Blix Report Raises Prospect of Iraq War Without U.N. Resolution

A report by chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix to the United Nations on Feb. 14 was not the home run that Washington and London were hoping. The report and the immediate responses to it enhance the likelihood that the United States and its allies will have to go to war without the cover of a second Security Council resolution. This will increase the overall volatility of oil markets in the final days before an unavoidable attack.