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Video Shows Fleeing Ukrainians Killed By Russian Strike; Ukrainian President Accuses Russia Of "Deliberate Murder"; Civilian Death Toll Climbs In Ukraine As War Rages; Russian Airstrike Obliterates Part Of Ukraine Village; U.N.: More Than 1.5. Million People Have Fled Ukraine; Russian Attacks Near Power Plants Drive Nuclear Safety Fears; More Companies Cutting Ties With Russia And Belarus; WNBA Star Brittney Griner Arrested At Russian Airport. Aired 11p-12a ET

Aired March 06, 2022 - 23:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:01:22]

PAULA NEWTON, CNN HOST: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Paul Newton. Our breaking news this hour, Russia's intensifying assault on Ukraine and the devastating human toll of war.

Now we are seeing new and, of course, disturbing images of the harsh and harsh breaking reality for civilians on the ground, including those attempting to flee the fighting. Now, the video we're about to show you is hard to watch. But what it captures is the moment that a Russian military strike targets a town on the outskirts of Kyiv killing a family.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking Foreign Language)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking Foreign Language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: And that was him yelling medic. Now that strike is just one of many launched by Russia as it ramps up its attacks on Ukrainian cities. I mean, that was not an isolated incident. Now still, negotiations between Ukraine and Russia continue with a third round of talks aimed at ending hostilities set to take place in the coming hours.

Now since the start of the invasion, Russia has fired about 600 missiles, that's according to senior U.S. defense official who says Moscow now has about 95 percent of its mass combat power inside Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says sanctions aren't enough to stop Russia who he accuses of planning, in his words, deliberate murder.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translation): It seems it is not enough for the Russian troops, not enough ruined destinies, crippled lives. They want to kill more. For tomorrow, Russia is officially announced an attack on our territory, our defense facilities.

Most of them were built decades ago under the Soviet government. They were built in cities, and now they are in an urban setting with thousands of people work and hundreds of thousands lived nearby. This is murder. Deliberate murder.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: So U.S. officials say there are, in fact, urgent discussions are underway with allies as Ukraine pleads for more help. Now Secretary of State Antony Blinken says the U.S. is in talks with Poland about the possibility of sending fighter jets to Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: We are working with Poland as we speak to see if we can backfill anything that they provide to the Ukraine. We very much support them, providing MiGs, SUs, planes that Ukrainians can fly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: And we go live now to Ukraine where CNN's Michael Holmes is standing by live for us in Lviv. And Michael, I have to start with what has been, you know, just the devastating humanitarian toll there. We saw that video and as I said that is not an isolated incident. This is happening and it is difficult at this point in time for people to really decide, right? Do I flee or do I stay and either seems to be an incredible risk.

[23:05:10]

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, and some don't have a choice of whether to flee too. A lot of people are sort of trapped in these places. You know, I think Ukrainians are bracing for the horror that has already been wrought on the people of this country to get much worse. The pounding of Mariupol, Kharkiv, other towns and cities relentless.

And, you know, President Zelenskyy, as you just said, he's suggesting that the crucial port city of Odessa could be next. Odessa is the third biggest city in the country. It is the place through which most of Ukraine's trade passes.

You know, as is always the case in war, the civilians, their suffering is unbearable. And there was that stomach churning scene of that family in -- being literally while trying to get to safety being killed. Eight civilians in that one explosion killed in all. You know, nationally, the U.N. says more than 360 killed, but that figure is almost certainly drastically lower than the reality, Paula. NEWTON: Yes. And then that brings us to the west response. I mean, obviously, everyone is devastated by what they're seeing. The Ukrainians, Zelenskyy continually asking for more. And yet, what form could that aid look like? Because we continue to hear blunt assessments that, look, you may want a new flies -- a no-fly zone, but that is a non-starter.

HOLMES: Yes, we hear it here all the time, you know, whether it's government or civilians, you know, that talk about the no-fly zone. But, you know, as you pointed out, and others have, it's a non- starter. It would require shooting down Russian planes to enforce it. And that would lead to a far greater war.

