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U.S. Warns of Swift Response if Russia Invades Ukraine; EU Foreign Ministers Meeting to Discuss Ukraine Security; Hope that U.S. May Turn Corner in Latest Covid Wave; Taiwan: China Sent 39 Warplanes Into Air Defense Zone; Weekend Protests Across Europe and in D.C. Over Restrictions, Mandates. Aired 4-4:30a ET

Aired January 24, 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)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One nation can't go in by force and change the borders of another.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's provocative to send 130,000 troops to your neighbor's border for no apparent immediate reason.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He wants a replay, a redo of the end of the cold war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: The U.S. and the U.K. order families of its embassy staff to leave Ukraine amid fears of a Russian invasion. We are live in Moscow this hour.

Anti-vax and anti-mandates. Thousands take to the streets from D.C. to Brussels. We have the very latest on the state of the pandemic.

And with less than two weeks to go before the Winter Olympics and just days before the Chinese new year, we look at China's COVID policy two years after Wuhan.

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

SOARES: Welcome to the show, everyone. It is Monday, January 24th, and U.S. President Joe Biden is set to be considering option to bolster troop levels in Eastern Europe amid fears of a possible Russian invasion against Ukraine.

Now, according to Ukrainian intelligence, Russia has now massed more than 127,000 troops in the region, and as tensions remain high, America's top diplomat has issued one of the strongest warnings yet. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: If a single additional Russian force goes into Ukraine in an aggressive way, as I said, that would trigger a swift, a severe and a united response from us and from Europe. And, again, there are other things that Russia could do that fall short of actually sending additional forces into Ukraine. And, again, across the board we're prepared with Europe for a swift and calibrated and very united response.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, Ukraine's defense minister says his country has received a second weapons shipment from the United States, tweeting that more than 80 tons of weapons will help strengthen its defense capabilities. Ukraine's president has urged the U.S. and its allies to penalize Moscow now for its military buildup. but the U.S. Secretary of State defended the administration's decision to not impose sanction preemptively saying triggering now could lose the deterrent effect. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BLINKEN: What is at stake, Dana are some very basic principles of international relations that have been established since two world wars and cold war that have kept peace and security. Principles like, one nation can't go in by force and change the borders of another. Principles like, one nation can't dictate to another its policies, its choices including with whom it will associate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, meantime, the U.S. State Department says it will be reducing staff levels at the embassy in Kiev starting with non- essential staff and family members out of abundance of caution. And in the last few minutes confirmed the British embassy tweeting in the last few minutes that some staff and dependents are being withdrawn from Kiev in response to a growing threat from Russia. The British embassy, though, will remain open.

And at this hour, European Union, foreign ministers are meeting in Brussels to discuss the situation in Ukraine. They'll be joined virtually by Secretary of State Blinken.

So, a lot going on this morning. Our correspondents are covering all the developments for you. Nic Robertson standing by in Moscow and Melissa Bell is in Paris for us. Nic, let me start with you. We've been hearing the last few minutes that U.K. is withdrawing some of its embassy staff in Kiev following on from the United States as well. How do you interpret these moves? Is it just prudent planning -- Nic? NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, I think there

are several ways to interpret it. It is prudent planning. That's what's being said. I think slightly the specter of Afghanistan for Biden hanging over this. Remember, he's been briefed over the weekend by his national security team and other advisers at Camp David. So, he'll be fully up to speed on what's happening with dispensation of Russian troop deployments and the potential threat that poses. And he said that he believes, you know, that they could come across the border, even though Russia says they won't.

So, you know, given that in Afghanistan President Biden appeared to be flat-footed in drawing down embassy staff there, it does seem he is being cautious here.

[04:05:00]

There is an interpretation being offered a by Ukrainian official that says they think that the draw down, well, the Americans in particular, but perhaps by implication of British as well. That they think this is a bit preemptive. That they think this is coming too soon and is unnecessary.

But I think, you know, for the Kremlin, they're going to be able to look at this and see, number one, that President Biden clearly believes that there's a potential for invasion, that the situation is, in Ukraine is destabilized enough, you know, for this concern by the United States. It's not clear whether that's, you know, part of his game plan or not, but it certainly does ramp up the stakes on what's happening. The language of the possibility of conflict and Russia precipitates in the conflict really only grows stronger with moves like this.

