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Liberals and Mark Carney Win Big at Canada's General Elections; Power Restored in Almost All of Iberian Peninsula After Monday's Blackout; Conclave Set on May 7 for a New Pope; Teenager with Autism Breaks New World Record. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired April 29, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers, joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead, Canada's Liberal Party wins another term in a stunning comeback in response to threats from Donald Trump.

As power is slowly restored in parts of Spain and Portugal, questions remain about what caused Monday's massive blackout.

And 100 days into Donald Trump's presidency, one thing is certain, despite his promises, Americans are unhappy about the economy.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Thanks for joining us.

Well, Canada's Liberal Party has made a stunning political comeback in a federal election driven in large part by anti-Trump sentiment. And that means Mark Carney is set to continue as Prime Minister. He took over as party leader after former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau decided to step down.

U.S. tariffs and a U.S. President openly talking about annexation saw voters coalesce around the Liberal leader and his anti-Trump campaign. The Prime Minister gave a defiant victory speech to supporters just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: America wants our land, our resources, our water, our country. Never. But these are not, these are not idle threats.

President Trump is trying to break us so that America can own us.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: Four months ago, the Conservative Party, led by Pierre Poilievre, held a significant lead in the polls and looked to be heading for an election win. He expressed his disappointment in conceding the election.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PIERRE POILIEVRE, CONSERVATIVE PARTY LEADER: We didn't quite get over the finish line yet. We know that change is needed, but change is hard to come by. It takes time, it takes work. And that's why we have to learn the lessons of tonight so that we can have an even better result the next time the Canadians decide the future for the country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Votes are still being counted, but the Liberals look like they will fall short of the 172 seats they need for an outright majority government. CNN's Paula Newton has more from Ottawa.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Even in the last hours of Canada's election, Donald Trump made sure that he was a defining presence. And what did that mean for Prime Minister Mark Carney? It meant he was elected Prime Minister of Canada, very much running in order to thwart the threats from Donald Trump, and not just his economic threats, but his threats to make Canada the 51st state.

Now, the win for Mark Carney was less than some were expecting. He had been riding much higher in the polls a few weeks ago, perhaps enough to get him that coveted majority government in Canada, which would mean he wouldn't have to compromise when it came to making legislation. The parliament that Canada will get, though, will now be a much messier affair, and they will have to come to terms with exactly how they renegotiate their relationship with the United States.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre, as much as Mark Carney had a resurrection of his party, Pierre Poilievre, it should be noted, blew a 25 percent lead in the polls just about five months ago. Now, that being said, his party picked up a significant amount of seats.

In terms of what anyone can learn from this kind of an election, Canadians really were trying to elect a leader that could stand up to Donald Trump in the Oval Office. But in so doing, a lot of the smaller parties were marginalized here, and Canadian politics were left more fractured than ever, even though they are still, at this hour, quite united against Donald Trump.

Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Tens of millions of people in Spain and Portugal are waking up with electricity and questions about what caused Monday's big blackout. (VIDEO PLAYING)

Cheers erupted in Madrid around dusk as the lights flickered back to life. Power is almost entirely restored now on the Iberian Peninsula. Authorities have yet to explain what went wrong.

[03:05:03]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PEDRO SANCHEZ, SPANISH PRIME MINISTER (through translator): What has caused this sudden disappearance of supply? This is something that specialists have not yet been able to determine, but they will. And the relevant state institutions and all private operators are working together to understand what has happened. All potential causes are being analyzed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The European Council President says so far there's no evidence of a cyber attack. Portugal relies heavily on neighboring Spain for electricity, and the Portuguese Prime Minister said everything indicates the problem started there. Travelers across the peninsula were left scrambling amid the blackout, with many flights and train services cancelled, and subways going dark.

We're now to Berlin and energy analyst Christoph Maurer. He is a partner and managing director at Consentec, a boutique consultancy specializing in power systems and power economics. Appreciate you being with us.

CHRISTOPH MAURER, ENERGY ANALYST, PARTNER AND MANAGING DIRECTOR, CONSENTEC GMBH: Good morning, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So power is now returning to most of Spain and Portugal and parts of France after this massive power outage that lasted about nine hours or so. The cause is not yet known, but what are the possible causes, given Spain seems to be where this problem originated?

