Ahern to face FF opposition over support for US-led war

national | miscellaneous | news report Wednesday February 19, 2003 15:44 by bertie boy

From todays Irish Times, the pressure is payting off

The Taoiseach will face opposition from some of his own backbenchers today to his leaving open the prospect of supporting a US-led war on Iraq that did not have a UN mandate, write Mark Brennock and Conor O'Clery, in New York

There were some signs of unease among backbenchers last night, as the Fianna Fáil parliamentary party prepared to debate the issue today. Several deputies said the size of the anti-war demonstration in Dublin last Saturday had caused them concern.

Mr John McGuinness TD, said he would not support unilateral action and "we would have to rethink the use of Shannon" if the US launched its own war. Dún Laoghaire TD Mr Barry Andrews said he broadly supported that view but wanted to wait until after this morning's party meeting before talking about it.

In an interview broadcast on RTÉ's Prime Time last night, Mr Andrews' father, the former minister for foreign affairs, Mr David Andrews said: "I think that if Shannon was closed against the United States in the context of a unilateral attack on the people of Iraq, that it wouldn't damage us to any great extent.

"We should not be thinking in those terms: we should be thinking in moral terms."

The Government Chief Whip, Ms Mary Hanafin, confirmed that Mr Barry Andrews has tabled a motion for the meeting supporting a second UN resolution on Iraq.

Following sustained questioning from the Opposition in the Dáil yesterday, the Taoiseach said he had heard the views of the EU heads of state and government, the European Parliament and the UN Secretary General, Mr Kofi Annan, in Brussels on Monday night and "nobody is giving any end line positions, nor will they".

The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, told the Dáil last night that any unilateral US strike would be followed by a Dáil debate in which the Government would outline its position.

He said Ireland did not "wish" to see a military strike against Iraq without a second UN resolution. However, he did not say whether Ireland would oppose such action.

With the White House apparently prepared to give diplomacy just two more weeks before deciding on war, US and British diplomats have run into difficulties over the wording and timing of a new joint UN resolution authorising war if Iraq fails to disarm. A problem has arisen over the wording of an ultimatum to be delivered to Iraq in the resolution and how long President Saddam Hussein should be given to comply with UN disarmament demands.

Asked if he planned to set an ultimatum for Iraq's compliance with UN resolutions, US President George W. Bush suggested yesterday that would be pointless, like extending "another, another, another last chance".

However, US officials say that one option the two governments are considering is a demand for "actual disarmament" by Iraq within a specified number of days.

The UK is pushing for the inclusion of a detailed ultimatum in the resolution "with tasks Iraq has to do and comply with by a certain date", according to diplomatic sources at the UN. "If not done by the deadline, then the resolution would say serious consequences will flow."

One of the tests would be whether Iraq would agreed to the immediate destruction of its stocks of Samoud missiles, which UN weapons inspectors found exceeded the UN-permitted range of 150 kilometres. Hawks in the US administration are reported to be concerned that if President Hussein moved to meet such conditions, the US would be left to go it alone against Baghdad.

A spokeswoman for the British mission at the UN said "nothing is certain" but that a resolution would likely be circulated by the end of this week. White House spokesman Mr Ari Fleischer said, "it could be this week, it could be next". Mr Fleischer also said a new resolution "is not mandatory", referring to the US fall-back claim that Resolution 1441 passed in November already gives legal sanction for the use of force.

There was no immediate Government response last night to reports of an imminent second resolution. A spokesman said he could not say what the Coalition's attitude would be until they knew what any new resolution said.

Government "will stick" with