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What We Know with Max Foster

Zelenskyy Sending Delegation To Istanbul For Peace Talks; Trump Visits United Arab Emirates On Gulf Tour; U.S. Supreme Court Hears Arguments On Birthright Citizenship; Walmart Says It Has To Raise Prices Due To Tariffs; Defense Cross-Examines Ex-Girlfriend In Combs Case; TikTok Beauty Influencer Killed During Live Stream In Mexico. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired May 15, 2025 - 15:00   ET

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


[15:00:26]

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Despite proposing talks with Ukraine and Turkey, Russia's president Vladimir Putin has not showed up, leaving Ukraine still

searching for peace.

This is WHAT WE KNOW.

A day filled with no-shows, talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegates are still expected to happen in Turkey, just without their presidents.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara. Meanwhile, the Kremlin announced Russian President

Vladimir Putin will not be attending the highly anticipated peace talks in Istanbul.

So, now, Mr. Zelenskyy is sending a delegation there too, instead of visiting Turkey. Donald Trump is wrapping up the final leg of his Middle

East tour. The U.S. president says nothing will happen in the Russia- Ukraine resolution until he meets with Putin.

Clarissa Ward is live for us in Istanbul.

You know, a lot of politics going on here. But, you know, there was real hope, wasn't there, for a breakthrough at this meeting. And it's not going

to happen now.

CLARISS WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think there was some hope from some quarters earlier on in the week that maybe

especially after President Trump had indicated that he could possibly come as well, that maybe Vladimir Putin would show his face. We understood last

night that that was not going to be the case, and that everybody was essentially waiting to see how President Zelenskyy would respond. He is now

leaving the country after spending the day in the capital, Ankara, meeting with Turkish President Erdogan.

But he has sent a delegation. And he did say earlier on that he feels its important that Ukraine try to take advantage of what he called a very

fragile opportunity. He also said that he thought it was disrespectful, Max, that essentially by sending a lower level delegation without president

Putin, without the Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, whereas, of course, Zelenskyy was here, the Ukrainian foreign minister was here, U.S.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio was here, although that was actually for a NATO foreign ministers meeting in the city of Antalya. But even though he

perceived this as being disrespectful, he sent a delegation, the delegation comprises the minister of defense, for example, and it's still significant,

Max, right?

They're still going to be sitting face to face at the same table. These are still the first direct talks between Russia and Ukraine that we have seen

since the spring of 2022, shortly after the invasion. Those talks, which were held in Turkey and Belarus, fell apart essentially as the scale of

Russian atrocities in towns and cities like Bucha became known to the world and to Ukraine.

Now, it's an opportunity for them to sit down again. But there is a chasm. There is an abyss between the two sides. And it is expected that Russia

will likely articulate some pretty maximalist demands. Theres an impression in the Russian psyche and in the Russian, or I should say in the Kremlin's

perception of the world, that they are very much winning at the moment. And so, I think it is going to be very challenging to get the two sides to a

place where were going to see any major breakthroughs as a result of these talks.

But President Zelenskyy saying, again, I don't believe the Russians are serious about peace, but were going to be there and were going to continue

to push for a 30-day ceasefire without preconditions, Max.

FOSTER: Clarissa Ward in Istanbul, thank you so much for that.

Now to President Trump's Middle East tour then, and his final stop in Abu Dhabi. During a bilateral meeting a short time ago, Mr. Trump invited his

UAE counterpart to the White House to celebrate, apparently referring to UAE's commitment to invest more than $1 trillion in the U.S. over the next

decade.

Earlier, Mr. Trump took a tour of the Grand Mosque, calling the decision to close it for his presidential visit a great tribute. And he had this to say

about a possible nuclear agreement with Iran.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I think -- I think we're getting close to maybe doing a deal without having to do this. There's two

steps. There's a very, very nice step, and there's a violent step. The violence, like people haven't seen before.

And I don't -- I hope we're not going to have to do this. I don't want to do the second step. Some people do. Many people do. I don't want to do that

step. So, we'll see what happens. But we're in very serious negotiations with Iran for long term peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Jeff Zeleny traveling with the president joins us now from Abu Dhabi. I mean, that would be a major breakthrough, wouldn't it, for the

world to come to some sort of agreement with Iran.

[15:05:04]

What did you make of it?

