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Connect the World
Trump Declines to Say if U.S. Would Defend Taiwan Against China; Rubio Generates Slew of Memes While Traveling with Trump; UAE Building New Pipeline to Bypass Strait of Hormuz; Indian PM Modi Meets with UAE's President During Short Visit; Israel-Lebanon Talks to Continue Friday in Washington, D.C. Aired 9-10a ET
Aired May 15, 2026 - 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)
ERICA HILL, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: You're looking at live pictures there of the White House, President Trump, of course, on his way back to
Washington at this hour, he leaves China saying he made no commitments on Taiwan, while emphasizing a steadier relationship with Beijing.
It is 09:00 a.m. in Washington. Also 09:00 a.m. here in New York. I'm Erica Hill in for Becky Anderson. This is "Connect the World". Also, ahead this
hour. This is the scene in Havana as Cuba struggles with severe shortages of fuel, food and power. A closer look as well this hour at just who could
replace Keir Starmer as Britain's Prime Minister.
But we do begin this hour with U.S. President Donald Trump, who offered a very lengthy de brief responding to questions from reporters aboard Air
Force One on his way home from that closely watched trip to China. Trump says a lot of problems were settled. One of the big items, though, he was
expected to talk about tariffs, he says was not discussed at all.
What was discussed, the war in Iran and the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. And also, Taiwan, which Chinese Leader Xi Jinping had said at the
outset to these talks he considered to be the number one issue between the two countries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: We discussed arm sales.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's his request --
TRUMP: We discussed the Taiwan, you know, the whole thing with the arm sales in great detail, actually, and I'll be making decisions.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What --
TRUMP: But you know, I think the last thing we need right now is a war that's 9500 miles away. I think that's the last thing we're doing very
well.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With the U.S. defend Taiwan, if it came --
TRUMP: -- to say that there's only one person that knows that. You know who it is, me. I'm the only person that question was asked to me today by
President Xi. I said I don't talk about that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: CNN's Julia Benbrook has more now on the president's comments, and also more on that visit to Beijing.
JULIA BENBROOK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're still looking for a lot of specifics. As President Donald Trump has announced that during this summit
with Chinese Leader Xi Jinping that they solved a lot of problems. He has not gone into specific details on exactly what those solutions might look
like, exactly what they're related to.
But as you mentioned, he spoke for roughly 30 minutes on Air Force One as he travels back from Beijing from this summit that both leaders have
characterized as leading to a steadier relationship here. And he did speak about Taiwan, specifically, you went into some detail there.
But he said that he has not made a commitment either way, on the arms sales specifically, he said that he'll make a determination. And that comes after
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in an interview with NBC, said that U.S. policy toward Taiwan is, quote, unchanged.
He said that this is something that China brings up often, and that the United States has made it clear where they stand when it comes to Iran,
that's a topic that loomed over this summit. Right before Trump went on this trip, the United States had sent a proposal to end the conflict to
Iran.
Iran responded, and Trump made it very clear he was not happy with their response. He called it totally unacceptable. And while speaking with
reporters, Trump said that if he doesn't like the first sentence of something, he'll just throw it away and move on. Related to that Iranian
response.
And he was pressed, what was in that first sentence, he said they needed to make it clear that they would not have a nuclear weapon, and that was not
clear to him. So, we do know that Trump has plans to host Xi here at the White House in September, September 24th is that exact invite date. So, a
lot could happen between now and then.
HILL: Yeah absolutely. Julia Benbrook joining us there from the White House. Also, with us this hour. Mike Valerio, who is live in Beijing, it
was the first we heard extensively, of course, from the president really, over the course of these two days, he hadn't responded much to questions
from the press while he was in Beijing, certainly responding, though, on board Air Force One.
MIKE VALERIO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. And you know, we want to pick up where Julia Benbrook left off at the White House. And let's talk
specifically about Taiwan. We have the transcript of the president's remarks as Julia was saying, it's about 27 minutes that he talked to
members of the press.
And one of our colleagues on board Air Force One essentially asked the President that President Xi Jinping here in China, said that there was a
risk of conflict with the United States because of Taiwan, and how the president would respond to that.
