Iraq dismisses 'futile' threats

Saddam remains defiant in the face of mounting international pressure

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- President Saddam Hussein has dismissed as "futile" veiled threats made against Iraq over belief in the international community that it is stockpiling weapons of mass destruction.

"Recent futile threats will not scare your country," Iraqi newspapers quoted him as saying on Monday, hours after the U.S and UK vowed to continue the international coalition against terrorism.

Saddam told a group of pro-Baghdad Kurds: "Your country has reached a level that such threats will not intimidate it."

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His comments came as U.S. Vice-President Dick Cheney was due to arrive in Jordan on a whistle-stop tour of 11 Middle East countries.

At all meetings with leaders in the region Cheney is likely to be pressed on what America sees as the next step in its fight against terrorism.

Iraqi newspapers on Tuesday branded Cheney's tour as "futile and wicked" and aimed only at preparing the ground for another "aggression" against Iraq.

The official al-Qadissisya newspaper said it was "futile and wicked and aimed at achieving one goal which is attacking Iraq and the Palestinian resistance."

The paper urged Arab countries visited by Cheney to stand up against his "vicious activity."

As a counter measure, Iraq sent envoy Izzat Ibrahim to Amman and Damascus to seek Arab support in resisting the U.S. campaign.

In a further verbal attack, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz said U.S. interests in the Middle East region would be damaged if Iraq is attacked.

"The United States knows well that if wages an aggression on Iraq, then its interests in the Arab world will be threatened by the Arab people, not the regimes," Aziz was quoted as saying by state-run al-Qadissiya newspaper on Tuesday.

Following talks in London on Monday, both Cheney and British Prime Minister Tony Blair gave the strongest hints yet -- without actually naming names -- that the focus of the campaign could soon turn from Afghanistan to Iraq.

Cheney said there had to be concern about a "potential marriage" between states possessing weapons of mass destruction, such as Iraq, and terror groups such as al Qaeda.

He said: "With the governments of (the Middles East) I will be discussing the current actions of the coalition.

"We will confer as well about the threat of weapons of mass destruction and the important choices that await us in the days ahead."

U.S. President George W. Bush, who described Iraq as part of an "axis of evil," has repeatedly warned Iraq that it would face "consequences" if the U.N. weapons inspectors are not given proper access.

Blair acknowledged the issue of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction had to be addressed but said it would be done in a "calm and measured" way.

He said: "There is a threat from Saddam Hussein and the weapons of mass destruction that he has acquired. It is not in doubt at all.

"We have ... said again right from the outset that the threat of weapons of mass destruction will have to be addressed."

As well as London, Cheney's 10-day trip will take him to Israel, Oman, Egypt, Yemen, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey.

While Blair says Britain stands "shoulder to shoulder" with the U.S., Cheney faces a tougher task to rally Middles East leaders behind a military solution to threats in their region.

Jaffa Hassan, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Jordanian Embassy to the U.S. told CNN: "We totally object to a military solution to that problem.

"We don't think it is the best way to deal with things. On the contrary it is a nightmare or most of the countries in the region.''

Cheney will hold talks with 11 leaders in the Middle East

Jordan's King Abdullah II said ahead of Cheney's arrival that, while Jordan supports the U.S.-led war on terrorism, it "rejects the use of force against Iraq."

Turkey has also warned the U.S. that a military strike against neighbouring Iraq could destabilise the region.

Belgium, meanwhile, has proposed that the European Union take a diplomatic initiative to persuade Iraq to readmit the weapons inspectors.

Belgian Foreign Minister Louis Michel suggested in a letter to his Spanish counterpart, Josep Pique, that the 15-nation bloc "take the initiative to convince Iraq to respect the relevant (U.N.) Security Council resolutions and in particular to authorise the unconditional return of the inspectors."

He suggested sending either a ministerial delegation or the EU's foreign policy chief, Javier Solana, to Baghdad.

"It is essential that the union act without delay," Michel said.

Pique said: "The most important thing we can do is to continue to insist on full Iraqi compliance with the U.N. resolutions."