Putin hints at sending troops to Iraq
President Vladimir Putin said that Russia is ready to put aside differences over the war in Iraq to work with the US on rebuilding the country and may send troops to the country.
In a four-hour interview yesterday with The Associated Press and other US media ahead of a summit this week with President George W Bush, Mr Putin answered questions about Iraq, Russia’s nuclear cooperation with Iran, and touch on other subjects including the Middle East peace process.
The Russian leader, who is attending the UN General Assembly session in New York that starts on Tuesday, appeared optimistic about his forthcoming talks with President Bush at Camp David.
He said that despite differences with the President, “He’s a good partner. He’s an open and fair person and it’s agreeable to work with him.”
Mr Putin opposed the war in Iraq and joined French and German efforts to prevent passage of a UN resolution authorising the use of force. He said Russia’s position hadn’t changed, and that “the situation that is developing in Iraq is the best confirmation that Russia was right”.
With the confidence of a man who feels vindicated, Putin set the stage for cooperation with the US as well as bargaining with Mr Bush, who wants a new UN resolution for a multinational force. The Russian president insisted that “the UN must have a real role, not a decorative role”.
He said: “In contrast to many participants of this process, our approach is quite liberal. Theoretically, we don’t exclude more active participation of Russia in the restoration of Iraq, including the participation of our military in the normalisation process.”
But he added that “in practical terms, the question of sending Russian troops is not at the current time on the agenda – it is not even being considered”.
In the interview at his home outside Moscow, Mr Putin reiterated that Russia does not oppose a broader force for Iraq under US command.
“It doesn’t matter who is at the head of the operation. It could be the American military,” he said.
“What matters is that this decision is made by the UN Security Council and spells out the terms of military involvement, including the mission, the length of time and other issues.”
US officials say Russia’s nuclear cooperation with Iran is on the agenda at Camp David.
Washington believes Iran is secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons and that Russia’s work on the Bushehr nuclear plant could help Iran achieve that goal.
Russia has slowly moved closer to the US view, and Mr Putin said that there is no good reason Iran should not sign an agreement with the UN nuclear watchdog allowing unfettered inspections of the country’s nuclear sites.
“If Iran is not striving to develop nuclear weapons, it has nothing to hide. I see no grounds for refusing to sign these additional protocols,” he said. He said Russia was working to assure its cooperation does not let Iran develop anything other than a peaceful nuclear programme.
“The appearance of another nuclear power on our southern borders does not correspond to our national interests,” he said.
Mr Putin was pessimistic about the Middle East peace process. He said there was currently “no light at the end of the tunnel” and that Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat had “missed a historic moment” in failing to accept then-premier Ehud Barak’s offers three years ago of a Palestinian state in Gaza and most of the West Bank, with a foothold in Jerusalem. But he said isolating Mr Arafat was a mistake.
