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The Brief with Jim Sciutto
CNN International: Zelenskyy Rallies European Allies; Trump Accuses Zelenskyy of Not Reading Latest U.S. Plan; Latvia Condemns Russia's Relentless Attacks on Ukraine; NATO Allies React to Trump's New National Security Strategy; Paramount Goes Hostile for WBD; Japan Earthquake Alarm; Thailand Launches Airstrikes Against Cambodia. Aired 6-7p ET
Aired December 08, 2025 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[18:00:00]
JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR, "THE BRIEF": Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington, and
you're watching "The Brief."
Just at this hour, the U.K., France, and Germany vow to stand with Ukraine as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy embarks on a diplomatic tour of Europe. A
tug of war for control of Warner Bros. Discovery as Paramount takes on Netflix with a hostile takeover attempt. Plus, Japan now on the lookout for
tsunamis after a major 7.6 magnitude earthquake. That story and much more coming up.
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived now in Brussels. But Brussels, the latest stop on his tour to rally support from Europe as
the Kremlin welcomes America's tough new posture towards Europe and NATO. President Zelenskyy is due to meet with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte
and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. On the flight to Belgium, he dismissed calls by the U.S. for Ukraine to cede territory to
Russia in exchange for peace, saying Ukrainian law forbids him to do so.
He met earlier with the leaders of the U.K., France, and Germany in London, a deliberate show of unity after his delegation ended talks with U.S.
officials with few new developments or apparent progress over the weekend. The French President Emmanuel Macron says Europe has a lot of cards in its
hands when it comes to negotiations.
This is the German Chancellor, Friedrich Merz, expressed doubts about the U.S. peace plan.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FRIEDRICH MERZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR: I'm skeptical about some of the details, which we are seeing in the documents coming from U.S. side. And we
have to talk about that. That's why we are here.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Skeptical of details in the U.S. plan. On Sunday, U.S. President Donald Trump accused the Ukrainian leader of not even reading the latest
U.S. proposal. This as the Kremlin has praised the Trump administration's new national security strategy, which has an unprecedentedly
confrontational posture towards Europe. It has dropped language that describes Russia as a threat and says Washington wants to reestablish
strategic stability with Moscow.
Some Republican lawmakers have been expressing their own strong support for Ukraine and clear opposition to Russian aggression on this program.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DON BACON (R-NE): He tends to blame Ukraine for Russia's invasion. I don't get it. And so. I do not have confidence. The president has
periodically said the right things, but more often than not seems to waver back into the Russian camp, the invader camp.
REP. FRENCH HILL (R-AR): My best advice to the president and to the leaders in Europe is let's stack up all the arrows in our quiver to give
leadership in Europe and the United States to put the maximum pressure on Tsar Putin.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Republican Senator Roger Wicker said, quote, "This so-called peace plan has real problems and I'm highly skeptical it will achieve
peace. Ukraine should not be forced to give up its lands to one of the world's most flagrant war criminals in Vladimir Putin."
On the Democratic side, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse criticized the new national security strategy, writing, still think Trump Russia is a hoax?
Quite a charge there.
Joining me now, Democratic Congressman Greg Stanton is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Congressman, thanks so much for taking the
time.
REP. GREG STANTON (D-AZ): Good to be here.
SCIUTTO: I wonder, as you look at the broad sweep of U.S. peace efforts in Ukraine under President Trump, including the latest peace plan, in your
view, is the U.S. under Trump a fair mediator, or do you see this plan and the administration leaning in Moscow's favor?
STANTON: The Trump peace plan failed, and it's because he's leaned so far in Moscow's favor to ask Ukraine, who is fighting for their survival
against the invaders, Russia, to give up so much of their land. That peace plan, it could have been written by Putin. And so, of course, President
Zelenskyy said, no, and now we have to turn to Europe.
We didn't involve Europe in the development of the peace plan. And now, Zelenskyy has to turn towards Europe to see if Europe can come up with a
fairer plan that balances the interest better and gives long-term security to Zelenskyy and Ukraine.
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If Ukraine signs off on this deal, it is, you know, allowing Putin in the near future to move even further into Ukraine and into Europe. That's
totally unacceptable.
SCIUTTO: Do you believe that Ukraine, alongside Europe, can simply say no to Donald Trump?
STANTON: Yes, they should say no if it is not a good deal, not a durable long-term deal. And I think it's exactly what was presented. The United
States is presenting essentially Putin's goals for the end of this war as the United States peace plan. So, unfortunately, but inevitably, Zelenskyy
said no. The people of Ukraine said no. And now, they have to turn to Europe to get a fairer deal.
I think the United States, if it's going to be a real mediator in this dispute, has to be interested in settling both sides' concerns, not just
one side's concerns, not just Russia's concerns.
