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Presidents Biden and Xi Jinping Had Face-to-Face Meeting in Bali, Indonesia; President Zelenskyy Propose Plans to End the War with Russia; Kherson Residents Feel Their Freedom; Russia Warned of Not Using Nuclear Weapons; Republicans are Expected to Win House Majority; No Red Wave Happened During the Midterm; Former President Trump Hinting to Run in 2024. Aired 3-4a ET
Aired November 15, 2022 - 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, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.
Just ahead here on CNN Newsroom, the U.S. and China look to lower the temperature. Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping holding face to face talks as tensions between the two nations threatened to hit boiling point.
Ukraine's President makes a surprise visit to Kherson just days after the city was freed from Russian occupation.
And conflict on Capitol Hill, Republican leaders facing backlash from members of their own party after a disappointing midterm election.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN center, this is CNN Newsroom with Rosemary Church.
CHURCH: Good to have you with us. We begin this hour in Bali, Indonesia, where leaders of the world's biggest economies are hearing a direct appeal to end the war in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy laid out a 10-step plan and a speech via video link. It includes proposals on nuclear safety, resuming grain shipments, and an all for all prisoners swap with Russia.
U.S. President Joe Biden is working to get sign off from other world leaders on a joint statement condemning Russia's invasion. He's due to talk infrastructure with Indonesia's president and has a meeting scheduled with Italy's new Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni.
Well, earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron discussed the war in Ukraine with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. State media in Beijing report China is calling for a ceasefire and peace talks. Mr. Xi met with President Biden for more than three hours on Monday to discuss Taiwan, North Korea, and a range of other topics.
The Chinese leader warned the U.S. not to cross its red line when it comes to Taiwan, but Mr. Biden insisted U.S. policy on the self- governing island has not changed. The White House says the president raised concerns about human rights in China and emphasized cooperation on climate change. Mr. Biden added that he expects competition with China but not conflict.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I absolutely believe there's need not be a new Cold War. We -- I've met many times with Xi Jinping and we were candid and clear with one another across the board.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: So, let's bring in our CNN team. Ivan Watson and Kevin Liptak are in Bali, and Steven Jiang joins us live from Beijing. Welcome, everyone.
So, Ivan, G20 members listen to an address from President Zelenskyy and some are expected to sign that statement condemning Russia's war on Ukraine. So, what more are you learning about this?
IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we don't know how many members of the G20 will sign on to that statement. I probably can assure you that Russia will not sign on to a statement condemning its own invasion of Ukraine, but it's clearly the most burning, most important topic at this summit. One that the host of the summit, the Indonesian President, Joko Widodo, spoke about in his opening remarks.
Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOKO WIDODO, PRESIDENT OF INDONESIA: If the war does not end, it will be difficult for the world to move forward. If the war does not end, it will be difficult for us to take responsibility for the future of current generation and future generations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON: Now the Indonesian say 17 out of the 20 heads of state that were invited to the summit, members of the G20 are president, one who is conspicuously absent is the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, and that's probably because he would've likely gotten a very chilly reception, to say the least from the leaders of countries like Australia, the U.S., France, the E.U., South Korea and Japan. Just a few that have condemned Russia's invasion of Ukraine in some of the harshest terms.
[03:05:03]
Instead of coming himself in person, Vladimir Putin sent his foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov. We may hear from him in the coming hours.
In the meantime, the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he gave a virtual speech to the gathered summit and he spoke about the accomplishments that the Ukrainian armed forces have achieved in just the last week. With the humiliating Russian withdrawal from that southern Ukrainian city of Kherson after months of occupation that Zelenskyy visited that city himself and compared the liberation of that city to the D-Day invasion of Normandy during World War II.
Here's another taste of what he had to say addressing the assembled heads of state.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): The same goes for the crazy threats of nuclear weapons that Russian officials resort to. There are and cannot be any excuses for nuclear blackmail. And I thank you dear G19 for making this clear. However, please use all your power to make Russia abandon nuclear threats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WATSON: And he went on to say that though he wants peace, Ukraine should not have to compromise at all when it comes to its sovereignty, its territory, or its independence.
A U.S. senior administration official has said that they're expecting some kind of statement, again, condemning Russia's aggression against Ukraine. The question is going to be how many of the G20 members will sign on to that statement, and we'll bring you the latest on that. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. Thanks for that. Kevin, let's turn to you now. And President Biden met with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for three hours. What all did the U.S. achieve and get out of that high stakes meeting?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes, and this was really kind of the highlight of the president's entire trip to Asia this week, and the president went into those talks yesterday, really trying to come up with a way to reduce tensions and talk to President Xi and sort of determine that neither of the two countries really wanted to have a conflict.
