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Europe Facing New COVID-19 Restrictions As Cases Surge; Brazil's Health System Near Collapse; Fourth General Election Seen As A Referendum On Netanyahu. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired March 22, 2021 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:00:26]
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Linda Kinkade filling in for my colleague Becky Addison. Good to have you
with us. Well, surging cases new restrictions and a growing brow over vaccines. The third coronavirus wave in Europe is here. Some of Europe's
biggest countries going into lockdown yet again. The list is only going to grow larger.
Right now France and Poland are in partial lockdown. Italy is headed towards a nationwide lockdown for Easter. And Germany's government is
meeting today to consider new measures. Chancellor Angela Merkel may impose nighttime curfews in hard hit areas. With the lockdowns coming after nearly
20 E.U. countries temporarily paused or restricted the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine have over safety concerns.
And then blasted the drug maker for production shortfalls, which today we're getting new information on the European commission's president's
threat to hold AstraZeneca exports and the British Prime Minister's response. Well in the U.K., where some 40 percent of the population is
vaccinated and restrictions are seem to be lifted. The Prime Minister is warning today that a third COVID wave could hit his country too.
Well, let's break down all these fast moving developments for you. With us we have Frederick Pleitgen who joins us from Berlin and Scott McLean is
joining us live from London. Good to have you both with us. Fred, I want to start with you in Germany where infection rates are up, vaccinations
painfully slow as they are right across Europe. And we are hearing that lockdown measures there set to tighten.
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Yes. They certainly are. It's another big day here in Germany as Angela Merkel meets with the
state governors here of this country to talk about new possible lockdown measures. And it's really a difficult situation that the country here is
in. Angela Merkel has acknowledged, other German politicians have acknowledged that that third wave of coronavirus factions is very much in
full force and continues to grip this country more and more.
And there really isn't very much that the German government can do about it simply because the vaccinations are going so slowly here in this country.
In fact, only four percent of the population has so far received two doses of any vaccine that right now is out here in Germany. And so therefore,
lockdown measures really are the only thing that the government has right now.
The big thing that everyone's talking about here in Berlin is that possible curfew. That certainly would be a new step for the government -- for the
German government. It's something that is really very controversial here in this country. And certainly a lot of people wouldn't very be very happy
about it. The other thing also schools, some of the schools that have opened here in this country, they might have to shut down again in areas
that do have a large amount of coronavirus infections.
And then the other thing that the German government wants to do as well is it does want to expand testing to try and come to terms with the situation
but it certainly is a very difficult one and short of a vaccine the German government has acknowledged that really the only thing at their disposal
right now is further tightening of lockdown restrictions. Lynda?
KINKADE: Yes. Tough measures but they will have to be done. Fred, I want to go to Scott in the U.K. because we have seen a very strong vaccination roll
out there. And as a result, we could see the U.K. start to ease some of the restrictions.
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Cross your fingers. So, the next round of easing of restrictions then that could come three weeks from
today. That would mean reopening gyms, outdoor patios, and non-essential stores, things like that. After that the roadmap says the five weeks later,
sometime in May, you would have the chance -- the people's first chance to go on international holidays without a good excuse.
Right now you're only allowed to travel for essential reasons or for work not for simply to go to a holiday somewhere in mainland Europe. The
government though has made quite clear though, that all of these dates that they've set out are best case scenarios, they can move them back, they are
dependent on obviously the vaccine rollout continuing to go at the lightning fast speed that it has been going at.
[10:05:05]
MCLEAN: And also the case counts continuing to fall so much so that there's no risk of further inflammation of those numbers which could lead to
hospitals once again being overwhelmed. But there are some trouble signs on the horizon. I want to show you a graphic if we have it showing coronavirus
case counts falling the white line there. That's the case counts in the U.K. But then you can see Italy, France, Germany, it's a different story
for those countries where they seem to be on the brink of another wave of the virus. And the Prime Minister says that that could end up here as well.
Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: And people in this country should be under no illusions that previous experience has taught us that that -- when
a wave hits our friends and it -- I'm afraid washes up on our shores as well. And I expect that we will -- we will feel those effects in due
course. That's why we're getting on with our vaccination program as fast as we can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCLEAN: So obviously, the vaccination program seems to have made a huge difference here in addition to the lockdown restrictions that have been in
place now for the last couple of months. The U.K. has gotten shots into the arms, at least the first dose of about more than 50 percent of the adult
population and it continues to go. They put shots in the arms of almost 850,000 people in one day alone on Saturday. That's a new record.
