A coalition larger than 1991 Gulf War...how bout that!

No support indeed..

32 countries joined the alliance in 91'. A larger coalition is impressive.

 

I think it is a bit misleading to claim a greater coalition at this point..

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Powell’s Bad Day

At a key United Nations meeting, ‘Old Europe’ outmaneuvers America’s top diplomat

By Michael Hirsh
NEWSWEEK WEB EXCLUSIVE



Feb. 14 — Dominique de Villepin was grinning handsomely as he headed out of the United Nations Security Council, pausing for a photo op. “Mr. Minister, will you be discussing a second resolution when the Council meets again next week?” a NEWSWEEK reporter asked him. “No need for a resolution,” the French foreign minister shot back, still grinning.

IT WAS NOT difficult to surmise why he seemed so happy: by day’s end de Villepin had thoroughly outmaneuvered U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell. Resolution 1441, which had insisted on active compliance by Iraq in revealing and destroying its weapons of mass destruction, would get more time.
Earlier in the week, of course, the Americans were talking about the possibility of pushing immediately for a second resolution after Hans Blix’s update to the Security Council on Friday. This one, the Americans said, would call for “serious consequences”—in effect, authorizing force.

By the time Blix had finished his briefing, both the Americans and the British admitted there were no plans—for now—to discuss such a resolution. Translation: they knew they didn’t have the votes. Nor did the French feel compelled to push further for a new resolution authorizing more time and more inspectors, at least at the moment. By the end of Friday they clearly had consensus to do things their way. The French had brought on board two more permanent members with vetoes—the Russians and Chinese—and the British and Americans knew it.
For now, it looks as if the Americans will have to either wait an undetermined number of weeks for inspections to continue (Blix’s next scheduled update is on March 1, when Guinea takes over the presidency from Germany), or go to war to defend the honor of the U.N. Security Council while in defiance of the majority of U.N. Security Council opinion.

That still may happen, but it sounds uncomfortably like destroying the village in order to save it, a Vietnam-era reference that Powell would understand well. So far apart were the pro- and antiwar sides—only Spain and Britain stood with America in the Security Council in declaring that Saddam had had enough time to comply with Resolution 1441—that a planned ministerial meeting for the five permanent members of the Council was canceled.
One reason for the French victory Friday was Powell’s rather laid-back diplomacy during the week since his broadside at the Council. While Jacques Chirac, Gerhard Schroeder, Vladimir Putin and de Villepin have spent the week traveling to and fro, forging coalitions, making speeches, Powell (who doesn’t like to travel) and Bush have stayed put.

Even at the Security Council on Friday, de Villepin deftly played to the court of public opinion better than Powell. At one point, even while the Council was still in session, he left to launch a preemptive strike with the press staking out the meeting. Another reason: while the Blix report was mixed, it was much more positive than the Security Council’s last update, on Jan. 27. Referring to weapons of mass destruction, Blix said flatly, “So far Unmovic has not found any such weapons.” He noted new Iraqi cooperation, including the new law announced Friday morning banning WMDs from Iraq—which Blix noted had been suggested by him and the U.N.’s chief nuclear weapons inspector Mohamed El Baradei during their visit to Baghdad last week.

Blix even tweaked Powell over elements of his dramatic Feb. 5 presentation. Referring to the suspected bio-chem site of which Powell had shown detailed before-and-after satellite photos, Blix dismissed the idea that the supposed presence of a “decontamination truck” was meaningful. “The reported movement of munitions at the site could just as easily have been routine activity,” he said.
Powell also paid for Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s unfortunate jibe at “Old Europe” at week ago, a remark that turned into a hilarious football at the Security Council, mostly at America’s expense. De Villepin, the first of the permanent five to speak, gave an eloquent defense of the U.N. (and the inspections regime), concluding, “In the temple of the United Nations we are all guardians of an ideal, the guardian of a conscience,” he said. “This message comes from an old country, France, that does not forget ... all it owes to freedom fighters that came from the United States of America and everywhere.” His statement brought a sustained ovation from all parts of the chamber, including the press gallery.

The Chinese foreign minister, speaking next, referred to his country as “an ancient civilization,” and British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw comically countered with: “Britain is also a very old country. It was founded in 1066—by the French!” Powell, improvising, came back with: “America is a relatively new country, but it is the oldest democracy around this table ...” Unfortunately, that appeared to snub America’s most stalwart ally, Great Britain, which has had an operating parliament that outdates America’s founding by many years.

Also much in evidence was France and Germany’s newfound unity. When de Villepin received his applause, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer, presiding as Security Council president, said nothing. But when Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, who also called for giving the inspectors more time, got a smattering of applause, Fischer sternly admonished the crowd that “clapping is not allowed” in the chamber.

Powell spoke just as eloquently in favor of taking a tough line and ending inspections as de Villepin had for giving them more time. He too appealed to the sanctity of the U.N. The Iraqis, Powell said, let inspectors into the country for the first time since 1998 only “because of pressure. They did it because this Council stood firm … Resolution 1441 was not about inspections. It was about the disarmament of Iraq.” But when Powell finished, only a sole hand clap could be heard in the entire chamber. Then the room fell silent, as the clapper realized that he was quite alone.

© 2003 Newsweek, Inc.


Powell at UN

 

Just without many nations of significant power and/or influence (IE, those who don't need our favors).

It seems that the French finally gave Powell an answer in response to his demand as to how long futile inspections should continue. They said 1 month. I hope they really mean it... I really don't want the US to go it alone.