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Russian Forces Attacked Nuclear Power Plant in Ukraine; Russia Expands Assault on Ukraine, Targeting Key Cities; Ukraine's Largest Children's Hospital Still Open in War Zone; Helping Refugees in Europe; Fire Extinguished At Ukrainian Nuclear Plant; Zelensky Accuses Russia Of Targeting Nuclear Plant; Russian Oligarch To Sell Chelsea Football Club. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired March 04, 2022 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

UNKNOWN (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hello and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. Live from Ukraine, I am Michael Holmes.

Our breaking news this hour, an outcry after a nuclear power plant in Ukraine comes under attack by Russian forces. The fire it caused has now been extinguished and officials say radiation levels are normal.

The nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine, the largest in Europe. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia needs to be stopped before it causes a nuclear disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): I appeal to all Ukrainians, to all Europeans, to all people who know the word Chernobyl, who know how much grief and casualties the explosion at the nuclear power plant brought, it was a global catastrophe. Hundreds of thousands of people struggle with its consequences. Tens of thousands of people were evacuated. Russia wants to repeat this and is already repeating it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(EXPLOSION)

HOLMES (voice-over): Now, that was the moment a Russian strike hit an apartment complex. This is in Chernihiv, north of Kyiv. At least 33 people reportedly killed, 18 wounded.

Russian forces have increasingly been hitting civilian targets as they advance through the country. The second largest city of Kharkiv among those seeing an increase in shelling. So, too, the port city of Mariupol in the south of the country. It's being attacked from all sides with civilians trapped without food, electricity, and water.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES (on camera): Now, despite Russia's advances, particularly in the south, Ukrainians still very much putting up a fight.

CNN's Jim Sciutto has more on that.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

(EXPLOSION)

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Russian forces on the march, closing in on cities in Southern Ukraine. The mayor of Kherson says his city is now under Russian control. Ukrainian forces have left, though a senior U.S. defense official says there is still fighting there. Russian forces have also sounded the city of Mariupol. The deputy mayor tells CNN it has lost water and power.

SERGEI ORLOV, DEPUTY MAYOR OF MARIUPOL, UKRAINE: We have continuous shelling for 26 hours. Twenty-six hours, they are destroying our city.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): In the north, the U.S. says Russian forces are making slower but still devastating progress. The Russian military flattened a residential area near Kyiv and houses in the town of (INAUDIBLE). It also destroyed an oil depot near Chernihiv, just north of the capital. In Kharkiv, in the northeast, Russian barrages struck at least three schools.

The U.S. says Russian forces are staging just outside the city now. The Ukrainian military is still fighting. They claim to have hit the miles-long convoy that had stalled approaching Kyiv from the north.

DMYTRO BILOTSERKOVETS, ADVISER TO KYIV MAYOR: They need to understand we are a nation of ants (ph). Everybody knows what to do. That is why Putin could not win. We will win.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): Ukraine also claims its forces have destroyed 20 Russian military vehicles near the Hostomel Air Base. As the fighting rages, Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met for a second round of talks today in Belarus.

As Ukrainian negotiator tweeted that Ukraine's needs are not yet achieved, President Zelensky appealed for direct talks with Putin.

ZELENSKY: I think I have to talk with Putin. The world has to talk with Putin because there are no other ways to stop this war. That's why I have to.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): Zelensky continued with this message for Putin. I don't bite. Sit down with me and talk. What are you afraid of? Putin, however, says his invasion will go on. VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA (through translator): The special military operation in Ukraine is going according to plan, in strict accordance with the schedule. All tasks are being successfully carried out.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: The goal was to maximize the impact on Putin and Russia.

SCIUTTO (voice-over): Today, the Biden administration announced new sanctions on Russian oligarchs and their families, part of an effort to keep up the economic pressure on Russia.

Direct U.S. Military intervention remains off the table, but that has not stopped Zelenskyy from asking for the U.S. and NATO to impose a no-fly zone.

ZELENSKY (through translator): If you can't provide a no-fly zone right now, then tell us when. If you can't give Ukrainians a date when, how long do you need? How many people should be blown up?

[02:05:00]

SCIUTTO (voice-over): Jim Sciutto, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES (on camera): Now, following a phone call between presidents Emmanuel Macron and Vladimir Putin, France says it believes there is little hope for a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine crisis.

In a statement, the Elysee Palace said this -- quote -- "Without making a prediction, we should expect the worst is yet to come," President Macron said so yesterday and, "There is nothing in what Putin said that should reassure us."

Now, the palace says Mr. Putin told President Macron he is open to discussion with Kyiv but that it must happen soon and must include a plan for Ukraine to disarm. Otherwise, President Putin says he plans to continue his military operation to achieve the same result.

All right, let's talk more about all of this with Major General Mick Ryan. He is a retired Australian army officer and author of "War Transformed: The Future of 21st Century Great Power Competition and Conflict." He is coming to us from Canberra.

Good to see you again, sir. We have seen the horrific video of that apartment building being hit in Chernihiv. Casualties, major damage, you know, people screaming in the aftermath. I mean, it is outrageous, obviously, but do you see this as part of the Russian playbook? I mean, what do you fear is coming for Ukrainian cities?

MICK RYAN, AUTHOR, RETIRED AUSTRALIAN ARMY MAJOR GENERAL: Hello, Michael. It is good to be talking to you again. I think last time we spoke, we speculated that we would see a far more brutal phase of Russian operations, given their lack of progress up to that point. What we have seen over the last 72 hours or so is unfortunately and sadly for the people of Ukraine that is indeed playing out in places like Chernihiv, Kyiv and Mariupol, where the Russian army is rolling out the exact same playbook it used to what it thought was great success in Syria which, in fact, is military corrupt, unethical, and will probably result in lots of war crimes trials at some point in the future.

HOLMES: Yeah. I am curious, do you -- do you see a time imperative here for Vladimir Putin that, you know, he needs to move before the sanctions bite at home? People there start to perhaps learn exactly what is going on, see coffins returning. Does that put pressure on him? I mean, this could be a long war in one form or the other.

RYAN: I think it will be a long war and that is the one thing that Putin just cannot afford. The international sanctions will start biting. As you said, the coffins will start coming home. But more importantly, the Russian people will start finding out what is truly going on here.

There was a wonderful letter from a Russian (INAUDIBLE) talked about, I don't know what is going on, this is being kept from them. When the Russian people find out what is being done in their name, with their children, many of whom are dying, it will be very interesting to see what takes place domestically in Russia.

HOLMES: Yeah, yeah, very good point. The Ukrainians -- I mean, unquestionably and we have talked about this, they performed well, but is it a matter of time? I mean, when the enemy is so numerically superior?

RYAN: I think that there is a strong chance that the Russians will eventually overrun the Ukrainians, but we cannot write off the Ukrainians. They have such heart, such courage, and they have tremendous international support starting to roll in across their western borders.

So, we shouldn't roll off the Ukrainian forces yet. But certainly, the Russian forces are large, they are deadly, and they are using large amounts of firepower and violence to achieve what they want in the south, in the east, and in the north at the moment.

HOLMES: Yeah. We have also spoken about the potential for insurgency developing if the -- you know, if the traditional war is lost. How quickly could that transition be? I mean, the pivot to insurgency? And do you think it would be effective?

RYAN: Well, I think the Ukrainian military has outthought the Russians at every step of this campaign. I would be very surprised if the Ukrainian high command is not already preparing for some kind of insurgency. Certainly, many institutions in the west have been thinking about it, and I have no doubt that there would be many nations that would provide for that insurgency if, indeed, it was to manifest.

HOLMES: One extraordinary thing about what has happened in this country and we have seen it with our own eyes is, you know, how many civilians are actually taking up arms to defend their country. I mean, the defense capability multiplied many times over in days, really.

But how effective, in your view, can civilians, you know, just handed a weapon or a Molotov cocktail be? And then there is the risks to them which is clear. Is it helpful or in some ways not in a purely military sense?

