American Defense Issues

U.S. Secretary of Defense Richard Cheney spoke to students attending the Presidential Classroom program on issues relating to America’s defense. He discussed the Soviet Union’s February 21 peace initiative to end the Persian Gulf war, which had been termed unacceptable by President Bush earlier in the day because it contained what President Bush claimed were conditions to the withdrawal of Iraqi forces from Kuwait. Secretary Cheney said a cease fire under the conditions of the peace initiative would allow Iraq to rebuild its battered forces and preserve the base of Iraq’s military force, which could lead to further military hostilities later. Sec. Cheney said Saddam Hussein has ordered the systematic destruction of Kuwaiti oil facilities by setting them on fire, and said the only alternative to military conflict would be Iraq’s commencement of unconditional withdrawal from Kuwait before President Bush’s deadline of 12 noon on February 23, 1991. close