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Biden Presented With Options To Bolster Troop Levels in Europe As Russian Troops Mass on Ukraine; Protest Against Coronavirus Restrictions Turns Violent in Brussels; Efforts To Contain The Virus Across Asia; Hong Kong Housing Estate Under Lockdown Amid Outbreak; Syrian Kurdish Forces Tighten Siege After Islamic State Prison Break; Saudi-Led Coalition Denies Targeting Yemeni Detention Center. Aired 1- 2a ET
Aired January 24, 2022 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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MICHAEL HOLMES, Hello, everyone, I'm Michael Holmes. Appreciate your company. You're watching CNN Newsroom live from Studio 7 at CNN World Headquarters in Atlanta, coming up this hour.
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ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: One Nation can't go in by force and change the borders of another.
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HOLMES: The U.S. Secretary of State doubling down on his warning aimed at Russia's leader if you invade Ukraine you will get a severe response.
Also. Protesters in Belgium met with tear gas and water cannons as they marched against the country's strict COVID measures.
And Wuhan, China marks two years since going into lockdown as Coronavirus cases started spreading now less than two weeks from the Beijing Winter Games. We take a look at what the country is doing to prepare and what has changed since.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN Newsroom with Michael Holmes. HOLMES: U.S. President Joe Biden said to be discussing options to bolster troop levels in Eastern Europe amid fears of a possible Russian invasion in Ukraine. At the same time, the U.S. State Department says it will be reducing staff levels at the Embassy in Kiev, starting with nonessential staff and family members.
In the coming hours, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is set to meet with EU foreign ministers virtually and briefed them on his meeting with Russia's Foreign Minister. Ahead of that, America's top diplomat issuing one of his strongest warnings yet.
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BLINKEN: If a single additional Russian force goes into Ukraine in an aggressive way, as I said, that would trigger a swift, a severe and the United Response. We're prepared with Europe for a swift and calibrated and very united response. We're looking at every single scenario preparing for every single one. When it comes to sanctions the purpose of those sanctions is to deter Russian aggression. And so if they're triggered now, you lose the deterrent effect.
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HOLMES: Meanwhile, Russia lashing out of the UK Foreign Office one day after it said Moscow might be considering a pro-Russian politician as a candidate to lead Ukraine. The Russian embassy in the UK called that idea comical and demanded London put an end to quote, stupid, rhetorical provocations.
Let's head to Washington now with CNN White House correspondent Arlette Saenz is tracking the latest developments.
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ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): The U.S. is making changes at its embassy in Kiev as concerns mount over Russia's aggression towards Ukraine. The State Department ordered the departure of all families of American diplomats as well as authorized the departure of some non-emergency government personnel.
Now, officials say that this decision was made out of an abundance of caution. And in that travel advisory that was released they wrote there are reports Russia is planning significant military action against Ukraine. The security conditions, particularly along Ukraine's borders in Russia occupied Crimea and in Russia controlled Eastern Ukraine are unpredictable and can deteriorate with little notice. Demonstrations which have turned violent at times regularly occur throughout Ukraine, including in Kiev.
Now this advisory also urged the departure of U.S. citizens from the country via commercial or other private transportation options. Officials said that if Russia moves forward with an invasion of Ukraine that the U.S. would not be in a position to evacuate its citizens from the country.
They are saying they're made this decision out of an abundance of caution. But there has been rising concern over the course of the past few weeks about Russia's intentions with Ukraine.
Now the U.S. shipped its first shipment of lethal aid to Ukraine in order for the country to have defense mechanisms in place should Russia move forward with that invasion. The first shipment arrived on Saturday and Ukraine's Defense Minister tweeted that on Sunday, a second plane landed with 80 tons of weapons from our friends in the USA, he added and this is not the end.
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The U.S. has been evaluating what kind of military assistance the country and its allies can offer to Ukraine in this scenario.
Additionally, the Pentagon has been drawing up options for President Biden to potentially bolster the U.S. military presence in Eastern European NATO countries which have been rattled by these rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine.
President Biden convened a meeting of his national security team from Camp David on Saturday, where he talked about some of these deterrence measures that had been put into place and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken issued a stern warning to Russia on Sunday, saying that any type of invasion would be met with a swift and severe response from the U.S. and its allies. The US is trying and hoping that that diplomatic course will lead to this de-escalation in tensions from Russia towards Ukraine, but they also say they're planning for all scenarios. Arlette Saenz, CNN, the White House.
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HOLMES: U.S. lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are weighing in on how the U.S. should respond if Russia invades Ukraine. But one Republican senator says the U.S. shouldn't wait and should act immediately.
