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U.S. Delivers Written Response To Russia On Ukraine; Top U.S.; Russia's Vladimir Putin Opposes Any NATO Expansion; Boris Johnson Rejects Calls For His Resignation; Parents Push For Reopening Of Delhi Schools; South Korea: Two Ballistic Missiles Fired By North Korea. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired January 27, 2022 - 00:00   ET

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

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[00:00:35]

JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Coming up here on CNN, on a day of diplomacy over the U.K. crisis, Russian troops in hardware were on the move, and the U.S. is planning to deploy thousands of troops to Eastern Europe.

Let them eat birthday cake. The British Prime Minister brushes off opposition demands to resign over those pandemic parties. But soon, he may have no choice.

And the very difficult balancing act for corporations sponsoring an Olympics being held in a country with a proven record of serial human rights abuse.

ANNOUNCER: Live from Atlanta, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.

VAUSE: We begin with the latest, diplomatic moves over Ukraine including a formal U.S. response to a list of Kremlin security demands. But actions may have been speaking louder than words. The Russian president has continued to move troops and hardware as well as bolstering his military's presence on Ukraine's border.

While the U.S. now considers sending thousands of soldiers to Eastern Europe. According to sources, three countries Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary would host something similar to afford battlegroup, about a thousand personnel in each.

Ukraine and Russia held direct peace negotiations Wednesday, the first time in a long time. The meeting in Paris which included France and Germany ended with a reaffirm commitment to uphold an existing ceasefire, which is in place in Eastern Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DMITRY KOZAK, RUSSIAN NEGOTIATOR (through translator): We've agreed that regardless of the discrepancies in the readouts of the Minsk agreements between Ukraine and and the representatives of separate Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the ceasefire should be observed unconditionally.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: And in all of this, it is notable Ukraine's Foreign Minister is a rare voice playing down the threat of an imminent Russian invasion.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: The number of Russian troops amassed along the border of Ukraine and in the occupied territories of Ukraine is large. It poses a threat to Ukraine, a direct threat to Ukraine, however, at the moment as we speak, this number and is insufficient for the full-scale offensive about against Ukraine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: The Russian foreign minister has threatened retaliatory measures if the Kremlin is not satisfied with the response from Washington. NATO's response is now also with Vladimir Putin. It included a warning to Russia, deescalate immediately.

Both came with the same message. They were not prepared to prevent Ukraine from ever joining the NATO Alliance, which is a key demand by Russia.

CNN's Nick Robertson has details.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (on camera): Well, that written response has now been delivered to the Russian Foreign Ministry. Russian officials had wanted it, the U.S. Ambassador delivered it, Secretary of State Antony Blinken indicating that it is not a negotiating document. It is not an explicit proposal. But he did say that there were elements in there that he hoped would appeal to Russia that there would be areas where they could agree and cooperate.

But in some places, sticking to things that have been said publicly, that have been a very high bar for Russia to accept so far, and that is that NATO will keep its open-door policy.

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: That it reiterates what we said publicly for many weeks and, in a sense, for many years, that we will uphold the principle of NATO's open door. NATO's door is open, remains open, and that is our commitment.

ROBERTSON: Well, earlier in the day, Russia's Foreign Minister speaking to the State Duma got a big round of applause when he said if the response was not constructive, that if it was aggressive or used aggressive lines, he said, Russia would have a response. This is how he framed it.

SERGEI LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): If there won't be any constructive response, then the West will continue its aggressive line, then as the president has said multiple times, Moscow will take appropriate response measures.

In any case, everyone should proceed from the understanding that Russia's safety and its citizens is an absolute priority. And security will be provided in any circumstance.

[00:05:03]

ROBERTSON: Well, Lavrov then not explicitly saying taking military measures but that's been the language that Russian officials have used in the past few weeks, military and legal means.

Now, Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary General who also sent back a written response to Russia's security proposals, said that he believed that there was scope in many areas in the -- in NATO's response and the U.S. response that could benefit Russia and he hoped that they would see that.

