Chirac urges restraint over Iraq

The French President, Jacques Chirac, issued his strongest criticism yet of American plans to attack Iraq yesterday, warning that any "unilateral and pre-emptive" action would run counter to international law.

Mr Chirac insisted that any action must be taken with the authority of the United Nations.

Although France, which wields a veto at the UN Security Council, has traditionally been an ally of Iraq, Mr Chirac's strongly worded statement came as a surprise because his new government has shown greater understanding of the American position. The President told a conference of French ambassadors that he was concerned by "the temptation to seek to legitimise the use of unilateral and pre- emptive force".

He said: "This goes counter to the French notion of collective security, a notion based on co- operation between states, the respect of law, and the authority of the [UN] Security Council."

France, with Britain, insists that a resolution to the dispute will turn on the readmission of UN weapons inspectors, to determine whether Iraqi weapons of mass destruction have been eliminated. The British Government, though, has refrained from openly criticising the American plans.

If President Saddam Hussein continued to reject the unconditional return of the inspectors after a four-year absence, then "it must be up to the Security Council alone to decide what measures to take", Mr Chirac said. He did not say whether France would use its position at the UN to oppose the use of force.

Although Mr Chirac did not mention the United States by name, his statement was clearly at odds with those made by the American Vice-President, Dick Cheney, and the Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld, earlier this week.

Hawks in the Bush administration are calling for a pre- emptive strike on the basis that the UN weapons inspections would serve no purpose, and once it was proved that Iraq remained a threat to its neighbours it would be too late to act.

Germany, although not a Security Council member, is also opposed to military action, and public opinion in both countries is opposed to an invasion.

Arab states have made clear to the Bush administration this week that any military action aimed at toppling President Saddam would destabilise the entire region. The Pakistani President, Pervez Musharraf, an important ally of America in its campaign against al-Qa'ida, said in an interview with the BBC yesterday that a US attack would have "very negative repercussions in the Islamic world".

Other allies who allowed their countries' bases to be used to attack Iraq during the 1991 Gulf War, such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey, have also expressed doubts about the American plans.