And so, a lot of people here are paying close attention to what the E.U. will do and whether it will make good on its threats to actually block some
vaccine exports from reaching the U.K. The Prime Minister said just not long ago in the same interview where you saw that clip that he's confident
that based on his conversations with E.U. leaders over the past few months, they don't want to see export restrictions, they don't want to see a
blockades.
But obviously facing the prospect of rising case counts, rising hospitalizations and deaths in their own countries well, it'll -- obviously
we're waiting to see whether or not their tunes might change, Lynda.
KINKADE: All right. We will wait and see. Scott McLean for us in London. Frederick Pleitgen in Berlin. Good to have you both with us. Thank you.
Once more E.U. nation is hailing its decision to not suspend AstraZeneca vaccine. We'll be speaking with the health minister and Deputy Prime
Minister of Malta about his country's response to the coronavirus pandemic. We'll have that interview with Dr. Christopher Fern coming up in the next
hour. So stay with us for that.
Well, meanwhile, AstraZeneca is getting a huge boost from the United States following concerns across Europe over its safety. A U.S. clinical trial has
found that AstraZeneca is effective 79 percent of the time in mild symptomatic cases of the disease with no serious side effects. Well last
week, E.U. regulators confirmed the vaccine was safe and effective after reports that it may cause possible blood clots.
AstraZeneca says it plans on applying for emergency use authorization in the U.S. next month. To discuss all of this I want to welcome Professor
Adrian Hill. He is the director of the Jenner Institute at Oxford University where AstraZeneca is vaccine was developed. Great to have you
with us, Professor.
ADRIAN HILL, PROFESSOR AND DIRECTOR, THE JENNER INSTITUTE AT OXFORD UNIVERSITY: Good morning.
KINKADE: So. the results of this latest trial here in the U.S. is fantastic news. This is the biggest trial today of the AstraZeneca vaccine, finding
that it's 79 percent effective in mild symptomatic cases, 100 percent in severe cases with no safety concerns. Surely this is what's needed to boost
confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine.
HILL: Absolutely. And we're very pleased to see that that 100 percent figure has come up again, as the endpoint that is really the most important
for public health. We saw that in the large three country trial in the U.K., in Brazil, and South Africa. So that's complimentary if you like. And
this time the efficacy against mild disease is higher. And that's probably due to minor differences in the protocol, how severe the cases were.
But we were particularly pleased to see that in older adults, the efficacy came out around about 80 percent. And you may remember there was some
concern that the numbers in the previous trials have been fairly, fairly small in the elderly. So all round, really very encouraging. And, you know,
this is not even the best immunization regimen. This is one month between doses. If you go for three months between doses, you not only get higher
efficacy in previous trials, but you find that it's actually easier to deploy because you don't need as many doses upfront in the first months to
vaccinate the same number of people.
KINKADE: It -- that is great news. And I did want to ask you more about the fact that this trial involves 6000 patients over the age of 65.
[10:10:04]
KINKADE: And as you said it found that this vaccine was 80 percent effective for that age group which is pretty significant given that some
countries had recommended against giving this vaccine to the elderly, right?
HILL: Yes. But that, you know, seems a long time ago now, even though it was only a month or two. That was because the numbers in the initial trials
were limited. But then, you know, within almost days, data came out from Scotland on 80 year olds, and even 90 year olds were with a single dose, we
were seeing efficacy of the order of 85 percent. So that led to a lot of those countries rowing back on that and starting to vaccinate older adults.
And that's really important, of course, because older adults are those who have the greatest disease burden from this pandemic.
KINKADE: Professor, what was your initial reaction when the E.U. move to suspend use of this vaccine? And what do you feel will be the real impact
even though most countries have now given it the go ahead?
HILL: Yes. Well, you know, these poses in clinical trials, and then deployments occur frequently. They don't normally get as much attention as
they have this time. The pause was dealt with very quickly by the European Medicines Agency last week, in two or three days, and they were absolutely
clear that the benefits of this vaccine hugely outweigh any measurable risk. So, I thought they did -- well, actually, these very short delays
aren't a huge issue if you delay for weeks and weeks, then obviously, that's more problematic.
KINKADE: There are still some Scandinavian countries that want to investigate this further. What's your take on that? What would you say to
them?
HILL: Yes. So the concern here was thrombosis, and again, in the data presented this morning from the U.S. trial, it's absolutely clear, there
was no increase in thrombosis in the vaccines. Across the large data sets in the U.K. and continental Europe there is no overall increase in
thrombosis. Everybody's agreed on that. But there seems to be this incredibly rare syndrome that is a particular type of cerebral vein
thrombosis that seen in very, very, very rare cases, maybe one in a million, the numbers aren't exactly clear in population prevalence.
