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One World with Zain Asher
U.S. Blockade Of Iran's Ports After Peace Talks Fail; Pontiff Responds To Trump Criticism As He Begins Trip To Africa; June Runoff Likely As Ballots Still Being Counted; Oil Prices Rise After Trump Announces Iran Blockade; McIlroy makes History With Second-Straight Masters Championship; Trump: The World Needs The Strait Of Hormuz; Aired 12-1p ET
Aired April 13, 2026 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:00:46]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
ZAIN ASHER, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Coming to you live from New York, I'm Zain Asher.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. You are watching the second hour of "One World."
New threats from President Trump. He warns the U.S. will think any Iranian ships that come near the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports. Now, that blockade
has been in effect for two hours. This after weekend peace talks between the U.S. and Iran and Islamabad failed to reach an agreement.
ASHER: Yes. With the two-week ceasefire still in place, Pakistan says it is working to revive the U.S., Iran dialogue -- dialogue. All of this
disruption, once again, sending oil prices above $100 a barrel.
GOLODRYGA: Let's go straight to Clarissa Ward live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
And, Clarissa, before this blockade was set to begin, Iran firing back, saying that no ports in the region would be safe. What is the reaction thus
far in Riyadh?
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think everybody is watching very closely to see how this will develop, how Iran
will respond. We have seen a statement from Iran's acting defense minister just in the last hour or so, saying that its troops are now on maximum
combat alert.
As you mentioned as well, there was an earlier statement saying that no port in the Gulf of Oman or the Persian Gulf would be safe as long as
Iran's ports come under threat. That is a very obvious threat to the Arab Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia, where I am.
We have seen a number of attacks during the more kinetic phase of this war on the UAE ports and other Gulf ports as well.
So, that is one way that potentially Iran could seek to retaliate. They could also try to get the Houthis involved in the Red Sea, cutting off the
choke point of Bab al-Mandeb. And they could also try to attack pipelines that circumvent the Strait of Hormuz.
So, the East-West pipeline here in Saudi Arabia, for example, which was attacked, in fact, on the first day of the ceasefire resulting in
significant damage. That pipeline is now up and running again and providing some seven million barrels of crude oil a day that can be exported without
going through the Strait of Hormuz.
And they could also look at the UAE has a similar pipeline that circumvents the Strait of Hormuz in Fujairah.
So, a number of different options that the Iranians could take here. But obviously in the Gulf region, the hope very much is that this will not
escalate. They have favored a diplomatic process and resolution to this, but they also felt that Iran retaining any control of the Strait of Hormuz
was a red line for them.
ASHER: Clarissa, who has the most to lose here? Because, I mean, obviously for the Americans, what's at stake for this administration is the midterm
elections, the gas prices are such a political issue.
This is, of course, at least economically going to backfire in the U.S. with gas prices rising higher. But the Iranians, on the other hand, really
do have -- they really have shown themselves to be quite patient through all of this. Their ability to sort of withstand the economic pressure.
You know, they have to be ruthless. The survival of their regime is at stake. So, they're much more likely to be able to sort of hold through
this. Just -- just give us your take on that, Clarissa.
WARD: Well, I think it's a question of perspective, Zain. Ultimately, everybody is losers in this. And, yes, the Iranians have shown that they're
willing to withstand a lot of pain in order to survive.
But the impact of this blockade would be significant. You're talking about losses, according to one analyst, of something like $270 million a day.
That is no small thing. Iran's economy is already in a state of absolute crisis. And there has been a huge toll that has been waged militarily on
Iran.
[12:05:00]
You heard the president say many times now, the army is in tatters, the navy is in tatters, though he did, of course, single out those smaller,
what they call fast attack ships, which Iran still has at least more than 100, 150, according to some estimates of those, which he was warning should
not try to fire on any U.S. ships that are involved with this blockade.
But I think for many looking across the region and even globally, the big concern here is that this is becoming a conflict of diminishing returns for
all sides. And the impact goes far beyond this region, far beyond the U.S. even.
I mean, we haven't been focusing so much on Asia and the economic fallout there as a result of the disruption of supply chains, the lack of
fertilizer is going through, the food shortages that we could very well be seeing in the short-term future.
So, certainly, I think there's a sense that there's a lot more to lose than to gain at this stage. And that's why you're seeing these concerted and
continued efforts, shuttle diplomacy behind the scenes. There is still a period, nine days left on this ceasefire, in which to try to bring both
sides back to the table.
ASHER: Clarissa, I'm so glad you brought up the knock-on effect for other countries around the world. You mentioned Asia, but we've been covering
Africa as well and the rising food prices, rising gas prices, the inflationary pressures there. That is no small thing as well.
Clarissa Ward, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
Britain and France say will not participate in the U.S.-directed blockade, but will co-host a summit to discuss a coordinated independent plan to
safeguard shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
GOLODRYGA: The British Prime Minister says freedom of navigation is vital for the world. Keir Starmer, who returned from a visit to the Gulf region
last week, spoke in Parliament a short while ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: The region remains on edge. And a lot of work is required to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to de-escalate the
situation leading to a sustainable ceasefire.
The world in which we live has utterly changed. It is more volatile and insecure than at any period in my lifetime. And we must rise to meet it
calmly but with strength.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. Let's bring in retired Lieutenant General Karen Gibson. She's a senior associate for Intelligence, National Security and Technology
at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, and a former deputy director of National Intelligence. Thank you so much for being with us.
I just want to start by having you explain to our audience how this U.S. naval blockade will actually work militarily, just in terms of the U.S.
being able to control traffic in and out of Iranian ports.
