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Connect the World
E.U. Agrees On COVID Economic Recovery Plan; Kremlin Denies Putin Received Experimental Vaccine; Fair & Equal Global Distribution Of Vaccine Is A Challenge; Israeli Restaurants Caught In Clash Over COVID-19 Restrictions; Tennis Star Talks About Sport's New Normal. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired July 21, 2020 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: The European Union shows it is just that as it comes together to agree on an economic recovery plan. But
is it enough in what are these extraordinary times? I'm Becky Anderson.
Hello and welcome to our second hour of "Connect the World." we begin this hour in Europe where history has again been made in a year already destined
for the history books. EU members have agreed on a Coronavirus recovery plan worth, on paper, at least, more than $2 trillion.
But bear in mind that 1.3 trillion of that is the EU's new budget for the next seven years, which was under discussion before the pandemic. The rest,
more than $850 billion, will be in the form of grants and loans to help economies ravaged by COVID-19.
But is it enough? In terms of new spending, it falls way short of the $2 trillion plan the U.S. passed in March, a comparison which some say might
be fair given that both the EU and America have similar-sized economies and have, sadly, seen roughly around 140,000 deaths each.
Well, for more, Melissa Bell is in Paris for us. Deal done and a palpable sense of relief from European leaders, can you explain the significance of
this deal?
MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: Well, you need only look, really, Becky, at the deep divisions that meant these negotiations dragged on for
so many days, led to so many arguments and looked so unlikely to get to this.
To get an idea of everything that divided them, in a sense what we've seen in the last few years, our sources that seemed to be pulling Europe apart.
What we saw this morning with this historic deal, the solution we saw was to get people closer together one a day.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANGELA MERKEL, GERMAN CHANCELLOR: We have laid out the financial foundations for the European Union for the next seven years, and we have
also come up with a response to this arguably biggest crisis of the European Union.
CHARLES MICHEL, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COUNCIL: And this agreement sends a concrete signal that Europe is a force for action.
URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: Europe as a whole has now a big chance to come out stronger from the crisis. Today we've taken a
historic step we can all be proud of. But another important step remains ahead of us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BELL: It was really a measure of how bad things were that they were able to take this step. So long, impossible to think of for Europe, even as
federalist call for the idea not only of solidarity in some of its financial aid with grants being given to those hardest hit countries, not
the sort of loans we saw a decade ago during the debt crisis, Becky but also the fact that it's Brussels.
It is Europe, as a territorial entity, a state that we'll be borrowing from the markets in order to take responsibility for debt and raise that money.
That is a substantial shift, and it really took this unprecedented crisis to open the door to that dialogue, to that possibility, and now to this
reality that many had considered just a stretch too far.
ANDERSON: Yes well, fascinating. Melissa, thank you for that Melissa is in Paris. The EU taking a bow for what it says is a job well done. For some
context, it may be worth noting that the U.S. has been there, done that as it were in March Congress passed the Cares Act, the $2 trillion stimulus
package to keep the U.S. economy going as the pandemic first raged.
And today they are wrangling in Washington about another trillion-dollar relief bill. But Europe definitely lifting the mode especially among
investors, even though it looks like a bit of a compromise deal, especially in terms of grants versus loans as Melissa was pointing out.
This is the state of the markets. It's not an explosive day on the markets, but certainly they are in positive territory across Europe. John Defterios
is checking the nuances for us on this. There is a lot of euphoria.
[11:05:00]
ANDERSON: But wasn't this a make or break deal for the EU in that they had to deliver a package? Didn't they, John?
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I think you hit the nail on the head there, Becky. Failure was not an option here that's for sure because the
future of the European Union was at stake, and I think that's why they were willing to burn the midnight oil and actually sign this agreement at 5:15
am in the morning in Brussels.
They wanted to get it passed the finish line there. They were months behind on the budget for one, and number two you layered on top the pandemic and
then they had to come up with a much wider package of just over $2 trillion.
There was a threat here, though, because there was a north-south divide. The frugal fore as they were recalled led by the Netherlands, they were
suggesting that the original package which was 2-1 with grants, 2-1 over the loans just was not going to go.
And at the end of the day, it was almost a 50-50 split. That was a compromise that irked the southern Europeans, no doubt about it. Then they
took the anchor states of Germany and France with Angela Merkel and Emmanuel Macron to make sure that this boat didn't drift away and they
couldn't get a deal done.
So at the end of the day, it sends a message to the UK, number one, because Brexit was going to be formal in 2021 that because you left, we don't
splinter. And number two there is an anti-European grade, as you know, in Italy with the five star movements and also in Spain.
