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What We Know with Max Foster

Trump And Xi To Meet For Round Two Of U.S.-China Summit; Iran Closely Watching Meeting Between Trump And Xi; Israel, Lebanon Holding New Talks At State Department; Zelenskyy: Russia Fires 1,500+ Drones In Major Attack; Prime Minister Keir Starmer Faces Growing Calls To Resign; Israel Threatens To Sue NYT Over Kristof Article Alleging Sexual Abuse By Israelis Against Palestinians. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired May 14, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:31]

ISA SOARES, CNN HOST: President Donald Trump and Xi Jinping hail a new era for their two countries.

I'm Isa Soares in for Max Foster. This is WHAT WE KNOW.

We start this hour in Beijing, where the American and Chinese delegations are preparing for round two of bilateral talks just hours from now.

Earlier, Chinese Leader Xi Jinping called for the two superpowers to be partners rather than adversaries. U.S. President Donald Trump struck a

similar tone.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: As many Chinese now love basketball and blue jeans. Chinese restaurants in America today outnumber

the five largest fast food chains in the United States all combined. That's a pretty big statement.

The American and Chinese people share much in common. We value hard work. We value courage and achievement. We love our families and we love our

countries.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, day one of the summit wasn't all about pleasantries. As you heard there, President Xi warned that there could be conflicts if the U.S.

and China mishandle disagreements over Taiwan. Mishandled was how they read it out.

As for the Iran war, President Trump tells Fox News his Chinese counterpart offered to help while agreeing that the Strait of Hormuz should be open. He

also says China vowed not to give Iran military equipment.

Let me go to Hong Kong and get the perspective from our Ivan Watson.

So, Ivan, just give me a sense of what your takeaways were because, I mean, the readouts were so different. The U.S. was so sparse compared to the

Chinese readout. Much more detail, specifically on the question of Taiwan.

But what stood out to you?

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think just the fact that these two leaders have come together and they seem to want to get

along right now at a time of great turbulence around the world in energy markets, for example. And after what has been a really a roller coaster

relationship between Beijing and Washington for the past decade, basically triggered by President Trump in his first term when he declared a trade war

on China and accused it of being responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic.

So, in this case, you have these two leaders coming together and lavishing praise on each other. And the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, repeating a

kind of mantra that that Beijing often kind of publishes, which is talking about a win-win relationship. And, and he had this expression that I think

that would be catnip for President Trump, where he said achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can go

hand in hand.

That said, there are these major friction points, some of which we haven't heard about. For instance, the enormous trade surplus that China enjoys in

bilateral trade with the U.S., a surplus that appears to have grown this year. That used to be one of the favorite things for President Trump to

complain about and to openly accuse China, as he put it, of ripping the U.S. off that not being mentioned publicly, at least right now.

We do have President Trump in an interview with Fox News, he's saying that China has agreed to perhaps buy some 200 planes from Boeing, whereas he

said that they were expecting 150. He says that's going to create jobs.

But the biggest geopolitical friction points are Taiwan. And that's what the Chinese leader almost led with in his introductory remarks, saying that

as long as the two -- world's two largest economies can see eye to eye on Taiwan, things can go well. But if they disagree, it could lead almost to

conflict. He's throwing down a marker about how important this is a priority for China, for the U.S. not to support any move towards

independence for that self-governing island -- Isa.

SOARES: Yeah, very clear red line there. Ivan Watson joining us there from Hong Kong at four minutes past 3:00 in the morning. And we are very

grateful. Good to see you, Ivan. Thank you.

Well, as I touched on a short time ago, the war with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz came up between President Trump and Xi, with Mr. Trump saying China

was offering to help with a potential deal.

[15:05:00]

Our Matthew Chance is in Tehran right now. We'd like to note CNN only operates in Iran with government permission, but does maintain full

editorial control of what it reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, as you can see, it's a bustling capital of the Islamic Republic, but Iranians today

are watching President Trump in China, one of their most implacable enemies, meeting a powerful friend.

And with the Iran war so high on the agenda in Beijing, state media is almost gloating at the spectacle. One headline I saw earlier saying that

Trump's visit to China is in the shadow of failure and stalemate.

