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Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD)

Washington File

25 April 2003

Wolfowitz Says Baghdad Meeting April 28 to Be "Important Step"

(Deputy defense secretary speaks to Arab, Muslim media April 25) (5240)
The meeting of free Iraqis scheduled in Baghdad for April 28 is
another "important step forward," according to Deputy Defense
Secretary Paul Wolfowitz.
Called the Central Iraq Meeting, Wolfowitz said the event will be the
second in a series of meetings to be held around the country, in which
Iraqis will exercise "their newfound freedom to speak. ... Iraqis will
set the agenda and discuss the vital issues. This should accelerate
the dialogue and transition to the establishment of an interim Iraqi
authority," he said at a Foreign Press Center briefing for Arab and
Muslim media April 25.
Setting up an interim authority is vital because "the United States
and other coalition countries have no interest in governing or
occupying Iraq. ... Our intention ... is ... to leave behind an Iraqi
government that preserves the territorial integrity of the country;
that uses the resources of the country for the benefit of all the
Iraqi people; and that poses no threat to Iraq's neighbors," Wolfowitz
said.
An interim authority, Wolfowitz continued, should be representative of
all of Iraq's people, and include religious representation. He said he
sees the interim governing body as having two main tasks: to take over
administration of basic Iraqi governmental functions; and to lead the
way to the formation of a democratic government to work on drafting a
constitution and an agenda for legal and economic reforms, and to
organize elections. He suggested, as an example, that a "bill of
freedoms" could be written, guaranteeing all Iraqis the freedoms of
speech, religion, assembly and ownership of private property.
Quoting from President Bush's speech April 24 in Lima, Ohio, Wolfowitz
said, "One thing is certain: We will not impose a government on Iraq.
We will help that nation build a government of, by and for the Iraqi
people."
Asked how he saw the liberation of Iraq having an effect on other
Middle East countries, Wolfowitz answered, "I can't help but think
that the existence of a free and democratic country in the Middle
East, and particularly one of the largest and most important countries
in the Arab world, is going to have an important and positive
influence both on political development and on the
[Palestinian-Israeli] peace process, at least in the medium-to-long
run, and perhaps in the short run."
Responding to a questioner who asked whether the United States
considered the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk to be a Kurdish city,
Wolfowitz replied, "Kirkuk is not a Kurdish city. Kirkuk is an Iraqi
city. It's inhabited by Kurds and Turks and Turkomans and Arabs." He
added that the important disagreements there, especially concerning
property rights, must be resolved peacefully, and that the United
States was consulting with central European governments that had faced
the same kinds of issues, such as the government of Bosnia.
On the question of the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq,
Wolfowitz pointed out the difficulties."[R]emember, [Baghdad] is a
city the size of Los Angeles. So stop and think about it. We know they
were hiding things in houses. We know they were hiding things in
tunnels and basements. The places that are most obvious to look are
also the most obvious places to move things out of, so it'll take
time. We'll have to talk to people, have to get information," he said.
Following is the transcript of Wolfowitz's briefing:
(begin transcript)
FOREIGN PRESS CENTER BRIEFING WITH DEPUTY SECRETARY OF DEFENSE PAUL
WOLFOWITZ
TOPIC: ISSUES RELATING TO IRAQ
THE WASHINGTON FOREIGN PRESS CENTER
WASHINGTON, D.C.
APRIL 25, 2003
AMBASSADOR ROSS: Assalamu aleikum. Welcome to everybody at yet another
in our series for the Arab and Muslim press corps, both here, and in
New York. We understand that New York is present with us today and may
ask some questions. We have the pleasure of having with us for the
second time Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, whom we
introduced last week, and I will turn the podium over to him.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Thanks, Chris. Ahlan wa sahlan. My real
purpose for coming here today is to talk about the meeting that's
going to be held in Baghdad on Monday. It's a follow-on to the meeting
that was held in Nasiriya last week. I am quite limited on my time, so
I'm going to have to be out of here. I will try to get back here
before too long and we can have a broader discussion at some point.
But I'm going to try to confine myself mostly to this issue of the
Baghdad meeting.
