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Russia Intensifies Bombardment across Ukraine; Kharkiv Governor: "There Is Nothing Left Here"; U.S. Warns Russia over Possible Chemical Weapons Use; Southern Ukraine Mayor Detained; Romanians Open Their Homes to Ukrainian Refugees; CNN Crew Flies on NATO Surveillance Plane Near Ukraine; Dow Falls for Fifth Straight Week; Americans Paying Record High Gas Prices; Polish Animal Rescue Center Takes in Pet Refugees. Aired 2-3a ET
Aired March 12, 2022 - 02:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.
HALA GORANI, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to our viewers around the world and also in the United States this hour. I'm Hala Gorani, coming to you live from Lviv in Ukraine.
There is growing evidence that the Russian bombardment of Ukraine is intensifying. In just the past few hours, air raid sirens have gone off right here in Lviv and both in Kyiv and Dnipro, where CNN crews have heard numerous explosions.
And then, there was this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI (voice-over): This intense bombardment is happening -- or happened -- overnight in the town of Mykolaiv in southern Ukraine. Heavy shelling, as one official described it, indiscriminate shooting at civilian targets, including a cafe and an apartment block.
There is also new satellite imagery of Russian artillery units 18 miles northwest of central Kyiv. They are in a field outside of the village. You can even see the flash of orange, apparently the muzzle flash from one of the guns.
And as Russian airstrikes continue across Ukraine, the president of this country, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in a new video, address urged his country men and women to keep up their fight.
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Today, everyone is gaining glory for Ukraine and his or her place shows the world who Ukrainians are and what strength we have. Hold our ground. Hold on. We will win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Russia's onslaught is now opening fronts in part of the country that, so far, had escaped much of the violence while the Russians continue to pummel areas that had already been decimated. With a roundup, here's Matthew Chance.
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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is a new front in Russia's Ukrainian war, emergency workers battling flames caused by airstrikes on the central city of Dnipro.
Ukrainian officials say an apartment building, a kindergarten and a two-story shoe factory were targeted and destroyed, causing casualties.
To the West, in the Ukrainian city of Lutsk, just 70 miles from NATO ally Poland, a strategic airfield also came under attack. With the invasion now in its third week, Russia appears to be widening its assault.
There are concerns of escalation too. Russian state television has been broadcasting these images, the fighters from Syria, said to be volunteering to join the fight on Russia side. The Kremlin backs the Syrian regime of Bashar Al Assad. And the scenes appeared shortly after Putin told the Security Council that foreign fighters should be invited to join in.
VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): So if you see people who want voluntarily without payment to come and help people living in Donbas, well, we need to meet their efforts and help them to reach the combat zone.
CHANCE: These are thugs from Syria, said President Zelenskyy of Ukraine of the country destroyed in the same way the occupiers are destroying us, he said.
Later, at a Kremlin meeting with his Belarusian ally, President Putin struck a different upbeat tone, saying he'd been informed of certain positive shifts in recent negotiations with Ukraine. Though it remains unclear what those positive shifts could be.
But they don't seem to be diverting Russia from its invasion course. New satellite images suggest a massive Russian military column north of the capital cave has now dispersed with some elements reposition in the forests and countryside around the Capitol.
And these are the latest images from the besieged Ukrainian town of Volnovakha in the country's southeast, Russian troops moving through the streets, which are now reported to be under their full control. Bit by bit, Ukraine, it seems, is being overrun -- Matthew Chance, CNN, Kyiv.
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GORANI: So Kharkiv in the east has seen relentless shelling and missile strikes from the very beginning. The mayor says 48 schools have now been destroyed, along with numerous apartment blocks.
Among the facilities hit, a psychoneurological boarding school. All 30 staff members and 330 patients -- mostly elderly and disabled -- were taken to a shelter before the shelling started. And officials say that, for them, this whole thing has been devastating.
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OLEG SINEGUBOV, GOVERNOR, KHARKIV REGION (through translator): There's nothing left here. People can no longer live in this building. Some people have left and yet some refused to leave for various reasons. And they don't have electricity, water, they don't have heating, gas.
