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What We Know with Max Foster

Prince Harry And Meghan To Move Back To U.K.; Trump Vows "Crushing Economic Operation" Against Iran; Officials: At Least 17 Killed In Major Attack On Kyiv Region; Israel Moves Ahead With Controversial E1 Settlement Plan; U.S. National Debt Hits $40 Trillion. Aired 3-4p ET

Aired August 20, 2026 - 15:00   ET

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

[15:00:32]

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Prince Harry and Meghan are leaving the U.S. They're making a surprise move back here to the U.K.

This is WHAT WE KNOW.

It's a royal return that surprised many with the move expected to be merely days away. The couple's decision to relocate follows six years in the U.S.

The family have called California home since stepping back from their royal roles in 2020. That status won't be changing, according to King Charles,

who has made it clear that they'll remain non-working members of the royal family. CNN understands the first the King heard about these plans to move

back to the UK was on Sunday.

The move's already prompting a huge amount of speculation, with many wondering what's behind the sudden change and whether or not royal rifts

can really be solved.

Here's what we know so far.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER (voice-over): It's a move nobody saw coming; Prince Harry and Meghan returning to the U.K., six years after they stepped back from

official royal duties and fell out with other members of the royal family.

Both the Duke and the Duchess of Sussex have spoken out repeatedly about the unfair treatment they believe they received in the U.K., including

tabloid intrusion and racism in the British establishment.

In April, Meghan told young people during a visit to Australia --

MEGHAN MARKLE, DUCHESS OF SUSSEX: For now, 10 years. Every day for 10 years, I've been bullied and attacked. And I was the most trolled person in

the entire world. Man, hold on. I'm still here.

FOSTER (voice-over): Why the couple have decided to return now is unclear. A source close to the couple only remarked how much they enjoyed their

visit to the U.K. last month.

In July, King Charles hosted Harry, Meghan and their children at his private country residence in Gloucestershire. It was the first time in four

years that the King had seen the whole family.

However, Harry has made several solo trips back to the U.K. since moving to California, including after King Charles' cancer diagnosis.

FOSTER: CNN understands that when the family moves over to the United Kingdom, they'll be staying in a private residence, not a royal residence.

And they won't be returning to their full-time royal roles.

Where that residence will be is a mystery at this point, but the British media speculating it could be in the affluent Cotswolds in the countryside

and Oxfordshire. It could be near Althorp House, which is the Spencer family ancestral home where Princess Diana, Harry's mother, is buried. Or

it could possibly be near friends that they've retained here in the United Kingdom.

The other big question is about security, how that will be afforded. Prince Harry recently lost the case against the government's decision to downgrade

their taxpayer-funded security.

FOSTER (voice-over): In the BBC interview last year, he said the decision made it impossible for him to return to the U.K. with his family explaining

--

PRINCE HARRY, DUKE OF SUSSEX: I can't see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the U.K. at this point, no matter how

much private security I have around me. There's only so much that I can do and -- and operate and function within the U.K. when it comes to supporting

my charities, visiting my friends, all of these things.

FOSTER (voice-over): However, the couple's children, Prince Archie, seven and Princess Lilibet five, have now been enrolled at British schools. The

new school year begins in September, meaning, their move is likely to take place soon, possibly within a matter of days.

MEGHAN MARKLE, DUCHESS OF SUSSEX: Are you feeling excited for your parents?

FOSTER (voice-over): Once back, the couple are expected to carry on the kind of charity work they've been doing in California and outside the U.K.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Welcome to Australia.

FOSTER (voice-over): It's not yet clear how long they'll stay, or how closely they'll coordinate with the Royal household to avoid clashes in

public engagements and how they'll be folded into private royal family events.

CNN understands the king was only told on Sunday about their decision to move back.

The Sussexes may have kept their secret until now, but how much privacy they can hold once they're back in the U.K. remains to be seen.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Let's join CNN's Anna Stewart. She's here in London.

You spent many years, Anna, going to Sussex royal engagements when they were working royals. You'll probably see some more now, won't you? I mean,

how do you imagine that they're going to -- what are they going to do here, basically?

ANNA STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: But will we see more engagements?

