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Quest Means Business
Europe Shifts Focus to Defense, Looks to Fill U.S. Void; ECB Cuts Rates but Warns of High Uncertainty; Trade, Geopolitical Headwinds Lie Ahead for Europe. Trump Speaks at White House as Some Tariffs Delayed; Mexican President Thanks Trump for Respectful Call on Tariffs; E.U. Leaders Agree on Defense Surge. Aired 4-5p ET
Aired March 06, 2025 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If they don't pay, I am not going to defend them. No, I am not going to defend them. I got into a
lot of heat when I said that.
They said, oh, he is violating NATO, and you know the biggest problem I have with NATO, I really -- you, know, I mean, I know the guys very well.
They're friends of mine. But if the United States was in trouble and we called them, we said we've got a problem, France. We've got a problem. A
couple of others I won't mention. Do you think they're going to come and protect us?
They're supposed to. I am not so sure.
You know, with Japan -- you know, with Japan, we have a deal, which is a very interesting one. And I love Japan. We have a great relationship with
Japan, but we have an interesting deal with Japan that we have to protect them, but they don't have to protect us. You know that? That's the way the
deal reads.
We have to protect Japan. And by the way, they make a fortune with us economically. That is another case, but we have to protect Japan, but under
no circumstances do they have to protect us.
I actually asked who makes these deals? Yes, Peter --
PETER DOOCY, FOX NEWS CHANNEL SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, so why stay in NATO at all?
TRUMP: I view NATO as potentially good, but you've got to get -- you've got to get some good thinking in NATO. It is very unfair what's been happening.
Until I came along, we were paying close to 100 percent of NATO.
So think of it. We're paying a hundred percent of their military and they're screwing us on trade.
DOOCY: And when Zelenskyy inevitably comes back to the White House, what do you expect from him? And do you think you will see him in the next time?
TRUMP: Well, I think what is going to happen is Ukraine wants to make a deal because I don't think they have a choice. I also think that Russia
wants to make a deal because in a certain different way, a different way that only I know, only I know they have no choice either.
DOOCY: Are you still thinking to go into Saudi Arabia and are you getting ready to meet with Putin about this?
TRUMP: I don't know. I can't tell you.
I am going to Saudi Arabia.
REPORTER: Mr. President --
TRUMP: They've been -- you know, I've made a deal with Saudi Arabia where because normally you'd go to U.K. first. And last time I went to Saudi
Arabia, they put up $450 billion. You know that, right? You were there.
We had a -- we had American companies that took in $450 billion. I said, well, this time they've gotten richer. We've all gotten older. So I said, I
will go if you pay a trillion dollars, $1 trillion to American companies, meaning the purchase over a four-year period of a trillion dollars and
they've agreed to do that.
So I am going to be going there and I have a great relationship with them, and they've been very nice, but they're going to be spending a lot of money
to American companies for buying military equipment and a lot of other things.
REPORTER: So, Mr. President. Is that a trip in the near future?
TRUMP: Probably over the next month-and-a-half, yes..
REPORTER: Mr. President, you told us a couple of weeks ago that you were looking to speak with President Xi of China. That hasn't happened. How
come? What are you waiting for?
TRUMP: Well, I have spoken to him, yes.
REPORTER: Since --since that last phone call?
TRUMP: I don't want to say that, but I have spoken to him. Yes, please.
REPORTER: Yes, Mr. President --
TRUMP: I have a great relationship with President Xi.
REPORTER: But you've spoken --
TRUMP: He was hurt because of COVID. That's why I don't call it the China virus anymore. He said, please don't call it the China virus.
REPORTER: But to be clear, you've spoken to him since January 17th?
TRUMP: I don't want to say that, but I have spoken to him, and I speak to him a lot.
REPORTER: Regarding this executive order you signed revoking security clearances under Perkins Coie, do you think there should be more steps like
this to be taken against other people involved in the Russia collusion?
TRUMP: I do, but that's going to be up ultimately to the Attorney General and various other people.
