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CNN Sunday Morning
White House Ponders Questions of Iraq, North Korea
Aired October 20, 2002 - 11:19 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.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: As the White House pushes for a regime change in Iraq, this week the focus on the U.N. as the president tries to get a resolution passed. Our Kelly Wallace is live at the White House with that, and news on another nuclear issue involving North Korea -- Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, first to Iraq. U.S. officials say they are making progress. And the expectation is that a resolution will be introduced early this week up at the United Nations. This resolution would call on Iraq to disarm, and it would also say that Iraq should face, quote, "serious consequences if it does not comply." However, the resolution would not use the words military force. That is a concession to concerned countries such as France and Russia. But U.S. officials say the president would not feel restricted in any way if he ultimately decided to wage war against Saddam Hussein.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I'm confident that any resolution we come up with will in no way affect the president's authority with other like-minded nations to act in the presence of continued Iraqi violation. The debate is how do you get all of the members of the Security Council to act in unison? And that's why we're having the discussion, and there are 15 sovereign nations in this Security Council, and each has a right to express its opinion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: Meantime, as the administration tries to build a coalition to deal with Saddam Hussein, it is trying to figure out what to do about North Korea. The country led by Kim Jong-Il admitted to U.S. officials two weeks ago that it has been secretly pursuing a nuclear weapons program.
Well, now, the U.S. says it is scrapping its 1994 agreement with North Korea. This agreement called for the U.S. and other Western countries to provide fuel assistance in exchange for North Korea freezing its nuclear weapons programs. Now, U.S. officials say that North Koreans very brazenly two weeks ago said that agreement was now nullified, and so U.S. officials say as far as the Bush administration is concerned, that agreement is now null and void.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: This is a big deal, because North Korea has, in effect, told us that a political arrangement between the United States, North Korea and several other parties has been nullified. They are the ones who have blown a hole in this political arrangement, and in the most brazen fashion admitted that they have been looking for an alternative path to a nuclear weapon from the plutonium path that we thought they were on. It is a very serious matter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: And you can see the entire interview with Condoleezza Rice on CNN's "LATE EDITION WITH WOLF BLITZER" just about 45 minutes from now at noon Eastern time.
U.S. officials say their focus now is on reaching out to countries such as Japan, South Korea and China, trying to put as much international pressure as possible on North Korea, and President Bush has meetings planned with the leaders of China, South Korea and Japan just about a -- less than a week from now, beginning Friday -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Thanks very much, Kelly, from the White House.
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 October 20, 2002 - 11:19 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: As the White House pushes for a regime change in Iraq, this week the focus on the U.N. as the president tries to get a resolution passed. Our Kelly Wallace is live at the White House with that, and news on another nuclear issue involving North Korea -- Kelly.
KELLY WALLACE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Fredricka, first to Iraq. U.S. officials say they are making progress. And the expectation is that a resolution will be introduced early this week up at the United Nations. This resolution would call on Iraq to disarm, and it would also say that Iraq should face, quote, "serious consequences if it does not comply." However, the resolution would not use the words military force. That is a concession to concerned countries such as France and Russia. But U.S. officials say the president would not feel restricted in any way if he ultimately decided to wage war against Saddam Hussein.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: I'm confident that any resolution we come up with will in no way affect the president's authority with other like-minded nations to act in the presence of continued Iraqi violation. The debate is how do you get all of the members of the Security Council to act in unison? And that's why we're having the discussion, and there are 15 sovereign nations in this Security Council, and each has a right to express its opinion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: Meantime, as the administration tries to build a coalition to deal with Saddam Hussein, it is trying to figure out what to do about North Korea. The country led by Kim Jong-Il admitted to U.S. officials two weeks ago that it has been secretly pursuing a nuclear weapons program.
Well, now, the U.S. says it is scrapping its 1994 agreement with North Korea. This agreement called for the U.S. and other Western countries to provide fuel assistance in exchange for North Korea freezing its nuclear weapons programs. Now, U.S. officials say that North Koreans very brazenly two weeks ago said that agreement was now nullified, and so U.S. officials say as far as the Bush administration is concerned, that agreement is now null and void.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CONDOLEEZZA RICE, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: This is a big deal, because North Korea has, in effect, told us that a political arrangement between the United States, North Korea and several other parties has been nullified. They are the ones who have blown a hole in this political arrangement, and in the most brazen fashion admitted that they have been looking for an alternative path to a nuclear weapon from the plutonium path that we thought they were on. It is a very serious matter.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WALLACE: And you can see the entire interview with Condoleezza Rice on CNN's "LATE EDITION WITH WOLF BLITZER" just about 45 minutes from now at noon Eastern time.
U.S. officials say their focus now is on reaching out to countries such as Japan, South Korea and China, trying to put as much international pressure as possible on North Korea, and President Bush has meetings planned with the leaders of China, South Korea and Japan just about a -- less than a week from now, beginning Friday -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: Thanks very much, Kelly, from the White House.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