[02:10:02]

RYAN: It's tremendously heartening to see the people of Ukraine stepping up to defend their country. It's just been inspiring to see. But, you know, trained soldiers take time to not just build individual skills but team skills that are so vital in a military organization.

The other problem with civilians picking up weapons in this circumstance is we run the risk of Russians seeing every Ukrainian civilian as a combatant and that can lead to tragic outcomes.

HOLMES: I am curious in the broader picture, do you think what is happening in Ukraine, what has happened, has exposed weaknesses in the NATO defense strategy in Europe in terms of containing a threat?

I mean, we have mentioned this, too, Putin has been sanctioned, he has been re-sanctioned, he has been brutally sanctioned, and he has not blinked once. Do you think there needs to be a rethinking of NATO's strategy not just to stop Putin but to stop the next Putin?

RYAN: Well, I think we've seen a fairly quick rethinking of NATO's strategy over the last week. I think, for a lot of governments, they have finally realized what they are dealing with here and the rapid response in sanctions and lethal and nonlethal aid is representative of that.

Now, whether NATO needs to go further is, you know, something for European governments to decide. But I have no doubt, when you have a look at the German government drastically increasing its defense spending and a whole range of other governments across the world seeing what's going on in Ukraine, they now know what they are dealing with in Putin, and I have no doubt they will look at other authoritarian regimes very differently from here on in.

HOLMES: Yeah. Always good to get your analysis, Major General Mick Ryan. Really appreciate it. Thank you.

RYAN: Thanks, Michael. Stay safe.

HOLMES: All right. See you soon.

Now, Ukraine's largest children's hospital in Kyiv has had to take special precautions as the bombings get ever closer, including moving the children to the basement.

CNN's Clarissa Ward talks to the families and health professionals doing their best to take care of the kids.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARISSA WARD, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Outside the Okhmatdyt Hospital, the sound of heavy fighting pierces the night air. The shelling has started, this nurse says, we're in the surgical department for newborn babies. It's so loud. Exhausted staff hover nervously in the hallway.

This is Ukraine's largest children's hospital. Shutting down is not an option. Neurosurgeon Dr. Dmytro Ishchenko shows us the impact of just one week of war.

(On camera): So, the children who are too sick to be moved have to stay here in the basement in case the bombardment starts again.

(Voice-over): There are 10 patients currently being treated in this underground hallway, and they are very sick indeed.

(On camera): Is this your daughter?

(Voice-over): On the floor in one corner, we meet Sonya (ph) and her three-month-old daughter, Milena (ph). Milena (ph) has a brain tumor.

It's a terrifying situation. We must stay underground and we don't know how long for, she says. I am alone here at the hospital and my husband is at home with my other kid.

For seven nights, she has been sleeping on this floor as the bombing gets closer.

(On camera): She is saying that the stress of the situation has meant that her milk has dried up, so she is now using formula for her daughter.

(Voice-over): With resources being diverted to deal with trauma injuries, parents are stepping in to help where they can. At one bed, Valentin (ph) is feeding an unconscious child.

(On camera): So, he is saying that little baby there is his little boy, but he's helping with this child because their mother can't be here.

(Voice-over): I tell him he's strong. There is no other way, he says. God gives us strength.

In this environment, Dr. Ishchenko offers his patients and their families whatever he can, but there are limits.

DMYTRO ISHCHENKO, NEUROSURGEON: It's really very challenging and really tough because we don't have good conditions for our patients.

WARD (on camera): Is this dangerous for them, this situation?

ISHCHENKO: Yes, and not only because we have a war, this condition is not suitable with brain surgeries.

[02:14:59] WARD (voice-over): For now, nonessential procedures are on hold. Eleven-year-old Yaris Slab's (ph) sutures should have been removed, but the risk of infection is too high. His mother, Lutmila (ph), tries to comfort him. I will massage you and everything will be okay, she says.

But no one knows how long this war will last and these children cannot wait forever.

