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Iran Must Comply or Face More Sanctions; Mt. Kilauea Eruption Spreads More; Trump Requests DOJ to Investigate Spies; France Braces For Possible Biggest Strikes In 10 Years; E.U. Trade Ministers Meet On Iran U.S. Sanctions; Russian Billionaire Caught Up In U.K.-Russia Row; U.S. Slaps New Sanctions On Venezuela's Maduro; Pope Reportedly Tells Gay Man God Made Him Gay; Royal Wedding Bishop's Message For The World. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired May 22, 2018 - 03:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[03:00:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROSEMARY CHURCH, HOST, CNN: Hello and welcome to CNN Newsroom. I'm Rosemary Church. Right now, U.S. President Donald Trump is juggling two of his most significant foreign-policy issues today. First is the summit with North Korea's Kim Jong-un which one point look promising but now looks increasingly unlikely.
Mr. Trump has a big meeting in the hours ahead to try to keep those talks on track then there's the Iran nuclear deal once hailed as a milestone for the company's relationship now a thing of the past.
And President Trump's top diplomat is threatening even more pressure on Iran. But let's start with North Korea. And sources tell CNN Mr. Trump's aides are worried the summit won't happen after North Korea's recent harsh rhetoric and concerns that China may have too much influence over the talks.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet with Mr. Trump at the White House Tuesday, hoping to convince the U.S. president to stay the course.
And CNN's Will Ripley is in North Korea with reaction, he joins us now live. So Will, the big question of course right now is how likely is it that this summit between President Trump and Kim Jong-un will go ahead as planned.
WILL RIPLEY, INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: I think, Rosemary, the North Koreans want the summit to happen. However, they don't want to see actions by the United States and South Korea that they feel are detrimental to the peace process. The joint military exercises being one of them. South Korea's interactions with a high-ranking defector another -- another something that is really infuriated the North Koreans and yet, they would also point out that actions speak louder than words.
And at least on their side they say they're not connecting military exercises here in North Korea, and in perhaps a matter of hours or at least within the next couple of days they are going to be taking CNN along with a small group of a journalist from a handful of countries on a on a journey to their nuclear test site at Punggye-ri to watch the demolition of that site.
We're going to be traveling by train for 11 hours it's a 4-hour drive after that and a one- hour hike to get to this remote mountainous area which is been the scene of North Korea's six nuclear test. The most recent last year that trigger to 6.3 magnitude earthquake they say they are going to take us to this site and watch the site be demolished and they want the world to see, which is why they've invited the press, Rosemary.
So at least from the North Korea's actions they are still proceeding in a way that they want to see the summit happened but they also believe that the ball is in the court of the United States. And it really what the United States says and does in the coming weeks are crucial here.
CHURCH: Yes, we've seen a lot of posturing and we shall see what happens. Our Will Ripley watching these developments from North Korea there in Wonsan. Thank you so much for that. I appreciate it.
Well, two years ago, a dozen North Korean waitresses and their managers arrived in South Korea. It was an embarrassment for Pyongyang and a propaganda boost for Seoul but were they kidnapped or did they defect of their own free will. Well, the manager spoke with CNN's Paula Hancocks to set the record straight.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Mass defection or mass abduction, 12 North Korean waitresses from a North Korean state run restaurant in China and their manager arrived in South Korea April 2016. The North claimed they had been tricked. The South said they had escaped freely.
Now the restaurant manager is speaking out and says Pyongyang is right. Ho Kang-yo (Ph) wants his face hidden for fear of retribution, a former member of the elite, he tells me he was an informant for South Korea's spy agency the NIS while running this North Korean restaurant in China. He became disillusioned with the Kim Jong-un regime.
He says he was blackmailed by one of his customers who knew he was working with the intelligence agency and decided to defect to South Korea with NIS help.
"The NIS told me to bring everyone with me," he says, "I told them it was impossible. Their attitude suddenly change telling me if I didn't bring the workers with me they will report me to the North Korean embassy and have me killed. They called back and sais this is President park Geun-hye's order she has a big plan."
Ho (Ph) claims the defection was arranged to give conservatives a boost just days before a parliamentary election. In a highly unusual move the South Korean unification ministry publicize the mass defection releasing a photo of the North Koreans saying 13 defectors voluntarily decided to leave and pushed ahead with the escape without any help from the outside. The ministry now part of a new liberal government says they are looking into the fresh allegations but does no change in the government's stance that the women's defected of their own free will.
Three of the waitresses families were brought to a CNN team in Pyongyang in May 2016 for interviews. They all said the women were kidnapped.
[03:04:58] The emotional organized by the North Korean government. Officials also brought other waitresses they say were working at the same restaurant in China but left before Ho took the women to Malaysia. They too insisted their colleagues would never have abandoned their families and were tricked into going to South Korea.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HANCOCKS: What did you say to the women to convince them to go with you, where do they going?
