Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said Thursday that Moscow's position on Iraq remained unchanged following US Secretary of State Colin Powell's speech outlining Iraq's alleged weapons program.
"On the contrary, based on the results of yesterday's meeting of the UN Security Council, we believe that the position, under which Iraqi question is settled in strict accordance with the Security Council resolution, is correct," Ivanov told a news conference after talks with Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz.
"There are all necessary possibilities for a political settlement," he said, adding that a first analysis of Powell's statement did not appear to show that Iraq possesses weapons of mass destruction.
Powell on Wednesday presented tape recordings, satellite photos and informants' statements to the Security Council to prove his case that Iraq has defied international demands to disarm.
"We will wait for the results of work by the international inspectors, who must verify this information," said Ivanov.
(Xinhua News Agency February 7, 2003)
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