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European allies France and Germany joined forces Wednesday to block a war with Iraq, drawing frustration from the United States and a vague promise of more proof Baghdad has banned weapons.

As signs came from Americans that support for a war against Iraq is weakening, French President Jacques Chirac said here after meeting with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder their countries were in agreement that "everything must be done to avoid war."

"Germany and France have the same judgment on the Iraq crisis," Chirac said at a joint appearance with Schroeder.

That was summed up in two points, he said.

"The first is that any decision for the (UN) Security Council belongs to it alone, to be expressed after hearing the report of the inspectors" searching for alleged weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, Chirac said.

The second is that, "for us, war is always evidence of failure. Everything must be done to avoid war."

The joint statement was seen as an increasingly strident message to the United States to temper its ambitions of using military force to achieve "regime change" in Baghdad, which Washington claims is hiding illegal chemical, biological or nuclear arms.

Britain remained odd man out among the European powers, with Prime Minister Tony Blair issuing a passionate defense of his solid backing of Washington.

The premier, who is flying to Washington January 31 for talks with President George W. Bush, has said his role over recent months had been to construct "the broadest possible international consensus" on the best way to deal with Baghdad.

Meanwhile, Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell led the US offensive against French and German opposition.

Bush said the evidence was "incredibly troubling and disturbing" and demanded Baghdad be held to account while Powell questioned whether France and Germany were serious about disarming Iraq.

"(Iraqi leader) Saddam Hussein is not disarming like the world has told him he must do," Bush said in a speech in Saint Louis, Missouri. "He's a dangerous man with dangerous weapons. He's a danger to America and our friends and allies."

Bush also warned Iraqi military leaders they will face war crimes trials if they attack US troops or their own people with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons.

In Washington, Powell said France and Germany appeared to be pre-judging a report due Monday from weapons inspectors to the Security Council by deciding in advance that the inspections were working and should be allowed to go on.

The White House said Bush was likely to make public additional information about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and its links to terrorist groups, should he choose the military option.

The United States meanwhile forged ahead with its military buildup, adding 20,000 reservists to those already on active duty as US aircraft carriers and other warships steamed for the Gulf.

The United States is expected to have more than 150,000 troops in the region by mid-February. Britain is also pouring troups and ships into the Gulf region.

In Sydney, demonstrators heckled Prime Minister John Howard as he bade farewell to the first contingent of 350 Australian troops headed for the Gulf.

The issue of war is expected to come to a head Monday when chief UN weapons inspector Hans Blix gives a key update to the UN Security Council.

France has threatened to use its veto power on the council to block any UN resolution authorising US-led attacks on Iraq, while Germany has repeatedly said it will not take part in any military campaign to oust Saddam.

Bush and Blair are outnumbered among the permanent, veto-wielding permanent council members, with France, Russia and China calling for more time for the arms inspectors to to their job.

But the president has made it clear the United States is prepared to circumvent the UN and build its own coalition for an attack.

Amid poll results showing slipping support among Americans for war, top US lawmakers said the president must do a better job of making his case.

"We have to do more (international consensus building) and we need more consensus at home as well," said Republican Senator Jon Kyl.

Support for a possible war on Iraq has dropped to 57 percent from 62 percent in mid-December, according to a Washington Post-ABC News poll published Wednesday.

Poll respondents were split 48-47 percent on whether Bush had presented enough evidence to support using force to overthrow Saddam.

In Baghdad, a military spokesman said Iraqi anti-aircraft fire downed a US pilotless Predator drone which entered the country from Kuwait, in the second such incident in just under a month.

The White House flatly denied the claim, saying Saddam had "lied to the Iraqi people and the world ... There is no truth to the Iraqi claim."

US Air Force General Richard Myers, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the US military had detected hints of unrest within Iraq's leadership, but said it was not known whether the Iraqi military would fight if there is a war.

But Iraq's 23 divisions -- around 400,000 troops -- should be regarded as a credible force, he added.

He said the US military could sustain a major US force in the Gulf for several months, even in the torrid desert heat of the summer, as the diplomatic wrangling wears on.

As arms experts carried out a 54th day of inspections in Iraq, a leading state-run newspaper said Bush was out to stop them certifying the country free of banned weapons.

"The whole world knows that the declarations of the US president toward Iraq are false and even Bush himself knows it," said Babel, run by Saddam Hussein's eldest son, Uday.

"If the US administration cannot present proof, it should shut up and let the inspectors carry on their mission in all transparency and without pressure or blackmail." 

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