*EPF202 07/06/2004
White House Report, July 6: Iraq, Mexico
(Iraq survey group continues search for WMD, U.S. ambassador responds to interruption of U.S. marine funeral) (400)

IRAQ SURVEY GROUP CONTINUES SEARCH FOR WMD

White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan told reporters July 6 that the Iraq survey group has investigated the issues and has demonstrated Saddam Hussein was in "serious and clear violation of U.N. Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1441."

UNSCR 1441, passed in November 2002, stated that Iraq was in material breach for possessing WMD programs and provided a final opportunity for the Iraq to comply with U.N. weapons inspectors.

The Iraq Survey Group (ISG), headed by Charles Duelfer, is a unit of 1,200 American, Australian and British WMD experts conducting the search for Iraqi weapons programs.

The spokesman said that the ISG's work showed that Saddam Hussein had both the intent and the capability to produce WMD.

When asked about a recent statement from British Prime Minister Tony Blair on the inability to find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, McClellan responded, "Prime Minister Blair said that Saddam Hussein's regime was a threat to international security. We know that he [Hussein] had them [WMD] because he used them in the past against his own people and against a neighboring country."

"The Iraq Survey Group is determining what happened to the WMD and we should let them continue their work," McClellan said.

U.S. AMBASSADOR ADDRESSES INTERRUPTION OF U.S. MARINE FUNERAL

When asked about a dispute between Mexican soldiers and U.S. marines during the funeral of a U.S. marine killed in Iraq the White House spokesman said, "Ambassador Garza talked about how the family had requested that he be buried in his town of birth with full military honors."

According to news reports, four Mexican soldiers blocked the path of the U.S. marines acting as pallbearers at the funeral of Lance Corporal Juan Lopez Rengel. The Mexican soldiers demanded the marines give up the weapons they were carrying for the ceremony because it is illegal for foreign troops to bear arms in Mexico. After a brief argument, the Mexican-born Marine received a military burial.

"We have good relations with Mexico, and the president certainly views President Fox as a friend. But this particular incident, I would refer you to Ambassador Garza's comments over the weekend," McClellan said.

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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