For the Record: Jimmy Carter, former US President

Carter Says Bush Has Not Proven Case for Iraq War

The Bush administration has not convinced Americans or Europeans that a military attack on Iraq is necessary, Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jimmy
Carter said on Friday.

“Our government has not made a case for a pre-emptive military strike
against Iraq, either at home or in Europe,” the Democratic former
president said in a statement.

“It is sobering to realize how much doubt and consternation has been
raised about our motives for war in the absence of convincing proof of
a genuine threat from Iraq.”

The Bush administration has threatened to use military action to remove
Saddam if he does not comply with United Nations efforts to ensure he
has no weapons of mass destruction.

U.N. weapons inspectors, who returned to Iraq last November after a
four-year hiatus, are scheduled to present a progress report on Iraq’s
compliance with U.N. resolutions on Feb. 14.

Carter said the United States and the world would be better off if the
White House supported the strengthening of the inspection process in
Iraq.