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U.S. Strikes Houthi Militants in Yemen to Secure Red Sea Shipping; Iran Fires Missiles at Militants in Western Pakistan, Causing Casualties; Zelenskyy Urges Global Action to Prevent Frozen Conflict with Russia; Donald Trump Celebrates Historic Win in Iowa Caucus. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired January 17, 2024 - 00:00   ET

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

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JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Coming up here on CNN.

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UNKNOWN: This needs to be an all-hands-on-deck effort.

VAUSE (voice-over): The U.S. calls for a global effort to end Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Reality bites. Ukraine's president in Davos no longer pleading for weapons but pushing his peace plan.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE (R): The largest margin of victory in GOP history. Is that good?

VAUSE (voice-over): Yes, it was a big win for Donald Trump at the Iowa caucus, but is it good news for his chances in the general election come November?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: U.S. naval forces in the Red Sea have carried out a third round of strikes on Houthi militants in Yemen Tuesday, part of a ramped-up military offensive to try and secure commercial shipping in the region which has come under increased attack by the Iranian-backed group. U.S. defense officials tell CNN a number of anti-ship ballistic missiles were destroyed Tuesday in what was a pre-emptive strike, claiming the missiles were being readied for launch from parts of Yemen under Houthi control.

Shortly after the strikes, Houthis claimed to have fired a direct hit on a Greek-owned Maltese-flagged carrier, which the Houthis claim was carrying a shipment of missiles to Israel. The Houthis say they are only targeting commercial shipping linked to Israel, and a spokesman stressed that point again on Tuesday. A U.S. vessel, though, was targeted a day earlier, with the Houthis warning future strikes on Yemen will not go unanswered. More details now from CNN's Oren Liebermann.

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OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For the third time in the past several days, the U.S. has carried out strikes in Yemen targeting the Houthis. This time, U.S. Central Command says they went after anti-ship ballistic missiles that were preparing to be launched and posed an imminent threat to international shipping lanes. The U.S. has tried to limit and disrupt the Houthis' ability to target international shipping lanes because of the effect that has had on international shipping. Forcing many of the worlds largest carriers to go around Africa, adding thousands to international shipping rounds (ph) .

The U.S. has tried to degrade the ability of the Houthis to launch the sorts of missiles, ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and drones that they have used to target shipping. But they have not completely destroyed that ability. Several hours after the U.S. strike, the Houthis launched an anti-ship ballistic missile at a Maltese-flagged carrier. They struck that carrier, according to U.S. Central Command, doing minor damage. The ship was able to continue on its way, but it shows you the threat the Houthis still pose. And that's on top of a missile on Monday that damaged a U.S.-owned and operated vessel, the Gibraltar Eagle. That vessel, too, suffered minor damage, no injuries, and was able to continue on its way.

But it's because of this ongoing threat that the U.S. Transportation Department has recommended that U.S.-flagged or U.S.-owned ships, for now, avoid the Red Sea. This is an upgrade of a warning or a recommendation which was supposed to have an end date on it. Now that recommendation to avoid the critical waterway is, at least as of right now, indefinite. So, although the U.S., with the strikes that it conducted with the U.K., was trying to restore safety and security to the Red Sea, you can see the turbulence there, you can see the threat still posed to international shipping, and the fallout from the Houthi attacks on one of the world's most critical waterways. Oren Liebermann, CNN, in the Pentagon.

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VAUSE: Iran has fired missiles at Sunni militants in Western Pakistan, tuesday, killing two children, according to Pakistani authorities, who say four others were injured. Pakistani Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the strike inside its territory as unprovoked violation of its airspace by Iran and warned of retaliation. The attack comes a day after Iran launched missiles into northern Iraq and northern Syria. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson claims the strikes were precise and targeted operations against what it called terrorist headquarters in Idlib, Syria, and a Mossad affiliate in Erbil, Iraq.

To Canberra, Australia now, and Malcolm Davis, senior analyst for defense strategy and capability at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Malcolm, thanks for being with us.

