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Ukraine Makes Advances Amid Battlefield Difficulties; Hundreds Of Migrants Missing And Feared Drowned In Shipwreck Off Greek Coast; Former President Pleads Not Guilty to 37 Federal Charges. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired June 15, 2023 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:44]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Ahead here on CNN Newsroom.
On the frontlines to Ukraine's counter-offensive as it gains momentum.
Tragedy At Sea, 100 said drowned after a fishing boat crowded with migrants headed for Europe sinks off the coast of Greece. And the long term consequences to US national security after Donald Trump's alleged mishandling of classified information.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Thank you for joining us for another hour. Ukraine's counter- offensive moving closer to Russia's major defensive lines in what appears to be a slow and steady advance, despite some areas being heavily mined by Russian forces as well as Russian airstrikes.
A handful of Ukrainian villages on the frontlines have been liberated from Russian occupation, while the latest is this one in the Donetsk Region, where every building appears to be damaged, raising fears of a Russian scorched earth policy as they retreat. Despite the early Ukrainian successes, NATO's secretary general cautions this military offensive could drag on for some time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENS STOLTENBERG, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: We meet as Ukraine is conducting a major counter-offensive. It is still early days and we do not know if this will be a turning point of the war. But we see that the Ukrainians are making advances and liberating more land.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: More details now from CNN's Fred Pleitgen reporting in from the frontlines.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ukrainian forces laying into Russian troops holed up in Blahodatne in Southern Ukraine. This video shows what was the Russians' final stand here, the brigade says, but Vladimir Putin's army continues to put up stiff resistance, a drone pilot tells me.
They are good grunts, he says, sometimes it's very difficult to knock them out of those positions.
But the Ukrainians have been making significant gains here after launching large scale offensive operations across Southern Ukraine. Heavy combat now nearly constant.
(on-camera): This is the area of Ukraine where the heaviest fighting is currently taking place. And you can see what it's done to a lot of the buildings in the cities and villages around this area, and that fighting is set to get even worse.
(voice-over): We're with the 68th Jaeger Brigade, the soldiers confident and grateful for US-supplied vehicles saying it's not only the firepower but also the protection that matters.
A lot of times it saved my life, he says. It saves our lives every day from shrapnel, shelling and bullets. But some vehicles have already been lost and the Russians continue to fire back with frequent artillery barrages, but also using jets to try to hit Ukrainian forward positions.
We had to take cover as a plane drop bombs nearby. Not the only time we had to scramble.
(on-camera): So we've had to evacuate to this shelter now because apparently the guys fear that there could be aviation bombs coming in fairly soon. You can see the situation here still very kinetic. There's a lot of shelling still going on.
(voice-over): Still, the deputy brigade commander says his soldiers are just getting started.
Our counter attack will definitely be successful, he says. We believe in victory. We are moving towards our goal, we are advancing.
On this part of the frontline, the Ukrainians believe they have the gear, the manpower and the determination to advance far into Russian held territory. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Velyka Novosilka, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Mark Hertling is a CNN military analyst and the former Commanding General of US Army Europe and 7th Army. General, good to see you, sir.
[01:05:01]
MARK HERTLING, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Interesting times, John. Good to see you.
VAUSE: Absolutely. Well, this counter-offensive so far, it's early but it seems like it's the first round of a boxing match right now. Russia, Ukraine, sizing each other up. Real fighting hasn't started but the Ukrainians have landed a few punches here. They're taking back some ground. So, is this kind of what you expected to see in these early stages?
HERTLING: It is exactly what I expected, John. And your analogy of a boxing match is a very good one because both sides are landing blows. Some are a little bit harder than others. But there are indicators that the momentum and the probing operations, what we've been calling shaping operations, are now beginning to come together.
And it also appears that there are some of the Western pieces of equipment, the kit, now appearing on the frontlines entering into the fight. And we're seeing some not just probes in some areas, but we're seeing, I think, the Ukrainian force heading for specific directions, and really indicating what their objectives are.
VAUSE: So far, though, seems Ukrainians are yet to reach those major defensive positions held by the Russians. Those positions have been described like this. Russian fortifications in Ukraine are the most extensive defensive works in Europe since World War II. The Russian military has constructed trenches, minefields, dragon's teeth and other barriers to slow Ukrainian forces during offensive operations.
So, are we now at the hottest, slowest part of any counter-offensive, traditionally? These opening stages, they take the longest and the hardest. But once this sort of gets going, then it gets going.
HERTLING: I would think, or I would suggest, we're at the third and fourth belt of those defensive positions. If you can imagine four different belts, the first two are certainly difficult and hard to get through. The second one is the same. And then as you get to the third and fourth one, it not only has those physical barriers, which you just read off that piece of paper, the dragon's teeth, the minefields, the trench works, but it also has Russian soldiers and mass defending positions.
