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U.S. and North Korea Race to Revive Trump-Kim Summit; Trump White House; Former IMF Official Appointed as Italy's Interim Prime Minister; Warrior Seeking 4th Straight Finals Appearance; Vegas Looking To Make History In Debut Season; One-On-One With Nigeria Star Alex Iwobi. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired May 29, 2018 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): You're watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. Ahead this hour, it's on, it's off, it's on again. Maybe off, who knows. Well, at least for now, the historic summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un might just be happening after all.
Plus (INAUDIBLE) in Memorial Day with a tribute tweet roundly criticized as totally inappropriate.
And rescued a young life that might just changed his own forever.
Hello and thank you for joining us. I'm John Vause. This is NEWSROOM L.A.
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VAUSE: The summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un appears right now at least for the moment to be on again. A team of North Korean negotiators arrived in Singapore Monday to work on logistics with their U.S. counterparts.
Delegations from both sides met in the Korean DMZ to try and hammer out an agenda for the summit. The meeting is scheduled for June 12th, just two weeks away. President Trump called off the summit on Thursday and suggested over the weekend it's back on.
CNN's Paula Hancocks live in Seoul, South Korea.
Paula, we're told these presummit preparations are moving ahead with an urgency driven by the leadership of both countries. So in a practical sense, is there a uptick in activity this week compared to last week before the president canceled everything?
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, John. What we saw last week, according a Trump administration official, was there was no communication between the North Koreans and the U.S. There was actually a U.S. delegation that was waiting in Singapore
that was supposed to meet with the North Koreans and they didn't show up. And then they said that they couldn't get in touch with them after that.
And then since the U.S. president canceled the summit, there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity, not least the meeting between the leaders of North and South Korea, the South Korean president saying that Kim Jong-un had asked for that the day after the U.S. president canceled the summit.
So we really have seen a lot of moving parts over the last 24-48 hrs. As you say there is expected to be the delegations meeting in Singapore to deal with the logistics, the flight surveys, the security and there is also -- has been talks between the U.S. delegation and North Koreans in the DMZ recently.
And we are hearing from someone who's familiar with U.S.-North Korean relations that potentially there could be another meeting tomorrow as well. That is Wednesday local and that's to deal with the substance of these talks, what will the agenda look like, how close or how far apart are the two sides' opinions on what can be achieved with the summit -- John.
VAUSE: OK, Paula, thank you, Paula Hancocks live for us in Seoul.
Let's go to Jasper Kim now. He is also in Seoul. He's an expert on conflict management.
So, Jasper, thank you for being with us. From what you've seen over the past week or so, from both these leaders, Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un, who wants this summit to happen more?
Whose actions indicate they have the most to lose?
JASPER KIM, CENTER FOR CONFLICT MANAGEMENT: John, it's a great question. I think it really depends on the day, on certain days it seems like Donald Trump wants it more and other days it seems like Kim Jong-un wants it more.
It oscillates back and forth and I think each side is trying to do the same thing, is basically answer this question, how does it maximize its bargaining power, its negotiation power and leverage that into the negotiating table?
As the expression goes, the battle is won before it's ever fought and too goes through a complex, multistage negotiation as this is.
VAUSE: There's now this reality TV type drama surrounding the summit itself.
Will it happen on time?
Can the U.S. be ready? s
Should the president attend? Listen to the former director of national intelligence, James Clapper. This is what he said over the weekend.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES CLAPPER, FORMER U.S. DIRECTOR OF NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE: There's value having gone this far. There's value in meeting and greeting, gripping and grinning and just establishing a rapport. I think, yes, I think it would be important to have the summit.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: But are you concerned that the summit has become an end into itself simply if it happens, there will be a success?
There's no longer the focus on what the summit is actually meant to achieve?
KIM: That's one of the million-dollar questions, what is exactly they calibrate a success record between these two parties and from the office of the international community at large?
I think at the minimum, if we say that it is just a meet-and-greet and it basically just deals with optics for the media, then why would that not be a succeed in my estimation?
Because what that does is it creates a relationship and a direct dialogue between these two top leaders that we haven't seen the likes of before in modern history.
Whether in the future that leads to something that's even greater or not, well, who knows. But I think it is always better to speak with your counterpart, your enemies or frenemies, whatever terms you want to term, than not just speak.
VAUSE: If this summit does go ahead as planned, much of the credit it seems should go to the South --
[02:05:00]
VAUSE: -- Korean president, Moon Jae-in. Here's part of a report in the past few hours from "The Washington Post."
"Last week, however, Moon faced a setback. He was blindsided by Trump's decision to cancel the summit less than a day after the South Korean leader returned from a meeting in the Oval Office.
