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Russia and Ukraine Hold First Direct Peace Talks in Three Years; Russia and Ukraine Agreed on Prisoner Swap; Global Sextortion Suspects Arrested; Eric Adams Announces New Antisemitism Office; FAA Investigating New Air Traffic Control Outage. Aired 10:30-11a ET

Aired May 16, 2025 - 10:30   ET

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

[10:30:00]

PAMELA BROWN, CNN ANCHOR: -- with neither President Zelenskyy nor President Putin nor President Trump for that matter, attending. And a short time ago, we learned that President Trump held a phone call with Zelenskyy and European leaders.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: I want to go live right now to C'S Chief International Security Correspondent Nick Paton Walsh. He's joining us in Kyiv right now. That's the capital, of course, of Ukraine. Nick, what have you learned, first of all, about these talks and this high- level phone call?

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, important day in terms of what has happened, but also what has not happened as well. And these first talks, at a junior level, though Ukraine sent its defense minister as part of its bid to show how seriously it would like to take peace where Russia party to that seriousness as well.

It seemed to have ended with both sides essentially agreeing there will soon be a swap of a thousand prisons of war on each particular side in, quote, "the coming days ahead." The Russian side saying too that they will now exchange ideas as to how potentially a ceasefire could come into place.

I should point out, since Saturday, there has been a demand from Europe backed by the United States, backing a U.S. idea for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire here that Russia has brushed aside. Obviously, you don't need to exchange plans if you're implementing an unconditional ceasefire. So, clearly, Russia has some more conditions in mind here.

As a result of these brief talks, two hours, it seems doesn't appear to have been a particularly friendly occasion, junior indeed, as it was. There was then a phone call between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and the four European leaders who stood alongside him here on Saturday, barely a week ago now, to demand that urgent, unconditional 30-day ceasefire.

They rang us President Donald Trump, a picture released, essentially echoing what we saw on Saturday, a similar phone call during which Donald Trump, according to the Europeans assured his backing for the demand for the ceasefire and his backing for tough sanctions, massive sanctions. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, called them if indeed Russia brushed aside that demand for a ceasefire.

Well, it did. It also talks in Istanbul on Thursday, Trump potentially thought he might be able to get the presidents together. He now says nothing will happen unless he meets Putin first. Clearly, the Europeans are ringing him, hoping he backs their demand for consequences for Russia for stonewalling, it seems, this peace process. Wolf.

BROWN: All right. Nick Paton Walsh, thanks so much. And, Wolf, it's interesting because we heard President Trump on Air Force One say, you know, I must meet with Putin and kind of indicating that there really won't be a breakthrough unless he talks with Putin. Sort of undermining those talks happening right now.

BLITZER: Yes. He clearly doesn't believe there will be a breakthrough unless he talks to directly with Putin. I want to continue this conversation right now. Joining us now, the former U.S. envoy for the Middle East, Dennis Ross. He's the counselor for the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, and the author of a very important excellent brand-new book entitled "Statecraft 2.0: What America Needs to Lead in a Multipolar World." There you see the cover. He spent years and years as a diplomat at the State Department.

Ambassador, it's very interesting because President Trump says there can't really be a breakthrough unless he sits down and has a real serious conversation with Putin. Do you believe that?

DENNIS ROSS, COUNSELOR, THE WASHINGTON INSTITUTE FOR NEAR EAST POLICY, AUTHOR, "STATECRAFT 2.0" AND FORMER SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO PRESIDENT OBAMA: Well, I think that's a means. Again, you come back to what's the objective? If the objective is to end the war, at some point, Vladimir Putin has to understand there's going to be a consequence for not responding to us and to the Europeans. The consequence right now from us still seems to be quite vague.

But there are a lot of means we could apply. Good statecraft means you marry objectives and means. If we want Putin's response --

BLITZER: Imposing additional sanctions on Russia for example.

ROSS: Yes, I would say not just sanctions. If Vladimir Putin understood that we were going to continue to support the Ukrainians militarily, his position would not be so great. They're losing -- or at least they're suffering 20,000 to 30,000 casualties a month right now.

BLITZER: You mean, the Russians?

