Cheney Warns Iraq Will Get Nuclear Arms In Near Future
>>"So even if you had the return of inspectors, I'm not sure they would be able to do enough to be able to guarantee us and our friends in the region that he had, in fact, complied. He's gotten very good at denial and deception," Cheney said.<<
WASHINGTON -(Dow Jones)- U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney warned Wednesday that Saddam Hussein's Iraq will, in all likelihood, acquire nuclear weapons relatively soon and said the international community needs to come to grips with this reality.
While the vice president discounted the idea that a resumption of the U.N. weapons inspections would solve the problem, he also said President George W. Bush has made no final decision on whether to launch a military strike on Iraq.
Cheney made the remarks following a speech in San Francisco.
Looking back at Iraq's history, Cheney said that Iraq first began working on its nuclear program more than two decades ago but suffered its first major setback when Israel bombed the Osirak nuclear reactor just before it went online. Iraq's nuclear program than suffered a second setback during the Persian Gulf War.
However, since then, Cheney said that Saddam has reinvigorated the program and "left to his own devices, it's the judgment of many of us that in the not too distant future he will acquire nuclear weapons. And a nuclear-armed Saddam Hussein is not a pleasant prospect, I don't think, for anyone in the region or for anyone in the world for that matter. Sooner or later the international community is going to have to deal with that," Cheney said.
While Iraq has offered to open talks on a renewed weapons inspection regime, Cheney said this isn't a realistic option.
"The issue here isn't inspectors. That's a secondary item, if you will. The issue is the fact that he's required to dispose of his weapons of mass destruction, and the inspectors are merely the device by which the international community can assure itself that he's done so. So many of us, I think, are skeptical that simply returning the inspectors will solve the problem. A great deal depends upon what conditions they would operate under," Cheney said.
Cheney said that Iraq has had four years since the inspection regime was allowed to collapse by former President Bill Clinton and Saddam has likely used the time to hide his weapons programs under deeper cover.
"So even if you had the return of inspectors, I'm not sure they would be able to do enough to be able to guarantee us and our friends in the region that he had, in fact, complied. He's gotten very good at denial and deception," Cheney said.
Cheney also sought to ease the growing tensions between the U.S. and Saudi Arabia by saying the Saudi government had nothing to do with the attacks on Sept. 11 even though the majority of the hijackers were Saudi nationals.
Nevertheless, Cheney also conceded that it isn't all smooth sailing with the Arab monarchy and key differences between the two countries exist.
"It's important, first of all, to recognize that we've had a very good relationship with the Saudis now for about 60 years. It's been a very productive relationship, in terms of the values that we gain from it and that the Saudis gain from it, as well," Cheney said.
"And while we do have our differences - obviously, there are fundamental differences in our cultures, in our political systems and the way we operate - that doesn't mean that we should, in any way, ignore the benefits that both countries derive out of that very close relationship," Cheney said.
On Tuesday, the Washington Post broke the story that top military advisers had received a briefing at the Pentagon in which a Rand Corporation analyst labeled Saudi Arabia the U.S.'s most dangerous opponent in the Middle East. The briefing was disavowed by Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld as not official U.S. policy.
On Wednesday, Saudi Arabia made a point of saying that it wouldn't allow U.S. forces to use Saudi Arabia as a base for attacking Iraq.
On a third topic concerning the Middle East, Cheney said that while the U.S. objects strongly to the policies of the Iranian government, it has no conflict with the Iranian people. Cheney also said that this means the U.S. approach to Iran must be different from its approach to other rogue nations.
"The government, current government in Iran, clearly has actively and aggressively supported, especially, Hezbollah. It has been a major source of state-sponsored terrorism, if you will, and devoted to the effort to destroy the peace process. We find that clearly something that we can't accept. And we've made clear our opposition to that as well as to their efforts to try to acquire weapons of mass destruction. They're actively working trying to acquire ballistic missile technology as well as nuclear weapons themselves. But our argument with Iran is not with the Iranian people," Cheney said.
Cheney added there is a growing movement among the Iranian people both for democracy and for better relations with the U.S. While he stopped short of saying he expects the theocratic government of Iran to be toppled from within, he did say "the prospects there are promising in some respects."
biz.yahoo.com |
