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Ukrainian Forces Stall Russians Around Kyiv; Vladimir Putin Spokesman Refuses To Rule Out Using Nukes In Ukraine; Ukrainian Graveyard Prepares Burial Sites For War Dead; The Home Front: Ukrainians Wait For News Of Soldiers; Ukrainians Shelter in Lviv U.S. to Announce New Sanctions Against Russia; Jackson Disputes Republican Claim She's Weak on Crime; Dozens of Tornadoes Reported Across Southern U.S. Aired 12-1a ET

Aired March 23, 2022 - 00:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[23:59:32]

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: Hello and welcome to our viewers around the world and in the United States this hour. I'm Hala Gorani reporting live from the Lviv in Ukraine where it's almost 6:00 in the morning across this Western Ukrainian city.

Now, Ukrainian forces have launched a counter attack near the capital that appears to be making some headway against Russian troops. The Ukrainian military announced that it had taken back Makariv from the Russians that's outside of Kyiv. If Ukrainian forces consolidate control of that town, it will be tougher for Russian troops to secure areas West of the capital and push farther South.

[00:00:14]

GORANI: Now, Regional Police toward Makariv Tuesday and posted this video of the destruction. They say Makariv is still being shelled, that every other structure has been destroyed and that there is almost no one left but that the battlefield is fluid and Russia could reverse recent losses.

However, it is significant that Ukrainian forces are able to hold back to the degree that they have.

Here is the assessment of what's going on there from the Pentagon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, PRESS SECRETARY, PENTAGON: We have seen indications that the Ukrainians are going a bit more on the offense now. They have been defending very smartly, very nimbly, very creatively in places that they believe are the right places to defend. The Ukrainians themselves several days ago said that they were planning on on counter attacks. And so, I think we have seen indications that they are -- that they're moving in that direction.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: John Kirby the Pentagon spokesperson. Meanwhile, intense fighting is erupting elsewhere in the region, take a look.

This is an intensive gun battle by a train station in a village Northeast of the capital. A local politician who posted the video claims these are Chechen immigrants who fled the wars with Russia and are now taking up arms to defend Ukraine. CNN can't verify that information.

And in Kyiv itself, several large explosions rang out on Tuesday while the Capitol was under curfew. That curfew is scheduled to be lifted in about an hour. One of the blasts was so powerful. It set off car alarms in the city center.

And in Mariupol, that devastated port city, the hits just keep on coming. A massive humanitarian crisis is underway. And now, Russian ships have started firing on the besieged city from the sea. According to a senior U.S. defense official. Mariupol has already been hammered by land-based missile launches for weeks.

A new satellite images capture Tuesday shows smoke still rising from a neighborhood that is said to be under Russian control there. These pictures mark some of the only glimpses into Mariupol since there are from what we understand no independent journalists left there.

Meanwhile, the Ukrainian president says negotiations with Russia are still underway.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We continue to work at various levels to push Russia for peace. Until the end of this brutal war, Ukrainian representatives are working on the negotiations which continue virtually daily. It's very difficult, sometimes scandalous. But step by step, we are moving forward.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, Ukrainian forces have managed to halt Russia's advances on most fronts. Moscow's response so far has been to bombard cities with missiles and artillery and longer-range missiles as well since its ground troops are stalled in so many cases in so many parts of the country.

Phil Black reports that this war of attrition is turning urban areas to rubble and taking an ever-growing toll on human lives.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Ukrainian forces are pushing back close to the Capitol. They say they've regained control of this road and the surrounding area. It's Makariv, a short drive Western Kyiv. The head of the region's police released this video of his visit soon

after, it shows him reclaiming a melted Ukrainian flag from the local police station.

He says Makariv is still under fire and every second civilian building is damaged or destroyed. There isn't much left. But if Ukraine can now hold this ground, it could prove crucial in stopping Russian forces from encircling the Capitol.