[15:05:01]

It's so unclear isn't it what sort of level of public profile they're going to have when they come back to the U.K. given they wanted privacy. We know

Prince Harry works with a number of charities in the U.K. and he's come back to do engagements for those. We know he'll be very visible next year

in Birmingham for the Invictus Games for instance.

But what will we see of Meghan? She's done many charitable events we saw some of them in your piece there around the world and when they do these

events it does feel like an old school royal engagement as you say that I used to cover.

Now if they return to that in the U.K., it might be quite confusing. I mean, it will feel like a royal engagement regardless of whether they have

the status of working members of the royal family and that's why potentially it will be quite tricky particularly with the Prince and

Princess of Wales as you said in your piece will there be clashes and schedules. Will there be overlap and will attention sort of be shared

between all of their interests and charitable foundations?

FOSTER: There is an opportunity, isn't there, next year? It will be the 30th anniversary of Diana's death and we have seen the brothers come

together. previous anniversaries.

We also saw them come together, didn't we? When Queen Elizabeth died, they went on a walkabout altogether. It wasn't easy for them, but they can come

together when they need to, and perhaps that is an opening for the brothers to rebuild things.

STEWART: And one can only hope that that may be a reason for the return to the UK, reconciliation with Prince William, because that hasn't happened so

far, not least after everything that was said in the Oprah interview and in the book that Prince Harry wrote "Spare".

We don't know why they are returning. I mean, there are so many questions here. Is it to do with school education in the UK? Probably not, because

both the children are ages where you wouldn't start either primary school or secondary school. It's slightly awkward in the school year, really.

So perhaps reconciliation is it. We were told that the couple enjoyed their visit as a family to the U.K. last month, so certainly I'm sure

relationship with King Charles and seeing more of the family definitely plays into all of this. But it will be really interesting to see whether we

do get reconciliation with Prince William and, as you say, perhaps see them together next year for that big anniversary.

FOSTER: Anna Stewart, thank you so much.

Now, elsewhere, oil prices surging following U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to launch economic D-Day on Iran. Crude oil rose to its highest

level in weeks, nearly $94 a barrel.

Here's how the markets are looking right now. In the midst of stalled peace talks, President Trump says he's launching a (AUDIO GAP). In turn, Iran's

Revolutionary Guard issuing a warning of its own, saying it could deploy more destructive weapons if the war resumes.

So, Washington now, CNN senior White House reporter Kevin Liptak.

This is a shift in strategy, isn't it? And actually, it's something that could be very effective because, you know, the Iranian economy is already

on its knees.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Well, that seems to be the hope here at the White House, that just piling on more sanctions will cause

some fractures within the regime, will cause increased pressure from the Iranian people, and that eventually the officials there will capitulate to

some of the president's demands when it comes to both the Strait of Hormuz but also the nuclear program that the president is trying to get that

country to abandon.

Now, there are some questions still about what exactly this will entail. Aside from the president's post here, we haven't heard the administration

lay out in explicit detail what this will look like. The Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said that he would hold a press conference on

Monday laying all of this out.

We also don't yet know what the appetite is on the part of the president to go after some of Iran's biggest trading partners, namely China. You know,

China at one point bought 90 percent of Iranian oil that's available on the open market. They are Iran's biggest trading partner, but there doesn't

seem like -- doesn't seem as if there's much appetite on the part of the president to upend his relationship with President Xi Jinping. who will be

here at the White House next month for a state visit.

And we're at a point where the president is sort of mentioning that state visit every day now. And so that doesn't seem like it would be in the

offing. The other country that could be affected by this is India, although they have already weaned themselves off of Iranian oil for the large part

over the course of this war. And then you also have the countries in the Gulf.

We saw just yesterday the United Arab Emirates announced that they would cut off financial and commercial ties with Iran, sort of anticipating what

the president's moves would be on that front. But in the absence of any details of what the president is announcing, we also don't know how this

will be enforced, and a lot of the Iranian business in the Gulf happens through Shulka. details of what the president is announcing. We also don't

know how this will be enforced, and a lot of the Iranian business in the Gulf happens through shell companies, sort of surreptitiously.

So still a lot of questions about what the president's actual ability to do all of this is, but it is clear that the strategy is shifting away from

these threats of resuming the military conflict and more towards this era of strategic patience where the U.S. piles on more and more economic

punishment on the country with the hope that eventually the regime will cave.

