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One World with Zain Asher
Trump Meets With polish President Nawrocki At The White House; Epstein Survivors Speak Out At Rally On Capitol Hill; Protesters March Near Prime Minister's Home For a Day Of Disruption; U.S. Strikes Boat Allegedly Carrying Drugs In Caribbean; Xi, Putin, And Kim Show Unity In First Joint Public Appearance. Aired 12-1p ET
Aired September 03, 2025 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[12:15:00]
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: All right, everyone. I'm Bianna Golodryga in New York. You've been watching President Trump meeting with Polish
President Karol Nawrocki at the White House. The two leaders are expected to continue discussing trade and the war in Ukraine as you were just
listening when the meeting continues behind closed doors.
But the questions from the press quickly went to the Jeffrey Epstein case. In the last hour, we heard from several victims of the disgraced financier
and convicted sex offender urging members of Congress and President Trump to release all of the Department of Justice files related to the case.
Senior White House reporter Betsy Klein, CNN politics reporter Stephen Collinson joins now from Washington, D.C. with the latest. And let's begin
with Betsy.
Once again, we heard the president call all of this a hoax. The debate now that has a number of Republicans also signing on to legislation to release
all of the files, not that -- in addition to the 30,000 that were released yesterday.
The president called it a hoax, said that everything had been released, that that can be released, and the lawyers, interestingly enough, from the
victims in the last hour, said that they had spoken with president. He had spoken to President Trump back in 2009.
And President Trump had a completely different tone and approach to this issue back then, saying that it was very serious, even providing him with
some information and raise questions as to why he's now calling it a hoax.
The victim said it was very painful to hear that. And yet once again, we heard the president repeat his words calling all of this a democratic hoax.
Just talk about the significance here of what we heard from those victims in the last hour.
BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: That's right. I think one of the most interesting and notable moments during that press conference on
Capitol Hill from some of those victims was that they were asked what they felt when the president called it a democratic hoax. And they were very
emphatic.
One of them saying, this is not a hoax. And the president, just moments ago, asked about that, that very question. And he again called it a
democratic hoax.
I mean, the -- the reality is that at the White House, there is a belief that this has been a major distraction. It has been a major frustration
from President Trump that it hasn't gone away. And if anything, there's been fuel added to the fire in recent days now that Congress is back from
that August recess.
So this is something that clearly isn't going away for President Trump. And this moment that we saw on Capitol Hill today just underscores what a
significant issue this is because his own -- his own administration is the one that propagated these conspiracy theories for so long.
And also is -- is now saying there was no client list. They released this Department of Justice memo earlier this summer that said really essentially
nothing to see here. And now they're frustrated that it's not going away, Bianna.
GOLODRYGA: Stephen, I want to bring you in because as you were listening with all of us about an hour and a half, a very emotional raw testimony
about the abuse that these victims suffered at the hands of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell and all of their clients for years.
Some of these women were girls at the time, the age of just 14 and harrowing details that they so bravely came forward with and telling
reporters the world, essentially they're standing on the steps of the Capitol.
How in your view do you think this changes the dynamics now among lawmakers? If at all, we know we have a -- a minority but a very vocal
minority of Republicans that are coming forward and saying they want full disclosure and they want all of the files to be released. But the majority
still seem to be standing behind President Trump.
STEPHEN COLLINSON, CNN POLITICS SENIOR REPORTER: Yes. And it's a question of whether their loyalty to President Trump continues to supersede what is
a -- a real build-up of frustration in the Republican base. And I think that is the conflict here that is probably going to drive what is
happening.
I think there have to be real questions about how long the president's position that this is just a democratic hoax is sustainable when you sift
through that searing emotional testimony from those victims.
Clearly, this isn't a democratic hoax. And how long can the president just keep insisting that while all this pressure builds up on the White House?
So, I think that is an important aspect of this.
Another important aspect of it -- of it is how what happened today plays out on conservative media. Does this fixation on the right about there
being a government deep state that is covering up vital details, not just on the Epstein case, but on vaccines and on all sorts of other issues?
[12:20:07]
How long is Trump able to hold back that feeling of a cover-up on many issues after he unleashed it, as Betsy was saying, in many ways when he was
running for office?
So, you know, the -- the hope, I think, in the White House was that over August, this issue would fade away.
Clearly, that press conference today means it's not going to fade away. And once again, the administration is in this position where it's being asked,
why can't you release all these files? It's still three months into this, doesn't have a good public answer.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And really getting strange bedfellows together and co- sponsoring this legislation, the Epstein Files Transparency Act, where you saw Democrat Ro Khanna there with Thomas Massie, as well in support of
this, standing there with the victims, Marjorie Taylor Greene, as well.
The White House and other Republicans calling this a hostile act really extraordinary circumstances, especially when we heard from one of those
victims saying that Donald Trump was Jeffrey Epstein's biggest brag that he had an eight by 10 photo of the two of them on his desk.
Again, no accusation, specifically, of President Trump doing any wrongdoing, but just having that juxtapose with the president, calling this
a hoax, quite stunning. And it really will be interesting to see how far this goes.
Betsy, I do want to ask about what we heard from the president there when he was with the president of Poland, a conservative nationalist like
President Trump. The two have a -- a quite strong relationship. And the president making some news, perhaps, commending Poland for being the number
one NATO member spending on defense nearly five percent of their GDP going towards defense, understandably so, given their border there, and how close
they are in the proximity to the war taking place in Ukraine.
I believe that jets were scrambled overnight, following more missile attacks from Russia. And President Trump, when asked whether U.S. troops
would still be stationed in Poland, when even further saying yes, and if they want more, we'll be able to provide that as well.
KLEIN: That was a really notable moment. And obviously, President Nawrocki is a right-wing leader of Poland. He was supported by Trump during his
candidacy, came to power in -- was inaugurated in August. This marks his first overseas trip. His first trip to the White House, really an effort to
cultivate these close ties with President Trump, with whom he is politically aligned.
But heading into this meeting, there were a pair of key points, according to his staff, his chief of staff said that he wanted to emphasize that
neither Russia, nor Putin, can be trusted in this war in Ukraine.
He also was planning to advocate for the presence of U.S. troops in Poland. Right now, there are about 10,000 U.S. troops on a rotational basis in
Poland, something of a deterrence.
And President Trump was asked about that, as there has been some doubt over the future of those U.S. troops. And he said, quote, yes, I think so, if
anything, we'll put more in there if they need it.
The president also was asked to weigh in on that show of force in China, as we've seen Russian President Vladimir Putin really embraced on the world
stage by other leaders, including Kim Jong Un and President Xi of China, as well as India's President Narendra Modi, over the past few days.
The president said they were hoping I was watching, and I was watching. He said, again, setting that about two-week timeline for whether he'll know
how this war moves forward.
But the President has been so frustrated that he hasn't been able to secure a quick resolution. He's been frustrated by the pace of negotiations after
he hosted Russian President Putin on U.S. soil in Alaska just a couple of weeks ago. That hasn't really borne fruit in the way that he was hoping it
had.
He said he expected to speak with Putin over the next few days and reiterated that they have to stop the killing in Ukraine.
But really, overall, warm relations on display between President Trump and the President of Poland.
GOLODRYGA: And the two will also be talking about trade as well.
Stephen, one final -- one final question to you, and that relates to the war in Ukraine and the consistent extension that President Trump keeps
giving Vladimir Putin on the one hand condemning the war and his action saying he's not happy with it, but extending any sort of consequences,
meaningful consequences and additional actions that he will take in response to Putin's defiance, and really thumbing his nose to Donald Trump
at this point following their meeting in Alaska, following the president welcoming leaders of Europe and President Zelenskyy.
[12:25:16]
The bombardment only escalates from Russia's standpoint to know consequences at this point. And President Trump even said, I don't have a
message to Putin. He knows where I stand. You'll see what happens.
And at what point does that threat weaken from Vladimir Putin if he doesn't actually see any follow-up?
COLLINSON: Well, Trump has a history of many things of pushing off consequences and accountability as it relates to himself and others.
So, in a sense, I think Trump is almost willing to keep pushing this forward as long as he doesn't have to make a politically difficult decision
to go ahead and punish Putin. I think it was interesting that the Russian president said today, well, I'd be more than willing to meet President
Zelenskyy in Moscow. That seems to be a step towards Trump's position, but obviously it's a completely absurd one because there would be major worries
for Zelenskyy's security if he went to Moscow at a time of war.
The Ukrainians have said, they're willing to meet in any number of European cities or cities in the Middle East.
You know, the president said he's going to talk to Putin soon. It wouldn't be that surprising. I think if eventually there is some agreement for the
Russians to have a meeting with Zelenskyy, especially now Putin has been emboldened and totally rehabilitated on the international stage by his trip
to Alaska.
And, of course, the festivities -- the festivities in Tianjin and Beijing this week where he was fated by the Chinese.
The big concern about that meeting would be that a two-way meeting would end with Putin coming out and blaming Zelenskyy for thwarting the road to
peace. Then Trump would embrace Putin's position and simply walk away from the situation entirely.
That's why the Ukrainians wanted a three-way summit with Trump, Putin, and Zelenskyy. But Trump again adopted the Russian position while we have a
two-way summit first.
So, it -- it does seem still that the Russians are driving this situation and the president's peace efforts, such as they are, are not really
learning from the experience that they haven't been working for months. And the reason they've not been working to months, to your point, this is not
willing to put any pressure at all on the Russians.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. Driving this effort, continuing the bombardment, welcome on the global stage, not only here in Alaska, but obviously what we've been
seeing over the past few days in China as well, standing alongside President Xi and also Narendra Modi. And today, the leader of North Korea
as well, seemingly with -- with impunity at this point. We'll see if the president does follow up ultimately on these threats.
He does have an arsenal of tools that he can impose on Vladimir Putin to make this war a bit more painful on him. He's chosen not to do that thus
far.
Betsy Klein, Stephen Collinson, thank you so much.
And we'll be right back with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:30:01]
GOLODRYGA: It is 7:30 in the evening in Jerusalem, and you're looking at live pictures of protests from near Prime Minister Netanyahu's home.
Protesters are demanding that the government abandon its plans to take over Gaza City and instead focus on getting the hostages released.
Time now for "The Exchange." On October 7th, 2023, Omri Miran was kidnapped from his home in Kibbutz Nahal Oz during the Hamas attack. His family has
been fighting to get him and the other remaining hostages released ever since.
And joining me now is Moshe Lavi, Omri Miran's brother-in-law. Moshe, I don't even know what number interview this is that we've conducted with you
since October 7th.
You, your family, your sister, have been fighting relentlessly for the release of your brother-in-law and for the remainder -- the remaining 48
hostages, both deceased and still living in Gaza.
For you watching these protests, knowing there is an impending operation in Gaza City, and then seeing President Trump, just moments ago posting on
Truth Social, tell Hamas to return all 20 hostages immediately, not two or five or seven, and then things will happen quickly. It will be over.
What -- what is going through your mind right now? How are you feeling about all of this?
Obviously, First and foremost, everyone wants these hostages to come home and the war to come to an end. What is the best way in your view that that
can happen?
MOSHE LAVI, BROTHER-IN-LAW OF OMRI MIRAN: Thank you for having me, Bianna, for yet another interview. I truly wish we will not need to conduct these
any further.
I -- I will first say that to the viewers who are perhaps perplexed wider demonstrations in Israel. These are protests that stem from the feelings of
many families of hostages, that the current situation cannot continue, that the government cannot continue ignoring the pleas of the wider public over
-- then 70 percent of the public consistently is stating in polls that he wants a hostage deal, even if the price is ending the war.
It also cannot ignore the pleas of the families of hostages and -- and the arguments from the security apparatus that engaging in another operation,
expanding the current operation to -- to Gaza City, is going to risk the hostages and is not going to achieve any of the goals that the government
set in place following the October 7th.
So, those demonstrations offer a deal. And there is a deal on the table now that Prime Minister Netanyahu himself said a few weeks ago. And I was with
him in a room in Washington D.C. at the Blair House. Hearing him saying that to me and to other families of hostages, I will take a partial deal
because that's the only path forward to a comprehensive deal to be negotiated thereafter.
