BRUSSELS,13 February 2003 — The latest in a series of crisis meetings aimed at ending NATO’s division over preparations for a war on Iraq ended without an agreement late yesterday, diplomats said, adding that a new attempt would probably be made today.
There was “no agreement,” one senior diplomat said, as he and other officials left the latest 40-minute meeting — the fifth of its kind since Monday.
Another diplomat said Belgium, France and Germany refused to lift their opposition to a NATO proposal to help Turkey during the latest meeting.
The 19-member alliance’s ruling body had already met earlier in the day, when NATO chief George Robertson presented the compromise aimed at persuading Belgium, France and Germany to back US plans to help Turkey in case of war.
The proposal, which came after two days of marathon talks failed to resolve the rift, was sent back to NATO national capitals for consideration during the day, diplomats said.
In the first NATO council of the day, France, Germany and Belgium explained again why they had vetoed proposals to start planning to deploy Patriot air defense missiles, early warning planes and anti-chemical and germ warfare units to Turkey.
“The three repeated their position, they are undivided,” said one. “They have committed themselves to studying the new text but they are basically repeating their stand.”
Earlier, in a direct challenge to the United States and Britain, France circulated detailed proposals to strengthen UN inspections as an alternative to war, a position backed by Germany, Russia and China.
To further challenge US war plans, diplomats said the French and Russian foreign ministers, Dominique de Villepin and Igor Ivanov, would probably come to a crucial UN Security Council meeting on Friday when chief weapons inspectors, Hans Blix and Mohamed El-Baradei, deliver a crucial report.
Blix’s language will be watched closely for signs he is bolstering the US position after he issued a tough report last month on Iraq’s lack of cooperation in accounting for its biological and chemical arms programs and ballistic missiles.
In Baghdad, Iraqi officials dismissed US attempts to establish a link between terror mastermind Osama Bin Laden and Baghdad as no more than a pretext for war as Arab experts insisted his latest message underlined his contempt for Saddam Hussein.
Missile experts called in by UN arms inspectors have concluded that Iraq’s Al Samoud 2 missile has a longer operational range than is permissible under UN resolutions and the missile’s engines should probably be destroyed, diplomats said yesterday.
In Ankara, the leader of the country’s ruling party said yesterday Turkey will wait for a second UN resolution on Iraq before seeking Parliament’s approval for the deployment of US soldiers on its soil and the dispatch of Turkish soldiers to Iraq.
In Washington, the US military, preparing for possible war with Iraq, said yesterday it had activated nearly 39,000 more part-time Reserve troops, bringing the total number of reservists on active duty to more than 150,000.
In Doha, the official Qatar news agency (QNA) said Qatar, which currently chairs the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), called yesterday for an emergency summit to discuss the “challenges” facing the region. (Agencies)
