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First Move with Julia Chatterley
Evidence Shows Wagner Group Arming Paramilitary RSF in Sudan; Parliamentary Leader Announces Three-Day Ceasefire; Bremmer: Ukraine's NATO Membership far from Automatic; IKEA Assembles Massive U.S. Expansion Plan; WMO Report: Climate Crisis Took a Heavy Toll in 2022; Major Airport Heist in Canada Still Unsolved. Aired 9-10a ET
Aired April 21, 2023 - 09:00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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JULIA CHATTERLEY, CNN HOST, FIRST MOVE: A warm welcome to all our First Movers around the globe. Fantastic to have you with us on this Earth Day
Eve just ahead a tree world class program she says of planetary proportions among today's earthly matters Elon Musk, lightning rod.
Twitter begins removing blue checkmarks from users who won't pay a monthly fee but some celebrities getting a controversial free pass, a full report
on Musk's latest tweet storm coming up. Also, the tech earnings waterfall a cascade of important results in the days ahead from Alphabet, Amazon,
Microsoft and Meta all this of course, after Tesla's Q1 disappointment on Wednesday.
Plus, the debt ceiling cliff, the gulf between Republicans and Democrats widening the default date when the U.S. government runs out of cash getting
closer perhaps as soon as June. And the glacier that seems to be U.S.-China relations, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen warning in a major speech that
U.S. National Security Trumps its economic interests amid this growing superpower rivalry.
We'll discuss the frosty state of affairs with Eurasia and GZERO media found it Ian Bremmer. Earth Day an increasingly important day too for
multinational corporations. IKEA's U.S. CEO, will discuss his firm's dramatic new expansion stateside, as well as its planet friendly policies.
And CNNs climate correspondent Bill Weir will report on exciting new efforts to reduce global warming or as he calls it, how to unscrew a planet
literally and speaking of planets a bit of a flat earth type of day for U.S. and European investors.
Amid ongoing concerns, I think about weakening global growth new jobless claims that's unemployment claims here in the United States above
expectations for a fourth week in a row. Fresh lay off news this week too for a Meta, Disney and Amazon owned grocery train chain whole foods too.
An oil sector Folsom 6 percent this week amid all the concerns about slowing growth Brent over in Europe, in fact down 22 percent in price terms
this past year. Now a busy show as always and we begin this hour with the latest from Sudan.
Leaders at the Sudanese army have agreed to a three day ceasefire proposed by the opposition paramilitary group, the RSF. It coincides with Eid, the
Muslim holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan. So far more than 400 people have lost their lives in the conflict, according to the World Health
Organization.
Nima Elbagir joins us now to discuss. Nima, as we've seen now on a number of occasions proposing a ceasefire and adhering to it are very different
things. What have we seen so far?
NIMA ELBAGIR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: Well, on this the first day of the Muslim festival of aid, there didn't seem to be
much relief from the fighting first thing this morning. There are now signs that perhaps the army is hopeful that a ceasefire could be agreed or put in
place. But most of the people on the ground in Sudan have lost hope when it comes to these periods of respite.
This fighting feels very entrenched and evidence that we have uncovered, Julia, points to Russian support from the Russian proxy militia Wagner and
reaching the RSF which will serve to further entrench these positions. Have a look at this.
The Sudanese and the Libyan army celebrated a successful joint operation Wednesday, April 19th. Near the remote desert border between Libya and
Sudan, having captured the Chevrolet Garrison belonging to the rival Sudanese paramilitary rapid support forces the RSF.
But why is this military base so important? Given how far it is from the existential fight in Sudan's capital Khartoum because CNN can reveal that
the fight in Khartoum is being influenced by what was happening at that Garrison.
A Russian resupply campaign, backed by a key regional player aimed at turning the tide in Sudan's war in favor of the RSF who have been a key
recipient of Russian training and military aid. In collaboration with all eyes on Wagner, a research group focusing on Russian proxy Wagner, CNN
investigated the group's current presence in Libya.
You can see here on April 16th, one day after the fighting began in Khartoum, a Russian illusion 76 transport plane at Al Jufra base in Libya,
previously identified by American intelligence as a Wagner base.
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Three days later, this same plane is sponsored by flight tracker Aviation Expert Gourgeon, coming back from the Russian airbase in Latakia, Syria
before returning to the Libyan airbase in Hardeen. Images of that same plane began circulating online April 17th heading in the direction of
Sudan.
Sudanese and Regional Sources tell CNN that weaponry was airdropped to the RSF within that timeframe, April 15 to April 18, to the Chevrolet Garrison
during a period of fierce fighting, boosting the RSF.
