Allawi Says Not A 'tool' Of U.S.

WASHINGTON, Sept 23 (AFP) - Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi insisted Thursday he was not a tool of the United States as he rejected accusations that he was being used in President George W. Bush's election campaign.
"I am a tool of no man, I am a tool of nobody," the head of the interim government told a Council on Foreign Relations think-tank meeting in Washington.
"I did not come here to get involved in the internal politics of the United States. That is not our business," Allawi added amid a mounting political row in the United States over criticism by Democratic presidential challenger John Kerry.
Allawi earlier addressed a rare joint meeting of the US Congress and met President George W. Bush at the White House after which both leaders gave an optimistic assessment of the situation in Iraq.
Kerry, who has made Iraq one of the key issues in the campaign for the November 2 election, said the Iraqi prime minister had made contradictory statements about the fight against insurgents and declared that Allawi and Bush were seeking "to put their best face on the policy."
"The president says that things are getting better in Iraq and we must just stay the same course," said Kerry. "Well, I disagree. They're not getting better and we need to change the course to protect our troops and to win."
Kerry said the US administration was "in disarray" over Iraq.
But Vice President Dick Cheney hit out at Kerry over his comments.
"I must say I was appalled at the complete lack of respect Senator Kerry showed for this man of courage when he rushed to hold a press conference and attack the prime minister, a man America must stand beside to defeat the terrorists," Cheney said in St Joseph, Missouri.
"John Kerry is trying to tear down all the good that has been accomplished, and his words are destructive to our effort in Iraq and in the global war on terror.
"As Prime Minister Allawi said in his speech, and I quote, 'When political leaders sound the siren of defeatism in the face of terrorism, it only encourages more violence,'" Cheney added.