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Wagner Forces Training Near Poland's Border; Video May Show Yevgeny Prigozhin in Belarus; Iraqi Protesters Storm Baghdad's Swedish Embassy; Women's World Cup Underway after New Zealand Shooting; Trump Faces Third Indictment; Cuban Entrepreneurs Get a Crash Course in Business. Aired 10- 11a ET

Aired July 20, 2023 - 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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ELENI GIOKOS, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): I'm Eleni Giokos in Abu Dhabi and you are watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up this hour,

another devastating round of Russian attacks on southern Ukraine.

Escalating tensions between Sweden and Iraq.

Donald Trump could face a third indictment.

And the women's football World Cup kicks off.

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GIOKOS: We begin with Wagner troops training very close to Poland's border. The military group is in Belarus and the military there is praising

what it calls a unique experience in joint combat exercises with Wagner forces.

It reads in this video, showing those drills, this comes one day after footage emerged showing Wagner father Yevgeny Prigozhin alive and well.

This is thought to be his first appearance in public since he led a short- lived mutiny against the Kremlin. CNN's Fred Pleitgen is tracking all of this for us from Berlin.

Fred, great to have you with us. Prigozhin video coinciding largely with the messaging we are hearing from Belarus on those military exercises on

the border with Poland.

How do you characterize what you are seeing playing out right now?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it is a very clear message from the Russians, specifically from Wagner as

well, that this mercenary group is back.

It continues to exist and it intends to remain strong. And I think one of the big, important messages in this is that Yevgeny Prigozhin is still very

much in charge of the group and firmly in charge of the group.

Of course, one of the things we recalled, is the fact that Vladimir Putin himself essentially labeled Yevgeny Prigozhin a traitor when that Wagner

mutiny was taking place.

But now it appears that Prigozhin is not only still very much a free man, still very much able to travel between Russia and Belarus, but also still

very much the boss of the Wagner private military company. Here's what we are looking at.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Nearly a month after Wagner's mutiny, the private military company and its leader Yevgeny Prigozhin say, they're back. This

grainy video which CNN cannot independently verify purportedly showing Prigozhin welcoming his fighters to Belarus.

"Welcome to the Belarusian land," he says. "We fought with dignity. We have done a lot for Russia. What is happening now with the front lines is a

shame in which we do not need to participate. We need to wait for the moment when we can prove ourselves fully."

Prigozhin as critical as ever of Russia's defense ministry and apparently signaling his fighters could return to the front lines in Ukraine.

Various social media accounts had already reported movements of what appeared to be large Wagner convoys on the move toward Belarus. And CNN

analysis of satellite images from Planet Labs and from Airbus showed a convoy of Wagner fighters had already arrived at a formerly abandoned base

south east of Minsk.

Some of the Wagner fighters training Belarusian troops, as seen here on state media.

"They have been in combat and this is undoubtedly a very useful experience for our army," this Belarusian soldier says. "They saw some of the heaviest

combat and Russia's war against Ukraine."

But after their mutiny seen as a major threat to Vladimir Putin's power, Prigozhin was labeled as a traitor by Russia's leader. And Wagner had to

shutter its main base in southern Russia.

The base ceases to exist, this fighter says, Wagner private military company is relocating to new areas. Belarus seems to be one of those new

areas, Putin apparently coming to the conclusion he still needs the mercenaries and their leader.

The head of Britain's intelligence service MI-6 telling CNN, Prigozhin is, quote, "floating around" after the rebellion.

RICHARD MOORE, CHIEF, MI-6: If you look at Putin's behaviors on that day, Prigozhin started off, I think, as a traitor at breakfast. He had been

pardoned by supper. And then a few days later, he was invited for tea.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): And one of Prigozhin's top commanders, Dmitry Utkin, vowing the mercenaries will come back even stronger.

[10:05:00]

PLEITGEN (voice-over): "It's not the end, he says," it's only the beginning of the biggest work that will be done very soon and, finally,

welcome to hell."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: "Welcome to hell," he says, Eleni. As you can imagine, it is causing concern both for Eastern European allies and the U.S. We look at

Poland, which directly has a border with Belarus. They are saying that they are monitoring that training that is going on right now in the west of

Belarus, very, very closely.

