Return to Transcripts main page
CNN Newsroom
New Images Show Damage To Mariupol Theater After Bombing; Ukraine Says Fifth Russian General Killed; WHO Alarmed By Attacks On Medical Facilities; Ukraine Fighting Creating Humanitarian Crisis In Europe; Over 2 Million Refugees Flee To Poland; Mariupol School Sheltering 400 People Bombed; U.K. Prime Minister Says Putin In "Total Panic" Over Democracy; Putin Lays Out Demands In Call With Erdogan; Moderna Seeking Fda Authorization For Second Booster For All Adults. Aired 4-5a ET
Aired March 20, 2022 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to all you watching us here in the United States, Canada and around the world, I'm Kim Brunhuber. Straight to your breaking news.
Russian forces have bombed an art school that was being used as a shelter in the besieged city of Mariupol, according to an update from the city council. They believe around 400 people were inside when the attack hit and destroyed the building. The council said a short time ago they believe people are still trapped in the rubble.
The school attack comes after a theater in the city center was bombed on Wednesday. Satellite images show little more than a facade left standing. Officials believe hundreds of people were sheltering inside when the attack hit.
This is a new assessment from British intelligence, says Russian forces are likely to continue indiscriminately shelling Ukrainian areas. But Ukraine continues to mount a stiff resistance. Another Russian general was killed last week near Kherson. CNN can't independently verify those claims.
Ukraine's president says his people will continue to fight for their country. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Ukrainians have proven that they can fight more professionally than an army that has been waging wars for decades in various regions and conditions. We respond with wisdom and courage to the great number of their equipment and soldiers sent to Ukraine.
(END VIDEO CLIP) BRUNHUBER: We're also learning that 71 children from an orphanage in Sumy have been evacuated safely. Officials say the children, many of whom are disabled and all under the age of 4, spent some two weeks in a basement sheltering from Russian attacks.
Now CNN has correspondents positioned in key locations this hour. Jomana Karadsheh is in Istanbul, Melissa Bell in Poland and Arlette Saenz at the White House. Let's begin with Salma Abdelaziz live in Ukraine.
Let's start off with Zelenskyy's new video message. Take us through what he said.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. So we have been hearing consistently from President Zelenskyy, who has addressed at times Russian troops directly, telling them to surrender, telling them to put their weapons down.
Yet again he had another video message today, urging the Russians to come to the table. Urging them to end the blood letting. He says they've had significant battle losses on the ground and it's time to make a deal. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENSKYY (through translator): The enemy is sustaining unprecedented losses. Some of the occupier units have been 80 percent to 90 percent destroyed. And the areas where heavy fighting took place, the front line of our defense is littered with corpses of Russian soldiers.
And the corpses, these dead bodies are not being picked up by anyone. New units are being sent to advance right over them, some reserves that the Russian command is gathering wherever it can.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ABDELAZIZ: Now what President Zelenskyy is describing there is consistent with what we're hearing from Western intelligence officials, who also say that serious miscalculations have been made in the battlefield, that Russia is struggling to recuperate losses.
But in the absence of being able to take an outright military victory, what they're doing, according to British intelligence, a new assessment today, is they're increasingly turning to these horrifying tactics, like this bombing on this art theater this morning in Mariupol, putting civilians in the crosshairs.
It's using even more indiscriminate shelling to try to bring places to their knees. That's the fear here, Kim, as the Russian military feels increasingly cornered, runs out of weapons, runs out of soldiers, like what we're hearing from Western intelligence, they'll turn to brutal tactics, that means more loss of life.
BRUNHUBER: So then, given what you say, given that the war for Russia clearly isn't going as planned, will that put more pressure on Putin maybe to cut a deal here? ABDELAZIZ: Well, you do have, of course, a flurry of diplomatic activity still ongoing. President Biden is supposed to visit Europe in just a few days' time and different efforts from Poland, Turkey, Jerusalem, trying to reach a peace deal. We did find out more about what President Putin wants.
[04:05:00]
ABDELAZIZ: This is the one man who started the war, the one man who can end the war. He had a call with Turkish officials just yesterday. We started to get an understanding of the comprehensive deal that he wants.
But President Putin saying they haven't reached the deal that they need. They haven't made the progress, that they want to be able to see these leaders come directly, President Zelenskyy and President Putin to sit down.
