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Russian Forces Abandon Positions At Key Airbase; "Impossible" To Determine Russian Exposure To Radiation At Chernobyl; Scottish Charity Brings Ukrainian Orphans To Safety; Russia Says It Attacked Major Oil Refinery, Military Airfields; Sanctions On Russia Unlikely To Prompt Change; Moscow Pushes For Trade With India; Pope Francis Apologizes For Canadian Residential School Abuse; Academy Accepts Will Smith's Resignation. Aired 5-6a ET
Aired April 02, 2022 - 05:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I want to get straight to our breaking news.
The Russian military just announced it launched an airstrike on an oil refinery in central Ukraine that Russia says was being used to refuel Ukrainian forces. It happened in a city about 200 miles southeast of Kyiv. The facility was attacked by three Russian aircraft and caused a fire around 6:00 am local time.
Russia also said it struck military airfields in Poltava and Dnipro using high precision air based missiles.
Meanwhile, Ukrainian troops have been seizing territory as Russian forces pull back in northern Ukraine. Russian armor and artillery have abandoned their position at a key airbase near Kyiv.
The Kremlin now appears to be pivoting Russian forces to the east and south, while keeping up shelling and missile strikes in many other places. We have disturbing video out of one of those recently recaptured towns. Have a look here.
This is Bucha, a northern Kyiv suburb, a few miles from the now abandoned airfield. Ukrainian forces regained control of the town, encountered gruesome images of dead bodies lying where they fell.
The U.S. on Friday announced another $300 million in military assistance to Ukraine, including so-called suicide drones and night vision equipment. Even with that help, Ukraine's president said he expects tough fighting in the days ahead. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): In the east of our country, the situation remains difficult. The Russian militaries are being accumulated in Donbas, in the Kharkiv direction. They're preparing for new powerful blows. We are preparing for even more active defense.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: With Moscow's assault faltering on many fronts, there are growing questions about an apparent airstrike on a Russian fuel depot.
Did Ukraine attack Russia on its own soil?
President Zelenskyy said this on FOX News.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ZELENSKYY (through translator): I do not discuss any of my orders as commander in chief, the leader of this state. You need to understand that, on that territory that you mentioned, you have to know that they were placing their shooting systems and firing those missiles themselves.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Now Ukraine won't confirm or deny whether it was behind that fiery attack. Belgorod is a highly militarized Russian city near the Ukrainian border. Russia claims two Ukrainian helicopters came in Friday and fired on the storage tanks.
CNN hasn't verified that attack. The Kremlin is warning that the attack could had a negative impact on talks between Moscow and Kyiv. CNN has correspondents on every angle. Phil Black and Ed Lavandera are on the ground in Ukraine. Vedika Sud is in New Delhi, Matthew Chance in London and Atika Shubert in Valencia, Spain. But we begin our coverage with Phil Black in Lviv.
Phil, let's start on that counteroffensive by Ukrainian forces.
What's the latest on that?
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, President Zelenskyy says it is now clear that Russian forces are leaving the north of country. It is noticeable but slow. In some cases, they are leaving because they are being pushed out as a result of the counteroffensives that Ukraine has been launching over the last week or so.
But in other cases, he says they're simply abandoning their positions. This is something that Russia started talking about a week ago and it's now clear this is actually happening.
You can see it from satellite images, where positions that have been dug around the capital, Kyiv, they're now abandoned. And they're in some of the north and northwestern suburbs you were just talking about. What this means, though, is that -- and what the belief is, is that
these forces aren't pulling out to go home; they're being repositioned. And that is why it's being talked about in very serious terms here.
On one hand it represents success for Ukraine in preventing, thwarting Russia's efforts and goals around the capital and the north of the country. On the other hand, Ukraine knows and believes this is going to result in Russia consolidating its forces --
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BLACK: -- and launching new offensive operations in a more concentrated, powerful way in the east of the country as Russia seeks to control that eastern Donbas region and try and secure what it hasn't up until now. And that's an outright military victory, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Now, Phil, that strike on the Russian fuel depot in Belgorod, what do we know?
