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Biden Wraps U.K. Visit Ahead Of Key NATO Summit; Russia's War In Ukraine Looms Over NATO Meeting; Kremlin: Prigozhin Met With Putin After Mutiny. Aired 10-10:45a ET
Aired July 10, 2023 - 10:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:01:20]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Well, we begin in the U.K., a trip draped in pageantry and ceremony under the shadow of war and the specter of
climate change. Right now, U.S. President Joe Biden is wrapping up his trip there. He spent the last few hours with King Charles. With both men, they
were expected to discuss climate change earlier.
The president also met with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to discuss Ukraine. That's ahead of tomorrow's key NATO summit in Lithuania. Mr. Biden expects
to be back on Air Force One in just a few minutes, heading to the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius.
The big news ahead of Tuesday's high-stakes NATO summit is coming from Turkey's President. Recep Tayyip Erdogan is asking to clear Ankara's path
to E.U. membership before paving the way for Sweden to join NATO.
We are on the ground following this all for you. We got CNN's Max Foster at Windsor Castle, and our Nic Robertson is outside Downing Street.
Max, I want to start with you. We've just seen Biden wrapping up that meeting with British PM Rishi Sunak, as well as King Charles. I want you to
take me through the main messaging here before he heads to the NATO summit.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: I think these moments between the heads of state is really important because the U.S. is, by far, Britain's
most important ally in the world. So, they roll out the red carpet and President Biden came. He was given the honor of inspecting the honor guard
and then he went for tea with the king.
This is something we've seen in the past with Queen Elizabeth, of course, but then something slightly different this time. They went on to get a
briefing on a meeting about climate change. So, you had the heads of U.S. and British banks discussing ways to try to alleviate the effects of
climate change. And this was a big important meeting and this is something that The King can do. He can -- he uses his convening power to bring
important people together to discuss big issues.
I just had a chance to speak to the U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry. He was in that meeting and he told me it was agreed that we need to accelerate the
deployment of capital investments in the new energy economy. So getting big bank leaders to really try to use some of the capital, as John Kerry says,
is sitting on the sidelines and trying to put it into clean energy. So, some progress on that meeting as well.
And this is interesting to see how King Charles is choosing to use these moments for his new type of monarchy, which is distinct from the Queen,
Queen Elizabeth, the late Queen, because we never really heard about any of the details about her meetings. But there are two different ways of
effectively trying to achieve the same thing, which is solidify relations between nations.
GIOKOS: All right, Max. Thanks so very much for that. Of course, we're keeping a close watch on President Biden's movement as he heads out to
Lithuania.
But in the meantime, Nic, so much happening around that NATO summit. Turkey wants E.U. membership before Erdogan clears the way for Sweden to join
NATO. As you can see, live pictures there of President Joe Biden exiting the helicopter. He'll be heading onto Air Force One in just a moment
heading to Vilnius. The NATO summit, as we know, high stakes this time around, a lot on the table, a lot on the agenda and much to be discussed
with regards to Ukraine's potential membership, which we know has major pushback.
We also know that Erdogan has been talking about wanting E.U. membership before they vote for Sweden to join NATO. So President Joe Biden, as you
can see, making his way to his next trip to Lithuania.
[10:05:01]
Nic, I want to bring you in here. Zelenskyy, as we said, making it clear he wants Ukraine to join. He doesn't want to attend the summit just for fun,
as I've just mentioned. There's a lot to discuss. President Joe Biden is going to be integral in -- clearly in these conversations.
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: He is, and he has been. He has said that Ukraine is not going to get immediate membership of NATO,
and I think that was a given the concern that President Zelenskyy has expressed -- is very much in keeping with the way that he has tried to get
allies to go the maximum, do the maximum on providing military support, you know, pushing for planes, pushing for air defenses, pushing for tanks way
before anyone was willing to do it. So I think this is very much in keeping with what President Zelenskyy does, which is keep up a strong narrative of
what he feels Ukraine needs and indeed on the battlefield. It's sort of been assessed to be right so far that he needed the military support ahead
of when it actually came.
