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Remembering Jimmy Carter; US To Assist In Investigation Into Plane Crash; Transport For London Prepares For Massive Crowds. Aired 11-12a ET
Aired December 30, 2024 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:51]
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers from around the world, I'm Zain Asher in New York. Ahead on CNN Newsroom, the world is morning and honoring former President Jimmy Carter who has died at 100 years old. He served just one term in the White House, but he redefined what the post-presidency life could actually be. Plus, my guest served as deputy cabinet secretary to President Jimmy Carter and calls his global legacy moral clarity.
And desperate for news about their loved ones, some relatives of the 179 people killed in Sunday's South Korea plane crashed are camping out in the airport where it happened.
His time in the White House was short, but the impact he made both during and after his presidency is one that will live on for generations to come. The death of former US President Jimmy Carter at the age of 100 is being mourned worldwide today. Carter was surrounded by family when he passed away Sunday at his home in Georgia.
The former peanut farmer became the 39th president of the United States, winning the 1976 election over Gerald Ford. He lost a reelection bid four years later, but embarks on a post-presidency really dedicated to serving others, including but certainly not limited to his volunteer work with Habitat for Humanity.
The White House says an official state funeral will be held in Washington on January 9, a national day of mourning. US President Joe Biden honored his longtime friend, calling him a statesman and a humanitarian.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF UNITED STATES: What I find extraordinary about Jimmy Carter, though, is that millions of people all around the world, all over the world, feel they lost a friend as well, even though they never met him. And that's because Jimmy Carter lived a life measured not by words but by his deeds.
Just look at his life's work. He worked to eradicate disease not just at home but around the world. He forged peace, advanced civil rights, human rights, promoted free and fair elections around the world. He built housing and homeless for the homeless with his own hands. And his compassion and moral clarity lifted people up and changed lives, and saved lives all over the globe.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: CNN's Nic Robertson now takes a look at the tremendous impact of Jimmy Carter's diplomatic efforts across the globe.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JIMMY CARTER, FORMER US PRESIDENT: I, Jimmy Carter, do solemnly swear.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Jimmy Carter's presidency lived in the shadow of America's Cold War with the Soviet Union, but he refused to be constrained by East West communist versus capitalist tensions.
CARTER: We expect that normalization will help to move us together toward a world of diversity and of peace.
ROBERTSON: He improved relations with China and tried for the same with the Soviets. In his foreign policies, he pushed for nuclear non- proliferation, democratic values and human rights. He cut off military supplies to Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet and dialed back support for other Latin American leaders in Nicaragua, Argentina and Brazil.
One of his signature White House legacies was the Torrijos-Carter treaties that returned the Panama Canal to Panama in 1999. He also calmed Mideast tensions brought together Israeli and Arab leaders at Camp David, opening the door to the Israeli-Egypt Camp David accords. He normalized relations with China, weakened US ties to Taiwan in a vain hope Beijing would weaken ties with Moscow.
But after the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in December 1979, the last year of his presidency, he toughened his Soviet stance, backed the Afghan mujahideen in a war against the Red Army. The same year, 1979, Islamic Revolution in neighboring Iran dealt Carter a double domestic blow, spiked oil prices and led to a humiliating failed raid, Operation Eagle Claw, in April 1980 to rescue Americans captured by theocratic revolutionaries in Tehran.
[11:05:25]
CARTER: I can't stand here tonight and say it doesn't hurt.
ROBERTSON: Events overseas contributed to his 1980 election loss.
CARTER: The people of the United States have made their choice and, of course, I accept that decision.
ROBERTSON: But out office and the limelight, his global peacemaking grew. In 1994, he was the first former US president to visit North Korea, met Kim Il-Sung, the grandfather of today's leader, Kim Jong- Un, at a time of U.S-North Korean tensions, won concessions on North Korea's nuclear program, dialing back tensions for a decade. But 1994 was his big year of high profile peacemaking. In September, he went to Haiti. Raoul Cedras, the Caribbean nation's unpopular leader, was holed up in Port-au-Prince. Carter convinced him to step down, quite literally, as the US 82nd Airborne troops were inbound aboard Black Hawk helicopters ready to remove Cedras by force. Carter won the day, saved lives. The US troops landed as de facto peacekeepers.
