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Putin Calls On Ukrainian Troops In Kursk To Surrender; Russia's State Media Lauds After Talks With U.S.; Trump Admin. Warns Hamas To Accept Ceasefire Extension; CENTCOM: U.S. And Iraqi Forces Kill ISIS Global Number 2; Democrats Divided After Senate Approves Funding Bill; Trump Attacks Political Foes In Partisan DOJ Speech; Carney Sworn In As New PM, Calls Talk Of 51st State "Crazy"; Rodrigo Duterte Faces Murder Charges At The Hague; U.S. Declares South Africa's Ambassador Persona Non Grata; New Details About Missing U.S. College Student In Punta Cana; Passengers Safe After American Airlines Jet Fire; Judge Imposes New Reduced Sentence For Adnan Syed; SpaceX And NASA Launch Mission To Replace Held-Up Astronauts. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired March 15, 2025 - 04:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:00:28]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN HOST: Welcome to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN Newsroom.

U.S. President Donald Trump teases good news on Ukraine's ceasefire talks as Russia claims to make gains on the battleground. We'll have the latest from both Moscow and Kyiv.

The White House is also pushing to extend the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. We'll have details in a live report from the Middle East.

And Trump proclaims himself the chief law enforcement officer in America and threatens revenge against his perceived enemies in a campaign-style speech at the Justice Department.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: U.S. President Donald Trump says he's received pretty good news about the proposed ceasefire in Ukraine without going into specifics. He spoke a day after his envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow for talks about ending the conflict.

Putin got behind the ceasefire in principle but laid out a string of conditions and demands from Ukraine. The U.S. President says he still hopes Russia will be on board with his plan. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I feel that Russia is going to make a deal with us. I hope. We've spoken with President Putin. We've spoken with a lot of people. And Ukraine is waiting.

I'm very concerned about the field. In the field, there's a very vulnerable group of Ukrainian soldiers right now that are actually surrounded. And that's not good because we don't want them to die. Enough people have died.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Moscow could face more economic pressure to negotiate. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will hold a virtual meeting with leaders of about 24 -- 25 countries in the coming hours. And he'll call on them to use more economic leverage to force Russia to be part of the process.

Starmer said that, quote, "We can't allow President Putin to play games with President Trump's deal". And that the Kremlin's complete disregard for the ceasefire proposal only serves to demonstrate that Putin is not serious about peace.

Meanwhile, Putin is calling on Ukrainian troops in Russia's Kursk region to surrender. Now, he did that after an appeal from President Trump. Kursk is Ukraine's only territorial bargaining chip within Russia. And as Fred Pleitgen reports, Ukraine could be losing it.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Russian troops on the move, on the verge of ousting Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region, Moscow says, Ukraine's small and shrinking foothold inside Russia.

The regiment's units were mentally prepared and waiting for this moment, the commander says. Therefore, there was enough anger, courage, bravery and desire to win. I believe the personnel fought heroically.

The Russians claiming they've encircled a large number of Ukrainian troops here, a narrative President Trump buys as well, pleading with Russian leader Vladimir Putin not to harm them. At this very moment, thousands of Ukrainian troops are completely surrounded by the Russian military and in a very bad and vulnerable position, President Trump writes on his Truth Social account.

"I have strongly requested to President Putin that their lives be spared. This would be a horrible massacre, one not seen since World War II". And while the Ukrainians claim reports of their forces being encircled are not true, Putin, referencing the U.S. president's plea, says he's willing to let the Ukrainians live if they give themselves up.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (voice-over): We are understanding of President Trump's appeal to treat these servicemen humanely. In this regard, I would like to emphasize that if they lay down their arms and surrender, they will be guaranteed life and decent treatment in accordance with international law. PLEITGEN (voice-over): After waiting for hours in Moscow before Putin finally met with him, the Trump administration's negotiator Steve Witkoff left the Russian capital in the middle of the night and in the driving rain.

Russian state TV quickly declaring Putin the winner of this round of diplomacy. The highly experienced Putin simply outplayed the cornered Zelenskyy and the collective West, which was clearly in a flurry, the anchor says.

And while President Trump says he wants to talk directly with Putin as soon as possible, one of Putin's closest allies, Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko, addressing the U.S. president by his first name, also seemingly hitting the brakes on the administration's ceasefire plans.