"I told the workers we are moving accommodation to a better place," he says. "In North Korea, there is a very strict hierarchy like the military, lower rankings cannot question my orders."
CNN affiliate JTBC who first spoke to the manager also spoke to three women who say they are the waitresses and were tricked by their manager. Others did not want to talk who could not be tracked down JTBC says. We were putting to cars they say a few in each car, that's when we saw the South Korean flag and the embassy when we going into the South Korean Embassy in Malaysia I thought something is horribly wrong.
Ho says the women were given South Korean passports with false names and flown to South Korea a normally treacherous journey that takes defectors months took these North Koreans just two days.
Did the NIS pay for the flights? "The NIS paid for the plane fares," says Ho, it was about $10,000." CNN has ask the NIS about these accusations, they have yet to respond.
Why have you decided to talk about this now?
"I realize the government was manipulating people," he says, "I was trapped and felt that North Korean propaganda against the right was right but I regret it so much.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HANCOCKS: These accusations that surround the former government here in South Korea but it's the current government who will have to deal with any potential fallout. Now the issue does threaten to complicate warming relations between North and South Korea.
Just this weekend, North Korea renewed its demand that these women be sent back to Pyongyang. They didn't actually mention the manager but he has told me that he is willing to face any punishment if it means he can see his mother and his family again. Paula Hancocks, CNN, Seoul.
CHURCH: To another big story we're following. And first, President Trump yanks to the U.S. out of the Iran nuclear deal. Now his top diplomat Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is warning Iran must change its behavior in the Middle East or be crushed by sanctions and military pressure.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
This sting of sanctions will painful if the regime does not change its course from the unacceptable and unproductive path that its chosen to one that rejoins the league of nations.
MIKE POMPEO, UNITED STATES SECRETARY OF STATE: This will indeed end up being the strongest sanctions in history when we are complete. Iran will be force to make a choice, either fight to keep its economy and life support at home of keep squandering precious wealth and fights abroad, it will not have the resources to do both.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Among the U.S. demands Iran must abandon its nuclear program and stop enriching uranium, end its support for groups like Hamas and the Taliban, and withdraw its forces from Syria. Iran's President Hassan Rouhani fired back at Pompeo, basically saying, don't tell us what to do.
And Iran's foreign minister tweeted that U.S. diplomacy is a sham imprisoned by delusions and failed policies.
The European Union says it remains committed to the Iran deal, it's been trying to salvage the pact despite the U.S. exit and potential sanctions on European companies that do business with Iran.
Well, CNN senior international correspondent Sam Kiley joins us now from Abu Dhabi. Sam, good to see you. So, while the U.S. secretary of state threatened to crush Iran with sanctions Europe sent a very different message as it tries to save the Iran nuclear deal that the U.S. abandons.
So, where is this all going and where does that leave the U.S. and Europe relations?
SAM KILEY, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: It leaves, Rosemary, Europe -- U.S.-Europe relations in a probably I would say the worst state that they've been suddenly certainly since swift if not ever.
I mean, it's an absolutely extraordinary development these statements coming from Secretary of State Pompeo because the sanctions that really the United States are talking about will affect European companies. There is almost no business at all between the United States and Iran but there was following the signing of the Iran nuclear nonproliferation treaty and then the JPCOA. A lot of effort made by the Europeans to try with American
encouragement under the Obama administration to try to stimulate trade with Iran so that there was bounce, a positive economic bounce associated with giving up their nuclear weapons programs for the Iranian government but also by the Iranian people.
So this is really sanctions by proxy and there's a consequence of that and the time and I think struck by Mr. Pompeo saying they know where we stand with relation to sanctions on the, from the Europeans on Iran.
[03:09:59] This is how the European foreign ministry spokeswoman -- or foreign minister effectively Federica Mogherini reacted. She said that Secretary Pompeo's speech has not demonstrated how walking away from the JCPOA has made or will make the region safer from threats of nuclear proliferation or how it puts us in a better position to influence Iran's contact -- conduct in areas outside the scope of JCPOA. There is no alternative to JCPOA.
That pretty much spells out the position that is held in every single capital in Europe and particularly in the United Kingdom, in France, Germany too, because their view is that this was an opportunity to bring the Iranians in from the call that in part of the international order, and also perhaps in the longer-term through economic growth encouraged the very young population of Iran that is in any case demanding change to encourage them to push the moderates within their own system in that direction, Rosemary.
Now the view is that the hardliners will harden their line and we're anticipating perhaps this week that the Iranians may say that notwithstanding the efforts of the European they are going to give up on this nuclear deal too, because there is no prospect of any kind of reward, now a prospect of economic, Rosemary.
