U.S., Russia Tried for Syria Deal at G20; Amphetamines Fueling Some Syrian Militants; North Korea Fires 3 Ballistic Missiles; Cybersecurity Threat Hangs Over G20
ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church. And this is CNN NEWSROOM. At the G20 summit in China, U.S. President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin have met on the sidelines. But a U.S. official tells CNN the talks with Russia for a deal to ease the conflict in Syria have ended for now. The G20 summit will come to a close in less than three hours. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also met on the sidelines at the summit. There was hope for meaningful progress for solution for peace in Syria, but the two sides were unable to come to any agreement. The U.S. and Russia have been at odds on the situation in Syria for some time now. And Matt Rivers has been watching this summit very closely in Hangzhou and he joins us now live. So, Matt, do Russian and U.S. talks, they're over, no deal was reached on Syria. What happens next? And what more do we know about this meeting between the presidents of U.S. and Russia?</s>MATT RIVERS, CNN ASIA-PACIFIC EDITOR: In terms of the meeting going on this afternoon, that is closed to the press. In terms of the nitty-gritty details the two are talking of, we're not sure yet. Before this meeting happened, officials from both sides said this informal meeting was likely to happen and at the top of their agenda would likely be the ongoing conflicts in Syria and Ukraine. And as you mentioned, within the last two hours or so, we have heard the talks between the United States and Russia in terms of figuring out a new deal for the conflict to help ease the violence in Syria, they have failed here at the G20 for the meantime. And differences are still very wide, according to a senior U.S. official on both sides. Now in terms of what the differences are, whether they're more technical, minutia details, or whether there are still big broad differences between both sides of the negotiating table, we're still not sure yet. But the fact remains that that is something Presidents Putin and Obama could be discussing here in their informal meeting. There had been some optimism as late as yesterday afternoon in Hangzhou that we could see a deal come to fruition. But it was late yesterday evening the secretary of state John Kerry came out, told reporters that negotiations would continue into today. But it's been within the last two hours or so that we have learned that there will be no agreement reached here in Hangzhou during the summit.</s>CHURCH: That is certainly frustrating for so many people. What exactly has been achieved overall at this G20 summit? Anything? Anything concrete?</s>RIVERS: It depends on who you ask. If you talk to these leaders, every time, they come out and say it's always good to have dialogue between the economies of the world and that's never a bad thing. It's hard to argue that point. But in terms of specific things that are coming out of this G20, there isn't really anything that has come out that you can point to say that is the achievement here. That is the knock on these G20 summits overall is oftentimes the criticism end up being the leaders gather and sit around a big table and take a nice photograph today. But in terms of what is being done specifically, oftentimes there isn't anything that comes out. But proponents of these kind of meetings will say, look, it's never a bad thing when you the leaders of the largest economies in the world getting a chance to sit down, talk face-to-face, have one-on-one discussions. And you have leaders, like the new British prime minister, Theresa May, perhaps laying the groundwork for new deals for Britain. You have President Xi Jinping promoting his country's openness towards the continuation of free trade deals. Those are all things the leaders want to push. Those are their agendas. For them, perhaps, successful time spent here at the G20. But overall, no specific point in terms of a breakthrough or success here in here.</s>CHURCH: Very frustrating. Matt Rivers reporting there from Hangzhou in China. It's just after 2:00 in the afternoon. Let's talk about next hour. Appreciate it. Our Jomana Karadsheh has been following developments at the G20 summit and in Syria from neighboring Jordan. She joins us now from Amman. Jomana, this outcome from the G-7 submit, it is a slap in the face for those caught up in the war in Syria. What's the reaction so far from the region of this lack of progress for peace talks?</s>JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, people here are waking up to this news, we'll have to wait and see what kind of reactions we get. We've been speaking to activists and residents, especially in Aleppo, because of the situation there and the escalating violence that's been taking place. We've asked them about what they thought about the U.S. and Russia trying to work out a deal and possible cease-fire in the works, and you get a lot of skepticism from them. There is a lot of lack of trust when it comes to Russia. And some of the activists we spoke to finding it hard how Russia could be a part of brokering any deals directly taking part in this conflict. And for them they have seen troops fallen apart in the past. You remember that cessation of hostility that went into effect earlier this year and broke down. There is a lot of skepticism. No matter what people thought of this deal or no deal, the critical issue has been humanitarian aid delivery, something we have heard so much about from the United Nation. It has been so critical. They want a pause in the fighting, especially around these areas, for example, parts of Aleppo in the eastern part where desperately needed humanitarian aid and supplies are running out. They need to get the aid. The U.N. says they cannot do this unless there is a pause in the fighting. With this news of no deal, a lot of concerns of what this means, especially, Rosemary, over night, we heard from the Syrian's state news agency, as well, as the monitoring group saying the eastern part of Aleppo that's been under rebel control is under siege again by regime forces and their ally forces. So warnings we heard in the past of a humanitarian crisis that's unfolding in Aleppo in the eastern part of that city where there are more than 250,000 people who continue to pay the heaviest price when it comes to the fighting and conflicts -- Rosemary?</s>CHURCH: Jomana, what is it going to take an old likelihood to get peace talks between Russia and the U.S. back on track here?</s>KARADSHEH: It depends, Rosemary, on what the issues are. These differences we heard President Obama yesterday describe as great differences remain. We'll have to wait and see whether they'll be able to reach any sorts of compromise to get these talks back on track, to reach some sort of an agreement. The pressure is trying to reach any sort of deal to allow humanitarian deliveries into the besieged area. We'll have to wait to see what the U.S. and Washington officials will say about these talks, and why it failed, it is not really clear yet, and what points they actually agreed on, and what remains -- what the differences remain at that point -- Rosemary?