[09:05:00]
Parsing language that the president elicited not too long ago, we just got the tape back a short time ago, he said, quote, I don't think there's a
conflict. I don't think that there is a risk. We don't need their strait, meaning the Strait of Taiwan. So that is certainly language to give many in
the region pause and certainly follow up questions.
What exactly does he mean by we don't need their strait, meaning the Strait of Taiwan. Also, another reporter asked, Mr. President, can you elaborate?
And he said, no, I don't think that there's a risk of a conflict. I think we're going to be fine. I think we'll be fine. He doesn't want to see a
war.
He meaning Xi Jinping, the Leader of China. It was interesting, though, on board Air Force One the great David Sanger, CNN Contributor and Reporter
extraordinaire of "The New York Times" followed up and said, OK, Mr. President. Well, it seems as though, since the Reagan Administration,
there's been a policy of not consulting with China about arm sales to Taiwan since certainly the $14 billion arms sale that was green lit to
Taiwan is still sitting on the president's desk.
So, David Sanger then asks, on Air Force One, were you consulting with Chinese Leader Xi Jinping? And the president said, paraphrasing, for the
sake of our conversation, Erica, he says, oh, the 1980s was a long time ago, and what do you want me to do? Not discuss it. We were having an
extensive conversation about Taiwan.
So certainly, myriad details revealed on the plane heading back to D.C., but in terms of where we are now, as Julia was talking about very little
specifics when it comes to the deliverables. But there does seem to be a palpable mood in the change in atmosphere as it relates to the
relationship, at least right now, moving from extremely tense the nadir of the trade war back in the summer of last year.
Till now, you have so many people in Beijing seeing a sense of rejuvenation in the relationship over the past two days. So, I want to throw to throw to
some tape. We're going to listen to a sound bite of somebody certainly who has a lot of gratitude that this visit happened without a hitch from the
Chinese perspective, and then somebody who is grateful about the president and his trade war policies. We'll talk about it on the other side.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: As ordinary people, of course, we don't hope for any conflict between the two countries. Both are major powers. If there is
conflict, it is actually not very good for either country.
MR. SHEN, CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY WORKER: Trump's policies of imposing external sanctions have actually further galvanized us to strive for self-
reliance and independence. In that respect, I actually quite like this president.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VALERIO: So, self-reliance is pretty big when we're talking about Chinese reliance on advanced semiconductors and AI chips. That was certainly their
biggest vulnerability that was revealed during the trade war. The American vulnerability, of course, the reliance on rare earth minerals, with the
monopoly of refining and extracting from the earth that China has.
Also, on Air Force One the president was asked, what is going to happen with reopening the Strait of Hormuz? Did you ask Xi Jinping about that? And
he said, again, paraphrasing, that he didn't want to put in the Ask with China, because if he did, they would ask for something in return.
So, a lot of questions that need to be asked, certainly on the Sunday shows back home in America and when the president returns to D.C., Erica?
HILL: Yeah, the president very clear on that point, saying, I don't need favors. A lot of headlines coming out of it.
VALERIO: Yeah --
HILL: Still a lot of questions that deserve some detail. We will be looking for more that follow up as well. Mike, thank you. President Trump's
entourage with him on this trip included a number of top cabinet members, the Secretaries of Defense and the treasury were there.
Of course, Secretary of State, Marco Rubio as well, who merges an unlikely star of the trip back home on social media. CNN's Will Ripley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before the talks in Beijing even began, this became one of the most talked about
moments of the summit. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, seemingly mesmerized by the massive chandeliers and ornate ceiling decorations inside
Beijing's Great Hall of the People.
Right away a flood of memes mocking Rubio for comparing decorating ideas with defense secretary Pete Hegseth, is he getting inspiration for Trump's
White House ballroom, Rubio knowing he'll have to do the White House ceilings when they get back. And this Marco Rubio finding out he has to
become the new President of Venezuela, a nod to Rubio's now viral gray Nike track suit aboard Air Force One.
The same style many online users compare to the tracksuit worn by Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro after his arrest earlier this year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What's the context for that?
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: There's no context. It's a nice suit. I mean, I like it. It's comfortable.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was the same one Maduro was wearing.
RUBIO: It is. But you know what? He copied me because I had it before.
