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Progress in China-U.S. Trade Talks; Income Inequality in America Examined; Judge Rules Manafort Violated Plea Deal by Lying to Authorities; Netanyahu Tweet on Iran Turns Heads, and is Later Amended; Fears Over Truck Delays if No Brexit Deal; Trump & Duque Marquez Pledge Support for Venezuelan Opposition Leader; Venezuelan Refugees Stream into Colombia; NASA Says Good-Bye to Mars Rover after 15 Years; Fans Set Off Fireworks Outside Real Madrid Hotel; Caen and Nantes Remember Sala. Aired 12m-1a ET

Aired February 14, 2019 - 00:00   ET

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


[00:00:00]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL: Signs of progress, as the latest round of U.S.-China trade talks begin in Beijing, with warnings from the IMF, "without an end to this trade war, the global economy is at risk." Lies, lies, lies, three times a liar. A federal judge rules that the former chairman of the Trump Campaign lied to the FBI, lied to the Russia Special Counsel and lied to a grand jury, which means Paul Manafort's plea deal and lenient sentence is now toast.

And for a growing number of desperate and hungry Venezuelans, getting groceries requires an international journey. All the while, that (ph) humanitarian aid just sits there on the border going nowhere. Hello to all our viewers around the world; great to have you with us. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN Newsroom.

The state of the global economy might just depend on the success or failure of U.S.-China trade negotiations, underway right now in Beijing. The International Monetary Fund is warning, the world economy is slower faster than excited, citing Donald Trump's trade war with China as one of the factors that could cause an economic storm.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin is in Beijing. His only brief comment in the past few hours, "So far, so good." Right now, China and the U.S. have agreed to a tariff truce. They have until March to reach a deal and avoid a major escalation in the trade war - a 25 percent U.S. tariff on $200 billion of Chinese goods.

But President Trump has said, if both sides are close to a deal, then that deadline could slide. CNN's senior international correspondent Ivan Watson, keeping a close eye on all of this from Hong Kong. So Ivan, you know, that optimism from the White House, it was enough to list U.S and European stocks. It didn't it bring the same level of reassurance to Asian submarkets.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: No, that's true. But we are hearing kind of conciliatory messages coming from both sides in these negotiations. And you got to take into consideration the fact that this is a deadline, March 1st, that was imposed by the White House, a threat to more than double tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of Chinese goods going to the U.S., raising them up to 25 percent tariffs.

But initially, the deadline for that was January 1st. It was pushed back after President Trump and the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping, met in December, and President Trump has suggested that that deadline could slide further if they seem to be close to some kind of a deal.

In the meantime, the Chinese have made a number of goodwill gestures, announcing plans to buy billions of dollars worth of U.S soybeans in the last couple of months, temporary lifting tariffs on U.S. imports of automobiles - on U.S. exports of automobiles to China.

And if you take a look at some of the Chinese state media, the Global Times, for instance, which can often be quite nationalistic, it is sounding kind of measured at this time, its tone, as these two delegations go into this round of talks now.

Probably, some of the limits on the possibility of a deal, John, come from some of the U.S. political calendar, the fact that President Trump is scheduled to meet at the end of this month with the North Korean leader.

And he has indicated that it's not likely that there would be a deal without a face-to-face meeting with China's leader, Xi Jinping. And it doesn't seem like there's time to put together some kind of U.S. Chinese summit before the end of the month.

VAUSE: I guess if you oppose the deadline, it's pretty easy to take that deadline away; they kind of did it before. They centered (ph) the deadline last year on the tariffs being imposed. But again, it comes down, you know, the Trump factor here, the wildcard. Regardless of what comes out of these negotiations, it's still up to Donald Trump and China's Xi Jinping, but it's Donald Trump who's a factor here. They had to agree to the terms of the deal. And you know, they could come up a great trade deal; Donald Trump could ultimately say, "No, not good enough."

WATSON: I know, we have a very mercurial American president here who his administration, just a couple weeks ago, was saying, "Hey, March 1st is non-negotiable." And then within the last 48 hours, he's suggested that that deadline could slide. Some of the other concerns here are what he wants from China. He wants to dramatically change the trade deficits that the U.S. has with China - hundreds of billions of a surplus in Chinese goods going to the U.S economy.

He wants to potentially try to redefine China's largely state- controlled economy - open it up to U.S. banks, to U.S. telecommunications companies, to U.S. manufacturing. This is a serious challenge to kind of the entire structure of China's

relationship between the state and its economy - state run companies as well.

[00:05:00]

And so, there's a big question. Is that even possible, even though China's economy is slowing down and there are signs it wants to make some kind of deal to end this trade war?

VAUSE: There is incentive on both sides to bring this to an end. I guess we'll see that is enough. Ivan, (inaudible) will catch up with you next hour. If there one early defining feature of the coming U.S. presidential election, it's the number of Democrat candidates calling for a big increase in taxation on America's uber rich.

