‘Iraq will be disarmed,’ says Bush

STEPPING up the pressure on both the UN and Baghdad, President George W Bush last night warned Iraq “will be disarmed one way or the other” and the White House said Saddam Hussein would be a legitimate target if it comes to war.

A couple of 'floating voters' within the UN Security Council appeared to be moving to back the tough US-British-Spanish resolution that could lead to war. The US also feels Russia will not veto the resolution

Mexico was the first to signal a shift toward the US position. The change in policy by Mexico one of the most outspoken supporters of continued weapons inspections instead of war, echoing French and German desires was outlined in a new and confidential foreign policy directive obtained by The Associated Press.

At the White House yesterday, Mr Bush stopped short of repeating claims of an already existing link between Iraq and al-Qaida.

"The danger with Iraq is that he can strike in the neighbourhood and the danger with Iraq is that he has got the willingness and the capacity to train al-Qaida-type organisations and provide them with equipment to hurt America," said the US president.

"The world has waited a long time for Mr Saddam Hussein to disarm, but for the safety of the American people and for peace in the world, Saddam Hussein will be disarmed one way or the other."

Calling Saddam "a master of disguise and delay," Mr Bush mocked the Iraqi leader for disclosing some weapons when he previously denied having any. Earlier, Mr Bush said that if the Iraqi president and his generals "take innocent life, if they destroy infrastructure, they will be held accountable as war criminals."

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer offered a grimmer scenario. Saddam and his inner circle would be legitimate targets for US forces, he said: "If we go to war in Iraq, and hostilities result, command and control and top generals, people who are in charge of fighting the war to kill the United States' troops, cannot assume they will be safe. If you go to war, command and control are legitimate targets under international law."

Asked whether that could mean Saddam, Mr Fleischer replied, "Of course."

Meanwhile, in an impassioned appeal, French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin warned yesterday that waging war against Iraq now without exhausting all peaceful means for disarming Saddam Hussein would split the international community and "be perceived as precipitous and illegitimate."

Addressing a debate on the Iraq crisis in the French parliament, Mr Raffarin said France remains committed to continued and strengthened weapons inspections in Iraq.

The German government yesterday(OK) rejected a Canadian proposal to bridge competing plans to disarm Iraq, saying it saw "no need for any kind of compromise."

Meanwhile, Turkey's foreign minister yesterday (OK) urged legislators to approve an agreement to let in US troops to open a northern front in a possible war with Iraq. Secretary of State Colin Powell warned that time was running out for a decision.

Foreign Minister Yasar Yakis' comments came at a tense meeting of his Justice and Development Party, which was discussing a government proposal to authorise the deployment of 62,000 US combat troops, 255 warplanes and 65 helicopters.

Mr Powell called Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul on Tuesday night and emphasised that a decision needed to be made quickly, the Anatolia news agency reported.

The head of the governing Justice Party said the troop deployment bill will likely be approved after it is debated in parliament today.