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Trump Gives an Option to Meet Maduro Face-to-Face; Iconic Medieval Tower in Rome Partially Collapsed. Aired 3-3:45a ET

Aired November 25, 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]

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

Russia pounds Kyiv again as European allies plan to offer some changes to President Trump's peace plan, some that may be more favorable to Ukraine.

The U.S. President has been given an option for face-to-face talks with Venezuela's President. Will we see a chance to ease the growing tensions between the two countries? And --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: My family got a girlfriend.

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CHURCH: An administrator put a hot mic in a school hallway, asking students to tell something good that happened that day, and the results went viral.

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

CHURCH: Good to have you with us.

The Trump administration is engaged in a flurry of diplomatic activity this week, hoping to secure a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. But Moscow is not stopping its war, launching 22 missiles and more than 400 drones in overnight strikes, according to Ukraine's President Zelenskyy.

The capital city Kyiv and its surroundings were targeted. At least six people have been killed.

Meanwhile, a U.S. official tells CNN that U.S. and Russian officials are holding meetings in Abu Dhabi. They are discussing a proposed plan to end the war, and these talks will resume today.

Now this follows talks between Ukrainian and U.S. officials in Geneva. Ukraine's President says negotiators reached a new draft framework, keeping Ukraine's top concerns on the table for discussion. The Trump administration's original peace plan included several key issues that Ukraine and its European allies found too favorable to Moscow.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy is set to speak with those European allies today, and says he will soon speak with President Trump as well.

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VOLODDYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Today, our team reported on the new draft of steps, and this is indeed the right approach. I will discuss sensitive issues with President Trump.

We must also be aware that Russia will not ease the pressure on us, on Ukraine, on our people. These days, these weeks, we must be very attentive to air raid alerts and all similar threats of attack. We understand exactly who we are dealing with.

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CHURCH: Alexander Khara is the Executive Director for the Center for Defense Strategies, a Ukrainian security think tank, and he joins me now from Kyiv. I appreciate you being with us.

ALEXANDER KHARA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, CENTER FOR DEFENSE STRATEGIES: Hello Rosemary, thank you for having me.

CHURCH: Of course.

So even as Russia was targeting Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, with these deadly ballistic missiles Monday, confusion remained about just how much progress has actually been made in negotiations on the U.S. proposal to end Russia's war on Ukraine. What has likely been achieved so far, do you think, and do you expect to see a peace deal come out of this?

KHARA: Well, first of all, there is a slim chance of any peace deal coming out of this diplomatic activity, because on the surface there is a media and diplomatic activity, but beneath that is --

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-- the Russians lost 1 million killed and wounded subjects, plus hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars throughout this war. And they want not just to control Ukraine, but convert these losses into some geopolitical gains in Europe and elsewhere. So that's why Putin is not willing to compromise such a goal for any peace or any ceasefire here in Europe.

Meanwhile, our European partners are afraid to help us to the extent that we can change the situation on the battlefield. And you heard about this backstop ever since the coalition of the willing idea was surfaced. And the Trump administration is not interested in Europe at all.

So they're trying to play something, but they are not ready to invest in peace in Europe. I'm not talking about Ukraine, I'm talking the European continent.

So that's why the war will go on. Russia believes that time is on its side.

[03:05:04]

It's played the perfect logical operation with this 28 points plan. And we are discussing, we are trying to gather support to Ukraine from our European and other partners.

CHURCH: And of course, the initial 28 point U.S. peace plan was heavily criticized for favoring Russia. And now the "Wall Street Journal" is reporting that Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and the President's son-in-law Jared Kushner drafted the initial framework of this peace plan with input from a Kremlin insider who apparently held secret meetings with the aides in Miami. What's your reaction to that report?

KHARA: Well, first of all, when I saw 28 point plan, I didn't find any injection from the U.S. side in terms of the language and in terms of the meaning. Possibly it was about the, let's say, benefits for this administration out of the reconstruction of Ukraine. But the rest is completely clear, it was written in Moscow, in all those Russian type of phrases like Ukraine's sovereignty should be reconfirmed, as if we require any reconfirmation of sovereignty, which was recognized back in 1991.

So anyway, I believe that it's wrong to sideline the professional diplomats and professional intelligence officers of the United States and to give this whole thing to incompetent Mr. Witkoff, who is a big fan of Mr. Putin, not to mention that he is not critical about what the Russians are talking about this conflict and their goals. And I believe this is a key problem.

