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Russian Strike In Odessa Sets Fuel Depot On Fire; Senior Ukrainian Defense Official Says Kyiv Region "Liberated"; Over 4.1 Million Have Fled Ukraine; Pregnant Ukrainians Flee War Zone To Give Birth; Putin Aiming To Control Donbas By Early May; Sri Lankan Police Arrest Over 600 For Curfew Violations; March Madness; Biden Administration Sets New Vehicle Standards. Aired 4-5a ET
Aired April 03, 2022 - 04:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[04:00:00]
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): This is CNN breaking news.
KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR (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.
Ukrainian forces are capitalizing on recent battlefield successes, as more Russian troops pull out of northern Ukraine. Ukraine's deputy defense minister on Saturday declared the northern Kyiv region liberated.
But there are reports of increased shelling and missile strikes in the south. Ukrainian officials in the port of Odessa say several Russian missiles were fired on the city early this morning, striking critical infrastructure. A CNN team there reports a fuel depot is on fire.
And we just want to warn you now, these next pictures are graphic.
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BRUNHUBER (voice-over): The true horror of the Russian invasion is on full display in the town of Bucha, a northern suburb of Kyiv. Journalists report at least 20 people dead in the streets and all were wearing civilian clothes.
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BRUNHUBER: U.S. intelligence now suggests that Moscow has set a goal of controlling the eastern region of Donbas by early May. May 9th is when the Soviet defeat of the Nazis is celebrated each year in Moscow with a military parade through Red Square.
Now Ukraine is asking for heavier weapons, as they prepare for a renewed Russian offensive in the east. A source tells CNN that the U.S. is expected to help send Soviet-era tanks from NATO partners, possibly within days. We have CNN correspondents covering the conflict from multiple angles.
We have Phil Black in Lviv, Salma Abdelaziz in Poland, Ed Lavandera in Odessa, Kyung Lah in Warsaw and David McKenzie is in London.
I want to start now with CNN's Phil Black, who joins us live from Lviv.
So Phil, many Ukrainians are celebrating this retreat, I guess, of these Russian forces.
But with the knowledge that this may be less a victory, more of a respite, is that right?
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I think that's right, Kim. I think the Ukrainians are rightly proud of having saved the capital. But there is also the sober reality of what they know comes next.
So what we've seen is this, you know, this extraordinary achievement, if you like, particularly given the context at the start of the war, where Russian forces were expected to sweep through the outskirts of Kyiv and take the capital very quickly.
As Ukrainian forces have moved into the territory that Russia is leaving behind, what we're seeing is the evidence of Russia's failure to accomplish that goal and its failure to go on and even encircle the capital, which seemed to be its plan B.
You see the wreckage, the debris, the incinerated tanks, the bodies of Russian soldiers, the evidence of what was very clearly fierce and effective Ukrainian resistance.
But as you touched on there, what we also see, from the pictures of the areas that are being left by the Russian forces, is some evidence of how some of the local civilians were treated during that period of occupation.
There is that one stretch of road in the town of Bucha that you touched on there, where the bodies of at least 20 men, as seen on the ground, they are dressed in civilian clothes. Some have their hands bound behind their back.
The clear implication there is that these people were a threat to nobody in the moment that they were killed.
So some sense of satisfaction, for having taken back this territory, safeguarded the capital of Kyiv, at least for the moment. But the sober reality is the Ukrainian forces know, the government knows, that Russia is now focusing its attention elsewhere.
And it's going to likely redeploy these same units to efforts in the east and the south of the country, in a much more consolidated, a much more specific campaign, that will be very difficult to fight and repel. And that's why Ukrainian officials are warning of some very difficult days ahead -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, and that's why they want so much more support from the rest of the world. Phil Black in Lviv, thank you so much. Appreciate it.
