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What We Know with Max Foster
Cuba's Power System Suffers Total Collapse; Trump Wants Allies To Help With Security In Strait Of Hormuz; Kallas: Not Europe's War, But Out Interests Are At Stake; Pakistani, Indian Tankers Cross Strait Of Hormuz; Lebanon: Israel's Attacks Have Displaced One Million People; U.S. Airport Security Lines Grow As TSA Goes Without Pay. Aired 3-4p ET
Aired March 16, 2026 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:00:22]
ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST; The electrical grid keels over in Cuba.
This is WHAT WE KNOW.
Cuba has been plunged into darkness after its power grid completely collapsed. It's still daylight at the moment, but inside that is the scene.
It's the first nationwide blackout since the Trump administration effectively shut off the flow of all oil to the island nation.
Let's go to Patrick Oppmann, who's in Havana. Actually, Isa is with us as well.
Obviously, we're having trouble getting hold of Patrick as well in the situation
ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR, ISA SOARES TONIGHT: And look, I've spoken to Patrick about this before. He was saying to me he paid something like $300
just for a tank of oil or petrol for the black -- on the black market. But this is -- this is -- I know it's daylight right now in Cuba, but this is
the first time that we are seeing a nationwide blackout that we will see later on tonight. This is coming from the grid --
FOSTER: In the past, because we've talked about.
SOARES: Localized, localized blackouts, but not nationwide. But what you will expect to see, and this is coming by the way, from the grid operator
inside Havana, is we likely to see tonight is Cuba literally and figuratively in the dark? And this is huge. That speaks to the pressure,
Max, that we have seen, the pressure campaign that we have seen from President Trump. Cuba is running on fumes. It's practically as you said.
It's on its knees here.
And we have heard from Trump just on Sunday saying that Cuba wants to make a deal. We have heard from President Miguel Diaz-Canel of Cuba saying they
are speaking to U.S. officials. What we don't know exactly what that negotiations entails, but being pushed, of course, to negotiating table.
FOSTER: Okay, well, we can hopefully speak now to Patrick.
Patrick, saying it's a complete blackout and that's quite rare.
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is the first time since this oil blockade has happened that we have had an entire island wide blackout. What
is concerning about this? And, you know, just about a week or so ago, there was a blackout and a good chunk of the island. But of course, when you have
power in one area of the island, you can use that to get the other areas of the island back online.
Like you essentially used one car to jump another car. That is how they have been doing it here. When you have an island wide blackout, engineers
have told me it is much more complicated to get other power stations back online because you have no power anywhere. So, at the moment we are using
our generator, which of course runs on fuel. Fuel that is in short supply at the moment to come to you live.
I've, you know, been telling our colleagues we only can do this for a couple of hours because we will run out of gas ourselves. You extrapolate
that to an entire country, and that is a picture that we're looking at right now. Very few people have generators. Even less people have the fuel
to run those generators at the moment.
So for regular Cubans, this is really going to impact the -- as this goes on for potentially days and days because that's usually how long it lasts
and, and better circumstances, peoples food begins to spoil. It's already gotten very hot on this island. You don't get water usually here when
there's no power. So, it goes from being an uncomfortable situation to really a humanitarian crisis very, very quickly.
And previously, when we've had an island wide blackout which has become more and more frequent as Cuba's aging infrastructure fails, it can last a
couple of days. It's very uncomfortable now as there is no oil coming to this island. It's been three months since any oil is coming into this
coming this island according to officials, the concern is, has Cuba run out of oil, as so many expected, would have happened weeks ago. But the
government has strategic reserves. We don't know how much. We don't know if there's any left in those strategic reserves. And especially if this island
is going to be in the dark for the near future.
FOSTER: Yeah. So, they need to use that to trigger the wider system. But just explain quickly. I don't want to take too much of your time, Patrick,
about the government response to this presumably, Trump wants them to speak. Are they talking about negotiations to at least get some fuel in?
OPPMANN: You know, it's been so interesting because for weeks we've been hearing that there are talks going on between the U.S. and Cuba. Cuban
officials said they simply were not interested in negotiating under pressure. And then last Friday, the government here, the president came out
and said that, yes, Cuba would proceed, would move forward with negotiations.
It's probably no accident now that on Monday, this country is in a blackout obviously, they have more information about the reserves of oil here. They
knew that they were running low by their own admission. Have they run out? We don't know that.
