Clark says US, Britain won't find legal support for war

9.00am

The United States and Britain are unlikely to find legal support for abandoning a multi-lateral approach on Iraq, Prime Minister Helen Clark said today.

The US and Britain early today abandoned efforts to gain United Nations support for war on Iraq.

US President George W Bush will later today give Iraqi President Saddam Hussein a final ultimatum to leave Iraq or face a US-led war.

Miss Clark said the US and British would "stretch back through a string of UN resolutions to construct a legal edifice for what is happening".

"I think they will fail to convince most international lawyers. I think the lawyers will argue about this until kingdom come."

Self defence would need to be involved for war to be legal under the UN charter, Miss Clark said.

However, the UN had not determined that such force was necessary.

"The UN Security Council has refused to do that. As I say, the British and Americans will reach back into a range of resolutions to try to construct a case. It's very highly debatable," she told National Radio.

Miss Clark told NZPA she was saddened by the US and British decision.

"The UN system is constructed around the principles of collective security and multi-lateralism and to see major countries step outside that is a sad day," she said.

However, she did not believe their action had weakened the UN's effectiveness.

The credibility of the US and Britain was at stake, not that of the UN.

"I believe the UN was right not to sign up to anything which would have been the gateway for the use of force at this time because the inspection and disarmament process had traction," Miss Clark said.

"There was no case for war at this time."
Miss Clark did not expect to speak to the leaders of the US or Britain, saying it was past that point and that all involved were well aware of where others stood.

New Zealand believed some of its "best friends" were wrong but had a great interest in an ongoing, strong relationship, she said.

Eleven New Zealanders are currently in Iraq with the UN weapons inspections team, of whom eight are in Baghdad.

It was hoped all would gather in Baghdad today before leaving the country.

"There's a lot hanging on that -- there's a question of how Iraq reacts at this point," Miss Clark said.

"But to date we haven't heard any suggestion that Iraq would block people either."

The New Zealand frigate Te Mana would remain in the Gulf of Oman even if war was declared but would not be part of that operation, Miss Clark said.

It would continue its role in Operation Enduring Freedom.

"We think there's still a job to do and, arguably, probably an even more important job given that while the attention of the world community is distracted that's exactly the time you might expect al Qaeda-Taleban elements to think it was safe to make a dash (from the area)," she said.

The risk to personnel was medium when they went but if war broke out it would rise to high -- something the Government had said from the start of the deployment.

- NZPA

Herald Feature: Iraq