February 25, 2003	Tuesday	Zul Hijjah 23, 1423

UNITED NATIONS, Feb 24: UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix said on Monday Iraq must begin destroying its Al Samoud missiles by Saturday, rejecting Baghdad’s bid for more time to hold technical talks.

“We have set a date for the commencement of the destruction of these missiles and we expect that to be respected,” Blix told reporters.

Asked whether there would be any further negotiation with the Iraqis on the missiles’ destruction, he responded: “I do not expect that. There will be a discussion about the pace in which the destruction will take place,” he said.

Blix ordered Baghdad on Friday to begin destroying the missiles, their warheads, engines, launchers, guidance and control systems and numerous other components by Saturday after concluding they exceeded the 150-km range set for Iraqi rockets by a Security Council resolution.

Their destruction would be a blow to Iraq — which says the missile was designed to stay within the permitted range — as the country prepares for a possible US-led invasion.

But if Baghdad fails to destroy the missiles, the United States and Britain could argue Iraq was not cooperating with the United Nations and that war is justified.

Iraq had written Blix last week proposing technical talks in Baghdad on the missile’s capabilities, but Blix’s latest comments appeared to rule out the possibility.

Iraqi UN Ambassador Mohammed Aldouri said on Monday he did not expect any further reaction from Baghdad before the end of the day and could not now say whether his government would comply with Blix’s order.

“We are carefully studying the letter and we are not going to rush our response,” Aldouri told Reuters.

In Baghdad, a key official said Iraq was still studying the matter but would “quite soon” make a decision and hinted his government would be pragmatic.

“It is being studied very carefully and the channels (with UN arms inspectors) are still open between us and we will come up with a decision quite soon,” General Amer al-Saadi, top adviser to President Saddam Hussein, told reporters.

“This is a technical issue and it is not actually considered a hurdle,” al-Saadi later told an Iraqi satellite television station. “If the goal is to continue on the legal path, which is through the Security Council, Iraq has no objections to deal with the issue realistically.”

The flap over the missiles came as Britain prepared to introduce a new UN Security Council resolution — also backed by the United States and Spain — that would set the stage for war by declaring Baghdad in violation of UN demands, council diplomats said.

But getting approval of a new resolution will be difficult in the face of opposition from France, Russia and China, who have veto power on the 15-member council. A resolution requires nine “yes” votes and no veto to be adopted.

Vatican: A unilateral war against Iraq without a UN mandate would be “a crime against peace”, Vatican Foreign Minister Jean-Louis Tauran said on Monday.

“A war of aggression would be a crime against peace,” Tauran told a peace meeting in Rome.

He recalled that “article two of the United Nations Charter asks member states to renounce war as a means to settle international differences”.

“All possible action against Iraq must be undertaken and decided within the United Nations.

“Only the Security Council has the power to decide on an armed intervention as legitimate defense, which implies that there has been an aggression,” he added.—Reuters/AFP