http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/p...&subContrassID=8&sbSubContrassID=0&listsrc="Y"
14/10/2002
U.S., Arab troops take part in war games in Jordan
By The Associated Press
AMMAN, Jordan - Troops from the United States, Britain and Arab countries took part in war games in southern Jordan on Monday, diplomats said, and the government stressed the exercise had nothing to do with preparations for a possible U.S. attack on Iraq.
The government has previously said the war games, dubbed Early Victor 02, were due to start around mid-October and continue through early November. Monday, officials refused to answer repeated calls by The Associated Press seeking comment. A Jordan-based diplomatic source, insisting on anonymity, confirmed the desert maneuvers kicked off Monday.
Information Minister Mohammad Affash Adwan said recently the exercise involved armies from several Arab countries, including Jordan and the United Arab Emirates.
A British Embassy source, also speaking on condition of anonymity, told The Associated Press that British forces were also taking part in the drills at an unspecified location in Jordan's southern desert. No other details were immediately available.
Issues relating to the Jordanian military are usually not made public, but the added caution Monday indicated that the government was trying to keep a low profile on the war games to avoid sending a wrong signal to Iraq, its main trade partner.
Adwan and other Cabinet officials have stressed over the last two weeks that the drills were routine and periodical and have nothing to do with developments in the region - a reference to possible U.S. military action against Iraq.
Jordan, like other Arab countries, opposes an attack on Iraq, saying it may destabilize the volatile Middle East. Jordan is a longtime U.S. ally, but also has close business ties with Iraq. Two-way trade with Baghdad reached US $700 million last year. Jordan also receives all its oil needs from Iraq.
Jordan occasionally hosts more than one drill with the U.S. military each year since 1978, and other armies sometimes participate. On Aug. 12, a Marine expeditionary unit of about 1,500 soldiers disembarked in Jordan's Red Sea port of Aqaba for a two-week drill aimed at helping the Jordanian army develop its combat tactics.
Meanwhile, in Amman, King Abdullah II inaugurated an international exhibition of combat helicopters, tanks and light weapons.
At an Amman air base, Abdullah also attended a demonstration by the army's special forces troops, which included an air show by acrobatic planes and combat helicopters as well as 50 parachuters performing a landing exercise.
Abdullah, wearing a military uniform as the supreme commander of the Jordanian armed forces, later toured hangars where surveillance devices, communications systems, military transportation vehicles, tanks, boats, helicopters, rocket launchers and gear used by anti-terror and riot personnel were on display.
Around 170 international firms, including some from the United States and Britain, are taking part in the four-day exposition, called Special Operations Forces Exhibition - an event held every two years since 1996.
Monday's exhibition was attended by army commanders and top military officials from various countries as well as Britain's Prince Andrew, the Duke of York. No major deals were expected to be concluded during SOFEX 2002, which is organized by the Jordanian army in coordination with a military exhibition firm based in the United Arab Emirates.[/url][/b]
