THE US/IRAQ: As President Bush warned yesterday that a decision on war with Iraq was "weeks, not months" away, the Iraqi government invited the chief UN weapons inspectors to return to Baghdad before February 10th to discuss "strengthening co-operation".
The invitation provided a glimmer of hope in a situation that appears to be moving inexorably towards military conflict, but Washington is unlikely at this point to settle for anything short of regime change in Baghdad.
The US administration's determination to get rid of President Saddam Hussein has hardened. The Vice-President, Mr Dick Cheney, made tough remarks yesterday to a conservative club in Virginia.
"We will not permit a brutal dictator with ties to terror and a record of reckless aggression to dominate the Middle East and threaten the United States of America," Mr Cheney said.
"Confronting the threat posed by Iraq is not a distraction from the war on terror, it is absolutely crucial to winning the war on terror," he said.
Mr Bush's warning, "This is a matter of weeks, not months," came as he met the Italian Prime Minister, Mr Silvio Berlusconi. Italy is one of the European countries that would be likely to join a "coalition of the willing" with the US to attack Iraq, even if the UN Security Council withheld its approval.
Senior US officials said that while the timeline could change, Mr Bush intends to continue the consultation period until February 14th, the date when UN weapons inspectors give the Security Council an update on the situation in Iraq.
The White House is considering whether to issue an ultimatum to Iraq or seek another UN resolution setting a date for Baghdad to comply or face force.
Mr Bush yesterday also met Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister, Prince Saud al-Faisal, who is pressing for Mr Saddam to go into exile, an idea Mr Bush supports. "Should he choose to leave the country, along with other henchmen who have tortured Iraqi people, we will welcome that, of course," the president said.
Mr Bush added that the US would continue to insist that Iraq disarm, regardless of who governs the nation, implying that US forces might still occupy Iraq if Mr Saddam left.
Shortly before the Iraqi initiative yesterday, the chief UN weapons inspector, Dr Hans Blix, said there was no evidence to suggest that the Iraqis were improving their co-operation. They still could not get unqualified access to weapons scientists, for example.
He said, however, that there was still time for Mr Saddam to co-operate. "They can still do it, and if I saw any sign of that, I would also plead for longer time for inspections," he told Channel Four TV News.
The invitation to Dr Blix and Dr Muhammad ElBaradei, head of the UN nuclear watchdog, came from Mr Saddam's adviser, Mr Amir al-Saadi, according to the Iraq foreign ministry. The meeting was requested before February 10th, and would focus on "discussing a number of issues related to strengthening co-operation and transparency".
On Wednesday, the US Secretary of State, Mr Colin Powell, will brief the Security Council on US intelligence reports of Iraqi non-compliance with UN resolutions. The administration is said to be working to release such information without compromising US intelligence sources.
Today Mr Bush will meet the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, one of eight European leaders to sign an open letter calling on all of Europe to unify and back the US in the Iraqi crisis.
The US's closest neighbour, Canada, has shown reluctance to join the US-led coalition without UN backing. "If one state acts by itself it risks consequences," the Foreign Minister, Mr Bill Graham, said, after meeting Mr Powell. He said the UN had a responsibility to force Iraq to disarm.
Mr Bush telephoned the leaders of Portugal and Sweden as he stepped up efforts to recruit international support. "The President is using this window now to engage in very busy and active diplomacy," the White House spokesman, Mr Ari Fleischer, said.