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American Morning
Hussein Denies Iraq Has Missiles That Violate U.N. Rules
Aired February 26, 2003 - 08:03 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: More now on our top story. Saddam Hussein denies Iraq has missiles that actually violate U.N. rules. The denial comes as President Bush applies even more pressure, challenging the United Nations to honor its word and disarm Baghdad.
We have two reports for you this morning, from Chris Burns at the White House and Nic Robertson in Baghdad.
We're going to get started this morning with Chris -- good morning, Chris.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
President Bush saying that the world won't be fooled again, that the world should press ahead with that second U.N. resolution, though the U.S. doesn't necessarily need that to go ahead and attack Iraq. President Bush will be meeting one of his members of the coalition of the willing, the president of Azerbaijan, here at the White House today.
But also coming up in the headlines this morning, the "Wall Street Journal" and the "Washington Post" talking about the price tag of war, saying that the immediate invasion and immediate aftermath could cost upwards of $95 billion. Now, a member, a senior White House official says that this could be just part of a wish list of the Pentagon, but there is more talk of that. They have been talking about that for months, about the price tag of war.
President Bush, however, coming back and saying that the risks are even higher if there is no conflict.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's all kinds of estimates about the cost of war. But the risk of doing nothing, the risk of the security of this country being jeopardized at the hands of a madman with weapons of mass destruction far exceeds the risks of any action we may be forced to take.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNS: President Bush also planning to speak before the American Enterprise Institute this evening. A senior administration official says that the speech will focus, in part, on the after Saddam era, looking at the hopefully the push toward democracy in the Middle East and the role that Iraq could play in that -- Paula. ZAHN: How concerned is the administration about these numbers now that are being so publicly bandied around? I think when Larry Lindsey (ph) came out with those numbers months ago, before he left his White House job, he got into some trouble.
BURNS: Absolutely. That was the president's economic adviser at the time months ago. And he said that, at that time, that it would cost between $100 billion and $200 billion to invade and stabilize Iraq. That, of course, those figures are now being spoken of realistically at least in terms of $100 billion for the invasion and the immediate aftermath. So that is being talked about. That is haunting President Bush. Look at his economic approval ratings. Now, for the first time, disapproval is outnumbering approval. Even though the overall approval ratings remain in the 50s, President Bush does have something to think about when it comes to the economy and Iraq.
ZAHN: Chris Burns, thanks so much.
We'll let you go inside so you don't have to dodge those snowflakes anymore.
Now, Nic joins us once again from Baghdad. In his interview with CBS, Saddam Hussein said he would not go into exile. How defiant was he?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is what we've heard from people around the Iraqi leader up to now, that he's not prepared to do this. He said that he wouldn't forsake his country, that he would stand by the country, that he wouldn't deviate from his principles. And he said that he would be prepared to die here. This is pretty much what we've been hearing from officials. We saw on Iraqi television President Saddam Hussein meeting with top interior ministry officials, police chiefs and other security officials. They vowed to him that they'd make the country secure in the case of war and would stay and defend it.
On the issue of the al-Samoud 2 missiles, when Mr. Rather asked President Saddam Hussein would he destroy them, the Iraqi leader said that he, that Iraq was doing everything to comply with the U.N. weapons inspectors that they had done in the past and that they would do in the future. But when Mr. Rather pushed President Saddam Hussein on that issue, would they meet the Saturday deadline to begin dismantling and destroying those al-Samoud 2 missiles, President Saddam Hussein said that Iraq didn't have proscribed missiles and it said any missiles like that that it had had before had been destroyed.
Not clear here whether he was talking about those SCUD missiles that weapons inspectors and Iraqi officials destroyed in the 1990s or if, indeed, he's referring to the al-Samoud 2 missile -- Paula.
ZAHN: Nic, is that interview being talked about much there today by the Iraqi people?
ROBERTSON: So far, it isn't. You know, a lot of people here are really waiting to hear the whole interview and hear exactly how the questions were asked. People, analysts here say, look, when President Saddam Hussein gets into a situation like this, his answers can be really long, they can be really complicated, they can mean many things. People here say that they really need to sit down and look at the whole thing to get a real sense of it -- Paula.
ZAHN: Nic Robertson reporting from Baghdad.
Thanks so much.
Tomorrow is the day the Turkish parliament is expected to debate a deal that would give U.S. troops access to Turkish bases in exchange for billions of dollars in aid.
Our Jane Arraf will join us in a moment.
But first we want to look at the Turkish parliament and what would need to happen for it to grant access to U.S. troops.
There are 550 seats in the Turkish parliament. Three hundred and sixty-three of those seats are held by the ruling party. One hundred and eighty-seven are held by the opposition party and independent members. Sixty members might abstain.
