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Trump: U.S. Strikes will Get Much Worse if Iran Hits Ships; CNN on Board USS Abraham Lincoln; Democrat Platner Drops Out of Maine Senate Race; U.S. Emergency Oil Stockpile Falls to Lowest Level Since 1980s; France Take on Morocco in Rematch of 2022 Semifinal. Aired 9-10a ET

Aired July 09, 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)

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: You're watching live pictures from Mashhad in Iran, where the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is being

laid to rest. It is 04:30 p.m. in Iran. It is 05:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi. I'm Becky Anderson from our Middle East and Gulf Programming Headquarters.

You're watching "Connect the World".

Also coming up, a second straight day of back and forth strikes between U.S. and Iranian forces. CNN is on the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Northern

Arabian Sea. We got a special report from there for you coming up. And U.S. Democrats in Maine are scrambling to find a new candidate for Senate seat

as Graham Platner drops out of the race. Why that is important is coming up.

Well, the stock market in New York opens about 30 minutes from now. It looks as if it's a sort of mix to better picture on these markets today.

The U.S.-Iran conflict escalating again has had a knock on these markets, has had, you know, an influence on the price of oil. We'll talk about that

at the bottom of the hour as well.

But we'll wait to see what happens when these markets open, but that seems to be a clear indication that they're sort of in better shape than they

were yesterday. Well, Iran's late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is being buried today at the Imam Reza Shrine in Mashhad, as the U.S. and

Iran continue to exchange military strikes.

U.S. Central Command says it hit 90 military targets along the Iranian coastline overnight. The U.S. has not verified claims by Iran that it hit

even more targets around midday today, just in the past couple of hours. Well, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard says in response to those U.S.

attacks it targeted American bases in Bahrain and Kuwait, while the Iranian army says it also hit a U.S. site in Qatar.

Well, the escalating violence triggering high-level calls between Gulf nations as countries across the region face the threat of further attacks.

Well, for more, let's get you to CNN's Fred Pleitgen he is on the ground in Iran. Alayna Treene is at the White House, and Dina Esfandiary is Middle

East Lead Bloomberg Economics. She is joining us today from Geneva.

Let's start with you, Alayna. And I want to start with how U.S. and Gulf nations are responding to these latest strikes. Iran says it targeted U.S.

bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, the military side in Qatar, after being targeted itself by U.S. strikes of course.

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, look, Becky, I think one of course, these retaliatory strikes from Iran in response. I mean, it

actually depends on who you ask. The U.S. is arguing that this is in retaliation initially to Iran striking vessels in the Strait of Hormuz, and

of course now we're seeing these tit-for-tat exchanges of strikes be carried out over recent days.

But because of the increased hostilities, we know that the Trump Administration, the U.S. military, they had been expecting retaliation on

U.S. bases in the region, exactly what we've seen from Iran. But I do want to give you a little sense, Becky, of the scope of these attacks.

Over the past two days U.S. forces have struck 170 Iranian million -- Iranian military targets, that includes their air defense systems, drone

and missile storage sites, military speed boats, and logistics infrastructure, as you mentioned, Becky, all of those really along the

coastline, targeting really the Strait of Hormuz.

Now, as you've heard from the U.S., you've heard this from CENTCOM you've also heard this from the president, they argue that these are targeted

specifically to the Strait because they want to make clear that there needs to be open traffic, and that's really when you get down to what I'm hearing

in my conversations with White House officials, people throughout the Trump Administration.

So much of this is due to the president really being frustrated that the Strait has not been fully reopened. I'd remind you in that text of that

memorandum of understanding that the president signed just a couple weeks ago, around the G7 Summit, one of the key lines in that MOU was that there

needed to be open and free navigation in the Strait.

And so, that's been part of why the president, you could see this when he was in Turkey yesterday, that palpable anger coming out in a lot of his

remarks about all of this. The other thing I would note is that part of the reason you're seeing such a strong response, and specifically from Trump as

well, is that he was very frustrated and irked, I was told, by the timing of those initial Iranian strikes on boats in the Strait.