They answered to them saying, we did give you grant money, perhaps not as much as you expected, but we're delivering here after failing, I would
suggest, Becky, on the migration issue where southern Europeans were overly exposed and many are complaining they didn't get help in the south of
Europe as a result of the flooding of refugees from Syria and Africa overall.
ANDERSON: When you really drill down on the details of this deal, and people are only beginning to do that, what you see is an enormous amount of
conditionality, which it remains to be seen whether that is going to hurt countries going forward and whether people will actually be able to stick
to the details of this deal still going to get it through parliament, of course, in Europe.
What would stand out if I were going to compare this package that's been agreed by European leaders with the U.S. stimulus package?
DEFTERIOS: It's a great question, because, Becky, I think the U.S. plan was a jump-start growth as much as possible; make sure that the markets had
plenty of liquidity. With Donald Trump as President, put forward to tax cuts. He's even suggesting a payroll tax cut right now which is meeting
resistance even in his own Republican Party.
But I think with seven year deal to go into the numbers here, it's quite fascinating. This is a green infrastructure deal or an infrastructure deal
in general that Donald Trump couldn't deliver. He promised a trillion- dollar package to kind of revitalize the U.S. economy.
A third of this budget goes to green infrastructure so the transition to solar and wind, modernizing the infrastructure in the south, it puts them
on net zero emissions to 2050. So I think it's quite cleaver to take a seven year median term outlook and say, we have a crisis right now, we're
going to contract six to seven percent a year.
But what can we do to plan for the future at the same time? I think it's a legacy builder for Angela Merkel. 15 years as Chancellor, she did not want
to leave that table with a splintered vote here and the tensions between the north and the south, Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes, the Germans, of course, with the revolving Presidency of the EU at present. John, always a pleasure thank you, sir. John is in Abu Dhabi
in the house at his house today. Still a little - COVID, quite frankly, means that we are still working in a slightly strange way. Some of us are
at home and some of us are in the office, thank you John.
Now to something that's become a story of our time. Russian attacks, be it on elections or the vaccine surge, a long-awaited report by the British
parliament is calling Russian meddling, "New normal". An 18-month-long investigation finds that the EU government took its eye off the ball and I
quote the report there "Concerning Moscow's attempt to influence politics, allowing it to go unchecked for years".
Well, the report calls for new legislation to tackle the ongoing threats from the Kremlin. But Russia says the accusations of interference are,
"Baseless". The report also accuses the British government of being slow to realize the threat of Russian influence in the 2016 Brexit referendum.
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh is in London.
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR: Well Becky, a long- awaited report, which critics say is essentially at least nine months later than it could have been.
[11:10:00]
WALSH: But one also fails to answer a key question, many were hoping I would shed some light on, and that's whether or not Russia did in fact
influence the 2016 referendum here in the UK for the country to leave the European Union, which voted for the country to do so and will do towards
the end of this year.
Then answer from this committee in parliament behind me is it's impossible, frankly, for them to have gauged whether or not Russia had an influence on
that democratic decision, essentially, they say, because they weren't given information - it didn't appear the assessment was done by Britain's
intelligence agencies as to whether or not Russia had that impact back then.
And in fact they say that had the threat level been assessed by Britain's Intelligence Committee ahead of that vote, then it would "Have been
inconceivable" that they didn't take measures to try and limit Russia's influence.
Now, they go on to say that Russian influence here in the United Kingdom is, "A new normal, and they point to vast amounts, millions of pounds that
have been invested over the past decades, particularly here in London by wealthy Russians.
And also critical, perhaps, of some governments putting the emphasis of the need of that wealth coming into the country ahead of the impact of national
security. They're critical, too, of social media platforms to not doing more to limit Russia's influence.
But the key thing here really is exactly who's responsibility it was back then in 2016 to counter Russia's ability to sway elections? They refer to
that issue as "A hot potato" passed between the domestic security agency, MI-5, foreign intelligence service, MI-6, and the cyber wing of them DCHQ.
Nobody quite sure exactly who had to take responsibility for this and something which the UK was slow to act upon. So a long-awaited report here
that really doesn't answer decisively the question many were hoping it would do, but they laid before the intelligence committee here in UK the
question of why they hadn't done more and possibly the need for legislation and reform in the months ahead to make them better prepared for the
continuing Russian threat, Becky.
ANDERSON: That's Nick Paton Walsh in London. Let's bring in CNN's Matthew Chance live in the Russian Capitol of Moscow. What is Russian reaction to
that report?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, as a matter of fact, the Kremlin haven't actually come out after the report was
released and issued a statement, but they did in the minutes before the statement came out.
There was a conference call with reporters, which happens every day, and they basically pre- preempted the report, saying, look, we think this is
baseless, any allegations against us are unfounded and we don't mess in the politics of other countries.
