Posted on 06/18/2002 9:49:32 AM PDT by cody32127
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Even as George W. Bush mulls toppling Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein ( news - web sites), the U.S. president's predecessor Bill Clinton on Monday urged him to change priorities by focusing first on building a "legitimate" peace between Israelis and Palestinians.
"Looking down the road, the most important thing is to get our priorities right," Clinton said in response to questions after a speech on globalization at the Yale Club in New York.
"I don't have any use for Saddam Hussein. But I think you have to ask yourself in what order do we have to do this," said Clinton, who served as president from 1993 to 2001 and spearheaded Israeli-Palestinian peace talks which came close to an agreement. The talks stalled in October 2000 and have been followed by an upsurge in fighting.
"He has no missiles to put warheads on that could reach us," Clinton said of Saddam at the event organized by the Council on Foreign Relations.
Clinton said Saddam's Iraq was a threat because of its attempts to build biological and chemical weapons, but the immediate danger to the United States was minimal.
Over the weekend, Bush was reported by the Washington Post to have given the go-ahead for covert CIA ( news - web sites) operations to oust Saddam.
Bush, whose father ran Iraq's invading forces out of Kuwait during the 1991 Gulf War ( news - web sites), has repeatedly shown his desire to see the Iraqi president ousted. In January, Bush branded Iraq, along with Iran and North Korea ( news - web sites), part of an "axis of evil," accusing them of backing international terrorism and trying to make chemical, biological and nuclear weapons.
Bush's national security adviser, Condoleezza Rice ( news - web sites), said in a weekend interview that the United States is not looking to pursue a U.S.-brokered peace plan. The dramatic surge in violence that followed the breakdown of Clinton-backed Israeli-Palestinian talks in October 2000 has dramatically changed the situation in the Middle East, Rice said.
Bush is however widely expected to outline his views on a path to Palestinian statehood this week.
Clinton warned Bush against the U.S. acting alone. Pointing to Vice President Dick Cheney ( news - web sites)'s 11-nation tour of the Middle East in March, during which Cheney failed to win support for possible military action against Baghdad, Clinton said it was important to build coalitions.
The United States must learn the lessons from Cheney's trip, during which even Kuwait failed to back an attack on Iraq, Clinton said.
"It's very important to realize that these people didn't do that because they love Saddam Hussein. They can't stand Saddam Hussein," Clinton said.
"They thought the United States was on another planet, talking about attacking Saddam Hussein when we were not involved in the Middle East peace process at the time."
a.cricket
Ditto. I'd like to add this:
Hey Bill, you %#$^$@#^^!$, if you don't like the way the Mideast situation is today, you have only YOURSELF to blame, you sorry piece of bottom-feeding trailer trash pseudo intellectual rapist pig.
The person who is singularly culpable for the collapse in the Middle East, the menace in Iraq and Korea, and the attack on 9-11 should hide under a rock. I hope he and his comments both receive the contempt they so richly deserve.
Riiiiiiight, Bill. Take your meds. You look awful.
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