The United States and its coalition allies remain committed to turning over sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government on June 30 despite the current upsurge in violence, Secretary of State Colin Powell said in an interview on NBC Nightly News on April 9.

Powell expressed confidence that U.S. and coalition forces -- with a few exceptions such as Najaf -- are restoring control to the country, and that improved security will permit the Coalition Provisional Authority headed by Ambassador Paul Bremer to resume the political transition to Iraqi sovereignty.

When the transition occurs at the end of June, Powell said, "There will still be remnants of the old regime, there will be terrorists, and there will be individuals who are trying to challenge that government on its very first day. But we will be with them, standing with them, as they build up their own security forces as we move into the future."

Powell acknowledged that the performance of Iraqi police and civil defense forces was mixed, with some troops performing their jobs well, while others did not. "It shows that we have a force that is still quite immature. It is not yet trained, it is not yet fully equipped, and it is not yet under its own leadership, its own political leadership. That's why it's important for us, while we are restoring security, to keep moving forward with the political process so they can see an Iraqi government that has sovereignty," he said.

In response to a question about the Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, Powell noted that the coalition is seeking to arrest someone that the Iraqi authorities have already indicted. Moreover, Powell added, "Most Shias are not followers of Mr. al-Sadr. Most Shias don't want to see this kind of violence. He is not leading 15 million Shias. He is leading perhaps 10 or 12,000 Shias."

We need to remember that the insurgents are supporting dictatorship and despotism, Powell declared. "And remember what we are there for: We're for freedom, we're for democracy, we're for turning over sovereignty, we're for helping the Iraqi people reconstruct their country and we will stay the course," Powell said.

Department of State
Office of the Spokesman
Secretary of State Colin L. Powell
NBC Nightly News with Tom Brokaw
April 9, 2004

MR. BROKAW: I am joined now by Secretary of State Colin Powell. Mr. Secretary, our closest allies in Iraq, our Governing Council, are all but invisible during this critical week. Two members of the council have resigned in protest of the Fallujah operation. One has said what is going on there is unacceptable and illegal; he called it mass punishment.

We may gain control of Fallujah militarily, but it appears that we're going to pay a terrible price politically.

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, Ambassador Bremer has been in touch with all of the members of the Governing Council. There is some nervousness within the council. But I think as we bring Fallujah under control, and now that we have restored control to al Kut and to almost everywhere else in the country, with the exception of Najaf and one or two other places, for the most part, control is being reestablished. And I think when the members of the Governing Council see that the CPA security forces, the great troops we have over there were able to do this, I think that this will reassure them that we can get on top of the security situation, the problem, and go forward and get back on the political track and the reconstruction track.

MR. BROKAW: But we're only 90 days from our scheduled turnover of political authority to the Iraqis. A big piece of that will be security. There's lots of evidence that the local police have either abandoned their posts or have joined the insurgents, and no evidence of the Iraqi Army fighting side by side with the United States against the insurgents.

SECRETARY POWELL: It's been a mixed picture. Some Iraqi police and Civil Defense troops fought very well and they're doing the jobs we asked of them. Others did not. It shows that we have a force that is still quite immature. It is not yet trained, it is not yet fully equipped, and it is not yet under its own leadership, its own political leadership. That's why it's important for us, while we are restoring security, to keep moving forward with the political process so they can see an Iraqi government that has sovereignty that they will be working for but also along with their coalition colleagues and under immediate direction of the coalition commander.

And so I think this shows that we have challenges ahead, but we know how to meet these challenges.

MR. BROKAW: But can you meet them by June 30th? I mean, you're an old military man with lots of experience in this area --

SECRETARY POWELL: I think it's -- I think it's achievable, Tom. Remember now, on the 30th of June, we want to see an interim Iraqi government take over sovereignty again. We will still be there with a very large military force, and the Iraqi security forces will be working with our military forces. We're not expecting to see total calm on the 1st of July. Quite the contrary. There will still be remnants of the old regime, there will be terrorists, and there will be individuals who are trying to challenge that government on its very first day. But we will be with them, standing with them, as they build up their own security forces as we move into the future.