It's still too early, that's what President Putin has said. We're still far from reaching a deal, which means the senseless violence we're seeing here will continue.
BRUNHUBER: Tragically. Salma Abdelaziz, thank you so much.
Fierce fighting continues around the city in Kyiv as Ukrainian forces put up stiff resistance to the Russian advance.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Sirens have continued to go off here in the capital of Kyiv, as the ministry of defense on the Ukrainian armed forces continuing to claim that they are pushing the Russians back.
They've been fighting them hard in the north of the city, to the southwest, west and indeed to the east. They've inflicted casualties, some of which have been caught on video.
These are Russian soldiers who have been killed fighting here. And according to the Ukrainians, the Russians are running out of logistical support, out of weapons and they have been pushed back at least 70 kilometers in the east.
Now we have got no independent verification of that. But clearly there has been slight shift in tactics by the Russians here, using long- range missiles to attack the capital rather than artillery, which would indicate that their artillery has now been either destroyed or pushed further away.
But miserable scenes have also been witnessed on the other side, if you like, down in the south of the country in Mykolaiv, where there is now images coming of mass casualties among Ukrainian forces, after their barracks were hit in air attacks on Friday.
Scenes in the hospital, very bloody scenes indeed. And no great surprise that there are people bloodied and damaged and mortally wounded in the hospital, because there were more than 200 soldiers in this location.
In a city that has fought very determined defense, indeed, against the attempts by the Russians to capture that port city and push on to Odessa. It'd been a critical fight there and one that, so far, the Ukrainians have managing to sustain quite well.
In -- further east, though, in Mariupol, a continued bombardment there. And now, we are getting reports of people forced, in the words of the local administration, into the hands of Russians and suffering some kind of screening process, even allegations they are being shipped off to remote parts of Russia.
We don't have independent information on that. But that would be consistent with attempts by the Russians in the past to force refugees out into their territory, rather than into the hands of the Ukrainian government -- Sam Kiley, CNN, in Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: As the fighting grinds on, the World Health Organization says medical facilities are increasingly becoming a target.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): That includes a Russian airstrike on this maternity hospital in Mariupol earlier this month. Ukraine says at least five people were killed and more than a dozen injured. But as much as the attack outraged the world, Russia tried to claim, without evidence, it was a legitimate target of war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): (INAUDIBLE) the armed services of Ukraine -- equipped combat positions in it.
SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): This maternity hospital had had already been seized by the (INAUDIBLE) and other radicals. All the pregnant women, all the nurse and service personnel were already expelled from there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: The World Health Organization says by now there's a long track record of medical facilities coming under fire in the brutal war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. TEDROS ADHANOM GHEBREYESUS, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION: Since the beginning of the war in Ukrainian, WHO has verified 43 attacks on health care. WHO condemns all attacks on health care wherever they occur.
Attacks on health care not only endanger lives, they deprive people of urgently needed care and break already strained health systems.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: For more on this, we're joined by Tarik Jasarevic, a spokesperson for the World Health Organization and he's speaking to us from Lviv, Ukraine.
Thank you so much for being here with us. So first of all, tell us about the attacks on health care facilities. There are varying reports about the number of those attacks. Tell us more about what the WHO has found and how you go about verifying the number of those attacks.
TARIK JASAREVIC, SPOKESPERSON, WHO: Well, unfortunately (INAUDIBLE) --
[04:10:00]
JASAREVIC: -- 49 such attacks on health care. WHO has (INAUDIBLE) making sure that (INAUDIBLE). These attacks have to stop because they have devastating effects at all levels (INAUDIBLE).
BRUNHUBER: All right. We're having a bit of trouble with your audio. I'm sorry. We'll have to end it there for now. Tarik Jasarevic, thanks for joining us. We'll see if we can reconnect with you a little bit later.
All right. Ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, so far Poland has taken in more displaced Ukrainians than anyone else. We'll have a live report on the refugee crisis from the Polish-Ukrainian border. Stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(MUSIC PLAYING)
BRUNHUBER: We want to show you a picture that shows how far Ukrainians have to go to protect their loved ones during the war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Now this is Olga, nursing her 1-month old while she recovers in hospital.
