working its way to make art a more common appreciation. faiz gentlema jamil, al jazerra. and you can catch much more of our art stories and the rest of the day's news on our website aljazerra.com. >> i'm ali velshi, i'll show you how a little respect could go a long way. making the new deal stick, it's the dawn of a new era or doom to veil. if oil is the cover of the mist. i want to drill in to how the deal with iran may bit them against the united states, israel and saudi arabia.

today we got more insight into the depth of that battle. in a "new york times" article, wikileaks shows a saudi obsession with iran, based on thousand of diplomatic documents released in june. the story says - clear in many of the cables are saudi arabia fears of influence and the spread of islam. this is important. >> it puts it at odds. it's a nation dominated. saudi arabia and israel fear that lifting sanctions giving iran the financial firepower to advance its agenda. to a region where it is raging in syria. u.s. defense secretary ash carter is heading to saudi arabia and israel to help sell the deal. this chart from banker america, merrill

lynch, shows without products, the gross domestic size would have doubled - bigger than saudi arabia - based on assumption, not reflecting reality, but gives you an idea of how much of a boost the nuclear deal could give iran, this is what scarce iran's regional rivals. the question is what exactly iran will do with the new wealth once the sanctions are lifted and oil and other revenues start flowing. >> a secret report predicts that iran's government will pump most of a windfall into its struggling economy and will not boost funding to terrorist groups and sectarian officials. even if iran greases support, the extra cash is not likely to tip the balance of power in the battle for influence. president obama said the same

thing on wednesday, regardless of whether the nuclear deal is a game changer, you have to understand how the battle is played and how the rules may change. >> reporter: iran considers itself a superpower in the middle east, and wants the world to give it the respect that it thinks it deserves. despite greying to curbs on nuclear ambitions. it's influence is bound to grow as sanctions is lifted and economic sanctions ends. >> it's time for the american leaders, european leaders to realise that iran is a major player. and you liver with it, the live with it. the same way you live with china and iran. if you decide to do that, they'll encourage forces within iran that are willing and able

to accommodate western interests. >> reporter: one thing that iran is eager to help the west with is confronting i.s.i.l. iran and the u.s. backed iraqi government in the war against i.s.i.l. fighters. but in neighbouring syria, where i.s.i.l. controls territory, iran and the u.s. work at cross-purposes, because they back opposing sides in syria's civil war. >> income, in almost every contentious area and issue facing the middle east today, syria, israel, yemen and the flow of oil to the world, iran and the u.s. are on opposite sides. nowhere is that more apparent. a narrow way to connect talents between the gulf and the ocean. at its narrowest point, it separates iran, from the

countries of the arabian peninsula. let me give you a sense. across the relations. iran considers it a threat. it's mined this straight. the u.s. navy is escorting flagships through the straight. they started doing it for other vessels. besides military force, iran has many ways of wielding powers, and suuses a soft power to win hearts and minds in the region. >> iran has a soft power in the hearts and mines of the shia populations in this part of the world and internationally. iran uses both military and soft power to give backing to shia parties in conflict zones throughout the middle east.

>> in lebanon, iran long backed israel. the iranians have become a life president. and they lend crucial political and military support to iraq's shia dominated government. >> more recently iran has weighed in on the side of houthi rebels, triggering a sectarian law there, with sunni dominated saudi arabian. voices inside iran say it's now willing to use the influence in cooperation, to solve a myriad of problems consuming the middle east today. >> today iran has emerged as a major player. the islamic revolution has a lot of influence in many parts of the islamic world. there are a lot of different areas where iran can play a

prominent role in sorting out different conflict, resolving understanding issues. particularly in dealing with piece and security in the region. >> joining me is a former republican party chief counsellor and senior advisor to the committee on norren relations -- foreign relations. they made far too many moves. thank you for being with us. the port that i'm puzzled -- part that i'm puzzled by is despite the sanctions and that it is not enjoying relationships with iran, iran is a regional superpower. >> thank you for having me. iran plays an outsized role in the region, often through proxy forces. and you are right, they play a role. the question is will the nuclear deal make them more of a

regional power or not. >> it will make them more of a regional power, it gives them more money and influence with their neighbours. >> i talked to people on tuesday, they said that the deal emass coolates iran, they were free to do what they wanted, but now they have to follow rules by the international community. >> it's an interesting point. the truth is iran has a terrible track record of following rules it agrees to. beyond that, iran is bringing back into the communicate identify of nation, they'll seek sanctions relief, and they'll be allowed to continue to enrich and work on ballistic missiles and light. this is a vindication of iran's tactic of running a programme, not a slap in the face. >> iran in 2003 was found to

