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CNN Live At Daybreak
International Desk
Aired September 17, 2002 - 05:39 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.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We have so many resources around the world here at CNN. It is that time. We'd like to check in with our international desk to find out what's going on and what we're covering today.
Our international assignment editor Paul Ferguson joins us live now -- hello, Paul.
PAUL FERGUSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK: Well, good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: I guess at the top of the agenda must be Iraq and Tariq Aziz, who made some comments overnight.
FERGUSON: Exactly. In fact, two of the countries where we have the most interesting time, shall I say, gathering information are also our top stories, Iraq and North Korea. I'll come to North Korea in a second.
But in Iraq, overnight Tariq Aziz, well, our big question when we came in is how will Iraq respond to Bush's comments hinting that this was not quite enough? And sure enough, the response came. It was Tariq Aziz. It was a little difficult to come by, but we were able to get it through Al Jazeera. They gave us permission to down link.
COSTELLO: So he broadcast live on Al Jazeera Television and we got it from there?
FERGUSON: That's right. He was speaking to a conference of Iraqi sympathizers, if you will, from the U.K., France, Mexico, that were, that are in Baghdad right now.
COSTELLO: He said some interesting things. He called Iraq's move courageous and he expressed mistrust in the United States.
FERGUSON: Well, he would say that, wouldn't he?
COSTELLO: Yes. It's like deja vu all over again, isn't it?
FERGUSON: That's right. That's right.
COSTELLO: Yes.
FERGUSON: Well, our own correspondent, Rula Amin, was there afterwards. She ran across the street to her hotel and joined us for some analysis. And she joins us right now -- Rula, can you hear us?
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Paul, I can hear you. Hi, Carol.
COSTELLO: Hello, Rula.
FERGUSON: Rula, I just wanted to ask you now, covering the story, will things be different with, well, are there many journalists in town with that, with those sympathizers?
AMIN: Well, there are journalists here around. There are people representing American networks. We have the French, the Europeans, the Germans, the Italians. But along with those delegates, also more journalists have been able to get visas to come into Iraq. They used the opportunity, the fact that the government was very welcoming and wanted those delegates to come. So they facilitated the visas for the journalists to accompany them.
Today, at this rally, if you want to call it, where Tariq Aziz addressed all these delegates who came from most of the continents, we saw a lot of journalists and they were hoping that now, after Tariq Aziz is going and Iraq has decided to admit the inspectors in without any restrictions, that they would apply the same rule to journalists.
There are a lot of journalists who are trying to get into Baghdad and usually it takes a long time to get a visa to be able to come into Iraq. Iraqi officials are usually very skeptical. They say they are in a war with the U.S. and they have to be very careful of who they admit into the country -- Paul.
FERGUSON: Now, at this time it seems like there is an interest on the part of the Iraqis to get more people in there. They're inviting U.N. folks in. Will they be inviting in more journalists or what's your take on that?
AMIN: Well, every journalist is hoping that what is going to apply to the inspectors will apply to them, meaning that the Iraqis will be more welcoming and will invite journalists to come in. This is the prediction. People are hoping. We still don't know what the Iraqi government's reaction is going to be regarding the journalists' access to this country.
You know, it's interesting that for Iraqis, you know, the news happened overnight while it was like three in the morning in Iraq. People were sleeping. In the morning, the newspapers didn't have it because it was too late for the print out. So in the morning you had pictures in the newspapers about the Iraqi president meeting with the leadership. There were a couple of meetings yesterday that were shown on television. But that decision was not leaked to the press or announced until it was announced in New York.
So in the newspapers there was nothing. On the radio, the news didn't really play it high. They reported, were reporting, as you said today. But they focused more on the skepticism. They said that, they used the sounds of Tariq Aziz when he was accusing the U.S. of using the weapons of mass destruction as a pretext because the Iraqis says, you know, now we have allowed inspectors in and the U.S. is not happy. So it's just a pretext. They're looking for an excuse. And this is what was played more on Iraqi radio. On the television, the news starts at 3:00 p.m. We still have not seen that. It's still about 2:00 here. So in one hour we will have the news and we'll see how they cover it -- Paul.
FERGUSON: Good. Well, pretext is the word that kept coming up. He kept repeating the word pretext and that, Carol, is some of the challenges we're facing in news gathering on the ground in Baghdad.
Thanks, Rula.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes. Yes, thank you very much, Rula.
That was really interesting.
We'll let you get back to work at the international desk, Paul, and thank you for joining us here on the set.
FERGUSON: Yes, I'm surprised. It's nice to be here without all the telephones ringing all around me.
COSTELLO: It's a quiet time of the morning.
FERGUSON: I guess I'd better get back to it.
COSTELLO: Go ahead, get back there.
