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CNN Live At Daybreak

Iraq's Weapons Declaration

Aired December 10, 2002 - 07:04   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: I want to get back to Iraq right now, the documents and the denials thus far. Live reports again this morning from Washington, the White House, CNN senior White House correspondent John King is there, in Baghdad once again, Nic Robertson, and here in New York at the U.N. is Michael Okwu.
Let's start at the White House quickly with John King again to perceive and pick up on what's happening there this morning.

John -- good morning to you.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.

A very careful administration reaction so far. U.S. officials say teams of intelligence experts from a number of U.S. agencies have been brought together under one roof. They are now going through the documents filed by Iraq with the United Nations page by page. White House officials say it could be several days before there is any detailed analysis.

The White House, though, is reassuring U.S. allies and skeptics at the United Nations it will not use this document alone as the trigger for war. The White House saying it may well use any inaccuracies, anything it believes are lies in this document to make the case for military action down the road. But the White House is telling allies when it has a more detailed reaction, it will make the case that the inspectors must be much more aggressive on the ground in Iraq. No immediate decisions to proceed to a military conflict.

Mr. Bush himself, we might get his initial reaction later today. He is meeting here at the White House with a key delegation as the military planning continues -- the leader of Turkey's ruling political party and some of his top aides here in Washington for discussions with Mr. Bush, Vice President Cheney, National Security Advisory Condoleezza Rice. The U.S. trying to win approval for the use of Turkey's bases if there is a military conflict down the road. Reporters to be allowed into some of that meeting, perhaps the first official reaction from the president today to Iraq's filing with the United Nations -- Bill.

HEMMER: John, thank you.

Quickly to Baghdad and Nic Robertson.

And, Nic, you heard the appeal from the White House yet again to be more aggressive. Is there any perception that that's being taken that way in Baghdad?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It certainly appears as if the pace of the work is picking up here, Bill. Four teams today, there has been two up to now pretty much every day in the past, perhaps a reflection on the fact more inspectors arrived at the weekend. We are seeing another 20 or 30 inspectors due to arrive today. We're told maybe eight teams by the end of the week.

Stretching out a big distance from Baghdad today, one inspection team driving five-and-a-half hours across the Iraqi desert to Akashat (ph). That's a former uranium ore facility, where the Iraqis used to mine uranium ore and phosphate ore. That was badly damaged in bombing in 1991.

For the fourth straight day, the team of nuclear experts here at Baghdad's primary atomic research facility, that's about 30 kilometers, 20 miles south of Baghdad, a team at an animal vaccine site, and a team also at another site on the south side of Baghdad.

So, the pace of work picking up and perhaps a hint that it is a tad more aggressive. Officials at plants we visited yesterday saying inspectors questioned them for three-and-a-half hours -- Bill.

HEMMER: Nic, thank you. Nic, hang on one second in Baghdad.

I want to get to the U.N. quickly and get Michael Okwu's perspective on what he is hearing today.

Michael -- good morning to you. That dossier, this 12,000 page report, taken by the U.S. team down to Washington in order to make copies to be distributed to the U.N. Security Council permanent members, is that where we stand right now? And was there much movement last evening?

MICHAEL OKWU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not a lot of movement. They're still sort of in the planning stages, and they're still sifting through those 12,000 pages here at the United Nations.

We were able to get our hands on what I think is a bit of white gold here at the United Nations. Everyone very eager to get a sense of what's in this document, and in fact, we have a glossary of sorts.

This is a letter that has been floating around some of the members of the Security Council. I'm holding it up just so you can get a sense of what it's like. Nine pages long, dated December 7, 2002, signed by Mohammed Al-Douri, who of course, is the Iraqi ambassador here at the United Nations. And it is addressed to Mr. Alfonso Valdivieso, the president of the Security Council, the U.N. ambassador from Columbia.

And it breaks down essentially -- the declaration breaks down by various disciplines -- nuclear, chemical, biological and ballistic missiles. There's a table of contents, also includes that there could be several mentions of suppliers to Iraq, both countries as well as individuals. It's an interesting look -- Bill. HEMMER: All right, Michael, listen, stand by there. Nic, the same, and John King back at the White House, we want to get back to the Front Lawn right now.

John, Donald Rumsfeld, traveling in Africa today en route to Qatar, was essentially urging patience on behalf of the U.S., take a deep breath essentially, give it some days or even some weeks for this information to be digested. Is that a strategy shift that you're feeling at the White House as well? Because last week, a lot of criticism, internationally, directed at the U.S., telling the U.S. to hang on a moment here and take in the information slowly.

