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The Brief with Jim Sciutto
CNN International: Fed Holding Rates Steady; U.S. Sanctions Brazilian Supreme Court Justice; Trump Imposes Additional 40 Percent Tariff on Brazil; Tsunami Warnings in the U.S. Downgraded After Massive Earthquake; Microsoft and Meta's Strong Quarterly Results; Arab League Calls for Hamas to Give Up Power in Gaza; 39 Percent of People in Gaza Going Days Without Food; Russia Ramps Up Attacks on Ukraine; Trump Announces Trade Agreement with South Korea; U.S. and India Launch Historic Joint Mission. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired July 30, 2025 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:00]
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington. And you're watching
"The Brief."
Just ahead this hour, the Federal Reserve defies President Trump's pressure campaign for an interest rate cut. Tsunami warnings across Pacific are now
downgraded after one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded strikes off Russia's Eastern coast. And an historic joint mission between NASA and
India's space agency could change the way we see the Earth.
We do begin with the U.S. Federal Reserve and what's become a politically charged decision on interest rates. The Fed held rates steady despite
President Trump's repeated call for massive cuts. However, two fed officials disagreed, preferring to lower them by a quarter point. This is
the largest descent at the Fed since 1993, and it's coming from people appointed by Donald Trump to the bank's governing board. One of them,
Christopher Waller, is seen as a potential successor to the current Fed chair, Jerome Powell.
At his news conference, Powell said there is no need to lower rates just yet, and he said there have been no decisions made about what to do at the
next meeting in September.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEROM POWELL, CHAIR, U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE: For the time being, we're well positioned to learn more about the likely course of the economy and the
evolving balance of risks before adjusting our policy stance. We see our current policy stance as appropriate to guard against inflation risks.
We're also attentive to risks on the employment side of our mandate.
In coming months, we will receive a good amount of data that will help inform our assessment of the balance of risks and the appropriate setting
of the federal funds rate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: U.S. stocks finished the day mostly lower. Many investors were expecting Powell to signal a cut in September. The Fed decision also came
after a deceptively strong read on U.S. economic growth. GDP expanded in the second quarter at an annual rate of 3 percent, that after a negative
GDP read that we saw in the first quarter. However, a big reason was a sharp drop in imports coming into the U.S. Remember, the value of imports
are subtracted from a country's gross domestic product.
Natasha Sarin is an economist at the Yale Budget Lab, former deputy assistant secretary for Economic Policy at the U.S. Treasury Department.
Natasha, thanks so much for joining.
NATASHA SARIN, PRESIDENT, YALE BUDGET LAB: Thanks for having me.
SCIUTTO: So, let's begin with the Fed, but by the Fed's historic way of assessing rates, do the economic conditions right now, with that strong GDP
growth, for instance, and still a strong labor market, would that normally call for lowering interest rates further?
SARIN: Well, it wouldn't in the following sense. The way that the Federal Reserve thinks about its goals is it has a dual mandate. So, it looks at
inflation and it looks at the labor market. And the labor market is actually doing quite well. So, the unemployment rate is hovering around 4
percent. That's kind of close to what economists think of as full employment.
On the other hand, inflation has ticked upward, particularly in certain sectors of the economy that are starting to be impacted by these tariffs.
So, I'm talking about things like consumer electronics or household furnishings, where you're starting to see the impact of tariff rates, the
current effective tariff rate is something like 18 percent, when President Trump took office, that number was more like 2.5 percent.
So, that puts upward pressure on prices naturally. And so, the Federal Reserve, which already wasn't, even before this administration back to its
2 percent inflation target, is kind of in wait and see mode and has space to be in wait and see mode given how strong the labor market is presently.
SCIUTTO: So, is the current dissent we're seeing, is that based on a different reading of the economic data or do you suspect it might be based
on politics?
SARIN: You know, you saw Chair Powell kind of explicitly say that we are going to start to get more data in the months ahead. We're actually going
to get more data later this week. We're going to learn more about what the jobs picture has been looking like and also about what inflation has been
looking like in the last month.
And so, I think sort of walkers of all of these issues and members of the Federal Open Markets Committee, as well as economists who are kind of
wondering how to make and understand the data can kind of see true trajectories right now.
[18:05:00]
There's one in which we're starting to see the impacts of these trade wars, and we're starting to see this upward tick in inflation. And there's
another where we're -- we were gliding down towards our 2 percent inflation target. And although, these trade wars have been disruptive, they're
landing in a place that's somewhat less pessimistic than perhaps the market thought in April.
And so, in that universe, you actually have space to begin cutting. And I think there is totally reasonable room for dissent. And in fact, that's
what the Federal Open Markets Committee is supposed to do. They're supposed to look at the data and discuss and make informed choices. I speculate that
they're going to start to get more information that's going to better inform these decisions over the course of the coming weeks.
