Iraq condemns UAE call for Saddam’s exile
The call for Saddam to go the first ever made publicly by an Arab nation raised an outcry at an Arab summit in Egypt on Saturday.
However, the Emirates submitted the proposal again at a forum of Gulf nations yesterday and said it would do so later this week at an Islamic conference.
"Rejecting these ideas put forward by the UAE is acceptance of the remaining option, which is war," said Sheik Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the Emirates information minister.
Leaders at Saturday's fractious summit of the 22-nation Arab League did not discuss the proposal, presented in a letter from the Emirates president, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan.
However, Sheik Abdullah said Arab leaders have talked in private about getting Saddam to step down.
At the summit, leaders decided to send diplomats to the United Nations and to Baghdad to lay out the Arab position.
Arab League Secretary-General Amr Moussa yesterday said those delegates would leave "within days."
With Arab nations divided over how to deal with Iraq, diplomats said questions remained over what message delegates would take to Baghdad.
The Emirates submitted its proposal at a ministerial meeting of the Gulf Co-operation Council in Doha, Qatar, yesterday.
Emirati Foreign Minister Sheik Rashed bin Abdullah al-Nuaimi told reporters his country expects a "stance to be taken about it".
A senior UAE official said on condition of anonymity that Kuwait has requested the GCC to reach consensus on the proposal before the Emirates also proposes it at a gathering on Wednesday of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference, also in Doha.
Gulf states have argued a US war to oust Saddam is inevitable and Arab states should be preparing for the aftermath.
Other Arab states have split over how to prevent a war, with some calling for Baghdad to co-operate more with disarmament and others calling for a staunch stance supporting Baghdad.
Iraq, which has repeatedly said Saddam will not step down, vehemently derided the Emirates. Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri said Sheik Zayed's proposal must have originated from Israeli leader Ariel Sharon.
