the protesters did not accept, did not accept assad's attempts, and also they watched that assad, just a few days after making an announcement in his speech that he was interested in a national dialogue process, killed syrians that were protesting -- over 100 syrians -- on the great friday protest. this was april 22. by may 24, we are less than two months into the revolution, 1000 syrians had died. you can imagine, 1000 syrians across all of syria, not just in one area but across all syria 1000 syrians have died in eight , weeks time. on august the 18, fast-forward a you months, we see leaders in the u.s., france, britain, and germany calling for assad to resign. dissidents announced the formation of the syrian national cap show -- national council. you are already seeing right here this period, why this is important, that i have highlighted it. you are already seeing that the opposition groups, notice the plural, the fragmentation is a key point that you will have seen over the past five years and heard over the past five years repeatedly mentioned. whose side are we taking? if we are

assad is stuck. the russians are stuck. so in a very unfair way, could you please open your crystal ball and tell us what you think will be present five years from now in damascus. just look forward. you've given us a sense of where things are right now, but project forward from where we are right now. it's an unfair question, i know it's difficult, but i'd still like to hear what you have to say. >> if i could start, i'll complete the painting i started out with. if the united states and the international community had been willing to spend real money in syria, one could have done a yugoslavia where isis conquered easily. we're not going to do that, because we've stuck to our international borders and our plan of power sharing and returning iraq and syria to theirs. that means that we bowed out, really. america is busy destroying the sunnis of iraq with a sectarian shi'ite regime. and we're both cooperating in a sense to destroy the remaining sunni powers that remain this there. they will be oppressed. it will be unstable.

, but it is assad who is biuying the oil from isi. and the reason is simple. the center of gravity for isis is iraq and the center of gravity for assad is western syria, vital syria, the damascus and aleppo. and the connection, the geography con titinuity betweene assad realm, that is what they are all focused on. so the centers of gravity are different. and the other thing that i think people miss a lot, when looking at t at the arraignan structure and isis, there is a vector for both of them. isis is a sunni revolution organization that wants to carry out revolution. in the islamic world. but they are focused on taking over sunni territory, that is where they are focused. and iran is quite happy to have isis out there forming revolution in sunni areas. there is no possibility they will become active in iran, for example. so there are points where they have friction between them, iran and assad and isis, but basically they are vectors moving in the same direction. >> mike, thanks, that is terrific. i want to thank you for coming and

assad's regime. in response, president obama is considering escalating his support for those rebel groups. according to the "wall street journal," the u.s. may provide these rebels with antimissile systems to shoot down syrian and possibly also russian jets. in a sign president putin feels confident, russian military jets simulated an attack on a u.s. war ship in the baltic sea . what do you think is happening here, clarence? >> i think the russians are waving their sabers at us. at the same time they're trying to expand their control in syria. without getting too deeply involved in the combat over there. sphere of influence, and the cease-fire that was broken is probably not going to get reestablished very quickly. but it needs to be genuine. >> what the russians are doing makes more sense than anybody else. they want to keep their ally assad in power. they want to keep their bases, both of those, they want to preserve the regime. and so they're fighting the rebels, both bad and good rebels. it's th

. >> so what is our present attitude towards president assad, bashar al-assad? you and i both have been to syria when he was viewed as kind of a possible reformer. >> well, he lost the opportunity. as -- as was said to me on occasion, he made mistakes and i think it is clear that assad made enormous, gigantic mistakes in not recognizing what was happening throughout his region and when his young people demonstrated, he met them with thug i are rather than with dialogue, and the result is that parents came out and he made sure they were met with bullets and violence and the result really was the beginning of the tearing apart of syria. so i don't know how he puts it. this is important. i don't see how, even if the united states or someone else said, oh, go ahead. you know, you try and make a government and we will support that idea, which we don't, you couldn't make it happen. there is no way for assad to be the person who puts the pieces back together again. >> rose: and we conclude this evening with tina brown, talking about her seventh women in the world summi