REPORTER: So just as a follow up the other night, you know, we saw Democrats' behavior during your Joint Address to Congress.
TRUMP: Yes.
NICK GILBERTSON, BREITBART NEWS: Do you think it shows just how out of touch they are with the American people, especially given that 79 percent
according to a CBS poll approved of your of your speech.
TRUMP: I love this guy. Who are you with?
GILBERTSON: My name is Nick Gilbertson with Breitbart News.
TRUMP: I really liked your questions.
GILBERTSON: Thank you very much, sir.
Regarding the Executive Order --
TRUMP: The answer is just, Nick, just to -- and I know your name very well. Good job you do.
GILBERTSON: Thank you, sir.
TRUMP: Yes, the answer is, I thought it was very embarrassing for the Democrats what happened the other night. And that's not said for any other
reason other than it is obvious, it is a fact.
Even CNN fake news said that, they came out and they said it. And worse than CNN is MSDNC which is the worst. And the good news is very few people
watch them anymore. They have lost such credibility.
And frankly, what Nicolle Wallace said, I've never been a fan of hers, but -- and she is not very talented. But I will tell you, what she said the
other day about that young man is disgraceful. She should be forced to resign.
[16:05:10]
And Rachel Maddow should be forced to resign. Nobody watches her anyway. I don't know if -- it is not possible, they pay her as much money as I hear,
but certainly, she has lost all credibility, both of them.
But what they said the other day, they should be forced to resign about that young person who has suffered greatly. Thank you, Nick.
REPORTER: Will you will you extend, if a TikTok deal is not made on the timeline you gave, will you extend that? Will you --
TRUMP: Probably, yes.
REPORTER You will. Okay.
TRUMP: I think, look, we have a lot of interest in TikTok and China is going to play a role. And so hopefully, China will approve of the deal, but
they are going to play a role.
We have a lot -- we have a lot of interest in TikTok.
REPORTER: How long would you extend it and how close are you to a deal?
TRUMP: Well, we will see, but if I need -- I know right now we have at least another month, so we don't need an extension. But if I needed an
extension, I'd probably get it extended.
REPORTER: Mr. President, regarding the executive orders, there was talk that you might sign one winding down the Education Department.
TRUMP: Which department?
REPORTER: The Education Department. Are you having second thoughts on that --
TRUMP: No, no. No, no, no. I want to bring the schools. I want to bring the schools back to the states. And, you know, I've said it a hundred times, we
are ranked at the bottom of the list, and yet we spend more. We are ranked number one for cost per student.
We are ranked at the bottom of the list in education. And I know if I bring it back to Iowa, Indiana, Idaho, all of these great states, I think, I
could say 40 states, I want to bring it back.
Ten states won't be perfect. Five states will be probably not so good, but they will be every bit as good as Norway and Denmark and Sweden and all of
the states that are rated at the top.
If you tell me about Indiana and some of these great states that run really well, Iowa, you tell me about those states. And if they run their own
education, they're going to do a lot better than somebody sitting in Washington, D.C. that couldn't care less about the pupils out in the
Midwest.
REPORTER: When will the Mr. President sign them? When will you sign that order?
TRUMP: Well, I want to just do it. I mean, we are starting the process. We are trying to get the schools back into the states, let the states run the
schools. And I will tell you, you will see something, it is going to -- it is going to blow your mind. It will be run so well, the school system.
And I also believe in school choice, but that will take care of itself.
REPORTER: A follow up to that, Mr. President, if the Education Department were eliminated, how would you see sort of what department, what agency
would handle student loans and the other types of federal grants in the Education Department?
TRUMP: That would be brought in -- yes, that would be brought in to either Treasury or Small Business Administration or Commerce and we have actually
had that discussion today. I don't think the Education should be handling the loans. That's not their business.
I think it will be brought into Small Business. Maybe Kelly really liked it and really would like to do it. So the loans would be brought into a group
where they really do that, and I think it should be --
That is, by the way, the most complicated thing in moving, but it is very simple if you do that.
