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Satellite Images Show Possible Mass Graves In Ukraine; Intercepted Russian Communications Indicate Low Morale Among Russian Troops In Ukraine; January 6th Congressional Committee Reveals Evidence President Trump's Former Chief Of Staff Mark Meadows Was Warned Of Possible Violence Prior Capitol Hill Insurrection; Audio Released Of House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy Criticizing Former President Trump; Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) Testifies In Court On Possible Information She Received Concerning Violent Capitol Insurrection On January 6th. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired April 23, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:00:35]

JIM ACOSTA, CNN HOST: You are live in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Jim Acosta in Washington.

Ukraine preparing to mark Orthodox Easter in the shadow of war. Right now, much of the country is under curfew amid warnings of deliberate Russian military strikes on churches and holiday gatherings. What should be a time of celebrating salvation and resurrection instead looks like this, sheer destruction. Brand new video from this village near Kyiv bears the hallmark of Russian forces. The town is now free, but the same cannot be said for other areas of the country.

In Mariupol today, evacuation efforts were thwarted again by the Ukrainian military according to a city official. About 200 residents waited for a convoy to take them to relative safety in Zaporizhzhia, but instead, after they boarded buses, the Russian military reportedly informed them of their new destination, city inside of Russian- occupied territories. New satellite images show ground near Mariupol has been recently disturbed. A credible source claiming this is the site of mass graves. CNN cannot independently verify this. The mayor there believes 20,000 civilians have also been killed.

In Odessa today, a Russian strike killed 18 people, or I should say injured 18 people and killed five, including a three-month-old baby who had yet to celebrate his first Easter with his parents. That's according to a local official. These attacks on Ukraine's port cities continue as a Russian general says Russia wants full control of southern Ukraine because that would give Russia a land bridge to Moldova, stirring up fears for the sovereignty of yet another former Soviet republic.

CNN's Scott McLean joins me now from Lviv in western Ukraine. Scott what more do we know about the situation in Mariupol? It's been dire for weeks now. SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And it remains dire today, Jim. There was a humanitarian corridor that had been organized that was meeting on the western part of the city. It should have been left earlier today. There were buses supposed to be there to pick people up.

People were supposed to be able to take their private vehicles to get out of the city as well. But according to the Ukrainian officials, the 200 or so people who were there waiting for those buses, well, they didn't find buses. Instead, they found Russian troops telling them to disperse because there would be shelling in the area.

About 200 yards away, though, they found another set of buses, and when they boarded those buses, they were told that they were actually headed to a city that was in Russian-occupied territory. And this seems to be pattern, Jim, of Russians pushing people in that direction, pushing people toward Russia whether they want to go there or not.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): This is the answer about the attempted murders. I am not that afraid of that. My guards are afraid of that. I am not the one who is afraid. And my family is afraid of the attempted murders, just to be really sincere.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLEAN: So that there was President Zelenskyy speaking at a press conference actually in a Kyiv tube station, in a Kyiv underground station, meeting with the reporters. And he was responding to a question about his own personal security and whether he's afraid. He said he doesn't have the right to feel afraid considering what his own country is going through, and the fact that Ukrainians are dying and putting their own lives on the line.

Zelenskyy also made clear that he is open to talks with President Putin despite the obvious personal risks to himself potentially by doing that. So, on the one hand, he is open to talks. On the other hand, he is still very much trying to beef up his own military capabilities to fend off the Russians. In fact, he announced today that U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and the Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin would be in Kyiv tomorrow to meet about what kind of weapons Kyiv would need to defend itself from the Russian attacks, which we now know, according to a Russian commander who spoke to state media, are focusing on the eastern part of the country, and also the southern part of Ukraine, much of which has been untouched by Russian troops on the ground, cities like Odessa, which have faced the bombing, have faced missile strikes like they did today, but have really not seen anything in the way of Russian troops on the ground.

ACOSTA: All right, and that will be very significant to see the secretary of the state, the secretary of defense in Kyiv. Scott McLean, thank you very much.

