LONDON, March 26 - British Prime Minister Tony Blair flies to Washington on Wednesday for a war council with President George W. Bush, eager to convince his ally that the United Nations must play a central role in post-war Iraq. Washington said on Tuesday it was trying to determine what kind of role should be played by the U.N., which is deeply divided over the U.S.-led war to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. But Blair said he was confident the U.N. Security Council would come together to pass a second resolution on aid, reconstruction and a future administration for Iraq. "It is common ground between us that the United Nations has got to be involved in post-conflict Iraq," Blair told a London news conference on the eve of his departure. "I can assure you that it is our desire to ensure that the U.N. are centrally involved." Blair will meet U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan in New York after his Camp David talks with Bush.
Annan said on Tuesday that any U.N. role after the war beyond relief assistance would have to be decided by the Security Council. But the Council is still haggling over restarting the U.N. oil-for-food programme for Iraq, with the politics of war stalling agreement on a resolution. Diplomats said Russia, France, China and Syria, staunch opponents of the war, were wary of a resolution that would have the United Nations coordinate efforts with U.S. and British troops and thereby legitimise the military action.
In Washington, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell said U.S. officials were trying to determine "what kind of role should be played by the U.N., what authorities are needed, how to do it in a way that will make sure that the gains of the coalition military action are harvested." Blair acknowledged the deep rift between the United States and Europe, where France and Germany are implacably opposed to war. But he said he hoped ties could be restored. "There is no point in hiding it -- this has thrown up a profound issue about the nature of the transatlantic alliance," he said. "I think most people when they really sit down and reflect upon the interests of Europe, they would regard the idea of sacrificing the transatlantic alliance as madness. Because it would be absolute madness."
Blair has gambled his political future on a war that has divided his party and country. The latest opinion poll in the Daily Telegraph newspaper on Wednesday showed that any early euphoria had faded. Support for the campaign remained steady but the proportion of Britons who believe the war was going very or fairly well has dropped sharply over the past 48 hours from 84 to 71 percent.//