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Russian Forces Press Ground and Air Offensive; Russians React to Trump Election Win; How Trump May Influence Global Attitudes on Ukraine; U.N. Climate Change Conference Underway in Azerbaijan. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired November 12, 2024 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR: New Zealand's Prime Minister has offered a national apology to hundreds of thousands of victims of physical and sexual abuse. A report found that more than 200,000 children and vulnerable adults were abused in state and faith-based care institutions between 1950 and 2019.
FOSTER: The abuse included rape, forced sterilization and electric shocks targeting the indigenous Maori community and those with mental and physical disabilities most heavily. Here's Prime Minister Chistopher Luxon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTOPHER LUXON, NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER: Today I'm apologizing on behalf of the Government to everyone who suffered abuse, harm and neglect while in state care. Today I make this apology to all survivors on behalf of my own and previous Governments. You deserved so much better and I am deeply sorry that New Zealand did not do better by you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MACFARLANE: Well, the Royal Commission also recommended calling for public apologies from Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury.
FOSTER: Donald Trump said he would end the war in Ukraine in a day but what can he actually do in 24 hours? The view from Russia just ahead.
MACFARLANE: Plus, how a Disney cruise ship heading to its new home in Florida helped rescue four people. Details of that ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MACFARLANE: Hello, welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. Here are some of the top stories we're following today.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is quickly sorting out his new administration with staunch loyalists. Trump is expected to ask Florida Seneca Marco Rubio to serve as the nation's top diplomat. Secretary of State though is believed that a formal offer has not yet been made. New satellite images from NASA show just how extensive the toxic smog
has become over parts of eastern Pakistan. Officials say this season's smog has reached unprecedented levels. It's all thanks to a dangerous combination of coal-fired power plants, traffic burning waste and weather. On Monday, air quality levels in Lahore reached more than four times the level considered hazardous by IQ Air.
Officials in Pompeii, Italy will start capping daily visitors to just 20,000. The ancient Roman city saw a record-breaking summer season of more than four million people. Officials say the huge numbers of visitors is causing problems at the ancient site. The new measures are set to begin on Friday.
FOSTER: Tremendous military pressure on Ukraine. Russian forces are ramping up their ground offensive on the eastern front. Thousands of troops, including North Koreans, are fighting to push Ukrainian forces out of Russia's Kursk region.
And Russia has been launching relentless airstrikes for weeks on end. Monday's deadly strikes on Ukraine's Dnipro region are just the latest example. A woman and her three children have been killed in the city of Kryvyi Rih.
[04:35:00]
Residents in the Ukrainian capital are seeking shelter in subway systems as air raid sirens blare. On Saturday alone, Ukraine said Russia launched 145 Shahed drones, a record for one single night.
And the outcome of the U.S. election could embolden Moscow to pursue its special military operation, as it calls it, with even more force. CNN's Fred Pleitgen brings us the Russian reaction to Donald Trump's win.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Russian state TV feasting on Donald Trump's election victory. The main talk program showcasing a social media post by Donald Trump's son, Donald Trump Jr., mocking Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying his so-called allowance from the U.S. will soon run out.
The message from Russian media, Ukraine is concerned U.S. aid could dry up and Russia will win the war. On Moscow streets, optimism about the incoming administration in Washington.
PLEITGEN: Since the war in Ukraine, relations between Moscow and Washington have continued to plummet to new lows. But now many people here hope and believe that a new Trump presidency could bring those relations back on track.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translated text): I don't think he can directly stop the war, but I feel he can set ultimatums to both sides, which will definitely bring this conflict closer to an end.
PLEITGEN (through translated text): Trump also said he wants to end the war in Ukraine?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translated text): We all want that. We really want the war to end now. The situation is impossible. I hope we get to a mutual understanding.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): But what could a so-called mutual understanding look like? This video from Ukraine's military purporting to show Kyiv's forces hitting Russian troops in the Kursk region of Russia, where the Ukrainians say they are now facing off against nearly 50,000 Russian and also North Korean troops.
The Ukrainians acknowledge they probably wouldn't be able to sustain their operations without U.S. military aid. Aid Donald Trump has in the past insinuated he might cut altogether in an effort he claims to end the war.
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT, 2024 PRESIDENTIAL ELECT: They're dying, Russians and Ukrainians. I want them to stop dying. And I'll have that done. I'll have that done in 24 hours. Take over, Elijah.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): A Ukrainian source now saying Trump was joined by billionaire Elon Musk on a recent phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Musk, who while helping Ukraine by providing Starlink satellite internet, has in the past also criticized military aid for Ukraine, ridiculing Zelenskyy in posts on his platform, X. The Kremlin is vehemently denying Washington Post reporting claiming a Trump-Putin phone call has already happened.
