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Rumsfeld Plays Down Military Role in War
CAIRO, Oct 4 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Thursday played down the role of military strikes in the war against terrorism, saying there was only a "small" chance that actual terrorists would be killed.
"The chance of any military action affecting any single terrorist it seems to me is small, which is why the [U.S.] president [George W. Bush] has said this is an effort which would have to be sustained over a long period of time," he told a press conference in Cairo.
"I have a feeling that rather than a cruise missile or a bomb, it is more likely that a scrap of intelligence information will help roll up these [terror] networks," he said after meeting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.
Rumsfeld said Bush and Mubarak were like-minded on the need to combat terrorism after the September 11th attacks which razed the World Trade Center in New York and destroyed part of the Pentagon outside Washington.
Asked about Egypt's position on military involvement, he said the United States recognizes and accepts that each country has different circumstances.
He also warned of the possible disastrous consequences of weapons of mass destruction falling into the hands of terrorists.
"When terrorist networks get their hands on weapons of mass destruction it won't be thousands [killed], it will be many more," he said.
Earlier, Mubarak had said that his country would not participate in any U.S.-led military action against international terrorism, news agencies reported.
Egypt "supports the fight against terrorism, but will not take part with troops," Mubarak said, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Mubarak said Rumsfeld was not seeking Egypt's military participation in the "war on terrorism".
"He is not coming to ask for troops. He is coming for an exchange of points of view on events in the region," Mubarak said in a meeting with Egyptian army officers, in comments broadcast on television.
"We know our limitations and they know perfectly well the position of Egypt," he said. "The [Egyptian] head of state knows his limits, and he knows when to send troops and when not to send them."
Mubarak drew a distinction between the current terror crisis and the 1991 Gulf War when Egyptian troops joined a U.S.-led coalition in evicting Iraqi occupation forces from Kuwait.
"I sent troops to the Gulf because there was an Arab joint defense pact, and that was with the approval of parliament," he said. "We cannot send our children, without reason, just to fight somewhere."
But he stressed that Cairo had "very good relations" with Washington.
Egypt, along with other key U.S. allies in the Arab world, has said it was "sure" Arab countries such as Iraq would not be in the U.S.'s firing line.
Earlier Thursday, in a speech to the armed forces, Mubarak called for "logic and good sense" to face up to the threats facing world peace in the aftermath of the anti-U.S. attacks.
"We are confronted by extremely difficult circumstances which threaten the security and stability of the Middle East and entire world," he said in a speech to mark the anniversary of the 1973 Middle East war.
Rumsfeld arrived in Cairo Thursday evening on the third stage of a tour of Muslim states aimed at drumming up support for Washington's planned war on terrorism, as U.S. military forces were massing within striking distance of Afghanistan where terror suspect Osama bin Laden is believed to be hiding.
In Muscat, Rumsfeld held talks with Sultan Qaboos, the ruler of the pivotal sultanate of Oman, located on the Arabian Sea.
A senior U.S. official praised Omani cooperation in the wake of the September 11th attacks as "excellent", adding that Rumsfeld did not come with a list of requests but rather to consult a key friend.
Oman's official news agency, ONA, said only that Qaboos and Rumsfeld "reviewed cooperation between their two friendly countries, in addition to developments on the international scene."
But an Omani defense ministry official had earlier downplayed the presence of British and U.S. military forces in the sultanate, saying the U.S. military presence came "in the framework of a 'military facilities' agreement signed in 1980."
Rumsfeld spent just a few hours in the country before traveling to Egypt. He also plans to visit Uzbekistan, another possible staging area for U.S. forces.
In Riyadh, Rumsfeld told Saudi leaders overnight that the United States intends to proceed "on all fronts" in its campaign against terrorism, including using military action.
But the defense secretary, stepping softly around Riyadh's sensitivities about the use of its territory for offensive attacks on Muslim countries, made no requests for the use of Saudi bases or facilities, according to the kingdom's defense minister.
"There were no such requests presented by the United States in the first place, and this matter was not a point of discussion between the two sides," Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz said at a joint news conference with Rumsfeld.
CNN reported that Rumsfeld said he would not be negotiating with Saudi Arabia or any of the other countries on his three-day itinerary. Instead, he said his mission is to solidify old relationships and, in the case of Uzbekistan, forge a new one.
In Washington, Secretary of State Colin Powell told reporters that despite reports the Saudis were resisting helping the United States in its fight against terrorism, they have responded favorably to all requests the United States has made.
Retired General Wesley Clark, the former supreme commander of NATO and a CNN military analyst, said it would be important for the United States to secure the full support of the Saudi government, including the use of Saudi Arabia's military bases.
But Clark also noted that, "the U.S. is working hard as we speak to diversify its basing options."
But Rumsfeld's tour is being overshadowed by Israeli violence in the Middle East, reported BBC's online news service.
"President George W. Bush badly needs the support of the Arab and Muslim world in his war against global terror. He had been hoping to keep the Israeli-Palestinian conflict out of the news while he concentrated on building up an international coalition," the BBC said.
The BBC stated that, "Arab governments have broadly supported America's war on terror, but they have conditions of their own. They want the word terrorism clearly defined," referring to Israel.
The BBC added that Arab leaders would be urging Rumsfeld to restrain Israel or risk losing the support of the Arab world.
"They would also like to be shown some proof that links Osama Bin Laden or the Taliban to the attacks on the U.S. on 11 September.
"Until that proof is provided, there is a deepening suspicion among many ordinary Arabs that their region is being dragged into a military campaign that they do not support," said the BBC.
Convinced that no Arab state will be targeted as the United States readies its war machine against bin Laden, Arab governments are now providing Washington with vital information for its campaign, reported AFP.
High-ranking Western diplomats and Arab officials in the Middle East told AFP in Amman on Thursday that they expect a U.S.-led military operation against Afghanistan to be launched "next week".
"The operation will be massive, aimed and limited in time," a Western official told AFP, ruling out "any particular effect on the Arab world."
An Arab official spoke of the "concern now gripping the Arab world mainly because of the uncertainties" that lay ahead as Washington puts the finishing touches to its war plans.
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