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CNN Live At Daybreak
President Bush Attempts to Sell Missile Defense Plan to Europeans
Aired June 13, 2001 - 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.
COLLEEN MCEDWARDS, CNN ANCHOR: All right, the other major story we're following this morning: the president's mission to Europe. George W. Bush is making his NATO debut today. It is his toughest test so far on the world stage.
The president is trying to persuade NATO allies to scrap a treaty that bans missile defenses. Mr. Bush did not mention that in his opening remarks at the NATO meeting in Belgium, the second stop on his six-nation European tour and our senior White House correspondent John King is at the NATO alliance headquarters in Brussels. He joins us now. Hi, John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Colleen. Well, that's right, a very important stop for President Bush today. This, the second stop, as you mentioned, on his European trip, the focus today on security issues. Mr. Bush's debut as a leader of the NATO Alliance.
Just a short time ago, the 19 members of the alliance posed for their class photo after their summit meeting -- the first NATO summit meeting in two years -- a very crowded agenda -- NATO expansion. Three members were added two years ago: Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. They're planning on adding more, still to be determined just who, two years from now.
New plans for a European security force being discussed, but certainly the most controversial item, the president's case that the United States and its allies should move ahead with a new missile defense plan. Mr. Bush saying there is a threat of a rogue missile launch from say, an Iran or an Iraq or a North Korea.
Many of the allies quite skeptical. In public, the president said very little about this, only obliquely referring to the new threats he believes are faced by the United States and its allies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our nations established NATO to provide security for the free peoples of Europe and North America, to build a grand alliance of freedom to defend values which were won at great cost.
We succeeded in part. The NATO alliance deterred the Soviet Union. It provided the time and space for free peoples to defeat communism, and it brought the Cold War to a bloodless end. Now we have a great opportunity to build a Europe whole, free, and at peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Now U.S. officials telling reporters, as the president travels here, they believe they're making some progress -- slow progress, but still progress, they say, in convincing the skeptical allies that this missile shield program should go forward, that more technology should be tested.
But skepticism inside the hall as the president attended his first NATO meeting, more demonstrations and protests outside on the streets of Brussels, much as it was the case yesterday in Madrid: protests about that missile shield; protests about the president's views on global warming; protests about his support of the death penalty as well. As the president makes his first official trip to Europe, protesters and demonstrations, skepticism at every stop -- Colleen.
MCEDWARDS: John, is -- to what extent is Russia still considered key in terms of whether that missile defense plan lives or dies? I know -- I know Mr. Bush is meeting with President Vladimir Putin at some point on this trip.
KING: Certainly key as to whether the missile defense plan goes forward with less controversy. The president and his team say they will go forward. What they hope to do is convince the Russians and the European allies to negotiate amendments. The negotiations would have to be directly with Russia -- amendments to the 1972 Anti- Ballistic Missile Treaty, because otherwise the United States will eventually violate that treaty as it tests the new missile defense technology.
Mr. Bush hoping to reach an agreement with the Russians, encouraged by recent openness by the Russians to this subject, still very difficult negotiations ahead. The U.S. administration saying it will go forward regardless of what the Russians say, though. Certainly, it would be much less controversial if the president could reach an agreement with President Putin on this issue -- Colleen.
MCEDWARDS: Understood John, thanks. CNN's John King in Brussels.
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