On this specific issue of NATO membership, interesting that we heard from the Foreign Minister in Ukraine today saying that the original NATO
roadmap, if you will, for Ukraine to join came about April 2008, the Bucharest NATO summit there. It was going to follow a system called MAPS,
which is, you know, a process of integration. That is now going to be bypassed.
There will be another process, a process that perhaps we'll hear more about coming out of the summit. And I think some of the detail in that is going
to address the obvious elephant in the room that Ukraine is at war, if Ukraine was to become an immediate member of NATO then the article five
would be triggered and the rest of the NATO Allies would be at war with Russia. That's obviously one of the principal reasons why it can't happen.
The democratization, the democracy, that needs to be installed or instilled in Ukraine is the other issue here, to have a Democratic civilian
leadership or control of the military, again, a prerequisite for NATO not just the integration of weapons systems. So, I think for these reasons,
Ukraine can expect to look -- to get some language that will benefit it and some of the discussion here will have been about the modalities of that.
Its security guarantees through continued military support, continued economic support.
President Biden, over the weekend in his interview with CNN, likened it to perhaps what Israel has at the moment with the United States, which is, you
know, first world high tech weapon systems training on those weapon systems and the knowledge that its ally has its back. And so that's -- I guess
that's the realm that run at the moment, not the full membership room.
GIOKOS: Yes. Right Nick Robertson there for us max foster. Thank you so much just moments ago, we saw president Biden I hitting onto Air Force One,
heading towards Lithuania. This is going to be a vital moment. This is going to be an important NATO Summit. He's just wrapped up his visit in the
U.K. visiting Rishi Sunak, the British Prime Minister, as well as King Charles, solidifying the relationship there. A really important trip for
him and, of course, now heading to the NATO summit.
All right. Before leaving for Europe, CNN's Fareed Zakaria sat down exclusively with president Biden. The U.S. leader spoke candidly on why he
believes Ukraine still isn't ready to join NATO. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: I don't think there is unanimity in NATO about whether or not to bring Ukraine into the NATO family now at this moment in
the middle of a war. For example, if you did that then, you know, we -- I - - and I mean what I say we're determined to commit every inch of territory that is NATO territory, it's a commitment that we've all made no matter. If
the war is going on, then we're all in war, you know. We're in war with Russia, if that were the case.
So I think we have to lay out a path for a rational path for Russia, for -- excuse me, for Ukraine to be able to qualify to get into NATO. But I think
it's premature to say to call for vote, you know, in now because there's other qualifications that need to be met, including democratization and
some of those issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: All right. Some standing news coming from the Kremlin today. It confirms the head of the Wagner mercenary group met with Russian president
Vladimir Putin. That's after Yevgeny Prigozhin's failed mutiny last month. Moscow responding to a report in a French newspaper that Prigozhin had been
to the Kremlin five days after his 24-hour rebellion.
Some retired Ukrainians in the meantime living on the frontlines of the war, neither blackouts nor constant shelling are enough to push them from
their home. CNN's Ben Wedeman spent time with some to find out why.
[10:10:06]
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A small flashlight is all that illuminates the seller, Olga, calls her home. Her bedroom cramped,
windowless storage space. "I'd like to live under normal conditions," says Olga, a retired school teacher. Retired and 78 years old. She's been living
like this since shortly after the war came to her town of Siversk, battered smithereens by months of Russian bombardment.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WEDEMAN: Five hundred days of war have left this town and so many others a wasteland of wreckage and rubble. Despite that, some people refuse to
leave.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WEDEMAN (voice-over): We met 70-year-old Nina last March when she told us happier days seemed a world away. "What do we feel?" she asks, "pain, pain.
When you see something destroyed, you tear up. We cry. We cry."