SOARES: Yes, it's definitely very volatile, that's for sure. Melissa, let me go to you. So, much was said and Nic and I discussed this last week at length, about the possible fault lines as well as divisions within NATO. Where does Europe stand on a possible Russian invasion here? Are they all singing from the same hymn sheet?

MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: No, definitely not. I think there've been a lot of tensions within Europe. You mentioned the divided NATO. There is a divided Europe when it comes the stance to adopt toward Russia and this goes back of course some time. With the latest crisis, those divisions even more starkly exposed than they were before. And that's why what happens at that meeting of foreign ministers is going to be so important today.

The unity that they manage to find on this question will be tested and we'll know more about it this evening when we hear from Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, on the outcome of that meeting. What would trigger sanctions from Europe? What sort of sanctions to impose? Those are questions that we know that there is a division on within Europe, with Germany and France on one side and countries closer toward the border, the Baltic countries, Poland for instance, much more hard line in their desire to see strength from the European Union.

Of course, as you mentioned, Antony Blinken will be talking part by video conference towards the end of the afternoon once Europeans have had their conversations. And he'll be talking to Europeans about the outcome of his conversations with Sergey Lavrov. Europeans will be telling him about what they've managed to decide.

And of course, that question of resolving the differences within Europe, the divisions, crucial also to that unity that we just heard Secretary of State Blinken talk about, that unity that the United States is so counting on in its approach towards Russia at the moment.

So, a lot riding on this meeting today, and we've heard already as these arrivals continue, meeting delayed a little in its start from the Danish foreign minister, for instance warning that he believed that Europe would be coming up with sanctions stronger than anything we've seen before. Stronger than those in 2014, reflecting what Ursula von der Leyen has been saying these last few weeks.

But again, getting everyone on board is going to be the struggle and challenge today. We know for Europeans to impose sanctions. They have to vote on that unanimously -- Isa.

SOARES: Yes, and we've heard from Ukraine's president basically urging the U.S. and its allies to penalize Moscow and do it now. So, we'll keep an eye on what comes out these meetings. Our Melissa Bell there for us in Paris. Nic Robertson in Moscow, thank you very much.

Now, 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 U.S. shouldn't wait and must act immediately.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

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 used to bring Iran to the table is something we should hold out as a deterrent.

REP. MIKE MCCAUL (R-TX): If we don't do something strong right now, I'm afraid that he's going to invade Ukraine, which will have, as the secretary talked about, he's right. And I think you and I did, it will have global ramifications here.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, meanwhile, former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who served in the Trump administration told Fox News on Sunday he believes Russia does not see Biden as credible. And he suggested the U.S. should respect Vladimir Putin's power.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE POMPEO, FORMER U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We had deterrents for four years. Vladimir Putin didn't do these kinds of things. He didn't threaten. He didn't use coercive activity to try to push back on NATO in the way he did. We made sure NATO was focused on its mission. And when we did that, Vladimir Putin respected us. We had respect for him and his power. He is a very talented statesman. He has lots of gifts. He was a KGB agent, for goodness sakes. He knows how to use power. We should respect that.

[04:10:00]

And if we did that, we can make sure we do the things that are right for the American people and reflect well on our country's history and tradition and pushing back and making sure that Europe and the western world stood together.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Mike Pompeo there. Well, the experts say what we're seeing from Russia now is nothing new. And they warned the U.S. and other western powers need to take the threats seriously.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN GLASSER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: This risk of invasion is very real. You know, the administration officials with U.S. suggest there is a very real chance of a significant incursion, not just a minor incursion that President Biden spoke dismissively of the other day in his press conference. So, I think the signs point not to de- escalation at the moment, but to if anything, escalation. And a failure at diplomatic (INAUDIBLE) really were never concrete enough to resolve the situation.

