he cabinet has admitted MPs could have been better informed about security service ‘doubts and conjectures’ about Iraq’s supposed weapons of mass destruction in the run-up to the 2003 invasion.

And, in their formal response to last month’s highly critical Davids commission report, ministers say they should have been more open about the US request for assistance prior to the war.

The Netherlands supported the invasion politically on the grounds that Saddam Hussein was breaking UN resolutions but did not send troops.

Read more >> | DutchNews.nl – Cabinet admits Iraq war mistakes

he investigation into the reasoning behind the Dutch support for the US-UK invasion of Iraq may well mark a post-Cold War turning point for Dutch foreign policy. The days of the taken-for-granted US-European relationship are over.

One significant finding of the investigation into the reasoning behind the Dutch support for the US-UK invasion of Iraq, published earlier this month, was the decisive role of the ‘Atlantic reflex’. The committee chaired by former supreme court judge Willibrord Davids concluded the ministry of foreign affairs had treated the question primarily as an issue of alliance with its strongest international partner, rather than an issue to be decided on merits of international law.

Read on >> | nrc.nl – International – Opinion – The future of Dutch foreign policy

oreign secretary resisted legal advice on invasion of Iraq
- Attorney general’s advice not sought until eleventh hour

While Jack Straw, then foreign secretary, was roundly dismissing the unanimous advice of his top lawyers that an invasion of Iraq would be illegal, officials in Downing Street were strongly resisting similar unwelcome advice, this time from Lord Goldsmith, the attorney general.

Previously classified documents released today at the Chilcot inquiry offer a rare, perhaps unprecedented, insight into manoeuvring at the heart of government about one of the most serious issues to confront ministers – whether to go to war, and the lawfulness of it.

Read more >> | The Guardian

See also >> | Lord Goldsmith
See also >> | Straw’s clash with lawyers laid bare at Iraq inquiry – BBC News

ritish involvement in the invasion of Iraq was not decided until it was approved by MPs, Geoff Hoon has said.

The ex-defence secretary said the UK always hoped diplomatic efforts on Iraq would be successful and had never given “unconditional” support for war.
It would have been “inappropriate” for the cabinet to discuss the legal advice it received on the war, he said.
Letters show that the attorney general warned Mr Hoon in April 2002 about the legality of military action.

Read more >> | BBC News

hairman of Iraq inquiry also suggests then-attorney general was discouraged from expressing his doubts about war in writing

Lord Goldsmith was not convinced that war in Iraq would be legal even after the UN security council passed resolution 1441 in November 2002, Sir John Chilcot said today.

Basing his remarks on papers he has read but which have not been made public, the chairman of the Iraq inquiry said that the then-attorney general, “immediately after 1441 had been secured, said he would need some time to reflect on it. And it appears from what we read that he did not feel convinced at that time – I’m talking about post-November, before March – that standing on its own it would be a secure base.”

Chilcot also suggested that Goldsmith had been discouraged from expressing his doubts about the war in writing.

Read more >> | The Guardian

See also >> | The Times: Lord Goldsmith warned Tony Blair over legality of the Iraq war
See also >> | Iraq Inquiry Digest
See also >> | Telegraph: Iraq Inquiry: Lord Goldsmith ‘materially’ changed legal advice in days before war

etter to PM from foreign secretary challenged gravity of threat from Saddam in lead-up to pivotal meeting with Bush

Jack Straw privately warned Tony Blair that an invasion of Iraq was legally dubious, questioned what such action would achieve, and challenged US claims about the threat from Saddam Hussein, it was revealed today

Read more >> | The Guardian

nternational law was sacrificed to political interests. Don’t pretend otherwise.

Anyone who believed international law had an influence on issues of war and peace is an illusion poorer after the report of the Davids commission on the Dutch support for the invasion of Iraq in 2003. In 2002, international law carried no weight in the Dutch political capital, The Hague, we discovered yesterday. Legal arguments were subordinated to political interests. According to the commission, there was no adequate legal mandate for the military operation. The legal argument that was employed by the Netherlands “could not be defended”. And there was also no thorough or real legal preparation. At the ministry of Foreign Affairs, moreover, officials were radically divided on the matter, an “extremely unfortunate” state of affairs.

Read more >> | nrc.nl – International – Opinion – International law took back seat to politics

e lang verwachtte brief van het kabinet is naar de kamer. Van de Tweed van Boris van der Ham….

“Ik heb in deze verklaring gezegd dat door de commissie een gedegen studie is verricht naar de gebeurtenissen in 2002/3(…)
Het is zaak om het rapport van de commissie Davids de komende tijd grondig te bestuderen ten behoeve van een nadere kabinetsreactie.
Daar zal enige tijd mee gemoeid zijn. In de kabinetsreactie zal vanzelfsprekend worden ingegaan op de conclusies van de commissie.
Daarnaast zullen aan de kabinetsreactie worden gevoegd de antwoorden op de door de Tweede en Eerste Kamer gestelde vragen voor zover..
..e niet in het rapport van de commissie worden geadresseerd. nder verwijzing naar het verzoek van uw vaste commissie voor Buza 1 dec 2009..
…deel u mede dat het kabinet voornemen heeft in februari 2010 een reactie op het rapport van de commissie Davids aan kamers te zenden
…Het kabinet zal rapport van commissie leidend laten zijn bij een kritische terugblik op het verleden en het trekken van lessen toekomst.
‘met kennis van nu aanvaardt het kabinet dat voor Iral optreden adequater volkenrechtelijk mandaat nodig zou zijn geweest’.

brief met instemming Bos en Rouvoet, ook al staan handtekeningen er niet onder [Jaap Jansen]

In CDA-top hoor ik: we hebben concessie gedaan aan pvda om kabinet overeind te houden… [Jaap Jansen]