Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Ukrainians Takes Back Control of Towns; Chechen Fighters Side with Ukrainian Forces; Russia Hitting Ukraine from all Directions; European Countries Anticipates More Refugees; Aid Groups Helping More Ukrainians; Tech Savvies Sees the Truth; Ukrainians Fighting to Retake Town of Izyum; Kremlin Spokesperson Leaves a Question Unanswered; Ukraine's President to Address Japan's Parliament; SCOTUS Nominee Defends Herself; Aviation Investigators Still Looking for Clue; Tornado Killed One Person in St. Bernard. Aired 3-4a ET

Aired March 23, 2022 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: Welcome to our continuing coverage of the war on Ukraine. And welcome to our viewers around the world and in U.S. I'm Hala Gorani reporting live from Lviv.

Our breaking news this hour in Ukraine, explosions and gun battles are ringing out across the country as fierce fighting erupts on the outskirts of Kyiv.

You're watching a shootout by a train station in a village about 30 kilometers northeast of the capital. A local politician who posted the video says these are in fact Chechen immigrants who fled the wars with Russia and are now taking up arms to defend Ukraine against the invasion.

You hear him -- you hear them some of them say Allahu Akbar during this battle. CNN can't independently confirm the information. But we were able to geolocate the video and verify its authenticity.

In Mariupol, more fires, more destruction and no mercy for the tens of thousands of people trapped in that city without food, water or medicine. Ukraine's government has accused Russia of stealing a convoy of empty buses heading into the city, kidnapping their drivers and several emergency workers. And then the buses were said to evacuate some of the many civilians who were suffering.

That was the original mission of those buses. But of course, they were not able to fulfill it.

And take a look at these satellite images captured Tuesday. They show smoke still rising from a Mariupol neighborhood that is said to be under Russian control. These pictures mark some of the only glimpses we have into the city right now since there are reportedly no independent journalists left there. And this video it goes to show Russian cruise missiles launched off

the coast of Crimea that are heading towards Ukraine. The Pentagon has reported an uptick in naval activity in the northern Black Sea as ground battles continue to stall.

Now two hours from now Ukraine's president will address Japan's parliament in his latest effort to rally global support against the invasion. Japan is among those countries imposing sanctions on Russia. And on Tuesday, Volodymyr Zelenskyy address another parliament. He asked Italy to strengthen its sanctions against Moscow and any Russians responsible for the war. He called on the Italian government to go after their property, their real estate, their yachts, and their bank accounts.

Now on the battlefield Russian forces have been stalled but their bombardment of Ukrainian cities is leaving widespread destruction and claiming an unknown number of civilian lives.

Alex Marquardt has more on the military developments.

ALEXANDER MARQUARDT, CNN SENIOR U.S. SECURITY CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The booms of Russian missiles landing near Ukraine's second largest city, Kharkiv, which has borne the brunt of so much of the Russian onslaught. But few places have felt the wrath of Russia like the port city of Mariupol. Now facing an attack coming not just from land but from the water as well.

Russian ships in the Sea of Azov now joining the relentless bombardment of this key city. The deputy mayor estimating 90 percent of the city's infrastructure is now destroyed.

SERGEI ORLOV, DEPUTY MAYOR, MARIUPOL, UKRAINE: The city does not receive any humanitarian aid. City is without food, electricity, water, energy supply. the city is under continuous bombing. A lot of death, a lot of crying. A lot of awful war crimes.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: Ukrainian military says this explosion at a Mariupol industrial compound was caused by a Russian attack as new satellite images show the city is crumbling while Russian artillery units dig in around it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): Hard working honest city of Mariupol which is being destroyed by the occupiers and being reduced to ashes, but it will survive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: In the capital Kyiv, loud explosions were heard after yet another curfew imposed this time until Wednesday morning. The Ukrainian interior ministry saying that air defenses destroyed a Russian missile. Russia now claims Ukraine was hiding weapons in that Kyiv shopping center that Russia had previously bombed. Ukraine denies the allegation. Local officials say at least eight people were killed.

