The newspaper interprets Washington’s latest initiative as a climb-down by the Bush administration. Washington made no secret of its contempt for the UN after the failed attempt to secure a Security Council resolution authorizing war. After the downfall of Saddam Hussein, the Security Council unanimously agreed to a US call for all sanctions against Iraq to be lifted and granted America and Britain unfettered powers to run the country. But as the security situation has deteriorated, France and Germany may feel they now have enough strength to take on the United States in a new round of diplomatic arm-wrestling, the Daily Telegraph reports.

In this situation, Britain will resume its familiar role of trying to bridge the gap at the UN, the newspaper continues. However, according to it, this won’t be easy. The Daily Telegraph quotes its source in the Whitehall as saying that "changing the political structure of the authority is too high a price to pay for a resolution". The bargaining may eventually be decided by Russia, in the opinion of the newspaper. Moscow at first lined up with Paris and Berlin in opposing the war but in recent days has sent supportive signals to America, it says.

Meanwhile, the Iraq Governing Council made clear that it opposed the deployment of peacekeeping troops from Turkey and other neighboring states. "We don't want such interventions to happen because they will further complicate" efforts to restore order, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari was quoted as saying.

However, the US thinks Turkish troops should be deployed in Iraq. According to the Associated Press, this issue was discussed at a meeting of Turkish and American diplomats on Thursday.

Russia to send peacekeepers to Iraq only after UN authorisation - minister
Germany, France reject US draft