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CNN International: U.S. Official Accidentally Texts Journalist About War Plans; Alien Enemies Act Deportation Hearing; Talks Between U.S. And Russian Negotiators Concludes; BYD's New Milestone; Sixth Night Of Protests In Istanbul; Greek Islands Welcomes Back Tourists. Aired 6-7p ET

Aired March 24, 2025 - 18:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: -- a message with the nation's top national security officials discussing highly classified information and sensitive information about military strikes on Yemen.

Now, this happened right before St. Patrick's Day, it was the weekend of March 15th when those attacks were happening, and Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor of The Atlantic, suddenly was added to an encrypting message, a device called a Signal that many administration officials and many -- just normal people use on their phones. And he was watching this conversation play out in real-time right before the attack happened.

And take a look at some of these very recognizable officials' reactions, Houthi attacks that happened on March of 15th. John Ratcliffe, he's the head of the CIA, he says, a good start. Michael Waltz, he's the director of -- the national security adviser. Fist emoji and American flag, a flame, MAR. That's Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Good job, Pete and your team.

Now, this came all as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth was laying out in a very detailed format the attack that was about to happen. All of this was revealed in an episode of The Atlantic earlier today, the president was asked for his reaction. This is what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: I don't know anything about it. I'm not a big fan of The Atlantic. It's -- to me, it's a magazine that's going out of business. I think it's not much of a magazine, but I know nothing about it. You're saying that they had what?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They were using Signal to coordinate on sensitive of materials and --

TRUMP: Having to do with what? Having to do with what? What were they talking about?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With the Houthis?

TRUMP: The Houthis? You mean the attack on the Houthis?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Correct.

TRUMP: Well, it couldn't have been very effective because the attack was very effective. I can tell you that. I don't know anything about it. You're telling me about it for the first time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: And the president insisting he didn't know anything about it, that raises questions of its own. The president was not included in this group conversation. He had already made the decision to go ahead with this, but these were some of his top advisers, sort of, not second guessing necessarily, but raising questions if they should proceed.

So, Phil, this is a set off a just a wide variety of conversations, but I am told there is now going to be a separate review inside the White House about the use of this encrypted messaging device, as well as on Capitol Hill tomorrow when the Senate holds a worldwide threat hearing -- threat assessment hearing, they're going to be interviewing some of these top administration officials. This certainly will come up. So, never have we seen a breach of security like this in the modern age or ever before. Phil.

PHIL MATTINGLY, CNN ANCHOR: Jeff Zeleny for us on the North Lawn. Thanks so much. My very, very smart panel joins me now. And, Beth Sanner, I want to start with you. Because, look, I'll tell you how the review should end, don't do that anymore in terms of using a classified app.

BETH SANNER, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST AND DIRECTOR OF GEOPOLITICS, INTERNATIONAL CAPITAL STRATEGIES: They need you a couple weeks ago.

MATTINGLY: Yes. Look, I should be a council at the White House. No, I don't want that job. Explain to people why these matters, right? For anybody who's saying like, look, these are principles on an encrypted app talk, talking about it, what appeared to have been, at least by the administration standard, a successful operation, why is this a problem?

SANNER: It's a problem for the same reason that President Trump and everyone on his team said it was a problem that Hillary Clinton had a private server in her home where she got classified information on a system that was not a government secure system. It is because national security intercepted by anyone, because you're walking around with your mobile phone or whatever, is a threat.

[18:05:00]

Does it mean that this particular instance that that happened? No, but it means that there's a pattern here of just a complete lack of understanding of what classified information is and what needs to be protected. And you know, maybe I shouldn't be shocked, shocked, but I thought that the chief of staff was going in there to make sure we wouldn't have a case like classified papers ending up in a bathroom in Mar-a-Lago. Well, instead, we have her participating in something like this.

And I just think that instead of asking how did this journalist get on, maybe they should be asking themselves, why are they on this?

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Good to have you with us.

So, we are sticking on that story. CNN's Senior Political Analyst Ron Brownstein joins us now. Ron, good to have you with us. So, a journalist at The Atlantic magazine said the defense secretary accidentally texted him military war plans. Is this a breach of national security?

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: It wasn't just the defense secretary, according to the story by my former colleagues there, I mean, you're talking about the national security adviser, who may have been the one who initially put him on the chain. The vice president, the secretary of state, the defense secretary, other senior officials in the intelligence agencies, all on a commercial app rather than a government -- you know, a secure government channel, discussing the most intimate operational details of a military strike.