MAURER: Well, obviously, what happened and what we see from the data is that there was a major incident at around 12:35 p.m. yesterday. So obviously, somehow, the Iberian Peninsula was disconnected from the rest of the European grid at that time.

It's not yet clear why that happened and whether it was the root cause of the incident. But obviously, after the disconnection, there were major power imbalances in the remaining subsystems. So there was a shortage of power in the remaining European system and the drop of the frequency set there.

But because this is a very large system that was able to balance that out and nothing really happened out there. But within the Iberian system, then obviously there was a large mismatch between power demand and power generation. And the system was not able to destabilize that situation and went into blackout. Rosemary.

CHURCH: So how long might it take, do you think, to determine the actual cause and how do they make that determination?

MAURER: Well, there is a lot of data available. So you have recordings from frequency, from phase angles in the system. So that's a lot of technical stuff there. But what people in systems operations will now do, that they will very cautiously and diligently analyze the situation, what has happened.

And I think we can expect some first conclusion within, let's say, two or three weeks' time. And then typically within a few months, there will be a large report written by ANSO-E, which is the European Association of Transmission System Operators.

And with past incidents we had, they always reported them in a very detailed manner on what had happened and also what could be done to prevent similar events in the future.

CHURCH: Yes, of course. And power outages on this massive scale are, of course, a concern, triggering major disruptions with many people saying they were locked out of everything. They couldn't get money from ATMs or even buy goods. Of course, we know about the travel disruptions.

It reveals a vulnerability, doesn't it, which makes people very nervous. So how worried are you about the energy system?

MAURER: Well, I'm not that much worried. So blackouts are a major event and obviously they cause large problems. And we see that here.

And what somehow is relieving that obviously network restoration plans worked properly and power was restored within, let's say, typical time frames of several hours. So that's what you would expect, that it takes, let's say, 10 to 15 hours to restore supply after such an event. It's also what we saw in Italy when they had a blackout back in 2003.

And so somehow it worked, even if this is a worst-case scenario and I don't think that we will have to expect blackouts to happen much more often in the future. Typically, blackouts are very particular, very rare events, often triggered by some very special events happening in the transmission system, sometimes combined with human errors that needs to be thoroughly analyzed now. But I'm not concerned that this is a situation we will have to face more often in the future.

CHURCH: So your sense is that Spain could guarantee this won't happen again by saying that?

MAURER: Well, you can never say that won't happen again. So these are technical systems and technical systems are prone to failure. There's no 100 percent security that blackouts won't happen.

[03:10:03]

But on the other hand, we have established security criteria and rules of operation and so on, which normally take care that such events will not happen. So now and then, obviously, something bad happens, and then we have a

situation like the one we faced yesterday. But I don't think that this is a situation which we will have to expect to happen more often in the future because of the energy transition and so on. So it needs a thorough analysis, but it's not an event which I would expect to repeat, let's say over the next two years or three years or something like that.

CHURCH: Christoph Maurer, thank you so much for joining us live from Berlin. I appreciate it.

MAURER: Thank you for having me.

CHURCH: A new CNN poll shows shifting support for President Trump. We will check the numbers on his tariff policies, inflation and the economy.

And the latest on the rising tensions between India and Pakistan after a deadly militant attack in Kashmir.

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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone.

President Trump will celebrate the first 100 days of his second term with a rally today in the battleground state of Michigan. The "Wall Street Journal" reports he's set to announce a deal easing auto tariffs, avoiding stacking them on top of one another.

But a new CNN poll shows the American public is losing faith in the President's economic policies. 59 percent say they have worsened conditions in the country.

Wall Street is also reeling from the President's first 100 days back in the White House. The Dow has dropped nearly 4,000 points since the inauguration, resulting in massive losses for investors. More now from CNN's Alayna Treene.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, the Trump administration is leaning in heavily this week to mark the President's first 100 days in office. On Monday, they chose to focus on immigration. What administration officials tell me behind the scenes is really a bright spot for Trump right now in this point, in his second term.

That's why you saw them focus so heavily on talking about the number of deportations to this point compared to the Biden administration at the same point last year. You saw the White House's border czar Tom Homan speak in a briefing on Monday morning. But on Tuesday, the focus is going to shift to the economy. And it comes as CNN has new polling that shows many Americans, 59

percent, believe that the Trump administration has worsened conditions for the economy. That's compared to 27 percent who say that they have improved conditions and 14 percent who said that they have no effect.