So the President believes in the close associates who are not professional, but who are dealing in the ways that is not official. And that's why there will be no positive results out of these negotiations.

CHURCH: So European governments were shocked by the initial peace plan, as we mentioned, and that is how the Geneva negotiations came about, resulting in the possible removal, we don't know for sure, of some of the more controversial elements such as handing over Ukrainian land to Russia that Moscow has not yet captured militarily, preventing Ukraine from joining NATO, or having peacekeeping forces in the country. So how likely is it that President Putin will accept any changes to the initial U.S. peace plan?

KHARA: First of all, it was not his idea in the beginning. He has been using diplomacy as a tool of war and we've seen it before the Alaska summit.

So Trump threatened to unleash helluva tariffs on Russia. And he got a call from Mr. Putin. And after that, Trump made a U-turn and he said, I'm not interested in a ceasefire, even though from the beginning of his term of office, he was going to both sides and Ukraine actually agreed on unconditional ceasefire.

But the Russians were not interested in that. Diplomacy is a tool of war for Russia.

The Russians are not going to stop and they believe the time on their side, they believe with this incremental gains on the battlefield, they are showing to the world, and particularly to the Trump administration, that Russia is unstoppable. And it's better to feed at least half of Ukraine to Russia, and then restore business as usual.

CHURCH: Alexander Khara, thank you so much for talking with us and sharing your perspective on this issue. I appreciate it.

KHARA: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well sources tell CNN that officials are discussing the possibility of direct talks between the U.S. and Venezuelan presidents and what that communication might look like, even though the U.S. has now formally labeled Nicolas Maduro a member of a foreign terrorist organization. That designation kicked in on Monday. It gives the Trump administration more power to go after President Maduro, his allies, assets and infrastructure.

Legal experts say the designation does not explicitly allow the use of lethal force. But Trump administration officials claim they now have more options for launching strikes inside Venezuela, where a defiant President Maduro says his people are indestructible.

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NICOLAS MADURO, VENEZUELAN PRESIDENT (through translator): It is impressive how a movement of solidarity is rising everywhere in support of the victorious effort of the indestructible people of Venezuela in the face of these threats, psychological, political, diplomatic wars, whatever they do, however they do it, wherever they do it, they will not be able to defeat Venezuela. We are invincible.

Whatever they do, they have not been able to and will never be able to defeat our homeland. Never.

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CHURCH: CNN contributor Stefano Pozzebon has our report from Caracas.

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STEFANO POZZEBON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: The Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro did not personally react to the designation of several members of the Maduro government, including the President himself, Maduro himself, as members of a supposed foreign terrorist organization called the Cartel de los Soles, which is a collective name that members of the press and diplomats here in Venezuela use to refer to the fact that many government officials in this country are accused of being involved in narco-trafficking. In his weekly T.V. show late on Monday, Maduro was more keen to speak

about other issues concerning Venezuela, and when it came to geopolitics he made the reference to talks that he had with Xi Jinping, rather than addressing this new designation. Earlier on Monday his government wrote in a statement that those accusations are laughable lies.

But it's important to point out that Maduro, especially in his shows and his appearances, as he appears on T.V. here almost on a daily basis, is really portraying the message that nothing of that pressure coming down from Washington is breaking through, that nothing of this pressure is changing anything for regular Venezuelans who are going on, frankly, with their daily lives, even after 16 weeks of a standoff between Washington and Caracas.

And all of this is happening as our team in Washington was able to confirm that the White House has been given an option to hold a direct phone call between Nicolas Maduro himself and the President, Donald Trump. A direct phone call that would lead, of course, to more formal negotiations, even though, as we just said, Maduro has just been designated a member of a foreign terrorist organization.

At this moment, late on Monday night, we understand that President Donald Trump has not made a final decision on whether to take that call, although he did say that he was open to speaking in person with Maduro in the past.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Caracas.

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CHURCH: The U.S. Justice Department is planning to appeal a federal judge's decision to dismiss the cases against two of President Trump's political foes, former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James.

CNN's senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes has details.

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KRISTEN HOLMES, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, the White House says they still have full confidence in interim U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan, although it is very unclear right now what her role is going to be after this judge found that her appointment was not valid.

But I did ask Karoline Leavitt, the press secretary, what happens next? And what was President Trump's reaction when he learned that the indictments against James Comey and Letitia James had been dropped?

