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Macron Hails Diplomatic Progress, Kremlin Noncommittal; Macron Claims "New Leads" To De-escalate Crisis; French, German And Polish Leaders Meet In Berlin; Shiffrin Skis Out Of Second Consecutive Race; Fanfare And Controversy Swirl Around Skier Eileen Gu; Tensions Growing In Demonstrations Over COVID Mandates; Some U.S. States Roll Back Mask Mandates Amid Warnings; South Dakota Hospitals Strained Amid Low Vaccination Rates; Aired 1-2a ET
Aired February 09, 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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MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: -- technology segregates (ph) them to be green in a way that is both profitable and good for the consumer.
ADRIEN KOSKAS, GLOBAL BRAND PRESIDENT GARNIER: Yes, green is a very serious topic, you know, and it's all about science and delivering performance. And you're right that sometimes, you know, people were referring to green washing, but we can prove people with the science and how we actually do things and improve the footprint of our products with very clear numbers. And this is really, I think, the big challenge for us and the whole industry.
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BEN WEDEMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ben Wedeman in Beirut and this is CNN.
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers all around the world. I'm Lynda Kinkade, and this is CNN Newsroom. Coming up, the latest on the back and forth between Russia and the West. How Ukrainians near the border with Russia preparing for the possibility of an invasion.
And new details on the anti-vax protests in Canada, some of their biggest supporters are fully vaccinated. And day five, all the Winter Games is underway that shocking upset that's dashed the hopes of an American scheme champion.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN Newsroom with Lynda Kinkade.
KINKADE: Well French President Emmanuel Macron is claiming progress after his diplomatic mission to ease the standoff between Russia and Ukraine. Mr. Macron was in Kyiv on -- and then on Berlin on Tuesday, and he says he received an assurance from Russian President Vladimir Putin that Moscow would not escalate the crisis. And he mentioned new leads to ease tensions. But the Kremlin spokesman was not as positive in his assessment. He refused to confirm any tangible steps towards a resolution.
Russia's military buildup around Ukraine is still moving to a new front. Six Russian warships are headed to the Black Sea, south of Ukraine for what Moscow calls naval drills. A key U.S. envoy to Europe had this bleak reaction.
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MICHAEL CARPENTER, U.S. AMBASSADOR, ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND CO- OPERATION IN EUROPE: Russia has locked and loaded its guns and it's pointing them at Ukraine.
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KINKADE: Well, more now from CNN's International Diplomatic Editor Nic Robertson, reporting from Moscow.
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NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice-over): Close to Ukraine, Russian troops, a clear and present threat, overshadowing President Emmanuel Macron's high stakes diplomacy. Following a five- hour meeting, President Vladimir Putin's innuendo laden language dampening hopes further, demanding Ukraine and its President Volodymyr Zelensky submit his will on the Minsk peace talks, intended to end fighting with pro-Russian separatists.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): Like it or don't like it, it's your duty, my beauty.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Barely 16 hours later, as Macron met Zelensky, the Ukrainian President responded to Putin's apparent insult, parrying with diplomacy.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): Ukraine is indeed a beauty as far as him saying, my Ukraine is a slight overstatement. As far as ticket is concerned, I think Ukraine is very patient because there's wisdom.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Even so, Macron claiming small victories, on the latest minutes talks to end tensions in eastern Ukraine.
EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translation): I was able to obtain a very clear and explicit commitment from President Putin and Zelensky to the strict basis of the Minsk agreement, and in particular, to strict compliance.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): And appearing to think Putin agreeing to a military de-escalation, later scotch by the Kremlin. Reality is, Putin is giving up no ground, nor is he making clear what his next move will be. All the while keeping up his demands.
PUTIN (through translation): We are categorically against the expansion of NATO. ROBERTSON (voice-over): The Russian leader seemingly waiting while diplomacy plays out to see what Western weaknesses appear.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There will be no longer a Nord Stream 2.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): President Biden's insistence Germany in lockstep with U.S. sanctions under scrutiny.
OLAF SCHOLZ, GERMAN CHANCELLOR: The transatlantic partnership is key for peace in Europe. And this is what Putin also has to understand that he will not be able to split European Union or to split NATO. We will act together.
ROBERTSON (voice-over): Round three of Macron's diplomacy late Tuesday meeting Scholz on his return from D.C. along with Poland's President Andrzej Duda, whose NATO nation just received 1,700 troops from the U.S. 82nd airborne.
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ANDRZEJ DUDA, POLISH PRESIDENT (through translation): We must find a solution to avoid war. This is our primary task. I believe we will do it. Today, the most important thing is unity and solidarity.
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ROBERTSON: Putin likely watching every move making few of his own. As U.S. officials warn, if there is an invasion, it could cost tens of thousands of civilian lives and create a refugee crisis in Europe.
Nick Robertson, CNN, Moscow.
