WASHINGTON - President Bush used Veterans Day ceremonies yesterday to send fresh warnings to Iraq, vowing to use "the full force and might of the United States military" against that country unless Saddam Hussein agrees to disarm.
Bush spoke as Hussein faced a Friday deadline for accepting the conditions of a United Nations resolution mandating the return of weapons inspectors. Approved by the Security Council last week, the resolution states that Iraq must destroy its weapons of mass destruction or face "serious consequences."
The president has made clear that he would consider resistance by Hussein a justification for war. "And we will prevail," he said at the White House, before attending a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.
At both events, Bush reflected on patriotism, military service and the courage of war veterans, including those in his audience, then made a case for expanding the war on terrorism into Iraq to confront what he called a "uniquely dangerous regime."
"Especially in this time of war, we see in our veterans an example of courage and selfless sacrifice and service that inspires a new generation and will lead this country to victory," the president said.
Bush also made an unscheduled trip during an early morning downpour to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, where he laid a small American flag at the base of the polished black granite wall that memorializes the deaths of 58,229 American soldiers.
Tourists and other visitors said they had come early to beat the crowds but had not expected to be sharing the moment with the president. Bush, bundled up in a trench coat as rain pelted his black umbrella, paused for a few moments to inspect wreaths and mementos placed along the wall.
Bush turned to those gathered with him and said simply, "God bless you." Then he solemnly thanked a veteran in the group for his service to the country.
On Friday, Bush won a major foreign policy victory when the U.N. Security Council unanimously approved the resolution on Iraq. Bush had argued that if the United Nations did not join him in demanding that Iraq destroy its programs for the development of weapons of mass destruction, the organization risked becoming irrelevant.
Forcing cooperation
U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan will help the White House keep pressure on Hussein as he travels to Washington for talks today with Secretary of State Colin L. Powell. Annan and Bush are to meet tomorrow.
"We have to keep, in a sense, a gun pointed to the head of the Iraqi regime, because that's the only way they cooperate," Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, told National Public Radio.
In his aggressive approach toward Iraq, Bush faces resistance from world leaders - in the Arab world, Europe and elsewhere - who have made it clear that they do not want the United States to view the U.N. resolution as a mere formality on the road to war. They favor giving U.N. weapons inspectors a serious chance to force Hussein to dismantle his chemical, biological and nuclear weapons programs.
Discussions in Baghdad
Under a timetable spelled out in the U.N. resolution, Iraq has until Friday to formally agree to comply.
In Baghdad yesterday, members of Iraq's parliament met to discuss the resolution, a process that senior U.S. officials have dismissed, because Hussein is the sole decision-maker on whether his country will accept the terms of the resolution.
Arab League ministers, meeting in Cairo, Egypt, have predicted that Hussein will agree to the inspections regime.
If Iraq accepts the terms of the resolution, Hans Blix, the chief U.N. weapons inspector, is expected to be in Baghdad by Monday with an advance team to begin preparations.
By Dec. 8, Iraq is required to submit a report to the United Nations, disclosing details of its weapons programs. By Dec. 23, a full team of weapons inspectors would enter Iraq. The inspectors would then have 60 days to report back to the Security Council.
The first test of Bush's determination to dismantle Iraq's weapons programs would come if Hussein appears to be stalling or fails to fully comply with the resolution. Other Security Council nations, including Russia and France, say that if that were to happen, the issue should be brought before the United Nations for further debate.
If Hussein fails to comply, the resolution would require the Security Council to reconvene and debate how to proceed.
Plan of attack
Senior Bush administration officials have made it clear, however, that they believe the United States is free to launch a military attack on Iraq at any point, without any further U.N. authorization.
At the Pentagon, officials have drafted a plan to invade Iraq that would involve 200,000 to 250,000 troops. Bush administration officials are considering a plan for a U.S.-led occupation
if there is an invasion and Hussein is overthrown.
Bush insisted yesterday that the United States has "no territorial ambitions."
"We don't seek an empire," he said. "Our nation is committed to freedom, for ourselves and for others."
The president said Hussein has spent 11 years ducking U.N. demands that he disarm. Bush called it "a decade of systematic deception, unmet obligations, unpunished violations."
"Those games are now over," he warned.
In the aftermath of his U.N. victory last week, and his party's recapture of the Senate in midterm elections this month, Bush couldn't resist a quick quip at the White House ceremony honoring U.S. veterans.
After introducing Virginia Sen. John W. Warner, Bush paused, grinned and called him "the chairman." The Republican senator will soon be replacing Democrat Carl Levin of Michigan as chairman of the Senate Armed Services committee.
