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President Bush Comparing Notes with Prime Minister Blair
Aired April 07, 2003 - 15:33 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.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush and the British prime minister, Tony Blair, are holding two days of meetings in northern Ireland. The president and his key ally in this war in Iraq are talking not only about the war's progress, but also about peace in northern Ireland, as well as between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Our senior White House correspondent, John King, is traveling with the president. He's joining us now live from Belfast.
John, we know the president is on the ground. What's the itinerary? What's the immediate schedule?
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, tonight the president is having dinner with Prime Minister Blair at a castle just outside of Belfast, informal way to begin this two-day summit. Aides say much of the focus will be on post-war Iraq. Even though the bomb and the shooting still continuing in and around Baghdad, Secretary of State Powell saying on Air Force One as President Bush came across the Atlantic that it's critical to focus on post-war Iraq here, because in his words, "The hostility phase is coming to a conclusion."
Now one of the issues to be discussed here is the role of the United Nations in a post-war Iraq. The British government has been very open in saying it wants the United Nations to have a lead role. Other European nations have been even more open in saying they believe the United Nations should have the lead role.
The Bush administration disagrees with that. It says those shedding the blood will take the lead in calling the shots in post-war Iraq and take the lead in getting a new interim Iraqi authority up and running. Secretary Powell telling reporters he does not believe there are as many disagreements between Washington and London as some media accounts have suggested. And we are told by U.S. officials that a communique to be issued tomorrow will call for a broad advisory role for the United Nations, including a lead effort -- a lead role for the United Nations in the humanitarian effort.
So the president comparing notes with Prime Minister Blair tonight. We will hear directly from them tomorrow. Obviously the focus on the ongoing war effort. But these two leaders moving much more aggressively now to put plans in place for running Iraq once the shooting stops -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John, I saw the secretary of state, Colin Powell, with the president, traveling with the president, arriving in Belfast for these two days of meetings. A lot of speculation back home in the press about differences between Secretary Powell and Secretary Rumsfeld when it comes to a post-war Iraq.
It's almost like a cottage industry back there about these supposed feuds going on within the Bush administration. What's the sense? Is everyone basically on the same page right now, or are these reports serious, that there is a serious difference, perhaps, inside the upper echelons of the president's advisors?
KING: Well I think it's fair to say they're on the same page now, because the White House took steps at the end of the last week to make sure everybody understood where the president stood. Condoleezza Rice came out to brief on Friday; she said her goal was to quiet speculation that there was a tug of war, if you will, within the administration.
Defense Secretary Rumsfeld had suggested in a memo to the president perhaps getting some exiles into Iraq and get an interim authority up and running as soon as possible. The Bush administration says no, you cannot just have an authority with exiles. It must include people from within Iraq as well.
So since late last week, when Condoleezza Rice came out and spoke for the president on how he envisions all this playing out, at that point, administration officials say, if there is a bit of a tug of war, internal tension in the administration, it ended there, because the president has made his views clear -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John King traveling with the president in Belfast, northern Ireland for these two days of talks between President Bush and Prime Minister Blair. Thanks, John.
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 April 7, 2003 - 15:33 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: President Bush and the British prime minister, Tony Blair, are holding two days of meetings in northern Ireland. The president and his key ally in this war in Iraq are talking not only about the war's progress, but also about peace in northern Ireland, as well as between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Our senior White House correspondent, John King, is traveling with the president. He's joining us now live from Belfast.
John, we know the president is on the ground. What's the itinerary? What's the immediate schedule?
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Wolf, tonight the president is having dinner with Prime Minister Blair at a castle just outside of Belfast, informal way to begin this two-day summit. Aides say much of the focus will be on post-war Iraq. Even though the bomb and the shooting still continuing in and around Baghdad, Secretary of State Powell saying on Air Force One as President Bush came across the Atlantic that it's critical to focus on post-war Iraq here, because in his words, "The hostility phase is coming to a conclusion."
Now one of the issues to be discussed here is the role of the United Nations in a post-war Iraq. The British government has been very open in saying it wants the United Nations to have a lead role. Other European nations have been even more open in saying they believe the United Nations should have the lead role.
The Bush administration disagrees with that. It says those shedding the blood will take the lead in calling the shots in post-war Iraq and take the lead in getting a new interim Iraqi authority up and running. Secretary Powell telling reporters he does not believe there are as many disagreements between Washington and London as some media accounts have suggested. And we are told by U.S. officials that a communique to be issued tomorrow will call for a broad advisory role for the United Nations, including a lead effort -- a lead role for the United Nations in the humanitarian effort.
So the president comparing notes with Prime Minister Blair tonight. We will hear directly from them tomorrow. Obviously the focus on the ongoing war effort. But these two leaders moving much more aggressively now to put plans in place for running Iraq once the shooting stops -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John, I saw the secretary of state, Colin Powell, with the president, traveling with the president, arriving in Belfast for these two days of meetings. A lot of speculation back home in the press about differences between Secretary Powell and Secretary Rumsfeld when it comes to a post-war Iraq.
It's almost like a cottage industry back there about these supposed feuds going on within the Bush administration. What's the sense? Is everyone basically on the same page right now, or are these reports serious, that there is a serious difference, perhaps, inside the upper echelons of the president's advisors?
KING: Well I think it's fair to say they're on the same page now, because the White House took steps at the end of the last week to make sure everybody understood where the president stood. Condoleezza Rice came out to brief on Friday; she said her goal was to quiet speculation that there was a tug of war, if you will, within the administration.
Defense Secretary Rumsfeld had suggested in a memo to the president perhaps getting some exiles into Iraq and get an interim authority up and running as soon as possible. The Bush administration says no, you cannot just have an authority with exiles. It must include people from within Iraq as well.
So since late last week, when Condoleezza Rice came out and spoke for the president on how he envisions all this playing out, at that point, administration officials say, if there is a bit of a tug of war, internal tension in the administration, it ended there, because the president has made his views clear -- Wolf.
BLITZER: John King traveling with the president in Belfast, northern Ireland for these two days of talks between President Bush and Prime Minister Blair. Thanks, John.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
