Military

SHAPE News Morning Update

30 January 2003

IRAQ

• Wary of undermining diplomatic efforts to avert war, France and Germany on Wednesday again prevented NATO’s military from preparing for a limited backup role should the United States attack Iraq. Officials said the U.S. proposals were not even discussed at a meeting of the alliance’s policy-making North Atlantic Council, after the 19 allies failed to agree in private talks on Tuesday. (AP 291819 Jan 03)
  
  
• Eight European leaders called time on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein on Thursday, breaking ranks with France and Germany and lending much needed diplomatic support to U.S. President Bush. In an article in the Times newspaper and several other papers in Europe and America, the leaders of EU members Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal and Denmark and applicants Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic, appealed for unity in the bloc. “The transatlantic relationship must not become a casualty of the current Iraqi regime’s persistent attempts to threaten world security,” the eight leaders wrote. “Our strength lies in unity.” The idea for the joint article originated not with Tony Blair but with Spain’s Aznar. (Reuters 300142 GMT Jan 03)
  
  
• Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, days after referring to German and French opposition to the U.S. stance on Iraq as complaints from “old Europe,” said on Wednesday that Europeans are not against America as it assembles forces for a possible war with Iraq. The U.S. defense secretary said Iraqi intelligence may have infiltrated the UN weapons inspectors, judging by the fact that the Iraqi government appears to be a step ahead of the inspectors as they go about their business. (Reuters 292249 GMT Jan 03)
  
  
• The United States, weighing whether to set a deadline for Saddam Hussein to disarm, offered on Wednesday to try to help find a haven for the Iraqi president and his “henchmen” as a way to avert war. But time appeared to be running out, and State Department officials said an exile scenario was not under serious consideration. Powell, at a State Department news conference, said, “If he were to leave the country and take some of his family members with him and others in the leading elite that have been responsible for so much trouble during the course of his regime, we would, I am sure, try to help find a place for them to go.” Asked if the United States would support giving Saddam immunity from prosecution as a war criminal, Powell said that was hypothetical at this point and that he was not prepared to talk about it. (AP 292346 Jan 03)
  
  
• The Slovak government responded to a U.S. request on Wednesday and offered to deploy a specialist anti-chemical warfare unit to the Gulf in the event of a military campaign against Iraq, government officials said. The squad will be allowed to fully participate and take part in combat action only if a U.S.-led strike against Iraq gets the UN mandate. (Reuters 292109 GMT Jan 03)
  
  
• The first group of Iraqi volunteers to be trained for supporting U.S. forces in case of military action in Iraq arrived Wednesday at a local military air base, a Defense Ministry spokesman said. The group was flown directly to the Taszar base from an undisclosed overseas location. (AP 291756 Jan 03)
  
  
• Italy said Wednesday it has given the United States permission to use its bases for refueling and other “technical” needs in a possible war with Iraq - one of the few concrete military offers from Europe and another sign of Italy's support for Washington’s hard line against Baghdad. At the same time, Foreign Minister Franco Frattini said Italy wanted to give more time to UN weapons inspectors to disarm Iraq peacefully and give Baghdad a final chance to comply with UN resolutions. (AP 292038 Jan 03)
  
  
• While the UN Security Council debates whether Iraq has met demands to eliminate its weapons of mass destruction, Iraq prepares to take on a surprising role later this year: the leadership of the UN Conference on Disarmament. The chair of the conference rotates in alphabetical order and Iraq is to take over in May. “The irony is overwhelming,” said a spokesman for the U.S. ambassador to the UN, John Negroponte. (AP 292013 Jan 03)
  

OTHER NEWS

• Romania agreed Wednesday to buy 21 radars from Lockheed Martin as part of the country’s efforts to modernize its air force and better monitor its air space. The new radar systems will be used to monitor aircraft flying at small and medium altitudes, officials said. The cost of the 21 radars is about US $90 million, state news agency Rompres reported. They will be delivered from 2004 to 2008. (AP 291914 Jan 03)