The Bush administration decided back in mid-December that a US-led war on Iraq was inevitable, even as it publicly held out hope for a diplomatic solution, the Financial Times newspaper reported on Tuesday.

In the first instalment of a three-part investigation, it said the "internal moment" to go to war came within days of Iraq's 12,000-page declaration to the United Nations on December 8 on weapons of mass destruction.
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Despite France's image as leader of the anti-war camp, the Financial Times also said that a "senior French liaison officer" travelled to US Central Command headquarters in Florida in December to discuss a possible French contribution of at least 15,000 troops to the US-led invasion.

French diplomats concluded in January, however, that the United States had effectively abandoned the diplomatic track, the newspaper said.

» US decided on Iraq war in December: Report : HindustanTimes.com