Positive Iraq-UN Talks End No Decisions

Under the shadow of a much-reported possibility of US military strike against Iraq, the first high-level talks between the United Nations and Iraq in a year ended on a positive note on Thursday with both sides agreeing to meet next month. But there was no decision on whether Baghdad would allow UN arms inspectors to return.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan called the one-day meeting "frank and useful" while Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri said it was "positive and constructive." A new meeting with a "well-defined agenda agreed in advance" will be set for mid-April, a UN statement said.

Hans Blix, the leader of the UN Iraqi inspection commission, join the talk and face the Iraqi officials for the first time since he took over the job two years ago.

The talks were held amid heightened tensions since President Bush made Iraq the key element of his "axis of evil" reference in his State of the Union speech in January. He demanded Baghdad accept the inspectors or face the consequences.

The UN inspectors left Iraq in mid-December 1998, on the eve of a US-British bombing raid, and have not been allowed to return since. The arms experts now want access to determine whether Iraq has abandoned or continued to acquire weapons of mass destruction.

Blix and other experts believe Iraq had nearly accounted for its nuclear materials and ballistic missiles when the teams left in 1998. But gaps remained in accounting for chemical and biological weapons materials.

"It was clear that the Iraqis did not come ready to comply with UN resolutions," a US official said. "That is our only expectation from Iraq."

However, British Ambassador to UN Sir Jeremy Greenstock said the continuation of the talks was a hopeful sign but that Iraq could be stalling for time because of the American threat. But he said it was too early to draw conclusions.

Before the talk, Wang Yingfan, the Chinese permanent representative to the United Nations, expressed his hope that the dialogue will pave the way for the proper and comprehensive settlement of the Iraq issue.

(Edited by Zheng Guihong for china.org.cn according to reports of Xinhua News Agency)