REPORTER: Some Arab countries rejected your plan to move out more than two million people out of Gaza. What is your reaction to that and to Egypt's
plan and to this meeting that happened?
TRUMP: Out of Gaza?
REPORTER: Yes.
TRUMP: I think that Gaza is a mess, and I think that Gaza could be good. I think it has got to be run properly, but right now, Gaza is an absolute
mess and it has been for many, many years and decades.
Yes, Peter, did you have one more?
DOOCY: I did, yes. We have these two Starliner astronauts stuck in space for eight months. Have you spoken to them?
TRUMP: Oh boy. They left them alone -- Biden left them up there.
DOOCY: And what do you know about that?
TRUMP: I know everything about it. I said, we have two astronauts that are stuck in space. I have asked Elon. I said, do me a favor. Can you get them
out? He said, yes. He is preparing to go up, I think in two weeks, two-and- a-half --
DOOCY: Do you know about how this went down? Because he is saying that the Biden White House was offered some kind of SpaceX rocket to go get these
guys, and they said no.
TRUMP: That's what I heard. I can't tell you that, but that's what I heard. But Biden was embarrassed by what happened, and he said, leave them up
there. I would have said, if you're embarrassed, you've got to get them out.
Elon is right now preparing a ship to go up and get them.
DOOCY: I am sure that they will see this in space. What is your message to them?
TRUMP: We love you and we are coming up to get you and you shouldn't have been up there so long. The most incompetent president in our history has
allowed that to happen to you, but this President won't let that happen.
We are going to get them out. We are coming up to get you. I've authorized Elon. I said, can you get them out? Because you know, they've been left up
there. I hope they like each other, but they've been maybe they love each other, I don't know, but they've been left up there. Think of it.
And I see the woman with the wild hair, good solid head of hair she has got. There is no kidding. There are no games with her hair, but --
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And you know, there is a danger up there, too. They can have some failures up there, that would be very bad. We've got to get them out.
So I've watched -- I've authorized Elon a week ago, I said, you know, we have two people up there that Biden and Kamala left up there and he knows
it very well.
I said, are you equipped to get them? And he said, yes. He has got a Starship and they are preparing it right now, and so Elon is going to go up
and get him. Should I go on that journey just to be on the ship when we stop? What do you --
DOOCY: If that is an option, yes.
TRUMP: I should do it. Oh that's terrible. I thought he liked me. I thought he liked me.
DOOCY: That's space. That's going to space.
TRUMP: I thought -- Maria, should I do it?
DOOCY: Well, you should --
MARIA BARTIROMO, FOX BUSINESS NETWORK HOST, MORNINGS WITH MARIA": Stay here.
TRUMP: Maria likes me better.
DOOCY: Well, she should then come.
TRUMP: Maria likes me better, she is --
DOOCY: President Trump, should they come back from --
BARTIROMO: Stay here.
DOOCY: -- space.
TRUMP: Oh, when they come back, I will greet them. How about that?
No, no, we are going to get them out. I have authorized Elon Musk to go and get them and he is prepared to do so.
REPORTER: Mr. President, what are you making of the market selloff this week because --
TRUMP: I think it is just --
REPORTER: Like what is driving it?
TRUMP: I think it is globalists that see how rich our country is going to be and they don't like it. You know, it is a big market out there. But
again, they've been ripping off this country for years, and now -- and they are going to do great. Everyone is going to do great, but we can't let this
continue to happen to America, otherwise we are not going to have a country any longer.
Thank you very much, everybody. Thank you.
REPORTER: Thank you, sir.
REPORTER: Thank you, Mr. President.
REPORTER: Thank you sir.
TRUMP: Thank you very much. Great. Thank you, Nick.
GILBERTSON: Thank you, Mr. President.
ERICA HILL, CNN HOST: So you've just been listening -- if you're just joining us. If you're just joining us, you've just been listening, of
course to President Donald Trump speaking there with reporters just a short time ago, bringing that to.
An interesting range of questions there. Obviously, a lot focused initially on these tariffs and so many questions about them. We are going to be
tackling that as well.
