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Robertson: Extensive questioning of plant directors
BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) -- U.N. weapons inspectors visited a chemical complex about 40 miles northwest of Baghdad on Monday. In addition to conducting the usual investigation of the facility, the team questioned two plant directors extensively. CNN's Nic Robertson was with the inspection team, and later Monday he spoke to CNN anchor Paula Zahn about the developments. ROBERTSON: It was a day out for the first time for some of the new inspectors who arrived over the weekend. Fifteen inspectors went on to that site northwest of Baghdad, a former chemical facility. U.N. teams had been there many, many times in the past. The site had been bombed in 1991 and '98. The director of the plant told us that each time, (Iraq) had rebuilt it. Now, something very interesting about the inspection process (occurred) there today: Inspectors spent four hours at the site, but half of the team spent three-and-a-half hours (questioning) the two directors, one from the chlorine plant, one from the phenol plant. Apparently, (inspectors) asked them the same questions again and again, questions they had heard in the past: what were they producing, where (were the products) going, how many people work there? Questions like that. I asked this gentleman, "If you were asked to go outside of the country to be interviewed, would you do it?" He said, "No, we are Iraqis, we can be interviewed here. We don't want to leave." That's one of the issues on the table for the inspectors here at the moment ZAHN: So how much of an expectation is there that the inspectors ultimately will get people to leave the country so they can further interrogate them? ROBERTSON: The expectation with the inspectors here really doesn't seem to be high. The uptake to the idea from Iraqi officials seems to be incredibly low. That (is) coming right from the top, as President Saddam Hussein's top scientific adviser late last night said he didn't think it was a good idea, and today, a plant manager also ruled it out. So from right here in Iraq, it's an idea that doesn't seem to be flying at all at the moment. ZAHN: Any Iraqi reaction to what an Iraqi adviser had to say very recently about how close his country came to having a nuclear weapon? ROBERTSON: Well, his response was very interesting, Paula. He said that, "If I comment on this, then perhaps I might be seen as boasting." He said, "I couldn't really be objective -- rather subjective." He really said that it would be down to International Atomic Energy Agency officials to come up with an accurate assessment. I think he was speaking partly in jest, but really indicating that they had the people, they had the know-how, and that they could (have done) it if they (had) wanted to.
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