And troubling new economic data released this week might explain why that idea is gaining support among voters. New research from the University of California has found income inequality in the United States; it's now at its highest level since the days before the great depression.

And on Tuesday, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported a record number of Americans, 7 million, are 90 days late on car payments or auto loans. Economists warn, this is red flag which shows many American are struggling to pay their bills.

As The Washington Post explained, a car loan is typically the first payment people make because a vehicle is critical to getting to work - someone can live in a car, if all else fails. When car loans delinquencies rise, it's usually a sign of significant

duress among low income and working class Americans.

And despite a strong economy and low employment, the recent government shutdown revealed hundreds of thousands of federal employees are barely getting by, living to paycheck to paycheck.

For more now on potential consequences on the growing income inequality, we're joined by Robert Reich who was the labor secretary in the Clinton administration, and among his many current titles, Chancellor's Professor on Public Policy at UC Berkeley. Secretary Reich, thanks for coming in.

ROBERT REICH, FORMER U.S. LABOR SECRETARY: Delighted.

VAUSE: OK. A few years ago, I remember seeing this - a very good documentary, which showed a very close look at income inequality, explaining the causes and the consequences - and here's part of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Of all developed nations, the United States has the most unequal distribution of income, and we're surging toward even greater inequality. 1928 and 2007 become the peak years for income concentration. It looks like a suspension brick.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Last year, we made $36,000.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I probably make $50,000 a year, working 70 hours a week.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: OK. That documentary came out a few years ago, as you know. And back then, you predicted this chasm between rich and poor would continue to grow, and it has. How much longer can it go on before there is set kind of setback, a correction of sorts?

REICH: Well, it's not sustainable, either on economic grounds or on moral grounds. Economically, you don't have enough people who are earning enough to keep the economy going, because 70 percent of the economy in the United States depends on consumer demand.

And if consumers are not earning enough, they just can't demand enough goods and services. But more to the point; as more and more wealth and income concentrate at the top, you also have more political corruption, because with great concentrations of wealth and income also come great influence, politically. And we are seeing that in the United States; in fact, we see it around the world today.

VAUSE: Here's part of the argument from those who believe there's no need to be concerned about this income inequality, even at these extreme levels. This comes from Jesse Colombo, a analyst at Real Investment Advice.

He wrote, "What is loss on the left-wing wealth inequality (inaudible) is the fact that America's wealth inequality is not a permanent situation, but a temporary one, because the asset bubbles behind the wealth bubble are going to burst and cause a severe economic crisis. My argument is that our society should be worrying more about these asset bubbles than the temporary inequality."

He sees the argument that market forces will automatically correct this inequality, and that's when the real pain will be felt. But if so, the premise here seems to be incorrect because the market forces so far have not dealt with the inequality.

REICH: The market forces have not dealt with inequality at all. We've seen, over the past 40 years, the median wage, the typical wage, half above, half below, in the United States has barely budged - adjusted for inflation. Most of the economic gains have gone to the very top. And this is a cause for worry, in many of the ways I just indicated, but also it suggests that market forces are not doing anything to counter this.

If anything, what we see is that people at the very top, many of them enough income and wealth they can affect political decisions about how the market is to be organized itself, in terms of taxes and subsidies - various forms of details like bankruptcy - what are the rules to be that actually constitute the market. That kind of concentration of wealth and income generates a market that itself is tipped toward the wealthy.

VAUSE: Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the young freshman congresswoman, she's not running for president, but no doubt she will when she's old enough, but she's making the case here for a much higher tax rate on the very wealthy. That's what she said to Anderson Cooper on 60 Minutes.

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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ, D-NY: When you have a progressive tax rate system, your tax rate, you know, let's say, from zero to $75,000 may be 10 percent, or 15 percent, et cetera. But once you get to like the tippy-tops, on your 10 millionth dollar, sometimes you see tax rates as high as 60 or 70 percent, that doesn't mean all $10 million are taxed at an extremely high rate. But it means that as you climb up this ladder, you should be contributing more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: You know, the current top income tax rate in the U.S. right now is what, 37 percent? So when you hear a plan that says that should be almost double, to some people it sounds radical but in historical context it's far from it.

REICH: No, in fact the first three decades after the second World War, in the United States the typical tax at the top -- that is the marginal tax on those additional dollars at the very top averaged about 70 to 75 percent under Republican President Dwight David Eisenhower. The top marginal tax rate was 93 percent, and again we're talking about those dollars at the top.

And so what is being talked about among Democrats today is far from radical, and it is supported by our history, and I might also add that during those years -- the first three decades after the second World War, the economy grew substantially. There is absolutely no evidence suggesting a correlation or certainly causation between high taxes on the rich and economic problems.