I am Erica Hill. Nice to have you with us this evening on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
Helping us to tackle a little bit of what we just heard in those moments from President Trump, Kevin Liptak joining me from the White House,
Gabriela Frias is in Mexico City.
Kevin, I am going to start with you, because there is also, as often happens when we hear from the President, maybe a little bit of factchecking
necessary in some of these moments in these wide ranging questions. As I noted, it started out with a lot of questions or there were a number of
questions on the tariffs, but also, of course, about NATO.
He was asked very directly whether he would continue to support NATO countries. Also, questions about perhaps an upcoming meeting in Saudi
Arabia saying he could be there within the next six weeks.
What more did we learn from this availability?
LIPTAK: Yes, and we will see if he actually ends up in Saudi Arabia in six weeks. You will remember last month he said he was going to be there by the
end of February, and obviously he never made it.
So sometimes these deadlines have a way of slipping, but obviously he is still planning to head there to meet Vladimir Putin and he said in this
event in the Oval Office that he still believes Russia does want to make a deal with Ukraine to end the conflict there, but it was his comments on
NATO that really stuck out to me.
He said that he does still believe in Article V, but that if other NATO members aren't paying their fair share, that the U.S. would not defend
them. And of course, Article V is the NATO treaty of collective defense, an attack against one is an attack against all, but the President seems to be
putting some caveats on that commitment here in the Oval Office.
Obviously, it has been a consistent push of his to try and get European nations to pay more of their economic output, put a greater percentage of
that towards defense and you have actually seen a number of European nations commit to spending more to their own defense, but this is quite a
startling remark from the President.
Obviously, we've heard him before cast a lot of doubt on NATO, cast a lot of doubt on the American commitment to NATO, but I don't know that we've
ever heard him say so definitively that the U.S. wouldn't necessarily come to the defense of another NATO member if, in his view, they weren't paying
enough. So, very striking comments there.
I think the other interesting thing that we heard from the President was describing this meeting that he had earlier today with members of his
Cabinet and Elon Musk, and it was kind of striking.
We heard from him on social media after this meeting, say that in these talks, he instructed them to use a scalpel rather than a hatchet to start
cutting through the federal government. Obviously, what we've seen Elon Musk doing up to this point was using a proverbial chainsaw, or as he was
using at an event, an actual chainsaw.
Now, Trump seems to be saying, we need to be a little more careful and he is instructing the heads of his Cabinet to make their own decisions about
where to cut.
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He is saying that they want to keep the best and most productive people. Obviously, there had been some tensions between Musk and members of the
Cabinet about exactly how DOGE, which is his outfit to reform the federal government, how it has been going about its work. And he said in this
meeting that these agency heads can keep who they want, which is new. This is not something we have heard from the President before, and it really is
the first inkling of the President trying to rein in some of Musk's power.
So it is a fascinating dynamic that we are going to have to see how it unfolds, but it is a new dynamic as well. So it is very interesting, and
then of course there's the tariffs.
He says that these will be short term. He talks a little bit more about the rationale, all very interesting. That was sort of the backdrop against
which this Oval Office meeting was occurring.
HILL: And I want to dig into that, but I do just have one more quick question when it comes to the tariffs. You know, the fact that he was
saying the Secretaries are going to learn about, they're going to basically better understand their department so that they can have that scalpel
rather than a hatchet approach.
I was on my way up to the studio, but I think I heard a reporter press him and say, you know, is this basically an admission that this was not
working? Was the President saying that Elon Musk's approach was, in fact not working, or did he not go that far?
LIPTAK: He didn't go that far. He said that he was still proud of the work that Musk was doing. And in fact, he said that if the Cabinet heads did not
perform this task on their own, if they didn't make the reductions that he thought were necessary, that Elon would do it for them. Those were his
words.
And so he is clearly very intent on reshaping the bureaucracy, laying off workers, but what he seems to be saying is that these agency heads, now
that they have been in place for a number of weeks, now that they have a better sense of how their own agencies work, that it would be up to them to
make these decisions instead of Elon Musk, instead of these teams of engineers essentially, who have embedded themselves across the federal
government. So, that seems to be the change here.