Clarissa Ward, CNN, Kyiv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES (on camera): Now, the northeastern city of Kharkiv is also under siege by Russian forces. Ukrainian Emergency Services say 34 civilians in the Kharkiv region have been killed in just the last 24 hours, another 285 wounded. Kharkiv's mayor, Ihor Terekhov, spoke to my colleague, Erin Burnett, earlier.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ERIN BURNETT, CNN ANCHOR: Mayor, President Zelensky said today -- and I quote him -- he said, "We have nothing to lose but our freedom, our dignity, this is our biggest treasure." How far will you go to defend your freedom and your dignity?

MAYOR IHOR TEREKHOV, KHARKIV, UKRAINE (through translator): Just like the entire Ukrainian people, I will go till the end.

BURNETT: And I want to ask you, mayor, about the civilians, the people of your city, more than one million of them. You talk about entire blocks of residential buildings being bombed. It seems, when you think about that, that this is purposeful. From what you see, is it purposeful right now? Is Vladimir Putin purposely targeting civilians in your city?

TEREKHOV (through translator): As far as the residential blocks are concerned, what I can say is that I look around and I see that there are no military troops stationed in our residential blocks. And what does that mean? That means that they are purposefully hitting at the residential buildings, intentionally trying to eliminate the Ukrainian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES (on camera): Mayor Ihor Terekhov there speaking to us from the besieged city of Kharkiv.

Now, more than a million people have crossed international borders while fleeing the conflict in Ukraine. How European countries are helping this flood of refugees. That's coming up here on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HOLMES (on camera): Welcome back. The war in Ukraine creating a flood of refugees pouring across European borders. With the fighting in its second week, more than a million people have fled. At least half of those are children.

But on Thursday, Russian and Ukrainian negotiators agreed to provide humanitarian corridors for people trying to escape the fighting. And ministers in the European Union unanimously agreed to give temporary protection to all refugees fleeing Ukraine. That gives them protected status and rights to residency. The commissioner of the UNHCR explained the need for expediency in responding to the plight of the refugees.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FILIPPO GRANDI, UNHCR COMMISSIONER: I have worked in refugee emergencies for almost 40 years, and rarely have I seen an exodus as rapid as this one. Hour by hour, minute by minute, more people are fleeing the terrifying reality of violence. Countless have been displaced inside the country. And unless there is an immediate end to the conflict, millions more are likely to be forced to flee Ukraine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES (on camera): Now more than 133,000 Ukrainians have fled to Hungary alone. Ukrainian refugees crossing international borders, of course, are dependent on the goodwill of volunteers waiting to help them once they get there. And once they are there, they are grateful, of course, for every kindness.

CNN's Ivan Watson talks to refugees newly arrived on the Ukraine- Hungarian border, just happy to finally be safe.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Forced to flee their homes and their country, Ukrainians on the run. Their children making the best of it. Oblivious to the fact that a week-old war just turned them into refugees.

(On camera): This is one of Hungary's border crossings with Ukraine. There is a steady stream of people arriving here in vehicles and on foot. All of the Ukrainian new arrivals are women and children.

(Voice-over): Hungarian aid workers welcome the refugees and bring them free of charge to the nearest village, where the community center is now a place of refuge. Some people stay here. Others pause for food and warmth before moving on.

Among those here, Anna Teperchuk, her mother Spitlana (ph), and her 16-month-old son.

ANNA TEPERCHUK, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: Yes, this is my son, Mark (ph).

WATSON (voice-over): They crossed the border to Hungary this morning after spending nearly a week on the road.

TEPERCHUK: We are very thankful to the Hungarian people. It is very hard work that they are doing.

WATSON (voice-over): The Hungarian village of Barabas has a population of 1,060 people. The deputy mayor tells me the village has taken in more than 100 Ukrainians, including housing families in at least 20 village homes. As we speak, another family arrives from Ukraine.

(On camera): There is a little baby.

(Voice-over): Yesterday, we took care of a five-day-old baby who came across the border, the deputy mayor tells me. A five-day-old baby.

Victoria Kurinna says when the Russians invaded, she fled her home near Kyiv for what she thought would be one night. A week later, she and her son just arrived in a foreign country.