We see how the enemy targets the civilian infrastructure near the residential blocks. Here in Kharkiv, there's not a single residential block that has not been damaged as a result of the Russian aggression.
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GORANI: That was from the Kharkiv regional governor. Not a single residential block that hasn't been damaged. But it is not just those civilian buildings. Among those schools hit by shelling and airstrikes, the Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology, home to a nuclear lab and a reactor.
Now the institute's director says the school has been hit by a number of shells but, luckily, the core was not damaged. And he dismissed Russian media reports that Ukraine is developing some sort of nuclear weapon.
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MYKOLA SHULGA, DIRECTOR GENERAL, NATIONAL SCIENCE CENTER (through translator): It is impossible to make nuclear weapons out of those nuclear fuel cells.
The fake news that has been circulating in the media about our institute working to produce nuclear weapons is absolutely not true. Furthermore, everything that is being worked on at the institute is fully controlled by the IAEA.
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GORANI: We should mention, speaking of nuclear power, Russia now occupies both the Chernobyl and Zaporizhzhia nuclear facilities and that they are using Ukrainian staff to keep them operational.
Now Russia's debunked allegations that the U.S. is helping Ukraine develop some sort of biological weapon, that took the center stage at the U.N. Security Council, Russia very much pushing this unfounded line.
Ukraine's ambassador slammed Russia before Friday's meeting, saying the council has been manipulated by what he called Putin's henchmen. The U.S. ambassador went further, saying Russia called the meeting so it can spread all these lies and misinformation.
As far as Moscow's allegations go?
She said this.
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LINDA THOMAS-GREENFIELD, AMBASSADOR TO THE U.N.: I will say this once: Ukraine does not have a biological weapons program. There are no Ukrainian biological weapons laboratories, supported by the United States, not near Russia's border or anywhere.
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GORANI: Well, the meeting happened after Washington and Kyiv alleged Russia was possibly preparing to use chemical weapons in Ukraine, accusing Ukraine of doing something it has the intention of all of using -- of doing itself. Nina dos Santos has more on that.
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NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): First, it was nuclear weapons Russia claimed Ukraine was working on. Now the Kremlin, with no evidence, is suggesting Kyiv has a secret chemical stash, too.
These allegations have been debunked multiple times, but fresh talk of chemical weapons is giving cause for concern.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): What are these allegations of preparing chemical attacks?
Have you decided to carry out de-chemicalization of Ukraine using ammonia?
Using phosphorus?
What else have you prepared for us?
JEN PSAKI, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: They not only have the capacity, they have a history of using chemical and biological weapons and in this moment, we should have our eyes open for that possibility.
DOS SANTOS: The White House warns Russia could be setting up a false flag operation, laying the ground work for a chemical attack of its own, just as in Syria where Russia was accused of providing cover for Bashar al-Assad's regime to use toxic gas on his own people.
KENNETH ROTH, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: Russia has this indirect complicity in chemical weapon use and indeed even went out of its way to try to cover up the Syrian military's use of chemical weapons.
DOS SANTOS: Thus far we haven't seen Russia engaging in chemical weapons warfare on innocent civilians in large numbers, have we?
ROTH: It hasn't done that so far, but this is not beyond the realm of possibility.
DOS SANTOS: What weapons does Moscow have?
No one knows exactly. There's no evidence Russia used more common chemical weapons like chlorine and sarin, all are banned internationally for their cruelty.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Russia will pay a severe price if they use chemical weapons.
DOS SANTOS: That price not yet clear, though.
How do you think the world would react?
BOB SEELY, BRITISH MP, U.K. FOREIGN AFFAIRS SELECT COMMITTEE: It will be crossing a line but not one necessarily that would spark a military response. If Putin knows that we will react militarily, then we know that he can decide on what terms the U.S. enters this war or NATO enters this war, which would be incredibly unwise.
