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Trump Ratchets Up Pressure on Zelenskyy Ahead of Key White House Meeting Today; Storm Threatens Dangerous Rip Currents, Waves Along East Coast; Scheffler Wins BMW Championship for Fifth Victory in 2025. Aired 7-7:30a ET

Aired August 18, 2025 - 07:00   ET

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

[07:00:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: All right. Breaking overnight, we are standing by for key meetings at the White House as there are signs that the ground is shifting. President Trump puts new pressure on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the social media post that really pushes the Russian negotiating position.

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN ANCHOR: Mandatory evacuation orders are in parts of North Carolina right now as Hurricane Erin churns offshore now, not expected to make a direct hit. Forecasters, though, still warning of what this Category 4 storm can bring.

And it was a remarkable story of survival out of California, a man trapped behind a waterfall for over 48 hours. The details behind his rescue, we have that for you.

I'm Kate Bolduan with John Berman. Sara is out today. This is CNN News Central.

BERMAN: All right. And we do have breaking news this morning. This is a live look at the White House. We are standing by for these crucial meetings between President Trump and Ukrainian Leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Major European leaders will be there as well.

The news is this. There are new signs this morning, that Russia might be gaining ground in its war on Ukraine, not just on the battlefield, but with President Trump, after that meeting between Trump and Vladimir Putin in Alaska. Ukrainian officials say that a new Russian attack on a residential building in Kharkiv killed at least seven people, including a toddler.

This is what the Ukrainian president, Zelenskyy, wrote just a few minutes ago. Putin will commit demonstrative killings to maintain pressure on Ukraine and Europe, as well as to humiliate diplomatic efforts. This is precisely why we are seeking assistance to put an end to the killings. That is why reliable security guarantees are required. That is why Russia should not be rewarded for its participation in this war.

But even as that's happening, President Trump is leaning on Ukraine, the country under attack. This is what he wrote. President Zelenskyy of Ukraine can end the war with Russia almost immediately if he wants to or he can continue to fight. President Trump already flipped to the Russian position that a ceasefire should not be a precondition to peace.

It is worth noting the last time President Trump and Zelenskyy came together at the White House, the meeting devolved into a shouting match. This time, Zelenskyy is bringing back up, several of Europe's top leaders.

Let's get right to CNN's Alayna Treene at the White House for the latest this morning. What are we seeing, Alayna?

ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Yes. Well, today is going to be a very, you know, monumental day, John, as we continue to see whether or not the talks will progress beyond what we saw in Alaska on Friday. Of course, as you mentioned, Zelenskyy will be here. That meeting one-on-one with the president is going to be very important.

But then, of course, as well, there are many of the European allies that Zelenskyy has already been meeting with over there before coming here to Washington that'll be there as some sort of buffer perhaps, but also, of course, they have their own goals as well in wanting to ensure that the United States not only gives them a seat at the table in these negotiations with Russia, but also getting into the details of these security guarantees, which we have seen this Trump administration move closer to in the last few days than they have been before.

Now, it is still -- you know, we're learning more details as time goes, as we leave, you know, go farther away from Friday. The president has been very tight-lipped about some of the agreements and the specifics of what he discussed with Russian President Vladimir Putin. But we are hearing more and more from people like Steve Witkoff, special envoy, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio, particularly some of the things that they said yesterday.

We did hear Witkoff on CNN saying that he believes the key goal after today's meeting is to make sure they could try and set up a trilateral meeting with Putin as well as Zelenskyy. Listen to how he put it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STEVE WITKOFF, U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY TO THE MIDDLE EAST: We are going to get to a trilateral. And what we're trying to accomplish on Monday is get some consensus from President Zelenskyy and his team. We had some really good, specific, granular conversation on the plane ride home with President Zelenskyy about what he would be seeking.

[07:05:04]

And we don't think that there are any obstacles in that conversation that we heard.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TREENE: Now, John, he also said, Witkoff, that he believes that Russia is accepting robust security guarantees from the United States as they move forward as part of a deal. Again, more information than we've had since Friday when the, when they all gathered in Alaska, all to say today's going to be very key to determining where the Trump administration, where the president himself is on wanting to, you know, find a deal on the best pathway forward on that lines up with, of course, Zelenskyy, but also the European leaders.

BERMAN: Well, right. And the president overnight with that social media post really seemed to draw lines, not against Russia, but draw lines for Ukraine and Volodymyr Zelenskyy, pushing him or really cornering him on certain negotiating positions.

TREENE: That's right. I mean, of course, we know that land swapping as the president continues to refer to it as was a key part of what he discussed on Friday with the Russian leader. And it's very much unclear at this moment whether this idea and especially what we saw the president post last night, kind of previewing what his message would be today to Zelenskyy is something that Ukraine and European leaders, the seven who are going to be here today, would actually agree to overall,

I just want to go back to what exactly he said. He essentially said that giving or allowing Russia to keep Crimea and also never having Zelenskyy agreed to never joining, being a part of NATO, not becoming a NATO member, those are two of the things that the president laid out. He believes that Putin would accept to try and end the war.

We've heard the similar things, of course, from the Russians. Vladimir Putin kind of spelled out his demands for these land stops saying. He wants Crimea, he wants Ukraine to never be a part of NATO, again, things we have heard Zelenskyy and the Ukrainians kind of argue is not really something that they are comfortable with.

So, we really have to see what the direction of these talks will be today and if they can score that trilateral meeting to really move the ball forward and keep up this momentum. John?

BERMAN: All right, a busy day there. Alayna Treene at the White House, thank you. Kate?

BOLDUAN: And this morning, it is still unclear how Russian demands will play into today's talks. President Trump's special envoy, Steve Witkoff, you heard from just a short time ago, has said that Vladimir Putin made some concessions on what Alayna was just talking about, Ukrainian land swaps, and also agreed to what he described as game changing security guarantees, Friday, but Russia has said nothing about any such agreements, of course.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Moscow with much more on this. Fred, what are you hearing there?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, first of all, Kate, I think that the Russians really believe that the Trump administration is in line with their thinking as far as the Ukraine conflict is concerned. It certainly seems as though the two sides, the Trump administration and the Putin administration, came a lot closer in that summit in Alaska. One of the things we've seen is that one of the chief negotiators for the Russians, Kirill Dimitriev, who is, of course, the head of Russia's Sovereign Wealth, a Russian direct investment fund, one-to- one, basically taking over those things that President Trump mentioned. In that social media post that you guys showed, Ukraine never becoming a member of NATO and also giving up for good Crimea as well, those things that are obviously playing very big here in Russian media and also one of the main negotiators of Russia's negotiating team saying that as well.

At the same time, there was a senior Russian diplomat who came out tonight and said that Russia also wants security guarantees as well. We've been talking a lot, he said about the Ukrainian security guarantees. Well, the Russians believe that their security also needs to be secured. Of course, the Russians have been saying that part of that would be Ukraine, not being in NATO, Ukraine all but disarming. There's, of course, a whole laundry list of Russian demands that they want to see seen through.

On the whole, though, if we look at the summit that took place in Alaska, the Russians very happy with the outcome, Vladimir Putin actually got back here to Moscow on Saturday. He had a couple stops in Eastern Russia. He said that he had a very good meeting with President Trump. He said that he was able to calmly lay out Russia's position to the U.S. president. He also says that he understands and respects the fact that the U.S. wants a ceasefire or an end to hostilities as fast as possible. But, obviously, the Russians are saying that this negotiation process that President Trump is now aiming for, that that is much more in line with what their thinking has been.

The ex-president of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, he came out and said that this was a very good meeting for the Russians because it now allows the Russians to enter into talks while at the same time not ending their combat operations in Ukraine. Kate?

BOLDUAN: All right. Fred, thank you so much for being there. Thanks so much.

Coming up for us, mandatory evacuations and a state of emergency are in place in parts of North Carolina right now. Hurricane Erin strengthens back up to a Category 4 storm. Now, officials are warning beaches could be very dangerous today, even without a direct hit from this hurricane.

[07:10:01]

And new numbers out this morning show Americans haven't been this worried about the job market since the Great Recession.

And an 11-year-old girl being called a hero after she helped rescue a 5-year-old boy who fell into a well.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) BERMAN: All right. New this morning, Hurricane Erin is threatening deadly rip currents in highways for the East Coast in Bermuda. The storm is currently a powerful Category 5 hurricane.

[07:15:00]

It had been a Cat 5 over the weekend triggering flashfloods and power outages in Puerto Rico. North Carolina has issued a local state of emergency for Dare County, that includes a mandatory evacuation order for Hatteras Island.

Let's get right to CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam for what you're seeing with Erin this morning. Derek?

DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: All right, John. So, not only did this hurricane rapidly intensify this past weekend, but it blew up in size and it continues to grow into a monster, very large. This thing hit the gym this weekend. It took all the supplements and it's only going to get larger from here. And what that means for us as it splits the goalpost between Bermuda and the East Coast of the U.S. is it's going to send massive waves into the beaches as we lead into a long holiday weekend.

So, here's the latest, Category Four, Hurricane Erin, still lashing the Turks in Caicos, Dominican Republic, tropical storm force winds for them. Bahamas, you're next.

But I want to show you this map on my other computer because this is where it gets interesting for our interests here in the United States. We're talking about nearly 2,000 miles of coastline with the potential for dangerous rip currents and large waves that could lead to coastal erosion as well. We're talking about significant stretches of beach and coastline. Millions of people calling this home, millions of people visiting this area, especially heading into Labor Day weekend.

So, look at this forecast wave height. Obviously, the center of the storm located here, that's the strongest area, the most wind, the most tumultuous seas. Here's Bermuda. Here's the outer banks, right? Watch how it splits the difference between these two locations, but the wave and the wind field expands in size, basically propagating from the center outwards, and it will bring those dangerous waves to the eastern seaboard through the entire week, really starting today, lasting right through Thursday and Friday.

And there isn't any state along the eastern seaboard that will not feel the impacts from this system. Here's a look in Puerto Rico as the tropical storm conditions impacted the region causing flooding on the ground. We still have the tropical storm warnings for the Turks and Caicos, watches in effect for The Bahamas. But notice the core, the strongest part of the hurricane just offshore from the island regions, good news there, sparing them from the worst conditions. But, again, it is the large swells in the large waves that we will be experiencing along the eastern seaboard.

And I want to point this out right here on the coastline of North Carolina, there are still the chance of tropical storm conditions as the system wobbles a little bit to the west, as strong storms do. John?

BERMAN: You really see on that map right there why people in North Carolina need to be careful over the next few days.

Derek Van Dam, thank you very much for that.

New warnings about the controversial immigration detention center dubbed Alligator Alcatraz, why attorneys are worried it could be become what they are calling a black hole for detainees.

And an almost unbelievable rescue, a rock climber trapped for two days behind a dangerous waterfall.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:20:00]

BOLDUAN: So, once again, we're apparently back on the fairway of greatness with Scottie Scheffler winning the BMW Championship, his fifth win of the year.

Coy Wire was out there. Just -- I think you were as catty this time, huh? How'd it go?

COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS ANCHOR: I wish. Give me some of that greatness, however I can get it. Good to see you, Kate.

Scheffler continuing one of the greatest hitters we've ever seen in golf, or you could say he's so cold, like LeBron James posted afterwards, check out this shot. The world number one, continuing his dominance, all right? He's adding a fifth title of the season. He rallies to catch Robert McIntyre. And on the 71st hole, this is the 17th year, an 81-foot chip in on a long row, and in. Scottie Scheffler, are you kidding me? It gives in a two-stroke lead over McIntyre finishing the round three under, his 17th consecutive round under par on the PGA tour, 15 under for the tourney. And of all the memorable moments and monumental success he's had in his career so far, this was a signature moment. Every golfer who's had back-to-back five win seasons in the last 40 years, Tiger Woods, Scottie Scheffler, that's it.

NFL preseason debut for the Bears quarterback, Caleb Williams, the former number one, overall pick, wasting no time, marching down Soldier Field against the Bills. Three straight completions to start the possession, and then Williams hits Olamide Zaccheaus, who zipped past Damar Hamlin and races in for the 36-yard score. Williams going 5-6 on the opening drive, 97 passing yards. That would've been the most of any single drive all last season for Williams, given the doubt or something to think about. Bears win 38-0.

Hottest team in baseball, Brewers, down 1-0 to the Reds in the top of the ninth on a franchise record 14-game winning streak, and William Contreras shows the fight of the team with the seventh lowest payroll that we've seen all season long, ties the game with his 13th homer of the season. But the Reds would tie it up. And in the bottom of the tenth, Austin Hays hammers a shot to left. Bases loaded. And here they come, Kate. That'll do it. The Red snapped the Brewer's streak. 3-2 is the final. Milwaukee still sporting the best record in baseball with 78 wins on the season.

And here's your play of the day, Kate, San Francisco Giants. Jung Hoo Lee makes a catch you'll have to see. Top of the fourth, in comes Lee with a sliding grab. Upon further review, look where he snags it, he kegeled (ph) it. I mean he caught it right between his knees. All that money he spent on the late night QVC Thigh Master purchase pays off. Adductor dominance, Catch of the Year candidate Lee, helping his Giants secure the seven to one win, making it look easy too.

BOLDUAN: Wait a second. That is crazy. That is crazy.

WIRE: Unbelievable catch. I don't know that I've ever seen anything like this. First, just to get all the way over there, battling the sun and everything, and it slips out of his glove, rolls down his legs and --

BOLDUAN: Coy, the way he lands, it looks like he was injured. Like I was like, oh, no, he is hurt. Oh, wait. That's amazing.

WIRE: Right?

BOLDUAN: Ridiculous. Oh my God, it's ridiculous. That's like a good day to have strong calves, men. You see he was like right in his crotch (ph).

Thanks buddy.

WIRE: Thanks, Kate.

BOLDUAN: Good to see you.

[07:25:00]

Crazy.

All right, coming up for us, it is a monumental day at the White House, President Trump set to host President Zelenskyy of Ukraine and European leaders. The president already setting the table with two key demands on Ukraine before they even sit down.

And a growing fear for Americans, unemployment, a new study showing that worries about the jobs market haven't been this high since the Great Recession.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BOLDUAN: And the breaking news this morning, just hours from now, President Trump is welcoming Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to the White House to discuss bringing an end to Russia's war on Ukraine.

[07:30:07]

The president is just back.