KINKADE: Well, joining me now from the Russian capital, Anton Troianovski, the Moscow Bureau Chief for The New York Times. Good to have you with us.
ANTON TROIANOVSKI, MOSCOW BUREAU CHIEF, THE NEW YORK TIMES: Hello.
KINKADE: So you've wrote a really interesting piece in The New York Times today, concluding that this dangerous diplomatic standoff could drag on for months, if not all of 2022 given that no one seems is willing to compromise. And that could be a best case scenario.
TROIANOVSKI: Absolutely. I mean, certainly the worst case scenario is that, in fact, all these troops that we are seeing on the border around Ukraine, in fact, are used in a new invasion, which is something that analysts and American officials feared could happen in the next few weeks. But even if it doesn't, really, there's no way to imagine that Putin would take the pressure off in a significant way. He's showing that what he's demanding right now, a sphere of influence in Eastern Europe, in effect for Russia, is something that he will continue to push for, something that he will continue to keep the pressure high for, for as long as it takes to get his way.
KINKADE: Yes. I want to ask you more about that. Because if he did, in fact, draw down on troops on the border of Ukraine, what other ways could it keep the west on edge?
TROIANOVSKI: Well, of course, even if he draws down troops, you know, he could draw down some of them, but not all of them. The posture that he's maintaining right now with the, you know, all these soldiers way out of Garrison camped out in the snow, in the mud, here in the winter is -- so that's something that you can't really maintain you would think for a long time.
But if he can keep a lot of those troops there, he can conduct cyberattacks, he can conduct exercises of his nuclear forces, and he can mount future troop build-ups as well. So the way this has seen in Moscow is really a long kind of slog, a long fight. And something that the Kremlin is willing to pursue and put its capital on the line for a long time to come.
KINKADE: Yes. And as you noted in your article, when U.S. President Biden entered office, he wanted to focus on China's growing influence. But Putin has managed to divert much attention to his part of the world. We saw the French President Macron speaking, obviously, with both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, saying that Putin promising that there would be no escalation, although Russia has disputed that account. What does that tell you? Can Putin be taken in his word?
TROIANOVSKI: Well, you know, I think Russia disputed that account, because they are publicly saying they're not playing -- planning to escalate, and that they are planning to draw down these troops after exercises and -- in Belarus, for example, on February 20th. So this has all been a story in which we've heard a very different things out of the Kremlin officially, compared to what we're actually seeing on the ground around Ukraine.
But you're absolutely right, what you said about, you know, President Biden, he had a different priorities when he came in. And I think that the recognition of that exists here in Moscow as well. And that's part of what's going on here. The Kremlin knows that President Biden would much rather deal with China.
He sees China as America's biggest foreign policy challenge long term. And so, there's a sense here that that's one of the reasons why President Biden could be prepared to make a deal. At the end of the day, the Russians will be looking for a deal. And that's another thing to remember, even if we do have a war, even if we have a military escalation, the diplomacy will continue this kind of scramble to find some kind of diplomatic solution will continue really, no matter what.
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KINKADE: Yes, it seems that way. So we, perhaps, maybe talking about this again very soon. Good to get your perspective.
TROIANOVSKI: Absolutely.
KINKADE: Anton Troianovski, the Bureau Chief Moscow for the New York Times. Thanks so much.
TROIANOVSKI: Thank you. KINKADE: Well, day five of the Winter Olympics is underway in Beijing and we've already seen another stunning disappointment for American skiing star Mikaela Shiffrin, who skied out of her first slalom run after missing an early gate. And it comes just days after she crashed out of the first run of the Giant Slalom.
And meanwhile, the spotlight is still shining in China's snow princess skier Eileen Gu. Now she was born in the U.S., but she's competing for China and she's already won her first Olympic gold medal on Tuesday. Since then, she has faced renewed questions about her citizenship and her nationality.
Well CNN is covering this year's games from every angle as Steven Jiang is standing by in Beijing with the latest Eileen Gu. And World Sports Patrick Snell has a look at all the Olympic action. So let's start with you, Patrick, here in Atlanta. And Mikaela Shiffrin, the 26-year-old two time gold medal winner facing another setback in Beijing.
PATRICK SNELL, CNN WORLD SPORT: Yes, Lynda. Yes, we've been watching this very closely indeed. The case of deja vu for the USA superstars here, Mikael Shiffrin and not in a good way either. On day five of competition at Beijing's Winter Games, the 26-year-old have to say no other way to put it, a huge disappointment for it in China once again, after skiing out on the first run of the slalom today and failing to finish the second race in a row.
To recap what happened earlier in the week, Shiffrin crashing out of the women's Giant Slalom event. That was after just 11 seconds the race in which she was the defending gold medalist. Now, two days later, the United States competitor recording another what they call DNF, did not finish, after skidding out of control, missing a gate after just five seconds.
