Return to Transcripts main page
Connect the World
Israel-Gaza Confrontation; Trump Rails against Prosecution; NATO Chief Says Sweden Should Join Up as Soon as Possible; Russia's Response to Finland Joining NATO; Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen to Meet U.S. House Speaker in California; Aired 10-10:40a ET
Aired April 05, 2023 - 10:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): I'm Becky Anderson live from Abu Dhabi. This is CONNECT THE WORLD. Here, it's 6 in the evening.
Coming up this hour, Israeli police storm one of Islam's holiest sites.
Donald Trump outraged at his indictment.
We speak to the NATO chief as foreign ministers gather in Brussels.
And is this Tiger Woods' final Masters tournament?
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ANDERSON: Israel's far right security minister has made incendiary comments, calling for heads to roll in Gaza. Itamar Ben-Gvir's remarks come
after rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel following a night of violence in Jerusalem.
Israel has already conducted retaliatory airstrikes on what it says are Hamas targets. This comes hours after Israeli police stormed one of Islam's
holiest sites. The video here shows police breaking up a group of Palestinians, who they say were barricading the entrance.
Video from social media appears to show Israeli forces beating some of the group before arresting them. CNN's Hadas Gold has this report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HADAS GOLD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Israeli police stormed the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem early Wednesday, where Palestinians
worship during the holy month of Ramadan.
Video put out by the Israeli police shows officers entering the mosque by force as fireworks are launched at them.
Videos on social media appear to show officers striking people with batons. Eyewitnesses telling CNN, police also fired stun grenades and rubber
bullets.
The police said in a statement that they went in because hundreds of what they called rioters and mosque desecraters barricaded themselves inside in
a violent manner and, quote, "threw fireworks, hurled stones and caused damage."
The authorities arrested more than 300 people during the incident. The Palestinian Red Crescent saying at least 2 dozen Palestinians were injured.
Israeli police say two of their officers were also wounded.
GOLD: The holy sites behind me are known as the Al-Aqsa mosque compound or Haram al Sharif, the third holiest site in Islam. You can actually hear the
call to prayer going on right now. But it's also known as Temple Mount to Jews and it's the holiest site in Judaism.
Now there is a status quo that governs these holy sites and the Israeli police entering the Al-Aqsa mosque, which is this building right here with
the black roof behind me. That is considered a violation of the status quo and then not only them entering but then them entering in the way they did,
firing stun grenades and rubber bullets, that brought it to a whole other level.
GOLD (voice-over): Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia have denounced Israel for what happened. The Jordanian foreign minister saying the world must
clearly condemn the attack.
Shortly after the raid, rockets were fired from Gaza into Israel. The militant group Hamas saying Israel's actions in Jerusalem wouldn't go
unanswered. The Israeli military said it had struck Hamas weapons sites in Gaza in response -- Hadas Gold, CNN, Jerusalem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: We got a lot more on the storming of Al-Aqsa and other news from around the region in our "Meanwhile in the Middle East" newsletter. That is
cnn.com/mideastnewsletter. You can subscribe there or get your smartphone and do scan the code just below me here. Let's leave that up for just a
moment.
Well, indicted and indignant, Donald Trump has been venting his fury as he faces 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. Now as you know,
from watching this program, this has history written all over. Prosecutors will try to prove the 45th U.S. president sought to undermine the
integrity --
[10:05:00]
ANDERSON: -- of the 2016 election through a hush money scheme. After a long Tuesday, Trump turned to his supporters and slammed the district
attorney in the case. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT: He knew there was no case. That's why last week he delayed for a month and then immediately took that back. And
through this ridiculous indictment together, came out today. Everybody said, this is not really an indictment. There's nothing here.
My lawyers came to me and they said there's nothing here. They're not even saying what you did. The criminal is the district attorney because he
illegally leaked massive amounts of grand jury information.
For which he should be prosecuted or, at a minimum, he should resign.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: CNN legal analyst Karen Friedman Agnifilo joining us now.
And I have to ask you what you made of that speech last night.
KAREN FRIEDMAN AGNIFILO, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: It really surprised me that, after the judge warning him to watch it, that he would go out and
essentially attack the prosecutor and attack the judge again.
