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Austin's Closing Remarks in Germany; Constant Shelling in East and South Ukraine; Paul Eaton is Interviewed about the War in Ukraine; Musk to Buy Twitter; New Video of "Rust" Shooting. Aired 9:00-9:30a ET

Aired April 26, 2022 - 09:00   ET

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

[09:00:22]

JIM SCIUTTO, CNN ANCHOR: The U.S. is increasingly optimistic about Ukraine's potential ability to win this war. As the defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, calls Russia's atrocities here in Ukraine indefensible.

A very good morning to you. I'm Jim Sciutto reporting from Lviv in western Ukraine.

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN ANCHOR: And I'm Bianna Golodryga in New York.

In the next hour, the defense secretary will deliver closing remarks following high level meetings with counterparts from several nations. Their biggest challenge, how to help Ukraine win.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: My Ukrainian friends, we know the burden that you all carry. And we know, and you should know, that all of us have your back. And that's why we're here today, to strengthen the arsenal of Ukrainian democracy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Next hour we'll speak live to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Mark Milley.

Overnight, an adviser to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy say that Russian troops have intensified their assault in the south and the east. And right now Ukrainian officials say that Russian forces are in control, continue to be, of the city of Kherson. Two guided missiles rocked the city of Zaporizhzhia, killing one person, injuring another. The threat from the skies continues in this country.

You may remember, that is the same city that was a destination for people trying to escape Mariupol. No longer safe itself.

And in Luhansk, remarkable new drone video shows a village just leveled by recent fighting. The devastation seeming to go on for miles, Bianna. Something we've seen so often in this country since the start of the invasion.

GOLODRYGA: Can't get used to these images two months in now. CNN Pentagon correspondent Oren Liebermann joins us now from Ramstein

Air Base in Germany.

Oren, what do we expect to hear from the defense secretary today?

OREN LIEBERMANN, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Well, it will be interesting to hear in his closing remarks whether there is anything concrete coming out of his meetings today, whether that comes in a dollar figure commitment to Ukraine from either the U.S. or from some of the other 40 countries that were here, or any specific systems that any of those countries have now agreed to send into Ukraine. We heard earlier today Germany announcing that they would send in 50 jet part vehicles, which are mobile vehicles that are used for short range antiaircraft operations. So that in and of itself a fairly big statement from Germany, which had been criticized for its reticence to send lethal weaponry into Ukraine. Will there be any other such announcement? That's certainly one of the things we'll be listening for.

In the meantime, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin staying with that stronger rhetoric we've heard from not only him but from other U.S. officials over the course of the past couple of days saying optimistically, perhaps even a bit definitively, that Ukraine is capable of winning this fight and the stronger condemnation of Russia's actions in Ukraine.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LLOYD AUSTIN, DEFENSE SECRETARY: Russia's invasion is indefensible. And so are Russian atrocities.

Ukraine is fighting a war of necessity to defend its democracy, its sovereignty, and its citizens. But the stakes reach beyond Ukraine, and even beyond Europe.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIEBERMANN: In terms of what -- how the day was broken down, it started with an update on Ukrainian battlefield. That came from Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov earlier today. And then it was the focus on short-term and medium-term weaponry that Ukraine needs to stay in the fight and succeed. And then longer term what's needed for Ukraine to be able to defend its own sovereignty.

Just a few days ago, the U.S. approving $165 million package in foreign military sales to Ukraine. That was Soviet era weaponry. The type of weapons they use now. But they know that NATO -- or rather Ukraine needs to transition to NATO capable weaponry moving into the future. So that's part of the discussions today.

Jim and Bianna, later today, in an hour, we'll hear closing remarks and we'll see if there are concrete deliverables or a statement of the commitment to Ukraine.

SCIUTTO: Oren Liebermann there in Ramstein Air Base in Germany, thanks so much. Coming up, as we mentioned, I'm going to speak to the chairman of the

Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley. This is an exclusive interview. His take on the latest on Russia's war in Ukraine, as well as the critical meeting between U.S. and NATO allies in Germany. That will be at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Be sure to tune in.

Overnight, Ukraine says that Russian forces fired two guided missiles at the city of Zaporizhzhia. This as they step up their offensive in the south and the east trying to gain ground there.

CNN international correspondent Phil Black is in the capital city of Kyiv.

Phil, what more are we learning about attempts, at least, by Russian forces to make advances in the east and the south?

[09:05:02]

PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Jim, so Ukrainian officials continue to report a really notable uptick across all the key battle fronts, in the east and the south as well. They talk about Russian efforts to move forward, try to take territory, as well as a really notable uptick in artillery bombardment also.

So far, Ukrainian officials say, that they are withstanding those assaults. They are repelling those assaults. So Russia's attempts to advance, for the moment, continue to fail.

