The war, and after?” “

A firm ‘no’ to a war on Iraq was expressed on 19 September by the Catholic movement Pax Christi. In a communiqué addressed to the President of the French Republic and to the media, the movement declared its appreciation for the words that Chirac himself had addressed to the United Nations, recalling the need to resolve the crisis under the aegis of the UN and in accordance with international law. According to Pax Christi, France “could play a decisive role in the framework of a Conference on the Middle East”. “What’s needed – explains Michel Lafouasse, member of the movement – is to bring together all the nations of the Middle East, from Egypt to Iraq, with the mediation of the UNO or the St. Egidio Community. The aim would be to reintegrate Iraq among the community of nations”. Among those who support this proposal is the historian Alexandre Delval who recalls that Saddam Hussein, who “practices a cult of personality and has served his people”, belongs to the “Ba’ath” party which is secular in tendency: “All the religious confessions may freely express themselves in their rites, in contrast to what happens in Saudi Arabia, ally of the USA, where a theocratic system is in force. This is an aspect that should not be underestimated in the scenario of a possible war with Iraq”. The possibility of a war with Iraq has also been reflected on by Bishop Patrick Le Gal, military ordinary of the French Episcopal Conference. “In recent decades, in the event of major international tension – he says – conflict resolution has been entrusted to the politicians who have based themselves on an appropriate defence strategy. But today, another element must be considered, the influence of public opinion, conditioned by the media. This media dimension is now essential and must be borne in mind in every significant political project and in every important military operation”. Nonetheless, in the view of Msgr. Le Gal “the need arises to obtain wide consensus through the resolutions of the UNO and the choice of the type of alliances, if the instigation of any military action against Iraq is to made admissible. The absolute military supremacy of American military forces is not matched by an international consensus or the forging of an alliance between the USA and her partners”. In this context the weight that Europe may pull still remains to be ascertained: “The slowness of forming a European defence force represents an obstacle to the urgent need to offer the USA an ally with whom to establish a just political and military conduct which could thus become the basis of a wide coalition, if the emergency of a military action were to require it. Europe, which lacks the homogeneity of the USA, does not have the influence to offer an alternative power, nor to provide effective assistance. This could also prejudice the decisions of the superpower”.