The Poles, of course, put additional military assets into that border area, saying they want to keep NATO's eastern flank safe, especially with the

Wagner private military company now very much around in that area, Eleni.

GIOKOS: Indeed. Fred Pleitgen, thank you so much.

Ukraine is pleading for better air defense systems in southern regions after the latest devastating round of Russian attacks. Ukraine's air force

says Russia fired nearly 40 missiles and drones in overnight strikes on Odessa and Mykolaiv, hitting ports, piers, residential buildings and retail

stores.

One person was killed, dozens more were wounded. Russia has set up its aerial assault on Ukraine's southern ports since pulling out of the Black

Sea deal this week. The E.U.'s top diplomat today called Russian attacks on grain storage facilities "barbarian."

CNN's Alex Marquardt is in Odessa with a look at the massive destruction.

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ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT This city has ever seen anything like this since the beginning of this war. I can't

overstate the terror that the citizens of this city have had to experience over not one but the last three nights.

And it is no mistake that Odessa is home to Ukraine's most famous port. I want to show you some of the destruction from last night. This is an

administrative building. It looks like it was around four stories high. You can see it has completely collapsed.

We are told this is still a search and rescue operation. We know that at least one young man was killed. There were several people who were injured.

You can see those firefighters, trying to put out the fires in this building, both in -- from among the rubble and up on that ladder up there.

There are firefighters, rescue workers, there are volunteers and residents of this neighborhood, who are just trying to make sense of what we

experienced last night. We are on the edge of the port, the biggest port in Ukraine, which we can't show you for security reasons.

But that is almost certainly why, according to Ukrainian authorities, Russia has been carrying out these strikes on Ukraine.

Now this attack started just before 2 am local time. It was a combination of drones and missiles. We could hear those drones very clearly buzzing the

rooftops in downtown Odessa.

I want to play you some of the video that-- sorry, we're going to get out of the way of this water.

I want to play you some of the video shot by photojournalist Scott McQuinny (ph) of one of the explosions of the missiles here in Odessa, last night,

take a listen.

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MARQUARDT (voice-over): That is the kind of thing that we heard for 1.5 hours.

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MARQUARDT: Now it was not just Odessa that was hit. It was also Mykolaiv, which is another southern port city there; 19 people were wounded. This was

an incredibly sophisticated attack, almost 40 drones and missiles.

Most of the missiles got through. Russia used long-range strategic bombers, supersonic bombers. They used four different kinds of cruise missiles. They

used those Iranian kamikaze drones.

Just the symbolism of what they used is sending a very large message to Ukraine. President Zelenskyy is saying it is very clearly Russia trying to

target the grain infrastructure a few days after Russia pulled out of that critical grain deal.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: That was Alex Marquardt reporting for us from Odessa.

Now Ukrainian President Zelenskyy is thanking U.S. President Joe Biden for a new military assistance package. It totals $1.3 billion. The aid includes

four new advanced surface-to-air missile systems, bringing the total number to 12.

Ukraine will also get two types of attack drones and counter drone equipment, along with fuel trucks and tactical vehicles.

In the meantime, a diplomatic row is growing between Iraq and Sweden. Iraq recalled its charge d'affaires from the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm and

asked the Swedish ambassador in Baghdad to leave. Iraq says it is in response to Swedish authorities allowing the burning of the Quran and the

Iraqi flag. We are waiting to hear from Stockholm.

Ahead of this all, Iraqi protests are storming the Swedish embassy Baghdad and set it on fire today. They were angry over this demonstration near --

[10:10:00]

GIOKOS: -- Iraqis' embassy in Stockholm, where Iraqi officials claim the Quran and the Iraqi flag were ripped. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz joins us live

now from London.

Great to have you with us. Tensions clearly heating up. Iraq says it will sever ties with Sweden, essentially.

