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Trump and Tehran Send Opposing Signals on Talks; Oil Prices Rise as New Fighting Dims Hopes of Ending War; Gulf States Move Closer to Direct Conflict; Crisis in Lebanon; Israel Steps Up Strikes on Multiple Fronts; Iran War Threatens AI Supply Chain; Saudi Wants Iran Missile Capabilities Degraded. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired March 24, 2026 - 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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BECKY ANDERSON, CNN HOST (voice-over): Welcome to our second hour of the show. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi, where the time is 6:00 in the

evening. And here in this region, it is a tale of two competing realities.

One coming from U.S. president Donald Trump, who says the United States has reached, quote, "major points of agreement" with Iran in talks to end the

war.

The other from Iran's government, which says there is no dialogue between Tehran and Washington. What's apparent on the ground is this war shows no

signs of slowing down.

Israel says it was pummeled repeatedly with missile strikes from Iran in the early hours of Tuesday. Drone footage showing significant damage in Tel

Aviv. The Israeli air force, also targeting dozens of Iranian sites in the past day. The defense minister says attacks are continuing with full force.

An Israeli official said yesterday that a deal to end the war, quote, "does not appear to be tangible right now."

Kevin Liptak with us this hour from the White House. Matthew Chance is in Doha in Qatar. And let's start there at the White House.

Kevin, what has the messaging been on this?

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And when you talk to White House officials, certainly they're not contradicting the president,

that there could be some optimism now, that he says that these talks have opened up.

But they do describe any communications as preliminary at this point. Not particularly substantive. And you hear discussions of this 15-point plan.

President Trump mentioned that yesterday and you've heard that from officials as well. That seems to be the starting point for whatever

negotiations now get underway.

Among the points, of course, things that Iran in the past has refused to agree to, including that it not enrich its own uranium, that it give up its

highly enriched uranium that's buried deep underground.

Also under consideration at the White House at this point is a meeting in person, meeting between Iranian officials and American officials, including

potentially the vice president, JD Vance, to take place in Islamabad. No one has agreed to that at this point.

But it's something that Pakistani officials have said that they're willing to host if it should come to that. And so a lot of preliminary steps that

seem to be underway right now.

What I do think is clear is that the president, one, was looking for a way out of this box that he set up for himself, this ultimatum that he was

going to strike Iranian power plants if it did not reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

I think it had become evident that that would cause an enormous amount of retaliation in the region but also that, if the president didn't follow

through on it, it would make him appear weak to Iranian officials. So it was evident he was looking for a way out of that.

And what's less clear is whether the president is looking for a way out of this war altogether. You know, we are now approaching the four-week mark

that had been the White House's initial timeline for how long this war would last, between 4-6 weeks.

Obviously, it's become enormously unpopular for the president as oil prices rise, as the cost in American lives grows as well. So it's not clear if the

president was just looking for a way out of his ultimatum on the Strait of Hormuz or whether he's looking for a way out of the entirety of the war.

At the same time, you still see American military assets heading to the region, including some of those Marine units that could potentially be used

in a ground operation that the president has yet to rule out.

So a lot of uncertainties but also I think the president demonstrating here that he's looking for some way, for some glimmer of diplomacy as he looks

for a way to wind this war down.

ANDERSON: Matthew, you were just at a press conference in Doha.

What are Qatari officials saying about Trump's plan?

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, I mean, look, first of all, Becky, they're making it quite clear that, if there are

any direct talks between the United States and Iran taking place, Qatar is not mediating in them. It's got nothing to do with them.

And I think that, you know, the subtext to that is that -- I mean, when you speak to people behind the scenes privately, there's a lot of skepticism

about, you know, the extent of those actual contacts between the United States and Iran, between Washington and Tehran.

[10:05:05]

Yes, there have been, you know, messages passed between the two capitals by go-betweens. But the idea there are substantive talks taking place to end

the Iran war, well, again, a lot of skepticism about that.

But what is real is the idea, the reality, the fact that that president Trump has stepped back from his ultimatum, which was meant to be last night

and to bomb and smash Iranian power plants.

Which the Iranians said they would respond to aggressively by striking out at energy infrastructure in the surrounding area in places like Qatar,

which are energy-rich Gulf states which have already had a massive -- suffered a massive impact economically from the Iran War.

That press conference at the Qatari foreign ministry earlier, it was given by Dr. Majed Mohammed al-Ansari. He's the foreign ministry spokesperson.