Since the last time I was here at the Foreign Press Center, which
wasn't very long ago, a great deal has been accomplished in Iraq. With
each passing day, the situation is improving. There are still
small-scale military operations in some areas, but I think we can now
confidently say that the Iraqi people have been liberated from the
"Republic of Fear." Today they are working alongside coalition forces
to build a free Iraq.
On April 15th, Iraqi leaders met in An-Nasiriya to begin discussing
the process that will lead to a new government that will represent and
serve the true interests of the Iraqi people -- a government of the
Iraqi people, by the Iraqi people, and for the Iraqi people.
Iraqis attending the meeting produced a written agreement on 13
fundamental principles that can help guide future discussions among
Iraqis about the future of a free Iraq. The principles set forth are
these, and I'm going to quote word for word from them. I think they're
important.
The first principle, that Iraq must be democratic. And I will
underscore, also, these were not in our plan for the meeting; they
emerged quite spontaneously from the Iraqi participants.
First, that Iraq must be democratic. Second, the future government of
Iraq should not be based on communal identity. Third, a future
government should be organized as a democratic federal system, but on
the basis of countrywide consultation. Fourth, the rule of law must be
paramount. Fifth, that Iraq must be built on respect for diversity,
including respect for the role of women. Sixth, the meeting discussed
the role of religion in state and society. Seventh, the meeting
discussed the principle that Iraqis must choose their leaders, not
have them imposed from outside. Eighth, that political violence must
be rejected and that Iraqis must immediately organize themselves for
the task of reconstruction at both the local and national levels.
Ninth, that Iraqis and the coalition must work together to tackle the
immediate issues of restoring security and basic services. Tenth, that
the Ba'ath Party must be dissolved and its effects on society must be
eliminated. Eleventh, that there should be an open dialogue with all
national political groups to bring them into the process. Twelfth,
that the meeting condemns the looting that has taken place and the
destruction of documents. And finally, thirteenth, Iraqis
participating in the Nasiriya meeting voted -- and I would note, I
believe this is the first vote in free Iraq -- that there should be
another meeting with additional Iraqi participants to discuss
procedures for developing an Iraqi interim authority.
That meeting, which we are calling the Central Iraq Meeting, will be
held in Baghdad on Monday. It's very existence represents another
important step forward. We are very pleased with this because the
United States and other coalition countries have no interest in
governing or occupying Iraq.
Our intention, as we have said over and over again, is to stay as long
as we are needed, but not one day longer; to leave behind an Iraqi
Government that preserves the territorial integrity of the country;
that uses the resources of the country for the benefit of all the
Iraqi people; and that poses no threat to Iraq's neighbors.
Like the Nasiriya meeting, Monday's meeting will be a meeting of
Iraqis who are exercising their newfound freedom to speak. It is the
second in what will be a series of inclusive meetings open to Iraqis
to be held throughout the country. Iraqis will set the agenda and
discuss the vital issues. This should accelerate the dialogue and
transition to the establishment of an Iraqi interim authority.
That authority should be broad based and representative of all the
Iraqi people, including members of all religious and ethnic groups. It
should listen to Iraqis and devise ways in which the new government
will come into being. And it will have two main functions: One, to
take over -- as quickly as it can be done -- responsibility for the
administration of the basic aspects of government in Iraq. But second,
and perhaps in the long run even more important, to lead the way to
the formation of a democratic government for a free Iraq, to work on
drafting a constitution, on developing a legal reform agenda, an
economic reform agenda, organizing elections.
It's a process that might include the development, for example, of a
bill of freedoms to protect the right of all Iraqis to free speech, to
freedom of religion, freedom to assemble, freedom to speak, and the
sanctity of private property.
Our coalition troops on the ground have been greatly heartened by the
cooperation they are receiving as they work together with Iraq
citizens to restore civil order, to bring in food and medicine, to get
the electrical power grid and water systems back online, and to round
up Ba'ath party members and the leaders of a murderous regime that is
no longer in power.
