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Bush Leaves for Africa Monday
Aired July 04, 2003 - 14:08 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.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: New information coming in by the minute here at CNN Center. President Bush now leaving for Africa on Monday. It's widely expected that he will decide before whether to send troops into Liberia. Our senior White House correspondent John King monitoring the event minute by minute. John, what's the latest?
JOHN KING, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well a lot of developments today, Kyra, that could impact the president's time table. As you were discussing at the top of the show, the biggest development today is this promise from Liberia's president, Charles Taylor, to leave the country. Now, there's still a key hang up over the timing of such a departure. President Taylor says international peacekeepers could come -- should come in first. President Bush has said President Taylor should leave, and then the peacekeepers should come in. So, more remains to be negotiated. But the White House is saying this is a potential breakthrough in the Liberia crises.
The President's immediate move is to send a Pentagon assessment team in. This was announced by the white house as the President was out at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio today spending some time on this Independence Day with members of the U. S. Military. You see the President in his shirt sleeves there waving at Wright- Patterson.
This team from the Pentagon, about two dozen people, will go into assess the situation on the ground, whether it would be hostile if U. S. troops went in, and to assess how capable other West African nations would be. There is a West African force prepared to go in first. The Pentagon will determine their capabilities to see how many, if any, U. S. troops should go in to back them up.
Now, the President said nothing directly about the Liberia situation today, but in his speech out at Wright-Patterson, he did discuss his view that sometimes it is critical that the United States Military take an active role in world hot spots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our people in uniform do not have easy duty, and much depends on their success. Without America's active involvement in the world, the ambitions of tyrants would go unopposed, and millions would live at the mercy of terrorists. With America's active involvement in the world, tyrants learn to fear, and terrorists are on the run.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Then the next key step is the exact details of when and how President Taylor will leave Liberia. White House officials say his promise must now be backed up with deeds. They also say behind the scenes here that they believe President Bush was instrumental in bringing this about with his public calls in recent days that President Taylor step aside.
Again, Mr. Bush will send a Pentagon assessment team in. It will assess the capabilities of West African forces. It will assess the need for additional troops in the region. Here at the White House, Kyra, they say the President is committed to having a U. S. role in resolving the Liberia crisis, but as to an announcement as to how many, specifically, U. S. troops, might participate in the peacekeeping mission, the fact is this Pentagon team is just going in, it will need a day or two to get there, then a day or two to get their work. It could actually be a bit longer before we get a definitive answer from the President. Kyra?
PHILLIPS: All right. John, two quick questions for you as we're watching live pictures here as the President steps off at Andrews Air Force Base. First of all, a lot of people asking the question, why now? Why is this commitment to Liberia happening now?
KING: Well, part of it is just coincidental timing of what is happening. There was a cease fire agreement, and then it collapsed. And other countries are saying the United States should take a role in trying to bring back order because of the historical ties. Liberia was founded by former slaves here in the United States. So, there is a linkage with the United States. It was a key cold war ally.
Plus other nations have stepped up in the neighborhood of late, if you will. Great Britain sent troops into Sierra Leon as peacekeepers. France sent troops into the Ivory Coast as peacekeepers. Mr. Bush says he is committed to helping peace and stability in Africa, and what many world leaders are saying is, here's your turn, Mr. President.
PHILLIPS: All right. Now, John, taking a look at the situation in Iraq and what happened after the fall of Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi regime, the looting, the chaos, just the craziness that took place on the streets. Is the administration looking ahead? Ok, if Charles Taylor steps down, OK, if troops go in, how do you prevent the looting? How do you prevent the same type of chaos that we saw in Iraq? You have a lot of loyalists to Charles Taylor there.
KING: That is one of the concerns here. Now, they are very different situations. Iraq was a police state run by Saddam Hussein, and you have the chaos there. In Liberia, there are a number of identifiable rebel factions who have been fighting President Taylor and his forces for 14 years now. The United States has diplomats right now in Ghana meeting with leaders of the rebel factions. Before any U. S. troops go in, the President wants a commitment from those rebel factions that they will lay down their arms and police themselves, that they will not allow their men to loot, not allow chaos, not allow lawlessness. The President wants a commitment from the other West African nations in the neighborhood that they will send in 3,000 or 4,000 troops to take the lead role. The United States may be in command of it in the end. We're not certain of this yet, but the predominant number would come from other West African nations.
So, those are the questions being asked right now, and that is one of the challenges of this new Pentagon assessment team. Is there relative guarantee that if U. S. troops went in, there would be calm, not chaos.
