French President Jacques Chirac said today the US-British draft resolution outlining the handover of power to an interim Iraqi government has some positive aspects but needs further discussion.
Mr Chirac's office said the French head of state told US President George W. Bush in a telephone conversation that there must be a "real" transfer of power to Iraqis on June 30th.
Mr Chirac did not say what France wanted changed in the draft, presented on Monday to the 15-member Council and setting June 30th as the handover date.
Earlier, French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier, speaking after talks in Paris with European Union foreign policy chief Mr Javier Solana, said the resolution was a draft that needed to be discussed and improved.
France, which opposed the war in Iraq, holds a power of veto in the UN Security Council.
The United States and Britain asked UN members yesterday to endorse the handover of power but proposed US troops could "take all measures" to keep order.
But the draft UN Security Council resolution, which asks for support for a US-led multinational force, gives no date for the withdrawal of foreign troops. It also skirts the future of US prisons and Iraqi control over its own forces.
An interim government drawn from Iraq's religious and ethnic communities is expected to be formed in the next week or so, with help from UN Iraq envoy Mr Lakhdar Brahimi. No vote is expected until Mr Brahimi reports back to the council.
The resolution, presented to the council, would support the formation of a "sovereign interim government" to take office by June 30th. It says that government would "assume the responsibility and authority for governing a sovereign Iraq."
Agencies