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Heavy Rains Kill 900 Across Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand; Pope Leo XIV Calls for Peace and Unity Among Lebanon's Many Faiths; Mourners Pay Respects to Slain Israeli Hostage Dror Or; Netanyahu Requests Pardon in Ongoing Corruption Trial; New System of Arctic Air to Drive Down Temperatures; "Zootopia 2" Brings in $556M Globally. Aired 1-2a ET

Aired December 01, 2025 - 01:00   ET

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

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POLO SANDOVAL, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, everyone, I'm Polo Sandoval joining you live from New York. This is CNN Newsroom and here's what's coming your way. After a Sunday meeting between U.S. and Ukrainian leaders, Donald Trump says that there's a good chance Russia and Ukraine will agree to peace. But Trump's Secretary of State striking a more cautious tone.

The death toll continues to rise across several Asian nations after severe weather triggered devastating floods and landslides. An aid group on the ground joins us in just a few moments.

Also this Pope Leo hoping to bring a message of hope to war torn Lebanon. Details on this papal visit on the way.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from New York, this is CNN Newsroom with Polo Sandoval.

SANDOVAL: Great to start the week with you. Let's begin with U.S. President Donald Trump as he gets ready to send his special envoy to Moscow on Monday for talks to end the war in Ukraine. The Kremlin now confirming that Russian President Vladimir Putin will receive Steve Witkoff sometime this week. Trump says negotiations over the U.S. backed peace plan, they are going well, as he put it, and that he thinks an agreement is still possible.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Ukraine's got some difficult little problems, some difficult problems, but I think Russia would like to see it end. And I think Ukraine, I know Ukraine would like to see it end.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You just said that Ukraine has a little bit of problem.

TRUMP: Well, we have a corruption situation going on, which is not helpful. There's a good chance we can make a deal.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Then there's Marco Rubio, Secretary of State, who warns negotiations are still fragile and, quote, "complicated." Earlier U.S. officials, they held talks with high level Ukrainian delegations in Florida. Both parties say progress was made, but Rubio emphasizes that Russia also needs to have a hand in crafting the peace deal. And then there's Ukraine's president who is continuing his diplomatic push for favorable peace terms. Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be traveling to Paris in the coming hours to meet with French President Emmanuel Macron.

Earlier I spoke with former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst. He gave his assessment on where negotiations stand at this moment after Sunday's talks and also the likely red lines that Ukraine has drawn in the effort to reach peace.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN HERBST, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: I think that Secretary Rubio went in there looking to see if Ukraine was willing to be more flexible on some of the points that were probably removed from the 28 point draft. Difficult issues relating to security, relating to possible territorial compromise, relating to Ukraine, the size of Ukraine's military, restrictions on Ukraine's military, because the administration thought that some of those points might be helpful to persuading Russia to say yes.

SANDOVAL: What red lines do you believe that Ukraine has drawn when it comes to their main sticking points? You mentioned flexibility. That's certainly very important right now in these negotiations, especially after that Oval Office visit earlier this year. I'm sure that certainly there's pressure on Ukraine to demonstrate that they're there to negotiate in good faith. But when it comes to perhaps land concessions, their military or NATO ambitions, are there any red lines that Ukrainians are drawing?

HERBST: Ukraine needs to see a full package, full package, not just a partial package, which makes clear or ensures the country's sovereignty, security and territorial integrity along the lines of the agreements. In other words, so the question about territorial integrity is an important one because Russia occupies approximately 20 percent of Ukraine. And Trump's proposal is that the peace deal would involve the sides roughly retaining the territory they currently hold. Roughly, it could be some switches. And there's no doubt that the 28 point plan that was first tabled by the Trump team includes points which are dangerous to Ukraine's future survival and for that matter, which are not very sound in terms of American interest, in my opinion.

[01:05:00]

Because it's critical for the United States that any peace deal that Trump achieves be what he wants it to be, meaning durable. And if Ukraine is sufficiently weakened by terms of an agreement, then Ukraine's future is in doubt. And some of those points would have made Ukraine much weaker than it should be. SANDOVAL: Let's look at what's still to come here because of the initial plan that was essentially a Russian wish list as we understand it, do you see Putin accepting any of the modifications that came out of not just Florida, but Geneva before that? Do you see the Kremlin pushing back on any of these revisions when Steve Witkoff meets with President Putin?

