President Abdullah Gul of Turkey attended the NATO Summit in Chicago this week and appeared Friday on Amanpour.  He was asked about the presidential elections in Egypt and whether Egypt’s military would willingly relinquish its power.

“The military is well aware that they cannot continue forever,” said President Gul.

“I went to Egypt,” he added. “I talked to all the military leadership, and they know that it is not their job to run the country.  They are going to hand off the authority to the civilian government - but I think it needs some time.”

How much time, remains to be seen.  However, he added, “I think the Egyptian army is ready to hand over the authority when the time is preferred.”

We can contribute to them

Prior to the NATO Summit, the G8 countries met at Camp David to discuss the fracturing of the eurozone.  In that context, President Gul was asked about Turkey’s bid to join the European Union, just when it seems to be in a state of dis-union.

“We are a part of the European custom union for sixteen years,” said President Gul, “and we are a negotiating country with the E.U. and we...expect more reasonable understanding from our friends in Europe.”

While “the economy in many countries in Europe is not good,” he insisted that “we can contribute to them…We are performing very well.  Our incorporation will be helpful.”

No way that President Assad can lead

From the E.U., President Gul turned to Turkey’s troubled neighbor, Syria.  He was asked what it will take for Turkey to intervene or persuade the rest of the world to do so.

“Well, it’s an international issue,” said President Gul.  “That is why it is being taken to the U.N. Security Council, and we have to be all together, and we…have to stand behind the people’s demand.”

In that light, he said the Annan Plan “is a last chance for the…transformation of Syria… If it is not (fully implemented), then unfortunately the (situation) will yet be worse over there.”

Asked if the United States should play a leadership role, Gul said, “I think the United States is definitely the most important and definitely should engage more in this issue.”

As for Syria’s president, Gul was blunt: “There is no way that President Assad can lead the country anymore.”

On the high seas

Lastly, he was asked about Turkey’s fractured relations with Israel.

“You know, it was not our preference,” said President Gul, “and it was not because of us that the relationship deteriorated.  So, if the Israeli government - they want to correct, they…have to take some steps, which is known very well by them.”

Specifically, he referred to the 2010 attack by Israel’s military on a Turkish ship attempting to break the blockade of Gaza with humanitarian aid, in which nine people were killed.

“They attack the international, humanitarian… convoy…nine people (killed) on the high seas, seventy two miles away from the coast – so Turkey’s legitimate demand is to get the apology and compensation.”

He then added, “If Israel takes the decision to meet all of this, then I think the relationship will move forward.

Part 1: UN has no Plan B for Syria

U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon tells CNN's Christiane Amanpour that the U.N. has no plan B in Syria.

Part 2: U.S. plan for Afghanistan

The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan tells CNN's Christiane Amanpour how the U.S. plans to scale back in the country.

Episode #27: Thursday, May 24, 2012

(CNN) – Despite U.N. monitors’ struggle to contain violence in Syria, the U.N. Secretary General told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour Thursday that there was no fallback.

“At this time, we don’t have a Plan B,” Ban Ki-moon said.

The nearly 300 monitors deployed across five Syria cities are making “all possible efforts to stop violence” and have had “some dampening effect,” Ban said.

But, he conceded, “We were not able to completely cease the violence.”

Ban said that within the coming days, the full 300 observers authorized by the Security Council last month would be on the ground.

“They are patrolling every day, whenever possible,” he said. “They try their best to cease this violence. It requires strong political will at the level of President Assad, and also it requires full cooperation by the opposition forces.”

Ban said that “minimum 9,000” people had been killed in the conflict, which began more than a year ago. “I believe this number will have increased much more now,” he said.

Gross violations

An independent panel appointed by the U.N. reported Thursday that “gross violations continue unabated” in Syria.

The International Commission of Inquiry on Syria said that torture and arbitrary arrest are rampant in the war-torn country, and that the conflict is becoming “increasingly militarized.”

“Those are totally unacceptable violations of human rights,” Ban said. “The perpetrators must be held accountable.”

A broadening crisis, in- and outside of Syria

When a massive car bomb exploded in the Syrian capital Damascus in May, Ban quickly blamed the attack on al Qaeda, saying that the organization “must be” behind it.

He distanced himself from those comments Thursday, saying, “We do not have any clear evidence what al Qaeda was behind.”

