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CNN Saturday Morning News

U.N. Security Council To Get Resolution on Middle East Crisis; Syria Denies Link to Hezbollah; Floyd Landis Gets Second Positive in Tour de France Doping Scandal

Aired August 05, 2006 - 10:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

BETTY NGUYEN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. More breaking news on this possible diplomatic fix to the Middle East crisis. The Associated Press reports the U.S. and France have agreed on a draft U.N. resolution to present to the Security Council which we understand from Ambassador John Bolton which is the U.S. ambassador to the U.N., that they will meet a little bit later today. This could possibly be passed within the next couple of days. But we'll keep you posted on that.
In the meantime, President Bush is on a 10-day working vacation at his Texas ranch. He will be joined there today by Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and national security advisor Stephen Hadley. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux is covering the president for us this morning from her post in nearby Crawford. Lots of developments, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, Betty. Of course very important developments, Secretary Rice as well, national security advisor Stephen Hadley will be going to the Crawford ranch to meet with President Bush. Of course, we have been hearing over the last couple of days that there would be some sort of U.N. Security Council resolution.

The details of course being worked out that would come sometime soon, perhaps in the next 48 hours, so of course we'll be watching those developments. And that U.N. Security Council resolution coming after a little nudging, if you will, from the U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan just yesterday, put a phone call into President Bush at his ranch. They talked for about 15 minutes. He also reached out to French President Jacques Chirac really trying to emphasize the importance of working through the difficulties of that U.N. Security Council resolution.

Now so far what we know it's a resolution that the United States is looking for a cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon, also an international stabilization force that would go to the region along to establish some sort of buffer zone in Lebanon. I would also be some sort of disarming, if you will, of Hezbollah in terms of an arms embargo, international arms embargo, a prisoner swap of some sort.

Yesterday we talked with Tony Snow, press secretary and he said they were very close to a deal. Essentially what the sticking point here was is what he was calling staging and sequencing. That's simply diplo-speak for when the Israeli forces would pull out of Lebanon, when the multinational stabilization force would come on board. Those are the kind of details they've been working out the last 24 hours -- Betty.

NGUYEN: Let me ask you this, Ambassador John Bolton has said that this could be passed within the next couple of days. What are you hearing on that front? Are you hearing anything on that front?

MALVEAUX: Well, certainly Snow told us just yesterday if it didn't come within a day, it would come within a couple of days, that you would see this resolution. He says that the French as well as the United States were very much working along the same draft on the same page here, that it was really just the devil is in the details that they were almost there.

So clearly they have been working on this very, very hard. Of course after that happens, they will all come together. The U.N. Security Council, all 15 members will have to discuss what this resolution entails and whether or not they can actually vote on this. That is something that could happen as early as this weekend, but more likely on Monday.

NGUYEN: All right. CNN's Suzanne Malveaux. Thank you for that, Suzanne.

TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Israel steps up its air strikes on Lebanon and Syrian workers in Lebanon fall victim to the assault and Syria denies Israeli allegations that it's funneling weapons to Hezbollah.

CNN's Aneesh Raman joins us live from Damascus, Syria. Aneesh, good morning.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Tony, good morning to you. Syrian officials have from the start said that no arms are coming through their country to arm Hezbollah. They say Hezbollah points to Iran and essentially that is where the arms are coming from. The officials here have been very keen to stay out of this in terms of the military offensive by Israel.

They do not want to bring this war on to Syrian soil. It is in part why with the death of some 20 Syrians in Lebanon in that Israeli attack, there hasn't been much of a reaction here. It was reported as any other news would be on the Syrian television. No Syrian official response from the government. Those sort of statements come few and far between.

But the Syrians are really aware the situation as it stands now, with clearly a still strong Hezbollah fighting against Israel, gives Syria clout in the region because of its relationship with Hezbollah. So they have really no inherent advantage to bring a quick end unless it is them coming to the table and brokering peace with the other countries. That is what they desperately want. Engagement by the U.S., that does not seem like it will come in the days ahead -- Tony.

HARRIS: Hey, Aneesh, I don't think we talked about the refugee situation there in Syria for a while. With so many people leaving Lebanon and more leaflets being dropped today advising people to move on, give us a sense of what the refugee situation is like in Syria. RAMAN: Yes, just a couple of weeks ago over the weekend, we were at the border. People were streaming across from Lebanon fleeing the violence. But we've been repeatedly to refugee centers. We were just at one yesterday and the situation by all accounts is under control in Syria.

That's in large part due to the fact that Syrians have opened up their homes. They've donated food. The U.N. head of the world food program was here yesterday. I spoke with him and he said Syria really isn't an issue of concern. We went though to another refugee area.

I just want to bring to your light, which is a Palestinian area and there we heard a lot of anger from Palestinians who say the world while concentrated on what is happening in southern Lebanon and northern Israel, is ignoring what is happening in Gaza. And they warn and remind the world that without the Palestinian issue solved, nothing else in the region will be solved -- Tony.

HARRIS: Aneesh Raman for us in Damascus, Syria. Aneesh, thank you.

NGUYEN: Again, want to give you some information on the fact that progress is being made to end the crisis in the Mideast and that comes in the form of a U.N. resolution. Let's go straight to CNN's John King in Washington. What do you know about this resolution, John?

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Betty, CNN has confirmed that there is an agreement between the United States and France on the plan to get the United Nations Security Council to adopt a resolution that would end the fighting. We should emphasize, though, that this is an agreement between the United States and France.

The draft of the resolution is now being shared with other members of the United Nations Security Council. The expectation according to a State Department official is that the full council would meet later today to consider it. The expectation, again emphasis on expectation, is this would be adopted over the next couple of days. So the plan, if the other members of the council agree with the resolution is to adopt this approach by early in the week.

We should add some notes of caution here. We don't know the exact details of the resolution and we do know that in the negotiations that stretched throughout the past few days and late into the night last night and obviously this morning, one of the big hold ups was what would the mandate be of this larger security forces went in? And how would they deal with Israeli objections to the plan that in the short term have the existing U.N. force in Lebanon be the buffer if you will, the symbolic buffer.

Now we do know, though, that this resolution as they drafted it calls for a immediacy cessation of hostilities. But we were briefed by Israeli officials over the past few days who said they had a huge objection to letting the existing U.N. force known as UNIFIL be the first cease-fire force, if you will, the first stabilization force. It will take weeks, if not months, to get a full stabilization force in there. That was the big hang-up. What would contribute, what would the mandate be and would Israel accept a deal if they think the force that will be in place is two weak to stop Hezbollah from disarming.

So they have a deal on the resolution. That obviously does not mean the fighting will end. But we do know the resolution calls once it is adopted for immediate cessation of hostilities. That's not a cease-fire by the lawyer's legal terms, but a cessation of hostilities while they deal with other questions. Betty

NGUYEN: The details that are going to be key to it and getting both sides to agree to it. Senior national correspondent John King joining us from Washington with a little bit of information on this resolution. John, thank you

HARRIS: Let's see if we can flesh this out a bit more. No one is keeping a closer watch on the developments with regard to this resolution than United Nations correspondent Richard Roth. Richard, what can you tell us?

RICHARD ROTH, CNN UNITED NATIONS CORRESPONDENT: There's going to be an afternoon meeting of the Security Council where the other council members, other than the U.S. and France, will get their first look at this new agreed upon resolution. Just because France and the United States have agreed doesn't necessarily mean it's going to be immediately approved by the others.

But it certainly vaults a giant hurdle because France was representing most of the views of the other council members and the terminology John King just used would be very pleasing for China, Russia which have been demanding in recent days especially the council to call for an immediate cessation of hostilities.

One official said it was hard work overnight, nonstop negotiating between France and the United States. These two countries working much closer together toward a common goal than compared to the run-up to the Iraq war three and a half, four years ago. So this draft text is being circulated now to other council members.

Some have already seen it and then later today there will be a meeting. No vote expected. The vote would come when ministers, higher ranking people such as Condoleezza Rice, secretary of State come to the United Nations early next week, the next few days to vote on this -- Tony.

HARRIS: OK. Richard, I'm wondering we know who would speak for Israel with regard to this resolution. Who speaks for Hezbollah?

ROTH: Israel is not a member of the Security Council, but the United States and France have been meeting with people at the United Nations, other countries. Hezbollah does not speak at the United Nations per se and as you are hinting in your question, it is a big question mark what a group that is not a U.N. member country, the type of force that the U.N. is now faced with around the world in a different kind of globe than the U.N. was established in 1945.

Hezbollah has given indications that it might accept some type of cease-fire if Israel is not firing rockets. This is a big open question. This will play out. First they have to get something approved and voted on. And then you go from there.

HARRIS: Yes, it would seem to me and you know this dance better than we do, for sure, but it would seem to me you get all of the 15 nations of the Security Council to agree to this resolution and then in a joint statement and everyone working their own channels, begin to implement whatever is agreed to as kind of a united force speaking in one voice?