What was President Trump's reaction to those indictments against Comey and James being thrown out?

KAROLINE LEAVITT, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: His reaction was, we've seen this before. We've seen partisan judges take unprecedented steps to try to intervene in accountability before, but we're not going to give up. And I know that the Department of Justice intends to appeal these rulings very soon, if they haven't already.

HOLMES: Now, it is important to remember that the White House and President Trump himself have been involved in really every step of this prosecution against James Comey and Letitia James. For example, it was President Trump who essentially drove this political pressure campaign against Eric Sieber, the former U.S. attorney in the Southern District of Virginia, which, of course, is where he was replaced by Lindsey Halligan that ultimately led to his removal. That's when they put Lindsey Halligan in.

It was President Trump who then suggested publicly, before that happened, to the Attorney General, Pam Bondi, that Lindsey Halligan should take that place because she is willing to prosecute his political enemies, in particular, James Comey and Letitia James.

And so she and he have been really in lockstep for all of this. And it was very clear that President Trump was following all of this incredibly closely. But there are still questions as to what the Department of Justice is going to do next. You heard Karoline Leavitt there talking about this appeal.

Well, there are two options here. The Department of Justice can appeal this ruling saying that they still believe that she is valid and that these indictments were valid as well, or they can scrap that and they can start over essentially putting someone into that role who will then get confirmed by the Senate and then re-bringing the charges.

But, of course, that is going to take a lot longer for the Justice Department. We know President Trump is eager to see his political enemies be brought to court.

Kristen Holmes, CNN, the White House.

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CHURCH: Lebanon urges action from the international community after an Israeli strike in Beirut. Just ahead, what the country's president is saying after the attack that killed a Hezbollah commander?

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[03:15:00]

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CHURCH: Welcome back everyone.

Crowds packed the streets of Beirut's southern suburbs for the funeral of Hezbollah's chief of staff. Mourners carried his coffin one day after he was killed in an Israeli airstrike, the first in months in the Lebanese capital. Lebanon's president is calling on the international community to quote, "intervene forcefully," saying Israel's targeting of Beirut is proof that it's not heeding calls to stop its aggression against Lebanon.

CNN's Nic Robertson is following all the developments from Jerusalem. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: This call from the Lebanese president for the international community to put pressure on Israel, if it is manifesting itself, it's certainly not happening in a public domain. And I think as well, you know, it's a ceasefire that was agreed a year ago. It's a ceasefire that has come under increasing strain recently.

[03:20:03]

It's a ceasefire, the terms of which the Lebanese government always felt that they were going to be under pressure because the terms were that Hezbollah would pull out of the border area near Israel's northern border. And the Lebanese army would be responsible for moving into those areas and ensuring that Hezbollah didn't come back. But the Lebanese army has been woefully underfunded, under equipped and fundamentally under ready for this task when it was first handed to it.

So I think Lebanon has always felt on the back foot in trying to sort of meet Israel's expectations. And sources I've talked to in Lebanon have said that they think Israel's expectations are disproportionately high. Nevertheless, the view in Israel is that Hezbollah shouldn't be allowed to regroup.

And over recent weeks, we've seen an increasing number of strikes, Israeli strikes into southern Lebanon targeting what they say are locations where Hezbollah is either storing weapons or regrouping where it shouldn't be per the peace agreement.

You know, I think if you look at the dynamic moving forward, it just tells you the level of stress and strain that the ceasefire is under. And Israel also, you know, on its own side of the border, has been having drills, military drills in the north as well as elsewhere, to prepare for a possible Hezbollah counter maneuver.

These are drills, by the way, that have been planned for some time. But it's definitely in Israel's mind that there could be a retaliation from Hezbollah, but play into that dynamic, if you will, that the Pope is visiting Lebanon next weekend. I don't think anyone would expect a massive crescendo and escalation of force in the intervening period.

But after that, you know, the question of the ceasefire and the question, and if you will demand from the Prime Minister of Lebanon, the President of Lebanon, for this international move to sort of put some diplomatic shoulders to it behind the scenes, I think that will, the need for that may well come into play more as we get deeper into December.

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CHURCH: A medieval tower that partially collapsed in Rome is raising questions about the city's modern construction policies. Up next, the latest on the possible causes and the fallout from the tragedy.

