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Trump to Unveil His Middle East Plan, Palestinians Weigh In; Wuhan Coronavirus; Countries Still Violating Libya Arms Embargo; Iran Not Changing Behavior Post- Soleimani. Aired 11a-12:00p ET
Aired January 28, 2020 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Abu Dhabi, this is CONNECT THE WORLD with Becky Anderson.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): This hour the Trump administration gets ready to unveil its much vaunted plan to bring peace to the Middle
East.
Plus important new information about the deadly Wuhan coronavirus. Scientists say it is spreading faster and in new ways than previously
thought. We speak to a representative of the world's top health authority to get you the latest information that you need.
We are an hour away from President Trump revealing what is the political component of the deal we saw the economic side of a few months ago. Now
it's taken three years to get to this stage with a lot of false starts. Mr. Trump will be joined by Israel's prime minister. Both leaders currently
facing trials and reelection campaigns.
And it is important to keep in mind who isn't in Washington next hour.
The Palestinian prime minister, who has rejected the Trump administration's plan calling it, quote, "nothing but a plan to finish off the Palestinian
cause."
He says the U.S. can no longer be trusted as a mediator. Mr. Trump says the Palestinian side may come around. And he's promising the deal isn't one-
sided. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: It's something they should want. They probably won't want it initially but I think in the end
they will. I think in the end they're going to want it. It's very good for them. In fact, it's overly good to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, CNN covering this story from all over the world as you would expect us to. We are joined from Jerusalem by Oren Liebermann, Sam
Kiley is in Ramallah and our international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson is from London. And let's start from Washington with Jeremy Diamond.
"We have something that makes a lot of sense to everybody."
The U.S. president described this due for public release in an hour. This has been three years in the making.
What's expected?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think the first thing you have to know about this plan is to know how President Trump is
going to release it. And that is standing alongside the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
The Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas will be thousands of miles away. Nowhere to be seen and that is because the Palestinians cut off
diplomatic contact with the United States more than two years ago after President Trump announced that the United States would recognize Jerusalem
as Israel's capital.
There has been no connect between the Trump administration's peace team and the Palestinian officials, at least direct contact in those two years. And
so that will tell you pretty much all you need to know about this plan and the way in which it is expected to be tilted heavily in Israel's favor.
And not only will the optics of Netanyahu speak to the details of the plan and the extent to which it's going to be skewed in Israel's favor but also
the questions about the political benefits that President Trump may be handing to Netanyahu.
President Trump has made no secret that he would like to see prime minister Netanyahu remain the prime minister of Israel and so this is largely viewed
as a boost to Netanyahu.
[11:05:00]
DIAMOND: There's also a question of whether or not this will be aimed at trying to help Israel form the broad governing coalition between Netanyahu
and his political opponent, Benny Gantz.
This administration sees a broad coalition as conducive to getting a peace deal. But in the region there is no sense this is going to get off the
ground. It's largely viewed as dead on arrival.
But the administration is hoping that perhaps you will see some of the Sunni Arab countries like Saudi Arabia, come forward and support this plan
or at least encourage Palestinians to take a second look at it, even though they've rejected it out of hand.
We know that has been one of the fundamental ways this administration has approached this, through the lens between the rapprochement between Israel
and the Sunni Arab countries because of that Iranian threat. That will play a large part in how this plan is received and if there's a chance of it
gaining traction.
ANDERSON: That's a good point. Both of these leaders, we will see side by side in an hour or so in Washington, are facing big political problems.
Oren, Mr. Trump has been impeached and the Israeli prime minister formally indicted on corruption charges a few hours ago. Mr. Netanyahu echoing a
line from Donald Trump, saying he's facing an obsessive hunt from the anyone but Bibi crowd.
The argument, of course, that the timing of this release intended to provide a distraction from the problems that these two men have at home.
What's the perspective where you are?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the timing lines up conveniently in this case for prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. This morning he
withdrew his request for parliamentary immunity. That means the charges of bribery and fraud and breach of trust could continue.