[04:05:06]

ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO, BELARUS STRONGMAN (through translation): Yes, Donald wants to stop the war. Thank you to him for this. But at the same time, we must firmly stand our ground. Nobody must push us aside. And God forbid to cheat us, as we now say, or to try and run circles around us.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

BRUNHUBER: To Gaza now, where a hospital official says an Israeli strike on Friday killed four children. The official says the children were out collecting firewood southeast of Gaza City when they were killed by an Israeli drone. Gaza's civil defense spokesperson said four people were killed in an Israeli strike in the area but didn't provide further details.

The Israeli military has denied carrying out any strike in the area during the time of the reported incident.

Well, the U.S. is warning Hamas to accept its proposal to extend the Gaza ceasefire or face the consequences. The Trump administration said on Friday that Hamas is, quote, "well aware of the deadline and making a very bad bet the time is on its side".

The U.S. statement didn't give specifics on that deadline. But the warning comes after Hamas indicated it is willing to release a dual U.S.-Israel citizen, Edan Alexander, along with the bodies of four other hostages. The militant group also acknowledged receiving a proposal from mediators.

I want to go live now to CNN's Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi. So, Paula, when it comes to this extending the ceasefire, bring us up to speed on the latest.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, at this point there is certainly still gaps between what Hamas has agreed to and what Israel is agreeing to. As you mentioned there, Hamas has said that it is willing to release the Israeli-American soldier, Edan Alexander, also the bodies of four dual nationals held. They haven't specified the nationalities, but there are four deceased American hostages, we understand, as well.

And they have said that this is part of an exceptional deal. They still want to stick to the three-phase deal that Hamas and Israel had originally agreed to, saying that it is -- some of the conditions for this to happen mean they have to go back to the negotiations to try and secure that second phase, saying that that has to be agreed upon within 50 days.

Also saying that humanitarian aid has to be allowed in immediately and that Israeli military has to pull away from the so-called Philadelphia Corridor. This is the border between Gaza and Egypt.

Now, we have heard consistently from a number of different Israeli officials that that is not what they're willing to do at this point, that they don't want that military pull-out of Gaza. So what we're hearing from the Israeli side after this Hamas announcement is that they are calling Hamas, quote, "accusing it of manipulation and psychological warfare", saying that they have already agreed, Israel, to the U.S.-proposed deal.

Now, this was a deal that we heard from Steve Witkoff, the Middle East envoy, and he was proposing to extend this temporary ceasefire for another month so it would cover the holy month of Ramadan, also the Jewish Passover holiday, and that there would be a handful of living hostages that that would be released.

Now, Israel has agreed to that. We know that they favor at this point extending this temporary ceasefire, securing the release of more hostages without having to agree to pull the military out or having to agree to a more permanent ceasefire.

So at this point, we do see some significant light between the two sides, that they haven't been able to agree to get back to the original deal, which was going to be that second phase. Now we always knew it was going to be difficult negotiations, but certainly what we are seeing is that they are not particularly close at this point.

And we're also hearing this, as you said, we have heard that there are more deaths in Gaza, highlighting just how important it is to try and preserve this temporary ceasefire, however fragile it may be. We've heard from health officials in eastern Gaza that there were four children collecting firewood and that they say they were killed by an Israeli airstrike.

Now, we've heard from the IDF, they have said that they didn't carry out any airstrikes at that time in that area in a statement to CNN. Kim?

BRUNHUBER: All right, appreciate that.

Paula Hancocks in Abu Dhabi. Thanks so much.

The U.S. and Iraq have announced that a high-profile leader of ISIS has been killed. Iraq's Prime Minister shared the news on Friday, though the Associated Press cited one security official who says the operation took place Thursday night, but the death was confirmed on Friday.

[04:10:04]

The ISIS global number two was killed in an airstrike carried out by members of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service, along with U.S.- led coalition forces.

And U.S. President Donald Trump took to social media to tout the killing. The operation comes at a time when officials are anxious about a resurgent ISIS, while Syria's new rulers are still establishing control.

All right, still ahead, President Donald Trump targets his political opponents in a rare speech at the Justice Department. We'll look at what he's pledging to do next.