JENS STOLTENBERG, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: Everything from how to reduce the risks from missiles, short range and medium range missiles, reduce the risk of nuclear weapons, arms control, to transparency on military activities or cyber threats and how to reduce threats from, for instance, space-based weapons.

We strongly believe that within these areas, there is actually plenty of room also for Russia to see benefits.

ROBERTSON: So, all of these proposals, they're things that Russia doesn't want the things that might appeal to it all in the hands of President Putin and his officials, down to them now to determine if there is enough in there for them to continue on the path of diplomacy.

Nick Robertson, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Daniel L. Davis is a retired lieutenant colonel who saw 21 years of active service for the U.S. Army. He's currently a Senior Fellow and Military Expert with Defense Priorities, a Washington based think tank which advocates for restraint, democracy, and free trade. Good to see you again.

LT. COL. DANIEL L. DAVIS (RET.), U.S. ARMY: Good to be here. Thanks for having me, John.

VAUSE: You're welcome. Now, I want you to listen a little more from the U.S. Secretary of State on the written response to Russian demands, which is right now with Vladimir Putin. Here's Antony Blinken.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) BLINKEN: Right now, the document is with them and the ball is in their court, we'll see what we do, as I've said repeatedly, whether they choose the path of diplomacy and dialogue, whether they decide to renew aggression against Ukraine, we're prepared either way.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: I guess the thing which the question I have is, why bother submit a formal response outlining a position which is fundamentally unchanged from one which has already been rejected by Moscow?

DAVIS: Yes, that's a head scratcher. And as I was listening to that, I was thinking, what do they think that the objective is or the outcome of this is going to be? Because you can sit there and say, hey, you know, the ball is in their court, and we have responded to their demands, or their letter, rather. But when you look further into the other things that he said, basically, they're the things that we want to talk about, like, you know, arms control, and some transparency issues on exercises.

Yes, we want to talk about those, but we're not going to give Russia anything that they want. And just actually hours before that was delivered, you had Sergey Lavrov in Russia saying, if they don't recognize, you know, our requirements here, there are going to be severe consequences to pay, which President Putin has said many times was what his quote was, and so, I can't imagine this is going to be received well or have a very good outcome.

VAUSE: And just to back up a little bit, there is a general consensus that Putin does have some legitimate concerns, right?

DAVIS: Well, without question. Every nation has genuine, legitimate concerns for its national security on its border. I mean, everybody knows we do. They do. UK does. Everybody does.

So, yes, I think you have to start from the fact that every nation has some degree of legitimate concerns on its national security.

VAUSE: I want you to listen to the NATO Secretary General who's very upbeat, promising lots of listening, here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

STOLTENBERG: We are prepared to listen to Russia's concerns and engage in real conversation on how to uphold and strengthen the fundamental principles of European security that we have all signed up to.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Does Putin actually want to have that conversation?

DAVIS: Well, you know, this just shows that there are very different definitions of what's reasonable, coming from both sides. And here's the hard truth right now, one of the main reasons we're in this situation today is not because of anything that's been happened in the last four or five years or even since 2014. But going back decades, Vladimir Putin has been an equivocal, and

consistent since at least 2008, saying that, he reviews NATO expansion to Ukraine, and to Georgia as a red line. And he's already acted on it one time in Georgia in 2008 with limited military power and he acted on it in 2014, with by seizing part of Ukraine territory, the Crimea.

And afterwards, he expressly said that this was to keep Ukraine -- to keep NATO from taking Ukraine to come and right onto his border.

Now, if we think he meant it then, now that he has somewhere around 120,000 combat forces arrayed around Ukraine ready to strike, naval forces mobilized and Rocket Forces mobilized, Air Force mobilized, this is the time where he has all the tactic cards. And we can't keep going with the foreign policy that we've been having, which is like, we don't care about reality, we just want you to do what we want. But that's not going to work anymore. And I think that we either have to change policies pretty quick, or this is going to have a bad outcome.