Still, Vladimir Putin openly praising the president-elect's stance on Ukraine and on Russia.
What was said concerning the desire to restore relations with Russia to help end the Ukrainian crisis, in my opinion, seems to me to be at least worthy of attention, Putin said.
The incoming Trump administration certainly has the attention of many in Russia, hoping for improved relations with the U.S. and even possible sanctions relief.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MACFARLANE: Well, Ian Bremmer, global affairs analyst and founder of Eurasia Group and GZERO Media, spoke to CNN earlier about how a second Trump presidency will impact the war in Ukraine. Here's what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IAN BREMMER, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER, EURASIA GROUP AND GZERO MEDIA: Trump and J.D. Vance have consistently campaigned on wanting to end the war. And Putin is in a position to deliver that, which means he can drive a harder bargain.
Also, we now have members of the European Union that are coming out more strongly and saying we've got to stop providing aid. You've had that from Orban. You've just seen it from Fico, who runs Slovakia. Just in the last couple of hours, you wouldn't have seen that before Trump won the presidency.
So right now, Putin understands that he has the ability maybe to drive a wedge in Europe and start to get some normalization of relations from countries that consider him a pariah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MACFARLANE: Salma Abdelaziz is joining us to discuss. And Salma, given what we just heard there about Trump using this to potentially drive a wedge with leaders in Europe, with their approach to Ukraine, President Zelenskyy must feel like time is running out really now for him to do what he must before he's dragged to the negotiating table, potentially with Russia.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not just that he's running out of time. He's running out of manpower. He's running out of artillery. He's running out of steam on those front lines, particularly in Kursk. Of course, this territory inside Russia that President Putin is preparing to retake, where 50,000 troops are poised, fighting, pushing directly into those Ukrainian forces.
[04:40:00]
And of course, President Trump's message, even if not his policy, but at least his message, has been clear. I want you to take a listen to how he's characterized Ukraine during his campaign.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: I will end the war in Ukraine. I'll get it done. I'll get it negotiated. I'll get out.
TRUMP: If I'm president, I will have that war settled in one day, 24 hours.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: I think both Russia and Ukraine could agree that this will not be settled in 24 hours. It is a much more complicated road to any sort of negotiations, any sort of treaties. But what is happening on the ground in preparation for that possibility is that shift, that potential shift, that fighting on the front lines.
Ukrainian officials say they believe that President Putin's aim is to retake Kursk before President-elect Trump even enters the Oval Office. He wants to be in a strong negotiating position. And he wants to be able to point out the flaws that NATO has seen on the ground. Billions of dollars poured in. What is the result? That's the message here.
FOSTER: You were talking earlier about the long-range missiles. Obviously, this is crucial for Ukraine. And they've been pushing to be able to use the American missiles to fire into Russia.
There has been some commentary that perhaps Trump would allow it.
ABDELAZIZ: It's difficult to know what is the foreign policy approach he will take until we know who his appointees are. So we already know the National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz, a former military man, someone who would take a very traditional approach to national security and may very well say, or you would expect would say, we need to defend NATO's border. We need to defend our allies. We must barrel on through, potentially.
But then on the other hand, you're looking at Marco Rubio, who could potentially be the new Secretary of State, someone who is an unknown commodity on the world stage, someone who wants to pivot the U.S. to an Asia-first policy focus on a trade war with China, wants to throw all of that behind.
So until we have these appointees in place, their views, their visions, it's difficult to know what this 24-hour solution is that Trump has promised.
FOSTER: Could it not lead up to the day when he takes power? Could he not have negotiations effectively before? And then when he's talking about the 24 hours, doesn't that just apply to his first 24 hours?
ABDELAZIZ: Biden is still in the driving seat. Aid has still been promised and needs to be delivered. That will continue. That train will continue to move on.
FOSTER: Salma, as ever, thank you so much.
Now to a guilty verdict in a double murder case in Indiana. Richard Allen was found guilty of murder on Monday. A 13-year-old Abigail Williams and 14-year-old Liberty German in 2017 were the victims. Their bodies were found near a trail in the town of Delphi just a day after they went missing during a hike.
MACFARLANE: Prosecutors say Allen confessed to the crime more than 60 times while behind bars, including to his wife, his mother and his fellow inmates. The jury spent about 19 hours deliberating before reaching the guilty verdict. His sentencing is set for next month.