BLACK: Russia saying that could explain why Ukraine is unwilling to talk about it publicly, even unwilling to acknowledge or deny it, if it did or didn't do it.
We have the video that shows the explosions, that shows the strikes, that shows the helicopters. But still, from the very highest levels of the Ukrainian government, including President Zelenskyy himself, as you just heard, there is an unwillingness to comment on this in either way, neither confirm nor deny. Public ambiguity is the chosen policy here.
And it could be because of the sensitivities that would be involved in striking Russia on its own territory, the fear of escalation or reprisal. Or there could be some other operational security reason.
The truth is, we don't know. But as you touched on, Russia has no problem claiming responsibility for striking fuel depots across this country, as it has been doing so for some time and as it did so again just this morning, confirming that it destroyed an oil refinery and fuel storage facility in Kremenchuk, in the center of the country.
So Russia has no problem confirming that. Ukraine may have struck and destroyed one fuel storage facility in Belgorod. But for the moment remains thoroughly unwilling to discuss it, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: A story we will keep following, of course. And then finally, Phil, when we talked yesterday, we were talking about that humanitarian corridor that people were hoping would bring in supplies and a large-scale evacuation from besieged Mariupol. That failed.
But then I just saw an announcement just moments ago, suggesting there might be more hope for several more humanitarian corridors today, including Mariupol.
What more can you tell us? BLACK: So there are seven humanitarian corridors open again today, that are open by mutual negotiations for various locations, including, we're told, Mariupol. This is pretty standard but what this applies to are private vehicles, people being able to get out using their own methods.
What they tried to do was get a fleet of buses into Mariupol, some 45 or so in all. What we heard, yes, the buses are on the return journey with thousands of people on board. So there may have been some success there. In all yesterday, more than 6,000 people escaped various sections of Russian-controlled cities, including the besieged city of Mariupol.
The Red Cross was also trying to get aid into that city, because, as we've been talking about for so long now, it is cut off. They have no food, no easy access to water, very little heat and so forth while living with constant bombardment.
The humanitarian situation is said to be very dire. The Red Cross is desperate to get aid in. It said it wasn't able to do so yesterday. The situation became impossible without going into details why. But they said they will try to do so again today, Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. We'll keep on that angle as well. Phil Black, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
Russian troops who occupied the shut nuclear power plant in Chernobyl may have been exposed to dangerous levels of radiation before they left. That's according to the Ukraine state energy company, that says the activity of the Russian forces there remains unclear, particularly in the so-called Red Forest area.
David McKenzie explains from London.
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DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the very early stages of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, you'll remember those images of Russian tanks entering Chernobyl, the site of the worst accident in nuclear history.
And now in the recent hours, there's been questions raised about the state of Russian soldiers that departed the Chernobyl area in recent days, within the last 24 hours, in fact.
There is a statement from the state-owned nuclear agency in Ukraine, saying that they believe that Russian soldiers had built fortifications and dug trenches in the Red Forest. Now that is an area that saw the worst fallout from that nuclear accident in 1986.
Now radiation levels have, of course, dropped drastically since then. But that state-owned agency says that those soldiers were panicked before they left.
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MCKENZIE (voice-over): CNN couldn't independently verify that assessment.
But there is worry that they could have had some level of radiation exposure. The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency spoke to CNN on Friday, saying there were some levels of raised radiation but, after so much time since that accident, that the levels overall in Chernobyl are low.
They are requesting information from the Russians about possible exposure and he's looking to go to the site as soon as possible -- David McKenzie, CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: As we just discussed a couple minutes ago with our reporter, Phil Black, in the coming hours, the Red Cross will again try to help thousands of civilians leave Mariupol, the city on the Black Sea coast, that's endured weeks of brutal Russian military assault.
An estimated 100,000 people are still trapped there. The Red Cross says it's trying to reach them Friday but was unable to get into Mariupol. Some residents were able to leave in smaller numbers than the Red Cross had planned. They were taken to the Ukrainian-controlled city of Zaporizhzhya.
It took 11 hours to make it. In normal times, the trip would take less than three hours.
