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CNN International: Wagner Boss Prigozhin Presumed Killed in Plane Crash; BRICS Inviting Six New Members to Join Bloc; 200+ Wildfires Broke Out in Greece Since Monday; 127 Million in U.S. Under Excessive Heat Warnings, Advisories. Aired 4:30-5a ET

Aired August 24, 2023 - 04:30   ET

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

[04:30:00]

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: He said that remains to be seen. When asked if he was getting paid, he declined to answer.

You know, is notable that even though Giuliani's lawyers were in court a week ago saying that he could not afford to pay his legal bills, he flew into Georgia on a private jet even though he is just miles from the biggest airport in the world. It is unclear how he was able to afford that specific mode of transportation, but it did allow him to knock out the bond negotiations and his surrender all in one day, which I'm told was his goal. That he wanted to get back to New York before former President Trump arrived in Atlanta Thursday.

Paula Reid, CNN, Fulton County, Georgia.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR: We've been discussing the parallels between Giuliani's rise and fall. And you actually interviewed him at the zenith of his career where people consider him to be a hero.

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, after 9/11. And I remember being really -- on a hero's welcome he came to visit London and everyone was talking about him becoming president. He was the most popular American politician. And I remember being struck by his charisma and his very eloquent -- but I don't know. That was face-to-face. I don't get the impression that he has that confidence anymore. Who knows?

We're following developments -- a developing story out of Russia where the head of the Wagner Mercenary Group has apparently been killed in a plane crash. Russian authorities say that Yevgeny Prigozhin was on board a private jet that went down Wednesday evening. State media report all seven passengers and three crew members were killed. The flight was heading from Moscow to St. Petersburg. It stopped transmitting flight data shortly after 6:00 p.m. local time.

Malcolm Davis is a senior analyst of defense strategy and capability for the Australian Strategic Policy Institute and he's in Canberra for us. Thanks for joining us. I mean, we've been so careful about -- it's really a hard story to cover. Because we just don't know so many of the facts. But obviously, everyone is seeing a similar narrative here and we heard President Biden intimating it as well, that Putin was somehow involved in this downing.

MALCOLM DAVIS, MILITARY ANALYST: Look, I think that's right. We don't know all the facts. Clearly the plane crashed. There is a good deal of suggestion that Prigozhin was on the plane. And so therefore, you know, if that is the case, then, you know, his life is over, he is dead. And the question is, you know, was the plane crash deliberate, an act of state by the Russian government, or was it an accident? I think the majority of the evidence is suggesting that somehow the Russian government was involved.

NOBILO: What do we know, Malcolm, about the other passengers that were supposedly aboard this private jet and their significance in terms of Wagner's operations?

DAVIS: Look, we know that he had a lot of the top leadership on board with him. And so it's really a case of how Wagner can survive as an organization, as a private military contractor organization, having lost most of its leadership including its key leader Prigozhin.

Can it quickly reconstitute that leadership with new people or is it going to be left essentially rudderless? And obviously the other key question that I think everyone is focusing on is how does Wagner respond if indeed this was a state sanctioned assassination of Prigozhin by the Russian government. And I think the jury is still out on that, but there is a range of different scenarios that could emerge in the coming days and weeks which we could all see.

FOSTER: I mean, there is talk, isn't there, speculation online that Wagner will go for revenge and organize another mutiny, things like that. But are they organized enough without the leadership you just described going down in the plane?

DAVIS: I think that's key. And if they can reconstitute under new leaders, a lot would depend on just how much support they have within the rank and file of the Russian military. If they were to try a revenge against the Putin government, similar to what they did 60 days ago with the march for justice, then it's highly likely that Putin would essentially direct the Russian military to attack them. And the question then is to what extent do the rank and file of the Russian military, as opposed to the top military leadership follow Putin's orders or do some defect over to Wagner.

That uncertainty and the uncertainty as to who the Wagner can trust in Moscow, means that they may not do that sort of rebellion type offensive that they did some months ago. Instead what they may do is an internal insurgency or resistance or some sort of terrorist operation designed to strike back against the Russian government.