A sinking catamaran sent out a call for help and a Disney cruise liner came to its rescue. The brand-new Disney Treasure was nearby and helped the U.S. Coast Guard rescue the four people stranded off the coast of Bermuda here.
FOSTER: The ship's captain commended the crew for jumping into action. The Disney Treasure will embark on its maiden voyage on December 21st.
MACFARLANE: Treasure, indeed.
FOSTER: Global leaders are faced with solving the climate crisis and potentially losing a pivotal partner. We'll speak with an expert about what's at stake at the COP29 climate conference just ahead.
MACFARLANE: Plus, China is now targeting cyclists who claim they're just on an evening ride to get dumplings. Why Beijing thinks it's something much more sinister?
[04:45:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: More now on the COP29 summit underway in Azerbaijan, where global leaders have a lot on their agenda in the coming days. Overshadowing the summit, of course, is the possibility U.S. President-elect Donald Trump could withdraw the country from the Paris Climate Agreement.
MACFARLANE: But it's also the matter of a record heat across the globe. Leaders face an increasingly dire timetable to try to slow the progress of climate change, which could become exponentially more difficult without the financial backing of the U.S.
FOSTER: Ruth Townend joins us now. She's a senior research fellow at Chatham House and one of the authors of a report outlining the challenges to host country Azerbaijan as well as leaders at the COP29 summit. And one of the challenges appears to be the number of world leaders that have turned up, and it hasn't been particularly impressive.
RUTH TOWNEND, SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, CHATHAM HOUSE: Yes, we think around 80 world leaders are coming to the summit for the world leader segment today and tomorrow. It's important to note that the presence of world leaders there sends out a signal about their focus on the COP negotiations. But most of the work is actually done in the background by ministers and negotiators.
MACFARLANE: But there are, as Max was saying, noteworthy absences, that of the United States, that of China, France, Germany. And that, of course, sends a signal at a time when COP29 is trying to rally all countries to reduce their emissions that this necessarily, you know, isn't -- if the US and China are not leading the way on this, why should others follow in step behind them?
TOWNEND: Well, climate change is obviously an escalating global problem. We've seen some of those impacts very dramatically recently, for example, in the floods in Valencia in Spain, and in hurricanes in the U.S., which have caused unprecedented amounts of damage.
Scientists are very clear that the impacts of climate change are uninterested in the level of attention that world leaders have for them. They will continue apace whether or not we act on climate change.
So these summits, the COPs, are a unique annual opportunity for the world to come together and make decisions how we will act multilaterally to address this global problem. Behind the scenes, individual countries are also taking action. And the transition to renewable energy systems, which is one of the cornerstones of climate actions, of reducing these greenhouse gas emissions, which create the problems of climate change, are still gathering pace. Renewable energy is becoming cheaper and more effective. So the transition is happening, whether or not world leaders are present at the COP. FOSTER: It's also being hosted by Azerbaijan, and the president talked about oil and gas being a gift from God, and countries shouldn't be blamed for having them or bringing them to the market. There is that view, isn't there? Countries have these resources, they should be able to use them. How does that play into the reduction of emissions?
TOWNEND: Well, Azerbaijan's role as COP president is vital in that it will help shepherd the world towards agreements at the COP. As you say, it's a heavily oil and gas dependent nation. Something like 90 percent of its export revenues come from oil and gas.
So it has really strong incentives in many ways to maximize those revenues and the amount of money that it has available, including to use for its own energy transition.
However, Azerbaijan, like many countries, is also a climate vulnerable country. It's very susceptible to water stress. It gets over half of its water from outside its borders. And this is something that will become increasingly stressed as climate impacts increase.
So while Azerbaijan in some ways is a contentious host, it's also very well placed to understand the dilemmas of climate action and climate transition.
[04:50:00]
Because it itself is in that kind of between a rock and a hard place of it costing a lot for it to act on climate, but also it costing a lot for it not to act. So I do feel optimistic that Azerbaijan will be able to help countries navigate these dilemmas.
FOSTER: Really appreciate your time today. Thank you.
Huge numbers of university students in China have been taking night- time bike rides to an ancient city known in part for its soup dumplings.
MACFARLANE: I'd do it. Now, at first, the government was encouraging of the trend, but now it says it's gotten out of hand. Will Ripley has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Pedaling under the glow of streetlights, tens of thousands of Chinese students on a 40-mile impromptu adventure from Zhengzhou to the ancient city of Kaifeng. Students have been biking here for months, most joining for the thrill, some for the popular and juicy jumbo soup dumplings. Others just letting off steam.
