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Prism

Iran's Says It Will Build 10 New Uranium Enrichment Plants, In Clear Defiance Of IAEA And Global Outcry Against Nuclear Proliferation

Aired November 30, 2009 - 12:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

STAN GRANT, CNN INT'L. ANCHOR, PRISM (voice over): Iran says international criticism over its nuclear program is pushing the country to take new steps.

Struggling under enormous debt Dubai tries to contain the financial fall out as shares shed more than 7 percent.

And word tonight, U.S. President Obama has given the order to implement his new Afghan war strategy. In our "Prism Segment" tonight we examine the options and weigh the pros and cons.

(On camera): From CNN Abu Dhabi in United Arab Emirates, this is PRISM, where we take a story and look at it from multiple perspectives. I'm Stan Grant.

Iran says the West doesn't understand its peaceful message and it is pushing ahead with plans to build 10 uranium enrichment plants.

So, will new international sanctions come next? Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is expected to speak in about 20 minutes. Our Reza Sayah is tracking developments from neighboring Pakistan. He joins me from CNN Islamabad.

Reza, this is a provocative move. We've already seen censure coming from the IAEA last week, denunciation from other parts of the world. What does Iran hope to gain from this?

REZA SAYAH, CNN INT'L. CORRESPONDENT: No question about it, Stan, if anyone thought that reaching an agreement with Iran on the nuclear issue would be easy, all you have to do is look at the events of the past few days. Just a barrage of defiant, in-your-face messages coming from Iran's leadership. Iran's leaders essentially saying, look, we are going to set the tone in these talks. You are going to follow our lead and we're not going to back down to pressure from Western powers and the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the IAEA.

And what is interesting is just six weeks ago there was some optimism after the Vienna talks that perhaps all sides involved in this nuclear issue would be close to reaching an agreement with that deal on the table for Iran. But with this type of talk, with this type of posturing coming from Tehran, it certainly doesn't bode well, Stan, for a diplomatic solution, something U.S. President Barack Obama says he's committed to.

GRANT: Reza, thanks very much for that. Reza Sayah, joining us live there, from Pakistan. Of course, we'll keep an eye on that expected speech from President Ahmadinejad. When he speaks we'll bring that you live.

Your debt is not our problem, that the surprising message from Dubai's finance director to the troubled investment vehicle for Dubai, Dubai World. He says the government will not back the conglomerate's $60 billion in debts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ABDULRAHMAN AL SALEH, DIR. GENERAL, DUBAI FINANCE DEPT.: The government is a shareholder of Dubai World, but the company was set up that it will - on a commission basis are not guaranteed by the government.

Considering the diversity of the business it is doing, the risk involved, so it was decided from inception, at the time of establishing. Not now, at the time of establishing, that it is a commercial entity not guaranteed by the government. So, lenders and contractors that have been dealing with Dubai World on that basis, that they consider the viability of the business, the projects involved and they provide finance on that basis. Not on the basis of government guarantee, which is not there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: For more on this "MARKETPLACE MIDDLE EAST" anchor John Defterios joins us from CNN London.

Everyone watching now, John, to see what happens next. Whether the oil-rich Abu Dhabi bails out Dubai. What do you expect?

JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN INT'L. ANCHOR, "MARKETPLACE MIDDLE EAST": Well, Stan, I tell you that clip there from Dubai TV says quite a bit. Abdulrahman Al Saleh is not a man that is known in the international circles. In fact, fairly new to his job at the department of finance for Dubai.

For him to come out and say something like that, is quite alarming, I would imagine to the international banks, who have put some money, both into Dubai and the greater UAE, overall, some $123 billion of loans for cross-border transactions. And they are probably wondering if this is exposure to Dubai World and that first tranche of $3.5 billion, what happens to the January payment? And then what happens to the rest of the $59 billion for Dubai World?