And I asked him whether it was Qatari pressure or Qatari influence, if you like, that led president Trump to make that decision to step back.

And he told me he had been in close contact with Washington. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. MAJED MOHAMMED AL-ANSARI, SPOKESPERSON, QATAR FOREIGN MINISTRY: We work very closely with the U.S. administration and with president Trump on

finding an end to the current escalations. We have conveyed very clearly that the attacks on Qatar have resulted in catastrophic results on the

energy sector and Qatar's economy.

CHANCE: Before the Iran war began at the end of last month, did you make the point to Washington that, you know, this region, and Qatar in

particular, would suffer enormous economic consequences potentially because of the conflict?

AL-ANSARI: We've said since 2023, escalation left unchecked in the region will lead to not only regional spillover but a total regional war that will

engulf all of us. And this is exactly what we are in right now.

CHANCE: So you told Washington about the potential economic consequences but they but they ignored you.

What do you feel about that?

AL-ANSARI: They took the decision to go to war according to parameters that they think are, you know, related to regional security. This is their

assessments. We're working very closely with them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHANCE: Well, there you have it back, Becky. Dr. Majed Mohammed al-Ansari being pretty diplomatic at the end. He said it was a Washington decision to

go to war.

But you know, there is, I think, a sense of disappointment that Qatar's views, the views of the oil-rich Gulf states that are all, of course,

United States allies, that their concerns were not more fully taken into consideration before the decision to go to war in Iran was actually made.

Becky.

ANDERSON: What else did he say at that press conference?

There is this burgeoning feeling that there is a bit of a split around this region while officially you continue to hear that the GCC states -- and

they have all taken the brunt of these, what they call reckless and unprovoked attacks from Iran.

There does seem to be, you know, a sort of, you know, a bit of a rift as to what these Gulf states want to see happen next, particularly the hardening

language toward Iran from both the UAE, where I am, who are describing the regime as a terrorist regime outright now.

And Saudi Arabia at this point, the rhetoric there certainly more robust and stronger than we had heard before this.

What do you make of that?

CHANCE: Yes, I think that's true. The Gulf states do not necessarily speak with a single voice. And it's a point the Qatari foreign ministry

spokesperson made to us all, you know, whenever he was sort of, you know, making his views apparent or the country's views apparent on what should

happen next.

He was saying that this is Qatar's view only and he doesn't speak for Saudi Arabia or for the United Arab Emirates or for Bahrain or for Oman. But

certainly from a Qatari point of view, it's very much the situation that they want this conflict to deescalate as quickly, as soon as possible.

Because they're absolutely, I think, terrified of the economic consequences if the war escalates. I mean, they've got, you know, enormous energy

infrastructure here. It's already been struck. It was struck, you know, last week, which sent shockwaves through the global energy markets.

[10:10:00]

He said that the impact on the Qatari economy had already been catastrophic. And, of course, he wants that to end as soon as possible.

In terms of what comes after the war, the foreign ministry spokesman was like, look, whatever it is, Qatar at least is going to find a way of living

with the entity that exists after this U.S. and Israeli war in Iran has been completed.

ANDERSON: Good to have you, Matthew. Thank you very much indeed.

You've heard the category perspective there with Matthew. We are also hearing more from the Emiratis. Here's the latest from Dr. Sultan Al Jaber.

He's the CEO of the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company with some very strong words to describe what Iran is doing in this region.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. SULTAN AL JABER, CEO, ABU DHABI NATIONAL OIL COMPANY: Weaponizing the Strait of Hormuz is not an act of aggression against one nation. It is

economic terrorism against every nation and no country should be allowed to hold Hormuz hostage, not now, not ever.

And while we all appreciate all efforts to stabilize markets and reduce prices, let us be clear: this is not a supply issue. It is a security

issue and has only one durable answer, keeping the strait open. We cannot trade our way out of this crisis.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: A message delivered to the audience at CERAWeek, which is a very influential industry conference going on this week. That message, delivered

virtually to the conference by Dr. Sultan Al Jaber there.

Well, despite attacks on key infrastructure, U.S. allies in the region have not so far taken any military action on Tehran. But "The Wall Street

Journal" says Gulf states are now taking tougher steps, which could set them on the course for direct conflict.

Want to talk this reporting through now with Hamad Althunayyan, who is assistant professor of political science at Kuwait University, joins us now

live.

