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U.S. fears Iraq, minus inspectors, developing long-range missiles

SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Thursday, December 14, 2000

WASHINGTON — The Clinton administration suspects that Iraq is developing long-range missiles that could strike Western European capitals.

Administration officials said the Iraqi efforts come amid the absence of United Nations inspectors. The inspectors were expelled from Iraqi two years ago.

Officials said the regime of President Saddam Hussein is also trying to resume its nonconventional programs, including the construction of nuclear bombs. They did not say how advanced the Iraqi programs are.

"The U.S. government does not want to see divisions of Saddam Hussein's Republican Guards with the latest tanks, an Iraqi nuclear bomb, Iraqi missiles that could reach Paris," U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Edward Walker said. "Therefore, there have to be limits as long as he continues to have the aspirations of dominating his neighbors. We have to balance the need of alleviating the suffering of the Iraqi people with the need to deny him the ability to again threaten his neighbors."

The officials said they are concerned that Iraqi missile development programs are being accelerated amid the increase in international flights to Baghdad. They said that the frequency of such flights makes it difficult to monitor the equipment being smuggled into Iraq.

The assessment by U.S. intelligence is that Iraq is developing its weapons outside the country — particularly in Libya. Government sources said the No-Dong missiles that arrived in Libya earlier this year are meant for Iraq.

For his part, Walker said the administration is trying to clarify UN sanctions. He said currently UN Security Council resolutions on Iraq are ambiguous.

"In order for a sanctions regime to work, it has to be unambiguous," Walker said. "That's what we're trying to correct."

The warning regarding Iraq comes as the Saddam regime continues to withhold oil exports. Industry sources said Iraq has not loaded oil onto ships in the Gulf port of Mina Bakr or the Turkish port of Ceyhan.

Iraq is demanding that clients pay a 40-cent surcharge per barrel of oil directly to Baghdad. This would violate the UN oil-for-food program.

In another development, Kurdish sources said Iraq has been forced to abandon military positions in northern Iraq. They said two Iraqi battalions left their positions in the autonomous Kurdistan region about 60 kilometers from the town of Dohuk.

The report was confirmed by the U.S. Defense Department. Officials, however, said the 800 Iraqi troops involved did not fire any shots.

"No shots were fired, there was no direct engagement and it seems to have calmed down," Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon said. "Both sides are apparently moving back to their original positions. So this does not appear to be a threatening or serious incident at this stage."

Thursday, December 14, 2000


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