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Ukraine Making "Fast and Powerful Advance" in the South; U.K. Prime Minister's Priority: "Growth, Growth And Growth"; Young Women Are at Forefront of Demonstrations in Iran; Nord Stream Explosions Probe; OPEC+ Considers Slashing Oil Supplies to Revive Prices; Elon Musk Again Proposes Buying Twitter; OPEC+ to Cut Oil Supply by 2 Million Barrels Daily. Aired 10-11a ET
Aired October 05, 2022 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[10:00:00]
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LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Ukraine announces major battlefield gains as Putin moves forward with his plan to
annex parts of Ukraine.
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LIZ TRUSS, U.K. PRIME MINISTER: We gather it's a vital time for the United Kingdom. These are stormy days.
KINKADE (voice-over): The U.K. prime minister stakes out her political vision at the Conservative Party conference in England. And --
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In this video, the girls remove their head scarves and chase an official out of the school, throwing
water bottles and other objects as they chant, "dishonorable."
KINKADE (voice-over): Schoolgirls join the protest for greater freedoms in Iran.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
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KINKADE: I'm Lynda Kinkade, welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. Good to have you with us.
"It is only a matter of time when we will expel the occupier from all our land."
That is the assessment from the Ukrainian president as he praises his troops, who he calls his warriors. Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the army is
making fast and powerful advances into Russian occupied cities, as troops consolidate gains in the south.
Ukraine says Russian forces are leaving mines in villages as they retreat. Despite mounting setbacks on the battlefield, Moscow has taken the next
step to annex four Ukrainian regions. President Vladimir Putin has signed into law those measures approved by Russia's parliament but illegal under
international law.
He also appointed four acting heads of those regions. Pro-government correspondence says Russia's army lacks manpower to stop Ukraine's advance
into the Luhansk region. Our correspondent CNN Frederik Pleitgen is in the Ukrainian capital.
Good to have you with, Fred. Ukraine forces certainly pushing ahead with a counter offensive. Russian forces seeming, on the verge of collapse in
Kherson.
Should Ukraine take that back?
What would it mean?
Would it shift the momentum further?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: I think it would definitely shift the momentum further. What we are seeing right now
is already a huge shift in momentum.
One of the things that we have been talking about over the past 2.5 months is a small Ukrainian counter offensive in some smaller pockets of the front
line. But what we are seeing right now is Ukrainian counter offensive in large parts of the areas where the Russian forces and Ukrainians meet on
the front line.
You are talking about the east and the south as well. If you look at that map in front of us, there is really large areas where the Ukrainian forces
are advancing. The east, for instance, we have been talking in the past couple days about the town of Lyman, which was a really important logistics
hub for the Russians.
The Ukrainians have taken that back and have now managed to push on several kilometers from there. They have said and take over other areas there,
which obviously, on the one hand, makes it more difficult for the Russians to conduct their own logistics, because a lot of their logistics line are
now within artillery range of the Ukrainians.
Also obviously it allows Ukrainians to push further toward those Russian defensive lines.
But the big story and I think the one that has been really surprising for a lot of people has been the one in the south, where, late last night, the
Ukrainians were saying that they were making huge gains in that area, winning back a lot a very important villages and towns as they try to move
further south toward that town of Kherson, which is obviously a very important one.
But Lynda, one of the things that we also have to mention is that the Russians are still shooting back. One thing that happened overnight here is
that the Russians used kamikaze drones, the Ukrainians say, possibly supplied by Iran, to hit an area or to hit a town that is only about 50
miles from where I am right now, called Bila Tserkva.
That caused huge damage there in some areas of that place. So certainly still a very dangerous conflict. But right now the Ukrainians clearly
believe that the momentum is on their side.
KINKADE: Fred, it's certainly interesting when you hear from Moscow officials, who admit they still are not sure where the borders are in these
regions that they have claimed to illegally annexed.
Also eight months into the war, we have heard from a top Russian war correspondent, who is now acknowledging the losses.
PLEITGEN: Yes, certainly. And it's really a shift in the rhetoric that we are seeing, especially on Russian state TV.
[10:05:00]
PLEITGEN: I have been watching a lot of it over the past couple of months since all of this has been going on. One of the things that we have always
heard was about Russian advances and how well they are doing here in Ukraine.
That is certainly seeming to be a lot more muted now. That correspondent and some other people as well on government TV, some hosts also, talking
about the fact that right now it's very difficult for the Russians on the front lines, on the battlefields and also saying that the mobilization that
has taken place so far by the Russians.
