Arroyo Postpones Security Meeting Discussing Iraq War Implications

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, February 07, 2003

Arroyo Postpones Security Meeting Discussing Iraq War Implications

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Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has reset the meeting of the National Security Council for Feb. 14 to discuss the implications of a looming U.S.-led war on Iraq and the government's position in case of war, an official said Thursday.

President Arroyo, who originally planned to convene the council on Friday, chose to wait for a United Nations Security Council resolution on Iraq, her national security adviser Roilo Golez said.

Earlier in the day, Arroyo ruled out the possibility of sending combat troops to the Middle East to help the United States disarm Iraq, which Washington accused of still possessing weapons of mass destruction.

"If, God forbid, there is armed conflict, our response will be, as it has always been, in the context of the capabilities of a developing nation and consistent with our Constitution," she said.

But Arroyo, a staunch alley of Washington in the region, renewed calls for Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein to "heed the call ofhis people and do what is right."

"We are not fighting the Iraqis for America, but we remain an active member of the global coalition against terrorism," she claimed.

She said she monitored the "televised proceedings of the UnitedNations" on Wednesday, when US Secretary of State Colin Powell presented new evidence against Baghdad to justify the use of forceon Iraq.

She said she was also "alarmed at the information of the link between the Iraqi leadership and terrorist organizations."

The Iraqi representative to the United Nations denied what Powell said.

Arroyo also allayed fears that terrorist groups would attack government targets and US and other foreign interests in the Philippines if Washington pursues its plan to attack Iraq, saying "the police and the military will check any extremist plots to violate law and order."

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