What do you make of "The Wall Street Journal's" reporting on Saudi and the UAE, for example, inching toward joining the fight?

HAMAD ALTHUNAYYAN, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF POLITICAL SCIENCE, KUWAIT UNIVERSITY: Thank you, Becky. Well, first, let me say that the region has

dodged a bullet, at least for the next four days by president Trump's announcement to postpone the attack on the power plants in Iran.

I think the reporting -- and what we have seen over the past three weeks is that the diplomatic discourse of the Gulf states have evolved since this

war started. The message to the U.S. is that the Gulf states shouldn't be treated as war zones, operational war zones, or collateral damage.

Therefore, the consequences of any U.S. military action or targets chosen in Iran should be accounted for.

I think the second message to the United States and to this administration is that there is no military solution to this conflict. Therefore, there

should be a clear strategic planning for what could come the day after.

The third message, I think, speaks to what was mentioned in this article and that message is to Tehran. Don't mistake the GCC states' strategic

patience for weakness.

And as long as the Iranian aggression intensifies, the Gulf states might have no option but to use their offensive capabilities to neutralize the

Iranian threats and perhaps other measures that could be taken in that direction.

ANDERSON: You had Sultan Al Jaber there, CEO of ADNOC, making the case that Iran's actions are not just against the Gulf states -- Kuwait, where

you are; UAE, where I am -- and the damage, the targeting of not just military infrastructure but civilian infrastructure as well.

But the choking of Hormuz, the Strait of Hormuz makes this a global problem.

What does the GCC want from its allies, its partners, its friends outside of this region to that end?

ALTHUNAYYAN: Well, I think the Gulf states have played, have tried to seek different methods in order to rectify this problem. The first one was

through a direct communication with Iran, through the Omanis.

[10:15:04]

What the Omanis are doing -- and they've been successful, at least in one instance. Today we saw a tanker (ph) that passed through the Strait of

Hormuz. And that was good but it's like a Band-aid to a deep wound.

This could not continue without strict measures and recognizing that the strait is an international strait under the United Nations Convention on

the Law of Seas.

And no state should have a right, including Iran, to block the transit, the safe transit through that passage. So they are pursuing different pathways

in order to reach, including the potential to reach or to join international coalition to safeguard this passage.

ANDERSON: Pakistan offering to host talks involving Iran, Israel and the U.S. Saudi and Pakistan have a joint defense agreement.

I just wonder, you know, there is speculation as to whether Saudi would be supporting that effort by Pakistan and how much influence would the Saudis

have over how this conflict ends if Pakistan were to mediate at this point.

I wonder what your thoughts are on that.

And what is the best-case scenario to end this war from a golf perspective?

ALTHUNAYYAN: Excellent question. You know, I think we need to remember that the realities on the ground are too low. The mistrust is too profound.

And even the strategic interests of these parties are too divergent to reach an immediate escalation.

I think fundamentals of this conflict are still intact. The U.S. and Israel don't feel that the Iranian regime is weakened enough. The Iranians still

see a value in raising the cost of this conflict.

Now the best possible scenario, in my opinion, either in Pakistan this week -- which I hope, you know, it would bear fruitful or perhaps somewhere at

another point of time -- is to communicate the red lines and try to climb down, go down the escalation ladder.

This will probably be gradual, tacit and perhaps even asymmetrical. But at the end, in my opinion, this will be driven by exhaustion of the conflict

rather than the preferences of the state actors.

ANDERSON: Always good to have you, sir. Excellent to get the view out of Kuwait. Pleasure having you on. Thank you.

You are watching CONNECT THE WORLD, folks, from our Middle East and Gulf broadcasting headquarters here in Abu Dhabi, in the UAE. Ahead on the show,

Israel steps up its relentless attacks in Lebanon. What people displaced by the fighting are telling CNN about their plight.

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ANDERSON: Israel's defense minister says that the IDF will operate with full force in Lebanon until threats from the Iran-backed Hezbollah are

removed. And he says the more than 1 million displaced residents there won't be returning home anytime soon.

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ISRAEL KATZ, ISRAELI DEFENSE MINISTER (through translator): Hundreds of thousands of residents of southern Lebanon who evacuated northward will not

return to the south of the Litani River until security for northern residents is ensured.