</s>CHURCH: Of course, we are still waiting to hear the results of the meeting between the president of the United States and Russia. We'll keep a close eye on that. Jomana Karadsheh, for bringing us up to date. Just after 9:00 in the morning there. Many thanks to you. Turkey is claiming a big victory in its fight against ISIS. Turkish state media reports the terror group has lost its last territory on the Turkish-Syrian border. The news comes after Turkey sent tanks and armored vehicles into the Syrian border town of Alrai (ph) over the weekend. A Turkish military member told CNN, a dozen other villages near the border were captured by the Free Syrian Army, backed by Turkey. Now this video is said to show some of that fighting. This could be a major setback for ISIS, choking off its supply lines. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says ISIS has essentially lost contact with the outside world. Farther south in Syria, officials in Damascus say they have seized 400,000 tablets of a black-market drug used by jihadists. Our Brian Todd filed this report last November on the amphetamine fuelling Syrian militants.</s>BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A captured ISIS militant named Kareem tells CNN how he got his battlefield courage.</s>UNIDENTIFIED ISIS MILITANT (through translation): They gave us drugs, hallucinogenic pills, that would make you go to battle and not care if you live or die.</s>TODD: When our CNN team interviewed Kareem last November, he was being held by Kurdish militants in northern Syria. It was impossible to know if he was telling the truth or being coached by his captors.</s>TODD: But now, a U.S. official tells CNN it's believed some jihadist fighters are using the drug Captagon, a dangerous and powerful amphetamine. (on camera): How does it fuel you on battlefields? DR. ROBERT KEISLING (ph),</s>PSYCHIATRIST: It keeps you awake and giving you a sense of well-being and euphoria and you think you're invincible and that nothing can harm you.</s>TODD (voice-over): Recently, the U.N.'s drug czar said ISIS and the al Qaeda-affiliated Nusra Front were believed to be smuggling the chemical precursors for Captagon. A U.S. law enforcement official tells CNN there is a robust black market for the drugs in the Middle East. Analysts say the profits fund weapons purchases for jihadist groups.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hezbollah, people affiliated with Hezbollah have a long history in the production and sale of Captagon. At one point, there was a fight between Hezbollah affiliated persons because some people were angry they were not getting a cut of someone's business.</s>TODD: Captagon was developed in the '60s and was first used to treat people with hyperactivity. It has since been banned in the U.S. and elsewhere. And while some question the drug's prevalence among fighters who preach Islamic purity, analysts say jihadists can find a justification. (on camera): Is it critical, it is a violation of cultural religious principles?</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You have some saying this is not hypocritical, that, first of all, it is not a drug that's taken to get high. Physiatrist Robert Keisling (ph), who treated thousands of addicts, says Captagon is so hallucinogenic, it can make a user hear voices and see things that aren't there. That can hurt you on the battlefield, right?</s>KEISLING (ph): Absolutely, but I think they have made the decision that keeping these guys awake for four or five days at a time and giving them the sense of invincibility is worth whatever horror or side effects the drugs have.</s>TODD (on camera): For whatever sense of euphoria and invincibility Captagon might produce, Doctor Keisling (ph) says there are horrible down sides. Users, he says, can become psychotic, brain damaged and, of course, can get addicted to the drugs for years to come. Brian Todd, CNN, Washington.</s>CHURCH: South Korea says Pyongyang has fired three ballistic missiles into the sea off its east coast. CNN's Paula Hancocks is live in Seoul, South Korea, with the details on this. Paula, what do we know so far about these free ballistic missiles?</s>PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, we are getting more information here in Seoul. They say they believe they flew around 1,000 kilometers. They're assumed to be mid-range missiles. They believe they were actually flown into Japan's air defense identification zone, the air zone that Japan monitors for its own security. They also say that there was no prior navigational warning for these launches. We heard earlier from Japan's defense minister that they increased their state of vigilance and he's calling for gathering analysis of information. Also, they condemned what they said was once again of a violation of the United Nation Security Council resolution that North Korea is not allowed to use this ballistic technology. Time and time again, they can carry out these launches. They also gave insights on why they believe North Korea are doing this today, which is two things, the G20 summit that's going on in China. We know the presidents in South Carolina talked about North Korea, and towards the end of the week, on Friday, you have Foundation Day, the day they celebrate the foundation of North Korea -- Rosemary?</s>CHURCH: The big fear is just how much progress being made since the previous launch, and from what you said there, if they're assessing a thousand kilometers, that's significant progress since the last. How much of a concern is that?</s>HANCOCKS: It depends on which missile you are looking at. With the submarine launch a couple of weeks ago of a ballistic missile, they did make tremendous inroads. It was hailed a great success in North Korea. And the leader, Kim Jong-Un looking delighted. That flew around 500 kilometers. That was believed by many experts to be a success story and a significant increase in the capability. We these latest missiles, we have seen them fired a number of times. We don't know the exact altitude of the missiles. The fact that it went into this Japanese aviation area is significant to the great concern to Japan.</s>CHURCH: Most definitely. We'll wait for more analysis and assessment on that. Our Paula Hancocks joining us there from South Korea, Seoul. It is only 3:15 in the afternoon. We'll talk again next hour on this very issue. Let's take a short break here. Still to come, protests continue in Brazil days after the former president was ousted. Who's the target of these latest demonstrations? Plus, Donald Trump's campaign tries to clarify what his position is on illegal immigration. And what one of his biggest supporters said about the issue? That's after the break. Do stay with us.