STEVE HALL, FORMER CIA CHIEF OF RUSSIA OPERATIONS: If there is no pushback from the United States and from the West against Putin, there's going to be trouble. I mean, what has Putin learned from recent history? 2008, invades Georgia. What does he get? Basically, a stern wag of the finger from the West. Invades Ukraine and annexes Crimea. And what is he get? Some sanctions and another wag of the finger. So, you know, if not now, when, and if not, where -- if not in Ukraine where we going to stop it? We have to wait until he invades Finland or Sweden or something like that? So, I can understand that there's got to be some strong pushback. And I think that that's what the secretary is getting at when he's talking about these strong responses.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

SOARES: Well, the Biden administration has been in talks with a number of countries for weeks about stepping up production of liquefied natural gas. That is in case a Russian invasion of Ukraine leads to gas shortages. According to Eurostat, Russia provides Europe with more than 40 percent of its natural gas supply.

If we have a look at oil prices, they continue to rise on concerns of those tightening supplies and OPEC's struggle to raise its output of brent crude at the moment. Just down 0.20 percent and WTI hovering at roughly the same amount.

Now, America's top infectious disease Dr. Anthony Fauci says he's reasonably confident Omicron cases could peak in the U.S. by mid- February. Now, cases remain high overall, but appear to be leveling off. Infections and hospitalizations are trending down in the northeast. And while some areas are seeing the numbers increase, Dr. Fauci remains optimistic. That should shift soon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: We would hope that as we get into the next weeks to month or so, we'll see throughout the entire country the level of infection get to below what I call that area of control. And there's a big bracket of control. Control means you're not eliminating it, you're not eradicating it, but it gets down to such a low level that it's essentially integrated into the general respiratory infections that we have learned to live with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, and there's does hope that the youngest members of society could soon get vaccinated. Former FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb says children under 5 could start getting their COVID shots in late March.

And while young children wait for eligibility to get their shots, some adults are saying they never will. Protesters -- as you can see there -- gathered at the U.S. Capitol on Sunday to express their anger at government vaccination mandates. Organizers say they expected 20,000 people to attend, but only a few thousand showed up. CNN's Joe Johns was there and has the story for you.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: 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.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 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 anything you want.

JOHNS: It's very difficult to generalize about the crowd other than to say 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)

SOARES: Well, staying in Washington, U.S. lawmakers investigating the January 6 insurrection have been communicating with former Attorney General William Barr. Barr -- as you might recall -- was a staunch ally of then-President Donald Trump, although he resigned in December of 2020 after rebuking Trump's false claims about widespread election fraud.

[04:15:00]

The U.S. House Select Committee chairman says they're looking into a draft of a White House proposal at the time for the Defense Secretary to potentially seize voting machines in battleground states.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. BENNIE THOMPSON (D-MS): To be honest with you, we've had conversations with the former Attorney General already. We've talked to the Department of Defense individuals. We are concerned that our military was part of this big lie on promoting that the election was false. So, if you are using the military to potentially seize voting machines, even though it's a discussion, the public needs to know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SOARES: Well, it is unclear who wrote that draft executive order and the House committee is not aware of any operation plans to carry out the plan. But the chairman says they do know that a potential reason -- potential person was identified to become the next Attorney General who would communicate and interfere with certain states ratifying their results. We'll stay on top of that story, of course, for you.

Coming up right here on the show, Beijing flexes its military muscle, flying dozens of war planes near Taiwan. We have the details for you just ahead.

Plus -- anger over COVID restrictions spills out into the streets of Belgium. We'll have the latest in a live report just ahead.

[04:20:00]

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SOARES: Now, Taiwan says mainland China sent nearly 40 war planes into its air defense zone on Sunday. The latest such incursion so far this year. Now, Taiwan's defense ministry says the planes included dozens of fighter jets and a nuclear capable bomber. Now, in response, Taiwan says it deployed air defense missile systems to monitor the situation. Beijing's show of force comes one day after the U.S. and Japan conducted naval drills east of Taiwan.

CNN's Paula Hancocks has been monitoring the situation from Seoul, South Korea and she joins us now. And, Paula, give us first the reaction from Taiwan to these latest Chinese war planes.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Isa, Taiwan reacted in the same way it always does have to react when Beijing carries out these incursions, which is done frequently over recent years. It does have to scramble and it activates its missile defense system. It also gives verbal warnings. And Taiwan has really criticized Beijing for what it calls these gray zone tactics, for really putting the pressure on, really testing the air force and the reaction of Taiwan itself.