The Al Hadeem and Al Jufra bases where the Wagner planes departed from in Libya are under the control of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, who commands
territory in the east of Libya. Haftar and the commander of the rapid support forces Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo aka Hemedti having common strategic
alliances.
One with Wagner, who have that is hosting in his territory in Libya, and whom a previous CNN investigation exposed as working with him at DEA to
extract Sudanese gold, a second with United Arab Emirates who tapped him at -- to send forces to the conflict in Yemen, and backed Haftar in the
fighting in Libya.
What does it all mean for the ongoing misery and conflict in Sudan? It means that both a regional Libyan general Haftar and a global player Russia
are putting their thumbs on the scale, which raises the stakes for the region for the global balance of power and for the people of Sudan, caught
in the crossfire.
Field Marshal Haftar and Wagner did not respond to our requests for comment and RSF spokesperson told us that they have not received support from Libya
and all from Wagner, although he acknowledged that they have in the past, Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Follow the money finds some of the answers. And in this case, the fear is that extends the conflict and Nima great work. Thank you so
much.
ELBAGIR: Thank you.
CHATTERLEY: OK, a Russian warplane has dropped a bomb on its own city. It created a large crater in the City of Belgorod near the Ukrainian border.
The Russian Military calls it "an emergency release".
Ben Wedeman joins us now on this. Ben, even adjusting perhaps for a lost in translation problem here there's oddities. Surely, if you had to do an
emergency release of a weapon, you would release it in some kind of safe mode. But this appeared to explode or to try and get away from a population
center. It's odd.
BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The whole thing is odd happened at 15 minutes past 10 pm in this town in Belgorod, a city of
400,000 people just 25 or 40 kilometers from the Ukrainian border. Now it's odd that an it was dropped in the middle of the town. It's not clear what
kind of bomb it is.
And normally, if they're going to be releasing their bombs pilot in an emergency situation, he'll release all of them. So, lots of questions about
this incident. This is a town that of course has been a major staging area for Russian forces operated in Ukraine. Only two people were injured
according to the Mayor of Belgorod, two women.
But as we saw in that CCTV video, the bomb fell on a sidewalk by this very busy road in the middle of town, causing one car just to fly up in the air
and land on the roof of a nearby building. The Ukrainians have an official reacted saying we should not take pleasure in this sort of incident
happening in Russia. But certainly it is a case of what goes around, comes around, Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Ben Wedeman, thank you so much for that. Blue checkmark, so disappearing from Twitter profiles around the world is Elon Musk rolls out
an $8 a month subscription service for account verification. You can see the tick mark there on his account.
But if you look at my account, it's been removed and just by paying to get it back a few hours ago. I've just waiting to see how long it takes. So
far, no checkmark, but we'll keep you posted. Clare Duffy joins me on this. And of course, Clare, we've been waiting for this now for many months,
April 20th.
A date that we know that Elon Musk likes was the date where these things are removed. And now we wait and see who pays who doesn't who leaves. And
it's clearly creating some misinformation concerns and debate.
CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH WRITER: That's right, Julia. It is sort of chaos on Twitter this morning. Last night, we started to see the blue checks
disappear, including from major accounts like Kim Kardashian, Bill Gates, even Former President Donald Trump. But there was also a lot of confusion
on the platform.
There are blue checks disappearing from government agency accounts with which the company now appears to be scrambling to sort of fix and you
already have people you know is trying to impersonate major figures on the platform. And this is the big problem with this change is that we can no
longer really trust that the blue check means I am who say I am.
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What it now means as I've now paid $8 a month for the subscription platform and so it really sort of potentially undermines the trust that people have
in this platform that what they're seeing is real and it's been authenticated by the company.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, you're making a brilliant point. And I think the key here, at least for me, is that there are two separate points, the blue checkmark
needs to represent something. Twitter is a utility you shouldn't necessarily be able to free ride get it for free and use it.
So the utility function of Twitter perhaps deserves a subscription. Should that be tied to a blue checkmark that provides some degree of assurance
that you're following someone that you think you are, and it's not someone who's pretending to be that person, that you -- issues?
DUFFY: I think that's exactly the issue. And you know Elon Musk makes this point that Twitter is a utility, and people should be paying for it. But a
lot of these high profile creators who are now losing their blue checkmarks, and are concerned that they're going to be impersonated, are
saying, wait a minute, I bring a lot of utility to this platform.
I say things here that people want to read, I bring audience to this platform, and a lot of other companies pay creators to create content. And
now Elon Musk wants these major creators to pay to be there in the first place and to be creating content for the platform. And so I think it will
be interesting to see how many people decide to stick around after this.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, allow creators to monetize themselves off the platform, and they can more than earn their $8 back. OK, Clare Duffy, thank you.