And they did come out of those talks seemingly like they were ready to lower the temperature, to kind of cool things off a little bit. The president said that he did not find President Xi to be confrontational. Instead, he found him to be like he always finds them, which is open, straightforward.
They were able to talk very candidly about the areas where they disagree. And interestingly, the president said that they were also able to talk about areas that they just don't understand each other. Where the red lines are, particularly on Taiwan. And he said afterwards, that they didn't have any misunderstandings -- misunderstandings. And the president said that he did not think that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan was imminent.
So, the president was able to learn a number of things from his Chinese counterpart during those three-hour talks. But the president was also very frank that the disputes that the he had with President Xi going into the meeting are still disputes after the meeting. Things like, of course, Taiwan, the restrictions on technology, of course, human rights is always a big one.
The president was frank that there was not a, this was not a kumbaya moment thing. Nothing was resolved per se in the meetings themselves. And instead, they have tasked senior level officials to start the diplomacy to begin resolving these things.
And so, the Secretary of State Antony Blinken will travel to China in the new year. Other cabinet level officials will start talking to their own counterparts to see where they can find areas of common ground. And one key subject that talks will resume on is climate change. And of course, you cannot solve the climate crisis without the United States and China talking, they're the world's biggest emitters of greenhouse gas.
So, coming out of these talks, it really did, you do -- you got the sense that this was the beginning and that the diplomacy will continue from here and that certainly was what President Biden was hoping to accomplish when he walked in yesterday. Rosemary?
CHURCH: All right. Let's turn now then to Steven in Beijing. What did China's leader get out of this meeting with President Biden, and of course, his other bilateral meeting with the French president.
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Yes, Rosemary, you know, with both of those bilateral meetings in a way, Xi Jinping was trying to ease the concerns of the western leaders about where he stands on major issues and where China is headed.
Now the country is very much under his one-man rule. Now, one of those major issues, of course, is Ukraine, and he discussed that with both Macron and Biden, really reiterating some of China's long -- longstanding talking points. But he also made a specific point of telling Biden that China opposes the threat or use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
[03:10:01]
That's something he had previously set to the visiting a German chancellor here in Beijing as well, but it was still very telling that he told Biden this given Mr. Putin's recent nuclear posturing. Not to mention Mr. Xi supposed to no limits friendship with the Russian leader. But it's worth noting that this point was originally not included in the government readout on the Biden-Xi meeting.
It did later appear in a separate statement quoting the Chinese foreign minister. So there still seems to be some hesitation on a part of the Chinese in terms of how to address this very sensitive issue while maintaining close ties with Russia. But when it comes to U.S.- China ties, of course as Kevin mentioned, the most contentious issue remains to be Taiwan.
Now, as you just heard from him, the U.S. president coming out of meetings seeming -- seemingly more optimistic about a situation. But from the Chinese perspective, he has also said all the right things including sticking to a one-China policy and not supporting Taiwan independence. But still, the situation remains very precarious, especially when you were throwing in U.S. domestic politics.
The Republicans are still a favor to win the control of the House and the leading candidate for the new speaker's job is Kevin McCarthy who has said previously he would visit Taiwan as a speaker. So that could really plunge the relationship back to where it was before this meeting. And potentially making all the smiles on both leaders faces quite a fleeting moment. Rosemary?
CHURCH: Yes, a very important point. Steven Jiang, Kevin Liptak, and Ivan Watson, many thanks to all three of you for that.
After being bombarded with Russian missiles and self-detonating drones for nearly a month now, Ukraine is starting to see a lull in those attacks. The Ukrainian air force says Moscow is now incapable of launching a high number of strikes because it's running low on cruise missiles. And now it's Russia, which appears to be on the defensive.
Ukraine says it carried out its own strikes against Russian positions on the eastern bank of Dnipro River. Moscow's troops were forced to relocate thereafter retreating from the city of Kherson on the western side.
Well, the people of Kherson have been cleaning up the mess their former invaders left behind. They've been tearing down Russian posters, restoring communication services, repairing rail lines, and distributing aid to those in need. But President Zelenskyy warns the situation remains difficult since all of the critical infrastructure has been destroyed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENSKYY (through translator): This is what the Russian flag means. Complete desolation. There is no electricity, no communication, no internet and no television. The occupiers destroyed everything themselves on purpose. This is their special operation. Before winter, the Russian occupiers destroyed absolutely all critical infrastructure, absolutely all important facilities in the city and the region are mined.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Well, despite the long road to recovery, Mr. Zelenskyy says Kherson's liberation is the beginning of the end of the war. Earlier on Monday, he visited the city to celebrate its freedom and raised the Ukrainian flag at the main public square. He also told residents they would keep moving forward and free more land.
