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What We Know with Max Foster
Celebrations In Gaza And Israel After Announcement Of Deal; Trump Plans Trip To Middle East To Mark Ceasefire Deal; Israel Government To Vote On Gaza Ceasefire. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired October 09, 2025 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:23]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: This hour, Israel's cabinet meets to discuss the Gaza ceasefire plan, which could see the release of Israeli hostages as soon as
Monday.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
A meeting with Israeli security cabinet has ended. Now the full Israeli cabinet is meeting to vote on the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan. The
initial phase, believed to include the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza to an agreed upon line, the release of all hostages, living and dead,
the release of some Palestinian prisoners and detainees, and for crossings to open so that humanitarian aid can finally be sent into Gaza.
A news of the agreement setting off celebrations in Israel and Gaza. Thousands gathering in Tel Aviv's hostage square to celebrate, amongst them
former hostages and the families of those still held in captivity in Gaza.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROTEM COOPER, SON OF DECEASED HOSTAGE AMIRAM COOPER: The initial feeling, obviously, is some sense of accomplishment, a victory. That's what we're
fighting for, right? We wanted. That's what we -- that's why we're in the streets. That's why we went to the Knesset. That's why we traveled to the
U.S. That's why we talk to world leaders. Thats why there is the Hostage Family Forum. That's why everything that we did in the last two years, to
really bring about that moment where all the hostages are going to be released.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Many in Gaza hoping this agreement will lead to a long awaited comprehensive peace deal.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Thank God the war has ended and the truce has come into effect. It's an indescribable feeling of joy and
happiness beyond words. We hope Gaza returns to better days. We thank the Egyptian and Qatari presidents for standing with us during the war on Gaza.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): On this glorious day, by the grace of God, the war has stopped. Praise be to God. Everyone is happy and I am
happy myself.
But at the same time, I hope the war never returns. Two years of massacres, bombardment and death for the people of Gaza and global failure not only
Arab. Thanks be to God. He answered our prayers, and by his grace the war stopped.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Jeremy Diamond joins us from Hostage Square in Tel Aviv.
So, Jeremy, the cabinet meeting is taking place. This is -- there isn't technically a deal that Israel has agreed to until the cabinet signed off
on it. So how long do you think this is going to take?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: It is a formal step that needs to happen in order for this agreement to actually go into effect.
We don't, however, expect that there will be anything to sidetrack the cabinet from actually approving this deal. That doesn't mean, however, that
it's going to be a short process necessarily. We have seen before that sometimes during these very consequential cabinet votes, the various
ministers at the table will each want to deliver quite lengthy remarks, and that is likely to happen here again, particularly from those who have
reservations or who outright oppose this agreement, such as Israel's national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, and the finance minister,
Bezalel Smotrich.
And so this could be a process that takes several hours here. But once that vote happens and this deal is approved, a ceasefire will immediately go
into effect in the Gaza Strip. Israeli troops will begin to reposition themselves inside of Gaza. An initial withdrawal, if you will, of Israeli
forces within the Gaza Strip, then this 72-hour clock begins for the release of those Israeli hostages.
And so that could put us to Sunday or perhaps Monday for the release of Israeli hostages to actually take place. Keep in mind, 20 of whom we
believe to still be alive, 28 bodies of hostages, not all of which Hamas knows the location of. And that is another potential wrinkle in this
process going forward, in addition to all of that, of course, humanitarian aid set to surge into the Gaza Strip in enormous amounts.
And of course, as you are seeing behind me here, the celebrations that are underway at Hostage Square to the concert with people really in a very
festive mood, eagerly anticipating the arrival of these hostages. We have seen scenes of celebration playing out in Gaza as well, where Palestinians
are finally relieved to see this two year long war come to a close. Two years during which they have lost so, so much more than 67,000 Palestinians
have been killed, according to the Palestinian health ministry. Over those two years.
And of course, the destruction that has been wrought in the Gaza strip as well. And then for the hostages, more than two years of captivity,
oftentimes in horrendous conditions.
[15:05:05]
But their loved ones now waiting for them to return home in the coming days, Max.
FOSTER: Okay, I can only imagine the excitement there.
Jeremy, thank you so much.
President Trump says he'll travel to the region soon to mark this moment in history. He says he plans to visit Israel and may even speak at the Israeli
parliament as well, following an invitation from the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu. He's also planning a stop in Egypt.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We ended the war in Gaza and really on a much bigger basis, created peace. And I think it's going to be
a lasting peace, hopefully an everlasting peace. I'm going to try and make a trip over. We're going to try and get over there, and we're working on
the timing, the exact timing. We're going to go to Egypt, where we'll have a signing.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Let's go to Kevin Liptak. He's at the White House.
Obviously, the president very keen to take credit for this deal, but reality is it wouldn't have happened, would it, without his momentum.
KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: I think that's right. And you have seen sort of over the last month or so, the president really kind
of increases pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu in particular, viewing his leverage as sort of at a high point, particularly after those Israeli
strikes in Qatar going after Hamas leaders, the president of taking the view that Netanyahu had overreached and really trying to seize the
opportunity that he thought he had to build momentum around this 20-point plan and get all sides on board.
And I think what you've seen over the past few weeks is the president essentially trying to will this into reality, even as both sides of this
expressed misgivings at various points, whether it was Arab leaders who were worried that Israel had revised too many of the points, at one point,
the Arab countries had asked the White House not to release this plan publicly. But the president did anyway. They ended up getting on board.
