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Challenging Months ahead in the U.S., Officials Warn People to Stay Home for Holidays; China Blaming Frozen Food for COVID-19 Outbreak; Netanyahu Vows to Set Example and Receive Vaccine First; UAE: Chinese Sinopharm Vaccine Safe and 86 Percent Effective; Germany Reels from Deadliest Day of Pandemic; U.K.'s Johnson Heads for High Stakes Showdown in Brussels; Champions League Players Walk off Pitch after Alleged Racism. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired December 09, 2020 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What we do now literally will be a matter of life and death for many of our citizens.
BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Dire warnings out of the states this evening as coronavirus cases soar ahead of the holidays.
Plus --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID CULVER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The concern with the frozen foods has gotten so sensitive that, if I were to walk in just like this, I
would have to do two weeks of quarantine as soon as I walked out.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON (voice-over): New claims from China that a recent spike in COVID cases there was actually imported into the country.
And --
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ANGELA MERKEL, CHANCELLOR OF GERMANY (through translator): There still remains the chance of a deal.
ANDERSON (voice-over): A tone of optimism as trade talks between the E.U. and the U.K. now finally near their end game.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, it's the day after the night before, where history was made in the age of the coronavirus pandemic.
I'm Becky Anderson. Welcome to the program.
This hour, we are connecting a world that is rapidly changing in different ways. Just 24 hours ago, we brought you truly remarkable scenes like these:
81-year-old William Shakespere, one of the first people to receive an approved COVID-19 vaccine in the Western world, a symbolic "gentleman of
corona," as some pointed out on social media.
But if you know that story, you will remember there were, in fact, two gentlemen and their narratives, at times, were painfully different. The
U.K. may be pushing ahead with its vaccine program, as is China, whose Sinopharm vaccine has an 86 percent efficacy rate.
That number confirmed here in the UAE, where clinical trials have been taking place.
But the wait will be longer for the country worst affected by COVID-19, the U.S., which is now averaging around 200,000 new cases a day. Total deaths
could soon approach the 300,000 mark.
An official involved in the U.S. vaccine process says jabs will be available for vulnerable people within days of emergency authorization.
Both Pfizer and Moderna are waiting on the green light. This as states do what they can in the meantime. Alexandra Field is on the story for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): As new coronavirus cases spread rapidly across the country, some states are shifting into crisis
mode once again, enforcing more restrictions as intensive care units fill up with patients.
GOV. JAY INSLEE (D-WA): What we do now literally will be a matter of life and death for many of our citizens.
DR. MARK GHALY, CALIFORNIA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: We're experiencing a surge like we've never seen.
FIELD: Among those with stay-at-home orders in place: California, Michigan and North Carolina, where the governor's also enforcing a 10:00 pm
curfew.
GOV. ROY COOPER (D-NC): We will do more if our trends do not improve. That means additional actions involving indoor restaurant dining, entertainment
facilities or shopping and retail capacity.
FIELD: The virus running rampant, with the U.S. recording more than 215,000 new cases Tuesday.
Here in Rhode Island, there's a 9.4 percent daily positivity rate and the nation's highest new average of new coronavirus cases per capita.
Health officials treating patients inside this field hospital in Providence. More than 104,000 people nationwide are hospitalized with the
virus, a dangerous record.
President-Elect Joe Biden outlining a coronavirus response plan for his first 100 days in office.
BIDEN: As a country, we've been living with this pandemic for so long, we're at risk of becoming numb to its toll on all of us.
FIELD: His top three goals: safely getting more children back into classrooms, promoting widespread mask wearing and distributing vaccines to
at least 100 million Americans.
BIDEN: It's going to take some time but I'm absolutely convinced that, in 100 days, we can change the course of the disease and change life in
America for the better.
FIELD: Tomorrow, an FDA panel meets to consider whether the first vaccine candidate will be granted emergency use authorization in the United States.
A decision is expected this week.
DR. STEPHEN HAHN, FAD COMMISSIONER: We do feel that preliminarily, that the success criteria have been met.