NOBILO: The cause of the plane crash has obviously not been confirmed. We do know that it dropped precipitously in its last 30 seconds.

[04:35:00]

What might have led to that occurring?

DAVIS: Look, the evidence seems to suggest -- at least in terms of video evidence -- that when the plane fell out of the sky, it lost a wing. There is some suggestion that some sort of explosion. We don't know whether it was an internal explosion or some sort of external explosion. The latter would indicate some sort of missile. But if it loses a wing, it's not flying. It's going to come crashing out of the sky and it's not going to glide in. It's going to essentially drop like a stone. And I think that is probably what we saw on the video evidence.

FOSTER: We're waiting to hear from the Kremlin something firm. Clare, our reporter, was describing that, you know, all eyes on the Kremlin right now. I mean, how do we actually decisively say that Prigozhin is dead? Do we need -- you know, do we look at the language coming from the Kremlin? I mean, how are you going to read it?

DAVIS: Well, we're dealing with the risk of Russian maskirovka, trickery. And anything coming out of the Kremlin I think we have to take with a degree of caution in terms of its accuracy and its intent. If we actually do get confirmation that Prigozhin is dead through some sort of DNA evidence or identification of a body, something along the lines of that, then I think that is pretty certain.

But a statement out of the Kremlin suggesting that Prigozhin is dead, I'm not sure that we can totally trust that. And given the way the previous march for justice rebellion occurred and then suddenly ended without warning and Prigozhin was allowed to move about relatively freely, this is an issue that is ripe for uncertainty and ripe for Kremlin trickery -- maskirovka. So I do think that we need to be cautious in terms of assuming events coming in the next few days and weeks.

FOSTER: But just briefly, if Wagner came out and confirmed his death, that would be confirmation to you, would it, combined with the Kremlin statement?

DAVIS: I think so, yes. If Wagner says he's dead and the Kremlin says the same thing, then, you know, I think that we can take that as the accurate truth. And then as I said, the key issue is how does Wagner respond to that. To what extent can they reconstitute a new leadership and what are their options in terms of carrying out any sort of revenge? If they can't respond, if they can't reconstitute, then I think Wagner as a fighting force is finished and you might see them essentially dissolve as an element of power in the Russian state. A lot of their members would go over to other private military companies or simply remove themselves from the field of battle.

FOSTER: Malcolm Davis, really appreciate your insight. Thank you.

NOBILO: New developments now from the BRICS summit. As the group of developing nations is inviting six countries to become new full members. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa made the announcement a short time ago.

FOSTER: Senior international correspondent David McKenzie is in Johannesburg. Take us through the highlights of that speech.

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well I think this is a very significant moment. We had anticipated, Max, some potential moves towards expansion. But this is a rapid and expansive expansion in very short order that many didn't anticipate. And it speaks to a very significant development. Here is the president of South Africa making the announcement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CYRIL RAMAPHOSA, SOUTH AFRICAN PRESIDENT: We have decided to invite the Argentine Republic, the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to become full members of BRICS. The membership will take effect from the first of January 2024.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKENZIE: This is a very rapid expansion. And it can be seen, Max, as a significant win for China in particular. Of all the nations of BRICS, they were pushing the hardest behind the scenes to expand BRICS and to expand their influence. If you look at these countries, they may on the surface not have much in common, but there's something for everyone, I think.

The Brazilians and president of Brazil was saying that they welcome the inclusion of Argentina. You have Iran and Saudi Arabia in there. That will be seen as a win for China again. Those two countries were definitely political enemies until relatively recently when China pulled them together. And of course, Saudi Arabia in particular, brings a great deal of cash potentially to this grouping.

[04:40:02]

And there's an impetus for all of the members to increase their own capacity through their development bank to lend to developing countries and act as an alternative to the World Bank and the IMF. This expansion could have very real-world implications in a relatively short amount of time. You have African nations there, in Egypt and Ethiopia, and of course the UAE rounding that out.

Another thing to note was in the formal statement. There was a very specific language saying that they wanted to look into trading amongst their nations in local currency. And this is something that Russia and President Putin in particular have been pushing. You won't see any de- dollarization anytime soon, but I think this expanded group could be a powerful voice on the world stage -- Max, Bianca.

