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Ukraine Agrees To U.S. Proposal For 30-Day Ceasefire; Trump Backs Off New Tariff Threat On Canada; Former Philippine President Duterte Put On Plane To The Hague; Greenland Votes In Election Dominated By Trump; Tesla Faces Vandalism, Protests And Backlash Against Musk. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired March 12, 2025 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:33]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello. I'm Polo Sandoval live in New York City.

Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, Leaders say the ball is now in Russia's court with Ukraine agreeing to pause -- at least to pause the fighting after marathon negotiations with the U.S. Plus, Donald Trump backing down on his latest tariff threat following a concession from Canada and another rough day on Wall Street. And Greenlanders, they are heading to the polls, weighing both the possibility of independence from Denmark and a takeover by the United States.

Russia is facing even more pressure to halt the war in Ukraine now that Kyiv has signed on to the 30-day ceasefire proposed by the U.S. Ukraine has agreed to the plan during marathon negotiations with the American delegation in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Ahead of the talks, the U.S. Secretary of State said that he would be listening for possible concessions Ukraine would make in a peace deal. But still, there's no word on what Ukraine might be willing to give up. Still, a temporary ceasefire would be progress. And now the onus is on Russia to cooperate.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We'll take this offer now to the Russians, and we hope that they'll say yes. That they'll say yes to peace. The ball is now in their court, and -- but again, the president's objective here is, number one, above everything else, he wants the war to end. And I think today Ukraine has taken a concrete step in that regard. We hope the Russians will reciprocate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Meanwhile, back in Washington, the U.S. president welcomed the news and said that he would speak to Russia's Vladimir Putin, possibly as early as this week about this proposal. Donald Trump has also said that he would be willing to invite the Ukrainian president back to the White House. This despite their explosive confrontation last month. Volodymyr Zelenskyy had this to say about the proposed ceasefire. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Ukraine accepts this proposal. We consider it positive. We are ready to take such a step and the United States of America must convince Russia to do so. That is, we agree. And if the Russians agree, the silence will work at that very moment.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: As for European leaders, they are also on board. The European Commission president, writing, "This is a positive development that can be a step towards a comprehensive, just and lasting peace for Ukraine. The ball is now in Russia's court," she wrote.

CNN's Alex Marquardt has more now on the negotiations. He reports from Jeddah.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: This was a remarkable turnaround for the U.S.-Ukraine relationship that has really been on the rocks for the past week and a half since that disastrous meeting in the Oval Office between Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy.

Here in Jeddah the U.S. delegation praising the Ukrainians not just for their willingness to talk about a peace settlement with Russia and their commitment to achieving one, but also for the concrete proposals the U.S. said that the Ukrainians brought to the table.

Ukrainians had been talking about a partial ceasefire with Russia. Instead, the U.S. is now proposing an immediate, comprehensive, 30-day ceasefire. That's something that the Ukrainians immediately signed on to. And now the onus is essentially on Russia to accept this. And this is going to be communicated to the Russians by U.S. officials at several different levels in the coming days.

And because of how well the talks went in Jeddah, the U.S. also immediately lifted the American freeze on military assistance and intelligence sharing that is so crucial to the Ukrainian efforts to defend themselves against the Russians.

So two very notable outcomes from these talks here in Jeddah. The ball is now very much in Russia's court, as Secretary Rubio said. And it remains to be seen how Moscow is going to respond to this new American pressure.

Alex Marquardt, CNN, Jeddah.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: For more now, I'm joined by former ambassador to Ukraine Steven Pifer. He is also an affiliate of the Center for International Security and Cooperation, and a research fellow at Stanford University.

Ambassador, thanks for joining us.

STEVEN PIFER, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: Happy to be here.

SANDOVAL: So what do you make of this ceasefire agreement proposal with the understanding that Russia still has to respond? How hopeful are you that a peace settlement will eventually materialize?

[00:05:06]

PIFER: Well, I think there's still some very difficult questions that are going to have to be answered once the sides get at the negotiating table. But the good news is the damage that was done 11 days ago in the Oval Office when the vice president sort of provoked that argument, I think we're past that now. So the United States has resumed intelligence sharing and has resumed arms shipments. And now, really, the test is now up to the Russians to see how they'll respond.

SANDOVAL: So this -- if I'm hearing you right, Ambassador, so you think this is a sign that relationship between the United States and Ukraine has improved since that pretty disastrous encounter that you referenced from the Oval Office?