The flow of refugees continues across Ukraine's borders. According to the U.N., more than 4.1 million refugees have fled Ukraine since the fighting started. Poland has by far received the most refugees, with more than 2.5 million crossing from Ukraine.
And although they're relieved to have escaped the fighting, many just want the war to end so they can return home.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I want it all to end quickly and without losses, that all the Russians go home.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): And say that they leave us in peace so we can go back home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Yes, we all want to go home. We don't want to leave. It's just the way the situation is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:05:00]
BRUNHUBER: For the majority of refugees fleeing Ukraine, Poland is the first stop on their journey to safety. And our Salma Abdelaziz is in Przemysl, near the border with Ukraine.
Salma, tell us about where you are and what you're seeing there.
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So I'm at a train station right up near the Ukraine-Poland border. And this train station has been the halfway point, Kim, for weeks now.
Hundreds of families, every day, have flown through this train station, trying to figure out what they're going to do next. So far, over 2.4 million Ukrainian refugees are now in Poland. And this is one of the main crossing points.
I want to show you around. We are expecting a train coming soon. You have to remember, Kim, the train times are not regular here because of the situation on the ground.
So you see these volunteers in high-vis jackets. As soon as they get word that a train might be coming, might be arriving, they show up, to offer help and support. They want to make sure that every family that comes through is given a sense of dignity and normalcy.
They're offered a warm smile and a warm cup of tea. There's a reception point here. They have juices out for the kids and chocolate bars, so, when they arrive, they have something to snack on.
Just over there is the actual train line itself, so refugees come through here, they flow through this area. They're offered, again, that warm smile and a cup of tea. You can see basic medical assistance here.
We've seen that there are some nurses, paramedics, medical assistance provided for anybody who might need help, elderly, the pregnant, young children. So if they need to get checked out, there's a room in the back, also an ambulance available.
You're also going to see a lot of police and security throughout. They want to give that sense of security across this train station.
And I'm just going to walk you down this hallway. This has really just become the waiting area for refugees, as they arrive. Again, many of these families have no idea where they're going next, Kim.
So what they do is, they get here, they sit in this hallway, many of them, and they start to wait it out. They call friends across Europe, look up on their phone if they can find someone who's posting a house on Facebook.
Some people even show up with signs that say destination Munich, destination Vienna and they're offering rides to people. There's been this overflow of support, of kindness and compassion for these refugees.
But we oftentimes just see people spending the night in this hallway until they figure out where they're going to go next.
Just outside, there's a tent with a little kitchen, where people are again offering warm food. And you can see here, this is the first aid station for whoever needs it.
And it's quite a beautiful setting, extraordinary little train station here, Kim, gold trim, crushed velvet curtains. It's a 19th century train station. And you really get the sense that people are at a halfway point.
They're trying to figure out where they're going to go, what happens in this crossroad. And everybody we've spoken to has said, like you've heard, we want to go home but we need to find a safe place for now. We need to find people, who are going to take us in for now and, hopefully, when things calm down, we can return to Ukraine.
BRUNHUBER: Salma, really poignant to get that visual insight into what people are going through there. Thank you so much, Salma Abdelaziz, appreciate it.
And if you want to help the people of Ukraine, go to cnn.com/impact and, at last check, CNN viewers, like all of you out there, have raised more than $7 million to help those in Ukraine and neighboring countries with shelter, food and water and other needs.
Just ahead, pregnant women in Ukraine face a difficult choice: stay and give birth in a war zone or take their chances and have their baby in a foreign country. Kyung Lah will have that story from Warsaw.
Plus, we'll look at how women continue to pay a heavy price as the war in Ukraine rages on. Stay with us. (MUSIC PLAYING)
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LENA VELYKA, MATERNITY NURSE (through translator): Without gas, without water, without heating, babies were born, weighing 1.5 kilograms, 3.3 pounds, at 5 degrees. They were carried behind the shirt, inside mother's clothes.
What could we do?
