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UK got war options 'in June 2002' Blair's 'pledge on regime change'
(about 9 hours later)
Former PM Tony Blair first asked for options for UK involvement in military action against Iraq in June 2002, his then foreign policy adviser has said. Tony Blair signalled that he would be willing to back "regime change" in Iraq when he met George Bush in Texas in 2002, the Iraq inquiry has been told.
The PM was aware US military planning had started and wanted to find out what the UK military options were. But his ex-adviser Sir David Manning said he stressed the UK could only back action against Iraq if the issue went to the United Nations first.
But Mr Blair kept pressing President Bush to go through the UN to deal with Saddam Hussein, Sir David Manning said. Mr Blair asked for UK military options two months later, Sir David said.
He also said Mr Bush first mentioned Iraq in a call on 14 September 2001 - three days after the attacks on the US. In Texas Mr Bush told him there was "no war plan" for Iraq but a small cell had been set up to consider "options".
The president said there might be evidence of some connection between Saddam Hussein and Osama Bin Laden, Sir David Manning told the Iraq war inquiry in London. Last week the former UK ambassador to the US, Sir Christopher Meyer, told the inquiry he felt Mr Blair's views on regime change had "tightened" after the private meeting in April 2002 at Mr Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas.
He said Mr Blair had replied that the "evidence would have to be very compelling indeed" to justify action against Iraq. 'Peaceful' solution
'No war plan' He said as no advisers were present for much of the meeting he could not be "entirely clear what degree of convergence was, if you like, signed in blood".
Over the course of the next year, which included meetings between the two leaders at the president's Crawford ranch and at Camp David, the British continued to press Mr Bush to go through the UN, he said. On Monday, Sir David - who was Mr Blair's top foreign policy adviser from 2001 to 2003 - said the then prime minister had continued to press President Bush to go through the UN route to deal with Saddam Hussein throughout 2002 - including meetings at the Crawford ranch and at Camp David.
At the Crawford meeting, Mr Blair was told by the president that at that stage there was "no war plan" for Iraq but that a "small cell" had been set up in US Central Command in Florida to do some planning and come up with options for removing Saddam Hussein. AT THE INQUIRY BBC World Affairs correspondent Peter Biles This was a strong defence of Tony Blair's policy on Iraq. Sir David Manning repeatedly emphasised that Mr Blair had been determined to go down the UN route by building international consensus.
Mr Blair will give evidence early in the new year Sir David gave an impression of the British prime minister trying to put a brake on the more extreme voices in the Bush administration, the neo-conservatives and others, whom he labelled "the regime changers".
Sir David said the British were convinced Iraq had weapons of mass destruction and their policy was to disarm him, rather than sharing the US's primary goal of regime change. But as we now know, Tony Blair began talking about the possible need for regime change immediately after his visit to George W Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas in April 2002, nearly a year before the war.
He said that Mr Blair had made clear that the UK could only take part in any action if the issue went to the United Nations first. For the first time, there has been detailed evidence about the period after the invasion of Iraq. Sir David's assessment of the chaotic post-war reconstruction was a damning indictment of Paul Bremmer, the American who led the Coalition Provisional Authority.
But he said they were aware of a "real tussle in the heart of the [US] administration" about whether President Bush should go back to the UN. He told the inquiry that at the Crawford meeting, Mr Blair was told by the president that at that stage there was "no war plan" for Iraq but that a "small cell" had been set up in US Central Command in Florida to come up with options for removing Saddam Hussein.
Giving evidence at the start of the second week of the inquiry, Sir David Manning said the first time he knew that Mr Blair had asked for military options "was in June 2002". Sir David told the inquiry: "On the one hand the prime minister was very clearly urging the president to go back or adopt the UN route and coalition strategy but was absolutely prepared to say that at the same time he was willing to contemplate regime change if this didn't work.
Military options "I look back at Crawford as the moment that he was saying, yes, there is a route through this that is an international, peaceful one and it is through the UN, but if it doesn't work, we will be willing to undertake regime change."
Because they were aware that US Central Command had started planning, Sir David said he thought Mr Blair "was anxious I think to find out what sort of options do we have?" By June 2002 Mr Blair had asked for some options for UK military involvement, because they were aware US Central Command had started planning, Sir David said.
