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Russian Attacks Decimated Residential Area; Russia Faces War Crimes Investigation; More Than 1.5 Million People Flee Ukraine War; Ukrainians Defend Mykolaiv but Civilian Toll Grows; China Calls For Negotiations While Pushing Russian Agenda; Indian Students Trapped in Ukraine Ask to Be Evacuated; Russian Attacks Near Power Plants Drive Nuclear Safety Fears; Love in the Face of War. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired March 07, 2022 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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[01:00:50]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us in the United States and all around the world. I'm Michael Holmes coming to you live from Lviv in Ukraine. And we continue to follow breaking developments in Russia's assault on this country.
Ongoing fighting being reported Monday but according to Russian state media, the Russian Defense Ministry will hold fire and next hour will allow the opening of humanitarian corridors from four Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv and Mariupol. We'll see how that pans out given how the others have failed.
Meanwhile, the Russian assault continues to be met by strong resistance. The Ukrainian military claims to have knocked out a Russian artillery position near the southern city of Mykolaiv. Although CNN has not been able to verify the videos authenticity.
Still, we're witnessing the harsh and heartbreaking reality on the ground for so many civilians. This next video may be disturbing to some viewers. It's important to see it shows a Russian military strike outside, and this is an town just outside Kyiv, as Ukrainians were literally attempting to flee the fighting.
Now the mayor of Irpin says a family was killed in this strike, eight people in total dying during evacuations as the area was hit by shelling.
Now since the sound of the invasion, Russia has fired 600 missiles according to a senior U.S. defense official, who says Moscow now has 95 percent of its amassed combat power inside this country.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says sanctions aren't enough to stop Russia, who he accuses of quote planning deliberate murder.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Today is forgiveness Sunday. But we cannot forgive the hundreds upon hundreds of victims, nor the thousands upon thousands who have suffered and God will not forgive. Not today. Not tomorrow, never. And instead of forgiveness, there will be judgment.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Now there are growing questions about whether Russia is actively targeting civilians or just doesn't care what it hits. CNN's Alex Marquardt reports from a small village southwest of Kyiv devastated by an airstrike on Friday.
(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)
ALEX MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): The small country road is now lined by piles of rubble burned out cars, collapsed homes and a deep crater where a Russian missile struck.
The attack caught on a village security camera hit the home of Ihor Mozharev in the small village of Markhalivka about 15 miles south of Kyiv, where he lived with his family.
Now they're gone, killed in an instant, five family members and a friend including his 12-year-old daughter, who was disabled in an accident with a drunk driver, his wife just 46 years old, and his son in law, the father of his grandchildren.
IHOR MOZHAREV, MARKHALIVKA RESIDENT: There was a massive explosion and we all got trapped under rubble. My daughter has died in her wheelchair. Me and my grandchildren were rescued from under the rubble.
MARQUARDT: Today, Mozharev, blacked eye and face bruised, picked through the debris trying to find belongings and documents. There was a brief moment of happiness when he found one of his missing cats. But the reality of how his life is forever changed has not yet sunk in.
MOZHAREV: I have no thoughts now. What thoughts can I possibly have? It's terrible. Terrible. I just want peace for Ukraine, just leave Ukraine alone already. God help this to end as soon as possible. I will bury my relatives tomorrow. That's it, I don't know what will happen then.
[01:05:08]
MARQUARDT (on camera): There is simply no explanation for all of this destruction for the deaths that happened right here. There is no military target around four miles. This isn't a strategic village or town that needs taking. So as the Kremlin continues to deny that they are targeting civilians, it is indiscriminate attacks, like this one that show the reality of what is going on here.
(voice-over): Olha lives down the street. She points to a mat that was used to carry the children out of the rubble. OLHA, MARKHALIVKA RESIDENT: The main thing is for this hell to end as soon as possible. How is it possible that a brother goes against a brother. This is unthinkable. Everybody used to go to Russia and back, relatives everywhere, and now --
MARQUARDT: It's too much for Olha, and for millions across Ukraine who are in utter disbelief about what is happening to their home. Praying and pleading for the violence to end. Alex Marquardt, CNN, Markhalivka, Ukraine.