Plus, how trade tensions are creating economic volatility. And supporters and detractors of Rodrigo Duterte demonstrated outside the International Criminal Court Friday as the former Philippines president was charged with murder. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: U.S. stocks rallied on Friday, but despite the numbers that you see there, all three major indices remained down after a volatile week. Uncertainty is affecting consumers and investors, with confidence measured by the University of Michigan's Consumer Sentiment Index down by 11 percent for March. It's now at its lowest level since November 2022.

CNN's Anna Stewart has more on the effects of market volatility.

[04:15:09]

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's been a week that many investors may like to forget. The Dow Jones closed down more than 400 points in three of the five sessions, and the S&P 500 entered correction territory, falling more than 10 percent from its record high just last month.

So what's been fueling all the volatility? Well, early in the week, markets were rattled when President Trump didn't rule out the possibility of a recession in an interview on Fox News.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

TRUMP: I hate to predict things.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

STEWART: And then came the barrage of tariff news. On Tuesday, the Premier of Ontario in Canada said he would place a 25 percent surcharge on electricity exports to three U.S. states and warned he could go further.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

DOUG FORD, ONTARIO PREMIER: If the United States escalates, I will not hesitate to shut the electricity off completely.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

STEWART: Trump responded in a lengthy Truth Social post, threatening an up to 50 percent tariff on Canadian steel and aluminium. And suggesting once again that Canada would become, quote, "our cherished 51st state". The Ontario Premier backed down, and so did Trump.

Then on Wednesday, Trump imposed 25 percent tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports, measures he had previously outlined. The E.U. responded with tariffs on $28 billion worth of U.S. goods.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: The countermeasures we take today are strong but proportionate.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

STEWART: The president wasn't pleased, making his position clear at a bilateral with the Irish prime minister.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will you respond to their retaliation?

TRUMP: Of course I'm going to respond.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You will retaliate the --

TRUMP: The problem is our country didn't respond. Look, the E.U. was set up in order to take advantage of the United States.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

STEWART: And Trump followed through, the next day threatening a 200 percent tariff on European alcohol if the E.U. doesn't back down. Now, Trump is still bullish about the economy, but the on-again, off-again nature of the tariffs and their rapid escalation has investors on edge. What was a Trump bump for markets earlier in the year is now a Trump slump.

Anna Stewart, CNN, London.

BRUNHUBER: The U.S. Senate passed a spending bill on Friday, avoiding a government shutdown with hours to spare. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and nine others are now facing backlash after joining with Republicans to get it approved. Democrats are grappling with how to move forward after the vote exposed deep rifts within the party.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries slammed Senate Democrats but avoided directly criticizing Schumer. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you lost confidence in him? The fact that you guys see this so differently?

REP. HAKEEM JEFFRIES (D), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: Next question.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Senator Schumer says he's confident he did the right thing, even earning praise from President Trump, who said it took guts and courage to back a Republican-led bill. Senator John Fetterman was one of the other Democrats who broke ranks. He said they have no leverage right now with Republicans in full control of the U.S. government.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

JOHN FETTERMAN, U.S. SENATE DEMOCRAT: I'll be the only Democrat that's going to tell America the truth about shutting the government down, and that would be a -- disaster. What leverage do we have? Democrats keep showing up at every night fight with a casserole, you know, and they have these cheesy paddles. And then, you know, pick your fighter cheese ball stuff.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: CNN Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein weighed in on the situation congressional Democrats are grappling with.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: I feel like two things are true at once. I have covered a lot of government shutdowns, and the evidence is pretty unequivocal that they don't work as a lever to force the other side to do what you want. You can't put enough pressure on the other side because you are being blamed for vital services being disrupted.

On the other hand, as a big other hand, at this moment, Democrats feel everything they care about. Democratic constituencies, everything they care about is under almost unprecedented threat, generational threat.

Trump is rampaging through the government at home and the U.S. position in the world, and Democrats in Washington appear utterly helpless, right? I mean, and kind of feckless and without a clear direction.

And so to surrender without a shot, I think, even acknowledging that in the end you are not going to be successful in winning a lot out of this seems to me a tactical error that is only going to deepen the despair among Democratic voters.

That the only meaningful resistance to Trump is coming from the states, from the attorneys general who are suing him, governors and so forth, that the Democrats in Washington are just utterly lost at this point.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: President Trump is vowing to use the U.S. Justice Department to target his own perceived enemies.

