FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 17, 2003Contact:
Scott Lynch mobile: 703.725.5680
Kevin Martin: 301.608.0795
Jen Carr: 202.246.3040
Peace Action: Bush’s Invasion will make US Rogue Superpower
Spokespeople of Nation’s Largest Peace Group Available for Comment after Tonight’s SpeechWashington DC—Washington DC-The Bush administration is poised to invade Iraq, saying that invasion is necessary because of Iraq's lack of cooperation with the UN resolution 1441 which call for its disarmament. President Bush is scheduled to address the nation this evening and it is widely expected that he will announce his intention to invade Iraq despite overwhelming, worldwide opposition to an Iraq war and the lack of a UN mandate for his planned attack.
"It is absurd that President Bush claims that invading Iraq would be in the cause of enforcing a UN resolution when the US will be violating the UN Charter by invading Iraq without authorization from the Security Council. This inconsistency is not a mere legal technicality. It confirms the fears of hundreds of millions around the world that the Bush government has transformed the US into a rogue military superpower-outside of the rule of law-that uses violence to attain its political goals," said Kevin Martin Executive Director of Peace Action.
"The reason that Bush has been unable to get a mandate for war from the Security Council-a stunning diplomatic failure- is that Bush has not made a compelling case or offered valid evidence that Iraq is a real threat. In his press conference on March 6th, Bush declared, 'My job is to protect the American people' and yet the FBI and CIA say terrorist attacks against the US is more likely if we invade and occupy Iraq. Bush's war is already making the US and the world much more unstable and insecure. Bush has already failed in his primary responsibility as president. Bush's war will doom the world to a cycle of violence that will be traced to his irresponsible use of the Office of the President and the awesome might of the U.S. military," continued Mr. Martin"In an increasingly interdependent world, Bush's policies are isolating the United States from our friends. We are not seen as a good neighbor, but rather as a bully, by countries around the world. The US needs a new foreign policy based on democracy, human rights, and cooperation with the global community. Bush's radical, unilateralist foreign policy is as unsustainable as it is dangerous, and it will ultimately be repudiated by the American people and the world," concluded Martin.
Peace Action (the merger of Sane and The Nuclear Freeze) www.peace-action.org is the country's largest peace and disarmament organization with over 100,000 members.
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