The British government is still haggling with the US over the terms by which at least 3,000 British troops will soon be deployed in Iraqi troublespots without being tainted by what a leaked British memo calls "heavy-handed" American military tactics.
Senior officials stress there is no doubt further British troops will be sent to Iraq before sovereignty is handed over to an interim Iraqi government in Baghdad on June 30. It is a deadline that US President George W. Bush was scheduled to confirm in a speech yesterday.
But British military chiefs have urged Prime Minister Tony Blair to send extra forces only on British terms, not those of the US, whose tactics they privately damn as brutal and counterproductive.
PHOTO: AP
Privately ministers agree, though an internal Foreign Office paper leaked on Sunday suggested Britain is making progress towards "a more sensible and sensitive US approach to military operations," at least at senior level.
In the current climate, after the clumsy US mishandling of the standoff at Fallujah and the mistreatment of detainees at Abu Ghraib jail -- which the Foreign Office memo admits "sapped the moral authority of the coalition" -- there is no question of British troops serving under direct US command.
Filling gaps
PHOTO: AP
The British-controlled south-east zone is set to stretch into south-central Iraq to fill the gaps left by the withdrawal of Spanish and other forces. Plans include key hotspots such as the holy city of Najaf, the scene of fierce fighting between US troops and the Shia militia led by the cleric Moqtada al-Sadr.
The favoured plan is to send a force of up to 1,500 Royal Marines, backed by a brigade headquarters and armored infantry provided by the Black Watch Regiment. The battle group would total 3,000 troops under Brigadier John Rose.
"How to sell it is a political decision," said a senior military source. "Blair has to work out how to play it at home and with the allies."
But the exact terms have not been agreed with the US. That, say ministers, is the cause of the delay, not domestic politics or the June 10 local and European elections. No decision is now likely this week.
"We will do it our way," a senior military source said.
The UK chiefs of staff have made it plain extra British troops should be deployed only if the government agrees with the US on a plan leading to the withdrawal of foreign troops.
Republican US lawmakers on Friday criticized US President Joe Biden’s administration after sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment giant Huawei unveiled a laptop this week powered by an Intel artificial intelligence (AI) chip. The US placed Huawei on a trade restriction list in 2019 for contravening Iran sanctions, part of a broader effort to hobble Beijing’s technological advances. Placement on the list means the company’s suppliers have to seek a special, difficult-to-obtain license before shipping to it. One such license, issued by then-US president Donald Trump’s administration, has allowed Intel to ship central processors to Huawei for use in laptops since 2020. China hardliners
A top Vietnamese property tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to death in one of the biggest corruption cases in history, with an estimated US$27 billion in damages. A panel of three hand-picked jurors and two judges rejected all defense arguments by Truong My Lan, chair of major developer Van Thinh Phat, who was found guilty of swindling cash from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) over a decade. “The defendant’s actions ... eroded people’s trust in the leadership of the [Communist] Party and state,” read the verdict at the trial in Ho Chi Minh City. After the five-week trial, 85 others were also sentenced on
‘DELUSIONAL’: Targeting the families of Hamas’ leaders would not push the group to change its position or to give up its demands for Palestinians, Ismail Haniyeh said Israeli aircraft on Wednesday killed three sons of Hamas’ top political leader in the Gaza Strip, striking high-stakes targets at a time when Israel is holding delicate ceasefire negotiations with the militant group. Hamas said four of the leader’s grandchildren were also killed. Ismail Haniyeh’s sons are among the highest-profile figures to be killed in the war so far. Israel said they were Hamas operatives, and Haniyeh accused Israel of acting in “the spirit of revenge and murder.” The deaths threatened to strain the internationally mediated ceasefire talks, which appeared to gain steam in recent days even as the sides remain far
RAMPAGE: A Palestinian man was left dead after dozens of Israeli settlers searching for a missing 14-year-old boy stormed a village in the Israeli-occupied West Bank US President Joe Biden on Friday said he expected Iran to attack Israel “sooner, rather than later” and warned Tehran not to proceed. Asked by reporters about his message to Iran, Biden simply said: “Don’t,” underscoring Washington’s commitment to defend Israel. “We are devoted to the defense of Israel. We will support Israel. We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed,” he said. Biden said he would not divulge secure information, but said his expectation was that an attack could come “sooner, rather than later.” Israel braced on Friday for an attack by Iran or its proxies as warnings grew of