[00:10:18]

VAUSE: What's interesting, though, on Tuesday night, the President of Ukraine delivered a national address via social media, he was very direct, he was blunt, he said, though, there was no threat of imminent invasion. And hey, everything is under control, here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Everything is under control, there is no need to panic. The first issue of the meeting, of course, was the situation in Eastern Ukraine. The authorities are working for the full de-escalation of the situation and are moving towards a peaceful settlement. We know everything, we are ready for everything. We believe in the best. We do everything for it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: How can Ukraine's leader has such a different assessment compared to the President of the United States, who just a day or so ago was warning the world could change, if Putin goes ahead with this massive invasion?

DAVIS: Well, I mean, really, what else can he say? He can't go in front of his people and say, yes, we're probably going to get invaded and a lot of us are going to die. And there's really nothing we can do about it. That's not a real motivating speech.

I think he's saying what he thinks that people need to hear to keep them calm. While I'm sure that behind the scenes, he is anything but reassured, and is working feverishly to try to get the United States to do anything again to help protect him.

But frankly, I think that it's just too late. The only way I think, in my opinion, that we can prevent a war right now is to at least say, hey, look, we're going to have a moratorium. There's not going to be any talk of Ukraine joining NATO for the foreseeable future, which is the right poll, because the last thing we would want is Ukraine in the NATO alliance, because it would bring all that chaos into it and the chance for war.

Nobody in Europe wants a war, I assure you, and that would give a good shot at taking the motivation away from Putin. But if you stay with this hardline here that no, we're not going to give you anything. And we're not going to take NATO off the table for Ukraine, then you're probably going to get a war.

VAUSE: Yes, I guess, you know, talking is good, but there has to be something for both sides to actually talk about. And on that, we'll leave it there. Daniel L. Davis, thanks so much for being with us.

DAVIS: Thanks for having me.

VAUSE: Britain's Boris Johnson has survived another day as Prime Minister during question time Wednesday, Johnson was in full fight, fending off a barrage of opposition demands for his resignation over those pandemic parties at number 10.

This never-ending scandal has seen his approval ratings plummet, and a growing number of Conservative MPs are moving to oust him as party leader and leave eventually as prime minister, or it will now depend on what's in an internal report which is believed to be completed and could be made public at any time.

CNN's Bianca Nobilo has details.

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BIANCA NOBILO, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The question now a familiar refrain that no prime minister wants to hear.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Will you now resign?

NOBILO: With an equally predictable answer.

BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: No, Mr. Speaker.

NOBILO: In another rambunctious day in the British Parliament, opposition MPs pulling no punches.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I would prefer to be led by a lawyer than a liar. Will he now resign?

NOBILO: This lawmaker forced to withdraw the comment by the speaker but not before it landed on the already bruised Boris Johnson.

Johnson along with the whole of Westminster currently in a waiting game. A highly anticipated Cabinet Office inquiry into multiple alleged parties that took place in breach of lockdown rules over the past two years is expected imminently.

The accusations of illegal social gatherings steadily mounting. The most recent that people got together for the Prime Minister's birthday in June 2020, later on in the day that this photo was taken. When allegations first emerged weeks ago, Johnson denied them.

JOHNSON: All guidance was followed completely during --

NOBILO: But was eventually forced to apologize.

JOHNSON: Mr. Speaker, I want to apologize.

NOBILO: Admitting he had personally attended a gathering in May 2020, insisting he thought it was a work event. The turmoil has left the Conservative Party in a state of political purgatory. The word in Westminster that the outcome of this report will trigger a confidence vote in him if the findings are damning.

Johnson was before Parliament for the first time since the Met police announced they too are investigating whether the law was broken.

KEIR STARMER, BRITISH LABOR PARTY LEADER: We now have the shameful spectacle of a Prime Minister of the United Kingdom being subjected to a police investigation. Unable to leave the country, incapable of doing the right thing.

NOBILO: But for now, in limbo. The Prime Minister remains defiant.

JOHNSON: That we've taken the tough decisions. We've got the big cause right.

