Global Policy Forum

By Phillip Coorey

The US does not need a smoking gun in order to justify a war against Iraq, its most senior defence and foreign affairs officials said yesterday.

As UN Chief Weapons Inspector Hans Blix arrived in Baghdad for two days of talks, US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice and Secretary of State Colin Powell all used separate live televised interviews to say immediate Iraqi co-operation was the issue, not the discovery of weapons.

"No, I think the test is not [weapons]. The test is, is Saddam Hussein co-operating . . . he's not doing that," Mr Rumsfeld said. "The President said time is running out and if the test is, are the Iraqis going to co-operate, that's something you're going to know in a matter of weeks, not in months or years." Mr Rumsfeld said exile for Saddam Hussein and his family, or his removal from power by a coup, would be a fair trade to avoid a war.

In Baghdad, the Iraqis disclosed to the UN another four empty chemical warheads similar to the dozen found last week.

After two hours of talks, International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohammed Elbaradei, accompanying Dr Blix, said: "I think we are making some progress, it was a constructive meeting. We are saying in no uncertain terms that time is running out."

"We cannot wait for things to happen in the pace it has been in the past few weeks since we started inspections. I think that message has been registered with the Iraqi authorities." Dr Rice also dismissed the need for a "smoking gun" to warrant a war. "The UN Security Council resolution doesn't talk about a smoking gun," Dr Rice said. "This is not a case in which one has to show a picture of a weapon or a satellite photograph to know that this is a regime that deceives and intends to deceive and continues to deceive."

Dr Rice talked up the war option, adding that it was unlikely Saddam would be removed by any means other than force. "I think we're on the verge of an important set of decisions and the American people and the world should understand that because time is running out here," she said. Dr Rice would not declare that Monday, January 27 – when Dr Blix reports to the UN Security Council – a deadline for Iraqi compliance, because that was for President Bush to decide.

Mr Powell backed up his colleagues, saying time was running out for Iraq to comply and declare its weapons stocks. "The record so far is not a good record and they have very little time left to make it a good record," he said.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.