Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Russian Missiles Hit Military Base Near Poland Border; American Journalist Killed In Irpin; Russian Forces Nearing The Capital Of Ukraine; Fears Of Russia's Use Of Chemical Weapons; International Space Station Between Geopolitical Tensions; Refugees Fleeing Ukraine Now At 2.7 Million; Moments Of Hope Amid The War. Aired 5-6p ET

Aired March 13, 2022 - 17:00   ET

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

[17:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You're live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington and we begin with a major Russian military strike today very close to the border of a NATO country. Thirty-five people are dead and more than 130 are hospitalized after missiles hit a military base near Lviv in western Ukraine. Just 11 miles, that's right, 11 miles from Poland's border.

And in the besieged port of city Mariupol, local officials confirm more than 2,000 people have been killed just in that city since the invasion began. A humanitarian convoy carrying food and water failed to reach Mariupol today as did prevention attempts. Doctors Without Borders, a representative there tells me we will soon begin to see people die from dehydration and hunger because of those shortages.

And another southern city in Ukraine, a Russian strike hit a village school. Video shows it's still on fire. A place for learning now reduced to rubble. An official there says rescuers are trying to evacuate people who are trapped and Russian ground forces also continuing their push towards Ukraine's capital Kyiv. They are only at 15 miles away at this point which makes this video all the more remarkable.

Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelenskyy is out walking the streets of Kyiv and visiting with wounded Ukrainian soldiers in a hospital despite the risk, knowing that he is Vladimir Putin's number one target. Other elected officials in Ukraine also in danger.

Ukraine's foreign minister says Russian forces have abducted a second mayor in Ukraine in order to install pro-Russian replacements and it comes just days after the mayor of Melitopol was last seen on camera, there he is, being dragged away by armed men, a bunch of thugs dragging off a mayor of the city in Ukraine.

Let's begin with CNN's Scott McLean in Lviv in western Ukraine. Scott, what's the latest on these deadly Russian strikes on that military base, Ukraine's military base so close to the polish border? That sounds like an escalation in all of this? SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It certainly caught a lot of people

off guard, Jim, because obviously, as you mentioned 11 miles from the Polish border. This part of the country certainly in many ways probably felt like it was immune from the worse of the Russian air campaign because you would think that Vladimir Putin wouldn't want to get too close to a NATO ally country. That is apparently not the case.

Now, this military base is a sprawling facility. Typically it's there for foreign soldiers to come in from the United States, from Canada, from Europe to train Ukrainians troops in combat, in peacekeeping, things like that. AS you mentioned, nearby is a wooded area that stretches all the way to the border. It's also not far from a main road that leads to a border crossing that many refugees have been using as of late.

Now, 35 people were killed. Many, many more injured and one possible explanation for the high fatality count is according to one witness who spoke to CNN, the soldiers, the troops on that base, had gone down to a bunker to shelter in place while the air raid sirens were going off.

About 30, 40 minutes later when it seemed like things had gone to normal, this witness said that they started returning back to their places and then all of a sudden you had these three strikes hitting that area and leaving some pretty serious craters as well.

Obviously, the risk with this, Jim, is that many people from other parts of Ukraine have come to cities like Lviv, like Ivano-Frankivsk, which has also been hit in recent times. And if people start feeling like these cities are not safe, you may have a whole new rush to the borders.

ACOSTA: And Scott, an American journalist was killed and two other journalists were wounded by Russian forces near Kyiv. Just terrible news. What can you tell us about that?

MCLEAN: Yes. So this was in Irpin. This is an area that has taken some really heavy shelling over -- since the beginning of the war. And so this journalist, Brent Renaud, is his name, 50 years old, was working on a project for "Time" magazine we now know, to document the plight of refugees around the world, and obviously this is one place that is experiencing a lot of them.

This was an experienced war correspondent. Someone who had been in hot spots around the world. One of his colleagues Jose Arredondo, another American, was injured. When they had gone through a checkpoint. This is according to Arredondo's telling in a new social media video. Listen.

(BNEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNKNOWN: Tell me please, what is your name?

JUAN ARREDONDO, AMERICAN JOURNALIST: Juan.

UNKNOWN: Juan? ARREDONDO: Juan.

UNKNOWN: Where are you from?

