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First Military Shipment Of Formula Arrives In U.S. As Supplies Dwindle; Incumbents Face Trump-Backed Candidates On Georgia Primaries; Biden Arrives In Tokyo Amid Tensions Over North Korea Weapons Tests; Russia Introduces New Controls On Movement In Mariupol; Tiger Woods Withdraws From First Tournament In 26-Year Career. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired May 22, 2022 - 14:00   ET

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

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[14:00:22]

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Hello everyone. Thank you so much for joining me this Sunday. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.

We begin this hour with the U.S. taking a major step -- a new step to shore up the critically-low baby formula supply. The first pallets of emergency formula arriving from Europe via a U.S. military plane just a short time ago, and is now going through inspection.

The product is a specialty formula for infants who are intolerant to protein and cow's milk, and will be distributed to hospitals, pharmacies, and doctor's offices.

CNN's Polo Sandoval is live for us in Indianapolis where that first shipment just landed.

So Polo, this is just the first of what's expected to be many formula flights.

POLO SANDOVAL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is. And it's more important now that the formula went through those paces -- the inspection, and the quality control process that all of those imports go through. The only difference is what usually takes place in weeks was only done in about 72 hours. And that's with multiple different agencies involved.

U.S. transport command, for example, one of the key agencies in trying to get that baby formula from Zurich, into Germany and then from Germany, here to the Indianapolis where the manufacturer of that formula has one of the main distribution hub.

This is important however. This particular formula, it is a prescription product that is hypoallergenic and it basically is meant to go to the hardest hit of the hard-hit families that have been desperately trying to find the formula that they need for their children.

This specific formula is Alfamino Infant and Alfamino Junior. These will go directly to hospitals and to home health care facilities. So that's important to note. This is not formula that will be going to the store shelves, for example, which, however, there is high hopes that they will begin to import some of those products from overseas as the U.S.-based manufacturing operation for these products begins to rev up essentially.

I want you to hear directly from the acting head of FedEx, one of the other organizations that is involved in the distribution of this, that officials there are hoping to possibly have a flight as early as later this week that will be a formula that will address the needs of most parents.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FREDERICK SMITH, ACTING CEO, FEDEX: Well, this is hot off the presses, but we'll have the first one coming in Wednesday. The first one we're doing. It's coming from Ramstein, same place this came from, Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany. And I believe it's coming in Indianapolis. But I don't have all the details yet.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SANDOVAL: So that is key here, Fred, as you hear from FedEx officials that they have hopes of bringing in some of that formula that will hopefully address the needs of some of the -- or the general population of parents here. Because again this particular formula has the potential to impact at least benefit up to 9,000 babies, potentially up to 18,000 toddlers, but those with dietary restrictions.

So there's a consensus among many parents and even the men and women who crew this plane here into Indianapolis today, they believe that this will likely be the first of many more of these flights.

WHITFIELD: There's a critical need for all of it, but particularly that formula. Thank you so much Polo Sandoval in Indianapolis.

So this is just a first step. But one White House official said today more is being done to ensure that no baby goes hungry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIAN DEESE, DIRECTOR, NATIONAL ECONOMIC COUNCIL. Because of the actions that we're taking right now, we're going to see more formula coming off factory lines.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: When?

DEESE: And more formula in stores starting as early as this week.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Let's talk more about this. Joining me right now Dr. Emily Webber. She is the chief medical information officer and a pediatrician at Riley Children's Health in Indianapolis. And was there as the first shipment arrived earlier today.

So good to see you, Dr. Webber. So give me your reaction to this shipment. What were you feeling when you saw it make a landing?

DR. EMILY WEBBER, RILEY CHILDREN'S HEALTH, INDIANAPOLIS: Good morning. Good afternoon. Thanks for having me. It was really an exciting moment. There were a lot of our community partners and parents there as well. So as a pediatrician here at Riley Children's Health, there was a great sense of hope in seeing this action come forward.