ROSS: Yes, that's not sustainable. But right now, he thinks, look, time is on his side because he thinks we're going to stop supporting the Ukrainians militarily. If he understood two things, we will continue to support Ukraine's militarily and the $300 billion in frozen Russian assets that are primarily in Europe, we would support being used to rebuild Ukraine. That would move him.

BLITZER: It certainly would. Earlier this morning, as you probably heard, President Trump on his way home from this four-day visit to the Middle East, visiting three Arab countries. He did not visit the top U.S. ally in the region, namely Israel. Was that a mistake or is there a new strategy unfolding now?

ROSS: I'm not sure there's a new strategy. I think what we're seeing though is a signal that he was out there to do business in the Middle East and he didn't find the Israelis particularly relevant to that. That's pretty remarkable. For him to go to the Middle East and not see Israel is something that we would find unusual.

It's true that President Obama did that and his first trip to the Middle East back in 2009, that had an effect in terms of how the Israeli public saw President Obama from that time on. President Trump is perceived differently, but we're seeing in Israel a sense that very significant things are happening in the region, whether it's negotiations with the Iranians, a ceasefire with the Houthis that doesn't involve the Israelis and it doesn't have the Houthis stopping against the Israelis, dealing directly with Hamas.

[10:35:00]

All these things are being done without the Israelis. So, within Israel, there's a question of, where do we fit in Donald Trump's approach to the Middle East? And right now, I think there's a set of questions I haven't seen before.

BLITZER: Israelis reacted negatively because the Houthis are still launching rockets and missiles towards Israel, including Central Israel, sirens are going off in the middle of the night, not only in Tel Aviv, but even in Jerusalem. I spoke to a friend in Jerusalem and told me sirens were still going off.

The Israeli air defense system is working effectively, although potentially some of these Houthi rockets and missiles could land and hurt people. But when Trump was talking about that he was threatening the Houthis against launching anything involving U.S. ships in the region, but he didn't mention Israel.

ROSS: This deal does not relate to anything except American ships. We've talked about freedom of navigation. The Houthis have said, not only would they continue to attack Israel, but they would continue to attack ships that they see as being linked to Israel. Their definition of that is extremely elastic. So, you could have non-American flagships that could still be targeted by the Houthis. We don't see many non-American flagships going through the Red Sea right now.

BLITZER: You know, I thought it was also interesting when he was talking about what's going on in Gaza. We're talking about President Trump. He was suggesting once again that potentially the U.S. could take control of Gaza and transform it into what he's now calling a freedom zone. He used to think about the Riviera being a new Riviera in Gaza. How do you interpret that and how likely -- how do you think that's going to be received in the region? A freedom zone that the U.S. will help create in Gaza?

ROSS: If you're talking about Riviera and Gaza, I think that was not particularly well received in the region. There was an Egyptian plan in response to this, and it was what I described as a half plan. A half plan because, on the one hand, you had reconstruction for Gaza without having to move 2 million Palestinians out of Gaza. On the other hand, Hamas wasn't mentioned in the plan. So, the whole security dimension wasn't there.

You can't have reconstruction in Gaza without demilitarization. No one is going to invest in Gaza if they think that Hamas is there and could rebuild. So, the key to this freedom zone, it might be something that those in the region would be more willing to accept if they saw the -- in conversations with the U.S. that we are now saying, all right. come up with a security plan and then we can create this freedom zone, then you might have a potential.

Right now, the Israelis are planning to go back in, in a way that promises an ongoing war, not one that ends anytime soon.

BLITZER: I'm sure you agree that Trump deserves a lot of credit during his first term in office for helping to create the so-called Abraham Accords, which normalize relations between Israel and several Arab countries. He's now working behind the scenes, sometimes openly to see if other Arab countries like Saudi Arabia, for example, and maybe even Syria, the new regime in Syria could normalize relations with Israel. Is that doable?

ROSS: I think Syria and Lebanon would be prepared to move down a pathway, but they won't do anything prior to what the Saudis do. The Saudis won't act on this unless the war in Gaza ends and they see some credible approach on the Palestinians, which they too should assume some responsibility for.

BLITZER: So, you think unless the Israelis agree to what's called a two-state solution and move toward that step to work to establish a Palestinian State living alongside Israel, the Saudis aren't going to go ahead and recognize Israel?

ROSS: I think the first thing for the Saudis is the war in Gaza has to end. Even discussing anything else towards normalization is not going to happen until that. I noted very carefully words that President Trump used. He said, the Saudis will operate on their timetable. Well, their timetable right now is clearly a very gradual one.

BLITZER: Dennis Ross, thanks very much for coming in. Let me put the book cover back up on the screen. The brand-new book is entitled "Statecraft 2.0: What America Needs to Lead in a Multipolar World." I strongly recommend it.

ROSS: Thank you.

BLITZER: And we'll continue these conversations down the road. Appreciate it very, very much. Pamela. BROWN: All right. Wolf. Just ahead, we are joined by New York City Mayor Eric Adams. And we're going to ask him how the New Jersey Transit strike is having an impact on his city, up next.

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[10:40:00]

BROWN: Well, the FBI says that it has disrupted a group that targeted thousands of people around the world, including minors for sextortion. Now, sextortion is a type of blackmail when someone threatens to release sexually explicit images of a person unless that person complies with certain demands.

So, let's go live now to CNN Security Correspondent Josh Campbell in Los Angeles. Really disturbing. What more can you tell us about this global takedown here, Josh?

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Pam, four men now in custody in the Ivory Coast in West Africa after the FBI and its Global Partners disrupted this ring that they say targeted thousands of kids around the world.

I'll describe this sextortion scheme through the story of Ryan Last. He was a 17-year-old California teen in 2022, he receives a social media post from someone that's pretending to be a girl. Their conversation turns intimate. The scammer then asks for an intimate picture of Ryan, which he sends, and then the scammer immediately demands money. He took his life, sadly, just hours after that exchange.

I spoke to Pauline, who is Ryan's mom, who said that she's trying to turn their pain into purpose, trying to educate other parents about this diabolical scam.

[10:45:00]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAULINE STUART, MOTHER OF RYAN LAST: These people that run this scam care more about his $150 than his life. And that as a mother, I just can't grasp, there's no other word but evil for me, that they care much more about money than a child's life. And that hurts to know that there are people out there that could do that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: I talked to Pauline yesterday. She said that she's grateful that law enforcement never gave up on this case. Finally, it's worth pointing out there are things that parents can do. I've spoken with health experts who say, it's not just important to educate your teens about these scams, but to also create an environment where your team knows that no matter what, if they think that they made a mistake, they can come to you to discuss it as they say that that is so important. Of course, this ring now in custody. But the FBI says that they've received an explosion of complaints. So, they're trying to get the word out, Pam.

BROWN: Yes. So, important to raise awareness about this. Wow. Josh Campbell, thank you. And if you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts or mental health matters, you can call or text the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988. We'll be right back.

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[10:50:00]

BLITZER: Right now, an overnight strike has brought the nation's third largest commuter rail service to a grinding halt. Engineers walked off the job after labor negotiations broke down spelling potential chaos for rail commuters in the region this morning.

Joining us now is the New York City mayor, Eric Adams. Mayor, thanks so much for joining us. How are you and other city officials preparing for the possibility that this rail strike drags on and on, not just for days, but maybe weeks? So, many thousands and thousands of people in New Jersey, for example, need to come to work in New York City, your city. What can you do to help solve this problem?

MAYOR ERIC ADAMS (D-NY): And we are connected both New York and New Jersey. We coordinate together on so many different aspects of how we govern the life in both our states. And so, we are going to make sure that we deploy the proper manpower, have shuttles in place. We are going to utilize our notify NYC to keep people up to date on the continuous movement and negotiations and what will happen if there is a major impact on transportation.

Traffic mitigations systems are being put in place right now. So, our teams are meeting and we're ready. This region is prepared for any unforeseen circumstances when it comes down to striking.

BLITZER: Yes. Thousands of workers who normally would take a train to come and work in New York are staying home and working from home, and that causes other related problems as you know as well. I want to get to this major announcement you just made also, Mayor. The creation of a new office to fight antisemitism in New York City.