And later that year, Carter went to the dark heart of Bosnia's violent ethnic civil war, met the nationalist Serbs in their mountain stronghold parley tried to stop their bloody, murderous siege and shelling of the capital, Sarajevo, bring an end to the killing that claimed hundreds of thousands of lives during horrific ethnic cleansing. Success came slowly, in steps, Carter helped initiate a short Christmas ceasefire, and by his presence push the horrific conflict toward greater international attention.
RICHARD HOLBROOKE, US DIPLOMAT : We have work to do. We have to go back to it now. Thank you very much.
ROBERTSON: Less than a year later, another US diplomat, Richard Holbrooke, parlayed Carter's brief calm into the war ending Dayton Peace Accords. 1994 marked a peak in Carter's peacemaking, but far from the end of it. He helped found a group of seasoned international diplomats known as the Elders, whose work spanned the Mideast and far beyond. He helped the charity Habitat for Humanity change lives, building affordable homes, often showing up to help with construction himself.
In 2002, he was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development. It was a path he'd picked, a post-presidency with meaning and he followed it right up to his death. Nic Robertson, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: Ryan Young joins us live now from President Carter's hometown of Plains, Georgia. Ryan, can you hear me? I'm just making sure.
RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I can. (CROSSTALK)
ASHER: OK, good. People think about President Carter, they think about somebody who had great courage, humility, faith, compassion, genuine compassion, somebody who truly lived to be of service to others. Just talk us through how people there in Plains, Georgia are remembering him.
YOUNG: I love the way you open that up, because I feel like a lot of people are celebrating his life more than mourning his life at this point. And when you think about how small this town is, you're talking about a town of 700 people, everyone seems to have a Jimmy Carter story.
I mean, you have this conversation all the time when someone passes and you go to a town. Yes, there are some people who know someone, but everyone here lives and breathes the idea of this whole town is surrounded by the Carters. You can see that big sign behind me where he accepted that Democratic nomination is., is still up right here. He wanted all these shops to remain open after his death because he realized tourists would be flooding into this area, and he wanted to make sure the businesses downtown were able to make some money because he really was concerned about the economy here.
We've seen tractors and logging trucks go by us. And you think about the man who controlled one of the most powerful nations in the world, comes from such a small area, a peanut farmer, then went on to the Naval Academy and did so much after his presidency when you think about Habitat for Humanity, and now that global outreach, and you think about the diseases that he went after.
[11:10:13]
So this was a man who did so much. In fact, take a listen to the mayor here talk about the man so many knew and loved.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOZE GODWIN, FORMER MAYOR OF PLAINS, GEORGIA (via phone): I've known him since I was a child. He was not only my friend, though, he's a friend to everybody in town. And we've lost not just a president, but a friend and a person that never forgot the people here, regardless of what a position held.
Also, he's going to be buried here, and that's a deliberate move to keep people coming about to visit. On his part, even in death, he hadn't forgot the town.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YOUNG: Zain, you know, often in life, we talk about the things that people want. Well, guess what? People want family, and a lot of people want love. And you think about the Carters being together for some 70 years, the fact that Jimmy Carter's mother delivered his wife because she was a nurse and she helped deliver babies, that connection in this community where people know each other by where they live, oh, that's the Carter house, or that's the Carter's grave.
That connection is all woven through this entire town. And when you drive here, it's almost like stepping back in the past. I mean, one of the reasons why I was checking my ear is because those large industrial farming trucks and machinery is all around here.
And you get the idea that this is not just about losing the former president. For this community, it's about losing a loved one and someone who meant so much to this area.
ASHER: Yes, he really did have that common touch, you know. He was -- he was everyman. And that's what people loved about Jimmy Carter.
YOUNG: Absolutely.
ASHER: One of the most unselfish people that I think that I've come across in terms of people in the public eye. Ryan, we have to leave it there. Thank you so much. OK.
Let's bring in Jane Harman, President Emerita at the Wilson Center, and a former US Democratic Representative. Jane, thank you so much for being with us.
When people think about Jimmy Carter and they think about his legacy, oftentimes they think about the fact that, you know, maybe his time in office was mired in a lot of difficulty, a lot of challenges. But they look at his post-presidency and they say, yes, this is where he really achieved. It wasn't so much during the four years in office, it was after he left office where he really began to shine. Is that a fair assessment do you think?
JANE HARMAN, PRESIDENT EMERITA, WILSON CENTER: Not quite. His four years being pluses in the (inaudible) described by the very good (inaudible) that preceded (inaudible) include the -- between Israel and that took a lot of work David. And if Carter hadn't walked between the two small cabins to force the two men to make peace, I don't think what happened.
