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Russian Warship Sinks, Ukraine Claims Missile Strike; Eastern Ukraine Digging In Ahead of Expected Offensive; Israeli Security Force And Palestinians Clash At Al-Aqsa Mosque Compound; Life Under COVID Lockdown In Shanghai; A Tour Of The Moskva Deployed Off Syria In 2015; Elon Musk Offers To Buy Twitter For $41.4 Billion In Cash. Aired 10-10:45a ET
Aired April 15, 2022 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:31]
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: I'm Becky Anderson in London where it is 3:00 p.m. Hello, and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD.
We are watching for Russia's next move. After a key warship sank in the Black Sea, dealing a major blow it its fleet, the U.S. says Ukraine's claim
that it sank the Moskva with a missile is credible. The Kremlin says there was a fire on board. Ukraine now claims Russia is retaliating by stepping
up missile attacks in the south. The Ukrainian military claiming cluster bombs were used. At least two people were killed in front of a church in
Mykolaiv.
Russia claiming new advances elsewhere in southern Ukraine as it tightens its grip on the besieged city of Mariupol. In the east there's heavy
shelling along the front lines ahead of a feared Russian offensive and near Kyiv, Moscow says it hit a Ukrainian military facility after threatening to
retaliate for what it said was strikes on its soil.
Well, the warship Moskva was a symbol of Russian might. And as CNN's Fred Pleitgen now reports, its sinking comes at the potentially pivotal moment
in this war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): It seems like a massive blow to Russia's war against Ukraine. Ukraine's forces
saying they've struck the flagship of Putin's Black Sea fleet, the guided missile cruiser Moskva. I spoke exclusively with Ukraine's national
security adviser.
(On camera): Can you tell us what happened to the cruiser Moskva?
(Voiceover): It sank, he says, jokingly. Russia admits the ship has indeed sunk, but has not yet acknowledged it was struck by Kyiv. Instead, it says
it was badly damaged by a fire and then sank while being towed in stormy seas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Or you will be hit. Acknowledge.
PLEITGEN: The Moskva was involved in a now famous incident in a place called Snake Island, when its crew told Ukrainian soldiers to surrender.
This was the answer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Russian warship, go (EXPLETIVE DELETED) yourself.
PLEITGEN: The event has become so legendary in Ukraine they've commemorated it with a special stamp. People at this post office in Kyiv standing in
line to get it.
An important event happened yesterday. Our armed forces destroyed the aggressor's flagman ship. I think this event has to have a place in
everyone's memory, this man says.
The Ukrainians say, they managed to hit the ship, which has formidable defenses systems with Ukrainian Neptune anti-ship missiles.
The Moskva was still there near the Snake Island and was hit yesterday by two powerful Ukrainian made missiles, he says. And then a warning to Putin.
This is just the beginning, he says. There will be more than one Moskva. But the leadership in Kyiv understands the next major battles will be
different and possibly even more bloody as Russian tanks and artillery pour into the Donbas region.
This horde has invaded our country and they think we will watch them destroy us, he says. But, of course, we will respond by all means we have.
Thanks to our international partners, we have interesting tools.
The U.S. and its allies have already provided Ukraine with billions of dollars' worth of weapons and are now moving to give Kyiv heavier arms to
counter Vladimir Putin's tank battalions. The national security adviser says Ukraine needs all the firepower it can get.
I would never say that the Russian army is weak, he says. Given the amount of weapons thrown there, the number of tanks, armored personnel carriers,
planes and helicopters, I would not say this is a weak army. I would say these are strong Ukrainian soldiers who fight back such a powerful army.
And these territorial defense soldiers in Kyiv are vowing to keep up the fight. Their elite troops gearing up to head east.
We are absolutely prepared for this. We have both fighting spirit and fighting mood. We are patriots of our country. And of course, we will fight
back the enemy, this soldier who goes by the name Vlad the Rifle tells me. And they vow, just like in Kyiv, they will confront the Russian army once
again.
Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well then, as we've heard from Fred there, the Moskva sinking is a blow to Russia.
I'm joined by CNN's Nic Robertson who has spent a lot of time reporting from Moscow, back here in London with me today.
