Whereas, Saddam Hussein, the leader of Iraq, has proven himself to be a despotic ruler by using poison gas against his own people; assassinating his political enemies; waging an unjust war on the people of Kuwait; and, during that war, launching missiles at the people of Israel, a noncombatant nation; and

Whereas, Iraq has a history of acquiring and attempting to develop weapons of mass destruction, including biological, chemical, and nuclear munitions; and

Whereas, Iraq has regularly resisted compliance with the legitimate directives of the United Nations; however

Whereas, a unilateral war with Iraq will have enormous moral, economic, and political costs to the United States, including the possibility of further inflaming anti-U.S. feelings in the Middle East and the broader Islamic world and increasing support for groups dedicated to terrorism; and

Whereas, a preemptive strike by the United States will violate our commitments under the United Nations charter and go against established international law; and

Whereas, war against Iraq will place the lives of U.S. citizens and military personnel in jeopardy, and will inflict injury and loss of life upon innocent Iraqi people; and

Whereas, such a war will also result in widespread environmental and ecological destruction in the region; and

Whereas, our involvement in Iraq seems largely related to our nation's continuing heavy dependence on foreign oil and our excessive consumption of fossil fuels; and Whereas, our national wealth, which is needed to solve domestic problems, should not be squandered on such a war.

Now, therefore, be it resolved by the City Council of the City of Boulder, Colorado, that:

The City Council of the City of Boulder, Colorado, opposes a U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, but supports instead a genuinely multilateral diplomatic approach to the Iraq situation, sanctioned and directed by the United Nations.

The Mayor is directed to communicate to President George W. Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Colin Powell, national security advisor Condoleezza Rice, Senators Wayne Allard and Ben Nighthorse Campbell, Representative Mark Udall and the United States Congress.