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Russia Intensifies Attacks Across Ukraine; E.U. Proposes More Sanctions Including Russian Oil Ban; Americans Take To The Streets In Protest Against Supreme Court Abortion Leak; About 2,000 Troops Remain In Mariupol; Amber Heard Testifies In Defamation Hearing; Russian Orthodox Leader Named In Latest E.U. Sanctions. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired May 04, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

[14:00:00]

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone, I'm Lynda Kinkade, you're watching CNN Newsroom live from Atlanta. Tonight, Russia intensifies its offensive, targeting key infrastructure across Ukraine. We'll be live in Lviv after the strikes on the city overnight. Then, the EU proposes a sixth round of sanctions including banning Russian oil. But will member countries agree?

And later, people in the United States are taking to the streets as America faces a potentially seismic shift in its abortion laws. Well, Russia is intensifying its attacks across Ukraine, targeting railways and other transportation infrastructure to keep weapons and suppliers from reaching Ukrainian forces. Ukrainian officials say Russia carried out nearly 50 airstrikes Tuesday. But they say, despite the heavy bombardment, Russia isn't gaining much ground in the east.

Well, meanwhile, a new convoy of evacuees has left Mariupol. The city's mayor says heavy battles are going on right now at the Azovstal Steel plant, and he's lost contact with the defenders there. He says hundreds of civilians, including dozens of children are still trapped inside. This is a video of attacks on that steel plant. CNN is not in that city, but our analysis suggests that the damage shown here was done last week.

Well, the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov is disputing western analysts, saying there is no chance that Russia will declare war on its victory day. He's also warning against more sanctions. It comes as the EU proposes a ban on Russian oil. We'll be talking much more about that later this hour. But first, I want to get back to Ukraine, Scott McLean, who is in Lviv for us and joins us live where power has been completely restored after those missile strikes on Tuesday night. Good to have you with us, Scott.

So, Russia is now attacking infrastructure, a number of strikes on power stations and train lines across the country including where you are in Lviv. Just bring us up to speed, how much damage are we talking?

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, so if you ask the deputy mayor of Lviv, Lynda, there is substantial damage. I mean, enough damage to knock out power to large swath of the city last night. As you mentioned, it has been restored. When those blasts went off just before dark, actually around this time yesterday, they were unmistakable. You could hear them from the city center.

We went out to one of the blast sites, which was east of the city, about 6 kilometers or so outside of the city center. And it was an electrical power sub-station that appeared to have been hit. It was right next to some railway tracks. Now, there is no indication that the rail trucks were damaged in any way since we actually saw a train going by while we were there, while not long after the flames were raging at that area while firefighters tried to put those flames out.

But this seems like a pretty coordinated attempt to knock out bits of rail infrastructure and bits of infrastructure more generally across the country. There were, according to the deputy mayor of this city, some 18 or 19 missiles fired at the country. Many of them though were struck down, including some aimed at Lviv. There were also missiles that were fired at Kyiv that were struck down, same with Vinnytsia according to local officials there.

Some managed to land though in the Dnipro area. We're also hearing, today, that, there have been some strikes in the Dnipro area there as well, where rail infrastructure is affected, though, we're still trying to get more details.

But what was remarkable about this series of strikes is, it goes back to one that we saw about a week or so ago. Is that, it was across the country, across the central and the western part of the country, which is a long way from the front lines, especially, places like Zakarpattia, the very far western and southern edge of the country, a place that up until now has not seen any fighting.

It has not seen any missile strikes, any bombing of any kind. The only impact that they've had of war is the influx of internally displaced people. Now suddenly, they're on alert for these missile strikes. Lynda.

[14:05:00]

KINKADE: And Scott, Ukrainian forces and civilians have been holed up in Mariupol for weeks, sheltering from Russian shelling. What's the latest on the steel plant, given that it's really the final place of resistance where Ukrainian forces and civilians inside, and I understand 30 children are among those?

MCLEAN: Sure. So, you mentioned that the mayor says that they've lost contact with the people inside that plant, with the soldiers fighting inside that plant. According to a presidential adviser, that contact has been re-established. We established enough to know that according to the Ukrainians, the Russians are trying to storm the plant. They're trying to take it over, but they say that they have had no success thus far.