All five bridges over the Litani that were used by Hezbollah to transfer operatives and weapons have been destroyed. And the IDF will control the

remaining crossings and the security zone up to the Litani.

The principle is clear: where there is terrorism and missiles, there will be no homes and no residence and the IDF will remain present.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: Well, constant bombardments and forced evacuations have left Lebanon facing what is its worst humanitarian crisis in two decades. Tens

of thousands of kids are among the displaced. UNICEF has issued an urgent call for their safety and their well-being.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TED CHAIBAN, DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, UNICEF: Children in Lebanon deserve a chance to grow up in peace, to feel that sense of safety, to be

in school and to have a normal life like children all over the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CNN's Nick Paton Walsh, my colleague, toured areas of south Lebanon left devastated and deserted by Israeli attacks. And he talked with displaced

residents thrust into a war that they did not wish for and cannot escape.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Something familiarly awful is happening here. Israel said, Leave to the town of

Nabatieh two weeks ago. Now life is ground out of its streets.

WALSH: This extraordinary devastation just helps explain how the South is being emptied.

Ultimately, a strategic part of the Israeli campaign here and there's blasts, distant.

WALSH (voice-over): Even higher up, still no calm.

WALSH: They deal with the constant noise of jets around them here but also just overnight intensification of airstrikes. And because they're up on the

Hill here, they feel and see everything. And, of course, the injured from it come into here, as well.

DR. HASSAN WAZNI, GENERAL DIRECTOR, NABATIEH GOVERNMENTAL HOSPITAL: All strike hear here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You hear everything.

WAZNI: Everything. Yes. We hear everything. Like yesterday was horrible. Yesterday, many. Too many strikes.

WALSH (voice-over): There are fewer people below. So fewer patients than at the start.

HUSSEIN NADAR, NURSE, NABATIEH GOVERNMENTAL HOSPITAL: Once we've got nine children together have been injured. Three of them died and the rest lost

their families.

Eighteen people martyred in that strike. All civilians.

WALSH (voice-over): The burns unit treating a rescue worker who ran headlong into the carnage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): We moved toward it. The missile hadn't exploded yet. But the building was fall (ph). More than 30 or 40 people. We

started evacuating them and so on. Eventually, the missile went off.

WALSH (voice-over): And doctors' families have moved in, as it's safer here. To the South, near to where we also filmed with Hezbollah's

permission, life, too, is being squeezed out. Sunday, Israel warned twice it would blow up all the bridges to the South, sparking panic. Which one

would they hit first?

WALSH: They're shouting, warning about the jets. Which we've been hearing over the last half hour. Now this one particularly low.

WALSH (voice-over): This, the force used. And they would hit it twice again later.

Yet more isolated now in Tyre is the entire village of Majdal Zun, who we met earlier and fled their homes to this school.

[10:25:00]

YOUSSEF SHUHEIMI, MAYOR, MAJDAL ZOUN: Fifty -- 50 families.

WALSH: Fifty families?

SHUHEIMI: Fifty-one families, about 240 person.

WALSH (voice-over): Five of the men dead, two girls here without fathers, who sleep with their grandmothers here but are still girls.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to tell you a secret.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (from captions): They were fighting but they made up.

WALSH (voice-over): Although Zainab (ph) keeps pushing Yasmin's (ph) arm away, still.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (from captions): We built a secret bakery, her and me. We can show it to you. It was ruined by the cats.

WALSH (voice-over): A million are forced from their homes in Lebanon and into anger. Imagination, where these girls hide from horror, even in the

mud. Mohammed is 16 and worldly.

WALSH: What do you think of Trump?

MOHAMMED, DISPLACED LEBANESE YOUTH: Not good.

WALSH: Not good.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bad. Very bad.

MOHAMMED: Very -- very not good. I hate him. He's so bad. And we know that about, the Epstein.

WALSH: Yes.

MOHAMMED: Yes.

WALSH: The Epstein files.

MOHAMMED: Yes.

WALSH (voice-over): But no calm here either.

WALSH: So they say that four days ago, they got what must have been a fake warning, a telephone call to the people here to get out as quickly as

possible.

So they say they ran out down here as fast as they could and hid down on the beach for five hours until the threat had passed.

WALSH (voice-over): The city's old ruins sit silent and powerless as it keeps getting new ones -- Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, South Lebanon.

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ANDERSON: Well, ahead on CONNECT THE WORLD, oil prices rebound as hopes fade for a resolution of the war with Iran. I'm going to show you what Wall

Street makes of it after this short break.

