After being grounded for three days, Russian ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky yesterday finally reached Iraq aboard a special flight loaded with tons of aid.
International flights are not permitted to Iraq unless the UN sanctions committee grants special approval. Zhirinovsky left Moscow on Sunday and waited in Armenia for the go-ahead.
Dubbed Mad Vlad because of his views, Zhirinovsky was forced to leave behind most of the 200 Russian MPs and journalists travelling with him.
Only 30 people were allowed to board the flight, prompting fisticuffs and shouting matches among the group, many of whom were clearly drunk.
An angry Zhirinovsky blamed the Russian ambassador to Armenia, Andrei Urnov, for the delay and swore at him.
The United Nations imposed comprehensive sanctions on Iraq following its 1990 invasion of Kuwait. The punitive measures include a ban on all international flights. However, the sanctions committee occasionally grants exceptions to aid flights, including one organised by Zhirinovsky in December.
Zhirinovsky has visited Iraq several times to express solidarity with President Saddam Hussein.
The Russian MP has been an outspoken critic of the United States, which is threatening to use force if Iraq does not co-operate with UN weapons inspectors who want to examine dozens of presidential sites in Iraq.
''The Americans only want to strike a blow to show who is the boss and they don't want any peaceful initiatives,'' said Zhirinovsky.
''They fear that reporters will go and see that innocent civilians die under American bombs.''
In Baghdad, he launched into a renewed attack on the United States, which he blames for unnecessarily keeping sanctions on Iraq.
He first refused to speak to reporters in English, branding it ''the language of the aggressor''. However, he relented to attack President Clinton before TV cameras.
''Mr Clinton will make a very big mistake, a very big crime . . . not just against Iraq but against the people of the world and the Russian people,'' he said.-AP
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