"Trump's action was discouraging and hurtful, Moon's advisers said. But recognizing the U.S. president holds the key to resuming negotiations, Moon remained committed to salvaging the summit, they said."
And now to your point, the involvement here of President Moon has not removed one of the problems that there is still this lack of agreement on what they are actually negotiating over. You have President Moon overly optimistic view on what they can actually get to. But still ultimately there is no goal and no roadmap on how to get there.
KIM: I think that's what this summit is actually going to try to hammer out. I think there's not the end goal in and of itself but this summit will be the beginning of a future focused framework in terms of going forward in the multistage aspects of this negotiation about disarmament, about denuclearization, whatever topics, economic assistance.
There will be a process in which to go about talking about it, thinking about it and negotiating about it. In fact, the definition of a negotiation is really based on the communication process. The end result is almost sort of a byline.
So I think that's what's important here. If we get a tangible, workable process then I think we've got something here.
VAUSE: I just wonder how that all fits into what the U.S. president has led everyone to believe as to what this summit could achieve because on one issue of logistics, we have Siegfried Hecker (ph), a professor at Stanford University, who has been to North Korea many times. He's toured their nuclear facilities and published a report which says, "Nuclear disarmament of North Korea could take up to 15 years."
That alone is a timetable which would seem unacceptable to the current U.S. administration.
KIM: Well, my view is even if that's the case, 15 years, which seems like a long time, I think it's better 15 years than say 30 or 50 years of possible non-denuclearization. As long as there's the process in which that can be verified and so forth, that's basically meets the specifications, (INAUDIBLE) of all those sites involved.
So 15 years, yes, it's possible. But I still think that's better than nothing.
VAUSE: Jasper, thank you, Jasper Kim there from Ewha University in Seoul, we appreciate it. Thank you.
KIM: Thank you.
VAUSE: Joining us now, political analyst, Bill Schneider. He's a former senior political analyst for us here at CNN, also the author of "Standoff: How America became Ungovernable," which seems a very timely book right now.
BILL SCHNEIDER, POLITICAL ANALYST: Thank you.
VAUSE: OK, let's talk about, Bill, a lot of stuff happening over the weekend. A lot of stuff to do with North Korea. On Saturday, the president, he was in the Oval Office and, if you listen to what he said, the North Korea summit, no problem here. Everything was on track, all on schedule.
Listen to the president.
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TRUMP: We're looking at June 12th in Singapore. That hasn't changed.
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VAUSE: It hasn't changed. Except on Thursday, the president told all of us it was canceled. Again, in case you didn't see it, here it is.
SCHNEIDER: OK.
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TRUMP: Based on the recent statement of North Korea, I have decided to terminate the planned summit in Singapore on June 12th.
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VAUSE: OK, so he decided to terminate the summit. This seems to be a move straight out of the scripts of the season 9 cliffhanger of "Dallas" back in 1986. Check it out, the shower scene.
(VIDEO CLIP, "DALLAS")
VAUSE: Yes, Bobby's not dead. It was all just Pamela Ewing's bad dream and that entire season never happened.
(INAUDIBLE) Thursday, it never happened for the president.
Why pretend?
And it seems as if that's been erased from time as far as this president is concerned.
Why do that?
SCHULTZ: Because he wants to show I'm in charge here. I'm in charge of this agenda. If the summit happens or doesn't happen it's up to me, not that up to that guy Kim in North Korea. I mean some guy who he called him names --
VAUSE: Oh, Rocket Man, Little Rocket Man --
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SCHNEIDER: That's right. He didn't want to be seen as a pawn of Little Rocket Man, who originated the call for the summit. What Trump is saying is, if he doesn't behave, I'm going to call the whole thing off. And he did. And then he decided, well, maybe we'll putt the whole thing back on the agenda again.
Trump wants to make sure he's in charge.
VAUSE: But there seems to be this denial of reality that it was, at least for a day, it wasn't happening and no acknowledgement now that it's back on.
SCHNEIDER: Well, they're pretending that all that didn't happen because it now looks like it's likely to happen. But --
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SCHNEIDER: -- Trump, when he does a negotiation, it is his negotiation. He's the guy in charge. You've got two erratic personalities here, Kim and Trump. And it's very complicated to deal with that kind of personality.
VAUSE: I guess the Canadians and the South Koreans have a lot of common when it comes to their neighbors.
(LAUGHTER)
VAUSE: There does seem to be some agreement out there that all of this has come this far. So it is better to go ahead with the summit than not. Listen to Senator Flake again from the weekend.
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SEN. JEFF FLAKE (R), ARIZ.: Let me say, a freeze would be better than we've had before. So there's nothing wrong with saying, hey, they may not denuclearize but we can have a better situation than we currently have.