[10:05:03]
And conflicting reports on what happened, Nic. We know that. But what isn't in dispute is that the Kremlin has lost a huge asset. An important asset at
that. What's been the response there?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Peskov, President Putin's spokesman at the Kremlin, has refused to answer questions on it
when asked by journalists today. But I think perhaps the most telling thing was on state news last night. It was 27 minutes into a 60-minute show
before they actually announced that there had been a fire on board the Moskva.
They started the show talking about payments of gas, which is a big issue for Russia, but this is much bigger, much more symbolic, and a much bigger
dent in not just the nation's pride, but in President Putin's war agenda. Does it torpedo his agenda? No. But it is something that the Kremlin's
really keen to take out of the public eye.
ANDERSON: Isn't it interesting? As the U.S. prepares to send tougher firepower to Ukraine, the idea being that Ukraine needs this high-powered
military hardware for what is expected to be a big and different fight in the east, "The Washington Post" today reporting that Russia has sent an
official diplomatic note to Washington and to the -- and to NATO warning them off at this point. What do we make of this?
ROBERTSON: They've done this verbally as well already. They've said various officials, Sergey Lavrov, the foreign minister, have said that any NATO
supplies coming in, military supplies coming across the border into Ukraine, will be fair targets for Russia. The difficulty for Russia at the
moment is it doesn't have effective dynamic targeting. So it can't really target at the moment these supplies en route as they go.
Tanks are pretty big. You could see them, on trains is often the way they've been transported in the past. We know that Russia is stepping up
its attacks at train stations significantly over the past few weeks. But what does it mean to put this threat into a written communique? It just
heightens the notice that the United States and others are being put on that this could happen. The real concern for NATO and the message has been
don't step foot over the border into a NATO nation with this targeting.
But it's, obviously, a very real risk, and I think everyone sending supplies to Ukraine knows that they can get taken out in battle pretty
quickly, maybe even before they arrive at the battle front. But they also know Ukraine needs them.
ANDERSON: Secretary of State Antony Blinken was asked just how long he believes this could go on, and a gloomy forecast, Nic.
ROBERTSON: Yes, and this is very hard to define, isn't it, because there is a real push on from the Kremlin to take Donbas, one of their stated goals,
but it's been very clear that they would like ultimately to be able to take Kyiv. Do they come back to try to get that later? That would make the fight
last a really long time. Would they try to secure the land bridge to Crimea in the south, which is a military strategic objective? It seems to me
they're trying to do that.
Will they try to cut Ukraine off entirely from the Black Sea, push further west and take Odessa and the whole coastline on the Black Sea. That would
take more time to conclude. And also what does this look like? Is it a full intensity war or is it something that's done apace and a step at a time?
The longer Russia waits, the better equipped Ukraine gets to push back. There are theories floated that come Victory Day in Moscow, early May,
Putin would like to be there in Red Square, the big traditional victory parade, be able to declare some victory in Ukraine. However he defines it,
and let's face it, it will be a propaganda version of what's really happening.
ANDERSON: The sanctions are out there and clearly there is some damage being done to Russian business, to the assets of the Russian elite. We also
know that, of course, while oil and gas continues to be bought from Russia, there is something like $1 billion a day go into the hands of President
Putin and into the Kremlin to fight this war.
Where are we at with regards to sanctions? You know, the worry has been, as we go deeper and deeper and harder and harder and we're looking at these
energy sanctions and specifically at potential sanctions on gas, so we begin to see a disconnect in Europe between, for example, Poland and the
Baltic States who are all for massive energy sanctions. Now the Czech Republics, the Slovakias, the Hungarys of this world, Germany, indeed, who
are stepping back and saying, hang on a minute, you know, this is going to be ultimately so damaging to Europe and to European consumers that we need
to be careful here.
[10:10:00]
And we've talked at length about whether there's going to be a potential for a fracture amongst the European bloc. At present everybody is
determined to say no. But below the surface, Nic, there are questions now at this point, aren't there?
ROBERTSON: This is something President Putin sort of baked into his calculations. And I think this is pertinent to your last question, as well,
how long does this grind on for because Putin does have a finite financial window. So he does need to accelerate the war so he can afford to pay for
it and before some key components get cut off. So that's part of it.