The four-time world champion who won gold at the slalom at the Sochi Games in Russia in 2014, finishing fourth in South Korea four years later, left visibly devastated by the outcome here on this day fighting back tears afterwards sitting alone on the side of the course as well for several minutes, just sheer a current shock and disbelief. Shiffrin saying afterwards she felt pretty awful, that it won't feel awful forever, though, she added she felt pretty low at the moment.
Well U.S. Ski and Snowboard team tweeting, A heartbreaking DNF or did not finish for Mikaela Shiffrin. She's OK but disappointed. And the American ski legend Lindsey Vonn was taken to social media earlier, "Gutted for Mikaela Shiffrin, but this does not take away from her storied career and what she can and will accomplish going forward. Keep your head high."
Well Shiffrin still has opportunities potentially left open to it depending on what she does indeed decide to compete in. But just for context here, the two races she skied out in the Giant Slalom and now the Slalom by far, a favorite and they did indeed represent her best chances to medal.
Meantime, I've got to tell you about the young Norwegian Birk Ruud claiming the first men's freeski big air Olympic gold medal. What a moment for him. The 21-year-old emerging triumphant earlier securing the title even before his final run. Seeing off the challenge of his main rival Alex Hoare, a fine achievement by Ruud. He's had his country's flag right there with him during that final run.
But another really compelling storyline surrounding the USA's Colby Stevenson. He won the silver remarkable given the severe injuries the 24-year-old American had to go through after a car accident back in 2016. And the multiple surgeries that would follow for him. Really, really compelling storylines everywhere you look.
And we're following them every step of the way right through this day, Wednesday, day five, Lynda, of the Winter Games in China. Back to you.
KINKADE: Love the enthusiasm. Patrick, good to see you as always.
I want to also bring back Steven Jiang who is live for us in Beijing with the latest on skiing Eileen Gu. Now, she's U.S. born. She managed to crash China's main social media platform after winning gold for China.
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: That's right, Lynda. And she is still the talk of the nation generating an avalanche of state media coverage but also tons of articles, photos and videos about her across Chinese social media platforms. Everybody seemed to want a piece of her own claiming some sort of connection to her. So she has undoubtedly conquered China.
But one thing she seems unable to bridge is this growing division between the United States and China, not only on a political level but of course, on a people to people level. So she's, obviously, faced criticism in the U.S. for quote unquote betraying her birth nation to represent Team China this time. But now she's facing criticism for her supposed tolling (ph) the government -- the Chinese government line on some sensitive issues like Peng Shuai, the Chinese -- a tennis star but also this country's very sensitive internet censorship system.
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But Eileen Gu has been pushing back. Here's what she said.
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EILEEN GU, WON GOLD FOR CHINA IN FREESTYLE SKIING: And in that sense, I'm not going to waste my time trying to placate people who are, one, uneducated and, two, probably are never going to experience the kind of joy and gratitude and just love that I have the great fortune to experience on a daily basis. So, yes, if people don't believe me, and if people don't like me, then that's their loss. They're never going to win the Olympics, so.
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JIANG: As you can imagine, that kind of answer has gone viral here in China with many, of course, hailing her response as the perfect to not only address her critics, but also critics of China. But ironically, even some people here have pointed out that kind of directness, eloquence and confidence she presented seem to be more a product of her American upbringing.
So in better times, that kind of bicultural identity would be an undisputed asset instead of a source of controversy. But right now, it seems even somebody like her unable to unite this increasingly fractured world. Lynda?
KINKADE: We can only hope for that. Steven Jiang in Beijing, our thanks to you and our thanks also to Patrick Snell here in Atlanta.
Well China is hoping winter sports fans will stick around after the Olympics had done. The country's poured billions of dollars into growing its ice and snow sports tourism since they announced the Winter Games host. And even though much of this noise being made by machines, tourists seem to be taking to it naturally.
CNN's David Culver reports.
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DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Beijing playing host to its second Olympics, but these are the first winter games held in China's capital city. Given that many parts of China rarely see below freezing temperatures, winter sports are traditionally not as popular. But that is changing.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking Foreign Language).
CULVER (voice-over): Eric Zhang and his toddler twins just got back from a ski trip in northeastern China. Growing up in southern China, Eric never even saw snow until he moved to the U.S. for college. It was there he started skiing. And now as a dad, he's made it a family hobby.
ERIC ZHANG, SKI ENTHUSIAST: I heard of so many friends around me and then the esteem to starting to learn ski. They are starting to learn snowboard, right?
CULVER (on-camera): Even as adult --
ZHANG: Even as adults, right?
CULVER (on-camera): Yes.
ZHANG: And so, we are bringing our kids to -- onto the snow. And the industry is going to be booming.
CULVER (voice-over): Booming in typical China fashion. Take Zhang city, Shanghai, the lack of snow and ice, not a problem. Artificial skating rinks like this one are built annually with the help of snowmaking machines, giving kids in today's southern China, a luxury generations before them never experienced. Getting a feel for the slopes on these ski simulators. In the past five or so years, more than 100 of these climate controlled machines have sprung up in Shanghai alone. (on-camera): As people across China warm up to the idea of winter sports, you've got more and more indoor ski facilities like this one here in Shanghai that are opening up. And with that, you have a rapidly expanding market for it.
