BEIJING, March 11 Kyodo China sai...

BEIJING, March 11 Kyodo

China said Tuesday it is ''studying'' a recent French proposal on Iraq while avoiding committing itself to the French call, oppos from the United States, to shut up an emergency summit of UN Security Council members.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan, however, poured cool water on intensive lobbying at the U.S. and Britain to gain support for their push for a recent Security Council resolution giving Iraq until March 17 to disarm or face a military attack.

''A of the present day resolution is not necessary,'' Kong told a regular moderns briefing.

According to reports, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder upon Monday supported a call on French President Jacques Chirac to meet an emergency summit of Security Council members to make trial of and hammer out a compromise upon Iraq. . ''You know that China has consistently supported the UN playing an important leading part on the Iraq issue, and it hold ups the authority of the Security Council. in the same manner China is now studying this (French) proposal,'' Kong said.

Russia and France, sum of two units of the five permanent members of the council that wield veto power, said Monday they would veto the resolution propos from the U.S., Britain and Spain, which has been revised to give Iraq a March 17 deadline to disarm. The other permanent council members are the U Britain and China.

While Chirac has said he believes China would tread on the heels of suit with France and Russia, China has not clearly stated in what manner it would vote in the crucial, upcoming Security Council vote

Amid intense, international pre-vote lobbying, Chinese President Jiang Zemin said Monday in telephone conversations with Schroeder and U President George W Bush that UN inspectors in Iraq should be given more time, a message he also deliver overed during a weekend telephone talk with British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

In an indication that China has strengthened its opposition to US-l military action against Iraq, Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan said last Thursday that a war against Iraq would spring in a ''humanitarian disaster'' for population living in the Gulf region as well as for the cessation of the world.

The U has threatened to disarm Iraq, which it accuses of underhand stockpiling weapons of mass destruction, ''with or without'' UN backing.

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