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NATO Calls Emergency Session Over Iraq
Aired February 10, 2003 - 05:38 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: Let's talk about NATO now, and its emergency session called just about an hour ago. It has plunged military planning against Iraq into disarray, and it's given new momentum to efforts to avert war against Iraq.
We want to take you now live to Paris, where we find our senior European political correspondent, Robin Oakley.
And the United States is not happy.
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN SR. EUROPEAN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: The United States certainly can't be happy, Carol, at these latest developments. And three counties now, out of the 19 NATO countries, are blocking the U.S. request for NATO to make help available to Turkey in the event of a war against Iraq. The U.S. wanted NATO to make available AWAC surveillance planes, Patriot anti-missile defenses and special units for chemical and biological warfare.
And three countries -- France, Germany and Belgium -- are saying no, it's too early to authorize the planning for those moves, while diplomatic and political initiatives are still going on, because they believe war is not inevitable.
Donald Rumsfeld, the U.S. defense secretary, has called it a shameful action, and there are warnings from some U.S. diplomats that this could pose a severe threat to NATO.
But the French, for example, are countering this by saying that if it comes to a real threat, Michelle Alliot-Marie, the French defense minister, is saying France would be the first to be at Turkey's side. They simply do not want NATO to get into a war mindset at this stage -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Robin, what if Turkey would come out and say, we really need your help, act now, would France and Germany and Belgium change their mind?
OAKLEY: That's the curious thing. Almost certainly, they would, because the NATO charter provides for all countries to come to each other's aid in the event of a threat. If any of the others felt that there was a real threat, they would certainly act. And it may well be that even if NATO itself in its emergency council meeting this morning can't find a way of, as an alliance, supplying the help to Turkey, then some individual countries may still provide the things that Turkey is asking for and that the U.S. is asking that it should be given -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Complicated stuff, important stuff. Robin Oakley reporting live from Paris 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 10, 2003 - 05:38 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Let's talk about NATO now, and its emergency session called just about an hour ago. It has plunged military planning against Iraq into disarray, and it's given new momentum to efforts to avert war against Iraq.
We want to take you now live to Paris, where we find our senior European political correspondent, Robin Oakley.
And the United States is not happy.
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN SR. EUROPEAN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: The United States certainly can't be happy, Carol, at these latest developments. And three counties now, out of the 19 NATO countries, are blocking the U.S. request for NATO to make help available to Turkey in the event of a war against Iraq. The U.S. wanted NATO to make available AWAC surveillance planes, Patriot anti-missile defenses and special units for chemical and biological warfare.
And three countries -- France, Germany and Belgium -- are saying no, it's too early to authorize the planning for those moves, while diplomatic and political initiatives are still going on, because they believe war is not inevitable.
Donald Rumsfeld, the U.S. defense secretary, has called it a shameful action, and there are warnings from some U.S. diplomats that this could pose a severe threat to NATO.
But the French, for example, are countering this by saying that if it comes to a real threat, Michelle Alliot-Marie, the French defense minister, is saying France would be the first to be at Turkey's side. They simply do not want NATO to get into a war mindset at this stage -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Well, Robin, what if Turkey would come out and say, we really need your help, act now, would France and Germany and Belgium change their mind?
OAKLEY: That's the curious thing. Almost certainly, they would, because the NATO charter provides for all countries to come to each other's aid in the event of a threat. If any of the others felt that there was a real threat, they would certainly act. And it may well be that even if NATO itself in its emergency council meeting this morning can't find a way of, as an alliance, supplying the help to Turkey, then some individual countries may still provide the things that Turkey is asking for and that the U.S. is asking that it should be given -- Carol.
COSTELLO: Complicated stuff, important stuff. Robin Oakley reporting live from Paris 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.