Now one of the people who did escape Mariupol is the CEO of a TV station there. Before fleeing the city two weeks ago, he saw a children's hospital bombed. He described the ordeal to CNN's John Berman.
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NICK OSYCHENKO, CEO, MARIUPOL TV STATION: Yes, if you describe in one look, it is hell. It is just hell. Look, actually for a month right now and, as for me, it was something like 2.5 weeks, we live in the Stone Age here. We don't have anything.
But it was not the sole mates (ph), it was -- we have had shellings, missiles, mines and so and so and so on. We saw dead bodies. We saw dead children. And it's terrible memories. And I think it will be with me for all of my life, with me, with my children, with my wife and so.
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BRUNHUBER: And he adds, before the war, he had 89 employees at his TV station. He only knows that 44 are alive now.
Just ahead on CNN NEWSROOM, how fans of a Scottish soccer club came together to help young orphans out of Ukraine into a safe place in Scotland. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: We want to take you now to Malta's capital of Valletta, hosting Pope Francis right now. Reuters is reporting the pontiff is considering a trip to Kyiv.
Apparently he was asked by a reporter on the plane taking him from Rome to Malta if he was considering an invitation from the political and religion leaders and Pope Francis answered, yes, it is on the table and gave no further details.
Refugees who have been displaced in Ukraine are putting the blame squarely on Russian president Vladimir Putin. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Tragedy, I would never think.
For what?
For ambitions?
The ambitions of the ruler?
I am sorry.
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BRUNHUBER: Many who have been reluctant to leave their homes have been forced to evacuate after Russia's relentless bombing devastated cities and left many without even the most basic of necessities.
The U.N. is reporting that more than 4.1 million people have fled Ukraine after the fighting began over a month ago; 6.5 million have been displaced inside Ukraine. According to recent figures from the U.N., some 2 million children have been forced to flee Ukraine.
But one group is trying to make it easier on children, who have no families, to get them safety. The group, Dnipro Kids, operating out of Edinburgh, managed to get dozens of these orphans out of Ukraine last month, flying them to Scotland.
The foreign minister Nicola Sturgeon welcomed them, tweeting, "A warm welcome to Scotland. I know you'd all rather be at home in Ukraine but you'll find love, care and support here for as long as you need it."
Steven Carr is the chairman of Dnipro Kids. His organization has been working to help bring Ukrainian orphans to safety in Scotland.
Thank you so much for joining us. It's a heartwarming story.
First off, I want to ask, how are the kids doing? STEVEN CARR, DNIPRO KIDS: The kids are doing great. (INAUDIBLE) for them to witness any of the destruction that's going on and we managed to get them out very early on. So I think for the most part, (INAUDIBLE) danger. And so (INAUDIBLE) make sure that Scottish hospitality is there for them.
BRUNHUBER: But still, the idea that their country has faced this shelling, the worries over, you know, food, water, the loss of the sense of security, especially, I mean the emotional strain on these kids must be huge.
And it could last a long time, even though, right now, as you say, they're sort of seeing it as an adventure.
CARR: Definitely. I mean, Ukraine is where their home is. That's where they went to school, where their friends are. And the ones that are feeling the pressure the most are the people (INAUDIBLE) that orphanage mothers and brought these children over and stayed with them. And they're carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. (INAUDIBLE).
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CARR: They're the ones that received the news of loved ones still in Ukraine. So it's really affected them. They're the ones that we provide the support for.
BRUNHUBER: So give us a sense of who these kids are.
Where did they come from?
What's their background?
What's their story?
CARR: Well, these are children that have needed support for many years. And (INAUDIBLE) in 2005, for the past 17 years, we've been supporting these children, making sure that they have what they need, take them on excursions (INAUDIBLE) for them.
And basically just giving their needs (INAUDIBLE) so they'll think of memories from their childhood. (INAUDIBLE) to provide nice families as they're growing up.
So (INAUDIBLE) a while now and these orphanages were set up, what they're called as small family-type orphanages. So we have a housemother and housefather who look after some of the needs of (INAUDIBLE) children.