LT GEN. KAREN GIBSON (RET.), SENIOR ASSOCIATE, INTELLIGENCE, NATIONAL SECURITY AND TECHNOLOGY, CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES:
Certainly. So -- well, thank -- and thank you for having me on the program.
So, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Central Command are well trained and equipped to provide this kind of escort support to perform this mission. They've done
it in the past. It's been several decades, but this is something they are trained to do.
It would involve destroyers like the ones that demonstrated the feasibility of safely sailing through the Strait over the weekend, as well as combat
air support, intelligence surveillance and reconnaissance, and, you know, probably some minesweepers, perhaps the aircraft carrier there to provide
the kind of fighter support that will be required.
It's pretty resource intensive. And, again, they demonstrated the feasibility of sailing over the weekend.
But I think one of the key challenges will be, not the ability to escort some ships, because I have complete confidence it's a military mission.
They'll perform with great professionalism as they have been throughout the campaign, but that the throughput will be much lower even with escort
support than it was prior to the commencement of this campaign.
And so really, it won't totally address the challenge that we have of getting vessels in and out of the Gulf. And that's if Iran doesn't --
chooses not to strike back in some way.
GOLODRYGA: General, the principle of freedom of navigation really was what the origin of the United States Navy, how it came about. And here we are in
a position where President Trump is now following through on a threat that he had made earlier.
I'm just wondering about your reaction to and how you interpret European countries' approach to this. Clearly, everyone has to get in the game, as
President Trump notes. They rely on this oil more than the United States does, though the price is still impacting U.S. consumers as a whole.
Is it a mistake, in your view, that European countries, whatever they may feel about the war now that it is here, are not actively participating
alongside the United States militarily as it's issuing in enacting this blockade?
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GIBSON: So, I think each nation has been making different decisions about the ways in which they support the U.S. in this, whether that's facing over
flight, et cetera. You know, we've seen Spain take one stance and perhaps Italy or the Europe -- oh, I'm sorry, England, taking the U.K., taking a
different stance.
So, each nation has made its own decisions. It's not a united E.U. front in that regard. And perhaps that will change.
I think one other aspect to consider is the capability of the Gulf nations and their maritime forces. It's also very much in their interests to get
the flow of vessels going again through the Straits. And so whether it's Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, the Emiratis and others, they might also choose to
play a role.
I think people are waiting to see how Iran is going to respond. Really, one of the key purposes of this blockade is both to strip Iran of some resource
capacity, as your last interview just said, whether it's the tolls that they're extracting for passage or from their own exports, but also to take
away their principal leverage of choking off commercial activity in the Gulf.
They can either take a pot shot, some kind of action against the U.S. blockade, in which case I'm afraid we'll probably return to a more kinetic
return aspect of a campaign, or they may seek to come back to the negotiating table willing to make additional concessions, which is really
what I think the U.S. is seeking to do in addition to reopening the -- the Gulf.
ASHER: And just give us a bit more detail on just the specific risks. I mean, you talk about just some of the options that Iran has. Will they come
back to the negotiating table? Will they fight harder?
But just in terms of the attacks that the U.S. military, the U.S. Navy, could actually face at this point in time, what are the risks here?
GIBSON: Yes. Well, so you've mentioned the fast attack craft. It could also be drones or missiles from elsewhere within Iran. And I'd say, you know,
there's been a lot of focus on this narrow transit corridor that is the Strait of Hormuz.
But Iran has the ability to mess with traffic throughout the entirety of the Gulf to include vessels that are in ports on the other side. So, you
know, whether that's through drones or missiles.
So, it's a very broad threat that Iran has. And I think it's asymmetric from two perspectives. One, it can be these kind of cheap, reliable things
like fast attack craft or drones. It doesn't have to be something very big.
Two, it is in their interest to drag this out, because I think as we've talked about before, they're -- they seek to make the war so politically
and economically intolerable for the United States that the U.S. is incentivized to -- to bring it to a swift or conclusion.
And then the third thing that I think is really important is actually not the U.S. military or the Navy or the American president who will determine
that the Gulf is open again for -- for commerce. That's a commercial business decision that's driven by commercial entities and their insurers,
shippers. And they will have to decide that the risks that they face sailing through the Gulf are low enough that it is worth it.
And there's a lot of things, small things that Iran can do to elevate that risk or even the perception of risk, because that's really what it will
boil down to.
ASHER: All right. Retired Lieutenant General Karen Gibson, thank you so much.
GOLODRYGA: Well, Pope Leo is currently in Algeria. It's the first of four countries he'll be visiting on a historic 11-day trip to Africa.
Earlier, he visited The Great Mosque of Algiers. Now, it comes as the pontiff pushes back against criticism and insults from U.S. President
Donald Trump, who denounced the Pope's stance on the Iran war after Pope Leo condemned Trump's threats against Iran.
Here's some of what Trump said Sunday night.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: He's a very liberal person. And he's a man that doesn't believe in stopping crime. He's a man that
doesn't think that we should be toying with a country that wants a nuclear weapon so they can blow up the world.
I'm not -- I'm not a fan of Pope Leo.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Pope Leo did respond saying that he's not afraid of the Trump administration. And that is what -- what is needed right now is peace.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
POPE LEO XIV, HEAD OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH: I have no fear, neither the Trump administration, nor speaking out loudly about the message of the
gospel and -- and that's what I believe.
