Envoy Vows: Iraq Will Honor Pact

With the Security Council expected to threaten "very severe consequences," Iraq's U.N. ambassador said Sunday his government will honor an agreement to open suspected weapons sites to U.N. inspectors.

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The inspectors are trying to determine whether Iraq has complied with orders issued at the end of the Persian Gulf War, to destroy all long-range missiles and mass destruction weapons.

That is the main condition for the council to lift crippling economic sanctions imposed on Iraq in 1990 after Saddam sent his forces into Kuwait, leading to the Gulf War.

The 15-member council meets Monday to consider a U.S.-backed resolution, submitted by Britain and Japan, endorsing the Annan agreement, which reduced the possibility of a military strike by the United States and Britain.

The final draft of the resolution warned of "very severe" consequences if Baghdad breaks the accord. Earlier drafts had used the phrase "severest consequences."

Earlier drafts also referred specifically to a 1991 council resolution, which branded Iraq's failure to abide by U.N. orders as a "material breach" of the truce which ended the Persian Gulf War.

But Russia, France, China and others objected to any language which might open the door to an automatic U.S. military response if Iraq violates the Annan deal.

In an effort to win unanimous support, the sponsors removed a direct reference to the "material breach" resolution. Instead, the latest draft refers simply to "all relevant resolutions" on the issue.

Were the council to declare Iraq in "material breach" of the 1991 cease-fire, that would strengthen the U.S. case for launching military action under international law.

Although a vote was tentatively set for Monday, council diplomats said it was possible it could be pushed back until later in the week.

In an interview Sunday with "CNN Late Edition," Iraq's Hamdoon, who participated in the negotiations with Annan in Baghdad, acknowledged that the agreement contains no time limit for inspections of eight presidential compounds which the Iraqis had placed off-limits.

Before Annan left for Baghdad last week, the United States insisted that any agreement should neither limit the duration of the inspections nor rule out the possibility of repeat visits as long as the U.N. inspectors felt they were necessary.

"But I think that all th understanding was it should be within a reasonable time," Hamdoon said.

Hamdoon said the secretary-general had assured the Iraqis that he would "try his best to work together with the council in order to shorten that period" until the sanctions are removed.

Written by Robert H. Reid.
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