The Ukrainians, as you just reported, they want fighter jets, MiGs from, you know, Poland, for example, because the Ukrainian pilots know how to fly those. And there's also been, you know, there were reports that some Ukrainian pilots had gone into, like Romania to get their planes on the ground. And it was actually a chilling thing that Vladimir Putin said a couple of days ago, and he said that anything flying into or out of another country would make that country, in his view, a party to this conflict.

So it's a process to get those MiGs in. And it's also something that's, you know, fraught with risk, as well. I will say they're, you know, they're also caused from a weaponry to come in here. And indeed, that is happening. Weapons that can, you know, tackle armor tanks and so on, shut down helicopters, there's even sniper rifles arriving.

But, you know, you also have to wonder when that supply route from neighboring countries is going to become a target for Russian planes. That hasn't really happened yet. And that would certainly be a significant development if, you know, weaponry that's coming in from the west gets hit by the Russians on the way in.

It's interesting though, Paula, the Ukrainians, they really do continue to fight hard with those weapons. A lot of reports of Russian units, of course, stalling for things like lack of fuel, or even food. And what you're seeing is the Ukrainians doing a lot of hit and run with that, you know, Western supplied weaponry, getting in hit a couple of tanks, that hidden artillery position yesterday, and zipping out. That might be a taste of what of what an insurgency might look like going forward.

But that numerical superiority by Russia, you know, that continues. And, you know, you got to imagine that's going to wear down the Ukrainians eventually. And meanwhile, the pounding of these cities will continue and probably get even worse, Paula.

NEWTON: And that's the issue. I mean, at this hour, you still have Mariupol that is still not been able to get to a ceasefire where they can have civilians get out of there. And Michael, point out, you'll be back at the top of the hour, that's what you'll be covering today. Of course, another busy day of news ahead from Ukraine, and we appreciate.

Michael Holmes for us live in Ukraine. Now, we're uncovering more evidence that Russia is hitting civilian targets like Michael and I were just speaking about in Ukraine and, of course, killing innocent people. CNN's Alex Marquardt is in a small village southwest of Kyiv that was hit by an airstrike Friday.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: -- is a village that has no real strategic value, and yet it was the subject of a fierce Russian airstrike on Friday afternoon. Just take a look at this houses all around this area. We're hit in that Russian airstrike. What you're looking at here is the remnants of the house of a man named Igad (ph), who we spoke with earlier. There's a huge crater here in the ground.

He lost five of his family members, as well as a friend. His wife and his wife's friend and his mother-in-law were in a car when the strike happened. They were killed. His daughter was in the house in her wheelchair, and she was also killed. We spoke with him earlier today. He said that, obviously, that he is just empty.

[23:10:05]

He seemed disoriented. He's horrified by what's going on and he said he doesn't know what he is going to do now.

The Russians have said that they're only going after military infrastructure. That is clearly not the case. This home has nothing to do with the military. There is nothing within miles that has anything to do with the military. So that begs the question, are the Russians really bad at aiming? Is that why they're -- they've killed hundreds of civilians, and they've hit all these residential areas? Or do they simply not care?

Is it that they are simply just trying to bomb the Ukrainian population into submission? And it looks more and more like that may be the case. Now the Russians have said that they've agreed to allow people out through humanitarian corridors. But we've already seen today, bombing north of here near an area called Irpin where people are trying to get out, where people have been killed.

So it does certainly appear that all bets are off, that certainly we cannot believe what the Russians are saying when it comes to their intentions here. Very clearly, not just going after the military infrastructure, but hitting civilians as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: And that, of course, is Alex Marquardt. We thank him for his reporting there from Markhalivka, Ukraine.

Now for more, I'm joined by Kimberly Dozier, she is a CNN Global Affairs Analyst, and Time Magazine Contributor, and she's coming to us now from Washington, D.C. Kim, thank you so much for weighing in here. It is really tough to look at Alex's report understanding that this is the Russian game plan, it is to hit those civilian targets. Now officials have been blunt in telling people, look, we can't step in here in the way that Ukraine wants us to. Do you see anything that would change that even on the margins, Kim, because obviously there is a lot of outrage and trepidation really, that the worst is yet to come for Ukrainians?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, if Ukraine get a hold of those jet fighters that it's asking for from Poland, in a quick order, I'm talking about in two or three days, not in two or three weeks, then maybe something like that, could they get another shipment of those Turkish drones that have made such a difference on the battlefield, that could help them slow the Russian advance. But, unfortunately, what we don't see is Ukrainian troops recapturing territory.