Now, there is a fairly good assumption there that, of course, it is a company. It is not a sovereign fund, so if you are a bank, and you lend money to a company that you should be expecting to loose money, time to time. But that flat out statement is basically saying that we are not going to take the responsibility right now. There is a group called the Federal National Council, which is the parliament there, in the UAE. And when I talked to people on the phone, they say, well, you need to talk to people at the federal government. So, they are working through a stability board, behind closed doors. I know that talks are taking place. I would imagine the next 24 to 48 hours we'll hear a lot more.

But to have that statement come out today, after the UAE central bank, over the weekend said they would provide liquidity, is somewhat a surprise, yet again.

GRANT: John, thank you very much for that. John Defterios joining us there from London, following this story on Dubai World.

Of course, so much focus now on exactly where this goes to from here, as you heard there, from John. Abu Dhabi and Dubai both having meetings to see if they can work out some sort of a deal; the cause of this doubt, of course -there is so much doubt about where it is going to go from here. So, we'll keep an eye on that.

Now, in our "Prism Segment" tonight we are looking at fighting in Afghanistan. Of course, it has dragged on for eight years. Now, we understand that U.S. President Barack Obama has now given the order which will mean sending more troops to Afghanistan. We go to Suzanne Malveaux, who is standing by at the White House, to bring us up to date on that.

Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, Stan, this is a very significant development. We have gotten information through the briefing, just about an hour ago, or so. That the president has made up his mind regarding the Afghan strategy. That is has been officially announced through his war council, and that he has given the orders for it to be implemented.

This happened just yesterday. It was at 5:00 o'clock, it was an Oval Office meeting with his war council when he laid out the troop numbers. He laid out the time-table at that meeting. Key people, obviously, his Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Chair of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen, General James Cartwright, David Petraeus, his Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel and NSC Advisor Jim Jones. He also put a call in to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to tell her what his decision officially is now. And then he relayed that to the key members on the ground, in the region, in Afghanistan.

About 6:00 o'clock, or so, he went to the Situation Room, it was a secured video conference, that is when he talked to General Stanley McChrystal, who is the top general in Afghanistan. He also reached out to the ambassador, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan Karl Eikenberry, to tell him that the orders, in fact, have been given to move forward.

Now, Stan, as you know it is critical that he also talk to NATO allies, talk to key people and leaders that are essentially a part of this movement. We are told that he didn't give specifics per se, about troop numbers, not the kind of details that he is going to unfold before the American people tomorrow night in his prime-time speech, but he did tell them that he has decided and that he is thanking them for the contributions already.

We understand that the has had phone conversations with Italy's leader, Silvio Berlusconi, France leader Nicholas Sarkozy, Russia's president Dmitry Medvedev, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and as you know, Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, is here at the White House. They are talking face-to-face about what is taking place here.

This is a tough sell, Stan, as you know. He is going to have up to 30 lawmakers here tomorrow, face-to-face meetings to lay out this plan, explain his strategy, and then, later to the American people.

We are being told by senior administration officials some of the numbers to expect, these are not the numbers he is announcing today. But from senior administration officials expect anywhere from perhaps 34,000, 35,000 additional U.S. troops. At a cost, perhaps, as much as $75 billion a year.

That he is going to lay out, specifically, tomorrow a couple of things. First, why is the United States getting involved in Afghanistan? How has this mission changed? What is the process that he has gone through over the last months or so? A lot of criticism that it has taken some time to get to this point. He is also, Robert Gibbs said, is going to emphasize it is not an open ended commitment. That there are some limitations when it comes to the United States resources, budget, personnel, as well as other international allies. It is not an open-ended situation, that there is a strategy that is in place, that it is being implemented, and he is really trying to get the support of the American people.

Stan, it is going to be a tough sell. They are already many high- level Democrats, the base of his party essentially, who are calling into question a lot of things, including the cost as well as the mission, Stan.

GRANT: Suzanne, thank you for that. Suzanne Malveaux bringing that news from the White House, that U.S. President Barack Obama has revealed his decision to top commanders, to press ahead with his plan to send more troops to Afghanistan.

