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Trump Hits New Sanctions on Russia Following the Abandoned Meeting with Russia's Putin; Trump Administration Bares White House East Wing Construction Plans Despite Outcries from Critics; Louvre Reopens After Sunday's Heist, Museum Director's Resignation Turned Down by the French Government. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired October 23, 2025 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world and to everyone streaming us on CNN Max. I'm Rosemary Church. Just ahead.

Donald Trump hits Russia with new sanctions after deciding not to meet with President Putin.

The U.S. strikes a second boat in the eastern Pacific as part of the White House campaign on alleged drug smuggling vessels.

Plus, demolition day in D.C. We'll take a look at the Trump administration's new construction plans for the east wing of the White House as the outcry grows.

And the Louvre director is facing scrutiny as experts calculate the cost of the art heist.

UNKNOWN (voice-over): Live from Atlanta, this is "CNN Newsroom" with Rosemary Church.

CHURCH: Good to have you with us.

Well after months of threats and delays, U.S. President Donald Trump is now hitting Russia with significant new sanctions. This as his administration calls on Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in the war with Ukraine.

President Trump also announcing his expected meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin is off, for now at least. The new sanctions will target Russia's two largest oil companies, Rosneft and LukOil, and almost three-dozen of their subsidiaries.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says, quote, "Treasury is prepared to take further action if necessary to support President Trump's effort to end yet another war. We encourage our allies to join us and adhere to these sanctions." NATO Secretary General, who was visiting the White House, is welcoming

the administration's decision and says the U.S. President's leadership is crucial to negotiating with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: I have total confidence in President Trump and he is the only one who can get this done and who has a clear vision on bringing this war to a durable and lasting end.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: European Union countries have now formally adopted a 19th package of sanctions against Russia. It includes a ban on Russian liquefied natural gas imports. Today, E.U. leaders are meeting in Brussels, where Ukraine will be top of the agenda, the group is expected to focus on ways to step up support for Kyiv and increase pressure on Moscow.

Meantime, Ukraine is being pounded by a barrage of strikes across the country, including on a kindergarten in its second largest city.

CNN's Nic Robertson has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): More than 430 missiles and drones fired by Russia into Ukraine Tuesday into Wednesday, according to Ukrainian officials. They say they intercepted about 80 percent of them.

But this is another night that's so typical of the past month, where Russia is targeting civilian infrastructure. Six people killed in the area in Kyiv and the area around Kyiv, many others injured and power installations, energy plants. Also, the target plunging parts of Ukraine into darkness again.

The energy authorities in Ukraine saying that there are rolling blackouts because of Russia's continued strikes. And then during the day, a kindergarten in the northeastern city of Kharkiv came under attack, 48 children were rescued from there uninjured, according to officials. But one person was killed. Several others injured in that strike.

Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy in Sweden, beginning an agreement with the Swedish government and the manufacturer Saab who made the Gripen fighter aircraft. Zelenskyy saying that he hoped over time to be able to purchase more than 100 of these Swedish fighter jets. The air defense, of course, critical in Ukraine, the amount of munitions that Russia is firing, beginning to overwhelm and stretch the air defenses there.

And then moving on to Norway, the Norwegian prime minister giving the Ukrainian president a commitment of $150 million worth of energy supplies, again, to try to keep the heat on in Ukraine, to try to keep the lights on in Ukraine. [03:05:03]

The Ukrainian President speaking about his conversations with President Trump last week and President Trump's proposal that went to President Putin as well, that there should be a ceasefire in Ukraine and that the line should hold along the current front lines of battle. This is how the Ukrainian President framed it.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: After our conversation, you saw messages, public messages from Trump. He proposed stay where we stay and begin conversation. I think this that was good compromise, but I'm not sure that Putin will support that and I said it to the president.

ROBERTSON: So diplomacy and war fighting always at the forefront of President Zelenskyy's mind on play on Thursday and Friday this week. Thursday, European Union leaders meet in Brussels. Zelenskyy expected to attend there, expected again to be looking for further military support.

And then Friday, meeting in London with an expanded group of Ukraine supporting countries, again, looking to shore up the military support and also trying to sort of align the European position to present a united voice to President Trump so that he may turn again and put pressure on Vladimir Putin, which seemed to have evaporated over the past few days.