[04:20:02]

Now the threats came in a campaign style speech inside the department's historic Great Hall. U.S. presidents traditionally distance themselves from the DOJ so that its work will not appear political. But on Friday, Trump called himself the country's, quote, "chief law enforcement officer", a title usually reserved for the U.S. attorney general. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

TRUMP: We're turning the page on four long years of corruption, weaponization and surrender to violent criminals. We must be honest about the lies and abuses that have occurred within these walls. They tried to turn America into a corrupt communist and third world country. But in the end, the thugs failed.

Our predecessors turned this Department of Justice into the Department of Injustice. But I stand before you today to declare that those days are over and they are never going to come back.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The president also promised to remove what he called rogue actors and corrupt forces from the government.

CNN's Paula Reid reports from Washington.

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, President Trump has made no secret of the anger and bitterness that he has towards the Justice Department, given that for nearly a decade he has been facing federal criminal investigations from this very institution. So we weren't quite sure what to expect when he took the stage Friday.

But during his speech, he certainly aired his usual grievances about prosecutors, both federal and state, who have pursued charges against him. He also called out investigators like Jack Smith and other people like James Comey, who he believes targeted him intentionally. But there really wasn't a lot that we had heard or hadn't heard before.

I mean, this could have been a real barn burner of a speech. But for the most part, Trump stuck to his teleprompter. This was supposed to be a speech, according to the White House, about restoring law and order in America. He did touch on many of those themes, though the bulk of this speech was partisan and was focused on attacking the investigators who have targeted Trump specifically.

Now, it is not common for a sitting president of the United States to address the Justice Department, but it does happen. I was here a decade ago when President Obama gave a speech in this same hall. Now, you can see on the stage it's being carried away. But right here, there are some props that are supposed to represent fentanyl.

Trump did talk about fentanyl at the end of his speech. But overall, while it is highly unusual for someone to come and rail against the Justice Department inside the Justice Department, never mind a sitting president, when it comes to President Trump specifically, these are mostly things that he has said publicly.

Some he has even raised in courtrooms when he has been frustrated with the criminal justice process. So, overall, the speech seemed somewhat subdued. It could have been a lot more scorched earth than it was.

Again, up against regular norms, yes, this is unusual. Some people might find it offensive. But it was really nothing new for President Trump.

Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

BRUNHUBER: Meanwhile, the U.S. Justice Department is investigating whether people who took part in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University last year violated federal anti-terrorism laws. One activist caught up in that effort is Mahmoud Khalil. His green card has been revoked over his involvement with those protests last spring.

He remains in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, often referred to as ICE. We're seeing the first video of Khalil's arrest last Saturday that was recorded by his wife. Have a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What? You're going to be under arrest. So turn around, turn around, turn around, turn around.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK. OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stop resisting. Stop resisting.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, OK. He's not resisting. He's giving me his phone, OK?

He's not -- I understand. He's not resisting.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Turn around. Put your arm behind you.

MAHMOUD KHALIL, PALESTINIAN ACTIVIST: There's no need for this.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Don't worry about it. We have you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're going to have to come with us. Don't worry.

KHALIL: Yes, I'm going with you. Don't worry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No one's resisting (INAUDIBLE). UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You guys really don't need to be doing all of that.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: His attorney spoke to CNN about efforts to get him released.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

BRAD PARKER, ATTORNEY FOR MAHMOUD KHALIK: So we're fighting right now to bring Mahmoud home back to his family and to have him released from detention because this is, you know, a clear case of an individual being targeted and retaliated against for constitutionally protected speech, political dissent.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Mark Carney is now Canada's new prime minister. The former Bank of Canada governor replaces Justin Trudeau, who formally stepped down after nearly a decade in power. Carney takes office as Canada is embroiled in a tariff war with its largest trading partner, the United States, and amid questions about its sovereignty.

But within minutes of taking oath, he dismissed Donald Trump's talk of annexing Canada as crazy, and also adding that Canada will never become the 51st state. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: I've been clear. Personally, I've been clear. The ministers behind me, I think, to an individual. When asked, have been clear that we will never, ever, in any way, shape or form, be part of the United States.

[04:25:01]

America is not Canada. Look at the ceremony we just have. You could not have had that ceremony. You would not have that ceremony in America.

