The United Nations chief weapons inspector Dr Hans Blix has told the Security Council in New York there was no evidence Iraq had weapons of mass destruction, but that some items remained unaccounted for.
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Dr Hans Blix speaking at the United Nations Security Council
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Delivering a crucial report Dr Blix said he could not say how many weapons of mass destruction, if any, Iraq had, saying he had only found so far a small number of empty chemical munitions.
"One must not jump to the conclusion that they exist," Dr Blix said. "However, that possibility is also not excluded. If they exist, they should be presented for destruction. If they do not exist, credible evidence to that effect should be presented."
He said the time needed to disarm Iraq through inspections could still be "short" as long as Baghdad co-operates effectively.
"The period of disarmament through inspection could still be short, if immediate, active and unconditional cooperation ... were to be forthcoming," he said.
Dr Blix also cast doubt on some intelligence submitted by US Secretary of State Colin Powell.
He questioned a section of Mr Powell's evidence to the Security Council on Feb. 5th, saying that two satellite images shown in his presentation did not prove that Iraq was clearing the site of forbidden munitions.
"The reported movement of munitions at the site could just as easily have been a routine activity as a movement of proscribed munitions in anticipation of an imminent inspection," Dr Blix said.
Hours before the inspectors were due to speak, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein issued a decree banning the import and production of weapons of mass destruction, which will be followed up by legislation.
This had been requested by the council for a decade and more recently by Dr Blix, along with U-2 spy plane overflights and private interviews with scientists, which Baghdad has already conceded.
Dr Blix went on to say that an arms declaration submitted by Iraq in December omitted data needed to account for past stocks of anthrax, the nerve agent VX as well as on long-range missiles
"Although I can understand that it may not be easy for Iraq in all cases to provide the evidence needed, it is not the task of the inspectors to find it," he said. "Iraq itself must squarely tackle this task and avoid belittling the questions."
He added that "many proscribed weapons and items" believed to be held by Iraq have not yet been accounted for, but that did not necessarily meant they still existed.
French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin immediately told the Council inspections needed more time. "The use of force is not justified at this time. There is an alternative to war - disarming Iraq through inspections," he said.
On missiles, Dr Blix said Iraq had tested missiles beyond the range permitted by Security Council resolution. He did not say his inspectors would destroy them but he would speak to Iraqi authorities about his determination.
A panel of six independent experts Dr Blix organised this week determined that Iraq's Al Samoud 2 missile project is illegal because its range exceeds the 93-mile (150 km) limit first set down in a 1991 Security Council resolution.
France, Russia and China, who have veto power in the permanent 15-member Council, as well as Germany and other members, want to increase inspections, triple the number of arms experts and send in UN security guards to "freeze" suspected sites.