I'm not sure what would compare to this as a breach in national security, and certainly, you know, if you compare to what many of the same people who were involved in this call said about Hillary Clinton, having a private e-mail server in her house, we're talking about something -- an order of magnitude, potentially more damaging and something that's obviously should, in any rational world, raise enormous questions in Congress.

KINKADE: Yes. And as you pointed out, Ron, the initial invitation to this chat, which we're looking at on screen right now, was from the national security adviser, Mike Waltz. Interestingly though, back in 2023, he took to social media to complain about Hillary Clinton use -- getting e-mails on a private server writer, right? And he said at the time, like, what did the DOJ -- what did the Justice Department do about it? Not a damn thing. So, will the Justice Department do anything this time?

BROWNSTEIN: You know, and by the way, of course, similar comments from Marco Rubio and the defense secretary, Hegseth, and obviously Trump himself. Hard to imagine that this Justice Department, which has already kind of established a pretty clear pattern of coming down with, you know, kind of, hard fist against those who they view as enemies and looking the other way for those they view as friends.

I mean, really, you know, the question -- I mean, there are obviously questions about whether this violates various espionage acts. I know that that was addressed in The Atlantic story as well for handling classified information. I mean, there are legitimate questions here. I think it's very unlikely you're going to see legal action from the Justice Department. The question is, what is the White House do about the breach? I mean, leading aside whether there's legal liability, there's obviously -- it could be a lot worse than a U.S. journalist who acted responsibly and withholding this information until after the attack itself. I mean, if this could happen to put a U.S. journalist on this, who else could be listening in once you're operating outside of the normal, secure channels.

KINKADE: Exactly. And just quickly, the U.S. president was asked about this a couple of hours after the story broke and said he didn't know anything about it. Is that surprising?

BROWNSTEIN: You know, it's not surprising in that he often responds to kind of scandals or missteps with that initial reaction. The White House has confirmed the validity that -- you know, that this was in fact a valid chain and obviously, Jeffrey was included on it. That's not going to be a tenable position for Trump to basically say, I don't know what you're talking about.

Sooner than later, he is going to have to indicate, as I said, regardless of what the Justice Department does, what is he going to do about the officials who were involved in this egregious breach and about the procedures that allowed it to happen? Is he going to act or not? And then, do the National Security hawks in -- Republicans in Congress who held dozens of hearings, Lynda, sent out subpoenas and letters, one after the other about Hillary Clinton, do they bite their tongue and look away or do they also try to get some more information about what went wrong here?

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. Ron Brownstein, we will stay on this story. Good to have you with us. Thanks so much.

BROWNSTEIN: Thanks for having me.

[18:10:00]

KINKADE: Well, President Trump's immigration policy is also under scrutiny. The administration is appealing after a lower court blocked it from deporting people. Under an 18th century wartime law. The White House accuses certain migrants of being members of a Venezuelan gang justifying their detention and deportation under the Alien Enemies Act.

A panel of judges heard today's arguments. Judge Patricia Millett questioned an attorney for the Justice Department saying, deportees weren't given the chance to defend themselves. Take a listen to that exchange.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUDGE PATRICIA MILLETT: There were plane loads of people. I mean, it was also, it's a class action. There were plane loads of people. There were no procedures in place to notify people. Nazis got better treatment under the Alien Enemy Act.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Your Honor, we certainly dispute the Nazi analogy. (END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, joining me now is James Sample law professor at Hofstra University. Good to have you with us.

JAMES SAMPLE, PROFESSOR OF LAW, HOFSTRA UNIVERSITY: Thank you, Lynda. Good to be here.

KINKADE: So, Judge Millett, they're making a pretty startling comparison to the treatment of Nazis in the way the Trump administration has treated these deportees. How is the government's argue playing out in court that this so-called gang could be considered an invasion in the U.S.?

SAMPLE: It's a good question. And I think actually we didn't get a lot of clarity today in the sense that there is a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. circuit. Two judges spoke and they clearly seem to be coming down on opposite sides, but Judge Karen Henderson, who's 80 years old, turns 81 in July, was initially appointed to a district court by -- as far back as Ronald Reagan, and then elevated to the Court of Appeals by. George H.W. Bush did not speak a single time during the hearing.

