German Chancellor Mr Gerhard Schröder told Iraq yesterday to implement the UN resolution on disarmament "letter by letter" but reiterated that German troops would not take part in US-led attacks if Baghdad refused.
Mr Schröder, on a visit to Oslo, said that the UN resolution gave a chance for peace.
"It is crucial that the arms inspectors move in as soon as possible and that the UN Security Council resolution is. . .implemented letter by letter," he told reporters after meeting Norwegian Prime Minister Mr Kjell Magne Bondevik.
"I very much hope that we use. . .this chance towards a peaceful resolution of the problem in this part of the world," he said, adding: "We now do have this chance." He made clear that he had not softened his position on refusing to take part in any US-led strikes on Iraq despite the new UN resolution and a phone call with President. Bush last week to end a two-month chill in ties.
Mr Schröder gained support in Germany and a re-election victory in September in part by opposing US threats to attack Iraq, once saying he would not take part in a military "adventure".
"Before the election and thereafter I have always said that Germany is not going to participate. I am very much sticking to that wording," he said yesterday.
Mr Schröder also said that Germany was already doing its bit in the global fight against terrorism.
He said Germany's annual funding for peacekeeping topped €2 billion a year and that Germany was the second-largest contributor of troops in crisis zones from the Balkans to Afghanistan after the United States.
Mr Bondevik said the Security Council resolution had given Iraq a "final possibility to comply with disarmament obligations and resolve the issue peacefully." Commenting on the recommendation by a key Iraqi parliamentary official that the Iraqi Assembly reject the UN resolution, Mr Bondevik said: "Everyone knows that Saddam Hussein decides in Baghdad, not parliament." Mr Schröder and Mr Bondevik are also due to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin today.