The defense minister, of course, saying that they mobilized around 200,000 people to take part in the Russian armed forces, that is not going to make
a difference in the battlefield until at least a couple of weeks from now, if not more than that.
So certainly they are acknowledging it's a very difficult situation. But I think one of the other things that you just said is also very remarkable as
well. The Russians, so far, have not said what exactly the borders of these annexed territories, that they claimed to have annexed, what the borders of
those are going to be.
It was interesting because CNN actually asked the spokesman for the Kremlin today. And he said he would leave that question unanswered for now and said
he does believe the Russians will be able to take some of that territory back. But right now things certainly seem to be going in the other
direction.
KINKADE: They certainly do. Fred Pleitgen, good to have you there in Kyiv. We will speak to you again soon.
Britain's prime minister is promising to lead the U.K. through what she calls stormy days caused by Russia's war in Ukraine and the fallout from
the COVID crisis. Now this speech was billed as the speech of her political life after a chaotic early premiership.
Liz Truss telling her Conservative Party's annual conference that, quote, "Britain is open for business."
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LIZ TRUSS, U.K. PRIME MINISTER: I have three priorities for our economy: growth, growth and growth.
The fact is, the abolition of the 45 p tax rates became a distraction from the major cost of our greater plan. That is why we are no longer proceeding
with it. I get it and I have listened.
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KINKADE (voice-over): That speech, just hours ago, was briefly interrupted by the protesters you see there from Greenpeace.
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KINKADE: CNN's Bianca Nobilo has been covering every move of the Tory Party conference and joins us live from Birmingham, England.
Good to have you with us, Bianca. Lackluster is the way, at least one person, described the speech from the prime minister. The most animated
part seemed to be when those protesters came in and then the prime minister had a chance to spontaneously react to it.
BIANCA NOBILO, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Lynda, there has been a cross section of responses to Truss' speech. We should remember that the prime
minister is not a particularly strong performer. She is not known for her charisma and ability to captivate an audience.
That is where she is starting. From some of her supporters say it may have rescued her premiership, that it was strong and inspiring. Others say that
it was lackluster, workmanlike, disappointing, very thin on policy or explanations as to how she might achieve growth, growth and growth or many
of the other challenges that Britain has faced.
And she says she's going to navigate the country through those. I think when there is that level of disparate views and analyses of the speech, it
generally suggests that it's not a surefire success.
However, it did not do the prime minister any harm, even when she was -- when she came face to face with quite an awkward moment in the speech. She
handled it quite well. Let's take a listen.
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TRUSS: Now later on in my speech, my friends, I'm going to talk about the anti-growth coalition. But I think they arrived in the hall a bit too
early. They were meant to -- they were meant to come later on. So we will get on to them -- we will get on to them -- we will get on to them in a few
minutes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NOBILO: Protesters are not an uncommon occurrence in party conferences. And leaders are often judged on how well they navigate when that happens.
And by and large, people think she did a very good job and dealt with it with humor.
She also made reference there to the anti-growth coalition, which is a building narrative from within the Conservative government now because
Truss has set her stores being somebody committed to growth and growing the economic pie.
Her favorite metaphor of the moment. But whether or not this is enough to shore up her position remains to be seen. The majority of the lawmakers I
spoke to will admit that the prime minister has until Christmas to prove that she is the right person for the job.
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NOBILO: To stabilize the economy and deliver on some of these policies, also making an attempt to unite the party and take a more embracing
approach to those who have different points of view to her.
This is going to be key, because so far, it has not been long, just a month, the prime minister's approach to those who have disagreed with her
have been quite firm but harsh on the party discipline.
Some of her lawmakers will be hoping she is now more conciliatory. The next weeks will tell us which way she's going to go.
KINKADE: Christmas not far away, less than three months away. Certainly a lot to prove. Bianca Nobilo, good to have you with us, thanks so much.
We've got plenty of analysis of the British prime minister's speech on our website. You can go to CNN's U.K. and policy editor Luke McGee. He talked
about why the Conservative Party has "given up the will to live." You can find it on your CNN app. Just head to cnn.com.
The wave of outrage over Iran's tough response to protesters is growing.
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KINKADE (voice-over): These girls are chanting, "Death to the dictator," part of a wave of protests now in their third week. Iran has tried to crush
them sometimes with deadly results.
In the coming days, a source says the U.S. will sanction laws directly involved in the crackdown. The European Union is also looking at ways to
punish Iran.