[02:24:59]

What belongings do you --

VICTORIA KURINNA, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: I had just one jacket. I think Ukrainians, we are strong. It's a country with strong people, strong nation, and amazing power. That's why I don't worry. But, of course, my heart is broken.

WATSON (voice-over): She says she tried to convince her friends in Russia via social media about the deadly attack their military is carrying out on her homeland.

What do your Russian friends say to you?

KURINNA: It's not true. No, it's not possible.

WATSON (voice-over): They don't believe you?

KURINNA: No.

WATSON (voice-over): Ten-year-old Timor (ph) chimes in, saying, Vladimir Putin is like Adolf Hitler. He is attacking the world just like Hitler did.

There are almost no men here aside from the elderly because all Ukrainian men of fighting age have been ordered to stay behind to defend their country from the Russian invasion.

TEPERCHUK: I am very angry for Russia people.

WATSON (voice-over): I want to tell Russians that it is time to do something, it's time to change something, says Anna Teperchuk. My son doesn't deserve to be forced to run across Ukraine and across borders, she adds. He doesn't deserve to grow up like this.

Ivan Watson, CNN, on the Ukraine-Hungarian border. (END VIDEOTAPE)

HOLMES: Now, before this crisis began, the U.N. said that four to five million people might flee. Well, guess what? They now estimate 10 million Ukrainians might end up fleeing their country as the invasion intensifies.

Germany is preparing to see some 20,000 refugees come across the border there. Volunteers greeting new arrivals with food and medical aid. Desperate Ukrainians flooding into Poland, of course, with border cities expecting to see even more refugees as the situation worsens.

Now, in an extraordinary move, Canada says it will welcome an unlimited number of applications for permanent and temporary residency from Ukrainians. More Ukrainians live in Canada than anywhere outside of Ukraine besides Russia.

Still to come here on the program, the Russian people are getting a warped view of the invasion, thanks to state media. We will take a look at the real fake news that is flooding their airwaves.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:31:05]

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Welcome back. I'm Michael Holmes in Lviv, Ukraine. The latest on the Russian invasion of this country. Ukrainian official saying a fire that broke out at Europe's largest nuclear power plant has now been put out. They say the blaze started after a heavy Russian attack, no deaths or injuries reported. And one very important detail, radiation levels are still normal.

But now President Volodymyr Zelensky accusing Russia of purposely targeting the plant, which is in southeastern Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: We remembered that Russian propaganda is threatened to cover the world with the nuclear ashes. We remember. Now it is not a threat. Now it is a reality.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: All right. We now want to show you some video that you will find disturbing. This is the aftermath of a Russian strike on an apartment building. This is in a town north of Kiev. It shows victims screaming for help after the building in Chernihiv was hit on Thursday. Just down the street, a children's hospital and a school. Official say at least 33 people were killed, 18 others injured.

Meanwhile, as you can imagine, Russian media coverage of the invasion very different from what you'll see on CNN and other Western news outlets. Pro-Kremlin propaganda filling the airwaves and far too little real reporting getting through to the Russian people. More on that now from CNN's Nic Robertson in Moscow. NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR (voice over): On Russia-state T.V., audiences are only being told what the Kremlin wants them to know about the war in Ukraine.

This new Russian army video shows troops handing out humanitarian aid. They claim Russian forces are giving civilians safe passage from the fighting. A message reinforced in President Putin's latest state T.V. speech

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT: Our military have provided corridors in all areas of combat action.

ROBERTSON: The terrible reality the rest of the world sees shelling of civilians suffering, death and destruction. Never gets aired on Russian-state T.V. And many Russians believe their government that the war was forced on them by Ukraine, backed by NATO.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): And the more I know the truth, this was a forced measure on our side. After what Russia went through in World War II, it's madness to believe we want war.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I see what's on T.V. when I'm getting ready for work. We try not to get too involved in it because we've got enough of our own problems.

ROBERTSON: Some do care enough to reach beyond state TV. But even then they're not convinced by what they see.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Yes. I have heard that some civilians, even children have died, but I'm not sure I can believe it. Because there is fake news. They are making money.