It is clear from the help we are receiving from ordinary Iraqis that
they are thankful to be able to emerge from the terrifying grip of one
of the world's worst dictators. Yesterday, Secretary Powell pointed
out that the pilgrimage of huge numbers of Shia Muslims with probably
at least a million people gathering near Karbala during an important
religious ritual -- a ritual that was banned, I believe, in 1977 by
the old dictatorship -- occurred for the first time in 26 years
without violence. And let's not forget that none of the Iraqi people
enjoyed the freedoms that made that possible while they lived under
the oppressive and brutal regime of Saddam Hussein. These and many
other religious activities are an expression of freedom and stand in
themselves as a rebuke to the fallen dictator.
Secretary Powell also summarized the immediate aftermath of the fall
of the Hussein regime by saying, "We always knew," and I'm quoting the
Secretary of State, "We always knew that once you took this regime
down and broke the authority of the regime, there would be a period of
chaos and instability. That's what one would expect. But slowly, but
surely," the Secretary continued, "we are reasserting authority
throughout the country, not only with coalition troops, but with Iraqi
policemen, with Iraqi institutions."
The thing we should all bear in mind is that any dissent would have
been unthinkable throughout central and southern Iraq as recently as a
couple of weeks ago. The freedom to assemble and to demonstrate, to
worship freely, as we saw this week in Karbala, is proof of just how
far Iraq has come in an astonishingly short period of time. Looking
ahead, we are enthusiastic about the country's prospect for a future
of freedom, peace and prosperity.
And as President Bush said in a speech just yesterday, "One thing is
certain, we will not impose a government on Iraq." The President said,
"We will help that nation build a government of, by and for the Iraqi
people." Thank you.
MODERATOR: We'll take your questions. There is time for a few. Please
identify yourself and your organization. As you pose your question,
keep it short; and we'll take questions both from Washington and New
York. We're going to give New York the first opportunity, if we may.
Go ahead, New York.
QUESTION: Good afternoon Mr. Deputy Secretary. My name is Sylviane
Zehil from L'Orient Le Jour, Beirut, Lebanon. How do you foresee the
consequences of the war on Iraq on Syria, Lebanon, and the Middle East
peace process as a whole?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Well, we are, to be honest, focused
intensively now on how to help to restore order in Iraq, restore basic
services. In fact, restore isn't quite the right word. We have a lot
of work to do, actually, to make up for decades of lost development in
that country. And as I emphasized in my opening comments, to help the
Iraqi people move toward a free and democratic Iraq.
I can't help but think that the existence of a free and democratic
country in the Middle East, and particularly one of the largest and
most important countries in the Arab world, is going to have an
important and positive influence both on political development and on
the peace process, at least in the medium to long run, and perhaps in
the short run.
QUESTION: Salemeh Nematt, Al Hayatt newspaper and LBC TV.
The State Department has recently come under strong criticism from
different quarters, including -- mainly from the conservative right.
It was accused of sabotaging the work of the Pentagon. It's accused of
-- actually, the Secretary of State, himself, was described as "the
world's ambassador to the U.S. administration;" in other words,
representing the interests of "dictatorships in the region" rather
than the foreign policy, backing the foreign policy of the U.S.
President.
What are your views on these criticisms that have been leveled
recently?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I can't keep up with all the things that
people write. What I can say is that we have a very good relationship
between the Defense Department and the State Department and a very
close relationship between Secretary Powell and Secretary Rumsfeld.
There are always going to be differences in points of view.
I was the American Ambassador for three years to the Republic of
Indonesia, the largest Muslim population of any country in the world,
and I am sure that some people thought that I had, which is still the
truth, fallen in love with Indonesia and that I was representing
Indonesian views to the United States. That was part of my job. We
can't develop a coherent and successful foreign policy if we don't
have people helping us understand how other people think.
But this is a fantastic team run led by a very brave and decisive
President, and I think we come together in advancing American
interests with a sophisticated knowledge of how the world thinks.
That's our goal.
QUESTION: You don't think that (inaudible) kind of hypocrite?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: No.
MODERATOR: Another question from New York, please.
QUESTION: Deputy Secretary, this is Asla Aydintasbas from Turkish
Sabah.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Hi.
QUESTION: Hi. Jay Garner yesterday said Kirkuk is a Kurdish city. Is
this now the official position of your government?