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SEN. JONI ERNST (R-IA): We do need to go ahead and impose sanctions on Russia now. We need to show them that we mean business and we will be there for Ukraine should they invade. They see a very weak administration and President Putin sees every opportunity to do what he wants to do in Ukraine with very little pushback from the United States.
SEN. CHRIS COONS (D-DE): I do think we should take up and pass a bipartisan bill that will show resolve and determination and apply some sanctions now. But the very strongest sanctions, the sorts of sanctions that we use to bring Iran to the table is something that we should hold out as a deterrent.
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HOLMES: Authorities in Brussels, Belgium say some 50,000 people demonstrated against COVID restrictions on Sunday. Clashes as you see between police and protesters led to a dozen arrests. As you just heard when the protests turned violent, police using tear gas. They also use water cannon according to the authorities. Three officers and 12 demonstrators were hospitalized because of their injuries.
Turning now to the efforts to contain COVID 19 across Asia two years after Wuhan, China first lockdown. Authorities in Hong Kong have detected more than 170 confirmed or preliminary positive cases in a housing block. Two of the buildings are in their second day of a five- day lockdown, and mass testing underway for some 2 million people in a district in Beijing. A health official said five cases have been reported there in the past 14 days.
David Culver is in Beijing for us. Kristie Lu Stout, we hope we'll join us from Hong Kong. So, you know, David, we've had these, these testing going on, you have had your 101 COVID test, bring us up to date on what's been happening.
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: 101 in two years, Michael. Yes. And a lot of this, when we think back to Wuhan more than two years ago, by one day, we think about what has transpired since and what has changed here in China, really not a lot in the sense of strict measures remain in place.
In fact, there has been some evolution to those measures. But you still have the snap lock downs. You still have, as you talked about the mass testing, in some cases, the ability to test tens of millions of people, entire city populations within just a few days. And of course, you have the contacting, following us on our cell phones. And that has become even more sophisticated in recent months.
Now what we're seeing ahead of the Olympics, as there was, for a brief time, some sort of easing of these restrictions is the tightening once again. And it makes sense because while they have these two bubbles, so to speak, the one bubble that is the entire general population of China. And then within that, within the city here in the capital, you have, of course the closed loop system, which is part of the Olympic arrivals and the guests and the personnel and the media as well as the athletes. And they're trying to keep those two separate.
And doing so, there is increased concern, though, that these restrictions which have been described as draconian in some cases, may not ease up until after the Olympics. Meantime, though, we give you a look back at Wuhan two years ago, and what's changed since.
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CULVER (voice-over): Snap lock downs, mass testing and tracking our every move. Two years ago, this would have seemed like a sci-fi movie. While China's methods to combat the outbreak have evolved, the containment measures remain just as fierce and relentless and exhausting.
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CULVER (on camera): Much of what is happening today in China is rooted in the action sparked on January 23, 2020. The thought of that 3:00 a.m. phone call from that day still makes my adrenaline rush. Wuhan is going on lockdown. You've got to get out. (voice-over): My team and I scrambled to get to the train station. We weren't the only ones crowds already building. The world about to learn what China's version of a lockdown look like a city of more than 11 million sealed off, people confined to their homes, the streets emptied, a metropolis seemingly frozen in time.
Hospitals flooded with panic patients. Military like mobilization followed. In days, crews built field hospitals and quarantine centers to isolate the infected. The lockdown lasted 76 days.
Looking back, this was the start of China's zero-COVID policy.
After leaving Wuhan and returning to Beijing, my team and I continue to our reporting isolated in a hotel room for 14 days and early sampling of what's now so familiar, quarantine and work from home. Can even do it in slippers.
Today in China, 21 days is mostly standard quarantine for international arrivals, with some cities requiring additional time of isolation. On top of that, that's if you're able to even get into the country. In February 2020, Chinese officials said the U.S. was overreacting when it cut off lights from China. But today it's China keeping others out. It's borders are virtually closed off.
They view the virus as an imported threat. Their efforts to contain it matched only by the propaganda efforts to control the narrative of how it started.
By spring 2020, the U.S. and the rest of the world were battling their own outbreaks and China returning to near normal. Crowds began flocking to popular spots again. And in April, Wuhan came out of lockdown the desolate streets filling up once again. A packed summer pool party shock the then socially distance world. Today the city's economy recovering and people no longer fearful of leaving their homes.
So the emotional wounds and residents who lost loved ones early on. Those may never heal.