(END VIDEO TAPE)
HOLMES: Now, the rising number of civilian casualties in Ukraine has prompted accusations of war crimes being committed by Russia, the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, among those sounding the alarm. Last week, the International Criminal Court announced it was opening an investigation into allegations and now the U.S. Ambassador to UN weighing in on the matter.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE UN: Any attack on civilians is a war crime. And we're working with partners to collect and provide information on this so that we can investigate this and have it ready in the event that war crimes are brought before this government.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: And joining me now from Washington is David Scheffer, former U.S. ambassador-at-large for War Crimes during the Clinton Administration, also the author of "All The Missing Souls."
And it's good to have you with us ambassador, the ICC says it's going to fast track a war crimes investigation and got dozens of countries asked for one the allegations of like, but how difficult is it to successfully bring a war crimes case.
DAVID SCHEFFER, FMR. U.S. AMBASSADOR FOR WAR CRIMES, CLINTON ADMIN.: It's always difficult, it's always arduous. And it always requires a tremendous amount of expertise, and detailed examination of documents of forensic evidence, et cetera.
However, in this conflict, it is actually not as difficult as we experienced in other conflicts. And the reason is that the amount of indiscriminate shelling and assaults on civilian populations is so obvious, so blatant, documented, by the hour by the media, by the citizens of Ukraine, by governments, by overhead imagery. It is probably the most documented record of ongoing war crimes in the in the last 30 years. And we've had a lot of experience with this.
It's also important to remember that these attacks on civilians are not just isolated instances where you examine it and say, Oh, was that a mistaken missile firing? Or was that really a legitimate firing on a target of military value? These are all taking place under an illegal act of aggression. In other words, when you have an aggressive war, and this is clearly one, then the entire assault, every missile firing, every tank firing by the Russian military has an illegal character to it. It's not as if it can be legitimately classified as fired.
HOLMES: Yes, yes. Cases can be brought, of course against not only those committing crimes, but also those ordering or condoning them. I mean, that could in theory lead to charges against President Putin. Could you see such a thing happening? I mean, I think I read where you said he's actually making it easy for prosecutors.
SCHEFFER: That's right. He's making it easy and it will happen. The ICC is now officially investigating this. It was unprecedented that 39 member state governments of the ICC actually referred this matter to the ICC. That's never happened before. That's totally unprecedented. So there is an official investigation.
[01:10:00]
And it's usually hard and war crimes cases to identify the very top commanders having commanded the commission of the war crime, because you have to work your way up the chain. They don't usually put things in writing. They don't make public statements at the top.
But in this case, Vladimir Putin on an almost daily basis is incriminating himself publicly, as being directly associated with all of these military assaults on civilian populations. And so, it will be an easier case. And I would predict that with, you know, probably within a few months, he will be indicted by the ICC.
HOLMES: Wow. Does it complicate matters that neither, you know, Ukraine nor Russia nor the U.S., for that matter have signed on to the court?
SCHEFFER: Well, it does not complicate this particular situation. I think the United States can, frankly, be very supportive of the International Criminal Courts efforts with respect to the provision of information that constitutes evidence with overhead imagery, with the diplomatic support at the United Nations and elsewhere that can demonstrate that we're behind the ICC's investigation, even though we are not a party to the court.
It's entirely possible and, frankly, you know, the People's Republic of China, as much as it may dislike, the International Criminal Court is going to have a hard time arguing that what is being investigated by the court should not be investigated, rather it should be investigated. And so I don't think that's going to be much of a setback for the ICC.
HOLMES: I know you've seen parallel. So I'll ask you this, how much of a weapon are the sanctions currently imposed? Because I know you've spoken about holding those in place until the indicted are sent to trial. There is precedent for that.
SCHEFFER: Yes, in the Balkans sanctions were used very effectively by our friends in the European Union, and by the United States and Canada and other NATO nations. They were held in place until Milosevic in particular, the leader of Serbia, was deposed and surrender to the Hague to stand trial, and then Mladic, the General Mladic, and President Karadzic of the Bosnian Serb Republic, they had to be surrendered to the Hague, before the full package of sanctions could be lifted against Serbia.