And then when Hamas came back and agreed to it. But not all points of it, you know, they said that they would release the hostages but didn't say
anything else about the rest of the plan. Benjamin Netanyahu was a little bit concerned about that. He didn't necessarily take that as a yes, but the
president told him to stop being so negative and sort of pushed him to end the bombing. And that's sort of how he ended up to where we are today.
And so, the president, certainly in a valedictory mood today, suggesting that those hostages could be coming out on Monday or Tuesday and previewing
this trip that he's planning for to the region, which is coming together very, very quickly now, behind the scenes here at the White House.
At the same time, I think the president is acknowledging and his team certainly is acknowledging that there are some outstanding issues here,
whether Hamas will disarm. That's a condition that Netanyahu has set. Who will govern Gaza going forward? Those are all issues that have not been
negotiated as part of this initial phase and will be at the topics of further discussions. The president kind of mentioned them in passing today
with that same optimism, saying that, quote, there will be disarming quote, there will be pullbacks referring to the Israeli military pulling back to
various lines of control in Gaza.
But I think it's still an open question of whether this plan that the president, no question, has brought to the finish line here whether this
amounts to a full peace agreement for the region. That would be certainly historic, or whether this is just a pause in the fighting of the type we've
seen so many times over the last several decades.
But I think at this moment, it's certainly safe to say it's the biggest diplomatic achievement of the president's second term so far. He certainly
hopes it will amount to something bigger, potentially brokering a normalization between Saudi Arabia and Israel. All of these projects that
he thinks will be unlocked by this. But all of it, I think, still remains to be seen as these additional phases still have to be worked out.
FOSTER: Well, we've also got the Nobel Peace Prize being announced tomorrow, so maybe he's got in there in time for that.
Kevin, thank you so much for joining us from the White House.
Now, European leaders welcoming the Gaza plan with supportive reactions pouring in foreign ministers from the region and beyond are in France today
to discuss how exactly that ceasefire plan will actually be implemented and how countries plan to help. Palestinians want, once the war in Gaza does
end.
CNN's Melissa Bell has been following developments from Paris.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This was a meeting here in Paris designed to look at the day after in Gaza. The French
president bringing together not just the Qatari prime minister, but the foreign ministers of several Arab neighbors of Israel, the Arab quint, as
they're known, Jordan, the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, all of those countries that France and their European allies worked with in the run up
to the U.N. General Assembly and the recognition of the Palestinian statehood. All of those involved, it is hoped, also now in the future of
Gaza, the idea to look at contributions to do with security, to do with the rebuilding of Gaza and to look at its future governance.
[15:10:06]
This is what the French foreign minister had to say at the end of the day's meetings.
JEAN-NOEL BARROT, FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTER: A ceasefire is not yet a durable peace. This is the first step in a long path towards a political solution
that will guarantee the security of Israel, recognizing the legitimate right of Palestinians to a state.
BELL: The importance of those Palestinian voices and the importance of the Palestinians within the future governance of Gaza that has been at the
heart of a lot of the conversations here today at the heart also, of why this meeting was held to continue to weigh in on the future conversations
about Gaza and how it will be run. We heard from the French president earlier, after his meeting with the Qatari prime minister, speaking of the
importance of ensuring that a reformed Palestinian authority can play that essential part in the future governance of Gaza, in order that a
Palestinian state can exist.
Emmanuel Macron, also speaking very critically of the settlements in the West Bank as a threat to that Palestinian statehood.
Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: After two years of destruction, displacement, blockades, the humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire. The U.N. Agency for Palestinian
Refugees says it has enough aid for Gaza's entire population for three months. Ready to go. It says aid workers can hopefully get into Gaza now
within a matter of hours.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JULIETTE TOUMA, DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS, UNRWA: It means we can get into Gaza in in three hours, really. I mean, we have stuff here in Jordan, stuff
in in Egypt. We've been waiting for a green light since March. And we have not been able to deliver any supplies. However, our teams on the ground,
UNWRA has 12,000 people. They continue to provide services and they're ready to get those supplies and deliver them directly to people in need.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: For the people of Gaza, there's guarded optimism. But despite the deal, the violence continued earlier today. This explosion was seen several
hours ago from southern Israel.
As CNN's Paula Hancocks reports, Gaza residents hope the deal will hold. But after so much pain and suffering, many remain wary.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): One woman's prayers of thanks that the war is ending as phase one of the Gaza ceasefire plan is
agreed.
What sounds like celebratory gunfire is heard in the distance.
As the sun rises, Gazan residents assess their new reality.
"I feel joy," this man says. "Two years of torment and repression, displacement, lack of food and water. I'm happy the war will end. The
bleeding we see every day will end. The nightmares we see."
This 70-year-old woman says, "It's true. I'm happy in the moment. But now we feel the pain of our memories. I lost my daughters, my brothers'
daughters and their children. Most of our family died and our homes were destroyed."
This man voices concern. He says, "We have seen ceasefires before that lasted two months and then the war returned. It's true, I am extremely
happy but my joy is tinged with caution and fear."
Despite the hope of the promised surge in humanitarian aid, the harsh reality of Gaza has not changed. Two years ago, 12-year-old Mohammed Abu
Ammar (ph) was in school. He's now 14 and this is his life in Gaza, sifting through rotting waste to find anything that he can sell to help his family
survive.