[04:15:00]
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): The hospital says Olga shielded the child with her body after their home in Kyiv came under fire. The mother sustained multiple injuries and underwent surgery. Thankfully, her baby is OK. Olga's husband is also there in the picture and the attack wounded his legs.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: According to the U.N., nearly 850 civilians have been killed and about 1,400 more injured in Russia's war on Ukraine. But experts say those numbers will likely climb much higher. Since the beginning of the invasion, more than 3 million refugees have
fled the country. That's more than the total population of Chicago. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees says Europe hasn't seen a refugee crisis that escalated this quickly since the Second World War.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FILIPPO GRANDI, U.N. HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR REFUGEES: I have worked in refugee emergencies for almost 40 years. And rarely have I seen an exodus as rapid as this one. Hour by hour, minute by minute, more people are fleeing the terrifying reality of violence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: The U.N. estimates that 90 percent of the Ukrainian population can face poverty and economic vulnerability if the war doesn't end soon. That could set the country and the region back decades, leaving deep, social and economic scars for generations to come.
CNN's Melissa Bell is monitoring the refugee crisis in Poland and joins me now, live near the border with Ukraine.
Melissa, I'm struck by the sheer number of people who are flooding in there. Huge stress on the refugees themselves obviously and on the city as well.
MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. I think your point a moment ago was a good one, Kim.
It is the speed with which these extraordinarily high numbers of refugees have been flooding over the border at stations like this one here, very large numbers, very quickly and consequences that will last no doubt for generations.
And bear in mind that the people who are arriving, Kim, in stations like this one are 90 percent women and children, extremely vulnerable population, arriving amid very chaotic scenes. A lot of the aid is provided either by ordinary residents of towns like this or humanitarian groups.
Perhaps you can see behind me, a bus just arrived carrying medical supplies that will head into Lviv this morning, also bringing clothes provided to refugees arriving here.
What we expect to see is in the next 10 minutes or so another train arriving from Odessa later this morning. It is a train from Kyiv arriving. And inside these trains, Kim, you're talking about 1,000 to 1,500 refugees that have been packed in.
Large amounts of people arriving very quickly and in desperate need of absolutely everything. They carry with them as well all the uncertainty of where they'll head next and the trauma of what they left behind.
The more barbaric the atrocities committed on towns like Mariupol become, the more extremely traumatized populations are going to be crossing that border with very little in the way of certainty or places to go.
So it is a catastrophic situation that's unfolding here. Authorities are warning, if it continues at this rate and the sheer number of people crossing the borders continue to do so in these numbers, the European Union, according to the European Commissioner in charge of this in Brussels, said it could be up to 15 million Ukrainian refugees that the Europeans have to find shelter for.
So many we have spoken to say, we don't want to go terribly far from our border areas because our plan is to get back as soon as we can.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. Certainly all of that is unsustainable. But I know, Melissa, amidst the stress and desperation, so many acts of kindness, big and small.
What have you seen there?
BELL: It's such a good point. And what we see here, day after day at this train station but also the land border crossing, where people arrive on foot not terribly far from here and we spend a lot of our time there, too, people arriving with their own cars, their own trunks full of groceries they bring because they wanted to help in any way they can.
We have seen that here at the station. And then the NGOs come in and fill in the gaps. Whether the Polish state or the European Union, it takes time to get things together.
In the early days of the conflict it was almost the size of the population of the town that was arriving here at the station every day. Imagine that many people arriving into a town and what that means for individuals who are trying to help.
It means people putting refugees up in their homes, liberating any rooms they might have, using their cars to shepherd people around, ferry them back and forth.
[04:20:00]
BELL: Once they have had those couple of days, spent often in school gymnasiums turned into makeshift camps, then it is longer-term accommodation that needs to be found going forward.
And it is the heartbreaking stories of the ones arriving here that are hard to take. But you're right. It is seeing all that solidarity that is absolutely impressive. Now what the mayor of the town was telling us, of course, there isn't just geographical proximity with Polish people going to Ukraine or Ukrainians coming to Poland.
At this porous border they consider themselves brothers. Lviv was part of Poland until the Second World War. They have all that proximity, all that shared history. So there is this extraordinary sense of brotherhood. But three weeks into this war now, Kim, it is just the resources, the
space that is running out. Poland has already seen its population grow by 5 percent.
BRUNHUBER: That's incredible. Really appreciate your reporting there, Melissa Bell, thanks so much.
And if you would like to help people in Ukraine, who may need shelter, food and water, please go to cnn.com/impact and you can find several ways you can help there.
