World Faces Tough Choices on Iran’s Nuclear Program

JIM LEHRER:

And still to come on the NewsHour tonight: the Pittsburgh summit; and the success of "The Lost Symbol."

That follows analysis of the continuing confrontation over Iran's nuclear program. Last night, President Obama's chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel, discussed with Charlie Rose on PBS the options Iran faces.

RAHM EMANUEL, White House Chief of Staff: Iran has a choice to make whether they want to be a responsible member of the international community and what are the enticements to be part of that or one that's more of a pariah.

CHARLIE ROSE:

Does that choice have to be made and how will it be expressed before there is serious engagement between the United States and Iran?

RAHM EMANUEL:

You work on both levels simultaneously. They know there are consequences — there are opportunities to being a member of the international community, and there's consequences to acting as a state that doesn't take the responsibilities as a member of the international community.

CHARLIE ROSE:

What is our message to the Israelis if they decide they want to take military action at some point?

RAHM EMANUEL:

That I wouldn't do, even though I would like to do it, but that's that.

CHARLIE ROSE:

What would you like to say?

RAHM EMANUEL:

No way. That is — that is not something I'm going to comment on here.

CHARLIE ROSE:

OK. But the message to Iran: If, in fact, you show, which is a condition, if, in fact, you show that you want to be a part of the community of nations, we're prepared to engage you on all bilateral relationships that exist, whether it has to do with you stopping enriching nuclear fuel…

RAHM EMANUEL:

A nuclearized Iran is a threat to the region and…

CHARLIE ROSE:

Everybody knows that. Everybody knows that.

RAHM EMANUEL:

But as the president was quite clear in both bilat meetings, as well as he's been in his communication to the Iranian government, they have a choice to make. They know the opportunities of those choices and the consequences of those choices.

And they will — but what will not happen is, as the president said, merely talking for the sake of talking. They know, as Yogi Berra once said, when you get to a fork in the road, take it. They're coming upon that place where they have to take — choose what type of country they're going to be.

CHARLIE ROSE:

OK, now, how do they make that choice? I just want to stay with — what's the choice they have to make?

RAHM EMANUEL:

Well, Charlie, maybe — Charlie, maybe you need to get them here to talk. That's not my responsibility, to represent the Iranian people, because…

CHARLIE ROSE:

Yes, but it is to communicate what you think the choice that the government has to make in order to be engaged by the United States.

RAHM EMANUEL:

Right. Well, it's not just — it's not engagement for the sake of engagement.

CHARLIE ROSE:

Right.

RAHM EMANUEL:

It's they understand that, as it relates to a nuclear Iran, what are the consequences of that choice? Now, they know what they have to do. They know what the P5-plus-one is expecting.

CHARLIE ROSE:

They know because we've told them?

RAHM EMANUEL:

It's been…

CHARLIE ROSE:

Been communicated to them?

RAHM EMANUEL:

They are aware of the issues that are at play, but it's not just a issue. There's a series of issues that relate to what — the opportunity of what engagement means and the opportunity of being a country that is not engaged and is acting…

CHARLIE ROSE:

And it also has to do with Israeli-Palestinian issues?

RAHM EMANUEL:

A whole host of issues that — and there's a whole host of issues — they understand them. They, as you know, communicated once a willingness with the United States to discuss the range of issues, both in the region and their role in that.

CHARLIE ROSE:

Do you think they could be helpful on Afghanistan, the Iranians?

RAHM EMANUEL:

Well, there's no — yes, they can. They could be helpful. As you know, there's — Secretary Holbrooke participated in an international conference earlier in the year in which they attended.

CHARLIE ROSE:

And could they have…

RAHM EMANUEL:

And they have interests there, as well, in a stable Afghanistan.

CHARLIE ROSE:

Oh, they're very interested in that, and they are not a friend of the Taliban.

RAHM EMANUEL:

You know the history as well as I do.