Iraq still refusing to admit weapons inspections

The UN today failed to persuade Iraq to allow the return of weapons inspectors to Baghdad, wrapping up two days of talks with no breakthrough in site.

Diplomats agreed to keep talking however, planning another round of discussions in Europe in coming months.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan said that the Iraqis needed to consult with officials in Baghdad. The next round of talks had not yet been set, Annan added after the Vienna meeting.

‘‘There has been some movement, but obviously not enough,’’ he said.

Annan and Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri spoke privately before the announcement, but were unable to agree on any face-saving measures.

Diplomats earlier had expressed concerns about continuing the talks indefinitely, saying Iraq could be using the sessions to stall for time.

The unsuccessful session came after technical experts from the United Nations and Iraq discussed the nitty-gritty of returning weapons inspectors to Iraq in closed-door talks meant to avoid confusion on the ground should any agreement be struck eventually.

Sabri said the talks would continue on a technical basis after 12 years of poor contacts because much work still needed to be done in search for common ground. He called the talks ‘‘constructive.’’

‘‘We agreed to continue contact on technical matters,’’ he said. ‘‘There are a lot of issues involved.’’

The failure to reach a deal in the third round of talks this year will likely result in even greater pressure on Baghdad.

Some diplomats privately expressed fears that the Iraqis are simply using the talks to buy time, hoping that major powers would pressure the United States to back off from military action as long as the diplomatic door remained open.

But the diplomats couldn’t hide their dismay over a New York Times article today which indicated that Washington had prepared military documents outlining how Iraq could be attacked.

The article appeared a day after diplomats emerged from talks in a positive mood and described the talks as constructive. But Sabri downplayed the impact of the article.

‘‘This was not a factor in our discussions,’’ Sabri said. ‘‘We heard a lot of rubbish about these plans. These are wishes entertained by old colonialists and evil people.’’

Before agreeing to UN demands, the Iraqis want the United Nations to lift sanctions and address US threats to topple Saddam Hussein.

Iraq went into the talks with a broad list of subjects it wanted addressed, while the United Nations was focused largely on the return of the inspectors.

The Iraqis had demanded that the United Nations lift sanctions and address US threats to topple Saddam Hussein before it would consider allowing the inspectors back.

Under Security Council resolutions, sanctions can be lifted only when inspectors certify that Iraq’s nuclear, chemical and biological weapons have been destroyed, along with the long-range missiles that could deliver them.

Iraq did agree, however, to return Kuwait’s national archives, which were looted during the Gulf War.

The United States has warned Saddam he faces unspecified consequences if he does not allow the return of the inspectors, who left ahead of 1998 allied air strikes meant to punish Iraq for blocking inspections.

But Annan alone doesn’t have the ability to resolve the key issues Iraq wants addressed before allowing the inspectors’ return.