(voice-over): As part of its Olympic campaign, the Chinese government unveiled an ambitious winter sports development plan in 2016, aiming to construct 650 skating rinks and 800 ski resorts by the end of this year, and to grow the scale of the industry to top $150 billion by 2025. A lucrative market that attracts both domestic and international businesses.
China is proud of the surging craze. Since Beijing won its bid for the Winter Olympics seven years ago, the government says it has successfully motivated more than 300 million Chinese to participate in winter sports, targets set by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2014.
We should take the opportunity to popularize ice and snow sports, Xi stresses. But China's speedy growth also brings problems. The quality and service of its ski resorts are still relatively behind more traditional ski resorts in the West. There are also environmental concerns. The massive artificial snowmaking in ski resorts stretches already exhausted water resources.
Back in his Shanghai apartment, ski enthusiast Eric Zhang, hopeful for what's ahead.
ZHANG: I think Winter Olympics is going to be a strong booster for this. You are going to see the huge boost in enthusiasm or passion of the Chinese people in this winter sport.
CULVER (voice-over): In Olympic ambition for a once rural nation, prime to make winter sports mainstream to last long after the closing ceremonies.
David Culver, CNN, Beijing.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Ahead, escalating tensions in Canada truckers blocking the basis border crossing in North America as protests grow over COVID-19 mandates. Well explaining why Canada's Prime Minister is in no mood to negotiate.
Plus, some parts of the U.S. seeing a surge in coronavirus. Hospitalizations as much of the West the country sees declines.
[01:20:03]
Find out how politics are impacting the crisis in rural America as we go to the frontlines of an ICU.
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KINKADE: Well tensions are growing in Canada where truckers are defying cause to end nearly two weeks of protests over COVID-19 mandates. On Tuesday, the so-called Freedom Convoy displayed one of their boldest moves yet by blocking the busiest border crossing in North America when it comes to train.
CNN's Paula Newton is in Ottawa where protest organizers say they won't give up until COVID restrictions are lifted.
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PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Freedom, it's the mantra here. And what has become an eyesore of a parking lot right in front of Canada's Parliament. It stretches for blocks, it's gone on for days, the message the same. We're done with COVID and we're staying until the government is to.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Until the end that until everything is over. Until problems get solved.
NEWTON (voice-over): For Doran behind this rig for 17 years, the vaccine is the problem. He says he's vaccinated but feels he was forced into it. He wants the freedom to choose. As a father, he admits he stressed losing hundreds of dollars every day he's out here.
DORAN, TRUCK DRIVER: But there's something more important in this, you know life than than the money. You know, if you don't do -- make any changes now, we're going to lose all freedom.
NEWTON (voice-over): But here's the thing, it's not just truckers, it's not just about the vaccine mandates. These Canadians drove five hours and are here to have their say. Because the truckers tapped into a pandemic fatigue, they say they can no longer endure. And they say they're vaccinated.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: 100 percent.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Double dose, got my QR code.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I even made and sold masks at the beginning of this. But you know what, when you keep doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result, that's the definition of insanity. We're insane right now. We keep doing the same things over and over again. Nothing is changing.
NEWTON (voice-over): To get change, they say, they're staying put. No one has brokered a way out of this.
(on-camera): And now political leaders and police have learned the hard way that these kinds of truck blockades can pop up anywhere right across the country in a moment's notice.
(voice-over): The latest effectively paralyzing one of the most important supply chains across any border in the world. The Ambassador Bridge between Windsor and Detroit. Police officials say it may seem easy to resolve, but confrontation and violence is a real risk.
DREW DILKENS, WINDSOR, ONTARO MAYOR: And so, everyone here is trying to deal, at least on our side, is trying to be sensible, fair and reasonable, recognizing that we live in a democracy and that protest and demonstration is a natural part of a democracy. But also recognizing that it doesn't mean you can take your protest to the point of closing down the busiest economic corridor between the United States and Canada.
NEWTON (voice-over): But what's at stake couldn't be clearer for both Canada and the U.S., a movement of truckers that can stand their ground it seems anywhere and so chaos.
[01:25:09]
It's for that reason that auto industry executives are joining other high profile Canadians in warning American supporters of this protest to back off.
FLAVIO VOLPE, PRESIDENT AUTOMOTIVE PARTS MANUFACTURERS' ASSOCIATION: Let's see if Ted Cruz or the attorney general in Texas, or any other number of American personalities are going to stand up for the manufacturers in Michigan who can't get their products exported, or the petrochemical companies in Texas that rely on parts suppliers, turning those petrochemicals into plastic parts and sending them north of the border.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau remains resolute. He says he's not negotiating with angry crowds and that that would set a dangerous precedent. Having said that, he also points out that living up to those vaccine and mask mandates would actually end a lot of these COVID restrictions much sooner.
