Spanish Prime Minister to Meet with Pope over Iraq Crisis

Vatican spokesman Joaquín Navarro-Valls gave no further details today. The Pope has been meeting with world leaders to avoid an armed conflict in Iraq.

Spain, a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, is backing the draft of a second resolution on the crisis presented Monday by the United States and the United Kingdom.

In an address on Monday, Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, Vatican secretary for relations with states, stressed Iraq's grave responsibilities. But at the same time he reminded his audience that, according to international law "only the U.N. Council has the power to decide on an armed attack for legitimate defense, which presupposes the existence of a previous aggression."

Aznar last weekend visited U.S. President George W. Bush in Texas. This week, the Spanish leader will meet with French President Jacques Chirac and British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Last Saturday, the Pope received Blair in audience. Earlier in the week, the Holy Father met with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, with Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz, and with German Foreign Affairs Minister Joschka Fischer, current president of the U.N. Security Council.