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The Iraq Inquiry, also referred to as the Chilcot Inquiry after its chairman, Sir John Chilcot,〔(My alternative to another round of Iraq whitewashing ) The Guardian, 31 July 2009〕〔(Investigate UK abuses in Iraq ) The Guardian, 14 August 2009〕 is a British public inquiry into the nation's role in the Iraq War. The inquiry was announced on 15 June 2009 by Prime Minister Gordon Brown, with an initial announcement that proceedings would take place in private, a decision which was subsequently reversed after receiving criticism in the media and the House of Commons.〔(Iraq war inquiry to be in private ) BBC News, 15 June 2009〕〔(UK PM announces Iraq war inquiry ) Al Jazeera, 15 June 2009〕 The Inquiry was pursued by a committee of Privy Counsellors with broad terms of reference to consider Britain's involvement in Iraq between mid-2001 and July 2009. It covered the run-up to the conflict, the subsequent military action and its aftermath with the purpose to establish the way decisions were made, to determine what happened and to identify lessons to ensure that in a similar situation in future, the British government is equipped to respond in the most effective manner in the best interests of the country. The open sessions of the inquiry commenced on 24 November 2009 and concluded on 2 February 2011. In 2012, the government vetoed the release of the documents to the Inquiry detailing minutes of Cabinet meetings in the days leading up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Concurrently, the British Foreign Office successfully appealed against a judge's ruling and blocked the disclosure of extracts of a conversation between George W. Bush and Tony Blair moments before the invasion. The government stated that revealing a phone call conversation between Bush and Blair moments before the invasion would later present a "significant danger" to British-American relations.〔John Kampfner, ''Daily Mail'', 3 August 2012, (Hypocrisy and this insidious culture of secrecy )〕 The million-word report of the Inquiry was due to be released to the public by 2014, but difficult negotiations were continuing with the United States over the publication of documents.〔James Cusick, ''The Independent'', 13 November 2011, (Exclusive: US blocks publication of Chilcot’s report on how Britain went to war with Iraq )〕 The Lord-in-Waiting Lord Wallace of Saltaire said on behalf of the government that it would be "inappropriate" to publish the report in the months leading up to the next general election in May 2015. In August it transpired that the Report would in any event be further delayed, possibly into 2016. This was said to be due to the legal requirement of "Maxwellisation", allowing any person who is to be criticised a fair opportunity to comment on a draft prior to finalisation and publication. ==Build up== It was initially announced by Prime Minister Gordon Brown that the Iraq Inquiry would be held in camera, excluding the public and press. However, the decision was later deferred to Sir John Chilcot, the inquiry chairman, who said that it was "essential to hold as much of the proceedings of the inquiry as possible in public". In July 2009, when the inquiry commenced, it was announced that the committee would be able to request any British document and call any British citizen to give evidence. In the week before the inquiry began hearing witnesses, a series of documents including military reports were leaked to a newspaper which appeared to show poor post-war planning and lack of provisions. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Iraq Inquiry」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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