Iraqi leaders 'not US puppets'

2004-06-02 07:45

Washington - Iraq's new leaders "are not America's puppets," the White House declared, while President George W Bush scaled down hopes that other countries would send sizeable numbers of troops to help US soldiers fight rising violence.

Bush warned the violence probably would get worse as Iraq's caretaker government takes charge on June 30 from the US-led occupation. "I believe there will be more violence because there's still violent people who want to stop progress," Bush said on Tuesday.

Bush gave an unqualified endorsement to Iraq's new leadership - Ghazi Mashal Ajil al-Yawer, a powerful Sunni Muslim tribal leader, who was picked for the largely ceremonial post of president, and Iyad Allawi, who was named prime minister last week.

Bush played down suggestions Washington had played a major role in choosing the new leaders. UN envoy Lakhdar Brahimi was "the quarterback," Bush said. "I had no role in picking. Zero."

Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, also denied there had been undue US influence.

Not puppets

"Look, these are not America's puppets," she said. "These are independent-minded Iraqis who are determined to take their country to security and democracy."

A member of Rice's staff, Robert Blackwill, spent weeks in Baghdad providing Brahimi with the names of tribal sheiks and provincial leaders who could be named to Iraq's transition government. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Brahimi's assignment was difficult. "He's had to make compromises to move the process ahead," Annan said. "It was never going to be easy. He knew that."

UN spokesperson Fred Eckhard said the US-led Coalition Provisional Authority played the lead role.

"The CPA governs the country," Eckhard said. "Please do not forget the context in which Mr Brahimi was working."

With 135 000 troops in Iraq, the United States has carried the heaviest burden and has appealed to other countries for help. But the momentum has been in the other direction - Spain, Honduras and the Dominican Republic pulled out their troops - and Bush held out little hope that the tide would change.

"I don't know if there will be a major commitment of new troops but I think there will be a major focus on helping Iraq become a free country," he said.

Rice said some countries "might be willing to send a few troops here, a few troops there" after the UN Security Council approves a resolution setting up the mechanism for the new Iraqi government and procedures for elections.

"But no one really believes that we are about to have a massive infusion of foreign forces into Iraq," Rice said. She said Iraqis want other countries to concentrate on training their troops and their police to take over their own security needs.

Bush said US forces would remain in Iraq even after the interim Iraqi council assumes "full sovereignty".

"I am confident" that the new Iraqi leadership wants the US military to remain, Bush said.

- AP