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U.S. House Speaker's Weekly Address; Boris Johnson and E.U. Have a Deal; U.S. Senator Graham Says Syria Decision "Biggest Mistake" of Trump Presidency; Interview with British Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat on U.S. Diplomatic Visit to Turkey. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired October 17, 2019 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

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REP. NANCY PELOSI (D-CA), HOUSE SPEAKER: He spoke with unsurpassed clarity and moral integrity when he spoke on the floor. I had the just

coincidental opportunity to speak to -- to be at breakfast with someone who served with him in the state legislature in Maryland.

And they said, when Elijah Cummings would stand up in the state legislature, in the House of Delegates, as it's called there, the room

would fall silent because everyone wanted to hear was Elijah has to say. That's, of course, what was the case in Congress, in his committee and in

the country.

He used to always say, our children are our living messengers to a future we will never see. So he wanted to be sure that that future was going to

be better for them and that they would bring with them our values.

In that regard, in terms of a better future, I'm so proud that this morning Richie Neal announced in the markup and the hearing that they were having

on H.R. 3, lowering the cost of prescription drugs, that he was suggesting to name the bill for Elijah Cummings.

So appropriate because Elijah was a fighter for lowering the cost of prescription drugs, reaching across the aisle to do so. He always strove

to reach across the aisle and treat all of our colleagues with respect and even had dialogue with the president for a while on this subject.

So it would be very appropriate that H.R. 3 would now be the Elijah Cummings Low Drug Cost Now legislation, whatever the formal title will be.

It's very sad, very sad for all of us. We've all lost a friend. I'm devastated by the loss. We convey our condolences of our caucus to Maya,

his dear wife, this morning. She said what we all knew. He just fought to the end.

But that's the way he was not only on his personal health but what he believed in, in the Congress of the United States.

So we're back now after our district work period, where members all over the country were part of a drumbeat for H.R. 3, for our For The People

agenda. Our first, number one, was to lower the cost of prescription drugs. They presented H.R. 3, heard feedback and we are benefitting it

with two markups this week, one in Energy and Commerce, the other in Education and Labor. The hearing in Ways and Means this week and the

markup next week. Then we'll be well on our way to reconciling different versions and bringing something to the floor.

I think it's really important to note that, since the break, toward the end of the break, we did get this Congressional Budget Office, the CBO score,

of $345 billion in savings just in the Medicare part D part of the bill. Other savings, $158 billion in savings for family households, $46 billion

in rebates and the rest.

So the savings are considerable and the Congress will decide how some of it will be reinvested into innovation at the National Institutes of Health,

perhaps in community health centers across the country and expanded benefits for Medicare -- visual, hearing, dental. Perhaps committees will

hear back from them and just trying to lower the cost to the community.

Bobby Scott's committee is marking up this bill. But as many of you know, earlier in the, week announced his College Affordability Act. We're very

proud of the response from members on that. That will be making college less expensive.

We're still at work on the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade agreement and making progress every day on our path to yes. But we're not there yet. As soon

as we can get the assurances from the administration and from everyone involved that there will be enforceability of some of the provisions of the

legislation, then it will really be an improvement on the current NAFTA, then we'll be able to proceed.

But I'm optimistic about that. I'm still hoping that -- and this came up as we were focused on For The People agenda, lower health care costs and

bigger paychecks by building the infrastructure of America, cleaner government. That was our agenda in the campaign.

[11:05:00]

PELOSI: One of our priorities in this session has been to reduce the risk of gun violence in our country. It's now been 232 days since we sent our

bipartisan legislation to the Senate.

Every day about 100 people die from gun violence, nearly half of them children up to the age of teenagers. My colleague, Fredricka Wilson, when

I was in Florida during the break, gave me this bracelet made from a bullet and the orange color of gun violence prevention.

So we're not going away until we get legislation passed to reduce gun violence in our country.

As you know, this has been a week of some issues that relate to our foreign engagement. I was very proud of the work on the floor of Congress to

associate ourselves with the democratic aspirations of the young people of Hong Kong.

I've been working with now three generations of Hong Kong democratic leaders, for their Chinese regime to obey the basic law under which Hong

Kong was to exist, one country, two systems, living under the basic law, which made certain guarantees that are not being lived up to.

