Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Russia's War On Ukraine; Children's Arcade Being Used As A Shelter For Civilians From Mariupol; Zelenskyy: "I'm Ready For Negotiations" With Putin; Ukrainians Remain On High Alert For Russian Saboteurs; Team Rubicon Responds To Humanitarian Crisis In Ukraine; Fauci: U.S. Unlikely To See Dangerous Surge From Subvariant. Aired 2- 3p ET

Aired March 20, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:22]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me for this special CNN coverage. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

All right. We begin in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy telling CNN in an exclusive interview today that he is ready to negotiate with Vladimir Putin to end Russia's bloody invasion. But Zelenskyy offering an ominous warning about what could happen if those negotiations falter.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): So I think that we have to use any format, any chance in order to have a possibility of negotiating, the possibility of talking to Putin. But if these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third world war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Also today, we're learning about a deadly attack on a nursing home in eastern Ukraine. This photo posted before the assault. A Ukrainian official says a Russian tank opened fire on the building nine days ago killing 56 civilians, then abducting 15 others.

And we're getting new satellite pictures detailing the devastation at a Mariupol theater bombed by Russians. More than a thousand people had fled to that theater for shelter.

From the images you can see about two-thirds of the building is clearly destroyed. And still visible, the Russian word for "children" painted in large letters in front of the entrance. 130 people have been rescued so far, but many are still feared to be trapped under the rubble four days now after that attack.

And today, another civilian target bombed in Mariupol. An art school where 400 people were seeking shelter. Officials don't yet have confirmation and information of casualties. Folks fleeing violence in Mariupol have found refuge in an unlikely place in the town of Dnipro -- a children's arcade.

And that's where we find CNN's Ivan Watson.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Normally this is an arcade, a place where children come and play laser tag. Instead, now that there's this awful war in Ukraine, people have been using this as an improvised shelter. The owners have opened up their doors to ordinary Ukrainians, civilians who, for the most part, have been fleeing the port city of Mariupol which has been under Russian siege for weeks now.

And we've been talking to some of the displaced Ukrainians who have described horrific conditions where they are hiding in basements, where there is no electricity, no running water, no heat.

Constant bombardment from war planes, from artillery rockets and even now there are now reports from Russian ships in the Black Sea.

What the owners here have done is they have provided a space for families that have endured the unspeakable, to come here and get several days of rest and relative quiet which is really a blessing.

And we can see that children have really responded positively in this space that was, quite honestly, built for them in the first place.

The attacks and the horrors in Mariupol though, for the parents though, it's really traumatizing. And we've been talking to people who have left behind parents and grandparents who are still under Russian bombardment. People who are now trying to figure out where to take their families left, if there are other safe places in this country.

Before Russia invaded Ukraine, Mariupol had a population of more than 400,000 people.

Ivan Watson, CNN --- Dnipro, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Even as Russian forces continue their brutal invasion, Ukraine's President Zelenskyy says he is ready to talk about peace. Here's what he told CNN's Fareed Zakaria in an exclusive interview earlier today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST: President Biden has called Vladimir Putin a war criminal. And yet you have called for negotiations with him. Will it be hard? Will it be painful for you to have to sit down with Putin were he to agree and negotiate with him?

[14:04:51]

ZELENSKYY: I'm ready for negotiations with him. I was ready over the last two years. And I think that -- I think that without negotiations, we cannot end this war. I think that all the people who think that this dialogue is shallow and that it is not going to resolve anything, they just don't understand that this is very valuable. If there is just 1 percent chance for us to stop this war, I think that we need to take this chance. We need to do that.

I can tell you about the result of this negotiation. In any case, we are losing people on a daily basis. Innocent people on the ground.

Russian forces have come to exterminate us, to kill us. And we can demonstrate the dignity of our people and our army that we are able to deal a powerful blow. We are able to strike back.

But unfortunately, our dignity is not going to preserve the lives. So I think that we have to use any format, any chance in order to have a possibility of negotiating, possibility of talking to Putin.

But if these attempts fail, that would mean that this is a third world war.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. That's Ukraine's president Zelenskyy.