ROTH: Well, the United Nations is the official legitimacy, like it or love it, that's what is accepted around the world and a lot more overseas. And through that resolution then countries will then offer troops to a deployment force to assist and expand the existing U.N. peacekeeping operation there, known as UNIFIL and everything from proceeds from there, the money, the machinery.

It does take time, but there may be later resolutions which will then offer and mandate as the U.N. likes to use the word, the additional forces down the road that would be in that buffer zone. And the resolution excuse me is what everyone then looks back to. Everyone's recently been looking back to 1559 a couple of years ago which said all militias in Lebanon should be disarmed.

HARRIS: UNIFIL is that a -- remind us, is that fighting force?

ROTH: That's not a fighting force. It's not a peace enforcement. It's a peace monitoring force that is helpless in - when Israel and Hezbollah go at it. It's been there since 1978. Some of the observers that are attached to the mission have been there since 1948 observing other truces in the Middle East, but obviously as they like to say, events on the ground tend to overtake what the members of the council approved decades ago.

NGUYEN: Richard, I have a question for you, because we're getting some more wire reports on the details in this resolution and according to the Associated Press, an official with knowledge of the talks says that this draft calls for a full cessation of violence between Israel and Hezbollah, but would allow Israel the right to launch strikes if Hezbollah attacks it. Now does that appear to be a victory for Israel?

ROTH: I would have to see that terminology. You're going to have some people spinning various interpretations of this resolution before it is even voted on. So there's no way countries are going to vote for something that gives somebody an advantage, but it may be seen and interpreted -- many of these resolutions are compromises which each side can look at as we have seen in the Middle East before and say it gives us the right to do this, but it also gives somebody the right to do that.

They are still arguing over 242, 331, famous Middle East Security Council resolutions, 30, 40 years old on whether is supposed to withdraw from the territories before or after any type of initial peace agreement.

HARRIS: And once again, if you're just joining us this morning, we're talking to United Nations correspondent Richard Roth about this proposed resolution. That will be taken up by the full Security Council later today. It may be an agreement in the next couple of days. And this is a deal that was brokered by the United States and France. And Richard, if you would, fill everybody in on why France and the United States are the two parties working out the details of this deal.

ROTH: Well, France happened to be the president of the Security Council in July, which kind of put it in the unique role. But France has long historical ties and connections to Lebanon. France's leader Jacques Chirac was a good friend of Rafik Hariri, the assassinated former Lebanese prime minister and many people point the finger at Syria.

There are a lot of emotional and political reasons France is interested. France is a permanent member of the Security Council. France may lead or provide many of the soldiers for this peacekeeping force that will be there in the buffer zone. And that's the way it's been. And, yes, Britain has been there also. The match-ups are always different at various crises in the Security Council.

Sometimes as we saw North Korea you hear of the so-called six party talks and the dynamic is different, China, Japan, different countries. Here it's France and the United States taking the lead and they were working very closely together any way in the last few years to get Syrian troops and intelligence agents out of Lebanon. This has just been another step in that direction.

HARRIS: That's really helpful. United Nations correspondent Richard Roth for us this morning. Richard, thank you.

NGUYEN: And to get some more perspective on this. Right after the break we're going to talk live with CNN's Brent Sadler. He is Beirut. So stick around for that. Don't go away. You're watching CNN SATURDAY MORNING.

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NGUYEN: OK. As we've just been telling you, within the past 15 minutes, the U.S. and France have agreed on a resolution to send to the U.N. Security Council to end the fighting in the Mideast. But what does this mean? Where are the details? We're trying to figure out all of that.

Let's go to CNN's Beirut bureau chief and that is Brent Sadler who joins us with the latest on what this resolution means for that area. Obviously you know what Lebanon wants. What do they want out of this, Brent?

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: Betty, I have seen some of the details that comprise this agreement between the United States and France and the idea is that we're going to see early next week by Tuesday or Wednesday, I understand, agreement at the United Nations that will create conditions for a cessation of hostilities.

This is not a cease-fire, but a cessation of hostilities. What does that mean? Quite simply an unstable arrangement whereby there might be some breathing space between the warring parties to allow a second phase of diplomacy to kick in.

What we're talking about here on this U.N. agreement between France and the United States is that the second part of this diplomacy, a second resolution that would come later, no real timing guidance for that at the moment, Betty, would envision such things as a withdrawal with respect to the blue line, which is the border between Israel and Lebanon.

