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European Leaders Spearhead New Round of Diplomacy; Beijing Olympics in Full Swing; Boris Johnson Faces Staff Exodus amid Political Blowback; COVID-19 Detected by Examining Wastewater; Brazilians Outraged over Murder of Congolese Refugee; Climate Change Threatens Future of Winter Games. Aired 3-3:30a ET

Aired February 05, 2022 - 03:00   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, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A push for diplomacy to calm the tense situation between Russia and Ukraine. We're live in Kyiv with the latest.

The Winter Olympics are on but they are far from perfect. How COVID and climate change are affecting the games.

And another aide to Boris Johnson quitting but the prime minister insists he won't go anywhere. Live in London, with the latest.

Hello and welcome to our viewers all over the world, I'm Michael Holmes. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Michael Holmes.

HOLMES: The leaders of France and Germany are headed to Moscow in the coming days in the latest round of diplomacy, aimed at preventing a Russian invasion of Ukraine. French president, Emmanuel Macron, arriving in Moscow Monday and then travel to Kyiv, the next day.

Germany's chancellor Olaf Scholz, is set to visit the following week. Moscow insists it has no intention of sending its forces into Ukraine. Yet tens of thousands of Russian troops, tanks and artillery, have taken up positions within easy striking distance of Ukraine's border. Melissa Bell, joining us live from Kyiv.

Good to see you, let's start with France, trying to pump the brakes with Emmanuel Macron, stepping in to the diplomatic fray.

What can we expect there?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This will be seen over the course of the last couple of weeks, the French, specifically but also, helping with the Germans stepping in for some kind of room for dialogue with Moscow, specifically. This time Emmanuel Macron will come to Moscow first time on Monday,

then to Kyiv, here on Tuesday. Of course, this is something that is welcomed by Ukrainian officials, who don't quite share the alarm of the United States and the United Kingdom, about that troop buildup.

And as far as they are concerned, things have not changed that much since the spring of last year, in terms of Russian preparedness to invade. They also doubt the intention is to there for the time being.

So they welcome this diplomacy, we've heard from the Ukrainian foreign minister, so diplomacy, so far, has been working. These visits from foreign ministers and leaders, have been making a difference, show that Ukraine have allies.

Emmanuel Macron, coming here, to try and further those talks, a revival of the Normandy format, between Ukraine, Russia, France and Germany. The hope for a concrete solution to the problem at the front line, that has existed in the country since 2014, may be resolved; therefore, helping defuse the wider tensions around. Michael.

HOLMES: The meeting between Putin and Xi in Beijing, a vow to deepen strategic coordination for far reaching impact globally.

Do we know what that coordination and the far reaching impact might look like?

BELL: In a very concrete sense, what it'll mean first and foremost, the deal agreed at that the meeting with the leaders in Beijing, the Russian state-backed Rosneft will provide China with 100 million tons of oil, over the course of the next decade.

But more importantly, is the steady growth of this coordination, economic, on energy supplies but also military, between China and Russia. These last few months and years.

What we saw, last Friday, for instance, was when the United States called for this meeting on Ukraine, the Chinese were the only members of the Security Council, to vote with Russia against holding the meeting itself, held at the beginning of last week.

That is important for Russia, to show that it is not isolated, to come up with common positions, with China, which they did specifically on Ukraine and it goes down fundamentally to a vision of the world that they share.

There should be sort of mutual cooperation and a united defiance. These two countries after all, Michael, that are at odds with much of the Western world. They believe, quite strongly, they should be able to conduct affairs within their own borders, as they choose and seek to cooperate, without meddling in each other's strategic spheres of interest.

That was reflected in the joint statement that we saw the other day where spoke and the Kremlin's translation at least, that some states were looking to advance militarily, unilaterally, at the expense of the security of others. So an important show of unity for Vladimir Putin, at this time of growing international isolation. Michael.

