A New European

Aus dem Newsletter des Federalist Patriot die nachfolgende, sympatische Zusammenfassung des Oil-for-food Programmes.

The investigation of the United Nation’s corrupt Oil-for-food Program, headed by former U.S. Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, released its final report this week. More than 2,400 companies, including giants Siemens and DaimlerChrysler, made $1.8 billion in illicit payments to Saddam Hussein through the oil-for-food charade. French and Russian diplomats, business executives, UN officials, a former Vatican official and British anti-American-parliamentarian George Galloway allegedly took kickbacks or solicited Iraqi oil. Russia got $19 billion in oil contracts, while France managed to get $4.4 billion in deals. (Anyone still wonder why they were opposed to the war?)

The payments took the form of illegal surcharges on oil purchases and illegal kickbacks to the Iraqi government for contracts to supply humanitarian services. All in all, some 4,500 companies participated in the program, meaning almost half were in bed with the Butcher of Baghdad. Companies from 66 countries are named in connection with the kickbacks; companies from 40 countries in regard to the illegal oil surcharges. The commission estimates that Saddam received the mind-boggling total of $1.8 billion in kickbacks between 1997 and 2003 and that Iraqi oil smuggled in violation of sanctions amounted to $11 billion. And Kofi Annan still has a job…