In a letter to Paul Stoddart, FIA president Max Mosley has warned that Formula One's governing body could abandon planned attempt to cut costs.

The letter is the latest in series of communications, some of which were made public by the FIA last week, as the sports appears to form two distinct camps with the governing body and Ferrari on one side, and the other nine teams on the other. Minardi boss Paul Stoddart has become the spokesman for the nine teams ever since the Brazilian GP, when he and eight other team principals drew up their own basic cost cutting proposal, and has consequently exchanged a number of letters and faxes with Mosley.

The latest is in response to a letter Stoddart sent to Mosley on Friday 4 February in which the Australian, representing the nine F1 teams, questions the legality of various measures that the FIA intends introducing including the introduction of 2.4 litre V8 engines.

In his response, Mosley expresses his doubts as to whether the teams actually want to see costs cut, and warns that if the situation continues the FIA will simply take a back seat.

Having held their own meeting in late January, the teams opted not to attend a scheduled meeting with Max Mosley and Ferrari a few days later. Pitpass has since learned that the teams opted not to attend because, in their opinion, the vast range of issues that needed to be addresses could not be dealt with in a couple of hours on a Friday afternoon.

However, the meeting went ahead with just the FIA and Ferrari in attendance, leading to Mosley commenting that more was achieved in the other nine teams' absence than if they had been present. In today's letter, Mosley suggests that the decision not to attend the meeting indicates that the nine teams are no longer interested in cutting costs.

"This is perhaps understandable," he writes, "because the two teams whose future appeared most under threat at the end of last season have fortunately both been taken over by organisations which are reputed to have available very significant financial resources. This may be the reason why most of the teams seem unconcerned either by current costs or even probable future costs."

He continues; "There are now those in the FIA who question whether further time and effort should be expended in seeking cost reduction in Formula One. The matter will be discussed by the World Motor Sport Council next month and may well result in the abandonment of these efforts unless or until there is a financial crisis in Formula One of the kind which appeared imminent last autumn."

Paul Stoddart has told Pitpass that despite appearances, the situation is still salvageable: "I'm begging Max to join us," he said. "We need to make peace and go forward in a united way. It's never too late, although it's certainly not looking too good at the moment.

"The only way to legitimise the regulations is to have unanimity," he added, "with the 10 teams, Bernie and Max all in agreement."

However, Mosley's tone throughout the letter suggests that the FIA president is tiring of the saga, and indeed Stoddart. "He begins; "You are extremely fortunate to have time for this. In fact I suspect you have a ghost writer, because slightly pompous legalese is not your usual style. However, I have to reply myself and will do so this time, but will then have to stop."

And ends; "As indicated at the beginning of this letter, I regret that I have not got time to continue this correspondence which must now be considered closed."

Stoddart's dream of peace and unanimity has never seemed so distant.