I would argue that this is a much, much larger conflict, much more serious in terms of the damage and casualties facing us, theoretically, at least in the future. And it's absolutely imperative that, frankly, the Russian people and the Russian leadership understand that it would be impossible for the West to lift the significant portion of those sanctions until these individuals responsible for these crimes are surrendered under indictment.
Of course, they have to be indicted first, but then surrendered to the Hague to stand trial. The pressure will be enormous from civil society, from various governments, from just the people, the Ukrainians, that those sanctions not be lifted, until, of course, Ukraine is restored with its sovereignty and territorial integrity that's first and foremost, but also that they would not be lifted, at least in large part until these individuals are surrendered.
HOLMES: It is an important discussion to be having and your expertise in this invaluable. David Scheffer, I really appreciate it. Thank you so much.
SCHEFFER: Thank you.
HOLMES: All right. Still to come here on the program, as the fighting intensifies the number of refugees continues to grow. We'll look at the desperation many Ukrainians are facing as they try to flee by train.
Also the country of Moldova, sheltering hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian refugees, we speak exclusively to the nation's Prime Minister, when we come back.
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HOLMES: The refugee crisis getting worse as thousands of fleeing the fighting in Ukraine every day, many traveling long distances and braving freezing temperatures in their struggle to get to safety. The exodus has been so overwhelming in neighboring countries that tent cities such as this one in Moldova have been popping up near borders.
The UN says more than one and a half million people have fled Ukraine since the war began. And the crisis is escalating at a pace Europe has not seen in decades.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FILIPPO GRANDI, UN 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 II. 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 said 10 days, 1.5 million in 10 days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: The war intensifies the desperation only grows for those hoping to escape the violence. CNN's Scott McLean reports now from a train station here in Lviv.
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SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL 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 or people are lined up out the doors of the station for the next train to Poland. Those who wait 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 Poland with her mother and her two boys aged one and 16.
YULIA (ph), UKRAINIAN REFUGEE (through translator): 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.
[01:20:03]
MCLEAN: 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. 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 translator): I don't have any other choice. I came from far away. I need to evacuate my child. My husband stayed.
MCLEAN: Exhausted and frustrated. A volunteer suggest she 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 that said the bombings were hitting far too close to home.
TATIANA (ph), UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: Crush, crush, crush, crush, crush.
MCLEAN: As darkness arrives so does this family, 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 daughter's too.
OKSANA (ph) (though translator): I don't know when this will end. I'm so tired.
MCLEAN: 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 VIDEO TAPE)
HOLMES: The UN says this is the fastest growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II, one of the countries bearing the brunt of it, neighboring Moldova which has taken in more than 230,000 of Ukraine's refugees, and think about this that is nearly 10 percent of Moldova's entire population.
In an exclusive interview, Moldova's Prime Minister spoke with CNN about how she's managing the crisis and shared her thoughts on Russia's unprovoked attack.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NATALIA GAVRILITA, PRIME MINISTER OF MOLDOVA: We strongly condemn this military attack on Ukraine. And we have called for peace ever since the beginning of the war. We are seeing an extraordinary humanitarian crisis, so already 230,000 people have crossed the Moldovan border from Ukraine. So every child in Moldova is now a refugee. So about three fourths of the refugees are actually staying with families.
A lot of Ukrainians have friends or relatives in Moldova, but also regular people have just taken in Ukrainian families into and invited them into their homes.
IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Complete strangers.
GAVRILITA: Yes, absolutely.
WATSON: Do you think the refugee exodus will get worse in the days and weeks ahead?
GAVRILITA: I'm afraid so.
WATSON: On the first day of the invasion, your government closed Moldova's airspace so there is no commercial air travel right now. Why did you take that decision?
GAVRILITA: We took that decision to protect civilian airspace. So we received a request that indicated that there may be military operations in the vicinity of the Moldovan airspace.
WATSON: Who sent the request to restrict your air traffic?
GAVRILITA: This was a request from the Russian Federation.