[09:05:00]

They took place when he was abroad for that NATO Summit. You know, normally when Trump goes and he meets with foreign leaders on the world stage, he

wants to be able to tout victory, something he, of course, wanted to do with this agreement between the U.S. and Iran, wasn't able to do that.

Part of why he's been so frustrated, the last of course being he's been really losing patience with the pace of negotiations between the U.S. and

Iran, particularly believing that Iran is slow walking Washington when it comes to nuclear talks. So that just gives you a little context about where

this, a lot of this is coming from.

The other thing I'd say to your initial question about the response we are hearing, Trump said yesterday, very clearly, he was speaking with reporters

when he was returning from his trip overseas to the White House, that if Iran were to hit the United States, that the U.S. would come back 20 times

harder.

Those are the words that he used, and so we'll have to see what this really means for the state of the ceasefire moving forward, or if it's actually

over, as the president has tried to suggest in recent days.

ANDERSON: Yeah, that's the big question, isn't it? And we'll discuss that over the next couple of hours. It's, you know, from the perspective where

we are here, Alayna, in the Gulf, it really is very unclear at this point.

Fred, you've been following the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's funeral, of course, it's been a series of ceremonies. One question that's loomed all

week about what happens today is whether his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, the new Supreme Leader, will actually make an appearance on what is a very, very

important moment for this series of ceremonies, funeral ceremonies. What are you hearing and seeing there?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi Becky, that's certainly been a question that's been looming over these ceremonies,

basically since they started over this past weekend, and very much also on Monday, when there was a big procession in Tehran, as well as far as those

marathon funeral proceedings, as many people call them.

But you're absolutely right, today is also one of those big questions, whether or not Mojtaba Khamenei might make an appearance there. One of the

things we have to remind our viewers of, since taking the reins as Iran's new Supreme Leader, after his father was killed, he has not been seen in

public, and he's only communicated via written statements.

There's not even any audio statements from the new Iranian Supreme Leader. It certainly seems unlikely that he would make an appearance at the events

that are happening today in Mashhad. This, of course, is a place that is quite far away from Tehran, so just the logistics of bringing the new

Supreme Leader there, especially with the tight security situation that we're seeing here in Iran, is one that would be very difficult.

So, I think not many people are expecting him to make an appearance. However, nevertheless, this is, as you mentioned, an extremely important

day for the Islamic Republic of Iran, the slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, of course, ruled this country for 37 years, being laid to

rest not just in his hometown but in the holiest site for Shia Islam here in Iran, the Imam Reza Shrine there in Mashhad.

I've been to that place on several occasions, and it certainly is a gigantic shrine that does, of course, command a lot of respect, also here

in the Islamic Republic of Iran. So, you're absolutely right, it's a big day here for this country, and also a lot of people turning up.

We saw some of those live videos, a lot of those people also, Becky calling for revenge against the United States, and specifically against President

Donald Trump. And of course, as you've been talking about with Alayna, it really seems as though the situation between Iran and the United States

speeding up once again, Becky.

ANDRSON: That's right. And the Gulf countries, very specifically Kuwait, Bahrain, and this time Qatar, on the receiving end of further strikes as we

see this escalation. Dina, let me bring you in. Let's talk about the regional reality.

A flurry of high-level calls around the gulf between neighbors today. The UAE Leader, the President, making a visit to Kuwait himself. His Advisor,

Anwar Gargash, posting this, saying, in part, there is no substitute for rising to the level of these challenges by uniting our ranks in defense of

our sovereignty and preservation of our achievements, stemming from the unity of destiny and shared interests.

Talking about the importance of Gulf Cooperation Council unity, GCC unity here. As we consider where we are at, and we are, as I say, it seems very

unclear about what happens next with regard to the MOU, the ceasefire? Where does the Gulf go from here?