CHURCH: And Sam, some analysts suggest this new U.S. policy is more about regime change. What is being said about that across the region?
KILEY: Well, it's being seen entirely as straight out of the neoconservative playbook circa 2002 before the Iraqi invasion. This is a policy that talks, for example, about encouraging minorities within the country of Iran, the baluq (Ph), the Arabic speaking communities, the Kurds to try to have the centrifugal forces that could pull the government to pieces.
Now we've seen the consequences of that sort of policy of what the neocons would call muscular foreign policy and the continued chaos in Iraq and now Syria which has been contaminated by the collapse effectively or the evisceration of the central government in Iraq.
There is a suspicion, a strong suspicion that all of this is about regime change that's certainly the position, for example, even of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister wholly endorsed this policy because that is a policy of his government, although interestingly, very interestingly inside Israel not the policy of the advice that would come, for example, from the Mossad, the international spy organization that believes that actually this is a very good deal and that it is the deal with Iran would lead to longer- term stability.
That is not an argument that carries anyway in Israel any longer, and clearly not the White House either, Rosemary.
CHURCH: And many thanks to our Sam Kiley joining us there live from Abu Dhabi, where it is nearly 11.15 in the morning.
Well, the U.S. president has long called the Russia investigation a witch hunt. Now he is moving past fiery rhetoric and ordering an investigation into whether the FBI spied on his presidential campaign for political purposes. He met with intelligence and law enforcement leaders on Monday. The deputy attorney general agreed to have the inspector general expand his surveillance probe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think it would be very troubling to millions of Americans if that took place but we're very confident that is the inspector general has been doing their work looking at the conduct of the FBI during that period, that by adding their focus of this that we'll get to the bottom of this because the American people have the right to know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Now the top Democrats on the House intelligence committee says the president's suggestion of campaign spying is merely another effort to discredit the Russia probe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADAM SCHIFF, (D) UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE: They know that's nonsense. And I hate to see them say anything to give it credence.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell us why it's nonsense.
SCHIFF: Well, because it simply didn't happen and when you hear reports as was just related that there is concern within the White House about this, there's not concerned within the White House about this. There is a sense of opportunity, let's exploit anything any doubt we can create this is a defense strategy put the government on trial.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And all this comes as the Russia probe enters its second year. While one of the president's attorney is giving a timeline for when the investigation could end. New reports say two more foreign governments wanted to help Mr. Trump win.
Jim Sciutto has the details.
JIM SCIUTTO, CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT, CNN: The president's lawyers have predicted the end of the special counsel's investigation before and been repeatedly wrong. [03:15:00] Now Mr. Trump's newest attorney Rudy Giuliani said that Robert Mueller told him the obstruction of justice piece of the probe could be done by September before the midterm elections, although even Giuliani hedge saying it sounded more like the investigation could wrap up if the president agree to an interview with Mueller.
Giuliani says he is strongly advising against an interview, arguing that the special counsel is simply hoping to catch the president in the so-called perjury trap.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RUDY GIULIANI, FORMER NEW YORK CITY MAYOR: A perjury trap is when you get somebody to lie about what you're telling the truth, which is the president will testify tomorrow if it was truth. The truth is he had nothing to do with Russia. I was on that campaign. He didn't talk to Russians, he had nothing to do with Russia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: And now coming to light the president's son Donald Trump, Jr. met with representatives of two other foreign governments during the campaign. Governments offering to help his father's election.
The New York Times is reporting that Eric Prince set up a meeting at Trump Tower between Trunk Junior and George Nader, an emissary for two gulf princes, as well as an Israeli social media expert Joel Zamel, all this just three months before election day.
According to the New York Times Nader told Trump Junior quote, "that the princes who led Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates were eager to help his father win election as president."
In a statement to CNN an attorney for Trump Junior denied any wrongdoing, saying quote, "Prior to the 2016 election Donald Trump, Jr. recalls a meeting with Eric Prince, George Nader, and another individual who may be Joel Zamel. They pitch Mr. Trump Junior on social media platform or marketing strategy. He was not interested and that was the end of it."
The president himself dismissed the meeting over the weekend, tweeting quote, "The witch hunt finds no collusion with Russia so now they are looking at the rest of the world. Great."
The ranking Democrats on the House and Senate intelligence committees however, recalled news of the meeting disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK WARNER, (D) UNITED STATES SENATOR: If the Times story is true we now have at least a second and maybe a third nation that was trying to lean in to this campaign, and I don't understand what the president doesn't get about the law that says if you have a foreign nation interfere in an American election that's illegal. SCHIFF: You also have to be concern is why are so many foreign powers are dependent during the campaign, and perhaps thereafter that the Trump family is willing to play ball.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Of course, during the campaign the president's spokespeople the president himself denied any contacts with any foreign entities whatsoever during the campaign. That denials been belied by events since then. Of course, the question now is whether the special counsel Robert Mueller finds any criminal wrongdoing in those meetings and those contracts. That is still the question we don't have the answer to.
