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Iraq's arms data

incomplete: Ekeus

UNITED NATIONS: Rolf Ekeus, the Head of U.N. special commission on Iraqi disarmament, said Iraq's weapons' declarations fell short in accounting for biological warfare agents as well as any weapons programme to deliver them.

He told a news conference his inspectors were still missing five tons of growth media used to make biological warfare agents.

In addition, he said Iraq had not admitted programmes for "weaponization" of how these agents were to be delivered.

But he gave no estimate of when he would complete his probe on the biological weapons, the last major arms demand.

Diplomats said he was sending a team to Baghdad again later this month. A clean bill of health by Ekeus means the Security Council must consider seriously lifting the oil embargo, which is linked to weapons demands.

"There are still shortcomings in the Iraqi declarations especially on the production side," he said.

Ekeus also repeated Iraqi statements that the council had to lift the oil embargo by August 31 or it would not cooperate with the commission.-Reuter