RIPLEY (voice-over): President Trump keeps handing Rubio more jobs, Secretary of State, National Security Advisor, Acting U.S. Aid Chief,
temporary archivist, which has helped turn Rubio into an online punchline.
[09:10:00]
The secretary of everything, Marco Rubio finding out he is now the DJ at your wedding. DJ Marco on the ones and twos on AF1.
Poking fun at this viral video posted by White House Advisor Dan Scavino, Rubio DJing a family wedding. And Rubio riffing on Cypress Hill lyrics
while talking about Iran's leadership.
RUBIO: The top people in that government are, to say the least. You know, they're insane in the brain. They should check themselves before they wreck
themselves.
More means Rubio, after finding out he needs to be the Supreme Leader of Iran in 72 hours, hashtag, World War Three. And on a much lighter note,
Rubio as the Easter Bunny.
TRUMP: Who likes Marco Rubio? All right.
RIPLEY (voice-over): At the Rose Garden, even President Trump making jokes about a future dream team ticket with Vice President JD Vance and Rubio
with the VP back in D.C., Rubio is breaking the internet from Beijing, which is especially awkward because technically, China still has him
sanctioned.
RIPLEY (on camera): Beijing sanctioned Rubio in 2020 as a U.S. Senator for criticizing China's human rights record. There's viral speculation online,
China changed the Chinese spelling of Rubio's name by one character to quietly let the secretary of state into the country.
But CNN Beijing Bureau Chief Steven Jiang says Chinese officials have used different translations of Rubio's name for years, and Beijing has already
been signaling the sanctions applied to Rubio, the senator, not Rubio, the diplomat. Will Ripley. CNN, Taipei.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Well, President Trump notably said he did not ask his Chinese counterpart for any favors when it comes to Iran. Mr. Trump says it
appears, though, that he and Xi Jinping are aligned in agreeing that Tehran cannot have a nuclear weapon and both wanted the conflict to end.
Just hours earlier, the U.S. President had posted on social media that the war was, quote, to be continued, signaling he could resume U.S. attacks on
Iran and speaking with reporters on Air Force One he was asked about that directly, Mr. Trump said he threw out Iran's latest proposal.
Meantime, after he read the first sentence, which he called unacceptable. CNN's Paula Hancocks is following the latest for us from Abu Dhabi, notable
as well that Xi Jinping said that this is a war that should have never been started, Paula, when it comes to Iran, it does not appear that there was a
lot of movement coming out of this visit.
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not really Erica, no, I think the message certainly that the U.S. President wanted to portray was that he and
Xi Jinping were in lock step. They were in agreement when it came to the fundamentals of the war in Iran. Let's listen first of all to what the U.S.
President said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: On Iran, it's very interesting. You feel strongly they can't have a nuclear weapon. Said that very strongly, they cannot have a nuclear weapon,
and he wants them to open up the strait, but as he said, they closed it, and then you close them with a smile.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HANCOCKS: Now we didn't hear anything like that from the side of Beijing. It's less likely we would. There are far fewer details when it comes to
their readouts of these meetings, but what we saw from a White House statement, a read out of a previous meeting, was that they believe Xi
Jinping has said that he doesn't want to see the militarization of the Strait of Hormuz or any tolls as well, but that just coming from the U.S.
side at this point.
Now, we did hear from President Trump in a meeting, excuse me, in an interview with Fox News, saying that China had also offered to help. They
said that if it was necessary, they could play a mediator's role in order to try and solve the issue with Iran. We also, though heard from the U.S.
Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, that the U.S. did not ask for any help.
Now, Iran would have been watching these meetings very closely. Iran a very close partner of China. We know, of course, China is really the number one
buyer of Iranian oil, and the foreign minister was there just about 10 days ago before this meeting. I do have a statement I want to read from a
foreign ministry spokesperson in China saying, quote, this war, which should never have happened, has no need to continue.
Finding an early path to resolution would benefit both the U.S. and Iran, as well as countries in the region and the world as whole. Now we also know
that the foreign minister has made comments at a BRICS summit, he has said that he welcomes the efforts and the offer by China to get involved in
diplomacy, Erica.
[09:15:00]
HILL: As we're watching all of this play out and the questions are still there about what will happen with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, the UAE
talking about a new pipeline now that would actually get around the Strait of Hormuz. What more do we know about that?