What we know is that Ukrainians say that, they've been absolutely hammering it from tanks, from artillery, from airstrikes. They've even moved a ship in close to the plant, and they've been launching strikes at it from the ship as well. The Russians say that they have that facility surrounded, but they have not -- they're not storming it from the ground. What they do say that they're doing is suppressing militants' attempts to take over or to take new firing positions.

They insist that President Putin gave clear orders not to storm the plant, and they are following those orders. All of this though, does not bode well for the civilians who are still trapped inside of that plant, including, according to the mayor, 30 children. He says that they desperately need a new round of negotiations and a brand new evacuation effort in order to get them out. Lynda?

KINKADE: All right, Scott McLean for us in Lviv, Ukraine. Good to have you with us, thanks very much. Well, we are hearing from some of the people who were evacuated from the Azovstal Steel plant. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh spoke with them during some of the first hours back in sunlight after spending weeks underground, taking refuge in dark bomb shelters. Their stories are remarkable and heartbreaking. Here is Nick's report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice-over): Five buses only, but within them, the world's hopes of a way to deliver innocent Ukrainians to safety from Russia's onslaught. Just over a 100 civilians, the first to leave the basement of the Azovstal Steel plant in Mariupol, bringing with them stories of the circle of hell they lived in underground for weeks. This is Olga(ph), after two months in the dark, she struggles in sunlight still. I asked if she can see OK.

"Bad", she says. "I can't see anything in the sun." Age 78, and she keeps saying, completely alone. Her entire life is in these two bags. Forty eight hours earlier, she was pictured in a Ukrainian military video just walking out of Mariupol, cheerfully, across a bridge.

Now, by the U.N. and Red Cross, talks in Moscow and Kyiv and countless Russian checkpoints. She is here. Worried, she cannot fend for herself as a wound to her leg isn't healing because of her diabetes. The head torch, that was her only source of light still around her neck. Her toilet role in her pocket.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

WALSH (on camera): (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

(voice-over): Also coming off the bus is another familiar face. Anna, with six-month old Svetislav(ph). Embraced by her brother, one of many family reunions here. She was also seen in the same video as Olga(ph), leaving Mariupol. The day after, Svetislav(ph) turns six months old. She is a French teacher in happier times.

(on camera): How do you feel now?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, I feel happy and exhausted. Because two months in basic --

WALSH: How do you live for two months in a basement, with a four- month-old boy? How did you eat? UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, I smile because I can smile finally, because

all these months I was crying a lot every day. Emotionally, it was really very difficult. When we didn't have any hot water for him, we just took a candle and we heat the water on the candle.

[14:10:00]

WALSH (voice-over): The busy world she's emerged into now different for her.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For me now with (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE) -- how do you say it?

WALSH (on camera): Airstrikes.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's the most difficult and the most scary. Because now I -- when I -- sorry --

WALSH: OK --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's emotionally --

WALSH: Of course --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, when there are a lot of noise, I have a reflex to hide myself, you know.

WALSH: What are you going to tell him when he's older?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'll just tell him that he was really very brave boy. Very brave, he's very calm. He is the best child in the world.

WALSH: Yes --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I can say, he's idol.

WALSH: He's sleeping well, so --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes --

WALSH: That's good, that's all you can ask for --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All the time --

WALSH: Exactly.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. And also, I can say that I don't want for him to repeat this story or to repeat this story with his child.

WALSH (voice-over): Yet, the terror they bore witness to will fuel a loathing, it won't pass quickly. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, the EU says Russia must pay a high price for its brutal aggression in Ukraine, as the bloc proposes its most drastic sanctions yet. They include a complete ban on Russian oil and a removal of Russia's biggest bank from the SWIFT payment network. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggests phasing oil out gradually. But the proposals are contentious.

The spokesperson for Hungary's prime minister has just said, his country won't agree to the current proposed ban. CNN's Anna Stewart have been following this story for us and joins us now live from London. Good to have you with us, Anna. So, this could be the toughest sanctions from the European Commission.

But given Slovakia and Hungary rely so heavily on oil from Russia, it sounds like there's going to be a lot of pushback, and there has been already from what we've just been hearing.

