Moscow, Sept 07: Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov has reached agreement with France and Germany on the need of greater participation by the United Nations in Iraq, Russian officials said today. While short on detail, communiques issued by the ministry indicated that the three key members of the UN Security Council would jointly oppose US attempts to create a multilateral force in Iraq that ruled out an important role for the United Nations. The ministry said Ivanov and foreign minister Dominique De Villepin had discussed the Iraq situation in a telephone call during which they reaffirmed "a central role" for the UN in the process.

Likewise, Ivanov and German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer agreed on a common approach, including the importance of "a more active role for the United Nations." Earlier, both President Jacques Chirac of France and Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder of Germany warned that a proposal put before the Security Council by the United States did not go far enough in pledging a return to power by the Iraqis and a greater role for the united nations in the stabilization process.
BR> Ivanov said on Friday that the US proposal seeking contributions to a multilateral force and more finances for reconstruction work needed to "seriously reworked" to include a Central role for the United Nations. Bureau Report