ARREDONDO: The U.S.

UNKNOWN: U.S. What's happened to you?

[17:04:58]

ARREDONDO: We were, we crossed one of, the first bridge in Irpin. We're going to film other refugees leaving. And we got into a car. Somebody offered to take us to the other bridge and we crossed a checkpoint and they started shooting at us. So, the driver turned around and they kept shooting. It's two of us. My friend is Brent Renaud and he's been shot and left behind.

UNKNOWN: And how is he?

ARREDONDO: I don't know. I don't know.

UNKNOWN: You don't know? You don't know what happened to your friend?

ARREDONDO: I saw him being shot in the neck, and we got split, and I got pulled into the --

UNKNOWN: And who brought you here?

ARREDONDO: An ambulance. I don't know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLEAN: So my apologies. That's Juan Arredondo there. He has worked previously with "The New York Times," "National Geographic" and plenty of others. The committee to protect journalist in response to this incident today called for those who -- the perpetrators to be brought to justice. Jim?

ACOSTA: Scott McLean, and our thoughts go out to Renaud's family. He had so many colleagues who just thought he was an excellent journalist. A tremendous journalist was lost today. Scott McLean, thank you very much.

Joining me now is legendary chess grandmaster and fierce Putin critic, Garry Kasparov. He is the chairman of the Human Rights Foundation and Renewed Democracy Initiative. Garry, I know you've been saying that Putin needs conflict to survive. And you tweeted, and we could put this up, "I find it infuriating to hear how reasonable and deescalatory the west is being, as if it's proud of, if it's something to be proud of. It fails. It fails because Putin doesn't want de- escalation. But there is no nerve to match his escalation with strength as is required."

So what's the answer to all of this, Garry? I mean, you know, I suppose it might be fairly predictable to some that Putin is escalating these attacks. The Russians are escalating these attacks, firing strikes from warplanes, just miles from the Polish border. Talk of using chemical weapons and so on. This is escalation, not de- escalation. Putin is moving in that direction for sure.

GARRY KASPAROV, CHESS MASTER: Absolutely, and he's saving himself. And Russian propaganda keeps repeating, the war in Ukraine is not just war in Ukraine, it's Russia's war against NATO and the United States. That's their war. And it's not a question if the military conflict as the escalation reached a point of military confrontation. It's only when because Putin will be testing NATO. Step by step.

You can keep, you know, back pedaling and voiding it, but it's impossible to avoid it if Putin wants it. And he wants to demonstrate that NATO is (inaudible). That NATO might have weapons but is lacking political will. And he's campaign of terror in Ukraine and we are witnessing war crimes on an industrial scale now. And it's not only eastern or central Ukraine (inaudible), it's western Ukraine. It's a demonstration that his nuclear blackmail is working and NATO, despite its military might, is passively watching these crimes.

ACOSTA: So what do you say, Garry, to skeptics of NATO escalating things or the U.S. increasing its involvement in what's happening in Ukraine who say that this invites a World War III? That this may be exactly what Putin wants and so on. That this could be falling into his trap. You know, when you hear those kinds of comments, we all hear those comments, and I'm not minimizing them, diminishing them at all, what do you say?

KASPAROV: Read history books. We heard these calls in mid-'30s. I don't provoke Hitler. We know how it ended. It's known from history and also from Putin's (inaudible) history. It's his record. That offering him concessions, appeasement and demonstrating weakness only provokes him towards escalation.

We already in World War III. This war yet to involve open military conflict between NATO and Russian forces but the free world imposed economic sanctions that are aimed to ruin Putin's regime and Putin's fighting back. So, there's no need to pretend that NATO could keep avoiding this confrontation if America is ready to defend NATO territory like Lithuania or Poland because that also involves military confrontation with Russia.

So, its question -- it's only when it happens and sooner we do it, so better the chances that Putin's generals and admirals will not have resolve to follow Putin's criminal order. So, concessions? They are making actually the chances of confrontation on a much higher level and on Putin terms much more probable.

[17:10:03]

ACOSTA: Right. I mean, there's the thought that, you know, sending in the MIG's, sending in fighter jets to Ukraine after there's been a chemical attack, after more ground has been lost may not be all that helpful to the Ukrainians at that point.

