Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Saturday Morning News

Tony Blair Confident United Nations Will Pass War Resolution

Aired February 01, 2003 - 07:03   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.


MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get some more now on the situation in Iraq. British Prime Minister Tony Blair back in London after meeting with President Bush, seen over my shoulder. Mr. Blair says he's confident the U.N. will pass another resolution authorizing war if Iraq doesn't disarm.
For reaction in Baghdad, let's check in with our Nic Robertson. Hello, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles, good morning.

Well, reaction in the newspapers here to President Bush's meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, saying that everything that President Bush had to say about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction was lies, and characterizing Tony Blair, the British prime minister, as an attendant to the United States, saying that he'd humiliated his country, that the U.N. weapons inspectors here had proved everything Prime Minister Tony Blair had said was lies.

Miles, one of the more important, significant things that developing here at the moment, or has happened here in the last few days, the foreign minister here, Nadji Sabri (ph), has sent a very detailed 14-page letter to the president of the U.N. Security Council.

Now, in this letter, he takes issue with many, many of the points that Hans Blix, the U.N. weapons chief, raised to the U.N. Security Council in his address earlier in the week. He says that Iraq is -- the foreign minister says that Iraq is cooperating with the U.N. weapons inspectors despite the fact that Hans Blix said Iraq had failed to fully accept its need to disarm.

Also, he said that on the issue of the U-2 spy planes Hans Blix had failed to fully present Iraq's position, that is, that Iraq had offered for the U-2 surveillance aircraft to fly over in Iraq in support of the U.N. mission if Iraq was given advance notice of the timing, and if the coalition aircraft flying in the northern and southern no-fly zones were halted.

Many, many other issues he raised -- the documents found at a scientist's house, the chemical warheads, he offered explanations, detailed, very detailed, on all of those. And tone, he said that Hans Blix's comments had shown that it was the U.N. weapons inspectors here and their mission that need to -- needed to be improved in its transparency, needed to be improved in its impartiality, Miles. O'BRIEN: All right. Tell us about the letter that Hans Blix sent to the Iraqis in response to the Iraqis' request with a meeting with Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei. Of course, it was a meeting with several strings attached. Do we know much about what Dr. Blix's response was?

ROBERTSON: We don't know of the contents of a written letter at this time. We do know that the response that has come through the media so far, at least, has been thus, that Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the U.N. weapons inspection component here, want to see substantive movement on at least two key issues, that is, interviewing Iraqi scientists in private, and the issue of the U-2 surveillance aircraft flying over Iraq to help the U.N. weapons inspectors.

They want to see this before they come here, Miles.

O'BRIEN: Nic Robertson in Baghdad, thank you very much.

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




Resolution>


Aired February 1, 2003 - 07:03   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MILES O'BRIEN, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get some more now on the situation in Iraq. British Prime Minister Tony Blair back in London after meeting with President Bush, seen over my shoulder. Mr. Blair says he's confident the U.N. will pass another resolution authorizing war if Iraq doesn't disarm.
For reaction in Baghdad, let's check in with our Nic Robertson. Hello, Nic.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello, Miles, good morning.

Well, reaction in the newspapers here to President Bush's meeting with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, saying that everything that President Bush had to say about Iraq's weapons of mass destruction was lies, and characterizing Tony Blair, the British prime minister, as an attendant to the United States, saying that he'd humiliated his country, that the U.N. weapons inspectors here had proved everything Prime Minister Tony Blair had said was lies.

Miles, one of the more important, significant things that developing here at the moment, or has happened here in the last few days, the foreign minister here, Nadji Sabri (ph), has sent a very detailed 14-page letter to the president of the U.N. Security Council.

Now, in this letter, he takes issue with many, many of the points that Hans Blix, the U.N. weapons chief, raised to the U.N. Security Council in his address earlier in the week. He says that Iraq is -- the foreign minister says that Iraq is cooperating with the U.N. weapons inspectors despite the fact that Hans Blix said Iraq had failed to fully accept its need to disarm.

Also, he said that on the issue of the U-2 spy planes Hans Blix had failed to fully present Iraq's position, that is, that Iraq had offered for the U-2 surveillance aircraft to fly over in Iraq in support of the U.N. mission if Iraq was given advance notice of the timing, and if the coalition aircraft flying in the northern and southern no-fly zones were halted.

Many, many other issues he raised -- the documents found at a scientist's house, the chemical warheads, he offered explanations, detailed, very detailed, on all of those. And tone, he said that Hans Blix's comments had shown that it was the U.N. weapons inspectors here and their mission that need to -- needed to be improved in its transparency, needed to be improved in its impartiality, Miles. O'BRIEN: All right. Tell us about the letter that Hans Blix sent to the Iraqis in response to the Iraqis' request with a meeting with Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei. Of course, it was a meeting with several strings attached. Do we know much about what Dr. Blix's response was?

ROBERTSON: We don't know of the contents of a written letter at this time. We do know that the response that has come through the media so far, at least, has been thus, that Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the U.N. weapons inspection component here, want to see substantive movement on at least two key issues, that is, interviewing Iraqi scientists in private, and the issue of the U-2 surveillance aircraft flying over Iraq to help the U.N. weapons inspectors.

They want to see this before they come here, Miles.

O'BRIEN: Nic Robertson in Baghdad, thank you very much.

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




Resolution>