He isn't backing off publicly his support for Musk. I think that's important to note. What he is seeming to do is rein in some of his power,
some of his widespread power to cut the workers at these agencies. And we have seen it, it has been quite a chaotic process.
In some instances, they've laid people off only to bring them back in when they've determined that they were essential. The President has certainly
heard a lot of blowback, not only from his own Cabinet members, but also Republicans on Capitol Hill, who Musk spent most of the day meeting with up
there in the House and Senate.
And so this is all a culmination, I think, of these various pressures that the President has been feeling on this widespread effort to reform the
federal government.
HILL: And some of those lawmakers, of course, also hearing and feeling pressure from their own constituents as they try to make sense of what is
happening there.
Kevin, appreciate it.
As I mentioned, my colleague, Gabriela Frias is joining us now from Mexico City.
As we look at these tariffs and what we heard from the President earlier today. So he is now saying basically anything that falls under USMCA, that
free trade agreement, there will not be any tariffs until April 2nd. And I was struck by his Truth Social post where when he talked about President
Sheinbaum, he said this was an accommodation, in his words, "out of respect for her" and called their relationship "a very good one."
This very public praise from President Trump toward the Mexican President. How did she get him to play nice in public, do we know?
GABRIELA FRIAS, CNN ESPANOL ANCHOR: Well, no, we don't. But when President Sheinbaum was asked that question during her press conference after talking
to President Trump early in the morning, and she says that a lot of things are important and a lot of things explained, this respectful attitude.
She has always been respectful of President Trump, she said. But the other thing is her predecessor, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who had a
good relationship with President Trump during his first term.
Now, let's remember, Erica, that's one side of the story. The other side of the story is that the Trump administration has not stopped short of
repeating that the Mexican government is protecting the drug cartels, something President Sheinbaum has said in the past is offensive and she has
said this is a false statement from the Trump administration.
So a lot of people were wondering if two alpha males, that's how a reporter described is just tougher -- is tougher to get along, that relationship
between men, alpha males, she said, and President Sheinbaum who is a woman, but she just highlighted the fact that it is out of respect.
And she also said, put yourself in my shoes, President Trump, when she talked about the cooperation between Mexico and the United States in terms
of reducing undocumented migration through the U.S. border and also the increase in fentanyl seizures on the side in the Mexico side, which has
caused a decrease in the seizures on the U.S. side.
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And President Sheinbaum said that she explained this to President Trump using the CBP, the Customs and Border Protection numbers, that is the U.S.
numbers to make her point.
Now, in Mexico, I have to say, Erica, for a lot of people, this has mixed feelings. On the one side, it is a good thing. It is a political win for
President Sheinbaum that she had this outcome today.
But also thinking about April the 2nd, when other tariffs are going to be implemented by the Trump administration. A lot of politicians and the
business community are wondering if Mexico shouldn't do something more aggressive because uncertainty kills an economy, it kills investment
decisions, and puts economies at risk.
HILL: Yes, and we will be watching for that to see. It will certainly be an interesting month ahead as we wait to see as the clock ticks down to April
2nd.
Gabriela, appreciate it. Thank you.
Also with me this hour, Rana Foroohar, as we dig into what we are seeing, Rana, if we could stay on tariffs for just a moment, we see this one
reaction from Donald Trump towards Claudia Sheinbaum and it is a very different reaction, of course, toward Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in
Canada.
You know, his Truth Social post today on Trudeau calling him -- citing what Donald Trump calls the "terrible job" he has done for Canada, claiming that
he is using tariffs as a plot to somehow run again.
Canada, though, is not backing down on their promises to enact tariffs on the U.S.
RANA FOROOHAR, CNN GLOBAL ECONOMIC ANALYST: Yes, absolutely, and I think that the Canadians are saying, look, you know, we are being bullied and the
only way to deal with a bully is to not back down.