And a quick other question, which is Farouk Hijazi, the former Deputy
Head of Iraqi Military Intelligence, has just been caught on the
Syrian border. With this arrest and other work that's been going on on
the ground, have you more evidence on al-Qaida-Iraqi connection or any
suggestion of links to September 11th from those under arrest at the
moment?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Well, first of all, Kirkuk is not a
Kurdish city. Kirkuk is an Iraqi city. It's inhabited by Kurds and
Turks and Turkomens, and Arabs. We know there are some important
disagreements about crucial issues of property rights in particular.
Those have got to be resolved in a peaceful way, and we are looking
right now to try to develop a process that can move us in that
direction peacefully over time. We have actually been consulting with
some of the governments of Central Europe, which faced those same
kinds of issues, with the Government of Bosnia which faced that issue
in a major way.
But what has impressed me over the last couple of years is to hear
emphatically from Kurdish leaders that -- Iraqi Kurdish leaders --
that they think of themselves as Iraqis, understand the Iraqis, and as
one of them said to me, "Why can't a Kurd be the president of a free
Iraq?"
We are learning more every day about the crimes of this regime, about
its weapons developments and about its ties to terrorists, but we're
still in the early stages of that kind of learning. Some of the people
we're questioning have not been cooperative at the outset. They
probably will become more cooperative as they learn that other people
are talking. It's a process that takes time, but those connections are
there.
MODERATOR: Fifth row in the middle here.
QUESTION: Thomas Gorguissian, Al Wafd, Egypt. Mr. Secretary, you said
we'll not impose any government on the Iraqis, and in recent days it
was becoming an issue and, of course, always there is the fear either
to be Iranian model or come (inaudible) others, and which is obsession
with the Algerian experience -- one vote, one time, for one, and
that's it. How do you foresee this democratic -- if you can call it --
hyphen-theocratic regime, the possibility of having something like
that?
My second question is related to your experience in the region because
I know it's gotten back to even your -- you tried to learn Arabic word
because of the speech of Sadat at the Knesset. After all these years,
I mean, and talking about empowering society, reforming Islam and
democratization of Arab societies, how do you -- why would you think
this -- assuming these things are good things -- how do you think that
-- how do you see that these people rejecting these thoughts or they
are kind of -- kind of have doubts and skepticism about what you are
saying or what you and you fellows are saying about these wars?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Well, first of all, I wouldn't say that
because some people are demonstrating and say that they don't want the
United States to stay in Iraq that, therefore, they're rejecting the
idea of democracy. In fact, they're demonstrating their belief in
democracy and the fact that, for the first time in decades, they are
able to express their views freely, which is what we want to see.
I think, as Secretary Powell said in the comments I quoted, you can't
expect a regime like that to fall and the next day everything is all
beautiful and orderly and democratic. It takes time. Look at the time
it's taken in Central and Eastern Europe.
But again, if you look at those countries, which were suffocated for
decades by tyranny, you see, I think, that when the air is there for
democracy and free institutions to breathe, they grow up. And that's
-- what we want to help to create is the climate in which Iraqis can
determine their own future, not be dictated by external powers, not by
the United States certainly, but also not by Iran, not by Syria; to
choose in their own way a democratic government that they can also
reject in their own way; not one vote, one man, one time, but
something that protects the basic rights of all people for all time.
QUESTION: Thank you. My name is Said Arikat from Al Quds newspaper.
Secretary Wolfowitz, if, in fact, weapons of mass destruction are not
found in the quantities that the President cited, would that in any
way erode America's moral standing for justifying this war?
And second, sir, on the disparaging statements that were made by some
people who are closely associated with the Pentagon, are said to be
intended to sabotage the roadmap and lobby Congress against it, will
that complicate the President's effort, the peace efforts in that
regard? Thank you, sir.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Well, I have said very clearly, I'm happy
to repeat it, that we welcome very strongly the statement by the
President, along with the British Prime Minister, of our commitment to
the Road Map. We believe -- and I speak for myself; I know I also
speak for Secretary Rumsfeld -- in the importance of moving forward on
the peace process. And I believe that removing one of the most
destabilizing forces in the Middle East has got to improve the climate
for peace.
The first part of your question?