But Congress came through this week, spoke very clearly in a bipartisan way about our support for that. We are eager that we have bipartisan support

in the Senate, too. So hopefully that will come up soon there.

As you know, yesterday on the floor, 354 members voted in a bipartisan way to oppose the president's dangerous decision in regard to Syria. By 2-1,

Republicans voted to oppose the president's actions. There are only 60 votes in favor of the legislation.

The legislation would have called for Turkey to use restraint for us to help our friends, to be a trustworthy ally to Kurds, especially in

humanitarian needs, now that they're being bombed by the Turks or being attacked by the Turks.

It also calls for the president to show a clear plan for how Americans will be protected from ISIS, which has been further unleashed, green light to

the Turks, actions taken that renege on our handshake with the Kurds.

And now we need to have a plan to deal with what happens with ISIS. As you know, that was the subject of conversation yesterday at the White House. I

also pointed out to the president I had concerns that all roads seem to lead to Putin. The Russians have been trying to get a foothold in the

Middle East for a very long time unsuccessfully.

Now the president has given them that opportunity, with the Kurds reaching out to them for support in Syria. The Russians were the beneficiaries of

any withholding of assistance or encouragement to the Ukraine. Again, Putin benefits. The Russians benefitted, Putin did.

The president plays down our commitment to NATO from the start of his administration. All roads lead to Putin.

Then the president said, well, the reason I'm taking the troops out of Syria is because I promised in the campaign to bring the troops home.

My question to him was, is Saudi Arabia home?

Is Saudi Arabia home?

Why are our troops going to Saudi Arabia if you promised to bring them home?

He said, well, the Saudi Arabians are paying for it.

Really?

We're putting our troops in harm's way for Saudi Arabia because they're paying?

It just didn't add up. What it did do was cause a meltdown on the part of the president because he was unhappy with those questions. And it was so

unfortunate because we really went -- we were invited to the meeting.

The president started off the meeting by saying, I don't know who asked for this meeting, I didn't. We're like, well, then let's proceed anyway.

We had hoped -- our real mission was to find out what the plan was. Leader Schumer was very forceful in that discussion with the president on what is

the plan.

"My plan is to protect America."

That's a goal. It's not a plan.

What is the plan for us to be protected from ISIS now that some of them have been unleashed in Syria because of the green light that the president

gave the Turks and reneging on our trustworthiness as an ally to the Kurds, who had been our friends?

So that was most unfortunate.

On a separate front, on all of that, I'm very proud of the work of chairman Adam Schiff. Again, this is so solemn. None of us came to Congress to

impeach a president. That's not what we come here to do.

[11:10:00]

PELOSI: And any such actions are to be taken very solemnly, seriously and, in my view, prayerfully. It isn't a unifying thing for the country to have

to go through this. But we do have to go -- we do have to honor our oath of office to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States, our

democracy and our republic, as Benjamin Franklin said.

"A republic if we can keep it." Well, it is our fight to keep it. As I've said before, the times have found us to do just that. So I'm very proud of

the work that Adam Schiff is doing. This isn't about politics or partisanship. It's about patriotism for our country.

And I value the way he's conducting this, with equal time on all sides for the questioning there. You've heard from him. We were here together when

he presented how he was proceeding. He also sent a letter to members yesterday, which is in the public domain. I call it to your attention in

case you have some questions about the professionalism and the fairness with which these hearings are being held.

Any questions?

QUESTION: First of all, (INAUDIBLE).

PELOSI: Yes, that's so sad.

QUESTION: (INAUDIBLE).

On the impeachment inquiry, how important is it to you not to let this (INAUDIBLE) election?

PELOSI: Well, I think, as I've really made -- thank you for the question. And thank you for your condolences on Elijah.

I keep saying to people, impeachment is about the truth and the Constitution of the United States. Any other issues that you have,

disapproving of the way the president has dealt with Syria, whatever the subject is, reluctance, cowardice to do something about gun violence, the

cruelty of not wanting to help our DREAMers and transgendered people, the denial about the climate crisis we face, the list goes on.

That's about the election. That has nothing to do with what is happening in terms of our oath of office to protect and defend the Constitution and

the facts that might support -- and we don't know where this path will take us but could take us down a further path. But the two are completely

separate.

QUESTION: At what point might you say, let's just let the voters decide?

PELOSI: Who said that?

QUESTION: No, I'm saying, at what point might you say let's just let --

(CROSSTALK)

PELOSI: No, we -- voters are not going to decide whether we honor our oath of office. They already decided that in the last election.

Yes, ma'am?

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST: We've been listening to what was an incredibly emotional Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the U.S. House, talking about the

death of Elijah Cummings, the Democratic congressman from Baltimore, whose death at 68 was announced earlier.

This was her regularly scheduled press conference. Perhaps what was most interesting was that she alluded to what she described as the meltdown by

the U.S. president in a meeting that they had on Tuesday at the White House.

She said this meltdown came after she cross-examined the president over pulling U.S. troops out of Syria. Pulling those troops out, she said, at a

time when he's beefing up military assets in Saudi Arabia.

She said she had called on Donald Trump to provide a clear plan on how the American public will be protected from ISIS, now that the Turkish invasion

of Syria has made the detention of those ISIS fighters very vulnerable in Syria.

And she also said something that she did say on Tuesday. She said during this meeting where she was, let's call it wagging her finger at the

president, she had remarked to Donald Trump that all roads seem to lead to Russia.

Well, if Donald Trump was a attempting to humiliate her by releasing that photograph, in turn, she made it her Facebook wallpaper, as it were. Now

this is Nancy Pelosi speaking at a press conference on the Hill. We're going to take a short break. Back after this.

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ANDERSON: Well, lots of breaking news to get through this hour. We're tracking three very big stories for you.

Any time now, we are expecting to hear from U.S. vice president Mike Pence. He is in Ankara, having just had a one-on-one meeting with Turkey's

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. We're hoping to hear an update on American efforts to broker a cease-fire amid Turkey's incursion into northern Syria.

These images of a meeting which finished about a half an hour or so ago. We do understand that the Turkish president is now in discussions with

secretary of state Mike Pompeo.

Meanwhile, back in Washington, ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, one of the key figures at the center of the impeachment inquiry,

is testifying on Capitol Hill right now with a startling opening statement. He says he was directed by President Trump to work with Rudy Giuliani.

And ding-dong, deal is done. U.K. and European Union negotiators strike a Brexit deal. The French president at least says it is a good compromise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EMMANUEL MACRON, PRESIDENT OF FRANCE (through translator): I think it's good news and this agreement applies to the objectives which were on the

E.U. side, defending the integrity of the European market and free trade.

And on the U.K. side, to have all the guarantees to preserve their own integrity and to preserve the balance for the Irish. This agreement

appears to be a good compromise that allows to answer all these objectives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: You could also hear the sigh of relief, nearly. But don't pop the cork on the champagne quite yet. This deal needs to get through the

U.K. Parliament.

How does prime minister Boris Johnson intend to do that and solve the tricky arithmetic?

We'll absolutely explore that for you just ahead.

As I mentioned, there are a lot of moving parts this hour. I want to start with Turkey, where President Trump has sent two of his administration's top

officials. As I said, we are set to hear from them shortly.

Vice president Mike Pence has had a face-to-face with President Erdogan. The U.S. is trying to put a stop to Ankara's rapidly escalating action into

northern Syria. The U.S. secretary of state Mike Pompeo also weighing in on those talks.

This follows an extraordinary letter sent by President Trump to the Turkish leader, warning him not to launch this military action against the Kurds

across the border in Syria.

Well, let's bring in our team of correspondents on this. CNN's Arwa Damon is on the Turkish side of the border with Syria.

[11:20:00]

ANDERSON: Jomana Karadsheh is in the Turkish capital, where those meetings are going on and Alex Marquardt is standing by in Washington.

Let's start with you, Jo, in Ankara.

What do we understand, if anything, to have been achieved by the American lieutenants, as it were, that have been dispatched by the U.S. president?

JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, on the Turkish side, Becky, expectations are very low when it comes to these meetings. We're going to

have to wait and see what vice president Mike Pence is going to come out and say following these meetings.

