The Bush administration yesterday decided to seek a new United Nations Security Council resolution that would give the international body a greater role in the reconstruction and policing of Iraq.

The decision marks a major shift for the administration which shunned the United Nations in the lead-up to the invasion.

But senior officials say Washington is attempting to limit the power the UN and other countries will actually have. The Pentagon is insisting that a U.S. general maintains control of the U.S. troops in Iraq. One official told the Washington Post: “What remains key is that the U.S. remain in charge of the operation.”

Another official summed up the need for the UN resolution in four words: “We need the forces.”