Nato meets to heal Iraq rifts after training deal

Nato leaders gathered yesterday to repair relations torn by the Iraq war, buoyed by a likely deal on training Iraqi troops but struggling to equip their transatlantic alliance for emerging security threats.

"We are going to work together to help make sure that Nato is configured militarily to meet the threats of the 21st century," US President George W. Bush told reporters as he arrived in Istanbul for a two-day summit.

Bush has declared an end to the Western rifts over last year's US invasion of Iraq which plunged Nato into one of the deepest crises in its 55-year history. European leaders also appear keen to put divisions over Iraq behind them.

Nato Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said there was a "new momentum in transatlantic security cooperation", and he suggested that the unilateralism of Bush administration neo-conservatives who had derided Nato's usefulness was dead.

"Those US unilateralists who thought that the United States didn't really need allies have come to realise that the US not only needs allies but also the alliance," he said.

The 26 Nato heads of state and government attended a formal Sunday dinner in an Ottoman-era palace on the banks of the Bosphorus. Official meetings start this morning.

Before leaving for Istanbul, German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder said all Nato states want stability and democracy in Iraq which is suffering heightened violence in the run-up to Wednesday's formal handover of power to an interim government.

Germany and France scotched Washington's original hope of Nato taking command of a peace force south of Baghdad.

Even a request from the interim Iraqi government for help training forces brought a day of tense alliance negotiations.

The wrangling echoed Nato's bust-up before the Iraq war - when France and Germany blocked military assistance to Iraq's neighbour Turkey - but a vaguely worded agreement was reached on Saturday, in time for the leaders to approve it in Istanbul.

The lack of detail masks continued differences on whether Nato should train Iraqi officers inside the country under an alliance flag, or limit its role to training outside Iraq and acting as a clearing house for national efforts.

French officials said it would be a job for allies not the alliance as a whole, and there would "no Nato flag" in Iraq.

"France will continue to make known its concerns and reservations with respect to a Nato role, as such," French presidential spokeswoman Catherine Colonna told reporters.

But the US envisages a more comprehensive role for Nato, including training the army, police and border security forces, and a senior administration official said leaders may ask Nato to consider further steps to help bolster Iraq's security.

Allied defence ministers discussed how to improve their ability to tackle new threats such as terrorism far beyond their borders which de Hoop Scheffer warned could "end up on our doorstep".

Officials said the ministers would set "usability" targets for their armed forces, many of which are still better geared to fight a war against the old Soviet Union than to take on expeditionary missions to distant hotspots like Afghanistan.

The leaders will announce in Istanbul that Nato is ready to expand its Afghan operation beyond Kabul, taking command of five military-civilian reconstruction teams in the north. Plans to set up teams in the west of the country have been delayed because of allies' reluctance to offer costly equipment such as helicopters and transport planes for Afghanistan.

Human Rights Watch said last week that Nato foot-dragging had contributed to a worsening security situation, and more military support was needed to ensure September's elections are not derailed by Islamic militants and warlord intimidation.