[14:05:05] Let's bring in retired Brigadier General Mark Kimmitt. He's also a former assistant secretary of state for political military affairs. General, what is your reaction, I guess, first of all to Zelenskyy saying that these top U.S. officials are going to Ukraine? That would be a significant moment.

BRIG. GEN. MARK KIMMITT, U.S. ARMY (RET): Well, I think most importantly, it will demonstrate not only to President Zelenskyy but the entire country of Ukraine that the United States and the western powers remain firmly behind them. And the physical presence of both the secretary of state and secretary of defense means that they are willing to take those potential risks to demonstrate that point.

ACOSTA: And what do you make of this Russian commander spelling out phase two of their strategy, the details aligned with the west's assessment, but why would he publicly lay that out, do you think?

KIMMITT: First of all, there is some question about whether that's an official statement or that is just off of the back of his hand. But nonetheless, I think we have to be concerned not only about the notion of the land bridge, but notion and the determination of the Russians to take all of that area up to that land bridge which would include the critical port of Odessa. If they were able to take Odessa, you have essentially made Ukraine a landlocked nation, and nation that currently depends upon that port for so much of its trade.

ACOSTA: And to that point, there is particular alarm over his comment, General, that Putin has his eye on Moldova. If Russia were to take that step, if they were even capable of taking that step, I guess that is part of the conversation, how should NATO handle that?

KIMMITT: Well, again, I think how they should and how they will are two different thing. I think what we will see is that NATO will say that Moldova is not a part of NATO, and Transnistria, that little of separatist Russian inside of Moldova, NATO will say, yes, we have grave concern for that, but since it's not in NATO territory, we don't feel any obligation to defend it.

ACOSTA: And a crucial piece of Russia's southeastern strategy is Mariupol. In addition to preventing Russia from holding this key port city, the resistance there has been bogged down. And Russian troops, they have just not been able to break through for some 50 days. How significant is the situation there, do you think, right now?

KIMMITT: Well, I think it is desperate. It demonstrates what we have been saying for some time, this notion of Russian strategy to surround, siege, starve, and then assault. It's clear that the Russians know they have got a tough fight. They are reluctant to put their troops into the fight. I think eventually there will have to come a time where the Ukrainian resistance in there makes a decision whether they fight to last man. And that is going to be a remember the Alamo moment for the rest of Ukraine, and I think it just inspires Ukrainians to keep fighting.

ACOSTA: Absolutely. They have been through so much there. And let me ask you, General, about these new images that appear to

show mass graves near Mariupol. It is just heartbreaking to think about this, but it is something that we have seen the Russians do already. They've already been accused of this, obviously, in Bucha outside of Kyiv. What do you think? Is Russia trying to cover its tracks here, hide what they've done? What do you take from these images, these latest images?

KIMMITT: It just demonstrates that while the rest of the world has moved on from the brutality of 18th century warfare, in fact, 20th century warfare in the fight of the Nazis and the Soviet Union, while we have put into place the Geneva Conventions, laws of war, and respect for civilian populations, the Russians are still fighting the way they did during World War II, which is everywhere is a battlefield, and every person is an enemy. And they haven't changed from that philosophy since 1945.

ACOSTA: And Ukraine released intercepted Russian communications this week. Let's listen to a chunk of audio here in which the Russian troops are, I guess, purportedly complaining about their commanders. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We sat there for three days without -- anything. Our commanders, they received provisions, cigarettes, food, and our command have all -- off. They abandoned everyone and -- off. We don't even know where they are.

[14:10:01]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): -- jackals -- shoot them, and that's it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): Just imagine, they didn't provide a way to retreat, didn't say anything, didn't even bring foodstuff -- them.

Shoot him -- the first one.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: General, this suggests some major morale problems inside of Russia's army, and that might have something to do with some of these atrocities that we have been seeing.

