03 February 1998
TRANSCRIPT: SECSTATE BRIEFING IN RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA FEB. 2
(Abdullah agrees that Saddam is responsible for crisis) (1780) Riyadh -- Secretary of State Albright says Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah "agrees with our assessment that the responsibility" for the crisis with Iraq "falls squarely on the shoulders of Saddam Hussein. "His continued defiance of the Security Council's resolutions is utterly unacceptable," Albright said. "He must stop his lawless behavior and allow the U.N. weapons inspections to proceed without interference or obstruction. "Let's remember what's at stake here," the Secretary of State said. "This Iraqi regime produced chemical and biological weapons. It tested those weapons. It used them against the people of Iraq. It used them against its neighbors. It hid those weapons, lied about having those weapons, and was caught hiding and lying. And it is this Iraqi regime today that is still hiding, still lying, and still determined to possess chemical and biological weapons." Following is the State Department transcript: (begin transcript) U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Office of the Spokesman (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia) For Immediate Release on February 3, 1998 PRESS BRIEFING BY SECRETARY MADELEINE K. ALBRIGHT King Khaled International Airport Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 2, 1998 SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: Good evening. I want to begin by thanking Crown Prince Abdullah for seeing me so soon after Ramadan. His Royal Highness and I had a very good discussion, and I had an excellent discussion with the Foreign Minister as well. His Royal Highness, the Crown Prince has great wisdom and insight not only about the current crisis but about developments in the region. I value his advice. I am sorry I did not see the King this time but I have always valued my conversations with him. We talked primarily, of course, about the situation in Iraq. The Crown Prince agrees with our assessment that the responsibility for this crisis falls squarely on the shoulders of Saddam Hussein. His continued defiance of the Security Council's resolutions is utterly unacceptable; he must stop his lawless behavior and allow the U.N. weapons inspections to proceed without interference or obstruction. Let's remember what's at stake here: This Iraqi regime produced chemical and biological weapons. It tested those weapons. It used them against the people of Iraq. It used them against its neighbors. It hid those weapons, lied about having those weapons, and was caught hiding and lying. And it is this Iraqi regime today that is still hiding, still lying, and still determined to possess chemical and biological weapons. I know that the people of Saudi Arabia are especially aware that Saddam poses the greatest danger to the peoples of the Middle East -- all the people of the Middle East. Saddam does not discriminate in the use of his weapons: Saudis, Kuwaitis, Iranians, Israelis, and Iraqis have all been his targets. The world must stop Saddam from ever threatening any people of this region with weapons of mass destruction again. Today I briefed His Royal Highness on all the options we have at our disposal -- diplomatic and otherwise -- to compel Saddam to turn from his defiant, aggressive path. We agreed that diplomacy is the preferred option. But if diplomacy fails, Saddam Hussein will be responsible for the grave consequences of his failure to comply with the will of the international community. I want to say to the people of Saudi Arabia: The United States stood with you when Saddam Hussein attacked you seven years ago; the United States stands with you in the face of Saddam's latest threat today. I also want the people of Iraq to know that the United States of America understands that you are suffering under this regime. The President, our entire government, and all our people have no quarrel with you. We do not wish to see women and children used as human shields by Saddam Hussein. We do not wish to see people sick and hungry because Saddam Hussein sees food and medicine as his lowest priorities. U.N. sanctions imposed on Iraq have always permitted the purchase of food and medicine. We wrote the U.N. resolution permitting Iraq to sell oil for food and medicine. We fought for it for five years while Saddam refused to implement it. Now, we want to expand it so more food and medicine can be provided more effectively to the Iraqi people. But I must be perfectly clear: Nothing will change our determination to thwart Saddam from brandishing weapons of mass destruction and threatening the stability and security of this region and his neighbors again. Thank you very much. JAMIE RUBIN: We are only going to have time for a few questions. Q: Is there anything to work with in the new proposal - if it is a proposal - that the Russian envoy has obtained? Is it worth looking at? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: First of all, it's up to Chairman Butler to decide whether he sees any reason to go and whether something can be accomplished. I have to say that I continue to be skeptical. What is essential here is for Saddam to reverse his course and allow full and unfettered access for UNSCOM to any place it wishes to go, including the presidential and sensitive sites. This is the standard set by the Security Council resolutions and this is the standard that must be upheld. Q: Madame Secretary, you spoke the other day and said that you were frankly skeptical that the diplomatic path was going to work. You have been in the Gulf now for two days. Do you remain skeptical? Or, do you have more hope for diplomacy? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: I think that it would be very good if diplomacy did work. As we have said over and over again, it is our preferred option. As you kmow, there are a number of different envoys going to Baghdad. To me, that shows the united will of the international community to let Saddam Hussein know that it is his responsibility to fulfill his obligations that the Security Council laid on him, I would obviously like to see these initiatives work, but I do not want to see any kind of diversions come out of it. So, I remain skeptical. Q: Madame Secretary, you noted earlier that you and the Saudi officials agree that diplomacy is the preferred option. Do they also agree that all other options are open - including the use of force - and in conjunction with that, could you tell us whether you discussed with them the possible use of Saudi bases if it comes down to a military strike, and what their response was? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: As you know, the purpose of my trip - as I have mentioned to you many times - is to explain the gravity of the situation and really to clarify to everyone what our views are and to reiterate that it was Saddam Hussein who has precipitated this grave crisis. I had excellent discussions with the Crown Prince, and I think you will see from the statement that the Saudi Government has issued that we see eye-to-eye on the issues involved. We agree that the Iraqi regime is responsible for this crisis, that Iraq must comply with Security Council resolutions, and if diplomacy fails to achieve a solution Saddam Hussein will be responsible for the grave consequences that will follow. As usual, I am not going to get into the details of the military issues. I did lay out, as I mentioned, some of the military issues to the Crown Prince. He took them all on board. He wanted to consult with other members of his government. They will be doing that consultation. We will consult with them. Based on my excellent discussions with the Crown Prince and the very strong statement that they issued at the conclusion of our meeting, I have full trust and confidence in the Saudi Government and I really do believe that I have had an excellent day in very extended discussions with them. Q: Your Excellency, you said that Saddam Hussein will shoulder the responsibility. Does that mean that he will be punished if he does something against the United Nations resolutions? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: President Clinton made it very clear in his State of the Union Message -- and it is the same message that I am carrying -- that the purpose we have here is to thwart Saddam Hussein in his ability to acquire or develop weapons of mass destruction, or to thwart his ability to threaten his neighbors. That is the purpose of our diplomacy and that will be the purpose of our use of force -- if we decide to use force. But, let me reiterate: No decision has been made to use force and we still would like diplomacy to work. Q: Actually my question was asked, but since I have the chance, you said that you continue to be skeptical, and that what is essential is full and unfettered access. But, that is not what the Iraqis are offering, according to news reports. They are offering access to eight sites only. They cannot be UNSCOM inspectors -- they have to be representatives oftheir own governments. There are all sorts of conditions. Are you only skeptical of this offer, or are you perhaps more than skeptical? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: If those are the conditions, then they do not meet the criteria that have been laid out which are for unfettered, unconditional access to all sites. Saddam Hussein knows that, and that is what the international community has called for any number of times, in numerous Security Council resolutions and I think that we have to make sure that UNSCOM can function the way that it was set up to function. Having kind of piecemeal inspections of groups that are composed ad hoc -- that does not strike me as meeting the basic standard that we have been talking about for so long. Q: What about your discussion with the Saudis about the Middle East process? SECRETARY ALBRIGHT: I also spent a lot of time with the Crown Prince, and going through reporting on some of the meetings that have taken place in Washington -- discussing those with him as well as my most recent meetings in Jerusalem and Ramallah. I told him that we were very eager to have the leaders themselves make some of the tough decisions that are required, and we discussed some aspects of the kinds of views that the President laid out to Prime Minister Netanyahu and Chairman Arafat when they were in Washington. Again, I think that if you look at the Saudi statement, they speak on their own behalf about their view of the Middle East Peace Process. Thank you. (end transcript)
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