An obstacle belt is dangerous to be sure, the minds themselves will cause damage. But when you suck a force into those obstacle belts into what's called a kill zone, then it's up for -- up to the soldiers to defend those obstacles. And I see you're showing some pictures that were just released today, those are indicators that some Russian forces have fled those obstacle belts.
So, what we're going to see probably over the next couple of days, as the Ukrainian force enters, the third and fourth obstacle belt is how hard are the Russian defenders going to fight? And that will be critical to determining what the next phase of this of this battle looks like?
VAUSE: Well, we heard from the secretary general of NATO, he spoke about the possible endgame here for the Ukrainians and why taking as much real estate as possible was so important. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STOLTENBERG: We know that the more gains Ukraine makes, the stronger the hand will be at the negotiating table. The more gains Ukraine makes, the more likely it will be that President Putin realizes he cannot win on the battlefield but has to negotiate, adjust peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: I've heard so many conflicting opinions here about what will and will not force Putin to negotiate. Some say a decisive loss in Ukraine, a loss of territory being kicked out of the ground, will force him to negotiate some kind of ceasefire or longer peace deal. Others believe no amount of territory will force Putin to end this fight. They will just be meaningless, because you'll just regroup and continue to fight another day. How do you see this?
HERTLING: I'll take the words of the secretary general, which I think are very important. It will come to the point where Mr. Putin understands he cannot win. But then he has to decide how is he going to lose. And that can take all different types of forms. And what I would suggest a couple of them would be he will try and go to the negotiation tables.
But President Zelenskyy has already said he has three strategic political objectives; secure territory, secure his people and keep Russia being held accountable for all their war crimes. So that's his going in, that's the Ukrainian position going in to the negotiating table.
Would Putin be willing to accept that, or will he attempt to lose a different way? Call for a ceasefire, take -- continue to control a piece of land. Or in some cases, you know, as he's done before, and this is the hard part will he conduct a scorched earth campaign? And what I mean by that as he withdraws to places he can defend, will he not only attempt to destroy everything in his path, but will he leave nothing there for the Ukrainians to conquer in terms of infrastructure, capabilities, homes, schools, hospitals. That's the hard part, which way will Putin moves if Ukraine does take over the additional land. And I think they will.
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VAUSE: Yes. The worst possible way it seems. General, as always, thank you, sir. We really appreciate your time.
HERTLING: Pleasure, John. Thank you.
HERTLING: Despite claims by the Belarusian president, Washington says there are no signs that Russian nuclear weapons are heading to or have been deployed in Belarus. Aleksandr Lukashenko claimed, Tuesday, Russian tactical nuclear weapons had arrived. He also said deployment was still a few days away. Vladimir Putin announced his transfer to Belarus earlier this year, dismissed by many as empty nuclear threats intended to rattle the NATO alliance.
USS deployed F-22 fighter jets to the Middle East to push back it's what it calls unprofessional behavior by Russia's Air Force. Washington says Russian fighter pilots are increasingly conducting unsafe maneuvers around US military jets in the region. That's especially in the case in Iran and Syria. US commander says there's been a significant spike in aggressive Russian flights.
A group of African leaders will be in Russia, Saturday, to talk peace as well as food. Russian officials say President Vladimir Putin will host them in St. Petersburg to discuss what they call a peace initiative in Ukraine. George will also focus on the current Ukrainian Grain Deal, which Moscow is threatening to leave when expires next month, saying Russian exports are not benefiting. The African leaders will meet President Zelenskyy in Ukraine on Friday before heading to Russia.
Well, the worst migrant tragedy in years is unfolding right now in the Aegean Sea. After an overcrowded fishing boat capsized in high seas, and then sank off the coast of Greece. The Coast Guard released this aerial photo of the blue and battered boat. Every part of the upper and lower outer decks appears to be covered by migrants reportedly heading to Italy.
The exact number on board ranges between 400 to 750. So far, more than 100 people have been rescued, at least 79 others are confirmed dead. The boat was first spotted Tuesday in international waters. Hours later, the Greek Coast Guard was reportedly notified the engines had failed. Not long after that the boat capsized. Minutes after that it sank.
Greek officials say repeated efforts by the Coast Guard and other merchant vessels to offer assistance before the boat went down were rebuffed. CNN's Barbie Nadeau reports Greece has now declared three days of national mourning.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Exhausted migrants who survived a shipwreck rests at a rescue center in Greece. The Greek Coast Guard responded to the latest Mediterranean tragedy on Wednesday. They say no one on board was wearing a lifejacket. Scores of people drowned, the death toll continues to rise.
Hundreds of migrants crammed onto a boat in Libya hoping to reach Italy or get rescued on the way, but that didn't happen. Their boat sank in the Central Mediterranean, the most dangerous maritime crossing in the world.
