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CNN Live At Daybreak
More Cooperation From Iraq?
Aired February 07, 2003 - 06:08 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: Iraq says it is willing to cooperate harder -- cooperate more, I should say, and maybe it is doing that. Arms inspectors are meeting with some scientists one on one with no monitor in sight.
We want to take you to live to Baghdad and Rym Brahimi.
Rym -- are more meetings with scientists scheduled?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're expecting to hear more on that sometime later, Carol, but definitely that first interview with a private scientist was an indication, according to senior U.N. officials, that Iraq is ready to make such progress under heavy pressure.
Now, sites are being visited and checked this morning by weapons inspectors, although it's Friday, the Muslim day of rest. And also, journalists have been taken by Iraqi officials to some of the sites that were referred to by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, an effort again on the part of the Iraqis to demonstrate some sort of transparency. Again, this comes ahead of the visits to Baghdad of the two chief U.N. weapons inspectors.
Now, they say they're expecting their talks and their transparency to go beyond the three issues that have been the focus of attention right now -- those interviews with scientists, the high- altitude flights of U-2 planes and the enforcement of legislation here in Iraq.
Meanwhile, as you mentioned, Iraq has also been rebutting all of the allegations that were put forward by Colin Powell, saying it was pure fiction, none of the sources were real, it was all -- nothing could stand as evidence. And also, they suggested that these claims that Iraq was tied to al Qaeda had nothing to do with reality, saying Baghdad itself had been working with Jordan, its neighboring country, to find out whether there were any al Qaeda operatives in Baghdad, and so far haven't found anything -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, they're saying they've been searching for al Qaeda within Iraq and trying to expel them from the country?
BRAHIMI: Well, basically they've been working with the Jordanian authorities -- it was what a Foreign Ministry official has told reporters -- to see whether or not there are such al Qaeda operatives in Baghdad. They say so far, they haven't found anything.
They also responded to the allegations that there were ties between this group that operates in the north of Iraq, which is out of the control of Baghdad -- Baghdad doesn't control that area -- saying that in fact, a couple of years ago, Iraq even sent weapons for a Kurdish group to combat those terrorist groups -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
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 7, 2003 - 06:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Iraq says it is willing to cooperate harder -- cooperate more, I should say, and maybe it is doing that. Arms inspectors are meeting with some scientists one on one with no monitor in sight.
We want to take you to live to Baghdad and Rym Brahimi.
Rym -- are more meetings with scientists scheduled?
RYM BRAHIMI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're expecting to hear more on that sometime later, Carol, but definitely that first interview with a private scientist was an indication, according to senior U.N. officials, that Iraq is ready to make such progress under heavy pressure.
Now, sites are being visited and checked this morning by weapons inspectors, although it's Friday, the Muslim day of rest. And also, journalists have been taken by Iraqi officials to some of the sites that were referred to by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, an effort again on the part of the Iraqis to demonstrate some sort of transparency. Again, this comes ahead of the visits to Baghdad of the two chief U.N. weapons inspectors.
Now, they say they're expecting their talks and their transparency to go beyond the three issues that have been the focus of attention right now -- those interviews with scientists, the high- altitude flights of U-2 planes and the enforcement of legislation here in Iraq.
Meanwhile, as you mentioned, Iraq has also been rebutting all of the allegations that were put forward by Colin Powell, saying it was pure fiction, none of the sources were real, it was all -- nothing could stand as evidence. And also, they suggested that these claims that Iraq was tied to al Qaeda had nothing to do with reality, saying Baghdad itself had been working with Jordan, its neighboring country, to find out whether there were any al Qaeda operatives in Baghdad, and so far haven't found anything -- Carol.
COSTELLO: So, they're saying they've been searching for al Qaeda within Iraq and trying to expel them from the country?
BRAHIMI: Well, basically they've been working with the Jordanian authorities -- it was what a Foreign Ministry official has told reporters -- to see whether or not there are such al Qaeda operatives in Baghdad. They say so far, they haven't found anything.
They also responded to the allegations that there were ties between this group that operates in the north of Iraq, which is out of the control of Baghdad -- Baghdad doesn't control that area -- saying that in fact, a couple of years ago, Iraq even sent weapons for a Kurdish group to combat those terrorist groups -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Rym Brahimi reporting live from Baghdad this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
