in the last eight years, ahmadinejad has stolen the stage. he doubted the holocaust, suggested the u.s. maybe involved in the september 11 attacks, hinted israel shouldn't even exist. is this president likely to sing a different tune? >> very much. he would be no different than the reform president that existed about ahmadinejad came. i think what he is doing actually is going to the previous policy of having an olive branch to the united states, which the reform presidents did in iran before ahmadinejad. at that time, it was actually the bush administration that rejected the peace offerings, so i think he's just going back to a policy that iran has had before. >> so, professor, you mentioned this olive branch which raises the question of israel. are they likely to have a place in the talks? >> not israel, but if there is agreement about the nuclear appeals, this would give assurances to israel that iran is not eminently producing weapons, and of course, israel has been for years claiming that iran is on the verge of having a nuclear bomb. >>

they're the anti-ahmadinejad.re not going to make this kind of gratuitously offensive mistake, which ultimately undermine iran's position, certainly more than they strengthen it. >> thank you so much. >> any time. >> we'll be right back. [ female announcer ] who are we? we are the thinkers. the job jugglers. the up all-nighters. and the ones who turn ideas into action. we've made our passions our life's work. we strive for the moments where we can say, "i did it!" ♪ we are entrepreneurs who started it all... with a signature. legalzoom has helped start over 1 million businesses, turning dreamers into business owners. and we're here to help start yours. i've got a big date, but my sinuses are acting up. it's time for advil cold and sinus. [ male announcer ] truth is that won't relieve all your symptoms. new alka seltzer plus-d relieves more sinus symptoms than any other behind the counter liquid gel. oh what a relief it is. than any other behind the counter liquid gel. building animatronics is all about getting thi

>> the same statement was made by ahmadinejad, and he said it with a smile. the facts point to the fact that the irani and's are being mendacious when they make that statement. >> what was your view, your response, to what president presidentto say e >> obama said, very importantly, that any iranian words have to be backed up by actions, actions that have to be transparent and verifiable. we would support that, of course. >> are you happy to see a potential for real diplomatic driving towards the targets you would like to see? >> it is obviously impossible to reach a real diplomatic solution in which the military nuclear program would be dismantled, if there was we would support that, but we are concerned that behind the smokescreen of false promises, like we saw in north korea a few years ago, that under the cover of that kind of will be the irani and's making nuclear weapons and that is what we are concerned about. >> the problem is that iran has said all along they want a stable nuclear program. they have said that their program has military elements of gr

the interesting thing that's happened is now that ahmadinejad is gone.madinejad for the israeli right was the gift that kept on giving because he allowed the fear mongering to keep on. now he's gone, the israeli right has lost what many iranians call their best agent. >> i want to get your take, where do we move from here when it comes to dealing with syria and iran, and also the influence from israel? >> the new government has mentioned several locations. they do not seek war with israel, they do not seek confrontation with israel. but the mistrust exists between iran and israel. they think they're conspiring to dismantle each other, vaporize each other. that is not going to happen at all. iran does not pose a threat to any country, including israel. we have hundreds of thousands of iranians married to syrians, and they have many syrian nationals in cities and towns. you can't separate iran from syria. we're going to live together just as we've been living with iraq and lebanon under similar circumstances including afghanistan. they need to include iran

the people rallied around him because he was not associated with ahmadinejad.he's looking at i have to get reelected soon. if i can put a pause button on nuclear ambitions and not be so flamboyant, the people continue to like and trust me. that's the biggest thing to his advantage right now. in many ways, how gorbachev was when you saw communism in the ussr and they overexpanded. the people were at their wits end and you may have that here. >> maria, the presidents, both of them are going to be at the united nations this week. is it wise for president obama to have a direct face-to-face meeting? how would that go over with the american public? >> there's a possibility for them to sit down and talk. how formal will it be? we'll see. but, it's going to be interesting to see how it does play out here, martin, because the american people do have, i think, a deep psychological impact of their image of iran. i'm one of those z. look, i grew up in elementary school, catholic school and we prayed every morning for the release of the hostages. but, what has changed is w