[03:04:58]

The U.S. believes these brutal attacks signifies an increasingly desperate Russian military that is struggling to resupply is facing mounting casualties. Almost 10,000 Russian troops dead according to report in a Russian tabloid which the Kremlin denied. After the report was pulled down the outlet claimed they were hacked. Asked if Russian President Vladimir Putin has achieved his aim in Ukraine, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told this to CNN.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMITRY PESKOV, KREMLIN SPOKESPERSON: Look, first of all, not yet. He hasn't yet achieved yet. And we're speaking about special military operation that is going on. And it is going on strictly in accordance with the plans and with purposes that were established beforehand.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: There are growing signs of Ukrainian troops on the offensive fighting to take back lost territory. Pushing Russian forces back around Kyiv and claiming to have retaken the nearby town of Makariv. They're trying to do the same in the town of Izyum which Russia has pummeled.

Ukraine's soldiers also pushing towards Kherson near Crimea which had been taken by Russian forces which are now being forced to reposition. And while they struggle, U.S. and NATO officials are now warning that key Russian ally, Belarus, could soon send its forces into the war zone to help Vladimir Putin.

With the war raging on, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy continues his outreach to world leaders.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENSKYY (through translator): This morning, I spoke to his Holiness, Pope Francis, he said very important words. I understand that you long for peace, I understand that you need to defend yourself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MARQUARDT: Among the growing number of issues that Russian troops are now facing in Ukraine is the cold. According to a senior U.S. defense official, on top of the food and fuel issues, the logistical and communication issues that Russian troops are facing at the front, the U.S. is also seeing signs that some Russian troops have also come down with frostbite and have had to be taken out of the fight in Ukraine.

Alex Marquardt, CNN, at the State Department.

GORANI: Well, Europe is ramping up preparations for an influx of more refugees from Russia's war on Ukraine. Ireland's deputy prime minister says he expects 40,000 refugees to arrive by the end of next month. The government is reevaluating its services to meet this potential demand.

And France is preparing housing for at least 100,000 Ukrainian refugees. The prime minister vowed to help them better integrate into French society. And the U.N. Refugee Agency says more than three and a half million people have now fled Ukraine. And this is important as well. More than six million others are internally displaced.

The U.N. is adding more supplies of things like thermal blankets, hot meals and tents as temperatures continue to remain quite low. Though they have been heating up thankfully over the last several days.

Now in the past 24 hours, volunteers at just one Romanian border crossing helped nearly 3,000 refugees. Many of them fleeing the Russian bombardments of Mariupol and the Sumy region in eastern Ukraine. And the aid group the Mercy Corps warns that some Ukrainian towns could run out of the food in three or four days, saying quote, "the humanitarian system is entirely broken down."

Many of those trying to escape the violence are passing through Lviv here in western Ukraine. Some of those families spoke with CNN's Ben Wedeman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: 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.

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.

Around Lviv a multitude have found temporary refuge and the blessing of an air of the ordinary. But thoughts are still with those behind. Dasha Zuban's brother stayed in Kyiv to fight.

SASHA ZUBAN, FLED UKRAINE: We are praying, every day we are praying for my brother, for all my friends. They have someone to serve in military. Fathers, cousins, husbands.

WEDEMAN: Tiana Alteva (Ph) and her 3-year-old son David are staying in this stark municipal building set aside for the displaced.

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

Natalya and Bogdan Dimitrenko bed down every night in an indoor basketball court.

[03:10:00]

"I'm not so well, says Natalya (Ph) who led a choir back home, I'm nervous. I'm worried about my parents and my friends 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 Bogdan (Ph). "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. This farewell perhaps final.

Ben Wedeman, CNN, Lviv.

