World Media Watch for October 4, 2002

BUZZFLASH NOTE: Once again, these are the views and perspectives of the individual papers, not of BuzzFlash or Gloria. They offer BuzzFlash readers a way of reading what other nations are saying about the crisis, whether we like it or not. We repeat: This is not an endorsement of their viewpoints.

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1//Pravda, Russia--FAREWELL MOUNTAINS, HELLO DESERT: US SPECIAL FORCES MOVE TO IRAQ (In addition, it turned out that the USA hasn't enough land forces to back up the mass attacks on Iraq from the air. America needs about 30,000 special forces soldiers in addition to the 100,000 infantrymen America is going to involve in the operation. However, special forces commanders say that their soldiers are still engaged in Afghanistan, Yemen, and Philippines, so it is going to be a problem to find more soldiers. The transfer of troops has already started, from Afghanistan for instance: the elite special forces are being replaced with paratroopers there...)

2//TurkishPress.com, USA--THE SITUATION IN NORTHERN IRAQ (Meanwhile, Ankara is also trying to get the US to pay attention to developments in northern Iraq. It's known that it is thanks to the US that Barzani and Talabani are finding their courage to take certain steps. However, Ankara is cautioning the US that the only partnership capable of establishing stability and order in the region is one of Turkey and the US, not of the US and the Kurdish groups. And the situation in Iraq seems to grow even more complicated.)

3//The Daily Star, Lebanon--OPINION: HAS DAMASCUS STRUCK A DEAL WITH WASHINGTON OVER BAGHDAD? (In his June 24 speech, Bush criticized Syria and said it supported terrorism. Several US officials spoke of a "blood feud" between Washington and the Syrian-backed Lebanese Hizbullah. In other words, all indications showed that Washington and Damascus were moving farther apart ­ until a few days ago, when signs emerged indicating that relations were improving somewhat.)

4//Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippines--ABU SAYYAF EYED IN BLAST; US MILITARY GROUP TO STAY (Seven agents of the US Central Intelligence Agency arrived in this city Thursday immediately after the United States, through embassy spokeswoman Karen Kelley, condemned the bombing as a "brutal act of terrorism", and began coordinating with local authorities "to investigate the incident and bring those responsible to justice".)

5//The Newsmexico.com, Mexico--LULA LEADING POLLS IN BRAZIL (Brazil's presidential race has given the country a new word: Lular, meaning to jump on the bandwagon of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. These days, it seems everyone wants to lular. With Lula leading the polls days before Sunday's election, the rising stream of voters and politicians eager to back the front-runner could give Lula the votes he needs for a first-ballot victory.)

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1//Pravda 16:55 2002-10-03
http://english.pravda.ru/main/2002/10/03/37690.html
FAREWELL MOUNTAINS, HELLO DESERT: US SPECIAL FORCES MOVE TO IRAQ
Dmitry Chirkin

Elite special troops to be moved from Afghanistan to Iraq

US preparation for its war against Iraq is underway. The strength of the US troops in the Gulf region is rapidly increasing. Politicians understand that today's anti-war attitude of the world community comes in handy for Iraq, which is why they are rushing the American military to launch the war at the soonest possible opportunity. Military men, on the contrary, are rather cautious.

(SNIP)

However, no matter how persistent the Pentagon officials are, they won't be able to speed up the beginning of the war campaign. It is a very short period to cope with the deployment of troops, which number between 130 to 150,000 soldiers, military equipment, ammunition, and everything that is necessary for maintenance. There is only one way to transfer troops: by sea, which takes a rather long time. If troop-carriers are used for deployment, it may require a shorter time period, but the amount of troop-carriers Washington has isn't sufficient. NATO has just a few troop-carriers (Germany has some as well, but it won't let the US use them). Russia has a bigger fleet of troop-carriers, but it won't let the USA use them as well.

Against the background of what is currently going on and regarding the speed with which the US troops and equipment are being deployed in Turkey and the Gulf area, experts say that it is unrealistic to start operations against Iraq by November.

In addition, it turned out that the USA hasn't enough land forces to back up the mass attacks on Iraq from the air. America needs about 30,000 special forces soldiers in addition to the 100,000 infantrymen America is going to involve in the operation. However, special forces commanders say that their soldiers are still engaged in Afghanistan, Yemen, and Philippines, so it is going to be a problem to find more soldiers.