ROBERTSON: Obedient anchors on state TV never questioned the Kremlin's version of facts and reinforce its tropes about denazification. No mention that President Zelensky is Jewish or Russian missiles killed civilians near a holocaust memorial in Kiev. Even so, some mostly younger Russians, see through their governments lies, get their news from friends, independent and social media.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Almost all of us are understanding this thing that there is a lot of lie around. So, we do not know what's happening.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I think this is a crime and aggression against a neighboring country. Our government invaded. Now they are killing people.

[02:35:00]

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's awful but what can we think about it. Normal people understand everything but we can't do anything because they're afraid like everyone else.

ROBERTSON (on camera): The government is so worried independent media could challenge their narrative. In the past few days it shut down two outlets. And it's right now preparing a law that would criminalize what it calls fake media. It can carry a maximum 15-year jail sentence.

ROBERTSON (voice over): Despite the Kremlin's best efforts at controlling the narrative, many Russians have taken to the streets angered by Putin's war. More than 7500 people arrested so far. Including this elderly lady at a protest in St. Petersburg Wednesday. And no surprise, this video has yet to be shown on state media.

ROBERTSON (on camera): There is nothing more dangerous for President Putin in Russia today than the truth. Armed with evidence of what is happening in Ukraine, many Russians may reconsider their relationship with him. And that could challenge his role. Nic Robertson, CNN, Moscow.

HOLMES: Now as part of the effort to counter Kremlin disinformation, the Biden administration is working to reach a Russian audience directly. Senior officials have given at least seven interviews with Russian language news outlets since the conflict began. The White House accuses the Kremlin of engaging in a full assault on media freedom and the truth as they put it, following a Russian crackdown on what's left of independent media in their country.

U.S. officials say they will continue to support Russian media outlets even after the Kremlin bans them. Now the White House moving to tighten the economic screws on Russian leader Vladimir Putin even more going after more of his wealthy allies. My colleague, Kim Brunhuber will have that story after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:40:13]

KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: I'm Kim Brunhuber. We're continuing our coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The White House is piling on the pressure against Russian President Vladimir Putin by going after his inner circle. On Thursday, President Joe Biden slapped new sanctions on a group of oligarchs close to the Russian leader, they'll be cut off from the U.S. financial system, all their assets and property will be frozen or blocked.

Written later followed suit slapping its own sanctions on two oligarchs worth $19 billion combined. Biden says earlier sanctions are already having an effect. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: The severe economic sanctions on Putin and all those folks around him choking off access to technology as well as cutting off access to the global financial system. It's had a profound impact already.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Meanwhile, dozens of international companies are backing out of doing business in Russia following the invasion. And this list is getting longer by the day. Now the property is targeted by those sanctions include private yachts and multimillion dollar homes owned by some Russian oligarchs. So, for more on that, Anna Stewart joins us from London. So, Anna, let's start with -- what seems like an unusual target for sanctions, those mega yachts.

So, explain why they're going after them and how authorities are trying to track them down.

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: Well, these are the assets that you can really see and authorities are going about tracking them down with great difficulty, actually. France and the U.S. have set up task forces to really look into the oligarchs that have been sanctioned, and where their assets are. France sees a super yacht yesterday is the Amore Vero which means true love in Italian, Kim, not getting a lot of love from authorities.

They've taken it on account of it being -- belonging to Igot Sechin. Now, he's the CEO of Rosneft, big Russian oil giant. He's also a close ally of President Putin. But the company that manages the ship says that Sechin's not the owner. And this is the problem we're going to see with these assets being seized. It is incredibly hard from my own experience trying to track down some (INAUDIBLE) myself yesterday.

Find out who owns what because they're all kind of listed under various limited companies, shell companies, lots of dummy directors. And these the assets that we can see, you know, the super yachts, the fast cars, that mansions, the private jets. Much harder will probably be going after the vast amounts of wealth that is sort of squirreled away under opaque layers of shell companies and offshore tax havens. That is going to be hard.

Now the hope here is to squeeze the inner circle around President Putin to put pressure on them. But also, this is what countries, western allies can do within their own territories to really show support with Ukraine, I think.

