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Quest Means Business
Trump To Speak At Fort Bragg Amid L.A. Unrest; Second Day Of U.S.- China Talks Extend Into Evening; Uzum Is Uzbekistan's Only Unicorn Startup; Visiting The Historic Silk Road Trading Hub Of Samarkand; President Trump Speaks At Fort Bragg for U.S. Army Event; Franklin Templeton Aims To List $1.7 Billion In State Assets; Bulgarian President On Joining The Eurozone. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired June 10, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[16:00:28]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST, "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS": A topsy turvy day on the markets. The bell has rung on Wall Street. Trading has
come to an end. The Dow, as you can see all over the place. Up a bit, down a bit, around a bit. It is 1:00 A.M. here in Tashkent. It is a special
edition of QUEST MEANS BUSINESS from Uzbekistan.
On tonight's program, the U.S. President, President Trump, is expected, he is going to speak during the hour after days of clashes between police and
protesters in Los Angeles.
The European Union is announcing new harsh sanctions on Russia. I will speak to the president of Bulgaria who is against such a move.
And tonight, we are going to pay a very special visit to one of the world's most special and oldest cities. It is Samarkand. We will be there and show
you the beauty of that magnificent city.
Live from Tashkent in Uzbekistan on Tuesday. It is June the 10th in the U.S. and in Europe. We've slipped into Wednesday here in Tashkent. I am
Richard Quest and I mean business.
Good evening from Uzbekistan. It is not often one gets to say that, but it is a special edition of QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, and we are delighted to come
from Tashkent, the Uzbek capital. It is our second year at the Tashkent Investment Forum, and a lot has changed for the region since our last
visit.
On tonight's special program, Donald Trump's trade war pitting the U.S. against China, Uzbekistan quite literally is caught in the middle. As you
will hear, the Central Asian nation is at a crossroads between the East and the West and constantly tries to juggle both.
On tonight's program, the co-founder of Uzbekistan's first billion dollar tech company, Uzum, you'll hear the Bulgarian President, Rumen Radev, on
why he is not in favor of sanctions. And Marius Dan, the Central Asia Chief Executive for the U.S. hedge fund, Franklin Templeton, on a new fund to
invest in the country.
President Donald Trump is expected to speak very shortly. When he does, we will bring it to you if it is relevant to what we are talking about.
As protests against immigration and his crackdown continue to ripple through the streets of Los Angeles, the President today is at Fort Bragg in
North Carolina to observe a military demonstration. Mr. Trump has deployed the military Marines to Los Angeles, and he has also called up the
California National Guard, activating hundreds of them as well.
A source is telling us that most of the troops are expected to remain out of the public eye unless needed. California is asking for an emergency
court injunction to stop those troops from being used for law enforcement. The federalization of the National Guard, as it is called.
Josh Campbell is in Los Angeles. I sort of wonder, as Gavin Newsom, the Governor goes to court to stop it, I sort of wonder if indeed, he is
playing exactly into Donald Trump's hands. This is the sort of culture war fight Donald Trump was looking for.
JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: And this is not the first time we've seen this. You go back and look at the riots that we saw in Portland,
Oregon back in 2020, where you had night after night of violence that was there. The administration was accused by local officials of fueling that by
constantly coming out and, you know, ridiculing what was happening.
Here in Trump 2.0, the second administration, he is taking that a step further. Before he didn't send in the military, this time he is doing just
that. As you mentioned, he has federalized the California National Guard against the will of state officials. One of the thing that is of interest
as well is that we continue to hear from people here in Los Angeles who are involved in the peaceful immigration protest, what they are saying,
Richard, is exactly what you just said. They're telling the agitators, look, don't come out. Don't clash with police. Don't come out with
violence, because you're essentially fueling exactly what the White House is trying to do.
QUEST: If you look at the technical definitions for when the federalization can take place, it is all about insurrection and things like that and I am
guessing if you compare it to the 1960s when they did it against the governors, against the states' wishes, we are quite a long way off that.
[16:05:09]
These are -- yes, they are riots, but they are not out-of-control and I am guessing there is going to be a very interesting debate and argument in
court over whether it reaches the necessary test for federalization.