HANCOCKS: Yes, so this would be a second pipeline that can bypass the Strait of Hormuz. The UAE is in a geographically convenient position that
anything on its East Coast does not have to pass through that critical waterway, which is really the key of many of the issues that are coming up
at this point with the energy crisis.
This we understand, would be called the West East pipeline. It would be operational by 2027. Kpler said that some 1.5 million barrels of oil a day
were able to be pumped out from Fujairah on the East Coast up until this point that this would be an additional pipeline.
And of course, it comes as the UAE has pulled out of OPEC. It is withdrawn from OPEC because it wants to break itself from the restrictions of output
from the what is called, often the oil cartel. Also, we did see here in the UAE today that the Indian Leader Narendra Modi was here meeting with the
Emirates Lader as well.
There were discussions we understand on key agreements when it comes to energy, and also when it comes to defense, both sides saying that those
agreements and talks went well. Modi himself, tweeting that it was short but highly productive visit to the UAE, Erica.
HILL: All right, Paula, appreciate it. Thank you. Talks meantime between Israeli and Lebanese officials resuming today in Washington after what the
U.S. called productive and positive and positive talks on Thursday. The third round of discussions comes against a backdrop of continuing violence
between Israel and Hezbollah.
In Southern Lebanon motors said their goodbyes on Thursday to loved ones killed in an Israeli strike the day before the tenuous ceasefire between
Israel and Hezbollah is due to expire in the coming days, unless a new agreement can be reached. Still ahead here on "Connect the World", the
latest moves to try to oust British Prime Minister Keir Starmer from Downing Street.
And a closer look at a political potential challenger, Andy Burnham, England's so-called King of the North. And anger on the streets of Havana
as the country's energy crisis worsens. In the midst of all of that, an extraordinary meeting. We'll talk about the message delivered during a rare
visit to Cuba, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: As Cuba deals with the collapse of its energy sector, officials there received an extraordinary visitor, CIA Director John Ratcliffe. U.S.
officials say they're ready to help. Should Cuba make some major changes. Meantime, U.S. sanctions against Cuba have led to an effective oil
blockade, with Cuban officials warning that reserves keeping the electrical grid running are depleted at this point.
That crisis has left many Cubans angry and frustrated. Patrick Oppman is joining us now from Havana.
[09:20:00]
Quite the visit, quite the message, of course, coming from that U.S. official. What more do we know?
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: An extraordinary visit. Because if the U.S. is the evil empire for Cuba, then the CIA is really kind of the devil
itself. They have accused, of course, the CIA of trying to kill Fidel Castro decades ago, being behind every plot that has ever faced this
nation.
And so, to have the CIA Director come here on a plane that says United States of America on the side, hardly very subtle, is just something I
really honestly never thought we would see here. But very clearly, the CIA Director saying yesterday to his counterparts, Cuban intelligence
officials, you know, change or else that Cuba, according to the Trump Administration, is a threat to the United States and that Cuba needs to
change its behavior, or there will be consequences.
Cuban officials, for their part, saying they again expressed that Cuba is a country that does not have many resources. You know, the power is hardly on
these days, and that Cuba does not present any threat. That just has a different form of government. All the same, the impacts of U.S. policy on
this already failing economy are being seen here day by day.
I went out last night in Havana and there were power ranges across the city. People going out and knocking on pots and pans because they said that
the power had been off in their neighborhoods for more than 20 hours, that food was now spoiling the fridge. They could not get their kids to school,
and that essentially, you know, whatever has to happen.
They want it to happen because they said to me, this is not living anymore.
HILL: So, Patrick, the U.S. delegation, you touched on this a little bit, but they were really stressing that there needs to be some significant
change when it comes to the economy, when it comes to governance. But there was also talk about political prisoners. I mean in terms of specifics that
the U.S. is asking for.
How much of that seems, from your vantage point, something that could and would likely change anytime soon?
OPPMANN: None of it. This is a government that has stayed in power by resisting pressure from the outside, by resisting change, and they feel
that they've done the right things because they're still in power. And yet their own economists have said, you know, open up to the private sector,
that what we do does not work.
