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Ukraine's Zelensky: Russia Plotting Coup Against Me This Week; College Student Dies After Taking Part In Frat Boxing Match; 27 Chinese Military Jets Enter Taiwan's Air Defense Zone. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired November 29, 2021 - 07:30   ET

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

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[07:30:49]

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: A dazed 26-year-old man discovered inside the landing gear of an American Airlines flight from Guatemala to Miami on Saturday.

CNN's Pete Muntean is joining us live. You know, Pete, what can you tell us here? And I think a lot of people looking at that video are wondering how this person survived.

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, typically, incidents like this are not survivable, Brianna. It's been happening since the early days of aviation, which just makes this so incredible. This is a 26- year-old man that Customs and Border Patrol says was hiding in the landing gear well of this flight -- American Airlines flight 1182, on Saturday, from Guatemala City to Miami.

You can see him stumbling around there, which really adds up here. The air at that altitude is not breathable -- 33,000 feet. It's not pressurized in the landing gear well, like a passenger cabin where you and I sit. Also, incredibly cold at 33,000 feet -- maybe 50 degrees below zero. So, this guy not only would have faced hypothermia but also hypoxia.

This is the statement from Customs and Border Patrol. It says, "Persons are taking extreme risks when they try to conceal themselves in confined spaces such as an aircraft." CBP also says this incident is under investigation.

The FAA's latest data on incidents like this goes to 2015. Between 1947 and 2015, it says, 113 incidents of people trying to stow themselves away in flights coming into the United States. And of those, 76 percent were fatal -- typically, mean who were very young, Brianna.

KEILAR: All right, Pete. Thank you so much for that report.

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Ukrainian President Zelensky says a group of Ukrainians and Russians plan to carry out a coup against him this week. The accusation comes as Russian troop -- there is a Russian troop buildup on the border that has sparked fears of invasion. CNN's Matthew Chance is live in Kiev with the very latest -- Matthew.

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that coup that the Ukrainian president is warning about -- he said it's going to take place is scheduled to take place, or was planned to take place on the first of December or the second of December. So, just a couple of days from now.

He didn't make any evidence public but he said that the intelligence agency had gathered things like audio recordings, which -- on which Ukrainians and Russians were captured plotting in conjunction with Ukraine's richest man or people associated with Ukraine's richest man to engage in that -- in that coup.

All this falls into the general threat that is a sense of crisis that has currently gripped Ukraine. On the one hand, you've got these warnings of covert Russian-backed action to topple the government here. And then you've got these much more overt concerns as well. U.S. government's administration warning of a buildup, as you mentioned, of Russian troops near the border of Ukraine, possibly poised to invade the country for a second time -- something, of course, the Kremlin have categorically denied.

But, you know, it's all taking place over these few days and these few weeks as the pressure builds inside Ukraine and there is a sense that there is, you know, something bad is going happen. It's a real crisis situation here.

There's also political debate inside Ukraine domestically. There's also debates in the United States as well, particularly around Nord Stream 2, which is a strategic gas pipeline running from Russia to Germany.

Ukrainians are re-upping their bid to have sanctions reimposed on that -- on that -- on that pipeline because they say it's schizophrenic -- is what Ukrainian officials say. It's schizophrenic, on the one hand -- the warning of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. And on the other hand, for the Biden administration to be pushing to keep sanctions away on that important Russian pipeline -- John.

BERMAN: Matthew Chance, we're lucky to have you there in Kiev this week watching the situation. Please keep us posted.

KEILAR: All right, let's get more on this now with Bill Taylor. He's the former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine. And you may recall that he testified during Trump's first impeachment hearing, providing a damning account of Trump telling his appointees to establish a quid pro quo with Ukraine.

All right, so we're watching a lot of buildup of Russian troops there outside of Ukraine, and we're hearing from the president about a coup. He says there's going to be a coup that does coincide with a demonstration that's going to happen.

[07:35:03]

Do you think there's going to be a coup?

BILL TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE, VICE PRESIDENT, STABILITY, U.S. INSTITUTE OF PEACE: Brianna, I don't think there is going to be a coup either from Ukrainians or from Russians.

Clearly, there is going to be a big demonstration later on this week, as your reporter said. Those demonstrations are focused on some internal controversies having to do with an intelligence operation the plug was pulled on.