SCIUTTO: It was notable that the president's son, Donald Trump Jr., said over this weekend that to some degree his father is getting bored with
Ukraine and that he might very well walk away from the peace process entirely. If President Trump does so, can Congress backstop U.S. support
for Ukraine in some way? Because as you well know, there are many Republican colleagues of yours who are quite steadfast in their support of
Ukraine.
STANTON: Well, first off, I don't know why Donald Trump Jr. is a spokesperson for U.S. national policy -- U.S. national security policy. He
has no formal role in the White House. But I'll still take the question as asked, which is, can Congress do something? Yes, you heard on the lead-up
to this interview, Senator Wicker, Don Bacon. These are really well- respected Republicans who are making the exact same point that I am making, that you cannot present an alleged peace deal that is essentially the
Russian plan for ending this war. The United States has to be a stronger mediator.
And we need to hear leaders on both sides of the aisle be clear about that. I think that would put a lot of pressure on the White House to change its
strategy and do something that serves both sides' interests, not just the Russian side.
Look, we are looking for a long-term peace deal, one that sends a clear message that Russia cannot take this peace deal, hold out for a few more
years, and then keep moving further west into Ukraine and ultimately into NATO countries in Europe. That's a disaster for this world, and we can't
let that happen.
SCIUTTO: As you're aware, the administration released its new national security strategy on Friday to a fair amount of consternation in Europe and
even here in the U.S. At the same time, you have Congress moving ahead with a new National Defense Authorization Act. I mean, the two documents are
quite different, right? And I wonder, because the NDAA, for instance, would solidify U.S. troops deployments in Europe, for instance, and not pull
back, as the national security strategy appears to want to do.
This is a test, in effect, for Congress. And, of course, Congress, as you know, has Republican majorities in both houses. Do you believe that
Democrats with their Republican colleagues could definitively lock in the U.S. relationship with Europe and NATO in defiance of President Trump if he
tries to pull the U.S. away?
STANTON: Well, first off, on the NDAA, yes, it was just released yesterday, and it's over 3,000 pages. And the point you made about our
partnership with Europe is certainly true. I'm not committing to vote for it because there is so many other policy issues, including some social
policy issues, that may not be acceptable to the Democratic side. So, we're going to have to work that out.
But the concept, a reminder that Europe is our allies. Europe has been our allies and must be our allies if we're going to continue to lead the world.
And that's really the - reading that document, the national security document that put out by the White House, it really asks the question, does
the United States want to be America alone, or do we want to continue to lead this globe based on working with countries with our shared values?
And, yes, you may have critiques of Europe, but reading that document, it looks like Europe is our adversaries, not our close allies. And so, yes, I
do think the White House has gotten it wrong, and the framework of the National Defense Authorization Bill gets it right relative to our
partnership with Europe.
SCIUTTO: Congressman Greg Stanton, thanks so much for coming back on the show.
STANTON: Thank you so much. All right. Thank you.
SCIUTTO: Well, NATO's Baltic states have been some of the staunchest supporters of Ukraine throughout the full-scale Russian invasion. Over the
weekend, Latvia's top diplomat posted this on social media. Look at Russia's actions. It wants war, not peace, not a single indicator it means
what it says.
Foreign Minister of Latvia, Baiba Braze, recently returned from the Ukrainian capital Kyiv. You see her there with the Ukrainian president.
Latvia, of course, borders both Russia and Belarus.
[18:10:00]
And the Foreign Minister joins me now. Thanks so much for joining the program.
BAIBA BRAZE, LATVIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Thank you for having me.
SCIUTTO: So, you heard Congressman Stanton there say that his read of the national security strategy is that this administration is weakening its
partnership with Europe. And in fact, pointing the finger at Europe is a bigger threat than Russia to some degree. And I wonder if you read it the
same way.
BRAZE: The national security strategy, when we look at it, we have to look at it as a whole. There is some criticism of Europe, but there is also very
clear expression of importance of Europe for the U.S. Both in managing Russia, in relationship with China, but also clear wish to see Europe
stronger, more advanced on defense security, you know, more sort of as a defense and security power. So, it's like a bible, everybody will find
something else in it. And overall, it's a solid document, in my view.
SCIUTTO: It is. And it doesn't give you any concern that the U.S. is less invested in helping defend Europe. I'm aware of the burden sharing that
really both sides of the Atlantic seem to share. But the ultimate question is, do you trust the U.S. to defend Europe?
BRAZE: I think it goes both ways and that U.S. has very clear interest, for example, in Western Hemisphere. And in my view, we as Europeans also
have a clear interest here in Western Hemisphere, both in terms of stability, in terms of institutional sort of ability to manage the
countries, but also relationships on the continent and between North and South America. But then also issues such as transnational crime, such as
drug smuggling, such as export of various other substances where a lot is coming to Europe. And it is as big a problem for us as it is for the U.S.