WHITFIELD: So I want to play for you something else the Director of the National Economic Council said today. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DANA BASH, CNN ANCHOR: How did we get to the point where the United States of America has to airlift baby formula from another country in order to feed its children?

[14:04:50]

DEESE: Look, it's a reasonable question, and it's frustrating. I'm a parent. And we look and we say nothing could be more important than the health and the safety of our babies.

We have to take safety very seriously. And part of what happened here was that we had a manufacturer that wasn't following the rules and that was making formula that had the risk of making babies sick. So we have to take action on that front.

But there's a bigger route to your question which is how did we end up in a market where we have three companies that control 90 percent of the market. It goes back to this question of how we can bring more competition in our economy, have more providers of this formula so that no individual company has this much control over supply chains.

And we're going to have to work on that. There's some big questions underneath that that we're going to have to get under.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: So Dr. Webber, again, you were there as this shipment on a U.S. military flight landed there in Indianapolis that had to be a very surreal moment to see this kind of shipment coming into the United States. We're accustomed to seeing U.S. military vessels like this take shipments out to so many countries in need.

So where do we go from here? What kind of lesson do you think America learns from something like this? You just heard the economic adviser there talk about, you know, what seems to be really a monopolizing of just three U.S. companies that are in a position to make this kind of formula.

So what are the lessons to be learned? Where do you see the U.S. going from here?

DR. WEBBER: Yes. That's a great question. It was a little unusual. It's certainly not in my everyday work as a pediatrician, but I do think the thing that we take away here and in how we serve our children here in Indiana, the pediatricians across the country is parents and their doctors, we know what these children need. And so working closely, connected with our partners we already have through facilities like women and children of the WIC program, working with our communities so that we don't face these kinds of shortages again is really what I think most of us are going to be focused on.

It's certainly not unheard of the last couple of years. Most of us that work in health care and provide health care have had to look at those relationships and use those more than ever.

WHITFIELD: So we've heard of some of the damaging effects this shortage has had on a lot of families. The Medical University of South Carolina, MUSC says at least four babies have been hospitalized for complications related to the formula shortage. They said three were due to intolerance of formulas parents had to try because of the shortages, while another was sickened by mineral imbalances from caregivers mixing their own formula.

So you know, desperate times means desperate measures for a lot of families. What are your concerns as this shortage does continue? While we have this shipment in, it's not an answer to every family.

DR. WEBBER: Right. I think that's an excellent point and I think pediatricians like myself and those -- everyone who cares for children, we don't want to see that happen. But your point in those examples are really something that I think underlines how important this specific type of formula is for our most vulnerable children.

There are children who rely on this nutrition in this form to grow and thrive, but then as you mentioned, when we are desperate, when we have families that are facing empty shelves, we don't want people to feel that pressure, to take those risks and experiments, because it does predispose children to things like the electrolyte imbalances that you mentioned.

So I think it's really important that we keep getting good information and safe nutrition out to our kids and families so that we start to relay some of that, take off some of that pressure our families are feeling because exactly you're right. A lot of these infants, that is their only form of nutrition. And when you simply can't get it or you don't have the means to get it, that is really what these families are facing.

WHITFIELD: Right. The CEO of Abbott, I mean, we're talking about the company who makes a lot of these formulas and also had this voluntary recall of formula. And factory shutdown earlier this year. I mean, all of this was a catalyst for the shortage.

The CEO put out an op ed in "Washington Post" this weekend, and he apologized and said this, I'm quoting now. "We expect we'll be able to restart the facility by the first week in June. From the time we restart production at the site, it will take six to eight weeks before product is available on the shelves."

That's a long time. You've got a baby that wants to be fed every two hours or three hours, in so many cases. So what are families to do? And what is your feeling about why it will take so long and what people do in the meantime?

DR. WEBBER: That's a great question. I think today's really hopeful, but you're exactly right. It's going to take some time to get us in more of a routine and back to what we like to hope for our families is the kind of a normal feeling.

[14:09:55]

DR. WEBBER: Right now what families and what we're encouraging here at Riley Children's Health, and then also nationally through the American Academy of Pediatrics is to reach out and connect with pediatricians and with the other infrastructure we have through WIC offices.

And honestly through also the networks they have through their doctors and families that are facing similar challenges, because there is a -- although it's going to take some time to get us back up to where we need to have that availability, what I saw today and what has been expressed to us is that this is the first shipment of several to help us bridge that gap. And then the ability, of course, to make sure we get the most vulnerable children, the supplies they need and we work together to do that is just more important now than ever.

WHITFIELD: And when you say reach out to them, because they may potentially have emergency supplies or because they have alternatives, or other options for families who are relying on a very specific type of formula and you're saying there might be access for pediatricians where there might be -- where there may not be access for families directly?

DR. WEBBER: I think that's it in part. To be very honest, especially for the shipment that arrived today for these medically complex cases, we as the pediatric community, this is work we do pretty routinely.

You had mentioned earlier that sometimes we are writing prescriptions for these types of formulas. So we're used to working with families and patients to get what they need. Working with sometimes with WIC offices and sometimes just making sure that we all stay connected, and not taking any of the safety shortcuts we mentioned earlier.

That's why if I could just express how important that is to talk to your trusted pediatrician and the people who help you keep your kids safe, because we just don't want anyone out of desperation, very understandable, but if we can avoid the shortcuts, that would be really good for all of our patients.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Emily Webber, thank you so much. Great advice for a lot of families out there. We appreciate it.

DR. WEBBER: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: All right. Meantime, we're going to shift gears. We're now just two days away from a major primary in the state of Georgia, pitting Donald Trump's candidate against Mike Pence's pick. A live report on where this key race stands, next.

[14:12:11] (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: In two days, voters in four states will head to the polls. But much of the focus will be on Georgia where Donald Trump's endorsement power will once again be put to the test. The incumbent governor in that state, Brian Kemp faces a primary challenge from Trump-backed former senator David Perdue.

CNN's Eva McKend is in Atlanta for us.

So Trump has thrown his support behind two GOP challengers in Georgia. Any indication that Trump is planning to campaign for these candidates before Tuesday--

EVA MCKEND, CNN NATIONAL POLITICS REPORTER: Well Fred, it doesn't look like the former president will be coming to Georgia any time soon. He will hold a tele-rally tomorrow for Perdue. Essentially he'll get on the phone with Perdue and implore Republican voters to get out and vote on Tuesday.

It may be too little too late for Perdue. Historically we haven't seen that many Republicans challenge or Democrats for that matter, challenge members of their own party in these gubernatorial primaries because it is so difficult to pick off an incumbent governor. And so that is the challenge that Perdue has been having.

Governor Kemp on the campaign trail this weekend. He doesn't enjoy the support of the former president because he didn't do more to essentially cheat in the 2020 election on the former president's behalf.

But he does have the support of the Republican establishment, plenty of former and current Republican governors out on the campaign trail with him including Nebraska governor Pete Ricketts.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. BRIAN KEMP (R-GA): I think Stacey Abrams is a great unifier. I believe every Republican in Georgia will be unified after Tuesday. We've been through tough primaries before in our state. Like Pete said, people have differences of opinion on who they want their nominee to be. But I can guarantee you Republicans in Georgia know I'll be a lot better governor than Stacey Abrams and people in the middle now know that too.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCKEND: So you can see there Kemp talking about Stacey Abrams already pivoting towards the general election. Democratic candidate Stacey Abrams does not have a competitive primary, so she hasn't been out this weekend.

We are also tracking the Republican primary for secretary of state where the election lie essentially also on the ballot. We'll have to see if the potency of that election lie will do enough to boost Trump's endorsed candidate in that race, Fred. WHITFIELD: All right. Eva McKend in Atlanta. Thank you so much.