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VAUSE: So Senator Jeff Flake, a Republican like many others are saying it's better to go ahead with this summit, get something, get some kind of deal than nothing at all and have the current situation continue with the threat of war and nuclear confrontation.
Is this president capable of holding those kinds of negotiations with Kim Jong-un?
Does he have the temperament to basically settle for less?
SCHNEIDER: Well, look if the summit takes place at all, it'll look like a victory for Trump because he's the first president to deal directly with North Korea. At the least I think I'll establish some channels of communication, not diplomatic recognition, not denuclearization, which will take a long time but it'll establish a channel of communication and he'll get credit for being the first president to do anything like that with North Korea.
And that'll be what he's looking for, credit.
VAUSE: Even though every other since the '70s, the North Koreans have been throwing themselves at, trying to get this kind of meeting. It wasn't exactly a great master play to get this summit in the first place --
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SCHNEIDER: Well, the fact is it's never happened. And the optics --
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SCHNEIDER: -- the optics of it will be very good. What Trump really wants is a Nobel Peace Prize. But that's not going to happened unless the summit comes up with something very substantial. And I doubt that.
VAUSE: OK. Monday was Memorial Day in the U.S. when those who gave their lives to this country are remembered. So the president's sent out a tweet early Monday.
"Happy Memorial Day. Those who died for our great country would be very happy and proud of how well our country is doing today. Best economy in decades, lowest unemployment numbers for blacks and Hispanics ever (and women in 18 years) rebuilding our military and so much more. Nice."
OK. Amid a lot of criticism, David Frump (ph) from "The Atlantic" seemed to sum it all up with this paragraph.
"Trump's perfect emptiness of empathy has revealed itself again and again through his presidency, but never as completely and conspicuously as in his self-flattering 2018 Memorial Day tweets. They exceed even the heartless comment in a speech to Congress -- in the presence of a grieving widow -- that a fallen Navy Seal would be happy that his ovation from Congress had lasted longer than anybody else's."
Explain the outrage here over that initial treatment by Donald Trump.
SCHNEIDER: What the Democrats and the people who were outraged, not just Democrats, are saying is get over yourself. You know. He can't get over himself. He is, I think clinically a megalomaniac. He's someone who has a very grandiose vision of himself, his power. It's all about him. That's a very dangerous thing in a president.
VAUSE: He seemed to put the me into Memorial Day.
SCHNEIDER: Well, you could say that.
(LAUGHTER)
SCHNEIDER: Memorial Day is a solemn occasion in which we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice. And to use it as a as an excuse for self-congratulation really is outrageous.
VAUSE: And speaking of outrage, there have been outrage but certainly a lot of criticism and controversy after the president's lead Russia attorney, Rudy Giuliani, appeared on CNN with Dana Bash again over the weekend and certainly laid out the strategy of the president when it comes to dealing with the Russia investigation and Robert Mueller.
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DANA BASH, CNN SR. U.S. CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Is this an intentional strategy to undermine the investigation, knowing that they, the investigators, the special counsel, for policy not to talk but you are very free to and are very aggressive about doing so?
RUDY GIULIANI, TRUMP ATTORNEY: Well, they're giving us the material. Eventually the decision here is going to be impeach/not impeach. Members of Congress, Democrat and Republican, are going to be informed a lot by their constituents.
So our jury -- as it should be -- is the American people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Some legal experts, like CNN's Paul Callan, believes that the strategy laid out here by Rudy Giuliani could actually be illegal, maybe some obstruction of justice. This is what Paul said.
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PAUL CALLAN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Normally, what a lawyer will say is we're being fully cooperative with the investigation. We think they're wrong. We think they reach the wrong conclusion. But we will cooperate as the law requires.
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CALLAN: Instead, Giuliani says, yes, we're trying to undermine the investigation. And they have given us the material to undermine the investigation.
Now when a lawyer says that, it sounds to me like he's recommending an obstruction of justice. And I think Giuliani is getting perilously close to stating things that are unethical for an attorney to state.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: So the ethics here --
[02:15:00]
VAUSE: -- or the legal ethics under Rudy Giuliani. But talk to the strategy here, which the president is using, essentially admitting that they're now into a PR strategy as opposed to some kind of legal defense strategy.
SCHNEIDER: This isn't about legal process. This is about politics. The president is rallying his base. He is mobilizing his supporters. He fully expects that the Democrats take over the House of Representatives, they will move very quickly to impeach him. And they probably will do that because their constituents want them to do that.
It will be very difficult to get a conviction in the Senate. But he's preparing the way. And if there is an impeachment by the end of about the beginning of next year, it will completely take over the agenda for the next year. That is all we will be talking about.
VAUSE: To get a conviction in the Senate you need two-thirds. SCHNEIDER: Two-thirds, and that is very unlikely.