[15:05:01]
But at this point, every day, every hour that goes on, they have less here because none is coming in. And the situation, I'll say in terms of
blackouts, has just become more and more dire throughout the last several days. The blackouts have gotten longer and longer. My neighborhood,
sometimes up to 20 hours a day.
Over the weekend, we actually saw in one small town, protesters attack the communist party headquarters of that town. Of course, the government
responded. There was a crackdown. They've warned people not to do that.
But as people become more and more desperate, they simply lose fear or feel they have nothing left to lose.
FOSTER: Okay. Patrick, appreciate it. We'll let you turn that generator off for now.
Isa, Trump warned this would happen, he expected it to happen. How is he going to play it?
SOARES: Well, he warned, because he is part -- he's the one effectively doing this. He put in a blockade as you heard from Patrick. He put on a
blockade.
Just for context for our viewers, Cuba depended heavily on Venezuelan oil since of course, Maduro's in the operation in Venezuela. Maduro was taken
to United States. Delcy Rodrguez in charge. All the oil has been pretty much controlled by the United States. So, the U.S. basically said, no, no
more oil going to Cuba to try and pressure the Cuban regime and the government to come to the table.
FOSTER: To do what?
SOARES: Well, to find a way out of this to, to have someone --
FOSTER: What, regime change? I mean, what is it?
SOARES: Well, exactly. This is -- it's not clear. We know that they want ala Delcy Rodriguez. I think they're trying very much to change the people
in charge we know there have been conversations with various voices within the regime. What is not clear who's who exactly they want to actually get
out.
Is it -- is it the president, Miguel Diaz-Canel? Is it someone else? Is one of the Castros? That is not clear. And the message -- it hasn't been as
clear as what we've heard from Venezuela, but clearly, the pressure, the economic pressure is having an impact because it's forcing the Cubans to
come to discussions.
The bigger picture is, of course, we heard from Patrick is those who can afford it will buy $300 of tanks of oil to actually keep generators
running. But there's a bigger question here, and that is humanitarian. It's getting very hot in Cuba, as you said, their temperatures are rising. Weve
got bakeries running on fire.
FSOTER: No water, Patrick said.
SOARES: We've got no water. Patrick, I think he said he paid about $150. And then you have food going off. And then hospitals who need fuel to keep
-- actually conduct some of these operations. It has a knock on effect.
And then if people can't afford that, then you're going to see protests in the streets, part potentially -- part of the strategy from the United
States. We'll see.
FOSTER: Isa, appreciate it. Thank you very much.
Donald Trump says, meanwhile, it's time for the rest of the world to step up and help him secure the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. president said the
joint bombing campaign with Israel has destroyed most of Iran's military capabilities. He expressed disappointment at allies who've been hesitant to
get involved and help reopen vital shipping lanes in the Persian Gulf.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONALD TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Some are very enthusiastic and some are less than enthusiastic, and I assume some will not do it. I
think we have one or two that will not do it, that we've been protecting for about 40 years at, you know, tens of billions of dollars, Mr. Speaker.
So, I'll be reporting that to you in the House and the Senate.
And I'll say, why are we protecting countries that don't protect us? We don't need anybody. We're the strongest nation in the world. We have the
strongest military by far in the world. We don't need them.
But it's interesting. I'm almost doing it in some cases, not because we need them but because I want to find out how they react.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: President Trump is warning that NATO faces a, quote, "very bad future if it doesn't assist." Germany's response was, it's not NATO's war.
The German government has again reiterated that it would not participate in any activity in the strait, and the E,U.'s foreign policy chief has offered
a similar response.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KAJA KALLAS, EUROPEAN COMMISSION VICE PRESIDENT: This is not Europe's war, but Europe's interests are directly at stake. Today, we discussed options
to better protect the shipping in the region. E.U. already has naval operations in place. We have a speed that plays a key role in safeguarding
the freedom of navigation.
There was in our discussions clear wish to strengthen this operation. But for the time being, there was no appetite in changing the mandate of the
operation Aspides for now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Let's get to the White House for the latest, CNN's Alayna Treene.
I thought it was really interesting, Alayna, listening to the president speak there. He's warned hasn't he, that you know, when he talks about
NATO, that Europe wouldn't come to help America and he's almost framing this Hormuz crisis around that.
ALAYNA TREENE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, almost as a barometer.
[15:10:01]
He said at one point, and you played it, Max, this idea that, you know he said he doesn't even need some of these other countries to help reopen the
strait, but he just wants to see how they would respond.