I am called to know what the church is called to do. We're not politicians. We're not looking to make foreign policies policy with the same perspective
that -- that he might understand it. But I do believe that the message of the gospel, blessed are the peacemakers, is the message that the world
needs to hear today.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[12:15:06]
ASHER: Harry Enten takes a closer look at how Americans and Catholics feel about both of these leaders.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRY ENTEN, CNN CHIEF DATA ANALYST: Hey, there, Zain and Bianna.
Look, it was the matchup that nobody asked for, but last night, President Trump went after Pope Leo XIV on Truth Social. And maybe he's doing so
because he's jealous of the Pope.
Just take a look at these popularity ratings here in the United States of America, among all Americans. Among all Americans, you can see it right
here, Pope Leo XIV is blowing President Trump out of the water.
And that popularity rating here in America, you can see it. The Pope at plus 34 points way, way, way above President Trump, who's at minus 12
points. That means that Pope Leo XIV is 46 points more popular on the net popularity rating scale than the president of the United States.
Now, when we zoom in among Catholics specifically, you can see that President Trump is struggling.
Look at where we are right now. OK. U.S. Catholics on Trump. In November of 2024, Donald Trump won Catholics easily. He won him by 20 points over
Kamala Harris. Blew her out.
But look right now, as of late March, his net approval rating down it goes into the Dead Sea. We're talking about a minus four points on the -- on the
net approval scale. So that's a 24 points switcheroo against the President of the United States when it comes to how Catholics feel about him.
Now, of course, Pope Leo has been very critical of the war in Iran. And you know what? Most Catholics agree with Pope Leo. They are against the
president of the United States.
Take a look at this. OK. Net approval rating among U.S. Catholics of U.S. military action against Iran. You can see it's quite unpopular here. Ten
points underwater. Ten points underwater the U.S. military action against Iran is among U.S. Catholics.
You think that's slow? Come over to this side of the screen. You can see when it comes to Trump's net approval rating on Iran, he's even less
popular. He's 20 points underwater.
So, the bottom line is this, Zain and Bianna. The Pope, far more popular than President Trump, is here in the United States. Trump is struggling
with Catholics. And when it comes to the war in Iran, U.S. Catholics are on the side of the Pope and not on the side of the president of the United
States.
Zain and Bianna, my friends, back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: And perhaps that is best explained by the president deleting tweet - -
ASHER: Yes.
GOLODRYGA: -- speaking himself as Jesus there. I'm sure he tuned in earlier to watch Harry's reporting.
All right. Coming up, celebrations across much of Hungary as this man, Peter Magyar, brings Viktor Orban 16 years in office to an end.
ASHER: And why voters in Peru could be waiting months before learning who's going to be the next president. We'll have a live report for you after the
break.
GOLODRYGA: Plus, he's done it again. Rory McIlroy comes out on top to win his second straight Masters.
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[12:20:39]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CHANTING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Passengers aboard a train in Budapest there breaking out into song and celebration of Hungary's election results on Sunday.
Opposition politician Peter Magyar's sweeping victory means Viktor Orban's 16 years in office is coming to an end.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. The election was watched closely from outside Hungary as well. U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance tried to boost Orban, a Trump ally, in
the final days of the campaign.
While many in Europe hope Orban's defeat marks an end to Hungary's warm relations with Russia, here's how voters in Budapest reflected on the
results.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't believe. I can't believe.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't know. I -- I -- I hope now change and will change, but not only in Hungary, around the world. It's not normal now.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm very excited. Very excited. I'm -- I was waiting 16 years for this day.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Meantime, voting in Peru's presidential election has been extended into a second day because of problems at polling places, but ballots are
already being counted.
Conservative candidate Keiko Fujimori holds the lead. It's her fourth time running and she follows her father who served as president in the 1990s.
GOLODRYGA: Experts say, a runoff is likely since there are 35 candidates on the ballot. Peru has had eight presidents since 2018.
Well, we are thrilled to be joined by CNN en Espanol anchor Rebeka Kelly. She is making her debut. I believe if I'm correct here with CNN with us
here on "One World."
ASHER: Welcome.
GOLODRYGA: So, you have incredible taste by joining us for your first hit here with CNN. Rebeka, welcome to CNN. We're thrilled to have you.
ASHER: So thrilled.
GOLODRYGA: And obviously a very important election that you're kicking off your coverage following. Just give us a sense of what you will be paying
attention to as the results as the ballots are being counted.
REBEKA KELLY, ANCHOR, CNN AMERICA: Well, first of all, thank you, girls, for having me. It's such a pleasure. I'm a bit star struck with you on the
other side of CNN. I don't know what I'm more nervous about CNN Espanol or International. But anyway, thank you for having me. It's such a pleasure to
join the CNN family.
And that you were saying, Bianna, yes. Well, let me start with this. These are pretty unusual circumstances for voters in Peru. The election actually
kicked off yesterday, as you mentioned, but it didn't really start smoothly.
A lot of polling stations, specifically in Lima, just didn't open on time and it wasn't anything dramatic. It was more basic than that. It was about
logistical failures. We're talking about ballots arriving late, materials gone missing, some voting centers simply did not open in time. In some
places, people were waiting up to five hours or even more just to be able to exert their right to vote.
Now, because of that, authorities had, will step into the second day of voting, which is today, and now today more than 60,000 people around
specifically 63,000 people will be able to cast their ballot and that will be happening Mondays.
We don't have the results yet because it's during the whole day that will - - they will be able to go and vote.
Now, in terms of where things stand, early results from about half the votes counted, Keiko Fujimori, slightly ahead. She's leading over Rafael
Lopez Aliaga, the former mayor of Lima.
But here's what's really interesting. That is, the second place is so tight that the fear is that there will be a second round. And realistically, no
one is even close to the 50 percent needed to win outright, which is -- which means this runoff will happen most likely in June, which is the
second Sunday in June.
