European Leaders back Bush on Iraq

London - Eight European leaders have backed U.S. President George W. Bush calling for tough action to force Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to disarm, breaking ranks with France and Germany.

In an article in Britain's Times newspaper and several other papers in Europe and America, the leaders of EU members Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Denmark and applicants Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, appealed for unity in the bloc.

"The transatlantic relationship must not become a casualty of the current Iraqi regime's persistent attempts to threaten world security," the eight leaders wrote. "Our strength lies in unity.

"The Iraqi regime and its weapons of mass destruction represent a clear threat to world security," the premiers wrote in a thinly-veiled appeal to doubters French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder to join up.

The newspaper article signed by Britain's Tony Blair, Italy's Silvio Berlusconi, Spain's Jose Maria Aznar, Portugal's Jose Barroso, Denmark's Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the Czech Republic's Vaclav Havel, Poland's Leszek Miller and Hungary's Peter Medgyessy was hailed by the Bush administration as evidence of wider support in Europe than had been reported.

But at the United Nations in New York the split between world nations over Iraq was evident as 11 of the 15 members of the U.N. Security Council canvassed by The Associated Press supported giving more time to weapons inspectors to pursue Iraq's peaceful disarmament.

France, Russia and China, who all have veto power, want more time, as well as Germany, Mexico, Chile, Guinea, Cameroon, Syria, Angola and Pakistan, diplomats told AP.

Only Bulgaria and Spain backed the United States and Britain in focusing on Iraq's failures rather than continued inspections, AP said.

British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush's closest ally in the war on terror he declared after the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington, has been battling to persuade his EU counterparts to back Bush's hardline stance toward Iraq.

The idea for the joint article originated not with Blair but with Aznar, Reuters reported.

White House officials said they welcomed the declaration as proof of Europe's support for President Bush's position. It also proves that only a minority of European nations are opposed to Bush's stance regarding Iraq, they said.

Blair met Berlusconi in London on Wednesday evening and is due to drop in on Aznar on Thursday on his way to meet Bush at Camp David on Friday for what many believe will be final talks to fine-tune strategy before war starts with Iraq.

The eight European leaders said it was vital that all EU nations were seen to support U.N. resolution 1441 which paved the way for weapons inspectors to re-enter Iraq and resume their search for chemical, nuclear and biological arms.

"We sent a clear, firm and unequivocal message that we would rid the world of the danger posed by Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. We must remain united in insisting that his regime is disarmed," they wrote.

"We know that success in the day-to-day battle against terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction demands unwavering determination and firm international cohesion on the part of all countries for whom freedom is precious," they said in the statement.

"The attacks of September 11 showed just how far terrorists -- the enemies of our common values -- are prepared to go to destroy them. Those outrages were an attack on all of us. In standing firm in defence of these principles, the governments and people of the U.S. and Europe have amply demonstrated the strength of their convictions. Today more than ever, the transatlantic bond is a guarantee of our freedom."

Hans Blix, the U.N.'s chief weapons inspector, said on Monday quantities of anthrax, nerve gas and chemical weapons warheads remained unaccounted for, and accused the Iraqi government of hampering investigations.

U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Wednesday he would next week present evidence proving Iraq still had weapons of mass destruction as well as linking Baghdad to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network.

But Germany's Schroeder insisted that even if Washington, which is pouring troops and armour into the Gulf, did provide conclusive proof of its claims on February 5, he would still bid to avoid war with Baghdad.

The eight leaders, stating they had no quarrel with the Iraqi people, begged to differ, arguing that a failure by Iraq to comply with the U.N. Security Council resolutions undermined the body and threatened the world.

"Our goal is to safeguard world peace and security by ensuring that this regime gives up its weapons of mass destruction. Our governments have a common responsibility to face this threat," they wrote.

"If they are not complied with, the Security Council will lose its credibility and world peace will suffer as a result," they added. -- New York Times

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