The comments by General James L. Jones came as France, the leading opponent to the war that toppled Saddam Hussein, said it was "ready to examine" a possible NATO role in Iraq.

The 19-nation military Alliance is in informal talks over a US request to help secure the conflict-scarred country as it sets up a new government.

"Today I have received no guidance and no instructions to do planning of any sort, but if it did come, we'll be prepared to do so," said Jones, Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR).

"We just have to wait and see what the political will is," he added, speaking at Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE).

The United States is pushing for NATO to play a peacekeeping role in Iraq, and initial resistance from some anti-war countries including France appears to be easing.

US Secretary of State Colin Powell visited NATO's Brussels headquarters this month and said afterwards that no Alliance members had ruled out the possibility.

This in theory includes France, which sparked an unprecedented crisis in NATO in February by refusing -- along with Germany and Belgium -- to agree to a US request to bolster Turkey's defences in preparation for war.

French foreign ministry spokeswoman Cecile Pozzo di Borgo said Thursday that Paris was "ready to examine, with its allies, the issue of a possible role for NATO in Iraq".

It would be necessary to look at "the type of mission, the chain of command and the legal basis for the mission", she added, recalling that French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin had already told NATO colleagues in early April that his country would consider an Alliance role in Iraq.

France took a step towards reconciliation with Washington this week by issuing a surprise proposal to suspend United Nations sanctions against Iraq.

The United States, while insisting the sanctions be completely lifted, offered something of an olive branch in return, saying the French proposal "is ... a move in our view in the right direction", all the while mulling potential "consequences" for Paris for its opposition to the war.

The European Union's chief foreign envoy, Javier Solana, said a NATO role in Iraq might be helpful.

"After stability is secured, perhaps there will be a need for a stabilisation force and NATO could play a role in that regard, but it's too early to say," said Solana, a former secretary-general of the Alliance.

While NATO governments bridge their political differences, the military men say they are ready at a moment's notice.

"If tasked we could bring our resources to bear to fashion a response. But for that to happen it would have to be asked, and I have not been asked," said Jones.

He declined to specify what role NATO could have, rebuffing questions as to whether it could be as peacekeepers or searching out any weapons of mass destruction.

"Without having particular tasking to do so it would not be proper for me to speculate on the type of contribution that SHAPE could play, but this is a very capable organization," he said.

Jones added that NATO hoped to have a rapid response force of up to 2,000 soldiers ready to deploy by October.

The planned force is a keystone of NATO's transformation, agreed at a landmark summit last November, to turn the former Cold War military bloc into a global fighting force for the post September 11 world.

"What we hope to show is an initial capability that will be an integrated air, land and sea force that is capable of reacting on a moment's notice," said Jones.

SPACE.WIRE