But we're sticking with 30 June because, one, we think it's achievable; and two, we think it's important that we return sovereignty to an Iraqi government as quickly as possible and that's why we're sticking with 30 June.

MR. BROKAW: But if we stick with 30 June, do you think that American forces will have to fight at this level of combat throughout the summer months?

SECRETARY POWELL: I don't think so but I can't predict the future that clearly. I think we are seeing a very difficult week pass in front of us now. Things were getting better as we got to the tail end of the week. We took some casualties and I regret each and every one of them, especially as we approach this holiday weekend. But they fought bravely and they fought back well, and a lot of insurgents will not be around next week or on the 30th of June to challenge the new government or to challenge us.

MR. BROKAW: I know this is no longer your province, but you are a military man. Based on what you know, in terms of what we have on the ground right now, do we need additional troops in Iraq, in your judgment?

SECRETARY POWELL: This is a judgment I really have to leave in the hands of two very fine commanders, General Abizaid and General Sanchez. I know them both. They were young officers underneath me. I know that if they need more troops, they will ask for them. For the moment, there was a point in the moving in of forces and the moving out of forces where the number of forces present was a little higher than anticipated, and they will keep that high level for a short period of time, for as long as it's necessary to bring this current situation under control, and then get back on with the transition of forces in and out.

But I'm confident that General Abizaid knows what he needs, so does General Sanchez. If they need more, they will ask Secretary Rumsfeld for those forces, and I'm confident that he and the President will give them what they need.

MR. BROKAW: Two final questions, Mr. Secretary. If United States forces managed to capture the radical Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, and then that image is played throughout the Arab world and especially in Iraq, won't that just inflame the situation?

SECRETARY POWELL: Well, we'll be capturing somebody who has been indicted by Iraq and he will be turned over to the Iraqi authorities for prosecution. I don't know what that might mean in the streets. Most Shias are not followers of Mr. al-Sadr. Most Shias don't want to see this kind of violence. He is not leading 15 million Shias. He is leading perhaps 10 or 12,000 Shias. And so I do not think, as the night follows the day, if he is captured and put before the bar of justice, somehow this will cause all Shias to be outraged because a murderer has been put before the bar of justice, just as the guy who used to run this country, Saddam Hussein, is in a jail waiting to go before justice.

We've accomplished a lot in the last year and I don't think it should be underestimated or people should have a feeling that we haven't gotten a lot out of the last year; we have. A dictator has been removed, a horrible regime has been removed, mass graves are no longer filled, and we are on the road to putting in place an Iraqi government that will be committed to democracy as reflected in the administrative law they passed, and we're going to help them, we're going to stick with it. But we're going to have to have the patience to deal with weeks like this and the patience to deal with better weeks that are coming.

MR. BROKAW: Candidly, Mr. Secretary, it's been a year now since the war ended. Aren't you surprised by the depth of the continuing anti-American feeling and the efficiency, really, of the insurgency to fight back against American forces?

SECRETARY POWELL: I didn't think it would be this intense, but nevertheless, I think it is controllable and manageable and we have the forces to deal with it. And I think we'll get behind this week that has been a tough week for us. And maybe if they came out to celebrate in their own warped way, this first year of liberty, this first year of freedom.

Remember what they are for: They're for dictatorship, they're for despotism. And remember what we are there for: We're for freedom, we're for democracy, we're for turning over sovereignty, we're for helping the Iraqi people reconstruct their country and we will stay the course.

MR. BROKAW: Mr. Secretary, thank you very much.

SECRETARY POWELL: Thank you. Have a happy holiday.

MR. BROKAW: You, too. Best to Alma.

SECRETARY POWELL: Thanks.