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ANDERSON (voice-over): Welcome back. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson for you. Your headlines this hour.

London's Met Police are looking into a possible Iran link linked to an arson attack on several Jewish-owned ambulances. The attack left four

vehicles destroyed. The police chief says an online claim of responsibility by a group potentially linked to the Iranian state is now being

investigated.

One of the two pilots killed in the collision between a jet and an emergency vehicle at New York's LaGuardia Airport has been identified.

Canadian Antoine Forest was one of the pilots who lost his life, according to the "Toronto Star." The Sunday incident remains under investigation by

both U.S. and Canadian authorities.

Pakistan is offering to host talks involving the U.S., Israel and Iran amid conflicting accounts on diplomatic progress to end the war.

[10:30:00]

U.S. President Donald Trump says there are major points of agreement between his country and Iran. Tehran says no negotiations are taking place.

ANDERSON: As president Donald Trump and Iran gave or give conflicting messages about possible dialogue between the two on the ground, the

conflict rages on. Israel's defense minister says his country's attacks continue with full force.

The IDF saying it targeted production sites belonging to the Iranian government in the latest wave of attacks. And Iran is firing back. Israel

reporting seven waves of Iranian missile attacks in just 10 hours overnight. Let's get the latest from CNN's Jeremy Diamond. He is live for

you in Tel Aviv.

And I think we should just talk about how Israel is reacting to Donald Trump's comments, this wider story about the potential for talks to end the

war at this point.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, we heard from the Israeli prime minister who said that president Trump believes that this is

an opportunity to turn the military successes that they've had in Iran into long-term gains that would, he said, safeguard our vital interests.

So the prime minister publicly is certainly playing along with president Trump's desire to see if a deal can be reached with Iran here, if

negotiations actually come to fruition.

But there's no question that, behind the scenes, Israeli officials are very skeptical of this latest diplomatic push by president Trump of the

potential for negotiations with Iran at this very moment.

One Israeli official telling us that a deal to end the war in Iran does not appear to be tangible right now and that the Iranians don't appear to yet

be in concession mode, speculating that the negotiations play by the United States here is merely a tactic to buy time for future strikes.

And also potentially, ultimately, for the potential of some kind of ground operation in Iran, which we understand both the Israelis and the Americans

have been mulling over the course of the last couple of weeks here.

So you know, I think everybody in the region more broadly is kind of waiting to see whether any of this actually bears fruit, whether president

Trump's very rosy outlook about the potential for negotiations with Iran is actually built on anything concrete or whether, again, he's just trying to

buy time here and trying to buoy the markets.

Which he certainly successfully did yesterday, as he said that there would be a five-day pause here, effectively, until he would reconsider striking

Iran's energy facilities.

ANDERSON: I've got to tell you, I think there was something like a $3 trillion swing in the S&P index; $2 trillion up after he posted, $1

trillion down after the Iranians responded. All of this was done by posts, of course.

The Israeli military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut on Monday night.

What's the latest on the offensive in Lebanon, Jeremy?

DIAMOND: Yes, we have continued to witness the Israeli military pummeling Lebanon, both the Lebanese capital of Beirut as well as the southern area

of Lebanon.

The Israeli military has now destroyed five of the bridges that connect southern Lebanon to the rest of the country via that Litani River, which,

of course, has been a crucial marker in the kind of military strategy.

But also the negotiations over potential ceasefires in the past with Hezbollah, that being the line to which Israel wants to push Hezbollah

forces back to, the Israeli military has claimed that it has destroyed those bridges because they say Hezbollah was using them to bring weapons

back into the southern part of the country.

Today, we heard from the Israeli defense minister, Israel Katz, who really laid out the potential strategy to create a buffer zone in southern

Lebanon. He talked about Israel maintaining control of southern Lebanon all the way up to the Litani River.

That goes far beyond the kind of military plans that Israel has announced so far. But we certainly do know it is something that Israel has been

considering in this campaign as a potential next step, as it considers stepping up its ground offensive in southern Lebanon.

For the moment, though, certainly an intensification of those strikes. Israeli troops carrying out operations in, you know, within a few

kilometers of the Israeli border. But we haven't seen that all-out push all the way to the Litani.

ANDERSON: Good to have you, sir. Thank you.