Health Surveillance or contact tracing has played a major role in China's COVID control, its power unchecked in cyberspace. Just like in the real world. The government keeps tabs on everyone using an increasingly sophisticated digital surveillance infrastructure, flagging those who might get too close to a confirmed case. They also set up physical checkpoints to screen people. You pass through them to enter parks malls, restaurants, stores, the airport, I tighten control that we thought is only temporary.
Even as China rolled out its own vaccines throughout 2021 strict measures remained. In the public sphere of the virus intensified, fanned by propaganda.
Travel within China eased a bit, but every few weeks there was a jolting reminder, a cluster of new cases prompting new lockdowns and math testing of tens of millions entire city populations. As the Olympics near sporadic outbreaks continue to surface, fresh images reminiscent of Wuhan lockdown, though not lasting nearly as long, leading to more unease from neighborhoods sealed off to workers sleeping in their offices to shoppers trapped in stores.
Sudden lockdown and quarantine have dissuaded many here from travelling. Two yours on, COVID policies first slapped on Wuhan now replicated nationwide.
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CULVER: We are certainly seeing it replicated, Michael, and portraying its strategy as a resounding success. Chinese officials now see themselves on the global stage with more confidence. And as this Olympics nears closer, we're about a week and a half away. You can bet that they're going to insist on it being safe and spectacular, even as this pandemic rages on.
HOLMES: As you await your 102 test David Culver. Great report.
CULVER: That's right.
HOLMES: Fascinating. Thanks so much. Good to see. Very good report. Now Kristie Lu Stout is in Hong Kong. Kristie, you're outside the Kwai Chung housing estate. Tell us the latest on the outbreak there.
KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, absolutely, Michael. I'm standing outside the crowded public housing estate in Kwai Chung. It's located in Hong Kong's new territories area. This is effectively the epicenter of Hong Kong's Omicron outbreak.
In fact on Sunday, Hong Kong reported about 125 new locally transmitted cases at COVID-19. That's a highest daily tally in about a year. 104 of those new cases can be linked to the cluster here in Kwai Chung. A number of residential buildings here have been under overnight lockdown to buildings including the one right behind me, Yat Kwai House, has been ordered to be sealed off for a five-day lockdown.
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And we've been witnessing a number of people lining up behind me to go to this flash testing site over to my left. Now 35,000 residents here are now undergoing mandatory COVID-19 testing. We heard from Hong Kong authorities over the weekend about the outbreak here. They call it serious. They use the word exponential. I want you to listen to this from Hong Kong's top leader Carrie Lam.
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CARRIE LAM, HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE (through translator): We are worried that the exponential growth of cases that we have seen in other parts of the world is now happening in Kwai Chung.
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STOUT: You know, Michael, a number of cases are rising here in this area. Anger is rising as well. A number of residents who have been under lockdown and imagine lockdown for five days in your home are quite frankly fed up. In fact, when Carrie Lam, the top leader of Hong Kong came to visit this site yesterday, she was greeted with angry jeers and angry slurs. And she was only here on site for about 15 minutes before she went away, Michael.
HOLMES: Yes, I was going to ask you that the whole thing with Mainland China and Hong Kong, this zero-COVID strategy. When you see the sort of things that you've been seeing, how do all therapies defend keeping it going? I mean, is it working?
STOUT: Yes, Hong Kong like China pursues a zero-COVID strategy, no tolerance, zero tolerance for pandemic control. Right now schools are closed, secondary and primary. Major border restrictions are in place, quarantines that has led to severe travel disruptions. The measures go on and on.
The question was posed to the chief executive over the weekend, she defended zero-COVID strategy by saying number one, it's what is needed to bring down the level of the outbreak here in Hong Kong so that Hong Kong and this is her priority can eventually reopen with Mainland China and eventually the world. But also she admitted that the vaccination rate here is just not good enough.
Right now we know about 70 percent of the adult population has been fully vaccinated. But if you look at the vulnerable population, the elderly population, those vaccination rates are just not good enough. And that's why she is still sticking to this zero-COVID policy. Back to you.
HOLMES: All right, Kristie Lu Stout there in Hong Kong. Appreciate it. Thank you.
Now, deadly airstrikes in Yemen over the weekend left the country in an internet blackout. We'll have the latest on the conflict and calls for the international community to step in.
Also a massive battle ongoing at a prison housing ISIS militants in Syria after inmates took over the facility. We'll have that more when we come back.
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HOLMES: Welcome back the U.S. back Syrian Democratic Forces are tightening their siege of a prison housing ISIS suspects after inmates took over the facility. There's been fierce fighting there since Thursday.
