10/03/2001 Transcript: Deputy Secretary of State Armitage on War Against Terrorism Interview with John King broadcast October 3 on CNN
The global war against terrorism is being conducted on many fronts,
Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage said in an October 3
interview from Washington with CNN's John King.
"There are many more than two tracks, Mr. King. There are also
financial tracks, with which we hope to strangle the financial
resources of al-Qaida. There clearly are attempts to divide the
Taliban. There are other attempts by many nations to help and assist
the opposition, the Northern Alliance. And, finally, there is the
pressure brought by the coalition to include the possibility of
military pressure. It is a many-track front," Armitage said.
Regarding possible military action, Armitage said "as I understand the
American people's resolve, they would rather get it right than get it
in a hurry, and that's the way the President looks at this. He wants
to get it right, and he is going to attack this terrible enemy on all
fronts simultaneously, and he will do it in his time, not on the
terrorists' timetable."
Asked about Pakistan's role in the global effort, and whether the
United States had given any assurances to Pakistan that it would not
use Pakistani bases for U.S. military operations, Armitage replied:
"The United States has not given such assurances to the Government of
Pakistan. We have agreements with the government about what we may
need to do. We have not yet, to my knowledge, had to make use of
Pakistani bases. We are aware of the political fragility of the
society. But, equally, we are gaining confidence each day that the
leadership of President Musharraf is showing the way for 140 million
Pakistanis to a better future. And I think that we have seen the
anti-Americanism to be less than might have been expected."
Following is the transcript of the interview as released by the State
Department:
(begin transcript)
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE
Office of the Spokesman
October 3, 2001
INTERVIEW
(As Broadcast)
Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage
On CNN with John King
Broadcast October 3, 2001
Washington, D.C.
MR. KING: A short time ago, I had a conversation with the number two
man at the State Department, the Deputy Secretary, Richard Armitage.
And I began by asking him if a comparison might be drawn to a trip
made more than a decade ago by then Defense Secretary Dick Cheney, and
then General Colin Powell, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
They traveled to the region just in advance of the United States
launching the air war against Iraqi forces deployed into Kuwait and
southern Iraq.
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: I think the comparison, Mr. King, that you
should draw is that, given the importance of the endeavor we're about
to embark, and the importance of those countries to our efforts, that
the Secretary of Defense felt he needed and, indeed, in respect
required that we have face-to-face meetings with the leaders of the
various countries involved.
QUESTION: He told reporters on his plane on the way over that he had a
pretty good sense of where Usama bin Laden was, but he did not have
the exact coordinates. Does the United States have detailed
intelligence now about the location of Mr. bin Laden?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Well, there is intelligence about the
location. How detailed it is, I think, is a matter of some conjecture.
And I think the Secretary of Defense put it exactly correctly.
QUESTION: From the NATO allies yesterday, word that the United States
had provided "clear and compelling evidence" linking these strikes to
bin Laden and his network. I understand the sensitivity of
intelligence matters, sir. But can you help us understand what type of
evidence we're talking about? How do you connect the dots between
these hijackers and bin Laden?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Well, it's both, it's a number of things.
Financial records, financial transactions, communications among and
between various groups, information gleaned from interrogations of
people who have been picked up, as they say, busted in various
attempts to disrupt terrorist cells, so it's a combination of all of
them.
QUESTION: This operation seems to be proceeding on two different
tracks. On the one hand, we hear of efforts to try to divide the
Taliban, cause defections, bring them down from within, if you will,
without firing a shot. On the other hand, the British Prime Minister
yesterday saying quite bluntly, surrender the terrorists or surrender
power. The President once again warning the Taliban of "consequences."
Explain for us, is this a two-track mission, or is there a military
option only?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: There are many more than two tracks, Mr.
King. There are also financial tracks, which we hope to strangle the
financial resources of al-Qaida. There clearly are attempts to divide
the Taliban. There are other attempts by many nations to help and
assist the opposition, the Northern Alliance. And, finally, there is
the pressure brought by the coalition to include the possibility of
military pressure. It is a many-track front.