We're going to spend a lot of time talking about this. I'm thinking over the next couple of days. Thank you.
All right, something else which would be flying into Elon Musk's in trade a claim for damages. Take a look at this the owner of this minivan clearly
having a bad day after debris from the SpaceX Starship launch in Texas rained down on a car park. The rocket itself of course suffered a similar
fate exploding in midair and what SpaceX described as a rapid unplanned disassembly, aka explosion.
Straight ahead, plenty to discuss coming up with the GZERO Media President and Ian Bremmer, we'll talk Sudan we'll talk China and later how to
dissolve the climate emergency if you ever felt helpless. In the face of global warming, you need to keep watching some solutions coming up.
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CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to "First Move", we returned to Sudan where the paramilitary group at RSF announced a three day ceasefire to coincide with
the Eid holiday.
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The army says it will observe it too but only if the RSF abides by the truce. The Army has been locked in a fight with the RSF since last Saturday
at least 413 people have lost their lives so far. The World Food Program warns if the fighting continues, millions could be reduced to hunger tens
of thousands of people have already fled Sudan.
Joining us now is Ian Bremmer, President and Founder of GZERO Media and the Eurasia group. He's also the author of The Power of crisis, how three
threats and our response will change the world. Ian, great to have you with is a much to discuss. But I do want to begin with Sudan your thoughts
analysis assessment at this stage is clearly loss of foreign nationals there too.
IAN BREMMER, PRESIDENT AND FOUNDER OF EURASIA GROUP AND GZERO MEDIA: Yes, there are. And it's, you know, it's very difficult because they've had this
three ceasefires, they've announced, none of them have held so far. The logistics on the ground are not conducive at all to getting foreign
nationals out.
And the Americans are trying to set up right now support from some of the countries that have more influence there like Egypt, like the United Arab
Emirates, but this is not a matter of a few days, it's probably, if we're lucky, a matter of weeks, and clearly dangerous operations. We're looking
at that does risk the lives of these foreign nationals while they're there.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, I mean, a lot of lives at risk at this stage, what's the danger of spillover effects to the region, whether it's Chad, Eritrea, for
example, how concerned are you about that?
BREMMER: A little bit? I mean, in the sense that, you know, we have a lot there's radicalism, there is the refugees that we're talking about, there's
a lack of security in the region. And whenever you have the potential for significant famine and this could easily get to a matter of not just
hundreds of thousands, but millions.
Then you have you have poor governance, in that's going to affect the region. So it's not geopolitically. This is not like Syria, right? We don't
have people that are streaming into Europe none of the G7 countries have direct interests on the ground in Sudan. So you know we're not going to see
anything that's driving headlines, frankly, for the Western media but in the region, it's very significant.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, which is why we'll keep talking about it but to your point, unfortunately, geopolitically people's eyes are elsewhere. Ian, I
want to get your take on Janet Yellen, Treasury Secretary's comments on China, where she effectively said, look, protecting National Security
interests may mean economic tradeoffs.
We actually Trump economic tradeoffs. Who was the messaging too? And what do you think the goal is for the United States with China at this moment?
BREMMER: It's interesting the messaging is not to the Chinese. The messaging is to the private sector in the United States, most of which is
more aligned with France than they are with Washington. And this is the U.S. government and Janet Yellen has been in many ways, the most dovish, on
China in the entire cabinet.
She's the one say, well, we can't decouple we have to engage. But she's trying to say there's going to be costs. And American multinationals,
American Bankers need to understand that it's not going to be business as usual, with China going forward.
So you know this is not the rah-rah globalization that you've heard from the Americans. For decades now, it's a very different political orientation
towards what will soon be the largest economy in the world.
CHATTERLEY: It's interesting that you say they're more aligned with them. France is thinking because of course, we had Emmanuel Macron there
creating. What felt like significant wave standing in Beijing and suggesting that Europe shouldn't blindly follow the United States path with
regards the treatment of China, over Taiwan?
Ian, what did you make of those comments? And do you think there are other world leaders not just in the corporate sector that you're talking about
that quietly also think we need perhaps a more strategic plan to handle this?
BREMMER: Quietly, of course, is the point Macron is the one Western leader that is saying this stuff publicly, and that does undermine the
transatlantic relationship to a degree. But, you know, you and I talk a lot about Russia, Ukraine in the last year. And of course, the fact is that the
West, broadly defined, is almost 100 percent aligned in their Russia policy on China, they are not.
The American see China from a government perspective, through a much more national security lens, and therefore it feels more zeroism. There are no
other countries in the West that feel that way. They all want to hedge they want more access to American Muscle, but they want more access at the same
time to the Chinese market.
