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CNN Live Event/Special
Powell Speaks on Iraq, Haiti
Aired February 17, 2004 - 11:28 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.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going live to Washington, D.C. Here's Secretary of State Colin Powell.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The debates goes around the issue of a caucus. Is the caucus still the best way to do it or can the caucus process be refined or modified in some way? Or is there some other procedure that might be used to reflect the will of the Iraqi people as we move forward?
And so we're waiting to get the report from the secretary general before any decisions are made. And I think the governing council is also waiting to hear the report of Ambassador Brahimi.
And so we've got an open mind on it, but as Ambassador Bremer says, we are still determined to move forward to transfer sovereignty by the 30th of June.
QUESTION: But you said he used the word "interim," though. The notion that there would be a full transfer of sovereignty is still something the U.S. doesn't support?
POWELL: Well, what we're talking about is an interim government to whom sovereignly will be transferred until such time as you can have a full constitution in place and that you can have a full election, which nobody believes is possible by June, but at some point in the future; whether it's the end of this year or sometime next year remains to be determined.
And so whoever we transfer sovereignty to at the end of June would be an interim arrangement of some kind until you get into a full ratified constitution, elections and a government that flows from those elections at a point in the future.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, on Haiti, the opposition says that Aristide needs to leave before there can be free and fair elections there -- parliamentary elections. Do you believe that there can be free and fair elections with Aristide still in Haiti?
POWELL: Yes, he is, right now, the free and fairly elected president of Haiti. And so we have put forward with the United Nations and with CARICOM and the OAS a good plan -- the CARICOM plan -- that we believe both sides should take to heart and stop the violence on both sides and move forward to find a political solution to this crisis. But we cannot buy into a proposition that says the elected president must be forced out of office by thugs and those who do not respect law and are bringing terrible violence to the Haitian people.
We have a serious humanitarian problem there now. We are sending people from the United States, OAS and other international organizations down to see what we can do about that humanitarian crisis. And we are also working with the OAS and others to see if we cannot get a dialogue going between President Aristide and his government and the opposition forces.
The opposition forces have taken on new dimensions. Some reflect political opposition leaders, but we also have thugs who can't reasonably be called opposition. And we also have some individuals coming back into the country who had formerly been excluded from civil life in Haiti for very good reasons: They're murderers and thugs, and we can't expect anyone to deal with these kinds of individuals.
One more, and then I'm afraid I have to...
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, last week you said that there were discussions going on about possibly sending police into Haiti. Is the United States considering sending its own police or other forces to quell the violence?
POWELL: No. The discussion that we had last week with our CARICOM and OAS friends had to do with sending in police to sustain a political settlement, not to go in and put down the current violence. There is, frankly, no enthusiasm right now for sending in military or police forces to put down the violence that we are seeing.
What we want to do right now is find a political solution, and then there are willing nations that would come forward with a police presence to implement the political agreement that the sides come to.
So it is important now for us to push for a political solution, not only between the efforts of the United States and the U.N. and the OAS and CARICOM, we're also working with the Francophone group. And I spoke to French Foreign Minister de Villepin about the situation this morning, and France is also willing to play a role in all of this.
Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Listening in to a brief question and answer session from Secretary of State Colin Powell, addressing two topics. One,the look for the best way to hold elections in Iraq and transfer of power. Also in Haiti, the disintegrating situation there.
Secretary of State Powell saying at this time no plan to send any U.S. police presence or military presence. Rather, that the United States was part of a group countries trying to find a political solution to the increasing violence and unstable situation in Haiti.
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 17, 2004 - 11:28 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: We're going live to Washington, D.C. Here's Secretary of State Colin Powell.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: The debates goes around the issue of a caucus. Is the caucus still the best way to do it or can the caucus process be refined or modified in some way? Or is there some other procedure that might be used to reflect the will of the Iraqi people as we move forward?
And so we're waiting to get the report from the secretary general before any decisions are made. And I think the governing council is also waiting to hear the report of Ambassador Brahimi.
And so we've got an open mind on it, but as Ambassador Bremer says, we are still determined to move forward to transfer sovereignty by the 30th of June.
QUESTION: But you said he used the word "interim," though. The notion that there would be a full transfer of sovereignty is still something the U.S. doesn't support?
POWELL: Well, what we're talking about is an interim government to whom sovereignly will be transferred until such time as you can have a full constitution in place and that you can have a full election, which nobody believes is possible by June, but at some point in the future; whether it's the end of this year or sometime next year remains to be determined.
And so whoever we transfer sovereignty to at the end of June would be an interim arrangement of some kind until you get into a full ratified constitution, elections and a government that flows from those elections at a point in the future.
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, on Haiti, the opposition says that Aristide needs to leave before there can be free and fair elections there -- parliamentary elections. Do you believe that there can be free and fair elections with Aristide still in Haiti?
POWELL: Yes, he is, right now, the free and fairly elected president of Haiti. And so we have put forward with the United Nations and with CARICOM and the OAS a good plan -- the CARICOM plan -- that we believe both sides should take to heart and stop the violence on both sides and move forward to find a political solution to this crisis. But we cannot buy into a proposition that says the elected president must be forced out of office by thugs and those who do not respect law and are bringing terrible violence to the Haitian people.
We have a serious humanitarian problem there now. We are sending people from the United States, OAS and other international organizations down to see what we can do about that humanitarian crisis. And we are also working with the OAS and others to see if we cannot get a dialogue going between President Aristide and his government and the opposition forces.
The opposition forces have taken on new dimensions. Some reflect political opposition leaders, but we also have thugs who can't reasonably be called opposition. And we also have some individuals coming back into the country who had formerly been excluded from civil life in Haiti for very good reasons: They're murderers and thugs, and we can't expect anyone to deal with these kinds of individuals.
One more, and then I'm afraid I have to...
QUESTION: Mr. Secretary, last week you said that there were discussions going on about possibly sending police into Haiti. Is the United States considering sending its own police or other forces to quell the violence?
POWELL: No. The discussion that we had last week with our CARICOM and OAS friends had to do with sending in police to sustain a political settlement, not to go in and put down the current violence. There is, frankly, no enthusiasm right now for sending in military or police forces to put down the violence that we are seeing.
What we want to do right now is find a political solution, and then there are willing nations that would come forward with a police presence to implement the political agreement that the sides come to.
So it is important now for us to push for a political solution, not only between the efforts of the United States and the U.N. and the OAS and CARICOM, we're also working with the Francophone group. And I spoke to French Foreign Minister de Villepin about the situation this morning, and France is also willing to play a role in all of this.
Thank you very much.
KAGAN: Listening in to a brief question and answer session from Secretary of State Colin Powell, addressing two topics. One,the look for the best way to hold elections in Iraq and transfer of power. Also in Haiti, the disintegrating situation there.
Secretary of State Powell saying at this time no plan to send any U.S. police presence or military presence. Rather, that the United States was part of a group countries trying to find a political solution to the increasing violence and unstable situation in Haiti.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
