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American Morning
Nigerian Peacekeepers Arrive in Liberia
Aired August 04, 2003 - 07:31 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.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Peacekeepers from Nigeria have now arrived in the capital city of Monrovia, and they have first of a wave -- the first wave, rather, of a 3,200 member force from six West African countries that will be taking place there on the ground. They're in Liberia.
Jeff Koinange joins us now by videophone. He is in Monrovia right now.
And, Jeff, give us an idea right now of what the situation is like there.
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Leon, it was only 42 that arrived on the ground, but that was enough to cheer the spirit of Liberians. About 200 of them showed up at the airport cheering and waving on this wet and windy and rainy Monday morning. I'll tell you, Leon, they got out of their helicopter. Then they completely took position with their AK-47s, complete combat gear, ready for action. In fact, according to the words of one Nigerian officer, "the peacekeeping mission has begun."
And I was standing right next to one of the soldiers, and I asked him, 'What is your mission here?' He said, "To secure peace and stability in Liberia, nothing more, nothing less."
So, they're coming here, Leon, and they're ready for business. There are about 300, who are going to come throughout the course of the day, and, of course, they're going to bring a lot of equipment with them -- trucks, APC's, everything. They want to make sure they are ready for this mission, ready to secure the capital, and ready to bring peace back to this troubled nation -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, well, Jeff, as you know, many people believe that peace cannot come to that nation as long as Charles Taylor, the president, is still there. What is the latest on his situation now that peacekeepers are there on the ground? Is he going to be leaving now?
KOINANGE: Leon, he did say he insists a week from today, at exactly 11:59, in his own words, he will step down. In fact, in three days' time there will be a meeting of the national legislature. They will pick a successor to the president, and once President Taylor steps down, then he will -- a few days later he will leave. But he didn't specifically say on what day.
We actually pressed him on that the other day, and he said, "I'm not going to tell you." This is typical Taylor, Leon. He wants to control and he wants to write this script to the very end. He doesn't want anyone to dictate it to him, anyone to set the agenda for him. He is the one who is going to decide when he's going to get onto that plane and head to his new home in Nigeria -- Leon.
HARRIS: Very interesting. Of course, you'll be watching for us -- Jeff Koinange reporting live for us from Monrovia, Liberia. Be careful, Jeff. We'll see you soon.
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 August 4, 2003 - 07:31 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Peacekeepers from Nigeria have now arrived in the capital city of Monrovia, and they have first of a wave -- the first wave, rather, of a 3,200 member force from six West African countries that will be taking place there on the ground. They're in Liberia.
Jeff Koinange joins us now by videophone. He is in Monrovia right now.
And, Jeff, give us an idea right now of what the situation is like there.
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Leon, it was only 42 that arrived on the ground, but that was enough to cheer the spirit of Liberians. About 200 of them showed up at the airport cheering and waving on this wet and windy and rainy Monday morning. I'll tell you, Leon, they got out of their helicopter. Then they completely took position with their AK-47s, complete combat gear, ready for action. In fact, according to the words of one Nigerian officer, "the peacekeeping mission has begun."
And I was standing right next to one of the soldiers, and I asked him, 'What is your mission here?' He said, "To secure peace and stability in Liberia, nothing more, nothing less."
So, they're coming here, Leon, and they're ready for business. There are about 300, who are going to come throughout the course of the day, and, of course, they're going to bring a lot of equipment with them -- trucks, APC's, everything. They want to make sure they are ready for this mission, ready to secure the capital, and ready to bring peace back to this troubled nation -- Leon.
HARRIS: All right, well, Jeff, as you know, many people believe that peace cannot come to that nation as long as Charles Taylor, the president, is still there. What is the latest on his situation now that peacekeepers are there on the ground? Is he going to be leaving now?
KOINANGE: Leon, he did say he insists a week from today, at exactly 11:59, in his own words, he will step down. In fact, in three days' time there will be a meeting of the national legislature. They will pick a successor to the president, and once President Taylor steps down, then he will -- a few days later he will leave. But he didn't specifically say on what day.
We actually pressed him on that the other day, and he said, "I'm not going to tell you." This is typical Taylor, Leon. He wants to control and he wants to write this script to the very end. He doesn't want anyone to dictate it to him, anyone to set the agenda for him. He is the one who is going to decide when he's going to get onto that plane and head to his new home in Nigeria -- Leon.
HARRIS: Very interesting. Of course, you'll be watching for us -- Jeff Koinange reporting live for us from Monrovia, Liberia. Be careful, Jeff. We'll see you soon.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