FIELD: But in the meantime, with most of the country likely facing a months-long wait for a vaccine, Dr. Anthony Fauci says it's important to
accept the reality of the pandemic.
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DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: There are a substantial proportion of the people who still think
that this is not real, that it's fake news or that it's a hoax. It's extraordinary. I've never really seen anything like this.
We've got to overcome that and pull together as a nation, uniformly, with adhering to these public health measures.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: That, of course, was Dr. Anthony Fauci. Alexandra joining us from Providence in Rhode Island.
A state, Alex, where some hospitals are at maximum capacity. Just in the past hour, the outgoing health secretary, Alex Azar, speaking to CNN. He
had this to say. Have a listen.
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ALEX AZAR, U.S. HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES SECRETARY: That's going to be up to the nation's governors as they prioritize within their states. But as we
look at the quantities of vaccine that we expect to come off from a multitude of manufacturers, you should start seeing, at points in February
and March, general population vaccinations occurring.
What we said is we expect that, in the second quarter of next year, we'd have enough vaccine for all Americans that want it. But that's not a moment
in time event.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Well, is that the sense that you are getting, Alex?
And what are governors doing in anticipation of these vaccine approvals?
FIELD: So Becky, governors across the country are hoping that they're going to get a larger volume of doses and that those doses will come
quickly.
But for now, they're really going to have to be fluid in their planning. Every state in the nation is making plans to work with the doses that they
are given. Earlier this month, a number of states learned their initial shipment would be smaller than what they planned for.
But these are numbers that continue to change. Secretary Azar setting an optimistic goal here, setting expectations high. For now, what we know in
the state of Rhode Island is that they are preparing to receive some 29,000 doses of the vaccine this month, in December.
Each state will then have to figure out how to distribute the vaccines and prioritize who gets them. Across the board, you'll see health care workers,
front-line workers, getting the vaccines first as well as, in many states, elderly people, people who live in nursing homes or long-term care
facilities.
While the initial shipments will be smaller perhaps than some of the states had hoped, they are planning for that. Here in Rhode Island, they'll say,
yes, health care workers will get the vaccines first. Within that group, they will prioritize those health care workers working face-to-face on a
daily basis with COVID patients.
And because health care systems are stretched thin across the state, they're going to take added precautions once they start administering those
vaccines. That means that people who work in the same health care units will stagger their vaccinations in the event somebody is forced to take a
day or two off because they are suffering from some side effects -- Becky.
ANDERSON: Ahead of all of this, just describe how tough things are for these health institutions there, where you are at present.
FIELD: Well, look, you're seeing a lot of states that are turning to their secondary plans, backup plans, plans that may have been made early on,
eight, nine, 10 months ago about what they would do if things got really bad for their hospitals.
Here in Rhode Island, they have opened up this field hospital. It has a capacity of 600 beds. So that sounds like a good thing. That sounds like
something that should really ease the pressure in Rhode Island.
But the scramble now, Becky, will be for workers who can staff these kinds of facilities. They're already stretched thin in hospitals because you have
people who are either suffering from infection, health care workers themselves, or you have health care workers forced to quarantine because
they may have had exposure.
On top of that, with the volume, incredible volume of COVID patients across the country, you just need more hands on deck. So I think that is the
difficulty that we're going to be seeing, not just for this state but for many.
ANDERSON: Yes, and for days, weeks, if not months, to come. Alex, thank you for that.
In the place where the virus is thought to have originated, China, it appears they are keeping a lid on the spread. But officials there say they
are concerned that the source of some smaller sporadic outbreaks are imported boxes of frozen foods.
And that is strengthening claims by state media that the virus did not come from China at all. Experts say the virus can survive for a period of time
on cardboard and plastic containers. But it's not clear how significant the risk is. CNN's David Culver reports from Beijing, where he saw imported
cargo being handled.
CULVER: Becky, China has gone from being the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak to a nation that's contained the spread, essentially sealing
itself off from the rest of the world. Life within, near normal.