So let's talk more about what could be next for Ukraine.

Sviatoslav Yurash is a member of Ukraine's parliament. Mr. Yurash, so glad you could be with us. I know this is going to be a little dicey with our signal, but let's try.

We just heard President Zelenskyy say Ukraine should take any opportunity to negotiate with Putin because the alternative is so much worse. What do you think he means by negotiate? What would Ukraine be willing to give Putin at this point?

SVIATOSLAV YURASH, MEMBER OF UKRAINIAN PARLIAMENT: Well, the reality is that as far as the war with Russia is concerned, we have paid a dear price already so we aren't going to give up our fundamental sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.

So the point we heard from Russian delegation so far about Crimea, Donbas, that's unacceptable. Russians need to get out of our country and (INAUDIBLE) to something we consider have to work, try and mend whatever is there to mend.

But again, Russia's point of negotiation is very far from acceptable. And I can say that in the parliament, there are not going to be votes to change the constitution in any way to amend it as far as the accession to NATO and the U.S. concern that something of fundamental importance to us as a parliament.

WHITFIELD: If President Zelenskyy does have an opportunity to negotiate directly with Putin, why would you believe anything that Putin might promise or say?

YURASH: We will not believe that, but we can talk about, for example, the humanitarian corridors which Russia has been agreeing and then shelling every single time. We can talk about the exchange of prisoners. We can talk about the bodies which are so plentiful right now Russian soldiers in Ukraine and we don't have any use for them anyway. So we can provide them back.

So there are plenty of points to consider. But again, as far as the parliament is concerned, there aren't the votes to change the constitution on the matter of NATO or the E.U. and there will never be. Russia has guaranteed that fails.

WHITFIELD: Officials in Mariupol say thousands of residents are being rounded up and forcibly taken to Russia. Are you hearing that? And if that is the case, what are the details that you're hearing?

YURASH: You hear any number of horrible stories coming from that city, which was marvelous, which I'd been to many times. Just two weeks before the war I visited and how it's hell on earth. And the reality is details are coming in, and they are horrible and unfortunately very hard to confirm or deny.

For example, the story I've heard from one of my assistants who deals with the prisoners in Ukraine is a story of a prison in Mariupol where basically they have killed a good number of prisoners who were there and deported to Russia the remaining prisoners.

So I mean the stories coming out of Mariupol are just horrifying numbers, seem surreal. But when you see the images, you see that's the reality of it.

WHITFIELD: President Zelenskyy and several of your colleagues in parliament continue to call on the U.S. and the west to enforce a no- fly zone over Ukraine.

[14:09:51]

WHITFIELD: The president of the United States is heading to Brussels this week to meet with NATO allies. What do you believe can come from their meeting? What are you hoping will come from it?

YURASH: I can guarantee you that all of my colleagues are rallying and reminding the world of a need for a no-fly zone because of the images you see on your TVs every day is the result of the Russian use of air power on Ukraine.

As far as the meetings are concerned, we have many points to consider here. I mean any number of things are needed (INAUDIBLE) so whatever will be agreed to is something that we need to try and develop capability to stay in this fight and to win against that aggressor which is trying to destroy the national law.

WHITFIELD: I can at least reveal that you are in Kyiv and so you --

YURASH: I am.

WHITFIELD: So you are hearing, you know, the fighting, missiles, you know, bombs, concussions, all of that in the night and sometimes by day. Can you reveal to us how you are staying safe or what are you able to do that allows you to maintain hope that Ukraine will win this?

YURASH: I am not staying safe in that sense. I am going to the front line cities, not only to improve my rudimentary soldiering skills but also to try and provide things various army units and people that remain in those towns need.

So the point that is to try and support, try and develop the supply lines to Kyiv and to the -- to other parts of Ukraine and in the world. So the point here is that basically almost every day I travel to various points that are in desperate need all around Kyiv because Russia is trying to cut off our supply lines, but we aren't letting them.

WHITFIELD: Have you had to fire a weapon?