PHILLIPS: All right. John King live from the White House. 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 July 4, 2003 - 14:08 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: New information coming in by the minute here at CNN Center. President Bush now leaving for Africa on Monday. It's widely expected that he will decide before whether to send troops into Liberia. Our senior White House correspondent John King monitoring the event minute by minute. John, what's the latest?
JOHN KING, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well a lot of developments today, Kyra, that could impact the president's time table. As you were discussing at the top of the show, the biggest development today is this promise from Liberia's president, Charles Taylor, to leave the country. Now, there's still a key hang up over the timing of such a departure. President Taylor says international peacekeepers could come -- should come in first. President Bush has said President Taylor should leave, and then the peacekeepers should come in. So, more remains to be negotiated. But the White House is saying this is a potential breakthrough in the Liberia crises.
The President's immediate move is to send a Pentagon assessment team in. This was announced by the white house as the President was out at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base in Ohio today spending some time on this Independence Day with members of the U. S. Military. You see the President in his shirt sleeves there waving at Wright- Patterson.
This team from the Pentagon, about two dozen people, will go into assess the situation on the ground, whether it would be hostile if U. S. troops went in, and to assess how capable other West African nations would be. There is a West African force prepared to go in first. The Pentagon will determine their capabilities to see how many, if any, U. S. troops should go in to back them up.
Now, the President said nothing directly about the Liberia situation today, but in his speech out at Wright-Patterson, he did discuss his view that sometimes it is critical that the United States Military take an active role in world hot spots.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Our people in uniform do not have easy duty, and much depends on their success. Without America's active involvement in the world, the ambitions of tyrants would go unopposed, and millions would live at the mercy of terrorists. With America's active involvement in the world, tyrants learn to fear, and terrorists are on the run.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Then the next key step is the exact details of when and how President Taylor will leave Liberia. White House officials say his promise must now be backed up with deeds. They also say behind the scenes here that they believe President Bush was instrumental in bringing this about with his public calls in recent days that President Taylor step aside.
Again, Mr. Bush will send a Pentagon assessment team in. It will assess the capabilities of West African forces. It will assess the need for additional troops in the region. Here at the White House, Kyra, they say the President is committed to having a U. S. role in resolving the Liberia crisis, but as to an announcement as to how many, specifically, U. S. troops, might participate in the peacekeeping mission, the fact is this Pentagon team is just going in, it will need a day or two to get there, then a day or two to get their work. It could actually be a bit longer before we get a definitive answer from the President. Kyra?
PHILLIPS: All right. John, two quick questions for you as we're watching live pictures here as the President steps off at Andrews Air Force Base. First of all, a lot of people asking the question, why now? Why is this commitment to Liberia happening now?
KING: Well, part of it is just coincidental timing of what is happening. There was a cease fire agreement, and then it collapsed. And other countries are saying the United States should take a role in trying to bring back order because of the historical ties. Liberia was founded by former slaves here in the United States. So, there is a linkage with the United States. It was a key cold war ally.
Plus other nations have stepped up in the neighborhood of late, if you will. Great Britain sent troops into Sierra Leon as peacekeepers. France sent troops into the Ivory Coast as peacekeepers. Mr. Bush says he is committed to helping peace and stability in Africa, and what many world leaders are saying is, here's your turn, Mr. President.
PHILLIPS: All right. Now, John, taking a look at the situation in Iraq and what happened after the fall of Saddam Hussein and the Iraqi regime, the looting, the chaos, just the craziness that took place on the streets. Is the administration looking ahead? Ok, if Charles Taylor steps down, OK, if troops go in, how do you prevent the looting? How do you prevent the same type of chaos that we saw in Iraq? You have a lot of loyalists to Charles Taylor there.
KING: That is one of the concerns here. Now, they are very different situations. Iraq was a police state run by Saddam Hussein, and you have the chaos there. In Liberia, there are a number of identifiable rebel factions who have been fighting President Taylor and his forces for 14 years now. The United States has diplomats right now in Ghana meeting with leaders of the rebel factions. Before any U. S. troops go in, the President wants a commitment from those rebel factions that they will lay down their arms and police themselves, that they will not allow their men to loot, not allow chaos, not allow lawlessness. The President wants a commitment from the other West African nations in the neighborhood that they will send in 3,000 or 4,000 troops to take the lead role. The United States may be in command of it in the end. We're not certain of this yet, but the predominant number would come from other West African nations.
So, those are the questions being asked right now, and that is one of the challenges of this new Pentagon assessment team. Is there relative guarantee that if U. S. troops went in, there would be calm, not chaos.
PHILLIPS: All right. John King live from the White House. 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