Paula Newton, CNN, Ottawa.
KINKADE: Well, several U.S. states are rolling back COVID measures amid falling cases and hospitalizations. The federal officials say it could still be too soon. New York is expected to become the latest to end indoor mask mandates, according to The New York Times. It'll join a growing number of states from California to Delaware that have recently announced plans to drop the indoor mask mandate.
Others like Connecticut and New Jersey are eliminating the mandates in schools. But the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says COVID cases and hospitalizations are still too high to make any guidance changes. The head of the agency says hospital workers around the country are in crunch mode, and a whopping 99 percent of counties still have high levels of transmission.
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DR. ROCHELLE WALENSKY, DIRECTOR, U.S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION: We've always said that the state and local jurisdictions are the ones responsible for those kinds of policies for masking policies. Right now, our CDC guidance has not changed. We have and continue to recommend masking in areas of high insubstantial transmission that is essentially everywhere in the country in public indoor settings. MARIA VAN KERKHOVE, TECHNICAL LEAD FOR COVID-19, WHO: We are recommending to continue to wear masks, particularly when you're in close proximity with other people, but especially when you're indoors. And even if you're vaccinated because vaccines are incredibly protective against preventing severe disease and death, but they don't prevent all infections so they don't prevent all transmission.
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KINKADE: Well, vaccines as we know offer significant protection against COVID-19 as you just heard. And although cases may be declining overall, the number of people hospitalized with the virus remains higher than during the Delta wave last year. Parts of rural America are seeing the worst of it where vaccination rates lag behind the rest of the country.
CNN's Gary Tuchman reports from an ICU in South Dakota.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Inside this intensive care room at the South Dakota hospital, this woman in her 60s is unresponsive. She has just been hooked up to a ventilator after spending two weeks in a regular hospital room.
GEORGE SAZAMA, ADULT INTENSIVE CARE UNIT DIRECTOR: So she kind of came in traditional if, you know, someone that got the virus at home and feeling well, decided they need to come to the emergency department. Tested positive, requiring a lot of oxygen.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Her condition just continued to deteriorate. So after two weeks, this patient whose face we're not showing to protect her identity, was brought to the intensive care unit and intubated. She is not vaccinated.
SAZAMA: She doesn't have a good prognosis from this point.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): Moments later, we see a stretcher being wheeled by nurses, another patient being rushed from a regular COVID room to intensive care, in a hospital that is over capacity.
DR. SHANKAR KURRA, VP MEDICAL AFFAIRS, MONUMENT HEALTH RAPID CITY HOSPITAL: Absolutely, we are in the Omicron surge.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): COVID hospitalizations are decreasing in many parts of the United States. But here in Pennington County, South Dakota, in the mostly extremely rural Western part of the state, low vaccination rates and an increase of cases at the beginning of the month are now creating a surge of hospitalizations.
Dr. Shankar Kurra is the Chief Medical Officer of Monument Health Rapid City Hospital.
KURRA: We are seeing a rise in the rate of 60 percent increase in hospitalizations here at Monument Health. And that is worrying. This is a trend that is a warning to, as a dire warning that we could be at capacities that we never imagined.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): None of the COVID patients in the ICU today, an ICU that has had to be expanded have been fully vaccinated. Throughout this pandemic, the governor of South Dakota Kristi Noem, has refused to implement basic COVID health and safety precautions used in other states.
KRISTI NOEM, SOUTH DAKOTA GOVERNOR: My people are happy.
[01:29:48]
TUCHMAN: Although she does say she is vaccinated. While South Dakotas isn't at the top of per capita COVID deaths, it is comfortably in the top half at 20.
And neighboring Minnesota, which has had a full complement of COVID precautions, has a death rate about 26 percent lower than South Dakota. Not surprisingly, Monument Health one of three hospital systems in the state, doesn't rely on the governor to be the chief COVID safety spokesperson.
DR. SHANKAR KURRA, VP MEDICAL AFFAIRS, MONUMENT HEALTH GRAND RAPIDS CITY HOSPITAL: We've been the main spokesperson. It's been locked to the health system, to the doctors, to the nurses to be the spokes person. So in a way, the burden is on us to make sure that folks understand the gravity that we are in the pandemic.
TUCHMAN: The government turned down a request to talk to us on camera. But her communications director told us in part Governor Noem has provided her people with up to date science, facts and data, and then trusted them to exercise person responsibility to make the best decisions for themselves and their loved ones.
This is Jerry Morgan, an 87-year-old COVID patient at Monument Hospital.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: So you're feeling good.
JERRY MORGAN, COVID PATIENT: They've treated me pretty well here.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh, good.
TUCHMAN: He had a high fever, had trouble breathing, was shaking and came here to the hospital where he tested positive. One day later, he feels much better. No intensive care needed for him. He is fully vaccinated and boosted.
