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White House Ramps Up Pressure On Ukraine As London Peace Talks Falter; President Trump Says Tariffs On China Will Come Down Substantially; Mourners Crowd Vatican To Honor Pope Francis And Say Farewell; Anti-Pakistan Protests After Attack on Kashmir Tourists; Palestinian President Abbas Calls On Hamas To Free Hostages; Apple and Meta Combined Face $800M in E.U. Antitrust Fines; Refugee Family Recalls How Pope Francis Gave Them New Life. Aired 12-12:45a ET
Aired April 24, 2025 - 00:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: The Art of Capitulation ahead on CNN Newsroom.
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J.D. VANCE, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: To either say yes or for the United States to walk away from this process.
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VAUSE: The White House proposes a pro Russia take it or leave it peace plan for ending the war in Ukraine. Last month he was the unbreakable president refusing to bend on trade policy.
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DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: Back in along very well with President Xi and hope we can make a deal.
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VAUSE: Beijing confirms talks are underway with Washington, but warns the blackmail and threats must stop.
Also this hour. And so it begins. A farewell to Pope Francis flying in state with thousands of mourners paying their last respects.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: From CNN Center. This is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: Donald Trump promised an end to the war in Ukraine on day one in the White House 92 days later comes a proposed peace plan which officials have described as his final offer. Mid threats, the U.S. will walk away from peace negotiations if this deal is rejected.
President Trump believes the Russians are on board, but the Ukrainian president is not. And there is one glaring reason why. The proposed peace deal would require an almost total capitulation by Ukraine and would withdraw Russia for three years of a war of choice. According to the U.S. Vice president, this plan would freeze the front
lines of the war. With Ukraine formally recognizing Russian control of Crimea, which was illegally annexed by Moscow in 2014, it's a non- starter for Ukraine.
Russia would also remain in control of almost all the Ukrainian territory it captured since the start of the 2022 invasion. And in return, Ukraine gets almost nothing tangible, just vague promises of security guarantees and future membership of the EU, but not NATO. Little wonder why the plan has not been received well by the Ukrainian president, much to the annoyance of Donald Trump.
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TRUMP: I just want to see the war end. I don't care if they're both happy. They both sign an agreement. I have no favorites. I don't want to have any favorites. I want to have a deal done. I want to save their lives.
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VAUSE: More now from CNN's Fred Pleitgen reporting in from Moscow.
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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Russian state TV praising the Trump administration after the vice president issued a stern warning sign a ceasefire deal now.
VANCE: We've issued a very explicit proposal to both the Russians and the Ukrainians and it's time for them to either say yes or for the United States to walk away from this process.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Kyiv is refusing to hear the warnings, the anchor says. President Trump is fuming after Kyiv says it won't meet one of his key demands, de facto acknowledging Crimea, which Russia has been occupying for 11 years as Russian territory.
Trump lashing out at Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a social media post. The situation for Ukraine is dire, he writes. He can have peace or he can fight for another three years before losing the whole country.
While the White House hasn't confirmed details, an official familiar with the framework tells it would also put a ceasefire in place along the current front lines of the war, meaning Russia would get to keep nearly all the territory its forces have occupied since the start of the full on invasion in 2022.
But after another night of major drone attacks left more than a dozen dead across Ukraine, one official, Kyiv residents in no mood to be told to give up lands. Peace is not worth any bargaining, this woman says. Bargaining is simply not possible. We do not need peace at this price.
And he says, I think it's right that Ukraine defended its borders and said that Crimea is part of Ukraine and did not recognize it as part of Russia. But on the streets of Moscow, a very different scene, optimism still prevailing that a deal can be made with the help of President Trump.
Of course we believe a settlement is possible, this man says. You just need to sit down at the negotiating table to make the settlement possible. Earlier, Biden's administration did not even try to reach an agreement, this man adds, no one listened to us, did not want to listen to us. Today they heard us and hope emerged for us to reach an agreement.
And I ask this man if he thinks Trump could forge a peace deal. I don't think so, he says. Our president will call the shots.
And Russian leader Vladimir Putin once again showing he is calling the shots, meeting with his military industrial commission, telling them to make more weapons and fast. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.
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[00:05:09]
VAUSE: Well, for more of the implications of this proposed peace deal, go to Los Angeles. And Robert English, Director of Central European Studies at the University of Southern California. He's also a former policy analyst at the Pentagon. Rob, thanks for being with us.