CNN's Nic Robertson has more now from Kherson.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Flanked by troops who helped liberate the city, President Zelenskyy made a lightning trip to Kherson Monday, the nation's most significant victory in months.
ZELENSKYY: This is the beginning of the end of the war. You see our strong army. We are step by step coming to our country to all the temporarily occupied territories.
ROBERTSON: A morale boost for the country and president alike, Zelenskyy pledging peace on Ukraine's not Russia's terms and vowing to reconnect Kherson's residents to the rest of the country. To make them feel that we are not only talking about it, he says, but we really returning, really raising our flag.
Today's flags a much-needed temporary cell phone tower erected reconnecting residents to loved ones. Cut off since the retreating Russians destroyed the phone and internet services. And a truck full of humanitarian aid. The first to arrive since liberation. Candles, bread, water handed out to eager residents who have been without electricity and water since the Russian retreat.
How much is this needed here?
SVEYATOSLAV YRASH, MEMBER, UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT: Desperately. I was speaking with people about what is lacking, what they have, what they've lost, and basically the reality is supermarkets don't work, shops are crazy expensive or don't work.
[03:15:01]
ROBERTSON: In the city's neighborhoods poorly stocked street markets hint at how much more help is needed. Some goods like drinking water nearly impossible to find.
What help do you need from the government now here?
UNKNOWN: Electricity, water, and very hot in the phone. Very cold.
ROBERTSON: Within hours of Zelenskyy's visit, Russian artillery destroyed a house in the north of the city. A reminder, Russian troops are not far away where they retreated Friday. The pontoon they used to flee across now partially sunk. The once mighty Antonovsky Bridge crippled by U.S. made HIMARS that helped trigger the Russian collapse in tatters too.
But the Russians didn't go far, and that's where the danger is for Kherson. Just on the other side of the bridge, that's where the Russian positions are. They've dug in within easy shelling range of the city.
Zelenskyy's visit perhaps the closest to the front line since the war began.
Nic Robertson, CNN, Kherson, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: The Kremlin took notice of Mr. Zelenskyy visit to Kherson and offered a terse response. Its spokesman simply said, quote, "no comment. This is Russian territory." The Kremlin also responded to a different matter regarding Ukraine and security. It confirmed that Russia's intelligence chief met with the director of the CIA in Turkey on Monday. The U.S. says they discussed Ukraine and that Russia was warned against using nuclear weapons.
And CNN's Scott McLean joins us now with more on this. Good to see you again, Scott.
So, as we just reported, CIA director Bill Burns met with his Russian counterpart in Ankara Monday. What came out of that meeting?
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so we only know at this point, Rosemary, what the Americans have told us. And what they have told us is that its CIA director, Bill Burns went to Ankara to meet with his Russian counterpart to discuss freeing Americans who are detained in Russia. Paul Wheelan, Brittney Griner among them.
He also went to discuss risk, specifically nuclear risk, the risk to strategic stability. So, to translate that from diplomatic speak, this was essentially a chance for the Americans to give the Russians a warning about what would happen if they used nuclear weapons.
Of course, Russian President Vladimir Putin, he seemed to give a not so veiled threat about using nuclear weapons back in September, though he backed off of that in October thankfully. So, the Americans as of late have been trying to deliver this message however they can.
There have been phone calls involving, for instance, national security advisor, Jake Sullivan, the Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, and now this face to face with Bill Burns, who has commonly been used as an intermediary for the Americans. He's a former Russian ambassador. He speaks Russian. He's also the guy that the Americans dispatched to Moscow before this war ever -- even began to warn Russia about the consequences of invading.
Now, what's interesting here is that the Russians at first didn't even confirm that this meeting had taken place at all. Later, they did say, that it took place, but they only said that, look, this was at the invitation of the Americans and they didn't discuss anything about what exactly was talked about.
The Turkish side was also eager to confirm that the meeting took place, saying that this is another example of Turkey and President Erdogan trying to broker peace on the international stage. Something that he has really tried to make his focus over the last couple of months.
You'll remember that Istanbul previously held peace talks. Now, President Erdogan trying to coax President Putin back to the negotiating table with the Russians. The Russians ostensibly say that, look, they're open to negotiating. The problem is that the Ukrainians don't want to talk, and you have to wonder why the Ukrainians would want to talk given that the momentum seems to be in their court.
But the Ukrainians, at least according to a presidential decree that President Zelenskyy signed not long ago, that would rule out the possibility of any kind of negotiations with the Russians after Russia illegally annexed four regions of the country. Rosemary?