HERBST: It's highly unlikely that they would accept -- that Putin would accept the document reached in Geneva. In fact, he basically distanced himself from that comments that he made two or three days ago, whereas he was quite -- he was pleased but had not -- did not accept the 28 point plan, which included lots of Kremlin friendly language even then he would have pushed for more. Putin has shown no flexibility thus far or tiny flexibility, maybe more accurately. Ukraine has shown extraordinary flexibility. They've accepted pretty much every proposal Trump has put on the table since mid-March and the Russians have accepted none of them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: At least 900 people have been killed after storms triggered flooding and landslides across parts of Asia. In Sri Lanka, rescue efforts, those are still underway after a cyclone swept across the island nation. Over 300 people were confirmed dead in what the country's president is calling an unprecedented disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANURA KUMARA DISSANAYAKE, PRESIDENT OF SRI LANKA (through translator): As a country, we are facing the largest and most challenging natural disaster in our history. We also recognize that what we are undertaking is the most difficult rescue operation in our nation's history. This is the first time the entire country has been struck by such a disaster.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: A separate storm system ravaged parts of Southeast Asia. Heavy rain triggered landslides and flooding that submerged buildings in Thailand. Indonesia was hit the hardest with over 400 people, they're killed, homes have been washed away and communities cut off from critical supplies. Let's get more now on that response from Alexander Matheou. He's the regional director for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent. He joins us live from Kuala Lumpur, which is just past 2:00 p.m.

Matheou, thank you so much for taking the time to join us, Mr. Matheou.

ALEXANDER MATHEOU, IFRC, REGIONAL DIRECTOR FOR ASIA PACIFIC: Thank you for having me.

SANDOVAL: So I'm wondering if we could get right to it. Where is the greatest need as you see it right now, Alexander, and perhaps some of the challenges that your organization is facing in the aftermath of these storms? MATHEOU: Well, as you've said in your report it spread far and wide. Monsoon rains combined with a tropical storm have left vast amounts of Southeast Asia, particularly Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Malaysia, and in South Asia, Sri Lanka, underwater. Millions of people affected, hundreds of thousands displaced, tens of thousands staying in temporary shelter, and hundreds tragically, have lost their lives. Right now, it's still a search and rescue phase. Many of these areas are not accessible because bridges have collapsed, landslides have isolated villages from their neighbors.

Rescuing people, bringing food and water and shelter, that's the most important thing in the short term. But to give you an example of the longer term, over 16 million livestock have died in Vietnam because of these floods. And now that's going to affect a lot of people, their household economy, their food security. So there's a short term crisis and definitely a very long crisis as well.

SANDOVAL: Getting back to the issue of the -- or the problem right now with the displacements of so many people, as you mentioned, I read in a U.N. report that some 180,000 people, making up about 51,000 families, are having to turn to about a thousand shelters in the region. I mean, do these governments have the infrastructure, the resources to be able to sustain this kind of assistance long term?

MATHEOU: Well, right now we're dealing with a tragic situation. But the backdrop of that tragic situation is that there have been significant improvements in early warning systems across Asia Pacific. And that has allowed many people who otherwise would have been stuck or lost their lives to move to a place of safety. The investment in cyclone shelters in early warning systems really are helping a lot across the region. Now, this storm clearly has overwhelmed countries, as we heard from your report on Sri Lanka.

They haven't experienced anything of this magnitude for a very long time, and that has stretched capacity.

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Nevertheless, another interesting example from here is that not many of the countries are declaring national emergencies and calling for international assistance, now Sri Lanka has, and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Society is releasing its disaster emergency relief emergency fund of 1 million Swiss francs today. It will launch an appeal tomorrow. We'll also release relief -- release a disaster relief emergency fund for Indonesia and for Vietnam. But Thailand has been clear that it will handle response itself, so has Malaysia. So we're also seeing a lot more independence in the way that these crises are managed compared to example 10, 20 years ago.