DOS SANTOS: At a U.N. Security Council Friday, the U.S. was in no mood for disinformation.
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THOMAS-GREENFIELD: Today, the world is watching Russia do exactly what we warned it would.
DOS SANTOS: Russia is already facing calls for a war crime investigation for its alleged use of other banned weapons. The mere mention of chemical ones is a worrying escalation -- Nina dos Santos, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: So there is a physical war, then there is an information war and there are growing concerns, globally, over misinformation that's coming from Russia about the war in Ukraine.
This week's Russia's foreign ministry even claimed the country, quote, "did not attack Ukraine." This is Sergey Lavrov. Sergey Lavrov said we did not attack Ukraine.
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GORANI: One refugee from the Ukrainian city of Sumy painted a remarkable picture about one relative in Russia is actually hearing.
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DARIA MOLCHAN, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: She lives in Russia, like (INAUDIBLE). And when it started, the war, I called her and I said like, Mom, we like -- Russia, Russia attacked like Ukraine.
And she is like no, like it's not true. She is like the same thing, you know. Look this is your army making war, not ours. I said, Mom, they are bombing. You know, I'm her daughter and saying like it's crazy. We cannot live here. It's -- what is happening, it's like huge. It's war.
And she is like, until today, she don't believe me. Like, she is my mother. I am telling her what is happening. Like, that we are going to shelters, you know, we hear bombs. There is like attacks.
And she said she is -- she is not believing me. So I stopped talking to her because, like, what can -- like I can't -- if she don't believe her own daughter, she's all like totally brainwashed from TV, you know, because their TV is like all this propaganda.
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GORANI: That woman in Sumy says her own mother doesn't believe her when she tells her there is a war going on. Asami Terajima is a political reporter from "The Kyiv Independent" and she joins me now live here in Lviv.
Let's talk about what is going on in Mariupol, besieged city encircled by Russian forces. You are telling me this is one of the significant elements that we need to discuss. Tell me why.
ASAMI TERAJIMA, POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT, "THE KYIV INDEPENDENT": Because Mariupol is unfortunately facing a deepening humanitarian crisis. There are at least -- about 400,000 people still trapped in a basement, hiding under Russian bombardment, because -- and they are -- they are cut off from electricity, heat and water.
There are about 3,000 newborn children, who are still, you know, who lack medicine and food. And the people are just running out of food and drinkable water. So it's a very concerning issue. And it is -- if nothing changes, then thousands of people are going to die in the next few days.
GORANI: The Russians -- I mean, there was some agreement for humanitarian corridors to be put in place. But the reports are that the Russians are not allowing people to go out and that they continuously fire on these humanitarian corridors.
Is that also what you are hearing?
TERAJIMA: Yes, there are many reports. There are many evacuations attempts from Mariupol. But all -- they have all failed. And the mass evacuation hasn't been successful in Mariupol so far, even though it's been successful in some other -- some other cities.
GORANI: So let's talk about the western expansion of these airstrikes. In Lutsk, we saw an airport damaged. We saw, in other parts of Western Ukraine, civilian targets that were also hit by the Russians. Tell us more about that.
TERAJIMA: Yes. So it's -- so Russia -- so initially, Russia's strategy was, you know, targeting like military objects. But now, they've focus -- they're focusing more on, you know, targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, including residential buildings. So what you saw in like Western Ukraine yesterday, so this is
concerning, because we don't like -- we -- many of hundreds of thousands of people have come from eastern part of the country and you know, war-torn cities to Western Ukraine because they -- they seek safety.
And now, we don't know where in Ukraine it's going to be safe. And you don't know what's going to happen in Lviv. Like Lviv has been pretty safe so far. It hasn't faced any direct attacks from Russia, but we don't know how long that is going to last, because it is one of the fuel orbit (ph) centers in Ukraine that still hasn't faced any direct attack.
So hopefully, things will stay safe because we know that there is lots of refugees right now in Lviv. But we don't know what could happen in the nearest future.
