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Russian Foreign Minister: Still a Chance for Diplomacy; Political Costs of War for Vladimir Putin; Flights Diverted After Passenger Tries to Open Plane Door; Eileen Gu Claims Silver in Dramatic Slopestyle Finish. Aired 4:30-5a ET
Aired February 15, 2022 - 04:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:30:00]
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: If you look at tree ring data, in fact across many, many sites, thousands of sites around the Western United States and sample trees, whether they were dead trees, live trees, and also some wood beams from preserved Native American archaeological sites.
And all of this revealed significant data here when it comes to not only forest fires over the course of the last 1,000 or so years but within tree rings you can clearly see where rainy seasons have been based on how wide apart the tree rings are. And if the tree rings become very compact that tells us we're in a dry spell. And effect, we saw this dramatic shift which, again, suggests human induced climate change could play a role in all of this.
Kind of give you a more recent sample size here. Look at Los Angeles, December, one of the wettest Decembers on record. January, one of the driest Januarys on record. Reversal a significant one in a very short time period and a rather sobering study, Isa, as well.
ISA SOARES, CNN ANCHOR: Very worrying, indeed. Pedram, thank you very much.
Still ahead right here on the show, the drum beat of war seems to be growing louder in Ukraine as diplomatic efforts to avoid a conflict push ahead. We are live in Ukraine for you next.
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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM, everyone. I'm Michael Holmes in Lviv, Ukraine.
SOARES: And I'm Isa Soares in London. And if you're just joining us, let me bring you up to date with our top stories this hour. In an interview with BBC news, tennis star Novak Djokovic says he's
willing to skip out on the French open and Wimbledon over his COVID vaccination status.
[04:35:02]
And the accounting company working for Donald Trump and the Trump Organization are ditching the former president saying nearly a decade's worth of financial statements are unreliable. And of course, we'll have much more ahead on both of those stories on "EARLY START" in less than 30 minutes. Now Michael Holmes.
HOLMES: Now meanwhile here in Ukraine the U.S. is issuing some of its most urgent warnings yet that a Russian attack could come at any moment. Americans are also being urged to leave Ukraine and also Belarus to the north immediately.
All of this coming as new satellite images show at least 60 Russian attack and transport helicopters have arrived at a military base in Crimea. And several strike bombers have been deployed to southern Russia.
But Russia also now saying that some of its troops in western and southern districts have started returning to base after carrying out military exercises in the West but there are plenty more troops still on exercise and the Kremlin says Russian President Vladimir Putin is still open to negotiations.
Now, the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is in Moscow to meet with Mr. Putin in the next half hour or so. That's after meeting with Ukraine's president on Monday. More now from CNN's Matthew Chance in Kyiv.
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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The first strike on Ukraine may start with a barrage of air and missile attacks. But according to U.S. officials, it's ground troops like these, Russian Marines now training in neighboring Belarus that may eventually move across the Ukrainian frontier.
As tensions mount, these latest images released by the Russian Defense Ministry have further jangling nerves. It may have the capability, but in Moscow, a decision to attack does not yet appear to have been made. In fact, this carefully choreographed scene on Russian state television looks designed to show that diplomacy remains very much on the table, a very long table.
Is there a chance to reach agreement with our partners, President Putin asks his Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, or is it just an attempt to drag us into endless negotiations, he said? I must say, there's always a chance, Lavrov responds. It seems to me that possibilities are far from exhausted. They should not be carrying on indefinitely, but at this stage, I would suggest they be continued and increased, he adds. It is an important sign. The Kremlin may still see negotiations bearing fruit. Others haven't given up either. In the Ukrainian capital, Germany's new chancellor was greeted warmly by the embattled Ukrainian leader despite bitter disappointment that Germany hasn't done more to deter Russia.
And amid the urgent and dire U.S. assessments of a Russian attack, perhaps in dates, Ukrainian President remains determined to keep his country calm. Even declaring with irony and national celebration when Russian forces are set to be rolling in.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): We are told that February 16th will be the day of the attack. We will make it the day of unity. The relevant decree has already been signed. On this day, we will hoist national flags, put on blue and yellow ribbons and show the world our unity.
CHANCE (voice-over): But Ukraine is also desperate to show the strength of its defenses, now conducting its own military drills and releasing dramatic videos like this one, set to music, faced with an overwhelming Russian threat. Ukraine seems at once at ease and bracing for an attack.