Jim Sciutto, CNN, Washington.
CHURCH: And next to you on CNN Newsroom, looking at live pictures the Kilauea volcano is throwing out molten lava at this very moment just as it has been practically every day for more than two weeks. But that's not the only danger its posing to Hawaii's Big Island. We will bring you an update.
Plus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sometimes I can't believe it was me, you know, that went through as clear as the (Inaudible) and forgotten about into history, you know, and to never happen to (Inaudible) because whatever choice she made (Inaudible).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: A grieving mother explains why islands upcoming referendum on abortion laws is so important to her and to women all over the country.
[03:20:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Extraordinary images here. This is the Kilauea volcano in action, live pictures from the Pahoa, Hawaii. You are looking at one of nearly two dozen fissures that have been spewing lava along the eastern coast of Hawaii's Big Island every single day for more than two weeks now.
Not only that, there is also a lot of release toxic gas some 2,000 people have been force to evacuate their homes.
And CNN's Stephanie Elam is in Hawaii with the very latest.
STEPHANIE ELAM, CORRESPONDENT, CNN: The lava continues to fountain here on this side of the Big Island. Take a look behind me and you can see just how high and how striking this fountain is as it is shooting lava up into the sky and sending it down into this sort of river of black lava that is already coursed out of the earth and is run down the side here into the Pacific Ocean. It's still running into the Pacific Ocean and it's still sending up a
large plume into the sky that steam and hydrochloric acid as well as those glass particles that occur when you see a lava hitting the saltwater of the ocean. That al still happening brush fires have occurred and there's a constant explosion that you may hear behind me.
And that is another fissure off in the distance that is releasing those volcanic gases with such force that they sound almost sonic and boom sometimes. Sometimes like a cannon sometimes like a jet and you can see in places here at the right lighting, you can see that is forcing rocks up into the sky a couple hundred feet at a time.
All of this still continuing here as this eruption that has been going on now for over two weeks as it continues here.
Back to you.
CHURCH: Thank to that. Let's turn to our meteorologist Pedram Javaheri joins us now with more on the conditions in Hawaii. And Pedram, those images of fountains of lava essentially just seems to show the situation getting worse and we had no idea when this is going to come to an end.
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, METEOROLOGIST, CNN: Yes. You know, that's the most ominous thought of this, right, when you think about how this could be ongoing potentially for the remainder of the summer season. As I've said when you look at earthquakes you look at tropical systems. Tropical systems you get a heads up and they move that conditions improve at least weather-wise.
Earthquakes, yes, it's a surprised but you can look at the pattern of aftershocks after a particular earthquake and see that also taper off. This particular event is really unique one because certainly doesn't look that that's going to be the case.
In fact, the photos here showing you geologist taking it very seriously stepping in there, of course and trying to make any best estimates of how things will play out over the next several weeks and several months.
And of course, images such as this one here really show you what things have been happening on the ground there as far as getting a lava flow that's really consuming a tremendous amount of land as it works its way towards the Pacific Ocean.
But I want to give you this. Because, you know, we've looked at 3D perspective in the past but this really brings it a whole level of perspective to everything. You bring down the three levels of concern we've had here. Of course the ash cloud has been the primary, right. Initially we had aircraft that were threatened to be impacted by this.
The ash fog goes up some tens of thousands of feet into the atmosphere and you have ash fall that occurred downstream, that in itself is very -- a very damaging, I should say to your eyes, to the respiratory areas as well, so this certainly is a dangerous situation. But then you walk away towards getting a laze introduced into the action and that's of course lava working its way towards the seawater, interaction with that creates lava and haze and that in itself is a toxic material there and could be very dangerous.
And also the glass particles associated with this are very dangerous as well. And then sulfur dioxide is another level of concern you look at. We have this for the last several days and several weeks as well.
[03:24:59] This for the S02 levels, Rosemary, have tripled in the last several weeks as well. And of course, acid rain remains in place.
So when you think about different weather phenomenon or natural disasters they all of course had a very, very dangerous aspect to them really nothing compares to an active volcano situation like this just because there are so many different variables.
And of course, this graphic doesn't mention earthquakes we had thousands in the last several weeks across this region as well.
CHURCH: Just too much for people there to be concerned about. Thank you so much for keeping an eye on that, Pedram.
JAVAHERI: Thank you, Rosemary.
CHURCH: All right. To another story we are watching very closely. Voters in island are just days away from casting a controversial ballot to repeal abortion laws or not.
On Friday, they will choose whether to keep or change the eighth amendment of the Irish Constitution. That is the law that gives a woman and her unborn child an equal right to life effectively banning abortion.
