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International Rescue Teams Arrive on Scene of Philippine Mudslide; Dozens Trapped by Gas Explosion in Mexico; Hamas Takes Control of Palestinian Parliament
Aired February 20, 2006 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hoping for miracles amid mountains of mud. A desperate search for survivors in the Philippines.
Trying to negotiate a new Palestinian government even as its finances are cut off.
JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Pushing ahead. Hamas plunging into an uncertain future, trying to negotiate a new Palestinian government even as its finances are cut off.
VERJEE: And a simple matter of outsourcing or seriously out of bounds? U.S. lawmakers worry about a deal allowing a Middle Eastern company to take over American port operations.
It's 1:00 a.m. in Manila, and noon in the ports along the East U.S. Coast.
I'm Zain Verjee.
CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.
Welcome to our viewers around the world. This is CNN International and YOUR WORLD TODAY.
VERJEE: Rumors of survivors and a tapping noise in the mud in a Philippine village have been discounted three days after a landslide covered the farming community like icing on a cake. More than 1,000 people are now confirmed as missing, but international rescue teams have just arrived.
Hugh Riminton reports now from Leyte Island.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HUGH RIMINTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Once again, Monday, searchers reported more than just the bleak recovery of the dead. Rescue workers said they'd heard tapping sounds from where the village school once was, but listening devices found nothing and officials are playing it down. The work continues, teetering between resignation and stubborn hope.
RICHARD GORDON, PHILIPPINE SENATE MEMBER: There may be some people alive there. Even if we think there is none, the -- the hope is that there are air pockets there that we can pick up, no? RIMINTON: More U.S. Marines have been flown in to this isolated valley. They work alongside mountain rescue teams from Malaysia and Taiwan. The task for all of them, local and international, grueling, unremitting slog.
Specially-trained dogs have arrived from Spain for a personal presidential welcome from Gloria Arroyo.
PEDRO FRUTOS, DOG HANDLER (through translator): We know it's difficult, but we will try our best. We expect a lot of mud, a lot of work. But with the help of the army, we still have some hope.
RIMINTON (on camera): The international presence has given new energy to the search just when it was needed most, when the size of the task, the sheer daunting nature of the work up on the mountainside had left the initial wave of rescuers both exhausted and demoralized.
(voice over): As the dead now begin literally to pile up, an urgent call for there to be no rush to bury them.
GORDON: We now express our concern, our serious concern about this matter because we should not be burying bodies until we properly identify them. We would like to make sure that the people who died are given their proper dignity.
RIMINTON: Even now less than 10 percent of those thought to have died have been retrieved.
Hugh Riminton, CNN, southern Leyte, the Philippines.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Well, now to a search and rescue effort under way, half a world away in Mexico. It, too, is growing more desperate by the hour. Crews digging through debris at a coal mine, trying to reach 65 miners trapped in an underground gas explosion.
Morgan Neil is there. He reports that ministers have come by and they've talked to people, but hope if fading in San Juan de Sabinas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MORGAN NEIL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): With their co- workers trapped 2.5 kilometers underground, their fate unknown, these hardened miners do their best to help. But don't look to them for optimism.
"Do you have hope for them?" this miner is asked. "No," comes the blunt answer.
He, like the other miners, knows the dangers. More than a day since an explosion underground with tanks holding just six hours worth of oxygen, the math is straightforward.
Nothing has been heard from the 65 trapped miners. The rescue effort relying on picks and shovels is going slowly, and the presence of methane underground makes it hazardous.
The relatives of those below huddle together, seeking comfort against the shock of what has happened. They pay close attention to the periodic updates given by authorities here. But even they aren't optimistic.
"First of all, we have faith," she says. "In the end, it's the one above who holds the final card."
Morgan Neil, CNN, San Juan de Sabinas, Mexico.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE: Hamas is laying the groundwork for forming the first Palestinian government to be led by the Islamic militants. Hamas says that its goal is to establish a broad coalition as it faces a halt in vital tax funds from Israel and threats of boycott by major powers.
John Vause has the latest from Jerusalem and he joins us now.
John, what is some of the progress that Hamas has made in coalition talks?
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, all day long, Zain, they have been meeting with the various Palestinian militant factions in Gaza, but right now in Gaza City, a very important meeting about to get under way. This is the live scene in Gaza.
We are expecting the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, to meet with Ismael Haniyeh. He is the man who Hamas has nominated to be the next prime minister of the Palestinian Authority.
At that meeting, Abbas is expected to ask Haniyeh to go ahead and choose his cabinet, to effectively form the next government. Under Palestinian law, Haniyeh will have three weeks to do that. If he needs it, he can ask for another two-week extension.
Now, the defeated Fatah party, for one, says it will not be part of this broad-based coalition, this national unity government, because, according to many Fatah lawmakers, they now want to see Hamas sink or swim on their own. But the moment that cabinet is sworn in, the moment Hamas officially takes over the Palestinian Authority, that is when the Islamic militants will be facing a choice. They can disarm and they can recognize Israel's right to exist, or they will be facing an end to direct payment of foreign aid from the United States and the European Union.
As far as Israel is concerned, though, once the lawmakers were sworn into parliament over the weekend, that is when Hamas effectively took over Palestinian Authority, and that is why Israel, at that moment, decided to put a permanent freeze on the transfer of Palestinian taxes, about $50 million U.S. dollars each month -- Zain.
VERJEE: John, Israel is concerned about the extent of Iranian influence on Hamas. Is there any evidence of that? VAUSE: Well, right now, Hamas officials are in Tehran meeting with the Iranian leadership. There's been the exiled leader of Hamas, Khalid Machal (ph), meeting with the Iranian president, asking for financial help. And of course the Israelis are worried that Hamas may be getting a lot more than just financial assistance from the Iranians.
In fact, there is a concern that Iran could give Hamas some military expertise, help them in making bigger and better bombs and better Kasam rockets that could come back and attack Israelis. But right now, no evidence of that.
It must be remembered that there's not a natural alliance between Hamas and Iran. Hamas are Sunni; the Iranians are Shiites. So there isn't that natural bond -- while both Muslims, there isn't that bond between these two groups.
And in the past, Iran has been notoriously tight-fisted when it comes to giving out money. So there is a lot of talk that perhaps Iran won't be willing, won't be able to pony up with the hundreds of millions of dollars which Hamas will need to run the Palestinian Authority -- Zain.
VERJEE: CNN's John Vause reporting to us from Jerusalem.
Thanks, John -- Jim.
CLANCY: Iran, of course, for its part, vowing to pursue nuclear research despite fresh diplomatic efforts to diffuse the standpoint about its nuclear program. Iran's foreign minister holding talks with European leaders in Brussels, Belgium, this day, while parallel talks are under way in Moscow over Russia's offer to enrich uranium for Iranian power plants. Negotiations -- negotiators there agreed to continue their talks.
Senior International correspondent Matthew Chance spoke to us just a little bit earlier from Moscow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, those closed-door meetings are under way kin the Russian capital of Moscow between Russian and Iranian nuclear officials to try and find a compromised solution, a last chance, perhaps, to find a way of diffusing the international crisis over Iran's nuclear program.
What Russia is offering is to enrich uranium for Iran on Russian soil. That would deny Iranian scientists the kind of sensitive enrichment technology that is of most concern to the international community. Many countries in the world, of course, believe Iran is developing a secret nuclear weapons program. Tehran, for its part, denies that, says that it's merely trying to get nuclear technology in order to -- for peaceful purposes, in order to generate electricity.
These intensive negotiations have been on the table for some time now. The deal has been on the table, but it really is now approaching the last occasion where some deal could be made because it's in early March, March the 6th, in fact, when the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog, the IAEA, is to meet for a conclusive report on Iran's compliance with the will of the international community.
If it's found not to be in compliance, if the international community, the IAEA is still not satisfied with the progress that Iran has made towards satisfying its concerns about its suspected nuclear weapons program, then the U.N. Security Council will be expected to take action against Iran.
Now, that could involve economic sanctions, of course, something that Russia wants very much to avoid because it has strong commercial interests in Iran. It's doing its utmost to preserve those interests. It's also staked a lot diplomatically on getting a solution to this Iranian nuclear crisis with this Russian compromise proposal.
And so an awful lot is riding on these negotiations in the Russian capital, Moscow.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Speaking of diplomacy, it is wheels up in a matter of hours for U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. She'll be visiting Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates.
She's going to be talking about Hamas. And she's going to be talking about Iran's nuclear dispute with the Arab leaders.
CNN's Elise Labott joins us from Washington. She's going to be covering that trip.
Elise, the United States, the secretary of state looking at an Iran that is more influential than it was when the Bush administration came to power. Specifically, they're more powerful in Iraq today. They are more power in Lebanon.
And now with Hamas' election, they're more powerful there. And they've got trade deals with Pakistan pending, India pending, and even with the European Union.
What is the secretary of state going to be saying?
ELISE LABOTT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's right, Jim, and that's why Secretary Rice in recent months has been talking, really hammering home the nuclear issue, that Iran is amassing nuclear weapons and must be stopped. Now in recent days, she seems to have a new strategy, which is to cover all of what she calls Iranian mischief-making in the region.
You have, as you mentioned, the influence in Iraq. You have Iranian support for Palestinian rejectionist groups like Hezbollah and Hamas. And you also have them interfering in Syria and Lebanon.
And that's why Secretary Rice is going to reach out to these Arab leaders and say Iran is destabilizing the region, stopping the region from moving ahead, from developing. And that's why she wants to get these Gulf leaders, these Arab leaders in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, to sign on to isolate Iran, to talk to Iran and say, if you don't stop your nuclear program, if you don't stop some of these activities, we're going to isolate you as well.
Right now, the United States and Europe are united, but you really haven't had a lot of Arab public calling on Iran to stand down -- Jim.
CLANCY: Elise, this trip very important to further the U.S. strategy vis-a-vis Hamas. The secretary of state's message is going to be going head to head with calls for the Palestinians for Arab and Islamic states to send them the cash that Israel and the U.S. and the EU may cut off.
LABOTT: That's right, she certainly has her work cut out for her. And even the Egyptian government in the state-run agency this morning had said they are going to push Secretary Rice, push the United States and Europe to give this new Hamas government a chance, wait and see who the new government formed, what ministers are appointed and whether there are some pragmatic leaders that they can deal with.
They're already now asking Hamas to soften its language in terms of not necessarily recognizing Israel, per se, but signing onto a Saudi initiative called the Arab Peace Plan which would mean recognition of Israel in exchange for Israel returning all occupied land. So there's already a lot of talk going on about Arab leaders, about how Hamas can not necessarily give in but can seem to moderate position while saving face. And I think that's the kind of opposition Secretary Rice is going to be faced with when she gets to the region.
CLANCY: Elise, you know, Ambassador Khalizad in Iraq today said that the Iranians were training and arming some of the sectarian militias on the Shia Muslim side, causing a lot of trouble and strife inside Iraq today. But the U.S., is it coming to grips with the fact that Iran is just more influential today than it was five years ago?
LABOTT: Well, certainly it's concerned about Iranian influence in the region. I don't necessarily think that the United States is worried that Iran will really be pulling the strings in Iraq because the Shia there don't necessarily seem to want to have an Iran-backed state.
But certainly they're concerned about the weapons. They're concern that the Shia are not necessarily forming a unity government. And that's why you had Ambassador Khalizad today speaking that the United States is not going to stand for this kind of sectarian violence, this sectarian government. They want the Iraqis to form a national unity government, and they're going to be putting the pressure on the Iranians through these Arab leaders to stop their interfering in Iraq.
CLANCY: All right.
Elise Labott will be on that trip.
Elise, we hope to hear from you because it's going to be a very interesting itinerary, to be sure.
LABOTT: It sure is.
CLANCY: Well, the Bush administration finding itself on the defensive now over a deal that turns over management of some of the U.S.' ports to foreigners. We'll have more on that.
VERJEE: And also, we'd like to know what you think about this year's winter Olympics. Are you watching?
We are asking you this: What excites you about the Torino winter Olympics? Anything?
CLANCY: Weigh in on your view of the winter games. Send us your ideas and your responses at -- to ywt@cnn.com.
Also, as always, try to keep the comments a little bit brief and let us know where you are writing to us from.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CLANCY: Welcome back to our viewers around the world and in the United States, where a decision by the Bush administration concerning operations at half a dozen major U.S. ports drawing some fire from Democrats, as well as Republicans.
White House Correspondent Elaine Quijano has more on a move being described by some as a major security threat.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Homeland Security Chief Michael Chertoff is defending the Bush administration's decision to approve a deal allowing a state-owned Dubai company, Dubai Ports World, to take over operations at six major American ports.
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: The general process that has to work before this occurs requires a very thorough review, and where appropriate, necessary conditions or safeguards have to be put into place.
QUIJANO: The ports affected include ports in New York, New Jersey, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Miami, and New Orleans. But both Democratic and Republican lawmakers say that could make Americans less safe.
REP. VITO FOSSELLA (R), NEW YORK: Imagine if today there was an official announcement that Dubai was to take over security at our airports. Would not the American people question why and be somewhat outraged that we would delegate authority and security of our airports to a foreign nation?
QUIJANO: New York Senator Chuck Schumer is calling on President Bush to personally intervene to block the contract.
SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Outsourcing the operations of our largest ports to a country with long involvement in terrorism is a Homeland Security accident waiting to happen.
QUIJANO: According to "The 9/11 Commission Report," at least one hijacker drew money from bank accounts based in the UAE to help fund operations. And the commission noted one of the hijackers, Marwan al- Shehhi, was from the UAE.
But the Bush administration calls the United Arab Emirates a leading partner in the fight against terrorism. And Chertoff says there are other factors to consider.
CHERTOFF: Certainly Congress is welcome to look at this and can get classified briefings. You know we have to balance the paramount urgency of security against the fact that we still want to have a robust global trading system.
(END VIDEOTAPE
VERJEE: Michael Chertoff's predecessor weighed in on the brewing controversy. Tom Ridge described an intensive examination process for any deal involving U.S. ports.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM RIDGE, FMR. HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: I know how carefully we scrubbed arrangements of this nature when I was secretary. And you've got the secretary of Defense, you've got the secretary of the Treasury, the secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, and I suspect in this instance the secretary of State and perhaps even the attorney general looking at it. And I don't think anyone in there would do anything to compromise America's port security.
Having said that, and also not knowing the details of this arrangement, I think the legitimate questions have been raised by members of the House and the Senate, and those questions need to be addressed by the administration. And I suspect they will be.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VERJEE: The London-based P&O has been running the ports in the United States since 1999. That's according to the company's Web site.
CLANCY: Well, coming up next, a look at the latest business news.
VERJEE: Including a several-billion-dollar deal involving state- run Indian Airlines and the European Aerospace Company.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Daryn Kagan at CNN Center in Atlanta. More of YOUR WORLD TODAY in just a few minutes. First, though, let's check on stories making headlines in the U.S..
President Bush is in Milwaukee. He'll be pitching his energy program on this Presidents Day as we look at a live picture. He's expected to deliver his speech in just a few minutes, and we will bring that to you live.
Mr. Bush is visiting a company that makes batteries for cars and is working on a battery for a hybrid car. It's part of a tour to promote technology that he hopes will help cut America's reliance on imported oil.
CNN's Kathleen Koch is traveling with the president and she joins us from Milwaukee.
Kathleen, hello.
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Daryn.
The president's appearance here in Milwaukee kicks off a two-day, three-state swing to promote the president's energy policy. And the president -- it was back in January, if you'll recall, that in his State of the Union Address, the president declared that Americans are "addicted to oil" and that that needs to change.
And it was at that time that he announced that very ambitious goal of replacing three-quarters of the oil that the U.S. imports from the Middle East by the year 2025. So that's part of why the president is here in Milwaukee visiting Johnson Controls. It's the leading -- the world's leading producer of car batteries, and right now using a federal grant to develop a longer-lasting and more efficient hybrid car battery.
The president will see some of that technology demonstrated this afternoon, then going on to suburban Detroit, Michigan. There he will visit a solar panel plant.
Now, that particular company had been struggling and only this week announced plans to triplet its production by the year 2007.
So, as the president then moves on to Colorado, tomorrow he'll be visiting a federal lab that specializes in renewable energy sources.
And Daryn, all of this, the White House is hoping, will really resonate with Americans as they continue feeling the pinch from high gasoline and high home heating oil prices.
KAGAN: Kathleen Koch, live from Milwaukee.
Thank you.
KOCH: You bet.
KAGAN: We will go back live to Milwaukee when the president begins to speak.
Meanwhile, other news of the day. There was another church fire in Alabama over the weekend, but investigators aren't linking it to 10 other arson attacks on churches in the state. There was very little damage this time. And officials say that unlike other fires, this one started on the outside of the building. But there's no evidence of a break-in like in the other fires.
In 1963, four African-American girls were killed in a Ku Klux Klan bombing at a Baptist church in Birmingham, Alabama. Now the 16th Street Baptist Church is a national historic landmark.
Both Attorney General Alberto Gonzales and Interior Secretary Gale Norton took part in this morning's ceremonies.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's my honor to introduce to you Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.
(APPLAUSE)
ALBERTO GONZALES, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: As the first Hispanic attorney general, I am personally concerned about the struggle for civil rights. Discrimination is against the law and will not be tolerated. And this year especially, we will renew our commitment to voting rights and fair housing, key elements of the American dream.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KAGAN: The death of the four girls galvanized the civil rights movement and gained momentum to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Let's see what weather looks like across the country. Jacqui Jeras has that for us.
Hi, Jacqui.
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Hi, Daryn.
(WEATHER REPORT)
KAGAN: Thanks, Jacqui.
Once again, we are standing by for President Bush speaking on his energy plan in Milwaukee. We'll bring that to you live when it happens.
Meanwhile, YOUR WORLD TODAY continues after a quick break.
I'm Daryn Kagan.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VERJEE: Welcome back to YOUR WORLD TODAY here on CNN International. I'm Zain Verjee. CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy. These are the headlines right now.
First, the natural disaster in the Philippines. U.S. marines as well as rescuers from Taiwan and Malaysia joining in the efforts, where hopes are growing dim for finding survivors three days after a mudslide entombed after entire village. There were reports earlier that people heard a tapping noise in the mud, but those have now been discounted.
VERJEE: Hamas is in talks with various groups as it lays the groundwork for forming the first Palestinian government to be led by the Islamic militants. Hamas leaders also met Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas to present their choice of Ishmael Hanea (ph) as prime minister. Israel on Sunday halted the transfer of tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority in a bid to isolate Hamas.
CLANCY: Fighting the flu. Indian authorities are calling hundreds of thousands of birds in an attempt to contain an outbreak of bird flu. There have been no confirmed cases of the viruses in any humans, but several people with flu-like symptoms have now been quarantined. Meantime in France, consumers being assured it's safe to eat the chicken. That country confirmed the presence the lethal H5N1 strain of bird flu over the weekend.
VERJEE: A violent Monday in Iraq, where at 13 people have been killed and dozens more wounded. They were victims of at least half a dozen explosions. Police say 10 people were killed when a suicide bomb had detonated explosives on a minibus in a Shi'a neighborhood in Baghdad. In Mosul, three people were killed and six others wounded when a bomb blew up in the a restaurant. And police in Baghdad say four other bomb attacks wounded more than 30 people.
CLANCY: The U.S. ambassador to Iraq has a warning for politicians in that country. Politicians now wrangling over a new government. He says make it inclusive of all groups or risk losing U.S. support.
Aneesh Raman is in Baghdad.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANEESH RAMAN, CNN BAGHDAD CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Any talk that negotiations over Iraq's new government were going well got silenced Monday by the U.S. ambassador, who issued a blunt threat over who should lead the country's security forces.
ZALMAY KHALIZAD, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ: The United States is investing billions of dollars into these forces. We're not going to invest resources of the American people to build forces run by people who are sectarian.
RAMAN: People, many say, like the current interior minister Bayan Jabr, who has long been the target of intense criticism for abuse of mainly Sunni detainees at the hands of largely Shia security forces, discovered last year by U.S. forces in a Baghdad bunker; for the alleged infiltration of a Shia death squad into the police force, also discovered by U.S. forces earlier this month; and for his own alleged ties to the country's largest Shia militia, the Badr organization. All charges he denies, but all reasons why secular politicians want change.
KHALIZAD: The security ministry should not be appointed from people who belong to militias.
RAMAN: If unresolved, the issue could place the United States in an unenviable position, either funding security forces that may do more harm than good to the country or choosing not to; instead keeping U.S. troops here longer than desired and undermining the effort to get Iraqis to stand on their own.
KHALIZAD: We've got Iraq success to be our success, and as I've said before, God forbid Iraq's failure will be also ours.
RAMAN: Monday a reminder of how high the stakes are for the new government. A suicide bomber detonating on a minibus, killing at least a dozen and cutting away hope among Iraqis that their leaders will stabilize the country anytime soon.
(on camera): Politics in Iraq revolves around the issue of security, and now the very prospect of a unity government and of U.S. troop reductions seems set to succeed or fail based on who gets the country's top security post.
Aneesh Raman, CNN, Baghdad.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Ambassador Khalizad also accusing neighboring Iran of training and arming Shia Muslim militias in Iraq. He called on Tehran to stop, what he termed, interference in Iraq's affairs.
VERJEE: British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw's on an unannounced visit to Iraq. His office says he arrived on Baghdad on Monday. Aides say Straw will meet with Iraqi politicians and opposition parties, and assess progress on talks to form a new government. No word on when he'll head home.
CLANCY: Protests over the Danish cartoons mocking the Prophet Mohammed going on. In Afghanistan, hundreds of people shouted support for Osama bin Laden and threatened to join al Qaeda. In an attempt to cool the controversy, Pope Benedict said that the world's religions all need to be respected. A Monday protest in Tehran relatively quiet by Iranian standards. Previous demonstrations included cross burnings and bombings being tossed at Western embassies. Iran denies accusations by Washington that it has deliberately tried to stoke Muslim anger.
VERJEE: The rage seen recently in many Islamic nation appears as raw now as it ever was.
CNN's Angelie Rowe (ph) filed this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ANGELIE ROWE (ph), CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Fury over the cartoons boiled over in Istanbul, as protesters rallied in there tens of thousands. Shouting over loudspeakers, organizers of this demonstration said the huge turnout symbolized the outrage the world's 1.5 billion Muslims over the cartoons. The scene turned violent in the Pakistani capital Islamabad. Police unleashing tear gas and gunfire to quash a banned protest.
Religious leaders led the demonstrations, blaming cartoonists for the situation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Through these cartoons, they have damage our religious sentiments! They're creating a war between Muslims and other religions.
ROWE: The Pakistani city of Pesahwar last week saw its protest turn deadly, yet thousands turned out for this rally, their anger unabated and their demands simple.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We want those who are responsible for the blasphemous cartoon to be handed over to us, just as the federal government has in the past.
ROWE: The volatile picture was by no means confined to Asia. Troops patrolled cities throughout Nigeria to prevent a repeat of the weekend riots, in which at least 15 people were killed. Muslims went on the rampage, burning churches, hotels, shops and vehicles, and authorities are vowing to crack down.
ALI MODU SHERIFF, STATE GOVERNOR: The government is aware that some sections of this society want to use this situation to foment trouble. The government will not allow this.
ROWE: The newspaper which first printed the cartoons apologized last month over the fury. That apology was reprinted in Saudi Arabia newspapers on Sunday. But whether that will cool heated emotions in the Islamic world remains to be seen.
Angelie Rowe, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CLANCY: Returning now to our story, our focus on bird flu. Right now, in India, health workers are going door to door, knocking on those doors, trying to find anybody that has flu-like symptoms. In Africa, they're begging for help from the outside world. In all, at least 11 countries have now reported bird flu outbreaks over the past three weeks alone. That's an indication this is a virus that is spreading around the world, and it's a virus that's forcing countries to trigger their emergency plans.
Penny Marshall (ph) has more on that.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PENNY MARSHALL (ph), CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's coming closer, and the threat to Britain is increasing. This morning, nine countries around the world were taking action to stop the dangerous bird flu virus spreading. But it's the first confirmed case in France that has sent shockwaves throughout Britain, as authorities there cordoned off the area in the southwest of the country where the infected dead duck was discovered.
JOHN OXFORD, VIROLOGIST: Well, I wish bird flu had not hit France. It shouldn't make a difference in theory, but obviously it's geography, you know, it's your back garden. In that respect, I am worried about it.
MARSHALL: Since bird flu was first reported in 2003 in the far east, it's gradually been spreading westward. And already by this month, it had reached the heart of Europe, and at the weekend, France.
In Egypt, this morning, drastic measures are being taken as thousands of baby chicks, ducks and fowls are culled. No one here is suggesting that.
But there are now calls that all poultry farmers move their livestock inside to protect it from parsing migratory birds and infection.
DR. FREDA SCOTT-PARK, BRITISH VETERINARY ASSOC.: They should be feeding and watering their birds indoors to minimize the contact with wild birds. And then all of the free-range birds have to be brought indoors when the government says. And plans have to be put in place for that. It's not an easy operation.
DAVID KING, GOVG, CHIEF SCIENTIFIC ADVISER: We're going to get good action from the poultry farmers. All the indications are there. And so it's quite possible, in fact, I think likely, that should wild birds get this disease in this country, we may still not see it in the poultry.
MARSHALL: In France today, some consumers are already boycotting poultry, despite fact that the virus cannot be transmitted through eating poultry meat. Government experts are still stressing that humans can only catch it through close contact with live infected birds. And there have only been 169 confirmed cases worldwide since monitoring began.
Penny Marshall, ITV News.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VERJEE: Iran's foreign minister is speaking in Brussels. We want to listen to the news conference and go to it now.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
MANOUCHEHR MOTTAKI, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): ... international treaties and conventions should define the commitments of the member state on the one hand, and it should also clarify what's right. That member would enjoy because of his membership on the other hand. According to article II of NPT, we are coveted to carry out our activities in the framework of rule and regulations, the nuclear safeguards and also the IAEA rules and regulations. And also according to article IV of NPT, we believe that we have certain rights. We should enjoy the advantages of membership in NPT. It has been stipulated that the countries enjoy the -- may enjoy peaceful nuclear technology. And above that, this article stresses that the countries which already have the technology should help the countries which do not have the technology at hand. The other point is that our country needs 20,000 megawatts of energy, and this should be provided through nuclear power plants.
This means that during the program, we need between 10 to 20 nuclear power plants in our country, based on the capacity of electricity product that these plants may have. The oil and gas of Iran belong to future generations. Therefore, to have clean fuel and clean energy, we should invest.
Where are we now and what are we doing? How is nuclear activities of Iran going on? We have started enrichment at the research level. And this is in accordance with our rights. We have started at the lab scale. We are cooperating with the IAEA in the framework of our commitment. Yesterday and the day before yesterday, we had the inspection team of IAEA in Iran, and we are still continuing our dialogue and cooperation in the framework of the IAEA rules and regulations.
Our international commitments are observed in the framework of IAEA rules and regulation, safeguards, and NPTs.
There's an important issue which you have all heard, and that is the need to build trust. Building trusts...
VERJEE: If you're just joining us, we are watching the Iranian foreign minister speak to the press in Brussels, essentially reiterating Iraq...
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Here in the United States, we're going to break away from our international coverage and go to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, actually, Glendale, Wisconsin, President Bush today speaking on his energy initiative, trying to break America's dependence on oil.
Let's listen in.
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GEORGE W. BUSH, PRES. OF THE UNITED STATES: ... and the innovators that work here and the smart folks who work here are on the leading edge of change, and that's why I've come. And there's a role for government to help and I want to explain that role.
Before I do, again, I want to thank you, John. I want to thank all of the folks who work for Johnson Controls. It's not easy to host the president.
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I had the honor of touring the laboratory on the other side of town there. And it was really neat to see the engineers, and the scientists and the Phds all working hard to apply their God-given talents to help this country remain on the leading edge of technology. It reminded me one of the challenges that we have in America and that's to make sure a new generation of our citizens are interested in science, and engineering and physics. And part of making sure this country is the leader in the world, we've got to make sure our children are properly educated, so they'll be ready for the jobs of the 21st century.
I want to thank Congresswoman Gwen Moore for joining us. Appreciate you coming. Nice to see you.
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They tell me this is your congressional district. So it's awfully kind of you to let two other Congresspersons join us. That would be Congress Mark Green and Congressman Paul Ryan. Thank you both for coming.
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We have eaten a lot of custard in the past.
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Still recovering, I want you to know.
I want to thank the speaker of the house's joined us. The mayor the great city of Milwaukee heads joined us, and the county executive has joined us. Thank you all for coming. Proud you're here.
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By the way, it's always important, if any of you ever run for office, to always remember to recognize the sheriff.
Sheriff Clark, thank you for being here. Good to see you again. Thank you.
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Our economy's strong. It's gaining steam, too. It's -- we're now in our fifth year of uninterrupted economic growth. Last year, our economy grew at a healthy rate of 3.5 percent, in spite of high energy prices and devastating storms. Will-after-tax income is me up nearly eight percent per American since 2001, and that's one of the explanations, one of the reasons why retail sales last month made their biggest gain in more than four years. Homeownership's at record levels. That's a good sign. We want people owning things in America. More minorities own a home than ever before in our nation's history.
America's unemployment rate is down to 4.7 percent. That's the lowest level since 2001. We've added 4.7 million new jobs over the last two-and-a-half years. We're doing fine. The fundamental question is, how do we keep doing fine? The challenge that faces us is how we make sure that the economic growth today is -- carries over for tomorrow, and that's what I want to talk about. In order to understand what to do, you've got to understand what got us to where we are today. Part of it is keeping taxes low by the way, and that's exactly what I intend to do so long as I'm the president is keep the taxes low. Part of being wise of how we spend our money. Part of it is how understanding the how technology plays in the future of the country.
Think back 25 years ago, in the start of the 1980s. It's not all that long ago, really. Some of us remember the '80s pretty clearly. A lot of kind, gray-haired folks here that lived through the '80s. Then most Americans used typewriters instead of computers. They used payphones -- you remember what those were -- instead of cell phones. They used carbon paper instead of laser printers, bank tellers instead of ATMs, and they played the license plate game on trips as opposed to DVDs. Times have changed a lot in 25 years, because of technology.
We're seeing new develops all the time, new developments. Advance battery technology allows cell phones to last about 50 percent longer than they did just five years ago. In your laboratory, we're seeing firsthand seeing the progress being made because of your scientists and engineers in lighter, more potent battery technology. Lightweight parts and better engines allow cars to travel 60 percent farther on a gallon of gas than they did three decades ago.
Technologies are helping this economy become more efficient. Listen to this -- over the last 30 years, our economy has grown three times faster than our energy consumption. The economy has grown three times faster in energy consumption.
During that period of time, we created 56 million jobs, while cutting air pollution by 50 percent. Technology is really important for the future of this country. And so in the State of the Union I said that by using technology, we can help make sure this country remains a world leader, and that starts with making sure we change our energy habits. I know it came as a shock to some, to hear a Texan stand up there in front of the country and say, we've got a real problem. America is addicted to oil.
But I meant it, because it's a true fact, and we've got to do something about it now. Oil is the primary source of gasoline. It is the primary source of diesel. It is the primary source of jet fuel, and that means that oil accounts for virtually all energy consumption in the vital transportation sector of our economy. The oil we consume in this important sector comes from foreign countries, most of it does.
And in 1985, three quarter of the crude oil used in U.S. refineries came from America. Today that equation has changed dramatically. Less than half of the crude oil used in our refineries is produced here at home; 60 percent comes from foreign countries. Things have change since 1985. Some of the nation's we rely on for oil have unstable governments or fundamental differences with the United States. These countries know we need their oil, and that reduces influence. It creates a national security issue, when we're held hostage for energy by foreign nations that may not like us. Energy's also part of our economic security as well. That's obvious. I mean, the global demand for oil has been rising faster than supply, because there's new economies that are beginning to gin up, new economies growing like China and India. Oil prices rise sharply when demand is greater than supply.
And when they do, it strains your budgets. It hurt our families. It hurts our small entrepreneurs. It's like a hidden tax. And so we're vulnerable to high prices of oil, and we're vulnerable to sudden disruptions of oil. What I'm telling you is, oil, the dependence upon oil is a national security problem, and an economic security problem.
And here's what we intend to do about it. First, Congress passed a good energy bill last summer. I was pleased to sign it. It took a little bit of work. It's kind of hard to get things done in Washington. There's a lot of sharp partisan elbows up there these days. But we got something done, and it's a good bill. It encourages conservation and new technologies and alternative sources of energy, but there's a lot more that needs to be done. First thing that needs to be done is to make sure that there's an incentive for private business to invest in research and development. If technology's going to help us change our energy habits and change the way we live, it makes sense for the government to incent people to invest in research and development.
Right now, we've got what we call a research and development tax credit, which is a major incentive for private companies, such as yourselves, to invest in research development, which will yield new technologies.
The problem is, is that the R&D Tax credit expires. As a matter of fact, they've only renewed it on an annual basis. Now, I don't know how in the heck Congress thinks that people can plan properly if they're uncertain as to whether or not the tax credit is going to be exist. So therefore, if we want to be on the leading edge of research and development, then Congress needs to make the R&D tax credit a permanent part of the tax code. Secondly, government can help. Government provides about a third of the dollars for research and development. Two-thirds come from the private sector. One-third comes from the government. And so I proposed to double the federal commitment to the most critical basic research programs in the physical sciences over the next decade.
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Let me explain our strategy when it comes to energy. In other words, part of our strategy is to make sure people continue to invest. The research you're doing at Johnson Labs will change people's lives appreciably. But we've got to continue to make sure we conduct research and development if we want to be a leader in the world. If we don't want to be a leader in the world, fine, we'll just quit. That's not how I view America. I want America to lead the world, because by leading the world which when it comes to the economy, we're helping our people. We're make our people more productive, and productivity increases standards of living, and increased standards of living mean the American people are doing better.
Now I laid out what's called an advanced energy initiative. In the cornerstone of the initiative is a 22-percent increase in funding for clean energy research at Department of Energy. And it's got two major goals -- or two objectives. First, to transform the way we power our cars and trucks. And secondly, to transform the way we power our homes and offices.
So let me talk to you about the first one. Our nation is on the thresholds of some new energy technologies that I think will startle the American people. It's not going to startle you. You're at Johnson Controls because you know what I'm talking about. You take it for granted. But the American people will be amazed at how far our technology has advanced in order to meet an important goal which is reduce our imports from the Middle East by 75 percent.
By 2025 and eventually getting rid of our dependence totally. First objective is to change the way we power our cars and trucks. Today's cars and trucks are fuel fueled on almost exclusively by gasoline and diesel fuel, which of course comes from oil. To transform the way we power the vehicles, we have got to diversity away from oil. I just gave you a reason from a national security perspective, as well as economic security perspective, why reliance upon oil is not good for the United States.
And so here are three ways that we can do that. Change our reliance from oil. First, invest in new kinds of vehicles that require much less gasoline. That's a practical thing to do. Secondly, find new fuels that will replace gasoline, and therefore, dependence on oil. And finally develop new ways to run a car without gasoline at all.
The most promising ways to reduce gasoline consumption quickly is through hybrid vehicles. Hybrid vehicles have both a gasoline-powered engine and an electric battery based on technologies that were developed by the Department of Energy. In other words, this technology came to be because the federal government made a research commitment. That's why I think it's double -- important to double research as we go down the next decade. The gasoline engine charges the battery, which helps drive the vehicle, and the twin sources of power allow hybrid cars and trucks to travel about twice as far on a gallon of fuel as gasoline-only vehicles. That is a good start, on something that can go twice as far on a gallon of gasoline than the conventional vehicle can. Hybrid vehicles are a good deal for consumers, and the American people are figuring it out. More than 200,000 hybrids were sold in the United States last year, the highest sales on record. There's growing demand for hybrid automobiles.
And working with Congress, we came up with additional incentive, and that is, we provide up to a tax credit up to $3,400 per hybrid vehicle purchaser. In other words, we want to stimulate demand. Marketplace when there is demand, suppliers will meet that demand. And that's positive, because if you can go twice as far on a gallon of gasoline than otherwise, it means we're becoming less dependent on oil. Hybrid vehicles on the road today are delivering impressive gasoline savings, but there's more to be done, and that's why I'm here at Johnson controls. Those engineers here are working on ways to replace the current hybrid battery technology with advanced lithium ion batteries that are now used in cell phones and laptops. These batteries are lighter, they're more powerful, and they can be recharged quickly.
Using new lithium ion batteries, engineers will be able to design the next generation of hybrid vehicles, called plug-in hybrids, that can be recharged through a standard electrical outlet.
KAGAN: We've been listening into to President Bush. He's speaking in Glendale, Wisconsin today. He is at Johnson Controls. That is the largest maker of car batteries, and they're working on a battery for hybrid cars. This is the first in a series of speeches that the president plans to make on energy and breaking what he calls America's addiction oil.
We'll have more on those as they continue. I'm Daryn Kagan. We're going to go back to the news now and CNN's "LIVE FROM."
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