Of course, the U.S. has been imposing sanctions on Iran for many, many years. It hasn't necessarily caused them to abandon the nuclear program, so

it remains to be seen just how successful this all will be.

FOSTER: We'll take a look. Thank you so much, Kevin.

Now, one person is dead, two others injured after a police helicopter and a small plane collided in the US state of Pennsylvania. The accident happened

Wednesday night at a regional airport. Authorities say the helicopter was conducting training exercises and hovering close to the ground when it was

hit by the aircraft, going down a runway.

Two state troopers are hospitalized in stable condition, though. In the airport, the airplane pilot, who was also an emergency room doctor, died in

that crash. Another night of deadly strikes for Ukrainians. Authorities say a barrage of missiles killed at least 17 people and injured dozens more in

the Kyiv region. It's yet another painful strike exposing Kyiv's dwindling anti-missile defense supplies.

In a recent CNN interview, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Ukraine only has 10 percent of the interceptor missiles it urgently needs from the US

and other allies.

Attacks also bleeding into neighboring Romania and Moldova. Romania's defense ministry said two F-16 fighter jets scrambled to destroy a marine

drone carrying explosives near an offshore natural gas project.

The target of a recent bomb attack in Monaco tells CNN that rogue Ukrainian intelligence agents may have paid or been paid to assassinate him in the

wealthy Mediterranean tax haven. Vadym Yermolaiev survived the powerful blast in June, which also seriously injured his partner and child. Speaking

in his first television interview since then, he's now calling on the authorities in Kyiv to step up their investigation.

Matthew Chance has this exclusive report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's a super glamorous playground for the super-rich. One of the world's tiniest

nations, Monaco promotes itself as a haven of wealth and tranquility on the picturesque shores of the Mediterranean.

But one evening in June, as a Ukrainian-born businessman walked home with his family, that carefully manicured image of security and calm was

shattered -- plunging the principality into violence and chaos.

CHANCE: Well, this is the exact place where the explosion took place. You can still see the impact of the shrapnel, the stucco plaster work here

around the door has all fallen off. And you know if I lift up the tarp here, you can see the marble steps and the brickwork is all shattered.

We've also made contact with the target of the attack and despite his grave injuries, he's agreed to speak out.

VADYM YERMOLAIEV, BUSINESSMAN (through translator): When the explosion went off, I saw my partner Anna lying on the steps with badly injured legs.

My son was waving his bloodied arms and I had burns across my whole body and was missing pieces of flesh.

I'm not a confrontational person. I've always tried to avoid any sharp conflicts, so I don't understand the reason why this happened.

CHANCE: There's a suggestion in Ukraine and there are reports in Ukraine that this assassination attempt was linked to your involvement, alleged

involvement in organized crime.

How do you answer that?

YERMOLAIEV (through translator): I personally have never in my life had anything to do with that. The Monaco police also asked me if my family

could be involved, which was almost funny, as everything I own is already registered to my wife and children.

CHANCE (voice-over): But clearly, someone wanted to send a message. This is the face of the bomber, a 39-year-old single mother from Ukraine,

Anastasiia Berezovska. She even recorded herself planting the device, in what investigators say was part of a complex international plot they're

still trying to unravel.

CHANCE: Well, these narrow, twisting streets snaking through tiny Monaco are some of the most heavily surveilled anywhere in the world.

There are more than 1,400 surveillance cameras, basically watching everything anybody does and a police officer for every 60 residents of the

principality. The bombing appears to have been carefully planned to bypass all of that tight security.

CHANCE (voice-over): And Monaco's police department is now under intense pressure to understand what went wrong.

"Multiple theories are being explored," the police chief admitted, though he refused to elaborate or discuss the glaring connections with Ukraine and

its security services.

Within a Kyiv court those connections have become impossible to ignore. Two men, a serving officer with Ukrainian military intelligence and a former

security agent, now stand accused of executing Anastasiia Berezovska and burying the Monaco bomber in a shallow grave after she fled home.

For the Ukrainian authorities fighting a bitter war with Russia, it's a potentially embarrassing link that risks straining relations with its

European backers. Ukrainian military intelligence say the suspects are just criminals.

But fueling speculation, Vadym Yermolaiev is sanctioned by Ukraine for doing business with its Russian enemies, though he's ruling out any link to

his bombing.