KING: Well, that criticism, Bill, stemming from the fact that several senior administration officials were telling us last week, even before they had seen this document, that it was all but certain that the U.S. government would declare Iraq in material breach of the new United Nations Security Council resolution once it had seen and reviewed this document.

The criticism was that many saw that as the Bush administration rushing to war, rushing you might say to find Saddam Hussein guilty before anyone else on the Security Council reviewed the document and said perhaps the Iraqi government is innocent. U.S. officials say they will take their time; they will look at this document.

They also, though, tell us, Bill, they are very likely, if not this week or next then sometime down the road, to declare still that they believe Iraq is in breach of its commitments to the United Nations, but because of all of that criticism you hear from Secretary Rumsfeld and others in the administration, much more cautious, temperate words. They are saying this document itself will not be used as a trigger for war. It might well be used to make the case for war down the road, but it will not be used as an immediate trigger to go from reviewing the document to immediate military confrontation.

The administration says Mr. Bush pushed to get the inspectors in there. He will give them a chance, at least several more weeks if not a little more, to do their work and call Iraq's cooperation -- promise of cooperation to the test.

HEMMER: Got it. And let's get back to Baghdad quickly.

Nic, tie some loose ends together for us. There was this issue yesterday about some interpreting the Iraqi official on Sunday to be essentially boasting and bragging about its nuclear capability. Was there much more of a clarification on Monday about that statement, or even today for that matter?

ROBERTSON: Nothing further on that, Bill. He was being questioned. Now, that was President Saddam Hussein's top scientific advisor, General Amer al-Saadi, the man, of course, who knows the most about all of Iraq's former weapons programs.

No, he was asked, how close were they. He said, well, he couldn't be objective, because he would not take an independent view of it, and essentially saying, well, we have the know-how, we have worked on all of the different key areas of making this device, we essentially know how to do it, but it's up to the IAEA -- International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna -- to give an accurate assessment of how close we were.

But really, strongly hinting they've got the know-how, they know how to do it -- Bill.

HEMMER: Nic, thank you.

The IAEA in Vienna telling us yesterday, Melissa Fleming, saying it might be 7 to 10 days before they can make a full evaluation of the dossier there in Austria.

Nic Robertson in Baghdad, Michael Okwu at the U.N., thanks to you, and our senior White House correspondent, John King, on the Front Lawn this morning -- thank you, men.

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 10, 2002 - 07:04   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: I want to get back to Iraq right now, the documents and the denials thus far. Live reports again this morning from Washington, the White House, CNN senior White House correspondent John King is there, in Baghdad once again, Nic Robertson, and here in New York at the U.N. is Michael Okwu.
Let's start at the White House quickly with John King again to perceive and pick up on what's happening there this morning.

John -- good morning to you.

JOHN KING, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Bill.

A very careful administration reaction so far. U.S. officials say teams of intelligence experts from a number of U.S. agencies have been brought together under one roof. They are now going through the documents filed by Iraq with the United Nations page by page. White House officials say it could be several days before there is any detailed analysis.

The White House, though, is reassuring U.S. allies and skeptics at the United Nations it will not use this document alone as the trigger for war. The White House saying it may well use any inaccuracies, anything it believes are lies in this document to make the case for military action down the road. But the White House is telling allies when it has a more detailed reaction, it will make the case that the inspectors must be much more aggressive on the ground in Iraq. No immediate decisions to proceed to a military conflict.

Mr. Bush himself, we might get his initial reaction later today. He is meeting here at the White House with a key delegation as the military planning continues -- the leader of Turkey's ruling political party and some of his top aides here in Washington for discussions with Mr. Bush, Vice President Cheney, National Security Advisory Condoleezza Rice. The U.S. trying to win approval for the use of Turkey's bases if there is a military conflict down the road. Reporters to be allowed into some of that meeting, perhaps the first official reaction from the president today to Iraq's filing with the United Nations -- Bill.

HEMMER: John, thank you.

Quickly to Baghdad and Nic Robertson.

And, Nic, you heard the appeal from the White House yet again to be more aggressive. Is there any perception that that's being taken that way in Baghdad?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It certainly appears as if the pace of the work is picking up here, Bill. Four teams today, there has been two up to now pretty much every day in the past, perhaps a reflection on the fact more inspectors arrived at the weekend. We are seeing another 20 or 30 inspectors due to arrive today. We're told maybe eight teams by the end of the week.

Stretching out a big distance from Baghdad today, one inspection team driving five-and-a-half hours across the Iraqi desert to Akashat (ph). That's a former uranium ore facility, where the Iraqis used to mine uranium ore and phosphate ore. That was badly damaged in bombing in 1991.

