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To: TobagoJack who wrote (30528)	3/31/2003 11:18:43 PM
From: elmatador	Respond to of 74559

Running away from Saddam: Australia to Cut Iraq Naval Force Mon March 31, 2003 10:21 PM ET <<Clever Aussies! The guys who thought about capitalizing on a easy walk-through are realized the situation are not winnable and are pulling back. UK says will send no additional slodiers beyond the ones engaged in the adventure. Probably take Basra. Declare "victory" put tails in between the legs and leave some "peace-keeping forces>> By Andrea Hopkins CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia said on Tuesday it would cut its naval contribution to the U.S.-led war on Iraq to one frigate later this month, saying there would not be enough work to occupy two of its warships. At the same time, Defense Minister Robert Hill said six air force intelligence specialists would be sent to the Gulf to help the U.S.-led forces assess battle and bomb damage. Hill said the frigates HMAS Anzac and HMAS Darwin, which have been in the Gulf enforcing sanctions against Iraq since October 2002, would leave for Australia by the end of April, to be replaced by the frigate HMAS Sydney. A supply ship, the HMAS Kanimbla, will remain in the Gulf. "We don't think at this stage that the workload that will exist at the end of this month would require replacement by two ships," Hill told a news conference. "The work is obviously changing and reducing." An opinion poll released on Tuesday showed a majority of Australians now support the U.S.-led war on Iraq. Polls prior to the invasion showed around two-thirds of Australians opposed a war that did not have United Nations backing. REDUCED NUMBERS The return of the two guided-missile frigates is expected to reduce Australia's 2,000-strong force in the Iraq war by several hundred. Fighter jets, transport aircraft, navy divers and about 150 elite troops will remain in the war. Hill said six Royal Australian Air Force imagery specialists would deploy this week for up to three months, at the request of the U.S. Central Command. "Their role is to determine whether the target has been destroyed, basically, and they are principally looking at tanks and other military equipment or installations that are being purposefully bombed," Hill told Australian radio. The Newspoll survey of 1,200 voters, conducted March 28-30 and published in the Australian newspaper, showed 51 percent of Australians supported the nation's involvement in the war, while 38 percent were opposed. However, an ACNielsen poll of 1,431 people, also conducted March 28-30, found 44 percent of Australians supported involvement in the war on Iraq, while 48 percent were opposed. Another Newspoll survey of 1,145 voters found Prime Minister John Howard's personal rating has returned to a record high amid his staunch support of President Bush. Support for Howard's conservative government rose one percentage point from a week earlier to 46 percent. The opposition Labor Party, which has opposed war, was steady at 34 percent. The defense minister, who on Sunday said the United States had underestimated the Iraqi militia, said coalition efforts to avoid civilian casualties had so far been successful. "The targeting is exceptionally successful, better than any previous conflict," Hill said. "You can never eliminate civilian casualties but they are being kept at an absolute minimum." The U.S. Central Command said U.S. forces killed seven Iraqi women and children when they fired on a vehicle near the central city of Najaf after its driver ignored orders to stop.

To: TobagoJack who wrote (30528)	3/31/2003 11:31:07 PM
From: elmatador	Respond to of 74559