mahmoud ahmadinejad dressed in his shabby suit would saunter in, ramble and rant about the dangers of america and deny the holocaust and taunt us, his invited guests. rouhani arrived eloquently attired and he spoke intelligently and precisely on every topic discussed. the meeting was off the record but we were allowed to share some observations. i was struck by rouhani's optimism on the nuclear issue which he said could be resolved in a short time. the world wants to be assured that our program is peaceful, he said, and we want to help them gain that confidence. rouhani admitted that economic sanctions against his country have taken a heavy toll on its citizens. he was hopeful about better relations. i came away willing to believe that rouhani is a pragmatist and wants to end his country's isolation but it remains unclear whether he has the authority to act on behalf of his government. consider what happened on tuesday when the iranians turned down a white house offer of a brief meeting with president obama. rouhani explained that he had no problem in principle with handshake but said

mahmoud ahmadinejad would saunter in, deny the holocaust and taunt us, his invited guests. rowhani arrived punctually, in flowing clerical robes and spoke intelligently and precisely. the meeting was off the record. i was struck by rowhani's optimism on the nuclear issue, which he said could be resolved in a very short time. the world wants to be assured that our program is peaceful, and we want to help them gain that confidence. rowhani also admitted that the economic sanctions against his country had taken a heavy toll, denying people food and medicine. he suggested that both the united states and iran had made miscalculations, but that, he said, was in the past. he was hopeful about better relations. i came away willing to believe rowhani is a pragmatist. whether he has the authority to act on behalf of his government as you know clear. consider what happened tuesday when iranians turned down a white house offer during a brief meeting with president obama. he said in principle he had no problem with a handshake but said it was a sensitive issue and would have been the fi

. >> this guy is not ahmadinejad. he's not ahmadinejad in a variety of different ways.e's a completely different person in style, inclination, and i think in goal. the second thing i would say the kind through crystal clear is they want to deal. they want to deal now. they want to get it done and get it done quick. he wants something to come back to his constituency in tehran and say, look, you voted for change. >> and that message came across? >> huge. >> you feel like he's backed up by the supreme leader? >> he was acting with confidence, and the foreign minister, who i've known for years, spoke with confidence. if you look at the supreme leaders' comments, speeches he has made, he's supporting him. the supreme leader has been skeptical, people have come and said we want to deal with the united states. he would say you go and do that, best of luck and when you come back empty handed, i won't be surprised. he's skeptical but he's willing to give rouhani some rope, some room. >> and you're familiar with mahmoud ahmadinejad. his predecessor. >> just a dramatic difference

the joke in teheran, i don't know if it was a joke, with the departure of ahmadinejad, the israelis lost their biggest supporters in iran. >> tough words from the president an a definitive time line. if he doesn't get it the relationship might look a lot less like this but this once again. patty culhane, al jazeera, washington. >> netanyahu addressed the media, the truth is vital for security and vowed to tell the truth in the face of sweet talk. >>> and speaking of israel, a modern day spy story. a hearing for his arrest for ealingsdly spying for israel, israeli intelligence officials say he used a bell january passport, to cover up terrorist activities. >>> at least 16 people mostly teenage students were killed in an air strike in syria. the strike hit a secondary school on saturday, and the city of roca, claims to show the aftermath. the city has been under the control of insurgents since march. >>> 43 rebel groups in syria have merged into a group they call the islam army. more on the impact. >> rebels fighting in the outskirts of damascus, new group called the islam army and it incl

ahmadinejad and the last decade, there was no break through in these. president rouhani wants to present for flexibility and transparency. that is his promise. it seems that's what the iranians are going to present in these talks o. of course, the p5 plus one will be meeting, that will be a huge meeting, john kerry between the usn iranian diplomat. we're just going to have to wait and see what happens, if they actually present that and what the united states does, as well. >> thank you very much. >> as you heard, one of the biggest concerns from iran is over its nuclear program. the sudden shift has one american watchdog group changing course. we explain. >> from bill boards in times square to on line ads. >> building a nuclear arsenal. >> to demonstrations united against nuclear iran, the group has been steadfastly devoted to their cause. they have been fervent protestors on the front lines, particularly each year when the general assembly comes to new york. >> this week is like our superbowl. >> this time, it's different, mainly because the newly elec

president ahmadinejad said, the holocaust is a myth." do you agree?translator: i'm not a historian. i'm a politician. what is important for us is that we should get closer to one another. the nations in the world should get closer to one another so they can could prevent brutality. what i could say that the people of palestine should not be displaced. they should return to their homes. president >> president ahmadinejad had people believing that he wanted to wipe israel off the map, do you agree with this, is that what you want? >> translator: what we wish for this region is the rule of the people's votes. we believe in ballot boxes and palestinian issues who believe that people's votes should determine the destiny of that region. the votes of all, palestinians, all those who belong to palestine. that's what we believe and what we respect. >> so, i've just asked you two questions that relate to things that president ahmadinejad said that caused a lot of americans to be concerned about iran. and i want to know, i want to ask you again if you want to sa

