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Rex Tillerson to Meet with Russian Counterpart at G20; Multiple Arrests in Connect to Kim Jong-nam's Murder; Interview with Infosys Co- Founder. 8:00-9:00a ET

Aired February 16, 2017 - 8:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[08:00:35] KRISTIE LU STOUT, HOST: I'm Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, and welcome to News Stream.

Now, the new U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is set to meet his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, as diplomats gather for the G20 summit

in Germany.

Three suspects have now been arrested in connection with the death of Kim Jong-un's half brother, including this woman caught on surveillance cameras

at Kuala Lumpur airport.

And I speak to one of India's biggest names in technology, Infosys co- founder Nandan Nilekani tells me about his hopes for India's ties to the U.S. under President Trump.

Now, for the past few days coverage of American politics has almost felt like a tale of two cities - Washington and Moscow. But this hour, the

focus is firmly on Germany where right now the world's top diplomats are arriving for the G-20 summit. Among them, U.S. Secretary of State Rex

Tillerson will come face-to-face with his Russian counterpart on the sidelines of the meeting.

Now, back in the U.S., calls grow to investigate the Trump campaign's communications with Russia.

Now, another crucial aspect of America's relationship with Russia is NATO. In Brussels, the U.S. defense secretary has reaffirmed Washington's

commitment to the alliance despite critical words in the past from Donald Trump. That, as western and Russian forces come a

little too close for comfort in a series of incidents.

Ivan Watson has that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: this is what it looks like when Russian warplanes buzz a U.sS. warship. Multiple fly-byes filmed in

April of last year. Some of them roaring dangerously close to the U.S. ship as it patroled international waters in the Baltic Sea.

The U.S. military tells CNN a similar incident happened last week in the Black Sea, sharing

photos of Russian fighter jets that allegedly buzzed the USS Porter, a guided missile destroyer.

Russia's defense ministry denies Russian jets carried out any fly-byes there.

The fact is fly-byes and close shaves between the Russian military and the U.S. and its

NATO allies are nothing new. Both sides have been probing each other's defenses for years. And there have been some dangerously close calls.

Listen to this Norwegian F-16 pilot, shocked when a Russian fighter jet suddenly flies in over his cockpit.

Norway, a member of NATO, scrambled jets 20 times last year to escort Russian warplanes away from its airspace.

Meanwhile, just last month U.S. alley Britain carried out its own fly-byes, escorting a Russian navy convoy as it steamed through the English Channel.

The number of times NATO warplanes scrambled to meet Russian planes doubled from 2015

to 2016, and the tensions aren't only in the skies. Since Russia invaded and annexed Crimea, a part of Ukraine in 2014, the U.S. stepped up military

exercises in eastern European countries bordering Russia to send this unmistakable message to Moscow.

MAJ. GEN. JOHN O'CONNOR, U.S. ARMY: We lean forward and demonstrate to Russia and to Putin that we are not broken in our efforts to stand together

through this type of aggression.

WATSON: Russia sees this as a threat.

SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: But the planes of the United States, not only to - well, they quadrupled, I think, the money allocated

to support military deployment in -- in eastern Europe and then they moved the NATO infrastructure next to our borders.

And this is what happens when these military maneuvers go terribly wrong.

In November 2015, NATO member Turkey shot down a Russian warplane that was bombing

targets along the Turkish border with Syria, an example of what can happen when rival militaries operate in dangerously close quarters.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[08:05:19] LU STOUT: Now Russia is, of course, one of the key players at the G20 summit where ministers have been arriving this hour. Nic Robertson

is covering that for us in the German city of Bonn (ph), and he joins us now.

Nic, we now that U.S. and Russia ties are now under immense scrutiny and this has turned out to be an extremely complicated relationship.

So, as Tillerson and Lavrov meet there, what is the tone of this encounter?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is the meeting that's catching all the attention here. Of course, there's a lot of other things

for both Lavrov and Tillerson to discuss here. Tillerson has had meetings with the Saudi foreign ministry, the British foreign minister, the Emirati

foreign minister, expected to do the same with the Italians, with others today talking about Yemen, talking about Syria, but it is this meeting with

Lavrov that is the key one.