[12:35:10]
There is a partial deal on the table, according to reports, Hamas agreed to it. And I urge the Prime Minister to take it and then negotiate for a
comprehensive deal that will include the release of the hostages and the disarmament and disbanding of Hamas.
GOLODRYGA: We know, as we've seen from our coverage from these protests of patriotic Israelis outside of the prime minister's home who don't trust him
at this point. He's a very divisive figure. Obviously, he has an enormous amount of support from a current sector of the population as well. That's
not who you're seeing protests.
But somebody who had a very, very broad appeal and popularity in Israel is President Trump. And when he came into office, I know -- I've spoken to a
number of families. I spoke with you and just being there in Israel. There was a lot of hope and anticipation that he would be the one who would bring
this war to an end.
I'm just wondering how you're feeling and how Israelis are feeling now when you see President Trump, who they respect, who they support and trust,
telling Netanyahu to -- to finish it, to -- to don't take -- not to take a partial deal, to make sure that every single one of these hostages comes
home now.
LAVI: Yes. We -- many families, including myself, congratulated President Trump for bringing home hostages in January and February, 33, if I recall
correctly. Within a -- a framework that promised us as well a second phase where the rest of the hostages will be released.
I think he's done a lot to support us, the families, to invite us in to -- to the White House, to meet his officials, including the special -- the
special emissary, Steve Witkoff.
But at the end of the day, there are still 48 hostages held in Gaza, not 20 as he tweeted today. There are 48 hostages remaining in Gaza. Twenty of
them are still alive. And -- and we have the opportunity to bring them home.
What we expect -- many of us expect from President Trump is to keep pushing forward to pressure the Israeli Prime Minister to agree to a framework that
President Trump endorsed, that his special envoy, Witkoff, created. The Witkoff plan, which includes releasing the living hostages and dozens of
other deceased hostages who were murdered by Hamas. And then negotiate for a comprehensive deal that will end the war.
We understand, and I understand that completely, this is a complex issue. There are legitimate arguments why we have to continue with this war,
because Hamas refuses to internalize that they have been defeated on the battlefield, and they have been defeated also in the eyes of the people of
Gaza want this war to end with Hamas disappearing from their lives.
In order to achieve that, though, we can't just continue engaging only in the battlefield. We have to engage in diplomatic rooms with our allies,
with stakeholders, in order to ensure Hamas doesn't regain power and ensure that all the hostages are home.
I hope President Trump will pressure everyone. The Israeli Prime Minister and the government on one side and Hamas' sponsors and funders countries
like Qatar, Turkey, and Iran that are still giving a blank check to continue inciting and emboldening Hamas. That's my expectation from the
president.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And there is an argument to be made about the amount of pressure and what more pressure can be put on Hamas. Obviously, the onus is
on them for releasing all of the hostages, including your brother-in-law.
How much of this, Moshe, comes down to a number of Israelis, perhaps you included -- I don't want to put words in your mouth -- losing trust in the
prime minister himself?
We've spoken out about the extraordinary moment where you have the IDF Chief of Staff and other military officials disagreeing and opposing this
new operation.
If in fact they supported it, would your views be different?
LAVI: As you pointed out, I want to first emphasize that the onus is on Hamas. In a normal reality, the international community would have forced
Hamas to release all the hostages unconditionally and disappear from the political landscape in the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian territories.
We're not living in a normal reality. We're living in a world that allows terrorist organization to conduct such things and extort governments like
Israeli government. Any deal is a bad deal, but a deal that we have to take in order to preserve our social contract and responsibility for our
citizens like my brother-in-law, Omri.
[12:40:18]
I -- I don't know if I lost trust in the prime minister or in the government. What I do know is that we have received mixed signals over the
past 23 months that on one end, a partial deal is the only path forward to bring on the hostages.
