Return to Transcripts main page
One World with Zain Asher
Trump Hints U.S.-Iran Talks Could Resume in Coming Days; China Positions Itself as a Responsible Leader Amid Iran War; Pope Leo XIV in Cameroon for Second Leg of Historic Trip; Two More House Representatives Facing Ethics Committee Investigations; King Charles to Address Congress, Meet with Trump on U.S. Visit; Raffle Winner Takes Home Picasso's 1941 Gouache "Tete De Femme". Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired April 15, 2026 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ZAIN ASHER, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: Right, President Trump hints that talks could resume between the U.S. and Iran over the next two days.
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN HOST, ONE WORLD: "One World" starts right now. As war chaos deepens, China is positioning itself as a responsible global power,
as Trump says, Beijing agreed to not send weapons to Iran.
ASHER: Plus, as Pope Leo's tour of Africa heads to Cameroon, President Trump takes a new swipe at him on social media.
GOLODRYGA: And the global celebration of freedom is here. It is My Freedom Day, and we'll show you how young people are standing up to modern day
slavery. Hello, everyone. Live from New York, I'm Bianna Golodryga.
ASHER: And I'm Zain Asher, you are watching "One World". A source tells CNN the Israeli Security Cabinet will meet in about two hours' time to discuss
the possible ceasefire with Lebanon. Israel has continued to bombard Lebanon, even after the U.S. and Iran paused hostilities a week ago.
Back in Washington, President Trump suggests talks between the U.S. and Iran could resume within the next few days.
GOLODRYGA: Now, this is Pakistan's key negotiator is in Tehran to discuss another round of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran. Talks over the
weekend in Islamabad ended without an agreement. Now, for its part, Iran says that it will continue participating in talks despite believing
Washington is not trustworthy.
This says President Trump continues to claim victory in the ongoing conflict.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Is this war over?
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I think it's close to over here. I mean, I view it as very close to over. You know, what if I
pulled up stakes right now, it would take them 20 years to rebuild their country. And we're not finished. We'll see what happens. I think they want
to make a deal very badly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: Alayna Treene is standing by for us at the White House. But first, let's go to Nic Robertson, live from Islamabad. So Nic, a lot of
conflicting signals here. The president suggesting the war may be over very soon, that, on the other hand, there may be more talks on the horizon, and
this as more troops are reported to be on their way to the region. So how is all of this to be interpreted?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yeah, there's a diplomatic signaling and the military signaling isn't there. And I think,
you know, the president spoken about talks within two days. I think that's felt in this region as being pretty ambitious.
But I think that sense and the sort of momentum towards talks got a great bound forward today in the past hour or so, the main, if you will, top
interlocutor from the Pakistan side trying to bring Iran and the U.S. together. Field Marshal Asim Munir just landed in Tehran, along with his
interior minister as well.
So, this is a top-level delegation in Tehran, and the meetings there entirely to try to bring Iran closer to meeting what the JD Vance, the Vice
President, departed Islamabad with at the end of the talks here Sunday, saying, you know, a final and best offer that he'd made to Tehran, putting
the ball in Iran's court.
And I think this sense of momentum that's being generated in part by President Trump, but being generated here by the fact that the Field
Marshal in Pakistan, along with another key minister, has landed for talks in Tehran. And I should flag here as well. This is at a time when the
foreign minister and the Prime Minister of Pakistan are both out of the country.
You know, if you'd come to us a few minutes ago, you would have seen a dark city behind me, because there are power cuts in Pakistan, as there are in
many other countries, because there's a shortage of fuel because of what's happening in the Strait of Hormuz. So, Pakistan, in this, you know, there's
a sense of urgency to try to bring the two sides together, not just for them, but for the whole global economy.
So, they're very much in this with everyone else. But I think at this moment, what we heard from a foreign ministry briefing in Tehran this
afternoon, laying out Iran's points, saying that they want a full and complete ceasefire, that they want war reparations for the damages that
have been done, that they want sanctions being lifted.
[11:05:00]
And there was talk in that press conference about how Iran sees the talks as a whole, of being a complete package, not just one item that you tick
off and you tick off and you tick off, but an interlocking of all these items and issues. So, the momentum, if there was and then that breakdown of
trust that there were the talks here last weekend that seems to be being bridged and repaired.
Let's see how the Pakistan delegation in Tehran gets on, because the ball really is over there in Tehran at the moment, as the president, as you say,
gives the diplomatic signals, but the military signals of sending more troops into the region.
GOLODRYGA: CENTCOM now announcing a full blockade, full control over the Strait of Hormuz is in place. Nic Robertson, thank you so much.
ASHER: All right, let's go now to our Alayna Treene, joining us live now at the White House. So just in terms of President Trump intimating that this
war, Alayna, could be close to over, just walk us through what the details are, because obviously it's extremely complicated.
There are at least four to five points where neither side see completely eye to eye, major sticking points, especially as it pertains to nuclear
weapons. What do we know at this point?
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Know, absolutely, you're exactly right. I'd also argue that we've been hearing this idea that the
war is very close to being over for several weeks now, and with the president had, you know, setting out that four-to-six-week timeline at the
get go, after they initially launched strikes into Tehran.
And so, we've kind of been hearing this for a while. I think the difference now, though, is that they are in this two-week ceasefire. They are really
pushing for diplomacy. And in all of the conversations that I've been having with administration officials. They essentially tell me that, that
is the true goal here, that they want to deal out of this, and they do not want to resume the Trump Administration.
They do not want to resume the type of military operations and attacks that we were seeing before the ceasefire was in place. Now, of course, there are
so many questions of whether or not that is actually going to be viable. I think as much as we are hearing optimism publicly from the president and
from the vice president as well.
Of course, there is so much concern behind the scenes of whether or not they can actually get Iran to make the type of concessions that they are
looking for. You know, I was speaking with one person yesterday who has been involved in a lot of these talks and setting up this idea of a
potential second round of face-to-face talks between a U.S. delegation and an Iranian delegation.
And they essentially said, you know, they would give it a 60, 40, chance perhaps, that this could happen. Now that's probably even more optimistic
type of look that this person offered that I think other people in the administration are looking at. So, there's still a lot that needs to be
done here.
I do want to play for you, though, just what we heard from the president, what he was saying to Fox News this morning about the naval blockade,
because that is another part of this. You know, we saw the U.S. issue this blockade on the Strait of Hormuz as another way to try and, you know,
really an economic pain point for the Iranians to see if this would help, be a new form of leverage that could try and force them to the table.
The president seemed to argue that, that leverage is working. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TRUMP: What's been pretty amazing. Actually, I thought that was going to happen. They reacted to this, even I think we're, you know, we've
obliterated them, and this almost seems to be more of a reaction than we had before.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
TREENE: The president also followed there by adding that he said, it only matters the end result. So clearly his eye on a potential deal here. But
again, there's so much that needs to be agreed to. And I do think that a second meeting from the conversations I've been having with White House
officials, really there needs to be far more agreement on the front end about what the contours of a potential deal would look like.
Make sure that if they are sitting face to face with the Iranians, again that there is much more agreement on what is going to be discussed in the
hopes of ultimately reaching a final deal, but at this point, we're going to have to wait and see whether or not that actually materializes.
ASHER: Alayna Treene, live for us there. Thank you so much. All right. President Trump says that China has agreed not to send weapons to Iran.
GOLODRYGA: And a post on social media today, Trump also says, quote, China is very happy that I am permanently opening the Strait of Hormuz, and
predicted that the Chinese leader would give him a big fat hug when they meet next month.
ASHER: His post comes a day after Chinese officials slammed his blockade of Iran's ports as dangerous. They said it was irresponsible. China is seeking
to portray itself as a responsible global power, in all of this. In contrast, of course, to Donald Trump's unpredictable foreign policy. Here's
the Chinese President.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
XI JINPING, CHINESE PRESIDENT: Today, our world, our times and history, are changing in ways like never before.
[11:10:00]
Humanity has to make a historic choice between peace and war, between unity and confrontation and between development and decline, as important members
of the Global South, China and the UAE need to enhance coordination and cooperation to build a more stable, resilient and robust, comprehensive
strategic partnership.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: All right, let's get some perspective on all this now with Former U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns. He's also a Former U.S.
Ambassador to NATO and a former undersecretary for political affairs. Ambassador, you are literally the perfect person to talk to about China's
role in all of this.
So, Iran exports essentially 80 percent of their oil to China, so obviously they're being hurt significantly by this blockade. China, on the other
hand, receives 10 percent of its oil from Iran. They also have pretty much the world's largest oil reserves, 1.3 billion barrels of oil.
The U.S. Administration is referring to China as hoarding oil in all of this, but they've also been very forward thinking just in terms of a green
energy revolution, electrifying their cars, that sort of thing. So just walk us through terms of this meeting that is set to take place at this
point in time between Xi Jinping and President Trump.
Who goes into this meeting with the upper hand? How many sorts of cards does Xi have to play here?
NICHOLAS BURNS, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO CHINA: Well, it's a very good question. I'm not sure we can answer it. It's a month away. We'll have to
see by May 14th, 15th, when they are to meet in Beijing, whether or not the Iran war has ended. And the big question will be, how will it have ended?
Will the United States be deemed essentially the country that got the better of the deal at the end? Or will Iran I think that's a critical
question to answer, but there is a lot of dueling going on publicly between these two countries. Just over the last couple of days. You referred to
President Xi Jinping in that meeting in Beijing.
He said that the world should not return to the law of the jungle, and he was very pointed name the United States, but pointed in criticism of some
countries that are disregarding international law. That was a shot across the bow of the United States. I find the Chinese position, frankly, to be
hypocritical, because, on the one hand, they've been very critical of the American blockade of the Strait of Hormuz over the last two days.
And yet, on the other hand, no criticism whatsoever of the fact that Iran started this. Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz over the last couple of
weeks during the war. And so it's obviously they're trying to play both sides of this, but they're a country that, while you're right, they have
tremendous reserves of oil.
They're not pressing for Iranian oil right now, but if the blockade continues for another three to four weeks, let's say it goes that far, it's
going to hurt the Chinese, and I would hope that in the end, the Chinese would put more pressure on Iran to stop this war and to agree to a
reasonable settlement, a ceasefire, than pressure on the United States, and that will be a big factor when President Trump and President Xi Jinping
meet a month from now.
GOLODRYGA: Ambassador Burns you talk about China criticizing the United States for circumventing international law. There's also new reporting that
in addition to China supplying or attempting to supply Iran with military weapons and missiles that Iran has been using newly acquired Chinese spy
satellites to specifically target U.S. bases.
So perhaps it is understandable why the president doesn't want to address these issues publicly, but in terms of what he needs to do when he speaks
with Xi Jinping about all of these concerns. What lines need to be drawn about what is acceptable and what isn't, and what should the consequences
be, aside from his consistent tariff threats?
BURNS: Well, I think that's a very good question, Bianna. And you know, I think the President Trump is well within his rights when he is speaking to
President Xi Jinping to say, look, we're trying to stabilize U.S.-China relations. That's the whole point of President Trump's visit there.
They want to have a truce on tariffs, a truce on supply chains. They want to get back to a more stable commercial and political relationship. And I
think the U.S. has a strong point to make. The Chinese have denied these allegations that they're providing military support for Iran.
Well, we hope that those Chinese denials are accurate, that they haven't been doing it. I don't know where the truth is here, but the onus is on
China now, not to become a contributing factor to the problems in this war as president, as the U.S. Administration thinks about a second round of
negotiations with the Iranians.
ASHER: You brought up an interesting point, Ambassador on your first answer, this idea that perhaps that sort of 10 percent that China gets from
Iran, 10 percent of its oil supply that it gets from Iran, is hopefully, according to the U.S. calculations, going to be enough to really put
pressure on China, to persuade the Iranians to come to the negotiating table.
[11:15:00]
Is that likely to happen based on what we know about China?
BURNS: I don't think it will happen in the short term, because of the reserves that the Chinese have, and some of the vessels that did sail
through the Strait of Hormuz in the last few weeks before the blockade were Chinese vessel, COSCO, the Chinese state shipping company going with oil to
the Chinese market.
So, this will only play out as an action forcing event for the Chinese their lack of Iranian oil in about 30 or 40 days' time. So, it's a longer
time framework here, but I do think the Chinese have to think about their larger interests. If they want a stable relationship with the United
States, they ought not to be giving support to the Iranians.
And they should be pushing the Iranians to agree to a ceasefire, a permanent ceasefire, with the United States. And you know, we do know
there's a strategic relationship between among China, Russia, Iran and North Korea. That's very well known. I don't think the Chinese can have it
both ways.
The other example of this China, for most of the last 20 years, was on our side of the table, arguing that Iran should not have a nuclear weapon. The
Chinese haven't said a word in defense of the U.S. and Europe and Japan and other countries who are arguing that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,
they've gone silent on that.
So, I find a basic hypocrisy in the Chinese position. Maybe that's not surprising in global politics, but it's still something that should be
noted.
GOLODRYGA: And despite the public posturing, there has to be some concern for Xi Jinping to see how quickly the United States was able to act in
Venezuela, which had been a partner for China as well, and then now closing and controlling the Strait of Hormuz.
I'm wondering again, as they noted, the perfect guest for this segment, because you also served as U.S. Ambassador to NATO, whether it then, is a
gift and for Xi Jinping to see the growing rift between the United States and NATO really play out, first over Greenland now.
Obviously only exacerbated with the war in Iran and Europe, with Germany signing off on this, reportedly openly drafting a European NATO fall back
plan, if indeed the United States starts to pull troops back or play a lesser role in the alliance. What does that mean for players like Vladimir
Putin and Xi Jinping?
BURNS: It's a really important question, and I think it works both ways actually. I think on the negative side for the Chinese, they didn't stand
up for Venezuela, and they couldn't do much to protect Iran. They're two strategic partners. And they've also seen the extraordinary effectiveness
and professionalism of the United States military in both of these theaters.
So that has to be kind of a lesson for them. But as you say, you know, we've made our own mistakes. I think it's been a major mistake by President
Trump and the American Administration to be so critical of the NATO allies, they didn't inform the NATO allies of this war.
They didn't even invite NATO to take part. It was only when we got into trouble in the Strait of Hormuz, they did so, of course, the Chinese are
going to take advantage of this rift in NATO. And it's really in President Trump's interest to put aside his grievances with the alliance, form a
bigger coalition, try to work with the Europeans on what happens after the ceasefire.
Same is true of our East Asian allies, Japan and South Korea. So, the Chinese are trying to exploit that President Xi Jinping trying to say to
the rest of the world, I'm now the responsible, stable global leader, President Trump is not. So, I do think there are positives and negatives if
you're looking at where the Chinese are trying to gain from this.
And we should not be giving gifts to the Chinese by having these, I think, quite illogical arguments with the NATO allies. We need NATO, and we ought
to be more respectful of NATO as we go through this.
ASHER: Yeah, and it's worth noting for our international audience that in order for the U.S. to pull out of NATO, Trump would actually need Congress.
It would need the U.S. Senate. But as both you and Bianna pointed out, Trump can essentially just sort of contribute less and less and less to the
alliance, which is, of course, still a massive problem, and something that NATO allies, of course, want to avoid.
Ambassador, thank you for your very sensible analysis. We appreciate it. We hope to have you on again the show very soon.
BURNS: Thanks so much.
GOLODRYGA: Thank you.
BURNS: Thank you.
ASHER: Of course, all right, still to come on "One World", Pope Leo is in Cameroon on his historic Africa tour, but the trip is being overshadowed by
a spot with the U.S. President.
GOLODRYGA: Plus, they're out of Congress, but Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales may not be out of legal trouble. And --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Girls' education is about global transformation.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You educate a woman. You educate a nation.
[11:20:00]
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Freedom to receive an education means I have the ability to write to my future.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ASHER: Girls in Zimbabwe there reminding us that education is a ticket to freedom. We'll speak to a student in Atlanta for CNN's My Freedom Day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ASHER: All right, Pope Leo is in Cameroon now, after bidding farewell to Algeria earlier, he'll be visiting an orphanage, and we'll meet with
Catholic officials at the Cameroon Bishops Conference later. President Trump has continued his war of words with the pope, posting, will someone
please tell Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 innocent, completely unarmed protesters in the last two months, and that for Iran to
have a nuclear bomb is absolutely unacceptable.
GOLODRYGA: Vice President JD Vance, the highest-ranking Catholic in the U.S. government also had some advice for the pope.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JD VANCE, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I think it's very, very important for the pope to be careful when he talks about matters
of theology, if you're going to opine on matters of theology, you've got to be careful. You've got to make sure it's anchored in the truth.
And that's one of the things that I try to do, and it's certainly something I would expect from the clergy, whether they're Catholic or Protestant.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: The pope says the message he brings to Africa is one of unity and peace. And he referenced Saint Augustine, whose teaching was, he said,
an invitation to search for God and for truth, something that is very much needed today.
ASHER: CNN's Vatican Correspondent Christopher Lamb is traveling with the pope. He filed this report from Algiers, Algeria.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTOPHER LAMB, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Pope Leo continuing to voice his message of peace while in Africa, on Wednesday, he flies to
Cameroon, the second stop in his four-country tour of the continent. Leo is going to be in Cameroon, a country which has seen conflicts between the
French speaking government and English-speaking separatists.
On Thursday, Leo will fly into the heart of that dispute with a message of reconciliation. But while in Africa, Leo is continuing to face
extraordinary attacks from the Trump Administration. Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic, saying the pope needs to be more careful when talking
about theology, even saying the pope needs to remember just war theory, a theory that was devised by Saint Augustine of Hippo to whom Leo is very,
very closely linked.
