Rumsfeld denies Iraq sliding into civil war

TOP members of the Bush administration urged Congress quickly to pass a $91 billion spending bill as US Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld scrambled to deny Iraq was sliding into civil war.

Mr Rumsfeld and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice claimed that, despite a surge in sectarian violence in Iraq, the process of creating a stable government is proceeding satisfactorily.

Rumsfeld was pressed to explain the US military’s plan to respond in the event that Iraq’s sectarian violence grows into a fully-fledged civil war.

“The plan is to prevent a civil war and, to the extent one were to occur, to have the - from a security standpoint - have the Iraqi security forces deal with it, to the extent they are able to,” Mr Rumsfeld said.

Democrat Senator Robert Byrd repeatedly pressed Rumsfeld to say what US troops would do if civil war broke out, noting that in his own view the country “only narrowly missed descending into all-out civil war” in recent days.

Mr Rumsfeld said the key to avoiding civil war is for Iraq’s political leaders to form a government of national unity. He also said that it would be counterproductive to set a timetable for withdrawing US forces, stressing that he’s confident the Iraqis realise the enormity of the stakes at this stage of the process.

“They have everything to lose,” he said. “If they are not able to put together a government in a relatively short period of time they are facing a very difficult situation for all of the people involved in governance in that country.”

Also responding to Mr Byrd’s question, Gen John Abizaid, head of the US Central Command, suggested that Iraq is moving in the direction of civil war.

“There’s no doubt that the sectarian tensions are higher than we’ve seen, and it is of great concern to all of us,” Abizaid said, adding that he was pleased with the professionalism that Iraq’s own security forces have demonstrated in responding to the strife. Abizaid also described the situation in Iraq as “changing in its nature from insurgency toward sectarian violence.”

Both Mr Rumsfeld and Ms Rice acknowledged the recent growth in sectarian violence.

“There is a high level of tension in the country, sectarian tension and conflict,” Mr Rumsfeld said. But it has not yet become a civil war “by most experts’ calculation,” he added.

The emergency spending bill includes about $65 billion for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as about $20 billion for Hurricane Katrina recovery efforts.