Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, October 14, 1994 TAG: 9410140104
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Medium
``We don't like what we are seeing. ... They are clearly south of where we would like them to be,'' a senior military official, referring to the Iraqi troop movements, told reporters at the Pentagon.
Because of the latest development, a decision earlier Thursday by Gen. J.H. Binford Peay to slow the fast-paced flow of U.S. forces into the Gulf region will be under discussion, the official added. Peay is head of the Central Command and is in charge of the Gulf deployment.
``The whole process of when and what flows is being reviewed,'' the Pentagon official said of the U.S. troop movement.
``This looks as if it is another possible test of our resolve,'' said another senior Pentagon official, traveling with U.S. Defense Secretary William Perry in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia.
``This is one of the reasons why it is premature to talk about a pullout [of U.S. forces] immediately ... or why it's premature to talk about the troops not going in full strength,'' said the official, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
He made the comments after Perry had a 90-minute meeting with King Fahd of Saudi Arabia.
The latest development also could mute the expressions of pleasure that had come from top U.S. officials, when it appeared that Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein had responded to America's military moves and pulled his forces back.
``Iraq heard our message,'' President Clinton declared earlier in the day. But Clinton also had warned that the United States would not let down its guard.
A White House official, also speaking on condition of anonymity, said three Iraqi brigades, or about 3,500 troops, had paused near the town of Naziryah. One of the units is heavily armed with tanks, he said.
``We're watching it very carefully,'' the White House official said, adding that it was a matter of concern but that ``it's not a crisis mode.''
Earlier in the day, Peay had ordered 19,000 Marines from Camp Pendleton, Calif., to delay their deployment. Some Army and Air Force units also were told to remain on alert, but to hold off moving toward the Gulf.
But no deployment orders were canceled, the Pentagon official added, noting that the timetable of the troops' movements could be sped up again, given the latest change in the Republican Guard deployments.
At the height of the crisis, the Pentagon had envisioned sending about 63,500 soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines into the Gulf to face off against the 71,000 troops Saddam had massed on the border.
In Baghdad, Saddam Hussein offered Thursday to recognize Kuwait as a sovereign state if the United Nations promised to ease a stifling embargo after six months. The United Nations, the United States and other nations have said repeatedly that Iraq must abide by U.N. resolutions before the sanctions will be lifted.
Also in the Gulf region Thursday, U.S. warships intercepted a Greek tanker suspected of trying to smuggle out an Iraqi oil shipment. U.S. troops boarded the vessel and found the oil believed to be from Iraq, a violation of an embargo that halted Baghdad's crude exports more than four years ago, a Navy spokesman said.
by CNB