October 4, 2002	Friday	Rajab 26, 1423

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UNITED NATIONS, Oct 3: A diplomatic standoff between the five permanent members of the UN Security Council continued on Thursday as Chief UN weapons Inspector, Hans Blix, briefed the Council behind closed doors over the deal reached with Iraq in Vienna.

At issue is whether to adopt a tough new US sponsored resolution which gives Iraq seven days to confirm its acceptance and authorizes use of force if Baghdad balks on the strict new inspection regime set by the resolution. Of the five permanent members US and Britain, who have sponsored a tough new resolution to force Iraq’s compliance stipulating use of force, want a resolution in place before the UN weapons inspection team goes to Baghdad. France, Russia and China are opposed to any new resolution authorizing automatic use of force if Iraq does not accept conditions laid down in the resolution. France has fielded its own resolution which gives Baghdad a chance to comply. It also believes that another resolution could be adopted if Iraq does not comply.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told reporters on Thursday that he believed there was a basis for UN arms inspectors to go to Iraq soon, but awaited a decision from a divided Security Council.

He met the chief UN arms inspector Hans Blix, ahead of his meeting with the 15-member council on his talks with Iraqi officials in Vienna this week on arrangements for resuming inspections.

The United States and Britain want UN to hold off inspections until the council gives him a new mandate and Iraq gives an account of any programme it has to make weapons of mass destruction. Iraq denies it has such programme. Other council members say existing resolutions allow Blix to send advance teams. “I think from the discussions Blix had in Vienna, there is a basis to go forward,” Annan said. “But the council is discussing whether or not the regime should not be tightened and strengthened to ensure that we don’t repeat the weaknesses of the past,” he added.

Blix has said that the first inspectors could be on the ground later this month under the existing arrangements.

The US State Department officials warned that Washington would go into a “thwart mode” if he moves before the United Nations adepts a tough new resolution threatening the use of force if Baghdad does not fully comply. Most UN security Council members object particularly to a provision in the US resolution that allows a UN member, such as the United States, to determine if Iraq has violated UN demands and follow up with military action. French President Jacques Chirac, after meeting German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in Paris, told reporters on Wednesday, “We are totally opposed to any resolution that gave as of now an automatic character to military intervention.” France, which has circulated proposals informally among council members, has threatened to push its own resolution if Washington introduces its current draft without any changes, diplomats said. France favours a two-stage approach, the first offering Iraq a chance to cooperate, but saying the council would consider “any measure” if Baghdad failed to comply with its obligations. The second resolution, would threaten force, if necessary. Russia said that it was satisfied with the Vienna agreement because “this opens prospects for conducting inspections in Iraq,” a Foreign Ministry spokesman said.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov told reporters “‘the situation around Iraq should be settled by political and diplomatic means.” Under the US draft, approved by Britain, Iraq has 30 days “prior to the beginning of inspections” to provide “an acceptable and currently accurate” declaration of all aspects of its programmes to develop chemical, biological, nuclear and ballistic weapons. Any “false statements or omissions” in Iraq’s declaration would constitute a further “material breach” of its obligations and any UN member could use “all necessary means” against Baghdad — a diplomatic euphemism for military action. The US draft says the inspectors can interview anyone they wish, such as scientists and government officials, and evacuate them and their families out of the country, if necessary. They can inspect all places, including Saddam Hussein’s palace compounds.