FOSTER: Thank you, David.

NOBILO: You just get the feeling, as David was saying, that the tectonic plates of geopolitics are firmly shifting. Like there is quite a clear demarcation now that's emerging, ideologically, politically. This is a counter balance to the EU, the G7. It is a very significant time.

FOSTER: And very determined. Feels determined.

NOBILO: Absolutely.

FOSTER: Still to come, thick smoke darkens the skies around Athens as firefighters attempt to douse hundreds of fires in the region. We're live in Athens with the latest.

NOBILO: Plus, the heat is on and there's end in sight for millions of people in the midsection of the United States.

JENNIFER GRAY, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yet another day of triple digit heat, a dangerous heat especially spilling into the Midwest and upper Midwest. We'll have the details after the break.

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NOBILO: Take a look at this rare phenomenon in Canada.

[04:45:00]

It's a fire tornado or fire whirl. It formed last week over Gun Lake, in British Columbia. A new report says the climate crisis made weather conditions that fueled the devastating wildfires in eastern Canada and other parts of the world this summer, more likely and more intense.

FOSTER: In Louisiana, they are typically preparing for tropical storms and hurricanes at this time of year, but instead officials are battling wildfires amid a statewide burn ban and extreme heat. There were more than 300 wildfires burning in Louisiana earlier this week and the National Weather Service says every parish in the state is under a red flag warning.

NOBILO: More than 100 municipalities in Portugal are under the country's maximum fire risk alert according to officials. The announcement came on Tuesday amid sweltering temperatures as more than half the country surpassed 40 degrees Celsius -- that's 104 degrees Fahrenheit. Hundreds of firefighters have been deployed to bring local fires under control. And officials say that the alert will last until Sunday.

FOSTER: Firefighters in Greece are racing to contain more than 200 wildfires that have broken out since Monday including nearly 100 in the last 24 hours.

NOBILO: High winds are fueling the flames, increasing the threat to residents and their homes.

FOSTER: Let's go live to Athens where CNN's Eleni Giokos is standing by for us. A slightly calmer scenes at least than yesterday, Eleni.

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we were definitely in the thick of things yesterday as the fire started encroaching on homes. And we saw how residents responded trying to protect their livelihoods. And it was incredible to watch.

Now yesterday we had massive winds. It died down towards the end of the evening and then of course overnight the firefighters tell us was a very difficult night. It was nightmarish. The winds started picking up at about 3:00 a.m.

This is actually where the fire began on Tuesday afternoon. And as you can see in the distance there -- and we've been stopped by police, we can't go further than this spot -- fire has reignited further into Parnitha Mountain. Now this is known as lungs of Athens. Firefighters as well as air supports battling to contain these fires that are now igniting deeper within the forest.

One firefighter told me that Parmitha, as we know it, is not going to ever be the same again. They are trying as much as possible with the resources that they have, Max, to get things under control. One of those helicopters contains 11 tons of water. They are flying past every few minutes, which gives you a sense of the scale.

The fire department have not told us how many hectares have been burned, we don't know how many homes have been destroyed. But just seeing some of what happened yesterday and this morning, it's a really large area. And it's absolutely terrifying knowing that this is just one of the frontlines in the whole of Greece.

OK, Eleni, really appreciate that. And really great camera work as well, so you get a sense of the space.

NOBILO: About 127 million are under excessive heat warnings and advisories across the U.S. Over 400 daily heat records could be broken through Sunday -- mostly in the southern states. CNN's Jennifer Gray has the forecast for you.

GRAY: Almost seems like a broken record across the U.S. with this intense heat. But it really is a dangerous heat especially for places in the Midwest, the upper Midwest, people may not have air conditioning like they do in the south. Chicago, Minneapolis, Omaha, all under those excessive heat warnings.

The heat across the U.S., July 22 through August 22, we've had more than 8,500 records set or tied. It has been brutal this summer and more than 400 possible records to go for the rest of the week, that's record high temperatures as well as record warm minimum temperatures. So that means the overnight temperatures aren't cooling off very much either.

