The Hindu : Differences persist on Iraq, PA

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Jul 11, 2002

International

International

Differences persist on Iraq, PA

By Atul Aneja

MANAMA JULY 10. As key players, including the United States, Russia, the European Union and the United Nations get ready for a major brainstorming session on the Palestinian question and Iraq, hectic internal consultations are continuing to narrow down differences among them.

Jordan's King Abdullah has met the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow on Tuesday — a move that is seen here as significant as the two countries have expressed their reservations about "regime change'' both in Iraq and the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Foreign Ministers from Jordan and Egypt are also expected to join the quartet meeting that is slated for July 15 in New York. Despite its proximity to the United States, Jordan has serious reservations about the Washington's much-publicised military plans on Iraq.

Significantly, responding to media reports, Amman has rejected the use of its soil for mounting air strikes on Iraq. The Jordanian Information Minister, Mohammad Al Adwan, said on Monday that "we refuse to be a launching pad for any act against our brotherly State Iraq or the use of our soil and airspace to attain this objective''. Jordan's disinclination to join forces against Iraq is partly driven by economic considerations, as Baghdad is its foremost trading partner.

Seeking support for his recently espoused West Asian peace initiative, the U.S. President, George Bush, spoke on Tuesday over telephone with the Saudi Crown Prince, Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, and the Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon.

Incidentally, Israel has appointed a new army chief, who is set to receive his first intelligence briefing on the state of play in Palestinian territories later in the day.

With the new U.S. led initiative on West Asia gathering momentum, Syria which Israel accuses of harbouring Hizbullah and Islamic Jihad training camps that target it appears to have been put on notice.

The head of the U.S. Senate intelligence committee, Bob Graham, who had recently visited Damascus told CNN that the U.S. should lead an air campaign against Syria, in case these camps were not closed. The U.N. Secretary General, Kofi Annan, has also spoken to the Syrian President, Bashar al-Assad, over telephone on Tuesday ahead of the quartet meeting.

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