U.S. allies in Gulf turning to Saddam

WASHINGTON —The United States is concerned that its Gulf policy is being undermined by a regional swing toward Iraq.

U.S. officials said despite efforts by the Clinton administration several Gulf states and other neighbors of Iraq are bolstering aid to the regime of President Saddam Hussein. They said this has prevented an expansion of a U.S. plan for a Gulf security regime.

The plan has included a project to connect members of the Gulf Cooperation Council with a command and control network and early-warning alert systems. Another project is to increase the size of a GCC regional military force.

Officials said of the six-member GCC, only Kuwait and Saudi Arabia maintain that Iraq is a threat. The United Arab Emirates, Qatar and the remaining Gulf states are forging close ties with Baghdad.

But even in Kuwait — which has arrested an Islamic squad that planned attacks against Western installations — calls are growing from the opposition for the expulsion of U.S. forces. In Kuwait, a prominent Islamic cleric, Hakem Mutairi, said his six-member parliamentary bloc will press for the removal of the 5,000 soldiers from the emirate. Kuwait's parliament has 50 seats.

"All studies show that the U.S. presence will be a permanent one," Mutairi told the Al-Rai Al-Aam daily. "We agreed on the foreign presence to liberate Kuwait and repulse the aggression. But who foots the huge bill for this presence? What are its real intentions?"

The U.S. concern is being raised during the current visit to the Gulf of Gen. Tommy Franks, the commander in chief of U.S. Central Command. Franks has been holding talks in Qatar over the last two days.

Last week, the State Department announced sanctions on the president of a Persian Gulf regional airline who donated a Boeing 747 passenger jet to Iraq. The jet was donated to the Saddam regime by Hamad Bin Ali Al Thani, a Qatari national, earlier this month in Baghdad.

Hamad is president of Air Gulf Falcon.

State Department officials said the sanctions will limit exports of a range of U.S. products to Hamad and his airline. Those involved in the transfer of the jet will also be denied entry to the United States.

"The Department of Commerce is taking this action to prevent any further diversion of U.S.-origin goods to Iraq that are inconsistent with U.N. Security Council resolutions," State Department spokesman Philip Reeker said.

Hamad said his gift has no political significance. "It only reflects my true love for Iraq and its wise leadership," he said.

For his part, Saddam has urged Arabs to attack U.S. and Israeli interests around the world. The Iraqi president called on Jewish immigrants to return to their countries of origin.