GORANI: And now, in the first two weeks of this Russian attack, we saw so much determination from ordinary Ukrainians, not just the military but ordinary Ukrainians, to defend their country, to defend their families.
Are they still, based on who you're -- the people you are speaking with -- are they -- do they still have that determination?
Or is this relentless Russian' onslaught starting to damage morale, do you think?
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TERAJIMA: Every day that Russia continues to attack civilians and many -- it destroys Ukrainian cities. It -- the strength of Ukrainian people only gets stronger. So everyone, every single day, are united more than ever and are supporting each other because we all believe that we will prevail this war. And Ukraine will never, ever surrender.
GORANI: OK. And are Ukrainians, by and large, satisfied with how Western countries have decided that they will help Ukraine?
I know some people have called for a no-fly zone. Western countries have been quite explicit as to why they don't want to go there.
But apart from that aspect, which I know some people are frustrated with, are they satisfied by the sanctions, by the weapons that Western countries are sending over?
TERAJIMA: We are seeing more than we have expected. So this is a good thing. But at the same time, we want more. We need more weapons. We need more sanctions.
We -- we want, you know, we want all Russian banks to be cut off from the SWIFT international payment order system. And we need -- we need more sanctions. But at the same time, yes, Western efforts have been -- have been promising so far.
GORANI: Yes. So when you say all Russian banks, that would mean including the ones that facilitate payment for, for instance, gas, gas purchases, which -- which Germany, among other countries, has said that's off the table.
You think they should go there?
TERAJIMA: Of course, because, you know, this is where Putin's -- you know, Russian president and dictator Putin is getting the money from. You know, this is the fuel for Russia to kill Ukrainian civilians and militaries.
GORANI: Yes. Asami Terajima, thank you very much, as a political reporter for the -- are you normally based in Kyiv?
TERAJIMA: Yes.
GORANI: So you are here because obviously of the -- of the circumstances there. Thank you so much for joining us. Really appreciate having you on CNN, Asami Terajima.
The conflict in Ukraine has been called the world's first TikTok war, though it really isn't, because we saw in Syria how much social media was used there. But this one, too, is being widely documented on the social media platform.
You may have seen viral videos like this one of a girl describing everyday life in a bomb shelter.
In light of the influence users like these can have with younger audiences, the Biden administration held a briefing Thursday with around 30 content creators, giving them an update on developments in Ukraine and how the U.S. sees the conflict moving forward.
One of the big aims is to help combat misinformation on social media. The war in Ukraine is not just being waged by the military. After the break, why a group of armed men detained a Ukrainian mayor in broad daylight.
Also, more than 2 million people have fled Ukraine amid the invasion. We will meet one volunteer who opened her home to many, many refugees. We'll be right back.
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GORANI: Well, this hour, the mayor of a southern Ukraine city is in captivity. The Ukrainian foreign ministry says Ivan Fedorov, the mayor of Melitopol, Ukraine, was, in their words, abducted. You can see it on CCTV footage in this video.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) GORANI (voice-over): You see him being led away from a government building by about 10 armed men. A prosecutor in the Russian-backed Lugansk region claims the mayor committed terrorism offenses and is under investigation. No proof provided of that allegation. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls the incident, "a crime against democracy."
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VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Therefore, they have switched to a new stage of terror, when they are trying to physically eliminate representatives of the legitimate local Ukrainian authorities.
It is clear to any democratic state in the world that a legitimately elected mayor is a true representative to the people. Ukraine demands the release of the mayor of Melitopol and guarantees a full security to all heads of communities across the country.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, people who are fleeing this country are facing harsh, freezing temperatures as they try to escape.
And in Romania, for instance, Red Cross volunteers were afraid that some of the refugees -- and you see some of the people who fled crossing the Danube -- that they could even be suffering from frostbite as they made their way to safety.