Now, as you say, it was a significant incursion in the sheer number of aircraft that were involved, not the most ever. Certainly, the most this year -- 34 fighter jets among the 39 war planes in all. Now, it does come just a day, as you say, after the U.S. and the Japanese navy's did have a fairly significant show of force in the waters off the east coast of Taiwan in the Philippine Sea. It's not clear exactly how close it was to Taiwan. That information is not forthcoming.

But what we saw there was a very large military drill, a navy drill we saw from the U.S. side, for example, a couple of aircraft carriers, amphibious assault ships among other things from the Japanese side, a helicopter, a destroyer. So, it was a significant show of force.

From the U.S. point of view, it is part of their freedom of navigation policy to show that the waters in that area and in the South China Sea are free for navigation for all. We have seen China claiming the seas in that particular area and it's been a source of tension for many years. The U.S. saying it was conducting training to preserve and protect a free and open Indo-Pacific region.

So, certainly, that is expected to be one of the reasons that we saw this incursion from these fighter jets from Beijing. But as I say, it is something that we do see frequently and have seen an increase over recent years -- Isa.

SOARES: Indeed. Yes, and you and I have spoken at length about this, in last year in particular. Paula Hancocks for us there in Seoul. Thanks very much, Paula. Great to see you.

This is the scene in Belgium, Brussels. Authorities there say some 50,000 people demonstrated against COVID restrictions on Sunday. Clashes between police and protesters led to at least a dozen arrests. And as you just heard there, when protests turned violent, well, police used tear gas. They also used water cannon -- you can see there. Now, according to authorities at least three officers and 12 demonstrators were hospitalized because of their injuries.

Let's bring in CNN's Scott McLean who has the latest from the weekend protests right across Europe over restrictions and mandates. And, Scott, let's start with those images out of Belgium. What do these protesters want to see from their government? Because COVID cases there continue to spike from what I understand.

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, look, Isa, these protesters want to see the restrictions, the COVID restrictions in Belgium and across Europe start to go away. Right now, in Belgium, well, those protesters by the letter of the law should have been wearing masks because they were at a large gathering. They also should have been social distancing as well. There are also curfews in place for restaurants and bars and Belgium continues to use the COVID pass as well.

There were also protests in France over the weekend. They're upset after a court upheld the legality of the new health pass law in France, which comes into effect today. It requires vaccination for a range of really everyday activities -- restaurants, bars, even regional transit is affected. So, life is about to get very inconvenient and very difficult for the unvaccinated in France and that appears to be by design.

[04:25:00]

The French president has made no secret in the past of his desire to piss off the unvaccinated, to try to encourage them to get the shot. That's little more than encouragement, it seems. Some countries have gone even further than that. Austrian lawmakers have voted to mandate people to get the vaccine with heavy fines for people who continue to refuse. And German lawmakers will begin debate soon, at a similar law to have a similar vaccine mandate for almost everyone in the country.

Things look a lot different though here on the other side of the English Channel, Isa, and that is because the government has already said, you no longer have to work from home. You can go into the office. There's no longer masks required in schools. That was as of last week. And then Thursday, this Thursday, the mask mandate across England for indoors, it is going away as well, and so is the COVID pass. Which was only really required for large gatherings and for night clubs, things like that.

And so, the health secretary's approach here has been, look, we need to live with COVID kind of like we live with the flu as this disease becomes endemic. The U.K. has serious advantages though over the rest of Europe. Namely, almost two-thirds of the population or the eligible population has been boosted, plus cases here, hospitalizations, they are falling as well -- Isa.

SOARES: Well, I for one am very much looking forward to see colleagues back in the office including yourself, Scott. Good to see you, Scott. Thanks very much.

Coming up right here on the show, it's been two years since Wuhan first went into lockdown. Now less than two weeks before the Winter Olympic Games, we take a look at what the country is doing to prepare and what's changed since 2020.

Plus, an attack that may have taken months to plan. A battle is underway to reclaim a prison, housing ISIS militants, in Syria after inmates took over. Why it could signal ISIS is regrouping for something bigger.

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