YERMOLAIEV (through translator): I can't imagine it had anything to do with the Ukrainian sanctions against me, because that would mean our state

is potentially engaged in extrajudicial executions and I just can't believe that.

CHANCE: After the bombing, you accuse the Ukrainian security services of being behind it. Is that still your view?

YERMOLAIEV (through translator): That's not just my view; all the facts point to it. But I think this was a contracted hit. Someone privately hired

military intelligence specialists who know how to do this and they took it on for money.

CHANCE (voice-over): In both Monaco and Kyiv, investigations are now in full swing to uncover the facts, including the possible role of Ukrainian

guns for hire or rogue agents, making one of the world's most glamorous enclaves feel a lot less secure.

Matthew Chance, CNN, Monaco.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Coming up, Israel is advancing a controversial settlement plan in the West Bank that critics say would kill any chance of a Palestinian

state. One Israeli government minister says that's exactly the goal.

We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:21:23]

FOSTER: The Palestinian government in the West Bank says Israel is pushing the entire region towards a dangerous and potentially uncontrollable

situation. It's condemning Israel's decision to advance a highly controversial settlement plan that would effectively sever the occupied

West Bank in two. Countries around the world are joining the condemnation saying the E1 settlement could kill any remaining hopes for an independent

Palestinian state.

You can see why the plan is so controversial. It effectively divides the West Bank into North and South, making a contiguous Palestinian state

impossible. It also isolates East Jerusalem, which Palestinians want as their capital.

International pressure worked in the past, forcing Israel to shelve E1 plans for decades.

Our Jeremy Diamond, though, tells us why things are different now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN JERUSALEM CORRESPONDENT: Well, the E1 settlement project is one that right-wing Israeli politicians have sought to carry out

for years now, but it's been delayed over repeated international criticism of the project and warnings to the Israeli government. But last year, the

Israeli government finally approved the project, and now the Israeli housing ministry has issued a notice inviting bids on the construction of

more than 1,200 housing units as part of this project.

Now, the Israeli government wants to create this project in order to connect Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem to Jewish settlements in the

West Bank. But from the Palestinian perspective, one of the reasons why this is so controversial is that this project would also cut off

Palestinian communities in East Jerusalem from the rest of the West Bank, and it would also sever the major artery between the northern half of the

West Bank and the southern half of that same territory. And in doing so, it would threaten the possibility of establishing a contiguous Palestinian

state in the West Bank with East Jerusalem as its capital.

And that is exactly the goal of some far-right Israeli politicians like the Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, who said that the Palestinian

state is being erased from the table not with slogans, but with actions. Now, this is already drawing fierce criticism from the international

community, including from the British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, who said, quote, "This Israeli government's publication of a tender for the E1

settlement project is an unacceptable and destructive act. The Israeli government must halt E1 plans immediately, retract the tender and stop all

settlement expansion."

Now, not only the United Kingdom, but also a number of other European countries have threatened sanctions for any companies that would

participate in the building of this project. And they've also threatened diplomatic action against Israel for moving forward with this project, one

that, of course, will be keeping a very close eye on.

Jeremy Diamond, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: We're joined now by former IDF spokesperson Peter Lerner.

Peter, thank you so much for joining us. Where do you stand on this?

LT. COL. PETER LERNER (RET.), FORMER IDF SPOKESPERSON: Well, I believe that this is a short-sighted action by a government in its last days, I

think that this is a strategic problem and what is actually being done and began last year is the -- and what we're seeing over the last few days is a

combination of all of the government's policies over the last four years, especially with regard to settlement activity. I think that -- and when I

say shortsightedness, I think that it's important to note that why take away options that strategically could reinforce Israel's standing both in

the region, both security, both economically and of course internationally at this stage?

[15:25:10]

It was Yitzhak Rabin that actually laid the groundwork for E1. But all those years ago, it was realized time and time again that this is an area

we need to discuss. The dispute is ongoing and Israel needs to be wiser about these types of programs.

FOSTER: You set the context, you know, running up to the election, a lot of political talk, but we also were hearing there that destruction is

likely to begin before the election, which will make it difficult for the following government, whoever that is, to stop it.

So, whatever the political debate is likely to happen, isn't it?