And if you have 95 percent alignment on Russia, you have maybe 60 percent alignment on China and that tension is going to grow over time, if the
United States keeps testing the floor of existing U.S.-China relations.
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CHATTERLEY: Do you think the United States is quietly preparing for some form of conflict over Taiwan? And perhaps that's part of the sort of
imbalance in the relationship perhaps between Europe and the United States, as you said, there are economic interests and strategic interests. But
there's certainly a sense of greater alarm, I think in the United States about where this may lead.
BREMMER: --was a check off that said, if you introduce a gun in the first, you know, sort of act of a play that by the end, it's going to be used. I
mean, I do think the Americans and the Chinese are preparing for conflict, not because they think there's going to be conflict, but because they feel
like the relationship is getting worse and this is a key Flashpoint.
And so in case of any eventuality, they need to have the military capabilities, they need to have the technological hedges on semiconductors.
And of course, the more both sides do that and dig in, the more likelihood the last act of the play is going to end in tears.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, that's how accidents happen. It also happened in the same week, as we got news of the intelligence leaks in the United States,
spying, for what we read and can believe. There have obviously been suggestions from governments around the world that there's not necessarily
full truth or inaccuracies in some of these reports, spying on allies, spying on foreign adversaries as well.
Ian, what's your take on that? Do you think there's less intelligence sharing less trust as a result of this breach?
BREMMER: No, no, I think there's an enormous amount of intelligence sharing, again, because the risks are so proximate. I mean, you know, we've
got nuclear buildup. You've got all sorts of espionage. You have asymmetric attacks and warfare coming from countries like Russia, like Iran.
So the necessity of sharing that intelligence is going up and up. But of course, lots of individuals have access to it. Now here, you're talking
about some 21 year old junior IT staff or in the Massachusetts Air National Guard, not working with the Russians, or the Chinese or anyone else just
showing off with some of his friends.
So I mean the surprise is that this happens as rarely, as it does, at least in a public way. I will also say that on the basis of my conversations with
leaders in the G7, none of what I saw from the intelligence leaks was particularly new, and was surprising. So in other words, this was mostly
known by almost everybody out there.
And the idea that, well, this is disinformation, because the Russians happen to have changed a few of the slides to make it look like they're
losing fewer troops, the Ukrainians are losing more, that doesn't change the fact that this is actually real intelligence, and does reflect the
actual disposition of analysis of the Americans and others.
As to the state of play around Russia, Ukraine, right now, it puts Ukraine under more pressure, because there is there is the fact that the Americans
don't actually think that the Ukrainians can take much more land.
And if that's true, then at some point, the Americans are going to be shifting towards a how do we start negotiations position, which, by the
way, is where the French are right now? And where the Chinese have been for some time? That's going to be interesting, because it's very hard to say
that publicly.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, and how does that play into the much anticipated now Spring Offensive from Ukraine and of course, the timing of the NATO
Secretary General visiting for the first time, of course, this week, too.
BREMMER: Yes, and the Hungarian Leader Viktor Orban saying, what do you mean that, you know, Ukraine is going to join NATO? Well, I mean, you know,
they already invited Ukraine to join NATO, but they invited them under American pressure and without a plan.
And it has to be agreed by every country. That's why Turkey has had such a significant role in potentially vetoing Finland and Sweden, why it's taken
a long time. So if Hungary decides they never want Ukraine in, Ukraine never gets it. Let's recognize that, right. I mean, it's not as if the
Americans can just decide this unilaterally.
But I think what's more important here is the level of commitment to bringing the Ukrainians into the EU. It's the level of commitment to
providing real time defense support, and intelligence support for the Ukrainians, none of which they would have gotten if Russia hadn't invaded
Ukraine.
So of course, the Ukrainians have lost land. They've lost a lot of people they've been terrorized 8 million refugees that never comes back. But
Ukraine as a country will come out of this much stronger than they actually went in. And that's, of course, all because of Putin's invasion.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, closer to the EU and close to NATO, whatever the timing looks like on that. Final question, much discussion today about an
announcement next week by Joe Biden that he will run for President once again in 2024 is that what you expect for him to run unopposed? And is it a
2024 Trump, Biden, Presidential election?
BREMMER: Well, you know, Marianne Williamson has already announced her candidacy, which of course does mean that Biden will be running unopposed.
Those two things are essentially the same. I'm sorry, it's true.
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CHATTERLEY: You can laugh yourself.
BREMMER: I could laugh myself, but you know, I mean, I think no one else is talking about her, so why not give her some airtime? Yes, Biden's running.