When a partial deal is suddenly possible, again, Hamas should have responded positively a month ago, not after pressure being put on them over
the past few weeks by Israel's military. But we were told it's -- it's the only path. And now we're -- we're being told that it's not, that there's
only a comprehensive deal with stipulations that to be frank Hamas will not agree to.
So, in a way, we're losing trust in the mechanism that it can negotiations mechanism because it hasn't yielded results as of yet. And, yes, if we have
the security apparatus stating that an operation is going to risk the lives of the hostages, that an operation is going to continue not going to deter
Hamas, what -- and will not change the equation, how can we not listen to their advice when they are the people on the ground fighting for our loved
ones, fighting for the safety of Israel?
GOLODRYGA: Yes. And even more extraordinary was hearing that even members of Prime Minister Netanyahu's own cabinet were expressing and -- and
voicing concern about this operation going forward this week as well.
Moshe Lavi, I have faith. I look forward to the day where you come back on and Omri is back home with your sister, with his daughter, where he
belongs.
In the meantime, thank you for being a voice for him, for all of the hostages. Really appreciate your time.
LAVI: Thank you.
GOLODRYGA: And we'll be right back with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GOLODRYGA: A U.S. Appeals Court is blocking one of Trump administration's key justifications for its aggressive deportation efforts. The courts said
Trump cannot use the Alien Enemies Act to rapidly deport people that it claims are part of a Venezuelan drug gang.
Two of the three judges on the appeals court panel agreed that the gang had not committed a, quote, predatory incursion into the United States. The
ruling is the first time a U.S. appeals court has weighed in on the Trump administration's use of the Alien Enemies Act, and it likely sets the stage
for this case to move on to the Supreme Court.
[12:45:18]
Now, earlier this hour, we heard from President Trump defending the U.S. military strike that blew up a speedboat off the Venezuelan coast allegedly
carrying members of a drug gang.
Trump said, we have to protect our country. The boat was allegedly carrying drugs that were supposed to be sold in the U.S. 11 people on the board --
on board died in that strike.
The strike was a major step up in the U.S. efforts to battle the drug trade. In the past, the U.S. would have tried to seize boats like this and
arrest the people on board.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: The president has been very clear that he's going to use the full power of America, the full might of the
United States, to take on and eradicate these drug cartels no matter where they're operating from and -- and no matter how long they've been able to
act with impunity. Those days are over.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: CNN's Patrick Oppmann is tracking the story for us from Havana, Cuba.
How's Venezuela responding, Patrick?
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN HAVANA BUREAU CHIEF: Well, you know, they're calling in to question all of this, as you'd expect, saying that perhaps it's fake,
that this gang doesn't really even exist in Venezuela, and that's certainly, despite what the Trump administration claims, that Nicolas
Maduro has nothing to do with this gang that he does not oversee it, that he's not a -- a drug cartel leader.
But, you know, as you mentioned, this is just a striking escalation. While we have seen drug introductions going back for decades in the Caribbean,
you know, usually the Coast Guard tried to support a boat at mostly shoot out its engines. Certainly, you don't see a targeted strike on a drug boat
killing everyone involved intentionally like we just witnessed.
And the -- the change really is that under U.S. law now, thanks to President Trump, these are just not drug cartels, they are officially
listed as terror organizations, and that gives President Trump, gives the Department of Defense the green light to -- to treat them essentially as
enemy combatants.
And -- and that's why we saw this missile strike on this boat that according to the U.S., was carrying drugs to the United States. They've not
really provided any intelligence backing that up at this point. But it is really something quite new.
And whether or not it will have a chilling effect on the drug gangs or not remains to be seen, because there are so many drugs going to the United
States where the market is, the largest market in the world.
There are submarines that the -- the drug cartels build on their own in the jungle. There are containers full of drugs that somehow slip through
customs and -- and other efforts to stop that. There are tunnels built between the Mexico -- between Mexican -- under the Mexican border with the
United States.
And so, you know, it is just built into the drug cartels' booming business that some of the loads of drugs, like we saw yesterday, will be lost,
perhaps not as so violently as we witnessed. But that is just the price of doing business.
Literally, the drugs we saw aboard that boat are a drop in the ocean of drugs that are heading the United States.