but it's worth it give a short period of time what the true intentions of th of iran. >> ahmadinejad is the one who said they were going to wipe israel off the map. this president does not say such incendiary things. but we know his background. he's been part of the regime. >> which is why one lette lettes sent to him asking him to denounce. >> why should new yorkers be hosting this regime that is opposite of american values. >> reporter: whether they will back up recent words with action remains to be seen. these men are not overly hopeful just as yet. >> not when we see the increasing nuclear development and i don't know going assistance to the assad regime and syria. we see the on going human rights abuses in iran. >> reporter: still with the iranian president set to speak tuesday afternoon for the first time in this group's fight against a nuclear iran. >> we want to hear what he has to says and what happens. >> still ahead we have an update on the deadly siege in nairobi. there are reports that floors inside the building may have collapsed. on inside story, we bring together une

. >> they don't have ahmadinejad, the gift that keeps on giving for the chest thumpers around the world. the joke in teheran and i don't know if it's maybe not even a joke, that with the departure of ahmadinejad, the israelis lost their best agent in iran. >>> if president obama doesn't get his time line, the relationship might look a lot less like this but this once again. patty culhane al jazeera washington. >> politics in the u.s. now have 24 hours to come up with a deal before government services start to shut down. democrats and republicans are wrangling over a new budget. they are still no closer to a deal. jean meserve reports from washington, d.c. >> when it comes to a possibility of a government shut down republicans and democrats are playing the blame game. >> this is a terrible destructive strategy totally unnecessary. >> the president is the one saying? i will shut down government if you don't give me everything i want on obamacare. >> house will be in order. >> on the wee hours of sunday morn, the house of representatives did pass legislation funding government. >> i say it

mahmoud ahmadinejad was famous for that.the holocaust happened, again and again, and last week, publicly, again, after the jewish new year. mahmoud ahmadinejad was the holocaust denier, and probably still is. but he is no longer president of iran, his term ended last month. rowhani replaced mahmoud ahmadinejad, look at this message, "i wish all jews, especially iranian jews a special rosh hashanah "really? they ran a story denying that he could have said something like that on twitter because they say he actually doesn't have a twitter account. actually, they say he doesn't have a tweeter account. so do we believe them when they say their new president doesn't tweet and so couldn't have tweeted that nice thing to jewish people? i am not inclined to believe the foreign agency on anything. so here is the thing, the big beef between iran and the world is the nuclear program. the talks will be handled by this guy, the country's new foreign minister. and the country's new foreign minister really did definitively did send this mes

down in the days of ahmadinejad and the hunt for stereotype of the crazy america-hating anti-semitic wearing jacket wearing president. but how different can this rouhani guy be. >> though iran usually blocks iranians from twitter, now rouhani is tweeting. >> the surprising and unprecedented outreach that began with another tweet two weeks ago wishing the world's jews a happy rosh hashanah holiday. (laughter) >> jon: did not see that coming. well that is different, finally iran has reached the same level of tolerance as your local ford dealership. not that rouhani's wiped the whole slate clean. >> let me ask you, president ahmadinejad said the holocaust is a myth. do you agree? >> he's a historian, i'm a politician. >> jon: missed it by that much. here's a tip on the playing of the i'm not a historian card. if someone asking you, president rouhani, do you think the smooth hawley tariff contributed to the depression. you can bring out ot i'm not a historian. but when the question is was the holocaust real, i believe the proper response to that would be [bleep] yeah, yeah, it was real.

