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U.S.-Greenland Tensions; Interview with Chief of Denmark's Joint Arctic Command; U.S. Resumes Deportation Flights to Venezuela; Uganda Presidential Election; U.S. DOJ Investigating Minnesota Governor, Minneapolis Mayor; 2026 Winter Games. Aired 3-3:30a ET

Aired January 17, 2026 - 03:00   ET

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

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BEN HUNTE, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Hello. Wherever you are in the world, you are now in the CNN NEWSROOM with me, Ben Hunte in Atlanta. And it is so good to have you with me.

Coming up on the show, threatening consequences: the U.S. president says he may impose tariffs on nations that don't go along with his plan to control Greenland.

The U.S. Department of Justice launches investigations into Democratic leaders. All this amid anti-ICE protests in Minneapolis.

And one step closer to a return to the moon. The rocket that will carry astronauts into lunar orbit will make an important step.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Ben Hunte.

HUNTE: Welcome.

Let's begin this hour with president Donald Trump's latest comments on Greenland and his ongoing desire to annex the self-governing Danish territory. The president's push has been causing outrage among European nations and concerns over the NATO alliance.

On Friday, the president didn't answer a reporter's question about whether he'd pulled the U.S. out of NATO over the issue but said he is talking with the alliance about Greenland. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

QUESTION: Will you pull out of NATO if it doesn't help you acquire Greenland?

(CROSSTALK)

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Well, we're going to see. NATO has been dealing with us on Greenland. We need Greenland for national security very badly. Yes, we're going to -- we're talking to NATO.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: President Trump also said on Friday that he is considering placing new tariffs on countries that oppose his plan to annex Greenland.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I may put a tariff on countries if they don't go along with Greenland, because we need Greenland for national security. So I may do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Later today, demonstrations supporting the territory will take place in Greenland and across Denmark.

Also in the next hour, members of the U.S. Congress visiting the Danish capital are scheduled to hold a news conference. The bipartisan group of lawmakers have been meeting with Danish and Greenlandic leaders and reassuring them of congressional support.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): There's a lot of rhetoric but there's not a lot of reality in the current discussion in Washington. And part of the point of this trip is to have a bipartisan group of members of Congress listen respectfully to our friends, our trusted allies and partners here in Denmark.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI (R-AK): When you ask the American people whether or not they think it is a good idea for the United States to acquire Greenland,

the vast majority, some 75 percent, will say, we do not think that that is a good idea. This senator from Alaska does not think it is a good idea.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: European nations have sent military personnel to Greenland at Denmark's request. Germany, France, the Netherlands, Finland, Norway and Sweden have all confirmed deployments to the island. Canada and France say they will soon open consulates in Greenland's capital, Nuuk.

But Denmark's Joint Arctic Command in Greenland says the military relationship with the U.S. hasn't changed. CNN's Nic Robertson spoke with Danish Major General Soren Andersen about the situation on the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Compared to other NATO partners, how tough are the conditions up here?

MAJ. GEN. SOREN ANDERSEN, COMMANDER, DANISH JOINT ARCTIC COMMAND: It is very, very tough. And that's also why we have to train up here.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): The Danish commander shaping security around Greenland and by default signaling to President Donald Trump NATO can keep

it safe just got put in the spotlight.

ROBERTSON: So you're commander of the joint Arctic command for the Danish military. What's your mission here with these NATO troops coming in?

ANDERSEN: It's actually my normal job. It is to defend Greenland and the Faroe Islands.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Aboard one of his icebreaking warships that will be part of the upcoming military exercises. He says he is preparing for their

longest Arctic mission ever, more than a year.

ANDERSEN: I think it's a right way to do it, actually.

ROBERTSON: To do what?

ANDERSEN: To have this kind of training instead of having a lot of troops, putting a lot of pressure on the Greenlandic population. Try to have it all

throughout all year.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): NATO's apparent emerging strategy, a so- called tripwire force, similar to that along Europe's border with Russia, that

could surge troops if an enemy is detected.

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ROBERTSON: It's very clear that at the moment President Trump's putting a huge amount of pressure on the Danish government on Greenland because he

wants to have Greenland. Is this a message to President Trump that NATO can provide security here?

ANDERSEN: I will not go into any political thoughts but for me it is. If you're going to defend the kingdom, going to defend NATO's northern flank,

you simply have to train. ROBERTSON: In these waters around Greenland, President Trump says there's Chinese ships, there are Russian ships. Do you see Chinese and Russian

ships here?