KIMMITT: Well, I think that's right. But again, I would go back to my earlier comment about 20th century warfare for the Russians. These are conscripts. They are not professional soldiers. They don't want to be there. Things were so bad during the Great Patriotic War as they called World War II that the Russian technique was to have the political commissars behind the assaults, and if any of the soldiers, the Soviet soldiers, didn't fight or tried to retreat, they were shot by the political commissars.

It looks like that's what we are seeing again in the 21st century. The Russians see their soldiers as cannon fodder, and they'll keep throwing them in regardless of whether they have the slightest bit of care for them.

ACOSTA: It just goes to the total lack of respect for human life that we have seen demonstrated time and again throughout all of this. All right, General Mark Kimmitt, thank you very for your expertise, as always. We appreciate it.

KIMMITT: Sure, Jim.

ACOSTA: Coming up, coming up, the January 6th committee releases brand-new evidence about Trump former chief of staff Mark Meadows and what he knew before the violence at the Capitol.

Plus, far right Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene defiant and defensive under oath.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE, (R-GA): You sound like you have as many conspiracy theories as QAnon at this point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[14:16:00]

ACOSTA: The January 6th committee revealing new evidence that Trump's former chief of staff Mark Meadows had been warned there could be violence prior to the insurrection, but he pushed forward with the rally anyway. In a 248-page filing, lawyers for the committee highlighted the testimony of a White House aide in Meadow's office who said the following, and put this up on screen, quote, "I know that there were concerns brought forward to Mr. Meadows. I know that people had brought information forward to him that had indicated that there could be violence on the 6th. But, again, I am not sure he, what he did with that information internally."

Joining me now is CNN reporter Marshall Cohen. Marshall, this is some pretty eye-opening testimony that was released. The committee, it seems, wants to throw, or have a judge throw out a lawsuit that Meadows has against them, and they wanted to give this judge, I guess, looking at this a lot of evidence to ponder, and there is a lot in there.

MARSHALL COHEN, CNN REPORTER: It was like hundreds of pages long, Jim. It was a lot of material. They clearly think they have enough in front of that judge to win that case.

You pointed out something very important, that there is so much more, even. It is revelations from this former White House official, an aide to Mark Meadows, who went in for depositions earlier in the year, which is amazing to think that the committee is getting fresh new insights. In depositions in February and March, and she revealed that Meadows was warned that there could be the potential for violence.

And she also revealed that Meadows was told ahead of time that the plan to have Mike Pence throw the election to Donald Trump somehow on January 6th, that that was not a legally sound plan. But yet, of course, Jim, as you know, President Trump and his aides and his advisers tried to push forward anyway.

ACOSTA: Yes, I was reading through a bunch of this, Marshall, and you could see it right there in black and white in this aide's testimony, that the White House Counsel's office had told not only officials inside of the administrations, inside the White House, but members of Congress that this was not going to work, this plan to have Mike Pence throw out the electors that were going to make Biden president and bring in this alternate slate of electors, that that was not going to work.

But Marshall, the information that is laid out in all of this also suggests that there are members of Congress --

COHEN: That is right.

ACOSTA: -- who had been urging a crowd to amass at the Capitol on January 6th. What can you tell us about that?

COHEN: Yes, it illuminated the potential role of Republican lawmakers in Congress and how they were working with the Trump White House. This aide, Cassidy Hutchinson, was asked under oath if members of Congress had plans not just for the Ellipse rally, but also for a march at the Capitol. And she said that the answer to that question was yes. She specifically named a congressman named Scott Perry as part of the plan.

But Jim, it's important because one of Trump's big defense has always been that all that he wanted was a rally at the Ellipse, a peaceful rally. But then, as you remember, he adlibbed that critical phrase, let's all march down to the Capitol. So this testimony shows maybe it wasn't adlibbed at all. It is not clear, but it does indicate that there may have been some plans to head on down to the Capitol. And we all know how that ended up.

ACOSTA: Right. I think that that is a very key point, Marshall, that there was discussion about sending people down to the Capitol on January 6th in those meetings before January 6th, and then Trump said it at that "Stop the Steal" rally.

