[A-List] Germany: continuing opposition to war

["Michael Keaney" <michael.keaney@xxxxxx>]

Germany won't aid U.S. troops in Iraq
Defense Minister says that the Bundeswehr will only protect American
soldiers within Kuwait
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung Weekly, March 7 2003
By Aaron Kirchfeld

If American troops invade Iraq and come under chemical or biological attack
they will not be helped by German troops stationed in Kuwait, who are armed
with special equipment for detecting contamination from such weapons,
according to Defense Minister Peter Struck.

"Our soldiers will remain in Kuwait because the defense agreement applies to
the citizens and American troops stationed in that country," Struck said in
an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. "The
protection of American soldiers advancing in Iraqi territory must be taken
on by the Americans themselves."
Further burdening relations with the United States, already strained by
Germany's continuing opposition to an attack on Iraq, the German government
said it would not help finance the rebuilding of Iraq.

Although Germany did not play an active role in the first Gulf War in 1991,
it carried a large share of the financial burden.

Also this week, the government turned down a North Atlantic Treaty
Organization request for additional Patriot air defense batteries and
missiles for Turkey, saying it had already fulfilled its obligations to the
NATO alliance.
Still, Struck predicted that relations with the United States would return
to normal once the Iraq crisis was resolved.
Struck's position on helping U.S. troops in Kuwait was criticized by the
opposition Christian Democratic Union and its foreign policy spokesman,
Friedbert Pflüger, who called them "dangerous and unwise."

"I can't imagine that a German defense minister would deny emergency help
for attacked American soldiers in Iraq only kilometers from where German
Fuchs armored reconnaissance tanks are stationed," Pflüger said, referring
to vehicles specially outfitted with advanced equipment for detecting
chemical, biological or nuclear contamination.
Struck said that he would increase the number of soldiers in Kuwait to
maintain security should U.S. troop presence fall at Camp Doha, which would
be likely if Iraq is invaded.
Berlin announced last week that it would be sending 30 additional soldiers
to join the 59 "ABC" troops - the German acronym for nuclear, biological and
chemical contamination - operating the Fuchs vehicles at the camp, some 100
kilometers (62 miles) from the Iraqi border.
The contingent and its six Fuchs   are restricted under the German mandate
for cooperating in Operation Enduring Freedom to provide defense strictly
within Kuwaiti territory. The military has been authorized by the German
parliament to deploy as many as 800 ABC troops if necessary for this
purpose.

In the interview, Struck denied recent reports that German special forces
soldiers had participated in search-and-rescue training alongside their U.S.
counterparts in Kuwait.