The greatest perceived threat here now, one that is external. It's part of a growing narrative that also calls into question the origins of this
virus.
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CULVER (voice-over): Health officials in China blaming imported cases of COVID-19 for recent cluster outbreaks. They warned that it has been carried
in not only by some human travelers.
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But also and, perhaps more alarming, on goods imported from other countries.
As CNN saw firsthand, it has sparked immediate changes in the handling of international cargo that now entered China.
You'll notice the crew members behind me are in full PPE from head to toe. We have been told strictly not to go within a certain distance of them. And
we've also been told not to touch any of the cargo.
The reason is there's growing concern here in China that the imports from other countries might be carrying the virus; particularly, frozen foods.
And so those who are handling that cargo, as it is coming in or going out, now have to undergo these new measures.
While both the World Health Organization and the U.S. CDC insist there is no evidence that people can contract COVID-19 from food or food packaging,
Chinese media is airing images of the strict precautions now being taken.
Food transport trucks sprayed down with disinfectant, frozen seafood like shrimp and salmon along with the surfaces of all types of packaging, all
frequently tested for COVID-19.
This is one of the cold chambers here in the cargo wing of Shenzhen International Airport. Now the concern with the frozen food has gotten so
sensitive, that, if I were to walk in just like this, I would have to do two weeks of quarantine as soon as I walked out.
Full body suits now required for those working in these facilities.
China's ministry of transport warning that, before and after transporting the cold chain products, one should disinfect the used transportation means
and body parts that may have touched the containers.
Chinese health officials believe recent confirmed coronavirus cases might have been caused by contaminated imported goods. Last month, two Shanghai
airport cargo handlers tested positive for COVID-19.
In September, two dock workers in Qingdao, handling imported frozen seafood, also contracted the virus. And back in June, a massive Beijing
market shutdown, state media reported more than 300 people tested positive. Some have suggested that cluster outbreak might have been linked to
imported salmon.
Health experts say COVID-19 is tough enough to last for long periods on surfaces but they warn --
SRIDHAR SIDDHARTH, DEPARTMENT OF MICROBIOLOGY, UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG: this is not the most common way by which COVID-19 spreads. In most
situations, COVID-19 spreads from person to person, directly by (INAUDIBLE) particles in which the virus is present (ph) through the air.
CULVER: Still Chinese state media are using the imported case fears to repeatedly put into question the actual origins of the virus, stressing
that, "Wuhan is the place the disease was first identified, but probably not the place where the virus originated from," sowing seeds of doubt ahead
of a WHO field team's upcoming trip to China.
They will investigate the origins of COVID-19 as China works to keep new cases of the virus from seeping in through its borders.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CULVER (on camera): The WHO field team is expected to travel to China in the coming weeks as part of their efforts to trace the origins of COVID-19.
They're likely to travel to Wuhan as well. But they have yet to release many details on their plans to investigate, including how much access
they'll be granted by Chinese officials -- Becky.
ANDERSON: David Culver, reporting in Beijing for you.
In Israel, the first shipment of the coronavirus vaccine is now on the ground. Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu met the cargo plane as it arrived
at Ben Gurion near Tel Aviv, with tens of thousands of doses of the Pfizer vaccine on board.
Mr. Netanyahu says he will be the first to be vaccinated to encourage Israel's 9 million residents to get the jab, to start putting an end to the
health crisis there. The elderly and other high-risk populations are expected to start getting the vaccine in about 10 days' time. Oren
Liebermann joining us from Jerusalem with more on the vaccine rollout there.
Coronavirus cases are now trending upwards once again in Israel.
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said today was so significant that it was like a holiday. He
compared it to a holiday right before the holidays of Hanukkah and Christmas coming up in a few weeks.
That's the import he prescribed of this day as the vaccines arrived, calling it a light at the end of the pandemic. As you pointed out, he said
he would be the first to take the vaccine, as an attempt to show that it is both effective and safe. Here is part of what he said at the Ben Gurion
airport.