JEFF ZELENY, CNN CHIEF U.S. NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Well, Max, it certainly would, but I do think it's a bit of an open question how close

they are to a deal. The Iranian president earlier today issued a gentle warning to the U.S. President against threatening the regime. And he said

some of his language was a bit naive. So, we shall see where these talks go. But there's no doubt that the U.S. president, Donald Trump, really at

every stop along the way this week has extended a hand to Iran and said he wants there to be a deal and he wants the sanctions to be lifted and the

economies to lift.

But the reality here is that's a very difficult negotiation. And it's unclear. A serious negotiation is actually underway. Steve Witkoff, who's

one of his -- one of his envoys who has a variety of hot spots he's dealing with. He's been in negotiations at some level with Iranian leaders.

But the president, certainly as he finishes or as he nears an end to his first overseas trip of his second term, is focused on Iran.

But again, I think we should put a little caution here in terms of the speed at which any deal could be reached. We all remember how long it took

the last deal to be reached with Iran, and it was unraveled, of course, by this president, President Trump.

FOSTER: You know, time it's got this sort of sense of almost a game show, hasn't it, this tour, because these prizes just keep getting bigger and

bigger, like hundreds of billions from Saudi Arabia, the tour goes on. And this latest figure from the UAE, $1 trillion -- I mean, what is it, an

investment in the U.S.? I mean, it's extraordinary.

ZELENY: It is over a ten-year period. They say some $1.2 trillion, which you know, vastly out enumerates the GDP. So, I think we have to look at all

of these numbers with a bit of skepticism as well. Every transaction, every deal had some very large number to it with the superlatives as well.

No doubt there was a lot of business done and investment done. But every country was sort of trying to outdo the other with making big promises of

investments. But look, there's no question that, that was one of the central portions of the president's trip here, the American president's

trip here to get big investments. He was flanked really, at every stop with some of the world's biggest business leaders, so many American CEOs were

here. You were thinking it was a business meeting more than a presidential visit.

But Donald Trump right now is having his last state dinner. He's at the presidential palace for a dinner that's lingering on longer than it was

scheduled to, actually. And then he'll have a few more events tomorrow morning before returning to Washington.

But there's no doubt that there are still -- I think this trip has brought into focus all the challenges that actually exist and are on this Trump

administration's plate as they move through the second half of his first year in office, Max.

FOSTER: Yeah, Jeff, thank you so much. Traveling with the president there.

ZELENY: Sure.

FOSTER: Now the Supreme Court is debating whether lower court judges have the authority to make rulings that apply nationwide. That's a central issue

in a case involving Donald Trump's ending of birthright citizenship. The Trump administration argues that being born in the U.S. does not

automatically make someone a citizen. Lower courts have blocked the president's executive order.

Joining us now to break this down is CNN's chief legal affairs correspondent, Paula Reid.

Thank you so much for joining us.

So, this isn't a case -- is it about birthright citizenship on its own. But it does play into how the courts decide on these issues. Is that right?

PAULA REID, CNN CHIEF LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: And that's exactly right. This came as part of a case about birthright citizenship. But the

big question here is whether a single judge anywhere in the U.S. should have the power to block a policy for the entire country. And this is

something that could have enormous impact on President Trump's agenda, his ability to get through his campaign promises and his second term.

And, look, they're considering this policy right now. But this is something that has plagued all modern presidents. This has been something that has

been done with increasing frequency over the past 25 years. But because President Trump makes such prolific use of executive orders, he has faced

the highest number of nationwide injunctions.

His lawyers tell me he has issued over 200 executive orders and they have been blocked 39 times in the past few months. So most legal experts agree

that his executive order ending birthright citizenship, the idea that if you were born here, you're a U.S. citizen, even if your parents are not,

that that is likely unconstitutional.

[15:10:06]

So, it's a little surprising that this is the way we get these larger questions about judicial power, because the folks who are challenging, in

this case say this is exactly where you need a nationwide injunction. You need one uniform policy for the entire country. Otherwise, you'll have

chaos. And the liberal justices, all three of them, appeared convinced by that argument.

But again, the big question is, does the administration have a majority? Five justices that see things their way. Now, at one point when Trump's

lawyer was really facing a lot of pretty tough questions, the chief justice did sort of throw him a lifeline and said, look, we can limit the chaos by

taking up these issues more quickly, but we're going to be looking very closely next month to see what the justices do here, because whatever they

do will have an enormous impact not only on this administration, but future ones as well.

FOSTER: Okay, Paula, thank you. I mean, it is a profound case, isn't it?

