Russia steered onto a collision course with the United States today a warning it may use its power of veto in the UN ecurity Council to block any resolution paving the way for war on Iraq.
Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov also appealed for UN weapons inspectors in Iraq to be allowed to set their own deadline for verifying disarmament by President Saddam Hussein.
In a BBC World Service interview during a visit to London, Mr Ivanov insisted Moscow would not support any measure furthering the possibility of war, nor abstain in any future UN Security Council vote on Iraq.
"If the situation so demands, Russia will of course use its right of veto - as an extreme measure - to avoid the worst development of the situation," Mr Ivanov said. "Russia would not support any decision that would directly or indirectly lead to a war with Iraq."
Mr Ivanov said Russia, which like China, France and Germany opposes the hawkish stance of Washington and London against Saddam, would not abstain in any future UN vote.
"Russia is not indifferent to the future of Iraq," he said. "Russia will not abstain. It will take a particular position."
Prior to the 1991 Gulf War, Moscow sent envoys to try and persuade Saddam to withdraw from Kuwait peacefully, but ultimately backed the coalition that chased his troops out. The foreign minister, who was meeting his British counterpart Mr Jack Straw for talks today, said it would be a "serious mistake with serious consequences" if the United States went to war against Iraq without a second UN resolution.
Asked about Mr Ivanov's tough comments, British Prime Minister Tony Blair's official spokesman did not try to hide differences but said UN countries which unanimously agreed resolution 1441, giving Saddam a last chance to disarm, had to follow up on that.
"I don't think his words today are any great surprise," he said. "No one is pretending all 15 countries on the Security Council are in the same place on this...But countries have to confront at some point what they've signed up to."