You see that every day in the communist run country, and they have simply resisted those calls, sometimes coming from inside of Cuba. And so, you
know, it is not all the fault of this oil blockade that the economy is in essentially collapsed at this point. Certainly, it has been the final blow,
but this has been a long time coming.
You've even heard Cuban officials saying how they needed to change over the years and that they were on the road to ruin, and yet those changes, those
reforms, never came. And so that is where the U.S., despite all the sanctions that the U.S. puts on here, the economic sanctions, they say that
Cuba will never be prosperous.
And that having a failed nation that is in -- according to the U.S., provides spy bases to other countries, is an actor that works with Russia
and China off U.S. shores, that is not in the interest of the U.S., and that is what needs to change. You know the Cubans say that they have the
right to have their own government and decide their own policies.
But very clearly, the U.S. is saying that the time to change is now, and that if they think they continue, can continue to kind of thwart U.S.
interests and act in contrary to U.S. interests, then they're very mistaken, and that more sanctions and perhaps even more drastic measures
could be in store.
Certainly, Donald Trump has flowed the idea of military intervention against the Cuban government, and that is something I will tell you they
take very, very seriously here.
HILL: Yeah, Patrick. Really appreciate it as always. Thank you. Well, the U.S. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks is now out telling CNN he's decided
to step down because he wants to enjoy his life and his family after almost 37 years of public service.
Banks is the third high profile official to lead, leading rather President Trump's immigration policy to leave or be fired in recent weeks. Former
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was sacked in March. Acting I.C.E. Director Todd Lyons is set to leave at the end of the month.
We are keeping a close watch on what is unfolding overseas. In Britain, the leadership drama there really ramping up. Greater Manchester Mayor Andy
Burnham another possible challenger to the prime minister is attempting to reenter parliament. So that would be a necessary step if you wanted to try
for number 10.
It could also lead to a drawn-out leadership contest. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been facing, of course, revolt in his Labor Party since its
disastrous local election results last week in England.
[09:25:00]
We'll take you live now to London. CNN's Anna Cooban joins us now with the very latest. So, no shortage of developments this week, that is for sure,
bring us up to speed on where we stand at this hour, Anna?
ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS & ECONOMICS REPORTER: Well, many things need to happen in order for Andy Burnham, the current Mayor of Greater Manchester,
in order to challenge Keir Starmer in a potential leadership race, he first of all needs to run to become a member of parliament.
Now, an MP in the north of England has stepped aside to allow him to do that. That election could take weeks. And then once, if he wins our
election, he then needs to mount a formal challenge against Keir Starmer. This would all push us into the autumn, but it is not a slam dunk.
We know that reform a hard right party was surging in the local elections last week. And so, any election that Burnham would run to become a member
of parliament, he would have to beat reform. Now many people are saying that is possible. He is the best chance that Labor has of beating reform in
the general election in a couple of years.
And that is what everybody is really holding their breath for.
HILL: -- this moment, I think what are voters saying? What are average folks on the street saying as they're watching all of this unfold and
wondering about their own future?
COOBAN: Well, I think what Keir Starmer has tried to say repeatedly is that he does not want to see for this country a return of the chaos, so called
chaos of the preceding conservative government, where we had a revolving door of prime minister's leadership challenges every year or so, if there
is a successor to Starmer in the next few months, that will be the sixth prime minister in seven years in the United Kingdom.
Now the government has really touted some positive data that's come out in the past couple days, waiting times for the National Health Service are
down. Also, the economy was the fastest growing economy in the G7 over the first three months of the year. But for voters, you know these headline
statistics, they don't mean much if your day-to-day reality is that you can't afford the cost of living is high.
Wages are growing slowly compared with inflation. And I think it's that day to day reality which is what people are going to be voting on, when they
hit the ballot box, potentially in this election that might usher in Burnham, but also in that general election in a couple of years.
So, we are finding ourselves in yet another period of political instability in the United Kingdom.
HILL: Yeah, absolutely. Anna, really appreciate it. Thank you. Still ahead here on "Connect the World". A closer look at the trade deals coming out of
that Trump-Xi summit in Beijing, what was and was not announced after two days of talks.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: Right, you are looking at live pictures there from the New York Stock Exchange. We are a matter of seconds away from the opening bell on this
Friday morning.
