COLIN POWELL AGAINST US RAIDS ON IRAQ

An interesting revelation has been made in yesterday’s edition of the Spanish daily newspaper, El Mundo, which states that Colin Powell, US Secretary of State, raised strong objections against the bombing of Baghdad. The newspaper states that Powell supports economic sanctions but questioned the necessity of conducting a bombing campaign. It is stated that President Bush swayed more to the side of Vice-President Dick Cheney and the Defence Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld.. These positions were taken at an emergency White House meeting last Thursday, at which George Bush gave his permission for the raids. The reaction from the USA’s NATO allies at the time of the Gulf War should be highlighted – virtually all of them pronounced themselves against this attack and even in Britain, the other perpetrator of this act of aggression, the press was highly critical. France was particularly irritated, since it had not even been informed of the plan to attack, neither had Spain nor Turkey. As for Iraq, Foreign Minister Mohammed Said al-Sahhaf stated in a letter to UNO Secretary-General Kofi Annan: “This aggression happens at a moment in which Iraq prepares to organise a global dialogue with the Secretary-General of the UNO, which creates in the Security Council a greater responsibility to condemn this act”. The Iraqi press has already coined a new nickname for George Bush: the new dwarf at the Black House. Britain and the USA will have a lot of explaining to do in the coming weeks. JOHN ASHTEAD, PRAVDA.RU, LONDON