So, from a tea leaves perspective, it's a little bit difficult to say whether this Court of Appeals is going to be sympathetic to the government's position or not. But the exchange that you just played with Judge Millett questioning the government attorney was really a powerful thread in the sense that what the United States executive branch is seeking to do here is to basically do an end run around any individualized process whatsoever, which is to say that an individual swept up in one of these sweeps doesn't even have the opportunity to contest whether they are in fact a member of Tren de Aragua, that gang you referenced.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. There was no hearing whatsoever before they were put on planes and sent out of the country. We did hear that this is unprecedented. And especially the implementation by -- like lower- level members of the executive. So, what happens now? What comes next?

SAMPLE: Well, I think we're waiting on the ruling from this panel. But I think what we need to understand here is this has been -- this particular act has only been used three times in American history, the war of 1812 and the two World Wars.

In those instances -- going back 75 years, which is the last time that the United States declared war via Congress, that this act allows for extraordinary powers on the executive, and it's -- it allows for those extraordinary powers because of wartime. The government's position is essentially that Venezuela and Tren de Aragua are essentially a hybrid, and that therefore anyone who's a member or allegedly even a member of the gang is effectively a foreign nation or government invading the United States in a time of declared war.

If the courts accept that theory on the part of the executive branch, it will be a dramatic expansion of executive authority for the president and a dramatic erosion of anything resembling checks and balances.

KINKADE: James Sample, great to get your analysis. Appreciate your time today. Thanks so much.

SAMPLE: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, President Trump is ramping up his economic pressure on Venezuela too. The administration on Monday threatening 25 percent tariffs on all countries that buy oil and gas from Caracas, including China and India. The White House also giving energy giant Chevron a 30-day extension to wind down its oil operations in Venezuela. The new deadline is May 27.

Well, all this amid new hopes that President Trump's wider reciprocal tariff announcement set for next week will not be as disruptive as first feared. Trump has called April 2nd Liberation Day for America, the day when his entire tariff plan would finally come into focus. Well, there are some reports that say the announcement will be more limited in scope. Something the president hinted at on Monday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Well, I may give a lot of countries breaks, but it is reciprocal. But we might be even nicer than that. You know, we've been very nice to a lot of countries for a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[18:15:00]

KINKADE: All this helping spark in across the board rally on Wall Street with tech the big winner. Trump also announcing Monday that South Korea's Hyundai is set to invest $20 billion in the U.S., including the construction of a new steel plant. The move will allow Hyundai to avoid U.S. steel tariffs.

Well, Mark Zandi joins us now. He is the chief economist at Moody's Analytics. Good to have you with us.

MARK ZANDI, CHIEF ECONOMIST, MOODY'S ANALYTICS: Good to be with you.

KINKADE: So, Donald Trump did declare that Liberation Day would be April 2nd when all these tariffs would come into effect. Are we likely to see him walk back more of those now?

ZANDI: Well, if history is a guide, the answer is yes. The president has put tariffs on. He is taking tariffs off. He raises them. He lowers them. You know, I think it's a moving target. So, I wouldn't be at all surprised if he scales the tariffs back on April 2nd.

I mean, the one constant, I think though, is that the trade war -- the global trade war continues to intensify. The number of imported products that are facing tariffs continues to increase. The number of countries that are facing higher tariffs continues to increase. So, slowly but surely, more and more of the world is being engulfed in this trade war. KINKADE: And already, a trillion dollars in tariffs have already been imposed. How does that compare to Trump's first term?

ZANDI: Yes, that's right. Well, if you go back to the first term, President Trump's first term, it was at -- I think at the peak about $400 billion in imports, mostly imported goods from China. This case, as you said, it's now closing in on a trillion dollars in imports. And just for context, the U.S. imports about $3.4 trillion each and every year. So, almost a third of all imports are now facing tariffs. So, much bigger in scale. And of course, more countries are now engulfed in the higher tariffs, it's not just China, it's Canada and Mexico, and obviously, any country that exports steel or aluminum to the United States also faces higher tariffs.

KINKADE: Yes. And of course, if those temporary exemptions for Canada and Mexico do come into effect next month, it will push that to $1.4 trillion on imports. You did fry it on social media, Mark, that we are back on recession watch. You said the leading indicator is the FHA, the Federal Housing Administration, mortgage delinquency rate. Right now, it is rising. What can you tell us about that and why is it important when it comes to recession?

ZANDI: Yes. I mean, obviously, the economy's struggling with the higher tariffs and other policies that are being implemented, the uncertainty that's being created. And so, I do think -- and you know, at this point, I think recession is less likely than not, but recession odds are on the rise. So, I think it is instructive important to watch out -- watch the key indicators that historically have been good leading indicators of recession.