VAUSE: You know, that number 70 percent, AOC (ph) I didn't just sort of pluck that out of thin air, there's actually an economic theory out there that there is an optimal tax rate that will essentially see everyone enjoy the benefits of the economy -- not just the wealthy. The website Vox actually used potatoes to explain how it works, have a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So the government decides to shift the tax burden. It will increase taxes on rich farmers, to pay for programs that benefit the poor. Because as long as the rich farmer has more, one potato is still worth less to him than it is to the poor farmer.

So the rich farmer's taxes go up, and then they go up some more -- and more, and more people are better off. But then something happens -- when the government takes more, the rich farmer no longer thinks it's worth it to grow so many potatoes -- so he grows fewer potatoes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: And what they've found is that it's around the 70 percent rate on those top-top dollars. There seems to be disagreement if 70 percent is the actual precise number, but regardless the fact that this country is now at least talking about higher taxes on the wealthy -- is it time to declare an end to trickledown economics? Can we put it back in the wardrobe alongside shoulder pads, and double-breasted suits, and thin leather ties -- and you know, not look at it again for a while?

REICH: While I wish we could, unfortunately Donald Trump and Republicans did a major trickledown economic -- well it's not even an experiment, major trickledown economic law with that tax bill a little over a year ago that is going to cost $1.9 trillion over the next 10 years.

Most of the benefits have gone to corporations and the wealthy, and the evidence so far is that nothing has tricked down. Wages remain stuck, pretty much where they were -- adjusting for inflation. Trickledown economics has proven time and time again to be a hoax.

Ronald Regan tried it, George W. Bush tried it -- it is a thinly veiled justification for the rich to keep more, and more, and more of their money. But it's not really their money if you understand that they got rich in part, because of all of the investments made in the United States including national defense, and police and -- enforcement of property laws, and a population that is educated enough to understand that an economy needs a lots -- infrastructure, education and so forth.

You simply cannot expect an economy to function without the public investments that in turn, depend on revenue generated by the very rich.

VAUSE: We're out of time Secretary Reich, but thank you so much. And if anyone has not seen your documentary out there, "Inequality for All," they should. It's a great explainer (ph), and it goes deep in to the weeds in a very easy to way -- very easily understandable way, so thank you, sir.

REICH: Thank you.

VAUSE: The U.S. Court has ruled Paul Manafort, the one-time Trump campaign Chairman turned convicted felon, violated a plea deal by lying to investigators. Three counts in all, but Manafort's lawyers say, "he didn't mean it -- wasn't intentional."

Intentional or not, the ruling could result in a much longer prison sentence of Manafort who cut a deal with the Special Counsel and pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and witness tampering, in return for a promise of less time in jail.

Jessica Levinson is a professor of law and governance at Loyola Law School and she's with us now from Los Angeles. Hey Jess.

[00:15:00]

JESSICA LEVINSON, PROFESSOR, LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL: Good to hear you.

VAUSE: Good to see you. OK, keeping in mind this is the same judge who revoked Manafort's bail because he breached the conditions.

Specifically, Judge Jackson ruled the Special Counsel had proven beyond a preponderance (ph) of evidence that Manafort lied about his contact with Russian Konstantin Kilimnik who is believed to have direct links to the Kremlin and Putin. Lied about payments he'd received for his legal bills, and another unknown (ph) investigation.

And right at the very top of her ruling she notes the plea deal he made with the Special Counsel, your client shall cooperate fully, truthfully, completely and forthrightly with the government. So he's toast, the deal is off -- and with that comes, there's no possibility now of reduced time in prison.

LEVINSON: I think that's right, I think there is no possibility of reduced time. Because what Paul Manafort is facing is not just this case, but of course there was a previous case in a different jurisdiction where he was convicted, essentially of financial crimes.

So what we have today is Judge Jackson, a federal judge saying, "I've looked at everything that the prosecutor put forward, I have looked at all your rebuttal evidence -- and I think that you lied to the Special Counsel. And that means, Paul Manafort that you are stuck with your guilty plea. So when you said I'm pleading guilty to conspiracy, I'm pleading guilty to money laundering -- you're stuck with that."

But the prosecutor isn't stuck with his or her side of the bargain. And therefore there's no incentive and no need for the prosecutor to go easy on Paul Manafort, because in fact he tried to thwart the investigation, and therefore I think Paul Manafort will die in jail.

VAUSE: Wow, OK. Jackson also ruled that the Special Counsel though, had failed to prove that Manafort lied about his contacts with the White House after the election dating back, I think about a year ago. In the scheme of what is good news and bad news, what goes for good news these days is this a positive note for the president?

LEVINSON: Sure -- so there is a silver lining here for the president in that the judge said we found that three of the five allegations where the prosecutors said that Paul Manafort lied, we found three of the five were true.

And one of those five, as you said, was whether or not Paul Manafort had continuing discussions with the White House essentially after he said he did. Now, I think that that's good news for President Trump in the sense that it kind of (ph) cuts that connection between Paul Manafort and President Trump. But I would say it is really -- if you want to kind of write a novel of good news, this isn't even quite in the references. This is maybe a footnote.

