Today's statement, a draft of which was being finalised by CARICOM ambassadors at the United Nations yesterday in New York, is likely to be made by Jamaica on behalf of the 15-member Community.

The statement is expected to reaffirm CARICOM's opposition to military action against a sovereign state without the endorsement the UN Security Council. It will coincide with the current meeting of the UN Security Council that started yesterday to deal with the implications of the war on Iraq.

Jamaica's Prime Minister, P. J. Patterson, has lead responsibility among CARICOM heads of government for the community's external trade and economic negotiations and often speaks on issues of international importance to the region.

This second statement will come against the background of a controversial "diplomatic note" sent by the U.S. State Department to some governments of CARICOM whose countries are also members of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

The NAM had discussed at its recent summit in Malaysia to collaborate on an initiative for a special session of the UN General Assembly to address the implications for peace and security of war on Iraq without endorsement of the UN Security Council.

Since then, the war has been raging with disastrous human consequences over the past week.

In addition to the "diplomatic note" sent by the U.S. to some CARICOM governments, there have been reported pressure to get others to make statements that could justify some measure of support for the action taken to disarm Iraq of weapons of mass destruction.

While CARICOM ambassadors to the UN were finalising the draft of the statement to be made today, a statement was released by Prime Minister Lester Bird of Antigua and Barbuda in St. John's.

He said his administration "regretted that concerted diplomatic efforts failed to bring about the desired progress" in getting Iraq to comply with the UN Resolution (1441) for the "complete and unconditional disarmament of Iraq..."

This, said one CARICOM diplomat, was "a surprising variation" of the "spirit" of the original unanimous statement issued last month by the Community leaders.

But he also noted that Bird's statement did "urge all countries to remain steadfast in their commitment to, and support for the United Nations".

The original CARICOM statement had raised concern over the "legitimacy" of going to war with Iraq without UN sanction.