Look, these are pretty dismal numbers for President Donald Trump, particularly on an issue that he had vowed to repeatedly on the campaign trail to improve. He often said he was going to be ushering in the golden age for America. There would be an economic revival.

But these poll numbers show that Americans remain broadly unhappy with where the economy is and disillusioned by his trade policy.

Now, of course, all of this comes as the stock market has been kind of ping-ponging. People are questioning what is going to happen with these tariffs. And despite the White House saying that they have had around 100 countries approach them with trade proposals, we haven't seen any hard evidence or tangible evidence of what those deals will look like.

Now, Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, is expected to give a briefing Tuesday morning to talk about this. You can anticipate he'll be facing a lot of tough questions from reporters on the status of these deals.

We heard him on Monday say that he believes India could be the first country that they will strike a trade deal with, that that deal could come as soon as this week or next week. But again, a lot of people are running out of patience. We have in this poll as well that six in 10 Americans are saying Trump's policies have increased the cost of living in their community, and just 12 percent say his agenda has helped bring prices down.

Now, one of the most striking things in all of this, to me at least, is how different this is from the President's first term, when he used to dictate some of his policy based on how it was performing in the stock market. We know that Trump has said publicly, but also privately, that he is willing to have Americans deal with a little bit of short-term pain, and that he genuinely believes in the long run the economy will even itself out.

But again, this has been one of the areas that hasn't been a bright spot for this administration, and it also comes, as we know, that he's been frustrated with the status of talks with certain countries, including on China, which has really dug in on its position on trade policy. All of this, as we know, that the Trump administration officials, and in my conversations with them, argue that behind closed doors, you know, they notice that the first 100 days is really when you're able to get a lot through.

You have more leeway, particularly when you look at how Republicans in Congress are responding to some of this, and now some of the attention will quickly turn to wanting to make sure the policy is in the right place before the midterm elections. All of this weighing on the president's first 100 days in office.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Larry Sabato joins us now. He is the director of the University of Virginia Center for Politics and editor of "A Return to Normalcy? The 2020 Election That (Almost) broke America". Good to have you with us.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA-CENTER FOR POLITICS: Thank you so much, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So 100 days in office and President Trump is getting a wakeup call, according to the latest CNN poll showing nearly 60 percent of Americans think Trump's policies have made the U.S. economy worse, 65 percent disapprove of how he's handling tariffs.

[03:20:05]

And this is a president who promised to bring down the overall cost of living. So what could this mean for him politically in 2026, if he doesn't back off his extreme tariff policies?

SABATO: The Democrats are already favored to retake the House of Representatives. Trump is a very controversial, divisive president. That would help the Democrats to gain the handful of seats they need to take control.

The question is, will they get enough so they actually can run the House? And Trump is making it easier for them. It certainly looks good for the Democrats now.

The Senate is a very different kettle of fish. We'll have to wait until the election year to analyze that.

But, you know, this first 100 days has been a cavalcade of chaos, more so than any president in my lifetime. And I would argue any President since the 100 day tradition began with Franklin Roosevelt in 1933.

CHURCH: And of course, it is worth pointing out that these poll numbers coming in before the real impact of President Trump's tariffs start to be felt in terms of higher prices with current supplies expected to dry up in about six to eight weeks, after which new supplies will have those higher tariff supply to them, meaning the worst is yet to come in terms of price hikes.

So what happens if no trade deals with the various countries are announced this week and if Trump doesn't make a deal with China specifically?

SABATO: It's pretty obvious that these numbers will be Trump's high marks if, in fact, he doesn't retreat on tariffs and other things don't move in his favor. And right now, just about nothing is working. Even immigration has become controversial and less than a majority of Americans back him on that, which has always been his strongest issue.

CHURCH: And in an interview with "The Atlantic," President Trump pushed back on the suggestion that financial turmoil would prompt him to roll back his tariff policies. He said this quote, "It always affects you a little bit, but there's no red line, no certain number that would compel him to change course." But we have seen him blink, haven't we? Could he change course in response to his historically low approval rating?

