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Taliban says U.S. Forces Must Be Out By August 31 Deadline; Nearly 11,000 Evacuated From Kabul Over 12 Hours On Monday; Pfizer- BioNTech COVID Vaccine Receives Full FDA Approval; China Reports One New Local Case, Second Lowest Since July; COVID Cases Surging As Tokyo Readies For Paralympic Games. Aired 12-1a EST

Aired August 24, 2021 - 00:00   ET

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

[00:00:07]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello everyone, I'm John Vause.

Coming up here on CNN NEWSROOM, seven days left to save tens of thousands of Afghans who were promised safe haven by the U.S. Unless there is a deadline extension, many could be left behind. Their fate decided by the Taliban.

Let the mandates begin with the first official approval of the COVID vaccine in the U.S. health experts and now expecting a flood of vaccine mandates from businesses to schools.

And the curtain is set to rise on the Paralympics in Tokyo and just like the warm up event, a few weeks ago, these athletes are competing a year late before empty stadiums in a city with COVID cases are on the rise.

The fate of possibly tens of thousands of Afghans who helped American forces during two decades of war and their families is now wrestling with the U.S. president and a crucial decision on whether to extend an airlift beyond an August 31st deadline now just seven days away.

And pressure is also growing among U.S. allies Britain, France and Germany say there is a moral obligation to the Afghans and all three are expected to push for a deadline extension during a virtual meeting of G7 leaders in a few hours from now.

The U.S. says more than 16,000 were evacuated from Sunday into Monday. More than double the number from a day earlier. But even so, Kabul airport remains crammed with about 13,000 people, mostly Afghans hoping for a flight to safety.

As for the pecking order, a message from the U.S. Embassy on Monday, told Afghans who have apply for a Special Immigrant Visa to stay away from the airport and clear the way for Americans.

Another pressure point comes from the U.S. military, which has told the White House it needs to know within 24 hours if the current deadline stands because of logistics and planning needed for the withdrawal of close to 6,000 troops and equipment. And then, there is the Taliban. Any extension for them is a non-

starter. Warning that if all U.S. troops and personnel are not out by early next week, there will be consequences.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, PRESS SECRETARY, PENTAGON: We are well aware of the stated desire to by the Taliban to have this mission completed by the 31st of August. I will tell you that we too are still planning on completing it by the 31st of August. That is the mission that we have been signed by the commander-in-chief assigned to us and that's what we're trying to execute.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: But amid the cold calculations of airlift capacity divided by days left until the deadline, there are families, mothers, fathers and children who are waiting and watching as each passing minute brings a possible death sentence one minute closer.

And now, there comes a new threat from the terror group ISIS. CNN Sam Kiley reports now from Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: One of four Afghan soldiers wounded in a firefight after an unknown sniper killed a comrade who was guarding Kabul's airport. The attack followed warnings that ISIS posed a threat to the evacuation of thousands of foreigners and Afghans from the capital.

JAKE SULLIVAN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: The threat is real, it is acute, it is persistent, and it is something that we are focused on with every tool in our arsenal.

KILEY: This was the first recent attack on the airport and it came as the State Department said that Afghans who've been issued Special Immigration Visas would no longer be allowed into the airport. Thousands of others already inside are being evacuated.

This is the penultimate stage for evacuees before they get on an aircraft and get out of the country to safety. They're down to about the last 10,000 having moved 10,500 in the last 24 hours.

But the problem is the thousands of people left outside the gate with no real prospect now that the Special Immigration Visas have been suspended of getting in and getting out to safety.

The reopening of the gates to the airport is likely to depend on how long U.S. and coalition forces can stay on to run evacuations.

President Biden has said troops would remain until all Americans are out. But the Taliban has told CNN that U.S. troops would have to leave by August the 31st and no extensions.

American troops are already feeling the strain of refusing entry to so many families at the airport gates.

LT. COL. PINKIE FISCHER, DIVISION CHAPLAIN, U.S. ARMY 82ND AIRBORNE: A lot of these paratroopers are married. And I know while they're standing there, nothing else to do but doing their job, they're probably thinking about what would it be like --

KILEY: Those are my kids.

FISCHER: Exactly. What would it be like?

KILEY: Here those safety and freedom comes with a white wristband. It's a plane ticket given out already to 38,000 but the window for more flights to freedom is fast closing.

Sam Kiley, CNN, Kabul International Airport.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:05:04]

VAUSE: CNN's Anna Coren has covered Afghanistan for years and has recently returned from Kabul. She joins us now live from Hong Kong.

Anna, it seems when it comes to this U.S. operation, it seems to expanded depending on Monday talks about a variety of methods being used to help Americans actually reach the airport.

What more do we know about that? And this seems to be a shift from what we were told just last week about U.S. capability beyond the perimeter of the airport.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Look, John, there are reports that the Americans have used helicopters to pick up American citizens now. Where have those helicopters flown? If it's to the Baron Hotel, which is on the perimeter of the airport and a 200-meter walk to the gate, the checkpoint? Yes, that is one of the places where troops or I should say, citizens, U.S. citizens were picked up.

If it's within the city of Kabul, then that would have to get clearance by the Taliban. The Taliban are now in control, and we know that the Americans are in regular contact with the Taliban.

You have the U.S. envoy to Afghanistan. He is in Doha, talking constantly to the Taliban delegation, you have the U.S. commander in charge of this operation, he is having daily talks with the Taliban.

So, this is something obviously being negotiated if that is how the Americans are operating to get their citizens out. And we have now heard that that is the priority for America to get their citizens, those with passports, those with Green Cards out of Afghanistan.

What does that say for the thousands, John, the thousands of Afghans who worked for the Americans, who worked for the NATO forces, for foreign companies, people who actually have these Special Immigrant Visas in their hands not have applied, but actually have the visa, they are ready to go. And they are being turned away from the airport. I mean, that is what is terrifying.

John, if they stick to that 31st of August deadline, they will be leaving thousands, tens of thousands of people behind.

Just to wind up the operations that they have currently running at Hamid Karzai International Airport, you got, you know, almost 6,000 U.S. troops, let alone the other forces -- British forces on the ground, it takes time to get just those people out.

We've seen in the last 24 hours that they move something like 16,000 people, they evacuated 16,000 people. 11,000 of those on U.S. planes. So, the window is rapidly closing.

Obviously, President Biden is going to be under a lot of pressure when he attends that virtual G7 meeting today, we know that the Brits and the French certainly want him to extend that deadline.

But as you said before, the Taliban have stated quite clearly, any extension beyond 31st of August will be a clear violation, and there will be consequences. So, this is something that is going to have to be negotiated by the Taliban.

I mean, John, we know -- we are pretty to the fact that Afghans have managed to get out of Kabul through the help of other people on the ground, security services on the ground. And with the help of contacts within the airport.

You know, these missions that have been conducted to get these people inside have been nothing short of miracles, that has now completely dried up. And the Americans are purely focusing now on their citizens and people who have visas to America.

I mean, for those who are stuck there, John, it's absolutely terrifying because they do not know what awaits them.

VAUSE: Yes, so much for those promises that the Afghans would not be abandoned. Anna, thank you. Anna Coren live for us in Hong Kong.

Vali Nasr is a professor of Middle East Studies at Johns Hopkins University. He was also a senior adviser on Afghanistan during the Obama administration. He is with us this hour from Washington.

Professor, thank you very much for your time.

VALI NASR, PROFESSOR OF MIDDLE EAST STUDIES, JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY: Thank you.

VAUSE: In the 12 hours on Monday from 12:30 p.m. Kabul time, the White House now claims that a total of approximately 10,900 people were evacuated from Kabul. This is the result of 15 U.S. military flights, which carried approximately 6,660 evacuees, 34 coalition flights, which carried more than 4,000 people.

I mean, that total number which includes U.S. and coalition flights, it seems to be a bit of an attempt to fudge the numbers, at least a little. We don't know how many were American or NATO citizens, especially on those coalition flights, chances are not many were Afghans with special visas or Afghans at risk.

But even at this accelerated pace, does it seem almost certain that not everyone? Certainly not the Afghans, will make it out by this deadline next Tuesday?

[00:10:06]

NASR: No, it doesn't look like it. particularly because the number of Afghans is quite large.

I mean, some estimates are that upwards of 20,000, Afghans should qualify for SIVs as people who work with us and should be evacuated, each of them has four or five family members, that already puts the numbers close to probably to 100,000 at the most.

