The US has launched a worldwide diplomatic drive to head off the calling of an emergency session of the UN General Assembly to condemn the war on Iraq, diplomats said yesterday.
The group of non-aligned nations at the UN met earlier this week to consider convening a special session of the 191-nation assembly to denounce the US.
But the group of 166 countries, led currently by Malaysia, failed to agree on whether to go ahead after some argued action was premature as the war had not yet begun, diplomats said.
No new meeting of the group has been set since the invasion began. But "there are a lot of countries talking about that," said Syria's UN ambassador Mr Mikhail Wehbe.
Envoys attributed the disarray among the non-aligned to US diplomatic muscle and said many countries feared offending Washington. "The United States is putting pressure on many countries to resist," said General Assembly president Mr Jan Kavan of the Czech Republic.
US diplomats were opposing a special assembly session and - if that failed - a vote against a resolution condemning the US, Mr Kavan said.
In Washington, a State Department official confirmed the US was making its case that an emergency session "would not serve the interests of the United Nations".
"We do feel that we have a convincing case [for not calling a session\] but the situation is still fluid," the official said.
Unlike the Security Council, whose resolutions can be binding under international law, the General Assembly can make only political statements expressing the sense of the international community. But an assembly resolution criticising the war would nonetheless be highly embarrassing to Washington and London.
Despite US efforts, Mr Kavan said he thought it "very likely" although "not a certainty" that a special session would be called as early as next week. If no session was called or a resolution defeated, "it would be a very clear victory for the United States".
There are several avenues open at the United Nations to opponents of the attack on Iraq. A UN member could request a special session, which would require an assembly vote to go forward. Or a UN member could notify Mr Kavan that the Security Council was deadlocked on the Iraq issue. He would then consult all UN members and would be obliged to convene an emergency session if a majority of its members - at least 96 nations - gave their consent.