rouhani or obama? >> rouhani. he refused to take that meeting as though he was a guy sitting on a rope line, shaking hands with the president of the united states. >> well, there was a lot of behind-the-scenes ground work leg for the meeting that didn't happen. and the iranians in the end decided that it was a bridge too far for their domestic politics. same thing happened in 1995 when clinton was in office and there was a new diplomat and they were trying to do it. to read a lot into that, it is ridiculous. both of these leaders won because they are finally getting together after 35 years of a stalemate. >> i think rouhani comes out ahead because that we need discussion and obama admitted in his own speech that iran can proceed forth with a peaceful nuclear generating facility and israel has been sidelined out of the conversation. >> mark? >> no, i don't think this is the kind of gesture that franklin spires confident that he wouldn't meet with the president. it wasn't the big issue one way or another. but i do t

there we see iran's president rouhani about to be introduced. what are you expecting from his remarks? >> remember, this is his inaugural speech to the international body. and he has signaled in every way that he is going to change the tone of the iranian presence in the international community. >> let's listen in. >> translator: in the name of ala, praise be to god, the lord of the world, blessings and peace will upon our profit mohammed and his kin and companions. >> translator: there president, mr. secretary general, excellencies, ladies and gentlemen, at the outset i would like to offer my most sincere [ inaudible ] on your deserved election to the presidency of the general assembly. and seize the moment to express appreciation for the valuable efforts of our distinguished secretary general. mr. chairman, our world today is replete with fear and hope, fear of war and hostile regional and global relations, fear of deadly confrontation of religious, ethnic, and national identities, fear of institutionalization of violence and extremism, fear o

then came rouhani's "washington post" op-ped. rouhani declared he is committed to constructive interaction with the world. he appears to be ready to negotiate and urged his counterparts to engage. in the run-up to the general assembly, the iranians seem to be trying to use as many channel

rouhani or obama? >> rouhani. he refused to take that meeting as though he was a guy sitting on a rope line, shaking hands with the president of the united states. >> well, there was a lot of behind-the-scenes ground work leg for the meeting that didn't happen. and the iranns in the end decided that it was a bridge too far for their domestic politics. same thing happened in 1995 when clinton was in office and there was a new diplomat and they were trying to do it. to read a lot into that, it is ridiculous. both of these leaders won because they are finally getting together after 35 years of a stalemate. >> i think rouhani comes out ahead because that we need discussion and obama admitted in his own speech that iran can proceed forth with a peaceful nuclear generating facility and israel has been sidelined out of the conversation. >> mark? >> no, i don't think this is the kind of gesture that franklin spires confident that he wouldn't meet with the president. it wasn't the big issue one way or another. but i do thi

what can rouhani do to prove sincerity? >> well, i think first of all, rouhani has done quite a lot to show and prove that he can deliver. there is a legitimate question mark in the minds of many in washington, can he deliver, because the danger of engagement with the other side is that if the other side cannot deliver, you have wasted diplomatic capitol. he has released political prisoners, done things that shows that he has the ability to maneuver the. thepolitical landscape. president obama has challenges with congress. congress is going to be quite important in order to get a lasting, enduring deal with the iranians. only congress can lift many of the sanctions imposed on iran. >> how much is timing an issue? if this meeting doesn't happen now, is the chance just lost forever. >> i think because of the expectation game, it will be a tremendous amount of disappointment if the handshake does not take place. it may overshadow a very historic meeting taking place thursday when secretary kerry and the iranian foreign ministe

dollar has gone up because of what hassan rouhani said at the general assembly. he said he doesn't have the power to dismantle the program. even the leadership doesn't have that power or authority. any politician who dares to do that, they will be ousted. if you listened to when he was talking, he said he was under immense intense pressure. they don't trust the united states. yes, the united states governments will doesn't trust the u.s. government. i don't want to blame the u.s. government but the wall of mistrust is very high. >> i want to get to president obama's words. what has the reaction been out of tehran? >> well, they always welcome dialogue. they chose to elect a moderate president because they're sick and tied of dispute over iran's nuclear energy program. iran does not have anything to identify here. iran just wants respect and mutual understanding between these two countries. they want trust. iran would be more than willing to open it's nuclear program. iran has nothing to hide. the only thing that iran doesn't like is the so-called all options are