Nic Robertson, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Well, more pressure or not, Moscow is flexing its military muscle at home. Russia held drills to test the readiness of its nuclear forces Wednesday. The exercises involve the launches of nuclear capable missiles under President Putin's supervision. Russia says the drills were pre-planned. They came about a week after NATO held its own nuclear deterrence exercise in Europe.

Last hour, I spoke with Peter Zalmayev, director of the Eurasia Democracy Initiative, and I asked him why it took President Trump so long to impose these new sanctions on Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETER ZALMAYEV, DIRECTOR, EURASIA DEMOCRACY INITIATIVE: Vladimir Putin is a consummate KGB agent. He is able and capable of manipulating, you know, sometimes naive Western leaders, you know.

But in coming back to your second question, Donald Trump has had enough with Vladimir Putin. You know, it started to hurt him politically. It started to hurt him apparently with his spouse, Melania Trump, as Donald Trump himself acknowledged.

Every time Donald, you talk to Vladimir, he turns around and bombs Ukrainian cities harder, as you just mentioned in the lead-in to this, to our talk. A score of cities hit just after the conversation and apparent, you know, plan to meet in Budapest. And finally, there's been some pressure on the Hill, the normally complacent Congress, you know, bipartisan support for some strong action on Russia.

It's really been very difficult for Donald Trump. And he's seen that Vladimir Putin has not been willing to throw him any bone, meaning to make any meaningful concessions, meaning that he was not willing to make this Budapest trip for Donald Trump or anything other than a repeat of the fiasco that we saw in Alaska.

CHURCH: And Peter, after previously threatening to supply Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine, President Trump acknowledged for the first time Wednesday that he told President Zelenskyy he would not be giving him the long range missiles due to the training required for their use. Why did Trump backpedal and appear weak clearly in the eyes of Putin?

ZALMAYEV: Well, listen, you know, Russian nuclear blackmail has been effective. And once again, whatever they spoke in that, you know, phone call, making plans to meet in Budapest, the major component of that for Vladimir Putin, who I actually don't believe really had intentions or believed that it would be worthwhile to meet in Budapest, I think he wanted Donald Trump to stand down on the Tomahawk threat, because contrary to what Russians are saying, Tomahawks do hurt, they are a serious threat to Russia's ongoing war efforts in Ukraine, you know, in contrast to the sanctions that have been slapped on Russia, which is a good step.

But will they force Putin to end this war, sit down and negotiate? Probably not in the near future.

So, you know, we've been here before, Rosemary, you know, we've been here with HIMARS missiles, we've been here with F-16s and with the Biden administration. Every time we hear that, it's a huge escalation. It will take a long time to train the Ukrainians to use it. And then finally, every time we were given those weapons.

So I wouldn't put too much stock on this. You know, I think the issue is still very much on the table. But once again, Donald Trump wants to try other, you know, tools of pressure.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[03:10:01]

CHURCH: All right. We are just going to bring up this sound here. You can see Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaking there in Brussels. Let's bring up the sound.

(LIVE VIDEO FEED)

ZELENSKYY: We need lasting peace. This is very important for our nation. Thank you so much.

ANTONIO COSTA, EUROPEAN COUNCIL PRESIDENT: The last question.

REPORTER: One question I would like to ask you on sanctions. You said you're really happy about the sanctions, sanctions package,

but also on the U.S. sanctions. But does this mean, for example, also that you wish that the E.U. will go out of gas and phasing out gas even quicker? Is this also necessary?

ZELENSKYY: Also necessary what?

REPORTER: That the E.U. phases out gas, Russian gas.

ZELENSKYY: Yes, of course, it's very important.

COSTA: The netting package includes the LNG.

ZELENSKYY: This is the answer. Thank you so much. Sorry.

COSTA: Sorry?

REPORTER: Which I understand is a political decision. But in terms of the actual reparations loan, it seems that the E.U. still has issues that it guarantees that it will fight to resolve.

Really, is the E.U. doing whatever it takes? And can you tell me, because it's 55 percent today, reparations loan will be a political, very political move? Are you sure of that?

COSTA: As I said, today, we will take the political decision to ensure the financial needs from Ukraine to 2026 and 2027. The technicality of the solutions, we continue to work with the European Commission. But the most important is the political decision and the clear message that we are sending to Russia.

