CAMP DAVID/LONDON, 8 September — The United States is prepared to avoid military action in favor of a diplomatic solution to the Iraqi crisis, US Secretary of State Colin Powell said yesterday. President George Bush had not yet decided on military action and would closely examine all his options, "political, diplomatic and military", he said.
Speaking in an interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation, on the "Breakfast with Frost" program to be broadcast today, Powell said: "He (Bush) has said to all of our friends and allies around the world that he will consult closely with them and naturally that includes consulting with the United Nations.
"The actual form of that consultation, how he goes about it, these are issues that are being widely discussed within the administration." However, he admitted that the president’s advisers disagreed on what strategy to take against Iraq. Powell stressed that it was important to return UN weapons inspectors to Iraq and that their work there must not hindered.
Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Tony Blair yesterday gave his clearest explanation yet of the need to target Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein, using British forces if necessary. Iraq was a "direct" and "very real" threat to Britain, he said.
The prime minister, in the United States for talks at Bush’s Camp David retreat, reiterated his determination to halt the Iraqi president’s programs to develop weapons of mass destruction "one way or another".
Blair said: "The point I would emphasize is the threat is very real and it is a threat not just to America or the international community but to Britain. If these weapons are developed and used there is no way that any conflict Saddam initiated using these weapons would not have direct implications for the interests of Britain."
The Washington Post reported yesterday that Bush planned to tell the United Nations unless they acted quickly, the United States would be forced to move on its own. A White House official said the speech was still evolving and it was unclear if this element would be included. Unlike other US allies that have expressed deep reservations about launching a pre-emptive military strike against Saddam, Blair has embraced the US president’s aggressive stance.
Arab League chief Amr Moussa said yesterday Bush and Blair should heed international concerns over a military strike on Iraq. Moussa said he still believed that a deal could be reached on the return of UN weapons inspectors to Iraq. "I don’t believe enough consultation and exchange of views has taken place and at the same time there is a lot of concern around the world about the validity of military action at this stage," Moussa told reporters in Italian town of Cernobbio where he was attending an international conference.
Iraq welcomed growing overseas opposition to any US military action. "Russia rejects the (US) threats, calls for a comprehensive settlement and continuing dialogue with the United Nations" on outstanding issues with Baghdad, Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri said.
Sabri, who was speaking on his return to the Iraqi capital after a trip taking him to Russia and Egypt, added that his "fruitful" talks in Moscow with counterpart Igor Ivanov were testimony to the "solid relations of friendship between the two countries."
And in an interview to be published today, European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana reiterated a warning to Washington that the EU was opposed to military action against Iraq without a UN mandate. "We’re against a pre-emptive attack," Solana told German weekly newspaper Bild am Sonntag. (The Independent)