You know, I think also the back and forth nature of the way the President has been dealing with the tariffs is kind of creating a little bit of a boy
who called wolf scenario here where, you know, there is no purchase, really, in trying to make a deal because you don't know if the deal is
going to be overturned the next day.
I mean, we should step way back and remember that the USMCA, which is the regional bloc trading deal between Canada, Mexico and the U.S., was
actually negotiated by Donald Trump, and he seems to now be kind of walking his way back to that.
So this seems like a lot of political posturing to me.
HILL: It is also a lot of uncertainty, right? It is uncertainty as we are seeing -- I mean, we are seeing the reaction in the markets. I think we
might be able to pull up the numbers from today, but we have seen how the markets are reacting, so we know how investors are feeling.
Businesses are sort of at a loss here trying to figure out, the Dow down 427 points on the day there. Businesses trying to figure out what to do.
The markets as we know do not like uncertainty, Rana.
FOROOHAR: One hundred percent, you know I am talking to all kinds of businesses and they are saying, you know what, we are putting a hold on
investment. We just want to adopt a wait and see attitude.
Certainly, money managers are rethinking allocations in the U.S. I think if this kind of behavior goes on for a few more weeks, you may see a bigger
market reaction than what you are seeing right now.
I think we are in the first few days of markets trying to grapple with this, but I wouldn't be surprised about a big correction.
HILL: And that is to the trickle down of -- I mean, which you touched on, right, the sort of whiplash nature of what we have been seeing.
FOROOHAR: Yes.
HILL: It is difficult to trust what you're hearing and what you're seeing and that trickles down, right, if you're a company that wants to do
business in the United States, especially as we are looking at new investment, which we know Donald Trump wants to bring in
FOROOHAR: A hundred percent, and you know, there is a large body of research to show that when there is a perception not only of instability,
but that perhaps rule of law isn't even in order anymore, that tends to decrease investment.
I mean, there is decades of research showing that, and it actually hits capital investment first, because that's big chunks of money long term. You
know, if you're going to build a factory, if you're going to try and do something long term in the U.S., you really want certainty. You don't want
to think that things are going to change from 24 hours to the next.
HILL: No. Certainly not. Rana Foroohar, always good to talk to you. Thank you.
FOROOHAR: Thank you.
HILL: Still ahead here, European leaders voicing support for Ukraine. One member state holding out, however. We will take a closer look. We've got
the very latest coming up from Brussels.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[16:26:57]
HILL: An E.U. official tells CNN nearly every European Union leader has now pledged to continue to stand by Ukraine. Nearly every, because there is one
exception here and that is Hungary, the country's Prime Minister, Viktor Orban, who of course has maintained ties with Moscow.
E.U. leaders meeting in Brussels as they try to find a path forward for peace talks in Russia's war on Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr
Zelenskyy actually attended that Special Security Summit and thanked the European leaders for their support.
All E.U. leaders have backed plans to spend more on defense as President Donald Trump upends U.S. support for Kyiv.
Nic Robertson is joining us now from Brussels.
So, you know, Viktor Orban, the lone holdout here on this statement and on these promises of support for Ukraine, and also who needs to be involved in
the planning moving forward for Ukraine, especially attempts at some sort of a peace deal?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, and I think what we are hearing from the EU this evening, there is sort of two components to
today, if you will, the main thrust, the big energy was going into making sure that the E.U. could finance what it hopes are going to be massive
uplift in defense spending, a sort of a generational change, a reset that has been long awaited by many members of the European Union.
Viktor Orban of Hungary absolutely has caused trouble for the E.U. before being an outlier, being pro-Putin, not willing to support funding for
Ukraine, and really adopting a similar position in the past and that was an issue today.
In the past, the E.U. has managed to sort of circumvent and get around him, but on that issue of does the European Union push ahead with this massive
defense change and spending? That got the greenlight, but from the get go today, these were really intense meetings.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (voice over): Barely inside the doors at the E.U. in Brussels, Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy huddles with top officials.
Diplomacy across Europe accelerating as the U.S. tightens ties with Moscow.