There's one, Panama Canal Treaty firmed and reflects his moral -0- he thought it was wrong for the US to operate something in Panama. I think adding human rights as a tenet of our foreign policy not only was the right thing to do then but Ronald looked it up. He said Carter was a Reagan Democrat and Reagan was a Carter Republican.
I mean, there was (inaudible) in terms of the way they viewed some issues including non-proliferation. I think his presidency was very well-appreciated but it was afterwards. And yes, his post-presidency which lasted decades longer -- was longer and very successful.
Just a couple of points, though. I was a deputy cabinet secretary in the Carter White House. It was an early job for me after being counseled to a US Senate Committee. I (inaudible) I got to know Carter and stayed friends with him, and my husband, Sidney Harman, at the time as Deputy Secretary of Commerce (inaudible) '92 Carter sent me a note that with a 500 --
ASHER: All right, Jane. Jane, unfortunately we are having a lot of issues with your audio. I can't actually hear you properly but thank you so much for being with us. Jane Harman essentially talking about the fact that there were some highlights, some successful high points during the Carter presidency. Especially she talked about the Camp David Accords, the fact that Jimmy Carter really facilitated making help make peace between Israel and Egypt.
Jane, if you can hear me, we have to leave it there. Thank you so much.
All right. Still to come, we'll take a closer look at one of Carter's most significant achievements as president, the first peace deal in history as I was just talking about between Israel and one of its Arab neighbors. Plus, a steadfast advocate for the rights of the most vulnerable. World leaders are pressed praising Carter's compassion, his empathy, his life and his legacy. We'll have much more on their reactions just ahead. [11:15:10]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARTER: War may sometimes be a necessary evil. But no matter how necessary, it is always evil, never a good. We will not learn how to live together in peace by killing each other's children. The bond of our common humanity is stronger than the divisiveness of our fears and prejudices.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: That was former US President Jimmy Carter accepting the Nobel Peace Prize back in 2002. Carter passed away on Sunday at the age of 100. During his presidency, one of Jimmy Carter's most significant achievements was the Camp David Accords, a peace deal reached after extensive and exhaustive negotiations between Egypt and Israel. Our Christiane Amanpour looks at what the agreement meant for his presidency and the world.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN ANCHOR: Peace in the Middle East, the impossible dream. But President Jimmy Carter wasn't afraid to take it on inviting two of the world's fiercest enemies to the White House retreat at Camp David in 1978.
Jimmy Carter had been derided for his administration's foreign policy failures, partly because he's considered to have lost a US friendly Iran to the ayatollahs. But the Camp David Accords were his geopolitical triumph. He managed to strike a deal between Israel's Menachem Begin and Egypt's Anwar Sadat.
But this moment really got started a year earlier, when the cameras flew, flashed and rolled to capture Sadat's journey into enemy territory.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There has never in all these years been anything as striking and dramatic as this.
AMANPOUR: Indeed, Sadat had made a massive gamble that coming in peace to Jerusalem, becoming the first Arab leader to visit Israel and speak directly to its people would pay off. But the two Middle East leaders failed to reach a deal on their own, enter the American president.
Carter recognized a rare opportunity to act as the indispensable mediator.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Almost never in our history has a president devoted so much time on a single problem.
AMANPOUR: He had studied the characters and histories of the two leaders who deeply mistrusted each other. He wrote Sadat and Begin personal letters inviting them to Camp David. [11:20:08]
And when they arrived on American soil, it was high stakes for all three men involved.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Failure here would just increase the impression that Mr. Carter is a nice man but an inept president.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This meeting is truly historic and the people who will participate know it.
AMANPOUR: Thirteen days of intense negotiations, crucially behind closed doors, no leaks, no social media, no media at all.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Israeli delegation is totally zipped up. Even less is coming out of it than is coming out of the Egyptian delegation.
AMANPOUR: At Camp David, Carter and his team shuttle back and forth between the two men and their teams, often negotiating late into the night. Carter's national security advisor, the late Zbigniew Brzezinski, described what looked like mission impossible.
ZBIGNIEW BRZEZINSKI, FORMER CARTER NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: Sadat, to sign a peace treaty with Begin, had to break ranks with the entire Arab world. He had to face isolation. Begin, to agree with Sadat, had to give up territory for the first time and to give up settlements.