Shortly after that, the attorney general formally indicted on the charges, making him the first sitting prime minister in Israel's history to be
indicted. That won't be the headline for long here. A few hours later, we get to see the Middle East peace plan and that benefits Benjamin Netanyahu,
as does the picture of him standing next to President Trump as this is unveiled.
All of that to his benefit, even if his rival, Benny Gantz, met Trump yesterday, had his own private meeting, got his own pictures there, this is
clearly -- appears clearly orchestrated in a way that benefits Netanyahu.
And as he comes home, he'll look like the leader, the leader able to handle Trump, the leader able to handle world leaders. That both Trump and his
diplomatic accomplishments has been a big part of his campaign.
The question here is it too transparent?
Do Israelis see this as an attempt to distract away from issues back home?
It's to the point where the leader of the Labor Party sent a letter to Donald Trump, basically saying holding the peace plan release right now is
in interference in Israeli politics. That's how many here perceive it, as an attempt to get Netanyahu over the line.
In that case with 34 days before the election, does this change anything?
Is it put on the table in such a way that it gives Netanyahu extra votes and gives Netanyahu more political gifts, as we saw from Trump before the
April election?
Crucially to that question, what is it we're looking for?
Does the White House give Israel, give Netanyahu a green light to begin annexing parts of the West Bank?
That would be the ultimate gift for Netanyahu ahead of the election.
ANDERSON: Sam, we know how the Palestinian leadership feels about a deal which quite frankly we are told they haven't seen the details of. They have
already said this is the hopes of the century, not the deal of the century and it's a plan that's dead on arrival.
What are people on the street telling you there about how they feel about their potential future?
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Becky, we were out earlier, out and about, taking an very unscientific straw poll. You might
have anticipated and I certainly did, that there might be echoes of what Saeb Erekat said a few days ago, when he said the Palestinian Authority
might not survive the Trump plan by -- directly suggesting that it could be a collapse of the Palestinian Authority and an end of the Oslo peace
process.
But that really isn't what we were hearing on the ground, at least not today. The sense from people on the ground was that they would actually be
more united behind the Palestinian Authority and the president in trying to fight this plan off. Here's a sample of what we heard.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): This is a very bad plan for Trump, who wants to destroy the Palestinian people. We hope that all Palestinian
factions unite to stop this conspiracy that all the Arab countries are part of it, except for Jordan.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): No. I don't have any faith in the Trump plan. It's for destroying the idea of a Palestinian existence.
That's the aim of this plan. It is only for the Israeli benefit.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KILEY: Now there has been some unusual level of agreement; even Hamas has joined, according to Palestinian Authority sources, in conversations that
they're going to extend over the period in which this plan is laid out later on in an hour or so.
Here in Ramallah, where the Palestine organization and other factions will try to come up with united response and soon after that we expect to hear
from Mahmoud Abbas, but I think there will be an outright rejection here.
The problem, though, then, is there rejection, therefore, providing diplomatic space to some degree for the Israelis to make unilateral land
grabs on the West Bank, particularly on the Jordan Valley?
And where does that put the international community, particularly the Europeans who so far have been financially underwriting stability,
particularly here on the West Bank, Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes. Fascinating. Let me get to Nic. He is standing by in London.
Mr. Trump says that other nations in the Middle East are backing the deal.
Nic, have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: Many of the Arab nations have agreed to it. They like it. They think it's great. They think it's a big start. I think it's a big start,
too. I think it's a fantastic thing if we can pull it off.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Yes. Well, let's sort of break down where we are at so far as the narrative across the Middle East region is concerned. You spoke at
length to the Saudi foreign minister, for example, this week, a clear stakeholder in all of this.
What's the perspective there?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, it's a very clear perspective and that is that they will work with all parties to bring
about peace in the region. That's a narrative that we often hear and it doesn't, in and of itself at face value, seem to offer too much insight.