[09:10:00]

DINA ESFANDIARY, MIDDLE EAST LEAD, BLOOMBERG ECONOMICS: Well, that's the million-dollar question. I think the Gulf Arab states are tired, they're

frustrated, and they're worried because the war itself was their worst-case scenario. But the war being prolonged, being in this kind of low-level

uncertainty with skirmishes back and forth, strikes in the region, in the Strait, that is their literal worst nightmare.

Because they cannot repair, they can't go back to normal, and every time these strikes are exchanged, every time there's a threat of further

airstrikes from Iran on the Gulf Arab states, even if they're limited to U.S. air bases on their territory, it causes real disruption.

And of course, even if they are limited to U.S. air bases, there is the prospect that further rounds of escalation might lead Iran to actually

targeting energy infrastructure in the Gulf again. The Islamic Republic has made it clear that it will not stand down until the U.S. does, and the

problem today is that we have two very different readings of the terms of the MOU, so it seems unlikely that either side is going to back down.

Right now, both sides are trying to shape the implementation of this MOU, shape the potential negotiations that at the moment are nowhere to be

found, so I foresee more of this kind of instability.

ANDERSON: And Fred, let me bring you in at this point. While there are experts, many experts who suggest that Iran is frankly perfectly willing to

engage in a forever war, and let's see what plays out over the next period of time with regard the sort of cycle of escalation and de-escalation?

You've been speaking to Iranians there; do they believe those that you've spoken to believe that there is a risk of a return to full on war?

PLEITGEN: Well, I think many people here believe that there's a risk, Becky, of a return to full on war. And quite frankly, I think one of the

things that many people underestimate internationally is how big the criticism is also here within Iran about the negotiations with the United

States, and also about the memorandum of understanding, as well.

Especially if you speak to conservatives, to hardliners there are a lot of people who say they don't believe that their government should be engaging

with the United States. They believe that it diminishes, as they put it, and people have told us the sacrifices that their military made when

defending against the United States and Israel.

But at the same time, of course, there are a lot of people who are hoping for economic relief, and they really worry that things could go back to a

shooting war, especially here in Tehran. Of course, there are people who witnessed the air strikes that happened in the early stages of this year,

when a lot of places was destroyed, a lot of people were also hurt and killed in those air strikes as well.

So certainly, people don't want things to go back to that. At the same time, the leadership of this country has made clear that they are going to

take a hard line on all of this. They say that the age, as they put it, of American bullying and not sticking to agreements is over. You heard that,

for instance, from a Chief Negotiator, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf.

And I think when we've seen some of the responses recently to U.S. strikes on coastal areas the Iranians are trying to make that clear. You just

talked about those strikes on American facilities in Kuwait and in Bahrain. Well, there have also been air raid sirens today in Jordan, for instance,

where the Iranians apparently were using some of their heavier missiles there.

So, the Iranians are showing that they're going to draw a red line. And I think what Dina was just saying is absolutely the root of the problem right

now, is the interpretation of the memorandum of understanding as far as the transit through the Strait of Hormuz is concerned.

Where the U.S. says that all that the MOU says is that the Iranians need to make sure that there's no obstacles, there's no lines in the way for them

ships to be able to go through wherever they want. The Iranians are saying they are the ones who will administer the Strait of Hormuz.

They will decide which ships go through there, under what terms those ships will go through there, even though they're not charging tolls at this point

in time, Becky.

ANDERSON: Yep, I think you bang on both of you on that point. Alayna, I just want our viewers to hear from our Colleague Pam Brown, who is aboard

the USS Abraham Lincoln. Stand by.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAMELA BROWN, CNN CHIEF INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: We're here on the flight deck of the USS Abraham Lincoln, near the Strait of Hormuz, where

flight ops are happening. And you can see behind me here there's an F-18 that's getting ready to land. It has a hook on its tail.

And as soon as it lands, it tries to capture one of these wires on the ground. If not, the pilot has to go full throttle to take off again and

come back around. So, here we go.