VAUSE: Let's finish up on another odd tweet from the president, which is part of his overall strategy. This is a strategy of deflection, if you like. This is over his policy of separating children and their parents who arrive at the border and try to cross into the country illegally, maybe even seek asylum.
Here's the tweet.
"Put pressure on the Democrats to end the horrible law that separates children from there (sic) parents once they cross the Border into the U.S. Catch and Release, Lottery and Chain must also go with it and we MUST continue building the WALL! DEMOCRATS ARE PROTECTING MS-13 THUGS."
There's a whole lot there but essentially "put pressure on the Democrats" around this policy, which seems odd. Just as a reminder, this is what happened Thursday night, November 2nd, 2016.
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WOLF BLITZER, CNN HOST: Right now a historic moment. We can now project the winner of the presidential race, CNN projects Donald Trump wins the presidency.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN CHIEF WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: Donald J. Trump is the President of the United States electric.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have now confirmed that Secretary Clinton has conceded to Donald Trump.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: OK, so he's the president. Republicans control both houses of Congress. What did the Democrats have to do with this policy that he's talking about?
SCHNEIDER: Nothing.
VAUSE: yes.
SCHNEIDER: And I don't know what law he is talking about, the law that the Democrats apparently sponsored to separate parents from their children. The closest you could come to that is an anti-child sex trafficking law in 2008, when the Democrats did have control of one house of Congress.
There was a -- both houses then -- a child sex trafficking law that enabled the government to take into custody unaccompanied children who crossed the border. But that's nothing like the situation now. It is not clear that he is talking about any actual law.
But once again it's a political strategy to mobilize his base and to blame the other side.
VAUSE: Very quickly, you wrote a book about how American is now ungovernable.
How much do the tactics of this president feed into that?
SCHNEIDER: Well, he has a base that tends to be conspiracy minded. They think the rest of the country is out to get them. They feel disrespected, which is why he won in the first place. They were angry because they're disrespected.
And he's pursuing conspiracy theories to encourage that kind of belief.
VAUSE: In which no president has ever done before?
SCHNEIDER: I've never seen a president do that, no.
VAUSE: OK, Bill, thank you. Great to have you with us. Appreciate it.
Populists will not govern Italy after all, at least not for now. An interim prime minister is leading the country to new elections as the political uncertainty grows even deeper. Also the French president has a life-changing offer for the migrant who heroically saved a child dangling from a balcony (INAUDIBLE).
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VAUSE: Italy could be heading for new elections after populists failed to form a coalition government. The Italian president has appointed Carlo Cotarelli, a former official with the International Monetary Fund, as an interim prime minister.
For the next few months he will lead a country more than $2 trillion in debt and counting.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARLO COTARELLI, INTERIM ITALIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): I have agreed to for a government. At the present, the republic asked me to do. Naturally, I will do my best. I will go to parliament with a program that if it will the confidence vote, will include the budget law for 2019.
After that, the parliament will be dissolved and new elections will be called for the beginning of 2019. As a founding country of the European Union, our role in the union is essential and our participation in the world is also essential.
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VAUSE: The populist coalition collapsed when the president rejected a Eurosceptic nominee for economy minister.
CNN European affairs commentator, Dominic Thomas, is with us now.
Dominic, good to see you. We just heard from Cotarelli there, dead man -- no, I'm sure he'll be fine.
(LAUGHTER)
VAUSE: He's saying that he has a very modest agenda. He wants to pass a budget. He wants to keep the ship afloat until those elections which are scheduled after next year.
Right now that seems like he is the eternal optimist and there is almost no chance.
DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Right. There's a lot of strategizing going on. And I think that the choice of Cotarelli by Mattarella is about as far as he can go in playing this particular game.
What fuels the populist parties and the far right agendas are precisely this kind of administrative mechanism falling apart. So of course, right now they're screaming and shouting and kicking, which is, of course, concealing their shortcomings and potential disagreements.
But by picking somebody who is so unambiguously pro-European Union, pro single currency and in favor of the austerity fiscal measures of the European Union, he is not only completely taken somebody that was diametrically opposed to their choice for a finance minister, but forcing an election that will have to weigh in, not only on the question of the euro currency but on the European Union in a broader context.
And this is going to make the five-star movement and therefore of course the Northern League be a bit more articulate and less ambiguous on what they really want and expect out of the European Union.
VAUSE: This seems to be a pretty big gamble from a president who has been described as gray, a ghost, Berlusconi once called him a monk. This is a big gamble and (INAUDIBLE).
THOMAS: Well, what we could argue is that this is one potential example of the European Union fighting back here. Simply allowing this far right entity to enter into power with a group, a movement that has no experience in political office, was also profoundly irresponsible.