So, we have joint interest in various ways, both in terms of American presence in Europe and American posture in Europe, because that is a
deterrence and that is NATO, that is transatlantic alliance that we have, which is the strongest alliance in the world.
And this is where U.S. has been very clear. Yes, U.S. also needs friends, and there are no closer friends than Europeans for the U.S. and it goes the
other way around. But then also economically, when we look at the last 20 years of trade, for example, both the U.S. and Europeans have lost markets
in Indo-Pacific, in Asia, in South America.
So, who has squeezed us out? Mostly China, mostly China. So, maybe there is something that we can do jointly instead of competing with each other in
terms of tariffs and technological sort of issues, but actually doing something together to advance our joint interests. And that's how we -- on
my plate, that's how I see it.
SCIUTTO: In this new U.S.S., the administration, the Trump administration seems to communicate that it can find strategic stability, as it says, with
Russia, but also business opportunities. And you hear this frequently from Trump, that we can do business together and maybe Russia is not as big a
threat as many say. Do you think that he is being naive in that sense, to look at Russia as an opportunity as opposed to as an adversary?
BRAZE: I don't want to put words in President Trump's or other leaders' mouth, but what we have been very clear about is Russia is a threat. So, we
have identified Russia as a threat in NATO's strategic concept, but also in, for example, the Hague Summit declaration, just one page, but very
clear that Russia is and remains the most prominent threat to us all.
So, that means certain actions on the military side, on the intelligence cooperation side, on the deterrence side, the capability growing. And this
is where this administration has been very clear that Europe has to increase its defense funding. And it's not easy because, of course, we all
have our commitments and obligations.
In the Latvian case, OK, we have been very disciplined with our budget and with our debt and with the deficit. So, we have now, for the next year,
allocated 5 percent of defense, and that comes from both the budget cuts for the public service, the restructuring of the institution, so I'm
cutting budget for the Foreign Service, but also, we had space for borrowing, actually.
[18:15:00]
We had space for borrowing, still not increasing substantially the deficit and the debt, and being very disciplined about where we invest. But then
also making sure that our businesses, for example, in the defense sector, know that they have to bring the value back to the economy. So, that means
deregulation. And this is where we are on the E.U. side, behind the E.U.
SCIUTTO: Yes.
BRAZE: I mean, the regulation and the amount of regulation in the E.U. is really burdening our businesses, but also some other issues.
SCIUTTO: That's something the National Security Strategy identified as well. You just returned from Ukraine.
BRAZE: Correct.
SCIUTTO: Do officials there see the U.S. as a fair mediator in this peace plan? Because you've heard President Zelenskyy say quite publicly that at
least the initial plan seemed pro-Russian.
BRAZE: So, Ukraine is a democracy, and it remains a democracy. So, what I find there are the variety of opinions, both on various institutions within
Ukraine, meaning that there is a parliament, there is a presidential administration, but there are people on the ground.
I visited Chenchen (ph), which is 70 kilometers from the front, speaking to, you know, groups, NGOs, human rights defenders, first aid people, but
then also speaking to the military. So, very clearly, they are not ready to give up the self-defense. They don't want to capitulate. They don't want
President Zelenskyy to give up their country.
SCIUTTO: Yes.
BRAZE: So, in that respect, it's a democracy with a pressure on its leader, which Russia doesn't have. Russia is a totalitarian power,
authoritarian power, Soviet, communist, whatever you want to say, you know, the way it operates. So, he doesn't have that accountability like President
Zelenskyy.
SCIUTTO: Sure.
BRAZE: So, he could sell any deal possible. President Zelenskyy cannot pretend that something where Ukraine doesn't have agency, which a deal that
wouldn't be acceptable to Ukrainian people, that he's able to accept something like that.
So, this is where there is a big difference, where why we say is that the only thing that we see is that the pressure has to be put on Russia, more
pressure on Russia, through sanctions, through other methods, because that's the only way how to change Russian behavior. The war will not end
otherwise.
SCIUTTO: How about the situation on the battlefield? Because there is some talk, a great deal of it coming from Russia, mind you, that Russia has the
momentum there on the battlefield. Do you agree with that assessment?
BRAZE: The truth is that in this last year, Russia has gained less than 1 percent of Ukrainian territory. So, that, of course, is not the winning of
the war. That's not the objectives that much in Kremlin is looking for. He wants to deny Ukraine its sovereignty. He wants to subjugate Ukraine as a
country. So, they are not getting that on the battlefield. That's why he's trying various elements through the so-called peace talks.
SCIUTTO: Sure.