>> perhaps you can see why in a president rouhani's speech. he still needed to take a hard line against america while holding out an olive branch. the president of iran has said the reason there was no meeting over the chocolate mousse and the tuna tartare that was served is because alcohol was being served at that lunch. the americans are saying the meeting was too complicated for the iranians. it was because of the internal dynamics in iran, clearly referring to iran possibly leader. it really just underscored the trust that there still is between the two sides. on thursday there will be a meeting between the members of the un security council and iran's prime minister. that will be the highest level in counter between an american and an iranian since 1979. so that is significant. should remember that. on balance, this week at the united nations, has it been a disappointment, or given cause for optimism for those who think there is a diplomatic solution? >> i think it is only really just beginning, but there is certainly tremendous excitemen

predecessor, mahmoud ahmadinejad, but it was rouhani's new tone that changed mr. obama's calculus. >> we have a unique opportunity to make progress with the new leadership in tearen. >> reporter: the biggest skeptic is america's number one ally in the middle east, israel. prime minister benjamin netanyahu comes to the white house on monday. brian, i'm already told the white house has briefed israel on all parts of the conversation that took place. >> chuck todd at the white house, which brings us right here to this very studio. our chief foreign affairs correspondent andrea mitchell is here, also nbc's ann curry who interviewed the iranian president in

. >> iran's new president hasan rouhani touched down in new york. >> rouhani was elected in june as a moderate candidate who advocated improving relations with the international community. >> jon: rouhani is a moderate as well as an accomplished mannedi patinkin impersonator. 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 som

it is committed by rouhani. whether or not this is verifiable, which is a perfectly legitimate question to ask, is subject to international atomic energy verification. not for the head of another state to kind of demand and exact. >> so, professor, appreciate it. not a lot of time to talk to you, but we appreciate you getting here and being on with us. just enough time to say thank you for watching al jazeera. more news in just minutes. "inside story" is next. >>> gridlock, brinksmanship and the politics of shutdown. you're watching "inside story" from washington. >>> hello. i'm sheila macvicar. america outside the washington beltway is looking and lamenting the system. brinksmanship and politics seem to be the order of the day for the u.s. congress. here we are again you must be thinking from your armchair as you watch. you're right. the house gripped by a

watching were president rouhani's speech earlier together. it started fairly moderate and open to the west but became harder line. >> in many ways, he might have been speaking at the united nations general assembly, but he was also speaking to an audience in tehran. in many ways he has to talk to conservatives and hardliners and bring them through that this was the first definite nuclear process. they were like symphony conductors. they have a complex orchestra they are playing to read some of these musicians don't want to play in that orchestra. he was speaking to those musicians. it actually was the start of nuclear negotiations between iran and the united states. >> president rouhani said he is prepared to engage immediately in what he called time bound talks on iran's nuclear issues. what does he mean, and how significant is it tackle >> pretty significant that iran is actually starting negotiations. giving assurance to the west that we just don't want to talk with no purpose, to buy time to build our nuclear programs. it is going to be a

a washington post editorial written by rouhani, where rouhani tried to ease fears of iran's nuclear program. >> we have time and again said that under no circumstances would we seek any weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear weapons nor will we ever. >> despite that comment and many past denials the u.s. and many allies especially the gulf states an israel suspect the iranian program is all about building nuclear materials. mr. obama behinded that a new round of diplomacy is possible. >> there are indications that rouhani, the new president, is somebody who is looking to open being dialogue with the west and with the united states in a way that we haven't seen in the past. and so we should test it. >> iran's charm offensive may have been triggered by a letter from president obama to rouhani reportedly delivered three weeks ago that is said to have offered relief from economic sanctions in return for relief and cooperation on iran's nuclear program. guy ziv, founder of the israel national security project. thank you both for being with us tonight. david, want to start with you. presi

watching were president rouhani's speech earlier together. it started fairly moderate and open to the west but became harder line. >> in many ways, he might have been speaking at the united nations general assembly, but he was also speaking to an audience in tehran. in many ways he has to talk to conservatives and hardliners and bring them through that this was the first definite nuclear process. they were like symphony conductors. they have a complex orchestra they are playing to read some of these musicians don't want to play in that orchestra. he was speaking to those musicians. it actually was the start of nuclear negotiations between iran and the united states. >> president rouhani said he is prepared to engage immediately in what he called time bound talks on iran's nuclear issues. what does he mean, and how significant is it tackle >> pretty significant that iran is actually starting negotiations. giving assurance to the west that we just don't want to talk with no purpose, to buy time to build our nuclear programs. it is going to be a