The protests have been driven largely by young people, especially remarkable in a place like Iran involving young girls and women. CNN's
Jomana Karadsheh is following the developments from Istanbul. Joining us live.
Good to have you with us. Week after week, these protests are continuing despite the deadly crackdown, largely driven by young women, now chanting,
"Death to the dictator."
Is this regime at a point of no return?
KARADSHEH: Look, Lynda, I mean the regime is still far from being toppled, according to every expert that you speak to. It is about their willingness
to change that is the issue here.
So far, all their public statements, all indications are they are not willing to compromise. They are not willing to meet the people halfway to
address the grievances on the streets, of the people who have been taking to the streets over the past couple of weeks.
What is really remarkable, as you mentioned, Lynda, is now nearly three weeks since these protests started, we have seen almost on a daily basis,
video coming out of the country, trickling out.
The video that we see captures these incredible moments of defiance that we have never seen on this scale before, just truly unprecedented. Over the
past couple of days, what has been truly incredible is seeing all this video that has been coming out, as young, fearless school girls, who are
now joining the protests.
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KARADSHEH (voice-over): This religious propaganda song, released by the Iranian government, with a tribute to former Quds Force commander General
Qasem Soleimani, who was killed in a U.S. drone strike, is also a pledge of allegiance to the supreme leader and the ideology.
Critics of the regime say it's part of an effort to indoctrinate the next generation to carry on the Islamic revolution but that generation is now
rising up, saying enough to repression, demanding rights they've never known.
In Tehran, spontaneous outbursts of defiance, young girls on the streets waving their head scarves, chanting "Death to the dictator." And the now
familiar women live freedom protests, with cars honking their horns in support.
More and more video now emerging of teenage girls joining in the protests. In this video, the girls remove their head scarves and chase an official
out of the school, throwing water bottles as they chant, "dishonorable."
Girls emboldened by the young women at the front of the nationwide protests, braving bullets, the threat of prison or flogging, standing up to
the Islamic republic and its so-called morality enforcers, risking it all for their freedoms, for their right to choose.
No one knows how this will all end but one thing is for certain: the barrier of fear has now been broken.
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KARADSHEH: Lynda, this week we heard the supreme leader for the first time speaking publicly and commenting on what has been going on in the country.
Of course it is very similar rhetoric that we have heard from officials over the past couple of weeks, saying that this unrest, as he described it.
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KARADSHEH: It was designed by the United States and Israel to weaken Iran. Of course there is a lot of concern about what this really means.
Is this an indication that we are going to see a crackdown intensify in the coming days?
Something I found really disturbing, Lynda, is one of the comments from the supreme leader, where he said that some of these young people we're seeing
on the streets right now, he said that this is the excitement from a program that they saw on the internet.
With the right punishment, he says, they can be awakened to the fact that they are wrong. Lynda.
KINKADE: That is really, really disturbing. Jomana Karadsheh, thanks to you. We will speak again soon.
The Iranian singer we told you about earlier this week has been released by bail by Iranian authorities. She was arrested as part of the regime's
crackdown on protesters.
The song in support of Iran's women went viral after it became an anthem for the demonstrators. Iranian authorities say he will be until his case
goes through the legal process.
An 85 year old American citizen being held in Iran has been allowed to leave for medical treatment. He will undergo a procedure in Abu Dhabi. He's
a former UNICEF official and had been detained since 2016, when he went to Iran to try to free his son from custody. We will have more on that story
next hour.
Still ahead, the mystery behind those leaks in the Nord Stream pipeline. We will speak to the Swedish defense minister as investigations get underway.
Plus, oil producers meeting today.
What will that mean for prices heading into winter?
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KINKADE: Welcome back. More now on our top story.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukrainian troops are making powerful advances in the south. The Ukrainian leader of the Luhansk region says that
the deoccupation has begun. Despite a setback, the Kremlin is moving forward to annex four Ukrainian regions.
Earlier today, president Vladimir Putin signed into law measures deemed illegal under international law. But Russia says it should be part of the
probe into leaks in the Nord Stream gas pipelines. Sweden has blocked off the area around the pipelines, pending an investigation.
We want to welcome Peter Hultqvist, Sweden's defense minister. And he joins me now from Stockholm.
Good to have you with us, minister.
PETER HULTQVIST, SWEDISH DEFENSE MINISTER: Thank you so much. Thank you.
KINKADE: There has been so much speculation about these blasts on the pipelines that run from Russia to Germany. Many point to sabotage.
What can you tell us about the likely cause and the culprit?
