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North Korea Fires Two Unknown Short-Ranged Projectiles; United States Declares Second Coronavirus Death; Global Markets Bounces Back; Pete Buttigieg Out of Democratic Presidential Race; Polls Predict Another Deadlock In Latest Election; Dispute Over Prisoner Release After U.S.-Taliban Deal; Vatican Opening Pope Pius XII Archives. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired March 02, 2020 - 02:00   ET

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


[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us here in the United States and of course, all around the world. You are watching "CNN Newsroom" and I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, North Korea conducts a test launch for the first time this year days before the country plans to evacuate diplomats, under quarantine over coronavirus fears.

A second death from the virus has been confirmed in the United States as Africa prepares for its spread. We will hear from the head of the CDC there.

The field is narrowing as U.S. Democrats march towards Super Tuesday. Pete Buttigieg is out of the race.

Good to have you with us. So North Korea has fired two short range projectiles into the sea. That is according to the South Korean defense ministry. Our Will Ripley has reported from North Korea many times in recent years and he joins us now live from Tokyo.

Good to see you Will. So when might we learn more about these two projectiles and what signal is Kim Jong-un trying to send right now do you think?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Rosemary. Well, certainly, whenever North Korea conducts a test like this there is a message behind it. A message aimed at the internal domestic audience inside North Korea and a message aimed at the rest of the world.

Now, these are the first launches of their kind this year, but this is something that we saw North Korea do repeatedly last year. And it's also something that we know the United States is not particularly concerned about even though South Korea certainly is paying very close attention because a weapon with this kind of range could target tens of millions of people in South Korea including U.S. troops who are stationed in that country.

But right now, the world's focus really isn't on North Korea or its military. It's on the coronavirus outbreak. And with, you know, 4,200 plus cases in South Korea and unknown number of cases, none confirmed inside the North.

But clearly, it's a situation that a lot of people are concerned about, you know, trying to get supplies, medical supplies into North Korea because it is so woefully under-equipped if there were to be an outbreak there. It could be really catastrophic for that country given its limited medical capabilities.

You do have to wonder if this launch is an attempt by Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, to project strength in these uncertain times. And also to project basically a message that it's business as usual because a couple of days ago he oversaw a tactical strike drill.

We know that these missiles are, you know, short range projectiles as being described were launched from the coastal city of Wonsan. This is a very familiar launching ground. A place I visited before that North Korea was up until recently trying to develop as a tourist destination.

Now it seems it's reverting back to its role as a military testing ground given that a lot of the construction projects in that country are on hold as the diplomatic process between the U.S. and North Korea has stalled.

We also are watching very closely the timing of this. It's interesting, Rosemary, because we know that on Friday, according to a source of mine inside North Korea, diplomats from various countries are going to be evacuated.

The North Korean government is urging missions to leave the country. They've been quarantined, foreign diplomats have, in Pyongyang for more than a month now. The country has sealed off its boarders, not allowing flights in or out, not allowing any people in or out because of the coronavirus outbreak that is at its doorstep both in South Korea and also in China.

So the fact that they are conducting this kind of a test given that it's just days before foreign diplomats are going to be evacuated from the country, certainly interesting timing and something we should continue to watch.

CHURCH: Absolutely. And we shall do that. Our Will Ripley joining us live from Tokyo. Many thanks to you.

Well the number of deaths from the Novel coronavirus has now jumped to at least 3,000 worldwide. Two of those deaths have now come from the United States. Officials say another person has died in Washington State, the same area where the first death was confirmed. And earlier, the U.S. vice president spoke about the country's containment efforts. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm happy to report this weekend more than 15,000 testing kits have been released. Also, the FDA has approved a testing regimen that state and local officials can be using. And beyond that, we actually are working with a commercial provider with the new testing framework to send another 50,000 kits out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[02:05:03]

CHURCH: Meantime, South Korea has reported nearly 500 new cases and four more deaths from the virus. Across the country, at least 26 people have now died. And for more on South Korea's surge in new cases, I'm joined by CNN senior international correspondent, Ivan Watson, just outside of Seoul at a coronavirus testing center.