"We collect wood and plastic for fires," he says. Anything else to light a fire with. Two years ago, before the war, I didn't even know where the
garbage dump was."
There are 11 people to feed in his family. He says two of his brothers were killed by a drone strike after being displaced from Gaza City.
This is al-Mawasi in Khan Yunis, an area the Israeli military has forced hundreds of thousands of Gazans to move to over the course of this war.
This is the area Israel calls a, quote, "humanitarian zone."
Hopes that peace will last this time are palpable across Gaza but also tainted by previous disappointments, a peace that some in Gaza have never
even known.
Paula Hancocks, CNN, Abu Dhabi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Coming up, the Israeli prime minister facing some opposition to the ceasefire and hostage agreement. As we speak, we'll discuss with a former
Knesset member.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:15:51]
FOSTER: Let's get you live to Washington. President Donald Trump meeting with the Finnish president, Alexander Stubb.
TRUMP: Meeting you and knowing you. And I heard about Finland and their icebreakers, and I said, do me a favor. Would you have your people take a
look at what these people are doing? And they came out that, just as I thought, they had no idea what they were doing.
And we got involved and we ended up we need -- we need these ships very badly because we have we have a lot of territory, more than anybody. And so
I'm very honored to have this deal.
And thank you very much. It's going to be great. It's going to be a great partnership. And it's a great honor to have you, Mr. Prime Minister.
Would you like to say something, please?
ALEXANDER STUBB, FINNISH PRESIDENT: First, Mr. President, thank you very much. Its' great honor to be here today. And as a prime minister of
Finland, I want to say that this deal is its very important to Finland and our economy because our economy is suffering a lot because of Russian
aggression in Ukraine.
And this, this deal, it means investments. It means jobs and jobs means hope. And that's why this is so important. And I want to thank your
leadership on this deal and this issue. Thank you very much.
TRUMP: So, you've been affected very badly by the war going on, the ridiculous war going on, right?
STUBB: Yes, because we have we have to close the border with Russia. We have 1,300 kilometers common border with them. And it affects the
atmosphere in Finland, in investments. And that's why we need good news. Our people need hope.
TRUMP: Right. So your border is closed, and that's because you have so many Russians and Russians trying to get in?
STUBB: Yes. They started to push illegal migrants to our border. That's why we were forced to close them.
TRUMP: And people also that don't want to go into the military, I guess, trying to come through.
STUBB: Yeah, some of them are escaping. Fortunately, on our side, we don't have that problem in Finland.
TRUMP: You have a great military.
STUBB: Yeah. We -- I mean, we have compulsory military service. And as I always say, we have 900,000 men and women who have done it, including
myself and the prime minister. We have 200 --
TRUMP: And you've been fighting Russia for a long time. So how many years have you been indirectly fighting Russia?
STUBB: Well, put it this way. We have managed our relationship since the 1300s with about 30 skirmishes. But it's been very peaceful at our border
after World War II.
TRUMP: Thirteen (ph) --
STUBB: Yeah, but it's been peaceful at our border since the winter war and the war of continuation. But I mean, a lot of it is because we actually
have a very large military. It's the biggest in Europe, together with turkey, Ukraine and Poland. We have over 60 F-18s. We just bought 64 F-35s.
We rolled out the first one in Texas in December.
We have the biggest artillery in Europe together with Poland. And I always say we don't have it because we were worried about Stockholm.
TRUMP: Well, you really have proportionately, I think, the largest military in the world. Proportionately.
STUBB: It's quite big, yes, I have to admit. But, you know, we have it for defense purposes and also to build a deterrence. And it's worked. And I
think that's one of the reasons that our relationship is so good as well. We have the defense cooperation agreement with you. We're new allies in
NATO. Our defense expenditures going north of 3 percent.
We work very closely with you and the rest of our allies. And, you know, when you push the ceiling of defense expenditure in NATO to 5 percent, you
can imagine that a country like Finland was quite pleased with that, because that means that all of the allies have to bring up their defense
expenditure.
And you basically increased our security just with that decision in The Hague. And I have to admit that having been to my first NATO summit in the
summer of 2024, if someone would have told me that you will move from 2 percent to 5 percent after Trump enters, I would have said, go see a
doctor. But you know --
TRUMP: Well, you had to do it and you were -- you were great about it. Spain has not been. Spain is the one that didn't do it.
And so, I think you people are going to have to start speaking to Spain. The only one that didn't do it, the only NATO country that didn't do it is
Spain. And you'll figure what that's all about, right?
STUBB: Yeah. I mean, we'll work. And I think with the leadership also, Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO.
[15:20:02]
I think, you know, there are a lot of commitments that have to take place. And this is, of course, is going to also increase industrial defense
exchanges. I think we buy four times more military material here from the U.S. and I think it's an essential part of our whole military setup in
Europe. And it's good to be working on this together.
But there's one thing that I wanted to mention also, I want to congratulate you for what we have seen in the past 24 hours in Gaza.
TRUMP: Yeah, thank you.
STUBB: I think it's a historic deal. I went through the 20 points. It's almost like the best of record. You really see all the key elements.
And if someone would have said a few weeks back that you and your team are able to push us to a position where there will be a ceasefire, an exchange
of prisoners, hostages, and then a pullback, I would not have believed it, but it's -- this is what diplomacy is at its best.
TRUMP: Thank you.
STUBB: And I think it's a potentially huge deal. So congratulations to you and your team.