And their choice of economics minister was so far out of the realm, his age, his experience, his positions, especially given as mentioned in the lead up, the financial situation of this country. This debt is on the level just below Greece's. A really important European economy with huge social problems and to have allowed that to go ahead is irresponsible.
VAUSE: But what about the counterargument, which we're hearing from the five-star movement and the others, essentially that this is what the people wanted. Together, I think the coalition makes about 40 percent of the vote, if not more.
Together, you put the votes together, that's democracy.
THOMAS: Right. But what Mattarella would argue is that that's not what people voted for in the case of this finance minister, which was essentially this kind of plan B he invoked, which is to start strategizing about --
[02:25:00]
THOMAS: -- withdrawing from the European Union and the euro.
That's the argument that is being used. That is not what people asked for. Yes, overwhelmingly, more than two-thirds voted for anti- immigration positions, anti-euro currency, attacking Brussels and so on.
It is a big difference between that and a kind of Italian exit when the overwhelming percentage of Iranians are still in favor of the European Union.
VAUSE: And we also once -- Sergio Mattarella made this call, there was some praise coming from the de facto leader of the E.U., France's Emmanuel Macron. Here's what he said.
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EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): I simply want to express my regards and support to President Mattarella, who has an essential task to carry out, that of his country's institutional and democratic stability, which he is doing with much courage and a great sense of responsibility.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: How will that go down with those people who've (INAUDIBLE)?
(CROSSTALK)
THOMAS: Well, Macron's an ambiguous figure. So in terms of some of the major issues that impact Italy, you could argue that there -- that this vote in Italy reflects the broader state of the European Union, that there are two Europes. There is a Europe of Macron and the Europe of Merkel, which wants to move ahead with greater integration, standardization of policy across these countries.
Although on the question of immigration, Emmanuel Macron has been very tough and problematic and that is, of course, a major issue in Italy, where so many people voted for anti-immigrant positions.
I think what we are going to see here from the Northern league and from the Five-Star Movement is they're going to do everything they can to build on this -- on this division to mobilize the electorate what they will call European Union reform. So not so much complete withdrawal from the European Union but we need
to look at questions of austerity. We need to make sure the European Union is helping us more with the migrants issue and so on.
And it's possible that around that, they will be able to galvanize votes. However, many of the supporters of the Five-Star Movement were disappointed at the idea of going into a coalition with the Northern League.
Let's not forget that the Northern League represents essentially the north, which is wealthier, and the Five-Star Movement represents the south, where unemployment is above 20 percent and so on.
And so even within these two, to move forward and to assume that the Northern League and the Five-Star Movement are going to remain as potential coalition partners, is problematic. And we already see some cracks there, too.
And let's not forget Berlusconi and Forza Italia, which is also making comments that lean in toward the Northern League and to support there. Ultimately the leaders of the Northern League and the Five-Star Movement both want to be prime minister. That's what counts to them.
VAUSE: We're out of time. I'm glad you mentioned Berlusconi because it makes you wistful for the relative stability of the days of Berlusconi and bunga bunga parties, I guess.
THOMAS: Well, I think there's going to be some disruption in the next few months and the Italians will be -- there will be some heated conversations about how all this means and how it's recuperated by each political agent.
VAUSE: Just part of the upheaval we're seeing in so many places. Dom, thank you. Appreciate it.
THOMAS: Thank you.
VAUSE: Next here on NEWSROOM L.A., the ministry endures but the search for Flight MH370 will be at an end. A live report after the break.
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[02:30:43] VAUSE: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause. The headlines this hour. Negotiators from the U.S. and North Korea are working to revive the on again off again summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un. Talks have been taking place in the Korean Demilitarized Zone as well as in Singapore where the summit is scheduled for June 12th. Italy's appears headed to new elections after the president appointed Carlo Cottarelli as the interim prime minister. He's a former official with the International Monetary Fund and is promising to hold elections early next year. Two leading populist parties fell to form a government after the president rejected the euro skeptic nominee to Economy Minister.
The Golden State Warriors are heading to the NBA Finals to meet the Cleveland Cavaliers for the fourth year in a row. Golden State beat the Houston Rockets Monday to advance in the finals. The Warriors have won the NBA title two of the past three years. Game one Thursday in Oakland. (INAUDIBLE) aviation's biggest mysteries and a source of ongoing heartbreak for the families and friends of those on board. Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared more than four years ago and now the search for the missing plane will be officially over. Anna Coren live this hour from our Hong Kong newsroom. So Anna, this is it. No more extensions. No more private searches. No more governments. It's done.