The SDF say at least 27 of their fighters, dozens of ISIS members and at least 15 inmates have been killed so far. Hundreds of civilians, including women and children fled homes in nearby areas following the ISIS attack.
Taliban officials are meeting with leaders from the international community in Norway to discuss human rights and other economic, social and political issues. Norwegian officials say the meetings in no way recognize the legitimacy of the Taliban, but are a necessary step to prevent a humanitarian disaster that is unfolding in Afghanistan and the Taliban spokesman says cooperation is the only way to solve Afghanistan's problems. The meetings will continue through Tuesday.
The Saudi led coalition fighting in Yemen denies targeting a detention center as part of a series of airstrikes on Friday that killed dozens of people in call to a cause the nationwide internet outage. According to the Houthi Health Minister 82 people were killed and hundreds more injured in the attack on the detention center. The UN says a ceasefire is needed before the fighting gets any worse.
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ANTONIO GUTERRES, U.N. SECRETARY-GENERAL: What we need is to stop this vicious circle in which things kept escalating one after the other. What we need is to have as we have been proposing from long ago, a ceasefire together with the opening of harbor and airports. And then the beginning of a serious dialogue among the parties. These escalation needs to stop.
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HOLMES: Another airstrike on Friday hit the port city of Hodeidah, disabling the country's internet there are reportedly four children among the dead, playing on a soccer field nearby.
The Norwegian Refugee Council said the blackout will affect delivery.
For war now I am joined by Marc Schakal. He's Operations Manager for Medecins Sans Frontieres or Doctors Without Borders. And it's great to have you here what a horrible situation. And I do know from reading your website to MSF staff members who live in Sadr City were in their houses close to the prison at the time of the airstrike. What did they say they heard and witnessed and how overwhelmed with the hospitals locally?
MARC SCHAKAL, OPERATIONS MANAGER FOR YEMEN, MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES: So good to Good morning. Yes, we had some eye witnesses from the field mentioning that they have heard the hovering planes and, and three bombs, three strikes that hits the vicinity of their house. The hospitals in Yemen today are struggling in receiving adequate supplies and sufficient number of supply to run properly their facility and the hospital of Sa'dah was overhead -- overhand to the point that they had to refuse some patients the day of the attack.
HOLMES: How bad is life for civilians in Yemen right now, daily life?
SCHAKAL: The civilians are exposed to increasing attack and escalation of violence both in north and south of the country. The unexpected airstrikes are very often occurring at night. The criminality in some cities in the south, the economic situation is a big concern for them. And it triggers demonstration and social fragmentation within the society there. There is a general of lack of basic services of broken governance. Economic factor aggravating bit the situation there. And as an example, to illustrate that, we have our MSF psychologist facing a lot of patients affected by the consequences of war and losing their job, losing income. And this is long term consequences that will be difficult to manage.
HOLMES: Yes, you know, this is of course, a proxy war with outsiders fueling the conflict. And it's striking, listening to the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres there, there has been little action from the outside world the US for example, other than words, and we were just hearing more words then. Yemeni civilians, kids must feel absolutely forgotten like their lives don't matter. What would you were your plea be for Yemen?
SCHAKAL: It's simple. You know, the rules of war have often been violated in Yemen. And we are calling all the warring parties to commit to protecting civilians.
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It's important that even all the feuding parties outside Yemen, who are supporting by selling arms, intelligence or training to the different warring parties, also bear the responsibility in assuring that international humanitarian law and international laws in general established to protect civilians are properly respected.
HOLMES: We're just looking as you were speaking there at images of children and the UN says 300,000 Yemenis have been killed since 2015. UNICEF says since the start of the conflict, more than 10,000 children have been killed or injured. They are staggering numbers, why has this conflict impacted so many children?
SCHAKAL: The children are particularly vulnerable in times of war. First, because the education system initially is much weaker, and they are wandering around the streets trying to find income or activities. And the other part is that the newborn and under five children are also health wise are particularly vulnerable because they are developing some complications from basic diseases, like infections of respiratory tract, acute diarrhea and so on, that can be fatal if it's after under treated. The thing is that if they had a proper follow up at the primary health care level, they would avoid developing these kinds of complications and this is one of the of the main problems for children indeed.
HOLMES: I know that MSF and others have had their facilities damaged in this war, what is the broad state of medical facilities in the country, the ability of organizations like yours to effectively help?
SCHAKAL: The following the outbreak of war, the health system has collapsed, obviously, and the blockage that is put in place by different parties prevent proper supply of equipment and drugs. We are lucky to work with skilled Yemeni healthcare workers, but the difficulty to have proper equipment and proper training makes access to healthcare rather difficult. And in addition to that, the COVID pandemic even worse in this situation, in a health system that is already very weak, and hospitals had to close down some of the services or being afraid of the spreading of the disease itself. So the situation is worrying and us being as a medical organization, we are focusing a lot of efforts in providing the basic health services.