Overall, more than 2.5 million people have fled since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine more than two weeks ago. According to the U.N., Poland is the country that's received the majority of them, with more than 1.5 million crossing into the -- across the Polish border. Many who have made the grueling journey just want the fighting to be over.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have like only one desire, that everything -- I want everything to finish as soon as possible and it's like, to live in peace.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): My favorite country is Ukraine. We were under bombardment there, heavy bombardment. We did not ask for that. We had a good life. We do not know what they want from us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GORANI: Well, many of those crossing borders to safety are depending on the kindness of strangers on the other side. Miguel Marquez introduces us to one woman in Bucharest, Romania, trying to ease the plight of those escaping war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: There are many normal everyday Romanians who have stepped up to the call. We are in a house south of Bucharest. They've taken in -- right now, they have 31 people living here.
I just want to give you -- this is a good example of how many people -- these are the shoes, for some, most of the people that are here, many of them are out doing other things right now. They have cared for about 61 people in all over the last few weeks. They have three more refugees coming tonight.
And it's Alina Greavu who is a sort of an organizer here in Bucharest.
You are doing this?
What -- tell us where we're standing. This is the entryway to this house with the coats, all these donations.
What are we looking at here?
ALINA GREAVU, ROMANIAN HOSTING REFUGESS: You're looking at our house that my husband and I decided to sell last year. We moved to Bucharest to be closer to the kindergarten and it was empty.
And when everything started in Ukraine, we said, why don't we use the house that's empty to host people during this crisis?
MARQUEZ: So now you have 31 people here right now.
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MARQUEZ: You have a -- you have volunteers.
How many volunteers does it take?
How much effort does it take to keep 31 people, 31 refugees kind of up and going?
GREAVU: We have over 80 young people on our WhatsApp group. Yes, some of them come here every day. Some of them sleep here at night. Some of them just help us online. And I don't know, it's a huge effort, mostly because we don't speak Russian so we need a couple of people who can help us with that.
Some of them have -- need special attention. They have certain issues with their papers, they -- their diseases and stuff like that.
MARQUEZ: There's one woman who has cancer who now you're helping sort out a surgery for her here.
GREAVU: Yes, one of the volunteers who also speaks Russian is helping her in medical controls because she -- I think she might get a surgery in Romania because, in Kiev, it couldn't happen.
MARQUEZ: And how concerned are -- you are Romanian, how concerned are you, your husband? You see what's happening right across the border. You're hearing -- they're hearing some of the firepower now on the west side of Ukraine.
How concerned are you about what's happening at your doorstep?
GREAVU: You know that old saying like carpe diem, which is like just live in the moment?
MARQUEZ: Seize the day.
GREAVU: Or seize the day?
Yes. We don't want to be to be thinking about what could happen in Romania. So we'd rather keep ourselves busy. That's helping these people. We know that it's a very fragile moment and anything can happen. We would rather not think about --
MARQUEZ: And try and not think -- focus on the positive.
How long is this sustainable?
GREAVU: Maybe for like half a year, considering our donations and the fact that we don't have to pay rent. We just have to pay the utilities and people keep helping us with food. And they donated us medicine and clothing and diapers and everything we need.
MARQUEZ: Amazing. And ALUZIVA is the name of the organization, A-L-U- Z-I-V-A.
You can find them if you search them, correct?
GREAVU: Yes.
MARQUEZ: Very good luck to you. You have your work cut out for you. And they're still coming.
Three more refugees coming this evening?
No end to it.
This is all free as well to them, correct?
GREAVU: We have a lot of mattresses. And we can --
MARQUEZ: Are you --
GREAVU: -- put even more.
MARQUEZ: -- are you considering bunk beds?
GREAVU: But we just -- yes, we just didn't want to crowd people. We still wanted them to have a bit of privacy and like a square meter around their beds, not to feel very crowded.
MARQUEZ: Thank you very much.
And this is happening here. It's happening in homes throughout Romania, hotels. It is happening in homes all over Europe right now.
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GORANI: All right, Miguel Marquez, thanks for that. Very, very generous hosts there.
If you would like to help people -- sometimes we all feel helpless when we see these stories -- if you would like to help people in Ukraine, who may be in need of shelter, food, water, go to cnn.com/impact. And there are several organizations there that we have listed for you.