but without assad. and that the moderate opposition becomes part of the government and there is a government that can give the syrian people what they deserve, a country that runs and moderate and treats its people decently. we're a long way from that now. that's the vision for syria. these people have a role is the point. >> you think that's a realistic vision? one we could realistically achieve within the necessary time? >> i think it's a necessary one to achieve. because i think assad can't be part of the future of that country. >> what if he doesn't go? what if he doesn't leave? sec. carter: the -- this is why it's so important that the russians keep their commitment, which is to political transition there. they're the ones that have the most leverage over assad. it's very important they do that. as the chairman indicated, they're the ones that have the most leverage over assad. there's no resolution of the syrian civil war until that occurs. >> thank you. well thank you both for being here. secreta

assad is stuck. the russians are stuck. in a very unfair way could you please open your crystal ball and tell us what you think will be present five years from now in damascus? looking forward, if you could give us a good sense of where things are now the project forward from where we are right now. this is an unfair question that i knoi know it's difficult i wod still likely what you have to say. >> i won't just complete the painting i started out with. if the unite attorney and the international community have been willing to spend real money in syria, one could have done a yugoslavia and created a sunni state where isis conquered easily. we are not going to do that because we have stuck to international borders and our plan of power sharing amongst all these different sects. america's busy destroying the cities of iraq with a very sectarian shiite regime the rush is busy destroying the cities of syria and we are both cooperating in a sense to destroy the remaining sunni powers that remain in there. they will be oppressed

this attack fits the assad regime's abhorrent pattern of striking first responders. more than 100 have been killed in action. and many are killed in what are often referred to as double tap strikes. this is where, after a strike has been carried out on a location, forces, including airplanes, will sometimes return to that location after first responders have arrived to try to treat the injured, and another strike is carried out. that results in first responders themselves being victims. it's these tactics that are abhorrent, they're immoral, but unfortunately they're entirely consistent with the actions that we've seen from the assad regime for quite some time. this does place even more pressure on an already fragile cessation of hostilities. and it's the continued violation of that cessation of hostilities by the assad regime in supporting -- and supporting forces that is also having a negative impact on the political talks. the other concern that the united states and the international community continues to have is how the violations of the cessation of hostilitie

-- see assad exit in an orderly structured way. charlie: those are important words. you've got to have something to succeed him. john kerry: that is exactly what we are working on in geneva. that is the principle around which the geneva talks are organized. there will be a transition by mutual consent and both parties compromise to put people in place who manage the affairs of state until there is a new constitution and an election. ultimately the people of syria ratified their new leadership and the constitution through a referendum. charlie: do we have candidates to succeed him? john kerry: there are very qualified people who i think can earn the respect of all parties. charlie: what does vladimir putin want? john kerry: he wants a syria that is whole and secular and united. charlie: that is what we want. john kerry: that is exactly why we came together and therefore organized the conference is indiana and new york and be in make to push for the cessation of hostilities and try to get to the transition. their goal and iran's goal

now, in fact, as a consequence of the steps i took and the diplomacy we engaged in, assad removed the vast majority of those chemical weapons from syria. there was never a claim that, had i taken military action because of those chemical weapons, that we would have resolved the civil war in syria. but i want to be clear. i think there are those who make the argument, charlie, that somehow we can change a civil war inside of syria. if they are being honest, what they would have to argue is we would, in fact, deploy a large army to overthrow assad. the notion that by sending a few missile strikes into syria that we would have resolved the syrian conflict is simply not borne out by any of the subsequent facts. >> rose: beyond that, as you know, there is this question of red line and if you announce a red line and somebody crosses the red line that it raises questions about your will, your dependability and your credibility. ended up removing those chemical weapons, essentially syria caved. they gave in. with the help of the russians, they, for the first time, acknowledged they had chemic

president obama: an assad regime. i think they are also very much committed to maintaining the structure of the syrian state which we don't object to, either. where we have continually butted heads -- and this has been true six years -- is his insistence he cannot back unilaterally the removal of assad, that that is a decision aside and the syrians have to make. charlie: he said that to me, too. my impression is is that he is not committed to assad. he's just committed to a reasonable government in syria as he defines it. president obama: and that's where there's a potential overlap in interests. now, the challenges is that he's not the only person making the decisions. assad himself has something to say and the iranians have some thing to say about it. charlie: dothe iranians interest in syria and the russians differ? president obama: they do not perfectly overlap. the iranians are concerned about maintaining their connection to hezbollah in syria. they see it as a vital mechanism whereby hezbollah maintains its infl

