Chapter ( 3 )

Bush remains unimpressed ,branding Iraq as an outlaw nation , Bush accused the country ,reeling from more than a decade of devastating sanctions ; of possessing weapons of mass destruction . Bush said in a keynote speech ahead of the summit ,

'' we are threatened by the spread of chemical and biological and nuclear weapons , which are produced by outlaw regimes and could be delivered by missile or terrorist cells '' . He harped on the same theme during the NATO summit . I get the impression that US is bent on attacking Iraq under all circumstances .

When UN resolution 1441 was unanimously approved , there was a belief among many countries , including those who blesses the US- drafted motion , that Washington would devolve the task of Iraqi's disarmament to the UN . But judging by the verbal salvos daily fired by senior American officials against Baghdad, the US is increasingly seen to be on a hair – trigger .

Arbitrarily jumping to the conclusion that Iraq would not fully comply with the resolution , Washington is at5 pains to build an anti – Baghdad coalition .Bush carried the idea and attempted to sell it at the Prague summit . This desire of pulling the trigger , reinforces the notion that the US has its eyes transfixed on other things than disarmament in Iraq . What might happen to Iraq will have dire political , economic , and social consequences . The Americans will not bomb just two or three buildings in Baghdad . The whole structure of Iraqi society will be demolished . The wealthy country will suffer starvation and humiliation .Toppling Saddam Hussein in on the US plan of intervention , for which there is no law , no constitution , and no previous tradition . Bush has been compared with Hulaku , who sacked Baghdad in 1258 .If Bush thought that military action against Iraq would have solved the Palestinian- Israeli problem , he was wrong . The Israeli question has grown more complex They want to make the Palestinians refugees in their own country Israel has sullied its own reputation , but it will take years to wipe out its traces in the occupied territories , and more years to cross out the memories of torture and bloodshed from the minds of the Palestinians and that was the case in Iraq The US bloodshed is found there every day .

Without wasting anytime US president flew to Russia where he met with Putin. Iraq was the center of the Bush – Putin talks at the Catherine Palace outside St.Petersburg One day earlier , Iraq underlined president Bush's discussions at the NATO gathering . His trip to Russia pursued a heavy agenda .

Having reluctantly blessed a UN resolution on Iraq's disarmament , Russia was in need of reassurance about its interests in Baghdad . In the eight weeks , which preceded the security council's unanimous approval of resolution 1441 , the US unleashed an exciting campaign to dilute opposition against its firm draft on Baghdad.

Moscow's opposition was more than violent .Russia , the heir of the now- defunct Soviet Union , maintains close relations with Iraq , with which it has recently cut a huge co- operation deal .Moscow is concerned that the debts unpaid by Baghdad would become a history if Washington went ahead with its declared plan to effect '' a regime change '' , in Baghdad .Also at stake are traditional Russian economic interests in Iraq .

During his brief visit to Russia , Bush tried to dispel Moscow's fear about the price of a shift of alliances . The expansion of US – led NATO into the territory of Eastern Europe has ruffled Russia's feathers .The American president , whose anti – Iraq agenda needs no more overemphasis , made it clear that Russia stands to benefit

from subduing Iraq and enlarging NATO. .He sought to portray the situation as this : in the post – Iraq era , all will be winners . The US was trying to build an anti – Iraq coalition modeled on that which dislodged Iraqi troops from Kuwait long ago . Circumstances are totally different , Washington saw in the ( carrot and stick ) policy a successful formula . As Bush and Putin met , their two countries released a joint statement which told Baghdad in no uncertain terms : disarm or face the consequences . In short the Americans were currently busy trying to prove that the kingdom of Saudi Arabia was deeply involved in the tragic events of 11 September 2001 . ABC cable TV channel said that the CIA has circulated a list of 12 Saudi businessmen to banks worldwide . According to ABC , these Saudi tycoons are accused of offering millions of dollars to Ben Laden , who is regarded US enemy number one . US officials who spoke to ABC claim that the many of the listed suspected have strong personal and business ties with the Saudi royal family , but Adel al Jebeer , the Saudi Crown prince's advisor for foreign affairs , denies this , telling ABC that neither the US administration nor congressmen have offered the slightest shred of evidence for these horrible accusations .

Meanwhile , CIA officials worked on the assets and accounts held by these Saudi millionaires in Asian , European and Africans banks , not to mention American banks which were already closely scrutinized in the hope that investigators will detect every single cent that can be shown to have connection with the suspected businessmen .

Although ,the Saudis and their regime have come under heavy fire from the US media and Congress , their image is not actually that bad with the US administration itself .Washington still considers Saudi Arabia as its close ally and friend , while , even Fleischer , the white house spokesman , has said that US president Bush regards the Saudi government as a useful partner in the war on terror .

Commenting on criticism directed against Saudi Arabia ,Fleischer said :it is a good sign that both Democratic and Republican members of Congress continue to call on worldwide countries to participate in the war of terror . this is an important message for every country not just Saudi Arabia US Secretary of State Colin Powell said he could not believe that the Saudi ambassador to Washington or his wife could possibly have got involved in promoting terrorist activities .

In fact, the US goes further under the mistaken belief that its security agencies, the CIA and the FBI would effectively guard the safety of American citizens at home and abroad . Such a misleading belief was reinforced after these two agencies were supplied with high – tech equipment and devices , which allegedly could overhear intimate conversation , even in bedrooms , Moreover , the CIA and the FBI were said to have possessed equipment , which could monitor peoples' conversations over their cellulars anywhere in the world

In the meantime , communities , which formed military tribunals to protect their national security , came under American fire , worse , there was a time in which the Americans condemned these communities' efforts , prompted by acts of violence by militants And now after the menace has reached the American heart – land , Us president George .W . Bush stepped forward to sign an unprecedented legislation , which established a Department of Homeland Security . Its budget is estimated at

40 billons dollars and it will recruit more than 170/000 people .The law stipulates that the new department will have to pre- empt the planned attacks against the US . The law , therefore , gives the Department of Homeland Security absolute authority to collect the information required . Moreover , works are underway to form a number of military tribunals to charges against the perpetrators of acts of violence .

Prior to the release of these new tough measures , the Americans approved the amendments to the current penal code to arrest any suspects and put them in custody without charge . On the other hand , CIA and FIB officials complained that the newly- created department had minimized their responsibilities . They also lamented that by establishing the department of Homeland Security .The US president implicitly recognized the shortcomings in the responsibilities of both the CIA and FBI before the September 11 incidents .

America is now undergoing drastic changes . It can no longer proudly claim that it is the first democracy in the world . It is hoped that the US has appreciated every country’s right to suggest laws and regulations under particular circumstances. Among the worst repercussion of the September 11 events is that Arab – US relations have reached a stage where each is trying to rediscover the other on both intellectual and political level . It is as if each party is entirely ignorant of the other . An atmosphere of unprecedented misunderstanding prevails . The two parties seem to have returned to square one .

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