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BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL (through translator): This is a great day of celebrations for the state of Israel. We can see the end. We
still need to keep the rules, the masks, the hands, the distance. But we can see the end.
What's important for me is that the citizens of Israel will get vaccinated. I believe in this vaccine. I expect to get the requisite approval in the
coming days and I want the citizens of Israel to get vaccinated. In order to do that, I want to set an example.
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NETANYAHU (through translator): And I intend to be the first one to receive this vaccine in the state of Israel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LIEBERMANN: Crucially, Israel is not nearly out of the woods yet just because of the first doses of the vaccine arrive.
It was just a few days ago that Netanyahu said the slowly and steadily rising number of new infections a day is the beginning of a third wave of
infections in Israel, with speculation coming that perhaps a third lockdown will come before the country is vaccinated.
So it's a bit of a mixed bag of news here. Great news that the vaccine has arrived but it's not over here.
ANDERSON: Yes, fascinating. And the health minister alongside Benjamin Netanyahu in those pictures. Have a listen to what he had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YULI EDELSTEIN, ISRAEL HEALTH MINISTER (through translator): The mission of the vaccination is one of the most important missions facing the state
of Israel in recent years.
I intend to supervise this operation soon to ensure that Israeli citizens, who want to, will be able in a short period of time to safely receive
vaccines. And then, God willing, we will really see an end to the pandemic, a light at the end of the tunnel.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: So what is the plan?
Is there one in place for how to distribute this vaccine?
LIEBERMANN: If there is one in place, it doesn't look like it's been made public at this point. In regard to the vaccines that arrived today from
Pfizer, those will be taken to a logistical center, where they'll be stored until they're ready to be distributed.
But it's unclear at this point who gets them first, in what order, how many are here. And there are other vaccines that have been ordered. Israel
ordered the vaccine from Russia as well as talks with other companies that have produced a vaccine.
Crucially, it's unclear to us how many doses of the vaccine were on that DHL cargo flight that arrived. We asked the minister of health, the health
ministry and health officials here, including the director general of the health ministry and his spokespeople and we couldn't get a clear answer as
to how many doses were on the first flight and how many are expected to arrive in the coming days.
Israeli media, however, was all over the place when it came to that reporting, some suggesting there were only 3,000 to 4,000 doses on that
first flight as a sort of logistical test. Others said there were 100,000 doses. So quite a bit here remains unclear, even as the first doses of the
vaccine have arrived in country.
ANDERSON: Oren, meantime, away from COVID for the moment, as it were, a committee within Israel's parliament has, as I understand it now,
officially scheduled fourth elections for March the 16th of 2021, correct?
LIEBERMANN: So this is the house committee that decided today in a vote of 10-7 that the fourth elections within two years will be officially
scheduled for March 16th. Crucially, it doesn't mean the election is happening. This is just the committee and it's a bill to set the date for
election.
That bill needs to come out of committee, which it has done, and it still needs to pass three votes in the full Knesset. The first one of those is
tentatively scheduled for Monday.
It could still go down, which means that an election may not happen. That crucially depends on prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and defense minister
Benny Gantz coming to some sort of an arrangement to work out what has been an entirely dysfunctional government pretty much ever since it was
effectively put into place in May.
Can they work these out?
Well, perhaps Netanyahu was just given a big motive to try. And that's because one of the key members of his party, Gideon Sa'ar, announced he was
quitting the party because of the sort of subservient loyalty that Netanyahu had starting his own right-wing party, perhaps taking some right-
wing members of Knesset with him.
That could be a threat to Netanyahu, one that may prevent him, if he sees, from getting the necessary 61 seats to give himself some sort of
parliamentary immunity. And that alone may be enough to keep Netanyahu away from going to an election.
But it's all, as it usually is, very complicated in Israeli politics at this point. And we'll see how this plays out over the next few days and
weeks.
ANDERSON: Oren Liebermann is in Jerusalem, always a pleasure, sir, thank you very much indeed.
We've been seeing good news on the vaccine front, haven't we, right around the world. There are more than 100 trials still going on, with more than 13
of those with Chinese developers.