CHURCH: And Scott, what more are you learning about recent comments from Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov that President Putin plans to hold his annual address to parliament before the end of the year, even as he appears to be stepping back from the public eye.
MCLEAN: Yes, we have not seen him a whole lot on the world stage as of yet, but the Kremlin said yesterday that there are plans for him to hold this. Basically, the Russian equivalent of the State of the Union, the Russian -- the address to the Russian assembly before the end of the year.
[03:20:01]
This is a speech that has not taken place since April of last year, so we're talking about 10 months before this war even began. The Kremlin was also asked about Putin's annual Q&A session with the public where it goes on for hours on Russian television answering questions that come in through calls and e-mails and texts to the program.
And this could be quite a lengthy thing. This hasn't happened since June of last year, and perhaps that's not surprising considering that Vladimir Putin not exactly in the best public relations situation with his own country. In fact, he hasn't even acknowledged yet, the Russian withdrawal from Kherson.
CHURCH: All right. Our thanks to Scott McLean joining us there from London with that update. I appreciate it.
Well, congressional Republicans head back to Washington for the first time since the midterm elections. The tough road to the party's leadership elections, that's next on CNN.
Plus, former Vice President Mike Pence says the U.S. will have better choices for the White House than Donald Trump. Hear more of Pence's candid remarks after the break.
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CHURCH: Another 2020 election denier has lost her bid for office. CNN projects Democrat Katie Hobbs will win the Arizona governor's race defeating Trump favorite Kari Lake. Hobbs, who currently serves as Arizona's secretary of state, tweeted her thanks to voters saying democracy is worth the wait.
Appearing on Fox News shortly before the race was called Kari Lake, basically called the state's election botched, and once the call was made, she opted not to acknowledge Hobbs's win tweeting, Arizonans know B.S. when they see it.
Well, another Arizona Republican is celebrating his victory. CNN is calling Arizona's sixth district congressional seat for Juan Ciscomani. That's another Republican pickup in the House, giving them a projected 215 seats. The Democrats currently hold 204 seats with 16 races still undecided. With control of the House still up for grabs, congressional Republicans returned to Washington Monday for the first time since the midterms. And as they move toward choosing new leadership, the blame game for last week's election is already starting.
Our Manu Raju reports from Capitol Hill.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As Republicans move closer to securing a razor thin House majority, they are confronting this question.
UNKNOWN: Did we have the wrong strategy?
RAJU: Republicans are likely stuck with a narrow House majority, which would make governing difficult and complicate House GOP leader Kevin McCarthy's path to the speakership.
Democrats like Michigan's Hillary Scholten who picked up a GOP seat says voters sent a message.
[03:25:02]
HILLARY SCHOLTEN (D), U.S. HOUSE-ELECT: People are tired of the divisiveness and the extremism that today's Republican party embodies.
RAJU: As the incoming freshman gathered in the capitol today, McCarthy was behind closed doors trying to lock down the votes to become speaker and wielding the support of former President Donald Trump. Also winning the backing of the staunch Trump ally and controversial conservative Marjorie Taylor Greene.
REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): It's very, very risky right now to produce a leadership challenge, especially for speaker of the house.
RAJU: Also backing McCarthy, incoming Republican Mike Lawler, who won one of four key GOP races in New York, likely enough to secure the majority.
MIKE LAWLER (R), U.S. HOUSE-ELECT: Well, I think ultimately, you know, you can always quibble about margins, but a majority is a majority. I fully support Kevin McCarthy, and will support him for speaker.
RAJU: Yet McCarthy can only afford to lose a handful of GOP votes to win the 218 he needs in January to become speaker. And Arizona's Andy Biggs is considering a challenge to deny him the votes.
REP. MATT GAETZ (R-FL): We'd rather be water boarded by Liz Cheney than vote for Kevin McCarthy.
RAJU: In the Senate, an even bigger GOP debacle after Democrats retained the majority following victories by Arizona's Mark Kelly and Nevada's Catherine Cortez Masto, and could add a seat after next month's runoff in Georgia.
SEN. CHUCK SCHUMER (D-NY), SENATE MAJORITY LEADER: The red wave proved to be a red mirage.
RAJU: Senate GOP Leader Mitch McConnell facing backlash from some conservatives who want to hit the brakes on this Wednesday's leadership elections.
SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): It would be insane if we reelect the same leadership two days from now.
RAJU: Trump is blaming McConnell. Is that fair?
UNKNOWN: No, that's not fair at all.
RAJU: All as Democrats are prepared for their own shakeup when Speaker Nancy Pelosi decides whether to step aside.
NANCY PELOSI (D), U.S. SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES: My decision will again be rooted in what the wishes of my family and, the wishes of my caucus.