And it's been pre announced pretty strongly. And, you know, people still talk about his age, but he is an incumbent President.
And if an incumbent President wants to run in the United States, under almost any circumstances, that's the strongest candidate you're going to
have. So the Democrats or any serious Democrat is going to clear a lane. We've already heard that from Governor Gretchen Whitmer.
We've heard that Governor Gavin Newsom, I mean, all of the important Democrats that would be credible in this electoral cycle are not going to
run against Biden. The bigger news, of course, is that Trump is still way ahead of everybody on the GOP side. And the arrests, the arraignment, I
mean, all of that has only made him stronger.
And so you know, if you're a betting person here, you do think that this is going to be Biden Trump yet again, and that doesn't say great things
internationally about the state of American democracy right now.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, and the sort of number two behind him, Ron DeSantis, who we've talked a little bit about, on this show is currently in a fight with
Mickey Mouse, which I think is very sort of confusing for most people, but also--
BREMMER: --for Donald Trump --
CHATTERLEY: Wow, you're on the phone today -- specifically, but also seemingly quite confident that he can eventually get the nomination. What
do you expect there and how does that work?
BREMMER: I think that DeSantis has gotten an enormous amount of money from very big, deep pocketed Republican donors. And this is the establishment
that doesn't like Trump that thinks and has seen that the Republicans have lost three times now as a party, and it's getting more fragmented because
of Trump.
They lost the Senate, because of Trump and the special Georgia elections. They just got thumped in the midterms that they underperform because of
Trump. And because of the Trump candidates that were out there that performed very badly. So they don't want to see that.
But of course, you know, if you're Trump and you're running a grievance based campaign, the fact that people with a lot of money, don't want the
average Republican voter in the base to support Trump is a feature not a bug for Trump's campaign.
So it does make him stronger. It is part of why the anti-establishment forces in the U.S. continue to do so well. I mean, if Trump didn't exist
right now, the base would have to invent him because there is an enormous amount of anger in the United States for those that perceive themselves
some in reality and some in social media and conspiracy theory to be truly underprivileged.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, we're no longer in Disneyland. That's for sure. Ian Bremmer, always a pleasure. Thank you so much for that. President and
Founder of GZERO media and Eurasia group will speak soon. Have a great weekend. OK, coming up after the break. Can you follow instructions?
Do you like cheap hot dogs? Have you got a collection of screwdrivers and endless amounts of patience? IKEA is assembling a major expansion in the
United States the CEO is here to build his case that accompanies U.S. future and may contain some small parts. Stay with us.
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CHATTERLEY: Welcome back to "First Move". And a little bit of a Friday feeling on Wall Street, U.S. stocks little changed in early trade. The DOW
currently on track for its first drop in four weeks, Goldman Sachs however out was soothing words on one of Wall Street's main concerns, and that's
weaker bank lending.
Goldman's believes U.S. firms can withstand tighter credit conditions if banks are forced to issue fewer loans, so the strength is there. A consumer
product giant Procter & Gamble is a bright spot to its shares on the rise after a first quarter earnings coming in above expectations.
The maker of Tide, Pampers and other products is also raising guidance, it's still able to pass along price hikes, and it seems to consumers. Now
if you have a drawer full of Allen keys, you probably own something from IKEA. The world's largest furniture retailer famous for its Billy bookcases
has a presence in 31 countries, including the United States, where it's actually been for the last 38 years.
The Swedish giant has decided now is the time to beef up its famous meatballs in the United States, and is investing $2.2 billion in new stores
and pickup sites creating an estimated 2000 new jobs. It's the company's biggest ever investment in a single nation.
A part of the plan is to explore new opportunities in green energy from geothermal technology to electric delivery trucks. And Javier Quinones is
CEO and Chief Sustainability Officer at IKEA, United States. Fantastic to have you on the show, Sir! As I mentioned, this is a market that you've
operated in for, what almost 40 years? Why this size investment today? What do you see now that perhaps you didn't see in the past?
JAVIER QUINONES, CEO & CHIEF SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER, IKEA U.S: Hi, Julia, and thank you very much, first of all, for having me here. You know, you
said it; we have 51 stores in the U.S. The U.S. is a country the size of a continent. So, there is still space for many more IKEA stores. We also know
that we've been 48 years already here.
And it's been a fantastic relation. We know that the U.S. consumers love us. And we love the U.S., of course, and it is a priority market. So, we
believe that it is actually right now, the right moment to bring IKEA closer to many more people.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, I mean, you said it's about boosting the Omni channel experience in the press release that you've talked about. I believe 900
pickup locations as well as boosting some of the stores, talk to me about this and whether the customer that you see in the United States is the same
as the customer.