GORANI: Joining me now is Jan Egeland, he is the Secretary General of the Norwegian Refugee Council and the former United Nations undersecretary for humanitarian affairs. Thanks for joining us.

So, Jan, one thing that struck me about this refugee crisis is just how quickly it happened. I mean, in four weeks we're talking about 10 million Ukrainians either that became overnight refugees or internally displaced in their own country. Talk to us a little about how much of a response needed to be mobilized very quickly to address their needs.

JAN EGELAND, SECRETARY GENERAL, NORWEGIAN REFUGEE COUNCIL: We haven't seen such a ferocity in an onslaught on cities in a long time. And we haven't seen three million people being displaced per week ever I think. It is mind boggling really. I was in Ukraine myself just before the invasion, there are also millions and millions now in gun -- in crossfire who cannot leave.

GORANI: Yes.

EGELAND: So, as aid groups we have to scale up inside Ukraine. That's a number one priority. Of course, we're also have sent emergency teams to Poland to Romania, to Moldova that are receiving hundreds of thousands every day now. But if six million leave the country there will be 36 million left. And they will be in very, very difficult situation.

GORANI: Yes. Are you concerned that longer term there might be refugee fatigue setting in, that people who helped initially because obviously you help your neighbors in need at some point won't have the means, won't have the patience, won't have the support to host millions of people in their own communities?

EGELAND: I hope not. I hope not. I mean, the outpouring of generosity here in Europe has been tremendous. And the volunteers in Poland and all of the other neighboring countries have done miracles. And remember, inside Ukraine, it's been primarily volunteers who have helped the neighbors.

Now, we, professional organizations who are on the ground who have aid workers are scaling up. We're doing cash distributions as of this week. We're starting up with collective centers. We have hot meals. And we're organizing the convoys from the neighboring countries. So that will come more and more.

GORANI: Yes. EGELAND: And asked, perhaps, yes, the volunteers will be exhausted. You cannot run such an operation on volunteerism long term.

GORANI: Yes. But this is short term. Right? Because you have millions of kids out of school. Even if they are warmly welcomed in a country like Poland or Romania or Moldova or anywhere else, there's going to be a language barrier. They need to -- they need to go to school and continue their education.

We saw the lost to generation that was created by the Syrian refugee crisis and you want to avoid it at all costs with the Ukrainians. How do you do that?

EGELAND: By integration really. I think the Ukrainian refugees will little by little go to more and more European countries. In my country Norway --

GORANI: Yes.

EGELAND: -- we're getting thousands now. And they're going to small communities where they are becoming integrated. They will start school. They will be able to speak English which Norwegians can speak and then they will learn Norwegian and then of course they will return when it's safe there. We cannot give up hope. That this madness will end and that there will be a ceasefire talks and some kind of a peace agreement.

GORANI: Well, refugees in the system thing, I think people who are not familiar with some of their issues don't always understand. Initially is that no refugee wants to be a refugee. And very few refugees don't have as their primary goal the idea of returning back to their home, their community, their towns and their villages.

[03:15:03]

There's been quite a difference in the welcoming, though, of these refugees compared to refugees from the Middle East and some of these countries that were adamant that they wouldn't take any Syrians, Afghans, Yemenis or whatever. This has been quite a different picture. How do you explain it?

EGELAND: Well, it's neighbors now coming here. I mean, yes, Poland was not very welcoming to -- we have to -- we have to admit it, the Eastern Europeans took very few refugees crossing the Mediterranean. It was the southern Europeans with Germany and Sweden really.

But at that time the slogan in Europe was refugees, welcome to Europe. Welcome, to the individual countries. And then within the year, it became much colder and then we had the European Championship in barbed wire erection around our borders.

I don't think this will happen now. But of course, Poland has now taken more refugees in three weeks than Europe took in all of the 2015. The year of the refugee influx. So those countries have to be alleviated from this pressure. The rest of Europe can absorb several million Ukrainian refugees. But the longer the war ends, the more exhausted both the Ukrainians

will be and those who come here. The neighboring countries will be. And the less likely it is that people can return short term because of they are -- they are destroying cities, they are destroying the homes of the people who live.