BRAZE: But I think this very resilient negotiations that Ukrainian and American negotiators have undertaken, sitting down for several rounds,
sitting down for three and four days in a row, traveling to Moscow, going back, going to Europe, and so on and so forth, it shows the seriousness,
the seriousness of Trump administration to trying to achieve the deal, to trying to achieve the outcomes that is acceptable.
But in the same time, also, we have to be very realistic that for Russia, currently, the policy is war. To stop that, we need to force Russia to
something that changes that calculus.
SCIUTTO: Not ask kindly, as it were. Foreign Minister Baiba Braze, always good to have you on the show. Thanks so much for returning.
BRAZE: Thank you so much.
SCIUTTO: Still ahead, the battle for Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company of CNN, goes hostile. Paramount Skydance says it remains the better
fit for the parent company of CNN over Netflix, the winning bidder. It's taking its sweetened take-off offer directly to shareholders now.
And a powerful earthquake rocks Japan. Officials have issued evacuation orders, urged residents to take precautions after several aftershocks.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:20:00]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back. In today's Business Breakout, a rough start to the trading week on Wall Street. Stocks fell across the board ahead of this
week's big Fed policy meeting. U.S. Central Bank is widely expected to cut interest rates on Wednesday for the third time this year because of, well,
among other things, ongoing uncertainty in the jobs market. NVIDIA shares are on the rise. In after-hours trading, the Trump administration says the
firm can now sell some of its most advanced A.I. chips to China.
Another story we've been following closely, the battle for Warner Bros. Discovery, the parent company, we should note, of CNN. It's not over yet.
Paramount Skydance launched a $30-a-share hostile takeover bid for all of WBD, including its cable networks. We should note, as of the end of last
week, WBD accepted another offer, $27.75 a share, from Netflix for everything except those cable channels. Paramount Skydance CEO David
Ellison now wants shareholders to decide on his all-cash offer.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID ELLISON, CEO, PARAMOUNT SKYDANCE: We're sitting on Wall Street where cash is still king. We are offering shareholders $17.6 billion more cash
than the deal they currently have signed up with Netflix. And we believe when they see what is currently in our offer, that that's what they'll vote
for.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Paramount entered multiple bids for Warner Bros. Discovery, but was beaten out last week by Netflix. Ellison argues his company has a
better chance of getting a deal approved by the Trump administration. It should be noted, President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, is backing
Paramount's bid through his private equity firm, Affinity Partners.
Other investors include the sovereign wealth funds of Qatar and Saudi Arabia, as well as a holding company owned by Abu Dhabi. President Trump
insisted today he is not favoring Paramount over Netflix.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, U.S. PRESIDENT: None of them are particularly great friends of mine. You know, I just -- I want to do what's right. It's so very
important to do what's right.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The Paramount deal was supported by Jared Kushner, Mr. President, would that impact your decision?
TRUMP: If Paramount is? I don't know. I've never spoken to them.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Netflix, for its part, says the hostile bid was expected and still expects to prevail for its offer. Joining me now, CNN Media Analyst
Sara Fisher. First of all, do you believe President Trump when he says, I know nothing about this deal?
SARA FISHER, CNN MEDIA ANALYST: No, I think Donald Trump knows very well about this deal. He's commented on it before. He had a meeting at the White
House with Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos. He's fully aware of what's going on here.
SCIUTTO: Hostile takeovers are tough, but they're not impossible.
FISHER: No.
SCIUTTO: How about this one?
FISHER: This is going to be tough. So, essentially, David Ellison needs to convince the Warner Bros. Discovery shareholders that his bid not just is
financially better, but that also it stands a better chance of regulatory approval than a Netflix bid. And the way I see it, both of these bids have
challenges from a regulatory perspective.
I do think both of these bids, though, Jim, could prevail in a court. If Donald Trump directs his DOJ or if the DOJ independently decides to sue to
block either of these deals, it would go to a trial and to a court and a judge would have to make that call.
SCIUTTO: And that's an important point because there is this impression that Donald Trump can just make a call to his DOJ and say, hey, block this
bid and ease the way for my friend Larry Ellison's son here. But as you're saying, it's not as simple as that.
[18:25:00]
FISHER: It's not as simple as that. Each one has their own regulatory challenges. So, for Paramount, it owns a major movie studio in Paramount
Pictures. Combining that with Warner Bros. Discovery Studio, Warner Bros. Pictures could create some sort of antitrust concerns.
For Netflix, it is the largest global streamer in terms of subscriber numbers. So, -- and combining that with HBO Max, that could pose some
concern. But either way, I think there's a good chance either of these prevail in court. What matters to the shareholder is which bid is the best
financial value for them and which bid is going to actually cross the finish line and not waste a lot of time. Those are the things they're going
to consider.