But Turkey has made its position clear over and over again. We heard that repeatedly from President Erdogan, saying they're determined to continue

with this operation and that the only way they're going to stop is when these Kurdish fighters pull away from the border area and basically

establish that safe zone that Turkey is aiming to create with this military offensive, 30 to 35 kilometers inside Syria.

Other than that, they're saying they're really not concerned about this threat of sanctions. And that seems to be the one card that the Trump

administration continues to play here.

They are pushing and trying to strong-arm Turkey into some sort of a cease- fire here, to stop this operation, saying that there will be more severe sanctions after those sanctions that we saw this week, described by so many

experts, that we've spoken to here, as very light sanctions.

Then again, you know, the fact that the United States is not really in a position to push for this cease-fire. Some would say this is not, you

know, anything that is going to happen on the ground. It's going to require Russia's blessing, really, as the United States has handed over

that little leverage that it had left pretty much to the Russians.

We know that President Erdogan next week is headed to Russia. He's going to be meeting with the Russian president Vladimir Putin. A lot of people

see that as a very critical meeting.

Some here that you speak to, Becky, would say that this meeting, what we're seeing today, the highest possible level delegation that was dispatched by

President Trump, is one of two things: either laying the groundwork for the meeting expected next month, when President Erdogan is invited to the

United States to meet with President Trump in November, and you have others here who see this as nothing more than a show, basically where President

Trump and the administration are trying to appease some in D.C. and show that they are backpedaling.

They're trying to backtrack on what they did and that was essentially the green light for this operation, something, of course, that the Trump

administration denies, Becky.

ANDERSON: Alex, the U.S. withdrawing troops, the president saying what's going on in Syria is nothing to do with us and not only defending his

decision to withdraw U.S. troops from northern Syria but praising himself. I want our viewers to just have a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: So I view the situation on the Turkish border with Syria to be, for the United States, strategically brilliant.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Question is then, Alex, why dispatch vice president Pence and secretary of state Pompeo to Turkey?

Face-saving exercise it may be but it does seem an awfully long way for his two senior lieutenants to travel if the likelihood of gaining anything at

this point is minimal.

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, it's completely contradictory. It's more than just Pompeo and Pence. The national security adviser,

Robert O'Brien; the special envoy, James Jeffrey; as Jo just said, this is the highest possible level delegation that was sent by the White House, by

President Trump himself, to try to broker this cease-fire.

Meanwhile, we have the president himself back in Washington, saying it has nothing to do with us. So that is a real contradiction in stances right

there. It has a lot to do with the United States, not just according to Nancy Pelosi, but there was this resounding vote in the House of

Representatives yesterday, issuing a real rebuke to the president over what he's just done in terms of pulling back U.S. troops. The vote was 354-60.

That means there were two-thirds of Republicans who voted against the president. Becky, you know well, this is a group of politicians who rarely

are out of lockstep with the president.

But they felt so offended by what the president has done, abandoning the Kurds to be slaughtered by the Turks, allowing ISIS eventually, possibly,

to regroup after the so-called caliphate had been defeated.

[11:25:00]

MARQUARDT: And Becky, perhaps most importantly of all, allowing Russia to fill this void. We have seen it in very tangible terms, with the Russian

forces moving north and literally taking over bases where the U.S. was just hours and days before.

We have seen Russians picking through these operating bases, going through the tents, looking at communications gear. The U.S. had to send two

fighter jets to bomb their camps so that those camps couldn't be used, those munitions couldn't be used.

So it's Russia moving in literally but also geopolitically in Syria. But all across the Middle East, as Jomana mentioned, President Putin is meeting

with President Erdogan next week. President Putin is becoming the arbiter in the Middle East in the way the U.S. once was.

That meeting with Erdogan, President Putin just went to Saudi Arabia for the first time in 12 years. He has a close relationship with Iran, a close

relationship with Israel. So as the U.S. is really receding from the world stage and the president makes no apologies for that, you really see Russia

rising up and taking its position in the Middle East and beyond.

ANDERSON: I can tell you, for somebody who lives here and broadcasts from the Middle East, people should have seen this coming. The Russians have

been around in this region for an awfully long time. Alex, thank you.

The Turkish president's position, Arwa, is this, that we are fighting an insurgency. He says we have terrorists at home, the PKK and associated

Kurdish groups south of the border, the YPG, erstwhile allies of the United States.