And that may be an issue and people are looking at that in detail. But again, the European Medicines Agency looked at that very carefully, and
said it was safe to continue. So, we're very reassured not just not just by the efficacy, we're saying today, but by the safety profile, as well.
KINKADE: And Professor, just finally, the AstraZeneca vaccines still needs to go through the process of being approved from the U.S. Federal Drug
Administration to be used here. And by the time that happens, it may not be needed here. There might be enough vaccines from the others already in use.
But this is a global fight. What should happen to those doses?
HILL: Well, firstly, in the U.S., that might be the case, but I'm afraid that's a pretty optimistic interpretation that, you know, by the -- by
summer, it'll all be over. I think there's going to be another wave. Later in the year, these doses will definitely be needed in the U.S. and
AstraZeneca tell us today that they have 30 million doses ready to go now. 50 million in the first month, and then a regular supply afterwards.
So, it's -- more vaccine is always good in this pandemic. Globally, the picture is very different. 101, I think is the number of countries that are
now deploying or approving this vaccine. So it really is being used in most of the countries in the world. And it'll be great to have the U.S. added to
that list.
KINKADE: Absolutely. Professor Adrian Hill, fantastic to get you on the show. Thanks so much for your time today.
HILL: Thank you.
KINKADE: Well, Brazil is another country using the AstraZeneca vaccine, but there's just not enough to go around yet. And the desperation there is
growing. COVID-19 has nearly toppled the country's healthcare system. And hospitals are overwhelmed by patients and they are running out of supplies.
On Sunday, Brazil reported ICUs in nearly every state or at least 80 percent fall.
Well, I want to bring in our correspondent Matt Rivers who joins us live from Rio de Janeiro. Matt, day after day people there as you are seeing, as
you're reporting have been told that the vaccines have simply run out and the virus there is running rampant.
MATT RIVERS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. It's a time when vaccines would just be so crucial, Lynda, considering what is going on
across this country right now. You mentioned the ICU occupancy rates. If you look at near 14 of 26 Brazilian states have ICU occupancy rates at or
above 90 percent. That means that if those ICUs haven't collapsed already, they're at imminent risk of doing. So meanwhile, we're hearing about
shortages of medicines needed to be intubated.
[10:15:03]
RIVERS: There's a coastal town in the State of Sao Paulo that is actually being forced to excavate patients today because they don't have the right
medicines to keep people intubated.
They're taking them off ventilators. All this as we've seen over the past 10 days that the people who are dying here in Brazil do not just include
the elderly.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS (voice-over): There's a sense of desperation outside this Rio de Janeiro clinic. She didn't get one says Sylvia Silva Santos walking out. My
77-year-old mom can't get a vaccine. One of many that showed up that day waiting for vaccines that don't exist. This woman says this is a disgrace
people, waiting all day and night who knows if there will be a vaccine tomorrow. In Brazil's COVID-19 situation has never been worse daily case
and death records are the norm.
ICUs nationwide are full and health systems are failing us. And despite health officials saying the program has been a success vaccine deliveries
are well behind schedule months away from making a big impact experts say. No supply means no shots today back at the clinic.
So all these 70-plus year olds behind the had been told there are no more vaccines left in this clinic. The weather app says it's feels like it's
about 100 degrees outside and yet they're not willing to leave because they're scared that if they do leave and some vaccines show up, they won't
be here to get them.
They wait because they're scared of the disease that preys on the elderly. But in Brazil lately, it's not just the old who are dying (INAUDIBLE) says
she wasn't just a daughter. She was a friend. It was everything to me. Her daughter Graciani (ph) was only 28 when she died last year of COVID. Her
four-year-old son lives with grandma now their family forever missing a member. She says they called me that morning and said she was dead and I
went into shock.
The virus didn't let us say goodbye. For the last two months, multiple doctors across Brazil have told us they've seen more young people dying of
COVID than before. And Brazil's largest state of Sao Paulo official say 60 percent of ICU patients are now between 30 and 50. Something Rio de Janeiro
Dr. Pedro Archer is seeing too.
He says we have patients now in their 30s, in their 20s, severe intubated patients. I think maybe the virus has mutated become a new strain. There
are new COVID variants here. But experts say there's no proof yet, they're more lethal for the young. To explain it. Epidemiologists point more to
scenes like this.
Social gatherings, this one a party from this month ramped up during the new year and carnival holidays, younger people simply exposed more. In
another video given to CNN this weekend, dozens can be seen streaming out of a party broken up by police. And that's just the illegal stuff. In Rio,
bars and restaurants can be open until night. Many taking full advantage.
It is crowded out here. And it just doesn't feel like you might expect given that Brazil keep setting new records for cases and deaths.
