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American Morning

North Korea Hinting It Might Withdraw From Global Nuclear Arms Control Treaty

Aired December 30, 2002 - 07:35   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: Now the possibility of banned weapons in Iraq is just one threat now facing the Bush White House. Now, as we mentioned, North Korea is hinting that it might withdraw from a global nuclear arms control treaty.
How is the administration handling two threats at the same time?

Let's turn to Dana Bash, who's standing by at the White House -- good morning, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

Well, they certainly do have a lot at their plate here at the White House, but they are continuing to handle both situations in a very different manner. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was at not one talk show yesterday, but five, trying to explain the difference, saying that with Iraq the only way for or the main way for Iraq to avoid military action is to comply with the resolution, with U.N. Resolution 1441 and to comply with the U.N. weapons inspections. But when it comes to North Korea, he was urging patience and said over and over again that it is not a crisis there, that a crisis implies that the U.S. is poised for military action in North Korea, which it is not. It wants a peaceful resolution.

He also said that crisis, North Koreans almost are trying to create a crisis, to bring the United States to the table to negotiate. And Colin Powell said that there is no intention on the part of the U.S. to do that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: We have made it clear to the North Koreans that there are ways to communicate, but we will not enter a negotiation where they sit there and say what will you pay us for our misbehavior, how will you appease our misbehavior this time?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, there were critics of the administration out also yesterday, some Democratic senators, saying that the U.S. must engage in direct negotiations with North Korea in order to stop this, saying that the administration, because they cut off negotiations with North Korea, that's caused this to escalate. But for now, the U.S. is saying that they are going to work through North Korea's neighbors in the region, through stock, through Japan. They're going to send a U.S. envoy to South Korea in the next couple of weeks in order to try to work diplomatically, not directly with North Korea, but through the world community -- Paula.

ZAHN: Just very quickly, Dana, everybody else on TV was calling this a crisis in North Korea yesterday, including senior senators. Secretary of State Powell loathed to use that word. Is there any discord at the White House about that decision?

BASH: Not yet. There seems to be a uniform belief that they don't want to ratchet up the rhetoric on this right now. They want to maintain a diplomatic approach. They want to not call it a crisis. They want to work through the neighbors in the region, try to put pressure on North Korea, both politically and economically at this time, and not at all use the "M" word, military action -- Paula.

ZAHN: Dana Bash, thanks so much.

Nice to have you at the White House.

BASH: Thank you.

ZAHN: Dana's brand new there on duty, has been with CNN for a long time and is newly stationed by that tree on the White House lawn.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Arms Control Treaty>


Aired December 30, 2002 - 07:35   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Now the possibility of banned weapons in Iraq is just one threat now facing the Bush White House. Now, as we mentioned, North Korea is hinting that it might withdraw from a global nuclear arms control treaty.
How is the administration handling two threats at the same time?

Let's turn to Dana Bash, who's standing by at the White House -- good morning, Dana.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

Well, they certainly do have a lot at their plate here at the White House, but they are continuing to handle both situations in a very different manner. U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell was at not one talk show yesterday, but five, trying to explain the difference, saying that with Iraq the only way for or the main way for Iraq to avoid military action is to comply with the resolution, with U.N. Resolution 1441 and to comply with the U.N. weapons inspections. But when it comes to North Korea, he was urging patience and said over and over again that it is not a crisis there, that a crisis implies that the U.S. is poised for military action in North Korea, which it is not. It wants a peaceful resolution.

He also said that crisis, North Koreans almost are trying to create a crisis, to bring the United States to the table to negotiate. And Colin Powell said that there is no intention on the part of the U.S. to do that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: We have made it clear to the North Koreans that there are ways to communicate, but we will not enter a negotiation where they sit there and say what will you pay us for our misbehavior, how will you appease our misbehavior this time?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: Now, there were critics of the administration out also yesterday, some Democratic senators, saying that the U.S. must engage in direct negotiations with North Korea in order to stop this, saying that the administration, because they cut off negotiations with North Korea, that's caused this to escalate. But for now, the U.S. is saying that they are going to work through North Korea's neighbors in the region, through stock, through Japan. They're going to send a U.S. envoy to South Korea in the next couple of weeks in order to try to work diplomatically, not directly with North Korea, but through the world community -- Paula.

ZAHN: Just very quickly, Dana, everybody else on TV was calling this a crisis in North Korea yesterday, including senior senators. Secretary of State Powell loathed to use that word. Is there any discord at the White House about that decision?

BASH: Not yet. There seems to be a uniform belief that they don't want to ratchet up the rhetoric on this right now. They want to maintain a diplomatic approach. They want to not call it a crisis. They want to work through the neighbors in the region, try to put pressure on North Korea, both politically and economically at this time, and not at all use the "M" word, military action -- Paula.

ZAHN: Dana Bash, thanks so much.

Nice to have you at the White House.

BASH: Thank you.

ZAHN: Dana's brand new there on duty, has been with CNN for a long time and is newly stationed by that tree on the White House lawn.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com




Arms Control Treaty>