So whether or not this will stop the drug cartels from carrying out this very lucrative dirty business remains to be seen. But the likely answer is
no.
GOLODRYGA: Yes. The president seems, and his cabinet and his administration seemed to view this as a deterrent. We will continue to be following this
story.
Patrick Oppmann in Havana, Cuba. Thank you so much.
We'll be right back with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:50:14]
GOLODRYGA: Well, after spending three days on the international stage delivering a message of strength and solidarity, Xi Jinping is calling
China's rise unstoppable.
(MUSIC)
Earlier, Xi hosted a gala dinner for global leaders who were in Beijing to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. The big event took
place just hours earlier in the form of a massive military parade in Beijing, meant to showcase China's power in cutting-edge weaponry.
And it wasn't just Beijing's military strength on display, but it's diplomatic influence as well. Xi Jinping stood side by side with his
Russian and North Korean counterparts just days after presenting his vision for a new world order.
And while Russian President Vladimir Putin attended that military parade in Beijing, this was the scene in Kyiv.
(SIREN)
Moscow launching a sweeping air attack on Ukraine overnight. Ukraine says its air defense has shot down most of Russia's drones and missiles, but
some managed to hit their targets.
Sebastian Shukla has more on the President Putin's day in Beijing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SEBASTIAN SHUKLA, CNN PRODUCER: It has been another highly successful diplomatic outing on the international stage for the Russian President
Vladimir Putin.
Today, culminating in that enormous military parade and show of force in the Chinese capital, what then happened was we saw President Putin, the
Chinese leader, and Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea, striding confidently and seemingly in good spirits together.
That message was almost as important for Russia as it is for China. For President Putin, it sent a message to the West that says we, these Asian
leaders are supporting you in your war in Ukraine.
China, don't forget, inked an enormous multi-billion dollar deal to import Russian gas, something that it's been doing since the invasion of Ukraine
and has subsequently allowed Moscow to fuel its war chest and to keep the fighting going in Ukraine's borderlands.
The image stood alongside North Korea, a leader of a Hermit Kingdom, exiled on the international stage, is equally poignant, especially given that
North Korean soldiers have been found fighting in Ukraine on behalf of Vladimir Putin.
But what came out at the end of the day, a press conference from the Russian President gave us still a flavor that the Ukraine story and the --
the -- the discussions around ending that war are still very much front and center of his mind.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Donald asked me if it was possible to hold such a meeting. I said, yes, it is possible. In the
end, if Zelenskyy is ready, let him come to Moscow. Such a meeting will take place.
SHUKLA: The prospect of President Zelenskyy arriving in talks for Moscow with the Russian President is almost a non-starter for a myriad of reasons.
One of them being that the Russian government doesn't view President Zelenskyy as a legitimate leader.
President Zelensky himself, though, will know that part of the initial invasion plan put together by Vladimir Putin was that he wanted a
decapitation of the Ukrainian government and that there had been numerous security fears for President Zelenskyy going there would offer would be a
real test of his own personal security.
And that is all before the optics that would come around such a meeting where President Zelenskyy would go essentially to kiss the ring and to --
on bended knee, you know, signing a peace deal after his country was invaded.
President Zelenskyy, though, for his part, will be meeting with European allies today in Paris with President Macron of France and then later
tomorrow with other European leaders in a meeting of the so-called Coalition of the Willing.
[12:55:04]
What we're starting to get from Europe now is a little bit more of a flavor about the so-called security guarantees promised by European allies and the
United States. A source in the Elysee has told CNN that there are now three key pillars that President Macron will be talking to President Zelenskyy
about. One of those is the continued support and delivery of equipment and supplies to bolster and train the Ukrainian Armed Forces.
The second, crucially, appears to be some sort of contingent of European peacekeepers on the ground, although details of that are not quite clear.
And finally, is that the U.S. will be involved in some sort of American safety net, as the source called it. More details on that will likely come
out tomorrow.
Sebastian Shukla, CNN, Berlin.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: And that does it for this very busy hour of "One World." I'm Bianna Golodryga. Thanks so much for watching. "Amanpour" is up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[13:00:00]
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