YANNIS KARVELIS, GREEK REGIONAL HEALTH DIRECTOR (through translation): It is indeed a tragic situation, a very difficult situation with very large number of shipwrecked people, a number that I think we have not faced in the past to such an extent and volume.
NADEAU (voice-over): This is the deadliest first quarter on record in the Mediterranean since 2017. In February, a migrant boat carrying more than 100 people broke off the rocks of Calabria in Southern Italy. 94 bodies were recovered. Despite the dangers, the number of undocumented people seeking a better life in Europe has soared in 2023. The Italian government says more than 55,000 people have arrived by boat since January. They're fleeing conflict at home, the climate crisis and sweeping economic inequality. But European leaders can't seem to agree on how to solve the crisis, which has grown increasingly deadly. Ongoing negotiations with Tunisia and Libya where most of the boats come from have stalled. So the boats keep coming and the death toll keeps rising. Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Food assistance for 5.5 million Syrians will soon be slashed by the UN's World Food Program because of an unprecedented funding crisis, leaving assistance for just 2.5 million people. Much more, half of Syria's healthcare facilities are not operating, 90% of Syrians live below the global poverty line. More than 12 million people there are food insecure. The International Committee of the Red Cross and Red Crescent calling on countries to take immediate action.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FABRIZIO CARBONI, ICRC REGIONAL DIRECTOR, NEAR AND MIDDLE EAST: That there are many crisis around the world today requiring a lot of effort from our traditional donors. And so we want them obviously to grow and to keep on doing this humanitarian effort. That's because it's just life saving.
[01:15:02]
But at the same time, we want also other states, other donors to join and shoulder this humanitarian challenge. So it's dire, it's worrying. And in the short term if there is no injection of funds, I see a very difficult future for the Syrian population.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Coming up here, it may be the biggest legal and political fight of his life but Donald Trump's campaign is still cashing in after the former president was arrested and charged. So, could all this have been avoided from the get go? The deal that may have been that wasn't. And later, Italy says goodbye to the colorful a controversial Silvio Berlusconi. Taking you inside the Milan Cathedral, We're looking at the former prime minister's funeral. That's up next here at CNN.
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VAUSE: New reporting from the Washington Post what may have been a chance for Donald Trump to negotiate a settlement in the classified document case that may have kept him from being charged. Three sources briefed on the matter tell the Post that one of the former president's lawyers pushed for that possible exit ramp last year. But CNN spoke to sources close to the Trump legal team, casting doubt on whether there was any real opportunity to cut a deal with prosecutors since what was listed in the indictment predates when that lawyer joined Trump's team last August. Connect the dots here.
Trump has now been charged with 37 felony counsel and criminal, which he pleaded not guilty to in a federal court on Tuesday. Despite all of that, the Trump campaign has been fundraising off the indictment or maybe because of it, raking in $7 million since last week.
Meantime, the US attorney general is not talking about the case itself but rather on the man leading it who Trump called a thug. Details now from CNN's Paula Reid.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MERRICK GARLAND, US ATTORNEY GENERAL: Can now take a few questions.
PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Speaking for the first time since former President Trump was indicted Mr.
GARLAND: Smith is a veteran career prosecutor.
REID (voice-over): Tonight, Attorney General Merrick Garland standing by Special Counsel Jack Smith, who is prosecuting former President Trump, and addressing fears of a violent response from protesters.
GARLAND: You live in a democracy. These kinds of matters are adjudicated through the judicial system. The Justice Department will be vigilant to ensure that there are no threats of violence or actual violence.
REID (voice-over): Demonstrations, Tuesday, outside the Miami federal courthouse where Trump was arraigned were largely peaceful.
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: I did everything right and they indicted me.
REID (voice-over): Trump gearing up for the legal and political fight of his life as the first former US president to face federal criminal charges, the result of a large scale Justice Department investigation into his handling of national security secrets after leaving office.
[01:20:08]
TRUMP: Many people have asked me why I had these boxes. Why did you want them?
REID (voice-over): Trump speaking to supporters at a fundraiser held at his New Jersey golf club the same day he made his first appearance in federal court, telling them how the FBI ended up recovering hundreds of classified documents from his Mar-a-Lago home last summer.
TRUMP: These boxes were containing all types of personal belongings many, many things, shirts and shoes. I hadn't had a chance to go through all the boxes. It's a long tedious job, which I was prepared to do, but I have a very busy life.
TIM PARLATORE, ATTORNEY: Don't talk about the case in public. Let your lawyer do all the talking for you.
REID (voice-over): Attorney Tim Parlatore, who up until a few weeks ago was representing Trump in this matter, says, ideally, Trump would stop talking about the case in public altogether. TRUMP: Thank you very much.