Now if the majority votes yes than the Irish government says it will introduce legislation to allow abortion in all circumstances up to 12 weeks.
Now abortion remains a deeply divisive and emotional issue in Ireland, a predominantly Catholic nation.
CNN's Atika Shubert shares one woman's story.
ATIKA SHUBERT, CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN: Few voices have been able to cut through Ireland's abortion debate like that Tracey Smith. Tracey's daughter, Grace was diagnosed with a fatal condition at just 22 weeks in the womb. But Tracy was not able to terminate her pregnancy early because of the eighth amendment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRACEY SMITH, IRISH MOTHER: My uncle has said, look, it's a gray issue my hands are tied. There's nothing I can do. I can pass you enough to wherever you decide to go, but that's it. That's all I can do legally. (END VIDEO CLIP)
SHUBERT: Her choice, deliver Grace still born at full term or travel abroad to induce labor early. She decided to go to the U.K.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: I spent I think five hours in active labor and she arrives I think 5 o'clock in the morning. I met my second daughter that I can't be anyone happier of course. I haven't given birth to baby his silence is there nowhere I imagine it first.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SHUBERT: But Tracey couldn't afford to return to Britain for Grace's funeral so she opted for cremation, but the ashes sent home to Ireland.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: (Inaudible) and Grace arrived via courier who is carrying Grace, he was carrying my neighbor's online (Inaudible).
SHUBERT: So heartbreaking that she had to process.
SMITH: The whole crew sometimes I can't believe it was me, you know that went through this. If there is the (Inaudible) and that carries and practices gone and forgotten into history, you know, and to never happen again to another because whatever choice you made no (Inaudible).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SHUBERT: That is why she says she wants Ireland to vote yes and repealing the Eighth Amendment allowing the government to legislate for abortion in all cases including her own.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: And hopefully they'll understand that it's not a black and white issue. It's about healthcare at the crux of this and there's so much that doctors can't do because of the Eight Amendments and obviously our stories is a big partisan. I hope they just keep me in mind, Grace in mind all these families in mind when they will come to the ballot box.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SHUBERT: Ireland's vote is more about a change in law. For Tracey it's about finally laying Grace's story to rest.
Atika Shubert, CNN, County Mayo, Ireland.
CHURCH: We'll take a very short break here, but still to come with doubts emerging, U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly close to pulling the plug on the historic summit with Kim Jong-un. But South Korea's president will be meeting shortly with Mr. Trump and looking to keep the summit on track.
And he maybe a billionaire but Roman Abramovich may not be able to buy a break. Why the best known Russian in Britain may not be welcome there anymore.
[03:30:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: A very warm welcome back to CNN Newsroom, I'm Rosemary Church. I want to update you now on the main stories we had been following this hour. Sources tells CNN Donald Trump's aide are worried his summit with North Korea leader Kim Jong-un might not happen. They side North Korea recent harsh rhetoric and concerns the China may have too much influence over the talks.
South Korea's president will meet with President Trump in the coming hours to try and get the summit back on track.
France is bracing for massive street protest and major disruptions in a matter of hours. More could be the country's biggest strikes in 10 years. Airline flights and train services are expected to be affected, public sector workers are unhappy with President Emmanuel Macron's proposed economic overhaul which would cut half its spending and jobs.
European Union trade ministers are meeting in Brussels this hour toping the agenda how to protect European companies to do business with Iran from U.S. sanctions. On Monday U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, promise the strongest sanction ever on Iran if the country does not abandon its nuclear program, withdraw from Syria and meet other U.S. demands.
While the E.U. remains committed to the Iran deal some major European firms are suspending project anyone unless they get waivers from the U.S. More now from CNN's John Defterios in Abu Dhabi.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: The Trump administration is using what may be best described as something different the stick and carrot method. Fighting existing sanctions and introducing new one send dangling an entirely new agreement in the future. U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, talked of imposing the strongest sanctions in history against Iran and its military ensuring there is no path to a nuclear weapon.
Pompeo said, U.S. wants to see Iran agree to what he called 12 basic requirements which in fact are wide ranging this post washes at odds with the other five signatories of the nuclear deal including European allies Germany, France and Britain. This weekend Iran's Foreign Minister, Javad Zarif met with European Union's energy Commissioner and said that a political commitment from Europe is not enough and the agreement needs to be supported by European industry. Both total of France and Germany have said it cannot proceed with new agreements unless given exemptions from Washington.