New York City, of course, the home to the largest Jewish population in the United States. The move comes amid a surge of antisemitic hate crimes. Why do you think this new task force is necessary and give us a sense of how it will work?

ADAMS: Well, first. we had a mayor's office to fight against hate already. We had that office in place because you do have cases when you have 8.5 million people, a small number of them use hate to communicate in their ways or to be harmful to others. And so, we had that office in place already.

But what we noticed in 2024 out of the large number or the number of complaints we receive around hate crimes or acts of hate, the Jewish population makes up 10 percent of the city, but they were over 51 percent of the complaints. And then, in the first quarter of 2025, that same 10 percent population was over 61 percent of the complaints and we knew we had to zero in on that problem.

And so, this office is not only going to be dealing with hate crimes, but holistically, what's feeding antisemitism and what could we do to really stop these cases from taking place and elevating to the point of being a crime? We want to go after those areas, even prior to criminality.

BLITZER: So, what are you going to do specifically to stop this growth in antisemitism?

ADAMS: Yes, there's a couple of things. Number one, we need to look at what's playing out on our college campuses. You're seeing a great deal of not only anti-Jewish sentiments, but even anti-American sentiments. They seem to be tied together.

And also, we're looking at what we having in our public schools. We saw two newsletters that went out that really gave the impression of lifting up Hamas and what Hamas stands for. Hamas is a terrorist dangerous organization and that cannot be tolerated within our public school system. And then, we want to be proactive with what we call breaking bread, building bonds. We had over a thousand dinners in the last few years where people are sent down and communicating with each other and then looking at information that's been printed, that's sent out any agencies within the city that is having any form of procurement contracts with entities that are dealing with hate or antisemitism. And so, it's about being really not only reactive to the cases that come up, but also proactive.

BLITZER: As you know, Mayor, some free speech activists are concerned that foreign students attending schools in the United States are being targeted by federal immigration authorities for their pro-Palestinian viewpoints. How will you ensure First Amendment rights are protected while also fighting antisemitism?

[10:55:00]

ADAMS: Well, the thing about it, Wolf, we had last year over 3,000 protests that came after October -- the October 7th attacks. 3,000. people were able to voice their concerns, exercise their right to free speech of this city. When you look at the various protests, exercising a free speech, people giving their views with 8.5 million people. We do it in an orderly fashion. We allow people to do so. You could look at the marches that have occurred in this city, because that's what we believe in. This is a city where free speech is crucial and important.

And I always share with people, not only have I marched in protest, but I've also protected marchers as a police officer. So, I'm always going to stand fast on the right to have people to have free speech. But free speech cannot destroy property, cannot break into buildings, cannot harass those who are trying to enter college campuses, cannot threaten individuals. And so, there is a clear distinction between your right to express yourself and not your right to infringe on the rights of others. BLITZER: Well, good luck with this new task force. A political question, Mayor, before I let you go, I know that last month you announced you're running for re-election as mayor of New York, but as an independent, not necessarily as a Democrat.

Curtis Sliwa who's running as a Republican says your, quote, "a Trump candidate in this race." Are you what he says, a Trump candidate?

ADAMS: Well, first of all, you know, you said Curtis Sliwa, and as soon as you say that, you know you're going to deal with a high-level of buffoonery and you shouldn't even acknowledge the existence of his comments because he's not realistic and what he's doing. Anyone as a grown man that's still walking around with a red cap on his head, you have to question what they're doing.

I am an independent candidate. And anyone who have followed me for over 40 years of public service, you'll see the consistency in my message. And I said over and over again, and people have yet to answer the question, what have I said or done differently from prior to this election to post-election? The same message, public safety, protecting the rights of New Yorkers, going after dangerous gang members who want to come to our country and create harm.

I've been fighting for that pre-election and I'm still fighting for that post-election. And I'm going to collaborate with the president of the United States that's currently in office like I did with the previous president of the United States, President Biden. I'm consistent and I'm going to remain consistent.

BLITZER: Mayor Eric Adams of New York, thanks so much for joining us.

ADAMS: Thank you.

BROWN: All right. Coming up --

BLITZER: Pamela.

BROWN: Thank you, Wolf. Coming up, another air tariff control outage. Where it happened. Up next.

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