They don't care, they cannot believe that we are tired. We are not tired. And we are here to continue to support Ukraine diplomatically, politically, military and financially.

And this is the most important message for Russia, because Russia needs to understand that they need effective to stop to kill civilians in Ukraine, they need to stop to destroy civilian facilities in Ukraine. They need to stop the war in Ukraine. They need to accept all the diplomatic efforts, namely the efforts by President Trump to bring them to the peace negotiations and it's clear now for everybody that President Zelenskyy accepts the ceasefire, President Zelenskyy accepts the peace negotiations.

What we need is that Russia accepts also. And last week, once again, the expectations created by President Trump was very welcome from everybody.

Everybody wants this. Unfortunately, there are only one person, there are only one part on this that doesn't accept is Russia.

And that's the reason that on one hand, we need to continue to support diplomatic efforts. But on the other hand, as we have always said, we will continue to support Ukraine by all means.

And today we will take the political decision to ensure that to support the financial needs of Ukraine from the next two years. And that means that they have the capacity, the financial capacity to continue their fight for a just and lasting peace and Russia should understand this. Thank you very much.

(LIVE VIDEO FEED ENDS)

CHURCH: All right, just ahead of the European Council summit, we were listening there. We heard from Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying, of course, he is happy about sanctions being placed on Russia. And of course, we heard the support there for Ukraine. We'll continue to watch and monitor those meetings.

Moving on now, U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance is expected to meet with top Israeli officials and the U.S. Secretary of State will arrive in Jerusalem today. It's part of an effort to ensure Israel remains committed to the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Marco Rubio says he's not worried about the ceasefire falling apart. On Wednesday, Vance met with Israeli hostages and families of hostages after a meeting with the Israeli Prime Minister earlier in the day.

Well, the top U.N. court says Israel must help facilitate humanitarian aid in Gaza and ensure the basic needs of Palestinian civilians are met. The court criticized Israel's restrictions on aid into Gaza during the war. CNN's Jeremy Diamond has details now from Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: The United Nations top court has rebuked Israel's efforts to restrict humanitarian aid into Gaza and its refusal to work with a key U.N. agency. The International Court of Justice in a ruling issued on Wednesday says that Israel, as the occupying power in Gaza, must facilitate humanitarian aid there and is obligated to ensure that the basic needs of the civilian population are met.

[03:15:08]

And this ruling not only rebukes that weeks-long blockade, total blockade of aid into Gaza that we saw Israel impose earlier this year, but also a law that Israel passed effectively banning any cooperation with and the operations of UNRWA, that U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees within Israeli-controlled territory.

The ICJ in this ruling says that Israel must cooperate with the United Nations, including with its agencies, and that UNRWA has not violated its impartiality. Israel has repeatedly accused UNRWA of harboring a slew of Hamas-affiliated employees, but the top court from the United Nations here finding no substantial evidence to substantiate those allegations. A U.N. investigation had previously found that nine employees, quote, "may have been involved in the October 7th attacks," but that's out of a total of some 13,000 UNRWA employees in Gaza.

Now, this ruling from the ICJ is non-binding, but it does carry a lot of legal and political weight, and it could affect how member states interact with Israel in the future, how they choose to respond to any future attempts by Israel to restrict humanitarian aid in Gaza, or its work with U.N. agencies. Israel, for its part, is rejecting this opinion outright, saying that this is a political ruling by this top U.N. court, and also making clear that it has no plans to reverse course on its cooperation with UNRWA.

It's the Ministry of Foreign Affairs saying in a statement that Israel will not cooperate with an organization that is, quote, "infested with terror activities," and they insist that Israel is and will continue to uphold all of its obligations under international law.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The east wing of the White House is now a demolition site, with President Trump set to build a ballroom even bigger and more expensive than initially planned. We'll take a closer look after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:20:00]

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CHURCH: In Washington, another failed attempt to pass a Republican bill to temporarily fund the government. Senate Republicans need 60 votes to advance the measure, but so far they can't pull in enough Democrats to pass it.

Democrats want to preserve certain health care subsidies. House Speaker Mike Johnson says they have proposals ready for discussion, but insists that demands to include it in a bill to fund the government are not appropriate.