ROBERTSON (on camera): This is what Europe working at speed looks like. Unlike the high speed decision making inside the White House, leaders here
have to meet again and again and again, meaning there are no quick fixes to fill all the security gaps they fear the U.S. is leaving them.
ROBERTSON (voice over): This meeting about raising money to pay for a massive defense spending hike with as much as 800 billion euros at stake.
URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: Europe faces a clear and present danger, and therefore Europe has to be able to protect itself,
to defend itself.
ROBERTSON (voice over): It is not just Ukraine feeling let down by U.S. President Donald Trump, it is Europe, too. After years of fearing how a
second Trump presidency would impact allies, reality has hit and it is ugly.
ROBERTA METSOLA, PRESIDENT EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: It is about damn time. This is something that we have been asking for a long time that the European
Union, that Europe is capable of standing up on its own two feet.
[16:30:16]
ROBERTSON: Zelenskyy, reeling from the apparently capricious cutting of U.S. intelligence and wider U.S. Military abandonment, at the table, his
nation's future hanging on how fast European funds are authorized and how quickly the money is turned into weapons.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: We are very thankful that we are not alone. And these are not just words. We feel it.
ROBERTSON: Not alone, but Europe not even close yet to having the money or deciding how to spend it. Europe's leaders still hoping for Trump's
security partnership in Ukraine.
OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR (through translator): We must make sure, with a calm and wise approach, that U.S. support is guaranteed for the
coming months and years, because Ukraine is also dependent on their support for its defense.
ROBERTSON: Inside the E.U., leaders meet two pro-Russian leaders, Hungary's Viktor Orban and Slovakia's Robert Fitzhugh, didn't derail Europe's
rearmament. Plans to raise the defense funds got the go ahead.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTSON (on-camera): And so the next real steps for the European Union is going to be how to spend this money once it's agreed that they have a
mechanism to get it and the money starts coming in. And that is also being accelerated. We know there's going to be a meeting of defense chiefs in
Paris coming up pretty soon, and there'll be a white paper delivered by members within the sort of European Union here on, again, how to spend that
money, what parts of defense, what weapons to buy, where the factories, additional factories should be built to really do this uplift in arms
manufacturing as well.
All of that to come and of course that's what takes the time. And being able to turn as quickly as the White House has turned in this situation and
change the security balance, it really is going to take time.
ERICA HILL, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes. It will. Nic, really appreciate it. Thank you.
Much more to come here on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS, including a closer look at a troubling jobs report out of the U.S. Stay tuned.
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[16:35:32]
HILL: The European Central Bank cut interest rates as expected, but is also warning its next moves are highly uncertain. Markets in Europe welcomed the
lower borrowing costs, with stocks closing higher in Amsterdam, Frankfurt, Paris and Helsinki. It's the sixth time since June the central bank has cut
rates. A sign of slowing inflation. But the Eurozone's future is clouded by a looming trade war with the U.S. and a possible surge in European defense
spending. ECB president Christine Lagarde discussed those headwinds.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINE LAGARDE, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK: An escalation in trade tensions would lower euro area growth by dampening exports and weakening
the global economy. Ongoing uncertainty about global trade policies could drag investment down. Geopolitical tensions, such as Russia's unjustified
war against Ukraine and the tragic conflict in the Middle East, remain a major source of uncertainty, as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HILL: Anna Stewart joins us now from London.
So, Anna, as we look at all of this, how are European officials balancing these economic concerns with concerns about potential tariffs and trade
issues with the United States?
ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I mean, there is a lot to be concerned about, not least, of course, with tariffs potentially looming April 2nd I
think it is, in less than a month. It was interesting that the ECB did what we expected. They cut rates. They slightly revised downwards economic
growth forecasts. They slightly revised upwards inflation.
What was interesting, though, was actually a change in language in the press release. I mean, if anyone covers central banks, you'll know that
every meeting you get a press release and that almost always identical with a slight change in language. And it was interesting this time it said
instead of just having restrictive policy, they say monetary policy is becoming meaningfully less restrictive.