The transfer of troops has already started, from Afghanistan for instance: the elite special forces are being replaced with paratroopers there...

(MORE)

2//TurkishPress.com 10/3/2002 7:36:11 AM
http://www.turkishpress.com/turkishpress/news.asp?ID=7216

THE SITUATION IN NORTHERN IRAQ

MILLIYET- Columnist Fikret Bila writes on the Iraq issue and possible contingencies in northern Iraq. A summary of his column is as follows:

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz wrapped up his contacts in Ankara yesterday. Here is a summary of the message from his superiors that he delivered to President Ahmet Necdet Sezer, Prime Minister Bulent Ecevit and Foreign Minister Sukru Sina Gurel: 'If Turkey opposes the US, it can't dare to strike against Iraq.Turkey shouldn't lend the US that courage.' In turn, Ankara gave the following response: 'The US is well aware that Turkey has, from the very beginning, been against a military intervention. Yet, we alone may not be able to convince the US to not to undertake an operation in Iraq. So you'd better watch your steps and do as what the UN tells you. Try not to give Washington reasons for such an intervention.'

Developments in northern Iraq were also discussed in Ankara yesterday. Aziz blamed the US for Massoud Barzani and Jalal Talabani's designs on the region, and said that both Ankara and Baghdad had commmon concerns on the issue. He furthermore argued that his government had been able to come to terms with Barzani and Talabani, but that the US had managed to scuttle the whole thing.

In terms of Turkey's attitude, Ankara has been waiting for this week to arrive, when Barzani and Talabani are expected to convene a Kurdish regional Parliament. Turkey demands and rightfully expects that Iraq's Turkmens also be invited to participate in this assembly. The end result to emerge from this convention will determine Turkey's stance on the issue.

(SNIP)

Meanwhile, Ankara is also trying to get the US to pay attention to developments in northern Iraq. It's known that it is thanks to the US that Barzani and Talabani are finding their courage to take certain steps. However, Ankara is cautioning the US that the only partnership capable of establishing stability and order in the region is one of Turkey and the US, not of the US and the Kurdish groups. And the situation in Iraq seems to grow even more complicated.

3//The Daily Star Beirut, Thursday, October 3, 2002. Updated 08:30 AM +2GMT
http://www.dailystar.com.lb/opinion/03_10_02_c.htm

OPINION: HAS DAMASCUS STRUCK A DEAL WITH WASHINGTON OVER BAGHDAD?
Ibrahim Hamidi is a Damascus-based journalist specialized in Syrian current affairs

There were recent indications that Syria had changed its rhetoric vis-a-vis US plans to invade Iraq and oust President Saddam Hussein. Similar changes were also noted in the way Washington has been dealing with Damascus of late. Have the two sides struck a deal? And how much have they shifted their positions?

(SNIP)

Where the current crisis is concerned, the perceived wisdom was that Syria would oppose a US blitz on Iraq because the regime had not occupied another country, the current administration of George W. Bush was not likely to launch a new Middle East peace initiative, and the US was not interested in making concessions to regional states like Syria, Turkey or Iran to entice them into a coalition.

The Syrians pursued two apparently contradictory courses. On the one hand, Damascus played host to high-ranking Iraqi officials and said it opposed external attempts at "regime change." The Syrians said "any attack on Iraq is an attack on the entire pan-Arab nation." ...On the other hand, Syria was aware that Congress was debating the so-called Syria Accountability Act, a bill calling for additional political and economic sanctions on Damascus. The Bush administration was not making any visible efforts to oppose the bill ­ not to mention refusing to negotiate with Syria.

In his June 24 speech, Bush criticized Syria and said it supported terrorism. Several US officials spoke of a "blood feud" between Washington and the Syrian-backed Lebanese Hizbullah. In other words, all indications showed that Washington and Damascus were moving farther apart ­ until a few days ago, when signs emerged indicating that relations were improving somewhat. These signs were:

1. The Bush administration agreed to allow Syria and Lebanon to attend meetings of the Middle East "Quartet" in New York. Washington had hitherto refused to allow the Syrians and Lebanese to attend these meetings, held to discuss the Palestinian issue.

2. No member of the US administration met with Aoun on his recent trip to America. Aoun only met with congressmen Richard Armey, a Republican, and the Democrat Eliot Engel, two of the most vociferous supporters of the Syria Accountability Act.