Matthew Chance, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now as to the timing of all of this, CNN military analyst retired Lt. Gen. Mark Hertling believes Mr. Putin may have been planning this for some time but was surprised by the reaction from the NATO alliance and the United States.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LT. GEN. MARK HERTLING (RET.) CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Remember what was happening in September. The United States that just pulled out of Afghanistan, we were looking week. NATO was struggling with people like Merkel leaving the alliance. Because she was not elected -- she was -- changed the election in Germany. So, a lot of things were happening then that aren't happening now. But what we don't know is what is Putin's next move? He wants to have plausible deniability if he decides to attack, he's going to attack. If he doesn't, he can say, hey, I was just there for an exercise, what the hell is NATO all concerned about?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine says if there is a war there will be significant political costs for President Putin at home.
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[04:40:03]
WILLIAM TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO UKRAINE: The Russian people are not particularly angry at the Ukrainians. The Russian people by large have a good attitude towards the Ukrainians. And they're going to wonder why President Putin is sending their sons, and daughters, and fathers, and brothers into combat and are getting killed and going back to be buried in Russian towns. That is not a -- that could have -- that could disrupt President Putin's regime. It could be destabilizing to his regime. So, he's got a lot to think about. And I think he will look for the offering.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SOARES: That was William Taylor, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, speaking to us earlier. I'm Michael Holmes in Lviv. We will have much more on the tensions in Ukraine coming up on "EARLY START." That's in about 20 minutes or so. Meanwhile, Isa Soares, back to you.
SOARES: Thank you very much, Michael, Thanks for your company.
Now for the first time ever Bahrain is hosting an Israeli Prime Minister for an official visit. Naftali Bennett is scheduled to meet with Bahrain's Crown Prince and Prime Minister this hour. Israel has increased cooperation with Bahrain and other Gulf states on their shared concerns about Iran. We'll keep you updated of course on this story as it develops.
Flying in the unfriendly skies. New details of an American Airlines flight that had to be diverted after a passenger tried to open the plane's door. That's just ahead.
Plus, athletes and former Olympians are speaking out over the Russian doping scandal at the Beijing Olympics and they're not happy. We'll have the latest reaction from the winter games and beyond. Just ahead.
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[04:45:00]
SOARES: Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has taken his most aggressive approach yet. The so-called freedom convoy protest invoking the government's emergency's act for the first time ever to try to end more than two weeks of blockades as well as demonstrations.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: This is about keeping Canadians safe, protecting people's jobs and restoring confidence in our institutions.
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SOARES: The law passed in 1988 can temporarily restrict people's freedom of movement or assembly and allows authorities to go after those who financially support the protests.
The U.S. has temporarily halted avocado imports from Mexico. The U.S. Department of Agriculture says it's a response in part 21 of its officials receiving a threatening phone call during an inspection. This happened in Michoacan state, a region known for drug cartel violence. An investigation is underway to determine who is behind the reported threat.
Texas is suing Facebook's parent company Meta claiming it illegally captured facial recognition data of tens of millions of residents for a decade. The lawsuit argues the former photo tagging feature did not get Texans informed consent before gathering the data. Facebook has continued the tool in November after settling a class action lawsuit in Illinois over the same issue for $650 million. Meta says the claims in Texas suit are without merit. We'll stay on top of that story for you.
And a scary moment in the skies. We are learning more details about American Airlines flight that had to be diverted over the weekend because a passenger was being unruly. As CNN's Tom Foreman reports, it's the latest example of a very disturbing new trend.
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TOM FOREMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The approximately 6'3", 240-pound man confronted the crew right outside the cockpit according to court papers. Holding a plastic utensil like a shank, kicking and shoving a service cart into one of the flight attendant. Those documents say Juan Humberto Rivas also tried to open up the boarding door, same people on the plane were attempting to hurt him and were going to bring down the plane. Before and attendant hit him with a coffee pot and other passengers rushed up, punched him, tackling and securing him with handcuffs and duct tape.
The flight from L.A. to D.C. was then diverted to Kansas City where Rivas was taken into custody. The FAA says on average about 10 unruly travelers are now reported every day.
SARA NELSON, INTERNATIONAL PRESIDENT, ASSOCIATION OF FLIGHT ATTENDANTS: With the steep rise in these cases, flight attendants have been asking every single day when they put on their uniform, is this going to be a sign of authority and leadership in the cabin or is it going to be a target for a violent attack?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm able to 14 (BLEEP) hours. You gave me one (BLEEP) warning, one warning.