It also has to do with an oligarch -- anti-oligarch bill that has been signed and is now law. It goes into effect in the spring -- that's caused a lot of concern among people. So, they're demonstrating against that.

This question of coup, I think, is an example of the concern about the Russians, as you say, building up on the border. There's real concern about the military movement. The Russians clearly don't want to have Ukraine succeed.

KEILAR: Is -- so what is Zelensky doing here? Is he just trying to get eyes trained on the region as there is concern about a Russian invasion?

TAYLOR: Clearly, a focus -- transparency helps him because if people are watching what the Russians do then they can't get away with any covert action. So, that could be something that makes people look at what's going on in Ukraine.

Again, he is concerned about an invasion because they have the capability and they've done it before. They've invaded Ukraine, of course, in 2014. They invaded Ukraine -- Mr. Putin invaded Ukraine in 2014 when Mr. Putin thought that Ukraine was slipping away from him. The pro-Russian president fled and went to Russia. And Mr. Putin was concerned so he invaded Crimea, part of Ukraine.

KEILAR: When you're looking at where Russian troops are and what's Russia is saying even as the foreign intel chief there says hey, there are no plans to invade Ukraine, what do you see?

TAYLOR: We see the capability. We see the capability both on the Ukrainian border. We see Russian troops building up in Crimea -- occupied Crimea -- so they could come up from the south. We see the Russians and the Belarusians coordinating very closely on Ukraine's north.

So, on three sides, Ukraine is concerned about military action sponsored by and depend -- and done by -- executed by the Russians. So, there is a real concern about capabilities.

KEILAR: All right, we'll keep watching. Capabilities -- is he going to move forward. We don't know at this point.

Ambassador, thank you.

TAYLOR: Brianna, thank you. KEILAR: Just ahead, we're going to talk to the NBA star who says he will legally change his name just hours from now.

BERMAN: A college student tragically dies after an amateur fraternity boxing match. His parents join us next.

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[07:42:13]

KEILAR: This morning, a family is seeking answers after a life has been cut far too short. Nathan Valencia, a UNLV student, participated in a charity boxing match that was hosted by a fraternity earlier this month. He collapsed shortly after the bout and he died four days later. This is according to statements from the university and from his family's attorney.

According to an online flyer for the event, Valencia was one of the fighters participating in the card's main event. However, his family's attorneys tell CNN that Valencia had no prior boxing experience.

On Saturday night, on what would have been his 21st birthday, a vigil was held to remember Nathan. One fraternity brother said he was the best person that anybody could ever ask for.

And joining me now are Nathan Valencia's parents, Cynthia and Michael Valencia. And they're also joined by their attorneys Nick Lasso and Ryan Zimmer.

Cynthia, to you first. I am so incredibly sorry for what your family is going through. We see these pictures of your son. We hear from his friends what he was like. He was clearly a beautiful, beautiful person.

What can you tell us about him?

CYNTHIA VALENCIA, MOTHER OF NATHAN VALENCIA (via Webex by Cisco): He truly was. To me, he was perfect. He was our baby. He was God's greatest gift to us. Our world revolved around him.

He had such a great personality and I think that's why everybody was drawn to him. He loved life. Like, he had such charisma. Fun-loving, very loyal.

I mean, he was just perfect to me and I thought that was because I was -- as a parent, I was biased. But just hearing from all his friends how he affected their lives. It's apparent he was just perfect.

KEILAR: Yes. Look, his friends love him and dearly miss him, as does his family.

I wonder if you can tell us -- because look, we see -- we've heard this description of this being like an underground fight club, but when you look at it this was an organized event. It was publicized. It was something to raise funds for charity.

I wonder what you have learned about what happened and what happened to your son.

C. VALENCIA: Well, what I know is when he first mentioned to me that he was going to be joining that fight night I said, what do you mean fight night? He said well, mom, it's fight night.

I said what do you mean, like box? He said yes. I said no, you have to back out. And he goes no, mom, I can't back out. This is for a charity, right?

[07:45:00]

And so, I made sure -- I kept asking him are you going to be protected? Are you going to be wearing a headgear? And he said yes, of course. This is for charity. So, he was saying mom, you worry too much. This is -- you know, this is just a charity event.

So, come to find out, he was going to be the main event. And I was like how did this happen? But he was like telling me -- he kept telling us that no, this is for people who didn't have prior boxing experience because he never was a boxer. He truly was just doing this because it was for a charity.

