U.N. appoints Haiti adviser, mulls action

UNITED NATIONS, Feb. 26 (UPI) -- The U.N. Security Council Thursday promised to consider urgent involvement in Haiti to support a political settlement of the worsening crisis.

On another front, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan appointed a long-time diplomat from Trinidad and Tobago, Reginald Dumas, as his special adviser on Haiti.

As night fell, diplomatic sources at the United Nations said, "Things were getting worse," in Haiti, particularly around the capital, Port-au-Prince.

The council's soft stance apparently was meant to allow time for a conference in Paris Friday, called Wednesday by Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin. However the deteriorating situation in French-speaking Caribbean nation threatened the ability of principals to get to the Paris meeting.

Diplomatic sources Thursday night said the meeting could slip into next week.

The position of the panel of 15 was spelled out in a formal presidential statement, a notch below a resolution, which is the world organization's instrument to carry the weight of international law.

Ambassador Wang Guangya of China, this month's council president read from the statement, saying, "Continued violence and the breakdown of law and order in Haiti could have destabilizing effects in the region."