QUESTION: The first part of my question is if, in fact, the weapons of
mass destruction are not --
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Oh, yes, okay. Look, you know, we've said
over and over and over again that you could not expect 200 inspectors
to search through a country the size of France -- or for Americans who
don't know how big France is, the size of the state of California --
and find weapons that had been systematically hidden; when scientists
who knew about those weapons have been systematically put in
situations where they could be coerced.
Jay Garner was talking today on a conference about the efforts, the
basic efforts to restore -- or maybe provide for the first time --
basic services in Baghdad. He visited Medina, I guess it's called,
where the large Shia population is in open sewers. He said there are
open sewers throughout the city. There's garbage collection problems
throughout the city. I think it's clear these were not caused by
anything we did in the last two months. And then he observed -- we're
working to get that back as fast as possible
-- but remember, this is a city the size of Los Angeles.
So stop and think about it. We know they were hiding things in houses.
We know they were hiding things in tunnels and basements. The places
that are most obvious to look are also the most obvious places to move
things out of, so it'll take time. We'll have to talk to people, have
to get information. I'm not going to speculate at this early stage.
MODERATOR: Sixth row.
QUESTION: This is (inaudible) from Turkish Daily Zelda. Mr. Secretary,
can you give us some information? In northern Iraq, in Kirkuk, Time
and the AP report that U.S. forces captured almost a dozen Turkish
special forces for they are trying to help or aid to Turkomens, or
bringing some weapons and weaponries. Do you have any --
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I would rather not comment on that. I
would like to make a more general comment, though, which is we all
have to work hard to put the past behind us. We're dealing with a
legacy of decades of one of the worst regimes in the world. And one of
those legacies was a vacuum in northern Iraq from which terrorists
attacked Turkey and killed thousands of Turks, and Turkey adopted some
policies to try to deal with it and they, I have to point out, got
some fantastic cooperation, I think, from the main Kurdish groups in
the north.
We're in a different era; we have to act in different ways. The goal
is to have a peaceful, stable Iraq that is not a threat to Turkey, and
I think we can get there and I think there's good cooperation between
the U.S. Government and the Turkish Government in dealing with any
problems, including the one that you alluded to.
MODERATOR: Second row, here.
QUESTION: Mr. Wolfowitz, you said that we all have to work hard to put
the past behind us. This is Tulin Dalogou from Turkish Star TV. But
you know, in that region, it's very difficult for people to put the
past behind them. And it's not like only this Iraqi regime, but it
really goes back the World War I, when the map of the Middle East and
then Ottoman Empire, today's Turkish Republic has been redrawn. So one
part that your (inaudible) think the Kurdish parties are seeking
autonomy, a federal body. But then, Turkey says that "This is our red
line. If you do that it is going to threaten our territorial
integrity." How do you balance it? Can you give us a better
understanding, looking into the future, not to the, you know, moment,
but to the future -- how you are going to deal with your two partners,
Turkey and the Kurdish groups?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I think we're going to deal fairly and
openly and transparently, and since everybody says that they are for
the same goal; we ought to be able to get to the same place.
I happen to love history. I think, in fact, it's very important in
approaching any country to understand its history. I also think that
people who live in the past will never make progress and I remember at
the time of the Gulf War a very wise Omani general commenting on
Saddam's observation that the incorporation of Kuwait was a fact of
history. He said, "If people around here don't stop talking about
history, there will never be any peace." We have to get past the past.
The past is fascinating, it's rich, it's important to understand it,
but the future is much more promising than the past.
MODERATOR: Second row, here.
QUESTION: I was attending a news conference by Mr. Kanan Makiya who's
also taking part in the Baghdad meeting, and he said that one thing
which he think the Pentagon did not do was to provide an Iraqi police
force even before the war started so that you can prevent the looting
and all the problems that happen, so I just want -- and he blamed the
Pentagon for this, you know, or the CENTCOM, you know, basically they
are supplying the war, so what's your comment on this?
And my second question, sir, why is the United States refusing until
now to declare that the war is over and what about your
responsibilities as occupation force? I mean, how can we hold you
accountable?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: On the latter point, people are still
shooting at Americans. Small, organized elements from the old regime
are still trying to kill our people, and we will try to bring an end
to the formal hostilities as quickly as we can, but I suppose that
also helps me answer the first part of the question.
