TURKIYE- Columnist Yilmaz Oztuna writes on Saddam’s decision to halt oil exports. A summary of his column is as follows:
After being humiliated by the US and President Bush, Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein made his move. He acted to halt oil exports until Israel vacates the territories it has occupied over the last two weeks. Oil prices increased by a dollar a barrel. If Libya and Iran follow suit in this boycott, the price per barrel of oil could reach $30. President Bush, the UN, the EU, and NATO have already called for Israel to pull back from the Palestinian lands... When this evacuation begins, Saddam will brag in Baghdad. He will say that he was the one who towed Israel to line, he was the one who saved Palestine, he did what the monarchies in the Gulf, all US satellites, did not dare, and took his revenge on Bush. When he makes these claims, Washington will toughen its stance towards Iraq. At present US Secretary of State Colin Powell is visiting the Middle East. He started his visit in Morocco. He will meet with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah, who had presented a proposal for peace. From there he will proceed to other countries. In fact he is taking the pulses of many other countries as well. At the moment, the world’s focus is slipping from Palestine to Iraq.
SOURCE: OFFICE OF THE PRIME MINISTER, DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF PRESS AND INFORMATION