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Clashes Between Thailand And Cambodia Over Disputed Border; Donald Trump Cites Progress In Ongoing Trade Negotiations; Polluting Nations May Need To Reparations; Sources Say Trump Was Briefed His Name Appears in Epstein Files; New Fitness Program for Elderly Woman in Uganda. Aired 2-2:45a ET

Aired July 24, 2025 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:29]

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

Just ahead, Chinese and European leaders are meeting to try and decide how to respond to Donald Trump's trade threats. What's at stake in today's talks.

Plus, protests in Ukraine over a new law that some say raises the risk of corruption. Now Zelenskyy is responding to those concerns.

And the latest on the deadly situation in Gaza, what the possibility of a cease -- where the possibility of a cease fire stands as the threat of starvation looms.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Lynda Kinkade.

KINKADE: We start with the growing tensions along the Thai Cambodian border. Thailand deploy -- Thailand has deployed fighter jets against the military of Cambodia a short time ago, tensions over the disputed border region there are edging closer to a much broader conflict.

Thailand's military says it destroyed two Cambodian regional military headquarters. There was no immediate confirmation from the Cambodian side.

Armed clashes between Thai and Cambodian forces erupted along the disputed border earlier on Thursday, injuring civilians and prompting evacuations.

Those clashes came a day after a Thai soldier lost his leg in a land mine explosion. Relations between the two countries are at their lowest level in years.

Well, for more on the story, I want to bring in our Senior International Correspondent Will Ripley. Good to have you with us, Will. So, certainly we are seeing tensions sharply escalate along that disputed border between Thailand and Cambodia. There are reports of troop movements and now a full diplomatic rupture. What can you tell us?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I mean, this is an area where Lynda, as you know, for decades, there have been military skirmishes. Basically, when the French were occupying Cambodia, they drew this artificial line through an area with a lot of striking and historical temples that both Thailand and Cambodia claim as their own.

So, there's a lot of nationalist hurt feelings over how these temples are designated, whose temples on which side of the border. So, that's kind of where you get to the emotion that is fueling this.

But what actually happened was that back in May, there were two soldiers -- groups of soldiers, one group from Cambodia, one group from Thailand. They had a confrontation with each other. They opened fire and a Cambodian soldier was killed, and since then, tensions have been ratcheting up.

What we're seeing on the ground right now is a significant escalation. You have the pretty dilapidated Cambodian military using artillery to fire into Thailand. And we actually have video purported to be from a 7/11 showing people seriously injured after it looks like something hit the roof of this civilian convenience store, causing a big plume of smoke to be -- to be rising.

Obviously, their target, the Cambodian target would not have been a 7/11 but it just goes to show they don't have very sophisticated military equipment.

Then you had Thailand come in with its far superior military. They got F-16 jets that they deployed, and they say that they actually bombed and destroyed some Cambodian military units that were responsible for this artillery shelling into Thailand that has, according to the Associated Press, killed at least one person and injured several others, although those numbers are expected to rise.

So, you have a fast moving situation on the ground at a time of real political turmoil in Bangkok, clashes between the former or the -- I should say the suspended prime minister and the military.

So, you have -- you have a Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra -- Paetongtarn Shinawatra, she is the daughter of a former prime minister who has close ties with Cambodia. Her dad actually was deposed in a military coup back in 2006 and he spent a lot of time in Cambodia, and one of his old friends is a strong man in Cambodia by the name of Hun Sen.

And in an effort to try to resolve this conflict, there was a phone call between Hun Sen, the Cambodian strongman, and the now suspended prime minister. She -- you know, the daughter of the former prime minister, she called him. Didn't know that the phone call was being recorded. She called him uncle. She said that she was going to do everything she could to resolve the Cambodian side of the issue. She even called the Thai military her opponents.

When the strong man, the dad's friend, some friend, he turned out and leaked that phone conversation out, that created a scandal. She's now suspended. So, you have -- you have the military that's in a very strong position right now, fueling on this national sentiment that erupted over this ongoing border clash. You have uncertainty about what's -- where the country is going to go moving forward, Lynda. So, it's a -- it's a real mess right now.