CAMPBELL: That's right. California officials hope that the courts will side with them and essentially revoke the President's authority to nationalize
troops here in the state and they mentioned exactly what you just said, that we are not seeing what would one would typically think of as a
rebellion here. we are not seeing, you know, insurrectionists all, you know, burning down the city.
In fact, you know, we've been covering this since it started. We are talking about essentially a few blocks in downtown Los Angeles, an area of
the city I live that's massive, that spans many, many kilometers. We are talking about three streets.
But nevertheless, what we continue to hear from the White House is they are saying that they don't want this to continue. They don't want this to grow
in any certain way, and so that's why we are seeing this standoff between federal and state officials.
QUEST: I am grateful for you tonight, Josh. Josh Campbell.
CAMPBELL: Yes.
QUEST: Now, the second day of trade talks between the United States and China has stretched long into the evening. The U.S. Treasury had said
earlier that negotiations had taken a break and that talks would resume around 8:00 in London, just about an hour ago from now.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says they hope to finish the talks tonight. The major sticking points include China's control of rare earth
minerals, which they are trying to restrict, and the U.S. restriction on chip exports, which the U.S. is trying to restrict.
China is by far Uzbekistan's largest trading partner. The trade between the two countries has reached more than $10 billion each year. For Uzbekistan
itself, it really wants to stay on everybody's good books, friends to all seems to be the constant mantra that you hear.
And when you look here in the capital, in Tashkent, well talk about whether it is the U.S., Russia, traditional, of course, because of the Soviet Union
or China, new partners, Tashkent simply can't afford to make enemies with any of the major players.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST (voice over): Double landlocked and in the middle of Central Asia, Uzbekistan quite literally finds itself caught in the middle. Decisions in
Washington, Beijing and Moscow are all felt in Tashkent, and the leaders here are doing their best to be friends with all.
In April, U.S. authorities say Uzbekistan accepted more than a hundred Central Asian citizens who were in the U.S. illegally. The Trump
administration praised the country for its cooperation. Still, it faces the fallout of Donald Trump's trade war.
DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: This will be indeed the Golden Age of America. It is coming back and we are going to
come back very strongly.
QUEST (voice over): The direct relationship between the two countries is small, but it could bear the brunt of a global slowdown induced by tariffs.
Uzbekistan also maintains close ties with Russia for historical reasons. The two were both part of the former Soviet Union and the Uzbek President
recently attended Russia's Victory Day parade.
At times, it can be an arm's length relationship. Even three years on from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the conflict remains a thorny issue between
the two.
Uzbekistan's biggest trading partnership lies to the east. China dominates trade in Central Asia, and the two countries upgraded their diplomatic ties
last year. Some Uzbeks are skeptical about the benefits of China's increased presence and the economic practices of Chinese businesses.
QUEST (on camera): The Registan Square was the traditional meeting point, the melting pot, if you will, along the Silk Road. Here they will get
together, trade ideas, concepts, commodities, you name it.
In many ways, it remains a metaphor for today's Uzbekistan, whose policy is friends with all and investment from everyone.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST (on camera): Now, you won't find a lot of unicorns here in Uzbekistan of the financial type, of course. In fact, Uzum is the only one, and it is
becoming the first tech startup here to reach the valuation of $1 billion. The company says it offers e-commerce, Fintech and banking services, a wide
range, and it has a large domestic base.
The company's 40 percent of the country's population now uses its platforms. Uzum was able to capture that market share very quickly,
launching its first product less than three years ago.
[16:10:09]
With me is Nikolay Seleznev is the co-founder of Uzum. Good to see you, sir. Thank you.
NIKOLAY SELEZNEV, CO-FOUNDER, UZUM: Thank you very much for having me.
QUEST: It is quite an achievement in three years to have done that. That speaks to a huge pent up demand of a country that was ready for these sort
of services.
SELEZNEV: Yes, that's right, and you know, the original idea is to what our -- my co-founder is saying is to achieve great things, two things are
needed, a plan and not quite enough time.
So the idea was to find a great place and to do a great thing.
QUEST: Right. So I mean, to viewers watching, you essentially are part Amazon because you're -- and you deliver yourselves and you're part
financial services like Monzo or Revolut, because you are essentially a bank. How do they come together?