MORGAN: I feel a strong sense of relief. I'm almost positive that if I had not had those, I'd have been probably gone.
TUCHMAN: Jerry says he wishes vaccines weren't so political. His brother he says died from COVID and wasn't vaccinated. And now Jerry is also spokesperson.
MORGAN: In the United States, 80 percent of people would've gotten the shot, it would've been a lot of easier to control. TUCHMAN: Getting people vaccinated here is still a high priority, but
it is an uphill battle. Case in point -- the Black Hills Stock Show and Rodeo, a huge, big, great event that happens here every year, lasts 9 days. It just ended this past weekend in Rapid City. More than 300,000 show up.
So the medical authorities thought it would be a good idea to set up a vaccine booth, to give COVID vaccines, shingles vaccines, flu vaccines. When the nine days ended they totaled up the COVID vaccines, the grand total they gave was 12. That's just more than one per day.
Gary Tuchman, CNN -- Pierce, South Dakota
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Well, a city in the line of fire prepares.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This city could be one of the first to get attacked in the event of an invasion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Coming up, how the people in one Ukrainian border city are living with the fear of invasion.
And this snowboarding sensation makes winter Olympics history for New Zealand. We'll speak with the new champ who talks about what she'll do when she gets home.
[01:32:39]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back.
Two days of intense diplomacy appear to have strengthened European resolve, but the standoff between Russia and Ukraine remains unchanged. French President Emmanuel Macron was in Kyiv Tuesday to meet with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky.
Mr. Macron said he believed that steps can be taken to de-escalate the crisis. A key concern among Ukrainian intelligence officials is that Russia will use Belarus as a theater of operations for an attack.
Mr. Macron said he received assurances from Mr. Putin that that would not happen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): President Macron and I have a very common position on the security threats in Ukraine and all of Europe and the whole world.
The new positions, new approaches from the European leadership. We stand for the de-occupation of our territory.
EMMANUEL MACRON, FRENCH PRESIDENT (through translator): We had an exchange with the president, who told me that he would not be the cause of an escalation. The second important element is that there would be no fixed base or deployment of sensitive equipment in Belarus.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: While the politicians work for a diplomatic resolution to the standoff, people in Ukraine are preparing for the worst. The residents of one city have a reason to be uneasy.
CNN's Sam Kiley reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): "Kharkiv is Ukraine. Glory to Ukraine."
Russian troops and ships muster on land and at easy. And few places in Ukraine feel more vulnerable than Kharkiv.
(on camera): Here is only 30 miles from the Russian border. It's a city of about a million and a half people, at least 75 percent of them speak Russian as their mother tongue.
Demonstrations like this are important as this city could be one of the first to get attacked in the event of an invasion.
(voice over): Volodymyr Zelensky, the president, has warned as much, but U.S. officials are saying that Vladimir Putin could order an attack at any moment.
ANNA ZYABLIKOVA, KHARKIV RESIDENT: Every day, I'm trying to be calm and I'm trying to go 0through my daily routine, but I'm trying to have the thought, ok where are my documents? Where is food? Where is my mom? Do I have enough money?
KILEY: In a city that's been identified as a potential Russian target by the Ukrainian president, there are attempts to carry on as normal.
But for many, this is the new normal.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't want to sleep, so I need to protect the city, my country, my family.
KILEY: Ukraine has expanded its military, but it's a long way behind Russia in military might. So it's taking these wrecked T64 tanks from the 1960s, and rebuilding them from the chassis up to rush to the front lines.
Much like Ukraine is trying to build and defend a democracy in a landscape much haunted by the Russian dominated Soviet Union.
Sam Kiley, CNN -- Kharkiv. (END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: The British prime minister has been actively seeking a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine crisis as he fights for his political life back home. Boris Johnson's latest attempt to smooth over the party gate scandal, involves a partial reshuffle of his cabinet.
CNN's Salma Abdelaziz explains.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Britain's rebel prime minister is in serious trouble.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a business meeting.
ABDELAZIZ: Boris Johnson's administration stands accused of breaking the rules, throwing multiple boozy parties under his roof during lockdown.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE:s We police impartially --
ABDELAZIZ: Police are investigating to determine if crimes were committed at the heart of government. An earlier civil investigation found a culture of excessive drinking and failures in leadership and judgment at 10 Downing Street.
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH PRIME MINISTER: I get it, and I will fix it.
ABDELAZIZ: A defiant Johnson has ignored calls for his resignation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: In the name of God, go.
ABDELAZIZ: And ordered a shake up of his team. He reportedly sang, I will survive, to his new director of communications, who described his new boss as not a complete clown, but a very likable character.
The prime minister's fate now lies with his own conservative party, at least nine Tory MPs have taken steps to remove Johnson, and submitted letters of no confidence to the 1922 committee which oversees the party.