GORANI: Absolutely. Thanks very much, Jan Egeland, for talking to us this morning.

I'll have more from Lviv, Ukraine a little bit later. But first, let's go to Rosemary Church in Atlanta.

EGELAND: Thank you.

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you so much, Hala. I appreciate it.

Coming up, the Russian government has strict controls on what information its people can access. We look at efforts to get around Vladimir Putin's digital iron curtain. Back in just a moment.

[03:20:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, we continue tracking developments out of the Ukraine where armed forces are fighting to retake the town of Izyum in the eastern part of the country. That is according to a senior U.S. defense official who says Russia moved vehicles there last week to cut off Ukrainian forces in the Donbas area from the rest of the country.

And we're also seeing fierce fighting in a village northeast of Kyiv. A politician who posted this video claims these are Chechen immigrants who fled the wars with Russia and are now taking up arms to defend Ukraine. CNN cannot independently confirm that information though, but we were able to geolocate the video and verify its authenticity.

Russia's war on Ukraine isn't just being fought on air, land and sea. It's also being fought in cyber space as the Kremlin tries to spread misinformation and control the news that Russians access.

Joining me now is Ilya Lablokov, he is a lecturer in journalism at the University of Sheffield in the U.K. His research covers media in post- socialist countries. Thank you so much for being with us.

ILYA LABLOKOV, LECTURER IN JOURNALISM, UNIVERSITY OF SHEFFIELD: Hello. Good morning.

CHURCH: So, we know that some Russians have been successful breaking through Putin's digital iron curtain to learn the truth about Russia's war on Ukraine. And in some instances, they are sharing that information and it's dividing family and friends.

LABLOKOV: Yes. CHURCH: Many Russians not wanting to believe their country would target civilians. So, how are the younger Russians able to bypass sensors. Are they using VPNs or other digital tools?

LABLOKOV: Yes. I think the VPN now is the most efficient tool to get through the, as they call it the iron curtain. Because the government was implementing quite a lot of measures to put internet traffic under control. It's been happening for the last five years and now it's the high point. So basically, they have been able to shut down all the major independent media or to cut access to them.

But it's not just the young people who actually want to get access to the independent and verified news. The divide is really between those who would like to get the real information. Not the censored one. Not the twisted one. And those who would like to stay in this, you know, world of illusions about Russia fighting against the west.

CHURCH: Right. And you have said that Russia's censorship capabilities have so far allowed the government to control the narrative inside Russia's borders. But you also say that this may change. How and when might it change? Could this war perhaps be the trigger for that change do you think?

LABLOKOV: The war itself is not going to be the trigger, I think. The trigger will be the vast sanctions and the lowering standards of life. This is going to be the key trigger for some Russians, not all Russians, but some Russian to reconsider their position on what is happening.

So, the lower will be the standards, the harder will be the sanctions the quicker some Russians will realize. And that will certainly trigger revolt within certain communities. I also predict that some journalists will be leaving the media and some journalists will be working to undermine the regime from inside. So that usually what happens in the authoritarian or in the totalitarian regimes.

[03:25:08]

CHURCH: And of course, Russia's propaganda saturates television which does tend to be watched more by the older generation. Right? But younger Russians, I mean, you mention some older ones too. But for the most part younger Russians get their information from social media feeds.

LABLOKOV: Yes.

CHURCH: So, where are they getting the bulk of that information? And how extensive is the sharing of the truth about this war?

LABLOKOV: Well, again, it's all by the eco-chambers. But you're right. The older generations they're trying to get access through traditional media. Some still go on the YouTube. So, we notice there are some people in kind of 60-plus age categories that go online and watch things on YouTube. And the interestingly, that sense YouTube is still not banned in Russia. So, Russians can get information independently verified through a variety of sources. Young people normally go on social networks. Again, depending on their

preferences. So, some go on the biggest Russian social media, VK, which is highly censored and which is highly monitored by the domestic intelligence services. Some use VPN and go on Twitter and on Instagram and on Facebook.

But again, those who want to know kind of verified information, of course he use -- go on Twitter. Again, there is a very important source of information called Telegram and Telegram channels. Again, these became one of the alternatives dimensions for both pro-Kremlin audience to get their information.

And opposition audience that are trying to read the news and kind of disseminate messages among their relatives. But normally now it's a battle between platforms. And it is increasingly the battle between big tech platforms and Russians, how Russians are going to get the verified information.

CHURCH: All right. We'll certainly watch to see what happens with this. Ilya Yablokov, thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate it.

LABLOKOV: Thank you.

CHURCH: Well, Hala Gorani picks up our coverage next from Lviv in Ukraine. We will hear from the spokesperson for Russian President Vladimir Putin in an interview you won't see anyone else. What he says about nuclear weapons and the war in Ukraine.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[03:30:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

HALA GORANI, CNN ANCHOR: More now on the developments here in Ukraine. A senior U.S. defense official says Ukrainian forces are battling to retake the town of Izyum. You see it highlighted on the map. The U.S. believes that Russian forces moved into this town southeast of Kharkiv to cut off Ukrainian forces in the Donbas area from reaching the rest of the country.

We have been showing you this dramatic video which captured an intense fire fight between Ukrainian forces and Russian forces about 30 kilometers northeast of Kyiv. Now the Ukrainian politician who posted it says that the fighters are Chechen immigrants who are now siding with Ukraine against Russia. CNN has not been able to verify that report.

Meantime, a Ukrainian official says food and medical supplies have nearly run out in Kherson. Russian forces have occupied the city for about two weeks now. And also, among other developments that we're following. The port city of Mariupol is still the target of relentless bombardment.

Satellite images are offering this most recent view of the widespread destruction there. And you can see that smoke is still rising and the aftermath of a strike. This is the aftermath of another missile strike on a rail way station in Pavlohrad. Officials say at least one person was killed in that attack.

Also, new video emerged showing cruise missiles being launched from a vessel located off the coast of Crimea just west of the city of Sevastopol. So, you can see the intensity of the fighting is not abating.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov admits that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not achieved any of his military goals in Ukraine. Peskov spoke exclusively with CNN's Christiane Amanpour and he refused to deny that Russia could resort to nuclear weapons in Ukraine.

(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?

DMITRY PESKOV, KREMLIN SPOKESPERSON: President Putin intends to -- intends to make the world listen to and understand our concerns. We have been trying to convey our concerns to the world, to Europe, to the United States for a couple of decades but no one would listen to us.

And before it is too late, it was a decision to launch a special operation, military operation to get rid of entire Russia that was created next to our border.

[03:35:06]

AMANPOUR: What? To get rid of Russia?

PESKOV: And to enter Russia. Because Ukraine, actually Ukraine started to be it was formed by the western countries into Russia.

AMANPOUR: OK.

PESKOV: This is the problem --

AMANPOUR: Look, Ukraine is a country. Sovereign. It's recognized by the United Nations. It's been around for a very, very long time. But I just want to know, I want to ask you again, is president Putin -- because again, the Finish president said to me that when he asked Putin directly about this, because 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 arms to be used. So, if it is an existential threat for our country, then it can be used in accordance with our concept.

AMANPOUR: Well.

PESKOV: There are no other reasons that were mentioned in that text.

AMANPOUR: So, you are basically saying only an existential threat to your country. I still don't know whether I've got a full answer from you. And I just -- I'm just going to assume that President Putin wants to scare the world and keep the world on tender hooks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GORANI: All right. There, Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson, the Kremlin spokesperson speaking to Christiane a little bit earlier. Certainly not a reassuring answer when it comes to whether or not Russia would consider using the nuclear option.

