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Blair in U.S. amid Iraq WMD storm
LONDON, England -- Amid increasing criticism over the justification for going to war against Iraq, British Prime Minister Tony Blair is in Washington on Thursday for talks with U.S. President George W. Bush. Blair proved Bush's unwavering ally in the war, but pressure in Britain over the accuracy of intelligence on Iraq's weapons and Washington's determination to try two UK citizens at a military tribunal are putting a strain on the cosy U.S.-UK relationship. Before leaving on a seven-day trip that also takes in Japan, South Korea, China and Hong Kong, Blair was given an unceremonious send-off by British lawmakers. MPs used Wednesday's last Prime Minister's Question Time before holidays to turn the heat up on Blair over the whereabouts of Iraq's weapons of mass destruction and the way his government used intelligence information in dossiers published in the run up to the war. "The prime minister is now in conflict with the U.N. arms inspectors, the BBC and the Central Intelligence Agency. Is it any wonder if people are now beginning to ask if the real problem is a dodgy dossier -- or a dodgy prime minister?" one MP asked Blair. "Can he now reassure the House that we and the British people were not duped and that British soldiers were not sent to their deaths on a false premise?" asked another MP. Blair's answer, repeated endlessly, was that people should wait for the Iraq Survey Group to complete its search for weapons. "We know, according to the U.N., and not the British Government, there are some 300,000 missing people and 80 mass graves. I happen to believe we still did the right thing!" an animated Blair said. As for his use of intelligence, Blair said, "No, I do not accept that people were misled at all. I stand entirely by what was in the dossier." Intelligence information in Blair's September 2002 dossier was used to boost the case for war and is now subject to two parliamentary committee investigations. Military trialThe trouble is that U.S. authorities are not exactly standing by Blair's dossier.
The CIA has said the evidence was not strong enough to be included in Bush's January State of the Union address -- namely that former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein was seeking uranium from Niger for a nuclear weapons program. Indeed, intelligence and the coalition's inability to find WMD in Iraq are set to dominate talks when Blair meets Bush in Washington. With Bush now coming under greater pressure over his use of intelligence material, some diplomats wonder if Blair will be welcomed as warmly as before the war -- now that the prime minister's Iraq troubles seem to have spread across the Atlantic. But Robert McGeehan of the Institute of U.S. Studies at the University of London told CNN that Blair "will be well received. "He has been an extremely loyal ally right from 9/11. A good friend and a loyal ally is not a puppet. His decision (to go to war) was taken independent of American pressure." Blair is also being urged to raise at his meeting with Bush the fate of two British citizens being held at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. The men, Moazzam Begg and Feroz Abbasi, are on a list of detainees to face a U.S. military court and could receive the death sentence if convicted. Lawmakers, rights groups, lawyers and relatives have protested the U.S. plans, and the British government says it is insists the men must have a fair trial. (Military trial plan) As Blair moves to East Asia, the North Korean nuclear crisis is likely to be at the forefront of talks with Japanese, Chinese and South Korean officials. The standoff between North Korea and the United States began last October and intensified this week after Pyongyang said it had processed enough uranium to make half a dozen nuclear bombs. China this week sent an envoy to North Korea to push for a diplomatic resolution and is encouraging both Washington and Pyongyang to return to talks. (China bid) -- CNN European Political Editor Robin Oakley contributed to this report. Copyright 2003 CNN. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Associated Press contributed to this report.
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