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Media Expects Very Short Notice Before Any Announcement of War

Aired March 19, 2003 - 14:02   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: At the White House, it has been one meeting after another for the president as the clock ticks away on his ultimatum to Saddam Hussein and his sons.
Our senior White House correspondent, John King, working a very long day for us at the White House -- John, what is the latest from there?

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, the question now is when, not if U.S. forces will attack Iraq. As you note, that deadline just six hours away. It is very much on President Bush's mind. He met earlier today with his full national security team. After that meeting taking some time to meet privately with the defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld. We are told the president went over in great detail the final war planning, including the movement of those troops we've just seen in the pictures to positions further north in Kuwait, poised just along the border with Iraq. Officials say the president will make the call based upon the advice of military commanders as to when to strike, and with the United States on the brink of war, perhaps even within hours, the White House press secretary, Ari Fleischer, saying today, Yes, the American people need to be prepared for the loss of life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Clearly have seen what has been developing for months and months and months as a result of the diplomatic endeavors that the president tried while making plain and certain to the American people and to Iraq that if Iraq did not disarm, force would be used, and the American people understand that if force is used, lives may be lost, indeed. I think there is no question the country understands that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Mr. Fleischer telling reporters the president hopes any war will be as precise and as short in duration as possible. Mr. Bush called his chief ally, the British prime minister, Tony Blair today to consult as well, and to congratulate him on winning a key vote of support in the British Parliament.

U.S. officials say the president could decide any time after the deadline passes to order strikes on Iraq, but they say he will make his decision not based on that deadline, but based on what his military commanders are telling him. One senior official telling CNN the president could wait a bit, saying he sees no harm at all in leaving the Iraqis -- quote -- "looking up at the sky for a little bit."

Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's John King. Before you get away, could you give us a sense of what indications you anticipate from the White House as the time draws near or, for obvious reasons, they're not telling you?

KING: Well, they're not telling us much, and we may see, as we did in the last Persian Gulf war, the first piece of evidence coming from our folks in Baghdad, who might see the beginning of an aerial assault. We are told we will get a very short heads up that the president will be prepared to deliver an Oval Office address to the American people announcing that hostilities are underway. That is our understanding. The next time we hear from the president of the United States, he will be announcing war is underway, but we aren't being told when that will come.

O'BRIEN: Not a big heads up. OK. John King at the White House. We'll check in with you frequently throughout the day.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I would imagine the viewers at home can tell that CNN's presence here in the Persian Gulf is unparalleled. A number of our crews are also embedded with combat units. That includes our Ryan Chilcote, and he's joining us now from Camp New Jersey in the Kuwaiti desert that is temporary home to the Army's elite 101st Airborne Division -- Ryan, hello.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's 10:00 p.m. here, and as you can see at Camp New Jersey, a lot of the soldiers are still up repacking, a lot of them repacking their ruck sacks, a lot of soldiers recleaning their weapons, a lot of soldiers double-checking on their ammunition, keeping themselves busy late into the evening here, but there's really not a whole lot left for the soldiers to do but wait.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. MIKE LINNINGTON, U.S. ARMY: They've been here for a couple of weeks, as you know. They've acclimated to this environment. They've got their plans and orders. We've gone through rehearsals, and we're ready to go. We're just waiting for the word from the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHILCOTE: All day, soldiers have been lining up at what is known here as the AT&T calling center. It's a place where, for 30 cents a minute, the soldiers can call back home. A lot of them making what they think will be their last call before they ship out saying, Hey, a lot of conversations beginning with, Hey, I don't know when I'm going to be able to call you next, but I just wanted to let you know I will be OK.

So a lot of heartfelt conversations, a lot of soldiers here taking care this evening a lot of their own personal business -- back to you. KAGAN: Ryan, can you tell our viewers how long you have been embedded, how long you have been with the 101st Airborne Division, and if you've seen the mood change from the time you arrived to tonight, with the night could be the eve of war?

CHILCOTE: Sure. Well, I started with the 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, about three weeks ago. I spent a week with them there and then flew over, actually, on civilian airliners with them here into the desert -- into the desert here in Kuwait. And absolutely, there's been a mood change. Up until about two or three days ago, the soldiers didn't know for sure what was going to happen. There was still the prospect that this could get delayed indefinitely, that it could get delayed until the Fall. Now there is a real feeling that they will be going. That is a real strong feeling among the soldiers, and there is a sense of fear, but it's really a fear of the unknown. But it's a fear that, I think, they're happy to replace with the feeling -- the fear they had before of not knowing what they are about to do.

