Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Live At Daybreak

Bush Administration Ready to Make Case Against Iraq

Aired February 05, 2003 - 05:02   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: Our top focus this morning, the Bush administration's case against Iraq. Colin Powell speaks to the U.N. Security Council just about five and a half hours from now.
Our senior White House correspondent tells us what Powell plans to say, plus what the White House expects the Security Council to do.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): High stakes diplomacy on the eve of a critical presentation to the United Nations Security Council, where China has veto power. Administration officials say Secretary Powell will detail contacts between al Qaeda operatives and Iraq, but be careful not to suggest any formal alliance.

RICHARD ARMITAGE, DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE: I want to, don't want to overstate it for the obvious reason. Some intersections with various and sundry terrorist groups, and that's our real fear with Iraq so.

KING: Powell's overwhelming focus, officials say, will be to show the Council what the White House considers detailed proof of Iraqi deception, satellite photographs showing evidence moved just before weapons inspections, intercepted conversations in which Iraqi officials talk about hiding evidence and coach scientists to mislead inspectors and intelligence suggesting Iraqi imports of banned weapons materials as recently as the past month or so.

The goal is to win enough backing for a second Security Council resolution that sets a final deadline for Iraqi compliance within several weeks and gives the U.N.'s blessing for military action if that deadline is ignored.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Council must face up to its responsibilities and serious consequences will have to be faced.

KING: President Bush called Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss Powell's presentation and U.S. officials are increasingly confident of Russia's support. Lobbying France fell to British Prime Minister Tony Blair. But President Chirac says he still favors giving inspectors more time.

PRES. JACQUES CHIRAC, FRANCE: That's my case and I believe, in fact, it's everybody's case. We have to allow them the freedom to have the amount of time that they need.

KING: The administration views the Powell presentation as one of two critical dates for the Security Council as a decision on war draws closer. Chief weapons inspector Hans Blix briefs the Council again on the 14th, and the White House then wants key decisions made within days.

(on camera): The president is holding an early morning breakfast at the White House to offer key law makers a preview of the Powell presentation and, top aides say, to make clear his patience with efforts to find a diplomatic solution is running short.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And we'll give John a wake up call in the next hour of DAYBREAK to talk with him more about the importance of Colin Powell's briefing.

U.N. chief weapons inspector Hans Blix will be at the United Nations listening to Colin Powell, but Blix is not expected to speak. Blix has said Saddam Hussein is moving his country closer to war for not cooperating fully with inspectors. He was also asked what Powell might tell the Security Council.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANS BLIX, CHIEF U.N. WEAPONS INSPECTOR: I assume that he is not going to indicate any sites which we should visit, because I would assume that he would, the U.S. would have given the sites to us rather than telling the Iraqis that here is where we think the inspectors should go, unless it was a full fledged new reactor or something like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It seems we are moving closer to war with Iraq.

Our Rym Brahimi has been tracking Baghdad's reaction to the U.N. Security Council gathering this morning.

She joins us live from Baghdad -- what's the feeling there, Rym?

RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, the feeling there, everybody's eyes are really on the interview that President Saddam Hussein gave to a former member of the British parliament, an interview in which he made several key points regarding the inspections and regarding war.

Let me just give you a run down of the main points. He said, first of all, "Iraq has no weapons of mass destruction whatsoever. We challenge anyone who claims that we have to bring forward any evidence and present it to public opinion."

The second point he made, "We have no relationship with al Qaeda," said President Saddam Hussein.

And finally, he talked only then, "The Iraqis don't wish war, but if war is imposed on them, if they are attacked or insulted, they will defend themselves. They will defend their country, sovereignty and security."

The president also made another point regarding what he saw as the U.S.' goal to dominate the world by securing oil resources, suggesting that there may be another way, saying that if that was the U.S.' aim, well, it was very short-sighted and it was, did not serve the long-term interests either of the U.S. or of its people -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So Colin Powell's assertion that he's got lots of evidence saying that Saddam Hussein does have weapons, Saddam Hussein is still saying those are lies and made up stories?

