Roger L. Simon: SPECIAL REPORT #1 - OIL-FOR-FOOD INVESTIGATION

This blog has new information from sources close to the investigation of the United Nations Oil-for-Food Scandal by Paul Volcker's Independent Inquiry Committee. After some delay, the committee is releasing its preliminary results at noon Tuesday. This report may reveal, among other things, startling information tending to indicate Secretary General Kofi Annan had more knowledge of, or was closer to, his son Kojo's activities with Cotecna - the company whose role in the scandal seems so pervasive - than previously thought.

The committee has been interviewing Pierre Mouselli, a businessman in Paris who was Kojo's business partner. Their relationship started in 1998 when then 45-year old Mouselli met young Kojo (then 23) at a Bastille Day Party in the French Embassy in Lagos, Nigeria. Mouselli, who has been a cooperative witness and is not under investigation himself, has told the committee numerous interesting things, which deserved to be followed up, They include:

1. Previously unrevealed private meetings between Kojo and two separate Iraqi Ambassadors to Nigeria, arranged by Mouselli in or about August 1998. At these meetings Kojo presented the business card of Cotecna, which subsequently won the lucrative oil inspection contract for Oil-for-Food. Cotecna had previously been blacklisted from doing business in Nigeria for alleged arms trafficking.

2. A trip in September 1998 by Mouselli and Kojo to the Non-Aligned Nations Movement Conference in Durban, South Africa during which they traveled with the Secretary General's entourage and later had a private lunch with Kofi Annan. In Mouselli's view, the purpose of the lunch was to make the Secretary General aware of the various business dealings in which he and Kojo were engaged, in order to get the Secretary General's "blessing". It was Mouselli's understanding at the time that Kojo had previously discussed the Iraqi Embassy visits with his father, though he does not recall specific statements regarding the UN inspection contracts.

3. Early Autumn 2002. The Iraqi Ambassador to Nigeria makes a surprise call to Mouselli inquiring of the whereabouts of Kojo (at this point Mouselli and Kojo were not in close contact). Mouselli goes to the Iraqi Embassy where he is informed by the Ambassador that we (the Iraqis) have done favors for Kojo in the past and now need to see him. The Iraqis do not specify what these favors were or what they needed from Kojo, but offer Mouselli a visa to come to Baghdad for further discussion. Mouselli picks up the visa in Paris but does not go to Iraq because of the increasingly violent situation.

Mouselli appears to be reliable. I have spoken to him briefly on the phone in Paris and at some length with his attorney Adrian Gonzalez-Maltes. (Interestingly, witnesses and their lawyers seem not to be under confidentiality agreements in this investigation, possibly because there is no governing body to enforce them.)

Mouselli's testimony contains considerably more interesting material, which I will detail in subsequent reports or in tandem with Claudia Rosett with whom I have been in contact on this story. The issues his testimony raises are obviously troubling and I look forward to reading the committee report on Tuesday, which will probably flesh them out from other directions.

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Of course, any credibility the UN once had as an international arbiter is utterly forfeit...

Thanks, Roger. Without blogs like yours, who knows how much of this would ever have seen the light of day? Keep up the good work.

May hundreds of Pierres with secrets to tell be extended a helping hand as they jump the sinking ship. May the Annans and Chiracs of this world be proven too clever by a half, and made to dine on bread, water, and spam during lengthy prison terms. But let us not be at all surprised with the agility of much of the media around the world to finesse and ignore all of this.

“In Mouselli's view, the purpose of the lunch was to make the Secretary General aware of the various business dealings in which he and Kojo were engaged, in order to get the Secretary General's "blessing".”

Kof Annan’s days are numbered if Mouselli is able to convince President Bush’s administration that he’s telling the truth. This may very well be the piece of straw that breaks the camel’s back.

John Bolton’s nomination hearing is on April 7th. He should be easily confirmed. The Democratic senators will not dare take the chance of being perceived as Kofi’s flunkies.

Hey, a thought just occurred to me: [Duck! -ed] suppose some good can come of the International Criminal Court? One of the U.N.'s many needed reforms is a mechanism to subject it's top people to the rule of Law. The ICC could stand in until a legitimate court is devised [Cheap shot! -ed Yeah. What's it to ya'?]

