Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

DATE=6/18/03

TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT

TITLE=WOLFOWITZ / IRAQ (L-O)

NUMBER=2-304496

BYLINE=DAN ROBINSON

DATELINE=CAPITOL HILL

CONTENT=

VOICED AT:

INTRO: A senior U-S official says American forces will remain in Iraq for as long as necessary to eliminate remnants of the Saddam Hussein regime. Deputy Defense Secretary, Paul Wolfowitz, appeared before a congressional panel and faced questions about resistance to the coalition occupation, and the controversial issue of weapons of mass destruction. V-O-A's Dan Robinson has a report from Capitol Hill:

TEXT: Amid reports of the latest U-S military deaths and injuries in Iraq, Mr. Wolfowitz was faced straight off with a question from the ranking Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee.

Congressman Ike Skelton, a key critic of Bush administration Iraq planning, said he is concerned U-S forces may become mired in a guerrilla conflict, and called for careful planning:

/// SKELTON ACT ///

Now that we have seen what the first two months of occupation have wrought, we need to understand the planning that is going forward and the benchmarks for success that can be measured along the way.

/// END ACT ///

Congressman Skelton pressed Mr. Wolfowitz about reports Sunni Muslims in Iraq are recruiting Sunnis from other countries to oppose the U-S-led coalition occupation. Mr. Wolfowitz said it's not a surprise "terrorist" elements will try to take advantage of the current situation:

/// WOLFOWITZ ACT ///

The victory in Iraq is a victory in the war on terrorism. It's not an accident I think that the terrorists in there are trying to de-stabilize the country and try to make us lose, but they are the ones who will lose.

/// END ACT ///

However, the (Republican) committee chairman, Duncan Hunter, echoed concerns expressed by other lawmakers since the end of the Iraq war about the ability of the U-S military to meet threats not only in Iraq, but in Afghanistan:

/// BEGIN OPT HUNTER ACT ///

While our military did remarkable work in defeating two terrorist regimes in short order, events in Afghanistan and Iraq make it clear that we have a ways to go in both countries.

/// END ACT /// /// END OPT ///

Statements by Mr. Wolfowitz before the war about weapons of mass destruction have angered many lawmakers because of the inability so far of U-S forces to find any such weapons in Iraq.

In this exchange, Congressman Gene Taylor, a Democrat from Mississippi, asked Mr. Wolfowitz why the administration relied so heavily on the weapons threat to justify the use of force:

/// TAYLOR WOLFOWITZ ACTS ///

(TAYLOR): Why didn't you just leave it at that? Why didn't you leave it at those things we knew to be true?

(WOLFOWITZ): If you go back and read any number of presentations, but I would take you to the one Secretary Powell made to the U-N Security Council. He talked about three things believed to be true. One, that he had chemical and biological weapons and was seeking nuclear ones, secondly that he supported terrorism, and third that he brutalized his own people. Those have always been part of the president's decision and the administration's argument, that the cost of inaction in our judgment, and its a judgment, it's a prediction about the future, the cost of inaction far outweighed the cost of action.

/// END ACTS ///

/// OPT /// Mr. Wolfowitz was also pressed on conditions for U-S troops in Iraq, with one lawmaker reading a letter from a soldier complaining about the length of deployment. He said Washington is aware of the strains on soldiers forced to serve as peacekeepers, and still hopes for major contributions from U-S allies. /// END OPT ///

Mr. Wolfowitz' appearance coincided with the start of closed-door hearings by the House and Senate Intelligence committees to review thousands of pages of intelligence documents provided by the C-I-A and other agencies. Senior administration officials are likely to be called to testify. (signed)

NEB/DAR/RH/FC