BRAHIMI: Absolutely, Carol. President Saddam Hussein saying if we had weapons, it would be obvious by now with all the inspectors around. He said weapons are not like an aspirin that you can hide in your pocket. It's very difficult to hide. Now, Iraqi officials have also said they fully expect U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to come up with what they call fabrications and lies. You even have a cartoon here in the newspaper run by the Baath Party, I don't know if you can see it, but there's a cannon that's being fired by the U.S. at the United Nations with lies and fabrications.

That said, Iraqi officials, Carol, have also said that whatever Colin Powell comes up with, they will ask the two groups of U.N. weapons inspectors to verify those claims and they say they are not worried because they say they're on solid ground and there's absolutely nothing they think the U.S. can pin them down on -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We'll see what happens later this morning.

Rym Brahimi live from Baghdad.

You can count on CNN to bring you live coverage of Secretary of State Colin Powell's address to the Security Council. That happens at 10:30 a.m. Eastern time, 7:30 Pacific.

And for all the history of the U.N. weapons inspections and an interactive look at Iraq, just log onto our Web site at cnn.com, AOL keyword: CNN.

More troops and equipment are on the way to the Persian Gulf. An unknown number of Stealth fighters are being sent to Europe, then will continue on to the Gulf region. Over the past two weeks, hundreds of support personnel have been sent ahead to the Gulf, where they'll be on hand to receive the planes. The F-117s were also used in the 1991 Gulf War.

And airmen from the 140th Fighter Wing from Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado are also heading to the Gulf. The unit flies and maintains F-16 fighter jets. They've been used in the Gulf region in the past to enforce the no fly zones in Iraq.

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said good-bye to nearly 300 Marine Corps reservists who were called up from his state. The members of the Marine Wing Support Squadron will be sent to North Carolina and possibly on to the Gulf region.

And in Alabama, the Air National Guard is mobilizing 250 more members. The company provides maintenance support for Army helicopters. There are now close to 35,000 reservists nationwide preparing for a possible war with Iraq.

And many of those troops are heading to Kuwait, where thousands of Americans are already stationed.

Our Martin Savidge is in Kuwait City and says the buildup to war is pretty evidence now -- good morning, Martin.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

No question now that Kuwait is more and more becoming what will be the launching pad, if, in fact, it boils down to war with Iraq. The numbers being reported of U.S. troops in country as of today, 45,000. That is up by 15,000 from the numbers that were being reported to us from just, say, a week ago.

When the troops arrive, of course, as always, they head out into the desert. The desert has not been a very kind place for any military forces that have been out there for the past couple of days. They've been inflicted with some very severe wind and dust storms out there. That's made life and training very difficult, but, after all, that is part of why they are here, why they are here in advance.

When the sand storms are not striking, then they do live fire exercises or do warfare training. These have been some of the largest exercises to be seen in Kuwait since, well, the last Gulf War.

And let me show you something else. Just yesterday the ministry of defense here outlined that there was going to be a new, broader, exclusionary zone that is in Kuwait. The area that is in black is now what will take effect as of the 15th of February. In other words, over half the country now is going to be considered a military zone, civilians not allowed. It runs all the way from Salmania (ph) all the way up to the Iraqi border. What I'm saying is from Saudi Arabia all the way north. It is a huge swath of territory there. Obviously it's to take in for the training and preparations for the next battle.

COSTELLO: Oh, yes, but half the country, Martin? Kuwait's not very big.

SAVIDGE: No, it's not. And there are a lot of agricultural farms that are up there, as well as oil wells. Any foreign workers up there, they've got to go. Anybody who has got any illegal tents or camps -- camping very popular here in the desert -- they have to go, as well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, you be careful, Martin.

Thanks so much.

Martin Savidge live from Kuwait.