TRUMP: Peace in the Middle East.
STUBB: Peace in the Middle East, yeah.
TRUMP: And every country came together. Every single country came together. And people are shocked by it. But it's an amazing situation. Nobody thought
it was going to happen.
Thank you very much. And you've been of help, too. You helped always. But we are really working more closely together, having to do with Russia,
Ukraine.
STUBB: Yeah, yeah.
TRUMP: And I would have thought that would have been easier because that would be number eight for me. Number eight. And I would have thought the
Russia deal maybe would have been one of the easier ones. And unfortunately, last week, they had over 7,000 soldiers die unnecessarily.
So, it's a terrible thing. But I think we'll be getting there, hopefully soon.
STUBB: Yeah, I'm probably -- will go, I mean, or you will be going piece by piece. I mean, there are only so many agreements that you can get done. And
I think this one will be the next big one. Of course, this one needs to stick, and I'm sure it will, because the incentives are all there. And then
we'll continue to work.
I mean, the last time I was here in the Oval Office was with the other European leaders in August.
TRUMP: That's right.
STUBB: And I think we did a lot of good advancement there on security arrangements. I think you pushed us Europeans hard not to buy oil and gas
from Russia, which I think is a very correct decision. Europe just put down its 19th sanctions package.
I think Russia is actually right now both economically and militarily, not in a very strong place. And I think it's because of the commitments that
we've made to Ukraine. So, you know, day by day on this one.
TRUMP: Yeah, we're going to get it worked out.
(VIDEO GAP)
FOSTER: Okay. We've got a bit of a technical glitch there. We'll try and go back to it because we expect them to take some questions as well. And
there's key questions, isn't there, Kevin, this hour about how the Israeli cabinet meeting is going to go and whether or not they give the final
approval to this ceasefire. And then, as I understand it, the ceasefire is going to start straight away.
LIPTAK: Yeah. And I'll be interested to know whether we'll see a repeat of the scene we saw yesterday when the secretary of state handed the president
a note, essentially saying that the deal was finalized, as this cabinet meeting is underway in Israel, potentially we could see the same thing. And
we did hear that the president's delegation to these talks, the special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son in law, Jared Kushner, have been meeting
with Israeli officials as they try and get this across the finish line.
Of course, this meeting with the Finnish leader, Alexander Stubb, is probably going to focus more on the other conflict that the president is
still trying to work to resolve, which is the war in Ukraine, and you hear him talking and repeating again that this has been a conflict, that he at
one point thought would be very easy to try and wrap up because he has this personal relationship with Vladimir Putin. He thought he would be able to
leverage that and convincing Russia to end the war.
But obviously that has not panned out at all. And I think he is really relying on the Finnish leader to try and convince other European countries,
one, to reduce their dependance on Russian energy, but also to step up their commitments to Ukraine's defense. Now, Alexander Stubb is someone
that the president has quite a close relationship with. They've bonded over golf. Alexander Stubb is quite a good golfer and he's some -- seen as
something of a trusted voice by the president and a representative in some ways, of the European point of view on that war.
One thing that you hear from administration officials as this Middle East deal is coming to fruition, is that they think that this could potentially
lend some momentum to those Ukraine talks. They have not really spelled out why they think that's the case, but you hear it over and over again,
including from Steve Witkoff a few weeks ago, talking about how this could potentially lend some more grease to what the president is trying to do
there. Of course, right now, there's no evidence that that war is any closer to ending. But obviously the president a very intent on trying to
add that to his list of the conflicts he says that he's resolved.
[15:25:06]
FOSTER: As we understand it, the latest we're getting from Israel is that all government ministers were due to convene for a second meeting in
Israel. The cabinet, though this has been delayed while Netanyahu meets with Witkoff and Kushner. What do you make of that?
LIPTAK: I'll be interested to know what their view of Netanyahu's political position is in all of this. Certainly, he is under pressure and has been
under pressure from for some time now from those on the hard right of his political coalition to take a very sort of unrelenting stance on Gaza, to
not let up on going after Hamas, to sort of continue the war going forward. And I think Netanyahu may be looking for some sort of political
reassurances from these two men that he can bring to this cabinet meeting later to get them on board with this proposal.
And so, I think in these discussions, these are -- these are people that know each other quite well. Jared Kushner, you know, there's an anecdote
from his time as a young man that Netanyahu actually slept in his bedroom in New Jersey. The Kushners and the Netanyahus are close family friends.
And so, I think now that Jared Kushner is a very central player in these discussions, it really just began this week.
This is someone who I think can speak with Netanyahu, sort of man to man, friend to friend, and sort of convince him and maybe sort of develop a way
to bring this proposal to the cabinet in a way that will get it approved and will be satisfying both to Netanyahu and his coalition partners, but
also to President Trump, who's very eager to see this deal finalized.
FOSTER: And you'll be eager to hear what he's saying in that meeting. We've got the signal back. So, let's go back to the White House.
TRUMP: Nobody in history has solved eight wars in a period of nine months. And I've stopped eight wars, so that's never happened before. But they'll
have to do what they do. Whatever they do is, is fine.
I know this, I didn't do it for that. I did it because I saved a lot of lives. And that's the thing that bothers me so much about the Russia,
Ukraine -- 7,000 people are dying a week, young soldiers -- almost all soldiers of Ukraine and Russia. So, in theory, it doesn't affect us. No,
but it's a terrible thing. And we'll get that solved, too.