So Texas voters will also head to the polls on Tuesday. In March, incumbent Democratic Congressman Henry Cuellar narrowly beat challenger Jessica Cisneros, by about 1,000 votes, but because neither candidate broke the 50 percent threshold, they will face off again Tuesday to represent Texans in the 28th congressional district.

And joining me right now is Jessica Cisneros. She is the Democratic candidate challenging nine-time incumbent Congressman Henry Cuellar.

Jessica, so good to see you.

JESSICA CISNEROS (D), TEXAS CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATE: Good to see you too. Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: So this is an interesting predicament, we'll say, because you once worked as an intern in Cuellar's office. So what made you want to run against him for his seat?

CISNEROS: Sure. I mean, it was a formative experience to say the least. I actually thought about that experience I had in D.C. on Capitol Hill in his office when I first decided to run last cycle.

And it was because me as a lifelong constituent of Texas 28 had to go to Washington and work in the office to find out what kind of representation Texas 28 was receiving.

[14:19:53]

CISNEROS: The fact that we're represented by someone who's anti-labor, anti-choice, receiving money from people like the Koch Brothers, having an A-rating from the NRA, pushing anti-immigrant legislation. I knew those weren't the values of our congressional district, especially one that's reliably blue.

And when I was approached to run last cycle, I mean, nobody had to sit up really to give Henry Cuellar a run for his money, but I decided to do so, because I think the last straw for me was the fact that he was voting almost 70 percent of the time with Donald Trump, and again those are not the values of south Texas.

So we decided to run. And last time we were almost three percentage points away from defeating him, so we came back to finish the job.

WHITFIELD: So is it your kneeling that as a congressman he evolved from when you were an intern working in his office compared to his recent representation of himself and the district and so you felt it was time to challenge him because you do have a unique perspective as having worked in his office, knowing a lot more about the person you're challenging than, say, most political opponents might have.

So how do you use your knowledge of what you learned as an intern working in his office now against him as a challenger for that office?

CISNEROS: I think, of course -- I think the last time around because he hadn't been challenged in a very long time, a big part of the list that we were doing as part of our campaign was that voter education. Right? Did you know that Henry Cuellar was voting almost 70 percent of the time with Donald Trump? Did you know that he had voted to defund Planned Parenthood or was pushing, you know, for an expedited removal of Central American miners coming to seek safety in this country? Did you know he was receiving money from the Koch Brothers?

There was just so many issues that I knew that people in the district, if they knew what kind of representation that we were receiving, we would get their vote. And I think that's why we got so close to defeating him and why we pushed, you know, this historical runoff election is because people are finally paying attention and holding Henry Cuellar accountable.

WHITFIELD: And now abortion is a huge ballot box issue, particularly in this race this year. You support abortion rights. Your opponent, Congressman Cuellar, opposes abortion rights and was the only House Democrat to vote against legislation to codify Roe v Wade. So how influential do you believe this issue is going to be at the ballot?

CISNEROS; Yes. This is an issue that we've been talking about from the very beginning back when I decided to launch this campaign in June of 2019. Because Henry Cuellar has close to a 20-year track record of being anti-choice and I think his most recent vote against the Women's Health Protection Act and siding with Republicans and voting against it which was actually put on the House floor for a vote, because of the Senate Bill 8 legislation, the six week abortion ban that came from Texas.

So for him to be a Texas representative and to side with Republicans at such a crucial moment when, you know, we're watching the fall of Roe has just been very frustrating for a lot of people here.

And I think the issues have been the same. I mean, health care is one of the number one issues that we're running on. It's health care and jobs. But I do think that the sense of urgency, you know, has definitely been highlighted in the last few weeks.

And I guess this is an opportunity for a final sell for you to your potential constituents. Why do you believe you have an advantage over this nine-time incumbent, someone you once worked with as an intern, and someone you also ran against before as a 26-year-old fresh out of law school? What do you have to offer to your potential constituents that you believe Congressman Cuellar does not?

