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The Standoff with Iraq

Albright opens talks with Mubarak over Iraq

Albright and Bahrain's foreign minister, Sheikh Mohammad bin Mubarak al-Khalifa

February 3, 1998
Web posted at: 12:56 p.m. EST (1756 GMT)

CAIRO, Egypt (CNN) -- U.S. Secretary of State Madeleine Albright began talks Tuesday with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, as she wound up visits to Europe and the Middle East to shore up support for a possible military strike against Iraq.

Mubarak, a key U.S. ally, has opposed the use of force against Baghdad.

Albright arrived in Cairo from Bahrain, where she said she was confident the United States would have "all the cooperation we need" from Persian Gulf states if action against Iraq became necessary.

"I have had very positive support -- whether from (Jordan's) King Hussein, the emir here, or Kuwait or Saudi Arabia -- for what we are seeking," she said. Albright made the comments earlier in the day in Bahrain's capital of Manama, after meeting with the emir, Sheikh Isa bin Sulman al Khalifa, and other officials.

However, Albright was evasive about whether Bahrain had agreed to allow the use of its military bases for U.S. air strikes against Iraq.

"I'm not going to comment on specific countries or operational details. But we believe we will have the cooperation we need to use our forces, if necessary, from all the countries," she said.

Bahrain, a Gulf Arab island, is regional headquarters of the U.S. Fifth Fleet.

Washington has repeatedly threatened military force if Iraq cannot be persuaded by diplomacy to comply with U.N. demands to give full access to U.N. arms inspectors seeking to ensure the country's elimination of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons of mass destruction.

The aircraft carrier USS Nimitz is stationed in the Persian Gulf

The United States has assembled a powerful multi-service force to keep the pressure on Iraq in the standoff over U.N. inspectors' access to suspected weapons sites.

Two aircraft carrier battle groups are patrolling the Gulf region with 108 embarked tactical aircraft, able to hit targets 1,000 miles (1,600 km) or more away with high- technology weapons.

Overall, about 25,000 U.S. personnel have been deployed in the region, including about 8,000 airmen and 3,000 Army troops, according to the U.S. Central Command that is responsible for coordinating U.S. forces in the area.

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