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Iraq Comments on Blix's Report

Aired January 28, 2003 - 13:24   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.


KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: We go to Baghdad now. Our Nic Robertson live with more on the inspections taking place -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there have been a number of inspection teams out. I think the headline from here today is still no progress on the scientist issue, and we've also had today the first official reaction by Iraqi officials here to Hans Blix's report to the U.N. Security Council. General Amer Rasheed, who is a former oil minister here, perhaps more significantly, he was formerly in charge of Iraq's chemical weapons file, when dealing with the last U.N. mission here.

He said that Hans Blix had been unfair, that it amplified the negative and hadn't focused on the positive. He said not enough attention was paid to the fact that Iraq had really cooperated to the U.N. officials by opening up all these different sites for inspections.

He also said he was disappointed by the fact that there was nothing reported by Hans Blix about the fact that United States and Britain have put forward dossiers of information that had alleged the possibility of weapons of mass destruction production at certain facilities, and he said the U.N. had been there and proven that to be wrong, and there was no comment of it in the report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. AMER RASHEED, IRAQI PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: We would have liked, of course, not possibly (UNINTELLIGIBLE), acknowledgment of this fact, as I am putting it, but at least a mention, to show the whole world what has been called by allegations by the two administration, one should explore that it is purely for political objectives, have nothing to do with mass destruction weapons, have nothing to do with fulfilling Security Council resolution, but rather for pure political objectives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: Now, some of the negative things he said focusing on the U-2, lack of agreement on using that surveillance aircraft.

Also, he gave some very interesting insights into why Iraq has not given the inspectors more information about their VX. He said that they never produced it in a pure enough form, because it was so impure it would have degraded in two to three years. So he said, why discuss the quantity when the very fact that we couldn't produce it and make it last long enough, it makes it a nonissue. Very similarly on anthrax, where there were outstanding questions, he said, look, we only ever got it in liquid form, we never got it in powder form, therefore, it would have degraded quickly. Again, a nonissue, he said. Why discuss quantity when we wouldn't have any stocks left, because it would have degraded. So that's how he dealt with that.

He did, however, say that Iraq was willing to give more cooperation and some extra effort, but he indicated perhaps that had already been done. In a letter to Hans Blix about a month ago, Iraq, he said, had offered to deal with some technical issues, and he said perhaps that was the extra cooperation, and he hinted as well that there may be some progress to be made with the U.N. inspectors on the possibility of these private interviews with scientists -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Nic, meanwhile, Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz coming out, saying if shooting were to begin, that he can't say they wouldn't attack neighboring Kuwait. What about Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi, would these be legitimate targets also, considering all the U.S. troops?

ROBERTSON: Well, he didn't comment on that. I think the implication of what he was saying was that's where the U.S. force would invade Iraq from, and that's why Kuwait would become a target.

Now Iraq is limited under the U.N. resolutions by having missiles that can't go further than about 95 miles. So that would put some of those countries off limits. The question being for many analysts, What about the SCUD capability that could possibly reach these countries, would that come into play? Aziz specifically referring, in this case, however, to Kuwait. He did say that if attacked from there, they would consider retaliation -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Live from Baghdad, Nic Robertson. Thanks, Nic.

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 28, 2003 - 13:24   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: We go to Baghdad now. Our Nic Robertson live with more on the inspections taking place -- Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, there have been a number of inspection teams out. I think the headline from here today is still no progress on the scientist issue, and we've also had today the first official reaction by Iraqi officials here to Hans Blix's report to the U.N. Security Council. General Amer Rasheed, who is a former oil minister here, perhaps more significantly, he was formerly in charge of Iraq's chemical weapons file, when dealing with the last U.N. mission here.

He said that Hans Blix had been unfair, that it amplified the negative and hadn't focused on the positive. He said not enough attention was paid to the fact that Iraq had really cooperated to the U.N. officials by opening up all these different sites for inspections.

He also said he was disappointed by the fact that there was nothing reported by Hans Blix about the fact that United States and Britain have put forward dossiers of information that had alleged the possibility of weapons of mass destruction production at certain facilities, and he said the U.N. had been there and proven that to be wrong, and there was no comment of it in the report.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEN. AMER RASHEED, IRAQI PRESIDENTIAL ADVISER: We would have liked, of course, not possibly (UNINTELLIGIBLE), acknowledgment of this fact, as I am putting it, but at least a mention, to show the whole world what has been called by allegations by the two administration, one should explore that it is purely for political objectives, have nothing to do with mass destruction weapons, have nothing to do with fulfilling Security Council resolution, but rather for pure political objectives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROBERTSON: Now, some of the negative things he said focusing on the U-2, lack of agreement on using that surveillance aircraft.

Also, he gave some very interesting insights into why Iraq has not given the inspectors more information about their VX. He said that they never produced it in a pure enough form, because it was so impure it would have degraded in two to three years. So he said, why discuss the quantity when the very fact that we couldn't produce it and make it last long enough, it makes it a nonissue. Very similarly on anthrax, where there were outstanding questions, he said, look, we only ever got it in liquid form, we never got it in powder form, therefore, it would have degraded quickly. Again, a nonissue, he said. Why discuss quantity when we wouldn't have any stocks left, because it would have degraded. So that's how he dealt with that.

He did, however, say that Iraq was willing to give more cooperation and some extra effort, but he indicated perhaps that had already been done. In a letter to Hans Blix about a month ago, Iraq, he said, had offered to deal with some technical issues, and he said perhaps that was the extra cooperation, and he hinted as well that there may be some progress to be made with the U.N. inspectors on the possibility of these private interviews with scientists -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Nic, meanwhile, Iraq's Deputy Prime Minister Tariq Aziz coming out, saying if shooting were to begin, that he can't say they wouldn't attack neighboring Kuwait. What about Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi, would these be legitimate targets also, considering all the U.S. troops?

ROBERTSON: Well, he didn't comment on that. I think the implication of what he was saying was that's where the U.S. force would invade Iraq from, and that's why Kuwait would become a target.

Now Iraq is limited under the U.N. resolutions by having missiles that can't go further than about 95 miles. So that would put some of those countries off limits. The question being for many analysts, What about the SCUD capability that could possibly reach these countries, would that come into play? Aziz specifically referring, in this case, however, to Kuwait. He did say that if attacked from there, they would consider retaliation -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Live from Baghdad, Nic Robertson. Thanks, Nic.

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