YURASH: I cannot -- I cannot -- I was in shootouts, but as far as firing the weapons successfully and actually killing and actually doing that soldierly part, I am yet to be in the firefight.

I have been in shootouts in Kyiv in the first week. Kyiv was heavily infiltrated basically and there were plenty of those incidents, but as far as the battles are concerned. That's still to come.

WHITFIELD: I also want to ask you something personal. Oleksandra Kuvshinova was the journalist, Ukrainian journalist who was killed along with a cameraman in a Russian air strike. You knew her for a very long time. Can you tell us about her and what this loss means to you?

YURASH: I knew her for a long time and knew her very closely. She was a person that was full of life, full of dream, full of ambitions. And the reality is that Russian artillery has killed her.

And it's but another sign of what is happening in Ukraine. Foreign journalist getting killed. Civilians getting killed and this won't stop unless the west takes that decisive step which will stop not just this madness but all the Oleksandras in Ukraine killed in the thousands. To finally stop that madness (INAUDIBLE) which is happening every single day.

WHITFIELD: Sviatoslav Yurash, a member of Ukraine's parliament, I wish you all the best. Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us and I hope that you don't have to fire a weapon, but I do understand from what you're saying, you are poised and ready if you have to.

YURASH: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: Be safe.

All right. At any moment now, President Biden returns to the White House as he prepares for a high-stakes week both at home and abroad. Details next.

[14:13:46]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: It's a high stakes week for President Biden. Tomorrow, hearings begin on Capitol Hill for his U.S. Supreme Court nominee. Biden has tapped Federal Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to fill Justice Stephen Breyer's seat when he retires this summer.

And later in the week the president heads to Europe to meet with allies to finalize new measures to punish Russia and potentially help Ukraine.

He will also take part in an emergency NATO summit, a special session of the European Council and a G-7 meeting.

With me now to discuss is CNN global affairs analyst Susan Glasser. Susan, good to see you. So what could come out of these meetings that would stop Putin?

SUSAN GLASSER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well, you know, I am not sure anyone has obviously a magic formula at this point for stopping Putin, but I do think, you know, the message of an extraordinary unplanned spur of the moment NATO summit meeting in person sends a very loud signal to Putin about the unity of the NATO alliance.

It certainly reinforces one of the unintended consequences of his invasion of Ukraine which is to say, a much stiffened resolve of NATO. If anything, he seems to have reinvigorated an alliance that he says is the reason that he launched this war in the first place.

So I think that message primarily of unity is most important. It's not clear yet what exactly will be forthcoming to Ukraine in terms of further military assistance. I think everyone expects that there will be additional measures taken for Ukraine but also probably to shore up NATO's eastern front and sending more troops and weapons and the like to the easternmost countries of NATO --

WHITFIELD: Well, there seems to be unity that NATO finds this appalling, but they haven't exhibited unity on what to do. What are the consequences that Putin, Russia should face.

[14:19:51]

GLASSER: Well, that's right. There's a lot of questions about what is the goal as well of NATO policy. At this point, is it to deter Putin from taking further action against NATO outside of the borders with Ukraine? Is it to actually help Ukraine defeat Russia militarily? Is it to punish Russia for its active aggression, to isolate Russia.

You know, in some ways there's aspects of all of those things but it's not entirely clear at this point what the allied goals are. So helping to articulate and clarify that is probably important right now. And to spell out, you know, it's not just a military crisis now. It's an economic crisis for Europe.

And it's also an incredible humanitarian crisis for Europe. There's more than 3 million refugees who's already left Ukraine and of course, they're all largely on the territory of NATO countries. So those are things that need to be addressed.

WHITFIELD: President Zelenskyy is still pleading for NATO membership. He says if Ukraine were a member, Russia would never have done this. NATO must have unanimous consent to include a new member. So why have the U.S., France, Germany, been against Ukraine being a member?

GLASSER: Yes, I mean I think what we've heard from President Zelenskyy is an increasing note of realism that he understands that NATO membership is not in the cards for Ukraine any time soon. If anything, you have seen him pleading both with the west and with Putin, you know, to sort of have a little bit more reality-based conversation right now while his country is being torn apart.