He really needs to stop attacking people, especially on a personal level. I don't think that's going to bode very well for him in court.
ANDERSON: Big question here is, Karen, what happens next?
AGNIFILO: Yes, so what happens next is the case is adjourned until December. And that means that's the next time he and his lawyers and the
prosecutors have to appear in court.
Before that, though, what's going to happen is the prosecutor is going to turn over their entire case file to them.
They are entitled to see that and, at the same time, equally, the defense is going to make a motion practice, basically challenging the evidence,
challenging the law, saying that he can't get a fair trial in Manhattan because a lot of people in New York City, especially in Manhattan, where
he's charged, he's going to say are Democratic leaning and didn't vote for him.
And so he's going to make lots of motion practice trying to get the case delayed, get it moved away from Manhattan and charges dismissed. I don't
think he will be successful in any of those. But he's going to try.
And then what?
So what will happen after that is he will make those legal arguments on paper. And that will be filed with the court. And will -- we will all get
to see them. And after that happens, the prosecution will respond in their motions. And we'll get to see that, too.
And then it will be adjourned to December for the judge to decide the motions. There is a chance, however, that we will see him before then or at
least see the lawyers before then.
Because of the hearing yesterday, there was some discussion that they were -- that the lawyers on both sides were trying to negotiate the terms of
turning over all the paperwork and that they were -- they anticipated that there would be -- they would agree to the circumstances of turning over
paperwork.
But I wonder whether that -- they will come to an agreement because, if they do not, then the lawyers will have to go back before the court for the
judge to decide.
ANDERSON: I just want you to listen to this statement from former presidential candidate and Republican Mitt Romney, no friend of Donald
Trump's. Let's be quite clear.
He said and I quote, "The prosecutors overreach," as he described it, "sets a dangerous precedent for criminalizing political opponents and damages the
public's faith in our justice system."
What do you make of that?
Because that very much reflects a kind of wider response from many Republicans, friends and foe of Donald Trump alike.
I wonder, do you believe this whole affair is actually playing into Donald Trump's hands at this point?
What sort of precedent does it set?
AGNIFILO: So you have to understand that in, our justice system in the U.S. there really is a difference between politics and justice and it's
completely separate. And really, it's important that justice is blind, that it applies to everyone equally, that prosecutors bring cases without fear
or favor.
And that nobody is above the law. The law applies to everybody. This DA, Alvin Bragg, has charged this crime 117 times in the last 1.5 years since
he took office. And before that Cy Vance used it just as much, if not more.
It is truly a very common charge that is brought in cases of -- for anybody in business who tries to break the law, which Donald Trump did. And don't
forget this investigation was going on well before he declared his candidacy.
[10:10:00]
AGNIFILO: And so this really -- there was no reason to -- he's the one who made this political by declaring his candidacy in the middle of a criminal
-- several criminal investigations, frankly, so that he can make this argument that -- that it's all about politics.
When all of -- all of this -- these investigations have been going on way before he declared and are because he has -- he has stepped over the line
multiple times and he continues to commit crimes.
ANDERSON: The perspective of CNN legal analyst Karen Friedman Agnifilo, joining us on the show. Thank you very much, indeed.
Well, let's connect you to Europe where Belarus' president is on a two day working visit to Russia. Alexander Lukashenko is there for talks with
Vladimir Putin with the war in Ukraine, of course, very much on the agenda.
The Kremlin says a new peace proposal by Belarus will likely be discussed. On Thursday, the leaders will attend the meeting of the supreme state
council of the union state, as it's known. And that is the highest governing body of the union state of Russia and Belarus.
Meantime, over in Poland, Ukraine's president has just been awarded the country's highest honor, the Order of the White Eagle. Polish president
Andrzej Duda called Volodymyr Zelenskyy man about standing qualities (ph) during a ceremony at the presidential palace in Warsaw.
And Mr. Duda also hailed the people of Ukraine as heroic, saying he had no doubt that Mr. Zelenskyy would save the country from Russian aggression.
And in Brussels, the head of NATO has reaffirmed the alliance's support for Ukraine, saying continued support is essential. Jens Stoltenberg also said
it would be an historic mistake for China to supply lethal aid to Russia and added that Sweden should become a NATO ally as soon as possible.