Summer has improved her mood, I show Nina and her friend, Valentina, pictures of the potatoes I'd grow back home in Italy, prompting Nina to
show off her tiny garden of herbs and onions.
Still, emotions flood back when I ask what she hopes for most. "We're waiting for the day," she says, "the minute when the war ends." On this
day, Siversk was quiet. All we heard was the occasional faint thud of distant shelling. Russian lines are six miles away. Yet the air of
tranquility is deceptive. "It's not quiet," insists Valentina. "They were firing all night long."
Those who remain are an eclectic group like Sasha, an aging rocker, a great fan of '70s classics.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SASHA, SIVERSK RESIDENT: Bee Gees.
WEDEMAN: Bee Gees. All right. Staying alive.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WEDEMAN (voice-over): Oleksandr never goes anywhere without his dog, Malish. Does he have high hopes for Ukraine's counteroffensive? No.
"Putin," he tells me, "will keep pushing ahead even if he has to kill every last Ukrainian. Russians are like a bear. They sit and wait and then."
Olga has the task of distributing loaves of bread to her neighbors brought in by volunteers. The powerful will do what they will do. Here, the
priority is staying alive.
Ben Wedeman, CNN, Siversk, Eastern Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: All right. And as we've said, just a few hours ago, we learned that Vladimir Putin met with Yevgeny Prigozhin days after the armed rebellion in
Russia. I want to go to CNN's Fred Pleitgen joining us now from Berlin to give us a little bit more detail about the stunning news.
It's another event, Fred, that basically questions a lot of things, right? What Vladimir Putin is thinking, what the fate of the former Wagner leader
or the Wagner leader will be. What does this tell you in terms of what has transpired in the last few weeks?
FRED PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Eleni. Well, first of all, I think all the people who are reporting on this, specifically Russian
Kremlin controlled media, must be getting whiplash right now. First of all, trying to find out where Yevgeny Prigozhin is, what his status is, and what
he's been sort of left to do by the Kremlin and by Vladimir Putin. Because of course, one of the things that the Russians had said, the Kremlin itself
had said, is that Yevgeny Prigozhin, after he called back his forces that were allegedly marching, or that were marching on Moscow as he put it, that
he would go to Belarus.
And then later, Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko told our own Matthew Chance, no, he has not come to Belarus yet, Yevgeny Prigozhin. He is in
fact in St. Petersburg, Russia. And now we're hearing from the Kremlin that only a few days after that mutiny took place that Yevgeny Prigozhin himself
was able to go to the Kremlin. That certainly seems to say several things. On the one hand, it certainly seems to indicate that Vladimir Putin still
very much feels that he needs the Wagner mercenaries on the battlefield. One of the things about them is that they have been one of the more
effective forces that the Russians have been able to field.
And, you know, one of the things that you can see around the Bakhmut area in eastern Ukraine is that since the Wagner forces have left there, the
Ukrainians have been advancing and the Russians have been pulling back slowly, but it certainly is something that has been happening.
We've been picking out a lot of things, of what the Kremlin had said about that meeting. First of all, that it was three hours long, which of course
is quite a lengthy meeting to take place. They said that 35 commanders were at that meeting. It's unclear whether any of them were from the Ministry of
Defense or whether these were all senior Wagner people. But we know that Yevgeny Prigozhin was at that meeting.
[10:15:00]
One of the things, Eleni, that really stood out to us is that the Kremlin says that Vladimir Putin, during that meeting, wanted to talk about the
mutiny, obviously, but then also talked about future combat roles, as the Kremlin put it. And that could indicate that Wagner might be making a
comeback to the battlefields of Ukraine at some point. But certainly, this is, you know, in every way, a remarkable development after it really seemed
as though Yevgeny Prigozhin and the Wagner mercenary group was essentially down and out as far as their standing with the Russian leadership was
concerned, Eleni.
GIOKOS: All right, Fred, thank you so very much.