AMANPOUR: When direct talks between Sadat and Begin became too heated, Carter kept them apart and quashed any attempt to call off the negotiations. After two weeks of complications, drama and false starts, the men finally returned to Washington to deliver the good news, they had reached a deal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just look at me two weeks ago, what the situation was. Peace process all but dead.
CARTER: An achievement none thought possible.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It appears that the President won and he won big.
AMANPOUR: Decades after Camp David, I sat down with President Carter and asked him how in the world he had done it.
There you were, you brought peace with Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat. It all seemed so much easier then, was it? Or is that just what we think now, all these years later?
CARTER: I think it was much more difficult because I was negotiating between two men whose nations had been at war four times in just 25 years.
AMANPOUR: The magnitude of that accomplishment lives on in the image of that three way handshake. The Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin summed it up like this.
MENACHEM BEGIN, FORMER ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: The Camp David Conference should be renamed, it was the Jimmy Carter Conference.
AMANPOUR: The final result, Israel would return the Sinai Peninsula to Egypt, a piece of land the two had fought wars over. Egypt would finally recognize Israel's right to exist and give Israel access to the crucial Suez Canal shipping lanes. Both leaders declared no more fighting.
All three men would eventually be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. But one thing wouldn't change, Arabs called Sadat a traitor. Three years later, he was assassinated by Muslim extremist in his own country. Still, many years later, President Carter told me that he was proud of this first peace deal between Arabs and Israelis.
CARTER: The peace treaty that was negotiated between Israel and Egypt over extremely difficult circumstances was beneficial to both sides. And not a single word of the treaty has been violated. It was much more difficult than the altercation between the Israelis and the Palestinians is today.
AMANPOUR: And that conflict, the one between Palestinians and Israelis, still rages on to this day. But it doesn't alter the fact that there was a shining moment when Jimmy Carter engaged the full and indispensable role of the United States and changed one corner of the Middle East forever. Christiane Amanpour, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: World leaders are looking back on Jimmy Carter's legacy and offering condolences to the Carter's family as well. Pope Francis is commending the former US president for his deep Christian faith and noted Carter's "firm commitment to the cause of reconciliation and peace between peoples."
French President Emmanuel Macron is celebrating the Nobel Peace Prize winner on social media writing, "Throughout his life, Jimmy Carter has been a steadfast advocate for the rights of the most vulnerable and has tirelessly fought for peace. France sends its heartfelt thoughts to his family and to the American people."
That sentiment was echoed by Great Britain's King Charles, who is remembering Carter as a "committed public servant who devoted his life to promoting peace and human rights. His dedication and humility served as an inspiration to many," all right.
Let's bring in Kate Andersen Brower. She's the author of "The Residence: Inside the Private World of the White House," and she joins us live now from Washington. Kate, thank you so much for being with us.
[11:25:01]
When you think about what most presidents do after they leave office, I mean, some obviously turn to making money, others move on from politics, others decide to dedicate their time to charities, and to causes, and to humanitarian issues around the world. It would have been easy given some of the failures that we've talked about in Jimmy Carter's presidency. It would have been easy for him to completely retreat from public view after his four years in office.
The fact that he didn't, the fact that he chose to take on a bigger role, almost using the White House as a stepping stone, taking on a much bigger role as a humanitarian, what does that tell you about his character, Kate?
KATE ANDERSEN BROWER, AUTHOR, "EXPLORING THE WHITE HOUSE": Well, it tells you that he was a very authentic person. I had the chance to interview him and his wife, Rosalynn Carter, and they were really a team in everything they did. And the Carter Center, interestingly, was both of their work, you know, they did this together.
And I went to Maranatha Baptist Church in their tiny in Plains, Georgia, where they sat and shook every person's hand who came in and listened to his Sunday school sermon. He delivered about a thousand of these sermons, and it's impossible to be in his presence and not feel that sense of authenticity. You know, he said faith is a verb, not a noun to him, and he really lived his life that way.
I think he redefined what it means to be a former president. He did not cash in on it the way that we have seen other presidents do. And I think that he's got, you know, issued a blueprint for every president to follow, to kind of want to help people around, not only the country, but the world.
And you see President Obama doing some of that, too, using his former presidency, you know, as a stepping stone on a global stage rather than just a national one.
ASHER: Yes. I was going to say that out of anyone, I think that, you know, President Obama has sort of taken on this role as an elder statesman of the Democratic Party. And, you know, definitely there is some overlap. But I do think it's interesting with Jimmy Carter because it's obvious that his faith played a huge role in how he conducted his affairs after leaving office, but just talk to us about how his faith played a role in how he conducted his affairs while in the White House, too.