Now, a majority of those members present must vote in favor of the proposal for it to pass. And if all 550 members attend the session, 276 votes would be needed for passage. If it passes, then the U.S. forces may come ashore immediately.
U.S. ships are already waiting off the coast there to unload supplies.
Jane Arraf joins us from there right now -- good morning, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
We're here at the port of Iskenderun, where, as you mentioned, some of the ships have arrived. And those are ships that are bringing supplies destined for the bases that the U.S. hopes to station combat troops in. The combat troops, themselves, of course, still off the port. Those ships are not visible, but they've been hovering there for days, a matter, according to Secretary of State Colin Powell, of some urgency. And that was the message he communicated in a phone call last night to the Turkish prime minister.
Now there is military activity here at this port. If we look over there, we can see the U.S. Navy ship Costello, which is in port, arriving with some of those supplies for the bases. And right in front of it, Patriot missile launchers and the missiles themselves. The missile batteries from NATO. They've come in on a Dutch ship. And they're part of defensive equipment that Turkey had requested from NATO in the event that a war breaks out.
Now, a lot of things going on here on the ground. Back in Ankara a lot going on politically, as well. Political sources tell us that they seem to be very close to putting the finishing touches on an agreement that would bring these combat troops to Turkey. Now, it will be voted on in parliament, but at the same time on a dual track they're trying to finalize exactly the political and economic aspect of it -- Paula.
ZAHN: So, Jane, what would be the consequences if the parliament votes no?
ARRAF: Well, that's the big question and that's part of the reason why it's taken so long to even bring this to a vote in parliament. Now, the United States seemed to have counted on Turkey to give this fairly quick approval, which is why we've had several deadlines that have come and gone, and at least two conversations between Colin Powell and the Turkish prime minister in just the last few days.
If they do say no, it essentially means that they will be shut out, in their minds, of any say of what goes in the war and any say in post-war Iraq. That's totally apart from the money they'd lose. But really for once the big thing does not seem to be the money in these terms. It's that Turkey feels it needs influence in what happens, particularly in northern Iraq, which is on its borders and controlled by Iraqi Kurds.
Tension has been raising a little bit lately between Iraqi Kurds and the Turkish government, with Turkey's plans to send in tens of thousands of its own troops into northern Iraq. So the major consequence would be that it wouldn't have any say in what happens -- Paula.
ZAHN: Jane Arraf, thanks for that update.
Jane reporting from Iskenderun, Turkey for us this morning.
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 26, 2003 - 08:03 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: More now on our top story. Saddam Hussein denies Iraq has missiles that actually violate U.N. rules. The denial comes as President Bush applies even more pressure, challenging the United Nations to honor its word and disarm Baghdad.
We have two reports for you this morning, from Chris Burns at the White House and Nic Robertson in Baghdad.
We're going to get started this morning with Chris -- good morning, Chris.
CHRIS BURNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
President Bush saying that the world won't be fooled again, that the world should press ahead with that second U.N. resolution, though the U.S. doesn't necessarily need that to go ahead and attack Iraq. President Bush will be meeting one of his members of the coalition of the willing, the president of Azerbaijan, here at the White House today.
But also coming up in the headlines this morning, the "Wall Street Journal" and the "Washington Post" talking about the price tag of war, saying that the immediate invasion and immediate aftermath could cost upwards of $95 billion. Now, a member, a senior White House official says that this could be just part of a wish list of the Pentagon, but there is more talk of that. They have been talking about that for months, about the price tag of war.
President Bush, however, coming back and saying that the risks are even higher if there is no conflict.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There's all kinds of estimates about the cost of war. But the risk of doing nothing, the risk of the security of this country being jeopardized at the hands of a madman with weapons of mass destruction far exceeds the risks of any action we may be forced to take.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BURNS: President Bush also planning to speak before the American Enterprise Institute this evening. A senior administration official says that the speech will focus, in part, on the after Saddam era, looking at the hopefully the push toward democracy in the Middle East and the role that Iraq could play in that -- Paula. ZAHN: How concerned is the administration about these numbers now that are being so publicly bandied around? I think when Larry Lindsey (ph) came out with those numbers months ago, before he left his White House job, he got into some trouble.
BURNS: Absolutely. That was the president's economic adviser at the time months ago. And he said that, at that time, that it would cost between $100 billion and $200 billion to invade and stabilize Iraq. That, of course, those figures are now being spoken of realistically at least in terms of $100 billion for the invasion and the immediate aftermath. So that is being talked about. That is haunting President Bush. Look at his economic approval ratings. Now, for the first time, disapproval is outnumbering approval. Even though the overall approval ratings remain in the 50s, President Bush does have something to think about when it comes to the economy and Iraq.
ZAHN: Chris Burns, thanks so much.
We'll let you go inside so you don't have to dodge those snowflakes anymore.