ANNA COREN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, at least for now. That is certainly the line coming out of Malaysia. The new government there is saying that this chapter needs to end that it needs to be closure. They obviously took out this offer from a private U.S. firm to continue searching for MH370. They had a 90-day contract and that contract ends today and the company released a press statement a short time ago saying that they end this search with a heavy heart. But for the families desperate for answers they need this search to go on.
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COREN: A routine Malaysian airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing would rock the aviation industry. And shatter the lives of the families over 239 people onboard. Flight MH370 vanished on the 8th of March 2014 less than an hour after takeoff. These were the last communications with air traffic control.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Malaysian 370 contract Ho Chi Minh 120 decimal 9, good night.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good night, Malaysian 370.
COREN: Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah was flying the Boeing 777 when it vanished from radar. Mounting speculation the disappearance of this ill-fated flight was in fact a deliberate act. A massive search immediately focus on the South China Sea, but a week later tracking data released by Malaysian authorities revealed the plane had flown up to eight hours in the opposite direction before crashing in the Southern Indian Ocean of the coast of Western Australia. One of the most challenging and exhaustive searches in history begun with the initial search zone roughly half the size of the United States.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're not searching for a needle in a haystack. We're still trying to find where the haystack is.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The loss of MH370 is the most bizarre mystery ever in aviation and arguably probably one of the most bizarre mysteries in any field at all.
COREN: And an Australian lead search, experts honed in on 60,000 square kilometers of seabed, 2000 kilometers off the coast of Perth.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If there is a plane down there, you know, we will see it.
COREN: Using sonar equipment and autonomous underwater vehicles, they navigated trenches, volcanoes, and underwater mountains searching for a debris field up to six kilometers below the surface.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Were looking for small pictures to -- something like this pixel.
COREN: More than a year into the search, thousands of kilometers away, debris from MH370 began washing up on the coast of Africa, an island in the Indian Ocean. As the underwater search dragged on, the Australian, Malaysian, and Chinese government funding the $150 million operation decided it had gone on long enough officially ending the search in January 2017, devastating families all over again.
[02:35:10] Earlier this year, a private U.S. company took up the search on a no find, no feed basis. But after five months it too has failed to produce any results and is ending its operation. If the Malaysian government decides to end the search and there's no further search then I will be very angry says Jiang Hui who lose his mother. We cannot accept this kind of outcome. (INAUDIBLE) whose beleoved wife was aboard MH370, he is also pleading for the Malaysians to keep searching.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do not give up the search. Stay focus on finding what really happened finding the claim and finding the truth.
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COREN: It really is that play, John, to not give up. And it is just one of those things that the families, they feel betrayed. They feel like they're being let down. They feel that the Malaysian government has broken its promise vowing, you know, back in that 2014 that it won't give up the search. It will find the remains of their loved ones, the debris of the plane. They have decided to just wash their hands of it and that for the families is just not good enough. So as you can imagine, John, they're going to continue to fight.
VAUSE: It's just still remains while there are things impossible to believe that a plane like that could disappear without a trace. Anna, thank you. (INAUDIBLE) CNN's Nick Paton Walsh has an exclusive report about a gang fighting police squad in El Salvador which includes foreign members or a controversial unit alleged of acted as a death squad. Here's a look.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It's an undeclared war here in El Salvador. Elite police against MS-13, a gang menace that beheads, rapes, and terrorizes and its America's war too because President Trump has declared MS-13 animals that must be eliminated and these men are fighting with U.S. money and help. We're headed now to one of the scenes of the more prominent killings here deep inside gang territory carried about by what locals here say it was effectively a police death squad.
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VAUSE: Tune in Wednesday and watch the rest of Nick's report starting at 5:00 a.m. in London, noon in Hong Kong. And we'll be back right after this.
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[02:40:09] VAUSE: Well, 8000 Starbucks locations in the U.S. will be close for a few hours on Tuesday as staff received anti-bias training. The giant company chain face protest and accusations of racial profiling back in April after two African-American men were arrested in a Starbucks in Philadelphia. The manager called police because they were waiting for a friend, they haven't ordered, and refused to leave when ask. About a hundred and seventy-five thousand employees are required to attend the sessions, but not all Starbucks will be close, 7000 stores in places like hotels and airports will remain open. Europe is considering a ban on single-used plastics such as straws, coffee cups, and plates. Ten items which make up 70 percent of the litter in European waters and beaches are being targeted and produces would be forced to cover the cost of cleaning up the plastic trash.
One industry groups says while it supports the overall objective, more resources are needed to improve, the collection of used plastic. A dramatic rescue in Paris ended with one life saved and another changed forever. When Mamoudou Gassama saw a little boy dangling from an apartment balcony, he scaled four floors with such ease and speed. He's been called Le Spiderman. If he pause for just a moment before the rescue, Gassama would have realize that act of bravery could pretty much (INAUDIBLE) deported because he's an undocumented immigrants living illegally in France. Jim Bittermann has details.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It looked like something out of an action film. The young man scaling the outside of a building to rescue a child dangling in midair. In fact, Mamoudou Gassama, 22 years old, an immigrant from Mali who was here kind of waiting to see whether he was going to get permanent asylum just suddenly sprang into action. He said he saw the child and he just had to do something. Here's the way he put it.
