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Politics : Foreign Affairs Discussion Group -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Elsewhere who wrote (72929)	2/10/2003 9:10:47 PM
From: Ilaine	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 281500

>>Nato ambassadors piled the pressure on France and Germany at their emergency council yesterday, demanding that the two countries must honour their alliance obligations by responding to Turkish requests for help. But the real target of the 16 Nato states backing the Anglo-American war on terrorism was Berlin, seen as far more amenable to moral argument. The pressure came at an emergency meeting of Nato ambassadors after France and Belgium, backed by Germany, blocked plans to begin shipping defensive equipment to Turkey to defend it in the event of an attack from its neighbour, Iraq. Sir Emyr Jones Parry, Britain's soft-spoken ambassador, reminded the Germans that they had been Nato's chief beneficiary for most of its 54-year history and had a moral duty to reciprocate. Germany's envoy, Gebhardt von Moltke, a direct descendant of the Prussian marshal, was told that Berlin risked shattering the most successful partnership of modern times by leaving a loyal ally in the lurch and refusing to allow the most rudimentary contingency plans in case of conflict. It was already bad enough to block Nato aid to Turkey for the past four weeks but to continue doing so after Turkey had formally invoked Article 4 yesterday, a move that obliges allies to come to its aid, would be tantamount to tearing up the alliance. All it takes is one failure to destroy the system's credibility. The Americans can live without Nato. Can Germany? Mr von Moltke did not need telling. Most German officials in Brussels are appalled by the manoeuvring of Chancellor Gerhard Shröder, fearing that it will inflict incalculable damage on long-term relations with Washington and cost Germany its reputation for reliability at a time when it is already going through an economic crisis at home. Peter Struck, the German defence minister, had devised a formula to lift the veto on use of Nato assets, agreeing to send German Patriot missile batteries to Turkey so long as they were manned by Dutch troops. He was overruled directly by the chancellor. "All this pressure is giving the Germans a lot of pause for thought but in the end it all rests on one man," said one official. Nato's tactic is to peel off the Germans in the hope that France will scramble to get back into line rather than being left nakedly exposed. A Nato source said Mr Schröder and President Jacques Chirac were in a much more vulnerable position than generally depicted in the press. "They are the guys who are isolated, not Blair and Bush. They are not getting an echo from anywhere else," he said. Yesterday, the French ambassador said his country would stand by its treaty obligations to Turkey. He said the refusal to lift the veto was simply a question of timing, since early deployment of assets in Turkey would pre-empt delicate talks at the UN. Turkey's leaders played down the disagreement, saying the alliance was split over timing, not principle. "This is not a question of whether or not Nato will support Turkey in a war," said Yasar Yakis, the foreign minister. "They did not veto the protection of Turkey," he added. "These countries have problems with the timing."<< telegraph.co.uk I remember the Berlin wall being set up. And I remember Kennedy saying he was a Berliner. I remember all the crazy, desperate Germans who were killed trying to get over the wall. When the wall came down, it was one of the happiest moments of my life. I have a piece of the wall, and treasure it. Maybe for Germany, it's a case of "what have you done for me lately"?

To: Elsewhere who wrote (72929)	2/10/2003 9:38:32 PM
From: Rollcast...	Respond to of 281500

Iraqi Intimidation Source: Iraqi Scientists Threatened With Death if They Cooperated With U.N. Inspectors By Christopher Isham and Brian Ross abcnews.go.com Feb. 10 — In the last 10 days, United Nations inspectors have been given what are described as "important, new and credible leads" from a recent defector, who also told ABCNEWS that Iraqi scientists involved in the nuclear, chemical and biological weapons program were systematically intimidated. The defector, interviewed by ABCNEWS in an undisclosed European country, is an engineer described as close to several of the weapons scientists who, he said, live in fear. Many of the scientists are eager to cooperate with the United Nations, but the intimidation is so effective that the scientists are terrified of meeting in private with the inspectors. One scientist who met with the inspectors this week was so frightened, it took an hour for him to stop shaking, according to U.N. sources. "Iraqi scientists and researchers are under a lot of pressure and influence by the Iraqi authorities," the Iraqi defector told ABCNEWS. "They were scared and threatened in different ways, including threatening to go after their families if they leave Iraq to meet with inspectors and going after their relatives if their families go with them and going after them even if they were in exile. "For these reasons, the scientist or researcher becomes scared to tell the secrets, even though he knows it's a way to lift the difficult, miserable conditions the Iraqi people are living under." According to the Iraqi, many of the scientists involved in the weapons of mass destruction program are housed with their families at a secret compound in downtown Baghdad. In mid-October 2002, when it became clear that U.N. inspectors would be returning to Iraq, the security at the compound was upgraded substantially and the personnel elevated from low-level Iraqi police officers to members of the elite Special Security Organization, which is responsible for ensuring the loyalty of all security and military personnel, protecting the president and controlling the weapons of mass destruction launch platforms. Scientists Detained, ‘Loyalty’ Questioned At about the same time, a group of approximately seven to 10 scientists involved in the secret weapons of mass destruction programs were detained and taken to another secret location. These scientists were detained because their loyalties to the regime were in question. According to the Iraqi, the scientists were not permitted to communicate with their families. "They went to their work as usual, as any other day," he said. "They were detained there and taken to unknown places. Afterwards, their families were contacted and assured that they will return shortly and that they were in good condition." Most of the scientists were released between one to two months later. One of the scientists who was released in late November was killed in a mysterious automobile crash less than a week after he returned. The message to the other scientists was clear: "This was a clear message from the Iraqi authorities to all scientists and researchers to stay away from the inspection teams and not to tell any secrets or give any piece of information that could harm the Iraqi government," said the Iraqi defector, "because if they do, their fate would be the same as their colleague's." Saddam Hussein's security organizations have killed a number of opponents in arranged "accidents" Amatzia Bar'am, a professor in the Department of Middle Eastern History at the University of Haifa in Israel, told ABCNEWS. "I could provide you with 10 such cases during the last few years," he said. "If you assassinate someone like that, there is no reason for it except to warn everybody watch it, you don't want to divulge any secrets." Held Legally Responsible The Iraqi also revealed, for the first time, how the scientists were compelled to sign two documents. The first was a declaration that he would cooperate fully with the U.N. inspectors. The second declaration negates the first, obliging every Iraqi researcher and scientist not to cooperate with the U.N. teams and hide the information. "If he causes any harm to the Iraqi authorities, he is considered legally responsible," said the defector. "The first pledge is public and a copy is sent to the U.N., while the second is only for some Iraqi security agencies." The words "legally responsible" have a particular meaning in Saddam Hussein's Iraq. "The penalty: killing and torture and going after the family, even if in exile." American intelligence sources say this defector was one of those whose information was used in Colin Powell's speech to the U.N. Security Council last week. Powell said, "Some of these sources have put their lives on the line to talk to us." The description of the secret compound and secret pledges is consistent with what many experts say is Saddam Hussein's usual tactics. "He has a need for legal niceties, and this is exactly what he has done in the past: getting people to sign pledges not to harm the country," said Bar'am. "They know then they face death if they do." The Iraqi has been interviewed by U.S. intelligence officials who have found his story to be credible and have verified certain key details. The defector's information about the intimidation of the scientists is being pursued this week in Baghdad, according to U.N. sources. ******************************* How are more inspectors supposed to work again?