"I'm here to eat." -------- Translation: I don't know what to say so i'll have to wait till someone tells me what to say before I can respond.
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Posted 3/18/2004 12:55 PM Updated 3/18/2004 1:38 PM
Poland 'misled' on Iraq, president says
WARSAW (AP) — President Aleksander Kwasniewski, a key Washington ally, said Thursday he may withdraw troops early from Iraq and that Poland was "misled" about the threat of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction.
His remarks to a small group of European reporters were his first hint of criticism about war in Iraq, where Poland currently has 2,400 troops and with the United States and Britain commands one of three sectors of the U.S.-led occupation.
"Naturally, one may protest the reasons for the war action in Iraq. I personally think that today, Iraq without Saddam Hussein is a truly better Iraq than with Saddam Hussein," Kwasniewski told the European reporters.
"But naturally I also feel uncomfortable due to the fact that we were misled with the information on weapons of mass destruction," he said, according to a transcript released by the presidential press office.
President Bush, in the chow line with troops at Fort Campbell, Ky., after delivering a speech, was asked about Kwasniewski's remarks but shook his head and said, "I'm here to eat."
Earlier in the day, Kwasniewski said Poland may start withdrawing its troops from Iraq early next year, months earlier than the previously stated date of mid-2005. He cited progress toward stabilizing Iraq.
"Everything suggests that pullout from Iraq may be possible after the stabilization mission is crowned with success and, in my assessment soon, it may be the start of 2005," Kwasniewski told RMF-FM radio.
His comments came days after Spain's new government, taking power in the wake of Madrid bombings apparently linked to al-Qaeda, said it would pull its troops from Iraq by June 30 unless the United Nations takes over.
The 9,500-strong multinational force that Poland commands in south-central Iraq includes the 1,300 Spaniards.
Kwasniewski noted that Iraq now has an interim constitution and said should soon have an interim government that will allow current forces to be replaced by peacekeepers.
He insisted that Poland's possible early withdrawal would not be prompted by fears of terror attacks or reprisals against his country for its role in Iraq.
"We are facing the same threat as Spain," Kwasniewski said, but "terrorism must be combatted, also with force."
Kwasniewski is a key Bush ally in Europe, although support for the military presence in Iraq has been far from overwhelming among Poles.
A poll last week found 42% of adults in favor and 53% opposed. The CBOS survey had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
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