In Ukraine's East, the city of Kharkiv, another much wanted price for the invading force has reported a noticeable increase in Russian munitions fired from a afar.

Intelligence assessments from Western governments say that's happening more because fighting up close isn't going Russia's way.

But still, no city in Ukraine has been bombarded like Mariupol. There is only daily torment for the hundreds of thousands still under siege there.

SERGEI ORLOV, MARIUPOL DEPUTY MAYOR: Each day, Mariupol is destroyed more and more. Till now in our estimation about 90 percent of our infrastructure is damaged and destroyed. City is under continuous bomb and from 50 bombs to 100 bombs Russian air aircraft drops each each day.

BLACK: But Vladimir Putin spokesman is still comfortable saying this:

[00:05:07]

DMITRY PESKOV, KREMLINS SPOKESMAN: Our military are targeting only military goals and military objects on the territory of Ukraine, not civil ones. Russian military are not hitting civil aims, civil targets.

BLACK: One of the still unanswered questions of this conflict, how great are Russian losses on the battlefield? The Russian tabloid Komsomolskaya Pravda appeared briefly to know the answer.

In a report published Monday, it said 9,861 deaths had been recorded by Russia's Defense Ministry with more than 16,000 wounded. Then, much later that day, the report was edited and the numbers removed. The tabloid said it was hacked and someone inserted false information.

The published figure is notable because it tracks with the U.S. Defense Department estimates of up to 10,000 Russian deaths in Ukraine.

After four weeks, Russia's invasion is stalled with little momentum and no significant wins. No problem says President Putin spokesman.

PESKOV: We're speaking about special military operation that is going on and it is going on strictly in accordance with the -- with the plans and there were purposes that were established beforehand.

Pete Buttigieg, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine. (END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: That Kremlin spokesperson you heard from there Dmitry Peskov admits that Russian President Vladimir Putin has yet to achieve any of his military goals in Ukraine. He was speaking there exclusively with CNN's Christiane Amanpour, and he refused to deny that Russian -- that the Russians could resort to nuclear weapons in Ukraine, listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN ANCHOR: Could I quickly ask you though, I need to ask you this because the world is afraid and I want to know whether Putin intends the world to be afraid of the nuclear option. Would he use it?

PESKOV: President Putin intends to -- intends to make the world listen to and understand our concerns.

AMANPOUR: President Putin has laid that card on the table. President Putin said that if anybody tries to stop him, very bad things will happen. And I want to know whether you are convinced or confident that your boss will not use that option.

PESKOV: Well, we have a concept of domestic security. And well, it's public, you can read all the reasons for nuclear arms to be used. So, if it is an existential thread of threat for our country, then it can be used in accordance with our concept.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, I want to bring in Malcolm Davis from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. He's a senior analyst at the think tank, working on defense strategy and capability. Thanks for being with us.

So, you heard Dmitry Peskov there refusing to say essentially that Russia could use the ultimate weapon, the most destructive possible weapon, which is a nuclear bomb, saying that, you know, if it feels under some sort of existential threat, implying it could be justified or could be used. What do you make of that?

MALCOLM DAVIS, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Look, I think it depends on how they define what an existential threat is. It's a very vague term, really, if you're looking at it from the perspective of Moscow, and I think that they could manipulate or rationalize somehow that Ukrainians are threatening Russia's existence. And so therefore, they're able to legitimately consider the nuclear option.

They also have this this concept called escalate to de-escalate where they would use or threatened to use a nuclear weapon to try and de- escalate a conflict by getting, for example, the Ukrainians to quickly seek surrender and for NATO to back off, so that would involve for example detonating a small nuclear weapon as a demonstrated strike.

So, I frankly don't believe Peskov's statement that they would never use nuclear weapons unless Russia itself was directly threatened. GORANI: Right. But also, this isn't the first time we've heard nuclear saber rattling from Russia. We heard it from Vladimir Putin himself just a few weeks ago. And this is really what's keeping Western and NATO allies in check here, right?