Donald Trump, Arwa, had this to say about the PKK yesterday. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Now the PKK, which is a part of the Kurds, as you know, is probably more of a terrorist threat in many ways than ISIS. So it's a very

semicomplicated, not too complicated if you're smart but it's a semicomplicated problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: It's a semicomplicated issue, which the American president seems to have been able to break down into quite basic terms. Arwa, your

thoughts on what he said.

ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think, Becky, look, first of all, let's explain the relationship with the PKK and the

YPG.

The PKK, yes, is a terrorist organization, categorized as a terrorist organization not just by Turkey but also by the European Union and the

United States.

Now the PKK used to have camps and its now-jailed leader used to be based in northern Syria. Long history condensed, they were evicted back in 1998

by the current Syrian president's father.

Then in around 2003, an entity called the PYD was established in northern Syria, a political organization but effectively the sister branch of the

PKK.

The YPG, the Syrian Kurds that the United States allied itself with inside Syria, they are the armed branch of that Kurdish political entity. So from

Turkey's perspective, they are one and the same as the PKK.

And, yes, from Turkey's perspective, the PKK does pose a larger national security threat than ISIS. President Trump saying that once again does

sound a lot like he is directly parroting lines from the Turkish administration.

But at the same time, this isn't a semicomplicated situation. It's a very complicated situation that spans back decades, when it comes to Turkey's

fight against the PKK, that is having a very present role at the forefront of what we're seeing unfolding right now.

And inside Syria, in the northern part of the country, you now have these regime forces taking over and moving into key areas that used to be

controlled by that Kurdish force, the YPG.

What is going to be especially interesting moving forward is potentially looking at how some sort of a cease-fire is perhaps negotiated, because, as

we've been hearing, it's not going to be negotiated by the U.S. It's going to be negotiated by Russia.

And one really gets the sense that it's ultimately going to be negotiated by Russia with the regime of Bashar al-Assad on one side, so Damascus on

one side, and Ankara on the other.

ANDERSON: Fascinating times. Alex, finally, we've just got about 90 seconds. Usually a staunch defender of the president, Republican senator

Lindsey Graham made this bold claim about the president's Syria withdrawal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): He's not listening to his commanders. He's not listening to his advisers.

[11:30:00]

GRAHAM: He's not -- he's making the biggest mistake of his presidency by assuming the Kurds are better off today than they were yesterday.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: The biggest mistake, Alex?

MARQUARDT: Yes, it is really shocking. Lindsey Graham, obviously, you know, he's a foreign policy hawk and he and John McCain were very strong

supporters of the Kurds. This is something that is so aggravating to someone like Graham and really many Republicans across Capitol Hill, that

they feel this need to speak out.

Now the president has struck back at Lindsey Graham. What it'll mean for their relationship going forward remains to be seen.

But the larger picture here is Republicans, both in the House and in the Senate, give President Trump a pass on a huge number of issues and we're

seeing that take place right now with the Ukraine scandal. They're not coming out against him.

But when it comes to this, when it comes to abandoning our allies who fought alongside the U.S. against ISIS, this is proving one step too far

for many Republicans on Capitol Hill, most notably led there by senator Lindsey Graham, Becky.

ANDERSON: Alex, Jomana and Arwa, thank you.

Up next on CONNECT THE WORLD.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): "It wasn't your time to die, my son. Why were you killed?" she mourns.

"Your mistake was defending the country against invaders."

Take a moment to consider their world.

ANDERSON (voice-over): Grief floods northern Syria as more graves are dug for the innocent. The human impact of this crisis is just ahead.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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ANDERSON: Welcome back. Just after half past 7:00 in the UAE. I'm Becky Anderson. This is CONNECT THE WORLD from your Middle East broadcasting hub

in Abu Dhabi.

Turkey's assault of Kurdish forces continues in northern Syria. The Turkish defense ministry says nearly 700 Kurds, who they label terrorists,

have been killed in their military operation. That's despite the fact that Kurdish soldiers, of course, helped the U.S. defeat ISIS.

Witnesses on the ground tell CNN Russian flags are now flying at stations previously occupied by U.S. troops.

Well, the Kurds themselves say dozens of civilians have been killed during this Turkish action. Over the past nine days, our screens have been

plastered with scenes of devastation.

