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New Video for 'We are the World 25 Years Later' Released; American and Afghan Forces Launch Offensive in Afghanistan; Winter Olympics Commence in Vancouver.

Aired February 13, 2010 - 14:00   ET

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

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, I'm Fredricka Whitfield in the CNN NEWSROOM.

The latest news in a moment, but first an event you've been hearing about, the first full airing of the new video for the Haitian quake relief fund, "We are the World." Here now is Jamie Fox.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JAMIE FOX, ACTOR: I'm Jamie FOX. Twenty-five years ago Quincy Jones gathered an amazing group of artists and musicians to create "We are the World" written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Ritchie. I'm so proud to be able to share a new version of that song with a video by Academy Award winning director Paul Haggis.

Two weeks ago we found ourselves surrounded by a dazzling array of artists of all ages, backgrounds, and genres, but all of whom share a common commitment to take action to help Haiti rise from the rubble and rebuild.

As artists, we hope that you enjoy the video and join us in this rare simulcast to millions around the world as we ask you to please do more than just watch. Reach deep into your hearts and give anything you can, as we have, for Haiti. Whatever you have, no matter how big or how small, it all counts.

Thank you so much, and enjoy the video.

VARIOUS ARTISTS (SINGING): There comes a time when we heed a certain call when the world must come together as one. There are people dying and it's time to lend a hand to life the greatest gift of all.

We can't go on pretending day by day that someone somehow will soon make a change. We are all a part of god's great big family and the truth you know love is all we need.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making, we're saving our own lives. It's true we'll make a better day just you and me.

Send them your heart so they know that someone cares, so their cries for help will not be in vain. We can't let them suffer, no we cannot turn away right. Right now they need a helping hand.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

When you're down and out and there seems no hope at all, but if you just believe there's no way we can fall. Let us realize that a change can only come when we stand together as one.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me...

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

We all need somebody we can lean on when you look around and see your dreams are gone, when the earthquake swell to make you through a storm to make a magic carpet to stand on. We are the world united by love so strong when you radio is on you can hear the song.

We can shine a light on the dark what you walking on when you find your hope is gone someone to help remove the obstacles you stumble on, someone to help you rebuild after the rubble's gone. We are the world connected by a common bond, love, the whole planet is singing along.

We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

Everyday citizens everybody pitching in you and over 12 days no water with the will to live. Everybody find the love watch it multiply we can make the world win like a dream of Africa, Indonesia, and now Haiti needs us. They need us they now need us. We are the world, we are the children. We are the ones who make a brighter day so let's start giving. There's a choice we're making. We're saving our own lives. It's true we make a better day just you and me.

FOX: Wow. Thank you for watching, everybody. You know, "We are the World 25" is an opportunity for us to see what we can do to help our fellow man. Haiti right now is in desperate need of our help, and only you can help them. Do what you can. Haiti needs your help now.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: We aired that new version of "We are the World 25 Years Later" because this is the new rendition, a Haiti quake fundraising effort. This was aired simultaneously on many networks across the country. And you got a chance to see it first in its entirety right here on CNN.

Here is how you can help. You can download the song at iTunes or you can give $10 by texting the word "world" to 50555 or logon to world25.org.

We'll have much more news straight ahead here in the newsroom. A U.S. marine and British soldier have died in a major NATO offensive in southern Afghanistan. Afghan and NATO forces, including nearly 5,000 U.S. marines, launched the operation early today in Marjah. The city is a tell ban stronghold that is so dominated by drug money it's called the "heroin breadbasket of Afghanistan."

An unusual sight as well in the deep south of this country, a winter storm buries much of the region under several inches of snow. This was Atlanta yesterday. It snowed hard there for several hours, creating a rush hour mess. Snow and ice are still on the ground, forcing Atlanta to shut down bus services today.

We'll have more on these stories in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM.

More now on that major offensive going on in southern Afghanistan. NATO troops, including U.S. marines, are moving into the city of Marjah. At least two coalition troops have been killed, a U.S. marine and British soldier.

