US considers Israeli plan for joint Iraq operation
The Bush administration is considering an Israeli proposal to send US special forces into Iraq’s western desert to knock out Iraqi missile sites in the event of war, a US official said.
In a joint operation, Israel would furnish the US with intelligence about the sites and how to disarm them early in the conflict, the official said.
Israel’s aim is to sharply reduce the risk of an Iraqi missile attack.
Israel presented the proposal during Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s talks this week in Washington with US President George W Bush and senior White House, Pentagon and State Department officials.
He was given assurances that the administration would make a maximum effort to neutralise any Iraqi missile threat.
Mr Sharon vowed before his trip to Washington that Israel ”will take the proper steps to defend its citizens” if Iraq should injure Israeli civilians.
In the 1991 Persian Gulf war, Iraq hit Israel with 39 Scud missiles, but at the behest of the US Israel did not retaliate.
On Wednesday, Mr Bush endorsed Israel’s right to self-defence. Still, the prospect of Israel attacking Iraq could hamper US efforts to attract Arab nations to support a war with Iraq.
Mr Sharon did not get a response to the special forces proposal during his three-day visit, and it is under consideration, the official said.
On the diplomatic front, the State Department asserted yesterday that Mr Bush had the authority to attack Iraq to force it to disarm even if the UN does not give the US the support it has been seeking and not getting for five weeks.
The administration would like a tough resolution from the UN Security Council to strengthen the President’s hand, but negotiations continued to drag on even after the US agreed to soften a threat in its initial proposal.
Specifically, in an effort to woo France, which is opposed to threatening language, US diplomats agreed to drop the phrase authorising “all necessary measures” to disarm Iraq.
Still, said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher: ”We want a strong resolution that clarifies there will be consequences for continued Iraqi non-compliance” with UN demands unless it gets rid of all weapons of mas destruction.
Based on the consultations the Bush administration had at the UN and elsewhere, “we expect to achieve those things in a resolution”, Mr Boucher said.
If that does not work, and the UN does not approve a tough resolution, Mr Bush still retains the authority “to do what is necessary for our national security”, Boucher said.
Administration officials disputed reports that the US was “caving in” and weakening its proposed resolution.
Within the administration, Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld have insisted that US diplomats not weaken the resolution.
US Secretary of State Colin Powell is guiding the difficult negotiations. Other administration officials said the talks were making headway but that there was no agreement on a text.
France and Russia each has the power to block any US resolution in the Security Council with a veto. As a result, the US hesitates to submit its joint resolution with Britain until a veto-free resolution has been worked out.
