The Clinton administration said "we will be looking for actions, not words" from Iraqi President Saddam Hussein as diplomats in Baghdad forged an agreement designed to settle a tense dispute over arms sites and forestall a U.S. military attack.
The Pentagon started a call-up of Reserves in case of they're needed."We obviously have serious questions," about the Baghdad agreement, said James P. Rubin, spokesman for Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. His statement tempered the optimism voiced by aides to U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan in Baghdad who predicted the understanding between Annan and Saddam would satisfy U.S. concerns.
President Clinton spent the afternoon in the Oval Office where he was constantly being briefed on the situation, said spokesman Joe Lockhart. He said lack of secure telephone service between Washington and Baghdad had kept details of the agreement to a minimum.
Albright had "a short phone briefing" with Annan and then began her own consultations with the French and British foreign ministers, Rubin said.
"She did not receive a comprehensive assessment" from An-nan, "and therefore we are not in a position to make a judgment whether the principles for a peaceful solution have been achieved," said Rubin.
He added, "Whatever happens, we will be looking for actions, not words," on whether Iraq meets the terms set down by the United States for settling the dispute. One of those conditions, he stressed, was unlimited access to sites where U.N. inspectors are looking for signs of biological and chemical weapon production.
Albright called French Foreign Minister Hubert Vedrine and British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook "to consult and compare notes," said Rubin.
Annan's spokesman in Baghdad, Fred Eckhard, said Saddam had agreed on a plan to open up presidential sites to inspectors from the United Nations.
White House press secretary Mike McCurry would not assess the preliminary accounts. "We've got a lot of serious questions," McCurry said. "It's a very serious matter at a serious time, and we want to get some questions an-swered."
Even before the mid-afternoon announcement of a possible deal, Clinton was talking with world leaders about promising signals from the Iraqi capital. Lockhart said he telephoned Sultan Qaboos of Oman and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain, Clinton's major ally in the Iraq showdown.
News of the Baghdad agreement came after Albright said the United States will act alone against Iraq if any agreement does not satisfy U.S. interests.
"It is possible that he will come with something that we don't like, in which case we will pursue our national interests," Albright said on ABC's "This Week."
She said Saddam's ability to threaten the world with weapons of mass destruction must be diminished, by military means if necessary. "We will pursue that, that's what our job is, that's what we will do," she said.
To emphasize the threat, Defense Secretary William Cohen announced on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he was making the first request for reservists to provide combat support for the 32,000 troops stationed in the Persian Gulf. "We are hoping for a peaceful solution, but we are prepared to exercise a military option if necessary," he said.
Marine Maj. Mary Baldwin at Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Fla., said Cohen is asking Clinton for authority to call about 500 members of the National Guard and Reserve for logistical support. She said they will include an Army chemical company, Air Force special operations C130 air crews, Navy harbor surveillance personnel and a Coast Guard port security unit.
She said the particular units have not been designated. Cohen said that people would be mobilized from various bases.
Administration officials said Annan left for Iraq fully aware that there could be no maneuvering room on the key issues of total access and operational control for U.N. weapons inspectors. An Iraqi proposal of putting a time limit on inspections was unacceptable, they said.
Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., said on ABC that he was "very nervous" about investing any negotiating authority in Annan when it was American lives that would be on the line in a military conflict. "We shouldn't have set up this scenario that the Secretary General of the U.N. is making those decisions," McCain said.
He and other senators said Congress is prepared to approve a resolution of support for military action but only if it includes backing for a long-term plan to end Saddam's ability to menace the world. "We have to be prepared to go the full distance, which is to do everything possible to disrupt his regime and to encourage the forces of democracy," Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., said on ABC.
Both chambers could take up Iraqi resolutions this week. National Security Adviser Sandy Berger, on "Fox News Sunday," repeated the administration position that it would welcome congressional backing, but "I don't think we believe we need it as a legal matter. But, obviously, it would be a preferable way to proceed."
Last week, the same officials met noisy protests and skepticism as they carried that message around the country. In Washington state, a spokesman for the University of Washington said Richardson canceled a similar Monday night appearance at the school, where activists had pledged to disrupt his speech.
Protesters greeted Albright Sunday when she appeared for her ABC interview, and Clinton went through an anti-war rally as he was driven to church Sunday morning.
Albright said the administration is listening to American opinion, but stressed that "this is not an issue that is going to be decided by public opinion polls. This is a national security issue."