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Iranian News Outlet: Trump's Claim About Direct Negotiations with Iran is a "Psychological Operation"; China: U.S. 50 Percent Tariff Threat is "A Mistake Upon a Mistake"; Trump Threatens to Ratchet Up Trade War with China; U.S. to Raise Existing Duties on Canadian Lumber; At Least 18 Dead in Dominican Republic Nightclub Collapse. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired April 08, 2025 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[09:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: You're looking at the New York Stock Exchange and the seat of U.S. power in D.C. Politics and

finance are center stage this week as China promises to fight Donald Trump's tariffs to the end. It's 09:00 a.m. in Washington, 02:00 p.m. in

London. I'm Christina Macfarlane, and this is "Connect the World".

Also coming up, Iran's Foreign Minister says he'll hold indirect talks on Saturday with U.S. Envoy Steve Witkoff as Donald Trump seeks a diplomatic

deal on nuclear weapons. And the stock market in New York opens in just about 30 minutes from now. Let's take a quick look at the futures, the DOW,

S&P, NASDAQ futures today, all in the green.

Global stocks appear to be off the lows of Monday, but investors and the world are waiting to see if President Trump makes good on that extra 50

percent tariff on China, even as China is vowing to fight to the end. Now the ball is in America's court, that from Iran's Foreign Minister, who says

his country will hold nuclear talks with the United States.

We just learned that Donald Trump's Foreign Envoy, Steve Witkoff will lead the U.S. side in talks in Oman over the weekend. Tehran says the

discussions will be indirect and mediated by Oman. His -- our President -- U.S., President Donald Trump described them.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We're having direct talks with Iran, and they've started. It'll go on Saturday. We have

a very big meeting, and we'll see what can happen. And I think everybody agrees that doing a deal would be preferable to doing the obvious. And the

obvious is not something that I want to be involved with, or frankly, that Israel wants to be involved with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, an Iranian news outlet calls Mr. Trump's claim a quote, psychological operation meant to influence public opinion. Worth noting

too. Tehran and Washington have not engaged in direct formal talks since the Obama Administration negotiated the Iran nuclear deal in 2015, a deal

President Trump quashed three years later.

Joining me to discuss is Mohammad Ali Shabani, Editor of Amwaj Media. Thank you for joining me here in London. I think that announcement came as a bit

of a surprise to all yesterday in the Oval Office, including Benjamin Netanyahu, sitting alongside President Trump. What has been the reaction to

those talks across the Middle East?

MOHAMMAD ALI SHABANI, EDITOR OF AMWAJ MEDIA: So, there has been talk about negotiations commencing, because Trump sent a letter to Iran back in March

saying that there's a two-month deadline for reaching some kind of deal. So, it wasn't a total surprise, but the way in which it was announced,

definitely it made waves.

I think in the region, most countries, with perhaps the exception of Israel, welcome these negotiations. They see it as an opportunity to de-

escalate tensions to avoid a confrontation, which Trump has one, may happen if a deal does not materialize.

MACFARLANE: And we have President Trump say that Iran will be in, quote, great danger if the talks don't do well. I mean, if the two governments

aren't able to reach a deal, is a military option on the table for the U.S.? What options do they have there?

SHABANI: I think a military option has always been on the table for success of U.S. Administration. It's looking at, I think we need to look at the

substance of these negotiations, rather than to go into discussion about whether they're direct or indirect, or which country is going to host them.

What's the substance, if we're talking about a Libya style dismantlement of Iran's nuclear program as the U.S. objective. That's probably a non-starter

for Tehran, and what we're going to see this summer is going to be rising tension, potentially a military confrontation.

If we're talking about what Witkoff is explicitly stated as a verification program to make sure that Iran's nuclear activities are not diverted

towards weapons, towards nuclear weapons, then we may have a deal on the table. So, I think we're just going to have to wait and see this week and

what comes out of those talks.

MACFARLANE: I mean, like you say it's very unlikely that Iran will agree to any sort of dismantling of their nuclear capabilities. So, what is in it

for them? They are under great economic pressure, diplomatic -- domestically at home. What did they want to get out of this?