I think that we're perhaps far more familiar with across Europe because geography here is a key factor. Part of the joy of IKEA is getting lost in
the store and having a look round. This country is bigger getting to one is perhaps more challenging for some people, at least.
QUINONES: It is it is absolutely true. This is one of the big differences. I still remember when my family was in Europe and I was visiting one of the
stores in the West Coast, our office is here in the East. And he told me the same time to go to visit the family than to visit one of their stores.
I was the first rally --.
So, with that, of course, geography is a big thing. As I said we only have 51. The press release says we're going to open eight I still believe this
is only the beginning of bringing IKEA closer to many more people. We are also going to open nine of what we call this plan and all the points.
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What this does is actually in a smaller format, going faster and being closer to where people live. And help them in the preparation of some of
the more difficult planning of the life at home dreams, right? Like a kitchen, like a living room, like a bedroom. So, this is more format will
be there to support in this planning phase, then we will add the collection and the collection is actually more in the convenience side.
So, it will be easier for people to come, half an IKEA close where I can do my -- as if it is in the store, if it is in one of these smaller formats,
or if it is online, and then pick it up in a closer location to where we are. On top of that in our -- thing sorry, go ahead.
CHATTERLEY: No, please carry on. I was just getting over excited.
QUINONES: All right. Well, me too. This is a very exciting, of course, announcement, right that we are doing, as you said is the biggest; we have
actually done in the U.S. in our 40 years history. But a big part of this investment is also going to go to the existing stores that we have, I
cannot imagine a better place in the world at an IKEA store to get inspired about home furnishings, right.
So, we will do much more of that. But we will also add a new capability, which is part of the fulfillment. And that's also part of this investment
where we will actually put fulfillment capabilities in all our units. So, we can actually be closer to people.
With the aim of doing this in a much more affordable way, in a much more sustainable way as our plan for electric vehicles and I can build on that,
on that little bit later if you want to.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, features in the locations yet. Even just for those sorts of nine design stores planning stores. I mean, is it east coast, west
coast, you're going for Central America, perhaps a little bit more South. Have you chosen where and sort of what drives that decision beyond being
close to people? Is it sort of economic incentives from state governments? What's driving that decision?
QUINONES: Well, the starting point is where people are right. And that's where we decide to go one place or another. It's too early to say where
exactly we are going to be, we are right now in the face of evaluation. But we know that with the time frame that we are giving us -- stores feel quite
right. And we will explore any possibility.
So right now, we are not closing absolutely any location. We actually announced recently that we are going to open our San Francisco is stored in
the heart of the city at the end of spring, early summer. We have also announced our Arlington plan or they're in DC, and we will see many more
announcements coming as we go.
CHATTERLEY: I want to ask you as well, because obviously you are the chief sustainability officer as well, which I think's important about your
buyback and resale operations. Just how big is that because that is something that's interesting to me? And I'm assuming you don't have to
disassemble and reassemble in order to sell it on. What kind of percentage of the initial value do you pay back to people?
And do they get some kind of reward for swapping coming back and buying something different? Because I do like this is trying to be more
sustainable and utilizing what we had even if we're buying new.
QUINONES: Yes, you know, this is, this makes me feel very proud, actually right. It's one of the programs that we launched a year ago. And actually,
we're now looking at expanding it. We launched last week, our -- online service. So, you can now buy some of these products online as well. So, we
are expanding it.
It is a service that tries to of course, bring back many of the products giving a second life, recycle them in the right way. And it's our aim to
become 100 percent circular in IKEA is part of our long-term strategy.
When in 2030, we have actually committed to be planet positive or climate positive and 100 percent circular. So, what this service does is you are
being using an IKEA product, you can bring it to the store, we will buy it from you and we will sell it at the same price to another family. If we
need to do an adjustment and upgrade or anything, we will take care of that.
And this is actually with the aim of taking care of the products that are already out there. I have personally moved many times, I still have my
villi from many years that I've moved sometimes. I've also sold many of the products that I cannot use anymore. And I'm so happy that they go with
another family, right.
[09:40:00]
CHATTERLEY: Did you assemble that yourself because you clearly did a good job.
QUINONES: I did --
CHATTERLEY: Do you finally think start to -- for a while.
QUINONES: I do.
CHATTERLEY: OK.
QUINONES: --your price.
CHATTERLEY: You're proud.
QUINONES: I have to assemble actually my kitchen in my -- yes, yes, I know that myself, you know. I started in IKEA many years ago, I work in the
kitchen department, and I assembled many of these kitchens when I was planning them with customers on the sales floor. And I'm so passionate
about our product and making them alive.