NOBILO: Multiple polls showing about two-thirds of British people think Johnson should resign.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it time to go, Prime Minister?

NOBILO: A question that now follows Johnson wherever he goes.

Bianca Nobilo, CNN, London.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Dominic Thomas is CNN's European Affairs commentator. He is with us this hour from Los Angeles. Dominic, welcome back.

[00:15:02]

DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR (on camera): Thanks so much, John.

VAUSE: They say clearly, Boris Johnson is not going down without a fight. Telegraph reporting that a number of his loyal supporters are running a shadow whipping operation to bring wavering MPs on site. He's part of the report.

Earlier this week, they drew up a list of 30 potential rebels for Mr. Johnson to meet in his parliamentary office, where he has asked MPs to explain their concerns in the hope they can be convinced to continue to support him. A source close to Mr. Johnson said he'd been contrite in the meeting. But The Guardian has this, senior backbenchers are to move as a collective to force a no confidence vote in Johnson wants senior civil servant Sue Gray releases her findings.

You know, at this point, it seems a stretch to believe that Boris Johnson's fate, you know, he only charmed (PH) his way out of this crisis by sweet talking a couple of backbenchers.

THOMAS: Yes, it's not going to be enough. I mean, of course, you know, he's -- will keep reminding them that he has this massive majority and make all sorts of questions, all sorts of promises. Now, whether or not he's able to fulfill them remains another matter. He can also highlight the fact that a leadership change would bring a certain degree of uncertainty.

But at the end of the day, these law makers are answerable to their constituents. And as much as they would like to push a particular legislative agenda or get some concessions from the prime minister, it is ultimately to them that they are answerable.

And the bigger issue as well that Boris Johnson faces beyond the possibility of a vote of no confidence is simply the extent to which those immediately around him in his cabinet are going to continue to stand by before they become so compromised by his -- by his behavior. And this negative attention that any potential leadership challenge that they hope to make will be completely compromised by their proximity to him.

VAUSE: In parliament, the opposition has had a field day, it's been relentless, demanding Johnson resign. But the prime minister hit back and with this kind of thing, here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNSON: He would have kept us in lockdown in the summer, Mr. Speaker. He would have taken us back into lockdown Christmas, Mr. Speaker. And if precisely because we didn't listen to Captain hindsight, that we have the fastest growing economy in the G-7, Mr. Speaker. And we have got all the big calls right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Offense is often the best defense. But there seems to be a big claim there by the prime minister, considering the early bungled pandemic response. Even if we what he is saying is true, it seems to be a good answer, but to a different question.

THOMAS: Completely, and it's irrelevant, and it's a total distraction. He's the prime minister, not Keir Starmer. The fact is that Starmer is skilled, experienced lawyer. And what he's really doing here is he has Boris Johnson on the ropes and he's playing with him. He's essentially luring him into making a whole range of statements, knowing full well that they will ultimately be contradicted by the facts.

And to that extent, the longer this goes on, the worse, Boris Johnson is going to be as Keir Starmer has these multiple opportunities to expose him on the record in the House.

VAUSE: The Sue Gray internal report, apparently, it's completed, could be released within the next day or so, maybe next week sometime. We're not entirely sure. But you know, while we wait for this, luckily, there is another scandal which we can pass the time with, this one's pet gate (PH). And the headline from CNN: Leaked e-mails suggests Boris Johnson lied about evacuating animals before people from Afghanistan.

This also (INAUDIBLE) former British Marine who is running an animal shelter in Kabul, and when Taliban took over, he wanted to get his staff, his animals out of country.

But in the end, only the animals made it onto a private charter fly. And Johnson was asked back in December, if he had a hand in authorizing that special flight out. Here's what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNSON: No, that's complete nonsense. But what I can tell you is that I think that the operation of pitting to are of 15,000 people out of Kabul, in the way that we did over the summer was one of the outstanding military achievements of the last 50 years or more.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Absolute nonsense, not quite. E-mails released by the Foreign Affairs Select Committee suggest Johnson did personally authorize the rescue effort for the pets and the animals and the people. Is this just another line from a prime minister, who everyone knows has had a very uneasy relationship with the truth for a very -- for a very long time? Or is this something bigger?

