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Trade Talks Collapse between U.S. and Canada; U.S. Secretary of State Meets with Omani Ambassador after Latest Trump Threat; Fifteen Killed, 100 Plus Wounded in Double Tap Strike on Ukraine; Trail Runner's Search for Missing Hikers in Taiwan's Mountains. Aired 3- 3:30a ET
Aired August 22, 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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WILL RIPLEY, CNN ANCHOR AND SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Hello from Hong Kong. I'm Will Ripley and you are in the CNN NEWSROOM. And here's what we're following on this Saturday.
Trade talks collapse. Canada suspends trade negotiations with the U.S. and warns of retaliatory tariffs.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We have total control of that entire region having to do with the Strait of Hormuz.
RIPLEY (voice-over): President Donald Trump there, claiming the U.S. controls the Strait of Hormuz as Iran pushes back on his economic threat.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): Plus, one man's mission, how he's searching for lost hikers in the mountains of Taiwan.
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RIPLEY: We begin with the trade war between the U.S. and Canada, two of the world's largest trading partners, now just reigniting the deadline for a new deal passed a couple of hours ago. And as talks collapsed, this means that 50 percent U.S. tariffs on some $20 billion in Canadian goods are now officially in effect.
Canadian prime minister Mark Carney says he suspended the talks in Washington and he says Canada will now match the new U.S. tariffs, quote, "dollar for dollar."
And he added, "Progress has not been enough to meet our objectives for Canadians. Last-minute changes in the U.S. proposed terms were unfair, uneconomic and called into question the reliability of any deal."
The U.S. Immediately labeled the collapsed talks as a missed opportunity for Canada. In a statement, the U.S. trade representative's office blamed Canada for walking back earlier commitments, making new demands and retaliating against the U.S.
As soon as the war with Iran is over, whenever that is, President Trump says oil prices will fall. Speaking in South Carolina on Friday, the president also said he views the Strait of Hormuz as an American territory right now. Here's what he told reporters earlier in the day about the state of the war.
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TRUMP: We're seeing what happens. They have no money. They have no navy. They have no air force. They are not paying their soldiers. They're not paying their police. They have 350 percent inflation. So we're just going to see what happens.
And we have total control, as you know, of the border. We have total control. If you look at the blockade, we have total control of that entire region having to do with the Strait of Hormuz. And that means well into it, the land areas. So they would love to make a deal but they're not ready to make the right deal in my opinion.
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RIPLEY: Iran is pushing back on president Trump's threat of a, quote, "economic D-Day. The U.S. president had earlier threatened the most crushing economic operation against Iran in a social media post that you can see here.
In response, the Iranian foreign ministry said new sanctions would pave the way for a, quote, "return to full-scale classic colonialism."
U.S. secretary of state Marco Rubio met Oman's ambassador to the United States on Thursday. This was following up on president Trump's threat to bomb that country. Oman has been negotiating with Iran on a potential agreement covering shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.
Last hour, I spoke with the former U.S. ambassador to Oman, Gary Grappo. He's also the former deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy in Saudi Arabia. And I asked him what he makes of secretary Rubio's meeting with Oman's ambassador.
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GARY GRAPPO, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO OMAN: The fact is that delivering messages is a chore, so to speak, that the Omani government has played on a number of occasions on behalf of the United States.
That is to deliver messages to Tehran, since we have no direct means of communication. In fact, that's one of their added value, so to speak, in their relationship with the United States.
In terms of the meeting that took place between the secretary and the Omani ambassador, from all the reporting that I have seen, it indicates that it took on the -- it took place on the margins of an event that was taking place at the U.S. Institute for Peace, which is located just adjacent to the Department of State, right across the street.
And so it's unclear how long the meeting was and the substance of their conversation. I would hope that the secretary conveyed that.
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If nothing else, an apology for the remarks of the president and threatening a long and valued ally of the United States. So we have had a relationship with the government of Oman that dates back to the early 19th century. It's one of the oldest trade and friendship treaties we have in the entire Middle East.
And it's not the appropriate way to deal with a friend and ally like this.
RIPLEY: And you have to wonder if it's going to help the situation at all when you have this rhetoric that keeps getting more and more inflammatory from the president. You know, Iran is using the Strait of Hormuz as leverage.
And do you think that anything really can convince Tehran to give that leverage up now that they see how effective it is?
GRAPPO: Well, the issue is how much pressure will it take to force this government in Tehran to come to the table and negotiate seriously with the United States on the issues that concern the United States, specifically the opening of the Strait of Hormuz completely, without tolls to all shipping traffic.