It's a mantra, frankly, Becky, that they have been repeating since the allegations first emerged of Russian meddling in the U.S. election in 2016.
So they've fallen back into the same sort of pattern of denial, refusing to acknowledge the substance at all of any of the allegations that are made by
any of these western governments, the latest one being Britain, in terms of Russia's meddling.
And so I don't expect that to change. It was expected that they would categorically deny this, and indeed, that is what the Kremlin have done.
Becky?
ANDERSON: In the meantime, Russia denying that President Vladimir Putin is being vaccinated against COVID-19. That comes amid reports Moscow's
business and political elite to getting early access to trial vaccine. Matthew, what have you learned?
CHANCE: Well, I mean, that report has been dismissed as speculation, this idea that there is sort of a secret vaccine program underway, but only
people who are in the political and business elites of the country are getting access to it before it's made publicly available.
That's a rumor that's been circulating around. And it's been, you know, reinforced by the fact that a couple of prominent people, particularly the
lead scientist who has been developing Russia's sort of best vaccine and the Head of the Russian Direct Vaccine Fund which has been funding much of
that vaccine research.
They've all sort of had early access to medicine, the drug that's being created. But there's been a rejection that this is something that's been
open to billionaires in the country, leaders of industry and things like that.
But, I mean, certainly Russia is pushing hard to try and get its vaccine approved. That approval is expected, according to Russian officials, by
next month, so it could be earlier than anyone else in the world, and of course they have every reason to be motivated.
There are more than, what, 770,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases in this country. That's the official figures. The real number, of course, could be
much, much higher than that, Becky.
ANDERSON: Matthew Chance is in Moscow for you folks. Thank you, Matthew.
[11:15:00]
ANDERSON: Well, a search for a vaccine ever more important as it seems one thing becomes increasingly clear about the virus. The symptoms of COVID-19
can linger and linger. It doesn't just go away, it sticks around and keeps hurting you.
Some people experience pain, fatigue and trouble breathing months after what they thought was their initial recovery. And now doctors are racing to
find out why. CNN's Isa Soares has more.
ISA SOARES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Emiliano Pescarolo taking each day one breath at a time with every exercise, a chance for this professional diver
to train the muscles in his chest which have been weakened by COVID-19.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMILIANO PESCAROLO, COVID-19 PATIENT: Your breath is less than before, so you have to use a walker, you have to take two or three hours to rest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Three months since he contracted the virus--
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PESCAROLO: Every single vein like a walker for a couple miles. It was like going up a mountain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: And after spending 17 days in hospital, he needs to pause to catch his breath. He's one of dozens of COVID-19 patients being evaluated by a
team of doctors at this rehabilitation institute in Genoa, Italy. And while the peak of infection may have passed here, medical professionals are only
now coming to grips with the long-term effects of the virus.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. PIERO CLAVARIO, DIRECTOR, ASL 3 COVID REHABLITATION CENTER, GENOA: COVID patients there are three main problems. The first one could be the
lung problems, and this is the fear of most of the doctors. But the other one, less known, probably, is the loss of strength, fatigue that they very
easily feel, and the lost one is a psychological problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: As in Italy, here in the UK, Professor Chris Brightling who was leading a new major study into the long-term effects of COVID-19 tells me
also he's seeing patients with fatigue and chronic pain, but is now investigating other potential conditions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS BRIGHTLING, PROFESSOR OF RESPIRATORY MEDICINE, UNIVERSITY OF LEICESTER: It might be that they actually developed new problems such as
scarring on the lungs, and in some people, we've also observed that the breath can get caught in the lungs and also the brain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: This is all very unsettling for people who have suffered from months on end with the virus. This video made by an 8,000-strong Facebook
support group who are calling for rehab, research, as well as recognition. Senior Intensive Care Nurse Claudia De Freitas is one of them.
Like so many others, she's been meticulously jotting down her symptoms since she first fell ill with a cough and chest pains in mid-March.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLAUDIA DE FREITAS, SENIOR INTENSIVE CARE NURSE: I felt like I was going to have a cardiac arrest. That's how I felt the way that my heart was. I get
quite upset because it just takes you back to--
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: It's clearly been a very long and difficult medical journey for Claudia. Four months on since the onset of her symptoms, she tells me she's
finally coming out of it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: How do you feel now?
FREITAS: I still have the chest pains but very mild. I feel much better, so I think I'm in recovery.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: Like so many others, she hopes this will be the end with the battle of suspected COVID-19. But with so much we don't know about this virus,
research into its long-term consequences can't come soon enough. Isa Soares, CNN, London.