You know, I think Zelenskyy has indicated an openness to negotiate over that question. But again, it is in the constitution of Ukraine right now as written that the aspiration to join western institutions is literally written into the Ukrainian constitution.

WHITFIELD: Zelenskyy was asked today by my colleague Fareed Zakaria about Putin's outrageous claim that the Ukrainian government was full of neo-Nazis.

Listen to how he responded.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENSKYY: The fact is that if you are serious about this statement, he might be capable of very horrendous steps. That would mean that this is not a game for him. If he really believes in this, if it's not a game, then we will just continue fighting against it. If it's a game.

But if it's not a game, if he's serious about it, if he thinks that this is his mission to conquer our territories, and if he sees signs of neo-Nazism in our country, that many questions emerge about what else he is capable of doing for the sake of his ambitions.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: And so what does anyone think, you know, Putin is capable of doing?

GLASSER: Look, it's a chilling statement. I mean first of all, it's outrageous on its face. You have literally the president of Ukraine right now not only is not a Nazi, just to be clear, he is the first Jewish president of Ukraine whose own relatives, many of them were killed in the Holocaust. It's just an outrageous calumny.

But I think President Zelenskyy also points out something really terrifying about President Putin in using this rhetoric. Either a, he's lying to himself, believing his own crazy propaganda which is very worrisome and bespeaks further atrocities. Or b, it's just -- it's one of the most cynical, horrific ways one could possibly imagine to whip up, you know, Russia itself into a frenzy against nonexistent Nazis. It's really -- it's just -- it's really horrifying at every level. WHITFIELD: So what are the concerns about what concessions Ukraine

might make. I mean if it does, if the president of Ukraine does have an opportunity to negotiate, mano-a-mano with Putin? There's been an expressed willingness to make concessions.

What might they be, I mean so that Russia doesn't walk away feeling like it can do this and do it again after Crimea, Georgia et cetera, with impunity?

GLASSER: I think that's the reason that you hear so many experts so deeply worried right now because it's not clear what, if anything, could satisfy both parties at this point. Vladimir Putin has pursued a maximalist vision of the war and yet so far has failed to achieve any of his major objectives, number one.

Number two, Zelenskyy having paid in a terrible cost in the blood of his people, in the infrastructure of his country, he's hardly in a position to be negotiating away territory which the Ukrainian people would not accept giving over to Russia in the long term, you know, including that which Russia has already illegally seized in 2014.

So that's where you see not only an impasse but no obvious way out, even in negotiations.

WHITFIELD: Susan Glasser, always good to see you. Thank you so much.

GLASSER: Thank you.

[14:24:51]

WHITFIELD: All right. Coming up, millions of people in Ukraine displaced as the war now expands to the west. I'll talk to an American doctor who just returned from Ukraine about the greatest needs inside the war zone.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Hard to believe, but the Russian invasion of Ukraine is now in its fourth week. And Ukrainians are fearful of potential Russian saboteurs on their soil and some suspicious residents are asking people on the streets to show documentation to prove their identity.

CNN's Scott McLean has the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Days after the invasion began, this Lviv office was set up to help Ukrainians fleeing war but not everyone who comes here is welcome.

MCLEAN: Shortly after we arrived, the man we're filming draws suspicion from staff.

[14:30:02]

They tell us he has links to Russia. Police are called. Documents are checked. Questions are asked.

More than an hour passes. The man tells us his only link to Russia was a 5-year-old passport stamp. They let him go.

Even here in Lviv, a city that is far removed from the front lines we've had the police called on us twice. Been asked to show our documents more times than I can count and some say that random, ordinary citizens are asking total strangers to produce identification.

But if somebody asked you for your identification or your passport, you wouldn't think it was weird?

ANATOLII HRYHORIV, LVIV RESIDENT: I wouldn't think, for now I wouldn't think.

MCLEAN: Anatolii Hryhoriv says two weeks ago he was walking home after sheltering in this bunker during an air raid alert.

You saw two guys that looked suspicious?

HYRHORIV: Yes. They were walking through the bushes.

MCLEAN: And they were walking through the bushes.