LERNER: Max, things seem to be already in their tracks and already moving. Of course, as Jeremy rightly pointed out in the report, the program was

approved last year, and now it's a tender for actual construction of getting things going. And that's why I believe it should actually be

stopped. It needs to be stopped by this government, not the next government. It needs to be stopped in its tracks precisely to maintain a

strategic opening for Israel.

There needs to be a lot negotiated. If this plan, as Smotrich said, is set to prevent a two-state solution, then I believe that the Israeli public

need and have the right to know what are the alternatives to a two-state solution. I'm not talking about anything immediate, but if you're going to

do something today, and I think this also relates to the policies and the reaction and the reality we've faced with the Gaza Strip.

Since day one, we've been saying, what is the plan for the day after? So I would say, what is the plan for the day after E1? How does that increase,

make Israel's security better? How does that create a strategic leverage? And that I think is what is missing from this whole debate.

It's easy to go down to the 1,300 or so apartments that will be built, but it's not a real estate deal. It's a strategic deal, it's a strategic view

that we need to be very cautious of, cutting ourselves short, why put a blockade in that path now when you don't know what's going to happen?

You know, we don't know what government's going to exist next in two months' time, let alone what Palestinian Authority is going to be or even

what type of security situation we're going to be. So why do we need this?

FOSTER: I don't know if you saw, ironically, the E4 leader's statement. the U.K., France, Germany, Italy, the big four really in Europe, a damning

statement about this and saying it should be stopped, agreeing with you.

But I also spoke to a key Palestinian voice earlier saying these words aren't having any effect on this government, so it's pointless. What they

need is action, some proper sanctions on from Europe, on Israel, but Europe's not going to do that until America does it.

So, you know, they pretty much do have a free run at this, don't they? Israeli government, the current Israeli government, if America aren't going

to step in and stop them.

LERNER: Israel does not need to cede its national security for Brussels, for London, for Washington, for anyone. It needs to identify its key vision

of what it wants to try and achieve. And I believe in this action is actually undermining its strategic goals for the future for the generations

of our children.

So, I would say, yes, we need to be very cautious of taking any major steps, but I think we need to be very clear that is it against Israel's

interest? And if it is, then what needs to be done on the Israeli side? So of course, this government in its last stages will try and amplify

everything they've done in their view that has been good for Israel.

And I think Israel as itself and the majority of Israelis don't understand the strategic implications of this program, perhaps they're looking for

housing and so on, but I think that the strategic implications of what it means actually moving down the line does not -- does not lay in Brussels,

London or Washington, D.C. It lays in Jerusalem, it lays in some to a certain extent, also into Ramallah, into the leadership being able to

understand that the future depends on the ability to acknowledge and understand, you know, there can be roads to circumvent and go around E1 and

but it's not where the roads where we're going.

It's what strategic decisions are we trying to achieve and how does that impact E1? But it's not where the roads where we're going. It's what

strategic decisions are we trying to achieve and how does that impact Israel positively or negatively?

[15:30:02]

FOSTER: Peter Lerner, as ever, thank you so much for joining us here on CNN with your insights on that key development today.

We're going to turn now to Gaza. Hamas official Basem Naim says the group is, quote, still committed to the ceasefire deal with Israel. He spoke

exclusively with CNN's chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour. But things have stalled since Israel rejected the latest U.S.-backed peace plan

for the enclave. U.S. envoy Jared Kushner held a rare meeting with Hamas in Egypt on Sunday and met with Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu the following

day in Israel. Kushner later said some progress could come as early as the next 30 to 90 days.

Here's what Naim told CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BASEM NAIM, MEMBER, HAMAS POLITICAL BUREAU: We still committed to the deal. We are still looking for work that the mediators and the Board of

Peace headed by President Trump to make it happen. We are still ready to continue this way to change or to give our people a chance on the ground to

revive their life and to reach. The minimum of calm, stability, and peace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, coming up is the rift in the British royal family really healing, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and Britain officially moving back

to England six years after their infamous breakaway from royal life.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Returning to our top story, Prince Harry, wife Meghan moving back to the U.K. with their children. We don't know exactly when or where

they'll live.

But CNN does understand that King Charles himself only found out about this on Sunday. He met with Harry last month, so the plan may not have been

finalized at that point. It certainly wasn't discussed. But Harry and Meghan are not expected to return as working royals, which they both quit

in 2020.

