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Martin Savidge: The general visits Kuwait
(CNN) -- The commander of the U.S. Central Command, Gen. Tommy Franks, was in Kuwait Thursday to talk with his leaders in the field. So was CNN's Martin Savidge, who spoke with Anchor Kyra Phillips about the general's trip to Kuwait, a nation sharing a border with Iraq. PHILLIPS: The man who will call shots if and when there's another Gulf War is the now-familiar leader of U.S. Central Command, Gen. Tommy Franks. Franks is in Kuwait today conferring with his top lieutenants. Our Martin Savidge is there too. He joins us by videophone from Kuwait City. Marty, what's the general saying? SAVIDGE: The general is not saying too much. In fact, we haven't seen the general. Media was banned from showing his arrival at Kuwaiti International Airport. This is part of how the United States and Kuwait both are working extremely hard to downplay this visit. U.S. officials say that this [visit] is nothing out of the ordinary. Gen. Tommy Franks was planning to come here long before the crisis came up most recently with Iraq. This a scheduled regular meeting with his commanders. However, you take into account just what is going on across the border in Iraq, and words that are being said between Iraq and the United States, and it takes a different framework. Plus, there are two other interesting military exercises going on right now, or about to begin. There is one that the U.S. Army has, the 3rd Army, called Operation Desert Spring -- about 2,000 U.S. soldiers joining with Kuwaiti forces, using heavy armor, maneuvering in and around but not on the Iraqi border. ... And then in about a week, maybe two weeks, U.S. Marines are coming in ... and they will be practicing amphibious assaults. They'll also be working with Kuwaiti forces using air and ground units as well. And that exercise is expected to go on for about a month. Again, in both of these exercises, the U.S. and Kuwaiti forces say, 'Hey, this is normal; they were planned.' But of course, we all know, given what is happening between Iraq and Washington, there is a lot of speculation. Iraq is definitely going to be a kickoff point if conventional U.S. forces are used in large numbers. They are already here, about 10,000 of them. There is not a lot of preposition equipment ready to go if needed. PHILLIPS: Marty, have you had a chance to talk with Kuwaitis, or soldiers for that matter, and what are they telling you? SAVIDGE: Well, you know, it's interesting. The government will say, 'We are very sensitive about what the Kuwaiti government is feeling.' We talk to people on the street here, though, [and] they are very much opposed to Saddam Hussein -- with good reason: Their nation was invaded back in 1991. They believe that Saddam Hussein is still a man who poses a great threat, not only to themselves, but to stability in the region. When you listen to the leaders, they mirror almost the same exact words that President Bush has been saying, that, 'All right, it is OK that the weapons inspectors go in, but we have been down this road before,' and they hope that Saddam Hussein is not playing any games once more. A short sigh of relief from people here in Kuwait, but they also know that there is a lot more to come.
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