You're in Georgia, Marshall, because Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, whose name surfaces in some of these documents, we should note, in some of this testimony you were just talking about, she was on the stand down in Georgia being asked about her actions around January 6th. And at the heart of the case is whether or not she is going to be eligible to run for reelection. What can you tell us about that?

[14:20:05]

COHEN: It's a fascinating topic. It's an extraordinary hearing that was taking place yesterday all day right here in downtown Atlanta on the question, the solemn question of whether January 6th was an insurrection legally, and if Marjorie Taylor Greene aided the insurrection, because if that's all true, if a judge agrees that that's the case, then she may be disqualified under an old Civil War provision of the Constitution.

It was in remarkable hearings. She was on the stand for three hours. It was a lot of "I don't know, I don't remember." But they were trying, the challengers, to hold her accountable for her previous statements, some vitriolic rhetoric that seemed to stoke the flames of the violence that happened on January 6th. She dodged most of it, but there was one moment where her words caught up to her. Jim, take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You think that Speaker Pelosi is a traitor to the country, right?

REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE, (R-GA): I am not answering that question. It's speculation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You've said that, haven't you, Ms. Greene, that she's a traitor to the country?

GREENE: No, I haven't said that.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. Put up exhibit five, please.

GREENE: Oh, no. Wait, hold on, now. I believe by not upholding and securing the border, that that violates her oath of office.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COHEN: OK, so she kind of got a little caught there.

Now, Jim, this is going to be an uphill climb. If the challengers do want to remove her from the ballot, we should get a decision in the next few weeks.

ACOSTA: All right, Marshall Cohen, thank you very much.

Coming up, House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and the bombshell audio of him slamming Trump in the days after the January 6th attack. How he is now trying to downplay it all. Plus, reaction from one of the officers who defended the Capitol that day, there he is, Michael Fanone. He joins me next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:26:29]

ACOSTA: Before the break, we told you about new evidence from the January 6th committee that former Trump White House chief of staff Mark Meadows had been warned about the potential for violence on January 6th, and in addition proceeded with a plan for alternate electors despite being told it was not legally sound. The filing also included new text messages that Meadows turned over, including several from House Republicans who were pushing him to act. From GOP Congressman Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, this, "Mark,

checking in as time continues to count down, 11 days to 1/6 and 25 days to inauguration. We gotta get going." And this one from GOP Congressman Jim Jordan of Ohio, "Vice President Mike Pence should call out all electoral votes that he believes are unconstitutional as no electoral votes at all." Meadows texted back in the early hours of January 6th, "I have pushed for this. Not sure it is going to happen."

Joining me now is one of the officers who defended the Capitol on January and then spent months recovering from the injuries he suffered after being dragged, beaten, and tased by the mob at the Capitol, former D.C. police officer Michael Fanone. Thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate your coming on.

What is your reaction to the idea that Meadows was warned of the violence but was still entertaining these ideas from Republican members of Congress who wanted to see the election overturned? Congressman, you had to policemen -- excuse me, congressmen that you had to protect later that day, Officer Fanone. What is your reaction to that?

MICHAEL FANONE, FORMER D.C. METROPOLITAN POLICE OFFICER: Well, the idea that there was, or that anyone involved with the events of that day or was in Trump's inner circle wasn't aware of the propensity for violence I think is pretty ridiculous. There is evidence that has come out, or come to light, that shows that elected members of our government, their staff and surrogates, were in communication with members of the Proud Boys, Three Percenters, and the Oath Keepers.

These are groups who advocate violence, whose members have a propensity for violence. And it's not just known to law enforcement. It's known pretty well throughout the U.S. that that's what these groups were established for. And the fact that they were brought in, in an organized effort to participate in this rally shows me that it was obvious that it was going to be a violent day.

ACOSTA: And according to the new court filing from the January 6th committee, an aide to Mark Meadows told the committee that she heard Republican Congressman Scott Perry talking about this idea of sending people to the Capitol on January 6th, and as you will recall in Trump's speech that day, he called on people to go down to the Capitol. Michael Fanone, what is your response to that?