[02:05:11]

To kind of break down just the timeline for you, I think we prepared a graphic, and let me just read it for you quick so you can just -- you can just understand how these things have been moving.

You have the Cambodian soldier killed during that clash. Then on June 7th, Thailand took control of border checkpoints. On July 1st, the Thai court suspended the Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra over that phone call that I mentioned. July 16th, there was a landmine explosion at the border that injured a soldier and prompt Thailand to accuse Cambodia of planting fresh land mines, because there are also a lot of land mines dotted in this area as a result of all the skirmishes that have gone back decades. And then on July 30 -- July 23rd, a second land mine explosion that actually injured five Thai soldiers at the border.

So, the question now is, is this going to be resolved peacefully and politically, or is this going to devolve into something further?

Neighbors like Malaysia have been calling for peace, but no offers to mediate this conflict just yet, Lynda, a lot happening and really moving a lot faster than anybody in this region expected, just really, within the last several hours, things heating up, as we've been seeing.

KINKADE: Yes, good to have you staying across the story for us, Will. We will come back to you shortly. Thank you.

Well, the threats of U.S. tariffs looming two world powers who have yet to reach new trade deals with the Trump administration are holding their own Summit. E.U.'s leaders are in Beijing to mark half a century of diplomatic relations with China.

And while there's hope of finding common ground, the two sides are struggling with their own trade tensions. According to Chinese state media, Xi told European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen that they must demonstrate strategic vision and responsibility and stand the test of history.

Both sides are facing the United States August deadlines for striking trade deals. If Europe and the U.S. fail to reach an agreement, and the new import taxes kick in, the E.U. warns it may launch retaliatory tariffs by August 7th.

Well, envoys from China and the U.S. are planning to meet next week in Sweden to discuss extending their trade truce. The U.S. president issued this update on negotiations.

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DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We're going to have a very, very simple tariff for some of the countries. We have so many countries, you can't negotiate deals with everyone. So, have a straight, simple tariff of anywhere between 15 and 50. We've offered such a deal to the European Union, where we're in serious negotiations and we're in the process of completing our deal with China.

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KINKADE: Well, CNN's Marc Stewart is covering all of this live for us from Beijing, great to see you, Marc.

So, today, of course, marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic ties between China and the European Union, but instead of a celebration, the relationship is under serious strain. Is there any chance of real progress at today's summit?

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, good to see you as well, Lynda. Look, the diplomatic speak is been very heavy since these conversations began, despite perhaps some shared frustrations between China and Europe, toward the United States, toward their approach toward trade and tariffs, these two blocks, if you will, have frustrations of their own.

As you mentioned, there has been concern that China perhaps isn't playing it so fairly, flooding the European market, everything from E.V.s to solar panels.

China responding, saying that the response from the E.U. maybe isn't so fair that it should focus its efforts elsewhere.

So, these talks are underway, but for the moment, the language that we are hearing is pretty safe. As conversations continue right now, just down the street from our bureau here in Beijing, we are hearing from the two world leaders themselves as they -- as they began these conversations. Let's listen to these different leaders.

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XI JINPING, CHINESE PRESIDENT (through translator): The more complex and challenging the international situation becomes, the more China and Europe need to strengthen communication, enhance mutual trust, and deepen cooperation. So as to contribute greater stability and certainty to the world through a steady and healthy China-Europe relationship.

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: As our cooperation has deepened, so have the imbalances. We have reached an inflection point. Rebalancing our bilateral relation is essential. Because to be sustainable, the relations need to be mutually beneficial. To achieve this, it is vital for China and Europe to acknowledge our respective concerns and come forward with real solutions. (END VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: Ursula von der Leyen speaking today from Beijing. This is a complicated relationship. In fact, there was some commentary we heard from an analyst before this meeting even took place. I think that these remarks are noticeable, saying that going into this, we should expect a very difficult moment and not a deal making moment.

[02:10:16]

Going into this European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen took to social media and give a very positive, forward thinking statement. But these trade issues are very difficult between these two -- these two trading partners, and so expect some difficult conversation.