Under the intense pressure of finding a job, China's economy is spiraling. Youth unemployment is skyrocketing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We wanted to take the challenge of riding a shared bike to Kaifeng City. We're only young once.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Some riders carry Chinese flags. Others sing the national anthem. State media even released this viral video, students chanting about their passion.
Then came the crackdown. Authorities closed key bike lanes this weekend, citing safety and traffic concerns. Bike-sharing companies issued warnings.
Some colleges restricted students from leaving campus. All temporary measures, police say. Authorities insist the situation became unmanageable.
Traffic disruptions from abandoned shared bikes, massive youth gatherings, all of it happening in China, an authoritarian state led by a party that itself came to power with the help of mass movements often led by students.
From Tiananmen Square in 1989 to the COVID lockdown protests of 2022, large, organized student gatherings rattle the ruling party's nerves, even if participants insist they are not political.
It also happened in Shanghai, the site of huge Halloween celebrations last year. This year, heavy crowd control, police escorting away plenty of people in Halloween costumes, one of the most conspicuous, President Donald Trump.
RIPLEY: Chinese censors have been working overtime to get this scrubbed off the internet. Every time we mention this topic, our signal inside China goes to bars in tone, and it likely has to do with the sensitivity of this imagery.
In the spring of 1989, for example, university students in Beijing rode their bikes to Tiananmen Square to join pro-democracy protests. Of course, we know that ended in a bloody crackdown by the Chinese military. In late 2022, it was mostly young people who took to the streets in major Chinese cities protesting the COVID era lockdowns.
And so to see young people gathering, even for something as benign as a craving for dumplings, not happening in today's China.
Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: The streets of Cologne are alive with celebration. What's bringing millions of visitors to the German city just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM?
MACFARLANE: What is it?
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[04:55:57]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everything you are. Everything you've done has come to this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: That is the new trailer for what could be the final Mission Impossible, the film titled "The Final Reckoning." Is there a clue there, Chrissy? Comes out next May.
MACFARLANE: The trailer shows Tom Cruise's character, Ethan Hunt, scuba diving and falling out of an airplane. The movie was supposed to come out in 2022, but the pandemic and SAG-AFTRA actors' strike caused multiple production delays. Personally, I hope it is Mission Over after this one.
FOSTER: Are you done with it?
MACFARLANE: I'm done. How many have there been?
FOSTER: It's got to be that running scene. He always does that running scene, doesn't he?
MACFARLANE: I don't think he can top the motorbike over the cliff in the last movie. So, anyway. Yes. Not necessarily something I'm going to be running to see, however.
FOSTER: Rain didn't stop thousands of people dressed in costumes filling the streets of Cologne in Germany. Dancing, drinking beer, wearing crowns. It is this year's carnival season. The festivities begin every year on the 11th day of the 11th month, on the 11th --
MACFARLANE: What a great excuse for a carnival and a beer-drinking festival.
FOSTER: And crown-wearing.
MACFARLANE: You're into a beer, Max. Would you --?
FOSTER: Yes.
MACFARLANE: Yes, why not?
FOSTER: Why not?
MACFARLANE: It's very harmonious, isn't it?
FOSTER: It does.
MACFARLANE: Happy crowd.
FOSTER: They've got a good rhythm to them.
MACFARLANE: Yes. The Germans certainly know their beer, don't they? So, yes.
The last three Ash Wednesday in early March of the year, millions visit Cologne during the carnival every year. The celebrations pause for the Advent and Christmas season and pick back up in the new year, culminating with five crazy days of carnival. In late February, there's another carnival.
FOSTER: I mean, they have those little glasses of beer, but aren't they, you know, you've got to go to Munich, haven't you, for the proper stuff.
MACFARLANE: I would personally. Oktoberfest is the one, isn't it?
FOSTER: Yes.
MACFARLANE: But, I mean, look, I'm not against the carnival. We're on the homeward straight now to Christmas, aren't we?
FOSTER: Maybe they could wear what they do to Cologne to Munich and then it all comes together.
MACFARLANE: I'd love to see you in that, actually.
FOSTER: I would.
MACFARLANE: Yes, you'd look good.
Thank you for joining us here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Christina Macfarlane.
FOSTER: And you got it right.
MACFARLANE: This is Max Foster. We'll be back with you tomorrow. Stay tuned. CNN "THIS MORNING" is up next.
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