But what it is essentially saying and what he did say very clearly is any deal has to recognize the 1967 borders, that it must represent a two-state
solution and it must give Palestinians a part of Jerusalem, at least, to represent their capital as well.
There are very clear lines that the Saudis and others in the region would want to see. You know, there is a degree of frustration. There has become a
degree of frustration over the years between -- among many Arab nations, that the Palestinians, have in some people's opinions, let opportunities
slip by.
But I don't -- you don't get the sense at all that their neighbors, despite what President Trump says, are going to step away from supporting the
Palestinians. Far from it. And there is, if there is a deal that is done here successfully and as everyone is saying, that's not in the cards, the
bonus for Israel would be the thing that it cherishes most, security in the region and access to the region. This is how the foreign minister put it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FAISAL BIN FARHAN AL SAUD, SAUDI FOREIGN MINISTER: We are very supportive of a peaceful resolution to the conflict. And once there is a peace deal
between the Palestinians and the Israelis, I think the integration of Israel into the regional context is very much on the table.
And we'll, in our proposal for the Arab peace treaty, there was included in that, complete normalization with the state of Israel once peace is
achieved.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTSON: And that normalization, you know, over time, equals stability and security. But for example, as we saw over the weekend, Israel allowing
its citizens to go to Saudi Arabia for business or for religious reasons or for tourism. The Saudis are saying, very good on the part of Israel but
that's a nonstarter until there's a deal in place.
ANDERSON: Yes. I want to get back to this moment from 1993. President Bill Clinton in the middle as Israel's Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader
Yasser Arafat shaking hands, confirming those Oslo accords.
Look, I want to bring in Oren and Sam up at this point. Sources I've spoken to do not believe we should see these sort of optics any time soon. There's
questions about whether America has any role as an honest broker across this region.
To both of you, starting with Oren and very briefly, if you will, what leverage does the U.S. have at this point?
[11:15:00]
LIEBERMANN: Well, the U.S. has tried to use its leverage already by cutting aid to the Palestinians and attempting to offer carrots. The $50
billion Bahrain economic workshop; more than half of it was supposed to go to the Palestinians and the rest to others around the region in terms of
incentivizing them to support the peace plan.
Does the U.S. have other options?
Sure. It can try to put leverage on Arab states to try to push the Palestinians into supporting this deal. Even if the U.S. isn't as much of a
player in the region, it can still apply leverage.
Will the leverage lead anywhere?
That's a more difficult question in terms of how this process plays out, part of it because we need to see what's in this plan. The U.S. has some
options, perhaps, mostly directed at trying to get the Arab states to push the Palestinians in here.
But the views most of their efforts it seems in trying to bring the Palestinians back to the table, a table they're not anywhere near right
now.
ANDERSON: Yes.
Briefly, Sam?
KILEY: Well, I think the level of leverage that the Arab states have over Palestinians is grotesquely exaggerated. The Egyptians have a closure in
alliance with the Israelis on the Gaza Strip. The Emirates, it's clear they're keen to get their hands on surveillance technology and military
technologies that the Israelis are developing.
So far it's really only been the Jordanians that seem to have any kind of influence. There is one rider to this, that is on the future of the mosque
complex that the Israelis, the Jewish call the Temple Mount. If there was some kind of proposal that would take the ownership of that, if you like,
away from Jordan's king, the Arab street may not put up with that development.
But certainly elsewhere in the Middle East, there's traditionally been a lot of lip service paid to support the Palestinians but historically little
delivered on the ground and that includes offers of financial support in the past.
ANDERSON: That is the analysis, with 45 minutes to go before the public release of this plan. Guys, thank you.
A programming note for you folks. We have a special third hour of CONNECT THE WORLD coming up tonight with special coverage of the Middle East plan
announcement at the White House. Stay with me for that next hour.
Meantime, coming up this hour for you, what it's like escaping the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus. We'll get you the story of an
American's long journey, very long journey back home.