But let me ask you about something else, Garry, and that is, you know, a second Ukrainian mayor was abducted by Russian forces today. In the first case, in Melitopol. We've been showing this footage to our viewers. It's just remarkable to see, you know, these thugs go in and drag a mayor out of a building, out of an official building.

And it sounds as though what they're trying to do in some of these places is, you know, they drag the mayor out and they put in their own people to try to create, you know, some veneer of an official government, an occupied government, I suppose. Is that out of the Putin playbook? What did you think when you saw that?

KASPAROV: Oh, again, just look what's happened in Crimea and in part of Donbas that a Russia de facto occupied since 2014. They declared some sort of a people's republic there with their puppets and they tried to do the same in Ukraine. I'm sure Putin had plans to do the same in Kyiv, but failed to take Ukrainian capital.

And as they said, they wanted to decapitate Ukrainian government and I am afraid it was not only a political term and I'm sure there were few candidates to become Putin's cronies to speak on behalf of Ukraine from Kyiv. Since it's failed, they are trying to do it on a smaller scale and they are running, you know, with very few candidates because it seems to me that there's always no support for Russian occupation among -- even Russian-speaking Ukrainians.

So that's why they are abducting mayors just to terrorize people and to make them submit to Russian rule through terror. Since there's no goodwill among Ukrainians and Russians, I think they can feel the heat (inaudible).

ACOSTA: And let me ask you about what the former Ukrainian president, Petro Poroshenko has been saying. He says that he thinks that what is happening in Ukraine right now will spell the end essentially of Russians ambitions for an empire. Putin's ambitions for an empire. Do you agree with him? And the one thought that I have about that is, as inspiring as the Ukrainian leadership has been and their courage has been to the world, I think, Garry, there is also the prospect that we may see Putin just grind this out for months on end.

And you have to wonder at what point can the Ukrainians really withstand that, to the point of a victory over their Russian occupiers, their Russian aggressors? Is it possible that Putin could just grind this out to a point where Ukraine has to buckle?

KASPAROV: It is possible if we do nothing because Ukraine has a big army and it's getting stronger every day. There's no shortage of man power. Actually, Ukrainian army is bigger than invading (inaudible) and Putin is bringing resources from everywhere. It seems that he's bringing Russian soldiers from military base in Armenia, some of them coming from Syria.

The marines have been brought now from Far East. So Putin's running low on his resources, heavy armor and man power. And all Ukraine needs is support now. So air support to close the skies and ideally, you know, the missiles that could defeat Russian targets not only in just immediate distance, but also their bases, for instance, in Crimea.

So it's a war that Ukraine can win if we offer them support. And they have not only enough man power, they have the spirit. It's not heroism of a few people. It's the whole nation that is fighting for its freedom. And it's a front line if freedom.

Victory of Ukraine in this war and Putin's military defeat will trigger the changes in Russia, and it's what we all need and hopefully it will change the trend, the negative trend for democracy all those 15 years and it will be also a very good, strong signal for China and other potential aggressors that we'll recognize that the free world still has teeth and political resolve to fight back.

ACOSTA: All right. Garry Kasparov. Always great to talk to you. Thanks so much for joining us again. We appreciate it.

KASPAROV: Thank you very much for inviting me.

ACOSTA: It is sounding like a page out of Putin's playbook. Why there are growing fears Russia may be preparing to use chemical weapons in Ukraine. That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:15:00]

ACOSTA: As Ukraine continues to be bombarded by Russian attacks, the U.S. is directing $200 million worth of immediate military assistance to Ukraine. This comes as the White House warns that Vladimir Putin could use chemical or biological weapons. CNN's Oren Liebermann joins me now from the Pentagon.

Oren, thanks for being with us. Is this the U.S. strategy at this point as increased worry about chemical weapons takes center stage to stay on top of this and when this intelligence comes forward, get it out to the world, get it out to the American people?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: On the intelligence side, absolutely. We've seen the U.S. essentially pumping out intelligence about Russia's intentions for quite a few weeks now. Even perhaps quite a few months about not only the buildup of forces, but then in the days leading up to the invasion.

