The US said late Tuesday that if Iraq uses weapons of mass destruction against US troops or their allies, it would trigger the "most serious" US response, repeating a warning made in the runup to the 1990 to 1991 Gulf War.
It also accused Baghdad of "pursuing opportunities" to conduct terrorist attacks against US targets.
The remarks by Secretary of State Colin Powell followed revelations that Iraq had ordered more than a million doses of the nerve gas antidote atropine, mainly from suppliers in Turkey.
The disclosure sparked fears the regime of President Saddam Hussein might be considering using chemical weapons in response to a possible US military invasion aimed at ending his rule.
But Powell told ABC television the warning issued to Iraq at the start of the Gulf War was still valid.
"I think the message of some years ago ... it's still a pretty good message, and I think they understand that the use of these kinds of weapons would be dealt with in the most serious way in response," Powell said.
Prior to the campaign to drive Iraqi forces from occupied Kuwait, the administration of former president George Bush made clear to Baghdad it would face a devastating counterstrike if it dared use chemical, biological or nuclear weapons against US troops.
The Iraqi chemical and biological arsenal is believed to include Sarin and VX gases, anthrax and botulinum toxins among other agents, as well as the means to deliver them, according to US officials.
Although the US officials did not specify at that time what weapons the US military could use in its response to an Iraqi attack with weapons of mass destruction, it was largely assumed it was ready to launch tactical nuclear strikes.
In his interview with the Nightline program, Powell was equally reluctant to provide specifics, saying the administration was not inclined "to tilt in any way toward the use of a particular weapon."
But he pointed out that US armed forces were ready to deal with any threat that could arise.
"The United States has all the military capability necessary to deal with whatever threats it faces, and also to deter potential threats as we have done in the past," he said.
As President George W. Bush stepped up his rhetoric against Iraq, Powell charged that Iraqi agents were preparing terrorist strikes against US targets.
"They have a far-flung intelligence network, and we have always known that they are pursuing opportunities to conduct terrorist attacks," he said without elaborating.
A media report made public Monday said Iraq had ordered its diplomats to use the cover of Iraqi embassies to conduct aggressive surveillance of US facilities overseas.
Citing unnamed sources, ABC News said US counterintelligence experts discovered Iraqi diplomats had rented an apartment overlooking the US Embassy in Amman, Jordan, and were watching the compound from there.
A man in a car with Iraqi diplomatic license plates was seen videotaping the US Embassy in Helsinki, Finland, according to the report, which also pointed out that Iraqi agents had been ordered to conduct surveillance of the US military bases in Rota, Spain, and Bahrain.
ROLLER-COASTER RIDE: More than five earthquakes ranging from magnitude 4.4 to 5.5 on the Richter scale shook eastern Taiwan in rapid succession yesterday afternoon Back-to-back weather fronts are forecast to hit Taiwan this week, resulting in rain across the nation in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration said yesterday, as it also warned residents in mountainous regions to be wary of landslides and rockfalls. As the first front approached, sporadic rainfall began in central and northern parts of Taiwan yesterday, the agency said, adding that rain is forecast to intensify in those regions today, while brief showers would also affect other parts of the nation. A second weather system is forecast to arrive on Thursday, bringing additional rain to the whole nation until Sunday, it
LANDSLIDES POSSIBLE: The agency advised the public to avoid visiting mountainous regions due to more expected aftershocks and rainfall from a series of weather fronts A series of earthquakes over the past few days were likely aftershocks of the April 3 earthquake in Hualien County, with further aftershocks to be expected for up to a year, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. Based on the nation’s experience after the quake on Sept. 21, 1999, more aftershocks are possible over the next six months to a year, the agency said. A total of 103 earthquakes of magnitude 4 on the local magnitude scale or higher hit Hualien County from 5:08pm on Monday to 10:27am yesterday, with 27 of them exceeding magnitude 5. They included two, of magnitude
CONDITIONAL: The PRC imposes secret requirements that the funding it provides cannot be spent in states with diplomatic relations with Taiwan, Emma Reilly said China has been bribing UN officials to obtain “special benefits” and to block funding from countries that have diplomatic ties with Taiwan, a former UN employee told the British House of Commons on Tuesday. At a House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee hearing into “international relations within the multilateral system,” former Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) employee Emma Reilly said in a written statement that “Beijing paid bribes to the two successive Presidents of the [UN] General Assembly” during the two-year negotiation of the Sustainable Development Goals. Another way China exercises influence within the UN Secretariat is
Taiwan’s first drag queen to compete on the internationally acclaimed RuPaul’s Drag Race, Nymphia Wind (妮妃雅), was on Friday crowned the “Next Drag Superstar.” Dressed in a sparkling banana dress, Nymphia Wind swept onto the stage for the final, and stole the show. “Taiwan this is for you,” she said right after show host RuPaul announced her as the winner. “To those who feel like they don’t belong, just remember to live fearlessly and to live their truth,” she said on stage. One of the frontrunners for the past 15 episodes, the 28-year-old breezed through to the final after weeks of showcasing her unique