SCIUTTO: I mean, the trouble is Trump is openly attacking the Fed, right, on a number of fronts. He's been demanding interest rate cuts. And by the
way, one of the people he's considering to replace Powell is one of those dissent votes who said, oh, yes, hey, I'm all for cutting rates. I mean,
might the markets read that as, at least, an erosion of the Fed's independence?
SARIN: You know, I think we are at a particularly dangerous moment for the Central Bank in the following way. The independence of the Federal Reserve
is such an asset to our economy. It is the reason why when you are looking to try and navigate economic downturns and make decisions that are going to
stimulate the economy, the market has sort of trust that those decisions are being made with the explicit purpose of managing just the dual mandate.
It's inflation and it's the labor market.
And so, when you start to have sort of politically motivated, even discussions around the interest rate trajectory, that really is pretty
dangerous. And the reason that I know that that's pretty dangerous is we've lived through that history in the United. States.
So, in the Nixon administration, a politicized Federal Reserve felt pressure to decrease interest rates very substantially, very quickly, and
it resulted in an uptake in inflation over the course of two years, from 3 percent to 13 percent.
That's obviously not the trajectory that we want the economy to take, and that's why we need to be very, very careful safeguarding this critical
asset that is the independence of the Federal Reserve to make its decisions about monetary policy in a thoughtful, informed, and apolitical way.
SCIUTTO: Yes, it's a great instance to remember, going back to one of the previous instances where president tried to influence rates. Natasha Sarin,
Yale Budget Lab, thanks so much for joining.
SARIN: Thanks so much for having me.
SCIUTTO: Well, the U.S. is now imposing sanctions on a Supreme Court justice in Brazil, accusing him of, quote, "serious human rights
violations." Alexandre de Moraes is accused of authorizing arbitrary detentions and infringing on free speech accused by the U.S., we should
say.
This comes almost two weeks after the U.S. State Department imposed visa restrictions on him over what it calls a political witch hunt against Trump
ally Jair Bolsonaro. We should note, the former president is currently on trial for an alleged plot to overturn the results of the 2022 presidential
election in Brazil. Bolsonaro denies wrongdoing. Brazil's attorney general says the actions by the U.S. are, quote, "arbitrary and unjustifiable."
Joining me now is Lourival Sant'Anna. He's an analyst for CNN Brazil. Good to have you on.
LOURIVAL SANT'ANNA, INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS ANALYST, CNN BRASIL: It's my pleasure to be here, Jim.
SCIUTTO: So, I wonder, given, we should note, Brazil, the U.S. has a trade surplus with Brazil.
SANT'ANNA: That's right.
SCIUTTO: So, not a typical target of the kinds of sanctions that Trump has leveled there. And Trump has spoken quite publicly about how Bolsonaro is
his friend and he is being unfairly prosecuted, et cetera. Does Brazil and do Brazilians see this as a deliberate interference in Brazilian politics,
in its judicial system?
SANT'ANNA: Yes. Brazil is a polarized country just as the U.S. So, the reactions follow the lines, the ideological and political lines. But most
Brazilians, according to posts, feel that this is an interference both in the sovereignty of Brazil and also in the independence of powers, of the
institutions, of democratic institutions in Brazil. Because the executive - - the government has no power over decisions by justice in Brazil.
It is fair to argue that Brazil is a protectionist country, that it practices tariffs and average like 11 percent, whereas the U.S. is like 2
percent. But the way that the president is mixing politico with trade and economic issues has made it clear that it is a way to try to impose his
views on Brazil.
SCIUTTO: Brazil's number one -- number two trading partner is the U.S., significant trading relationship.
SANT'ANNA: Yes.
SCIUTTO: But its number one trading partner is China.
SANT'ANNA: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Which is a relatively new development over the last several years. Is it possible that these pressure tactics could drive Brazil closer
to China?
[18:10:00]
SANT'ANNA: Yes. This is one of the possibilities. And President Lula has been very close to Xi Jinping. He -- Brazil is part of the BRICS, which is
led by the -- by China. So, there is this debate in Brazil that it would be -- it might be a mistake to go too close to China for the Brazilian
interest, but the instinct of President Lula would take him in that direction.
SCIUTTO: And that would be -- I mean, arguably that would have negative repercussions for the U.S. in terms of what was an ally in its own
hemisphere, right?
SANT'ANNA: Yes. And we know President Trump might escalate. So, there is a whole plan to escalate, according to my sources.
SCIUTTO: So, tell me about Brazil's willingness to stick this out, right? Because we have seen other countries, we've seen Japan, we've seen the
E.U., right, not comfortable with Trump's tariffs and pressure campaigns but they, basically, it seems made a calculation, we could tolerate this
much pain, it's better than this much pain, even despite popular resistance. Do you see Brazil making a similar compromise?
