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CNN Live At Daybreak
Chief Inspectors Talk
Aired November 20, 2002 - 06:05 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: More now on what Hans Blix and the Iraqis are saying about the latest developments in the weapons hunt.
CNN's Rym Brahimi has reaction from Baghdad in just a moment, but first, CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar has the latest from Cyprus.
Sheila -- bring us up-to-date.
SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.
Well, just a few hours ago, Hans Blix and Mohamed el-Baradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, arrived here in Larnaca; this, of course, being the forward-staging post, a logistics base for the weapons inspectors, where they organized themselves for that trip into Baghdad.
Dr. Blix and Dr. el-Baradei saying at a news conference this morning that the tone of their discussions with the Iraqis was professional, was business-like. They talked about how to go about restarting the question of inspections. They also talked about the declaration, or what is required by the U.N. Security Council from Iraq that's due on December the 8th.
Now, at that news conference, Mohamed el-Baradei talked about the kinds of cooperation or assurances the Iraqis gave them in some of those meetings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMED EL-BARADEI, INTL. ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY: They made it very clear that they will do everything possible to cooperate fully with us, and we would like to see that obviously when we start our inspection on the 27th of November. That's really the real test when we go back and start our initial inspection, and we hope their verbal commitment will translate on the ground into real, full cooperation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACVICAR: And that, of course, is the question: If those verbal assurances given personally by Iraqi officials to Hans Blix and Mohamed el-Baradei will, in fact, translate into complete cooperation?
One small clue as to what the Iraqis may be thinking. In the past, you may remember that there was a big issue about what Iraq called presidential sites, and how they did not want inspectors in presidential sites or only under very specific conditions. Hans Blix saying this morning that Iraq never once raised the subject of those presidential sites, making it clear that under the current rules, the new rules of this Security Council resolution, there could be no exceptions -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you very much -- Sheila MacVicar.
Now for word from Iraq, CNN's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.
And, Rym, you have to wonder if one of the first places that inspectors will check will be one of the palaces.
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, I think that's what a lot of people are going to be wondering.
A lot of people are also wondering if this unfettered access business means they can just go into even private homes. Of course, that's not what they're literally being told. But they know that unfettered access means pretty much everywhere. They're being told Iraqis, ordinary Iraqis, are being told on TV, by the news commentators on state-run TV that Iraq has pledged its cooperation, and Iraq intends to make sure that the United States will not have an excuse to attack.
And so, this is what a lot of people are wondering, how -- to what extent does that mean that we have to open every single door. I mean, this is -- this looks like a very different ballgame, and I think there's a huge awareness of that here -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym, do you really believe Saddam Hussein's employees, I guess -- the government officials that spoke out and pledged full cooperation, do you think they really mean it?
BRAHIMI: Well, it seems that -- you see, these employees are part of a system, Carol. They're part of a regime. They're part of -- they're also very tied to the leadership. And I think it's pretty well understood the months of pressure that has been brought on by the United States on the Iraqi leadership has been very, very clearly understood here.
I think the reason they accepted the resolution was they did feel that it was that or war, and it seems that they really, really don't want to go through another war. Not just the ordinary people, but I'm talking here about the leadership. I think they know that the threat is very real.
Now, I think what they are worried about having to come up with a full, final and complete declaration. And we're not really sure why they're worried.
I mean, are they worried because they're saying there are no weapons at all, and there might be something left that they haven't declared? Are they worried because they genuinely feel that there are a lot of dual-use items, meaning items that they use in their civilian industries that could be used as military purposes that they have to declare? And are they genuinely worried that they don't have time to list them all by December the 8th, which is the deadline? It's very difficult for us to say, of course.
But Mr. Blix and Mr. el-Baradei have said very clearly that they want to see how their commitments will translate on the ground. And I think this is going to be very, very important and key for seeing how sincere they were -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Absolutely. Yes, we'll know December 8. Rym Brahimi, thanks.