ANNA STEWART, CNN REPORTER: I mean, there's been pushback for weeks and weeks. But some of the bigger economies like Germany finally came on board, that was critical. But as you say, clear pushback from Hungary, Slovakia -- Hungary says Czech Republic is also opposing the proposal, and not just in terms of banning Russian oil this year, Hungary's government spokesperson told CNN that also actually opposing an extension of one year, they see a 3 to 5-year time-frame as the shortest in order to wean themselves off Russian oil.

So a huge gap, really, to overcome there. Given the EU Commission did set out this proposal today, clearly, they are hoping they can overcome some of these challenges and implement what would be the most significant sanctions and the most damaging to Russia from the EU since the conflict began. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, PRESIDENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION: So, today, we will propose to ban all Russian oil from Europe.

STEWART (voice-over): Once unthinkable, a Russian oil embargo is now on the table. It would be a major acceleration of the current plan to end the EU's Russia energy addiction by 2027, and a significant escalation of sanctions against the Kremlin.

Oil exports account for 37 percent of Russia's export revenues, and the EU is its biggest oil customer, bringing it $95 billion in revenue last year. But finding replacements for a quarter of the EU's annual oil imports is no mean feat.

SIMONE TAGLAPIETRA, SENIOR FELLOW, BRUEGEL: It's true that certain countries like Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates do have spare capacity. But so far, they have single, they are not so willing to put these spare capacity into the market. And therefore, it will be very challenging to replace Russian oil in case of an European embargo.

STEWART: Some EU members like Hungary and Slovakia would be hit harder than others, and have so far opposed on oil embargo.

ZOLTAN KOVACS, SPOKESPERSON FOR THE HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER: The proposals, the announcements we've seen on behalf of Brussels is simply against Hungarian national security energy security, and cannot be done if it's about Hungary.

STEWART: Oil prices rose 38 percent between January and March, according to the WTO, adding pressure onto businesses, households and at petrol pumps all over the world. In an effort to bring those prices down, the U.S. and other IAEA member nations are releasing oil from emergency reserves. It is short-term support for prices, but a longer- term solution is needed. And even if Europe's supply could be produced elsewhere, a ban on oil might result in Russia retaliating.

KOVACS: It is plausible that a reaction would be, for example, on cutting the supplies of gas to Europe, Europe has options to diminish its reliance on Russian energy in the short term.

[14:15:00]

It needs to put all these options on the table in order to be prepared for also what can be the worst reaction from the Kremlin.

STEWART: An embargo of Russian oil and gas could see a 3 percent drop in Europe's growth this year according to the IMF. The shockwaves of war having far-reaching consequences across the continent.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

STEWART: The EU has laid out this proposal, currently, it does not have the support it needs. It needs to be a unanimous decision from all 27 member states. So, a lengthy sanction for countries like Hungary or Slovakia are probably quite likely or even exemptions. The problem being that if you give it to some countries, others like Bulgaria, Czech Republic, may also want to follow suit, at which point, how effective is this sanction on oil, this oil embargo that they are proposing?

Meanwhile, each day while the EU negotiates this, and this has been on the table now for weeks and weeks. According to the European think- tank, Bruegel, the EU is paying Russia around $450 million a day for oil. So, helping to finance a war in Europe. Lynda?

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. Thanks so much for that report. Anna Stewart for us in London. Good to have you with us. Well, inflation in the U.S. hasn't been as bad in decades and the Federal Reserve is taking action. It's raising interest rates by half a percentage point for the first time in 22 years. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell will be holding a press conference in just a few moments. The Central Bank is under huge pressure to cool down the economy and wind down the stimulus program it rolled out when COVID-19 started to spread.

Rahel Solomon is covering the story for us from New York, and joins us now. Good to have you with us. So, this is a historic moment. The first rate rise of half a percent in over two decades, and largely to deal with the worst inflation we've had in over 40 decades -- in 40 years, sorry.

RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Good to be with you, Lynda. Yes, inflation is a huge issue. It's the topic of conversation at most dinner tables, I would imagine, certainly the topic of conversation amongst my friends. But what this means is that the Fed means business. They know that the pressure is on them to cool down inflation, which consumer prices are at 8.5 percent year-over-year, the highest pace, fastest pace in 40 years, as you pointed out.