have some plans for nuclear armaments. when the sanctions started, iran had 64, and now it has close to 20,000. at some point someone has to question the sanctions, the financial sanctions seem to have effect, but that is in making people sell the government "you are crushing us", it was the lower class people, middle class people are where hit by it. the upper class, government and elites were not. >> that's an important point. the thing about the financial sanctions is they have been in place, the heavy-duty sanctions have been this place since 20 so. the ones with an abiding offense on the government, from the bottom up or targetting the classes, that is what brought it. we are only beginning to feel the effects of those.

had we kept them in place longer, he would have got a better deal. the criticism is the tactics. when it comes to the content of it, what is it that people who oppose the deal, what would they have wanted differently. never mind that america would move the position. >> i think a great deal would be consistent with the administration's position of what they call the gold stand. the administration invented in 2009 with the u.a.e., a gold standard, no enrichment with a country. here we allow them to have an enrichment programme and advance r&d on the centrifuges, so if they break out, they can do it quicker. they have a chance to work on the rest of it. they'll do more surveillance.

that doesn't mean we'll find it. >> without a deal, they still would have done it. they did all of deal. aren't we worried about that, without a deal, why would they stop doing what they were doing? >> sure. you are right, it's true that they'll continue forward, but the question is will they do it with international prestige, will they do it with the money pressure. 2010. they came to the table. we could have used that opportunity to get a better dole. we gave up a lot in making the deal. people say there's benefits, we have more surveillance that is true. is it a good deal or a bad deal. good to talk to you. we'll talk again. jamil johner, former council and advisor to the senate foreign relations committee. next, what the new deal means for the middle east.

a former terrorist interrogator >> government committees. >> they're spending money, they're not saving it. >> costing millions and getting nothing. >> it's a bogus sham. >> america tonight investigates. money for nothing. >> they've gotten away with it for years.

>> al jazeera america, weekday mornings. catch up on what happened overnight with a full morning brief. get a first hand look with in-depth reports and investigations. start weekday mornings with al jazeera america. open your eyes to a world in motion. tonight we are looking at the battle for influence in the middle east between iran and america. chairman and chief executive at the private intelligence consultancy that advises government and companies on security risks.

previously he was an fbi counterterrorism agent, taking part in investigations into al qaeda and other groups. he is seen here on the left is credited with helping to uncover sheikh mohammed as the mastermind behind the september 11th attacks. he obtained that intelligence during interrogation. he wrote about his experiences in a book. he said the iran nuclear deal is history in the making, but cautions we don't know the long-term implications and warns that both have a chance to act in a constructive or constructive way. >> iran and north korea are the only state sponsors of terrorism, after taking off cuba. if it prevent iran having a

nuclear bomb, we can not only think about the nuclear bomb. we talk about iran. iran, as we mentioned. it has a lot of connections in the group. to shi'ite militia. and now iran will have a significant amount of wealth and income. $150 billion in frozen assets from south korea and japan. all this money, will they be used to enhance the iranian economy. portions will be used to destabilize the region, or further stablilize the region. israelis. that's the fear that many of our allies and the region are publicly talking about. iran can play an instructive

role in the region, can play a constructive role in fighting i.s.i.s. >> that's what they brought up, sake we share a common enemy. >> terrorism is bigger than i.s.i.s. we have significant problems in yemen, or the stability of iraq, and significant problems in syria, and syria alone. i think 2.6 million children growing up. we have a lot of issues, if they want to be instructive in playing the role in the region, happens. >> it does not. but it can be a foundation to start a new chapter, to start a new page. if iranians want to play an

instructive role, remember, this is not between the united states or iran. it's france, italy, jeremy, russia, e.u., china and iran. >> that is lost in the discussion. it sounds like an american-iranian deal. >> well the united states had a lot to do with it. but it's the international community, that's why it's going to the u.n., the stanks are mostly u.n. sanctions. >> the u.s. treasury and the state department used the swiss sanctions on iran as a gold standard. it's a thing that brought iran to the table. until 2012 there was sanctions. >> one of the things that the administration did was hit iran with sanctions.

if rain can export a million a dale. someone had to oversee that. >> the iranian economy shrunk, and it was deeply impacted. the sanctions were better than any before. remember in 2005, we were sitting in iranians, negotiating the deal. we walked out saying we don't want to deal with them. at that time iran had 64 septemberry fumes. today, after all the sanctions, they have about 19,500 centrifuges. so the sanctions worked against the iranian people. >> right. it didn't work against the nuclear programme and the regime. iraq expanded under sanctions, to iraq and yemen. more in damascus or the syrian regime. to many different places around the middle east.