SANDOVAL: Your organization is absolutely critical in helping so many people. I'm curious, given what you just mentioned. I mean, what is the IFRC message to some of those governments who have perhaps held back on requesting that government assistance that would, I'm sure, I mean, make a significant difference for the people affected by these storms? MATHEOU: Well, the purpose actually of the IFRC really is that every country can respond to its disasters as independently as possible and only requires international assistance when all national capacity is overwhelmed. Actually, a country that says it can handle its disasters alone because it's got good preposition stocks, well trained emergency responders, that's actually a positive sign. So if they are not calling for assistance because really they have it under control, we should see that as a sign of progress. If they're not calling for assistance for other reasons, that's different. But one of the things that the IFRC is trying to do is to promote a new treaty for persons affected by disasters to ensure that every state has a clearly outlined responsibility to invest in the preparedness and the disaster management in support of populations affected by disasters, that they know what they can handle themselves, but also call for international assistance when it's required.

That treaty, if it's signed in 2026 or 2027, I think will help us better prepare for these disasters in the future.

SANDOVAL: I wish you and all the other first responders the best as you continue with that work of helping all these people devastated by these storms. Alexander Matheou with that update from Kuala Lumpur. Thank you for your time.

MATHEOU: Thank you very much.

SANDOVAL: Authorities, they are combing through hundreds of ruined apartments as they search for people still missing in the deadly building fires in Hong Kong. Rescuers, they're currently making their way through what remains of Seven Towers after a fire spread rapidly in one of the city's apartment complexes. At least 146 people have been confirmed dead and about 40 people are still missing. CNN's Hanako Montgomery visited the scene of the fire and spoke to some of the survivors about what they -- about what they experienced firsthand.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Before William Li could see or smell this fire, his wife called him and sent this video. Flames were engulfing their apartment building, she said, and he needed to leave now. But when he opened his front door, he was met with this suffocating darkness.

WILLIAM LI, HONG KONG FIRE SURVIVOR (through translator): I called my wife again, I said, I can't leave. The door is full of thick smoke. That's when my wife started becoming emotional.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): William is a rare survivor in Hong Kong's worst fire in decades. An inferno that claimed dozens of his neighbors lives. The videos he filmed while trapped in his apartment for two hours and the messages he exchanged with his wife shows just how narrowly he escaped.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Please call me as soon as you get out. Please call me. (END VIDEO CLIP)

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): William lived on the second floor of this apartment complex, and the fire was moving fast. In another attempt to escape, he covered his face with a wet towel. But in the hallway, he heard an elderly couple screaming for help. Their home was already engulfed in flames after the fire shattered their windows.

LI (through translator): When I saw my window in this situation, I felt that this time I might actually die or I won't make it past today. I told my friends that I might not be able to leave and if anything happens to me, take care of my children.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): But then help arrived. Two hours after his wife's first call, firefighters pulled William and his neighbors to safety.

LI (through translator): My daughter ran towards me and hugged me and said, daddy didn't die. Dad doesn't need to die. My son was sitting to the side and was crying a lot.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): William's survival is a rare miracle in a disaster of staggering loss. But the fire took everything from him.

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LI (through translator): The place that my children grew up in, memories that I created with my wife, memories of making this home, they're all gone.

MONTGOMERY (voice-over): The community in Tai Po is left reeling from a tragedy that will haunt them for years to come.

Hanako Montgomery, CNN, Hong Kong.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SANDOVAL: Donald Trump says that he has spoken by phone with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Coming up here on CNN Newsroom, the very latest on tensions in the Caribbean as the U.S. faces a potential war crime accusation.

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SANDOVAL: Some U.S. lawmakers, they're growing increasingly worried that the Trump administration could be guilty of a war crime in the Caribbean. Over the weekend, reports surfaced that the U.S. conducted a double tap strike on an alleged drug boat in early September with a secondary attack which killed the survivors and ultimately sank the vessel. It has drawn some bipartisan backlash. Democratic Senator Mark Kelly says that the Armed Services Committee, they will be holding a public hearing on the potentially illegal military order.