THOMAS: I would say yes, it is more evidence of lying but at the end of the day, that's secondary. The fact is he has a track record of lying. And as we know, the cornerstone of any defense is credibility. And he has lost all credibility.

And all the evidence seems to be pointing to the fact here that he made decisions that were motivated purely by self-interest, which has been a lingering problem for him of self-interest, entitlement, and so on. And also, interest in protecting the interest of his friends, of his immediate friends and entourage, and so on.

And at the end of the day, that self-interest came ahead of his role as a public servant. And this is just simply further evidence, pushing him down the road around this sort of lack of credibility, and so on.

[00:20:08]

THOMAS: And essentially, it's impossible for him to defend himself and for everybody, anybody to actually believe him at this juncture.

VAUSE: Yes, he was -- he has always been known as someone who is couldn't lie straight in bed at times, but this just goes into a whole new point. Dominic, thank you for being with us. Dominic Thomas there in Los

Angeles. Thank you, John.

Still ahead, here on CNN NEWSROOM. The missile tests keep coming from North Korea. The second launch this week, raising questions what is the end game here for the dictator Kim Jong-un? A live report from Taiwan with Will Ripley coming up.

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VAUSE: The World Health Organization is reporting the highest number of new COVID 19 cases since the pandemic began. A record 21 million infections around the world this past week. Most new cases are in the United States followed by France, India and Italy. But the global pace of infection is slowing. Some regions are seeing case trending -- cases trending downwards.

Denmark plans to lift all COVID restrictions next Tuesday, the prime minister saying the virus is no longer a socially critical disease. Danes' official site high levels of immunity from high vaccination rates and previous infections. COVID tests for incoming travelers will remain in place until March.

And in Austria, a locked down for the unvaccinated that's been in effect for more than two months will end Monday. Nation's chancellor saying the pressure on hospitals has eased. On Tuesday, a nationwide vaccination mandate for anyone 18 and older goes into effect.

In India, they're debating about children and -- if children in Delhi should actually be back in school. Students have been out of the classroom for almost all of the pandemic and now, some parents are making a push to get kids back in the classroom 600 long days.

Vedika Sud joins us now live from New Delhi. You know, this has been tough on kids. You know, when you think about the amount of time they've been away from their friend, what they've missed out on, the social gatherings. They've had it tough, especially in India.

VEDIKA SUD, CNN REPORTER (on camera): Absolutely, John. And we have a delegation of parents who met with the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi on Wednesday through memorandum, they've requested for schools to be reopened with immediate effect.

You've just said it, John, but I'm going to repeat it here. According to these parents, children have been out of school for almost 600 days, the younger lot perhaps for over 650 days since the outbreak of the pandemic.

We've spoken to educationists who say that the implications can be catastrophic for children who've been out of the social environment for so long, there could be mental health issues, anxiety building up. We also spoke to a petitioner who's a parent who had signed that memorandum to the Delhi government asking for schools to be reopened. Here's what she had to say to us.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DHARINI MATHUR, INDIAN PARENT: 650 days plus of schools being closed

for primary school children in India, older kids have only had it marginally better.

[00:25:03]

MATHUR: And so, we've -- as parents believe that in our children lack of voice, the lack of vote, and unlike spa lobbies or restaurant lobbies who've been pushing for reopening, someone needs to speak up on behalf of our children.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SUD: Well, the latest numbers suggest that almost 7,500 new daily cases of COVID-19 have been reported from Delhi which is home to India's capital. But that's a lot less than earlier this month, John, where over 20,000 new daily cases were being reported.

Today, the Delhi Disaster Management Authority which is the body which will decide on lifting restrictions and reopening schools will be meeting with other stakeholders, including the Delhi government representatives, we'll have to wait and watch and see whether they really going to pay attention to the petition signed by over 1,600 parents who are requesting for at least a hybrid module where some children can go back to school if all parents are not willing, John.

