DEARBORN (USA), Feb 24: US Deputy Defence Secretary Paul Wolfowitz assured Iraqis here on Sunday that if the United States goes to war in Iraq, it will not be to hand the country over to a “junior Saddam Hussein.”

Wolfowitz was greeted by chants of “Down, Down Saddam” by an Iraqi-American audience in this Detroit suburb that appeared eager for US action in Iraq, but also dubious about US intentions after a war.

The secretary heard particularly pointed questions about reported US plans to install either a US general or a former Iraqi general after the war.

“It’s absolutely clear I think to the president ... if we’re not going to invest the kind of resources, the investment in American lives to liberate Iraq, it’s not going to be to hand it over to some junior Saddam Hussein,” he said.

He said the job of securing the country after the war — repairing critical infrastructure or putting out oil fires if they are set alight by the regime — would probably fall to the US military.

But he insisted that the United States had no desire to stay any longer than necessary, and urged Iraqis to think about how to build conditions for representative democracy after the war.

“The key to getting us out quickly is for the Iraqis to come together in the spirit of unity, and harmony and understanding,” he said.

An American general would run the country in the immediate aftermath of the war, US officials have said.

But reports this week said a prominent US civilian would likely be put in charge to lead a transition to some form of representative government.

Several members of the audience warned there would be little support for that here.

Emad Dhia, the outgoing president of the Iraqi-American Forum for Democracy, which hosted the event, likened it to “Saddam without a moustache.”

Another member of the audience called for creating a body of Iraqi technocrats with no political ambitions to establish conditions for democratic rule in Baghdad.

“This is something that we as Iraqis need to put together — not an American general,” the man said.

In a question and answer session at a conference facility here belonging to Ford Motors, members of the audience came forward with stories about massacres and executions of members of their extended families.

“We are willing to work for democracy,” said one. “So please, please, take it seriously as we want it fast, as fast as you can.”

Wolfowitz said there was still a small chance that war can be averted, but said time was fast running out.

He said the Pentagon was creating a programme to hire Iraqi-Americans as temporary civilians employees or as individual US government contractors, he said.

Additionally, the Pentagon was launching a separate initiative to encourage Iraqi-Americans to join the US military as part of its ready reserves.

“This programme would take advantage of your professional skills in a wide variety of areas, while also capitalizing on your understanding of local languages and cultures,” he said.

“As a reservist you would be mobilized to serve in Iraqi but would return to civilian status in the US,” he said.

“You may be eligible for accelerated US citizenship if your are not a citizen already, and your civilian job would be protected while you are mobilized,” he said.

Another alternative he said was to join the “Iraq Free Force” now being trained in Hungary to serve as guides, translators and experts on civil affairs with US forces. He said it was open to Iraqis around the world.

“After a conflict, the skills and local knowledge of these forces will help to rebuild Iraq,” he said.—AFP