DANGLING MEN (for Charles Murtaugh):

Iraq talk fuelled by Kosovo pull-out
(Judy Dempsey, July 12 2002, Financial Times)

Britain is to withdraw most of its 2,400 troops from Kosovo, fuelling talk it is preparing to provide support to any US military attack against Iraq.

A senior Nato official in Brussels said the Ministry of Defence in London "was mentally preparing for new challenges". When asked if this would involve Iraq, he retorted: "Well what do you think?" suggesting that the British Army was readying itself for a possible war in the Middle East. A British diplomat agreed that there would be speculation about future deployments - "plans further east - but not too far east", indicating that he himself was surprised by the suddenness and scale of the withdrawal.

Sounds like the phony war may be nearing its end. Posted by Orrin Judd at July 13, 2002 8:45 AM