Lots to unpack here with our teams around the world: David McKenzie is in Kyiv; CNN national security reporter Natasha Bertrand is at the Pentagon.
David, first to you and Zelenskyy's time in Poland. Just so walk through what we've seen and what we understand to have been discussed there.
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, it's certainly a very significant moment. This is the first state visit of its
kind with President Zelenskyy and the first lady of Ukraine in Warsaw. A lot of pomp and circumstance as you'd expect.
And the meetings have been substantive between the Polish president and the Ukrainian president. I think what is mostly on the agenda, of course, is
the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the need for Ukraine to get full support.
President Zelenskyy did talk a lot about the importance that their Western neighbor has had in this conflict, first from a humanitarian point of view,
saying that Polish citizens opened their arms to Ukrainians fleeing the first days of this conflict.
And of course, Poland has been on the very edge of support in terms of pushing other allies in Europe and in the U.S. to expand the financial and
military support of the Ukraine's war efforts. Take a listen to President Zelenskyy.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): You have not abandoned Ukraine. You stood with us, shoulder to shoulder. We're
grateful to you. We believe that this is a historical relationship. It is a sign of historic strength between our countries.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MCKENZIE: Now an interesting development; after this ceremony, president Zelenskyy spoke on the state of the war, Becky. He spoke about the
situation, the very difficult situation in Bakhmut in the eastern part of the country.
He did admit that if there was a scenario, that their troops, the Ukrainian troops were substantially encircled by Russian troops, both the regular
forces and mercenary forces, that there could be a moment where they decide to withdraw their forces.
But he also said that the reason they might have to do that is if they run low on ammunition.
And you've seen again today a recommitment by Poland to help Ukraine and overnight a substantial increase in U.S. military aid to the country: $2.6
billion announced by the White House, both drawdown ammunition, meaning coming from existing U.S. stockpiles, like HIMARS munitions and Patriots
missile system munitions.
And just part of that strategic Ukrainian stockpile that they say is important for the immediate needs and future security of his country.
ANDERSON: David's in Kyiv.
Natasha, let me bring you in here at this point because there has been a major meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels; this the day after
Finland officially joined.
[10:15:00]
ANDERSON: And we saw them all in this sort of group photograph in support of Finland yesterday. U.S. secretary of state Antony Blinken there.
What will he and those ministers be hoping to achieve?
To David's point, we are well aware -- and the NATO secretary general has said this more than once -- that the Europeans cannot keep up in
manufacturing the sort of ammunition supplies that the Ukrainians need at the moment.
And it's very clear from Zelenskyy at this point, that should they not get that ammunition cities, like Bakhmut -- and Bakhmut being a, you know, a
strategically important if not symbolically important perhaps more than strategically important -- moment could fall.
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Exactly right, Becky. And that is the message really that we are getting, even here at the Pentagon
on a daily basis, is that what the Ukrainians really need the most right now, apart from these heavy munitions, apart from the very sophisticated
Western systems, is just fundamentally that ammunition.
And what secretary of state Antony Blinken was discussing just now at a press conference following that meeting with his fellow foreign ministers
at NATO was this need, of course, to keep up with Ukraine's needs.
And he acknowledged that it's going to be difficult but that ultimately what they are all working on and what that was most discussed at this
meeting is going to be maintaining that support for the Ukrainians and giving them the ammunition that they need.
And of course, we have seen efforts in the U.S. and in Europe to ramp that up. There has have been a lot of new efforts underway in the United States
to increase the amount of production of ammunition as well as in different countries in Europe that is ongoing.
There's questions about whether or not they're going to be able to do that, just given the logistics. But that is top of mind, of course, for the NATO
foreign ministers right now, is how to keep up with this demand, especially with Ukraine using so many resources to keep this city of Bakhmut.
And of course, it is something that the U.S. had originally advised them against, using so many resources to try to take the city that the U.S. and
the Pentagon did not believe was very strategic.
And so what we're seeing now is kind of an effort to keep up with the Ukrainians, figure out how to build up their arsenal, really, to deter and
defend against the Russians, who do not show any signs of letting up, either, but also, of course, just to show Ukraine that they are with them,
really, until the very end here.