The country, though, has been pretty opaque in sharing details. But right here in the UAE, we are learning new details about one of their most
promising candidates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): More than 30,000 participants, 125 nationalities. It's been one of the largest and most diverse clinical trials in the world.
And now new interim results here in the United Arab Emirates show that the Chinese vaccine candidate is some 86 percent effective in protecting people
from being infected with coronavirus.
The UAE putting those results out before even China's state-owned pharmaceutical firm Sinopharm has.
[10:20:00]
ANDERSON (voice-over): The new numbers, according to the analysis from Sinopharm, which have not yet been published in a peer-reviewed medical
journal, show that it's 100 percent effective at preventing severe and moderate cases of the virus with no serious safety concerns.
The UAE, however, has not released any of their data. And CNN's calls to Sinopharm have not been returned.
But still now, the UAE will officially register the vaccine. Emirati State Media says that, quote, "the announcement is a significant vote of
confidence by the UAE's health authorities in the safety and efficacy of this vaccine."
The UAE is just one country of 10 taking part in the Sinopharm trial. So the final efficacy could fluctuate.
Authorities tell CNN that 100,000 people have already voluntarily taken the vaccine here, including 30 percent of the military with the country's
leaders, like its foreign minister, Abdullah bin Zayed, giving it their nod of approval.
Sinopharm has said that nearly 11 million people in China have already been given the vaccine in emergency approval.
How does this vaccine compare to others?
Well, the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine, which the U.K. started giving to people on Tuesday, is 95 percent effective. And Moderna's vaccine is 94.5 percent
effective. It's still waiting for regulatory approval.
So while China's vaccine falls short of that, it is still above AstraZeneca's at 70 percent efficacy on average. And it's far higher than
the 50 percent that experts say it should reach for approval.
But we're not there yet. The UAE is still not greenlighting the vaccine for a mass population program. So it will still be relying on its testing and
tracing regime, where it's been at the global forefront, with one of the highest per capita testing rates.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (on camera): Well, that's the story in the UAE.
A vaccine, of course, just can't come soon enough for anyone, not least those in Germany, reeling from its deadliest day yet in the coronavirus
pandemic.
What does this mean for restrictions there?
Well, next we are live for you from Berlin.
Plus, will the British prime minister be served up on a plate tonight in Brussels?
It's the diplomatic dinner date the world will be watching and so will we, with live reports from Brussels and London just ahead.
And later, two Champions League teams exited the pitch last night in the middle of a match. We'll talk to "WORLD SPORT" about why the game was
suspended.
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ANDERSON: German chancellor Angela Merkel is urging people to be on their guard before the holidays. This is the country's deadliest day, has been
announced since the coronavirus pandemic began. Germany's disease agency said 590 lives were lost on Tuesday, far more than any other day so far.
Some regions in Germany are tightening restrictions. Early on, the country was hailed for keeping its infections relatively low. But now, like much of
Europe, it is seeing a brutal second wave. CNN's Frederik Pleitgen has been following all of this for us. He is in Berlin this evening.
Describe the detail of what we know at this point.
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Becky, quite frankly, Germans were shocked by these new numbers of 590 people
having died in a single day of symptoms related to COVID-19.
That shattered the previous single-day record by more than 100. You could see Angela Merkel today, as she was speaking in parliament, she was getting
quite emotional about the current trajectory of the virus.
I think one of the things that Angela Merkel has seen that many other people have seen as well that, while the current light lockdown measures
that are in place, they have somewhat flattened the curve here in Germany. But they certainly have by no means managed to bring the numbers down.
By and large, a lot of people see the current measures as simply having failed. If we look at the numbers for today, it's around 20,000 new
infections that were registered by the German Center for Disease Control. That's about 3,500 more than the exact same day the week before.
So certainly things aren't going in the right direction. You're absolutely right; Angela Merkel is warning Germans to be more careful, to stick to the
anti-pandemic measures, especially looking forward toward Christmastime.