Well, the United Nations says Sudan is on the brink of a full-scale civil war following a weekend airstrike that purportedly killed at least 22
people. Reuters cites Sudan's Ministry of Health and his report on the attack in the city of Omdurman.
Now, the supposed attack and targets of the attack, the paramilitary group Rapid Support Forces released this video showing the aftermath of the
strike. The group says more than 31 people were killed and dozens of civilians injured.
CNN's Senior Editor for Africa, Stephanie Busari joins us in our live with more on the airstrike and its aftermath. Stephanie, great to have you on.
Look, the latest strike killing 22 people at least, you know, we know that numbers is being questioned, just shows how this could descend into a
bigger cycle of violence. Diplomatic efforts we know have been proven to be ineffective. And now the U.N. is warning of a full-scale civil war. I mean,
what kind of interventions are the U.N. talking about at this stage?
STEPHANIE BUSARI, CNN SENIOR EDITOR FOR AFRICA: So, Eleni, this is just the latest in this nearly three-month war. This is the latest incident to
provoke outrage, to provoke condemnation in this seemingly never-ending war that has claimed so far nearly 3,000 lives and more than 6,000 people
injured. And what is really shocking for observers, and including the U.N., is that it seems to be happening with no attention being paid to the
civilian casualties.
These attacks are happening in residential areas and we're hearing of people being forced out of their homes by paramilitaries to carry out full-
scale attacks and really just launch attacks, you know, on civilians without paying any attention to the rising numbers of casualties. This
diplomatic efforts have been tried. Numerous ceasefires have been instituted, but they've never worked. And it's just continuing. And the
U.N. has said that it's really concerned that the humanitarian efforts and international law has been ignored very largely in this war between two
rival generals, Eleni.
GIOKOS: Yes, and absolutely tragic news over the weekend. Stephanie Busari, thank you so much for that update.
Well, coming up on CONNECT THE WORLD, Northern India slammed with deadly landslides and flash floods over the weekend. Forecasters say there is more
to come.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Welcome back.
Northern India was slammed with heavy rains over the weekend as the country's capital saw the wettest day in July in more than 40 years. The
heavy rains spurred landslides and flashfloods, killing at least 22 people. Rescue efforts continue for those stuck in flashfloods. Forecasters say
heavy rainfall is expected for the next five days.
Meanwhile, 10 million people in the northeastern U.S. are under flashflood alerts. New York's governor declared a state of emergency in Orange County
where one woman has died. Forecasters are calling Sunday's delusion in West Point, a once-in-a-millennium rainfall event. Major flooding is also
heading parts of New England, including Killington, Vermont, where a highway has been washed out and the state's governor has declared a state
of emergency.
As forecasters expect, more severe weather will impact the area on Monday. You can see those images. There we've got meteorologists. Jennifer Gray
joining us now. It's shocking footage we're seeing right now. Devastating impact. It sounds like it's just going to get worse. Take us through it.
JENNIFER GRAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it really is. You know, we still have all day today to go tonight and then possibly into tomorrow morning.
This is a very slow moving cold front, pretty much stalled out over the area. And it's just bringing torrential rain rolling over the same areas
for hours and hours. And so here's a picture from Ontario County. You can see the roads are closed.
There's even a kayaker in the middle of the road. We have seen flash flooding all across portions of New England. And that's going to continue
as we go throughout the day today. I'm going to need my producer to advance a graphic for me. There we go. We have the flash flood threat across
portions of Vermont in eastern sections of New York. This is a level four out of four high risk of flash flooding. This is very rare to be issued by
the Weather Prediction Center.
But this area is going to be really susceptible for flash flooding throughout the day today as well as tonight. Flashflood warnings are in
effect for a large chunk of Vermont. And you can see we also have flood watches in effect as well. This is a very saturated area. Over the last,
two weeks, we have gotten a lot of rainfall across this region. And so any additional rainfall is really just making the flash flooding worse.
Rivers are rising -- rivers are running very, very high. They're going to rise even higher with this additional rainfall. This is the current radar.