ANDERSON: Well, the big picture this hour, will a vaccine be ready by Christmas? That's certainly the headline leading the UK's front pages.
Later in the hour we'll be putting that question to Kate Bingham, who is the Chair of the UK's Vaccine Task Force.
Well, the very latest on Libya is just ahead, and the Israeli Prime Minister under fire for his pandemic measures, facing backlash from
protesters and now his coalition government all that coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:20:00]
ANDERSON: You're watching "Connect the World." I'm Becky Anderson. And for those of you who have just joining us you are more than welcome. Let's talk
Libya. It's a powder keg of foreign interference and it may be about to plunge into further chaos.
There is a significant new development that you need to know about. Egypt's parliament has now approved the entry of troops into the conflict zone. It
is unclear whether the Egyptian President will actually send in any troops to Libya, but a deployment there would bring Egypt and Turkey, U.S. allies
that support rival sides in the Libyan conflict, into direct confrontation.
President El-Sisi spoke to the U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday about a need for a cease fire. French President Emmanuel Macron also spoke to Mr.
Trump about Libya, he tweeted this picture saying, great discussion on Libya with my friend@realdonaldtrump.
The White House says the two "Discussed critical bilateral and global issues including ways to de-escalate the situation in Libya which has been
- by the presence of foreign forces and arms. What is a battle field with many hands at work?
I recently spoke with Ibrahim Kalin Spokesman for the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan. You heard some of that last hour. He says Turkey is
neither an aggressor nor a savior in Libya rather it is just trying to help the political process.
Well, let's cut through this diplomatic jargon, if you will. Our Senior International Correspondent Sam Kiley normally based here in Abu Dhabi who
has reported extensively from Libya over the years. He is with us from London. I hope the shot is stable this time, my apologies for the problems
last hour, Sam. What do you make of this latest salvo from Egypt? The President has the ability to send troops to Libya. Will he? And why would
he?
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, will he, I think, is a moot point. What he has said where it would cease to be moot, he said,
is if there's going to be an attack on Sirte, and you remember that Sirte was the city where the last Libyan Dictator Muammar Al-Gaddafi was trapped
and eventually murdered during the rebellion there, that has unleashed this chaos since 2011, Becky.
So he has said Egypt would or could intervene if the government - the central government, which has backed out of Libya, out of Tripoli, were to
attack Sirte. Now they certainly are building up their forces, they are saying that they are going to do just that.
So they're making it very difficult, indeed, for Egypt not to intervene in some way. Now of course, Egyptian aircraft alongside Emirati aircraft,
alongside on the ground Russian mercenaries and Syrian mercenaries had been fighting in eastern Libya against the internationally recognized government
out of Tripoli on their side.
And this is what has been the game changer over the last year, when the - backed by Egypt, Russia and UAE were able to get close to actually
capturing the Capitol, they were eventually driven back as a result most experts would say of Turkish intervention.
The Turkish drones and air support have resulted in a retreat of forces. Now there are reports that both forces are reporting around Sirte.
[11:25:00]
KILEY: We'll just see in the next few days whether Egypt will make good on its threat, effectively, to deploy ground troops. That would potentially
bring Egypt into direct physical confrontation with Turkish forces.
Of course, Turkey is a NATO member. It's a very integrated and important part of Turkey, Egypt, from the western perspective, a very important part
of a stabilizing footprint in the American perspective across the Middle East, Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes, it couldn't be messier, what is going on the ground. You might draw parallels, of course, to Syria. A lot of players and there is
fighting are laterally the emergence of two key actors, Turkey and Russia. But there are key differences, correct?
KILEY: Yes, there are really important differences but they are kind of the same but different. One of the questions implicit in your question there is
why are the different sides getting involved? What's in it for them? If you look at why people are supporting Haftar, Egypt in particular, the
Emirates, they're supporting him because he's in the area and arguably has occasionally gotten into bed with very dangerous extremist Jihadi movements
that predate his rebellion that go back to the days of resistance against Muammar Al-Gaddafi.
On the government side, a government that's recognized by the United Nations, countries like Turkey who have a less, shall we say, paranoid
attitude to political Islam, given that President Erdogan by no means a jihadist, but is an exponent of political Islam, they see that so much as a
problem.
They want to see stability across the region and they want to see the government in power. Then right down the middle, pretty much just a few
kilometers to the East of Sirte, is where the oil comes out. Libya is not the world's biggest producer of oil, but it produces something like two or
3 percent of the world's oil, a significant amount.
And that, of course, is something that all sides would like to be able to control, get their hands on and use for - theoretically for development in
the years to come. So you've got this extraordinary schism, and going back not too far, you had the French who were supporting Haftar for those Jihadi
issues in his areas.