I've been listing hard for those reports that they have been effectively keeping the Russians from taking Hostomel airport. Last I checked, that's one of the airports that Russia has tried to seize. So it can use it as a way to bring in supplies and step up its attacks. But at this point, this is a holding action by the Ukrainians with slowly every day the Russian forces using brutality to break the resistance, drive civilians out and drive the military, at least to cover as it takes mile by mile by mile.

NEWTON: Yes. And, unfortunately, Kim, as you know, it is the -- the Russians making a calculation that that civilian resistance is actually a military asset, which is why they continue to hammer it. You know, we just heard in the last few hours from General Mark Hertling, a CNN contributor who says that he has seen intelligence reports, so tell him that the Russian army is increasingly bogged down.

You know, we've had some reporting on that as well at CNN, but does it really matter? And I'm interested that you're continually looking at this. We've got Russians still have a lot of superiority, whether it's on the ground or in the air, and now we hear stories of more mercenaries perhaps not just from Chechnya, but from Syria.

DOZIER: The thing is, yes, the Russian plan for battle, didn't seem to survive first contact with the enemy. It didn't go the way they had expected. And yes, they've been frustrated and slowed down by everything from very effective ambush attacks to effective drone use, to the fact that it seems they did delay their attack until the Olympics was over.

The ground got warmer and some of those tanks have gotten caught in mud. Yet, we still see the maps every day like inkblot growing from the areas that Russia has seized. Zelenskyy, the President of Ukraine has warned that the next target is Odessa. And it does look like the troops are moving in that direction.

Now, here's the thing. Once they've got all of those major port towns, that also means it's one more area from which they can resupply. You can also see that the troops in the south, ones that have apparently come up from Crimea, they're battle hardened and they are just churning through the forces in their way. [23:15:10]

Now, from the Ukrainian side, they're doing the smart thing, which is the civilians have to flee and the army has to retreat to fight another day and to go into another mode, which is the full-on insurgency mode. So even if the Russians do capture everything on the map, all the major populated areas, a new phase of the war would begin, but we're going to see hundreds if not thousands of people lost between now and then. And I don't see, at this point, diplomatic or military momentum out there able to stop it.

NEWTON: Yes, and in fact, in the next few hours, right, we're embarking on a third round of talks and a little has been shown for the two round of talks that came before.

Kimberly Dozier, I really appreciate you being for us here. Thanks.

DOZIER: Thank you.

NEWTON: Just ahead, as the fighting intensifies, the number of refugees only continues to grow. We'll look at the desperation many Ukrainians are facing as they try and flee by train.

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NEWTON: The refugee crisis just keeps getting worse as thousands are fleeing the fighting in Ukraine every day. Many have travelled long distances and braved freezing temperatures in their struggle to get to safety.

[23:20:02]

Now the exodus has been so overwhelming in neighboring countries that 10 cities such as this one in Moldova have been popping up near borders. U.N. says more than 1.5 million people have fled Ukraine since the war began. That's just extraordinary. And the crisis is escalating at a pace Europe has not seen in decades.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FILIPPO GRANDI, U.N. HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES: We have not seen in Europe -- I'm talking about Europe now -- a crisis escalating so fast since the Second World War. That's a long time. Because of course in Europe, there have been many refugee crises including in the Balkans, with the Bosnian wars, but it was a longer period of time. Now it's 10 days, 1.5 million in 10 days

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: Staggering. As the world -- as the war intensifies, the desperation only grows for those hoping to escape the violence. CNN's Scott McLean reports now from a train station in Lviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With each new round of bombing and shelling comes a new wave of people seeking refuge outside Ukraine. Many arrive in the western train hub of Lviv, where people are lined up out the doors of the station for the next train to Poland. Those who weighed are almost entirely women, girls and boys, who suddenly look a lot like men.

