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Princess Catherine Expected To Attend Trooping The Colour; Preparations Underway For Presidential Debate; Trump Ridicules Gag Order Request; SCOTUS Strikes Down Federal Ban On Bump Stocks; U.S. Submarine Arrives At Guantanamo Bay; Ukraine Peace Conference Begins In Switzerland; G7 To Loan Ukraine $50 Billion From Frozen Russian Assets; Potential For Terror Attack On U.S. Is Real; T20 Cricket World Cup; U.S. Open. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired June 15, 2024 - 04:00   ET

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

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ANNA COREN, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to all our viewers in the United States and around the world. I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

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MAX FOSTER, CNN LONDON CORRESPONDENT: The whole family, including Kate's, up there at Buckingham Palace.

FOSTER (voice-over): This will be Kate's first public engagement since Christmas.

COREN (voice-over): All eyes are on a much anticipated return by the Princess of Wales. We're alive outside Buckingham Palace with the very latest.

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COREN (voice-over): Plus the U.S. president and his rival on the campaign trail preparing to face off at their first presidential debate.

And Russia's presidents lays out terms to end his war. Ukraine responds with a hard no.

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COREN: In just about two hours' time, the U.K.'s Catherine, Princess of Wales, is expected to appear in public for the first time in nearly six months. The surprise announcement came Friday, along with a photo taken at Windsor and an update on her battle with cancer.

Princess Catherine says she's making progress but isn't out of the woods yet.

Still in the coming hours, she is set to attend Trooping the Colour event, the official celebration of the monarch's birthday. King Charles said he's, quote, "delighted" that she will be there. Well, CNN correspondent Anna Stewart joins us now outside London's Buckingham Palace.

And Anna, this is, of course, the king's birthday parade. But all eyes no doubt will be on Kate.

What can we expect to see from the Princess of Wales?

And tell us about the reaction from the public to her upcoming appearance.

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It certainly added quite a lot of excitement to the event. Of course, lots of people always keen to see the king and the king's (INAUDIBLE) parade.

But now, having not seen the Princess of Wales for so many months, there'll be a lot of eyes on that carriage, which we expect to leave Buckingham Palace here in about 1.5 hours.

The Princess of Wales is also the regimental colonel of the Irish Guards, which is actually the regiment that is being trooped today, which is the showing of the flag. And it happens every year to mark the king's official birthday, the second birthday really for the monarch.

It's always celebrated on the second June of the year, on the weekend, simply because monarchs aren't always born at the right time of year for the U.K. weather. So ideally, in June, it is sunny. I expect we're going to get a downpour pretty soon, though, Anna.

But all eyes on the Princess of Wales and what she'll be wearing and how she will be looking. She looked very well in the photos released yesterday.

But we do know of course, that she's still undergoing treatment and has good days and bad days.

COREN: In her message, Anna, she wrote, "I'm not out of the woods yet. Making good progress but there are good days and bad days."

I'm sure that there are countless cancer patients out there who can certainly identify with those sentiments.

STEWART: Of course. I think she's really captured the hearts of the nation with this very personal message. I think that's what's making this relationship in a way between the current royal family and the public really quite different.

There's a lot more information that we're getting from the Princess of Wales, perhaps not on the exact cancer that she's been treated for.

But on how she is feeling, how she is being coping with the last few months. And for that, I think the public are very keen to be able to see her and celebrate her return. But only a part return to work at this stage. So we're told that she'll start to appear at some engagements in the future.

But will take it as a case-by-case basis on the advice of her medical team. But today is a really joyful occasion and actually have to say, Trooping the Colour, also known as the king's birthday parade, is one of the best events in the royal calendar, because you've got all the pomp and pageantry.

But you also have all the family united for that amazing balcony scene at the end, when you have them all waving. And it was looking quite sad to think that the Princess of Wales wouldn't be a part of that.

So I think from the public's perspective, that's really put a bright light on the day, even if it does rain, it'll feel a bit sunnier.

COREN: And you have a front row seat, Anna, so all is well in the world. Anna Stewart joining us from London, thank you.

Well, the message from the Princess of Wales mentioned that her chemotherapy is ongoing and will be for a few more months. She has not revealed the type of cancer she's being treated for. But the treatment may provide some clues about the severity of her illness.