But nobody has ever done eight wars. Nobody has done eight wars in 30 years, let alone nine months.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Are you going to step up way you step up the pressure for Ukraine deal, particularly on --
TRUMP: Yeah, we are stepping up the pressure. We're stepping it up together. We're all stepping it up.
NATO has been great. The leader of NATO, as you know, Mark, has been fantastic, I think. I think he's a fantastic guy. And they are stepping it
up.
And we're selling a lot of weapons to NATO. And that's going, I guess, to Ukraine for the most part, that's up to them. But they're buying weapons
from the U.S. We make the greatest weapons in the world. You buy our planes and a lot of our equipment, and you have a big force. Actually, you have a
tremendous force of equipment.
So, I think we'll get that one done, too. Yeah.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Mr. President, I'm from Finland. Mr. President, I'm from Finland. Yeah, yeah.
TRUMP: Is he okay?
REPORTER: I'm okay.
STUBB: He's all right.
REPORTER: I'm all okay.
Mr. President --
TRUMP: You'll be great.
REPORTER: Yeah. President, you are buying icebreakers from Finland.
TRUMP: Yeah.
REPORTER: But what if Russia and Vladimir Putin attacks Finland? Would you defend Finland?
TRUMP: I would, yes, I would. They are a member of NATO. I would. They're great people.
But I don't think that's going to happen. I don't think he's going to do that. I think the chances of that are very, very small. But it's very
interesting because you have -- a military to your side. You have a very powerful military. One of the best. Certainly, we will -- we will be there
to help.
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: Okay, please?
REPORTER: Mr. President, thank you. We have a big border as our president said. How would you exactly defend Finland and -- yeah. Thank you.
TRUMP: Say what?
REPORTER: How would you defend Finland?
TRUMP: Vigorously.
(LAUGHTER)
STUBB: Can I -- can I just add -- can I just add on that? We are very -- we're very pleased with the fact that we have so much training going on
with American soldiers right now.
TRUMP: That's right.
STUBB: So, they're getting experience from Arctic conditions. And we're integrating our militaries together, working not only through the DCA
agreement, but other ways as well. We see that day to day in the work that we do, and it's working well.
TRUMP: Okay?
(CROSSTALK)
TRUMP: Please?
REPORTER: Yeah. Thank you. How do you see this?
TRUMP: Where are you from?
REPORTER: I'm from Finland, too.
[15:30:01]
STUBB: Yeah, a lot of Finns.
TRUMP: It's very impressive.
REPORTER: So, Mr. President --
TRUMP: Better than our reporters.
REPORTER: Thank you.
So how do you see the situation in the Arctic developing? Are they going to be any mutual plans with for Finland and the U.S. to cooperate?
TRUMP: We have a lot of relationships together. I mean, mostly buying our military equipment. They buy a lot of it. They have an order I guess 60
planes, 60, 64, 64 F-35s and many other things, too. It's a big order. Big countries don't order that many planes, you know, it's --
STUBB: Ten billion. You have a lot of a lot of aircraft, a lot of great military. We make the best military equipment. They buy a lot from us. So,
it's very good.
We're going to work together very closely with Finland and with NATO. We have a very good relationship. As you know, I requested that they pay 5
percent, not 2 percent. And most people thought that was not going to happen. And it happened virtually unanimously.
We had one laggard. It was Spain. Spain -- you have to call them and find out why are they a laggard? And they're doing well, too. You know the funny
thing, because of a lot of the things we've done, they're doing fine. They have no excuse not to do this.
But that's all right. Maybe you should throw them out of NATO, frankly.
Please?
REPORTER: What are you planning to do with that --
TRUMP: Gentleman, nice tall gentleman. Go ahead with the yellow shirt.
REPORTER: Thank you, Mr. President. I wanted to change gears just really quickly and ask you. You're going to Walter Reed tomorrow, are you? What
are you having done? And how are you feeling?
TRUMP: I'm meeting with the troops, and I'm also going to do a sort of semiannual physical, which I do, and I think I'm in great shape. But I'll
let you know. But I -- no, I have no difficulty thus far. Is there wood around here? I'll knock on. No difficulty.
Physically, I feel very good. Mentally, I feel very good. You know, I did about six or seven months ago. I do physicals, I like to when I'm around. I
like to check always early, always be early.
It's a lesson for a lot of people. But I also did a cognitive exam, which is always very risky, because if I didn't do well, you'd be the first to be
blaring it. And I had a perfect score.
And one of the doctors said he's almost never seen a perfect score. I had a perfect -- a perfect score. I got the highest score. And, that made me feel
good when they asked, would I like to do one? I said, yeah.
I said, did Obama do it? No. Did Bush do it? No. Did Biden do it? I definitely did -- Biden wouldn't have gotten the first three questions
right. No, Biden didn't do it. Biden should have done it.
I'm actually a person that believes that if you're president, you should do a cognitive exam. But last time I took a cognitive exam, and it was a
perfect score, the doctors announced it.
And by the way, not the easiest test. The first few questions are pretty easy. Once you get into the middle, it gets a little trickier, and there
aren't a lot of people in this room that would get every single question right. I can guarantee you.
STUBB: You're putting me in a difficult spot now. Next -- next question.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: I believe President Obama got the Nobel peace prize for way less than you did, and you, Obama, President Obama got the Nobel Peace Prize for
way less.