What are the repercussions of this move?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Important thing to recognize here are these are the actions of one single individual. The permit was issued for

one man and his translator. And it is that one individual who carried out this 45-minute demonstration in front of the Iraqi embassy in Stockholm

just a short time ago.

He was seen on livestream in that demonstration, wiping his shoes with the Iraqi flag, at one point putting the Quran under his feet.

But even before this demonstration began, it created ripple effects across the Muslim world. Hundreds of demonstrators -- and we have pictures to show

you -- hundreds of demonstrators overnight stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad, setting alight a portion of the building.

The Baghdad government, of course, issued punishments, legal consequences to some of those involved. But at the same time, as you mentioned,

threatened to sever ties with Sweden.

Those hundreds of protesters were followers of Muqtada al-Sadr, a very prominent Shia cleric in Iraq, who was outspoken on this issue. Because

this same individual, the same man we are speaking of today just a month ago was involved in burning certain pages of the Quran outside a major

mosque in Stockholm.

And that set off a firestorm of criticism across the Muslim world, particularly because it was the Eid holiday at the time. It even looked to

threaten Sweden's bid to join NATO at one point.

So yes, a very small demonstration, a very singular action by one man but huge repercussions. And as you mentioned, Iraq has already taken diplomatic

steps by recalling its charge d'affaires in Stockholm. It has expelled the Swedish ambassador in Iraq.

Of course, we will stay tuned to find out what more happens and how this develops further.

GIOKOS: Salma, thank you so much.

The Women's World Cup kicks off today, just hours after frightening violence in New Zealand. The latest from Auckland, that is up next.

Plus, all eyes on Washington, D.C., as a possible third indictment may come down for 2024 presidential candidate Donald Trump. We will be back after

this short break.

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GIOKOS: Welcome back.

The Women's World Cup, now underway after some scary moments before the first match was even played. One of the host nations, New Zealand, is in

mourning over a deadly shooting in the capital city, Auckland. Two people were killed --

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GIOKOS: -- and six others wounded. Angus Watson reports.

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ANGUS WATSON, CNN PRODUCER: A shadow cast over the opening day of the Women's World Cup in Auckland, New Zealand.

The first match between the hosts and Norway, opened with a moment of silence for two people killed Thursday morning and several others injured

by a lone gunman.

He took a shotgun to his place of work, a construction site in downtown Auckland, early Thursday and began shooting, killing two people and

injuring several others, including a police officer.

Police were commended for getting to the scene shortly after he began firing and ultimately neutralizing the suspect. He was found with a gunshot

wound in an elevator shaft.

Now every time that there is a case of public violence in New Zealand, thoughts immediately go to 2019, when a white supremacist terrorist

attacked two mosques in the city of Christchurch, killing 50.

This attack, however, was not deemed to be a terrorist incident; the killer was not deemed to be ideologically motivated by it. Police say it was an

isolated incident and not a national security threat.

So the authorities there in New Zealand believe that the game was OK and was safe enough to go ahead. And it did so.

There are several World Cup teams at the moment stationed in Auckland, including Team USA, who was quick to state their condolences after the

tragic incident, posting a statement to social media, reading, "U.S. Soccer extends its deepest condolences to the families of the victims who were

killed in the shooting in downtown Auckland today.

"We are saddened by the inexcusable loss of life to gun violence and our thoughts are with the people of Auckland/Tamaki Makaurau and Aotearoa New

Zealand."

Now the games of the World Cup are historic this time around. More tickets have been sold than any Women's World Cup previously. And 32 teams will

this time take part with Team USA, the favorites.

We'll all hope that the shadow of this terrible incident Thursday morning will not loom too large over the competition -- Angus Watson, in Sydney,

Australia, for CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: FIFA, football's governing body, says that authorities have informed them that the shooting was a, quote, "isolated incident" and the

tournament will continue as planned. CNN "WORLD SPORT" anchor Amanda Davies is following the tournament for us in London.

Amanda, sad way to kick off the Women's World Cup. But focusing on the good news, 1 million tickets sold.

I mean, this basically means that this event is going to be hitting records for women's events, right?