Now, the largest retailer in the U.S. says it's raising prices and blames Donald Trump's trade war. Walmart CEO says prices of some products will go

up because the company and its suppliers can't just absorb the cost of Trump's tariffs.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DOUG MCMILLON, WALMART CEO: We will do our best to keep our prices as low as possible, but given the magnitude of the tariffs, even at the reduced

levels announced this week, we aren't able to absorb all the pressure given the reality of narrow retail margins. We're positioned to manage the cost

pressure from tariffs as well or better than anyone. But even at the reduced levels, the higher tariffs will result in higher prices.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

FOSTER: Another sign of the impact of Trump's tariffs can be seen in the latest economic data as well. American consumers seem cautious about

spending in April, leaving retail sales largely flat from the month before. Consumers spent a lot in March in anticipation of the coming tariffs, which

may be one reason April sales were pretty lackluster. So, then we look to next month again.

Now for more on the day's business news, let's welcome CNN business and politics correspondent Vanessa Yurkevich.

I mean, what the Walmart exec is saying is pretty obvious, isn't it? I mean, the reality is that companies pay the tariffs. It's not foreigners

that pay the tariffs. And if they've got thin margins, they've got to pass them on the prices.

VANESSA YURKEVICH, CNN BUSINESS AND POLITICS CORRESPONDENT: Right. And when you have the world's largest retailer, Walmart, saying that they

cannot afford these tariffs, what does that say for all of the other retailers out there, big and small? Smaller retailers especially are not

going to be able to absorb these tariffs. And Walmart even mentioned that bringing the tariff down from 145 percent on Chinese exports to 30 percent

is welcome news, but it does not alleviate the pain that they're expecting.

And Walmart saying that they are going to have to pass those costs down to the consumer and they're going to raise prices starting later this month.

They hope it's a one-time price increase, but they're going to raise prices on things like toys, electronics and even food that's coming from Central

America. Many of those countries are hit with that 10 percent universal tariff, and they're already saying that they're going to have to increase

grocery prices in store. That is a key, key component of Walmart's business model.

Also on the consumer front, retail sales came out this morning, which signaled still somewhat of steady growth in terms of spending by American

consumers, but certainly a decline from what we saw in the previous month. We saw in March retail sales. You can see that huge, huge spike on your

screen there. March, we saw retail sales climb by 1.7 percent, in April is 0.1 percent. And that is really because we saw a lot of Americans sort of

front loading on key products, especially big-ticket items.

What we saw in this most recent report in April is we saw a slowdown in purchasing of motor vehicles. You can see their cars down by 0.1 percent.

Clothing, a lot of that comes from China. People pulling back on purchases there. Sporting goods also. Those are key products that come from overseas.

So, a pullback there. We did see a little bit of an increase in electronics and appliances in the month of April. Maybe that was some leftover buying

happening from consumers. But essentially this retail report signals that the tariff shopping spree is over and people are being more cautious about

how they're spending.

Economists predict that in April, we probably didn't see sort of the full scope of these tariffs playing out. So it'll be interesting to watch over

the summer, Max, what we kind of start to see with these reports and whether or not these tariffs really do get ingrained into the economy and

into prices, Max.

FOSTER: Absolutely. Vanessa, thank you so much for bringing us that.

Now, despite the uncertainty created by Donald Trump's on again, off again tariffs, U.S. stocks have erased all the losses created back in April when

Trump first announced his global tariff plan. In fact, the S&P 500 is pretty much back to where it was at the beginning of the year. What a ride

for today.

As we approach the close on Wall Street, U.S. stocks are quite mixed.

[15:15:01]

The Dow and the S&P are indeed up, but the Nasdaq is edging down by a third of 1 percent.

Police in Mexico investigating the death of a beauty influencer killed whilst live on TikTok. We are dealing with a terrifying wave of violence

against women and girls, and we're going to discuss that coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: This hour, the defense for Sean "Diddy" Combs is cross-examining Cassie Ventura. Combs' attorneys are questioning his ex-girlfriend about

their 11-year relationship and mutual drug use. Sean Combs is accused of racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking, and transportation to engage in

prostitution charges. He's pleaded not guilty.

CNN's Kara Scannell breaks down today's court proceedings.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: For about two hours, Combs' lawyer has gone through a number of text messages, many of them at the beginning of

the relationship, and she's using them to show that there was a lot of love and a lot of affection and effusiveness that was back and forth between

them. Some emails also deal directly with these freak offs, which Ventura has testified she felt she had to do because she felt threatened by Combs.

Either he would physically assault her or harm her.