SCIUTTO: Zaslav says that even though the per share price offer of the Netflix bid is lower than the Skydance bid, that together it's actually
higher because the split would continue for shareholders and that they would also get Netflix stock, I guess?
FISHER: We're going to find out a little bit more about this next week because what Warner Bros. Discovery had initially planned was separating
out its cable networks, including CNN, into a separate publicly traded company. And then if it continues on this deal path with Netflix, selling
the streaming and studio assets to Netflix.
The unknown, Jim, is what would that cable conglomerate trade at on the public markets? We will have a proxy to look at next week on December 15th.
Comcast is spinning out its cable networks into a new company called Versant, and that will tell us a little bit about what the trading value
could be if Warner Bros. Discovery were to spin out the cable networks.
Now, what David Ellison is arguing is my bid is financially better because it includes the cable networks and it gives you a premium on these networks
versus the uncertainty of them trading publicly. But that, again, is an unknown.
SCIUTTO: OK. There's another issue here, which I mentioned. You have several Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds involved. They would have, if
this were to go through, the Skydance offer have large stakes in a giant U.S. media company.
FISHER: Yes.
SCIUTTO: Is there precedent for that? And does that pose its own regulatory issues?
FISHER: I've covered many deals with sovereign wealth funds involved. There is a committee for foreign investment in the United States that
reviews deals for national security concerns. It's made up mostly of cabinet members, and Donald Trump, the president, gets the final say.
When it comes to bringing sovereign wealth funds or foreign money in, if you don't give those people board control governance seats, it typically
does not meet the CFIUS threshold where you would pause a deal. So, in this case, they have essentially said all of these wealth funds are giving us
money, but they've agreed not to have control.
Now, Jim, that is alarming to me. Why? Why would you put money into a company this much, $24 billion, to not have board seats? It's because of
soft power control. Now, the question becomes, do shareholders care? And honestly, this is where capitalism and democracy can be exploited a little
bit, because shareholders care mostly about the bottom line. They don't necessarily think first about democracy and being exploited by sovereign
wealth funds.
SCIUTTO: Oh, the sad truth, right. And just quickly, how long will this all play out, do we think?
FISHER: You're not seeing a deal close till at least 2027 if Warner Bros. Discovery does decide to go on this path of not splitting itself and taking
a deal partner. And that's because investigations take between nine to 12 months. From there, you would, if you get a lawsuit, then that trial has a
discovery period. You're going to sit in court. There's going to be an appeal. You need European regulators to bless it as well. They take
forever. So, this is not going to happen for a long time.
SCIUTTO: Well, I guess we'll have you back on the show. Sara Fisher, thanks so much.
FISHER: Thank you.
SCIUTTO: Checking some of today's other business headlines. China's annual trade surplus with the rest of the world topped one trillion dollars for
the first-time last month. China reached its milestone even as its exports fell some 30 percent due to Trump's higher tariffs. China making up for it
by shipping more goods to other parts of the world, including Southeast Asia and Europe.
President Trump today unveiled a financial aid package for U.S. farmers hurt by his tariffs. That new aid totals some $12 billion, most of it to be
sent to crop farmers through one-time payments under a so-called Farmer Bridge Assistance Program. The U.S. says it will start spending that money
or sending that money out in February.
President Trump says he plans to sign an executive order blocking A.I. regulations at the state level. Trump confirmed the decision via post on
Truth Social, as he so often does, saying the order is intended to preserve America's advantage in A.I. Critics say deregulation could allow firms to
avoid accountability if their A.I. tools cause harm to consumers.
In just a moment, we're going to bring you the latest on Japan's powerful earthquake now leading to evacuation orders.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:30:00]
SCIUTTO: Welcome back to "The Brief." I'm Jim Sciutto and here are the international headlines we're watching today.
Ukraine's president is now in Brussels following a meeting with European leaders in London. Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his gratitude for their
support for his country after President Trump accused him of not even taking the time to read the latest proposal to end the war. Not clear what
he based that on. President Zelenskyy said it was urgent for both Europe and the U.S. to show unity in resisting ongoing Russian aggression.
At the Supreme Court the conservative majority appears ready to back Donald Trump and his push to effectively take over independent agencies within the
federal government. This could mean that a precedent set back in 1935 might be overturned, that which protects agencies from White House control.
And Luigi Mangione has appeared in court for a hearing over the suppression of evidence in this case. His lawyers are arguing to have evidence thrown
out because police officers allegedly failed to read him his Miranda rights and did not have a proper warrant when they searched his backpack at the
time of his arrest. Mangione has pleaded not guilty to state and federal murder charges over the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson shot
on a New York street in broad daylight.
