"It's too early to draw any conclusions on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Rasmussen said, noting that searches were continuing despite the resignation Friday of David Kay, who had led US efforts to find Iraq's weapons arsenal.

Kay has said his Iraq Survey Group so far has failed to find any proof of active banned weapons programs and that he does not think that Saddam Hussein had possessed such arms at the time the war began -- contrary to the argument used by US President George W. Bush before launching the March 2003 invasion.

But Rasmussen said he was not yet convinced.

"I don't know how long the hunt for weapons of mass destruction will continue. But we know that the searches already undertaken have revealed traces of installations which could have been used to produce these weapons. That comes from a report previously published by Dr. Kay," Rasmussen told reporters.

"But I don't dare draw any conclusions other than that which the world already knows, that is, that Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction. Nobody is arguing that. We saw that he used them," he said.

Iraq used chemical weapons during its war with Iran in the 1980s.

"It should surprise everyone that, since he had them, he was unable to explain to the United Nations what happened to them," Rasmussen said.

The Danish government has been repeatedly pressed to justify its participation in the US-led war on Iraq, given the failure to find banned chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.

Rasmussen again defended that decision to join the war on Iraq: "What was decisive for us was not the question of weapons of mass destruction. That was not the reason for our support. It was rather Saddam Hussein's lack of cooperation with the (UN) Security Council which had to have consequences."

Meanwhile, the Danish parliament on Tuesday announced that Denmark would hold a public hearing on the war on March 24, inviting international experts to debate the decision to use force despite the lack of a UN mandate.

The idea of a public hearing was long rejected by the government, but it has now given in under pressure from opposition parties.

The debate will focus on "the rules of international law concerning the use of force, the possibilities of strengthening international law, the advantages and disadvantages of military intervention without a UN mandate and the future role of Iraq in the region," a statement from the parliament said.

While the government has said it does not want to debate its decision to participate in the war, a spokesman for the Social Democratic opposition, Jeppe Kofod, insisted that the subject would be raised "no matter what the government says."

British professor Christopher Greenwood from the London School of Economics and Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari are among the experts scheduled to attend.

WAR.WIRE