And Lynda, it's not just Europe and China that's paying attention to this. As we know, the United States and China have their own trade issues. Trade talks are scheduled for this weekend in Stockholm, and perhaps the tone of what happens here will help diplomats decide the tone they need to take in these conversations between the U.S. and China, Lynda.

KINKADE: Marc Stewart, as always in Beijing, great to have you staying across all of that for us. Thank you.

Well, we want to see how these trade talks are affecting the markets. At last check, the main Asia Pacific indices were in positive territory. You can still see them all up right now, the Nikkei up almost two percent.

And I want to take you to the U.S. Futures to have a look. You can see it's quite mixed, the Dow down, the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 up just ever so slightly.

Well, a day after signing a bill that would limit the autonomy of two Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is now backtracking promising a new bill on Wednesday to protect their independence. The initial bill signed into law on Tuesday has drawn the first major antigovernment protests in Ukraine since the war with Russia began.

Law would have put two agencies under the oversight of a prosecutor appointed by the president, who accused some employees at those bureaus of working for Russia

Well, starvation is rampant, and cease fire talks are at a standstill, and new scenes of utter destruction are emerging in Gaza. Refugees forced to evacuate from tent camps in central part of the Enclave returned on Wednesday to find nothing left after Israel launched a new ground operation this week.

The Israeli President Isaac Herzog visited troops in Gaza, blaming Hamas for sabotaging aid distribution and government Spokesperson David Mencer denied Israel is causing a famine, instead claiming a man-made shortage is being engineered by Hamas. The head of the World Health Organization blames the partially lifted

Israeli blockade for causing mass starvation, and almost a hundred aid groups, including Doctors Without Borders, say even their staff in Gaza are going hungry.

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CAROLINE WILLEMEN, PROJECT COORDINATOR IN GAZA, DOCTORS WITHOUT BORDERS: We are enrolling 25 new children under the age of 5 or pregnant and lactating women into our malnutrition program every day. Every single day, I'm having to tell desperate parents, your child is not malnourished yet, so it can't -- it cannot enroll in the program.

We know very well that this child will be malnourished within a matter of time, because there is simply not enough food for people to feed themselves, to feed their children. I have been doing this work for nine years.

Never in my life have I seen, have I been in a place, where my own colleagues come to work hungry.

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KINKADE: Well, so says it's unclear if U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will visit Qatar this week to discuss a potential ceasefire. Hamas says it has submitted a new response to the latest proposal after its previous one was deemed unworkable.

Still to come, the world's top court says polluting countries may be in breach of international law if they don't protect the planet from climate change. We'll speak to a senior attorney, next.

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KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade.

Columbia University has agreed to pay the U.S. government more than $220 million to settle a dispute over federal funding. The Trump administration has been investigating alleged violations of anti- discrimination laws by the school.

Under this deal, the university will not admit to any wrongdoing, and hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding will be restored. The administration froze that money after recent pro-Palestinian protests on the campus. The U.S. education secretary says the settlement should be a roadmap for other universities facing legal battles with the government.

Donald Trump has unveiled his plan for the U.S. to dominate the A.I. race.

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TRUMP: First, my administration will use every tool at our disposal to ensure that the United States can build and maintain the largest, most powerful and most advanced A.I. infrastructure anywhere on the planet.

The second pillar of our action plan for A.I. dominance is to get the entire world running on the backbone of American technology. And I think that's very much happening right now.

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KINKADE: Well, the president announced this framework at an event in Washington on Wednesday, the plan is expected to be a boon for big tech in Silicon Valley and the MAGA agenda. It calls for rolling back regulations, building out infrastructure such as data centers and making U.S. hardware and software the standard platform for A.I. innovations around the world.

It also recommends eliminating what the White House calls political bias in large language models, though it's unclear how that bias will be defined.

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The United Nations' highest court says countries harmed by climate change may be entitled to reparations from the world's top polluters. In a landmark advisory opinion on Wednesday, the International Court of Justice said polluting countries may be in breach of international law if they don't protect the planet from the existential threat posed by climate change.