MALCOM DAVIS, MILITARY ANALYST: It was my pleasure, John. VAUSE: Okay, so let's go through the list here. In recent days, U.S.

and U.K. forces have launched pre-emptive strikes on the Houthis in Yemen, which didn't really stop the Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. At the same time, Iran has hit sites in Iraq and Syria. Tehran said that they were Israeli spy headquarters as one of the targets. This came after the Iranian drone and missile attacks on these terror groups in Pakistan. Hezbollah continues to fire across the border, targeting Israeli military installations in the north of Israel. So, when it comes to this fear of regional escalation of the war in Gaza, are we there yet?

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DAVIS: I think it's slowly ramping up in that direction. I think we are seeing escalation occurring. It hasn't broken out into a regional war yet. What you're seeing is pockets of escalation occurring across the region, with the potential for these pockets of escalation to essentially link up into a much wider, more dangerous war. Certainly, I think it's no longer purely confined to Gaza. I think you are seeing areas of the Middle East that are increasingly in conflict.

VAUSE: I want you to listen to the U.S. National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos on how the Houthis and the expectation of their response to those U.S. and U.K. strikes. Here he is.

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JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: We did not say when we launched our attacks, they're going to end once and for all. The Houthis will be fully deterred. We anticipated the Houthis would continue to try to hold this critical artery at risk, and we continue to reserve the right to take further action, but this needs to be an all-hands-on-deck effort.

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VAUSE: There are a number of countries which are part of this international coalition to try and secure commercial shipping in the Red Sea and around the Suez Canal, but would more countries be willing to join this U.S.-led coalition if there was, in fact, some kind of strategic plan for dealing with the Houthis beyond just kind of, you know, firing at these missiles on a daily or hourly basis, sort of whack-a-mole style?

DAVIS: Yeah, look, I think you've hit the mark. I think you've hit the mark. I think you've hit the nail on the head there. There is no strategy here. When Jake Sullivan said this was never the intention to end the Houthi threat, well, I would ask, well, why not? I think that essentially that should have been the goal from the outset, to hit them hard enough to deny them the ability to use those weapons and to not deny them the ability to recover capability. And that means a strategic approach to the use of force.

It has to identify Iran as the sponsor and armorer of the Houthis. And I think that we saw a tactical incidence of that when the U.S. went after that vessel, the Iranian vessel carrying weapons. But as one vessel, I think what needs to happen is a much more decisive use of force across the length and breadth of the region against not only the Houthis, but also Iran. Now, the key challenge there, of course, is the Americans and their allies are trying to avoid escalation. If they do this more strategic approach, the risk of escalation goes up. But the risk is that if we continue on with this, as you say, whack-a-mole approach, this is going to go on and on and on. And ultimately, it will be the Iranians, the Houthis and others that will essentially have the initiative and will be responding to them, not us deterring them and defeating them.

VAUSE: Well, that in mind, here's Qatar's prime minister with the view, I guess, from Doha. Here he is.

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MOHAMMED BIN ABDULRAHMAN BIN JASSIM AL THANI, WATARI PRIME MINISTER AND FOREIGN MINISTER: We see like it's the most dangerous situation right now because its not only affecting the region but it is affecting the global trade as well. What we have right now in the region is a recipe of escalation everywhere.

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VAUSE: So, of all the places that violence has escalated as a result of the war in Gaza, are the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea potentially, where the direct confrontation could be triggered between the U.S and Iran and their allies?

DAVIS: I mean, the answer is one likely area. I think also we have to keep an eye on what the Hezbollah group is doing in Lebanon. But I think that certainly you will see Iran becoming increasingly emboldened the longer we go down this path of tactical responses to Houthi threats, you know, be they defensive responses, or in some cases, pre-emptive responses. But I think that Iran will see this as an opportunity to essentially manipulate the situation to its benefit. And so therefore, I think it's really vital that the Biden administration have a rethink of it strategy, recognise that it does need to take some risks in terms of escalation.

Because if it doesn't, then ultimately, what we end up with is this slow move towards a wider war, but one where you know, the other side controls the initiative. And that would be fatal. I would add in that, you know, other countries are watching what the US does here. And that's really important that we don't give the impression that the US lacks the resolve to win.