RAJU: New members of Congress, including the first gen Z member, 25- year-old Maxwell Frost are watching closely.
Do you think that your leadership team should reflect this younger, the younger class of members?
MAXWELL FROST, U.S. HOUSE-ELECT DEMOCRAT: Yes, I think generally we need younger people in office across this country and in Congress. I do think we should have young people represented in leadership as well.
RAJU: Now Republicans met behind closed doors for the first time since the midterms in which each of the members of the leadership team made their pitch to their members ahead of tomorrow's leadership election in which Kevin McCarthy needs to get just as simple majority of his conference to get nominated as speaker.
His bigger challenge will come in January. We need to get 218 votes of the full House in order to lock down the speakership, meaning he cannot afford to lose potentially more than a handful of Republican defectors. Now, no candidate came forward at the closed-door meeting, but it's very likely, if not certain, that someone will come forward ultimately during the leadership election.
On the Republican Senate side, Republican Leader Mitch McConnell has the vote locked up to become speaker, but he could face a long shot bid on Wednesday to his own leadership purge if Senator Rick Scott decides to mount a challenge against him. And I asked him if he would, he said he had not decided whether to challenge McConnell.
Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE) CHURCH: An advisor to Donald Trump says he will announce his third presidential bid in the coming hours even as a growing number of Republicans say it's time to move on from the former president. Many in the GOP blame Trump for the party's lackluster results in the midterms, and say he doesn't have the same magnetism that swept him into the White House six years ago.
Trump appears eager to launch his 2024 campaign early for a variety of reasons, including his desire to get ahead of other contenders like Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, and perhaps to insulate himself from his growing legal problems.
Well, meantime, Trump's former Vice President, Mike Pence, is hinting at his own presidential run in 2024, and he says Trump is not the best choice to lead the country again. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID MUIR, ANCHOR, ABC: Do you believe that Donald Trump should ever be president again?
MICHAEL PENCE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: David, I think that's up to the American people, but I think we'll have better choices in the future.
MUIR: Better choices than Donald Trump.
PENCE: And for me and my family, we -- we'll be reflecting about what our role is in that.
MUIR: Will you run for president in 2024?
PENCE: Well, we're giving a consideration in our house. Prayerful consideration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: And you can hear more from Mike Pence when CNN hosts a town hall with the former vice president, he will take questions from Jake Tapper and a live studio audience. That is Wednesday at 9 p.m. in New York, 10 a.m. Thursday in Hong Kong.
[03:30:01]
And still to come, new details on the Syrian woman suspected in Sunday's deadly blast in Istanbul. We will have the latest on the investigation.
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CHURCH: Joe Biden is trying to put a positive spin on his first face- to-face meeting as U.S. president with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. They met for three hours at the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia discussing North Korea's nuclear ambitions, China's red lines on Taiwan, and ways to cooperate on climate change and the global economy.
Mr. Biden says the talks were open and candid, but there were no breakthroughs specifically on Taiwan.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I do not think there's any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan, and I made it clear that our policy in Taiwan has not changed at all.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: Joining me now from Washington, Josh Rogin is a CNN political analyst, a columnist for the Washington Post, and the author of "Chaos Under Heaven: Trump, Xi and The Battle for the 21st Century."
Always great to have you with us.
JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Great to be with you.
CHURCH: So, President Joe Biden met face to face Monday with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for the first time since taking office on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali. They talked for three hours and that was more than expected. What all was achieved and what were the deliverables?
ROGIN: Well, frankly, Rosemary, I don't think there were any deliverables, and I don't think much was achieved at all. And of course, the White House told us that there weren't going to be any achievements or deliverables. Because they realize that the U.S.-China relationship is at a point where there's not much that they can agree on and not much that the two sides can cooperate on.
Now, of course, having the meeting itself is a positive sign that President Biden and President Xi are able to talk to each other about a range of topics. And of course, both sides said that they were able to communicate their positions clearly and feel that they were understood by their interlocutors.
However, if you just think about it, to talk for three and a half hours and to not find any areas of agreement or progress at all just shows you how far apart the two sides are. So, I think talking is always a good thing. I think that this will be the beginning if you wanted to find a deliverable. It will be the beginning of a new series of conversations between high level U.S. and Chinese officials.
[03:34:57]
Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to go to China to follow up on today's meeting. That's a deliverable of sorts. But at the same time, we have to say that on key issues like Taiwan, Iran, North Korea, nuclear missiles, human rights, trade, technology, zero progress was made. That's the reality.
