Bush impatient, Blair insistent, Saddam defiant. And the world waits

The chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, set off en route for Iraq last night bearing a message for Saddam Hussein that time for anything other than complete co-operation has now run out.

The Swedish diplomat, 74, has an unenviable task. He left bearing the last hope that war in Iraq can be avoided and knowing that perhaps he alone can secure a peaceful outcome.

He is carrying a barrage of messages. From America he heard that the White House considered the discovery of 11 empty chemical weapon warheads on Thursday "troubling and serious". From Tony Blair he heard that the inspectors had to be given "time and space", while the French President, Jacques Chirac, said that America could not act without the approval of the UN Security Council.

Meanwhile, in Baghdad, President Saddam said any invading army would face "suicide" at the gates of his capital.

Mr Blix has made clear the message he and Mohamed al-Baradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, will deliver to President Saddam is unequivocal: the Iraqi leader must do everything he can to help the UN weapons inspectors do their job or war will be inevitable. Mr Baradei said: "If you do not co-operate, unfortunately the consequences will not be very pleasant for you."

Earlier Mr Blix made clear that he did not consider the discovery of the 11 or 12 empty warheads to be the problem that some initially suggested. After meeting with Mr Blair, he said: "Some 12 empty shells have been forgotten and that, evidently, is not very good. But it is not a very big quantity. It's not a smoking gun."

Downing Street said Mr Blair had expressed his "strong support" for Mr Blix and the work of the inspectors. "He welcomed the continuing build-up in the intensity of the inspection programme as more inspectors arrived in Iraq," a spokesman said.

"The Prime Minister stressed how important it was for Saddam to take full advantage of this opportunity to disarm. He said that the UK looked forward to Dr Blix's update to the UN Security Council on 27 January."

But in Washington there were signs of growing impatience. President George Bush's spokesman, Ari Fleischer, said the discovery of the warheads was "troubling and serious".

While he stopped short of calling the empty warheads a breach of an anti-arms UN resolution, Mr Fleischer said the US had examined Iraq's 12,000 page declaration to weapons inspectors and that the cache of weapons was not mentioned in it. "Saddam Hussein has an obligation to disarm. It is become increasingly clear that he is not doing so," he said.

Speaking earlier this week, President Bush said: "So far the evidence hasn't been very good that he is disarming. And time is running out. At some point in time, the United States' patience will run out."

Yesterday, in a 40-minute televised address, delivered on the 12th anniversary of the Gulf War, President Saddam showed no sign of feeling threatened by Washington. He said that Iraq was mobilised to thwart an attack and warned Mr Bush: "Keep your evil away from the mother of civilisation".

He added: "The people of Baghdad have resolved to compel the Mongols of this age to commit suicide on its walls. Everyone who tries to climb over its walls ... will fail in his attempt. The whole nation will rise in defence of its right to live. Their aggressors' arrows will go astray or backfire, God willing. Long live Palestine, free and Arab, from the [Mediterranean] sea to the [Jordan] river."

In Paris, Mr Chirac warned President Saddam that he had to "do everything possible" to co-operate with the weapons inspectors, but said France would not be steamrolled into conflict.