SHABANI: Iran has long wanted sanctions relief, and he has proven itself as in, in 2015 nuclear deal, which Trump left in 2018 that it is willing to

cap its capabilities. It's willing to cap the level of enrichment, the type of centrifuges, is uses to enrich uranium, and also the stockpile of

uranium.

I think if there's a verification program in place to make sure that these capabilities are capped, and if we have stringent supervision by the IAEA,

the U.N. nuclear watchdog, there is a deal to be had, perhaps not that different from Obama's nuclear deal. Maybe Trump wants to call it the Trump

nuclear deal.

But I think end of the day, if we have verification instead of dismantlement, there is a real prospect for peace ahead.

MACFARLANE: And this is important with, you know, the JCPOA agreement as it stands, extinguishing in like October of this year.

[09:05:00]

So, you're saying that perhaps we could see a framework put in place that isn't that far removed from the sanctions that were previously put on Iran.

SHABANI: We've seen a similar pattern with, for instance, NAFTA and the U.S., Mexico, United States, Canada deal, trade deal, where Trump takes

pre-existing deals, repackages them, adds a few components, and calls it a zone, which is not a huge problem. I think, if you look at the JCPOA, if

you look at the pillars of it, which is about capping capabilities, supervising activities.

If you, for instance, take these timelines that exist in JCPOA, which are supposed to be expiring soon, and you add a couple of years on them, that

could be one way forward.

MACFARLANE: Two sources tell CNN talks between the U.S. and Iran about the possibility of a nuclear agreement are certainly not to Israel's liking, as

we would expect. Israel has long advocated for striking Iran's nuclear capabilities. So how will they be viewing this moment?

SHABANI: I think, under the Biden Administration, Netanyahu had a lot more room for maneuvering. And twice during 2024 Israel struck Iran directly

militarily in struck Iranian military sites, allegedly one nuclear site as well. Under Trump, I think Netanyahu will be very careful to stray, very

careful to be seen as undermining U.S. diplomacy.

So, I think if there is no deal to be had, there's a possibility for Israeli action. But if a deal is in place, or if there's diplomacy towards

a deal, I see very little chance of Israel intervening to kind of sabotage that kind of outreach that's going to enrage Trump in a way that I think

Netanyahu would enrich with Biden.

MACFARLANE: All right. Well, it's an important development, and I know we will be continuing to follow it. We appreciate your thoughts for now,

though. Mohammad, thank you. Now tariffs were also on the agenda as President Trump hosted Israel's Prime Minister, Monday.

America's ally was hit with a 17 percent tariff last week. Benjamin Netanyahu walked away from the meeting with no tariff relief, despite

bringing a proposal to eliminate Israel's trade deficit with the U.S., is what the Minister Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you plan to reduce the tariffs that your government put on Israeli goods, 17 percent?

TRUMP: On where?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: On Israeli goods, the 17 percent? Do you --

TRUMP: Well, we're talking about a whole new trade. Maybe not, maybe not. Don't forget, we help Israel a lot. You know, we give Israel $4 billion a

year. That's a lot. I Congratulations, by the way. But we give Israel billions of dollars a year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, CNN's Jeremy Diamond is in Tel Aviv for us. Jeremy, not particularly good afternoon for Benjamin Netanyahu. In addition to no

tariff release, he was somewhat surprised to learn about that meeting for the proposal of talks with Iran set to take place Saturday, it seemed.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, without a doubt. And you know, the Israeli Prime Minister went into this with the approach of being

deferential to President Trump, even kind of praising his approach on trade, despite the fact that he's trying to get these 17 percent tariffs

removed from Israeli goods.

Important to note that the United States is indeed Israel's largest trading partner, and so these could have quite an impact on the Israeli economy,

but there's no question that President Trump's declaration that he was engaging in direct diplomacy with Iran with a scheduled meeting this coming

Saturday was clearly not something that the Israeli Prime Minister expected, nor that he wanted to hear.

You could see as the expression on his face changed from a smile to that being wiped away as soon as President Trump talked about those coming talks

this Saturday. Two sources familiar with the matter are telling us that indeed, these negotiations between the U.S. and Iran are certainly not to

Israel's liking.

But it's also important to know that Prime Minister Netanyahu has been aware for some time now that President Trump was eager to engage in some

kind of diplomacy with Iran. For several weeks now, we know that President Trump has sent a letter directly to the Supreme Leader of Iran.

