Ahmadinejad Interview, Part 2 Scott Pelley's Interview With Iran's Leader

Sept. 23, 07

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2007/09/21/60minutes/main3286706.shtml

PELLEY: Is it your goal to build a nuclear bomb?
AHMADINEJAD: It is a firm "no." Any party who uses national revenues to make a bomb, a nuclear bomb, will make a mistake. The nuclear bomb is of no use. The time of the bomb is past. Today we are living in the era of intellectual pursuits. You should spend your money on your people. We don't need the bomb. In fact, we think that this is inhuman. So can you please tell me why the U.S. government is fabricating these bombs? Are you going to deal with global poverty? Or do you want to kill people? ...
PELLEY: At the moment, our two countries may very well be walking down the road to war.
AHMADINEJAD: Who says that?
PELLEY: France this week said that war might be indicated.
AHMADEINEJAD: It's wrong to think that Iran and the U.S. are walking towards war. Why should we go to war? We have a logic which we have announced for some time now. We very much oppose the behavior of the U.S. administration. We think it's wrong. ...that is a part of a psychological warfare plot. The American people are well familiar with these plots. There is no war in the offing. Again, this is psychological warfare. If you have differences of opinions, you can use logic to resolve your differences.
PELLEY: You can show the world today that you are not pursuing a bomb. Open your nuclear facilities. Let the United Nations inspectors in there today .
AHMADEINEJAD: The reports say that we have been complying. And they are inspecting all of our sites every day. Inspectors have said there's no diversion here. We have not diverted from a peaceful path. This is what the agencies think. There is a solution here, however, a very simple solution. The countries that have atomic bombs should destroy their stockpiles. And that would make everyone happy. Five or six nations have diverted from the peaceful path, road. So those five or six should return to the correct path. The American government respect the views of the agency. It's very regrettable to see that certain U.S. officials have insulted the very clear positions taken by the agency. They have attacked the director general of the agency. That is shameful. If you think that the agency is a reputable one, you should allow it to go ahead with its business. The problems of the American politicians are because they are interested in their own interests. And they want the rest of the world just to say "yes, sir" and go along with whatever they say. That is finished. It's in the past.
PELLEY: What trait do you admire in President Bush?
AHMADINEJAD: Again, I have a very frank tone. I think that President Bush needs to correct his ways. He should respect the American people. As an American citizen, tell me what trait do you admire?
PELLEY: Well, Mr. Bush is, without question, a very religious man.
AHMADEINEJAD: Well, is Mr. Bush a religious man?
PELLEY: Very much so. As you are.
AHMADEINEJAD: What religion, please tell me, tells you as a follower of that religion to occupy another country and kill its people? Please tell me. Does Christianity tell its followers to do that? Judaism, for that matter? Islam, for that matter? What prophet tells you to send 160,000 troops to another country, kill men, women, and children? You just can't wear your religion on your sleeve or just go to church. You should be truthfully religious. Religion tells us all that you should respect the property, the life of different people. Respect human rights. Love your fellow man. And once you hear that a person has been killed, you should be saddened. You shouldn't sit in a room, a dark room, and hatch plots. And because of your plots, many thousands of people are killed. Having said that, we respect the American people. And because of our respect for the American people, we respectfully talk with President Bush. We have a respectful tone. But having said that, I don't think that that is a good definition of religion. Religion is love for your fellow man, brotherhood, telling the truth.
PELLEY: President Bush has pledged that you will not be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon and will use military force if necessary.
AHMADEINEJAD: I think Mr. Bush, if he wants his party to win the next election, there are cheaper ways and ways to go about this. I can very well give him a few ideas so that the people vote for him. He should respect the American people. They should not bug the telephone conversations of their citizens. They should not kill the sons and daughters of the American nation. They should not squander the taxpayers' money and give them to weapons companies. And also help the people, the victims of Katrina. People will vote for them if they do these things. But if they insist on what they are saying right now, this will not help them. Again, nobody can hurt the Iranian people.
PELLEY: When your airplane approaches Manhattan this week, you will look out the window and you will see that the World Trade Center is gone. Many Americans, Mr. President, to be frank, believe that you look out that window and you say to yourself, "Good. Somebody got 'em."
AHMADEINEJAD: We issued an official communiqué condemning that incident. And you are saying that the American people are saying these things. The American people still don't know who was behind the bombing of the Twin Towers. Many books in the U.S. have been written about the incident., and there are questions circling in your society. I have the latest surveys. Eighty percent of the American citizens say that the American government knew about the attack beforehand. They had information.
PELLEY: You don't believe that, sir.
AHMADEINEJAD: Unethical politicians make war. Nations don't make war. We're saying that you should allow our nations to be friends with one another. You cannot produce even one document, a single document, about terrorist action on the part of the Iranian government or Iranian officials. It's very regrettable that many thousands of people were killed in the Twin Tower incident. Can we do something that ensures this never happens? We can do that, providing a number of parties do not establish terrorist organizations and set them off on nations. We know who is behind terrorist organizations. You know full well who is behind a number of terrorist organizations around my part of the world. Who provided them with logistical support, political support? It's a very well-known fact they have made and created these terrorist organizations themselves.
ELLEY: Shall I say CIA and the United States? Will that . . .
AHMADEINEJAD: Well, maybe you know something that . . . I don't want to say something which would agitate and fan the flames of the situation. What I'm saying that this is shameful. My country is a great victim of terrorism. We very much oppose terrorism. We're all fellow human beings. We should be respected. We would like to have relations with all countries based on mutual respect. This is the very basis of our foreign policy. I think that we are done.
PELLEY: You have been generous with your time, Mr. President. Thank you for your time very much.
AHMADEINEJAD: Good luck.