Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

CENTCOM: U.S. Strikes Iranian Missile Launch Sites & Boats; Russia Tells Foreign Nationals, Diplomats To Leave Kyiv; Cornyn, Paxton Battle In Texas Republican Senate Runoff. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired May 26, 2026 - 04:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[04:00:43]

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: Hey everybody, this is CNN Newsroom. And I'm Polo Paul Sandoval live in New York.

Here's what's coming your way. Working through the language, the U.S. says that it's currently trying to finalize an agreement with Iran as talks stall over wording disputes.

And all eyes on the state of Texas as John Cornyn fights to hold a Senate seat from his Trump-backed opponent in the Republican primary.

Also, a call to disarm A.I. What Pope Leo is saying in his manifesto of the dangers of artificial intelligence.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN Newsroom with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: Let's begin in southern Iran where U.S. Central Command says that the U.S. Military conducted self-defense strikes targeting Iranian missile launch sites as well as boats around the Strait of Hormuz. The attacks come as Washington and Tehran continue negotiating and as they may be closer than ever to ending the war. But disputes remain over Iran's nuclear program and the lifting of sanctions. President Trump laying out his plans for destroying Iran's enriched uranium or nuclear dust as he often refers to it as saying that it will be either transported to the U.S., dealt with on site or taken to another acceptable location.

Meanwhile, Iran's supreme leader issuing a new warning for the U.S. just a short time ago, posting on social media, "America will no longer have a safe haven for mischief and the establishment of military bases in the region." Want to go now to CNN's Salma Abdelaziz joining me from London. Salma, you're also closely following the current an ongoing trip of Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Is he offering any insight into where the U.S. and Iran are running into issues right now?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems like by the hour, America is either on the precipice of full blown war with Iran or about to get a peace deal, depending on who you're speaking to and what's just happened that hour. You mentioned the strikes, of course, around the Strait of Hormuz. Those just happen a few hours ago. We do have more information on where those occurred with CENTCOM saying that they targeted missile launch sites in Iranian boats attempting to place mines.

The statement went on to say that the U.S. is working to defend its forces while using restraint. Now, a note here, of course, there is a ceasefire that is in place now. Violations have happened in the past, and the ceasefire has carried on. So unclear how this will impact that at this point. But we do now have a statement from Iran's supreme leader. Before I read it out to you, I want to make clear that this is a written statement from the supreme leader, and it could have been written before these strikes occurred. Let me read out that statement to you.

The United States not only will no longer have a safe haven for its mischief and for establishing military bases in the region, but day by day, it is growing more distant from its former status. Again, an indication there of the type of military actions that Iran has taken in the region, striking at military bases, of course, in neighboring countries across the Gulf. It seems a hardening of position. But you mentioned, of course, those talks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, those concluded in Qatar a short time ago. With the secretary of state saying, look, it's a matter of wording, a matter of a few sentences that we're negotiating over now.

But if you ask Iranian negotiators, they seem to indicate that the United States and Iran are still very far from a deal. The key issue, of course, is enriched uranium. As you mentioned, that no dust, no dollar, is a statement that we keep hearing from U.S. officials over the weekend indicating that 1,000 pounds of highly enriched uranium that the United States and President Donald Trump, of course, personally wants to see destroyed. Iran, on the other hand, says that a conclusion to the war must be finalized before it speaks about how to handle that enriched uranium.

And again, hearing about those strikes around the Strait of Hormuz that just occurred in the last few hours. We're hearing from Iranian state media that there was the sound of at least three explosions around the key port, Bandar Abbas port in southern Iran. It says Iran's government says, and Iran's state media says that air defenses were activated. Again, we do not know if this state statement that we've just heard from the supreme leader, a written statement that was put out to mark the Hajj pilgrimage, whether that was written beforehand or afterhand.

[04:05:10]

But the key question here will be, will those U.S. strikes affect those negotiations and how far are they from the deal now that we're seeing those attacks again around the Strait of Hormuz by the U.S. forces?

SANDOVAL: Yes, Salma, that is crucial context as we are yet to actually see the supreme Leader after it was announced. Salma Abdelaziz with that live report from London, thank you.