The supreme leader then responded with a letter of his own, and now it seems that we are headed for some kind of more direct engagement, although

the Iranians so far don't seem to be fully accepting this prospect of direct negotiations, at least not publicly. But what was also interesting

was that the Israeli Prime Minister, in that moment, you know, recognized that Trump was going to engage in this diplomacy.

He tried to try, and he kind of tried to shape what the outcome of that diplomacy might be, or what successful outcome of diplomacy would look like

by talking about the Libya model, referring to the 2003 deal that saw Libya voluntarily entirely dismantle its nascent nuclear program.

[09:10:00]

And so, anything short of that Netanyahu is trying to tell Trump it is not going to be diplomatic success, and the likelihood of Iran agreeing to that

kind of full-scale dismantlement is going to be quite a challenge to achieve.

MACFARLANE: Additionally, Jeremy, Israel is, as we know, ramping up operations quite significantly in Gaza in the last two weeks. Do we know

what the two men talked about regarding the war itself and those operations?

DIAMOND: Well, we know that President Trump made clear yesterday that he wants to see the war end soon. He also talked about getting the remaining

hostages out, but he really didn't provide much specificity to that or a timeline for when he would like to see the war end.

And rather than applying more pressure to the Israeli Prime Minister, at least publicly, what we saw from President Trump was actually him providing

the Israeli Prime Minister with a good bit of political cover. Netanyahu has been under fire from a majority of the Israeli public really who

believe in a deal to get the remaining hostages out that would also end the war.

Certainly, the families of the hostages have been pressing for freeing the hostages, getting to the next ceasefire deal to be the priority, and many

of them have been angry with the Israeli Prime Minister for restarting this war after Israel carried out attacks in the last few weeks and ended that

ceasefire with Hamas.

We heard President Trump saying that he believes Netanyahu is indeed committed to the fate of the hostages, and that he's, quote, working very

hard to achieve that. And so certainly that was helpful to Netanyahu. That being said, there's no question that the U.S. would like to see a deal.

And the Israeli Prime Minister, for the moment, is focusing more on this kind of military pressure to achieve his aims, which we know from the past

may have contributed to pressure at the negotiating table, but ultimately, it's been clear that the overwhelming majority of hostages who have gotten

out of Gaza have not gotten out through military operations, but rather through negotiations.

MACFARLANE: All right. Jeremy Diamond, there for us in Tel Aviv. Thanks Jeremy. Now China is vowing to fight after the U.S. President promised a

further 50 percent tariff on Beijing. Donald Trump says those will go into effect mid-week if China refuses to drop its 34 percent retaliatory tariffs

on the U.S.

Despite the fresh threats, markets across Asia fed slightly better today after yesterday's sharp sell off, and trading is underway in Europe. Here's

how things are looking there. CNN's Marc Stewart is in Beijing. So, it seems, Marc, China gearing up for one awful, hell of a fight, even in the

face of what is now 104 percent tariff tax from the U.S.

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Right, Christina. I mean, despite what Washington may want, Beijing is not budging. And again, we are continuing

to see this shift from diplomacy to defiance. And if we look at some of the language that we are hearing just today from China, it's very strong,

calling the prospect of these additional tariffs a mistake upon a mistake.

China making it very clear that it would take countermeasures and that it would protect itself. And as far as those countermeasures are concerned,

there was a commentator on state media. A state media commentator talking about the fact that there could be even more tariffs focusing on

agriculture.

We know soybeans are such a big part of the economy for American farmers, also talking about the idea of banning or restricting American films. There

is a very big tool box of weapons, and it's not very clear what China would pull next from its arsenal if things do escalate to this next level.

But what is clear is that the government is being very firm. It's being very strong. Take a listen to what one spokesperson had to say just a few

hours ago here in Beijing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LIN JIAN, CHINESE FOREIGN MINISTRY SPOKESPERSON: Pressure, threats and blackmail are not the right ways to engage with China. If the U.S.

disregards the interests of both countries and the international community, insist on launching a tariff or trade war, China will fight to the end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

STEWART: This is pointed language. China will fight to the end. So, then there's this broader question, would China sit down at the negotiating

table with the United States? And the feeling from Beijing right now is far from optimistic, saying that it doesn't feel that Washington has a genuine

willingness to sit down and to have any kind of substantial talks, Christina.