But to the divisions that he has sort of thought that there was in the European Union and across the Atlantic, there are also divisions within
countries. For example, Lithuania was very proud to say, look, we're not going to buy any more Russian gas. They're still heavily dependent on
Russian oil and there is a big push and a concerted effort on within the European Union. And, yes, these are divisions, but I think that it is such
a big issue that's being posed and Russia and Putin are not getting less belligerent but more belligerent.
The threats towards Sweden and Finland who are considering joining NATO are a point in case about that, that the cost of not doubling down on the
sanctions and making them tougher is greater than the pain of sitting there in a room and trying to hammer out what's possible. We're in an entirely
different place. And I think all the politicians involved in the talks understand that. They're the cold face of it. They feel it. But it just --
it takes time to get to the endpoint of what can be agreed, the easier stuff has been done in a way.
ANDERSON: You've been in Moscow for weeks and then between here and Brussels. So you've got your ear to the ground. You're sourcing this
through those corridors in Brussels, so you've been talking to people who are really struggling with this calculus at this point. As you rightly
point out, you know, we are in unchartered territory at this point. It's a tough one. But keeping the unity of that bloc at this point obviously is so
important.
It will be also of course interesting to see what happens in the second round of the French elections because there are, of course, you know, the
narratives within countries as well will be important to watch. Thank you, Nic.
All right. So let's get you to eastern Ukraine where Russia is expected to make major push as Nic said any time soon. CNN's Ben Wedeman has been in
the thick of that and he joins us now.
From your perspective, what is the situation on the ground at this point, Nic -- Ben?
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, Becky. Yes, we here in Kramatorsk this morning heard a very large explosion. Seems to have
been a large bomber, cruise missile that hit an industrial site on the outside of the city. Now the regional military administrator for the
Donetsk region where we are has said that all frontline cities in this part of the country are under attack and that certainly seems to be the case.
Yesterday we were in Sievierodonetsk where just to the north of it, really just a suburb of it, there are reports that Russian artillery, armor and
troops are amassing in preparation for this much anticipated offensive. And in Sievierodonetsk itself, we certainly felt that that city has already
been on the receiving end of a lot of incoming what appears to be cluster munitions, and it is also bracing for the worst.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Denise loads food in his car for a delivery run. The supplies sorted by volunteers in this old warehouse were donated from
around Ukraine and abroad. Denise was a musician before the war.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My town is broken. Destroyed.
WEDEMAN: Sievierodonetsk is the city furthest east under Ukrainian government control. And under constant bombardment from Russian forces
nearby. The supplies Denise and other volunteers deliver are what keep this city alive.
Two missiles landed outside Nadia's decrepit Soviet-era apartment building. The strain of living under this shelling more than she can take.
It's hard, she says. I can't stay in this room. I'm so afraid. I want it to be quiet and calm again.
With Russian forces massing in the east, there will be no quiet. There will be no calm.
Sitting on a hospital bed, Ulyana (PH) recounts the night her house was hit.
[10:15:04]
I was in the kitchen and it started, she says. Her home is now in ruins. More than 20 corpses lie scattered in the hospitals morgue. Wrapped in
sheets and blankets awaiting burial. On the outskirts of the city more evidence of the toll war has taken.
(On-camera): This is a hastily dug graveyard that was started since the war began. Just look at the dates, 7th of April, 9th of April, 3rd of April,
4th of April. It goes on and on and on.
(Voice over): And more graves will soon be filled.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WEDEMAN: And we understand that in the Kharkiv region north of here Russian forces opened fire on two evacuation buses killing seven people and
wounding 27. Yesterday in Sievierodonetsk when I spoke to the head of the hospital there, I asked him about these evacuation corridors. He said as
far as the Russians go, they are a miff -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Ben Wedeman is on the ground. Ben, appreciate your reporting. Thank you. Stay safe with the team.
Next hour we will take a deeper look at the situation on the ground in the east with chief international correspondent Clarissa Ward.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): So you can hear constant bombardment. This is the bomb shelter down here. But you
can see this building has already been hit.
(Voice-over): More than 40 people are now living in what used to be a clothing store.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: And we'll have much more on Clarissa's reporting and on the war in Ukraine in a few moments. I do, though, want to pivot at this point to
the Middle East and to violence in Jerusalem on a rare convergence of holy days.