[09:15:00]

There you saw it, the plane just landed here. There are flight operations that are continuous throughout the day in and around the Strait of Hormuz.

This is happening as tensions are escalating between the U.S. and Iran.

And these fighter pilots here have played a crucial role since the beginning of the war. They were the first to take off to drop bombs on

Iran. They've been doing defensive missions, but of course, having a dynamic everything is that could change quickly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Yeah, and you can see active operations there as we speak. Given the posture that we just saw there, what's the actual state of the

ceasefire from the U.S. perspective at this point? Is it clear?

TREENE: It's not. And I think one of the big reasons, Becky, for a lot of this uncertainty is one the president doesn't know yet how he wants to

proceed. You could actually see that in some of the public comments he was making over the past couple of days, while he was in Turkey for the NATO

Summit.

You know, in one breath he was saying, I believe that this memorandum of understanding, that this ceasefire between Washington and Tehran, he said,

I believe it's over. It's over, talking at length about how he cannot trust that the Iranians will honor the commitments laid out in the text of that

agreement.

However, in another breath, Becky, he also said that a lot of the future of this is going to be up to the U.S. negotiators, people like Steve Witkoff,

Jared Kushner, the Vice President, those who have really been in the room and dealing on a daily basis with the Iranians, and even more specifically,

the mediators throughout all of this.

So, there's uncertainty there. I will say, as well, in the conversations I've been having with U.S. officials, they do believe that a lot of this is

going to depend on how Iran responds to these attacks in recent days?

There's no question, Becky, that almost every single person in the West Wing, those who are around the president, including the negotiators I just

mentioned, they want this war to be done with. I remember when I was reporting on, you know, there was a lot of consternation behind closed

doors about whether or not moving forward with the memorandum of understanding was the right move.

You know, you had people like the CIA Director, John Ratcliffe, arguing that the Iranians could not be trusted to keep their word on some of these

things. However, they all ended up moving and coalescing around this consensus that they need to get the war over with, and that was a quote one

of these negotiators told me.

And so, that remains true. And so, they are trying to find a way that they can resolve this, they still want this to end any peace deal. But they also

recognize that it needs to be the right deal, that is what I consistently hear in my conversations. And so, it's very much unclear where this moves

on from here?

And of course, what we are seeing right now with these exchanges of strikes that just further erodes any sort of missed -- any sort of trust, really,

it adds to the mistrust between these two countries, and so very much unclear at this time. And we really do have to wait and see what the

president decides, but from my conversations again, his mind is not made up.

ANDERSON: Yeah, let's not be naive here. I mean, there's a real power play going on, of course, each side trying to force the other back to the table

on its own terms. Dina, do you think either Washington or Tehran, or both, at this point risks or already has overplayed its hand? I mean, when you

look at, you know, how both sides have sort of conducted themselves to date what's your sense?

ESFANDIARY: I think Iran risks overplaying its hands. Tehran is confident, it's emboldened, it's weakened, but again it's made some significant

strategic gains, particularly in the Strait of Hormuz. And I think it's pushing the needle a little bit too far.

It knows the U.S. wants out of this conflict. It also knows that President Trump is notoriously rash, you know, he'll wake up one day and he'll change

his mind. And they are pushing the button far enough that might push the president to turn around and suddenly say, you know what, we'll restart

that war.

It's important to remember that both sides do want to walk away from this war. I think neither wants a return to the kind of high intensity war we

had that began at the end of February. Neither side is really prepared for that. Neither side wants that.

But neither side is prepared to make the compromises necessary in order for negotiations to resume and to lead to some kind of deal that will be

satisfactory, or let's say unsatisfactory enough to both sides that they'll inevitably stick to it.

And that's the problem, that's why we are stuck in this terrible cycle of no peace, no war, and a low intensity continuation of airstrikes,

skirmishes, and just general instability right now.