So Ivan, why the sudden surge in cases and talk us through this new method of testing and containment there in South Korea.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Rosemary, I mean, the surge is tremendous. South Korea went from 31 cases to more than 4,200 confirmed cases in just two weeks. So, the onus is on the authorities to try to do as much testing as they can right now.

So, far the Korean Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have tested more than 100,000 people and this is one of the methods they're doing to expedite it. Drive-through coronavirus testing.

In the city of Goyang, it's a service that is being offered to anybody for free. You drive in with your car. You don't even need an appointment. You come through here, get a questionnaire and a hand sanitizer and then spin around through a series of stations here.

Now, why is this important? The authorities say that they can speed up the testing process. Expedite it this way and this is crucial. They say they can limit the exposure of the frontline health workers, the doctors, and the nurses to patients by keeping potential infected patients in their cars at all-time.

They don't come into a clinic where they can potentially infect other patients. They stay in their vehicles and that maintains some social distancing.

So, through the various stations, drivers will come through, they'll get their temperatures checked. They'll fill out a questionnaire that looks for risk categories. You asked why the number has gone up so much.

More than 70 percent of all the infections nationally come from one city, the fourth largest city, Daegu, in the south of the country. So, in the questionnaire, and I filled it out -- if you've been to Daegu, that will put you in a more of a risk category.

At this last nation and there's not a car here right now, people come and the driver will get swabbed in their nose and deep in their throat. And the samples will be taken away to a lab and will get the test results within two to three days. At this time, there is a car coming through right here.

South Korea unfortunately has just logged more fatalities. The death toll has gone up to 26. This has spread into the South Korean military, the U.S. military, into factories as well. The workers here and somebody is demonstrating right now in the clean zone this cleaning solution.

This gentleman is going to be sprayed with disinfectant. And this is what the nurses go through here. And this is another one of the measures that they have here. Rosemary, a couple of days ago I interviewed a doctor at a coronavirus crisis center in Daegu, that frontline city.

And I said, do you have any lessons given this nearly two months of experience that you all have with the disease that you can share with other countries like the U.S. that are just starting to find their first cases of coronavirus? And he said its mobile centers like this which limit the exposure and can rush those tests through faster. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Incredible. Thank you Ivan for walking through that process. They seem to be very much on top of it. Ivan been bringing us that live report just near Seoul. Many thanks.

And for more on efforts to stem the spread of the coronavirus, we are joined now joined by Ivan Hung. He is a clinical professor with the Hong Kong University Medical Faculty where he is chief of the infectious diseases division. Professor, thank you so much for being with us

IVAN HUNG, CLINICAL PROFESSOR, HONG KONG UNIVERSITY MEDICAL FACILITY: Thank you.

CHURCH: Now, more than 3,000 deaths as a result of the novel coronavirus, mostly in mainland China. But it's continuing to spread to other countries with two people now dead in the United States and more deaths reported in Australia, Thailand, South Korea, Iran, and Italy.

And Americans are worried that their country is not ready to cope with this. Just how prepared is the U.S. and how effective will the new screening procedures be do you think?

HUNG: Well, I think the most important measures to contain the novel coronavirus is to basically buy infection control, by people wearing masks, and also by hand hygiene, hand rub with alcohol swabbed, which is basically are the main measures here in Hong Kong and also, I think in China nowadays, which is very effective.

[02:10:03]

And also that the important is for early diagnosis and early isolation and early treatment will be the mainstay of isolation and prevention of this infection from spreading. CHURCH: Right. You mentioned the masks, but a lot of people in

America, they've been told that masks are only useful if you have coronavirus and they should be kept specifically for those who are providing health services.

HUNG: Well, I don't think that is true because what we know about the novel coronavirus it is very contagious and there are a lot of asymptomatic carriers. So, people are infected with the virus and they have no symptoms.