Reporting more than 150 people injured in clashes with Israeli Security Forces. Police made hundreds of arrests at the mosque. They say the
violence erupted before dawn with young Palestinians setting off fireworks and throwing stones. Security forces responded with stun grenades and with
rubber bullets. Now police claimed they were acting to allow freedom of worship. Jordan's government, which serves as a custodian of the mosque,
calls the Israeli police reaction a flagrant violation.
Hadas Gold is connecting us from Jerusalem. And Hadas, just explain how -- what we understand about how things unfolded on the ground there earlier
today.
HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Becky, I am at the Damascus gate entrance to the Old City. It's a place that's probably well known to a lot
of people where we often appear when news happens. And as you can see right now, it's calm. Things are going on as normal. It seems like a normal
Ramadan. But earlier this morning it was not so calm. Violence erupted right after the dawn prayers.
We were actually just right outside the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound and we can hear the boom of the stun grenade and the crackle of fireworks being set
off. Now the Israeli police say that they entered the compound in response to what say were violent rioters, people who were throwing rocks, people
who were launching fireworks. The Palestinian Red Cross says more than 150 people were injured by things like stun grenades, rubber bullets or
potentially even being beaten by Israeli forces.
Now tensions had been rising. We had been reporting on tensions rising in Israel and across the West Bank for some time now. And that's partly
because of the Israeli military action has increased in the West Bank in response to a series of terror attacks in Israel that killed 14 people.
Those military options -- operations and raids in the West Bank, though, have also killed at least a dozen Palestinians.
The Israeli military says that many of them were engaged in violent acts with their forces but the tensions had been rising. Now Jerusalem actually
in the past couple of weeks had been relatively calm. But what happened at Al-Aqsa was Hamas put out a call. Hamas, the military groups that run Gaza,
put out a call for its supporters to come and defend Al-Aqsa. T
his is in, what they said, was response to threats by a small group of Jewish extremists who wanted to go up to the Al-Aqsa compound, also known
as the Temple Mount to jews, and perform a sort of ancient Passover sacrifice ritual because tonight is the first night of Passover. Now those
people never made it up to the Temple Mount, never made it up to Al-Aqsa compound, but the people -- it's clear that some people did heed Hamas'
call to go to the Al-Aqsa compound and that's how we saw those clashes are up.
Now, as I noted, things for the rest of the day have been calm. We know that more than 50,000 people went up to the compound to pray during prayers
today. But there is a question of what is going to happen now later tonight. What is going to happen now from Hamas, from the militant group
that runs Gaza, because keep in mind, it was tensions, Becky, just like these around this time last year the clashes at the Al-Aqsa compound,
tensions in Jerusalem that helped spark that 11-day war between Hamas and the Israeli army -- Becky.
[10:20:13]
ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely. Thank you.
Coming up on CONNECT THE WORLD, see what China is doing now in Shanghai as it faces more pressure over its zero COVID strategy. Why people there are
so angry.
Plus, Britain's Queen Elizabeth II hosted a pair of very special visitors recently. Details on what was a royal reunion after this break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson for you. It is 22 minutes past 3:00 here in London.
Before we get back to our continuing coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, I'd like to just get you up to speed on some of the other stories
from around the world. And we are seeing some dramatic video coming out of Shanghai where people are pushing back against the Chinese government's
stringent COVID policies.
Now angry residents clashed with police after they were ordered to give up their homes to house COVID patients. The city is being unable to stamp out
its COVID outbreak and it's scrambling to build quarantine facilities. Well, today some 23,000 new COVID cases were reported there. Most of the
city's 25 million residents are still in lockdown, but as David Culver reports from there, some are getting a little more breathing room. Have a
look at this.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A few steps of freedom granted to some Shanghai residents strolling their own neighborhood as if
taking in some strange new world.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But where are you going to go? There is nowhere to go.
CULVER: Most shops still closed and public transportation halted. Still, this woman can't hold back her joy, recording as she and her neighbors roam
the empty streets. After forcing 25 plus million people into weeks of harsh lockdown, government officials facing mounting pressure lifted some
restrictions.
For communities like mine, without a positive case in the last seven days, that meant we could actually step outside our apartments. My neighbors
enjoying the taste of relative freedom, and so too are pets, eager to stretch their legs still keeping within the confines of our compound.
