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U.S. dispatches 5,000 more troops to Kuwait for exercises
Perry to visit Persian Gulf allies
September 13, 1996
Web posted at: 8:00 p.m. EDT (0000 GMT)WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The United States is sending 5,000 more troops to the Kuwait desert near Iraq for a previously scheduled exercise, the Pentagon announced Friday. The soldiers from Fort Hood, Texas, will join 1,200 soldiers who have been in Kuwait since August.
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Hours after F-117 stealth fighter-bombers arrived in Kuwait, Pentagon sources also confirmed that Defense Secretary William Perry was going to the Persian Gulf to consult with U.S. allies about Iraq.
According to CNN Correspondent Jamie McIntyre, the 5,000 soldiers -- who weren't originally scheduled to go to Kuwait -- plan to leave this weekend.
"This is part of prudent efforts to protect our interests in the Gulf," Pentagon spokesman Sam Grizzle said. The troops from the 1st Calvalry Division in Ft. Hood. The exercise began August 10 and lasts through December 15.
The troops in Kuwait will bring out of storage M1-A1 tanks and M2-A2 Bradley fighting vehicles already positioned in Kuwait and will take part in exercise "Intrinsic Action," a desert war game, Grizzle said.
Dispatch of the troops from the home base of the Army's tank corps is the latest in a series of moves ordered by President Clinton to beef up U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf following aggression against Kurdish minorities in northern Iraq ordered by Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein.
Although a spokesman for the Department of Defense would not say where Perry is going nor when he leaves, sources told CNN's Steve Hurst that Perry would be leaving Friday night to visit Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Kuwait.
Perry was reportedly initially reluctant to make the trip, because the report on the deadly Khobar Towers bombing in Saudi Arabia, that is to be released Monday, is expected to be critical of his agency.
Meanwhile, Iraq appeared to back down from a confrontation, announcing Friday that it will no longer fire at U.S. and allied warplanes enforcing no-fly zones in northern and southern Iraq. Iraq said it would halt its attacks as of midnight local time (2000 GMT), the Iraq News Agency said, quoting an official spokesman for the ruling Revolutionary Command Council.
In Baghdad, Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz told CNN's Peter Arnett the reason for the Iraqi move was a Russian initiative asking Baghdad to suspend firing on allied aircraft. He said the suspension was temporary, and that it is up to the United States to respond.
Aziz said the decision does not mean that Iraq is giving up its legal claim under international law that the no-fly zones are illegal.
U.S. strike may be postponed
President Clinton's top advisers met at the White House Friday to discuss when and how to strike at Iraq. Sources said it appeared the attack, if it comes, would not occur until Tuesday or Wednesday. "It's a little up in the air right now," the source said.
No decision has been made on when or how to strike Iraq, a senior military source directly involved in the U.S. planning told CNN's McIntyre. But pulling back from the current U.S. course of action is "not part of the strategy," the source said.
At the White House, press secretary Mike McCurry, asked about the Iraqi announcement, responded, "Actions speak louder than words," indicating the administration would wait to see what Saddam Hussein does.
A Pentagon spokesman, Ken Bacon, said Iraq's decision was a wise move if it is true, but the U.S. would wait and see. He also said it was a good first step in defusing tension in the region.
The United States is "going to keep Saddam guessing" about possible military action, said State Department spokesman Nicholas Burns. (221K/20 secs AIFF or WAV sound)
Explaining U.S. policy
According to another top military source, Clinton administration personnel will make an effort over the weekend -- including appearances on Sunday talk shows -- to explain to the American people why another strike against Iraq is justified.
"It would be more comforting if they (supported) us, but in the long term we have to look beyond Saddam Hussein and have a Kurdish policy that makes sense over the long haul."
The administration's combination strategy -- public relations and consultation -- appears to suggest that next week is the mostly likely time for a new strike to occur.
One military source says the options drawn up by military planners lean toward a bombing campaign that would last several days, targeting Iraqi mobile missiles, air defense sites, and command and communications facilities. Both F-117s and cruise missiles would take part in such attacks, the source said.
Firepower in place
Eight F-117s arrived at Al-Jaber Air Base near Kuwait City Friday after a 20-hour flight from Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico. In addition, sources said more F-16 fighter jets are either in Kuwait or on their way. The F-16s are from Moody AFB in Georgia. They were due to relieve other jets already in the area that will now stay.
The F-16s are equipped with anti-radar HARM missiles that can counter Iraqi anti-aircraft missiles.
The USS Enterprise will join the USS Carl Vinson, already in the Gulf. The Enterprise, carrying about 75 aircraft, including F-14 and F-18 fighter jets, is sailing through the Suez Canal and Red Sea on its way to the Persian Gulf.
Four B-52 bombers capable of firing cruise missiles have also been sent closer to the region. They are based on Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.
The new forces will complement a force of 250 land- and sea- based aircraft and 21 warships already in the Persian Gulf.
Republicans feel left out
Republicans complained they were being left out of the decision-making process. Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott of Mississippi
"Don't expect us to jump in line because the president decides to take another swipe," Lott said.
In the House Thursday, Republican leaders, insisting the administration has left them uninformed, continued to block consideration of a Senate-passed resolution supporting U.S. troops in the Gulf.
Separately, former Bush administration Secretary of State James Baker offered his own advice. Testifying before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday, Baker said the Clinton administration should have hit Iraq harder than it did last week when 44 cruise missiles were fired on Iraqi air defenses in southern Iraq in response to the Iraqi army's attack on Kurdish rebels in the North.
Both Baker and retired Gen. Colin Powell, who was chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Gulf War, faulted Clinton for not maintaining better relations with anti-Iraq coalition partners. But Powell, speaking in Madison, New Jersey, said the alliance was still strong enough to assure that Iraq poses no threat to neighboring countries.
But Powell, speaking in Madison, New Jersey, said the alliance was still strong enough to assure that Iraq poses no threat to neighboring countries.
The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
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