JEDDAH, 30 July 2004 — Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi and US Secretary of State Colin Powell yesterday welcomed a Saudi initiative to muster a Muslim force to assist in maintaining order in war-torn Iraq as the Kingdom formally restored relations with its northern neighbor.
“The two sides have agreed to restore their diplomatic representation” and “develop their cooperation in the security field with an exchange of expertise,” a Saudi-Iraqi statement said without elaborating.
Former President Saddam Hussein broke relations with Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Gulf War.
Expressing support for the Saudi proposal for troops from Islamic states, Allawi called on leaders of Muslim countries to cooperate “in the face of gangs and terrorist groups that aim to disrupt stability in Iraq and the Muslim world.”
However, Allawi reiterated his refusal to have any troops from countries neighboring Iraq. “These forces should come from Arab or Muslim countries that do not have borders with Iraq,” he said at joint press conference with Powell.
Leaders of some governments have responded positively to the proposal but have asked for details regarding how and where they would be deployed, he added.
Powell said: “We welcome the proposal to have Muslim troops in Iraq to be either part of the multinational force or a separate force. We aim at finding additional forces in Iraq.”
“The current UN resolutions provide a framework for the deployment of new forces. One of the conditions set by many (Muslim) countries is that a sovereign Iraqi government is formed,” Powell said. “Many of them said they needed to see a UN mandate. Now there is a UN mandate under (Security Council Resolution) 1546. They also said they wished to see a sovereign government. There is a sovereign government that is up and running.”
Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal separately discussed with Powell “ideas” related to sending Muslim troops to Iraq, the Saudi Press Agency said. According to Powell, Saudi Arabia has put forward a set of conditions regarding the chain of command of these troops and their mission and the possibility of these troops taking the place of some multinational units in Iraq.
“We will be in more intensive discussions on the basis of the Saudi initiative with Muslim countries to see if more support cannot be generated,” Powell said.
Under the proposed Saudi plan, Arab and Muslim troops would supplement the coalition troops already there, not replace them. According to a State Department official, the implementation of this proposal could reduce the need for so many troops as security is restored.
“We exchanged opinions and formed ideas which we presented to the Iraqi prime minister which he, in turn, will suggest to Islamic governments and the United Nations,” SPA quoted Prince Saud as saying.
“This is a global war. These are forces of evil who are acting against us,” Allawi told reporters. “I call upon the leaders of the Islamic countries and the Arab countries to close ranks.”
Indonesia gave a cool reception to the proposal. “Our position remains that we will only contemplate sending our troops within the context or framework of the United Nations, in other words as part of a United Nations peacekeeping force,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Marty Natalegawa said.
“The only scenario wherein we will contemplate contributing our troops would be if such a force was to be a UN blue beret peacekeeping force under UN command,” he said.
Natalegawa also drew a distinction between peacekeeping and peace enforcing.
“Any UN blue beret force of a peacekeeping nature must be there when there is peace to be kept in the first place... the idea of a UN enforcement force, I don’t think anyone is entertaining that.”
And Abu Mussab Al-Zarqawi’s Tawhid wal Jihad threatened to attack Muslim countries that send troops to Iraq.
