Clinton to give Iraq deal a chance

Clinton addresses the nation's governors Monday in Washington

February 23, 1998
Web posted at: 11:07 a.m. EST (1607 GMT)

In this story:

• Clinton briefed by national security team
• No slowdown in military buildup
• Related stories and sites

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Clinton, still gathering information on a U.N.-brokered deal with Iraq on a weapons inspection dispute, was expected later on Monday to announce his conditional acceptance of the agreement.

However, he will also say that Iraq must live up to the terms of the agreement it made with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan.

In the meantime, the United States was continuing to maintain its readiness for military action in the Persian Gulf region.

Earlier in the day, Clinton declined to state a position on the deal, but CNN has learned that the United States is prepared to give the agreement a chance to be implemented if Iraq allows U.N. weapons inspectors unrestricted access to sites suspected of containing chemical or biological weapons.

Annan announced in Baghdad on Monday that he had reached an agreement aimed at resolving the Iraqi crisis and said that he hoped it would be acceptable to the Security Council, which he is due to brief on Tuesday.

If accepted by the United States, the deal could avert U.S.-led military strikes against Iraq in the long-running standoff over access for U.N. weapons inspectors.

Clinton briefed by national security team

In a previously scheduled White House meeting with state governors, President Clinton said he had been briefed by National Security Adviser Sandy Berger on what the administration knows about the tentative accord.

The governors wait for Clinton's arrival in the East Room of the White House Monday

Clinton also said he had spoken by telephone with Annan and British Prime Minister Tony Blair and expected to have telephone conversations with French President Jacques Chirac and Russian President Boris Yeltsin.

Prior to Monday's announcement of an agreement, the United States had made clear that it reserves the right to use the military force it has amassed in the Gulf region to bomb Iraq if a deal fails to meet its bedrock principle of full access for the inspectors.

But administration officials emphasized that the United States does not have full details of the agreement and said the president would not comment in a substantive way until he knows more.

No slowdown in military buildup

Despite the U.N. deal, the Pentagon said U.S. military deployments to the Persian Gulf were continuing. "There is no change for us," a senior Pentagon official told CNN.

The official said troops would remain ready for a military attack until Clinton orders them to stand down.

Approximately 28,000 U.S. troops are expected to be stationed in the Persian Gulf region by mid-week. Over the weekend, about 3,000 troops left the United States, most headed for Kuwait where they will be part of a defensive force in the event of an attack by Iraq.

"You just can't start and stop dozens of people and planes," the official said. "We can't predict how long troops will remain in the Gulf or when a pullout will begin. All of that is up to the president."

Secretary of Defense William Cohen announced on Sunday that he asked Clinton for authority to call about 500 members of the National Guard and Reserves for logistical help with the movement of troops and equipment to the Gulf.

The units could remain on active duty for 270 days if needed.

Marine Maj. Mary Baldwin at Central Command headquarters in Tampa, Florida, said the call-ups would include an Army chemical company, Air Force special operations C-130 air crews, Navy harbor surveillance personnel and a Coast Guard port security unit.

She said the particular units have not been designated.

Correspondents Wolf Blitzer, Eileen O'Connor, Charles Zewe and John King contributed to this report.

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