The sort of tone, if you will, is one of, yes, we can get along in some areas, but we have huge

disagreements in other areas. Just think a week back, the foreign ministry or sources of the foreign ministry in Moscow were leaking that they just

didn't know who they would deal with at the State Department in Washington. They were sort of indicating there that the State Department was in

disarray.

Well, now that's over. Tillerson will be right now sitting in front of Lavrov. They are talking. But in the background to this, you have, you

know, you have the U.S. vice president coming over to Europe. You have right now the Defense Secretary Mattis who is in Europe just yesterday. He

met other defense ministers from NATO and he said that the best way for the United States diplomats to -- to negotiate and talk to Russia is from a

position of strength, and you have the Russian defense minister in the past few hours saying that, you know, if the united states tries to negotiate

and deal with Russia from a position of strength that will be fruitless.

So this is the sort of diplomatic background that you have there.

But the two countries do hope to cooperate in some areas. President Trump has said that he

thinks Russia can help tackle ISIS. There's talk as well about cooperating on counterterrorism. We've heard from President Putin in the past hour or

so saying it would be good if both countries intelligence services could share intelligence. That would play into counterterrorism.

But there are big differences, too. Part of Tillerson's message is that Russian forces must get out of Crimea. And in the past couple of days, the

Kremlin has strenuously pushed back on that. So this will be a short meeting. One of many meetings that will be taking place here, but really

for Tillerson the biggest sort of signature meeting of his trip to Europe right now - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, and this summit is also an opportunity for the other foreign ministers there to understand Trump's foreign policy. We know

Secretary Tillerson will be meeting with other foreign ministers for the first time there, so is there a sense of anticipation

over what Tillerson is going to say about America first and what that really means?

ROBERTSON: There's real concern in Europe right now. They -- they are worried about a multitude of things. The America first, the closeness or

potential closeness, as it appeared with the Kremlin, worried that perhaps, you know, President Trump was going to do a deal over the wishes and wills

of most European leaders over their heads with President Putin in Moscow, what that deal would have looked like, what sort of cooperation. The

concern was that Europe would have been left out of the mix, but Tillerson and the State Department is saying that part of his message here is to

reaffirm the Transatlantic alliance.

We certainly heard that from the U.S. Defense Secretary Mattis yesterday in Brussels. He has reaffirmed it again today. So, that's a strong part of

the message.

But there are other things Tillerson is doing. His meeting in sort of a listening mode, we're told, to the Saudi foreign minister, Emirati foreign

minister, Omani foreign minister, British foreign minister, UN representative on Yemen, to get up to speed on Yemen, on

Syria, to expected to meet with interested parties on that, could be up to 10 different countries

there.

His meeting as well with the Italian foreign minister. He's expected to meet with the Turkish foreign minister, obviously a NATO ally, obviously

important in the fight against ISIS, obviously important in the future of Syria.

His meeting with the Italian foreign minister, potentially there are discussions about what's happening right now in Libya. You know, just a

multitude of things. He'll meet, perhaps, with the French and the German foreign ministers as well. But a strong part of the

message coming here to Europe for the first time. Tillerson, the United States, number one

diplomat, is to reassure Europeans that the alliance and understandings they have with the United States remain, although as we heard from the

Defense Secretary Mattis yesterday, there may be new strings attached like pay up

on NATO and do it in a timely fashion. So perhaps that tone will try to carry some of the conversations as well here, Kristie.

[08:10:07] LU STOUT: Yeah, but a dual message on NATO reassuring allies there from two members of Trump's cabinet.

Nic Robertson reporting live for us from the site of the G20 summit in Bonn (ph). Thank you.

Now, the turbulence in the fourth week of the Trump administration is showing no signs of letting up. Donald Trump is now defending the national

security adviser he just forced to resign.

Now, the president is once again blaming the media and illegal leaks. Here's Joe Johns with the

details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

TRUMP: General Flynn is a wonderful man. I think he's been treated very, very unfairly by the media. As I call it, the fake media in many cases.

JOE JOHNS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): President Trump defending the man he just fired, national security advisor Michael Flynn, and slamming

the intelligence leaks that exposed Flynn's lies to Vice President Pence about his communications with a Russian ambassador.