REID (voice-over): In court, Tuesday, Trump was silent. His attorney, Todd Blanche, entering a not guilty plea on his behalf. During his nearly hour long arraignment, Trump signed his bond agreement and then the judge telling him not to communicate with his co-defendant and personal assistant, Walt Nauta, about the case. There were source tells CNN that the two men would continue to travel together and work side by side.
TRUMP: That young man right there, he's answered more subpoenas than any human being in the history of the world.
REID (voice-over): Parlatore worked alongside Nauta when he represented Trump, asked if he thinks the president's assistant might make a deal to flip on his boss.
PARLATORE: Every criminal defendant has to make their own decision as to what they are willing to do, how much they're willing to risk. It's the client that has to live a rest of their life.
REID (voice-over): What's next in this case, the Justice Department will provide a full list of witnesses Trump would be barred from talking to except through counsel. The discovery process begins and with it likely disputes over evidence to be decided by Trump-appointed judge Aileen Cannon, and Walt Nauta's arraignment will be in two weeks.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
REID: Going forward, Trump's hearings will be held a little closer to one of his homes in West Palm Beach, the location of his Mar-a-Lago Resort. And the case will be heard before Judge Aileen Cannon. She was appointed by Trump after he lost the election but before he left office.
Now according to an analysis done by the New York Times, she has only overseen four trials, which amounted to a total of just 14 trial days. Special counsel says the Trump case is expected to last 21 days. Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.
VAUSE: A new line of defense or attempt to muddy the waters, at least, from Trump, his lawyers and supporters, is that he should never have been charged under the Espionage Act, because the law they say applies only to spies and traitors. But the Espionage Act also applies to those who willfully retain -- excuse me national defense information, which is exactly what Trump is accused of doing.
Joining us now is CNN national security analyst and former Department of Homeland security assistant secretary Juliette Kayyem. She's also a professor and faculty chair of Homeland Security at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government. That's a pretty big title, but as always good to see you.
JULIETTE KAYYEM, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Good to see you. VAUSE: OK. Here's part of the indictment, which reveals what was in those documents, some of which were found next to Trump's toilet. They included information regarding defense and weapons capabilities of both the United States and foreign countries, United States nuclear programs, potential vulnerabilities of the United States and its allies to military attack, and plans for possible retaliation in response to foreign attack.
At this point, is there any indication if all of the documentation which was illegally removed and illegally stored has been recovered and returned?
KAYYEM: No. I mean, no indication, no promises except for perhaps the thoroughness of the investigation. And actually, the details of the indictment was just show us a thorough review of what's in the documents. Also I should add, what we don't know is whether in the indictment, all of the materials that Trump was in possession of were actually listed, because there may be materials that that the intelligence community, what was unwilling to disclose even in a public court and a criminal proceeding, simply because it was too sensitive.
So the short answer is absolutely no, we have no idea. And that's, of course, the problem.
VAUSE: And I want you to listen to Senator Lindsey Graham, who was a defender of Donald Trump, who's speaking a few days before Trump's arraignment. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Whether you like Trump or not, he did not commit espionage. He did not disseminate, leak or provide information to a foreign power or the news organization to damage this country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[01:25:05]
VAUSE: Besides the fact that's not what Trump is charged with under the Espionage Act, is willful retention of documents. What we do know is that Trump has done that before by revealing classified information to the Russian Foreign Minister and the Russian UN ambassador at the White House back in 2017.
The point is, we just don't know what is happening. We don't know what's going on.
KAYYEM: I actually don't get -- I mean, I understand supporting Trump, if he's the leader of your party. I actually don't get making representations that you know, can't possibly be verified. I mean, at this stage, we simply do not know what the investigators have regarding who may have had possession of them, or disseminations.
VAUSE: Yes. The indictment does mention tens of thousands of members and guests at Mar-a-Lago between 2021 and 2022, when these documents were there. And we know that before that, in 2019, there was reporting on a woman who gained illegal access to the club. She was from China. She was held with passports, plural, cash, spy devices. So, is it possible how many people have seen or photograph this information just in passing?
KAYYEM: Yes. I mean, it's possible if they had access to any of the areas. But yes -- so you have that scenario where someone nefarious comes in with like a secret camera and is taking pictures. But what was also a possibility was left open by the espionage charges, is of course the Trump is directing this.
I don't -- I'm more -- honestly, I'm worried less about whether a spy gets (inaudible), it's what was Trump doing and why was he one so unwilling to give back the materials. And then the question that Chris Christie, former governor of New Jersey, who's also running for president, so like, why did he keep them? Like if we can't answer that question, every scenario could be true.
And that's not just from the perspective of national security, that's also our allies and our enemies who are well aware that there's no good explanation still, why did he take them and why after being told he can't have them did he keep them.
