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President Biden, First Lady Meet with Victims' Families; Zelenskyy Visits Troops on Front Lines; Ukrainians Pay Heavy Toll as Russia Attacks Mykolaiv; China Begins to Ease COVID Restrictions, Reboot Economy; Colombia Presidential Election Headed for Run-Off; Clashes Erupt Over Controversial Jerusalem Day March. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired May 30, 2022 - 00:00   ET

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

PAULA NEWTON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. Welcome to our viewers right around the world. I'm Paula Newton.

[00:00:30]

Ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM, U.S. president and first lady make a personal visit to Uvalde, Texas, trying to comfort families dealing with unspeakable grief. Volodymyr Zelenskyy makes his first visit outside Kyiv since the Russian invasion, getting a firsthand look at the damage in Kharkiv.

And as coronavirus cases wane in China, there's no end quick recovery in sight for the country's economy and for the world's vital supply chains.

And we begin with an emotional day in Texas as U.S. President Joe Biden and the first lady try to comfort the heartbroken community of Uvalde, just days after a mass shooting inside the elementary school there.

Now, the two met with families, local officials, and laid flowers at a memorial outside Robb Elementary, where 19 students and two teachers were tragically killed.

This is the second time in less than two weeks Mr. Biden has traveled to the site of a mass shooting to meet with grieving families. Now, during this visit, the grief and anguish could be heard in calls for action. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: President Biden, we need help! We need help, President Biden!

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: The president responded by giving them a thumbs up. Now also on Sunday, the Justice Department announced it would be reviewing response from law enforcement to last week's school shooting. This comes as Texas officials face scrutiny for how officers responded

after incredibly unsettling details of the timeline that have emerged. As CNN has reported, while the gunman was inside adjoining classrooms, a group of law enforcement officers stood outside for nearly an hour, as they waited for room keys and tactical equipment.

The Justice Department spokesman said, quote, "The goal of the review is to provide an independent account of law enforcement actions and responses that day, to identify lessons learned and best practices to help first responders prepare for and respond to active shooter events."

CNN's Arlette Saenz is following developments and has more now from Uvalde.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ARLETTE SAENZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: President Biden spent about seven hours on the ground here in Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday, trying to offer some sense of solace and comfort to the families grieving the loss of those 19 young children and two teachers, gunned down here at Robb Elementary school just last Tuesday.

The president and first lady spent about three hours meeting the survivors of that shooting, as well as the families of the victims. And CNN spoke with one of the family members who was in that meeting. Vincent Salazar, who lost his daughter, Layla Salazar. He talked about his conversation with the president.

VINCENT SALAZAR, FATHER OF UVALDE SCHOOL SHOOTING VICTIM: It was really just all about my daughter. You know what I mean? That's all we talked about. And, you know, like I said, they're very gracious. They showed compassion, and that's all we were here for. He listened to everything, and we listened to him. He shed some tears; we shed some tears.

SAENZ: The president also spent some time here in Uvalde meeting with first responders and law enforcement officers who responded that day at the horrific shooting.

But even as the president had those moments of grieving with the community, he also faced some calls to action.

SAENZ (voice-over): When he visited the memorial site here at Robb Elementary, he had the opportunity to take in each of the life-sized photos, read the names of each of these children who were gunned down in that massacre.

But there are also some demonstrators, both here and at the Catholic church, Sacred Heart Catholic Church, who were urging the president to do more, to make -- take some type of action to try to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again.

The president mouthed back to them, saying, "We will."

Of course, there are so many questions about what exactly that action could look like in Washington and in state legislators. The president himself has said that he does not think there is much more he can do on the executive level. And the White House is pushing for Congress to act.

There are those early discussions among a bipartisan group of senators to see if they can reach some kind of compromise when it comes to gun safety measures. But there are so many questions about whether or not it will actually come to fruition.

[00:05:05]

But it is clear here in the community that there is frustration, and that they do want to see more from this president, more from their elected officials when it comes to trying to keep their children safe in schools.

But here, in Uvalde, Texas, on Sunday, the president's main focus --

SAENZ: -- was really trying to extend that comfort to these grieving families dealing with these -- these gut-wrenching losses.

Arlette Saenz, CNN, traveling with the president in Uvalde, Texas.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now, we're also learning more about the terrifying moments surrounding the shooting from survivors and their families. Speaking with CNN, one mother detailed what it felt like waiting for her son -- can you imagine -- waiting for her son, Daniel, to see if he was alive. The 9-year-old boy climbed out of a window to escape the gunman.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BRIANA RUIZ, SON DANIEL SURVIVED SCHOOL SHOOTING: I knew the layout of his hallway. When they started pulling children out of the classes, I saw all the classes that surrounded his area, and my cousin's area, as well.

Once I saw all those children coming out, and I saw that they weren't, it -- it was a numbing feeling that I got. Just because I could feel something was very off. And just knowing he was still in there, the shooter was still in there, it's -- it was terrifying. I saw all his friends running out, and I still hadn't seen him.

And then finally, towards the end, when him and another friend came running out together, it -- it gave -- it gave me back -- like, I couldn't catch my breath, you know.