For the most part, NATO commanders say, the mission is going as well as planned. They are trying to rid the city of the Taliban, which at the moment is said to be confused and disoriented. Let's get straight to Fred Pleitgen in Afghanistan's capital. And what are you hearing, Fred, from where you are in Kabul.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka. It's a huge fighting force that has descended on that area of Marjah. We're hearing that some 15,000 troops are involved in that offensive. And one of the things why NATO is saying this offensive is actually going the way it has planned it is that apparently troops have been able to achieve some of the key objectives already. A lot of that is taking back key infrastructure, things like police stations, taking back key bridges, key roads so that they do have a foothold in that territory and are slowly, but surely increasing that foothold as they go on.

Of course it is a dangerous area, not least of which because it was held for such a long time by the Taliban, and also the Taliban have had time to prepare for this offensive, booby-trapped large parts of the area.

This offensive started in the early morning hours. It started under the cover of darkness with some air assaults into the area, also ground assaults going on there. Very, very tough going from what we are hearing from our teams on the ground.

Again because the area is so heavily booby-trapped the marines are using very heavy breaching equipment to move forward any way they can. One thing of course that is very important to the success of this operation is to minimize civilian casualties at all costs.

One thing, Fredricka, that everyone is keeping an eye on is what are the Taliban going to do. You were saying NATO saying they are at this point apparently disoriented. The question is will they mount something like a counterattack right now?

What we are hearing from NATO is there are pockets of resistance, but it seems more like this non-coordinated hit-and-run tactics rather than something that would be a larger coordinated attack -- Fredricka?

WHITFIELD: Fred Pleitgen, thanks so much, coming to us from Kabul.

Back to this country now. The southeast slowed by snow, digging out from yet another winter storm. Jacqui Jeras is tracking all of that in the Weather Center.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Checking our top stories right now.

A biology professor at the University of Alabama in Huntsville is charged with murder. Police say 45-year-old Amy Bishop Anderson shot and killed three colleagues yesterday and wounded three others. Investigators won't rule out the idea others might have been involved somehow. A Huntsville television station reports the suspect was upset because she was denied tenure.

And a protest against Iran's government is underway in Washington. Organizers of the Solidarity Committee to Protect the Iranian People's Will say they are protesting Tehran's continuing clampdown on human rights.

This march and rally comes days -- this is a live shot right now actually in Washington -- this comes days after the anniversary of the 1979 Iranian revolution.

Another problem for Toyota, this one with four-wheel drive pick- ups. There's now a voluntary recall of about 8,000 Tacoma trucks in North America. Toyota says there is a potential problem in the front drive shaft of some 2010 models. If you have one, repairs won't cost you anything.

OK, so the kids are happy about it, and some grown-ups, too, me included -- snow, snow, snow and more snow. The south getting a dose of what it feels like up north.

Check out these shots from Georgia and North Carolina. Schools were closed, commutes were slower than they usually are, and Atlanta's airport had more than 1,000 flights canceled yesterday. Nearly four inches of snow fell at the Atlanta Airport.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: The Winter Olympics well underway in Vancouver. We are going to get some insight from a two-time Olympic silver medalist and three-time world ice skater.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: And 5,000 U.S. marines are taking part in a big offensive taking part in southern Afghanistan. Our Pentagon Correspondent Barbara Starr keeping close tabs on it. So we're hearing so far, so good, from commanders. What do they mean?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred. We've been talking to officials in Afghanistan all day long, trying to get a sense of what exactly is going on and why they're so optimistic right now.

We have now a bit of a lay down of how the battle unfolded. First, let's look at Helmand province here. This is the key area. As we zoom in to the region we've been talking about, Marjah, let's pause the map for a minute and tell people what unfolded overnight.

What we now know is British and Afghan forces moved in from the northeast, about 37 helicopters putting 1,200 men on the ground in two hours overnight with no injuries, quite a substantial air assault mission.

At the same time, U.S. marines, perhaps as many as 4,500 of them, moving into the southwest. All told across Marjah, Fred, 60 helicopters dropping off thousands of Afghan, U.S. and NATO forces.

