COWBOY DIPLOMACY

Saudis allow use of key facilities to US (Robin Allen in Riyadh and Roula Khalaf in London, The Financial Times)

In an apparent attempt to secure an involvement in post-war plans for Iraq, Saudi Arabia has conceded to a range of US demands for facilities in the kingdom in the run up to any US attack, according to western and Gulf diplomatic sources.

Western diplomatic sources said the US had secured the use of the crucial air command and control centre at the Prince Sultan airbase near Riyadh to co-ordinate the air campaign that will be mostly led out of neighbouring Qatar.

His Lonely March (Romesh Ratnesar, Time Magazine)

Bush focused special attention on Russian President Vladimir Putin; after speaking by phone last Thursday, the two leaders agreed to "continue to communicate." A White House official told TIME that Putin assured Bush he wouldn't cast a veto. "There were rumors that the Russians were going to veto," says the official. "The President had a conversation and got a different impression--not that Putin was with him, but that he's not going to veto."

U.S. in Final Diplomatic Push for U.N. Vote on Iraq (Reuters)

Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Sunday the United States was "in striking distance'' of winning enough votes to back the U.N. Security Council resolution on Iraq but he would not be surprised if France blocked it with a veto.

I'm pretty indifferent about whether the UN votes for war with Iraq, but I've never seen millions have the rug pulled out from under them in one go.

Posted by David Cohen at March 9, 2003 3:32 PM