So the Fed has to do something, and it really speaks to the severity of inflation at this point. So with this rate hike today, the Fed funds rate goes to 75 basis point to 1 -- 75 basis point to 100 basis points. It's the largest rate hike since 2000. Again, just really speaking to the environment that we find ourselves in. I should say, however, is that the markets actually lifted, averages here in the U.S. equities market actually lifted upon this news because it was -- it was pricing, it was expected.

And so, what we will be listening to in about 15 minutes is what's coming down the road at next month's meetings and meetings to come. So, you can see the Dow is up about 143 points, but I was watching, Lynda, as the news crossed, as the announcement was released, and we saw a slight lift. So investors, at least, appeared to be pleased with what they have heard. They expected it.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. The Fed chairman signaled this was likely to happen last month. So certainly, no surprise for investors.

SOLOMON: No surprise, exactly. And what you touched on that's so important is that messaging is so important. We heard from Fed Chair Powell last month that 50 basis points was on the table. And so, we sort of have known, right, that this month we were going to hear 50 basis points. It was widely expected.

The question now is, might we see another 50 basis points next month or perhaps even 75 basis points? So messaging is very important. Now, the Fed does want to sort of let some steam out of the markets. They do want prices to cool a bit. But they don't want a full meltdown. So messaging is very important, it's very delicate for the Fed. They want to signal sort of what may be coming, but they don't want to spook investors.

And so, we will be listening very closely in about 15 minutes, so the words he chooses, how he speaks about the red-hot jobs market, how he speaks about economic conditions, and how they plan to manage inflation. And today's rate hike, certainly, a step in that direction, Lynda.

KINKADE: All right, Rahel Solomon, good to have you with us and welcome to CNN --

SOLOMON: Thank you. Thank you.

KINKADE: Well, still to come tonight, America is feeling the fallout from the leaked Supreme Court documents, suggesting it may have overturned Roe versus Wade. We'll bring you the latest on the backlash as well as the investigation into the leak continues. And despite intense artillery attacks, Ukraine says Moscow's ground offense to the east has not been successful. We're going to talk to a military analyst about the ongoing battles.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:20:00]

KINKADE: Welcome back. In the U.S., the Republican governor of Oklahoma has signed a bill into law banning abortion from the time when a fetal heartbeat can be detected. It's modeled after a similar law in Texas, and also allows private citizens to take civil actions against abortion providers. It comes as America is reeling from a draft opinion leaked from the Supreme Court, suggesting it would strike down Roe versus Wade. But protesters on both sides of the issue are taking to the streets.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(CROWD CHANTING)

CROWD: Abortion is violence! Abortion is violence! Abortion is violence! Abortion is violence!

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It makes me sick. The idea that our rights as women, as uterus owners can be taken away. That they can deny us rights over our bodies, it makes me shake to my core.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, I want to go live now to Ariane de Vogue in Washington D.C. Good to have you with us. So, if the Supreme Court does indeed strike down Roe versus Wade, that would undo 50 years of abortion precedent. Talk to us about the fallout and the protests we're seeing.

ARIANE DE VOGUE, CNN U.S. SUPREME COURT REPORTER: Well, that's what's interesting. Because this draft opinion is not final. The Supreme Court said yesterday, you know, it's a draft, it was a leak, it is not final. So, that means right now, as of today, Roe v. Wade is still on the books. There is still a federal right to abortion. But the reason you're seeing all these protests is because of the breath of the opinion if it does go into effect.

Because it doesn't limit Roe -- in fact, overrules it straight out. And that is -- that means that the issue would go back to the states to decide, and that's very bad for supporters of abortion rights. Because already, half the states have laws in place that either ban abortion or limit it. For instance, some states have laws that were on the books 50 years ago before Roe. Those would go back into effect.

Others have these -- what's called trigger laws, that would be triggered if Roe is overturned. So that's why you're seeing protests across the country. They're reading this draft opinion. They think if it's final, this is going to go back to the states. And that's very bad news for them. And also, they point out, that it's the women with fewer means, lesser means, poor women, who will be really directly impacted by this because they won't have the money to travel across state lines, and find a state that provides the procedure.

[14:25:00] KINKADE: Right. And I have to say, we were looking at a poll that CNN

conducted earlier this year on abortion rights, asking Americans what they think about whether Roe versus Wade, it should be struck down. And the results are quite interesting. Just 30 percent said they wanted the Supreme Court to overturn this landmark ruling.

