French Republic
Ambassador Jean-David Levitte
France is a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. Its proposal to take up a UN resolution authorizing the use of force only if Iraq fails to comply with a new resolution strengthening inspections formed the basis for UN Security Council Resolution 1441. It joined the UN on October 24, 1945. Jean-David Levitte was appointed UN Ambassador in 2000. The following is excerpted from the 4,625th meeting of the Security Council on October 17, 2002, in New York.Since December 1998, United Nations disarmament inspectors have no longer been present in Iraq. For nearly four years now, the international…