CHURCH: So, let's look at the issue of Taiwan. That will, of course always be the sticking point in this tense relationship between the United States and China. Where did those talks end and what comes next in those discussions? ROGIN: Right. To be clear, there are no U.S.-China direct talks about
Taiwan. What each side did was present their positions, the U.S. position is that, they want -- that we, the United States does not want to see either side, China or Taiwan unilaterally change the status quo.
And China's position is Taiwan is ours and stay out of it. And that's not a negotiation, that's not a discussion. That's just two sides defining their positions. And increasingly, it seems clear that those positions are at odds for each other.
Now, President Biden was very clear that he is not changing U.S. policy. He did not repeat his statements that he intends to send U.S. troops to defend Taiwan. Statements that he's made four times publicly in the past. At the same time, it was very clear that Xi Jinping's message was that Taiwan is a core issue to China, that any U.S. interference would be frowned upon.
And because the U.S. is not going to stop helping Taiwan and because China is not going to stop being angry about that help, I think the U.S.-China tensions over Taiwan are destined to only increase.
CHURCH: So, as you say not much achieved. But did these bilateral talks result at least in the lowering of the temperature between the two nations? And of course, as you mentioned, keeping the channels of communication open, or do you fear that the two nations are still on a collision course here?
ROGIN: Well, I think both. I think it lowered the temperature, but only for such a short time because the collision course is still set. So you can lower the temperature, but if you're still on the collision course, what good did it really do in the end?
And you know, there's some value in having open lines of communication so that we don't have misunderstanding, because misunderstanding can lead to mistakes and that can lead to conflict. But the course is that the two countries are on might also lead to conflict.
And if we have to wait and see if Xi Jinping is going to take his third term as president and use it to be nicer and to open up and reform and to play better with the international community or if he's going to take it the other way and become more aggressive and more reckless.
And the pattern of history shows that as totalitarian, aggressive dictators get more powerful, they usually get more aggressive and more reckless. They usually don't get nicer, but I guess we don't know for sure yet. But the bottom line is that the temperature is down for the moment, but none of the fundamentals have changed.
CHURCH: Josh Rogin, always a pleasure to get your analysis. Many thanks.
ROGIN: Any time.
CHURCH: The U.S. says a convoy from its embassy in Haiti came under attack on Monday. One Haitian driver is recovering from minor wounds. No U.S. Embassy staff were injured. A security source told CNN that one of Haiti's many violent gangs is responsible for the attack. It comes about a year after Haiti's President Jovenel Moise was assassinated.
Well, we are getting new details about the Syrian woman accused in Sunday's deadly bombing on a busy street in Istanbul. It comes as mourners pay their respects to the victims of that blast which killed at least six people and left more than 80 injured.
CNN's Jomana Karadsheh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Sunday's attacks sending shockwaves across the city and across the country, reminding many of some of the recent dark days that this country witnessed between 2015 and '17, where there were frequent attacks on Turkish cities carried down by extremist groups like ISIS, as well as Kurdish separatist groups.
Within hours of that attack on Sunday, authorities announcing that they had detained a suspect. They say a Syrian woman with links to Kurdish separatist groups. They say that authorities comb through footage for more than 1,200 cameras in this city, tracking down this woman, as well as 21 addresses linked to her raiding. Those addresses detaining the woman and more than 40 other people.
They say this woman sat on a bench in this area around Istiklal Street for about 40 minutes, and then she left a bag and walked away. And within a minute or two of her leaving the scene, the explosives in that bag detonated, killing and injuring dozens including children.
[03:40:00]
Some people remain in critical condition, in intensive care in hospitals here in Istanbul. Authorities say the woman crossed illegally from northern Syria, they say that she received training and orders from Kurdish militant groups, including the PKK, the separatist group that has waged a bloody insurgency in this country for decades. It's considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the E.U.
They also say it was also the YPG, the Syrian Kurdish fighting group that has been the U.S.'s ally for years in the fight against ISIS in Syria. Both those groups denying any links or involvement in this attack.
The bombing really also threatening to raise tensions between the United States and Turkey. The Turkish interior minister on Monday rejecting a message of condolences from the United States because of its support for Syrian Kurdish fighters that Turkey considers the YPG as a top national security threat for this country.
And this issue has been at the heart of disagreements between these two NATO allies for years. The minister slamming Washington yet again for its continued support for Syrian Kurdish fighters, and also, warning that Turkey will soon be responding to this attack.
Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Istanbul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Police are sharing new details about the University of Virginia student and former football player accused of killing three current players and injuring two other people in a shooting on Sunday. The suspect Christopher Jones Jr. is accused of opening fire on a bus after a class field trip.
