Arabs Hail Iraq Offer; Some Are Cautious

Iraq’s offer to withdraw from Kuwait was widely welcomed in the Arab world today, although the attached conditions prompted caution in several capitals.

Jordan’s information minister, Ibrahim Izzeddine, said the statement marked the first time Iraq has declared its readiness to abide by the initial U.N. Security Council resolution demanding its withdrawal from Kuwait.

In Saudia Arabia, host to most of the allied troops fighting Iraq, one government official said he prefers to see what developed. “It’s deeds, not words, that count,” the official said.

In Bahrain, temporary home to many Kuwaiti exiles, people on the streets congratulated each other. “Saddam is finished,” some said.

But Kuwait’s ambassador to the United Nations was more cautious about Iraq’s offer. “It is conditioned, it is just a proposal,” Mohammed Abulhassan said after conferring with the Kuwaiti government-in-exile in Taif.

An Iranian Foreign Ministry official said the Iraqi proposal is “a step toward peace.” Iraq’s deputy prime minister, Sadoun Hammadi, is to arrive in Tehran late today to discuss the proposal with Iranian officials.

Mohammed Milhem, a Jordan-based member of the Palestine Liberation Organization’s executive committee, predicted that the anti-Iraq alliance will be split if the Iraqi proposal is rejected.

“This is the beginning of the peace process, and the ball is now in the allied court,” he said.

A senior official in Jordan said his government was “not surprised by Iraq’s announcement and was informed beforehand of the Iraqi decision.”