GER

Dealing primarily in the issues of disarmament, arms control, non-proliferation and regional security issues, Ewen Buchanan (United Kingdom, 1958 – ) served in the British Diplomatic Service from 1983 to 1993, in various postings, including London, Dhaka and Washington, DC. In 1995, he joined the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM) under Security Council resolution 687 (1991) (S/RES/687(1991)), which oversaw the elimination of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and operated a system of ongoing monitoring and verification to ensure that Iraq did not re-acquire weapons. Mr. Buchanan served as the UNSCOM External Relations Adviser until 1999, when UNSCOM was absolved and replaced by the United Nations Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC). He was then appointed as the Public Information Officer of UNMOVIC in August 2000. After the termination of UNMOVIC's mandate by the Security Council in 2007, Mr. Buchanan served as an Information Officer in the Information and Outreach Branch of the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). This interview took place on 18 July 2001, during Mr. Buchanan's term as the Public Information Officer of UNMOVIC. He discusses the last inspections of UNSCOM and the relation of the December 1998 bombing of Iraq (Operation Desert Fox) had with UNSCOM's termination, as well as the role UNMOVIC played in its aftermath.

UNSCOM

53 p.

Typescript.
Yale University Oral history project on the United Nations.
Accompanied by 2 audiocassettes.
Includes index: UNSCOM.