A couple of notes I would make for context. One is I would remind you that there was only one time that Article Five of the NATO alliance was actually
invoked, and that was in the immediate aftermath of the attacks on the World Trade Center, in the aftermath of 9/11. So, of course, that was an
attack on the United States.
But also, I'd remind you that this is really the first time we've heard such an eagerness and urgency from President Trump about trying to involve
U.S. allies in this war. Many of these countries were not consulted before the United States decided to launch these strikes in conjunction with
Israel. And many said that they had learned of this attack, you know, once it was actually unfolding.
And so, I'd keep some of that in mind. But yes, this is also something I'd also take some of these threats and warnings. Particularly, we heard the
president yesterday on Air Force One telling reporters almost this ominous threat that we will remember. That was his message to other countries, if
you do not come to the United States, aid here and heed the presidents calls to send some of their warships through the Strait of Hormuz.
This is coming from a president who has openly mused with this idea of withdrawing U.S. support for NATO. So, again does give a level of
seriousness, even more so seriousness to what the president is saying here. But there's a couple other things that the president has pointed out. One
of the reasons he is saying that he believes this is necessary, and he believes that other countries should want to help reopen the Strait of
Hormuz, is because the U.S., he argues, does not get as much oil from that critical waterway in the Persian Gulf. Many of the countries the president
has called on actually rely on the Strait of Hormuz more than the United States does.
But also, it all comes back to this idea of showing the United States and in the president's mind and in his words, that they are willing to step up
and help here. At one point, when he was talking about the United Kingdom, he's used this anecdote about how, you know, calling on the prime minister,
Keir Starmer, to send you know different naval ships and you know, different aircraft carriers to the region.
He said, "I want that help now. I don't want them to wait until the war is over. So I think this just gives you how the president is looking at this
and what lens they are looking at this through." And it all comes, of course, some of the urgency we're seeing here is because the Strait of
Hormuz being closed right now with Iran continuing to fire projectiles at these tankers, trying to pass through.
That is a serious problem, of course, for the United States, but also globally, we are seeing oil prices spike every day. That this is closed, it
becomes a bigger problem. Starting to see that back home. Back here in the U.S., gas prices have been climbing, something that has worried a lot of
people.
Politically, of course, this Trump administration especially. And so, all of that adding to this extraordinary amount of pressure, we are now seeing
the president put on different allies, but also all of them thus far, really refraining from trying to commit to heeding the president's calls to
send those warships to help reopen it -- Max.
FOSTER: Alayna, at the White House, thank you so much for that.
Well, President Trump lobbies for U.S. allies to help address disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, Iran's foreign minister insists these straits is
open, just not to everyone.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ABBAS ARAGHCHI, IRANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: The Americans are asking other countries to come and help them so that the Strait of Hormuz remains open,
which, of course, from our perspective, it is open. It is only closed to our enemies, for those who carried out unjust aggression against our
country and to their allies.
We have not sent any message to the U.S. We are not asking for a ceasefire, but this war must come to an end in a way that it will not be repeated
again.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Indeed, there are signs that Iran may be allowing select shipments across the Strait of Hormuz. Three Pakistani oil tankers have crossed the
strait in the past 10 days. That's according to Pakistani shipping sources and ship tracking data. On Saturday, two Indian tankers carrying liquefied
petroleum gas safely passed through the strait.
Let's get to CNN's Nic Robertson in Kuwait City.
What's the Iranian tactic here? Is this to help the world get some oil or just to show who its friends are?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: If we look at the way that Iran has behaved in the past and the way it's understood to behave
here in the Gulf, it tries to divide countries away from each other. It tries to put division between the Gulf allies, and partners here have shown
themselves to be very resolved and strong. Normally when it would escalate, it would attack a couple of the GCC countries and not some of the others.
It would leave Saudi Arabia to later, but it's attacking all of them.
So, the message has become to all of them that they're all under attack. But I think what Iran is doing by this is signaling -- well, if you're not
against us, then you're perfectly free and open to pass your oil through the Gulf. And obviously, they look at the divisions that are really
bubbling to the surface today with President Trump doubling down, wanting the Europeans to stand up and commit to him really using very tough and
blunt diplomatic language to do it, knowing that these European leaders are in tight political corners at home, where populations are becoming more and
more disenchanted with President Trump's language and pressures.
So the Iranians are, in a way, are saying, look, you know walk away from America, don't have anything to do with this. Take your planes home and
then your ships can come through. That's clearly not going to happen but it's that kind of tactic that I think is in play here.