And they treat them as a family environment. So they're brought up in exactly the same way that they bring up their own children and the older children help out look out for the younger children. So it's a very good unit. And it has a sense of family and loyalty within each of these groups.
BRUNHUBER: So, eventually, I mean, will they all go back to Ukraine? Or do you think some of them might seek sanctuary in Scotland?
CARR: No, they will all go back to Ukraine. That's where their home is. That's where they want to go. We're simply providing safe haven while we're here and we're going to provide the hospitality that makes their stay here as easy as possible.
BRUNHUBER: So your group itself, Dnipro Kids, it has an unusual origin story.
How did a bunch of football supporters, soccer fans, as we would say here in this country, how did you get involved?
CARR: It was purely the luck of the draw. It was a European profession (INAUDIBLE) in Scotland, (INAUDIBLE) the Dnipro team and (INAUDIBLE) in Edinburgh. And secondly in Spain. A lot of supporters got together and then decided that (INAUDIBLE) to do something for one of the local orphanages.
We had (INAUDIBLE) some money and went out on the morning of the game, visit the orphanage with some items. And the hospitality there was just -- in fact, the hospitality in the city for all the supporters has been fantastic. And it really left a lasting mark for their supporters.
So when we come back to Scotland, (INAUDIBLE) and decided to continue to support this orphanage. And the supporters have been over there, supported us with that and the funding. And since 2005, that's where we've come. We started out with the initial one and now we have six of these smaller type orphanages that we support in the city.
And it's been ongoing. And it's very much a supporter-led charity.
BRUNHUBER: And now, obviously, the need has never been greater. You know, I'm seeing all of these stories, the kindness and generosity of people who volunteered. It's really been extraordinary. Take me through some of the things you've seen from folks there in Edinburgh.
CARR: The support has been absolutely phenomenal. Everything we've ever needed (INAUDIBLE) somebody somewhere has stepped up and provided us with what we need. There was an organization in Poland which assisted us with accommodation, during the evacuation.
There was a bus driver (INAUDIBLE) that was absolutely amazing. We got three of our orphanages out and (INAUDIBLE) across the border. That was not the case in another few (INAUDIBLE) Western Ukraine.
And I'd come to the driver and asked him if he would go back and get the others. So he smiled and said no problem. And dropped us off and some of the buses (INAUDIBLE) the other two families. So everybody has been fantastic. They've had (INAUDIBLE) for us, with accommodations in Scotland.
But it wasn't easy because we have six of these orphanage families who want to stay together, to want to stay as a group because of what they've been through. And the orphanage mothers need support and each other.
So it's not been easy but there's always somebody somewhere that's stepped up and provided us with what we need. And the Scottish government has been fantastic. It's just phenomenal, everybody's just been.
BRUNHUBER: It's such an uplifting story in these dark times.
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BRUNHUBER: Really appreciate you telling us about it and really appreciate the work that you're doing. I know so many children will benefit from it. Steven Carr, thanks so much.
CARR: You're welcome.
BRUNHUBER: And if you would like to safely and securely help people in Ukraine, who need shelter, food and water, please go to cnn.com/impact. You'll find several ways to help there.
Well, the bread lines of Russia's past may haunt the country's future. Coming up, we'll have a look at the effect Western sanctions are having on the everyday lives of Russians, including food and medicine.
Plus, Russia reaches out to some of the friends it still has left, trying to blunt the impact of crushing economic sanctions, we'll bring you those stories and more coming up. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and around the world, I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.
We're learning that seven humanitarian corridors along key evacuation routes are expected to open in Ukraine today. Ukraine's deputy prime minister says the list includes the route from besieged southern city of Mariupol to the government-held city of Zaporizhzhya in the southeast.
About an hour ago, Russia said it attacked a major oil refinery in central Ukraine. It says a refinery in Kremenchuk southeast of Kyiv was attacked by three Russian airplanes around 6:00 am local time. Russia says it also struck military airfields in Poltava and Dnipro using high precision air based missiles.
