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Officials: U.S. Soldier "Willfully" Crossed Into N. Korea; Video Appears To Show Wagner Leader Prigozhin Greeting His Fighters In Belarus; UK's MI-6 Chief: Putin Forced To Cut Deal With Wagner Leader "To Save His Skin"; Delta Passengers Stuck On Plane In 111-Degree Vegas Heat. Aired 1:30-2p ET

Aired July 19, 2023 - 13:30   ET

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

[13:30:00]

BORIS SANCHEZ, CNN HOST: This was moments before Army Private Travis King ran across the demarcation line. It was taken by a tourist who witnessed King taking off.

King's mother told ABC News that she's shocked her son crossed into the hermit Kingdom, which has no diplomatic relations with the United States.

Officials say that Army Private Travis King was supposed to return to the U.S. on Monday for disciplinary action over an alleged assault in South Korea.

But instead of taking the flight back, he somehow ended up on a civilian tour of what's known as the Joint Security Area where he then ran across the demarcation line.

U.S. military officials say that King did so, quote, "willfully and without authorization."

CNN's Natasha Bertrand is a Pentagon tracking this for us.

Natasha, the big question here is motivation. Have we learned more about why Travis King did this?

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, Boris, we are getting a few new details here and there from members of his family.

Notably, his uncle did speak to "The Daily Beast" and suggested that the recent death of Travis King's young cousin may have contributed to his unstable mental state, at which the uncle speculated may have contributed to his deciding to run across the border there and into North Korea.

We're learning more about his back story. He was facing disciplinary action in South Korea as a result of assault charges from allegedly assaulting members of the public in South Korea.

And he actually spent 50 days in a South Korean detention facility before being released on July 10th. Now July 10th, that was just a little over a week before we saw this

all play out where he crossed that military demarcation line into North Korea.

And actually, just the day before he ran across that border, he was supposed to board a flight home back to Fort Bliss in Texas because he was due to be administratively separated from the U.S. Army.

He was going to be removed from the military all together because of those assault charges that he had faced in South Korea.

Well, now we know that when he was going to board his flight at the airport on July 17th, he actually never made the plane. He never boarded it. Instead he ended up booking a tour, this private tour at the DMZ.

And that, of course, is the photo that we now have showing him in civilian clothes on that tour.

Now, U.S. officials have been trying to reach out to their North Korean counterparts about this, but they have had no luck. U.S. military officials say that they have not received any response by the North Koreans.

Which is not surprising because, as you mentioned, Boris, the U.S. has not had diplomatic relations with the North Koreans or even spoken to them really since the Biden administration came into office.

So this is going to be very challenging for the administration to resolve.

Travis King's mother also spoke to ABC and said this is very surprising to her that he would do something like this. But, of course, she really wants him to come home -- Boris?

SANCHEZ: A confounding decision to run into North Korea. Still a lot of questions to answer.

Natasha Bertrand, thank you so much.

Brianna, this is an area that you've visited before and it's really an odd place, right?

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN HOST: Yes, this is one of the strangest places I've ever been in any life, to be honest.

To get a better picture of the DMZ and the situation that the soldier is now in, we're going to take a closer look with, Josh Rogin, a columnist with "The Washington Post," who covers North Korea and China extensively. He's been to the Joint Security Area twice.

So, Josh, let's talk about this area. I'm curious about your impressions of it, this demilitarized zone. It separates North and South Korea, established in 1953 as part of the Korean War Armistice agreement. It's roughly 150 miles long, a mile wide. This is the little bubble

where there is sort of a porosity and, normally, you have this fence stretching the area and there's barbed wire along that part.

I think what sort of stood out to me, once you get out to this area where you can tour, is, are you kidding me, this little curve is the border between North and South Korea, the only thing stopping you from going over to the other side.

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: That's right. This is the most heavily militarized border in the world.

And that spot where we just saw that image of Travis King before he fled into North Korea is the one place where tourists can go, officials tend to go, where the North Koreans and the South Koreans have met in those buildings.

They actually put the buildings to straddle the lines so the buildings themselves during negotiations are in neither country exclusively.

On each side, North and South Korea have their own museums, these big gaudy sorts of buildings that are meant to show the other side that they're really cool and the other side is not as cool.

And over the years, there have been defectors from both sides. There have been American defectors who walked over that border into North Korea. There have been defectors who came the other way.

[13:35:04]

There have been attacks. There was a famous incident where some North Korean soldiers hacked two U.S. troops with axes in that little zone.

So this could not be a more politically, diplomatically, militarily charged patch of ground. And the fact that tourists can go there, as I went there as a college student, or that officials can go there, as you and I have gone there in our reporting capacities, is just amazing.

But it is that vulnerability and that little pocket inside the DMZ where North Koreans and South Koreans can interact with each other. That is the opportunity that Travis King took in order to run across the border and deliver himself into the hands of the North Korean government and change his life forever, probably, for the much worse.