In July 2002 the defence secretary's office outlined three possibilities. The first was an "in place support package" - using British military assets in the region such as planes in the no-fly zone and bases like Diego Garcia. The next month the defence secretary's office outlined three possibilities. The first was an "in place support package" - using British military assets in the region such as planes in the no-fly zone and bases like Diego Garcia.
The second option was "the enhanced support package" - similar but with "additional maritime assets and aircraft" and possibly some special forces involvement, which would take two months to assemble.The second option was "the enhanced support package" - similar but with "additional maritime assets and aircraft" and possibly some special forces involvement, which would take two months to assemble.
I think as time passed there was an acceptance that if it came to military action that we probably would be willing to move to package three rather than package two Sir David Manning 'No decisions'
A bigger third option "the discreet UK package" would have offered land forces at about the level of 20,000 troops - which would have meant at least six months' preparation, Sir David said.A bigger third option "the discreet UK package" would have offered land forces at about the level of 20,000 troops - which would have meant at least six months' preparation, Sir David said.
Mr Blair had said he did not want to take any decisions at that stage. Mr Blair had said he did not want to take any decisions at that stage and Sir David said: "I think he didn't want to give any signal that he was keen to think about a military alternative as opposed to going back to the UN route."
"This was the time when we were pressing for the Americans to consider the UN route, I think he didn't want to give any signal that he was keen to think about a military alternative as opposed to going back to the UN route," said Sir David. That same month, Sir David met the president at the Oval Office where "repeated that it was impossible for the UK to take part in any action against Iraq unless it was through the UN."
But in September Mr Blair was asked if Britain wanted to send a team to a planning conference in US Central Command in Florida and if so, what would the British be willing to offer. Mr Blair will give evidence early in the new year
Regime change But in September Mr Blair was asked if Britain wanted to send a team to a planning conference in Florida and what would the British be willing to offer.
Sir David said: "At this stage, the prime minister said he was willing, on an entirely contingent basis, for the military to suggest that we would be willing to offer 'package two' .. but that it had to be absolutely clear that no political decisions had been made in Britain about this.Sir David said: "At this stage, the prime minister said he was willing, on an entirely contingent basis, for the military to suggest that we would be willing to offer 'package two' .. but that it had to be absolutely clear that no political decisions had been made in Britain about this.
"Clearly during October there was further discussion between the prime minister and the defence secretary about this and I think as time passed there was an acceptance that if it came to military action that we probably would be willing to move to package three rather than package two." "Clearly during October there was further discussion between the prime minister and the defence secretary about this and I think as time passed there was an acceptance that if it came to military action that we probably would be willing to move to package three."
Sir David was asked whether he thought Mr Blair had told President Bush at their Crawford summit that the UK would join the US in military action. On Sunday Mr Blair denied reports his top legal adviser Lord Goldsmith was "gagged" after expressing doubts about the Iraq invasion's legality in a letter which had been submitted to the inquiry.
He said that Mr Blair at that time stressed that the issue had to go to the United Nations with the goal of a peaceful international resolution to the crisis. The Mail on Sunday accused Mr Blair of deliberately keeping him out of cabinet meetings and of bullying the attorney general - who had threatened to resign - into backing down.
But he also made clear that if the Iraq issue went to the United Nations and international efforts to disarm Saddam failed, then the UK would support US moves for regime change.
Legal gagging denied
On Sunday Mr Blair denied reports his top legal adviser was gagged over doubts about the Iraq invasion's legality.
The Mail on Sunday had reported that a letter written by Lord Goldsmith - then the government's top legal adviser - six days after a cabinet meeting on 23 July 2002 had been submitted to the inquiry.
The newspaper claimed Lord Goldsmith had advised that war could not be justified on the grounds of regime change, self defence nor humanitarian intervention and previous UN resolutions approving the use of force could not be relied upon.
The report accused Mr Blair of then deliberately keeping him out of cabinet meetings and of bullying the attorney general, who had threatened to resign, into backing down.
Asked if that was an accurate picture, Mr Blair told CNN: "No, it's not".Asked if that was an accurate picture, Mr Blair told CNN: "No, it's not".
But he added: "But I think the best thing with this inquiry is actually to let us all give our evidence to the inquiry."But he added: "But I think the best thing with this inquiry is actually to let us all give our evidence to the inquiry."