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CNN Live At Daybreak

Interview with Peter Finn of "The Washington Post"

Aired October 31, 2001 - 05:46   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.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: This raises a host of questions, and we turn our attention to the European terror connection here.

And joining us with more on that is Peter Finn. He is Central European Bureau Chief for the "Washington Post," and Peter joins on the phone now from Berlin. Peter, thanks for taking time to talk with us today.

You know, the first thing that jumps out of my mind after seeing Sheila's piece, and after you've listened to it as well, is: why Germany? Why was Germany chosen as the location for them to base their operations?

PETER FINN, "WASHINGTON POST": Well, Germany, I guess, has a long tradition of an open borders policy for refugees, compared to other countries in Europe, but also attracts a lot of foreign students. People operating under a religious umbrella are not subject to the same kind of scrutiny or surveillance that they might be in neighboring countries, such as France, where there is much -- traditionally has been much tighter surveillance.

HARRIS: So -- but does that lead you to believe, then, that there is not very much of an al Qaeda presence in any other country in Europe?

FINN: No, I'm not saying that. I'm just answering, in terms of Germany. I mean, European investigators believe that there is a network of loosely-connected groups, who have, to some extent, been absorbed by al Qaeda in quite a number of European countries. And the members of these groups, whether in Milan or France, Belgium, Frankfurt in Germany, have spent time in Afghanistan, where they received training.

HARRIS: Yes, I'm sure this is sort of putting you on the spot, but if you had to hazard a guess, could you guess how large this -- I guess, this conglomerate of people across the continent there might actually be? How many people there are?

Peter?

FINN: Yes.

HARRIS: Any -- do you want to hazard a guess for us this morning of how many people you think there may be working with al Qaeda in Europe?

FINN: I don't think anyone has a firm answer to that, and I think it would be speculative. Certainly, thousands of people have passed through the camps in Afghanistan in the last number of years. Many of those were probably weeded out, but a certain number were selected and returned to Europe to launch terrorist operations, if they could, whether against U.S. installations -- and there were plots against embassies in Rome and Paris -- or whether they were purely European targets, such as a Frankfurt cell that planned to blow up the marketplace in Strasburg, France.

HARRIS: From your seat, how have you -- have you been able to observe much in regards to the cooperation between European and U.S. investigators? Can you give us a report of what you have noticed with that?

FINN: Well, the U.S. investigators, who are currently stationed in Europe -- the FBI are very tight-lipped to the point that they simply do not talk to the media at all. I think cooperation has been evolving and improving. I mean, there have been pick ups, and there have been some tensions noticed since September 11. But I think it is improving as they step up cooperation, which had been piecemeal and staggered prior to September 11. They weren't always fast or speedy in responding to each other's requests for information.

They are working on that, and there have been some tensions, as I said, the Germans, at one point, thought that all of their information was going to Washington, but not enough intelligence was coming in the other direction. But that's probably inevitable as people learn to work with each other.

HARRIS: Yes, we have heard that before. Peter Finn with the "Washington Post" there in Berlin, Germany, we thank you very much for your time and for your insight this morning -- take care -- good luck to you.

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