Baker Backed Loans That Added to Iraq Debt (Poppy Bush financed Saddam)

[Barrett808]

Baker Backed Loans That Added to Iraq Debt
By KEN GUGGENHEIM, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Now assigned the task of reducing Iraq (news - web sites)'s debt, presidential envoy James A. Baker III once gave crucial support for continuing a billion-dollar loan program to Saddam Hussein's government that accounts for most of the money Iraq still owes the United States.

As secretary of state in 1989, Baker urged the Agriculture Department to offer $1 billion in loan guarantees for Iraq to buy U.S. farm products after Iraq said it would reject a smaller deal.

"Documents indicate he intervened personally to make sure that Iraq continued to receive high levels of funding," said Joyce Battle, Middle East analyst for the National Security Archives, a foreign policy research center with a vast collection of declassified documents from the era.

Only half the guarantees were provided before the program was suspended amid allegations of improprieties and deterioration of relations with Iraq in the months before the August 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

The guarantees were an important part of the first President Bush's effort to improve relations with Iraq in hopes of boosting commercial ties and gaining leverage with a powerful and strategically important nation.

(more)

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20040111/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iraq_baker&cid=540&ncid=1480

Ahem. These loans were not used "to buy U.S. farm products." They were used to buy weapons. At the direction of Bush/Baker, these loans were rammed through over the objections of many officials.

It is, however, encouraging to see this story breaking. Maybe it's 13 years too late, but at least it's breaking.

For detailed, impeccably documented research see:
Friedman, Alan, Spider's Web: The Secret History of how the White House Illegally Armed Iraq,
New York, NY, U.S.A.: Bantam Books, 1993. Chapter Book. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. 455 pages with notes, index, b/w photos. ISBN:0553096508
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0553096508/ref=ase_cryptogoncom-20/103-0699862-8219055?v=glance&s=books

Out of print, but worth tracking down.

interview with Alan Friedman
http://www.informationclearinghouse.info/article5401.htm

[seventhson]

1. Important Story

Best to pull it out again in the general election to slam Bush and Cheney

[madrchsod]

2. i remember the deal..

alot of people were really pissed about this and knew there was more behind it than "food". then as the war started this story got lost in the shuffle of time...

[cosmicdot]

3. what better person to envoy the Iraqi debt hen house

~ the fox ~

rated the article a "5"


```````````````````````````````

Baker to go to Middle East: Bush
Thu Jan 1, 4:23 PM ET Add Politics - AFP to My Yahoo!

FALFURRIAS, United States (AFP) - US President George W. Bush (news - web sites) said after meeting with his special envoy for Iraqi debt, James Baker, that the former secretary of state would next travel to the Middle East.

~snip~

The former secretary of state briefed Bush on his "very positive" meetings in Japan and China, who have indicated they are willing to help ease Iraq (news - web sites)'s 120-billion-dollar debt burden, the president told reporters.

"I thanked him for spending as much time as he did on the road for our country," said Bush, who added that the seasoned diplomat would soon formally brief him and national security adviser Condoleezza Rice (news - web sites) on his efforts.


Bush tapped Baker to lead US efforts to convince Iraq's creditors to help reduce its debt, which Washington says clouds efforts to put the war-ravaged country on course for democracy and prosperity.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040101/pl_afp/us_iraq_debt_bush_baker_040101222340

[jpak]

4. Will Saddam call Baker as a character witness

along with Rumsfeld, Poppy, Reagan, Cheney and the rest of the Republicans-for-Saddam fan club at W's upcoming Kangaroo Kourt trial??????

[hedda_foil]

5. Please rate this at 5 and keep the thread kicked here.

Get this sucker up to the top of Yahoo top rated and KEEP it there please.

[Jacobin]

6. Consigliore Baker at work

[goforit]

7. Track his money laundering down!!!!!

:bounce:

Follow the money!!!

[Barrett808]

8. morning kick n/t

n/t