WATSON: Wow. Many people may not know that there are actually Russian troops on Moldovan territory. Has there been any communication with those forces?
GAVRILITA: Indeed, we have a separatist region on the eastern border of Moldova, on the border with Ukraine, this separatist region the Transnistria region has Russian troops on its territory. We have called continuously for the withdrawal of the troops and we have a negotiating format with the separatists region.
We are currently seeing no signs of involvement in the military conflict and we expect this to remain so. Moldova is a neutral state. Its military neutrality is enshrined in the Constitution and we expect everyone to respect this status.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: All right, the resistance in one port city has kept the Russians at bay but there is a cost to stalling the invasion. Coming up a report from Mykolaiv.
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[01:28:35]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is CNN Breaking News.
HOLMES: The latest developments now in Ukraine for you this hour. Russia's Ministry of Defense says it will soon open a humanitarian corridor from four Ukrainian cities. They are the capital Kyiv, Kharkiv, which of course has been under constant bombardment, also Sumy and Mariupol.
Now this would be the third attempt to provide safe passage for civilians trapped in Mariupol. Earlier efforts to open evacuation routes there were derailed for a second day on Sunday. Ukrainian authorities say six days of shelling have cut off food, water and heating supplies.
A Russian strike hit an evacuation crossing point in Irpin near Kyiv, killing a family with two children and several other civilians. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says officials have seen credible reports of attacks on civilians and they are being documented for a possible war crimes investigation.
NATO and the U.S. continue to resist President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's calls for a no fly zone but the U.S. is working with Poland on possibly providing fighter jets to Ukraine. The administration is also discussing banning Russian oil imports.
And Moscow cracking down on anti-war protesters there once again, then independent monitoring group says more than 4,600 protesters have been detained inside Russia.
[01:29:53]
Now, the Ukrainian defense of the city of Mykolaiv 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. And we must warn viewers, some of the images are disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Putin needs it, but he's having real trouble getting it. Drive to the last Ukraine position outside the port city of Mykolaiv, and you can see the mess made of the Kremlin's plans.
Even the (INAUDIBLE) Russian propaganda says, it's from the denazification they ridiculously claimed to be enacting is charred. Its occupants, captured or dead. Their missiles on display along with their names.
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.
(on camera): He's just saying, "It goes forwards, 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.
(on camera): That they left the tank?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They needed to do that.
WALSH: Right. They didn't have much of a choice.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't have another choice.
WALSH (voice over): Then, a warning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There's a helicopter coming.
WALSH (voice over): A helicopter is spotted and we have to leave.
Rushing in the weapons, this David has hit the Russian Goliath with a gain in the game. But the Kremlin is sure to impose a cost on anyone it can.
Grand rockets have slammed into homes regularly.
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 one 53-year-old man brought in on Sunday morning.
Across town, the rockets, apparent cluster munitions that seemed to fall just anywhere.
(on camera): There -- another rocket landed up the street here. (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 ports of (INAUDIBLE) they said.
The bodies so often of the elderly who would've survive being a Soviet citizen, but not this.
Ruslan (ph) 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: 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 Sumy they are sitting in the basements and hiding because they are being bombed by Russian missiles.
When will it stop?
[01:34:59]
WALSH: They show us the corpse of a Russian soldier and asked us to film him up close, which we don't do.
Loathing here setting deep and lasting with each body in the ground.
Nick Paton Walsh, CNN -- Mykolaiv, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HOLMES: Powerful reporting there from Nick.
Now, China's foreign minister calling for diplomacy and dialogue between Russia and Ukraine, but still Beijing has not denounced Moscow's invasion.
From the beginning, China has walked a fine line saying it doesn't want to see all the violence in Ukraine while at the same time, calling out the quote, "negative impact" of NATOs expansion towards Russia.
CNN's Steven Jiang joins me now from Beijing to discuss and yes, a lot of eyes on China to see if it will in fact provide a financial lifeline for Russia, which is under all the sanctions. And we're going to be hearing shortly from the foreign minister there. What are you expecting?
