Hours after the United States and its partners Britain and Spain gave the United Nations one day more to agree to a resolution demanding Iraq's 'immediate disarmament', France, Russia and Germany rejected giving Iraq any ultimatum and called for giving Baghdad 'realistic time' to fulfil key disarmament tasks and more time to the UN weapons inspectors to do their job.

France offered to consider a thirty-day deadline to Iraq provided the inspectors recommended it, but without giving Baghdad any ultimatum. The US immediately rejected the idea and the inspectors are unlikely to recommend such a deadline.

Following US President George W Bush's ultimatum, the UN Security Council decided to hold a closed-door meeting on Iraq at 1000 EST (2030 IST) on Monday.

The council was due to meet in the evening, but advanced consultations by five hours as members realised that time was fast running out.

"The Iraqi regime will disarm itself or the Iraqi regime will be disarmed by force," Bush had said in the Azores on Sunday.

UN chief weapons inspector Hans Blix called the situation 'very threatening', but said that unless there was a sudden decision to withdraw the UN team from Iraq, the inspectors would continue to work as normal.

Blix said he would push forward with a thirty-page work programme and a list of key remaining disarmament tasks he wants Iraq to complete. Also, with the prospect of military action looming, Blix was considering an invitation to visit Baghdad.

But the weapons inspectors flew most of their helicopters out of Iraq as insurance companies withdrew cover. This has slowed down their work.

Though the United States and its allies gave until Monday for diplomacy to work, it was unclear what they intended to do thereafter. They could press for a vote on the resolution already introduced, which sets March 17 as the deadline for compliance, or could withdraw it, or move another resolution giving President Saddam Hussein a few more days to comply with the disarmament tasks.

But diplomats say Washington intends to push back the deadline by a few days and the vote is not likely on Monday.

The US could also simply abandon the resolution and take military action, citing the previous Resolution 1441 as the authority.

It could also amend the resolution, in which case it would need to give 24 hours to members to get instructions from their capitals before the vote.

US officials have indicated that once diplomacy was exhausted, Washington would move on a war footing. Bush may address the American people, possibly as early as Monday night, and issue a final ultimatum to Saddam Hussein.

The US has already ordered non-essential diplomatic staff and dependants out of Israel, Syria and Kuwait.

Meanwhile, President Jacques Chirac of France repeated that his country would veto any UN resolution that paves the way for war on Iraq, saying, "We should pursue [diplomacy] until we've come to a dead end."