SABATO: Of course. Now, assuming he doesn't run for reelection, which he's not allowed to do in 2028, he still has to be responsive to the Republicans in Congress who backed into the hilt on everything. But they're the ones whose names are on the ballots in 2026. They're the ones who are going to pay the price for Trump's policy.

And if, in fact, they tell him that they're panicking and he must act, I think probably he would do something.

CHURCH: Now, you mentioned this, but those latest CNN polls also show that 54 percent of Americans disapprove of how Trump is handling immigration, 60 percent disapprove of how he's handling foreign affairs when it comes to the war in Gaza and the war in Ukraine, which he promised to end in his first 24 hours in office. So what impact do you think that would have or these issues would have on him going forward?

SABATO: They're less important than the domestic economy, which, after all, was why he was elected, even more than border security and immigration. And you mentioned his first day promise to end the war in Ukraine. Well, the bigger first day promise was to bring down prices immediately.

They have gone up. Inflation is up. And once these tariffs take effect, it's really going to skyrocket.

So, again, Trump has not fulfilled those promises. And even part of his MAGA base understands they're not getting what they bargained for. And

Larry, I do want to just quickly touch on another issue. The Trump administration's web page about the COVID-19 pandemic just got a makeover now pushing the China Wuhan lab leak theory about the virus' origins, while also slamming the Biden administration's response to the pandemic.

Now, we still don't know the actual source of the virus. This is just one of any number of possible sources. How dangerous is it when a government highlights information like this on its own website?

SABATO: Well, of course, it's dangerous because it is either untrue or unproven or both. And when a government pumps out misinformation and disinformation on a regular basis and it's hardly limited to the COVID website, then you have a problem for Americans who are actually trying to get informed and find out the truth. So this is part of the path to authoritarianism, which is another piece of Trump's current unpopularity.

Americans have sensed that he is grasping for more and more power and saying more and more things that are unconstitutional, like potentially ignoring court decisions or running for that unconstitutional third term. [03:25:08]

CHURCH: Larry Sabato, thanks so much for joining us. I appreciate it.

SABATO: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: As we mentioned, President Trump's positive poll numbers on immigration are shrinking, with 54 percent now saying they disapprove of how he's handling the issue, that's a six point swing from last month.

CNN's Gustavo Valdes looks at how the president ended up underwater on this key issue.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DONALD TRUMP, THEN-REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We built over 500 miles of border wall.

GUSTAVO VALDES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One of U.S. President Donald Trump's main campaign promises.

TRUMP: It's got to stop and we've got to have the largest mass deportation effort in history.

VALDES (voice-over): It's perhaps one of his most successful so far, despite backlash from countries in Latin America and critics in the U.S.

TRUMP: That's a good one, birthright.

VALDES (voice-over): After Trump ordered the U.S. military to secure the border and assist with mass deportations, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro refused to allow two military planes carrying deportees to land in his country because he didn't like seeing migrants in shackles as they were being transported. But Petro ended up sending a presidential plane to retrieve his citizens after the U.S. briefly imposed tariffs on Colombian imports, sanctioned government officials and suspended consular services.

But some policies so far are not working as planned. The notorious Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba, known for housing many terrorists from the September 11 attacks, is now also being used as an immigration detention center and must have eventually been deported to their country of origin or returned to the U.S. without explanation.

Back at home, President Trump's policies continue to face legal challenges. Even with a conservative majority, the Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to stop deporting some immigrants using the Alien Enemies Act so it can hear the case, an act that dates back to 1789 and has only been used in time of war. It allows for the detention and quick deportation of foreign adult men considered a danger to the United States.

The Trump administration argues that members of international crime organizations, like Tren de Aragua from Venezuela and MS-13 from El Salvador, in the U.S. illegally, can be deported under the act.

Some have claimed the government is detaining them without evidence, and many say they are entitled to challenge their removal.

DAVID SUPER, PROF, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: That's not what this law is. This law is for when the United States is at war. The administration is arguing that it's the equivalent of a war, that we have problems with gangs and cartels, but the definition of war and invasion was very clear in 1798 when this law was passed, and that does not mean it.

VALDES (voice-over): And then there is the case of Killmar Abrego- Garcia, a Salvadoran man deported to his country even though an immigration judge had ruled he shouldn't be. The U.S. admits it was a mistake, but his case has led to a standoff between Abrego-Garcia's legal team, the courts who ordered his return to the U.S., and the Trump administration's refusal to work to bring him back.