President Trump is moving full speed ahead with his plans to build a huge new ballroom at the White House. Bulldozers have already demolished the entire east wing.

The project has sparked criticism and questions about whether the President has the legal authority to tear down sections of the historic executive mansion. Sources say the ballroom is now expected to be larger than initially planned. The cost has soared from $200 million to $300 million, which the President says will be paid for by private donors.

Larry Sabato is director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. He's also the co-author of the book "Campaign of Chaos - Trump, Biden, Harris and the 2024 American Election." Good to have you with us.

LARRY SABATO, DIRECTOR, UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA-CENTER FOR POLITICS: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So let's start with the issue everyone's talking about, the total demolition of the east wing of the White House to make way for Donald Trump's $300 million ballroom in the midst of a government shutdown and despite the President previously saying this wouldn't happen. So critics suggest it's a metaphor for what Trump's doing to the country. What's your response?

SABATO: I think a conservative Republican senator from North Carolina put it very well when the optics on this are terrible and they absolutely are. Also, the story's changed. Donald Trump, when he announced it, said, oh, it wouldn't touch the west wing or the east wing of the White House.

Everything would be preserved. Of course, none of the money will be taxpayer money that will all be contributed. Even by me, that is Donald Trump contributing.

I think we'll be surprised to see that. But it's turned out that it's something quite different. People were shocked when they saw the demolition of the east wing.

This has touched the cord in the United States among people who apparently haven't been moved by the other outrages of Donald Trump. But this one has really got them.

CHURCH: Yes, interesting. And of course, specifically, the government shutdown now in its third week. What's it going to take to make a deal and end the stalemate as cracks start to appear on the Republican side?

SABATO: This may be up to the American public, because right now they haven't made a firm choice between the two parties. Who is being held more responsible? The Republicans, but not by a wide margin.

If the public shifts either in the direction of Republicans being guilty or Democrats being guilty, then I think you'll see movement. But for the time being, there's nothing. And Donald Trump shows no interest whatsoever in putting the parties together here for peace negotiations, as he did in the Middle East.

[03:25:03]

CHURCH: And of course, meantime, President Trump is demanding the Justice Department pay him $230 million for past investigations into his actions to be paid for by U.S. taxpayers. What are the optics here and the likely political fallout if Trump receives this payment at a time when so many Americans are hurting during the shutdown and generally?

SABATO: The revealing part of this, Rosemary, is that even Trump's strongest allies have been trying to avoid this subject. They have not really been defending him.

They will discuss it in roundabout terms. But everybody knows the idea of a president paying himself $230 million from taxpayer funds with the only approvals necessary being his flunkies at the Justice Department, including his former lawyer, is an outrage beyond outrage.

CHURCH: And Larry, while Donald Trump tries to end wars in Gaza and Ukraine, he appears to be opening up a possible war on another front with the U.S. military expanding its campaign against alleged drug trafficking with the first strike on a boat in the Pacific off the coast of Central America after multiple strikes on vessels near Venezuela. What's really going on here?

SABATO: Trump is trying to demonstrate his toughness and so is the defense secretary who calls himself the war. And we have no way of checking. We don't really know who these people are, we don't know how guilty or innocent they may be.

We know they're being killed. But beyond that, it's projecting the image of a war on drugs without knowing for sure that it's a war on drugs. And sooner or later, it's going to lead to ill consequences.

CHURCH: And Larry, as Democrats look to next year's midterms, former President Barack Obama is urging his party to fight fire with fire and support redrawing congressional districts in California, as Republicans are doing in Texas, to correct what he calls abuse of the system. So what more do Democrats need to be doing to offer an alternative for voters next year?

SABATO: They need to find more state legislators and governors in the elections of 2026, because that's the fundamental problem. The Republicans have control of so many more states. And they're able to add perhaps a net of eight to 10 seats just from the gerrymandering that's going on and that's assuming that California's voters pass Proposition 50, enabling California to take back five for Democrats; otherwise, it'll be more like 15 additional seats for Republicans.

The current margin between the parties, depending on who's being seated, is four or five seats. 15 additional seats pretty much guarantees the House for the Republicans.

CHURCH: Larry Sabato, always good to chat with you. Many thanks.