So, you don't know who actually is carrying the virus. And already before the symptom onset, they will be shedding the virus. So wearing a mask is extremely important and also probably home officing is another measure and stopping school for a while will be the main measures to control the spread of the virus.

CHURCH: All right. And this is the problem because a lot of people across the United States are getting mixed messages about what they should and shouldn't do.

Infections have spread to about 10 states across the U.S. and Vice President Pence says 15,000 test kits were distributed over the weekend, with 50,000 more to come. Will that be enough and why did it take so long given South Korea has tested more than 100,000 people we understand now? The U.K. has tested 8000 and the U.S. only 500. Why is the U.S. so far behind everyone else?

HUNG: Well, I think the main reason is because the infection rate in the United States has not been high at the beginning. Even with the cruise passengers returning to the U.S. They have been isolated quickly.

And the number has been kept very low -- only recently that they have problems that they have community -- unknown community outbreaks. So, I think the main measure is still to test more and also to isolate these patients as quickly as we can.

CHURCH: All right, professor, many thanks for joining. We do appreciate it.

HUNG: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, global markets are starting to rebound after the coronavirus caused huge sell offs last week. Right now, U.S. futures for all major industries are slightly up reversing earlier losses. Dow Futures had plunged more than 500 points at one point, but it's now up about 50 percent.

All of this comes as markets in Asia ended the day with gains across the board. So, let's get the latest now from Kaori Enjoji who is following markets from Tokyo. So, Kaori, how much comfort should any of us take from this and talk to us more about what you are seeing on Asia markets.

KAORI ENJOJI, JOURNALIST: Well Rosemary, a little bit of comfort today and I think that is partly because of the central banks trying to put up a united front and saying that they're going to do all they can to try and stem the weakness that we saw in the equity markets and the capital markets last week.

The Bank of Japan issued a very rare statement this morning here in Tokyo and that triggered the rebound across the board here in Asia. The Tokyo stock market ended up 1 percent, more than 200 points. Shanghai has rallied more than 3 percent.

So, the Bank of Japan statement I think has increased expectations among investors that there will be some kind of concerted effort by central banks across the world, particularly because it comes on the heels from similar remarks by the U.S Federal Reserve last week.

And central banks have done this before. Back in November of 2011 when we were in the midst of the European debt crisis, central banks around the world cut rates and tried to stem the volatility of the markets. So I think that's what's triggering the rebound today.

But we have a long way to go before we make up for all of these losses that the markets have suffered in the last week and people even before that move has even made. People are saying that this is not a financial crisis. This is an everyday problem. It's a health issue. It's a supply issue. It's a demand issue as well.

And they are wondering whether normal monetary measures like a cut in interest rates can do -- can really correct what we are seeing in the equity markets. But on the day we are seeing a little bit of relief on the pressure for all of the indexes here in Asia. Back to you.

CHURCH: All right. Kaori Enjoji, many thanks to you for keeping us up to date on how the markets are looking. We're going to take a short break. We'll be back in just a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:15:00]

(WORLD SPORTS)

CHURCH: Well, just ahead of Super Tuesday, Democrat Pete Buttigieg has ended his run for United States president. He broke the news Sunday night to a spirited crowd in his hometown of South Bend, Indiana.

Buttigieg was the first gay candidate to earn presidential primary delegates for a major parties nomination, but he had a tough time reaching voters of color, a key Democratic base. Buttigieg did not endorse any of the remaining candidates during his announcement, but he did have a message for his supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: So I urge everyone who supported me to continue in the cause of ensuring that we bring change to the White House and working to win the absolutely critical down ballot races playing out across the country this year. There is simply too much at stake to retreat to the sidelines of the time like this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Former Vice President Joe Biden is energized for Super Tuesday after his big primary win in South Carolina on Saturday. CNN political reporter Rebecca Buck is with the Biden camp Norfolk, Virginia.

