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Blair sticks to his guns

By Hasan Suroor

LONDON FEB. 18. The British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, today made clear that he would not be deterred by public opinion from supporting a U.S.-led military action against Iraq if he believed that was the "right thing'' to do.

He said he understood the concerns of those who took part in Saturday's huge anti-war rally in London but insisted that there were situations in which difficult decisions had to be taken. "In the end there is democracy and people are accountable'', he said suggesting that he was aware of the political risks he was taking.

Mr. Blair's remarks at his monthly press conference at Downing Street came after an opinion poll showed that his personal standing among British voters had taken a huge blow.

For the first time, his popularity ratings have gone into negative — to "minus 20 points'' amid heightened speculation of a leadership change. But Mr. Blair shrugged it off saying that he had a `duty' to say what he believed on Iraq even it made others angry.

He also thought that the talk of opposition was exaggerated and that a majority of British people would support a war if it was backed by a second U.N. resolution. Maintaining that it was the `merits' of the issue that mattered, he warned his critics that the `consequences' of not tackling the Iraqi President, Saddam Hussein, would be `horrendous'.

He advised them to `listen' to the four millions Iraqi exiles who desperately wanted the Hussein regime to go. Mr. Blair, who was grilled for more than an hour, denied that there was "rush to war'' but said that if Mr. Hussein did not disarm on his own he would "be disarmed by force''.

He also made it abundantly clear that a military action could well involve a regime change, though the main aim was disarmament. He said if it were a `benign' regime, things would have been different but given the "brutal nature'' of the Hussein administration the Iraqis would be the happiest people if it was removed. Looking unusually relaxed despite the growing pressure on him, Mr. Blair was confident that it would be possible to get a second resolution authorising force against Iraq.

He refused to answer a hypothetical question about the possibility of a French veto, but left no doubt that eventually he would follow the U.S. line. He was angry with some of the anti-Bush criticism in the British media and said it was a "parody''.

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