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Quest Means Business

FIFA Lifts Team USA Star Folarin Balogun's Red Card Suspension; UEFA on Red Card Controversy: Integrity of the Game at Stake; Trump Set to Speak with NATO Leaders in Turkey; Nonprofit Offers A.I. Training Programs For United States Workers; Paul Theroux Details Personal Journey Through Canada. Aired 4-5p ET

Aired July 06, 2026 - 16:00:00   ET

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

[16:00:18]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Apparently you can't keep a good index down. The Dow up again today, more than 150 points and the NASDAQ

also pulling off a solid performance. A strong day again for chip stocks.

Those are the markets and these are the main events: For the first time, FIFA has rescinded a player suspension under the current rules during a

World Cup. The star striker for the United States is set to play and President Trump is suggesting it was his influence that got him back on the

pitch.

Russia hammers the Ukrainian capital with deadly attacks as NATO allies prepare to meet in Turkey.

And the former governor of Indiana wants to help U.S. workers navigate the age of A.I. We will tell you how when he joins me live.

And live in New York, it is Monday, July 6th. I am Paula Newton, in for Richard Quest and this is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.

Good evening.

And we do begin with anger and outrage at the FIFA World Cup.

U.S. striker, Folarin Balogun can now take to the pitch in the next few hours to play in Team USA's match against Belgium. It comes after President

Trump personally appealed to the head of FIFA, Gianni Infantino.

Now, he asked him to review the reffing decision that earned Balogun a red card and a one-match ban. FIFA then took the extraordinary step of lifting

that suspension, citing a rarely used article. Belgium asked FIFA for an explanation which FIFA treated as an appeal, and just a short time ago we

can report that FIFA said that appeal had been denied.

President Trump's action, and FIFA's ultimate decision to lift the suspension have ignited a political firestorm. It is also raising serious

questions about the integrity of the entire World Cup tournament and FIFA itself.

Here is how Mr. Trump responded earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: All I did, I asked for a review because I didn't think it was a foul. And, you know,

again, I am good at this stuff.

If they wouldn't allow, you know, a top player, maybe the best, maybe among the best players on the team to play, I think it would have had a big stain

and I related just that. I didn't tell him what to do. I can't tell him what to do, but -- and I don't believe he made the decision. I think it was

a committee that made the decision.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Now, meantime here, UEFA, European football's governing body, is criticizing FIFA. It writes in a statement: "Yesterday's decision crossed a

red line. Football, like any other sports, relies on rules which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are

open to interpretation. In this case not. We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision."

Belgium's Foreign Minister is also condemning the decision. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAXIME PREVOT, BELGIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Well as a former football referee myself, I have always been committed to upholding the rules and ensuring

fair decisions and this decision, let me be frank, raises a lot of questions.

If it is really one phone call that led to such an incomprehensible decision, that would be a flagrant breach of the most basic rules of

football and sports, and that would be very serious.

All, for instance, could FIFA continue to advocate for fair play with any credibility? So let's hope that the Belgium team will give the best answer

on the ground in the coming hours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: And we will see what happens in the coming hours.

Meantime, FIFA President Gianni Infantino released a written statement saying, "FIFA's judicial bodies are independent. They operate autonomously,

apply the FIFA Disciplinary Code and decide cases based on the applicable regulations and the specific facts before them."

Now, as we just said, the U.S. is set to take on Belgium at 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time. Right now, we do want to tell you that Spain and Portugal are

facing off in Dallas, that match still at nil-nil.

Amanda Davies, thankfully, is with us from Atlanta.

And Amanda, we are going to lean on your experience here because despite what Infantino wrote there in that statement, I was struck by UEFA because

they were really categorical saying, look, this crossed a red line.

[16:05:00]

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Yes, and I think that's the thing, you know, the FIFA president, Gianni Infantino, has said all along, as the

questions have mounted over his relationship between with President Donald Trump, Infantino has said that we need to have a relationship with the

political leaders of the countries we are dealing with in order to put on the best possible sporting event we can, and that is absolutely true for an

operational and a logistical standpoint, and we have seen it in years gone by.

Infantino has a relationship with Vladimir Putin putting on Russia 2018 and the leaders of Qatar in 2022. But I think the worry and where questions

have been raised here is the very visible closing of the relationship on a public and political level.

We saw Gianni Infantino invited to the peace talks in Sharm El-Sheikh at the back end of last year. Then that awarding of that first ever FIFA Peace

Prize to Donald Trump at the draw last year.

And this is a relationship, a phone call that has been very much admitted to by President Trump to Gianni Infantino, which has now crossed into

footballing territory and that absolutely breaks FIFA rules and statutes and Gianni Infantino, pointing to the independent nature of FIFA's judicial

bodies. Well, they need to be called into action.