And all this comes as Venezuela accuses the U.S. of murder, publicly acknowledging for the first time that some of its citizens have been killed in these recent boat strikes. On Sunday, President Trump confirmed that he recently had a phone call with his Venezuelan counterpart, Nicolas Maduro. But Trump did not provide any details of what was discussed during that conversation. And the head of Venezuela's national assembly also declined to discuss that conversation.

CNN's Betsy Klein with more on the simmering tensions of the Caribbean.

BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: President Trump confirmed on Sunday evening that he spoke by phone earlier this month with Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro. The president declining to provide any additional details, but this comes after he posted on social media that Venezuela airspace should be considered closed. The president was asked why? Listen.

TRUMP: Because we consider Venezuela to be not a very friendly country. They sent millions of people, really, and probably a number in excess of that. And a lot of those people shouldn't be in our country from jails, from gangs, from drug dealers, from all of the people that came into our country shouldn't have been in our country causing a lot of problems.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does your warning --

TRUMP: And drugs.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Does your warning mean that an airstrike is imminent or should we not read it that way?

TRUMP: Don't read anything into it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KLEIN: This all comes as the U.S. has amassed a major show of force in the region and conducted roughly 20 known airstrikes on alleged drug trafficking vessels in the Caribbean. There are more than a dozen warships operating in the area, along with about 15,000 U.S. troops. The president has been briefed on a range of potential military options. That includes airstrikes on key military or government facilities or drug trafficking routes, as well as the possibility of a more direct attempt to oust the country's president, Nicolas Maduro. The president was also asked Sunday evening about reports that after a strike on September 2nd on one of those drug trafficking boats, the boat had to be struck a second time because there were survivors.

That has prompted concerns on both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill that this could be a war crime. The president telling reporters that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says he did not order the second strike. President Trump says that he personally wouldn't have wanted that. Betsy Klein, CNN, the White House.

SANDOVAL: Honduras is awaiting the results of its presidential election in a tight race that has really thrown a curveball with late surprise from the endorsement of U.S. President Donald Trump. Right now, conservative Nasry Tito Asfura, he leads with 34 percent of votes counted. That's according to early results from the country's electoral authority.

Security and jobs, they remain voters top priority priorities. But the election has also been defined by accusations of fraud. As for the Trump administration, it sees the election as an opportunity to flex its influence in Latin America. The U.S. president even threatened to cut funding from the country if Asfura, his preferred candidate, loses.

President Trump also shocked Hondurans when he announced that he would pardon the country's former president. Juan Orlando Hernandez is facing a 45-year prison sentence in the U.S. after being convicted of drug trafficking. Now that's similar to the charges that President Trump is alleging against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Our Dana Bash pressed one of the president's supporters in the U.S. Senate, Republican Markwayne Mullin, about that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: He is clearly very concerned about Central and South American presidents allegedly trafficking drugs to the United States. So if that's the case, why is he planning to pardon the former Honduran president who was convicted by an American jury of drug trafficking?

SEN. MARKWAYNE MULLIN, U.S. SENATE REPUBLICAN: I think by building new relationships, by allowing people to have a new beginning, he's showing good faith, saying, hey, we're going to work with you as long as you work with us. The minute you want to come punch us in the face, you want to continue to send your illegal drugs to us, we're going to be very proactive against you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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SANDOVAL: And Pope Leo is in Lebanon for the second leg of historic trip abroad. It's bringing a message of peace and of unity to the crisis hit country. Have the very latest on his tour of the Middle East when CNN Newsroom returns.

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SANDOVAL: That's Pope Leo XIV as he received a warm, but wet, welcome thanks to Mother Nature as he arrived in Lebanon on Sunday. This is all part of his historic first trip abroad as pontiff.

The rain not keeping people at home. He was greeted by cheering crowds and traditional dancers as his convoy made its way to the presidential palace.

And this route actually took him through Hezbollah-controlled neighborhoods. That's where scout troops lined the streets to greet him.

His arrival coming just a week after an Israeli airstrike killed five people in Beirut. This adding to fresh tensions to a country already struggling from a series of crises, including a fraying ceasefire with Israel.