The extent of my freedom is all the way to here, the compound gate. Still double locked, it's been like that for about a month. In recent weeks we
had to get community permission to leave our homes, mostly for COVID tests of which there were many. We can also step outside to pick up the
occasional government distribution.
[10:25:01]
(On-camera): Today's delivery, a bag of rice.
(Voice over): But even with heavy restrictions still in place, we have it good, for now at least. A majority of the city remains in hard lockdown,
kept to their homes, some hungry and suffering. This woman heard begging in the middle of the night, pleading for fever medicine for her child. And
this man recording his dwindling food supply. Then there were those who've tested positive. Tens of thousands being sent to cramped government
quarantine centers, whose residents have described a host of problems. Facilities that were quickly and apparently poorly constructed.
Outside of Shanghai, panic spreading quicker than the virus. The horror stories from China's financial hub have residents and other Chinese cities
stocking up, from Xuzhou to Guangzhou. Online, sales for prepackaged foods surging. This as China's National Health Commission warns of more cases and
publicly calls out Shanghai for not effectively containing the virus. Shifting blame to local officials for allowing it to spread to other
places.
China's strict zero COVID approach forcing dozens of cities into weeks-long full or partial lockdowns. Residents in Jilin banging on pots to protest.
Most of the 24 million people in the northern Chinese province confined to their homes for more than a month now.
Back in Shanghai, the joys of freedoms for some might last only a few hours, as it takes just one new case nearby to send them back inside,
resetting the clock for their community. Another 14-day sentence in lockdown, a seemingly endless cycle.
David Culver, CNN, Shanghai.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, Britain's Prince Harry and his wife Meghan are headed to the Invictus games but not before making a very important stop on the way.
A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex confirms that the couple visited Queen Elizabeth II on their way to the Hague. It comes as the 95-
year-old monarch revealed that she's been tired and exhausted following a recent bout of COVID-19. A royal source says the Queen will not attend
Easter service at Windsor as she would normally do this Sunday.
Well, just ahead, a symbol of Kremlin intimidation now rests deep beneath the Black Sea and Ukrainian morale is soaring. What the sinking of the
Moskva could mean to the Russian war effort. That is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:30:02]
ANDERSON: I'm Becky Anderson in London. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Welcome back.
The world is watching Moscow and holding its collective breath because the pride of the Russian fleet is now beneath the waves of the Black Sea.
Ukraine says it sank the Moskva warship with a missile. Moscow says that's not the case. The U.S. and Western defense officials seem to favor the
Ukrainian account and Ukraine will need the morale boost. It is bracing for what is expected to be a massive Russian assault on the Donbas region in
the east of the country.
Well, so far it's been 51 days of Kremlin brutality aimed mostly at Ukrainian civilians. But now Russia might be viewed as a wounded bear
licking its wounds over the biggest wartime loss of a naval ship in nearly 40 years.
CNN's Matthew Chance shows us why the sinking of this vessel means more than a passing humiliation for the Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The now sunken flagship of Russia's Black Sea fleet, the Moskva, was always
about intimidation and delivering a blunt message from the Kremlin, whether to Ukraine or elsewhere.
(On-camera): Well, this is an extremely impressive bit of military hardware out here in the eastern Mediterranean.
(Voice-over): When we went to board this once powerful symbol of Russian naval power off the Syrian coast in 2015, the ship's captain told me they
deployed on the personal orders of President Putin. Furious a Russian aircraft had been shot down by Turkey just weeks before.
The Moskva bristling with its missiles is a threatening weapon, the captain warned. The loss of this raw firepower now, which we witnessed at close
quarters seven years ago is a humiliating military blow.
(On camera): And you can see it's got these enormous missile launching tubes which can carry a nuclear missile, although we're told there are none
on board at the moment. It's got this big gun as well to defend itself. But most importantly, this ship, the Moskva, has very sophisticated surface-to-
air missiles and that's why it's been deployed here off the coast of Syria to provide air defenses for the Russian warplanes that carry out their
airstrikes back there in Syria.