And perhaps one of the most fascinating things in a sort of a diplomatic point of view today is you have heard the pushback from the German
Chancellor Merz saying, no way. He's said from the beginning he's not going to put ships in the Strait of Hormuz while there's a war on to keep those
passageways open. Keir Starmer saying, I need a legal basis and I need a clear, a clear plan, which really tells President Trump that he doesn't
have a legal basis, and Keir Starmer doesn't believe he has a clear plan before he will put British troops in harm's way.
I say it's a fascinating day from a diplomatic point of view simply because you haven't heard that from the Gulf leaders here who are right here next
to Iran. And it's -- and it's not because they're not shocked with the way that President Trump has started this war without really consulting
surprising them. But they also know that Iran will try to up the ante with them if they come out publicly and get into this discourse, this
diplomatic, public discourse about where they stand, where they don't stand, they don't want to lose the United States support. They don't want
to anger the Iranians further.
You know, standing in a country like this, one thing many people say, look, it feels pretty safe here. Sirens were going off. We felt safe on the
streets. They said they didn't run and take cover.
But they know that Iran has the possibility to up the ante, target desalination plants, target desalination plant here. People need that water
to live target the power generation facilities here. People need that power to live.
So, there's a real sense here that they're in a tight spot. They don't want to be going one way or another because they don't want that escalation, and
in this diplomatic environment, Iran would love nothing better than to say to them don't side against us and well treat you fairly. They understand
what Iran is trying to do. They're not going to go down that path.
But I think that's the answer to Iran's tactic here. Divide and conquer. But there's no conquering to be had, I believe.
FOSTER: Okay. Nic, appreciate it. Thank you, joining us from Kuwait City.
Lebanon says Israel's attacks on Hezbollah have displaced more than a million people. There are Israeli tanks inside Lebanon. We can see them
here from earlier on Monday. Israel's defense minister says the troops are working there, in his words, to remove threats.
CNN's Jeremy Diamond joins us live from Tel Aviv.
Is this a -- technically a ground war now, Jeremy?
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's certainly an expansion of what we've already been seeing over the course of the last
couple of weeks, which is Israeli forces are operating inside of southern Lebanon. This is now an expansion of that ground operation, but it is not
yet the kind of full-fledged ground invasion of southern Lebanon that Israeli officials have been discussing now, and considering for at least a
week. That's because what we're seeing is Israeli forces are still in the kind of frontline villages in southern Lebanon. One official explained the
difference to me earlier today, as whereas before they might have been a few hundred meters in. Now they might be a few kilometers inside of
southern Lebanon.
But they're certainly not going all the way to the Litani river, up to 25 kilometers away from that Israeli Lebanon border. But the Israeli defense
minister, talking about this latest phase of this ground operation as being aimed at removing threats in those southern Lebanese villages, specifically
the anti-tank missile threat that faces residents of northern Israel. And, he says to destroy terrorist infrastructure in these border adjacent
villages inside of Lebanon.
We do know, however, that Israeli officials are still considering that broader ground operation. Tens of thousands of Israeli troops are being
mobilized. Some of those are being sent to that northern border to prepare for the possibility of a broader ground operation.
But what we're certainly seeing now in Lebanon in terms of an Israeli offensive standpoint, is more focused on artillery and airstrikes not only
in southern Lebanon, but also, of course, in the Lebanese capital of Beirut. And as a result of that, we've seen mass displacement of civilians,
more than a million people displaced now, according to Lebanese authorities.
There's also been a significant toll in terms of the death toll in Lebanon. More than 800 people have been killed. At least 100 of those are children
according to Lebanon's health ministry.
And again, while we know that there are discussions about the potential for diplomacy to try and bring about talks between Israel and Lebanon directly,
even so far, nothing actually concrete or tangible to grasp on and to give people in that country some real hope -- Max.
FOSTER: All right. Jeremy Diamond in Tel Aviv, appreciate it. Cheers.
Well, coming up, TSA workers in the United States have been working without pay for weeks now. Passengers are being asked to donate food to their
security staff, would you believe? Details on that just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:23:34]
FOSTER: If you're flying from a U.S. airport this week, you could be waiting for hours in a security line. With a partial government shutdown at
the Department of Homeland Security, in effect, TSA workers across the country missed their first full paycheck over the weekend. Hundreds of them
have quit, and that's according to the DHS. And it's led to lines like the one you're seeing here.