Russia says that its bombardment of Kyiv this weekend was the start of, "systematic strikes against military facilities in the city." Moscow firing more than 600 drones and 90 missiles overnight on Sunday, killing at least four people and wounding dozens more. The attacks destroyed civilian infrastructure, including some of these residential buildings and also some shops.

Moscow also warning foreign nationals, including diplomats and international organizations to leave Ukraine's capital as soon as possible. But the E.U. ambassador to Ukraine said that her team would stay in place and a State Department spokesperson said that there are currently no changes to U.S. Embassy operations. CNN Sebastian Shukla following those developments from Berlin. Sebastian, what else is the U.S. State Department saying about the -- about their diplomats there?

SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN PRODUCER: Yes, good morning, Polo. What we've seen over the weekend is a systematic campaign, as the Kremlin has called it, against the Ukrainian capital city and it has been delivered with ferocious might. Some of that video that you were just showing has shows the devastation that has been left and the ferocity that has been wrought on the Ukrainian capital and the residents of Kyiv just over the last few days. And what the Kremlin is now saying is they plan to double down on this.

They are still livid about an attack on launched by the Ukrainian armed forces in Russian occupied territory, that region of Luhansk, which killed some 18 people. The Russian Foreign Ministry released a statement late last night. I'm going to read a selection of it portion of it to you which says in response to the Kyiv's regime continued terrorist attacks against civilian and civilian infrastructure on Russian territory, the Russian armed forces are commencing systematic and sustained strikes on facilities in Kyiv used for the needs of the Ukrainian armed forces as well as other decision making centers.

Polo, as we know, Kyiv is very, very well used now to attacks like these. The scale of these is something that we haven't seen before. And most interestingly, the Russians are almost advertising now that what they are about to do and something that I certainly have not seen before is a phone call which took place between the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov and Marco Rubio, who's traveling in India at the moment, where basically the foreign minister called Secretary Rubio and said, I have a message from President Putin. I would like you to deliver it to President Trump. Take a listen to what Marco Rubio had to say about that call and about the strikes more generally.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Well, they sent a notice to all the embassies and I think he was just calling the person to tell him. They told all the embassies to -- Kyiv is going to be a very dangerous place -- Kyiv is going to be a very dangerous place now for a number of years. But the danger in all of these wars as they continue and they go on, is that they always have a threat of escalation, of spreading into something new. So I spoke to him yesterday about that and a couple other topics. And obviously Putin wanted -- had asked me, to call me to relay the message directly to the President, which I did.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SHUKLA: And so we're seeing now what the European embassies are also doing, whether the allies are really taking heed of what the Russians are telling them they need to do. What we're seeing here is a solidarity of by the European embassies. They will not be cowed into submission by threats by the Kremlin. And the Ukrainian people are going to remain steadfast in staying at home and trying, as they have done now since the beginning of this war, not to bow to any pressure from the Kremlin. Polo?

SANDOVAL: That's CNN's Sebastian Shukla with the live report from Berlin and the latest on Russia's war on Ukraine. Thank you, Sebastian.

Back to the states now. It's decision day in Texas. Republican voters will be heading to the polls for the runoff between incumbent Senator John Cornyn and State Attorney General Ken Paxton. The winner will face Democratic State Representative James Talarico in what is already one of the most closely and -- closely watched and also expensive races of the 2026 midterms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CYNDEE BALDWIN, UNDECIDED REPUBLICAN VOTER: There's some things on Cornyn that I really like, but then there's some things on Paxton that I like. And then I'm trying to discern between lies that are being told on both sides and the truths that are being told on both sides.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[04:09:59]

SANDOVAL: President Trump has endorsed Ken Paxton, who's been plagued by ethics scandals. And despite being essentially pushed aside by the President, Senator Cornyn is clinging on to Trump.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOHN CORNYN (R-TX): President Trump has called me a friend and a good man. I don't see my situation as the same. But you know, in the end, it's Texans who are going to make that decision.