I mean, they would potentially have implemented a no-fly zone, had Russia not been a nuclear power. They're really really concerned that any direct confrontation will lead to a war, an all-out war with a nuclear armed superpower here.

GORANI: I think that's correct. I mean, if this was some third world dictator in the Middle East, then we would have been in boots on the ground by now. But it is Russia with 5,500 nuclear weapons.

[00:10:07]

DAVIS: And clearly, Putin is willing to rattle nuclear sabers and make coercive nuclear threats. And that really has constrained NATO's options for intervention, including in regards to a no-fly zone.

GORANI: (INAUDIBLE) that, though, let's look at the advances of Russian troops on the ground, and in some cases, they're being repelled. We see it on the outskirts of Kyiv. They're resorting as a result to longer range missiles, they're firing from the sea into Mariupol. They're not putting their boots on the ground as close to the action, as I'm sure at this point they would have wanted.

What does that tell you about the longer-term picture here for Russian forces inside Ukraine?

DAVIS: Well, look, I think, certainly the Russian initial campaign has culminated, it's reached the point whereby they can no longer advance on any front.

So, what they're doing is they're digging in for a longer-term operation, in terms of, as you say, bombarding cities indiscriminately with mass firepower. They're trying to get their logistical base back in order to resupply forces that are dug in. But it's not clear that there'll be able to do that, because that logistical train is quite exposed to Ukrainian attacks in the rear.

And at the same time as this, as the Russians are digging in for a prolonged war, the Ukrainians are growing stronger, and more bolder each day, because they are getting military support from the West in terms of, you know, systems like javelin and so forth.

And so, you are seeing Ukrainian counterfeits. Now, these counterfeits are not necessarily making huge progress, but they are nevertheless important first steps.

But I do think we are in for a prolonged conflict rather than a quick conflict. And I do think you will see intensified war of the cities where the Russians are using large scale artillery attacks on cities indiscriminately.

GORANI: So, what the Western allies, NATO allies, the U.S., the E.U. what they're doing now, is it enough in the longer term to help Ukraine really repel this invasion? Do you think or do they need to be doing more? Ukraine seems to think that they need more assistance, more certainly anti-aircraft weaponry, they've called for no-fly zone, that's off the table for now. But do you think that what's being done now is enough to give them the tools that they need on the Ukrainian side?

DAVIS: It's never enough, I do think that the West needs to step up even more in terms of shipping different types of military capabilities to the Ukrainians to enable them to become even more effective in attacking the Russians.

And ultimately, the West also does need to really tighten the economic screws on Russia. And that means cutting off their oil and natural gas supplies.

But, you know, we can only go so far short of risking a wider war between NATO and Russia. And that's where we come into the no-fly zone issue. So, we can -- we should be pushing our assistance to Ukraine as far possible as we can without necessarily blundering into essentially what would be World War III.

GORANI: Malcolm Davis in Canberra, Austria. Thanks very much for joining us, appreciate it.

DAVIS: Thank you.

GORANI: U.S. President Joe Biden heads to Europe in the next few hours for a critical trip that comes one month since Russia launched its route -- launched its brutal assault on Ukraine.

Mr. Biden's first stop is in Brussels for an extraordinary NATO Summit, that happens on Thursday. Followed by a meeting of the G7 and the European Council.

The U.S. leader tweeted that on this trip the West will make clear it is united and their defensive democracy. His National Security Adviser says Mr. Biden will join with allies in imposing further sanctions on Russia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE SULLIVAN, NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISER: For the past few months, the West has been united. The President is traveling to Europe to ensure we stay united, to cement our collective resolve, to send a powerful message that we are prepared and committed to this for as long as it takes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Well, Mr. Biden will also be traveling to Poland at the end of the week, where he will meet with U.S. troops and hold a bilateral meeting with the Polish president.