Gustavo Valdes, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Still to come, as Russia prepares for its annual Victory Day commemorations, President Vladimir Putin declares a unilateral three- day ceasefire in Ukraine for next week. But Ukrainian officials are skeptical.

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[03:30:00]

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CHURCH: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom." I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check today's top stories for you.

A new CNN poll shows declining support for President Donald Trump. 59 percent say his policies have made economic conditions in the U.S. worse, that's up eight points since March. 69 percent say they think a recession is at least somewhat likely within the next year.

Electricity has been restored in most of Spain and Portugal after one of the largest blackouts ever in Europe. They suffered the massive outage on Monday, effectively shutting down a number of major cities across the Iberian Peninsula. No word yet on what caused the blackout.

[03:34:59]

Canada's Liberal Party, led by Prime Minister Mark Carney, has won the country's federal election and will form a new government. It's a stunning political comeback for the Liberals, who were down by 20 points to the Conservatives in January.

So let's get more on the Canadian election now from Professor Michael Keating, Emeritus Professor of Politics at the University of Aberdeen and Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh. Appreciate you joining us.

So, Canada's Liberal Party is projected to win the federal election, led by Mark Carney, in a stunning political comeback. Votes are still being counted, but how do you expect this to land in the end?

MICHAEL KEATING, EMERITUS PROF. OF POLITICS, UNIVERSITY OF ABERDEEN AND HONORARY PROF., UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH: It's not clear whether Carney will get an absolute majority, but will certainly form the next government because he's the biggest party there ahead in the popular vote. If he doesn't get a majority, he'll have to seek support from smaller parties, most likely the New Democratic Party, which is a center-left party, which has been doing very badly, but they may pick up half a dozen seats and that might be critical to forming the next government.

CHURCH: Now, in his victory speech, Carney asked, and I'm quoting here, "Who's ready to stand up for Canada with me?" How much of this Liberal Party win was due to the Trump factor, with Donald Trump's trade war with Canada and of course his constant threats to make the country the 51st U.S. state?

KEATING: Oh, a great deal. Canadians are very proud of their independence. They don't dislike the United States, but they're very keen to tell you that they are non-Americans, they're not part of the United States, so that kind of language is going to produce a reaction.

All the parties in Canada, Quebec nationalists included, have to say no, we'll stand up for Canada, but Carney was the most effective in doing that because Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre had been seen as having some affinities with Trump and quite close to Trump, so Carney was the one who was in a better position to speak in defense of Canada.

It should be said, however, the Conservative vote also went up, both parties went up, and at the expense of the small parties I mentioned, the New Democratic Party, there's a Quebec Nationalist party, the Bloc Quebecois, who may get some seats in Parliament as well. So a win for Carney, but not an overwhelming win, because nevertheless it's remarkable because they were 25 points behind just a few months ago. I've never seen such a massive turnaround in such a short period of time in any democratic system.

CHURCH: Yes, of course, and Mark Carney is a Harvard-educated economist with a master's degree and doctorate from Oxford University, he's also a former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England. So how will he likely take on Donald Trump and his tariffs, and how will he prevent a recession in Canada?

KEATING: Well, that's remarkable, he's an Oxford-educated banker, he's just the sort of people that the populist would target, that's for him, but it's quite remarkable. Hardly an ordinary man of the people, but nevertheless he speaks with some authority, and at a time of uncertainty like this, people are looking for somebody who doesn't have political experience, but has a lot of credibility and has run two central banks. The challenges facing the country are enormous, even without the

threat from President Trump, there are problems with growth, problems with productivity, there are problems with inflation and the cost of living, and these are big problems, and Canada's dependence on energy is in some sense a strength, but it's also a weakness at a time when we're supposed to be transitioning to net zero.

As far as Trump is concerned, this is a huge challenge, he's certainly, Carney has certainly been able to speak up for Canada and to criticize Trump very frankly in a way that some other leaders, such as the British leader, have not been able to, but he's got to deal with the United States. The United States takes 85 percent of Canada's trade, there's got to be some kind of deal, otherwise the economic consequences for Canada could be quite devastating.

CHURCH: Michael Keating, thank you so much for joining us, I appreciate it.

