February 24, 2003	Monday	Zul Hijjah 22, 1423

PARIS, Feb 23: France opposed a second UN Security Council resolution on Iraq for now, a French diplomatic source said on Sunday, as Washington prepared a new resolution contending Baghdad was failing to comply on disarmament demands.

The diplomatic source said President Jacques Chirac believed UN weapons inspectors needed more time to complete their work.

“We are still and remain in the inspections phase” allowed for by resolution 1441 on Iraq, the diplomatic source said.

France has veto power in the UN Security Council.

The source said Paris believed Washington was raising the tempo with a view to getting rapid adoption of a second resolution hot on the heels of a report that chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix is due to make on March 7.—Reuters