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U.S. may send more warplanes to Gulf
August 30, 1996
Web posted at: 9:20 p.m. EDT (0120 GMT)From Military Affairs Correspondent Jamie McIntyre
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States may beef up the number of warplanes it has in the Persian Gulf, in response to signs that Iraq may be gearing up for military action, CNN learned Friday.
Sources say the Pentagon is considering sending more warplanes to the Persian Gulf region in response to a movement of Iraqi tanks and troops in northern Iraq, and is moving forces to be ready to respond to any Iraqi aggression against Kurds in the north.
U.S., British and French planes have been patrolling the skies of northern Iraq since shortly after the Gulf War in 1991, enforcing a no-fly zone to protect Iraq's Kurds from attack by the Baghdad government. The Iraqi troop movements are above the 36th parallel, the region patrolled by the Allied planes.
The United States has been "watching carefully" the movement of what sources say is a "mechanized brigade" of Iraqi troops, which includes small tanks and armored personnel carriers near Irbil in Northern Iraq where rival Kurdish factions have been fighting.
The United States believes the troop movement is simply a "show of force" aimed at intimidating the Iranian-backed Kurdish faction, but it has warned Iraq it "would take seriously any aggressive acts on the part of Iraq."
U.S. officials say a number of "prudent measures" are being taken so that the United States can be "prepared to respond militarily" if Iraq takes aggressive action against the Kurds.
Already, sources say, air patrols of the Iraqi no-fly zone have been stepped up and made more visible, and the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Enterprise has been ordered to remain in the eastern part of the Mediterranean where it is in range should its warplanes be needed.
In addition, military sources say that as a precautionary measure the United States is considering moving an Air Expeditionary Force (AEF) of about 30 planes and 1,000 support troops into the region, either to Jordan, Qatar, or Bahrain.
U.S. officials say that two B-52 heavy bombers are also being moved to Guam so that they will be closer in case they are needed in the Gulf Region.
The United States already has about 200 land-based planes in the region, mostly in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, plus some 70 planes on the U.S. aircraft carrier Carl Vinson in the Persian Gulf.
Movement of additional Air Force planes into the region has been done routinely over the past year in Jordan and Qatar, in part to make up for times when an aircraft carrier has not been in the Persian Gulf.
At the State Department Friday spokesman Glyn Davies said, "We are, of course, as you would expect, actively watching the situation in that part of the world, where we keep a close watch on what's occurring in the north, because of our interest in northern Iraq and the fate of the Kurds. We would take any aggressive Iraqi moves in the area very, very seriously."
Related stories:
- Pentagon says chemical weapons were detected in Gulf War - August 22, 1996
- Source: Persian Gulf wealth backing terrorists - August 14, 1996
- Iran builds up military strength at mouth of Gulf - August 6, 1996
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