MACFARLANE: Well, we will wait and see where all of this goes, especially as those retaliatory tariffs come into effect tomorrow.

[09:15:00]

Marc Stewart, appreciate it for now. Thank you. Now still to come, immigration was a hot button election issue, one that likely helped Donald

Trump win re-election, but judges are pushing back on parts of his mass deportation plan. The latest in a live report, straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MACFARLANE: We have some news "Just In" on Russia's war in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says two Chinese nationals have been taken

prisoner in eastern Ukraine while fighting with the Russian army, and he suspects they are not the only Chinese fighters in Russian units.

Mr. Zelenskyy says the foreign ministry has contacted China about this, and he sees China's involvement as a further sign that President Vladimir Putin

is not interested in peace. Donald Trump hit the ground running on immigration right after being sworn in, but activists are raising concerns

his aggressive approach has led to people being wrongly deported.

The Supreme Court temporarily paused a court order mandating that this Maryland man mistakenly deported to El Salvador had to be returned by

midnight Monday. The High Court, at least for now, also lifted a block on using wartime powers to deport alleged gang members. Well, in another case,

an immigration attorney is demanding answers to how her client, a 23-year- old makeup artist with no known ties to gangs ended up in El Salvador.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LINDSAY TOCZYLOWSKI, PRESIDENT OF IMMIGRANT DEFENDERS LAW CENTER: We are gravely concerned for his safety in the -- We know the conditions there. We

know that there are reports of torture, the images of Andry when he arrived there, the what we heard that he was crying for his mom, that he was

pleading for help. I can only imagine how scary this situation is for him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, joining me now to discuss is Kathleen Bush-Joseph. She's a Policy Analyst at Migration Policy Institute. Welcome to you.

KATHLEEN BUSH-JOSEPH, POLICY ANALYST AT MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE: Thank you for having me.

MACFARLANE: So, President Trump and his allies are seeing this pause by the Supreme Court ruling, this ruling as a vindication of their use of the

Alien Enemies Act. What are the implications of this pause?

BUSH-JOSEPH: Thanks so much, Christina. You know, we're only at the initial stages of a lot of these cases. So, while the court has allowed Trump to

use this very old law from 1798 to be quickly deporting people, for now, the case will continue, and we'll have to see what the courts say.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, and on that point, we know Judge Boasberg has not ruled yet on the underlying issue of the case, which is, is it lawful for the

government to invoke the Alien Enemies Act to remove these men? Is it possible the court will, still reverse course on that?

[09:20:00]

BUSH-JOSEPH: It is possible, and this is a truly extraordinary use of what has only been used in the past during times of war, as you well know, it's

now a time of peace, but this really reflects how the Trump Administration is drawing on exceptional and rarely used provisions of the law to be

trying to quickly deport people with little due process.

MACFARLANE: And we're seeing the fallout of that right with this poor Venezuelan makeup artist who's been swept up by the administration here

with no hearing because of seemingly the fact that he has tattoos that they believe he belongs to a gang, and we don't know what's going to happen to

him because he hasn't had his day in court.

How does this play into the wider concern there is now about Trump's or the Trump Administration's fast and aggressive approach?

BUSH-JOSEPH: You know, there are concerns that more people like the man you mentioned, who actually had protection from deportation to El Salvador, the

country he was removed to, could be removed mistakenly, and in the rush, there have been reports of U.S. citizens being arrested. So, there are very

real concerns about how this affects not only immigrants, but also U.S. citizens.

MACFARLANE: And how should U.S. citizens be viewing this moment? Because what we're seeing here is a prioritization of political objectives over

public safety at the expense of, you know, these constitutional protections like due process. You know, where does this lead, and what does this mean

for people who are in the United States, even legally?

BUSH-JOSEPH: You know, we're really seeing the Trump Administration try to deliver on its campaign promises of mass deportations. I do want to quickly

note here that, you know, while we see these high-profile removals to third countries such as El Salvador, Panama and Costa Rica.

At the same time, the administration is actually facing very real constraints. And we have heard reports that President Trump is disappointed

in the pace so far of ICE arrests and deportations.