Where it does feel like that is this cemetery in Rio de Janeiro, both young and old and up here. Today, it's a funeral for a 52-year-old COVID victim.
There's a lot of services lined up this afternoon. So, the family only gets 15 minutes to mourn.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
RIVERS (on camera): And Lynda, we know that vaccines are the ultimate way out of this for Brazil. But as we talked about earlier, the vaccine rollout
program remains very slow. Some good news on that front within the last week with Brazil coming to agreements to receive up to 138 million doses of
the Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson vaccines in total. But what critics are saying is why were those agreements only signed at a time when Brazil is
already in the worst days of this pandemic?
Had those agreements been signed much earlier, those vaccine doses would already be in country but now it will be a long time before those vaccines
arrive. And during that time period unfortunately, more Brazilians are going to die that might not have otherwise had this government in this
country managed to secure vaccines earlier on in this process.
KINKADE: Yes. Certainly a dire situation there. Matt Rivers for us in Rio de Janeiro. Good to have you on the case. Thank you.
Well, despite critics and a corruption trial, Benjamin Netanyahu presses on to a fourth election. One of his supporters is even talking in mystical
terms.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TZACHI HANEGBI, KNESSET MEMBER: Feeling, the inner feeling that you're there because God sent you to save the people of Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE (voice-over): And up next. A live report as the divided Israel gets ready to go to the polls again. And later they call it ergonomics.
[10:20:08]
KINKADE (voice-over): The controversial plan by Turkey's president to solve his nation's financial crisis. Why the plan has sent Turkish markets into
freefall?
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KINKADE: Welcome back. Well, for some voters in Israel, it may feel a bit like Groundhog Day. They headed back to the polls tomorrow for a fourth
time in less than two years, which he says election is turning into a bit of a referendum on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. In the shadow
of his corruption trial. Israeli opinion polls suggest the result may be no clear winner.
Mr. Netanyahu and his right wing allies is seeking a stable majority which is proved elusive in three previous elections. So, the Prime Minister is
going all out for every last vote according Israel's Arab avoiders and promising direct flights to Mecca for Muslim Israelis looming over all of
this, of course, is the pandemic. Let's connect you now to our correspondent, Hadas Gold who joins us now live.
So, Mr. Netanyahu is certainly struggling with this corruption scandal but hoping that his response to the pandemic with this swift rollout of
vaccines there will help boost his chances. But looking at the polls, it looks like we're going to see potentially another deadlock.
HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: And the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has definitely been criticized for part of how he has handled the
coronavirus pandemic. But one bright spot has been the robust rollout of the vaccine that has almost brought like -- almost back to normal as you
can see at the Central Market here in Jerusalem behind me. It is full of life. But what's not clear is whether that will be enough for the voters as
they head to the polls tomorrow.
Whether that will give him enough of a basic. So far, we haven't necessarily seen the polls react to that. He hasn't seen a huge boost after
the vaccine roll up. So it's not clear whether that will be enough to put him over the edge to keep him in power tomorrow.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GOLD (voice-over): Benjamin Netanyahu has been crisscrossing the country ahead of Israel's fourth election in just under two years. Hammering the
message that he's the one that turned the startup nation into the vaccination nation and brought historic peace agreements with Arab
countries. With his corruption trial now underway. Netanyahu is desperate to win enough seats in Tuesday's election to remain in power.
On the ground, this election is almost entirely staked on whether voters are for Netanyahu or against him. Yair Lapid, a smooth talking former
television anchor sits out in front among the anti B.B. block. His centrist Yesh Atid Party looks set for a strong showing.
[10:25:06]
GOLD: (INAUDIBLE) refusing to rise to Netanyahu's provocation until finally issuing a challenge to a T.V. duel.
YAIR LAPID, ISRAELI POLITICIAN: (FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GOLD (voice-over): Out on the streets, it's hard to miss those who want the leader gone.
The anti-Netanyahu camp up and down the country is passionate, dedicated and loud having weekly protests here in Jerusalem against the Prime
Minister. But it's not clear if the energy will translate into the actual numbers that they need to form a (INAUDIBLE) that could unsee Netanyahu.
The big challenge for the opposition is stitching together left and right. One of Netanyahu's former cabinet ministers Gideon Sa'ar broke off to form
a party called New Hope, claiming he's the true bastion of the Israeli right. But Sa'ar support has egged after a strong start. Then there's
Naftali Bennett, another former Netanyahu lieutenant who's the Yamina Party may end up holding the keys to Netanyahu's future.
Their seats could help with Netanyahu over the 61-seat majority he needs to hold on to power or by joining the opposition they could be the ones to
sink him.
Despite the many challengers, protests, a corruption case in which he has pled not guilty not to mention his fourth election campaign in almost two
years. Netanyahu presses on. One of his most loyal aides explains it like this.