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HULTQVIST: First of all, we're now doing a police investigation. The Swedish security police are responsible for it. They are doing it in the
area. This will take some time but it's very important that they can do their job.
They also do the same from the Danish side. So we have no evidence and we have no result yet. They have to come back with information. But I think
it's time for that. That is the topic, number one.
Topic number two is that, from our first analysis is that this is done by somebody that have a mission to do something, that we see there may be a
responsibility for (INAUDIBLE).
KINKADE: I understand, Minister, that Sweden has sent a diving vessel below to investigate.
What more can you tell us about how long it will take?
We understand that Ukraine, along with many other nations, is already pointing the finger and blaming Russia.
Should you find Russia responsible, what sort of action are you willing to take?
HULTQVIST: We have not had any evidence or proof so we can not say it's a specific nation. So what we have to do now is to do a good job around this
investigation and then we have to come back.
KINKADE: We've seen so much gas bubbling in the ocean from these pipelines.
What do we know about the environmental damage and when will these leaks cease?
HULTQVIST: It's very early to say but it does impact the environmental question. I think there are still some activity with these leaks. But we
also have now started the investigation around what has happened and the security police is responsible.
KINKADE: I understand, Minister, that you have come from the Swedish foreign policy committee meeting.
What was said about Russia's illegal annexation of those four regions in Ukraine and what new sanctions are being considered?
HULTQVIST: I think that the European Union have to decide about new sanctions. That is very important. I think, in Sweden, we have full support
for new sanctions and we also condemn what the Russians have done. It's against international law in all means that they escalate the war when they
are doing it like this.
So we condemn what Russia have done.
KINKADE: Can you take us through the talking lines, the agenda from the meeting you have just come, from the Swedish foreign policy committee
meeting?
HULTQVIST: The topics is the annexation of Crimea. It's also about these gas pipelines leaks and the economics of Denmark and Sweden. That is what
we have discussed.
Some of what we have discussed is classified and some of it is open but it's a broad support for condemning Russia's activities in Ukraine. And we
will support also Ukraine in the future with new elaborates (ph) with weapons systems.
KINKADE: Can you tell more about that?
Sweden has dropped its neutrality; applied to join NATO and Sweden, we know, has donated a number of packages already to Ukraine.
Any more on the horizon?
HULTQVIST: We have decided about -- we have decided seven times about support, including military materiel to Ukraine. One new dimension from our
side is that we, together, with other countries under U.K. leadership, train troops to serve in the Ukrainian armed forces.
We are also involved in international discussions about production, directed -- weapons used in production directed to Ukraine. So we will see
a long term support to Ukraine and we think that that is very important. It's very important also to support in many ways so Ukraine can feel that
they have a real support and that they can also be successful.
KINKADE: Peter Hultqvist, Swedish minister for defense. We appreciate your time today. Thank you so much for joining us.
HULTQVIST: Thank you so much.
KINKADE: With fuel supplies already precarious for some, OPEC and its allies are meeting today and we are waiting to see if they will agree to a
big cut in output, as some predict. OPEC is hoping to boost prices.
[10:25:00]
KINKADE: So here is a look at where we stand now. The White House has said a steep cut would be a total disaster. This can make a long winter in some
parts of the world. CNN's Anna Stewart is tracking this for us from London and joins us now live.
Good to see, you Anna. The war in Ukraine continues to play out on the energy markets. OPEC is already pumping out less than the quotas. A
decrease could be on the table.
Just how big of a decrease are we talking?
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That is the interesting point in terms of the output. The expectation in the days ahead of this meeting were for a
cut between 1 million and 2 million barrels per day, which is really significant.
That is 1-2 percent of all the oil consumed around the world. So it's a big output cut. As you say, we do need to put that into context. Let me bring
you up a chart just to show you where the output target has been for OPEC and its allies.
They have been missing them now for sometime. You can see the blue line is the production and the red line, that is the quota. You could see there is
a big gap there. Actually according to Reuters, who cites sources from OPEC and its allies, they missed targets by 3.5 million barrels in August.
So that is a context for whatever output we do get and we're expecting a press conference to start imminently, where we will get that news.
Yesterday at an oil and gas forum in London and the CEO of Saudi Aramco was speaking. And he actually warned about cutting output at this stage,
warning about a lack of spare capacity in the market, particularly if there's any sort of hiccups ahead if, for instance, China were to relax its
COVID-19 restrictions and suddenly there was a demand for oil.