Our senior international correspondent Jim Bittermann is following developments live from Paris. And Peskov there reiterating that maximized set of demands that the Kremlin has set forth, has put from the beginning of this unprovoked invasion, Jim.

JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And absolutely, Hala. And kind of reflecting the kind of paranoia that we're hearing from the Kremlin, basically, and Vladimir Putin. That no one understands mother Russia and no one understands the threat that its under. That kind of paranoia that we've seen throughout the system.

And it's important to point out that Peskov also said in that interview that they have nothing to fear from Alexei Navalny who is the leading opposition leader. And yet, at almost the same time that interview was taking place. Navalny was sentenced to nine more years in prison and hard labor because of his opposition to the government.

It looks like it's part of the same crackdown that's going on all over the place in Russia. The Duma, for example, is set to extend the very draconian laws about criticism of the military to criticism of other governmental sectors. And it led the director of human rights watch to say this. The Kremlin seems determined to isolate Russian society from the outside world to cut Russians off from uncomfortable facts. Hala?

GORANI: Right. And I mean, where does that leave the potential here for any kind of negotiated exit from this nightmare? It really sounds as though Putin through his spokesperson is saying we haven't achieved our goals, we may or may not use the nuclear weapons. It depends if we feel existential threat. Where do you go from here?

BITTERMANN: Well, exactly. That's the big question. One thing Peskov did say that sort of slightly positive and that is that they are, the Russian side is going to show up with for the talks, the continuing talks which have gone nowhere with the Ukrainians. So, perhaps there's something going there. At the moment it really is kind of a grim picture, Hala.

GORANI: And what about E.U. countries, NATO allies. They're discussing more sanctions. There is resistance though coming from some countries like Germany to increase sanctions against the gas and oil sector in Russia. But what more cards can they probably play? They've said no to a no-fly zone. What more can they do?

BITTERMANN: Well, in fact, there are some talk this morning that part of this NATO meeting that's coming up at the end of the week will include more sanctions that President Biden will suggest that there should be more sanctions against members of the Duma, members of the parliament in Russia. And other kinds of sanctions.

But in fact, they are running out of the options in terms of turning up the heat. And the Russian short of perhaps cyber warfare or short of perhaps, a real kinetic warfare. Those kinds of options are still out there, I suppose. But at the moment no one wants to exercise them, Hala.

[03:40:00]

GORANI: All right, Jim Bittermann, thanks very much, reporting live from Paris. And that's going to do it for me in Lviv, Ukraine. For more, I'm turning it over to Rosemary Church at the CNN center in Atlanta. Rosemary?

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN ANCHOR: Thank you so much for your reporting, Hala. I appreciate it.

Well, Ukraine's president will soon address lawmakers in Japan. Hoping to rally more support for his country's fight against Russia. We will look at what the war in Ukraine may mean for Tokyo's ties with Moscow when we come back.

[03:45:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, Japan is among the countries sanctioning Russia for its war in Ukraine. And talks between Russia and Japan have now broken down over formally ending World War II hostilities. Now this comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will soon address the Japanese parliament in effort to rally more international support.

And for the latest, CNN Blake Essig is outside parliament in Tokyo. He joins us now live. Good to see you, Blake. So, Ukraine's president is set to address Japan's lawmakers. How far might Japan go in supporting Ukraine?

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Rosemary, Japan has already done a lot as far as typically what they're known to do, slow to put forth sanctions back in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea. This time around things have moved quickly. Very much in lockstep with the United States and G7 nations.

Now, as you mention, Zelenskyy's virtual address to Japan's parliament is scheduled to last about 10 minutes to take place here in just about an hour. We'll be live as long as the situation in Ukraine allows for it. This will be his first such address to a country in Asia.

Now since the invasion started a few weeks ago, President Zelenskyy has taken time to speak directly to national legislators around the world. Thanking them for their support and asking people to do more to help. And Zelenskyy's previous addresses he's been masterful in his ability to make the current conflict relatable. And appeal to each country's conscience.