QUESTION: And credibility, obviously, is very important to diplomatic
endeavors. Do you run the risk, sir, if the President and the Prime
Minister are speaking in such muscular language, if you will, that if
there is not military strikes relatively soon, that people will start
to doubt the resolve?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: No, I think, speaking -- as I understand
the American people's resolve, they would rather get it right than get
it in a hurry, and that's the way the President looks at this. He
wants to get it right, and he is going to attack this terrible enemy
on all fronts simultaneously, and he will do it in his time, not on
the terrorists' timetable.
QUESTION: There have been in the three weeks since these tragic events
a number of stories about efforts over the year to try to capture Mr.
bin Laden or to kill Mr. bin Laden. Obviously, the Clinton
administration chose the cruise missile option back in 1998. One
report this morning is saying that the United States under the Clinton
administration had an agreement with the Pakistani intelligence
service to try to go after bin Laden and that that agreement fell
apart after the military coup in which General Musharraf seized power
in Pakistan. Is that true, sir?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Well, I don't think I would be long for
this job if I were commenting on intelligence activities. What is true
is that we would all be a lot better off if Usama bin Laden was not
here.
QUESTION: Let me ask you, sir, about the difficult diplomacy. We hear
assurances from Secretary Powell, yourself, the President, that the
Saudis are fully cooperating. Yet, in the Saudi press back in the
region, they say they do not want their bases used for offensive
military actions.
Can you explain to us, sir, is there a degree of disagreement between
the United States and Saudi Arabia? Or is this just an example, if you
will, of having to speak to the home political audience?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Every nation has a home political audience.
But I am unaware of any major difficulties with the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia. I think they, like many others, want to know exactly what
we're up to. And I think Secretary Rumsfeld will explain that very
well, and I suspect that you will see the Government of Saudi Arabia
fully supportive of President Bush's efforts.
[Break in interview as broadcast]
MR. KING: Earlier today, I had a conversation with the Deputy
Secretary of State Richard Armitage. Another key nation, obviously, in
this diplomatic effort is Pakistan. The Pakistani Government has been
cooperating, but there is a great sensitivity about the United States
using bases in Pakistan to launch operations into Afghanistan. I asked
the Deputy Secretary of State if the United States had given any
assurances to the Government of Pakistan that it would not use those
bases for US military operations.
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: The United States has not given such
assurances to the Government of Pakistan. We have agreements with the
government about what we may need to do. We have not yet, to my
knowledge, had to make use of Pakistani bases. We are aware of the
political fragility of the society. But, equally, we are gaining
confidence each day that the leadership of President Musharraf is
showing the way for 140 million Pakistanis to a better future. And I
think that we have seen the anti-Americanism to be less than might
have been expected.
QUESTION: A remarkable and a broad-based effort by the administration
under way to build this international coalition. Some suggest that, in
doing so, perhaps the administration is having to slow down on some
other fronts that might offend some of the people, the very people you
want involved in this coalition, including our State Department
correspondent, Andrea Koppel, reporting that the State Department is
delaying the release of its annual report on religious freedom around
the world for fear of antagonizing countries that you hope will join
this coalition, like the Chinese, like even the Saudi Arabians. Is
that true, sir?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: I think if you look at last year's
religious freedom report, you will see that many of the countries who
are countries of concern will be repeated this year. Since the events
of September 11th, our attention has been primarily devoted to
coalition building, and I don't feel that I have had the sufficient
time to devote to the issue of religious freedom to warrant the
issuance of the report. It will be issued in good time, and it will be
just like our Trafficking in Persons Report, one that fully reflects
American values and American standards.
QUESTION: How about the issue of missile defense? The President's
budget in the quadrennial military review makes clear this
administration is committed to a missile defense. He is asking for
more money from the Congress. But is there a sense, and would the
State Department recommend to the Pentagon, slow down a little bit, do
not cross the line and antagonize the Russians by violating the ABM
treaty at this time?
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Well, it is not for the State Department to
recommend to the Defense Department something that's wholly in the DOD
area.
We have discussions with the Russian Federation. The President has
discussions with President Putin to include missile defense. Those
discussions are ongoing continually, and I am very hopeful that we
will have a satisfactory conclusion with the Russians.
QUESTION: Deputy Secretary Armitage, we are grateful for your time
this morning, sir. Thank you very much.
DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE: Thank you, Mr. King.
(end transcript)
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