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29 January 2010

Blair is in control of the narrative so far

The Staggers' third instalment from the Chilcot inquiry today.

By Sophie Elmhirst

It’s the break for lunch. Blair became passionate during the second session of the morning — emphatically defending the course of action that he took. Perhaps one of the key lines, and the one that provides insight into his perspective, is this:

Sometimes it’s important not to ask the March 2003 question but to ask the 2010 question.

Blair forcefully believes that, whatever the process, the result of the action he took was right. That if, right now, Saddam Hussein and his sons were still holding on to power in Iraq, the world would be in a much worse situation, and significantly more fragile. Another key moment was his assessment of what it all boiled down to — his personal judgement:

In the end, this is what it is: this isn’t about a lie or a conspiracy or a deceit, it is a decision and a decision I had to take . . . It’s a judgement. I had to take the decision.

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Sir Roderic Lyne raised a laugh as he responded, sardonically: “You made that, I think, very clear.” The rest of the morning’s session covered the 2002 dossier, which Blair dismissed as being hyped up far more than when it was actually launched (when it was seen as being rather cautious and dull, he says).

He was challenged by Sir Lawrence Freedman over the phrase “beyond doubt”, which Blair used in reference to his belief in the intelligence and featured in the foreword of the dossier. There is an interesting exchange:

Blair: I did believe it. I did believe it frankly beyond doubt.
Freedman: Beyond your doubt. But beyond anyone’s doubt?
Blair: Look . . . if I’d said it was clear rather than beyond doubt it would have the same impact.

And so it comes down to semantics, and the oft-employed “belief”. On the 45-minute claim, he admitted it would have been better to correct it in retrospect. But Blair has an extraordinary ability to shrug away critical or awkward moments — as though the panel keep missing the point.

Then the questioning moved on to the diplomatic process — the conversations with Hans Blix on weapons inspections and an attempt by the panel to establish a clear order of events.

Blair’s treatment of the panel is fascinating in itself — he uses endless disarming techniques, deferentially calling them by their full titles and using their names as he speaks, as though they are having a one-on-one conversation. He often comments on their questions being “fair” and “right” in their direction, but then also tries to hold them back so they don’t miss the truly “important” points in the process.

There’s no doubt: he is controlling the narrative so far.

 

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