It's very hard to bring oil demand back on at pace unless you are Saudi Arabia, one of the big producers. So we are watching, waiting for the
meeting to wrap. I think you have to remember that is not just necessarily about the oil prices right now and the weeks ahead.
This is also perhaps a political move. We have to remember that, come December, G7 are planning to impose a price cap on Russian oil. That takes
control away from OPEC and its allies. And it's not something Russia wants to see. The Russian deputy prime minister is in that meeting.
KINKADE: The White House has launched a last-ditch effort to dissuade OPEC from cutting oil production, calling it a total disaster.
How much weight does it have?
STEWART: I would say clearly not enough or not as much as they would like. We know there has been a really big lobby campaign from the White House in
terms of OPEC trying to prevent the output cut.
If anything, they would like to see OPEC pumping more oil for less inflationary pressure. For President Biden, a month or so out from the
midterm elections, you can imagine the pressure he's under to keep gasoline prices low.
It's interesting that, even though we have had the official announcement at this stage from OPEC -- and we are waiting for this press conference -- a
top White House spokesman has said President Biden's trip to Saudi Arabia, which was around three months ago was not, and I quote, "a waste of time."
Speaking on another channel, John Kirby, the national security communications coordinator, pointed out that as we have the OPEC, as we
have said, does not really meet its targets at the moment.
So he says in some ways this announced decrease really gets them back into alignment with actual production, not seeing dramatic shifts in the oil
price. We are not seeing dramatic shifts right now. You can see the price right there.
But I think that might be, one, we've expected an output cut for some days out of this meeting and two, as we say, there is the fact that output at
the moment does not actually meet the quota that OPEC and its allies said. Lynda.
KINKADE: Anna Stewart, good to have you with us from London. We will come back to you if you do not mind when we get news of that decision. Thank
you.
Billionaire Elon Musk is back on board with buying Twitter. Twitter may buy but will the two sides still go to court?
We will get you up to speed on this topsy-turvy deal. Stay with us. You are watching CNN.
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KINKADE: Welcome back. I am Lynda Kinkade coming to you from Atlanta. You are watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Good to have you with us.
Protests in Iran are going strong into their third week, with no sign they are slowing down.
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KINKADE: In a major development this week, the demonstrators are getting younger. Yet another video has emerged, showing school age girls chanting,
"Death to the dictator." They are turning out, day after day, despite the very real threats they face from a violent government crackdown.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Iranian leaders' response to the protests ratcheting up tensions with the West. The U.S. is expected to issue new sanctions this week
against Iranian law enforcement officials, who are directly involved in the crackdown.
E.U. leaders are meeting Tuesday, saying they're considering similar measures. This striking video shows a Swedish MEP cutting off her hair in
solidarity with Iranian women during a parliamentary debate.
We are awaiting Twitter's response after Elon Musk reverses course again, saying he will buy Twitter at the originally agreed upon price of $44
billion. Twitter sued Elon Musk earlier this year after the world's richest man tried to pull out of the deal.
The two sides were headed to court in just two weeks. The reversal is raising questions about whether former U.S. President Donald Trump will
return to the platform. Let's bring in CNN correspondent Donie O'Sullivan, who joins us from New York.
Good to see you, Donie. It's on, it's off, it's on again.
I just wonder whether Musk has been backed into a corner and does he legitimately want to buy Twitter?
DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN TECH CORRESPONDENT: It's like a bad celebrity romance that we are watching all play out in public. I think we have a
graphic just showing how much of a saga this year has been, since the spring, when Musk started talking about buying Twitter initially.
And then over the past few months, backing out of it and, now finally, yesterday, we are learning that he now wants to buy the company again -- or
at least to go ahead with the deal.
Twitter, for its part, it's saying, yes, we want to close this deal; we want Elon Musk to pay the $44 billion and for the deal to go ahead.
Whether that is going to happen, is there is a few different factors in play here, one, of course, being that that court in Delaware, as you
mentioned, due to go to trials in about two weeks' time. What the court has to say -- and there's a few other pieces that then have to fall into line
for this all to happen.
But aside from the business end of this could be a huge -- have huge political ramifications, not least here in the United States, where Musk
has said that he would allow former president Donald Trump back on the platform.
You will remember that Trump was permanently -- at least we thought permanently -- suspended from Twitter in January of 2021 after the attack
on the U.S. Capitol. Musk has a lot about how speech, how the moderation of speech on Twitter should change.
He is very much saying, suggesting that it will become a free speech bastion. So how that will all play out will be very big politically here in
the U.S. and likewise around the world, too, where we have seen other figures be banned.