Powell seeks bridge-building with Europe. The US next steps: It will go to the Europeans and say: Look guys we give you 50% of the spoils, i.e., construction works, let the contracts signed with France and Russia for oil exports intract, but please help us get out of the adventure while we still can walk. Don't let Saddam himiliate us. Hey, if this is the outcome, I will call it half pizza result and you'll get Half Pizza only, Jay. Powell seeks bridge-building with Europe By Edward Alden in Washington and Judy Dempsey in Brussels Published: March 31 2003 21:14 \| Last Updated: April 1 2003 1:19 Colin Powell, secretary of state, surprised diplomats on both sides of the Atlantic on Monday by announcing that he would travel to Turkey and Europe this week, a move seen as an effort to mend key relationships badly bruised by the US-led war in Iraq. The trip, during which Mr Powell will spend Tuesday and Wednesday in Ankara and Thursday in Brussels, follows intense diplomatic activity to rescue the battered transatlantic relationship. The visit to Europe will be the first from the top US diplomat since opposition from France and Germany quashed US efforts to win United Nations backing for the war. Special report: Iraq For latest news and analysis on Iraq click here The meetings in Turkey will be Mr Powell's first with government leaders since the Turkish parliament last month rejected US requests to open a northern front in Iraq through Turkey, a decision that many in the US are already blaming for the difficulties facing the war effort. Mr Powell said he planned to raise US concerns that Turkey might complicate the military campaign by sending troops into Kurdish-controlled northern Iraq. He said he would "reassure Turkish leaders" that the US military presence in Iraq "should make it unnecessary for them to consider any incursions in the region". He said the talks in Europe would focus on the reconstruction of Iraq after the war. The Turkish government is likely to seize the opportunity to try to improve relations with Washington. Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Turkey's prime minister, wrote in the Wall Street Journal yesterday that Turkey was "determined to maintain our close co-operation with the US". More on Iraq See the latest movements in the allied advance Click here US command hints at timing of Baghdad attack Click here NBC fires reporter Arnett for war comments Click here News in depth: Iraq Click here "Turkey will strive for peace and durable stability in the region alongside the US, her strategic partner and ally for more than half a century," he wrote. The US slashed a planned $6bn economic aid package to Turkey down to $1bn following the parliamentary vote. There are signs that more limited aid could be stalled in the US Congress. Leaders of the House international relations committee, who are strong backers of Turkey, on Monday called for a smaller aid package that would depend on the country demonstrating its "role as an ally". "Turkey's recent activities have caused significant and justified consternation in Congress," they said. In Brussels, Mr Powell will try to mend the dispute over Iraq that has led to one of the most serious crises in Nato since it was founded 54 years ago. He will meet Lord Robertson, Nato secretary-general, and will hold talks with the European Union's "troika" - George Papandreou, foreign minister of Greece, which holds the EU's rotating presidency; Javier Solana, EU foreign policy chief; and Chris Patten, the EU external affairs commissioner. Diplomats said Mr Powell hoped to hold a special lunch attended by all 19 Nato foreign ministers to focus on the postwar reconstruction of Iraq. In Iraq, US military officials said that seven Iraqi women and children were killed on Monday when the van they were riding in came under fire at a US army checkpoint. Two others were wounded, and four other people in the van were unharmed. A US spokesman said that US troops opened fire on the van after it ignored both signals to stop and warning shots. "As a last resort, they fired into the passenger compartment of the vehicle," the spokesman said. "When soldiers opened the vehicle they found 13 women and children inside. Seven of the occupants were dead, two were wounded and four were unharmed." The incident follows the deaths of four US soldiers in a suicide car bomb attack at a checkpoint near Najaf on Saturday. The US army said it was investigating the deaths. US troops continued to engage units of Iraq's Republican guard around the towns of Karbala and Hindiya, both around 50 miles from Baghdad, on Monday, while air attacks continued against Iraqi positions and targets in the capital. Iraq reported intense fighting in the southern town of Nasiriya, where US Marine units have been facing continued resistance from fighters loyal to the Iraqi government. In the United States, President George W. Bush sought to reassure Americans that progress was being made in the war to remove Iraq's president Saddam Hussein. Speaking in Philadelphia, Mr Bush said: "Many dangers lie ahead. But day by day we are moving closer to Baghdad. Day by day we are moving closer to victory." Mr Bush also sought to underline attempts to persuade Iraqis to support the US-led invasion, saying "it is understandable that fear and distrust run deep," but pledging: "We are coming with a mighty force to end the reign of your oppressors. We are coming to bring you food and medicine and a better life. And we are coming and we will not stop, we will not relent, until your country is free."