Among them is MP Tobias Elwood --
[01:39:58]
TOBIA ELWOOD, BRITISH MP: There's almost like a Trump-esque approach to dealing with some of the challenges of short-term survival. We should have been an exemplar of good democracy. And at the moment, I'm afraid this is not our finest hour.
ABDELAZIZ: If the committee receives 54 letters, that's 15 percent of Tory MPs, a vote to unseat Johnson would take place. But while there is a will, there is for now no way to depose Johnson. ELWOOD: Many of my colleagues, you know, privately don't believe that
this is going to get better. And therefore, this is a miserable drive path to a very, you know, dark place. 0
ABDELAZIZ: Without a strong alternative to replace the prime minister, the revolt against him remains fractured and disorganized.
And, if a vote is triggered, at least half of Tory MPs, that's 180 lawmakers, must vote against Johnson to force him out of office.
If the vote fails, Johnson would be protected from attempts to oust him for a full 12 months.
JOEY JONES, FORMER ADVISER TO FORMER BRITISH PM THERESA MAY: If they're going to strike, they have to be confident that they can get it right, and that they can muster the numbers. That, it seems to me, is largely why people are continuing to be hesitant at the moment.
ABDELAZIZ: For now, Johnson clings to power, dragging his party's reputation and credibility down with his owns.
Salma Abdelaziz, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Retired Pope Benedict is asking for forgiveness, responding to accusations that he mishandled cases of sexual abuse in a church while he was the archbishop. We'll have the details ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back.
Retired Pope Benedict is now asking for forgiveness for his handling of child sex abuse cases in the church. But he's denying any wrongdoing.
His comments come after a court found he had been informed of four cases of abuse, but failed to act while serving as archbishop.
CNN Vatican correspondent Delia Gallagher has more from Rome.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Pope Benedict's response to accusations that he mishandles cases of sexual abuse leaves the situation at something of a stalemate.
The Pope Emeritus denies any wrongdoing, and his response focuses particularly on the most egregious case of a priest who was transferred into the Diocese of Munich to receive therapy.
The Pope Emeritus says he signed off on therapy for that priest, but he was not aware of previous allegations against him. Now, the Munich report agrees that the Pope Emeritus at the time, Archbishop of Munich, signed off on their way for that priest and said they do not have evidence that he knew about previous allegations, but they say it is probable.
In the Pope's letter, he says this. "Once again, I can only express to all the victims of sexual abuse my profound shame, my deep sorrow, and my heartfelt request for forgiveness. I have had great responsibilities in the Catholic Church. All the greater is my pain for the abuses and the errors that occurred in those different places during the time of my mandate."
[01:45:01]
GALLAGHER: So the Pope Emeritus is offering an apology for the general situation of sexual abuse, but he is not taking personal responsibility for any of the accusations against him. Nevertheless, a suspicion that he mishandled cases will likely leave a stain on the Pope Emeritus' legacy, which until now, has been considered relatively robust in terms of how he dealt with sexual abuse cases as cardinal, and as pope.
Delia Gallagher, CNN -- Rome.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Shaun Dougherty is the board president of SNAP, an organization dedicated to supporting survivors of clergy sexual abuse. He joins us now from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Thanks so much for your time.
SHAUN DOUGHERTY, BOARD PRESIDENT, SNAP: Thank you so much for having me.
KINKADE: So, if you don't mind, I'd like to start with your reaction. I'd like to quote from the statement from your support group. You said, Benedict is repeating words of apology that have fallen on deaf ears for decades. This statement is going on to say that true apologies are followed by true amends, a concept the Church does not seem to be able to grasp.
Tell us more about your reaction to the report, and the apology from the former leader of the Catholic Church.
DOUGHERTY: Well, the report is just as appalling as every other report that has been announced in the last few years. The apology is, you know, without true accountability behind it, without true prosecutions, without true investigations from secular police. They're just more hollow words out of the Vatican.
These are real crimes that were committed against children that have lifelong traumatic consequences. And they need to make amends to all of their victims worldwide.
KINKADE: And I want to ask you about what you endured. I understand the abuse you suffered was detailed in a 2016 grand jury report into widespread child sex abuse in a diocese in Pennsylvania. And I understand it started when you were just ten.
DOUGHERTY: Yes, I was only ten years old. My religion teacher, who was a (INAUDIBLE) priest, and he was also my basketball coach began sexually assaulting me and several classmates at the school. And it went on for a few years with me up into my early teens, 13. And then it stopped -- 13, 14 years old.
KINKADE: Gosh. And I understand, at some point, you came face to face with your abuser as an adult. What did you say to him?
DOUGHERTY: I was able to have a meeting with my abuser and another victim, a childhood friend of mine. And he apologizes, he confessed to the abuse, but you know, we were able to capture that on news video, so for me personally, it's accountability that now no one can say that I've made this up. That is mine forever.
Mine is proven in a grand jury report out in 2016. And my priest was on the news saying that he abused me. So I am, in that aspect, very fortunate because most victims will never, ever, ever get that.