That has been the consistent message coming out of both the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House, Becky.
ANDERSON: And more on this. Thank you, Natasha and David, more on this from Brussels next hour -- sorry -- after the break I'm joined by the
foreign minister of Canada, one of the founding members of the NATO alliance and next hour by the secretary general of NATO himself, Jens
Stoltenberg.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:20:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ANDERSON: Well, as Finland joins the NATO meeting as a member state for the first time, one thing is clear. The alliance, formed specifically to
counter the Soviet Union, just got a whole lot stronger. Have a look at what this means.
Finland's military assets include over 257,000 troops, 300 tanks, 100 combat aircraft. What's more and perhaps most significant, it doubles
NATO's border with Russia to over 1,500 miles or 2,500 kilometers.
Well, joining me now is the foreign minister of Canada. Melanie Joly, Canada, one of NATO's founding members.
And Melanie, you tweeted, quote, "With Finland and soon to be Sweden, we are stronger than ever. I'm ready to stand together in the face of some of
the most important challenges to our collective security in decades."
And that very much reflects what we are hearing from the NATO chief and other foreign ministers. Thank you for joining us.
MELANIE JOLY, CANADIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: It's a pleasure.
ANDERSON: You have pointed out how significant this is for the alliance.
How confident are you that Turkiye, who is there, foreign minister there at the ceremony yesterday and with you in these meetings, will also clear
the way for Sweden?
JOLY: So Becky, first and foremost, it is indeed important days here at NATO, where I am in Brussels, because we were able to have Finland join us.
And now we have 31 members and we're 31 members strong.
But we will soon be 32 members strong. It is important that Sweden be ratified by Turkiye and Hungary. We're calling them to do so without any
delay. Canada was the first country to ratify Finland and Sweden because we are both arctic. All the three of us have our arctic countries.
And we believe that it is in the alliance and in our -- in our interest to make sure that these countries join NATO. And I'm confident that we can
make sure that Sweden will be part of NATO by the leaders' summit of NATO, which will be this summer.
ANDERSON: In Vilnius in Lithuania, of course. Let me just cross examine this just for a moment because you say it's important. You also say you are
confident. I wonder where you get that confidence from. Just explain the atmosphere behind the scenes, if you -- if you will, you're there, and what
it is that you believe you've heard or seen to suggest that you have confidence that Turkiye will indeed sign off on Sweden's membership.
JOLY: Well, I think that Turkiye and Hungary heard loud and clear from all member states of the importance of having Sweden joining. I think also that
Turkiye has reaffirmed, many occasions directly and indirectly, that they were going to ratify Sweden's accession.
And we will want to make sure that we all have one voice in Vilnius because it is important for the Vilnius summit to be successful. So we're confident
in Jens Stoltenberg's leadership on this issue. We've had reassurances also from many different countries.
And we know that we will be able to have -- to be 32 members strong coming out of the Vilnius summit. And you can count on Canada to make sure that we
put pressure.
ANDERSON: OK. All right. Well I -- you say you can rely on Canada to put that pressure on. I'm speaking to Jens Stoltenberg next hour, so we will
continue to sort of push on this issue.
Because I think, with respect, it's not clear at this point, necessarily, that either Hungary or Turkiye are absolutely 100 percent determined that
accession will actually take place.
Look, this is of course -- you know, extremely important and an absolute rebuke to Mr. Putin's aggression. But it is not without risk this extension
of the membership. Russia has responded by saying that they've updated Belarusian aircraft for nuclear strike capabilities.
And Russia's defense minister has said, and I quote him here, "In the near future, Finland will become a member of NATO. Under these conditions --
[10:25:00]
ANDERSON: -- "we are taking retaliatory measures, defending the security of the union state."
Well, Finland is now a member.
How concerned are you about this sort of rhetoric and the potential for a significant escalation?
JOLY: Well, Becky, first and foremost, NATO was never a threat to Russia. Russia decided to invade Ukraine, a sovereign neighbor. And based on that,
countries such as Finland and Sweden decided, as sovereign nations, to make sure that they would be investing in their collective security. And they
decided to join NATO.
And at the end of the day, if Russia wants peace and wants to make sure that things are able to be much more at ease, well, they need to get out of
Ukraine. And we've been saying that many times.
