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Early Start with Rahel Solomon

Sources: Around 1,000 U.S. Soldiers To Be Deployed To Middle East; Energy Market Volatility Felt Around The Globe; New Details Emerge As NTSB Probes Deadly Runway Collision. Aired 5:30-6a ET

Aired March 25, 2026 - 05:30   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

[05:30:00]

MALCOLM NANCE, U.S. NAVY INTELLIGENCE (RET.): They have helicopters they can do it with. They have landing craft they can do it with. But it's easily mined and it's an easy narrow channel to attack with any ship missiles even if you have heavy air defenses. They could helicopter over the Musandam Peninsula and land on islands like Abu Musa, which belong to the United Arab Emirates, lesser to them and greater to them.

They've been doing an extensive bombing campaign on these islands this week by the U.S. government. But one thing they didn't do was they did not bomb the airstrips, which means that they look like they're going to use that for future operations.

Qeshm Island, the one that's shaped like a shark, is much more extensive. It's 53 villages. It requires water for desalinization. That's a massive target.

That's something that the Marines themselves may make an initial landing, but you could paradrop the 82nd Airborne troops there. But that's fraught with danger because you have to have absolute aerial control, you have to be sure there's no surface-to-air missiles, and you could lose or injure people just jumping out of the airplanes onto that big island.

But Delta Force, the Rangers, they could easily take Kharg Island in a matter of an hour. It's a question of keeping it without getting bombarded day and night.

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN ANCHOR: I wonder whether you believe that the deployment of these troops has been part of the long-term planning and strategy or whether this is a U.S. administration -- I don't want to say making things up as they go along because I have no idea, you know, what the thinking has been behind the scenes. But, you know, I wonder whether this is sort of layering on sort of new opportunities that Pete Hegseth wants to be able to provide for Donald Trump at this point.

NANCE: You know, I'll speak frankly as a former intelligence professional. They're winging this. Every military activity that we see does not show phased planning that was part of a strategic campaign in the pre-war where the Pentagon thought about it, prepared it, and had it ready. None of these forces were ready, especially the Marines. I mean, they seem to be an afterthought.

I think in response to Donald Trump's rhetoric about let's take the Strait of Hormuz, you are now seeing the system spool up to take the Strait of Hormuz. There's no taking it. So long as Iran can deny the sea, which they could do with any ship missile launched 300 miles away, this is going to be a very hard nut to crack.

Worse, Becky, once the fighting starts no one is moving any ships. There's no chance anyone's going to insure a vessel that's going to go when there is massive fighting in the Strait of Hormuz.

ANDERSON: I've got reporting that says the key regional partner, Saudi Arabia, certainly wants Iran's missile capabilities closed out -- degraded before this war ends. So they've said to me very specifically they don't want civilian infrastructure targeted.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Gulf allies, including the UAE where I am, are considering joining this fight because they've been so relentlessly targeted in Iran's retaliation strikes or attacks. I mean, they call them reckless and unprovoked.

There was no suggestion as of yet that the UAE or the Saudis are prepared to jump in offensively in this fight and join, you know, the U.S. here. But I wonder what a coalition would look like and achieve and just how much degradation do you believe of Iran's military capabilities we've seen to date to ensure long-term stability in the region where I am?

NANCE: Well, a coalition is not hard to put together. I mean, the GCC already has a -- you know, its informal networks for the militaries. The UAE would align -- would probably work with the United States in recovering an island that was stolen from them, Abu Musa Island. The Iranians just summarily took that some 20 some odd years ago.

The Saudis, on the other hand, have a big armed force but the key component of that is using their airpower to provide cover and defense for U.S. forces and other forces in the -- you know, that are coming along and seizing these literal islands.

As far as degrading Iran's ballistic missile capability let's all be realistic here, OK? You cannot just say it and it's done. If it's going to be a question of degrading it before we declare the war over, we're going to be here a year because those missiles can be hidden, they can be moved around. The -- we haven't even gotten into the large number of short-range ballistic missiles that they have, and we could hunt them for, you know, some time to come, just as we did in Iraq.

[05:35:00]

But now you're talking an extended period of strikes. The Gulf -- you know, the Strait of Hormuz not opening. And quite possibly even worse, bringing the Houthi rebels into this and they open this war to, you know, and attack Saudi Arabia from the west and close the Bab el- Mandeb waterway. It's a nightmare.

ANDERSON: Malcolm, your perspective is really valuable. Thank you very much indeed for joining us. Malcolm Nance with us this morning. Thank you.

Let's get you back to Rahel Solomon who is in New York -- Rahel.

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, Becky. Thank you.

And still ahead for us, confusion over efforts to end the war with Iran continues to wreak havoc on oil prices around the globe. We are live in Dubai just ahead with a look at how countries are coping.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL)

[05:40:25]

SOLOMON: Welcome back to EARLY START. This is your business breakout.