And, of course, to serious and substantive negotiations in reducing its nuclear weapons program -- they haven't shown any inclination to do that as of yet. The military campaign that lasted for several months did not achieve that.
The only thing left for the administration to use is the economic lever. And in fact, it is one area of significant vulnerability on the part of this government in Tehran. The economy was suffering mightily at the start of the war in February and things have gotten worse throughout the six months of the war.
Of course, those suffering the most are the people of Iran. But the government of Iran is also feeling the heat.
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RIPLEY: Former ambassador Gary Grappo there.
The Palestinian health ministry says a Palestinian teenager was shot and killed by an Israeli settler. Dozens of settlers, some of them armed, reportedly marched into a village in the occupied West Bank, setting off this confrontation with residents.
Palestinian authorities say the gunfire killed 16-year-old Karim Shalaldeh and wounded a man in his 70s who's in the hospital right now in critical condition. Eyewitnesses, including the boy's father, say an Israeli settler wearing an Israel Defense Forces uniform fired the fatal shots.
The IDF, which was dispatched to the area, said the head of the local settlement security force, quote, "opened fire" in the area. And there are Palestinian casualties. As a result, the military said Palestinians threw rocks at the settlers, injuring several of them.
It also said the settlers were not authorized to be in that area. The United Nations is calling for accountability.
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STEPHANE DUJARRIC, U.N. SPOKESPERSON: We reiterate that Palestinians across the occupied Palestinian territory must be protected as required by international law and the perpetrators must be brought to and held to account. The use of lethal force in law enforcement must be a last resort.
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RIPLEY: I want to show you this video now of emergency crews searching through the wreckage of a shopping center in central Ukraine. This is the aftermath of a deadly Russian drone attack. Ukrainian officials say it was a double tap strike and they say it killed 15 people and wounded at least 130 others.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): This is an absolute atrocity committed by the Russians. They're nothing but beasts. We will definitely respond.
It's crucial that we have everything we need to protect lives. It is important that the world does not remain silent about all of this. This Russian war must come to an end and the world must help us achieve that.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): Now in this video, you can see a drone hitting the shopping center and then erupting into flames. Ukraine's president says a second wave of drones targeted emergency crews just a half an hour after the first strike in that same location. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports.
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NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: The images are particularly distressing. Remember, we seem to be in something of an escalatory spiral here between Ukraine and Russia. Russia continuing its callous, often targeting of specifically
civilian sites and also Ukraine hitting recently as well distribution centers for Amazon style delivery service called Wildberries.
Now they said that's part of their military logistics network but both sides increasingly looking toward civilian targets. Russia has been doing that much more severely for some time.
But this strike on Kryvyi Rih in a shopping center is a particularly ghastly strike, it seems.
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I've been to that shopping center. It is frequented by everybody you might possibly imagine.
According to officials here, there was one drone strike in two waves and then 30 minutes after the first, a second drone went in specifically so Ukrainian officials to hit the first responders on the scene.
Now the numbers here are particularly striking because we are talking about devastating toll in this, particularly specific bid to hit a civilian target there.
You know, these shopping centers, yes, sometimes you see soldiers in there buying food like everybody else. But this is very clearly a civilian target being hit.
And we are now seeing, I think, this increasing scope of targets by both sides, I should say Ukraine is targeting more infrastructure and military it seems in its focus. But Russia, increasingly brutal in what it is willing to hit out at.
We've reported on damage to gas stations across the country upon the energy infrastructure regularly, look, almost nightly apartment blocks are hit.
Unclear if that's purposeful or just missiles going wildly off course. The Ukrainian official you were referencing in that earlier report talked about how some of these North Korean missiles land 15 to 19 kilometers off what they believe is their target.
So an increasingly horrific toll there and I should point out, too, that July was the most deadly month for Ukrainian civilians since May of 2022. There is no real peace mechanism at sight here.
There have been discussions, potentially that maybe the U.S. process, essentially moribund now, might somehow have life breathe into it again, maybe a visit by Jared Kushner or Steve Witkoff to Moscow, they even floated some individuals. The idea they might even go to Ukraine for the first time.
But that seems to be paused. And instead, now we are seeing Russia clearly exploiting the horrific gap in Ukraine's air defenses because they are not getting the patriot interceptors they need to strike. You're seeing images from -- now that's a drone. Russia's drones jet
powered now faster, harder to stop. We are going to see more horrific incidents like this, I fear, in the months ahead.
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RIPLEY: CNN's Nick Paton Walsh there.
Authorities in Sweden say an 18-year old armed with a sword has killed a high school student. The attack happened on Friday. Police say the attacker was a former student at the same school. Police shot and then detained him.