CNN's chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta explains.

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DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: A lot of terms being used here around Princess Catherine and just a lovely picture that we see of her there, preventative chemotherapy is the term that is often being used.

And I think a lot of people may have interpreted that as a type of chemotherapy that can prevent cancer. Some of this may just be semantics. But I think what we're talking about here specifically is something that is more commonly known as adjuvant therapy.

[04:05:04]

So this is an additional therapy in addition to the operation that she had several months ago. So different types of therapies out there. They can take several months of scheduled chemotherapy. We don't know what type of cancer. We don't know what type of therapy.

And she is totally entitled to her privacy, so we won't speculate on that. But I will tell you the types of factors that go into the consideration here. The type of cancer obviously; the types of medications that are being used; the stage of that cancer, that will all play a role in determining what, how long the therapy is likely to last.

Also what types of side effects she might have. She, in the statement, says she's not out of the woods yet and probably really means two things.

How well does the medication, the chemotherapy work?

Is it actually helping with the existing cancer?

And what are the side effects?

Good days and bad days. And you can see the list of side effects there. People get exhausted while on these medications and you can change day to day in terms of how you feel, even hour to hour.

But also like brain fog and difficulty with pain, even in the limbs, there's all sorts of things that can happen in response to chemotherapy. So that may be what she means by good days and bad days.

As you may remember, Princess Catherine, 42 years old; here is a timeline of how things progressed over the past several months.

It was the middle of January, January 16th, when she was admitted for that abdominal operation. At that point, they thought whatever they were doing was not related to cancer.

But then subsequently, we heard that, in fact, she has cancer, so they may have actually examined some of the tissue under the microscope and found, in fact, she did have cancer. And that has now led to this time period since February, where she's been undergoing chemotherapy and will likely undergo that for some time.

Again, depending on the type of cancer, that can be months, six to nine months, even, of chemotherapy, sometimes longer or shorter, depending on the specifics. But that is what we know at this point.

Again, we don't know what type of cancer, we don't know what type of therapy and we're not going to speculate on any of that. But it is good to see that picture of her. Guys, back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Sanjay Gupta, thank you.

Well, lets get perspective now from CNN royal historian, Kate Williams. She joins us also from Buckingham Palace.

Good to see you, Kate.

Do you see this public appearance as a positive sign about Princess Catherine's health and progress of her treatment?

KATE WILLIAMS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it was just so wonderful to hear from the princess yesterday. We've all been worried about her. She's been through so many tough times. We haven't seen her since Christmas. That was her last engagement.

And it really is, I think, so delighting to us to be able to see her today in the carriage with the children, with Charlotte, with Louis, with George. They'll all be traveling together. We believe Prince William is going to be on horseback. So Kate will be in the carriage.

And in terms of a return to work, a brief return to work, as she says it, I mean, this is a big moment. I think I personally was expecting her to do a smaller engagement. But all the eyes of the world will be on her. She'll be on the front pages tomorrow. This is a huge moment.

And I think it really does show that -- she says she's having good days and bad days. She says in her very moving statement she's not out of the woods yet. But clearly, it's a very hopeful sign. And perhaps in the autumn, at the end of the year, we might see her back to work full time.

COREN: Are you surprised by what she shared in that personal message, how open she was?

WILLIAMS: I think the message was -- I think the message was so personal. She was so open. Just as Anna was saying earlier, we don't know what cancer that she has. She may never tell us. It is her private information.

But at the same time, she's telling us a lot about her feelings, what she's going through. She is saying I feel weak, I feel tired. I have to rest. And I think that really is unprecedented. Normally, we don't know anything about royals' health.

For example, the queen's father, we didn't know he was very ill until he did pass away. And we weren't given much insight into the queen or the Duke of Edinburgh. But this is a new openness. I think we're seeing a new royal family with this openness, with speaking directly to the public.

And I think that's most of all because, as Kate was saying, she understands how many other people are going through what she's going through. And both she and the king want to be a beacon. They want to be a support for all of those people across the world who are cancer sufferers and cancer survivors.

COREN: What has been the reaction, the overwhelming reaction no doubt, from the British public about Kate returning to the public?

Even though this is obviously not a return to duty is -- but still.