And in despite of that, we still have limited resources. And it's very important that we have to prioritize -- to put priorities and it's very important that all organization also able to have a preparedness plan to conduct ad hoc response in times of emergencies.
HOLMES: Yes, it's just a horrendous, disgraceful situation. And it's organizations like yours, MSF, that aren't just words. They are action and effective action. Marc Schakal in Dubai really appreciate you and the work --
SCHAKAL: Thank you.
HOLMES: -The work you does.
SCHAKAL: Thank you.
HOLMES: Well, the consequences of the eruption near Tonga are clear on the beaches in Peru. Coming up the latest on the oil spill there plus.
Anti-vaccine protesters gathered at the U.S. Capitol Sunday but not in the numbers expected the story when we come back.
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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome back, everyone. You're watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Michael Holmes.
And returning now to our top story.
All eyes on Ukraine as fears of a Russian invasion intensify. At this hour, E.U. foreign minister are preparing to meet in Brussels to discuss the situation. Meanwhile U.S. President Joe Biden has been briefed on options for bolstering U.S. troop levels in eastern Europe.
On Sunday, the U.S. State Department also announced plans to stop reducing staff levels at the embassy in Kiev. Now this comes as Ukraine says Russia has deployed more than 127,000 troops in the region.
Joining me now from Washington D.C. is Jill Dougherty. She is a former CNN Moscow bureau chief and an adjunct professor at Georgetown University's Walsh School of Foreign Service.
Always a pleasure, Jill. Putin takes risks but he's calculating. He knows how to play the game of brinksmanship. Given he no doubt does not want an Afghanistan-style occupation of Ukraine, what do you think he is planning? What might be his calculation? JILL DOUGHERTY, ADJUNCT PROFESSOR, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY: You know, I
think his -- there are objectives -- several objectives but I think overall it's the big picture.
I mean he wants a replay, a redo of the end of the Cold War and especially to create this global security arrangement for Russia along its borders basically in eastern Europe. That is number one.
But more immediately with Ukraine, he could have some more limited objectives. He certainly wants to destabilize Ukraine, and make sure that it doesn't move any further into the embrace of the west and he can do that by multiple things.
I mean you and I have talked about this. We are paying a lot of attention, and rightfully so, to the military side of it, to the buildup on the border, et cetera. But there are other things that President Putin can do that would be -- could be very effective that would be more, and I don't like this word very much because it is so undefined, but hybrid of things that he can do -- false flag, provocations, disinformation, et cetera.
HOLMES: Yes. You know, short of an invasion, despite, you know, the warnings of consequences from the west for any move across the border, do you think Putin could perhaps move forces into the Donbass region where there are Russian sympathetic forces there anyway, claim to be protecting Russian passport holders and speakers, and have a Crimea- style referendum to join Russia?
DOUGHERTY: Oh, certainly. In fact, I was watching Russian TV as I often do tonight, and they were discussing these are not officials, but they are on TV, they're discussing well you know, we could recognize those two areas in the Donbass as independent entities from Ukraine. And so that is entirely in the cards.
And they wouldn't have to do much. You know, you could send some unnamed or unmarked forces that the little green men as we call them, you saw, in Crimea and to do that actually quite easily.
HOLMES: Yes. I saw them firsthand. I was in Crimea when they came in in 2014. You are a Russia watcher, politics, media, everything -- what have you seen gives you a sense how the Russian people feel about the possibility of conflict and who they blame for it?
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DOUGHERTY: Well, you know, there is a very, very interesting poll by the Levada Center which is a quite reliable polling company in Russia. And they showed, they surveyed Russians and what did they find out?
Ok. So 50 percent of Russians in this poll don't believe that there is going to be a war at all. And another 15 percent absolutely don't believe there is going to be a war. So the overwhelming majority think there won't be.
But there was a sizeable minority, 39 percent, that believe that there will be. And this is -- what they are talking about is Ukraine-Russian war. What they really are fearful of is NATO-Russia war, which they almost believe is happening.
And then who do they blame? Ok 50 percent -- 50 -- half of them blame NATO and the United States. And between 3 percent and 4 percent blame Russia.
HOLMES: Wow.
DOUGHERTY: So that is very significant.
HOLMES: Wow.
DOUGHERTY: I think, you know, the quote that I, Michael -- I'm sorry -- but the quote that I paid attention to was they are dragging us into war. They are dragging Russia into war.