Louis Armstrong Airport in -- Louis Armstrong Airport in New Orleans, passengers have been told to expect wait times of up to two hours. In
Atlanta, travelers have been told to arrive at least three hours early for flights, and airline bosses are now calling for Congress to take action,
saying the stakes are high, especially with the World Cup coming up and some airports are even asking passengers to donate food and hygiene
products to TSA staff are going without any pay.
What we don't know is how does this airport backlog get cleared?
Joining me now, Mary Schiavo, CNN's transportation analyst.
Mary, thanks for joining us.
MARY SCHIAVO, CNN TRANSPORTATION ANALYST: Thank you.
FOSTER: I mean, how bad is this compared to other incidents we've seen like it?
SCHIAVO: Well, when I was inspector general, in the time -- my time in the federal government, I went through many shutdowns. But now, they're getting
longer. The last one was over 40 days. There's been a 35-day one, the longest one I had before that was many years ago and was 21 days.
But not only are they costly, but when - you know, workers are resilient.
[15:25:01]
They can withstand a partial paycheck. So, the first partial missed paycheck doesn't cause the big problems. It's when you start having full
missed paychecks that workers quit and go on to other jobs, sick leave, call ins go up.
And remember, these TSA workers, they're between, oh, about 47,000 to 50,000 of them. And they are not highly paid government workers. They
aren't paid what members of congress are paid. They made between $35,000 and $50,000. And if you have a family of four in the United States of
America, $35 could actually put you below the poverty line.
So, to put that in perspective as to what they're doing. In the United States of America, we have 45,000 flights a day. That's just U.S. That's
not counting the world. The world has 100,000 and we have almost 3 million passengers a day. That's more than several U.S. states combined.
And they're supposed to do this and their job without pay. And they are admitted by all law after 9/11/2001, the terrorist attacks with four planes
on sites in the United States, the TSA became our last line of defense against terrorism. And every year, they take 6,000 -- well, last year it
was 6,678 guns at the checkpoints, 94 percent of them are loaded.
So, this is a ridiculous situation all caused by Congress, using these hardworking last line of defense against terrorism workers as political
pawns. That's what's going on. I can't say it anymore.
You know, I'm not trying to be dramatic. It's just ridiculous.
FOSTER: Well, it's going to have a huge impact on the World Cup, which the government wants to work smoothly. So perhaps they've got some bargaining
power here.
SCHIAVO: Well, there is bargaining power but, you know, I have to say this is sort of equal opportunity. Both parties have done it to the -- to other
parties over the years. And then there have been efforts to stop this. For example, there was one bill where they would just say, if you don't get the
funding, the departments or the agencies will just go under the previous funding levels until the funding is put in place.
And remember, we didn't have shutdowns until after 1980 and this is an 1884 law. But in 1980, the then attorney general issued an opinion and it said,
no, if you don't have the funding pass, then you have to shut down. And it's got progressively worse over the years.
I think what has to happen and what, you know literally every almost every American knows this as Congress has to come back and fund the government.
And by the way, when Congress doesn't fund the government, they still get their pay. You know, $250,000, $300,000 a year, on top of all the other
perks. And so, there are a lot of ways that that you could change this, but to change it, the law has to change. Or we have to have a new attorney
general opinion that changes the interpretation of this way old 1884 law.
And it's such a complicated thing, but we need these services desperately because people have already forgotten. I never thought it could happen.
September 11th, 2001, 19 hijackers cruised through security and nobody caught the box cutters, mace, and knives that they took through.
And now, here we are again, not paying -- you know, people have to take food. So, we have security against terrorists on airplanes. It's
ridiculous.
FOSTER: Okay. Mary, I appreciate it. Thank you.
Meanwhile, nearly 40 million people are under a tornado watch across vast swathes of the U.S. east as a multi-day storm system brings strong winds
and blizzards to the country.
Take a look at this. Powerful winds lifting this Missouri barn right off its support, sending animals running. While a twister was spotted in the
state of Arkansas, that was on Sunday. Almost zero visibility in parts of the Upper Midwest, after getting up to three feet of snow in the last 24
hours and trees ripped from their roots along with downed power lines, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without power.
Meteorologist Chris Warren has been following the latest for us from Atlanta, joins us now.
Have you got any good news, Chris?
CHRIS WARREN, CNN METEOROLOGIST: I wish I did here, Max. All of what you were just showing us is possible again today. This is day two associated
with this huge system that's bringing blizzard conditions to parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. Severe thunderstorms are the stronger thunderstorms
with damaging winds, hail and tornadoes possible. And behind this system and with this system, very windy conditions and temperatures that will be
below freezing as far south as the south here in the U.S.