[15:35:06]

The King's pretty clear that's not on the agenda.

After years of family and political drama, the big move is being met with a pretty wide range of reactions, as you'd expect here in London.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not especially happy about it because they trashed the whole country numerous times, betrayed their family, betrayed his king,

his father, went out to America and now they're bored and now they want to come back.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But maybe he's just truly British at the end of the day and he just misses home.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope they have a good time when they come back and the press leaves them alone.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: So, what we want to know is why are the Sussexes moving back to the U.K. now?

Joining us now is British broadcaster Bidisha Mamata.

It's guesswork, I know, Bidisha, but you are a qualified guesser on this topic, so guess away.

BIDISHA MAMATA, ROYAL WATCHER: I'm qualified to guess and to speculate and to enjoy this latest chapter in the never-ending saga that is the British

royal family. That is partly what they're here for as well, I think, to divert us and to inspire us. And I think that the broad range of vox pops

that we've heard out on the street is a fair indication of how complicated this situation is.

It's been fraught, it's been dramatic, it's involved a flight to the new world, the land of opportunity which did not ultimately deliver the viewing

figures that perhaps they and some streaming giants may have wanted, but it also involves family, history, British identity, soft power and politics. I

tend to think that at the heart of this is a very human, very personal decision, which is something to do with Prince Harry wanting to be closer

to his family, in particular to his father.

We don't know how much they all really did know about it, but given that the couple is so security-minded, I think they may well have been working

all summer trying to nail down their security arrangements and the schooling arrangements for the kids before they said anything.

FOSTER: The security arrangements are interesting, aren't they? The Prime Minister today saying it's a private matter, implying that they'll have to

solve that themselves. But you know as well as I do that it was quite recently that Harry said he didn't feel it was safe to come to the United

Kingdom for his family. He wanted armed police. He won't be getting that if he's paying for it himself because that would, you know, it's not allowed

here in the U.K.

I mean, what might have changed there? Is there something, do you think, about his residential arrangements that he's going to feel more comfortable

with? I mean, the kids going to school, I mean, that would concern him, surely.

MAMATA: I think that he has clearly been in conversation with various parties all through the summer. I don't think that the government or

whoever Harry feels that he should be getting security from are completely out of it. I don't think the rest of the royal family are completely out of

it, too.

But whatever they've decided, clearly, he's happy with the mix of people who are going to be involved in protecting and helping his family and

making them feel safe and be safe. I am absolutely sure that it's very, very expensive, whoever is bearing the cost of that. I'm absolutely sure

that it's extremely confidential and that's part of the security measures, right? You don't say who is giving you security because that makes you

vulnerable.

But clearly, He's happy with whatever they've ultimately decided. And for all their protestations of doing this thing that so many of us do already

do, which is having a job to earn money to pay bills so that we can survive, he's clearly ultimately made peace with that. And he was never

really, really poor to begin with.

So, whatever the bill is, he or someone else is paying for it. And I do understand the timing, which is that they want to get their kids into

school come the opening of autumn term, for those of us who are incredibly institutionalized, that is when autumn term begins. It's the beginning of

September. And so they want those lovely family photographs of the kids in little school uniforms. And they are very, very happy with that. And I

think it's right.

So, this is a welcome closing of the let's go to America and see what happens there part of the story.

FOSTER: One thing we do know is we'll be talking about it more, Bidisha, as the story develops.

MAMATA: We will definitely be talking about it much more.

FOSTER: With the final moments of trade on Wall Street, stocks are down today. The falling Dow down more than one percent as investors remain

concerned over rising government debt.

This is our Business Breakout.

The founder of what was China's biggest property developer has been sentenced to life in prison, according to Chinese state media. Hui Kai Yan

was the driving force behind Evergrande, which dominated China's real estate market.

[15:40:04]

Towering debts eventually pushed the company over the brink, though, triggering a country ride property crisis.

America's largest retailer, Walmart, has received a massive $2.9 billion tariff refund. This after the Supreme Court ruled most of President Donald

Trump's tariffs were illegal. Despite the refund, Walmart shares fell today after reporting its slowest domestic sales growth in more than five years.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is trying to soothe anxieties in the bond market. He told CNBC the government could do more to expand a debt

buyback program. Bond traders have become increasingly worried about the country's mountain of debt and rising inflation.

