Weapons claims fitted US plans, says Wilkie

By Peter Fray, Herald Correspondent in London
June 20 2003

The Australian and British governments grossly exaggerated the threat 
posed by Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction to stay in 
step with the United States' plan to invade Iraq, a former senior 
Australian defence analyst has told a British parliamentary inquiry.  

Andrew Wilkie, formerly with the Office of National Assessment, also 
accused John Howard of repeating false claims about Iraq trying to buy 
uranium from Niger so that he could be a player on the world stage.  

Mr Wilkie said both governments had ignored warnings from their own 
intelligence agencies that the US was intent on deposing Saddam 
Hussein for "strategic and domestic reasons".  

Deliberately distorted and doctored evidence about Iraq's weapons 
program had backed up a series of "ridiculous",
"preposterous" and 
"fundamentally flawed" claims before the war.  

"The British and Australian governments were deliberately intent on 
using WMD to exaggerate the Iraq threat so as to stay in step with 
the US . . .   

(snip snip)

Full article at Sydney Morning Herald ...
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/06/19/1055828436631.html

Cheers, Steve..

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