Annan: U.S. attack without U.N. illegal

United Nations chief Kofi Annan warned yesterday that the U.S. would be flouting international law if it engaged in military action against Iraq without a Security Council mandate.

"If the U.S. goes outside the Security Council, it will not be in conformity with the U.N. charter," he said, according to the Australian Associated Press.

Annan said that if the U.S. acts without U.N. sanction, "the legitimacy of such military action will be seriously impaired."

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"War must always be the last resort," he said. "The United Nations has a duty to search to the very end for a peaceful solution."

The secretary general insisted that the U.N. would not be sidelined if the U.S. decides on its own to attack Iraq.

"Whichever way this conflict is resolved, the United Nations will have an important role to play," he said.

Annan noted that the U.N. has been involved in the reconstruction of Kosovo since the campaign by the U.S. and NATO.

The U.N. leader's comments came amid talks aimed at ending the three-decade dispute in Cyprus.

Annan said the peace efforts on the Mediterranean island have been "overshadowed by the atmosphere of crisis and great anxiety that is affecting the whole world over Iraq."

"This has brought the international community to a dangerous point of division and discord," he said.

But with "goodwill and determination," the Security Council could regain unity as it has before in times of discord, Annan contended.