As January 27 approaches, which has been designated as the deadline for full inspection of the sites in Iraq where it is suspected that weapons of mass destruction have been manufactured or stored, analysts are becoming more certain that the U.S. will attack Iraq.

Most countries in the region are increasing their diplomatic activities to avert war. There are new efforts by Syria and Turkey in that regard. Along these lines, Syrian Foreign Minister Farouq Al-Shara is visiting Iran on a diplomatic tour which also takes him to Riyadh. According to Syrian sources, Al-Shara will be trying to arrange a meeting of the foreign ministers of Iran, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Turkey, Jordan, and Syria.

Diplomatic sources in Ankara have said that Turkey has already invited representatives of five regional countries to a meeting in Ankara.

The Anatolia News Agency said on Thursday that the Turkish deputy foreign minister has made a trip to arrange the meeting and that a draft of the common statement which is to be issued at the meeting in Ankara has already been prepared. Anatolia also reported that the meeting would be held on January 23.

Meanwhile, Tehran has become a center of diplomatic activity with several high-ranking officials of regional countries visiting in the past few weeks, including Turkish Prime Minister Abdullah Gul and the Romanian and Finnish foreign ministers.

These trips are indicative of the anxiety of the international community about the prospect of a new war against Iraq. As the United Nations report stated, the outbreak of a new war in Iraq would cause a humanitarian disaster as well as many regional and international problems. Regional countries are seeking a peaceful solution to the problem, since they believe that any change in the political system of Iraq should be carried out by the Iraqi people themselves within the framework of UN resolutions.