School officials say Jones was with the football team for just one season in 2018, but had a preexisting injury, which kept him from playing. Tributes have been pouring in for the slain students. At Virginia Tech, the women's basketball team wore t-shirts during pre- game warmups Monday honoring the victims.
And on Virginia's campus in Charlottesville, a massive silent vigil was held for the three players killed.
We get more now from CNN's Marque - - Miguel Marquez.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ten fifteen, Sunday night police say gunshots fired on the University of Virginia campus.
UNKNOWN: We heard some of the shots, and then almost immediately rumors were flying.
MARQUEZ: One witness tells CNN they heard shots inside of bus as it pulled up to campus, the doors flying open, people tumbling out.
JIM RYAN, PRESIDENT, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA: The shootings occurred on a bus full of students returning from a field. Three of the victims did not survive.
MARQUEZ: Ten forty a.m. UVA police tweets a shelter in place order. For the next 12 hours students trapped wherever they were. In libraries and dorms.
UNKNOWN: We were basically turned the lights off, hunkered down. Trying to just stay put. I was feeling pretty anxious.
MARQUEZ: The dead, all football players, all with their lives ahead, Devin Chandler, D-Sean Perry, and Lavel Davis, Jr. In a statement, their coach said, these were incredible young men with huge aspirations and extremely bright futures. Our hearts ache for their families, their classmates, and their friends. These precious young men were called away too soon.
Around 11.15 Monday morning.
TIMOTHY LONGO SR., POLICE CHIEF, UVA: Pardon me.
MARQUEZ: In the middle of a press conference, the news everyone was waiting for.
LONGO: We just received information the suspect is in custody.
MARQUEZ: Henrico police say they picked up that suspect, a University of Virginia student and former football player, about 75 miles away from the Charlottesville campus.
UVA's president says he wounded to additional students, one in good condition, the other critically injured.
RYAN: My heart is broken for the victims and their families and for all who those who knew and loved them.
MARQUEZ: This is not the first time the suspect has come to the UVA Police Department's attention. They say he was involved in a threat assessment with the investigation revealing a 2021 concealed weapon violation.
The accused shooter for now faces multiple murder and handgun charges.
A vigil was held on the University of Virginia campus. Students pouring out from around the university to attend after a very, very somber day, and also all around campus now signs popping up. A Charlottesville strong, UVA strong, and the number is 1, 15 and 41. The Jersey numbers of those three players who died.
[03:45:01]
Miguel Marquez, CNN, Charlottesville, Virginia.
CHURCH: It's been described as everything from a worthless delusion to the mother of all scams. Now the collapse of one of the world's biggest cryptocurrency exchanges has some wondering if crypto can survive. We'll have details for you, next.
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CHURCH: Tennis Star Novak Djokovic maybe playing in the Australian Open next year. A source tells CNN that Australia plans to overturn a three-year ban on the former world number one. You may recall that Djokovic was deported from the country in the lead up to this year's Grand Slam since he had not received a COVID-19 vaccine.
Well, inflation in Argentina is reaching sky high levels and people have had enough. In September, it topped 80 percent and is forecast to go even higher by year's end.
CNN's Rafael Romo reports on the growing frustration in the country.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AMERICAN AFFAIRS EDITOR (voice-over): On the streets of Buenos Aires, the capital of Argentina, demonstrators marching once again to tell the world they're fed up. This time it was doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers saying low wages and a galloping inflation have put them between a rock and a hard place.
"This is our eighth week of struggle and our second week of an undetermined strike." this resident says, and that they're demanding a living wage as well as insurance from paid interns. One of the striking doctors showed CNN his space stub for the month of September, stating a salary in pesos equivalent to just over $760.
That's below Argentina's poverty line salary of just over $800 a month for a family of four in the capital.
RAMIRO BLAZQUEZ, FINANCIAL ANALYST, BANCTRUST & CO.: Inflation has eroded the purchasing power of wages for many years already.
ROMO: This financial analyst says workers have been hit by a double whammy of inflation and low salaries, especially in the last seven years.
BLAZQUEZ: If you look back at 2015, the end of 2015, former workers, the purchasing power of wages are - is down 20 percent, and in the case of informal workers, it's almost 40 percent.
ROMO: According to government data, the inflation rate rose to 83 percent in the 12 months through September. Some analysts suggest it may go as high as 100 percent by the end of the year. Do you agree with this assessment?
BLAZQUEZ: Yes. Essentially, that is our forecast. Our -- actually, our point forecast is 103 percent.
(FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
[03:49:56]
ROMO: President Alberto Fernandez acknowledges inflation is high, but strangely, he says consumption hasn't decreased and neither has industrial production nor gross domestic product. That's little consolation to striking doctors like Marcelo Acuna.