Kanan Makiya is a wonderful man. The people who want to see instant
peace and order in the country and instant democracy in country have
totally understandable desires. But to expect the United States to
instantly transform a situation is just an unreasonable expectation.
I think when you think about what those brave, young American men and
women have accomplished in an astonishingly short period of time, you
have to marvel at the speed and the skill and the humanity with which
they conducted themselves, speaking of which, I'll take this moment,
if I can, to advertise. On the State Department website there's some
wonderful photographs of the kinds of things our troops have been
doing to bring food and water and medicine and basic care to the Iraqi
people.
QUESTION: (Inaudible) museum and the national library and the  -- 
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I'm sorry. We didn't. You know, that
happened as order was collapsing in Baghdad. It may even have been
happening while order was still in Baghdad. We're not quite sure when
some of that stuff was stolen.
We are doing everything we can in a difficult situation with a lot of
demands on our troops to protect those things that are most important
to the Iraqi people, to bring food and medicine in. We're getting --
70 tons of medical supplies were just delivered a couple of days ago
from Kuwait. The UAE is delivering supplies. Jordan and Saudi Arabia
are bringing in field hospitals. There's a lot of work to be done
there. A lot of people are helping.
I think for every story, which, I know it makes better news if it is a
bad news story, there are six or seven or eight good news stories. And
this is in a country that for the last 30 years has had no good news
stories.
MODERATOR: One last question in the far back.
QUESTION: Thank you, Mr. Deputy Secretary; I'm (laughter)  -- 
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Another Turkish colleague?
A PARTICIPANT: Please maintain some control.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I will give you one more.
QUESTION: All right.  Okay.
A PARTICIPANT: Yeah, you came earlier.  That's the reason why  -- 
(Laughter.)
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Just in the interest of peace and
stability and order (laughter) we can stretch it five more minutes.
Kevin is terrified.
A PARTICIPANT: So you see, sometimes it is good to be a backbencher.
I'm (inaudible) Dawn newspaper [Pakistan]. And yesterday, Iranian
foreign minister said that Iran was not interfering in Iraq and he
said that instead Americans have deployed troops along their border
and they warned Americans from entering the Iranian territory. Your
comments, please.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Well, I hope they are not interfering in
Iraq and I'll welcome that if it's true. And we're not interfering in
Iran.
MODERATOR: Go ahead.  Last question.
QUESTION: Thank you. Umit Enginsoy with Turkish NTV Television.
Recently, people like Jim Woolsey and Ari Fleischer have said Turkey
could be an example and model for a new Iraq, and in a major speech in
November at the IISS in London, you evaluated the resulted of Turkish
relations. And you said the outcome was significant and you said you
were ecstatic to work with a new Turkish Government, Islamist leaning
but democratic at the same time. In light of Iraq developments and
recent tensions between the Islamist Government and more secular
segments of the Turkish state structure, do you feel the need to
revise your conclusion or are you concerned over such tensions in
Turkey? Thank you.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: I have a lot of faith in Turkey and in
Turkish democracy and I believe -- I continue to believe, as I said in
the speech in London -- that having one of the most important
countries in the Muslim world be a very committed democracy is
important not only for Turkey. I think it's important for the Muslim
world. I think it's important for the United States and, look:
democracy is a process of working out problems. It's not a process of
burying them or submerging them, but working them out peacefully and
with consensual outcome.
MODERATOR: Last question here in the front row again. The neglected
front row.
(Laughter.)
QUESTION: Samir Nader, Radio Sawa. How important to you the capture of
Tariq Aziz and what will happen to him since he gave himself up? Will
there be a difference if he gives himself up or if the forces will
capture him? Will he face war crime charges?
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Most of that is speculative. I can't
answer. I can only say that like many other senior Iraqis whom we are
detaining, I think they have an enormous amount of knowledge about the
crimes of that regime and I think it's important to get to the bottom
of things. And it's very helpful, as General Franks has said, that so
many ordinary Iraqis are coming forward and helping us to find these
people. And I think as time goes on, we'll find more.
MODERATOR: Thank you, Paul.  Thank you all very much.
DEPUTY SECRETARY WOLFOWITZ: Thank you.
(end transcript)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)



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