20 March 2003
Bush: More than 40 Nations Support Action Against Iraq
(President reaches out to world leaders, White House says) (970) By Wendy S. Ross and Alicia Langley Washington File Staff Writers Washington -- Over 40 nations now support the coalition military action now under way against Iraq's Saddam Hussein regime, President Bush told reporters March 20 following an afternoon Cabinet meeting at the White House. Secretary of State Colin Powell briefed the Cabinet on "the ever-growing coalition of the willing, nations who support our deep desire for peace and freedom," the president said. He added that he and his administration "are grateful for their determination, we appreciate their vision, and we welcome their support." Also briefing the Cabinet was Defense Secretary Don Rumsfeld, who reported on the early stages of the coalition effort in Iraq, Bush said. "There's no question we've sent the finest of our citizens into harm's way. They perform with great skill and great bravery. We thank them, we thank their loved ones. We appreciate their sacrifice," the President said. Earlier, White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer told reporters that contributions from the "growing" coalition effort against Iraq "include direct military participation, logistical, intelligence and political support, specialized chemical and biological response teams, overflight rights, humanitarian and other aid." He listed some of the nations involved in the effort -- Australia, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Britain, the United Kingdom, and Turkey. Fleischer noted that Turkey's Parliament March 20 voted to grant overflight rights to the United States and the coalition. "It is no accident that many members of this coalition recently escaped from tyranny and oppression," Fleischer said. "They understand what is at stake in bringing freedom and liberation to the Iraqi people as the mission of disarmament continues." Asked about leaders of countries that are critical of the military action, Fleischer said "The president understands and respect the thoughts of those who disagree, but the United States and the coalition of the willing will not be deterred from the mission to disarm Saddam Hussein." President Bush has been making a large number of phone calls over the last several days, to leaders around the world, Fleischer reported. "He has reached out to leaders in every corner of the world, from a number of Arab leaders, who are important, to leaders in other nations and other continents. It's a very large volume of calls between yesterday and today," Fleischer said, "And the calls are still ongoing, too." The point of the calls, Fleischer said, "is to touch base with world leaders about the military operation, to talk to them about the purpose of the mission -- the purpose of the mission being, as we've discussed, the disarmament of Saddam Hussein's regime." Asked whether the opening attacks on "leadership targets" in Baghdad were successful, Fleischer said "bomb damage assessment takes time. We don't rush to conclusions." Approximately three hours after those attacks, a videotape claiming to show Saddam Hussein was seen on Iraqi television. "We have reached no conclusions about that videotape as to whether that is or is not Saddam Hussein, or what time that may or may not have been prerecorded. We have reached no conclusions," Fleischer said. Despite a U.S. executive order that bans the killing of foreign leaders, under international law in armed conflict "command and control" is always a legitimate target, Fleischer said. Asked if the offer is still on the table for Iraq's dictator to go into exile, Fleischer responded: "We continue to hope that Saddam Hussein will leave Iraq. We continue to hope that Iraqi generals will not follow orders. It is not too late for them to do that. It is very important, and the president has said, that Iraqi generals, Iraqi troops lay down their arms and not engage in combat. This is not their battle, this is not their war. This is a war to disarm the Iraqi regime from its weapons of mass destruction. It would be a welcome event if Saddam Hussein were still to flee." In another development, Fleischer reported that the United States has received reports from its military forces "that a small number of oil wells in southern Iraq are on fire. We have no additional details, we have no information to the extent of the damage," he said. "The United States and its international partners anticipated that Saddam Hussein's regime might attempt acts of sabotage against oil wells. By doing so, Saddam Hussein is trying to destroy the wealth of his own people, and once again showing the world that he lies," Fleischer said. The Press Secretary recalled a recent interview of Saddam Hussein by Dan Rather of CBS in which Saddam claimed that the Iraqi regime does not burn its own oil wells. "Clearly, we have some evidence already this morning of a small number of cases to the contrary, which is a reminder of what this war is about, the very fact that Saddam Hussein will lie," Fleischer said. "And the issue is his lies about his possession of weapons of mass destruction." "World energy supplies are more than adequate to compensate for any disruption these acts may cause," Fleischer said. "Saudi Arabia and other major energy suppliers have increased production and their exports are proceeding normally in this regard." The press secretary reported that Bush began his day with an early morning phone call from National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice, who provided him an overnight update on events in Iraq. He then met in the Oval Office with Defense Secretary Rumsfeld, and had lunch with Vice President Dick Cheney, before he met with his Cabinet. The evening of March 20, Bush was scheduled to meet at the White House with President Paul Biya of Cameroon. (The Washington File is a product of the Office of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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