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CNN Live Sunday

White House Focuses on U.N. Diplomacy

Aired February 23, 2003 - 18:10   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.


CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: The White House is busy focusing on the passage of a new U.N. resolution on Iraq. CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux has more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush returned from his Crawford ranch prepared to introduce a final resolution requiring Saddam Hussein to disarm. A senior administration official says it's now down to the details. Mr. Bush having spent the weekend engaged in debate over the specific words to be included in the text, consulting with world leaders from Spain, Britain, Mexico, Chile and Italy. The goal to get the nine votes and no vetoes needed from the U.N. Security Council for the resolution to pass. But Sunday France's foreign minister said in a newspaper interview, "Inspectors must be given more time."

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The issue is not more time for inspections. The issues is disarmament.

MALVEAUX: Secretary of State Colin Powell on a four-nation tour, arriving in Beijing to lobby China to come around. But Iraq's top general insists his government is complying. He now says Saddam Hussein may consider destroying Iraq's Al Samoud II missiles, deemed illegal by inspectors. The State Department dismissed the gesture. A spokeswoman saying, "These forbidden missiles should never have existed in the first place. They violate U.N. Security Council Resolution 687 and the restrictions imposed under the previous inspection regime."

Earlier in the week, Mr. Bush echoed that sentiment. Today Iraq responded.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Iraq decides to destroy the weapons that were -- that -- that were long-range weapons, that's just the tip of the iceberg. My question is, why don't they destroy every weapon, illegal weapon?

GEN. HUSSAM AMIN, NATIONAL MONITORING DIRECTORATE: President Bush was not successful in describing this issue as the iceberg, because the missile is not (UNINTELLIGIBLE), OK? The weapons of mass destruction are biological, chemical and nuclear.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Senior administration officials tell us that resolution could be introduced as early as tomorrow. March 7 is when chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix reports to the U.N. Security Council. Following that the White House, of course, would push for allies for a vote on that resolution. Then, there is a three-week window before the president has to make that critical decision whether the U.S. is going to go to war and who is going to be on the team -- Carol.

LIN: Suzanne, do you have any idea of how that resolution is likely to be worded?

MALVEAUX: Well, they're working on that wording. And it is really quite controversial. What they want to do is say, yes, that Saddam Hussein is in material breach, he continues to be in material breach of previous resolutions requiring him to disarm. The administration argues that they do not have to have that resolution explicitly authorize the use of military force, that they already have that authorization through previous resolutions. It is something that they hope that many of these U.N. Security Council members at least can have some sort of political cover and encompass everyone's needs. But again, this is something that's still being worked out as we speak.

LIN: So would you say that the most important goal of the administration in the wording of this resolution if it is not an authorization for war is simply to get as many allies, as many votes as possible on the Security Council to at least have a proxy endorsement if the United States does decide to strike against Baghdad?

MALVEAUX: Absolutely, Carol, that's what it is all about. They want those nine out of 15 votes from the U.N. Security Council, no vetoes. It is going to be tough work. It has been tough diplomacy the last couple of weeks. They're confident they can get this done. They point to the fact that Resolution 1441, they were able to get a unanimous vote on that. But the administration saying they're not going to wait that seven weeks that it took to get that resolution passed this time around.

LIN: All right. Thank you very much, Suzanne Malveaux, live at 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 February 23, 2003 - 18:10   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: The White House is busy focusing on the passage of a new U.N. resolution on Iraq. CNN White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux has more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Bush returned from his Crawford ranch prepared to introduce a final resolution requiring Saddam Hussein to disarm. A senior administration official says it's now down to the details. Mr. Bush having spent the weekend engaged in debate over the specific words to be included in the text, consulting with world leaders from Spain, Britain, Mexico, Chile and Italy. The goal to get the nine votes and no vetoes needed from the U.N. Security Council for the resolution to pass. But Sunday France's foreign minister said in a newspaper interview, "Inspectors must be given more time."

COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The issue is not more time for inspections. The issues is disarmament.

MALVEAUX: Secretary of State Colin Powell on a four-nation tour, arriving in Beijing to lobby China to come around. But Iraq's top general insists his government is complying. He now says Saddam Hussein may consider destroying Iraq's Al Samoud II missiles, deemed illegal by inspectors. The State Department dismissed the gesture. A spokeswoman saying, "These forbidden missiles should never have existed in the first place. They violate U.N. Security Council Resolution 687 and the restrictions imposed under the previous inspection regime."

Earlier in the week, Mr. Bush echoed that sentiment. Today Iraq responded.

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If Iraq decides to destroy the weapons that were -- that -- that were long-range weapons, that's just the tip of the iceberg. My question is, why don't they destroy every weapon, illegal weapon?

GEN. HUSSAM AMIN, NATIONAL MONITORING DIRECTORATE: President Bush was not successful in describing this issue as the iceberg, because the missile is not (UNINTELLIGIBLE), OK? The weapons of mass destruction are biological, chemical and nuclear.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Senior administration officials tell us that resolution could be introduced as early as tomorrow. March 7 is when chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix reports to the U.N. Security Council. Following that the White House, of course, would push for allies for a vote on that resolution. Then, there is a three-week window before the president has to make that critical decision whether the U.S. is going to go to war and who is going to be on the team -- Carol.

LIN: Suzanne, do you have any idea of how that resolution is likely to be worded?

MALVEAUX: Well, they're working on that wording. And it is really quite controversial. What they want to do is say, yes, that Saddam Hussein is in material breach, he continues to be in material breach of previous resolutions requiring him to disarm. The administration argues that they do not have to have that resolution explicitly authorize the use of military force, that they already have that authorization through previous resolutions. It is something that they hope that many of these U.N. Security Council members at least can have some sort of political cover and encompass everyone's needs. But again, this is something that's still being worked out as we speak.

LIN: So would you say that the most important goal of the administration in the wording of this resolution if it is not an authorization for war is simply to get as many allies, as many votes as possible on the Security Council to at least have a proxy endorsement if the United States does decide to strike against Baghdad?

MALVEAUX: Absolutely, Carol, that's what it is all about. They want those nine out of 15 votes from the U.N. Security Council, no vetoes. It is going to be tough work. It has been tough diplomacy the last couple of weeks. They're confident they can get this done. They point to the fact that Resolution 1441, they were able to get a unanimous vote on that. But the administration saying they're not going to wait that seven weeks that it took to get that resolution passed this time around.

LIN: All right. Thank you very much, Suzanne Malveaux, live at 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