He says that inflation has eroded the salary increases they've been able to get over the years. The government of Argentina announced Friday a deal with supermarkets to freeze or tightly control prices for around 1,500 products. But analysts like Blazquez say this new effort to contain inflation will have little impact if Argentina doesn't deal with one of the root problems, resorting to printing pesos to make up for a rising fiscal deficit.
Rafael Romo, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHURCH: Federal prosecutors in New York are investigating the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX. This after the company imploded last week with internal documents showing it had $900 million in liquid assets to cover billions of dollars' worth of liabilities. The demise of FTX has created chaos in the industry and raised questions as to whether crypto can even survive. Our Brynn Gingras has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRYNN GINGRAS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a matter of days, FTX, one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world filed for bankruptcy. The company's 30-year-old CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried resigned, and his $16 billion fortune erased. Bloomberg has called his meteoric fall from grace one of history's greatest ever destructions of wealth. Bankman-Fried has publicly apologized. I'm piecing together all the details, but I was shocked to see things unravel the way they did, earlier this week he wrote on Twitter.
Now allegations of mishandling of customer funds have emerged. Two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters at least one billion in customer funds have vanished. Bankman-Fried secretly transferred $10 billion of customer funds from FTX to his trading company Alameda Research, the sources told Reuters.
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: In some ways this collapse of FTX is the Lehman Brothers moment of the crypto world. It is a classic financial crisis.
GINGRAS: The downfall of the crypto exchange began earlier this month when serious questions were raised about the financial health of the company. Those questions caused many customers to cash out. Then a failed merger between FTX and its rival platform Binance caused more strain on FTX. Binance backed out of its plans to acquire the company, saying its problems were beyond our control or ability to help.
The Justice Department and SEC are launching probes into FTX. The company which is headquartered in the Bahamas is also being investigated by Bahamian authorities over potential criminal misconduct. And the White House addressing the need for oversight.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Without proper oversight cryptocurrencies they risk harming everyday Americans. But the most recent new -- news further underscores these concerns and highlights why prudent regulation of cryptocurrencies is indeed needed.
GINGRAS: At its peak, the crypto exchange was worth $32 billion and benefited from superstar endorsements from Tom Brady, Gisele Bundchen, Naomi Osaka, and Steph Curry.
STEPHEN CURRY, NBA PLAYER: I'm not an expert and I don't need to be. With FTX I have everything I need to buy, sell, and trade crypto.
GINGRAS: The NBA's Miami Heat had its venue renamed as FTX arena just last year, but now that name is coming off the building. It even ran an ad during this year's Super Bowl featuring Larry David.
LARRY DAVID, ACTOR AND COMEDIAN: I don't think so, and I'm never wrong about this stuff.
(END VIDEOTAPE) CHURCH: CNN's Brynn Gingras reporting there. And we'll be right back after a quick break.
[03:55:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHURCH: Four American climate activists say they were kicked out of the COP 27 U.N. climate talks in Egypt after protesting during President Joe Biden's speech on Friday. Here was the moment they disrupted him.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BIDEN: We've taken enormous strides to achieve that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHURCH: The group then unfold this banner which reads people versus fossil fuels. Protests are rare and mostly illegal in Egypt. The government says anyone wishing to protest during the summit can only do so in a special dedicated area away from the main conference.
Well, some nightclubbers in Scotland are doing their part to reduce carbon usage with their dance moves. A club has created a system to capture body heat from dancers, store it and reuse it. The Reuters news agency spoke with the creators.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW FLEMING BROWN, MANAGING EDITOR, SWG3: Our audience generating heat which rises and it goes a long way in a room like this, and is then captured in these cassettes above us and literally pipe back through a plant room into bore holes in the ground, which are out in our community garden.
DAVID WALLS, GEOTHERMAL GEOLOGIST: Lot of hot, sweaty dances in the nightclub and they require cooling to keep everybody enjoying the night. That heat is transferred from the nightclub gets transported out to here, which is at the community garden, and we've got 12 boreholes beneath the ground. The heat gets transferred into the rocks, which these boreholes access and that's used to store the heat.
Then when we need the heating for something else at a different time of day or a different part of the venue, we can transfer the heat from the rocks back into the venue.
Although engines we are, yes. So essentially if you're sitting at home on your couch, you're maybe giving off 150 watts, and if you're at one of those nights, which is a legendary night, they'll stay with you forever and you're dancing your hardest. You're probably about 500 watts or so.
BROWN: Our audience participates in the system, so they feel that they're really kind of contributing and part of it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
And thank you so much for your company. I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. CNN Newsroom continues with Max Foster and Bianca Nobilo, next.
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