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 February 5, 2003 - 05:02   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Our top focus this morning, the Bush administration's case against Iraq. Colin Powell speaks to the U.N. Security Council just about five and a half hours from now.
Our senior White House correspondent tells us what Powell plans to say, plus what the White House expects the Security Council to do.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN KING, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): High stakes diplomacy on the eve of a critical presentation to the United Nations Security Council, where China has veto power. Administration officials say Secretary Powell will detail contacts between al Qaeda operatives and Iraq, but be careful not to suggest any formal alliance.

RICHARD ARMITAGE, DEPUTY SECRETARY OF STATE: I want to, don't want to overstate it for the obvious reason. Some intersections with various and sundry terrorist groups, and that's our real fear with Iraq so.

KING: Powell's overwhelming focus, officials say, will be to show the Council what the White House considers detailed proof of Iraqi deception, satellite photographs showing evidence moved just before weapons inspections, intercepted conversations in which Iraqi officials talk about hiding evidence and coach scientists to mislead inspectors and intelligence suggesting Iraqi imports of banned weapons materials as recently as the past month or so.

The goal is to win enough backing for a second Security Council resolution that sets a final deadline for Iraqi compliance within several weeks and gives the U.N.'s blessing for military action if that deadline is ignored.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Council must face up to its responsibilities and serious consequences will have to be faced.

KING: President Bush called Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss Powell's presentation and U.S. officials are increasingly confident of Russia's support. Lobbying France fell to British Prime Minister Tony Blair. But President Chirac says he still favors giving inspectors more time.

PRES. JACQUES CHIRAC, FRANCE: That's my case and I believe, in fact, it's everybody's case. We have to allow them the freedom to have the amount of time that they need.

KING: The administration views the Powell presentation as one of two critical dates for the Security Council as a decision on war draws closer. Chief weapons inspector Hans Blix briefs the Council again on the 14th, and the White House then wants key decisions made within days.

(on camera): The president is holding an early morning breakfast at the White House to offer key law makers a preview of the Powell presentation and, top aides say, to make clear his patience with efforts to find a diplomatic solution is running short.

John King, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: And we'll give John a wake up call in the next hour of DAYBREAK to talk with him more about the importance of Colin Powell's briefing.

U.N. chief weapons inspector Hans Blix will be at the United Nations listening to Colin Powell, but Blix is not expected to speak. Blix has said Saddam Hussein is moving his country closer to war for not cooperating fully with inspectors. He was also asked what Powell might tell the Security Council.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HANS BLIX, CHIEF U.N. WEAPONS INSPECTOR: I assume that he is not going to indicate any sites which we should visit, because I would assume that he would, the U.S. would have given the sites to us rather than telling the Iraqis that here is where we think the inspectors should go, unless it was a full fledged new reactor or something like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: It seems we are moving closer to war with Iraq.

Our Rym Brahimi has been tracking Baghdad's reaction to the U.N. Security Council gathering this morning.

She joins us live from Baghdad -- what's the feeling there, Rym?

RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Carol, the feeling there, everybody's eyes are really on the interview that President Saddam Hussein gave to a former member of the British parliament, an interview in which he made several key points regarding the inspections and regarding war.

Let me just give you a run down of the main points. He said, first of all, "Iraq has no weapons of mass destruction whatsoever. We challenge anyone who claims that we have to bring forward any evidence and present it to public opinion."

The second point he made, "We have no relationship with al Qaeda," said President Saddam Hussein.

And finally, he talked only then, "The Iraqis don't wish war, but if war is imposed on them, if they are attacked or insulted, they will defend themselves. They will defend their country, sovereignty and security."

The president also made another point regarding what he saw as the U.S.' goal to dominate the world by securing oil resources, suggesting that there may be another way, saying that if that was the U.S.' aim, well, it was very short-sighted and it was, did not serve the long-term interests either of the U.S. or of its people -- Carol.

COSTELLO: So Colin Powell's assertion that he's got lots of evidence saying that Saddam Hussein does have weapons, Saddam Hussein is still saying those are lies and made up stories?

