On September 16, 2002, UN Secretary General Kofi “Annan stepped to the floodlit microphones at the UN to announce that Iraq would accept the return of weapons inspectors ‘without conditions.’ Blocks away…[Secretary of State Colin] Powell interrupted a meeting with the Egyptian foreign minister to read the Iraqi offer, which was not as unconditional as Annan had suggested. Iraq did not promise to disarm, or to disclose the state of its weapons programs, or even to allow ‘unfettered inspections,’ a term of art that meant ‘anytime, anyplace, anywhere,’ including presidential compounds and palaces. ‘This is a tactical step by Iraq in hopes of avoiding strong UN Security Council action,’ said a White House spokesman, Scott McClellan. ‘As such, it is a tactic that will fail.’ ”
– Todd S. Purdum and The New York Times Staff, A Time of Our Choosing, Page 48