Jordan Times
Wednesday, May 26, 2004
Government welcomes US pledge; observers skeptical
By Mahmoud Al Abed
AMMAN — The government on Tuesday welcomed Washington's “commitment” to the June
30 deadline of power handover to Iraqis.
Minister of State and Government Spokesperson Asma Khader said “in principle, we
welcome the US commitment” to returning sovereignty to Iraqis on the declared
date.
In what was billed as a major speech on Monday, US President George W. Bush said
that “on June 30, the Coalition Provisional Authority will cease to exist and
will not be replaced. The occupation will end and Iraqis will govern their own
affairs.”
Khader said Jordan will always support what the Iraqis want.
“The Kingdom's position is crystal clear: We support any move that helps Iraqis
regain sovereignty over their affairs. We want what the Iraqis want,” she told
The Jordan Times.
Reiterating the need for more effective UN role in Iraq at this stage, the
spokesperson told Agence France-Presse there is a ”necessity to establish a
calendar” for the withdrawal of foreign troops from Iraq.
A draft UN resolution submitted by the US and UK Monday endorses a “sovereign
Iraq” under an interim government being assembled by UN secretary general's
special envoy, Lakhdar Brahimi. It formalizes an end to the occupation more than
a year after US-led coalition troops ousted Saddam Hussein.
Analysts and lawmakers criticized and said Bush stopped short of specifying a
date for the withdrawal of the US troops from the occupied Arab country.
“The plan did not show there will be troop withdrawal. Although it emphasized
the concept of the transfer of sovereignty, the blueprint actually speaks about
transfer of administration to the Iraqis,” political analyst Adnan Abu Odeh
said.
“Commentators described the plan as an exit strategy, but I say it is a cover-up
strategy.”
MP Ali Etoum, an Islamic Action Front member, insisted that the entire plan is
part of the “misinformation campaign Washington is leading to clear its name in
the region and the world.”
“We do not believe such promises, and we do not expect the US to leave Iraq,
which was occupied for no excuse in the first place,” he said.
He said the “Islamic movement in Jordan and the entire world” does not trust the
UN either, which he described as a tool manipulated by the US administrations.
Deputy Mamdouh Abbadi, a centrist, said Jordan is looking forward to the return
of stability in Iraq because this serves the Kingdom's national interests.
Mohammad Abu Hudeib, head of the Arab and International Affairs Committee at the
Lower House, said the US president was mainly addressing American voters after
his administration's political and military failure.
“His speech had an apologetic flavour,” he said, noting that the blueprint
lacked a “mechanism of implementation” and left many questions unanswered.