CHATTERLEY: I've got one more question per capita, do Americans or Europeans eat more meatballs?
QUINONES: You know we are actually bringing more and more plant-based products. I think our members are all over the world. They are loved all
over the world. But you know, more and more, we are looking at our options in the restaurant. And this is a fantastic one. If you have not tried yet,
I will actually encourage you to do it and see what the difference you find.
But actually, it has a 3 percent of the impact in the planet than the normal and regular meatball has. So, I think more and more, we all will
enjoy many more of these healthier products in our restaurants.
CHATTERLEY: Sir, you've lived up to your title of the chief sustainability officer by pushing me towards the plant-based meatballs. Great to have you
on always great to see you, thank you! Take care.
QUINONES: Thank you very much. I appreciate it.
CHATTERLEY: Thank you. OK, still to come on "First Move" critical efforts are underway to pull carbon from the sea and the air we breathe. CNN's
Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir joins us to explain the whole story, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHATTERLEY: Welcome back, a health check-up for the world ahead of Earth Day tomorrow and I have to say the diagnosis is pretty grim from drought to
floods and record low ice levels. The climate crisis took a heavy toll is it intensified in 2022. That's according to a new report from the World
Meteorological Organization.
Researchers noted that extreme weather affected tens of millions drove food insecurity, boosted mass migration and cost billions of dollars in loss and
damage quote. Scientists say cutting back on planet cooking fossil fuels is no longer enough to reverse climate change.
[09:45:00]
We must pull billions of tons of carbon dioxide from the air over the next 25 years. The problem is there are multiple ways to do this. And they're
all newly developed and still in the early stages. CNN's Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir took a look at some of those proposed solutions as
part of CNN's new program, the whole story, and he joins us now.
Bill, fantastic to have you on the show! I have to say you heard me at carbon sucking kelp. I'm very excited. But are you, are you more enthused
about the opportunities and the potential technology that we can use to help the planet as a result of this show?
BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT: I'm definitely more enthused. If when I need to snap myself out of the stare into the middle distance
over the peer reviewed dread, I read every day. I look to the innovators and the helpers and those trying to solve this massive problem. But I'm
also humbled by the sheer size of it.
You realize the challenge; we've kicked this can down the road for so long, that now over a trillion tonnes of carbon must be pulled out of the sea and
sky. And I got an amazing metaphor to help us sort of conceptualize this from a scientist's fisherman in Maine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WEIR (voice over): While he was studying robotic engineering at Dartmouth and Earth Systems at Columbia, he realized a manmade monster was destroying
his beloved Gulf of Maine, warming it up at a rate now faster than 95 percent of the rest of the world.
MARTY ODLIN, FOUNDER & CEO, RUNNING TIDE: It's a Godzilla. There's this thing out there and it's like ruining everything that we love or hate. All
the good stuff is getting ruined. All the stuff that's free and fun. It's burning forests down, it's stealing our fish. It's devastating our crops,
it's hurting our farmers get mad and go kill that thing, right.
WEIR (voice over): And right there on a dock in Maine, Marty's metaphor is a light bulb moment for me, a whole new way to think about a giant problem
that began when people figured out how to move lots and lots of carbon, that stuff of ancient life.
From the slow cycle locked in rock and under oceans, into the fast cycle in the seawater and the sky, and we've moved so much carbon. That monster now
weighs a trillion tons give or takes more than every living thing on earth. So not only do we have to stop making the monster bigger, we have to catch
it, chop it up and bury the pieces back into the slow cycle was something called carbon removal.
ODLIN: Removal chopping Godzilla down, we got this 400-foot-tall lizard and we're just chopping that thing down. That's what removal is.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WEIR: And so, Marty uses the natural earth systems, the cobbling carbon gobbling ability of kelp, big macro kelp, and he builds a raft made of bio
waste, and then bits of limestone which help with the acidification of the ocean like anti-acid for the ocean. And he's floating these off in the
North Atlantic off of Iceland now as that kelp grows up to two feet a day.
The weight of it will then sink down to the bottom of the ocean where that carbon is locked away hopes to scale this up on a grand scale. He also
works with oysters, which are big, carbon devouring little machines that nature has designed for us. And I found all kinds of ideas both bio-mimicry
that uses earth systems, but new machines that pull this stuff out of the sea and sky and pump it below but we have to pay for this.
This is a trillion-dollar industry nobody's talking about; it is essentially building the petrochemical industry in reverse, Big Oil in
reverse to try to lock that carbon Godzilla away. But a lot of this innovation is just now being uncorked. And it can be terrifying or
exhilarating depending on how you look at it, Julia.
