[Carol Costello, Cnn Anchor:] To the heated matter of Iraq now. Let's get an early briefing on this looming showdown. The Pentagon is ordering a dozen missile firing navy warships from the Mediterranean into the Red Sea. The White House is backing off demanding a vote today on a new resolution before the U.N. Security Council. That resolution would authorize war if Baghdad refuses to disarm. And former President Bill Clinton says disarmament without war is the right way to go. The White House says there just may not be a vote at all in the Security Council, though, over the latest resolution. Our senior U.N. correspondent Richard Roth has more on the diplomatic squabbling.
[Richard Roth, Cnn Correspondent:] The search for a compromise here at the Security Council goes on, but prospects remain dim. [voice-over]: British Ambassador Sir Jeremy Greenstock spent hours trying to convince uncommitted delegates about the British benchmarks, those ideas that Saddam Hussein would go along with testing his cooperation in order to avoid military action. However, the uncommitted delegates were rather low key and unenthusiastic inside the Security Council. They now want to work on their own ideas, including possible talks over the weekend. The United States did put off a possible vote on Friday, but it doesn't seem like Washington wants to give the British proposals that much more time. The French, the Russians, the Chinese are still opposed to the existing resolution on the table, the one with the March 17th deadline for Iraq to obey. Richard Roth, CNN, United Nations.
[Costello:] And we turn now to Baghdad for reaction to the U.N. squabbling as the clock ticks towards war. Our Rym Brahimi is in the Iraqi capital and joins us live good morning, Rym.
[Rym Brahimi, Cnn Correspondent:] Good morning to you, Carol. Well, today is the day when Iraq is expected to hand over to the United Nations a report on the V.X. that it destroyed in, that it says it destroyed in '91. The report being a detail on how they can actually measure and prove the quantities of V.X. that Iraq says they destroyed in 1991. A similar report on anthrax is expected to be handed over also by the Iraqis in the next few days. Now, inspections have continued today despite the death yesterday in a car accident of one inspector. About five teams went out today to various sites, including to the site where the Al Samoud 2 missiles have been destroyed almost every single day in the past two weeks. They're now up to something like 61 Al Samoud missiles destroyed. That's about half of the number of believed Al Samoud missiles that Iraq has. At the mosque today, it's Friday. It's a Muslim day of rest. At the mosque the sermon broadcast on Iraqi TV. The preacher was calling on Americans to rise up against President Bush, saying that signs of victory for Iraq are near because the Americans have managed to, have not managed to unify the members of the United Nations Security Council. Similar criticism here in this newspaper, Carol, a newspaper called "Al Iraq." Today an article saying that the United States has not even managed to maintain any form of credibility at the United Nations Security Council. The article asks, "Does the U.S. seriously think that the leaflets it's dropping over Iraq will affect the morale of the Jihad fighters?" Carol.
[Costello:] Rym Brahimi reporting live from Baghdad this morning.