This family fled central Ukraine. Yulia (ph) left her brother, father and husband behind to fight the Russians. Now she's going to pull in with her mother and her two boys aged one and 16.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): When my husband left, he said to our son, you're the man of the house. And now at 16 years old, he's become a grown man. Our children needs to have a childhood. They shouldn't become adults under these circumstances.

MCLEAN (voice-over): Well, over a weekend of the war, there are swarms of volunteers handing out food and hot drinks, and heated tents for a break from the frigid winter cold. But sometimes temper still flare. This woman says she's been here since 5:00 a.m. with her 10-year-old son.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I don't have any other choice. I came from far away. I need to evacuate my child. My husband stayed.

MCLEAN (voice-over): Exhausted and frustrated, a volunteer suggest you try a bus to the border. There are lineups for those too, standing- room only to make the 50-mile journey to the pedestrian crossing to Poland. 72-year-old cancer patient Tatiana (ph) wanted to stay in Kyiv but said the bombings were hitting far too close to home.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Crash, crash, crash, crash, crash.

MCLEAN (voice-over): As darkness arrives so does this family. They say they drove for three days across the country from a village near Kharkiv. They're trying to figure out where they can stay the night but seem resigned to sleeping in the car. Oksana (ph) says her elderly mother and husband stayed behind. She not only has to get her own children to safety, but her friend's daughters too.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translation): I don't know when this nightmare will end. I'm so tired.

MCLEAN (voice-over): Back at the station, the next train won't leave for another four hours. But for the masses of people here, it's worth the wait.

Scott McLean, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: So, so far one port city has held the Russians off, but the repercussions of stalling the invasion are deadly.

Coming up, our report from Mykolaiv.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [23:27:27]

NEWTON: Hello, I'm Paula Newton. The latest developments this hour from Ukraine, more and more civilians are being killed as Russia escalates its attacks. Now people are trying to flee the invasion. We're stuck at an evacuation point in a suburb of Kyiv. The mayor of Irpin says at least eight civilians were killed across the district.

Hopes for safe routes meantime out of Mariupol were dashed for a second day on Sunday. The governor of the region said heavy Russian shelling made evacuation far too dangerous to attempt. The U.S. defense official says Russia has now launched about 600 missiles so far. NATO and the U.S. though continue to resist President Zelenskyy's calls for a no-fly zone, but the U.S. says it is working with Poland on possibly providing fighter jets to Ukraine.

And Russia is cracking down on anti-war protesters there. An independent monitoring group says more than 4,600 protesters have been detained there this weekend again. And the Ukrainian defense of -- we go now, in fact, to the Ukrainian defense of the city, Mykolaiv, and that has kept it from falling into Russian hands so far.

But Nick Paton Walsh reports, the civilian death toll is rising as Russia repeatedly targets the city with rockets. Now we have to warn you, viewers, may find some of these images disturbing.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice-over): Putin needs it but he's having real trouble getting it. Drive to the last Ukrainian position outside the port city of Mykolaiv, and you can see the mess made of the Kremlin's plans. Even the Z (ph) Russian propaganda says it's from the denazification they ridiculously claimed to be an acting is charred. Its occupants captured or dead.

Their missiles on display along with their names.

(on-camera): It says the army of Russia.

(voice-over): Further down this road are the rest of the Russian tanks. But one was left behind. And now farmers, pensioners and bemused locals are picking it over. The model may be newer, but the empire it seeks to restore is long gone.

(Speaking Foreign Language)

WALSH (on-camera): He's just saying it goes forward but doesn't turn around.

(voice-over): The same can't be said for its crew who fled. The Ukrainians here A little gleeful this keeps happening.

[23:30:00]

WALSH (on-camera): They left the tank hole (ph)?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They needed to do that.

PATON WALSH: Right, OK. They didn't have much of a choice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, they didn't have much of a choice.

PATON WALSH (Voice-over): Then, a warning.

(On-Camera): Is a Helicopter coming in?

(Voice-Over): A helicopter is spotted and we have to leave. Rushing in the weapons, this David has hit the Russian Goliath with again and again. But the Kremlin is sure to impose a cost on anyone it can.