[02:20:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

REBECCA BUCK, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, here in Virginia on Sunday we saw an energized Joe Biden on the heels of his major victory in South Carolina hoping to ride that wave all the way through Super Tuesday into the key contest in this Democratic primary, even beyond that, telling his supporters here in Norfolk, Virginia that he believes his campaign is on the rise and that he has a few reasons now to be very optimistic.

And this only because of that result in South Carolina, but very fortunate timing for the former vice president with a decision by former South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Sunday to drop out of the 2020 race for president.

Of course, he has cut a more moderate path in this race. He has rejected the path of Bernie Sanders and what Buttigieg describes as an all or nothing my way or the highway approach to this race.

And so that suggests that his decision to drop out could leave an opening for former Vice President Joe Biden to step into at this key juncture in the race. Of course, it is unclear whether there might be other beneficiaries of Buttigieg's decision.

There could be Elizabeth Warren. Also, former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a major wildcard heading into Super Tuesday. This will be the first contest in the Democratic primary where Bloomberg will be competing.

He has spent already more than half a billion dollars on advertising to boost his presidential campaign, and so he remains a major obstacle for Biden. And of course, Bernie Sanders, still a front runner, if not the front runner in the Democratic race.

On "State of the Union" with Jake Tapper on CNN over the weekend, Biden went after Bernie Sanders, suggesting that he is not pragmatic and wouldn't be able to get things done. That is Biden's pitch to voters here in the Democratic race. It's the pitch he is going to be making heading into Super Tuesday. In just a few days we will see whether that strategy paid off. Rebecca Buck, CNN, Norfolk, Virginia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, checking in with the other candidates ahead of Super Tuesday, Senator Bernie Sanders' campaign says they raised a massive $46.5 million in February. He has been crisscrossing the nation focusing on Super Tuesday states and investing in ads -- his own airing and 12 out of the 14 states voting on Tuesday.

A Black Lives Matter protests shot down an event in Senator Amy Klobuchar's home state of Minnesota. The protesters are critical of Klobuchar's handling of a case involving a black teen convicted of murder back when she was the county attorney.

Despite a disappointing finish in South Carolina, Senator Elizabeth Warren's campaign says she is in a strong position to earn a sizable delegate haul on Tuesday.

And in Selma, Alabama on Sunday, members of the historic Brown Chapel AME Church turned their backs on billionaire Michael Bloomberg as he spoke during a ceremony honoring the 1965 civil rights march from Selma to Montgomery.

For a look ahead to the voting, coast to coast on Tuesday, we are joined now by Jacob Parakilas with the foreign policy think tank at the London School of Economics LSE Ideas. Thank you so much for joining us.

JACOB PARAKILAS, POLITICAL ANALYST: Good morning.

CHURCH: So, Democratic presidential hopefuls Pete Buttigieg and Tom Steyer have both bowed out of the race for the White House. So, what does this mean for the aspirations of both Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders and of course, looking forward to Super Tuesday?

PARAKILAS: Well, I think there are two different things. Steyer in most national polls was in the low single digits. He invested heavily in South Carolina and his disappointing finish there was the immediate precipitant for him withdrawing entirely from the race so, I am not sure his departure makes an enormous difference.

Buttigieg is a slightly different story. He actually won Iowa. He was in second place in New Hampshire. He was pulling in around 10 percent in national polls. So there is now a substantial block of the primary electorate which had been interested in Buttigieg, which will now be up for grabs.

I am not sure the distribution of that is necessarily an ideological one. Voter preferences are not as tightly constrained by the ideological lanes as maybe we'd like to think.

Buttigieg's rise in the late fall came at the expense largely of Senator Elizabeth Warren from whom he had distanced himself ideologically, but they were both competing for a more highly educated, whiter than usual electorate.

[02:25:00]

So, it's possible that those people will largely flow and give her campaign some new hope, although it's come in disappointing places in the last few contests. Although, you know, it's also possible, that many of his voters will be ideologically driven and will go to Bloomberg or Biden. I think it is relatively unlikely that Sanders will see a big boost

out of this. But again, voter preferences don't follow those ideological names necessarily.