ANDERSEN BROWER: Well, you know, you were talking about Camp David earlier, and I think that his deep interest in bringing peace to the Middle East came spiritual place, and he was able to use that human connection that he had. One of the things I love is a story where he -- when the negotiations were breaking bad, it looked like they were going nowhere.
He went to Menachem Begin, the Israeli leader's cabin at Camp David, and presented him with the photograph of himself, Sadat and Begin, and signed it to Begin's grandchildren and said, you know, we tried our best. Here's the photograph, you know.
And this is something that really hit Begin hard. This is going to affect generations to come if they could reach some sort of agreement. And I think tapping into that was what led the kind of empathy and human connection is what led to an actual agreement there. So I think he did that throughout his time in the White House. And yes, he did lose reelection and I think that's something that stuck with him the rest of his life. Being a one term president is a difficult place to be. But as you said, he turned it into something that I think there is no former president who has done more for the world than Jimmy Carter.
ASHER: I mean, 100 percent, it's not just about, you know, Habitat for Humanity, for example. It's also even in Africa working to almost virtually eradicate a disease. I mean, I think that guinea worm in Africa is the only disease, after smallpox, that could be close to being completely eradicated thanks to the work of Jimmy Carter and the Carter Center.
We've talked about how much of a role faith has played, but also how much did a role of the, you know, the fact that he was an outsider. Obviously he was governor of Georgia for one term as well but, yes, we've talked a lot about how much of a miracle journey, you know, this man rose from being a peanut farmer in Plains, Georgia to becoming the 39th president of the United States.
The fact that he was an outsider, he was not a Washington insider, how did that affect how he viewed his role in the White House?
ANDERSEN BROWER: Well, you know, I interviewed President Trump about Jimmy Carter for a book I did about the former presidents and how Trump was an outlier too. He said, Trump said, you know that he saw some similarities between himself and Jimmy Carter. Of course, policy wise, there are none, but they were outsiders.
In fact, Trump called Jimmy Carter, he's one of the only presidents, the only president I know of, that he sought advice from about China and trade. And it tells you a lot about Jimmy Carter is that, he was at a friend's house with a paper plate, putting buffet food on his plate, because he just lived a very modest life.
[11:30:13]
And he was just scooping food onto his plate, and he gets a call from the White House. He steps outside for 10 minutes, takes the call with President Trump. This was when Trump was in office the first time, and has a conversation with him and sits back down, and starts eating.
And people around him at the table said, how did it go? And he said it was fine. He was just a very down to earth person. And he was an outlier. He had a difficult time in Washington because of it.
Katherine Graham, you know, the Washington Post, the kind of -- the status symbols in D.C. They looked down their nose at him and it kind of reminds me of LBJ in some ways, the way that the Carters were treated. And it stuck with them.
I interviewed Rosalynn Carter and I asked her about how she made -- there were reports that she made clothes for Amy. And Rosalynn said that wasn't true. I didn't actually sew clothes for Amy, that was kind of made up to make me look like a southern person who wasn't, you know, cultured as the northern elites. And so, I think they were outsiders in a lot of ways.
ASHER: So what -- I mean, I think the story that you shared about, you know, President Carter speaking to president. I mean, obviously the two men didn't see eye to eye, and President Carter made that very, very clear. But obviously, you know, he had the humility to go outside and give former President Trump advice, you know, and be helpful where he could
I mean, President Carter seemed to be somebody who conducted his life with the sole goal of being truly helpful in everything that he did. What do you think other people, other presidents I should say, can learn from someone like Jimmy Carter?
ANDERSEN BROWER: Well, I mean, they can learn empathy, forgiveness. I mean, this is not something we see in Washington today. Jimmy Carter and Gerald Ford were bitter rivals in 1976, and they go on a trip to Sadat's funeral in 1981, and they come back best friends. And Carter delivers the eulogy at Ford's funeral.
I mean, these are a Republican and a Democrat who had a lot you could say in common in their life's work, not in their politics. And I think former presidents could learn to work together and really speak their minds.
I mean, another thing that Jimmy Carter did was he believed that some of Mideast policy during the Bush administration, for instance, was going in the wrong direction. And he actually wrote op-eds about this. He wrote a book criticizing the current administration.
He didn't always abide by the rules of the president's club, which is not ever criticizing the sitting president. And I think there's something important about that. He was always true to himself, and that's something we don't always see today.