VAUSE: Vedika, thank you. Vedika Sud there live for us in New Delhi.

SUD: Thank you.

VAUSE: We'll take a short break. When we come back, the U.S. Russia surge of troops to Belarus is deeply concerning. Belarusian opposition leader shares that here (PH) and we will hear from her in a moment.

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

North Korea's missile mania, not letting up with a second missile test this week. According to military officials in Seoul, two short range ballistic missiles were fired early Thursday from the East Coast landing in the ocean. It appeared to be the sixth missile test by Pyongyang just this year.

CNN's Will Ripley live in Taiwan with the very latest on this. I guess one thing we have to keep an eye out for is that we're coming up to the Beijing Winter Olympics. That'd be a perfect time for North Korea to wrap up the missile tests even further.

WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT (on camera): It's not exactly what we expected to see a missile testing binge right before Beijing hosted an international sporting event and yet, you don't see a lot of response from China, which of course, is the big enforcer of these international sanctions. They're kind of the make or break decider about whether North Korea actually gets pinched by these sanctions. The U.S., the Biden administration has put more sanctions in place after other missile tests earlier this month, North Koreans responded back furiously saying that those sanctions are only going to provoke them further and cause them to take stronger and stronger action.

We don't know if this is North Korea's busiest month for ballistic missile tests ever because we're still going through historically to try to figure that out but it certainly is one of their busiest months to have six weapons test, some of these tests with multiple projectiles launched at the same time, two short range ballistics today.

Two days ago, it was to cruise missiles. Last week, it was two other short-range missiles that North Korea calls tactical guided weapons. Then earlier this month, they launched a short-range ballistic from a rail car. They launched two hypersonic missiles, and these hypersonics are what have the attention of = a lot of people. Because of what they could potentially do. Listen.

[00:30:16]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DUYEON KIM, ADJUNCT SENIOR FELLOW AT THE CENTER FOR A NEW AMERICAN SECURITY: North Korea is aiming for the types of weapons that can evade U.S. missile defenses, make it harder for the United States to detect, to try to target and to try to hit if it wanted to.

MELISSA HANHAM, STANFORD UNIVERSITY CENTER FOR INTERNATIONAL SECURITY AND COOPERATION: North Korea has been making really powerful threats for decade after decade. But they are now reaching a technical capability where they can make some of those threats real.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIPLEY: U.S. missile defense systems are lackluster at best, John. So these hypersonic tests and North Korea hinting they could even resume nuclear test, which they haven't done since 2017 as part of a self- imposed moratorium. All of it adds up to a potentially tense situation here in this part of the world.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: On the surface, at least, this looks like a pretty impressive display of new weapons and new technology. The North has developed -- it kicked off the year with a bang, if you like. But how big is the threat for those hypersonic missiles?

RIPLEY: Well, they're, in many ways, very similar to the ballistic missiles that North Korea currently has. They're launched on the same kind of base, the missile base that fires it up at speeds up to ten times or perhaps more the speed of sound.

But what hypersonics do is that the warhead itself has a glide vehicle attached, which allows the warhead, either a nuclear warhead or a conventional warhead, to make an unexpected turn. And that's what makes it so tricky for existing missile defense systems, which already have a very spotty track record, when you're talking about being tested in ideal conditions with advanced warnings, certainly not a wartime scenario.

So when you have experts saying that North Korea now is really at a point where they might have the technology to fulfill some of these dire threats that they've been making against the United States for years.

And that has a lot of people wondering what steps the Biden administration and others are going to take, beyond sanctions, to either try to engage the North, like President Trump did, former President Trump. Of course, we know how that has turned out, because we're now right back to where we were before the Korean detente.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes. Even worse off than we were before the detente. But Will, thank you. Will Ripley, live for us. I appreciate it.

Tensions remain high near Ukraine's border, where tens of thousands of Russian forces have massed. But there's also growing concern about an increase of Russian troops in Belarus.

The Russian ministry of defense says a number of SU-35 fighter jets have been sent to Belarus. The military drills are taking place right now and into next month.

Video shows jets taking off on an undisclosed air field in Russia's eastern military district.

The U.S. State Department says the decision by the Belarusian to allow Russia to stage forces in the country is, quote, "an affront to Belarus's sovereignty."

And now an opposition leader sounding the alarm about these latest moves. CNN's Fred Pleitgen has our report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Russia's army is increasingly encircling Ukraine. Vladimir Putin's troops now also pouring into neighboring Belarus, allegedly for military exercises, all with the help of Putin's friend, Belarusian strong man, Alexander Lukashenko.

Lukashenko falsely claiming the exercises near Ukraine's border are only a reaction to Ukrainian moves.

ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO, BELARUSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We were not the first ones to start paying attention to our southern border. Ukrainians began to gather troops there. I can't understand why.

PLEITGEN: Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya has heard the lies all too many times. From her exile in Lithuania, she's been leading the opposition against Lukashenko. And speaking only to CNN, says the U.S. and its allies must act decisively. SVIATLANA TSIKHANOUSKAYA, BELARUSIAN OPPOSITION LEADER: What's going

on, on the territorial bills (ph) with all these military drills, is very concerning. And in some sense (ph), we're watching this very attentively. And we understand that the regime now in very weak position. And maybe they could, like, allow U.S. be able to send territory (ph) for Kremlin's (ph) aid.

PLEITGEN: She had Lukashenko on the ropes in 2020. A housewife and mother, she took the reins after her own husband, the politician Sergei Tikhanovsky, was jailed by Lukashenko.

According to the U.S. and its allies, Tsikhanouskaya beat Lukashenko in the presidential election, but he rigged the election.

What followed were peaceful protests against Lukashenko, and then a brutal crackdown that jailed or exiled most of the opposition including Tsikhanouskaya.

Lukashenko managed to stay in power, mostly thanks to Vladimir Putin, she says, effectively making him Putin's stooge and putting Belarus's army at the Russian president's disposal.

TSIKHANOUSKAYA: We don't know what steps he can do to keep his power, not to look like loser in this situation. But he also understands that he's -- this over. And he's just prolonging all these political games and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) to Russia.

[00:35;11]

PLEITGEN: While Tsikhanouskaya continues to fight for change in Belarus, she remains devoted to her family, ultimately admitting she is sometimes afraid, especially since her husband was recently sentenced to 18 years in jail, after a trial the U.S. and the E.U. called a sham.

TSIKHANOUSKAYA: I'm scared every day, scared for people in Belarus, scared for my own family. But you have no choice. You have to go forward, knowing that we are a strong nation.

PLEITGEN: While Lukashenko has become an international pariah, essentially hijacking an E.U.-flagged plane to arrest an opposition blogger and unleashing a migrant crisis on the E.U.'s doorstep this past fall. He does remain in business, not just thanks to Russia, but also China.

Xi Jinping recently called for deeper economic ties, despite U.S. and E.U. sanctions.

But Tsikhanouskaya believes allowing a massive Russian force in the country will further discredit Lukashenko.

TSIKHANOUSKAYA: This is invisible resistance, but it is going on every day. So I'm sure that I will go back to Belarus, the same as hundreds, thousands of (UNINTELLIGIBLE) citizens and all our political prisoners. PLEITGEN (on camera): And the U.S. clearly also sees the threat that

Russia could use Belarus as a possible launching pad for invasion of Ukraine. The State Department's spokesman saying that Lukashenko will face, quote, "a swift and decisive response from the U.S." if that were to happen.

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Well, corporate sponsors usually try to make the biggest splash possible at the Olympic Games. Usually. But with the threat of boycotts over China's diplomatic record, many of the biggest sponsors are choosing to play it safe and play it down. Those details, just ahead.

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VAUSE: Prince Andrew's legal team has asked for a jury trial in the civil sex abuse lawsuit brought by Virginia Dufresne, who alleges she was trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein as a minor and forced to have sex with his friends including Andrew.

