New York The New York Times quotes US President George W Bush saying he wanted to ?go beyond Iraq in dealing with proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction? referring to a telephone conversation between US President Bush and Prime Minister Tony Blair.
In this context Bush mentioned that Pakistan along with Saudi Arabia, North Korea and Iran. In effect, Pakistan appeared to form part of the ?axis of evil? comprising of Iran, North Korea and Iraq.
Bush's comment, made during a private telephone conversation on January 30, 2003 and mentioned in notes taken by Matthew Rycroft, then the private secretary to Blair, have been cited in a new book, the New York Times reported.
The comment reported in an American edition of Lawless World, by Philippe Sands, a professor at University College, London, could be significant because it appeared to add Pakistan and Saudi Arabia to a list that previously had included only Iraq, Iran and North Korea.
The White House declined to comment, saying any telephone conversation between Bush and Blair at that time would have been private and personal. A spokesman for the British embassy in Washington also declined to comment.
Bush said, ?It made sense to try for a second resolution, which I would love to have.?
?His biggest concern was looking weak,? the British document says about Bush. It says that the two leaders had agreed that United Nations inspectors in Iraq should be given ?weeks not months,? to complete their work.
(With inputs from PTI)
Comments
0 comment