BRUNHUBER: All right. So, those sanctions on oligarchs and especially the threat of further measures, like sanctioning Russian oil and gas, all that seems to create a lot of volatility in the global markets.

STEWART: Yes, certainly in the last 24 hours, the Russian ruble hit yet another record low. It was, I believe, eight -- 118 to the dollar. There we go. It's come back a little bit. Also oil Brent and WTI hitting new multi-year record highs yesterday morning. They've come back a little bit as well. Mark is very concerned, actually that oil and gas could be targeted by sanctions in the coming days. It hasn't so far.

But President Biden said on Wednesday that it was a measure that was on the table and it was unthinkable just a couple of weeks ago. Interestingly, President Putin had a call yesterday with Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The Kremlin's readout of this, Kim, was really interesting because it said that Putin warned against politicizing energies, that perhaps he is worried too.

May raise some eyebrows of course because Putin has been accused more than once of politicizing energy.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, absolutely. With all those threats. Anna Stewart in London, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

Well, one of the most successful soccer clubs in the world is now up for sale. Chelsea F.C. is looking for a new owner after Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich says it's in the best interest to sell the club as sanctions loom. CNN World Sports Alex Thomas has more outside Chelsea's Stamford Bridge stadium.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ALEX THOMAS, CNN WORLD SPORTS ANCHOR: For fans of Chelsea Football Club, these are momentous times. The team is still World and European champions, but there's now huge uncertainty over its future after Roman Abramovich said he's ending a 19-year spell as Chelsea owner. That announcement came on Wednesday, and none of the questions it raised were answered on Thursday.

Abramovich has poured billions of dollars into the club and says he won't ask it to repay him any loans. He also vowed to gift the net proceeds from the sale to a new charity that will be set up to assist victims of the war in Ukraine. But which costs need to be deducted from the sale to arrive at a net figure?

[02:45:03]

THOMAS: And why set up a new charity to help people in Ukraine when there are so many already operating in the region. Not to mention Chelsea's own charitable foundation. On the football side, this is a massive moment. The Abramovich era has been far and away the most successful period in Chelsea's 117-year history. Delivering more than 20 major trophies, including five English Premier League titles, two Champions League crowns and the FIFA Club World Cup.

Abramovich says the sale is in Chelsea's best interests. And although he has not been sanctioned by the U.K. government and has always denied political links to Vladimir Putin, it comes as leading Western nations have begun seizing the assets of Russian oligarchs with links to Putin's regime. I've been here outside Stamford Bridge many times before to watch as Chelsea fans flocked to celebrate major trophy triumphs, or even to protest as they did at the end of Josie Marino's first managerial spell.

So, it's notable that we see no mass turnout this time. Chelsea supporters may have mixed feelings but most seem to understand there's more at stake than simply success on the football field. Alex Thomas, CNN, Chelsea Football Club, London.

BRUNHUBER: All right. When we come back, more on the Ukraine Russia crisis live with Michael Holmes in Lviv. And the story of a chef bringing people relief in the best way he knows how with food. Stay with us.

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[02:50:45]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) HOLMES (voice over): A very touching human moment in the midst of crisis. Italian pianist there, Davide Martello playing John Lennon's peace anthem Imagine for Ukrainian refugees arriving in Poland. He traveled there from Germany to bring cheer to those displaced by this invasion. More than half a million Ukrainians have fled to Poland. That's according to the U.N.

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HOLMES: Now a well-known chef is helping the people of Ukraine in his own way. Chef Jose Andres and his World Central Kitchen, have expanded their relief mission and are now on the ground here in Lviv. CNN's Anderson Cooper caught up with Andres who showed him how his team is turning a restaurant into a lifeline as the war rages.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. He's adding the meats. So what's happening here?

JOSE ANDRES, FOUNDER, WORLD CENTRAL KITCHEN: Well, this is one of our partner kitchens. And the partnership happen, like always happens before even we land. We contact them, sometimes they contact us.

COOPER: You come in to help them. How does this work?

