Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Tareq Aziz on Saturday embarked a visit to Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco to rally support from these Arab countries to avert any possible attacks from the United States.
Earlier last week, Vice Chairman of Iraqi Revolutionary Command Council Izzat Ibrahim as an envoy of Saddam leading an Iraqi delegation had visited Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Iraq's diplomatic drive came ahead of the annual Arab summit due in Beirut, Lebanon from March 27-28, during which Iraq hopes the summit to take a unified stand against US attacks against Iraq.
Wherever he visited, Izzat Ibrahim emphasized that the Iraqi people have no fear for any threat of military strike. He urged the Arab states to stand by Iraq's side.
Lebanese President Emile Lahoud stressed that Iraq's sovereignty should be respected and the integrity of its territory should not be breached.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak said that Egypt believes that every possible effort should be exerted to implement relevant UN resolutions without inflicting more sufferings on the Iraqi people.
President of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahayan told Izzat Ibrahim that UAE was opposed to any military action against Iraq.
US President George W. Bush has branded Iraq as part of an "axis of evil" in his State Union of Speech and strongly warned that Iraq may become the next target of the US-led war on terror. Washington accused Iraq of developing and hiding weapons of mass destruction. Baghdad has so far refused to allow UN arms inspectors to return to resume its work in Iraq.
Iraq will continue its confrontation with the United States until victory is achieved, Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan told the visiting Vietnamese vice president last week. The two sides signed an agreement to increase bilateral trade volume and expand cooperation through joint projects.
Hundreds of Iraqis on Sunday gathered outside the office building of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) in Baghdad and protested against threats of attacks by the United States, a Baghdad local TV reported.
US Vice President Dick Cheney is currently on a 11-nation Mideast tour to rally Arab support for US possible military strike against Iraq.
(Edited by Zheng Guihong for china.org.cn according to reports from Xinhua News Agency March 20, 2002)
