European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - October 11, 1994, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 4 the stars and stripes persian Gulf tuesday october 11,1994 sure Saddam gets the picture Bijl Abrams the associated press Washington this time . Officials say there will be no confusion Over iraqi aggression. And they Hope Saddam Hussein won t Blunder again and discount american resolve to use deadly Force. We have really planned for this Day Secretary of state Warren Christopher x i said Sun analysis 1 Day from Jerusa Lem. If Saddam is foolish enough to in Vade Kuwait he would pay a horrendous Price Christopher told Abc s this wee with David Bunkley. The administration has moved swiftly both in rhetoric and military firepower to warn the iraqi president that he faces cer Tain destruction if he sends his troops across the Border into Kuwait As he did in August 1990. I a then perhaps Saddam did t believe the United states had the will to fight. After All the United states had supported him and had provided military and nuclear technology in his War with Iran. Former . Ambassador april Glaspie statements appeared to indicate that the United states would t get involved in Iraq s territorial disputes. And thousands of american business people and Engi neers a huge Pool of potential hos tages were in Iraq. Saddam was wrong but it would be months before the Bush administration could move a viable Force into saudi Ara Bia and come to the realization that Diplo Matic pressure had Little effect. In aug. 2, the Day of the invasion. President Bush did Send the aircraft car Rier Independence and its six ship escort from the Indian Ocean to the persian Gulf and on aug. 7, he ordered the first american forces to saudi Arabia. By aug. 13, he had committed 50,000 of the More than 500,000 service members who would eventually be deployed to the Gulf and on aug. 17, he called up the first group of reservists. The . Navy Bega interdicting Oil shipments but the emphasis in those Early Days was still on a nonmilitary solution. Both the United states and the United nations imposed economic embargoes and Washington scrambled to bring the Arab states into an anti Saddam coalition. Jordan s King Hussein flew to Washington to me Diate the .-iraqi confrontation. Saddam bolstered by pro iraqi demonstrations in the capitals of Jordan and other Arab nations said he would leave Kuwait if Israel withdrew from the occupied territories. This time Saddam determined to bring an end to International sanctions on his country might have seen a new . Presi Dent weakened by political troubles at Home and leery about involvement in yet another foreign crisis. Some people have postulated that he May think we Are distracted by Haiti that we will not have the will to act defense Secretary William Perry said on lbs Kice the nation. That s a very bad judgment on his part if he believes  just As he misread Bush and though the was a paper Tiger now he has misread Clinton As Well said retired col. Harry g. Summers jr., a military analyst with the army War College at Carlisle Barracks in Pennsylvania. Clinton has had missteps in peacekeeping missions but has been firm about maintaining . War fighting capabilities in Europe and the Middle Hast said sum mers whose column appears in the Sta Sand stripes. Saddam Hussein has missed that he said. . Forces might not pack Erful punch Byart Pinelis Angeles times Washington the United states does not have sufficient military forces in Kuwait to Stop iraqi troops on the spot if they invade Kuwait in the next Day or two and it Hopes to use air Power to deter any attack at least until More american forces arrive military analysts said. The United states has Only about 3,000 ground troops in the area a Force that would be far outnumbered by the nearly 70,000-member contingent that Iraq has assembled near the kuwaiti Border. And even though president Clinton has approved plans to Send up to 37,000 serv ice members by the end of the week de sense analysts say the United states does have enough aircraft and missiles on hand in the Region to damage the iraqi Force severely and to retaliate against other targets if Baghdad launches an attack. They say Washington will have enough military might on the ground by midweek to repel an iraqi invasion with a Combina Tion of armoured arid air forces despite the lopsided advantage the iraqis have in troop strength. A  strategists Are betting that Iraq will not be Able to launch a full scale inva Sion before late this week after it has put the logistics arrangements in place needed to sustain such an operation and they say . Forces will be fully ready by then. Our goal for the next few Days is to deter any iraqi invasion a Pentagon offi Cial said sunday. But some analysts question whether air rower alone can successfully Stop the near 70,000 iraqi troops who Are assembled Only eight Miles from the kuwaiti Border. By almost any measure iraqi forces could easily Cross the Border into Kuwait today. Military officials have been approaching the Issue of . Readiness cautiously. On saturday Marine corps it. Gen. John j. Sheehan operations director for the join chiefs of staff declined to say specifically