Cohen visits Amman

US Secretary of Defense William Cohen was in Jordan today as part of his current regional tour, where he addressed reporters.

Cohen indicated US support for Jordan, saying, "The United States stands strongly behind Jordan and... we are moving forward with an economic package going through Congress of $300 million, which we hope will be beneficial to the people of Jordan." He added that the US is "very hopeful that Jordan will now enjoy the support of all the Gulf States."

The US official indicated that the United States does not want to partition Iraq, "The stories about the United States supporting the breakup of Iraq are false and without any foundation. We are not supporting any concept of a federation and we support the continued territorial integrity of Iraq."

He also indicated that the United States believes that the Iraqi people will not "be able to enjoy the benefits of peace and stability" or prosperity until there is a change in the government of Iraq.

He placed blame for the Iraqi people's suffering on Iraq, saying, "The United Nations has just filed a report indicating that Iraq now has some $275 million dollars worth of medical supplies and medicines that are stored in warehouses, and that are not being distributed to the Iraqi people. So the suffering that is now being visited upon the Iraqi people is due to the fact that Saddam Hussein has the ability to distribute these medicines and has refused to do so."

He noted that his stop in Jordan came to pay respects to King Abdullah and "express my shared grief at the loss of King Hussein who was a great leader."

Cohen said his talks with King Abdullah addressed "security arrangements in the region. We cooperate very closely with Jordan and we think it's an important security relationship."