But the truth is, both the United States and Iran are now looking to China, it seems, as a way out of their deadlock. The ongoing closure of the Strait

of Hormuz, the inability to agree a compromise on Iran's nuclear activities. Washington, of course, wants Beijing to pressure Tehran to

accept its terms. But here, officials are calling on China, the Islamic republic's most important trading partner, to mediate a favorable end to a

damaging war.

Matthew chance, CNN, in Tehran.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, President Donald Trump also says China has pledged not to provide Iran with military equipment. Iranian state media reporting that

about 30 ships, including Chinese vessels, crossed through the Strait of Hormuz since Wednesday night. A semiofficial news agency says China

consulted with Iran to help facilitate the passage of these ships. Iran has been charging for access to the strait, reportedly $2 million per tanker.

Well, we're just days left until their latest ceasefire expires, Israel and Lebanon are meeting for talks right now at the State Department. U.S.

diplomats, including ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, are working to broker a durable peace, but no talks so far and no declared truce has

managed to stop the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah. Israeli forces carried out new strikes in southern Lebanon today.

Let's bring in our Jennifer Hansler, who's been on the story for us from Washington.

So, Jen, I mean, I suppose the priority right now, first of all, is to try and expand this, extend the ceasefire, right?

JENNIFER HANSLER, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: That's absolutely right, Isa. That is going to be front and center of these talks, which

kicked off around 9:00 a.m. Washington time this morning.

As far as we know, these talks are still ongoing, which means that they have been lasting far longer than the previous two rounds of working level

direct talks. And the State Department says they are expected to continue tomorrow.

Another notable detail about this particular round is both the Israeli and Lebanese delegations have added new officials to their negotiating teams.

On the Lebanese side, they have added presidential envoy Simon Karam, who was a former ambassador to the United States. And on the Israeli side, they

have sent both their ambassador, their deputy national security adviser, as well as what the state department described as senior military

representatives.

Now, this cease fire that is due to expire in just the next few days, has been in place for a little less than a month now. And as you pointed out,

isa, it has been far from perfect.

We have seen a number of strikes between Israel and Hezbollah in the course of that month. Hezbollah, of course not at the table, not involved in these

discussions. They have come out against the talks that are happening here.

There is a hope, especially from the Lebanese side, that there can be a continuation of even that imperfect cease fire on the road to what

Washington wants to see as a durable, long term ceasefire between Israel and the Lebanese government. The Israelis, of course, also want to see a

disarmament of Hezbollah.

Now, the U.S. has said they are going to support the Lebanese government in any demilitarization. However, they have not given any specifics of how

exactly they intend to provide that support, whether they would boost their funding for the LAF, for example. We have not heard any details on that

front, Isa.

Now, as all of this is happening, Israel has continued to maintain its forces in southern Lebanon and according to a military official, they have

breached that key boundary of the Litani River in the south this week. They have also continued to destroy villages in southern Lebanon, as this cease

fire is playing out.

Now, a key part of this ceasefire was Israel's ability to defend itself, according to Washington. They said they were pushing them for restraint.

But we still have seen these strikes continuing here. So, there's going to be a lot of eyes on what happens here in Washington, D.C., here at the

State Department, whether they can at least extend the ceasefire in these next few days of talks -- Isa.

SOARES: Yeah, I know you'll keep us posted on this, Jen. Great to see you, Jennifer Hansler there.

Well, over in Ukraine, authorities are reporting Russia's largest prolonged drone attack since the war began.

[15:10:02]

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says more than 1,500 drones were used, along with missiles. At least 12 people were killed in the attack, which began on

Wednesday. Ukraine's capital was hammered in the attack, but it wasn't alone.

Our Nick Paton Walsh has the latest for you from Kharkiv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: A particularly huge Russian assault on Ukraine in the last 24 hours. The

sirens just going off again here in Kharkiv and the street cleaners here to wash the blood off the streets injuries here in Kharkiv. But the larger

toll in the capital of Kyiv, 1,500 just short of drones fired in the last 24 hours, over 50 missiles and the whole side of a residential building

torn down in Kyiv.

Dozens rescued from that site. Already, children already among the injured. And as President Trump visits China, Ukrainian officials pointing to an

onslaught like this as a reminder that Russia's offer of a limited ceasefire in the last week isn't a reflection of them actually wanting

peace.

Ukraine's interceptor drones able to take some of the damage out of these assaults, but ultimately still the threat of constant Russian bombardment,

particularly in these horrific images that were now seeing emerging from Kyiv, that rubble being combed through as the toll of injured and dead

rises, a sign of how much Ukraine continues to endure despite now having technological advantages in drone warfare that much of the world is

comfortable.

Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Kharkiv, Ukraine

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, thanks to Nick for that report. We are going to take a short break, but we will see you on the other side.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: Well, there has been another unexpected political maneuver in what could be an attempt to oust U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a member of

the British parliament says he will resign so that Greater Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham, you see him there, can run for the Labour position.

[15:15:08]

Now, Burnham, who has already served in parliament, could then, if elected, challenge Starmer for the leadership position and this comes, stick with us

as Wes Streeting this gentleman here resigns as health minister. He stopped short of saying he was gunning for Mr. Starmer's job. Pressure is growing

on the defiant prime minister after his Labour Party suffered huge losses in local elections last week. And this is why we are where we are.

Our Clare Sebastian joins me now with the details.

Well, Clare, what a last -- what a rollercoaster 24 hours, of course. Our attention was on Wes Streeting earlier on the day, but it's all -- it's all

shifted, hasn't it

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. Look, I think now we can safely say we've seen several potential challengers make their first moves. Even

though we don't officially have a leadership race yet. It certainly feels like things are moving. If you combine the resignation of Wes Streeting

now, the statement from Andy Burnham, the mayor of Manchester, saying he does want to run in that by election for that seat that's now going to be

vacated by a Labour MP.

We even had Angela Rayner, the former deputy prime minister, earlier on in the day, not officially saying that she wants to run, but saying she wants

to play her part in bringing the change that the voters wanted. All of that, add to that, obviously, the damage that the prime minister has

sustained this week. You know, 90 or so MPs coming out against him saying that they think he should at the very least, set a timeline to leave.

We had four junior ministers resigning their government posts earlier in the week. And now, of course, a senior cabinet minister with Wes Streeting.

I think all of that really is starting to add up.

And not only did Wes Streeting leave and resign his post today, but he did so with a stinging resignation letter, really railing against the prime

minister's leadership. I want to read you a portion of that, he said. Where we need vision, we have a vacuum where we need direction, we have drift. It

is now clear you will not lead the Labour Party into the next general election.

Now, obviously, he hasn't officially announced his leadership, but certainly he made his feelings towards the prime minister pretty well

known. With that letter, the prime minister, though, who continues to maintain that he is going to fight this, that he is going to try to stay

and serve out his five-year mandate. He responded to streeting with what was a really conciliatory letter, considering, he said, it is incumbent on

all of us to rise to what I see as a battle for the soul of our nation. As part of that, we must deliver all the promises we made to the country,

including our promise to turn the page on the chaos that was roundly rejected by the British people at the last election.

Obviously, we know that the previous conservative government had burned through three prime ministers in their final two years in office, six in

the -- in the -- five, I should say, in the last eight years. So, you know, that was something that the labor party had run on trying to stop.

But certainly, look, I've been in Westminster for most of this week. I can tell you that the feeling on the ground there is that the chaos is already

here -- Isa.

SOARES: Indeed, it does seem like this. Clare but just explain to our viewers right around the world, I mean, if they're all seem to want to

bring change a new chapter to the Labour Party following, of course, this dismal election. Why won't they just kick start the process? What are they

waiting for?

SEBASTIAN: Well, look, the procedure for the labor party and its different for each of the main parties. We saw a different process when we had the

various leadership races with the conservative party. But for the Labour Party, the process is that to kick start a leadership race, they need 20

percent of sitting MPs in the House of Commons to back a single candidate. That's 81 MPs. Given the current majority that labor has.

Now, look, we don't know exactly how much support Wes Streeting has. Possibly if he did have 81 MPs at this point supporting him, his

resignation letter could have looked a little bit different. It could have come alongside a bid for the leadership. But I think what we have seen in

the labor party as the dust has settled this week on those catastrophic local election results for that party, is that this is a party divided,

unable at this point to coalesce around a single candidate. And that's why the next few weeks will be absolutely critical.

If Andy Burnham can win, that can run in that by election. He still needs permission, by the way, from Labour's national executive committee, which

governs these things. If he can then win Farage from reform, Nigel Farage is saying that he will fight that with everything he can. Then I think we

could have a multi horse race on our hands and this is far from over -- Isa.

SOARES: Yeah, the battle is on for Starmer, that is for sure.