SELEZNEV: They come together quite nicely because the idea here is to provide primarily what used to be a very underbanked and underserviced
audience, or the population of 40 million population with a convenient services through e-commerce and fintech. We united under one umbrella
through Uzum, and frankly speaking, the customers, they love us.
QUEST: Right. But it is, I suppose it is easy to do the delivery and a lot of the services here in Tashkent or Samarkand where I was, but it is a huge
country with a great -- I mean, the rural part must be very difficult. How do you ensure you don't have to haves and have-nots?
SELEZNEV: That's a good one.
Well, the thing is, when we arrived here, like four years ago, the country didn't have proper warehouses, pick up points, logistics, infrastructure,
and we had to invest and build ourselves. That would be one of our key differentiating factors from the other companies that do the same thing in
other countries.
QUEST: We often think of doing business in this part of the world as being a bit like the Wild West, mainly because companies are nascent. They are
launching on stock markets elsewhere, they are getting venture capital in, the transparencies of doing business is not as arguably as robust as one
might say, as in other parts.
Is it still the Wild West?
SELEZNEV: I won't call it the Wild West. It is a land of opportunity. The country basically was, I would call it, in maybe self-imposed isolation up
until 2017. And when the new President came in, he basically opened up the country to the outside and investor community, to the outside world, and we
are basically riding that wave of change, and we managed to be the first one to maybe the trailblazers, for that matter.
QUEST: Is there a risk that the other players come in? Now, when I say Amazon, I don't necessarily mean Amazon per se, but large global players --
Alibaba, Amazon, DHL or whatever the players, that they come in, spot an opportunity, find favor in a regulatory environment and start to eat your
lunch.
SELEZNEV: Well, I would call it a blessing. I do believe that the market is big enough. The opportunity is big enough, and we would love to have other
competitors.
QUEST: Really?
SELEZNEV: Yes, because we were the first one. And I really believe that, we won't be the only one.
QUEST: But you've stuck to your knitting and you've stuck at home. I guess to be global, you must have an ambition, obviously, to grow outside of the
country, maybe not.
The stands are a huge opportunity. Youve got every stand known to Lord Earth all around you. Do you intend to expand into them?
SELEZNEV: Frankly speaking, I've seen too many entrepreneurs doing geographical expansion too early, too fast, and the idea here is to
properly win the local market. And just to give you a hint, our logistics infrastructure allows us to service not only the entirety of Uzbekistan,
but the guaranteed next day delivery.
But the south of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and even the north of Afghanistan. I am not saying we are going to the north of
Afghanistan anytime soon, but that might be a hint of where we are going in the next three to five years from now.
QUEST: You did very well with all those --stans, I can never remember all the names.
SELEZNEV: Well, I am here on the ground. This is how business is done.
QUEST: Right. Absolutely.
So all of these other regional -- these neighbors -- are opportunities that you can nibble away at.
SELEZNEV: Yes. The region was very long time overlooked by, again, this international investor community. And finally, Uzbekistan is sort of
leading the way for the remaining parts of the C-5 of the --stans, as you call them. I won't call them this way, it is Central Asia.
QUEST: I think I've been put in my place. Thank you very much, sir. Very grateful for you for joining us tonight.
SELEZNEV: Thank you very much for having me. It is a pleasure.
QUEST: That's all. Wherever I go, everybody keeps saying how magnificent and the people are using your service. Thank you very much indeed.
SELEZNEV: Thank you, sir.
[16:15:03]
QUEST: Now, the European Union is slapping more sanctions on Russia. Bulgaria's Prime Minister tells me China will be the real winner.
My interview with President Rumen Radev is next. QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Europe has announced a fresh set of sanctions on Russia. It is the 18th package, and this time it is hitting Russian energy and banks. It is
designed to stop the kremlin from making money from its oil and gas resources. The E.U. says Russia has shown it is not interested in peace,
and it keeps up its daily attacks on Ukraine.
Those sanctions now need the approval from the E.U.'s 27 member states before they can go into effect. So there will be quite a lot of negotiation
to get an agreement.
