The U.N. Security Council has adopted a resolution to back the investigation of the "oil for food scandal", which will include a probe of contracts with Iraq around the world. We don't know enough about this to opine yet, but if you do, feel free to comment.

Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve, began a high-level investigation yesterday into allegations of kickbacks and bribes in the U.N.-run oil-for-food program for Iraq. Volcker assumed his post as head of a three-man team after he was assured all 15 members of the U.N. Security Council adopted a resolution to back the investigation, which will include a probe of contracts with Iraq around the world. "We will be following the money as well as we can," Volcker told a news conference.

....Under the now-defunct program, Iraq was permitted to sell oil in order to buy civilian goods. Its purpose was to ease the impact on ordinary Iraqis of sanctions imposed after the 1991 Persian Gulf War...The panel intends to hire investigators, accountants and legal specialists in an effort to analyze contracts, he said. The program allowed Saddam's government to choose buyers of its oil and suppliers of goods. U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he took the allegations seriously, which include accusations that a senior U.N. official took a bribe from Saddam's government.