All NATO countries have been saying that. Many countries of the world have been saying that. We've been also calling on China to clearly state that to
Russia. And that's been our position. So we know that it is in the Kremlin's hands that deescalation can happen.
But at the same time, meanwhile, we will be steadfast supporters of Ukraine. We were with Dmytro Kuleba, the foreign minister at NATO, again,
making sure that we support Ukraine through its victory, even after its victory because, afterwards, it will still be a neighbor of a very
aggressive Russia.
So we need to address the long term security guarantees of Ukraine and that I can answer, Becky, any questions you may have about that. And at the same
time we stand by Finland and Sweden in their decision as well.
ANDERSON: Let's talk about what Ukraine needs at present, because this is front and center in the conversations that you are having with other NATO
ministers. Europe frankly cannot provide the sort of scope of munitions that Ukraine currently needs.
And the Ukrainian president today in Poland has said that they may have to walk away from Bakhmut, which may be seen as symbolic, will be seen by
Ukraine is strategic because they don't have the munitions that they need.
What is NATO going to do about that at this point?
JOLY: So I was in Ukraine for two days a month ago. And I met with President Zelenskyy, his wife, with the prime minister, with minister
Kuleba, with different ministers; basically a very good visit and, at the time -- and it is still the case now -- we need to make sure that we speed
up the delivery of ammunition.
We've already sent earlier tanks; we've already provided $1 billion of military support plus $4 billion of different types of financial support,
the new manager (ph) and support to Ukraine.
But at the same time, my point right now -- and what I was talking about NATO -- is the question of long term security guarantees and long term
security commitments. I'll give you an example.
For Norway recently announced a five year commitment to support Ukraine militarily speaking. That provides assurances to Ukraine as they're dealing
with Russia, which is still there neighbor and will continue to be their neighbor.
And so that's what we are bringing to the table. We need to make sure that Ukraine is able to have commitments. It will have the commitment from
Canada. It will have commitments from different NATO nations.
But we want to broaden the umbrella, broaden the scope of different countries that could be investing in their own security and also in
Ukraine's security. And so that's why we're bringing this conversation to the table.
ANDERSON: Fascinating and it's a conversation that I will pursue with Jens Stoltenberg next hour.
Do, while I've got you, want to turn to some pretty disturbing scenes that unfolded in Jerusalem this morning. I just want to play this video again
for our viewers, who may have missed it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): This is Israeli police after storming al-Aqsa this morning while Palestinians worshiped there. This feels like a pretty clear
provocation by the Israelis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: What do you make of what you are seeing and of the timing?
JOLY: Well, clearly, these images are disturbing, so we strongly condemn any form of violence against Palestinian worshippers. And we call also on
the status quo of holy sites, particularly at this very important holiday season, which is Ramadan, Passover and also Easter.
[10:30:00]
JOLY: Meanwhile, we know that there have been rockets launched against Israel, so we condemn that violence as well. And fundamentally, I would
say, Becky, we call for deescalation, we call for peace. It is important that that be the case.
Canada will always be a supporter; the two state solution, the respect of the rule of law. And I've been in contact with my colleague from Jordan.
I've reached out also from -- to my Palestinian counterpart and Israeli counterpart, as is a very important matter that we need to address.
ANDERSON: Let me just address Iran while I've got you as well. Iran's supreme leader doubling down on his stance against women who don't wear the
hijab. He calls it a religious and political sin.
Canada recently announcing further sanctions on members of the IRGC. They've made it easier for Iranians in Canada to extend their visas.
But how else at this stage can or is Canada planning support of the women of Iran?
Briefly, please.
JOLY: We've been supporters of the courageous woman in Iran. We have a lot of hope when we look at the woman peace and freedom movement. We will
continue to support them and, meanwhile, will continue to sanction and isolate the Iranian regime.
We will continue also to ban them from coming to Canada. And we call on the Iranian regime to be held accountable. And we will work with many countries
of the world to make sure that we amplify the voices of the courageous woman and men in Iran.
ANDERSON: Melanie Joly, foreign minister for Canada out of Brussels today, thank you very much indeed for joining us. Your analysis and insight
extremely important from there.