TRUMP: He got it for doing nothing.
REPORTER: Exactly.
TRUMP: Obama got a prize. You didn't even know what he got -- he got elected and they gave it to Obama for doing absolutely nothing but
destroying our country. Now, he was a -- he was not a good president. The worst president was sleepy Joe Biden, but Obama was not a good president.
REPORTER: Are you going to do something with the (INAUDIBLE) prize?
TRUMP: How many months after he won the election, then they gave him the peace prize, right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right after he was elected.
REPORTER: Are you going to take --
TRUMP: My election was a much more important election.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Now that you're fixing the situation between Hamas and Israel, are you going to be taking care of the Hezbollah or armed the Lebanese
armed forces to take care of it?
TRUMP: Yeah, we'll be able to do that. That will be -- it's a smaller part of the puzzle, but very important part. They have a great new ambassador
that I appointed, Michele, great new ambassador. So, yeah. Please?
REPORTER: Mr. President, the hostages will be released on Monday or Tuesday. What's your strict deadline? When do they have to get released.
And how do you --
TRUMP: We think it's going to be Monday or Tuesday? It's going to be around that time. Yeah. They're working on it very hard. They're in very diverse
parts of the Earth. Okay. They're very, very diverse.
Actually, it's -- they're going to -- I think they're going to come through. I'd be surprised if they didn't. I think it will happen.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Thank you, sir. The 19th point of the 20-point plan said that in the future there could be conditions in which the Palestinians might
eventually get a state. Under what conditions do you think the Palestinians could have their own state in the future?
TRUMP: Well, we'll look at it at the time. We're going to see how it all goes. And, you know, there's a point at which we may do something that
would be a little bit different and maybe very positive for everybody, but we'll be looking at that at the time.
[15:35:00]
REPORTER: Mr. President -- Mr. President --
TRUMP: I think we'll get to that -- I think we'll get to that period, too.
Yeah. Please?
REPORTER: Mr. President --
TRUMP: Yeah, please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last.
REPORTER: Thank you.
Mr. President, the United States has previously said that you would be -- that Europe would have to take more responsibility for its own security.
Are you or the U.S. planning to withdraw some of the U.S. forces from the European soil?
TRUMP: No. We may move some around a little bit.
I'd ask you that question, Pete. Go ahead.
PETE HEGSETH, DEFENSE SECRETARY: I think that's right, Mr. President. We're looking at -- we're very much heartened by your leadership to get NATO to
rise up to 5 percent, which means they can take primary responsibility for defense of the continent. But that doesn't mean America is abandoning NATO
in Europe. But we could look at where our troops are postured. What makes the most sense for America and our NATO allies.
TRUMP: We have a lot of troops in Europe, as you know, a lot. And we can move them around a little bit. But no, basically, we'll be -- we'll be
pretty much set.
Go ahead. What's the second?
REPORTER: My second question would be, are you planning to impose more sanctions on Russia at this point?
TRUMP: I might. Yeah, I might.
REPORTER: Mr. President, your 20-point plan says we will encourage people to stay. Can you confirm that as Gaza is rebuilt, that no one will be
forced to leave?
TRUMP: Nobody's going to be forced to leave. No. It's just the opposite. This is a great plan. This is a great peace plan. This is a plan that was
supported by everybody.
I mean, as I said, they're dancing in the streets of many, many countries right now. It's amazing. I've never seen anything like it. No, we're not
looking to do that at all.
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Do you think that we could see a full withdrawal?
REPORTER: Mr. President, can you cut through the politics on the shutdown? We had another failed vote today. Can you speak to our viewers from Orlando
to Sacramento, what's your message to some of these families tonight facing missed paychecks, potential layoffs and missed benefits due to the
shutdown?
TRUMP: Yeah, I blame the Democrats. They ought to call their local Democrat representative, whether it's a senator or a congressman. And it's their
fault. I mean, they admit it. It's their fault. They campaigned on the fact that they'd never shut down the country, but they want to shut it down.
And, you know, we have the greatest economy. Were the hottest country in the world right now. I think you'd admit that -- the hottest country, we
went from a dead country a year ago to the hottest country in the world. So, I think they probably don't like that.
But, we're doing great. I mean, we're doing great. I would say, my message is call your local representative, congressman or senator and tell them to
get on the ball. The Democrats have caused this problem.
REPORTER: Can I ask one more. Congressman --
TRUMP: Please?
REPORTER: Thank you, Mr. President.
TRUMP: Where are you from?
REPORTER: I'm from Finland.
TRUMP: So nice. Uh-oh. Here we go. Here we go with a killer question.
REPORTER: I would like to circle back to the icebreaker deal. So Finland and the U.S. are strengthening their economic partnership through the deal.
What other areas of cooperation with Finland do you see as possible?
TRUMP: Good question. We're going to be talking about that in a little while. We're going into the next door room, commonly known as the cabinet
room, beautiful room. And we're going to be discussing that, but we'll be doing other things.
It's a wonderful country with wonderful people. Weve had a long-term relationship, but it's never been as close as it is now. We'll be doing
other things.
STUBB: We've been talking about a lot with the president. I mean, two specific fields where I think Finland has strengths. One is quantum and
quantum computing.
TRUMP: Yeah.
STUBB: And we know that that is basically what gives food for thought, for artificial intelligence. That's very important.