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[03:25:00]

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

Russian officials say Ukraine launched a drone attack on its territory, killing three people. Moscow says it intercepted and destroyed nearly 250 drones overnight. This comes as Russia carried out its own major attack across Ukraine, killing at least six people in Kyiv alone, the mayor of Kyiv says some areas are also experiencing power and water supply shortages from the assault.

The U.S. has now formally labeled the Venezuelan president a member of a foreign terrorist organization. That designation kicked in on Monday, it gives the Trump administration more power to go after Nicolas Maduro, his allies, assets and infrastructure. Legal experts say the designation does not explicitly allow the use of lethal force.

The controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation is set to officially close its operations inside the enclave. GHF suspended its work last month at the start of the ceasefire. The U.S. and Israeli-backed foundation had been operating since late May. But limited aid for desperate Palestinians led to chaotic scenes and authorities in Gaza accuse Israeli forces of fatally shooting dozens of civilians near one site in Rafah.

An 800-year-old medieval tower undergoing renovations in Rome suffered two partial collapses earlier this month, killing one worker. Weeks later, authorities are still investigating what happened.

CNN's Ben Wedeman has the latest.

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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SR. INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The fire brigade was on hand after part of the tower had caved in, when another section of the 800-year-old structure in the heart of old Rome collapsed in a cloud of dust.

For more than 15 years, the Torre dei Conti was left abandoned until 2022, the city began to renovate this medieval landmark. The tower's collapse in November killed one Romanian worker, badly injuring another.

WEDEMAN: Because a worker was killed in the partial collapse of the tower, a special investigation has been launched. And as part of that investigation, all work on this brand new metro station, which is just down the street from the tower, has been halted.

[03:30:08]

WEDEMAN (voice-over): It happened in an area undergoing massive underground work. Down the boulevard in Piazza Venezia, a metro station for the new sea line is being dug 11 floors below the surface.

According to a statement from Rome's city prosecutor provided to CNN, "Among the hypotheses being examined is vibrations from the metro sea construction sites, but the central question remains about human error during the renovation."

When asked for comment, the municipality issued a brief written statement. "The city is cooperating in the ongoing investigation and refrains from comment until the outcome of the judicial investigation into the partial collapse of the tower."

Earlier this year, officials said structural surveys and load tests confirmed it was safe to start the latest phase of work last June.

TOM RANKIN, ARCHITECT, DIRECTOR OF BORROMINI INSTITUTE: But it's not a city that needs more architecture.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Architect Tom Rankin has lived and worked in Rome for decades. Part of the problem, he says, is that the city's bureaucrats don't share their plans with the public.

RANKIN: The lack of transparency about what's actually being designed, where I think that should be participatory. Like, urban regeneration works best when it's participatory, where other people can weigh in on it, and that just doesn't happen here.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): In a city that counts its history in millennia, old habits die hard.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: Students in Ohio were sharing some exciting updates about their lives coming up, how a gratitude microphone in a school hallway became a viral sensation on social media.

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[03:35:00]

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CHURCH: Welcome back to "CNN Newsroom," this is your Business Breakout.

Investors in the Asia-Pacific region are buying tech stocks as fear of an A.I. bubble appears to be easing. There's also renewed hope the U.S. Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again next month. You see there are stocks or markets in positive territory.

These are the business headlines.

President Trump signed an executive order on Monday to bolster artificial intelligence research. The new Genesis mission is designed to allow data sharing between government agencies, tech companies, and academic researchers. Administration officials say the aim is to use A.I. to bolster research in health, energy, manufacturing, and other fields.

Amazon announced it's investing $50 billion to expand the U.S. government's A.I. and supercomputing capabilities. U.S. agencies will be given access to advanced A.I. tools and chips that will help develop a range of cutting-edge software for government initiatives. The move aims to position Amazon as a key A.I. partner for federal customers.

U.S. trade officials say they're open to the idea of lowering tariffs on steel and aluminum from the European Union, but only if the E.U changes the regulations for its tech sector. The Trump administration says the current E.U. policy unfairly targets U.S. tech companies. European officials have openly disagreed.

Well the holiday shopping season kicks off this week in Europe and here in the United States and it's not just the shoppers who could be seeing higher prices, it's the shops as well. CNN's Anna Cooban explains.

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ANNA COOBAN, CNN BUSINESS AND ECONOMICS REPORTER: I'm standing on the most expensive retail strip in the world. New Bond Street in London has overtaken Milan and New York as the priciest place to be selling stuff to the ultra-wealthy.