And you can see just rain pouring all across New England. The radar estimated rainfall in the last 24 hours or running more than 200
millimeters in some locations. And some areas received all of that rainfall in just about a six hour timeframe. West Point, New York, for example,
nearly a one in one thousand year event with 200 millimeters of rain. That's a preliminary storm total. And they received that within about six
hours.
So, just incredible numbers coming out of the Northeast and New England. So, here are the probabilities of occurrence with that one in one thousand
year event is a 0.1 percent chance in any given year of this happening. And we know, due to climate change, we're seeing these excessive rainfall
events happening more frequently than we used to. And so this is something we're dealing with more and more across the northeastern U.S., New England.
We are going to expect many flight delays as this rain continues to fall.
You can see another photo right here. We're going to see more roads washed out. We're going to see major flooding across this region today. And it's
going to -- as we mentioned, continue for tonight into tomorrow morning.
GIOKOS: Yes. We hope everyone stays safe. But I have to say that picture of the kayak really got me. I'm sure many people will be perhaps considering
taking out their kayaks or canoes. Great to see you Jennifer. Thank you so very much for that update.
Well, horrific scene in southern China where a deadly knife attack took place outside a kindergarten earlier today. And I want to warn you the
images you're about to see are disturbing. State media reports six people were killed, including three children, one teacher and two parents. Police
say a 25-year-old suspect has been arrested.
CNN's Anna Coren has been tracking the story for us and joins me now live from Hong Kong, absolutely devastating story, children among the victims.
What more do we know about the suspect?
ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, a horrendous attack, Eleni. Early this morning in China, a man fatally stabbed six people with a knife outside a
the kindergarten in southern Guangdong province.
[10:25:02]
According to state media, the victims were three children, two parents and a teacher. One person was wounded. CNN, as we just showed those images, we
have -- we've blurred them because we're looking at lifeless bodies lying on the road. Emergency crews were quick to act, we understand, but unable
to save the victims and they all died at the scene. Police arrested a 25- year-old man from Lianjiang County. He's from the same place as where the kindergarten is located. He's been taken into custody and an investigation
is underway.
Authorities have released very few details, Eleni, about the fatal stabbings other than to say that this attack was intentional. Now, guns in
China are strictly controlled and really out of reach for most people, but knives have become a common and accessible weapon. In recent years, there
have been a spate of mass stabbings at schools targeting children across China.
Let me run you through some of them. In August of last year, three people were stabbed to death and six wounded at a kindergarten in China's southern
Jiangxi province. In April 2021, two children were killed and 16 wounded in a stabbing attack at another kindergarten in southwestern Jiangxi. And then
in June of 2020, 37 children and two adults were wounded in a knife attack at an elementary school.
You know, China has a very low rate of violent crime compared to the West, but these horrific knife attacks targeting young children are obviously
very disturbing, Eleni.
GIOKOS: Yes, very disturbing. Anna Coren, thank you so much.
Well, still to come, U.S. President Joe Biden defends his controversial decision to send Ukraine cluster munitions during an interview with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Welcome back. I'm Eleni Giokos in Abu Dhabi, and you're watching CONNECT THE WORLD.
In Israel, demonstrators are threatening more protests as Parliament prepares to take its first vote on one aspect of the Netanyahu government's
judicial overall plans. The controversial legislation aims to reduce judicial oversight of the executive and legislative branches.
[10:30:04]
This particular bill would attempt to negate the court's ability to determine whether the government acted in a reasonable manner. On Saturday,
tens of thousands of protesters rallied against the measure for the 27th consecutive week ahead of a planned day of disruption tomorrow.