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TOMMY ALRIKSSON, FAGERSTA POLICE AREA COMMANDER (through translator): The perpetrator is a man around 18 years old. We have been able to link him to two local addresses here in Fagersta when we have conducted house searches. At this stage, we have no reason to believe there are multiple perpetrators.
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RIPLEY: Two teenage boys were also severely injured. A third was treated at a hospital and released.
It was a sleepless night for a lot of people in southern Taiwan. There was this massive explosion and fire that happened overnight in Tainan. Look at this video.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): It's really terrifying. It happened in an open space used for parking near a number of homes. More than 100 firefighters and 50 fire trucks were sent to fight this. The fire triggered, as you saw in the video, a second large explosion about 1.5 hours later.
And that happened as fire was burning through flammable metal waste materials. And there were a lot of people who had gathered to watch the fire. So they were injured in this blast. You had at least 15 people hurt, 20 vehicles and 11 homes damaged. And officials say nearly 60 households have had to move into a shelter.
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RIPLEY: You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. We're live in Hong Kong. And up next, I'll show you another story from Taiwan, an incredible opportunity that I had, to meet a man who has become famous for finding people who were lost in the rugged, beautiful and yes, dangerous mountains of Taiwan.
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RIPLEY: Taiwan is home to some of the most spectacular mountains in Asia. But every year, hundreds of hikers run into trouble on the trails. When someone goes missing, there's one man who's become known for taking on the searches that others have given up on.
And I got to meet him. He's known across the island as the Beast Runner.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): Every year, hikers vanish in Taiwan's mountains.
PETR NOVOTNY, TRAIL RUNNER (from captions): Now I can feel it. There's another piece of something. This is the worst that I ever saw.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Petr Novotny is the man they call when nobody else can find them.
RIPLEY: What's the percentage of finding them alive versus finding them dead?
NOVOTNY: Now it's mostly dead.
RIPLEY (voice-over): They call him Beast Runner. He moves fast, searching for clues.
NOVOTNY (from captions): His hat. There is the shoe. I see second shoe.
RIPLEY (voice-over): He says lost hikers seem to vanish like ghosts.
NOVOTNY (from captions): OK. You are helping. You are helping, OK?
RIPLEY (voice-over): But they always leave something behind.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Oh, my God.
Let's go. Enter to Wujie Shan (ph). Wujie Mountain.
RIPLEY (voice-over): For many heading into Taiwan's high mountains, Puli is the last stop before rugged, remote wilderness.
So you'll sleep in the van.
NOVOTNY (from captions): And that's the thing. Sometimes I can sleep in the car.
RIPLEY: And you're cooking in here, too?
NOVOTNY (from captions): Yes, you can cook. That's very easy.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Petr knows these trails better than most.
RIPLEY: How did you come up with the name Beast Runner, by the way?
NOVOTNY (from captions): Because we always meet some beast. You know, spiders, snake, bees.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Born in the Czech Republic, he came to Taiwan as an exchange student and fell in love with the mountains.
RIPLEY: Here, trail running (ph), do you just ...
(LAUGHTER)
RIPLEY: Did that more gracefully than me.
RIPLEY (voice-over): A former competitive trail runner, he and his wife, Eva, organize international mountain races.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nice (ph).
(LAUGHTER)
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RIPLEY (voice-over): It clearly runs in the family.
NOVOTNY: (INAUDIBLE).
RIPLEY (voice-over): Years of trail running came in handy when Petr joined his first search for a missing hiker a decade ago, realizing he had a knack for search and rescue.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Once you go hiking and you don't have the skills or knowledge, it can turn to disaster.
RIPLEY (voice-over): With hiking getting more popular in Taiwan, the number of people missing or needing rescue tripled in the last seven years, more than 4,300 total cases. Most are rescued.
But since 2019, hundreds have died. Dozens have never been found.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking foreign language).
RIPLEY (voice-over): Petr made headlines in Taiwan in 2022. He found the body of a missing technology executive. The family offered a reward of around $35,000.
RIPLEY: And I'm sure most families are very grateful to pay you because you found their loved one.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Hey, of course, somebody doesn't have the money. Right?
And if they don't pay me, it's OK. But some family has the wealth and they know the urgency.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Families started calling, offering to hire Petr to find other missing hikers. NOVOTNY (from captions): It's hard for family emotionally but also
legally it's terrible because then they cannot get death certificate and they cannot reach insurance.
(CROSSTALK)
RIPLEY: Everything is in limbo if they don't find the body.
NOVOTNY (from captions): You need death certificate.
There are two ladies alive I saved. Last March, the mountain over there, we found one guy. Everywhere I see disasters.