Now with the war now into its fourth week, Ukrainians are scared of saboteurs on their soil. And people are asking strangers on the street to show their papers. It's not always obvious to tell if they're friend or foe. Scott McLean has their story.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Days after the invasion began, this Lviv office was set up to help Ukrainians fleeing war. But not everyone who comes here is welcome.
Shortly after we arrived, the man we're filming draws suspicion from staff. They tell us he has links to Russia. Police are called, documents are checked, questions are asked, more than an hour passes and then tells us his only link to Russia was a five-year-old passport stamp. They let him go.
MCLEAN: Even here in Lviv, a city that is far remote from the front lines we've had the police called on us twice, we've been asked to show our documents more times than I can count.
And some people even 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 (voice-over): Anatolii Hryhoriv says two weeks ago he was walking home after sheltering in this bunker during an air raid alert.
MCLEAN: And you saw two guys that look suspicious.
HRYHORIV: Yes. And they were going to the bushes.
MCLEAN: And they're walking through the bushes.
HRYHORIV: We physically grabbed them here and didn't let them cold. We would probably let them go but if they could show us some documents or something like that but they didn't.
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state. We have information that enemy sabotage groups have entered Kyiv. MCLEAN (voice-over): Ever since the president's warning, CNN found that, in Mykolaiv, any men out after curfew get special attention from police. And in Kyiv, even those fleeing through humanitarian corridors don't escape scrutiny.
OLEKSANDR KAMYSHIN, CEO, UKRAINIAN RAILWAYS: Because we are afraid that Russians may have sent some of their own.
MCLEAN (voice-over): 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.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Constantly gauge them and send them to police.
MCLEAN: How do you know for sure?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Russian documents (INAUDIBLE) --
MCLEAN (voice-over): 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 (through translator): And it was an unpleasant experience for me. But I'm happy that there are such security measures. If you're an honest person and have no bad intentions, there's nothing to worry about.
MCLEAN: Was the word "saboteur" in your vocabulary before the war started?
LYTVYN: (Speaking foreign language).
MCLEAN (voice-over): But finding links to Russia is complicated in a country filled with Russian speakers.
ROKSOLANA YAVORSKA, UKRAINIAN SECURITY SERVICE SPOKESPERSON (through translator): It is simply impossible to consider every Russian- speaking person is saboteur. A saboteur may have a characteristic Russian accent, not just be a Russian speaker.
MCLEAN (voice-over): The Ukrainian security service in Lviv says only soldiers and law enforcement can demand a person's documents. But in wartime --
YAVORSKA (through translator): To detain or not to detain a suspect with your own hands is the decision of each person.
MCLEAN (voice-over): 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)
BRUNHUBER: Turkey's leader says he's willing to mediate talks to end the war in Ukraine. But after so much bloodshed, Vladimir Putin's demands to end the conflict may get a chilly reception in Kyiv. We'll have a live report from Istanbul just ahead. Stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:25:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world, I'm Kim Brunhuber.
Shocking reports out of Mariupol of a school being bombed, while hundreds of people are sheltered inside, this word comes to us from the city council a short time ago. The statement said about 400 people were inside when the building was destroyed. No word yet on casualties at this time.
Now this after the U.S. confirmed Russia struck Ukraine with hypersonic missiles similar to what you saw here. It's believed to be the first time such weapons have been used in combat. Russia says last week's attack targeted an ammunition warehouse in Western Ukraine.
Ukraine also says a fifth Russian general was killed last week in southern Ukraine. Now CNN can't independently verify the claim but, according to the Ukrainian military, the general died when Ukrainian troops attacked Russian forces near the city of Kherson.
And in some hopeful news from eastern Ukraine, 71 orphans, all under the age of 4 and many with special needs, were safely evacuated from the town of Sumy. They've been sheltered for two weeks in a basement as Russians shelled the town.
With the war now in its fourth week, a big question remains.
Why did Vladimir Putin attack Ukraine in the first place?
Among his explanations, that Ukraine would join NATO, which he framed as an existential threat to Russia. But speaking at a Conservative Party conference Saturday, British prime minister Boris Johnson said Putin's real concern is that Russians could follow the lead of democracy-loving Ukrainians. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, U.K. PRIME MINISTER: He was frightened of Ukraine because in Ukraine they have a free press. And in Ukraine they have free elections.
[04:30:00]
JOHNSON: And with every year that Ukraine progressed, not always easily, toward freedom and democracy and open markets, he feared the Ukrainian example, And he feared the implicit reproach to himself.