VAUSE: Very quickly. About a almost a year ago, the DNI ordered a review of how much harm could have been caused by these documents, by these documents which went missing or were being held by Trump and not return. When we'll get the results of that investigation?
KAYYEM: So it's probably an internal review. I don't think it will be public. But the important point on this is that the review had to be conducted. It may be we can never connect the dots between what Trump did and maybe a foreign asset, or someone who is spying for us, or someone who got into a terror organization for us that harm was done to them, because our enemies had access to the information.
So the point is, why do we have to ask, right? And that's because the president of the United States was so -- former president of the US was so negligent about the materials. It's just the sheer fact that we have to do these reviews, or ask these questions is someone get harmed is, it was the damage itself? Because no one should have confidence that if Donald Trump becomes president again, in sharing intelligence with us.
VAUSE: Yes. Juliette, thank you so much for being with us.
KAYYEM: Yes.
VAUSE: As always, really appreciate it.
KAYYEM: Thank you.
VAUSE: Two indictments, two impeachment, two arrest, we're going to be rich ground for political attacks during a presidential primary, at least say you think. Trump's Republican rivals are speaking out. Some in meek, mild and measured tones, others have been a little more harsh and critical. But it seems all of them are worried about alienating Trump's rabid base.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MIKE PENCE, FORMER VICE PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: This indictment contains serious charges, and I cannot defend what is alleged.
NIKKI HALEY, US REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: If this indictment is true. If what it says is actually the case, President Trump was incredibly reckless with our national security.
TIM SCOTT, US REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This case is a serious case with serious allegations.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Meantime, another Republican candidate is getting into the race for the White House. Miami Mayor Francis Suarez has filed paperwork to run for US president 2024. He'll be speaking at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in California in the coming hours.
Suarez, a Cuban American, currently in his second term as mayor of Miami. He's a bit of an underdog in this primary race with former President Donald Trump, a resident of nearby Palm Beach and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. That's right. Well, they're the two front runners so far in this in this Republican field.
Ukraine along the way to counter-offensive now underway making some modest and slow gains, but small clandestine groups Ukrainian fighters have been laying the groundwork for this for months. That story just ahead.
[01:25:00]
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[01:32:20]
VAUSE:: Welcome, back everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.
America's most senior diplomat is heading to Beijing this weekend for a rescheduled trip to try and mend some fences. A February trip to China was delayed when a Chinese spy balloon was found over the United States, and a pair of military close encounters in the past few weeks have raised tensions even further.
CNN's Kristie Lu Stout is live for us this hour in Hong Kong with details. You know, hopes maybe high but expectations are rock-bottom.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, expectations are very low for this high stakes visit to Beijing. The U.S. and China, they both confirmed that this visit will go ahead. Antony Blinken will visit China this weekend.
This was a trip originally scheduled four to five months ago in February, but it was postponed because of the Chinese balloon incident. Now this will be the first visit by a U.S. Secretary of State to China since 2019. And interestingly, both sides did not say which officials Blinken would meet. It's been reported that Bill Gates, who's currently in Beijing, will probably meet with Xi Jinping. We don't know if Blinken will be meeting Xi Jinping.
Now Blinken is expected to discuss the situation in Ukraine and reiterate a call for peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. We also heard from a senior State Department official who cautioned against any potential for a breakthrough.
He said this, let's bring up the statement for you. "We are not going to Beijing with the intent of having some sort of a breakthrough or transformation, the way that we deal with one another. We're coming to Beijing with a realistic, confident approach, and a sincere desire to manage our competition in the most responsible way possible," unquote.
Blinken is expected to raise additional issues, including the cases of the three wrongfully detained Americans in China. And he is also expected to make a call for appropriate military to military communications.
As you recall, in Singapore, there was that invitation by the U.S. Secretary of Defense to have high level talks with his counterpart in China. That was turned down.
Now earlier, the U.S. Secretary of State had a testy phone call with China's foreign minister, Qin Gang. And Qin, he urged the U.S. to respect China, to respect China's core concerns including the issue of Taiwan.
And according to a foreign ministry read out of that call, let's bring it up for you, the minister said this. "The U.S. should respect China's position on the Taiwan question. Stop interfering in China's affairs. Stop undermining China's sovereignty, security, and development interests in the name of competition," unquote.
The diplomatic rift between the U.S. and China has been deepening over a number of issues -- Taiwan, trade, access to sensitive technology, territorial disputes, the balloon incident, et cetera.
[01:34:58]
STOUT: And U.S. officials are hoping that this visit by Blinken will pave the way for more bilateral meetings, including a possible trip by the U.S. Treasury Secretary.
In fact, we heard from Janet Yellen this week. She told U.S. lawmakers that decoupling would be a big mistake. And she called for greater cooperation with China, John.