But it's crucial to remember that, with every war-torn image, comes the loss of life, human life, a reality that many Kurdish families are now

facing yet again, with mass funerals swamping northern Syria. My colleague Nick Paton Walsh reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WALSH (voice-over): There's little light left for Syria's Kurds, who must bury their dead and their old allegiances.

"It wasn't your time to die, my son. Why were you killed?" she mourns.

"Your mistake was defending the country against invaders."

Take a moment to consider their world. They've grieved like this before under American direction to fight ISIS and buried 10,000 sons and

daughters. And now America's president, in one phone call, has unleashed Turkey's NATO standard army and air force on them and America's army has

reluctantly left them.

A martyr does not die, she chants. One of many here who do not look like they will submit to Turkey's new borders here soon.

At the hospital in Qamishli, the doctors line up outside to receive the wounded. It is an endless stream. Despite eight days of fighting, Syrian

Kurdish fighters who complain so often at only having old Kalashnikovs to fight ISIS, are still holding Turkish forces back.

They have had some help, desperate enough to strike a deal with something worse than the devil, the Syrian regime arriving here quite far north in

the town of Tal Tamr. The flags may be so new, they've just been unfolded, but the moves, the show of loyalty, is old and practiced.

Our spirits are high and our will strong, he says.

We're here to defend Syrian land and people, another adds.

While diplomacy stalls in Ankara and soon the Kremlin in the displaced shelter yet again, possibly hundreds of thousands are on the move while the

fighting continues.

Turkish President Erdogan wants control of a deep swath of Syria, yet the Kurds are fighting hard for Ras al-Ain, with the Syrian regime supporting

in nearby Tal Tamr. Pro-Turkish forces push towards this road and the American base west, but the regime and Russia are now in Manbij setting

both sides for a collision in the city of Kobani.

And Wednesday night, video emerged of a deeply symbolic moment, Syrian regime forces entering the city of Kobani, where the Syrian Kurds fought

for months with American air support to kick ISIS out of the rubble. But where now Russia and the regime are the new protectors for America's NATO

ally -- Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Irbil, northern Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: My next guest says Britain isn't doing enough to protect its allies in the Middle East. Tom Tugendhat is a British conservative and the

chairman of the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee.

In an op-ed for "The Times," he writes, "President Trump has shaken the kaleidoscope of the Middle East."

He joins me live from London.

Donald Trump called this a strategically brilliant decision for the U.S.

How would you describe it?

TOM TUGENDHAT, BRITISH CONSERVATIVE MP: Well, I think that's a pretty surprising description but I would call it a very serious strategic

reversal for the United States and her allies.

Look, it's quite clear who has won out of this. President Putin is now wandering around the Middle East like the all-conquering hero, having

secured alliances with Turkey and demonstrated his strength in Syria.

And we're already seeing now the Saudi government entering discussions with the Iranian government, something nobody thought was even slightly

possible.

[11:40:00]

TUGENDHAT: At the very, very loosest level, admittedly in this early stage, because nobody considers the United States to be an enduring

partner. This president has destroyed the reputation of the United States in the region.

ANDERSON: You've written, "A thousand U.S. troops pulling out of Syria, leaving the way clear for a Turkish invasion and for Russian soldiers to

take selfies in their now empty barracks."

You say, "British and French troops operating alongside the U.S. have been left high and dry in the desert and the Kurds, who made up the mass of the

force that ended the rule of ISIS and their terror, have been abandoned."

Let me put this to you.

Are you telling me Britain, and others across Europe and beyond, hadn't or couldn't have anticipated what has happened?

I'm not talking about the speed of what's happened but about what has happened on the ground?

TUGENDHAT: Look, I think there are questions to answer in Paris and London. That's definitely true. But to find out that your principal ally

and most important military partner is leaving within hours is pretty extraordinary. I mean, I served with the 82nd Airborne in combat in

Northern Helmand about a decade ago.

I served with other U.S. forces in Iraq and in other parts of Afghanistan. The idea that you'd one day wake up in the morning and find out they were

off less than 24 hours later is, I mean, really extraordinary.