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ANDERSON: Well, the president of China is using some blunt language to describe the battle against the deadly coronavirus outbreak. Xi Jinping
calls it a demon that he will not allow to hide. A new study suggests the outbreak began earlier and was more widespread than anybody thought.
That's according to Chinese researchers, whose study was published by "The Lancet." Now evidence emerging that the virus can be spread via human to
human. The virus has killed at least 106 people in Mainland China and there's been a 65 percent jump in the report of cases, now at 4,500
reported infected people.
What started as a mysterious pneumonia in the Chinese city of Wuhan has expanded into a deadly outbreak, stretching close to 12,000 kilometers from
its outset.
In an effort to curb the spread of the virus, Hong Kong is attempting to quite frankly seal it off from the mainland. Chief executive Carrie Lam
announcing on Tuesday the number of inbound flights from China will be cut in half and there will be few buses coming through the border.
But thousands in the mainland are on lockdown, unable to get out. David Culver tells us the story of one American's journey as she tries to flee
the outbreak and get home.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Leaving the epicenter of the deadly coronavirus, American Persilla Dickie and her 8-year-old daughter
Hermione record their drive to safety.
PERSILLA DICKIE, U.S. CITIZEN IN WUHAN: I've never seen the road this empty in the middle of the day.
CULVER (voice-over): Headed to a Wuhan airport, headed back to the U.S.?
HERMIONE DICKIE, PERSILLA'S DAUGHTER: I'm trying to get a ticket to the plane.
CULVER (voice-over): We videochatted with the pair the night before the flight. They were among 240 U.S. citizens, including diplomats and their
families, granted special approval to get out of the lockdown zone.
H. DICKIE: I'm already all packed. My bag is over there.
CULVER (voice-over): Retreating from the front lines of this deadly outbreak as Chinese medical personnel move in with force. More than 4,000
deployed to Hubei province checking for those who might be infected and potentially carrying the virus. At this community hospital, doctors see
patient after patient.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I received 55 patients today, of whom nearly 20 had fever. Of those 20 patients, two are suspicious cases of
a new type of viral pneumonia and have been transferred for treatment.
CULVER (voice-over): Amid the crisis, acts of kindness; with public transportation shut down, local Chinese offering to drive those otherwise
stranded.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We encourage each other and work together. I hope the epidemic can go away and we can get the normal life
back.
CULVER (voice-over): Chinese state media approach rapid construction underway for two new hospitals. They will reportedly hold more than 2,000
infected patients and both are slated to open within two weeks' time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): My wife is a medical worker and I am a builder at the hospital. Our goal right now is to build this hospital
better so that all medical staff like my wife can work worry free and feel more secure.
CULVER (voice-over): And as a sign of unity on Monday evening social media captured residents singing China's national anthem from their open windows
and chanting, "Go Wuhan." Become inside a near empty Wuhan airport terminal, the waiting game, Persilla and her daughter posing for photos,
about to board a long flight back to the U.S. to be followed by several days of quarantine.
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ANDERSON: The World Health Organization has sent top officials to Beijing to meet with government and health experts. The risk assessment put China
as very high and regional and global levels as high.
But the group still has yet to declare this a public health emergency of international concern. Joining me from Geneva is Tarik Jasarevic, a
spokesman for the WHO, spoke to me on Sunday.
[11:25:00]
ANDERSON: And I put this question to you then, sir, and I put it again. Why hasn't the WHO labeled the Wuhan coronavirus as a public health
emergency of international concern?
TARIK JASAREVIC, WHO SPOKESPERSON: My answer is along the same lines. We're working hard and our director general is today in China. And he met
with the president, with the ministry of health and other officials really to exchange the latest information on what we know and what we don't know
and what needs to be done.
So he spent two days talking to officials, trying to understand the measures that have been put in place by China, trying also to see what
studies need to be done so we understand better the transmissibility and severity of this virus, what material needs to be shared so WHO can guide
other countries.
