Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Saturday Morning News

Iraq Appears to Be Preparing for War

Aired March 08, 2003 - 09:07   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.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And with the war clock ticking, at nine days and counting, Baghdad is apparently bracing for war. The view now from Iraq's capital here, CNN's Nic Robertson. Good morning to you, Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. Well, Iraqi officials say that they're continuing to destroy their Al Samoud 2 missiles. They say another six will be destroyed today. That would bring to a total of 40 the number of Al Samoud 2 missiles destroyed so far. That's about one-third of Iraq's declared inventory of Al Samoud 2 missiles.

We've heard from Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, appearing on television this afternoon with some of his top ministers. That meeting, he said, or at least the news reader reading commentary over those pictures, said that now all the governments of the world were aware of what the United States and Great Britain were doing, that they were trying to cover up the fact that Iraq is complying with U.N. Resolution 1441, going on to say that it was time that the U.N. Security Council called the United States and Great Britain liars, and that it was time that the U.N. sanctions and the U.N. embargo against Iraq be lifted.

Now, we've seen on Iraqi television the way Hans Blix, the U.N. weapons chief's statement was played out at the U.N. Security Council in Iraq. It was called positive. Mohamed ElBaradei, the chief nuclear inspector, his report on Iraqi television, they said, showed that Iraq had no ongoing nuclear programs.

The overall view in Iraq towards what the two U.N. weapons chiefs have said has been positive. The view is, in Iraq, at least, that the United States and Great Britain are either choosing not to listen or are just plain ignoring what's being said at the U.N. Security Council, Heidi.

COLLINS: Nic, wondering once again, I've asked you this before about the Iraqi people, and whether or not there is a growing sense of urgency as we hear about deadlines approaching and things like that, with this second resolution, anyway. Is that starting to change? Are people scrambling at all? Is there more urgency? Or not really a change?

ROBERTSON: It's very interesting. People are very aware. When you talk to them, they say, Well, it could come any hour, any moment, or any day. People are very aware. They're perhaps not as aware as people outside of Iraq are of the intensity that the attack could have, this so-called shock and awe that the Pentagon talks about.

People here, perhaps, not aware of its intensity. People are concerned, they are making preparations. But, for example, yesterday I went to the horse race track here. People were out there enjoying it, enjoying the betting, enjoying the day, enjoying the horse racing. They said they don't care about the war, they say, so if it's going to come, We've been through war before, we'll survive it again.

So almost a sense of fatalism, it's going to happen. But people do ask how aware are the Iraqi people of the intensity that this conflict could have? It could be much worse than 1991, Heidi.

COLLINS: Very interesting. All right, Nic Robertson, live from Baghdad this morning. Thank you.

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 March 8, 2003 - 09:07   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: And with the war clock ticking, at nine days and counting, Baghdad is apparently bracing for war. The view now from Iraq's capital here, CNN's Nic Robertson. Good morning to you, Nic.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Heidi. Well, Iraqi officials say that they're continuing to destroy their Al Samoud 2 missiles. They say another six will be destroyed today. That would bring to a total of 40 the number of Al Samoud 2 missiles destroyed so far. That's about one-third of Iraq's declared inventory of Al Samoud 2 missiles.

We've heard from Iraqi president Saddam Hussein, appearing on television this afternoon with some of his top ministers. That meeting, he said, or at least the news reader reading commentary over those pictures, said that now all the governments of the world were aware of what the United States and Great Britain were doing, that they were trying to cover up the fact that Iraq is complying with U.N. Resolution 1441, going on to say that it was time that the U.N. Security Council called the United States and Great Britain liars, and that it was time that the U.N. sanctions and the U.N. embargo against Iraq be lifted.

Now, we've seen on Iraqi television the way Hans Blix, the U.N. weapons chief's statement was played out at the U.N. Security Council in Iraq. It was called positive. Mohamed ElBaradei, the chief nuclear inspector, his report on Iraqi television, they said, showed that Iraq had no ongoing nuclear programs.

The overall view in Iraq towards what the two U.N. weapons chiefs have said has been positive. The view is, in Iraq, at least, that the United States and Great Britain are either choosing not to listen or are just plain ignoring what's being said at the U.N. Security Council, Heidi.

COLLINS: Nic, wondering once again, I've asked you this before about the Iraqi people, and whether or not there is a growing sense of urgency as we hear about deadlines approaching and things like that, with this second resolution, anyway. Is that starting to change? Are people scrambling at all? Is there more urgency? Or not really a change?

ROBERTSON: It's very interesting. People are very aware. When you talk to them, they say, Well, it could come any hour, any moment, or any day. People are very aware. They're perhaps not as aware as people outside of Iraq are of the intensity that the attack could have, this so-called shock and awe that the Pentagon talks about.

People here, perhaps, not aware of its intensity. People are concerned, they are making preparations. But, for example, yesterday I went to the horse race track here. People were out there enjoying it, enjoying the betting, enjoying the day, enjoying the horse racing. They said they don't care about the war, they say, so if it's going to come, We've been through war before, we'll survive it again.

So almost a sense of fatalism, it's going to happen. But people do ask how aware are the Iraqi people of the intensity that this conflict could have? It could be much worse than 1991, Heidi.

COLLINS: Very interesting. All right, Nic Robertson, live from Baghdad this morning. Thank you.

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