Some of these text messages that the jury has seen today shows Ventura saying that she's going to go to the store and pick up supplies, set up the

room and take her vitamins, LOL, oblique reference to the drugs that they were taking, which the defense would want to argue that this is her

willingly participating in these freak offs.

Now, Ventura says she did it eventually at the beginning, but then she eventually grew to not want to continue to do them, and she testified on

direct examination that she had had engaged in these freak offs with 19 different male escorts. Now, also in the cross examination today, the

defense trying to get at the concept that this was a racketeering conspiracy.

[15:20:00]

And so, they were asking her, you know, were members of his staff knowledgeable of the freak offs. Did they know? Was it the security guard?

Did they know? The personal assistants, did they know?

And Ventura said that she never told them. Obviously, the prosecutors pushing the theory that they were involved and that their involvement was

evident by them supplying some of the supplies that were needed, the baby oil, the lubricants and setting up some of these hotel rooms, paying for

the damages that occurred after the freak offs.

But his team trying to chip away here at some of what Ventura is saying, making it to be more of a complicated relationship than what the

prosecution has alleged is a sex trafficking crime. And that is because Combs' defense is that there was domestic violence in this relationship.

He's not running away from it. But he says it wasn't sex trafficking.

And they say that a lot of those fights came because of infidelity between both of them on both sides, and that was what was fueling that. But they

said that that's not what he's charged with. That's not the crime.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Authorities are investigating a high profile killing in Mexico. Valeria Marquez was talking to her followers on TikTok from her beauty

salon in the central part of the country. Someone showed up at her door with a small parcel. The 23-year-old influencer returned to her viewers and

unwrapped the package.

Moments later, she was shot dead. That was actually as the live stream continued Marquez's death and many others are being investigated as

femicide, where women and girls are killed for gender-based reasons.

Let's bring in CNN's Gabby Frias. She joins us from Mexico City.

And, Gabby, tell us what the government is saying about this case, because there's an undoubted issue with femicide, you know, all around the world.

But it seems as though the numbers are particularly high in Mexico.

GABRIELA FRIAS, CNN EN ESPANOL ANCHOR & CORRESPONDENT: Completely. Max, good to see you.

Well, this morning, let me just quote President Sheinbaum's reaction to this murder, gruesome murder, live -- live stream. She said this morning

during her morning press conference that this case will be investigated. She expressed condolences to the family. She said that her security cabinet

and that means the federal government of Mexico will support the Jalisco state governments investigation.

But let me tell you part of the details of what we know, and those details come directly, Max, from the live stream that Valeria was having. She

originally had thousands of followers on Instagram and TikTok. She shared beauty tips, lifestyle tips, also pictures of herself.

That tragic afternoon, Valeria had been streaming for a while, interacting with her followers. She even shared her birthday February 14th. At some

point, Valeria is seen talking to a person in her salon, a female voice who tells her that someone with an expensive gift had come looking for her,

that that person would come back in an hour to give it to her directly.

Valeria seems uncomfortable, asks for more details. The person looked like a delivery boy or a bodyguard. Then she looks at the camera and says, and

I'm quoting here -- I'm going to be kidnapped. Maybe someone is coming to kill me.

And despite being tense, Valeria continued the live stream, during which she received a beverage from Starbucks and stuffed piglet, which she keeps

with her. In her final moments, Max, Valeria looks into the distance and says, okay, they are here. You can hear someone entering her salon asking

"Valeria?" And, Valeria replies, yes, it's me.

And the final minutes you see that she mutes the live stream microphone. And what comes next, Max is that gruesome image of her violent death. Of

course, the footage ended with another person picked up her phone, their faces momentarily shown to viewers.

And as you say, her killing sent shockwaves in Mexico, a country with a staggering level of violence against women -- Max.

FOSTER: Gabby, thank you so much. An incredibly upsetting story.

One woman or girl is actually killed every ten minutes globally by their intimate partner or a family member. And horrific statistic from the United

Nations. Also, concerning the number of countries reporting data on the killing of women and girls is decreasing.

Let's bring in psychologist Jillian Peterson, professor, she is the founder of the violence project and a professor of criminology at Hamline

University.

Thank you so much for joining us.

JILLIAN PETERSON, PSYCHOLOGIST: Thank you for having me.

FOSTER: So, this was -- this, you know, I don't know if you could hear our reporter, but describing what happened in this TikTok live stream. But

specifically, it's being investigated as femicide, isn't it? It was -- so just take us through what that means.

