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CNN Live At Daybreak

'International Wrap'

Aired January 09, 2004 - 06:38   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: Libya is still making news. It's going to pony up some more big money. And then, there is North Korea in that unofficial U.S. delegation over there looking around for nukes.
Our senior international editor, Eli Flournoy, is here to tell us more.

ELI FLOURNOY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: That's right, Carol.

We've got -- we just had not too long ago in Paris, France, we just had a signing ceremony between families of victims of the UTA airline flight that crashed in 1989 over the Niger desert in Africa, and the Libyan government agreed to $170 million settlement. That's $1 million for each of the victims. There were 170 people killed.

COSTELLO: And remind us of how that aircraft came down. What happened?

FLOURNOY: There was a bombing on the aircraft. It was linked through an international trial to Libyan officials -- six Libyans who, in fact, still remains at large. They were convicted in absentia, but they still remain at large.

COSTELLO: This is the second big payout for the downing of aircraft.

FLOURNOY: It is. It is. Now, this follows the $2.7 billion payout for the Pan Am 103 flight downing over Lockerbie, Scotland, that came after that announcement was made that it was going to be $2.7 billion, the families in France -- there are 54 of the 170 people were French. There were also seven Americans and several other nationalities on there.

They had previously received an agreement for a $33 million payout, but were obviously very upset about hearing that the Pan Am 103 deal was going to be $2.7 billion. So, they renegotiated, and this is all tied -- this is all tied into Libya's moves to get back into, you know, the international community...

COSTELLO: So, do you think Libya will be able to pay out all that money?

FLOURNOY: Well, they apparently do have the money. There was -- at this signing ceremony today, there was a representative from the bank, who was there to sign as well. And the money is going to be handed over in four different installments of $42.5 million.

COSTELLO: Unbelievable.

FLOURNOY: That's right.

COSTELLO: OK, now to North Korea.

FLOURNOY: Yes. North Korea, and interestingly tied to Libya, North Korea came out with a statement today saying to the United States that they were hallucinating in the statement from North Korea -- I'm just reading here. If they believe that North Korea is going to follow in the footsteps of Libya and turn over weapons of mass destruction and open up the country...

COSTELLO: Well, that's a great stab at datante (ph).

FLOURNOY: Well, you hear this kind of rhetoric coming out a lot. But having said that, there is, in fact, the U.S. delegation that's in North Korea right now, and they are apparently trying to go see the Yongbyon nuclear facility in North Korea, and...

COSTELLO: So, North Korea has actually let them into the country. They just throw so many curves, because on one hand, the U.S. delegation is there, and on the other hand, they said the United States is hallucinating if it thinks it's going to kiss and make up kind of like the United States did with Libya.

FLOURNOY: That's right. That's right. You hear a lot of different things coming out of North Korea.

Now, on this U.S. delegation, we have actually have not heard anything about it from the North Koreans. But, in fact, the delegation did leave four days ago to go into North Korea. We haven't heard anything from them, but they are due to come out tomorrow. And we are going to be standing by. They are going to come back to Beijing to talk to them and see whether, in fact, they were able to go to that nuclear facility.

Now, this is a "private delegation" -- quote/unquote. However, it does include several -- two top aides from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a former U.S. diplomat, a former head of the Los Alamos laboratory.

So, there is...

COSTELLO: And we say it's unofficial, because the Bush administration...

FLOURNOY: That's...

COSTELLO: ... says, you know, it's not connected.

FLOURNOY: That's correct. That's correct. The U.S. government has distances itself from this group, saying this is unofficial. This is a private delegation that's going in there. However, it will be very interesting to hear what they have to say when they come out.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm certain that you'll be trying to get ahold of them tomorrow.

FLOURNOY: We will.

COSTELLO: Eli Flournoy, thank you.

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 January 9, 2004 - 06:38   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Libya is still making news. It's going to pony up some more big money. And then, there is North Korea in that unofficial U.S. delegation over there looking around for nukes.
Our senior international editor, Eli Flournoy, is here to tell us more.

ELI FLOURNOY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL EDITOR: That's right, Carol.

We've got -- we just had not too long ago in Paris, France, we just had a signing ceremony between families of victims of the UTA airline flight that crashed in 1989 over the Niger desert in Africa, and the Libyan government agreed to $170 million settlement. That's $1 million for each of the victims. There were 170 people killed.

COSTELLO: And remind us of how that aircraft came down. What happened?

FLOURNOY: There was a bombing on the aircraft. It was linked through an international trial to Libyan officials -- six Libyans who, in fact, still remains at large. They were convicted in absentia, but they still remain at large.

COSTELLO: This is the second big payout for the downing of aircraft.

FLOURNOY: It is. It is. Now, this follows the $2.7 billion payout for the Pan Am 103 flight downing over Lockerbie, Scotland, that came after that announcement was made that it was going to be $2.7 billion, the families in France -- there are 54 of the 170 people were French. There were also seven Americans and several other nationalities on there.

They had previously received an agreement for a $33 million payout, but were obviously very upset about hearing that the Pan Am 103 deal was going to be $2.7 billion. So, they renegotiated, and this is all tied -- this is all tied into Libya's moves to get back into, you know, the international community...

COSTELLO: So, do you think Libya will be able to pay out all that money?

FLOURNOY: Well, they apparently do have the money. There was -- at this signing ceremony today, there was a representative from the bank, who was there to sign as well. And the money is going to be handed over in four different installments of $42.5 million.

COSTELLO: Unbelievable.

FLOURNOY: That's right.

COSTELLO: OK, now to North Korea.

FLOURNOY: Yes. North Korea, and interestingly tied to Libya, North Korea came out with a statement today saying to the United States that they were hallucinating in the statement from North Korea -- I'm just reading here. If they believe that North Korea is going to follow in the footsteps of Libya and turn over weapons of mass destruction and open up the country...

COSTELLO: Well, that's a great stab at datante (ph).

FLOURNOY: Well, you hear this kind of rhetoric coming out a lot. But having said that, there is, in fact, the U.S. delegation that's in North Korea right now, and they are apparently trying to go see the Yongbyon nuclear facility in North Korea, and...

COSTELLO: So, North Korea has actually let them into the country. They just throw so many curves, because on one hand, the U.S. delegation is there, and on the other hand, they said the United States is hallucinating if it thinks it's going to kiss and make up kind of like the United States did with Libya.

FLOURNOY: That's right. That's right. You hear a lot of different things coming out of North Korea.

Now, on this U.S. delegation, we have actually have not heard anything about it from the North Koreans. But, in fact, the delegation did leave four days ago to go into North Korea. We haven't heard anything from them, but they are due to come out tomorrow. And we are going to be standing by. They are going to come back to Beijing to talk to them and see whether, in fact, they were able to go to that nuclear facility.

Now, this is a "private delegation" -- quote/unquote. However, it does include several -- two top aides from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a former U.S. diplomat, a former head of the Los Alamos laboratory.

So, there is...

COSTELLO: And we say it's unofficial, because the Bush administration...

FLOURNOY: That's...

COSTELLO: ... says, you know, it's not connected.

FLOURNOY: That's correct. That's correct. The U.S. government has distances itself from this group, saying this is unofficial. This is a private delegation that's going in there. However, it will be very interesting to hear what they have to say when they come out.

COSTELLO: Well, I'm certain that you'll be trying to get ahold of them tomorrow.

FLOURNOY: We will.

COSTELLO: Eli Flournoy, thank you.

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