International

U.S. threat not new: Iraq

BAGHDAD JUNE 18. Iraq's Foreign Minister, responding to the disclosure of stepped up U.S. efforts to topple the President, Saddam Hussein, has said U.S. threats against his country are nothing new.

``The United States has been conducting conspiracies against Iraq for the past 30 years,'' Mr. Naji Sabri was quoted as saying by the state-run Al-Qadissiya newspaper on Tuesday. He said Iraqis were not frightened and accused the U.S. of resorting to deception to justify its policies.

The U.S. President, George W. Bush, signed an order early this year directing the CIA to increase support to Iraqi opposition groups and expand intelligence collection efforts within the Iraqi Government. The plan, first reported by The Washington Post, also calls for possible use of CIA and Special Forces teams to capture Mr. Hussein, and to kill him if the teams are acting in self-defence. Mr. Bush said earlier he favoured a regime change in Baghdad. He has also warned Mr. Hussein that he faces unspecified consequences if he fails to meet American demands that U.N. weapons inspectors be allowed into Iraq to verify whether it has dismantled its weapons of mass destruction.

Iraq has barred the inspectors and claims it has met all U.N. demands to disarm.

Reacting to the development, Australia said it supported the right of the U.S. to launch pre-emptive attacks against nations such as Iraq where terrorists may gain access to weapons of mass destruction. The Defence Minister, Robert Hill, said a new U.S. doctrine emphasising pre-emptive strikes over deterrence had emerged in the wake of the Sept. 11 hijack airline attacks on New York and Washington. — AP, PTI

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

International

News: Front Page | National | Southern States | Other States | International | Opinion | Business | Sport | Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary |

Stories in this Section

• Israel ponders exiling Arafat
• U.S. threat not new: Iraq
• Labour Govt. backs down on 'Big Brother' Bill
• 'American Taliban' will stand trial
• Top Enron staff reaped $744 m.
• Indian sailors rescued
• ACD must be clearly defined: Sinha
• Govt. yet to implement truce agreement: LTTE

Copyright © 2002, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu