Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Top U.S. and Russian Diplomats to Meet Soon in Geneva; Biden: Heavy Price if Russia Move Unites Into Ukraine; January 6 Committee Asks for Ivanka Trump's Voluntary Testimony; Lawmakers Investigation Possible Fake Electors Scheme; Rock Star and Grammy Winner Meat Loaf Dead at 74; Covid-19 Detected Among Arrivals to Beijing Winter Olympics. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired January 21, 2022 - 04:00   ET

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

[04:00:00]

ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and right around the world. I'm Isa Soares in London. And just ahead right here on CNN NEWSROOM.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I've been absolutely clear with President Putin. He has no misunderstanding if any, any assembled Russian units move across the Ukrainian border, that is an invasion.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If Russia further invades Ukraine, further uses military aggressive means against Ukraine, there will be a high price.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

High stake talks between U.S. and Russia begin in the coming hours. The latest effort to resolve the standoff of the Ukraine through diplomacy. We are live in Geneva and Moscow this hour.

Plus, the damage is extensive and the country's needs are dire. We'll have a live report on the aid that's finally arriving in Tonga after a devastating volcanic eruption.

And Grammy award-winning singer Meat Loaf has died. We'll take a look back at his legendary music career.

ANNOUNCER: Live from London, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Isa Soares.

SOARES: Welcome to the show, everyone. It is Friday, January 21st. And we'll begin with a flurry of diplomatic activity scheduled to get underway this hour aimed really at preventing an all-out war between Russia and Ukraine.

Now, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will meet soon in Geneva, in Switzerland. Negotiations have done little to ease tensions so far. And Ukrainian leaders say the U.S. and President Joe Biden must do more to deter a Russian invasion. Well, tens of thousands of Russian troops amass on Ukraine's eastern

border and President Biden is having to clean up his comments that a minor incursion could bring a less forceful response from Western allies. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: I've been absolutely clear with President Putin. He has no misunderstanding. If any, any assembled Russian units move across Ukrainian border, that is an invasion. It will be met with severe and coordinated economic response. Russia will pay a heavy price.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, let's get more on the story. CNN's international diplomatic editor Nic Robertson standing by for us in Moscow. But first I want to go to Geneva and are senior International correspondent Fred Pleitgen joins us now. And Fred, the stakes for these talks are huge, and that's probably an understatement. But what everyone wants to see is a de-escalation of the tensions. What are the expectations from your advantage point?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they want to see de-escalation and I think they also want to see progress here at these talks. And see whether or not progress is actually possible between the U.S. and its allies on the one hand and then the Russians on the other hand as well. And the fact the talks are happening at all shows that both sides understands how high the stakes are and how important it is to try and keep all of this in the diplomatic realm rather than have things get out of control between Ukraine and Russia. With, of course, Russia continuously amassing that force near the border with Ukraine.

And really, it is quite remarkable that these talks are taking place in the first place, Isa. Because remember, after the first round of talks here in Geneva, the Russians afterward said they were so disappointed they weren't even sure whether or not further talks would be possible or whether or not those could lead to anything. But now at least the two top diplomats are talking to one another.

But if you look at the areas where things are really difficult, the Russians, of course, put forward that list of demands that they have where they want written responses from the United States, Secretary of State Blinken has already said those written responses definitely are not coming at this meeting.

But the main key places are that the Russians demand that there's no further enlargement of NATO. Which obviously, is first and foremost means no taking into NATO of Ukraine. And that there's no offensive weapons close to Russian borders.

That second point, the U.S. has already signaled that there could be a room for negotiations if it's really a big security concern for the Russians. Then the first point, though, that is going to be the big issue, whether or not some sort of middle ground can be found with that. The U.S. has already said completely saying the Ukraine is never going to be a member of NATO is simply not going to happen. The Russians are saying that it's the key point for them, is there going to be any middle ground on that? Or maybe they don't come to some sort of solution on that topic today, but at least they decide to continue to talk to one another.

[04:05:00]

Because one of the things that we have heard from the Russian side over the past, I would say 12, 14 hours, is that the Kremlin has said it would really like to see another top-level phone conversation at least between President Biden and the Russian President Vladimir Putin. Perhaps things could continue in that sphere, and this meeting today could set the stage for that -- Isa.

SOARES: Yes, and the talks ongoing, that's a good sign. Fred do stay with us. I want be to go to Nic. And Nic, President Biden's comments yesterday, I know he's clarified them, we just played a short clip of that. But those initial comments, Nic, caused somewhat of a diplomatic wobble. Is the West, are NATO allies really united in its response and messaging here on Russia?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Well, t's here are differences and Russia certainly was aware of this when it chose to negotiate separately with the United States because it believed it could be a strong influence at NATO and separately with NATO as a group of nations. The differences are perhaps slightly geographic in terms of perception of the Russian threat.

The United States, Canada, the U.K., Denmark, Norway, the Baltic States all feel, you know, that sanctions and measures against Russian actions in Ukraine should be perhaps stronger than some other countries, perhaps some of the southern European nations who are more distant from, you know, the borders of Russia and who don't feel the threat, the military threat as much from Russia.

So there are differences, and a diplomat at NATO said that, you know, essentially that President Biden shouldn't have really got into airing the fact that there are differences, and those differences perhaps center most on what happens if it's a cyberattack, what happens if it's a paramilitary-style, you know, assault from inside Ukraine rather than Russian forces crossing the border initially, what happens if it's something that sort of orchestrated or triggered in Ukraine that then Russia says that it needs to then send in troops, you know, to support perhaps Russians in Russian-speaking part of the population in Ukraine.

There are all these gray areas. And so those differences have been exposed, do exist. And Russia is certainly aware of those differences. But there is unanimity that if Russia crosses the border with military forces, then that will trigger big sanction and we don't know what those economic sanctions precisely would be.

But, you know, I think at this stage it is still very much a united front that's being presented by the United States, by NATO, by the European Union, by the principal leaders that there is, you know, a very clear option to the Kremlin right now. Either you follow the diplomatic path or there will be a very heavy price to pay, whatever the action. It's just not clear precisely what that, what that price would be. And this is perhaps where the conversation between Lavrov and Blinken can go today. And certainly, will be the center of, you know, how the Kremlin assesses the situation at the moment.

SOARES: And we shall be keeping an eye on that meeting when it gets underway. Important perspective from our Nic Robertson in Moscow and our Fred Pleitgen in Geneva. Thank you both.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAULA REID, CNN SENIOR LEGAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The House select committee investigating January 6th moving in on former President Trump's inner circle, requesting a voluntary interview from Ivanka Trump.

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I'm very proud of Ivanka.

REID (voice-over): The committee has already gathered some evidence about what the former first daughter was doing on the day the insurrection.

REP. LIZ CHENEY (R-WY): We have firsthand testimony that his daughter, Ivanka, went in at least twice to ask him to please stop this violence.

REID (voice-over): In an eight-page letter today, the committee says it would like to discuss any other conversations you may have witnessed or participated in regarding the president's plan to obstruct or impede the counting of electoral votes.

Lawmakers also want to know more about what she saw in the Oval Office, saying a witness has testified that she was there for a call between her father and the vice-president, when Trump tried to pressure Mike Pence to go along with the plan to block the certification of electoral votes.

They also want to know why they she didn't do more.

[04:10:00]

Testimony obtain by the committee indicates that members of the White House staff requested your assistance on multiple occasions to intervene in an attempt to persuade President Trump to address the ongoing lawlessness and violence on Capitol Hill.

And they also want to ask her whether her father gave any orders to deploy the National Guard that day. The committee is aware that certain White House staff devoted time during the violent riot to rebutting questions regarding whether the president was attempting to hold up deployment of the Guard.

Trump's state of mind, a key focus of the committee, their letter painting a picture of the chaotic White House and staffers hoping that Ivanka, a senior adviser, could get through to her father. They also wanted to talk to Ivanka about how others, including Fox News Host Sean Hannity, tried to stop Trump from talking about the election being stolen and keep him away from certain people.

Ivanka's representatives issued a statement saying, as the committee already knows, Ivanka did not speak at the January 6th rally, as she publicly stated that day at 3:15 p.m., any security breach or disrespect to our law enforcement is unacceptable. The violence must stop immediately. Please be peaceful.

It did not say whether she will comply with the committee's request.

TRUMP: I've got to get -- I have to find 12,000 votes, and I have them times a lot. And therefore, I won the state.

REID (voice-over): The former president's efforts to overturn the 2020 election also under scrutiny in Georgia today, with the Fulton County district attorney is requesting a special grand jury to gather evidence and compel witnesses. The D.A., Fani Willis, saying her office has information indicating possible criminal disruptions of that state's election process.

REID: The House committee is also looking into whether there was involvement from the Trump White House in the creation or submission of fake electors. Sources tell CNN Trump campaign officials led by Rudy Giuliani oversaw efforts in December 2020 to put forward illegitimate electors from seven states that Trump lost. This is a core tenet of the broader plot to try to overturn Biden's victory when Congress counted the electoral votes on January 6.

Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Now, former Trump attorney Rudy Giuliani was subpoenaed this week, but the January 6 committee sources say he and his allies coordinated the nuts-and-bolts process of creating fake electors on a state-by-state level. Now one illegitimate elector from Michigan boasted at a recent Republican event that the Trump campaign directed the entire operation. Have a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MESHAWN MADDOCK, CO-CHAIR, MICHIGAN REPUBLICAN PARTY: He fought for investigations into every part of the election we could. He fought for a team of people to come and testify in front of the committee. We fought to see the electors. Um the Trump campaign asked us to do that. Under a lot of scrutiny very for that today.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: And the seven state sources say were targeted in the fake electors scheme, were all states Trump loss -- as you can see on the screen. They include Georgia and Arizona, both long-time red states that turned blue in 2020.

Well, while U.S. house lawmakers continue to piece together the events leading up to the January 6 insurrection, U.S. President Joe Biden is looking ahead at a landmark legislation he still hopes to get through Congress this year. The key Democratic Senator who stalled Mr. Biden's $2 trillion Build Back Better bill is indicating he's in no hurry.

Joe Manchin told CNN, quote, I'm open to start with a clean sheet of paper. We'll just be starting from scratch whenever we start on that.

That's a severe blow to the White House, of course, which spent months trying to craft a spending bill that Manchin could support. U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says legislation is too important to give up. He spoke earlier to CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY: We know that these are good policies that the American people correctly believe are going to make them better off. Whether we're talking about fighting inflation, lowering the cost of insulin, lower the cost of being in the work force by getting people child care that they can afford, getting people pre-K child tax credit, the things we have to do for our climate, you name it.

But these are important policies that are going to make Americans better off, help deal with the fact that there's a lot of upward pressure on prices right now. And for that reason, we continue to believe that they're going to pass. What form it's in, what legislative vehicle it's in, the ups and downs and twists and turns on Capitol Hill, that's going to continue to, I'm sure, be a long-drawn- out story. But at the end of the day, these are good policies that have to get done and we're going to keep pushing for them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, with the 2022 midterm elections now less than ten months away, President Biden said he was disappointed that voting rights legislation failed to pass Congress on Wednesday.

[04:15:00]

But when he was asked if that failure might delegitimatize the upcoming elections, his answer took many people by surprise. And here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BIDEN: I'm not saying it's going to be legit. The increase in the prospect of being illegitimate is in direct proportion to us not being able to get these, these reforms passed.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, the dust up over that remark prompted the White House to spend much of Thursday trying to explain what the president really meant to say. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: He is not trying to predict that the 2022 elections would not be legitimate. Quite the opposite. His view and he's told us this privately a lot, is that in 2020 the American people rose to the moment. We had COVID. People were trying to suppress the vote. They still turned out in record numbers.

What we also though need to be clear eyed about -- and this is what he was trying to convey last night -- is that there were efforts in 2020 by the former president and his supporters to attempt to overturn the outcome of the election. We need to be clear eyed about that possibility or about the effort to try to do that. We need to educate voters. We need to make sure they know what their rights are. And that's what our focus is going to be moving forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: That's White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki speaking earlier to CNN.

Now to some sad breaking news for you this hour, the American rock star and Grammy winner known as Meat Loaf has passed away.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MEAT LOAF, SINGER: Never had a girl looking any better than you did than all the kitchen schools that were wishing they were me that night

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Famous 1970s hit "Paradise by the Dashboard Lights" and "You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth," his "Bat Out of Hell" I remember very clearly, remains one of the best-selling rock albums of all time. His family wrote on Facebook that they were with Meat Loaf -- his really name was Marvin Lee Aday -- during his final hours. And that their hearts are broken. CNN's Paul Vercammen has a look back at his life.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PAUL VERCAMMEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Meat Loaf performed sweet suburban melodies with dramatic flair. Unleashing the lyrics of composer Jim Steinman.

MEAT LOAF, SINGER: I'll go out on the stage as if that's the last thing I'm ever do. I will -- and that's why I'm on the set. If I'm go out, I'm going out on a stage.

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Meat Loaf, where did that name come from?

MEAT LOAF: The real story is, there is no real story. The real story is that kids -- I was 8 years old, I've been called Meat Loaf since I was about 8.

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Meat Loaf or Meat for short was born Marvin Lee Aday in Dallas, Texas. But even Texas was not big enough to corral his talents. Meat Loaf would go on to sell more than 80 million records worldwide. One of the top-selling musicians ever. His "Bat Out of Hell" album became staples in college dorms. The first one selling 43 million copies.

MEAT LOAF: When "Bat Out of Hell" won I was not ready for. I had a nervous breakdown. I went to psychologists and psychiatrists for two years. And I went with them to deal with the word "star"

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Meat got a hold of his demons. He starred on stage and screen. Now for the "Rocky Horror Picture Show," and Bob Paulson in "Fight Club."

MEAT LOAF: First rule is I'm not supposed to talk about it. And the second rule is, I'm not supposed to talk about it. And the third rule --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Bob, stop. I'm a member.

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Off screen he married twice, became a father to two daughters. And Meat Loaf entered reality TV, Donald Trump's "Celebrity apprentice." In an infamous episode, he blistered Gary Busey.

MEAT LOAF: You look in my eyes. I am the last person in the world you ever want to (BLEEP) with.

VERCAMMEN (voice-over): Such harsh yelling, a stark contrast to what launched Meat Loaf to international adoration, that operatic voice.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Meat Loaf's cause of death has not yet been released. Meat Loaf was 74.

[04:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SOARES: Now, the Biden administration is tightening U.S. borders in hopes of curbing the spread of COVID-19. Beginning on Saturday, essential travelers arriving in the U.S. by land or ferry must be fully vaccinated and they'll have to show proof. The rule will not apply to U.S. citizens and permanent residents.

Now, according to data from Johns Hopkins University, the U.S. has recorded a total of 69 million COVID cases since the start of the pandemic. That's more than a quarter of those infections have now been reported just in this past month during, of course, the Omicron surge.

If we show you a look really at coronavirus headlines right around the world, Austria is now the first country in Europe to mandate vaccines for adults. The country's parliament passed a law on Thursday making it compulsory for residents over 18. Now, the mandate will be enforced beginning March 15th, and violators could face nearly $700 in fines.

Early next month, France will start easing some of its COVID-19 restrictions. Sports and venues will be allowed to reopen February 2. Then later in the month nightclubs and bars will follow suit.

And with just two weeks to go really until the start of the Winter Olympics, Olympic officials say COVID has been detected among the guests who have already arrived in Beijing, but they have stressed that no infection has occurred in the closed loop which includes the Olympic Village and venues.

Well, CNN has your COVID headlines around the world. Jim Bittermann is in Paris with the latest in the lifting of restrictions in France.

[04:25:00]

But first let me go to Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong with more on those COVID cases ahead of the Winter Olympics. And Kristie, these new cases will be of concern no doubt to authorities as we prepare now for the Olympics in less than two weeks.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, it was a matter of math that these would be detected. Look, it's just two weeks to go before the start of the Beijing Winter Games and cases of COVID-19 have been detected in recent arrivals heading into Beijing for the games. We've got a statement from the IOC and the organizers tell us this, quote --

The positivity of arrivals testing is 1.53 percent. And for regular screening testing inside the closed loop, 0.02 percent.

The IOC adds and emphasizes there is no infection inside the closed loop. And we know nearly 11,000 people, we're talking about athletes, officials, volunteers, media, they're all set to arrive in Beijing for the Winter Games. The closed loop system that we've been reporting about for the last few weeks, that is up and running. It covers all stadiums, venues and accommodation.

And to get into the closed loop system, all arrivals have to test negative twice before flying into Beijing. All athletes and participants, they have to stay inside the bubble and undergo daily COVID-19 testing. Fully vaccinated participants, they can enter the closed loop without quarantine. If you're not vaccinated, you have to go through 21 days of quarantine once you touchdown in Beijing. Whether or not you test positive for COVID as we talked about before, if you test positive, you cannot compete, you cannot take part. If you are symptomatic, you have to stay at a designated hospital for treatment. Asymptomatic you go to isolation. But whether or not that's inside the loop, we don't know about that -- Isa.

SOARES: Very strict rules all around. Kristie, stay with us. And let's go to Jim in Paris. And Jim, restrictions are easing. Welcome news no doubt for so many, but I remember you and I still talking early in the week where we were talking about cases soaring.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely, and, in fact, they're leaving the restrictions here despite the fact the cases each day have been coming in around 400,000 or so, new cases each day, each 24-hour period. Also, despite the fact that something like 19,000 classrooms in this country, school classrooms, remain closed because of COVID. But the Prime Minister announced last night easing the restrictions as

you mentioned earlier, which includes an end to mask wearing in public areas starting on the 2nd of February, also on the 2nd of February, employers will no longer be mandated to have their workers working from home, whether they're going to be -- it will still remain a recommendation of the government.

And the reasoning behind the government's decision on this easing of restriction, basically based on the fact that there are two things happening. The vaccine pass is going to come into effect on Monday. That's given the fact that the constitutional court will clear it today. It still hasn't happened yet today, but we're expect it to happen soon.

And then the second thing is that the number of people in I.C.U. beds has stabilized over the last week or so. And because of that they're looking at these figures and saying, well, maybe we cans ease up all of it -- Isa.

SOARES: Jim Bittermann for us in Paris this hour, and Kristie Lu Stout in Hong Kong, thank you very much.

And still to come right here on CNN NEWSROOM, countries rush to deliver a to Tonga following disasters -- Blake.

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Aid is finally arriving in Tonga six days after that massive and deadly volcano. I'll have the latest on the recovery efforts as aid begins to trickle in.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)