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CNN Saturday Morning News

U.S. Examines Function of Troops in Saudi Arabia

Aired January 19, 2002 - 08:08   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: Military sources tell CNN that there has been no formal request for the U.S. to withdraw its troops from Saudi Arabia. There are roughly 5,000 U.S. forces in the country.

CNN national security correspondent David Ensor examines their function and their future.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID ENSOR, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The front page article in the "Washington Post" suggesting senior Saudi officials may soon ask the U.S. to withdraw its forces from their country prompted a chorus of denials from senior American officials.

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: And there has been no discussion of such an issue.

GEN. TOMMY FRANKS, COMMANDER, CENTRAL COMMAND: No one from Saudi Arabia has contacted me and suggested that what I saw printed earlier today is a fact.

ENSOR: In Riyadh, Saudi spokesmen also denied the report that Crown Prince Abdullah, the kingdom's de facto leader, is considering asking the roughly 5,000 U.S. troops in his country to leave. But some dissident Saudis living in the U.S. say they believe pressure on Riyadh to get American forces out is growing.

ALI AL-AHMED, SAUDI INSTITUTE: Within the government there is a powerful group, the religious group, who are anti-American and they are, they want to see America out. The second part is the proper level where young Saudis are increasingly anti-American and they would like not only to see America out of Saudi Arabia, but they would like to take American hostages in exchange for Saudi, you know, prisoners in Guantanamo Bay.

ENSOR: U.S. troops first entered Saudi Arabia in 1990 to fight the Gulf War against Iraq. From the Prince Sultan Air Base in the Saudi desert, American forces have run command and control for the air campaign over Afghanistan.

ROBERT PELLETREAU, FORMER ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF STATE: It is the most modern, the largest, the best furnished control center that we have access to. ENSOR: Since Osama bin Laden has for years demanded that U.S. forces leave the land of his birth, if they were to leave, his supporters would likely see it as a victory.

GEN. WESLEY CLARK (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: It's the worst possible strategy in dealing with a terrorist. You cannot do appeasement and this would be appeasement.

ENSOR (on camera): Present and former U.S. officials say while some Saudis grumble about the political problems created by U.S. forces in their country, on balance they do not believe the government will ever ask the U.S. forces to leave, though a few said they could not rule it out entirely. Such a move, though, officials say, would greatly complicate U.S. efforts to protect friendly governments in the region and crucial oil fields.

David Ensor, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CALLAWAY: Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott was asked about U.S. forces in Saudi Arabia during an interview for CNN's "NOVAK, HUNT & SHIELDS." He says that a pullout is not something that the U.S. should be thinking about.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TRENT LOTT (R-MS), MINORITY LEADER: No, and, you know, again, I don't know of the discussions that are going on between, you know, ambassadors or State Department officials. The Saudi government has certain -- there are obviously radical terrorist elements within their country. That is a problem for them. And there are those that feel like the fact that the United States is there is a sin against all of them.

So we have to be careful, but I think in the case of Saudi Arabia, some time what they say publicly is not necessarily what they hope for in the end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: And you can see the entire interview with Senator Lott on "NOVAK, HUNT & SHIELDS" today at 5:30 p.m. Eastern time, 2:30 Pacific.

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