CHURCH: Yes, of course. It's always very difficult to predict going forward, but I'd be interested to get your read on the likely path ahead for Amy Klobuchat, Elizabeth Warren, and Michael Bloomberg. Of course, Bloomberg has a bottomless pit when it comes to money, but they run the risk of fracturing the vote, aren't they, at a very critical time.

PARAKILAS: They do. I think Bloomberg, as you say, is in a very different position. He can stay in as long as he wants. He doesn't need to worry about his fund-raising (inaudible) being turned off. He doesn't need to worry about basically donors or parties, elders telling him to go away.

So, it's just a question of how much money he wants to throw at it and, you know, how many defeats or victory he wants to endure. We haven't seen Michael Bloomberg's actual performance yet because he hasn't been on the ballot so we really don't know. He is a true wildcard in the voting tomorrow.

For Warren and Klobuchar, I think tomorrow really is do or die. Klobuchar I think is much closer to the end of the line unless something significant changes, unless for instance, basically all of Buttigieg's support goes to her.

Warren is hanging in there, continues to post reasonable fund-raising hauls. And if she brings in at least one state victory if she wins her home state of Massachusetts, and post second and third 3rd place finishes in other big states, I think she can continue on the basis that it'0s likely to be a contested convention.

But again, you know, this is a major break or test for her campaign. And it's not impossible to imagine either or both of them not being in the race as of Wednesday or Thursday.

CHURCH: Right. And of course, it has to be said the goal of most Democrats is to beat Donald Trump. But you wouldn't know it at times, would you? They appear divided, confused about or what they support and what they represent. If they don't find a way to unite behind one viable and electable candidate, how likely is it that they will ultimately hand victory to Mr. Trump?

PARAKILAS: I don't think we can answer that question at this stage. First of all, I mean, a divided primary obviously is not as good as everyone agreeing on a candidate the party being completely unified. But the party, whichever party you are talking about, is rarely completely unified.

I mean, there is a similar sense of chaos in 2016 even. It's a different situation, it's a different method of politics (ph) delegates, but the 2016 Republican primary didn't have a lot of analysts thinking that Republicans were likely to beat Hillary Clinton, and yet here we are. So, I think we have to expand our analysis a little bit, to include

the possibility that, you know, Democrats in general are enthusiastic about loathing (ph) against Donald Trump. And whoever the candidate is, the vast majority of Democrats will probably go out and vote, however reluctantly or enthusiastically for that person.

So, I think we just don't know. We also don't know if the number of things that could change within the next seven or eight months to change the fundamental trajectory of the race. We do not know how that will play for each individual candidates favor.

Frankly, we don't know what electability is. I think there are a lot of general assumptions that go into that. Some of them are a little bit based on historical experience, but the number of presidential elections that we have is actually fairly minimal.

So, everyone is its own unique creature and I think we have to be very cautious about assuming we know more about what electable than we actually did.

CHURCH: Yes, absolutely. I guess knowing the politics of the American voters is a good guide there. But Jacob Parakilas, many thanks to you for bringing us the latest details on this. Appreciate it.

And be sure to tune in as voting kicks off across 14 states. Our Super Tuesday special coverage starts at 4:00 pm in New York and Washington, 9:00 p.m. in London, 5:00 a.m. Wednesday in Hong Kong if you are up, right here, on CNN.

Israelis are voting in another election. Ahead, a look at whether they will be to end the political stalemate that's lasted nearly a year. We're back with that in just a moment.

[02:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM, I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check the headlines for you this hour. North Korea has fired to short-range projectiles into the sea according to the South Korean Defense Ministry. It says they were launch near the eastern city of Wonsan. Japan says no damage has been reported.

The global death toll from the coronavirus has now climbed past 3,000. On Sunday, China reported another 42 deaths and at least 200 new infections mostly in Hubei province. The World Health Organization says the number of new cases in that region has increased for two straight days.

