Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
British Defense Secretary Takes the Stand
Aired August 27, 2003 - 08:07 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: Now to London. British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government trying to get through a bitter controversy about whether or not Iraq had WMD. At issue is whether the government deliberately sexed up a dossier about Iraq. Weapons expert David Kelly, said to be the source for that story, later killed himself.
Today, the British defense secretary, Geoffrey Hune, taking the stand as the investigation into Kelly's death continues.
In London for us, here's Robin Oakley on this story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For 30 years, John Scarlett had lived in the shadowy world of espionage, rarely seen, never filmed. Once Britain's spy chief in Moscow, a former director of MI6, the chairman of Downing Street's Joint Intelligence Committee came out into the open to defend the way Tony Blair had made the case for war against Iraq.
Mr. Blair, who faces the inquiry Thursday, has been accused of meddling with last September's dossier on Saddam's weapons to bolster his case for war. But Mr. Scarlett maintained it was the intelligence services, not Blair and his aides, who'd included the claim that Saddam Hussein could deploy chemical and biological weapons at 45 minutes' notice.
"I was completely in control of the process, felt it at the time and feel it subsequently." And he denied that some in the intelligence services had worries about the single source report. "I wasn't aware of any unhappiness in the intelligence community about the contents of the dossier and the judgments we were making in it."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OAKLEY: Well, that was good news, Bill, for Tony Blair and his government yesterday, crucial support from a leading intelligence official backing their case that they hadn't interfered politically in the preparation of that dossier on arms -- on Saddam Hussein's weapons program. But the government's facing also much criticism over its potential involvement in the death of Dr. David Kelly, the weapons expert, because they insisted on pitching him forward into the public arena, an official used to the anonymity, the background of civil service work and work as a weapons expert.
The question is how much the government unscrupulously pushed him forward into the public arena, putting him under a strain which may have led to his death.
Tomorrow, Tony Blair will face questioning at the inquiry, but today it's the turn of his defense secretary, Geoff Hune. He's having a fairly uncomfortable time at the hands of Lord Hutton and the council at the inquiry, James Dingemans, and really every answer that he gives is, in a sense, digging Tony Blair a bit deeper into it, because all the discussion about how Dr. Kelly's name should be brought into the public, we keep seeing him referring to Alistair Campbell, Tony Blair's communications chief in Downing Street, lots of conversations with him, letters that the defense secretary sent to the BBC dictated by Jonathan Powell, Blair's chief of staff.
All those fingers pointing back to Number 10 -- Bill.
HEMMER: Robin Oakley in London, it continues.
As you mentioned, Tony Blair will take the question tomorrow. We'll watch it then.
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 August 27, 2003 - 08:07 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Now to London. British Prime Minister Tony Blair's government trying to get through a bitter controversy about whether or not Iraq had WMD. At issue is whether the government deliberately sexed up a dossier about Iraq. Weapons expert David Kelly, said to be the source for that story, later killed himself.
Today, the British defense secretary, Geoffrey Hune, taking the stand as the investigation into Kelly's death continues.
In London for us, here's Robin Oakley on this story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For 30 years, John Scarlett had lived in the shadowy world of espionage, rarely seen, never filmed. Once Britain's spy chief in Moscow, a former director of MI6, the chairman of Downing Street's Joint Intelligence Committee came out into the open to defend the way Tony Blair had made the case for war against Iraq.
Mr. Blair, who faces the inquiry Thursday, has been accused of meddling with last September's dossier on Saddam's weapons to bolster his case for war. But Mr. Scarlett maintained it was the intelligence services, not Blair and his aides, who'd included the claim that Saddam Hussein could deploy chemical and biological weapons at 45 minutes' notice.
"I was completely in control of the process, felt it at the time and feel it subsequently." And he denied that some in the intelligence services had worries about the single source report. "I wasn't aware of any unhappiness in the intelligence community about the contents of the dossier and the judgments we were making in it."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
OAKLEY: Well, that was good news, Bill, for Tony Blair and his government yesterday, crucial support from a leading intelligence official backing their case that they hadn't interfered politically in the preparation of that dossier on arms -- on Saddam Hussein's weapons program. But the government's facing also much criticism over its potential involvement in the death of Dr. David Kelly, the weapons expert, because they insisted on pitching him forward into the public arena, an official used to the anonymity, the background of civil service work and work as a weapons expert.
The question is how much the government unscrupulously pushed him forward into the public arena, putting him under a strain which may have led to his death.
Tomorrow, Tony Blair will face questioning at the inquiry, but today it's the turn of his defense secretary, Geoff Hune. He's having a fairly uncomfortable time at the hands of Lord Hutton and the council at the inquiry, James Dingemans, and really every answer that he gives is, in a sense, digging Tony Blair a bit deeper into it, because all the discussion about how Dr. Kelly's name should be brought into the public, we keep seeing him referring to Alistair Campbell, Tony Blair's communications chief in Downing Street, lots of conversations with him, letters that the defense secretary sent to the BBC dictated by Jonathan Powell, Blair's chief of staff.
All those fingers pointing back to Number 10 -- Bill.
HEMMER: Robin Oakley in London, it continues.
As you mentioned, Tony Blair will take the question tomorrow. We'll watch it then.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