VAUSE: Malcolm, good point to end on, as always. Great to have you with us. Malcolm Davis there in Canberra. Thank you.

DAVIS: Thank you.

VAUSE: Well, in southern Gaza, Palestinians are being forced to flee what was once a place of relative safety.

VAUSE (voice-over): With Israeli forces moving towards the Al Nasser Hospital, the biggest in Khan Yunis, international doctors say many Palestinians who'd taken refuge in the medical compound have packed up their few belongings and left. All the time, the sound of explosions and small arms fire can be heard in the distance. Israel claims Hamas recently fired a missile from the hospital grounds.

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Meantime, Qatar has brokered a deal between Israel and Hamas which will increase medical and humanitarian supplies for Palestinian civilians in return for Israeli hostages receiving medical aid as well. Qatar says the aid will head to Egypt and then to the Rafah border crossing in the coming day.

VAUSE: Israel has likened Hamas to ISIS following the group's brutal October 7 attack on Israel. CNN's Matthew Chance takes a closer look at the tactics of the terror groups, how they're similar and where they differ. But first a warning, his report contains graphic images.

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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's hard to imagine the sheer brutality of the rampage. In more than 20 Israeli communities, Hamas gunmen moving house to house, room to room in an orgy of violence. We can barely show the horrors of October the 7th. But the torture, mutilation and killing of more than 1,200 people as well as abductions of hostages still held in Gaza point to a radical, gut-wrenching shift in tactics. This is one video shared with CNN by an Israeli source that we are showing you. Security cameras at the Nir Oz kibbutz in southern Israel show a knife-wielding terrorist and gunmen soaring at the necks of dead Israelis. Evidence of beheadings cementing an Israeli view that Hamas is now akin to jihadi groups like Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State or ISIS.

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Hamas is ISIS and just as ISIS was crushed, so too will Hamas be crushed. And Hamas should be treated exactly the way ISIS was treated. They should be spit out from the community of nations.

CHANCE (voice-over): ISIS, which controlled parts of Iraq and Syria before being dispersed in a multinational effort, also used beheadings, torture and sexual violence against their captives. While the two groups use similar brutal tactics, their goals remain different.

PETER NEUMANN, PROFESSOR OF WAR STUDIES KING'S COLLEGE LONDON: So Hamas is an Islamist organization, but its principal enemy is Israel. Now ISIS is a global transnationalist, jihadist organization that wants to establish a global caliphate who considers every country in the world to be its enemy. Hamas doesn't attract foreign fighters. Hamas only wants Palestinians to fight for it. ISIS wants people from all over the world to come and fight for it.

CHANCE: But is Hamas becoming more, more like ISIS?

NEUMANN: So I would say that ideologically it's not becoming more like ISIS, but tactically and strategically it is. It is widening its area of operations. It's considering terrorist attacks abroad. And also its tactics are becoming more like ISIS.

CHANCE (voice-over): Recently, Western security services say they've identified several Hamas threats. Police in Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands making arrests in suspected Hamas-linked plots to strike European targets. This amid growing international outrage over Israel's hardline response.

CHANCE: And that response, in which thousands of Palestinian civilians have been killed in Israeli strikes, has further thrust Hamas into the spotlight, raising concerns, say analysts, that the October 7th rampage and the Gaza war could inspire a whole new generation of terror attacks in the West. Attacks with groups other than Hamas exploiting the crisis.

NEUMANN: Groups like ISIS, even though they weren't responsible, for October 7th, are now trying to jump on the bandwagon. They are trying to say, look, look what's happening in Israel, Palestine. Get inspired by that. Join us and commit acts of violence and terrorism abroad.

CHANCE (voice-over): Revitalizing an ISIS campaign in Western countries may not have been a driving force behind the Hamas attacks on October the 7th. But ISIS could now benefit from the atrocities, Hamas carried out. Matthew Chance, CNN London.

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VAUSE: When we come back, Ukraine's president makes an in-person plea for help at the World Economic Forum in Davos. His message there, don't let Russia's invasion become frozen.