COOBAN (voice-over): According to a new report from commercial real estate company Cushman and Wakefield, rents over the last year on New Bond Street increased by 22 percent to over $2,200 per square foot per year. Rents in New York on Upper Fifth Avenue stayed at around $2,000 per square foot. And losing the top spot is Milan's fashion district via Monte Napoleone, again, there have been no rent increases this year.

So why are these luxury brands scrambling for a spot on this sidewalk?

COOBAN: Burberry. It's an iconic British fashion brand. And the company recently posted its first quarter of growth in two years. Now, its CEO Joshua Shulman has talked recently about the importance of going back to basics, displaying the iconic scarves and trench coats in the shop windows.

And the report by Cushman and Wakefield has made it clear how important it is for brands to really lean into their flagship stores. Being in person, smelling, touching, feeling the clothes, that is really good for business.

It's not just coats and scarves that are really pushing up the rents here. I'm here between Burlington Gardens and Clifford Street. Now this is the most hotly contested slice of retail real estate in the world right now.

And it's where you get your diamonds. COOBAN (voice-over): It's so easy to get swept up in the glitz and

glamour before you remember the price tag. I guess I'll just settle for a spot of window shopping.

[03:40:07]

COOBAN: Most people will do their shopping a stone's throw from here, neither Oxford Street or Regent Street. But even there, there have been double digit rent increases. So it's going to be an expensive Christmas, not just for shoppers, but for the shops.

Anna Cooban, CNN, London.

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CHURCH: One of Berlin's most picturesque Christmas markets has reopened for the holiday season after a two-year hiatus, the historic square where it's traditionally held was undergoing restorations during that time. On the opening day, crowds returned in full force to embrace the Christmas spirit. Over a million people are expected to visit by closing day on New Year's Eve.

Will you ever have trouble getting your kids to open up about their day? A local school system in Ohio is going viral online for their unique approach to unlocking what's in the hearts and minds of their students. Krista Bo Porlanco takes a closer look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNKNOWN: Someone told me that my hair looked really pretty today.

UNKNOWN: There was a new girl at school today and I think I made a new friend, so--

UNKNOWN: I finally got a girlfriend.

ADAM MARCUM, COMMUNICATIONS COORDINATOR, MONROE LOCAL SCHOOLS: We set up a tripod and a camera with a microphone and on the microphone there was a sign with a prompt and all it said was, tell us something good that happened to you today.

KRISTA BO PORLANCO, CNN PODCAST HOST AND PRODUCER, "CNN 5 GOOD THINGS", AND CO-HOST, "CNN 5 THINGS" (voice-over): Adam Marcum is a communications coordinator for Monroe Local Schools in Ohio. He's on Instagram posts showing college kids sharing their joyful moments and had an idea.

MARCUM: When we set out to initially do this, we just wanted to capture positive moments.

UNKNOWN: It's my birthday and people have been really nice.

MARCUM: It started off actually really slow. The whole time I'm thinking to myself, you know, this is a dud. It's not going to work out. As time went on, a few students started and once they saw their

friends, there were times that we had a line of people waiting to do it.

UNKNOWN: The best part of my day was seeing all my teachers come to school and be happy to see us.

BO PORLANCO (voice-over): Mr. Markham posted the video on Facebook and Instagram and the video quickly went viral, racking up over 1.5 million views combined.

MARCUM: I knew it would do really well in our community. What I did not anticipate was that it would get this kind of attention on the national level.

BO PORLANCO (voice-over): The real surprise? Hearing what the older kids had to say.

MARCUM: I was truly expecting kids to come up and say, I had a good breakfast and it was so much deeper than that.

UNKNOWN: Me and my sister are actually kind of getting along now and like, we're not arguing as much as we used to.

UNKNOWN: The good thing that happened to me today was Ms. Gates, she complimented my artwork.

UNKNOWN: I've been having a great relationship with my mom. Like if we're in an argument, we talk about it instead of just shutting each other out.

MARCUM: I think it's so easy to forget the impact that you have as a human being and it's really cool to see the students share that.

UNKNOWN: If the little things can brighten someone's day, what impact can we make? When all the little things light up.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHURCH: What a wonderful idea. Thank you so much for your company, I'm Rosemary Church. Have yourselves a wonderful day.

"World Sport" is coming up next.

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[03:45:00]

(WORLD SPORT)