Look at the Cabinet behind me. You would not have that Cabinet in America. You do not have that Cabinet in America. We are a very fundamentally different country.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Carney said he doesn't have plans yet to visit the U.S., although he will hold talks with the French and British leaders.

Former Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte made his first appearance before the International Criminal Court Friday on charges related to the years-long war on drugs policy he carried out, where thousands of people were killed. He's repeatedly denied the extrajudicial killings of drug suspects.

CNN's Melissa Bell has more on the initial hearing.

MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The first appearance by the former Filipino President Rodrigo Duterte this Friday at The Hague. He's accused of crimes against humanity relating to his time, both when he was the mayor of a southern Filipino city from 2011 and then when he became president from 2016.

The prosecution alleges that his brutal war on drugs involved extrajudicial killings and for which he will now be tried. Now, this court hearing, the very first, was likely to be a long trial, say, legal experts. It was simply about hearing him state his name, his age.

He appeared frail, appeared by video link because of his poor health. He also had the opportunity to hear more about the charges that have been being investigated by the ICC and that he will now have to answer for.

There were supporters and critics of the former president outside the courts at The Hague to make their anger in the case of his supporters clear about the fact that he should be at the ICC at all. But supporters of the move, very happy to see, they say, this president who was responsible for officially, this is according to police figures, the killing of 6,000 people during, as part of that war on drugs.

What critics of Duterte and human rights organizations say is that, in fact, the number of victims could be into the tens of thousands and not just drug pushers or drug users, but many say people simply caught in the crossfire.

So for those who were outside the court celebrating his presence, it is an important moment, not simply the first time that a former Asian leader is tried by the international criminal court, but also, say Rodrigo Duterte's detractors, an opportunity finally for justice to be done.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

BRUNHUBER: Russia's president has stopped short of giving full support to the U.S. proposal for Ukraine's ceasefire. So does he really want peace or is he just playing for time? We'll talk with an expert in Ukraine when we come back.

Plus, why passengers aboard an American Airlines flight had to use the wing of the plane on fire after an emergency landing. Those stories and more coming up after the break. Please stay with us.

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[04:31:30]

BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN Newsroom.

Returning to our top story, U.S. President Donald Trump appears confident that Ukraine's ceasefire talks are on track, despite a mixed message from Moscow. He said on Friday that he received pretty good news about his proposal, but didn't go into details.

Earlier, Russian leader Vladimir Putin said he agrees with the idea in principle while adding a list of conditions and demands. Meanwhile, Putin is also calling on Ukrainian troops in Russia's Kursk region to surrender. He made the statement at the urging of President Trump.

Kursk is Ukraine's only territorial bargaining chip within Russia, but Moscow is rapidly gaining ground, and President Zelenskyy is describing the situation as very difficult.

All right, for more on all this, we're joined by Mykola Bielieskov, a research fellow at Ukraine's National Institute for Strategic Studies, and he's speaking to us from Kyiv. Thank you so much for being here with us.

So just to start, on those Ukrainian soldiers in Kursk, what do you make of the U.S. president basically making this very public appeal, in quotes, with Putin to save their lives?

MYKOLA BIELIESKOV, RESEARCH FELLOW, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES: We shouldn't trust any single words that Vladimir Putin is saying, so these reports are now unverified. We can't exclude the situation when some troops, unfortunately, during the withdrawal, they might get captured and become, unfortunately, prisoners of war.

It happened during the withdrawal process. But to say about a big number, without any verification, and to trust every single word of Vladimir Putin is, for me, it's not a good way to do business.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, and I guess it's just -- to ask the -- to broaden the question a bit more, about just that idea of President Trump sort of going over Ukraine, I guess, and trying to get this done directly with Russia, it certainly speaks to the larger disconnect between President Trump and President Zelenskyy.

BIELIESKOV: I don't see this logic. I mean, if Trump is interested in getting some Ukrainian prisoners of war, which are in Russia, we would welcome it. Otherwise, for sure, we expect coordination between Ukraine and the U.S. side, dealing broadly with Russia in terms of the settlement.

But in this particular case, I do not see the situation when Trump is sidestepping Ukraine and do not consult with it. That's --

BRUNHUBER: Yes.

BIELIESKOV: -- because I think, ordinary way of doing business.