One of the principles of war is surprise. And it appears that the commander in chief of the United States didn't get to that advanced stage

of his military education; otherwise, he'd have learned that surprise is what you do to the enemy, not what you do to your friends.

ANDERSON: So what happens to the British and French troops operating alongside the U.S. today who have been left high and dry in the desert?

TUGENDHAT: Well, they'll have to withdraw. And there's not really very much choice. That's why I've had many conversations with senators and

congressmen in the last few days, all of whom have completely agreed with the points that I've made and who've, to a person, have apologized for the

behavior of their president, who is abandoning allies and devaluing relationships, unpicking the very careful patchwork of strength and depth

that the United States has built up over 70 years.

This is really exposing the United States in a most unfortunate way, at a time when challenges like China and Russia have never been greater.

ANDERSON: Sir, I need to take a very short break but, just before I do, I want to put this to you.

Do you see any value in the efforts by two top Trump aides, Mike Pence and Mike Pompeo, who are in Turkey, trying to persuade the Turkish president to

call a halt to this incursion?

TUGENDHAT: I'm somewhat at a loss to know why President Erdogan would think it was worth talking to them, given that the current White House has

demonstrated it will cut and run.

ANDERSON: With that, I'm going to take a very short break. I'm going to have you stay with us. There's an awful lot more to discuss, not least

that deal. It's not a done deal but we got a deal between the E.U. and the U.K. More from Tom after this.

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ANDERSON: Right. You're back with CONNECT THE WORLD. Just before 10 to 8:00 here in the UAE.

We have a deal. It's an excellent deal, according to the British prime minister, but it is by no means a done deal with the European Union.

Yes, I am talking Brexit. It is a very big day in the process. A deal struck between Britain and the E.U. this morning in Brussels theoretically

could mean that Britain leaves the bloc as planned on October the 31st. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, says it amounts to a good

compromise.

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MACRON (through translator): I think it's good news and this agreement replies to the objectives, which were on the E.U. side, defending the

integrity of the European market and free trade.

And on the U.K. side to have other guarantees to preserve their own integrity and to preserve the balance for the Irish. This agreement

appears to be a good compromise that allows to answer all these objectives.

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ANDERSON: As I said, it is far from a done deal. Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party says it can't support the agreement as it

currently stands. The opposition Labour Party says this deal is worse than Theresa May's, an agreement rejected by Parliament three times.

Both the DUP and Labour say they won't back it in Parliament when lawmakers vote to Saturday. Richard Quest is at the heart of the story, live for us

in a very busy Brussels today at the European Commission headquarters.

So in the end, it will all come down to the arithmetic once again.

Have you done the math?

What happens Saturday?

RICHARD QUEST, CNNMONEY EDITOR AT LARGE: Oh, they can't get it through. They don't get it through. Look, think of it this way, Becky. First, the

DUP are not supporting. Boris Johnson has already lost 20-odd members of his own party. Some will vote with him, of course.

But then you have the DUP, who won't vote with him. Labour says they won't vote with him. You may get five or 10 Labour MPs. Then you have the STP,

who certainly won't vote with him. The numbers would have been tight even in the old days but he doesn't have them at the moment.

I'm not going to -- look, I'm not saying for a second he can't pull it out of a hat between now and Saturday. I'm just saying, as you look at it at

the moment, it's not easy because, Becky, don't forget also the ERG, the European Reform Group.

If the DUP isn't on board, then the cover for the ERG doesn't exist. Realistically, I can make a theoretical argument that says he gets it

through. But realistically, I can't see it gets through.

ANDERSON: Yes, no, you make a very good point. The math is really tough at this point. Boris Johnson clearly feels that he has a chance to do

this. He has about, what, 30 hours to work out just how to do that.

The reporting has been excellent. Thank you, sir. Your insight and analysis extremely important.

We're going to take a very short break. Back after this.

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ANDERSON: Well, some may argue you can never get enough royals. We've just had -- ahead, we have a major CNN royal exclusive. Max Foster sits

down with Britain's Duchess of Cambridge as she and Prince William continue their official tour of Pakistan. Officials say this is the most complex

trip the couple have ever taken due to security logistics. That's at 10 pm here in Abu Dhabi, 7:00 pm in London.

I'm Becky Anderson. That was CONNECT THE WORLD. Thank you for watching.

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