Bulgaria is one of those countries with a vote. It has been far more reluctant to vote for sanctions than the other countries involved. Here in
Tashkent, I was joined by Bulgaria's president, President Rumen Radev, and speaking diplomatically, we talked about the E.U. strategy and sanctions on
Russia.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RUMEN RADEV, BULGARIAN PRESIDENT: First of all, we should realize and recognize what is the result of the sanctions. Who is the winner from these
sanctions? I believe that the biggest winner is China. Why? Because China enjoys cheap Russian energy resources. China enjoys Russian military
technology.
We withdrew our companies from Russia and opened the big Russian market to Chinese companies, so China benefits from these sanctions. And the
sanctions linked Russia and China closely.
QUEST: The problem that I think a lot of people with your position, how do you end up with a peaceful ceasefire or a peaceful solution that doesn't
reward the initial aggression of Russia?
RADEV: This is extremely difficult political and moral dilemma we are approaching, because we need to understand the nature of this war.
The Americans say this is boots on the ground warfare. This is a fight for every inch of territory and the most important asset in this war is not the
weapons, it is the people.
[16:20:06]
But we are approaching the moment when Ukraine could run out of people to defend itself. On the other hand, do you think that Russia is going to step
back from Crimea and other regions?
We have two options. The first one is to reconcile with the fact that in the 21st century, someone can grab territories by force and to forget -- to
forget about our values, to forget about international law, to forget about U.N. Charter -- are we going to agree with this? Then what should we do? To
send troops? NATO forces to defend Ukraine and to push the Russians back to the borders of 1991? What does it mean? Third World War with maybe
devastating nuclear consequences. This is the biggest dilemma.
That's why I strongly support the efforts of the new U.S. administration to initiate peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
QUEST: You're a former military man, so you do not want to fight. One thing --
RADEV: I want to avoid fighting.
QUEST: Exactly.
RADEV: Yes.
QUEST: One thing I've always known about the military, the last thing you want to do is fight. But in this case, to come to a solution that is a just
and peaceful solution.
RADEV: I believe that we have three instruments to influence the peace process military, economic sanctions and diplomacy. We have not harnessed
the full potential of diplomacy yet. That's why, again, I strongly support the efforts of President Trump. I believe he is a pragmatic, very pragmatic
business person who hates devastation brought by any war.
And my -- how to say -- disappointment is that he still does not find enough support within the E.U. for his peace efforts because yes, he is
pragmatic, he is realistic, but some European leaders refuse to recognize the realities on the battlefield and this is a huge problem.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: The President of Bulgaria and you'll hear more from him on the program later in the week.
To Austria, staying in Europe now, Austria, where the city of Graz is mourning a deadly school shooting in Graz. The authorities say a gunman
killed 10 people at a high school, 10, including several victims younger than 18 years old. This is just heartbreaking. Absolutely.
The police say the attack ended as the gunman took his own life. The suspect has been identified as a 21-year-old man. He had attended the
school, but never graduated from it.
Fred Pleitgen is in Graz and he joins me.
There is never an explanation for this, but do we know a motive?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi there, Richard. Well, we certainly don't at this point. In fact, just a couple of
minutes ago, I spoke to the mayor of Graz, and she said that at this point in time, it is absolutely unclear why the gunman did this.
Obviously, the investigation is still going on, and you can see that even in these very late hours, it is about 20 minutes past 10:00 P.M., if we pan
over, you can see that there are still many people who are coming out here who are lighting candles, who are laying down flowers here right in the
center of Graz.
And I think with that, you can really see the devastation that this has brought on and one of the things that many people that we've been speaking
to here is they say for them, this is the most awful day in this city in recent history. Here is how it unfolded.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (voice over): Children screaming as the shooter opened fire inside this high school in Graz, shattering the quiet of this South Austrian town.
Police say they intervened only minutes later, hundreds of officers deployed to the scene, but the damage had been done, many killed and
wounded, some critically evacuated to nearby hospitals.
Even as things calmed down, a heavy security deployment in surrounding streets. Panicked parents soon converged on a nearby sports center, where
authorities had moved students trying to find out if their children were among the dead and injured.
This mother said she was lucky to hear from her son, who has a cellphone.
(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN (voice over): "I still cannot comprehend it," she says. "It is unbelievable when you're sitting at home and don't know whether you're safe
or not."
The mass shooting, one of the worst rampages in this country's history. Austrians own more guns than most of their European union neighbors, but
gun violence here is relatively low. A fraction of the U.S.' rates, according to the Small Arms Survey Research Institute.
