GULF WATCH: Day 126 : Diplomatic Front:
Iraq formally accepted President Bush’s proposal for top-level talks, with Bush to meet Iraq’s foreign minister in Washington and Secretary of State James A. Baker III to meet with Saddam Hussein in Baghdad.
Hussein warned that the United States should come to negotiate, not “like a policeman delivering an order.” Baker, however, said his mission will be to outline the choices: Withdraw from Kuwait or “risk disaster.”
President Bush said he’s “not optimistic” that the talks will resolve the crisis.
Hostage Front:
Eighteen American and 24 British women were reunited with relatives being held as human shields in Iraq. They expressed high hopes that their relatives would be freed.
British officials said a 57-year-old British man held as a human shield died of an apparent heart attack. Meanwhile, an evacuation flight for Soviet workers in Iraq was scheduled for today.
Military Front:
Gen. Colin L. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said that if the United States goes to war, “we will use overwhelming forces to win as quickly and decisively as possible.” He added that the United States will accept nothing less than Iraq’s total withdrawal from Kuwait.
The Army, meanwhile, ordered to active duty another 13,614 reservists for Operation Desert Shield.
Authorized U.S. Military Reserve Call-Ups:
* Total: 189,250
* Army: 115,000
* Navy: 30,000
* Marine: 23,000
* Air Force: 20,000
* Coast Guard: 1,250
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