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BRUNHUBER: When the first Russian missiles landed in Ukraine, many pregnant women had a difficult choice: stay at home and give birth in a war zone or take the long, treacherous journey across the border to have their babies in a safe place. CNN's Kyung Lah talked to some new mothers, who chose to flee to Poland.
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KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Born just hours ago in Poland, baby Adelina is already a survivor of the war in Ukraine.
LAH: Is it -- is it hard to be happy?
KHRYSTYNA PAVLUCHENKO, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "It is," she says.
Adelina is Khrystyna Pavluchenko's first child.
PAVLUCHENKO: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH: You feel guilty?
Why?
PAVLUCHENKO: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "Because I left," she says, left her home in Western Ukraine.
The war had begun. The bombing neared their city.
Pavluchenko escaped by bus, then walked on foot across the border. Paramedics rushed her to the hospital. She delivered Adelina a month early, separated from her family.
PAVLUCHENKO: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "My mother, sister, grandparents still in Ukraine."
"He is killing our people," she says, of Vladimir Putin.
"How could anyone be so cruel?"
DR. MAGDA DUTSCH, INFLANCKA SPECIALIST HOSPITAL: I am terrified. I'm terrified that something like this can happen, that you can live your everyday life and, all of a sudden, because of decisions that you have no influence upon, there is a war. And you have to flee. It's -- it's unbelievable. It's terrifying.
LAH (voice-over): Dr. Magda Dutsch is a psychiatrist at Inflancka Specialist Hospital in Warsaw.
The hospital, focused on treating women, has seen 80 Ukrainian patients this month, delivered 11 babies and treated cancer patients, like 58-year-old Tatiana Mikhailuk.
TATIANA MIKHAILUK, UKRAINIAN REFUGEE: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "I ran with my granddaughter in my arms," she says.
Missiles had already blown up the windows in their building. As they fled, something exploded next to their car.
[04:15:00]
LAH (voice-over): Her city is now occupied by Russians. She is grateful for her doctors at the hospital and the free health care in Poland, that is treating her cervical cancer.
Khrystyna is one of the doctors. We are not using her last name because she, herself, is also a refugee from Ukraine, a mother of a 5- year old and the wife of a Ukrainian military man.
LAH: Your husband?
DR. KHRYSTYNA, INFLANCKA SPECIALIST HOSPITAL: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "My husband has been in the military since 2014. At the moment, he's in Lviv."
LAH: You had to leave your husband behind?
"Yes," she says.
"Now in Warsaw, I can't sit and do nothing," she says. "I have this opportunity here to help women who fled the country."
LAH (voice-over): With each breath, baby Adelina offers her mother a respite from the war.
LAH: What will you tell your daughter about her birth? PAVLUCHENKO: (Speaking foreign language).
LAH (voice-over): "The truth," she says. "We will tell her everything as it was. She should know the truth."
LAH: All of the Ukrainian patients you have seen in this story, that health care is being covered by the government of Poland, including all the care once they leave the hospital.
And they are not the only ones. The Ministry of Health here in Poland says 197 Ukrainian children have been born in Poland since this war began -- Kyung Lah, CNN, Warsaw, Poland.
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BRUNHUBER: I want to take an even closer look at the war's impact on women in Ukraine. According to the U.N., about 54 percent of people in need of assistance from the ongoing crisis are women.
More than 4.1 million refugees from Ukraine, the vast majority, women and children, have fled to neighboring countries, while many others are displaced within the country. Now these numbers are expected to increase as the war continues.
At the beginning of 2021, there were around 57,000 women in Ukraine's armed forces, comprising 22.8 percent of the total, according to the ministry of defense. Now it's not clear how many women are in the armed forces now.
But we do know there are women helping combat Russian forces. And women have also been central to Ukrainian society and have been essential to sustaining democracy. According to the World Bank, women held 21 percent of the seats in the Ukrainian parliament after the most recent elections.