like assad buys oil from isis. and the russians blame the turks but it's assad who is actually buying the oil from isis. and the reason for it is pretty simple. the center of gravity for isis is iraq. and the center of gravity for assad is western syria, what they call vital syria, damascus, and damascus and aleppo and the connection, the geographic continuity between the assad realm, that's what they are all focused on. so their centers of gravity are different and the other thing that people miss a lot is that when looking at the iranian structure and isis, there's a kind of same strategic structure. isis is a sunni organization that wants to carry out revolution in the islamic world and focused on revolution and taking over sunni territories. that's where they are focused. iran is quite happy to have isis out there foe meanting revolution in sunni areas. there's no possibility that they are going to become active in iran, for example. so there are points where they have friction between them. iran and assad and

of those of 17 million, about 60% are in areas controlled by assad's troops.he election comes as a surge in violence threatens a partial cease-fire. it also took place on the same day as u.n.-backed peace talks in geneva. syria's opposition says the election undermines these negotiations. >> and some of those key players have spoken publicly, the main syrian opposition group met with stefan. he said he wanted to see a renewed pledge from all sides in withholding -- upholding syria's cease-fire. he called the president a disease and asked him to step down. they will arrive in geneva later this week. brent: our correspondent barbara basil is covering those talks in geneva. here's what she had to say. barbara: the elections held at damascus are nothing but a disturbance. the talks are dismissing them as -- they are not internationally recognized, and will not be the thing that the rails this second round of the peace talks. however, there are other dangerous. the first, that the cease-fire will break down. the position groups here are saying that if assad does no

>> the no is that assad is quite dependent on russian support. so if you go back to last summer, i think the reason that we saw the russian intervention in the fall was that, over the summer and into the fall, assad was losing badly. the iranians and hezbollah weren't able to stem it. the russians came in and bolstered assad's position. >> rose: and said they were. and said they were. the russians also said their principal objective was to fight against i.s.i.l, but what they did predominantly early on was to bolster assad. >> rose: because putin believes in a strong state, not so much assad, but a strong state is crucial because he looks at libya, as does president obama, and says that's a disaster because it is a state without central authority. >> what russia was most concerned about was losing its investment, as it were, in syria. and they wanted -- >> rose: what's their investment in area? you mean in terms of before -- >> years and years of involvement in syria. it is a place in the middle east where they have had some involvement for sever

>> you mean directly engaging with assad? >> maybe not in a room, but in dealing -- yes. >> i don't think any american president will be directly engaging with assad. >> or indirect. >> or indirect. but you're saying, how would you essentially deal with this? >> what would you tell him, when he he's like, jeb was low energy, he was lying ted, who is this guy? >> it gets back to the original set-up. which guy is this? how do we figure out, is it bashar the reasonable reformer or the hardline dictator who's killed all these people? the only way to cut through that, that i know of, you would have to put him into hard dilemmas. and the only way to put him into hard dilemmas, you have to be willing to follow through on whatever dilemma you put him into. >> this is president trump, you just have to give him one sentence advice. [ laughter ] >> i'm not sure there is really an easy, one sentence -- i would say, set up your dilemmas well. >> i would say, if he was meeting with assad, and i'm president trump right now -- [ laughter ] -

david: if the russians are not supporting assad, i think there is a fair question about how secure assad ought to feel. charlie: talk about this conflict between syria and iran. david: what we contribute to this conversation is helping the president and senior policymakers understand iran's perspective on the region, how they view their role, what they are doing in the region, why they are doing what they are doing. likewise, the saudis -- we obviously have a much lesser relationship with the saudis than with the iranians. we have diplomatic relations. we have an understanding of what the saudis -- charlie: why are they so upset? david: the saudis and others in the gulf were concerned and expressed their concern with the nuclear deal with iran. they were concerned that that was somehow going to undermine their security. i think the president and national security team and we have been involved in this as well have made it as clear as possible and have acted on this with the saudis and others in the gcc, that we have their back, that we are supporting them, and we understand that iran is