Clare Sebastian -- thanks, Clare.

Now, Israel is threatening to sue "The New York Times" over an article it published called "The silence that meets the rape of Palestinians."

Pulitzer-Prize winning columnist Nicholas Kristof wrote that piece, and he detailed stories of male and female Palestinians who describe, quote,

brutal sexual abuse by Israeli prison guards, soldiers, settlers and interrogators.

[15:20:01]

Kristof says there's no evidence Israeli leaders ordered rapes, but says they've built a security apparatus where sexual violence has become, quote,

"standard operating procedure."

"The New York Times" is defending what it calls Kristof's deeply reported piece of opinion journalism, saying details were extensively fact-checked

and independent experts were consulted. Israel's foreign minister calls it one of the most hideous and distorted lies ever published against the state

of Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he's instructed his legal advisors to consider the harshest legal action against the paper, and Nicholas

Kristof. He says they defamed Israel and perpetrated a blood libel.

Let's just get more from our chief media analyst, Brian Stelter.

So, Brian, I mean, this multi-layered hear this story, but just on the -- on the first point of "The New York Times", what are they telling us about,

you know, this this charge from, of course, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the leadership there?

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA ANALYST: Well, number one, people at the times want everyone to actually read the Nick Kristof column in question.

It's up on nytimes.com. And it opens with a very simple and very powerful sentence.

He says, it's a simple proposition. Whatever our views of the Middle East conflict, we should be able to unite in condemning rape. Kristof points out

that sexual violence has been used by Hamas, has been used against Israelis. And then he goes on to detail allegations of sexual violence

against Palestinians. He says he spoke to 14 people who were victims, and he corroborated those accounts in a variety of ways.

And the main point "The New York Times" is making this week is that this was a deeply reported piece that was extensively fact checked and was

corroborated whenever possible. This is about the accounts of those individuals who were detained by Israel. And Kristof goes on to make the

argument that perhaps he says he does not know this, but he says perhaps this kind of sexual abuse in Israeli prisons is becoming so common that

more people are becoming willing to speak out, that there's less shame attached and more of a willingness to go public.

He also acknowledges in the column that people might wonder if these accounts are fabricated. He thinks that's a farfetched claim, he says,

because he interviewed people who he was going and finding. In some cases, he was seeking them out. They were not coming to him necessarily to share

their accounts. He had to convince some people to go public with these stories.

But in any event, this column in "The New York Times" from several days ago has been intensely debated and scrutinized online with some people, some

pro-Israel commentators, calling it impossible, implausible, unbelievable. And now today, a big statement from the Israeli government saying it will

try to sue.

But right now, this is just a legal threat. It's actually quite Trumpian. We've heard many analysts today saying it's a Trumpian legal threat, where

the Israeli government is threatening to sue, and we don't know if or when or how the government will follow through.

SOARES: Yeah, that was going to be my next question. I mean, this is very much out of the Trump playbook. Of course, we saw a President Trump suing

BBC in Florida. Of course, just speak to that. I mean, is this going after the media here?

STELTER: Yes. I thought Netanyahu's statement was very revealing in one way when he announced today that he was directing his aides to consider a

lawsuit, he said, we will fight these lies in the court of public opinion and in the court of law.

Now, maybe it's just a coincidence, but he listed court of public opinion first. And to me, this legal threat is largely about telling people in the

court of public opinion, telling Israelis, telling folks all around the world that the country rejects these allegations, refutes what was written

in the New York times and wants to challenge it.

But the times, notably, is emphasizing the amount of review and fact checking that went into this piece ahead of time. And that's the same kind

of response we've seen, we've seen from news outlets when Donald Trump or other political leaders have threatened lawsuits. You know, this is not the

first time that Israel has threatened legal action against "The New York Times". This came up last summer as well.

And at the time, the newspaper responded by calling it an unfortunate play from an increasingly common playbook. And that's true. There's a through

line here from President Trump and other leaders, either threatening legal action against news outlets or actually following through in some cases and

suing, although usually Trump's lawsuits, they usually fail in the U.S., in the U.S. courts.

Now, we don't know what jurisdiction you know, where Israel would maybe attempt to file this suit. A lot of that's unknown. For now, it seems to me

this is about Netanyahu and his aides trying to very publicly challenge Kristof's reporting.