and talking to antonio morrow, jim said that this is no ahmadinejad. a very different kind of man. apparently he said that he is doing this because he has a window of opportunity. he was elected by the iranian people to be a breath of fresh air and a lot of them said good luck with the united states. and he wants to do something, and he wants it quickly too. two or three months is his timeframe. but today, president hassan rouhani spoke at a non-proliferation conference here at the general assembly, and to show how markedly different he is than ahmadinejad, he never referenced other countries not having nuclear weapons as well. and by that, he means israel. > >> interpreter: nuclear weapons states have primary responsibility for nuclear disarmament. i strongly urge them to comply with this long, overdue, legal obligation. where fulfillment of nuclear disarmament obligations must not be delayed any further. >> so there we are. that is the president of iran speaking within just the last hour or so here at the united nations general assembly f. one other footnote, one of the things ha

about ahmadinejad not showing up for 11 days in a row. >> what was the reason for the dispute?>> there were rumors everywhere, and there was no way to know exactly what it was, but we knew that for the first time we were seen a lot of infighting the top levels of the islamic republic. one thing that is in porton to note is limited to shot and his closest advisers -- one thing that is important to note is committed to shot and his closest advertisers pushed away. there is some support from the clerical elite. hassan rohani has come out and is trying to show a different face for the islamic republic, what is important to know is that because of all of this political infighting there is a significant portion of both the revolutionary guard and politicians that were very much against ahmadinejad. >> you are a filmmaker getting your phd here in new york and you have been looking at chemical weapons in a big issue is around support of syria. in recent headlines we reported -- onlyly disclosed disclosed information showed the u.s. helped saddam hussein launch chemical weapons on iran.

he knows the delusional as ahmadinejad.if you have to do a deal with the united states, you need to do it now, not three years from now. >> you mentioned former president ahmadinejad, what role will it take here for the european and the u.s. delegation walking out during the speech from president ahmadinejad. we go from that scene to the president of the united states revealing in a press conference, i just got off the phone with president hassan rouhani. how significant is this? >> i think it is significant and i think it is historical. i think the dominant narrative with iran is people want normal relations with the united states. they're tired of being sanctioned and marginalized from the rest of the world. >> you're going to make news today. you met with the chief of staff of president had a ra rouhani. >> yes, i did. >> what did you take from that? >> first i was very happy with the trip. this was the best opportunity that we've had since the revolution, and we have to use this opportunity to solve our problems with th

. >> we never heard this tone, we certainly never heard it from former president ahmadinejad. president rouhani said he wants a constructive interaction with the world. what do you make of this? >> i think it's a change in tone. it's a step. it's welcome. we did have a more positive tone than years ago. but what we have not seen is change in ira iranian reaction d policies to this point. they're still running ahead for rich uranium. if they wanted a civilian nuclear program that's achiev achievable in corporation with the iaea. so we have to see some changes there is. we still have iran supporting the government and syria, supporting hezbollah, playing a growing regional role in what is becoming the conflicts in the middle east. >> there were a lot of issues. if we stay focused on the nuclear program for a moment. president rouhani said that they would not be building nuclear weapons. will the west be more willing to hear rouhani out whereas in the past ahmadinejad was essentially shut out? >> well, i think that's the wrong question. >> okay. >> the west has been willing to he

i understand ahmadinejad was a holocaust denier.on't you think most people in iran understand what happened during world war ii in. >> they do. he is in a way undermining his predecessor. this was an official line of the iranian government so he is basically saying, i disagree with my predecessor. i'm acknowledging something that he had denied. and this is basically a very open and public break among the leadership in iran. and he is doing it not inside iran. he is doing it in the united states. and for that reason, the hard liners were very shocked by this. and they also did not want to show to the west that there is this break and there is this breach between the hard liners and rouhani. >> and earlier he had send out a twet wishing a happy new area to the jews. not only in iran but around the world. what does that say? when you saw the sweet this. >> he is trying to change the conversation. he is strike to change the context in which it happens. he wants to move away from, we want to annihilate israel and not only that, we want t

one this guy is not ahmadinejad. that he is smiling and blah, blah, he has completely different personality. when you're with ahmadinejad he is the smartest guy in the room whether he is or it's not. it is always about him. he is very peculiar personality. you can tell rouhani is a political professional. he is focused on the process and the second big thing that came out of this was not only is he not ahmadinejad, he wants a deal and wants it quick. he doesn't want a big deal that will take a lot of time and is complicated. he wants deal on nuclear that is small and get the ball rolling i can go back and sell in tehran. jenna: sounds like you're optimistic? >> i've seen this movie before and everyone find a way not to be successful. i think we'll have to wait for the results. i will say this, this is the best shot all the countries had in a long, long time. jenna: claudia, you've been at the u.n., and covering this event this week. the president of iran was at a non-proliferation meeting this morning. we have the me