Because in Putin's Russia, you get jailed for 15 years just for calling an invasion an invasion.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Now we're learning new details about a call between Russian president Vladimir Putin and Turkey's president on Thursday.
According to Turkish officials, Putin laid out a specific set of demands for a peace deal in Ukraine. Turkey also offered to host negotiations between the Russian and Ukrainian presidents. For more, let's bring in Jomana Karadsheh in Istanbul.
Turkey sees itself as an important broker of peace.
What's the latest on the efforts between the two sides to do that?
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, as you know, Turkey is a key NATO member n a very unique position. It's a country that maintains very strong ties, both defense and economic, with Russia and Ukraine. President Erdogan has a very good working relationship with President Putin.
So they've been really trying to use this for a real diplomatic push, to try to bring an end to the conflict -- or at least start with some sort of a permanent cease-fire that Turkish officials have been really calling for.
And we have seen some signs of success in their efforts. Turkey has managed to bring together the Ukrainian and Russian foreign ministers for talks here earlier this month. But they realize that, if you really want to go for this permanent cease-fire, a long-lasting agreement, this is going to have to be the decision of one man.
And that is Vladimir Putin. And this is why Turkey has really been pushing hard for talks on the leadership level. And President Erdogan has been working the phones, Kim. He has been -- he made multiple calls to both presidents Putin and Zelenskyy in recent weeks.
The latest call we understand, according to Turkish officials, was on Thursday. This is where they say President Putin laid out again his demands for negotiations to end this war.
And there's nothing new there. We have heard these demands before from Russia. And you know, the list includes the disarming Ukraine when it comes to no NATO membership, that so-called denazification.
And these are all issues that Turkish officials say they believe can be resolved in the ongoing negotiations between both sides, all these talks that have been taking place at a lower level.
But the main issues at the heart of the conflict right now, that they see very difficult to resolve for both sides, very contentious, and that is the issue of annexation of Crimea and the so-called Donbas republic.
Putin telling Erdogan he wants the recognition of these territories. We know for the Ukrainians that is a red line. That is not something negotiable. This is an issue for the international community as well.
So while President Zelenskyy, according to Turkish officials -- and we heard it from him, too, saying he is ready for these leadership talks -- Turkish officials are saying, according to what President Putin told President Erdogan, that he doesn't think they can have these talks just yet because of the difference in positions when it comes to these key issues.
But nonetheless, you know, we're seeing, Kim, Turkey continuing to really push to try and bring them together. They're not ruling out that this is going to happen. But they do understand that it's difficult. President Erdogan really trying to bring them for face-to- face talks here in Istanbul or in the capital, Ankara.
BRUNHUBER: The Turkish effort is just one of several tracks to try to negotiate peace. European leaders have also been very vocal especially in trying to call for a cease-fire.
Any movement there?
KARADSHEH: Well, we do know that both President Macron and the German chancellor Scholz have been engaging in these conversations with Vladimir Putin, pushing for a cease-fire.
And I think our understanding from Turkish officials -- and we need to keep in mind that, while all these efforts are ongoing, so far, it does seem that Turkey has been the only one that's been able to really bring both sides together. And this is because they have that sort of relationship with both sides.
Yes, it is a NATO country but it has maintained those good ties with Russia. While you have European countries slapping sanctions on Russia and continuing to isolate the country, Turkey hasn't gone that far. They say that they need to keep those channels open with the Russians.
[04:35:00]
KARADSHEH: They have put in some measures in place, including restricting the movement of Russian military vessels, warships through the Turkish Strait from the Mediterranean to the Black Sea, invoking a 1938 treaty.
But they are not closing their airspace or putting sanctions on Russia just yet because they believe that they are in a very unique position. They want to continue to use this because they believe they can bring both sides together and negotiate some sort of a cease-fire. We have to wait and see if they'll be successful, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Let's see if that bears fruit. Jomana Karadsheh, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
The NATO summit is this week in Brussels, of which Turkey is a member. U.S. President Joe Biden and other world leaders will be grappling with how best to respond to Russia's ruthless war on Ukraine. CNN's Arlette Saenz has more from the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The White House has described President Biden as a big fan of face-to-face diplomacy. And he will have the opportunity to engage in just that when he travels to Europe on Thursday.