There is a very obvious way to do that. However, Kristof makes the point in his column, access to these prisons is basically impossible. Journalists

are not allowed in. Red cross officials, sometimes not allowed in, he said it would be certainly in the benefit of everyone to have more access, more

humanitarian access to these facilities, to be able to speak with prisoners.

SOARES: Brian, I really appreciate you coming on this story.

[15:25:01]

Thank you very much. I know you'll stay across this for us.

Brian Stelter for us there in New York.

And still to come for us, superpower partners, why President Donald Trump, Xi Jinping are doing their best to say nothing but nice things to each

other. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: We want to return now to our top story, the superpower summit, of course, happening in China. It is Friday morning in Beijing, where U.S.

President Donald Trump and Chinese Leader Xi Jinping are scheduled to hold a second day of talks. Mr. Trump says he got a pledge from China not to

provide military equipment to Iran, and the two men say they want to get the Strait of Hormuz open again, did not specify how.

For the most part, the public words spoken at the summit have been ones of praise as well as partnership.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: Such respect for China, the job you've done. You're a great leader. I say it to everybody. You're a great leader. I wanted only the top. And

they're here today to pay respects to you and to China. It's an honor to be with you. It's an honor to be your friend.

XI JINPING, CHINESE LEADER (through translator): Achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and making America great again can go

hand in hand. Both China and the United States stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation.

TRUMP: Together, we have the chance to draw on these values, to create a future of greater prosperity, cooperation, and happiness and peace for our

children. We love our children. This region, and the world, it's a special world with the two of us united and together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: So, what we want to know this hour is can these warm words become reality for U.S. China relations?

Joining me now is Gary Locke, who was the U.S. ambassador to China during the Obama administration.

[15:30:04]

Ambassador, good to have you on the show. Let me pick up exactly with that question. Lots of pleasantries, lots of nice words being said to each

other. What do you -- what did you make of what was said? Can it really warm the relations between these two leaders

GARY LOCKE, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: Well, first of all, it's very nice words, but there are major fundamental economic and, trade issues

separating the United States and China. And I'm not sure that any of those underlying critical issues are being addressed. Certainly, President Trump

wants to be able to go back home and have headlines talking about Chinese purchases of soybeans and beef and Boeing airplanes that will play well to

his audience. At the same time, China wants to project an image of confidence, of being equal to the United States.

SOARES: Right. And we have seen and we got more a sense of what China wants to get out of this and how clear China has been in their readouts of

the U.S. one was slightly sparser. Sparser in terms of what they said.

But let me give you a sense of what I read from the Chinese readout and what stood out to me, Ambassador, because it said President Xi stressed

that the Taiwan question is the most important issue in China-U.S. relations if it is handled properly. The bilateral relationship will enjoy

overall stability. Otherwise, the two countries will have clashes and even conflicts, putting the entire relationship in great jeopardy.

I mean, that is a very clear red line or a warning from the Chinese side. How do you read it? How do you think the U.S. response to that

LOCKE: Well, I don't think that we can expect the United States to reverse its policy in terms of support for Taiwan, saying that it should be a part

or it should not be independent. But, you know, the policy has been that it should the China and Taiwan need to resolve this peacefully without any

type of military force. In the meantime, the United States has been supplying a lot of military equipment to Taiwan.

At most, I think what President Xi will be trying to get President Trump to do is to reduce the amount of military sales to Taiwan. I don't think he's

expecting the United States to reverse any of its public positions, regarding Taiwan. But suddenly to, say, reduce the amount of high-grade

military equipment that you sell to Taiwan.

SOARES: Let's talk about Tehran, the other -- the other T and there are lots of Ts. It seems part of these negotiations because we've had in the

last few minutes, President Trump saying that she offered to help me offer to help him with Iran. The U.S. readout ambassador said the two sides

agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy. President Xi also made clear Chinas opposition to the

militarization of the strait, and any effort to charge a toll for its use.

I mean, that sounds pretty straightforward. Well, good. How do you get it open in the first place? I mean, how can Xi Jinping, what can he offer? How

much influence does he have with Tehran here?

LOCKE: Well, these statements are really consistent with what China has been saying for the last several weeks. Nothing new, but China is a very

close ally with Iran. And they had the recent high level meetings between the leaders of the two countries, or at least representatives of the two

countries..

China very much wants oil to flow from the Gulf states and Iran, not so much for itself, because oil, and especially oil from the Gulf states in

Iran, make up a very small percentage of the energy supply of China. But many other countries in the Pacific region, as well as Europe, depend on

that oil. And if their economies suffer, it means less markets for made in China goods and products.

So, China has an economic interest in making sure that oil flows to other countries so that their economies can be strong. But in the meantime, China

-- China really does not want to get involved and interfere with the affairs of Iran.

SOARES: And, Ambassador, before I let you go, we have seen, of course, a lot of pomp and pageantry clearly calibrated for a president who loves a

good spectacle. But you've been inside these majestic rooms of President Xi. Give our viewers a sense of what he's like.

LOCKE: Well, he's very casual. He's very self-confident, very assured. He doesn't talk using written notes or a script, like many of his

predecessors. He's able to recount history and philosophy.

And so, he presents himself from a -- from a position of being casual but strong and self-assured.

[15:35:08]

SOARES: Former U.S. ambassador to China, Gary Locke, thank you very much, Ambassador. Appreciate it.

LOCKE: My pleasure.

SOARES: Now, diplomacy -- you're very welcome. Now, diplomacy of a different kind in Italy, the princess of Wales visited a preschool today as

part of her two day trip. Princess Catherine is on her first official overseas visit since receiving treatment for cancer. She's learning about

the region's unique approach to education.

And, Max, of course, is there for us.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: Principessa Caterina, two words you keep hearing here in Reggio Emilia. Princess Catherine, of course, she's

just visited. She was here for less than 48 hours, a huge presence when she arrived. Thousands of people.

But what started out as a fascination in her actually turned into something the other way around. Her fascination into this town, because she came here

to learn about how the very youngest people in society, under-fives, are educated. So she wanted to find out about this way of teaching, which isn't

sticking children in the classroom and instructing them, but by giving them objects, taking them outside and letting them explore, using all their

senses, you know, smelling, seeing, tasting everything that's around them, whatever it is, but allowing them to lead the learning and to learn for

themselves without being told what to do.

The princess feels that if you can get that early learning correct, then you can solve many of our toughest problems in society. For example,

addiction. And she now feels this is a global mission for her to encourage the world to take early learning more seriously.

And she wants to take those ideas back to the U.K. and keep going on trips like this. And I've never seen her actually quite as enthused as she was

meeting the young kids here. And the difference that the system they use here, the Reggio Approach, because she's been through this period of

recovery from cancer, she's gone through this life changing experience. As an aide described it to me. And now she wants to throw herself into her

work even more, but she has to balance it with that recovery. But what I think we're going to see is her back on the global stage, traveling the

world, trying to promote what she sees as a key cause for her and indeed the planet up there with climate change.

Max Foster, CNN, Reggio Emilia, Italy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Wonderful to see. Principessa Catherine, Caterina being hugged by all those children. Thanks to Max for that report.

Well, we are in the final moment of trade on Wall Street, and it's been a solid day for U.S. markets. The Dow has climbed back above the 50,000 --

just as you can see, up almost 8/10 of a percent. And that's after the warm meeting between President Donald Trump as Xi -- and Xi Jinping.

And this is, as you figured out, our Business Breakout.

Americans are still shopping despite the economic pressure from the war in Iran. Retail sales grew by half of 1 percent in April. However, that's

slower than the previous month and slightly below what economists had been predicting. One economist said the higher energy costs could change

spending habits in the months ahead.

Elon Musk's lawyer has slammed the credibility of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman in court today, as lawyers for both sides make their closing arguments. Musk

is suing OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and his partner Greg Brockman. He accuses them of, quote, stealing a charity by shifting from nonprofit model to a

for profit structure. OpenAI says, Musk, who helped found the company before leaving in 2018, just wanted to gain control.

Japanese automaker Honda has posted its first annual loss in nearly 70 years, largely due to a pullback in electric vehicle plans in the United

States. Honda and other car manufacturers have downshifted their EV ambitions after the Trump administration removed incentives for Americans

to purchase electric vehicles. The change in direction contributing to Honda's nearly $2.7 billion loss.

And Cuba says it has completely run out of diesel fuel and oil under U.S. blockades. Scattered protests have broken out in Havana amid a series of

island wide blackouts, some of which have lasted for days.

Our Patrick Oppmann now reports from Havana.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Somehow, Cuba's already terrible energy woes are about to get a lot worse. Cuban officials have come on

national TV to essentially warn people that as bad as things are, they're going to deteriorate even more. We're talking about 20 to 22-hour more than

that, possibly blackouts each day.

And the reason for that is this country simply does not have any fuel anymore.

[15:40:05]

There was a shipment of Russian oil that has now run out. It's the only shipment that this island has received in four months. Ever since the Trump

administration put a virtual oil blockade on Cuba. And so you've seen the blackouts stretch longer and longer to the point where many basic functions

people being able to cook, people being able to school, go to work, have any kind of public transportation, have now been essentially curtailed.

And so, because of that, people are going out more and greater regularity to protest, particularly at night. There's no easy solution to this. U.S.

is negotiating with Cuba, has offered some assistance. If this island's government makes very deep changes.

But at this point, there's negotiations haven't progressed very far. The government says they are not willing to make any leadership changes. Their

system of government, the party, communist party rule here will not change. So, it's unclear what the government is willing to make in terms of

concessions to the Trump administration.

But people here that were talking to on the street say they simply can't take any more.

Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: And still to come, another key departure at the Department of Homeland Security.

We'll bring you that story, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: Another senior immigration official is leaving the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Border Patrol Chief Michael Banks is stepping down,

effective immediately. He says -- he says after 37 years of public service, now is the time to enjoy family and life. He is the third high profile

departure since Markwayne Mullin became DHS secretary in March, when he replaced Kristi Noem.

After nearly a year of calling for his release, a community in Pennsylvania is celebrating the return of a man taken away from his family and put in

Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody for almost nine months.

[15:45:09]

Carlos Della Valle entered the U.S. illegally decades ago, escaping violence in Mexico. But a family vacation in 2024 changed his life forever,

as our Danny Freeman now reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DANNY FREEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In a quiet suburb of Philadelphia, signs like these have dotted lawns for months. A plea from a

close knit community, "Bring Carlos home".

CARLOS DELLA VALLE, DETAINED BY DHS: When you're inside this, there's really not much you can do other than endure. Be strong.

FREEMAN (voice-over): This is Carlos Della Valle. He's been living in Downingtown, Pennsylvania, for nearly two decades, working, raising a

family with a U.S. citizen wife and a U.S. citizen son now in college.

But for years, Carlos had a secret. The Mexican national says he crossed the border illegally back in 1997, when he was just 20 years old, fleeing

violence in his home country.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: If I had known what I was doing -- doing at that moment, I probably would have never done it.

FREEMAN (voice-over): Carlos fell in love with his wife, Angela, and said the two consulted with immigration attorneys to get him legal status once

they were married in 2002. But they say the advice they got was wait for Congress to pass laws helping mixed status families.

ANGELA DELLA VALLE, CARLOS WIFE: We got together. We had no idea that there was not going to be a pathway for us.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: They -- they did say, stay out of trouble. Don't do anything that you might regret later. And that's what -- that's what I've

been doing personally.

FREEMAN (voice-over): But in 2024, during the final days of the Biden administration, his luck ran out. On Christmas Day, while on vacation with

his family in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Carlos was stopped at the airport in Saint Thomas. He was told he had a final order of removal and was charged

with illegal reentry.

His trial was set for the following August during the first year of the new, more hardline Trump administration.

FREEMAN: Did you have a sense that it might become harder in the next administration?

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: They actually said it right there. Someone mentioned something to wear, like, oh, you know, were in the process of changing the

way we do things.

FREEMAN (voice-over): His community rallied, family and neighbors from Pennsylvania wrote letters, and some even flew to Saint Thomas to advocate

for him in open court. Carlos was found not guilty, but DHS still detained him because he still lacked status.

For the next nearly nine months, Carlos was in custody, shuttled between ICE detention centers all throughout the south, including the infamous

Alligator Alcatraz in the Florida Everglades.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: Whatever anybody is seeing on TV is true. You are in cages. It's like tents and eight cages per tent. You know, and 32 people in

each cage and -- I mean, no privacy.

FREEMAN (voice-over): All the while, his wife, Angela, followed.

FREEMAN: How have the past nine months been for you?

ANGELA DELLA VALLE: They've been the hardest days of my whole life. Every day felt like a year.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: I was worried about my body, not my mind. I believe I got all the strength from the people outside fighting for me.

FREEMAN (voice-over): Back in Downingtown, support and awareness grew. Neighbors started raising money. The local church held rallies. Politicians

took notice and then -- without explanation, after more than 250 days in detention, Carlos was released.

He arrived home last week.

ANGELA DELLA VALLE: We did it.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: All I wanted to do was hug people, and that's really all I did.

MISSY DOW, DELLA VALLE FAMILY FRIEND: Carlos means everything to this community. We are a community of good neighbors here.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It has restored my faith in who we are as Americans.

CARLOS DELLA VALLE: Just because I wasn't born in this country doesn't mean that I don't love this country.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: And still to come, tonight, a star-studded concert for sports biggest competition in the world. We'll tell you about the new

entertainment coming to the World Cup. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:51:52]

SOARES: Welcome back.

While FIFA has now announced that Madonna, BTS and Shakira will headline a Super Bowl half time show at this year's World Cup final. That's a first

for the tournament, as football fans are more used to stretching their legs at half time. Or indeed, the case of my producer getting a beer. In my

case, just going to the toilet.

What we don't know is how are football fans going to respond to a halftime show at the World Cup final?

Joining me now, Simon Cooper, columnist for "The Financial Times" and author of the new book World Cup fever.

Simon, great to have you on the show.

Look, I'm sure you have nothing against Shakira or BTS or Madonna, but what do you make of this move to introduce this halftime show in the final?

SIMON KUPER, AUTHOR, "WORLD CUP FEVER": I think like most football fans, I think it's completely unnecessary. The World Cup final is the show and

football fans, in my experience, really don't want some musical entertainment during a game. You're there for the game at half time. You

want to talk to the people around you about the game. This is the biggest game in the football calendar.

I think -- I've seen these kinds of shows when they've been attempted in Europe, being booed away by fans, and I think it's really gruesome. Also,

it will mean a much longer half time.

Half time is supposed to be 15 minutes, so the players stay in the momentum of the game, and this is likely to go on for 25 minutes or half an hour. It

completely ruins the essence of football.

SOARES: Just picking up on your latter point, Simon, I mean, what then will footballers have to do? Because this will have they'll have to wait

much longer.

They -- that will mean there will be cooling down, right? This could mean risk of injury. So, what would this mean for them?

KUPER; Well, this is new terrain. We don't know how you stay ready to play for 25 minutes because nobody's ever done that before. It's always been a

15-minute turnaround. So, I'm sure the medical teams of the leading countries will be looking into this. How do you deal with this situation,

which none of these players will have faced before in any match they've ever played?

SOARES: So then why decide to go with this? I mean, reporter -- our reporter just in the last hour was saying, you know, they're trying to

Americanize the whole game. I mean, this is certainly something that we're not used to hear. My producer and I were talking about this. You know, we

tend to rush to get a beer, get a toilet break, listen to analysis, radio analysis, even just converse with our -- with our friends about this.

But why are they doing this now then? Why do you think this is necessary?

KUPER: I think the American tradition, I mean, as a halftime show at the Super Bowl, and I guess it was felt that this would improve football. The

thing is that there's a great suspicion among the world's football fans outside the U.S. and maybe even inside the U.S. to some degree, about the

game being Americanized. And football is really soccer is grown up in hundreds of countries around the world before the U.S. and, of course,

because the U.S. is so culturally dominant, there's always been this fear that the U.S. will take over football and remake it in its own image.

[15:55:02]

And this seems to be an example of that happening.

Also, the ticket prices, the amazingly high ticket prices, unprecedented at any World Cup, now falling, as it seems demand is not there. But again,

that's in the American tradition of sports watching, but not in the World Cup or the football tradition.

SOARES: Yeah, I mean, the ticket prices is an entirely other conversation, Simon. Really eye watering. Appreciate it.

KUPER: No, but that's also why fans are upset.

SOARES: Yeah, indeed. Quite rightly.

Simon Kuper, thank you very much. Appreciate it.

And finally, tonight, the NFL is going global. The American Football League announced a nine-game international slate that will take it to four

different continents. There will be six games in Europe, including three in London and the first ever NFL game in France. The league will also be

making its debut in Australia with a game in Melbourne. The NFL says it hopes to build to as many as 16 international games in future years.

A very busy hour of news here for you. Thank you very much for your company. I'm Isa Soares. Stay with CNN. We have much more after this short

break.

END

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