SABATO: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: Still to come, the U.S. deals fatal strikes against vessels that officials accuse of trying to smuggle drugs into the country. But South American leaders are fed up with U.S. forces playing judge, jury and executioner.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," I'm Rosemary Church. I want to check today's top stories for you.

The Trump administration has slapped new sanctions on Russia, targeting the country's two largest oil companies, Rosneft and LukOil, and almost three-dozen of their affiliates. The U.S. wants Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. President Donald Trump says he's cancelled an anticipated meeting with Russian President Putin. The top U.N. court rebuked Israel for its restrictions on humanitarian aid during the war in Gaza. The International Court of Justice stated Israel is obligated to work with U.N. agencies to facilitate humanitarian aid in Gaza and to ensure the basic needs of civilians are met. Israeli officials accused the court of being politicized and weaponized against Israel.

President Trump is moving ahead with the demolition of the East Wing in order to build a huge ballroom at the White House. But critics question whether he has the legal authority to tear down parts of the historic mansion. The cost of the renovation is now estimated to be $300 million, that's up from $200 million.

Well President Trump says he believes the U.S. has legal authority to launch strikes in international waters when targeting drug cartels.

[03:35:03]

He also announced a stop to all payments and subsidies to Colombia, accusing President Gustavo Petro of doing, quote, "nothing to stop production of drugs there."

The U.S. Secretary of Defense has announced military strikes on two separate boats in the eastern Pacific. Officials said two people were killed in the first strike and three killed in the second, that makes nine known strikes by the U.S. military since the start of September.

Well CNN traveled to Ecuador to try and find one of the few people to survive one of those strikes. His family says he's just a father trying to provide for his children and locals add it's not uncommon for people to turn to drug running when desperation hits. Our David Culver filed this report before the news of the most recent strike in the eastern Pacific.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DAVID CULVER, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In this small Ecuadorian coastal town, nearly everyone knows someone who's left for work and never come back.

CULVER: This is all her brother Andres' clothes, the mattress where he slept up until nearly a year ago. She says he was desperate for work, that he was concerned about providing for his six kids, and he said he needed to go to work. And like many in this small coastal town, he is a fisherman.

The thing is, and this is what she found odd, he left behind all of his fishing gear. She says he's a good person and that was just trying to make ends meet.

President Trump says your brother is a terrorist.

CULVER (voice-over): Her brother, Andres Tufino Chila, isn't a stranger to U.S. law enforcement. Court records show he was arrested, convicted, and jailed in 2020 for smuggling drugs off Mexico's coast before being deported. Now, after surviving the latest U.S. strike on a suspected drug vessel in the Caribbean, he's believed to be back in Ecuador and free.

Officials here say they have no evidence he broke local laws and released him. Yet his case has put a spotlight on a broader question. Who and what exactly are these U.S. strikes trying to stop?

Since early September, the U.S. has carried out at least seven strikes off Venezuela's coast. The Trump administration says they're about saving American lives from drug overdoses.

Yet most U.S. overdose deaths aren't from cocaine. They're from fentanyl, largely produced in Mexico and smuggled over the border, often by U.S. citizens. It's not clear where exactly the U.S. has been targeting suspected drug-running boats, but our analysis of U.S. military flight data shows dozens of surveillance flights just north of Venezuela in the Caribbean.

Far from Ecuador's shores, where cocaine from Colombia in the north and Peru in the south pours in before moving out to sea, using Ecuador essentially as a transit hub to the Pacific. This is how about 70 percent of the world's cocaine supply gets to the U.S. and Europe and beyond and the drug runners, the ones risking it all at sea, mostly are not gang members. They're fishermen, often seen as expendable by the gangs that control them.

Ecuadorian officials say they're also cracking down, even with limited resources. Still, many here say the trade feels impossible to escape.

CULVER: When you ask them about the amount of involvement in narco and drug trafficking, some are hesitant to disclose it.

He says, as he looks at it, probably 25 to 30 percent are working in illicit drug trafficking activity.

CULVER (voice-over): Some say they have no choice.

In 2023, gangs ambushed a fishing village in the north, targeting those who refused to pay extortion. Nine were killed, dozens wounded. Others say the money makes it worth the risk.

UNKNOWN (through translator): We put a box in the hull of the boat to hide the drugs. As a fisherman, I could make $300 a month.