A powerful 7.5 magnitude earthquake shook Japan Monday night. The quake struck about 70 kilometers, 44 miles off the northeastern coast. Parts of
the country experienced tsunami waves. Authorities are issuing evacuation orders to those areas. You can see the moment there as the shake occurred -
- the quake occurred. Japan has had several severe earthquakes. It lies on what's known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, an area of intense seismic
activity.
Hanako Montgomery joins me now from Tokyo. And I wonder, I mean, listen, the number is high. I mean, that was a strong earthquake. The tsunami is
relatively small. What kind of damage are we seeing?
HANAKO MONTGOMERY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jim, as you mentioned, this earthquake was pretty powerful. The Japan Meteorological Agency downgraded
it from his initial 7.6 to a 7.5. But again, it's still in that level five -- level seven area, which is again, very, very strong for Japan.
[18:35:00]
In fact, even I felt it and I live in Tokyo. My entire apartment was shaking for a good 30 seconds at least. So, you can imagine just how
powerful this earthquake was for residents who actually live in parts of northern Japan, which are much, much closer to the epicenter.
Now, Jim, you asked whether we've seen any kind of damage. And so, far, the chief cabinet secretary in Japan has said that we're seeing initial reports
of damage and injuries in parts of northern Japan. That includes Aomori Prefecture, Iwate Prefecture, and also Hokkaido, which is Japan's
northernmost prefecture.
Now, he didn't specify what kind of injuries they were or what kind of damage this was, but we are getting some updates that at least one person
has been seriously injured. Eight have sustained minor injuries and four have injuries of unknown severity.
Now, in terms of the damage, the chief cabinet secretary said that we have seen some fires in Aomori Prefecture.
Also, Japan's rapid train service from this prefecture to Fukushima Prefecture, which, as you remember, back in 2011, it saw a triple disaster
also because of a massive earthquake. That bullet train line has been suspended for now.
Now, the Japanese government has issued these evacuation warnings for specific parts of Japan that are more vulnerable to large tsunami waves.
Now, initially, we were getting tsunami warnings, which means that we could see waves of up to three meters in height hitting Japan's coastlines. Now,
that warning has been downgraded to an advisory, meaning we could see waves of up to one meter in height.
So, for now, residents who, again, live in those more vulnerable places, more close to sea level, have been advised to get to higher ground and stay
in those evacuation shelters until Japan can actually lift all of those tsunami advisories and also warnings.
Now, Jim, also, I do want to point out here that the Japanese government, of course, is very, very well-rehearsed when it comes to dealing with these
types of natural disasters, given, as you said, Japan sits on the Pacific Ring of Fire. It is very, very used to earthquakes. In fact, earthquakes
happen nearly every day. They just might not be that significant and they might not feel that strong. But again, they do happen every day. Japan is
no stranger to these.
So, every time a disaster of this magnitude occurs, Japan responds very dutifully. It responds very quickly. Residents, again, in more vulnerable
places told to evacuate and just await more information. Japan's self- defense forces and also government forces are, of course, looking into the extent of damage now that we do have daylight in Japan and we can really
ascertain how much damage there is across northern Japan.
Now, also, of course, they have said that they will conduct search-and- rescue missions and operations if necessary. We have heard from the chief cabinet secretary that some individuals have called ambulance services. But
again, we don't know the extent of help needed in these types of situations. And we are hoping to get more information, again, in the coming
hours as day breaks in Japan and we can see, actually, the extent of damage from this powerful earthquake, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Question, just to be clear, are the tsunami warnings still in place for people in those affected areas, the coastlines? In other words,
could there still be tsunamis coming or has it passed, has the danger passed?
MONTGOMERY: Yes. So, now, it's tsunami advisories, meaning the warnings have been downgraded to advisories. So, instead of seeing waves of up to
three meters, we could see waves of up to one meter. But those are still in place. And Japan will need to deliberate and see and really ascertain the
potential damage and also just see whether tsunami waves could continue hitting shores of Japan before they actually completely lift those tsunami
advisories and, of course, just ascertain the damage again, Jim.
SCIUTTO: Hanako Montgomery of Tokyo, thanks so much. Just ahead, new clashes along the border between Thailand and Cambodia, forcing civilians
now to evacuate the area. We'll have more on the conflict and what these renewed hostilities mean for President Trump's self-appointed role of
peacemaker in this conflict.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:40:00]
SCIUTTO: Celebrations in Syria to mark one year since the fall of the Assad regime. Fireworks over the capital Damascus earlier today. But for
all that understandable jubilation, Syria still faces major challenges. Our Nada Bashir has more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Monday has marked a day of celebration for Syrians commemorating the first anniversary of the
overthrow of ousted authoritarian leader Bashar al-Assad, according to Syria's official news agency. The country's leader, President Ahmed al-
Sharaa, marked the occasion by performing dawn prayers at the Umayyad Mosque in Damascus, where he pledged to build a strong and just Syria.