DAVIES: Yes, absolutely. This is not just going to be the biggest Women's World Cup in history. It's actually going to be the biggest women's

sporting event on the planet.

And there is a real understanding by everybody involved with this tournament of the responsibility and the platform that that then provides.

I was fortunate enough to be asked by FIFA to co-host the draw for this tournament in Auckland back in October, some eight months ago.

And it was impossible not to get swept up with the buzz and the momentum of what this moment means, not only for women's sport but women and the fight

for equality. There's 32 teams for the first time; there's eight more than has ever been seen at a Women's World Cup.

And interestingly, brilliantly for the game, all eight of the extra spaces have been taken by teams who have never been at the World Cup before, the

likes of Morocco, of Vietnam.

I think, it is unlikely that this Moroccan side are going to do what their men's team did in Qatar, of course, such an upset. But there is a real

feeling that, yes, huge strides have been taken, are being taken for equality in the women's game.

But there is still a very long way to go. The prize money has been vastly increased for this tournament with the hope that the next edition of the

event in 202017 (sic), the prize money will be equal.

There will be parity with the men's tournament. But for this event, for the first time ever, every player taking part will take at least $30,000. For

many of these players and these countries, that is life-changing.

The facilities that the players and teams are being offered and subjected to are equal, for the first time ever, to their male counterparts. Each

team has their own dedicated training base. Players have been given the option of rooms on their own, if they so wish, which traditionally hasn't

been the case.

But the issues of equal pay and the fight for equality, given the discrepancies between the developments of the game around the world, are

still very much there.

[10:20:00]

DAVIES: You've got the likes of Nigeria, the likes of Jamaica, even the likes of England, the European champion, still in disputes with their

national federations in terms of fighting for equal pay and opportunity to the commercial opportunities for the game.

But this an understanding by these players, that they have had to fight throughout their career to get to this point.

(CROSSTALK)

GIOKOS: And, Amanda, it is such a good point. To be honest, what I'm worried about, this is a fight that's going to have to continue for some

time to come, right, this is not going to be fixed anytime soon because, as you said, it's the value chain. It's the development, it's the focus

throughout this whole thing.

But when I'm looking at the numbers, New Zealand winning for the first-ever World Cup match ever, whether it's for men's or women's, I'm just looking

at what the U.S. team has done. They are going for their third win in a row, five in total. Women are doing incredible things in the sport.

DAVIES: Yes, and women have always done incredible things in sport. But we are talking about it more now. But this is what we are talking about in

terms of the discrepancies geographically of the development this game.

And New Zealand, the emotion that we saw from their team tonight, not only because of it being so quickly in the aftermath of that deadly shooting

that we are talking about but the captain, Ali Riley, this is her fifth appearance at a World Cup.

And finally, on home soil at Eden Park, one of the most iconic sporting venues in the world, she was able to celebrate a World Cup victory for her

side against the 1995 winners at Norway, at least, with a huge wealth of talent.

And it's a really at a moment where these players understand their platform. They understand the showcase. They see the responsibility and

they want to put on a show. They want to demonstrate exactly what they can do, with more eyes on it as a game than we've ever seen before.

It's certainly been a brilliant opening day with victory not only for New Zealand but also their cohosts Australia in Sydney. And it promises to be a

fantastic month of action to come. It's two matches down, 62 to go, Eleni.

GIOKOS: Exciting times. I will be sure to catch a lot of those matches. Amanda, great to have you on and for your insight, thank you so much.

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GIOKOS (voice-over): I want to get you up to speed on some other stories that are on our radar.

Palestinian health officials say that a Palestinian teenager was killed in clashes with Israel's military in the West Bank. It happened as the Israeli

security forces accompanied thousands of Jewish worshippers to a tomb in Nablus. The area around the tomb has seen repeated outbreaks of violence.

To Kenya now, demonstrations over a raft of unpopular tax hikes turned deadly. At least three people were shot and killed in clashes with security

forces during anti government protests. That is according to local media reports.

Kenyan opposition leaders have called for three days of anti government protests that began on Wednesday.