Wow. Your next novel just wrote itself. Well...the plot anyway...you still have to sweat that accursed putting-it-down-in-words part. Anyway, please tell Ms. Rosett that one of her fans is madly in love with her. ;-)

Nice work! Perhaps you can get Fox or NBC to put this Mouselli on camera to tell his story.

Excellent, Roger! Congratulations on being at the bleeding edge of the news! And may Kofi become so "depressed" that he resigns soon. Maybe the good people of the ICC will indict him and his son and the rest of the guys in the UN with human rights infractions??

And now it looks like Saddam had reason to believe he bought and paid for the UN.

There's a strange, kinda beautiful symmetry here -- if you can just ignore all the ugly corruption and all those Iraqis who died as part of this deal.

The U.n.’s apparently been quite a cute hot-bed of activity, of course, little of it appears to have been good. As part of the same investigation, this story points to another little enterprise which you can certainly bet has been profitably exploited elsewhere, Iran stockpiling high-tech weapons.

I'm sure it's unnecessary to point out, however, the story would appear to indicate there's a distinct separation made between what arms Iran could acquire through their 'legal' exploits as opposed to those through those as part of the Un's anti-drug program. I can certainly think of more than a few other distinctly nasty little 'blankity-blank' regimes which could profitably exploit the acquisition of high-tech arms under such a program.

Why does the tune to 'Hit the Road Jack' keep running through my mind when I think of the Un?

Well, that explains the news reports tonight about Kofi's "depression" and thoughts of resignation.

Great work! I knew there must be a French connection. Here's my two bits from the previous thread. They're relevant here too!

It's the French Connection all over again, Kofi's looted the UN and he's on the run with the money. High speed pursuit now in progress in downtown Manhantten. CBS, NBC, ABC all have newscopters following chase.

BREAKING we now have Kofi on the cellphone. Jessie Jackson's on the phone now negotiating Kofi's surrender to NYPD and asylum in Cuba. Helicopter is on standby at the UN. Of course Jessie has eye's on the SG for one of his associates - OJ needs a new gig.

Now this is all exciting. At least this is more newsworthy than the Wacko Jacko trial and the Terri Schiavo family's tragedy that's been blown all over the world.

But have we seen one word on the Iran riots on Friday. The BBC ran a lame feed from official Iranian gov't news sources. For some real hard core news check today's update by Dr. Zin at Regime Change Iran at:

BTW does anyone in So Cal have a decent Pent IV level laptop that they would be willing to part with CHEAPLY? Dr. Zin's rig is grinding slowly to a stop and we have a regime change underway in Iran. Donations can be channeled thru an appropriate non-profit for tax deduction :-).

I hate to be the dark cloud blocking out the sun but I think you are all confusing what should happen with what will happen. The MSM will downplay or ignore it. They will justify it by saying that Kofi needs support for his so called reforms and that since there isn't a smoking gun, for example a tape of Kofi taking a check from Saddam, they will pin all the guilt on the son and swallow the bilge that poor Kofi was abused by that bad son of his. The MSM and the Democratic party have ignored all the amazing garbage that the UN has been spewing these last 40 years so whats a little graft. They will probably say thats just how the middle east operates and give Kofi a mild scolding and get back to buisness as usual. My greatest hope is that I am wrong and you can all call me a fool in a year or two. But I wouldn't hold your breath.

Gee Roger, I was right on the mark in the other thread. The dirty Neocons Bush/Chenney set ole poor Kofi and the rest up reminescent of, The Sting. . . Que the Rag Time music please.

Agent Bauer (FOX 24 hrs) is single handedly fighting global terrorism, disarming dirty nukes, and containing bio weaps deployment.

This a grand conspiracy put in motion by the Neocons led by Bush/Chenney. This was all [a] charade. This was an elaborate spy vs spy vs spy (Ala Madd Magazine) double reverse money laundering scheme to destablize the ME and take the UN down at the sametime leaving Kofi, his son, the French, and Saddam all holding the bag.

“Nice work! Perhaps you can get Fox or NBC to put this Mouselli on camera to tell his story.”

As long as Mr. Mouseli seems truthful---that will be a no brainer. Fox will jump at the chance of interviewing him. NBC may initially be reluctant, but this MSM network will have no choice but to jump on board. It can’t allow Fox to monopolize the story.

I'm being paid $25 million dollars to assist in this conspiracy---but please don't tell anyone. I'll give you half the money for your silence.