he has known rouhani for more than ten years. in their meeting, koumura said he delivered a message from the u.s. government on iran's nuclear program. he also said he received a message from the iranians, though he didn't disclose the details. >> translator: it is desirable that iran and america have a dialogue, and i said that japan is ready to help both sides build confidence in the other. >> reporter: on tuesday, rouhani not only made his debut speech but met french president francois hollande for the first time in new york. an iranian expert says this is part of rouhani's efforts to rebuild confidence with western countries. >> we are trying to rebuild our face and figures in international community, and we are trying to rebuild again this balance of power. these are our goals to go in -- to sit in front of united states and start strategizing a negotiation with them. >> reporter: iran's leadership is apparently aiming to open a new page with the world. the international community is watching whether and how the u.s. leaders

rouhani saad yesterday. he said that he is not going to retreat from the nuclear right. and what he said that he doesn't have the power to -- to dismantle iran's nuclear program. even the leadership doesn't have that kind of power and authority. any politician who dares to do that will be owed here. he was sweating when he was talking, this means he was under immense internal pressure. many groups here don't like to have relations with the united states and they have many reasons for that. they don't trust the united states. and the united states doesn't trust the iranian government. the wall of trust is very high, and it's not going to collapse overnight. >> i want to get to president obama's words. what has the reaction been out of tehran. >> iranians also welcome dialogue. they chose a moderate president because they are sick and tired of the dispute over the united states over iran's nuclear program. they have nothing to hide, they just want respect and mutual understanding between these two countries. they want some kind of trust. if that exists iran is more than wi

a gesture which rouhani welcom welcomed. and after the release of 11 political prisoners, this reaction from the u.s. state department. we welcome today's report that the iranian government has released several prisoners of conscience. in the months ahead we hope he will continue to keep his promises to the iranian people. both rouhani and obama will both be at the united nations next week for the start of the general assembly. so far aides say there is no plans for the two to meet. but it is starting to look like what was once unthinkable is emerging into the realm of possible. al jazeera. >> the white house has given this statement in response to president rouhani's interview. this is what they said: >> international affairs at the university of south florida. he said the timing of this interview and release of political prisoners is very significant. >> i think this release of the political prisoners is a statement about iran's nuclear program must be viewed in the context of a very major strategic decision that the islam

hassan rouhani's government efforts do not stop there. his foreign ministers met with the european union's envoy on iran's nuclear program. the diplomatic obstacles on iran are substantial. there's syria, a staunch storer of bashar al-assad, iran and the u.s., and its allies are on opposite sides. then there's iran's backing of the military wing of hezbollah, a listed terror group operating in syria and lebanon. iran's nuclear program left the country isolated. a former diplomat in iran's un mission says hassan rouhani can change that, especially now as iran's highest authority sees the need for flexibility. >> mr hassan rouhani has enough authority, free authority to deal with particular problems. >> the mandate means for the first time in more than three decades, instead of pes imism, there's a degree of opt miss m as an iranian leader prepares to speak to the world at the u.n. >> gunfire could be heard this morning in kenya as security forces conduct what they call a final push to remove gunmen from a nairobi shopping mall. as you can

as hassan rouhani said here. we have a full screen graphic to put up that will help explain what the sanctions are and where they came from. the u.s. impose them because of its suspicions that tehran is secretly trying to make nuclear. it sanctions companies from oil to banking and other things but they've had a devastating affect on ordinary iranens. they have unemployment in iran is widespread. so the lifting of those sanctions could bring jobs and the end of isolation for iran. i can't stress enough how bad the economy is. you can't get anything done in iran. the ports are closed. they don't have stuff coming from around the world. they get some stuff through the very long border in china. no one knows what goes on in that part of the world, but you can't police that, and you have no idea what is coming into the country. but iran has a very old aircraft fleet. they can't get the parts to keep their aircraft going. that's the affect of the sanctions, and that's why hassan rouhani has been reaching out and presi

president hasan rouhani cannot be trusted. i'm across the street at an event organized by the people muhajdine they have high profile speakers including rudy giuliani and former u.n. ambassador john bolton. they are joining a growing chorus of voices in the u.s. senate who say iran simply cannot be trusted, and sanctions should not be ruled back. i should point out there was another demonstration shortly here a short time ago taking the opposite point of view. a demonstration saying that the time from iran and united states to talk, and its time to end bellicose language and the organizers of that organization, a group named abas. they show 60% of americans do in fact direct talks between the two countries. but as you can see the opposition voices are very loud. >> admitting rather difficult conditions, thank you very much, kristin. >>> the leadership of iran is having an impact on one watchdog group. >> reporter: from billboards on times square to online ads to demonstrations, a group against iran has been steadfastly devoted