[11:25:00]
President Trump also suggesting that Leo needs to recall the protesters who died in Iran. But Leo will be on board a five-hour flight. The question is,
will he come out to journalists and take questions and perhaps respond to these latest attacks? Leo, though arriving in the capital of Cameroon with
that message of peace during his marathon trip of Africa. Christopher Lamb, CNN, Algiers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: Well, there's still no end to the violence in Sudan as the civil war there enters its fourth year. The United Nations says 14 million people
are hungry and displaced, and the country's health system is in ruins. U.N. officials say fighting between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary rapid
support forces has pushed 70 percent of the country into poverty.
ASHER: Yeah, that's a 32 percent increase from April 2023 when the war began. The World Food Program says the international community has failed
to help stop this crisis. Right, turning now to Turkey, where there has been a second school shooting in just two days.
A warning to our viewers, the images you are about to see are very distressing. Officials say that at least four people, including a teacher,
were killed and more than a dozen injured when a student opened fire at a middle school in the south of the country, the shooter reportedly killed
himself afterwards.
GOLODRYGA: And on Tuesday, a former student opened fire at his old school in southeast Turkey, injuring 16 people. He too reportedly committed
suicide. Typically, school shootings in Turkey are extremely rare. All right, still ahead for us. Israel and Hezbollah continue to trade strikes,
despite historic talks in the U.S. between Israel and Lebanon.
But is there a glimmer of hope? We'll have a live report from Israel.
ASHER: Plus, after 10 years, the global celebration of freedom makes it to Antarctica. We'll have the latest from My Freedom Day. Stay ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
ASHER: All right, welcome back to "One World". I'm Zain Asher.
GOLODRYGA: And I'm Bianna Golodryga. Here are some of the headlines we're watching today. President Trump suggests talks between the U.S. and Iran
could resume in the next few days. Sources tell CNN, the U.S. Vice President would again lead the American delegation.
ASHER: New data suggests that some ships have been intercepted in the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. U.S. central command says the blockade
of Iranian ports has been fully implemented. The U.S. is not preventing ships that are not tied to Iran from passing through the Strait of Hormuz.
GOLODRYGA: Pope Leo has landed in Cameroon on his historic visit to Africa. He's meeting with President Biya and due to visit an orphanage. After
leaving Algiers, the Pope says that he brings a message of peace and unity, even as he faces new criticism from U.S. President and vice president for
his stance on the war in Iran.
ASHER: Investigators in Los Angeles are looking into a fifth woman sexual misconduct allegations against Former Congressman Eric Swalwell. Lonna
Drews says that Swalwell drugged and raped her at a hotel back in 2018. He resigned from Congress on Tuesday after a former staffer accused him of
rape.
Swalwell has denied all accusations of sexual misconduct. Eric Swalwell is one of four U.S. lawmakers under scrutiny right now.
GOLODRYGA: Yeah. Tony Gonzales, a Republican from Texas stepped down after he admitted to an affair with a staffer. Representative Sheila Cherfilus-
McCormick is being investigated for campaign funding violations, and Congressman Cory Mills is the subject of a House ethics investigation for
assault and benefiting from federal contracts while in office. CNN's Manu Raju takes a look at more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MANU RAJU, CNN CHIEF CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Congressman Eric Swalwell and Congressman Tony Gonzales both resigning on Tuesday afternoon after
separate scandals involving sexual misconduct came to light through press reports and two separate situations but two very similar outcomes, both
seeing their political careers implode.
And Eric Swalwell's case, also facing the prospects of separate criminal probes that could happen outside of Capitol Hill. But now that they have
resigned, they have avoided expulsion votes that were certain to happen this week in the House of Representatives, it would require two thirds
majority in the House to expel either them.
It was possible it could have reached that threshold. Just six members in the history of Congress have ever been expelled from the United States
House. And the question will be if there will be others who could join them, two other members of Congress facing their own ethical issues.
Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida, a Democrat, is also another Florida member, a Republican Cory Mills also facing pressure from
their colleagues to resign or face potential expulsion votes. But it was Swalwell case in particular that caused so many people by surprise, because
Democrats viewed him as a very likely next Governor of California.
But after the "San Francisco Chronicle" and CNN detailed these allegations of sexual misconduct, allegations of rape, he has denied those allegations.
That was enough to see his support collapse completely on Capitol Hill, and ultimately his decision to step aside.
Tony Gonzales too, had decided to step out of his race, drop out for running for reelection in the house, but he did not face calls to resign
from the Speaker of the House, Mike Johnson said there should be an ethics investigation that should conclude first before deciding whether before he
made a decision and whether to call on John and Gonzales to resign.
But members of the House reacting to this news as they came back to after a two-week session making very clear that the culture on Capitol Hill needs
to change.
REP. ALEXANDRIA OCASIO-CORTEZ (D-NY): Washington should be a place where we are elevating and acting with integrity. And I think it's what the American
people expect. These are positions of profound privilege and a profound responsibility. And I think the most important thing right now is to center
these women and their bravery in coming forward.
There is such a punitive culture here in Washington that silences people who have been victims of abuse and for them to do what they did takes a
tremendous amount of bravery.
REP. LAUREN BOEBERT (R-CO): I think that they should have been expelled and not resigned. And I think that we need to actually, like, look into ways to
censure with other aspect to say you can't have your pension, you can't leave here with all your taxpayer funded benefits after you have created
such shameful acts that you have to bow out and resign from Congress.
[11:35:00]
There needs to be stricter penalties with that.
RAJU: Now the other two members have resigned, Eric Swalwell and Tony Gonzales. The ultimate margin in the Republican White House will not
change. We expect there just still to be one Republican defection. That's all Mike Johnson can't afford on any party line vote, which goes to show
you how significant every seat is in the razor thin GOP majority. Manu Raju, CNN, Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GOLODRYGA: Turning overseas now, A source tells CNN that Israel's Security Cabinet will meet shortly to discuss a possible ceasefire in Lebanon. The
Lebanese and Israeli governments agreed to hold further negotiations after their first direct talks in decades in the U.S. on Tuesday.
ASHER: At the same time, Israel says it struck more than 200 of what it calls Hezbollah terror infrastructure sites in Southern Lebanon. The past
24 hours, Lebanon says at least 35 people were killed. Hezbollah also launched rockets at Israel hours after Tuesday's talks.
GOLODRYGA: The World Food Program says Lebanon is facing increasing food insecurity amid Israel's bombardment. CNN's Oren Liebermann joins us from
Tel Aviv. And Oren, just 24 hours after these historic meetings. And important to note that for the first time, Lebanon representing itself, as
opposed to whether it's Syrian officials or Iranian officials, or even Hezbollah, that clearly was viewed as a step forward yesterday.
And now reports of a potential ceasefire, again this would be between Israel and Hezbollah. What are we to read and the timing here and how this
potential ceasefire would come about?
OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN JERUSALEM BUREAU CHIEF: It's certainly noteworthy that under the auspices of the Trump Administration, Israel and Lebanon are
having direct talks, and it's clear that President Donald Trump wants to see that continue.
And we haven't seen a second day of talks scheduled yet, but we fully expect it will take place as the Trump Administration pushes for more
progress and something tangible to come from a potential ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah that would lead to a larger agreement between Israel
and Lebanon.
That being said, what will this look like? How does this take place? The first day of talks were really just to effectively set the framework for
further discussions. Now, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has convened a Security Cabinet meeting that's set to take place in just under an hour and
a half in Jerusalem, where an Israeli source tells us a potential ceasefire is expected to be discussed.
And that is viewed as what's supposed to be a positive gesture towards Lebanon on as these talks are trying to really to get going and to make
some sort of grip here in an effort to end the fighting between Israel and the Iranian proxy Hezbollah. So, it is noteworthy here.
Of course, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said over the weekend that any real agreement with Lebron would require the disarmament completely of
Hezbollah, as well as what he called a true peace agreement that could last for generations. So, there are clearly major diplomatic challenges ahead.
But back to the point about the Trump Administration being interested in seeing these succeed. The U.S. has pushed Israel to scale back its strikes
on Lebanon over the past several days, we have not seen Israeli strikes in the capital of Beirut, and they have scaled back the number of strikes
according to what we have seen and what we have been told, and yet it is still very much a hot war.
As you pointed out, Israel says it carried out some strikes on 200 Hezbollah targets. The Lebanese Ministry of Health says 35 Lebanese were
killed in a day earlier this week. So, there is still very much a hot conflict here. It's really a question of, is there space here? Is there
maneuvering room for a ceasefire?
And perhaps the critical question, how much pressure is Trump willing to put on Netanyahu to get there. On the military side, I should point out,
Bianna and Zain, the IDF, Chief of Staff, on a visit to Southern Lebanon earlier today, said Israel has plans, and he's approved plans, new plans
that is for further operations in Lebanon and in Iran.
GOLODRYGA: Oren Liebermann, reporting for us live from Tel Aviv, always great to have you on Oren, thank you. Well, students from all corners of
the globe are fighting to end modern day slavery. Just ahead, we speak with one Atlanta high school student about how her school is celebrating My
Freedom Day.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:40:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No child should suffer in the name of survival or convenience. Protecting children is not optional. It is moral duty we all
share. A protective child is a free child.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: You see a student from Royal Orchard College in Nigeria sharing a key message that she's learned from My Freedom Day. This as we mark 10
years of work to fight modern day slavery.