HANEGBI: The knowledge that you have to learn from your own mistakes in order to get better, and the feeling, the inner feeling that you're there
because God sent you to save the people of Israel and to lead them in troubled times. I think this gives him the power and the support of the
people.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLD: And Lynda, one of the key things we have to look out for tomorrow after the polls close might not actually be the numbers that Netanyahu
gets. It will be the numbers that some of these smaller parties get whether they even make it into the Knesset or whether they get enough votes because
those smaller parties may actually be the kingmakers. They may be the ones that decide who will actually become prime minister.
KINKADE: All right. Hadas Gold for us. Good to have you (INAUDIBLE) the election coverage. We will speak to you again very soon. Thanks so much.
We're going to take a quick break. When we come back, Turkey's currency plummets after the head of the central bank is fired. How an internal money
matter turned into an international financial crisis? Stay with us. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back. Turkey's currency is in freefall today.
[10:30:04]
KINKADE: It comes off to Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan shockingly fired the country's central bank chief over the weekend. Today the Turkish
Lira is plunging, dropping to new record lows against all the major currencies. CNN business emerging markets editor John Defterios and our CNN
international correspondent Arwa Damon are following these developments. And they join us now live. Thanks for being with us.
John, I want to start with you because this recent ping pong is very reminiscent of the 2018 currency crisis. Talk to us big picture, give us
the macro level perspective here.
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN BUSINESS EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: Well, I tell you, this is a policy, Lynda, that has both the emerging market economists had
tracked Turkey and the average Turks shutter, right? Because you have inflation running at 14 percent a month, interest rates remain low because
they don't want to change policy according to President Erdogan. And then you also have this idea, we have a revolving door at the Central Bank.
This is the third central banker in less than two years. And as a result, this is lack of confidence that you see in the currency market and in the
stock market in Turkey at the same time. If you take a look at the latest quote, we've stabilized a lot in the last three hours is trading below
eight to the U.S. dollar but in the last 24 hours, we hit a low of 8.48. Just off the all-time low of 8.58 in November.
So, as you're suggesting, for the last 2-1/2 years, Turks have been dealing with this. On the Istanbul Stock Exchange, we had to have a halt in trading
twice because of the sharp drops that we saw direct related to the weaker Turkish Lira, and we're finishing down here nearly 10 percent of the day.
But if you're not going to raise interest rates to protect your currency, your foreign exchange reserves are low because you spent so much in the
last two years.
And doing so, there's even discussion now of capital controls limiting the amount Turks can cash out or put into a foreign currency as a result of
what we're seeing today. It's gone so desperate, Lynda, there's even talk of having jewelers put in gold into the central bank as a tax to build the
deposits for the central bank because of this war against the currency traders who were -- who are winning it right now.
KINKADE: Wow. That is incredible. John, stand by for us. I want to bring in Arwa because, Arwa, you're on the ground, just give us a sense of how this
is impacting people's everyday lives.
ARWA DAMON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, look, Lynda, it's been impacting their everyday lives for years now ever since, you know, 2018,
pretty much when the lira crashed fairly significantly. And inflation here, as John was mentioning is extremely high. And people just simply put, are
not able to stay ahead. The cost of just about everything has gone up significantly.
I was speaking to a friend of mine who works as a stylist, and she cannot raise the rates that she's charging her customers because she's afraid of
losing them entirely. And yet the money that she's getting for the services that she provides is buying her a lot less basics. I mean food costs have
gone up, cab costs have gone up. And you have to remember Turks were going through this before COVID hit.
They're also now dealing with the impact of COVID on the economy, on their day to day lives. on their abilities to make money. Another small example.
So the pet shop that I go to to get cat food, there, the owner imports cat food from abroad. It's costing him a lot more in Turkish Lira to import
that. But he also cannot raise his prices to cover the gap that he's selling to the public to because people won't be able to afford it. So he's
taking a loss.
And people watch this currency fluctuating especially over the last 24 hours back and forth, back and forth. And yes, of course it does create a
certain level of anxiety because at the end of the day, they don't know where it's going. They don't know where it's going to stabilize. And again,
I bring it back to the fact that we're still feeling globally and in Turkey, the impact of coronavirus on people's livelihoods.
And so now add to that the anxiety over the economy. It does not make for a very settled mental state of mind for so many people.
KINKADE: Yes. Certainly interesting to hear how this is impacting people that you're seeing in your day to day life there. John, I just want to go
back to you because politically this goes hand in hand with the erosion of confidence in Turkey's government, particularly Erdogan's AKP party. Walk
us through that and why this is such a lightning rod issue.
