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Gold/Mining/Energy : ARAKIS: HIGH RISK OIL PLAY (AKSEF) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Douglas V. Fant who wrote (7771)	2/15/1998 12:34:00 AM
From: LARRY LARSON	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 9164

Hi Kids- More negativity regarding "our little oil company": U.S. gearing up for military move on Iraq By Laurence McQuillan WASHINGTON, Feb 14 (Reuters) - Despite growing concerns from several world capitals, the United States forged ahead with preparations on Saturday for military strikes against Iraq and moved to rally U.S. public opinion behind a tough stand. President Bill Clinton, spending the three-day Presidents Day holiday weekend at Camp David, spoke on Saturday by telephone with Danish Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, who ''expressed support for our efforts'' on Iraq, a White House spokesman said. While the White House tried to stress the backing it was picking up for a showdown with Baghdad, China rebuffed efforts by the U.S. envoy to the United Nations, Bill Richardson, to overcome its objections to U.S.-led military action to force Iraq to comply with U.N. arms inspections. After an hour-long meeting with Richardson in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen emerged to say his government ''is deeply concerned about the escalating crisis.'' China, Russia and France are among the leading opponents to military action, while Britain has been Washington's chief ally in using force to end the stalemate. The showdown began after Iraqi President Saddam Hussein objected to the actions of U.N. arms inspectors charged with making sure he complies with Gulf War peace accords requiring the destruction of weapons of mass destruction. An American news magazine, quoting from the draft conclusions of a U.S. congressional task force, reported on Saturday that Iraq had smuggled many weapons of mass destruction to other Arab countries for safekeeping. U.S. News and World Report quoted the draft report of the House of Representatives Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare as saying Iraq had transferred chemical weapons and 400 Scud missiles to Yemen and Sudan in the summer of 1991. In 1992, Iraq sent materials from its nuclear program -- including 27.5 pounds (44 kg) of highly enriched uranium-235 -- to Sudan, some of it in a truck that traveled through Jordan marked ''furniture,'' the magazine said, quoting the report. The materials were later shipped to the Ain Oussera reactor in Algeria, it added. In 1995, according to the draft obtained by U.S. News, Iraq and Sudan jointly built a mustard gas weapons plant near Wau in southwestern Sudan and in the past two years have completed more sophisticated chemical weapons plants in the Kafuri and Mayu areas near Khartoum. The report also said that early this year, about a dozen Iraqi scientists involved in biological weapons research arrived in Libya to help the Libyans develop a new biological warfare complex under the guise of a medical facility called General Health Laboratories. U.S. News said the task force's report was based on U.S., German and Israeli intelligence. Clinton administration officials had no immediate comment on the report. The United States has been amassing a potent military force in the Gulf region and officials now have begun a campaign to muster public support in the United States for the need to force Saddam into ending his defiance. Clinton on Tuesday will go to the Pentagon for a briefing with the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the military services and with Defense Secretary William Cohen, who has just returned from a trip to the Gulf and Moscow on dealing with Iraq. While there, Clinton plans to address military personnel about the mission they face unless last-minute diplomatic efforts can avert military action. ''I would characterize this as continuing the dialogue with the American people on the situation in Iraq and our national interests, and what we're prepared to do,'' said White House spokesman P.J. Crowley. ''This is continuing the process of conveying our concern and determination as we have in recent days,'' Crowley said. On Wednesday Cohen, Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and White House National Security Adviser Samuel Berger will make an unusual joint appearance in Columbus, Ohio, to rally public opinion behind the tough stand by the administration. According to administration officials, Clinton and British Prime Minister Tony Blair -- who visited Washington last week -- agreed there was a need to campaign for public support for military action before ordering strikes. Although the United States has avoided setting a public deadline for Iraq to comply, several officials have said Clinton wants to be able to show that serious diplomatic efforts had failed before taking action. ''At this point, we see nothing that looks hopeful'' on the diplomatic front, said a senior administration official. ''Time is running out.'' The U.S. Air Force chief of staff, Gen. Michael Ryan, arrived in Kuwait on Saturday to discuss preparations for military action. ^REUTERS@ 18:48 02-14-98 Copyright 1998 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of Reuters content, including by framing or similiar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Reuters. Reuters shall not be liable for any errors or delays in the content, or for any actions taken in reliance thereon. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.