STEVEN JIANG, CNN BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well Michael, we are not expecting to hear from anything we haven't heard before. On that key question you mentioned, if and how China is going to help Russia minimize the impact of severe western sanctions, we have seen some indication in the past few days. I think the answer for now is it depends.
For Chinese companies or institutions with large exposure to the western markets, it seems to be at least willing to consider compliance with western sanctions. But other Chinese entities without such exposure, the response may be quite different.
So we are still waiting for a lot of details to emerge, but the Chinese government has said, they are willing to maintain and strengthen normal trade and economic relations with Russia.
But, back to the question, in terms of what China will do to help end this war, I think at least for now, despite Beijing's public insistence on impartiality, it's increasingly clear to a lot of others they are sticking with Putin, who of course, has been described by Chinese President Xi Jinping as his best friend.
So that kind of personal relationship has also made it very challenging for Beijing to really, climb down or move away from that so-called no limits partnership with Russia.
Wang Yi (ph) actually had phone call with Tony Blinken last Saturday, doing what Xi again, said the China respects all nations' sovereignty. Obviously, that pledge sounds increasingly hollow as their best friend is continuing this invasion of its neighbor.
And then of course, Wang Yi again suggested NATO's eastward expansion is the root cause of this conflict. That, of course, is a key Russian talking point, Michael.
HOLMES: All right. Steven Jiang there, in Beijing for us. Really appreciate it.
Now more companies are severing ties with Russia over its invasion in Ukraine. Streaming giant, Netflix, joining entertainment companies in closing 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 re-evaluate the matter.
But two global giants aren't abandoning Russia -- the soda maker Coca- Cola along with fast food giant McDonald's. They're are continuing to operate there and that has Ukraine's foreign minister seeing red.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: We were upset to hear that companies like Coca-Cola and McDonald's remain in Russia, and continues providing their products.
It's simply against basic principles of morale to continue working in Russia and making money there. This money is soaked with Ukrainian blood.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Hundreds of Indian students still asking to be evacuated from Ukraine. What they are being told by the Indian government, after the break.
[01:38:42[
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HOLMES: Welcome back.
At least 700 students from India are asking to be rescued after getting stranded in Ukraine. They're trapped in the city of Sumy. That is about 30 miles or some 50 kilometers from the Russian border.
On Sunday, the Indian government advised the students to be ready to leave on short notice saying a team is ready to coordinate efforts nearby.
Vedika Sud is in New Delhi with more. You've been following this all along. What is the latest, Vedika ?
VEDIKA SUD, CNN PRODUCER: You know, Michael, we spoke yesterday, and the situation has not developed in the last hour and a half. Like we mentioned on CNN, according to the Russian state news agency, there will be -- the Russians will be holding fire for a while, and opening humanitarian corridors from Ukrainian cities.
One of them is going to be Sumy. That's where the 700 Indian students are trapped. They have been waiting for this moment. We don't know if they will be evacuated in the coming hours, but from what we have heard from the Indian embassy, in the last couple of hours, where they have asked the students to be on standby, we are hoping that this is the moment that they can be evacuated.
We have also spoken to an Indian student in Sumy and he has confirmed that the Indian embassy has been in touch with them, and they have assured that within a day or two, they will be evacuated from the area but he also said that they've heard this before from the Indian embassy.
It is a fast developing situation but the water crisis, the electricity crisis, the food crisis, remains for the students of the hostel (ph). it continues to say that there's a huge water shortage in the hostels for them. Hygiene is a big concern now that there is very little water that they can access.
So the electricity went off according to them because of which they couldn't cook anymore food, and most of them had to just eat the remains from earlier in the day.
So let's just see how this pans out in the coming hours. We do know that the Indian embassy has stationed officials in a city called (INAUDIBLE) which is about 150 kilometers drivable distance from Sumy.
We're going to see what happens in the upcoming hours. Like is said, it's a very fast developing situation. Students are on standby after (INAUDIBLE) from the Indian embassy, Michael.
HOLMES: Well, fingers crossed for them. Yes, they've been in a dire situation for some time now.
Vedika thank you. Vedika Sud in New Delhi. Appreciate it.
