U.S. troops pouring into gulf region

WASHINGTON -- The buildup of U.S. troops in the Persian Gulf region is approaching 90,000 land, sea and air forces, and that number likely will double within two weeks, officials said Thursday.

Nearly a third of the total is in Kuwait, which would be the main launching pad for a U.S.-led invasion to disarm Iraq.

The Pentagon is not announcing either specific unit deployments or the arrival of forces in the gulf area, but officials familiar with details of the buildup said it is growing by thousands each week.

By mid February there are expected to be nearly 180,000 troops in the region, and the total could reach 250,000.

Small numbers of U.S. troops are in areas of northern Iraq not controlled by the government.

The president met Thursday at the White House with Myers, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and the military's top commanders, including Gen. Tommy Franks of Central Command, who would run a war against Iraq. Most of Franks' battle staff, who normally operate from Tampa, are at a command post in Qatar, and Franks would be expected to go there soon unless the momentum toward war is reversed.

Franks could launch an attack as early as mid February, but officials say a more optimum time would be late February or March.

During a Mideast visit last week, Franks clinched an agreement with Jordan to allow the stationing of some U.S. troops there, according to the Associated Press, which cited a U.S. official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

American warplanes would be allowed to pass through Jordanian airspace during an Iraq war.

U.S. troops in Germany that would form part of a northern front in a war against Iraq have received orders to pack up and prepare to head to Turkey as the Turkish government nears a decision on whether to accept the forces.

Turkey's National Security Council, which is dominated by powerful senior generals, has scheduled a meeting today to consider a recommendation to the Turkish Parliament, which has the final say on a U.S. petition to base troops in Turkey for a possible invasion.

-- Information from the Washington Post was used in this report.

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