Annan Sets Conditions for Iraqi Arms Talks

U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan told Iraq on Tuesday that the organization’s chief weapons inspector could go to Baghdad for talks only if discussions focused on practical arrangements for inspections, which have been barred for nearly four years.

Though Annan did not turn down Iraq’s invitation for chief inspector Hans Blix to visit, he listed U.N. Security Council conditions for doing so in a letter to Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri, who last week invited Blix to Baghdad for technical talks.

At issue is Iraq’s insistence that the talks focus on a joint evaluation of what remains to be done in investigating its nuclear, chemical, biological and ballistic weapons programs.

But a 1999 Security Council resolution says the inspectors cannot determine unresolved tasks until they are back on the ground to see what has happened since they left in December 1998.

In his letter, Annan said Blix had to be guided by council resolutions.