ARIS, Oct. 8 — Whether President Bush intended it or not, much of the world praised his speech on Iraq on Monday not for its toughness but for its suppleness, lighting upon the idea that he might not be fixated on going to war after all.
A number of foreign officials and commentators chose to ignore the spy satellite photos said to show how an Iraqi nuclear plant had been rebuilt, the new charge that Iraq's unmanned aerial vehicles were intended to pinpoint American cities with biological and chemical weapons and the comparison of the threat from Iraq to the Cuban missile crisis of 1962.
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Instead, they focused on one line of Mr. Bush's half-hour speech: that the pending Congressional resolution giving him the right to use force if necessary "does not mean that military action is imminent or unavoidable."
The front-page headline in Wednesday's issue of Le Monde read, "Iraq: Bush's War Is No Longer Inevitable."
The foreign ministers of Jordan and Egypt seized on the same statement by Mr. Bush. "We still believe that a military operation isn't imminent and that there's a chance for diplomatic moves to try to avert the dangers of such a war," Foreign Minister Marwan Muasher of Jordan told reporters in Amman.
After a meeting in Cairo between President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt and Foreign Secretary Jack Straw of Britain, Egypt's foreign minister, Ahmed Maher, was asked about Mr. Bush's remark that war was not inevitable. "These are important words," Mr. Maher said.
For several months, many countries have voiced more skepticism than support for Mr. Bush's stated goal of replacing Saddam Hussein as the leader of Iraq, and warned against a solo venture.
In Japan, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's spokeswoman, Misako Kaji, said Tokyo welcomed Mr. Bush's confirmation in the speech that it was important to pursue a United Nations Security Council resolution.
Although it is not clear whether there was a connection to Mr. Bush's speech, Foreign Minister Igor S. Ivanov of Russia said this evening that his country would support the French approach for a resolution that would not call for the automatic use of force but was "aimed at enhancing the performance of international inspectors in Iraq."
Mr. Ivanov added that it was too early to discuss a specific resolution, and that it was important that weapons inspectors be allowed to return after their four-year absence.
In Italy, the left-leaning daily La Repubblica characterized the speech as "an important concession to European allies." But the moderate daily La Stampa noted that the American economy was not doing well and that voters were concerned about it, implying that the Bush administration had an agenda beyond Mr. Hussein's removal.
The idea that American lust for oil is the overriding motive for war with Iraq has been a persistent theme in global opinion in recent weeks. A cartoon in Le Monde today showed Mr. Bush sending planes into Iraqi oil wells and a telephone to the United Nations with a severed line. "This is my strategy for fighting against terrorism," the cartoon president is saying.
For more than two hours today, the French National Assembly debated about Iraq with passion. Jean-Marc Ayrault, representing the opposition Socialists, charged that the United States "intimidates the international community" and said France should veto any Security Council resolution authorizing force.
Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin retorted sharply that it was more important for France to forge a common position in the Security Council. "If France waves this veto, it will deprive us of influence and the capacity to be part of the international game," he said.
Former Prime Minister Alain Juppé, a close ally of President Jacques Chirac, called the United States a "very close friend," but warned: "You won't win alone. Beware messianism!"
With the election in Germany last month rocking German-American relations precisely over Iraq, the government of Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, who campaigned on an antiwar platform, did not comment directly on Mr. Bush's speech.
Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer chose to make only oblique comments, saying it was of "central importance" that the "Security Council forms one view and creates the basis for inspectors to be able to begin their work immediately, and on this basis to prevent a great tragedy."
In Britain, Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has echoed Mr. Bush's tough line against Iraq, today emphasized the importance of the United Nations.
In China, the government reiterated that it disapproved of unilateral American military action, pressed Iraq to comply with all United Nations resolutions and called for the rapid return of arms inspectors.
In Israel, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's government was silent, and senior officials refused to discuss the speech on the record. Mr. Sharon ordered his ministers on Sunday not to speak publicly about Iraq. A senior official said today that any Israeli comment about the speech would only fan Arab claims that Mr. Bush was acting at Israel's behest.
In Baghdad, senior members of the Iraqi Parliament reacted angrily. "Your speech, Bush, is full of lies and full of unreasonable argument," Abdul Aziz Kailani, the head of the religious affairs committee, told Reuters. "You are just like a beast which wants to eat small countries, and while you should help them you want to destroy them."