KEILAR: It seems like every president and secretary of state makes this trip, right? Trump's trip was a little bit different, of course, as we see him here crossing that sort of curve-like border with Kim Jong-un from the North Korean side coming towards the South Korean side.

You can't remember this moment when Hillary Clinton was there inside one of those kind of peculiar blue conference rooms. And you can see over here a North Korean soldier who is looking in from the North Korean side as she's in.

But just talk a little bit about the political leaders who have been in here.

ROGIN: Right. I mean, in one sense, visiting North Korean -- South Korean border has been a show of resolve by officials who wanted to emphasize the tough message against North Korea. In other examples, it's been a show of peace and diplomacy and outreach.

There's the Trump example, which was just crazy because he became the first sitting American president to cross that border and, you know, had his various meetings with Kim Jong-un.

That was the most interaction that the two governments ever had. Didn't work for a lot of reasons, but that was probably the time that it was the most significant.

And he showed up on a whim. He wasn't supposed to be there. He tweeted to Kim Jong-un, "I'm on the way," and he showed up with his daughter and son-in-law and sent John Bolton to Mongolia so he wouldn't be there.

So you know, a lot of -- it's a piece of history. But right now, it's just a place of tragedy.

And I think we need to understand that this is not really about diplomacy. This is about apparently a troubled young man who, you know, threw his freedom away and did something very foolish for reasons we can't really pretend to understand.

That he's now turned that border into a much more dangerous and heightened place of tension because, you know, if you can just run over it, who knows who is going to run over it next.

KEILAR: Yes, that's a very good question as he joins a number of other people who have been detained in North Korea. Many of them freed, as it were, in 2008 during the Trump administration, three Americans who were freed.

Of course, Otto Warmbier, when you talk about tragedy, that's one that stands out. He came home and died days later.

We think of Jeffrey Foul as well in 2014, leaving a Bible in a hotel room and being detained for six months.

This is serious business, Josh. We don't know how it's going to end.

But thank you so much for taking us --

ROGIN: Thank you.

KEILAR: -- through what is obviously a very particular place with particular dangers to this young soldier.

Boris?

SANCHEZ: Ahead, Britain's top spy says that Vladimir Putin cut a deal with the man who tried to overthrow his government in order to save his skin. Ahead, new video appearing to show the whereabouts of Wagner mercenary leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin.

[13:38:47]

Also, another distressing sign of climate change. Devastating flooding in north India reaching the outer walls of the iconic Taj Mahal, one of the wonders of the world. More of the video and the effects when we come back.

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[13:43:30]

SANCHEZ: New today, Yevgeny Prigozhin, the man who waged an armed rebellion against Vladimir Putin, has been spotted in public for the first time since that uprising.

This has the grainy video posted on Wagner's social media channels that appears to show the mercenary leader greeting his troops in Belarus. The video appears unedited, but it was filmed in very low light, as you can see.

CNN can't definitively confirm that the speaker in the video is, in fact, Prigozhin or even when the video was recorded.

CNN chief international security correspondent, Nick Paton Walsh, has been following this development.

Nick, what more can you tell us first about the video and about Yevgeny Prigozhin's whereabouts?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is extraordinary, this video. It doesn't really give us particularly compelling evidence that Prigozhin is in the dark, grainy footage that appears to be possibly from the camp in Belarus, as they claim when they posted this video, is where Wagner fighters may have relocated to.

Essentially, this comes forward and says that Yevgeny Prigozhin, who has been long absent, is essentially keeping with the deal provided by Belarus' President Aleksandr Lukashenko, when he turned his army column around on the way to Moscow during that failed armed rebellion.

And interestingly, too, it emerged a matter of maybe three hours after, here in Prague, the head of Britain's foreign intelligence agency, MI-6, said that, in their assessment, Yevgeny Prigozhin, when asked, is he alive, is he healthy, and he said that Prigozhin was, quote, "floating about."

[13:45:08]

And then, suddenly, this video emerges. So clearly, a lot of a bit here to show that Prigozhin is going along with that deal -- Boris.

SANCHEZ: Nick, you were able to ask the head of MI-6 about the deal that Prigozhin struck with Vladimir Putin. What did he share with you? PATON WALSH: Yes, it was an interesting assessment really. Often when

we hear the Kremlin speak publicly, most seasoned observers imagine there's a different story behind closed doors.

But Sir Richard Moore, the head of MI-6, in a rare public speech, said, look, from what we've assessed with the Western intelligence assets that we have available to us, actually that public narrative of Prigozhin marching on Moscow, Lukashenko from Belarus intervening and Putin suddenly forgiving, Putin, in very short order the days ahead, that's actually what really happened.

There isn't a hidden private story that is more complex. That was interesting. He said that essentially Putin cut that deal with Prigozhin to, quote, "save his own skin."

But he used some kind of color metaphors to describe quite how Putin had flip-flopped over Prigozhin. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIR RICHARD MOORE, BRITIAN MI-6 CHIEF: He really didn't fight back against Prigozhin. He cut a deal to save his skin using the good offices of the leader of Belarus.