ROBERT ENGLISH, DIRECTOR OF CENTRAL EUROPEAN STUDIES, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA: Quite welcome.
VAUSE: So I want you to listen to the U.S. vice president talking about sacrifices, sacrifices both sides will have to make to stop the killing in his words.
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VANCE: The Ukrainians and the Russians are both going to have to give up some of the territory they currently own. There's going to have to be some territorial swaps. So I wouldn't say the exact lines, but we want the killing to stop.
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VAUSE: For Ukraine, that means giving up all of Crimea. That's 10,000 square miles of territory, population 1.9 million. According to Axios, Russia will return a small area of Kharkiv, which is Ukrainian territory under Russian occupation. So there is no territorial swaps. That's just not true.
Is that statement by Vance tacit admission of just how pro Russia this proposal really is?
ENGLISH: Yes, it's an admission of what the whole world can see. And, you know, President Trump can try to spin it by saying things like, as long as both sides are happy or both sides are trading, but they're not. It's 100 percent pro Russian, and Ukraine gets nothing out of it. But what Trump is learning is that there is power and then there's
power. There's ethical power, there's moral power, there's courage. Ukraine is losing this war, and yet they refuse to sign such an unbalanced deal. And our European allies are stiffening their spine and providing the arms that we're cutting off. And lo and behold, Trump thought he could muscle Zelenskyy and he can't.
VAUSE: Yes. This has been going on for three months here. That peace deal on day one just hasn't appeared. And now Donald Trump says this is his last offer. Listen to this.
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TRUMP: I think we have a deal with Russia. We have to get a deal with Zelenskyy, and I hope that Zelenskyy, I thought it might be easier to deal with Zelenskyy. So far, it's been harder, but that's OK.
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VAUSE: Zelenskyy says he's not giving up Crimea because it's just not, possibly from a legal point of view, because of the Ukrainian constitution. But explain why it's just so unacceptable to Ukrainians in the context of all they have lost over the past few years.
ENGLISH: That's exactly it. They're getting nothing in return. They're not. Even if they were to agree to give up most or all of this territory that's being demanded in return, NATO membership, some kind of concrete security guarantees, some kind of major economic invested. No, they're getting their minerals stolen. No NATO membership and no security guarantee.
Who'd accept this deal? Even the most desperate, as the Ukrainians are, would turn it down because it's even worse than the current situation. And as I said, they're going to show, perhaps President Trump, they're certainly trying with the European allies behind them, that they can make up for what America is not giving.
And they can turn global public opinion against President Trump and maybe he'll have to reconsider his position instead of sort of, you know, taking his ball and stomping away in a huff because he didn't get his way. It's really, really unprecedentedly amateurish diplomacy to be approaching things this way and then act so petulantly when the obvious what we could expect happened is happening.
VAUSE: And President Trump continues to publicly criticize Zelenskyy. He posted on social media the statement made by Zelenskyy today will do nothing but prolong the killing field. And nobody wants that. We are very close to a deal, but the man with no cards to play should now finally get it done.
This line from Trump and others at the White House about stopping the killing, what it fails to take into account is the likelihood of Russia launching another full scale invasion of Ukraine in the not too distant future. Even if the deal was in place, at best, this peace plan would delay more bloodshed and to a time of Putin's choosing, wouldn't? ENGLISH: It very well might. It is just a rotten deal all around. And what those of us who've studied diplomacy, war and peace, you know, our whole lives for decades, are also amazed at is how they went into this so amateurishly. We have never seen a major negotiation over a major international issue where the, you know, where the staffs, where the foreign ministries, where the deputies had not worked hard, tested variants and basically hammered out at least the outline of agreement in advance.
But to go to the table like this with no agreement whatsoever with the two sides miles apart, and then think that in the space of a few days or weeks, you can muscle them into agreement, especially when all the muscling is going one way, it's just ridiculous.
VAUSE: The other point about this deal, too, it comes from a point of view. It seems that, you know, both sides here are equally as bad as the other, that there is not a clear victim which is Ukraine and a clear aggressor, Russia.
[00:10:03]
And in those circumstances, usually it's the aggressor which pays the highest price. Any kind of peace settlement.
ENGLISH: Well, that we'd like that to be the case. It isn't -- it hasn't always been that way, you know, and many wars have ended, you know, with the stronger side getting the better settlement. Look, the way the wars in the former Yugoslavia ended was very favorable to the Serbian dominant side in Bosnia. But at least there was some horse trading and some semblance of, you know, a fairer deal. Nothing like this.