The vast majority, 69 percent said that, no, they do not want to see the court take this sort of action. And over more than half the country said that if the ruling was overturned, they would want their state to become a safe haven for women seeking abortions. So, it's interesting when you look at the opinion polls, how they certainly don't seem to match up with this leaked opinion from the Supreme Court.

DE VOGUE: Well, that's absolutely right. And that's why a lot of people were so stunned by this opinion. Because they felt, wait a minute, this opinion has been on the books for 50 years, and now a right is about to be taken away. And that's why this leak was so interesting, because somehow, whoever leaked it really wanted to raise maybe an alarm on one side or on the other side, bolster conservatives in order to try to make this draft opinion, make sure it becomes a final opinion.

But it's such an intriguing thing because leaks like this, they might happen at the other branches, maybe in the White House, maybe in Congress, but it's almost unprecedented for them to happen at the Supreme Court. And it comes in a case that is the most important abortion case the court has heard in decades. And at a really front time when already, the public opinion of the court is at a new low.

So, it's been a fascinating couple of days here. We're seeing this opinion, but keep in mind, it wasn't supposed to be released until sometime in the end of June. So, a lot can happen between now and the end of June. This could reflect the final product or we could see a shift in votes, and maybe somebody might change their mind. So, it's really intriguing.

KINKADE: Yes, it certainly is, and certainly, a big investigation into the source of that leak.

DE VOGUE: Yes --

KINKADE: Ariane de Vogue, good to have you with us, thank you.

DE VOGUE: Thanks.

KINKADE: But still to come tonight, the giants still planning, Mariupol is under renewed attack the day after dozens of people managed to get out. We're going to talk to a military analyst about the state of the war in Ukraine. Plus, the human toll of the war. We'll hear from one woman who survived an artillery attack that destroyed her home.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:30:00] (MUSIC PLAYING)

KINKADE (voice-over): Welcome back.

Russia is intensifying its attacks across Ukraine, targeting infrastructure throughout the country. Ukraine says nearly 50 missile strikes rained down in cities on Tuesday. The defense ministry says Belarus, which began a large-scale army drills, is being used as a springboard for attacks.

In the east, Russia has renewed its bombardment of a steel plant in Mariupol, where hundreds of civilians remain trapped. The mayor says contact has been lost with Ukrainian fighters inside.

Despite the intensity of the battles, Ukraine says Russia's forces have not made much progress toward their goal of securing regions in the east.

I'd like to welcome CNN military analyst, retired Major General Paul Eaton. He's a former commanding general of the coalition military assistance training team in Iraq and joins us from Key West, Florida.

Good to have you with us.

MAJ. GEN. PAUL EATON (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Thank you. Thank you very much.

KINKADE: So in recent weeks, military analysts were questioning why Russia had not gone after Ukraine's railroads and roads to slow the flow of Western weapons to Ukraine. That's now a reality.

How significant are these attacks on infrastructure?

EATON: Well, in the beginning, the Russian army failed to do what we call intelligence preparation of the battlefield. And it's a comprehensive analysis of where you are going and what you need to do to make your life just a little bit easier, if you are the attacking force.

The Russian army did not do that. They were overconfident; they grossly underestimated the prowess of the Ukrainian armed forces. And they overestimated their own capacity to wage a competent war. So they are trying to catch up right now.

And that is unlikely to ever be the case. So what they are trying to do now is to fix the sins of the past and to take the transportation infrastructure of Ukraine, which is too late. We've already got goods and the methods going to where they need to go.

And it is unlikely that what they do right now is going to have a substantial impact on the outcome in the east.

KINKADE: General Eaton, May 9th is known as victory day, a day of celebration in Russia, marking the surrender of the Nazis in World War II. No doubt, Putin wanted to be celebrating victory in Ukraine by then. This war has been far more drawn out, as you pointed out, than Putin expected.

What can we expect from him May 9th?

Because there is some suggestion that he will make a major declaration.

EATON: In the mind of every warfighter, who will see what they see on the 9th of May, is a scene from a movie that came out in the 1960s -- 1967, I want to say -- "The Dirty Dozen."

And you have a U.S. Army officer, looking at troops and his comment is, "Very pretty, very pretty. But can they fight?"

