White House Finds Russia a Tough Customer on Iraq

President Bush urged Russia’s top officials both in telephone calls and in person Friday to support a stringent U.N. resolution against Iraq but apparently found little success in softening their resistance.

Russian Foreign Minister Igor S. Ivanov did emphasize that Moscow agrees Baghdad must comply with U.N. Security Council demands that international inspectors be permitted a free rein to search for biological, chemical and nuclear weapons.

Privately, a senior Russian official said Friday: “I will tell you frankly that if the United States decides to use force against Iraq, we can do nothing to stop it. Our main goal is the elimination or clarifying the situation around weapons of mass destruction, and in this regard we are ready for full cooperation. If we fail to reach agreement in this particular matter, we must do our best to ensure that this does not endanger the positive direction of U.S.-Russian relations.”

But it appeared that Bush made no headway in gaining support for a tough new resolution that would authorize the use of force if Iraq does not quickly accede to thorough searches. Russia, as one of the five permanent members of the Security Council, can veto any council resolution.

The senior official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “What we don’t want is for someone to use a resolution [on use of force] for some different purposes, such as to change the regime there. This goes beyond any of the Security Council resolutions.”

Papering over the differences between Washington and Moscow, Ivanov told reporters outside the White House that “Russia and the United States firmly believe that the international U.N. inspectors must return to Iraq.”

At a news conference later, he suggested that Russia sees no need for a new United Nations resolution until renewed inspection efforts are given a chance.

The United States and Russia have a “common interest in reliable and comprehensive information on all problems associated with the alleged existence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq,” Ivanov said. “We believe that the best way to obtain this information is to ensure the return of international inspectors to Iraq and the beginning of their work.”

To counter Bush’s push for a tougher U.N. stance toward his regime, Iraqi President Saddam Hussein agreed Monday to allow weapons inspectors to return to his country without conditions.

Friday’s developments brought into focus the fluid relationship between Washington and Moscow, in which each finds itself a suitor. Russia is seeking a U.S. blessing for more aggressive action against Chechen rebels taking refuge in neighboring Georgia. The U.S. is trying to head off a Russian veto of a U.N. resolution to allow the use of force against Iraq if Hussein doesn’t completely open up his arsenals and weapons laboratories.

Bush spent 30 minutes on the telephone with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer said, and met in the Oval Office with Ivanov, the foreign minister, and Russian Defense Minister Sergei B. Ivanov.

Bush told Putin that the United Nations must pass resolutions that are “firm, that accomplish the goals of disarmament and don’t let Iraq avoid responsibility,” Fleischer said.

He said Bush was “encouraged” by the conversations and was “confident [about] the ultimate outcome” at the U.N.

Bush appeared receptive to Moscow’s concerns about the Chechens in Georgia, while stopping short of agreeing that Russia has the right to launch a preemptive attack on Georgian soil.

“The president stressed the importance of Russia protecting the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Georgia,” Fleischer said.

Bush is taking a series of diplomatic steps intended to bring recalcitrant members of the Security Council behind the U.S. position on Iraq. Britain has made clear its support. However, Bush has yet to obtain the full backing of the other three permanent members of the council: France, China and Russia.

Russia, which has significant economic interests in Iraq, wants assurances that they will be protected or compensated if the U.S.-led confrontation with Hussein results in war.

Russia’s chief concerns include a multibillion-dollar Iraqi debt from weapons sales and tens of billions in potential oil production contracts if the U.N. lifts economic sanctions. Moscow suspects that U.S. oil companies are eager to shove Russian oil interests aside and stake out territory for themselves in a post-Hussein Iraq.

Fleischer said, however, that the topic was not raised during Friday’s discussions.

Furthermore, just as the Russians sought after Sept. 11 to liken the Chechen rebels to Al Qaeda terrorists, they now see an analogy between Iraq and Chechen rebels in the Pankisi Gorge, a mountainous area in Georgia that Moscow says the rebels use for attacks on Russian soil.

At his news conference, Igor Ivanov said the situation in the Pankisi Gorge was a central topic of his discussion with Bush.

Ivanov said Putin “has already stressed very clearly that if actions of terrorists from Georgia against Russia continue, Russia reserves the right, relying on the provisions of Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, to take any necessary actions to block the activities of these terrorists.”

But for now, the foreign minister said, Russia will continue to “use all diplomatic and political means” to resolve the conflict.