For the fourth straight day, the team of nuclear experts here at Baghdad's primary atomic research facility, that's about 30 kilometers, 20 miles south of Baghdad, a team at an animal vaccine site, and a team also at another site on the south side of Baghdad.

So, the pace of work picking up and perhaps a hint that it is a tad more aggressive. Officials at plants we visited yesterday saying inspectors questioned them for three-and-a-half hours -- Bill.

HEMMER: Nic, thank you. Nic, hang on one second in Baghdad.

I want to get to the U.N. quickly and get Michael Okwu's perspective on what he is hearing today.

Michael -- good morning to you. That dossier, this 12,000 page report, taken by the U.S. team down to Washington in order to make copies to be distributed to the U.N. Security Council permanent members, is that where we stand right now? And was there much movement last evening?

MICHAEL OKWU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not a lot of movement. They're still sort of in the planning stages, and they're still sifting through those 12,000 pages here at the United Nations.

We were able to get our hands on what I think is a bit of white gold here at the United Nations. Everyone very eager to get a sense of what's in this document, and in fact, we have a glossary of sorts.

This is a letter that has been floating around some of the members of the Security Council. I'm holding it up just so you can get a sense of what it's like. Nine pages long, dated December 7, 2002, signed by Mohammed Al-Douri, who of course, is the Iraqi ambassador here at the United Nations. And it is addressed to Mr. Alfonso Valdivieso, the president of the Security Council, the U.N. ambassador from Columbia.

And it breaks down essentially -- the declaration breaks down by various disciplines -- nuclear, chemical, biological and ballistic missiles. There's a table of contents, also includes that there could be several mentions of suppliers to Iraq, both countries as well as individuals. It's an interesting look -- Bill. HEMMER: All right, Michael, listen, stand by there. Nic, the same, and John King back at the White House, we want to get back to the Front Lawn right now.

John, Donald Rumsfeld, traveling in Africa today en route to Qatar, was essentially urging patience on behalf of the U.S., take a deep breath essentially, give it some days or even some weeks for this information to be digested. Is that a strategy shift that you're feeling at the White House as well? Because last week, a lot of criticism, internationally, directed at the U.S., telling the U.S. to hang on a moment here and take in the information slowly.

KING: Well, that criticism, Bill, stemming from the fact that several senior administration officials were telling us last week, even before they had seen this document, that it was all but certain that the U.S. government would declare Iraq in material breach of the new United Nations Security Council resolution once it had seen and reviewed this document.

The criticism was that many saw that as the Bush administration rushing to war, rushing you might say to find Saddam Hussein guilty before anyone else on the Security Council reviewed the document and said perhaps the Iraqi government is innocent. U.S. officials say they will take their time; they will look at this document.

They also, though, tell us, Bill, they are very likely, if not this week or next then sometime down the road, to declare still that they believe Iraq is in breach of its commitments to the United Nations, but because of all of that criticism you hear from Secretary Rumsfeld and others in the administration, much more cautious, temperate words. They are saying this document itself will not be used as a trigger for war. It might well be used to make the case for war down the road, but it will not be used as an immediate trigger to go from reviewing the document to immediate military confrontation.

The administration says Mr. Bush pushed to get the inspectors in there. He will give them a chance, at least several more weeks if not a little more, to do their work and call Iraq's cooperation -- promise of cooperation to the test.

HEMMER: Got it. And let's get back to Baghdad quickly.

Nic, tie some loose ends together for us. There was this issue yesterday about some interpreting the Iraqi official on Sunday to be essentially boasting and bragging about its nuclear capability. Was there much more of a clarification on Monday about that statement, or even today for that matter?

ROBERTSON: Nothing further on that, Bill. He was being questioned. Now, that was President Saddam Hussein's top scientific advisor, General Amer al-Saadi, the man, of course, who knows the most about all of Iraq's former weapons programs.

No, he was asked, how close were they. He said, well, he couldn't be objective, because he would not take an independent view of it, and essentially saying, well, we have the know-how, we have worked on all of the different key areas of making this device, we essentially know how to do it, but it's up to the IAEA -- International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna -- to give an accurate assessment of how close we were.

But really, strongly hinting they've got the know-how, they know how to do it -- Bill.

HEMMER: Nic, thank you.

The IAEA in Vienna telling us yesterday, Melissa Fleming, saying it might be 7 to 10 days before they can make a full evaluation of the dossier there in Austria.

Nic Robertson in Baghdad, Michael Okwu at the U.N., thanks to you, and our senior White House correspondent, John King, on the Front Lawn this morning -- thank you, men.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.