Democrat Pete Buttigieg out of the U.S. presidential race. The former South Bend, Indiana Mayor broke the news to a spirited hometown crowd Sunday night. He's the first gay candidate to earn presidential primary delegates for a major party's nomination. Well, Israeli voters are back at the polls for the third time in less

than a year. Opinion polls show neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party nor former Army Chief Benny Gantz's Blue and White Party will win enough seats for a governing majority. That was also the case in the elections in April and September.

So for more, we're joined now by journalists Elliott Gotkine in Jerusalem. Good to have you with us. So as we've said, polls indicate the same result may be the outcome here. Neither Netanyahu nor Gantz able to form a government. What happens if that's the case? They can't keep doing elections? What's the next step?

ELLIOTT GOTKINE, JOURNALIST: In theory, they can, Rosemary. They've already had two, as you say. We're already -- you know, it's already unprecedented what's going on here in Israel. As you said, the opinion polls points again to the continuation of this political deadlock. And in theory, it can just keep on happening. They've already penciled in a date for the fourth elections in early September.

So it's not putting off people from coming to the polls, it should be said, although it's quite early here. So just a trickle so far this morning. But right now, there's no kind of constitutional reason why you can't just keep on having more elections if there is no definitive result.

[02:35:11]

CHURCH: It seems pretty crazy for most of us watching from the outside. But Benjamin Netanyahu, of course, is due to go to trial later this month on corruption charges, but voters don't appear to care about that, do they? What does that signal and what have been the highs and lows of this campaign?

GOTKINE: I think it signals that people are either with Netanyahu or they're against him. And those that are with him believe Netanyahu's assertion that this is all just a witch hunt cooked up by a liberal elite and that he is innocent of all charges level that him. And those who oppose him are similarly unswayed in their belief that Netanyahu was guilty and ought to -- ought to go to jail and not be prime minister anymore. So in that respect, the electorate remains divided.

And in terms of the impact that is having more broadly, I suppose you could argue that with Netanyahu at the helm, that is preventing any possibility of a government of national unity being formed. Benny Gantz, the leader Blue and White has said he will not serve with a prime minister who is under indictment or is facing charges.

So in that respect, it is partly responsible for this political deadlock we're seeing. But as you say, voters don't seem swayed either way. And it's actually not really been a big issue at this -- at this election.

CHURCH: Just extraordinary, isn't it? Elliott Gotkine, thank you so much for keeping an eye on that. We'll check back in with you next hour. I appreciate it. Well, the ink is barely dry and already there are disputes over details in that historic agreement signed between the U.S. and the Taliban.

The deal calls for the U.S. to begin withdrawing thousands of troops over the next 135 days, with the goal of an eventual full withdrawal. In return, the Taliban must commit to ending terrorists attacks in Afghanistan, including helping in the fight against ISIS and al-Qaeda.

But here's the sticking point. The Taliban say they expect 5,000 prisoners to be released ahead of talks with the government in Kabul due to begin in barely over a week. But U.S. officials say the number is up to 5,000, while Afghanistan's president says his government has made no commitment to such release.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ASHRAF GHANI, PRESIDENT OF AFGHANISTAN: We will discuss the question of prisoners as part of a peace deal which has to be comprehensive, which is to discuss. The wording that is used there is that the United States would facilitate. We've made it very clear to Ambassador Khalilzad that the political capital in the consensus in the country that would be necessary for such a major step does not exists today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Afghanistan's president there. And just a day after the agreement was signed, CNN's Nic Robertson sat down for an exclusive interview with the Taliban negotiator and asked him to clarify some key details about the deal.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, before the barely dry on that agreement, already a hurdle in the way. The Taliban expect the Afghan government to release what they believe a 5,000 of their prisoners before the Taliban say they'll go into the intra Afghan talk with the Afghan government expected to begin on the 10th of March.

The Afghan Government, for its part believes that is too many prisoners too soon. They're not ready for that. So that first round of intra Afghan talks, the timeline on that could slide. But a big question going into this is the position of the Taliban. Are they going into this believing they're coming in as victor, something Secretary of State Pompeo warned them against? I asked that of one of the Taliban negotiators, do they think they beat the Americans?