So for more on all of this, let's bring in Oleksandra Kanster, she's an international relations manager with the Feminist Workshop. This is a nongovernmental organization that's been working with women's organizations across Ukraine, to help evacuate women to the western part of Ukraine.
We're going to try to get her a little bit later on in the program.
All right. We'll be right back.
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BRUNHUBER: And 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. All right, before the last break, we were discussing the impact the
war in Ukraine is having on women. So with me by phone to discuss that is Oleksandra Kanster with the Feminist Workshop, an NGO based in Ukraine, and she joins us from Leipzig, Germany.
Thanks so much for speaking with us. The pictures we've been seeing out of Ukraine have just been heartbreaking, whether it's the images of young orphaned girls on the run or pregnant women, you know, going through an attack, or a maternity hospital, destroyed.
I mean, it's usually more that women and girls bear the brunt of conflict.
What have you and the workers there in Ukraine have been seeing?
OLEKSANDRA KANSTER, INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS MANAGER, FEMINIST WORKSHOP: Good morning, can you hear me?
BRUNHUBER: Yes, I hear you.
KANSTER: OK. So the pictures you described, they are, indeed, horrible. But also, usually, when I look at it, I always think what is left behind because, as horrible as they are, I think they're also very efficient.
So we don't hear a lot of precise, long stories. But there are definitely stories. And I feel like partly the reason why we don't do it, why women don't give out that much interview, because it's just impossible.
It's impossible to put this in words, to describe it. So I -- my opinion is that we will be able to estimate the damages, the psychological, the physical damages long after the war has stopped, if it's, you know, stopped. There will be the space to actually discover all of this traumatic influence.
BRUNHUBER: I imagine that's right. I mean, in too many of these wars across the globe, we see soldiers using sexual violence as a means of punishment, of terrorizing the civilian population.
According to U.N. Women, in a crisis setting, more than 70 percent of women have experienced gender-based violence. And sadly, we're hearing reports in Ukraine of rape and sexual violence.
What are people telling you?
KANSTER: Yes, so, of course, there's plenty of room for rape in any territory if it's occupied by Russians but also just the war situation, I think, makes it very unstable and dangerous for women.
And I would make this one a small example, that it's not about rape but it's about really gender symbolism. Recently, we get some of our soldiers, Ukrainian soldiers liberated from Russian captivity.
And among them were 15 women. And all these women, they have had their heads shaved. And that was directly made out of this mentality that shaving a woman's head is a symbol of, I don't know, shaming her or just assaulting her in that way.
This detail is very maybe small compared to what we discussed before but, at the same time, it shows that like the character of this war, which is very old-fashioned, not -- this is not -- the style of this war is not the modern war but more like 100 years ago war.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, many people have drawn the parallels, saying that everything they're seeing, it reminds them of the Second World War.
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BRUNHUBER: And now, with so many women and girls forced to flee, you know, they're separated from their husbands and brothers, many international organizations are warning of an increased risk of trafficking and exploitation.
And even before this conflict, there were already these sophisticated trafficking networks in Eastern Europe, that have been going on for decades. So talk us through what the dynamic is here.
Is it that girls and women are being taken or abducted against their will?
Or is it more that they're being forced into these situations, because they don't have any security or means of support or survival?
KANSTER: So what I don't like and what I feel happening is that, due to the, like, traditional idea of family, the decision about leaving the hot spot or staying in the hot spot is usually made by men.
Also, men are usually car drivers and women are sometimes car drivers in Ukraine. But sometimes they're not. And that means a lot now, because they cannot make this decision. They cannot take their child and leave, because they don't have a driving license or they just don't know how to do it.
So there's the father who makes that decision. And if he doesn't estimate the situation right, then the whole family is in danger. And I think that happens a lot, actually.
BRUNHUBER: Yes.
