Berlin, Feb 10: The UN Security Council is discussing an alternative to military action against Iraq based on proposals by French foreign minister Dominique de
Villepin on February 5, a German spokesman said today.
Government spokesman Bela Anda stressed that "there is no
Franco-German plan and these ideas are being thought over by
all the members of the UN Security Council."
The proposals were being discussed with "all the members
of the Security Council," Anda said. Germany is the current
head of the Council.
The weekly Der Spiegel reported a "secret" Franco-German
plan in today's edition, which it said could include sending
UN peacekeepers in to Iraq, tripling the number of UN weapons
inspectors and turning the whole of the country into a no-fly
zone.
Anda said France and Germany had been discussing "common
ideas" to reinforce the work of UN weapons inspectors in Iraq
and sanctions against President Saddam Hussein's regime.
He said that the idea of sending peacekeepers to Iraq
had been around for a long time.
"Whether a deployment happens and the number of
peacekeepers involved would depend essentially" on the
Security Council and on the needs of the UN weapons
inspectors, he said.
Speaking in Afghanistan earlier today, German defence
minister Peter Struck denied reports that the proposals
envisaged deploying peacekeepers.
"It's a question of increasing the number of UN
disarmament inspectors present in Iraq," struck said on a
visit to the afghan capital Kabul.
Bureau Report