MACFARLANE: So, a final question is, you know, if we continue to see law enforcement diverted and used in this way, what harm is this causing, and

what message is this really sending about the use of law enforcement within the United States?

BUSH-JOSEPH: Yeah, you know, the Trump Administration is really pushing the boundaries here and using a whole of government approach. So, they've

marshaled agencies, including the IRS, the tax agency, to be assisting with deportations. And there are concerns that investigations of terrorist

threats and of criminals at home are suffering because of this focus on immigration enforcement.

I would also add that, you know, this is having a very real chilling effect, not only on immigrants who are in the country. There are some 14

million people without status currently who fear deportation. But it's also affecting people's choices as to whether or not they want to come to the

United States, be that as visa holders or tourists.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, the risk is calculating by the day, doesn't know where it appears to be for those who are considering visas, but Kathleen Bush-

Joseph, Political Analyst with the Migration Policy Institute, we appreciate your thoughts on this for now. Thank you.

BUSH-JOSEPH: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: All right. Still to come, President Trump is threatening to escalate his trade war with China. So how are the U.S. stock markets

reacting? We'll find out after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:25:00]

MACFARLANE: Welcome back. I'm Christina Macfarlane in London, and you are watching "Connect the World". These are your headlines. China is accusing

the U.S. of economic bullying and protectionism following President Donald Trump's new tariffs on Chinese imports.

And Beijing says it will quote, fight to the end. On Monday, Mr. Trump threatened even more tariffs on China if Beijing doesn't remove its

retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. by today. Well, CNN has learned White House Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff will lead the U.S. side in nuclear talks

with Iran.

The Iranian Foreign Minister said earlier today, the indirect, high-level discussions will take place in Oman on Saturday. Well, it comes a day after

Donald Trump gave a slightly different version, saying direct talks with Tehran were already underway. The U.S. Supreme Court says the Trump

Administration can continue its use of the Alien Enemies Act for deportation, at least for now.

In a five to four decision, the justices lift an injunction sparked by last month's deportation flights to a super prison in El Salvador. The ruling

does require the administration to give proper notice to people who may be removed. And a mistake upon a mistake. That's what China is calling

President Trump's new threat in his escalating trade war.

The president vowed to hit China with an additional 50 percent tariff on top of everything else, unless China removes its own retaliatory tariffs on

the U.S. And yet, despite all this tough talk, there is a glimmer of hope in the markets, not only the U.S. futures, but in Asia too.

The HANG SENG, the NIKKEI and the KOSPI all rebounded after a steep sell off, you can see here. And our next guest says the escalation of tariffs

raises recession risks, and a U.S. recession would mean a global recession. Joining us now is Rajeev Sibal, Senior Global Economist at Morgan Stanley.

Let's start on that point, Sibal. Because, you know, the way I've been reading this, falling share prices doesn't always mean economic misery

ahead, but we have had a number of warning signs of the potential economic decline in the form of falling commodity prices for copper and oil and even

in bank stocks. So, what does that tell us about the chances of recession ahead? How certain it is.

RAJEEV SIBAL, SENIOR GLOBAL ECONOMIST AT MORGAN STANLEY: Hi. Thanks, Christina, thanks for having me. Indeed, we've seen a lot of volatility in

markets, and we're seeing a little bit of respite today. We're seeing that the market is taking some time to reassess and consider what the risks are

to the points you've highlighted, our view is that there are higher risks of recession.

The growth outlook for us is looking to slow down versus where we would have been a couple of weeks ago. The challenge is it's still too early to

understand exactly where we're going to land. Trade is a fundamental part of the U.S. economy, but it's not the largest part of the U.S. economy.

And so having tariffs in place will slow down goods consumption, and it could have effects in the broader economy, but it's really too early to

tell how wide that may spread. And so, for now, we expect to slow down, and we keep an eye out in terms of where consumption may go, where investment

may go, and what that could mean for the U.S. outlook, and then what that could have implications for the global outlook.

MACFARLANE: So, I mean, my next question is going to be, where do we look to in history for sort of context of how bad this crash is going to be?

[09:30:00]

But to your point, you know, we just don't know yet if we're going to see the same levels as perhaps the pandemic even the 1987 market crash. And as

we speak, we are seeing the bell on Wall Street here. Trading is open for the day. On U.S. stocks, we'll wait to see where those numbers land.