Tehran is also pushing to see its crude sold to Europe, but price in Euros. For his part, Pompeo spoke to the Iranian people saying, they deserve better with skyrocketing unemployment, the plummeting currency and oil and gas resources not benefiting the average people putting the U.S. and Europe are two very different paths. John Defterios, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEO)
CHURCH: Now the plan summit between the U.S. and North Korea may or may not happen next month, but despite the uncertainty the White House Communications Agency has already maintained a commemorative coin for the event. It shows Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un facing each other in profile under the words, peace talks. Well, South Korean President, Moon Jae-in will try to keep those peace talks on track when he meets with Donald Trump in Washington in the coming hours, but some of those closest to the U.S. president are growing more and more skeptical as Brian Todd, reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thank you. President Trump seems increasingly jittery over possible summit with Kim Jong-un.
[03:35:03] The president tweeting, China must continue to be strong and tight on the border of North Korea until a deal was made. Analyst say that is a reference to recent reports that China maybe letting up on sanctions against Kim's regime and allowing more North Korean goods to be smuggled into China.
DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Why was that significant? Of course President Trump knows that if Kim Jong-un believes the Chinese are going to bail them out economically, Kim is under much less pressure to strike a deal quickly.
TODD: Another sign of pre-summit jitters, the New York Times reports President Trump has become more and more concerned in recent days that a meeting in Singapore with Kim quote could turn into a political embarrassment. The Times reports the president has been pressing his aids on whether he should even go ahead with the summit and was thrown off by a statement that the Kim regime made last week.
He were quite surprise and we were told quite angry to read the statement from North Korea saying we will never just trade away all of our nuclear capability for some security guarantee and the promise they build some trade with the West.
TODD: If the president goes to Singapore, he'll be meeting a young dictator well briefed on him. New information from a former British diplomat who has recently traveled to Pyongyang, but the North Koreans were studying Trump. Analyst say similar to the way the CIA has researched Kim Jong-un.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: When I was there in December they were reading of also the deal. I wanted to discuss the book or what is showed about the president, but I went back to the beginning of this year there were reading Fire and Fury all on PDF's of by the book itself and tried to discuss what that told him about Trump. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think the banned is going to give Kim Jong-un
insights into Trump's approach, how he negotiates what his tactics are, so I think this going to make for almost all Grand Master chess style negotiations, but also a lot of (inaudible) probably going to resolve.
TODD: A chess match with enormous stake, experts say between two survivors neither of whom feels he can afford to lose face.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Donald Trump is financially wealthy successful person who survive in the shark pit of New York financial real estate dealing. Kim Jong-un has survived the acid test of North Korean politics where you win where you die literally.
TODD: Kim Jong-un is also likely had been brief on the summit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. Kim has made two surprise visits to China in recent weeks and President Trump has said, he thinks that Kim's change in tone over the summit is more negative tone might had been influence by Xi. The Chinese has responded that their position on all of this hasn't changed, and their pleased with the momentum for dialogue between Trump and Kim. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEO)
CHURCH: British lawmaker say Russia's days of laundering money in the U.K. are over. They are out with a report saying Russian dirty money filtered through British banks weakens U.K. security. The report also alleges London banks have benefited from the money-laundering since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. Kremlin spokesman, Dmitry Peskov dismisses the report as an attempt to sow anti-Russian sentiments, but British Prime Minister Theresa May is stepping up the fight against corrupt assets in London, take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
THERESA MAY, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: We have taken significant steps to enhance our ability to government -- we have to deal with those. Set up a National Crime Agency, we set up new National Economic Crime Center within the National Crime Agency under the security in the prime minister through the criminal finances act. We have taken greater powers for the U.K. to be able to act against criminal finances and we will ensure that we do so. Obviously, we are talking about criminal finances which will be about law-enforcement taking their actions and they must do so on an operation on an independent basis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And caught up in the round between the two countries is Roman Abramovich, he is the best know Russian oligarch in Britain and the owner of the Chelsea Football Club. That he miss Chelsea if they cup win on Saturday. Matthew Chance explains why.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, officially the Abramovich team are making no comment, they are saying it's a postal master, but I've spoken to a source close to the billionaire they says that in fact Roman Abramovich, his visa expired more than three weeks ago and they tried to renew it as usual, but it just take a lot longer than usual to come through them and told why that would be and their expectation is that Mr. Abramovich will still get a U.K. visa, but they would know for sure they say until that stamp is in his passport and so there is still big questions hanging over his continued presence in Britain.
[03:40:00] Because it comes in a time as questions is ratcheting out on the position to take stronger actions against Russian oligarch that had made United Kingdom their home in the Parliamentary foreign affairs. The committee is issuing scathing report saying that the British government has turn a blind eye to the dirty Russian money that has flooded into the United Kingdom over several years and calling for stronger political leadership and further sanctions against Kremlin connected individuals. It is unclear whether Roman Abramovich is one of those individuals that is being scrutinized for that purpose and but what we do know is that since the poisoning of the Skripal's in Salisbury in March, the British government has been compiling a list of oligarchs of people close to the Kremlin, of people with connections with organized crime, who are Russian and who live in United Kingdom, but with a view to making their presence in the United Kingdom much more difficult.
