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Russia, US disagree over Iraqi missile implications

A finding by a panel of arms experts that an Iraqi missile exceeds the range allowed under UN resolutions may result in a tougher assessment of Iraq's cooperation when UN weapons inspectors deliver crucial reports to the Security Council today.

The six independent experts concluded that Iraq's production of the Al Samoud 2 rocket program had a range over 150km, forbidden under UN Security Council resolutions, diplomats reported on Wednesday.

But Russia's Deputy Foreign Minister Yuri Fedotov argued that the determination by the experts, summoned by chief inspector Hans Blix, did not constitute a final conclusion and that a decision between war and peace was premature.

"Inspections should continue. It's clear," Fedotov told reporters after a Wednesday meeting of the advisory board of the UN Monitoring,

Veteran Iraqi diplomat Tariq Aziz flatly denied that Baghdad possessed ballistic missiles in violation of UN accords as he arrived in Rome yesterday for talks with Pope John Paul II, adding that Iraq would welcome more UN weapons inspectors in the country.

Iraq's deputy foreign minister played down suggestions that the US and UK had found the "smoking gun" which could tip the balance towards an imminent war.

He insisted Baghdad's missiles were within the limits of the range set by the UN after the 1991 Gulf War and did not breach disarmament obligations under UN resolutions.

Verification and Inspection Commission, headed by Blix, in charge of accounting for Iraq's long-range missiles and chemical and biological weapons.

For the US and Britain, the experts' analysis is expected to bolster their argument that Baghdad is in "further material breach" of UN resolutions, legal language that can justify war.

Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, in charge of nuclear inspection teams, present their reports at a public meeting due to begin at 10:15am today. Another meeting is scheduled for next Tuesday so nations not on the Security Council can voice their views.

In preparation for today's report, Blix had convened a panel of experts, which met on Monday and Tuesday, to advise him on whether the range of the al Samoud 2 missiles exceeded UN limits.

Security Council resolutions ban Iraqi missiles with a range of more than 150km, and the Al Samoud repeatedly tested up to 40km beyond that limit. The experts concluded the missile was a proscribed weapons system.

The inspectors first learned of the range of the missiles from test results that Iraq included in its 12,000-page arms submitted to the UN on Dec. 7.

But Fedotov dismissed the issue as "a technical matter" rather than a violation of council resolutions and said it needed further study. A Russian expert had been invited to the two-day meeting, diplomats said.

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