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CNN Live At Daybreak

Bush Administration Knows It has to Convince Muslim and Arab leaders U.S. Justified in Targeting Afghanistan

Aired November 01, 2001 - 08:08   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.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Since the beginning of the U.S. efforts to strike back at terrorism, the Bush administration knew it had to convince Muslim and Arab leaders that the U.S. is justified in targeting Afghanistan.

Our Major Garrett is on the White House lawn this morning to explain what Washington and London are doing to try to achieve that goal -- good morning, Major.

MAJOR GARRETT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Miles.

As CNN first reported yesterday afternoon, the United States and the British are about to unleash a massive, and very seriously coordinated, campaign to deal with the propaganda coming from the Taliban. What British and U.S. officials believe is very dangerous propaganda coming from the Taliban. Propaganda, they say, has begun to erode support, not only in the Muslim and Arab world, generally, but even in Europe to the coalition's effort to confront global terrorism, particularly in Afghanistan.

The United States and the British government have agreed to set up offices here at the White House, at 10 Downing Street in London, and in Islamabad, Pakistan, to create, what they call, the Coalition Information Center. It is a means by which the coalition will respond, in what they describe as a real-time basis, to any new development in the war on terrorism -- be it in Afghanistan or be it here in the United States -- and to disseminate pro-coalition information, facts and speeches, briefings and other things.

So when there is a news event, for example, in Afghanistan, if there is something on Al-Jazeera television, if there is something put out by the Taliban, instead of hours going by before anyone from the coalition responds in an official way, that response will be immediate. And U.S. and British officials hope this, will in some way, at least balance the scales, particularly in the Muslim and Arab world, scales they believe have been tipped dangerously toward the Taliban direction. And the very real sense here at the White House and of the British government is that on the propaganda front, the war is being lost, and this new massive and coordinated effort needs to be joined immediately to try to balance the scales -- Miles.

O'BRIEN: All right. A war on many fronts -- CNN's Major Garrett at the White House -- thanks very much. TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.