>> you are saying this is the option. >> this is an important option. however, the important work has to start now. >> what does that start with, diplomacy, we don't have diplomatic relations with iran, they don't have it with us. >> it starts with something, garmenting that there's a verification process going on. we have to verify, verify. it's not like trust and verify, there's no trust. >> if all the ferifications work out, there may be trust. >> at the statement we have to creat create snore strategy recollects that can guarantee that iran will be counted if they try to play a destructive role. we have to try to push the new deal, push the iranian people, the moderates in iran to

guarantee that all this wealth that they are getting will build the economy and benefit the people, not the radicals. u.s. and iran don't see each other in friendly terms. >> the fda isn't testing enough. >> now science is pursuing an organic alternative. >> these companies are trying out new technologies. >> no hormones are ever added into our tanks. >> mmm! >> techknow's team of experts show you how the miracles of science... >> i'm standing in a tropical windstorm. >> can affect and surprise us. >> wow, some of these are amazing. >> techknow - where technology meets humanity. >> i think we're into something that's bigger than us >> that's the pain your mother feels when you disrespect her son... >> me being here is defying all odds

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>> we're here to fully get into the nuances of everything that's going on, not just in this country, but around the world. >> ...as if there were no cameras here, would be the best solution. >> this goes to the heart of the argument >> to tell you the stories that others won't cover. how big do you see this getting? getting the news from the people who are affected. >> people need to demand reform... >> we're here to provide the analysis... the context... and the reporting that allows you to make sense of your world. >> ali velshi on target only on al jazeera america

iran and the united states have a history of distrust of the americans remember iran for holding workers hostage in 1979 and see it as a sponsor of terrorism. iran sees it as meddlers. given the history of hostility, it's amazing that the two countries agreed to talk. in my conversation, he tells me that the nuclear deal could lead relations. >> the iranians are a different vision of history to the vision we have. when we talk about iran, we talk about the days of hostages. we talk about hezbollah,

terrorism in the '80s. the iran contra. they talk about overthrowing the government. shooting down a flight that america didn't apologise for - are they wrong? >> they are not americans, they are locking at it from an iranian perspective. we look at things from an american perspective. this is a new page. iran could not play the same role. they could not support the groups that publicly talk about chaos and disruption. now it is up to the iranians, the government, and the people to take full advantages of this, and start a new page, and we have to create the policy to the sanction. they'll help us prevent iran

from having a nuclear weapon. we need to install a strategy that put everything on the table in our diplomatic initiative in the region, in the diplomatic posturing. diplomacy has been difficult, but it will create a new involvement of roun in the middle east. >> we have asked people in that part of the world to comment on what the deal does. i speak to someone who said it emass coolated rain in an area where they have regional enemies. other say for a country that thinks of themselves as a them. they feel more prosperous. what do you think as a regional power, is iran better off or

worse off. >> iran is better off from one perspective. now it is being welcomed back to the international community. >> what they do with that, that's up to the iranians. that can be a win for them, and a big loss for them. for example, this deal. there's the sanctions, with penalties, they can come back with a snap-back that is included in the deal. this is something we have not seen before. here, the five plus one and the e.u. can meet together. russia and china will not have a veto. the sanctions can come back. it's not a perfect deal for the iranians, and i am sure it's not a perfect deal for us. it's a deal.

it's something that we can start discussing more constructively, situations beyond the nuclear bomb, situations in yemen, iraq, situations in lebanon, with bashar al-assad regime in syria and so forth. this is up to the iranians s. >> good to see you as always, we are always smarter for our conversations with you. ali, the chairman and c.e.o. and author of "the black banner, the inside story of iran,". >> i have more to talk to you. join me sunday night at 9:00 p.m. eastern. iran behind the deal, from the streets of tehran to the streets of hore moose. i'll bring you an inside look at the nation and people that call

>> tell me what you and your generation think is gonna to happen. i'm antonio mora, goodnight. when crime was high, a generation with highest levels of incarcerations, now that state budgets are under pressure, and the crime is lower, is the country open to