OPENING STATEMENT OF MR. DUNCAN HUNTER September 18, 2002 Today, the Committee on Armed Services continues its review of United States policy toward Iraq. This morning's hearing marks the second of a number of planned public sessions designed to educate and inform the Committee, and the American people, on the various issues surrounding Iraq's continued violation of numerous United Nation's resolutions, its illicit development of weapons of mass destruction, and the threat that Saddam Hussein poses to the United States, the Middle East, and the international community. Last week, the Committee received a classified briefing from the CIA and DIA. We also heard from former, senior UNSCOM inspectors about Iraq's illicit weapons programs, and Saddam Hussein's persistent efforts to thwart the efforts of the U.N. inspectors so that he might preserve, and advance, his weapons of mass destruction programs. Tomorrow, the Armed Services Committee will hear how the Iraqis built and sustained their weapons of mass destruction programs 1 |