Iraqi official: No more U.N. arms inspections

But diplomat says nation ready to discuss issue with agency

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- A senior Iraqi official said Tuesday that U.N. weapons inspections in Iraq are over and that his country only would permit a U.S. congressional delegation to visit.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it would be foolish for Iraq to allow U.N. arms inspections to resume because the teams would have spies who would provide intelligence to the United States.

He said the only way inspections would be conducted is if a U.S. congressional delegation accepts an invitation to visit Iraq for a brief period to look at suspected weapons sites -- an idea some senior Republican and Democratic aides in Washington said was far-fetched. (Full story)

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However, Iraq's ambassador to the United Nations, Mohammed Al-Douri, contradicted the senior official, saying his nation is willing to talk about inspections.

"No, that's not true," Al-Douri said. "Iraq is ready to discuss weapons inspections, including future work."

The ambassador said he believed the Baghdad official was referring to the earlier U.N. weapons inspection program completing its mandate. A new program, known as the U.N. Monitoring, Verification and Inspection Commission, or UNMOVIC, was created to replace the earlier one.

Al-Douri criticized Hans Blix, the head of the U.N.'s new weapons inspection agency, saying he reacted negatively to the latest Iraqi letter on inspections without consulting with the U.N. Security Council and before the letter was fully translated.

U.N. weapons inspectors left Iraq in 1998 after the nation stopped cooperating with them. They departed before U.S.-British airstrikes began against the Baghdad government.

The United Nations has said it won't lift economic sanctions imposed on Iraq for its 1990 invasion of Kuwait unless inspectors can certify that the country does not have weapons of mass destruction.

The senior Iraqi official was also critical of President Bush, describing him as "an idiot" who "is in the hands of the Zionists," a reference to Israel.

"We would appreciate it if the United States would invade Iraq on the ground because then we could have a fair fight," the official said.

In discussions with CNN, numerous Iraqi officials said they consider a U.S. attack on Iraq inevitable.

One official said that the only way the United States could achieve a change in the regime of Saddam Hussein would be by putting an army on the ground in Iraq. The official said Iraq would relish the opportunity to fight a U.S. military force.