Tony Blair was committed throughout the Iraq crisis to achieving an international solution through the United Nations, his key foreign policy adviser has said.
Giving evidence to the official inquiry into the war, Sir David Manning denied Mr Blair and George Bush had secretly agreed on military action during talks at the President's Texas ranch 11 months before the invasion in March 2003.
However, he said that once it was clear that diplomatic efforts to persuade Saddam Hussein to give up his weapons of mass destruction had failed, Mr Blair believed he had given a commitment to join the US in military action.
"The Prime Minister concluded that he had always said that if we had exhausted the diplomatic route, we would take part in military action," Sir David said.
"My view is that he believed that, having said that and having exhausted the diplomatic opportunities, he would be as good as his word.
"The Prime Minister was clear in his own mind that if he felt the UN route had been completely exhausted, he would stand by his commitment that he would take military action."
Sir David said Mr Bush had first raised the issue of Iraq with Mr Blair in a telephone call just three days after the 9/11 attacks in 2001.
The President said he thought there was evidence of a link between Saddam and al Qaida, although Mr Blair insisted it would have to be "very compelling" to justify any action against Iraq. However, by the time Mr Blair met Mr Bush at his ranch at Crawford in April 2002, it was clear Iraq would be on the agenda.
The two leaders dined alone on the first night before meeting more formally the next morning with their senior officials, including Sir David and US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. Sir David said Mr Bush had briefed them on their discussions the night before.
Read More
"He told us that there was no war plan for Iraq but he had set up a small cell at Central Command in Florida to do some planning and to think through the various options," Sir David said. "The Prime Minister added that he had been saying to the President that it was important to go back to the United Nations."
