World Tribune.com-- Gulf states to U.S. war planners: It's now or never

Several Gulf states have quietly urged the United States to launch a war against Iraq before it's too late.

The diplomatic sources said the United States will not go to war before mid-February. They said Washington, with an estimated 60,000 U.S. troops in the Gulf region, has not completed either diplomatic or military preparations for the war.

The administration is expected to send such units as the 101st Air Assault Division, the 3rd Mechanized Infantry Division, the 1st Cavalry Division and a Marine Expeditionary Force. This would result in a force of up to 200,000 soldiers, a mission that could take at least two months.

Brookings Institution analyst Michael O'Hanlon predicted that the United States has decided to ignore the UN inspections and launch a war in January. He told a Brookings seminar on Dec. 12 that the decision to go to war appears to have jelled over the last few weeks.

War hawks step up the pressure on Christmas Eve, Peace on Earth ~ Good Will to Men.