Iran Hiding Nuclear Program?; U.S. Military Options For Syria
BLITZER: A dramatic encounter on Capitol Hill today as a top senator called for U.S. action to stop the slaughter in Syria. The Pentagon brass revealed just what steps it might be taking, at least possibly. Our Pentagon correspondent Barbara Starr has details of various contingency options. What are you learning, Barbara?</s>BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, Wolf, it all starts with the Syrian opposition, doesn't it? What we learned today is the U.S. believes the opposition is growing deeper and wider across the country. Now the question is what to do about it all?</s>STARR (voice-over): As Syria continues to unravel, the president says he wants to exhaust diplomatic efforts, but for the first time, signs that President Obama has started discussing options with his military.</s>GENERAL MARTIN DEMPSEY, JOINT CHIEFS, CHAIRMAN: The president of the United States, through the national security staff, has asked us to begin the commander's estimate, the estimate of the situation.</s>STARR: CNN was first to report military planning was underway. On Wednesday, the nation's top officer told a Senate committee those options include humanitarian relief, a no-fly zone, intervention at sea and air strikes.</s>DEMPSEY: I want to be clear, we can do anything, the question is not can we do it, should we do it?</s>STARR: Senator John McCain continued to insist the U.S. should.</s>SENATOR JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Can you tell us how much longer the killing would have to continue? How many additional civilian lives would have to be lost? How many more have to die, 10,000 more, 20,000 more?</s>LEON PANETTA, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Before I recommend that we put our sons and daughters in uniform in harm's way, I've got to make very sure that we know what the mission is. I've got to make very sure if we know whether we can achieve that mission.</s>STARR: Panetta said U.S. ground troops are not being considered. U.S. concerns, however, a fractured opposition with nearly 100 groups. Air strikes could take hundreds of aircraft and weeks of bombing to destroy Syria's air defenses.</s>DEMPSEY: They have approximately five times more air -- sophisticated air defense systems than existed in Libya, cover one fifth of the terrain.</s>STARR: Panetta said it wouldn't make sense for the U.S. to act unilaterally, but he set off a firestorm when he said the U.S. would want international permission, but might not seek congressional approval for military action.</s>PANETTA: Our goal would be to seek international permission, and we would come to the Congress and inform you.</s>SENATOR JEFF SESSIONS (R), ALABAMA: I'm almost breathless about that, because what I heard you say is we're going to seek international approval, and then we'll come and tell the Congress what we might do. And we might seek congressional approval.</s>STARR: Now, we just finished talking to Senator Sessions privately a few minutes ago. He remains very concerned, Wolf. His feeling is that time may be running out in Syria, but not for Assad. He thinks time may be running out for the U.S. and the allies to intervene. That Assad actually in recent days and weeks has been gaining momentum on the ground in Syria, and that the administration could be desperately wrong, it may not be inevitable that Assad cease regime will fall. So this is all shaping up to be quite a dire situation for many different reasons -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: Yes, it seems to be going from bad to worse in Syria. All right, thanks very much, Barbara. Meanwhile, the head of the United Nations Nuclear Watchdog Agency today said Iran is not telling everything about its nuclear program. As CNN was first to show you, there are signs Iran may be trying to, quote, "clean up evidence of nuclear activities at a critical site before international inspectors can get there." Let's go live to our senior international correspondent Matthew Chance. He's in Vienna, Austria right now. Matthew, you have new information about this reported cleanup. What are you learning?</s>MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the latest information on that, Wolf, is that, you know, the U.N. inspectors that tried to get into that site, it's called Parchen. It's close to the Iranian capital. It's a military facility where it's suspected that weapons research on the trigger mechanisms for atomic bombs, to be specific, may have been carried out there. They tried to get access to it. They were denied access repeatedly in January and February. What's been reported since then by the IAEA and confirmed by other western diplomats we've been speaking to here as well, is that they're monitoring that site through satellite images. On those images, Iranian vehicles can be seen in the site, earth moving equipment, things like that. And the interpretation being given to us by diplomats here at the IAEA is that the site is being cleared up before inspectors are allowed in to take a look around. So that's what the implication is, according to the diplomats who have seen these satellite images that are Iran is cleaning it up before it allows inspectors to see what's been going on there.</s>BLITZER: Important developments. Matthew, is there anything significant that's expected to happen at this upcoming IAEA meeting, and you're in Vienna, where the IAEA is headquartered, which potentially could slow down Iran's nuclear program?</s>CHANCE: Potentially there's a big day tomorrow. It's supposed to be the last day of these meetings tomorrow here at the IAEA nuclear headquarters in Vienna. I learned from a western diplomat this evening that the five permanent members of the Security Council. So including the United States, China, France, Britain, have agreed along with Germany a joint statement -- Russia as well, of course -- a joint statement to basically underline their serious concerns about Iran's ongoing nuclear program and call on the IAEA to report again on what progress, if any, is made when they go there next time. It doesn't sound like much, but it shows as negotiations get under way against with the Iranians and the P-5 plus one as they're being called, the Security Council members are presenting a united front. Remember, Russia and China have often provided diplomatic cover for Iran and its nuclear activities. On this occasion, it seems they're on the same page as the western countries when it comes to Iran kind of coming into compliance over its nuclear program -- Wolf.</s>BLITZER: We'll, of course, stay in close touch with you, Matthew. Thanks very much. And as the full extent of the slaughter in Syria becomes known, I'll speak with the former top Middle East envoy, the adviser on the Middle East to President Obama. Dennis Rossi just recently left the National Security Council. He'll update us on what's going on. New developments in the case of a high school valedictorian who was facing deportation to a country she left as a 4-year-old.