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YUJI IWASAWA, PRESIDENT, INTERNATIONAL COURT OF JUSTICE: Unanimously, is of the opinion the states have obligations under international human rights law -- human rights law to respect and ensure the effective enjoyment human rights by taking necessary measures to protect the climate system and other parts of the environment.

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KINKADE: Well, this marks the first time the court has considered the climate crisis, and while the ruling is not legally binding, experts say it could bolster climate negotiations and boost climate lawsuits worldwide.

Joie Chowdhury is the senior attorney at the Center for International Environmental Law. She's at The Hague and joins us live. Good to have you with us.

JOIE CHOWDHURY, SENIOR ATTORNEY, CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL LAW: Thank you. Good to be here.

KINKADE: So, the International Court has delivered what many see as a historic climate opinion. Can you explain exactly what the court said and what it means when we hear the phrase, polluters must pay?

CHOWDHURY: Absolutely. So, the court yesterday, this was an absolutely extraordinary and unprecedented moment for climate justice, the court provided a clear legal blueprint to hold major communities accountable and to secure remedy and reparations for climate harm.

What the court clarified was what legal forces apply to define state obligations and what they must do under international law on climate change and what happens if they fail to meet those obligations.

And they made very clear that states are liable under multiple legal sources of international law, including, of course, the climate treaties, but also human rights law, the law of the sea, customary international law, and if those obligations are breached, that full reparation is due to those who have been harmed.

KINKADE: So, it sounds like the court saying there's no legal loophole for climate harm under international law. Is that right? And what kind of legal precedent does this set?

CHOWDHURY: The legal precedent it sets is, I mean, this is an absolutely watershed decision that we saw yesterday from the court, because during the proceedings, whether the written proceedings or the oral hearings that we've heard in December, you had many major polices come and argue in a way that dilutes their responsibilities, and the court was having none of it. The court just was very clear that international law sets a clear mandate for states to do more on climate change and to protect people and the environment from climate harm.

KINKADE: And this case, of course, was initiated by Pacific Island students fighting climate change. This is a group of young people from some of the world's most climate vulnerable nations. What does their role in this case say about the power of youth activism?

CHOWDHURY: Their power honestly, it just gives so much hope to actually being able to secure a just and livable future given the intensity of the climate crisis in the moment.

So, this idea of the case was born in a classroom, in discussions with 27 law students, and they took it from there, and with a unanimous vote from the UNGA, got the case before the International Court of Justice and secured this incredible ruling yesterday.

And their work has been throughout, whether that was through diplomatic initiatives and getting states on board, whether it was influencing written submissions, whether it was actually arguing before the court, which the director of PIP, the Pacific Island student fighting climate change did powerfully. Their president did it as well. You had other youth organizations like the world's youth for climate justice coming in a powerful way.

And really, creating powerful movement infrastructure around this case that will take this case forward in a very effective way, because a case is only as effective as in how it is taken forward by states, but also by the people.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And that's what I want to understand from you where we might see the biggest ripple effects of this ruling, and who's actually responsible for enforcing or upholding it? Could we see countries adjust their laws or policies in response? CHOWDHURY: Absolutely, we have been in past in relation to like past ICJ cases, shaping legal conduct and really influencing the legal directions of certain topics and certain contexts.

So, we absolutely expect this case to have tremendous ripple effects, whether that's in litigation on the international, regional or national levels, or whether it is in the climate negotiations, multilateralism, these processes remain extremely important because of the scope and transversal nature of climate change.

[02:25:14]

And we really expect this place to be able to give small island nations and very heavily climate affected nations additional tools to bolster their arguments in these multilateral talks that happen every year, and not just climate negotiations, but also negotiations around the plastics treaty developments in the Fossil Fuel Non Proliferation Treaty Space. So, we -- and also campaigns, right?

So, there's litigation, there's negotiations, but there's also many campaigns all across the world on phasing out fossil fuels and remedy and reparation, and this case allows those campaigns to be super charged as well, and provide leverage for campaigners to hold their governments to account to stay in conformity with the law.

KINKADE: It'd be interesting to see how this plays out going forward. Joie Chowdhury, great to get your perspective on all of this and the significance of this ruling. Thanks so much for your time.