The second one is actually networks. And you know that there are two sort of safe and trustworthy western networks right now. One of them is Nokia
and the other one is Ericsson. And actually, 70 percent of all broadband in the United States is Nokia.
So, one of the things that we could work on together is creating the 6G space through networks. And we -- Nokia has 7,000 people working here in
the United States and an American CEO.
TRUMP: Okay. Anybody else?
(CROSSTALK)
REPORTER: Mr. President --
REPORTER: What is the international stabilization force that's going to deploy to Gaza? What is that going to look like? What --
TRUMP: To be determined. Really, to -- I think there's going to be a large group of people determining what it will be, and a group of people funding
it that, are very rich countries are going to be funding it. People want to see this work. It's going to work. It's absolutely going to work.
And it starts. It's already started. We've signed, as you know, everybody's agreed. I think Monday is going to be a very big day, Monday, Tuesday. But
it's going to be depending on where you are. It's going to be a very big day. I think it's going to be a day of great celebration.
There's -- I've never seen anything like it. The streets of so many countries right now, they're just roaring with love and with praise for the
people that did this. And these are countries that it's -- the whole world came together for this.
[15:40:00]
Even Iran -- and I really thank them for it. Iran came out and said, this is a good thing. This is a very good thing. So, it was terrific. It's been
a terrific experience for me.
Thank you very much, everybody.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you. Thanks, guys. Thank you. Sorry. Thank you, thank you, press. Thank you, press. Let's go. Let's go. Thank you.
FOSTER: Meanwhile, the meeting there in front of the press with the Finnish president, U.S. President Donald Trump talking mainly Kevin to Ukraine,
because that's, you know, Finland's at the front lines of that, but also giving some more context about this Middle East peace deal. We're hoping --
or ceasefire deal, we're hoping to hear about from Israel any moment in the next few hours.
He was asked about a Palestinian state. He did answer it, didn't he? He wasn't completely negative to the idea, but he couldn't speak to what shape
it might have.
LIPTAK: He wasn't negative, but he didn't endorse the idea either, which he said that they were thinking about doing something different, quote. I'm
not sure what exactly that means, but I do think it's important, given a Palestinian state, whether that is an aspiration that the Palestinians can
expect as part of this deal is going to be a big sticking point in the future negotiations, in the next phase of these talks.
Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has suggested that a Palestinian state would pose a threat to Israel's security. But the Hamas
negotiators have insisted that that be part of any sort of agreement to end the conflict. The president, I think, probably recognizes that there is a
major gap between the two sides and is kind of skirting the issue, neither endorsing nor turning it down.
He did that, I think, with Benjamin Netanyahu last week as well. I think it's probably sort of a recognition that this is going to continue to be a
sticking point going forward.
He was also asked about the idea of an international stabilization force for Gaza. And there, too, he didn't really have many specifics to offer,
because that hasn't necessarily been sort of detailed in some of these discussions that the two sides have been having. They have left that for
the future talks.
The president clearly focused right now on getting the hostages out, leaving some of these other details for the future.
I do think on Russia and Ukraine, it was interesting that the president again said that he's ready to ramp up pressure on Vladimir Putin, when he
was asked whether he would apply sanctions on Moscow, he said, I might. Of course, he's been saying this for quite some time now, months. I think that
he has left that as an open possibility. He said continually that Europe would need to step up, that it would need to cut off its purchases of
Russian energy. The president, still holding out this opportunity option of his going forward to increase the pressure on Putin, but clearly not ready
to do that just yet.
He also suggested that he would, quote, vigorously defend Finland if it was attacked by Russia. Of course, it's been a tense several weeks in NATO
along the eastern flank, as Russia continues these drone incursions into airspace of NATO members, the president saying that, yes, he would defend
that country and defend NATO if there was sort of an open invasion, which I think is a reassuring set of words from the president for countries that
haven't always necessarily been confident that the president would uphold that Article Five clause in the NATO treaty.
FOSTER: Okay. Kevin, thank you so much.
That's the latest from the White House. Still waiting to hear from Israel about this ceasefire deal being signed off. It could take a couple of
hours, a lot of debate to be had in the cabinet there. We'll bring you the latest as we get it.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:47:33]
FOSTER: We'll keep a close eye on those Israeli government meetings this hour. Officials say Israel's security cabinet has met. Now, meeting of the
full government has just begun to vote on a ceasefire plan. The initial phase of the ceasefire, believed to include the withdrawal of Israeli
troops from Gaza to an agreed upon line, the release of all hostages, living and dead, the release of some Palestinian prisoners and detainees,
and for crossings to open so that humanitarian aid can be sent into Gaza.
Still, so much we don't know about this deal, though, and issues that need resolving. Amongst them, the disarmament of Hamas, the timeline and
conditions for an Israeli military withdrawal from Gaza, the future governance of the enclave, and security guarantees that Israel will not
resume the war.
A list of Palestinian prisoners to be released also has not yet been finalized. Negotiations ongoing in Egypt about that. Then there's the
massive task of reconstruction and aid. Many of Gaza's people are starving. Vital infrastructure. Infrastructure has been destroyed. Homes lie in
ruins.
As you can see, Nic Robertson is live for us in Cairo.
I don't want to under -- you know, estimate what has been achieved so far, but there is so much more ahead. Although I'm seeing that Hamas is putting
out statements that the war is over. That really isn't the case, though, is it, yet?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: It really feels at the moment that that this is in a -- in a position for Hamas to have agreed, as
they've said, they believe that they've got the guarantees that this is an end to the war. They've got the guarantees and support of the of the United
States. They've got the guarantees and support of the mediating countries Turkey, Qatar, Egypt. And this gives them the confidence, they say, to go
forward.
