*EPF202 10/05/2004
White House Report, October 5; Iraq, Hungary
(White House says clear ties existed between al-Qaeda and Iraq) (460)

White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan said the Bush administration continues to see ties between former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein's regime and the al-Qaeda terrorist network, saying that "disturbing similarities" exist between the two.

"There are clearly ties between ... Saddam Hussein's regime and al-Qaeda," McClellan told reporters October 5 at the White House.

He said the two shared similar ideologies and had both expressed satisfaction over the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. McClellan also stated that senior-level contacts existed between leaders of the ousted regime and the terrorist group, as documented by the 9/11 Commission.

The press secretary also said Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, a known al-Qaeda associate, operated in and out of Baghdad, and was in Baghdad at the time that American diplomat Lawrence Foley was killed in Jordan in October 2002. McClellan said al-Zarqawi was also in contact with Ansar al-Islam in the northeastern part of Iraq, and that the al-Qaeda leader operated a terror cell there as well.

McClellan said the release of the final report by U.S. weapons inspector Charles Duelfer will support the Bush administration's claim that Saddam Hussein "had the intent and capability" to pursue a weapons of mass destruction program, as well as a desire to thwart sanctions through illegal finance procurement schemes.

"I think the report will continue to show that he was a gathering threat that needed to be taken seriously, [and] that it was a matter of time before [Saddam Hussein] was going to begin pursuing those weapons of mass destruction," McClellan said.

He also addressed concerns over troop levels in Iraq, stating that President Bush responds to the assessments of U.S. military leaders in order to determine troop levels and to ensure that the military is adequately supported. According to press reports, Ambassador Paul Bremer, the former head of the Coalition Provisional Authority in Iraq, was quoted October 4 as saying the United States did not have enough troops in Iraq in the period immediately following the ouster of the former regime in 2003.

Bremer released a statement later in the day saying he believed that current troop levels in Iraq were now sufficient.

"[W]e will always work to make sure that they have those troop levels as well as the resources that the troops need to complete their mission," McClellan said.

Earlier on October 5, President Bush telephoned Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany to thank him for Hungary's support for the Iraqi people. McClellan said the two leaders discussed the importance of having a strong Europe promote freedom, and of ways to improve the business climate between the two countries.

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)

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