Now, Nic joins us once again from Baghdad. In his interview with CBS, Saddam Hussein said he would not go into exile. How defiant was he?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this is what we've heard from people around the Iraqi leader up to now, that he's not prepared to do this. He said that he wouldn't forsake his country, that he would stand by the country, that he wouldn't deviate from his principles. And he said that he would be prepared to die here. This is pretty much what we've been hearing from officials. We saw on Iraqi television President Saddam Hussein meeting with top interior ministry officials, police chiefs and other security officials. They vowed to him that they'd make the country secure in the case of war and would stay and defend it.
On the issue of the al-Samoud 2 missiles, when Mr. Rather asked President Saddam Hussein would he destroy them, the Iraqi leader said that he, that Iraq was doing everything to comply with the U.N. weapons inspectors that they had done in the past and that they would do in the future. But when Mr. Rather pushed President Saddam Hussein on that issue, would they meet the Saturday deadline to begin dismantling and destroying those al-Samoud 2 missiles, President Saddam Hussein said that Iraq didn't have proscribed missiles and it said any missiles like that that it had had before had been destroyed.
Not clear here whether he was talking about those SCUD missiles that weapons inspectors and Iraqi officials destroyed in the 1990s or if, indeed, he's referring to the al-Samoud 2 missile -- Paula.
ZAHN: Nic, is that interview being talked about much there today by the Iraqi people?
ROBERTSON: So far, it isn't. You know, a lot of people here are really waiting to hear the whole interview and hear exactly how the questions were asked. People, analysts here say, look, when President Saddam Hussein gets into a situation like this, his answers can be really long, they can be really complicated, they can mean many things. People here say that they really need to sit down and look at the whole thing to get a real sense of it -- Paula.
ZAHN: Nic Robertson reporting from Baghdad.
Thanks so much.
Tomorrow is the day the Turkish parliament is expected to debate a deal that would give U.S. troops access to Turkish bases in exchange for billions of dollars in aid.
Our Jane Arraf will join us in a moment.
But first we want to look at the Turkish parliament and what would need to happen for it to grant access to U.S. troops.
There are 550 seats in the Turkish parliament. Three hundred and sixty-three of those seats are held by the ruling party. One hundred and eighty-seven are held by the opposition party and independent members. Sixty members might abstain.
Now, a majority of those members present must vote in favor of the proposal for it to pass. And if all 550 members attend the session, 276 votes would be needed for passage. If it passes, then the U.S. forces may come ashore immediately.
U.S. ships are already waiting off the coast there to unload supplies.
Jane Arraf joins us from there right now -- good morning, Jane.
JANE ARRAF, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.
We're here at the port of Iskenderun, where, as you mentioned, some of the ships have arrived. And those are ships that are bringing supplies destined for the bases that the U.S. hopes to station combat troops in. The combat troops, themselves, of course, still off the port. Those ships are not visible, but they've been hovering there for days, a matter, according to Secretary of State Colin Powell, of some urgency. And that was the message he communicated in a phone call last night to the Turkish prime minister.
Now there is military activity here at this port. If we look over there, we can see the U.S. Navy ship Costello, which is in port, arriving with some of those supplies for the bases. And right in front of it, Patriot missile launchers and the missiles themselves. The missile batteries from NATO. They've come in on a Dutch ship. And they're part of defensive equipment that Turkey had requested from NATO in the event that a war breaks out.
Now, a lot of things going on here on the ground. Back in Ankara a lot going on politically, as well. Political sources tell us that they seem to be very close to putting the finishing touches on an agreement that would bring these combat troops to Turkey. Now, it will be voted on in parliament, but at the same time on a dual track they're trying to finalize exactly the political and economic aspect of it -- Paula.
ZAHN: So, Jane, what would be the consequences if the parliament votes no?
ARRAF: Well, that's the big question and that's part of the reason why it's taken so long to even bring this to a vote in parliament. Now, the United States seemed to have counted on Turkey to give this fairly quick approval, which is why we've had several deadlines that have come and gone, and at least two conversations between Colin Powell and the Turkish prime minister in just the last few days.
If they do say no, it essentially means that they will be shut out, in their minds, of any say of what goes in the war and any say in post-war Iraq. That's totally apart from the money they'd lose. But really for once the big thing does not seem to be the money in these terms. It's that Turkey feels it needs influence in what happens, particularly in northern Iraq, which is on its borders and controlled by Iraqi Kurds.
Tension has been raising a little bit lately between Iraqi Kurds and the Turkish government, with Turkey's plans to send in tens of thousands of its own troops into northern Iraq. So the major consequence would be that it wouldn't have any say in what happens -- Paula.
ZAHN: Jane Arraf, thanks for that update.
Jane reporting from Iskenderun, Turkey for us this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