Nonetheless, “considering the scale and sophistication of the terrorist attacks,” he said, “it seems to be clear that there are certain organizations and groups with … clear political intent.”

Tensions in Syria’s neighbor, Lebanon, have also been high of late. Clashes erupted earlier this week following the killing of two religious clerics opposed to Bashar al-Assad’s rule in Syria.

“We are entering into a pivotal moment,” Ban said. “We are very much worried about this kind of spillover effect. … We have to prevent this.”

A council divided

When the U.N. Security Council voted last month to authorize a monitoring mission in Syria, it was a rare moment of unity.

“When Security Council is united, we can see much difference,” Ban said. “Unfortunately, Security Council at the beginning of this crisis was not united.”

This February and last October, Russia and China issued rare double vetoes of draft resolutions condemning the violence in Syria.

Ban said that those countries are now “in full support” of the monitoring mission. But they remain wary of authorizing further intervention, saying the current process should be allowed to play out.

Ban urged the Security Council, and the international community at large, to be united in its response to Syria.

“It’s very sad. Civilian people have suffered too long,” he said. “This atrocity must be stopped at any cost.”

(CNN) - The White House has been scaling back both troops and expectations in Afghanistan as it scales down the war there. General John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, confirmed specifics of the drawdown, announcing that a quarter of American troops will be home by the end of September. But in an exclusive interview with Christiane Amanpour he said he'll need strong combat forces there for the foreseeable future.

The change of in the U.S.’ definition of success in Afghanistan has even resulted in the national security advisers’ publicly saying that the U.S.’ goal is to provide a modicum of stability for Afghanistan. Even though previously, the stated goal had been to defeat, prevent, and to have high expectations for a secure Afghanistan.

The New York Times reported that aides to President Obama informally called this strategy, “Afghan Good Enough.” General Allen firmly rejected this prescription to Amanpour. “I don't use the term, ‘Afghan good enough,’ he said. “Because we're all sacrificing way too much for something that's ‘Afghan Good Enough.’ I think that term understates or undersells the commitment that we've all made to this.  Afghanistan is an important country in an important region. And the outcome of our investment  – this global investment of 50 nations and ISAF and many other nations who've been involved for a long period of time with great generosity – is not about being good enough.”

Recently U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein and U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, both from their respective intelligence committees, came back from a visit to Afghanistan saying the Taliban was stronger since the surge of troops to Afghanistan. When Amanpour asked General Allen about this assessment, he did not disagree.

“I don't think that there's a difference of opinion,” he said. “What I would say is that while the Taliban think that they still have the possibility of succeeding, we don't see that.  We don't see that the Taliban ultimately can succeed, and it's a combination both of what the international community can do to support Afghanistan, not just in the short term, but over the long term.”

Amanpour asked Allen about Afghan forces that have been attacking NATO troops – the very same group training them up to take the reins of security. Allen bluntly stated, “Any attack is a blow, and we are very, very conscious of this.  It is a tragedy every time it occurs. We should not be surprised that the Taliban seek to infiltrate the Afghan National Security Forces.”

But Allen said he remains optimistic about the rapport between the two groups . “There are tens of thousands of interactions every single day across Afghanistan between the Afghan troops and International Security Assistance Force,” he said. “On most of those, every single day we continue to deepen and broaden the relationship we seek.”

Allen rejected the notion that the U.S. and NATO are packing up and leaving Afghanistan all together.

“We are not leaving.  And the narrative for the Taliban that they can wait us out is a flawed narrative,” he told Amanpour. “I think that the unambiguous international support for Afghanistan has been a very powerful message.  You know, that was the message that came out of the NATO summit.  We will not abandon Afghanistan.  The international community's role here over the long term is good for the region.”

And he told Amanpour that he has promised President Obama an analysis following the drawdown of the 23,000 troops on what we he thinks forces will need in Afghanistan in 2013.

“That analysis will include an analysis of the state of the Taliban, the insurgency, how the Afghan National Security Forces are doing, and what we anticipate the operational environment being in 2013.”

Part 1: Egypt military handover

An Egyptian General tells CNN's Christiane Amanpour the military might hand over power sooner than planned.

Part 2: Iran nuclear negotiations

A former member of the Iranian National Security Council discusses the sticking points for an Iranian nuclear deal.