So work is really going around the clock trying to understand that. When it comes to emergency committee and declaring public health national concern,
that's always the option and a committee can be convened at a short notice.
ANDERSON: With respect, the WHO has recently admitted it was wrong and that the global risk is high.
What I don't understand and perhaps our viewers will not understand is why not declare it a public health emergency of international concern?
JASAREVIC: The risk assessment did not change at all. We were saying from the very beginning that the risk of it to spread in China is very high and
on a regional and global level, it's high.
This is because we're seeing reports from other countries. I know you're seeing we have now 14 countries that have reported coronavirus in 46
people. So this is something that we are working on. We are issuing guidance and updating guidance.
The first set of guidance issued on January 10th and we as we get more understanding of the virus, we're issuing more guidance. So health systems
and health workers around the world can be ready.
ANDERSON: The Chinese national health commission says that people don't -- people who don't have the symptoms can spread the disease.
Has the WHO, as far as you understand it, seen data to corroborate what they are saying?
JASAREVIC: Well, we understand that there could be some cases of people who have not been shown symptoms yet, that they are infectious. This would
not be uncommon for coronavirus, as we've seen with the Middle East and respiratory syndrome.
The question would be whether this person will show symptoms later or it will remain asymptomatic for the time of the illness. These are all the
questions we have to understand.
We need to get data from various individual cases, get their history and have a sample that would give us really the full picture of the virus that
then would help us to work on treatment and vaccines.
ANDERSON: I want to know something that I find disturbing. Anyone who remembers the miss around the HIV and AIDS crisis of the late 1980s, early
1990s, will recall the awful stigma of patients and families when it was suggested wrongly that the virus and the disease could spread from human
contact.
Can you confirm that this virus is asymptomatic and can be spread by human to human contact?
JASAREVIC: Definitely there is a human to human transmission. And most likely, as it is the case with the other coronaviruses, it is being
transmitted through droplets. When a person sneezes next to you and if a droplet of that comes to your skin and enters your body, you may get
infected.
We know for sure there's a human to human transmission. How easily it's being transmitted is something we have to look at.
Is it only across close contact if you spend lots of time near a person or is it a short period?
What's the distance?
How much the virus can survive in a droplet on the surface.
Sure, there's a human to human contact established. When it comes to the stigma, I hope every country in the world will provide the right
information to its population. There is really no need for panic and there is no need for a stigma.
ANDERSON: Sir, thank you. And we will have you back. Please, keep us up to date on exactly where the WHO stands on all of this.
And folks, for up to the minute updates and more, you can use cnn.com. It has a wealth of ,information including symptoms of the virus and its
complications.
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ANDERSON: And what you personally can do to help stop its spread.
Well, the U.S. president is set to unveil the White House plan for peace in the Middle East very soon. Ahead of that, he is making a prediction.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: It's something they should want. They probably won't want it initially. I think in the end they will. In the end they'll want it. It's
good for them. In fact, it's overly good to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, Palestinians voicing a quite different opinion about what to expect. More, much more on the president's long awaited reveal is up
next.
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ANDERSON: Our top stories for you if you are just joining us, you're more than welcome. Just 30 minutes to go until President Trump's big reveal at
the White House. A Middle East plan devised by his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, that he says decades of conflict.
He'll be joined by Benjamin Netanyahu, indicted just today on fraud and bribery charges back home in Israel. It is all happening, of course, as the
president's legal team gets set to finish their arguments in his impeachment trial. Two embattled leaders set to provide a unified front,
some call it a pivotal day.
Expectations seem decidedly muted. The Palestinians point out they've had no involvement in this plan and consider it dead on arrival.
[11:35:00]
ANDERSON: The Palestinian prime minister saying it would in his words, liquidate the Palestinian issue.
Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his main political rival, Benny Gantz, both visited the White House on Monday and announced they support
the plan. Reporters were not allowed into Gantz's meeting.