ASHER: Yes. I mean, it's almost a cliche to say that President Carter was such an inspiration, but I mean, you know, I mean, it's a cliche because it's true, you know. He was such an inspiration. Just a really beautiful soul.
Kate, thank you so much for your insight. We appreciate it.
ANDERSEN BROWER: Thank you.
ASHER: All right. Still to come, a country in mourning, we're learning new information about the horrific crash that claimed 179 lives in South Korea. Plus, US President Joe Biden races to provide Ukraine with crucial aid before Donald Trump takes office next month. We have a live report for you just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:35:51]
ASHER: All right. Welcome back. You're watching CNN Newsroom, I'm Zain Asher in New York. Here are some of the international headlines we are following for you today. The World Health Organization says that Northern Gaza's last remaining major hospital is now out of service after Israeli forces raided the facility and forced everyone to evacuate, including critically ill patients.
The hospital's director was detained. Israel says Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahia was being used as a Hamas command and control center, but did not provide evidence to support that claim.
A hardline critic of the West has been sworn in as president of Georgia after disputed parliamentary election. Mikheil Kavelashvili was the only candidate in the running after opposition parties boycotted the process to elect a president, saying that it was illegitimate.
The far right former lawmaker and ex-professional football player was chosen by parliament instead of the popular vote. His party has suspended EU secession talks, triggering weeks of protests.
The president of Azerbaijan is accusing Russia of accidentally causing the plane crash that killed 38 people in Kazakhstan last week, but then covering it up. The country leader told state media "no one can deny Russia shot down the plane," adding, "we are not saying that this was done intentionally." Russian President Vladimir Putin apologized for what he called a tragic incident that he stopped short of taking responsibility.
And South Korea is mourning a deadly plane crash that killed 179 people on Sunday. Flags are at half staff as the country grieves for the victims of the Jeju Air crash. Officials say the pilot reported a bird strike minutes before the deadly landing.
South Korea's acting president now ordering an emergency safety inspection of the country's entire airline operations systems. A team of US federal investigators will assist in the investigation. CNN's Mike Valerio reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, we're getting a better sense of how expansive the debris field is. And right now we're only a couple yards away from the epicenter of the debris field. That is the tail section of the Boeing 737-800, which managed to survive relatively, and I stress relatively, intact 15 yards high.
And this is the section of the plane where the two survivors were pulled from, rescued by first responders minutes after this plane was engulfed in flames. So we're going to pan to the left, that's where you can see this massive yellow crane that will be charged with moving pieces of the wreckage. Then we're going to pan down and you can see parts of the aircraft that were hurled, jettisoned beyond the cinder block perimeter of the airport.
And this is what investigators from South Korea, the NTSB from the United States will be pouring over, scouring over as they investigate certainly what went wrong and were there any mechanical issues that contributed to the landing gear not deploying. But, you know, I think we got a better sense during the day as we pan further to my right, just showing you that some of this debris was hurled from the aircraft a distance longer than a football field.
Just to give you the sense of the force of this crash. During the daylight hours, we saw tray tables, yellow inflatable vests, seats that were mangled, and members of the military that were combing this area that we're looking at after sunset looking for potential human remains, looking for passengers' belongings, and cataloging certain elements of the aircraft, certain pieces of the aircraft.
We are waiting for the NTSB team to get on the scene to begin their work. That is the next part of this equation when it comes to the investigation, figuring out what went wrong. And we do know that one of the black box components has been damaged, and it's questionable, an open question rather, whether or not it will have to be sent to the United States for examination. Mike Valerio, CNN, Muan, South Korea.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[11:40:02]
ASHER: The US has announced nearly $6 billion in additional aid to Ukraine. Earlier, US President Joe Biden unveiled nearly $2.5 billion in security assistance to Kyiv, and what the White House says in an attempt to put Ukraine in the strongest possible position as Russia steps up its attacks.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen also said the US has made available $3.4 billion as well in direct budget support. It comes as Donald Trump, who has been a vocal critic of US aid to Ukraine, is set to take power in just a matter of weeks. CNN's Natasha Bertrand joins us live now from the Pentagon.
So, Natasha, of course, I was going to say you can't really ignore the timing of all of this. When Donald Trump steps into the Oval Office on January 20, we don't know what exactly he's going to do when it comes to Ukraine. So just in terms of how much this additional age -- aid rather can actually impact the battlefield and Ukraine's position, albeit temporarily, what can you tell us?