And it really is, as you were mentioning, all eyes on the Israeli government meeting right now, 26 different ministers, all of them will get
to speak. Some of them may speak at length. It wouldn't be unusual if the meeting that began in the past half an hour lasted several more hours,
effectively in the early hours of Saturday morning before the actual ceasefire goes into place.
And, you know, we got a sense of frustration among Arab leaders, if you will, that the ceasefire Israel hasn't agreed and gone on to a ceasefire at
an earlier stage. President Sisi met with Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff who have also just met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
[15:50:03]
When the Egyptian president met with them, he stressed the importance of getting onto a ceasefire as soon as possible.
And in the past couple of hours, there's been a strike. We understand in Khan Younis, a big strike there in Khan Younis. So, I think for -- you
know, for partners in this region who've worked to get this deal they will be sitting there knowing that the Israeli government is very likely and
almost undoubtedly, were told, going to vote in favor, but wondering perhaps, why couldn't this have happened earlier in the day? Why couldn't
this move have moved ahead? Maybe that strike in Khan Younis wouldn't have been necessary.
But all of this is going to play into the mood music as you suggest of all the other issues that have yet to be decided because it's going to be trust
that has already sort of begun to be tested, if you will and will be tested further because its trust that's going to be what's required to take these
other steps in the 20-point plan, Max.
FOSTER: Nick in Cairo, thank you so much. Watching from there, as we all are around the world on this crucial cabinet meeting that's just got
underway in Israel.
Joining me now, Ofer Shelah, a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies in Israel.
So, we know the security cabinet has happened. That must have gone okay for them to move on to the wider cabinet, right? And we've had this meeting in
between, between Netanyahu and the key U.S. negotiators. What do you make of that?
OFER SHELAH, SENIOR RESEARCH FELLOW, ISRAEL'S NATIONAL SECURITY POLICY: I don't -- I don't know that the main topic of discussion between Netanyahu
and the. American negotiators was the -- related to the government decision. I think the political players in Israel, including on the hard
right of Netanyahu's coalition, have already made up their mind.
They are not going to break up the coalition right now. They're going to build a narrative around their in a way, backing off of their promises or
their threats to do that. And I don't think Netanyahu will have problems at this stage of passing the resolution in his government.
FOSTER: And as we understand it, from Israeli officials, that the ceasefire would be effective straight away. So the fighting would stop tonight.
SHELAH: Yeah. The -- I think the first phase of the agreement and you were very right. And I've been listening to your show, a lot of commentators
were very right about the fact that we don't really know what's going to happen next. But we do know that the first phase is going to be a pretty
easy, not easy on anybody, but pretty easy to decipher, to understand what's going to happen. And it's going to be physical.
There's going to be a ceasefire. There's going to be a certain withdrawal of Israeli forces, and then there's going to be the release of, if not all
hostages, at least the hostages. And probably most of the bodies of those who are who are already dead. And that, in a sense, is easier to do because
we're talking about physical facts on the ground.
What's going to happen next? I don't know, I don't think anybody knows. It's so -- it'll be so easy for either Hamas or Israel to disrupt this sort
of vague process that everybody is talking about. But I think for Israelis, it will be a really a day of almost a national holiday when the hostages
come back home.
FOSTER: I mean, what a moment for Israel, right? And everyone pinning their hopes on seeing that moment. Also, lots of Palestinians hoping to see those
locked up in Israeli prisons as well.
On the U.S. negotiators, I just want to ask you about this because we've literally just heard that Donald Trump's son in law, Jared Kushner, and the
special envoy, Steve Witkoff, haven't just met with Netanyahu. They've actually joined the Israeli government meeting, which is due to sign off on
this deal. What do you make of that?
SHELAH: Well, let's be honest, both sides, both Israel and Hamas are being coerced here. Israel is being coerced by the American, the Trump
administration and the personification of it is the participation of Mr. Witkoff and Mr. Kushner. But just think about the call that Netanyahu made
to the Qatari prime minister apologizing for the Israeli attack from the Oval Office with the Qatari representative present, and basically, you
know, just saying words that were dictated to him. You don't do that if you're not pressured personally by the president of the United States.
And on the other side, you have the pressure on Hamas by mostly Turkey and Qatar. And if you look at it, if you want to broaden it, if you're going to
broaden the view for a second, I think Turkey, Qatar and the Gulf States, Saudi Arabia and the UAE are really the winners of this -- not the war, but
the situation right now.
[15:55:09]
And the two sides who have shed blood, who have suffered so much, we and Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza, I don't know if we want anything in
that. And that may be a lesson for historians, but right now, those are the powers that actually determine together, of course, with the Trump
administration, with the president himself, what's going to happen next.
FOSTER: Okay. Well, we're expecting that update any time tonight. And then the ceasefire could actually be in place tonight, which is an extraordinary
moment. It's been moving very, very quickly.
Ofer Shalah, really appreciate your context on this. As he says, there's -- you know, this is just the first phase of a wider peace plan, and we're
nowhere near the end of it. But there's a real hope that certainly in terms of Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners, there's going to be some
movement there.
That's WHAT WE KNOW.
"QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" up next.
END
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