She's urging people if they don't have to, not to travel for Christmas because she says, quite frankly, that could be very, very dangerous. Let's
listen in to what she said in German Parliament today.
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MERKEL (through translator): I want to say this: if we have too much contact over Christmas and, afterwards, it turns out that this was the last
Christmas with the grandparents, then we will have really messed up and we should not mess up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: Looking at the press responses today here in Germany to Angela Merkel's speech, there's a lot of commentators who are saying it's the most
emotional they have basically ever seen the German chancellor.
The other thing that she's doing, she's also calling for tighter lockdown measures to be put in place here in Germany. She's eyeing the time after
Christmas. She's saying that the whole country should basically shut down for one to two weeks after that.
But she's also saying that she believes school holidays should start earlier because, at this current rate, she doesn't believe any easing or
even going on the way Germany is right now simply isn't possible. Becky.
ANDERSON: Yes. That is Fred in Berlin. Fred, thank you for that.
Well, it is supposed to be a diplomatic dinner. On the menu, finding a way to end the Brexit trade talks deadlock.
Up next, could supper between these two be the last supper for U.K.-E.U. cooperation?
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ANDERSON: Well, over the coming hours, the British prime minister will be breaking bread with the E.U. commission chief in Brussels. Now this is all
about the deadlocked Brexit trade talks, each side trying to get the other to budge. There is no time to waste and there is more pressure from an E.U.
summit on Thursday.
But Boris Johnson, never far from Westminster, of course. It is likely some members of his own Conservative Party worry he will be offering up more
than an olive branch when he sits down to dinner with Ursula van der Leyen.
And I'm thinking of the critical voices of his own orbit, members of his own Conservative Party in London, especially the eurosceptic members of the
European Research Group.
Remember, Boris Johnson is the ultimate Brexiteer, elected a year ago to do justice, take the U.K. out of the E.U. But if he thought he'd face a tough
job in getting a deal done with Brussels, believe me, he faces an equally tough job with his own party back home.
Let's connect you to Anna Stewart, who is watching all of this from London.
I just want our viewers to get a listen to what the German chancellor, Angela Merkel, had to say a little earlier, as we set up, Anna, just where
we are at with these talks. Have a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MERKEL (through translator): There still remains the chance of a deal. I don't think we will know by tomorrow whether we have succeeded or not, that
I can promise. But we are working on it.
We are, however, prepared for a scenario, in which we cannot accept the conditions; i.e., if there are British conditions which we cannot accept.
Then we will take the path of no deal. One thing is absolutely clear: the integrity of the E.U.'s market must be preserved.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: What do you make of what Angela Merkel said?
She did actually strike a relatively optimistic tone in that speech.
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But they're saying there will be no deal tonight or tomorrow. And I think that is the expectation here in
Westminster as well, Becky.
Deadlocked talks have been the situation for days now. And that's between the negotiating teams on either side. That is why it's going up the ladder,
up the political scale, and why Boris Johnson will be meeting for dinner with Ursula van der Leyen, the E.U. Commission president in Brussels, later
this evening at 8:00 at night.
Who knows what they'll be eating, perhaps that is fish given that's one of the biggest issues on the table.
Boris Johnson just a few hours ago speaking in Parliament behind me at the weekly prime minister time. And he struck a slightly positive tone, perhaps
more positive than he's been in recent days. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, U.K. PRIME MINISTER: A good deal is still there to be done. I look forward to discussing it with Commissioner van der Leyen tonight but
I must tell the house that our friends, our friends in the E.U., are currently insisting that, if they pass a new law in the future, with which
we in this country do not compile or don't follow suit, then they want the automatic right, Mr. Speaker, to punish us and to retaliate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: Becky, you can hear the balance he is trying to strike there, first of all, saying a good deal is still there to be done but then
suggesting, of course, that it is the E.U. that needs to compromise.
And that is, of course, playing to his party very well. Of course, lots of MPs want to see a deal. But he also has to please, as you said, the
hardline Brexiteers within his party, like the ERG.