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes. I mean, look, President Biden has about three weeks left in office and the administration is under no illusions about just how much or how little the next administration is going to be providing to Ukraine, given that President Trump has said repeatedly that he wants this war to end really within the first few months, if not sooner of his administration.
And so, it remains to be seen whether the administration under Trump is going to continue to surge this kind of assistance to the Ukrainians. But in terms of what this administration is trying to send as quickly as possible now to Ukraine, it involves essentially drawing everything possible from the administration, from the Defense Department stockpiles that they can actually take, which is available, and sending it to Ukraine on such an expedited timeline.
Whether or not that makes a real difference in Ukraine's battlefield situation remains to be seen, because the administration has been surging equipment to the Ukrainians over the last several months. Yes, they are in a final sprint now, but still we are seeing the Ukrainians lose a significant amount of territory in the Kursk Region that they took back in August. And it remains unclear at this point whether they have enough manpower to actually sustain offensives against the Russians.
And so that is the big question at this point. So while the administration is trying to use up in its waning days all of this money that Congress had appropriated, had given to the administration earlier this year back in April, you know, they are still going to run short. And that is because they don't have enough equipment in those stockpiles to actually send to Ukraine immediately in terms of the munitions that it needs, the tanks, the rocket systems, all of this that would be coming from, you know, US stockpiles needs to also be replenished at the same time.
And so, they're doing as much as they can, as quickly as they can but still, you know, ultimately this is going to come down to what the next administration decides to do over the next year, four years of their of the Trump administration. And it's completely unclear at this point, including to the Ukrainians, whether or not they're going to continue that support, Zain.
ASHER: Natasha Bertrand at the Pentagon for us. Thank you so much. All right.
We are continuing to remember the life of Jimmy Carter. After the break, we'll look at the former president's relationship with his Christian faith. That's next.
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[11:45:26]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CARTER: Well, the best thing I ever did was marrying Rosalynn. That's the pinnacle of my life. And we've had 69 years together, still together. And so, that's the best thing that happened to me.
But I think getting involved in politics and going up, you know, as a state senator, then governor and president of the United States is obviously glorious event., so -- and we have a growing family. We have 22 grandchildren and great grandchildren, 12 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren now, and they come in every year. So we have a good and harmonious family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: We are remembering the life and legacy of former US President Jimmy Carter. The late president was really open about his deeply held Christian faith. It was something he spoke about without any kind of political motivation. CNN's Jake Tapper looks at how faith shaped Carter and his presidency.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CARTER: I, Jimmy Carter, do solemnly swear.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Jimmy Carter faced the American presidency the same way he faced nearly everything else in his life, with unflinching faith.
CARTER: I have just taken the oath office on the Bible my mother gave me to just a few years ago.
TAPPER: And as Americans look to President Carter to lead them, President Carter looked to God for guidance.
CARTER: With God's help and for the sake of our nation, it is time for us to join hands in America.
TAPPER: As a devout evangelical, the pride of Plains, Georgia was active in his hometown church well into his 90s.
CARTER: Well, thank you for coming this morning.
TAPPER: Both as a student of faith and as a teacher.
CARTER: My father was a Sunday school teacher. He taught me when I was a child. I still teach Sunday school when I can.
TAPPER: A commitment to God and family were long held hallmarks of the Carter home.
DOUGLAS BRINKLEY, PRESIDENTIAL HISTORIAN: Scripture was part of his daily childhood life. Every night at supper, they would not only say the Lord's Prayer, but would read the Gospel.
TAPPER: When Carter left home for the Naval Academy, his faith followed.
BRINKLEY: He would spend his weekends on leave doing Bible classes, tutoring people in scripture. He talks about Jesus Christ all the time.
TAPPER: But in 1966, the lifelong Christian came to question his beliefs. His faith shaken after losing the Georgia governor's race in the primary.
CARTER: I really felt let down by God.
TAPPER: Carter's younger sister read him scripture from the Book of James, reminding the future president --
CARTER: That a setback in life should be an institution that results in perseverance and patience, and self analysis and renewed spiritual commitment.
STUART EIZENSTAT, PRESIDENT CARTER'S FORMER POLICY ADVISER: She made him into what evangelicals called a born again Christian.
TAPPER: With renewed conviction, Carter went on to serve as Georgia's governor, and later as America's commander in chief. The 39th president and his new vice president, Walter Mondale, had Christianity in common. They bonded over it.