VAUSE: It's a low bar these days. It looks like the President will actually now sign off on that budget compromise, which includes $1 billion and change for a border wall -- a border fence, I should say -- not a wall. But it seems that money isn't needed, because Donald Trump through the sheer power of his mind, and his imagination he's already willed the wall in to existence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: The wall is very, very on it's way -- it's happening as we speak. We're building as we speak, in the most desperately needed areas. And it's a big wall, it's a strong wall -- it's a wall the people aren't going through very easy. Going to have to be in extremely good shape to get over this one -- they would be able to climb Mount Everest a lot easier, I think. But it's happening...

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: I mean, what is he looking at? There is no wall, nothing's being built! There's nothing! You know, the last two years of this presidency have been odd, but we're in the "Twilight Zone" now.

LEVINSON: Yes, and I appreciate the background music. So I would say that there's just no truth to this. So there is -- we do have part of a border wall, and we had that before President Trump. But during the Trump administration that wall has not been constructed. So when he says we're making deals, or when he asserts that the wall is being constructed -- that's just not true.

Now it is said that some of the wall will start to be constructed within a matter of months. But again, what we're talking about -- what President Trump asked for is, in monetary terms more than five times what he got, and in physical terms probably more than 10 times what he got.

So the idea that he's saying, "we're starting to build the wall," I mean, we're laughing about it but it's terrifying because people are believing it because the president says it. But there's just no truth behind it.

VAUSE: Article 25, perhaps? (Inaudible) Donald Trump, apparently he's got a plan now for reelection in 2020, he'll campaign on defeating the scourge of socialism -- listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Socialism does not work too well, and we don't want that as part of our country, and as part of our heritage -- we just can't have it. Everything would come to an end, and rapidly...

VAUSE: He plans a major speech on the dangers of socialism, it's going to be mostly in support of the opposition leader in Venezuela. You know, the polling website 528 looked at how Americans view socialism in the here and now, in reality and they found it's not like 1949, you know? There's not this sort of Iron Curtain image which comes up,

[00:20:10]

Americans actually like socialism even though they don't really know it because they like social security, the like food stamps, they like housing. They like all of these programs which are essentially redistribution of wealth. Hello, socialism.

LEVINSON: So, it's interesting that there's more support of socialism. And I saw the study, it -- it not surprisingly like everything else in America in 2019, breaks down around party lines. What's interesting is the deaf definitional shift when it comes to socialism. Sp previously, I think we used to understand it as basically government ownership and control, now we understand is as more of the programs that you talked about, which help, kind of more an equality principal.

And so, I think part of it is, we think of socialism as something else, but also in that study, what I saw is that it still is a popular boogeyman for -- for instance Republican voters to try to get them to scare off people like Bernie Sanders, to scare scare off somebody like Elizabeth Warren who has a popular message. And so while we know what the reality is, I still think telling people they need to be very afraid of socialism, we know can be politically effective.

VAUSE: OK, well, I don't know, the times are changing and we'll see. Jessica, thank you so much.

LEVINSON: Thank you.

VAUSE: Iran says there will retribution for a suicide bombing which blew up a bus carrying members of the elite revolutionary guard. The blast on Wednesday left the bus in a heap of twisted metal, killing at least 23 and wounding 17. This happened on a desert in a remote region near Iran's border with Pakistan and Afghanistan. A militant separatist group has claimed responsibility. Meanwhile, Iran's tops the agenda at a security conference ongoing in Warsaw, Poland. U.S. vice president will speak there in the coming hours. He's expected it call out the Iranian regime for its actions in the Middle East. But Iran's foreign minister says the meeting is nothing but a circus. He's also slamming the U.S. from withdrawing from the nuclear deal last year.

(VIDEO BEGINS)

JAVAD ZARIF, IRAN FOREIGN MINSTER: It's for them to return to the negotiating table. They're not supposed to take us back to the negotiating table. We and the rest of the international community are at the negotiating table. They're the ones who left. They can come back, because it's the United States that is breaking the law. It's the United States that is violating every known international agreement. I think -- I mean, you name it, they withdraw from it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says the conference is a chance to reach consensus on a lot of issues. But in the past, he has advocated for regime change in Iran.

The Israeli prime minister turned heads at a meeting with a tweet saying -- (inaudible) I should say -- with a tweet saying they were about to talk about war with Iran, but the translation of what he said was later changed. Details now from Oren Lieberman.

(BEGINS VIDEO CLIP)

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN REPORTER: Prime Minister Netanyahu has certainly used strong words against Iran in the past, but nothing quite like this. After meeting the foreign minister of Oman, Netanyahu appeared to openly advocate for war with Iran, saying it was a common interest of the dozens of countries meeting in Poland under the auspices of the United States. In a tweet and an official statement from the government, Netanyahu said this is an open meeting with representatives of leading Arab countries that are sitting down together with Israel in order to advance the common interest of war with Iran.