The president will have a host of meetings with allies, beginning with an extraordinary NATO summit to discuss Russia's war against Ukraine. Leaders are expected to speak about defense and deterrence measures.
And it also gives Biden an opportunity to reaffirm to NATO allies that the U.S. remains committed to them and their ability to defend themselves.
Additionally, Biden will be meeting with the European Council at a summit, where they will take about a host of issues, such as sanctions and humanitarian assistance.
And later in the day Thursday, he will attend a meeting with G7 leaders. This was a meeting that was called by Germany, where they will also talk about further ways to respond to Russia in the wake of their aggression toward Ukraine.
Now the U.S. has been working very closely with allies over the course of the past few months every step of the way, as they've crafted these responses to both Russia and also developed ways to assist Ukraine going forward.
This will give Biden one of his first opportunities to sit face to face with so many of these leaders, as the U.S. continues to want to show this united front against Russia's aggression toward Ukraine and also developing ways to help Ukraine defend itself amid these attacks -- Arlette Saenz, CNN, the White House.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: So we mentioned more than 3 million Ukrainians have now fled the country and thousands more have been displaced internally. The waves of refugees streaming into neighboring countries are leading to an enormous humanitarian challenge.
With us from Baltimore, Maryland, is Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, head of the Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service.
Thank you so much for joining us. I was struck by this fact, some 3 million Ukrainians, as I said, have left the country since the war started. And practically none of them have been allowed into the U.S., no more than a handful that I'm aware of.
Why not?
KRISH O'MARA VIGNARAJAH, LUTHERAN IMMIGRATION AND REFUGEE SERVICE: Well, I certainly know that the administration is contemplating what more the U.S. can do. And it couldn't come at a better time.
Obviously as you mentioned, with 3.3 million refugees and frankly more expected to leave Ukraine, no country, no region can do this alone.
I know that there are programs that we have in place here in the U.S., everything from the asylum system at the southern border, where we have seen an increasing number of Ukrainians seeking to cross.
Refugee resettlement, unfortunately less than a dozen people in March, have come as Ukrainian refugees. Both the asylum resettlement systems are beset by backlogs. They're not timely processes.
But that is where we have got to look to alternatives, like humanitarian parole. That is meant to allow for populations coming into the U.S. in urgent humanitarian situations to enter.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. So I want to follow up on a couple of those things that you mentioned.
But just to start, part of the problem, as I get it, is that it's not possible for American families to sponsor Ukrainian refugees, is that right?
VIGNARAJAH: It's right in the sense that there is a process. It is not a quick process. One of the things that my organization has called for is to expedite family reunification of Ukrainian refugees who have family here, to allow them to travel to the U.S. and then to finish that expedited processing.
We've done that before. It's obviously a situation right now where that would make sense.
BRUNHUBER: So you referenced the so-called humanitarian parole process, that the U.S. used that to admit some 80,000 Afghans when the Taliban took over.
[04:40:00]
BRUNHUBER: But even that process is beset by huge backlogs and, you know, big delays.
So is that really the best solution here?
VIGNARAJAH: Yes. Humanitarian parole does have about 45,000 people who have applied for that. But humanitarian parole is really the president's prerogative. And so if there's a population that is designated as needed to enter quickly, that actually can be done.
So when we talk about the Afghans, the 76,000 who came into the U.S. last year, the president was allowed and used what we call port parole. So these individuals were able to come into the country. It doesn't require the years-long process like refugee resettlement, where, on average, it takes five years.
BRUNHUBER: OK. So you know, part of the problem here, it seems, is that the immigration system itself is broken. And much of the refugee settlement infrastructure was dismantled during the Trump administration.
How big of a factor is that?
And how hard would it be to change, given we have President Biden saying he wants to change things and we seem to have bipartisan support, specifically on the issue of Ukrainian refugees?
VIGNARAJAH: Absolutely right in terms of bipartisan support. We have Governor DeWine from Ohio, saying that his state is right now preparing to accept Ukrainian refugees. Governor Wolfe in Pennsylvania has said the same.
So I think there is bipartisan support. But it is true that, during the Trump administration, the refugee resettlement system went from accepting 110,000, as the target under the Obama administration, to only 15,000.
There were more than 100 offices closed across the country, when you think about the national resettlement infrastructure. But we have rebuilt over the last several months, because we had to in response to Afghan arrivals.
