United Nations: Stressing that war must always be a last resort, UN Secretary General
Kofi Annan has appealed to major powers to search for a peaceful method for disarming
Iraq of its Weapons of Mass Destruction.
The world body has a "duty to search till the very end for the peaceful resolution of
the conflicts," he told a press conference at The Hague where he has gone for talks
on Cyprus, another trouble spot.
The members of the Security Council, Annan said, face a great challenge. "If they
fail to agree on a common position and action is taken without the authority of the
Security
Council, the legitimacy and support of any such action will be seriously
impaired."
The United States, United Kingdom and Spain have introduced a draft resolution that
presents Iraq with a March 17 deadline to cooperate fully with disarmament demands or
face war.
In a statement at the start of his news conference, Annan stressed that the entire
international community needs to act together to curb the proliferation of Weapons of
Mass Destruction.
"The determination of the Security Council to disarm Iraq of such weapons is the most
urgent issue - because Iraq has actually used such weapons in the past, and because
it has
twice committed aggression against its neighbours," he said.
That is why the Council ever since 1991 has passed successive resolutions requiring
Iraq to disarm and on this critical question, there are no divisions, no grounds for
doubt, dispute or delay, he said.
However, Annan said, people around the world want to see this crisis resolved
peacefully.
PTI