CISNEROS: Sure. I mean think it's the mix of personal and professional experience. Although I have been -- I became an immigration and human rights attorney under the Trump administration. I had been advocating for my community since 2012 when DACA had first been announced by President Barack Obama.

And I think this personal experience of being so close to a lot of the challenges that south Texans face in terms of, you know, it's very heart breaking that we don't have a lot of investment in our community in terms of health care, education, making sure that our laws, our immigration and border policy is humane, that we are investing in the infrastructure here.

I mean, those are all issues that haven't been resolved in the past 20 years. And you know, Henry Cuellar tries to say well, I have the experience. Well, our poverty rate has remained the same. Our health insurance rate of people being uninsured in our district has remained the same, and they're very high.

We are running a campaign that's two-fold. One that is centered on people-centric politics in terms of like the policies that we're supporting but also the energizing of the base that we've been able to do.

[14:24:58]

CISNEROS: I mean just this runoff election we're seeing a higher than anticipated voter engagement in people turning out to vote. It's because of all the groundwork and infrastructure that we've been laying out in terms of getting people electorally engaged.

WHITFIELD: All right. A very enthusiastic Jessica Cisneros. Thanks so much for being with us.

CISNEROS: Thank you so much.

WHITFIELD: And we also reached out to Congressman Henry Cuellar to appear on our show today as well.

All right. Still ahead, President Joe Biden is in Japan for the second leg of his trip to Asia amid renewed tensions with North Korea. We'll take you live to Tokyo next.

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[14:30:00]

WHITFIELD: All right. Welcome back. President Biden is now in Tokyo for the second leg of his Asia trip. The president is scheduled to meet with the Japanese prime minister tomorrow. That meeting is coming amid renewed tensions with North Korea.

Let's go straight to CNN White House correspondent Jeremy Diamond who is traveling with the president in Tokyo.

So, Jeremy, the president offered a brief message, rather, to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. What did he say?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, listen, President Biden wrapped up his visit to South Korea on Sunday with a message first to U.S. troops, thanking them for their service as they were stationed in the area. Also thanking South Korean troops jointly positioned at this Osan Air base in South Korea.

But the president wrapped up this visit without that ICBM test or a nuclear test being carried out by North Korea. Something that U.S. intelligence officials had indicated was possible if not likely. But President Biden did indeed have a message for the North Korean leader. And he also talked about the possibility that an ICBM test could still be carried out. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Are you concerned by North Korean missile tests while you're here?

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We are prepared for anything North Korea does. We've had -- we've thought through how we'd respond to whatever they do. And so I am not concerned if that's what you're suggesting.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Do you have a message for Kim Jong-un while you're here?

BIDEN: Hello. Period. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And that brief, brief message from President Biden to the North Korean leader really a reflection of the shift of how the U.S. is conducting its North Korea strategy under President Biden, compared to what it was under former President Trump. Former President Trump of course met three times with the North Korean leader. He talked about the love letters that they would exchange. His words, not mine.

And we also know that President Biden is ultimately pursuing a lower- level track of diplomacy. Reaching out consistently to the North Koreans through administration officials. But so far they have had no meetings with the North Koreans. And instead North Korea of course has ramped up its pace of ballistic missile tests. Fifteen so far just this past year.

Now the National Security adviser Jake Sullivan, for his part, he talked about this possibility that North Korea could still carry out an ICBM test saying that it is still possible that North Korea could carry out that test while President Biden is here in Japan. And he reiterated that the U.S. is prepared for that possibility if North Korea acts, he said, we'll be prepared to respond -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right. Jeremy Diamond traveling with the president in Tokyo. Thank you so much.

Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed joins Jake Tapper tonight to discuss his 985 days in Russian imprisonment. He talks about what happened and how it came to an end in "FINALLY HOME, THE TREVOR REED INTERVIEW."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKE TAPPER, CNN ANCHOR: Have you been able to fully grasp that you're free?