So we are going to see a pretty army on the 9th of May. And we already know that they have greatly embarrassed -- the Russian army has embarrassed their country. And we are going to see a parade of military equipment. We are going to see a parade of soldiers and we may hear one of two things out of Mr. Putin.

It is unlikely that he is going to do a declaration of war, which would demand a far better performance than he is ever likely to get from the Russian army in the next decade. But what we really hope to see and hear is the offramp, is President Putin telling his citizens that he has achieved the goals of the special military operation.

[14:35:00]

EATON: And that he is going to retire from the battlefield of Ukraine and he will say, just don't make us come back. If he takes the offramp, he might salvage the very worst possibilities of a very bad situation that he, alone, has created.

KINKADE: And what's the likelihood that that will happen, do you think?

EATON: Well, unfortunately he does not have a coterie of advisers who will speak truth to power. He believes that he is the only smart guy in the room.

And the very logical way out of this terrible dilemma that he has created for his country, any Western observer would tell him, take it, pull out, admit that you made a mistake -- to yourself, at least -- and let's get the country moving again.

Is he going to do this?

Tough call. But it's the only way out for him right now.

KINKADE: Yes, and all indications are that Russian forces have had suffered heavy casualties, especially amongst senior ranks. We will leave it there for now, General Eaton, good to have you with us, thanks so much.

EATON: My pleasure, thank you very much.

KINKADE: Well, the intense fighting has taken a heavy toll on civilians. Here's a story about one survivor, an elderly woman, who barely escaped a Russian artillery attack. CNN's Sam Kiley reports.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAM KILEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Since Russian rockets destroyed her home and killed her brother, all she has left is her mother and her life.

LUDMILLA (through translator): All at once, it had fallen one by one. There were explosions everywhere. All through the kitchen and the house, the windows and frame blew into the room. We were standing there. My brother was making the sign of the cross and I'm shouting.

I turned away from him to look at the house and then another rocket hit and I was trapped under the rubble. I can't see my brother anymore. I fell and I don't even know how I woke up and started pulling myself out. I'm all scratched and battered. I yelled, "Vita (ph), Vita (ph)," but he was gone.

KILEY (voice-over): Lyudmila's home was flattened in Lysychansk during the battle for Rubizhne, which is now in Russian hands. Putin's forces have been driving Southeast along the Donetsk River and South from Izyum. Russia's stated aim is to capture all of the Donbas and that includes Luhansk and Donetsk provinces.

The governor of Luhansk says that Ukraine can hold the Russians back, for now.

"But," he says, "we need powerful long-range artillery. And that, unfortunately, is not here yet. And it could completely change the whole war. Without the heavy weapons already promised by the U.S. and other Western allies," he says, "the Russians will destroy everything with artillery and mortars. They destroy with aircraft. They use helicopters. They're just wiping everything off the face of the earth so there's nothing left to hang onto."

For Ukraine, this is an existential battle. Reinforcements have been rushed to the front lines but there's no sign of the heavy weapons needed to block a Russian advance, much less reverse it.

The doctor says Lyudmila will be moved West for more treatment. But her fate and that of her 96-year-old mother, is unknown.

"We simply cannot physically handle so many wounded with such severe injuries," he says.

This elderly woman, a victim of Russian shelling that morning, joins the ward. And more than 13 million other Ukrainians have fled their homes to escape Lyudmila's fate.

LUDMILLA (through translator): I was brought here naked. I had nothing at all, no money, no documents, nothing.

KILEY (voice-over): Yet, her very survival is a small victory over Putin, because she's been neither beggared nor beaten -- Sam Kiley, CNN, in Bakhmach.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Still to come tonight, neighbors say North Korea fired a ballistic missile Wednesday, just days before South Korea's new president takes office.

And Amber Heard takes to the stand as she testifies against her ex- husband, Johnny Depp. The latest from that trial, just ahead.

(MUSIC PLAYING)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[14:40:00]

(MUSIC PLAYING)

KINKADE: Welcome back.

Just minutes ago, actress Amber Heard took to the stand in the explosive trial pitting her against her ex-husband, Hollywood superstar, Johnny Depp. Depp is suing her for defamation, saying that he lost $50 million in earnings when she wrote an article that accused him of abuse during their marriage.

During cross-examination Wednesday, one of Heard's witnesses, a forensic psychologist, admitted that Heard has also been violent and abusive to Depp during the marriage. CNN's Alexandra Field is following the developments and joins us now from New York.