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BRUNHUBER: That comes amid questions over an attack on a fuel depot in the Russian city of Belgorod. Two Ukrainian helicopters carried out the attack. Ukraine won't confirm or deny any role in the attack. And more Russian troops are pulling back from areas around the
Ukrainian capital. New images show troops once around the Antonov airport outside of Kyiv are no longer there. Earlier images showed military vehicles and artillery positions and protective berms dug in the ground. Now just the berms there.
And new images from Bucha show a number of bodies along the roadway, along with one person who appears to have been on a bicycle. No word on whether they're civilians or military. Bucha is another town retain by Russian forces.
Across the border in Russia, sanctions imposed by the West are taking a toll on the population. It's not always easy now for people to find the essential items they need for everyday lives, from food to medicine. Matthew Chance takes a look.
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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): In Russia, they're calling it the sugar panic. As Western sanctions on the country bite, ordinary people have been snapping up essentials. They're jostling with each other in the Russian city of Saratov to buy sugar off the back of a truck.
"God bless you," the voice says, as a supermarket worker pushes a trolley of sugar toward anxious shoppers, who scramble to grab as much as they can before supplies run out. Pleas from Russian officials for the public not to panic buy are going unheard.
But now a prominent Russian economist tells CNN this economic pain is set to deepen.
CHANCE: We're seeing the shortages now and that's bad enough for some people in Russia. But what you're saying is that soon we could see a much bigger, much more serious economic impact because of these sanctions.
RUBEN ENIKOLOPOV, NEW ECONOMIC SCHOOL: Yes. Most of the shortages are a temporary problem, so that will be solved and these goods will appear. There will be a very acute phase and everything is fine. With the quality of life, actual real income, that is not that apparent yet.
But that will be -- this problem will be accumulating and becoming more and more apparent in the coming months.
CHANCE (voice-over): In fact, that impact on quality of life is already being felt. These are the crowds that flocked to an IKEA superstore in Moscow the day before it closed down last month.
Across Russia, Western brands have suspended production or simply pulled out over the invasion of Ukraine. Jobs may soon go permanently. Even more seriously, there are concerns a shortage of Western medicines is starting to have a real impact on people's health, people like Anastasia in Moscow and her father, who she says has been diagnosed with a brain aneurysm. "We asked everywhere but no one had his medicine," she says, "now he feels sick."
Russian officials say they are aware of the shortages and are trying to address them. But if sanctions persist, Russia faces being cut off from medical advances and other technologies that may set it back, even cause harm.
Many Russians accustomed to hardship remain unshaken by the economic doom threatening their nation.
"I was born in Soviet times," says Larisa in the Russian town of Pokrov.
She then speaks of the challenges since then like economic restructuring and food stamps.
"We got over it all," she says.
Valentina, also in Pokrov, says she doesn't mind that prices have gone up at all.
"In a month, it will straighten out," she hopes.
After years of navigating Western sanctions, there is a belief -- perhaps misplaced -- things will work out this time, too.
ENIKOLOPOV: When Russians are seeing this, I mean, yes, psychologically, they are used to sanctions. But in terms of the effect on the economy, it is much more damaging than the sanctions that were previously implemented.
CHANCE: Well, previously as well, the sanctions haven't really worked in terms of changing Russian policy, changing the Kremlin's policy.
Do you think there is a chance that these sanctions in that case will work and they will force the Kremlin to change course?
ENIKOLOPOV: Honestly, I doubt it. Just with the logic of the current regime in Russia, they -- it's a thing about Putin, that he doesn't give up under pressure. It makes him even more persistent, at the expense of the country.
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CHANCE (voice-over): Economic pain, it seems, is a price the Kremlin is willing to let its own people pay -- Matthew Chance, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: And for more on this, let's bring in Atika Shubert, who joins us from Valencia, Spain.
Atika, what we just heard there from Matthew Chance, the sanctions are biting but maybe not doing all that much to change attitudes among Russians generally or more specifically at the Kremlin. What more can you tell us?
ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. I mean, what's clear is that it's impacting ordinary people. Those temporary shortages that you saw in that video package show that it is having an effect. The problem is it may not be having an effect on the calculations of decision makers, most importantly, Russian president Vladimir Putin.