And you called out one of them, the FHA mortgage delinquency rate. So, lower middle-income households, generally first-time home buyers often get a mortgage loan from the FHA at the Federal Housing Administration. And those loans are made to borrowers that lower kind of middle income, lower credit scores, they have less of a down payment. So, they're more likely to have a problem.

And I view them as a canary in the economic coal mine. If they're starting to have trouble making their mortgage payments, that's an indication that stress is starting to develop on the economy more broadly. You know, by themselves, I don't think it's a big deal because it's too few FHA loan borrowers, but it's a signal that stress is developing and could become a problem more broadly going forward. So, something to watch, an indicator watch when you're looking out for a potential recession.

KINKADE: All right. We'll keep an eye on that. Mark Zandi, chief Economist at Moody's Analytics. Good to have you with us. Thank you.

ZANDI: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, U.S. and Russian delegations have been meeting in Saudi Arabia as the Trump administration pushes for a ceasefire in Ukraine. Russian media say the talks Monday lasted more than 12 hours. The Kremlin says they've been focused on reviving the Black Sea Grain Initiative. Frederik Pleitgen reports. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (Voice- Over): Despite unrelenting fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces on various fronts, and Moscow saying its troops continue to make headway, President Trump's special negotiator saying he trusts Russian President Vladimir Putin has no further ambitions in Europe beyond Ukraine.

STEVE WITKOFF, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY: I just don't see that he wants to take all of Europe. This is a much different situation than it was in World War II. In World War II, there was no NATO. So, I just -- you have countries that are armed there. I just -- to me, it just does -- I take him at his word in this sense.

[18:20:00]

PLEITGEN (voice-over): But the Ukrainians say Russia is continuing an aerial blitz with drones and missiles, a strike in the Northern Sumi region today leading dozens injured, Kyiv says. And Moscow accuses Ukraine of stepping up attacks on Russian energy installations despite an agreement with the Trump administration not to do so, even though Kyiv denies the allegations.

The Kremlin seemingly pushing the brakes on talk of a possible imminent full ceasefire. Of course there are still many different aspects related to the settlement that need to be worked out, the Kremlin spokesman said.

As U.S. and Russian negotiators met in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh to try and hammer out some of those details, Steve Witkoff says the last time he met Putin, he saw a special relationship between the Russian leader and President Trump developing, Witkoff told Tucker Carlson.

WITKOFF: You know, it got personal. The president -- President Putin had commissioned a beautiful portrait of the -- of President Trump from the leading Russian artist, and actually gave it to me and asked me to take it home to President Trump, which I brought home and delivered him. It's been reported in the paper, but it was such a gracious moment and told me a story, Tucker, about how when the president was shot, he went to it -- his local church and met with his priest and prayed for the president, not because he was the president of the United -- he could be become the president of the United States, but because he had a friendship with him and he was praying for his friend.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Those words reverberating on the streets of Moscow.

PLEITGEN: He said that president Putin had ordered a portrait of Donald Trump. What did you think about that?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't know. It's maybe a symbol of growing relationships. I don't know how to think about it.

PLEITGEN: Do you think they're friends? said that he was praying for a friend.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, yes. He said so, but I don't know maybe, maybe.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I believe they have a quite good relationship between them. So, I believe that everything will be fine.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): The Trump administration also says they believe things will be worked out even as the Kremlin cautions many tough issues still need to be solved to end the fighting in Ukraine.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: All right. Joining me now is Maria Snegovaya, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Good to have you with us, Maria.

MARIA SNEGOVAYA, SENIOR FELLOW, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES: Thank you for having me.

KINKADE: So, while these peace talks continued in Saudi Arabia, Russia launched a missile striking a densely populated area in the northeastern part of Ukraine, hitting a school and a hospital. What does that signal?

SNEGOVAYA: And of course, just over the last weeks as these allegedly successful peace talks are progressing, Russia has been, even by its own standards, extremely vicious against Ukraine, attacking multiple cities like Odessa, Kyiv, other regions with potentially even larger number of objects like drones and missiles than before. Clearly, that's a signal that Putin is not awfully interested in the peace talks honestly.

And just today, we had Russian officials, among them Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, reiterate that Russia sticks to its original maximalist demands on Ukraine, including, quote/unquote, "de-Nazification of Ukraine," which obviously is a Kremlin language for basically abandoning -- making Ukraine loosening sovereignty and identity.