-- by the assad forces. isn't that really wonderful, right? he's smart enough to know he had to mention the fact that, yes, of course, assad does use chemical weapons and torture his own people and so on and so i feel a little bit -- i, boris johnson, i feel a little bit sheepish about saying this but isn't it wonderful? no, actually it's not wonderful. believe me, i don't shed a tear for any isis fighter who has killed, but what are we talking about? who liberated palmiera? afghan, iraqi, shiite militias dominated by the iranian, trabd, equipped, and deployed by the iranians with the support of russian air power and as joe said, we have some contracted to the russians in syria which means we are building a new order. not just in syria but in the middle east, in which this russian-iranian alliance and this network of militias that the iranians have put together, which is now operating not just in syria but also in iraq, also in lebanon, also in yemen and so forth is an acceptable partner for the united state

but without assad. and that the moderate opposition becomes part of the government and there is a government that can give the syrian people what they deserve, a country that runs and moderate and treats its people decently. we're a long way from that now. that's the vision for syria. >> and so -- >> these people have a role is the point. >> you think that's a realistic vision? one we could realistically achieve within the necessary time? >> i think it's a necessary one to achieve. because i think assad can't be part of the future of that country. >> what if he doesn't go? what if he doesn't leave? >> the -- this is why it's so important that the russians keep their commitment, which is to political transition there. they're the ones that have the most leverage over assad. it's very important they do that. as the chairman indicated, there's no resolution of the syrian civil war until that occurs. >> thank you. well thank you both for being here. secretary carter and general dunford and for your service

david: assad is quite dependent on russian support. if you go back to last summer, i think the reason that we saw the russian intervention in the fall was that, over the summer and into the fall, assad was losing -- losing badly. the iranians were not able to stem it. has the law was not able -- hezbollah was not able to stem it. the russians came in and certainly bolstered assad's position. charlie: and said they were. david: the russians also said there -- their principal objective was to fight against isil. a strong state is crucial. looks at libya, as does president obama, and says that is a disaster, because it's a state without central authority. david: what russia was most concerned about was losing its investment, as a word, in syria. charlie: what do you mean, in terms of -- david: years and years of involvement in syria. they have a base. it's a place in the middle east where they have had some involvement for several decades now. to get back to your question of -- her assad is stronger he was certainly bolstered by assistanc

that assad is firmly entrenched because of the backing? an. carter: again, that is observation that we would make and did make with them. mr. graham: our goal is to destroy isil and replace a ssad. he is more firmly in power than ever. president obama will leave office in january, and it likely that assad

it's bashar al assad. and i wonder what you believe our options are in this obviously deteriorating situation in syria, which means a resumption of the slaughter, a resumption of the flow of refugees. mr. secretary? >> may i start and chairman join in behind. we are intent upon fighting isil in syria because our principal and paramount responsibility is to protect the american people, and isil's trying to attack the american people. but i agree with you also about the assad regime, and it's a reason why assad can't be part of the future of that country, in my judgment, because of what he's done to his people. and i also agree with you that while the cessation of hostilities has had an important effect, particularly -- both in the north and the south, but very much in the south in permitting the humanitarian assistance, it is not being completely abided by, that is, especially by the syrian regime. and finally, you mentioned russia. and while you're mentioning russia, i'll just remind you of what i've said

he was, he worked within assad's innermost security committee as a, as a mole essentially.ly to process all the paperwork for assad's innermost security committee and he was a member of the opposition from the beginning.f so it's from his testimony thatt he know a lot of how that committee worked.lo and he basically saw that every single night, assad's crisis cell which he formed in response to the syrian crisis in 2011. and they would demand security reports from all over the country and this young man named abdul majid baraka would collect all of the reports, read them and draft a summary for them to look at as they had theiras meetings. after their meetings when they've decided how to handle each security issue they would send a list of recommendations to assad through a courier and he would then review them, sometimes cross things out, sometimes add- >> sreenivasan: president assad would actually read these reports? >> absolutely. >> sreenivasan: edit them, sign them.y. >> and then return them to the crisis cell. and once they had clear instructions they would then send