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VAUSE: From outside, the front lines in Ukraine have barely moved. Russian defensive lines have stalled the much-anticipated Ukrainian counteroffensive. And so now President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is urging world leaders to prevent this conflict with Russia from being frozen. Zelenskyy made his plea in person at the World Economic Forum in Davos Tuesday. While he expressed gratitude for allied support until this point, he was also critical for not receiving enough support sooner.

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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Full force of the sanctions could have forced Putin to concessions. Because of don't escalate, time was lost. And the lives of many, of many of our most experienced warriors who fought since 2014 were lost. Some opportunities were lost.

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VAUSE: Well, U.S. financial and military assistance for Ukraine has been stalled for weeks in a partisan fight in Congress. Well, the head of NATO tells CNN he believes the billions of dollars now on hold will eventually be approved by lawmakers. Until then, what seems to be a none too subtle message from Ukrainian troops about the crucial role U.S. military hardware has played so far in this war. With more now, here's CNN's Fred Pleitgen.

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FRED PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As the Russian army assaults Avdiivka in eastern Ukraine, U.S.-provided Bradley infantry fighting vehicles are key to keeping the Ukrainians in the fight. We're ready, the crews say. And then unleash their powerful 25-millimeter gun on Russian troops in nearby tree lines, helping Ukrainian infantry blunt an assault. The vehicle's commander's call sign is Barbie. He tells me the Bradleys are making all the difference.

I doubt that we'd be talking with you during this interview if we didn't have the Bradleys, he says. Most likely, the northern flank would have been already lost without the Bradleys. They have no time to lose, the next task waiting as the Russians try to press forward.

PLEITGEN: The Ukrainians say the Bradley is now one of the most effective tools in the defense of Avdivka. Because of its armor and its strong cannon, it can easily defeat Russian armored vehicles.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The Bradleys also own the dark, the crew says. They're able to find and target Russian troops with their thermal scopes. You can see the round's impact after they fire a salvo at Russian forces. I asked Barbie if the Russians fear the Bradley. The Russians are very afraid of the Bradley, he says. We were getting radio intercepts where we could hear their infantry shouting that the Bradley was coming, and they couldn't do anything against it. They've come a long way. Since Ukraine's failed counteroffensive this past summer, when Bradley's and other Western vehicles were often bogged down by minefields and Russian artillery barrages unable to unleash their firepower. Now, it often looks like this. Ukraine's 47th Mechanized Brigade provided us with these videos of what they say is Bradley's firing at Russian infantry positions.

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They also provided several videos purporting to show a Bradley beating Russia's most capable main battle tank, the T-90, in a duel. The Bradley fires salvos at the Russian tank. After taking many hits, the T-90 seems to be out of control, its turret spinning. The vehicle then hits a tree before the Ukrainians send a drone to finish it off. The Russian crew manages to bail. But the Ukrainians fear this could end soon if U.S. Congress doesn't okay additional funding for military aid, and both U.S. and Ukrainian officials have said that Ukraine is already forced to ration some ammunition.

JOHN KIRBY, U.S. NATIONAL SECUIRTY COUNCIL STRATEGIC COMMS COORDINATOR: The assistance that we provided has now ground to a halt. The attacks that the Russians are conducting are only increasing.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Barbie and his crew say, so far, the T-90 has been a great help to the Ukrainian army. So far, they have no shortages of ammo or spare parts for the Bradleys, a key weapon as they try to hold the line against a massive Russian invasion force. For Pleitgen, CNN, near Avdiivka, Ukraine.

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VAUSE: CNN European Affairs commentator Dominic Thomas is with us this hour from Houston, Texas. Good to see you, Dom.

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: Very great to be on, John. Thank you.

VAUSE: Okay, so Zelenskyy's point here about U.S. and European fears of escalation with Russia as one of the reasons for dragging out this war for so long was followed up by this point. Here he is.

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ZELENSKYY: If anyone thinks this is only about us, this is only about Ukraine, they are fundamentally mistaken. Putin embodies war and he will not change. He will not change. We must change.

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VAUSE: Yeah, it seems very much that Zelensky here is sort of embracing the reality of the moment because on the one hand, you know, he seems to realize that the U.S. and the Europeans are unlikely to continue with the same level of military support which they've seen for the last year and a half or so. And so the best thing you can hope for now is to win backing for this peace plan he's been pushing, a peace plan which Russia says is a nonstarter. So is that basically where the Ukrainians are at this point?