Gantz calls the plan historic and says he would work to implement it if he becomes prime minister after what will be Israel's third election in a year
coming up in March.
Not all Israelis are on board. I want to show you a quote from my next guest, a Labour Party member in the Knesset.
He says in the "Jerusalem Post," and I quote, "Even an American permit to the annexation won't allow Israel to digest what it cannot swallow."
Only one side it seems has been privy to the details of this plan and the leader and opposition in Washington over the last 24 hours.
Have they, Gantz and Netanyahu, shared this deal of the century with lawmakers?
ITZIK SHMULI, LABOR PARTY MEMBER OF KNESSET: Hello, Becky. We don't know all the details about the initiative. But we can say now the most important
thing is what is next, meaning, what is the real goal of this initiative?
If it's going to be the base for the future negotiation between the sides, this is great. But otherwise, otherwise in case the real goal of this plan
is to create an alibi for Israel to take a unilateral step of annexation, this is something that we cannot accept and this is something devastating
for our future.
ANDERSON: I wonder what your position is on this move by the White House to unveil this plan at this time. The plan that by all accounts seems to
tip so heavily in Israel's favor. Both the Israeli leader and the U.S. president himself facing troubled times in their respective homes.
SHMULI: Well, it seems to me that -- well, first, we really appreciate the efforts of the Trump administration to promote any solution to this ongoing
conflict. But I think the most important thing in this plan is the fact that still there is no recognition of the two-state solution as the only
possible solution to this conflict.
Of course in the context of our demands and our security needs of Israel, of course, this plan is more favorable but I think that the problem is that
in the plan there are many points that the Palestinian leadership cannot accept and cannot agree and this is something that might get stuck us (ph)
in the next few weeks.
You talk about that the -- there being still support for a two-state solution. That, though, sir, is not reflected in the Knesset. If Netanyahu
tabled a vote to annex the West Bank, Mr. Lieberman said he would support that. It would probably split Blue and White.
Isn't the truth of the matter that Israel is now ready to annex and that voices like yours, quite frankly, are in the minority these days?
SHMULI: I don't think so. This is not regarding the Knesset or the Israeli public. In principle we have a clear majority to the two-state solution and
there is no question about it. The problem is that we can see in both sides a leadership who can move forward the process.
Regarding the annexation, I think this is something that for three reasons. One, it can end the -- it might lead to the collapse of the Palestinian
Authority. It might lead the cancellation of a peace agreement with Jordan and, third, it might block our essential cooperation with the Sunni
countries in the area against the real threat in this area, Iran, of course.
[11:40:00]
ANDERSON: Right. Listen, I want to get in, before I let you go just one other thought. Benny Gantz, not your leader but a man you'll likely end up
supporting for prime minister after the election in March. I think that's a given, isn't it?
Did he make a mistake, do you think, going to Washington?
SHMULI: No, absolutely not, because, once you get an invitation from the White House, from the President of the United States, you have to go and
you have to say what is your agenda regarding the most important issue in our reality.
We have to separate from the Palestinians because, first and foremost, this is the Israeli interest. We have to keep this land, this country as a
democratic state and also as a state with the Jewish majority.
And if we want to ensure this in the next generations, we have to separate from the Palestinian and really hope that this is what Benny Gantz said to
the president on their appointment.
ANDERSON: I'm going to have to leave it there, sir. I have to take a break but we appreciate your time. Thank you very much, indeed, for joining us.
My colleague Christiane Amanpour will interview senior White House adviser Jared Kushner in just a few hours. The architect, of course, of this much
warranted -- let's give it Donald Trump's name -- deal of the century. Tune in later, 11:30 pm in Abu Dhabi and 8:30 in London.
Still to come, ahead of this grand reveal for President Trump's peace plan, we get an exclusive reaction from Saudi Arabia.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAUD: We've always supported all genuine efforts toward pushing for a peace agreement between the Palestinians and Israelis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: More of that exclusive interview is just ahead.