FANONE: It's what I have been saying since my testimony before Congress. I believe that Donald Trump, his surrogates, incited violence that day, and that their words resulted in the insurrection at the Capitol, as we all saw it.

ACOSTA: And the fact that we now have it in writing, members of Congress wanted people to show up at the Capitol that day, I mean, these are the people that you were supposed to protect, that you were there to protect.

[14:30:01]

FANONE: Yes, that is like, I don't know, nothing short of embarrassing. That was my initial reaction, I think, to all of this, was in a time where so many of us Americans, myself included, are inspired by the actions of President Zelenskyy, I look at our politicians and our elected leaders, and I think to myself, this is the best we've got? This is it? People like Marjorie Taylor Greene and Kevin McCarthy, I mean, they just -- it's just unreal.

ACOSTA: Yes. And Michael, former president Trump is standing behind McCarthy, the House Minority Leader, despite this audio of McCarthy bashing Trump on this call with the other Republican colleagues in the days after the January 6th attack. Let's play a little bit of that for our viewers, and then I will get you to respond.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY, (R-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: All right, I know this is not fun. I know this is not great. I know that this is very tough, but what I want to do, especially through here, is I don't want to rush things. I want everybody to have all the information needed. I've had it with this guy. What he did is unacceptable. Nobody can defend that, and nobody should defend it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: And then McCarthy went down to Mar-a-Lago and had that meeting with Trump. How does all of this look now to you?

FANONE: Unfortunately, again, it's not surprising. This is the caliber of politician that we have in this country today. Kevin McCarthy, again, I don't know what's worse, some of the fringe members of Congress that never accepted the reality of January 6th, or someone like Kevin McCarthy who is acutely aware of what happened that day, the violence that day, attributed blame to former president Trump, and then for political purposes has now reversed course and decided that him being speak or potentially being speaker is way more important than our democracy. But again, that is what we call a leader in this country today.

ACOSTA: Right. And there is another part of this audio where McCarthy said Trump accepted responsibility for the attack. Let's listen to that as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY, (R-CA), HOUSE MINORITY LEADER: But let me be very clear to all of you, and I have been very clear to the president. He bears responsibility for his words and actions, no ifs, ands, or buts. I asked personally today, does he hold responsibility about what happened, does he feel bad about what happened? He told me he does have some responsibility for what happened, and he needs to acknowledge that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ACOSTA: Isn't it kind of incredible to hear McCarthy talk about Trump in this fashion, in such a candid way privately with his fellow Republican members of the House, and then just sound just so, like a different human being when he is speaking to the public about it? How does that grab you? And I guess, what would you like to see in terms of accountability for Trump?

FANONE: Well, first, I mean my reaction -- I don't know if I believe that statement from Kevin McCarthy. I don't know what to believe when it comes to Kevin McCarthy. He lies so much in public I don't know what the difference between his private conversations and his public conversations. To me, someone who lies is a liar.

As far as accountability, if laws were broken, I want the people held accountable. I don't want to hear about political niceties. I don't want to hear about the committee not subpoenaing members of Congress because they are concerned about the optics of it. If they feel like somebody should be subpoenaed, they are interested in hearing what they have to say, then issue the subpoena. All I want is the law to be enforced. I think that politicians should be held to a higher standard, just like police officers, than the rest of us. And if they broke the law, they damn sure should be held accountable for it.

ACOSTA: And what does that mean for Trump, in your view, as more and more of this comes out?

[14:35:05]

FANONE: I don't understand all the logistics behind executive privilege, things like that. I'm just a cop. But it seems to me that Donald Trump broke the law, and he should be held accountable. The DOJ should pursue criminal charges, and he should be put on trial.

ACOSTA: And how are you holding up?

FANONE: I don't know how to answer that question, to be honest with you, Jim. Sometimes I feel like everything that I have done and said has been for absolutely nothing.