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 20, 2002 - 06:05 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: More now on what Hans Blix and the Iraqis are saying about the latest developments in the weapons hunt.
CNN's Rym Brahimi has reaction from Baghdad in just a moment, but first, CNN's senior international correspondent Sheila MacVicar has the latest from Cyprus.
Sheila -- bring us up-to-date.
SHEILA MACVICAR, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Carol.
Well, just a few hours ago, Hans Blix and Mohamed el-Baradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, arrived here in Larnaca; this, of course, being the forward-staging post, a logistics base for the weapons inspectors, where they organized themselves for that trip into Baghdad.
Dr. Blix and Dr. el-Baradei saying at a news conference this morning that the tone of their discussions with the Iraqis was professional, was business-like. They talked about how to go about restarting the question of inspections. They also talked about the declaration, or what is required by the U.N. Security Council from Iraq that's due on December the 8th.
Now, at that news conference, Mohamed el-Baradei talked about the kinds of cooperation or assurances the Iraqis gave them in some of those meetings.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMED EL-BARADEI, INTL. ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY: They made it very clear that they will do everything possible to cooperate fully with us, and we would like to see that obviously when we start our inspection on the 27th of November. That's really the real test when we go back and start our initial inspection, and we hope their verbal commitment will translate on the ground into real, full cooperation.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACVICAR: And that, of course, is the question: If those verbal assurances given personally by Iraqi officials to Hans Blix and Mohamed el-Baradei will, in fact, translate into complete cooperation?
One small clue as to what the Iraqis may be thinking. In the past, you may remember that there was a big issue about what Iraq called presidential sites, and how they did not want inspectors in presidential sites or only under very specific conditions. Hans Blix saying this morning that Iraq never once raised the subject of those presidential sites, making it clear that under the current rules, the new rules of this Security Council resolution, there could be no exceptions -- Carol.
COSTELLO: All right, thank you very much -- Sheila MacVicar.
Now for word from Iraq, CNN's Rym Brahimi in Baghdad.
And, Rym, you have to wonder if one of the first places that inspectors will check will be one of the palaces.
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, I think that's what a lot of people are going to be wondering.
A lot of people are also wondering if this unfettered access business means they can just go into even private homes. Of course, that's not what they're literally being told. But they know that unfettered access means pretty much everywhere. They're being told Iraqis, ordinary Iraqis, are being told on TV, by the news commentators on state-run TV that Iraq has pledged its cooperation, and Iraq intends to make sure that the United States will not have an excuse to attack.
And so, this is what a lot of people are wondering, how -- to what extent does that mean that we have to open every single door. I mean, this is -- this looks like a very different ballgame, and I think there's a huge awareness of that here -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym, do you really believe Saddam Hussein's employees, I guess -- the government officials that spoke out and pledged full cooperation, do you think they really mean it?
BRAHIMI: Well, it seems that -- you see, these employees are part of a system, Carol. They're part of a regime. They're part of -- they're also very tied to the leadership. And I think it's pretty well understood the months of pressure that has been brought on by the United States on the Iraqi leadership has been very, very clearly understood here.
I think the reason they accepted the resolution was they did feel that it was that or war, and it seems that they really, really don't want to go through another war. Not just the ordinary people, but I'm talking here about the leadership. I think they know that the threat is very real.
Now, I think what they are worried about having to come up with a full, final and complete declaration. And we're not really sure why they're worried.
I mean, are they worried because they're saying there are no weapons at all, and there might be something left that they haven't declared? Are they worried because they genuinely feel that there are a lot of dual-use items, meaning items that they use in their civilian industries that could be used as military purposes that they have to declare? And are they genuinely worried that they don't have time to list them all by December the 8th, which is the deadline? It's very difficult for us to say, of course.
But Mr. Blix and Mr. el-Baradei have said very clearly that they want to see how their commitments will translate on the ground. And I think this is going to be very, very important and key for seeing how sincere they were -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Absolutely. Yes, we'll know December 8. Rym Brahimi, thanks.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