Good to have you with us. So obviously there's a great deal of interest in this case and as we can see now, Amber Heard is now taking her turn at testifying.

What has she said so far and what can we expect?

ALEXANDRA FIELD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this is really been a long- awaited moment in this trial because we've already heard some 14 days of testimony from two dozen witnesses. The majority of them, all but one, have been witnesses that were called by the plaintiffs, Depp's team.

You know, Depp's goal in this case was to talk about what he says is the damage that she did to him. But now we are hearing her side of the story, the allegations she is making of abuse from him.

So we are going back to the beginning of the couple's relationship right now. Heard was first asked about what the experience of being a part of the trial has been like. She called this some of the most difficult days of her life, one of the most painful and horrible experiences she has had.

Of course, she's been sitting there for weeks, listening to those who knew the couple, who witnessed their interactions, testifying about intimate and violent moments. She is now being asked about how the relationship started. She detailed how they first met during the casting of the film, "The

Rum Diary." She talks about what started as a friendship, a flirtatious friendship, as she describes it, and then how it transformed into what she calls a whirlwind romance, describing the electricity and the chemistry between the couple.

But really, this is the beginning of what I expect will be a lengthy testimony, where you are going to hear her chronicle instances of what her team says was abuse perpetrated by Depp.

KINKADE: And as you say, 14 days of testimony so far, including Depp, who's also spoken. But the first witness for Heard's defense team was earlier today, a forensic psychologist.

What did she have to say?

FIELD: Yes, this is a forensic psychologist, who was called as an expert witness, who spent some 30 hours evaluating Heard.

[14:45:00]

FIELD: It was her professional opinion, she testified, that Heard had suffered PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder, as a result of intimate partner violence committed by her ex-husband, Johnny Depp.

That same witness did today, though, also say on the stand that there were instances where Heard had committed violence against Depp. And this really goes to the nature of so much that we've heard over the course of the trial.

People describing various instances, where they say, one was the perpetrator or that another was a perpetrator or some trying to characterize one part of the couple as being more violent or less violent toward the other.

Heard has denied the allegations against her, Depp has denied the allegations against him. But really, some sordid and painful details continuing to be aired throughout the trial.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. Good to have you on the trial for us. We will continue to follow it. Alexandra Field for us in New York, thanks so much.

FIELD: Thanks.

KINKADE: Well, Beijing has effectively shut down its largest district as the Chinese capital continues to try to curb COVID-19 cases. Transport has been suspended and residents are being encouraged to work from home.

And this comes as this video raises accusations of government heavy- handedness when it comes to implementing restrictions. You can see a local policeman, partly knocking down a resident's door to get access to their apartment.

The policeman says that the women in the video tested positive and needed to be transferred to makeshift hospitals.

Well, South Korea and Japan saying North Korea has fired another ballistic missile. They say it was launched into the waters east of the Korean Peninsula just days after North Korea's Kim Jong-un vowed to ramp up his nuclear arsenal.

The Japanese prime minister calls this launch a threat to peace, security and stability while South Korea's incoming administration promises a strong response. Will Ripley is reporting from Taipei.

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WILL RIPLEY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Early analysis shows that this missile was launched from the same area in Pyongyang, Sunan, where North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile on March 24th. It was the first test of a weapon that big in more than four years.

If this is another intercontinental ballistic missile, then that would make it yet another major provocation by North Korea. We will, of course, learn more details about this missile from North Korean state media, of course, when they release images and a news article about this.

That would be expected, potentially, the early evening hours on Wednesday Eastern time, early morning hours Thursday here in Asia.

We know that this missile flew 470 kilometers or more than 290 miles, landing in the waters outside of Japan's exclusive economic zone, hitting a maximum altitude of almost 800 kilometers, almost 500 miles.

And this is happening during a time of transition in North Korea's neighbor to the south. On May 10th, the new South Korean presidential administration takes over.

But in the meantime, in the final days of his presidency that he had really hoped to define by making peace with North Korea, South Korea's President Moon issuing, you know, a stark warning to North Korea, saying that there will be a thorough response, that the U.S. and South Korea are going to be strengthening their defense posture.

In previous launches, South Korea has also launched missiles in response that did not happen in this launch on Wednesday. But the South Korean National Security Council strongly condemned this action, calling it a clear violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions and urging Pyongyang to return to dialogue.