So the feels like temperatures this afternoon, Chicago 111, 114 in Springfield, 114 in St. Louis, 93 in Minneapolis, 106 in Des Moines. The high temperatures are going to stay hot for one more day really and then we'll start to see those temperatures come down at least for the northernmost cities. Omaha, 100, then we drop to 92. Minneapolis at 90, we start to stair step our way down. Wichita, you have a couple more days of temperatures in the triple digits the next two days and then we start to fall. Same for St. Louis.

So the above average temperatures, that heat dome will start to break over the Plains, the upper Midwest. The heat does remain in the South. However, we will get some relief. Elsewhere in the Plains, Midwest, below average temperatures actually moving in across portions of the east. So feels like temperatures across the South, 113 in Shreveport, 112 in

Houston, 116 in Baton Rouge, 110 in Dallas. So high temperatures over the next couple of days are going to stay incredibly hot across the South.

[04:50:38]

102 in New Orleans, 100 degrees in Memphis, 106 on Thursday in Dallas and then you have to factor in that heat index. So temperatures feeling very, very hot across the board. Here is the New Orleans 7-day forecast. And look at that, temperatures really flirting with those triple digits for the next four or five days and then trying to fall a little closer to average by the end of the seven-day period.

FOSTER: "Messi Mania" is taking Miami by storm. Still ahead, how Argentine star Lionel Messi is helping bring more joy to soccer fans.

NOBILO: Even more joy?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Stories in the spotlight this hour. Inter Miami and its new star Lionel Messi just keep on winning. The MLS team have reached the U.S. Open Cup final just days after winning the International Leagues Cup tournament. And Messi helped Miami pull off a comeback win against FC Cincinnati on Wednesday and prevail on penalty kicks. The Argentine star joined ranks of Inter Miami last month unleashing what's being called the "Messi Mania," in Miami. And I like their kit.

NOBILO: It is pretty, isn't it?

FOSTER: Well --

NOBILO: Men should wear more --

[04:55:00]

In major league baseball the New York Yankees have snapped their nine- game losing streak with a decisive win over the Washington Nationals. Aaron Judge already had one home run when he hit this grand slam in the second inning and he homered again in the seventh. The Yankees are still in last place though in the division and their general manager on Wednesday called their season a disaster.

NOBILO: Baseball's two-way superstar, Shohei Ohtani, of the Los Angeles Angels, has torn ligament in his right elbow and won't pitch again this season. He suffered the same injury in 2018 and needed surgery which kept him from pitching the following year. Ohtani was heavily favored to win the American League MVP award for the second time in three seasons. He is set to be a free agent after this season.

FOSTER: And you had a big injury on your head this morning but they covered it with makeup --

FOSTER: I don't know what you're talking about.

NOBILO: Quite well.

FOSTER: It is all a lie. Fake news.

It is company Peloton saw its stock plunged 20 percent in early trading Wednesday amid a mass recall of more than 2 million exercise bikes. I'm laughing about the previous story. About 20,000 members have paused their monthly subscriptions whilst they wait for replacement parts for their bike seats.

NOBILO: Peloton says it's received more than 750,000 requests for new seat post, which is more than they expected. But the company believes it will have all requests fulfilled by the end of next month, which is three months sooner than was planned.

And hours after an Indian spacecraft successfully landed on the moon, it deployed a rover which is now exploring the lunar surface.

FOSTER: And it is going incredibly well. Isn't it? Everything going to plan. The historic landing of the Chandrayaan-3 spacecraft on the moon, makes India the fourth country to land on the lunar surface. India is also the first country to land on the moon's south pole which has been largely unexplored. And you are vaguely excited about that part of it.

NOBILO: I am. More potential for human habitation. Sometimes I've just had enough here. I wouldn't mind --

FOSTER: You'd go and live on the moon.

NOBILO: I would.

FOSTER: You would be digging away for ice to survive.

Thanks for joining us here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Max Foster.

And I'm Bianca Nobilo. "CNN THIS MORNING" is next right here on CNN.

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