A new report issued by the Pentagon on Friday says that the Russian government gave Saddam Hussein intelligence information about U.S. military movements during the opening days of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003.
The report does not specify the exact type of intelligence given but does say it was passed to the ex-Iraqi dictator through the Russian ambassador in Baghdad.
The information comes from the non-classified version of the report. A classified version which most likely contains more specific information, is not being made public.
According to the unclassified report, the Russian intelligence actually helped the Americans deceive Saddam by saying that the main attack on Baghdad would not take place until the Army's 4th Infantry Division arrived on April 15. The attack began well before the 4th Infantry Division arrived and Saddam's army was quickly overwhelmed by American forces.
The document was allegedly captured from Iraqi government files. According to the Pentagon, Russian intelligence reported that the American forces were moving to cut off Baghdad from the south, east and north, with the heaviest concentration of troops in the Karbala area. The report claimed the Americans had 12,000 troops in the area, along with 1,000 vehicles.
The report also says Saddam was a poor military leader. 'The largest contributing factor to the complete defeat of Iraq's military forces was the continued interference by Saddam,' the report said.
The report also said that Saddam had forbidden the destruction of the nation's oil wells.
Regardless of what happened in April, 2003, the biggest problem facing the United States now is not how to get into Iraq, but how to get out of it.
