|
Coalition has few partners { January 25 2003 } Original Source Link: (May no longer be active)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40191-2003Jan24.htmlhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40191-2003Jan24.html
U.S. Coalition for War Has Few Partners, Troop Pledges
By Glenn Kessler and Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writers
Saturday, January 25, 2003; Page A16
The Bush administration has asked 53 countries to join the United States in a military campaign against Iraq, but so far the "coalition of the willing," in President Bush's phrase, consists of a handful of countries and even fewer commitments of troops, officials and diplomats said yesterday.
The United States would carry much of the burden of any war against Iraq, but diplomatically it is more important for the administration to claim a broad coalition if it fails to win United Nations backing for a military strike. For the moment, many countries publicly have said they will provide help only if the U.N. Security Council approves it.
Britain, Australia and the Czech Republic have sent troops to the region, while Kuwait and three other Persian Gulf states have either welcomed U.S. forces or supported military action.
Pentagon and administration officials said behind-the-scenes discussions over military contributions have intensified with dozens of countries in recent days, and they suggested that a number of countries have privately promised to back the United States, with or without U.N. support. But the reluctance of so many nations to take a public stand suggests that most governments continue to have misgivings about a U.S. strike on Iraq at this time.
"The reality is that as of today, you are talking about two or three countries, plus the gulf neighbors," said Ivo Daalder, a Brookings Institution senior fellow who was a National Security Council staffer in the Clinton administration. "If that's the coalition of the willing, it's a remarkably thin coalition."
Daalder said that, in his view, it is not enough to define a member of the coalition as providing use of bases or permitting overflights, which he noted that even Germany, a fierce opponent of war, has agreed to provide. "A coalition of the willing means people who put forces on the ground or whose participation makes them a target of an attack," he said.
The strongest support comes from Britain and Australia. Britain has dispatched 26,000 troops, while Australia this week sent the lead elements of a special task force that could include as many as 14 F/A-18 Hornet aircraft. U.S., British and Australian officials this week also held discussions on postwar reconstruction, diplomats said.
A number of European countries run by conservative governments, such as Spain and Italy, have strongly suggested they would support the United States, though they continue to offer the caveat that military action should be under the auspices of the United Nations. Spanish Foreign Minister Ana Palacio, in remarks before parliament on Thursday, indicated that Spain would allow use of an air base and a navy base if armed intervention in Iraq "is unavoidable," but the Spanish government has not yet made a firm public commitment.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer this week listed Italy as among countries supportive of the U.S. position. An administration official pointed to a statement earlier in the week by Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, in which he said the country would wait for the report of the U.N. weapons inspectors to the Security Council on Monday before making any decision on war with Iraq, but promised not to "back off" if war becomes inevitable.
However, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi later said that only the United Nations can decide whether there should be a military campaign against Iraq. Responding to the opposition in parliament yesterday, Berlusconi said, "Italy is not called to war."
The Bush administration suffered a blow this week when NATO deferred a decision on a U.S. request for assistance in a possible attack. A senior NATO official said the United States had wanted to secure NATO approval for steps necessary to defend Turkey in the event of a war.
NATO operates on consensus. When the U.S. ambassador offered his proposal for assisting Turkey, four nations -- France, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg -- objected, saying the timing was not right, and 14 allies supported the proposal, a NATO official said.
Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters this week that the United States already has "the coalition support to do what we need to do," although he added that "obviously, the more of that, the better." Gen. Tommy R. Franks, the commander of U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf region, has boasted that ultimately the number of countries assisting in a war would exceed the number -- roughly 35 -- that joined the United States in evicting Iraqi forces from Kuwait in 1991. However, it appears that the number of personnel and equipment provided would be smaller, especially if France did not participate.
Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld angered the French and Germans this week when he dismissed them as "old Europe" and pointed to "new Europe" -- former Soviet allies -- as a source of strong support.
Poland, a NATO member since 1999, already has a military presence in the gulf region; it sent a commando unit and a logistics vessel last year in support of U.S. operations in Afghanistan. Polish Foreign Minister Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz pledged this week that his country would support a "firm response" should U.N. weapons inspectors find weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.
Hungary is providing a base for U.S. training of Iraqi opposition members who could serve as interpreters and guides to U.S. troops. Earlier this month, several hundred U.S. Army trainers arrived at Hungary's Taszar air base to set up training facilities.
The Czech Republic also already has an anti-chemical unit deployed in Kuwait. The Czech parliament agreed last week to let the unit stay in Kuwait during any hostilities with Iraq, and Defense Minister Jaroslav Tvrdik, visiting the troops this week, declared that they could accompany invading U.S. forces if needed.
Yet, in an embarrassment for the Czech government, when Tvrdik made a symbolic offer of sending anyone home who "did not feel ready" for a possible U.S.-led war against Iraq, 27 of the 250-person unit signed up, with seven being flown home immediately on Tvrdik's jet.
Staff writer Vernon Loeb contributed to this report.
© 2003 The Washington Post Company
|
|