At least now they know that they are going to be going. That's a lot better than what they had before, because a lot of the soldiers are saying, Look, this is what we came here to do. The sooner we start this, the sooner we can finish it, and the sooner we can go home. Really some pragmatic views of this conflict that's about to unfold -- back to you.

KAGAN: Question that still hangs out there is when. We'll just have to wait to see for the answer for that. Ryan Chilcote, thank you so much for that. We move on now to Turkey. That is where, as we mention, lawmakers may let U.S. war planes use Turkish air space, but they will not let U.S. ground troops use Turkish bases. U.S. forces do have a presence in Turkey, as they carry out patrols of the northern Iraqi no-fly zone from the air base there. That is a far cry -- that is actually very far from the Iraqi border, but war preparations are underway nonetheless, and that is where our Harris Whitbeck is tonight -- Harris, hello.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

Actually, Operation Northern Watch, which has been run out of Incirlik for several years now has been suspended for the last two days. For the last two days, no attack aircraft have left this base. Normally, you see F-15s, F-16s from the U.S. and U.K. flying in and out of here practically on the hour, but since two days ago, that has not happened.

The air base is on what they call a force protection contingency at the Charlie level. That is the second highest level of alert here. And so far, about 1,500 dependents of U.S. citizens, who work either as civilians or in the military on the base, are in the process now of being sent back to the United States. This, again, to protect them. The fear here is that there could be terrorist attacks against U.S. civilian -- military interests in the region. And of course, we're only about 300 miles or so from the border between Turkey and Iraq.

Now, you said -- you mentioned the government's decision here to allow the use of air space. The parliament is to decide tomorrow on whether to allow that. That is a lot less than what the U.S. had expected originally. Originally, as you said, they wanted to put up to 62,000 U.S. troops on the ground in Turkey, and have them march into northern Iraq to establish a northern front. That won't happen immediately, but the government is leaving open the possibility that that could be addressed in the near future -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Harris Whitbeck in Turkey.

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




War>


Aired March 19, 2003 - 14:02   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: At the White House, it has been one meeting after another for the president as the clock ticks away on his ultimatum to Saddam Hussein and his sons.
Our senior White House correspondent, John King, working a very long day for us at the White House -- John, what is the latest from there?

JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Miles, the question now is when, not if U.S. forces will attack Iraq. As you note, that deadline just six hours away. It is very much on President Bush's mind. He met earlier today with his full national security team. After that meeting taking some time to meet privately with the defense secretary, Donald Rumsfeld. We are told the president went over in great detail the final war planning, including the movement of those troops we've just seen in the pictures to positions further north in Kuwait, poised just along the border with Iraq. Officials say the president will make the call based upon the advice of military commanders as to when to strike, and with the United States on the brink of war, perhaps even within hours, the White House press secretary, Ari Fleischer, saying today, Yes, the American people need to be prepared for the loss of life.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ARI FLEISCHER, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Clearly have seen what has been developing for months and months and months as a result of the diplomatic endeavors that the president tried while making plain and certain to the American people and to Iraq that if Iraq did not disarm, force would be used, and the American people understand that if force is used, lives may be lost, indeed. I think there is no question the country understands that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Mr. Fleischer telling reporters the president hopes any war will be as precise and as short in duration as possible. Mr. Bush called his chief ally, the British prime minister, Tony Blair today to consult as well, and to congratulate him on winning a key vote of support in the British Parliament.

U.S. officials say the president could decide any time after the deadline passes to order strikes on Iraq, but they say he will make his decision not based on that deadline, but based on what his military commanders are telling him. One senior official telling CNN the president could wait a bit, saying he sees no harm at all in leaving the Iraqis -- quote -- "looking up at the sky for a little bit."

Miles.

O'BRIEN: CNN's John King. Before you get away, could you give us a sense of what indications you anticipate from the White House as the time draws near or, for obvious reasons, they're not telling you?

KING: Well, they're not telling us much, and we may see, as we did in the last Persian Gulf war, the first piece of evidence coming from our folks in Baghdad, who might see the beginning of an aerial assault. We are told we will get a very short heads up that the president will be prepared to deliver an Oval Office address to the American people announcing that hostilities are underway. That is our understanding. The next time we hear from the president of the United States, he will be announcing war is underway, but we aren't being told when that will come.