ANDRES: We cannot do what we do without people like them. He's the -- he's the owner, his daughter. And look, they want to be helping. If we didn't show up, probably they will be doing it too. We see these happening everywhere. But sometimes things are complicated. Sometimes people don't think about helping. Sometimes they see the example of other chefs before we walked into our kitchen and it's what everybody does.

What can I do to help my people is what that cook does, is what the restaurant owner does, they feed people in the good times. And we are learning that everybody wants to feed people in the no good times. So what are we doing here? We are bringing everybody together, creating a network of different restaurants. That is not only cooking, but this meeting the demand where there is need.

COOPER: This is also going to be potentially a very long effort. I mean, this can -- this conflict can go on for a long time there. There's probably going to be more and more people fleeing cities and coming through the Lviv.

ANDRES: This is before we know it is going to become the city of cities for refugees within Ukraine. And obviously people that are going to be leaving, but this is going to be the place that everybody usually is going to be flowing. Restaurants like this, we're going to be playing a crucial role. If we have people like them, that they're committed, you need to understand they are committed. And we have more restaurants around the city. Think about it.

There are no restaurants in the good times. They are community kitchens in a way. That's what we created during this pandemic too. If we have many chefs like that many owners like them, many restaurants like them, we have a map of the city and we know the needs of the city. We can cover whatever.

COOPER: You and I met up in Puerto Rico after the storm there and people were very united and trying to help each other. Have you ever seen though anything like the unity of the people here in Ukraine?

ANDRES: It's fascinating. Number one, Polish people. Because it's the first place I arrived and --

COOPER: Involving that's where you're heading.

ANDRES: In Poland watching Ukrainians and the Polish people becoming one and in the other countries that a little organization like ours is part of, we are already in other places. We are fitting inside (INAUDIBLE) Odessa. We are feeding in Krakow as right now, Kharkiv is being bombed. We have three, four restaurants making meals and delivering to the shelters right now. That's the power of working together on this soup.

Who was going to be saying that (INAUDIBLE) that we thought this organization will be used for hurricanes. We are also helping in a way in a war zone. It's essential we do this because we cannot have men, woman and children in a shelter for hours if not for days without anybody taking care of their needs. My heart is broken knowing that these people are putting their lives at risk to do that.

COOPER: It also seems like everyone here in Ukraine, if they can't carry a weapon, if they can't make a Molotov cocktail, they want to do something. They want to feed people, they want to contribute to this effort.

ANDRES: Feeling is another form of fighting. Actually, feeling is the best war -- way of fighting. If we could all believe like longer tables will win the day and not crazy higher walls and bumping people away.

[02:55:06]

COOPER: Bigger tables you're saying.

ANDRES: Longer tables. Longer tables that we can sit everybody and to say it's more things that unite us, that not -- come on, one person creating mayhem, who are we as humans? We are nine billion people in planet earth. We're going to let one person destroy what we are trying to build? Humanity is going to have to learn that we cannot let leaders that breaks us apart, that bring our boards demons from within us.

We, the people need to start betting on leaders. That's a matter what they want to do, right or less. But people that want to build a better world. In reality, no with his speeches, but with actions. We need to stand up. Cooking is a way to stand up, it's to say, you're not going to let my people go hungry. We're not going to let our people go hungry and you're not going to win this war. And the world has to speak up for cooks like this. This is the only way we have to pick up. COOPER: One plate at a time.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

HILTON: The World Central Kitchen says it along with several other restaurants have served more than 41,000 meals in at least five Ukrainian cities. They're looking to expand their services to six bordering countries.

Now as Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine more people around the world are voicing their opposition to what is happening here. Have a look at the scene in Venezuela on Thursday. Opposition leader Juan Guaido joining the demonstration along with hundreds of Venezuelans.

The Maduro government is a close ally of Russia, and blamed NATO and the United States for the crisis in Ukraine. And in Nepal, E.U. and U.S. diplomats held a candlelight vigil at the Stupa in Kathmandu. The demonstration -- demonstrators lit lamps, observed a minute of silence for those who lost their lives so far in the ongoing war in Ukraine.

And as the air raid sirens sing out here in Lviv, I'll leave it at that for the moment. Our breaking news coverage continues though after a break.

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