Episode #26: Wednesday, May 23, 2012

(CNN) - As meetings took place in Baghdad in hopes of ensuring that Iran isn’t producing a nuclear weapon, and thereby heading off an Israeli strike against Iran’s nuclear facilities, two insiders with knowledge of the negotiations appeared Wednesday on Amanpour.

Ambassador Hossein Mousavian, a former spokesman for Iran’s nuclear negotiating team, put the onus on the P5Plus 1 countries (U.S., Britain, Russia, China, France and Germany):  “I’m afraid the P5Plus 1, they ask too much from Iran.  They ask Iran to give diamonds in return for peanuts.”

The diamond in question, he said, is Iran’s nuclear enrichment program.  “The issue is political, not technical.  For the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Iran would have no problem to cooperate to all questions.   But…asking Iran to stop twenty percent (uranium enrichment), to implement additional protocols, to give access beyond additional protocols – this is practically the diamonds the P5 Plus 1 wants.”

He added, “And if they are going to propose Iran spare parts for airplanes (in exchange), these would be the peanuts.”

What’s happening in a closed room

From Washington, Ambassador Thomas Pickering, former Undersecretary of State for Political Affairs, joined the conversation.  He was asked if the P5 Plus 1 countries might offer something more than peanuts – namely a roll back or lifting of sanctions.

“All negotiations begin with each side putting on the table its most extreme demands,” said Ambassador Pickering.  “The rumor mill was churning here in the last forty eight hours with the idea that sanctions would not be put on the table.  But negotiations have their own dynamic, Christiane, and speculation about what’s happening in a closed room is always very futile.”

“I would count a future meeting as a success here…I’ve long been of the view that to have everything settled in one fell swoop is probably a council of futility.  It’s just too complicated.  There are too many pieces.  There are too many compromises that would have to be made.”

Ambassador Mousavian echoed that reality:  “Iran has proposed a five step plan.  The Russians have prepared a new plan.  The U.S. and European allies – they have prepared a third plan.”

Almost confident

Still, he said he was “almost confident” that if there is a broad package that addresses Iran’s main concerns – “recognizing the rights (to an acceptable percentage of nuclear enrichment) and gradually lifting of sanctions…Iranians would cooperate.”

Ambassador Pickering shared his guarded optimism:  “The good news is that apparently it’s now ten or eleven at night in Baghdad and they haven’t reported out.  I hope this is good news that they’re still talking.”

(CNN) - Even as Egyptians head to the polls for a second day Thursday, there are still very real questions about whether the military – which has been running the country since the revolution – will easily give up power.  The military has massive wealth, and deep institutional control.  Tuesday, retired General Sameh Seif Elyazal, a key Egyptian military figure, told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour that the military is ready to handover authority to a civilian power and maybe even sooner than planned, but with caveats.

“There is no hesitation. They will do it on June 30,” Elyazal said.  The general, who is a close adviser to Egypt's de facto ruler, General Hussein Tantawi, said that the military might even let go of the reins sooner if the new president is elected in the first round. “They will give up [power] immediately after that and they will not even wait until June 30,” he said. “I have no doubt whatsoever that they will hand over power to the new president at the right time.”

When Amanpour pressed him on whether the military would attach strings to its handover of power, he said, “I don’t think they want be involved directly or indirectly with political life,” but he added that the military does want certain conditions to be met.

At the top of the list, Elyazal said the military wouldn’t want the new Egyptian president to declare war on another nation without consulting military leaders first. He also told Amanpour that they would want the budget of the army to remain somewhat confidential – discussed in subcommittee, but not publicly in parliament.

But that wasn’t his only stipulation, “I think we are not ready -yet- for a civilian minister of defense.  What they want is to have a general – someone from the military – to be the next Minister of Defense.”  But he said that might change as Egypt’s democracy grows, “maybe later on – ten years from now.”

When Amanpour asked the general who the military would prefer to win the election he said “No one – believe me.” He added, “They don’t care really about a secular candidate coming to power or an Islamist – they will deal with anybody.”

Eurozone and Syria: Italy's perspective

Italy's foreign minister gives Christiane Amanpour his perspective on the problems in the eurozone and Syria.

Ahmed Rashid: 'Pakistan on the brink'

Pakistani journalist and author Ahmed Rashid says that paralysis is gripping Islamabad.

Episode #25: Tuesday, May 22, 2012