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Arabs forge compromise draft declaration on Iraq
( 2003-03-01 09:40 ) (7 )

Arab foreign ministers forged a compromise draft declaration on Friday opposing war against Iraq, but it was unlikely to halt a U.S. military build-up in the Gulf, including in several Arab states.

The draft communique, to be presented to Arab leaders for approval during their one-day summit on Saturday, emerged after two days of diplomatic wrangling between foreign ministers of the 22-member Arab League.

"It does send a message to all concerned that we cannot support a military action against Iraq and that we are for the full implementation of Security Council resolutions," Arab League Secretary General Amr Moussa told reporters.

He said the draft had been unanimously approved.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher said the draft "sends a message of peace, a message of Arab solidarity, a message of the necessity for the whole world to cooperate with us in avoiding a military confrontation."

Maher and Moussa declined to confirm details of the draft until it was presented for approval to the summit, but delegates said earlier it would include a rejection of a strike against Iraq as well as a possible call on Arab states to refrain from participating in a war.

The phrasing cited by the delegates would be a compromise between states who host U.S. troops and their critics, who want to deny Washington use of any facilities in the event of war.

Arab leaders will pore over the document and could still make amendments before announcing what they hope will be a unified stance aimed at averting war in the volatile region.

But their work is cut out for them.

SUMMIT UNLIKELY TO PREVENT WAR

Analysts say they doubt the summit could help prevent war, arguing that Arab states lack the leverage to influence either Iraq or the United States, even if they can paper over differences among the deeply divided members who range from U.S. allies to states Washington accuses of sponsoring terrorism.

While Arab states oppose war, analysts say they have made clear they would not use the oil weapon to pressure Washington. Nor, analysts say, would traditional U.S. allies who rely on Washington's support and protection try to exert influence by taking the domestically popular step of kicking out U.S. troops.

Some Gulf states, such as Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain, host U.S. forces and are seen as springboards for any invasion. U.S. troops have also been in Saudi Arabia since the 1991 Gulf War.

Summit host Egypt, a major U.S. aid recipient, has spoken out against war but has increasingly put the onus of averting a crisis on Baghdad. Syria, which Washington says sponsors terrorism, has strongly opposed a war on its doorstep, saying U.S. targets in the Middle East extend beyond Baghdad.

Earlier on Friday, Arab foreign ministers dismissed a U.S. suggestion that their leaders should urge President Saddam Hussein to resign, saying they wanted to search for peace, not meddle in Iraq's affairs.

"If you start telling me that to avoid war you have to start changing leaders, that certainly would be an innovation in international law that I am not aware of," Egypt's Maher said.