KINKADE: And of course, both the U.S. envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the U.S. president have been parroting Russian propaganda at times. What does that do to good faith negotiations?

SNEGOVAYA: I will just say that in defense maybe of Steve Whitlock that when he says that some parts of Ukraine, like this four occupied annexed -- recently annexed by Russia, regions of Ukraine are actually Russians and been transferred by Khrushchev, that's not -- that's even far by Putin's own standards because he never claimed those are historically Russian regions. Putin says those are populated by Russian speakers who are allegedly unfairly prosecuted by the current Ukrainian government. So, that's a little bit beyond from -- even Putin's own claims.

But of course, from Ukrainian perspective a lot of these token points seem to be echoing what Kremlin is saying, and one can only hope that it's a negotiating strategy and tactics, but unfortunately, also seems to be combined with pressure applied primarily on Ukraine rather than Russia in accepting serious concessions such as, for example, (INAUDIBLE) recognizing Russia's control over its regions, which of course is a non-starter for Ukraine.

[18:25:00]

So, clearly, that is a very concerning development. And one only hope that a similar pressure can -- will also be eventually applied on Russia, including toughening sanctions and reinforcing lethal aid applies to Ukraine.

KINKADE: The White House says a maritime truce in the Black Sea is one of the top priorities to allow the free flow of goods. Why do you think that is high on the agenda for these initial stages of the talks?

SNEGOVAYA: I would argue that is something that Russia is willing to negotiate. Just to remind our audience is that Russia currently is advancing on Ukraine. Unfortunately, for Ukraine, Russia is an opposite -- an advantage in terms of socioeconomic and military aid situation. So, Putin is not awfully willing to make major concessions to Ukraine.

To the extent that he's willing to negotiate, it's the Black Sea situation because that's where Ukraine was particularly successful in keeping the Russian Black Sea fleet at bay by very successful attacks from the Russian sea fleet over the last year. And also, as we know, the other negotiation has -- had to do with the earnings infrastructure that is, again, partly because Ukraine was highly successful in attacking Russian refineries, using the -- using drones.

So, these are the areas allegedly quite where Russia is vulnerable. And accordingly, Putin is willing to basically achieve some sort of agreements on those particular dimensions.

KINKADE: Maria Snegovaya, we appreciate your time today. Senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Thanks very much.

SNEGOVAYA: Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, still to come, Elon Musk's BYD problem. The EV giant overtaking Tesla in sales last year. It's just the latest milestone for the Chinese firm. We're going to have the very latest next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back. A landmark achievement for Chinese electric vehicle firm, BYD. The company announcing that its annual revenue last year surpassed $100 billion for the very first time beating out rival Tesla. BYD's surge is further proof of Tesla's challenge in China, one of its key markets. Our Anna Stewart has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, this is actually more good news for the Chinese car maker. Last week, the company unveiled a new charging system called the Super e-Platform, which it says can charge its latest models in just five minutes, allowing them to go 250 miles.

[18:30:00]

Now, BYD isn't just challenging Tesla in its charging innovation but also in sales, as it beats its U.S. rival in revenues for 2024. BYD already dominates in China and has an aggressive expansion plan overseas with new factories currently being built in Hungary and Turkey to target the European market.

Last month, Chinese-owned car makers sold more new cars in Europe than Tesla, according to research platform, JATO Dynamics, and they say BYD increased sales there by 94 percent. Meanwhile, Tesla sales are falling, and so is it stock price down nearly 30 percent this year.

Anna Stewart, CNN London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Still ahead, Turkey in crisis. More than a thousand people have now been taken into custody after almost a week of protest. We'll have a special report on what's behind the political turmoil, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Here are more international headlines we're watching today.

The Palestinian health ministry in Gaza has published the names of 15,000 children killed there over the last 18 months. 890 of them were no more than a year old. A quarter of them, roughly 4,000 children, were under the age of five. Israel disputes the figures and says it avoids civilian casualties in accordance with international law.

Ukrainian officials say 88 people were injured, including 17 children in a Russian missile strike on Monday. It happened in a densely populated residential area in Northeast Sumi. Authorities say children's facilities and a hospital were damaged in the attack.

A wildfire alert has been issued for Southern Chile. Evacuation orders are in place and President Gabriel Boric says there are over two dozen active fires with others now under control.

