Rumsfeld: Iraq lying about weapons development

KUWAIT CITY, Kuwait (CNN) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Monday accused Iraq of lying about its efforts to develop biological weapons.

"They're lying" when Iraqi officials say their nation is not pursuing the development of biological weapons, said Rumsfeld, who is touring Gulf states to shore up support for the U.S. presence in the region.

"They have [weapons of mass destruction] and continue to develop them, and they have weaponized chemical weapons. We know that," Rumsfeld said. "They've had an active program to develop nuclear weapons. It's also clear that they are actively developing biological weapons."

Iraq, said Rumsfeld, is a continuing threat in the Middle East. He skirted questions about speculation the United States might launch a future military strike against Baghdad.

While in Kuwait, Rumsfeld said he had extensive discussions on the issue of Iraq-Kuwait relations, which seem to have improved -- a relationship Rumsfeld characterized as "the lion inviting the chickens into the embrace."

India-Pakistan tensions

Rumsfeld will meet with officials in Bahrain on Monday. He'll stop in Qatar on Tuesday ahead of traveling to the Indian subcontinent in an effort to defuse tensions between nuclear neighbors India and Pakistan.

"I wouldn't say it's continuing to escalate in terms of risk," Rumsfeld said, regarding the situation on the subcontinent.

In other developments, Kuwaiti officials will travel to the U.S. military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to interview detainees taken from Afghanistan about their knowledge of al Qaeda or Taliban operations, Rumsfeld said.

There are 12 Kuwaiti men among the U.S.-held prisoners in Cuba.

Regarding the operation of the al Qaeda network in Kashmir -- the disputed territory at the center of Indian-Pakistani tensions -- Rumsfeld said: "Scraps of information suggest that al Qaeda is active in that area. We are concerned."