You mentioned those missile strikes on Zaporizhzhia. Two hit a business there, killing, as you say, one person, injuring another. Another blew up in the sky.

But perhaps more concerningly, in fact I'd say no doubt more concerningly, two flew over at low altitude Zaporizhzhia's sprawling nuclear power plant. The clear concern there is that if one of those missiles had failed while in close proximity to the power plant, it could have caused extensive damage and created a hugely serious nuclear emergency, Jim.

SCIUTTO: No question. We've seen so many close calls in that category.

Phil, the mayor of Kherson, in the south, this is a key city as well, he says his city has completely fallen under Russian control. How significant a change is that?

BLACK: So, Kherson has been under Russian occupation from the early days of the war, but even during that time we're told the city council was allowed to operate. This is the civilian authorities were allowed to operate in a limited way. But it seems no longer. The mayor there says that armed guards turned up -- or Russian troops showed up at the city hall building, took the keys, exchanged their guards for Russian ones and they believe that that era of being able to continue some sort of local civilian administration is now over.

Now, there has been talk from the Ukrainian government, President Zelenskyy specifically, about plans by the occupying forces there to stage some sort of -- some sort of public vote to try and declare independence, as other regions have done with Russia's assistance in the past. Zelenskyy has said that if that happens, it will mean an end to any future negotiations with Russia.

SCIUTTO: And that's always been the U.S. assessment, that the Russian plan included a military phase and then a political one, to take over the political systems, assuming Russia was able to gain those towns, that ground.

Phil Black, thanks so much.

GOLODRYGA: Well, an alarming development this morning. The president of Moldova is convening a Security Council meeting after explosions rocked the city of Tiraspol. That's the largest city in Transnistria. Two radio towers were damaged there following what Ukraine described as a planned provocation by the Russian security services.

Transnistria is a Moscow-backed breakaway territory in Moldova that's not recognized by the international community, but it sits between Moldova and Ukraine. Russia has maintained a military presence there since the early 1990s. Last week, a top Russian general said Russia intended to establish, quote, full control over southern Ukraine, adding that control there would give Russian forces access to Transnistria.

Well, the U.S. is praising Ukraine's efforts to resist Russia's aggression, saying the west is doing what it can to help Ukraine win.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KIRBY, PENTAGON PRESS SECRETARY: They have certainly defeated Mr. Putin's strategic objective thus far. He did not take Kyiv or Chernihiv or any other city in the north. They have had some limited progress in the south and there is an active fight going on in the east in the Donbas region.

It's hard to look at this fight and preclude that Russia has won, that Mr. Putin achieved his objectives. He has not. The Ukrainians have beaten him back at almost every turn. And what we're trying to do here today in Germany is make sure that the turns to come that Ukraine can to beat them back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SCIUTTO: Joining us now to discuss, CNN military analyst, retired Army Major General Paul Eaton. He's also a former commanding general of the coalition military assistance training team in Iraq.

Good to have you on, sir.

It strikes me, there's a notable change in public assessments by the U.S. and NATO of the situation on the ground here. And the most current one is that if not the tide is turning, at least Ukraine has resisted so well to date that it does have a chance to succeed, to resist Russia's invasion, to win. And I wonder if you share that assessment. MAJ. GEN. PAUL EATON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Indeed, Jim. The

Ukrainian army has distinguished itself. Undermanned, less well equipped than the -- than the Russians. And on the power of their own guts and willpower, the Ukrainian army is turning the tide right now.

Now, the west has been prolific and wonderful in supplying the weapons that Mr. -- that President Zelenskyy needs. And I expect that this is going to just ramp up as we continue to put the pressure on.

Our secretary of defense's assessment is shared by a lot of my peers.

[09:10:01]

We've watched an incompetent Russian army on many levels, in many areas of concern fail miserably. And his comment, interesting, that this whole Ukraine situation could defang the Russian military, their ground forces certainly, is interesting.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. And it's coming at a time when you're seeing more NATO allies step up with their weaponry delivery. Germany just the latest now, announcing that it's planning to supply Ukraine with antiaircraft tanks after resisting that just a few weeks ago.

Let me ask you about Moldova, those two explosions that you just heard there in the city of Tiraspol, that's part of Transnistria. The country's president says that this is a provocation from pro-Russian separatists there. I'm curious, from your perspective, thus far, the U.S. has assisted Moldova more on a humanitarian basis, providing millions of dollars in aid for the hundreds of thousands of refugees that have come into that poor country from Ukraine. But a reminder that Moldova has no protection from NATO, no protection from the EU. Should the U.S. now be thinking about helping Moldova militarily protect itself from Russia?

EATON: Thank you, Bianna.

