February 27, 2003	Thursday	Zul Hijjah 25, 1423

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MOSCOW, Feb 26: Russia may veto a new resolution on Iraq put forth jointly by the United States, Britain and Spain, a senior Kremlin source said on Wednesday.

“We cannot agree with a text which speaks about how a military solution is unavoidable,” the unnamed Kremlin official said.

The source was quoted as saying that Russia may use its right of veto when the resolution is placed before the 15-member UN Security Council, possibly in mid-March, adding that “such a development is undesirable”.

In Washington, however, a senior official said he doubted either Russia or China would veto the resolution.

In Paris, on the other hand, French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin said his country did not need to consider using its veto as the text did not have majority support.

Noting that the draft resolution would require nine of the 15 Council votes to pass, de Villepin said: “We are not in that situation. There is therefore no reason to evoke the hypothesis” of France using its veto.

De Villepin — who was speaking to reporters after talks with his Italian counterpart, Franco Frattini — said Paris and Rome shared “a common willingness to see the UN fully play its role and achieve a peaceful solution” in Iraq.

The French minister added that it was “important for the Europeans to rally their forces behind a peaceful solution”.

Paris has staunchly opposed Washington’s plans to launch military action against Baghdad, while Rome has placed itself in the pro-Washington camp.

The United States, Britain and Spain on Monday submitted a draft resolution that would in effect authorize the use of military force against Baghdad over its alleged arsenal of weapons of mass destruction.

De Villepin later addressed the French Senate, saying that the draft resolution before the Security Council “clearly paved the way for military intervention”.

That appeared to be a jab at British and US attempts to present the short text as a simple confirmation that Iraq had not met its commitments to fully and unhesitatingly cooperate with the UN inspectors.

While that surface interpretation is being used to lobby reluctant council members, most diplomats acknowledge that the effect of the resolution is, in fact, to authorize war by referring back to the “serious consequences” threatened in Resolution 1441, adopted on Nov 8.

De Villepin also said that the Iraq crisis was something of an example for the United Nations for other problems it faces, starting with North Korea’s nuclear weapons programme. He argued that a peaceful resolution here would act as a precedent for later crises.

“The temptation to use force must be resisted,” he said.

“Force alone is force in vain when it is not applied according to principles of law.”

Iraq, though, had to “fully” and “without delay” cooperate with the terms of Resolution 1441, the French minister said, noting that the inspections “cannot go on forever”.

FRENCH PM: French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin told parliament on Wednesday that an invasion would be “illegitimate” and would divide the international community.

Opening a special debate on the Iraq crisis, Mr Raffarin said a war “would divide the international community... (and) weaken the coalition against terrorism”.

He also repeated President Jacques Chirac’s stance that “in the current circumstances, a second resolution at the UN has no justification”.

France’s approach had the “support of the majority of states and of public opinion”, the premier said, making reference to massive anti-war rallies that have taken place around the globe.

Raffarin stressed that UN inspections mandated under Resolution 1441 had shown “results”, though he also called on Baghdad to show full cooperation without delay.

“Today’s crisis could well be tomorrow’s war,” he told the deputies.

Raffarin, too, tried to smooth ruffled feathers, insisting that “the building of Europe’s politics should not be taken hostage in this crisis” and that the split between Washington and Paris “should not in any way undermine the strength” of their ties.

“We are not ruling out war, but our fight is one for peace.... We do not want a new war of religions. We do not want a clash of civilizations. That is not how we see the planet,” he said.

“Our aim in the circumstances is to persuade, our strategy is that of the majority of the Security Council,” Raffarin said.

But he added: “As for our next objective concerning the Security Council, I believe that it is clearly stated by France that we do not exclude any option.”

And, when it came to French-United States ties, the prime minister said that the “frankness” of France’s position “cannot hurt our links of gratitude, of closeness with the American people.... We know what we owe them, they can count on our allegiance”. —AFP