PETERSON: That means that in this case, the victim, Valeria Marquez, was targeted specifically. Because of her gender, because she was a woman. So,

there may or may not be any relationship between her and the perpetrator. But the motivation was to, in this case, quite publicly, kill a woman.

[15:25:00]

FOSTER: It was streamed on social media. And I'm not saying social media is to blame for all of this, but social media has certainly provided a

platform, certainly for a lot of the sentiment about the misogyny that we're seeing.

Can you just explain how you feel that the numbers are increasing and the role that social media plays into that?

PETERSON: I think social media plays a number of different roles. It can be a space where. People can be radicalized, can find. Other people who

hate women, who talk about violence against women, where that is normalized or even celebrated. And often, we're seeing more and more of these crimes

where violence is actually livestreamed on social media, and it's used to kind of get a message out to the world to make other people witness what

you're doing.

FOSTER: How does it you know, obviously, femicide is the extreme end of a much bigger problem, isn't it? When we talk about violence against women,

coercion, you know, small level coercion at the other end. But it's all part of a spectrum. Is there one thing fueling the rise in that at the

moment?

PETERSON: It's hard to say if there's one thing fueling it. We do know that the perpetrators who do this, who are typically men, often feel

powerless in their own lives, either like a job loss or a relationship loss. Oftentimes they have mental health challenges or substance use

challenges.

I think in many ways, it's kind of a backlash to women getting more power, getting more agency, getting more equity that can make certain men feel

threatened. And when men feel threatened. Unfortunately, we live in a society where that can come out as violence.

FOSTER: A lot of the viewers currently talking about "thank you for covering this issue. It's not talked about enough."

Do you feel that, too? Is that specific to femicide? Or because we -- obviously, the wider issue about gender equality is widely talked about.

PETERSON: I do think that's true. You know, I study a lot of different mass shooting in the United States. We talk about it endlessly. But the

most common type of mass shooting is a man who kills his family. And the most likely person to kill a woman is a romantic partner and ex-romantic

partner.

I think this happens so often, and it -- it's true. It doesn't get the coverage that I think it really deserves.

FOSTER: Okay. Dr. Jillian Peterson, thank you so much for bringing us your analysis on that horrific story and the wider context. We'll be back in a

moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:31:03]

FOSTER : Back to our top story a diplomatic game of hide and seek. We are waiting for Russian and Ukrainian delegates to meet in Turkey, despite

their respective presidents backing out of the peace talks. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dropped his plans to travel to Istanbul after

the Kremlin confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be absent.

Speaking to reporters, President Zelenskyy is urging other nations to put more political and economic pressure on Moscow.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Number one point on the agenda is a ceasefire. And I still believe Russia is not being

serious about these meetings. It does not want to end the war. But we hope they demonstrate something during the meeting.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Another major player not in Turkey, U.S. President Donald Trump. Right now, he's on the final leg of his Middle East tour. But he did have

this to say about the peace talks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Nothing's going to happen until Putin and I get together, okay? And obviously, he wasn't going to go.

He was going to go. But he thought I was going to go. He wasn't going if I wasn't there. And I don't believe anything's going to happen whether you

like it or not, until he and I get together. But we're going to have to get it solved because so many people are dying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, we don't know. Is peace possible without a Putin-Zelenskyy- Trump meeting?

Nick Paton Walsh is in Kyiv for us.

We should say that, you know, still a significant meeting, but it's not going to have the heft that it had before. Obviously.

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: And I think it's really important not to overstate what could be done in these

talks tomorrow. Yes. This is the first time since the early days of the war that we've seen Russian and Ukrainian officials engaged in direct

conversation. But the Russians sent essentially the lowest level they potentially could to Istanbul, and they are now setting the narrative. They

are the schedulers, frankly, of this peace process as it currently stands. And so, I think what we take away from what's happened over the past, well,

almost week now.

Remember, Max, this started with a Saturday demand for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire from the Europeans and Ukraine. An American

proposal originally morphed through Putin's suggestion of a meeting between Ukraine and Russia. Direct talks in Istanbul on Thursday. Zelenskyy then

saying this needs to be between myself and Vladimir Putin. Trump then getting into the mix, saying he might turn up, but Putin would like him to

be there.

Now, really, the issue is, where does Trump sit after the Russians have basically brushed away all the entreaties here and gone ahead with their

own plan? You heard him there saying, nothing is going to happen until I meet Putin.