3. The Bush administration finally moved to obstruct the Syria Accountability Act by postponing the House International Relations Committee hearings in the subcommittee on the Middle East and South Asia several times. These postponements made it impossible for the bill to be passed before the mid-term congressional election in early November.

4. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Satterfield announced in Damascus at the beginning of September that the Bush administration opposed the Syria Accountability Act. Satterfield also praised Syria's role in the fight against terrorism. He did not attend the congressional hearings in person and instead sent a statement lauding Syria's role in the peace process and in saving American lives.

5. Most importantly, in a Sept. 3 letter to Democratic Congressman Robert Wexler, Bush opposed the bill as it would "limit our options and restrict our ability to deal with a difficult and dangerous regional situation at a particularly critical juncture."

These developments coincided with a new Syrian approach toward Baghdad. While Damascus was not expected to retract its public opposition to external attempts at regime change, the Syrians nevertheless stressed that Baghdad must implement UN Security Council resolutions. In other words, should a new resolution be issued by the Security Council, it would be very difficult for Syria to stand against it ­ especially since Syria has been insisting for a long time that Israel implement Security Council resolutions 242 and 338 and return the Golan Heights.

(MORE)

4//Philippine Daily Inquirer Thursday Oct. 03, 2002,
http://www.inq7.net/brk/2002/oct/03/brkpol_19-1.htm

ABU SAYYAF EYED IN BLAST; US MILITARY GROUP TO STAY
Posted: 8:25 PM (Manila Time) | Oct. 03, 2002
INQ7.net with Inquirer News Service

ZAMBOANGA -- Abu Sayyaf rebels were behind the bomb blast that left a US soldier and two Filipinos dead and at least 24 others injured in this southern city Wednesday night, a Philippine military report said Thursday.

The report, sent to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, said four rebels belonging to the group of an Abu Sayyaf leader identified as Jainal Sali were spotted near an air force base here shortly before the explosion occurred. It did not say why authorities did not apprehend the four.

Seven agents of the US Central Intelligence Agency arrived in this city Thursday immediately after the United States, through embassy spokeswoman Karen Kelley, condemned the bombing as a "brutal act of terrorism", and began coordinating with local authorities "to investigate the incident and bring those responsible to justice".

(SNIP)

The US military has not named the two victims, but local military officials have identified the dead soldier as Sergeant Mark Jackson. The other soldier was said to be in "serious but stable condition".

Both were part of a 260-man Special Operations support team doing civic projects after six-month-long Philippine-American military exercises ended in July, in which 1,000 US troops assisted local soldiers against the Abu Sayyaf on the nearby island of Basilan, officials said.

The US Special Operations support team has been put on a "heightened state of alert" but will continue with its humanitarian work, US embassy spokesperson Karen Kelley said in Manila.

(MORE)

5//The Newsmexico.com Thursday, October 03, 2002
http://www.thenewsmexico.com/noticia.asp?id=36661

LULA LEADING POLLS IN BRAZIL
Bernd Radowitz, AP - 10/3/2002

(Note: Lula is leader of the Workers Party [PT].)

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil - Brazil's presidential race has given the country a new word: Lular, meaning to jump on the bandwagon of Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. These days, it seems everyone wants to lular.

With Lula leading the polls days before Sunday's election, the rising stream of voters and politicians eager to back the front-runner could give Lula the votes he needs for a first-ballot victory.

The latest polls give Lula about 43 percent of the total vote and an even larger share of the valid votes, discounting blank and void ballots. With a majority of the valid votes, Lula would win outright on Sunday.

His closest rival, government-supported candidate Jose Serra, has about 19 percent of the vote, followed by former Rio de Janeiro state Gov. Anthony Garotinho with 16 percent and ex-finance minister Ciro Gomes with 11 percent.

Favoring Lula is Brazil's history of weak political parties and tenuous alliances. Switching allegiances is a common practice, and there's a tradition of the "voto util," Portuguese for practical vote -- the reasoning that if your candidate is going to lose anyway, why waste your vote on him.

The practical votes now tend to flow to Lula, as backers desert Serra and Gomes.

(MORE)

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© 2002, Gloria R. Lalumia
insight@zianet.com

Updated listings of Radio for Progressives on the internet at http://www.zianet.com/insightanalytical

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