Now, as the war in Ukraine grinds on, we're almost a month in here, soldiers on both sides of the conflict are losing their lives. How Ukraine is handling the rising number of war dead.

And we'll look at how two Ukrainian families are coping with the war as their loved ones are fighting far away.

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[00:19:12]

GORANI: Welcome back. Exact casualty numbers are hard to pin down in Russia's war on Ukraine. But one thing is clear, the death toll has been rising and it's been rising on both sides.

CNN's Ivan Watson takes us inside a graveyard where burial plots are being made for Ukrainian troops.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

IVAN WATSON, CNN, SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): This military cemetery brings home the stark reality Ukraine has been living with for years. All of these crosses, they marked the graves of Ukrainian servicemen who've died fighting against Russian backed separatists in the Donbass region since 2014.

And on this side, we have new graves. And they're devoted to casualties from Russia's invasion of Ukraine that was launched on February 24th of this year.

[00:20:05]

WATSON: One of the Fallen is Mikhail Zaderaka (PH). Born in 1997, just 25 years old.

And if you come over here, you see something else which is a reminder of how grim this conflict is. The authorities have dug dozens of additional graves, anticipating the likelihood of more casualties in this terrible conflict.

WATSON (voice over): This refrigerator truck represents another side of this war, it's parked outside a city morgue, and city officials say that it is partially filled with the bodies of some 350 Russian soldiers.

There is another refrigerator truck they say that is parked in another part of the city with around 400 Russian corpses. And when you come to this side here, you can smell the stench of cadavers.

Ukrainian officials say that they are conducting DNA tests of the Russian dead and that they are then going to send these bodies to the Ukrainian capital, to eventually be returned to Russia and to the families for proper burial.

Ivan Watson, CNN, Dnipro, Ukraine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: It is absolutely grim and every war has a home front. Don Lemon profiles two Ukrainian families who are in the relative safety of Lviv, while their loved ones are fighting the Russians.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: This is when he came home from war?

Oksana Buhel has lived in Lviv for her entire life. But for now, without her husband Max, who was fighting in southern Ukraine.

You miss him? You miss Dad?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

LEMON: She and her two children sleep in this hallway in case of an airstrike and worried (PH). One of the countless families across Ukraine separated with a spouse at the front.

OKSANA BUHEL, LVIV, UKRAINIAN RESIDENT (through translator): I tried to track if he's online and get very worried if he hasn't been online.

LEMON: So, you check just to make sure he's OK?

BUHEL (through translator): Yes, I'm very worried when I get calls from unknown numbers.

LEMON: What do you worry that unknown phone number is?

BUHEL (through translator): I'm afraid someone I don't know will call and tell me some bad news.

LEMON: What's the hardest thing?

BUHEL (through translator): That it's indefinite. And you can influence anything. You try to monitor the news but you can't do anything. That and the uncertainty.

LEMON: Oksana and her children Lota (PH) seven and Stanislav (PH) four, are relatively safe in Lviv. But as other cities across Ukraine turn into frontlines, other families have a difficult choice to make.

TATYANA NUKUBATI, KYIV, UKRAINE RESIDENT (through translator): If not for my son, I wouldn't be here.

Tatyana Nukubati (PH) and her son Nikita (PH) fled from their home in Kyiv when Nikita's father is fighting.

NUKUBATI (through translator): For every mother, the most important thing is to keep their child safe.

LEMON: So, you would have stayed in Kyiv if it weren't for your child?

NUKUBATI (through translator): Most likely, yes.

LEMON: Why?

NUKUBATI (through translator): Because it's my home. My family and relatives are in Kyiv. LEMON: Here in Lviv, 10-year-old Nikita is trying to adjust to life with war.

Do you worry about him?

NIKITA: Yes.

LEMON: What do you worry?

NIKITA (through translator): That he doesn't get hit.

NUKUBATI (through translator): When we first came to Kyiv, I asked what he wanted for his birthday. And he didn't say toys. He said I want -- I want this day to be done.