DEFTERIOS: Yes. You're talking about aerodynamics. This is President Recep Tayyip Erdogan keeping if you will, Lynda, to a very unconventional policy.
Usually, in economics 101 you raise interest rates when your currency is under pressure and to bring down inflation. He's never believed in that. In
fact, he thinks there's an interest rate lobby conspiracy on the international markets to go against Turkey which is dangerous because it
strikes that nationalist tone in the fight to keep them into power.
[10:35:03]
DEFTERIOS: We have to remember for the better part of 18 years, he's been either prime minister or president. He has a tight grip on power but he's
losing the global economic battle. And I think he went a bridge too far, if you will, when he put in his son in law in 2018, making reference to what
Arwa was talking about when this currency crisis started, Berat Albayrak. And in that two-year window because he had no economic experience and he
followed his father-in-law's policy of keeping interest rates low, they spent nearly $130 billion defending the Lira.
That's an incredible amount of money for an economy the size of Turkey today. So, the options are limited right now. But he has no real political
foe that could really take him out of office. The real challenge I think now because before the elections, he's stoked inflation, stoke growth to 7-
1/2 percent, they actually grew last year 1.8 percent which was a miracle considering the state of the pandemic in Turkey. All that goodwill eroded
away here, as we see the currency under pressure, Lynda,
KINKADE: Certainly has. All right. Arwa Damon, I want to thank you for joining us. But I want to keep you around, John, if I can, because there's
another big story that we are following. Oil of course, with no one traveling during the pandemic. Saudi Aramco, the world's biggest oil
company, saw their annual earnings drop over 40 percent last year. What does that tell us about the year that was and what we can expect in the
year to come?
DEFTERIOS: We were on a conference call, the limited group of Middle Eastern reporters with Amin Nasser, the CEO, the Saudi Aramco, and he says
I kind of feel relieved because that was the worst year in the energy business since being president and CEO of the company. And that's certainly
an understatement because what you're talking about, Lynda was that demand was down better than 20 percent in the second quarter of 2020, at the
height of the pandemic.
Overall, down 10 percent for the year. And as a result, if you look at the results for Saudi Aramco earnings down 44 percent to $49 billion. It is the
largest oil company in the world, one of the biggest companies in the world, as a matter of fact, still profitable, but stacked up against $87
billion a year before. Kind of a double whammy here. They're in the OPEC plus agreement, Saudi Arabia decided to prop up prices by cutting
production by another million barrels a day and February and March.
This hurts their revenues because they're not exporting as much oil. That's difficult. Then we have to think of the wildcard for Saudi Aramco and for
the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia overall, it is almost on a weekly basis now. We have Houthi rebels, firing attacks through drones on Saudi Aramco oil
facilities. The latest was last Friday for a Riyadh refinery. We saw this in Jeddah over the last couple of months.
And in the last year off and on in the belt, the oil belt of Saudi Arabia, Ras tanura (INAUDIBLE) these are facilities that have been either struck at
or actually hit, they have very good defenses. But every week, week in and week out, they're getting tested on a regular basis for the oil facilities.
Although the CEO said it been 99.9 percent reliable still getting that oil out of the country.
KINKADE: Always good to pick your brain. John Defterios as always. Thanks so much for covering those developments on two big stories.
Well, as Turkey faces a financial crisis Turkish women are facing what is widely seen as an assault on their rights. The President has put out an
international -- put out of an international treaty designed to combat violence against women. CNN's Jomana Karadsheh has more from his symbol.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hundreds have gathered here to protest President Erdogan's decision to withdraw his country from
the Istanbul convention. People woke up to this news of the Presidential Decree on Saturday that is really sent shockwaves across the country. There
is so much anger here. A short time ago they were reading the names of women who have been killed.
It was 10 years ago that the Council of Europe binding pact to combat violence against women was signed in the city. Turkey was the first country
to sign the convention.
But since last summer, there has been a heated debate in this country, lobbying by some conservative and religious groups to withdraw from the
convention that they say it damages family unity and traditional values and "legitimizes" the LGBT community.
Women's rights' defenders say that this is a nightmare for women. This is only going to empower rapists, murderers, abusers of women, they say. This
is a country that has a serious domestic violence and femicide problem.
At least 78 women have been killed so far this year, according to a women's rights group.
[10:40:04]
KARADSHEH: That is a woman every single day so far and they're very worried that this is only going to get worse. And they say this is not just about
the Istanbul convention. The way this happened. Despite the reassurances of government ministers, saying their countries' laws will safeguards women's
lives, they are very concerned that, even Turkey's domestic laws are now in jeopardy.