Russia President Vladimir Putin has announced a unilateral three-day ceasefire in Ukraine, beginning next week on May 8th. It coincides with Russia's 80th annual Victory Day parade, commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II.

The Kremlin says the temporary truce is based on humanitarian considerations, but it's not enough for U.S. President Donald Trump, who again called for a permanent ceasefire in Ukraine, and Ukrainian officials are skeptical of Putin's motives.

[03:40:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Yet again, another attempt at manipulation. For some reason, everyone is supposed to wait until May 8th before ceasing fire, just to provide Putin with silence for his parade. We value human lives, not parades.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: CNN's Clare Sebastian joins us now live from London. Good morning to you, Clare. So, what more are you learning about President Putin's planned three-day ceasefire beginning May 8th, his motivation for it and the U.S. response to it?

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, I think it was entirely predictable amid mounting frustration from Trump directed in various rare comments towards Putin. And after that conciliatory meeting between President Zelenskyy and President Trump at the Vatican, that Russia would want to come forward with some kind of gesture like this to try to prove to Trump that they are not standing in the way of peace and to try to salvage that reset, which clearly Russia cares about.

I think that is not at all clear that it's worked as of yet. As you noted, the White House has said that they are not looking for some kind of three-day ceasefire, they want a permanent ceasefire. So, it doesn't seem that he has successfully proven his peacemaking

capabilities to President Trump at this point. I think the second thing that Russia clearly stands to gain from this, as you also alluded to, is potentially to prevent any long-range strikes by Ukraine on Russia during these very important Victory Day celebrations.

This year is the 80th anniversary of Victory Day. It's already a huge day in Russia, and this round number makes it even bigger, plus the fact that many foreign dignitaries, foreign leaders will be attending. It would have been hugely embarrassing for President Putin to have anything go wrong, plus the fact that this also comes several days after the high-profile death of a Russian general in a car bomb just outside of Moscow.

So, I think they were potentially rattled by this and wanted to try to secure, as President Zelenskyy suggested, their parade.

Now, whether or not this moves the needle in terms of the U.S. threats to walk away from the Ukrainian peace process, I don't think it does at this point. If anything, I think it shows how badly that peace process is going.

Russia, with one voice as it announced this three-day unilateral ceasefire, said that it was willing to enter into talks with Kyiv without preconditions. But as that note came out from the Kremlin, we saw an interview that Sergei Lavrov, the foreign minister, did with a Brazilian newspaper where he essentially laid out the conditions under which Russia would come to the table, including international recognition of not only Crimea, but of the four regions in Ukraine that Russia has partially occupied, not even fully occupied, since 2022, sanctions relief, lifting arrest warrants, no NATO for Ukraine.

So, all of these things suggest that Russia, its demands have not changed and that it is not serious about getting into this peace process.

CHURCH: Clare Sebastian, joining us live from London. Many thanks for that report. I appreciate it.

The embattled chief of Israel's internal security agency says he will step down on June 15. Ronen Bar's decision comes nearly three months after Israel's government voted for the first time to dismiss the head of Shin Bet. In a speech Monday, Bar accepted responsibility for the failures of the agency on October 7. However, Bar could still be fired before June 15.

Still to come, the Vatican announces plans for the election of the next pope. We'll tell you some of the forerunners, the frontrunners, I should say, ahead of the new conclave.

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[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) CHURCH: Tensions are high between India and Pakistan after a deadly militant attack in Indian-administered Kashmir, with both countries threatening each other of consequences. CNN's Will Ripley has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On India's streets, anger at Pakistan is burning, one spark away from a wider explosion.

India is flexing military muscle at sea. Pakistan warns of war if India threatens its water supply, a dangerous moment between nuclear- armed rivals. Old wounds from decades of insurgency and three wars torn wide open, one of the deadliest attacks in years in Indian- administered Kashmir.

We fled immediately after hearing gunshots, says Gopal Rupchand.

Gunmen opened fire on sightseers in the remote mountain valley of Pahalgam, 25 Indian citizens and a Nepali national dead. Police on the Indian side named three suspects, claiming two are Pakistani nationals, without providing evidence. They link the attack to a Pakistan-based Islamist group called Lashkar-e-Tayyiba.

Pakistan's Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, denies any involvement.

