Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz promised "another Vietnam" for the United States should Washington decide to attack his country.
In an interview published Monday by the French daily Le Figaro, Aziz said "against the United States, each town will become another Vietnamese jungle." He added any U.S. agression would be doomed to failure and vowed that "we would fight until the end."
"It would not be a military walkover for the United States," Aziz vowed. "Our government has a very healthy relationship with the people," he claimed. "If they were not happy with the regime, we would not have survived two wars and 11 years of sanctions. Therefore, do not speak to me about dictatorships."
Aziz also expressed opposition to international arms inspectors entering the country, and asserted that today Iraq "is 100 percent clean." "The option of surrendering is excluded," he said.
Meanwhile, it was reported Sunday that the Pentagon has begun evacuating families of its servicemen from Turkey. According to the Turkish Cumhuriyet daily, this move may be indicative of U.S. preparations for the armed campaign against Iraq.
The Pentagon sent instructions to its Turkey-based forces last week saying that the servicemen's wives and children must leave Turkey within the next three months for considerations of safety, the daily wrote.
Tough security measures were taken at U.S. military facilities in Izmir on the Aegean Sea and a school where 200 American children were studying was closed. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