About 30 minutes later, that tweet was deleted and the government offered a new translation for Netanyahu, who was speaking in Hebrew. Instead of "advancing the common interest of war of Iran," it was significantly softened to "advancing the common interest of combating Iran." The word Netanyahu used in Hebrew can be translated as either war or combating, it depends on the context and intent of the speaker. The prime minister's office didn't offer a public explanation as to why war was first used in official translations and then changed.

From a big picture perspective here, Israel's assessment is that U.S. sanctions against Iran are working, they're crippling Iran's economy and forcing Iran to decrease the numbers of its forces in Syria and the funding to those forces. For years, Netanyahu has warned that Iran is the biggest threat to Israel, even calling it a threat to the region and the world. Israel has carried out repeated strikes in Syria and Netanyahu has said those will continue as long as Iran's presence in Syria continues. Despite the strikes and the bellicose rhetoric, Netanyahu has never openly advocated for war with Iran, and that appears to still be true.

Oren Lieberman, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Well, in just a few hours, yes, another Brexit debate in the U.K. Parliament again. But as politicians posture, preen and haggle, those who actually have real lives, are actually trying to make a plan to stay afloat in the case of the dreaded crash-out of the E.U. Also, it's been on the job for 15 years, 50 times longer than originally expected, but now NASA's Mars rover has bitten the dust. A look back at the glory days when we come back.

[00:25:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: It seems the only issue dealt with by U.K. lawmakers these days is Brexit. They'll debate it again to death in the next few hours, even though not much has changed since Parliament rejected Theresa May's deal last month. So far, the prime minister has failed to convince the E.U. to renegotiate, but talks, she says are at a crucial stage. And don't worry, she's reassured parliamentarians that the U.K.is leaving the European Union on March 29th. Will lead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

THERESA MAY: The government -- the government's position is the same. We triggered (ph) article 50; in fact, this House voted to trigger (ph) article 50. That had a two year timeline that ends on the 29th of March we want to leave with a deal and that's that we're working for.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: This Brexit deal is essentially all about trade. And U.K. ports now are preparing for delays on both sides of the border. And CNN's Anna Stewart reports across the channel, they're confident that everything will actually run smoothly.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: The port of Calais. Geographically speaking, it's the Brexit frontline. And not since 1800s has it faced a threat like this. From across the channel.

JEAN-MARC PUISSESSEAU, CEO, PORT OF CALAIS: We are now investing 16 billion Euros to be prepared for the Brexit. But what should we do? If we don't do anything, we will not be prepared.

STEWART: Jean-Marc Puissesseau is the CEO of the port, where he says 3,000 to 4,000 trucks cross to and from Britain by ferry each day. A no-deal Brexit could put an end to trade to fractious trade and force trucks to clear customs.

ALEX VEITCH, FREIGHT TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION: Even adding a couple of minutes for the most basic checks, even that will tail back 20 kilometers either side of the border.

STEWART: The French, the British say, are decidedly ill-prepared. Battle plans are being drawn up, U.K. trucks recently testing an airfield near Dover as a place to queue if the warnings come to pass. Puissesseau is defiant. His Brexit plan, a holding area where 250 trucks can go through additional checks. He's confident customs will runs smoothly.

PUISSESSEAU: There will not be any more control except the question, monsieur, do you have your papers ready? If it is yes, there will be exactly as I said.

STEWART: You're putting a lot of faith and trust in all these hauling companies, knowing what to do and doing it.

PUISSESSEAU: Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I think so.

DAVID ZACCEO, BRITISH HAULER: I don't think they are. I don't think they're going to be ready to cope with the potential volume of vehicles that are going to be stopped.

[00:30:02] STEWART: The first shots may have already been fired. The U.K. government recently announced plans to divert traffic away from Calais. When he heard the news, Puissesseau said the British transport secretary was no longer welcome at his port.

JEAN-MARC PUISSESSEAU, PORT CHAIRMAN, CALAIS, FRANCE: It's a pity. Really a pity. To know that, just in front of that 36 permit (ph), if you're a third (ph) country, I cannot believe it. But it's a reality.

STEWART: Anna Stewart, CNN, Calais.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Breaking news this hour, Airbus is pulling the plug on the jet once described as the future of air travel. Production of the Airbus A380 will stop in 2021. The decision came after Emirates Airline cut back on its orders.

The world's largest airliner first took flight 14 years ago. Two hundred and thirty-four of the double-decker planes have been delivered so far, just a fraction of what Airbus predicted it would eventually sell.

Well, soon to come here, desperate and frustrated Venezuelans struggle to find relief from a growing crisis, even if it means going far from home in search of food. A report from the border. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Welcome back, everybody. I'm John Vause with an update on our top news stories this hour.

