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American Morning
National Security Council Meets About Iraq
Aired December 18, 2002 - 09:04 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: Back to Iraq. This morning, National Security Council is meeting to recommend that the president declare Iraq in violation of the U.N. resolution. Let's turn to our senior White House John King who has the details -- good morning, John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Paula. That meeting getting underway as we speak. Here at the White House, members of the president's National Security Council have been arriving over the past 30 minutes or so. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Powell.
On the agenda this morning, we are told their recommendation to the president that he declare Iraq has failed the test, that Iraq has done nothing close to what it was supposed to do in terms of providing a full, complete, and accurate accounting to the United Nations Security Council about its programs of weapons of mass destruction.
U.S. officials say the Iraqi document falls far short, that it does not say what Iraq has done with stockpiles it was known to have, mustard gas shells, other chemical and biological weapons, also nuclear weapons program. U.S. officials say there's not any detail at all about what the United States believes has gone on in the Iraqi nuclear program over the past several years. Still, U.S. officials tell us the president will lay out and authorize U.S. diplomats to tell the United Nations that the U.S. feels Iraq is in violation of its commitment, but also say there is no press from this administration for immediate military action.
Instead, the United States wants more aggressive inspectors and, again, the United States pressing for the inspectors to use the clause in the resolution that allows them to take Iraqi scientists outside of Iraq, take their families outside of Iraq, interview them there. U.S. officials believe they will get a much more honest accounting of the weapons programs if they do that. That will be the priority for the next several weeks -- Paula.
ZAHN: But John, there's also been a tremendous debate how successful the inspectors would be in getting these folks out of the country, and how they get their families safely out of the country. Fill us in on that.
KING: Well, Hans Blix himself has voiced some skepticism that that is the route to go. He has said he would use that provision if he believed it was necessary.
Mr. Blix, of course, the head of the United Nations inspections agency. He has said he wants to see down the road if that becomes necessary. U.S. Officials believe it is the only way to get a good accounting. They believe only when people feel safe, free of the grip of Saddam Hussein, will they tell the truth. So, that still remains a very pressing question.
One of the reasons the United States is coming forward with this finding that Iraq is in violation is because Mr. Blix is supposed to give his preliminary account to the Security Council tomorrow and into the end of the week, and so the United States wants to put the pressure on him to be more aggressive by laying out there at least this initial verdict that the United States believes Iraq is guilty, if you will, that Iraq has failed to meet the will of the United Nations.
ZAHN: Take us behind the scenes, the debate over the use of the word material breach and how Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is loath to use that at this point.
KING: Well, many U.S. officials, not just the secretary of defense, believe once the United States declares Iraq is in material breach, if we get to that point, and most believe here we will, but if the United States says Iraq is in material breach, then past statements of the United States have said there would be no patience for any violations, no patience once the United States reached the conclusion of material breach, then the United States has said it would invoke the clause that says there will be serious consequences.
Of course, everyone knows that term means, from the White House perspective, military confrontation. So until the president and unless the president has decided to go to war with Iraq, some in his national security team believe you do not want to put that term out there because that is the trigger. Once you decide material breach, they believe the burden is on the president to prove that he meant it.
ZAHN: John King, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
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 December 18, 2002 - 09:04 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Back to Iraq. This morning, National Security Council is meeting to recommend that the president declare Iraq in violation of the U.N. resolution. Let's turn to our senior White House John King who has the details -- good morning, John.
JOHN KING, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good morning to you, Paula. That meeting getting underway as we speak. Here at the White House, members of the president's National Security Council have been arriving over the past 30 minutes or so. Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, Secretary of State Powell.
On the agenda this morning, we are told their recommendation to the president that he declare Iraq has failed the test, that Iraq has done nothing close to what it was supposed to do in terms of providing a full, complete, and accurate accounting to the United Nations Security Council about its programs of weapons of mass destruction.
U.S. officials say the Iraqi document falls far short, that it does not say what Iraq has done with stockpiles it was known to have, mustard gas shells, other chemical and biological weapons, also nuclear weapons program. U.S. officials say there's not any detail at all about what the United States believes has gone on in the Iraqi nuclear program over the past several years. Still, U.S. officials tell us the president will lay out and authorize U.S. diplomats to tell the United Nations that the U.S. feels Iraq is in violation of its commitment, but also say there is no press from this administration for immediate military action.
Instead, the United States wants more aggressive inspectors and, again, the United States pressing for the inspectors to use the clause in the resolution that allows them to take Iraqi scientists outside of Iraq, take their families outside of Iraq, interview them there. U.S. officials believe they will get a much more honest accounting of the weapons programs if they do that. That will be the priority for the next several weeks -- Paula.
ZAHN: But John, there's also been a tremendous debate how successful the inspectors would be in getting these folks out of the country, and how they get their families safely out of the country. Fill us in on that.
KING: Well, Hans Blix himself has voiced some skepticism that that is the route to go. He has said he would use that provision if he believed it was necessary.
Mr. Blix, of course, the head of the United Nations inspections agency. He has said he wants to see down the road if that becomes necessary. U.S. Officials believe it is the only way to get a good accounting. They believe only when people feel safe, free of the grip of Saddam Hussein, will they tell the truth. So, that still remains a very pressing question.
One of the reasons the United States is coming forward with this finding that Iraq is in violation is because Mr. Blix is supposed to give his preliminary account to the Security Council tomorrow and into the end of the week, and so the United States wants to put the pressure on him to be more aggressive by laying out there at least this initial verdict that the United States believes Iraq is guilty, if you will, that Iraq has failed to meet the will of the United Nations.
ZAHN: Take us behind the scenes, the debate over the use of the word material breach and how Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is loath to use that at this point.
KING: Well, many U.S. officials, not just the secretary of defense, believe once the United States declares Iraq is in material breach, if we get to that point, and most believe here we will, but if the United States says Iraq is in material breach, then past statements of the United States have said there would be no patience for any violations, no patience once the United States reached the conclusion of material breach, then the United States has said it would invoke the clause that says there will be serious consequences.
Of course, everyone knows that term means, from the White House perspective, military confrontation. So until the president and unless the president has decided to go to war with Iraq, some in his national security team believe you do not want to put that term out there because that is the trigger. Once you decide material breach, they believe the burden is on the president to prove that he meant it.
ZAHN: John King, thanks so much. Appreciate it.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