KANSTER: Also, I think a lot of women fight in the army and -- but I think, right now, in the army, in official army, there are 33,000 women. But also, there are women who just have the arms and they fight. But if you -- if you are married to a man and you are a woman married to a man, you have a child, you are in the army, then your husband, he also has to serve.
And the idea is that, if it's like this, no one can take care of the child. So the child also stays in Ukraine. And that would make more sense if, for example, a wife is fighting in the army. Then men would leave with the child. But unfortunately, that's not the option.
BRUNHUBER: But it is. You raise an important point here, that women and girls aren't just victims in this conflict. Obviously, they're playing an important role in the resistance, whether it's on the front lines, fighting or supporting those who are fighting in other ways, right?
KANSTER: Yes, it's called home front and (INAUDIBLE). So you do a lot of things. And I think women, they are overcompensate (ph), because of this idea that -- I mean, it's debatable, whether it's true or not.
But the idea is that if you risk your life on the front line, that cannot be compared to anything you do on the home front. So women feel that, they feel this pressure, even I think guilt. So they will overcompensate. They will just stand there, they would not sleep and they would help volunteer.
And of the day (ph) women are helping internationally displaced persons, people with disabilities, all the people, even animals, dogs, plants. And of course, they do, they help support the children and other children, just like other children.
And a lot of tips in Ukraine on the internet right now, like how to calm down a child, how to talk to a child about war, because children have a lot of questions, which are sometimes triggering even for parents and not easy to answer.
So on Ukrainian internet, there is all this advice, how to survive but in terms of your mental health.
BRUNHUBER: Yes, those long-term effects, as you say, will last for maybe years, decades, but women are playing such a crucial role there. And we appreciate everything that you and your organization are doing, to try to help women in Ukraine. Oleksandra Kanster, thank you so much. Appreciate you talking to us.
KANSTER: Thank you.
BRUNHUBER: We want to give you a quick update on the latest developments on Russia's war on its neighbor.
Ukraine's deputy defense minister says the entire Kyiv region has been liberated or cleared of Russian forces. Now CNN can't independently confirm that.
So Ukrainian troops have been gaining ground around the capital, as the Russian military said it was de-escalating there.
Also in the capital, two former Ukrainian prisoners of war are accusing Russian troops of abusing Ukrainian prisoners. They spoke exclusively to CNN after a prisoners exchange Saturday. Listen to this.
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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): At first, they took us very aggressively and made us shout, "Glory to Russia." And whoever didn't want to do that, they used physical measures.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): They hit me in the face with machine gun butts and kicked me. My front teeth were also chipped.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[04:30:00]
BRUNHUBER: And in Odessa in southern Ukraine, a fuel depot burst into flames after apparent Russian missile strikes. The fire sent a plume of smoke skyward which was visible for miles away.
Russian defense officials say their sea- and air-based missiles destroyed an oil refinery and three storage facilities. Odessa's city council says Ukrainian air defense shot down some of the Russian missiles, with the mayor reporting no casualties. Our Ed Lavandera is standing by in Odessa with more on this.
Ed, take us through what happened there.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, it has been a jarring morning here in the city of Odessa, the key port city on the Black Sea in southern Ukraine.
It was just before sunrise, around 6:00 am local time, when we heard the explosions of multiple blasts here inside of the city. We have been able to reach the location. You can see the dark clouds, the dark smoke, still billowing here in the background, from our vantage point.
And closer to the scene, the strikes, multiple strikes, perhaps as much as, as many as a half dozen or so, hit a fuel depot area inside the city. As we got closer to the scene, we kind of discovered that it's an industrial area, not highly populated with residents.
But there were a couple of apartment buildings right next to the fuel depot. We spoke with several witnesses there, who described the terrifying moments, when they were woken up by these series of blasts, just across the street from where they were.
We could see the broken-out glass from the impact that had blown out windows there in the apartment buildings. There were a number of people, simply just standing there, kind of looking on to the scene, as firefighters were inside the fuel depot, trying to put out the flames.
