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American Morning

Powell to Meet With U.N. Security Council Today

Aired September 16, 2002 - 07:05   ET

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

BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: Secretary of State Colin Powell will talk with U.N. Security members today, in fact, urging quick action against Baghdad.
Our State Department correspondent, Andrea Koppel, live with us here in New York.

Good to see you again.

ANDREA KOPPEL, CNN STATE DEPARTMENT CORRESPONDENT: Thank you.

HEMMER: I saw you last week spending a lot of time here, and so, too, is the secretary of state. And today's issue is what for Colin Powell?

KOPPEL: Today's issue, and this week's issue, is to get a resolution or resolutions. The U.S. doesn't care how many it takes, just so long as at the end of the day, U.N. weapons inspectors would be ordered back to Baghdad with a short deadline, and at the end of the day, that there would be a threat of force.

So, Secretary Powell, who has been sort of on pins and needles all weekend, is waiting to hear back from various permanent members, who have been home over the weekend in their capitals consulting with their government. They are expected to come back this week and start filtering in.

And really, the question is: Will they support the threat of force? Right now, pretty much most governments are saying they agree with the Bush administration. Weapons inspectors need to get back into Iraq. There needs to be a short deadline. But they haven't signed off on the idea that there would be a possible war that would be, you know, waiting there at the end of the road.

Syria is, so far, the only government to say that they rule it out, any kind of military action. Powell will be meeting with the Syrian foreign minister later today.

But really, though, the first signal, the first possible light at the end of the tunnel, possible, you know, support for military action came from the Saudis, believe it or not, over the weekend. In an interview with CNN, the Saudi foreign minister for the first time signaled that if there were the support of the United Nations, the Saudi government would allow the U.S. to launch attacks against the Iraqis.

HEMMER: Yes, he indicated that not only they would be able to use the bases, but they would also support the action, so long as the U.N. got behind it. I have to think that is very significant, especially in the Arabic world, for that position for Saudi Arabia to go public now.

KOPPEL: It is. But you know, I was talking to a State Department official last nigh, and he said that's always been the Arab world's position. You get the U.N. behind this action -- and, in fact, I believe we have a sound byte with the Saudi foreign minister -- and that's something that the Arab world would support.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRINCE SAUD AL-FAISAL, SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER: There is a world of difference between a week ago, 10 days ago or less, and the time that the president made his speech. The talk that was being circulated at the time was that there is a military action being prepared for Iraq, regardless of what the international community says outside the framework of the United Nations and so forth and so on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KOPPEL: So, the Saudi foreign minister making it very clear, Bill, that his government -- so long as the U.N. signs off on a resolution, which would threaten the use of force -- the Saudi government would allow the U.S. to use military bases.

HEMMER: Quickly come back to the U.N. in the short time we have left here. I'm trying to figure out some sort of timetable that's acceptable to Colin Powell and the rest of the Bush administration. On Friday, the president said it's a matter of days and weeks, not months. Do we know how many weeks? Some say three, some say four, some say at the end of September.

KOPPEL: Bill, it's the U.N.

HEMMER: What's the best gauge?

KOPPEL: Come on, we have no idea. The Bush administration wants to get this done very quickly, and certainly, the pressure will be on the Security Council members to vote. I would guess -- in fact, we are hearing from some diplomats it could be the end of the month.

HEMMER: All right, thanks, Andrea -- great to see you.

KOPPEL: It's good to see you.

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