And so, if Roman Abramovich perhaps the best-known Russian in the United Kingdom these nice subjects that kind of scrutiny, it would be an absolutely huge developments. In term of what the Kremlins had said, they have not commented directly Roman Abramovich's circumstances, but they said in general they have sensed a Russiaphobic (ph) attitude towards Russian business and they say that this may well be a part of that the apostle and of course they criticized it. Matthew Chance, CNN, Moscow.
(END VIDEO)
CHURCH: In the coming hours, Facebook CEO, Mark Zuckerberg will be grilled by the European Parliament and it will be streamed live. Initially Zuckerberg was going to meet with a handful of European lawmakers behind closed doors, but the decision not to make the meeting public was widely criticized by other lawmakers. Facebook is under scrutiny following the reports that data firm Cambridge Analytica got access to information from millions of Facebook users without their knowledge.
Now to a wild scene of the Texas airport, a monkey got loose at the San Antonio airport Monday and briefly had the run of the place. The rhesus macaque escaped his cage and ended up on the luggage belt specialist from the city zoo helps airport employees capture the monkey at the baggage handling area and nearby sanctuary says the primates name is Dawkins and is now in their care. They say the brief escape tide in but he is now doing very well.
Well, a private conversation between Pope Francis and a gay man has been heard around the world leaving some to wonder of the pope is signaling a shift in the church's teachings on homosexuality. Plus a Venezuela president is facing new U.S. sanctions after a contested election makes how President Trump is hoping to cut-off Nicholas Maduro's economic and political support.
And the man who could be Italy's next prime minister has no political experience. So, why was he chosen for the job, we will explain. That is next.
[03:45:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (TRANSLATOR): The result were very forceful, very clear support to strengthen our process. A democracy that we are currently experiencing in the great Venezuela our motherland needs these events for us to consolidate.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (TRANSLATOR): This is a fraud, they robbed us just like they do in all the election and we don't want the government. I am unhappy. I am tired of this line, every day I'm here at six in the morning and I arrived at work at nine or 10, we have no food, we have no transportation, there are no medicines. What we want, we want this government to leave.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Two very different reactions to the reelection of Venezuelan President Nicholas Maduro, he is now facing international backlash over the vote which many are calling a sham. A day after the contested vote, U.S. President Donald Trump had post new sanctions on Venezuela, that the country faces a devastating economic crisis. CNN's Paula Newton reports from Caracas.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Nicholas Maduro victory was widely expected and so were the U.S. sanctions that followed. President Trump signing executive orders that basically he said would keep the Maduro regime for mortgaging the future of Venezuelans and that means that U.S. entities could no longer buy any kind of Venezuelan issued debt or debt issued from the state oil company here appended as, of course the Maduro regime are reacted saying, that was illegal and in their words barbaric. Take a listen to Venezuelan's foreign minister.
JORGE ARREAZA, VENEZUELAN'S FOREIGN MINISTER (TRANSLATOR): The U.S. President, the first he does today is add new sanctions on Venezuela on public debt and Venezuelan bonds that the state won't have the capacity to liquidate assets in U.S. territory. It is to continue to force in this case through measures that are absolutely illegal in attachment with crazy barbaric in absolute contradiction to international rights.
NEWTON: And despite the reaction from the Venezuelan regime the E.U., Latin American countries can all join in the condemnation of this vote. What is interesting here though is that Russia and China continue to invest in Venezuela. China congratulated Maduro on his victory. The Trump administration has been trying to use their influence that there is a left those countries China and Russia to tell them that they are harming what they are trying to do here in Venezuela by continuing to prop up the regime, but that is the issue. Maduro still has that kind of support, also coming off the back of the three election re-election that really will have him in office from six years from January 2019, he will now consolidate power not to send Venezuela and using intimidation tactics from the intelligence services in the National Guard, but also consolidate power within his own party trying to continue to keep the all-important military on side. Paula Newton, CNN, Caracas.
(END VIDEO)
CHURCH: After two months of political deadlock in Italy, the two leading populace parties have nominated a new prime minister, a big step toward forming a government. The anti-establishment Five Star Movement and its partner the Far-Right leg party have chosen Giuseppe Conte, a law professor with no political experience. So, why was he chosen for the post? Our Richard Quest posed that question to a former Italian economic official.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is close to the Five Star Movement, but certainly no experience in politics. He is not even a M.P. OK, but having said that.
RICHARD QUEST, EDITOR AT LARGE: Why would they put him there? Other than as a puppet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, clearly they want to maintain control. I think the government would be very much against the true leaders.