You know, we have already seen that, for example, the Russian central bank was able to prop up the currency, basically by ratcheting up interest rates and putting under those strict capital controls, they've now got the ruble to what it was almost before the war started. And that helped to ease the pressure off the government quite a bit.
Now the government is demanding that all of its energy contracts be paid in rubles. This is something that the European Commission has urged companies not to do. But this is -- this shows that the Russian government is still operating and still relying very much on its exports of oil and gas.
I think it's important to remember here that, while these sanctions are biting into the Russian economy, the Russian economy is not in freefall. There is a floor to this. And that's because Russia continues to sell oil and gas to big markets like China, India, where the Russian foreign minister just visited.
But also to Europe still, Europe last year relied on nearly 40 percent of its energy needs from Russia. So it's going to take some time to wean itself off that and find other alternate ways of getting that much energy.
So in the meantime, Russia is leveraging all of its weight on this oil and gas, to try and keep its economy propped up. That's why sanctions may not be able to really have the effect that the United States and others want at this point.
BRUNHUBER: Yes. That's right. Atika Shubert, live in Valencia, Spain, thanks so much.
And China is among the countries not on board with squeezing the Russian economy. And because of that, it took heat from the E.U. during the virtual summit on Friday. After the talks, the E.U. said China can't look the other why while Russia violates international law.
The head of the European Commission said she had an open and frank exchange with China's president. The message was, quote, "If you're not part of the solution, don't be part of the problem." Here she is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
URSULA VON DER LEYEN, EUROPEAN COMMISSION PRESIDENT: We expect China, as a member of the Security Council of the United Nations, to take its responsibilities. There are few members only and they have a vast responsibility.
And China has an influence on Russia and, therefore, we expect China to take its responsibility to end this war and to come back -- that Russia comes back to a peaceful negotiations solution.
We expect China, if not supporting the sanctions, at least to do everything not to interfere in any kind. Also on that point we were very clear.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: And von der Leyen also told China that no European would understand any support for Russia's war effort.
As Russia looks for an economic lifeline, it's pushing for more trade with India. Foreign minister Sergey Lavrov was in India Friday, meeting prime minister Narendra Modi. Lavrov is pushing to sidestep Western currencies in future trade.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was a busy day for Russian foreign minister Lavrov in India, his first visit to New Delhi since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Lavrov met with India's prime minister, Narendra Modi, and foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Friday.
In a major announcement, Lavrov said that Moscow is ready to supply any goods India wants. He said more transactions between the countries would be done through the rupee-ruble mechanism (ph). Slamming the U.S., Lavrov said pressure from the West will not affect (ph) the partnership between the two countries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SERGEY LAVROV, RUSSIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Well, with regards using the ruble and the rupee in our financial trade dealings, I would recall that, many years ago, we started moving in our relations with India, with China and with many other countries from using dollar and euros to more and more use of national currencies.
Under these circumstances, this threat (ph), I believe will be intensified, which is natural and obvious.
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LAVROV: We will be ready to supply to India any goods which India wants to buy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SUD (voice-over): Despite diplomatic pressure, India has maintained a normalized stand on the war. It has abstained from condemning Russia's aggression and keen to international war turn has scored (ph) for disputes to be resolved through dialogue and diplomacy.
On Friday, Modi emphasized of the importance of cessation of violence and conveyed India's readiness to contribute in any way to the peace efforts.
SUD: Responding to a question on Lavrov's India visit Thursday, U.S. State Department spokesperson said America is not seeking to change India-Russian ties but is seeking to build a consensus in the international community against Russia's aggression.
And the spokesman said India has leverage. India shares a strong partnership with Russia, a major arms supplier. More than 50 percent of India's defense equipment comes from Russia. Lavrov's visit coincides with a trip to New Delhi by Britain's foreign secretary and U.S. deputy national security adviser -- Vedika Sud, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER: Germany's foreign minister was asked about President Putin's end game in Ukraine. Next, you'll hear her answer and it's only two words. Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: Germany's foreign minister, trying to read President Putin's intentions in an interview with CNN, our Christiane Amanpour asked the minister what the Russian president's end game in Ukraine might be. Listen to her response.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNALENA BAERBOCK, GERMAN FOREIGN MINISTER: Unfortunately, I would say nobody knows, because nobody could have imagined that a president from a European country would attack so brutally its neighbor, because it's not only a neighbor; there are so many families, friends, relationships between Ukraine and Russia.
