- WASHINGTON (AFP) - After
a week of intense diplomacy, the United States and Britain still lack enough
support in the UN Security Council to pass a single, tough resolution on
Iraq and may be forced to compromise on a two-step solution, US and UN
officials said.
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- The officials spoke as US Secretary of State Colin Powell,
national security adviser Condoleezza Rice and Deputy Defense Secretary
Paul Wolfowitz gathered at the State Department to discuss the the future
of Iraqi arms checks with chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix.
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- The talks were to focus on the mandate of his team and
the preparations needed for the inspectors to return to Iraq following
an agreement reached between Blix and the Iraqis on Tuesday in Vienna.
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- Washington insists that the inspectors not return until
a new Security Council resolution is adopted but Blix's deal with Iraq
is based on existing resolutions and some have called for his team to return
as soon as possible, with or without new UN action.
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- State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the US
position had not changed but that Powell and the others wanted to hear
what Blix had learned from his talks in Vienna.
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- "We think it's a moment to review with Dr Blix to
make sure we are prepared, he is prepared, and we're prepared to support
him," he told reporters.
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- Ahead of the meeting, Boucher said Powell had consulted
twice with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw and once with UN chief
Kofi Annan about the continuing disagreements over US-British proposals
for a new resolution on Iraq and the meeting with Blix.
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- The five permanent Security Council members -- the United
States, Britain, France, Russia and China -- are divided over whether to
send Blix to Iraq with a tough new mandate, backed by the threat of military
force if Iraq refuses to cooperate.
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- France, China and Russia want preparations for sending
the inspectors back to go ahead and are opposed to the US-British proposal,
which sets out new rules for Blix's team and authorizes the use of force
against Iraq if it does not comply, US and UN officials said.
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- In addition to facing a possible veto, the US-British
proposal is opposed by a majority of the elected members, the officials
said, citing private discussions in the Security Council on Thursday when
Blix briefed the group.
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- Even if the veto threat could be overcome, the United
States and Britain may only be able to count on the support of four --
Bulgaria, Colombia, Norway and Singapore -- of the non-permanent members,
and two of those -- Colombia and Singapore -- are shaky, the officials
said.
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- The remaining elected Security Council members -- Cameroon,
Guinea, Ireland, Mauritius, Mexico and Syria -- were all opposed to the
US-British proposal in varying degrees, with the most adamant being Ireland,
Mexico and Syria, they said.
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- In the best case scenario, that would leave them three
votes short of the nine necessary to pass the resolution, the officials
said.
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- The split leaves the United States and Britain with few
alternatives other than to accept a French-backed proposal two resolutions,
the officials said.
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- Under that proposal the first resolution would set out
a new mandate for the arms inspectors and the steps Iraq must take to disarm.
A second resolution, detailing the consequences for non-compliance would
then be be drafted, if necessary.
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