is telling russia to rein in the assad government and stop these attacks. but how much influence realistically does russia actually have at this point? james: russia is in the lead here. russia turned around the whole conflict when it went in in september with a relatively small force but very effectively deployed by putin. therefore, do the attack -- to the extent that assad hanging onto power, it has russia to thank. we see russia using that role not to further the u.n. resolution, but rather, to drive what looks like a total victory by the assad forces. jane: you were the former ambassador to iraq. joe biden made a surprise visit to baghdad today. what impact is the turmoil there having on efforts to fight islamic state and bring to an end the conflict in syria? james: it is all of a piece. as even larger than the struggle against the isis terrorist movement, there is this undercurrent of sunni-shia conflict in the region. we want to take more action in iraq against isis. who's blocking that, tehran and its allies. in baghdad putting pressure on the iraq

secretary carter, you said assad cannot be part of the future. is that the explicit view of the president of the united states? sec. carter: yes, it is. that is why secretary kerry is working on a political transition to a regime after assad. we haven't undertaken to change that regime by force for a number of years. we have not made that undertaking our focus in syria. the department of defense is fighting isil because of its irect threat to americans. but with respect to the tragedy in the civil war in syria, we're working on that political transition. but it is a political transition fustanella leadership has indicated that it necessarily involves assad removing himself from the scene because of everything he has done to his people what you just cited. sen. wicker: voluntarily removing himself? sec. carter: no, here is where the russians would do well to make what they do correspond to what they say. that is to move the political transition forward. use the leverage that they have and have gained by intervening on assad's side to end the civil

one is our attempt to oust bashir assad, which resulted in a civil war that has assad's forces fighting a whole bunch of different uncoordinated, unconnected forces, some we hope are friendly to us. some we know are islamists. then there is the whole separate much of isis. so the complexity of what's going on over there is enormous. >> so then let's go to what we led with. if the u.s. is going to arm the seenian rebels with more sophisticated weapons, does that put us back at square one? how do you know who the bad guys really are? >> you know, this goes back to vetted rebels. you remember two years ago the c.i.a. had a $500 million program to come up with a bunch of vetted rebels and make them part of the moderate rebels that were going to fight against assad. that program was a total failure. at the end of the day, the entire program collapsed and in part because it took so long to find vetted rebels. so it's so ironic, you had that piece with amy kellogg. we're talk being syrians who fled syria, i'm sure we could find all the vetted rebels we need to up in europe. tens of thousands o

and assad., black serves as cochairman for the cruz campaign in virginia. but after word of his visit with members of assad's government became public yesterday, one of his aides told the associated press that black had resigned as co-chair of the cruz campaign shortly before his trip to avoid any possible distraction related to that trip. why might black's visit to syria and his promise to support assad create distransactions? well -- here's one example. the past two days the rebel-held city of aleppo has been under assault from air strikes leaving more than 60 dead. one direct target was an active hospital supported by doctors without boreders and red cross which has served as the main referral center for children in aleppo. more than a dozen people were killed at that hospital. at least three children are among them. doctors without borders confirmed three of the eight doctors who work there are dead, including one of the last pediatricians in all of the city of aleppo. to put that in perspec

we have power blocs now with the russians coming in support of the assad regime and the iranian chinese russian alliance that is moving towards support of that assad regime against the us backed saudi arabian qatari, other interests of t and what is the role of saudi arabia rise to isis and have they been part of this jihad that is increasingly being spread globally throughout africa and even into asia? host: bob, we will get joby warrick to answer that in the second, but how long have you been following this a story of the developments in this area? caller: i used to teach at the defense language institute on a daily basis interacting for theh last six and a half years i spent six years at the defense language institute, so i was dealing with people coming and going, commuting back and forthh from afghanistan and iraq like some people go from kansas city to chicago on a daily basis. host: thank you sir. guest: one of the great places in the world to live i think moderate must've been amazing, but to answer your question what is complicated this fight and what to do with isis is the fac