High-level trade talks are underway in Beijing. The U.S. treasury secretary says so far, so good. Trade representatives could soon meet with the Chinese president. But hanging over that optimism, a March 1 deadline. If a deal is not reached, new (ph) tariffs could go on $200 billion of Chinese goods.

In the coming hours, U.K. lawmakers will again debate Brexit and suggest the next steps for leaving the E.U. In the month since Parliament rejected Theresa May's Brexit deal, the prime minister has failed to get the E.U. to reopen negotiations.

A big push is underway in the U.S. Congress to end support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen. A resolution passed the lower House, calling for U.S. forces to withdraw within 40 days. It's a stunning rebuke of President Trump and his close relationship and defense of Saudi Arabia, especially in the wake of the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This will now go to the United States Senate, where it passed in the last Congress; and we're expecting it to pass in this Congress and giving the president an opportunity to potentially veto this.

Now, again, you're right. It does not have enough votes to override a presidential veto, but a very symbolic rebuke from Congress, bipartisan opposition to the Saudi-led war in Yemen. The U.S. support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen putting pressure on the administration to change course.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The United Nations calls Yemen the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. The Trump administration has a much different take. Here's the U.S. secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, appearing on PBS.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE POMPEO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The Americans, the Brits, the Saudis and Emiratis are doing everything we can to take down the threat from the humanitarian crisis in Yemen while Iran fuels it.

[00:35:09] It provides missiles to the Houthis that they launch into airports in Saudi Arabia and the Emirates. These are the challenges in Yemen. These are the challenges that this administration is determined to push back against. We're going to keep at it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: President Trump is hinting, once again, he may send U.S. troops to South America to help end the crisis in Venezuela. He met with Colombia's president at the White House on Wednesday, urging Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro to resign. Duque says Maduro's efforts to block badly needed-aid are a crime against humanity.

Meanwhile, a source says Mr. Trump will deliver a speech on Venezuela Monday in Miami. For now the president and President Duque are pledging support for Venezuela's opposition leader, Juan Guaido.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have great respect for the man that most people, many people think is the real president of Venezuela. He's very brave.

IVAN DUQUE MARQUEZ, PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA: President Guaido, who is the person about to lead the transition in Venezuela, has a strong support. And we need to give him even stronger support.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: U.S. officials believe the situation in Venezuela will continue to worsen, so they're stockpiling relief supplies on the border, ready to deliver once it is safe.

In the meantime, though, Venezuelans continue to stream into neighboring Colombia to get whatever food and medicine they can afford.

CNN's Lisa Suarez is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LISA SUAREZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Every step is a burden: a load they have to carry for miles on end. But even the weight of their cargo does little to hold their tongue (ph).

And while the majority cross this border legally, some others take a less traveled road. And they all do it out of necessity.

(on camera): (speaking foreign language) There's no food. "Nothing. Nothing there," he's saying.

"Coffee. Toothpaste. There's nothing in Venezuela. Only sadness." That's what she's telling me.

Yet, 20 minutes away from here on Tienditas Bridge, is a warehouse packed full of humanitarian aid, waiting to be delivered. Sure, this is just a drop in the ocean, but it's creating a wave of expectation on both sides of the border. And with that, desperation.

(voice-over): The frustration is evident in every corner of this border town as Venezuelans line up for food, for money and for any way out of this crisis.

(on camera): He's saying Colombia, but this gentleman here, he's collecting some money, and he's going all the way to Peru. He's telling me, "We don't want anything to do with Maduro."

(voice-over): It seems he's not alone. They're celebrating the fall of Maduro's regime. Premature. After all, he's standing his ground, with his military still preventing the aid from entering the country. But they're heeding the call of Juan Guaido --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

GRAPHIC: We will move the humanitarian aid. Of course, we will move it. And we will move it, even if we have to carry it through unofficial paths.

SUAREZ: -- who has been rallying his troops, calling on the people to volunteer and carry the aid across the border on the 23rd of February.

(on camera): Are you going to help on the 23rd? (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(CHEERS)

SUAREZ: As you can see here, everyone, as you can see here, everyone is prepared to risk their lives to carry that humanitarian aid across the border.

(voice-over): And they're counting on the army, the rank and file, who, too, are living on the edge, to walk as well as stand beside them.

Lisa Suarez, CNN, Bogota (ph), Colombia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: In the Philippines, journalist Maria Ressa is free on bail. She's an outspoken critic of the Philippine president and was arrested for cyber libel. She's a CEO of the online news site Rappler, and Maria spoke to reporters after she was released from custody.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MARIA RESSA, CEO, RAPPLER: For me, it's about two things: abuse of

power and weaponization of the law. This isn't just about me, and it's not just about Rappler. The message that the government is sending is very clear, and someone actually told our reporter this last night: Be silent or you're next.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Ressa posted 2,000 dollars in bail. The news site says the libel charges are related to an article published in 2012. Ressa is among several journalists named Person of the Year by "TIME" magazine last year. And she was also CNN's long-time bureau chief in Manila. Local and international journalism groups, as well as Amnesty International among those condemning her arrest.