ACOSTA: I don't think that is the case at all. I think if we hadn't had your voice throughout all of this, there might not have been as much pressure to get to the truth. You buy that?

FANONE: Well, I appreciate that. And I do understand there is quite a few Americans out there that have been extremely supportive of me and the other officers that fought on January 6th. But this has taken a large personal toll on me, my family, and unfortunately, it has made me cynical at times. And I wonder whether or not anything is actually going to come of it.

Or is Donald Trump going to do what he has been doing his entire life, which is exploit legal loopholes. And that's to be said for his surrogates as well. I think the DOJ needs to get aggressive. Unfortunately, I don't think that's anything that, at least I could ever say or accuse the DOJ of being is aggressive.

ACOSTA: All right, former officer Michael Fanone, it's been a pleasure to talk to you. I know it's not easy to do this and go through all of this all over again, but really appreciate the time, really appreciate your insights. I hope you'll come back. Thanks so much. FANONE: Thanks for having me.

ACOSTA: Thank you.

The world's number one tennis player, Novak Djokovic, is calling the ban on Russian tennis players at Wimbledon, quote, "crazy." We'll get reaction from a Ukrainian tennis star who left his family to join the fight against Russia. Does he think this ban goes too far or not far enough? That's next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:42:14]

ACOSTA: The world's number one men's tennis player Novak Djokovic is slamming Wimbledon's decision to ban Russian and Belarusian players from competing because of the war in Ukraine. Djokovic was 11 when he endured airstrikes on his native Serbia which marked the beginning of a campaign by NATO to bring an end to the atrocities by Yugoslavia's troops against ethnic Albanians in Kosovo. He told reporters, quote, "I will always condemn war. I will never support being myself a child of war. I know how much emotional trauma it leaves. However, I cannot support the decision of Wimbledon. I think it's crazy when politics interferes with sport. The result is not good."

My next guest is a Ukrainian tennis player who has played Wimbledon and returned to Ukraine at the start of the war to help in the fight against Russia. Sergiy Stakhovsky is with us. Thank you, Sergiy, for coming back. We appreciate it. What is your reaction to Djokovic and what he has been saying, that it's crazy to ban these Russian and Belarusian players from participating in Wimbledon?

SERGIY STAKHOVSKY, UKRAINIAN TENNIS PLAYER: Good day. Well, that's his opinion, and I'm pretty sure if you would take him back in his life, and when he was a child, if there would be any way to stop the bombings or the war, any way possible, he would use any way possible tool. And for me, as a professional, or ex-professional tennis player, the level of atrocities that Russian army is conducting on the territory of Ukraine, which is part of Europe, is just insane.

And if the Russian government doesn't want to stop, then I do believe that the Russian citizens have to have a common, collective guilt, and they have to carry this onwards. And sport is something that Putin has taken big pride of. He was always placing the sports, people up front of his campaigns, and not for them to not be able to participate is one thing. But for me, it is not a problem. The problem is that they were silent, that they are neutral on the stands.

They say they don't know politics, they don't follow the news. It is pretty hard not to follow the news when you have today, a three-month- old child killed in an Odessa air strike. It's very hard not to follow when all of the world is talking about the atrocities happening in Ukraine. So it's either they condemn what's happening, either they condemn the invasion of Russian troops inside Ukraine, or they support it. There is no neutrality in this. ACOSTA: And Sergiy, let me ask you, though, about Russian tennis star

Andrey Rublev. He is saying that this decision was illogical. He called it complete discrimination. He is the tennis player who wrote "no war please" on that camera during a match a few days after Russia invaded Ukraine. I am sure you saw that. What about athletes who don't support the war, should an exception be made for them?

[14:45:03]

STAKHOVSKY: Don't support the war is one thing, but you have to -- saying "no war" is basically means if Ukraine will stop shooting, the war would be over. But the fact is that if Ukraine is going to stop shooting, we are going to be killed and destroyed, and Ukraine will stop to exist. So only Russia can stop shooting, go back to their Russian country, and then war would end. So no war -- peace. But it just doesn't work this way.