You know, we do expect that the side that's militarily more powerful, that's advancing is probably going to get better conditions, but not 100 to 0 as in this proposal.
VAUSE: Robert, thanks for being with us. Robert, with some very good points. Appreciate your time.
ENGLISH: You're welcome.
VAUSE: Thank you. Another shift in trade policy from the White House with Donald Trump warning reciprocal tariffs could be reimposed on some countries within weeks. They fail to reach a new trade deal with the US. But on China, President Trump appears to be taking a much softer approach. He's optimistic about reaching a deal and gave details of what will happen if they don't.
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TRUMP: I think what's going to happen is we're going to have great deals. And by the way, if we don't have a deal with a company or a country, we're going to set the tariff. We just set the tariff. It's something that we think that will happen, I'd say over the next couple of weeks. When you say I think so, over the next two or three weeks, we'll be setting the number and we're going to pick -- could be for China, too. Could be for China.
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VAUSE: Officials in Beijing say they are open to talks with the United States, but the bullying and threats must stop. And according to the treasury secretary Scott Bessent, rebalancing trade with China could take up to three years.
This latest change to tariffs came after the president met with the CEOs of major retailers Monday. Sources telling CNN President Trump was repeatedly warned his policies would cause supply chain disruptions and leave store shelves empty.
Investors on Wall Street seemed encouraged by the softer stance on China. Significant gains for a second day on Wednesday morning. From CNN's Jeff Zeleny reporting in from the White House.
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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Trump signaling on Wednesday once again that he is eager to make a trade deal with China. Of course, for weeks this trade war between the two superpowers has escalated bit by bit. China has not blinked at all. The U.S. suddenly is saying it wants to lower those 145 percent tariffs, but only if China meets the U.S. part way. But the U.S. President had this to say Wednesday night in the Oval Office.
TRUMP: I get along very well with President Xi and I hope we can make a deal. Otherwise we'll set a price and hopefully they'll come here and they'll contribute. And if they don't, that's so certainly.
ZELENY: A softer, friendlier tone, if you will, echoed by the Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent as well. He was trying to explain the America first agenda, of course, a key part of the Trump administration's plans. But he said the U.S. is willing to reach out to China. They are in fact eager for President Xi to reach out to the United States.
Now in this back and forth escalating trade war, China has not blinked at all. The United States has on several occasions. It is clear because of the negative reaction in the fiscal markets, just the idea of the economy and the supply chain slowing. The president is trying to shake things up a bit and get his trade war with China unstuck, if you will. So certainly a softer tone from President Trump. We will see if China responds. Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.
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VAUSE: Tensions are rising between India and Pakistan after the deadliest attack on civilians India in nearly two decades. Protesters in three Indian cities blame Pakistan Tuesday's terror attack which killed 26 people as gunmen opened fire in a popular tourist area India controlled Kashmir. Pakistani flags were set on fire amid chants of down with Pakistan. Pakistan though denies any role in Tuesday's massacre.
The search for the gunman continues. So too an investigation into who was behind the attack despite a little non militant group called the Resistance Front claiming responsibility. The Indian government has now suspended a critical water treaty with Pakistan, one of several measures against its neighbor.
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VIKRAM MISRI, INDIA FOREIGN SECRETARY: The Indus waters Treaty of 1960 will be held in abeyance with immediate effect. The integrated checkpost Atari will be closed with immediate effect. Pakistani nationals will not be permitted to travel to India under the SARC visa exemption scheme visas. The defense military, naval and air advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi are declared Persona non grata. Support staff of the service advisers will also be withdrawn from both high commissions.
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VAUSE: Pakistan's foreign minister denounced the suspension of the water treaty. Islam, its national security committee is set to meet in the coming hours to determine its response.
[00:15:00]
President of the Palestinian Authority is now demanding Hamas disarm and also release all remaining Israeli hostages in Gaza. In a fiery speech, Mahmoud Abbas laid out his vision for a unified Palestinian state and strongly criticized the militant group Hamas.
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MAHMOUD ABBAS, PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY PRESIDENT (through translator): Stop the Israeli genocidal war in the Gaza Strip. This really must stop. Every day there are hundreds of deaths. Why don't they want to hand over the American hostage? You sons of dogs. Just hand over the hostages and let's get out of this mess. Block their excuses.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Hamas was quick to reject those demands from Abbas and also questioned his competence. This comes amid a renewed push for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, with Egypt also floating the idea of Hamas disarming.
A long lines and wait times as large crowds come to say farewell to Pope Francis, who is now lying in stock State in St. Peter's Basilica. Details in just a moment.
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VAUSE: Thousands of mourners traveling to the Vatican to pay their respects to the man known as the people's Pope. Many have been waiting in line for hours. In return for just a few seconds before the coffin of Pope Francis, a poignant moment to honor his life of service and compassion. The pontiff will be lying in State at St. Peter's Basilica for two
more days before his funeral on Saturday. The famous doors to the basilica are currently closed but will reopen to the public in less than an hour from now. More details from CNN's Ben Wedeman.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In reverence and respect, the faithful united in tribute to Pope Francis Wednesday from the modest chapel at Casa Santa Marta through the storied streets of the Vatican.
Pope Francis simple wooden coffin held aloft by pallbearers and followed by his cardinals and Swiss Guard in a somber cortege. The historic procession was welcomed to St Peter's Square by more than 20,000 people, the Vatican said.
The applause of two and faithful following his open coffin as it was moved into the basilica. Here the pope will lie in state before his funeral Saturday, coffin on the floor, his hands clasping, the rosary a mark of his wish for simplicity in death as in life.
After the service, a chance for the faithful to say farewell, lines of mourners who had queued since the early hours flooding in.
Irma Herrera-Recio and her 80 year old mother were in the crowds when the pope appeared at Easter Sunday Mass. Days later, they're back to say goodbye.
IRMA HERRERA-RECIO, VISITING FROM LOS ANGELES: This has been her dream to come to the Vatican, come to Rome and get to see the pope. We were hoping we would have him for a while because of all the wonderful things that he did,
LOUIS KEMAYOU, VISITING FROM U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS: Faithful and men and women of good will. So I was so humbled to be among those who honored that great man.
WEDEMAN (voice-over): The pope's body now back with the flock he loved ahead of his funeral and burial. Ben Wedeman, CNN Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: A disgraced cardinal officially declared a non-elector ahead of the conclave is demanding to be allowed to take part. Cardinal Giovanni Angelo Bicciu is the first cardinal to be convicted in the Vatican's criminal court. Found guilty of embezzlement and fraud in 2023. He maintains his innocence and his appeal is still under consideration.
The dean of the College of Cardinals will likely decide if he will be allowed to participate in the conclave.
An expletive laced argument in the West Wing. Ahead, what the White House is saying about a dust up between Elon Musk and the U.S. Treasury Secretary. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[00:08:18]
VAUSE: Welcome back to CNN Newsroom. I'm John Vause. Let's check today's top stories. U.S. President Donald Trump ramping up pressure on Ukraine to accept a peace plan to end the war with Russia. President Zelenskyy rejected a key part of the plan for Ukraine to formally recognize Russian control of Crimea, which Moscow illegally annexed in 2014.
President Trump says he could reimpose reciprocal tariffs on some countries within the next two to three weeks unless they make a deal. The White House says more than 100 countries have reached out to the U.S. but so far little sign of any actual progress.
India has suspended a critical water sharing treaty with Pakistan. Retaliation after militants with links to Pakistan were accused of attacking a popular tourist spot India controlled Kashmir Tuesday. At least 26 people were killed. Pakistan denies any role in the attack and has denounced India's suspension of that treaty.
Billionaire Elon Musk and billionaire U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reportedly got into a screaming match last week at the White House. According to the news site Axios, Musk and Scott Bessent shouted expletives at each other while arguing about the leadership of the Internal Revenue Service.
The White House press secretary does not deny the claim, and she says it's part of the way things work in the Trump White House.
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KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Look, there are disagreements amongst the president's staff and cabinet sometimes, but we think that's part of the healthy debate process. And everybody knows that ultimately President Trump is the decision maker.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: A few weeks ago, Musk got into an argument with economic advisor Peter Navarro, calling him a moron. Musk has just announced he'll be stepping back from his high profile role within the Trump administration after a plunge in profits and sales at Tesla.
[00:30:09]
The E.U. has fined Apple and Meta nearly $800 million combined in the first enforcement of its landmark digital competition law. The antitrust fines risk escalating tensions between the E.U. and the Trump administration, as CNN's Clare Sebastian reports.
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CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, this was a delicate moment for the European Union, given the current trade climate.
On the one hand, they had to be seen to be enforcing their digital laws.
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): But with Trump's reciprocal tariffs paused and Europe hoping they'll be dropped completely, they also had reason to avoid inflaming further tensions with the U.S., especially because the Trump administration has made it clear it sees Europe's tech regulations as non-tariff barriers, against which it could retaliate with tariffs.
So, the fines themselves are relatively modest. Apple, which was found by the E.U. to not be doing enough to allow app developers to steer users to offers outside the app store, well, they were fined around $570 million. Small change for a company that made almost $400 billion in annual revenue last year.
Now Meta, which the E.U. says, through its consent or pay system on Facebook and Instagram, didn't offer users who didn't consent to their personal data being used for personalized advertising and equivalent service, which uses less of their personal data. Well, they were hit with a fine of around $230 million.
SEBASTIAN: Previous antitrust penalties in Europe have been in the billions.
But --
SEBASTIAN (voice-over): -- there's a sting. Both companies have to pay the fines and change their behavior within 60 days. Meta already has a fix in place, which the E.U. is assessing, or they risk fines going up.
And both companies have slammed the decision. Apple promising to appeal, saying the E.U. decisions are, quote, "bad for the privacy and security of our users, bad for products, and force us to give away our technology for free."
Meta going even further, saying that "the commission forcing us to change our business model effectively imposes a multi-billion-dollar tariff on Meta, while requiring us to offer an inferior service."
SEBASTIAN: The pointed use there of the word "tariff," which this isn't, making it clear that, while the E.U. is still willing to get tough on tech, the political climate and Trump's trade war have raised the stakes.
Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: When we come back here on CNN, a group of Syrian refugees remember Pope Francis for his compassion and help, which changed their lives.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [00:37:08]
VAUSE: Parts of Turkey were shaken by a 6.2 magnitude quake Wednesday. The epicenter was just off the coast near Istanbul.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
(CRASHES OF THINGS FALLING)
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VAUSE: CNN affiliate CNN Turk live on-air at the time of the earthquake. Aftershocks were also felt for hours.
Officials say more than 150 people were hurt.
Thousands of mourners waiting in line for hours for a chance to see Pope Francis as he lies in state at St. Peter's Basilica.
About 50 people passed the coffin every minute, giving mourners just a moment to pay their respects to the people's pope.
From the very first days of his papacy, Pope Francis advocated for the poor, for migrants, as well as refugees.
CNN's Clarissa Ward has the story of a group of Syrian refugees and how the pontiff changed their lives.
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WAFAA EID, FAMILY RELOCATED TO ITALY: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It was a day Wafaa Eid will never forget: arriving on Italian soil with Pope Francis on his personal plane.
WARD: And how were you feeling in this moment? (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
EID: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD: "We felt safe."
EID: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD (voice-over): Safe for the first time since leaving war-torn Syria. Wafaa, her husband, and their two children, were among three families assisted by the Catholic charity Sant'Egidio to leave the Lesbos refugee camp in Greece and start a new life in Italy.
Their host: the pope himself.
"He came to greet each one of us," she tells us. "And he placed a hand on my son Omar's head."
"How did you feel," I ask her.
"A dream," she says. "It was like a dream."
Back in Rome, Pope Francis invited the families to lunch as they settled in.
WARD: Omar?
EID: Si.
WARD: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD (voice-over): She remembers him as calm and kind.
EID: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
He's smiling so nicely.
WARD (voice-over): Wafaa and her children have now been in Italy for nine years. As the political tide has turned against welcoming refugees, she is acutely aware of how fortunate they are.
WARD: What do you think that Pope Francis saw that other leaders did not?
EID: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD (voice-over): "In my opinion, he saw that refugees are also humans," she said. "That they are people. They feel; they get sick; they have families; and they also have a right to live well."
[00:40:07]
WARD: If you had the opportunity to speak to Pope Francis one more time before he had died, what would you like him to know?
EID: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
WARD (voice-over): "I would tell him, thank you," she says. "Just thank you."
Clarissa Ward, CNN, Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: I'm John Vause, back at the top of the hour with more CNN NEWSROOM. Stay with us. WORLD SPORT starts after a short break, but we shall leave you with live images from inside St. Peter's Basilica.
This is the scene right now. It is 20 minutes to seven in the morning there at Vatican City. The doors to St. Peter's will reopen in about 20 minutes. You're watching CNN. Back at the top of the hour.
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(WORLD SPORT)