HYRHORIV: They physically grabbed them here and didn't let them go. Probably let them go, but if they could show us some documents or something like that. But they didn't.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): They want to destroy Ukraine politically.

MCLEAN: Ever since the president's warning, CNN found in Mykolaiv, any man out after curfew gets special attention from police. In Kyiv, even those fleeing through humanitarian corridors don't escape scrutiny.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because we are afraid that Russians may have sent some of their own.

MCLEAN: Ukraine's rail chief says security has been beefed up to guard against saboteurs planting special targets to guide Russian missiles. Staff detained this man near Kharkiv.

OLEKSANDR KAMYSHIN, UKRAINIAN RAILWAYS CEO: Confiscate them and send them to police.

MCLEAN: How do you know for sure?

KAMYSHIN: Russian documents.

MCLEAN: A few days into the war, Volodymyr Lytvyn's wife says she spotted suspicious vehicles without headlights outside their home near the airport. By the time he went to investigate, police were already there pointing guns in his direction.

VOLODYMYR LYTVYN, LVIV RESIDENT: It was an unpleasant experience for me but I'm happy there are such security measures. If you are an honest person, there's nothing to worry about.

MCLEAN: With the word saboteur in your vocabulary before the war started?

But finding links to Russia is complicated in a country filled with Russian speakers.

ROKSOLANA YAVORSKA, UKRAINIAN SECURITY SERVICE SPOKESPERSON: It's simply impossible to consider every Russian speaking person a saboteur. A saboteur may have a characteristic Russian accent, not just be a Russian speaker.

MCLEAN: The Ukrainian security service in Lviv says only soldiers and law enforcement can demand a person's documents. But in war time --

YAVORSKA: To detain or not to detain a suspect with your own hands is a decision of each person.

MCLEAN: Despite all the hype, she says not a single person in Lviv has been charged yet with sabotage.

Scott McLean, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: Meantime, the need for humanitarian and medical aid is growing every day. In a nation of 44 million people, many are torn between staying put or fleeing to another country. We know about 3 million Ukrainians have left the country.

With me now, Dr. David Callaway, the chief medical officer for the international disaster response group Team Rubicon. He just returned from Ukraine.

So you're still trying to get your sea legs back here on U.S. soil. I'm sure it's very difficult to leave the images, the people, the experiences that you just witnessed while there. How are you feeling?

DR. DAVID CALLAWAY, CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER, TEAM RUBICON: Well, Fred, I'm tired, but I'm thankful. I'm thankful we had the opportunity to be there and to help people in their time of need. I'm really grateful for our volunteer teams over there right now and putting themselves in harm's way to address this probably once in a century humanitarian crisis.

As we see 3 million people have crossed the borders. That's Chicago and Phoenix have crossed the borders into other countries and another 6.5 million are displaced internally. It's creating a massive need within Ukraine and the rest of Europe.

WHITFIELD: So you are back here state side but you still have teams there, particularly more than 20 people in Ukraine. Team Rubicon, how are you able to assist people? What were some of the things you were able to do while there and that your team members continue to do?

CALLAWAY: Team Rubicon is an international humanitarian aid organization. We have a leadership team in Poland that's helping coordinate across all of the surrounding nations. So, we're looking at refugee care, some people who have crossed the border. A team in Hungary providing primary care and urgent care to refugees in Hungary.

And about 20 to 24-person team in western Ukraine doing everything from providing care in these internally displaced camps like you just showed churches, railway stations, working with the government of Ukraine and world health organization to help set up transportation of sick patients from further east through Western Ukraine and to the border.

[14:35:01]

And then actually helping with some training of first responders on things like trauma care and, sadly, even things like chemical, biological and nuclear preparedness.

WHITFIELD: OK, preparedness. So in terms of the kind of medical care that you were able to carry out in concert with some of the Ukrainian medical staff there, what kinds of injuries were you tending to?

