IRAQ: The European Union has stepped up its opposition to a hasty attack on Iraq, saying war is not inevitable and that more information from weapons inspectors is necessary to justify any attack.
But the Commission revealed that it has already discussed contingency plans to provide humanitarian aid and to assist in the rebuilding of Iraq in the aftermath of war.
Speaking in Athens at the announcement of the programme for the Greek presidency, the Commission President, Mr Romano Prodi, said the EU should forge a common policy to avert war.
"War is not and must not be inevitable. We all have to do everything we can to find a peaceful resolution," he said.
Earlier, the EU's foreign policy chief, Mr Javier Solana, told Le Monde newspaper in Paris that it was for the UN Security Council to determine whether weapons inspectors found enough evidence against President Saddam Hussein to justify an attack on Iraq.
"Without proof, it would be very difficult to start a war. The legitimacy of such a war will be determined by the Security Council. The weapons inspectors derive their legitimacy from the council so if there is not any information deemed sufficient by the Security Council, I would not comprehend, I would find it very difficult to act," he said.
Mr Solana added it would be necessary to show that Iraq had more than just the potential to produce weapons of mass destruction. "Potentiality does not justify war," he said.
An EU mission headed by the Greek Foreign Minister, Mr George Papandreou, plans to visit Arab states in the coming weeks to encourage them to mediate between Iraq and the United States.
The Greek Prime Minister, Mr Costas Simitis, said he would work to find a common EU position on Iraq but he declined to say whether a war was now more or less likely.
"No one can tell now if there will be a war. We don't want a war. Our view is that the Security Council must again deal with this issue with the facts at hand," he said.
There are currently four EU member-states on the UN Security Council - France and Britain, which are permanent members, and Germany and Spain, which have just begun two-year terms on the council. A policy change by Germany means that all four countries now believe a new Security Council resolution is necessary to launch a war against Iraq.
The German Chancellor, Mr Gerhard Schröder, told members of his Social Democratic Party yesterday that a new resolution was necessary, contradicting remarks by Germany's ambassador to the UN. The German government is divided over the issue, with the Foreign Minister, Mr Joschka Fischer, fearing that the need for a new resolution could put Germany in a difficult position, in view of Berlin's stated opposition to war against Iraq.
Despite his insistence that war is not inevitable, Mr Prodi confirmed yesterday that the Commission this week discussed a contingency plan in the event of an attack on Iraq.
"There are funds available for humanitarian aid in Iraq. We have contingency plans in case of war in order to bring relief," he said.