Now, that really is a statement that takes a lot of the wind out of the sails of both the pressure on Moscow to offer compromise to speed up these

negotiations. I'm sure there must be some European leaders hearing that with a degree of consternation, they've publicly been very careful to call

Donald Trump when it comes to his role in trying to find a peace here in Ukraine.

But just remember, Max, only -- forgive me. I'm doing the maths in my head now. Only six days ago, European leaders huddled around a telephone here in

Kyiv talking to Donald Trump and emerged saying they had assurances from him that he wanted that ceasefire and that he would back sanctions against

Russia if Russia ignored it.

Now, here we are with basically Trump saying it's got to be me and Putin for this to go anywhere at all. That demand, that prerequisite for progress

really means the Russians can string out tomorrow. They'll probably go with max demands anyway.

But the Ukrainians have little choice but to attend. Their attendance is going to likely lead to talks about more talks, maybe at a different level.

We're in the second or third venue and cast list for these talks now already.

They appear to be playing for time. The Russians and many Ukrainians here are concerned. Thats because they're building up forces for potentially a

push in the weeks or months ahead, Max.

FOSTER: Okay, Nick, in Kyiv, thank you.

Donald Trump hasn't ruled out placing more sanctions on Russia if it doesn't accept an extended ceasefire.

[15:3:02]

A former Ukrainian foreign minister tells Christiane Amanpour he thinks that's unlikely.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMYTRO KULEBA, FORMER UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: In diplomacy, to make someone change his position, you have to strike the right balance between

sticks and carrots, right?

So, the carrot here is let's -- is when Donald Trump says, Vladimir, lets meet. Let's see what we can do together. And the carrot if you do not --

and the stick is if you do not end the war, then this, this and this bad, and that bad thing will happen to you.

What we've seen so far were all the sticks were going to Ukraine, and all the carrots were going to Russia. I mean, by definition, by the very kind

of fundamentals of diplomacy, it doesn't work.

So today, I personally doubt there will be a serious kind of shower of sanctions thrown on, falling on the head of Putin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: President Donald Trump says India has offered the USA a trade deal with no tariffs. He made the remarks in Doha, where he also had word for

the Apple CEO as well. Mr. Trump isn't happy with Tim Cook's plan to manufacture iPhones bound for the U.S. newly built plants in India. Apple

decided to shift production from China amid the Trump administration's tariff wars. President Trump wants Apple's business closer to home.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TRUMP: I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday. I said to him, Tim, you're my friend. I treated you very good. You're coming in with $500

billion. But now I hear you're building all over India. I don't want you building in India. You can build in India if you want to take care of

India. Because India is the highest, one of the highest tariff nations in the world. It's very hard to sell into India.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Tim Cook's been brought up a couple of times on this tour. He wasn't one of the execs on the tour. I initially thought it was that. But

what do you think it is?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, he's not in the president's good books this week, for sure. In Riyadh, President Trump actually called him

out in a in a press conference on stage and said, Tim Cook isn't here. So, this is the second time in a week.

Clearly, he's upset that Apple are going to continue to make their iPhones outside of the U.S. and its interesting, Max, because Apple was really a

bit of a darling of the tech world for the White House.

In February, they announced $500 billion worth of investment in the U.S. over a four-year time period. At the time, I said, you know, this is

actually a similar amount to what they've invested over the last 4 or 5 years in sort of segmented chunks. And actually, it's not that different.

And they're not going to be building iPhones. I said it, I don't think maybe the president actually read that.

So, he's upset about this. The problem, of course, is building an iPhone in the U.S. not only would that take 4 or 5 years, perhaps to build up a

factory, not only would your supply chain still be outside of America, so you'd still be importing parts and raw materials, but also the cost. The

cost of labor in the U.S. is very different to India, and China.

Are American consumers willing to pay three times as much for an iPhone? Probably not.

FOSTER: And that's kind of would be Tim Cook's point, wasn't it? We announced we were going to build loads of factories. It does take time. In

the meantime, at least we're choosing India over China, as it were.

STEWART: Yeah. And they're investing money in the U.S. for things that make sense to make in the U.S. They're just saying that making iPhones in

the U.S. probably. I mean, I haven't said this, but it probably doesn't make much sense at this point or any other. But they are making big

investments. The point is, they're not going to be making as many iPhones in China for the U.S. market.

FOSTER: And in terms of Indian tariffs, we haven't had it confirmed from India that they're happy to go to zero tariffs, have we? Or --

STEWART: No. So we've heard this from President Trump.