What the Russian army is doing inside of Ukraine is you are not able to comprehend the atrocities and the level of barbarianism they are doing. And yet somebody is saying no war and saying that he's impolitic. It just doesn't work this way. I've seen what was going on, what the Russian troops did in Bucha, and it just, it's either-or.

If they don't feel they can do something out loud because they're scared for their families, well, they're scared there would be consequences in Russia, but the Ukrainian people are withstanding bombardments daily. We have daily civilian death, while they are silent about what is happening in Ukraine.

ACOSTA: And the last time we spoke with you, I guess it was a few weeks ago, at the time you were telling us that when you were leaving to fight, your kids weren't told what you were going to do. Do they know now? How are things going for you and your family? And I guess for you specifically? How are things going for you?

STAKHOVSKY: For me, it is getting much better. Kyiv, the region of Kyiv is liberated from the Russian troops, so we have only the danger of air strikes. But they could come in any part of Ukraine any day, whether it's Lviv, or Mariupol, which is daily bombarded, or Kyiv. So with the family, the kids still don't know what war is, and I hope -- the elder daughter, she knows what the war is by term "war," but she doesn't really know what that means. So I hope it will stay that.

I will be able to see them soon. I have been with the reserves, and Kyiv, is a bit of, I would say, trying to go back to normal, people are trying to go back to work because the economy is devastated, and people actually need to get money to sustain their living for the future. So Ukraine in some parts is trying to go back, they are trying to work. The problem is that all the Kyiv infrastructure is destroyed, and there's not much thing you can do.

ACOSTA: Well, I know when we spoke to you last, things looked pretty bleak, and things have turned around to some extent in Kyiv. We really appreciate your time with us today, Sergiy Stakhovsky. I hope you'll come back again, give us a status update when you can. Thanks so much, we appreciate it. STAKHOVSKY: Thank you very much. Thank you. Goodbye.

ACOSTA: Thank you.

And we will be right back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:52:30]

ACOSTA: The polio episode put Paul Alexander in an iron lung. But for 70 years with only the use of his head, he's broken barriers and is still going strong. Dr. Sanjay Gupta tells us his remarkable story in today's "The Human Factor."

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Meet Paul Alexander. He's one of the last people in the world still in an iron lung. The iron lung works to change the air pressure and stimulate breathing. It has been his home, keeping him alive for 70 years.

In 1952, Paul contracted polio and became paralyzed from the neck down. He was six years old. A therapist promised Paul a dog if he could breathe on his own for three minutes.

PAUL ALEXANDER, 70 YEARS IN AN IRON LUNG: I developed a way to get air and breathe it. I worked on it for a year before I could breathe for three minutes. But I reached it.

GUPTA: Eventually, Paul would be able to gulp, or take in air for hours at a time, allowing him to leave the confines of the iron lung during the day, and accomplish more than anyone thought was possible for him -- college, law school, and a 30-year career as a courtroom attorney. Paul wrote his autobiography, and he's working on a second book now.

ALEXANDER: I've got some big dreams. I've got to accept from anybody their limitations on my life. I'm not going to do it. My life is incredible.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ACOSTA: Incredible story.

Now to this. Putin critic, poison survivor, and prisoner -- see the unbelievable true story of a man who took on Putin and lived to expose the truth. The Sundance Award winning CNN film "Navalny" airs tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. here on CNN. Here's a preview.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): It's Alexei Navalny calling, and I was hoping you could tell me why you wanted to kill me?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Remarkably, Vladimir Putin faces a legitimate opponent, Alexei Navalny.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't want Putin being president. If I want to be a leader of a country, I have to organize people.

[14:55:00]

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Kremlin hates Navalny so much that they refuse to say his name.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Passengers heard Navalny cry out in agony.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on, poisoned? Seriously.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are creating the coalition to fight this regime.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If you are killed, what message do you leave behind to the Russian people?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's very simple. Never give up.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: "Navalny," tomorrow at 9:00 on CNN.

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