Rescue workers are underway in India after a massive landslide in the western part of the country. Authorities say at least nine people were

killed. Dozens of people are still missing and could be trapped under debris.

Some areas got 40 centimeters of rain in just 24 hours, according to the weather department.

And still to come on CONNECT THE WORLD, how former U.S. president Donald Trump is preparing for the worst, ahead of another possible indictment from

the special prosecutor.

And later, new information about the moments before a U.S. soldier crossed into North Korea. We will have a live report.

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GIOKOS (voice-over): Welcome back, I'm Eleni Giokos in Abu Dhabi and you are watching CONNECT THE WORLD. Here are your headlines this hour.

Russia launched a third straight night of attacks on the Ukrainian port city of Odessa. Ukraine's air force says most of the 19 missiles Russia

launched hit targets, causing extensive damage. At least one person was killed.

Russia says the strikes are retaliation for Ukraine's attack on the Crimea bridge.

The world is also watching what's happening near Poland's border. That's where Wagner mercenary troops are holding joint combat drills with

Belarusian forces. The military in Belorussia (sic) has released this video of the exercises. It comes one day after this footage emerged. It appears

to show Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin in control of these troops in Belarus.

Iraq's prime minister has ordered the Swedish ambassador in Baghdad to leave the country and the withdrawal of the Iraqi charge d'affaires from

Sweden. The diplomatic blowup came hours after Iraqi protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad and set it on fire.

They are angry over what Iraqi officials called the destruction of the holy Quran at a protest in Stockholm. CNN's awaiting Sweden's response to the

diplomatic tensions.

GIOKOS: Former U.S. president Donald Trump could be facing an unprecedented third indictment by the end of the day. The grand jury being

used by the special counsel in the election interference probe is expected to meet today.

Sources say Trump's legal team believes it has less than 24 hours to respond to an invitation from the special counsel's office to bring their

own witnesses or evidence. CNN's Katelyn Polantz is at the courthouse in Washington, where the grand jury is due to meet.

We are expecting this meeting today. Many asking what this third indictment could be for Trump. I mean, we've got 24 hours to go.

KATELYN POLANTZ, CNN SENIOR CRIME AND JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Maybe. We actually don't know exactly how this is going to play out over the next

couple of days and weeks.

But we do know we're in the window now, where the Justice Department very likely has already made the choices that they need to make about whether

they want to bring a case against Donald Trump.

This unprecedented third indictment against the former president and a really significant one at that, given it would be about the end of his time

as presidency, in the presidency, when he was trying to hold on to power, overturn the votes that people cast across the country in the 2020

election, electing Joe Biden as the President of the United States.

Then, of course, related to his behavior, what he was saying, what he was doing leading up to and on January 6th, when his supporters rioted and

overran Capitol Hill.

So what today brings us is a moment where the grand jury is here. They could return an indictment against Trump today, if the Justice Department

chooses to do it now.

But we do know the grand jury has a little bit of work to do. They convened just around 9 am this morning on the East Coast time. But at this point in

time, they're going to be hearing from witnesses this morning.

[10:30:00]

POLANTZ: We know at least one person, who is an aide to Donald Trump, expected to return to the grand jury today after having testified a few

times before. I know there may be at least one other witness, maybe even two, that will come before the grand jury as well today.

And then there is that opportunity for Donald Trump himself to testify. Or he, perhaps, may want to send someone in who can give a sympathetic

portrait about his behavior that is under investigation. Here but a lot that remains to be seen.

We do know a little bit about what the Justice Department believes they may want to charge Trump with here. But the meat of the case, they have a lot

of evidence, a lot of witnesses that they have heard from across the country, who are witness to the election, not just in Washington and in the

White House's but in battleground states.

All of those things could factor into an indictment. And so we just watch and we wait.

GIOKOS: Yes, a lot of probabilities you're spelling out there for us. Katelyn Polantz, great to have you on the ground there. Keeping a close

watch on all the developments. Thank you.