KEILAR: And so, what happened that night, Cynthia?

C. VALENCIA: So, that night we got a call from his girlfriend -- actually, like Lacey called Nathan's dad saying that the fight was over but they think that Nathan suffered a concussion because he had collapsed. So, we rushed to the hospital.

But what we've heard was like he was laying on the floor waiting for paramedics for about 15 minutes because they didn't have paramedics on standby at the site.

KEILAR: And, Michael, do you know if safety protocols were followed here?

MICHAEL VALENCIA, FATHER OF NATHAN VALENCIA (via Webex by Cisco): I don't think so because if there is safety protocol my son would be at the house right now and he will be -- he'll be 21. We'd be celebrating his birthday now -- you know, having a good Thanksgiving and everything. So, I don't think there's a safety in place. So --

KEILAR: Can you tell us anything about what you've been told about who the referee was?

C. VALENCIA: Well, I guess like in the past, they've always had professional referees, right? But what we've heard -- like, this time, they just pulled some random guy from Kappa. Is that right, Kappa? Yes.

NICK LASSO, ATTORNEY FOR NATHAN VALENCIA'S FAMILY (via Webex by Cisco): That's what we believe.

C. VALENCIA: That's what we believe. And we have videos showing that the referee was drinking, as well as the judges, during the event. KEILAR: So, you're saying this was a referee from a fraternity who

was in charge of making the calls about obviously whether to go or stop this. That's what you're saying.

And Nick and Ryan, maybe you can speak to this. Is -- as I understand it, and please correct me if I am wrong here, this was an event that was held many years here annually, practically. The weigh-in -- is that right -- was on campus at the school and publicized?

What is the -- what is the role of the school here? What is the accountability of the school?

LASSO: Well, so, you are correct. The weigh-in was held on campus. This was an event that was known to the university. It's been held many times in years past. So, the school absolutely had notice of this. Apparently, had no care or concern for safety regulations and making sure that the referees were professional and there were paramedics on-site.

So, there's a lot of moving pieces, of course, but it just appears that there were safety failures at every single step of this process.

Again, you were correct. The weigh-in was held on campus and that would have been a room reserved by the Kappa Sigma fraternity, so they were well on notice of this. Of course, the social media posts and everything else.

KEILAR: All right. I just want to be clear the fraternity, as well as the UNLV president -- they've put out statements.

The president saying they're shocked and heartbroken. That words connect describe their feeling, meaning your feelings, Cynthia and Michael, and your family, of grief and emptiness. And the fraternity also greatly saddened, sending their condolences as well.

Look, a lot of questions here to be answered I think just days after this event and we're going to stay on this, Cynthia and Michael. But I just wanted -- before I let you go here, I just want to give you a chance to reflect on your son and tell us -- tell us what you're going to miss about Nathan.

C. VALENCIA: We're going to miss his great personality. I mean, how can you move on from losing a child, especially somebody who lost his life so tragically? It could have been avoided. I mean, our family is broken. I don't know.

M. VALENCIA: Senseless now (ph).

C. VALENCIA: Yes.

KEILAR: Look, I think it's very clear that this is -- this is senseless and I don't think you do move on from it. But we're going to stay on this story, Michael and Cynthia.

[07:50:05]

Thank you so much for being with us. And Nick Lasso and Ryan Zimmer, we appreciate you being with us as well.

RYAN ZIMMER, ATTORNEY FOR NATHAN VALENCIA'S FAMILY (via Webex by Cisco): Thank you.

C. VALENCIA: Thank you.

LASSO: Thank you.

KEILAR: Just ahead, we're going to hear live from an American family now stuck in South Africa as a new COVID travel ban begins.

BERMAN: China's new powerplay sending military jets into Taiwan's air defense zone.

And NBA star Enes Kanter joins me live on why he's changing his name in just a few hours.

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BERMAN: Taiwan's air force scrambled combat planes after 27 Chinese military planes flew into its defense zone. This was the latest show of force by Chinese President Xi.

CNN's Will Ripley live in Hong Kong this morning for us. Will, why don't you tell us what's going on here.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, there have been nearly 200 Chinese warplanes flown near Taiwan since October, John. And the motives behind this, according to Taiwan's defense minister, intimidation of Taiwan, testing Taiwan's defense capabilities because they scramble their fire jets and defense systems every time this happens. And they also want to send a message to the United States, which just days ago sent a surprise delegation of lawmakers to meet with Taiwan's President Tsai Ing-wen.