And it seems they have only been called into action because of that phone call from Gianni Infantino from President Trump to Gianni Infantino and

Balogun, who we are talking about here is one of 13 players to have received a red card in this World Cup up to this point as far as we are

aware, this is the only red card that has been considered to be overturned and has been overturned and that is where the questions are being asked,

the concerns being raised about the impact that it has on the competitive nature of the tournament, the sporting integrity and the precedent it sets

moving forward.

NEWTON: And Amanda, I have to ask you, what effect do you believe this will have on the pitch in the coming hours? This is certainly more politics than

either team wanted to deal with.

DAVIES: Yes, I mean, the impact it has on the pitch is that the U.S. gets the player who has scored more goals than any other up to this point in the

tournament being able to play, and I think you know that without doubt is a massive plus for Mauricio Pochettino's side as they look to make it into

the quarterfinal of a World Cup for the first time since 2002.

And we know, you know, they have set their bar very, very high in terms of what they are hoping to achieve this tournament. But there is no doubt, it

is black mark and a really disappointing stain on what should be a fantastic football match even without this controversy. You know, the U.S.

playing better than we've seen them in a long time up against Belgium side with some incredible talent on display. The likes of Romelu Lukaku, the

likes of Kevin De Bruyne, the likes of Jeremy Doku, the stakes are very, very high for both of them, but neither will have wanted to be part of this

as a storyline.

Whatever happens to the result, neither will have been wanting to deal with this as a storyline heading into their game, and I think the question then

is what happens with red cards moving forward at this tournament? And do teams accept it or do we end up with other political leaders trying to get

involved?

Because we know from a footballing context, but also from a political context that the eyes of the world on your football team, as you progress

through this tournament, have a massive, massive impact, doesn't it?

NEWTON: Yes, absolutely, and as I said, a shame as we had dodged a lot of politics, at least when the World Cup started, perhaps not before, perhaps

not after, but at least we were all fixated on the games on the pitch.

Amanda Davies, good to have you Stateside as we continue to follow this World Cup.

I want to bring in Jules Boykoff now. He is the author of "Red Card: The 2026 World Cup, Sportswashing and the FIFA Greed Machine."

So, yes, I am going to state it here. You wrote the book on the red card, perhaps not the one that we are discussing, but it is also steeped in

politics.

Infantino-Donald Trump will argue this isn't unprecedented and there was no political influence. But of course, so many disagree with that. What

informs your view of this? What is your red flag to take this analogy that tells you political influence was involved here?

JULES BOYKOFF, "RED CARD" AUTHOR: This is most assuredly a political intervention by U.S. President Donald Trump into the machinations of the

2026 World Cup.

[16:10:04]

This is the political intervention that shocked the football world, except that no one is actually shocked that Trump would put himself at the center

of attention and nobody is shocked that FIFA president, Gianni Infantino would go along with President Trump. He has been helping President Trump at

every single step of the way, giving him that FIFA Peace Prize in 2025, attending the opening of "Melania," also showing up at the FIFA -- the

Board of Peace meeting representing FIFA and talking about remaking Gaza. So, he has been there every step of the way for Trump.

This just goes to show you that the World Cup is political through and through and anybody who tells you otherwise is not your friend.

NEWTON: You know, UEFA was blunt. They basically said they were in disbelief about this decision. Does it call into question so much about the

World Cup itself? And I want to point to things like reffing, how games are decided? What is done for ratings? Because I have to say before this event,

despite everything that you've written and researched, besides everything that was said, what was happening on the pitches was uplifting and

astonishing.

You only have to see the story of Cape Verde to know you know, that this was a real thing the world was engaging into. Does it tarnish that now, in

terms of everything that has gone on?

BOYKOFF: No question about it that this World Cup has been a split screen event. On one side, incredible things happening with Cape Verde making it

as far as they did, providing so much joy in this tournament. But on the flip side, there has been so much exclusion. I mean, the referee from

Somalia being excluded from the tournament, just for no apparent reason whatsoever; the exclusion of fans from around the world that had absolutely

no chance of getting a visa.

And now you have, like you said, UEFA, questioning the very integrity of the game. They are saying it is at stake and they are not wrong. It is sort

of like when you think about politics and truth in the United States right now, where a lot of people don't believe anything is true, that same

dynamic could go into the World Cup now, and that is what is the bigger risk with this tournament heading into tonight's match.

I have to say one other thing. The united states has had a great run here, and even if they manage to win tonight with their star forward, Folarin

Balogun on the pitch, now, no matter what, there is going to be an asterisk attached to this win, whether they like it or not.