But as we're saying, we just don't know that yet. Then what sort of recession we're in for if indeed we reach that point?

SIBAL: Yeah, I know, you've seen in market discussions that those comparisons that you've highlighted in 1987 are often brought up. But from

an economic standpoint, we're looking to the examples of 2017, 2018 when the U.S. imposed tariffs on China. We're looking to other examples where

the U.S. imposed tariffs to kind of better understand what could happen in the economy.

So, you know, the market signal, we came from a very high level in the market we've -- we're normalizing at a lower level. What that means for the

economy is still very complicated. If you look at where the stock market is versus a year ago, we've actually kind of done a round trip, and so the

economy was actually in a very strong place a year ago. So, you know, price action doesn't always reflect what's happening in the economy.

MACFARLANE: And we can see there on our screens, Rajeev, the stock markets, U.S. stock markets, they're all still up in the green, echoing what we saw

in futures earlier today, all three indices up by just over 3 percent. I feel like we're in a bit of a reprieve today, you know, the midst of

yesterday's opening and tomorrow's retaliatory tariffs.

And what is not making that any better is the escalating trade tensions between the United States and China. What is your view on what we're seeing

with those two major trading blocs?

SIBAL: Look, I think this is part of a negotiation. I think China is not going to be the only one where we see over the weeks or the months ahead,

where we see back and forth in terms of what the tariff level should be and what a dialog should be. I think there's been some press lately about a

dialog with Japan as well.

Clearly, China is a very large and important trading partner with the United States, but, you know, I think over the next few months, and this is

part of the reason it's difficult to forecast in the economic sense, because these dialogs, these are negotiations, they're going to be ongoing

for an extended period of time.

And so we kind of have to keep an eye out, not only in China, but across the world, to see how that dialog progresses, and if the tariffs continue

to escalate, or if they retract a little bit, because the dialog progresses, and it's still very early days, and this is why it becomes

difficult from a forecasting process, you know, to your point, trying to frame what the market narrative may mean for the economic outlook.

It's just really difficult to frame that so early in the process, because in and of themselves, tariffs are a drag for the U.S. economy, but they

probably would not create a recession. What would create the recession, in our view, at Morgan Stanley is basically a broadening out of that risk, off

mindset, into investment and into consumption.

And we haven't seen that yet. So that's why I think, like you've highlighted, keeping an eye on these negotiations becomes so critical for

us to better understand what the next month look like.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, if indeed there are any negotiations, right? I mean, at the currently, Donald Trump is not committing to have any dialogs, it

seems. But I just want to -- because we've been, you know, reflecting on this trade war, this developing trade war between China and the United

States.

I just want to get your view on this, because Donald Trump is claiming that the United States are at an advantage here because they are in a trade

deficit. But in reality, which of the two countries do you think will have the ability to absorb more pain in the long run, if indeed this is set to

continue to escalate?

SIBAL: I don't know that it's a relative game, comparing the U.S. economic outlook with tariffs to the Chinese economic outlook with tariffs. You

know, over the past 20, 30, years, it's been a win-win for both sides. The Chinese have a strong current account surplus in their trade with the

United States, but the Americans had also benefited from lower cost of goods.

So as that equilibrium rebalances, I don't know that it's going to necessarily be better for one party or another, but we're going to see. I

guess an adjustment period is the way I would frame it, on both sides of the equation.

MACFARLANE: All right. Rajeev Sibal, we appreciate your thoughts, and we look ahead to tomorrow and what more turmoil could come on Wednesday with

these reciprocal tariffs. We will wait and see. But thank you for now.

SIBAL: Thank you.

MACFARLANE: Now from investors to government officials, let's take a quick look at the international reaction. Or Canada's Prime Minister says the

U.S. is driving itself into a recession with its global trade war. The Trump Administration has already slapped 25 percent tariffs on some

Canadian goods, including steel and aluminum.

And on top of that, the U.S. is planning to raise duties on Canadian softwood from more than 14 percent to nearly 35 percent Canadian leaders

warn that it will send U.S. home prices skyrocketing. Prime Minister Mark Carney is trying to reassure Canadians that despite all the U.S. imposed

chaos, Canada can look after itself.