ASHER: Yeah, CNN's Salma Abdelaziz takes us to school near London to show us how they're also marking My Freedom Day with beautiful and very moving
performances.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: These students are celebrating and acknowledging Freedom Day a very important occasion for them to recognize
the victims and survivors of modern-day slavery, of which there are millions around the world.
All day, we've seen these students putting on these very beautiful and engaging and meaningful and moving performances, from dance to poetry to
singing. They've also shared stories of survivors from the Congo to Honduras to right here in the UK, all in an effort to remind each other of
the impact of modern-day soldiers.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: All right, joining us now from Atlanta is 11th grade high school student Megan Gurion, her school, Lakeside High School, is planning on
handing out thousands of blue ribbons for My Freedom Day today. Megan, thank you so much for joining us. Thank you for everything that you've been
doing.
You have been really commemorating this day and following the plight of modern-day slavery for a number of years now. That is not typical of most
people, especially most people in 11th grade in high school. If we could pick back up on what you have been doing yourself, and that is handing out
these blue ribbons to students.
What message are you hoping that they share, that they send to one another? There we see some images as they're wearing these ribbons today.
MEGAN GURION, 11TH-GRADE STUDENT OF LAKESIDE HIGH SCHOOL: Yeah, so our purpose for these ribbons is to really start conversations within our
school and spread awareness with that in our community. I find that starting to have these conversations and breaking down the awkwardness of
this topic helps in such a small way, and I think these little steps will lead to just something so much bigger.
ASHER: You know Megan, you 17? Are you 17 years old?
GURION: I'm 17.
[11:45:00]
ASHER: OK, and so I'm sure, through the sort of process of researching and learning about human trafficking and the importance of freedom, I'm sure
you've learned so much about some of the things that other 17-year-old around the world, face be it 17-year-olds who have been trafficked, be it
17-year-olds who are the victims of forced labor.
Just explain to us what is the most important thing that you have learned about your own privilege as a 17-year-old living in Atlanta, Georgia?
GURION: Yes, I'm really glad you brought privilege here, because every time, I've been asked why I've gotten involved here, it comes down to it's
a blessing for me to be able to fight for human trafficking, it's a privilege to be able to shop for trade and educate others.
And having that ability in my life is something I'm really trying to take advantage of and help others with and spread awareness and really get
others to even with their little opportunities they might have help each other out and seeing how other people live on the other side of the world
really puts things in perspective how lucky we are to be able to sit here and discuss these things and help each other out.
GOLODRYGA: And Megan, as we noted earlier, you have been dedicated to this initiative in particular for a number of years now. Sadly, it is not
something that is focused on nearly enough in everyday life, much less in curriculums at schools across the country and the world.
So, I'm just curious what drove you to this issue, and how has it impacted teachers and students at your school become more familiar with this
problem.
GURION: Well, I got involved with this issue of modern-day slavery because human trafficking is something a lot of people don't realize is still
happening today, and raising awareness is really important to me, and any sort of difference you can make, I think, can impact the community so much
more long term than people realize.
And my organization, Lakeside for human rights, we focus mostly on educating others about human rights issues and setting up organ like
activities and taking action to support this cause of ending human trafficking. And we like choose our voices to make an impact and bring
attention to these global issues.
And I spent years now educating others, bringing more people into our group. My organization has rocketed in numbers over the years. It started
out just me and a few friends, and now we've got a good group, about 20 dedicated individuals.
ASHER: Megan, I am so impressed by you, because if I'm completely honest, you know, I'm thinking about what I was doing at 17, and it was not this. I
was not fighting to end modern day slavery, not even close. And so just the fact that you have started this club, and you are going out there trying to
educate others, and you have grown it from just a few friends to now 20 people.
Just explain to us how you are educating other people, like even just beyond school friends, people in the wider community. What are you actually
doing to help, because the more people that know about it, the more chance we have as a society to eradicate it. So that's what I'm really curious
about how you're getting others involved here?
GURION: Yeah, absolutely. Just a few weeks ago, we had a youth summit for the ninth-grade class, so every single ninth grader rounded up into our
auditorium, and I had a panel discussion with a news anchor -- county police officer, survivors, victims and advocates in general, to answer any
sort of questions ninth graders might have get the conversation starting of breaking down.
What is modern day slavery, the impact that it has online now, because unfortunately, a lot of this starts online, through social media. It's not
just what people imagine in the movies. It's a lot more technical, manipulative and breaking down sort of stereotypes that people think exist.