BRUNHUBER: All right. So then to the larger negotiations about a ceasefire deal, as I mentioned earlier, Donald Trump says he's got, you know, quote, "pretty good news from Russia". And here he is again. Listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP) TRUMP: So we'll see what happens with regard to all of it. But I'm getting, from the standpoint about a ceasefire and ultimately a deal, some pretty good vibes coming out of Russia.

Good vibes coming out of Russia. Do you share his optimism that a ceasefire deal might be close?

BIELIESKOV: We've heard Putin, and it's a classic Putin. He can say unequivocal no because he might be blamed. That's why he said yes with a lot of conditions. And I think the major point, the major rationale why he did so, like saying we need to remove root causes, as he said, of the conflict, is to drive a wedge between Ukraine and U.S. and maybe to have the situation when U.S. again is pressing more Ukraine than Russia.

So it's a classic Putin. But he can stay on two chairs indefinitely. So he needs to choose either he supports his fire or he put a lot of conditions, and then we'll see what would happen.

[04:35:07]

BRUNHUBER: Now, the media in Moscow are claiming both Presidents Trump and Zelenskyy have been outplayed in this latest round, and the concessions that Russia are asking for are likely ones Ukraine wouldn't be able to accept. So you sort of got a part of this. But what do you think Putin's aim here is exactly in terms of this larger stalling on a ceasefire?

BIELIESKOV: Again, when he said about different conditions, hinting about, like, suspension of aid during this so-called ceasefire, he wants to drive a wedge between Ukraine and U.S. and have a situation when Ukraine is pressed instead of Russia being pressed.

So it's a classic Putin. He's a very good one in creating cracks and exploiting it. So we should be very careful.

BRUNHUBER: All right. So, on the idea of a larger permanent peace, you've argued that Putin doesn't want peace. He wants the destruction of Ukraine as an independent nation. And you -- I want to quote this here. "This does not mean that current U.S.-led peace efforts are entirely futile, but it is vital to recognize that freezing the conflict along the current front lines will not be enough to end the war."

So if Donald Trump has his deal-making reputation at stake with his promise to end the war, and if, as you've said, Putin essentially never wants the war to end, is this sort of an unstoppable force, meaning an immovable object here? How does this end?

BIELIESKOV: It can end with, as Marco Rubio said, both sides need to recognize that it can end with military force. And it's first and foremost about Russia, which still wants to attain its ultimate maximalist goals. So it's about, in the end, supporting Ukraine if Russia is not ready to negotiate honestly, and to have the situation when Russia is denied the victory outright won. BRUNHUBER: Do -- the west -- does President Trump sort of misunderstand Putin, sort of thinking that he's pragmatic instead of this grander ideological aim that he has here in terms of Ukraine?

BIELIESKOV: Yes, that's a problem. That your politicians, I mean Western politicians, they do a kind of mirror image, and they think that Putin is the same rational kind of person who does the same rational calculation of pros and cons. He is a strongman, first and foremost, and his image of a strongman is undermined.

And we're basically his biggest geopolitical failure, the fact that Ukraine has defied him not only for the last three years, not only since 2014, but since he's come into power in the early 2000s, when he made clear that the USSR disintegration is the end of a classical Russian empire, so I want to recreate it. So that's the major point a lot of people are missing, unfortunately.

BRUNHUBER: Yes. All right, we'll have to leave it there, but fascinating speaking with you, Mykola Bielieskov. Thank you so much.

BIELIESKOV: Thanks for the invitation.

BRUNHUBER: South Africa's president says he's still committed to building a good relationship with the U.S. despite what he calls the regrettable but likely U.S. expulsion of his ambassador to Washington, Ebrahim Rasool.

Now, the U.S. Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, declared Rasool persona non grata, or unwelcome in the U.S., after Rasool was quoted calling the MAGA movement, was a response to, quote, "To the supremacist instinct and to projections that Caucasian Americans could become a minority in the future". Rubio called Rasool a race-baiting politician who hates the U.S. and Trump.

Now tensions between the Trump administration and South Africa have been growing, especially over the country's land reform. Trump and Elon Musk, who is from South Africa, claim the reform discriminates against white farmers. South Africa says it's trying to reverse the legacy of apartheid.