Meantime, U.S. President Joe Biden told CNN's Fareed Zakaria in a wide- ranging interview that Israel and Saudi Arabia are a long way off from normalization deal. The U.S. has been pushing to normalize diplomatic ties
between its Middle East allies. The president also discussed America's complicated relationship with Riyadh.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZAKARIA: You've had tough words about Saudi Arabia from the start about the Khashoggi killing and things like that. You talked about needing a kind of
new relationship. They've been pretty unyielding when you've asked them to pump more oil. They've slashed oil recently. Now, Saudi Arabia wants a
defense treaty from the United States promising that you will protect them and they want civilian nuclear capacity, which, again, the U.S. would have
to provide. And in return, they would recognize Israel. Are you going to do it?
BIDEN: We're a long way from there. We've got a lot to talk about. For example, that trip I went, which was criticized for my going, a number of
things have happened on that trip. On that trip, I was able to negotiate over flights so Israeli could know -- Israeli aircraft could now over fly
Saudi Arabia, number one.
Number two, the price of oil is actually down, not up, and it's not because they have done one thing or the other. But the world is changing, our
policies relative to renewables are real.
Number three, we found ourselves in a circumstance where the war in Yemen is essentially for a year now, been -- it's ended -- now peace is being
kept. So, we're making progress in the region. And it depends upon the conduct and what is asked of us for them to recognize Israel. Quite frankly
-- I don't think they have much of a problem with Israel, quite frankly. And whether or not we would provide a means by which they could have
civilian nuclear power and/or be a guarantor of their security, that is -- I think that is a little way off.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: What a brilliant interview there with President Joe Biden, Fareed Zakaria. I want to turn now to CNN's Jeremy Diamond, who is in
Washington, a wide-ranging interview here. And so much about geopolitics. The U.S. has positioned particularly in the Middle East, as well as it's,
you know, position with Ukraine and what we're seeing with NATO. What else stood out here that is really vital ahead of the NATO summit?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it certainly was a wide-ranging interview. And just to pick up where that interview left off,
which is the other side of that equation of Saudi-Israel normalization, President Biden also making some very frank comments and candid comments
about the U.S.'s relationship with Israel and his view of what is the most right-wing coalition in Israeli government history.
President Biden said that he believes that a two-state solution is necessary. He talked very frankly about some of the right-wing members of
Netanyahu's cabinet who believes -- who believe that they have a right to expand settlements anywhere in the West Bank. The president very much
condemning that and saying that it is not all Israel's fault what is happening in the West Bank, but he said they are part of the problem.
And he also talked about the Palestinian Authority saying that they have lost a lot of credibility as well. So, the president giving a very frank
assessment of the situation in that region.
Now, as we prepare for President Biden heading over to this NATO summit in Vilnius, the president was also asked about the possibility of Ukraine
joining the NATO alliance, something that President Zelenskyy is pushing for and President Biden making very clear in this interview that Ukrainian
membership in NATO is not in the cards for right now, effectively, because it would put the U.S. and other NATO allies at war with Russia if Ukraine
became a member, and Article 5 would need to therefore be invoked.
But he did talk about the fact that they are looking to show some progress here, potentially offering Ukraine some security guarantees similar to the
kinds of security guarantees that the U.S. provides a country like Israel. And the president did also defend what is a controversial decision and a
decision that is splitting the NATO alliance in some ways, something that President Biden has really endeavored not to do, really trying to keep that
alliance in lockstep.
[10:35:01]
And that is his decision to send cluster munitions to Ukraine. President Biden making clear that it took a while for him to be convinced of this,
and that ultimately, it was a decision made out of necessity, that the Ukrainians are running out of ammunition. He believes that this kind of a
transition period was needed for manufacturing of those traditional artillery shells to ramp up. And so in the meantime, providing Ukraine with
those cluster munitions. He said it took a while for him to be convinced. And I can tell you, this was a months-long process of deliberation within
the administration, a decision, of course, that they are very much now defending, Eleni.
GIOKOS: Jeremy Diamond, thank you.