Al-Sharaa was also seen attending a military parade alongside senior ministers while celebratory gatherings took place across the country. The
past year has brought hope to many in Syria following years of deadly conflict inflicted on the country by its former leader.
Assad fled the country for Russia after rebel forces led by Syria's new president seized control of Damascus following an unprecedented 11-day
offensive. Hundreds of thousands have been killed in Syria since 2011, and millions more displaced, many risking their lives in search of safety
overseas as refugees. But according to the U.N. Refugee Agency, more than 1 million refugees have returned to Syria over the last year, alongside some
2 million people displaced within the country who have been able to return to their homes.
Since the collapse of the Assad family's decades-long regime, Syria has seen sweeping changes across its political and economic landscape. But the
country has also seen hundreds killed in bouts of sectarian violence. Over the weekend, President al-Sharaa told a forum in Qatar that those
responsible for acts of violence would be held accountable. The Syrian leader has, over the last year, forged new relationships with world
leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, and strengthening its ties with regional allies in Turkey and the Gulf.
Western sanctions on Syria have also largely been lifted, and progress has been seen in the rebuilding of local governance structures. President al-
Sharaa has said that he will continue to lead the country through a transition period over the next four years before elections are held.
Nada Bashir, CNN, in London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Well, President Donald Trump has, of course, marketed himself as a peacemaker around the world. However, one agreement where he's claimed
success is now falling apart. Thailand launched airstrikes against Cambodia Monday, the latest in a new wave of fighting along the border. Bangkok says
it was retaliation for a Cambodian attack which killed a Thai soldier, and injured seven people.
The fragile ceasefire is now collapsing just two months in. President Trump oversaw that deal between Thailand and Cambodia. This, after a conflict in
July, killed dozens of people and displaced some 200,000 more.
Thomas Pepinsky is a professor at Cornell University, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. He joins me now. Good to have you back.
THOMAS PEPINSKY, PROFESSOR, CORNELL UNIVERSITY AND NONRESIDENT SENIOR FELLOW, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: Thanks very much. Good to be back.
SCIUTTO: I wonder what's your assessment of why this ceasefire broke down?
[18:45:00]
PEPINSKY: It's hard to say exactly why the ceasefire broke down. It seems to be fairly fragile. I don't think any of the core issues have been
solved. And so, I think that anytime there is a little bit of an accident, you can get events like this happen.
SCIUTTO: I mean, that's the issue here, right? Because no one would begrudge President Trump's attempts to make peace here. But he seemed to
have claimed a long-term lasting peace where there wasn't one, because those key issues haven't been addressed. Can you explain what those are and
what would need to be addressed?
PEPINSKY: Well, the key issues -- the short-term immediate issues are territorial control over some border areas, including areas that include
some important temples, which are important both to Cambodians and to Thai people. And so, the border between Thailand and Cambodia in this region has
always been a little bit contentious, a little bit unsettled. This goes back about 50 years or so. It's been before the ICJ and others as well.
But if you want to look even further back, kingdoms in the area, which is today Thailand and today Cambodia, have been in conflict with one another
for 500 years or even more. And so, determining what the border is between these two countries is a narrow problem, but it goes back to some deep,
deep historical animosity.
SCIUTTO: What is the state of communications between Cambodia and Thailand? I mean, is there any path towards a peace process here? I mean,
this is certainly not the only place in the world where there are border disputes. We see them on every continent. What's the path forward?
PEPINSKY: I think that it's unlikely that there's going to be like a full- scale war between the two countries. I think both of them would like to simply resolve the border issue in a way that plays well to the domestic
audiences.
The peace process, though, and how that's going to look is going to be complicated by two things. One is that ASEAN, which already was part and
parcel of the peace process most recently, has not proven to be particularly effective. The other issue is there's some real distrust
between the heads of state. Recently, about a year ago, there was a fairly major diplomatic kerfuffle in which some secret recordings of a former Thai
prime minister were released by the Cambodians. And so, I suspect that any sort of sensitive topics will be difficult to discuss in diplomatic ways.
SCIUTTO: If U.S. peacemaking fails here, doesn't get them to a longer-term agreement, is it possible that China attempts to step in?
PEPINSKY: I doubt that China will want to play an active role in solving these or resolving these particular problems. Although, historically, China
has enjoyed warm relations with Cambodia, it also wants to maintain good relations with Thailand as well. And so, you can imagine perhaps a quiet
Chinese initiative to calm tempers or to find an off-ramp. But I doubt they will want to be actively involved in this process. And I also suspect that
neither Thailand nor Cambodia would want that either.