(INAUDIBLE)

PATON WALSH (voice-over): Grad rockets have slammed into homes regularly.

(INAUDIBLE)

PATON WALSH (voice-over): This woman thinks she has broken her back. The house collapsed on me, she says, and then they pulled me out.

There are no other patients in this hospital. All the injured treated here died in their beds, we're told, including 153-year-old man brought in on Sunday morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Just here.

PATON WALSH (voice-over): Across town, the rockets apparent cluster munitions that seem to fall just anywhere.

(On-Camera): Another rocket landed up the street.

(Voice-Over): From cars to vegetable gardens. At the morgue, the toll is growing. At least 50 bodies, they told us, 20 of them incinerated in a Russian missile strike on the naval port of Kharkiv, they said. The bodies so often of the elderly who would have survived being a Soviet citizen, but not this. Ruslan has worked here 13 days straight and is from Crimea where Russian state propaganda still calls this a special operation against Nazis.

RUSLAN, MEDICAL WORKER (through-translation): Now you understand I am from Crimea and my friends who live there think it's just like that. And I have to say that my former friends you betray me, you are supporting Putin who is a fascist, a real one. My family is hiding in the basement now because of you monsters. I'm telling you it's really scary to watch it. My friends who are in Kyiv and Kharkiv and Surny, they are sitting in the basements, and hiding because they are being bombed by Russians missiles. When will it stop?

PATON WALSH (voice-over): They shows a corpse of a Russian soldier and ask us to film him up close which we don't do. Loading here, set in deep and lasting with each body in the ground. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Mykolaiv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed evacuations and, of course, the safety of Ukraine's nuclear power plants in a phone call on Sunday. Now that's according to a readout from the Kremlin. The French president expressed his concern, of course, about the safety of these (inaudible) to nuclear power plant after Russian forces attacked and took control of it last week.

The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency says Russian forces have switched off some mobile networks and the internet at that nuclear power plant. Meaning officials are unable to get reliable information from the site through those normal channels. Now, the IAEA also says they're concerned about problems with food availability, and other supplies at the plant.

Ukraine is home to some of the largest nuclear power plants throughout all of Europe. The Russian military has also seized control of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster sites.

Now to get more on this, I'm joined by Mariana Budjeryn. She is a research associate in the Project on Managing the Atom at the Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center. And I thank you for being with us this evening.

And given your expertise, how concerning is it right now that Russia isn't even agreeing to an exclusion zone around these nuclear plants in Ukraine? What kinds of risks are we looking at here?

[23:35:06]

MARIANA BUDJERYN, RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, PROJECT ON MANAGING THE ATOM AT THE HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL BELFER CENTER: Well, Paula, it is extremely concerning. These are very high security facilities that require special, specially trained personnel to operate them. There are very, very rigorous safety and security protocols that need to be executed at all times. And we really don't know how this operation is going to happen under the military administration under the military command.

We know the Ukrainian nuclear operator and (inaudible) had informed the IEA that the personnel and the management of the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plan were told to report directly to this military occupying force. That, yes, a new shift of workers were allowed to come in after the shelling, after the Parkland was taken over. The previous shift had worked there for almost 24 hours under the shelling.

This is extremely dangerous. We can imagine these people who are operating, you know, a radioactive nuclear facility, and they're working under duress. And not only that, they are clearly concerned about the safety and well-being of their families that live in the town nearby, in Enerhodar. I mean, most of the town is the actual, you know, families and the workers of the power plant themselves.

NEWTON: Yes, you make such a good point there that this is under duress, literally, but also the fact that you said they are worried themselves, not just about their safety, but the families they aren't seeing.. I mean, you also point out though, that despite all these risks, there are safeguards and some of these plants, all of them, in fact, are built with redundancies built in and those safeguards. What are some of them?

BUDJERYN: So in, you know, in the condition of a shelling or some kind of explosions, the -- a nuclear reactor is protected by a very robust, reinforced concrete, shelter, a confinement chamber so called. And then, of course, there are cooling systems in operation to keep the reactor running safely and smoothly.

