With the country's most egregious suspected war criminal at liberty, the European Union had a plausible reason to prevaricate about admitting it.

ECONOMIST: The EU and the western Balkans

If the other members of the Security Council propose having one more try at implementing the existing weapons-inspections regime, and if Mr Hussein accepts it (only to prevaricate again), Mr Bush would face an unenviable choice.

ECONOMIST: Iraq and the UN

How long can the Spanish government prevaricate and fail to make sure the banks have all the capital they need?

BBC: Will Spain suffer an Irish bust?

In the corridors, officials complained that many countries still either refuse or prevaricate when asked to co-operate with their investigations.

ECONOMIST: Money launderers keep a few steps ahead of academe

The parliamentary bible, Erskine May, makes it clear that witnesses who "give false evidence, prevaricate, present forged or falsified documents... or attempt in any way to deceive a committee... may be reported to the House and dealt with as determined".

BBC: How can select committees avoid being misled?

So it is now up to the weapons inspectors to probe hard enough to convince America that they are doing their job which increases the likelihood that at some point Iraq will prevaricate.

ECONOMIST: The inspections begin