DATE=5/14/02

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE= BUSH / IRAQ (L)

NUMBER=2-289801

BYLINE= PAULA WOLFSON

DATELINE= WHITE HOUSE

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: The Bush administration is welcoming the U-N Security Council vote to reform sanctions on Iraq. V-O-A's Paula Wolfson reports the White House says now that the U-N has acted in the best interest of the Iraqi people, the Iraqi government should do the same.

TEXT: White House Spokesman Ari Fleischer praised the Security Council decision.

///FLEISCHER ACT///

Today's action is a step forward for the Iraqi people.

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The unanimous vote in the council was a victory for the Bush administration, which pressed the need to keep the sanctions in place with revisions.

The council voted to make it easier to get humanitarian supplies into Iraq. But it kept strong controls on items with possible military use, such as telecommunications equipment.

Mr. Fleischer said the U-N acted in the best interest of Iraqi civilians.

///FLEISCHER ACT TWO///

Now, Iraq's government has an opportunity to prove that it seeks the same benefits for all its citizens.

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The sanctions were put into effect after Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. They cannot be lifted until U-N inspectors report that Baghdad is not developing weapons of mass destruction and the means to deliver them. (signed)

NEB/PW/KBK