Now we are learning more about a U.S. soldier's movements in the days and hours before he made an inexplicable sprint through the Korean

Demilitarized Zone, right into North Korea. We want you to take a look at this picture, shot by an eyewitness.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS (voice-over): Private Travis King is highlighted in the black shirt and hat. This group was on a tour of the DMZ when King ran across the

border. South Korean guards shouted after him. But guards from the North hurried him into a van and then drove off.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Joining us now is CNN's Kylie Atwood.

Kylie, more information. Frankly, after asking so many questions and not really knowing what transpired, we're slowly getting more details.

So what do we know about what the soldier was doing hours before he crossed the border?

And the video in particular, really fascinating to see.

KYLIE ATWOOD, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, we're still trying to paint the full picture of, you know, what exactly went down

here. But here's what we know from beginning to end.

We know that this soldier was dropped off at the main airport in Seoul by military handlers. He was actually set to be flying back to the United

States. He was going to be removed from the U.S. Army after facing assault charges in South Korea.

He was dropped off and two handlers dropped him at the airport. He then went through his gate. According to U.S. officials, he actually texted his

handlers to say that he had made it to the gate, presumably to get on that flight back to the United States.

But that's where his plans went awry. And as far as we can tell, that this new plan was of his own planning. He told folks at the airport that he had

misplaced his passport, so that is when he was escorted out of the departure area.

We don't know how he got from the airport to the Demilitarized Zone between North Korea and South Korea. But he did get there. He was on a tour of the

joint security area, which is between North and South Korea.

And according to eyewitnesses, who, as you were saying, were on that tour with him and U.S. officials who have been briefed on the matter, that's

when he sprinted away from the group and ran into North Korea.

He ran between soldiers, according to an eyewitness. He was running so fast they tried to catch him but they couldn't. And when he got to the North

Korean side, he went up to a building. The front door was closed. He went around to the back.

And that is where officials from North Korea picked him up and put him into a van. And that's about as much as the U.S. knows at this moment in time.

We asked State Department spokesperson yesterday, you know, what the U.S. knows about the well-being of this American soldier and if he's even alive.

The United States really doesn't have those details right now.

The Pentagon has tried to reach out to its counterpart in the North Korean army. They have not received any responses at this point. So there's a lot

of questions about his well-being.

And, of course, what motivated him to do this?

We really don't know that at this time.

GIOKOS: Truly interesting to hear those details about what happens when you cross the border. Kylie Atwood, thank you so much for staying on top of

the story for us.

Well, just ahead, Wall Street is unimpressed with Tesla's latest earnings, even though the tech giant posted better than expected profits. We'll

explain next.

Plus, the football phones give New Zealand something to celebrate, with the big upset at the Women's World Cup. We'll be right back.

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GIOKOS: Tech high-flyers are starting to roll out their latest product results but Wall Street isn't finding enough reason to applaud Tesla

shares. It's true the electric car maker is reporting a much bigger than expected increase in profits.

But Wall Street appears to be more focused on a series of price cuts, which turned the amounts of revenue for every Tesla vehicle sold. It's down 6.83

percent.

One lucky ticket, in the meantime, in California, has won the third largest jackpot in Powerball history. Wednesday's drawing will give the winner just

over, listen to this, $1 billion before taxes.

It is the first Powerball jackpot won since mid April. The ticket was sold at this store in downtown Los Angeles. Powerball says the odds of hitting

the jackpot are about 1:292 million. According to some calculations, you are more likely to be struck by lightning, date a supermodel or get killed

by a falling asteroid.

All right, so, the dream of owning a small business can be challenging for many entrepreneurs, who may face issues with capital, workforce and

production. But in Cuba, the challenges are particularly unique, as potential business owners continue to deal with the country's political

relationships.

Just days ago, Russian warships were docked off the coast of Cuba for training exercises. That is in addition to the ongoing sanctions from the

United States, meant to impact the Cuban government. Patrick Oppmann takes a look at what it takes to open a business in Cuba.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A business seminar in the hotel meeting room may not seem that groundbreaking. But not long ago in Cuba,

where capitalism used to be outlawed, it would have been impossible to imagine.

