THE United States is threatening to open a new rift with the United Nations by bypassing international sanctions to kickstart the rebuilding of Iraq.

If the UN Security Council fails to lift the trade embargo imposed on Iraq in 1990, the US would simply ignore it, under plans being pushed in Washington.

Officials at the Pentagon argue that sanctions are preventing American companies from importing the equipment that they need to reconstruct the country. Jay Garner, the retired general overseeing the first phase of postwar transition, has blamed the constraints imposed by UN sanctions for fuelling Iraqi anger against US forces.

However, Colin Powell, the US Secretary of State, is urging caution on the White House against forcing another showdown at the UN. He regards the issue as a vehicle for the US to make peace with its Security Council allies, such as France and Russia, with whom ties became strained during the run-up to war. France and Russia have said that sanctions cannot be fully lifted until Iraq is verifiably clear of weapons of mass destruction, part of the reason that they were imposed. The issue is expected to come to a head in the coming weeks when the US tables a resolution calling for sanctions to be lifted.

Bechtel, the giant Californian company awarded a contract to rebuild Iraqi infrastructure worth up to $680 million (£423 million), is limited to assessing the state of the country’s power plants and electrical grid. The transmitters that it would need to import to start work are banned under UN sanctions, as are a host of other essential materials, ranging from dynamite to water pumps.

By making clear that the White House is considering ignoring the UN, the US hopes to force France and Russia to back off. Part of the calculation is that both countries will not want to be seen to be standing in the way of the reconstruction of Iraq, putting legal issues ahead of aid.

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