A lot of people said that this is a dark day for Turkey not just for women's rights in this country. Critics of President Erdogan, are very
concerned that this move by presidential decree is just another step in the wrong direction by this president, taking this country further down that
road of one-man rule. Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Istanbul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, still to come. A busy weekend of European football, including one of the most stunning free kicks you will ever say. The full
story on that when we come back.
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KINKADE: Welcome back. Well, it was a very, very busy weekend in European football. But what caught our eye was this gem from the French league. Take
a look. It's an absolute stunning free kick from around 40 meters out. It fierce and swerved and dipped right into the goal for a thrilling
equalizer. Don Riddell joins us for more on all of this. Tell us about this young goal score, Don.
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Yes. What an amazing go. You know what I liked most about it, Lynda, the fact that he was licking his lips before
he stuffed it into the back of a goal from all that way out. I mean, you really don't see many free kicks like that. Very, very difficult to do.
Absolutely brilliant. Armand Lauriente is his name place for the Lorient Football Club in France. That was the equalizer against (INAUDIBLE) and now
the whole world has seen it. Great goal.
KINKADE: Yes, absolutely incredible. I just want to keep watching the replays of it. Don Riddell, I look forward to watching it again in WORLD
SPORT with you. We'll see you very soon. We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:16:06]
RIDDELL: I'm Don Riddell at CNN Center. Barcelona didn't want Lionel Messi to leave them. Their new president says he will try and persuade him to
stay. And if you've watched his latest performance on Sunday, you'll know exactly why. The Catalans continued their impressive run and form in
Spain's La Liga with a big win against Real Sociedad. And Messi's fingerprints were just all over it on what was an historic night for him
personally.
The Argentine star made an assist here for Sergino Dest laid in the first half, and he helped himself to a couple of goals after the break. His boss
a ramp to a six-one wing. On this night, Messi became the man who has played more games for Barsathan anyone else. And with 23 goals now to his
name. This season he remains the top scorer in La Liga.
Meanwhile, how big a save was this from Atletico's goal Jan Oblak and denying Alaves a late penalty and ensuring another win for his team
Atletico Madrid and in that moment, he saved two points. That could end up being decisive in the title race because who knows how it's going to play
out in the next couple of months. As it stands Atletico, a four-points clear of Barcelona by the Catalans have made up a lot of ground in recent
weeks. Barsa will actually host Atletico at the start of May. That could end up being a title decider.
You know, a theme we've been covering this season is the passing of the torch whenever, wherever Messi and Ronaldo do finally hang up their boots.
It's the likes of Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, who will take over. In fact, they kind of already are. Haaland scored another two goals for
Borussia Dortmund over the weekend and Mbappe scored two as well for Paris Saint-Germain as they went top of the table in France for the 40-win
against Leon.
And it was historic. With this performance, Mbappe became the youngest player in League One to score 100 goals breaking a record that stood since
1969. That's the year that man first walked on the moon. Mbappe has scored 84 goals for PSG. He had 16 for Monaco before that, and he only just turned
22 just a few days before Christmas.
OK. You know, social media used to be such a fun place to hang out, didn't it? But these days, it has become a sewer of toxic abuse and for athletes,
it can be a really miserable place to be at times. Now I was going to say professional athletes, but actually even amateur players and our targets
for some horrific messages. Over the weekend, Ohio State were dumped out of college basketball's March Madness tournament by robbers.
E.J. Liddell missing a free throw at the end of the game. He then revealed a series of direct messages sent to him on Instagram. Like, I hope somebody
shoot you in your face. That was one message. And don't ever show your face at Ohio State. We hate you. Read another. University has reportedly reached
out to the police as a result. Actually a short time ago, Liddell spoke with CNN on our new day program. This is what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
E.J. LIDDELL, AMERICAN BASKETBALL PLAYER: A lot of people on social media don't know me personally and I don't know them personally. But you also
have to think about our feelings when we leave the court. Sometimes we're viewed as entertainers and people just want the T.V. but like off the court
I have a mom, a little sister, little brother, big Sister, and they all care for me dearly.
And I know they don't want me to be talked about like that. And my dad, so I just -- I just don't like how people get treated sometimes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIDDELL: On Saturday, the Wales rugby team lost their six nations game against France. A result that cost them the coveted grand slam. And some of
their players were singled out for abuse. There are so many swear words in those messages that we can't put them on the screen but the Wales rugby
union chose to publicize it, demanding that the abusive stops.
And then on Sunday, Manchester United were knocked out of the F.A. Cup by Leicester City after which United's Brazilian midfield Fred became the
latest black footballer in England to be targeted with a racist abuse on Instagram.