LEMON: Everyone is dreaming of the day the war ends.

What's the first thing you're going to do when you see your dad?

NIKITA (through translator): I will hug him.

LEMON: And?

NIKITA (through translator): Also, I'm happy he returned.

NUKUBATI (through translator): I will hug him and say thank you.

LEMON: Thank you for what?

NUKUBATI (through translator): Thank you for staying strong. Thank you for bringing peace. Thank you for risking everything for us, our people and our country.

LEMON: Don Lemon, CNN, Lviv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: Our coverage of Russia's war on Ukraine continues in just a moment.

Straight ahead, the humanitarian crisis is getting worse as some towns are on the verge of running out of food, and refugee families here in Lviv speak to CNN about the emotional toll of the war, stay with us.

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[00:29:20]

GORANI: Welcome back. The refugee crisis from Russia's war on Ukraine is worsening by the day. The U.N. refugee agency says more than 3.5 million people have now fled their country. It is ramping up supplies of thermal blankets, hot meals and tents along the Ukrainian border as temperatures continue to remain quite low.

The World Health Organization says about half a million refugees in Poland alone need additional support for mental health and emotional distress.

The WHO reports at least 62 attacks on Ukrainian healthcare sites since the invasion began.

Now, the aid group Mercy Corps warns some Ukrainian towns could run out of food in three or four days saying "the humanitarian system is entirely broken down" according to them.

[00:30:10]

Many of those trying to escape the violence are passing through Lviv right here in Western Ukraine. Some of those families spoke with CNN's Ben Wedeman about the struggles and emotions that they're having to process.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): While the children play, parents ponder a fate uncertain as they wait outside Lviv's train station.

A priest tries to keep up spirits with song and dance. Volunteers provide a hot meal.

(on camera) Almost a month into this war, and the sheer scale of the movement of humanity is mind-boggling. More than 10 million people, basically a quarter of the population of this country, has been rendered homeless.

(voice-over): Around Lviv, a multitude of people have found temporary refuge in the blessing of an air of the ordinary. The dots are still with those left behind.

Dasha Zuban's brother stayed in Kyiv to fight.

DASHA ZUBAN, FLED KYIV: We are praying, every day we are praying for my brother. All my friends, they have someone to serve in the military. Fathers, cousins, husbands.

WEDEMAN: Deana Tabar (ph) and her three-year-old son, Davide (ph), are staying in a stark municipal building, set aside for the displaced.

"I couldn't tell him what's going on," she says. "He's too small. When he heard bombing, he hid under the bed. I told him, Don't be afraid. It's just thunder."

Natalia and Bogadan Dilutrenko (ph) bed down every night in an indoor basketball court.

"I'm not so well," says Natalia, who led a choir back home. "I'm nervous. I'm worried about my parents and my friend who has parents in Mariupol, whom she hasn't heard from for 20 days."

She shows us video of a performance before the war shattered their lives. The choir has gone silent. The light at the end of this tunnel is receding. "At first, people thought it would last a week," says her husband,

Bogadan. "They said hang on, don't lose hope. Now we hope for the best but prepare for the worst."

And so the painful exodus West goes on. This train bound for Hungary is farewell perhaps, final.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Lviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GORANI: If you would like to help people in Ukraine who may be in need of basic necessities like food, water or shelter, go to CNN.com/impact. There are many organizations on the ground that are trying to help as best they can.

I'll have more from Ukraine in the next hour. But first, let's bring in John Vause in Atlanta -- John.

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, thank you for that. We'll take a short break here on CNN.

But when we come back, as the Russian military turns increasingly to a scorched-earth policy in Ukraine, the U.S. president set to announce another round of tough new sanctions. This time, Russian lawmakers will be the target.

Also ahead, a marathon day of questions for the first African-American woman nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court. All the details here on CNN when we come back.

