The second testimony of Tony Blair on 21 January 2011 and new speeches, memoires and declarations by diplomats and key policy officers have rekindled the political discussion on the feasibility of options alternative to war. This presentation arises out of a long-term research project based on a wide range of documents as well as on my participation in the campaign led by the Transnational Radical Party (www.radicalparty.org) on the role of Western leaders prior to the decision to invade Iraq. By collating statements, events, and documents a pattern of decision-making emerges, indicating that the war in Iraq could have been avoided through a solution based on Saddam Hussein’s exile. Our work also stresses the necessity to restore the truth as the core element of any healthy democracy and upholder of the Rule of Law against the threats of authoritarian regimes and the military industrial complex.

The presentation proceeds along two tracks. One is about the political theory of establishing truth and its role in the moral legitimacy of Western democracies in world politics. The other is evidence-based, specifically concerning the following questions: what does the evidence say about Blair and Bush’s decision not to pursue the possibility of sending Saddam Hussein into exile? Was it due solely to Saddam's refusal, or did they boycott this option? What was going on within the Arab world and in particular what was the position of the Arab League at that time, i.e., the summit in Sharm el-Sheikh of 1 March 2003? Should Sir Chilcot have looked into the minutes of the conference call of 22 February 2003, between Bush, Aznar, Blair and Berlusconi - where the exile scenario, which would have avoided any military action, was clearly mentioned? With an eye on the evidence sent by Peter Lilley MP to the Iraq Inquiry, what are the options still open for the Inquiry and beyond that to establish truth?

Matteo Angioli is completing a PG degree in comparative politics at ULB (Université Libre de Bruxelles) Brussels. He graduated at the Open University in Social and Political Sciences. He was parliamentary assistant at the European Parliament to Marco Pannella MEP (ALDE) from 2003 to 2009. He is now member of the Senate of the Nonviolent Radical Party and advisor to the Vice-President of the Italian Senate (Senato della Repubblica), Emma Bonino MP.