Remarks at Arlington
At Arlington National Cemetery, Bush took part in the annual wreath-laying ceremonies. He told veterans gathered under gray skies that "America must always be prepared to confront enemies of human freedom."
Then, he turned the subject to Hussein, declaring, to applause, that the U.S. government will not allow "a dictator who has used weapons of mass destruction to threaten America with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. ... This great nation will not live at the mercy of any foreign plot or power."
Bush spoke as Hussein faced a Friday deadline for accepting the conditions of a United Nations resolution mandating the return of weapons inspectors. Approved by the Security Council last week, the resolution states that Iraq must destroy its weapons of mass destruction or face "serious consequences."
The president has made clear that he would consider resistance by Hussein a justification for war. "And we will prevail," he said at the White House, before attending a Veterans Day ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery.
At both events, Bush reflected on patriotism, military service and the courage of war veterans, including those in his audience, then made a case for expanding the war on terrorism into Iraq to confront what he called a "uniquely dangerous regime."
"Especially in this time of war, we see in our veterans an example of courage and selfless sacrifice and service that inspires a new generation and will lead this country to victory," the president said.
Bush also made an unscheduled trip during an early morning downpour to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, where he laid a small American flag at the base of the polished black granite wall that memorializes the deaths of 58,229 American soldiers.
Tourists and other visitors said they had come early to beat the crowds but had not expected to be sharing the moment with the president. Bush, bundled up in a trench coat as rain pelted his black umbrella, paused for a few moments to inspect wreaths and mementos placed along the wall.
Bush turned to those gathered with him and said simply, "God bless you." Then he solemnly thanked a veteran in the group for his service to the country.
On Friday, Bush won a major foreign policy victory when the U.N. Security Council unanimously approved the resolution on Iraq. Bush had argued that if the United Nations did not join him in demanding that Iraq destroy its programs for the development of weapons of mass destruction, the organization risked becoming irrelevant.
"We have to keep, in a sense, a gun pointed to the head of the Iraqi regime, because that's the only way they cooperate," Condoleezza Rice, Bush's national security adviser, told National Public Radio.
In his aggressive approach toward Iraq, Bush faces resistance from world leaders - in the Arab world, Europe and elsewhere - who have made it clear that they do not want the United States to view the U.N. resolution as a mere formality on the road to war. They favor giving U.N. weapons inspectors a serious chance to force Hussein to dismantle his chemical, biological and nuclear weapons programs.
In Baghdad yesterday, members of Iraq's parliament met to discuss the resolution, a process that senior U.S. officials have dismissed, because Hussein is the sole decision-maker on whether his country will accept the terms of the resolution.
Arab League ministers, meeting in Cairo, Egypt, have predicted that Hussein will agree to the inspections regime.
If Iraq accepts the terms of the resolution, Hans Blix, the chief U.N. weapons inspector, is expected to be in Baghdad by Monday with an advance team to begin preparations.
By Dec. 8, Iraq is required to submit a report to the United Nations, disclosing details of its weapons programs. By Dec. 23, a full team of weapons inspectors would enter Iraq. The inspectors would then have 60 days to report back to the Security Council.
The first test of Bush's determination to dismantle Iraq's weapons programs would come if Hussein appears to be stalling or fails to fully comply with the resolution. Other Security Council nations, including Russia and France, say that if that were to happen, the issue should be brought before the United Nations for further debate.
If Hussein fails to comply, the resolution would require the Security Council to reconvene and debate how to proceed.
At the Pentagon, officials have drafted a plan to invade Iraq that would involve 200,000 to 250,000 troops. Bush administration officials are considering a plan for a U.S.-led occupation
if there is an invasion and Hussein is overthrown.
Bush insisted yesterday that the United States has "no territorial ambitions."
"We don't seek an empire," he said. "Our nation is committed to freedom, for ourselves and for others."
The president said Hussein has spent 11 years ducking U.N. demands that he disarm. Bush called it "a decade of systematic deception, unmet obligations, unpunished violations."
"Those games are now over," he warned.
In the aftermath of his U.N. victory last week, and his party's recapture of the Senate in midterm elections this month, Bush couldn't resist a quick quip at the White House ceremony honoring U.S. veterans.
After introducing Virginia Sen. John W. Warner, Bush paused, grinned and called him "the chairman." The Republican senator will soon be replacing Democrat Carl Levin of Michigan as chairman of the Senate Armed Services committee.
Then, he turned the subject to Hussein, declaring, to applause, that the U.S. government will not allow "a dictator who has used weapons of mass destruction to threaten America with chemical, biological or nuclear weapons. ... This great nation will not live at the mercy of any foreign plot or power."