VAUSE: Kristie Lu Stout, as always, good to have you with us live there in Hong Kong. We appreciate it.
STOUT: Thank you, John.
VAUSE: Thank you. Now the Federal Reserve has hit pause on the interest rate hikes for
now, but comes with a warning, there are more increases likely later this year.
That mixed message led to a fairly wobbly Wednesday afternoon on Wall Street. A lot of alliterations there -- thank you, thank you. Markets at the end of the day are little change.
In Asia, markets are trading mostly higher this hour not because of the Fed decision but because China is heading in the opposite direction, cutting key interest rates to stimulate the economy.
The European markets closed before the Fed decision was announced, they were much changed as investors waited to hear what the Fed was about to do. So we'll see what happens there in a few hours.
Back in the U.S., this is the futures right now, about eight hours before the opening bell. The Dow is flat, Nasdaq flat, S&P flat.
So, why did this pause on rate hikes actually happen, and what does it mean for inflation as well as the U.S. economy?
CNN Business Matt Egan has the details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATT EGAN, CNN BUSINESS REPORTER: This is a pause, not a finale. At least that is the message from the Federal Reserve. The Fed deciding unanimously to keep interest rates steady. That is a significant shift after ten straight meetings where they raised interest rates.
And yet, the Fed is making clear that they are not ready to declare victory over inflation, at least not yet. Fed officials are penciling in another two quarter-point interest rate hikes this year. During a press conference, Fed chair Jerome Powell -- he called out the fact that core inflation, which excludes food and energy. He says that has not cooled off enough.
And he opened the door to another rate hike at next month's meeting, calling the July meeting, q quote, "live meeting".
So what does all of this mean? Well, for consumers, it is certainly good news that the Fed is taking a breather here with rate hikes. Because we've seen borrowing costs rise (ph) for mortgages and credit cards and car loans.
And so, there is some relief there, at least for now. The pause also means that the Fed thinks that their inflation fighting medicine is working, that the economy doesn't need these monster interest rate hikes every single meeting just to get inflation back down.
One very important point that Powell stressed again and again during the press conference is that these rate hikes, they hit the economy not immediately, but with a lag.
It's kind of like if you take antibiotics. You might not feel the impact right away, but it doesn't mean the medicine is not working, it's just taking some time.
And so all along, the risk here was that the Fed was moving interest rates so fast, so much higher, that they were going to overdo it and actually cause a recession.
So, that is why Powell said that they are moving slower now, to look around and see what the impact is on the economy. So again, that doesn't mean that the Fed is done raising interest rates. It doesn't mean that the war on inflation is over. It's just moving in a more deliberate phase. Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Ukraine's counteroffensive appears to be underway in three different directions. And it's facing increasing shelling and airstrikes from Russian forces. Ukraine says advances Wednesday were incremental, with partial success around Zaporizhzhia, where they have been whittling down Russia's robust defenses, according to Ukrainian officials, destroying ten Russian vehicles, air defenses, and other critical weapons systems.
The "Wall Street Journal" has obtained remarkable video of a Russian soldier on the battlefield of Bakhmut, appearing to surrender to a Ukrainian drone. The soldier is seen running in the trenches, dodging mortar fire at one point. And then according to the drone pilot, he discards his weapon, raises his hands, and gives the signal he wants to surrender. The drone drops a note, outlining precise actions he had to follow to safely give up.
The "Wall Street Journal" interviewed the soldier in the presence of a Ukraine guard. CNN does not know whether he was speaking under duress. We have not seen the raw video that was edited and was introduced with added music.
Small hastily organized groups of Ukrainian fighters were instrumental in blunting the original Russian invasion to seize Kyiv. Now, those soldiers have evolved into a critical component of Ukraine's strategy to push the Russians out of the country once and for all.
CNN's Sam Kiley has this report.
[01:39:50]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: A special forces night operation. The objective? To bring a special kind of misery to Russian troops. As they arrived alongside Ukrainian regulars, the Russians attacked. A night vision recording of a routine assault that the special forces needed to shrug off.
How long did you spend under fire like this before you could move?
(INAUDIBLE)
KILEY: And then what did you do? (INAUDIBLE)
KILEY: Electronic surveillance pinpointed their victims. First, they killed two paratroopers approaching on their left flank, to get to the group's main targets, Russian commanders near Bakhmut. A sterile record of an all too gritty event in March.
First, one officer is shot. Then another down. He says radio intercepts revealed that the Russians lost two officers and five others to their sniper team that night.
(INAUDIBLE)
KILEY: Formed when Russia invaded Ukraine last year, this team of experienced veterans works in secret realm, under the intelligence services.
They're tasked with tactical work seeking strategic effect, as Ukraine's counteroffensive takes shape.
Here, using a modified heavy machine gun in a hidden bunker last month close to Bakhmut --
Drone operators more than a mile away are directing (INAUDIBLE) on to Russian troops.