CNN gets an insider's look into surveillance work that's underway in the skies here in Ukraine. Next, our crew climbs on board a NATO plane that keeps track of Russian military flights.
And European Union leaders find ways to hit Russia where it hurts: in the wallet. Details on some even tougher new sanctions -- after this.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.
GORANI: Welcome back to our viewers around the world. I'm Hala Gorani. You are watching CNN. Let's bring you up to date on what has been happening across Ukraine in the last 24 hours.
The Russian military is keeping up the pressure on Ukrainian cities that have been largely spared until recently.
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GORANI (voice-over): This is video from the central city of Dnipro a short time ago. A CNN crew felt at least two outgoing explosions and saw smoke in the sky, which appeared to be remnants of anti-aircraft fire.
Dnipro had not seen any attacks until Friday, when Russia expanded its offensive into parts of central and even Western Ukraine.
That's when Russian aircraft also hit an airport in the city of Lutsk, causing this massive fireball. Ukrainian officials say at least two people were killed and the airport is only about 110 kilometers from the Polish border.
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We now want to follow up on a story we told you about yesterday. This week, a CNN crew joined a NATO surveillance plane flying over Eastern Europe and monitoring Russia's military moves in Ukraine. The plane saw fighter jets flying in from Belarus and now we can show
you a reaction from a NATO crew member as he monitors -- monitored those jets on his radar. Natasha Bertrand has this story.
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NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: CNN was granted rare access to a NATO surveillance flight on Thursday that flew for roughly 13 hours over the Ukrainian-Polish border, monitoring Ukrainian airspace and looking for Russian activity there.
While onboard, the NATO airmen that told us they could see Russian- made aircraft taking off from Belarus and entering Ukrainian airspace, an apparent indication that these Russian-made aircraft were taking off in support of Russian military operations in Ukraine.
Now they were unable to tell for sure whether or not those operators of the aircraft were Russian or Belarusian, because both countries use the same kind of aircraft.
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BERTRAND: But what they told us is that this is a clear indication that Belarus is allowing Russia to use its country as a staging ground. Take a listen to what one NATO airman told me onboard yesterday.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We do see activity coming from Belarus going into the Ukraine. But we cannot distinguish whether these are Russian aircraft or Belarusian aircraft.
Sometimes there are certain periods on a day, which are not on a regular basis, where we do have a lot of activity going in, like a larger package, with 10 to perhaps 20 aircraft coming in from the Belarusian airspace into Ukraine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BERTRAND: Now we did ask whether the intelligence that is gathered during flights like these is shared directly with Kyiv. And we were told that NATO as a bloc is not providing that intelligence to Ukraine, because they are very wary, of course, of getting involved directly in the conflict.
But when it comes to the intelligence that is given to the NATO members themselves and shared amongst them, that is at their discretion to share with Kyiv -- Natasha Bertrand, CNN, Brussels.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, Europe's fourth round of sanctions against Russia has just been implemented. Take a look at what they are. They're -- they're tough, tougher than they have been. Russia will lose its most favored nation status in European markets.
That means no benefits from being in the World Trade Organization, for instance. Also, membership rights in the top financial institutions are gone. This includes the World Bank and the IMF, the International Monetary Fund.
The E.U. will also make sure Russia cannot use crypto assets to get around any of these sanctions. Unclear how they will do that.
And finally, Europe is halting exports of luxury goods and won't import any Russian iron or steel goods.
The U.S. and other G7 nations are taking similar actions. The European sanctions were announced at a summit of E.U. leaders in Versailles. The French president, who holds the current E.U. presidency, says this latest round of sanctions may not even be the last. Melissa Bell explains.
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MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A message of support to Ukraine and of determination against Russian aggression. That was what came out of two days of summit at Versailles just outside of Paris on Thursday and Friday.
But also, a determination on the part of the French, who hold the rotating presidency. The European Union were hosting the 26 other European Union leaders, that it is time to consider to give a kickstart to European sovereignty.
