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Former Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld on the U.S.'s involvement in Syria and Iran’s nuclear program.
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Bob.
I sat -- -- Donald Rumsfeld to get his take.
On Syria Iran and some of the other issues facing our country today with the secretary of let's start with Syria because this is where there seems to be a lot of attention now and most importantly is that U.
In -- earlier years with the government you dealt with the saw its father and end that he was a tyrant to.
-- Indeed he was he was a model tyra.
-- very tough guy.
And I met with them when I was president Ronald Reagan's Middle East envoy and would spend time and those countries in that part of the world.
Dealing with the leaders that they -- and it it is the outside family of course is part of the -- white.
-- and they are small.
Much very much a minority in the country.
And there have been efforts from time to time to not have them be there.
And right now we're seeing of course all -- father killed I don't know 101520000.
People at home.
When he was an office so it's this is not something new for the outside family.
Well and it's not something new -- for us if you if you knew that we dealt with them in this a Middle East envoy.
You written it would seem like the relations between Syria in the United States.
Where fine for a long time or didn't do -- them and a friendly manner.
And I'm not at all when I was -- about it President Reagan to serve over there.
The Syrians were making a lot of trouble in Lebanon and we ended up with some forces in Lebanon 19823.
Area.
And then we had 241 of them killed and that their barracks at the -- Beirut airport.
And the Syrians were harmful they had a lot of intelligence operatives in the country that were preventing the country from functioning as a democratic country.
And we were attempting to encourage them to not do that today -- problems are different today they're still doing that Lebanon.
But they also -- causing difficulties in Afghanistan -- cause difficulties in Iraq.
They are supporters with a -- and Hezbollah and Hamas there's been a proxy for Iran exactly exactly.
So when you're dealing with a sawed today.
Is that why our country is.
Not treating -- the same as we treated Libya or -- completely off course.
No I think -- the situation in Libya evolve somewhat differently when when there was some uprising.
And and -- Qaddafi situation was with such that.
There were different tribes and different sects of different elements and different militias.
And he was a apparently even though he was there for -- forty years.
It did not have the grip on the country that I thought seems to have -- staying and there are a lot longer.
And they.
He uprising in in -- serious of a different nature although when I'm sure the Muslim Brotherhood -- involved as it is in most of those countries.
So are we having any success with any sort of embargo or should we be using military force.
Well I'm sure that.
People in the -- the government our government and other governments that are concerned an interest and are looking and their full range of problems that do nothing all the way over to using military force on the ground and in between of course are.
Such things as the Kofi Annan effort to get countries to put pressure.
On -- -- to stop the massacre of his people there are efforts to put on economic sanctions and there of the it actions that are where they're withdrawing their diplomatic but cut the countries are withdrawing their diplomatic people from me.
Syrian embassies.
And and then all the way over to where they ended up going with Libya which would -- have to be considering she -- the use of airpower.
And not ground -- so so that whole spectrum undoubtedly is being looked at.
The the -- that is laying in the background of course is the events in these other countries.
Coupled with the the very real Shia Sunni.
Divide in that part of the world.
And the the Sunnis are are pressuring and -- -- have supported by Iran are pressuring.
And many of the country's most of the countries in that part of the world are I have mixtures of that.
They have the Sunni Sunni leadership in many instances which the reasonably large Shia population.
Is speaking of Iran and issue with Iran is about the course their ability to get a nuclear weapon.
Forgive me because I'm I'm I'm not I've never understood the diplomatic back and forth but it seems like the latest rounds.
Of talks with he wrong warning to sit down.
That that they in the Iraq and then in the -- Baghdad.
Was just stalling tactic and that they're they just keep continuing.
To stall and used tricks.
That most of has learned what we were route fourteen that you can tell when somebody's just kind of come and onto.
-- giving you did delay delay delay so that they can continue to get to the point where they did they say okay we have now have our borrow.
You're exactly right mean we've seen the same thing the North Korea.
Successive administrations and successive collections of free nations.
Have been attempting exactly the same thing with exactly the same outcomes.
Unsatisfactory.
Outcomes him and we see reports in the press well there's going to be a meeting here and it's hopeful that possibly -- -- And and they don't these people are determined.
In Iran and the Ayatollah as they are our outer directed there and they're not going to be pressured from other countries.
And the same thing in North Korea -- mean we've seen administration after administration.
Engage in me the similar practice.
Looking for different outcome and find that the outcome -- -- -- each time.