CALLAWAY: It's a great question. Most of what we were doing is not war injuries. We're farther west. But the first patient I saw was at 4:34 in the morning in an air raid shelter in the bottom of a building in the city of western Ukraine. A 16-year-old who ran down the stairs when the air raid sirens went off and was having chest pain and his teacher came and asked me to come see him. I was laying down. Didn't have any scrubs on, I don't know how she knows I'm a doctor.

But I went and saw him. He probably had COVID. He was having chest pain and had some abnormal findings in his lungs. We're seeing everything from that to children with fevers to women who were in labor and pregnant to elderly people who had just lost their medication.

When you take 10 million people and move them, you still have things like heart attacks and asthma exacerbations and little kids who have fevers and appendicitis. A lot of what our team is doing is that.

WHITFIELD: And for you, you are a family man. It's hard, even though you're a professional medical doctor, was this a particular challenge? Was this particularly hard treating these family members, these children, mothers, grandparents and not think about your family at home?

CALLAWAY: Yeah, I mean, I have been in crisis zones in the Middle East and in Africa and one of the things that was hard about this is, it really is what I imagine my grandfather saw in World War II. As we'd stand at the train station, a train would pull up and thousands of women and children and some elderly would come off. They would pour off the train and then an air raid siren would go off and they'd immediately go into a bunker.

And as you look at that, it's hard not to feel a strain on your sense of humanity and really think, what is at risk here is our humanity. I mean, this is truly a conflict that is really affecting women and children and putting them at risk. We know that women and children when they're displaced become very vulnerable and maybe put these people in other countries, are going to be displaced some place they don't have contacts and connections. They become at risk.

As a father of two daughters, yeah, it's very emotional, very personal and I spend a lot of energy trying to keep that under control while I was in country.

WHITFIELD: Yeah, the repercussions of the trauma. The aftershocks, right? It's just a continuation. It keeps going.

CALLAWAY: Yeah, I mean, every single night, the Russians would fly planes into Ukraine to trigger air alarms and every single night, you know, people would have to go down into air raid shelters. You can only imagine the impact that has on a 6, 7, 14-year-old or mother with two children and you know her husband or their brothers are on the front lines fighting. That amount of fear has long lasting repercussions. That's kind of going to become the big story of this crisis right now.

WHITFIELD: Dr. Callaway, thanks so much on behalf of all the people that you have been assisting. Thanks for what you are doing and sharing the story.

CALLAWAY: Thank you. Thanks for the time. Appreciate it.

WHITFIELD: Thanks for being here. Appreciate it.

And then there are these images out of Ukraine. Any sense of normalcy. It's a welcome moment right now albeit very difficult. In the western city of Lviv, children attending art lessons in a bomb shelter -- drawing, painting, even dancing.

Elena, a Lviv resident teaching the classes, explains why this is so important for the children.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ELENA, LVIV RESIDENT: Well, I believe that none of the children has to live through the trauma. Emotional and physical especially and also -- so that's why we decided to make this meeting for children just to help them to live everyday life they are used to.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:43:56]

WHITFIELD: The nation's top disease expert warns that the U.S. is likely to see a rise in COVID cases thanks to a subvariant of omicron.

Dr. Anthony Fauci expects a spike similar to what's happening right now in Europe. But he's hopeful that the new surge won't be as dangerous as omicron.

For more now on these developments, let's bring in Polo Sandoval.

So, Polo, what more are the medical experts saying about this new subvariant?

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: What we're hearing from many medical experts, Fred, is do not be surprised if you begin to see an uptick in some of those COVID numbers here in the United States. But that being said, don't panic. We certainly have an arsenal of tools available to make sure people stay out of the hospitals or worse here.

What we heard from Dr. Anthony Fauci, basically summarizing that we continue on that good trajectory, at least in a good, positive direction, but given the numbers we continue to see in China, parts of Europe as well and an increase there, it's certainly possible that we will see increases here because of the BA.2 variant that's highly transmissible.

And you hear from Dr. Fauci just a few moments, but also earlier this morning we heard from the surgeon general on Fox News re-emphasizing again, not a time to panic, just to continue to push on vaccination, on boosting, and also remaining flexible.

