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'Inconsistencies seen in Iraqi declaration'

UNITED NATIONS DEC. 19. Iraq's weapons declaration contained ``inconsistencies'' and left many questions unanswered, the chief United Nations weapons inspector, Hans Blix, told the Security Council on Thursday.

According to a copy of Mr. Blix's remarks distributed after the meeting, Mr. Blix noted that in the biological area, a table, which Iraq submitted previously, was not included in the latest report. ``This table has been omitted from the current declaration and the reasons for the omission need to be explained,'' he said.

At a closed Security Council meeting, Mr. Blix and Mohamed El Baradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, provided the Council with initial assessments on the declaration. Mr. El Baradei said Iraq also needed to provide answers and evidence regarding Iraq's recent purchase of aluminium tubes. The top U.N. nuclear inspector also found little new in the 12,000-page declaration. The U.S. administration is denouncing gaps, omissions and other major troubles with the Iraqi weapons declaration, setting the United States on a course to possible war with the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, early next year.

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