GULF WATCH: Day 55 : A Daily Briefing Paper On Developments In The Crisis : Diplomatic Front:

President Bush cited the “staggering burden” imposed on many nations by the gulf crisis and announced creation of an international clearing house to coordinate financial help for needy countries. And in a meeting with Turkey’s President Turgut Ozal, Bush promised increased trade to help that country. The Administration made clear before the meeting that direct assistance would have to come from other nations.

At the United Nations, Soviet Foreign Minister Eduard A. Shevardnadze joined a chorus of indignation against the invasion of Kuwait and suggested a U.N. military role.

Iran, meanwhile, reportedly pledged not to buy embargoed Iraqi oil or help Iraq export crude, but it did not promise to withhold food and other essentials. Iraq announced that it will try President Bush on Oct. 15 for “crimes against the peoples of the world.”

Military Front:

Iraq has significantly increased the number of troops, tanks and other materiel in and near Kuwait over the past week. Part of the reported increase is attributed to the Pentagon’s including a larger geographic area in its count, and part to new deployments, said a Pentagon spokesman.

In the field, military sources say the most imminent threat to U.S. forces is from terrorism, particularly from car bombings. Troops are fortifying positions and increasing security to prevent the kind of attack that in 1983 killed 241 servicemen in Beirut.

Economic Front:

Analysts say consumers should enjoy $1.35-a-gallon gasoline while they can. It’s about to get higher, and could even go beyond $2 a gallon in a shooting war.

Crisis Indicators:

* Iraqi soldiers in/near Kuwait: 430,000

* Iraqi tanks: 3,500

* Iraqi armored personnel carriers: 2,500

* Estimated losses to economies of these countries this year, and primary cause:

* Eastern Europe, $4 billion from loss of debt repayment

* Egypt, $2 billion from loss of salaries from workers in Iraq

* India, $2.5 billion from repatriating refugees, higher oil costs

* Jordan, $2 billion from oil costs, trade embargo

* Turkey, $3 billion from trade embargo

* Yemen, $2.5 billion from trade embargo