Now, China would never explicitly actually reveal its reasons. China, all the way -- by the way, also gets intelligence every time they conduct these missions.

[07:55:04]

And what makes this one Sunday really unprecedented is that for the first time, in addition to the 18 fighter jets and five nuclear- capable bombers, you had a new type of plane -- the Y-20, which is an aerial refueling aircraft which allows China to conduct longer-range missions, potentially putting within striking range, analysts say, U.S. troops in Okinawa and maybe even potentially endangering U.S. troops in Guam.

And so, this is a message aimed at Taiwan but also not so indirectly at the United States. Chinese President Xi Jinping, on the very day that this was happening on Sunday, was at a military conference, according to the Chinese Xinhua news agency, where he told the troops that they need to prepare, they need to train. They need to get out there so they can have the upper hand in future wars. This is a president who has said repeatedly that if Taiwan does not agree to China's demand that it reunify with the mainland, they will retake it by force if necessary. Of course, China's communist rulers have never actually controlled the island of Taiwan, John.

BERMAN: Will Ripley, please keep us posted. Thank you very much.

So, today is a big day for Enes Kanter, the outspoken center for the Boston Celtics. Not only is he scheduled to become an American citizen this afternoon, but he also plans to change his name to Enes Kanter Freedom.

Joining us now is Enes Kanter. First of all, can I just say congratulations to you? This is a day where I feel like America wins by getting you as a citizen. So, congratulations.

Just what does it mean to you?

ENES KANTER, CENTER, BOSTON CELTICS (via Webex by Cisco): Thank you for having me, John.

I mean, a dream came true. It's been six years that I have tried to become an American citizen and now, finally, I can call somewhere home. I mean, if you guys have followed my story, I have been struggling with a lot with my home country, Turkey. And now, I have a new home.

I just want to start fresh. So, I'm just like today's the probably biggest day of my life.

BERMAN: What does it mean to you to be an American?

KANTER: I mean, I'll tell you a story. The first time I came here in 2009, one of my teammates criticized the president. And I turned around and I told him -- I was like dude, you're going to be in jail. What are you doing? He turned around and he started laughing and he said don't worry about it; this is not Turkey.

To me, America gives me everything. America gives me a home, give me family. My teammates become my brothers and my real -- like my real family.

So, this means so much to me. I mean, I'm just finally going to call somewhere home. And because the Turkish government revoked my passport and put my name on the Interpol list. So, I'm just -- was waiting for this moment for years and years and it's finally here.

BERMAN: So, talk to me about the name change -- Enes Kanter Freedom.

KANTER: Yes. I think the -- I mean, as you guys know, that's the one thing my whole life I have tried to fight for. You know, when I came to America, to me it was so amazing because here there is freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of expression, and freedom of press, which I didn't have any of those in Turkey.

You know, that's why I wanted to -- and freedom also is the greatest thing that a human being can have. So, that's why I wanted to make that word a part of me and carry it wherever I go. And so that word definitely means the world to me.

BERMAN: Is that going to be on your uniform?

KANTER: Yes, actually. We have a game on the 30th against Philly and that is going to be the first time that I'm wearing a jersey and behind the jersey, it is going to say Freedom.

BERMAN: And is it what your -- you were telling me your teammates have been calling you Freedom? What have they been saying?

KANTER: So, yesterday, yes, my teammates started calling me Mr. Freedom. It was just a fun joke in the beginning and now it's actually become a reality. But I just cannot thank them enough. You know, their support gave me so much hope and motivation to fight and fight for what's right.

And I told them. I was like -- they wanted to throw a party and I was like listen, all I want is cupcakes. Red and blue cupcakes and I'll be fine.

BERMAN: It's not like all I want is nothing. You actually demanded cupcakes there, which is, I guess, a good way to use this new freedom.

Look, you're not -- the one thing I think people need to understand is you're not just taking this for granted. You are using your platform. You are really leaning into what it means to be an American and to promote freedom.

KANTER: You know, God gave me this platform to be the voice -- be the voice of all those innocent people out there who don't have a voice. There are so many people who are struggling right now. There are so many people who are -- become political prisoners because of what they say, what they think, what they tweet. So, to me, it was important to --