ANNOUNCER: A CNN exclusive.

TAPPER: You went to a party in August 2019.

TREVOR REED, FORMER U.S. MARINE IMPRISONED IN RUSSIA: And the next morning I woke up in a police station.

ANNOUNCER: Former U.S. Marine Trevor Reed talks with Jake Tapper about his 985 days in Russian hands.

REED: They have absolutely no value of human life.

ANNOUNCER: How it came to an end.

REED: They were never going to break me. Maybe I would have died. They never would have broken me.

ANNOUNCER: "Finally Home: The Trevor Reed Interview," tonight at 8:00.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

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[14:38:01]

WHITFIELD: Ukraine's president is accusing Russia of blocking 22 million tons of food products. Plus this warning from President Zelenskyy. If ports are not unblocked, many countries will face a food crisis.

Melissa Bell is following all of these developments from Kyiv.

Melissa, we're learning Russians are also introducing new controls on movement in Mariupol. The mayor saying it's nearly impossible to leave. What else are you learning?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. Essentially, Fredricka, saying to anyone who wants to come into Mariupol tonight, remember, that it is a one-way ticket, a one-way trip. Because what we're seeing in Mariupol tonight is what we've seen in cities like Kherson in the past. Once they fall to the Russian forces as Mariupol did officially on Friday night when the last of those Azovstal fighters were confirmed to have been evacuated and in Russian hands as prisoners of war, is that the cities are essentially locked down.

The border closed and it's very hard for anyone to get in or if you do get in, you don't get out, and for those who are inside to come out. What we've been hearing about these last few days, Fredricka, from those leaving Kherson already, so another city that had seen a similar fate these last few weeks are really harrowing details of what's happening inside those Russian-controlled areas.

Of course, we have very little access to that because we can't get reporters into those areas. Stories of forced abductions, unexplained disappearances, people going without food, no medical supplies, really harrowing tales. What it appears tonight is that Mariupol is now facing that same fate with it residents locked inside and facing no doubt the same kind of things that we've seen from those fleeing Kherson in the past.

There has also been continued fighting, of course, tonight, Fredricka, in the east of the country where those forces have been concentrated, the Russian forces, their manpower, their fire power. But we've also seen an interesting development over the course of the last couple of days, and that is increasing missile attacks from the part of Russian forces on the West of the country, in Zhytomyr. It's about two hours from where I'm standing now.

[14:40:01]

We saw a couple of nights ago a train station in Malyn, one of the towns in Zhytomyr, being struck by a missile strike that was according to the Russians. And it was aiming to get some of those Western military supplies that have been coming in by train.

Over the course of the day, we've had the confirmation from the Ukrainian armed forces that there have been four more attempted missile strikes on Zhytomyr. We happen to be standing about an hour from here, an hour from Zhytomyr and that town of Malyn earlier today when one of those cruise missiles passed overhead. Have a look.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking in foreign language)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BELL: Now that cruise missile was intercepted as were the four others that Ukrainian armed forces say were targeting those military infrastructures in the west of the country. But it was interesting to see the reaction of the local residents we were with. We happened to be very close to Bucha. Of course remember, this is a part north of Kyiv of the country that was occupied by Russian forces for a month.

As soon as that sound came, everybody ducked because that house you just saw, that rubble we were standing in, was the exact consequence of that kind of sound. Missile strikes, artillery fire, precisely what those residents just north of Kyiv have yet to recover from nearly two months since Russian forces left that area -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Terrible. All right. Melissa Bell, thank you so much.

All right, joining me right now to further discuss the situation in Ukraine, former U.S. Defense Secretary William Cohen.

Good to see you, Secretary Cohen. So let me get your response to this.

WILLIAM COHEN, FORMER DEFENSE SECRETARY: Good to be with you.