The idea after what happened last summer when, for the first time, Europe -- Europeans decided that they could raise debt in order to help fight the effects of the COVID crisis.
That is what the French presidency wants to see extended to Europe's ability now to weather the storm and the macroeconomic shocks that will definitely be coming from all that's been playing out in Ukraine these last couple of weeks.
So a stronger-than-ever Europe is what they have been talking about but also the idea of how they can extend a hand to Ukraine. Some European countries determined that the regular process of accession needs to be followed.
This after Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced at the end of February that he was looking for a fast-track accession for Ukraine to the European Union.
That cannot happen, said the 27. There are procedures. It can take months, it can take years. And yet, Brussels is going to be looking at ways to extend its hand to a country that it believes -- and this in a statement signed by the 27 -- that Ukraine is definitely going to be part of the European family -- Melissa Bell, CNN, Paris.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GORANI: Well, that's the very latest from me. I will see you at the top of the hour. But for now, back to Paula Newton in Atlanta.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Hala.
As you were just saying from a ban on Russian energy imports to new restrictions over trade, they are major economic repercussions coming for Russia. We will assess the global impact next.
Plus, gasoline prices still climbing in the United States, even after reaching record highs. But help may, soon, be on the way. Details, next.
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NEWTON: U.S. financial markets ended the week in the red, marking another ugly time on Wall Street. Now the Dow has now notched its fifth straight week of losses. The Nasdaq and S&P were both down as well. The selloff was driven, of course, by President Biden calling for suspension of normal trade relations with Russia.
It is the latest in a line of sanctions designed to try and isolate Moscow economically. Now it may be too early to say relief is on the way for Americans paying record high gasoline prices.
While the price of crude, you see it there, fell 5.5 percent this week, it is still hovering around 14-year highs. The weekly decline has been driven, in part, by those tentative signs of more supply. Again, they're tentative signs from OPEC.
The unprecedented spike in energy bills, though, will take a significant chunk out of household budgets. CNN's Kyung Lah spoke to some Californians, who are being forced to make some tough decisions.
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RUBEN PONCE, INDEPENDENT TRUCK DRIVER: I'm an owner-operator, which means I own my own truck. There's no cutting back when it comes to diesel.
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: On the road with independent driver Ruben Ponce who has no options around the skyrocketing price of fuel.
PONCE: Every week, it was getting higher and higher and higher, $100 more today and it was also $100 more two days ago and if you think about it it's an extra $800 more a month. I don't care who you are, that's going to hurt you.
LAH: The pain is worse in California, where gas prices are higher than any other state in the U.S. and financial fear is already impacting families. Here in the Los Angeles area, people are waiting up to 30 minutes to fill their tanks. This isn't a supply issue. It is all about the price. This gas station is selling it for about $1 gallon less than other stations nearby. So the people who are waiting in line it is worth their time just to save some cash.
[02:45:00]
LAH (voice-over): And no one is immune from the doctor to the new mom.
ALICIA BROWN, WORKING MOTHER: Then I got to go back to work, then get off work to drive and then go back home.
LAH: All that back and forth already means Alicia Brown can't make her day care for 8-month-old Josiah (ph) work.
BROWN: I'm about to get him out of his daycare, because I can't afford the gas.
LAH: Kevin Corbin works a second job for Uber Eats to support his family; $30 at the pump starts his evening.
How much gas was that?
KEVIN CORBIN, PART-TIME FOOD DELIVERY DRIVER: A little over 3.5 gallons.
LAH: 3.5 gallons?
CORBIN: Yes, that's it. Minus the $30, I made $13.
LAH: Last night, you made $13 last night?
CORBIN: If you factor in I put $30 in the tank, $13.
LAH: But economists say accounting for wages and inflation, the consumer can handle the rise in prices.
LEO FELER, SENIOR ECONOMIST, UCLA ANDERSON FORECAST: As a fraction of everything we consume, gas is smaller today, even at $6 a gallon, than it was 10 years ago, than it was 40 years ago.