Those flames have now been raging for almost six hours. And we suspect that it will continue to go on throughout much of the day.
One of the other interesting things we learned from speaking to residents there, three different people told us that, in recent days, they had noticed that there were drones flying over the fuel depot area, almost as if there were reconnaissance missions there, scoping out the landscape of the fuel depot.
All of that pre-dated the attack that we felt this morning. So a jarring moment for the residents of this city. This is the second time that there has been a strike, a serious strike, here inside the city.
But it hasn't really been seen since the early days of the invasion. For the most part of the last week, it had been relatively quiet. But as this kind of lines up with what we have seen Russian forces doing in various parts of the country, attacking these fuel depot stations in various corners of the country, it appears to be more of a strategic attack.
But this does raise concerns and fears among the residents here in Odessa, as they have been watching the pullback of Russian forces in the north and the continued talk that those Russian forces would be redeploying into the Donbas region.
And so the concern here is that, and the question that they have, is Russia setting its sight once again on making it down to Odessa in the most southern part of the country?
So that is what this city is dealing with this morning.
BRUNHUBER: Ed Lavandera in Odessa, thank you so much. Really appreciate that.
U.S. intelligence believes Russia is now refocusing its efforts to Eastern Ukraine and its timeframe is tight. According to U.S. officials, Vladimir Putin wants to get the area under control by early May. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy says, Ukrainians will keep fighting, no matter what. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): We are aware that the enemy has reserves to increase pressure in the east.
What is the goal of Russian troops?
They want to capture both Donbas and the south of Ukraine.
What is our goal?
Protect us, our freedom, our land and our people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: CNN's David McKenzie is live in London.
So David, new intelligence assessments from U.S. suggest that Russia would like to show significant progress before early May, as we said.
Why is that?
Why that date?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: May 9th is a very significant day in Russia. It's victory day, the celebration of the defeat of the Nazis in the end of World War II. And obviously, it lines up with some of the false propaganda being put out by the Kremlin, that this was a so-called denazification campaign.
Now that assessment coming from several U.S. officials with awareness of intelligence is that the Russians are trying to now focus, as we have seen, from the actions on the ground there, fighting in the eastern part of the country and possibly the south, and to show some kind of progress before what is traditionally a very significant day.
[04:30:00]
MCKENZIE: I must say that several other officials in the European Union saying that this may be wishful thinking and that the Russians are readying, like everyone, for a very protracted campaign in the east of the country. Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. David. Moving away from the battlefield, negotiations are still ongoing.
Any progress so far?
MCKENZIE: Well, throughout these horrific scenes of conflict and the scenes we've been seeing in just the last 24 hours, there has been ongoing negotiation between Ukrainian and Russian officials.
Now in the last few hours, a Ukrainian official, on state TV there, saying, being relatively optimistic that there might be a face-to-face meeting between Vladimir Putin and President Zelenskyy in the coming days or weeks. They say that there is some progress being made in talks toward a possible cease-fire.
Some of the most intractable issues, though, include the status of Crimea and also, of course, the ongoing discussion about the state of the war and where it goes from here; particularly, how Ukraine is viewed in the international landscape, whether it will take on some kind of neutral standpoint, whether there'll be third-party countries to guarantee the security of Ukraine.
Now despite the Ukrainians being optimistic there might be a sit-down meeting of the two leaders, that has been less what we have seen from the Kremlin -- excuse me, has been less optimistic. They say they have to have a concrete deal on the table before the leaders meet.
And no one is very -- analysts certainly don't believe that these negotiations will be wrapping up anytime soon, as the fighting rages on. And we'll see what impact, if any, these alleged atrocities by Russian forces will have on the Ukrainian position in the coming days. Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Thanks so much, David McKenzie in London. Appreciate it.
Sri Lankan police are cracking down as protesters defy a weekend curfew. We'll have the latest on the economic crisis fueling the unrest, coming up. Stay with us.