[18:35:00]

The president emphasized the importance of fire prevention and said most are due to human responsibility.

Thousands gathered across Turkey Monday for a sixth night of protests after the arrest of President Erdogan's main political rival, the mayor of Istanbul. The Turkish president blasting protestors for the, quote, "evil" they have done to the country and demanded that they, quote, "stop provoking citizens." But demonstrators fear their country is sliding towards authoritarianism. They're not letting up. Our Nada Bashir has the latest on Turkey's ongoing political crisis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Turmoil in Turkey. Thousands of demonstrators gathering across dozens of cities in protest against the jailing of Istanbul mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu. Only to be met by a violent crackdown by riot police. With more than a thousand people detained in just six days.

Also detained Imamoglu. Considered to be the most serious political rival to Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Arrested on the very same day his secular Republican People's Party nominated him as their next presidential candidate.

Erdogan has been Turkey's president for over 20 years, favored by the likes of Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump.

TRUMP: I'm a big fan of the president.

BASHIR (voice-over): And accused of pushing Turkey further towards authoritarianism. Now, having his government formally charge his rival, Imamoglu, with corruption.

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, TURKEY PRESIDENT (THROUGH TRANSLATOR): A country like Turkey has a main opposition party that is too small, too primitive, and too weak in terms of foresight, vision, and quality. It has become apparent once again that they cannot be trusted to run a country, let alone local government.

BASHIR (voice-over): Imamoglu has denied the allegations against him, describing his arrest as a dark stain on democracy. What began with a successful attempt to strip him of his university degree effectively barring him from running for president, has since expanded to allegations including extortion and bribery.

Critics have warned that Imamoglu's arrest could signal a dangerous shift in Turkey's already stifled democracy. With fears Erdogan may have been emboldened by backers further afield, including in the U.S., where President Trump has previously praised the Turkish leader's strongman tactics.

TRUMP: We've had a great relationship and we will make it even better.

He's a hell of a leader and he's a tough man. He is a strong man.

President Erdogan is a friend of mine. He's a guy I like, respect. I think he respects me also.

BASHIR (voice-over): That mutual respect seemingly still strong despite past differences. Bloomberg has reported that Erdogan is working to secure a meeting with Trump at the White House in the coming weeks, citing Turkish officials, President Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, meanwhile, recently told Tucker Carlson on his podcast that the two leaders remain in close contact on regional affairs. WITKOFF: I think the president had a great conversation with Erdogan a couple of days ago. Really transformational, I would describe it.

BASHIR (voice-over): Nada Bashir, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, coming up after the break, parenthood in the age of an online misogyny, bullying, and radicalization. The heartbreaking TV miniseries, "Adolescence," is sparking an intense debate about the rights and wrongs of social media. We'll discuss, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:40:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Now, to an urgent question, troubling society and parents in particular, what's behind the anger and resentment felt by some young boys and men? It's an issue tackled by the Netflix miniseries "Adolescence," which has sparked a global debate on toxic masculinity, rejection as well as violence against women and girls.

The four-episode series begins with the immediate aftermath of the murder of a young girl in England. Her 13-year-old classmate is taken into police custody by armed police and what looks at first to be a terrible mistake. But all is not as it seems, and the message to all parents is, this could happen to you or your children.

The actor Stephen Graham, who also served as the show's executive producer, told our Christiane Amanpour what he wants parents to take away from the series.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEPHEN GRAHAM, EXECUTIVE PRODUCER AND ACTOR, "ADOLESCENCE": What this program did, and Hannah said this, my wife said, what she feels our program has achieved is for parents to be able to open that bedroom door now and talk to their children, be their male or female and ask them what's going on. Let's just -- you know, we -- look, you know yourself, when you go to a restaurant sometimes and no disrespect, I understand it, but kids have sat there with on -- you know, talk to each other, ask each other what's going on. That's the only way we can understand what's happening.

Adolescence is such a difficult age. Your brain's forming, you know, your chemicals are all over the place. You're learning about yourself. You're trying to construct this character that's going to take you into the future. So, let's talk, let's open the bridges of communication with each other. That's all we're trying to do.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, "Adolescence" has drawn such a strong reaction, the British prime minister raised the issue of radicalization of teenagers in parliament. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: This violence carried out by young men influenced by what they see online is a real problem. It's abhorrent and we have to tackle it. We are putting in specialist rape and sexual offenses teams in every police force doing work on the 999 calls. But this is also a matter of culture that I think it's important that across the whole house we tackle this emerging and growing problem.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, Jackson Katz is the co-founder of the Mentors in Violence Prevention Program and urges men to speak up about misogyny. He's also the author of "Every Man: Why Violence Against Women is a Men's Issue." He joins me now. Good to have you with us.