Now this launch comes after North Korea held a massive military parade last month, the parade in which Kim Jong-un gave a speech, promising to grow his nuclear arsenal. There were a lot of weapons on display at that parade for North Korea's military foundation later, Hwasong-17 ICBM, multiple giant rocket launchers, submarine launched ballistic missiles.

Kim Jong-un saying these weapons are for deterrence, to defend North Korea's national sovereignty. But he says he will not rule out using them if he feels provoked -- Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei. (END VIDEOTAPE)

KINKADE: Well, still to come tonight, some of Pope Francis' strongest comments yet about the war in Ukraine, as he blasts a fellow religious leader for supporting Russia's attack.

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KINKADE: Back to Russia's war on Ukraine. And some new video we are just getting. And it shows Ukrainian forces who have been on the counterattack, raising their country's flag in Moldova. It's a village in the region of Kharkiv and it's just 20 kilometers from the Ukraine Russian border.

CNN has geolocated and verified the authenticity of the video. In the last two weeks, Ukrainian forces have retaken some half a dozen cities in the area.

The leader of the Catholic Church is taking on the leader of the Russian Orthodox church over the war in Ukraine. Pope Francis said in an interview this week that Russian orthodox patriarch Kirill is becoming Vladimir Putin's altar boy.

The pope said he spoke in March with the patriarch and that Kirill spent 20 minutes reading off note cards with justifications for the war. The pope responded by telling Kirill that they must speak the language of Jesus, not the language of politics.

Our Vatican correspondent is following the story for us and joins us now.

And Delia, these are the pope's strongest words to date. And come after he spoke with the leader of the Russian Orthodox church.

How much impact, how much influence does the pope have?

DELIA GALLAGHER, CNN VATICAN CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, Lynda, obviously not a lot. And I think these comments are indicative of a level of frustration, exasperation, really, that the pope is feeling with the patriarch because this is not a relationship that Pope Francis wants to put in jeopardy in any way.

But, obviously, these are very strong comments coming from the pope. And it's interesting that when he spoke about the 40 minute Zoom meeting that they had in mid March, where patriarch Kirill essentially read off a list of justifications for the war and the pope said that he said to him, brother, we are priests. We cannot use the language of politics. We must use the language of Jesus.

So the pope again and again, trying to appeal to his brother Christian leader and that appeal falling on deaf ears.

Just yesterday, patriarch Kirill, in a sermon in Moscow said, Russia has not invaded anybody. They are just trying to protect their borders. So not just the pope; other Orthodox and Christian leaders as well just shaking their heads at this staunch support of patriarch Kirill for the war.

So the pope coming out with these comments yesterday in an interview, saying that he cannot become Putin's altar boy, suggests to me a level of frustration and, obviously, a sense that dialogue for the moment between these two churches is off.

3in fact, the pope, said that a meeting scheduled for June in Jerusalem has been called off. So not a good time for the Russian Orthodox church and the Catholic Church, which, for years, have been trying to have good relationships.

KINKADE: And Delia, the Russian Orthodox leader is now among the individuals set to be sanctioned in what will be the sixth round of sanctions from the E.U.

GALLAGHER: Well, right, and, therefore, another indication that this is not just an innocuous religious leader --

[14:55:00]

GALLAGHER: -- but an important political player and ally of Putin, who is giving full-on support with massive influence in Russia. Now of course, the Russian Orthodox church has come out and said, well, if you think that we are going to be intimidated by being put essentially on a blacklist, you obviously do not know the history of the Russian Orthodox church.

So really, what you are seeing here is both their response to the E.U. and their response to the pope's comments, which they called "unfortunate" and said he used the wrong tone when he was characterizing the talks between himself and the patriarch.

You see them really digging in their heels. So it's very difficult to see from here where any kind of dialogue can go. Lynda.

KINKADE: All right, Delia Gallagher, we will leave it there for now. Good to have you with us, thanks so much.

Before we go, a quick update of one of our top stories this hour. In comments directed to the U.S., public moments ago, the chairman of the Federal Reserve is saying, quote, inflation is much too high. It comes after the Fed raised the key interest rate by its largest amount in more than 20 years.

We are going to have much more on that story in "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" after a short break.