Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
IOF issues evacuation order for neighborhoods in Hodeidah, Yemen.
Rubio: 'Very short window', maybe days, for Hamas to accept deal
Al Mayadeen correspondent to southern Lebanon: Israeli warplanes launched a raid on the Ksar Zaatar neighborhood in western Nabatieh.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: The tower destroyed by the Israeli occupation in Gaza includes media offices, including Al Mayadeen's bureau.
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: Four fetuses and three premature babies died at Nasser Medical Complex due to malnutrition
Lebanese Ministry of Health: One person was killed in an Israeli airstrike on a car in the town of Burj Qalawieh, south Lebanon.
Al Mayadeen correspondent: The first ship of the Maghreb fleet delivering aid to break the siege on Gaza departs from the port of Gammarth in Tunisia.
Channel 12: Airspace closed at Ramon Airport due to fears of drone infiltration
IOF Spokesperson: Sirens sounded over an aircraft infiltration in the Bir Ora area, and details are being examined
Drone infiltration sirens sound north of the Gulf of Aqaba

Declassified files reveal UK frustration with Chirac over Iraq

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 31 Dec 2024 11:39
  • 1 Shares
3 Min Read

The documents include minutes from a key cabinet meeting held on March 17, 2003, following Chirac’s announcement that France would veto any resolution authorizing military intervention.

Listen
  • x
  • US Army soldier stands outside an Iraqi family home in al-Anbar in western Iraq on January 27, 2018 (AP)
    US Army soldier stands outside an Iraqi family home in al-Anbar in western Iraq on January 27, 2018. (AP)

Newly declassified UK government documents, released on Tuesday, reveal the frustrations of then-Prime Minister Tony Blair and his cabinet with French President Jacques Chirac's opposition to "UN-backed military action in Iraq in 2003."

The documents, released by the National Archives, include minutes from an emergency cabinet meeting on March 17, 2003, just a week after Chirac announced he would veto any resolution authorizing military action.

UK ministers at the meeting agreed that "the French attitude had undermined the mechanism of the UN to enforce the will of the international community."

Blair expressed frustration, saying, "We had tried our utmost," but the French "were not prepared to accept that if President Saddam Hussein of Iraq did not comply with UN obligations, military action should follow."

Dive deeper

Despite significant opposition within the UK, Britain joined the 2003 US-led invasion to oust Saddam Hussein, citing allegations that the Iraqi President had stockpiled weapons of mass destruction (WMD). These accusations, heavily promoted by the administration of US President George W. Bush, were later proven to be false.

According to the documents, then-Foreign Secretary Jack Straw accused Chirac of "torpedoing the whole process" and suggested that the French leader was attempting to "open up a strategic divide between France and the UK."

Related News

South Korea defies US push for Japan-like trade agreement

Trump alleges second US strike on Venezuelan boat, killing three

Three days later, Straw noted that Chirac "appeared to be positioning himself... (to) become leader of one side of the bi-polar world he advocated," in opposition to a US-dominated world order.

The UK joined the US-led invasion on March 20, 2003, despite large-scale protests, including one in London with over a million demonstrators against military intervention.

The invasion and the ensuing war severely damaged Blair's political standing, leading to the Chilcot inquiry in 2016, which concluded that Blair had deliberately exaggerated the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's regime.

Blair later expressed "sorrow, regret and apology" for mistakes made in the planning of the conflict. Alastair Campbell, Blair's influential press chief at the time, stated that the decision would "weigh heavily on him... for the rest of his days."

Campbell was also embroiled in controversy after the BBC reported that he had "sexed up" a dossier on Iraq’s military capabilities, a claim he denied.

Read more: UK killed many civilians in Iraq, despite claims otherwise: Guardian

It is worth noting that the war resulted in 3.9 million Iraqi refugees that were displaced between 2003 and 2016; 2 million of them fled the country, while 1.9 million were left displaced within Iraq.

The medical journal The Lancet estimated civilian deaths at 600,000. As for Iraqi national military forces and national and local police forces, 48,719 were killed in the period between March 2003 and August 2021. 

The numbers, however, do not account for the ones who were killed due to the destruction of healthcare systems, which caused as many deaths from malnutrition and diseases.

  • United States
  • Britain
  • Iraq
  • war on Iraq
  • US
  • Jacques Chirac
  • France
  • UK
  • United Kingdom
  • Iraq Invasion

Most Read

The damaged building in the Katara neighborhood, Doha, Qatar, September 9, 2025 (Social media)

Hamas delegation survives Israeli assassination attempt in Qatar

  • Politics
  • 9 Sep 2025
Pro-"Israel" conservative Charlie Kirk shot during Utah speech

American far-right activist Charlie Kirk shot dead during Utah speech

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025
Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza.

Uprising against Volker Turk at the Human Rights Council over Gaza

  • Politics
  • 12 Sep 2025
A screengrab from the ad played on Fox News. (X Screengrab)

Fox airs ad warning Trump not to let Netanyahu 'play' him on Gaza

  • US & Canada
  • 11 Sep 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
President Nicolas Maduro gestures to supporters during the inauguration of a monument in China's honor on the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, in Caracas, Venezuela, Wednesday, September 3, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Maduro warns of threats, urges 'battle for truth' to defend Venezuela

Damage is seen after an Israeli strike targeted a compound that hosted Hamas' political leadership in Doha, Qatar, Wednesday, Sept. 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Jon Gambrell)
Politics

Netanyahu informed Trump before deadly attack in Doha: Reports

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio hold a joint press conference at the Prime Minister's Office, during Rubio's visit, in occupied al-Quds, occupied Palestine, Monday, September 15, 2025 (AP)
Politics

Netanyahu warns of Israeli isolation, calls to boost self-reliance

Spain axes €700Mln arms deals with 'Israel' over Gaza genocide
Politics

Spain axes €700 mln arms deals with 'Israel' over Gaza genocide

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS