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Putin-Zelenskyy Meeting Up in the Air; Palestinians Flee as Israel Plans to Occupy Gaza City; Trump Ramps Up Attacks on Museums; China Keenly Watching Ukraine Talks; Taiwan on Edge as China Watches Negotiations Over Ukraine; U.S. Government Considering Taking Stake in Chipmaker Intel. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired August 20, 2025 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:22]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: It was all going so well until the Kremlin got involved, ahead on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEXANDER STUBB, FINNISH PRESIDENT (through translator): We must remember that Putin is rarely to be trusted.

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VAUSE: Will Putin be a no show after the White House announces he will meet with Volodymyr Zelenskyy? The Kremlin now slowing down the clock with talk of thorough and proper preparation.

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PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Everyone is scared, he says. People are waiting for a statement from the Israelis to evacuate the area. It could come any minute.

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VAUSE: Anxiety and fear as Palestinians in Gaza City wait for Israeli occupation. But many ask, what's left to occupy?

And bracing for Erin along the U.S. East Coast. While the category two storm will not make landfall it will bring hurricane force winds and storm surges.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN NEWSROOM with John Vause.

VAUSE: The Kremlin seems to be gumming up the works for a potential one-on-one meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents. U.S. President Donald Trump says Putin has agreed to meet Zelenskyy. And the White House is now working out the details to make it happen, possibly within two weeks.

In Moscow, Kremlin officials are not ruling out a summit, but Putin has yet to publicly commit to this one. With the Russian foreign minister talking of the need for thorough preparations before the two leaders actually meet.

And after meeting with Putin and Zelenskyy separately in recent days, Donald Trump says now is the time for Russia and Ukraine to hold bilateral talks. The president has been pushing for those direct talks between the leaders. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt explains why.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He wants these two countries to engage in direct diplomacy. He said that from the very beginning, which is why he's agreeable to the idea of having President Zelenskyy and President Putin get together. And I understand accommodations for that meeting are underway. As soon as we hear more details, we'll be sure to let all of you know.

The president has definitively stated U.S. boots will not be on the ground in Ukraine, but we can certainly help in the coordination and perhaps provide other means of security guarantees to our European allies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Ukrainian allies in the so-called Coalition of the Willing met virtually Tuesday discussing security guarantees as well as possible new economic sanctions on Russia. And in the hours ahead, security guarantees for Ukraine will be the main focus during a virtual meeting of NATO military leaders.

And despite all the diplomatic talk and push for peace, Russian attacks on Ukrainian cities and towns are not letting up, with the largest aerial assault in a month on the same day Trump and Zelenskyy were meeting at the White House.

CNN's Jeff Zeleny has been following all the developments. He's reporting in now from the White House.

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JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: President Trump and the White House still making plans for a potential meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, although the Kremlin has not yet agreed to this meeting.

Now, the president making clear that it was his idea for this one-on- one meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I had a very successful meeting with President Putin, I had a very successful meeting with President Zelenskyy, and now I thought it would be better if they met without me, just to see. I want to see what goes on. You know, they had a hard relationship, very bad, very bad relationship. And now we'll see how they do. And if necessary, and it probably would be, but if necessary, I'll go and I'll probably be able to get it closed. I just want to see what happens at the meeting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENY: And those were the president's words in a new radio interview on Tuesday evening, making clear that he believed a one-on-one meeting with Putin and Zelenskyy would be better before he joined them. Of course, all of that is still very much an open question.

Now, some potential locations the White House is saying for a meeting, should it happen, would be possibly Switzerland, possibly even Hungary. The Middle East also a possibility. Even the United Nations in New York City, they're having their general assembly, their annual fall meeting just next month, that's also one possibility.

But so many questions are still hanging over all of this. Security guarantees are chief among them. Now, President Trump saying on Tuesday he will not put American troops on the ground. That is a bit of a reversal from what he said Monday, when he did not rule out that possibility. However, air support, he said, is something that he will still consider. So, so many questions still hanging over all of this, even as fighting continues in Ukraine.

Jeff Zeleny, CNN, the White House.

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[00:05:02]

VAUSE: When it comes to security guarantees and peacekeeping missions, few, if any, know more than General Wesley Clark. He's a former Supreme Allied commander of NATO and founder of the nonprofit organization Renew America Together.

It's good to see you, sir. Thank you for being with us.

GEN. WESLEY CLARK (RET.), FORMER NATO SUPREME ALLIED COMMANDER: Thank you, John.

VAUSE: So the term security guarantees, it's fairly vague. It means different things to different people. But in the terms of keeping the peace in Ukraine after the war, CNN's Tim Lister has this analysis. "A fully fledged assurance force fanning out across a 1,000 kilometer, 600-mile front line would require far more than 100,000 troops, a huge stretch for European armies, which have shrunk since the end of the Cold War."

So from your perspective, what is a minimum number of troops needed to be effective? Where would they come from? Typically, how long would they actually stay in country? These are -- there are myriad questions here which are yet to be answered. And it is complicated stuff.

CLARK: Well, the number of troops is a function of other elements of the peace agreement. So, for example, are there confidence building measures? Are there limits on how many troops the Russians can have in the front lines? Ten kilometers behind the front lines, 100 kilometers behind the front lines? Are there limitations on weapons systems that can be there? Are there required notifications of exercises and not only in Ukraine, but also in neighboring Belarus?

So all. Of. These things -- is there overflight permission? Is there a commission that can investigate alleged violations of these? So all of this is part of -- has to be developed as part of a peace agreement. Then, you get all this, you get what you want, then you have to figure out, OK, what is required? Well, first of all, Ukraine is not going to demobilize all its forces. It shouldn't. It can't.

It can never totally trust the elements put in by the international organizations. Why? Because it doesn't control them. They're controlled by sovereign states. So when the tensions ratch up -- ratchet up, what if Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Poland suddenly says, well, we're going to have to pull our troops back because we have to worry about our own country's defense? But I think it's important also to look at what the rules of engagement are.

So let's see -- let's say there is a violation, well, then, what happens? Does the local commander, if he's attacked, shoot back? If the local commander hasn't been attacked, but he sees the Russians crossing, does he initiate contact? Does he have air support? And who's going to provide it and who's going to regulate what the targets are? So there's so many of these details that are really important. And at every one of these, many of them will be included in an agreement. You can count on Russia to fight back.

VAUSE: You know, when it comes to making a peace deal here to end Vladimir Putin's war of choice, and it was his war of choice, the U.S. president seems to believe that Ukraine will be the one paying a much higher price than Russia.

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TRUMP: Look, everybody can play cute and this and that. But, you know, Ukraine is going to get their life back. They're going to stop having people killed all over the place, and they're going to get a lot of land. But this was a war. And Russia is a powerful military nation, you know, whether people like it or not.

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VAUSE: What is it? Since 1932, the U.S. has followed the Stimson Doctrine, which is essentially the U.S. will not recognize land seized by one country after invading another. There would be no reward for aggressive military action. It seems, whether he's aware of it or not, is President Trump abandoning that doctrine?

CLARK: 75, almost 80 years of work since the end of World War II has been premised on the idea that nation's borders cannot be changed by force, and that the United States would work with others in the international community to prevent it. So you can't have a just peace in the case of Ukraine in which you reward the aggressor. This peace in Ukraine needs to return all the abducted people, account for all the missing. Russia should pay reparations. They've done $1 trillion worth of damage.

They shouldn't be allowed to keep the area that they've conquered including Crimea. Now that's simply a fact of what a just peace would be.

VAUSE: What is interesting is that the Russian president has been making these outsized demands for Ukrainian territory in the east, territory which he doesn't even control at the moment. And his foreign minister, though, is telling the world that this war is not about seizing land. Here's Lavrov. Listen to this.

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SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): I would like to emphasize once again that we have never talked about the need to seize any territories. Neither Crimea nor Donbas, nor Novorossiya, as territories have ever been our goal. Our goal was to protect Russian people who lived on these lands for centuries.

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[00:10:10]

VAUSE: Yes. The practical implications of what he's saying is it's a distinction without a difference. So, you know, why make that distinction?

CLARK: Well, first of all, Russia speaks with many voices, but around a central theme. So there was never any oppression of Russian speaking people in Crimea or Donbas. Those populations voted overwhelmingly for independence from Russia in 1991. And in 2014, they weren't being oppressed. It was Russia's desire to restore the boundaries, the region of the Soviet Union and Soviet control in Eastern Europe.

And Putin has made no bones about this. He said the greatest tragedy of the 20th Century was the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The strongest army in Europe right now, excluding Turkey, is Ukraine. If Ukraine is not supported, if Ukraine's army collapses because of manipulation, neglect, lack of supplies, just the complete bubbling of this as this peace talk discussion goes on for days and weeks and months perhaps, Europe has lost its front line of defense.

VAUSE: General Wesley Clark, sir, thank you very much for being with us and sharing your experiences and your insights. Very much appreciated.

No word probably yet from Israel on a new ceasefire proposal to end the fighting in Gaza put forward by Egypt and Qatar. Officials from Hamas, though, agreed to the plan more than a day ago. Families of Israeli hostages, though, still held by Hamas received a text from a government official that negotiations are taking place around the clock and they require full confidentiality.

Under this ceasefire, fighting would stop for 60 days and about half of the hostages, living and dead, would be released. The White House has pointed to President Trump's statement on social media calling for Hamas to be, quote, "confronted and destroyed," as one reason why the militant group has agreed so quickly to this ceasefire proposal.

Israel's prime minister is set to meet with top security officials on Thursday to approve plans to occupy Gaza City. Many residents in that besieged city are now fleeing in fear of what may come next.

CNN's Paula Hancocks has our report.

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HANCOCKS (voice-over): Gaza City is more like a tent city these days. Buildings that are still standing are damaged. Some appear dangerously close to collapse. But even this scene of ruin is now changing.

Montasser Abu al-Siddiq is one of many packing up his makeshift home, planning to flee Gaza City with whatever he and his family can carry ahead of a planned Israeli invasion. "Everyone is scared," he says. "People are waiting for a statement from the Israelis to evacuate the area. It could come any minute."

Israel's Security Cabinet approved plans earlier this month to expand the war and seize the city. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claiming it is the best way to end the war. It is a plan that has been met with international condemnation and warnings from the United Nations that it could trigger another calamity in Gaza.

The prospect of yet another forcible move seems almost impossible for some. Rima al-Masri's husband and son were injured during the war. With no money for transport she does not know how to move them along with her young daughters. "We don't know what to do," she says. "Life is destroyed and living is unbearable."

Azam Mohammed Dabo bakes bread for her family of 10. She says, "We'll have to adapt again to find the basics like water. If they move us, things will get even harder."

The U.N. says over 86 percent of Gaza is already under displacement orders or falls within Israeli militarized zones. Any attempt to force hundreds of thousands more into an ever-shrinking area would be devastating. Israeli strikes have been intensifying around Gaza City over recent weeks. 19-year-old Mira Abu Amer says the shelling was on the outskirts of town, but sounds closer since Monday. She describes how she calms her young brother.

MIRA ABU AMER, GAZA CITY RESIDENT: Don't be scared, Karim. This won't be the first or last time you hear that sound. It's far away. They won't do anything, so don't worry. Just go to sleep now. But deep down, I know those are just empty words to say to a kid his age. He shouldn't have to get used to this.

HANCOCKS: A continuing heatwave in the territory is also adding to the misery hindering the daily hunt for food and water. As Gaza City waits for Israel's military to take over, some displaced residents point out there's nothing left to occupy.

Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[00:15:08] VAUSE: For Donald Trump, it seems the Smithsonian focuses too much on how bad slavery was. In a moment, the latest round in Trump versus the museums.

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VAUSE: Much of the U.S. East Coast is seeing dangerous surf conditions from Hurricane Erin. And destructive waves and storm surges could reach North Carolina's outer banks in the day ahead. The state's governor has declared a state of emergency to free up resources ahead of the storm's impact.

[00:20:02]

Erin is just shy of category three strength, and while landfall is not expected, coastal flooding remains a concern. Bermuda could also be impacted by rough seas and tropical storm force winds a little later this week.

For Donald Trump, a visit to the Smithsonian Museum in Washington leaves him feeling there is too much emphasis on the dark chapters of American history. Like how bad slavery was. The campaign to rid cultural institutions of so-called woke agendas is similar to his crackdown on universities across the country.

And CNN's Kristen Holmes has more.

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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: President Trump escalated his attacks on Smithsonian museums today in a Truth Social post, posting this, said, "The Smithsonian is out of control where everything discussed is how horrible our country is, how bad slavery was, and how unaccomplished the downtrodden have been. Nothing about success, nothing about brightness, nothing about the future."

Now, there are a lot of reasons for concern over this post. We know that this comes after President Trump ordered a sweeping review of Smithsonian Institution. And I want to read to you a portion of the letter of why they said that they were ordering this review. They said that, "This aims to ensure alignment with the president's directive to celebrate American exceptionalism removed of divisive or partisan narratives and restore confidence in our shared cultural institutions."

Now, there were no specifics as to what exactly they were going to remove from these various Smithsonian museums, but there was a lot of concerns that this would be an effort on the White House's part to try and whitewash history, to try and get rid of some of the parts of history that are uglier, like slavery. But the things that make America, America.

Now, this post essentially to many is going to confirm that that is what the White House is looking to do, particularly when he's mentioning their slavery and saying essentially that all of these museums do is paint slavery in a negative light. And it's unclear how you would have slavery in a museum and not paint it in a dark or negative light.

It was obviously a very dark time in American history but again is part of what is the fabric that makes America the country it is today. So lots of concern already, lots of pushback, particularly now that we're seeing a little bit more in terms of specifics of what President Trump is trying to do when it comes to those Smithsonian museums.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: So what happens in Ukraine and what a peace deal might look like is being closely watched by Beijing. In a moment, what this means for the island of Taiwan and mainland China.

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[00:27:26]

VAUSE: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. Let's take a look at today's top stories.

The White House says planning for a Russia-Ukraine summit is underway with Vladimir Putin agreeing to talks with Volodymyr Zelenskyy. But the Kremlin has yet to make any firm commitment. Russia's foreign minister says meetings between top officials must be prepared with the utmost care.

Palestinians orphaned by the war in Gaza held a graduation ceremony in the city of Khan Younis Monday. Young children wiped away tears at Al- Wafa Orphanage Village. The Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics says more than 39,000 children have lost at least one parent as a result of the war, including about 17,000 who have lost both parents. And it's being described as the largest orphan crisis in modern history.

And Hurricane Erin is bringing life threatening rip currents to the U.S. East Coast. Just shy of a category three strength, it's prompted a state of emergency in North Carolina. The state's outer banks region could see destructive waves and storm surge in the coming hours.

China has been keeping a close eye on negotiations over Ukraine. Experts believe Beijing is looking for cracks in Western unity and possibly opportunities to launch an invasion of its own.

CNN's Will Ripley explains.

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WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As U.S. President Donald Trump poses for talks with Ukraine's president, China's leaders see something very different. Opportunity.

Observers of Chinese leader Xi Jinping said what's at stake is nothing less than reshaping the world order, perhaps even tilt the balance of power toward Beijing. When it comes to Russia's war in Ukraine, China's official position

remains objective and impartial, even promoting peace talks. But on China's tightly controlled social media, comments like these are meant to cast doubt on America's traditional alliances, and they're being allowed to go viral.

"Trump doesn't give a damn about Europe. Trump loves Putin so much he did everything he could to become president just to protect him and keep him safe." A popular pro-Chinese government researcher predicts, "Cracks in the Western alliance will continue to deepen. NATO's role will be weakened. The E.U. and Japan will continue to be marginalized, and Ukraine is destined to be the biggest loser."

All of it rattling nerves here in Taiwan, a small island claimed but never controlled by China's communist leaders.

VANESSA CHEN, TAIPEI RESIDENT: I cannot predict what Trump is going to do. I do feel like we are like one of the items on the list that can be traded for Trump's -- for his own good.

[00:30:09]

RIPLEY (voice-over): "I do worry that Taiwan's security will be traded away," he says. "But I also believe there will be other ways for Taiwan to protect itself."

Trump claims President Xi personally promised not to invade this island democracy, at least while Trump's in office.

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: He told me, I will never do it as long as you're president. That -- President Xi told me that.

And I said, "Well, I appreciate that."

But he also said, But I am very patient. And China is very patient.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Taiwan's government says it's "continuously committed to improving its self-defense capabilities," recently holding its largest ever military drills, putting billions in U.S.- supplied weapons on full display.

Chinese commentators certainly took note when Trump cozied up to Russian strongman Vladimir Putin in Alaska, saying NATO's role is shrinking and the West is fracturing, something Xi Jinping may have predicted even before Trump's reelection.

We dug up this Russian state media footage from the Kremlin more than two years ago. Xi is on camera telling Putin, "Change is coming that hasn't happened in 100 years. And we're driving this change together."

The world is bracing for what comes next.

RIPLEY: Observers say Beijing is definitely watching for an opening here. Trump's warm approach to Putin could weaken unity between the U.S. and Europe, some fear, and that is something that China would welcome. It could give Xi Jinping more room to maneuver here in Taiwan. Beijing

has vowed to take this island democracy by force, if necessary.

Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Still to come on CNN, American chipmaker Intel could soon have another new investor. That would be the U.S. government. We'll tell you why officials are considering a deal.

Also, giving new meaning to holy roller. We'll look at the massive undertaking to move an entire church just five kilometers down the road.

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VAUSE: The U.S. government is considering taking a stake in the struggling chipmaker Intel. The company just got a $2 billion investment from SoftBank in Japan.

Now, the question is what kind of boost Intel might get from the Trump administration. CNN's Clare Duffy reports.

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CLARE DUFFY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, a major potential lifeline for Intel with this $2 billion investment from SoftBank.

And now, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirming the reports that the Trump administration is looking at taking a potential equity stake in Intel, in an effort to boost the struggling American chip maker.

I think the big question is now, what does the White House do with that stake, with that influence, if they decide to take this sort of unusual step?

Of course, Intel has already had a CEO come and gone: Pat Gelsinger, who was brought in as this industry veteran, a company veteran who was thought of as sort of a saving grace, who would be able to turn Intel around.

But alas, he was not, in large part because the company just doesn't have technology that's as advanced as rivals like TSMC.

Now, Scott Bessent commented on this on CNBC on Tuesday, and he said the White House would not be planning to pressure other U.S. tech companies into buying Intel's subpar chips.

Let's take a listen to what he said.

SCOTT BESSENT, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: The last thing we're going to do is put pressure -- is take a stake and then try to drum up business. That the stake would be a conversion of the -- the grants and maybe increase the investment into Intel to help stabilize the -- stabilize the company for chip production here in the U.S.

There's no talk of trying to force companies to buy from Intel.

DUFFY: So, if the strategy is not to try to drum up business for Intel, perhaps the hope is that, with an investment from the Trump administration, perhaps also --

DUFFY (voice-over): -- with this $2 billion investment from SoftBank, Intel might be able to get a new Ohio chip making facility off the ground.

This is something that Intel has had to repeatedly delay because of its financial troubles. And the White House does want --

DUFFY: -- more chips made on American soil. I think the question is, just because you've got a new chip-making facility doesn't necessarily mean Intel will have customers to buy the chips that they would be making there.

And so, it'll be interesting to watch if the Trump administration has anything more to say on that piece of the problem, as this deal moves forward.

Clare Duffy, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Five kilometers, two days, and a 113-year-old church. The Kiruna Church was delicately lifted from its foundations Tuesday and then inched its way down a long, winding road. And in a few hours should reach its final destination.

The church is being relocated, along with 3,000 nearby residents, because the ground where it was built is sinking. That's due to the expansion of the world's largest underground iron ore mine.

The Kiruna Church is often voted the most beautiful wooden structure in Sweden. It's also one of the biggest.

Well, happy new year to the followers of the Universal White Brotherhood. Hundreds of people gathered in Bulgaria celebrating the divine new year. They braved cold temperatures near a mountain lake for this three-day ritual.

[00:40:05]

Founded in the 1920s, the Universal White Brotherhood's name refers to the light and purity of the soul. It combines a form of Christianity with Indian mysticism.

Happy new year, but it's not 2026 yet. Not by a long shot.

Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause, back with more news at the top of the hour. Please stay with us. In the meantime, WORLD SPORT is next.

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