When president Trump announced there had been productive talks with Iran, he refused to specify who on the Iranian side was involved.

He would only say it was a respected, and I quote him there, "leader," who is not the supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei.

Well, some speculation is now doing the rounds that high-level -- that high-level figure could be the speaker of the Iranian parliament. Now we

know that Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf is a regime insider, who is closely linked to the IRGC.

[10:35:00]

And has been for many years. He also served as mayor of Tehran and ran for president many times and lost.

Well, joining me now is Sina Azodi. He is an expert in Iranian politics and us-Iranian relations. He directs the Middle East studies program at George

Washington University.

Good to have you. I want to talk about Ghalibaf. He's called reports that Washington and Tehran are talking as "fake news."

What do you make of these competing narratives?

And of Ghalibaf as a potential interlocutor at this point?

SINA AZODI, DIRECTOR, MIDDLE EAST STUDIES PROGRAM, GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY: It's good to be with you, Becky.

Look, we're at the, you know, in a situation where it is really hard to measure which side is telling the truth. The president has very good

motivations to claim that their talks are going on to calm the markets.

When he announced that the talks are going on, the stock markets improved. But then when the Iranians denied it again, the stock markets lost some of

its value. So the president has very strong reasoning to claim that there could be exchanges of messages between Iranians and the Americans through

the Pakistanis.

There are reports that Pakistanis have been saying, that have been offering to mediate talks between the Iranian side and the American side.

Unfortunately, I think both sides thinks that they are winning the fight. And they have less reason to give concessions.

From the Iranian side, they believe that they haven't lost. So by that measure, they're winning.

And from the U.S. side, the Iran -- they've destroyed Iranian military infrastructure very much.

As for Ghalibaf, look, he's a strongman. He has served in IRGC for years. He was the commander of IRGC's air force for years. He was very much

involved in the Iranian law enforcement forces.

And he's -- I think he is someone who has the credentials within the IRGC, the military and the Iranian hardliners to be the point man for any talks

with the U.S.

ANDERSON: Is he a Delcy, as in Delcy Rodriguez, the Venezuelan now leader, who Donald Trump is now happy to do business with?

AZODI: I think that he is someone that the U.S. could do business but I don't really think that he could be Delcy Rodriguez. I don't think we have

any equivalent of Delcy Rodriguez in Iran. They're all committed ideologically to the revolution, to more or less extent.

But in case of Ghalibaf, he is someone, you know, you may not see him like Vladimir Putin with, you know, shirtless, riding a horse and a gun. But

that's the image that he wants to portray.

He has been -- he has been trying to portray this image for years. You see his pictures flying an Airbus plane in very light color blazers, running

around Tehran. He wants to be the guy who gets the job done. That's the personality that he has. That's the image that he wants to portray.

ANDERSON: Let's just talk about what is going on as we continue to, you know, discuss whether or not these talks will be on and whether they will

come, you know, bear any fruit.

Israel says it will keep striking Iranian targets. Tehran is threatening retaliation across multiple fronts. An Israeli source tells CNN, this is

not tangible, saying the Iranians do not appear to be in any concession mode. We are not there yet.

If Israel is not on board, does it matter if Donald Trump wants to talk at this point?

And I do wonder what you make as well of the Gulf states' position. We are hearing hardening, more robust talk against Tehran by, for example, the

likes of the UAE and Saudi, who, frankly, are in -- certainly seem to want to get the job done at this point.

They do not want to see Iran as a threat, like it has been over the past month, going forward.

AZODI: Well, I think the president can. But he needs to be the president of a superpower, meaning that he needs to make it clear that the United

States is the bigger partner here. The United States is a superpower.

And then as the president of a superpower, he can be more forceful toward Israel or other allies in doing what the interests of the United States

are.

[10:40:04]

And that the interests of the United States is not to go to war of choice. And this is -- again, I do want to emphasize, I've been on your show

before. And, you know, the president has said it repeatedly, that wars of the past have been a mistake. And I think he was coerced into this war.

Now in terms of the GCC countries, I absolutely agree with you. They're in a very difficult situation. There is a public pressure in Kuwait, in

Bahrain, in other countries of the GCC, to respond.

And we also should -- we should not forget that, for them, a weakened Iran is better than a strong Iran because of the proximity that they have to

Iran. And Iran is a very large country, a 93 million population. It has a robust defense capacity that is independent of foreign supplies.