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[00:37:25]

VAUSE: U.S. President Joe Biden is set to reveal new economic sanctions this week, targeting hundreds of Russian lawmakers serving in the lower house of Parliament. The announcement expected while Biden is in Europe meeting with U.S. allies.

CNN's M.J. Lee has more now, reporting in from Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

M.J. LEE, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Ahead of President Biden's departure for Europe, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan announcing that the U.S. will announce a new round of sanctions against Russia and that this will be done in conjunction with other U.S. allies.

Thursday, of course, is the day that President Biden is going to attend this extraordinary NATO summit. He will also be meeting with the leaders of the G-7 and the European Council.

Sullivan telling reporters that, while he is not going to get into the details of this new round of sanctions, that you can think about them in sort of two buckets. That one will be the actual news sanctions that will be announced, and the second will have a lot to do with the enforcement of sanctions. Here's what he said.

JAKE SULLIVAN, U.S. NATIONAL SECURITY ADVISOR: One of the key elements of that announcement will focus not just on adding new sanctions, but on ensuring that there is joint effort to crack down on an invasion, on sanctions, on any attempt by any country to help Russia basically undermine, weaken, or get around the sanctions.

LEE: Jake Sullivan saying that these new sanctions to be announced on Thursday will mark a new phase in the global effort to try to contain Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

One country that the U.S. has been watching very closely, of course, is China. President Biden recently spoke with President Xi of China. And Sullivan saying at the White House press briefing that at this moment in time, the U.S. does not believe that China has given military assistance to the Russians.

M.J. Lee, CNN, the White House.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: The former U.S. ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker, joins us now for more on a NATO summit which is expected to be like no other. For the record, Ambassador Volker served as the U.S. special representative for Ukraine negotiations.

And welcome back to CNN NEWSROOM. It's good to see you.

KURT VOLKER, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR TO NATO: Thanks for having me.

VAUSE: So this is not your father's NATO. This isn't even your NATO. This is a NATO with renewed energy, commitment. But in a recent op-ed you made the case that there is a danger in this newfound unity in purpose. And that Ukraine could actually be left hung out to dry in a way. I mean, it's a very broad summary, possibly too broad. But lay out how you think this could still go all South for the Ukrainians.

VOLKER: Right. So what NATO has done exceptionally well is to demonstrate unity of purpose among the allies for a collective defense of NATO territory.

Baltic states, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria. You know, NATO has been very clear that any attack on any NATO country will be met with the full force of NATO.

[00:40:10]

But by saying that, what that does is it leaves a country like Ukraine, or Moldova, or Georgia in limbo. What about them? There is no actual Russian threat or attack against NATO territory today. Of course, we want to prevent that.

But there is an ongoing Russian attack against Ukraine, and potentially also against Moldova or others. So what is NATO going to do about that?

And if the answer is nothing, then that's a green light to Russia. So this is where the difficult part is for these NATO leaders meeting on Thursday. What do they say, meaningfully, about Ukraine? What do they do to help Ukraine? What kind of warnings can they give to Vladimir Putin?

VAUSE: A week ago, when Ukraine's president address lawmakers in Berlin, he used Germany's own past to highlight the crisis in his country. Here he is, and he begins by referencing the number of years since the end of the Second World War.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): Eighty years later, I address all of you who heard politicians say every year, never again! But I can see these words are worth nothing. Now, a whole nation is being exterminated in Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Never again! A promise to prevent all forms of genocide, now and forever. So what does that actually look like for NATO when it comes to Ukraine? How do they ensure that it never again -- you know, they stick to it?

VOLKER: All right. Well, that is -- that is the issue of the day. And I think President Zelenskyy put his finger right on it. There is a legal obligation of NATO to protect its members. And that's good, and that's being met.

There is a moral obligation of those of us in the West. Not to allow further Holocaust, further genocides, further extermination of countries, such as we saw during World War II.

That is happening now with Ukraine. And so, where is NATO in meeting this moral obligation? That's the dilemma. We don't want to start World War III. We don't want to expand the war. I don't think anyone is arguing for that.