[04:10:00]

How have people responded?

WILLIAMS: They are absolutely thrilled. Kate didn't come to the rehearsals. I think most people thought she wasn't going to come to this. And the crowds -- I've just been out talking to them, they're all lining up. They're all got Union Jack hats on. They're so excited.

They've got their picnics and I've just -- they're just so thrilled to see her, thrilled to see her. She's such a royal superstar. She's been a royal superstar since the minute she was engaged to William. People, crowds turn out for Kate. And they are delighted to see her.

It'll be wonderful to see the king, the king in a carriage, we do expect, leaving the palace in about 1.5 hours. Wonderful to see the king and wonderful for all the royal family together.

It's the second Trooping the Colour for the king and the king's big birthday parade that he has every year at this time of year, which is supposed to be chosen because of the nice weather but it is probably going to rain.

But we often have rain on royal occasions and that just makes them more fun. I think the crowds are so excited but you can't dampen their spirits, to see Kate out and we're all just so thrilled to see her.

And she's looking so well in that photo we saw yesterday and I'm expecting really a real cheer to go up when we see her.

COREN: Talk to us about the close relationship between Princess Kate and King Charles and how that perhaps plays into her decision to attend the king's birthday parade.

WILLIAMS: The king talks, has talked about Princess Kate as his beloved daughter in law.

He's talked about how he's delighted. He gave a statement saying he's delighted that she's going to be with him today. It was a really moving statement. And we know that they were both in hospital together in January, Kate for her abdominal surgery, the king for his also (INAUDIBLE) surgery.

And that we understand that he left his hospital room to go over to her room to comfort her, to make her feel better. I really do think that shows the moving nature of the relationship between them. She's like a daughter to him. She's not a daughter-in-law. She's a daughter to him.

And he really is delighted to see how there, that all the royal family are going to be out there supporting him. The queen, Camilla's going to be there; William's going to be there. The children are going to be there. And the balcony wave, I think, will be such a wonderful picture and showing how much support the king does have.

COREN: Kate Williams, always wonderful to get your insight. Thank you so much for joining us.

WILLIAMS: Good to see you.

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COREN: With less than two weeks to go until the first U.S. presidential debate, which will be hosted by CNN in Atlanta, it's crunch time for President Joe Biden and his Republican opponent, Donald Trump, to prepare.

Returning from the G7 summit in Italy, Biden will spend Saturday in Los Angeles for a fundraiser with a lineup of Hollywood celebrities. Trump is in Michigan this weekend, where he hopes to reach Black voters. On Friday, the former president attended an event in West Palm Beach and celebrated his 78th birthday.

And Democrats are capitalizing on Trump's recent description of the Wisconsin city that will host the Republicans' convention. He called Milwaukee "a horrible city." Now the Democrats have put up 10 billboards across Milwaukee with

Trump's comments. Our Kristen Holmes has more on how Trump is approaching the run-up to the debate, including celebrating his birthday in Florida.

But first to Arlette Saenz in Los Angeles with the latest on how Biden is preparing.

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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Joe Biden has spent much of the past two weeks traveling abroad, meeting with world leaders in France and Italy. But back here at home, his debate prep has gotten underway.

Leading those debate preparations is what former White House chief of staff, Ron Klain, who led Bidens prep back in 2020 and also led debate prep for Hillary Clinton when she faced off against Trump in 2016.

Now a campaign official says the president won't have as much time to devote to debate prep as he did in that 2020 race. They expect that the most intense sessions of debate preparation will come in the days leading into June 27.

In fact, the president is expected to spend a few days at Camp David in the coming weeks. But there have been some debate preparation sessions so far. And a source does that in those sessions, the president has really been focused on trying to find ways to hold Trump accountable in this debate.

Some of the areas where he really wants to draw a contrast and criticize Trump are related to reproductive rights and also Trump's calls for political violence or trying to undermine democratic institutions.

The ultimate goal, advisers say, is trying to paint Trump as chaotic and divisive while presenting Biden as a steady and wiser alternative. One campaign official said that President Biden has been much punchier in his remarks, in his speeches about Trump on the campaign trail.

And they expect that will continue into this debate. Of course, Biden and Trump have faced off twice before back in 2020.