There's a water that's supposed to be pumped into the reactor at all times. That water supply depends on pumps, pumps depend on electricity, should the main electricity grid go out, there be a power outage, there are redundancy systems like the diesel generators.

So yes, of course, these facilities are designed to be robust, to be safe and to be secure. These protocols are constantly updated in cooperation with the IEA and it safeguards regime. But, of course, Paula, none of these have been designed with a view of a full scale military operation that is unprecedented in history.

NEWTON: You know, you have ties to Ukraine, you studied there. I don't have a lot of time but can you speak to the dedication of the Ukrainians that are likely safeguarding these plants right now?

BUDJERYN: I mean, these people are true heroes, right, because it's not only the safety and security of their facility or even of their country. We know that a nuclear accident anywhere is a nuclear accident everywhere. We've lived through Chernobyl and we lived through Fukushima Daiichi accidents. We know the impact that takes and the impact could go well beyond the borders.

So these people are really doing an incredible job, under very difficult conditions, for the sake not only of their countrymen but for the region, and who knows maybe the world.

NEWTON: Yes. Scary days ahead and we certainly hope those negotiations lead to more safeguards for all those nuclear power plants. Mariana Budjeryn, thank you so much, really appreciate your expertise.

Now earlier, CNN spoke with Anna Makanju. She's a former special policy adviser to Joe Biden, in fact, when he was the US Vice President, and also during the Russian invasion and annexation of Crimea. Now, she says she feared something like this would happen, especially as the Russian president continues to isolate himself. I want you to listen what he said to me.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANNA MAKANJU, FORMER SPECIAL POLICY ADVISER TO BIDEN: 2014, this isn't something that we were foreseen. We, of course, feared that he would push further into the East, that he would try to take a city like Mariupol in order to create a landbridge to Crimea. But this kind of all out assault on the entire country, honestly, wasn't something that we believed at that time would happen. [23:40:13]

But in terms of what changed, I do believe that we're probably looking at three things. One of them is what happened in Belarus, the sustained protests, how close Belarus came to actually getting rid of Lukashenko dictator, who was the only one in power longer than Putin in Europe. And clearly, Putin responded very aggressively to that.

The second is his -- Putin's complete mismanagement of COVID. At one point, we had official statistics from Russia a couple of months ago, thousand people dying a day. There are some demographers that have estimated that over the course of a year, Russia lost a million people, even if they weren't, you know, all classified as COVID, clearly that had a tremendous impact.

And third is just that he has been increasingly isolated. We've seen that he is lost, or gotten rid of any advisor might have challenged him in any way. And over the course of the last year, his rhetoric has completely mirrored the most ultra nationalists in his circle.

And I think you see that this kind of isolation and this kind of echo chamber is one of the reasons that he anticipated that this invasion would be quick and easy, despite the fact that I think any analysts would have predicted that this is going, you know, the Ukrainian people would not have greeted, you know, Russian soldiers for (inaudible), or any of the other analysis that seemed to have factored into the decision to do this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: OK. Still to come for us, new details on the arrest of WNBA star Brittney Griner in Russia and what US officials are saying about her detention.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:45:40]

NEWTON: More companies are severing ties with Russia over its invasion in Ukraine. American Express is just the latest credit card company to end operations. Its globally issued cards will no longer work in Russia. The company is also ending operations in Belarus, which is a close Kremlin ally.

And streaming giant Netflix is joining entertainment companies pausing operations in Russia. It will stop selling and providing its video service there. Netflix hasn't said what will happen to existing subscriber accounts, or when it will reevaluate the matter.

Now, there is a lot of mystery surrounding the arrest in Russia of WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner. And our customs officials at an airport near Moscow reportedly found cannabis oil in her luggage last month. But news of the arrest just went public over the weekend. CNN World Sport anchor Don Riddell fills us in.

DON RIDDELL, CNN WORLD SPORT ANCHOR (voice-over): One day after we learned that the American basketball star Brittney Griner had been arrested in Russia, the US government suggested that it was working to help with her case. Speaking at a press conference alongside the President of Moldova, Secretary of State Anthony Blinken spoke briefly about Griner situation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: With regard to the individual you mentioned, there's only so much I can say given privacy considerations at this point. Let me just say more generally, whenever an American is detained anywhere in the world, we, of course, stand ready to provide every possible assistance.