[10:35:00]
STEWART: They don't want to give up too much when it comes to sovereignty on these big chunky, meaty issues, fishing rights, competition rules and
who ultimately will police any future deal if they can reach one -- Becky.
ANDERSON: These are, of course, the three sticky issues. And let's just bring them up so our viewers can get a sense of them because I do think it
is worth saying that, for those who are exhausted by this process -- and I'm sure, Anna, you are one of them -- but for our viewers, who are, I'm
sure, exhausted by hearing us say it's deadline day, we're down to the wire, we're nearing the end game, we really are at this point.
The idea is this literally goes no further than the back end of this year. As you and I have been discussing, I have to say, my sense is that I am
just hearing a slightly more optimistic tone, at least, for example, from the speaker that we started this part of the show with, that being Angela
Merkel.
Her voice will be so important in any decisions, of course, that are being made by the E.U. 27.
STEWART: And we've had over 4.5 years of this. I think it always comes down to the wire. In fact, it always pushes past the wire, frankly. I can't
think of a single deadline that really has been met.
It is always in these negotiations the darkest before the dawn. And we heard a lot of dark language and a really dark mood here in Westminster and
in Brussels. You're right, perhaps we're hearing a slightly improved language coming out of this. It will be interesting to see whether we get a
readout from that dinner tonight. It will be Boris Johnson, Ursula van der Leyen and both sides' chief negotiators and a few officials.
Will we get a readout from that meeting?
What will the language be and what will that tell us?
We don't expect an agreement tonight or tomorrow. What we expect is that somehow these political leaders will perhaps show a sign of willingness to
compromise. If they can, that might get talks going beneath them between the negotiating teams.
There is a E.U. leaders' summit tomorrow. That was supposedly going to be where an agreed trade agreement would be signed off by the 27 E.U. members.
That is not going to happen. We are 22 days away from the next supposed deadline, the end of the transition period. If they go past that, it's
going to be very costly for the E.U. and the U.K. tariffs, border checks.
So that is the current deadline. Perhaps they're going to have to have another E.U. summit, a special Christmassy one, before the 31st.
ANDERSON: Oh, a special Christmassy Brexit summit.
Wouldn't we all like to be at that?
No.
Thank you. Anna Stewart is in what looks like a lovely Christmassy London there. Yes.
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ANDERSON: Champions League is once again dealing with an alleged racist incident, I'm afraid. But this time coming from a referee. Yes, you heard
it here right. You heard that right. We'll have more on why players walked off the pitch last night -- coming up next.
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ANDERSON: Two teams walking off the pitch in solidarity following an alleged racist incident following a referee. Amanda Davies, who was
reporting on this story for us.
I'm just watching these images.
Who was playing and exactly what went on here?
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Becky, this is the Champions League knockout group stage last night, Paris Saint-Germain against Istanbul.
You know, we absolutely condemn every incident of racism, both in football and across society.
But it's quite interesting. People are talking about this moment last night in perhaps slightly more positive terms than normal. It's being talked
about as a watershed moment, a landmark moment.
And that is because it is what people have been waiting for, for such a long time, for this to happen in perhaps the most high-profile kind of game
it could have taken place in, in European football, the Champions League when Paris Saint-Germain, last season's beaten finalists, were fighting for
their place in the competition.
The players decided enough was enough. There was an alleged racist remark by the fourth official to Istanbul's assistant coach, Pierre Webo. And the
players didn't want to listen anymore and walked off the pitch. The match was halted after 14 minutes, despite what was at stake.
UEFA have opened an investigation. And this is a match that will be resumed with a new set of officials on Wednesday. But in some ways, because of the
focus on it, because it has been so widely condemned, what has happened, you feel that a lot of positive will come out of it.
And we've got plenty more reaction in a couple of minutes in "WORLD SPORT."
ANDERSON: Yes, that's a really interesting way of describing what we might take out of this. And as you say, you've got a lot more on this in "WORLD
SPORT," which is up after the break. We'll be listening to that.
We'll be back with CONNECT THE WORLD at the top of the hour.
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