Reid says U.S. may gain allies by waiting

Monday, March 17, 2003 | 9:12 a.m.

Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., on Sunday sounded a note of caution about rushing to war this week. Reid said a few more allies may join the United States if Bush waits a few more weeks.

"Can't we wait a little while to see if we can get some of our allies to go along with us? That's what I say," Reid said during an interview on CNN.

Reid is among the Democrats backing Bush's use of force in Iraq but also criticizing White House officials for bungling diplomatic efforts. Bush failed to build a sizeable coalition to fight and pay for war and its aftermath, Reid said.

"My concern is that, 12 years ago, 90 percent of the cost of the war was paid for by countries other than the United States," Reid said. "Tens of thousands of troops came from all over the world to help us there. I'm just very concerned about what has happened during the past six months.

"We have a situation where the European community announced this week, unless there's another vote on a resolution, they're not going to be involved in the reconstruction of Iraq," Reid said. "Those are serious contentions."

Reid noted that he had supported the resolution in Congress to use force in Iraq if necessary. Reid said he did not believe Bush needed another resolution from Congress, but he did call on Bush to ask for another United Nations vote.