you interviewed bashar al-assad. how strong is he today? his forces are trying to retake aleppo, crucial effort for them, and we're looking at the human destruction and pictures every day. who is helping him? who is part of the fight that's taking place there now? >> well, the first answer is that assad is stronger than when i spoke to him a year ago and stronger than when you spoke to him a few years ago and the big reason is, of course, because not only are the iranians there but they have been there all along but, as everybody knows, the russians have stepped in. now, the russians is supposedly ended or reduced their engagement, but they've withdrawn very little of their equipment and material, and their troops and more importantly their planes are still engaged. so in the last few days, reports from aleppo are that the city, rebel-held areas are being hit, mostly civilian areas, by the way, hit not by just helicopters and barrel bombs, typically assad's air force, but fixed winged fighter aircraft shooting missiles strongly suggesting t

this individual was said to be close to bashar al assad. how close is that close? >> according to the evidence that was used to convict him, peter, which essentially recorded him with explosives, he said that bashar al assad personally ordered him or was aware of plots to plant these explosives in lebanon to target different religious institutions and personalities in order to create some sort of civil strife or conflict in lebanon, so according to him, very close indeed. >> some people were saying his first sentence was by and far just too too lenient. was the court reacting to that or was this just part of an ongoing legal process? >> well, i mean it depends who you speak to, really, there is no doubt that this case has been very closely monitored not just by the average person here in lebanon but by all the different sides vying for influence in lebanon or control in lebanon and obviously also the regional powers who are at play in what is becoming more of a cold war or proxy war being fought on lebanon. with regard to the first sentence since the first sentence

what to do about assad, which hasn't been solved. what to do about a resurging, kurdish, nationalist terrorist state that crosses borders throughout the region. >> we haven't talked about the news either, which is the al qaeda affiliate in syria, and it has distinguished itself by not trying to attract fighters in syria, it's homegrown. we have to worry about that group. syria is divided, and it's probably not going to come back together as a state. thanks to russia, assad has been able to extend his territory a little bit, but he still controls the area of one-third of the country. the kurds are on the move, and they are interesting because they have support from both the united states and russia, and obviously the turks don't like them. and they have expanded their area of autonomy in syria. and then you have the chunk of isis, is it likely to be an al mall gum of groups that have support from the saudis and the united states, and it's not as if isis should rinks, it's going to be more coherent. >> if you look at the layup there, a

assad's baath party won a clear majority in the election a few years ago.s time, the election is likely to be similar. given the moderate influence held by syrian mps in political affairs, observers expect the result to bring out little change. brent: i am joined here in the studio by a syrian journalist based here in berlin. it is hard not to be a cynic when you talk about a civil war that is still raging and parliamentary elections. what is going on tomorrow? sirine: this is a show. perhaps for the outside viewer, this is really weird, but for a syrians, this has been going on for a long time. don't forget that there are presidential elections to come soon. this is all connected. brent: there have been what, to elections -- two elections prior to this one since the uprising against a side begin? is there any proof that the results of those elections have any influence on the course that the assad regime is on? sirine: it has been five years, assigned is still there. the revolution, nobody remembers anymore. people are still dying. parliament was there whe

>> we are not pro-assad. >> really? >> assad forces ended upbeating isis. >> it's a problem.an force is posting online with the other terrorist organizations. that's who -- >> you are into this. thanks so much. straight ahead, on a lighter note, dawson, beyonce knowles and tom brady coming up in the fastest 7. >>> we'll talk about a we're always looking for ways to speed up your car insurance search. here's the latest. problem is, we haven't figured out how to reverse it. for now, just log on to compare.com... plug in some simple info and get up to 50 free quotes. choose the lowest and hit purchase. now...if you'll excuse me, i'm late for an important function. compare.com. saving humanity from high insurance rates. >>> welcome back. time for -- the fastest seven minutes on television. three stories, seven minutes, one principle host. check out dawson. dropped this bombshell on the hillary campaign. >> we are fending for ourselves right now. we are literally under attack for not just supporting the other candidates. i'm with monica lewinsky on this, bullying is bad. she's act