[14:45:11]

This is what both administration officials had to say this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DR. ANTHONY FAUCI, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY AND INFECTIOUS DISEASES: It's about 50 percent to 60 percent or so more transmissible, which means ultimately, over time, it might take over as the dominant variant. Cases continue to come down. Deaths continue to come down, and hospitalizations.

That's no time at all to declare victory because this virus has fooled us before. I think we are clearly going in the right direction. I hope we stay that way.

DR. VIVEK MURTHY, U.S. SURGEON GENERAL: There may be rises and falls in cases in the months ahead. Here's the key: our goal is to keep people out of the hospital. It's to save their lives. We have more tools to do that than ever before. So, our focus should be on preparation, not on panic.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: Dr. Vivek Murthy expanding on the tools. Things like vaccination, boosters and therapies as well. Those are those valuable tools he and many health officials we've heard from expect will help us carry us through these waves as we continue to potentially see an increase of cases and Dr. Murthy saying, the big concern, Fred, securing funding.

We know that the White House and various Republican lawmakers are currently at a stalemate. Some disagreement about how much more money is needed for COVID relief. Of course, the White House administration wants to see more but when you hear from some representatives in Congress, on the Republican side, they say there's still some of that funding relief from last year that's left over. So we'll have to see how that plays out in D.C. as the battle against COVID continues.

WHITFIELD: All right. Polo Sandoval, thanks so much.

SANDOVAL: Thanks, Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. That subvariant is spreading in Europe right now as cases rise in a number of Western European countries.

Here now is CNN's Barbie Latza Nadeau.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BARBIE LATZA NADEAU, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: COVID-19 cases across western Europe are spiking once again. But that has not led to a new round of restrictions. In fact, many countries are easing restrictions despite the rising number of cases. In Germany, which hit a record high of nearly 300,000 cases in a single 24-hour period of time will be lessening most of their restrictions in the coming week. That means no more mask mandates inside public places like schools or public transportation.

Here in Italy, we've seen a steady increase in the number of cases as well. But we're also looking at an end to a now more than two-year- long state of emergency. At the end of the month, Italy's state of emergency will be lifted and we'll see a number of restrictions lifted following that. That includes no more health pass required to enter inside restaurants. And that will see the lifting of a mask mandate that's been in place in this country for more than two years. Completely absolved by May 1st.

Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right. Next, more of our CNN exclusive with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine. The hope the embattled president helps carry him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:52:31]

WHITFIELD: Earlier today, Ukraine's President Zelenskyy joined CNN's Fareed Zakaria, telling him about the way he explains the war to his children. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN HOST, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS": You are a young man. You have a young family, and I have to -- I keep wondering, how do you explain to your children what is going on?

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): my children know for sure what is happening, and I don't know whether it's good or bad. I have not explained anything to my children. They have said to me that war is raging in Ukraine, and at our home, we have the same freedom of speech as we have in our country. And they know what we are fighting for. They understand all of that.

My son has to be aware of it because while my son is alive, that means that some Ukrainian army member is giving up his own life for this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: He also told CNN about what's at stake for Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENSKYY: The people throughout the planet have shared values. It's not simply about give us help or save ourselves, but about the fact that we have to be united. We are fighting for our freedom, for our lives. Unfortunately, we have to fight for our lives at the expense of another lives.

We have to earn the life for the entire civilization, and in order to make this happen, we are giving up our own lives. This is not right. So we have to unite. We have to unite in our energy. We have to be united because that means that -- it means that salvation is there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:59:22]

WHITFIELD: At a workshop in Berkeley, California, women are teaching young girls how to build both confidence and careers in STEM fields.

Here's today's "Represented."

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

EMILY PILLOTON-LAM, FOUNDER, GIRLS GARAGE: There are not nearly enough women in STEM and in the construction trades, and I am determined to change that for the next generation. I'm Emily Pilloton-Lam.

When I started working in architectural offices and on construction sites, I was almost always the only woman in the room. This is not just a problem of underrepresentation. It's also a problem of who gets to be a part of building the world.

Girls Garage is a design and construction school here in Berkeley, California, for girls and gender expansive youth ages nine to 18.