Baghdad, 14 November 2000 (RFE/RL) - Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said today in Baghdad that Russia wants an end to no-fly zones in Iraq. At the end today of a two-day visit to Iraq, Ivanov told a news conference held jointly with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz that the United States and Britain breach UN resolutions by using warplanes to enforce no-fly zones in southern and northern Iraq.
UN resolutions established sanctions against Iraq following the 1991 Gulf War. The no-fly zones seek to protect Kurds in the north and Shi'ite Muslims in the south from attack by Iraqi government forces.
The Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein began last December to challenge U.S. and British jets monitoring the zones. The two nations then ordered retaliatory air attacks.
UN resolutions established sanctions against Iraq following the 1991 Gulf War. The no-fly zones seek to protect Kurds in the north and Shi'ite Muslims in the south from attack by Iraqi government forces.
The Iraqi government of Saddam Hussein began last December to challenge U.S. and British jets monitoring the zones. The two nations then ordered retaliatory air attacks.