European Leaders Condemn Bombing of UN's Baghdad Headquarters

Douglas Bakshian
19 Aug 2003, 18:58 UTC

European leaders have condemned the bombing in Baghdad and expressed strong support for the
United Nations role in Iraq.

The European Union strongly condemned the attack. EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said he
is deeply shocked by what he called a despicable act that is an attack against people who are
working for Iraq's future. He said the EU strongly supports the U.N.'s role in the ongoing
reconstruction of Iraq and expressed his sympathy to the relatives of the victims.

French President Jacques Chirac said the entire international community has been hit, and he called
the United Nations' work in Iraq essential. He described the attack as odious and said it provoked
indignation. The French leader praised the chief U.N. official in Iraq, Sergio Vieira de Mello, who
died in the bombing, saying his work is intelligent and courageous.

Russia condemned the attack as a barbaric act, and said it was intended to undermine the already
difficult process of postwar stabilization in Iraq. A Russian foreign ministry statement expressed
indignation that U.N. personnel who are trying to help the Iraqi people return to a normal life have
become the target of terrorists. Moscow, which strongly opposed the U.S.-led war on Iraq, has
repeatedly called for a stronger U.N. role in the country.

In Brussels, NATO's deputy secretary general, Alessandro Minuto Rizzo, also issued a
condemnation. He said the attack is a barbaric act aimed at an international institution working to
help the people of Iraq and offered his sympathy to the relatives of the victims.