Return to Transcripts main page
American Morning
British Prime Minister Tony Blair Presses France
Aired February 04, 2003 - 07:19 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.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: On the question of what to do with Iraq, they're on opposing sides, but this morning, British Prime Minister Tony Blair meeting with French President Jacques Chirac. They're in France, a one-day summit meeting taking place there.
And our senior European political correspondent, Robin Oakley, now joins us live from the scene with more on what may be said today behind closed doors.
Robin -- good afternoon to you.
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN SENIOR EUROPEAN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Bill.
And Tony Blair is going to have to use all of his famous charm to win around Jacques Chirac to join any war coalition against Saddam Hussein. The French have been making it clear that they will not have anything to do with any unilateral action that is taken just by the U.S. and the U.K. They would only ever consider taking part in military action if it was fully authorized by the U.N. Security Council.
But Tony Blair is hoping that the French are beginning to hedge their bets. They today sent an aircraft carrier to exercises in the eastern Mediterranean. Jacques Chirac did tell his troops in a New Year message to be ready for anything, and Tony Blair will hope he can persuade Jacques Chirac to sign up for a second U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing military action on the grounds that Saddam Hussein has been defying the will of the United Nations, and that its authority must not be defied.
But it has to be said, relations between the two men are not good. They had a big spat at a European summit on farm subsidies not long ago. Jacques Chirac then said he'd never been spoken to so rudely by anybody, and he canceled this summit, which was originally due to be held in September.
Tony Blair has mollified him since then by writing an article in a French paper, saying that Jacques Chirac is a great man in every sense of the word. He'll hope that has warmed up relations, and that he can persuade him today to join with the U.S. and the U.K. -- Bill.
HEMMER: It doesn't hurt to talk, we know that. Robin, thank you -- Robin Oakley with the latest there on Jacques Chirac and Tony Blair.
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 February 4, 2003 - 07:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: On the question of what to do with Iraq, they're on opposing sides, but this morning, British Prime Minister Tony Blair meeting with French President Jacques Chirac. They're in France, a one-day summit meeting taking place there.
And our senior European political correspondent, Robin Oakley, now joins us live from the scene with more on what may be said today behind closed doors.
Robin -- good afternoon to you.
ROBIN OAKLEY, CNN SENIOR EUROPEAN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Good afternoon, Bill.
And Tony Blair is going to have to use all of his famous charm to win around Jacques Chirac to join any war coalition against Saddam Hussein. The French have been making it clear that they will not have anything to do with any unilateral action that is taken just by the U.S. and the U.K. They would only ever consider taking part in military action if it was fully authorized by the U.N. Security Council.
But Tony Blair is hoping that the French are beginning to hedge their bets. They today sent an aircraft carrier to exercises in the eastern Mediterranean. Jacques Chirac did tell his troops in a New Year message to be ready for anything, and Tony Blair will hope he can persuade Jacques Chirac to sign up for a second U.N. Security Council resolution authorizing military action on the grounds that Saddam Hussein has been defying the will of the United Nations, and that its authority must not be defied.
But it has to be said, relations between the two men are not good. They had a big spat at a European summit on farm subsidies not long ago. Jacques Chirac then said he'd never been spoken to so rudely by anybody, and he canceled this summit, which was originally due to be held in September.
Tony Blair has mollified him since then by writing an article in a French paper, saying that Jacques Chirac is a great man in every sense of the word. He'll hope that has warmed up relations, and that he can persuade him today to join with the U.S. and the U.K. -- Bill.
HEMMER: It doesn't hurt to talk, we know that. Robin, thank you -- Robin Oakley with the latest there on Jacques Chirac and Tony Blair.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