TRUMP: I think it's very, very unfair what's happened to General Flynn, the way he was treated, and the documents and papers that were illegally -- I

stress that, illegally -- leaked.

JOHNS: One crisis after another frustrating the president's own party and now threatening to affect their agenda.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN, (R) ARIZONA: Of course I'm concerned. All of us should be concerned.

JOHNS: But some Republicans are towing the president's line, showing more interest in the legality of the leaks rather than Flynn's ties to Russia.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to find out who the leaking moles are.

JOHNS: The chairs of the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees both demanding the inspector general launch, quote, "an immediate investigation

into whether classified information was mishandled."

SEN. MARCO RUBIO (R), FLORIDA: The Senate Intelligence Committee is undergoing -- we met again yesterday. There's going to be a bipartisan

investigation. All of this is going to be in the context of that. And we're looking for facts; and we're looking for evidence; and we're looking for

details.

JOHNS: Meanwhile, a small bipartisan group of the Senate Judiciary Committee is calling for an expanded investigation, asking the Department

of Justice and the FBI for a briefing and the release of transcripts of Flynn's conversations with Russia, as Democrats call for a larger

independent investigation.

REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), MINORITY LEADER: The American people have a right to know.

JOHNS: But key Republicans continue to resist.

MCCAIN: On the Flynn issue, I think that we need to ask questions first and find out what is the scope of that before the investigation needs to be

expanded.

JOHNS: The turmoil over Flynn's resignation also overshadowing the high- profile visit from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

TRUMP: Thank you very much.

JOHNS: The president breaking with decades of U.S. foreign policy, abandoning a two-state solution to Middle East peace. Mr. Trump no longer

insisting on the creation of a Palestinian state and making clear he isn't giving Netanyahu a blank check.

TRUMP: As with any successful negotiation, both sides will have to make compromises. You know that, right?

JOHNS: And in yet another blow for the Trump White House, the president's embattled pick for labor secretary, Andrew Puzder, withdrawing his

nomination, a day before he was set to get a Senate hearing, over eroding support and because of his business record and personal character issues.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: And that was Joe Johns reporting there.

Iran had some sharp words after the Trump/Netanyahu press conference. The foreign minister calling Donald Trumps claims about Iran's nuclear program

baseless.

Now, CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in the Iranian capital with more on the escalating tensions between Tehran and Washington. But first, let's go to

Oren Liebermann in Jerusalem.

And Oren, with Donald Trump saying two states, one state, I can live with either one, what message is he sending about the peace process?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Perhaps the strongest message is that he has no plan for the Middle East peace process.

That statement was an incredibly vague, non-committal statement. Two states, one state, whatever - whatever works for everybody else works for

me. There was no clear vision of policy there. It was an incredibly - it was an answer essentially to avoid his having to formulate exactly what his

plan is. And the assessment here is he doesn't yet have a plan.

Netanyahu's answer was very different. When he was asked if he still supports a two-state solution he very much dodged the question saying he

doesn't want to use the words two-state solution because he considers that a label instead of substance.

When it comes to what will Netanyahu do, his government is hailing this press conference as a new era, and we've heard that term, new era used in

both English and in Hebrew. His right wing government, that is Netanyahu's, calling now for more settlement construction, even if Trump

said he would like to see settlement construction halted a bit.

As for the Palestinians, that's the line they seized on. The fact that Trump wanted to see settlement constructed halted a bit so he can try to

make peace. They say that's what Netanyahu has to do now. Palestinian leadership saying they still support a two-state solution pointing to the

Israelis and Netanyahu refusing to commit in this case.

What's clear, though, Kristie, is that Trump doesn't seem to have a formulated Middle East policy. We've seen him shift on the embassy move

and we've seen him shift on settlements. The question what else is he going to shift on and where will his policy end up?

[08:15:11] LU STOUT: Oren Liermann joining us from Jerusalem.

Now, let's go to Fred Pleitgen standing by in Tehran. And, Fred, we did hear earlier Prime Minister Netanyahu quite clearly campaign against the

nuclear deal between the U.S. and Iran. Mr. Trump earlier he called it the worst deal ever.