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ANDERSON: Mr. Trump's plan to bring peace to the Middle East, which is to be unveiled in about 15 minutes' time, comes at a time when the region is,
well, quite frankly, roiling. We'll wait to see what this plan may look like. Let's turn our attention to the region right now.
And in Libya the United Nations says several countries are still sending weapons and fighters to the country, in blatant violation of an arms
embargo despite commitments made at a confirmation in Berlin last week. The United Nations says advance weapons, armored vehicles and fighters are
being provided to Libya's warring parties.
[11:45:00]
ANDERSON: Threatening a fragile truce that was struck earlier this month.
The U.S. warning against reigniting violence in Yemen. In a statement Tuesday, secretary of state Mike Pompeo said and I quote, "Renewed fighting
is unacceptable and threatens to undermine this hard-earned progress.
"It also produces instability that terrorist groups and other malign actors can exploit for their own purposes."
In Iraq we've seen days of deadly protests. On Sunday, human rights officials said 12 people were killed and 230 injured in three days of
protests. They say more than 600 people have been killed since anti- government demonstrations erupted in October.
Well, when you look around the region, Saudi Arabia, of course, is one of the heavy weights in the Middle East. It's been weighing in on some of the
issues with the region as well as those hanging over the kingdom itself.
In what is an exclusive interview with our international diplomatic editor, Nic Robertson, speaks with the new foreign minister of Saudi Arabia.
Nic, joining me now for more.
And I know you talked about a number of issues but as we talk of the potential for peace with regard to Donald Trump's plan, the big reveal in
some 15 minutes' time, that important to the region, we did also at the beginning of this month see the killing of the Iranian general Soleimani
just weeks ago. That did seem to take this region almost to the brink of war.
What is the Saudi perspective on that, firstly, Nic?
ROBERTSON: Yes. It's interesting to sit down with the foreign minister just alone on that particular issue, because we haven't heard from senior
Saudi officials in detail about how they view everything that's fallen out of the killing of Qasem Soleimani.
One thing is very clear from my conversations that they do value and want to have U.S.-international forces -- and I say international forces because
that was the way the foreign minister sort of framed this force in Iraq. They do believe it's essential to have them in Iraq to counter the
possibility of ISIS.
But on that issue of the killing of Soleimani, I began our discussion by asking him if the United States had told their major ally that has a huge
border with Iraq that they were going to kill Soleimani just over that border.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON: One of the biggest things happen the region recently was the killing of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian military commander, on Iraqi
territory by the United States, your major ally.
Did the United States tell you they were going to kill Qasem Soleimani?
SAUD: We were not aware of those operations, no.
ROBERTSON: What impact does that have on your relationship with the United States?
Given that this in a way brought the region possible to the brink of war, particularly when Iran retaliated. If U.S. troops had been killed, there
could have been a real escalation.
SAUD: The U.S. acted in its own self-defense. They were being attacked in Iraq, they have, according to what we have been, told, significant
intelligence that Qasem Soleimani was working on additional attacks on American interests.
We know Qasem Soleimani had a very bloody track record in the region, of multiple attacks organizing the Iranian militia networks and all of the
proxy networks with constant acts of terrorism. So we believe that the Americans were acting in their own legitimate self-defense.
We also called, of, course for a de-escalation afterwards and I think we see in the region that relatively, things have calmed down and we will
continue to work with all parties to prevent any further escalation going forward.
ROBERTSON: President Trump has said that this strike against Qasem Soleimani has made the region safer.
Is the region safer at the moment?
SAUD: I believe the region is safer with Qasem Soleimani removed from the scene but we all have a responsibility to continue to work to ensure that
we prevent any further escalation and that we put the region on track towards more stability, more security, more development, more investment,
rather than violence and terrorism and the activities that Iran continues to push for in the region.
ROBERTSON: I know your aspirations for what you want them to do in the message that you have had.