rouhani was elected and they had a new foreign minister. were any conversations with the previous-- >> no. >> rose: none. >> no. therefore, it's a major shift. after the election, i received the ambassador of iran, and the new minister, mr. zarif, called me saying, "well, there has not been a relationship before" and we had an interesting conversation on the phone. it was about syria. i said, "you know we are against chemical weapons because we have suffered with chemical weapons coming from the iraqis, and, therefore, we are against the chemical weapons, and we want to that everybody will abide by the international law." and i said, "mr. minister, i'm very happy to high pressure from you. we want that everyone will abide by international law, and especially in the nuclear field. then there was a silence. and then he said okay. and, you know, this sort of story which enabled us to know who is in front of us. >> rose: where do you stand and has your opinion changedly on the question of iran being a participant in negotiations about syria? >>

president rouhani gave us some details of the conversation. margaret brennan is our state department correspondent. margaret, what do you know? >> well, scott, the phone call capped off this week-long public relations offensive during the iranian president's visit here in new york and he tried to show he was accessible, very different from past leaders and used social media to reach out to the public. he tweeted this account of the phone call. according to president rouhani, president obama told him that "if we can make progress on the nuclear file, other issues such as syria will certainly be positively affected." president obama then sent president rouhani good wishes for a safe and pleasant journey and apologized if you're experiencing the horrendous traffic in new york city. president rouhani expressed confidence that progress could be made on the nuclear file. "with political will there a way to rapidly solve the matter." the new talks will begin in two weeks. "i express my gratitude for your hospitality and your phone call." the iranian

rouhani is different. it's clear because of his political training it's about a process and getting a result. so ahmadinejad would give these long answers and flowery language. this guy is a practical, prudent, politicall organized, l guy. >> was there anything off limits. >> we talked about women's rights, afghanistan, the whole gamut of issues. >> did they talk about the handshake? he explained it was a quote, very sensitive subject. there really are no problems in terms of shaking mr. obama's hand in negotiating but we have not talked at that level in 35 years. we did not have enough time to make that happen. how did he address that tonight? >> i think he said a similar thing. i can't quote directly from the meeting because we have certain rules i'm under here. but the key word that he mentioned that you just mentioned. this is a complicated history. there are lots of ways for these things to go wrong. he's about results. he's not opposed to meeting with obama, but he wants result that would lead to res

rouhani was elected and they had a new foreign minister. were any conversations with e previous-- >> no. >> rose: none. >> no. therefore, it's a major shift. after the election, i received the ambassador of iran, and the new minister, mr. zarif, called me saying, "well, there has not been a relationship before" and we had an interesting conversation on the phone. it was about syria. i said, "you know we are against chemical weapons because we have suffered with chemical weapons coming from the iraqis, and, therefore, we are against the chemical weapons, and we want to that everybody will abide by the international law." and i said, "mr. minister, i'm very happy to high pressure from you. we want that everyone will abide by international law, and especially in the nuclear field. then there was a silence. and then he said okay. and, you know, this sort of story which enabled us to know who is in front of us. >> rose: where do you stand and has your opinion changedly on the question of iran being a participant in negotiations about syria? >> w

but the hoped-for photo-op of iran's hassan rouhani shaking hands with president obama as rouhani did with french president hollande, did not materialze. later, rouhani denied iran was building nuclear weapons. "nuclear weapons have no place in either the security or defense doctrine." a meeting with rouhani's predecessor would have been unimaginable. mahmoud ahmadinejad's anti-american, holocause denying speeches led u-n diplomats to walk out. mr. obama also challenged the u.n. to impose consequences if syria does not turn over its stockpile of chemical weapons blamed for the death of 14- hundred civilians two months ago in a section of damascus known for government opposition. "if we cannot agree on this, it will show that the un is incapable of enforcing the most basic international law." others, such as secretary general ban ki-moon of south korea also denounced syria's use of chemical weapons on its citizens. "bring them to justice and verify with a un investigative mission." mr. obama also met with palestinian president abbas as well as the president of lebanon, whose country ha

president rouhani gave us some details of the conversation. margaret brennan is our state department correspondent. margaret, what do you know? >> reporter: well, scott, the phone call capped off this week- long public relations offensive during the iranian president's visit here in new york and he tried to show he was accessible, very different from past leaders and used social media to reach out to the public. he tweeted this account of the phone call. according to president rouhani, president obama told him that "if we can make progress on the nuclear file, other issues such as syria will certainly be positively affected." president obama then sent president rouhani good wishes for a safe and pleasant journey and apologized if you're experiencing the horrendous traffic in new york city. president rouhani expressed confidence that progress could be made on the nuclear file. "with political will there is a way to rapidly solve the matter." the new talks will begin in two weeks. "i express my gratitude for your hospitality and your phone call.