O'BRIEN: Not a big heads up. OK. John King at the White House. We'll check in with you frequently throughout the day.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I would imagine the viewers at home can tell that CNN's presence here in the Persian Gulf is unparalleled. A number of our crews are also embedded with combat units. That includes our Ryan Chilcote, and he's joining us now from Camp New Jersey in the Kuwaiti desert that is temporary home to the Army's elite 101st Airborne Division -- Ryan, hello.

RYAN CHILCOTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's 10:00 p.m. here, and as you can see at Camp New Jersey, a lot of the soldiers are still up repacking, a lot of them repacking their ruck sacks, a lot of soldiers recleaning their weapons, a lot of soldiers double-checking on their ammunition, keeping themselves busy late into the evening here, but there's really not a whole lot left for the soldiers to do but wait.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COL. MIKE LINNINGTON, U.S. ARMY: They've been here for a couple of weeks, as you know. They've acclimated to this environment. They've got their plans and orders. We've gone through rehearsals, and we're ready to go. We're just waiting for the word from the president.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHILCOTE: All day, soldiers have been lining up at what is known here as the AT&T calling center. It's a place where, for 30 cents a minute, the soldiers can call back home. A lot of them making what they think will be their last call before they ship out saying, Hey, a lot of conversations beginning with, Hey, I don't know when I'm going to be able to call you next, but I just wanted to let you know I will be OK.

So a lot of heartfelt conversations, a lot of soldiers here taking care this evening a lot of their own personal business -- back to you. KAGAN: Ryan, can you tell our viewers how long you have been embedded, how long you have been with the 101st Airborne Division, and if you've seen the mood change from the time you arrived to tonight, with the night could be the eve of war?

CHILCOTE: Sure. Well, I started with the 101st Airborne at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, about three weeks ago. I spent a week with them there and then flew over, actually, on civilian airliners with them here into the desert -- into the desert here in Kuwait. And absolutely, there's been a mood change. Up until about two or three days ago, the soldiers didn't know for sure what was going to happen. There was still the prospect that this could get delayed indefinitely, that it could get delayed until the Fall. Now there is a real feeling that they will be going. That is a real strong feeling among the soldiers, and there is a sense of fear, but it's really a fear of the unknown. But it's a fear that, I think, they're happy to replace with the feeling -- the fear they had before of not knowing what they are about to do.

At least now they know that they are going to be going. That's a lot better than what they had before, because a lot of the soldiers are saying, Look, this is what we came here to do. The sooner we start this, the sooner we can finish it, and the sooner we can go home. Really some pragmatic views of this conflict that's about to unfold -- back to you.

KAGAN: Question that still hangs out there is when. We'll just have to wait to see for the answer for that. Ryan Chilcote, thank you so much for that. We move on now to Turkey. That is where, as we mention, lawmakers may let U.S. war planes use Turkish air space, but they will not let U.S. ground troops use Turkish bases. U.S. forces do have a presence in Turkey, as they carry out patrols of the northern Iraqi no-fly zone from the air base there. That is a far cry -- that is actually very far from the Iraqi border, but war preparations are underway nonetheless, and that is where our Harris Whitbeck is tonight -- Harris, hello.

HARRIS WHITBECK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Daryn.

Actually, Operation Northern Watch, which has been run out of Incirlik for several years now has been suspended for the last two days. For the last two days, no attack aircraft have left this base. Normally, you see F-15s, F-16s from the U.S. and U.K. flying in and out of here practically on the hour, but since two days ago, that has not happened.

The air base is on what they call a force protection contingency at the Charlie level. That is the second highest level of alert here. And so far, about 1,500 dependents of U.S. citizens, who work either as civilians or in the military on the base, are in the process now of being sent back to the United States. This, again, to protect them. The fear here is that there could be terrorist attacks against U.S. civilian -- military interests in the region. And of course, we're only about 300 miles or so from the border between Turkey and Iraq.

Now, you said -- you mentioned the government's decision here to allow the use of air space. The parliament is to decide tomorrow on whether to allow that. That is a lot less than what the U.S. had expected originally. Originally, as you said, they wanted to put up to 62,000 U.S. troops on the ground in Turkey, and have them march into northern Iraq to establish a northern front. That won't happen immediately, but the government is leaving open the possibility that that could be addressed in the near future -- Daryn.

KAGAN: Harris Whitbeck in Turkey.

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




War>