[10:50:06]
RIDDELL: Clearly the social media platforms are failing in their promise to keep their sites safe for users. At the end of January, United striker
Marcus Rashford was also abused and he described the experience as "social media and humanity at its worst." He is a player who is not afraid to call
out the ills of this world under the age of just 23. He has shown incredible leadership off the field working to tackle child poverty in the
U.K.
His activism even forced the British government into a U-turn on policy. His work is now being noticed globally.
The other day, the track and field legend the sprint star Usain Bolt told us that Rashford is doing great work.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
USAIN BOLT, EIGHT-TIME OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST: It's massive, you know, I mean, it's our duty as superstars or any you want to classes to actually
use our fame to really help in any way we can because we -- most of us, we came from nothing, you know what I mean? So, we understand the struggles
that people actually go through on a daily basis. So, in any way you can help you should. So for me, I tip my hat to him for fact, because he has
done a great thing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIDDELL: In the United States, Rashford was recently featured by Time Magazine as one of the next 100 most influential people and he's even
caught the eye of one lawmaker in the U.S. government. Colin Allred used to play for the Tennessee Titans in the NFL, he was an athlete himself. Now
he's a congressman in the House of Representatives. He and I were chatting the other day and he was so impressed with Rashford's work that I asked
what he would say to him directly. This is what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. Colin Allred (D-TX): Marcus, first of all, thank you for doing what you're doing. We are proud of you across the world who are using at your
age, the platform of being an incredible athlete to stand up and speak out for the most vulnerable in our society. I know that when you do that, a lot
of folks come after you. They try and find things to criticize you of just say ignore all of that. What you're doing is historic.
It helps people with impactful and it's far more important than anything and any negative comment that anyone will send your way or that any, you
know, downsides of, you know, the folks out there who just want to use their time and their energy to go after people like you who are standing
up. So, thank you, keep leading and, you know, those of us who are in positions, policymaking are listening and we'll try and make sure that we
also do we can for our most vulnerable
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIDDELL: Well said, Congressman Allred. OK. I'm afraid that we have some desperately sad news to report from the world of surfing, which is today,
mourning the death of Katherine Diaz surfing. The 22-year-old from El Salvador was hoping to compete in the Olympics this year, and she was
training for a qualifying competition when she was reportedly struck and killed by lightning.
Diaz was in the water with her uncle at the time. He said that she was killed instantly. Her funeral was held on Sunday. This photograph was
posted on social media showing her surfboard and flowers next to her coffin. Reacting to the terrible news the International Surfing Association
wrote on Twitter, Katherine embodied the joy and energy that makes surfing so special and dear to us all.
As a global ambassador of the sport, she excelled at the international competition level, representing her country with pride and both the world
surfing games and ISA World Junior Surfing Championship. We send our heartfelt condolences to Katherine's family, the surfers of El Salvador and
to all those in the international surfing community whose lives she touched. We will never forget you.
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[10:55:29]
RIDDELL: Again at the start of his show, I mentioned the latest exploits of Lionel Messi but he's not the only European footballer making records, you
might have heard of this guy, Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He's not somebody that likes being overshadowed. The 39-year-old was back in the A.C. Milan team
for the first time after three weeks out injured and he found the back of the net after just nine minutes there against Fiorentina.
He's now scored 15 goals in as many games. And he's the oldest player in Serie A history to score that many times in a single season. Milan won the
game three-two and they will be just thrilled to have him back.
There are so many sports fans all over the world who would consider themselves to be a superfan but it would be really hard to top Sister Jean
in the United States. At the age of 101 now she's hard to miss at March Madness, and her team is on another roll. She's the chaplain of the college
team Loyola Chicago. And she became -- you might remember this, an international star in 2018 when they made her run to the Final Four of
March Madness as a rank outsider.
They're underdogs again. But with prayers like this, I guess they can do anything. Sister Jean said we hope to score early and make our opponents
nervous. Well, that pretty much happened in their last game. She also provided the other teams shooting percentages in the middle of the prayer.
Just amazing. The Ramblers were led by Cameron Krutwig, tough to stop a man with a mustache like that.
Loyola led wire the wire knocking out the one seed Illinois. It wasn't even close. 71 points to 58. Next up for the Ramblers is a match up with the 12-
seed Oregon State. So Loyola, I guess are no longer the underdogs. What an amazing story Sister Jean. Absolutely beloved in that community and I think
nationwide now, if not globally. And how cool is that to just throw in some stats into our prayer? How can they not be answered then?
KINKADE: I know. She's certainly well loved. Don Riddell for us at "WORLD SPORT." Good to have you with us. Good show. Thanks so much. We're going to
take a quick break. We'll be right back at the top of the hour with much more news with CONNECT THE WORLD. Stay with us.
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END