PIFER: Yes, I think it's improved. And if you look at the last month, the last month has really seen kind of Ukraine in the crosshairs. So back in mid-February, you had the president and you had the secretary of Defense saying, well, Ukraine can't get all of its territory back. It can't hope to join NATO, which was an odd thing to be saying if you're going to try to broker an arrangement when the negotiations haven't even begun, and then you had the unfortunate meeting at the Oval Office 11 days ago.

And it's been a month where Moscow has really enjoyed a free ride. Well, now there's some ideas on the table. There's been a good discussion between Secretary Rubio and his Ukrainian counterparts. And now the question is going to be, is Moscow prepared to negotiate. Based on what they were saying last week, they were not prepared to make concessions so it'll be interesting to see what answer comes out of Moscow in the next day or two.

SANDOVAL: Right. And we also heard on Tuesday, the Secretary of State Marco Rubio, after that meeting, tell reporters that if Russia says no, then we will all know what the impediment to peace is.

So let me ask you, Ambassador, what if Russia says no? Again, we're still waiting to hear from the Kremlin and to see what their next move will be. But what could we see as the next potential step to prevent a seemingly never-ending dialogue and actually promote peace?

PIFER: Yes. Well, I think the next step would be at least my recommendation would be is then, the administration has a lot of leverage it could use on Russia if it chose to do so. So it could tighten sanctions. It could ask Congress for more military assistance funding for Ukraine. It could work with other members of the G7 to begin moving to seize the $300 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets.

Those steps would begin to make it clear, I think, to the Kremlin, that if you don't get serious about a negotiation, this war is only going to be more Russian casualties, more pressure on the Russian economy. And so you want to create a situation where the Kremlin sees real costs to not negotiating seriously. That would increase I think the chances that the Kremlin would begin to look for a more accommodating position.

SANDOVAL: The big question, will Russia agree? And if we do see a ceasefire, will they honor it? That is all yet to be seen.

So, Ambassador, thank you very much for sharing your expertise, your experience and certainly your time.

PIFER: You're very welcome. Have a good evening.

SANDOVAL: U.S. President Donald Trump has reversed course on what was an extraordinary escalation in his trade war with Canada, which would have seen a doubling of tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. The president signaling that he'd backed down after Ontario agreed to suspend a 25 percent surcharge on electricity to U.S. customers in three states. Ontario's premier says that he'll now meet with U.S. Commerce secretary and Canada's Finance minister to renegotiate a free trade treaty.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG FORD, ONTARIO PREMIER: They understand how serious we are about the electricity and the tariffs, and rather than going back and forth and having threats to each other, we have both agreed, let cooler heads prevail. We need to sit down and move this forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And it's just about eight minutes past midnight in Washington, D.C. and that means that the White House is moving forward with implementing that 25 percent tariffs on all steel imports into the U.S. with Trump still threatening that it may go up higher at a business roundtable.

All the uncertainty surrounding tariffs and fears of a recession have rattled investors and the U.S. markets, with all three major indices closing another day in the red.

Mr. Trump now says that he doesn't see a recession at all this year, just days after refusing to rule out the possibility. His comments, though, it did little to calm the markets.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny is following developments from the White House.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Trump trying to strike an upbeat message on Tuesday about the economy, saying in no uncertain terms, he is not concerned about a looming recession.

[00:10:01]

Of course, that is at odds with what he said just a couple of days ago, when he left unanswered that question, which really has roiled financial markets for the rest of the week.

Now the president is simply trying to embrace the market uncertainty, the market chaos, he said. Stocks go up, stocks go down. The economy, he said, is strong.

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We had the greatest economy in history. This economy, in my opinion, is going to blow it away. I think this country is going to boom.

ZELENY: But even as the president was speaking in the final hours of trading on Tuesday, it was clear the stock rollercoaster continued with more uncertainty about the trade wars. The president threatened a 50 percent tariff on some goods coming from Canada in retaliation for Canada threatening a 25 percent tariffs on electricity for Minnesota, for Michigan and New York. Once Canada backed off on that, Trump said he too would back off on his tariff, at least in part, but going ahead with more on Wednesday for steel and aluminum.

