A spokesman for Mr. Annan told reporters in New York today that the agreement was reached at a meeting between the Secretary-General and Iraqi Ambassador Saeed Hasan yesterday.

"The Secretary-General asked for that meeting as a follow-up to the meeting that he had in Doha, Qatar, with the Vice-Chairman of Iraq's Revolutionary Council, Izzat Ibrahim," spokesman Fred Eckhard noted. "In Doha, you will recall, we reported that the Vice-Chairman expressed an interest in beginning a dialogue with the Secretary-General and so they agreed yesterday they would shoot for after Ramadan, in other words the early part of next year," he added.

According to Mr. Eckhard, in Doha, the Secretary-General had "asked the Iraqis to consider what shape these talks would take - what the agenda might be - and he said he too would give thought to those things and then they would subsequently exchange views."

The spokesman emphasized that Mr. Annan's mandate is "rooted in the Charter" and that he is "very sensitive to the views of the various Council members and is proceeding accordingly."

"I think the principle of the requirement by the Security Council that Iraq comply with all resolutions is a given," said Mr. Eckhard. "I think that the Secretary-General made that clear."

Asked about Mr. Annan's goals for the 2001 meetings, the spokesman said the Secretary-General "would hope that Iraq would agree to accept inspectors as the first step towards full compliance with the existing resolutions." He noted that full compliance was a pre-condition of the lifting of sanctions, adding that Mr. Annan was "trying to get Iraq to agree" on that point.