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American Morning

Iraq's Admission

Aired December 02, 2002 - 07:03   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.


BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get back to Iraq quickly again, the hunt for weapons on the ground. Iraqi officials today have made a surprising admission to U.N. inspectors.
Our chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, now live in London with this exclusive report and possibly the indications that may come after.

Christiane -- hello.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Bill, well, what's interesting is that the Iraqi officials, according to this high-ranking official who I spoke to, have over the last couple of weeks confirmed to the chief U.S. weapons inspectors that they did try to import aluminum tubes. Those tubes, as you remember a few months ago, the U.S. pointed to as evidence that the Iraqis were trying to re-launch and re-start its nuclear weapons program.

But the Iraqis are telling the U.N. weapons inspectors that those tubes were designed not for centrifuges to enrich uranium for a nuclear weapons program, but, according to Iraqis, for their conventional rocket program.

They also say that they did try to import these aluminum tubes about half a dozen times, and they have not been successful. The Iraqis say they did not manage to import these aluminum tubes.

Now, although they are saying that these are not destined for any kind of nuclear weapons program, importing any kind of military equipment is prohibited under the U.N. sanctions regime, the longstanding U.N. sanctions regime that bars any kind of import of any kind of military equipment. However, that does not amount to a violation of the current U.N. resolution that points to Iraq's compliance and its necessary compliance if it is to avoid any military action.

U.N. weapons inspectors are expecting a full and formal declaration, as we know, of Iraq's weapons inspection capability by December the 8th, and senior officials tell us that they expect more details on this aluminum tube issue on or around that declaration date of December the 8th -- Bill.

HEMMER: Christiane, why do this now from the Iraqi position? Why not do it weeks ago? And if indeed there is a denial that they were not being used in a harmful way, why not come out with it a month ago when the U.S. was talking about it on the cover of every newspaper around the world?

AMANPOUR: Well, they did come out with this a couple of weeks ago. We've only just found about it. The Iraqi senior weapons officials in meetings with the chief U.N. weapons inspectors in Baghdad around November the 19th, this is when they explained it to the weapons inspectors, according to a high-ranking official who was at those meetings in Baghdad. And this is when that information came out.

As I say, the officials are looking to see whether they will have more information on this by the time of the formal declaration on December the 8th.

But the Iraqis have told them the thickness and the diameter of those aluminum tubes, which they say they did try to import, and weapons inspectors and experts are saying that if it turns out that those tubes are of the specifications that Iraq claims, then they could not be used for centrifuges.

Again, they are waiting for a fuller accounting by December 8.

HEMMER: Christiane Amanpour on the ground in London -- 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 December 2, 2002 - 07:03   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get back to Iraq quickly again, the hunt for weapons on the ground. Iraqi officials today have made a surprising admission to U.N. inspectors.
Our chief international correspondent, Christiane Amanpour, now live in London with this exclusive report and possibly the indications that may come after.

Christiane -- hello.

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Bill, well, what's interesting is that the Iraqi officials, according to this high-ranking official who I spoke to, have over the last couple of weeks confirmed to the chief U.S. weapons inspectors that they did try to import aluminum tubes. Those tubes, as you remember a few months ago, the U.S. pointed to as evidence that the Iraqis were trying to re-launch and re-start its nuclear weapons program.

But the Iraqis are telling the U.N. weapons inspectors that those tubes were designed not for centrifuges to enrich uranium for a nuclear weapons program, but, according to Iraqis, for their conventional rocket program.

They also say that they did try to import these aluminum tubes about half a dozen times, and they have not been successful. The Iraqis say they did not manage to import these aluminum tubes.

Now, although they are saying that these are not destined for any kind of nuclear weapons program, importing any kind of military equipment is prohibited under the U.N. sanctions regime, the longstanding U.N. sanctions regime that bars any kind of import of any kind of military equipment. However, that does not amount to a violation of the current U.N. resolution that points to Iraq's compliance and its necessary compliance if it is to avoid any military action.

U.N. weapons inspectors are expecting a full and formal declaration, as we know, of Iraq's weapons inspection capability by December the 8th, and senior officials tell us that they expect more details on this aluminum tube issue on or around that declaration date of December the 8th -- Bill.

HEMMER: Christiane, why do this now from the Iraqi position? Why not do it weeks ago? And if indeed there is a denial that they were not being used in a harmful way, why not come out with it a month ago when the U.S. was talking about it on the cover of every newspaper around the world?

AMANPOUR: Well, they did come out with this a couple of weeks ago. We've only just found about it. The Iraqi senior weapons officials in meetings with the chief U.N. weapons inspectors in Baghdad around November the 19th, this is when they explained it to the weapons inspectors, according to a high-ranking official who was at those meetings in Baghdad. And this is when that information came out.

As I say, the officials are looking to see whether they will have more information on this by the time of the formal declaration on December the 8th.

But the Iraqis have told them the thickness and the diameter of those aluminum tubes, which they say they did try to import, and weapons inspectors and experts are saying that if it turns out that those tubes are of the specifications that Iraq claims, then they could not be used for centrifuges.

Again, they are waiting for a fuller accounting by December 8.

HEMMER: Christiane Amanpour on the ground in London -- 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.