War Over Profit-
Britain and US at Odds
Over Port Rebuilding Project
By Donald Macintyre in
Qatar, The Independent
28 March 2003
The first signs of tension between Britain and America over the rebuilding
and running of post-war Iraq have emerged with the award of a $4.8m
(£3m) contract to manage the captured port of Umm Qasr.
British forces are determined
to engage an Iraqi director and staff to run the country's only deep-water
port, which is expected to provide the gateway for humanitarian aid
and military supplies.
But the US Agency for International
Development has already awarded the contract to Stevedoring Services
of America, a Seattle company. The British Army is pressing ahead with
its plan to reinstall the man who directed the port before the Allied
invasion. Britain sees this as the first big test of the proclaimed
Allied intention to ensure that Iraqi resources are used for the benefit
of the Iraqi people.
While senior British officers
are guarded about the implications, they have moved swiftly to ensure
that Iraqis are seen to benefit from the port's regeneration.
Although Umm Qasr has a population
of 30,000, the port is about the size of Dover and became the most important
in the country after the docks in Basra were destroyed in the Iran-Iraq
war.
The man who ran the port
until the Allied invasion which was the main maritime conduit
for the oil-for-food programme has been identified among captives
taken when British troops moved into the city. He is likely to be back
in his old job after careful vetting. British sources would not disclose
details, but the man is likely to have quickly volunteered his identity
to British officers.
The US Agency for International
Development announced on Monday that Stevedoring Services of America
had won a contract to "provide an initial port assessment, develop
improvement plans ... and supply technical expertise to ensure an adequate
flow of through shipment".
A spokesman added: "The
company will be responsible for the port pilots who will guide ships
up the channel, and will manage the access of trucking companies to
the port and establish a system of controls to avoid theft and corruption."
The award caused considerable
irritation among British companies aggrieved that their US counterparts
appeared to be receiving preferential treatment. P&O made a bid
for the contract but was rejected. One British service source suggested
yesterday that the contract could be limited in duration, leaving the
port's long-term future in Iraqi hands.
Umm Qasr may be the first
of many tests for complex and unresolved issues on the ownership and
control of assets in post-war Iraq. The captured port is likely to be
in a "British zone" for as long as military control lasts,
which could further complicate matters.