FOSTER: Yeah.

STEWART: We have not heard it from India. So, we have absolutely no idea whether the trade deal has progressed enough that this is confirmed at this

stage. The U.S. does have a big deficit when it comes to India. It's around $45 billion and tariffs from India on imported U.S. goods are really high,

70 percent on autos, 80 percent on rice. There's definitely a deal to be done.

And they've been top of the list, actually, in all the trade negotiations, it's almost surprising they want the first trade deal to be announced.

FOSTER: It's also one of the ones that he can actually use as a genuine example when people doubt this, because when you look at the numbers, it is

an unfair relationship. Thats not me supporting Donald Trump, but they are particularly high tariffs on -- you know, they support his argument is what

I'm saying.

STEWART: Yeah. Unlike, the U.K. where actually there was a negligible difference in the trade balance. And to be fair, the deal actually wasn't

that expansive abroad. This is an opportunity for there to be a really good trade deal where both sides could win some territory here. Perhaps iPhones

will end up being a sticking point after this week. Who knows, Max?

FOSTER: You might mention it again. We'll tell you if he does.

Still to come in a short time. The second semifinal of the Eurovision song contest will kick off in Switzerland. But what makes a great Eurovision

song? We actually have a world expert on this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:43:01]

FOSTER: Gaza's civil defense says more than 100 people have been killed in Israeli strikes. It says women and children are amongst the dead. Israel

has intensified strikes amid a total aid blockade, but a source tells CNN it has privately agreed to allow some aid into Gaza in the coming days. A

new U.S. backed foundation says it will begin delivering aid within two weeks.

Relief organizations say the plan isn't enough, though, to meet Gaza's enormous needs as the world watches and waits to see what kind of aid Gaza

will receive and when the threat of famine grows. We've shared so many statistics with you on this hunger crisis, but as Jeremy Diamond reports,

this story really is about people. Men, women, children resorting to desperate measures just to stay alive.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Amid the crush of bodies clamoring for food, children are being put to an unthinkable

test. Who will manage to fill their family pot? And who will have to wait another day to eat?

This is how Gaza's children are being forced to live as Israel continues to block the entry of food. A total siege that is now in its 11th week. A boy

burnt by the small prize of lentil soup he has managed to win. A girl scooping what remains with her bare hands.

But before it all, a search for food for them and their families with no guarantee of success.

I wake up every day. Then we go find a kitchen. If we don't find food, then we go to another kitchen and another kitchen, Mohammed explains. If we

don't find anything, we go all day without food.

Nearly all of Gaza's population, now experiencing crisis levels of food insecurity or worse, with 56 percent at the emergency or catastrophic

level, meaning very high rates of acute malnutrition and large gaps in food consumption.

[15:45:09]

Unless aid gets in, more than three quarters of the population are projected to fall to those emergency levels.

TOM FLETCHER, U.N. UNDER-SECRETARY GENERAL FOR HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS: Every single one of the 2.1 million Palestinians in the Gaza Strip face the risk

of famine, one in five face starvation.

DIAMOND: As this manmade crisis worsens, Israel and the United States approving a new, tightly controlled mechanism to get aid into some parts of

Gaza. The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation says it plans to launch its operations within two weeks. Until then, it called on Israel to allow aid

in through existing mechanisms. Israel has yet to publicly agree.

A person involved in the planning said. Israel has agreed to allow some aid into Gaza in the coming days, but Israel has yet to say so publicly. The

U.N. says it won't participate, saying the new plan will make things worse. Facilitating forced displacement and putting civilians at risk. In Gaza,

people are running out of time as charity kitchens like this one run out of food.

14 pots were not enough. The manager of this kitchen says those who didn't get food will not eat anything today, and will come back tomorrow and might

not get anything again. Cases of acute malnutrition are spiking and people are being pushed to the brink.

Like Reda Ahmed (ph), who fainted yesterday from a lack of food. I swear I can't walk anymore. There is nothing to eat, she says.

As for the children who stand waiting for a chance to be fed, too many are now learning what it means to go hungry.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Now, in just a few hours, we'll know which international artists will compete at the grand final of the 2025 Eurovision song contest. This

year's edition is being held in Basel in Switzerland, where it all began 69 years ago.

Sixteen songs that have made it to Saturday's final were chosen on Tuesday. Tonight's semifinal will decide the last 10 qualifiers.

So, what we want to know is what makes a great Eurovision song. Well, actually, it's shown in the control room.