Main threats with the severe thunderstorm risk today, damaging winds tornadoes and a lot of lightning. Now it is still possible. Not as likely,
but still possible there could be some of the stronger, more damaging long- lived tornadoes out of this.
[15:30:01]
We haven't seen that yet. We hope that does continue to remain the case throughout the next few hours. Greater chance, though, for strong, damaging
winds just associated with this line of storms or with any of the individual thunderstorms. But also, when you look at this, the green and
the yellow, that's the rain. The purple and the pink colors, that's the winter weather. So, parts of Alabama, Tennessee even Georgia seeing a few
flakes flying or even a little bit of sleet mixed in.
But the immediate threat right now from Florida to the Carolinas mid- Atlantic and parts of the Northeast are these thunderstorms with a lot of lightning associated with these storms always dangerous. The severe
thunderstorm warnings where there could be some very strong winds. Same story down here into North Carolina. There was a tornado warning a little
bit earlier that is expired, also eminent weather here. So, it's either happening, the damaging winds, or it's about to happen in these warning
areas.
Here's the future forecast radar, reasonable idea of what the radar could look like through time. Here's 6:00. Some of the worst of the weather
pushing offshore, South and North Carolina still in Eastern Virginia through D.C. by about 8:00. A little bonus showers and storms afterwards,
but the worst of it moving offshore of -- most areas well before midnight.
And then, boy, that cold air settles in huge difference in a 24-hour period with freeze alerts posted from Texas all the way to North Carolina and as
far north as Arkansas and in Tennessee, with much colder air to the north.
Max, keep in mind these are high temperatures in Chicago both today and tomorrow will not get above the freezing mark.
FOSTER: Chris, thank you.
Still to come, not our war. NATO allies are pushing back on U.S. President Donald Trump's demand that they help to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. We'll
examine that just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:35:25]
FOSTER: U.S. president Donald Trump is once again slamming NATO allies for not stepping up their involvement in the military operation against Iran.
The president today said he's not happy with British prime minister, in particular, Keir Starmer. And he gave a very tepid response when asked
about his French counterpart's willingness to acquiesce to his demands.
Some European leaders are pushing back. In response, the German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, says his country will not take part in this war, while
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says he believes time will show that we made the right approach. Mr. Starmer spoke to President Trump on Sunday.
The call did not result in any immediate announcement of British assets heading towards the strait. The prime minister did say today that the
U.K.'s decision about whether to help should be made carefully, and in the British national interest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEIR STARMER, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: That our decision should be based on a calm level headed assessment of the British national interest and that if
we are to send our servicemen and women into harm's way, the very least they deserve is to know that they do so on a legal basis and with a proper
thought through plan. Now, there are others who would have made a different decision two weeks ago. They would have rushed the U.K. headlong into this
war without the full picture of what they're sending our forces into, and without a plan to get us out.
That is not leading. It's following. My leadership is about standing firm for the British interest, no matter the pressure
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: So what we want to know is, will countries join Donald Trump's coalition in the Strait of Hormuz?
Joining me now, Sir Peter Westmacott, who is the former British ambassador to Washington before Trump's time, of course, Peter.
But you know, there's a lot of pressure on Europe right now. Do you think they will relent at some point?
SIR PETER WESTMACOTT, FORMER BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO U.S., FRANCE AND TURKEY: Well, good to be with you again, Max. I think what's changed is that when
this conflict began, when Donald Trump began his war of choice if you like, as people here have called it, there was an initial strong reluctance to
get involved partly because the law officers in Britain and elsewhere advised heads of government that this was not legitimate and they should
not therefore get involved.
And when it became an issue of the Iranians fighting back and broadening the conflict, it became easier politically as well as militarily to say,
well, we can take action of a defensive nature. Now what we've got is an asymmetric form of warfare with these low cost drones effectively closing
the Straits of Hormuz, which is only 21 miles across and as we all know, a fifth of the world's oil goes through there.
Now, everybody's got a legitimate interest in defending trade, oil, keeping supplies up and prices down. And also, in the U.K.'s case, we've got allies
amongst the Gulf states around there, which used to be British territories whom we wish to protect, and 100,000 Brits who live in Dubai alone.
So, there's a very legitimate reason now why I think British government feels that it's appropriate to take action. The problem is the assets are
very limited. As we all know there have been very few British naval vessels around. There's some airplanes. And not a lot else. But there are now
maritime drones being supplied.