It was perceived that this powerful general could take over the country perhaps and squash these all these form of oppositions, and then countries
like the United Kingdom, vocally, at any rate, supporting the government out of Tripoli. Really its turns on the issue there of political Islam and
what people think they should do about it.
ANDERSON: Very briefly Sam why has that been such a failure of diplomacy?
KILEY: Largely because of the confused networks. Libya has broken up. I mentioned how effectively you've got, for example, the UK and France really
on opposite sides of the argument, not opposite sides in terms of fighting.
You have the Emiratis increasingly flex their muscles diplomatically around the world. On the opposite side of their very close allies, the United
States which backs the Libyan government.
So you've got these confused lines of communication which, of course, the Russians have been very effective in exploiting by sending significant
numbers of Russian and paying for Syrian mercenaries to operate on the side of general Haftar threatening to overrun Tripoli at one point, now being
pushed back but creating this roiling mess on the effectively the southern underbelly of Europe with the added problem of a huge number of these
refugees.
All these different conundrums have proved very, very difficult for countries that frankly and I've been covering this since the revolution in
2011, they just wished would go away. They've been trying to wish away a problem on their doorstep and there has not really been any significant
engagement, particularly not from the Europeans, who largely have most to lose strategically.
ANDERSON: Sam Kiley on the story for you. Thank you, Sam. Well, the idea of Christmas miracles now was being floated in regards to the race for a
Coronavirus vaccine or vaccines. But just how realistic is that? We're going to break down the vaccine politics at play after this. Plus, he only
seems to be getting better. Cristiano Ronaldo smashes another record, his extraordinary achievement is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
ANDERSON: Welcome back. You're watching "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson. The global race for a Coronavirus vaccine is driving us forward
this hour with the UK, the U.S. and China among the countries sprinting ahead for a possible pandemic escape route.
While the headline "Vaccine by Christmas" dominating the UK's front pages today, following Monday's preliminary results from two vaccine developers,
just how possible is this? "A Vaccine by Christmas" Kate Bingham is the Chair of the UK's Vaccine Taskforce. And he is standing by in London, makes
a great headline, but is this vaccine by Christmas really a reality?
KATE BINGHAM, CHAIR, UK VACCINE TASKFORCE: Thank you, Becky. I think the answer is it is a possibility, but it's no more than a possibility. We've
got to have a lot of things that go right for that to be correct, and we have to take the wonderful things that we've seen from Oxford so far.
And continue that study to show that Oxford vaccine can be both safe and effective in preventing infection or in reducing the symptoms from
infection. So that's the first thing that has to be done. The second thing that has to be done is to actually ensure that we can manufacture enough a
bit that is underway at the moment.
So that manufacturing is taking place at risk, because we don't know yet whether or not the vaccine will work. And then the final thing that has to
happen is we have to have the regulatory approval. So in the UK, that's the MHRA or the European Medicines Agency have to approve this as being safe to
use before we can get the vaccine.
ANDERSON: Kate, take a listen to what Richard Horton, who is Editor in Chief of course, of "The Lancet" said in a podcast by the launch. Have a
listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICHARD HORTON, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, THE LANCET: I think most people would agree that those who should have access to the vaccine first are those who
are most at risk of developing severe, even fatal disease, if they become infected.
And we know enough about this virus now and the disease it causes to know what those risk groups are. Right now there is a real danger that those
groups most at risk will not get fairly or equitably treated if a vaccine does become available. And that should be a cause of not just global
concern, but actually global shame.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Yes, we're talking about fair and equal distribution here. Is it realistic to establish a global framework for fair and equal distribution,
do you think, Kate?
[11:35:00]
BINGHAM: I think it is. I mean, first of all, he's completely correct. So in the UK, we have an advisory group to the government called the Joint
Committee of Vaccination Immunizations. And they advise on the vaccine strategies, all vaccinations, but including COVID.
They have advised exactly what Richard Horton just said, which was to vaccinate those people who are at most risk of infection from COVID. So in
the UK, it will be applied similarly across the world, but it includes the elderly, the front line workers, the ethnic minorities and those people
with co-morbidities over the age of 18.
So, that policy is something that we can obviously completely support. But this broader point about vaccine nationalism is also one that's completely
relevant. There is no point any country trying to just protect themselves without ensuring that the whole world that needs it is vaccinated. And so
what--
ANDERSON: Sorry, let me just - in that point. How do you protect against what you've just described as vaccine nationalism?
BINGHAM: Well, I was just - I mean with the Astra Zeneca Deal that we've signed a three-way deal between Oxford, the UK and AZED, part of the terms
of that contract is that they have to provide equitable access and supply throughout the world. So that we have not just said we want you to supply
the UK, we want them to be making very serious commitments to ensure everywhere and every country does have access to that vaccine.