I mean, now that policy shifts aside, U.S. and Israel are drawing closer together under Trump and Netanyahu. How concerned is Iran right now?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems as though they are very concerned about that situation. And it was

interesting earlier this morning. we were looking through the Iranian press here, but television as well as television and newspapers, and there really wasn't much in the way of a

reaction at all immediately after that press conference that took place.

However, now, the spokesman for the foreign minister, Bahram Kassimy (ph). He came out and he had some strong words. And if you were going to

categorize that, or define the way that he said it, he lashed out very heavily at Israel, but then also criticized the U.S. president as well.

Of course, speaking about some of the claims that were made in that press conference, of

course, the Israeli prime minister saying that he believes that Iran wants hundreds of nuclear warheads to attack places like Israel, for instance,

Kassimy there said it's the Zionist regime, which is the way that the Iranians refer to Israel, atomic arsenal is the biggest threat to both

global and regional peace and security.

He also says that what Trump -- Mr. Trump and Mr. Netanyahu said included, quote, no new points, but repetition of the unfounded and unworthy claims

about Iran's peaceful nuclear program.

Of course, the Iranians always insisting that their nuclear program was never designed to build a nuclear weapon, but only for nuclear research as

well as for nuclear power.

So, some very strong words aimed at the Israelis, also criticism aimed at Donald Trump as well

calling the claims that were made in that press conference baseless and saying that they had nothing to do with reality,

But you're absolutely right. The Israelis certainly are concerned what they have been seeing some of the proximity between the Trump

administration and the Netanyahu administration. Of course, it's very different than what they saw when Barack Obama was still in office. When

there was somewhat of a warming of ties between Iran and the United states.

You can tell that the Iranian political scene, the Iranian power struggle here, the Iranian people here in power that they are still struggling to

come up with a definition of how they want to deal with a Trump administration.

They want to see what Donald Trump is going to be up to. They want to see what the next four years have been like. Certainly, they have been put in

a state of warning by some of the comments that have come out of Washington over the past couple of weeks since Donald Trump has been in office, but at

the same time, they are here trying not to antagonize the situation any further - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, the foreign policy lines coming out of team Trump shifting all the time. Very difficult to come up with a distinctive response.

Fred Pleitken reporting live for us from Tehran Oren Liebermann live from Jerusalem. Many thanks to you both with the reaction there.

Now, new details have emerged from the investigation into the death of Kim Jong-nam. We are live in Kuala Lumpur with the latest on what we know

about the alleged murder.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[08:20:25] LU STOUT: Coming to you live from Hong Kong. Welcome back. You're watching News Stream.

Now, three suspects are under arrest in connection with the death of the North Korean leader's half brother Kim Jong-nam. This surveillance video

was taken at the Kuala Lumpur Airport shows one of the two women under custody. And they were carrying Vietnamese and Indonesian travel papers.

And police say the third suspect is a Malaysian man.

Now, let's take you to Kuala Lumpur. Saima Mohsin is standing by. And Saima, tell us more about the individuals who were arrested today, and what

they have to do with the case.

SAIMA MOHSIN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, Kristie, the more you and I speak, the more widespread this investigation gets. This the has

become an Asia-wide murder mystery, bringing in Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia,

So you'll remember the first suspect that was arrested was a woman identified crucially through CCTV footage. And she was arrested actually

at Kuala Lumpur international airport. She had a Vietnamese passport on her at the time of arrest, and they have identified her as 25-year-old Duan

T. Hang (ph) -- sorry, 28-year old.

Now, a 25-year-old Indonesian woman was arrested earlier this afternoon. Her name Siti Isha (ph). And CNN teams in Jakarta have managed to confirm

with the ministry of foreign affairs that she is indeed an Indonesian citizen and that passport was a genuine one. And when they were -- when

she was arrested, a press release was release was released saying that she was believed to be involved in the death of Kim Jong-nam.

Now, following that, more intrigue, her partner or boyfriend Mohammed Fareed bin Jalalabin (ph) has also been arrested. He's 26. And he's

arrested over the alleged murder as well. Not sure how much to read into the wording, because that phraseology wasn't attached to the Vietnamese

woman, but in my experience they perhaps haven't matched all press releases here in Malaysia, but they are definitely being investigated as part of

the murder of Kim Jong-nam - Kristie.