Now, in January Mr. Obama pledged to help the Afghan people emerge from decades of war and poverty, defeat the Taliban, rebuild their nation. Since, then the Taliban have become empowered in part through stepped up suicide bombings and waning global support or the lengthy and costly war.

As Suzanne said, U.S. commanders on the ground in Afghanistan have asked for additional troops, up to 45,000. There are currently some 68,000 U.S. troops on the ground, or committed. President Obama is expected to announce he will order up to 35,000 more troops over the next year. Now, that would put the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan at more than 100,000. Allies are being asked to step up as well. Britain has about 9,000 troops in country and reaffirmed its commitment to add another 500, a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GORDON BROWN, PRIME MINISTER, GREAT BRITAIN: It is often said that America and Britain are fighting alone. This is wrong. Excluding America and Britain, the numbers of international coalition troops will have risen from in January 2007, 16,000 troops to around 30,000 soon. And I believe that over the coming months even more countries will respond. Our effort in Helmand will benefit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Now, 42 nations are providing forces under NATO's command, providing some 33,000 troops. Prime Minister Brown said an additional 5,000, are likely to be committed from other nations.

Afghans are also waiting for Washington's decision. In many cases their lives depend on it. Some want all foreign forces out, others do not. Leaving is an option that is being weighed by U.S. and NATO forces. Warlords and the Taliban would almost certainly welcome the opportunity to challenges the Afghan government. Many fear that civil war would then resume.

We have some thoughts from Afghans on this, for you.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, Americans are sending more troops, somebody told me that if they send 100,000 people more, they will not build a nation. They have to make our own nation. We have to do it. We have to protect our land. That is the reason. It's not gong to work.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I think it would be best to support the Afghan forces, rather than bringing more troops to Afghanistan. Since Afghan troops can maintain better security in the country.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): From the beginning warlords have been working for the will of foreigners and neighbors. They destroyed our country. But unfortunately people cannot understand that warlords are misusing their support.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE(through translator): Power must be given to the people, not to the warlords. Since there is democracy, power should belong to the people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Now India's leader recently weighed in on the debate, as he made a state visit to Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANMOHAN SINGH, PRIME MINISTER OF INDIA: It is important for the international community to sustain its engagement in Afghanistan, to help its emergence as a modern state. The forces of terrorism in our region pose a grave threat to the entire civilized world and have to be defeated.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRANT: Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt has worked extensively in Iraq and Afghanistan, both in and out of the military. I spoke with him earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. ARMY (RET.): I don't think the war is unwinnable. It is clear that the generals on the ground need those additional troops for both security and for training of the Afghan national security forces. I think the greater risk is for us to have a half-hearted commitment inside of Afghanistan, insufficient number of troops to get the job done.

GRANT (on camera): OK, what would be a sufficient number of troops, because the numbers of troops have been increased dramatically, just over the past year, and in that time we have seen a resurgent Taliban.

KIMMITT: I think it is fair to say that General McChrystal fully understood when he made this troop request that he would not be able to come back six months from now, one year from now, and ask for an additional number. So, my suspicion this 40,000 number, that he put on the table, was the number that he believed would be sufficient for the next couple of years, barring significant unforeseen changes on the ground.

GRANT: General, it is not just about troop numbers, is it, though? It is where the troops are going to be deployed. How they are going to be deployed. What support you can win from the Afghan people. How to win over disaffected members of the Taliban who may be tired of fighting, and whether Karzai is actually a viable and willing partner.

KIMMITT: I think that is exactly right. In fact, the troop numbers may be a red herring. At the end of the day it will not be the additional troops that are the decisive element in the Afghanistan strategy. It will be assisting the Afghan government, rooting out corruption, reducing the amount of poppy cultivation, helping the Pakistan government. Many, many, many things that our troops will be peripherally involved in, but in fact we will rely far more on civilian experts rather than military experts and uniformed military to execute those tasks.

GRANT: Well, that sounds like a very long-term strategy. Been there, what, eight, nine years now? President Obama is saying he wants to finish the job, but from what you are saying this could be open ended. It could still be happening when he gets to the end of his term?