[05:45:00]
BAERBOCK: We have also seen that this is not only an attack on Ukraine but it's also an attack on the European peace order.
So that's why we have answered as we did, together with the United States, together with Canada, together with many other countries aboard, but especially together as the European Union, with the strongest sanction package we have ever had, to make sure that this breach of fundamental international law and of the European peace and security order is not being tolerated in any way and that we will stop Putin with whatever we can do.
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN HOST: Let me ask you about that, then, because the French prime minister, your counterpart, has said that winning this is a strategic necessity for the West. That's a big, big aim, a strategic necessity.
If that's the case and whether you agree if that's the case, do you believe you're doing enough to actually achieve your strategic ends?
Your Polish compatriot, the prime minister opponent, I spoke to yesterday and he said, look, the Russian ruble has -- is doing fairly well against the dollar. It's not really yet impacting Putin. He is getting oil revenue.
How do you expect to influence him going forward?
BAERBOCK: Well, I think we have to be very honest in this so difficult situation, because we are all humans. And everybody from us is a mother, is a grandmother, is a sister, is a father, is a nephew.
And everybody from us wishes that peace would be there tomorrow. But the brutal reality is that Putin himself has chosen to do the opposite, to fight a war against civilians and to fight a war against the European peace order.
And this is why we have answered with the sanction package. But we have to face reality also that we are in a situation that NATO is standing there, in solidarity with Ukraine and, on the other hand, Russia, which has made clear that there are no red lines for themselves.
So this is why we support military-wise with weapons as Europeans. We are supporting also from Germany with weapons, which we haven't done in the past, because the reality has changed so brutally. We have set up this sanction package but it is in Putin's hands, because he's the one who started the war without any region -- reason.
And this is now his responsibility to end the war. And we pressure the system of Putin by the sanctions, so that he's being isolated. And we, as an international community, are making very, very clear that these are heavy costs on his own society, on his own citizens.
But, unfortunately, in this world, in the 21st century, we are all in dependence -- we are all connected to each other.
So, therefore, the question you were raising about fossil fuels, oil and energy, Europe is connected with Russia and, therefore, we are working every day to phase out also with regard to our fossil dependency on Russia.
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BRUNHUBER: And the minister spoke after Russia trying to get Europe to start paying for energy imports in rubles but Moscow later backed down.
Pope Francis has apologized to Canada's indigenous people for the role the church played in decades of abuse, particularly at residential schools. The Catholic leader also said he would visit Canada after meeting over three days at the Vatican with Canadian indigenous groups.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) CASSIDY CARON, PRESIDENT, METIS NATIONAL COUNCIL: The pope's words today were historic, to be sure. They were necessary and I appreciate them deeply.
And I now look forward to the pope's visit to Canada, where he can offer those sincere words of apology directly to our survivors and their families, whose acceptance and healing ultimately matters the most.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Indigenous leaders had sought the apology for years. But things sped up last year. That's when suspected graves of hundreds of children were found near some of the now-closed schools. Many children were forced to attend to be assimilate into mainstream society. A Canadian commission called the abuse "cultural genocide."
We'll be right back.
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BRUNHUBER: The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences accepts Will Smith's resignation after the actor slapped the presenter, Chris Rock, on stage last weekend during the Oscars.
In a statement, Smith apologized for his actions, saying, quote, "I will fully accept any and all consequences for my conduct. My actions at the 94th Awards presentation was shocking, painful and inexcusable.
"I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken."
And Smith went on to say, "I'm resigning from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and will accept any further consequences."
The Academy said it will continue with disciplinary proceedings against Smith.
Groups for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar are now set. The tournament kicks off in November and features plenty of story lines on and off the pitch.
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BRUNHUBER: That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. The breaking news coverage continues on "NEW DAY" with Laura Jarrett and Boris Sanchez. You are, of course, watching CNN.