[09:35:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: The situation at the heart of this is uncertainty about U.S. policy. Or to make it worse, is greater certainty

that U.S. policy will be self-harming to the American economy, and therefore the global economy, if the U.S. doesn't walk back from this

tariff policy.

We can't control the United States. We can control President Trump's decision. We can speak and we do and, you know, influence and form. We can

control what we do here in this country.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, Mexico's President said Trump's tariffs are not in her country's best interests. Claudia Sheinbaum hopes there is still a chance

to convince the U.S. President to drop them, but she says she won't rule out reciprocal tariffs if they protect the Mexican people.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CLAUDIA SHEINBAUM, MEXICAN PRESIDENT: As much as possible, we would like to avoid imposing reciprocal tariffs. I'll tell you why. Cars have their own

characteristic, but particularly on steel and aluminum, the increase of 25 percent which we won't rule out, but we prefer continuing with talks before

any other measure, it would represent increases in the Mexico price. So of course, we want to protect Mexican industry, Mexican companies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Well, the EU is considering its options as new tariffs loom. The European Commission President says it will explore markets beyond the

U.S. for new trade opportunities. The block has already made deals with Mexico and Switzerland and is looking into new agreements with Indo-Pacific

nations. Ursula von der Leyen says she's still hoping to strike a deal with the U.S.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: We stand ready to negotiate with the United States. Indeed, we have offered zero for zero

tariffs for industrial goods, as we have successfully done with many other trading partners, because Europe is always ready for good deal. So, we keep

it on the table, but we are also prepared to respond through counter measures and defend our interests.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MACFARLANE: Now we are following breaking news in the Dominican Republic, at least 18 people have died and dozens more are injured after the roof of

a nightclub collapsed. Authorities fear there were more than 300 people inside the venue at the time of collapse.

Joining me now is Correspondent Jessica Hasbun, she is in Santo Domingo. Jessica, tell us more about what you're learning about the disaster there.

JESSICA HASBUN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning. From the Santo Domingo right outside the Jet Set club where authorities are working tirelessly to

try to find more people under the rubble. At this time, like you mentioned, at least 18 people have been confirmed dead, and more than 121 were

transported to local hospitals after the roof collapsed at this nightclub hotel here in Santo Domingo, early Tuesday.

Authorities said crews are searching for potential survivors under the rubble. Jet Set is one of the most visited disc attacks here in Santo

Domingo and the panorama right now, authorities have said that could be at least 300 people inside under the rubble. They are working tirelessly to

try to find survivors.

It's been about 8.5 hours since that roof collapsed. And the images and the anguish throughout this entire area is really heartbreaking, seeing family

members just waiting to find out information about their loved ones. While we've been here since about 7 o'clock this morning, local time, at least 6

people have been rescued from under the rubble and transported to local hospitals.

Authorities fear these numbers will increase throughout the day. Like I said, they are working tirelessly to try to find more people under the

rubble. It is a tragedy like no other. Authorities have said, the last time we had a tragedy similar to this was the explosion in San Cristobal in 2023

but that was an explosion.

This just the roof collapsed. People were having a good time. They were dancing and join their night out. This is a discotheque that people of all

ages come right from 18 and over. This is a center of the city that a large array of people come and enjoy this place.

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A very recognized singer was in there, in the middle of this situation, when that roof collapsed. And you can see, I mean, rescue teams are

working. They've have not stopped since 1 o'clock this morning, local time. And we are waiting on those updates from authorities.

They're happening about every 30 minutes, and they're working hard. They said that they're not leaving this area until they get everybody out of the

rubble.

MACFARLANE: Yeah.

HASBUN: The President Luis Abinader was here. He's been on top of this situation since the news broke out.

MACFARLANE: Yeah.

HASBUN: And authorities were informed of this tragedy. We're going to keep a close eye with everything that's happening.

MACFARLANE: Thank you, Jessica.

HASBUN: Christina, this is a true tragedy, a developing story, and we'll have it all for you.

MACFARLANE: Yeah, we can see it developing there. We can see the rescue teams and what look like families and one only imagines what is going

through their minds right now. But thank you for now, we'll continue to keep across this. And that is it for this hour of "Connect the World".

We'll have much more news at the top of the hour. "World Sport" is after this quick break. Stay with us.

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