That would mean Israeli forces going back behind their border area. It would mean respect of each other's sovereignty. It would mean that between the Litani River, which is north of Tyre and the blue line (INAUDIBLE), that there would be an area there free of all armies, in other word's Hezbollah's rockets, Hezbollah's fighters, free of Israeli forces and that that vacuum would be patrolled by the Lebanese army hand in hand with an international force.

Also envisioned in this U.S./U.N. agreement would be an arms embargo on Lebanon, so Hezbollah and any other parties would not be able to rearm. So these are some of the details in there. Also I understand there is now U.S. -- and this is very important -- U.S. and French agreement in this recommendation for a stage two resolution at the U.N., that the Shebaa Farms -- this is something you hear about a lot -- the Shebaa Farms is one of what many Lebanese would call a pretext for Hezbollah to have its armed resistance in continuance against Israel.

Shebaa Farms is a disputed patch of land at the foot of the Golan Heights. United Nations says it should be dealt with between Israel and Syria, not Israel and Lebanon. But Lebanon has said it's Lebanese land. The Hezbollah says they are fighting for it.

So take that Shebaa Farms issues away. That's one of the reasons why Hezbollah claims it needs its weapons. Israel considering that by no means on board with that idea of taking Sheba out of the equation, also disarming of all militias.

A lot of what is on the table here that's been agreed between the U.S. and France has yet to go to the Security Council. And in this resolution, referrals to the Security Council resolution 1559, disarming of all militias. So a lot of what's on the table here has been agreed between the U.S. and France, has yet to go to the Security Council.

And it also depends on what Hezbollah has to say about all this. Hezbollah is part of the Lebanese government. On behalf of Hezbollah, you have Nabih Berri the speaker of the parliament here speaking for Hezbollah. So there are many, many complicating factors on the ground. The best I think we can hope for Betty is that this will lead to a cessation, a break in the hostility to give second phase diplomacy time to kick in. There are many ifs and buts involved in all this. NGUYEN: There are. As we have said many times, the devil is in the details and you've laid out a lot of those details in this second resolution. But I guess the main thing is to get the cessation of violence long enough so that the second part of the resolution can be discussed and hopefully agreed upon at some point.

Brent Sadler, thank you for that, joining us live out of Beirut. There's much more to come on the crisis in the Mideast. Stick with CNN SATURDAY MORNING. We'll be right back.

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HARRIS: Is Floyd Landis' Tour de France title in jeopardy? Looks like it after a second positive test for high levels of testosterone. Now with Landis on the defensive, is the doping test itself truly reliable? Medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen joins us here now with some insight. We're talking about these tests and what do you think about all of this?

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well it's interesting what they are not saying is that it's almost as interesting as what they are saying. Let's talk about what they are saying and then we'll get to what they are not saying.

Last week we heard that the "A" sample of Landis' urine tested positive for high levels of testosterone, in fact, nearly three times as high as what is allowed by the rules. And now there's a "B" sample, another sample of urine that they say has also tested high. They didn't give levels, but that first test there's no way you could have that naturally. That's what experts tell us.

Now Landis has proclaimed his innocence. He said today in a statement, I have never taken any banned substance, including testosterone. I was the strongest man in the Tour de France and that is why I am the champion. Now, here's what they are not saying. What we have not heard officially from the international cycling union is, did they do something called a carbon isotope test?

That test will tell you for sure as it gets whether the testosterone in his body is natural or synthetic. Did his body make it or did he get it from some form of a drug? That test, if that's positive, that is the nail in the coffin as one expert said to me.

HARRIS: I am Floyd Landis and I'm saying to you that the lab made a mistake. The sample was spiked.

COHEN: And if you said that you would be one in a long line of athletes that has said that.

HARRIS: This is true.

COHEN: If the carbon isotope test does come back positive and they announce that, it behooves Landis to make that argument. The onus is on him to say somebody spiked me. Somebody doesn't like me and they put something in my water or the lab made a stupid goof. He has to prove that. HARRIS: Yes.

COHEN: He has to show that that happened and that's hard to do.

HARRIS: The isotope, that's the test.

COHEN: That's the test. We have not heard what the results are officially on that.

HARRIS: Thank you.

NGUYEN: Well we do have another hour of CNN SATURDAY coming up. You don't want to miss that, a lot happening in the Middle East. We'll bring you up to speed on all of it.

HARRIS: We will be right back.

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