US Coalition for War has Few Partners: Washington Post

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Sunday, January 26, 2003

US Coalition for War has Few Partners: Washington Post

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The United States has asked 53 countries to join it in a military campaign against Iraq, but so far the coalition for war consists of a handful of countries and even fewer commitments of troops, the Washington Post reported Saturday.

For the moment, many countries have publicly said they will provide help only if the UN Security Council approves it.

Bush administration officials said behind-the-scenes discussions over military contributions have intensified with dozens of countries in recent days.

The officials suggested that a number of countries have privately promised to back the United States, with or without UN support. But the reluctance of so many nations to take a public stand suggests that most governments continue to have misgivings about a US strike on Iraq at this time.

The Bush administration suffered a blow this week when NATO deferred a decision on a US request for assistance in a possible attack.

A senior NATO official said the United States had wanted to secure NATO approval for steps necessary to defend Turkey in the event of a war.

When the US ambassador offered his proposal for assisting Turkey, four nations, France, Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg, objected, saying the timing was not right, and 14 allies supported the proposal, a NATO official said.

The United States would carry much of the burden of any war against Iraq, but diplomatically it is more important for the administration to claim a broad coalition if it fails to win United Nations backing for a military strike.

Britain, Australia and the Czech Republic have sent troops to the region, while Kuwait and three other Persian Gulf states have either welcomed US forces or supported military action.

A number of European countries run by conservative governments, such as Spain and Italy, have strongly suggested they would support the United States, though they continue to offer the caveat that military action should be under the auspices of the United Nations.

Spanish Foreign Minister Ana Palacio, in remarks before parliament on Thursday, indicated that Spain would allow use of an air base and a navy base if armed intervention in Iraq "is unavoidable," but the Spanish government has not yet made a firm public commitment.

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