So, look, I can't see inside Putin's own head. But the only person who has been -- well, the only people who have been talking about escalation and nuclear weapons are Putin and a handful of henchmen around him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PATRON WALSH: Now, he says this while at breakfast. Essentially, he called Prigozhin a traitor. By supper, he had been pardoned. But a few days later, he had been invited into the Kremlin for tea.

An extraordinary flip flog we've seen from Putin, a sign of weakness and something that repeatedly was compounded by this head of MI-6 and a rare public assessment of what really intelligence knew about that extraordinary weekend in Russia -- Boris?

SANCHEZ: And it shows just how the Kremlin needs Prigozhin and needs Wagner forces in Ukraine, how little progress they've made aside from Wagner.

Nick Paton Walsh, thank you so much for the reporting.

Brianna?

KEILAR: Now to some of the other headlines that we're watching this hour.

A remarkable image out of Beijing where former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger just met with China's top diplomat and defense minister. Now 100 years old, Kissinger's trip coming at a low point in U.S./China relations. Though U.S. officials insist he's visiting as a private citizen and

not in any official capacity. According to Beijing's statement on the meetings, Kissinger has said, "History has proven that neither country can afford to treat the other as an adversary."

He, of course, played a key role in normalizing U.S./China relations in the Nixon and Ford administrations.

In the U.S., some more catastrophic flooding, this time in western Kentucky where five to 10 inches of rain fell overnight. These are images from Mayfield where first responders there have made several rescues.

Another resident showing water flowing straight through the inside of their home in this video here. More rain and thunderstorms, by the way, are expected there today.

Extreme storms also wreaking havoc in northern India with floodwaters reaching all the way to the Taj Mahal's outer walls. Local media say that not since 1978 has the Taj Mahal come this close to being flooded.

Really just amazing pictures to see there, Boris.

[13:48:46]

SANCHEZ: So it's not fun to be stuck on an airplane on the tarmac, period. But you add in triple-digit temperatures and it got down-right dangerous on a Delta flight in Las Vegas. One passenger describing this whole ordeal as traumatizing. We have details straight ahead.

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[13:53:44]

KEILAR: New details are emerging about passengers who were stuck on a Delta Airlines flight in 111-degree weather with no air conditioning as they waited to take off from the Las Vegas airport.

CNN affiliate, KBVU, says these passengers sat on the tarmac for more than four hours, many of them getting sick from the heat, including flight attendants.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I extremely apologize. I've been on here as long as you've been on here. I don't feel my best at this point, either. Everybody on the crew is on the same page as everybody else here.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: First responders had to be called, that's how bad it was. At least one passenger was taken out on a stretcher.

CNN aviation correspondent, Pete Muntean, is looking into this.

You hear the desperation in the flight attendant's voice.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

KEILAR: There's the tipoff that something needed to happen, for sure.

MUNTEAN: You know, and flight attendants do this all the time. And this is something they are pushing federal regulators to regulate even more.

What is so interesting here, at least right now, is that Delta Airlines is not really disputing this. They say they are apologizing directly to customers, they're compensating them, and they're investigating exactly how hot it got on board this flight.

[13:54:54]

It's also interesting that the officials at the airport at least confirm to us that one person was treated by emergency workers for what they call heat-related discomfort. That's a fun euphemism, although the passengers on board, I'm sure would tell you that this was way more than just uncomfortable.

I want you to listen to Krista Garvin. She was on board this flight. She saw as the emergency workers came in. She said she was on board for five hours, as passengers --

KEILAR: Five?

MUNTEAN: Five -- as passengers began fainting. Some of them soiled themselves, she said. It was really desperate on board.

And she says that they were offered the opportunity to get off the plane, but the rub was that they weren't sure if they got off the plane if they would get on another flight.

And, in fact, one of the pilots spoke over the P.A. and they said, if they get off, there's no guarantee they will get to where they were going, which was Atlanta.

Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KRISTA GARVIN, AIRLINE PASSENGER: It was just like chaos at this point. There was a woman walking up the aisle and she looked like she was about to pass out. They ended up putting an oxygen mask on her.

It was traumatizing. At this point, there were people running around everywhere. They went over the loudspeaker and said, you can choose to get off the plane, or you can stay on. And if you get off, just know that you may not get a flight out for a couple of days.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MUNTEAN: There is no regulation on how cool airlines have to keep the air on board a flight, although there are some squishy rules around this. During a tarmac delay like this, they have to provide working toilets, comfortable cabin temperatures -- that's the keyword -- and adequate medical attention if required.

This is something that the airlines occasionally get fined for, especially if passengers are stuck on board for a long time. In fact, Delta got find about two quarters of a million dollars back in 2019 for a similar incident.

KEILAR: This kind of heat kills people. That's what we are learning as they follow this heat.

MUNTEAN: Yes.

KEILAR: They need to pay close attention to this.

Pete Muntean, thank you so much.

MUNTEAN: You got it.

KEILAR: We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)