WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Colin Powell says Iraq is trying to produce weapons forbidden by the U.N. Security Council but so far lacks the capability to endanger the region in an "exceptionally threatening" way.
Powell commented last week in an interview with wire service reporters as Arab leaders prepared to attend a summit in Jordan beginning Tuesday that will feature a discussion on Iraq's call for an end to U.N. economic sanctions.
The secretary said he spoke to leaders from almost every country in making his case for reducing sanctions on civilian-oriented goods without losing sight of Iraq's potential for developing weapons of mass destruction.
"I think they all go in there with a clear understanding of the danger they face and a clear understanding of where we are moving, and I would hope the summit leaders would take that into consideration," Powell said.
He said his confidence about the limitations thus far on Iraq's military capability comes from intelligence data and other information he has seen.
"I have seen nothing that persuades me they have an operational capability that could endanger the region in a way that I would find exceptionally threatening," Powell said.
"I am sure they are working on it. If they weren't working on it they would let the (U.N.) inspectors in," he said.
Addressing the Iraq issue in a speech earlier Friday, Powell said all U.S. efforts are designed to prevent Iraq from become a menace to its neighbors.
"The international community must not let them, because they are threatening the children of the region, the people of the region," he said.
Also in his interview, Powell:
Said the Bush administration "will be looking to making adjustments downward" in the contingent of U.S. peacekeeping troops in Bosnia. About 3,700 Americans will still be in place after a reduction of 750 soldiers already under way. "It seems appropriate to bring out those kinds of units that are not needed," he said.
Offered assurance that the United States will sell no weapons system to Taiwan that violates a 1982 agreement with China. That pact forbids transfer of weapons that are qualitatively or quantitatively superior to those of any previous year.
Declared it was up to Israel and the Palestinians to decide how significantly violence must subside before they reopen negotiations. "This is not a judgment that can be made by the United States of America," he said. "That is a judgment that has to be made by the two sides." Powell added, however, that he is "not so naive as to believe that violence is going to go down to zero."
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