whether . Forces already in the Region could actually Block an immediate iraqi instead he noted that the United states has 200 Tomahawk cruise missiles in the area which could hit Baghdad easily. If iraqi president Saddam Hussein does something we can punish those forces he said carefully punish but not necessarily defeat j. / %. Gulf from Page 1 cams a a once Crawley sgt. Frank Tate i m going Back  coaster ride she said. I went through this with desert storm Rwanda an Bosnia. V  "  -. It s hard every time they put you through that she said. Sgt. 1st class Eric Stro Iid an air traffic controller with the 3rd in 58th aviation regt said the coalition forces should have put stronger tactical limitations on Iraq s army after the 1991 Gulf War. When Are we going to learn that we should quit playing with iraqi Leader Saddam Hussein How Long Are we going to leave him in Power he asked. Stroud was in the Region following the War three years ago with operation provide Comfort the Effort to provide Protection for kurdish refugees i Northern Iraq. Then i just thought he was crazy Stroud said of Saddam now i m wondering about our  Stroud whose wife is German said his friends Felt disgust with the  that has allowed this to  Lori Hall who this month is expecting her second baby said he initial reaction to the news of the iraqi military movement toward Kuwait was to cry. / .-., " her first son Joshua was born As the Gulf air War was beginning in january 1991, As she came out of a fort Belvoir va., delivery room Back then she watched president Bush make the announcement on television. Her husband Douglas Hall a Supply sergeant for the 109th trans co was not with Herthen. She said she fears he won t be Here for this baby  others in the 109th said they were confident that their commanders would keep them informed about a possible deployment. But Wanda Kratzer a nuclear biological and chemical warfare specialist with the 109th, said that it was not a question of if she were going but  sgt. Frank Tate also of the 109th,said he remembered Well the nine months he spent trucking ammunition and rations across the desert dust during the Gulf War. On hearing the news of things kicking up once More he said he just Shook his head. -.-. A. I m going Back again he remembered thinking. Wars jus follow me i  Iraq from Page 1 with its troop deployment in the mean time.  "  earlier defense Secretary William Perry would not Rule out a preemptive strike on Baghdad. We will not be pinned Down in that area indefinitely Perry said in an inter View with a network news. We will want to resolve this crisis  the White House official said the United states remains committed to Leav ing in place . Sanctions against Iraq. He Saddam has not complied with All the relevant . Resolutions. The last few Days demonstrate that to the world the official said. Asked about Clinton s reaction to the reports that Saddam was moving troops away from the Border the official said he said this is very interesting he was cautious. He did not breathe a sigh of Relief and say Good i can turn to other matters " a mid afternoon meeting of the presi Dent s National Security team was scheduled monday. In response to Iraq s announcement a senior Pentagon official said the administration was waiting to see direct evidence of a withdrawal. But so far there was no indication that an iraqi withdrawal was under Way the Pentagon official said. The official spoke on condition that he not be identified. Perry said it appeared that More of Iraq s Best forces were heading toward the i kuwaiti Border area bringing the estimated iraqi troop total there to near80,000. In Baghdad Iraq s foreign minister Mohammed Saeed Al Sahaf told the official news Agency that the withdrawal was ordered in response to appeals from friends and in View of the fact that the troops presence might be used As pretext to maintain  . Officials have said the american ground air and sea Force could reach nearly 70,000 service members if All those now on Alert Are actually sent. Dick Cheney who was . Defense Secretary when Saddam invaded Kuwait in 1990, said monday on Abc that the United states should launch missile strikes at Iraq if Saddam does not agree to reverse his troop buildup on the Bor Der. " ". We ought to take the initiative Che Ney said and Tell Saddam he must Back Down or we will  he suggested hitting Iraq s Power Grid and Oil system. Perry said the . Forces arriving in or near Kuwait included More than 200 air orca warplanes. Moreover the George Washington Battle group s presence in the red sea brings a powerful naval air combat and missile Force within striking distance of Iraq. If he sees that Force if tie under stands that we Are prepared to use that Force then he should be deterred from any military action Perry said. In morning appearances on All the major to networks Perry stressed that while the Clinton administration was unsure of Saddam s motives it was acting on the Assumption that he would invade. If he continues in the direction he going it looks like the same buildup in Many ways almost an identical buildup to what he did when he invaded Kuwait be fore Perry said on Abc. We dare not assume other than he is preparing for an other