Now they have taken several key objectives, they tell us, major arteries, roads, junctions, some of these irrigation canals and bridges that we've been hearing so much about, moving through this area trying to root out the Taliban.

What are their concerns? IEDs still the number one concern. The feeling now is that the area is riddled with IEDs. We know they are using some breaching, some heavy equipment to punch through these mine fields to avoid casualties for coalition forces.

So a lot of continuing concern about that, and a lot of concern that now is when the hard work will begin getting the Afghan government to move in and provide the long-term security to these people so the Taliban can't come back -- Fred?

WHITFIELD: And Barbara, any thought about the advantage that perhaps Taliban had on placing those IEDs? Did they have an advantage because the Pentagon and publicly it has been talked about this operation was under way?

STARR: Right. I think most commanders will tell you it was a bit off a trade-off, that yes, by signaling this, they might have given the Taliban some time to plant these IEDs, but they also know the Taliban are a very savvy lot. They have their own intelligence network down in this region, and they saw the preparations coming.

Perhaps the real objective of General McChrystal, the top U.S. commander, was to signal the Afghan people, the citizens in this region, about what was about to unfold, the fighting that was going to take place, and to get them on the side of NATO and Afghan forces so they would begin to warn the troops about where the IEDs are and that they would buy into this notion that their Afghan government is there to protect them.

Again, that's the real challenge ahead, making the Afghan government move in and take charge of this very volatile region, Fred.

WHITFIELD: Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr, thanks so much from Washington. We'll check back with you throughout the day.

Perhaps you're looking for ways to save money. We've got some tips on how to slash that monthly cell phone bill, for example, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: The celebration at the opening of the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver was tempered by a Luge accident, and it killed a young money.

Elvis Strojko is a former Olympic figure skater. Once an Olympian, always an Olympian, a three time world champ, and is the first man ever to perform a quadruple toe loop, is in Vancouver.

And Elvis, I want to talk to you about a whole lot of things. I wonder, as you have this strategy that has unfolded involving the luge before competition and the opening ceremonies were to take place, as an Olympian, how are others trying not to be distracted by that tragedy and staying on point with their own competitions?

ELVIS STROJKO, FORMER OLYMPIC FIGURE SKATER: Well, I haven't had a chance to talk to anybody specific. But I know yesterday there was, when the accident happened and it got word down from Whistler down here, it took the wind out of so many people. It's such a tragedy, especially here and before the opening ceremonies. WHITFIELD: And for an athlete to get up for that, it's really tragic. My heart goes out to the family and the competitors and the people of the country of Georgia.

STROJKO: It is really tough. I know the luge or the sliding center is still open for business, so to speak. They will continue on course with this, but surely it will be on the minds of many people, especially when they take to that ice.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk about ice skating. That's your forte. What are you looking forward to as the individual skating, dance pairs, all that gets underway? Who should we keep our eyes out for?

STROJKO: There are so many great skaters in each event. Starting off even with the pairs event, we have Hung Bo Xia coming back to compete. They took a couple years off in retirement, but they're back again and having a great season. They are definitely the favorites.

The other two Chinese teams, the Russian team, the Canadian team. There is a big group there in the dance. They have the American team, I know is strong, our Canadian team is strong, as well.

In the men's, the big talk is about Plushenko coming back to compete. And then there are three American men. I was up in Spokane, Washington, the U.S. nationals is a very strong team, and Jeremy Abbott and the world champion Evan Lysacek. The Japanese guys are strong as well.

The ladies events, the Asian contingent, it makes for a good competition. I'm excited to sit back and watch. You can predict all you want, but in our subjective sport of figure skating, you never know what's going to happen.

WHITFIELD: Is it tough for you to sit back and watch. Do you look at this or anticipate looking at this saying, darn, why am I not on the ice right now? Or do you feel the butterflies you felt before your competition?

STROJKO: Well -- sorry, the police are going by here. But I've been out for one Olympics in '06. And watching it from home, you still get those kind of butterflies and kind of want to be out there.