So, in our most recent discussion, they showed us a map of the world, and I'm pleased to say probably three-quarters of it is colored in, as in they
have discussions either signed or supply agreements underway to supply those different countries.
And I have to say, just that as an example, to be scaling to get to 2 billion doses of a vaccine where we only discovered and learned about the
virus at the beginning of this year, I think, is completely phenomenal. It's at the level of international collaboration, it's really good.
ANDERSON: It's unprecedented. And that begs the question, should we be concerned about the pace of this vaccine development?
BINGHAM: So it's unprecedented, and the reason the pace is so much faster than normal is that the funding has been unlocked to allow these trials and
manufacturing to take place before we know whether or not the vaccine is going to work.
So Oxford released their data yesterday from their phase 1 and phase 2 study which was obviously very encouraging, but they did not wait for that
data before they enrolled and started bringing together their phase 3 study.
So actually they have already vaccinated over 8,000 people in their phase 3 large equity study which is highly unusual. Normally you would do things
sequentially and here things are being done in parallel. But that is not shortcutting any safety measure.
So nothing has been done that would compromise the patient's safety or that would lower the standards that the regulatory agencies are seeking from any
new - vaccine.
ANDERSON: I just want to get back to what we discussed at the beginning of this and just pressed you a little more, whether a vaccine by Christmas is
possible? I mean, you sort of - you caveat the possibility.
I guess our viewers who are watching from all over the world simply want to know, when is it do you think, that a vaccine will be available to all of
us that is safe and that we understand we should take?
BINGHAM: Okay, so there are two questions. One is when and then you said two all of us. So, I don't think "to all of us" is something that's going
to happen for a long time. Because we need to be sure that the priority populations are vaccinated first, and that will take some time.
And in fact no - there is no large-scale studies being trialed on under 18, so it's not likely that they will ever have a label or not in the near term
for these vaccines. So, the global picture is, I would not assume there are any vaccines before next year.
There will be some early vaccines, if everything goes right, potentially at the end of this year. But that's not something I would be going to the bank
on in terms of everyone can get vaccinated by Christmas.
And the other point frankly that's worth raising is that, these are likely to be two-dose vaccines, so you have one dose and then 28 days or a month
later, you'll have your second dose, and you won't be fully protected until after you have that second dose. And so, that also extends the time it will
take before we can actually vaccinate everybody.
[11:40:00]
ANDERSON: We are discussing this here under the assumption to a certain extent that people will be willing to take a vaccine when it's available.
We already know that there are lots of anti-vaccers, as they're called out there. What's your message to those who might be concerned about taking any
vaccine in the early stages of release?
BINGHAM: I would ask anybody who is concerned about it to just look at the impact of vaccination on global health. And it wasn't so long ago that
children were dying in the millions from diseases that could be prevented such as smallpox, and vaccination has eliminated that, or largely
eliminated that from the global scene.
And if we lose confidence in vaccination, we suffer much more significant consequences than just this COVID pandemic. So there is no reason to be
concerned about it. Where we've had anti-vac campaigns before, they have all proven to be false. And so, the MMR campaign has been very destructive.
There are lots of people and children who were not vaccinated, who are now getting very sick and causing others to get sick.
ANDERSON: Yes.
BINGHAM: So the impact of anti-vac is not a helpful one in the global scene.
ANDERSON: Very briefly, there is reporting the scores of Russia's elite have been given early access to an experimental COVID-19 vaccine. Also
we've heard reports of the Russians trying to interfere or infiltrate vaccine research elsewhere. How concerned are you on those points?
BINGHAM: Well, I don't know anything about early access to elites to a vaccine. It sounds like they've enrolled in a clinical trial, which is
great. And I think everybody who would like to contribute to the prevention of COVID as soon as possible should enroll in a clinical trial.
And actually, that's something we have started in the UK. For the first time we've launched a national website as part of the LHS website to allow
any member of the public to sign up and register interest in taking part in clinical trials.
So that is absolutely spectral and part of our rapid response to the pandemic. As far as I'm concerned about cyber stealing of secrets of
various vaccines, the reality is much of technology is already disclosed and is public, and data was published because the whole thesis here is
largely the pharmaceutical companies are not trying to make money. So they've gone public.
And so, Astra Zeneca, Johnson & Johnson, GSK and so on have all said this for them is a time of global pandemic and they are working at non-profit
prices. So, it's not clear to me what anybody will achieve by trying to steal secrets.
Because it's important for all of us that everyone has that access to vaccines and we need as much help as we can to create that supply is
potentially 7 billion people we need to ultimately vaccinate. And so, there is nothing that anyone will gain from this sort of cyber watching.