He has repeatedly denied the allegations, making it formal in the filings on Wednesday. The filings come two weeks after a New York judge denied a motion by his lawyers to dismiss this lawsuit. They argued a financial settlement between Dufresne and Epstein, in which she agreed not to take legal action against Epstein and all future defendants, applied to Andrew. The judge ruled it did not.

The head of the International Olympic Committee is expected to meet with Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai during the upcoming Winter Olympics in Beijing.

The IOC says it has spoken with Peng in the last week, and she's looking forward to speaking with the IOC chief, Thomas Bach. Peng disappeared from view for three weeks back in November, after apparently accusing a senior Chinese officer of sexual assault.

But now, she says that social media approach was misunderstood. And she has not accused anyone of anything.

The Olympic Games set to get underway eight days from now. That would be February 4.

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China's alleged human rights abuses has several Olympic sponsors treading very lightly, many of them under pressure to boycott the games. This is not uncommon for when the games are held in places like China.

CNN's Selina Wang has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) SELINA WANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Beijing is gearing up for the biggest show on earth, but the lead-up for sponsors of the Winter Olympics has been quiet. Foreign (ph) brands are caught in the middle of diplomatic boycotts outside China, in fear of retaliation by the Chinese government and consumers.

DIPANJAN CHATTERJEE, VICE PRESIDENT AND PRINCIPAL ANALYST, FORRESTER: Whereas you would expect brands to sort of beat their chests and come out strong. Instead, what you found is that they've retreated into theirselves.

WANG: Some of the largest Olympics sponsors, like Airbnb, Coca-Cola, Intel, Procter & Gamble, and Visa have collectively spent billions to be a part of what's normally a marketing bonanza.

MARK DIMASSIMO, FOUNDER, DIMASSIMO GOLDSTEIN: They're being much more pragmatic advertisers, sticking with their evergreen themes. No one wants to be seen as a sponsor of human rights abuses.

WANG: The muted global campaigns have focused on athletes with little mention of Beijing.

CHATTERJEE: They paid top dollars to be associated with this incredible equity of the Olympics. And now they find themselves having to backtrack.

WANG: While it's all quiet outside China, inside China, the sponsors are seizing the Olympic opportunity. Over Christmas, Coca-Cola had an online campaign to send free Olympic memorabilia to Chinese consumers, showing off an interactive exhibition at the Dimdung (ph) train station.

Visa creating an emotional video 100 days before the games. Procter and Gamble unveiling a beauty salon for They athletes at the Olympic Village.

(on camera): But there's growing pressure from Washington and rights groups and these giant corporations to take a stand on Chinese human rights records.

The Biden administration and other U.S. allies will not send government officials to the Winter Olympics as a statement against allegations of genocide in China's Xinjian region, allegations that China strongly denies.

(voice-over): But industry analysts say the priority of many Olympic sponsors for these games is to keep and grow their market share in China, because retaliation can be swift and painful.

CNN has reached out to all of the top Olympic sponsors. Most have either declined to comment or not responded. Most have either declined to comment or not responded.

France-based Atos said, "We fully abide by the IOC's strategy on human rights, in addition to our own ethics and compliance program." Switzerland-based Omega and Germany-based Allianz said their focus is

on the athletes. Allianz adding, "We consider dialogue with civil society organizations to be very important and regularly exchange in our NGO dialogue on socio-political issues."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're all very cautious right now to not do something that could be perceived as insulting the Chinese government, per the Chinese people.

WANG: And last year, Nike, H&M, and other western brands faced a boycott in China because of a stand they took against the alleged use of forced labor in Xinjian.

Then in 2019, comments made by then-Houston Rockets GM in support of Hong Kong pro-democracy protests almost ended a multi-billion-dollar deal between the NBA and China.

So for these Olympics, sponsors are likely to play it safe.

Selina Wang, CNN, Tokyo.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. I'll be back at the top of the area with another edition of CNN NEWSROOM.

In the meantime, please stay with us. WORLD SPORT starts after a short break.

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