And let's start with where U.S. futures stand ahead of the opening bell on Wall Street. It has been a very headline-driven market for the markets. Let's see, U.S. futures are up between eight-tenths of a percent to almost a full percentage point for Nasdaq futures. Oil prices, however, are moving the opposite direction. We'll get into that in just a moment.

You can see WTI down almost 4.6 percent, trading at about $88 a barrel. We're going to talk to Eleni about that in just a moment, but let's check some of today's other business headlines.

We're learning more about what led the chief federal court judge in Washington to quash the subpoenas against the chairman of the Federal Reserve. At a high-stakes hearing earlier this month the federal prosecutor admitted to the judge that his office did not have evidence that Fed chair Jerome Powell had committed a crime related to the costly renovation of the Reserve's headquarters.

Jurors in New Mexico have ruled against Meta in a child sexual exploitation case. They found that the social media giant failed to safeguard kids from child predators and did not warn parents about the risk on its platforms. The verdict marks the first time that Meta has been held legally liable over these issues.

And tech company OpenAI is shutting down its video generation app Sora just months after its release. The app drew criticism from copyright holders since it was widely using intellectual property and the likenesses of celebrities in the videos that it generated. OpenAI says that it will instead focus on other priorities.

And we've been watching oil price go on a rollercoaster ride since the war with Iran started and today things seem to be on a bit of downward trajectory.

Let's bring in CNN's Eleni Giokos in Dubai. And Eleni, as I said a moment ago, WTI is off 4.6 percent. I mean, that -- you know, that's nothing to sneeze at or laugh at. I mean, what's happening here? What are you reading into this? ELENI GIOKOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, so Brent crude also coming under pressure. And look, any kind of messaging from the Trump administration that negotiations are happening or talks are on the go with Iran, that signals a potential end to this devastating conflict. We're now in day 26.

But I've spoken to some traders and analysts, and they say this is just a reprieve that we're seeing because of the rhetoric but the fundamentals -- the issues still remain the same. We talk about the supply constraints. We are worried about ultimate damage to critical infrastructure. That still needs to be, you know, taken into consideration.

And importantly, a lot of people are waiting to see what happens come Friday. Remember that Trump had given a 48-hour ultimatum to Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz. He's now pushed back on hitting critical energy infrastructure in Iran until Friday. So we're waiting to see what happens on the weekend.

But I have to say we've been speaking about demand destruction and the International Energy Agency saying, you know, don't use fuel if you don't have to. And it's already having a massive effect on emerging markets, specifically in Asia.

And I want to take you through what countries have implemented to try and reduce consumption. Pakistan announcing school closures and also work-from-home policy. South Korea -- we've seen a fuel price cap there.

Philippines, four-day work week for some government workers. And we've also been seeing some protests in Manila, the capital city, where they have been rationing at some of the gas stations. And then importantly, price rises. The government there declaring a state of emergency.

So this is already -- we're seeing the ripple effect. China also putting things into play in terms of pricing mechanisms.

Central banks around the world are looking at this very closely and asking themselves what kind of inflation this is going to create for economies around the world and looking at whether they have emergency reserves to put into the market. But at the end of the day everyone I've spoken to -- this is not a switch you can turn off and then turn back on very quickly.

There's already fuel supply shortages, specifically on jet fuel, and we're hearing that from the airlines trying to figure out how they're going to manage routes.

The point is if it ends today, we still have longer or medium-term damage. If this still lasts a couple of more weeks what does that mean? And it really all centers around the Strait of Hormuz that has been weaponized militarily as well as financially. And if that doesn't open up, we're looking at a longer-term event here.

I mean, the -- or the BlackRock CEO -- oh, pardon me, Rahel. Larry Fink says that if oil prices hit $150 a barrel that's going to have enormous ripple effects globally and we could be looking at a global recession. So a huge warning there from the largest fund manager in the world.

[05:45:00]

SOLOMON: Yeah. I mean, just really hard to even wrap your head around.

Eleni Giokos for us in Dubai. Eleni, thank you.

All right. And coming up next what federal investigators are learning about the deadly collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck at LaGuardia Airport.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL)

SOLOMON: Welcome back. I'm Rahel Solomon, and here are some of the stories we are watching for you this morning.

U.S. President Donald Trump is expressing optimism that a deal with Iran may be in sight. He says that Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are leading negotiations with Tehran. And an Iranian source tells CNN that Tehran is willing to listen to "sustainable proposals" to end the war.

[05:50:08]

Desperately needed aid is slowing trickling into Cuba after the country was plunged into total darkness twice last week. A humanitarian aid ship carrying solar panels, toiletries, food, and medicine docked in Havana on Tuesday. The island is grappling with a deepening economic crisis and a U.S. blockade of critical oil supplies.