play that conversation that you had with the compared to the interview that i did with mahmoud ahmadinejadyear, struck a much more conciliatory tone in the fact he admitted there had been a holocaust which was certainly nothing that ahmadinejad would ever admit to. what did you make of that? how important is that kind of concession? and do you see a real shift there in the relationship with america? how much do you trust him? >> first of all, i think it's interesting commentary on the world in which we're living that admitting that the holocaust occurred qualifies as being a moderate. i mean, in other words, if you get into the fact based world, there's something to it. at least we can have something to talk about. i was hoping and i think the president was that the opening of the u.n. would give them a chance to, you know, maybe even do more. this is erie reminiscent of what happened when the last iranian president was there. he spoke and i spoke. i went out in the audience and spoke to the american delegation and listened to his speech and apologized for america's role in overthrowing th

the world came to now ahmadinejad before him. what was important about what he just said versus what we have heard from iran before? >> reporter: this is a very, very big deal. i can tell you at the white house and at the highest levels of the state department they were watching for this all day. they were looking for these signals in this interview. he made it very clear he wants a deal on the nuclear weapons. the president said on telemundo yesterday he wants to test his seriousness. that is what they are going to be looking for at the u.n. there is no formal meeting scheduled. they are not planning one. unlike ahmadinejad, his predecessor, you can understand ethics week when both of them are at the u.n., same time, same place, they are going to look for an opportunity to see each other, perhaps to have a real conversation. they believe that iran b want this is because of the oh sanctions, because they are crippling the economy, that the time is right but there is a short window to see if iran is serious, whether this man with

ga speech, that were parts of that which toned down and softened what we would have heard from ahmadinejad last year but represent nis" of it slightly condemning drone attacks on civilians, that was definitely a reference to u.s. foreign policy. had there been a meeting hours earlier between him and obama, there would have been people in the white house wishing they hadn't made that will handshake happen perhaps. that will fuel those who suggest this is purely buying time. it's a charm offensive. at the end of the day, you can't fault the fact that the highest meeting if happened. they took the gamble. now we have to see if there's something on ground on paper that changes. >> nick, can't let you go without asking you about syria. i mean, dozens of people killed again on the ground with conventional weapons today. just outside damascus. what's happening with the resolution on that? where is that going? >> a deal seems to have been struck basically. we're waiting 0 hear from the u.n. monitoring group how they can implement what was agreed between john kerry and sergey lavrov. tonight at 8:0

this guy is not ahmadinejad in a variety of ways. he's a different person in style and inclination and goal. the second thing that came through crystal clear is they want to deal, they want to deal now and get it done and done quick. he wants something to come back to his constituency in tehran and say you voted for change. >> that message came across. >> huge. >> does it feel like he's backed up by the supreme leader. >> i think so. his foreign minister who i have known for years spoke with confidence. if you look at the supreme leaders speeches that he made in the last couple of weeks, it's changed. people have been spectacle. people have gone to him saying, "we want to deal with the united states", he said, "you go do that, when you come back empty handed i won't be surprised." he's scept -- scepticcal but willing to give hassan rouhani some rope. >> you have met him before, you a met ahmadinejad before. >> he was an unusual character. i spent about 20 hours with him. he was going to be the smartest guy in the room, even if he was

heard from iran's previous president, ahmadinejad. add to that the foreign minister set to meet with secretary of state john kerry on the sidelines of the u.n. general assembly meeting happening in this hour. >> historic meeting. >> amazing development. >> historic meeting. the highest level talks between two governments since the late 1970s, 34 years. jim sciutto joining us from washington. hearing that john kerry and iran's foreign minister is sitting down with their counterparts, other leader there's, other foreign ministers, six major powers. how do we expect it to unfold and tell us again about the significance of the meeting. can't be overstated, historical nature of this. >> reporter: sure. first, let's talk about how it's going to set up this is part of the p-5 plus 1 process, permanent five members of the u.n. security council, including the u.s., plus one being germany and iran joining it. the way it starts, it will be catherine ashton, in effect the eu, european union foreign minister will convene the meeting with one step

mindful of ahmadinejad's reputation for anti-western rhetoric, rouhani used his op-ed to argue he will bring a new attitude to the united nations next week. the threat is an iran with a nuclear weapon. to prevent that, the united nations imposed tough economic sanctions that have cut iran's oil revenues in half and triggered double-digit unemployment. the white house believes rouhani's own words suggest iran is seeking an economic lifeline. lif president obama took the first diplomatic step, writing rouhani a letter of congratulations after the iranian election. rouhani wrote back a short time later. the white house will now not rule out a face-to-face meeting next week at the united nations. iran says its nuclear program is all about peaceful electric power, but international inspectors contend iran has technology that goes far beyond that and could produce a nuclear weapon. until iran gives that technology up or allows inspectors unlimited access to it, the white house, scott, will take note of iran's new language but remain suspicious of its motives. >> pelley: thanks, major. the pr