Pope Leo will be spending three days in Lebanon, where he will be taking part in the interfaith dialog meet. He will also be meeting with political leaders and then attend a gathering for young people.

Here's CNN's Ben Wedeman with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: On the second and last leg of his first trip abroad as pontiff, Pope Leo landed in Beirut Sunday, driving through the city's southern suburbs, bombed by Israel during the recent war.

Reaching the presidential palace in the pouring rain, the dancers on hand undeterred, showering the popemobile with rice, a traditional Lebanese greeting.

Lebanon's government made the theme of this visit "blessed be the peacemakers" -- the phrase in Arabic, French and English on posters around the capital.

Lebanon has a large and influential Christian minority, which has seen its numbers in recent years fall as a result of war, instability and a collapsed economy.

Speaking before a gathering of senior government and political officials and diplomats, Pope Leo stressed the need for unity and harmony among Lebanon's diverse religious communities and the country's desperate need for a respite from war.

POPE LEO XIV, PONTIFF, ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH: It is a great joy for me to meet with you and to visit this land where peace is much more than just a word, for here peace is a desire and a vocation. It is a gift and a work in progress.

WEDEMAN: But peace here is elusive. The one-year-old U.S.-brokered ceasefire is beginning to fray, with Israel carrying out almost daily air and drone strikes, just a week ago, killing a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut's southern suburbs.

But until Tuesday, when Pope Leo departs, Lebanon will be distracted by a packed schedule, taking the Pope to the mountains of Lebanon, the Christian heartland, and back to Beirut for a silent prayer at the site of the August 2020 Beirut port blast, followed by a huge mass on the city's waterfront.

I'm Ben Wedeman, CNN -- reporting from Beirut.

(END VIDEOTAPE) SANDOVAL: To southern Israel now, where mourners gathered on Sunday to pay their respects to slain Israeli hostage Dror Or. They waved Israeli and yellow flags as the funeral procession drove by his -- by his hometown.

He and his wife were killed in the Hamas attacks of October 7th. His remains were taken hostage along with two of his children. Now the kids were safely released in November of 2023. Or's remains were only recently handed over to Israeli officials.

The Israeli prime minister is formally asking for a pardon, even though he hasn't been convicted of any crime. Benjamin Netanyahu requesting to the Israeli president well -- Benjamin Netanyahu's request to the Israeli president, this actually comes amid long running corruption trials.

In a letter published Sunday, Netanyahu said that the pardon was, quote, "in the public interest".

And the request, that has been met with fierce opposition at home. In Tel Aviv, protesters, they rallied outside the president's private residence.

Here's one protest leader on what a pardon could mean for the country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHIKMA BRESSLER, PROTEST LEADER: He's asking that his trial will be completely canceled without taking any responsibility, without paying the price for how he tore up this country and how he eventually brought to the massacre of 7 in October.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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SANDOVAL: The president's office acknowledged that it is a, quote, "exceptional" pardon request with significant implications, and added that it will consider it with great care and responsibility.

And we'll be right back with more.

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SANDOVAL: Some parts of the U.S., they are still feeling the wrath of winter cold from the Thanksgiving holiday.

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SANDOVAL: Imagine going back home through this, snowstorms like this one in Iowa. They caused more -- really they made for some really nasty, dangerous travel and were responsible for hundreds of disrupted flights on Sunday.

And adding insult to injury, there's this new weather system that's been fueled by even colder arctic air, which is actually moving across the country as we speak.

It is set to drive down temperatures, dumping freezing rain and more snow in its path, meaning dangerously icy conditions will likely follow for millions of Americans throughout the country starting their week.

Shifting gears, Disney is back at the top of the box office with its new animated adventure film, "Zootopia 2". "Zootopia 2" actually raked in an estimated $556 million in global movie ticket sales over the Thanksgiving weekend.

The sequel finding rookie police officers Judy Hopps and Nicky Wilde facing a new mystery when a snake moves into town. "Zootopia 2" debuted in the U.S. with $156 million in sales.

I want to thank you so much for joining us on CNN NEWSROOM.

Stick around for another edition of "WORLDSPORT". And then the news continues with Ben Hunte.

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