But is there anything tangible you can see that they have changed thus far?
SAUD: We have not seen any real signs of change in behavior at this point. The statements are not positive but we will continue to call on them to
behave in a way that can support regional stability.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON: I talked about Libya, what we understand to be the backing for General Haftar.
[11:50:00]
ROBERTSON: They said Saudi Arabia supports the peace efforts in the region. But on Turkey sending troops into Libya and facilitating Syrian
fighters going to fight in Libya, he was very clear on that particular issue and called it dangerous and called what Turkey is doing at the moment
very dangerous.
ANDERSON: Yes. Fascinating. It's always a busy region.
This is CONNECT THE WORLD, of course, from your Middle East broadcasting hub here in Abu Dhabi.
Always a pleasure, Nic.
And you can watch more of Nick's exclusive interview. He covered a lot of ground as you can hear, including as he just mentioned what is going on in
Libya. That is not a story that anybody should overlook. Well worth watching there online.
One prominent Palestinian is already calling it the biggest hoax of the century. The U.S. president getting ready to roll out his plan to end the
decades-old conflict between the Israelis and Palestinians. We'll get the details on Trump's proposals for ourselves in a matter of minutes.
You'll get them, too. Stay with us as we follow the announcement here from the White House.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
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ANDERSON: We are minutes away from what will be or is touted as a major announcement from the White House. I'll get you live pictures of what is
going on in the room at the White House where it is all going to happen.
U.S. president Donald Trump preparing to reveal his plan for peace in the Middle East. You see his daughter, Ivanka, there, among others, the Israeli
prime minister, Netanyahu, will be with the U.S. president. No Palestinian leaders. They say they do not support the plan and they were not involved,
they say, in the negotiations.
Now this all comes as Mr. Trump and Mr. Netanyahu struggle with corruption trials and reelection campaigns back at home. Leaving these pictures up for
you just for the moment, let's bring in our crew, who are covering this for you, Oren Liebermann, Sam Kiley in Ramallah Jeremy Diamond from Washington.
You have about a minute each.
Your thoughts ahead of the great reveal, Jeremy?
DIAMOND: I think it's important to kind of put this in context. This is a plan that has been three years in the making for this administration.
But despite all of that time and effort put into this, there is a real question about whether this is truly a peace proposal. There are a lot of
questions, particularly because of the lack of involvement of any Palestinian officials in all of this, if this is a plan that can get off
the ground at all.
[11:55:00]
DIAMOND: This will be the first time we see this administration answer the most intractable political questions at the heart of this decades-old
conflict. We expect this plan to address the status of Jerusalem, questions about borders, Palestinian refugees. All the key issues the Trump
administration has avoided answering so far.
They have kept this plan tightly under wraps. But despite that, of course, we understand that this is a plan that will likely be skewed heavily in
favor of the Israelis and Palestinians are mistrustful of this administration.
ANDERSON: Oren in Jerusalem.
LIEBERMANN: The question here really is what is Israel allowed to keep or annex under this plan and crucially when. It's expected that this is very
much expected to be skewed in Israel's favor on the major issues. Jerusalem, security, borders and refugees.
And the fundamental question is does this give Israel the green light to annex parts of the West Bank?
That part is expected and when. That could be a big factor in the upcoming election in a month.
ANDERSON: Sam, you have 30 seconds, sir.
KILEY: Well, I think the simple question here -- and it may not be answered until after the Israeli elections just over a month away -- and
that is will the Palestinians, particularly if they're faced with the sort of unilateral annexation that could follow, a reject of this plan, fold up
their own Palestinian Authority and tear up the agreements of the Oslo peace process and force the Israelis back into full-scale occupation with
the potential violence that could flow from that.
ANDERSON: Thank you, guys.
The reason I'm keeping it brief is that we need to take a very short break ahead of what is the public release of this plan scheduled at least for the
top of this hour. We will be back after this.
END