So, we, in the military, tend to speak in terms of the tactical level of warfare, operational level of warfare, and the strategic level of warfare. We're now talking about the operational level of warfare. And the fact that that southern tier, Odessa, is the jewel of this potential movement to the west by the Russian forces, what we're seeing right now in Moldova, Transnistria, is provocations at the operational level, it is preparatory in a political sense, as well as a military sense, to movement into that area, which we have got to take a long hard look at what we are doing to help Moldova and its future and the potential of support to that country.

SCIUTTO: Do you believe Russia has the military capability to carry out that aim of taking the entire south of Ukraine and linking up to Moldova? Or given what they've run into in the east, do you think that that's a stretch for the Russian forces?

EATON: Jim, that's a great big stretch from what they have demonstrated right now. And we expect to see the Ukrainian army and their military in general shift to make sure that that key stretch of territory, that economic zone of great importance to Ukraine, not be pressed. And what I have said in the past, and would repeat here is, the NATO naval forces need to give a very strong point to President Putin, that he does not own the Black Sea. That his ships, if they come into military influence on the south of Ukraine, are going to be pressed. That we will put enough naval forces in there to ensure that he does not have freedom of action or freedom of navigation in the international waters of the Black Sea.

SCIUTTO: That would be quite a stand-up there.

General Eaton, thanks so much, as always.

EATON: Thank you very much, Jim.

SCIUTTO: Still to come this hour, CNN's Clarissa Ward and her team follow the paramedics doing incredibly dangerous work of trying to save people wounded in Russia's attacks, often becoming targets themselves.

GOLODRYGA: Just incredible heroism on the part of the medics.

Also ahead, new video of Alec Baldwin speaking to authorities immediately after the fatal shooting on the set of the movie "Rust."

Plus, text messages from the film's armorer, what she was saying about using live rounds.

And, Elon Musk poised to be the new owner of Twitter. What that means for users and employees. We'll talk more up next after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[09:18:45]

GOLODRYGA: Well, from electric cars to space travel and now social media, the world's richest man, Elon Musk, is officially set to buy Twitter for roughly $44 billion. Soon after the announcement, Twitter employees held an all hands meeting with current leadership where questions were raised about everything from what the sale will mean for them to whether former President Trump would be allowed back on the platform.

I'm joined now by CNN chief media correspondent and anchor of "RELIABLE SOURCES," Brian Stelter.

Brian, so it wasn't too long ago that we were talking about just this possibility.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT: Right.

GOLODRYGA: We didn't think that the odds were high of this happening. Now we are here and Elon Musk wants to take this company private. He's all about freedom of speech. The question is, how do you balance that with regulating hate speech and misinformation?

STELTER: And I think he's about to experience an extraordinary education in the complexities of that very topic. Elon Musk has pursued this. People thought maybe he's just buying it

as a play thing. Didn't know how serious he was. Now he's, obviously, very serious. He committed his capital to it. He wants to build this business.

But I don't think he has -- based on his public statements, it's clear he has a very little understanding of the complexities that go into content moderation and hate speech policies and the like. So, he's about to learn how it works. And it might be a whole lot more complicated than he realizes.

[09:20:00]

GOLODRYGA: And not just here in the U.S. Obviously, this is a global company.

STELTER: Right.

GOLODRYGA: EU regulators are much tougher.

I want to read a quote from one of Europe's most influential digital regulators in response to this news. And he said, we welcome everyone. We're open. But on our conditions, Elon, he says, there are rules. You are welcome, but these are our rules. It's not your rules which will apply here.

STELTER: Hmm.

GOLODRYGA: So he's got a lot of work ahead of him. Is he prepared for it?

STELTER: Well, he's going to needs a management team to do the day to day. Whether the current team stays in place or not is a big question. A lot of Twitter employees were dismayed by the news that the board agreed that Musk's takeover bid. Will they want to stay involved in the company or not?

There's also a question of whether users and advertisers will want to be a part of Elon Musk's Twitter. So I suspect that the service, the company may actually change less than Musk is claiming, but, you know, that's very much a months down the road question.

And there are also media questions about whether he's going to reinstate certain accounts, certain politicians. One former president comes to mind. This has been a hot topic in the past 24 hours since this deal was struck. And we've already heard from a lot of U.S. senators and others about this.

For example, Senator Marsha Blackburn, hopeful about the new Twitter, saying, quote, today is an encouraging day for freedom of speech. I am hopeful Elon Musk will help reign in big tech's history of censoring users that have a different viewpoint.

That is the main narrative on the right.