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MAMOUDOU GASSAMA, RESCUED CHILD DANGLING FROM BALCONY (via translator): We came here to watch the football match at a restaurant. I saw a lot of people yelling, cars were honking. I got out and I saw the child who was about to fall from the balcony. I like children, so I will hate to see him get hurt in front of me. I ran and I thought of ways to save him and, thank God, I scaled the front of the building to that balcony.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (via translator): How did you climb? It seemed easy.
GASSAMA (via translator): I got in top of a door and I manage to pull myself up from balcony to balcony and, thank God, I saved him.
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BITTERMANN: Gassama very humbly crediting divine intervention for his heroics. But it took a great deal of bravery to do that and President Macron said that this morning when he met him in the Elysee Palace, he said, bravo at the end of their discussion and said that in fact, Gassama, will be given French nationality, a kind of brain that perhaps he had. It said that life expands and contracts with courage and certainly Gassama's life has expanded today. Jim Bittermann, CNN Paris.
VAUSE: A lot of good news story to pitch on. Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Los Angeles. I'm John Vause. "WORLD SPORT" starts after the break.
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[02:45:12] VINCE CELLINI, CNN INTERNATIONAL SPORTS ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to WORLD SPORT at CNN Center. I'm Vince Cellini.
It is the most exciting moment in sports, a Game Seven. And that was the case of the NBA's Western Conference finals. Golden State took to the roads seeking a fourth straight finals appearance, while the Rockets could be thrown the champions with a win. Now, each team missing a key injured player. Golden State without Andre Iguodala, and once again, Houston, their Chris Paul.
Rockets led by 11th at the half, but the Warriors go on the path in the third quarter run. And Steph Curry, had 14 in that period, 27 in the game. Outscoring Houston, 33-15, were the Warriors.
But the Rockets really hurt themselves, they went brain dead. Continually missing three-pointers. They went an NBA record all for 27 from three and one stretch. Finish seven of 44 from beyond the arcs. Steph at seven three-pointers alone, and that's Kevin Durant, he closing things up. 21 of the 34 came in the second half, big shot after big shot. Curry and Durant could buy in for 40 at the Warriors. 58 second-half points, 101-92. Four games to three, the Warriors win going back to the Finals. What a job by Steph Curry and company.
So, ready or now, the Warriors and Cavaliers meet once again in the NBA Finals. Starting Thursday at Oracle Arena in Oakland. It's the first time the same two teams have met four straight years in the finals. And really aside from these teams, no clubs have been ever met three straight. Warriors are favored but the Cavs have LeBron James. So, there is that and it will start very soon.
The NHL Stanley Cup Finals began in Las Vegas of all places. The Vegas Golden Knights trying to become the first expansion team in any of the four major U.S. sports to win a title in season one.
The visiting Washington Capitals ending a 20 year finals drought. What an entertaining game we had in Game One, tied to three up to the second. The Capitals open the third-period scoring. Tom Wilson with Ovechkin and Kuznetsov, assisting actually, Andre Fleury, pushed it back and goal 4-3 Caps.
But the Knights shut the door at 2:41. Ryan Reaves out front ties the game at four. And it turns out the expansion Knights close out the scoring. Tomas Nosek finds the net for the final two goals, the second was an empty-netter. The Golden Knights strike first winning 6-4, Game One of their first ever Stanley Cup final. Game Two is Wednesday also in Las Vegas.
And joining us now from ground zero is CNN's Paul Vercammen. And Paul, the Knights, putting on our show in their inaugural Stanley Cup game, they get a win. What was it like there?
PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It wasn't indeed a show because it was the spectacle on so many different levels including the win. But, of course, they put on this production that's almost unimaginable in sports. It's combining this Game of Thrones Team with Las Vegas Blitz, and the free game itself has become suddenly, it's a buzz around the sports world. That's because they got this characters if you will.
They've got this mocked and small castle, they have this golden knight who gets in some sort of pitch battle with the opponents. And he has to slay these people to takes on this whole other vibe inside. And the fans are expecting a show, they get one.
They, in turn, get whipped up, and it gets so loud in their bits and their so much music pump in. That you can hear this reverberation and feel it in the press box.
This happened with every single (INAUDIBLE), it just set all this sort of mini-quakes throughout the arena.
CELLINI: It talks about this being a happening, Paul. Our Knights fans now taking -- you know what, this could happen. This could really happen for us and you're one.