JACKSON KATZ, CO-FOUNDER, MENTORS IN VIOLENCE PREVENTION AND AUTHOR, "EVERY MAN": Good to be with you, Lynda. Thank you very much.

KINKADE: So, full transparency, I haven't seen this show, but everyone seems to be talking about it. Why do you think it's hit a nerve?

KATZ: Well, I think it's extremely well done, televisual art. I think the storytelling is brilliant, but I think it's tapping into its -- it's one of those examples where art is actually illuminating what's really happening in the society in a way that a lot of people can relate to. And I think it focuses on the family of the young boy or who is accused of or charged with murdering a young girl, one of his classmates, and it takes you right inside of his world, if you will, and the family's world. And what happens as a result of the -- I don't want to totally spoil it for people who haven't seen it, but it gives you an insight into some of the dynamics, both within families, but in the larger society.

I think that's an important point. It's not just about insular look inside of a family as much as it is a look at the larger society through the lens of this family, because misogyny and online sort of misogyny and the manosphere and the influences in young boys and young men's lives that are, you know, kind of pervasive in the English- speaking world, Andrew Tate, the -- you know, all the various sort of toxic influences in -- that young men are consuming in, especially in the online world is all sort of, there -- not always foregrounded, but it's always in the backdrop.

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And you know that that's what's causing, or at least an important part of the cause of this family's -- and this -- you know, this sad and tragic situation.

KINKADE: Yes. I mean, as you kind of point out, the show highlights this worrying trend online. A group described as incel, which is involuntarily celibate. According to Wikipedia incel is a term associated with a mostly online subculture of people who define themselves as unable to find a romantic or sexual pun despite desiring one, and who may blame objectify or denigrate women and girls as a result. And sometimes, obviously, they commit gender-based violence. Just to explain how this movement has evolved online and who is most at risk of being influenced by it?

KATZ: Well, what used to be a small corner of the internet that was called the manosphere, which was a place where lots of men, including men who were really angry at feminism and feminists, and the changes that were happening in the gender, you know, culture of our societies could find a connection with each other and a lot of angry men in that space, but it's become much more mainstream in the last, you know, 10 years.

And so, what used to be a sort of a dark corner of the internet has become much more on the -- you know, sort of the front page, if you will. And, you know, let's be honest Donald Trump is president of the United States. Andrew Tate is a global superstar who has just came into the United States after being held by the Romanian officials for, you know, allegations of rape and sex trafficking. And now, he was, you know, welcomed into the United States and is being cheered at various, you know, events.

So, we're talking about a mainstreaming of a really abusive kind of masculinity that, by the way, is total disservice to young women and women in general because it's normalizing a level of misogyny that is just unspeakable, but it's also really doing a disservice to young men and boys, many of whom want connection, they want intimacy both with girls and with other boys and men and with their, you know, families, but they're not getting intimacy. What they're getting is angry adult men who are basically exploiting their needs for their own personal, either political or economic gain.

And I think we've reached a crisis. And I think this series, "Adolescence," really speaks to that crisis in a very profoundly personal way, which it touches a lot of people personally because of the successful execution of the art.

KINKADE: Yes. It really is frightening and there are a lot of questions and debates about access to social media through smartphones for teens. We know that Australia is leading the way with a law that will soon coming to effect banning kids from using social media platforms if you're under the age of 16, and the writer of "Adolescence" has spoken about the fact that he hopes that a similar law might be enacted in Britain.

But for teens already using these platforms, how can parents spot signs of radicalization and start a conversation?

KATZ: Well, Lynda, the key point is starting the conversation. So, I think the notion of protecting your kids, which is a responsibility of adults, and I'll speak even more directly to fathers because I think this film has a very poignant message about a father's relationship with his son and his feelings of failure, in failing to protect his son from these pernicious influences.

I think historically -- and I mean, not historically in the long view, but in -- you know, in recent decades, I think a lot of men, adult men, have kind of outsourced to women our responsibility to talk to boys and young men about issues relating to gender and sexuality and relationships and heterosexual relationships.