ANDERSEN: No. We see Chinese and Russian ships in the Arctic Ocean. I've been a commander up here for 2.5 years, I haven't seen any.

ROBERTSON: So what's the success of this mission going to look like, a long mission that projects security?

ANDERSEN: That Russia keeps away. We do that with the U.S. with Canada and all the NATO allies. And that is actually the mission up here. There's no

immediate threat to Greenland.

ROBERTSON: As a NATO commander, are you personally surprised that a NATO partner could be threatening another NATO partner?

ANDERSEN: I will not go into politics but I work perfectly together with the U.S. military. We have done that for decades in Bosnia, in Afghanistan,

in Iraq and we do it also today.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Even so, this professional soldier, clearly troubled by the turn geopolitics is taking.

ROBERTSON: As a Dane who suffered a lot of losses in Afghanistan, 52 soldiers killed, that's as many per capita as the United States, is it

disappointing to you that we're in this position?

ANDERSEN: Frankly, it is.

ROBERTSON (voice-over): Nic Robertson, CNN, aboard the Danish warship Knud Rasmussen, Greenland.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: The U.S. is once again deporting migrants to Venezuela for the first time in almost two weeks. A deportation flight left Phoenix and arrived in Caracas on Friday. It was the first such flight since the U.S. arrested Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in a military operation. CNN's Stefano Pozzebon reports.

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STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Maria Corina Machado, remained in Washington this Friday. She met the press after meeting the U.S. president, Donald Trump, on Thursday.

And in her first public appearance since the meeting, she reiterated that she has the support of the U.S. president and her confidence that Venezuela will very soon once again transition toward democracy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA CORINA MACHADO, VENEZEULAN OPPOSITION LEADER: I am profoundly, profoundly confident that we will have an orderly transition. This is a

complex phase we are right now. Some of the dirty work is being done by them. But then the result of a stable transition will be a proud Venezuela

who is going to be the best ally the United States has ever had in the Americas.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

POZZEBON: However, just hours before those remarks, the same U.S. president Donald Trump was seen speaking with reporters at the White House.

And he once again seemed to ask for time, saying that he does not want to repeat the errors and mistakes of adventures such as Iraq and Afghanistan more than 20 years ago when it comes to exporting democracy to Venezuela.

And so far, Mr. Trump seems to be more keen to speak and to build a working relationship with the current interim leader and acting president of Venezuela.

Delcy Rodriguez used to be Nicolas Maduro's old vice president, who has since taken power since Maduro was captured by U.S. forces on January 3rd. Ms. Rodriguez on Friday chaired an economic council, addressing reforms that she wants her country to do in the near future.

And at the same time, we have seen the first flight of deported migrants back to Venezuela since January 10th, clearly a sign that the cooperation between Washington and Caracas after Nicolas Maduro's ouster is working just fine.

And warming up the deportation of Venezuelan migrants has been a core issue for the White House for months. And, of course, seeing these flights, this one in particular, had taken off from Phoenix in Arizona, landing in Caracas on Friday morning.

Well, seeing these flights is a sign that this cooperation is clearly working just as much as the visit late on Thursday afternoon of the CIA director to Caracas himself, to itself, to meet with Ms. Rodriguez, a sign that the first cabinet minister traveling, the cabinet member of the United States, visiting Caracas since Maduro's ouster.

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And a sign once again that Rodriguez seemed all too keen to work with Washington for now -- for CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota. (END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: Newly released video gives us a glimpse into the daring escape of Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado as she made her way to Oslo to accept the Nobel Peace Prize. She had been in hiding for months from m the Maduro regime.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRYAN STERN, FOUNDER, GREY BULL: Maria, hi.

MARIA CORINA MACHADO, VENEZUELAN OPPOSITION LEADER: Hi.

STERN: Do you have a suitcase or a bag or what do you have?

MACHADO: I have a bag.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Machado is seen confirming her identity to the rescue leader, whose organization Grey Bull specializes in getting civilians out of trouble spots worldwide. The mission made its way through dangerous and choppy waves, with Machado saying how wet and cold she felt.

The boat reached an island off the Venezuelan coast, where a plane was waiting.

The Federal Aviation Administration is warning U.S. airlines and pilots about potential safety risks over a broad stretch of airspace around Central and South America. New flight advisory site military activity off the Pacific coast and warn of possible interference with onboard satellite navigation systems.

The FAA spokesperson told CNN the advisories were not issued at the request of the military and will remain in place until at least March 17th.

U.S. president Donald Trump says he and he alone decided to put a military action against Iran on hold. A source told CNN that White House officials believed he was leaning toward a military option earlier this week but he later backed away, partly because Iran said it had called off planned executions of 800 protesters.

