White House defends policy on Iraq pacts

Excluding countries that opposed the war in Iraq from those that will reap the largest profits in the country’s reconstruction is “perfectly appropriate and reasonable,” a White House spokesman said yesterday.

The Pentagon on Tuesday announced its policy to allow only companies based in the 63 countries that have supported the Iraq war to bid on the “prime contracts” for reconstruction.

The policy has angered France, Germany, Russia and especially Canada, which contributed troops to the effort to oust the Taliban regime and track down terrorists in Afghanistan. But Ottawa opposed the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq.

White House spokesman Scott McClellan defended the policy, saying “those who have been sacrificing” soldiers and treasure in Iraq deserve to bid on the $18.6 billion in U.S. funds to rebuild the country.

“These are countries that have been with us from Day One,” Mr. McClellan said. “These are countries that are contributing forces, that have been making sacrifices, and that’s why this decision was made.”

Meanwhile, the Iraq Program Management Office, which is overseeing the reconstruction of the country, announced yesterday that it has “temporarily delayed” its schedule for awarding contracts by February.

It was not clear whether the delay was related to the public flap stirred by the bidding policy, but a statement on the agency’s Web site said a “pre-proposal conference” scheduled for today has been put off until Dec. 19.

A Pentagon spokesman did not return calls for comment last night.

The list of preferred contract countries, compiled by Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz, includes 32 that have contributed troops in Iraq, such as Poland and Britain. But the list also includes small countries, like the impoverished African country of Eritrea and the former U.S. territory of the Marshall Islands, who have done little more than offer words of support in the United Nations.

“Coalition membership is a self-designated thing,” said State Department spokesman Richard Boucher, defining the list as “countries that wanted to make contributions and wanted to stand up and be counted part of the coalition.”

Officials from the White House and the State Department said it was still possible for countries to apply for inclusion on the list and thus be eligible to have their companies bid on the Iraq contracts.

Mr. Boucher said he would not “speculate on exactly what we consider to be signing up at this stage.”

“We’re not setting a particular standard for inclusion. We’re just saying [the list] is open to others to be included,” he said.

Mr. Wolfowitz wrote in his memo that the favored contracting policy is intended to “encourage the continued cooperation of coalition members” and to “encourage the expansion of international cooperation in Iraq and in future efforts.”

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