QUEST: But this is a bit of a disgrace. If you put somebody in control was a namesake prime minister so that you can have a kit here, you could be the power behind the throne, pulling the strings of the puppet.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would -- I would totally, OK. In the sense that he would be better one of the true leaders, probably the Five Star Movement given that they are bigger in terms of electoral support, would have taken the leadership that, you know, it was a kind of --
[03:50:00] QUEST: Why would they take them? Why would not he let them take it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it was a veto by Salvini, the leader of the league. He doesn't really want to have a Five Star leader take the lead. You can take another view, I mean the leader of the Five Star is 31, he also has no experience in there.
QUEST: As a treasury official, when you look at their economic plans, 100 billion in spending in a form of generous pensions and the like, what do you make of it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is clearly a non-realistic program, OK. If you add up all the spending project and the cuts in taxation, you end up to something close to 100 billion, which is 6 percentage on the GDP. So, can you believe that, certainly not, OK? So, it is unfeasible, simply unfeasible.
(END VIDEO)
CHURCH: And the leader of one of the coalition parties is responding to fears their platforms may drive the Italian economy into greater turmoil. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTEO SALVINI, LEADER, LEAGUE PARTY (TRANSLATOR): No one should fear our economic policies which will be very different from those of recent years that have increased public debt by 300 billion Euros, our goal is to grow the Italian economy to reduce debt.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: For now, the nominated prime minister needs approval from Italy's president and a vote of confidence from Parliament before assuming the post.
Well, the Catholic Church has longed for taught that homosexuality is against the natural law. But some comments reportedly made by the Pope himself are raising questions about a possible shift in their teaching, a victim of clerical sexual abuse says he discussed his sexuality with Pope Francis in April, he says the pontiff told him quote God made you like these and God loves you like this. CNN's Delia Gallagher has more now from Rome.
(BEGIN VIDEO)
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Pope Francis met with Juan Carlos Cruz for three days at the Vatican at the end of April. The Pope invited Cruz to the Vatican because he is a survivor of clerical sex abuse in Chile. And Cruz said during the course of those conversation, they also discuss about gay. And that the pope allegedly told him it doesn't matter, God made you this way God loves you this way. The Vatican says that they don't know normally comment on the Pope's private conversation causing discussion because if it is true that the Popes say God created you this way, essentially saying God created you gay, then it suggest that the Pope is going beyond anything that Pope has said in the past about gay and indeed it is difficult to square with the traditional Catholic teaching that the homosexual inclination, as they call it is disorder. So that opens up a whole series of questions on the Catholic position on gays. Now one interpretation of this is that Pope Francis was nearly speaking privately to a gay man and offering as he has done in public the church is welcome and God loves too gay. Another interpretation that we have seen in the past with the Pope is that he doesn't mind if his private comment are made public, because it is a way of changing the narrative changing the public perception on an issue without however having to change the official Church teachings which the Pope has given no indication he intends to do. Delia Gallagher, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEO) CHURCH: He was a worldwide sensation of the royal wedding. American
Bishop, the Reverend Michael Curry talks to see CNN. That is next.
[03:55:00] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Welcome back everyone, well, in the coming hours, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex Prince Harry and Meghan make their first official appearance as husband and wife at Prince Charles' 70th birthday celebration. We also getting out this look of the official photograph taken on the couple's wedding day at Windsor Castle and they show the wedding party including the Queen, Meghan's mother and also the page boys and bridesmaids, great pictures there and another picture shows Harry and Meghan sitting on the steps of the castle clearly looking very happy. Newlywed couple. And the wedding itself was full of standout moments that veered away from conventions and expectations. American Bishop Michael Curry presides of the Episcopal Church's, he's address was in a star familiar to many Americans, but was a new experience for several of the British guest and he mentioned slavery the healing power of love and quoted Martin Luther King Jr. Bishop Curry spoke earlier to CNN about how the royal wedding reflected a modern beside.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REV. MICHAEL CURRY, PRESIDING BISHOP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH: The wonderful thing about is, the royal family are all made this possible, they made all of these possible. And I suspect that in some wonderful and small way I got a feel that God was trying to send a message not just for them, but maybe to the whole human family that the truth is no matter who we are, no matter our station in life, we actually come from the same God and -- and last time I checked even in the world of biology if you have the same parent you are related to that person and the truth is we got the same parent which means we are all related whether we are Royal or not whether we are black or white red, yellow, brown, gay, straight, rich, poor, no matter the nationality, no matter the religion, we all come from the same God and if that's true then we are brothers and sisters and were meant to be our sister's keeper in our brother's keeper and my friend we have a very different world if we all live like that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: A powerful message there from Bishop Curry speaking to CNN. And thank you so much for your company this hour. I'm Rosemary Church. The news continues next with Hannah Vaughan Jones in London. Have a great day.