RIPLEY: So you look and you know where you found people?
(CROSSTALK)
NOVOTNY (from captions): There was some case.
RIPLEY: It's really beautiful here but obviously it's very dangerous as well.
Why is it so dangerous in the mountains of Taiwan?
NOVOTNY (from captions): Well, I think the terrain. You know, like the weather and combined with the terrain could be dangerous. But the most dangerous is actually the people themselves because they are not prepared. They don't follow common sense.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Petr says the first 72 hours are the best chance of rescue.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Should be over there somewhere.
RIPLEY (voice-over): But most hikers who lose the trail panic. Instead of hiking up to find a cell signal, they hike down into Taiwan's jagged and dangerous river valleys, where accidents like falls are often deadly.
RIPLEY: So if your phone is dying and you have a signal and you told someone, here's my -- I've dropped a pin, here's where I am, just stay there.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Yes. but you can't imagine how many cases the rescuers arrive in a couple hours. And the person is nowhere.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Last year, Huang Yonghong (ph) went to the mountains alone. The cancer survivor in his 50s told nobody his hiking plan, disappearing for seven weeks. Petr scoured Huang's social media to understand his hiking habits, spending days scouring rugged terrain deep in the mountains, until this.
NOVOTNY (from captions): A hat, shoe, he must be over there. Here is obvious slide. Oh, so deep. OK. I have him. Over there is orange. Sorry. But you are back. You will go to family, OK?
RIPLEY (voice-over): After 47 days, the body was mostly bones. Petr says Huang missed a turn, falling from a sharp ridge.
He found another missing hiker here beneath a waterfall, his body surrounded by hundreds of butterflies, a moment seared in Petr's mind.
Despite his popularity for search and rescue, Petr says he hates the job and hopes nobody else gets lost. He sometimes faces the gruesome task of securing bodies so helicopters or rescuers can carry them out.
RIPLEY: Talk more about that feeling when you know you're getting close to a body.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Yes, sometimes, like, you smell it, right?
Because you searching for a corpse, right?
So basically I have to like convince myself, be brave and keep going. And, yes, then I maybe spot the person or the missing one.
RIPLEY: Do you feel scared sometimes?
NOVOTNY (from captions): Always. Of course I get scared but I have to always repeat myself, I am helping.
I got him.
You know, I'm really helping. So actually the scare and shock in a few seconds, just like few seconds, turned to the relief. Huge relief. Like the adrenaline is still there. But I'm like, oh, it's solved. And then in half-minute more, my brain switch to survival mode, how to actually get out.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Scouring Taiwan's mountains sometimes leads Petr to more than missing hikers.
NOVOTNY (from captions): I found like a crashed airplane. I somehow figured out where is the location. And actually, Taiwan has many places where airplane crash.
[03:25:00]
RIPLEY (voice-over): Petr posts his search and rescue videos promoting hiking safety.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Start hike early, have some basic gear. Don't go in bad weather.
RIPLEY (voice-over): Beast Runner is a household name in Taiwan. People ask for photos everywhere he goes.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Give me the phone.
(CROSSTALK)
NOVOTNY (from captions): Selfie. (INAUDIBLE).
RIPLEY (voice-over): Sometimes Petr's cases take him away from his family for days.
NOVOTNY (from captions): A big one.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): That one is very sharp.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): I caught one at school.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Really?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): It's so beautiful.
NOVOTNY (from captions): See you tomorrow.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE).
RIPLEY (voice-over): Despite the dangers, he has this advice.
NOVOTNY (from captions): Enjoy outdoors. Go out when you can and don't wait until you're 50s. Here, you have huge scorpion, the most dangerous one in Taiwan.
RIPLEY: Really?
(LAUGHTER)
NOVOTNY (from captions): I'm joking
RIPLEY: Another life saved.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIPLEY: Petr Novotny, that man is a legend, let me tell you. And beautiful scenes there in the mountains of Taiwan. But stay safe.
All right. Shifting gears entirely now, panda twins at a zoo in Germany were enjoying their second birthday yesterday.
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RIPLEY (voice-over): This is Leni and Lotti, celebrating their big day with a special cake made just for pandas. It was actually made with ice, colored with carrot and beetroot juice. Apparently they love that.
Giant pandas like these female twins can live up to 33 years. Leni and Lotti are owned by China and, at some point, as with all pandas, they will return to take part in their home country's breeding program.
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RIPLEY: Thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM live from Hong Kong. I'm Will Ripley. Up next, CNN's Japan's cultural imagination (ph). And CNN NEWSROOM will be back at the top of the hour with my colleague in London, Salma Abdelaziz. Have a great Saturday.