But the flipside is if you don't do something, if you don't risk something, then you are seeing this never again moment repeat itself. And I think that's a shame on all of us.

VAUSE: Well, in terms of the bigger picture and what's at stake beyond Ukraine, the U.K. foreign secretary, Liz Truss, wrote this for "The Financial Times": "Our response is not yet aimed at deterring Putin's territorial ambitions. But also showing other potential hostile states how we deal with threats. We cannot allow any authoritarian to think their aggression will go unchallenged."

So how much pain needs to be inflicted on Russia and Putin to make any future wannabe Stalin think twice?

VOLKER: Right. Well, I think what we're doing, actually, is a good strategy. That is to say we are hitting Russia with unprecedented sanctions that are going to hit the economy incredibly hard. Russia will never be the same after this for decades and decades.

And at the same time, we're helping the Ukrainians to defend themselves. And they've exterminated Russia's military in Ukraine. And they are forcing Russia to consider what their next steps are. All of that is a good strategy so far.

But as you point out, other dictators, whether Xi in China, or in Iran, or in North Korea, they're watching to see how does this play out.

What's critically important now is that Putin is not allowed to succeed. Putin does not succeed in exterminating Ukraine as a country. And Putin's force to reckon with the damage that he has inflicted on his own country. That is critical for all of these other dictators.

And we're still in the balance now. We are not out of this. We still have to do more.

VAUSE: What about the flip side of the coin here, supporting Ukraine with defense shipments. That's important and crucial. But on the other side, why not announce the type of Marshall Plan to rebuild the country once this is over? To send a message that NATO and Western support is there for the long term.

VOLKER: Yes, I think this is essential, as well. The first thing we need is for Ukraine to survive as a sovereign and independent state.

And I do believe that's something that NATO should state at its meeting on Thursday. That Ukraine's survival is a NATO interest. And then once the war is over, we are going to have to help to rebuild Ukraine. We do need a Marshall plan of sorts for Ukraine.

Certainly, there will be some seized Russian assets that can contribute to that. But that won't be enough. It's got to be a project of the West to then help rebuild Ukraine economically, politically, and ensure that it is never threatened again.

So we have to start looking at security arrangements and its relationship with your Atlantic (ph) institutions such as the E.U.

VAUSE: Ambassador Volker, thank you so much. We appreciate your time and your insights and your experience. Thank you, sir.

VOLKER: Thank you for having me.

VAUSE: In the U.S., Senate Republicans ramped up attacks on day two of the confirmation hearing for Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson.

The first black woman nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court was accused of being soft on child sex offenders, grilled over her faith, and criticized for defending detainees at Guantanamo Bay and a whole lot more.

CNN's Paula Reid has details.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) PAULA REID, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): On the second day of her

Supreme Court confirmation hearings, Judge Kentucky Brown Jackson forcefully pushing back against GOP attacks accusing her of being lenient in sentencing child porn offenders.

JUDGE KETANJI BROWN JACKSON, SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: As a mother, and a judge who has had to deal with these cases, I was thinking that nothing could be further from the truth. The statute says, calculates the guidelines, but also look at various aspects of this offense and impose a sentence that is, quote, "sufficient but not greater than necessary" to promote the purposes of punishment.

REID: Those guidelines, she says, are out of date, as they suggest tougher sentences based on the number of photographs received in the mail.

JACKSON: And that made total sense before, when we didn't have the Internet. When we didn't have distribution. But the way that the guideline is now structured, based on that set of circumstances, is leading to extreme disparities in the system.

REID: But Republican Senator Josh Hawley still used his entire allotment of time to talk about the issue.

SEN. JOSH HAWLEY (R-MO): Judge, he was 18. These kids are 8. I don't see in what sense they're peers. I've got a 9-year-old, a 7-year-old, and a 16-month-old at home. And I live in fear that they will be exposed to, let alone exploited in this kind of material.