And then, we would like to bring out people -- other people who are at risk. Women leaders, civil society leaders and the like. And that -- and those people also have family members. So, we're potentially speaking about a very, very large number.

I think the administration's priorities to get the Americans out and then get the SIVs out. And particularly to finish this without any American casualties, because if an American evacuee is killed, or an American soldier is killed or injured, then we will be in a very different place.

VAUSE: Well, the Pentagon said during Monday's briefing, there has been constant communication with the Taliban and they continue to be constant communication about access to Kabul's airport, listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KIRBY: Thus far, and going forward, it does require constant coordination and deconfliction with the Taliban. It absolutely is going. It's absolutely requiring of us to keep these lines of communication with the Taliban open, who do have checkpoints out beyond the airport.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So, with that in mind, the U.S. president could decide as soon as Tuesday if the airlift deadline of August 31st will be extended. But it would seem the Taliban will ultimately make that decision. It's not a decision the U.S. president gets to make on his own, right?

NASR: Well, first of all, I know the president is under a lot of pressure to extend this deadline. And perhaps he should, in order to get as many people out, but I think what makes him and many around him nervous is that the longer that we are on the ground, the more time it gives for an accident to happen, an unintended shooting or something like that. Or for ISIS, where -- which the administration has identified as a threat to have time to plan an attack.

So, the longer you're sitting on the ground, the more the chances of something going wrong will increase. But at the same time, you're correct, we're playing with these numbers as if the Taliban have no say in it, the Taliban would like us to get out, get out safely and be gone. But they don't want us to just make these decisions on our own.

So, we made a deal to leave Afghanistan May 1st. That was the original Doha deal. It was extended to this time period. And I think the Taliban will want something in return if they are to compromise and allow the United States to stay.

VAUSE: Well, with that in mind, could that something be money? Could the U.S. use as leverage the billions of dollars which have been frozen in foreign bank accounts, which are essentially Afghan cash reserves? Could they essentially pay to get Americans and Afghans out of the country?

NASR: Well, I think economic incentives are quite important. This is not just paying off a group that we don't like, the Taliban is now the government of Afghanistan, it's paying people salaries. Salaries of the very people that we are trying to protect, people who are working in different ministries or worked in different organizations, they have to pay that, they have to keep the economy going.

We don't want 34 million people in Afghanistan to fall into abject poverty and become displaced. So, there is an incentive for us to keep the economy going. It may not be the United States paying, it might be that we allow certain trade or we allow some way in which that the Taliban can access some economic benefits that would allow them to function.

I think that's a big incentive, I think threatening them is not going to go anywhere, because they can threaten us back.

Right now, they are meters away from American soldiers, they can shoot at us or they can leave their checkpoints. The checkpoints the Taliban are put there is a nuisance. But at the same time, if those checkpoints were not there, then you know, all kinds of people could get very close to American soldiers.

And so, we want to keep this process moving without getting into a fight with the Taliban and then, therefore, we have to be willing to negotiate with them.

VAUSE: Vali Nasr, some insight that we very much appreciate. Thank you, sir.

NASR: Thank you.

VAUSE: Still to come here, it seems those who refuse to be vaccinated with COVID are running out of reasons why.

Regulators in the U.S. have put an end to one of the more popular excuses, like giving full approval now to Pfizer's vaccine, but what does this now mean for mandates?

Also ahead, a pandemic which does not discriminate bringing equality to athletes competing at the Olympics and now the Paralympics in Tokyo, a live report after the break. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:17:03]

VAUSE: In the past eight months, more than 200 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine have been administered across the United States.

And finally, on Monday, health regulators issued their full approval, the first for a COVID vaccine in the U.S.

Until now, three COVID vaccines were given Emergency Use Authorization. This announcement by the Food and Drug Administration has confirmed much of the original data about the safety and effectiveness submitted by Pfizer for Emergency Use Authorization while also meeting quality and safety standards during manufacturing.

The U.S. President Joe Biden now says the time has come for reluctant Americans to get vaccinated.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: If you're one of the millions of Americans who said that they will not get the shot when it's -- until it has full and final approval of the FDA, it has now happened.

The moment you've been waiting for is here. It's time for you to go get your vaccination and get it today, today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Doctor Ashish Jha is the Dean of Brown University School of Public Health. He is with us this hour from Providence in Rhode Island. Welcome back. It's been a while.

DR. ASHISH JHA, DEAN, BROWN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Thank you so much for having me back.

VAUSE: OK, well, the FDA specifically addressed some of the false and misleading statements, some of the blatant disinformation, which has been circulating about the safety of COVID vaccines. Listen to this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DR. PETER MARKS, DIRECTOR OF THE FDA'S CENTER FOR BIOLOGICS EVALUATION AND RESEARCH: We've heard false claims that COVID-19 vaccines cause infertility, contain microchips and cause COVID-19. And worse, we've heard false claims that thousands of people have died from the vaccine.

Let me be clear, these claims are simply not true.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: So, how far do you think this FDA approval will go towards ending that kind of disinformation (INAUDIBLE) improving public confidence?

JHA: Yes, I think it's going to help a lot actually. And there are going to be a small proportion of kind of conspiracy minded people who are going to not necessarily be swayed by this.

But there is a large chunk of people who are unvaccinated who just didn't feel comfortable with something that only had Emergency Use Authorization. I do think for them, it's going to be a confidence booster.

And then, I think for businesses thinking about mandating vaccines, this is going to go a long way.

VAUSE: Yes, because public confidence is important. And obviously, you don't, you know, dismiss that anyway. But this approval does seem to have a lot more impact in terms of opening the door for mandates, whether it's a business or schools or military gyms, wherever, right? And that's where the significance could come.

JHA: Absolutely. And you know what, people are realizing what businesses are realizing, business leaders, schools, universities, is they really can't get back to any semblance of normal if they have a lot of people who are unvaccinated, they just won't work. They can't figure out how to do it.

So, they want to do mandates as a way to get businesses back. But they have been waiting for an approval. They didn't need to wait for an approval by the way, they could have done it under emergency use. But they were waiting for an approval and now they have it and I think that's going to make it much better.

VAUSE: Because the approval effectively gives them cover? Is that the thinking here?

[00:20:00]

JHA: Yes, I think there's a psychological element to it as well that these vaccines are now fully approved. It's not just an emergency use.

And so, if you're going to compel somebody to do something. And by the way, we compel people to get vaccinated for all sorts of things all the time. So, that's not unusual. But it's usually been in the context of fully approved vaccines.

VAUSE: With White House Medical Adviser Dr. Anthony Fauci also talked about the potential real-world benefits from this vaccine approval, here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: If we can get through this winter and get really the majority, overwhelming majority of the 90 million people who have not been vaccinated, vaccinated. I hope we can start to get some good control in the spring of 2022.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: That's still not until well into next year. And it's still an if, that's a long time and still uncertainty out there.

JHA: Yes, look, I'd be a bit more optimistic. I think what we're seeing is if you look at places like Vermont and Massachusetts that are well vaccinated, yes, they're having outbreaks, but their hospitals are not filling up. People are not dying in large numbers.

So, I do think that if we can get into the sort of, you know, 70 percent of the population or higher vaccinated, it will make an enormous difference for a little over 50 percent of the population.

Now, having kids, adding some chunk of those people who've been waiting on the fence, I think it will start making a big difference even going into this winter.

VAUSE: You know, the former U.S. President Donald Trump, he politicized so much about this pandemic, he encouraged anti-maskers, he praised those who were opposed to lock downs. He downplayed the virus from the beginning. He actually talked about vaccines at a rally over the weekend in Alabama. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I recommend take the vaccines. I did it, it's good. Take the vaccines, but you got -- no, that's OK, it's all right. You got your freedoms. But I happen to take the vaccine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: You know, the booing seems to say that he can't undo the damage he's done in many ways. Those who seek pandemic restrictions as an attack on personal freedoms are unlikely to be swayed.

JHA: Yes, look, first of all, I was absolutely thrilled to hear the president -- the former president, talk about the fact that he got vaccinated, I think that will help encouraging more people. I wish he would go on the road. I wish the White House -- the current White House would invite him to the White House to talk about the fact that he got vaccines.

Whatever it has happened in the past, we need President Trump to play a constructive role now, and he can for his followers by speaking -- by talking up the vaccines.

VAUSE: And very quickly, where do you stand on these third booster shots? Are they still necessary because of the Delta variant?

JHA: You know, I think for a certain high-risk people, no doubt about it. Immunocompromised people should be getting it now. I think elderly people with chronic diseases. I have not yet seen the data that compels young healthy people from getting -- for getting that booster. If that data becomes available, sure. But right now, I would focus on high risk people. VAUSE: OK, and now it is approved and it is legit. If you like in many ways, it's a good time to go and get vaccinated.

And Dr. Jha, it's good to see you. Thank you for being with us.

JHA: Thank you so much.

VAUSE: China is reporting just one new local COVID-19 case the day after reported no such cases for the first time since July, and it could be a sign the country's worst outbreak since last year may be coming under control at least soon.

CNN's Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong live for us with the details on this. What are they saying? What do they think?

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, there is a significant downward trend here. Today, China officially reported only one new local case of the coronavirus, this follows the report out yesterday, zero new cases of the virus an indication that this latest outbreak in China is tapering off. Again, in a country that has a zero-tolerance approach to the virus.

This latest outbreak first emerged in around mid-July in the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing and it quickly spread to over half of China's 31 provinces. Over 1,200 people confirmed to have been infected. And China through its pandemic playbook at the problem was sweeping pandemic measures, including punishing. Prolonged lockdowns that have been strictly enforced, as well as mass testing campaigns in which millions of people in cities across China would be tested in just a matter of days.

There were also and have been, you know, extensive travel restrictions, quarantines. Chinese officials have been punished and held accountable for failing to rein in the virus.

In the last hour, I spoke with Jin Dongyan. He is a top virologist based in Hong Kong at the University of Hong Kong. He said that this outbreak is reaching an end. He said that this is a vindication of China's COVID-19 zero COVID strategy to some extent, because China has no choice due to the less than ideal effectiveness of its homegrown vaccines. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. JIN DONGYAN, VIROLOGIST, UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG: If they they give up this zero-tolerance policy, it might be a disaster because it's actually very challenging for them to come to that leaving was the virus status. Another major major concern is the efficacy or effectiveness of the vaccines.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:25:15]

STOUT: Jin Dongyan virologist at the University of Hong Kong speaking to me earlier, he adds that China would need to add a third booster shot of its homegrown vaccines like Sinovac or Sinopharm. Or consider administering Messenger RNA vaccines like the ones made by Pfizer, BioNTech and Moderna.

Right now, we know that about 60 percent of the total population in China have been vaccinated. 1.9 billion doses have been administered so far, of course of the homegrown Chinese vaccines and China is set to meet that milestone of two billion people administered or two billion doses administered by sometime this week, John.

VAUSE: Kristie, thank you. Kristie Lu Stout live for us in Hong Kong.

Just hours before the opening ceremony of the Paralympic Games, the number of daily COVID infections continues to rise across Japan.

The whole city Tokyo recorded near record numbers of infections for four days in a row last week, straining an already overwhelmed health system.

Fears have also been renewed over so many international athletes gathered in one place, leading to an even bigger surge in the number of infections.

CNN's Blake Essig is live in Tokyo here with us now. So, Blake, you know, just like athletes from that earlier curtain raiser a few weeks ago, these Paralympians, they're facing similar conditions, empty stands and pandemic restrictions.

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, John very similar. Look, the world's largest event for athletes with disabilities begins tonight. In just a few hours, the Paralympic flame will be lit inside the National Stadium making Tokyo the first city to host the games twice. Now, the first time being back in 1964.

Now compared to the somewhat festive atmosphere surrounding the Olympics a few weeks ago, there's clearly not quite that level of interest surrounding these games. But it is still early, this is similar to what we saw on the build up to the Olympics, before a noticeable shift in the mood took place once the games were underway.

And spending time outside the National Stadium today, that interest is starting to build in support of what the Paralympic stand for.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I also have a disability and so, it gives me courage to see all the Paralympians doing their best and showing nothing brings them down. It's really moving for me.

Some people in Japan still have prejudices against foreigners. And that prejudice extends to people with disabilities. The Paralympics highlights how everyone is different and how that is absolutely fine. And actually, a great thing.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ESSIG: Of course, health and safety was the story throughout the Olympics and will continue to be the story of throughout the Paralympics here in the capital. COVID-19 infections continue to skyrocket. In fact, cases are at least three times higher than they were when the Olympic Games started about a month ago. And just last week, Tokyo's governor called the situation a disaster level emergency.

Now, currently, only 41 percent of Japan's population is fully vaccinated and medical professionals say that the recent surge in cases has put the medical system under immense pressure.

Well, there's no question that the movement of people increased as a result of the Olympics' organizers maintain that there's no connection between the games and the rising cases in Tokyo.

This time, John, 19 prefectures, including Tokyo are under a full or quasi-state of emergency through mid-September. And as a result, no spectators will be allowed to attend any of these events.

VAUSE: On one other note, the Paralympians from Afghanistan, at least two were eligible to compete, they will not be there because of the Taliban takeover. But Afghanistan will not be forgotten. What's the details?

ESSIG: Yes, you know, John, because of the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan more than a week ago, the country's two Paralympic athletes were unable to reach Tokyo.

In a sign of solidarity, International Paralympic Committee President Andrew Parsons says that the Afghan flag will be included in tonight's opening ceremony. He says while it's not possible for the two athletes to physically be here, he says that they will be here in spirit and the Afghan flag will be carried by representative from the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, John.

VAUSE: Blake, thank you. Blake Essig there in Tokyo with all the details. We'll catch up with you again and the days ahead, thank you.

Still to come, there are a few things in this world more terrifying right now than just being a woman living in Afghanistan. When we come back, how the Taliban can be expected to turn the clock back 20 years.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone. I'm John Vause. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM.

[00:32:02]

U.S. President Joe Biden's is under growing pressure to extend the withdrawal deadline in Afghanistan. And that will only increase during a virtual meeting with G-7 leaders in the coming hours.

Biden is also being pushed by the military to decide by Tuesday whether he'll keep U.S. troops in Afghanistan beyond that August 31 deadline. Those troops are currently deployed as security at Kabul's airport, where the pace of evacuations has accelerated.

A source says there are now about 13,000 people, mostly Afghans, inside the terminal, waiting for a flight. New satellite images from NASA technology showed the scene Monday at the Kabul airport. Large crowds at multiple checkpoints and security gates along the perimeter, while inside, several groups can be seen on the tarmac, waiting to board military planes.

And thousands of evacuees from Afghanistan are now waiting at the Ramstein airbase in Germany, waiting for their next flight to the United States. Atika Shubert is there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In the last three days, at least 39 evacuation flights have landed at Ramstein Air Base. The number of evacuees now waiting here has swelled to nearly 8,000, all of them desperate to get to the U.S. To speed up mobilization, the Pentagon ordered some extra help.

(on camera): Delta Airlines waiting for passengers to board. But as you can see, this is no ordinary flight. We're at Ramstein Air Base, and that is part of the civil reserve air fleet that has just been activated.

What's happening here is that military planes are bringing evacuees from Afghanistan to U.S. bases. And now commercial airliners like Delta will be flying those evacuees back to the United States.

(voice-over): But as we wait for departure, the plane stayed put. As of Monday night, the U.S. government says only one flight had left this base to bring evacuees to the U.S. from Ramstein, a military plane with 60 passengers. That's nearly 8,000 in, 60 out, a bottleneck.

The State Department responsible for processing Afghan evacuees says the combined resources of U.S. bases in Germany, Italy and Spain alone will be able to shelter about 15,000 Afghans as they await transit to the U.S.

But for now, what was supposed to be a 48-hour transit stop is taking much, much longer.

Atika Shubert, CNN, at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: And some of the women who've managed to leave know firsthand about the misogynistic, child-bride-marrying Taliban. And they're now trying to save their daughters from that same nightmare.

CNN's Salma Abdelaziz looks at why their fears are so well-founded.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SALAMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After takeover, the Taliban vowed to govern Afghanistan by Sharia. When asked how that would differ from the group's rule two decades ago, this was the answer. "If this question is based on thoughts, ideology, beliefs, then there

is no difference. We have the same beliefs," the group's spokesman said.

[00:35:06]

The Taliban says it's forming an inclusive government that will ensure women's rights within an Islamic framework. But because Sharia is not a codified system of laws, what that means is entirely up to the Taliban themselves, says Professor H.A. Hellyer.

H.A. HELLYER, UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE CENTER OF ISLAMIC STUDIES: When we talk about Sharia in a public context, and again, interpretations for how that is applied as Islamic law, they differ tremendously across the board.

ABDELAZIZ: The group's record is bleak. The Taliban's draconian regime from 1996 to 2001 was widely criticized by Muslims and non-Muslims alike.

In moderate legislative applications of Sharia like other Muslim- majority states provide little comfort. Take, for example, Iran, a country ruled by a strict Shia interpretation of Islam. There, the morality police subject women and girls to daily harassment and violent attacks, says Amnesty International.

In Qatar, women are denied the right to make key decisions about their lives, from marriage to work, without a male relative, Human Rights Watch reports. And under Saudi's male guardianship system, women must obtain permission for some of their most basic rights. Men can even file cases for disobedience, rights groups say.

But there has been a recent shift in the kingdom. A driving ban was reversed and travel restrictions on females eased in recent years.

HELLYER: There's certainly interpretations that are held up, and then there are other interpretations that are equally valid in Islamic law that are not. Why? That's a public policy decision.

ABDELAZIZ: And that's exactly where the Taliban say they are changing. They want to engage on a global stage.

HELLYER: They also have to take into account the relationships that they have with powerful actors outside of the country.

ABDELAZIZ: That leaves the U.S. and its allies with one key piece of leverage: international recognition and legitimacy. Hanging in the balance, the 20 years of gains and rights and liberties for the women and girls of Afghanistan.

Salma Abdelaziz, CNN, London.

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VAUSE: The U.S. vice -resident is traveling in Southeast Asia right now, but Kamala Harris cannot escape the controversy surrounding the chaotic and disastrous withdrawal from Afghanistan. A live report from Singapore in a moment.

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VAUSE: Vietnam is the next stop in Kamala Harris's trip to southeast Asia. Right now, the U.S. vice president is in Singapore talking about APAC, the military coup in Myanmar, taking some pointed swipes at China. Manisha Tank is live in Singapore this hour.

Manisha, it seems she's talking about anything, it seems, which has pretty much nothing to do with Afghanistan.

MANISHA TANK, JOURNALIST: Well, I mean, we could say that. Yesterday she wouldn't be drawn initially when journalists were questioning her about the situation in Afghanistan, particularly as they were asking her opinion. And she remained focused on what the U.S. is actually doing, John.

But today, what's been really interesting was we were all expecting this big foreign policy speech. That is what we got. It was big. I'm going to get to some of the details in a second.

But before she got onto those remarks that everybody was waiting for, she addressed Afghanistan right from the get-go, repeating some of the remarks that she made the day before, but effectively saying this is what the U.S. is doing; this is what the U.S. Is focused on. And it's more about the here and now where that situation is concerned.

But let's get on to the big foreign policy moment, which is being interpreted in a very strong way here in Southeast Asia at the moment, or the Indo-Pacific.

And it's important to use that term, because this is a term that, if you noticed, former president Donald Trump would say Asia-Pacific. This administration is using the term Indo-Pacific, which those academics in the field are saying that this is a very important moment when you look at the language that's being used.

With that, she talked about territorial disputes in the South China Sea. She came out strong. Here's what she had to say.

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KAMALA HARRIS, U.S. VICE PRESIDENT: Beijing continues to coerce, to intimidate, and to make claims to the vast majority of the South China Sea. And Beijing's actions continue to undermine the rules-based order and threaten the sovereignty of nations.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TANK: And there has been comments before from Beijing about their opinion on the situation in the South China Sea, always referring back to international laws.

But what this boils down to, eventually, really, is the discussion of how do you interpret those laws? What is the deal with some of those special economic zones around many of the U.S.'s regional allies in this region who were stationed around that sea area. Interpretation very important here.

So it was major that this came out in the speech but also addressing COVID-19. And I want to bring this up, because of course, she's headed off to Vietnam later.

And today we heard that troops are out in Ho Chi Minh City. which is really a business center of Vietnam, to help enforce the rules to control a spike in cases there. She will be traveling to Hanoi, which is some thousand kilometers away from there.

But even there, there was a lockdown. This is a very pertinent issue in the region and she talked about vaccines and vaccines being available for free. This has been a part of core diplomacy in Southeast Asia, where these COVID cases, John, have been spiking.

VAUSE: Manisha, thank you. Manisha Tank there, live for us in Singapore. Thank you. And thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM.

I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. WORLD SPORT starts after a short break. And I'll be back at the top of the hour. See you then.

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