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CNN Live At Daybreak
Do U.S. Forces See Less of a Chance For War?
Aired November 14, 2002 - 05:12 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: Back now to our top story this morning. With Iraq reluctantly agreeing to U.N. weapons inspections, do U.S. forces see less of a chance for war?
Well, CNN's Kyra Phillips is with U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf region. Now, she's joining us now via video phone from Kuwait City -- Kyra.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Catherine.
First, I'll talk about the immediate reaction and that's from out of Kuwait here. When we first arrived and we talked to people about a potential war against Iraq and the decision that was looming in Iraq about weapons inspections, well, I can tell you that people were very nervous. They were withdrawing money out of the bank. Trading was low on the stock exchange. People were packing their bags, getting ready to go. They're very concerned about the economy and the way of life here if, indeed, a war does break out. Memories from the first Gulf War are still extremely vivid here.
Now, when the decision came down, I can tell you that people in Kuwait were relieved, but only in a minor way because they tell me Saddam Hussein, his words and his actions, it's definitely a wild card and it's still very much of a wait and see mode here. They want to see how, if, indeed, weapons inspectors get into the area of Iraq and if there are any conflicts between weapons inspectors and Iraq's regime.
Still, as you know, a war against Iraq still can happen. It's very much a reality. And so is the threat of weapons of mass destruction.
Now, within the past four weeks we've been able to observe troops by air, land and sea. We've had exclusive access to a number of missions, from strike fighting missions to recon missions to special operations missions. And even after this decision was made, soldiers on the ground and also officers flying strike fighters up in the air tell me they are still prepared, they are still waiting to see what the president has to say and if, indeed, a war against Iraq must still take place, they're ready to go.
Meanwhile, here in Kuwait, the mission is still the defense of Kuwait and preparing for any type of unlikely or likely action from Iraq -- Catherine.
CALLAWAY: And, Kyra, you mentioned you have been in this region for some time now. Have you witnessed or observed any movement or actions by the Iraqi military?
PHILLIPS: Well, that's a great question, Catherine. One of the missions I was able to go along on, it was the MIDO (ph) operation, Maritime Interdiction Operation. And that's where U.S. forces are out here in the Persian Gulf, combined with Australian and British allies right now, patrolling the waterways out of Iraq.
And basically what they do is they try to enforce the U.N. sanctions, making sure that smugglers are not taking oil out of Iraq, making sure that vessels are not bringing weapons into Iraq. And we were out on a patrol and actually came face to face with an Iraqi patrol boat, something commanders told me has not happened in 10 years. So you can imagine it created quite a stir among the battle group out in the Persian Gulf region.
They responded quickly. They had conversations with the Iraqi military boat. So you can imagine, they tell me, actually, that Saddam Hussein is definitely testing the waters, so to speak, and seeing how the U.S. will react and what type of coalition forces are out there supporting the enforcement of U.N. sanctions and trying to prevent illegal oil and other contraband to come in and out of Iraq -- Catherine.
CALLAWAY: All right, sounds like a tense moment there for you.
All right, Kyra.
Kyra Phillips in Kuwait City.
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 November 14, 2002 - 05:12 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CATHERINE CALLAWAY, CNN ANCHOR: Back now to our top story this morning. With Iraq reluctantly agreeing to U.N. weapons inspections, do U.S. forces see less of a chance for war?
Well, CNN's Kyra Phillips is with U.S. forces in the Persian Gulf region. Now, she's joining us now via video phone from Kuwait City -- Kyra.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Catherine.
First, I'll talk about the immediate reaction and that's from out of Kuwait here. When we first arrived and we talked to people about a potential war against Iraq and the decision that was looming in Iraq about weapons inspections, well, I can tell you that people were very nervous. They were withdrawing money out of the bank. Trading was low on the stock exchange. People were packing their bags, getting ready to go. They're very concerned about the economy and the way of life here if, indeed, a war does break out. Memories from the first Gulf War are still extremely vivid here.
Now, when the decision came down, I can tell you that people in Kuwait were relieved, but only in a minor way because they tell me Saddam Hussein, his words and his actions, it's definitely a wild card and it's still very much of a wait and see mode here. They want to see how, if, indeed, weapons inspectors get into the area of Iraq and if there are any conflicts between weapons inspectors and Iraq's regime.
Still, as you know, a war against Iraq still can happen. It's very much a reality. And so is the threat of weapons of mass destruction.
Now, within the past four weeks we've been able to observe troops by air, land and sea. We've had exclusive access to a number of missions, from strike fighting missions to recon missions to special operations missions. And even after this decision was made, soldiers on the ground and also officers flying strike fighters up in the air tell me they are still prepared, they are still waiting to see what the president has to say and if, indeed, a war against Iraq must still take place, they're ready to go.
Meanwhile, here in Kuwait, the mission is still the defense of Kuwait and preparing for any type of unlikely or likely action from Iraq -- Catherine.
CALLAWAY: And, Kyra, you mentioned you have been in this region for some time now. Have you witnessed or observed any movement or actions by the Iraqi military?
PHILLIPS: Well, that's a great question, Catherine. One of the missions I was able to go along on, it was the MIDO (ph) operation, Maritime Interdiction Operation. And that's where U.S. forces are out here in the Persian Gulf, combined with Australian and British allies right now, patrolling the waterways out of Iraq.
And basically what they do is they try to enforce the U.N. sanctions, making sure that smugglers are not taking oil out of Iraq, making sure that vessels are not bringing weapons into Iraq. And we were out on a patrol and actually came face to face with an Iraqi patrol boat, something commanders told me has not happened in 10 years. So you can imagine it created quite a stir among the battle group out in the Persian Gulf region.
They responded quickly. They had conversations with the Iraqi military boat. So you can imagine, they tell me, actually, that Saddam Hussein is definitely testing the waters, so to speak, and seeing how the U.S. will react and what type of coalition forces are out there supporting the enforcement of U.N. sanctions and trying to prevent illegal oil and other contraband to come in and out of Iraq -- Catherine.
CALLAWAY: All right, sounds like a tense moment there for you.
All right, Kyra.
Kyra Phillips in Kuwait City.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