RIDDELL (voice-over): Much about this case, however, remains unclear. News of Griner's detention only emerged on Saturday when Russia's Federal Customs Service said an unnamed female basketball player had been arrested at an airport near Moscow in February. A Russian news agency later identified the US citizen as Griner.

The Customs Service claimed that Griner was carrying vape cartridges containing hashish oil in her luggage. As a result, the two-time Olympic champion and seven-time WNBA All-Star could be facing a jail sentence of up to 10 years. Her case is now significantly complicated by Russia's recent invasion of Ukraine and the global condemnation of its hostile actions, that may limit the US government's ability to help especially as it is actively applying economic sanctions against Russia and trying not to further escalate tensions in the region.

Underlying the sensitive nature of her case, Brittney's wife has written about it on Instagram. Thank you to everyone who has reached out to me regarding my wife safe return from Russia century, said Cherelle Griner. Please honor our privacy as we continue to work on getting my wife home safely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

RIDDELL: Meanwhile, there remains a great deal of concern for Brittney grinders health and well-being the American Iranian journalist Jason Rezaian telling me, "It appears to be the most audacious hostage taking by a state imaginable. Rezaian calling for Griner's release and the release of other American citizens being held in Russia on Twitter. Rezaian spent 544 days unjustly imprisoned by Iran before he was released in January of 2016. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: And thank you, Don. Now still ahead, one carried a weapon the other flowers. Our bride and groom both defending Ukraine managed to have their wedding in the midst of war.

[23:49:15]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: Churches around the world are praying for the people of Ukraine like this Anglican Church in Japan where some Ukrainian nationals that candles and prayed for peace. One woman who is an IT employee working in Japan says the losses in her home country are just heartbreaking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SASHA KAVERINA, IT EMPLOYEE IN JAPAN: The house where my parents lived the 16th floor is building was destroyed by a missile. My parents miracly survived. They say the floor was not impacted that much. Right now they've evacuated 20 kilometers from the impact place but the place where I was born, where I grew up, the place is destroyed.

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NEWTON: So a peace rally for Ukraine was held over the weekend in a country that is typically a close ally of Russia. About 2,000 people attended a demonstration in Kazakhstan to support Ukraine and denounced the Russian invasion. Crowds shouted slogans like no war and wage Ukrainian flags, the Kazakh foreign ministry meantime has stressed its neutrality in the conflict.

Now amid war and bloodshed, a couple in Ukraine is focusing instead on their growing love. We want to meet the newlyweds who decided there's just no time like the present.

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NEWTON (voice-over): She carried flowers, he carried his weapon, both dressed in military fatigues walking together in step to the tune of "Here Comes the Bride." This is love and a time of war. A military chaplain led the ceremony taking place near a checkpoint in Kyiv. Since both bride and groom are part of Ukraine's Territorial Defense Unit.

The venue may have been unconventional but still rings were exchanged, vows were made, and a blessing bestowed on the happy couple who have been together for 20 years.

[23:55:07]

They say and official marriage never meant much to them until now. Valerii says, we decided to get married because we live in challenging times. You never know what's going to happen tomorrow. His bride, Lesia, adds, we need to live in the moment, we must take as much as we can from life. Members of their unit attended the ceremony holding white roses. And what's a wedding without cake, a champagne toast, and there was even an honored guest.

VITALI KLITSCHKO, KYIV MAYOR: I want to give a present for everyone, but the present forever Ukrainian to finish the war. Every Ukrainian have just won gold to stop the war, to stop the killing of civilian people, women, huge hope for everyone not just in Ukraine.

NEWTON (voice-over): A fleeting distraction from the bloodshed in Ukraine, a reminder of what the country is fighting for.

(END VIDEO CLIP) NEWTON: We've seen incredible resilience from Ukraine. I want to thank you for being with us, I'm Paula Newton. It is now nearly 7:00 am Local Time in Ukraine and we will continue to have breaking news coverage from there. We'll continue right after the break.

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