That will do it for now from here in Lviv, Ukraine.
Let's send it back to Paula Newton in Atlanta for more. And I will see you a bit later, Paula.
[01:44:53]
PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR: Absolutely, for what will be a crucial few hours ahead as we look to see if those pauses make any difference with the evacuations.
Still ahead here for us, one carried a weapon, the other carried flowers -- how a bride and groom, both defending Ukraine managed to have their wedding in the midst of war.
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NEWTON: French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed evacuations and the safety of Ukraine's nuclear power plant in a phone call Sunday. That is according to a readout from the kremlin.
Now, the French president expressed his concern about the safety of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power after Russian forces attacked and took control of it last week.
Now, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency says Russian forces have now, switched off 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.
The IAEA also says they are concerned about problems with food availability and supply at the plant. Now, Ukraine is home to some of the largest nuclear power plants in Europe. The Russian military has also seized control of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster site.
[01:49:57]
NEWTON: Now earlier, I spoke with Mariana Budjeryn. She is a research associate with the Project on Managing the Atom at the Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center. She spoke about some of the potential risks with Russian military forces, now commanding a Ukrainian nuclear facility. Take a listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIANA BUDJERYN, RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, PROJECT ON MANAGING THE ATOM, HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL BELFER CENTER: Paula, it is extremely concerning. These are very high security facilities. They require especially 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 Energoatom had informed the IAEA that the personnel and management of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant 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 power plant 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're clearly concerned about the safety and well-being of their families that live in the town nearby Energodar (ph). I mean most of the town is the actual, you know, families and the workers of the powerplant themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Yes. Such good points on the crisis there.
Now earlier, CNN spoke with Anna Makanju (ph) is a former special adviser to Joe Biden when he was, in fact, the U.S. vice president and also during the Russian invasion and annexation of Crimea. She says she feared something like this would happen, especially as the Russian president continues to isolate himself. Listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANNA MAKANJU, FORMER SPECIAL ADVISER TO VP JOE BIDEN: In 2014, this isn't something that we would have 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 land bridge to Crimea.
But this kind of all-out assault on the entire country, honestly, it wasn't something that we believe at that time would happen.
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 voters came to actually getting rid of Lukashenko, the dictator, who is the only one in power longer than Putin in Europe. And clearly, Putin responded very aggressively to that.
The second is because of Putin's complete mismanagement of covid. At one point, we had officials (INAUDIBLE) Russia a couple of months ago, a thousand people dying a day. There are some demographers that have estimated that over the course of the year, Russia lost a million people even if they weren't, you know, classified as COVID deaths, clearly that's had a tremendous impact.
And third is just that he has been increasingly isolated. We've seen that he has lost or gotten rid of any advisor that might have challenge him in any way. And over the course of the last year, his rhetoric has completely mirrored the most ultra nationalist in his circle. And I think, you see 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 analyst would've predicted that the Ukrainian people will not have greeted, you know, the Russian soldiers as savior or any of the other analysis that seem to have factored into the decision to do this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: Ok now, amid the war and bloodshed, a couple in Ukraine is focusing in fact, on their growing love. We met the newly-weds who decided there is in fact, no time like the present.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: This is love in 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.
[01:54:54]
NEWTON: The venue may have been unconventional, but still rings were exchanged, vows were made and a blessing bestowed on the happy couple who've been together for 20 years.
They say an official marriage never meant much to them until now.
Valery (ph) says, "We decided to get married because we live in challenging times. You never know what's going to happen tomorrow.
His bride Lesia (ph) 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 cake? Champagne toast, and there was even an honored guest.
VILAI KLITSCHIKO, MAYOR OF KYIV, UKRAINE: I want to give the present for everyone but the present for every Ukrainian to finish the war. Every Ukrainian have just one goal -- to stop the war. So stop keep the few civilian people, women. It's a huge hope for everyone, not just Ukraine.
NEWTON: A fleeting distraction from the bloodshed in Ukraine, a reminder of what the country is fighting for.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Incredible.
I'm Paula Newton.
Our breaking news coverage from Ukraine continues right after a break.
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