GOLODRYGA: All right. Megan Gurion, thank you so much for everything that you're doing, for the community, for your school, for the world, really, on
this subject matter. We appreciate it. We appreciate your time. Thanks for joining us and say hello to all of your friends there and everyone in that
community doing so much to address this really important crisis.
GURION: Thank you so much --
ASHER: Megan, of course, anytime, right. Follow the hashtag My Freedom Day on social media and check out cnn.com/myfreedomday to learn more about the
worldwide event to raise awareness of modern-day slavery. We've been doing this at CNN, by the way, for 10 years.
GOLODRYGA: You were here at the beginning.
ASHER: I was here at the beginning. I'm so proud of this project. I'm so proud of it. You know, it keeps going and spreading across the world. We
will right back with more.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:50:00]
ASHER: All right. Buckingham Palace says that King Charles will address a joint meeting of Congress and meet privately with President Trump, and he
visits the U.S. later this month.
GOLODRYGA: The king and Queen Camilla will also attend a state dinner and a ceremony honoring fallen soldiers. CNN's Max Foster has more on this
upcoming trip.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAX FOSTER, CNN ROYAL CORRESPONDENT: The key moment in this state visit will be king Charles's address to a joint meeting of Congress. Only the
second time a British monarch has had that honor. Now the last one was given by his mother, Elizabeth the Second in 1991.
The only insight we've been given on the king's speech this time will be that he will address the challenges that both countries face. Now, one of
those, you might think, is the state of the so-called special relationship between the U.S. and UK, after weeks of repeated attacks from President
Trump on Prime Minister Keir Starmer for not offering more support to the offensive against Iran.
But some British lawmakers have even questioned whether Charles should still go ahead with this visit. But that's politics, and we are reminded
that the king has a constitutional duty to stay above politics and out of all of that mudslinging. So, he'll focus instead on the shared history of
the two nations, including the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence from British rule, which was under Charles's predecessor, George the Third that,
of course, was the ultimate low in relations between the two countries.
Now, when they arrive in the U.S., Charles and Camilla will meet away from the cameras, with the President's First Lady. There'll be a garden party, a
formal welcome ceremony, a ceremonial military review. They'll also be a state dinner where both the king and the president will say a few words.
And after Washington, the couple will travel to New York, where they'll commemorate those killed in 9/11 and other events as well there. Now
finishing up, the couple will go to Virginia to meet with some of the area's indigenous communities and conservation groups. Max Foster, CNN,
London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ASHER: All right, a painting by famed Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, valued at more than a million dollars has sold for the price of a dinner -- Ari
Hodara was the lucky winner of "1 Picasso for 100 Euros" raffle, which offered ticket buyers the chance to take home Picasso's 1941 "Tete de
Femme".
[11:55:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ARI HODARA, WINNER OF "1 PICASSO FOR 100 EUROS" RAFFLE: I was surprised -- actually, when you bet on this, you don't expect to win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GOLODRYGA: After a long back and forth, Ari finally outbid Zain. The price of a ticket was 100 euros, or about $117 hence the name "1 Picasso for 100
Euros". There was a total of 120,000 tickets available with all proceeds going to the Alzheimer's Research Foundation.
The ticket winner Ari Hodara is an art lover from Paris. When he got the call about winning, he initially thought it was a hoe --
ASHER: I was thinking it was a hoe -- Would you keep it or sell it?
GOLODRYGA: I'd probably keep it --
ASHER: Yes, you should keep it.
GOLODRYGA: Right. Right answer?
ASHER: You wouldn't be tempted by the million, though.
GOLODRYGA: I sell it to you.
ASHER: Because I have a million dollars.
GOLODRYGA: Yes.
ASHER: OK, a million, 1,000,001.
GOLODRYGA: Right. All right, something I tell it to you on discount, something to look forward to, if you're a ringer that's a fan of "Lord of
the Rings", a prequel to the original movie series.
ASHER: The new film set between the events of "The Hobbit" and "The Fellowship of the Rings", tells the story of Aragorn's quest to capture
Gollum. "Lord of the Rings: The Hunt for Gollum" is directed by Andy Serkis, who plays Gollum for the fifth time, the star of "Fifty Shades of
Grey", Jamie Dornan is among the new faces taking on the role of Aragorn.
Elijah Wood and Ian McKellen return from the original trilogy. The film is set to release in December 2027.
GOLODRYGA: Something our producer, Catherine, is very much looking forward to. All right, stay with us. We'll have more "One World" after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