On Friday. He was asked if there was another reason why he might have changed his mind.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did Arab and Israeli officials convince you to not strike Iran?

TRUMP: Nobody convinced me. I convinced myself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: A U.S. activist group says almost 2,900 protesters have been killed in the government crackdown. More than 22,000 have been arrested. Security forces are acknowledging 3,000 arrests, according to a state affiliated news agency.

CNN cannot confirm those numbers, partly because of the internet blockade that has been in effect for over a week. But as Paula Hancocks reports, some information about the victims is still coming out. We have to warn you, some images in her report are disturbing.

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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The cry of a generation robbed of their future. Twenty-three-year-old Mahan Ghadami, a

barber shop owner with a passion for rap, singing the pain of no freedom.

(MAHAN GHADAMI speaking in foreign language.)

HANCOCKS (voice-over): Activist outlet Iran Wire says Ghadami was killed last Friday, the day after the internet was cut and Security Forces

launched a brutal crackdown on anti-regime protesters.

This shows just how bloody their response was. New footage sent to CNN of the inside of the Kahrizak morgue in Tehran, row upon row of body bags.

Distraught relatives saying farewell to lifeless loved ones, some of those killed with clear gunshot wounds to the head.

The body of Siavash Shirzad was one of those taken to Kahrizak according to Iran Wire and Hengaw, a Norway-based Human Rights organization -- a Kurdish

father of one. His family say he was part of this protest in Tehran's Punak Square on January 8th. They had begged him not to go.

Hengaw says he was shot and killed by Iranian Security Forces. He would have turned 38 this past week.

So many victims were young, like 20-year-old Setayesh Shafiei, killed on January 8th according to Hengaw and Iran Wire. Her last post on Telegram,

"I love you all. They may cut the internet soon."

So many risked their lives to fight for freedom. Thousands are believed to have been gunned down in the street, according to U.S.- based Human Rights

Activists News Agency on the order of leaders that value regime survival above all else.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi. (END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: OK, to Uganda now, where Reuters is reporting that the main opposition leader has been forcibly taken away. The National Unity Platform party posted online that the army removed Bobi Wine from his house on Friday and took him to an unknown location.

Wine runs to unseat the Ugandan president in an election that took place this week, marred by violent clashes and an internet blackout. As of Friday night, the electoral commission said the incumbent held a commanding lead with nearly 74 percent of the vote.

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But Wine is alleging mass fraud in the election.

The Trump administration is investigating Minnesota's governor and the mayor of Minneapolis following days of protests. Still ahead, the response from the two leaders and the latest details on the case next.

Plus, the White House names its board of peace for Gaza. We'll take a look at who's on it and what they'll be tasked with. See you in a moment.

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HUNTE: Welcome back.

Now to Minnesota, where U.S. Justice Department is investigating the state's governor and the mayor of Minneapolis over possible obstruction of law enforcement. Governor Tim Walz and mayor Jacob Frey have been vocal critics of the Trump administration's crackdown on immigration and the conduct of the federal immigration agents there.

They're condemning the probe, which they say is an intimidation tactic. Deputy U.S. attorney general Todd Blanche blamed Minnesota's leaders for unrest in the state.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TODD BLANCHE, U.S. DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL: When the governor or the mayor threatened our officers, when the mayor suggests that he's encouraging citizens to call 9-1-1, when they see ICE officers that is very close to a federal crime.

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You cannot do that if you impede the work we're doing. You better -- you better be worried, because we're coming after you.

(END VIDEO CLIP) HUNTE: Meanwhile, a U.S. district judge has ordered federal agents to not take certain actions during their operations in Minnesota. They're forbidden from arresting, retaliating or using pepper spray on peaceful protesters and from stopping people in their cars without cause, among other things.

Anti-ICE protesters kept up their demonstrations outside a federal building in Minneapolis on Friday, despite below-freezing weather moving in for the weekend. CNN's Shimon Prokupecz has the latest from Minneapolis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHIMON PROKUPECZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Word of this investigation is certainly going to raise a lot of concerns here in Minneapolis. It's already a very tense time. People are afraid to leave their homes. People are worried about their neighbors. They just want what's happening here to stop.

And now this investigation is only going to raise more concerns. It's not entirely clear what the Department of Justice is investigating. The governor has certainly been very critical of federal authorities here, as has the mayor and so what exactly, what kind of obstruction they could be looking at is not entirely clear.