THOMAS: I think so, John. And I think that the most compelling way or convincing way of engaging with the people in front of you is precisely what he did, which is to argue that it's not simply about him. in Ukraine, what unfolds in that region of the world, impacts those people in his audience there in the financial world, in the political world, the impact on domestic economies, the impact on regional stability moving forward. And so that's a great way of going about it. I think for him, too, there's a tremendous sense of urgency here, of moving forward on this because of the distraction in the Gaza war, the story covered prior to this one.

And I think also because in a year's time when they meet again in Davos, there will be either a returning U.S. president or a former U.S. president coming to power. And with all the uncertainty that comes, especially when one knows that in the case of former President Trump, the support for multilateralisms, for organizations like NATO, the European Union and so on, is extraordinarily weak. And I think for Zelenskyy, this is a real moment of kind of a existential crisis, that this conflict must be won and ended in a timely manner. And I think that being there in Davos, present, speaking to people was a crucial step and moment for him, John. VAUSE: There was also another moment where we've heard from the U.K. defense minister. It seemed almost disconcerting to hear him speak about this. He warned that Europe is heading into what seems to be a very dangerous period. Here he is. Listen to this.

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GRANT SHAPPS, BRITISH DEFENCE MINISTER: We've come full circle, moving from a post-war to pre-war world. An age of idealism has been replaced by a period of hard-headed realism. Today, our adversaries are busy rebuilding their barriers. Old enemies are reanimated. New foes are taking shape. Battle lines are being redrawn. The tanks are literally on Europe's Ukrainian lawn.

VAUSE: I guess one reason why that sounds so ominous is because it's hard to argue that he's wrong.

THOMAS: Well, John, I mean, I think that, yes, obviously it connects with what Zelenskyy is saying. It connects with what is a growing kind of separation between democratic spaces and non-democratic spaces around the world. However, having said that, I think it's very difficult to listen to the U.K. defense secretary at this moment in history, precisely because a general election is pending in the U.K.

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To talk about war, to talk about threats, these are the kinds of diversionary tactics to which Sunak's government has turned in recent months. We saw this certainly play out with the Home Secretary talking about a migratory invasion and the threats of immigration to the UK. And one cannot help but think that if the 2019 election was simply a one-theme election around Brexit, let's get Brexit done. Brexit is no longer a theme in the same way, but it is because it's a liability.

And it's hard to look at this UK government right now as it heads into the election after having been at the helm for 14 years without them working with some kind of diversionary tactics that allow them to, I think, move away from some of the failures of their policies. And if you're talking about pre-war John, you're talking about investment in the future. And although that means controlling the narrative in terms of sort of scare tactics and so on, and in some ways separating themselves from the Labour opposition, I think it does nevertheless point to the vulnerability of this particular Conservative government when this Defence Secretary may not even be at the helm within, let's say, 12 months moving forward here.

So, yes, there is a connection and a kind of aspect of it. And I think that's a very important point that rings true, that we are at a moment of international uncertainty as we move forward. But it's hard to see how the UK makes this a priority when the types of countries it's mentioning, like Russia, China, and you look at their levels of military investment and so on, whether that playing field is level at that particular moment. So, I think that there's some ambiguity about why this Defence Secretary, John, is speaking at this moment. VAUSE: Yeah, I guess. Politics play a big role in all of this in so many ways. And also, you know, much like the U.S. President, we're hearing from the European Commission President trying to rally support at home for Ukraine. Here she is.

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URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: They are exhausted without any question, but they are determined to prevail. And this is something we have to support with all our means.

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VAUSE: Yeah, it's a long way from supporting Ukraine for as long as it takes. Rock solid commitments, take it to the bank, lock it up, see it through to the end, whatever it takes. Promises made both by European and American leaders. So does Ukraine now join the Kurds, the Syrian interior, rather the Afghans, the Iraqis who fought alongside U.S. troops or have just sort of at one point or another been, kind of, I would say betrayed, but just left behind?