But then here is Senator Chris Murphy, a Democrat, saying, OK, Trump's coming back, probably. Trump's coming back to Twitter. Maybe that's a good thing for Democrats. Quote, I never expected that policy to be permanent. Trump back on Twitter is terrible for the country, but really good for Democrats. I think that's one of the interesting x- factors about all o this. I think, frankly, this is a domino effect. Elon Musk has just hit the first domino and we don't know how it's going to fall.

GOLODRYGA: So, former President Trump has said that he, as of now, will not plan on returning.

STELTER: Right, he has said he won't go back.

GOLODRYGA: Obviously, he's got TRUTH Social, the other media platform not doing so well.

STELTER: Yes.

GOLODRYGA: What's the likelihood that he will return?

STELTER: I believe he will be back on Twitter. Again, whether that helps him or hurts him remains to be seen. But it's hard to imagine him not going back to a service that he was so addicted to back in the day.

GOLODRYGA: Yes. Well, one warning that we should read to our viewers here came from NAACP, and this is where they implored Musk, do not allow Twitter to become a petri dish for hate speech.

So, you'll be following this story, as always.

STELTER: Yes.

GOLODRYGA: Brian Stelter, thank you.

STELTER: Thanks.

GOLODRYGA: Well, new video released by the Santa Fe Sheriff's Office shows the chaotic moments on the set of the movie "Rust" just after the fatal shooting of the film's cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where was she shot at?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (INAUDIBLE) right side (INAUDIBLE).

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She came in here. It went across her chest.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And came out the back and it went into him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You want an air flight?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, we got one en route.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GOLODRYGA: Dramatic body cam footage shows first responders frantically rushing to the scene, rendering aid to Hutchins and assistant director Joel Souza. The files also contain video of Alec Baldwin drawing a gun and pointing it toward the camera while rehearsing a scene for the film.

CNN correspondent Josh Campbell has been following this story.

Josh, video of Baldwin's initial interview with police was also released. Tell us about that.

JOSH CAMPBELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Bianna. Among this trove of evidence that was released yesterday by the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Department is video of Baldwin himself.

Now, after the shooting, he sat down with investigators. He was read his Miranda rights. He actually asked if he was being charged with a crime. The deputies say, no, they're just trying to gather the facts. And then we hear Baldwin, in his own words, describing what happened as that fatal shot rang out.

Watch.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALEC BALDWIN, ACTOR: She hands me the gun. I'm assuming she's done it the right way, she's done over the last two week. I put it in the holster. I pull it out slow. We're rehearsing. We're not filming anything. I pull it out slow. Turn, cock the pistol, bang, it goes off and she hits the ground.

For the rehearsal, the gun is normally empty. But my point is, is that they were standing in positions they wouldn't ordinarily be in because they assumed it was an empty, cold gun. We weren't shooting, we were rehearsing. That's a vital difference.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you think somebody would deliberately do this?

BALDWIN: I can't imagine who would.

If I'm standing there in a rehearsal, I'm thinking to myself, could someone actually believe that in the rehearsal I would actually aim the gun and hit those two people? That's far-fetched.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CAMPBELL: Now, what Alec Baldwin didn't know as that interview was being conducted, that this cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins, had succumb to her injuries. She died from that fatal shot after being taken by helicopter from the set of that movie to the hospital.

Of course, how that live round of ammunition got in that firearm to begin with, that remains under criminal investigation, Bianna. GOLODRYGA: Well, Josh, we're also learning more about text messages

from the armorer. What do they reveal?

CAMPBELL: These are very concerning. I talked to a law enforcement source who says that this is a key piece of evidence for investigators because they're trying to determine whether there was a pattern here of unsafe practices. And what we see among this trove of evidence is a text message between the armorer, Hannah Gutierrez Reed, she was the person responsible for firearm safety on the set.

[09:25:01]

She asks another set member, can I shoot hot rounds out of the trap door? A prop gun. This other person says, what the f is a hot round? And she responds, like a pretty big load of actual ammunition. This other staff member tells her, it's a serious mistake, always ends in tears. Hannah then reportedly responds, good to know, I'm still going to shoot mine, though, meaning her own weapon.

Now, an attorney for Gutierrez Reed said that what she was trying to do was trying to determine how this historical weapon worked. But he maintains that his client never actually practiced live ammunition on the set of a movie. But, again, this, I'm told by a law enforcement source, is a key part of this investigation because this incident, which -- this text message, which was two months before this shooting, in their view, they're trying to, again, determine, was she involved in a pattern of unsafe practices because, again, we all know that live ammunition on a movie set simply doesn't mix, can have fatal consequences, as we saw in this case.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

Josh Campbell, thank you.

CAMPBELL: Thanks.

GOLODRYGA: And still ahead, an incredibly close encounter from CNN's Clarissa Ward and her team as they shadowed Ukrainian paramedics and got caught in the middle of Russian shelling. The dramatic scenes up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)