SCIUTTO: Thomas Pepinsky, thanks so much for joining.
PEPINSKY: Thanks for having me.
SCIUTTO: Coming up next, the Mona Lisa may be smiling, but staff at the Louvre certainly are not. Again, another headache for the museum. We'll
explain why.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[18:50:00]
SCIUTTO: India's travel industry is recovering from a week of chaos as the country's biggest airline canceled thousands of flights. Indigo's problems
around roster planning led to widespread cancellations, forcing the Indian government now to step in. Will Ripley has more from New Delhi.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Air travel here in India has been a mess this week, causing chaos across the country. Indigo
is the largest airline in this nation of more than 1.4 billion people. And since Friday, they've canceled all flights out of their capital, New Delhi,
along with hundreds of others. Why? Well, Indian authorities recently tightened regulations on how often pilots can fly and when, like requiring
at least 48 hours of rest per week and limiting their weekly nighttime landings.
But Indigo has admitted they failed to plan ahead of the November 1st deadline. So, not only is it peak travel season, it's also the height of
the wedding season here in India, forcing one couple to attend their own reception virtually.
MANDAKINI ANIL KUMAR KSHIRSAGAR, MOTHER OF BRIDE (through translator): They lost their chance to reach here, and we felt awful. These moments come
only once in a lifetime. And when my daughter could not come for this event, I felt really bad.
RIPLEY: The company's CEO says it will take time to return to normal, likely around December 10th. The Indian government sent him a letter to
explain why this chaos is happening on his watch. So, far, no other Indian airlines have had to cancel flights due to the new rules.
Will Ripley, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Another big setback for the world's most popular museum, a little embarrassment as well. Just weeks after a shocking daytime jewelry heist, a
water leak at the Louvre in Paris has damaged hundreds of books there. The leak was caused due to a defunct plumbing valve opened by mistake. Melissa
Bell has more on yet another headache for France's iconic tourist destination.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More difficult headlines for the Louvre Museum here in Paris, as the world's most visited
museum, it seems, had some sort of water leak back in November that caused damage to some 300 to 400 books in its Egyptian antiquities department.
We understand from museum directors that none of these were particularly precious first editions, simply 19th or 20th century books that were
consulted by Egyptologists, and there is some hope that many of them can be restored. Still, another difficult headline just weeks after that
spectacular October heist that so captured the world's attention.
Even now, the jewels have not been recovered. There have been a number of arrests, however, four of the suspected burglars and several of those
believed to have been their accomplices have been arrested. The search continues, though, for the jewels themselves.
There was also, we understand, in the autumn, one of the galleries that houses Egyptian vases and certain offices that had to be closed because of
structural concerns. And what we saw just a few weeks ago was the publication here in France from France's public audit body, the Cour des
Comptes, accusing the museum of having overspent on acquiring art at the expense of refurbishing its ancient infrastructure. That report, of course,
coming after the heist and really pointing to a lack of deficiencies in the updating of the museum's infrastructure and security.
And if all that were not enough, there will also now be a strike by some of the museum staff on 15th of December. They are complaining about working
conditions and the difficulty that comes from that poor infrastructure that I mentioned. So, a difficult few months here for the Louvre Museum in
Paris.
Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SCIUTTO: Better watch out. Lots of nice paintings there. From vampires to witches, Shakespeare to a secret agent, award season has now kicked off in
Hollywood with the Golden Globe nominations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They got hurt. Now, they're coming after us. Sorry.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn't ask for this. That's just how the cards were rolled out for me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's not cards. You don't roll cards. It's dice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Dad, what is wrong with you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You're right. Let's go.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCIUTTO: Well, there's nothing wrong with Leonardo DiCaprio's performance in "One Battle After Another," he has earned a nod for best actor in a
musical or comedy, one of nine nominations for the film. Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande get nominations for their roles in the film as witches of Oz
in "Wicked: For Good." The film, however, was snubbed in the best picture category.
On the drama side, vampire thriller "Sinners" has scored big as well as "Hamnet," which is based on the life of William Shakespeare. Three of the
six best drama nominees are foreign language films, including Iranian director Jafar Panahi's acclaimed, "It Was Just an Accident."
[18:55:00]
And finally, something that could also be straight out of a movie. You would not see C-3PO acting like this, though. You're looking at the CEO of
Chinese robotics company EngineAI being kicked to the ground by one of his own creations. This was not a random act of violence. The company wanted to
show the robot is the real deal after some accused the brand of fabricating the model with computer generated imagery. No word yet on whether the robot
still has a job or, well, if that's what you want a robot to be doing. I'm not sure I do.
Thanks so much for joining us today. I'm Jim Sciutto in Washington. You've been watching "The Brief." Please do stay with CNN.
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[19:00:00]
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