The last person to see a missing U.S. college student alive in the Dominican Republic is speaking to authorities. What he says happened the night Sudiksha Konanki disappeared straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:42:11]

BRUNHUBER: We're waiting for the Vatican to issue its latest update on Pope Francis. On Friday, Vatican officials said the Pope's doctors decided not to issue an update due to the stability of his condition, citing there's been no new developments over the past few days.

The Vatican also said the Pope's release from the hospital isn't imminent, though he remains in stable condition. We're learning more about what may have happened to an American college student who disappeared while on spring break in the Dominican Republic.

The man last seen with the missing woman says he rescued her from rough seas before she vanished. CNN's Jessica Hasbun has the latest.

JESSICA HASBUN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. As the search intensifies on the eighth day of Sudiksha Konanki's disappearance, authorities are ramping up their efforts by air, sea, and land. The man who was last seen with the University of Pittsburgh student before she disappeared from a beach in the Dominican Republic has provided details to the local prosecutors about the last time he saw her, according to the Dominican news agency Noticias SIN.

The 20-year-old disappeared on the beach of the Rue Republica Hotel in Punta Cana in the early morning of March 6. The man who accompanied her on the beach, identified as Joshua Steven Riibe, told the prosecutors that he and Konanki were hit by an intense wave. He said that they were both dragged out to sea when the water returned, according to Noticias SIN.

It is important to note that at this time, Riibe is not considered a suspect in the case and has not been charged with any crime. During his interview with prosecutors, Riibe described his attempt to save Konanki after being shaken by the wave in an interview on March 12, six days after Konanki was last seen.

Riibe said that it took a long time to get her out of the water, according to Noticias SIN. And that he swallowed a lot of water and that he could have lost consciousness several times. He said that both of them made it out to land and that he held her in front of her.

He added he was a lifeguard at pools but not at the beach. He said that the last time he saw Konanki, she was walking with water up to her knees. Riibe said he began to feel sick from the water he had swallowed. He said he thought she had grabbed her things and left the beach.

He went on to say that he fell asleep on a beach chair. Riibe's aunt, Theresa Riibe, issued a statement on Thursday to the Minnesota Star Tribune asking for privacy. "Our family is going through a very difficult time and we are experiencing a lot of sadness and pain", the statement read.

As of now, eight days after Konanki's disappearance, authorities continue their search.

From Santo Domingo, Jessica Hasbun, CNN.

BRUNHUBER: To all passengers who were taken to hospital with minor injuries after a fire aboard an American Airlines jet on Thursday have been released. Some passengers fled the flames by climbing onto the plane's wing.

CNN Aviation Correspondent Pete Muntean has more on the incident.

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PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): New images of roaring flames and thick black smoke will be key to investigators as they dig into yet another incident on a commercial flight.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! Charlie 48, engine fire!

MUNTEAN (voice-over): The fire on the right side of American Airlines Flight 1006 was visible from the terminal at Denver International Airport as passengers started streaming through emergency exits on the left side of the plane, then waiting on the wing helplessly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Come on.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): Ingrid Hibbits was one of the 178 on board.

INGRID HIBBITS, PASSENGER: There's flames out of the window where I was looking out. It started bubbling, like melting. It was really weird. And everybody's kind of pushing to get out of the plane.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): Passengers say the flight from Colorado Springs to Dallas-Fort Worth started normally. But 20 minutes in, the pilot said the flight would divert to Denver due to an engine vibration, an issue reported to air traffic controllers with apparent calm.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: American 10,006, just -- 1006 just to verify not an emergency still, correct?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, we just have a high engine vibration so we are cruising slower than normal.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): The Federal Aviation Administration says the fire in the Boeing 737's right engine started after landing during taxi to the gate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Smoke started filling the cabin and people started kind of screaming and pushing and jumping up and yelling.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): Still unclear is whether passengers were ordered to evacuate by the crew or if they did so on their own.

MILES O'BRIEN, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: There's a lot of questions about the decisions, the sequence of events and how this chaotic evacuation occurred.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): It is just the latest emergency evacuation to be captured on video.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Our plane crashed.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): Last month, everyone survived when a Delta Airlines regional jet crashed as it landed at Toronto Pearson International Airport.

PETER GOELZ, CNN AVIATION ANALYST: The evacuation will be studied very carefully, as will be the evacuation in Toronto, because we need to know that the FAA regulations governing evacuations reflect real world situations.

MUNTEAN (voice-over): In both cases, airport rescue and firefighting crews arrived in moments. And all passengers escaped with their lives.

