Britain's Secretary of State for International Development, Claire Short, who fiercely criticized Prime Minister Tony Blair over war in Iraq, quit the government on Monday, accusing the British leader of breaking a promise that the United Nations should have a leading role in post-war Iraq.
She said Blair's approach to Iraq's reconstruction made her position impossible.
"She has resigned," an official in the International Development department said. Blair's office said Short called the premier on Monday morning to tell him of her decision.
Before war in Iraq was launched, Short labelled Blair "reckless" for his hawkish stance and said she would resign if a UN resolution authorizing military action were not secured.
"As you know, I thought the run-up to the conflict in Iraq was mishandled, but I agreed to stay in the government to help support the reconstruction effort for the people of Iraq," Short wrote in her resignation letter to Blair.
"I am afraid that the assurances you gave me about the need for a U.N. mandate to establish a legitimate Iraqi government have been breached," she said.
Short accused Blair and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw of secretly negotiating a U.N. resolution which contradicted assurances she had given to parliament about "the need for a U.N.-led process to establish a legitimate Iraqi government". "This makes my position impossible," she added. (Albawaba.com)
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