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American Morning

Interview with Robin Wright

Aired September 13, 2002 - 08:02   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Time to talk Iraq now. If the U.N. won't, the U.S. will. The president's challenge includes an ultimatum for Iraq. The president said yesterday Saddam Hussein must be held to account for a decade of defiance.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: All the world now faces a test and the United Nations a difficult and defining moment. Are Security Council resolutions to be honored and enforced or cast aside without consequence? Will the United Nations serve the purpose of its founding or will it be irrelevant?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZAHN: The president's giving the U.N. a chance for a peaceful resolution. But will diplomats have enough time to avoid a war?

Robin Wright, chief diplomatic correspondent for the "Los Angeles Times," joins us. She also happens to be the author of the book "Sacred Rage." And she joins us now.

Good to see you in person for a change.

ROBIN WRIGHT, "LOS ANGELES TIMES": Nice to be here.

ZAHN: Aren't you happy we didn't wake you up at L.A. time in the middle of the night?

Let's talk a little bit about the clear shift in strategy that was exposed yesterday in this speech. What does it mean?

WRIGHT: Well, the president has reached out to world. He has redefined the parameters of the debate. He said the issue is not just Iraq, but the future of the world's most powerful global institution. He's also said that the issue is not just the issue of weapons of mass destruction, it is a host of other things that a lot of other countries are much more concerned about -- the humanitarian plight of the Iraqi people, the failure of Iraq to comply with economic sanctions, its violations on a host of human rights issues dealing with the aftermath of the Gulf War.

So I think that there's a sigh of relief in the outside world that the debate has been defined in ways that are sellable in their own home towns and in ways that may make the issue and the future much more compatible with their own, you know, their own values. ZAHN: The next step might be the most challenging step now, as Secretary Powell tries to cobble together resolutions with the Security Council. And I guess my question to you is how movable do you think even the most staunch contacts of the Bush administration are when it comes to potential action against Iraq?

WRIGHT: Well, I think it's likely you'll see unanimity on some kind of resolution to get the weapons inspectors back into Iraq. The issue is how much agreement is the United States going to get on the issue of using force or is it going to get at minimum some kind of agreement that U.N. member states may be allowed to take action if Saddam Hussein does not comply? That's probably what, all the United States can hope for.

But I think there are three key players as the United States looks out at the outside world.

ZAHN: Russia?

WRIGHT: Russia.

ZAHN: China?

WRIGHT: France.

ZAHN: France?

WRIGHT: France.

ZAHN: OK, because we had Chirac setting a very distinct timetable that sort of surprised people when he gave that four to six week window?

WRIGHT: And France also represents Europe and the doubts in Europe about not just going to war, but the aftermath, what happens after Saddam Hussein is ousted. I think China, at the end of the day, will probably go along with what France and Russia. And those, of course, are the three permanent members of the U.N. Security Council that have not signed onto this. Britain has, so the U.S. has two out of the five votes.

ZAHN: In an interview with Secretary Powell earlier today, I posed the question how is it that 16 resolutions that the administration keeps on pointing out were never enforced by the U.N. and you believe now, going through this next process and creating another resolution that it will stick. And he basically says he believes this time around the U.N. will have the inclination. Do you believe that?

WRIGHT: Well, I think the threat of force and the United States using force, I think, will probably compel members of the United Nations to take action or allow action, because they see that there's no alternative. And as I said, the debate's been framed in a way that it's their own future as a global institution that's really at stake.

But Secretary Powell is going to have an incredibly tough job. The president followed his advice and detoured on the road to Baghdad through the United Nations. Secretary Powell now, over the next two or three weeks, is going to have to try to get everyone to sign on. And I think that we will see not only movement at the United Nations, but these teams of U.S. diplomats and intelligence analysts going to the outside world, to the capitals with the kind of material we didn't see in the dossier the administration presented, all the secret intelligence about what Iraq is developing in terms of weapons of mass destruction, to convince them.

ZAHN: I thought it was interesting that in my interview with the secretary of state just about an hour ago that he said that when it comes to these initial discussions they're going to have about resolutions, the inspectors sort of aren't even part of the immediate conversation. The more immediate conversation is trying to cobble together a consensus of may they -- and he wasn't specific, because they're still trying to come up with this resolution -- just to enforce what's already on the books.

WRIGHT: Well, I think it's a much bigger picture now. The weapons inspectors are part of it. And the administration is trying to convince the world that inspections are not the last aspect of the debate. So you'll see this play out on a number of different levels over the next few weeks.

ZAHN: What are the most obvious signals we should be looking for to see how this is playing?

WRIGHT: I think the language that the French propose in their own resolution, which is quite likely, something probably to counter what the British will propose is part of an alliance that, a budding coalition to see if they can expand it. I think the language from Russia. I think Saudi Arabia is another key player. It represents the Arab world and it is a front line state with Iraq. If the United States does opt to go in militarily, having access at least to over fly rights of Saudi Arabia and potentially use of some of its bases would be critical.

And so I think what Saudi Arabia does will be a reflection in many ways of what the Arab world decides to do.

ZAHN: Well, we very much appreciate your views and enjoy reading your columns when they come out. I know you're one busy woman. And thank you for spending a little part of your morning with us this morning.

Robin Wright of the "L.A. Times," appreciate it.

WRIGHT: Thank you.

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