And -- because I think, again, a lot of adult men are uncomfortable with this conversation. And so, if adult men are uncomfortable and we are -- and we -- but we have a responsibility to boys and girls and others, but to boys, I think we need to get over -- the adult men need to get over our own feelings of inadequacy or anxiety and even, by the way, acknowledging to our sons -- and I'm the father of a son, acknowledging to our sons that we don't have all the answers. We're not -- you don't have to be an expert.

If you're a father, if you're an adult man who's in a position of mentoring or with a young person, you don't have to be a father, you can also be an adult mentor to a boy or a young man, it's just -- you don't have to pretend that you're an expert. You can say, look, I'm concerned about you. Let's have a conversation. And I -- you can share some of your own struggles. Maybe it's not exactly generationally similar because of the technology has changed so much, but I think that's a valuable takeaway from this film is that adult men in particular need better skills and courage often to break our silence.

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And by the way, not just in our relationships with our kids, I think this needs to happen in the public conversation. I'm glad to hear that, you know, Keir Starer and other powerful prominent men are talking about this publicly. We need more adult men in positions of influence, whether it's coaches, teachers, you know, media, celebrities, obviously political figures, but men who are in the public conversation, the more that they talk about the need to be vulnerable, to be -- have honest conversations, to not have all the answers, but know that the level of misogyny in our societies is just unacceptable.

And it's not fair that women carry the burden of being the ones, whether they're mothers or others who are always, you know, relied upon to be the ones talking about this, bringing up the subject, initiating the conversations.

If men would do that and adult men and take some of the pressure off of women, I think we'd have a much more productive conversation. Both in our families, but also in the larger culture.

KINKADE: You make some great points there. Jackson Katz, we appreciate your time. Thanks so much for joining us.

KATZ: Thanks very much, Lynda.

KINKADE: We're going to be right back in just a moment. Stay with us. You're watching CNN.

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KINKADE: Welcome back on Lynda Kinkade. Well, after thousands of earthquakes and mass evacuations, the Greek Island of Santorini is open for business and they're more excited about the return of the economy as tourists come back.

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KINKADE (voice-over): The popular Greek Islands of Santorini experienced waves of earthquakes in January and February causing tourists and many residents to evacuate.

But just over a month later, the first cruise ship of the season arrived at the island. It's a sign of hope that tourism could bounce back after the earthquakes triggered a state of emergency that lasted until March 3rd.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's exciting, yes, to know that the islands open again and we get to visit first. It is safe.

KINKADE (voice-over): The picturesque island sits near the boundary of the African and Eurasian tectonic plates. Because of its proximity to the geographic fault lines, Santorini often experiences seismic activity, but the most recent wave of earthquakes was not typical.

Data from the National Observatory of Athens indicated that over 1,200 earthquakes ranging from 1 to 5.2 in magnitude occurred over a two- week period. Schools closed and construction work was halted. But now that the quakes have died down, tourists express excitement about returning to Santorini after the government's safety assurances.

JULIE EBERLY, TOURIST: We love being the first cruise ship that got the chance to come to Santorini. We feel really blessed. We trust the tourism board here. And so, if they said it was safe to come, we came with open arms.

KINKADE (voice-over): The island, which attracts around 3.4 million visitors each year is also home to around 200,000 residents, and tourism makes up a large majority of the island's income.

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TASSOS KONTOS, SHOP OWNER (through translator): We all hope that things will return to normal, that people will come back. The cloud seems to be lifting. So, things should improve for everyone. At least that's what we hope.

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KINKADE (on camera): Well, if climbing Mt. Fuji is on your bucket list, be prepared to pay a higher fee and take a test. Starting this summer, Japan has doubled the fee to $27. In addition, hopeful hikers will also have to book a slot online. Take a class on hiking, safety, and local rules, plus pass a short test. Japan wants to curb overcrowding and littering on the volcano, which attracts more than 200,000 climbers every year. The UNESCO Wild Heritage side is a symbol of natural beauty and holds deep spiritual significance in Japanese culture.

And of course, in Japan, the country's breathtaking cherry blossom season officially begins today at the first Sakura blooms appearing in Tokyo. As per custom, Japan's weather agency confirmed that at least five blossoms have opened, the minimum required for the much- anticipated announcement. Well, cherry blossom season represents new beginnings with many around the world, engaging in Hanami, the age-old Japanese tradition of flower watching. Well, that sounds delightful.

And that does it for this edition of CNN News. I'm Lynda Kinkade. Thanks to your company. Stay with CNN.

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