- MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian
Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov dismissed on Wednesday the "propaganda
furor" surrounding Britain's dossier on Iraq, saying the return of
weapons inspectors to Baghdad was the main priority.
-
- The British dossier, presented by Prime Minister Tony
Blair on Tuesday, said Iraq could launch a chemical or biological warhead
at 45 minutes' notice and produce nuclear weapons in one to two years if
it obtained essential components from abroad.
-
- But Ivanov told reporters: "I believe that only
specialists and experts can judge whether or not Iraq has weapons of mass
destruction. We have therefore sought the fastest possible return to Iraq
of inspectors.
-
- "It therefore seems to us that it is not worth creating
a great propaganda furor around this report. We should wait for the conclusions
of the experts. Only after that can any conclusions be drawn," he
said.
-
- Moscow has long called for the return of inspectors to
Iraq and applauded Iraq's decision to allow the monitors to resume their
activities for the first time since they left in 1998.
-
- Russia, along with France, has also said that there is
no need for any further U.N. Security Council resolution on the matter
now that Iraq has agreed to allow the monitors unrestricted access to sites
in the country.
-
- The United States wants such a resolution to include
tough language spelling out that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein would face
serious consequences if he failed to allow inspectors to proceed with their
work unhindered.
-
- But Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov has suggested
that talks in the Security Council on a new resolution could go ahead at
the same time as inspections proceeded in Baghdad.
-
-
-
- Copyright © 2002 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Republication or redistribution of Reuters content is expressly prohibited
without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable
for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance
thereon.
|
