Saddam Abused His Last Chance, Clinton Says

 

 By Linda D. Kozaryn
 
American Forces Press Service


 WASHINGTON -- A month ago, the United States called off its war 
 planes to give Saddam Hussein one last chance to cooperate. When 
 he failed to do so, the United States took action.
 
 President Clinton ordered air strikes Dec. 16 against Iraq's 
 nuclear, chemical and biological weapons programs and its 
 military capacity to threaten its neighbors. Warships and combat 
 aircraft began bombarding the defiant Gulf state at 5 p.m. EST -
 - 1 a.m. in Baghdad, the Iraqi capital.
 
 "The international community gave Saddam one last chance to 
 resume cooperation with the weapons inspectors," Clinton said. 
 "Saddam has failed to seize the chance. So we had to act and act 
 now."
 
 Less than an hour after American and British forces launched 
 Operation Desert Fox, the president addressed the nation to 
 explain his decision. He said the attack was designed to protect 
 the national interests of the United States and the interests of 
 people throughout the Middle East and around the world.
 
 "Saddam Hussein must not be allowed to threaten his neighbors or 
 the world with nuclear arms, poison gas or biological weapons," 
 Clinton said. The Iraqi dictator has used these weapons against 
 his neighbors and his own people, he said, and "left unchecked, 
 Saddam Hussein will use these terrible weapons again."
 
 The strikes culminated the second showdown with Iraq in the past 
 month. Clinton turned back U.S. warplanes bound for Iraq Nov. 14 
 when Hussein backed down in the face of intense diplomatic 
 pressure backed by overwhelming military force. At the time, the 
 Iraqi leader agreed to cooperate unconditionally with the U.N. 
 Special Commission.
 
 "I concluded then that the right thing to do was to use 
 restraint and give Saddam one last chance to prove his 
 willingness to cooperate," the president said. The confrontation 
 wasn't over, but simply on hold -- Clinton said at the time that 
 the United States would be prepared to act "without delay, 
 diplomacy or warning" if Saddam failed again.
 
 Over the next three weeks, U.N. weapons inspectors tested Iraq's 
 willingness to cooperate. UNSCOM Chairman Richard Butler 
 reported Dec. 15 to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. 
 
 Butler's conclusions, Clinton said, proved to be "stark, 
 sobering and profoundly disturbing." Instead of living up to its 
 agreement, he said, "Iraq has abused its final chance."
 
 He said Iraq had placed new restrictions on the inspectors, 
 further obstructed inspections and failed to turn over all 
 requested documents. In one instance, the Iraqis removed all 
 documents, furniture and equipment from a building prior to a 
 U.N. inspection.
 
 Butler's report concluded Iraq has ensured U.N. inspectors could 
 make no progress toward disarmament. Even if the inspectors 
 could stay in Iraq, Clinton said, their work would be a sham. 
 
 "Saddam's deception has defeated their effectiveness," he said. 
 "Instead of the inspectors disarming Saddam, the Iraqi dictator 
 has disarmed the inspectors." 
 
 Clinton said he and his national security advisers agreed that 
 Hussein presented a clear and present danger to the stability of 
 the Persian Gulf and the safety of people everywhere. He said he 
 deemed military action necessary to prove the international 
 community, led by the United States, had not lost its will. 
 Failure to act, Clinton said, would have "fatally undercut the 
 fear of force that stops Saddam from acting to gain domination 
 in the region."
 
 In a Pentagon briefing immediately following the president's 
 address to the nation, Defense Secretary William S. Cohen and 
 Army Gen. Hugh Shelton, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, 
 briefed reporters. 
 
 Cohen said he was ordering a sharp increase in U.S. Gulf forces 
 to limit the risk to U.S. and allied troops. Deploying forces 
 include an air expeditionary wing with about 36 combat aircraft 
 and the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson battle group, to join 
 the 201 planes and USS Enterprise battle group already in the 
 region.
 
 Shelton noted that deploying more elements of the crisis 
 response force would add flexibility and allow military leaders 
 to increase the intensity and tempo of strike operations if 
 necessary.
 
 The chairman also recognized those called upon to enforce the 
 national defense leaders' decisions -- America's men and women 
 in uniform. "We can be particularly proud tonight of those that 
 are answering the call in the skies over Iraq and the Persian 
 Gulf," he said.
 
 

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