"The inspection is not a prelude to war, it is an alternative to war and that is what we want to achieve," Blix

BAGHDAD, January 19 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – As Washington intensified efforts with U.N. Security Council member states to secure a second resolution authorizing war on Iraq, in case one is needed, chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix Sunday, January 19, returned to Baghdad for critical talks.

Upon arrival in Baghdad, Blix said that war against Iraq was not inevitable but called for active Iraqi cooperation, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"We have been to a number of capitals: Brussels, Paris, London. We do not think war is inevitable," Blix told reporters.

"We think that the inspection process is a peaceful alternative. It requires comprehensive inspections and a very active Iraqi cooperation," he said after flying in with U.N. nuclear watchdog head Mohammad El-Baradei.

"The inspection is not a prelude to war, it is an alternative to war and that is what we want to achieve. We are not here to humiliate or to insult, we are here to inspect in the best correct manner," Blix said.

El-Baradei stressed the timing of the trip was "very important ... critical".

"We would like to see the inspections work and for that to work we need a lot of additional information, and we are going to impress on our Iraqi counterparts the importance of providing as much information, as much documents, as much physical evidence as possible.

"This will help greatly before we submit our report next week to the Security Council," on January 27, he said, asserting that "it's in Iraq's interest to present us evidence so that we can present positive reports."

"The importance of the visit is that it is a direct eye-to-eye contact. A possibility to discuss with the Iraqis what they need to be doing, particularly in advance of the 27th of January," IAEA spokeswoman Melissa Fleming elaborated.

"We need to see a demonstration of a change of course on the side of the Iraqis, a shift from passive cooperation to active cooperation. This message will be delivered directly to them today," she said.

Blix, head of the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, and El-Baradei, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, were to have a series of meetings with Iraqi officials before leaving Monday afternoon.

U.N. spokesman Hiro Ueki said they would meet Foreign Ministry officials in charge of disarmament issues at 1300 GMT.

 Powell Intensifies Meetings Ahead of Security Council Meeting
   
In New York, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was to meet Sunday, January 20, with his Chinese, French and Mexican counterparts ahead of a U.N. Security Council ministerial meeting.

Powell also planned to hold private talks before and after Monday's special council meeting with the foreign ministers of Bulgaria, Germany, Russia and Spain, whose countries hold seats in the Security Council.

The topics of the private discussions are likely to vary depending on the minister, but Iraq and North Korea are expected to dominate the agenda.

With French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin, Powell is expected to discuss Ivory Coast peace efforts.

With new Mexican Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez, Powell will also discuss mediating the current political crisis in Venezuela.

Political observers, however, believe that Powell's top priority is garnering support for a second resolution on Iraq, should Washington deem the situation too risky to go it alone against Baghdad.

Massive global anti-war demonstrations may force the Bush administration to reconsider its plans to strike, even without a clear go-ahead from the world community, according to analysts.