Bush administration officials have met with Iraqi opposition leaders on how best to mobilize against President Saddam Hussein and prepare for a new Iraqi government after Hussein leaves power, the State Department said yesterday.

Among those at the meetings were representatives of the Iraqi National Congress, despite fresh signs of friction between the State Department and that group. Department spokesman Richard Boucher said the administration offered the INC $8 million. A source close to the opposition group said the offer was unacceptably small and carried too many restrictions.

Boucher said discussions on an anti-Hussein strategy have been held in recent days with representatives of the INC, the Kurdish Democratic Party, the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan, the Iraqi National Accord and the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq. Additional meetings will be held in coming weeks to lead to a larger conference in the summer, Boucher said.

He added that the common theme of the discussions is how Iraq should be organized in the post-Hussein era.

Bush administration officials have warned of preemptive U.S. military action against Iraq because, they say, Hussein continues to pursue development of weapons of mass destruction in violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.

Congress has singled out the INC as its preferred opposition group. Asked why the administration seems to be looking to other groups, Boucher cited the importance of reaching out to as many opposition organizations as possible. 
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