US wins backing for Iraq policies but little cash

8.00am - By EVELYN LEOPOLD and IRWIN ARIEFF

UNITED NATIONS - The UN Security Council has unanimously adopted a resolution charting a future for Iraq. The vote is seen as a diplomatic victory for the United States, which sought backing for its occupation of Iraq.

With President Bush under pressure over the growing cost of the Iraqi operation in US lives and money, the resolution asks nations to aid the reconstruction of the country with troops and cash.

And it calls on Iraqi leaders to draw up a plan for a new constitution and elections by December 15.

The unanimous vote this morning (NZ time) was uncertain until the last minute. In a surprising shift, France, Russia, China, Germany, who had opposed the war in Iraq, gave their support. Syria, the only Arab member on the council, then came on board.

But pledges of aid were slow in coming, particularly among wealthy European nations. At a summit in Brussels, European leaders declined further aid after setting a modest $232 million contribution from EU coffers for 2003-2004.

And Pakistan, considered a prime candidate for sending soldiers, declined to do so, saying the new multinational force created under the resolution was not distinct enough from occupation troops.

"Under these circumstances Pakistan will not be able to contribute troops for the multinational force in Iraq," its UN ambassador, Munir Akram, told the Security Council.

The resolution, which went through five revisions since August, almost failed to the get the minimum nine votes required for adoption. France, Germany and Russia proposed joint amendments, the main one asking for a timeline to end the occupation, which was rejected by Washington.

After intense negotiations led by Secretary of State Colin Powell this week, the United States first weaned China away from Russia, which then prevailed on Russia to change its stand, diplomats said. Moscow pressured Germany after which France also gave its support, the envoys said.

Even if the Bush administration had received nine votes for adoption, a narrow victory would have been considered a political failure in recruiting support for US policies.

"We were looking for more than passage. We were looking for a solid statement from the entire international community and all of the members of the Security Council if possible," Powell said in Washington after the vote.

Russia, Germany and France said they backed the resolution for the sake of unity and stability in Iraq but regretted some of their key amendments had been rejected, especially setting a timetable for the end of the occupation.

In a joint statement, the three nations said the resolution should have gone further in expanding the political role of the United Nations and accelerating the transfer of power to Iraq.

"In that context, the conditions are not created for us to envisage any military commitment and no further financial contributions beyond our present engagement." they said.

In Brussels, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, after conferring by telephone with French President Jacques Chirac and Putin, announced support of the three countries early on Thursday. "We agreed that the resolution is really an important step in the right direction," he said.

The resolution creates a UN-authorised multinational force in Iraq under US leadership in an effort to recruit troops from nations wary of serving the occupation.

The measure also calls on the 25-member Iraqi Governing Council to produce by Dec. 15 a timetable for drafting a constitution and holding elections, a process which could take several years. But it gives no date for a transfer of power.

UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan nearly torpedoed the effort two weeks ago when he agreed with France and Germany in urging the United States to shift power within a few months to a provisional government.

The United States refused but came back with new concessions this week. Annan telephoned world leaders pleading for unity on the resolution but said he would not send staff back to Iraq until safety conditions permitted following the Aug. 19 bombing of UN offices in Baghdad that cost the lives of 22 people.

Adoption of the resolution was a victory for Powell, who first convinced hard-liners in the administration to return to the United Nations and last week was ready to give up on the resolution rather than face a divided council.

- REUTERS

Herald Feature: Iraq