[00:40:08] It was only meant to be a 90-day gig, but it ended up 15 years on the job, changing what we know about the red planet. Ahead, NASA says its final good-byes to the surprising workhorse known as Oppy.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: Well, for the NASA rover over here, Opportunity, it's not just mission accomplished but mission more than anyone ever expected could ever be accomplished.

It landed on Mars about 15 years ago. Originally, it was just a 90- day gig, you know, touch down, take a few pictures. But year after year, it kept going until a dust storm silenced it eight months ago. Final efforts to revive the rover ended on Tuesday. Space agency administrator Jim Bridenstine described how Opportunity surpassed expectation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM BRIDENSTINE, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: When this little rover landed, the objective was to have it be able to move 1,100 yards and survive for 90 days on Mars, 90 souls. And instead, here we are, 14 years later, after 28 miles of travel, and today we get to celebrate the end of this mission.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Oppy, as it was called, had a long list of achievements: helped confirm that Mars once had flowing water; conditions for micro- bio life was also there. It was by far the longest-lasting lander on the red planet, and the six-wheeled rover also set a record by traveling more than 45 kilometers.

Opportunity and its identical twin, Spirit, landed on Mars in 2004. The goal was to learn more about the history of water on the planet. Spirit was pronounced dead in 2011 after becoming stuck in the sand.

What a sad note to finish on. Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause. Stay with us. WORLD SPORT is next. You're watching CNN. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KATE RILEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello there. Welcome to WORLD SPORT. I'm Kate Riley at CNN Center.

[00:45:08] Well, what a great Champions League week we are having. We are at the knockout stage right now. We'll get to all the excitement on the pitch in just a minute.

However, in Amsterdam, early on Wednesday morning, the fireworks were going off right outside Real Madrid's team hotel. And it wasn't just the old sparkler. Oh, no, these guys went to town with their message, as a group of creative Ajax supporters did their best to wake up the Madrid players. It was 3 a.m. The authorities clearly not impressed. Four people were arrested.

Well, the jury's out on whether their stunt actually worked or not. This Ajax team were up against the reigning European champions, who have won four of the last five finals. The first 60 minutes was tight, and then Karim Benzema gave Madrid the lead. This is the first time in more than a decade that Ajax had made it to the knockout stage of the Champions League. Hakim Ziyech equalized 15 minutes from time, but experience reigned supreme in the end, Madrid winning with a late goal from Marco Asensio. Two-one the score. The return leg will be in three weeks' time.

Well, over in London, and Tottenham beat the Bundesliga League leaders, Borussia, going 3-0 on the ninth. The Korean star Son Heung- min is on fire. Since returning from the Asian Cup, he scored in each of his last four games. And that was very well taken volley at the start of the second half.

And then it was Tottenham's Jan Vertonghen, who was actually playing out of position on the night. He was the farthest forward, seven minutes from time. A rather rare goal from the Belgian defender.

And then Spurs scored through Fernando Llorente to potentially put this tie to bed. Spurs are, in fact, the first English site (ph) to win their first home leg of a knockout tie against German opponents in the Champions League for almost a decade.

To a more touching story now: Wednesday night in France, two former clubs of the late footballer Emiliano Sala faced each other.

To give you background here, the striker spent the second half of the 2014-15 season on loan at Caen and scored five goals before returning to his parent club, Nantes.

And there were tributes left, rather moving, outside Caen's ground on -- in memory of the forward, who played for both clubs in his short career. We saw moving scenes when each Caen player's shirt had the striker's name on the back. A minute's applause was then held in the 14th minute. That was Sala's squad number at the host of this Ligue 1 club tie.

Well, you remember the sad news last week that the footballer's body was recovered from the wreckage of the crashed plane in the English Channel.

All right. Well, the Champions League final is going to be in Madrid on June the 1st, and it's a big day for international sport that day. The British world heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua has announced that he's going to be fighting that day, and it will be his first bout in the United States.

Joshua is the WBO, WBA and IBF heavyweight champion. At Madison Square Garden in New York this summer, he'll be fighting unbeaten Jarrell Miller. Joshua is a major celebrity in the U.K., and he's making no secret of the fact that he'd rather afford the WBC champ Deontay Wilder to try and unify all the belts.

Well, Wilder is committed to a rematch with Tyson Fury, though. So for the time being, Joshua is heading in another direction.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTHONY JOSHUA, BRITISH HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION BOXER: Myself and Deontay Wilder are the current active heavyweight champions of the world, sorry. And we was looking to get that fight on April 13th, but things happen in boxing politics. I'm sure you guys are aware.