. >> and he compared to the interview they did with mahmoud ahmadinejad last year struck a much moreonciliatory tone particularly in the fact he admitted there had been a holocaust, which is nothing mahmoud ahmadinejad would admit to. what do you think of that concession? >> first of all, i think it's an interesting commentary on the world in which we're living that admitting that the holocaust occurred qualifies as being a moderate. >> of course president clinton is right. i mean, the holocaust happened. and the kind of stuff that the iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad did over the last eight years, bringing holocaust deniers, having these ridiculous conferences in iran, standing here at the united nations doing that. but it's not the majority of the people who believe that. >> and this is my kind of maybe out of left field comment about the holocaust deniers and everything else. our greatest ally there is turkey. in that region. yet turkey denies the armenian genocide. to the point where obama as a candidate would talk about it as when i'm in office i will recognize it. and i'll

. >> and he compared to the interview they did with mahmoud ahmadinejad last year struck a much morehe fact he admitted there had been a holocaust, which is nothing mahmoud ahmadinejad would admit to. what do you think of that concession? >> first of all, i think it's an interesting commentary on the world in which we're living that admitting that the holocaust occurred qualifies as being a moderate. >> of course president clinton is right. i mean, the holocaust happened. and the kind of stuff that the iranian president mahmoud ahmadinejad did over the last eight years, bringing holocaust deniers, having these ridiculous conferences in iran, standing here at the united nations doing that. but it's not the majority of the people who believe that. >> and this is my kind of maybe out of left field comment about the holocaust deniers and everything else. our greatest ally there is turkey. in that region. yet turkey denies the armenian genocide. to the point where obama as a candidate would talk about it as when i'm in office i will recognize it. and i'll recognize the genocide. and he's

iranian counterpart tomorrow what can we expect here we sold this deal this deal proved elusive with ahmadinejad at the helm what changes now that rouhani is there. well sam i look like we're finally beginning to see some baby steps take place between iran and the u.s. trying to kind of finally approach each other that a highly anticipated meeting that we were looking forward to seeing between obama and rouhani would have been the first in over three decades between the u.s. and iranian president that meeting did not take place but yes tomorrow kerry and has iranian counterpart will be holding talks and those should certainly shed more light on whether or not we could see some kind of improvement between these relationship between these two countries and of course you know the reason that people are being optimistic that something might actually come out of this is because over the last eight years especially when mahmoud ahmadinejad would come here the previous president lots of fiery speeches controversial statements aimed at the west and the west of course for years now the united states and

>> you don't see any significant change wien this new president and ahmadinejad?be a change of styl. if there's any seriousness, he has to cease enriching uranium and take the stockpile they have and ship it abroad, close the secret facility that was made to prevent the west from preventing him from getting a nuclear weapon, close that and he has to close the plutonium reactor which could make a weapon very quickly. >> could that be done through dialogue? i raise the question, there's a lot of speculation. the white house is indicating maybe the president next week at the united nations general assembly, president obama would meet with the president rouhani. >> president obama has said that his words have to be tested. and there are four security"rút cou'cil resolutions that iran has violated. remember how hard it was to get a secure council resolution on syria? you have four of them. they're in violation. only after they have stopped the enrichment, only after they have closed them, stopped the stockpile abroad. >> you would be upset if there was a meeting next w

he also said -- it was also a very different kind of interview from former president ahmadinejad, whoave interviewed. it was less bombastic, more conciliatory and it was also clear that president rouhani and his team see that his trip to the united nations in new york next week will be a major opportunity for improving relations with the west. andrea? >> ann curry, this is extraordinary. we know, you and i, you particularly, how tense past interviews have been at that presidential palace. tell me, with this signal, certainly, we can expect that the white house is going to pick this up. i've been told as recently as today and last night that top officials in the national security team say that the president does want to see, to test very quickly whether this really is an opening. they think that maybe this is self-interest, but they think that the american sanctions have created such economic pressure that iran is really ready to make a deal. >> it's difficult for iran to admit that the economy in iran has been affected by the sanctions, but there is no doubt that it has been affected