How many Russians have you killed in this war?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A lot of. A lot of. A lot of, for example, here is a lot of Russians.
KILEY: This is when you're on with this gun. How many more or less there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. We didn't calculate on the stand (ph).
KILEY: It's the Russians they want to do the counting, because Ukraine's best hope is that Russian troops run rather than fight.
Sam Kiley, CNN -- in eastern Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Millions in India and Pakistan are bracing for a slow-moving cyclone expected to bring heavy rain and flooding.
The very latest on the storm's path and the forecast is up next.
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[01:44:46]
VAUSE: Thousands have attended a state funeral for Italy's former president, Silvio Berlusconi. His body is set to be cremated and then housed at a mausoleum at his villa near Milan. Flags at the European Union headquarters in Brussels were lowered to
half staff in honor of Berlusconi. The controversial populist who was also a billionaire from his media empire.
More details now from CNN's Ben Wedeman.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Thousands attended the funeral of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi held in the Duomo of Milan, the largest church in all of Italy to commemorate a man who was, for many, larger than life.
The applause a gesture of respect from his admirers. In attendance were his five adult children from two different wives and his last romantic partner Marta Fascina 53 years his junior. Also there was president of the republic Sergio Mattarella, and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.
But just a handful of foreign dignitary showed up, among them were Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the Emir of Qatar, and the Prime Minister of Iraq.
Wednesday was declared a day of national mourning for a billionaire who was Italy's longest serving prime minister since the end of the Second World War and one whose flamboyant personality, for better or for worse, has left a lasting mark on Italian politics.
I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN -- reporting from Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: The Vatican says Pope Francis is expect to be discharged from hospital in the next few days. The Pontiff is said to be recovering without complications after abdominal surgery last week.
But the Vatican has canceled all public and private audiences until at least Sunday. The 86-year-old is said to be resting at a Rome hospital, and is spending some time in a small chapel on the tenth floor. He's scheduled to visit Portugal for World Youth Day in early August.
Right now, millions of people across Pakistan and India are in the path of a slow-moving cyclone, set to make landfall in the coming hours.
More than 100,000 people across the region have been evacuated. This storm now has the equivalent wind to a strong Atlantic tropical storm.
CNN's Chad Myers has the latest forecast.
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Seems like we've been talk about the storm for a week. Tropical storm Biparjoy, barely hanging on to it s cyclone category here, a long and winding road in the water, finally moving to the north, but moving so very slowly.
Now, that's a good thing in the water, and especially because there's so much dry air to the north that it's not getting any stronger.
That slow motion, that slow movement will be a bad thing when it comes onshore and makes very heavy rainfall. And I do believe that that is probably the biggest threat with this will be that inland freshwater flash flooding, rainfall flash flooding. We're going to see tremendous amounts of rain due to the slow nature of the storm.
Even in 36 hours, it's barely onshore, maybe by 100 kilometers or 60 miles on shore. So, still raining very, very heavily.
Yes, there will be some wind, but that's not the main threat. The main threat with this will be a little bit of surge, 2 to 3 meters along the immediate coast. But then as it gets inland, all of this will rain out.
The storm is just going to sit over the same place for hours and hours and hours. So, certainly, 8 to 12 inches of rainfall over 250 millimeters, if you do it in metric, that's where the heaviest rainfall will be. And that's where the biggest threat will be with this storm.
It's been a slow mover, and it continues to be a slow mover. The good news is there was enough dry air to the north to make this not a big storm.
VAUSE: For the first-time, scientists have discovered phosphorus in an ocean which is not on earth. The new study in the journal "Nature" says the element, which is crucial to life, was found inside salty ice grains shot into space from Enceladus, one of the moons of Saturn, the sixth biggest.
Not only is phosphorus vital to all life on earth, but its existence supports the idea of an ocean beneath the icy surface of the moon capable of supporting life. Life there has not actually been detected yet that ocean.
The coauthor of the study says the next step is clear, we need to go back to see if the habitable ocean is actually inhabited.
Last hour, I spoke with Christopher Glein, a planetary scientist and coauthor of the study about the importance of this discovery.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER GLEIN, PLANETARY SCIENTIST: It's definitely an ingredient for life. It's one of the big six elements that life uses. So it makes the environment habitable, what scientists call it. Those are the conditions that can support life. And if you have those conditions that can support life, that gives you better odds of finding life.
But we cannot yet say that we know or do not know if Enceladus has life.
VAUSE: Ok, so Saturn has, what, 146 moons at last count? How was this discovery made on Enceladus? Especially since it wasn't really something you are looking for, nor did you expect. [01:49:57]
GLEIN: Right, we had a mission there, about ten years ago, named Cassini (ph) it did a lot of great science.