Thank you, Paul.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired September 17, 2002 - 05:39 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: We have so many resources around the world here at CNN. It is that time. We'd like to check in with our international desk to find out what's going on and what we're covering today.
Our international assignment editor Paul Ferguson joins us live now -- hello, Paul.
PAUL FERGUSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DESK: Well, good morning, Carol.
COSTELLO: I guess at the top of the agenda must be Iraq and Tariq Aziz, who made some comments overnight.
FERGUSON: Exactly. In fact, two of the countries where we have the most interesting time, shall I say, gathering information are also our top stories, Iraq and North Korea. I'll come to North Korea in a second.
But in Iraq, overnight Tariq Aziz, well, our big question when we came in is how will Iraq respond to Bush's comments hinting that this was not quite enough? And sure enough, the response came. It was Tariq Aziz. It was a little difficult to come by, but we were able to get it through Al Jazeera. They gave us permission to down link.
COSTELLO: So he broadcast live on Al Jazeera Television and we got it from there?
FERGUSON: That's right. He was speaking to a conference of Iraqi sympathizers, if you will, from the U.K., France, Mexico, that were, that are in Baghdad right now.
COSTELLO: He said some interesting things. He called Iraq's move courageous and he expressed mistrust in the United States.
FERGUSON: Well, he would say that, wouldn't he?
COSTELLO: Yes. It's like deja vu all over again, isn't it?
FERGUSON: That's right. That's right.
COSTELLO: Yes.
FERGUSON: Well, our own correspondent, Rula Amin, was there afterwards. She ran across the street to her hotel and joined us for some analysis. And she joins us right now -- Rula, can you hear us?
RULA AMIN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Paul, I can hear you. Hi, Carol.
COSTELLO: Hello, Rula.
FERGUSON: Rula, I just wanted to ask you now, covering the story, will things be different with, well, are there many journalists in town with that, with those sympathizers?
AMIN: Well, there are journalists here around. There are people representing American networks. We have the French, the Europeans, the Germans, the Italians. But along with those delegates, also more journalists have been able to get visas to come into Iraq. They used the opportunity, the fact that the government was very welcoming and wanted those delegates to come. So they facilitated the visas for the journalists to accompany them.
Today, at this rally, if you want to call it, where Tariq Aziz addressed all these delegates who came from most of the continents, we saw a lot of journalists and they were hoping that now, after Tariq Aziz is going and Iraq has decided to admit the inspectors in without any restrictions, that they would apply the same rule to journalists.
There are a lot of journalists who are trying to get into Baghdad and usually it takes a long time to get a visa to be able to come into Iraq. Iraqi officials are usually very skeptical. They say they are in a war with the U.S. and they have to be very careful of who they admit into the country -- Paul.
FERGUSON: Now, at this time it seems like there is an interest on the part of the Iraqis to get more people in there. They're inviting U.N. folks in. Will they be inviting in more journalists or what's your take on that?
AMIN: Well, every journalist is hoping that what is going to apply to the inspectors will apply to them, meaning that the Iraqis will be more welcoming and will invite journalists to come in. This is the prediction. People are hoping. We still don't know what the Iraqi government's reaction is going to be regarding the journalists' access to this country.
You know, it's interesting that for Iraqis, you know, the news happened overnight while it was like three in the morning in Iraq. People were sleeping. In the morning, the newspapers didn't have it because it was too late for the print out. So in the morning you had pictures in the newspapers about the Iraqi president meeting with the leadership. There were a couple of meetings yesterday that were shown on television. But that decision was not leaked to the press or announced until it was announced in New York.
So in the newspapers there was nothing. On the radio, the news didn't really play it high. They reported, were reporting, as you said today. But they focused more on the skepticism. They said that, they used the sounds of Tariq Aziz when he was accusing the U.S. of using the weapons of mass destruction as a pretext because the Iraqis says, you know, now we have allowed inspectors in and the U.S. is not happy. So it's just a pretext. They're looking for an excuse. And this is what was played more on Iraqi radio. On the television, the news starts at 3:00 p.m. We still have not seen that. It's still about 2:00 here. So in one hour we will have the news and we'll see how they cover it -- Paul.
FERGUSON: Good. Well, pretext is the word that kept coming up. He kept repeating the word pretext and that, Carol, is some of the challenges we're facing in news gathering on the ground in Baghdad.
Thanks, Rula.
COSTELLO: Oh, yes. Yes, thank you very much, Rula.
That was really interesting.
We'll let you get back to work at the international desk, Paul, and thank you for joining us here on the set.
FERGUSON: Yes, I'm surprised. It's nice to be here without all the telephones ringing all around me.
COSTELLO: It's a quiet time of the morning.
FERGUSON: I guess I'd better get back to it.
COSTELLO: Go ahead, get back there.
Thank you, Paul.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
