-Caveat Lector- Wed 19 Feb 2003 http://www.thescotsman.co.uk/international.cfm?id=210162003
Turks and Saudis take firm stance over Iraq GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN TWO of the countries whose support is considered crucial in any future military campaign against Iraq yesterday warned Britain and the United States they would not support any attack that did not have the backing of the United Nations. Saudi Arabia said it would regard any action without UN backing as a war of aggression which could destabilise the whole of the Middle East, and Turkey made it clear that even an �18 billion aid package might not be enough to persuade it to join in an unsanctioned campaign. If the US and Britain were in any doubt about the difficulty of the task facing them in winning international support for military action, it was spelt out by the Saudi Arabian foreign minister, Saud al-Faisal. In the strongest statement so far by the key US ally against a possible attack on Iraq, Prince Saud said: "We think war is going to be a tremendous threat to the region. "We think that, especially if it doesn�t come through the United Nations� authority, it would be a dangerous thing to do." Saudi Arabia was a main launch-pad for the 1991 US-led Gulf war to liberate Kuwait from an Iraqi invasion but Riyadh has yet to say whether it will allow US forces on its soil to strike at Iraq again. Officials say the country is lobbying Washington to grant amnesty to Saddam�s top generals, partly to encourage them to overthrow him. But Prince Saud lashed out at the United States, saying that Saudi Arabia - which was subjected to a vitriolic US media campaign for allegedly breeding Islamic militancy - was worried about rising fundamentalism in America. "Our worry is the new emerging fundamentalism in the United States and in the West. Fundamentalism in our region is on the wane. There, it�s in the ascendancy. That�s a threat," he said. There was another headache for Washington and London when Turkey demanded the doubling of an aid package it had been offered in return for participation in a war on Iraq, and warned that it would not join any campaign without a second UN resolution. Turkey�s president, Ahmet Necdet Sezer, said: "We have been saying from the very beginning that the presence of foreign soldiers in Turkey could be allowed in circumstances considered legitimate by international law. In order to have a situation deemed legitimate under international law, we believe there should be a Security Council resolution other than Resolution 1441." Turkey�s top politician, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said authorisation for US combat troops to be deployed in Turkey depended on Washington meeting his demands. "The other side must meet our demands, and if they do, we shall see. After this is finalised, the authorisation will come to parliament," Mr Erdogan said. The US believes that a northern front, launched from Turkey, would shorten any war but Turkey�s continued refusal to commit itself to the US plans could seriously hinder military preparations, with tanks and armoured vehicles already reportedly on their way. If Ankara continues to drag its feet, US military planners could go ahead without a northern front. But an assault on Iraq from Turkey would relieve a main invasion from the south and could shorten any war and reduce US casualties. Turkey is demanding �6.25 billion in grants and up to �12.5 billion in long- term loans - double what the US had been offering - and Mr Erdogan warned that the country would not be bounced into a war. "Our American friends should not consider parliament�s decision on modernising bases and ports as meaning that Turkey is on an irreversible path," he said. Yesterday Turkey�s parliament postponed a planned vote that would have authorised the stationing of US troops on Turkish soil. But the White House spokesman, Ari Fleischer, said Turkey had to decide sooner rather than later what it intended to do. "It ... will be settled one way or another rather soon," he said. "We continue to work with Turkey as a friend. But it is decision time. We will find out what the ultimate outcome is." While the diplomats continued to talk, however, preparations continued for a military campaign, with soldiers from 16 Air Assault Brigade, including members of 3 Para and 23 Engineer Regiment, due to fly out to the Gulf region today. This article: http://www.thescotsman.co.uk/international.cfm?id=210162003 More War with Iraq?: http://www.news.scotsman.com/topics.cfm?tid=518 Websites: UNMOVIC http://www.un.org/Depts/unmovic/ FCO - Policy towards Iraq http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029394374 UN News Centre http://www.un.org/News/ FCO site - Britain, UNSCOM & Iraq http://special.fco.gov.uk/ UN - Office of the Iraq Programme http://www.un.org/Depts/oip/ US Dept of State - Iraq Update http://usinfo.state.gov/regional/nea/iraq/ Iraqi Presidency http://www.uruklink.net/iraq/ Iraq Watch http://www.iraqwatch.org Dossiers on Iraqi WMD & human rights abuses http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1032455026312 John Pilger on Iraq http://pilger.carlton.com/iraq Forwarded for your information. 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