THOMAS: It's terrifying that that will happen. And there's that moment of urgency here. This is a turning point in this in this moment of conflict. Either the support is there to not just rebuild the country, but for that to be a country that can actually be physically rebuilt, John. That's the kind of sort of, you know, challenges that one faces going forward. And the European Union also plays an ambiguous kind of role in this year. It's got a significant number of countries now that are on the road to accession. Geopolitically, it is expanding and not contracting.

Those are important messages that it's sending towards that question of geopolitical realignment, the ways in which it's working along with NATO, the way in which NATO membership is expanding. But at the end of the day, John, it's the immediacy of the moment that is urgent. And there's very little time now for deliberation and further negotiations and so on. Zelenskyy is saying to them, I need support now, or there will be a country, there will no longer be a country, rather, that we can actually defend against Russia as they continue and are determined to win out in this conflict, John.

VAUSE: Yeah, the view from Kyiv is very different to the view from London or Berlin in many ways. Dominic, thank you for being with us. Dominic Thomas there, as always, good to see you.

THOMAS: Thank you. When we come back here from the courtroom to the campaign trail, Donald Trump riding higher than high after his historic win in the Iowa caucus. Next stop, New Hampshire.

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VAUSE: Well, after finishing third place in the Iowa caucus, Nikki Haley says she will be a no-show for all future debates unless Donald Trump is there. Trump boycotted all the Republican Party's presidential debates and still won Iowa in a landslide. [00:31:58]

Now the candidates are focused on the New Hampshire primary, just six days away. CNN's Jeff Zeleny has our report.

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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Donald Trump arriving in New Hampshire.

DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is the biggest one.

ZELENY (voice-over): Following a landslide victory in Iowa, eyeing a decisive one-two punch on the road to the Republican nomination and what he hopes will be a rematch with President Joe Biden.

TRUMP: This is the first, because the big night is going to be in November when we take back our country and truly, we do make our country great again.

ZELENY (voice-over): Along the way, he made a voluntary detour to federal court in New York to watch jury selection in a defamation case against him, the latest sign of how the courtroom is a critical piece of his campaign.

Nikki Haley sought to turn a narrow third-place Iowa finish into a winning message on electability.

NIKKI HALEY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Our campaign is the last best hope of stopping the Trump-Biden nightmare.

ZELENY (voice-over): That pointed argument rests at the heart of a weeklong push to the New Hampshire primary, hoping to tap into Americans exhausted by their leading options. She amplified that call in a new TV ad.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The two most disliked politicians in America, Trump and Biden.

ZELENY (voice-over): In New Hampshire, Haley wore a confident smile as she tried to will the primary into a two-person race.

HALEY: He is not my concern. I'm going after Trump.

ZELENY (voice-over): On the heels of a distant second place showing in Iowa, DeSantis began his day in Haley's home state of South Carolina, hoping to plant a flag outside New Hampshire to keep his presidential aspirations alive.

GOV. RON DESANTIS (R-FL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Haley said, only the top two from Iowa, you know, go on to be viable. Well, guess what? We passed that (UNINTELLIGIBLE).

ZELENY (voice-over): DeSantis and Haley intensified their bitter duel over who is the leading alternative to Trump. Yet the former president's 51 percent Iowa win suggests most Republicans may not be looking for one.

Trump's unifying tone in Iowa --

TRUMP: I want to congratulate Ron and Nikki for having a good -- a good time together. We're all having a good time together. And I think they both actually did very well.

ZELENY (voice-over): -- belies the reality in New Hampshire, where he and his allies have been on the airwaves tearing into Haley, hoping to blunt any momentum.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Nikki Haley, too weak; too liberal to fix the border.

ZELENY (voice-over): While Iowa is the first stop on the Republican nominating calendar, once again, it marked the end of the road for two more candidates, including former Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, a fierce Trump critic, and Vivek Ramaswamy, the entrepreneur who endorsed Trump and is set to appear with him in New Hampshire.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, Henniker, New Hampshire.

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VAUSE: Well, the numbers are in, and for China, 2023 was a year which saw a population decline and a very weak economy. CNN's Marc Stewart live in Beijing with more this hour.