And there's a lot of hesitation, I think, going on in the ECB as to whether we'll get another cut next month. So it's a bit of a wait and see. As ever,
they're looking at the data.
HILL: Yes, they're looking at the data. Business leaders of course also looking at that data trying to read the tea leaves while watching all of
this. I know you've been speaking with a number of business leaders as well. How are they feeling in this moment?
STEWART: Yes, I'm fresh back from Barcelona. I went to the Mobile World Congress, so lots of telecom and tech CEOs there. And definitely I think
U.S. and Europe tensions were at the forefront of many of the conversations we had. Europe is lagging when it comes to artificial intelligence. Way
behind the U.S., possibly even behind China.
And I spoke to the CEO of Deutsche Telekom. It's the biggest telecom in Europe. They own T-Mobile in the U.S. as well, and asked him what he
thinks. He says that Europe is definitely missed the boat on A.I. so I asked, well, what can policymakers do to try and catch up?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIMOTHEUS HOTTGES, CEO, DEUTSCHE TELEKOM: We have free market and we have a lot of good, you know, companies and we even have a lot of money here. So,
first, when something is not working, you should look into the mirror and question what you can do to improve that. So it's our duty as an ecosystem
to invest.
STEWART: You have such an interesting perspective because of course you operate here in Europe, but also have a huge base in the U.S.
HOTTGES: Yes.
STEWART: How concerned are you by the divergence in politics on the different sides of the Atlantic?
HOTTGES: By the way, Europe is very divergent. We are -- we have different nationalities. We have different identities. And the same is true for the
Americans. You know, we always were different. I always said that, you know, we might look the same, but, you know, in principle, we have a
different history, a different legacy, a different political system we are living in. But we always had, you know, a common sense of ethical values
and on a democratic understanding of how we want to operate.
And Deutsche Telekom, by the way, is only engaged in this Western hemisphere. I'm not concerned about the Western world as a whole. Now we
have a change. Now there will be a lot of changes coming to us, and we have to maneuver around that. We should keep orientation. I'm more concerned
about Europe because, you know, Europe is defined as a headline, but we don't have a single market for digitization.
We don't have a digital single market for our banking union. We don't have a single market for a lot of things. And if we want to compete with the
U.S., if we want to compete with China, if you want to compete even with the BRICS states, we have to get better aligned.
[16:40:05]
We have to have an identity which is really defining us as a market. And then we are the biggest economy in the world.
STEWART: But are you concerned by, I mean, even the trade war, the trade tariffs that have been implemented today that's likely to be tariffs on
Europe from the U.S.? It feels like a real breakdown in a trading relationship.
HOTTGES: On the one side, every change which is coming to systems is an irritation, is something which is triggering something. By the way, some
irritations might lead to something better, to being more agile, to be, you know, finding new ways of, of doing your businesses, you know. So I'm in
principle for free trade. I'm not for that at all, you know, especially not in the Western world. But this is something now the politicians have to
fight out, and for us, Deutsche Telekom, it's not a concern because we never import something into other countries.
We always produce everything in the country. So we have our network in the U.S., we have our network in Germany, we have our networks in the European
countries. So we always, you know, being inclusive in the society of the respective market, and therefore for us, it is not a risk.
STEWART: Unless of course the economy collapses and no one has any money to spend on your telecoms business.
HOTTGES: Look, the -- even there you find me quite optimistic with all my experience in this industry. You know, we are living in a society where
connectivity is a human right. And by the way, this world lives from connectivity, from exchange, from collaboration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
STEWART: From that conversation, you know, Europe faces many issues, many external, like the looming tariffs, like the war in Ukraine and trying to
fund that, but also, as the CEO points out there, it faces many internal issues that need to be worked out by policymakers as well -- Erica.
HILL: Yes, he does sound very optimistic, though. I will give him that.
Anna, I appreciate it. Thank you.
That is going to do it for QUEST MEANS BUSINESS on this Thursday. I'm Erica Hill. Up next, "CONNECTING AFRICA."
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[16:45:47]
(CONNECTING AFRICA)
END