For example, when he addressed the United States Congress, he compared Russia's attacks to 9/11 and Pearl Harbor. When he spoke to German lawmakers, he urge them to tear down Russia's new wall echoing the fall of the Berlin Wall. Now we expect to hear much of that same type of message from Zelenskyy in a little more than an hour here in Japan.

Now, over the past few weeks, in what has been and unusual response from Tokyo, we've seen Tokyo quickly step up its international role as the invasion of Ukraine has triggered a more assertive foreign policy response from Japan. A response not just aimed at Russia but also China.

Now in line with the United States and other G7 nations, Japan has imposed significant sanctions against Russia and Belarus and joined the call to cut Russia from the SWIFT banking system. Japan has also provided about $100 million worth of humanitarian aid and amended rules to be able to deliver defense equipment to the Ukrainian people.

And when Prime Minister Kishida heads to Brussels here later tonight to attend the G7 summit, we expect more sanctions and more humanitarian aid to be announced. Rosemary?

CHURCH: All right. Blake Essig joining us live from Tokyo. Many thanks for that.

Well, the search continues for what caused a Boeing jet to crash on a routine flight in China. We will have the latest on the investigation and why officials say answers may be hard to find.

[03:50:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

CHURCH: Welcome back, everyone. Well, the first Black woman nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court is defending her record amid tough questions from Republican senators.

Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson has wrapped up her second day of confirmation hearings. She refused to lay out a specific judicial philosophy but said she approaches cases without imposing her personal opinions.

Republican Senator Josh Hawley led the attack on Jackson's judgment and what he called light sentences in child pornography cases. Here's what Jackson told Senator Patrick Leahy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SEN. PATRICK LEAHY (D-VT): What do you say to people who say you're

soft on crime? Or even anti-law enforcement. Because you accepted your duty as a public defender.

KETANJI BROWN JACKSON, U.S. SUPREME COURT NOMINEE: As someone who has had family members on patrol and in the line of fire, I care deeply about public safety. I know what it's like to have loved ones who go off to protect and to serve and the fear of not knowing whether or not they're going to come home again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Jackson returns for more questions in the day ahead. CNN will of course bring you live coverage throughout the day.

Investigators in China are trying to find out any evidence that may help them determine why a Boeing aircraft fell from the sky and crashed in the city of Wuzhou. Of the 132 passengers on board, officials say no survivors have been found so far. They also haven't been able to find the planes block boxes containing critical information on the flight's last minutes.

Well, at least one person is dead after a massive tornado tore through parts of Louisiana. The storm hit near the city of New Orleans on Tuesday night. Video taken from the ground shows just how big the twister was.

[03:55:01]

It eventually touched down near the eastern part of the city. Leaving behind major damage in some areas. And as you can see the tornado flipped cars and shredded homes. Search and rescue crews spent much of the night combing through the debris.

Earlier, CNN's Don Lemon spoke with the president of one of the hardest hit areas about what he's seeing on the ground.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GUY MCINNIS, PRESIDENT, ST. BERNARD PARISH, LOUISIANA: We had a large tornado come over the river. Started in the south area. And just cut all the way through the (Inaudible) open canal which is on the lake side of our parish. We have multiple homes. We don't know yet how many. We do know that we have some homes that were levelled.

We have homes that were lifted up and put back down on the street. We have one confirmed death. We have multiple injuries that were reported at the hospital. We don't have a number all that yet. We don't have a number of homes. Tonight, we are looking at rescue and recovery tonight. Fire department and our sheriff deputy department they'll be out all night.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: The twister was part of a larger storm system that swept through Texas and Oklahoma on Monday. That system is making its way east with a tornado watch in effect for parts of Alabama and Florida.

And thank you so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church. I will be back with another hour of breaking news coverage after the short break. So stay with us.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)