But stepping back for a second, ladies, let me explain to you why this is not just about an election. Peru has been stuck in a cycle of political
instability for years, since 2018 to be specific.
As you mentioned, the country has had eight presidents, leaders don't finish their terms. Congress is deeply unpopular with the people. And
voters are increasingly frustrated with the entire system. And that's what makes Peru so fascinating -- fascinating and also very complicated.
[12:25:06]
Because economically, it's relatively strong. It's a major exporter, especially in mining. But politically, the institutions are very, very
weak.
So, you have this contradiction of sorts, a country that should feel stable on paper, but in reality, isn't. And this matters for you in Peru, because
it's a key player in global copper markets, so instability can ripple into the global economy.
ASHER: I love that you mentioned instability, because we're talking about nine leaders in what, 10 years. And then you talked about the fact that
there are, what, 35 people on the ballot, including a former minister, a political dynasty heiress, a comedian.
So yes, there's going to be a runoff, for sure.
Rebeka --
KELLY: It's -- it's a -- it's a lot happening, yes.
ASHER: Yes. There's a lot about happening.
Rebeka, as we mentioned, we're so happy to have you at CNN. And, you know, I find your background so interesting, because, yes, you're Mexican, but
you grew up where I grew up. You're partly from the U.K., you spent time in structure. Your dad was born in India. There's just -- just so -- just so
fascinating, such a great background.
Just -- just walk us through who you are. And obviously we are, as I mentioned, just so happy to have you here at CNN.
KELLY: Well, believe it or not, I started in Mexico City carrying cables for -- for photographers back in 20 years ago. And I just wanted to be a
conflict (ph) some correspondent, because I grew up in Mexico with my father reading "The Times," and, you know, he was just fascinated by
journalists. So, I wanted to be part of that world.
And when I had the opportunity to come to -- to the U.S., you know, exerting journalism, I didn't think about it twice. And then here I worked
for other broadcasting companies.
But finally, I came back to, I guess, what my home was, from the very beginning of my journalistic career in Mexico City. And now I'm in Miami
working for CNN, the company I've always admired.
And I admire it, because it looks -- and, you know, it's a very particular way, CNN way, of doing journalism, which is, I think, fact-based. So, I'm
so thrilled to be here.
ASHER: Yes. We're -- we're really excited. And you're from Mexico. I used to -- was telling Rebeka during the commercial break, I used to live in
Guadalajara.
GOLODRYGA: She was speaking to her in Spanish.
ASHER: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
KELLY: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
GOLODRYGA: OK. I'm feeling left out, so I'm going to say goodbye now, Rebeka. Kidding.
Rebeka Kelly --
KELLY: Bye, girls.
GOLODRYGA: -- it is so wonderful to have you with us. And we look forward to having you on the show many more times in the future as I brush up on my
Spanish.
KELLY: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
GOLODRYGA: So I can be included. I did study Spanish in Texas for many years, but I've completely lost it. Now you've given me reason to brush
back up on it.
KELLY: Well, girls, well, you're in Miami. We have to catch up. Lovely to meet you both.
ASHER: Let's do it. For sure.
KELLY: Bye.
GOLODRYGA: Well, you can catch Rebecca's new show, CNN America, on CNN E, at 8 AM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. Can you believe that? I
actually said Spanish for five years.
ASHER: You're from Texas. You should speak Spanish fluently.
GOLODRYGA: I can say a little bit, but yes. I guess I can only comprehend a couple of ones this time.
All right. Coming up for us, how will President Trump's blockade of Iran's vital shipping lane affect its economy? We'll have details after the break.
ASHER: So funny. Russian, English.
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
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[12:30:28]
GOLODRYGA: All right. Welcome back to "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: And I'm Zain Asher.
The U.S. military has begun enforcing a blockade of all Iranian ports, both inside and outside the Strait of Hormuz. And this morning, President Donald
Trump threatened to sink any Iranian ship that comes near the blockade.
GOLODRYGA: European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says that freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz is, quote, paramount
importance while drawing attention to the economic impact of the war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Since the beginning of the conflict, 44 days ago, our bill for fossil fuel imports has
increased by over 22 billion euros, 44 days, 22 billion euros, not a single molecule of energy in addition.
Even if the hostility seized immediately and the disruption of energy supplies from the Gulf will persist for some time to come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: All right. Time now for The Exchange. Joining us is Miad Maleki, senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. And, Miad,
welcome to the program.
I was really struck by a post you made over the weekend on X of lengthy thread about the impact that this blockade would likely have on Iran.
And you point out that Iran's oil infrastructure faces permanent damage after just 13 days of a blockade.
And -- and crunching the numbers, you're saying the cost of the regime ultimately and collectively would be some $435 million a day. But this is
essentially a staring contest. Is it not as to who will blink first and who can publicly at least withstand more pain? Why do you think that this
blockade could even last as long as you say that it could? Two weeks seems like a very long time.
MIAD MALEKI, SENIOR FELLOW, FOUNDATION FOR DEFENSE OF DEMOCRACIES: Hi. Thanks for having me.
No. I mean, it's -- it is unclear how long this blockade is going to last, what U.S. governments and allies and partners, you know, how long they can
-- they can sustain this blockade and how effective it would be. It's obvious that Iranians or Iranian regime is going to really escalate.
Now, whether it's through targeting the flow of commerce in the Strait of Hormuz or even going after some of these oil production facilities in the
Gulf. So that's a possibility.
Now, at the same time, you know, the numbers that you laid out, you know, Iran has about, you know, $280 million a day of export that goes out of the
Persian -- Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz.
About $160 million in import that comes back a day. So you cutting that out. And if -- if that is not happening, then what's going to happen?
Iran's going to have to store its oil that is extracting on offshore storage facilities or on tankers.
And, you know, I think within 13, 14, you know, two weeks, Iran's going to run out of the ability to store oil. And then they're going to have to drop
their extraction, which is going to pose a permanent long-term damage to its ability to extract oil. And that -- that can lead in to some kind of a
friction within national Iranian oil tanker company, national Iranian oil company, labor strikes.
And -- and as a matter of fact, you know, it's -- the -- the ability -- regime's ability to pay salaries of its government employees if they can't
collect taxes, because they can't sell metals, they can't sell petrochemicals and petroleum, because they can't produce any, that is going
to really hurt them really bad. We can also, like, account for regime's ability to continue paying salaries.
ASHER: As Bianna was saying though, it is, at the end of the day, a staring contest because, yes, I'm so glad you laid out just so smartly just how
much this is going to cost the Iranian regime, especially as it pertains to lost exports.
[12:35:10]
But it's also going to be very costly for the U.S. to maintain just this naval blockade. When you think about the number of ships, the aircraft, the
personnel that will, you know, be required to sort of maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz.
You've got -- you've got to also worry about mine clearing, missile defense, convoy protection. Then there's the attrition when it comes to
damaged ships, lost drones, equipment, depletion. This is also going to be a very expensive undertaking for the Americans too.
MALEKI: Absolutely. I think about what's going to happen. Iran's ability to continue to disrupt or cause chaos is going to decline as well.
I mean, I can assume that it would be some kind of an airstrike campaign or -- or some other means to -- to -- to disrupt Iran's ability to target U.S.
and Western assets in the Persian -- Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
So, Iran's ability to maintain control or cause chaos is going to actually decline. And I think Iran's economy and Iran, more than any other nations
in the Gulf, needs the Strait of Hormuz operations to go back to normal.
As I said, if they can't collect taxes domestically, they've shut down the internet for over 45 days now. That's a major source of tax -- taxation and
revenue for the government and also employment domestically.
So, they're going to face major domestic pressure as well if they can't get their -- their export back to the -- to the normal kind of numbers.
GOLODRYGA: What's interesting, and -- and I think so important to highlight that -- that you raise in your thread over the weekend is that throughout
all of this blockade, it's important to offload humanitarian cargoes for those civilians in Iran that need medical aid, that need food supplies, et
cetera.
Just talk to us about how important that is, not just from a humanitarian perspective for Iranians, but for America's image around the world, this
coming just days after the president took a lot of heat understandably so for threatening to eliminate an entire civilization.
MALEKI: Right. I think at least from a messaging point of view, it's important to make sure that those humanitarian cargoes reach Iranian ports.
Now, I have a strong doubt in humanitarian aid to the Iranian or to -- to Iran would actually translate into help for the Iranian people.
What the regime is going to do is to grab those cargoes, resell them in the market through rounds of rounds of commissions and intermediaries. But at
the same time, the market is going to receive some food, stuff, agricultural commodities. So, I hope those continue.
At -- at the same time, I'm very skeptical that the humanitarian trade is going to really actually help the Iranian people.
ASHER: And just speaking about the civilians and all of this, you know, you talk about not helping the Iranian people.
But here in the U.S., what the American voters care about most is really, at this point in time, many of them, gas prices, the economic sort of pain
at the pump.
Doesn't that also put an exorbitant amount of pressure on the Americans as well? I mean, yes, Iran might be losing more economically just in terms of
lost exports, but the pressure on the Trump administration from independent voters, from swing voters who are feeling much more pain at the pump,
that's going to be an important consideration too.
MALEKI: Yes, absolutely. And then as a matter of fact, the Iranian regime has realized that and it really has -- the messaging has been targeting,
you know, the ordinary U.S. citizens, you know, their -- their -- actually, the Iranian chief negotiator, the head of parliament who was in Pakistan
negotiating with Mr. Vance.
He -- he tweeted yesterday with a screenshot of gas stations and gas prices around the White House.
So, there are -- they are speaking into that issue. And I think they did understand that domestic pressure here is -- is -- is important factor to -
- to -- to get them some kind of a lifeline.
Now, very quickly on the threat that Iranian regime posed to us and to assets. It's not just in the Middle East. You know, what's been overlooked
is the fact that Iranians -- the same way that they -- they targeted the Israelis by setting up proxies around Israel, same way with the Saudis and
UAE by setting up Houthis and helping them to cause -- to put pressure on Emiratis and Saudis and other Gulf states.
They were working with Venezuela to bring in drone facilities to -- to our backyard here. That's -- that's a real threat that -- that, you know, back
then in the government, I was viewing as a serious issue that we would have to deal with if Iran actually establishes military presence in Venezuela
with drones that can reach Texas and Florida.
Now, they won't have that ability. They can't reconstitute that anytime soon.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. It's important to note your background. You previously had worked for the U.S. Treasury Department. So, thus, you really have insight
into where some of this dark money was coming from.
[12:40:00]
It's just interesting to see whether this would have carried more teeth or weight if the United States has -- had imposed a blockade sooner in this
war than now six plus weeks later. We shall be following it all.
Miad Maleki, thank you so much. Really thoughtful post and thanks for joining the show.
MALEKI: Thanks for having me.
ASHER: All right. Rory McIlroy has achieved a historic win at the U.S. Masters golf tournament.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Zain was watching this all weekend. 36-year-old from Northern Ireland --
ASHER: She knows me so well.