[09:20:00]

ANDERSON: Yep, it is. It's a painful position. It really is. Thank you, Dina. Always a pleasure having you on, and to both my colleagues, Fred and

Alayna. Appreciate it. Thank you. Coming up, a major shake-up in one of the most important Senate races of the midterms, U.S. midterms. Maine's

Democratic nominee dropping out, leaving the party now scrambling to find a replacement.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Well, the U.S. State of Maine has a high stakes Senate race, which has been thrown into total turmoil. Democratic Nominee Graham Platner

has now dropped out after a woman told CNN and "POLITICO" that he raped her, which Platner denies. He said what he calls his movement, though,

can't progress with him as a candidate.

Well, now Democrats in Maine are racing to pick a new candidate to take on the Republican Senator Susan Collins. There are less than four months, of

course, to go until these crucial U.S. November midterm elections. CNN's Arlette Saenz is in Portland in Maine. She has the very latest. This is a

significant decision made by Platner for the Democrats' hopes of flipping what is this crucial Senate seat? Just explain, if you will.

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner officially suspended his campaign last evening, which will

now pave the way for Democrats to be able to select a new nominee to replace him in this Senate race.

But Platner, in his message to supporters, still remained defiant in some ways. Many Democrats had felt that these allegations against him really put

him in an untenable position, that there would not be any type of support for him. We saw that as even some of his longtime endorsers had said that

he needed to step aside from this race.

But as Platner spoke to supporters in this 11-minute video, he also took aim at the Democratic Party establishment, arguing that they have been

trying to undermine him and his movement. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GRAHAM PLATNER, FORMER MAINE DEMOCRATIC SENATE CANDIDATE: We are suspending campaign operations. This is incredibly difficult, because I know that some

will think it's an admission of guilt, and it most certainly is not.

We're not doing it because of the allegations. We're doing it because of the structures that are being taken away from us by those in power. And I

also feel an immense amount of responsibility to everyone who has worked so hard to get us to where we are.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[09:25:00]

SAENZ: But Democrats find themselves in an incredibly tough position now. Maine is one of those states that will be central to both parties' battles

to try to win the majority of the Senate in November. Democrats need to flip four Republican-held seats and hold on to all of their own if they

have any chance of retaking the majority.

They had really viewed Maine for a long time as being a potential pick-up opportunity against Republican Senator Susan Collins, but now Democrats at

this point don't even know who their nominee will be just yet. They have a very short window of time to run this campaign.

ANDERSON: With the election, of course, now less than four months away it is extremely tough. How quickly do Democrats believe they can unite behind

a replacement candidate? And is it clear at this point who that might be?

SAENZ: Well, there are a few logistical things that have to play out. Graham Platner did say he is suspending his campaign. He still has to

formally file that paperwork to withdraw from that race. Then that will kick off this process to find a replacement.

The Maine Democratic Party has already approved a plan to hold a nominating convention to select the next Democratic nominee that needs to happen by

July 27th leaving Democrats just 18 days to pick their next candidate. We have already seen a number of Maine Democrats step into this race just in

the last five minutes or so, that included Jordan Wood.

He is a someone who ran for Congress earlier this year, but failed. We have also heard from several of the Democrats who ran for governor in this

year's contest, but were unsuccessful. Nirav Shah and also Troy Jackson are two people who have entered this race. There's another woman, Shenna

Bellows, who might be stepping in.

But really this is going to be critical to see how this process plays out. I've spoken to many voters who feel a lot of anxiety around trying to pick

a candidate this late in the cycle. A lot of people have pointed to those candidates who ran for governor, saying that they already have some of the

infrastructure and support in the state that they may be able to move ahead in this race.

But so many talk about the parallels that this has to 2024 when Democrats found themselves in a similar situation as Joe Biden stepped out of the

race with just four months to go, so a lot of people have anxiety about whether Democrats can really course correct in this moment to wage a

successful campaign against Susan Collins in November.

ANDERSON: It's really good to have you. Thank you very much indeed. A really important story there in Maine. Well, U.S. President Donald Trump

indicated that he would give Ukraine permission to make their own patriot defense systems.