SANT'ANNA: Well, from a trade perspective, yes. Brazil's trying to negotiate. And even the companies, major companies, Brazilian companies and
American companies based in Brazil, which exports to the U.S. are trying to show that this -- who do harm the American consumers and that they have
plans to invest in the U.S. So, that agenda, that trade agenda is there. But there is this political side, which is only a peculiar thing for
Brazil. Other countries have not faced that. Maybe Canada has been threatened to --
SCIUTTO: 51st state and all. Yes.
SANT'ANNA: Yes. But this case is different. What President Trump is saying that he doesn't like President Lula, he prefers former President Bolsonaro.
Has said that, and he disagrees with the decisions by the court regarding also the social media, which President Trump is very related to. So, it's
hard to make concessions on that area. And I'm sure the government is not going to make them.
SCIUTTO: It's similar to the criticism they had, for instance, in Germany, right, of AfD and restrictions on some of the sentiment express there.
Lourival Sant'Anna, thanks so much for joining and helping us understand.
SANT'ANNA: My pleasure. Thank you.
SCIUTTO: Well, a massive 8.8 magnitude earthquake off of Russia's far eastern coast triggered a volcanic eruption and a series of tsunami
warnings around the globe. The first waves hit Russia and Japan, then they reached all the way to U.S. shores, including parts of not just Hawaii but
California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska. Nearly 2 million people were evacuated to higher ground in Japan. Some of them onto the roof this
building. You can imagine their fears as the waters rose. There are no reports, thankfully, of serious injuries.
All tsunami warnings now along the U.S. coast line have been downgraded. Officials say the worst is over. However, they are urging people to remain
vigilant. More now from CNN's Marc Stewart in Beijing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARC STEWART, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Surgeons try to keep steady, holding on to their patient and equipment as a huge 8.8
magnitude earthquake violently rocks the operating table at this Russian Cancer Center Wednesday.
The quake struck off Russia's Far Eastern coast around 11:25 a.m., local time, sending waves crashing into shoreline towns nearby, and rattling
furniture inside homes and offices, even damaging this kindergarten.
At kindergarten number 15, there was a collapse of the building facade, but thank God, no one was injured. There were no children, said this local
official.
Waves also crushed the Japanese coastline. People rushed to the top of this fire station for safety standing on the roof after a tsunami warning was
issued.
The tsunami warning extended across the Pacific Ocean Coastline. In Hawaii, officials warned of potential 10-foot waves.
STEWART (on camera): California, Oregon, Washington and Alaska were also hit by waves. This quake is tied for the sixth strongest ever recorded, and
around 2 million people were ordered to evacuate in Japan alone, many of the tsunami warnings were later downgraded.
Marc Stewart, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Joining me now is John Vidale, professor of Earth Science at the University of Southern California. John, thanks so much for joining.
JOHN VIDALE, PROFESSOR OF EARTH SCIENCE, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Oh, my pleasure.
SCIUTTO: So, considering this earthquake had a magnitude of 8.8, one of the most powerful ever recorded, and also, as I understand it, relatively
shallow, so more potential, at least, for tsunamis, why weren't they even bigger than we saw?
VIDALE: Well, you know, that's a good question, and it turns out the last two tsunamis that were so disastrous had a number of factors that made them
worse. I mean, the two being Sumatra in 2004 and Japan in 2011. So, both of those struck on coasts where a lot of people were living. So, the big
waves, you know, hit directly on people with less warning, only 10 or 20 minutes of warning.
[18:15:00]
And the other factor is that these earthquakes just have different amounts of slip-on defaults shallow or close to the surface. The one in Japan, for
example, had a new record, almost a hundred meters of slip just under the sea floor that made a huge wave, made 40-foot -- 40 meters tsunami that
just overwhelmed the planning. This earthquake yesterday doesn't seem to have generated as much a motion in the shallow part of the fault.
SCIUTTO: Understood. Now, if we put that map up again on the screen, as I understand it, it's yet another quake on that famous ring of fire around
the Pacific. And I know these things aren't, you know, necessarily one thing leads to another. But does that signal the possibility of more to
come?
VIDALE: Well, yes, any earthquake, even these very big ones, could lead to more earthquakes. The adjacent parts of the Pacific Rim have been now badly
shaken and received some extra stress from this earthquake. So, watching out for big aftershocks is something that people are aware of and almost
guaranteed to have magnitude seven aftershocks. You could have magnitude eight aftershocks or even trigger another nine. It's not likely, but it's
possible.