But doing an illegal run up to just off the coast of Mexico, I can make $30,000 to $60,000 a month. It's good money.

CULVER (voice-over): If you survive the trip.

Since 2024, Solanda Bermeo's group has documented more than 2800 Ecuadorian fishermen missing, dead, or detained abroad. These women, some two dozen who wanted to share their stories with us, know their loved ones broke the law. But they also know why.

We don't have work. We don't have any way to support ourselves, she says.

As the U.S. strikes continue far from these shores, the ones caught in the crossfire are rarely cartel leaders, but the men who take the risk for them.

[03:40:02]

CULVER: She says she really wants to talk to her brother Andres. She's grateful that at least he's alive, especially considering her other two brothers are both in prison, one here in Ecuador, the other in the U.S., both of them accused of being fishermen turned drug runners.

We did ask that one fisherman turned drug smuggler who showed us how he hides drugs inside of his boat if the drug smuggling has slowed down in light of the recent strikes from the U.S., and he said nothing's really changed.

That speaks to, in part, the fact that there are just so many risks already leading into this type of work that they've been carrying out that many of them say it's just another one that could potentially keep them from returning home. Others say that they are motivated by the money, in which they can gain a lot of that.

And still others say this is about being under the control of gangs, that they have no choice when they're being coerced and threatened. And so they feel, given they're not gang members themselves, they're not high-level cartel members, they're simply fishermen, that they have no choice but to go along with it.

David Culver, CNN, Guayaquil, Ecuador.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Shocking scenes from social media in China, where a car ploughed into a group of children near a primary school. We must warn you that some viewers may find this next video disturbing.

Social media videos show a white sedan driving into a group of students and parents waiting at a traffic light on Wednesday afternoon. CNN Geolocated the video to Xi'an City in China's central Hubei province.

Multiple children are seen lying injured or unresponsive, but it's unclear exactly how many casualties there were. Local police and education officials told CNN they're not familiar with the incident and videos of the scene have been removed from Chinese social media. While CNN cannot verify the nature of the incident, sudden episodes of violence have surged across China in recent years.

And we'll be back in just a moment with more of today's top stories.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back to CNN. A look at the business headlines now.

A big win for an Australian employee who just wanted to work from home. Karlene Chandler challenged the Westpac Bank's demand that she work in an office two days a week. But the country's Labor Tribunal ruled in favor of Chandler, saying she has the right to work from home all the time.

Tesla's best quarter of the year isn't impressing investors. Elon Musk's car company sold nearly half a million vehicles in Q3, a new record for Tesla as Americans rushed to buy electric vehicles before a federal tax credit expired. But the carmaker's income is down nearly 30 percent from a year ago, a steeper drop than analysts had anticipated.

General Motors says it will introduce eyes-off driving on new Cadillac Escalades starting from 2028. The new system lets passengers read a book and take their eyes off the road. GM hopes to be the first to make personal self-driving cars a mainstream hit.

Donald Trump leaves next week for the APEC Summit in South Korea. The U.S. President says he expects to make several deals with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. There's also talk of a possible meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. CNN's Will Ripley spoke with South Korea's President about that and more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: South Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung says the chances of an in-person meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong- un in the coming days are relatively low. But he says he would welcome such a meeting, which could help dial back tensions here on the Korean Peninsula.

It's one of many issues swirling around as South Korea prepares to host leaders from around the world for what could be one of the most consequential economic summits in modern memory.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Just hours before our interview with South Korea's new President Lee Jae-myung, North Korea flexed its military muscle with a show of force. The first missile launch since Lee took office.

But the biggest test of his five-month-old presidency may come in the days ahead, when South Korea welcomes world leaders, including China's Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump, for a high-stakes economic summit, APEC, being held here for the first time in 20 years. And just maybe a repeat of this, the surprise 2019 meeting at the DMZ with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.

RIPLEY: Do you believe that a meeting will happen between President Trump and Kim Jong-un?

LEE JAE-MYUNG, SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT (through translator): If the two leaders of the U.S. and North Korea could suddenly get together, then I believe that is a good thing. And I also believe that President Trump wants to achieve world peace. That's why I have asked him to take on the role of peacemaker.