Now this is after Ukraine said it is facing a shortage of the interceptors solely capable of taking down Russian ballistic missiles. The move would

make Ukraine the third -- only the third country to have such a license from the U.S., and the Dutch Prime Minister says the decision could be a

game changer. He spoke to CNN's Christina Macfarlane.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROB JETTEN, DUTCH PRIME MINISTER: This is very important news, because the Ukrainians have now taken a new momentum on the battlefield, putting a lot

of pressure on the Russian economy and Russian President. But obviously the impact of Russian air strikes on Ukraine is intense, with not enough air

defense at the moment.

So, we need, in the very short term, more delivery from EU countries to Ukraine. But for the midterms, we need Ukraine to have more capabilities to

produce it on their own. And they can do it in Ukraine, but they can also do it in European countries under license.

The Netherlands is working closely with Ukraine on drone production, for example, and we stand ready to do that also with other capabilities. So,

this move from the President of the United States can be a game changer for the Ukrainians.

CHRISTINA MACFARLANE, CNN ANCHOR: President Trump also said today that he - - in his view, both sides in Ukraine's war want to see a settlement. Do you think that's true? Do you believe that Russia wants to see a settlement

that would be acceptable to all parties?

JETTEN: So far, we haven't seen any clear indications that Putin is willing to negotiate a just and lasting peace. So, that is why it's so important to

keep the support for Ukraine high, so they can go to a negotiation table at any time from a strong position in the end, also in this conflict, only

negotiations can solve this war. But as long as Putin is not showing any willingness, we have to keep pressure on Putin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: OK, ringing the opening bell just moments from now.

[09:30:00]

Brazil's largest airline Azul, the trading day just about to start there in New York. And we will be back with the busiest news of the day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Right, you're back with us. It's just after half past five here in the UAE, just after half past nine in New York. I'm Becky Anderson.

You're watching "Connect the World". The markets are open. Let's see how stocks are getting on.

And a very mixed start it has to be said. In fact, the indications from the futures markets were that things would be slightly better than this, but

it's no real surprise, is it, given that we've seen this escalation once again in the region where I am, around the Strait of Hormuz, the

retaliatory attacks by Iran on Bahrain, on Kuwait, and on a military site in Qatar.

So, these markets really, it feels as if investors are sort of sticking out, staying out of things for a little bit. Oil prices are moving. They're

moving more moderately after the latest strikes by the U.S. and Iran. We've got WTI, that's the U.S. benchmark, of course, at 73 but Brent at 77.

We were looking like we might actually break through the $80 on the barrel level, which we haven't seen for some weeks. This again an indication that

people are concerned about what's going on. Traders looking to see where things go with this fighting and the reopening of the Strait.

Brent did surge on Wednesday, as I said, to its biggest single day gain since the end of April, that was after President Trump said this MOU, this

memorandum of understanding with Iran, was to his mind over. Worth noting that the amount of oil in the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve plunged last

month to the lowest level seen since the early 1980s.

Republican House Representative Thomas Massie, no friend or fan of her Thomas -- of Donald Trump, of course, he's been a thorn in Mr. Trump's

side, posted this: the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, or the SPR, was created to help our country, the U.S., during emergencies.

But presidents use it to stabilize fuel prices globally, because oil is a global market. If we use much more of it, he said, to mask the cost of

wars, we risk collapsing the salt caverns that hold it. Well, worth considering those comments.

[09:35:00]

Well, despite the regional challenges, it is business as usual in the UAE, and the National Oil Company here in Abu Dhabi, ADNOC involved in a series

of big-ticket deals, a billion-dollar deal, for example, to acquire Shell's South Africa business. It includes the acquisition of 580 fuel stations,

plus Shell's wholesale fuel aviation and lubricants operations in that country.