HOLMES: Absolutely. Melissa Bell, in Kyiv, appreciate it.

Now to the Winter Games, where competitions are starting to get into full swing, following Friday's opening ceremony in Beijing. The big event, filled with fireworks, light shows and colorful costumes. Some 3,000 performers, taking part, most of them teenagers.

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HOLMES: The ceremony ended with two young Chinese Olympians, lighting the cauldron inside the stadium, one of them a member of China's Uyghur population.

Her inclusion especially noteworthy and controversial, since China's alleged genocide of the Muslim minority group sparked a diplomatic boycott by several Western nations

And despite Beijing's best efforts, the COVID-19 pandemic, still lingering over the games. The Olympic committee reporting 45 new infections, among games related personnel, as of Friday.

We are covering it all here on CNN NEWSROOM. Andy Scholes is here in Atlanta with me but first, let's go to Will Ripley, live in Taipei.

Will, how different was the opening ceremony compared to pre-COVID and compared to the last Olympics?

How different will these games be overall?

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: You mentioned 3,000 performers, comparing that to 15,000 back in 2008. It was a lavish ceremony, China intended to showcase itself and its advancement to the world.

This time the message was much different. They expressed a political message and a confident message, in a shorter presentation, about half of the length of the 2008 performance in Beijing.

But the moment you mentioned, with the Uyghur cross-country skier, who is from Xinjiang, where the United States, which has a diplomatic boycott on the games, has accused China of genocide, a charge China denies.

The fact that they included her and did not hide away from the issue, shows China is sending a message to the West, to the United States, really, that they will not be lectured about human rights.

And, even in the crowd, because they didn't sell tickets; there was only a certain number of people allowed, in the stadium not nearly full capacity. You could hear, in the audience, very different reactions, as different teams came out.

For example, for the Russian team, a massively larger amount of applause than for the United States. Perhaps not surprising, given the host country. Still, noteworthy, that this is politically charged, even though the Olympics are supposed to be neutral and a celebration of peace and unity around the world.

HOLMES: Indeed. Will Ripley, in Taiwan. Thank you so much.

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HOLMES: Now the British prime minister keeps losing close aides, as the so-called Partygate scandal haunts him. Next up, more staffers calling it quits as Boris Johnson fights to keep his job.

And it is a dirty job but someone has to do it.

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HOLMES: How the CDC hopes that tracking wastewater can help predict future surges of COVID. We'll be right back.

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HOLMES: Welcome back.

Downing Street in full damage control mode as a close aide of prime minister Boris Johnson after another heads to the exit. These were some of the newspaper headlines this week, calling the exodus a "meltdown" and a "bloodbath."

Mr. Johnson, losing five close aides in two days, as his office works to shake off the blowback from, the so-called, Partygate scandal. Salma Abdelaziz, in London, joining me now live.

Certainly, it feels like the wheels are falling off for Boris Johnson.

How much more precarious is the situation, after this latest resignation?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Michael, these last 48 hours have been really revealing to the public about where prime minister Boris Johnson is. Yes, we've been talking for weeks now about the Partygate scandal.

But he still appeared to hold the support of his party. He still had not reached that threshold within his party where they wanted to push him out, where they wanted to send enough letters of no confidence to trigger a contest for his leadership.

But this begins to reveal where the cracks in this system are within his own administration. Five aides within 48 hours, the first quitting because of blowback from something prime minister Boris Johnson used in Parliament, basically, to snub his opponent, accusing him of failing to prosecute Britain's most notorious pedophile.

Now that is a common conspiracy theory that has been debunked many times. And, in quick succession, we saw many more aides resign for various reasons. But you are looking at a prime minister now, weaker than ever before, less popular than ever before and under fire like never before, a reminder of that Sue Gray report that was released a few days ago, a report that was a damning condemnation of this administration, describing failures of leadership, failure of judgment and little thought given to the British public during a time of pandemic.