So we had to branch out and look for eruptions (ph). And Jarrell Miller came up. It's an exciting fight. He's an undefeated heavyweight. And I know I'm always focused and disciplined, and I'm always looking forward. But right now, I have to keep my attention and focus on Jarrell Miller. I can't afford to slip up. There's no banana skins in this road.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RILEY: All right. Then we have witnessed a bit of a moment this week in cricket. Joe Root's comments to abusive words has made him an icon. More on this in just a moment's time.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:51:35] RILEY: Welcome back. It's been a great week for the England cricket captain Joe Root. And it's not just his cricket that's been doing the talking. In fact, he's been hailed for this week, something in his actions where he said after the third test against the West Indies in St. Lucia. He was reacting to what was presumably a gay slur from the Windies bowler Shannon Gabriel, and his response spoke volumes at the time.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE ROOT, ENGLISH CRICKET CAPTAIN: Don't use it as an insult.

SHANNON GABRIEL, WEST INDIES PLAYER: What's that?

ROOT: Don't use it as an insult. There's nothing wrong with being gay.

(END VIDEO CLIP) RILEY: Well, as you saw there, he said, "Don't use it as an insult. There's nothing wrong with being gay."

Well, the International Cricket Council has now suspended Gabriel for four games, because he accepted their charge over the incident. The demerit points that he accrued prompted the ban.

There's been plenty of reaction. Quote, the former England captain, Nasser Hussein, writing on Twitter, "I don't know who said what to whom, but boy do I applaud Joe Root's reaction here. For me, his 12 words, as a role model will be in the end more important than a test hundred or possible victory."

Well, the former England player Steven Davis, who came out as gay in 2011, wrote, "There is no room in the game for any form of discrimination. Well done jay root and well done, England."

All this week, we're having a deeper dive into rugby in Japan ahead of the World Cup there. And this very tournament four years ago was the Japanese team, which had a major decision to make. Losing by three points in the dying seconds, they could have kicked a penalty to tie the game against South Africa. Instead, they rolled the dice and went for the win, with Japan fans on the edge of their seats.

The Cherry Blossoms ran the ball through half a dozen phases to score a sensational try. And just like that, they had beaten the mighty Springboks. It was their biggest ever win for Japanese rugby, and in turn, enhanced the credibility of the decision to let Japan host the tournament in 2019.

All right. We are now just six months away from that tournament. The first time that an Asian country will host the World Cup. Twelve venues will host the games between the 20th of September and the start of November. The hosts kick off their campaign against Russia on the opening day and will have tough games against Ireland and Scotland.

Their captain, though, is optimistic, and he should be. It was him who made the right call four years ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRAPHIC: Michael Leitch, Japan captain

What was it like beating South Africa?

MICHAEL LEITCH, JAPAN CAPTAIN: It's one of the best games Japan's ever played. But my fondest memory of that game was guys going in at 100 percent for the whole 80 minutes and coming out victorious of it. It's a game that's sort of set the standard in Japanese rugby.

GRAPHIC: Was it your decision to go for the win?

LEITCH: A general feeling within the team, within the forwards, is let's go for it. It wasn't an individual decision. The message did come up from upstairs saying kick the goal. But the guys around me were saying, "Let's go for the scrum." So we went for the scrum. [00:55:04] I'd rather go down in a challenging (UNINTELLIGIBLE), rather than kicking the goal and missing and regretting it for the rest of my life.

The Japanese team at that time, they hadn't won a game in -- at the World Cup. Having beaten a top four team, you know, it was a very inexperienced team, to come out and blow surface (ph) off the park, you know, it was a very satisfying moment.

The last World Cup people often saying Japan has never won again with the World Cup. Japan's chances of getting out of the pool stages this time around is very hard. But it won't be easy. And every game, we've got four games to play; and every game is very crucial. So the team's very focused, and our main goal is not to get out of the pool stages but to keep on winning.

GRAPHIC: What does the tournament mean for you?

LEITCH: I've been here for 15 years, and being in Japan, I've made a career. There's a lot of people I've met, a lot of friends, a lot of guys that have had me here. So personally, it's about gratitude to this ball club.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RILEY: And in the NBA right now, we are seeing two great storylines. These involve both James Harden of the Houston Rockets and the Oklahoma City Thunder's Russell Westbrook. The pair are rewriting history with their performances of late.

Harden has scored at least 30 points in his last 40 games. Westbrook has had a triple double in ten consecutive games. That's when you make it to double digits in three separate statistical categories.

Both are being compared to the legendary Wilt Chamberlain, whose records they are chasing. But the man you really want to hear from on all of this is Michael Jordan. Of course, he's widely considered the greatest of all time. You'll remember that Jordan won six NBA championships, and he was asked which of these two streaks is more impressive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MICHAEL JORDAN, BASKETBALL HALL OF FAMER: Uniquely, it shows talent, you know, that we have within the league. It shows still progression within the league.

I'm very proud about what both guys have done, because they're making their mark for the league. And I think it really helps the growth of the league, which is harder from a player standpoint. Six championships, by all means.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RILEY: Very good. That's it from us. Stay with us, though. The news is next. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)