Remember, Minneapolis is, by law, not allowed to cooperate with federal authorities on immigration issues or arrests. You know, there has been a lot of concern here from the federal authorities that they're not getting enough backup or support when there are tense moments between ICE officers and people who live here in Minneapolis.

That has certainly been a concern that was raised by the president and other ICE officials and federal authorities.

But you know, the thing with this now is, for the people who live here, they're just trying to get to a point where things calm down and they can try, try to live their lives, which they are really finding it very hard to do right now -- Shimon Prokupecz, CNN, Minneapolis.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HUNTE: We now know who will serve on president Donald Trump's board of peace for the reconstruction of Gaza. The announcement came from the White House.

Members include secretary of state Marco Rubio; the president's foreign envoy, Steve Witkoff; the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner and the former British prime minister, Tony Blair.

Under the U.S.-brokered peace agreement, a committee of Palestinian technocrats will handle the governance of Gaza while the U.S. moves forward with a plan for reconstruction and demilitarization of the territory.

In the coming hours, leaders from the U.S. and Ukraine will try to make more headway in their attempt to end Kyiv's war with Russia. The Ukrainian ambassador to the U.S. says they'll meet in Miami to discuss security guarantees and future economic development in Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy has said the deal is 90 percent done and, if the two sides agree on everything else, a peace agreement could be signed during the economic forum in Davos, Switzerland, later this month.

But that last 10 percent includes the toughest issues, such as potentially conceding territory to Russia, which threatens to scuttle the process.

NASA this weekend is moving one step closer to its goal of returning to the moon. The rocket that will carry four astronauts into lunar orbit is set to move to the launch pad in Florida on Saturday, with the hope of launching by April.

Artemis II will be the first crewed mission to enter deep space since the first Apollo mission in 1972. This test flight is the second phase of NASA's Artemis program, a years-long effort to return astronauts to the moon and build a foundation for eventual exploration of Mars.

Three NASA astronauts and one Canadian space agency astronaut will take flight on the Orion spacecraft for 10 days and travel about 4,700 miles beyond the far side of the moon.

While on board making sure the Orion systems and hardware are running smoothly and are able to sustain human life in the deep space environment. They'll study their health and send valuable information back to Mission Control.

At a press conference on Friday, NASA's chief exploration scientist said the number one priority is to bring the crew back safely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JACOB BLEACHER, CHIEF EXPLORATION SCIENTIST, NASA: This is a very historic moment, an exciting moment. We're rolling out the integrated SLS and Orion for a flight that will carry four of our friends, our NASA family members, around the moon and bring them safely back to Earth.

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HUNTE: If Artemis II is successful, NASA will begin preparing for Artemis III, when a new crew of astronauts will hopefully walk on the lunar surface.

Rain and cold and gray skies didn't stop the Olympic flame from stealing the spotlight in Italy. The torch relay continued its journey toward the 2026 Winter Games on Friday.

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The flame was carried through northern Italy, drawing crowds as it started in the city of Tortona and wrapped up the day in Piacenza. It's part of a massive cross-country relay from Rome to Milan, uniting the country ahead of the 2026 Winter Games. Former U.S. president Jimmy Carter's life is well known but a more

private side is now on display in New York. Paintings and personal items from him and his wife, Rosalynn, are up for auction at Christie's.

The selection includes oil paintings by the former president himself, as well as everyday objects. They offer a unique glimpse into the quieter life Carter lived after leaving the White House.

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JULIA JONES, CHRISTIE'S ASSOCIATE SPECIALIST, AMERICANA DEPARTMENT: The places and people and scenes that he painted all reflect really personal things to him. Like behind me you see a steeple. Well, the work is titled "Steeple."

It's of the Baptist church in Plains, Georgia, where Jimmy Carter was extremely involved until he passed away. So this was clearly a very personal and important place to him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HUNTE: Scientists believe Leonardo da Vinci's DNA may be hiding in his artwork. Da Vinci's DNA is hard to locate because he had no children and there's uncertainty about his burial site and remains.

So researchers have been sampling his paintings, drawings and letters. And they say they've uncovered a matching sequence of a male's Y chromosomes on da Vinci's "Holy Child" drawing and on a letter.

They don't know if it's his DNA but the scientists say if the same sequence is consistently found across his items, it could be the key to assembling the genome of a genius.

All right. That's all I've got for you. It's been very quick. Thanks for joining me on the team. I'm Ben Hunte in Atlanta. "AFRICAN VOICES: CHANGEMAKERS" is next. And then there's so much more CNN NEWSROOM at the top of the hour. See you tomorrow.