SCIUTTO: Beyond the fact that this one took place further away from heavily populated areas, like for instance, we saw in Japan in 2011, does
it also show that the warning systems are getting somewhat better perhaps?
VIDALE: Yes, we've been building warning systems. You know, Japan told us that, you know, some of the systems just weren't up to par in Japan and
particularly they built a system that didn't expect a magnitude nine. So, we have sea floor sensors, we have better communications that people on the
coast are more prepared.
You know, Kamchatka doesn't have many people, but all around the Pacific Rim, we're just more ready than we were a few decades ago.
SCIUTTO: Yes, thankfully. John Vidale, thanks for walking us through it.
VIDALE: Oh, you're welcome.
SCIUTTO: Still ahead, tech earning season in full swing. Now, Meta and Microsoft are just out with closely watched results. We'll tell you how
they did.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:20:00]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back to "The Brief." Two of the biggest names in tech have just released their quarterly results, Meta and Microsoft both beat
expectations for sales and earnings. Microsoft results driven by continued strength in its cloud computing division. Meta, parent company of Facebook
and Instagram, saw continued strength in advertising. Meta also raised its sales estimates for the current quarter. CEO Mark Zuckerberg laid out why
the company is investing heavily to develop A.I. superintelligence.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK ZUCKERBERG, CEO, META: A lot has been written about the scientific and economic advances that A.I. can bring, and I'm really optimistic about
this. What I think an even more meaningful impact in our lives is going to come from everyone having a personal superintelligence that helps you
achieve your goals, create what you want to see in the world, be a better friend, and grow to become the person that you aspire to be. This vision is
different from others in the industry who want to direct A.I. at automating all of the valuable work.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Clare Duffy joins me now. Listen, it's not the first time we've heard about A.I. as it relates to the market. I mean, that seems to be
driving so many companies here. I just wonder, you know, where does Meta stand in the A.I. race as it were? I mean, we're so used to talking about
NVIDIA, OpenAI, et cetera. And how about Microsoft as well?
CLARE DUFFY, CNN TECH REPORTER: Yes, Jim, look, I mean, we keep hearing this question about whether and when investors are going to get sort of fed
up with the huge investments these tech companies are making in A.I. data centers, in Meta's case, in hiring the top A.I. talent. It's been on this
hiring spree in recent months. In some cases, shelling out multimillion dollar pay packages to try to attract top researchers away from rival
companies. But I think what you see from these earnings reports today is that that may not happen because we're starting to see A.I. really become a
revenue driver and a contributor to these company's core businesses.
So, let's start with Microsoft here. Again, as you said, revenue and profits up both strongly, really, really -- both up really strongly year
over year, beating expectations, and that is because A.I. is really contributing to the cloud business. The cloud business is powering other
companies' A.I. applications. But also, to Microsoft's other businesses, like Microsoft 365, which is benefiting from the Co-Pilot chatbot.
And then, in the case of Meta, you know, Mark Zuckerberg has these lofty ambitions about building superintelligence, but we're already seeing A.I.
really contribute to the company's core ads business and its ability to serve more targeted ads to people across social media. Mark Zuckerberg, on
the company's earnings call, really kind of flexed the company's power in terms of how well its core business is doing, and that is going to allow it
to continue to invest really strongly in artificial intelligence.
SCIUTTO: It seemed like Zuckerberg there was trying to deliberately distinguish Meta's approach to A.I. to be less about -- and this has been a
big concern, right, that A.I. is going to replace a lot of people like you and me, right? It's going to do jobs that human beings used to do. Mark
Zuckerberg is like, hey, know our approach, we're going to give you tools to advance yourself. I mean, is that -- does the market treat that as
realistic?
DUFFY: Well, I mean, I think it's a savvy argument on Zuckerberg's part to say, oh, don't worry, we're not going to, you know, make A.I. that takes
people's jobs. I think when you get to a place where A.I. is potentially smarter than all humans, which is what Mark Zuckerberg says he wants to
create, it's going to be inevitable that it's going to take jobs. But I think the part that he's really focused on is having people use A.I. for
creation and creativity, which of course will then feed back into the company's core business of social media and entertainment.
SCIUTTO: Superintelligence, I mean, listen, they're not alone in talking about it. I mean, Sam Altman's been talking about this for a couple years.
Anyone say how close we are to the superintelligence?
DUFFY: Yes. I mean, mark Zuckerberg said on the call this afternoon that he thinks it's probably years away and not quarters away. That seems pretty
similar to what we're hearing from other A.I. leaders. But what we are also hearing is that this technology is moving and accelerating so quickly.
Zuckerberg said on the call that it really is the fastest expectations that seem to be the correct ones in terms of how this company is -- how this
technology is growing and changing.
And so, I do think that, you know, these companies, these leaders think that it's coming in a few years, but this is also a really nebulous
concept. It's still unclear how they're going to measure whether A.I. is at some point smarter than all humans. I think that's the part that these
companies are going to have to really try to define for investors and for the rest of us. When do we get to that point? What does that actually mean?
SCIUTTO: No question. I mean, certainly it's moving quicker than folks imagined just a couple of years ago. We'll have to see if it stays on that
kind of trend line. Clare Duffy, thanks so much.
DUFFY: Thank you.
[18:25:00]
SCIUTTO: Well, Airbus is breathing a sigh of relief after the Trump administration reached a trade deal with the E.U. The terms of that
agreement include tariff exemptions for the aerospace industry. Airbus CEO, Guillaume Faury. Spoke to my colleague Richard Quest earlier and shared his
reaction to the deal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GUILLAUME FAURY, CEO, AIRBUS: We are indeed happy to see that this is the way forward. We -- so that in the agreements between the U.S. and the U.K.
and recently, over the weekends, we heard that civil aviation parts and equipment and aircraft themselves will continue to be without tariffs. That
was important for us, that was important for the U.S. industry, for the European industry, and we are glad that this is the case moving forward.
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE AND CNN ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: As I look at your results, they are they are interesting. I
mean, you are ramping up the commercial aircraft production, but there is still this line, particularly with the 320s, we face persistent engine
supply issues, my words not yours. You must be getting pissed off by this by now. Because there -- I mean, it -- there doesn't seem to be resolution
to a problem that's been around for too long.
FAURY: It is indeed frustrating for us. We've managed to bring the supply chain with us in this ramp up. We are producing at the right level of
production rates on all our products, but on the 320 family, we cannot complete the production. We have to produce what we call the gliders,
meaning finished airplanes without engines, waiting for the engines to be delivered to us and therefore, having us delivering to the final customers.
So, indeed, it's frustrating. We are in interesting discussions with engine suppliers, CFM primarily, but also Pratt, expecting from them that they
will recover later in the year. Both of those two engine manufacturers faced issues, industrial issues in the first half of the year. So, there
are some specific reasons why they are late this year, but we're indeed facing persistent problems on having engines in the right number at the
right time, enabling our own production.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Richard's conversation there with the CEO of Airbus. Well, U.N. agencies warned that time is running out to respond to the starvation
crisis in Gaza with more than a third of the people there going days now without eating anything. I'm going to speak to the chief executive of Mercy
Corps right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:30:00]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back to "The Brief." I'm Jim Sciutto. And here are more international headlines we're watching today.
The U.S. Federal Reserve is leaving interest rates unchanged despite pressure, quite public pressure from President Trump to lower them. For the
first time since 1993, two Fed governors dissented. They wanted to cut rates by a quarter point.
Former U.S. President Kamala Harris has announced she will not run for Governor of California in 2026, ending speculation about her interest in
that role. However, raising speculation about the 2028 presidential race and her plans. She said she will share new details on that in the months
ahead.
Thousands of music fans turn out to pay the respects to the Black Sabbath front man, Ozzy Osbourne, who died last Tuesday at the age of 76. The
hearse weaved its way through the city streets of Birmingham, England where Ozzy grew up and formed his band back in 1968. His family followed with
Sharon, his wife of 43 years, visibly moved, as you could see there.
Well, for the first time, Arab countries such as Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt are calling for Hamas to give up power in Gaza. The 22-member Arab
League signed a joint declaration with the E.U. in 17 other nations stating that governance across all Palestinian territory must lie with the
Palestinian Authority, the PA.
Canada became the latest western nation to say it will soon recognize a Palestinian State. Prime Minister Mark Carney made the announcement this
afternoon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARK CARNEY, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: For the reasons I cited earlier, Canada intends to recognize the State of Palestine at the 80th session of
the United Nations General Assembly in September, 2025.
This intention is predicated on the Palestinian author's commitment to much needed reform, including commitments by the Palestinian Authority's
president, Abbas, to fundamentally reform its governance, to hold general elections in 2026, in which Hamas can play no part. And to demilitarize the
Palestinian State.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: U.N. agencies are warning that time is running out to mount a full response to the starvation crisis in Gaza. The World Food Programme
says some 40 percent of Palestinians there are going days without eating. It also warns that more than 500,000 people are now living through famine-
like conditions. The Palestinian Health Ministry says seven more people starved to death in the past 24 hours.
Tjada D'Oyen McKenna is the CEO of the global aid organization, Mercy Corps, and she joins us now. Thanks so much for joining.
TJADA D'OYEN MCKENNA, CEO, MERCY CORPS: Thank you. Thank you for having me.
SCIUTTO: So, first, Israel is now allowing airdrops into Gaza, it's not the first time we've seen this. As, you know, the U.S. did some -- a number
of months back. You have called these airdrops, in effect, stunts. Tell us why.
MCKENNA: Yes. These airdrops are just not effective solutions. They're expensive, they're inefficient, and they're generally like very last
resorts, like if you can't reach a place for -- because of some natural disaster. In this case we have roads, we have systems, there are lots of
trucks waiting in a border. Trucks can carry far more than an airplane can carry and they're many, many more of them.
So, people are desperate. We need food urgently to get to people. And I understand people wanting to do something, but the answers here are
painfully simple and we've just got to push Israel to let that happen.
SCIUTTO: Now, as you know, Israel says all that aid waiting in the border, it's the U.N.'s fault. The U.N., you will hear this frequently, is letting
that aid rot there. I've spoken to other aid agencies, they say it's just very difficult to get permission to bring the aid in that they need from
Israeli authorities. What are the facts? Why is so much of that aid sitting on the border?
MCKENNA: The facts are that Israel has allowed in very little aid. There was even a full blockade of everything, commercial and aid supplies in
March. They've relaxed it a little bit to a trickle of aid supplies, but getting something there is one part of the problem. The other problem is
moving around. Just as you said, so many aid workers have been killed. The roads are damaged, they're destroyed with active military conflicts, and we
have not had a full deconfliction system that we normally have in these disasters. So, we just have not been able to do our work.
[18:35:00]
SCIUTTO: Now, the current environment, as we've seen -- we've heard voices from inside Gaza of growing malnutrition and even starvation. And images of
it as well. As you know, you've seen the images. Even President Trump has been moved by the images you are hearing. And I spoke to a former Israeli
IDF spokesman yesterday who said, this is largely a disinformation campaign. And they point to one particular image, a young boy in The New
York Times which claimed he was suffering from severe malnutrition, at least that one child had a preexisting medical condition.
What are the facts on the ground in terms of suffering and starvation there? Is it a disinformation campaign or is it reality?
MCKENNA: I wish it were a disinformation campaign. Very much. Even my own staff wake up every morning thinking, am I going to eat today? Where am I
going to get food?
SCIUTTO: Yes.
MCKENNA: The reality is that hunger and malnutrition affect and attack, first, people who are most vulnerable, either due to age or medical
conditions or senior citizens. So, even pointing to that photo, that child had a pre-existing medical condition and that child was severely
malnourished, that malnourishment did not have to happen. It shouldn't happen. It's barbaric.
SCIUTTO: We now have this call from Arab states for Hamas to disarm and the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza. Now, it's not clear Hamas is
going to listen to them, right? It's resisted at great pain to the Palestinian people. From your standpoint, does this at least open a pathway
if you have Arab State saying to Hamas, it's time to go?
MCKENNA: Look, our challenges right now are political, not logistical. Every solution, everything that pushes for a full open resumption of aid
and the U.N. humanitarian system working as it should in the territory is critical. Like these kids, the population of Gaza doesn't have a second or
a day to waste on the back and forth. So, hopefully, something will move something.
SCIUTTO: I can understand why you hope for that. Tjada McKenna, thanks so much for joining and giving us a view from inside Gaza.
MCKENNA: Thank you for having me.
SCIUTTO: Well, U.S. President, Donald Trump says he's going to impose a penalty on India for doing business with Russia. In a post on Truth Social,
the president criticized India for buying not just Russian military equipment, but also energy, oil. He reiterated his call to stop the killing
in Ukraine. Trump said Tuesday, Ukrainians who fled to the U.S. are now free to stay. Some 280,000 refugees came to the U.S. under a Biden era
program, which Trump had paused on his first day in office.
Air attacks have become part of daily life for many in Ukraine. And now, with Russia intensifying its ground assault as well. The sense of terror
that Ukrainians have lived with for three years is only worsening, as Nick Paton Walsh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): The space left for Ukraine is shrinking from above, too. Lined with fishing nets to protect cars from Russian drone attacks, this is the road
to Konstantinovka, one of three vital towns in the east Russia is slowly encircling.
WALSH: Extraordinary low-tech bit of invention here to counter the high- tech problem of drones that have redefined warfare in Ukraine.
WALSH (voice-over): If you live here, you still need to get home. And, as we see on this Russian drone footage, the holes let Moscow's smarter drone
operators in. One even lies in wait, filming the other drone as it strikes.
The town lined with prey. A drone hit this van at dawn. The driver killed, even if its explosives didn't go off.
Little has been spared here. Artillery grinding for months.
WALSH: Well, something just flew in over our head there, but, again, when we move around this town, the clearer how more in the pincers it is of
Moscow's summer offensive, but still these bizarre signs of ordinary life trying to persist.
WALSH (voice-over): Tatyana lives on the edge of town and is now carrying her stuff to safety.
TATYANA, KONSTANTINOVKA RESIDENT (through translator): We don't have anywhere to go. I live on (the outskirts) and went to feed my dog and it's
heavy there. Really heavy, everyone has left.
WALSH (voice-over): Oddly bustling, though, is the central market, where you'll notice locals turn away from our camera.
WALSH (through translator): How is it now? OK.
[18:40:00]
WALSH: So, people here don't want their faces shown. Sometimes a sign that they're concerned the town may change hands or want simply not to be shown
on television.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): As you see. Glory to Ukraine.
WALSH (through translator): Calm for now?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): There is no calm today. They are shooting of course.
WALSH: She doesn't want to be filmed either. The same story, really.
And now we've just been told that a drone's been spotted, which may have been surveying the area, so we're told we should leave now.
WALSH (voice-over): With the drones, for every new idea, there's something newer.
WALSH: They're littering the battlefield now, this fiber-optic cable, meaning that drones can't be jammed and are instead linked back to their
controller through this tiny cord that can extend for tens of kilometers.
WALSH (voice-over): It is underground where they try to control the skies. Ukrainian commander Vasyl sees many Russians closing in and no new
Ukrainians coming to help. This airstrike, a Ukrainian drone team targeted.
VASYL, 93RD SEPARATE MECHANIZED BRIGADE (through translator): We have a critical shortage of personnel, we hardly get new recruits, the workload on
the troops is very heavy. Ukraine has a lot of people but no one wants to fight. The war is over (for them).
The old personnel are left, they are tired and want to be replaced but no one is replacing them, because there are no (people).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Cloud, fly around it and give me a close-up.
WALSH (voice-over): They show us one success, this Russian tank covered in protective netting, which needed 70 Ukrainian drones to stop it. Some
Ukrainian positions held by just a pair of soldiers, isolated, Vasyl said. No vehicles able to reach them.
VASYL (through translator): We are currently supplying the infantry using drones. As dusk falls, we launch the Vampire of Kazhan drones. We load 10
kilograms of supplies, food, ammunition, water, batteries, chargers for radio stations.
WALSH (voice-over): On their screens, a lone Russian is hit by a drone's grenade, but survives and shoots at the next one, throwing his helmet as it
flies in. He again survives, but another comes and misses him by inches.
He takes off his armor and waves a shovel. Isolated, relentless, agonies for both sides.
VASYL (through translator): We are tired. Everyone is tired of this war and I believe other countries are also tired of helping us. This war must
end, that would be the best solution.
WALSH (voice-over): Moscow wants that too. Just its ending is yet uglier still.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Konstantinovka, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Three years of just painful war there. Well, a newly launched satellite could be a game changer for predicting natural disasters. We're
going to take a deep dive into a joint mission between NASA and India's space agency.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:45:00]
SCIUTTO: This just in to CNN, President Trump has announced minutes ago in a truth social post that the U.S. and South Korea have now reached a trade
agreement. Under the deal, as the president described, the U.S. will impose 15 percent tariffs on all South Korean imports. Trump says South Korea has
also agreed to invest some $350 billion in the U.S. and purchase a hundred billion dollars in U.S. energy products.
Now, to an historic $1.5 billion mission by NASA and in India's space agency, which could change the way we see our planet.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3, 2, 1, 0.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: The radar satellite called NISAR launched from Southeastern India today, it will orbit Earth while scanning the Earth's surface to help
understand nearly imperceptible changes. Scientists hope it will be indispensable in predicting weather events and natural disasters.
Joining us now acting deputy associate administrator for NASA's science mission director, Mark Clampin. Thanks so much for joining.
MARK CLAMPIN, NASA'S SCIENCE MISSION DIRECTORATE AND ACTING DEPUTY ASSOCIATE ADMINISTRATOR, NASA SMD: Thank you. It's a pleasure.
SCIUTTO: So, it sees the Earth in 3D, in effect, land, ice, other features tell us what kind of difference that'll make in terms of observing the
Earth.
CLAMPIN: So, it really does give you a 3D view of the world. So, it goes round, it is in a polar orbit and at over a period of 12 days, it maps out
the world. And it can detect changes in surface height of land at the level of less than a centimeter over an area that's about half the size of a
tennis court. So, this allows us to do all sorts of things.
So, we can address things like hazards such as earthquakes. We can look at regions where we've had earthquakes before and after, which is going to
help people do a much better job predicting them. Same with volcanic activity. You can, you know, go back and look what did this region look
like before the volcano erupted? What does it look like after? You know, how has the magma been pushing on the Earth's surface? And we can detect
all of that.
And then, of course, there are things like floods. You know, we've already just recently been using a less capable instrument on an airborne platform
to, you know, do disaster relief in Texas. This will allow us to do a lot more of that kind of assistance to state and local authorities. And it is
also is very useful things like helping disaster relief for fires as well.
And then, it also makes a major contribution to the U.S. economy as we go forwards because it makes us able to see crop health. We can actually
literally watch crops grow. And at the size of half a tennis court, you really have very high resolution on the surface of the planet. So, it just
is a Swiss knife of observations. And different groups will be able to do lots of different science and, you know, applications that support society.
SCIUTTO: Well, given that we just had a major earthquake yesterday, granted that one was underwater. So, I can't imagine, you can see all the
one under underwater. But are you saying that this would have the capability to at least see the possibility of an earthquake to come?
CLAMPIN: I think it's very possible that we'll be able to start to see, you know, very small changes in the Earth's surface that could indicate
that we might be about to see one, yes. So, it really is going to help people that study how earthquakes, you know, happen, you know, have a lot
more data that they can work with to really sort of get insights into how these processes work.
SCIUTTO: You can imagine it could save lives too. It also monitors ecosystems on a global scale, forests, crops, wetlands, permafrost, et
cetera. So, I imagine as we're seeing temperature change the planet, this will give us a vision as to how quickly that's happening and where it's
happening.
CLAMPIN: So, it -- I mean, as I said, this mission is really designed to provide us with a lot of different Earth science applications, and it will
allow us to monitor, you know, forests, equatorial regions. So, yes, it will.
SCIUTTO: Well, that's good to hear. And it's nice to have a collaboration between the U.S. and India as well in this.
[18:50:00]
CLAMPIN: Yes. So, we are really excited by this collaboration. You know, President Trump highlighted this as a, you know, really important
cooperation between India and the U.S. when President Modi visited back in February. And we've worked for about 10 years with the Indians on this. So,
we're really excited about finally getting to the launchpad and actually, hopefully in around 90 days, studying to get science data.
SCIUTTO: And there's always a long lead time on projects like this. Mark Clampin, thanks so much for joining.
CLAMPIN: Sure. Thank you very much.
SCIUTTO: Still to come this hour, it's a new robot that has just one directive, to be a friend. And this sci-fi companion is helping to do just
that, particularly for seniors in Australia. We'll have that story coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
SCIUTTO: So, remember the "Terminator" movies? Well, we're nowhere near that level of sentient robots. Tech companies do see a new frontier when
they look at artificial intelligence and robots. They're working on helpers, which could potentially transform our daily lives, particularly
for those in need. One Australian startup already has a robot that is helping seniors feel less lonely. CNN's Polo Sandoval introduces us to Abi,
the humanoid robot companion.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Where technology meets empathy. Melbourne startup, Andromeda robotics' slogan says it all. Abi is
a humanoid robot, but she's also a companion for patients in aged care facilities.
GRACE BROWN, FOUNDER AND CEO, ANDROMEDA ROBOTICS: She's been designed and built to address and alleviate loneliness. So, people just talk to her as a
one-on-one friend and companion. So, people talk to her about your story from their lives, you know, their love affairs, their family stories. Yes,
they just -- they don't see her as a robot. They see her as a -- as a friend.
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Abi recognizes faces, remembers past interactions, and speaks 90 languages. She sings, dances, meditates, even does Tai Chi,
all under four feet tall.
Brown created Abi alongside healthcare professionals, aged care providers and robotics engineers. Andromeda is one of many companies worldwide that
are developing and expanding A.I. robots out of factories, handling more complex tasks and public services like this humanoid robot developed in
China, which learned how to do things like play dice. Andromeda says it sends engineers out regularly to study how people interact with Abi and
document ways to improve her technology.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was so surprised to see such a nice robot. It's fantastic.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think she's become our best friend.
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Abi's also able to change personality modes based on who she's interacting with. For instance, Sarcastic Maven Abi is sassy
and witty. Psychological Abi encourages movement and motivation. And Dementia mode Abi is compassionate and understanding for more vulnerable
patients. Abi's bubble-blowing arm is perhaps her favorite party trick.
BROWN: I think the reason we gave Abi bubbles is because it's so indicative of like who she is. Like she's incredibly like complex piece of
technology, but she's also just very creative and playful and fun.
[18:55:00]
SANDOVAL (voice-over): Aging experts in Australia say as many as 40 percent of aged care facility residents aren't visited by family or
friends, which Brown says encouraged her research. Andromeda says it's launching Australia's first humanoid robot production line. And it plans to
have Abi's in 100 aged care facilities in children's hospitals by mid-2026.
Polo Sandoval, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Thanks so much for your company today. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington. You've been watching "The Brief." Please do stay with CNN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[19:00:00]
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