LAH: What's different now is how Americans feel in 2022.
FELER: We're hitting up on, you know, exhaustion on human beings.
LAH: So you're exhausted and pull into the gas station and you see that.
FELER: And you're more exhausted.
LAH: Right.
Ruben Ponce fears that uncertainty won't stop at his truck and will trickle down to the average consumer.
Is that coming to their house?
Is that going to come to their bank account?
PONCE: I don't see how it's not. Food, clothes, whatever it is, it's going to go up. So we're all going to feel it.
LAH: Kyung Lah, CNN, Long Beach, California.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: So millions are, of course, fleeing from Ukraine. But people aren't the only refugees. We will go to an animal rescue center in Poland, taking in beloved pets -- and they are beloved. That's after the break.
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(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[02:50:00]
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NEWTON: There's more heartbreak for the people in Ukraine as they flee their homes. Many to have decide whether to leave their beloved pets behind or bring them along on a difficult journey. Sara Sidner reports on an animal rescue shelter in Poland taking in pet refugees.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This is Moon. She is a survivor of war.
SIDNER: Medically, what are -- what is wrong with her?
Is she sick?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, she's sick. She is in bad condition.
SIDNER: She's dehydrated.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.
SIDNER: She's scared.
She has lots of problems. Pancreatitis, maybe worms.
She also has a tumor that needs to be removed. But at least she's alive. Rescued from a shelter in Ukraine after the war began.
She's not aggressive or she's --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
SIDNER: -- just letting you do what she needs for you to do. It's OK, sweetie. This veterinarian must poke and prod her to find out just how sick she really is.
Everything is in this dog's ear. Dirt. Wax.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You -- we must clean this ear --
SIDNER: Same.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: -- for seven days.
SIDNER: Seven days?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
SIDNER: You have to keep doing this?
The staff at the ADA Foundation treats these dogs as their own. It is a no-kill animal shelter in Przemysl, Poland. Hundreds of animals from war-torn Ukraine are being cared for here.
The humans have not slept much since the war began in neighboring Ukraine. They are just a few miles from the Polish-Ukrainian border. The staff has been driving into war torn Ukraine to save truckloads of shelter animals and pets people simply couldn't carry across the border.
In another room, more animals, different war stories.
This is Sasha. Oh. And she is from Ukraine.
A baby goat brought from Ukraine with legs that needed mending.
Who's going to be a good boy?
Who's it going to be, baby?
Sasha, is a newborn, just 7 days old. You can tell because he tries to nurse on my earlobe, biting down when no milk comes out. The doctors say without the care he got here, he would have starved to death if left alone in Ukraine.
She would've died if she wasn't here basically.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. He had --
SIDNER: Oh, he would die. He would die if he wasn't here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He would die.
SIDNER: The son of ADA Foundation's founder tells us Sasha was dropped off here by a woman after she escaped from Ukraine into Poland but had nowhere to take him. But she left one instruction: she will be back to get him. She loves him. He's family.
These are just two animal war stories of hundreds and more arrive every week.
[02:55:00]
SIDNER (voice-over): And every week, these animals get top-notch care. To the staff here, these war refugees are as important to care for as the human kind -- Sara Sidner, CNN, Poland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
NEWTON: Such generosity on display there.
We close with a glimmer of hope amid the horror. A pregnant woman who survived the Mariupol hospital bombing has given birth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON (voice-over): Here you see her right after the blast. She is bloodied and injured as, of course, she fled the destruction. This photo and others illustrating the barbarity of the war currently at this hour underway in Ukraine.
She is one of more than a dozen people injured in that attack. Three people including a young child were in fact killed. The great news is that she has given birth to a baby girl. You see the picture there, she's being cradled by her father in those newly published photographs there, holding that baby. The Ukrainian ambassador announced at the U.N. Security Council the baby's name is Veronica.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
NEWTON: We wish them well. Thank you for watching. We'll be back live from Ukraine after a short break.