The bottom line to all of this it's created a market uncertainty across the board, even as stocks continue to fall. Now, the president said he does believe the, you know, there is going to be some short- term pain. Acknowledge that will happen. The question, how short term and how much pain there actually will be. But the president made clear there was one stock in particular on his mind on Tuesday when he made the extraordinary step of walking out to the White House South Lawn to stroll down the driveway with Elon Musk looking at his cars, his Tesla cars.

Of course, the president has talked against electric vehicles. He said there should not be mandates. He's even taking down some charging stations. But he bought a Tesla, he said, at full price with his own money to send the signal that that was a good stock. So certainly a very curious split screen message. As stocks were going down, Trump was talking up one stock in particular, Elon Musk's Tesla.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: For more, we're joined by Pedro Antunes. He's the chief economist at the Conference Board of Canada.

Pedro, thank you so much for joining us. I've been looking forward to this.

PEDRO ANTUNES, CHIEF ECONOMIST, THE CONFERENCE BOARD OF CANADA: Well, it's a pleasure. Thanks for the -- thanks for the call.

SANDOVAL: So as you and I know, these tariffs have proven to be more than just a negotiation tactic for Donald Trump as we've seen markets tumbling the last couple of days. And President Trump has really offered few to no specifics on any sort of long-term economic plan. On Tuesday, he simply said this country is going to boom, to use his words. So that obviously would do little to reassure markets.

So at what point, Pedro, does the economic uncertainty pose an even bigger threat than the tariffs?

ANTUNES: Well, I think we're living it right now. In fact, you know, we've seen very little of tariffs applied yet. Certainly there's been lots of threats. A few of them have come on for a day or two and come back off. You know, this reminds me a little bit of what happened back in 2016 during President Trump's first term when we were essentially, you know, threatened with this dissolution of NAFTA, our free trade agreement. And that created a lot of anxiety.

But in the end, we really signed an agreement that was very similar. So I still do believe that, you know, the threat of tariffs is certainly real. I do think we're going to see some tariffs applied. But this fear and this concern around the tariffs is causing a lot of anxiety certainly in markets as we've seen. But consumer confidence is down. I think investment, certainly investment in Canada is going to be hurt by this.

SANDOVAL: I'm glad you point out we still are yet to see the full potential brunt of these tariffs. But just assuming for a second that we do see some prolonged tariffs, at any rate, at any percentage rate, how imminent could a recession be, both for us in the United States or where you are in Canada? On Tuesday, Trump insisted that it's not likely, but we've also heard from one of your fellow economists, one over at Harvard, offering some 50-50 odds that we would actually see that.

So in your view, what's the likelihood that we could get to that point on either side of the border?

ANTUNES: Yes. Well, I do think that, in fact, because the U.S. is applying tariffs not just to Canada, but in fact to Canada, Mexico and China all at the same time, you know, the impact is significant there. In fact, we think even though Canada is more dependent on our trade with the U.S., that because the U.S. is hitting across three different countries, that that trade war has spread wider, that the impacts are going to be similar.

How big they are and whether we get to a recession really depends on how long. We think if it's for a quarter, let's say three months of full brunt tariffs at 25 percent on most goods, we probably will see a decline of one quarter of activity. Sorry, if one quarter in terms of a decline in economic activity.

But if the tariffs were to last, or if markets believe that the tariffs will last, I think we could get a bigger hit. And certainly if they do last, you know, we would see a much bigger hit, easily see the economy in recession certainly in in Canada and I would argue in the U.S. as well.

[00:15:06] SANDOVAL: Certainly concerning for so many people. Now we are kind of going through this a day at a time because of that uncertainty that we've talked about already here a few moments ago. Tuesday alone, it started with Trump threatening to double tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum. That then led Canada's provincial government there essentially rolling back its planned energy surcharges over in Ontario, so, you know, in terms of those surcharges on the U.S. And then his press secretary over at the White House also shared this on Tuesday. Listen in.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president is again responding to the fact that Canada has been ripping off the United States of America and hard-working Americans for decades. If you look at the rates of tariffs across the board that Canadians have been imposing on the American people and our workers here, it is egregious.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: So certainly, there is this high level of confidence coming at least from the White House press secretary there, Pedro. But I'm curious, just overall, do you think that Donald Trump could point to Tuesday's drama and say, see, it's working, even if it's caused turmoil in the stock market?

ANTUNES: Well, I do think if the objective from the Trump administration is to really create this anxiety and create uncertainty around Canadian investors as to whether they have access to the U.S. consumer, this is really important for Canadian companies. Most manufacturing, for example, is targeted at the U.S. consumer for, you know, with good reason. The U.S. consumer and the U.S. economy, in fact, is a quarter of global GDP.

