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CNN SHOWDOWN: IRAQ
British Prime Minister in Political Dilemma
Aired March 11, 2003 - 12:11 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go to the White House now, where officials are brushing aside an offer from the so-called undecided six to give Iraq another 45 days to meet its remaining obligations.
Our White House correspondent Dana Bash is standing by with that.
Where exactly does the White House stand right now, Dana, as far as you can tell on these two issues, changing the actual text of the language in the amended version of the resolution to include the so- called benchmarks for Iraqi compliance, and delaying the deadline?
DANA BASH, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: They are being very cautious on both of those questions, Wolf. They are really open to some changes in the language that could include some benchmarks, and also open to pushing back the date a little bit, but not a lot.
The president, despite the fact you heard Richard talk about the fact there is an almost assured veto from Russia and France. The president, for his part, is working the phones again today. He is making calls to the members of the U.N. Security Council. He already called the president of Angola this morning. He will, we are told, continue to make calls this afternoon.
Yesterday, the White House points out just to underscore how personally involved the president is in this process, he made eight calls, and the White House says that is the most number of calls he has made to world leaders since October 7th. That is when he was calling to tell them he was going to start the bombing in Afghanistan.
Now, on the question of what kind of vote there should be and when the vote should be, the White House is being very clear that they do want to vote this week, regardless of where the votes are. They do want it to occur at the United Nations this week. And Ari Fleischer was being very careful not to publicly commit to any kind of language or any kind of specific date.
He did say -- quote, -- "The way I've answered the question to say, there is still little room for some diplomacy, not a lot of room, and not a lot of time." One thing Ari Fleischer was very clear on, Wolf, however, was that the whole question of giving a month beyond the March 17th deadline, which is proposed now, is not going to fly. He said, I indicated that the vote would be this week, and that's a nonstarter. Others were proposing a one-month period, and that's a nonstarter. The White House is maintaining they are working behind the scenes, and they are open to some compromise, but not much.
Also, the other thing I should note, Wolf, is at the White House, despite what Kofi Annan was saying, that there could be a potential breach of the charter at the United Nations if the U.S. does go ahead and bomb Iraq without another U.N. resolution, the White House is maintaining the president has all the authority he needs already regardless of what happens in the coming week at the U.N. -- Wolf.
BLITZER: Dana Bash at the White House. Thanks, Dana, very much.
And this important note, today's White House press briefing will be coming up shortly, scheduled to begin in the coming minutes. We'll have live coverage of Ari Fleischer's question-and-answer session with reporters.
Also, later today there's a pentagon briefing coming up in about a little bit more than an hour from now, 1:30 p.m. Eastern.
CNN, of course, will bring live coverage of the Defense Secretary, Donald Rumsfeld. He'll be briefing with the chairman of the joint of chiefs of staff, General Richard Meyers. CNN will be there, of course.
The British Prime Minister Tony Blair is in a political dilemma of sorts, in a highly skeptical country. His unconditional support for the U.S. position on Iraq may be putting Blair's political future directly on the line.
For more on that, let's go to London now. Our chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour is standing by. How much political trouble is he in right now, Christiane?
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTL. CORRESPONDENT: Well, it probably is not inaccurate to say that it's desperate times at Downing Street right now. They are really desperate to get another U.N. resolution. And the strategy is that they want to get a majority saying yes, even if France and/or Russia will veto, so they can make the moral case that most of the world supports us and that others are casting unreasonable vetoes.
So on the heels of the French foreign minister going to woo the three African swing states, Angola, Cameroon and Guinea, a British senior administration official has gone there this week. She's there today, going to those countries. These countries being wooed very, very ardently indeed.
At the same time, Prime Minister Tony Blair really showing the strain now. He seems to be plunging in regardless, into often hostile audiences. Last night, another one on television, where he was slow hand-clapped. I mean, really a disspiriting reception on British television, trying again and again to convince people that his position is right, and that he has got the moral imperative, and that it needs to be done and needs to be done soon.
But, of course, also, as you've been listening to other correspondents there, desperately trying for wiggle room in trying to bring on wavering members of the Security Council in terms of a later deadline, and these benchmarks which we started reporting from on Friday. They want something that they can convince the wavering members. But he is very, very tough, and still standing tough on his line. This is what he said just this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TONY BLAIR, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: Let us not be under any illusion. There is no way that Iraq will make any concession or cooperate in any way without the threat of force being there. The only reason we've made any progress at all in the past few weeks has been because of the threat of force.
And my concern is that if countries talk about using a veto in all sets of circumstances, the message that sends to Saddam is, you're off the hook.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
AMANPOUR: Now, as I said for Tony Blair himself, desperate. A new poll released today shows that only 19 percent of the British people would support him if there was to be a war without another U.N. resolution.
Already this week high-profile broadside against his policies by one of his cabinet ministers. And the threat that if the prime minister puts another vote to parliament, that he could get an even bigger rebellion from within his own members of parliament than he did two weeks ago when about a third of his own members voted against Iraq policy.
Back to you, Wolf.
BLITZER: Christiane, I want to be precise here. The Bush administration's position, as far as I can tell, even if this new resolution which is voted on at the end of this week is not passed, either vetoed, doesn't have the nine affirmative votes that it would require, that still would not slow down the U.S. from going to war in the days that followed against Iraq. But presumably, it would slow down the British position if this resolution goes down to a flaming defeat, is that right?
AMANPOUR: Well, it seems that if it goes down to a defeat, then -- Blair has already said with or without a new resolution, he will stand by his policy, and that is to stand with the United States, and if Iraq doesn't disarm, as the mantra goes, they will be forced to disarm him militarily, and he's sticking to that position. And, of course, now even his aides are voicing great worry that this could cost him his leadership. People are saying that if it is a short war, relatively casualty free, liberated Iraqis dancing in the street afterwards, then he will survive. But if it's not, then he could be an ex-leader, even before another election.
BLITZER: Christiane Amanpour in London. Thank you very much, Christiane, for that information.
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