So fill us in the details here. What's going on?

MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there, John.

These issues are population decline and a weak general academy. None of this is a surprise to government leaders here in Beijing. In fact, during a New Year's Eve speech, President Xi Jinping made an admission, a startling admission that the Chinese economy is in bad shape.

[00:35:09]

2023 saw growth of about 5.2 percent, a little bit higher than projected, a little bit higher than what we saw in 2022. But if we look over the last three decades at some of the worst performance ever.

So, what's at play? It's this ongoing real-estate crisis. It's the fact that young people at a record rate are facing unemployment. And then there's this issue of an aging population, and that plays a big role in productivity, which is what GDP measures.

So what's happening as far as the population? China's population is still very big, about 1.4 billion people, but it saw a drop of about 2 million over the past year or so.

What's at play? Well, first of all, it's very expensive to have a child, and it has been several years since the one-child policy was relaxed. And a lot of young people are having a hard time reconciling all of that. They don't want to deal with the burden, the emotional burden, the physical burden, and of course, the financial burden of having a child.

So the government is trying to offer some incentives, but John, the real question is, will that be enough? Not very clear.

VAUSE: Yes, the old saying: time will tell. Marc, thanks for being with us. Marc Stewart there, live in Beijing.

When we come back here on CNN, we'll head to the World Economic Forum in Davos, where solving global issues can be just as slippery and some winter sports.

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VAUSE: Retro is still alive, and that's a big deal, according to Chinese scientists who cloned the monkey back in 2020. All this reported in a study published in the journal "Nature Communications."

Retro is the second primate species that's been successfully cloned. Significant because monkeys are genetically similar to humans.

Venture is a clone.

Still, there are ethical concerns from welfare groups, as well as other scientists. The U.K.'s Royal Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals say, "Cloning animals requires procedures that can cause pain and distress, and there can be high failure and mortality rates."

The world's oldest dog, who died last year, has temporarily lost that title. Bobby, reportedly 31 years and 165 days old when he died back in October -- there's Bobby.

Portuguese veterinarian service supposedly confirmed Bobby's age, but that record has been challenged, amid suspicions over evidence that verified Bobby's age.

Let him rest.

Now the Guinness World Record says an investigation is underway. Did he fake it? Who knows?

Well, the World Economic Forum in Davos is in full swing in Switzerland right now. Government leaders, industry captains, titans of business, all those guys are there.

So is CNN's Richard Quest, and he went curling.

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RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR (voice-over): It is a scene of alpine beauty. The landscape of winter at Davos. The peaks, the vistas, the snow.

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The World Economic Forum's theme this year: rebuilding trust, where it aims to hit the target. That's also the philosophy of their Davos curling club.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So when does skip says here, you make to true like that.

QUEST: So that's why it's called curling, because you --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It curls. It curls.

QUEST: Yes.

Think of these stones as being the economy. There is governments, prime ministers, presidents, finance ministers. They set their course and send it on its way.

QUEST (voice-over): So many factors threaten to sweep the economy of its path.

For starters, interest rates. Central bankers have hiked them to the point where economies have slowed down to kill inflation.

And now, they're trying to hit that target -- 2 percent -- without knocking themselves off. Global growth is expected to slow this year. I hope it's not going to spiral down.

QUEST: That's a nothing. That's a nothing, because I wasn't able to swift enough out of the way. And so the economy came to a stop.

QUEST (voice-over): It is also the year of elections. Political candidates charting their collision course for victory, hoping to knock rivals off the stage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Good!

QUEST (voice-over): A.I. is like a curling stone: heavy. Once set free, maybe difficult to control. And even if all do the right things, well, accidents can still happen.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Unbelievable.

QUEST: The world of curling can teach us much about today's global economy. Having raised interest rates and then still trying to keep things going without coming to a complete stop.

And then, when all's said and done, in a competitive environment, you want to knock your competitors to one side. But you don't want to completely ruin the game.

Richard Quest, CNN, Davos.

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VAUSE: Tomorrow, he'll ride the bike up the hill, I think. I'm John Vause, back at the top of the hour with more CNN NEWSROOM. But first, WORLD SPORT starts after the break.

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