LU STOUT: Yeah, more arrests made today and yet the mystery deepens. Still many, many lingering questions. Saima Mohsin reporting live for us

from KL. Thank you, Saima.

Now, Kim Jong-nam's death has not been publicized in North Korea. Instead, the spotlight is on his late father Kim Jong-il who would have turned 75

this week.

Now, just a short time ago there were fireworks marking the occasion. A government source tells CNN the country's launch of a ballistic missile on

Sunday was also part of the celebration.

Will Ripley has more from inside Pyongyang.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): North Korea has no religious holidays but make no mistakes, this is a time of worship. On the 75th

birthday week of late leader Kim Jong-il, tens of thousands flock to one of Pyongyang's most sacred sites. They come to honor two men whose legacy

towers over every aspect of lift in this highly militarized nation. The man who led North Korea into the nuclear age.

A government source tells CNN it's no coincidence North Korean leader Kim Jong-un chose this week to test the latest weapons in his growing arsenal,

a ballistic missile and newly developed mobile launcher. North Korea says it's capable of a nuclear surprise attack on key U.S. allies and military

installations. And it seems to play well with the people.

"We're very proud of our military achievements," says this retiree. "Now we have nothing to be afraid of in the world."

These men have lived under three decades of the Kim family leadership. All their lives the government has warned them they're under the constant

threat of invasion by what they called the hostile United States. They've seen North Korea's arsenal grow, along with its alienation from the outside

world.

(On camera): Do you worry that these tests are isolating your country and leading to more economic hardship?

(Voice-over): "We always lived under sanctions," he says. "We were under sanctions yesterday and today. We're not worried."

(On camera): The North Korean weapons program began under the late leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il. But it has really accelerated under the

current leader Kim Jong-un. Just in the last year along he has ordered two nuclear tests and launched more than 20 missiles. And he is promising more

to come.

[08:25:07] (Voice-over): Everyone we meet on the streets of Pyongyang offers only praise for their leader's military first policies.

"As long as we have our great Marshall Kim Jong-un and we believe in him, we're not afraid of anyone," says this city employee.

We are allowed to approach anyone we want. All give the same answer. In this close society, nearly all information comes from state- controlled

media.

JOSEPH BERMUDEZ, 38 NORTH SENIOR ANALYST: This is the reason why you're sacrificing. This is why you don't have the highest quality of food. You

have to work extra hours.

RIPLEY: Joseph Bermudez, senior analyst with 38 North, says missile launches and nuclear tests allow the young leader to project power and

ensure survival.

BERMUDEZ: North Korea is in this for the long term.

RIPLEY: He says Kim's ultimate goal, to make it simply too dangerous for any foreign country to threaten his nation's existence.

Will Ripley, CNN, Pyongyang, North Korea.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: Now, voters in Jakarta have cast their ballots in the governor's race. And analysts say their choice could change the political

landscape in Indonesia.

now, the incumbent governor, known as Ahok, is from two minority groups. He is ethnic Chinese and Christian. His two opponents in the race are

Muslim.

Exit polls show Ahok and the former education minister received the most votes and a runoff election is possible. We'll know the results in about

two weeks.

Now, still to come right here on News Stream. Could America first actually turn to India first, a one-tech billionaire certainly thinks so as it is

becomes harder to get an H1B visa. My conversation with the co-founder of Infosys is coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HEADLINES)

[08:30:16] LU STOUT: A Mexican immigrant mother facing deportation is vowing to stay in a Colorado church for as long as it takes. Now, she has

four American children, has been living in the U.S. for 20 years, but she's been ordered to leave now.

Ana Cabrera has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CROWD (chanting): Hey, hey, ho, ho, white supremacy's got to go.

ANA CABRERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Demonstrators outside the immigration office in Colorado supporting a mother of four from Mexico,

Jeanette Vizguerra, scheduled to check in with I.C.E. Unlike other check- ins, her attorney and pastor entered without her.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to go in and talk to immigration. We'll be back in a second.

JEANETTE VIZGUERRA: My intuition is, it's bad.

