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The Situation Room

Interview With Former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger; Guantanamo Bay Detainees Speak Out; Interview With Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns

Aired November 21, 2006 - 17:00   ET

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

JOHN KING, CNN ANCHOR: And, to our viewers, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time -- standing by, CNN reporters across the United States and around the world to bring you today's top stories.
Happening now: Bullets fly near Beirut. Are they first shots in a new civil war? As another political assassination rocks Lebanon, is the United States pointing the finger at Syria and Iran? I will ask Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns.

Is Iran calling the shots in Iraq? We have two exclusive reports from inside Iran and inside U.S. Central Command headquarters in Qatar. And I will speak with the former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

Also, terror suspects held for years without charges -- we will listen to shocking audiotapes from inside the U.S. detention camp at Guantanamo Bay.

Wolf Blitzer is off today. I'm John King. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

A prominent Lebanese Cabinet minister and harsh critic of Syrian influence is gunned down near Beirut. But was the real target Lebanon's fragile democracy? Fingers are already pointing at Syria and Iran, even as those countries extend their influence in another direction, Iraq.

We will have full coverage of a spreading crisis in the Middle East. CNN's Aneesh Raman has an exclusive report from Tehran. A CNN Pentagon correspondent has another exclusive from a CENTCOM command center post in Qatar. And CNN's Michael Ware is in Baghdad.

But we turn first to our Beirut correspondent, our bureau chief, Brent Sadler -- Brent.

BRENT SADLER, CNN BEIRUT BUREAU CHIEF: John, hello.

Another blood-soaked day in Lebanon's political history, with the assassination of a leading opponent of Syria, the industry minister being gunned down in a Christian suburb north of Beirut -- the country now teetering once again on the brink of possibly renewed violence and continuing political turmoil.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SADLER (voice-over): It was a highly organized, professional assassination. The young Christian Lebanese M.P. Pierre Gemayel died in a hail of bullets, after his car was rammed, shot at close range, in what is being described by many as a cold-blooded murder to ignite a political firestorm and topple the Western-backed government.

Lebanon's national security may now be hanging on a thread, in the wake of this latest murder of a leading anti-Syrian Lebanese politician.

FUAD SINIORA, PRIME MINISTER OF LEBANON (through translator): This attack against one of the symbols of freedom in Lebanon will make us more determined and committed to the freedom of this country and to the independence and sovereignty of this country.

SADLER: Embattled Prime Minister Fuad Siniora pledges to stand firm, but his government was already rocked by resignations from his Cabinet, mostly by allies of Syria, and facing political assault by a Hezbollah-led opposition, threatening street protests to bring down the ruling coalition.

Leader of the parliamentary majority, Saad Hariri, was holding a news conference, defending Siniora's government, when he received a handwritten note, alerting him to the deadly attack.

SAAD HARIRI, LEBANESE PARLIAMENT LEADER (through translator): I have been told that the minister Pierre Gemayel has been shot.

SADLER: Clearly shaken, he accused Syria of having a hand in the killing.

HARIRI: I'm afraid that these assassinations will never stop, until we have an international tribunal to prosecute the people who killed all those who died last year, and also Pierre Gemayel.

SADLER: Outside the hospital where the minister died, anger and sorrow, with promises from the pro-Syrian president, Emile Lahoud, to hunt down what he called terrorists.

EMILE LAHOUD, PRESIDENT OF LEBANON (through translator): This terrorist attack will not pass unpunished. We will do everything we can to unmask the criminals who carried out this crime against all Lebanese.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SADLER: The leader of the parliamentary majority, Saad Hariri, says he fears more attacks, but warns that the killers will be brought to justice, and shall feel justice, he says, that is on the way -- John.

KING: And, Brent, you mentioned many questioning whether the government of Prime Minister Siniora can survive.

Help our viewers understand. What should they look for over the next several days? Is there a benchmark you're looking for as a test of what this government has to do?

SADLER: Well, the big test is whether or not Hezbollah, the armed militant group backed by Syria and Iran, are going to go ahead with repeated threats to bring demonstrations on the streets to topple the Siniora government.

Now, Thursday, we expect to see a very large funeral, indeed, to bury Pierre Gemayel, the industry minister, amid calls that this is a time when the anti-Syrian opposition here, the government, the ruling coalition, should also show its mettle, show its determination, to continue with trying to bring about an international tribunal, under the auspices of the United Nations, to try not only the suspected killers linked to Syria, but -- of Rafik Hariri, the former prime minister -- but also killings that have taken place here over the past two years.

These are crucially decisive times for the future of Lebanon -- John.

KING: Our bureau chief, Brent Sadler, on another day of turmoil in Beirut -- Brent, thank you very much.

And, as Brent just noted, Hezbollah's role, as well as two main patrons, are exerting their influence across the region. Syria has just restored diplomatic relations with Iraq, while Iran has invited leaders from both Iraq and Syria for weekend talks.

CNN's Aneesh Raman is the only U.S. network reporter in Tehran right now.

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: John, the message from Iran is clear: It doesn't need to engage with the U.S. to engage with Iraq.

Set to arrive in the Iranian capital this weekend is Iraq's president, Jalal Talabani. And there's speculation on the ground that he could be joined by Syria's president, something the Iraqi president has so far denied.

But Iran and Syria, both isolated by the West, are growing closer by the day. And they are pointing their alliance directly at Iraq. In addition to news that Jalal Talabani will be coming this weekend of course came news that Syria had resumed full diplomatic ties with Iraq.

Now, Iran leads this two-country alliance with Syria. Its interests are to flaunt regional influence over the U.S. Why? Because Iran wants to topple American influence and be the superpower in the Middle East, but also because Iran and Syria, perhaps more than anything else, share one thing, a desire to not be the next Iraq, to not see forced regime changes in their countries, and to have both of their governments survive -- John.

KING: Aneesh Raman in Tehran.

And, from Aneesh in Tehran, we go to another CNN exclusive.

To what degree is Iran stirring up the violence inside Iraq? The U.S. military is grappling with that problem right now.

Our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr, is the only television reporter traveling with Central Command commander General John Abizaid.

She's reporting from a classified operation center in Qatar.

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: John, here at the desert headquarters of the U.S. Central Command, of course, the war in Iraq is the top priority and growing concern about Iran's influence in that war.

One of the things they track here is a potential breakaway rogue element of the Shia militia controlled by the radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Officials here say that they now believe that breakaway element is largely influenced by Iran, which is providing weapons, money, and training inside of Iraq.

It's something that is a matter of great concern here. They also, of course, continue to see what they believe are improvised explosive devices shipped into Iraq from across the border in Iran. The belief is that that Iranian-militia-backed element inside Iraq may now have as many as 10,000 supporters, and it will be very difficult for Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki to crack down on that group.

Officials here tell us that they believe, if the sectarian violence cannot be brought under control within perhaps six months, that civil war will come to Iraq -- John.

KING: Barbara Starr there at CENTCOM headquarters.

And the assassination in Lebanon raises the question, are we seeing a generalized meltdown across the Middle East? And what would it mean for U.S. policy in Iraq and across the region?

Correspondent Michael Ware joins us from Baghdad.

Michael, the big news in the region today, obviously, this political assassination in Lebanon. Help us put it into regional context. What is the impact in a place like Iraq? Is this something that emboldens the insurgents, who are trying to not only destabilize Iraq, but, some would say, destabilize the entire region?

MICHAEL WARE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, directly, immediately? No.

But, indirectly, this assassination fits within a much broader picture within the region, that the insurgents, both Sunni and Shia, and all the regional actors, from Syria to Iran, and American Arab allies in the region, are well aware of.

I mean, this, right now, is a region of American malaise, during a period of U.S. strategic uncertainty. I mean, this is a time, a strategic opportunity, for all of America's rivals in this region.

And I think we're seeing certain elements within this part of the world trying to capitalize upon that. We're certainly seeing evidence of that here on the ground, certainly patterns of behavior from certain militia groups and insurgent groups, that have taken particularly directly and targeted operations that seem to be making the most of this opportunity.

KING: You mention certain militia groups.

As you're aware, our Barbara Starr is reporting today that there are some concerns in the U.S. Central Command about perhaps a splinter group within one of Muqtada al-Sadr's militias, a splinter group backed by Iran.

Based on what you see on the ground there every day, does that fit with what you're seeing? Is that conceivable, that a group within al-Sadr's militias could split off and be beholden to Iran, not to Muqtada al-Sadr?

WARE: Well, John, let me put it this way.

If Central Command is concerned that this might be happening, that's frightening, because it shows they have absolutely no reality of what's been happening here on the ground for the past year. And, in fact, I know that's not the case.

I have spoken to U.S. military intelligence here on the ground at very senior levels. They, like all of us, have been tracking the fracturing of Muqtada's Mahdi army militia, one of the most potent and politically powerful right now here in the country.

Now, U.S. military intelligence says that, for some time, you know, Mahdi militia has been receiving millions of dollars of aid from Iran, including training, the facilitation of relationships with Hezbollah, the transfer of technology, the adoption of an Iranian- inspired template.

Now, there's been breakaway groups going on from that main body for well over a year. And, in fact, U.S. intelligence says there's now classic Mahdi army, there's militant Mahdi army, much like the IRA and the more militant real IRA from Northern Ireland, and then there's rogue factions.

Indeed, what we're seeing is that all of them are sponsored or supported or have a relationship in some way with Iran. And now we're seeing Iran poaching Mahdi army commanders.

So, it's much more than a concern. It's a reality we have lived with here on the ground for over a year -- John.

KING: Michael Ware for us in Baghdad -- Michael, thank you very much.

WARE: Thank you.

KING: Up ahead: never-before-heard tapes of Guantanamo detainees. They describe, in their own words, abusive treatment and military tribunals they say they never had a chance of winning. Also: Is the Middle East in meltdown? And what can the United States do about it? I will ask the Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns. He's standing by to join us live.

Plus: He played a key role in the Vietnam War. Now former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger is advising the Bush administration on Iraq. He now says an outright victory there may no longer be possible. I will ask him why.

Stay with us. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KING: A generation ago, when the U.S. government decided that the Vietnam War was unwinnable, Henry Kissinger helped put an end to that conflict.

Now the former secretary of state says an outright victory in Iraq may no longer be possible.

We want to begin, though, our conversation with Dr. Kissinger with today's tragic assassination in Lebanon.

Henry Kissinger joins us from Kent, Connecticut.

Mr. Secretary, thank you so much for joining us today.

I want your assessment of this tragedy, yet another tragedy, in Lebanon, the assassination of Mr. Gemayel, another anti-Syrian voice in the very fragile Lebanese government. In your view, will this topple the government of Prime Minister Siniora? And what should the United States do about it?

HENRY KISSINGER, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: In Syria, the challenge to the government comes partly from Syria, partly from the Hezbollah, which is a combination of Iranian and Syrian influence.

It demonstrates that the struggle for a free government in Lebanon is -- it's still being joined. The Hezbollah is actually materially stronger than the Lebanese government is. And to choose this moment for another assassination and for another demonstration of the influence of Syria and Iran in Lebanon indicates what one -- what we have to deal with in the Middle East, which is that the internal balance in these countries must be restored, if they're not all going to be swept away by the influence of these radical organizations that are states within a state.

KING: Well, when you speak of the internal balance in these countries must be restored, what is the United States' role in that? Some have spoken that there should be this grand bringing-together of all the parties; the United States should sit down at a conference, and bring the Lebanese to the table, bring the Iranians to the table, bring the Syrians to the table, of course, bring Iraq to the table.

Is that something that is feasible in this environment, given so much instability and so much violence in the region? KISSINGER: I'm in favor of negotiating with the countries that are involved in the region.

But we should not delude ourselves. These countries have no interest in helping us out of our difficulties. They have an interest in enhancing their own role. So, if they're going to play a responsible role, we have to create a balance in the region and in the countries concerned. And, if we can't do that, then any agreement, it's just going to be a very brief armistice.

KING: And, when you speak of a brief armistice, and the U.S. getting involved in some way, if that balance can be restored, is part of that balance, though, part of the pragmatism perhaps necessary here, the president to realize and to accept that he will not realize the grand vision of his second inaugural of the spreading of democracy throughout the region, that he needs to have some more realpolitik, as opposed to idealism, at the moment?

KISSINGER: I believe the president was correct in stating democracy as an objective of the United States, because that is what has distinguished our country since its beginning.

But the time scale within which democratic institutions can be instituted and promoted, it's different from the time scale of the conflicts that are now going on. And I think we have to settle, on the way to our ultimate objective, for some intermediate objectives, which save the possibility of achieving our ultimate objective.

KING: I want to move specifically now...

KISSINGER: So, in that sense, we have to adjust our goals to the necessities of the situation.

KING: I want to continue on that point, but specifically focus on the crisis in Iraq right now, and the challenge facing the president of the United States.

As you know full well, the American people just voted on this issue, largely, in the midterm elections. And anger at the war, disappointment with the lack of progress in the war, led to the Democratic victories, at least to a great extent.

I want you to listen to the president in the final days of that campaign. This is the president of the United States, George W. Bush, speaking on October 25.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're winning, and we will win, unless we leave before the job is done. And the crucial battle right now is Iraq.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Mr. Secretary, you don't believe we are winning, do you? And do you believe we can win? KISSINGER: I don't believe -- I don't believe we are winning in Iraq, in the sense that we are not -- we do not have a government there whose write runs across the whole country, and which is, at this moment, capable of dealing with the civil war and with the insurrection.

I do believe we can win, in the sense that we can make it unprofitable for radicals and for the jihadist movements to resort to their methods on a global basis, and to force them into some kind of agreement -- not the jihadist groups, but the surrounding countries -- for the stabilization of Iraq.

KING: And how do we force them into that agreement? Does it necessitate not only diplomacy, and some pretty tough diplomacy, but does it necessitate, in the short term, in your view, more U.S. troops?

KISSINGER: I think we should look at the proposal of Senator McCain.

The objective is to bring about -- to undermine the possibilities of the jihadist movements around the world resorting to these methods, and gaining confidence from what is happening in Iraq.

The ultimate objective, of course, is a substantial reduction of American forces and a political stabilization. Our challenge is to bring together the military and the political goals, the relationship to the surrounding countries and the internal relationship of the various forces that are at work there, and not to focus on just one aspect, either on diplomacy or on military force, as the only solution to this problem.

KING: So, then, has this president not focused enough on the diplomacy part of it? He has steadfastly refused to have high-level talks with Syria, steadfastly refused to have high-level talks with Iran. The ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, has had some conversations in the past about security issues.

How does the United States, essentially, break out of this terrible situation at the moment? What does it need to do to provoke -- to push through to get a breakthrough?

KISSINGER: I believe we should be -- we should be ready to have geopolitical talks with Iran and with Syria about the region as a whole.

But I also -- but, in order for those to be effective, we must have a stabilized military situation. So, both of these objectives have to be preserved simultaneously.

KING: And, Mr. Secretary, you, of course, remember all too well American public opinion at the end of the Vietnam War, the difficult decisions that were made to end that war.

This president was just in Vietnam for an economic conference, an annual event. Already, in the political campaign, many were making the comparisons between the Iraq War and Vietnam. Those intensified because of his travel schedule. It is a fair comparison, sir? What's the same, and what's different?

KISSINGER: Well, there are many differences.

Vietnam did not have -- at least it didn't have, after 1968, in the last phase of the war, an internal insurrection. Most of the combat was between outside North Vietnamese forces and the local South Vietnamese forces.

And we also have to remember that in -- that American combat had ended inside Vietnam in 1971, as far as ground forces were concerned, and, finally, that there was an agreement which ended the war and brought about a withdrawal of American forces.

Then, after that agreement was made, largely due to American internal problems, we cut economic aid to Vietnam from $2.5 billion to $750 million, and prohibited any American effort to enforce the agreement. Under those conditions, no country could have survived.

And I hope that we can avoid similar circumstances. And I'm hopeful that the Baker commission will chart a bipartisan course which all of us who are concerned with avoiding a repetition would do -- will do our best to support.

KING: The former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger -- Dr. Kissinger, thank you so much for your time and your thoughts today. Thank you, sir.

Coming up: allegations of hush money -- the latest twist in the Simpson saga. His former sister-in-law is speaking out on the controversy that's making headlines. We will have the details.

Plus: Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns standing by to join us live. We will talk about the crisis in Lebanon, and what the United States intends to do about it.

Stay right here. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The atom blast heard 'round the world. North Korea stunned the world community by testing its first nuclear device.

North Korea's Kim Jong Il is a candidate for "TIME" magazine's person of the year.

ROMESH RATNESAR, WORLD EDITOR, "TIME": The testing of a -- of a nuclear weapon by the -- North Korea, in some ways, was the biggest single news event, if you could point to just one event, because not only is that a -- a major disruption of the balance of power in Asia, but it also, I think, has kind of crystallized this larger danger that the world faces from nuclear proliferation.

The real concern with Kim Jong Il is not so much that he would ever use a nuclear weapon, but that, as the head of a really desperate, poor, starving country, he would be tempted to sell some of the technology needed to develop a weapon to other states that are interested or even to terrorist groups.

ADI IGNATIUS, EXECUTIVE EDITOR, "TIME": He has continually tied pretty much every other nation in the world in knots, as countries from the U.S., to China, to Japan, to South Korea, try to figure out how to contain the North Korean threat.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KING: You're in THE SITUATION ROOM, where new pictures and information are arriving all the time.

Happening now: Lebanon is plunged in a new crisis. A leading anti-Syrian lawmaker is assassinated near Beirut. Pierre Gemayel was the country's industry minister and the son and nephew of two elected presidents. Many are now blaming his murder on Syria.

We will get U.S. reaction and find out what the Bush administration intends to do. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns will join us live.

Also, for the first time, we hear Guantanamo detainees in their own words describing their treatment and tribunals they say were stacked against them. We have newly released tapes for you this hour.

And a tragedy compounded in Huntsville, Alabama, where a fourth student has died now from injuries she received in that tragic school bus crash. Fourteen students are still hospitalized, at least three of them in critical condition.

Wolf Blitzer is off today. I'm John King. You're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

The assassination of a key anti-Syrian politician in Lebanon is raising fresh concerns about that country's fragile democracy, which rose from the ashes of a long civil war. The United States is calling the killing an act of terrorism and there are deep suspicions that Hezbollah and its patrons Iran and Syria may have had a hand in it. Joining me now to discuss this U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns who's live at the State Department.

Nick Burns, both you at the State Department, our ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton pointed the finger at Syria, saying that logic because of past trouble in Lebanon leads you to look there first. Why?

NICHOLAS BURNS, UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE: Well John this is a sad and tragic day for Lebanon and for the Gemayel family. That family has contributed so much to the history of Lebanon, but we don't know who did this, but we do know that among most of the people who have been murdered in Lebanon in the last year or two they've been anti- Syrian. Lebanon through off 29 years of Syrian occupation just last year and it's time for Lebanon to take control of its own destiny and for the Syrians and Iranians to stay out and let the Lebanese people determine their own future. It's an act of intimidation and we think an act of terrorism, the assassination of Pierre Gemayel.

KING: I want you to listen to Imad Moustapha, the ambassador from Syria to the United States, he was here with us in the last hour and he says it is the United States, not Syria or Iran in his view, causing trouble in the Middle East. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IMAD MOUSTAPHA, SYRIAN AMB. TO U.S.: We call on the United States to stop playing a role instigating the Lebanese against the Syrians, the Iraqis against the Syrians, and to engage with us because we want to find a constructive, creative solution to the Middle East crisis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: Mr. Moustapha's point Nick Burns was that this killing comes just as there was pressure on the Bush administration to sit down and talk to Syria, to sit down and talk to Iran to try to solve the problems in Iraq.

BURNS: Pierre Gemayel was a patriot in Lebanon, he was a member of the March 14th coalition, he was a reformer, he was a Democrat. He stood for everything against the Syrian occupation. He stood for everything that Syria despises about Lebanon. So the Syrians certainly have to understand that they're going to be watched very carefully. We don't know who did this. There will have to be an investigation to determine that. It's not the job of the United States to point fingers.

But we do know that Syria continues to seek to destabilize the country, as Syria's support for Hezbollah is part of that. And I think the Syrian ambassador to the United States ought to check his facts and he ought to look in the own mirror and he ought to ask his own government to play a more responsible role in Lebanon and in Iraq because they certainly haven't been responsible for the past several months.

KING: Is he right on the point that this could potentially poison and already poisoned well -- if there was to be pressure on the Bush administration or from within if the administration decided to achieve its policy goals in Iraq, perhaps one or two high-level meeting with Syria might be helpful or at least a test, a chance to call their bluff? In your perspective will this tragic killing spoil any prospects of such diplomacy?

BURNS: You know John the problem with Syria and the United States hasn't been the lack of communication, the ambassador sits here in Washington, D.C., I've met him. I've talked to him other people do as well. The problems with what Syria does, they left Lebanon after 29 years very reluctantly. They still are trying to meddle in the internal affairs of Lebanon, they seek to destabilize the country.

They have not been good friends to Prime Minister Siniora and his government. And they're certainly not been good friends to the Iraqi government. So the real answer here is for Syria to reflect on its isolation and reflect on its own destructive policies in the larger Middle East. The United States wants Lebanon to be free and independent and certainly wants to see Lebanon rebuilt after all the many sufferings of the Lebanese people this year and in past years.

KING: With all due respect, it's a very different thing to have Nick Burns running into Ambassador Moustapha at a reception or at some event here in Washington and having the secretary of state or the president of the United States sitting down across the table from President Asad of Syria.

Former Secretary of State Jim Baker last month on the ABC program this week said this. And I know you're well aware of this. "I believe in talking to your enemies. You don't give away anything, but in my view it's not appeasement to talk to your enemies." Why not take it up the chain of command again just once or twice so that then you could come on this program and say to the world, we tried to have a productive relationship, they wouldn't do what they needed to do.

BURNS: John, we have diplomatic relations with Syria. We know about the Syrians. We've talked to the Syrians. And of course we've had endless conversations with President Asad over many, many years. But the Syrians never put themselves in a position to be the constructive country that they should be. To try to repair their relations with Israel, to try to play a more constructive role in Lebanon.

So I think you ought to turn the question around and ask the Syrian ambassador to the United States when they're going to start pursuing a more constructive policy. But today's events are very tragic. And you don't have to be an expert in the Middle East to know this was an act of intimidation. They are trying to intimidate the Lebanese people and the reformist forces in Lebanon and that cannot be supported. They were denounced today, that was denounced by the Security Council at the United Nations.

KING: Let's look at the troubled diplomatic climate in the broader region. Syria has just re-established relations with Iraq. The Iraqi President Mr. Talabani is on his way to Tehran this weekend for talks with Iran. Do you of course accuse both Syria and Tehran of meddling in a destructive way inside Iraq. But if you could set one test for the Iraqi-Syrian relationship and one test for the Iranian- Iraqi relationship that you think would be a step toward progress, what would that test be?

BURNS: The key test for the Syrians in Iraq will be to stop the flow of foreign fighters coming from Syria into Iraq to destabilize Iraq. The key test for Iran, stop the flow of technology to the Shia insurgent groups, the IED technology that have been used against Iraqi forces, against the British and against the United States of America. The United States understands that Iraq wants to have good relations with its neighbors. And we have nothing against that. The test will be can Syria and Iran decide to be good neighbors? Can they actually by their deeds, not just by what they say, but what they do on the ground, contribute to a unitary state in Iraq, to the resolution of the problems and to the end of sectarian conflict that has been such a challenge to the Iraqi people. Syria and Iran have to meet that challenge and the rest of the world should ask them to meet that challenge.

KING: Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns, thanks for joining us live today.

BURNS: Thank you.

KING: And Carol Costello joins us now with a closer look at other stories making news -- Carol.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, John. Hello to all of you. China and India play let's make a deal and they do so successfully. During a meeting in New Delhi today the Chinese president and the Indian prime minister agreed to double trade between their nations to $40 billion by 2010. The deal includes a provision to cooperate on nuclear energy. Their leaders also say their countries will intensify efforts to resolve the border disputes that remain from the 1962 Sino Indian War.

A fresh update in a spy thriller unfolding in London. He's the former Russian spy who suffers from dehydration, heart problems and his hair has fallen out. But doctors say it may not be because of the toxic metal thallium, instead, officials say radioactive substances may have been used to poison him. The former spy suggests his former employee, the Russian government poisoned him. Moscow denies that.

Ed Bradley being remembered as a superior journalist, a humanitarian and a stylish lover of the good life. Colleagues and friends gathered at Riverside Memorial Church in New York today for a memorial for the "60 Minutes" correspondent.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BILL COSBY, COMEDIAN: Ed was a very, very wonderful person that would make any teacher proud. Because Ed was -- Ed was a person who admitted when a teacher said, "You can be anything you want to be." And Ed said, "And I believed her."

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Several musicians performed at today's service, including jazz legend Wynton Marsalis, you see him there. Bradley died this month of leukemia, he was 65 years old. Back to you John.

KING: Carol Costello, Carol thank you very much.

Coming up here, voices from a secret world. Guantanamo detainees talking about their military tribunals and why they say they never stood a chance. Stay with us here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KING: We're hearing today for the first time some extraordinary audiotapes that raised disturbing questions about the war on terror, specifically how the U.S. government is handling detainees suspected of ties to terror. CNN justice correspondent Kelli Arena is here with the story and the remarkable tapes -- Kelli.

KELLI ARENA, CNN JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: John, the audio tapes remain at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, at the U.S. prison camp during military tribunals back in 2004. Now lawyers represented six of the detainees held there filed a freedom of information request, and the tapes were released.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA (voice-over): They're voices from a secret world caught in a legal void. If they were Americans, their situation would be unthinkable. But they're not.

The six Algerian born detainees were taken to a small room shackled to the floor. The hearings determined they were, quote, enemy combatants and could be held indefinitely. After nearly five years in U.S. custody, they still have not been charged. And say the evidence against them is slim. The men tried to present evidence in their defense, but their lawyers say they were stonewalled.

MELISSA HOFFER, ATTORNEY FOR DETAINEES: At no time did their lawyer have the opportunity to confront the evidence against them. Exculpatory evidence that was in their files was never made available to the tribunals.

ARENA: The six were initially arrested in Bosnia just after September 11th for allegedly plotting to blow up the U.S. and British embassies there. The Bosnian Supreme Court cleared them, but as soon as they were free, they were picked up by American officials and taken to Guantanamo Bay.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ARENA: I asked the Pentagon for a response and spoke with Commander Jay Gordon. He says that the U.S. is at war and that defense attorneys like to think about tribunals as a civil procedure, but they are not. He says the detainees are being held to prevent them from returning to the battlefield and committing another 9/11, John.

KING: Fascinating look, Kelli Arena. Thank you very much, Kelli.

Next here, did the company behind O.J. Simpson's now cancelled book and TV special try to buy silence from some of his most vocal critics. Details of some surprising allegations. Stay with us, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KING: There are new developments in the controversy over O.J. Simpson's cancelled book and TV special about what he says is a hypothetical account of the murders of his former wife Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman. Simpson's former sister-in-law is now alleging her family was offered hush money to keep quite about the project. CNN's Carol Costello is live in New York with the details -- Carol.

COSTELLO: Oh I've got them and you thought it was over, well not quite. Denise Brown was on the "Today Show" this morning and she was hot.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO (voice-over): Ugly from the start, it just got uglier. Today charges of hush money to keep the Browns from saying anything bad about the Simpson project. Denise Brown, Nicole Brown Simpson's sister told NBC's today's show "FOX NEWS CORP" had contacted her family in the past week. She said, and I quote, "They wanted to offer us millions of dollars, millions of dollars for like, "I'm sorry" money, but they were still going to air the show."

I just talked with "News Corp," Andrew Butcher told me News Corp did talk with the Browns and Goldmans over the past week and did offer them all of the profits from the TV special and the book, "If I Did It". Butcher said there were no strings attached to our offer.

Shortly after "News Corps'" offer, its chief Rupert Murdoch famous for scandalous headlines that often decorate the tabloid "The New York Post," pulled the plug on both the TV special and the book, which may or may not mean O.J. Simpson lost any profit he was to make on the project. The publisher Judith Reagan said any profit will go into an education fund for the Simpson children.

But Brown believes it's a ploy and Simpson will be the one using the money. She said, when the offer from News Corp came to us, we just thought, "What they're trying to do is keep us quiet. Try to make this like hush money. Trying to go around the civil verdict, giving us this money to keep our mouths shut."

News Corp spokesman Andrew Butcher tells me he knows of no money paid to Simpson, the Goldmans say they don't believe it and plan to take legal action. Their only comfort now, that O.J. Simpson, who says he's indifferent to his failed TV gig and book, is that Simpson won't get a chance to be a star.

FRED GOLDMAN, RON GOLDMAN'S FATHER: He missed his chance to be on television and shoot his mouth off. He missed his chance to be in the public view which is incredibly important to him. I don't believe for a minute he's indifferent.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COSTELLO: If you're wondering where all of those books, "If I Did It" ended up, some were shipped to retailers. The publisher is asking for them back. But if one or two end up on eBay, News Corp says if you're a seller or a buyer, that's on your conscious -- John. KING: Fire starter comes to mind. Carol Costello in New York. Carol thank you very much. Coming up -- the high-tech spy plane flying over the United States, for the first time is big brother watching or is it something far less sinister? Stay with us, you're in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KING: Toy manufacturer Mattel is recalling more than four million toys worldwide because of new safety concerns. The toys contain tiny magnets that may be fatal to children if swallowed. Mattel says it has three reports of serious injures. Here with more details on toy safety this holiday season is our Jacki Schechner -- Jacki.

JACKI SCHECHNER, CNN INTERNET REPORTER: John, these are some of the Polly Pocket play sets that are currently being recalled. They contain these tiny very powerful magnets that can cause serious injury or even be fatal if kids swallow them.

Mattel has dedicated a page on its Web site to identifying the play sets in particular. We're talking about sets that were sold between May 2003 and September of 2006. The Consumer Product Safety Commission says he problem has been fixed so the play sets that are on store shelves now are safe to purchase and give to your kids.

Now this comes on the heels of consumer safety report that comes from the public interest research group, the D.C. based research group. They do an annual survey every year and they call this one "Trouble in Toyland." They identify some toys that may be hazardous or may be toxics. They do identify toys with small magnets in them as well.

Now, this group and also the Consumer Product Safety Commission both point out its very important for parents to know what is age appropriate for their particular children. They say that especially when you're shopping online it's important to do your research and know because there may not be any warnings or warning labels online in your online purchases.

Go to CNN.com/situationroomblog. We've put all of the links up there to make it very easy for you -- John.

KING: Jacki Schechner, some helpful hints for the holiday season to keep us and our children safe.

Up next, a military eye in the sky flying over the United States for the first time. Is big brother watching you, details next in our "Welcome to the Future" report? And in our 7:00 p.m. hour, much more on our top story today, President Bush denounces the assassination of a top Lebanese politician and accuses Syria and Iran of stirring up trouble. So is Damascus involved? Syrian's ambassador to the United States joins me right here in THE SITUATION ROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) KING: It's one of the U.S. military's most high-tech tools in a critical part of the war on terror. Now, though the global hawk is taking to the skies over this country for the first time. Carol Costello is live in New York with our "Welcome to the Future" report.

COSTELLO: Got it right here. John the global hawk is one of the new breed of unmanned aircraft that's giving the U.S. an eye in the skies over Iraq and Afghanistan. And it's never flown a mission over the United States until now. But it's not for spying. It's for training.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO (voice-over): It's an odd-looking plane with a swayed back and a bulbous nose. But the Air Force's global hawk is playing an increasingly important role helping the U.S. military hunt down terrorist threats. Now, for the first time, its flying over American skies, taking off today from Northern California's Beale Air Force Base.

But the purpose of this mission isn't surveillance, its training. Beale base crews consisting of four people each, are already controlling missions over the Middle East. The plan is to have seven global hawks for training, based at Beale by 2009.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: Pretty cool isn't it. Air Force plans to call for a worldwide fleet of 54 global hawks at a cost of more than $80,000 each. Yes, John, each.

KING: Pretty cool look. Carol Costello, thank you very much Carol. And remember, we're here every weekday afternoon from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. eastern and we're back at 7:00 p.m. eastern, that's just one hour from now. Until then, I'm John King here in the SITUATION ROOM, "LOU DOBBS TONIGHT" starts right now -- Lou.

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