October 4, 2002	Friday	Rajab 26, 1423

MOSCOW, Oct 3: Russia said on Thursday it would not back a new UN resolution on Iraq that threatens Baghdad with the automatic use of force should it obstruct weapons inspections.

“In our opinion, it is not constructive to present Iraq with an ultimatum without first having an objective picture” of Baghdad’s alleged programmes of weapons of mass destruction, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Saltanov told a conference on Iraq held here.

“The document presented to us by the Britons and Americans has only strengthened our assurance that our stand in favor of a quick re-launch of inspections and monitoring in Iraq, and the general settlement without the automatic use of force, is correct,” Interfax news agency separately quoted him as saying.

Saltanov said Russia, which has veto power as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, was instead preparing its own UN resolution seeing weapons inspectors return to Iraq and the international community lift its sanctions against Baghdad.

“This is a so-called package deal,” said Saltanov, who holds the foreign ministry brief on Iraq.

Moscow had inched back on Wednesday from total opposition to a new UN resolution on Iraq, saying for the first time that it would consider a new text laying out international demands to Baghdad.

A Soviet-era ally of Baghdad, Moscow has made repeated efforts to ensure the return of inspectors, and has hailed Iraq’s decision last month to provide unfettered access to a UN team.

But the United States and Britain, which accuse Iraq of developing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, are pressing for a strong resolution that would authorize the use of force in the event of Iraqi obstructionism.

The new US-British resolution would give Baghdad seven days to declare all its weapons of mass destruction programmes or face military action, and another 23 days to cooperate fully with UN inspection teams.

Both Washington and London sent top diplomats to Moscow over the weekend to convince Russia to support their stance.

But those talks have had only mixed results, with Saltanov’s comments suggesting that Russia was not convinced by arguments presented by the US and British negotiators.

The remarks came during a round-table meeting attended by a senior Iraqi delegation which repeatedly reminded those present on Thursday that Russia had oil interests in Iraq — as well as nearly eight billion dollars in debts owed by Baghdad — that stood to vanish should there be a war.

“The United States has not yet been to establish its control over Iraq oil, and other nations stand to benefit from this,” said Abdul al-Hashimi, chairman of the Iraqi organization of friendship, peace and cooperation with foreign countries.—AFP