All the more so since the man teaching this in a business boot camp organized by the U.S. embassy in Havana is Cuban American development

expert Gustavo Arnavat who left the island as a young boy to flee Fidel Castro's revolution.

He's been invited by the U.S. government to share his knowledge with Cuba's trailblazing entrepreneurs.

GUSTAVO ARNAVAT, BUSINESS SEMINAR INSTRUCTOR: What they need is capital, they need an idea, they need persistence. They need to really work through

very difficult times. Every entrepreneur is going to have good days and bad days. Some bad days are going to be extremely challenging they might want

to give up.

Again, this is in any other country but here it's particularly difficult.

OPPMANN: Particularly difficult because for decades following the 1959 revolution all private enterprises was banned in Cuba. Cubans were required

to work for the state. Then following the collapse of the Soviet Union, official prohibitions on self employment slowly began to ease.

The first entrepreneurs in a generation here face a unique problem. There are no business schools, scarce knowledge that can be passed down about

self employment. Cuba's budding capitalists have to learn by doing.

Juan Carlo has turned a side business selling hamburgers into a restaurant franchise, a small supermarket and a logistics company. All together he

says he employs more than 60 people.

Attending the business boot camp be says helped him to identify areas of future growth.

"We've done courses on e-commerce, marketing, risk capital, private financing," he says. "They are very current things --

[10:40:00]

OPPMANN (voice-over): -- very modern and things that we can use a lot."

Even though the U.S. government says it wants to help Cuban entrepreneurs, U.S. economic sanctions intended to impact the Cuban government also hurt

business people here making it all but impossible for them to access the U.S. banking system or receive financing.

The U.S.'s top diplomat in Havana says the Biden administration is studying if sanctions can be eased for Cuban entrepreneurs.

BENJAMIN ZIFF, CHARGE D'AFFAIRES, U.S. EMBASSY IN HAVANA: There's a shortage of food, there's a shortage of gas, there's a shortage of water.

Cuban state economy is no longer able to provide for its people.

And the answer to that is not a necessary evil private sector, it is more better, more empowered private sector.

OPPMANN: So far the U.S. embassy in Havana says about 200 entrepreneurs have taken this boot camp. And the hope is that they can move beyond the

decades of hostility between the U.S. and Cuba, to not only transform their lives but their country -- Patrick Oppmann, CNN, Havana.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: All right, so, a dramatic upset for one of the host nations of this year's Women's World Cup, as the football phones deliver an especially

meaningful victory to New Zealand, following a deadly shooting in Auckland overnight.

Just to underline what this means to the team, this is their first, their first win in World Cup history, for both men and women. It's a big one.

Amanda Davies joins me now.

We spoke about this a little earlier but let's talk about the game itself. Tell me.

AMANDA DAVIES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Eleni. Ali Riley, the New Zealand's co-captain in the buildup to this match, had talked about how she really

wanted to use this platform. She and her teammates, to inspire and encourage young girls, particularly in New Zealand, to take up the game.

She is someone who has played domestic football around the world, really blazing a trail in the likes of France. She is currently in the United

States, playing for Angel City. And you could see just what it meant to her at full -- well, she was in tears at the national anthem ahead of the game.

And then really couldn't stop on the final whistle because this is New Zealand's sixth appearance in World Cup finals. They had played 15 World

Cup final matches in the runup to this tournament and had never once managed a victory.

And tonight, not only did they get the victory, they got it against Norway, a side who have won and a handful of countries to have won the World Cup.

It was in 1995 but they have some of the most talented footballers on the planet.

The likes of Ballon d'Or winner, Ada Hegerberg, the likes of Guro Reiten and they really, Norway, couldn't get in this game at all. New Zealand

decided they wanted to put on a show, put on a show they did.

And if that has set the tone for what is to come, we have a fantastic month ahead. We have plenty more coming up in just a couple of minutes in "WORLD

SPORT."

GIOKOS: Spot on, Amanda Davies will be back after the break. I'll be back at the top of the hour. We'll see you soon.

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