ANDERSON: And with that, we leave it there, Kate. Thank you for the kind of wide ranging discussion on this. It is so important to people watching
around the world. Thank you. Ahead on "Connect the World" with me Becky Anderson open as an act of defines restaurants in Israel, take on the
government over Coronavirus Oren gives a live update from Jerusalem in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:45:00]
ANDERSON: Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing another challenge to his controversial Coronavirus measures. He has infuriated
restaurateurs with his order for them to close. And now the Knesset will instruct that order down CNN's Oren Liebermann joining me now from
Jerusalem, Oren?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, part of the confusion has to do with who is calling the shots here. When it comes to restrictions at first,
they are generally passed as emergency restrictions by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the cabinet.
But then they have to fairly quickly be approved by Knesset Committees, and that's where we saw this disagreement. So for example, on Friday, there was
an order to close restaurants Friday morning. By sunset Friday, restaurants could stay open over the weekend.
They were supposed to close this morning Friday at 5:00 am, a few hours later a Knesset Committee overruled the cabinet and said, no, they can stay
open. And that has been part of the growing frustration here, not only on the part of restaurant owners, but also on the general public as they look
for some sort of long term strategy or plan to get Israel through the Coronavirus crisis. I'm here at Mona Restaurant in Jerusalem and I'm joined
by Chef Owner Itamar Navon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: As you see the regulations flit back and forth closed, open, open, closed, sometimes within a few hours, how frustrating is that as you
just try to figure out what's the guidance here?
ITAMAR NAVON, CHEF/OWNER, MONA RESTAURANT: Basically, we are fed up. We are completely frustrated. We take our business very seriously. We are a top-
level restaurant. We have over 200 employees in all our restaurants. We get the orders in for the weekend way before.
And we can't manage our business if we don't know if we're open or closed. We need a long-term plan. That's what we're so frustrated about and that
has been our demand from the beginning of this Coronavirus.
LIEBERMANN: You already went through a general lockdown when we saw that for a couple of months between late March and early May or so. In a sense
we knew that was coming. We knew there was a general closure of most of the country here. Is it much more difficult with the sort of the quick
decision-making, the last-second notices, and what are you looking for now from the government?
NAVON: It's impossible to plan and run your business and make the necessary adjustments if you don't know what's going on. When the first time it was
clear that we were going to close, and they gave us like a couple of days' notice, but it was obvious that's where we were heading, so we made the
adjustments.
We talked to our staff, put them on hold. We told them we would get back when we get back. And then they told us that we can come back, and it
wasn't clear exactly how can we come back. Each day was planning by that day exactly how we were going to reopen and when we were going to reopen.
And then they said, tomorrow you can reopen.
So everybody ran around, made the adjustment, we reopened and now they say, sorry, we need to close you back. And then they say, oops, that's not
right, you can reopen. It's impossible. It was obvious for us when they told us that we have to close from that day that basically it's a joke, and
we protested.
We said we would keep the restaurant open. And we made the right decision. A friend of mine who owns another restaurant decided to close. He gave all
of his products away. When they said you can reopen, he had nothing left to sell for the weekend which he bought already and just gave away to his
staff.
LIEBERMANN: Itamar Navon, thank you for your time here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: From here restaurant owners who head for - street which is the official Prime Minister's residence, and they will join what has become a
growing group of protesters out there, and we've seen it from a number of different angles.
Black flag anti-corruption protesters, economic protestors frustrated with the situation, restaurant owners will now join that group again looking for
some answers. And that you can sense that frustration amongst restaurant owners, that is the frustration Becky that is more and more running through
the country here in this second wave of corona virus.
ANDERSON: Yes, and I think reflected around the world. Oren thank you for that Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem. This just in to CNN, the White House
says, U.S. President Donald Trump is being tested for Coronavirus multiple times a day.
Yes, you heard that correctly, multiple times every day, although we don't know exactly how many times that is? The White House Press Secretary
describes him as the most tested man in America, which could explain his reluctance to wear a mask.
[11:50:00]
ANDERSON: Whether you are a fan of Cristiano Ronaldo or not, you panel deny his carrier achievements. The football superstar may be 35 years of age,
but simply doesn't stop making his feat. We're going to tell you about his latest feat up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Football Superstar Cristiano Ronaldo made history on Monday night. Yes, once again the 35-year-old Portuguese Star set a new scoring
record, becoming the first player to score 50 goals in three of Europe's top football leagues, now putting Juventus within reach of a ninth league
title.
Don Riddell is in the house. Just when you thought he may be running low in the tank at the ripe old age of 35, he goes and breaks another record. Is
he for real? I mean, seriously?
DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR: Yes, Becky, this moment in the sports broadcast where we start talking about vintage wines and getting better
with age, anybody that's been following his career knows just how good he is, and he's not interested in slowing down, is he?
The world might be upside down with the Coronavirus right now, but some people are carrying on like his business as usual. Ronaldo once again
demonstrating his extraordinary talent this season, even in his twilight years apparently he's just getting better.
Ronaldo scored twice as you say for Juventus in a 2-1 win against Lazio on Monday, nudging Juve closer to what is almost surely yet another title. His
brace means that he is now past the 50 goal mark in Syria, in Italy, and he becomes the first player to score at least half a century in Italy, Spain's
La Liga and England's Premier League.
He now he has a whopping 30 goals in 30 league games this season. That's a really big improvement on his first year in Italy when he scored 21 last
year. That is incredible. Juve are now eight points clear at the top of the table, and there are only four games left in the league this season.
Now we've learned a lot of new words and phrases this year, Coronavirus, social distancing, and the word around professional sports these days is
bubble. A bubble is a way of keeping athletes and employees safe. Professional tennis is hoping to return next month, but as I'll tell you in
a moment, there are challenges ahead.
And a non-official series in the Balcones (ph) last month's two stringing criticism after several players tested positive for COVID-19. The World
Number Three, Dominic Thiem played in that event, he's also just won the Bet 1 Aces Exhibition Tournament in Germany. And he has been telling
Patrick Snell about tennis in the age of a global pandemic.
DOMINIC THIEM, WORLD NUMBER THREE TENNIS PLAYER: Temperature checks every day, and then when we arrive to, we go tested, and until we got the result,
we are obviously in the hotel. And once everybody was negative, we were allowed to move from the hotel, to the site, from the site back to the
hotel, so we were basically living in a bubble.
And well from safety measures, it was a great tournament and also probably a role model for everything that's coming up.
PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: And you got the U.S. open in New York City coming up starting late next month. Is that going to be safe, are going to
play?
THIEM: If it's going to happen, I'm very sure that it's safe, and then I'm also going to play because I guess that it's time that the normal tourists
coming back.
[11:55:00]
THIEM: And I think that what's happening here in a very small way, I think it's possible to do it like with 250 players as well in New York.
SNELL: Imagine a Grand Slam, if you will, without fans. Can you even relate to that? Can you even imagine?
THIEM: It's tough to imagine. I think I played 24 Grand Slams now in my career, and if you experience it, every day, 50,000, 60,000 fans on-site.
And it's with zero fans, it's tough to imagine. But at the same time, it is how it is, and we have to deal with it until the normal life is coming
back. We have to deal with it. I think the main thing is that the tour and the tennis slowly comes back.
SNELL: There were fans, of course, at the Andrea Tour recently. When you look back on that Dominic, how much regret when you reflect on it all?
THIEM: Well I mean it was obviously a mistake. Everybody who got positive there is healthy again, which is a very good sign as well, and I'm happy
for everybody. I think everybody learned from that mistake.
When we came there, it was kind of bad. In reality we saw happy fans, we saw happy kids and then we kind of forgot to keep the distance, to not make
pictures, to not hug the kids and everything, and it was a mistake. Everybody regrets it, of course, but it's time to look in the future.
SNELL: Do you think the criticism was unfair on Novak? Because everyone's heart was in a good place right? Have you talked to him? Was it unfair on
him?
THIEM: Of course it was unfair to him because he didn't break any law, and as well he didn't force us, he didn't force any player to come there, he
didn't force any player to interact with the fans, it was everything our own decision. So I think it was unfair to put him in so much critics and
the whole event was for a very good cause as well.
SNELL: Athletes in general Dominic have being showing support for the Black Lives Matter movement. How important is it tennis does the same as well and
I'm moving forward?
THIEM: It's very important in general. There is no place for racism in no department of the whole world. And I think I can speak out for every tennis
player it doesn't matter from where he comes, what skin color he has.
It's everything the same, no, and especially as the sport is super global, we are basically all around the world every week. So I think we have a
pretty good view on that, and racism is just - it's something what it is not acceptable.
RIDDELL: Dominic Thiem there with Patrick Snell. The ATP Men's Tour was supposed to resume next month as the city open in Washington, D.C., but we
just heard in the last hour or so that the event has been canceled. Becky remember, the U.S. open one of the four Grand Slam events is due to start
at the end of August, but perhaps now that now also in jeopardy. We'll see, back to you.
ANDERSON: Yes, absolutely shame. Thank you, Don. Well, that was a busy couple of hours. Thank you viewers for joining us, stay safe forever you
are watching in the world. We'll see you same time, same place tomorrow.
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END