FOREMAN (voice-over): Incidents of upset angry and occasionally violent passengers soared last year to nearly 6,000 with more than three quarters of the episodes related to mask wearing. So far this year, the numbers are down a bit but while many states are dropping mask mandates, federal authorities still require them on airplanes and the tension is real.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Listen (BLEEP).
FOREMAN (voice-over): Combine that with a record number of guns caught at security checkpoints and some industry groups want no fly lists for disruptive travelers and the Biden administration says they might consider it.
PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: You simply should not behave this way on the airplane. You should not behave this way on the ground either. But in air travel is a unique risk.
FOREMAN (voice-over): In the meantime, many flight attendants continue training to defend themselves, other passengers and even their planes when fellow travelers for whatever reason attack.
FOREMAN: The man in that weekend incident is now charged with interfering with a flight attendant and he is still being held with no word on how he will answer that accusation.
Tom Foreman, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOARES: And we are counting down the hours until the Russian figure skater involved in a doping scandal competes in the Beijing Olympics. That's not all that's going on. Coy Wire has the latest from the winter games -- Coy.
COY WIRE, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Huge day for the host nation. The unflappable female Eileen Gu flying away to a second metal. And Switzerland continuing to prove they're fastest humans on skis. Just two of the stories, Isa, that I have to show you, coming up.
[04:50:00]
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SOARES: It's been an exciting day of competition in Beijing. Tuesday's events featured some career firsts on the podium as well as athletes like Eileen Gu winning more medals for host China. Our Coy Wire is outside Beijing with the latest on today's events. And Coy, it has been another terrific performance for the ice princess. Not quite gold but still pretty impressive.
WIRE: Impressive, Isa. We were there to see the women's free slopestyle final, the highly anticipated second event for Eileen Gu at these Beijing games. And there's no question, Isa, that she is capturing the hearts of spectators here. Biggest crowd at the snow park I've seen thus far. Folks are wanting to snap pictures and video. Already having won that gold medal for the host nation here in the big air competition. Gu puts down another solid performance enough to add a silver to her medal haul. Big cheers especially when she was flashing a big smile and holding heart hands above her head on the big screen. The 18-year-old female has another opportunity to add a third medal via free ski halfpipe competition yet to come.
The slopestyle gold goes to Switzerland's Matilda Gremaud. Allowing from being lowest scoring qualifier to Olympic champ. She already won bronze at these games in big air competition. And now she adds to her silver from the slopestyle again four years ago. Matilda can now say that she's hanging an Olympic medal of every color back home, Isa.
[04:55:03]
Now, women's downhill was delayed to wind gusts up to 40 kilometers per hour. But it was Switzerland's shows and yet again why nobody's touching them on the Alpine slopes. The Swiss skier Corinne Suter capturing a first ever Olympic medal. She's been with Sophia Goggia, but she beat the defending Olympic champ by .16 of a second for gold. The 27-year-old overcame injuries that put her on crutches for about a month before returning to competition in December. She said afterwards, Isa, this was the biggest dream of her life.
Switzerland repeating a fete from 50 years ago. They won gold in both the women's and men's downhill events. This is the first time ever that four different alpine skiers from the nation, one have won individual Olympic gold. In the same event American superstar Mikaela Shiffrin finished 18th in her first ever Olympic downhill competition.
Finally, history made, Isa, for the host nation China. Su Yiming winning gold in the men snowboard big air, three days before his 18th birthday. Su is the first Chinese snowboarder ever to win Olympic gold. He already won silver in the slopestyle competition earlier. He's starred and acted in movie and TV industry, Isa, 14 years old but he decided to pursue his passion for snowboarding hoping to represent his nation one day. And clearly, he has taken full advantage, Isa. He's representing the next generation of winter sport athletes from China, 1.4 billion population, Isa. But not many familiar with winter sports. China now has 6 gold medals at these Beijing games actually blowing away their performance from four years ago when they had just one.
SOARES: 17 years of age, such an over achiever there. Coy Wire, thanks very much. Good to see you.
That does it for us here on CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Isa Soares in London. Our coverage of the Russian/Ukraine crisis continues on "EARLY START" with Christine Romans and Laura Jarrett. I shall see you tomorrow. Have a wonderful day. Bye-bye.
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