By Yoon Won-sup
Staff Reporter

A group of junior lawmakers from the ruling Uri Party will make a statement Monday, criticizing the United States-led Iraqi war and calling for an apology from U.S. President George W. Bush.

In the statement, the lawmakers will also urge Bush to explain the recently released report that there was no ``link’’ between Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and terrorist organization al-Qaeda.

The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, dubbed as the 9/11 commission, released the report last Wednesday, showing the invasion of Iraq was conducted on the inaccurate assumption that Saddam Hussein had connections with al- Qaeda.

``As the report proved no connection between Saddam Hussein and al-Qaeda, President George W. Bush must make an apology over the war in Iraq,’’ a lawmaker said. ``We will give him a stern warning not to produce artificial information.’’

Through the statement, the group of reform-minded legislators, will also point out that tensions on the Korean peninsula could be exacerbated due to such false information.

The lawmakers’ move is likely to stir up diplomatic fuss in the ROK-U.S. relation as it is the first time for South Korean lawmakers to collectively express a critical opinion of the U.S. president’s foreign policy.

The group, called ``New Search,’’ was launched earlier this month with 34 first- and second-term lawmakers, most of whom have opposed the government’s plan to send additional ROK troops to Iraq at the request of Washington.

Some senior officials within the party expressed concern over the lawmakers’ move toward that end.

``We have requested Song Young-gil, a two-term lawmaker and leader of the group of young legislators, revise the statement in consideration of bilateral relations,’’ a high-ranking official of the Uri Party said.

Given the ongoing bilateral talks on the relocation and reduction of U.S. forces in Korea, the statement is expected to negatively affect the negotiation processing, he said.

However, lawmakers in the group rebuffed concerns that their outspoken criticism over the U.S. might hamper the 50-year-long Seoul-Washington alliance.

``Since U.S. lawmakers from the Democratic Party already denounced the Iraqi war based on the 9/11 commission’s report, our statement on the war is not likely to damage the bilateral relationship,’’ another lawmaker in the group said.

yoonwonsup@koreatimes.co.kr