NICOSIA Ñ Iraqi President Saddam Hussein has again met his nuclear
chiefs to prepare for a U.S.-led attack against Baghdad.
Saddam met both the heads of his nuclear and military industries late
last week in what the official Iraqi media termed was an effort to bolster
defensive capabilities against any foreign attack.
The Saddam meetings included a session with Fadel Musalam Al Janabi,
director of the Iraqi Atomic Energy Agency. It was the publicized third
meeting between Saddam and his nuclear chief over the last four months, according to Middle East Newsline.
Last week, a CIA-led report said the United States believes that Saddam
requires "several years to produce enough fissile material" to assemble a
nuclear bomb. Iraq is believed to have resumed its chemical and biological
weapons program.
"Iraq relied on extensive foreign assistance before the Gulf war and
will continue to seek foreign assistance to expand its current
capabilities," the National Intelligence Estimate, which analyzes 13 U.S.
intelligence agencies, said.
Saddam also met with the directors of his growing military industry.
This included Deputy Prime Minister and Military Industrialization Minister
Abdul Tawab Al Mullah Huweish.
In a meeting on late Saturday, Saddam urged his defense chiefs to
bolster cooperation for Arab defense. The Iraqi president praised what the
official Iraqi news agency termed as the "the level of scientific and
medical cooperation with Egypt." Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri told
Iraqi television that Baghdad plans to expand a range of relations with
Egypt and Syria.
Western diplomatic sources said Iraq has focused on developing its
anti-aircraft capabilities to counter any U.S.-led air campaign. The sources
said Baghdad has sought to obtain military and dual-use systems from Germany
and former East Bloc countries.
U.S. officials say Iraq may have acquired two Tamara radar systems which have been reported missing in the Czech Republic.
The officials said the regime of President Saddam Hussein has been
conducting negotiations with companies in Eastern Europe to procure a system
that could detect and respond to U.S. stealth bombers, such as the B-2
F-117. The F-117 and the B-2 have been used by the United States in
Afghanistan.
The Bush administration is concerned that Baghdad might have
smuggled a radar system from Eastern Europe in what could mark a surprise in
any U.S. military campaign against Iraq. Officials said Iraq nearly bought a
$300 million radar system from the Czech Republic in 1997. The deal was
blocked by the government in Prague.
U.S. officials said the Pentagon has assessed that Iraq has gained new
anti-aircraft capabilities. They said this includes the ability to detect
and shoot down U.S. and British aircraft. The officials said Washington has
instituted changes in electronic warfare systems to better protect its
aircraft.