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ROSHITHIA PERERA, PROTESTER: Having curfew is not going to help anybody. People have to run businesses. People have to -- these two drivers, they need to live that.
They live on a daily wage. They do run their trucks to go like (INAUDIBLE) people out. People are suffering. This is going to keep -- be a continuous thing.
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BRUNHUBER: Police in Sri Lanka say they've arrested more than 600 people for violating a weekend curfew. The curfew was launched amid unrest over a struggling economy and as anti-government protests grow.
People have been crowding stores to buy food and other essentials after the president declared a state of emergency. This as a foreign exchange crisis batters the local currency.
The government says it's seeking help from the International Monetary Fund and loans from India and China. Joining me now is Vedika Sud in New Delhi.
So much unrest in that country.
What's the latest?
VEDIKA SUD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, despite that 36-hour curfew imposed on Saturday, 6:00 pm local time in Sri Lanka, people have been out on the streets protesting. Initially it was just civilians but now we are hearing of leaders of opposition parties who have been protesting against the government.
The president of Sri Lanka, his brother, is the prime minister. So these opposition leaders have taken to the streets. Hundreds of protesters along with these politicians are now protesting against the political dispensation in Sri Lanka.
They not only want the family to resign, there are the two brothers also, who are a part of the top cabinet but they also want an end to the economic crisis that has been going on for a while.
Let's just listen in to one of the opposition leaders and what he had to say about the president of Sri Lanka.
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SARATH FONSEKA, SRI LANKAN OPPOSITION POLITICIAN (through translator): Today, this government has imposed a curfew and curtailed their rights. The government is causing further injustice to people. We have come here to preserve what little is left of this country. Turn your guns on the Rajapaksas, not us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SUD: A nationwide public emergency was imposed on the 1st of April. You have the 36-hour curfew. You have a social media ban that has also been imposed all across the island nation. Every possible attempt to clamp down on these protests and protesters and to make sure that their voices aren't heard is happening on the ground.
There's a massive security deployment across Colombo, especially at government establishments. But these people are not backing down. They've seen enough. They're saying enough is enough. They have been running out of electricity. They've been running out of food, fuel.
There have been massive queues over the last week at fuel stations. We've also heard of people dying because of the scorching heat and because they've been waiting there for hours.
So now the protesters are out and about. We're expecting a massive protest later in the day. But we have to see how that really plays out, given the curfew that has been called for.
Now this economic situation and crisis in Sri Lanka has been going on for a while. It's been on because of misgovernance; it's been on because of some poor economic reforms and decisions that have been taking place, because of tourism being hit post-2019.
That's when the Easter bombing took place in Sri Lanka and, of course, because of the pandemic. The Sri Lankan prime minister speaking to CNN on Saturday has said that the finance minister is taking every possible step to curb the inflation. But analysts say things will get worse before they get better -- Kim.
BRUNHUBER: All right. Thanks so much, Vedika Sud in New Delhi.
Voters in Hungary are heading to the polls right now in a closely watched election. Prime minister Viktor Orban faces a rare challenge from a united coalition of opposition parties. He's drawn international criticism over the erosion of democratic rights in Hungary during his time in office.
His close ties to Russian president Vladimir Putin have also come under renewed scrutiny. The prime minister accuses his opponents of wanting to drag Hungary into the war in Ukraine. Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VIKTOR ORBAN, HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The Left thinks that Ukraine fights our war. This is what the leader of our opponents said, word by word, that Ukraine fights our war. This is a mistake. This is not our war. In this war, we cannot gain anything but can lose everything.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: Leading the united opposition is Peter Marki-Zay, a small town mayor, who has painted Orban as a budding authoritarian, following in Putin's footsteps. Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, it's April but March Madness isn't over
yet. We'll show you which basketball powerhouses have punched their tickets to Monday's championship game.
