Russia opposed to use of force against Iraq over UN row - Russian report

Excerpts from report in English by Russian news agency Interfax

Moscow, 14th January: Russia opposes any use of force to settle the problems concerning the work of inspectors from the UN special commission for destruction of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, Russian Foreign Minister Yevgeniy Primakov said during his telephone talk with US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright on Tuesday [13th January].

The telephone conversation, initiated by Albright, took place within the bounds of efforts to settle problems between Iraq and the UN special commission, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Valeriy Nesterushkin told Interfax on Wednesday.

Primakov emphasized the need for full cooperation between Iraq and the UN special commission, he said.

Russia believes that no force should be used to deal with emerging problems, the spokesman said.

"From our point of view, all issues concerning the work of inspectors from the UN special commission in Iraq should be settled through talks," he said ...

The Russian side maintains active contact with both Iraq and permanent members of the UN Security Council in order to settle the conflict, Nesterushkin said.

Meanwhile, a high-ranking Russian diplomat told Interfax on Wednesday that the Russian side "supports the idea of ensuring a more balanced composition of inspection groups within the UN special commission".

"The need to take effective steps in this direction was fixed in a decision made by the UN special commission at an extraordinary meeting in November 1997 and supported by the UN Security Council," the source said. "Thus, the positions of Russia and the UN Security Council converge on this issue," the diplomat said.

The source declined to comment on the possibility of an Iraqi representative's visit to Moscow in the near future.

The crisis that emerged between Iraq and the United Nations in November 1997 stopped short of developing into another military conflict in the Persian Gulf. The conflict was overcome largely due to agreements reached by Russian officials and Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz in Moscow.

Source: Interfax news agency, Moscow, in English 1425 gmt 14 Jan 98

BBC Monitoring (http://www.monitor.bbc.co.uk), based in Caversham in southern England, selects and translates information from radio, television, press, news agencies and the Internet from 150 countries in more than 70 languages.