It’s Too Soon for Gulf Vote, Democrats Say

Key Democratic lawmakers agreed Sunday that, despite increasing calls for Congress to express itself on the Persian Gulf, it would be premature to debate and vote on the new offensive buildup of U.S. forces that appears to bring war closer.

Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell (D-Me.) said the addition of more than 200,000 Americans to the 238,000 already in the gulf constitutes “the use of the threat of war to prevent war.” He said the moves are not a decision to go to war. Until such a decision is made, Mitchell said on ABC’s “This Week With David Brinkley,” Congress does not need to vote.

However, Mitchell and others agreed that President Bush needs Congress’ approval to go to war, and some questioned why Bush is nearly doubling the deployment of U.S. forces.

Sen. Sam Nunn (D-Ga.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the decision to send more troops makes sense only if the President is considering a ground invasion to drive Iraqi troops out of Kuwait.

“I think that’s the wrong strategy,” Nunn said on CBS’ “Face the Nation.” “I think getting bogged down in a ground war there is the last thing we want.

“President Bush has not explained the strategy, and I have a lot of questions,” Nunn added. “The first thing the President has to say is why we’re in such a hurry.”

Rep. Les Aspin (D-Wis.), chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, argued on ABC that Iraqi President Saddam Hussein must not only withdraw his forces from Kuwait but also must be dislodged from power. He also said Iraq’s chemical and potential nuclear arsenals must be neutralized so that they cannot precipitate an even more threatening crisis in a few years.

But Rep. Lee H. Hamilton (D-Ind.), influential chairman of the House Foreign Affairs subcommittee on the Mideast, argued that Iraq “had those weapons before Kuwait was invaded, and we can survive it” if he keeps them.

The lawmakers spoke as Czechoslovakia prepared to dispatch a military team to the Persian Gulf that is trained in countering the effects of chemical weapons. Other Eastern European nations have offered or are prepared to offer similar help to the U.S.-led allied forces in Saudi Arabia.

Emphasizing the need to explore more aggressively the diplomatic options, Hamilton also said that the United States “should say we are prepared to deal with the (entire range of Mideast) issues if Saddam Hussein gets out of Kuwait.”

“He amassed his military power because we let him,” Hamilton said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.” During the Iran-Iraq War, the Soviets, the French and the United States provided him with arms to counter Tehran. “If we cut that off in the future, he could not become that powerful again,” he said.

Mitchell noted that Bush declared to Congress several months ago that U.S. forces were not imminently in danger of becoming involved in hostilities. Since those assurances still stand, Mitchell said, the War Powers Act need not be invoked.

Bush will meet with congressional leaders Wednesday, Mitchell added, and “we expect to hear from him” that the War Powers Act has still not been triggered despite the new buildup.

Aspin agreed with Mitchell that Congress should vote “up or down” on going to war. They also agreed that, as Aspin put it, “Congress does not usefully debate hypotheticals such as the possible use of force at the end of January. If the decision is made, then that’s the time to have the debate.”

Meanwhile, Iraq’s ambassador, Mohammed Mashat, said the United States has “the power to level Iraq.” But he warned on “This Week With David Brinkley” that the victory would not be worth the resulting animosity of Arabs at the grass-roots level.

Insisting that Iraq would prefer to resolve the conflict at “the political and diplomatic level,” he said, “If you hit Iraq, it’s going to create a catastrophe for everybody, including you and the whole world.”

Czechoslovakia’s military team of chemical-weapons experts was approved for deployment to the gulf last week by the Parliament.

A Czechoslovak general returning from Saudi Arabia said the two countries “would soon decide when the unit would be deployed,” according to a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty report.

Saudi Arabia formally accepted the Czechoslovak offer last week, according to Radio Prague.

Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria have offered or are prepared to offer similar help to the anti-Iraq coalition.

The only one of the five small East European nations not offering help is Romania, which continues to experience domestic turmoil. The offers stand in contrast to Japan and Germany, which so far have pledged monetary assistance only.

The medical aid offered by these former Communist states, while not much more than token, could be significant if Iraq resorts to chemical warfare.

Hussein has used such weapons against Iran and Kurdish rebels, and has threatened to do so against forces arrayed against him in the gulf. Part of the reason U.S. forces have taken so long to get ready to fight there, some officials say, is to be prepared for chemical attacks.

The East European nations have several motives for providing these forces, according to senior U.S. officials. Among them is the desire to be seen as a responsible member of the international community--recognition which could bring them economic and technical aid as well as political support as they move toward free-market democracies.

Oil is another reason. The Soviet Union has become unreliable in delivering petroleum, due to its mounting transportation problems, and will begin charging hard currency for oil in 1991. The rise in oil prices due to the gulf crisis has also added to the economic woes of Eastern Europe.

By signaling their support for Saudi Arabia, East European states hope to get some preferential treatment from the rich gulf states to cover the increased cost and to assure delivery as winter approaches, U.S. officials said.

Sending military medical teams is not without risk for these small nations, according to Madeline Albright, an East European specialist and head of the Center for National Policy in Washington. “They are very nervous about it because they have citizens (in Iraq and Kuwait), technical advisers, who could be hostages,” she said.

“It’s a healthy development, although we have nothing to do with it,” said a senior Bush Administration official. “We neither encourage nor discourage it. The East Europeans deal directly with the Saudis in this matter.”

Transportation is the largest problem in getting the East European teams, largely made up of volunteers, to the gulf region. None of those nations have long-range military aircraft, so they have asked the Saudis to provide and pay for transport.

The Czechoslovak mission consists of army volunteers who are technical specialists trained in detoxification techniques and medical personnel trained to treat poison gas and other chemical weapon injuries.

Poland has offered a 500-member unit, consisting of three medical teams, including a field hospital, according to a Polish Embassy official here. “Our offer was received warmly,” he said, “and technical negotiations are under way on how to get the teams there.”

Hungary has begun to form its volunteer medical team, with parliamentary approval expected this month, according to a Hungarian Embassy spokesman here.

Bulgaria has also begun forming a voluntary military medical unit with chemical weapon specialists, according to another Radio Free Europe report. More than 1,100 individuals came forward, it said.