The U.S. strategy is clear, avoid direct conflict with Russia, but get as much aid to Ukraine as possible. That's not only the $200 million we saw announced over this weekend, $350 million in aid from a couple of weeks ago and more on top of that in recent weeks and months. Crucially that aid is now going in faster than it ever has before. Instead of taking weeks or months, it takes just a few days to begin moving in all of that as quickly as possible.

On the issue of chemical weapons. Let's be clear here. The U.S. has been clear. Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby actually said it earlier this morning.

[17:19:59]

The U.S. has not seen evidence that Russia is preparing an attack with chemical weapons at this time, but what concerns them is the track record here and the rhetoric they're seeing around it.

Remember, Russia has a history using these, if you will. First in the poisoning of Sergei Skripal in the U.K., the poisoning of Russian opposition politician Alexiei Navalny, backing the Assad regime in Syria as they used chemical weapons. So there is a track record here.

Then on top of that is the language. The Russian foreign ministry and other parts of the Russian administration accusing the U.S. and Defense Department of working with Ukraine on chemical and biological weapons. That the U.S. worries is a false flag operation or preparations for one, and an indication that maybe Russia is planning this as well. So Jim, they're watching this very closely.

ACOSTA: Yes, they are the masters in the art of projection. Oren Liebermann, thank you very much and we appreciate it.

Joining me now is William Cohen. He was secretary of defense under President Clinton. He comes on the show often. Mr. Secretary, always great to see you. President Biden says Russia will pay a severe price if it uses chemical weapons in Ukraine. We don't know what that price is. The president hasn't specified what it is and he quite frankly, shouldn't. I mean, that is what you do as commander-in-chief, 101. But what do you think the administration should consider in terms of drawing a red line with Vladimir Putin when it comes to chemical weapons?

WILLIAM COHEN, SECERATARY OF DEFENSE UNDER PRESIDENT CLINTON: Well, again, we need to keep it as ambiguous as possible other than saying it will be very severe. When you look at what's going on in the battlefield right now, he hasn't begun to feel the severity of what could take place if the United States does, in fact, decide to respond in kind.

You said something earlier when you're asking the true master chess player in the world. You asked him whether or not the Ukrainians could hold on. I would say the Ukrainians can hold on a lot longer than perhaps we can in the United States. We're already seeing some members of the press or in some on the political party start to mock President Biden.

What we need to do in this country to hold it together is that every time someone goes by a gas station, it should be a sticker with Putin's face on it that says, genius at work. This is Putin raising your gas prices not President Biden. So, we need to hold this country together and that would be harder to do that I think than what the Ukrainians are doing like fighting for their lives and being brave in the face of catastrophic hell. So, we need to be tougher as tough as the Ukrainians are.

ACOSTA: And I was talking to General Peters (inaudible) about some of this in the previous hour and he has been opposed to really escalating things in terms of providing weaponry to the Ukrainians. And he said he was wavering on that somewhat. And today, the National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan stood by the administration's decision to reject a Polish offer to transfer fighter jets to Ukraine over concerns that it could cause an escalation. There are senators from both sides of the aisle who are pushing back

on some of those concerns. Let me play a little of that and get your thoughts on the other side.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. RICHARD BLUMENTHAL (D-CT): My personal feeling is we should provide those planes because they are potentially very important to the Ukrainian defense.

SEN. ROB PORTMAN (R-OH): We have given them helicopters as recently as January. We provided them U.S. military helicopters, and those are directly from the United States. I don't understand why this is any worse than from the Russian point of view that other things that we've already done or that we're talking about.

SEN. AMY KLOBUCHAR (D-MN): I still don't rule out having planes at some point, but, again, you take one day at a time and make the best defense system decisions and that can't always be discussed on the air or you'd be giving Vladimir Putin the road map.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: What do you think, Mr. Secretary?

COHEN: Well, I've been inching my way to that as well, but I've be driven partly by the fact I'm tired of the Russians telling us what we can do. They have invaded an independent sovereign country. They are laying siege to those cities. They are killing hundreds if not thousands of innocent people. They are creating a massive immigration problem for the rest of Europe to cope with. And now to hear them say, oh, it's unacceptable. You'll become targets if you provide any of this type of equipment going to a fight.

ACOSTA: Right.