CHATTERLEY: Yes, we need the money to scale it to your point. It's clearly going to be a must watch. Bill, when can we watch it?
WEIR: This is Sunday night, eight o'clock Eastern.
CHATTERLEY: OK.
WEIR: On the whole story with Anderson Cooper.
CHATTERLEY: Fix a date. Bill Weir, great to have you on thank you so much!
WEIR: Thank you.
CHATTERLEY: OK, coming up, a Canadian crime caper. The Great White North reeling after a brazen heist, at its largest airport all the details coming
up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[09:50:00]
CHATTERLEY: To South Korea now and an outpouring of grief over the K-pop Star Moon Bin who died this week. Police has said they believe the 25-year-
old took his own life. Paula Hancocks takes a look at the pressures on those in the Korean entertainment industry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Moon Bin was a K-pop success story, 25 years old and popular. A member of the boyband Astro on a
world tour with band mate Sanha, He is suspected suicide Wednesday, shocked friends and fans that raised questions once again about the pressure of
being inside South Korea's intense K-pop bubble.
DR. KWON JUN-WOO, PROFESSOR OF PSYCHIATRY, SEOUL NATIONAL UNIVERSITY: Celebrities are stressed out by the public. They have to maintain their
popularity, so they are more vulnerable to anxiety, depression, and panic symptoms.
HANCOCKS (voice over): K-pop is based on highly choreographed, perfected images and dance moves a polished face to the world known for long hours
intense competition with just a fraction making it and in recent years a number of high-profile suicides. Korean American singer Brian Joo admitted
mental health precious several years ago; he was one of the first to speak publicly.
BRIAN JOO, K-POP SINGER: Because talking about it is just not something that a lot of people do in this country. And I think that's the main reason
why and that's how that's why a lot of K-pop singers feel like they're --.
HANCOCKS (voice over): K-pop star Sally took her own life in 2019. A former member of girl group effects, she too spoke publicly about mental health
issues. Six weeks later, her friend singer and actress Goo Hara died by suicide both admitted pressures from cyber bullying. Mood Bin himself spoke
of struggling just 11 days before his death. But the reason behind his suspected suicide is not known.
MOON BIN, K-POP STAR: I have something to confess to fans. It's been quite hard. It's been hard and I try not to show it, but I think I showed it
since the tour and I'm sorry about that. It's a job I chose so I need to bear with it.
HANCOCKS (voice over): Korean entertainment agencies now say they prioritize the physical and mental health of their artists.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HANCOCKS: South Korea has also seen a former president and a soul mate take their own life. But it's not a problem that is confined to those in the
public eye. The suicide rate here in South Korea is one of the highest in the world. It is the leading cause of death for those in their teens 20s
and 30s. Paula Hancocks, CNN Seoul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CHATTERLEY: OK, let's move on. Also, today Canada is known for a lot of things hockey, maple syrup, and of course it's moose. But it's not just a
moose on the loose in the Great White North. Paula Newton reports on a brazen unsolved heist at Canada's largest airport.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is still quite a mystery as to what unfolded at Toronto's International Airport on Monday evening. Now, police
said that in fact, a cargo container about five feet squared was loaded off an airplane. They're not telling us which airline was loaded into a holding
warehouse. From there police say it was illegally taken.
Apparently, this container they described as high value at least $15 million worth of valuables. Some of it was gold. Some of it hires valuable
articles. They're not saying what. In fact, police aren't saying too much of anything. They are not telling us which airline was involved. They're
not telling us if there was any surveillance for it.
They're not telling us who owns this cargo. And all they will say is that this is the early stage of the investigation and that they want to explore
all avenues.
[09:55:00]
What was really interesting here was that they said that they don't even know if the cargo remains in the country. Now no one else is saying much
about this, including airport officials. They say that this is an open investigation and they do not want to tamper with that having said that,
this is quite a heist that someone could pull off.
And at this point, police do not seem to have concrete leads. What is glaring here is that they did not ask for the public's help. So, you're
wondering what kind of investigative avenues they are going down, but extraordinary. And police themselves said that look, this is rare an
isolated incident and at this point in time, they have no suspects and no one has been arrested. Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.
CHATTERLEY: And finally, if your name is Kyle, then the city of Kyle Texas needs you, it's trying to break the Guinness world record for the world's
largest theme name gathering. The place to be is like Kyle Park for the Kyle fair on May 21. And your first name must be spelled K-Y-L-E, no
variations allowed.
The record apparently currently held by the city of Bosnia and Herzegovina which brought together more than 2300 Ivan's in 2017. A Google departed
this 21,129 Kyles in Texas. Your state needs you. That's it for the show. "Connect the World" is up next. Have a great weekend.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