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: Does the Taliban believe the United States has been defeated militarily?

MUHAMMED SUNAIL SHAHEEN, MEMBER OF THE TALIBAN NEGOTIATION TEAM: We Solution through talks. That means when you reach a solution through talks, that means it is a win-win situation for both sides.

ROBERTSON: Why should the United States trust you now when you say that you will now go after al-Qaeda and go after ISIS, because the Taliban have been allowing al-Qaeda to live inside their territory in Afghanistan for the past 20 years? SHAHEEN: It is our policy that anyone who wants to use the side of Afghanistan for their goals against other country and harm our country, our people, we will not allow them.

ROBERTSON: When it comes to al-Qaeda, are you turning your back on your Muslim brothers of many years of many decades to support the United States, a Christian country, and their national security.

[02:40:09]

SHAHEEN: It is a question of our policy that if someone harm other countries from Afghanistan and on our territory, and we have declared a law that they should not do this, it means that we have to take steps to prevent them because this is law.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: Well, another big question, particularly if the Taliban as they do believe that the Afghan government right now under President Ghani is an illegitimate government. The question is, what is the future government going to look like? Will be there -- will there be a new constitution, and what will the role of women be? That's not written down in the agreement between the United States and the Taliban. Again, a Taliban the negotiations explained to me their views.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: Will it have a new constitution, this new government?

SHAHEEN: Yes, sure. I think they must have a constitution, new constitution. If they continue with that, that mean we will be -- it means the Constitution of the occupation time, so it will not have credibility and trust of the people.

ROBERTSON: What guarantees are you going to give in that constitution for the education of women and the role of women in society?

SHAHEEN: Yes, about the role of women, their education, because women want to have education and women want to have right of work. We do not have any problem with that.

ROBERTSON: An education up to which age?

SHAHEEN: Yes, yes, no problem which -- the higher education, that's not the problem.

ROBERTSON: Higher education for women?

SHAHEEN: Yes, yes. Only the issue is the Islamic hijab they observed because it is an Islamic society.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ROBERTSON: So the Afghan government and the Taliban pulls apart. The Taliban see the Afghan government is illegitimate. The Afghan Government has what they call an Islamic Republic. The Taliban want an Islamic Emirate. So many fundamentals still in play, and it's not clear that all of this can actually lead to peace. But the signals between -- the signature between the United States and the Taliban, it represents an opportunity far from a done deal though. Nick Robertson, CNN, Doha, Qatar.

CHURCH: Well, African nations are scrambling to contain the coronavirus. We will hear from the head of the CDC for Africa, who has a dire warning for the continent.

[02:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Well, the number of cases of coronavirus continues to increase rapidly worldwide. The World Health Organization says China's Hubei province has seen an increase in new cases for two straight days after a period of decline. Right now, the global number of infections stands at more than 88,000. More than 3,000 people have died.

The outbreak is also affecting Israel's election. They've set up 16 polling places for nearly 6,000 people under self-quarantine, and South Korea just reported nearly 500 new cases bringing their total to more than 4,200. Now that comes after Italy reported more than 500 new cases over the weekend.

And African nations are also scrambling to contain the coronavirus after Nigeria recorded its first case last week. The World Health Organization says Africa could be hit harder by an outbreak than China. And CNN's David McKenzie is live from Johannesburg. He joins us now.

So, David, you talk to the head of the CDC in Africa. What did he have to say about this first case reported in Nigeria and, of course, how the continent will handle any outbreak?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, he said that Nigeria passed the initial test, but there's a long way to go. That Italian national traveling from the northern part of Italy to Lagos for work, then was detected or got symptoms quickly isolated and diagnosed. Now the head of the African CDC told me that there are twin threats to Africa, diagnosis and then containment.