COHEN: No. I think it's time to stop letting them tell us what we can do or stop setting red lines for us. We need to set some red lines for them and if they it start sending missiles into Turkey, into any of the countries, but especially Poland, they ought to expect they'll be a response to whoever's firing that missile or that aircraft, it will be taken down.

So I think we have to draw some red lines in terms of what they're able to do rather than have their deputy foreign minister lecture us about those who become targets. I'd say no, Mr. Foreign Minister.

[17:24:57]

I hope you will join President Putin when the trial comes for crimes against humanity. You, your boss, especially Putin himself.

ACOSTA: And on that point, I mean, 35 people were killed earlier today after Russian air strikes hit a large military base, as you know, near the western city of Lviv, 11 miles or so from the Polish border, which, of course, is NATO territory. That is a provocative act on the part of the Russians, and it sounds as though Putin is sending a message.

COHEN: Well, the message ought to come back saying, you're not going to be able to do this and say, whoops, that was a mistake. You have been warned. You touch any of the NATO countries, and NATO is in it, all of us, all for one, one for all. So, if you want to take on NATO, you'd have to be our guest. In that case, if you violate the words we have put out for you.

By the way, as we were talking I saw something just a moment ago come across the screen that said, "Russia's looking to China for assistance in this matter."

ACOSTA: Right.

COHEN: I think the Chinese ought to be looking to help bring this to a close because if it does come to a shooting war between the United States, NATO, and Russia, India is not safe. China is not safe. No one is safe. So, everybody has a stake here to try to pull this thing away from war and get down to settling this on terms that the people can live with. Not simply respond to whether or not they're charging us with escalation. I think we made it clear. You touch us, you're in trouble.

ACOSTA: Right. If the world is looking for some pressure points when it comes to Vladimir Putin, the Chinese, a lot of people are saying, may be able to help with that. Secretary Bill Cohen, always great to talk to you. Thank you so much. We appreciate it.

Coming up, how the war in Ukraine is creating tension hundreds of miles above the Earth. That's right. At the International Space Station. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:30:00]

ACOSTA: As Russia's brutal unprovoked war grinds to its third week in Ukraine, the repercussions have now reached space, jeopardizing collaboration at the International Space Station. NASA Commander Scott Kelly who spent a year aboard the ISS, even got into a Twitter feud with the head of Russia's space agency leading Kelly to tweet this in Russia and about a medal he received from the Russians. "Please give it to a Russian mother whose son died in this unjust war. I will mail it, the medal, to the Russian embassy in Washington. Good luck."

Former ISS Commander Scott Kelly joins me now. Commander, great to see you. I know you never expected to be in a situation like this, but you say a Russian propaganda video showing two cosmonauts on the station waving good-bye to an American really set you off. Talk about that. What was that about?

SCOTT KELLY, RETIRED RUSSIA ASTRONAUT: You know, Jim, I just thought it was just absolutely insane. Unconscionable that, you know, this country, Russia, and the Russian space agency that we had a very great partnership with, and I believe we can keep that, but that they would produce and release something that shows them abandoning a crew member in space. Someone that they agreed to be responsible for, and I just felt obligated to call it out.

ACOSTA: And what are your thoughts, I mean, let's just get right to the, you know, the meat of the issue here. I think you just alluded to it. Should there be a conversation about ending this cooperative effort that has been going on for years now between the United States and Russia in space? It's been one of those partnerships that sort of, you know, been held outside of politics. Politics haven't permeated too much and caused that much trouble up there, but is it time to start having that conversation?

KELLY: I don't think so, Jim. You know, the space station has the program for the last 20-plus years, has transcended what goes on politically on planet Earth. And I think it is worth saving because it is our connection with a country that, you know, we're sometimes, you know, not too friendly with, but allows us to work cooperatively and peacefully together on something that's important to us and I think if we lose this, then there's really nothing left that keeps us connected.

ACOSTA: And based on your experience with the Russian cosmonauts, you know, and their space program, you had a lot of time with them in the ISS. What do you think? Do you think they're against this war? You know, we don't want to name names because we know how Putin is, but what do you think they're thinking right now?