CABRERA: Vizguerra chose not to show up, instead taking refuge inside a church where she received the bad news by phone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They denied her stay.

CABRERA: Her request for a temporary stay denied, despite six previous stays that were granted. Vizguerra, first, speechless, then in tears. Her

nightmare coming true. We talked with her prior to the check in about her fear.

VIZGUERRA: It's difficult. My kids are my life. My family is my life. Not's (ph) my country. But it's my house. it's the house of my kids. It's the

country of my kids.

CABRERA (on camera): And so this is your home.

VIZGUERRA: Yes, it's my home.

CABRERA: The country.

VIZGUERRA: I live in more years here than my country.

CABRERA (voice-over): Vizguerra came to the U.S. in 1997. She has three children, ages six, 10 and 12 who are citizens, born in the U.S. Her

oldest, Tania (ph), is 26 with three children of her own. She has legal status through DACA, an Obama administration policy that protects immigrant

youth from deportation.

TANIA BAEZ (ph), JEANETTE'S DAUGHTER: She's basically the backbone of our family. So without her, my kids would not know their grandma anymore and

they wouldn't see grandma.

CABRERA: This family's future in limbo since 2009, when Vizguerra was arrested following a traffic stop. She had a fake Social Security Number on

a job application in her car. She's been fighting deportation ever since.

CABRERA (on camera): Did they give you specific reasons for denying the stay this time?

HANS MEYER, VIZGUERRA'S ATTORNEY: When you have a blanket deportation policy, you don't need to have specific reasons. You just say, no, and

that's exactly what they did.

CABRERA (voice-over): The local I.C.E. office provided the following response, saying, "Jeanette Vizguerra-Ramirez, from Mexico, has two

misdemeanor convictions. On November 18, 2011, a federal immigration judge originally issued her final orders of deportation to Mexico. Based on these

factors, Vizguerra-Ramirez is an I.C.E. enforcement priority."

CROWD (chanting): Down, down with deportation. Up, up with liberation.

CABRERA: The news triggering a protest in D.C. Meantime, Colorado Congressman Jared Polis has filed a private bill in the House of

Representatives hoping to help plead her case.

For now, she's moved into this Denver church basement, an informal sanctuary where immigration officials have not yet dared to go. She

addressed supporters through a translator this afternoon.

VIZGUERRA (translator): So I know that my fight will continue even though I'm still -- even though I'm inside these walls, there's much that I can do

to continue organizing and to continue to support my community. And by my community, I don't just mean the Mexican immigrant community. I don't just

mean South Americans. There are people from all over the world that are in the exact same situation as I am.

CABRERA (on camera): How long are you prepared to stay here?

VIZGUERRA: I don't know. It's possible days, months or years.

CABRERA: Ana Cabrera, CNN, Denver.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: There has been plenty of focus on Donald Trump's travel ban, but another potential immigration shake-up has many in India worried.

Now, the U.S. president is considering changes to the H-1b visa, which can make it much harder to get. Now, it is vital to India's tech industry,

because it let's firms hire highly skilled foreigners in the U.S., and there's good reason for that. Nearly a third of India's tech experts flow

to the U.S.

Now, any visa changes could have major ramifications in India, so what is one of the country's biggest names in tech think?

Nandan Nilekani co-founded Infosys. He is optimistic and sees opportunity. And I started by asking him whether he thinks President Trump threatens to

disrupt the sector.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NANDAN NILEKANI, CO-FOUNDER, INFOSYS: What I think today is in some sense a reaction to globalization and many other things that we took for granted

for the last 30, 40 years. So, I think it's a wait and watch situation.

[08:35:11] LU STOUT: If you had the opportunity to sit down and speak with President Trump, what would you tell him?

NILEKANI: Well, I would tell him that the reason why the United States is such a great country is because it has always been open to immigrants,

talented people. If you look at the Silicon Valley companies, every one of them has an immigrant founder. I mean,

Google has an immigrant founder. I mean, most of the companies have immigrant founders. So if you really want to keep the U.S. continue to be

globally competitive, you should be open to talent.

LU STOUT: Yeah, the H-1B visa program started because of a lack of engineering talent and talent in America.