KINKADE: But I understand the statute of limitations had expired for you, and this person who abused you now lives as a private citizen, is that right?
DOUGHERTY: Yes. The statute to limitation ran out on me by the time I was only 18 years old. I learned that at 21 years old, when I joined the American Navy I served, and when I swore the oath, I felt obligated upon swearing the oath to say something.
So, when I returned home from basic training, I attempted to do something about it, and that's when I was first told about the statutes of limitations. Up until my 21st birthday, I had never heard of the statute of limitations before.
[01:49:50]
KINKADE: Wow. So with that in mind and given that you advocate on behalf of victims, of survivors, what does justice look like for survivors?
DOUGHERTY: Accountability. These monsters should be criminally held. You know, the church prosecutes the priests and the bishops and the cardinals that steal. They certainly don't transfer the thieves to another parish of unsuspecting people so they can do it again.
We were children. They should be immediately turning this over, and they should be helping all of their victims heal, just as they would help a cardinal or a bishop of they felt ill. They have done a lot of damage worldwide, and they have a lot to answer for.
KINKADE: Indeed. Shaun Dougherty, really appreciate your time. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us, we wish you all the best.
DOUGHERTY: Thank you so much for having me.
KINKADE: We're going to take a short break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KEATING: Wells, New Zealand with its population of less than 5 million is celebrating its first ever gold medal at any winter games.
20-year-old Zoi Sadowski-Synnott placed first in the snowboard slope style event over the weekend. She spoke with CNN's Coy Wire about over her historic win and why her dad is now going viral.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ZOI SADOWSKI-SYNNOTT: It probably won't sink in until I'm back home in New Zealand, but I kind of need to decompress and put it in the back of my mind because I've still got figure up next.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: You go out there, you make history, the first (INAUDIBLE) from New Zealand to ever get winter gold, and you go to call mom and dad, then what happens?
SYNNOTT: Yes, my parents, I was talking to them after, they were pretty -- had a few too many drinks for sure which was awesome because it's sick that they have got to celebrate for me over in New Zealand and the whole family was losing it so, yes, it's official.
WIRE: Now, your dad goes viral.
SYNNOTT: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: How proud are you right now? Your daughter has just become the first Kiwi to win a winter gold ever.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (EXPLETIVE DELETED) to be honest.
WIRE: What did you see in that interview and then how do you analyze what you saw?
SYNNOTT: Yes, I didn't even want to watch. I just heard about it and I was like, I don't want to see this. But when I watch that, I just wracked up laughing because, it was so him, and, yes, he definitely had a few too many beers, but I can't really blame him.
WIRE: On a scale of 1 to 10, where does your dad rank on the type of person that you would want to party with?
SYNNOTT: Like, 10 out of 10, I reckon. He can sink drinks for sure.
WIRE: How much have your parents missed you on this journey?
SYNNOTT: Yes, my parents, they've done so much for me and to come home with gold after all the support and the ups and downs, it's been pretty emotional homecoming.
[01:54:47]
WIRE: When you finally get back home when these Olympics are over, what are you going to do? What's it going to be like?
SYNNOTT: Yes, I turn 21 in two weeks, so I'm pretty excited for that, but I won't be home. I don't even know what I'm going to do, and I don't even know when I'm going home, so, yes, let it happen. WIRE: What's it going to be like with you and dad.
SYNNOTT: Yes. Dad, oh, yes, hopefully by then his whiskey endorsement comes true and --
WIRE: He's got a whiskey endorsement.
SYNNOTT: He reckons but he also said that he's got a toilet paper and mouthwash endorsement
WIRE: All from the viral moment.
SYNNOTT: Yes.
WIRE: I think that the toilet paper endorsement is because of the potty mouth.
SYNNOTT: Yes.
WIRE: Mr. Synnott, I'm coming to celebrate with you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Huge congrats to Zoi.
Well, video of a German soccer coach shouting at his television set is lighting up social media.
CNN's Jeanne Moos shows us how his dog appeared to help calm him down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Do you ever yell at the TV like a maniac?
German coach Stephen Baumgardner (ph) is known for yelling and gesturing at his Cologne soccer team from the sidelines, but when he was sidelined by COVID, all he could do was holler at the TV.
He even wore the same hat he wears at games. His daughter posted the rant on Tiktok, where German fans declared him a legend. "He is the best." But the best supporting player had four lakes. He nearly killed that dog by sitting on his head. It was as if his dog was trying to calm the coach with a little shoulder rub not once, but twice.
As one fan wrote in German, I don't want to know what would've happened if FC, the coach's team would've lost. The team won by a single point, but the true hero is the dog that literally got butted, and still managed to act like a goalpost.
Jeanne Moos, CNN -- New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: That looks good:
Thank you so much for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Lynda Kinkade.
Stick around, NEWSROOM continues with another Aussie, Rosemary Church, after a short break.
[01:57:27]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
