UNITED NATIONS - Seeking U.N. approval for war, the United States and key allies Britain and Spain submitted a resolution Monday to the Security Council declaring Saddam Hussein (news - web sites) has missed "the final opportunity" to disarm and indicating he must now face the consequences.
But France, Russia and Germany, which oppose the military option, circulated an alternative plan to pursue a peaceful disarmament of Iraq through strengthened inspections over at least the next five months. Their memorandum won immediate backing from China, despite Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites)'s lobbying efforts with top officials in Beijing on Monday.
The rival positions set the stage for a heated battle over whether the council would back the U.S. and British demand for war now or the French, Russian, and German call for war to be "a last resort." The council decided to hold another closed meeting to discuss the two proposals on Thursday.
The showdown heightened fears of war, with Wall Street posting its biggest decline in a month Monday after a day of light trading.