VERCAMMEN: Oh, are they ever? And they feel like they've scripted this. They feel like this is again some sort of, oh, Las Vegas theatrical show in which they are the underdog, and they have knights, and they take this misfit players who were basically disregarded by other teams and allowed to be pick the expansion grab.
And they throw it all together, and we come on stage -- in this case, it's a rink. And we win the whole thing, and we all go home, and we celebrate, and we pump our fist, and we say we're number one.
They have a body and you cannot believe how much. And they all come here and gather before the games and start dancing, it's wild.
CELLINI: It is hot taking, no question about that. Paul Vercammen, thank you very much. 1-0, Knights over the Caps in the Stanley Cup Final. We'll talk you soon.
Much more ahead on WORLD SPORT, football friendlies, free World Cup, and Rafa's reign as in French Open Titles and weather issues. Riddell's storm ahead before Mother Nature puts the breaks on its quest for 11.
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[02:51:59] CELLINI: Welcome back. When it comes to artistry in the form of clay, the great sculptor, Roldan, comes to mind. But from a sports perspective, the French Open offers the works of Rafa Nadal. He of the record 10 consecutive titles at Roland Garros, and on display Monday, if only for a limited time facing Italian Simone Bolelli, and motoring through the first two sets.
But remember, no player in history has won as many grand slam titles at the single tournament. But then, he got lose for Rafa in the third, and the -- losing the first three games, and the weather stop things. Rain ends play to be resume Tuesday, but there is more work for him to do.
The 2016 champion Novak Djokovic is through the round two, but the same campy said for the man who won the year prior, one, Stan Wawrinka. The Swiss who has also won the U.S. in Australian Open is clearly struggling to find his best form after recovering from a knee injury. Wawrinka was beaten in five sets by Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain.
Looking for a -- looking like a shadow of the player he wasn't paired as three years ago. Stan, currently rank 30 is -- had 72 for unforced there as now facing dropping outside the World's Top 250.
Following an exciting finish to Champions League play with Real Madrid topping in Liverpool, attention turn to the FIFA World Cup which starts in Russia just over two weeks from now. At this time, competing nations, tweaking their lineups and seeking possible momentum for World Cup play.
France and the Republic of Ireland, in this friendly, the French hosting the tournament in 98, and delivering to the fans, and Monday in Paris, liberation rude delivering. Becoming the fourth highest goals scoring in French national team history.
And then, Nabil Fektir, with the highly coveted 24 year old, too hot to handle right there. France 2-0 was the final.
No Cristiano Ronaldo, on duty for Portugal on Monday, a hardly surprising given CR7 was busy over the weekend. Once again, winning the Champions League before planting seeds of doubt regarding his long-term future with Real.
Ronaldo plays for the European Champions when it comes to both club and country. In his absence, West Ham United's Joao Mario, the rocket of a gold for the Portuguese up 2-0. In front of the home fans, and the World Cup warm-up against Tunisia, the bottom -- the visitors rather, come back with plenty of flights stuck a lead in half. Level through Ben Youssef, a 2-2 draw it ends.
And leading up to the World Cup, in our new one on one series, we'll be bringing you access to not just the biggest names of on current players but also retired legends of the sport, as well.
First stop is young Arsenal player, Alex Iwobi, who came on as a second-half substitute for the Nigerian national team in their 1-1 draw on Monday, with the Democratic Republic of Congo. And it seems the 22 year old gunner can't wait to get going in Russia. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
[02:55:02] ALEX IWOBI, FORWARD, ARSENAL: Hi, I'm Alex Iwobi. I'm attacking footballer for Arsenal and Nigeria. I have a lot of memories when I was young, my family used to go out to ball and go home, I went some matches. So, my favorite for to have to be just watch them in training and just watch him how he is because everyone knows where his life going -- he's on the pitch what says. Sees he doesn't training. When I was young, at least, to fascinate me and, unless you said trying when I get home as well.
Of course, you mentioned and talked about so many times in training the way we qualify and agree we're very confident and we've played it like at some big teams to be country so. We're very confident and we believe it we're going far, but we're taking a step fast and has been some preparation I need to play. And so, we'll see how far we can go.
They're both big player, both the best players in the world. But for me, on ruble play against Ronaldo, play with Messi. There have to be -- but as young, and you know, participate and also my family and even though like our support England on that (INAUDIBLE) we're not jerky one. Remember my mom that was screaming just the T.V., like she what Nigeria to go far.
So, just small things that, that was playing my mind and I want the whole of my family going to be and on participate, as well. Just small things like just my colleague though.
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CELLINI: A good chat. That is our time for now. We will see you next time right here on WORLD SPORT. Until then, I'm Vince Cellini, the news continues.