And I will be speaking with Jens Stoltenberg, NATO secretary general, about Finland's accession, about what is going on in Ukraine, whether Sweden will
become a member anytime soon. All that a little more than 30 minutes from now. That interview happening at 7 pm Abu Dhabi time. That is 4 pm In
London.
Well coming up here on the show, the president of Taiwan making history in California. Who she is meeting with and what China thinks about that is
coming up.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[10:35:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi. You are watching CONNECT THE WORLD. The time here is just after half past 6 in the evening.
Well, just a few hours from now, a milestone meeting on U.S. soil, the president of Taiwan and the U.S. Speaker of the House set to meet in
California. She arrived Tuesday in Los Angeles following visits to Guatemala and to Belize. This stop part of a 10 day trip Taipei hopes will
build democratic solidarity.
Preparations are underway at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library near Los Angeles, where she will meet with speaker Kevin McCarthy and lawmakers
from across the political divide. The landmark meeting is garnering attention from China. And for that, let's bring in Selina Wang, who is
following this story from Beijing.
Tell us, what does Beijing make of what they are seeing out of California this hour?
SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, no surprise. Beijing is responding with its usual fire and fury. Remember that Beijing sees Taiwan
as part of its territory, as a breakaway province, which is why it gets so angry every time there are these high level meetings between Taiwanese
leaders and U.S. officials and lawmakers.
We've seen Beijing respond by saying that this is a violation of its sovereignty, that it undermines regional stability and undermines regional
peace. We're also seeing a more muted military response and last time we saw U.S. -- then U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visit Taiwan.
But we are seeing the regular military drills around Taiwan and also the announcement of the launch of a three day patrol through the Taiwan Strait.
Now the timing there is very clear in that they're trying to send a message about how unhappy they are, about this meeting, moving forward.
But remember, though, that last summer, when Pelosi went to Taiwan, Beijing reacted with these unprecedented military drills that essentially simulated
a blockade of the island. It's not expected that this visit is going to create that kind of reaction because the meeting is happening on American
soil. It's not happening in Taiwan.
And Washington has also tried to downplay the importance of this meeting by saying that it is merely just a stopover on her way back to Taiwan. There's
no reason to overreact to any of this.
So that's why we could still see more military response tomorrow but not expected to be as bad as it was last summer. Becky.
ANDERSON: Meantime, the French president following the footsteps of the European president, Mr. Macron in China, what do you make of what you have
heard today?
WANG: So this visit, really, from the French perspective, they're positioning it as a chance for Macron to push China to do more, to bring
peace when it comes to the conflict in Ukraine.
On top of that, there's also clearly an economic purpose to this meeting. Macron is going to Beijing with a delegation of about 50 business people
from France. China is a key trading partner, not just for France but for the E.U.
We're also seeing the European Commission chief come along to this trip, Ursula van der Leyen. Now there is a lot of skepticism, though, about how
much Macron can really do when it comes to China, playing more of a peacemaking role.
We know that China has refused to condemn the invasion. It has refused to even call it an invasion; in fact instead, we're seeing Putin and Xi
Jinping increase their ties. Russia and China increase their partnership.
This meeting of Macron to Beijing comes only weeks after Xi Jinping went to Moscow, where he and Putin had reaffirmed their partnership in a whole
variety of areas. Nonetheless, from Beijing's perspective, this meeting with Macron is also going to be key for China to reconnect with the world
after three years of devastating zero COVID restrictions that also sought China's economy heavily damaged.
So this is also a way for China to increase its relationships with its key trading partners, as well as it tries to shore up its economy. Becky.
ANDERSON: And as it struggles with its relations with the U.S., thank you.
Let me just read some of what Emmanuel Macron has said while he's been there.
He said that China can play -- and I quote here "a major role in the conflict in Ukraine because of its close relationship with Russia."
He added that it would be wrong to allow Russia to have exclusive dialogue with China. Regarding the path toward peace in Ukraine and crucially on the
issue of trade, Mr. Macron said that Europe must not disassociate or separate from China, calling that -- or were they to do that -- a fatal
mistake for Europe.
We continue to monitor Macron's trip to China and, as we get more, of course, you will get it here first on CNN.
[10:40:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
END