Now it's a move that puts Abu Dhabi on the map in one of Africa's biggest fuel markets. I spoke recently with the CEO of ADNOC Distribution, Bader

Saeed Al Lamki, who explained the strategy behind this big deal.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BADER SAEED AL LAMKI, CEO, ADNOC DISTRIBUTION: South Africa, one of the biggest economies in Africa, I think there's a good destructive to do

business at. The regulatory framework when it comes to fuel retail is quite transparent and tested over the years.

This particular asset, the Shell Downstream South Africa, has been in operation for nearly 120 years. And as such, this wealth of data that we've

took comfort in analyzing, we've been looking at this deal for nearly two years, looking at the different aspects of it, the operational parameters,

the financial parameters, the regulatory framework.

So, we got ourselves to a place where we are comfortable that we can create value, we can continue the journey to serve people of South Africa through

this essential service. And South Africa is a country whereby we, of course, enjoy strong bilateral from a UAE perspective.

And as a company, the financial reward for us is one that we cannot ignore. This deal, upon completion, we are going to accelerate our operational

targets. For example, we are going to acquire 580 service stations. This will add into our existing portfolio and will take us immediately from 1032

stations today into 1600 stations immediately upon completion.

This is a 55 percent increase in the size of the portfolio. If you look at the convenience stores, where you go and get you convenience requirement,

we're going to also add some 380 convenience stores, and that will be a growth of 77 percent in one go upon completion.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, this deal comes just months, of course, after the UAE announced its set exit from OPEC, and the regional oil giant is wasting no

time, elevating production to near record highs. According to Reuters it hit 3.8 million barrels per day last month. And I asked Al Lamki, how this

South Africa deal fits into the sort of wider post OPEC strategy?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LAMKI: South Africa is a net importer of fuel, right? They've shut down the finance over the years. And at the moment they depend on imports into the

country, coming with the ADNOC backing our Ankara (ph) shareholder definitely gives us the ability to supply fuel into South Africa, and to

meet its growing demand.

We are talking about 11 million cars in the streets in South Africa. We are talking about a network of 5500 service stations in that nation, which

requires fuel to satisfy the growing economy. So, I think this is an opportunity for ADNOC and ADNOC Distribution to add value, to be a partner.

This is the style of Abu Dhabi and the UAE, to be in partnership with companies and countries alike.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Right, some of your business news today. Well, after a day of no football yesterday, World Cup action returns with the rematch of the Semi-

Finals back in 2022 in Qatar. More on that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:40:00]

ADNERSON: The Quarter Final stage of the World Cup kicks off later today. It's the last eight Les Bleus take on the Atlas Lions in what will be a

rematch of the 2022 Semifinal, when the French, of course, came out on top. Patrick Snell joining me now. I mean, on paper, this should be a cracker of

a match. Two teams that relish attacking football. Who do you fancy to win?

PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Becky, yeah, really looking forward to this one. I'm going to probably no shock here, but I'm going to lean towards the

French. I think they're just stacked with talent, and any side of Morocco can do one part of the job, which is actually to stop the French from

playing.

Keeping Kylian Mbappe, Ousmane Dembele, for example, Desire Doue quiet, so to speak. Then they've done a huge part of this. It's then a question of

how do they go on and actually win the game? But Morocco, I hear we were hearing from their head coach on an early edition of World Sport, and we'll

hear from him again in the build up to this.

This is a team that is very strong in terms of mentality. Morocco really do feel that they are the real deal, that they're better than their

achievement of four years ago when they got to the last four. And they have amazing self-belief. So, I think it will be very, very close, but I'm going

to edge towards Les Bleus, Becky.

ANDERSON: I'm going to leave us as we go into the break with some images and sound from some of the Moroccan supporters, because I agree with you.

Yeah, I think the French may edge this, but the unbridled passion and joy of these Moroccan supporters through this entire tournament has been an

absolute joy to behold.

So, we'll go to break with these images, and they will certainly be well supported tonight. World Sports up after this.

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[09:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)

[10:00:00]

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