NILEKANI: And Indian companies have done a great deal to help U.S. companies become more competitive. And I think that should continue.

LU STOUT: And if there are limits placed on the H-1B visa program, could India stand to benefit? India would be a position to hire India first.

NILEKANI: Well, actually, you know, this issue of visas has always come up in the U.S.

every few years, especially during election season, and invariably it's actually accelerated the development work here, because as you rightly said

people are investing more to do the work here. And India itself is going to have a huge program of digital India, and all that will I think require

the best talent to work on it.

LU STOUT: And do you feel that the talent is starting to remain in India as opposed to working in Silicon Valley or elsewhere?

NILEKANI: Oh, absolutely. If you look at the (inaudible) project. It was built by extremely talented and committed Indians, both...

LU STOUT: This is the national ID project.

NILEKANI: Yeah, the national ID project, both from the government and from the private sector. And many of them had global experience, but they

brought that talent and experience to solve India's problem.

So, I think we will see more and more of that, giving back by India's who have global experience.

LU STOUT: So, this is India first?

NILEKANI: Oh, absolutely, yes. Yes, absolutely, I think you're right. I mean, in fact, it's called making India or startup India. It's India

first.

LU STOUT: Now, so far Donald Trump on Twitter has yet to send any sort of disparaging or negative tweet about India. What do you think about the

U.S.-India relationship ahead under U.S. President Trump?

NILEKANI: No, I think India is a very important and strategic partner for the U.S., and I'm sure that -- I know that there have been discussions

between the U.S. president and the Indian prime minister. And I'm very confident that things will work out well.

LU STOUT: So, it will be a smooth relationship, an uneventful one?

NILEKANI: Well, yeha, I think it will be a good one, yes.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LU STOUT: and that was Infosys co-founder Nandan Nilekani speaking with me in Bangalore.

Now, you're watching News Stream. And still to come, we'll take you to Chang Mai where artists and entrepreneurs are bringing traditional crafts

back wit ha modern twist.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LU STOUT: Welcome back.

Now, entrepreneurs in Thailand are gathering Chiang Mai to tap into the city's resources and creativity. And now traditional crafts are getting

revived with a modern-day twist. Saima Mohsin reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MOHSIN: The past serves as an inspiration for the artists of Chiang Mai. The northern city was the capital of the ancient Lana kingdom. Now it's

trying to position itself as the country's creative hub. At this workshop, traditional weaving meets modern design.

Boon Charoenpoonsiri tarted with leading fashion houses in Italy and strives to combine European quality with local crafts.

BOON CHAROENPOONSIRI, TORBOON: So we try to be local (inaudible) that existed in Chiang Mai. It takes so much time to weave. And we bring it up

with a very modernity.

MOHSIN: Across down, that sentiment is shared, but interpreted in a different way.

Make a Space Thailand hopes to build on the legacy of local handicraft, by providing people with modern tools, from laser cutters to 3-D printers.

Founder, Nati Sang says member can learn to use them for free and provides additional usage at cost.

NATI SANG, MAKEASPACE THAILAND: In order for people to innovate they need to try to experiment, they need to be able to fail and if they have these

cost pressures in place, thenn, OK, who is going to just experiment and just try things out.

In other words, it allows people to be more entrepreneurial and try to monetize their ideas.

MOHSIN: One of Makeaspace Thailand's success stories is Thamarat "Ong" Sukjeeradei. She designed a

foldable loom for his wife who wants to practice her grandmother's hobby of weaving.

THAMARAT SUKJEERADEI, RADA LOOM: Well, traditional looms are the size of, you know, beds. I chose more modern material and it doesn't break as

easily and also this loom can be taken apart, every piece and put back together.

MOHSIN: Now, Ong and his wife have opened a store to sell their loom and they say they are

working to keep up with demand. Nati tries to find investments for their ideas. And he's working on a few projects of his own.

SANG: What we're looking at here is a smart farm system. In Thailand, the number one industry is agriculture, so it makes a lot of sense that with

the Makeaspace that we start trying to put in more advanced technologies into something that is very traditionally

done.

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LU STOUT: And that is News Stream. I'm Kristie Lu Stout. But don't go anywhere.

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