So, you know, obviously, I think we are seeing, you know, with this uncertainty investment already moving, as we saw back in 2016 with the threat of NAFTA being dissolved. Yes, so I do think it's working in that respect.

SANDOVAL: We've heard from so many experts in the United States, and we are so glad to be hearing from one of our experts and friends to the north.

Pedro, thank you so much for offering your insight. It is Trump's tariff rollercoaster and we're all on it. Let's see where it goes.

ANTUNES: Thanks for having me. It's a pleasure.

SANDOVAL: Former president of the Philippines under arrest. Ahead, the case against Rodrigo Duterte and why he's headed to The Hague.

Also, Greenlanders are voting for a future that does not involve Donald Trump. That too is coming up.

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[00:22:06]

SANDOVAL: Former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte has been put on a plane to The Hague after the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for the alleged -- for alleged crimes against humanity. The fiery populist leader has been investigated by the ICC over his deadly crackdown on drugs. His daughter Sara, who's the vice president of that country, accused authorities of kidnaping him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SARA DUTERTE, PHILIPPINE VICE PRESIDENT: There is no legal basis at all to turn over or to endorse the president, the former president to ICC.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Meanwhile, you see here critics of the former president held a demonstration and vigil to show their support for his arrest and also to honor those killed in his war on drugs spanning six years.

Greenland's pro-business opposition party is holding a clear lead so far in the territory's general election. That vote is in the international spotlight because U.S. president Donald Trump put it there. He's promising that the U.S. will one day own the Danish territory. But what people in Greenland want is really their own independence.

Here's CNN's Frederik Pleitgen with that story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): A high stakes vote in the high north. People lining up in Greenland's polling stations for an election that they feel is decisive and could determine whether they will seek independence from Denmark soon, as President Trump wants.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We don't want to be a part of the USA for obvious reasons like health care and Trump.

PLEITGEN: But President Trump does very much want Greenland to become part of the U.S.

TRUMP: And I also have a message tonight for the incredible people of Greenland. We need Greenland for national security and even international security and we're working with everybody involved to try and get it.

PLEITGEN: Fewer than 60,000 people live in Greenland, a semi- autonomous region of Denmark. But underneath the vast Arctic ice shield lie vast quantities of oil, gas, and rare earths. And global warming is causing that ice to melt fast.

Greenland also hosts a radar for America's missile defense shield. President Trump saying its strategic location between America and Europe means the U.S. must have it. Trump even deploying his son, Don Jr., on something of a fact-finding

mission in January, with a documentary film showing him speaking to some local folks, most of them wearing MAGA hats.

DONALD TRUMP JR., DONALD TRUMP'S SON: So, you like the U.S.?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like the U.S.

PLEITGEN: Even putting his dad on speakerphone.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You're right.

TRUMP: I just want to thank everybody.

TRUMP JR.: You guys like that, right?

PLEITGEN: But most here don't actually seem to like it that much. None of the major political parties favor joining the U.S. and threats from the Trump administration against Denmark, an important U.S. ally, including a reportedly fiery phone call between the president and Denmark's prime minister caused a stern rebuke from Copenhagen.

[00:25:13]

METTE FREDERIKSEN, DANISH PRIME MINISTER: Greenland is today a part of the Kingdom of Denmark, it's a part of our territory, and it's not for sale. The chairman, the leader of Greenland, has been very clear that they are not for sale.

PLEITGEN: Both the Danes and the Greenlanders making clear Greenland's future will be decided at the ballot box and not in the White House.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: President Trump returning to his salesman roots. This time he's promoting Tesla vehicles with his friend Elon Musk on the White House lawn. But the public backlash to the Tesla CEO grows.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANDOVAL: And welcome back. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Polo Sandoval in New York City.

[00:30:44]

The Trump administration is making the first move in its plan to eliminate the Department of Education, cutting nearly half of its 4,100-person workforce on Tuesday.

Security guards locking the doors to the department's building, an [SIC] employee -- as employees were informed that the offices were closing for unspecified, quote, "security reasons."

Hundreds will be laid off in addition to those who took voluntary buyouts.

Meanwhile, President Trump turned the White House lawn into a Tesla showroom for his friend and Tesla CEO Elon Musk, the richest man in the world.