WHITFIELD: Great. Thank you. So speaking yesterday on Ukrainian television to mark his third anniversary as president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed that Ukraine will battle to a bloody victory, but insists the Russian invasion will still end with diplomacy. And even with what Melissa just described for us, that Mariupol is like a one- way ticket into the city, the kind of control that Russia now has over Mariupol, do you share Zelenskyy's view that after all of this diplomacy will help end this war?

COHEN: Well, most wars ultimately end in diplomacy that once it's determined on the battlefield, whether there is a winner and a loser, then the diplomats try to resolve what result can we present that both sides can live with.

I think President Zelenskyy said, number one, I want to defeat the Russian military and drive them completely out of Ukraine. That's option number one. The second option would be well, I want to drive Russians mostly out of Ukraine, but there may be some areas I'm willing to give up under certain circumstances. Number three, we haven't really focused on it until just now when you brought it up, Odessa. The Black Sea.

We're going to have a world famine on our hands unless there's some way to reach some kind of agreement for the food that has to be harvested this summer, this fall into the hands of the world community. So there are a number of options that ought to be on the able, and certainly the Ukrainians have to sit down and think about this as do all the people who are supporting Ukraine.

What -- if we go through option one, driving the Russians out of Ukraine, well, what does that mean in terms of the option of the army being able to be pushed all the way back into Russia itself? What does that mean in terms of getting food out of Ukraine? What does it mean in terms of getting medicine in? You have all of these issues that have to be put certainly on the table -- in the planning part of it.

And I think Ukraine obviously has to look at those different options, even though he's saying, I'm going to drive the Russians out. I want every inch of my territory back, but I'm willing to negotiate at the very end. You have to go through and look at the options. One, two, and three, and see what the upsides and downsides of this are.

WHITFIELD: And are you suggesting that part of that negotiation is giving up some land to Russia because that's all Russia wants?

COHEN: I can't -- none of us can make that recommendation. Only President Zelenskyy can look to his people, look to his soldiers, and say how much are we willing to continue this on? Can we continue this for a long, long time? And the question becomes, will the Ukrainian allies be supportive over the long term? You can have divisions start in Europe. You can have divisions start here in the United States.

You have members of the political parties here in the United States who support Putin, who support Russia. So those are issues that President Zelenskyy and the Europeans and the Americans have to take into account, how long can this go on?

[14:45:03]

I think Putin has always calculated he can withstand the sanctions longer than we can impose them because we are a democracy and he's obviously in a dictatorship. So those are issues that obviously have to be pondered.

WHITFIELD: Yes. I mean, it's hard to belief. It was just really three months ago when Russian officials predicted a quick and decisive victory for Moscow. And according to the "Washington Post," it's now reporting the Russian military is attempting to, quote, quoting now, "resuscitate its sputtering offensive in Ukraine, firing commanders, splitting combat units into smaller formations, and redoubling its reliance on artillery and other long-range weapons."

What does this tell you about their calculus of their invasion?

COHEN: Number one, they made a strategic mistake. Number two, tactically they have been a disaster, that their generals have not been well prepared for this war, nor were the conscripts and those in the army, well-trained to carry out the mission. So the mission was the wrong one in the beginning and the tactics were wrong.

So now they're admitting that, but remember, it was Napoleon after Waterloo, the first thing he said was it was the generals who lost the war, not Napoleon, but the generals. So I think you're seeing some of that with Putin saying fire the generals, and now apparently he's getting more involved in the tactical decisions, which I think is probably a big mistake on his part. He's not a trained military man.

And for him to get into the details and trying to orchestrate all of the moves that take place on the ground, it reminds me of one of those ads we used to see where a person about to undergo brain surgery and the patient asked the doctor, are you really qualified for this? And he said no, but I did stay at a Holiday Inn.

It's that kind of I think situation where Putin as a strategist, tactician, on the ground for the military, I think it would be a big mistake on his part, but that would work to the advantage of Ukraine and those of us who are supporting Ukrainians.

WHITFIELD: Yes. As funny as that parallel is, sadly, I mean, hundreds of people are dying every day as this drags on.