KEN PAXTON, TEXAS ATTORNEY GENERAL: What has John Cornyn accomplished not just in the 24 years in the Senate, look, he's running for a fifth term, which no one's done, as you know, in Texas history. No one's served 30 years in the U.S. Senate. He's been in office since I was in college and I'm 63.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: And I did speak in the last hour with Ron Brownstein, who's CNN senior political analyst and Bloomberg opinion columnist. And I asked Ron if Senator Cornyn could possibly if he stands any chance of reversing the trend of Republican lawmakers losing to Trump back candidates. And here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RON BROWNSTEIN, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: He won the first round of the primary, but as the -- in March, but as the incumbent, he finished well under 50. And that's us a tough sign for an incumbent heading toward a runoff. Plus, the obvious, you know, elephant literally in the room. Donald Trump's endorsement Ken Paxton. So it would be a surprise if John Cornyn, I think prevails. Today, Paxton, as Arlette said, is, you know, would still have to be the favorite in a very red state. But it is going to be a competitive race.

You know, you go back to 2018 when Democrats had their good midterm. During Donald Trump's first midterm, Beto O'Rourke came within two and a half points of Ted Cruz in Texas, the best Democratic showing in a long time. It would not be surprising if polling consistently shows Talarico at least that close and maybe closer against Paxton. But those last few points are tough for a Democrat in the Lone Star State.

SANDOVAL: That would make for an absolutely fascinating face off come November. We got to get through tomorrow for a -- rather Tuesday first, Ken Paxton already focusing on his Democrat potential Democratic opponent, James Talarico. If we do see these on a midterm ballot, do you expect that Texas voters may be open to seeing past Paxton's personal and political scandals?

BROWNSTEIN: You know, negative partisanship is a very powerful force in modern politics. I mean, you know, you have flawed nominees on each side who win now basically by making the other -- making the argument that you cannot tolerate letting the other party be in power. You got to go back, as I said, to 2018 as your baseline, in a year where Democrats won the national popular vote by eight and a half points in 2018. Beto O'Rourke lost by two and a half points in Texas.

Now it suggests you need a bigger wave than you had even in 2018 for Democrats to win down there. There might be a bigger wave for Democrats to win. There might be a bigger wave this year that the Democratic lead and the generic ballot is larger now than it was at this point in 2018. And also Texas has changed in these eight years. I mean all, basically all population growth in the state since that 2018 race has been among voters color the white share of the electorate, particularly those non college whites who are the core Republican voters everywhere. But especially in the south, they are a smaller share of the electorate than they were.

On the other hand, Republicans have made inroads since 2018 among Latino and to a lesser extent black voters. I suspect the key for Talarico will be to push those Latino margins back as close to the 64 percent that Beto won as he can. But then to run better among those college educated white suburbanites. Beto got 44 percent of them. He's going to need more. And they are presumably the voters who will be most resistant, I think the PACs and those fiscally conservative socially moderate voters who are just kind of put off by all of the various personal and political and even financial scandals swirling around PACs. That still a reach because of negative partisanship, but one that I think is more possible than against Cornyn. (END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Our thanks to Ron.

And after the break, a look at Pope Leo's first theological publication as Pontiff. The stark warning that he issued to the world and why he's taking aim at the rise of artificial intelligence.

[04:14:17]

And a little later, a race against time allows cave divers. They are now searching for seven people who are trapped underground. A live report on the way.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SANDOVAL: Welcome back. Pope Leo has issued a stark warning about artificial intelligence in his first major theological publication as Pontiff. The text, titled Magnifica Humanitas, which is Latin for magnificent humanity. He calls for the disarming of A.I. to prevent it from dominating and degrading human lives. CNN's Vatican correspondent Christopher Lamb with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A pope weighing in on the debate over artificial intelligence. Leo XIV wants the Church's voice heard on what he sees as a revolution, taking the unprecedented step of personally presenting an encyclical letter on the issues. One of the highest forms of papal teaching.

POPE LEO XIV: Artificial intelligence needs to be disarmed. The word is strong, I know, but deliberately chosen because this moment needs words capable of attracting attention, awakening consciences and indicating paths forward for humanity.

