Britain and France in War of words.

BRITAIN and France were embroiled in a new row about Iraq last night at the European Union summit in Brussels.

A war over words broke out when the French insisted on dropping from a new EU resolution on the crisis any reference to United Nations Security Council Resolution 1441.

Prime Minister Tony Blair agreed to that - but he put his foot down when French President Chirac also tried to remove a paragraph reaffirming that the EU's objective remained Iraq's ``full and effective'' disarmament.

Backed by Spain and Austria,Mr Blair said the words were staying in - and they did. To appease Mr Chirac the sensitive words were moved further down the text and last night the Prime Minister's official spokesman refused to confirm whether Mr Blair and President Chirac had spoken to each other at all..

He insisted there was ``a lot of support'' for the UK's position on Iraq, and emphasised that the French refusal to countenance any reference to 1441 did not square with the country's agreement to the resolution in the first place.

The final EU declaration last night said the transatlantic partnerships remained a ``fundamental strategic priority'' for the European Union.

Opinion - Page 8