The two posed in front of some shiny new Tesla vehicles in what was part press conference, and I guess you could call it a sales pitch?

Tesla sharing that they have been -- or rather Tesla's shares have been in a sharp slump recently as Musk's increasing efforts to cut the federal workforce have drawn significant public backlash and declining sales.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: So, I think he's been treated very unfairly by a very small group of people. And I just want people to know that you can't be penalized for being a patriot. And he's a great patriot.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: We're also tracking blowback -- blowback against Tesla, which has taken many forms: from protests at car dealerships to vandalism. Some Tesla owners fed up with Musk are now ditching their vehicles, but others saying they are standing firm.

Here's CNN's Jason Carroll with their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tesla vehicles on fire at this car lot in Seattle over the weekend. The cause: still under investigation.

A fire erupted at a Tesla charging station in Littleton, Massachusetts, after police say vandals targeted that center last week.

This person caught on camera throwing a Molotov cocktail at a Tesla showroom in Oregon, weeks after police near Portland responded to shots fired at the same location.

It comes as protests have broken out across the country at Tesla locations from New York to California, all in response to Elon Musk's involvement with DOGE, the Department of Government Efficiency, and its cut to federal workers.

He's also facing criticism over his alignment with far-right politics.

Tesla shares have plunged, losing nearly half of their value since Trump took office and Musk began slashing federal agencies. The richest man in the world has taken a hit to his fortune, losing $29 billion in net worth on Monday alone, though he's still worth over $300 billion.

Some Tesla owners are feeling buyer's remorse.

ANGELA KENZSLOWE, TESLA OWNER: Had I had the option of purchasing a Cybertruck after the inauguration, I just wouldn't.

CARROLL (voice-over): Others have decided to sell at a loss.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: About 18 to $20,000.

CARROLL: Loss?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

CARROLL (voice-over): And those who proudly want to keep driving their Teslas.

KUMALT JAROJE, TESLA OWNER: I'm going to keep it. I'm going to defend it. So, no, I'm not selling my Tesla. If they don't like my Tesla, don't -- just don't drive it.

CARROLL (voice-over): Kumalt Jaroje uses his Cybertruck to advertise his body sculpting business in Worcester, Massachusetts. He says he has been harassed, his vehicle vandalized, threatening voicemail messages like this left on his phone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Take your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) gold Tesla, the of ya, climb in, and drive down to Florida, or drive to Tennessee.

JAROJE: I refuse to get terrorized, so to do something they want me to do, to force me to do that.

CARROLL (voice-over): Tesla owner Angela Kenzslowe knows what it feels like to be on the receiving end of threatening messages. She says driving a Tesla was fun at first, until Musk got involved in politics.

KENZSLOWE: The thumbs down. Flipped off, mean-mugged, cut off.

CARROLL (voice-over): She wrote an essay about her experiences for "Business Insider." Then, she says, things got worse.

KENZSLOWE: I've been sent death wishes. So, folks have -- have sent, you know, I wish that, you know -- I hope -- How did they say it?

I hope that your Cybertruck catches on fire with the doors locked and you inside.

CARROLL (voice-over): But the backlash seems to have only strengthened Musk's relationship with the president. Just today, Trump said he would look to have attacks on Tesla dealerships designated as domestic terrorism.

TRUMP: I will do that. I'll do it. I'm going to stop them. We catch anybody doing it, because they're harming a great American company.

And let me tell you, you do it to Tesla, and you do it to any company, we're going to catch you. And you're going to -- you're going to go through hell. Jason Carroll, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: A violent tornado rips through parts of central Florida, and a woman trapped in her car films the shocking moments when the storm touches down. You're going to want to see more of this video after the break.

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[00:40:12]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ay, Dios mio. Ay, Dios mio.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And you see, she writes up there, "Asi fue," "That's how it happened."

A woman in Florida, she was trapped inside her car during a destructive tornado, and she lived to tell the tale. She actually captured this video from inside that vehicle, showing tree limbs flying through the air, debris even slamming into her windshield.

Weather officials say the storm carried winds of up to 185 kilometers per hour, the strongest tornado to hit that county in more than 25 years.

Lucky to be alive.

Thank you so much for spending some time with me. I'm Polo Sandoval. I will be back at the top of the hour with more CNN NEWSROOM, but first WORLD SPORT. And it starts right after this break.

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(WORLD SPORT)

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