KELLY: Well, I have a lot of Russian friends, I have Ukrainian friends. I have Ukrainian family members. My wife, Amiko's sister is married to a Ukrainian-American who moved here when he was 10 years old. So I got two Ukrainian nieces and nephews. And most of them, Russians, Ukrainians, are on the side, on the right side of this issue or on the side and of the same exact opinion I have, that this is immoral, unjust war.

Now, having said that, some of them are not. Some of them are on the other side and these aren't, you know, stupid people. They're not -- they don't have ill-intentions. It's just that they're exposed to, you know, constant propaganda and state media. And now it's just getting worse.

[17:35:01]

I mean, their opportunity to get real news is just being destroyed on a daily basis.

ACOSTA: Yes. And some of that sounds awfully familiar to some of us here in the United States. Let me ask you. You know, there are four NASA astronauts on the space station right now. Two Russians, one European. What do you think that dynamic is like right now? I mean, they are professionals so I can't imagine that this is causing friction, but, I mean, what do you think?

KELLY: So, I know a lot of the crew members onboard. I flew in space with Anton Shkaplerov who is one of the cosmonauts up there now. And just knowing him and everyone else and based on my own experience, I think they're probably maintaining a very professional relationship. I don't think that this is probably affecting their work much. Certainly, there's a lot of tension involved, but are they letting

that affect, you know, their friendship, their teamwork, their camaraderie? I don't think too much at this point. But again, you know, that's just based on my experience and my, you know, personal opinion.

ACOSTA: And just very quickly, did you really send that medal back?

KELLY: I put it in the mail the same day I tweeted.

ACOSTA: It's gone?

KELLY: Gone.

ACOSTA: All right. When Scott Kelly says something he means it. All right. Commander Kelly, thanks so much for your time. We'll check back with you to see, you know, how this develops. Fascinating wrinkle in all of this. We appreciate it.

KELLY: Thanks, Jim.

ACOSTA: All right. Coming up, as millions flee the violence in Ukraine, and incredible moment caught on camera. A mother reuniting with her children at a border checkpoint. A live report from near the Poland and Ukrainian border, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[17:40:00]

ACOSTA: This is the Odessa National Academic Theater Orchestra sending a message of support with a concert Saturday. The free sky event was a nod to President Zelenskyy's call for a no-fly zone over Ukraine and an end to the war.

In the meantime, the United Nations says nearly 2.7 million Ukrainian people have fled the violence in their country since the Russian invasion began and now they are refugees. CNN's Ed Lavandera joins me now from the Polish-Ukrainian border.

Ed, we talked to you in the previous hour and it was very busy. You were in the thick of it. It looks like you still are. What are you seeing, what are you hearing?

ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jim. That is the stunning thing that we are seeing here, now entering the third week of this refugee crisis and the flow of people continues. This is another bus since we have last talked to you. There has been just an endless stream of buses here. You can see groups of refugee families, women and children, showing up here.

This is actually, they have walked several hundred yards from the immediate border checkpoint and they are now making their way to these buses. And from here they will go to temporary shelters just a few miles away and they will have to figure out the rest of their journey, but it has been a dramatic journey for all of the people that you're witnessing here at this site.

They have come from many parts of Ukraine, from very -- from the eastern part of the country, the western part of the country, and for much of today they have spent hours waiting just on the other side of the border, which is several hundred yards away, waiting at the checkpoint, waiting to get to this point where they have been greeted by nongovernment organizations who are here providing food, medical services, and that sort of thing.

But now, it is the process of moving away and moving into other parts of Europe at this point. As you mentioned, nearly 2 - more than 2.7 million refugees, and there doesn't appear to be any sign of those numbers slowing down anytime soon. We have continued to see this as a 24-hour operation here at this border checkpoint where vast majority of these refugees have crossed into Poland.

And the challenge that many of these people will now face and these families will now be facing is where exactly to go next as they try to figure out from the temporary shelter where they can go to other, different parts of Europe.

A little while ago, Jim, we spoke with a doctor who has been here over a week and he told us that in the last 24 hours, they coordinated the transfer of 50 orphaned children to this border checkpoint, and he talked about, and this is the son of a Pakistani refugees who now live in Germany. He felt it was his duty to be here this week to help children just like him.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WJAHAT WARAICH, HUMANITY FIRST: The children actually, many of them, as I told you, in the coldness, they had severe cold effects on their fingers, on their toes. Some of them were really exhausted, tired, and had vomiting and nausea, had pain in the stomach. Of course, they are children from 3 to 12 years old. So my task was before they were, you know, before they travel to Germany and Austria, we are to check them, we have to examine them and then also treat some of them.