[04:45:00]
BRUNHUBER: Stay with us.
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BRUNHUBER: This weekend, the average price for a gallon of unleaded gas in the United States is $4.20, according to AAA, because of Russia's invasion against Ukraine and other factors.
Now that's too high for the Biden administration, with plans to tap into the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserves. The hope is releasing a million barrels per day for the next six months will rein in sky- high gas prices and that will likely make a dent in the U.S. reserves. They were at 568 million barrels at the end of last month.
So here's why it will help U.S. customers. A barrel of oil from the Strategic Reserves costs nearly $30. A barrel on the open market costs more than $100.
So as the U.S. grapples with soaring gas prices, the Biden administration is announcing landmark new fuel economy standards. By 2026, all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. will be required to have an average fuel economy of 49 miles per gallon.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says this move isn't just about saving individual drivers money; the bigger goal is to make America less dependent on oil.
[04:50:00]
BRUNHUBER: Here he is.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETE BUTTIGIEG, U.S. SECRETARY OF TRANSPORTATION: Even if all of the oil we use in the USA were made in the USA, the price of it is still subject to powers and dynamics outside of the USA, which means that, until we achieve a form of energy independence that is based on clean energy created here at home, American citizens will still be vulnerable to wild price hikes, like we're seeing right now during Putin's war.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
BRUNHUBER: The new standards also aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. The Muslim holy month of Ramadan is beginning and many are finding the
price of food becoming unbearably high. And that's especially true in parts of the Middle East and North Africa, where people depend on wheat from Ukraine and Russia.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Baskets of colorful grain for sale at a market in Iraq. But for many families, the price of buying bread and other staples this holy month of Ramadan is just too high.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Everything is expensive. Meat is expensive. We will not buy it. Other things like sweets, we will not make them. They are expensive. The same with the oil. We can't even use it anymore.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): During Ramadan, Muslims fast during the day, then gather with friends and family to eat traditional foods when the sun goes down at night.
But the World Food Programme warns, this year, that meal will be a costly one. Food prices were already high in some countries because of weak economies, global supply shortages and security concerns. Well now, they're rising even more because of the Russian invasion in Ukraine.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Energy and food prices have gone up. That has had a broader impact on many developing countries, especially those that are import dependent on wheat from Ukraine and Russia and where the wheat is their staple food. So those are countries like Egypt, like Tunisia, as well as Yemen, Lebanon.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): Ukraine and Russia are both major exporters of wheat and sunflower oil. And though this supermarket in war-torn Yemen looks well stocked, customers say they can no longer afford many of the items on the shelves.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): The people are living in a state of distress and cannot take it anymore. Prices have now increased by 50 percent to 70 percent.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): The U.N. says, since the war in Ukraine began, cooking oil is up 36 percent in Yemen and 39 percent in Syria. Wheat flour is up 47 percent in Lebanon and 15 percent in Libya.
Tunisia was suffering from a political and economic crisis before supplies imported from Ukraine and Russia were disrupted. Now some bakeries say they have had to close because they can't find any flour. And many shoppers face long lines for bread if supplies haven't already run out.
Stores in Lebanon are also cutting back. This shop, which has been in business for 100 years, says it's just too expensive this year to make some of its traditional Ramadan sweets.
Before the invasion, Lebanon's economy was already spiraling out of control. And since then, prices have only risen, because the country imported some 60 percent of its wheat from Ukraine. The sticker shock for some is just too much.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I've never experienced a year like this before.
Where is the joy of Ramadan?
Before, we used to look forward to it. But not this year.
BRUNHUBER (voice-over): For many, who were already struggling, the shortages caused by the war in Ukraine are making a bad situation worse. This Ramadan, there will be even less on the table.
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[04:55:00]
BRUNHUBER: That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. Our breaking news coverage, the war in Ukraine, continues on "NEW DAY," with Laura Jarrett and Boris Sanchez.