NEWTON: And I am wondering when you thought to write this book, I mean, your book lays out how political leaders and you point out, especially

Donald Trump, they leveraged the World Cup, right, to kind of whether its stoke up nationalism or gin up their own political popularity. I mean, FIFA

corruption has been endemic, you point out, and in your words, it is dripping with patronage.

What happens next here? Because so much of what we as fans see on the pitches is real. The fans have really engaged across three countries, and

yet the narrative, the facts of what has gone on with FIFA, not today, not yesterday, but for decades seems to have hijacked the whole situation here.

How to fix that?

BOYKOFF: Well, there are a lot of problems with FIFA, and I do delineate those problems in the book, but that doesn't take away from the magic that

these footballers bring to the world and the community that gets built through football. And I argue that, you know, football or soccer is a lot

bigger than FIFA and it is definitely worth fighting for.

One of the ways that I think is exciting that's happening right now, that anybody who is watching could do is sign your name onto this thing called

RebootFIFA.com. It is a new campaign put forth by a humanitarian group based in London called FairSquare. I am on their advisory board, I will

say, and what we are trying to do is get as many signatures as possible on the biggest ever class action complaint against FIFA for breaking their

neutrality rules in the ways that we have been talking about here today, sending this complaint to both the FIFA Ethics Committee, yes, they

actually have one, and also to the European Parliament, where there has been already quite a bit of action from the European Parliament.

And I expect a lot more based on what we've been talking about with Belgium, so there are things that fans can do to get involved, become more

informed and be part of the pushback against this FIFA greed machine, if you will.

NEWTON: Yes, and not unheard of now that we might actually have a bit of a sideline discussion of this at the NATO Summit tomorrow, where so many

European leaders will be gathered with Donald Trump.

Jules Boykoff, thank you so much. We really appreciate you being here.

BOYKOFF: Thank you.

NEWTON: Now, as I was just saying, on the eve of that NATO Summit in Turkey, Russia launches deadly missile strikes and drone strikes right

across Kyiv. Now, Ukraine is pleading for more patriot missiles to defend itself.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:17:29]

NEWTON: Deadly Russian strikes pounded Ukraine's capital and surrounding areas early Monday, Ukrainian officials say at least 21 people were killed

and dozens more wounded.

Russia unleashing ballistic missiles and drones right across Kyiv on the eve of that critical NATO Summit in Turkey. Now, massive explosions lit up

the night sky. Kyiv's mayor said there was damage and destruction in multiple parts of that city.

President Trump is set to attend that NATO Summit in Turkey. He is expected to meet on the sidelines with his Ukrainian counterpart. Volodymyr

Zelenskyy says he spoke with Mr. Trump, Saturday. Russia's Foreign Ministry says the U.S. President also spoke to Vladimir Putin and offered again to

help end the war.

CNN's Kristen Holmes is in Ankara for us and joins us now.

Good to have you on the ground there. I am wondering, President Trump, when he met with Rutte, the Secretary General -- NATO Secretary General in the

Oval Office last, you know, the President said that Ukraine was, in his words, winning. I mean, how much does that matter in this context, as he is

set to attend this NATO Summit and is going to be asked to do a lot more for Ukraine?

KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, that matters to President Trump more than anything, which is why you've seen him say things

in the past to Zelenskyy like, you don't hold the cards indicating that Putin had more power.

Now, there is a world in which you might look at these strikes right before NATO, right before they are going to be all of these asks from European

countries and understand that Putin knows that shows of strength are something that impress President Trump. But of course, we cannot say the

two are correlated.

Now, we know President Trump has spoken to both leaders. He has said that Putin wants an end to this war, that he had offered his help. But it is

really unclear to me, from speaking to U.S. officials, what is actually going to get done, while these European leaders want to talk about it,

while The White House and U.S. officials have said President Trump wants to find a solution, he sees the urgency, he wants to bring an end to this, no

one can quite tell me what exactly President Trump might commit to in any of these meetings, even in the meeting with Zelensky.

Now, of course, he has agreed to have this kind of sidebar bilateral meeting with Zelensky, which in itself is one of only two or three meetings

that he is having while he is on the ground for this very short amount of time, but whether or not anything comes of it that really remains a

question and what we've seen overall is kind of frozen atmosphere from The White House when it comes to Russia-Ukraine, they haven't really been

engaging at all.

We've seen somewhat of a ramped up interest just in recent weeks. We saw a new round of talks. But in terms of what the U.S. would actually agree to

moving forward, other than just kind of mediating these talks. Again, no official was able to tell me that.

[16:20:16 ]

NEWTON: Yes, and that is the point. Donald Trump himself said a few weeks ago, it doesn't involve us, I think I remember him saying, so let's see how

much we can get done in this NATO Summit.