You know, when this outbreak first started in China, only here in South Africa and in West Africa and Senegal had the capabilities in their lab system to test for this new virus. Over the last few weeks the African CDC has been working with governments to try and rapidly expand that diagnostic capability. They are now standing around 40 countries. But if you cannot quickly diagnose people and contain them, the public health system in Africa in many parts of the continent just weren't cope. Take a listen.

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JOHN NKENGASONG, DIRECTOR, AFRICA CDC: Our strategy continues to be rapid detection and rapid containment because there's no way our systems will be rapidly improved to be able to cope with a large outbreak like what we are seeing in China.

MCKENZIE: If you see communal transmission in countries like Nigeria and other African countries, should borders closed?

NKENGASONG: If we begin to seek community transmission which is the scenario which we truly don't want to see happen, because that will mean it will ensure that this sustained transmission becomes very difficult to contain. At that point you we can speak any more of a containment strategy. We will move to a mitigation strategy.

What do we do with -- to mitigate the effect on the community? That will require that we start closing down places of mass gatherings, the churches, schools, public facilities, and then we have a severe economic impact and social impact on the -- on the continent.

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MCKENZIE: Well, he said that there are countries like South Africa, Ethiopia, Nigeria that have closed business ties with parts of the world that have seen major community outbreaks. He said that is the one risk. But then you also have countries for example, like the Democratic Republic of Congo which has a large population and a weak health system.

And though, Rosemary, public health experts have said that this virus, compared to SARS and other coronavirus is not as severe, maybe somewhere around two percent fatality rate, because a number of people get sick up to 15, 16 percent, or 20 percent very sick, those health systems just wouldn't be able to cope. So they're saying they have to get to those diagnostics as quickly as they can. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Yes. It is certainly a real concern. David McKenzie bringing us the latest on there from Johannesburg, many thanks. We'll take a short break here. Still to come, questions have been asked for decades. The answer scholars might find the archives about the world war two era Vatican. Back with that in just a moment.

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CHURCH: A fuller picture may soon emerge on a controversial period in Vatican history. Scholars are being given access Monday to the archives of Pope Pius XII. His silence during World War Two led to accusations he was a Nazi sympathizer. Delia Gallagher reports the move could answer questions that have lingered for decades.

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DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: It's a moment of truth for the Vatican as the world waits to discover what is in these files. Several million letters, cables, and documents relating to Pope Pius XII. Pope during the Second World War who has been accused of not doing enough to help save Jews during the Holocaust. Menachem Rosensaft the World Jewish Congress says the opening of these archives is a tremendous step forward. MENACHEM ROSENSAFT, WORLD JEWISH CONGRESS: I think we need to express our enormous gratitude and appreciation to Pope Francis for taking the step of relying on the verdict of history and handing over to scholars what is the last archive that remains to be explored.

[02:55:18]

GALLAGHER: The reputation of Pius XII has long been tainted by accusations that he remains silent in the face of the Holocaust.

JOHAN ICKX, ARCHIVIST: That will be released.

GALLAGHER: One of the Vatican's head archivists Johan Ickx says he has personally reviewed over one million documents and that the accusations against Pius XII are unfounded.

ICKX: He was not at all silent. And all his (INAUDIBLE) in the --- in the in the center of Europe -- Central Europe and also in the north of Europe were actively doing nothing else than trying to save people. People, also Jews, people. Because that was one of their charges.

GALLAGHER: From March 2nd, so scholars will be allowed into the Vatican to study the files. When Pope Francis decided to open these archives, he said the church is not afraid of history, and that he hopes that these files will help shed light on what he calls the hidden but active diplomacy of Pope Pius XII during the war. A group of Jewish scholars will also be among those studying the papers.

ROSENSAFT: We can't rewrite history, but history has to be written based on full evidence, and that is what we are looking for.

GALLAGHER: Evidence that is now available at the Vatican waiting for history to be written. Delia Gallagher, CNN, Rome.

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CHURCH: And thanks so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. I'll be right back with another hour of news from all around the world. Do stay with us.

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