Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz today rejected the unconditional return of UN weapons inspectors as demanded by the United States, saying the move would not avert US military designs on Baghdad.
"We do not accept President Bush's conditions," Mr Aziz told the Dubai-based Arab satellite television station MBC in an interview.
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"The return of inspectors without conditions will not solve the problem...we have had a bad experience with them. Is it clever to repeat an experience that failed and did not prevent aggression?"
UN weapons inspectors responsible for accounting for Iraq's nuclear, chemical, biological and ballistic weapons were pulled out of Iraq in December 1998 on the eve of US and British bombing raids and have not been allowed to return.
"Is the great diplomacy they are talking about to delay US aggression four or five months and then for it to take place after the inspectors had returned?" Mr Aziz said.
US President George W Bush told the United Nations General Assembly yesterday that unspecified action against Iraq would be inevitable unless the UN forced Baghdad to eliminate weapons of mass destruction.
But a report earlier in the week by International Institute of Strategic Studies says that even with extensive foreign assistance, it would take Iraq "at least several years" to produce fissile material to build a nuclear weapon.
"President Bush wants to dominate Iraq, President Bush want's Iraq's oil, President Bush wants to protect Israel from Arabs," Mr Aziz added.
Asked about Iraq's military ability to fight off a massive air assault, Mr Aziz said Iraq had an edge over superior US military power because its soldiers would be defending their own turf.
"Every person when he is in his home and country and is exposed to an attack has the means to defend himself more than when he goes outside and fights others," he said.