So with all -- it has a nuclear program. So with all that in mind, I think they would like to see a weakened Iran. They don't want to see chaos in the

country or instability in the country. But they certainly would like to see a weakened Iran that does not pose a threat to them.

ANDERSON: It's good to have you, Sina. It's always a pleasure. Really important that we get a deep understanding as far as possible of what is

going on. And certainly, you know, who might be you know, controlling the narrative at this point and going forward. Thank you.

You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. I'm Becky Anderson from our Middle East programming headquarters here in the UAE. I'm in Abu Dhabi and the time

here is 6:40. How the war with Iran is impacting the AI boom, that is up next.

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ANDERSON: Well, stocks and oil prices, frankly, whiplashing around at present as we continue to report on these opposing views on talks between

the U.S. and Iran.

A former senior U.S. official tells CNN President Trump's claim about renewed talks might be a move to calm the markets.

We're taking a look at Wall Street. Let's see where those markets stand at present. The Dow Jones industrial average down by about 0.12 percent. These

markets all opened lower despite a better session by the Asian markets.

But, of course, they are keenly keeping an eye investors on the oil markets. Brent crude, the international oil benchmark, is back above $100

on the barrel. And looking at the U.S. benchmark WTI, that market also trading higher again today.

Well, this Iran war is now colliding with one of U.S. president Trump's economic ambitions, which is frankly turning the Gulf into a hub for

American AI.

[10:45:00]

Billions had already been committed to build data centers across Saudi Arabia. The UAE, powered by advanced U.S. chips. Those same countries are,

of course, now or certainly have been under attack. Data infrastructure has been a potential target and could be that strategy then maybe facing new

risks.

My next guest writes, quote, "If the conflict lingers, chip prices will steepen as manufacturers ration and compete for tighter supplies.

Eventually, production could seize up. In the U.S., elevated energy costs would make present and future data centers less viable."

Joining me now is Tej Parikh, the economics lead writer at the "Financial Times."

Look, let's start with manufacturers rationing and competing for tighter supplies.

How quickly could that pressure feed through to AI companies and investors?

Or are we seeing that already happen?

TEJ PARIKH, ECONOMICS LEAD WRITER, "FINANCIAL TIMES": Well, we're seeing the beginnings of it. So the main exposure that your end chip users have at

the moment are via Asia.

Now we know that South Korea dominates memory chip manufacturing. And Taiwan is obviously center to advanced semiconductors. (INAUDIBLE)

dependent on energy via the Strait of Hormuz. And they're also dependent on them for a lot of other chemicals.

Now there's some murmurings at the moment that both countries have enough reserves to maintain chip production. But as -- the longer this conflict

goes on, the more the risk is that we're going to start to see that rationing.

We've already heard in South Korea that there is some rationing around oil and gas and eventually I think we'll start hearing more of that. And what

I'm hearing from analysts is that, certainly if this continues for another month, then you are going to start to see potential chip shortages. And

that will affect data centers in the U.S.

ANDERSON: Yes. We're looking at a gradual squeeze or a sudden break then in supply chains.

PARIKH: I think this is -- at this stage it's a gradual squeeze. I think a lot of people are still working out how much reserves and buffers there are

in South Korea and Taiwan. The problem is that, you know, for instance, Taiwan, we're told, has secured around half of its LNG needs for May.

The difficulty is, when we come up a few more weeks down the line, you start reaching this cliff-edge scenario. So in that situation, in a month's

time, you could see a sudden squeeze.

In the interim, what we're going to be seeing is likely some delays, maybe some rationing, maybe some focus on certain clients and certain chips. And

gradually we'll see the price kind of moving up the supply chain.

But I think we're now in the phase where people are very, very conscious about how long this goes on for.

ANDERSON: I want to talk about the push to export AI to the Gulf. And the Gulf seen as certainly the UAE and Saudi making huge investments into U.S.-

based companies. But also, you know, the ecosystem building here around AI and advanced tech.

I know that there are some suggesting that this conflict could fundamentally disrupt the plan, which is domestic plans here. It's also a

Donald Trump plan, that he can have American AI companies based here with cheap energy and lots of space to build these AI factories.

There's some -- there are, you know, there are those out there who say that plan isn't viable still, given what's going on. You know, I think the

region would certainly beg to differ.