hassan rouhani was making his first address at the united jace a december. nations assembly in new york. economy decemberred the imposition of western sakes, james bays reports in the united nations. >> reporter: the focus was on one man as world leaders met. the arrival of hassan rouhani iran's president for less than two months on the world stage, brings the promise of a any start to his country's relations with the west. >> mr. president. >> reporter: but can he bring concrete change? he didn't immediate president obama who spoke several hours beforehand. but both men spoke yeah ka*u cay after more than three decades of mistrust about the possibility of a new relationship. >> we are encouraged that president rouhani received from the iranian people a mandate to pursue a more moderate course and given his stated thoughts of reaching an agreement. >> reporter: he said progress would only be made if there is ideal removing the threat of an iranian knock lahr bomb but offered a con connection that they can have a nuke already energy program and acknowledged m

because hassan rouhani has this very dig tack. he has a mandate of the iranian people given that he was elected by the majority in june of this year, june 14 in facts. and he has the majority and part of his campaigning was the willingness to act. he wanted better relations with the west and with the united states. given that he got that mandate from the people that's what the most iranians actually want. but there is that hartline sector that i just mentioned who don't want america and iran to come to any kind of agreement they don't want to put this 35 years of history behind them. so he has to walk a very fine line not just betwee here in irn between the two sectors, he didn't meet president obama face-to-face, he had the opportunity and didn't. and that cakes the fine line he's to walk, and appeasing the international community, doing just enough to satisfy the international community, but also the iranian voters here in iran. >> okay, thank you very much indeed. turn to go greece now and the arrest in the past hour of the hea

. >> it is interesting that president obama was toward meet with rouhani tuesday but it was rouhani decided he needed more time. that it wasn't going to hax as he was getting ready to leave the united states, according to susan rice, the president's security adviser, he send word that he would like to speak on the been to the president and the president of course responded positively to that. what's going on here? he didn't want to meet directly but now they wanted to have a phone call. >> i think they wanth to meet. they were afraid that the meeting had no agenda and they were afraid of going into the meeting and then it is interpreted in the press as, in the wrong way. then rouhani would lose face at home and it would fizzle away. they back away from the meeting. and then i think they thought they needed something concrete to take back home. he has gone out on a limb on this trip. he has launched his charm offensive. he has said things that would be controversial including his statement on the holocaust. he has to show the supreme leader that he is getting something from this trip that ah

hassan rouhani is completely different. it's clear because of his political training, it's about a process and getting a result. ahmadinejad gave long answers, this guy is practical, prudent, organised political guy. >> was anything off limits? >> the did you suggest we talked about - israel, women's rights, human rights, afghanistan, nuclear, a gamut of issues. >> what about the handshake? in some meetings, closed door he said he explained - this is a quote from him - a sensitive subject. there are no problems in terms of shaking mr obama's hand and negotiating. we have not talked at that level in 35 years. we did not have time to make that happen. how did he address it tonight? >> i think he said a similar thing. i can't quote directly from the meeting - we have certain rules we are under - the key word, "this is a complicated history", there are a lot of ways for these things to go wrong. he is about results. he was not opposed to meeting obama, but wanted to know it would lead to a result leading to a result leading to

rouhani is different. it's clear because of his political training it's about a process and getting a result. so ahmadinejad would give these long answers and flowery language. this guy is a practical, prudent, politicall organized, political guy. >> was there anything off limits. >> we talked about women's rights, afghanistan, the whole gamut of issues. >> did they talk about the handshake? he explained it was a quote, very sensitive subject. there really are no problems in terms of shaking mr. obama's hand in negotiating but we have not talked at that level in 35 years. we did not have enough time to make that happen. how did he address that tonight? >> i think he said a similar thing. i can't quote directly from the meeting because we have certain rules i'm under here. but the key word that he mentioned that you just mentioned. this is a complicated history. there are lots of ways for these things to go wrong. he's about results. he's not opposed to meeting with obama, but he wants result that would lea