I think that is the system we can use. But we've got to figure out a way to allow the Ukrainians to travel into the U.S.
So I think that if we, one, prioritize family reunification; two, allow for refugee resettlement to happen more quickly; and, three, use humanitarian parole, we, as a country, can play a global humanitarian leadership role, when every country needs to do as much as they can.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. Well, certainly your organization has helped bring in many Ukrainians in the past. Hopefully with changes to the system, as you've been saying, you'll be able to facilitate even more, because, as we have been seeing throughout the newscast, the need is so huge.
We have to leave it there but really appreciate you having you on. Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, Thanks so much.
VIGNARAJAH: Thanks for having me.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Ahead here on CNN, we're following a surge of COVID-19 cases across Western Europe that has health officials here in the U.S. on high alert. Stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:45:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
BRUNHUBER: Welcome back. We'll return to our coverage of the war in Ukraine shortly. But first, let's give you update on the coronavirus pandemic.
Here in the U.S., Moderna is now seeking emergency use authorization for a second COVID booster shot. But unlike Pfizer and BioNTech, only seeking another dose for people 65 and older, Moderna wants approval for all adults. It comes as doctors warn of fresh COVID cases in parts of Asia and Western Europe.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. LEANA WEN, CNN MEDICAL ANALYST: This new variant appears to be even more contagious than the original Omicron variant. However it does not appear to cause more severe disease and, in very good news, the vaccines we still have provide good protection against it.
Is it possible to see an uptick in the U.S. as well?
Yes. However, as long as our hospitals are not overwhelmed, as long as the vaccines continue to provide good protection against this new variant, I do not think that we need to have new restrictions coming in here in the U.S.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: All right. Let's bring in CNN contributor Barbie Nadeau in Rome.
Barbie, case numbers in many places in Europe are going up, even though restrictions continue to fall.
BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. It's really the same theory there. You're not seeing this increase in hospitalizations and deaths, so even the higher number of cases aren't prompting officials to institute more restrictions.
In fact, in Germany, seeing a high case load, almost 300,000 in a 24- hour period, they're getting rid of almost all of their restrictions in the coming weeks.
Here in Italy, we're seeing numbers spike up again and we're looking at a decrease in restrictions here as well. We're going to be out of the state of emergency that's been in effect for more than two years now here at the end of the month.
And we're looking at getting rid of mask mandates by May 1st, something that hasn't happened in two years. So you're right, despite the high number of cases, restrictions don't seem to be following suit like before.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. That falls into the pattern, that it seems to be generating a different reaction to this wave this time. There's less concern.
Is that fair?
NADEAU: Yes, it is fair. I think also the fact that people are finally getting their lives back in order. You know, these economies, which have been struggling for two years now, are finally seeing some better days.
And I think these government officials just aren't in a position at all to tell people to go back and lock down and close things up again.
And so, when you look at the high number of vaccinations across Europe, you look at the relatively low number of hospitalizations, you know, in comparison to the high number of cases, you know, the governments are just saying enough is enough.
People, stay vaccinated, get your boosters, stay safe. We'll keep you in work and keep businesses open.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. That's the same attitude people are trying to take here. But, of course, our vaccination rate is a lot lower here in the U.S. than it is in many places in Europe. Barbie, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
The world of sport isn't immune from the effects of war. After the break, a Ukrainian high jumper flees the turmoil in their homeland and gives her nation something to cheer. Stay with us.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[04:50:00]
(MUSIC PLAYING)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Have a look at this. These kids are taking art lessons. Now it seems normal enough. But they're doing it in a bomb shelter in Lviv. One of the people teaching the class is a Chinese student who lives in Ukraine and has chosen to stay. She says this is a way to create a sense of normalcy for the children, adding that kids shouldn't have to live through this sort of trauma.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Solidarity with Ukraine has been on display in the world of sport. An emotional finish at the World Athletics Indoor Championships. Ukraine's top high jumper takes the gold and Italy pays tribute at the Six Nations Rugby Championship.
(WORLD SPORT)
[04:55:00]
BRUNHUBER: That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. Our breaking news coverage in Ukraine continues on "NEW DAY."
We want to leave you with a moving performance before we go. Have a look here. That is Ukraine's national anthem, now a hymn of defiance more than three weeks into Vladimir Putin's war.
The soloist is a Ukrainian soldier. You can see there in the background, his audience, fellow troops all listening, some recording the special performance on their phones.