I mean, we heard from the UAE ambassador to the United States just in the past week or so, absolutely doubling down on the UAE's investment in the

U.S. in AI and various others. There seems to be absolutely no sense here in the UAE that the AI push will slow down by any stretch anytime soon.

I mean, your sense of what you see across the landscape?

PARIKH: Yes. I mean, fundamentally for the region, it needs to diversify away from oil and gas. And therefore AI is going to be a big play for it.

But the question that arises from this conflict, I mean, I think there's three things to consider.

I mean, one is whether a lot of companies around the world will think about focusing their data centers in the region. Whether that's at a risk because

infrastructure has been targeted.

The second is how much does -- how much do the Gulf nations think they might (INAUDIBLE) and investments they have for AI toward security needs

and local defense needs.

And the third thing is, even if this conflict ends, you know, let's say tomorrow, there are still big question marks that have emerged around the

security of the Strait of Hormuz.

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And I think one thing that this conflict has done is (INAUDIBLE) we're thinking about oil and gas exposures. But all of a sudden now, we're

thinking about helium, bromine and sulfur, all these vital raw materials that come and support the AI supply chain.

So there will be bigger question marks about how derisking takes place. And all of this, I think, will have an impact on the Gulf.

ANDERSON: Yes, it'll be interesting to see what happens out of this, certainly key questions that will be -- they will need to address. It's

good to have you. Thanks very much indeed for joining us.

And you are watching CONNECT THE WORLD. There is a lot more news ahead. Stay with us.

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ANDERSON: A ship carrying humanitarian aid has arrived in the Cuban capital of Havana. Earlier today, this was the scene at the Port of Havana

just a few hours ago. The aid ship set sail from Mexico on Friday and was organized and funded by activist groups.

On board, critical supplies like medicines, food and solar panels. Well, Cuba has experienced two blackouts in just the last week after the Trump

administration cut off the island's supply of Venezuelan oil. Our man in Havana, CNN's Patrick Oppmann, joining us this hour.

I mean, Patrick, frankly, looking at this ship, I mean, this is just a drop in the ocean, compared to what Cubans need.

What other sources of aid do they need and what is getting in at this point?

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very, very little.

And let's be honest, it's really more of a boat, isn't it, Becky?

But, of course, these activists say that the symbolism is important as well. That's why they previously sent aid to Gaza and that whatever can

come here will be of use. They brought in tons of aid via cargo air as well.

And this is the first shipment by sea that we've seen from these activists. It came, it left several days ago from Mexico and had some rough weather

over the weekend before it arrived here. And it was celebrated here by the Cuban government and as well as some Cubans and other activists.

But you know, you can only fit so much aboard a boat so small. And while anyone who receives a solar panel or medical equipment, it will be a

tremendous help, Cuba needs so much more.

As you rightly point out, at this point, there're really very few cars on the street because of this oil embargo. There have been two nationwide

blackouts in the last week, with blackouts every day here. Blackouts are lasting most of the day.

And so that is just a complicated situation that we are in, as the United States and Cuba, in theory, are negotiating but are so far apart because,

on one side, the Cuban government is saying that the U.S. does not have the right to interfere in domestic politics.

And the other side, you hear Donald Trump and Marco Rubio saying that they want to essentially decide who the next president of Cuba is and they want

to see a change in leadership here, among many other parts of the government. And so the two sides seem very far apart, while the rest of

Cuba is suffering

ANDERSON: Good to have you in Havana there. Thank you so much, Patrick.

I just want to give you a final note on our top story before we leave you this hour. We've been looking all hour at the position of the Gulf

countries when it comes to this U.S. war, U.S.-Israeli war with Iran.

I'm here in the Middle East and I've just got some new reporting for CNN.

[10:55:00]

A regional official familiar with Saudi Arabia's position has told me, and I quote here, "We can't have an aggressive neighbor but also can't have a

population in Iran that is destitute. At the end of the day, we are neighbors and we want a peaceful neighborhood."

And separately, out of Iran, an Iranian source told CNN on Tuesday that there had been, quote, "outreach" between the United States and Tehran.

That same source telling our Fred Pleitgen that Iran is willing to listen to, quote, "sustainable proposals" to end the war. More on that as we get

it here on CNN.

Well, that is it for CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Becky Anderson. From the team working with me here in Abu Dhabi and those working with us around the

world, it is a very good evening, at least timewise from here. Stay with CNN, though. "ONE WORLD" is up next.

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