In other words, pilotless small boats, which can take down some of the attacks which are being made against shipping in the Gulf, and we are
providing more airplanes. So, I think the U.K. and others are prepared to be a part of this. But frankly, megaphone negotiations insulting other
heads of government in public rather than having a private kind of grown-up conversation, I don't think is always the best way of getting what you
want.
But I think allies will want to be part of it because they have their own interests now at stake more than they had when Donald Trump, first of all,
said he wanted all NATO allies to join him in this conflict.
FOSTER: The megaphone diplomacy you're talking about -- I mean, it feels like a reality, though, doesn't it at the moment. And you were talking
there about Britain for example, didn't send assets initially, did send them later on. And what angered Donald Trump was why didn't you send them
straight away when we needed help. Aren't the European nations in a at risk of doing the same thing again, not responding straight away, sending
something later on and still dissatisfying President Trump?
WESTMACOTT: Well, stuff can't be delivered overnight although the U.K. and France have sent French warships than us, the U.K. have sent aircraft and
some ground to air missile defenses and so on. Don't forget that, Max, also that the U.K. does play a particularly important role for U.S. defense
interests in that we have got assets around the world, including in Diego Garcia, but also in Cyprus and other places not far from the Middle East,
which we make available to the United States of America.
And these are not about European security. This is not free riding Europeans, you know, sheltering under the American umbrella. These are
things which are really important to Americas strategic interests and which we have made available initially. Of course, as we all know, the prime
minister didn't want either RAF or Diego Garcia to be used for offensive operations. But once it became clear that there was a need for defensive
activity, then the green light was given.
So, there's a lot of that support, if you like. The United Kingdom is able to provide, I'm not sure how much credit Donald Trump is giving the U.K.
government on this but there are those elements and there are other within the bounds of what's available, things that we can do. But one of the
problems we've got is that this conflict has shown that in the United Kingdom, as well as elsewhere in Europe, we have allowed our military
capabilities to be run down, and we've got less kit available, especially at short notice, than we used to have, and probably than the generals and
the admirals would like us to have.
FOSTER: Okay. Sir Peter, as ever, thank you so much for joining us with your insights this evening in London.
Now, as the final moments of trade on Wall Street, stocks are up, the Dow has been solidly higher all session, up by almost 1 percent.
This is our Business Breakout.
The White House says President Trump's upcoming trip to China could be delayed, as the war on Iran is currently his number one priority. Mr. Trump
is scheduled to meet with Xi Jinping later this month, but his press secretary says the dates could be moved.
In football, Chelsea have been hit with a fine of more than $14 million by the English Premier League. The club has -- was found to have breached the
league's rules on financial reporting and payments from third parties. Chelsea have also been hit with a nine month ban on academy transfers and a
one-year ban on first team transfers suspended for two years.
Gas prices in the U.S. are now at their highest levels since the end of 2023. Prices have surged since the start of the war in Iran, with some
trucking companies already adding fuel surcharges. Donald Trump claimed that prices would fall rapidly once the war was finished.
Mohamed El-Erian says Americans will be less well off than they would have been because of the war. The top economist at Allianz says what happens in
the long term depends on how the war actually ends.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MOHAMED EL-ERIAN, CHIEF ECONOMIC ADVISER, ALLIANZ: So, in relative terms, the U.S. economy is better placed than virtually any other economy to
handle the stagflationary wind that's now blowing because of this war, through the global economy. That -- that is unambiguous. But that's a
relative statement.
In absolute terms, growth will be lower, inflation will be higher, and the risk of financial instability will also be higher. So yes, we will
outperform other countries in the -- the U.S. will. However, we will be less well off than we would have been otherwise. That's the short term.
The long term is hotly debated there is some sort of view that this will reduce risk in a meaningful way long term. A lot of that depends, as you
know as to what happens to Iran after this war. And there's many different scenarios there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FOSTER: Well, still to come, President Trump has big plans to change the historic Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. But first, he has to follow a
judge's ruling.
We'll explain.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:47:10]
FOSTER: Well. the Trump Kennedy Center board of trustees voted today to close the arts institution for two years for renovations. During his first
year back in office, President Trump gutted the center's board and installed loyalists who elected him chairman. Today's vote was unanimous.
CNN's senior White House reporter Betsy Klein is at the White House.
Does he have a say on how it ends up looking?
BETSY KLEIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: He likely will, Max. And we've seen President Trump take significant steps to impose his style and
taste on culture here in the nation's capital. The Kennedy Center is no exception.