LAMB (voice-over): Doing so alongside Chris Ola, a co-founder of Anthropic, the leading A.I. firm which has been in a legal dispute with the Trump administration.

CHRIS OLAH, CO-FOUNDER, ANTHROPIC: Some might believe that matters of A.I. are best handled by computer scientists like myself. They are mistaken. The questions raised by A.I. are bigger than the A.I. research community, not just in their implications, but also in their nature.

LAMB (voice-over): An ethical and human centered development of A.I. is a top priority for the American Pope, who is known to be tech savvy. At the heart of his plea, an insistence that technology cannot replace the "grandeur of humanity nor take the place of God or personal conscience, and that A.I. should not be controlled by a powerful few and warning about its use in war." Leo wants to influence those responsible for the new tech after a 10-year dialogue between the Vatican and Silicon Valley over A.I.

[04:20:17]

LAMB: The Pope sees A.I. as raising more than just technical questions. He sees it as asking profound ones about what it means to be human. Now, in the past, the Catholic Church has made mistakes entering into scientific debate. But Pope Leo believes that faith and science, while asking different questions, shouldn't be in opposition, but help one another.

LAMB (voice-over): This encyclical, likely to be a landmark text for Leo's papacy. A Pope seeking to address a defining issue of the age.

Christopher Lamb, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Let's stay on this. In the last hour, I spoke with Elise Allen. She's a senior correspondent for Crux Now. And I asked Elise what the significance of the Pope's appeal could actually mean for the future of A.I.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ELISE ALLEN, SENIOR CORRESPONDENT, CRUX NOW: I think this is incredibly significant, Polo. I think this is going to be one of his most important documents. I mean, it's his first major, major teaching document that he has released here. The fact that he chose to do it on A.I., I think says a lot. It says a lot about the direction he sees humanity going in. But one of the key issues that is going to define humanity's future. And this is something that doesn't just touch, you know, one nation or one people across the board, you know, and there are a lot of really critical questions that he raised in this document in terms of our basic understanding and, you know, have we lost respect and understanding of what is -- what it means to be human at the most very basic level, but also in terms of how wars are waged.

And he talked about, you know, new colonialisms and modern forms of slavery that this could bring about if there are not, you know, clear moral and ethical criteria in place developing these technologies. So I think it's a very important discussion that the Pope has just launched here.

SANDOVAL: Yes, it is significant, it's historic. But will it be influential, you think? I mean, when you -- as you read through the text, at least, do you think that it will actually have at least a small impact in the development of A.I.?

ALLEN: I think it could. You know, I think that the Pope has opened a door here. He's made an invitation to get big tech and governments around the world involved in this. You know, he called on government and political leaders especially to be involved, you know, in ensuring that the technology that he said remains in the hands of a few doesn't just stay there and that it is available to people broadly, you know, the benefits of it, but that also that there are many actors involved in shaping how this develops, you know, in an ethical way.

So I think he's opened the door to a conversation here. And I think the presence of Christopher Olah, you know, the head, the co-founder of Anthropic, at the presentation in the Vatican yesterday is a signal that there's at least some in the big tech world that are open to having this conversation. So I think there could be some, at least their initial signs that some are listening at this point.

SANDOVAL: The Pope also argued that we should not fear A.I., but instead to keep the question of the human in play, speak to the significance of the pontiff issuing this challenge to some of the tech companies, including the way you just mentioned, to keep humans at the heart of tech change. Obviously, we cannot ignore that even in recent graduations, we've seen even students booing, criticizing A.I. So it is heavily on the mind of people, and it's not just college communities, but artists themselves as well, that have serious concerns about the rise of A.I.

ALLEN: I think all these concerns are absolutely legitimate. And I think that that's one thing Leo wanted to highlight. You know, I think he sees the development of these technologies as inevitable. And the question he posed in this document was not, you know, whether we want this technology. He sees that as inevitable. It's what kind of world do we want to build with it? It's whether we want it or not, you know, so we can either build something, he says, you know, from the eyes of faith, you know, we can try to, you know, hold on to dominion and this culture of power that he described in this sort of lust to dominate, you know, that it leads to greater conflict and war, or we can build something better for humanity. And those are the two paths that lead, you know, that are in front of us.