(END VIDEOP CLIP)

[17:44:58]

LAVANDERA: And Jim, just as you heard there from this doctor, that one bus pulled away, another one has now pulled up and more refugees getting onboard this bus. Jim?

ACOSTA: Just heartbreaking. All right, Ed Lavandera, thank you very much. And for more information about how you can help humanitarian efforts in Ukraine, go to CNN.com/impact. And we'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ACOSTA: Some brand-new video coming into CNN. Take a look at this. This is from Mariupol and it shows Russian tanks firing on apartment buildings. Watch.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

[17:50:00]

Officials in the besieged city say more than 2,000 people there have been killed so far. Of course, some of this violence is a big part of the reason why.

And there have been so many heartbreaking images flooding out of Ukraine that I'm sure many of you have been tempted to tune it all out, but we can't look away. You might miss the moments that give all of us hope.

Consider, for example, the pregnant woman who was bloodied in Russia's bombing of a Ukrainian hospital. Her name is Marianna. And in case you missed it, she delivered her baby, a girl, in another hospital, according to her family. The baby's name is Veronica. The tiny face of Ukrainian defiance. Perhaps when she gets older, Veronica will become a fan of the movie "Frozen" and learn to sing "Let It Go" like little Amelia who performed in an underground bunker this week.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

Amelia wasn't the only Ukrainian spreading joy in the nightmare that has engulfed her country.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

There was the military band performing next to a sandbag barrier outside Odessa's iconic opera and ballet theater building. These notes of courage are inspiring other musicians around the world to join the chorus that is standing up to Putin. From the piano man who traveled to the Ukrainian border to lift the spirits of refugees making the trek to Poland.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

To the activists who projected the blue and yellow of the Ukrainian flag onto the Russian embassy in Lisbon, Portugal. Take a look at that. To the famed cellist, Yo-Yo Ma who performed at the Kennedy Center here in Washington where he played the Ukrainian national anthem. Watch.

(VIDEO PLAYING)

Despite the solidarity for the Ukrainian people, the Russian assault on Ukraine grinds on with attacks on hospitals and schools, among other civilian targets. Cities are being leveled. More than 2.5 million refugees have fled the country in less than three weeks and there are growing concerns that Putin will authorize the use of chemical weapons to crush the Ukrainian resistance.

All of which raises the question, what exactly will Putin capture should he win? Maybe that's the point. It doesn't matter to him. In Russia, Putin has clamped down on any kind of independent press with threats of prison time for journalists and yet protesters continue to criticize the war. One demonstrator was reportedly arrested -- look at this -- for carrying a blank protest sign.

It's hard to speak truth to power when those in power can crush the truth, even when that truth is unspoken. And yet despite all of this despair and heartache and suffering, the Ukrainians fight on.

This weekend, we told you the story of Bohdan Yurov, a Ukrainian bar owner who has been risking his life delivering food to vulnerable neighbors in his community. Back at his business, he provides shelter to people who have fled their homes. I asked him this weekend what his message to the world was.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BODAN YUROV, CONVERTED BAR INTO EMERGENCY SHEKTER: We will stay strong and we will keep the (inaudible) and we will keep the country, but it's only possible when is that (inaudible) be united.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: That message echoed what Yurov's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy told the British parliament this week when he channeled Winston Churchill's legendary call for courage during World War II.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translation): We will fight to the end at sea, in the air. We will continue fighting for our land whatever the cost. We will fight in the forests, in the fields, on the shores, in the streets.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: From Ukraine's president to a small child huddling in a bomb shelter, one country's spirit has given all of us a chance to see some light in the darkness and good reason to hold on to hope. Courage. That's the news. Reporting from Washington, I'm Jim Acosta. I'll see you back here next Saturday at 3:00 p.m. eastern. Pamela Brown takes over the "CNN Newsroom" live after a quick break. Good night.

[17:55:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[18:00:03]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VITALI KLITSCHKO, MAYOR OF KYIV: This is our home. We will defend the country until last drop of the blood.