BRAHIMI: Absolutely, Carol. President Saddam Hussein saying if we had weapons, it would be obvious by now with all the inspectors around. He said weapons are not like an aspirin that you can hide in your pocket. It's very difficult to hide. Now, Iraqi officials have also said they fully expect U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to come up with what they call fabrications and lies. You even have a cartoon here in the newspaper run by the Baath Party, I don't know if you can see it, but there's a cannon that's being fired by the U.S. at the United Nations with lies and fabrications.

That said, Iraqi officials, Carol, have also said that whatever Colin Powell comes up with, they will ask the two groups of U.N. weapons inspectors to verify those claims and they say they are not worried because they say they're on solid ground and there's absolutely nothing they think the U.S. can pin them down on -- Carol.

COSTELLO: We'll see what happens later this morning.

Rym Brahimi live from Baghdad.

You can count on CNN to bring you live coverage of Secretary of State Colin Powell's address to the Security Council. That happens at 10:30 a.m. Eastern time, 7:30 Pacific.

And for all the history of the U.N. weapons inspections and an interactive look at Iraq, just log onto our Web site at cnn.com, AOL keyword: CNN.

More troops and equipment are on the way to the Persian Gulf. An unknown number of Stealth fighters are being sent to Europe, then will continue on to the Gulf region. Over the past two weeks, hundreds of support personnel have been sent ahead to the Gulf, where they'll be on hand to receive the planes. The F-117s were also used in the 1991 Gulf War.

And airmen from the 140th Fighter Wing from Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado are also heading to the Gulf. The unit flies and maintains F-16 fighter jets. They've been used in the Gulf region in the past to enforce the no fly zones in Iraq.

Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty said good-bye to nearly 300 Marine Corps reservists who were called up from his state. The members of the Marine Wing Support Squadron will be sent to North Carolina and possibly on to the Gulf region.

And in Alabama, the Air National Guard is mobilizing 250 more members. The company provides maintenance support for Army helicopters. There are now close to 35,000 reservists nationwide preparing for a possible war with Iraq.

And many of those troops are heading to Kuwait, where thousands of Americans are already stationed.

Our Martin Savidge is in Kuwait City and says the buildup to war is pretty evidence now -- good morning, Martin.

MARTIN SAVIDGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Carol.

No question now that Kuwait is more and more becoming what will be the launching pad, if, in fact, it boils down to war with Iraq. The numbers being reported of U.S. troops in country as of today, 45,000. That is up by 15,000 from the numbers that were being reported to us from just, say, a week ago.

When the troops arrive, of course, as always, they head out into the desert. The desert has not been a very kind place for any military forces that have been out there for the past couple of days. They've been inflicted with some very severe wind and dust storms out there. That's made life and training very difficult, but, after all, that is part of why they are here, why they are here in advance.

When the sand storms are not striking, then they do live fire exercises or do warfare training. These have been some of the largest exercises to be seen in Kuwait since, well, the last Gulf War.

And let me show you something else. Just yesterday the ministry of defense here outlined that there was going to be a new, broader, exclusionary zone that is in Kuwait. The area that is in black is now what will take effect as of the 15th of February. In other words, over half the country now is going to be considered a military zone, civilians not allowed. It runs all the way from Salmania (ph) all the way up to the Iraqi border. What I'm saying is from Saudi Arabia all the way north. It is a huge swath of territory there. Obviously it's to take in for the training and preparations for the next battle.

COSTELLO: Oh, yes, but half the country, Martin? Kuwait's not very big.

SAVIDGE: No, it's not. And there are a lot of agricultural farms that are up there, as well as oil wells. Any foreign workers up there, they've got to go. Anybody who has got any illegal tents or camps -- camping very popular here in the desert -- they have to go, as well -- Carol.

COSTELLO: All right, you be careful, Martin.

Thanks so much.

Martin Savidge live from Kuwait.

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