HIBBITS: I'm grateful that everybody survived and there weren't any major injuries or anything, so that's something to be grateful for, for sure.

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MUNTEAN (on-camera): This involved a Boeing 737-800, which is not part of the embattled 737 MAX line. It uses engines from CFM, which are known as some of the most reliable in the world. But they have been under some scrutiny, an explosion of one of these engines killed a Southwest passenger back in 2018.

Just this month, the FAA called for modifications to 737s with CFM engines to help prevent a repeat.

Pete Muntean, CNN, Washington.

BRUNHUBER: Millions of people are bracing for a weekend of extreme weather that could be dangerous across the Midwest and southern United States.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look at all that debris.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God. We are in a tornado.

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BRUNHUBER: Passengers took shelter in a car as a tornado passed through a town in Missouri on Friday. The cross-country storms include the chance of multiple strong tornadoes, which prompted the governors of Alabama, Kansas, and Missouri to declare states of emergency due to the threat of severe weather.

Now, the strong winds from those strengthening storms are fanning the flames of fast-moving wildfires in Oklahoma, prompting mandatory evacuations. Winds across much of the state have been gusting up to 70 miles or 113 kilometers per hour throughout the day on Friday. Emergency officials say they're trying to get a handle on more than 100 hot spots across the state.

Meanwhile, a wildfire near Amarillo, Texas, is now 50 percent contained after burning more than 9,300 hectares or 23,000 acres. The blazes are fueled by strong winds and bone-dry conditions.

Heavy rains and swollen rivers are causing flooding in parts of Italy. Now, this is video from Florence, where museums and schools are closed and events are canceled. No fatalities have been reported so far, but hundreds have been evacuated. Now, to the north in Bologna, landslides and widespread flooding have been reported.

Well, they refuse to say they're stuck or stranded in Space, but now, finally, two American astronauts are preparing to come back to Earth after they've been held up for months at the International Space Station.

The crew swap mission is ahead. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: The rapper and media mogul Sean Diddy Combs appeared in court on Friday for a pre-trial hearing ahead of his federal criminal case. Combs pleaded not guilty to three charges as part of a superseding indictment, which includes fresh allegations but no new charges.

Combs is currently awaiting trial in New York, having been accused of coercing at least three women into sex acts. Opening statements are expected to begin on May 12th.

The case of Adnan Syed that caught the world's attention following the True Crime podcast serial appears to have come to a close. A judge in Maryland on Friday formally sentenced Syed on Friday to time already served in prison. His conviction for the 1999 murders of his high school ex-girlfriend, Hae Min Lee, still stands, but he remains free and with a modified sentence under a law that allows for the release of people convicted of crimes committed as minors.

Syed, who was 17 at the time Lee was killed, has maintained his innocence. He was released from prison in 2022 after prosecutors said they found problems with the case and moved to vacate his conviction and was later reinstated on appeal.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ignition and lift off. Go SpaceX, go NASA Crew 10.

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BRUNHUBER: SpaceX and NASA have successfully launched what could be called a crew swap mission to the International Space Station.

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Once this rocket's four-member crew arrives at the ISS, astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will be able to return to Earth on a different capsule. They've been held up on the orbiter for nine months longer than expected. Their extended stay that became a political flashpoint back here on Earth.

CNN's Nick Valencia has more.

NICK VALENCIA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: On paper, this is a routine handover mission, but in reality, it is so much more, especially when you consider the comments made by President Trump alleging that the Biden administration left two American astronauts stranded in space.

And while Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams have been in Space for more than nine months, by and large, they've tried to stay out of the controversy.

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BUTCH WILMORE, ASTRONAUT: We don't feel abandoned. We don't feel stuck. We don't feel stranded. I understand why others may think that. We come prepared. We come committed. That is what your human spaceflight program is. It prepares for any and all contingencies that we can conceive of, and we prepare for those.

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VALENCIA: According to NASA, it'll be between four and seven days after Crew 10 docks on the ISS when Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams will make their way back home. That means they could be back here on Earth with the rest of us as early as Wednesday.

Nick Valencia, CNN, at the Kennedy Space Center.

BRUNHUBER: All right, that wraps this hour of CNN Newsroom. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back with more news in just a moment. Please do stay with us.

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