HOLMES: That is an interesting viewpoint. Real quick -- we are almost out of time. In that domestic sense, does Putin need to get results from the whole situation. Would it hurt him on the home front to gain nothing at the end of the day? And if so, what would an off-ramp look like that would allow him to save face?
DOUGHERTY: Well, you know, if the Russian people actually understand that he wants to redo the end of the Cold War, that is one thing. I'm not convinced that they really understand all of the nitty-gritty of this dynamic that is unfolding.
But what he has done is he has created a fear among the Russian people that the enemy is at the gate. That, we look at it as Russian coming into Ukraine, they look at it as Ukraine, NATO, the United States and the west moving to Russia.
And so he has succeeded in scaring the Russian people into believing that their lives are in jeopardy from this. And that I guess you could say is probably one of the main things he wanted to do.
HOLMES: Yes. Yes. Interesting days and weeks ahead. Jill Dougherty, as always, thanks so much.
Much needed outside aid has started arriving in Tonga as the island nation struggles with the aftermath of recent volcanic eruption's and tsunamis. Ash from the January 15h disaster still blankets much of the country. The government estimates around 84 percent of the population was directly impacted in some way.
Meanwhile, Tongans living in neighboring New Zealand are stepping up, donating and coordinating aid to help their country recover.
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MAKA PAILATE, TONGA RELIEF COORDINATOR: There's a lot of love. Yes, you can see thinking about our home, taking the islands. I guess that is why -- that's why you see today it's that kind of love.
ESTHER TOFILAU, NEW ZEALAND RESIDENT: We have tried to do our part as cousins (ph) like this help the Pacific to contribute to what has happened in Tonga. (END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: COVID concerns have complicated relief efforts following the disaster. Tonga has only had one case of COVID since the pandemic began and strict restrictions are still in place.
Part of the damage from the Tonga eruption can be seen thousands of miles away. The cleanup from an oil spill in Peru is underway and environmental groups warn the damage could be long-lasting.
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HOLMES (voice over): Waves of black sludge wash up on a popular beach in Peru. This time of year it should be filled with sunbathers. Instead, emergency crews in biohazard suits scoop oily sand into barrels to be transported to toxic waste treatment facilities.
The blackened beach here yet another casualty of a powerful volcanic eruption under the sea thousands of kilometers away near Tonga. Peru says a tanker ship spilled some 6,000 barrels into the sea more than a week ago while it was off-loading the crude to a refinery.
Unusually high waves caused by the eruption were to blame for the accident. Repsol, the company that owns the refinery has said it isn't responsible for the spill and says maritime authority should have issued warnings about the rough seas.
The Peruvian government though says Repsol should pay for the damages. An environmental emergency is being declared for the next 90 days.
So far health officials say 21 of Peru's beaches have been polluted. Dead seals, fish, and birds are washing up covered in oil and fishing activities in the area have been suspended. Local residents say they too have been impacted.
"Nothing. Nothing is solved," this fish vendor says. The fish, more than anything give off the smell of oil and people don't buy it.
[01:40:01]
HOLMES: Environmental groups say that cleaning the beaches with shovels and buckets is not nearly enough, and the damage to the country's rich marine life could be long-lasting.
Repsol says it has deployed more than 1,300 workers to the area along with large vessels and skimmers to try to filter the oil from the ocean.
The United Nations is also are sending a team of experts to help with the emergency response. Still few who live around here think this will go away soon.
This man says, "Everything is toxic right now, look at the oil stains on those stones. It's hard to clean them immediately, it would take years. Everything here is polluted." A disaster initially caused by a force of nature, though some say the devastating effects in Peru could have been mitigated. An investigation is ongoing, many people questioning why the ship was unloading in such conditions, and if there was sufficient warning about the dangers.
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HOLMES: Well, here in the U.S., hopes are rising that the country could soon turn the corner in the latest COVID-19 wave. Cases remain high overall but do appeared to be leveling off.
Hospitalizations are trending down in the northeast and new COVID hospital admissions across the country have started to decline over the past few week.
On Sunday, the top U.S. disease doctor was cautiously optimistic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, WHITE HOUSE CHIEF MEDICAL ADVISER: There are still some states in the southern states and western states that continue to go up. But if the pattern follows the trend that we're seeing in other places, such as the northeast, I believe that you will start to see a turnaround throughout the entire country.
Things are looking good, we don't want to get over confident. But they all look like they're going in the right direction right now.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And in Washington D.C., protesters gathered to express their anger at government vaccination mandates. The Defeat the Mandates rally took place on the National Mall on Sunday. Organizers said they expected up to 20,000 to attend but in the end only a few thousand showed up.
CNN's Joe Johns was there and has the story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT (on camera): It's no secret, America is polarized over the issue of vaccines. And this event on the National Mall was visual evidence of that fact.
One of the things that people were concerned about at the very outset, was that it was being billed as an event for medical autonomy. In other words, the right not to get the shot, or the right not to wear a mask. But this event, of course, went a little bit farther than that.
U: I'm in the health care, worker. And so that has brought me out here due to the issues that I've had with my job and my current vaccination status. Multiple issues with HR and doctors treating me differently and discriminating against me because of my choices.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You should be able to believe what you want to believe, no matter what. And that's why I'm here. As long as you don't hurt anybody in this country, you can do whatever you want.
JOHNS: It's very difficult to generalize about the crowd other than to say that one of the things that brought them together was criticism of the Biden administration's handling of vaccines and Dr. Fauci.
Joe Johns, CNN -- Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Still to come here on the program, why more people in Hong Kong say they're feeling depressed, and the challenges they face getting help.
Plus, a tragic nightclub fire claims the lives of more than a dozen people in Cameroon. We'll have the latest after the break.
[01:43:45]
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HOLMES: SpaceX's unmanned Dragon cargo ship is on its way back to earth after undocking from the International Space Station. The trip originally had to be postponed due to bad weather, but now the Dragon is set to splash down off the coast of Panama City, Florida in the hours ahead. Some of the cargo and experiments on board will be transported to NASA's Kennedy Space Center.
In the coming hours, WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will learn whether he can appeal a British high court decision allowing his extradition to the U.S. The U.S. won an appeal against the ruling that he could not be extradited after agreeing to special conditions to protect Assange's mental health. But his lawyers argue those assurances are quite vague and meaningless.
Assange is wanted on more than a dozen espionage charges in the U.S. for his role in publishing a massive trove of classified information more than a decade ago.
At least 16 people are dead and eight wounded after a fire tore through a nightclub in Cameroon's capital. Explosions from fireworks caused the ceiling of the nightclub to catch fire. The fire than cause two strong subsequent explosions that sparked panic among those in the venue. The country's president has ordered an in-depth investigation into the incident.
Gunfire there, ringing out near the home of Burkina Faso's president on Sunday, soldiers mutinied demanding more resources for troops, and protesters ransacked the headquarters of the government's ruling party.
The situation is raising fears of another coup in the volatile west African nation. The government denying rumors that the army has seized power.
Queen Elizabeth, visiting her country estate of Sandringham after canceling her trip during Christmas over coronavirus concerns. And the palace says she now is expected to be there for the next few weeks. The queen will be celebrating her Platinum Jubilee, marking 70 years on the throne this year.
Hong Kong is struggling to cope with a growing mental health crisis from the coronavirus pandemic to social changes in recent years. As more people show symptoms of depression and anxiety, the health care system is struggling to cope.
CNN's Will Ripley reports.
WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Beneath Hong Kong's bright lights are dark secrets. Depression and suicide rates rising. The city's happiness index falling. Many in Hong Kong are struggling.
Experts call it a mental health epidemic. One of the hardest hit groups, young people like University of Hong Kong student Stef Ng (ph).
STEF NG, STUDENT, UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG: What I would call the worst day was that complete lack of hope.
RIPLEY: Lack of hope about the future in a city rocked by upheaval in the past few years. From the protests through the pandemic and China's ongoing crackdown on Hong Kong's freedoms.
DR. LUCY LORD, FOUNDER, MIND HK: It's almost been a perfect storm of social change, political change, and now a pandemic. And the Hong Kong system is struggling to cope with the epidemic of mental health.
Hong Kong's public health system overwhelmed. Patients with non-urgent cases are waiting from nine months to almost two years to see a psychiatrist. The average visit, just six to eight minutes.
Dr. Lucy Lord is an obstetrician who suffered debilitating postnatal depression.
DR. LORD: Everybody has mental health, just like we all have physical health.
[01:49:48]
RIPLEY: She's the founder of Mind HK, a foundation focused on fighting mental health stigma. Only a quarter of those suffering seek professional help. One in seven face a common mental disorder in Hong Kong.
It's even worse for high school students. More than half show signs of depression.
DR. LORD: Intervening early, it doesn't just saves people's lives, it saves their families, it saves their relationships, it saves their careers, it saves everything.
RIPLEY: Getting help early, the key to Stef Ng's recovery from a life- threatening eating disorder when she was in high school.
NG: Conversations about mental health are only really as scary as you make them.
RIPLEY (on camera): When you share your story, how often does it happen that you open up to someone, and then they open up to you and say I have been struggling too?
NG: All the time. Almost every time, Will. And it's quite wonderful to see that because I am here, and I'm to share the story.
RIPLEY: A story shared by many in Hong Kong. Only a few getting help they so desperately need.
Will Ripley, CNN -- Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Taiwan says mainland China sent nearly 40 warplanes into its air defense zone on Sunday, the largest such incursion so far this year.
Taiwan's defense ministry says the planes included dozens of fighter jets and nuclear capable bombers. In response Taiwan says deployed air defense missile systems to monitor the situation.
Beijing show of force coming one day after the U.S. and Japan conducted naval drills east of Taiwan.
The French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler has died at the age of 73. Mugler was known for his provocative and exaggerated designs. He launched his first clothing label in 1973 before starting his self- named label.
More recently he was known for styling iconic looks for Beyonce, Lady Gaga, and rapper Cardi B. The creative director of Mugler's fashion label Casey Cadwallader wrote on Instagram, quote, "You changed our perception of beauty, of confidence, of representation and self empowerment."
Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, a winter wild fire burns near California's iconic Highway One. The latest on efforts to fight the blaze ahead in a live report.
Also we will find out how the simple act of checking a spam e-mail folder turned one Michigan women into a multimillionaire. It's quite a story.
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HOLMES: Now, next time you are checking your e-mail, before you mindlessly empty your spam folder have a quick scanning of it first. A Michigan woman is $3 million richer because she did checkers. She was looking for something else actually, when she came across this.
She had purchased a mega millions ticket online through a lottery Web site. Now while searching for an e-mail a few days later, lo and behold she found a message from the Michigan lottery informing her that she was a winner. Spears says she plans to share the winnings with her family and retire early.
All right. Take a look at these images from a massive wildfire. This is Big Sur, California. The fire forcing hundreds to evacuate and shutting down part of a major California highway.
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CECILE JULIETTE, CAL FIRE SPOKESWOMAN: We are talking grasses, the twig, the ground litter -- that is all very dry and then you put some fire or put some wind behind that and that just really got the fire moving.
JAKE DAVI, RESIDENT: I mean yes, everyone's a little shaken up. It's wintertime right, now January, end of January. It's pretty -- it's pretty crazy to see a fire like this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Gusty winds are helping the fire grow and so far Cal Fire says it's only about 25 percent contained.
Joining me now meteorologist Pedram Javaheri. Tell us what you are seeing there, it is a weird time of year for a fire like that.
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: It is. You know, it is the only fire across the state of California and only 12 of them in the entire United States. So it kind of speaks to the rarity of what is happening right now. and the good news is the latest number, it's just coming in the last few seconds, Michael -- increasing that containment up to 35 percent.
700 acres consumed or about 300 hectares of land consumed across this region of central California and precisely where I lived about 12 years ago. I hiked these areas, very prominent region, that landscape, the hills across that region certainly conducive to see these fires rapidly expand, unfortunately.
But notice the state of California even in the wet season here is still under 98 percent of the state are in drought situation from moderate to severe, 1 percent of it remains in extreme category.
And high pressure, at least for now has been in place. We've had multiple rounds of rainfall in recent weeks across this region. But the last week and a half or so high pressure in place very much stagnant air across the northwestern United States as a result of the drier air.
And of course, those gusty winds fuel the fire that was ignited sometime Friday into Saturday very quickly it expanded Saturday into early Sunday. And the good news for now is the winds have died down. We don't expect additional expansion.
But when it comes across this landscape, Michael, you look at this, we often talk about fire doubling their speed with every ten degree slope. It is the analogy of taking a match and lighting it and of course, holding it straight-up burns towards your finger slowly. Give it a slope and it rapidly burns towards your finger and that is what's happening on these hilltops across California where fires expand very quickly.
HOLMES: Yes. That is a good way of illustrating it. Pedram Javaheri, thanks so much. Appreciate it, Pedram.
And finally it was raining teddy bears in Pennsylvania last night. Just watch this.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Goal line feed -- he gets it back -- all right. circles, pulls the trigger and scores.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And there they go. Fans of the Hershey Bears hockey team tossing more than 52,000 slush toys after they scored their first goal last night. In doing so, they broke their own world record. The toys will be donated to more than 25 local charities.
Thanks for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Michael Holmes. You can follow me on Instagram and Twitter @HolmesCNN.
Do stick around CNN NEWSROOM continues with Rosemary Church coming up.
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