Some 200 US Marines Could Go Ashore in Liberia: Pentagon

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, August 14, 2003

Some 200 US Marines Could Go Ashore in Liberia: Pentagon

Some 200 US Marines on three warships off the coast of Liberia could go ashore briefly if rebels fighting there abandon the port in Monrovia, a senior Pentagon official said Wednesday.

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Some 200 US Marines on three warships off the coast of Liberia could go ashore briefly if rebels fighting there abandon the port in Monrovia, a senior Pentagon official said Wednesday.

Air Force Major General Norton Schwartz, director of operationsfor the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said the Marines would be part of aquick reaction force in reserve to serve as liaison to African peacekeepers.

The US forces would include Navy SEALS, who would make sure thewaterway is secured, and engineers who would help the delivery of humanitarian aid, Schwartz said. But he said not all of the Marines going ashore would remain overnight.

The forces would be the largest US military commitment in more than two months since the start of the latest waves of bloodshed in Liberia, which have left 2,000 dead.

The administration of President George W. Bush has resisted calls by UN Secretary General Kofi Annan and the international community to dispatch troops immediately to Monrovia to prevent the worsening of the situation.

A fierce debate took place within the administration regarding whether committing US military forces in Liberia was in America's national strategic interest, in spite of the fact that the West African nation was founded by slaves freed by the United States inthe 19th century and its capital, currency, flag and political structure all bear an American imprint.

Washington has sent fewer than 100 people to Liberia, most of them assigned to protect the US Embassy in Monrovia and less than 20 to serve as a liaison team between the US commanders and West African peacekeepers.

Three US warships carrying about 2,300 Marines have been awaiting off the coast of Liberia for more than one week, but Bushgave no hint Wednesday of whether he intended to send the Marines ashore.

"One of the things I've said all along is we're there to help ECOMIL do its job," Bush spoke to reporters from his ranch in Crawford, Texas, referring to the peacekeeping force sent by the Economic Community of West African States. "They are in the lead, and we are there in support."

One day after Charles Taylor quit as Liberia's president and went into exile, the rebels there promised Tuesday to pull out of the Monrovia's port by Thursday and hand over control of the capital city to West African peacekeepers.

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