Kristen Holmes in Ankara, again, grateful to have you there.

Now Ukraine's President is pleading with the U.S. and European allies for more patriot air defense missiles. Zelenskyy says Ukraine was not able to

shoot down any of Russia's ballistic missiles on Monday because it lacked enough interceptors. Ukraine is having more success with offensive drone

strikes, its military said Monday that it hit Russia's largest oil refinery more than 2,500 kilometers away in Siberia.

Joining me now is Ukrainian Parliament Member, Kira Rudik, and she joins us now, as I said, from Kyiv.

Good to see you.

I am wondering what you believe President Zelenskyy can achieve at this NATO Summit, because I don't have to remind you, the United States itself

may be low on those interceptors.

So what does Ukraine need to get from this NATO Summit right now?

KIRA RUDIK, UKRAINIAN MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT: Hello, Paula. Thank you so much for having me.

As you said yourself, it is critical for Ukraine to get the interceptors as right now, Russia outpaces the United States in production of the ballistic

missiles against the production of the anti-ballistic missiles that we desperately need.

What President Zelenskyy can get there is additional support and at least promises of the delivery of the missiles that we need, but also to continue

on the discussions that we have heard started in Paris regarding getting the technology to produce the patriot missile systems to Ukraine so we can

at some point produce them ourselves and strategically be able to defend ourselves in the future. That would be a life changer and a game changer

for us.

And because we obviously understand that the situation when there is not enough of those missiles in the world is critical for us and gives Russia

unnecessary leverage at this point.

NEWTON: You know, and I do know that, in fact, in Ukraine, you guys are confident that if you get that permission, you can actually build these

fairly quickly. I am wondering, though, that even though Russia looks wounded right now, and you only have to look at the gas situation in Russia

to see that, and obviously, some developments on the front line, do you worry that Ukrainians should brace themselves for so much more escalation

now?

I mean, watching those civilian targets overnight in Ukraine, and it has been the case for several weeks now, it can't be easy.

RUDIK: It is not easy, Paula. But what is the alternative? What is the option? Unfortunately, the real peace deal or the real ceasefire was never

at the table. If you look at Russia's actions and not listen to what Putin says, trying to fool President Trump, the truth is Russia never intended to

stop.

They have started a full scale invasion and they continue terrorizing our peaceful cities because they do not have real gains at the front line and

they will continue doing that no matter what we do. The only thing that we can do for ourselves is to fight back, to brace ourselves and again, find a

way to defend our people.

And this has been a case for us since the day one, because Russia would not stop unless they are stopped. We have proved that by the fact, and we are

hoping that finally, the leaders of the world will realize that.

NEWTON: I am wondering what you believe Russians themselves may realize. Obviously, arguably, Russians do not have any influence over what Vladimir

Putin does, but have you seen any indication that it might be the Russian people themselves that would be just so fatigued with this war now that it

is on their doorstep?

RUDIK Russian propaganda is very strong, and Russians in their majority support the war. We can see that by the social media, but also, we can see

that by the progress of Russian Army being supported and added with new recruits.

So we have no hope that at some point Russians will rebel, but what we have hope that Putin's inner circle may become less supportive of the war and

create the political instability that may pressure Putin into ending the war, or at least agreeing to a ceasefire.

Coming back to the patriot missile systems, Paula, I think it is important to mention that it is not the only way of producing more of them. We can

pressure Putin to produce less of the ballistic missiles.

[16:25:06]

And for that, sanctions need to actually start working, because right now, the majority of the ballistic missile is made of the western components

that four-and-a-half years into the sanctions are still somehow being delivered to Russia, becoming a part of the deadly weapons that are coming

our way.

So this is another way of working with it and I hope that President Zelenskyy is bringing up to President Trump.

NEWTON: Yes, the sanctions at times have proven ineffective, even though even European countries have promised to get tougher with those sanctions.

Kira Rudik, good to see you again and we will leave it there for now. Thanks so much.

RUDIK: Thank you.

NEWTON: Now, large crowds packed the streets of Tehran on Monday as the late Ayatollah's coffin is carried a ten-kilometer journey through the

capital.

Iran's President joined the hundreds of thousands of people attending the funeral procession for Ali Khamenei. Many there grieving and angered,

shouting "Death to America" and vowing revenge against the U.S. and Israel.

Frederik Pleitgen is there in the crowds in Tehran.

A reminder CNN operates in Iran only with the permission of the government, but maintains full editorial control.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is truly a historic moment that we are witnessing here in Tehran as scores of people

have come out to commemorate Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who, of course, was killed in the U.S.-Israeli airstrike, along

with several family members at the beginning of the U.S. and Israel's war against Iran.

And as you can see on the ground here, there is a lot of sorrow, but there is also a lot of anger. The chants of "Death to America" we are hearing

right now and "Death to Israel" have been going on almost nonstop, with people vowing revenge against the United States

(UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE speaking in foreign language.)

TRANSLATION: We have come here to seek the revenge for the blood of our leader and we will not abandon this goal for a second. We will continue

until we take the revenge from the killer of our leader.

PLEITGEN: Of course, we always have to point out that not everybody is mourning today, not everybody is out here. There are people who are deeply

opposed to the rule of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

But as you can see here, right now, the government has galvanized its supporters. They have come out here en masse and the message that they are

sending, of course, is also directed at the United States and if negotiations fail, Iran is ready for another fight.

Now, these processions are going to go on for another several days and then culminate when the Supreme Leader is laid to rest in the city of Mashhad in

Eastern Iran.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Tehran

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: One of the world's most renowned writers takes on an assignment very close to home.

Up next, Paul Theroux joins us to discuss "True North: On the Road in Canada."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:31:06]

NEWTON: So, Microsoft just cutting 4800 jobs as it shifts resources toward A.I. Shares fell nearly one percent, a large portion of the layoffs are

within the company's Xbox division. It set to lose one-fifth of its total headcount. Microsoft is just the latest tech firm to cut jobs in a pivot

toward A.I. investments.

Over the past year, Amazon, Cisco, Salesforce, and Meta have done the same.

The former governor of Indiana just co-launched a nonprofit to help U.S. workers navigate a more A.I.-driven economy. Eric Holcomb started RAISE US,

along with former U.S. Secretary of State Gina Raimondo. The organization is deploying A.I. training programs in these four states. You see them

there with the goal for companies to reskill their workforces rather than scale them back.

RAISE US is backed by top tech firms, including OpenAI, Amazon, Anthropic, and Microsoft.

RAISE US' co-chair and former Indiana Governor Eric Holcomb joins us now. Good to see you, Governor, and thanks for being here as we all try and

parse the effect A.I. will have on all of us. I mean, what do you hope to get done with this project, and what kind of impact can it have? Because as

developed economies, we have never really been good at, have we? In terms of pivoting, whether it's re-skilling, retraining.

ERIC HOLCOMB, CO-CHAIR, RAISE US: Yes.

NEWTON: So, how do you think we can overcome this?

HOLCOMB: Yes, there is always been a healthy dose of skepticism, because so many things have been tried in the past. Some have succeeded, some have

failed, but we know that with every technological advancement since the beginning of time itself, there has been an effect on the future of work

and workers in the workplace. It's just now the scale and pace is different.

And so, we have to have a somewhat different approach to how we do skill up our American workforce. We know the backdrop says that we already need more

teachers and truckers and tradesmen and women, more veterinarians, more nurses, more air traffic controllers, pilots, et cetera. With A.I. and

quantum and robots over the next decade, we need to make sure that our workforce development systems, programs, policies, are consumer or client

or citizen centric, that being they are more affordable, more accessible, and certainly, folks are more aware of them.

NEWTON: So, the task at hand that you just outlined is daunting enough. So, what can you actually do? And I -- and I know that you guys point out that

you are going to have incentives to retrain and redeploy workers, new approaches, training models, but are we also talking about a guaranteed

national income, unemployment benefits that last longer? Like, give me a sense of what it might look like for the average worker.

HOLCOMB: Sure. Well, we definitely need to look at our unemployment insurance systems. They were designed somewhat 90 years ago, and with the

with A.I., and as I mentioned, quantum, and robotics rolling out, we need to make sure that they are able to not just absorb folks going on the

unemployment rolls, but how quicker do they get back to work. How do they get a bigger paycheck once they do, and that all runs through getting the

new skill set for this new time.

And so, yes, we will pilot new ways of thinking about things. I don't think a kind of universal basic income is a route to go. Paying people not to

work to become more dependent. We are trying to do the opposite. We are trying to make sure people get the skill set, so that they are independent,

so they have more options, so they can pursue a better quality of life, and that make -- it has to run again right through having been prepared for

what the supply and demand of the workforce, of the business sector is craving.

[16:35:08]

And so, we will pull together, as you alluded to, we will pull together business folks, we will pull together post-secondary and education and

training providers, and we will pull together governments, primarily as you mentioned, four states to start with, but we have got 50 and territories.

So, more work to be done, and we'll try some things that maybe haven't been tried before, and we'll try to do a lot more of what's already working.

NEWTON: We mentioned the tech companies involved here. How will you make sure I know you are good at holding people to account to make sure those

tech companies, that this isn't a token P.R. campaign for them. That real people with real jobs get the leg up that they need.

HOLCOMB: Absolutely. Well, we make -- we make the decision, and thankfully, everyone who has supported us, in addition to those tech companies

understands that we make the decision, we have also are standing up a policy lab that helps inform us of what investments to make and where and

when and how much, but I got to say I'm grateful that any business, any business who is willing to contribute to this collective action wants to be

part of the solution and think outside of their own business model, because they know that technological advancements will have an effect on folks.

My great grandfather was a blacksmith, and in the 1940s he did an interview and said, the good Lord gave it and replaced it with rubber. He used to

work on wheels, and now he is working on tractors. And he said, who knows what the future holds? But the boy here is making things with his hands

like airplanes. That boy was my dad on a dirt floor in the 1940s. So much has changed. We just need to be, make sure that we're prepared for those

changes.

NEWTON: Yes, you have a valuable perspective there, Governor. I thank you, and we'll continue to check in with RAISE US to see how it does. Thanks so

much for being with us.

HOLCOMB: Thank you.

NEWTON: Now, few voices have been painting pictures of the world longer than Paul Theroux since the late 1960s. He has published more than 50

novels and travel logs. One of the most famous, "The Great Railway Bazaar", recounts his four-month train journey through Europe, the Middle East, and

Southeast Asia.

More recently, Theroux set his sights on Canada, examining its rich history, geography, and cultural makeup.

Now, he goes through it all in his latest book, "True North on the Road in Canada". American novelist and travel writer Paul Theroux joins us now.

Thanks for being on the program. We really appreciate it.

PAUL THEROUX, NOVELIST AND TRAVEL WRITER: Thank you, Paula. Lovely to see you.

NEWTON: Now, we are going to have some full disclosure here. I am Canadian, and I'm always interested in anyone who believes my country worthy of

holding up a mirror to it. I will say, you come by it honestly, you do have French Canadian heritage. Why Canada? Why now?

THEROUX: I think that's -- everyone knows the answer to that question. It was going to be the 51st state, so that's a place we want to know about.

And that united Canadian, when that directive went out, Canadians suddenly became extremely patriotic, extremely unified. It's a country that's not --

patriotism doesn't come naturally to Canadians. As you probably know, it's very widespread country.

I wanted to go to see my ancestors, but even before then, when the trucker protest was on, was that four or five years ago? I went there just to see

the trucker protest. I went for the NHL playoffs, and I went to the potato harvest and watch basketball games.

I found it an amazing country, a country that's greatly interested in the U.S., Canada gave us basketball, peanut butter, insulin, the wonder bra.

They gave us so many -- they gave us, they fought with us in two world wars and in Vietnam.

So, they are great neighbors. And I could have breakfast at home, lunch on the border, and dinner at my ancestral village of Yamaska, near Montreal. I

could have a great meal in Montreal.

NEWTON: Right.

THEROUX: You -- I understand you were in Montreal for a while, one of your gigs, am I wrong?

NEWTON: Yes, I've been to many -- I've been very lucky to report from any place in Canada, and was based in Halifax, Montreal, and Ottawa, and

traveled everywhere, which is why it caught my attention when the trucker protest -- and I was on the ground for that for many days in the freezing

cold, caught your attention.

We are showing video of it now. But I also want to point out that, you know, you write that, "Stereotypical as the land of prudent people,

civility, and restraint; Canada was suddenly in the world news for its mayhem and its mobs."

[16:40:00]

You wrote that it energized the place. Are -- were Canadians less boring to you during those protests?

THEROUX: I've never -- I never found Canadians boring. I found -- one virtue of Canadians is civility. Canadians are great listeners. They were

very interested in the protest, and when I went there, there was, they were apologizing for it.

It was a lot -- a lot of it was from the U.S., as you probably know. But I wanted -- the thing about mayhem or amazing events is it concentrates

people's attention, it makes them talkative.

So, Canada is fairly undramatic most of the time, but the drama of the trucker protest actually made people talkative, they were offering

perspectives on it for me.

If you are a writer, you want people to come forward. It also -- it made them reflect on their own destiny, and they began flying flags in a way

that they had not before.

Trying to -- I wrote about Mexico. I wrote about in -- on the plane of snakes. I wrote about the deep south. This is kind of a road trip trilogy.

I may also say Canada is a fabulous place to take a road trip. You could -- I went from Newfoundland to Vancouver. I mean, that's many thousands of

miles up of that --

(CROSSTALK)

NEWTON: Gosh, I mean, yes. Just what you are -- just what you are saying is breathtaking, because Canada is incredibly large, a very difficult place

geographically to get your arms around. It's actually many trips. I'm impressed that you went to all those places.

Paul, we only have about a minute left, but I do want to ask you, how much is Canada's multiculturalism really an influence on the country it is

today?

THEROUX: Well, as you know, Canada doesn't assimilate people. It lets them go the runway. So, it's actually one of the paradoxes of Canada, is that

you go to places in this kind of an ethno bubble, all Chinese, all Sikhs outside Toronto. So, that's likely to become an issue for Canada in the

future.

But what I would -- what I thought was, anyone who goes to Canada, you think the best journeys don't confirm what you already believe. What they

do is they prove you that how you are wrong. In a gentle way, they prove that you are wrong. And I found there were so many lessons that I learned

that I had to put them in a book, and that's -- that was the genesis of "True North".

NEWTON: As I said, I so appreciate someone bringing the mirror up to Canada, because we learn so much about ourselves when we have people like

you that come to the country and give us their insights.

Paul Theroux, we do have to leave it there, but the book is "True North on the Road in Canada". Thank you so much. We will check in with you again.

And that --

(CROSSTALK)

THEROUX: Thank you.

NEWTON: That is QUEST MEANS BUSINESS for today. Up next, "CONNECTING AFRICA".

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[16:45:53]

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to Connecting Africa. I'm Eleni Giokos.

This month we are meeting philanthropist and global business leader Patrice Motsepe. And looking at the impact his numerous businesses are having

across the continent.

The South African billionaire has built a number of trailblazing companies across the mining, renewable energy, and financial services sectors.

Growing up in South Africa, where the unemployment rate still stands at more than 30 percent.

Motsepe tells me his business acumen came from a desire to help the continent and its people reach their full potential.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICE MOTSEPE, PHILANTROPIST AND GLOBAL BUSINESS LEADER: We have got the second largest young population, you know, below 30 in the world. So, we

have to begin now to create the sort of employment opportunities and economic opportunities and provide the skills and expertise, then create --

that can allow them to find employment, but also be part of the economy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Motsepe began buying gold mines in South Africa, when prices were at a low in the 90s. Now, his most successful company, African Rainbow

Minerals, operates nine mines in South Africa across iron ore, manganese or chromo, platinum group metals, and coal. With global demand for critical

minerals on the rise, we look at how the company is ready to meet this demand and keep the value within the continent.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS (voice over): Here in the Northern Cape of South Africa, workers are digging to the depths of one of the continent's vast iron ore deposits.

MIKE SCHMIDT, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, AFRICAN RAINBOW MINERALS: South Africa is well endowed with extremely rich resources, and resources not

only in minerals, in people, in legacy, in history, infrastructure, being road sports, and rail is absolutely well suited for our operations.

GIOKOS (voice over): 4,000 people work around the clock at the Khumani Iron Ore Mine to extract, process, and ship the mineral around the world.

SCHMIDT: From here, this is loaded on rapid load out facilities, and it's sequentially loaded on rail and railed all the way down to Saldana. From

Saldana it's loaded on ships and goes to the various economies and markets.

GIOKOS: African Rainbow Minerals or ARM, says it produces 12-1/2 million tons of iron ore a year, a mineral crucial to the production of steel.

SCHMIDT: What sets Khumani a pie aside is the quality and the value it derives, it's not only an extraction of mining, it's an integrated process,

value added, well diversified, playing into extremely positive markets in the world.

China has always been the dominant market, but Japan is an important market. Korea is an important market, and we also send into the U.S. and

the E.U.

GIOKOS (voice over): Here in the heart of the mine is the control room, where the product quality and grade of the iron ore is monitored. As the

company evolves, ARM says it's working on developing a technology to process ores by drastically reducing its dependency on standard

electricity.

SCHMIDT: We do propagate with gas, but to superheat it with oxygen, and so, you don't need conventional coal-fired electricity to smelt any product.

GIOKOS (voice over): Beyond all, the company actively runs seven platinum, manganese, and coal mines, and says it's starting to mine nickel. Many of

these critical minerals are essential to the A.I. revolution, the building of data centers, and the continent's shift to clean energy.

ARM says the company aims to double the output of its minerals within the next seven years.

SCHMIDT: I think, Africa has reached an inflection point, a defining point in mining. It's no longer a volume game, it's really a value game.

[16:50:04]

That what creates downstream, upstream industries, what creates a platform for growth, and Africa is at the pivotal point in this time in terms of

capitalizing on that industry.

GIOKOS (voice over): While transportation and logistics are integral to moving these critical minerals, the company says the African Continental

Free Trade Agreement goes beyond connecting the region through infrastructure.

SCHMIDT: Certainly, opened up free trade. But a lot more than that, it's actually opened up markets, integration, and it's opened up social

interactions and business interactions.

So, we see cross-border happening in terms of mining skills, engineering skills, and services.

GIOKOS (voice over): With Africa being home to nearly a third of the world's critical mineral reserves, ARMS founder, Patrice Motsepe says it's

crucial to find a way to keep the complete mining value chain within the continent.

MOTSEPE: Africa has got some of the best minerals in the world, but other continents do have those minerals as well. So, we have to compete, and you

know, the cost of production of those minerals -- and I think what is important is we have to create a legal fiscal tax, a monetary dispensation

in every country where they are -- where they are world-class minerals that is attractive and that competes and that allows those mining companies to

much rather want to come to Africa rather than other parts of the world.

GIOKOS: But mining is going to be integral.

MOTSEPE: Mining is an essential part. You know, you've got to look at what has Africa got that the rest of the world either doesn't have as much -- as

qualitatively as we do.

But also, what is important is we've got to build relationships with clients, with customers worldwide. We have got to be a reliable and

dependable producer and marketer of the minerals that the world needs, because, you know, this whole A.I. revolution that's taking place, the

whole technological advancements, they require the minerals that we have on the continent in South Africa, and in other parts of the continent.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS (voice over): Up next, how Motsepe is using cutting-edge innovations to harness the power of the sun.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GIOKOS: Welcome back.

With vast land and a blazing sun, the International Energy Agency says Africa is home to 60 percent of the world's best solar resources. Looking

to harness this potential, the Global Solar Council says Africa had record solar P.V. growth last year, adding 4.5 gigawatts of new capacity. That's a

54 percent increase compared to the year before.

Patrice Motsepe founded African Rainbow Energy and Power in 2012 to focus on building affordable clean energy solutions in South Africa and beyond.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS (voice over): Spread across this vast landscape, thousands of solar panels track the African sun. Here in the northern part of South Africa,

Selemela Solar Park is an example of a new approach to renewable energy generation.

BRIAN DAMES, CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, AFRICAN RAINBOW ENERGY AND POWER: Each one of them is about 191,000 solar panels. It's got trackers that gets

used to follow the sun, and that is to optimize the solar resource during the day.

GIOKOS (voice over): Using trackers to chase the sun's rays, the spark is utilizing the latest technology. Once the maximum amount of energy is

generated from the sun, large scale batteries store the electricity, so it can be used for whenever it is needed.

[16:55:00]

DAMES: We will not be building a solar plant without battery storage. Currently doing work to add batteries to that. And why? Is because we have

quite a predictable solar resource, and battery technology has just seen a massive reduction in pricing.

And now you can have renewable energy that's dispatchable, particularly at times that it's needed. So, generally, South Africa has an excess of, you

know, solar energy during the day and can be used at night.

And so, for us, our focus is on we have always been clear, modern technology that's clean, that is affordable and competitive.

GIOKOS (voice over): What makes this park more innovative is its use of what is called electricity wheeling, where power is generated in one

location and sent over the national energy network and sold to customers hundreds of kilometers away.

DAMES: Big part for private sector clients, mining customers in particular. So, the projects are the first large scale wheeling projects in South

Africa, where at one place we produce electricity, and we deliver it across the grid to five different locations for, you know, two mining companies,

which are the customers in that case.

GIOKOS (voice over): The park was developed by the SOLA Group, of which African Rainbow Energy is a major shareholder.

GIOKOS: You have invested heavily in renewable energy and you've increased your stake in SOLA Group from 40 percent to over 80 percent. How important

do you think that is?

MOTSEPE: Renewables is part of an industry that we've looked at for many years and we've invested a huge amount of resources finance. We have bought

one of the best companies not just in South Africa, but in the continent. SOLA with world-class management.

So, as a family, we are in the mining industry, and in all of the industries we get involved. These are long-term investments. And sometimes,

for many years, you don't make the sort of revenue that you'd like to, but, you know, we take a five, seven, 10-year perspective.

So, the renewables are doing very well, and we think we'll realize the benefits of that industry in the medium to long term.

GIOKOS: African Rainbow Energy says part of its long-term plan is to roll out its business model across the continent and play its part in an Africa-

wide interconnected electricity network.

DAMES: I think, for the continent to be successful, energy is crucial. Now, for the continent, I believe to work quite successfully is to be

interconnected. But if we could take the best of the hydro north of us, some of the gas resources that are available, north, east, and west, the

renewable resources that is in abundance, and you'll be able to put that together. What do you do? You create an interconnected energy system that

is very competitive, that is sustainable, and can support each of those economies' developments. And so, that's crucially important.

So, the continent being more interconnected is absolutely essential.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: Well, that's it for this month's CONNECTING AFRICA. If you want to know more about the subjects we cover, you can check out our web site.

Until next month, from me, Eleni Giokos, let's keep on connecting,

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END