[09:30:00]
A lot of focus here, of course, as investors weigh in on how they feel about these two days of talks between President Trump and President Xi of
China. A lot of headlines coming out of that. Headlines related to trade deals, but the specifics of many of those deals, those remain light.
The two countries did announce that those minor developments, but really, as this -- bell ring here, lacking any major breakthroughs when it comes to
more sensitive areas, including international sanctions, tech export controls. Among the announced deals, China ordering 200 Boeing aircraft and
purchasing billions of dollars of U.S. agricultural products.
Those offer important headlines, of course, but it's really important to stress that we have very little in the way of details on those deals. And
analysts also advising caution here, one pointing out a number of multibillion dollar agreements that were announced after President Trump's
first trip to China in 2017 during his first term, those deals never happened.
On the way home from Beijing, President Trump telling reporters a short time ago, the issue of tariffs did not come up for discussion in his
meetings with President Xi. CNN Global Economic Analyst, Rana Foroohar joins us now. So, Rana, I found that surprising as I was listening to the
president's comments this morning, as they were coming in, touting so much when it comes to in depth discussions that he did have on a number of
topics, but not tariffs. Is that surprising to you?
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Not really, you know. The truth of the matter is that the tariff situation between the U.S. and China is
pretty much now set. It's pretty clear that there's not going to be any kind of major change. I actually, you know, was in Washington talking to
different officials before the summit.
There was not a whole lot of sense that there was going to be some kind of major breakthrough. You know, what I was hearing was that steady as Xi
goes, both sides just want to not escalate any situations, to not create new trade wars, or, you know, make things more inflamed, but that they're
not really expecting huge progress.
In some ways, this was much more a geopolitical summit. You know, you heard a lot of talk about Iran. You heard some talk about Taiwan. So, the deals
that we heard China is going to buy a few more airplanes, some more soy beans, pretty much what we expected. I think it was a success in the sense
that, you know, no major blow ups, but definitely not any kind of a game changer.
HILL: In terms of that, you mentioned Iran.
FOROOHAR: Yeah.
HILL: Let's talk about oil, if we could, for a minute, the fact that the president said he's considering lifting sanctions on Chinese companies
buying Iranian oil. That's in addition to a potential U.S.-China energy deal here for China to buy more U.S. oil supply. You know, oil rising once
again today.
No movement on opening the strait. How do you see these potential moves by the U.S. and China impacting that situation?
FOROOHAR: Well, you know, what you saw was Trump putting some pressure on Xi to really use Chinese influence to try and open up the strait. He did
not, Xi did not make a comment saying, yeah, we think that's a good idea. Yeah, we're going to move. I mean, it was kind of mums the word here.
China doesn't want to talk much about Iran, because, frankly, the current situation is in some ways, serving China. The fact that the U.S. is in this
very asymmetric war, and the U.S., major global player, Iran, able to stand its ground, it's not made the administration look great.
It's driven up oil prices. It's made a lot of American allies upset. Yes, it's raised the cost of fuel for China. But China is, in some ways, using
this opportunity to move even more quickly to a clean energy future, which it dominates. It dominates electric vehicles, lithium batteries.
So, the situation in Iran, although, yeah, great for China to be able to buy more U.S. oil is as a geo strategic matter, really kind of favoring
China at the moment.
HILL: You also mentioned soybean, so -- soybean, excuse me, futures actually selling off sharply after the U.S.
FOROOHAR: Yeah.
HILL: You talked about this big commitment from China to buy for U.S. farmers who have been hit incredibly hard as we know. It's also a promise
that's happened in the past hasn't necessarily been followed through. Soybeans are the top U.S. export to China, the world's largest buyer.
When we look at what has happened to soybean farmers in this moment and how important soybeans can be to trade negotiations, the fact that we're seeing
this off, there's not a lot of faith in what is coming out of this?
FOROOHAR: Yeah. You know, 100 percent and I think it reflects this larger paradigm that China has made it very clear it wants to be independent of
Western Tech, independent of Western Ag and energy. Ultimately, China doesn't want to be locked into things like oil purchases or soybean
purchases from the U.S.
The market knows that farmers know that, and the fact that the U.S. government is still wildly subsidizing soybean production, as opposed to
say, you know, helping farmers shift to different cash crops, or even helping them grow more fruits and vegetables at home, because the U.S. is
importing more of those healthy foods at the moment is, I think, a policy failure on the part of the U.S. government.