[04:15:02]

So Biden at least understands a little bit of the style that Trump uses on the debate stage.

Now in addition to debate preparations, President Biden is also focused on raising major cash for his campaign. He is here in Los Angeles, where he will be attending a fundraiser with former president Barack Obama, Julia Roberts and George Clooney.

Really to try to tap in to some of that star power in this campaign. So far, the campaign has not said how much they raised. But a similar event between Biden, Obama and Clinton brought in $26 million. So the campaign is hoping to bring in another big haul here in Los

Angeles with this fundraiser as they are trying to keep that cash advantage over Donald Trump -- Arlette Saenz, CNN, Los Angeles.

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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Former president Donald Trump, celebrating his 78th birthday with a room full of supporters in West Palm Beach, Florida. While he didn't shy away from the fact that he was 78, he did manage not to attack Joe Biden for his age, just a few years older than Donald Trump.

We should be clear that if he were to win, Donald Trump would be the oldest person to accept or be sworn in as president in history.

That is something Donald Trump himself is a acutely aware of. But again, why he has continued to avoid the topic of age while insulting Joe Biden, take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: We have a president who has no clue what the hell is going on, just look at him yesterday, look at him the day before in Europe. He doesn't where the hell he is.

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HOLMES: Trump also talked at length about that debate that's happening in two weeks. He will be on the stage with Joe Biden. We did learn that while he was in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, he held a, quote- unquote, "policy session" with senior advisers as well as two senators, Eric Schmitt of Missouri and Marco Rubio of Florida.

While they are saying this is not debate prep, they really want to stress that this is something that will, they acknowledge, help him prepare for the debate. Of the topics that they talked about, democracy, also how to answer questions about January 6 and the riots on January 6, Donald Trump's involvement in that.

And his later conversations and remarks about how he would pardon those involved in the January 6th attack -- Kristen Holmes, CNN, West Palm Beach, Florida.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN: Still to come, a major Supreme Court ruling in the U.S. on Friday, rolling back gun regulations. Those details just ahead.

And U.S. health authorities say they have found two cases of a rare strain of flu. We will tell you why it may be harder to fight it.

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COREN: Donald Trump and his team are not happy about the prosecution's new request for a gag order in his classified documents case. His attorneys are calling it a shocking display of overreach and disregard for the Constitution. CNN's Evan Perez explains what's behind the prosecution's request.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

EVAN PEREZ, CNN SR. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: The former president has been making very inflammatory comments about the 2022 search of Mar-a- Lago.

He said that the standard FBI order which had -- which oversees all of these searches, including the search of President Biden's home when -- you know, as part of that classified documents investigation, it is the standard order for FBI agents to be armed doing their jobs.

Right?

That is part of their requirement for their jobs.

And what the former president has been claiming is that he was put in danger. Keep in mind, he was not present for the search at Mar-a-Lago and so he was never in any danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Well, prosecutors had already asked for a gag order last month. But the judge denied that request, saying they need -- needed to fully confer with Trump's attorneys first.

A judge in Texas has ordered conspiracy theorist Alex Jones to liquidate his personal assets.

Well, that would force him to begin paying the roughly $1.5 billion in damages he owes the Sandy Hook families. Jones had broadcast a blatant lie on his popular website, Infowars, that the massacre at the school was a hoax. The judge did offer Jones a partial win, ruling against liquidating Infowars' parent company.

Twenty children were killed in the shooting in 2012. The families also want to seize Jones' social media accounts, arguing they are a key part of his Infowars business that allow Jones to promote his brand.

A major ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court Friday, striking down a federal ban on bump stocks for guns. The court ruled 6-3, with conservative justices sticking together in the majority. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote in a dissent that the majority's ruling, quote, "will have deadly consequences."

CNN's Paula Reid has details from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: On Friday, the Supreme Court struck down a ban on bump stocks. Bump stocks enable semiautomatic rifles to fire at speeds comparable to machine guns.

This was a rare regulation to result from a mass shooting in the United States. This regulation, of course, resulted from the 2017 Las Vegas shooting from a hotel that left dozens of people dead and hundreds injured.

Now Friday's decision fell along ideological lines. Justice Clarence Thomas writing for the majority that, quote, "We hold that a semiautomatic rifle equipped with a bump stock is not a machine gun because it cannot fire more than one shot by a single function of the trigger.

"And even if it could, it could not do so automatically."

Now the liberal justices joined in a fiery dissent written by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, who wrote, quote, "When I see a bird that walks like a duck, swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck.

"A bump-stock-equipped semiautomatic rifle fires automatically more than one shot without manual reloading by a single function of the trigger.

[04:25:00]

"Because I, like Congress, call that a machine gun, I respectfully dissent."

The ATF, which put forth this regulation originally, released a statement calling on Congress to legislate and try to restrict these bump stocks that way. But of course, it is unrealistic that, in an election year, Congress would actually be able to pass anything this sensitive -- Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

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COREN: A rare flu variant that is resistant to some of the most commonly used drugs has been found in at least two people in the U.S. That's according to the CDC. The variant has two mutations that could lower the effectiveness of the drug known as Tamiflu.

Cases of the mutated variant were found in 15 different countries, including the U.S. Health officials say they are actively monitoring the cases. For now, though, experts say the threat of the flu variant is low.

Titanium that was distributed with fake documentation has been found in commercial jets made by Airbus and Boeing. The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration is now investigating, along with the companies that supply Spirit Aerosystems to determine whether there's any public safety hazard.

The probe was first reported in "The New York Times" on Friday after small holes were found in some of the material.

Millions across the southeastern U.S. are starting to feel the heat. Temperatures began climbing to the upper 90s yesterday and could continue to the triple digits in some areas over the weekend.

But that's nothing compared to what's to come. An expansive heat dome is expected to bring the Midwest and Great Lakes regions their first significant heat wave of the year. What's worse, the heat dome will trap the air in place, making each day hotter than the last.

And in south Florida, recovery is underway after record breaking rainfall and unrelenting flooding turned roadways into canals and left homes in waist deep water. Governor Ron DeSantis says more than 12 million gallons of water have been pumped from flooded areas so far.

Still to come, how Ukraine is reacting to Vladimir Putin's terms to end the war.

Plus how the U.S. is responding to that flotilla of Russian navy ships arriving in Cuba. Those details ahead.

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COREN: Cuba is not happy that a U.S. nuclear powered submarine has arrived at Guantanamo Bay.

The U.S.S. Helena is a fast-attack nuclear submarine based in Norfolk, Virginia. The U.S. Southern Command says it's at the U.S. base in Cuba as part of a routine port visit.

But it comes after a group of Russian navy ships, including a nuclear- powered submarine, arrived at the port of Havana on Wednesday, a sign of strengthening ties between the two Cold War allies.

The two-day Ukraine peace conference is set to begin a few hours from now as the G7 summit wraps in Italy. Delegates are now heading to Switzerland to talk peace efforts.

Nearly 100 countries and organizations will take part, including leaders from Germany, France, the U.K. and Canada. Vice President Kamala Harris and national security adviser Jake Sullivan will be representing the U.S. Let's go now live to CNN international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson in Monopoli, Italy.

Nic, good to see you. It appears that it has been a very productive G7, especially on the issue of Ukraine.

Would that be a fair assessment?

We seem to be having some problems speaking to Nic. Nic, can you hear us?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: I think I can hear you -- I can now hear you. This is wonderful. Ask me again, please, Anna.

COREN: I was just going to say it's been a productive G7. Talk us through what's been achieved.

ROBERTSON: A lot. I mean, there was a conversation about AI, which was the last one that really got a lot of attention. The pope was here for that and it was very much about using AI as a tool for positive not for bad.

But a lot of other discussion as well. China, its trade practices, criticism of that. Criticism of China's involvement supplying Russia with components for weapons, criticism of Russia, a lot of support for Ukraine and financial support alone, more sanctions on Russia.

Also development aid, development to support, you know, poorer economies in sub Saharan Africa. That was a good part of the conversation here.

I think the strongest focus perhaps when it comes to Ukraine and the Russia part of it was the effort of the G7 to show -- this is what they said -- to show President Putin that he does not have time.

If Putin had thought that the delays in the European Union, the delays in the United States early this year, putting together big financial bundles for -- to support Ukraine, the war going forward, it would be a mistake for Putin to interpret that, that he had all the time he wanted in the war.

And that -- and that was a very, very clear message and narrative that came across and that really plays to the Ukraine peace summit that is packing up and getting going this weekend in Lucerne, Switzerland.

COREN: Nic Robertson, so pleased that we were able to reestablish comms.

On the issue of this peace summit, whilst most of the leaders from Italy attending the G7 will now ahead, there will be some notable admissions.

ROBERTSON: Well, we won't be seeing the Chinese president nor the Russian president attending the peace summit in Lucerne, Switzerland.

However, there will be 57 other leaders of nations there; 30 ministers. Justin Trudeau going from here, Canadian prime minister, of course.

The British prime minister, German chancellor, the French president, all going because the initiative there is to -- is to develop as much support as possible for Ukraine to set the context of what peace should be.

[04:35:00] ROBERTSON: Obviously without Russia, it's unrealistic to think that there can be a meaningful discussion about the compromises, if there were to be, over what would constitute peace.

Putin, a couple of days ago, said that Ukraine can have peace if it gives up on the four provinces that Russia has illegally annexed, seized and annexed. And if Ukraine gives up on its aspirations to join NATO, which is clearly a nonstarter.

And we heard that from U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin speaking about that just yesterday, at the NATO summit in Brussels. But the idea is to find a coalescence of views. And quite simply that will be that peace should be established on the basis of the U.N. Charter, that Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity should be respected.

Build a big level of support for that perhaps in case the United States drifts off from the principled international position later.

COREN: Nic Robertson joining us from Monopoli in Italy, many thanks.

Well, Ukraine is calling Putin's terms to end the war a complete sham. The Russian president laid out his demands in more detail than ever before, saying Ukraine must demilitarize and abandon its bid to join NATO. It must surrender all four regions claimed by Moscow: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhya.

Putin also wants Western nations to lift their sanctions on Russia. This comes after Joe Biden placed more than 300 sanctions on Russia this week. And G7 leaders agreed to lend Ukraine $50 billion using interests frozen -- from frozen Russian assets. But Putin is not backing down. Again, threatening the West on Friday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We have come on acceptably close to the point of no return. Calls to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, which has the largest arsenal of nuclear weapons, demonstrate the extreme adventurism of Western politicians.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COREN: Well, I'm joined now by Bill Browder. He is the founder and CEO of Hermitage Capital Management, which was the investment advisor to the largest foreign investment fund in Russia until 2005.

That's when he was expelled from the country after being labeled a threat to national security amid his outspoken criticism of Russian corporate governance.

He's the author of several books, including "Red Notice: A True Story of High Finance, Murder and One Man's Fight for Justice." And if all that was not enough, he's now Sir Bill Browder, having just been knighted for his contribution to human rights and anti-corruption as head of the Global Magnitsky Justice Campaign.

Firstly, congratulations on your knighthood.

Let's start with Putin's terms for a cease-fire, obviously swiftly rejected by President Zelenskyy. You described it as a Hitler like ultimatum. But Bill, the reality is that many Ukrainians and I'm sure Russians would like to see an end to this war, where there is no end in sight.

BILL BROWDER, FOUNDER AND CEO, HERMITAGE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: Well, first of all, Putin has no intention of ending the war. And these terms that he's laid out are effectively the same demands he made as part of his invasion.

In no way should Putin be rewarded for invading a country and taking the territory. And President Zelenskyy is right to reject it and the rest of the world should reject it. And I'm sure that the rest of the world will reject it at this peace conference in Switzerland.

COREN: Let's now look at the $50 billion loan agreed to at the G7, which will be repaid from interest on frozen Russian assets held in Western institutions.

Why wasn't this done sooner?

BROWDER: Well, it's interesting and I think the main reason it wasn't done sooner is because Putin is making all these terrible threats all the time, as we just heard, he's pulling out the nuclear card every time he gets upset.

And so there's been a lot of fear, of fear of Putin. There's a lot of desire to somehow duck and hide and appease him. And as a result of that, we've wasted a lot of time on a lot of different issues, not just the $300 billion of central bank reserves but on weapons and other things.

And the thing is that thugs and dictators, they don't respond to weakness by backing down. They get more aggressive. And so the way that you deal with a man like Putin is with a boot on the throat.

And the way you put a boot on the throat is by giving Ukrainians more weapons. You give them more money from the frozen money that we have in the West. And I'm not satisfied with the $50 billion. There's $300 billion of Russian central bank reserves, which could be confiscated and given to Ukraine.

Again, I think this is a half-step. This is a half measure.

[04:40:00]

And we should be doing more.

COREN: And what do you make of the new U.S. sanctions put in place this week?

BROWDER: Well, I like those sanctions. I particularly like the -- these are hitting hard on the Moscow MICEX, the currency exchange where -- the currency exchange can no longer convert dollars and euros.

And we've seen that banks are shutting down their websites. You've seen lines in Moscow. We've seen the stock market go down 15 percent. And this is the kind of hard hitting measure that we should be doing more of.

There are other things that can be done and should be done, particularly in the area of oil. Russia can still sell their oil and they still use the proceeds from the oil sale to buy weapons from Iran and North Korea.

We should be doing everything possible to just completely take away Putin's financial ability to conduct this war.

COREN: We've heard from Vladimir Putin, his response to this $50 billion loan. He says this is stealing Russian assets that won't go unpunished.

Now as someone who was relentlessly pursued by Putin and his regime, what do you foresee those consequences being?

BROWDER: Well, this is the beauty of this particular measure, which is that it's not like the U.S. or the E.U. keeps their foreign exchange reserves at the Russian central bank. It's not like there's any symmetrical response.

And then to the extent that Putin is threatening to take away businesses, Western businesses in Russia, well, in my opinion, those Western businesses should have pulled out like many other Western businesses a long time ago. And if they're there, that's their problem, not ours.

And so there really isn't any response that Putin can give that will -- that will, in any way, change our lives. And we should just go forward with this. And for what it's worth, I've worked on sanctions against Russia for the last 15 years.

And he's made all sorts of crazy threats on all the work that I've done. And here we are. The world hasn't come to an end. And so we shouldn't be cowing to this dictator.

COREN: Bill Browder, a pleasure to speak to you. Thanks so much for joining us.

BROWDER: Thank you.

COREN: After the break, why officials are sounding the alarm over a potential terror threat in the U.S.

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CHRISTOPHER WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: We've disrupted multiple terrorist attacks in cities and communities around the country. Increasingly concerning is the potential for a coordinated attack here in the homeland.

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COREN: Counterterrorism officials are issuing major terror warnings after the arrest of eight men across the U.S. The eight Tajik nationals entered the U.S. through the southern border and may have possible ties to terror group ISIS. CNN's Josh Campbell has more.

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SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): Would you say that there's multiple blinking red lights out there?

CHRIS WRAY, FBI DIRECTOR: I see blinking lights everywhere I turn.

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Current and former U.S. counterterrorism officials increasingly sounding the alarm over concerns about threats to the homeland.

Multiple U.S. officials tell CNN eight Tajikistan nationals with possible ties to ISIS those were arrested on immigration charges in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia.

The man had entered the U.S. through the southern border and requested asylum, raising no red flags when initially vetted by immigration officials, but it was the later discovery of their potential ties to an ISIS affiliate that set off a flurry of urgent investigative efforts by FBI agents and analysts coast-to-coast.

No specific attack planning was detected, sources said, but senior U.S. officials decided late last week to arrest the men and begin proceedings to expel them from the country, rather than continuing surveilling them to determine any possible plot.

The FBI investigation continues, sources say, along with a renewed focus on threats from central Asia.

KATIE BO LILLIS, CNN SENIOR INTELLIGENCE REPORTER: And we have seen a number of high-profile attacks and plots, both planned and carried out by Tajik nationals acting on behalf of ISIS-K, several in Europe, as well as in particular, the deadly attack on a concert hall in Moscow earlier this year that killed more than 100 people.

CAMPBELL: The recent arrests have also renewed concerns about the vulnerability of the U.S. southern border.

In 2023, U.S. Customs and Border Protection reported 169 encounters with non-U.S. citizens identified as potential matches with names on the terrorism watch list. A broad category of individuals who may have only tangential

connections to note extremist, but nevertheless remain a matter of grave concern for terrorism experts in this heightened threat environment.

CHRISTOPHER O'LEARY, THE SOUFAN GROUP: Terrorist groups are learning and adaptive organizations. They've identified vulnerability that the United States has.

JULIETTE KAYYEM, FORMER DHS ASSISTANT SECRETARY: What we need to do is police and target our resources so that we stop people from entering illegally or if they present themselves at a border crossing, ensure they never make it in if they are in fact a terror threat.

While officials say the group known as ISIS-K, an ISIS affiliate based in Afghanistan, has dramatically ramped up its online fine propaganda machine.

O'LEARY: The scope of the problem is really massive. The problem since September 11 continued to metastasize. The enemy has not stopped. They're committed to causing violence and harm to us.

We have to be committed to protecting this country.

Now security experts say that groups like ISIS-K are focused less on training operatives abroad to send to the United States but more on online radicalization, trying to find the so-called lone wolf.

Of course, that kind of threat is much more difficult for law enforcement here to identify if you have a group of people communicating with each other that can result in possible detection. Much more difficult if you have one lone individual who might not telegraph to anyone what they're potentially about to do -- Josh Campbell, CNN, Los Angeles.

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COREN: There are new developments along the Israel-Lebanon border. Israel said a short time ago that it launched airstrikes targeting Hezbollah after rockets were launched from Lebanon into Israel. It comes amid growing concerns over the risk of a wider war in the Middle East.

On Thursday, Hezbollah fired dozens of rockets into Israel. Many were intercepted in the air. The U.S. and France say they are working to calm the situation.

After the break, the Dallas Mavericks made a desperately needed comeback in the NBA finals. More on that court blowout.

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COREN: There will be no NBA finals sweep this year after embattled Dallas came roaring back in game number four on Friday. The Mavericks beat Boston by a staggering 38 points. That's the third largest margin of victory in NBA finals history.

Luka Doncic was the comeback kid, sinking 25 points in the top half. The superstar drew criticism for his performance in game three. The Celtics will again attempt to secure that record 18th title on Monday.

The USA has advanced from the group stage to the final stage at the T20 Cricket World Cup.

Or the way to the Super Eight, the Cinderella squad won its first ever T20 World Cup match against Canada, then upset world cricket power Pakistan. They will face South Africa next in Antigua on June 19th.

Round three of the U.S. Open golf tournament gets underway in a few hours in Pinehurst, North Carolina. As "WORLD SPORT's" Patrick Snell reports, everyone's watching a young Swede playing in his first U.S. Open.

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PATRICK SNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When it comes to breakout stars in the world of golf, look no further than the young Swedish player Ludvig Aberg. The 24-year old only turned professional 12 months ago.

He was runner-up at the Masters early this year. And now he'll take a one-shot lead into the third round at the U.S. Open after firing a 69 in the second round on Friday.

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LUDVIG ABERG, ROOKIE PRO GOLFER: Sometimes I have to stop for a little bit and think about how fortunate I am to be able to do this at this level. But I also feel like I have a very, very good team with people around me that I trust a lot. And hopefully we'll be able to do this for a long time.

QUESTION: Do you ever sort of pinch yourself in disbelief sometimes?

ABERG: Yes, I think so.

I mean, obviously, to be able to play these tournaments, to be able to play with the guys that I watched on TV for such a long time, is definitely a pinch me moment. Yes.

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SNELL: Meantime, there was relief for world number one Scottie Scheffler, who avoided missing the cut for the first time since August of 2022. The Masters champ making it through to the weekend at five over par

while there was huge disappointment for Tiger Woods. The three-time champ missing his second straight cut at a major. And the 48-year-old telling me afterwards, this may or may not be his last ever U.S. Open -- Patrick Snell, CNN, Pinehurst, North Carolina.

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COREN: For many first-time homebuyers, it can feel like it's impossible to afford a house these days. Well, a new report sums up those feelings by creating a new category that labels some cities as, quote, "impossibly unaffordable."

And right here in Hong Kong tops that list. U.S. cities on the West Coast and Hawaii occupied five of the top 10 most unaffordable places. The report pointed to pandemic era demand along with policies to limit urban sprawl and investors piling into markets as reasons that sent home prices soaring.

Well, thanks so much for joining us. I'm Anna Coren in Hong Kong. CNN NEWSROOM continues after a short break. Stay with us.