well, today assad held elections, ignoring u.s. demands that he step down. elizabeth palmer is in damascus. >> reporter: more than 3,000 candidates vied for seats in syria's parliament, but none represented genuine opposition, so every vote was really an endorsement of president bashar al-assad, who, along with his wife, made a personal appearance today to cast his ballot. this election, with its thousands of candidates, its ballot boxes and polling stations is a surreal exercise, considering that syria is very much at war and the ceasefire month is now collapsing. so to say this election is flawed is an understatement. there was no voting for the millions of syrians who fled the country. or those who live in areas controlled by opposition groups and none in the many active battle zone, some close to the center of the capital. but the fiercest fighting right now is around aleppo, where opposition activists say on the weekends syrian helicopters dropped barrel bombs on a northern suburb, injuring children who live there. the syrian government is determined to

does it include president assad?understand there are a couple of scenarios that we keep assad in place and have the opposition working under him. the opposition says no, we just want him out. how does that play out? >> well, i think all of these talks in geneva, this whole idea of some sort of grand deal with assad, it's really a pipe dream, actually. and i think that -- i very much doubt that we're going to see anything fruitful coming out of these negotiations. and let's bear in mind as well the entire iran nuclear deal is a disaster. it has strengthened the hand of the iranian regime. it's also actually strengthened the hand of the assad regime. i think at the moment, the priority for the west should be to crush and defeat isis, and then focus on delling with assad. but we should be under no illusions here. the iran nuclear agreement has been extremely bad for u.s. interests in the middle east. there's also, of course, a vacuum of american leadership at the moment. and it's very sad to see the european union, actu

but assad and russia who denounced the deployment of the 250 troops to it syria.his comes as international talks to try to bring about a peaceful solution to the ongoing five year civil war in syria is beginning to fail. the ceasefire in february held for several months, but it is crumbling before our eyes and you are seeing a rising death toll as the situation is getting worse with the summer fighting season. >> just when you thought it couldn't get worse. thank you, conner. >> an investigation of a accidental bombing of a afghan hospital. the factors that contributed and who is held responsible. a brutal regime sentencing a second american to prison. we'll tell you what he's accused of coming up. i'm only in my 60's. i've got a nice long life ahead. big plans. so when i found out medicare doesn't pay all my medical expenses, i looked at my options. then i got a medicare supplement insurance plan. [ male announcer ] if you're eligible for medicare, you may know it only covers about 80% of your part b medical expenses. the rest is up to you. call now and find out

charlie: here in palmera, the assad regime taking it back. russia came in and propped him up and use them. john kerry: he is clearly stronger than he was. that doesn't change the fundamental dynamic. if you're going to end the war. you can't do it with us out there. charlie: before you enter the war he has got to be gone. kerry: the war will not come to a complete ending if aside against the wishes of the lord jenkins lord bettman and there in very. the opposition will not fight and fighting because of what he they are nota gun going to suddenly disappear. assad is in a stronger position they still have to transition. charlie: you spent hours with vladimir putin. what does he want? he wants russia to be respected. ?hat else john kerry: i don't claim to be intelligent. i think he is strategic. and tactical. sometimes more tactical than strategic. he wants his point of view acknowledged as to certain degree his interests reciprocated. there are limits. the crimea is not changing. you think there is reason to believe that crimea can be taken bac

yes, we could get rid of assad to mhat would benefit isis.eah, regime change is easy, getting rid of dictators is easy. but before you do that am a yet to think about what happens the day after. >> with all the respect, you voted for regime change with respect to libya. you joined the senate and voting to get rid of gaddafi and you asked that there be a security council validation of that with the resolution. all of these are very difficult issues. amy: that is hillary clinton and bernie sanders debating in new hampshire a while ago. seymour hersh, if you could talk about this issue and this must recent news, charles koch, the republican mega-donor, saying he could see himself actually supporting hillary clinton over a republican nominee. >> well, i don't believe that for a minute, but that is another story, what koch said, i think it is just pressure. whoever heard of republican talking about nato is useless, which pretty much a lot of people i know believe it is pretty much useless. there are a lot of things that trump said are pretty remar