But also being here in my home country, it does make it a little bit tough, because once a competitor, always a competitor. So you still want to get out there and do your thing.

Working with Yahoo here has been often. I get to write some columns and do a little bit of play by play a little bit here, which is great. So it gets me to be part of it and part of the sport I love so much.

WHITFIELD: Hopefully you can hear me on this last question. As a Canadian, Canada really wants to bring home a gold during these winter games. Do you have any predictions on who that might be, what sport it might be? STROJKO: Well, a lot of talk in the skiing event, you have a strong team there with the short track. And I know the Americans have a strong team there, and the Chinese and Koreans.

We are talking in the men's event, the dance events, we have Patrick Chan who is very strong. In the ladies' events it will be tough. Joanie Rochette. So there are shots at gold and definitely some hardware in silver and third. It depends on the day and with the pressure being at home country, you never know what's going to happen.

WHITFIELD: The pressure and the enthusiasm by being in home country. Elvis Strojko, thanks so much. Good to see you, and I know we'll be checking with you again over the next couple of weeks as the Olympic Games are now underway. Good to see you.

STROJKO: Great. Thank you.

WHITFIELD: You have probably seen the commercials, right? Cell phone prices going down, but your monthly bill could actually go up. It's what some are calling the phone company's dirty little secret.

Joining us from New York us CNN's Personal Finance Editor Gerri Willis. Good to see you this lovely Saturday.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR: Good to see you, too, Fred. This is crazy. They are saying they are saving you money, but in fact down the road they think you are going to pay more and more for data plans, right? So they think your bill is going to go up and up and up.

They are trying to entice you with low voice rate. But the dirty little secret from the consumer's point of view, people overbuy on these plans. In fact two thirds of cell users use less half of their minutes. Get that, you are overpaying from the get-go for your cell phone plan.

The most important thing is to match your usage with your plan. You can do that at a website called billshrink.com. They match you up with a plan cheapest for you.

And if do you experience a month for personal reasons, maybe you have a baby or a death in your family, you want to up those minutes for a short period of time, you can definitely do that. Call your carrier and say I have a problem, I need 15 more minutes. I'm willing to pay that bill, but only temporarily.

That's a big deal there. People buy too many minutes.

WHITFIELD: You have to know before you go into it how much you are going to be depending on your phone, what kind of plan would be best for you.

Let's talk about cars now. Everyone wants to get a better deal on buying something pre-owned or used. When you are buying pre-owned or used, and say it's a Toyota, how do you make sure it was fixed as a result of all these recalls? How do you know that previous owner took it in and took care of things?

WILLIS: That is a great question. At the end of the day it's the consumer's responsibility to do that. Frankly, 30 percent of the time consumers don't do it. So there are cars on the road with all kinds of recalls on them that have never been fixed.

And if you are going to buy a second-hand Toyota you need to figure out if it does have a problem. Get that VIN number, vehicle identification number right off the dash. It's on that little silver plate. You can find it easily.

Then take that number to Toyota or actually call NHTSA itself or go on their Web site. In fact they have all this information on what VIN numbers have been recalled. That will help you know if the car has been fixed. You can call Toyota directly.

And even if you're buying a car today and it hasn't been fixed, you can still take it to Toyota and get it fixed.

One piece of advice here Fred that I think is critical that a lot of people don't even know about it. The big deal with this is there were lots of complaints and people weren't able to -- there was no recall. The recall only followed slowly.

Go to safercar.org. It will help you know what complaints are out there by consumers against your car, your make and model sitting in your driveway right now.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk taxes now, because right around the corner we need to file our taxes. Right now everyone is gathering their receipts and looking for things to deduct. So how can I trust reaching out to some business is really the best route for me? How do I pick the right tax plan?

WILLIS: There is no better place to go than the IRS, right? If you make $57,000 or less you can have the IRS do your taxes for you. What they do is they give you free software. You answer questions, it's a Q&A format. You get your money back, refund from the government right into your checking account. It's free for you.

There's also another program if you don't want to do the computer thing, you're afraid of the software, you can actually get a human being to do it for you. It's called a volunteer taxpayer stance program, free as well for people earning $47,000 or less.

And of course there are the software programs that will cost you $100 to $300 out there. turbo tax, tax cut, and dirty little secret if you go to H&R Block, they are typically using this software. You just don't see it. So that's an easy thing to do.

You can also hire a CPA. That's the most expensive route to go. But if you have complicated taxes, say you have a blended family, own two or three properties, maybe you own your own business, maybe you work for yourself, it might make sense to hire a professional to do it for you. You can go to aicpa.org and find out about their track record. WHITFIELD: Great tips, great variety on getting help on those taxes. Gerri Willis, good to see you. Happy Valentine's Day weekend in your beautiful red. You're ready and raring to go.

WILLIS: Thank you, Fred. Great to see you.

WHITFIELD: Let's talk love in the new age. Has social networking changed the rule for this Valentine's Day?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Our top stories right now, Olympic officials say the luge track is safe. Although the speeds are faster than they expected, 21-year-old Nodar Kumaritashvili of the Republic of Georgia died Friday in a crash on the track during a training run. The track is back open for training now.

And we could be looking at a higher death toll from the H1N1 virus. New estimates by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention put that number close to 17,000, and that's just in the United States. So far only about 3,000 confirmed deaths are linked to H1N1.

Relief supplies continue to pour into Haiti. Much more is need. U.S. State Department officials say they plan to ask Congress for more money for more aid.

What about other relief programs for other nations? White House officials say they'll work with Congress to make sure those programs also get their fair share.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Love is in the air. Yes, Valentine's Day is tomorrow, a subtle reminder to all of you who may have forgotten your sweetheart.

So with the new decade, and we've got new rules by the way when it comes to romancing that someone special, joining us from New York is Heather Cabot, Yahoo's web life editor. Heather, good to see you.

HEATHER CABOT, YAHOO'S WEB LIFE EDITOR: Hi, thank you.

WHITFIELD: How has this whole social networking thing changed it all, Facebook, twitter, your mobile phone, how is all that impacting romance these days?

CABOT: Well, I think number one we are going to see many more virtual Valentine's and virtual gifts. On Facebook alone there are all kinds of applications where you can send virtual goodies like chocolates or flowers. The virtual gift industry is huge. Some reports are they put in $1 billion a year.

So that is an easy way for people to quickly express their sentiments.

WHITFIELD: Is that satisfying? Why do I want a virtual bouquet of flowers, virtual chocolates? I want to eat chose chocolates.

(LAUGHTER)

CABOT: You're right, me, too. And most people do, too. Yahoo actually did a survey a couple of months ago where they asked people about their attitudes regarding relationships in the digital age.

And for the most part people agree. They say it's not necessarily appropriate to wish a significant other a happy birthday or happy anniversary or even happy Valentine's Day using social media. They prefer you do it in person and give a real thing.

So I think that the point is that these virtual gifts don't necessarily take the place of the romantic dinner or the flowers or the chocolate, but perhaps it's an enhancement or it's a preview.

WHITFIELD: So just a cutesy way of complimenting all the other things you plan to be doing for your sweetheart?

CABOT: I think so. I think among younger people it may be more acceptable to express your feelings in this way. Certainly our surveys showed younger people more involved with social media are maybe a little bit more comfortable with it. But I think among most people it doesn't take the place.

WHITFIELD: And so are we saying these younger people who find it is acceptable to get that virtual bouquet of flowers, that it's also OK to electronically break up with somebody? Now it's OK to break up via e-mailing or texting, too?

CABOT: Interestingly enough, when it comes to breaking up, according to the survey that we did, only one in 10 people said they thought that was appropriate. When you look at other ways of breaking up, whether it's via text or instant message, you have some of the numbers up there, a very small percentage of the people think that it's OK.

So I think that perhaps that's good news, that we haven't gone so far into this digital age that we still feel that having that one-on- one, in person conversation, or at least picking up the phone, that that is a little more appropriate.

WHITFIELD: And I guess that is the indicator. If somebody is breaking up with you via Internet or e-mail, then you didn't need that person any way.

CABOT: I'm with you definitely.

WHITFIELD: What about sending romantic messages online, people certainly do do it. How acceptable has that become?

CABOT: I think it's very acceptable. Again, if we are talking about a significant other, it doesn't really take the place of that romantic dinner or maybe the night out or the flowers.

But certainly on Yahoo just for example today we are seeing top searches for Valentine e-cards. The number two search just in the last hour has been for Valentine e-cards.

Overall, in the last seven days people are looking for love quotes on Yahoo, looking for flowers, Valentine gifts, love poems, and also roses. It's nice to see people are looking for quotes.

WHITFIELD: That is sweet. Bring the romance back, especially after the whole idea of texting some kind of interesting messages or valentine wishes, why not bring back romance in some other way, shape or form?

CABOT: Certainly.

WHITFIELD: All right, Heather Cabot, thanks so much. Good go see you, and happy Valentine's to you. And hopefully it's not the virtual kind but the real thing.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: Time now to share a few of our favorite stories from the water cooler this week, starting with a dog mugging in Brooklyn. A woman tied up her westie named Lexi outside a market and ran in for two minutes to get milk. And she tells the "New York Post" when she came back the dog was still there, but her $25 green wool and leather coat was gone.

And this from Britain's "Daily Mail" just in time for Valentine's. Their survey of 2,000 male customers at a chain of British perfume stores, six in 10 believe that they knew just about everything about their mate.

But when questioned, 12 percent didn't know her eye color, 10 percent didn't know her birthday, eight percent didn't know her natural hair color, 11 percent didn't know her job title, and 12 percent didn't know the name of her best friend.

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Getting online to follow the mission in Afghanistan, Josh Levs has more on that.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Fred. We have what a commander in NATO told his troops just before they embarked on this new operation. You will hear it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: "A historic mission," that is what a NATO commander says about the major new operation underway in Afghanistan. Our Josh Levs joins with us with that and how you at home can actually follow the war online. This is pretty extraordinary, Josh.

LEVS: It is. It's a complicated war, in general, and so a lot of people with a lot of questions all the time. What we are doing at CNN.com/Afghanistan is breaking it down step by step the whole way.

What's interesting as we look at this is partly what people are saying about it on the ground right now. I want to start by setting the scene, which is something we do here. We have Google animation for you. This will bring you back to the area where this new operation is happening.

We are zooming all the way into Marjah, that's the key area where the siege has been taking place. And we give you a lot of information on our Web site about it.

We also show you some of these photos from the Defense Department, from the military that they were sending out to us about what was being done in advance. The military was doing a lot to get the word out. And they put these online and a lot of other photos online, too. We share a lot of these with you at the web.

The military up and moving, getting ready. This was all in advance of the official beginning of it, so we got these yesterday.

Something else that really struck me as I've been looking through the kinds of materials we are getting was the words of a commander inside NATO. In this case it's a British commander who is talking to his troops. He addressed them and told them what to expect and what was ahead. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LT. COL. NICK LOCK, COMMANDER, ROYAL WELSH BATTLE GROUP: On this mission is a historic mission. We are really at a point, a tipping point in the future of the campaign. And I'm absolutely convinced of the necessity for this mission, because by doing things and clearing this particular area, we will ensure we have government of Afghanistan influence right the way through central Helmand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEVS: You can see some of his troops there to whom he was talking. He was giving them something of a pep talk, but it's also laying out for the world, because this was immediately released by NATO, laying out for the world in a lot of ways the way troops inside NATO understand what they are doing, the historic nature of it, the hopes, everything at stake in this operation right now in the hope it could truly be, in his words, a real turning point in the war.

So Fred, we have all of that for you and a lot more information that goes along with it at CNN.com/Afghanistan.

WHITFIELD: Thanks so much, Josh.

And a lot is at stake. We're going to have a closer look at NATO's Afghanistan strategy. In a moment we're going to talk more a little bit about all those things at stake.