Pubdate: Thu, 26 Sep 2002
Source: Washington Post (DC)
Page: A29
Copyright: 2002 The Washington Post Company
Contact:  http://www.washingtonpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/491
Author: Mike Allen

BUSH ASSERTS THAT AL QAEDA HAS LINKS TO IRAQ'S HUSSEIN

President Cites Potential Cooperation as Concern

President Bush asserted a link yesterday between Iraqi leader Saddam 
Hussein and the al Qaeda terrorist network, saying he fears they will join 
forces and are already virtually indistinguishable.

"The danger is, is that they work in concert," Bush said. "The danger is, 
is that al Qaeda becomes an extension of Saddam's madness and his hatred 
and his capacity to extend weapons of mass destruction around the world."

The administration had begun deemphasizing claims of links between Hussein 
and global terrorism. Senior intelligence officials told The Washington 
Post this month that the CIA had not found convincing proof, despite 
efforts that included surveillance photos and communications intercepts.

U.S. officials have continued to hint at connections, however. Evidence 
linking Hussein to the Sept. 11 attacks could help erode reservations on 
Capitol Hill and among world powers about the justification for a U.S.-led 
invasion of Iraq.

A few hours before Bush's remarks, Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld was 
asked by reporters traveling with him in Warsaw if there are linkages 
between al Qaeda and Iraq. "I have no desire to go beyond saying the answer 
is yes," he replied. Rumsfeld had just appeared before NATO defense 
ministers with CIA Deputy Director John McLaughlin to give an intelligence 
briefing on the Iraqi threat. Rumsfeld said McLaughlin told them about 
linkages between Hussein and al Qaeda.

White House press secretary Ari Fleischer tried to play down the 
specificity of Bush's charge, saying the president was talking about what 
he feared could occur. Fleischer repeated the administration position that 
it would be a mistake to wait for a smoking gun. "Clearly, al Qaeda is 
operating inside Iraq," he said. "In the shadowy world of terrorism, 
sometimes there is no precise way to have definitive information until it 
is too late."

Bush was in the Oval Office with President Alvaro Uribe of Colombia when he 
was asked whether Hussein was a bigger threat to the United States than al 
Qaeda. "That is an interesting question," Bush began. "I'm trying to think 
of something humorous to say."

"But I can't when I think about al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein," the president 
continued. "They're both risks. They're both dangerous. The difference, of 
course, is that al Qaeda likes to hijack governments. Saddam Hussein is a 
dictator of a government."

Bush then drew another distinction that differs from longtime reports from 
the country. "Al Qaeda hides, Saddam doesn't," Bush said. In fact, military 
planners fear finding Hussein could be a challenge if Bush decides to 
depose him, because the Iraqi leader often works and sleeps at different 
palaces and other sites.

"The war on terror, you can't distinguish between al Qaeda and Saddam when 
you talk about the war on terror," he said. "They're both equally as bad, 
and equally as evil, and equally as destructive."

Bush praised Uribe, the Colombian president, who took office on Aug. 7 amid 
guerilla attacks, for his vision for the long process toward a peaceful and 
prosperous Colombia. "He's a man who told the people of his country that he 
would work to eradicate terrorism, narco- trafficking," Bush said. "The 
Colombian people believe him, and so do I."

The two discussed ways Colombia can secure international aid to fight drugs 
and terrorism, and Bush said the United States is "certainly willing to 
help the government and the Colombian people realize a prosperous future." 
Fleischer said Bush told Uribe that the United States will press the World 
Bank, International Monetary Fund and other organizations "to assure an 
increased flow of financial and development assistance."

Bush made a connection between terrorism and drug trafficking when he cited 
the unsealing of federal charges Tuesday against Carlos Castano, head of a 
violent right-wing Colombian paramilitary group, who is accused of bringing 
17 tons of cocaine into the United States and Europe since 1997.

"The guy who got indicted yesterday made a decision to be a terrorist," 
Bush said. "We made a decision to hold him to account, and we will continue 
to do that."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom