US bids for war crimes immunity

Washington presented a draft Security Council resolution last month to renew the immunity already in place that shields US forces from the reach of the International Criminal Court (ICC) at The Hague.

But the renewal that the United States had been hoping would be automatic ran into problems after revelations that the US military abused and possibly tortured detainees at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad.

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On Tuesday, the United States offered a compromise that would make this the final one-year exemption, although it was not immediately clear if that would be enough for wary fellow nations on the council.

"The United States is the biggest provider of global security and we have special concerns in this area," US deputy ambassador James Cunningham said.

"We agreed to the change because the members of the council are becoming increasingly uncomfortable," he told reporters. "We are willing to take this step to preserve council support and to provide a year to phase out this arrangement."

Diplomats said they would wait for reaction from their capitals on Wednesday before taking any decision, although some suggested the US move was insufficient.

The compromise was offered after it became clear that Washington did not have the nine votes needed on the 15-member council on the initial resolution, which would have allowed the exemption to be renewed again in future.