Iraqi Oil

NPR's Trevor Rowe reports from the United Nations that Iraq 's speaker of parliament today rejected a UN offer to allow Iraq to sell oil to finance the purchase of emergency humanitarian supplies. Ever since the 1990 invasion of Kuwait, Iraq has been barred from selling its oil on the world market. The embargo was imposed by the United Nations, and once the Gulf War ended, it stayed in place...leverage to force Iraqi compliance with Security Council resolutions regarding weapons of mass destruction. The sanctions have hurt the Iraqi people, and yesterday, the U.N. Council told Iraq it could sell two billion dollars worth of oil to help finance purchases of food, medicine and other humanitarian supplies. Today, Iraq rejected the U.N. move, and launched a new anti-American propaganda drive.