And the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has appeared as a star witness in the trial of a close friend and former congressman. Rubio testified on Tuesday in Miami that he did not know that David Rivera was a lobbyist. Prosecutors say that Rivera and a former business partner acted as foreign agents without registering with the Justice Department and laundered money to conceal and promote criminal conduct.

Federal investigators are releasing new information about the deadly runway collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck at New York's LaGuardia Airport, and they're also taking a close look at a number of potential factors in Sunday night's crash.

CNN's Pete Muntean has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): New details from investigators reveal the final moments before an Air Canada Express flight fatally slammed into an airport fire truck crossing the same runway. National Transportation Safety Board chair Jennifer Homendy says just

two people were working in the LaGuardia control tower at the time with both starting their shifts about an hour before the crash.

Investigators now say one controller was handling the active runways and airspace immediately surrounding the airport. The second controller, a supervisor, was also responsible for issuing route clearances to departing flights, an arrangement investigators say was not uncommon for that hour of the night.

JENNIFER HOMENDY, CHAIR, NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION SAFETY BOARD: That is in the standard operating procedures for LaGuardia. Our air traffic control team has stated this is a problem that -- that this is a concern for them for years.

MUNTEAN (voiceover): But investigators still do not know which controller was specifically overseeing ground control -- the movement of planes and vehicles on taxiways.

Richard Kennington spent 25 years as an FAA air traffic controller.

RICHARD KENNINGTON, FORMER FAA AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER: LaGuardia is one of the most difficult because they have so much aircraft and so little real estate when compared to a Denver or a Kennedy or a DFW.

MUNTEAN (voiceover): Adding to the complexity investigators say controllers were already dealing with another emergency just before the crash. A United Airlines flight aborted its takeoff twice prompting the response from airport firefighters.

UNITED PILOT: 2384 is declaring an emergency. Flight attendants in the back are feeling ill because of the odor.

MUNTEAN (voiceover): The NTSB says that one minute and three seconds before the crash interference garbled a radio call from the fire truck to the control tower. The truck radioed again just 20 seconds before the crash. And the LaGuardia tower granted clearance to cross the runway when the plane was just 100 feet above the ground. Just nine seconds before the fatal collision, the tower told the fire truck to stop. The plane was one second from touching down.

CONTROL TOWER: Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop truck one. Stop, stop, stop! Stop, truck one. Stop! Stop truck one! Stop!

MUNTEAN (voiceover): The NTSB now says the fire truck was not equipped with a transponder, meaning ground collision warning systems in the tower did not alert controllers to the danger unfolding in front of them.

A CNN review of anonymous safety reports from pilots showed growing concerns about conditions at LaGuardia. Before the crash pilots filed at least a dozen reports warning of miscommunication, near misses, and increasing pressure on controllers.

"The pace of operations is building in LaGuardia. The controllers are pushing the line," one pilot wrote. "On thunderstorm days, LGA is starting to feel like DCA did before the accident there. Please do something."

KENNINGTON: I think this was preventable and we will get to the bottom of it and honor all those that were involved by reassuring that it doesn't happen again.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOLOMON: Our thanks to Pete Muntean for that report.

We'll be right back.

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[05:58:35]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JARED ISAACMAN, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: America will never again give up the moon. That brings us to the next step, building the moon base.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOLOMON: NASA's administrator there announcing ambitious new goals for the space agency. Those include revamped plans for a moon base and other projects. It also plans to invest approximately $20 billion over the next seven years to build a base through dozens of missions. The agency announced that it was pausing plans to develop a space station to orbit the moon and would redirect some of those resources to the lunar base.

Among the other projects, a brand-new nuclear-powered Mars vehicle that NASA hopes to launch by 2028. The Mars mission would put nuclear electric propulsion technology to use in space for the first time.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup Tournament is less than three months away and football fans or soccer, depending on where you are watching, are celebrating with a world tour of the tournament's trophy. The first stop in the U.S. was in Los Angeles featuring Italian soccer legend Alessandro Del Piero and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass. Upcoming U.S. stops include Chicago, Miami, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and New York.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALESSANDRO DEL PIERO, FORMER PROFESSIONAL SOCCER PLAYER: Football and sports in general represent more than a sport. It's a way to be connected. You were talking about how many different nationalities lives in Los Angeles, you know, and FIFA with the World Cup. Embrace more people as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[06:00:05]

SOLOMON: The World Cup Tournament kicks off in Mexico in June with matches scheduled across the U.S. and in Canada. That's going to do it for us here on EARLY START. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. Our thanks to Becky Anderson and her team in Abu Dhabi. "CNN THIS MORNING" starts right now.