clearly the supreme leader has given rouhani some rope to play. we need to investigate how far he can play. i think we see already there are limits. this morning in the kahai newspaper, the mouthpiece of the regime, it was said rouhani should not shake the president's hand. then he didn't do it. it is a power game. they sense we are running after them and they are going the to play hard to get. >> david, does it sound like the u.s. had the rug pulled out? does it i make the u.s. look bad for offering? >> i think it made the u.s. look a little clumsy in its diplomacy. it was a little embarrassing when the leader of the most powerful nation on earth was willing to meet and somebody else basically snubs him. you know, that's an embarrassing moment. but i think it's small to go back to the christiane's point compared to the larger picture we see here. ultimately just a footnote. the larger picture is the obama administration deserved credit along with the bush administration in bringing the sanctions to bear. that's what's bringing president rouhani t

president rouhani was. it was someone from the arab press who used the term resistance but we were talking about terrorism. we were talking about hezbollah. he said something, i can't quote him, but he said something like this is not mutually exclusive with the kind of outreach we're doing. so in effect, he's not backing off the support for hezbollah. >> in other words, we're talking to obama and the president today, you know, to be fair to the president, he said it's got to be meaningful, transparent and verifiable. that's what he says about the united nations' agreement. that's what he says about syria. so the question is how can it be transparent and verifiable, because there's not much in iran or syria that's transparent as far as i can tell. >> let's remember that reza also reported that nothing has changed about their nuclear program. it's exactly the same as when ahmadinejad was in power. so this is a new package and no one knows what's inside it. >> although it is an old position of the iranian gove

no meeting of course as we know between rouhani and obama. the white house telling the press corps this evening that they offered the iranians a chance for an encounter, and the iranians said no. >> okay. john terrett for us, wrapping up an extraordinary day of speeches. john thank you. >>> while world leaders gather, protests are going on outside the united nations. two groups are taking different stances on iran. >> reporter: as the possibility of a [ inaudible ] between the west and iran being seen at the united nation, there is a push back coming from voices in the united states who believe that iran just can't be trusted. we are at a demonstration across the un organized by a group, that have organized demonstrations like this for the past several years calling to an end to iran's religious leadership. but this year they are getting a lot of support from high profile speakers from rudy giuliani and others. they are joining a growing chorus of voices who have expressed concerns about rolling back sanctions, including high-level senator li

why president rouhani did not go, we don't know. reports are he didn't go because alcohol was serve. i think he left the u.n. for the afternoon, but will be back to make his speech in an hour or so. >> let me be clear on that point. so there was the report now that there was an offer from the administration to--for the president to meet with mr. rouhani on the sidelines. was this over lunch, before lunch, after lunch? and the iranian leader and delegation said no to this? >> reporter: we always thought that a meeting between president rouhani and president obama was kind of a bit touch and go. it was never going to be a proper meeting in which they were filmed greeting each other and chatting. it was always going to be if it happened at all a chance encounter in the corridors. what happens after the u.s. president has spoken, there is always a lunch given by the secretary general to which all world leaders go. they offered the iranians an encounter on the sidelines of the general assembly. one can only assume that would be in the en

. >>> rouhani gets ready. he says he is ready to start a new round of nuclear n negotiations as he heads to the united nations and a possible meeting with president obama. kenyan security forces remain in a tension stand-off with members of the armed group, al shabaab. the gunmen entered a shopping mall saturday firing machine guns and toting grenades. the death toll is 50. some hostages have been freed. it's unclear how many more remain. more from ardel walters. >> the siege by armed gunmen at an upscale shopping mile in nairobi kenya has entered the second day with no end in sight. kenyan security forces find themselves at a stand-off with members of al shabaab, which has claimed responsibility in attacks that killed more than 50 people and injured dozens of others. images like these have played throughout the crisis. others have not been so lucky. one of those injured gave a first-hand account of the carnage and tactics being used by the group. >> we tried escaping and they threw a grenade and the grenade,

rouhani was elected and they had a new foreign minister. were any conversations with the previous-- >> no. >> rose: none. >> no. therefore, it's a major shift. after the election, i received the ambassador of iran, and the new minister, mr. zarif, called me saying, "well, there has not been a relationship before" and we had an intesting conversation on the phone. it was about syria. i said, "you know we are against chemical weapons because we have suffered with chemical weapons coming from the iraqis, and, therefore, we are against the chemical weapons, and we want to that everybody will abide by the international law." and i said, "mr. minister, i'm very happy to high pressure from you. we want that everyone will abide by international law, and especially in the nuclear field. then there was a silence. and then he said okay. and, you know, this sort of story which enabled us to know who is in front of us. >> rose: where do you stand and has your opinion changedly on the question of iran being a participant in negotiations about syria? >> w