Nice job, Roger. Many in the MSM will continue to ignore this story, and decline to dig.

things aren't going well for the fwench and Jack-the-Ass-Sure-Fucked-Up these days....

'Corruption is still rife at top level of French government'
By Henry Samuel in Paris

Excellent post and you are working with my favorite investigative reporter. I can't wait for the follow up.

Great bit of reporting! The world needs to wake up to the reality of corruption and deal with it straight up! Keep the pressure on!

Anonymous sourcing is anonymous sourcing, and it interests me that people who condemn it when it works against their interests embrace it when it works for their interests.

“Anonymous sourcing is anonymous sourcing, and it interests me that people who condemn it when it works against their interests embrace it when it works for their interests.”

I personally have nothing against per se anonymous sourcing whatsoever. My only demand is that the source’s identity not be hidden from the editor---and that the information is double-check as much as is reasonably possible. There must be some sort of effective check and balance system in place. But what does your complaint have to with Roger L. Simon’s piece? Does he not mention that “Mouselli appears to be reliable. I have spoken to him briefly on the phone in Paris and at some length with his attorney Adrian Gonzalez-Maltes?” How can this gentleman be considered an anonymous source? And isn’t Mr. Simon partnering with one of the foremost journalists of our age, Claudia Rosett? Haven’t these two individuals earned our respect? Are you hinting that they might be careless with their respective reputations? I don’t think that’s likely.

What was it that you read? Mouselli and his attorney Gonzalez-Maltes are anonymous? Funny, I just wrote their names down. I'll do it again: Mouselli and Gonzalez-Maltes. Can't remember doing that with a NYT's article lately. Might there be other sources? Sure. But what is your point again?

Hey, Mister Simon, who do you think you are? Why are you committing Journalism without a license? Where's your certification? This information may affect our elections, you could be reported to the FEC for illegal campaign contributions. You should leave reporting up to the experts WITH EDITORS at our blessed MSM, thank you very much. You know, the MSM has fact-checkers, news judgment and the vitally important gatekeepers. What do you have, Mystery-writer? You sure don't have a Truth-Detector.

Great job, Roger. Great job. And you won't even have to test California's "press" shield law!

From myetery writer to real-life investigator. That's quite a career move, Roger! :)

Congratulations on breaking an important aspect of this story. I can't wait to see what you and Ms. Rosset come up with, next. I'm sure Kofi can't, either.

From mystery writer to real-life investigator. That's quite a career move, Roger! :)

Congratulations on breaking an important aspect of this story. I can't wait to see what you and Ms. Rosset come up with, next. I'm sure Kofi can't, either.

What Roger did is called a scoop. If he hadn't used the name of the person and described his testimony then you would have a point. If the report comes out and is different then what Roger reported or if Mr.Mouselli claims that he never said what Roger reported then you might have a point.Everything that Roger wrote was attributed to that man. If Roger had written "someone close to Kojo " blah blah blah then you would have a point. He gave the mans name, get a clue!

I'm looking forward to what more you've discovered. I've always had a gut feeling that Kofi Annan is more involved than he's letting on.

Great! But I'm certain the msm will ignore this. They'll find something else to talk about. They've talked out the Schiavo atrocity, so what next? Will they pump up the phoney Republican memo? Probably. Bottom line is, they will find something, anything, else to talk about before they'll report the truth about the UN and Kofi.

Great stuff, Roger. Transparent governing with accountability of the UN, or Iraq, of any country, is the answer.

Well, it's now official--Kofi is dead man walking and, I suspect, his resignation is imminent (poor depressed baby).

Nice work, Roger. Perhaps in time you'll tell us how you got here. Now, isn't this eminently more rewarding and satisfying, not to mention exciting, than anything Hollywood has to offer?

I guess that Kofi brought out the reforms in the hopes of heading off the inevitable criticism. But I have to wonder, after all this how could he hope that a demand that countries increase humanitarian aid spending to the UN woulld ever pass?