And so I think some of these protests and the resistance to technology or resistance, you know, to this other path that he's talking about, you know, this thirst to dominate and holding on to power, you know, instead of trying to build something better, you know, for humanity. So I think the conversation that he wants to start is, you know, this is going to be present and instead of, you know, getting caught up in, you know, this, you know, ultimately useless debates with one another, how can we build a debate and a dialogue that is constructive?

So we know that these technologies that are going to be present, no matter what, are being used in a useful and productive way for humanity, you know, keeping humanity at the center, not losing what it means to be human beings, you know, seeing that technology does not replace the human being and trying to ensure that at every stage. But how can it enhance human existence? You know, and those -- that's where he says that the need for clear ethical guidelines shaping the development of this technology are so necessary to ensure that the human being isn't lost, but that it's really at the service of humanity preventing wars, you know, and being used for things such as, you know, education, medical progress.

[04:25:25]

There's a lot of creativity here and that's the direction we have to go in. So I think that's ultimately the challenge proposed and what he would like to see happen.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SANDOVAL: Right now. An urgent effort is underway to reach seven villagers who are trapped underground in a cave in Laos. They've now been there for nearly a week after flash flooding from heavy rain reportedly blocked their exit. One group coordinating the rescue says the teams will have to navigate a more than 1,000 foot long tunnel just to reach those villagers. And then of course, the next challenge is how do you get them out? CNN's Mike Valerio, great at multitasking, covering a conflict in the Middle East one hour and then transitioning now to following this dramatic rescue. Mike, what are you hearing from authorities on the ground about these ongoing efforts to get these people out safely?

MIKE VALERIO, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're hearing, Polo -- what we're hearing, Polo, just how difficult this rescue is. Sorry to talk on top of you. We have about a five second delay, but we're hearing how harrowing the efforts are. And I think that the video that was just released and posted on Facebook can tell the story much better than I can. We're going to put it on the screen. It is claustrophobia inducing. But if you're in your hotel room making lunch, getting started for the day, stop what you're doing and looking at this video.

Just try to look at what they are up against, the conditions, the sharp edges of these rock formations, and you can see right there the murky waters. And some of these divers just have their skin exposed. They say that it's cold water. They take a breath, go under that murky water, come up and try to look for those seven people who went into this cave last Wednesday looking for gold in Xaisomboun Province in Laos and haven't been seen since.

Flash flooding blocked the entrance to this cave. And one person who is with the seven people who are in there somewhere got out of there and said they need help. They have been trapped. So to cut away from that video, Polo, and give you a better idea of what the rescuers are up against, some of these entrances, or I should say the narrowest entrance is about 60 centimeters wide, 23 inches. So this is what rescuers are dealing with in that water, in the darkness, in those conditions. And you said at the top of the segment that the length of that tunnel is about, you know, 1,100 feet long.

For all of our viewers who deal in the metric system, that's more than 300 meters long. And that's about, you know, New York City's home for me. That's almost the height of the Empire State Building. So those are the measurements that we're dealing with here. Efforts are being made to pump water out of those tunnels. And Laos, of course, Polo is a communist one party state. It's very hard to get information out of there. So we're checking Facebook. Thousands of people are watching this rescue.

And there are two Thai rescuers who are involved in the dramatic 2018 cave rescue of the soccer team that are also part of this effort now. So our hopes, hearts, prayers with them. Incredible stuff that we're seeing out of Laos. Polo?

SANDOVAL: Yes, we all remember that dramatic rescue back in 2018 with a happy ending. We certainly hope the same for this. And it started with a search for gold. Just incredible. Mike Valerio, thank you so much for that demonstration too.

VALERIO: That's right.

SANDOVAL: People who are not claustrophobic, they certainly are when they start looking at that. Thank you.

[04:28:51]

And still ahead here on CNN Newsroom, Russia is using its drones to turn a vital supply road in eastern Ukraine into a deadly gauntlet. How Ukraine's forces are adapting.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)