Anti-war campaign pushes UN vote on Iraq back to March

British and American plans for a new United Nations resolution to open the way to war were snagged in diplomatic barbed wire yesterday. A final vote inside the Security Council is not likely before early March at the earliest.

The dragging timetable, the result of stiffening international opposition to the Anglo- American stance, suggests that hostilities – while perhaps still inevitable – will at least be delayed until the middle of next month, giving Saddam Hussein some unexpected additional breathing space.

In a further complication, Turkey said it had still not taken a decision on allowing American troops on its soil. The new delay means the Pentagon might have to scrap plans for an assault on Iraq on its northern front and concentrate its power to the south.

"A framework for the agreement we are looking for has not been established," a spokesman said after a meeting of Turkey's cabinet, noting that the government had therefore not yet asked parliament to approve the admission of US troops.

The rift is over the aid package on offer to Turkey. A White House spokesman said that an offer of $6bn (£3.8bn)in grants and up to $20bn in loan guarantees was final. Turkey had demanded more than $30bn, American sources said.

At the United Nations, meanwhile, sources said that Hans Blix, the chief weapons inspector, was preparing to ask Iraq to destroy its inventory of al-Samoud missiles. Experts recently determined that in flight they would exceed a 150km (93-mile) range limit set by the UN. If the request is made, Washington will watch closely to see whether Iraq complies. A refusal would be further reason to declare it in violation of UN rules.

Regarding a new UN resolution, sources said a text might not be formulated for several days, at the end of this week or during next week. Washington was still mired in trying to compose a draft that had the best chance of adoption in the Security Council against a background of resistance from a majority of members and the risk that three permanent members – France, Russia and China – might veto it.

Versions under consideration range from a short declaration that Iraq is in "further material breach" of its obligations to one setting a deadline for Baghdad to respond.

In the meantime, Britain is insisting that Council members be given up to two weeks to negotiate the final form of the resolution once it is tabled. In any event, serious negotiations are unlikely to begin until after 28 February, when Mr Blix is expected to submit a new report.