KINKADE: Certainly a big question over whether that court case will proceed now.
[10:35:00]
KINKADE: It was set to play take place in two weeks.
O'SULLIVAN: That is right. We all thought we would be in Delaware for a week this October. Look, Musk was also due to be deposed in this, which
might be another reason why he is now saying that he wants this deal to go ahead.
We are expecting to learn really anything and maybe in the next few hours, certainly in the next few days, about where all of this is headed. There
are, as we say, quite a bit to sort out.
But in terms of the regulatory approval and whatnot, most of that is already in place. So if the final few parts get put together, this could
happen pretty quickly. But you know, everybody has given up predicting what could happen in this case.
KINKADE: We will see how it plays. Donie O'Sullivan, good to have you with us. Thank you.
O'SULLIVAN: Thank you.
KINKADE: Let's get up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now.
The Nobel prize in chemistry has gone to three scientists for their pioneering work in click (ph) chemistry. The trio discovered reactions that
a molecular building block snap together to create new compounds. They have been awarded almost $1 million for their efforts.
The U.S. and South Korea test-fired for missiles in response to North Korea's ballistic missile launch. The exercise happened Wednesday of the
east coast of the Korean Peninsula. It comes one day after North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan.
Teenage chess Grand Master Hans Niemann likely cheated in more than 100 online matches. That is according to chess.com. The report says in 2020,
the American proudly confessed to cheating to the website's chief chess officer. This led to him being temporarily banned from the platform.
Still to come ahead in sports, the Yankees' Aaron Judge hits a record- breaking home run in baseball. The jury is still out on whether or not he will get the ball back.
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KINKADE: We have some breaking news, an important OPEC+ meeting just ended in Vienna. Much of the world has been watching to see if they would decide
to cut oil production in order to boost prices. That could make for a long winter in some parts of the world. CNN's Anna Stewart is tracking this for
us from London.
Anna, what is the decision?
Just how big are we talking?
STEWART: Yes, we finally got that decision and it is 2 million barrels per day. That is the output cut they have decided on. That is very much on the
upper limit, really, of the expectations that we had going into this meeting.
If you look in terms of the overall context of global oil consumed, that it is about 2 percent. So that is significant. In this press release it says
they are doing this in light of the uncertainty that surrounds the global economic and oil market and the need to enhance the long term guidance for
the oil market.
We have also, in the last few minutes, had a reaction from the White House. President Biden saying that he is concerned that OPEC+ oil production cut,
saying I need to see what the detail is. I am concerned. Is it necessary?
That was in a response to a question from CNN's Arlette Saenz as he left the White House for Florida.
Looking at oil prices right now there is not a huge move but the expectation for an output cut has been there since the weekend. It is
interesting that, at the beginning of the week, the expectation was for 1 million barrels per day. It is 2 million barrels per day. That is double
the expectation.
As we have said, though, OPEC+, many of the members actually struggle to produce the oil that they have set the target for. So in terms of real
terms, you can question how much oil will be coming off of the market as a result of this decision.
KINKADE: Yes, I want to get a bit more on what that means in real terms, a 2 percent cut to the world's oil supply sounds like a significant amount.
What will this mean for people?
STEWART: It could mean, if it really does mean more oil is coming off the market, that oil prices will be higher. They are certainly higher in the
last few days in expectation of this move.
OPEC would say that looking at the economic outlook, the big fear here is that advanced economies go into recession and demand for oil drops and
prices drop down too low, this is their attempt to bolster prices.
We have to consider the political elements of what is happening, very soon, at the end of the year in December. We get the G7 members who want to
impose a price cap on Russian oil. We also have the E.U. wanting to ban Russian imports of seaborne oil.
So that will also have an impact. This is, in some ways, OPEC drawing back some control over oil prices. But I will show you in terms of what OPEC and
its allies currently produce in terms of oil, it is below the output. You can show you where the production currently is and the quota that they have
been trying to reach, that's according to Reuters in August.
[10:45:00]
STEWART: OPEC and its allies actually missed out on their targets by 3.5 billion barrels per day. So it is interesting if you consider this is 2
million barrels per day, how big an impact that will have on a market.
KINKADE: Yes and interesting to note Russia's deputy prime minister was at the meeting, addressing U.S. sanctions.
Anna, thank you very much for being with us.
We will have "WORLD SPORT" just a moment, we are going to take a quick break and be right back.
(WORLD SPORT)
[11:00:00]
END