SHEHBAZ SHARIF, PAKISTANI PRIME MINISTER: The recent tragedy in Pahalgam is yet another example of this perpetual blame game.

NARENDRA MODI, INDIAN PRIME MINISTER: I will defy threats and punish every terrorist.

RIPLEY (voice-over): India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, under growing pressure to strike Pakistan as rage fills India's streets.

[03:50:07]

Across the border, in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, many are bracing for what may come next.

We are Muslims. We are peace-loving, says Tarqib Ahmed. We don't promote terrorism.

India already suspended parts of a crucial water-sharing treaty, threatening to cut off a lifeline for Pakistan's farms and cities. Pakistan is vowing to respond with force.

As militaries posture, families suffer.

India shut down a key border crossing, cancelling visas for many Pakistanis, causing fear among some Hindus, fleeing what they call religious persecution. Pakistan also limiting access for Indian citizens, tearing families apart on both sides, like Anurha Imran, desperate to return to her husband and children.

Despite my daughters being Pakistani nationals, why am I not allowed to enter Pakistan? What have I done? How will my daughters live without me, she says.

The playbook is grim and familiar. In 2019, a terror attack in Kashmir triggered Indian airstrikes inside Pakistan, the closest the two countries came to all-out war in decades. Many fear this time could be even worse.

Will Ripley, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The process to select the next Pope starts next week. The Vatican says the conclave will begin on May 7th. Only cardinals under the age of 80 are allowed to vote for the next pontiff, and right now there are 135 cardinals eligible to vote.

A highly-secretive process takes place in the Sistine Chapel, which was closed on Monday to prepare for the vote. Electors will take part in a special mass before taking an oath of secrecy. They won't be seen again in public until the new Pope is elected, which requires a two- thirds majority.

The Vatican is following tradition by issuing a special edition stamp. On Monday, they released the new empty chair stamp that's issued during the period between popes. The stamp will be available until the conclave chooses the next pontiff.

An autistic teenager in Nigeria sets a new world record for the largest art canvas by an individual. When we come back, how his artwork aims to celebrate neurodiversity.

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[03:55:02]

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone.

The record for the world's largest art canvas goes to an autistic teenager in Nigeria. The giant painting was unveiled on World Autism Day. The 15-year-old artist is non-verbal, and his work is about breaking down the stigma around autism.

CNN's Ben Hunte has more.

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BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): They say a picture speaks a thousand words. For this 15-year-old, his pictures say everything.

SILVIA TAGBO-OKEKE, MOTHER OF KANYEYACHUKWU TAGBO-OKEKE: He doesn't talk, but we want his art to tell his story on his behalf.

HUNTE (voice-over): It's telling that story in a big way. So big, it's record-breaking.

Kanye, a young autistic artist, is a Guinness World Record holder. His winning painting, "Impossibility is a Myth," is the largest artwork on canvas by an individual at 12,381 square meters. Its centerpiece, an infinity sign, surrounded by faces showing a mixture of emotions.

TAGBO-OKEKE: That sign means awareness, acceptance, and the neurodiversity. And then if you see around, you see the faces. You see the sad faces, the smiling, the crying.

And when Kanye was growing up, if you look at all his previous paintings, some of his previous paintings, if you go back in history, you see all those smiley faces.

HUNTE (voice-over): April is Autism Awareness Month around the world. The World Health Organization says one in 100 children has the disorder, and yet the stigma remains.

TAGBO-OKEKE: I've had instances where somebody looked at my son and called him an idiot. And that's why Kanye does what he does. Awareness, for people to know the kind of person he is, to understand people like him.

HUNTE (voice-over): People like Kanye, an artist, a gamer, a world record winner.

Ben Hunte, CNN.

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CHURCH: A letter written on board the Titanic before it sank has sold for almost $400,000. The letter was written by one of the ship's best- known survivors, Archibald Gracie, and sold at auction to a private collector in the U.S. Gracie sent it to his great-uncle with a postmark of April 10, 1912, from Queenstown in Ireland. He survived the disaster and was eventually rescued, but Gracie never fully recovered and died nine months later.

I want to thank you so much for spending part of your day with me. I'm Rosemary Church.

"Amanpour" is next, then stay tuned for "Early Start" with Rahel Solomon, starting at 5 a.m. in New York, 10 a.m. in London. Have a great day.

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