[16:25:10]
And many are left wondering about the motive. Authorities said they believe the shooter, a former student of the same school who didn't graduate, acted
alone and died by suicide in a school bathroom.
(UNIDENTIFIED MALE speaking in foreign language.)
PLEITGEN (voice over): "Two firearms were used in the shooting," this police official says, "Which were recovered at the scene. These weapons are
now being forensically examined. The suspected perpetrator is believed to have possessed the weapons legally."
Austria has declared three days of mourning, with messages of condolences pouring in from all over the world after a rampage many in this country
cannot comprehend.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLEITGEN (voice over): And today, obviously, Richard, where people remain devastated here in the late evening hours as well. One of the things that
the mayor of the city told me is what she believes could be at least one positive in all of this is that the response by the authorities here
happened extremely quickly. They got a lot of officers on the scene; also, a lot of emergency reaction personnel as well.
And of course, one of the things that they need to do is they need to care for the people who have been impacted by this and they say it is going to
take a very long time for Graz, for the city, and of course, for the country of Austria to get beyond this -- Richard.
QUEST: I am grateful for you, Fred, tonight, thank you. Fred Pleitgen in Graz, reporting.
As you and I continue, we are in Tashkent. But earlier in the week I left the capital, took the train and went to one of the world's oldest cities.
It is here in Uzbekistan. It is Samarkand, absolutely spectacular. After the break, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Hello, I am Richard Quest. There is more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in just a moment.
I'll take you on a 300-kilometer journey to Samarkand, one of the world's oldest cities. See the beauty of the place.
And Bulgaria's upcoming move to join the Eurozone, well, the President of Bulgaria still wants a referendum. You're going to hear more from President
Radev in just a moment, only after the news, because this is CNN and on this network, the news always comes first.
[16:30:26]
The streets of Los Angeles are relatively calm at the moment after protests over President Trump's immigration crackdown. L.A.'s mayor says she's only
aware of one planned demonstration to take place today, Tuesday. California is asking a federal court to block the administration from using the
state's National Guard for law enforcement.
A gunman opened fire at a high school in the Austrian city of Graz, killing at least 10 people. The Interior Ministry says the suspect was a 21-year-
old man who used to attend the school but didn't graduate. The police say the gunman took his own life at the scene.
And a series of explosions in southwest Colombia have killed several people. Local officials say the devices were detonated near two police
stations. It follows an opposition senator Miguel Uribe Turbay was critically injured during a shooting event during a campaign in Bogota on
Saturday.
Tonight I'm in Tashkent, which is the capital of Uzbekistan, and delighted to be here. But earlier in the week I took the train to 300-kilometer
journey to one of the world's oldest cities. Absolutely spectacular. For centuries it was Samarkand that was the key stop on the silk road that
linked east and west. Getting there was half the fun on Uzbekistan's new high speed rail system. All aboard.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: I'm always delighted when it works. What's my seat number?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Number eight.
QUEST: Eight. Right. Thank you very much. Good morning. Give me a push. Up she goes. Gosh. Oh, it's raining. This wasn't very clever. It's raining.
They didn't tell me about this bit. Welcome to Samarkand.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So Registan Square, always counted always as a center of the city in the historical period of the time also. And here you can see
three different madrasas all together.
QUEST: So what are there on either side?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So the first one, which is built in 15th century, called Ulugbek madrasa, built by Ulugbek.
QUEST: Right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Grandson of Amir Timur. And opposite of this very madrasa you can see Sher-Dor, which is built in 17th century by the order
of Yalangtush Bakhodir, who ruled this very city in that period.
QUEST: So what purpose were they? Were they religious institutions? Were they madrassas?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So they were used to be madrasas and they were counted like a schools. Not only religious knowledge is taught here. Here it was
included music, different medicine, geometry, all different world sciences and religious sciences all together in the mosque. Just stars. Because
Ulugbek was like an astronomer, famous astronomer.
QUEST: Gets very tight inside, doesn't it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
QUEST: You know me I do like a good market. Oh, look at all this. What is the main thing that people buy in Uzbekistan?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Some samples of handicrafts, local handicrafts.
QUEST: Yes. What sort of --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For example, embroidery.
QUEST: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ceramic.
QUEST: Ceramics. Let's have a look. Yes, yes, yes.
What have you got going on in here? Let's have a look.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Technology of the ceramic 250, 300 years old. But today same technology. This is my grandfather made like 18th, 19th century. Holds
the hand.
QUEST: I love these. Gosh, that was interesting, wasn't it? Let me see. Fascinating.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So let's move to the next madrasa now. Yes.
QUEST: Oh, look at that. I mean, that just lifts the heart, doesn't it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
[16:35:05]
QUEST: Lifts the heart.
Is there any worship here at the moment or are they all -- they're no longer working mosques? Is that right or madrasa?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. Here you can pray.
QUEST: Carry on.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If on the way they are going to make some of their prayers. I hope --
QUEST: Oh, we have to remove our shoes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Yes.
QUEST: Right. Oh my goodness.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
QUEST: Now why are we climbing these stairs? What's at the top?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Here it is our middle layer of the building of the necropolis.
QUEST: Gosh, a feast. Really is a feast when you get to the top and you suddenly see this intricate, beautiful. Absolutely. Oh, my goodness.
There's more and more and more. Each one more beautiful than the last.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: A feast not only for the soul, but everybody knows food is the best part of traveling. So on my way back here to Tashkent, at the railway
station, I needed to pick up a little something for the road.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: I think this is rather interesting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's called Samarkand bread. It's very tough bread. It's very popular --
QUEST: Should we try it?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, you can try.
QUEST: You got any money? Thank you very much. Oh. It's heavy, it's warm.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Yes. So this is it. It is called a non. I can't really describe it. I mean, you can see how sort of brittle it is. And if I try to pull it
apart, it does require a certain amount of -- it's a, oh, that wasn't supposed to happen. It's a cross between a bagel and a sourdough and a --
well, I mean, you get the idea. It looks rather tasty, but I'm not going to try it live on air because it might take the fillings out.
Coming up, straight ahead, President Trump is set to speak, at the moment he's talking at an event celebrating the Army as he sends more troops to
Los Angeles. We'll bring you up to date on what he's saying in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:40:43]
QUEST: President Trump at the moment is speaking at an event celebrating the 250th anniversary of the American Army's founding. Appropriately for
this because the president responded to protests in Los Angeles with a show of military force. He called up the California National Guard by so-called
federalizing it. And he's also activated hundreds of Marines and sent them along, too, which is highly unusual on U.S. domestic. The city has been
rocked by days of protests over immigration raids.
Stephen Collinson is with me from Washington.
Both sides, besides the actual law and order, both sides are playing the politics very much to their individual bases. I guess where is the balance
of opinion at the moment?
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: It's a good question, and I think it's quite a perilous issue here for Democrats. If we put aside all
of the issue, Richard, about whether the president is acting legally, he is becoming across rather as an authoritarian by sending troops into a state
where the local leaders don't want them. What he is staking out is a position where he is using the military to stand up against what he says
are forces of disorder, and to pursue the deportation program, which was at the center of his reelection campaign and which the Democrats don't really
have a good answer for on undocumented migration.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a potential Democratic presidential candidate in 2028, he's standing up to Trump. He's daring him to arrest
him. There's been some talk about that in the administration about, you know, if he impedes the deportation operation. But what Democrats risk here
by standing up to the president and alleging that he's acting beyond his powers is once again being in the position politically, where they've been
ever since Donald Trump started running for president, where it looks to many Americans, especially on the right, but some in the center, that
they're standing up for undocumented migrants and illegal immigration and not law and order in an American city.
You know, this is a very complex situation, but the politics is quite simple in many ways. And that's what it is.
QUEST: Yes. And listening to you then, from the Democrats' point of view, damn if you do, damn if you don't basically.
COLLINSON: Yes. And that's the position that they've been in, I think, for much of Trump's term. You know, immigration has been, ever since his first
term, a key issue. He does have majority support most of the time on that issue. Now, there's some new polling that came out before this latest
business in Los Angeles that suggested that while many Americans want tougher border security, they want to deport undocumented migrants, they
are worried about the methods that Trump is using.
So where is the line politically? You remember in the first term, there was that story about children in cages down by the border who were in
detention. That kind of broke the political tolerance of the public for Trump's harsh border policies. I think the line has moved since then. We
don't know exactly where it is. If we see, you know, more deportations sweeps against people that are basically, apart from the fact they're
undocumented, law-abiding citizens, working in the community. Could that do it? We don't know yet.
QUEST: I'm grateful to you as always, Stephen. Thank you very much indeed.
COLLINSON: Cheers.
QUEST: Earlier in the program, we were talking about unicorns and new companies here in Uzbekistan. Well, the Sovereign Wealth Fund wants to
attract international investors and is doing so in a rather interesting way, using a U.S. investment group, Franklin Templeton, who've been tasked
with managing this vast $1.8 billion fund of 18 companies of Uzbek state assets that are going to be in some shape or form, floated on global stock
markets, probably London, in the next year.
[16:45:01]
I sat down with the chief executive of Franklin Templeton Central Asia. It's an interesting fund. And Marius Dan says foreign investment here will
be transformative.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARIUS DAN, CEO, FRANKLIN TEMPLETON CENTRAL ASIA: It's a great structure that should really contribute to the transformation of the state-owned
companies through our work and our involvement, our operational involvement in all the state-owned companies. And it's meant to give institutional
investors a one-stop shop to Uzbekistan, a vehicle in which they can invest and get terrific exposure to the country outside of the sector of mining,
because there are no mining assets in the portfolio.
QUEST: What's to stop the government from fiddling around with the various components? Because at the end of the day, the government still has the
majority stake in all these companies. So what's to stop them from suddenly changing their mind, fiddling around, doing whatever they choose to do?
DAN: So the government not only owns the majority stakes in the underlying portfolio companies, the government owns 100 percent of the fund at this
stage. Once it will be listed, the government will sell a portion of their holding but will remain a significant and majority shareholder of the pot.
But I think in all the preparatory work that we have done with the government, with the leadership of the country to launch the National
Investment Fund of Uzbekistan, we've seen a tremendous amount of support for this project.
It is a huge step forward in increasing the transparency, increasing the governance of the state owned companies and also allowing investors to
participate in the equity markets of Uzbekistan.
QUEST: Does this prevent an oligarchic, maniacal structure?
DAN: Absolutely. Because the structure is opened to a wide, a global institutional investor base, if you will. So the natural investors that
would be participating in the listing of the fund itself are mutual funds, hedge funds, long only pension funds from the United States, from the U.K.,
from Europe, from Asia. So it should see a very diversified base of investors coming into this. And we've seen a tremendous amount of interest
in this first month since we launched the fund.
QUEST: How are you going to get ordinary investors in Uzbekistan? Because you can have all the funds that you like and all those nice pension funds
and everybody else and institutional investors, but actually you really want people in the country invested in their own well-being.
DAN: That's exactly one of the key issues and objectives of the listing of the fund itself because when we do the IPO, we're going to have the
institutional tranche, but we're also going to have a retail tranche, which is dedicated to investors and Uzbekistan. And we will have as it's
sometimes common with these IPOs, they invest, the retail investors in Uzbekistan will get a discount to the price of the institutional tranche.
So that should really incentivize a lot of retail investors to open their accounts on the Tashkent stock exchange.
We've done this with an IPO in Romania of Hidroelectrica, which in 2023, we successfully completed. It was the largest IPO in Europe, third largest IPO
in the world. And 100,000 people opened their accounts just to participate in this one single transaction.
QUEST: In a way, this is slightly more adventurous because this has got lots of bits to it, hasn't it? You know, it's one thing to buy a little bit
of an airline or a little bit of an electric company, but this has got lots.
DAN: In a sense this is a very attractive investment proposition because it is a diversified portfolio of assets. Some of them are monopolies and
investors like monopolies because it's very easy to understand them. It's very easy to make money with monopolies and other companies that operate in
a very competitive environment as the economy of Uzbekistan continues to liberalize the growth that we should see in all these assets will be
fantastic.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: That's a new fund. It is coming up to 10 to 2:00 in the morning. The lights are still on. We're on the roof of the Hyatt Regency here in
Tashkent, where the lights are starting to go out. Of course, there's a lot of football going on today, and there's a lot of people getting very
excited at the way the country has done so well getting through to qualifying for the World Cup. So here on the roof of the Hyatt, it's all
lovely evening, except it rains just threatening.
As QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight continues, we're going to hear again the second part of our conversation with Bulgaria's president. Rumen Radev says
his country is split on whether it's a good idea to be joining the Eurozone, and bearing in mind they're perhaps joining it as early as
January.
QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:52:35]
QUEST: And there you have the Pyramid Building as it's known in Tashkent. The lighting up different colors, kind of them to leave the lights on. We
didn't ask them to, but they generously -- the lights are shining tonight in Tashkent.
Bulgaria is on track to become the latest and newest member of the Eurozone. It's been approved for full membership, having met the criteria.
It could have argued some say it will boost economic stability and growth. It's a debate that's been going in Bulgaria for some years. Others say
higher prices and loss of independence, and indeed, if you look at the polls, they do seem to be split on whether Bulgaria should actually join in
January.
The president of the country believes there should be a referendum. And I asked him why.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RADEV: This is the result of a, so to say, conservative financial policy throughout the years of hard work and sacrifice. All this is paid by the
Bulgarian people. We expect to bring benefits to our economy, but there is no consensus in our society, not about Europe. But are we ready to accept
during in 2026? This is the question.
QUEST: You've been at it for years. I mean, it's not like it's suddenly come round the corner. Surely the time for a referendum would have been
earlier?
RADEV: Yes, but everything is so dynamic, everything changes. Even in the European Union. Why did U.K. left the European Union at all? And in 18
countries out of 27 today, they held referendum for joining E.U. with this binding agreement to introduce the single currency.
QUEST: So are you saying you still wish a referendum between now and the date upon which you're joining?
RADEV: Perhaps I'm old fashioned, but I strongly believe in democracy. You see, some leaders, they believe in technocracy. Some other leaders believe
in economy as a driving engine. But without democracy, if there is no democracy, the entire social construct is doomed. That's why I initiated a
referendum on our readiness to join the Eurozone in 2026.
[16:55:09]
QUEST: Does a constitutional crisis exist in Bulgaria between a P.M. who says were going in, and an elected president who says, not so fast, only
after a referendum?
RADEV: No. There is and there will be no constitutional crisis. In fact, it is about the trust in the institutions because for the last four years, can
you imagine, we helped seven parliamentary elections and we witnessed a decline of the trust in our institutions, and the referendum can bring back
the trust in the Bulgarian government.
QUEST: So much of European countries trade relations is dealt with at the E.U. level. But I'm guessing you're trying to build some form of bilateral
relationship, not just with Uzbekistan, but around this whole region.
RADEV: The Central Asian countries are of growing importance for the European Union. Bulgaria provides the most important part. The
connectivity. There is a huge room for bilateral relations, for trade, for exchange in various areas. However, we need the connectivity, transport,
energy, digital. Without this connectivity, we are pretty limited and can you imagine Bulgaria is on the west coast of the Black Sea?
And also you should know that the world's second busiest land border cross point is between Bulgaria and Turkey. We provide a European strategic entry
point to this region and this is Central Asia. This is China on the other side as well.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: That's the president of Bulgaria.
We are here in Uzbekistan at a moment of great national celebration. No, it's not the Investment Forum. It's actually all about football. Uzbekistan
has qualified for the FIFA World Cup. It's the first Central Asian nation to achieve that feat. And they did. They actually qualified earlier in the
season, but the team was back on the pitch on Tuesday. The fans were out supporting the city right here outside our hotel.
This was the scene as Uzbekistan beat Qatar a short few hours ago. The noise was great. The atmosphere is tremendous, and we will take a
"Profitable Moment" if the rain stays off in just a moment.
QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment," we made it. We took a risk in being outdoors and it has paid off except for the last few minutes when the rain
has started to come down quite heavily. But that's fine. We've made it in from Uzbekistan. Wonderful to be here in Tashkent for one more edition of
the Investment Forum. And this is a growing, fast moving country. It's a treat and a pleasure to be here. And the cherries are delicious at this
time of the year.
And that's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for tonight. I'm Richard Quest in Tashkent. Whatever you're up to in the hours ahead, I hope it's profitable. I'll see
you next week.
END
