Germany Friday dismissed US President George W. Bush's call for a second United Nations resolution on Iraq, saying a new resolution is "not necessary for the moment" and that UN arms inspectors must be allowed to continue their work in Iraq.
A government spokesman told a regular government conference in Berlin that Germany did not think a fresh vote was needed.
The spokesman's words came one day after Bush said he would "welcome and support" such a vote.
The spokesman also played down US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's remarks likening Germany's opposition to a US-led war on Iraq to the positions of Cuba and Libya, saying his words "do not do justice" to Germany's stance.
Although Germany has pledged fly-over rights and freedom of movement for US forces based in the country, yet as a strong opponent of possible US-led war against Iraq, the country has ruled out involvement in any military strike.
Rumsfeld's remarks Wednesday put Germany in the same category as Libya and Cuba as nations that had ruled out a role in any attack on Iraq, which the United States has accused of harboring weapons of mass destruction.
(People’s Daily February 8, 2003)
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