JACKSON: This particular defendant had just graduated from high school. And some of, perhaps not all, when you are looking at the records, but some of the materials that he was looking at were older teenagers, were older victims. Attempting to take into account all of the relevant factors and do justice, individually, in each case.

REID: Today was the first chance lawmakers had to question Jackson, with another big focus being her previous representation of Guantanamo Bay detainees.

JACKSON: Federal public offenders don't get to pick their clients. They have to represent whoever comes in, and it's a service.

REID: The issue touched off this tense exchange.

SEN. DICK DURBIN (D-IL): Suggest a president of your own party suggested --

SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R-SC): I'm suggesting the system has failed miserably. And advocates to change the system, like she was advocating, would destroy our ability to protect this country. We're at war. We're not fighting the crime!

REID: Senator Ted Cruz zeroed in on critical race theory, the idea that U.S. systems are inherently racist, using charts and books!

JACKSON: Senator. REID: It was one of the few times Jackson appeared visibly annoyed.

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Do you agree with this book that is being taught with kids, that babies are racist?

JACKSON: Senator, I have not reviewed any of those books, any of those ideas. They don't come up in my work as a judge, which I am, respectfully, here to address.

REID: Democrats, though, often used their time to highlight the historic significance of her nomination and provide a reprieve for Jackson during the grueling day-long hearing.

SEN. DIANNA FEINSTEIN (D-CA): I think you're doing very well, and as you can see, this is a bit of a tough place.

REID: Paula Reid, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Still ahead, wild weather in the American South. Powerful winds sweeping across a highway, strong enough to overturn a pick-up truck and a whole lot more on that. Details when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:53:16] VAUSE: A severe weather system is sweeping across the Southern U.S., spawning dozens of tornadoes in the last 48 hours. This video shows a massive tornado hitting near New Orleans on Tuesday, moving incredibly fast. Take a look at that.

One person confirmed dead after storms hit Louisiana. At least 18 twisters reported in neighboring Mississippi. The same storm system slammed parts of Texas and Oklahoma on Monday.

CNN's Rosa Flores has more now on the destruction left behind.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ROSA FLORES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Some Southern states on high alert.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, my God.

FLORES: As residents surveyed the damage in Texas and Oklahoma. A 73- year-old woman died after a powerful storm destroyed her home in North Texas, local officials say. Several other people were transported to area hospitals.

This video captures the moment a reported tornado touches down on the town of Elgin, Texas. It rips across the road destroying transformers, knocking this pick-up truck on its side as debris swirls around. The truck spins in circles before it flips right side up. Luckily, the driver is able to speed away.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Get inside. Drive, drive, drive.

FLORES: A man at Walmart yells at frantic shoppers attempting to take cover from the flying debris as a tornado bears down on Round Rock, Texas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stay away from the windows.

FLORES: Jacksboro, Texas, also hit hard by a powerful storm that partially destroyed this elementary school.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've been in this district for 30 years, and this is the most catastrophic damage I've -- I've witnessed.

FLORES: And ripped this mobile home from its foundation before flipping it upside-down.

GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): We know that you have faced a devastating storm, with multiple tornadoes ripping through. We know there are many people whose lives been completely disrupted and people who have lost their homes.

[00:55:03]

FLORES (on camera): Governor Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration for 16 counties in the state of Texas.

Look, overnight, the dangers are going to be moving to the east as this storm moves east, with millions of people still in the path of this storm and with at least three governors warning their residents that they must be weather aware.

Rosa Flores, CNN, Houston.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: I'm John Vause. Hope to see you back here next hour as our breaking news coverage continues with Hala Gorani live in Lviv, in just a moment. But first, this is CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

GORANI: Welcome, everybody. It's just past 7 a.m. here in Lviv, Ukraine. Welcome to our viewers around the world and in the United States. I'm Hala Gorani.

For the first time since the Russian invasion, it appears Ukrainian forces.