Downing Street has confirmed that the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, will travel to the US next week to have separate meetings with President George W Bush and the UN Secretary General, Kofi Annan, on the growing crisis in Iraq.
Officials in London and Washington have insisted that the meeting with Mr Bush will not be an emergency summit.
A Downing Street spokesman said Mr Blair's talks with Mr Annan would cover the political transition in Iraq.
He will also discuss the UN's role in the run-up to the planned hand-over of power from the US-led administration to Iraqis at the end of June.