In fact, the U.S. national debt hit a grim new milestone this week, $40 trillion. That's trillion with a T. The record high, 14-digit debt. The

load there coming roughly two years sooner than the Congressional Budget Office projected even just a few years ago.

It's in part due to rising interest payments, which are expected to top a record $1 trillion this fiscal year alone. Other factors include the war,

tax cuts, entitlements, as Americans live longer.

Our business editor at large, Richard Quest, joins me now from New York with more.

Just help us get our head around these numbers because they are unfathomable.

RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR AT LARGE: Okay, first of all, you have to see it has doubled in the last 10 years. And the rate at which it is

going up is also quite terrifying. But, of course, as a percentage of GDP, it rises. The fact that the US economy is vast. also has to be taken into

account.

So you can take this 40 trillion and you can pass it any way you want. If you wish to be apocalyptic, you can say the bond market is now saying you

are on borrowed time. If you wish to take an advantage and say, look, there's plenty of time for this economy that is growing, it is growing

well, unemployment is under control, inflation is relatively moderate. If you take the longer route in terms of A.I. now, investment, then all of

this is really not terribly significant at all. You can see how it goes, Max.

But what has happened in the last week or two is that the bond market has said, yeah, we get all the good bit, but we are still not happy with the

way you are managing the debt. And that's why the Treasury has now had to start to do this financial engineering, twisting the curve, as it's called,

in terms of buying bonds and this, that and the other. It is financial engineering. It's not solving the problem.

FOSTER: Richard Quest, thank you so much. More of Richard, of course, in half an hour on CNN International.

Still to come, new conservation efforts in Nigeria. We'll look at what one initiative is trying to do to save Nigeria's remaining wildlife populations

and ecosystems.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:46:07]

FOSTER: From oil spills to political instability and environmental concerns, news from Nigeria can sometimes feel devastating, but one

conservationist is trying to change that with a community-led approach.

In today's "Call to Earth", our Zain Asher takes a look at her work through Rolex's Perpetual Planet initiative.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RACHEL IKEMEH, CONSERVATIONIST & FOUNDER, SW/NIGER DELTA FOREST PROJECT: The Niger Delta in itself is the second largest swamp forest in Africa, the

third largest contiguous mangrove forest in the world. There are up to five sea turtles classified as endangered.

I'm on a mission to preserve the last places, the last remaining wildlife populations, significant wildlife populations left in Nigeria.

ZAIN ASHER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): To achieve this, Ikemeh is going bottom up.

IKEMEH: The communities themselves are equipped with the same technology, with the same tools that will enable them to do conservation in a very

credible manner.

We started our work in Apoi community around six years ago. I've been working across the Niger Delta. Today as I speak to you, we have records of

four groups, thriving groups in the communities.

ASHER (voice-over): Her reputation for repopulating wildlife led communities like Foropa, 22 kilometers away, to reach out for help.

IKEMEH: The Foropa people were very, very welcoming about the idea of conservation, to conserve parts of their forest, parts of the ocean, their

fishing grounds. They did reconnaissance visits to some of the other community-based conservation areas.

ASHER (voice-over): Together, they established Nigeria's first locally- managed marine area.

IKEMEH: A locally-managed marine area in every context is conserving an area within the marine space.

ASHER (voice-over): The community is strategically positioned for aquatic wildlife. Young men from the community work as coastal guards, monitoring

local fishing activities and collecting scientific data.

EMOTIMI SEIBOKURO, BIO MONITORING TEAM LEADER, FOROPA MIDDLETON KINGDOM: We are the team that registers any type of specific data we see, we record

them. Every Wednesday is our engagement with the community, maybe sometimes with the elders, sometimes with the chiefs, sometime with the youth. Let

them know that we should not kill our animals, especially here (ph) we conserve, so that area will be protected for our own children.

ASHER (voice-over): The women also actively participate in the conservation process.

MARY WASON ALAMENE, WOMEN LEADER, FOROPA MIDDLETON KINGDOM: As women in the community, we talk to the youths about killing of the animals in the

bush. Some, they bring them very young. We are talking to them. Do not bring those ones. Keep them in the bush so that they will mature and give

birth to other young ones.

ASHER (voice-over): Rachel Ikemeh is looking ahead and already engaging communities nearby.