RIPLEY (voice-over): And Lee told Trump he'd be the pacemaker to keep diplomacy alive.

[03:50:00]

DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: We'll have talks he'd like to meet with me.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Six years after talks with Kim fell apart with no deal.

RIPLEY: If Marshal Kim is listening to this interview right now, what's your message to him?

LEE (through translator): I would like to say that meeting your counterpart and talking to him would be the first step in resolving many issues.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Perhaps the most pressing issue for President Lee, complicated trade negotiations with the U.S.

RIPLEY: Are you and President Trump going to be able to sign a trade deal while he's here in your country?

LEE (through translator): I believe that it's taking some time. And I also believe in the rationality of the United States. And so I believe that we will be able to reach a rational agreement.

RIPLEY (voice-over): One key sticking point, Trump's demand of $350 billion in upfront investment in exchange for lower import tariffs. President Lee said that would effectively trigger a financial crisis.

RIPLEY: President Trump has long said that U.S. allies, including South Korea, have been ripping off the United States. And that's why it's now payday for the U.S. But there are voices in the United States who say this is tantamount to a mafia shakedown, that it's extortion to be asking close allies to pay up or else the tariffs are going to get jacked up through the roof. Where do you stand on that issue?

LEE (through translator): I believe that in the end, we will be able to reach a rational result that is acceptable because we are an alliance and we both have common sense and rationality.

RIPLEY (voice-over): But he knows what the rest of the world knows. With Donald Trump, anything is possible.

RIPLEY: Even though he's only five months into the job, it was interesting to see President Lee so deftly tap dance around the issue of President Trump's massive economic demands. People behind closed doors here in South Korea are certainly talking about it. Some actually thought it was a joke when they heard the figure, which accounts for a large percentage of South Korea's GDP.

But Trump has said repeatedly he wants to see that $350 billion cash up front and that reportedly has been a major sticking point that's been holding up this trade deal with negotiations underway almost around the clock. Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are also expected to meet here in South Korea at APEC. The world wondering what will happen there. Will there be a deal or

disaster?

Will Ripley, CNN, Seoul.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: The head of the Louvre says she raised concerns over security and staffing months ago, well before thieves made off with crown jewels in this stunning daylight heist. The French government's response to her offer to resign, that's next.

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[03:55:09]

CHURCH: The Louvre Museum in Paris is back open for visitors for the first time since more than $100 million worth of jewelry was stolen in just a matter of minutes. The Apollo Gallery where the robbery took place remains closed. CNN's Melissa Bell has more on the fallout from the shocking heist.

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MELISSA BELL, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The director of France's Louvre Museum has been defending herself in front of a Senate committee explaining that she tendered her resignation in the wake of Sunday morning's dramatic heist. It had been refused, she said, by the culture minister.

Both women are saying culture minister and the director of the Louvre that the security systems function, defending their record. This in the face of a great deal of criticism and calls for both their resignation. There have been questions of course about the security breach itself on Sunday morning, how robbers could have got in with such rudimentary tools to what should have been some of the best guarded crown jewels in the country.

But there is also a not yet published report that has emerged in parts of the French press by France's highest auditing body that was critical specifically of what it described as security lapses in the museum between 2019 and 24. The lack for instance of CCTV cameras in a number of the museum's rooms. So all of these have been pounced upon by the French press.

In the meantime the manhunt continues as does the hunt for the jewels themselves. More than a hundred French investigators are working on the case we understand and continue to gather clues. A scooter left behind by the robbers, a glove, a motorcycle helmet and of course the truck that was used with its mechanical ladder on it that is being scoured for any fingerprints.

Any evidence they can find to try and help them track down the robbers. But of course with every day every hour that passes the hopes that will happen grow slimmer.

Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.

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CHURCH: Ballerina Misty Copeland is retiring from the American Ballet Theatre after a trailblazing career. In her final appearance on Wednesday Copeland performed excerpts from Romeo and Juliet and Sinatra Suite and was honored at the star-studded Gala. Copeland joined the company at age 18 back in 2001 and in 2015 she became the first black female principal dancer, the highest company ranking.

I want to thank you for your company, I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day. "Amanpour" is next, then stay tuned for "Early Start" with Danny Freeman, that's at 5:00 a.m. in New York, 10:00 a.m. in London.

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