WALTER MONDALE, FORMER US VICE PRESIDENT: I grew up in a minister's family, and he recognized what I was about. And I think that's one of the things that pulled us together.
TAPPER: It was also one of the qualities that helped Carter become the first president to welcome the Pope to the White House.
CARTER: Let all of us here, of every faith, stand as one under God for peace and justice, and for love.
TAPPER: The president's knowledge of world religion played a key role in his brokering of the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty in 1979, a key accomplishment of his administration.
PETER BOURNE, PRESIDENT CARTER'S FORMER ADVISER: Because of his intimate reading of the Bible and other religious documents, he felt an intimacy with almost the land of the Middle East. And he just thought that was the most important thing that he could do as president.
TAPPER: But Carter's devotion to service did not end with his presidency. The former peanut farmer dedicated his energy to humanitarian work, building homes for the poor, even as he neared his 95th birthday.
CARTER: I happen to be a Christian, and it's a practical way to put my religious beliefs into practical use.
[11:50:04]
TAPPER: While he continued to refer to himself humbly --
CARTER: I'm a Sunday school teacher, but I have a lot of people that confide in me.
TAPPER: President Carter and his namesake Carter Center touched the lives of millions.
CARTER: Well, work at the Carter Center has been, I'd say, more personally gratifying to me.
TAPPER: Founded in 1982 as part of his presidential library, the Carter Center has worked to ensure the fairness of more than 100 elections in nearly 40 countries and is credited with virtually eliminating diseases like guinea worm that had long burdened parts of Africa.
CARTER: Guinea worm is probably one of the oldest diseases remembered by human beings. It's in the Bible. We think it's a fiery serpent. TAPPER: For his work, Jimmy Carter earned the Nobel Peace Prize in
2002. In addition to his philanthropic work, Jimmy Carter was a prolific author. He published more than 25 books touching on his belief in God, country and kindness. You only have to have two loves in your life, he wrote, for God and for the person in front of you at any particular time.
The person with Carter most was his wife, Rosalynn, who worshiped alongside him for more than seven decades.
CARTER: When I'm overseas or when she is, we read the same passage in the Bible and we kind of, you know, communicate silently.
TAPPER: Even when cancer threatened to take Mr. Carter from his wife and from the life he loved, he kept his faith and looked again to God.
CARTER: Now I feel, you know, this is the hands of God, whom I worship, and I'll be prepared for anything that comes.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right. Before we go, one last thing for you. London is expecting huge parties and massive crowds of revelers trying to get home after they ring in the New Year. And the city's transport is getting ready. CNN's Anna Stewart has a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: From parties on the tube, to scenes like this, the struggle to get home, New Year's Eve is a big night and a major challenge for transport for London. Time to see how it all works from the driver's seat.
Do you get nervous, like, going into the platform and seeing huge crowds?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Takes a certain individual to become a driver. For you to have, like, say, nerves of steel, you're coming in a platform, you can't be too jittery, you can't be too jumpy, can't be too shaky. You just got to come in knowing that in your mind everything's fine.
STEWART: Fortunately for Stefan, there are many more eyeballs on platforms on the night.
RALPH DAVISON, NETWORK RESILIENCE STRATEGY MANAGER, TRANSPORT FOR LONDON: So we have additional staff. All over the combine, we have additional staff and we ask them to keep an eye out on absolutely everyone.
STEWART: The team here starts planning for New Year's Eve in July, and then they manage the crowds by watching it all unfold live from this control center.
DAVISON: Your safety is our priority. STEWART: To prevent overcrowding, you may have to queue outside
stations for, well, quite a while. And once you've made it onto a tube, the party may continue, giving drivers like Stefan some light relief.
[11:55:00]
STEFAN YOUNG, TRAIN DRIVER: It gives me something to do look at, have a little giggle to myself because obviously everyone's been out having a good time enjoying New Year's Eve, and I've been stuck in my little office.
STEWART: Of course, the little office does come with a perk, the power to chat to the passengers.
YOUNG: Almost again, mind the gap between the train and the platform.
STEWART: This is Anna Stewart from CNN. Happy New Year, and please mind the gap.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: And CNN will have a special coverage of New Year's Eve across the globe. Tune in December 31st at midday London time to follow all the festivities, all the way from the fireworks in Sydney, Australia to the ball drop at midnight here in New York City.
And thank you so much for spending part of your day with me, I'm Zain Asher in New York. Stick with CNN. I'll have much more news for you One World after the short break.
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