IKEMEH: Our plan is not to stop at Foropa Middleton Kingdom, but to create a stretch of protected zone along 30 kilometers of this coastline. I'm

really on a mission to rebuild the old ruins, and I don't think I'm going to rest until every last wilderness in Nigeria is conserved.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Do let us know what you are doing to answer the Call to Earth, the call to protect the Earth. You can share your stories with the hashtag

#CallToEarth.

We'll be right back with more after this short break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[15:52:11]

FOSTER: If you've ever been to Paris, take a look at the ground buildings across the city and then look up. There you'll see the tiniest apartments

originally built to house domestic servants. But many current tenants are drawn by the affordable rents and great locations.

CNN's Saskya Vandoorne reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANATOLY NOVIKOV, STUDENT: So yeah, the entrance here, that's the small, yeah, like entrance area.

SASKYA VANDOORNE, CNN PARIS BUREAU CHIEF (voice-over): These are some of the smallest apartments you'll find in Paris. Some measure less than 100

square feet.

NOVIKOV: A private shower.

VANDOORNE: Wow. Can you open both doors at the same time?

NOVIKOV: I've never tried, but I guess you could-ish.

(LAUGH)

VANDOORNE (voice-over): They're called chambre de bonne, maid rooms, hidden at the top of some of Paris' grandest buildings. Built for domestic

servants, they were notoriously cold, with toilets often shared between tenants.

As of 2022, there was still more than 90,000 of these tiny apartments across Paris.

NOVIKOV: The view from the rooftop is just amazing, like you see pretty much every big Parisian monument. My friends commented that like, oh my

gosh, you're going to have a depression in like one month's time because it's so tiny, like it's a prison cell. And technically, I guess prison

cells are bigger.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): Anatoly is an engineering student who's called this place home for the past year. He pays about $800 a month in rent,

expensive by the square foot, but still cheaper than most Parisian apartments.

NOVIKOV: It's not a sacrifice, it's a trade-off. In engineering, you don't have good solutions, you only have trade-offs. So yeah.

VANDOORNE: What's the trade-off here?

NOVIKOV: The space for the location, pretty much.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): And there's another price to pay for living in central Paris, lots and lots of stairs.

VANDOORNE: You do this every day.

GLADYS MAGNAN, STUDENT: It's terrible.

VANDOORNE: Oh.

(LAUGH)

MAGNAN: I know. It's a sports.

VANDOORNE: Lovely to meet you.

MAGNAN: Lovely to meet you too. Welcome.

VANDOORNE: I'm going to need a minute.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): This is Gladys, and she lives right at the top on the seventh floor. Unlike in the 19th century, when the problem was the

cold, today, it's relentless heat waves, turning these tiny apartments into furnaces. With temperatures climbing above 40 degrees Celsius, that's more

than 104 Fahrenheit.

MAGNAN: I was also taking like ice during the night, all the ice next to me.

VANDOORNE: Like a pillow?

(LAUGH)

MAGNAN: Yeah, exactly. That was terrible, and also I slept at my sister's house, so that was better than my friend's house.

VANDOORNE: So you actually had to leave?

MAGNAN: Yeah, yeah.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): It's not just Parisians willing to squeeze into these tiny homes. Tourists do it too, paying as much as $140 a night to

stay in the heart of Paris.

[15:55:01]

And whether they're here for a night or a year, perhaps this is part of what they're paying for.

Wow.

MAGNAN: You can see the view?

VANDOORNE: Yes. The Eiffel Tower.

MAGNAN: Yeah, the Eiffel Tower.

VANDOORNE (voice-over): Saskya Vandoorne, CNN, Paris.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: The top of the Eiffel Tower.

Finally, before we go, we want to show you A video of two runaway goats. Why wouldn't we? They're walking onto a public bus even in Portland,

Oregon. After one set of doors closes, the goats rush to make it on before it's too late. Get on them.

Here's a closer look at them getting on from inside the bus. But the human passengers were not thrilled about this. They chased the goats off the bus

before it took off. Sympathy for the goats on that one. The transit agency says that the goats made it home safely, though, and that their owner has

now fixed their enclosure.

I'm Max Foster, and I wasn't kidding there. That's WHAT WE KNOW. Stay with CNN.

END

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