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American Morning

King of Jordan Praises Bush's Middle East Policy

Aired February 01, 2002 - 08:30   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.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: It's interesting to note that the king of Jordan, who has just had breakfast with the president, praised Bush's Middle East policy yesterday, saying it was striking a fair balance, but at the same time urging the president to continue to try to work with Yasser Arafat.

Let's check in with Major Garrett, who is standing by outside the White House. A catch-all of issues that the president addressed here this morning, he seemed to be spending the most time on this relationship between the United States and Jordan. What struck you about what you heard this morning?

MAJOR GARRETT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, a couple of things first, Paula, on the Middle East. The president talking about the Palestinian Yasser Arafat, saying he must do more to fight terrorm, and we believe he can do more.

Now, on the one hand, the president is saying Yasser Arafat hasn't done enough, but he's also saying we believe he's in a position to do more, suggesting that Mr. Arafat, at least in the eyes of the president and his senior advisers, has more legitimacy perhaps than is currently being conferred upon him by some in the region.

So on the one hand, he is saying you have got to do more, but we also know you can do more, so you are a factor, you are a legitimate prescence in this process, and you've got to step up to the plate.

The other thing, and you touched it just a moment ago, Paula, King Abdullah saying I know where your heart is on issues of concern throughout the region. And that is a very significant message, because if there is any space between the United States, and Egypt and Jordan on this question of the Israelis and the Palestinians, this makes the U.S. position all the more difficult to sell throughout the region.

And with the Jordanian king saying, yes, you need to be involved, but where you are right now, I agree with you, know your heart is in the right place; that very strongly suggests to Palestinians who believe the United States president has inordinately sided with Israel. The king of Jordan does not believe that. That was significant.

Also I thought it was interesting that the president talking about the trail, the evidentiary trail that the e-mails may provide and maybe a breakthrough on this Daniel Pearl hostage situation. I was struck that he mentioned that out loud as a course of evidence. Typically, when evidence is being gathered and promising leads are being followed, you don't want to mention them, so perhaps that suggests they're farther along than we believe. But mentioning the e- mail certainly lets those who are watching this case very closely think that maybe the Pakistani government and the U.S. intelligence operatives there are on to something -- Paula.

ZAHN: Major, let's come back to the Middle East for a moment. It's striking to me that there seems to be a slight change in position of the king of Jordan. I know in an interview he did with me shortly after September 11th, he essentially said, had there been peace in the Middle East, September 11th would not have happened. And there were, at this point, overtures coming from the Jordanian government that the U.S. was not an honest broker and perhaps supporting Israel too much in the process. Is there a change in position, or am I reading too much into this in this morning?

GARRETT: No, I think you're on to something, Paula. And the watershed event, and I don't think there's any doubt about it, both in the region and as far as the high council of the Bush administration are concerned. With the discovery in early January of that transport vessel, the Korean A, and 50 tons of weapons. As the president said, from Iran, destined for the Palestinian Authority.

Now, the Jordanian king know hs ecannot look at this shipment of arms and say, well, that was sort of an accidental delivery, we don't know what that is really about and be considered as a serious and credible member of the anti-terror coalition. That shipment of weapons, as the president said, is in some ways exposed some elements within the Palestinian Authority of wanting to have weapons, but the Israeli government contends and the United States sympathetically beleives, were going to be used to commit acts of terror against Israeli civilians.

So when the president says you've got to fight terror to get to peace, he means it. And the Jordanian king knows, diplomatically, if he disagrees with that position, he'll be opting himself out of the anti-terror coalition, putting himself on the wrong side of this administration, and basically freezing himself out. So that shipment of weapons has really changed the dynamic of how many in the region, and clearly this White House, view the Palestinian Authority and its verbal commitments to fight terror within its own ranks.

ZAHN: All right, Major Garrett, thanks so much. Appreciate that update this morning. Lots of territory covered by the president.

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