There was a Ukrainian victory over the weekend at Wimbledon. Why it led to cheers and boos from the crowd. We'll explain just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Welcome back. A popular sports drink is coming under scrutiny by a U.S. senator. Chuck Schumer wants an investigation into the caffeine
content of Prime.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The fastest growing sports drink in history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: The drink has more than, get this, double the caffeine as Red Bull. Schumer claims it is being targeted towards minors. The company that makes
Prime energy does not recommend the drink for anyone under 18 years old.
Vanessa Yurkevich joins me now live. I have to admit, I've never tried Prime until today. I bought Prime Hydration, however, that doesn't have
caffeine in it. But I just know that this has been so enormous on social media. The marketing has been extraordinary. The drink was kind of
disappointing for me personally, but what is behind this investigation?
VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this drink has just exploded on social media, especially on TikTok. The brand has 3.4
million followers, 42 million likes, led in part because one of the co- founders, Logan Paul, has such massive audience on all social media platforms and he does a lot of the advertising for this brand. And as you
mentioned, there's Prime Hydration, which is the sports drink. There's no caffeine there. But then you also have Prime Energy, which is the concern
that Senator Schumer has. It has 200 milligrams of caffeine in it. It does say it on the label, but some parents may not know the difference.
But the energy market is absolutely huge. In 2022, $58 billion in global sales, that is pushing up to about $62 billion this year. And then in four
years, it's projected that the energy market globally is going to be worth $83 billion. So, another way that this company has been able to market
themselves is by sponsoring sports teams. They sponsor the LA Dodgers.
[10:40:00]
They sponsor Arsenal. They sponsor Barcelona, the soccer team. And they're in very good company with other brands, like Adidas, Nike, Coca-Cola. So
they're really trying to get their face out there. They're trying to get the brand out there. And people are catching fire with this. They are
really loving it on social media. But especially the younger generation, the tweens and the teens, and that is why Senator Schumer is bringing this
up, just bringing to the attention of people that this -- the energy part of this drink has a ton and ton of caffeine in it and he is asking the FDA
to investigate.
Now, we have not heard back from Prime. We have not heard back from the FDA on this, but clearly, this is very, very popular. And it's important to
note, you know, as you're buying this for your kids potentially, which a part of the brand is just the hydration, the sports drink, and which side
of this is the energy because there is a massive, massive difference.
GIOKOS: This -- exactly. And I'm also just wondering who can afford this. This is like -- I paid $15 for one of these hydration drinks today. I just
couldn't believe the cusp, which is absolutely fascinating. Look, this conversation is definitely going to continue. You have to have deep
pockets, I guess, if you want to drink Prime. Vanessa Yurkevich, great to have you on. Thank you so much.
A Ukrainian victor -- victory at Wimbledon brought the crowd to its feet. Fans cheered as Ukrainian Elina Svitolina defeated Belarusian Victoria
Azarenka on Sunday. Belarus supports Russia's war on Ukraine. Svitolina declined to shake her opponent's hand and the drama did not end there.
Coy Wire joins me now. Coy, look the crowd also delivered a very strong message to Azarenka. There was booing and it basically shows the
geopolitics spilling over into the court.
COY WIRE CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: Yes, and a really precarious situation, right, for Azarenka. She saw there she did not offer to shake Svitolina's hand.
But that was, as you mentioned, she had said before the match that she wasn't going to shake any Russian or Belarusian players' hands due to the
ongoing war in her home country, but Azarenka did wave and offer a hand gesture and she said afterwards that she thought it was very unfair that
the crowd responded the way they did.
She did acknowledge that they probably had a few drinks, probably not Prime, probably something else a little stronger, but the crowd, they're
certainly not appreciated by Azarenka who was just doing what she thought would be best given the situation with Svitolina. We have that and a bunch
more, Eleni, coming up, some of the more women's highlights and men's from Wimbledon. Good action and a big F1 race wrapped up yesterday as well.
GIOKOS: A lot going on in your world, Coy. Always looking forward to your report. You'll be back right after the short break and I'll be back with
more news at the top of the hour. Stay with CNN.
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