Secretary William Cohen, thank you so much.

COHEN: Good to be with you. Thank you, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And we'll be right back.

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[14:51:48]

WHITFIELD: It's the final day of the PGA Championship and one of golf's biggest names is out. Tiger Woods withdrew from the tournament yesterday after posting his career worst round at the event.

CNN World Sport host Don Riddell is in Tulsa for the 104th PGA Championship.

And Don, tell us more about Tiger, you know, withdrawing after having never done so from a major tournament in his 26 years as a pro.

DON RIDDELL, CNN HOST, WORLD SPORT: Yes. Hey, Fred, I can't say it was a major surprise when it happened yesterday evening. He had really struggled on Saturday, and he had looked absolutely miserable. As you say, shooting the worst score of his career in a PGA Championship. That's in 22 years of playing this event. Of course coming off the back of making the cut at the Masters. But then shooting his worst ever scores in that tournament as well just last month.

I mean, he was all over the course. We've seen him at various points this week looking as though he was in extreme discomfort, and we know that he has an incredibly high threshold for pain. Pain is something that of course bothers him, but it doesn't bother him in that he's still able to get out there and play through it. But this week it just seemed as though it was all a bit too much.

And given that he would have been teeing off very, very early this morning, he wouldn't have had time to recover. He'd have had to be up very, very early in order to sort of get his body warmed up and his muscles warmed up. We can only conclude that he just didn't think it was worth it, or that he was perhaps concerned that he was going to injure himself even more.

It is still remarkable that he's playing at this level less than a year and a half after that car accident that could have killed him or could have cost him his right leg. So it is still amazing that he's out here doing it. But because he withdrew and because he's never done that in a major championship before, we are all now wondering what the future holds for Tiger Woods at the age of 46.

He has said this week he doesn't know how many more opportunities he's going to get to come out and play in these events. He doesn't know how much more his body will allow him to do. So we are now in a period of uncertainty regarding the future of Tiger Woods. He had already committed to play in the Open Championship at St. Andrews in Scottland in July, a championship he's won twice at that venue before.

So we are hoping, expecting he will still play in that, but we truthfully don't know. And after he withdrew last night, there was no statement. He's posted nothing on social media. He said nothing. So we really are all guessing at this point what's next for Tiger Woods.

WHITFIELD: Yes. That's a painful reality check, but I'm sorry, it is still an amazing comeback story given what he has been through in the last year, year and a half. So still rooting for him. Right? You know, and whatever he decides to do, we all have to just simply respect that. But yes. The grimacing, you could see it in his posture, too. Just it looked painful.

All right, Don Riddell, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

All right. And in a new episode of "NOMAD," Carlton McCoy heads to the beautiful coastal nation of Ghana to explore a country and region that is experiencing a true renaissance, a transformation that is proudly modernizing without Westernizing.

[14:55:05]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARLON MCCOY, CNN HOST, NOMAD: No dish in West Africa is more debated than jollof rice. uprights. Onions, ginger, scotch bonnets, sauteed in palm oil and crushed tomatoes. Then the rice. It seems simple, but this jollof rice sparks a heated debate between Ghana and nearby Nigeria, both claiming that theirs is the best. Sort of like the battle over best pizza in New York City. Everyone is right. Everyone else is wrong.

Here at the Alley, jollof rice accompanies chicken quarters, butterflied, seasoned and grilled over hot coals.

You must have grown up eating jollof rice?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. A lot.

MCCOY: It was party of food.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you didn't just always have jollof rice like you did now. Growing up you only had this after graduation or during Christmas.

MCCOY: It's a special dish?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it was a very special dish. Right, you know, like so.

MCCOY: It's a very familiar flavor.

To be honest with you, jollof rice is the one dish I may have every night while I'm here. It is so good.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: I love varieties of rice. I'm ready to dig in. Hey, you can catch the new episode at 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific tonight on CNN. We'll be right back.

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