Weapons inspector 'must be given time'

THE UN's weapons inspectors must be given time to do their job in Iraq but it should not take months to establish whether Saddam Hussein is complying with his disarmament obligations, British Prime Minister Tony Blair said yesterday.

Mr Blair indicated that today's report from the inspectors to the UN Security Council would not be the end of the road for the inspections' effort. But while acknowledging that the inspectors should have more time, he emphasised their work could not be open-ended. Mr Blair, interviewed on BBC 1's Breakfast with Frost, said: "They (the inspectors) have got to be given the time to do the job, but it is important to define what the job is ...

"The job of the inspectors is to certify whether Saddam is co-operating or not with the UN inspections' regime and that duty to co-operate doesn't just mean that he has to give them access to particular sites. It means he has got to co-operate fully in saying exactly what weapons material he has, allowing the inspectors to inspect it, monitor it and shut it down. "We have gone down the UN route precisely because the inspectors have got to be the means of trying to resolve this peacefully. If the inspectors are able to do their job, fine, but if they are not able to do their job, then we have to disarm Saddam by force." Pressed on whether Britain would give the inspectors more time if they needed it, Mr Blair said: "Of course, and I have always said the inspectors should have the time to do their job."