U.S. and Saudis Agree on Who Will Command GIs

Secretary of State James A. Baker III and Saudi King Fahd reached a new military command and control agreement Monday guaranteeing that American troops will be under the command of American officers if they launch offensive operations against Iraq.

Although operational details of the pact were not disclosed, the agreement seems to remove an obstacle that might have complicated a decision to use force against Iraq if U.N.-imposed economic sanctions do not force Baghdad to withdraw from Kuwait.

A senior U.S. Administration official said that U.S. and Saudi forces would be under “truly joint” command if their mission was defense of Saudi Arabia. But he said that if operations were conducted outside of the kingdom, American forces would be under American command.

Military experts have been concerned about the problems of coordinating the multinational force in the gulf ever since it was assembled after Iraq’s Aug. 2 invasion of Kuwait. Some U.S. officials had expressed alarm at the possibility that Saudi commanders might interfere in American military operations.

The Administration official said the U.S.-Saudi understanding does not affect the forces of other nations, except for those that had previously been placed under either American or Saudi command. He said Baker hopes to work out similar agreements with some of the other nations to clarify the command structure.

However, the official said the United States and Saudi Arabia would have to reach a high-level political understanding before Saudi territory could be used as the launching pad for an attack. A senior Saudi official said that issue has not yet been addressed.

“We are still genuinely hoping to see a peaceful outcome of this crisis,” the Saudi official said.

For the time being, he said, Washington and Riyadh agree that the emphasis will be on political and economic pressure and “anything beyond that, we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”

“Increasing the political pressure beats the heck out of shooting,” the Saudi official said. But he added: “The longer this goes on, the more we have to polish other options.”

Resolving the complicated command and control situation was one of Baker’s top priorities in the Saudi stop on his seven-country, weeklong trip through the Persian Gulf and Europe.

Earlier in the day, Baker said the gulf crisis is “entering a new phase” that will require the United States and its allies to get ready for war.

He did not spell out how long he believes the new phase would last, but he spoke to reporters after the exiled emir of Kuwait appealed for early action to return his government to power.

“This crisis is entering a new phase, and while we are still seeking a peaceful, political and diplomatic solution, we have to, I think, put ourselves in a position where we would be prepared to exercise any options that might be available . . . (including) resort to force if that should be necessary,” Baker said.

Baker met Sheik Jabbar al Ahmed al Sabah, the deposed emir of Kuwait, in his exile capital, the Sheraton Hotel in the Saudi resort town of Taif, before flying to Jidda for his talks with Fahd.

The senior Administration official said Baker had not intended to imply that the new phase was the last before the resort to force. But he said there is no question that the emphasis has shifted to preparing for war if peaceful methods fail to produce results.

The exiled emir of Kuwait said it is up to the U.N. Security Council to decide how long to wait for the United Nations’ trade embargo to force Iraq out of Kuwait before turning to more violent measures. But he added quickly: “What I would like to see is the liberation of Kuwait, whether through the Security Council or not.

“I would like my country to be liberated today--before tomorrow,” he said during a brief photo session with Baker before the start of their private meeting.

A State Department official aboard Baker’s aircraft said the emir pledged to provide additional economic support to the gulf operation if the crisis lasts into next year, as now seems virtually certain.

The exiled government previously promised $5 billion, split nearly evenly between defraying the cost of the U.S. military operation and cushioning the economic impact of the trade embargo on front-line states like Turkey and Egypt. But that contribution covered only the final months of 1990.

Asked if Baker and the emir discussed Kuwait’s contribution for next year, the official said: “Not in dollar terms, but Secretary Baker said, and the Kuwaitis agreed, that as this thing continues, they are going to probably have to come up with more contributions--and they said yes.”

While the emir and Baker met with only a handful of aides, three members of the deposed Kuwaiti Cabinet talked to reporters.

Housing Minister Yahia al Sumait said that the master registry of Kuwaiti citizenship has been smuggled out of Kuwait and will soon be deposited with the United Nations in New York and Geneva.

Iraqi authorities have confiscated the identity papers of Kuwaitis who have been permitted to leave the country, leading to speculation that Iraq plans to obliterate all records of Kuwaiti citizenship and then repopulate the country with loyal Iraqis.

The Kuwaiti Cabinet ministers also introduced to reporters, and later to Baker, four young Kuwaitis who told a now depressingly familiar tale of torture and intimidation by the Iraqi occupation authorities.

One 24-year-old bank employee, who declined to give his name, said he was finally released after paying a bribe to his captors.