(Voice over): That same weaponry was unleashed on Ukraine, too. These recent images from the Russian Defense Ministry showed the Moskva firing
cruise missiles from the Black Sea. The ship was also involved in the Russian takeover of a Ukrainian island early on in the war. Ukrainian
troops refusing to surrender, telling the Moskva where to go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through text translation): Russian warship, go (EXPLETIVE DELETED) yourself.
CHANCE: Confirmation this Black Sea flagship has now been sunk will be a major boost for Ukrainian morale, but it's another big loss in Russia's
staggering war.
(Voice-over): Well, there's a sense from the Ukrainians that this is retribution. One Ukrainian official telling CNN that Putin came to kill our
children, our women, our civilians. This, in return, is our gift to him.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Well, as the West tries to find a way to end this war in Ukraine through sanctions and diplomacy, a Ukrainian novelist is saying thank you
for the support, but words and admiration are not enough to fight off Russia's bombs.
Next hour, we'll speak to Oksana (INAUDIBLE) about her deeply moving address to the European parliament. Taking a short break. No, we're not. We
want to get you up to speed to some of the other stories that are on our radar right now.
And celebrations in North Korea to mark the birth of the country's founder. Fireworks and light shows honored the 110th anniversary of Kim Il-Sung on
what is called Day of the Sun Day in North Korea. There is no indication North Korea held an expected military parade or weapons test to mark the
day.
China's Foreign Ministry condemning a visit by U.S. lawmakers to Taiwan, reiterating that Washington should abide by the One China Policy. Beijing
says it conducted military drills around the island on Friday. It says they are in response to, quote, "passive actions" taken by Washington including
this visit.
Severe flooding on South Africa's east coast has now killed nearly 400 people. Days of historic rainfall triggered mudslides, damaged homes and
caused power outages in the city of Durban. The South African government has released emergency funds to help disaster victims.
And the last member of the ISIS cell known as the "Beatles" has been convicted. This man El Shafee Elsheikh was convicted of kidnapping a number
of Westerners and killing four Americans.
[10:35:06]
During the trial in Virginia, former hostages who survived the ordeal testified about the brutal beatings and torture they endured from the three
British fighters known as the "Beatles." One of the others was killed in a drone strike and the third pleaded guilty in September.
All right. You're with CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson. Still ahead, Elon Musk offering to buy social media giant Twitter outright in cash. So
what are the chances the world's richest man will get what he wants and why does he want it?
And an inspirational night on the pitch for Ukrainian football team complete with an ending you will not want to miss.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Twitter's shares down after Elon Musk made an offer he is hoping that Twitter can't refuse. On Thursday the billionaire announced he wanted
to buy the social media giant for more than $41 billion, saying he believes the company needs to be, quote, "transformed." But at least one Twitter
shareholder is rejecting that offer.
CNN chief media correspondent Brian Stelter following the story for us from New York.
Before we talk about what the shareholders think of all of this, why does he want Twitter at this point? What's his argument?
BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: He says it's about the future of civilization, it's about the future of free speech. He thinks that
Twitter is way too aggressive in banning and moderating content, he believes it's censoring people especially conservatives in the United
States and he wants a much more permissive atmosphere where basically everything goes.
A lot of experts would say he's going to run right into local rules, national rules, a lot of -- a thicket of regulations around the world.
However, he believes in an internet that is much more free where you can say just about anything and not face the content moderation system. So that
seems to be his main motivation.
ANDERSON: Interesting. All right. Well, I guess the next question is how seriously is Twitter considering Musk's offer? Certainly one of its biggest
and early shareholders, Alwaleed of Saudi Arabia, Kingdom Holdings, it got into interest in this, tweeting yesterday. So that's one shareholder out of
the mix. What do we know about the rest of them?
STELTER: I think many others are saying the same things but not quite as publicly. So here's the tweet saying I don't believe the proposed offer
comes close to the intrinsic value of Twitter giving its growth prospects. Alwaleed believed to own 4 percent to 5 percent for Kingdom Holders, 4
percent to 5 percent of Twitter right now. He says being one of the largest and long-term shareholders of Twitter we reject this offer.
Now Elon Musk responded overnight saying, just two questions, if I may. How much of Twitter does the kingdom own directly and indirectly, and what are
the kingdom's views on journalistic freedom of speech? He's basically trying to say, hey, Saudis, you're hypocrites.