There were different models suggesting that phosphorus could be very rare or more abundant. So we weren't really quite sure what to expect. And then over the past few years, this team, as a part led by Frank Postberg (ph), we started looking at the data from the Cassini mission and we found a tell tale sign of phosphorus contained in the chemical date of material that spewed out of Enceladus' ocean.
VAUSE: So the "New York Times" breaks down the importance like this. It's kind of a (INAUDIBLE). They say phosphorus is a key ingredient in human bones and teeth, and scientists say it's the rarest bio essential ingredient in the cosmos.
Planetary researchers have previously detected the other five key elements on Enceladus -- carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen and sulfur, although they're a bit dodgy on the sulfur part right now.
If this potentially habitable ocean was in fact, inhabited, what sort of life form would be there? What would it look like?
GLEIN: Right. So we're a long way from answering the question if it's inhabited. We'll need a new mission to do that. But what we know from the data, the kinds of life that could be supported under these conditions would be microbes. So, they could be organisms that would either be at the bottom of the ice sheet near the surface, or they could be at the bottom of Enceladus ocean at the sea floor perhaps next to what we think are hydrothermal vents on the sea floor.
Those would be the kinds of environments that are very dynamic, where a lot of ingredients would be mixed in and would be most favorable for supporting life.
(END VIDEOTAPE)\
VAUSE: Still to come, E.U. lawmakers are pushing for tougher rules on artificial intelligence. We'll tell you how that could impact companies like ChatGPT.
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VAUSE: The E.U. parliament has approved landmark new rules on artificial intelligence, moving one step closer to the first laws which can actually regulate A.I. They call for a ban on A.I. biometric surveillance, bans on emotion recognition systems, and bans on predictive policing.
Lawmakers also want tech firms like ChatGPT, to disclose anything A.I. generated, to help distinguish between what's real and what is fake. The European Parliament says it will negotiate with EU member states to turn the rules into law.
A surprising number of senior business leaders apparently believe A.I. could end our very existence, and pretty soon. The yale university survey of almost 120 CEOs shared exclusively with CNN, found 42 percent said A.I. could destroy humanity within 5 to 10 years.
The other 58 percent said it could never happen, and they are not worried at all.
On a separate question, 42 percent said the potential of an A.I. catastrophe is overstated. 38 percent say it is not. Now, that's what you call a sharp divide. The Yale professor behind the survey called the results pretty dark and alarming, added to the list.
Meantime, in a major blow to Google, EU regulators are threatening to penalize the company over its online advertising practices.
CNN's Anna Stewart has details.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The E.U. is telling Google it should breakup its online advertising business, saying it's bad for competition.
[01:54:57]
STEWART: Brussels has filed antitrust charges against the search giant, accusing it of abusing its dominance in the market of buying and selling online adverts.
These claims center around AdX which is Google's online auction house that matches advertisers with publishers. And the EU believes that Google has unfairly pushed customers to use AdX, rather than rival ad exchanges.
This is just the latest blow for Google. In January, the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit and also called for a breakup at the company.
Here at VivaTech in Paris, you'll see all the big tech giants, including Google, and it's where I caught up with Bruno le Maire, France's finally -- finance minister, he says he supports the EU's findings.
BURNO LE MAIRE, FRENCH FINANCE MINISTER: I think that we are just sticking to the rules and the commission has a role to be sure that every private company is abiding by the rules.
So I fully support the work that is currently done by the commission. Innovation does not mean that you should get rid of the old.
STEWART: The EU Commission has submitted its findings in writing to Google, according to officials, and that kickstarts a legal process which could and in billions of dollars of fines and a breakup of the company.
Google says it doesn't agree with the EU's findings, and they will respond accordingly. Anna Stewart, CNN -- at VivaTech in Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Environmental protesters in Sweden attempted to deface a painting by Monet as a way of bringing attention to climate change.
Two actors tried to smear red paint over the Artists' Garden at Giverny which is displayed at Stockholm National Museum. They then glued their hands to the painting's protective glass, but were arrested and charged with aggravated vandalism. The museum is assessing if the painting was damaged in any way.
Well, speaking of paintings, you could soon be the proud owner of a crayon drawing by a future British king. Hanson auctioneers released these images of drawings by then Prince Charles when he was about five years old.
They go on auction Friday. Some feature his mommy, Queen Elizabeth, and his dear papa, Prince Philip. Those two portraits alone are expected to fetch more than $2,000.
Cards by his sister, Princess Royal Anne are also on sale.
The auction house claims they are extraordinarily touching, and says many people will relate to them, especially if they have a royal background.
Thank you for watching this hour. I'm John Vause. Please stay with us.
CNN NEWSROOM continues with my friend and colleague, Anna Coren in Hong Kong, after a break.
See you back here tomorrow.
[01:57:27]
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