[09:35:00]
HILL: Rana, I always get to talk to you. Thank you.
FOROOHAR: Thank you.
HILL: Catherine, the Princess of Wales, wrapping up her first overseas trip since completing her cancer treatments. The solo trip was focused on her
work with the Royal Foundation Center for Early Childhood. Here's CNN's Max Foster with more.
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Prince Chapesa Katerina, two words you keep hearing here in Reggio Emilia, Princess Catherine, of course, she's
just visited. She was here for less than 48 hours. A huge presence when she arrived, thousands of people.
But what started out as a fascination in her actually turned into something the other way around. Her fascination into this town because she came here
to learn about how the very youngest people in society, under-fives are educated. So, she wanted to find out about this way of teaching, which
isn't sticking children in the classroom and instructing them, but by giving them objects, taking them outside and letting them explore.
Using all their senses, you know, smelling, seeing, tasting everything that's around them, whatever it is, but allowing them to lead the learning
and to learn for themselves without being told what to do. The princess feels that if you can get that early learning correct, then you can solve
many of our toughest problems in society, for example, addiction.
And she now feels this is a global mission for her, to encourage the world to take early learning more seriously. And she wants to take those ideas
back to the UK and keep going on trips like this. And I've never seen her actually quite as enthused as she was meeting the young kids here, and the
difference that the system they use here, the Reggio approach, because she's been through this period of recovery from cancer.
She's gone through this life changing experience as an A described it to me. And now she wants to throw herself into her work even more, but she has
to balance it with that recovery. But what I think we're going to see is her back on the global stage, traveling the world, trying to promote what
she sees as a key cause for her and indeed, the planet up there with climate change. Max Foster, CNN, Reggio Emilia, Italy.
HILL: And stay with us. You're watching "Connect the World". We're back after a quick break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HILL: This week, we are exploring the global rise of Korean film and drama as part of "K-Everything", CNN original series with Daniel Dae Kim. Vice
Chairwoman of CJ Group, Miky Lee, is an Entertainment Industry Pioneer in Korea. Daniel sits down with her in Los Angeles this year.
How Lee helped create the infrastructure of the Korean film industry through building cinemas and nurturing top talent.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DANIEL DAE KIM, HOST OF K-EVERYTHING: You were one of the ones who were insisting that one day Korean culture would be at the center of the world.
[09:40:00]
MIKY LEE, VICE CHAIRWOMAN OF CJ GROUP: Yes. How did you know that?
KIM: Everyone in the business knows Miky Lee. She was born in 1958 granddaughter of the Founder of CJ and Samsung. He died in 1987 the same
year South Korea transitioned from military rule to democracy.
LEE: My grandfather always told us, growing up, the nation will have the true competitive advantage when power of culture is combined with
industrial and economic growth.
KIM: At that time, awareness of Korean culture was much different from what it is today.
LEE: Yeah. Are you from North Korea -- South Korea? that was the most asked question when I answered like, oh, I'm from Korea.
KIM (voice-over): In 1995 Miky led CJ's $300 million investment in DreamWorks, a studio founded by Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg and
David Geffen. In exchange, she asked for advice on how Korea could replicate Hollywood's success.
LEE: And they always emphasized very important two points entertainment business is making intangible asset into tangible, lucrative business. So,
you need to build infrastructure that the creators and artists can continue to create the storytelling and their performance and their creative
activity.
KIM (voice-over): So, she built multiplex theaters Korea's first and launched CJ cinema Empire spanning seven countries.
KIM: What gave you the idea that you would want to do this and make this your mission?
LEE: Somehow, I have the belief that Koreans have the great passion for music and storytelling. Our story telling, there is always the layered
narrative and emotional density.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HILL: Daniel Dae Kim goes behind the scenes of Korea's film and TV industry in the CNN original series, "K-Everything". You can catch this new episode
Saturday on CNN, and of course, you can full stream the full series on CNN All Access, and also HBO Max.
That's going to do it for this first hour of "Connect the World". Stay tuned. "World Sport" is up next. I'll see you right back here at the top of
the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:45:00]
(WORLD SPORT)
[10:00:00]
END