[10:40:01]
But certainly 4 percent to 5 percent is a significant stake by the Saudis. That's been reported by multiple outlets and there are many other
shareholders that are going to be weary of this offer as well. This stock was up about $70 this time last year. It's been languishing in the 30s and
40s lately. What's really notable is that when Musk put in this offer for $54 a share the stock didn't get close to that yesterday.
There was no trading in the U.S. on Friday due to Good Friday and Passover. But the stock did not get to the place that Musk says it should be. That
indicates investors don't believe him. They don't think he's that serious, they don't think he's actually going to go through with it.
ANDERSON: Yes.
STELTER: And that is the wild situation we are in. Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, might just be doing this because he is bored or he's
trolling and nobody knows for sure.
But, Becky, the Twitter board is taking it seriously. And I think we will hear some response from the Twitter board of directors in the next few
days.
ANDERSON: Yes. We should do. And there are various questions. If he really is -- if this is a really serious offer, how is he actually going to raise
the crash? That's one of the questions. And that will be something that people will discuss ahead of whatever the board says and what that final
decision is.
And then, you know, it's not about the people who work for Twitter, of course, because ultimately they are not going to make -- they are not in a
position to take a decision about whether or not Elon Musk buys this company, but we do know that there is -- this has been a very disruptive
period for the Twitter staff, the Twitter employees.
STELTER: Yes.
ANDERSON: What do we know? Certainly we know that there was an all-staff meeting just yesterday. What came out of that?
STELTER: Well, some staffers are grumbling that Twitter is not being more aggressive, using Elon Musk-style tactics, tweeting their way through it.
There is certainly -- there has been a perception in recent years that Twitter is not nearly as strong of a big tech player as the Facebooks, as
the Googles. And that's true based on the market cap. It's a much smaller company.
It has been viewed as a takeover target before. So I think what staffers are now wondering is, OK, Elon Musk has made this offer, if he seems to be
serious, but no one ever knows with Elon Musk. Is there another buyer for Twitter? Will someone else take it over? And it reminds us all these
massive communications platforms critical to the world are in private hands, in this case they're in many private hands through shareholders.
But here's Elon Musk wanting to take it private. It's really an incredible moment to see the richest man in the world saying he wants to own Twitter.
We'll find out if he is able to or not. But I think somehow, some way Twitter is going to change through this. We don't know in what way yet
because we're in the middle of it. But there's a lot of anxious staffers and frankly I think a lot of worried Twitter users, wondering what the
future holds because if you are on Twitter like me, you can get pretty addicted to it.
ANDERSON: Yes. Absolutely. I mean, look, I'm on Twitter as well. And he is not the only multimillion or gazillionaire who actually owns or wants to
own a platform either, is he?
STELTER: That's right.
ANDERSON: I mean, this is a -- and we can talk about that next time you and I have some time. But this is a really important story. Stick on it for us,
Brian. Thank you.
STELTER: Thanks.
ANDERSON: Amidst the nightmare of war, a heartwarming moment on the pitch for a Ukrainian football club. And not just any Ukrainian football club.
This is Shakhtar Donetsk taking on a Polish opponent in the latest match of what is being called a global tour for peace.
This was a heartwarming game with a Hollywood ending, Amanda. Just explain what happened.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: It was. I mean, the Ukrainian Premier League has been suspended understandably since the outbreak of the war and
the Premier League leaders Shakhtar Donetsk, what do they do if they can't compete in the league, well, they used their platform to raise awareness,
to raise funds and to bring a bit of joy to the people back at home in Ukraine.
This 12-year-old little boy, a refugee from Mariupol, was allowed on to the pitch in the 90th minute. Not only did he play, he scored. And the scenes
were just fantastic. All the players had names of the cities affected by the war on their backs. But such a special moment.
ANDERSON: Look, I don't think the keeper actually went for that. But it was a lovely little strike.
DAVIS: It was.
ANDERSON: It was a lovely little strikes.
DAVIS: It was. And he made the most of his moment.
ANDERSON: Absolutely.
DAVIS: We have seen pros miss from there.
(LAUGHTER)
ANDERSON: "WORLD SPORT" is up with Amanda. I'm back after that. Stay with us.
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