GOLODRYGA: -- took the title. Or in Espanol.
Took the title for the second year in a row. CNN's Don Riddell was at Augusta National in Georgia as McIlroy delivered a nail-biting final day.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Zain and Bianna, Rory McIlroy is flying back to Florida today. And he promised that he would be travelling with a sore
head after a night of celebration at Augusta National.
On Sunday, McIlroy further cemented his legacy with his second Masters title, becoming only the fourth player to win back-to-back green jackets.
It was thrilling and it was dramatic. McElroy admits that he doesn't make it easy for himself.
At times during the tournament, he seemed to be running away with it. Then he was flying by the seat of his pants, but he was able to compose himself
around amen corner with a couple of birdies. And he needed a two-stroke lead because his tee shot on 18 was just awful.
But in the end, he got it done, beating Scottie Scheffler by a stroke. And it meant so much that he was able to do it in front of his family. His mom
and dad sacrificed everything so that he could pursue his dream. But they didn't seem to do it last year and they didn't want to jinx it this time.
But he persuaded them to come and it was certainly worth their while.
RORY MCILROY, NORTHERN IRISH PROFESSIONAL GOLFER: When the ball trickled by and I marked it there from, you know, two inches or whatever, I just looked
to the back of the green and I give it one of these because I saw my mom and dad in Erica and Poppy and I was just like, I can't believe I've just
done it again, so.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President are another round of talks --
GOLODRYGA: More from the White House.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And if so, will you send Vice President J.D. Vance again?
TRUMP: Well, he's done a good job with Steve and Jared. They've all done a very good job. And I can tell you that we've been called by the other side.
They'd like to make a deal very badly. Very badly.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, where the slipping quite over, you said it was over nuclear.
TRUMP: It was over nuclear, very similar. Yes, very good. I guess you're listening. It's over the fact that they will never have a nuclear weapon.
Iran, you mark it down. Iran will not have a nuclear weapon.
And we agreed to a lot of things, but they didn't agree to that. And I think they will agree to it. I'm almost sure of it. In fact, I am sure of
it. If they don't agree, there's no deal. There'll never be a deal.
Iran will not have a nuclear weapon. And we're going to get the dust back. We'll get it back either. We'll get it back from them or we'll take it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President, as far as the naval blockade is concerned, what's the end game? Is it, of course, Iran back to the
negotiating table? Is it to open up the Strait so that gas prices ultimately come down?
TRUMP: Maybe everything. I mean, both of those things certainly and more. We can't let a country blackmail or extort the world, because that's what
they're doing. They're really blackmailing the world. We're not going to let that happen.
And, you know, the amazing thing is we don't -- can you believe this? We don't use the Strait. We don't need the Strait. We have our own oil and gas
much more than we need. We have more oil and gas than Saudi Arabia.
Think of this. We produce more. Saudi Arabia and add Russia to it. Substantially more. And by next year, we'll have double that amount. So we
don't need it, but the world needs it.
And many ships are heading to our country right now, as we speak, to load up with the best. Really, I guess you could say somebody said the best and
sweetest. I don't know exactly what sweet is, but when it relates to oil, it's a good thing, but they're coming to our country.
Right now, there are many boats coming to our country. Now, it could very well be, this is going to be settled before that.
We've been called this morning by the right people, the appropriate people, and they want to work a deal. They would like to work a deal.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it your anticipation, Mr. President, that other countries will assist in this effort to blockade Iran and those --
TRUMP: Yes, other countries are going to also.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Which countries, sir?
TRUMP: We don't need other countries, frankly. But they've offered their services. We'll let it -- we'll let it be known, probably tomorrow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Has the blockade started, sir?
TRUMP: Yes, started at 10 o'clock.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President (INAUDIBLE) important to you and your policies creating new for defending your history then?
TRUMP: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did you (INAUDIBLE) owe Pope Leo an apology? Will you apologize?
TRUMP: No, I don't, because Pope Leo said things that are wrong. He was very much against what I'm doing with -- with regard to Iran. And you could
not have a nuclear Iran.
Pope Leo would not be happy with the end result. You have hundreds of millions of people dead. And it's not going to happen. So I can't.
I think he's very weak on crime and other things. So I'm not. I mean, he-- he went public. I'm just responding to Pope Leo.
[12:45:05]
And you know his brother is a big MAGA person, and he's a great guy, Louis. And I said, I like Louis better than I like the Pope.
Now, you have to have law and order in our country, and that's what we have now. We have the lowest crime numbers we've had in a long time, despite the
fact that many criminals were allowed into our country, but we've gotten a lot of them out. We've done a great job on crime.
So, we have the lowest murder rate in 125 years. Since 1900, the lowest murder rate. So, we believe strongly in law and order. And he -- he seemed
to have a problem with that. So, there's nothing to apologize for. He's wrong.
The other thing is he didn't like what we're doing with respect to Iran. But Iran is a -- wants to be a nuclear nation, so they can exterminate the
world. Not going to happen.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: And, Mr. President, on Iran, if -- if the deal is not reached by the end of the ceasefire, does your threat (INAUDIBLE) or still
stands?
TRUMP: Yes. I don't want to comment on that, but it won't be pleasant for them. Let me put it that way.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, has your timetable changed in any way in terms of ending this conflict?
TRUMP: No. I'm just -- just going -- it's going on. Right now, there's no fighting. Right now, we have a blockade. They're doing no business. I
didn't like seeing boats come out, if they were doing business with Iran. But if there weren't, no boats came out.
So now, they're doing -- Iran is doing absolutely no business. And we're going to keep it that way very easily.
Don't forget, their Navy is gone, their Air Force is gone, their anti- aircraft is gone, their radar is gone, and their leaders are gone. It's a lot.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A report coming from predominantly going to China, Mr. President, has been reached out. I know you can --
TRUMP: No, but we have a very good relationship with China. He would like to see this ended also. He certainly wants it ended. Every -- everyone -- I
want to see it ended, too.
But we can't give a nuclear weapon to a group of people that have caused nothing but havoc for 47 years.
Look, I'm the president that's done something about it. This should have been -- and many other presidents regret that they didn't. You know, so I'm
doing something about it.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, Ukraine engagement documents that were just declassified show that Eric Ciaramella, not only submitted false
information but that he had no direct knowledge of the alleged conversations (INAUDIBLE).
Do you feel vindicated by those comments?
TRUMP: Yes, I do. They're a bunch of crooked people. You're talking about with respect to all of the things that they put against me? Yes.
Well, it's come out that in so many different ways -- thank you very much for that question. I appreciate it.
But in so many different ways, the election was rigged, the 2020 election was rigged. We found that out. What you just said is just a piece of that.
It's a big piece, but minor, relatively speaking, compared to what they did.
They cheated on the election. They cheated on the vote. They cheated in every way possible. And it's the only way we got an incompetent man to be a
president. And he was an incompetent man.
Many of the things that we're talking about, even including this, this would have been settled a long time ago, not now. And it should have been
settled by other presidents. But the election was a rigged election. We can't let that happen to our country.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is concealment of (INAUDIBLE) information what should happen?
TRUMP: Well, it's very serious charge against them. And the Democrats, they cheat. They can't get elected with their policies. So their policy is no
good. They want to have, I mean, open borders. They want to have men playing in women's sport.
Do you think that men should play in women's sports?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I really don't have an opinion on that.
TRUMP: You don't. I bet you do.
SHARON SIMMONS, DOORDASH WORKER: No, no. I'm -- I'm here about tax on tips.
TRUMP: Yes. OK.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: Yes. Go ahead, please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, Mr. President. Is it your understanding that during this period of time while the U.S. has instituted this naval
blockade that oil companies will be able to send their oil tankers through the Strait, get more oil out from this area?
TRUMP: Yes. I think they're going to be doing very well there. And I think they're doing very well here.
You know, a lot of tankers are coming up here. They're coming in empty and out full. And we have a great capacity to take care of that business.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Ma'am, may we know your name, please? Have you delivered to the White House before?
SIMMONS: I have not. My name is Sharon Simmons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And are the White House good tippers, do you know?
SIMMONS: Um --
TRUMP: Wait.
SIMMONS: Potentially. Yes, very.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, can I ask you something --
TRUMP: Actually, thank you. You reminded me of that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President (INAUDIBLE). You previously said that you had no problem with countries of sending fuel to Cuba after previously
promising to (INAUDIBLE). What happened? What you think --
TRUMP: Well, we're going to see with Cuba. Cuba's another story.
Cuba's been a terribly run country for a long time. It's got a bad system. It's been very oppressive, as you know. And we have a lot of great Cuban-
Americans, all of whom just about voted for me. And they were treated very badly.
[12:50:07]
In many cases, family members have been killed. They've been beaten up and mugged and like terrible things happened in Cuba. And Cuba's a failing
nation. And we're going to do this. And we may stop by Cuba after we're finished with this. But Cuba is a nation that was -- has been horribly run
for many years by Castro.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You said, we can stop by --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (INAUDIBLE). Regarding those two recent referrals for the Letitia James for an insurance fraud. Do you know if federal
prosecutors have evidence to charge?
TRUMP: Well, I don't know. I know she's a very corrupt person. And you're talking about the so-called Attorney General of New York. She's a very
corrupt person. That's been proven now.
And I know they've -- I have nothing to do with it, but they're looking at things all over -- all over the place, more than one state concerning her.
And concerning people like Comey, who's a dirty cop.
Comey's a dirty cop. And dirty cops, I bet. I love -- nobody likes the police more than me. Law enforcement more than me. But Comey's a totally
dirty cop. And they're not going to -- we're not going to stand for it. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The UFC fight is happening at the White House this summer. The UFC typically numbers those fights consecutively, but should
they label this one UFC 1776?
TRUMP: That's a good idea. I'll tell that to Dana White. I like that idea.
I will say, I've been involved with a lot of big events. I have never had an event that's had more interest than the UFC fight that we have right at
the front door. Right there, they're going to start building a -- about a 4,500 seat arena.
And then in the back, at the ellipse, we're going to have maybe 100,000, 50,000 to 100,000 people, I guess. They're building tremendous stages. And
you're going to have massive screens of the fight. And it's a, you know, very popular sport.
But I have never been involved. And because of the White House and everything, you know, there's a lot of reasons why. But we're having a
fight at the White House on June 14th. And we're going to have an arena built right at the front door.
SIMMONS: Wow.
TRUMP: And you know, if you want, is your husband up to coming, do you think? Does he like UFC?
SIMMONS: He might.
TRUMP: If he's feeling good, we'll make sure you come, OK?
SIMMONS: That would be wonderful. Thank you.
TRUMP: It's better than the tip I just gave you. That's a lot better. But, no, if he's feeling good, right?
SIMMONS: Yes.
TRUMP: Is he doing okay? Is he going to be able to?
SIMMONS: He's doing very well. He's doing very well. He actually during the process, he wrote a book and --
TRUMP: Go ahead give them the name, maybe yourself.