Not only does Kofi think his plan will work he can also count on much of the left to support him. The ideal of the UN is seperated from the reality of what it has become. No matter what the UN does they will just assume that if we give more money to it it will work. When we found out that North Korea had no intention to stop it's nuke program what did Albright suggest? To repeat the process that had just failed massively. She believes,in a religous sense, in the idea of Diplomacy no matter what. She didn't come to the logical conclusion that the dear leader conned her, she just reflexivly assumed that if we gave him more money he would change his mind. She didn't realize that by repeating her failed idea we would just encourage Kim to continue screwing us . Why not? He cheats and then gets rewarded. The left clings to the UN in a religous frenzy that will not reality to creep into their minds.

The ideal of the UN is seperated from the reality of what it has become. No matter what the UN does they will just assume that if we give more money to it it will work.

This pretty much seems to describe whatever The Left loves. Reality never matters, the ideal is all that counts. I know its a rhetorical question but how do so many people stay so heavily invested, for so long, in failure, corruption, and ineffectiveness?

Thank you for pushing this issue. I have been a great admirer of Claudia Rosett's work on the Oil for Food scandal. This is the largest financial scam in history. Great to see a collaboration of Roger & Claudia!

A heavy wind is blowing on their house of cards, and the sooner it collapses the better.

Also, hope you were not offended by my Hearst reference in the other thread. It was certainly made in jest.

Great job, Roger! This type of reporting is what is sadly lacking from most of the MSM, which appears to be lost in some sort of echo chamber of fashionable opinions.

If reality means anything (I'm not sure it does w/r/t the UN), Kofi's goose should be cooked. My cynical side expects the usual double standard to come into play, however. The same crowd that thinks the "appearance of impropriety" at Haliburton is enough to force the resignation of Dick Cheney as Vice President will all man the ramparts to defend/minimize the actual impropriety of Kofi Annan. Even if Kofi is not directly responsible for any corruption, it's hard for me to see how the organization can make any necessary reforms with him at the helm. I certainly hope I'm disappointed, but I believe the sportswriter Grantland Rice first opined that "the race is not always to the swift, nor the battle to the strong, but that's the way to bet."

What the UN really needs is a Secretary General who is a hard-edged reformer and who has no expectation or desire for a further career -- i.e., someone who has nothing to lose by goring any ox that happens to get in the way. Perhaps a receivership of sorts would be useful, with a SecGen appointed for a fixed term with no possibility of reappointment and a broad mandate to clean up the organization. Of course, that would take a political will that I expect is lacking almost everywhere: I doubt the US cares enough to clean house, the Europeans don't want to upset the Third World Kleptocracies that are their emerging markets, and the Third World Kleptocracies want to keep robbing everyone else blind.

The main thesis which emerges from the examples of Kofi Annan,Ward Churchill,Michael Moore,Gnome Chomsky et al, is that the liberal left as it is so constituted,is unfit to govern,they are simply too easy to con.
Any huckster,mountebank,shyster or grifter spouting the true gospel can cut their purses and be exonerated for it,nay indeed, be applauded.

Sadly true, I fear. About the best you can say about them is that they have a profound lack of seriousness.

Ben,
The really frightening part is that they a deadly serious,they have the seriousness of a true believer.hey also have the vicarious altruistic willingness to sacrifice anyone else for their beliefs.Not unserious,dangerous.

Today Kofi Annan blamed the Uk and US for the oil-for-food scandal. Granted, mistakes may have been made. But no-one is suggesting that either the US or UK governments took bribes to make those "mistakes" as in the case of Benon Sevan. Neither is it being suggested that either government spent 7 months shredding all the incriminating documents as in the case of Iqbal Riza.

But it is perhaps wrong however to vilify the U.N. for its institutional corruption. It is handicapped at every turn by its membership of institutionally corrupt and self interested states. Why should UN kleptocrats be expected to keep their fingers out of the till when the Al-Mada 270, including the French and Russian Governments, cannot?

The war in Iraq was a direct consequence of Saddams belief that the U.N. had been bought and paid for and that we and the Americans would lack the political willpower to bring him into compliance with his 1991 commitments by force without the approval of the UN.

Let us not forget that Oil-for-food was supposed to be a charitable undertaking and that the cash that was stolen was supposed to feed starving children. The estimated amount stolen equates to roughly $40,000 per (UN estimated) dead child. Those responsible should be pursued accordingly.

Great job, Roger! This type of reporting is what is sadly lacking from most of the MSM, which appears to be lost in some sort of echo chamber of fashionable opinions.

March 27, 2005: SPECIAL REPORT #1 - OIL-FOR-FOOD INVESTIGATION

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