[15:50:02]

But I want to speak to the only person that can really answer it. Forensic musicologist, professor Joe Bennett, who currently predicted correctly,

rather, seven out of the top ten from 2024, which is quite extraordinary. I mean, my first question has to be, why did you go down this route of

research?

JOE BENNETT, FORENSIC MUSICOLOGIST: Well, I've always been interested in analyzing popular song as an academic at Berkeley. It's really what I do

most of the day. So, Eurovision seemed a fun way to do that in a more public forum.

And I've also been a lifelong fan of Eurovision. The first record I ever owned was the U.K.'s winning single from 1976, which is a song called "Save

Your Kisses For Me". So I'm very fond of Eurovision academically and personally.

FOSTER: Okay. The favorite this year is from Sweden, which I am grateful for because I'm half Swedish, so we need to play a bit basically, and I'll

ask you about it.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: So why is it the frontrunner? And is it your frontrunner?

BENNETT: Well, you -- it's very difficult to lose money betting on the Swedes in Eurovision. They have such an incredible track record.

This particular track, "Bara Bada Bastu" that you just played there is actually a song all about sauna -- or sauna, as I believe they pronounce it

there. And it's a little bit of a departure for the Swedes. Normally, they create something that I refer to as a Euro banger, which is a sort of 120

bpm plus bit of electro pop. And they've had a lot of success with that strategy in the past.

But this is a comedy song about sauna, and who knows it? Certainly, it is, as you said, tipped to win. And I think I've got to say it's also going to

be my prediction for number one this year.

FOSTER: Okay. You're going for a higher number of winners over your amazing history. But you mentioned Euro bangers because this is one of the

defining features of many of the winners, isn't it? Let's listen to Sweden's entry from 2012 so everyone can compare.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: I think we get it now, what is a Euro banger. Is there anything more technical about those songs that often win though?

BENNETT: Well, a few years ago, I did a study of 259 Eurovision finalists over a 10-year period, and we took all the data set there and tried to sort

of work out what was going on and what the trends were in voting.

And one of the characteristics of this subgenre that we are calling Euro banger is that they tend to be 120 beats per minute. They tend -- they

pretty much always in four, four time. They always have a killer chorus, and they have a number of dynamic ramps.

So that little section that you played there was just before a beat drop and the drums in euphoria and in quite a lot of the Swedish euro bangers,

they'll drop in and out, and every time they drop back in again, it's another excitement point. And songs like that tend to do very well in the

stadium, on the night.

FOSTER: Yeah. Well, the other ones are the ballads, of course. France 2021.

BENNETT : Right. Well, "Voila".

(CROSSTALK)

BENNETT: It's a great, great example. Let's listen.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

FOSTER: So different set of technicals there, obviously.

BENNETT: Well, this is the French doing what the French do so well, which is really the genre of music that they own. This is the French chanson as

popularized by Edith Piaf, Jacques Brel in the middle of the 20th century.

And sometimes I think France really don't care about winning, because it's really rare for a chanson to do well. That particular song, "Voila", was

there. I think it got to number two in the -- in the judging, and it was their best entry in terms of voting in about 30 years. But they do do that

genre of music really very well. That sort of tragic heroine figure in a follow spot, singing sad tales of love and loss.

FOSTER: Yeah. I mean, it's a mega night, isn't it? In terms of TV events, more than 100 million people tuning in. You can't deny the fascination. And

it's interesting to see that you found a pattern in there as well.

Joe, thank you so much.

Now, Tom Cruise arrived in the south of France for his latest mission.

(VIDEO CLIP PLAYS)

[15:55:01]

FOSTER: Not that one.

The Hollywood star was at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday to promote his new film, "Mission Impossible: The Final Reckoning".

Now the crowd went wild when they saw Cruise. Also, the cast there on the red carpet. The orchestra even struck up the "Mission: Impossible" theme.

This is the eighth film in the series, leaning heavily on the franchise's three-decade legacy, and the audience loved it, applauding to Cruise's spy

character Ethan Hunt. Ever glamorous at Cannes.

Finally, tonight, the magna carta, the foundation of the rule of law in many countries, it might be more than relevant now than ever. In fact, with

basic human rights at risk in so many places. And that makes a recent discovery by British historians even more special. A document the Harvard

University Law School thought was a copy of the magna carta is actually an original. The now priceless great charter of freedoms was purchased -- wait

for it -- for $27 80 years ago.

I'm Max Foster.

That is WHAT WE KNOW.

"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" up next.

END

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