SIMMONS: He hasn't had it published yet, but it's a -- it's a book on humility. And his name is Leo. And he's just --
TRUMP: Good guy.
SIMMONS: Doing good. He's doing great.
TRUMP: How long are you married?
SIMMONS: We have been married for six years.
TRUMP: Oh, so? That's good.
SIMMONS: But we've -- you know, like most people, we've been together for over 10, so.
TRUMP: That's very good.
SIMMONS: Yes.
TRUMP: Want to -- say hello to him. He's going to be good. OK. He's going to get better and he's going to be good.
SIMMONS: Yes, sir.
TRUMP: Good.
SIMMONS: Yes, sir.
TRUMP: Well, I want to thank you all. And I especially want to thank you for being here.
SIMMONS: Well, I want to thank you for --
TRUMP: Thank you.
SIMMONS: -- the no tax on tips.
TRUMP: Oh, that's good.
SIMMONS: It has helped my family out immensely. And I definitely appreciate it.
TRUMP: It's so nice. You know, the one thing that I -- I -- just in leaving. We've had more good press for change, having to do with the fact
that people are receiving more money from their tax refunds than they ever thought possible.
We had a man the other day that got $5,000. Another one got seven. They weren't expecting anything like this. And it's because of the great Big
Beautiful Bill. And that's why you came. And I really appreciate it. And tell your husband to get better.
SIMMONS: I will.
TRUMP: And if he's feeling good, you'll come up and you'll watch that fight. OK? June 14th.
SIMMONS: All right. I appreciate it. Thank you.
TRUMP: All right. Thank you very much.
SIMMONS: Thank you so much.
TRUMP: Take care of yourself.
SIMMONS: Thank you.
TRUMP: Thank you.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Any update on who you want to be DOJ --
TRUMP: Well, I think Todd, as far, he's doing a fantastic job. And we'll say that he's a great lawyer. I know that because he's been with me a long
time. And so far, he's doing a great job. But we have incredible people in the DOJ. Getting better all the time.
Thank you very much, everybody.
SIMMONS: Thank you, sir.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right. You've just been listening to the U.S. President on Trump speaking to reporters outside the White House, essentially saying a few
things about the U.S. blockade, that it's ongoing, and that he believes that J.D. Vance did his best in terms of those negotiations in Islamabad.
That he hopes that the issue between the U.S. and Iran will be settled over the next couple of weeks, but that you cannot have a country, essentially,
blackmail or extort the world.
I want to go straight now to our Kevin Liptak at the White House.
One of the things the president said that I thought was quite interesting is that other countries are going to be assisting the Americans in this
naval blockade. He said that he couldn't reveal it to us today, but apparently, he's going to let us know tomorrow.
[12:55:59]
Just walk us through, you know, how much, I guess, it's difficult to say this, but how much truth is there to that, Kevin? Do we know for sure that
there are other countries that are actually going to be helping the U.S. in this?
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: We know for sure that there are countries that are not going to be helping. We heard that explicitly from
the British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer earlier today. We've heard it from other members of NATO.
I think the countries that White House officials seem to be eyeing are in the Gulf, you know, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, countries that
would stand to benefit from seeing the Strait reopened, but none of them, at this point, have come out to say explicitly that they're planning to
help.
You know, the president said first, over the weekend, that these countries would be joining. It's been more than 24 hours, but we haven't heard any
specifics about who that might be. And now the president's saying that maybe we'll hear about it tomorrow.
Of course, the blockade is already in effect. It began two and a half hours ago. And so if there were other countries who are participating in it,
presumably we might have heard something by now. And so the president, clearly, believing that they will get on board at some point.
The other interesting thing that he said or claimed, I should say, is that Iran had actually called up this morning to say that it was ready to make a
deal.
Now, who that was, where that phone call was placed, totally unclear. We know that Iran had rejected the U.S. red lines over the weekend in
Pakistan, but I think it's notable that the president does seem eager still to try and reach some kind of agreement.
You know, he had said yesterday that he didn't care whether a deal was struck. Now, the president seems to be suggesting that the negotiations are
ongoing and that Iran seems to be closer than it was over the weekend to coming to some sort of agreement.
Now, what exactly that means, again, we don't know, but optimism, I think, from the president as this blockade begins.
And I will just note one last thing that the president said, which was responding to that picture that he posted of himself, where he looked like
Jesus Christ, like Christ the healer, the president claiming that, in fact, he thought that he was being depicted as a doctor, despite the orb of light
he was holding in his hand and the rays of light that were emanating from his patient, the president saying he thought it had something to do with
the Red -- Red Cross.
That explanation makes zero sense, but nonetheless, that's how he is writing that off.
GOLODRYGA: Yes, the Pope -- the president --
ASHER: (INAUDIBLE) your honesty, Kevin.
GOLODRYGA: The president making it clear that no apologies will be issued for the Pope and some of his harsh rhetoric towards him.
Just for those at home as we're wrapping up that thought the image may look a bit like an odd juxtaposition of the president, talking about Iran,
standing next to an Uber delivery woman. She was actually there, I guess, for his initiative in policy on no tax on tips.
Quite diplomatic, though, in her response, when he asked her to weigh in and prompt you on whether she shot there should be any men in women's
sports. She said, she's not going to address that. She's there to talk about no tax on tips.
We'll continue to follow any developments here with the latest in the -- the fallout from this blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
Thank you so much. That does it for "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: I'm Zain Asher. She'll be back with "Amanpour." I was going to say 15 minutes. We're really actually in two minutes.
GOLODRYGA: Don't go anywhere. Speaking.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
END
