http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2006-03-24T203341Z_01_N24241162_RTRUKOC_0_US-IRAQ-USA-RUSSIA.xmlWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Russia provided intelligence to Iraq's government on U.S. military movements in the opening days of the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, a Pentagon report released on Friday said.
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"But the tension created by the regime's steadfast refusal to 'come clean' with regard to WMD shaped the actions and interactions of both sides leading up to war," the report stated. "Saddam walked a tightrope with WMD because as he often reminded his close advisors, they lived in a very dangerous global neighborhood where even the perception of weakness drew wolves."
It stated that there were benefits for Saddam to let his enemies believe he had such weapons, even if he did not, while at the same time it was critical to his survival for the United States and the rest of the West to believe he did not have them.
"He had placed himself into a diplomatic and propaganda Catch-22," the report said.
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