The first plane load of US troop reinforcements ordered to the Gulf has arrived in Kuwait.

They flew into the tiny Gulf state as UN aid workers continued leaving neighbouring Iraq, ahead of an 11th hour mission by the Secretary General, Kofi Annan, to avert war.

Flexing military muscles ahead of UN chief's mission

Some 300 troops from the US army's third infantry division disembarked in combat fatigues from a chartered airliner at Kuwait's international airport.

The soldiers, from Fort Stewart in Georgia, are the first of a contingent of 6,000 expected in the Gulf over the next three days.

A BBC correspondent watched the men board buses, heading straight out to the desert.

The new troops will deploy along with 1,500 other US soldiers who are already in Kuwait taking part in scheduled exercises known as "Intrinsic Action".

UN workers depart

As the troops flew into the Gulf, United Nations humanitarian workers continued leaving Baghdad.

Their exodus is a safety measure ahead of the mission by the UN General-Secretary Kofi Annan.

He is expected in Baghdad on Friday on a visit which is seen as the last chance to ward off a US-led military strike on Iraq because of Baghdad's refusal to allow UN weapons inspectors access to a number of sites.

The Iraqi authorities are barring the inspectors from a number of President Saddam Hussein's palaces.

Western intelligence has led the arms inspectors to believe that the palaces have been used by the Iraqi military to hide weapons of mass destruction.

The UN says the evacuation is precautionary and the organisation's humanitarian co-ordinator in Iraq hopes it will prove to be a temporary measure.

Two of the UN staff are leaving via northern Iraq. Another 29 are being transported across the border into Jordan.

Humanitarian aid

All were working on projects to ensure Iraqi revenue raised from an oil for aid programme was spent on humanitarian projects.

Denis Halliday hopes aid workers will return quickly

Denis Halliday, the humanitarian co-ordinator for Iraq, said the reductions in personnel would limit operations carried out under an exemption to the UN embargo.

He said: "We can take some reasonable precautions without damaging the programme too much.

Denis Halliday of the UN food for oil programme: "we are determined to keep going here as long as possible" (2' 38")

"Ideally all these people will come back within a week if we get a breakthrough and a diplomatic solution."

The embargo exemption allows Baghdad to sell $2 billion of oil every six months for food, medicine and other humanitarian goods. The UN has expressed fear that an American attack may disrupt these humanitarian supplies from reaching the country.

"Stay away"

Last week the UN advised staff on leave from jobs in Iraq to stay abroad.

The relief staff are distinct from the arms inspectors, who regularly travel in and out of Iraq.

Nils Carlstrom, the inspectors' chief in Baghdad, has said they have contingency plans to leave as well but had no orders to make any moves yet.
 

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