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To: LindyBill who wrote (81307)	10/28/2004 3:36:36 AM
From: LindyBill	Respond to of 793800

COMMAND POST - France Reportedly Surrenders on Iraq Conference From Al Jazeera : France’s attempts at creating a coalition of Iraqis opposed to the interim government of Prime Minister Iyad Allawi collapsed yesterday as Paris announced it had abandoned its opposition to an international conference to be held on the future of Iraq. “We are no longer asking that non-governmental groups be invited,” French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said. “We have agreed with Egypt that this should be an intergovernmental affair.” The conference, scheduled to take place Nov. 22-23 in the Egyptian Red Sea resort of Sharm El-Sheikh is part of a US-sponsored plan to mobilize international support for stabilization and reconstruction in Iraq. […] Hours earlier, Barnier had said France wanted to include Iraqi political groups not linked to the government, telling LCI television that they should be included “so that this conference will be useful.” […] Initially, Washington had asked for the conference to be held in October. France opposed that and proposed a November date to deny President George W. Bush any chance of using the conference in his re-election bid. Next, France and US were at loggerheads about who should attend the conference. Washington insisted that only governments should be invited. Paris, however, wanted what it calls “Iraqi resistance groups” to also attend. With help from Syria, France started looking for Iraqi figures that could be invited as “resistance” leaders and opponents of the interim government in Baghdad. Among the Iraqi figures contacted were Muhammad Al-Durri, a former diplomatic aide to Saddam Hussein who had served as ambassador to the United Nations. Also canvassed were Abdul-Razzaq Al-Hashemi, a former minister of science under Saddam Hussein, and Mahdi Salehi, a former Baathist minister of commerce with ties to the French establishment. None of the figures canvassed, however, are involved in the “resistance” while at least two are in exile in the United Arab Emirates. Both the Iraqi interim government and the US-led coalition have criticized the French move as a naked bid to find a place for the dissolved Baath party in the new Iraq. “We understand France’s desire to revive part of its influence in Iraq,” says an aide to interim Prime Minister Allawi. “But this does not mean that we can let Baathist criminals and their jihadist allies to gain a foothold thanks to French support.” France, however, had insisted that the individuals and groups it wishes to invite must first renounce violence. Although France has softened its position on the Sharm El-Sheikh conference, it still appears determined to make life as difficult for the Iraqi interim government and its US backers as possible. […] One idea is to invite Iraqi “resistance” figures and groups to a conference in Paris. But the Allawi government and virtually every Iraqi political party will almost certainly boycott such a conference. Another idea is for France to meet with “resistance” figures earlier and then act as their spokesman in the Sharm El-Sheikh conference. France is also determined to make life difficult for the US-led coalition by insisting that the Sharm El-Sheikh conference include in its agenda a discussion about fixing a date for the withdrawal of the occupation forces from Iraq. […] Analysts believe that France’s attitude, of course, may change if President Bush loses the presidency in next week’s election. “Paris will do everything to make life as hard for Bush as possible,” says analyst Olivier Marquand. “ If John Kerry is elected, however, Paris may want to signal its joy by adopting a more positive attitude toward Iraq. Such a signal could be a constructive approach to the Sharm El-Sheikh conference, and the ending of French objections to a NATO role in building the new Iraqi army.” Taking part in the Sharm El-Sheikh conference will be Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, Syria, Turkey and Iran as neighbors of Iraq. The United States, Britain, Germany, Italy, France, Canada, and Japan will also be present as members of the G-8 group along with Russia. The current holder of the European Union presidency, Holland, will represent the EU. As with all Al-Jazeera stories, grains of salt should be taken.

To: LindyBill who wrote (81307)	10/28/2004 7:34:31 AM
From: unclewest	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 793800

Several important military and political decisions remain to be made before any attack, officers said. Britain is redeploying about 850 troops from Basra to an area south of Baghdad I find this story amazing. The Brits move 850 men (a battalion) a coupla hundred miles and it makes the US papers four days in a row. We probably have 850 men driving up and down that highway everyday. We have 152 equivalent sized units in Iraq. When was the last time our press reported on an American battalion sized troop movement? Even more amazing is this battalion has a rep as one of the UK's toughest, yet 40 US Marines (one little platoon) were tasked to provide security for the move.