It described excessive drinking at the workplace, inside 10 Downing Street. So this prime minister keeps taking hits but again it comes down to his party, Michael, if they'll reach that threshold.

So far, that small rebellion with the Conservative Party, it is growing but it's not organized. And we're waiting to see what happens next -- Michael.

All right, Salma, thanks, Salma Abdelaziz, appreciate, it thanks.

All right. The U.S. crossed a grim statistic on Friday. Data from Johns Hopkins University confirming that the U.S. had surpassed more than 900,000 total deaths from COVID-19.

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HOLMES: In the past few weeks, there have been more than 2,000 deaths reported each and every day. The CDC considered expanding the interval between first and second doses of Pfizer and Moderna vaccines to eight weeks. The current interval is three weeks for Pfizer and four for Moderna.

The CDC also unveiling its COVID wastewater tracking system on Friday. It's designed to give communities across the U.S. early warning of COVID infections in their area. That could give local health agencies a chance to shift resources and warn the public.

Good news if you're a European traveler: Greece is going to make it easier for Europeans to take a holiday there. Starting on Monday, tourists with the European vaccination certificate won't have to show a negative COVID test to enter the country.

Greek officials hope it will help boost tourism.

Austria is now the first country in Europe to enact a strict and controversial vaccine mandate. All adults eligible to receive the COVID vaccine are now required to do so. The mandate signed into law on Friday.

And health officials say South Korea set a COVID case record for the fifth day in a row, more than 36,000 cases reported Friday. The country recently increased social distancing measures in an effort to curb rising Omicron cases.

Now some other stories we are following around the world for you. The Pentagon now says the deadly ISIS-K attack on the Kabul airport was carried out by a lone suicide bomber. Officials had initially believed gunmen were also involved. At least 170 Afghan civilians and 13 U.S. service members were killed.

The Pentagon released this video, showing the chaotic scene in the hours leading up to the attack, huge crowds trying to flee Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover.

The Pentagon says it's highly likely the attacker used an alternate route to the airport to avoid a Taliban checkpoint.

All right. Rescuers in Morocco are inching closer to a 5 year old boy trapped in a well. The boy named Rayan, fell down the 30 meter deep shaft on Tuesday but rescuers couldn't go in after him, because the opening is only about 45 centimeters wide.

So they are digging a separate tunnel and working slowly, because the well could collapse. Emergency crews did drop in food, water and oxygen, as well as a camera to monitor Rayan's condition. Medical personnel also standing by, of course.

And two Russian state-backed oil and gas companies have inked new deals with China. Gazprom says it will boost natural gas supplies to China through its pipeline by 10 billion cubic meters per year. And Rosneft signed a deal to provide China with 100 million tons of oil over the next decade.

The agreements were reached as Russian president Vladimir Putin met with Chinese president Xi Jinping on Friday.

There is outrage in Brazil over the brutal murder of a Congolese refugee in Rio de Janeiro, many calling it a hate crime, sparking protests, a social media campaign and calls for justice.

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HOLMES (voice-over): Police in Brazil are investigating the death of a young Congolese immigrant, after he was killed while working in Rio de Janeiro. Police say 23 year old Moise Kabagambe was beaten to death on January 24, at a beach bar where he was a bartender.

His mother says he was killed when he demanded his boss pay him overdue wages. His friends and family are outraged.

CHADRAC KEMBILU, MOISE KABAGAMBE'S FRIEND (through translator): We are afraid of Rio de Janeiro. We didn't know that Rio de Janeiro was like this. A cowardly act that was carried out against our brother, Moise, I'm really sorry and sad.

HOLMES (voice-over): That anger has since spilled into the streets. Demonstrators chanted and held a banner, reading, "Fire to the racists." Many say his death is part of a larger issue of racial discrimination in Brazil.