CHOWDHURY: Thank you so much.

KINKADE: Well, U.S. President Donald Trump has been trying to distance himself from Jeffrey Epstein, but about two months ago, he was briefed on the Epstein files. What we're now learning about that briefing, next.

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KINKADE: Welcome back. I'm Lynda Kinkade. The U.S. Attorney General briefed President Trump in May that his name does appear in files related to the Jeffrey Epstein case. Sources familiar with the briefing say Pam Bondi mentioned that several names of high-profile figures were also in the Epstein files, and then investigators did not find evidence of a so-called client list. Here's what Trump had to say last week about that briefing.

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DONALD TRUMP, (R) PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: She's given us just a very quick briefing and in terms of the credibility of the different things that they've seen and I would say that these files were made up by Comey. They were made up by Obama.

(END VIDEO CLIP) KINKADE: Well, according to an official, the White House does not view this latest news as groundbreaking or new or surprising. The official adding that there's no evidence Trump was involved in any wrongdoing with the late sex offender. CNN's Jeffrey Zeleny has more.

JEFFREY ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yet another day here at the White House, yet another attempt to change the subject, deflect away from a question that has been hanging over this administration and this president for days, that is the Jeffrey Epstein case. Now, we learned on Wednesday that the Attorney General Pam Bondi briefed President Trump back in May, saying that his name appeared in the Epstein files multiple times. That is something that the president did not say when he was asked about this just a couple weeks ago. He said, no, that his name was not appearing in there or he was not told that by the Attorney General.

So, this is now a contradiction that will have to be resolved in the coming days. The White House trying to deflect from this, change the subject by essentially going after the Obama administration, trying to re-litigate the allegations that Russia tried to influence the 2016 election, going to the lengths of having the Director of National Intelligence come to the White House, Tulsi Gabbard, and accuse the Obama administration of treason.

Well, look, this is something that ended up not changing the conversation at all. The president now will be faced with the question of what did he know about his name being in these files. Now, again, we should say, the context is unclear. There are many people's names in these files. It does not show any wrongdoing. So, what it does do though is continue this case, the unanswered questions that continue in the House. A Committee voted to subpoena some Epstein, files and records from the Justice Department. So, one thing is clear as yet another day ends here, that the questions about Epstein and Trump continue and grow louder.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.

KINKADE: Well, thanks to Jeff. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back in just a moment. Stay with us. You're watching CNN.

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KINKADE: Welcome back. Uganda has seen a rise in obesity among women in recent years. And now, some elderly women are reclaiming their health with a new program where they can stay fit while having fun. CNN's Larry Madowo reports.

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LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Women in Kivubuka, Uganda are having a field day with fitness by stretching, running, and playing a form of cricket. This elderly community fitness group aims to reduce non-communicable diseases or NCDs such as heart disease, hypertension, and diabetes, which can become more common with age. The workouts are practical, tailored towards movements used in daily life.

JANE ANONYAALABA, FITNESS GROUP PARTICIPANT (through translator): When I first started these exercises, I lost some weight. I no longer feel a lot of body pains. I walk properly, dig and do all my house chores without any help.

MADOWO (voice-over): At 70-years-old, Jane Anonyaalaba says that the group fitness has reduced her pain and improved her mobility.

ANONYAALABA (through translator): My legs used to hurt a lot. I had chest pain. I could not move my hands like this, and even during sleep, I could not move my hands.

MADOWO (voice-over): Obesity rates have risen in Uganda over the past 25 years, although they're lower than the average across Africa. At the same time, the country has seen a rise in deaths from NCDs.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As people age, usually they tend to gain weight because of those diseases. One of the ways to reduce on that weight burden is physical exercise.

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MADOWO (voice-over): As a low-cost approach to healthy aging, fitness clubs such as Kivubuka's may be a model for groups across Africa, fostering both movement and community.

Larry Madowo, CNN.

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KINKADE: It's great to see. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Lynda Kinkade. "World Sport" is up next. And then, I will be back with much more news in about 15 minutes. Stay with us.

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