Written question asked by Robert N Wareing (Labour) on Monday, 13 January 2003, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 20 January 2003. It was answered by Bill Rammell (Labour) on Monday, 20 January 2003 on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, under what procedures the United States gained first access to Iraq's document of 8th December 2002 on weapons of mass destruction.

Answer: Mr. Wareing: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs under what procedures the United States gained first access to Iraq's document of 8 December 2002 on weapons of mass destruction. [91346] Mr. Rammell: Under relevant non-proliferation conventions, China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom and the United States of America are obliged to prevent the dissemination of information relating to the production of biological, chemical, and nuclear weapons. The President of the UN Security Council therefore decided that the full Iraqi declaration should be given only to these members of the Security Council who also have the expertise to assess the risks of proliferation. His decision followed consultations with all members of the Security Council.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 91346; 398 c79-80W;398 c81W
Session: 2002-03
Subjects: Disclosure of information Chemical weapons Biological weapons Iraq Nuclear weapons Publications Weapons
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk