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Iran Confronts U.S. Navy; America Votes 2008

Aired January 07, 2008 - 12:00   ET

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

JIM CLANCY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: A confrontation between the U.S. and Iran in the Strait of Hormuz. It couldn't have happened in a more dangerous place or at a more critical time.
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Iowa is history, New Hampshire is next. U.S. White House hopefuls do everything they can to win this primary state.

CLANCY: Will the U.S. wait to be asked into Pakistan? We're going to look at Washington's plans to flex its military muscle.

CHURCH: And is French President Nicolas Sarkozy about to tie the knot? Well, don't ask the French people. They don't seem to care.

It's noon at the Pentagon, 10:00 p.m. in Islamabad.

Hello and welcome to our report seen all around the globe.

I'm Rosemary Church.

CLANCY: I'm Jim Clancy.

You're watching YOUR WORLD TODAY.

A confrontation at sea between the U.S. and Iran is our headline this day, because it puts the spotlight back on foreign policy concerns right as Americans are getting ready for a second crucial contest in the presidential election. The U.S. military says Iranian gunboats harassed and provoked U.S. ships in a major oil shipping route to the point where the U.S. warships were prepared to open fire.

Middle East Correspondent Aneesh Raman is following the story from Cairo. We want to start though with our Pentagon correspondent, Barbara Starr.

Barbara, what is the Pentagon saying about this?

BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Jim, the ships were prepared to open fire. Thankfully, they did not have to do that.

U.S. Navy officials we have spoken to and U.S. military officials here in the Pentagon are trying to take pains not overplay this, but on the other hand, they are saying it is the most serious provocation they have seen in years. In fact, Admiral Kevin Cosgrif (ph) commander of the U.S. 5th Fleet in Bahrain, we spoke to him on the telephone a little while ago. He tells CNN, "It is more serious than what I have seen in the past." He calls it completely unnecessary and provocative.

It was Sunday in the Strait of Hormuz, in international waters, three U.S. naval warships making their way through that strategic choke point shipping lane when they say five small attack craft, fast boats of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard naval force, came at them at high speed. Five boats.

Three broke away to one side, two to the other side. They began to make threatening maneuvers, coming very close to the U.S. Navy warships. And in fact, the Navy said it received a radio transmission saying, "I am coming at you, you will explode in a couple of minutes."

It doesn't get much more serious than that, according to what our sources are telling us. One of the Navy ships in fact, was preparing to issue the order to fire, but it did not have to do that because the Iranians turned away in the last couple of minutes.

A very provocative incident. The U.S. Navy trying to figure, frankly, they say, why the Iranians did it, what their motivation was, and is it going happen again -- Jim.

CLANCY: Is the White House -- did they have anything to say about this?

STARR: Well, they are saying that they don't want to see any provocative incidents, they don't want any escalation of tensions in these waters, so they also are calling upon Iran to not conduct any provocative operations. Of course, I think, you see the statement there, "We urge the Iranians to refrain from such provocative actions that could lead to a dangerous incident in the future."

But this now, immediately, within hours of it becoming public earlier today, is becoming a very delicate tightrope here in Washington. The U.S. does not want to escalate tensions with Iran, but it wants to make very clear to the Iranians how very unhappy Washington is that this happened -- Jim.

CLANCY: All right. Our thanks there to Barbara Starr.

At the Pentagon, Barbara.

CHURCH: All right. Now, the Strait of Hormuz is the only sea passage to the open ocean for many oil exporting states in the Persian Gulf. In fact, about 25 percent of the world's oil production passes through that narrow waterway.

To give you an idea of just how much that is, in 2006 the amount of crude oil exported through the strait rose to 750 million tons. Now, 27 percent of transits carry the crude on oil tankers.

We want to find out now what Iran is saying, if anything, about the confrontation at sea.

Aneesh Raman is covering that part of the story, and joins us again from Cairo. Now, you are in Cairo, but, of course, you've gone to Tehran many times for us. How often does this sort of thing happen? And how much of this is being reported back in Iran?

ANEESH RAMAN, CNN MIDDLE EAST CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so far, very little has been reported, Rosemary, within Iran. The government, late today, came out and said this was "an ordinary occurrence." They're eager to downplay this incident. But as you mentioned, this doesn't happen, according to the details being provided by the U.S., that often.

It was March last year that Iran got into an altercation with British sailors that they had taken in a dispute over whether or not they were in the international waters in Shatt al Arab, right above the Persian Gulf. This is an entirely sensitive area, with Iran's enemies at some level, the U.S., other western allies in a country next door. So Iran will have to explain a bit more, I think, in terms of why this happened.

The IRGC, the group that was involved, of course operates completely independent, Rosemary, of Iran's elected government. It is autonomous. It does only answer to the country's supreme leader. And in the past six months or so, it has had a deteriorating relationship with the U.S.

It was late last year the IRGC got a new commander, Mohammad Jafari, who was seen to bring some war footing to the group in case Iran was attacked. It was late last year the U.S. labeled the IRGC a terrorist organization, and it was late last year the IRGC took command of Iranian naval operations in the Persian Gulf.

So, it is a tenuous relationship at a sensitive time, in a sensitive area, as we've said. It could have led to a one-on-one conflict, it was that close as far as what we know. And so many within Iran are going to be asking why this happened and trying to get more details on what we've heard so far -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: Indeed. How do the Iranians view the presence of the U.S. in the Hormuz Strait? .

RAMAN: The whole thing is very sensitive. I think you have less controversy in the Strait of Hormuz than you had in Shatt al Arab in terms of where international water is, where Iran can claim it was sovereign water of its own.

We will try and get further understanding as to why this happened, was it a misunderstanding like that? But Iranians, by and large, don't want another crisis. They don't want another conflict.

They felt the tensions had decreased quite significantly after that NIE report last year that said Iran had stopped a nuclear weapons program in 2003. Iranians felt, look, this means an attack is not imminent.

I was there in December, when the president gave his most recent press conference. For a man known for controversy, he was remarkably subdued in tone. It was clear Iran, at least the political government, strategically wanted a different relationship with the world, Rosemary, but the IRGC has sort of done the opposite.

It's worked counterintuitive to what Iran has said publicly, antagonizing at some level, according to what the U.S. is saying, the U.S. military. So Iran has more to explain, I would think, not just to the world, but to those within Iran as well who are concerned that one incident like this could spark a conflict that the world really would not be able to stop.

CHURCH: Indeed. All right.

Our Aneesh Raman reporting and viewing all of that from Cairo.

Thanks so much for that.

CLANCY: Well, this news on Iran coming in as President Bush is preparing to travel to the Middle East and voters in New Hampshire are about to go to the polls in that state's critical presidential primary. A crisis overseas might help some candidates who see foreign policy as their strength, but it might be bad news for others who are viewed as less experienced in that national political arena.

The latest opinion polls would suggest that presidential candidate Barack Obama is surging ahead among Democrats, with New Hampshire's primaries now just a day away. The latest CNN/WMUR poll has Obama leading Hillary Clinton 39-29 percentage points. An earlier poll suggested that they were in a deed heat. John Edwards is in third place with 16 percent.

Also look at the Republicans. Thirty-two percent say Senator John McCain is their man. Twenty-six percent favoring former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, while Iowa caucus winner Mike Huckabee follows on with 14 percent.

CHURCH: Well, U.S. presidential candidates are making the most of the last day of campaigning before Tuesday's New Hampshire primary. Polls show Arizona Senator John McCain in the lead, followed by former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney.

Now, it's unlikely that Mike Huckabee will be able to repeat his victory in last week's Iowa caucus. Nevertheless, the former Arkansas governor says his campaign still might surprise some folks tomorrow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We come into New Hampshire and most people didn't expect me to be in anywhere but about fifth or sixth place. We're going to do better than that. And I think, you know, if we come anywhere in the third and fourth slot, we're going to be doing great. I'd like to do better than that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Well, on the Democratic side, Barack Obama has opened a wide lead over fellow U.S. Senator Hillary Clinton in the polls. In third place, John Edwards is falling behind. Nevertheless, the former senator says, he'll stay in the race.

Now, earlier, he spoke with CNN about his plan to keep U.S. jobs in the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN EDWARDS (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There's a potential of America losing 30 million more jobs over the next decade. And the people most at risk for those job losses are college graduates, which hits New Hampshire particularly hard.

These are the things we need to do. We need a trade policy that actually looks out for American middle class workers instead of bleeding American jobs. No more trade deals like NAFTA and CAFTA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CLANCY: All right. Let's take a look now what's at stake for both parties in New Hampshire's political horse race.

Joining me now from Dover, New Hampshire, is our senior political correspondent, Candy Crowley.

Candy, you know, Hillary Clinton really hit hard on the economy as she went there to campaign, saying, you know, the economy's nearly in a crisis. And some people say what she's trying to do is divert everybody's attention from the real big crisis up in New Hampshire, and that's the collapse of her campaign.

What's the talk?

CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SR. POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, the talk here is really about Independents. They expect that about 150,000 Independents will probably vote in tomorrow's primary. And that about 100,000 of them will vote on the Democratic side.

Independents tend to swing towards Obama. So, you know, she can no longer depend on just base Democrats to move her forward. So, obviously, what's happening here is they're putting the Clinton machine in place. Bill Clinton is here.

She is out talking aggressively about the things that Barack Obama is doing wrong. She said, listen, it's one thing to talk about change, it's another thing to actually have done it.

So, there's a very aggressive push against Barack Obama and a very aggressive push on the ground to get Hillary Clinton's voters out.

CLANCY: You know, some people are wondering about all of the moves that we've seen now with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard today. Is this an attempt by Iran to in one way or another maneuver its way into the headlines, on one hand, and on the other hand, perhaps into some of the rhetoric up there in the campaigning? Much chance of that really? CROWLEY: Well, you know what's interesting is, when Bhutto was assassinated, we were right before the Iowa caucuses. And we all thought that somehow that would move the Iowa caucus-goers toward a more experienced candidate on the Democratic side. It's certainly Hillary Clinton that's been selling herself as the most experienced candidate.

But as you know, we came out of Iowa, and Barack Obama won by nine points. So here again, we have an issue that's come up.

It's really had more effect on the Republican side, I would say. John McCain, who has many years of foreign policy experience, and of course a Vietnam War hero, he has really surged here in New Hampshire on the basis of his experience. But on the Democratic side, they seem, the voters, more interested in who's going to bring about change, and that works against Hillary Clinton, who has kind of run as the incumbent candidate.

So, while it may have some effect with some votes, if we look back at Iowa, it didn't have that much of an affect when Benazir Bhutto was assassinated. So, if you put that on -- in to New Hampshire and apply it to Iran, it may not have that much of an effect.

CLANCY: Candy Crowley, our senior political correspondent up there in New Hampshire.

Candy, we'll be talking with you in the hours and the days ahead -- thanks.

CHURCH: Certainly will. And much more still to come here on YOUR WORLD TODAY, including the latest from Pakistan on a growing al Qaeda threat.

CLANCY: There are reports that Washington may be considering increasing the role of CIA operatives in Pakistan's remote tribal areas.

We'll have that story.

Plus...

CHURCH: A new cricket scandal. It's game over for a top Indian baller who is banned after making a racist remark about Australia's only black player.

CLANCY: And get ready for gadgets. And I mean gadgets. We're going to give you a real display of technology that will keep you spinning.

Stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CLANCY: Hello, everyone. Welcome back to CNN International and YOUR WORLD TODAY. CHURCH: And a special welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States this hour.

Well, expanding the authority of U.S. forces and the CIA to act inside Pakistan, according to "The New York Times," it's an option Washington is reportedly considering to hunt down al Qaeda fighters in remote tribal areas.

Well, let's get Pakistan's reaction to this report from CNN's John Vause in Islamabad.

I don't think they were very happy.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely Rosemary.

But U.S. sources do stress that this is all part of a discussion, an internal debate. Certainly there's been no decision on this. Nonetheless, that's been enough to draw an angry response from Pakistani officials.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE (voice over): It's been widely reported but never officially acknowledged by the U.S. or Pakistan that the CIA has been operating for years in the tribal areas of Pakistan's Northwest Frontier. The same area where American intelligence believes Osama bin Laden is hiding.

For Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf, the issue of foreign forces is politically explosive. So any suggestion that the number of U.S. operatives could be increased has been angrily denied by Pakistani officials. One telling CNN, "This report, even if incorrect, is damaging to U.S./Pakistani relations."

TALAT MASOOD, LT. GEN. PAKISTANI ARMY (RET.): I think that they would really be extremely angry and will not accept it, because it would be a great infringement on their sovereignty and also an insult.

VAUSE: But greater numbers are precisely what's needed, according to one former CIA operative who was once there hunting al Qaeda.

ART KELLER, FMR. CIA OPERATIVE: No, I know for a fact that the people there were incredibly shorthanded. That's why it was a challenging situation.

VAUSE: And that was February last year, long before Benazir Bhutto's assassination, which is seen by Washington as strengthening the militants. Unlike Musharraf, she publicly called for U.S. help to regain control of the tribal areas.

BENAZIR BHUTTO, FMR. PAKISTANI PRESIDENT: They would certainly like to work very closely with the U.S. government and with the NATO troops in Afghanistan for a common objective of reclaiming the frontier area and cleansing it of terrorists. VAUSE: And the risks are high, too, for the U.S. An air strike two years ago missed its target, al Qaeda's number two, Ayman al- Zawahiri, killing dozens of civilians. That sparked angry anti-U.S. protests in cities across Pakistan.

PETER BERGEN, CNN TERRORISM ANALYST: Clearly, the reason they're thinking about doing this is al Qaeda continues to be headquartered in the ministry tribal areas, and Taliban is headquartered there. And that's been the case for years and years. And so the policy -- all of the policies up to this point haven't really seemed to work.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: And if left unchecked, the United States fears that al Qaeda will simply grow in strength, be able to carry out more and more deadly attacks, not just here in Pakistan, but beyond this country, as well -- Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Our John Vause reporting there.

Thanks so much for that.

Well, the Italian army is taking on a tough, new foe -- garbage. The streets of Naples are full of it. A result of a crisis sparked by the refusal of one neighborhood to allow a local landfill to reopen.

Now, the army may win this battle against the protesters, but it's doubtful it will ever win the war against rubbish. The southern region has fought the garbage monster for nearly 15 years, but a combination of corruption, growth and organization crime has kept the government from effectively dealing with the problem there.

CLANCY: All right. A check of U.S. headlines coming up straight ahead for our viewers in the United States.

CHURCH: That's right.

And for the rest of you, there's more YOUR WORLD TODAY just head, including charges of racism. Two teams facing off on the cricket pitch, now launching allegations of unsportsmanlike conduct and racial slurs. The war of words between Australia and India.

CLANCY: And then a little bit later, Rosemary, the story of that one high-profile bachelor. You may know him. He may soon have a new first lady.

A look at love and politics in the City of Lights.

(NEWSBREAK)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIM CLANCY, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back to our viewers joining us from around the globe, including in the United States this hour. You're with YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Jim Clancy.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Rosemary Church. And here are some of the top stories we've been following.

Iran's foreign ministry is downplaying an incident between the U.S. and Iranian ships in the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. military says revolutionary guard boats harassed and provokes its ships early Sunday, but Iran calls the incident normal, suggesting it was resolved after its boats recognized the Americans. The revolutionary guard also denies any aggression.

CLANCY: Washington reportedly considering expanding the authority of U.S. forces and CIA operatives in Pakistan. "The New York Times" reports the U.S. is concerned about intelligence that suggests al Qaeda and the Taliban are intent on destabilizing Pakistan from their bases in tribal regions.

CHURCH: U.S. presidential candidates are getting in some last- minute campaigning in New Hampshire. The critical primary takes place Tuesday. Barack Obama has opened up a lead on fellow Democratic Senator Hillary Clinton in the polls. Senator John McCain leads on the Republican side.

CLANCY: We're turning now to our top story. That confrontation at sea that one Pentagon official calls most serious provocation of its sort. Iran, though, at this hour, downplaying the incident with U.S. ships, denying there was any aggression involved, saying these things happen all the time. Let's get some perspective now. We're joined by Joseph Cirincione. He's in Washington. A senior fellow and director for nuclear policy at the Center for American Progress.

Joe, what's going on with Iran? Why now?

JOSEPH CIRINCIONE, CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS: We don't know for sure, Jim, but there's three likely possible explanations. One is that this is a response to President Bush's remarks of just the last few days on the eve of his trip to the Middle East. He's, once again, warning about the Iranian danger. This could be a push back from the Iranians.

Number two, it could be a probing operation. Something similar to what the U.S. did during the Cold War, going right up to the enemies' defense perimeters and then pulling back just to see what the reaction would be.

And third, and this is, you know, probably the most serious to worry about, it could actually be a provocation. There could be some elements of the revolutionary guard that want to provoke a conflict with the United States.

This could be part of a political strategy by Ahmadinejad, who's got some contested parliamentary elections coming up in March. And, for him, a conflict with the U.S. works to buoy his political fortunes. We don't know for sure what was behind the provocation.

CLANCY: The reality is, that when U.S. warships are out there, whether they're in the gulf itself or in the Strait of Hormuz, they're between Amman and Iran, that very narrow waterway, there are always these kinds of incidents. The Iranians are always there, going around the U.S. warships. And what are the possibilities here that Iran is saying is accurate that, hey, this stuff goes on all the time?

CIRINCIONE: Well, number one, this kind of Iranian gambit is actually quite common. They do something provocative and then pull back and say, no, no, we didn't mean anything by it. Nothing serious is going on. Why is the U.S. making a big deal?

But your first point is right on the mark. People don't realize how narrow the Straits of Hormuz are. It varies from about 65 miles wide to about 12 miles at its narrowest point. Remember, Iranian territorial waters are 12 miles extending out from the shore. So you have a very narrow margin for error here. And it is quite possible that the Iranians saw these ships coming close to their territorial waters and were taking what they thought of as a defensive move. We just don't know for sure.

CLANCY: Joe, you normally stay well clear of politics, I know. But I just want to ask your opinion. The other night in the debate in New Hampshire, we saw the focus turn to Pakistan, its nuclear weapons, how concerned people should be. How did you think that the candidates on both sides of the aisle really handled it?

CIRINCIONE: Well, the anchor for that debate, Charlie Gibson, was right to start the debate on that note. This is the most dangerous issue confronting the United States is not Iran, it's not North Korea. It's nuclear terrorism. There hasn't been much discussed in the debate. He wanted to bring it out.

I thought the candidates on the Democratic side were a little muddled in their responses. Nobody, you know, really seems to have internalized these threats yet or the solutions to it. But all of them were generally on the mark. They focused on the need to secure the nuclear materials around the world. In other words, prevent the terrorists from getting these materials in the first place. They need to shore up the now weakened international non-proliferation regime, the series of treaties and barriers to any country getting nuclear weapons. And some of them correctly noted our own responsibility to reduce our arsenal of 10,000 nuclear weapons to set a leadership standard for the rest of the world to follow.

All of them had parts of the puzzle. Nobody really put it together the way it needs to be done yet. CLANCY: Joe Cirincione, director of nuclear policy at the Center for American Progress. As always, I want to thank you very much for be with us.

CIRINCIONE: My pleasure, Jim.

CHURCH: Well, rolling blackouts in Gaza. Palestinians now having to go without lights and power for up to eight hours a day because of Israeli cuts to the fuel supply. Israel has been restricting fuel supplies to Gaza since October to try to pressure Hamas leader into stopping cross-border rocket salvos.

Well, the power cuts come just days before a planned visit by U.S. President George W. Bush. Al Qaeda has already issued threats and mass protests are planned. Atika Shubert tells us about the type of security needed to ensure the safety of the U.S. president during his first Middle East tour.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): Only days before the president embarks, al Qaeda issued this grim appeal to militants in the region.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE, (through translator): To be prepared to receive the crusader butcher Bush on his visit to Muslim Palestine and the occupied peninsula at the beginning of January. They should receive him, not with roses and applause, but with bombs and booby traps.

SHUBERT: More than 10,000 police will be deployed, in addition to American federal officers, the biggest security operation here since the visit of the pope more than seven years ago. But it's not just the possibility of terror attacks the president has to contend with. A number of large demonstrations are planned. None of them very welcoming.

When First Lady Laura Bush visited Jerusalem's holy sites in 2005, she faced angry crowds of Israelis and Palestinians, forcing Israeli police to form a human wall between the first lady and protesters. Security analysts say the greatest risk may be during such volatile situations when an individual is suddenly inspired to take violent action.

RONNI SHAKED, "YEDIOT AHARONOT" NEWSPAPER: We are talking about the crazy men, crazy Palestinian, or somebody who was sent here, not by Hamas or by, I don't know what, perhaps that he went to the mosque and he heard something and he will do something. That's the only risk I think that he have here.

SHUBERT: During his three-day visit, President Bush will also go to the Palestinian territories where the Palestinian authority, not Israeli forces, will be responsible for his security.

To minimize exposure, President Bush will be doing most of his traveling by helicopter. But some of the stops on his itinerary, particularly in the West Bank, can only be reached by car or on foot. That, security analysts say, will be the most dangerous time for the president.

Atika Shubert, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, there's a hopeful development to report concerning the crisis in Kenya. Opposition leaders who claimed last month's elections were rigged are canceling Tuesday's protest in order to give diplomacy a chance there. Well, CNN's Zain Verjee is following the story from Kenya's capital, joins us now via broadband.

Zain, the violence is continuing, isn't it? So just how positive should we be about the diplomatic progress? ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The violence is continuing, but it has subsided significantly and there are only reports of violence in small pockets around the country now. But the diplomatic developments here this day, Rosemary, are extremely significant.

In just the past few minutes, we have learned that President Kibaki is now asking the opposition leader, Raila Odinga, to come to meet him for talks at the state house on Friday. I just got off the phone with the opposition spokesman who says in response, Mr. Odinga would be happy to meet with Mr. Kibaki on Friday if, and only if, it's part of the negotiations that are supposed to be mediated by the president of Ghana, John Kufuor.

At the same time, the top U.S. diplomat for Africa has been dispatched to Nairobi. A key and strategic country for the United States and for the region. Jendayi Frazier has been putting pressure on both sides, meeting them multiple times. There was supposed to be an opposition rally planned for tomorrow, but that got canceled by the opposition just after they met. People were really worried that that would ignite more violence. So when it was canceled, everybody sort of breathed a huge sigh of relief.

More than 400 people have been killed in violence here and thousands displaced. In an exclusive interview, Rosemary, with Jendayi Frazer, she said the only solution here is dialogue between the two sides. She said that the situation here was both disappointing and dangerous and some of the fundamental issues that underlie the conflict here in Kenya, like ethnic tension, like the use of constitutional reform, really need to be addressed. She gave this warning to leaders here in Kenya, saying that if they don't resolve their problems through talking, there will be serious problems.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENDAYI FRAZER, U.S. ASST. SECRETARY OF STATE: I think Kenya is going to be a long future of instability if, in fact, they don't address the fundamental questions. And so getting the politicians to dialogue is not just about the past election, it's about the future of this country and owning up to the real crisis that we are all seeing the evidence of over the past week.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VERJEE: She also said that both sides have to acknowledge that there were election irregularities and that violence is not the answer.

Rosemary.

CHURCH: Zain, it's difficult to know where these negotiations or this dialogue on Friday will go because we already know the opposition leader had said no to the offer from the president of a national unity government. So what is the likely outcome here in the end?

VERJEE: Well, it's a positive development. It's not clear what the likely outcome would be. But there is a serious move by all Kenyans here on the ground to hold their leaders accountable. Kenya has been one of the beacons of stability in Africa. We're not used to seeing tribal conflict, ethnic conflict of this magnitude happen in this country. So people are shocked, they're angry and they want their leaders to accommodate each other. The international pressure helps.

The outcome, though, is unclear. The opposition is saying that they want a transitional government and they want to have elections in three to six months that really, for all intents and purposes, may be impractical. The government is saying, we won and we're not standing down, that's it. We're open to a coalition government. But that has happened before in Kenya and that has failed.

So Kenya's future seems unclear. But today's developments are significant and positive.

Rosemary.

CHURCH: All right. Zain Verjee monitoring the situation across Kenya from the capital there. Thanks so much for that.

CLANCY: All right. Well seen right around the globe, this is YOUR WORLD TODAY.

CHURCH: And still ahead, if you love gadgets and gizmos, you're going want to stick around for this one.

CLANCY: We're going to take you live to Vegas. It's the Consumer Electronics Show. That's the one that includes this car with no one at the wheel. That and so much more straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: All right. You're looking at live picture here of Mitt Romney campaigning there in Nashua, New Hampshire, along with many other hopefuls there. And, of course, he's got a big fight ahead of him, trying to beat John McCain, the favorite there now.

CLANCY: All right. We're going to continue to follow the election debate here on YOUR WORLD TODAY. And we'll have complete coverage for you coming up in the next 24 hours. That's for sure. Big vote.

CHURCH: That's right.

And a warm welcome back to all of you watching CNN International and in the United States, too.

CLANCY: All right. Seen now in, what, more than 200 countries all around the globe.

But we're going to look at an American story now. It's really a major league controversy in American baseball.

CHURCH: That's right. Pitcher Roger Clemens denies ever using steroids, despite charges in the recent Mitchell report. He filed a defamation suit late Sunday against his accuser and former trainer, Brian McNamee. Now "The Houston Chronicle" says the seven-time Cy Young award winner filed the suit just before airing his thoughts on CBS' "60 Minutes."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROGER CLEMENS: I didn't play my career to get fame or go to the hall of fame or worry about all that. That's nice. All that's nice. Again, it's not who I am. And I've worked my tail off to get where I'm at. I'm not going to put something in my body for a quick fix that's going to tear me down. I'm angry that what I've done for the game of baseball and as a person in my private life what I've done, that I don't get the benefit of the doubt. The stuff that's being said, it's ridiculous. It's hogwash for people to even assume this. Twenty-four, 25 years, Mike, you'd think I'd get an inch of respect. An inch. How can you prove your innocence?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: And Clemens has an new conference scheduled for this afternoon and could appear before Congress next week.

CLANCY: But he says he doesn't know about a lie detector test. He says he's not sure that those are accurate.

Now if gadgets make you giddy and technology leaves you tickled, then look up from that laptop that has you multitasking right now.

CHURCH: That's right. The International Electronics Show has gone live, as they say, in sin city, Las Vegas.

CLANCY: And from the cnn.com desk, we sent our resident tech expert Veronica De La Cruz.

Veronica, what's going on out there?

VERONICA DE LA CRUZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, there is a whole lot going on, Jim and Rosemary. It's nice to see you guys.

We're going to focus on robotics. There are a lot of gadgets here at the International Consumer Electronics Show. This is a friend of mine. He is Tribot (ph). And he is the latest when it comes to robotics. Lance Ulanoff from "PC Magazine," joins us now to tell us a little bit more.

Lance.

LANCE ULANOFF, "PC MAGAZINE": So Wowy (ph) makes this. And Wowy's made the robosapian (ph). Now this is the Tribot. It's a $99 robot that's coming out later this year. It's all about entertainment and fun. He also can navigate his space. He's aware of his environment. You can control him with a remote control. Yes, he knows his position. Knows if you pushed him over, if you've abused him. Gyroscope in there to control his movement, which is really kind of neat. But basically he's about entertainment for the kids. He plays games. DE LA CRUZ: $99. Really inexpensive.

ULANOFF: Yes. And he's cute. And he's entertaining.

DE LA CRUZ: All right. And this is another robot.

ULANOFF: This is -- I can barely believe . . .

DE LA CRUZ: You are not a robot, but this is.

ULANOFF: The CEO of Gibson Guitar is here, right, to -- this is -- you know, the thing is, this is amazing to me because I've been playing guitar for seven years and this thing tunes itself. I don't know if you can see what's happening here. He set how he wants to tune. These knobs are turning on themselves. As long as he instruments it, they will turn until it reaches the perfect pitch. Gibson Robot Guitar, $2,400, limit edition right now. They sold out of the first run. My guess is they'll sell out of the next run. You know, it comes out perfectly tuned.

DE LA CRUZ: And we have the CEO of Gibson himself, Henry Juszkiewicz. He's going to play me a version of "Veronica."

ULANOFF: "Veronica?"

DE LA CRUZ: Elvis Costello.

HENRY JUSZKIEWICZ, CEO, GIBSON GUITAR: Whatever you can play. She's asking for "Veronica."

DE LA CRUZ: All right. "Stairway to Heaven." You go ahead and work on that.

A couple more robots to take a look at.

ULANOFF: Right. So Telepresence (ph) robot, also from Wowy. This is called Arobio (ph). $249 later this year, this is your home away from home robot. You're in Paris, the robot's at home. You dial in through the web to go to the kitchen, check on the cookies. Go to the laundry room, check I didn't leave the iron on.

DE LA CRUZ: What if I left my iron on? You can go ahead and check on that.

ULANOFF: Yes, so this is the future (ph). It's coming out later this year. But this is a practical robot from Wowy. So that's really kind of exciting.

DE LA CRUZ: Green technology. We're seeing a lot of that this year. A lot of green technology.

ULANOFF: That's right. Elegant, sexy looking with a solar panel on the front. This is . . .

DE LA CRUZ: You want to model it? ULANOFF: This is from Iqua (ph). It's an $80 -- or $90, I should say, Blue Tooth headset. Charge it for two hours, get 12 hours of listening. No battery is required.

DE LA CRUZ: That's absolutely amazing. You just drop this in the sun and it charges itself. This is incredible.

All right. What about this one?

ULANOFF: Well, what you're looking at, not just a set of goggles. Actually it's a camera. A 5 megapixel camera. It's right there, dead center. This is from Liquid Image. This is a $99 device that can go down about 100 feet underwater, capture sharp photos because it has a shutter in it. And it's really -- it's the real deal.

DE LA CRUZ: It is. And we're out of time. Lance Ulanoff, "PC Magazine." It's too bad. I know. We're having a good time. I have to send it back to you guys in the studio.

CLANCY: OK, Veronica, thanks so much for that. I apologize. We had a bit of an audio problem there.

CHURCH: Yes, we were doing a tech segment but we had audio.

CLANCY: Unless it was the robot (INAUDIBLE) one of the tables. So I'm not positive. He didn't get enough air time.

CHURCH: All right.

CLANCY: Coming up, France is without a first lady, at least for the moment.

CHURCH: That's right. But maybe not for long. What's this we hear about President Sarkozy planning to marry his fashion model girlfriend? We'll take a look.

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CHURCH: OK. Want to take a nap? I sure do. Or talk on your cell phone? Go ahead.

CLANCY: Your car could be doing the driving for you within the next 10 years.

CHURCH: That's right. GM says that it's got the car for you, if you're interested. Take a look at this. No hands, baby.

CLANCY: No hands at all. This is a special prototype that they put together. GM, the president of the company, expected to talk about this Tuesday out there at CES. Automaker says the most significant obstacles facing the driverless cars could actually be human rather than technical.

CHURCH: Now that's because of government regulation and liability laws. CLANCY: Yes, what are you going do? Who are you going to sue if it runs into the car in front of it.

CHURCH: Yes. I'm not sure I trust it, you know. It's not for me.

All right. Is it really more than a rebound? Paris is buzzing with speculation over whether the recently divorced president of France plans to remarry next month.

CLANCY: Yes, they can't smoke in the cafes anymore, but they can still just talk away. French media reporting now that Nicolas Sarkozy and his girlfriend, former super model Carla Burni, have set a date. And the date is the 8th or the 9th of February. That would be quick, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Oh, yes. The president's office had no comment after the couple was seen together with Bruni's son in Jordan this weekend. But Sarkozy plans to face reporters directly when he holds a news conference Tuesday in Paris. Maybe we'll find out a little bit more.

CLANCY: You know, she's gorgeous.

CHURCH: She is.

CLANCY: And, you know, he's much the talk of the town. There they are in Petra. And the real question is that the French don't seem, you know . . .

CHURCH: They don't care.

CLANCY: They're not boost (ph) by all of this.

CHURCH: All right.

CLANCY: Did you know what the word subprime meant, at least prior to 2007?

CHURCH: Probably not. Unless you're a banker or a borrower. That's why it's been picked as the word of the year.

CLANCY: That's right. Subprime, the American Dialect Society says the credit crisis thrust that word into your mainstream vocabulary and now it affects all kinds of people.

CHURCH: And runnersup included Facebook, as in the social networking website.

CLANCY: Green, for being environmentally friendly.

CHURCH: And Googleganger, for someone who shows up when you Google yourself.

CLANCY: All right. Also, waterboarding got its way in there. And we all know how that happens.

That has to be it for this hour of YOUR WORLD TODAY. I'm Jim Clancy.

CHURCH: And I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN. Stay with us.

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