MARIA LAURA CANINEU, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH (through translator): This case must be analyzed in the very serious context of violence against the Black population in Brazil, whose chance of being a victim of homicide is almost three times higher compared to non-Blacks. What we are asking is that the investigation into this case

scrutinizes the possible discrimination against the victim, against Moise, about his race and his origin.

HOLMES (voice-over): Kabagambe's murder has also ignited a social media campaign, calling for justice. Police say they have arrested three men in connection with the incident, which was caught on a security camera.

It shows Kabagambe being attacked by a group of men, who beat him repeatedly with a club and a baseball bat, according to police. The beach kiosk since has been shut down.

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HOLMES (voice-over): His mother said he came to Brazil in 2011, fleeing the armed conflict in his native Democratic Republic of Congo.

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HOLMES: A powerful cyclone is about to hit Madagascar. We will get the latest from Karen Maginnis in the CNN Weather Center when we come back.

Also the future of the Winter Olympics, threatened by climate change. We'll have that as well, after the break.

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HOLMES: Just weeks after a deadly tropical storm hit Madagascar, the island bracing for another dangerous cyclone. Tropical cyclone Batsirai is expected to make landfall on the East Coast of the country in just a few hours.

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HOLMES: Beijing's been promoting the Olympics as its greenest ever. But with a warming planet, there is an inescapable fact about the Chinese capital: its winters are arid. And this year it's so dry that organizers are forced to use artificial methods to make its hills and mountains even skiable.

And climate change putting future Winter Games in jeopardy. Earlier I talked to Daniel Scott, a professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Management at the University of Waterloo in Canada and asked him about the future of the Olympics.

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DANIEL SCOTT, UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO: The difference really comes down to what we do in the next decade or so.

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SCOTT: What the U.N. calls the decisive decade for climate change.

If we continue on the emissions path we're on right now, our research shows that we're going to be left with about four climate reliable locations or past hosts by mid century and maybe down to one in late century. And that is Sapporo, Japan.

So it could really change the geography of where you can host the games and how they will have to be hosted, as you see with the dependence on 100 percent snowmaking this year in China.

Some of these coaches have been around for 30 years. And they travel the world, go to some of the same events and competitions year-over- year. They talk to the old timers there. And they really see how the landscape has changed, how the climate has changed.

Some of their competitions can't be held anymore. Their summer training grounds at high elevation are not happening anymore. So, they are actually a really interesting source of just how winters are changing around the world.

And what we have seen, from an observational perspective in the 21 host locations over the last 70 years, since 1950, on average, they've warmed up about five degrees. Some of them, in February, some as high as nine degrees. So on average, they are warming up about twice the global average, over the last 50 to 70 years.

The future of the Winter Olympics is really in our hands, as it is with many things. So if we manage to achieve the Paris climate agreement, a low emission future, the numbers of climate reliable host locations, largely, stay unchanged from where they are now.

It's that high emission future that really, makes a big change that we don't want to see for many reasons, including winter sport and the Olympics as well.

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HOLMES: Professor Daniel Scott there speaking with me earlier.

Three fishermen survived after their boat capsized and sank off the Massachusetts coast on Tuesday. One of them, Joe Roderick, telling CNN affiliate WBZ they held onto floating hoses from their boat for 45 minutes in the freezing water.

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JOE RODERICK, MASSACHUSETTS FISHERMAN: The whole boat flipped over. We got thrown in the water. And I remember swimming away from the boat, because I didn't want to get pulled down in the suction.

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Shaken, bruised but alive, Roderick and his crewmates were treated in a hospital for hypothermia. A woman onshore being praised for calling the police when she saw the boat roll over. The crew members were not wearing life jackets or survival suits.

They'll do that next time, though.

I'm Michael Holmes, thanks for spending part of your day with me, you can follow me on Twitter and Instagram @HolmesCNN. Do stick around, Kim Brunhuber takes over and about 30 minutes. Meanwhile, "AFRICAN VOICES: CHANGEMAKERS" is up next.