KIMMITT: Well, it certainly will not be open ended. But I believe that any notion that this will be a one- or two-year commitment is, quite frankly, unhelpful. I think we need to prepare the international community. We need to prepare the American - more importantly, we need to make the Taliban and Al Qaeda very aware that we are going in there to get the job done. And this is not a vacillating or equivocal strategy, but it is a strategy with resolve, commitment and determination behind it.

GRANT: You just mentioned Al Qaeda. The shift - the focus seems to have shifted in recent times; less about the Taliban, and more about ending the Al Qaeda threat. Is that a more viable ambition? Is it easier to fight that than it is to try and rebuild Afghanistan or defeat the Taliban?

KIMMITT: Well, I think you have to do all of those. In fact, you will not ever completely defeat Al Qaeda. What we are trying to do is reduce it to the point where it no longer has a presence in Afghanistan and is no longer using Afghanistan as a sanctuary or safe haven. To do that you will also need to defeat the Taliban. You need to develop an Afghan national security force, and an Afghan government that can stand on its own, for that eventual day when our coalition allies and the American forces will withdraw.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRANT: General Mark Kimmitt speaking there.

Now, we want to hear from you. We want to know this: Will extra troops win the war in Afghanistan? Send your thoughts to my Twitter account. That is StanGrantCNN.

Honduras elects a new president, but he already has an international crisis on his hands, even before taking office. We'll explain.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: Welcome back now to politically troubled Honduras. Conservative presidential candidate Porfirio Lobo thanked his supporters Monday. That is as preliminary results showed he won Sunday's election. The poll came five months after President Manuel Zelaya was forced out in a coup. And some nations say they will not recognize the result.

For more, Senior Latin American Affairs Editor Rafael Ramo joins us from CNN Center.

And, Raphael, so many questions still to be asked, here. Particularly, whether or not this will get recognition internationally?

RAFAEL RAMO, CNN SR. EDITOR FOR LATIN AMER. AFFAIRS: Exactly, Stan. Before the election there were two questions. One was whether the de facto government was going to be able to carry out the elections in any peaceful manner. There were threats of violence. And then the number two question was whether voters in Honduras were going to participate in the process and give the election any sense of legitimacy.

The good news for the de facto government is that the elections were peaceful, with the exception of an isolated demonstration in the city of San Pedro Suhla (ph), where police used tear gas against protestors. Voter turnout was estimated at more than 60 percent. At the end of the day, conservative candidate Porfirio Lobo, a 61-year-old rancher from the opposition declared victory, saying that the real winners are the people of Honduras.

Still hold up at the Brazilian embassy, however, ousted President Manuel Zelaya said he does not recognize the process, calling the election a farce.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANUEL ZELAYA, OUSTED PRESIDENT OF HONDURAS: As president of all Hondurans, I declare this process illegitimate, illegal and not representative of the people's will. It will have to be annulled and done again, once we have reinstated a lawful state.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RAMO: And several countries, including Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela, have said that they are not going to recognize the results of this election. But then, on the other hand you have countries like Panama, Peru, Costa Rica, and the United States who say they will in fact recognize the results of this election, Stan.

GRANT: Rafael, thank you for that. Rafael Ramo, joining us from CNN Center.

Up next we will take a look at your global weather picture. But first, one fashionable Tokyo street gets into the holiday spirit. It bright, and green, too. We'll explain next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRANT: Time to take a look now at the global weather picture. Mari Ramos is at the CNN World Weather Center.

(WEATHER REPORT)

GRANT: Now after an 11-year absence holiday lights have returned to one of Tokyo's trendiest streets. The trees of Omote Sando are now adorned with more than 630,000 bulbs. Organizers say they are keeping the decor eco-friendly by using LED lights, known for consuming less energy. They've also added extra rubbish bins to accommodate larger crowds attracted by the display.

And that's it for me, Stan Grant, in Abu Dhabi. "LUXURY LIFE" coming up next, after we update the headlines.

END