In addition to gutting its board and installing loyalists, as you mentioned, that board then voted to rename it the Trump Kennedy Center.
They have reimagined the staffing as well as key leadership positions, and then overhauled its programming and secured a $257 million set of funding
from Congress for repairs. Next up is that two-year closure for major renovations, which the board approved just moments ago.
Now, the president earlier today at the beginning of a board meeting, conceded that it was maybe a little late for the board because they had
already announced it. But all of these changes taken together have led to slumping ticket sales, major artists canceling their appearances. And some
saw that as driving the president and his boards desire to close.
Now, according to an agenda for this meeting, they received a presentation on what the changes would entail. There was some discussion, and then there
was the vote. According to the Kennedy Center, that passed unanimously a few moments ago.
Now, most of the board members are Trump loyalists, but there are a number of ex officio members who are designated by congress to serve on the board.
That includes Congresswoman Joyce Beatty of Ohio. She is a Democrat. She did not have a vote today, but she has filed a lawsuit against the
president and the board of trustees. And that lawsuit is twofold. Number one was specific to Monday's meeting she was asking for the Trump
administration to turn over all relevant documents related to these planned renovations, to let her talk during the meeting and to let her have a vote.
A judge ruling partially over the weekend they did allow her to receive those documents, but she wasn't allowed to vote, she said. She voiced her
dissent on this, and she suggested that there were other members of the board who came up to her afterward and expressed some agreement and
solidarity. She did not say who.
Separately, her lawsuit centers around the idea of closure more broadly. She has warned about significant impacts to staffing, to donors, even to
those longtime relationships cultivated with programming and bookings. Now, Beatty says she's totally against how this process has played out, and they
do intend to go to court and ask for an expedited ruling on the closure itself -- Max.
[15:50:03]
FOSTER: Okay. Betsy, at the White House, thank you so much for bringing us that update.
We'll be back in just a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
FOSTER: We've seen the horrors of war and the effects it's had on families. But what about pets?
Well, an online community is helping pets in the United Arab Emirates. They're abandoned by their owners fleeing because of the Iran War.
CNN's Ryan Young has that story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN YOUNG, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Milo and Bruno were two beloved family dogs left alone after their owners fled the Gulf in
the early days of the war. But thanks to an online community of pet rescuers, the pair was adopted in Dubai and now are settling into their new
home.
Bruno and Milo weren't the only ones left looking for a new home. Strict airline rules and paperwork required to travel with pets has caused many
people fleeing the UAE to leave their pets behind.
Now, animal rescuers and shelters in the UAE say they're overwhelmed with the numbers of abandoned pets. In the days following the first strikes, No
Pet Left Behind was created as an online community to help abandoned pets in the United Arab Emirates find foster homes and adopters after their
owners fled the region.
The community uses a Telegram chat forum for advice and discussions among members. They've also used social media as a way to spread the word, and
they now have over 8,000 followers on Instagram.
SHIKA BODANI, CO-FOUNDER, NO PET LEFT BEHIND UAE: You can actually get a lot of resources from the community in terms of people who've already
relocated with their pets, advice on that. And then, of course, we can also put you in touch with people who have applied to be foster homes or
adoptive homes.
YOUNG (voice-over): No pet left behind partnered with three animal rescuers in the UAE, along with connecting people with local organizations, the
community also provides resources for how to relocate out of the region with your pet.
BODANI: We have some amazing volunteers who have stepped forward to help us, who are just amazing, and they do this on a daily basis. And it's
really incredible to see people band together over their love of animals.
YOUNG (voice-over): When UAE resident Anna saw No Pet Left Behind's photo of Milo and Bruno, she reached out to adopt them.
ANNA JENTGEN, UAE RESIDENT WHO ADOPTED BRUNO AND MILO: The fact that you are incapable of doing anything in the situation makes you kind of lost.
So, by being able to support just in the smallest way, by bringing in a pet in your house and taking care of that animal is -- I feel like it just
gives some sort of purpose in this whole situation that we have absolutely no control over.
[15:55:09]
YOUNG (voice-over): She said Milo and Bruno were already feeling at home in her backyard. No Pet Left Behind says about 300 people have already signed
up to foster or adopt animals in need. They say they hope to see many more success stories like this one.
Ryan Young, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
FOSTER: Well, they seem happy enough. I'm Max Foster. That's WHAT WE KNOW. Do stay with CNN.
END
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