But I ran straight to him, and I just held him. And I remember somebody trying to get him out of my arms, but I just -- I kept holding him.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

NEWTON: So tragic, what they all went through. Daniel's cousin, 9-year-old Ellie Garcia was, in fact, one of the 19

children killed in that massacre.

To Eastern Ukraine now, where President Vladimir Zelenskyy visited frontline troops in Kharkiv region Sunday. The area has faced, in fact, intense bombardment by Russia.

Mr. Zelenskyy was there to assess the damage and honor Ukraine's defenders with medals of valor.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON (voice-over): On his first known trip beyond the capital since the Russian invasion, Vladimir Zelenskyy got a firsthand view of the destruction in the Eastern city of Kharkiv, touring residential areas that came under relentless Russian bombardment for weeks.

Those strikes continue. Nine people were killed in Kharkiv on Thursday night, one of them a baby.

Zelenskyy said the government would have to find funds to rebuild areas destroyed by three months of Russian shelling.

He also went closer to the front lines, surveying the wreckage of battle in an area where Ukrainian forces have pushed back Russians to within just a few kilometers of the international border.

Zelenskyy also presented medals to soldiers, telling them, "You risk your life for all of us and our state. Thank you for defending Ukraine's independence."

Fighting continues across Eastern and Southern Ukraine. Russia's ministry of defense released video of the Russian flag being hoisted over the town hall in Lyman, a town in Donetsk that's the gateway to the larger city of Sloviansk.

Russians continue to use artillery and airstrikes against the town of Bakhmut as they try to push further West and fulfill President Vladimir Putin's objective of taking all of the Donbas.

But the Ukrainian military says it has launched a counteroffensive in the Southern region of Kherson. It published video of artillery strikes and claimed that Russian forces were pushed back nearly ten kilometers. There's no way for CNN to verify the claim.

Meantime, Ukrainians are still trying to flee Russian-occupied areas, with hundreds of vehicles stranded for days at a Russian checkpoint at Zaporizhzhia. There are still few safe ways for civilians to reach Ukrainian-controlled territory.

These women beg for help in getting evacuated, saying there are many babies and young children among the hundreds trying to cross.

Inside, Russian-held Mariupol, a small gesture of defiance Sunday.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE) NEWTON (voice-over): A rare note of dissent. But the Russians are trying to consolidate their grip in the South. The sign being put up outside Mariupol saying, "Forever Russian."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[00:10:05]

NEWTON: Now, leaders for the European Union met in the coming -- will meet in the coming hours to try and agree on terms on a Russian oil embargo after failing to see eye-to-eye on Sunday.

It's the latest attempt to deal another blow to Russia's economy. The only problem is, some European countries are completely reliant on Russian oil, making it more difficult to cut the cord.

Now, one official tells CNN that most countries seemed willing to make an embargo work. The final details, though, just need to be worked out.

Meantime, CNN has obtained new satellite imagery that allegedly shows a Russian freighter full of grains stolen from Ukraine arriving at the Syrian -- a Syrian port of Latakia.

Now, the image was captured on Friday and provided by Maxar Technologies. This is one of the three ships -- you see it there -- that has been spotted loading grain in the Crimean port of Sevastopol since Russia invaded Ukraine. It was last seen in Sevastopol on May 19.

To Southern Ukraine now, where Russian forces continue to shell towns and villages in the Mykolaiv region. CNN's Sara Sidner is there meeting with residents, including one woman who says her husband was killed by Russian soldiers.

And we have a warning. Some of the images you're about to see in Sara's report are graphic.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SARA SIDNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A Ukrainian army drone gives you a look at the battle on the front line in the Mykolaiv district. Here, the battle is in the rural farmland of Ukraine. The villages nearby have taken the brunt of the Russian attack.

In a nearby village, a blast that shakes a building apart. It's not just any building. It's a school. Russian gas masks and children's books covered in broken glass, left to rot.

SIDNER: Can you tell me what has been happening here? Have you been going through shelling all day?

ANATOLY, VILLAGER LIVING UNDER SHELLING (through translator): They're bombing every day. Every day. In the morning and at night.

SIDNER (voice-over): Anatoly says his neighbor was killed by a strike in his home, just a day ago. But he is staying.

SIDNER: Are you afraid?

ANATOLY (through translator): We got used to it. It's a bit scary, though.

SIDNER (voice-over): Tatiana Bozko lives in another village in the same district. Before the Russians invaded, she and her husband, Sergei, lived a quiet country life.

"He was very kind. He was very cheerful," she says. "He didn't do any harm to anyone in the village. He was only hated by Russian sympathizers."

Bozko says her husband was hunted down by Russian soldiers and taken from her for days, until villages found him.

"The hand was sticking out. The men saw it. He was beaten up. It was so scary," she says. "The pose was terrible. Arms and legs twisted."

The pictures of her husband's dead body show signs of torture: his hands mangled, bruises on his side, cuts and what appears to be bullet wounds.

This is just one of the many atrocities soldiers on the frontlines say they're fighting to stop.

They're not just fighting over border lines. They are fighting for the survival of their people.

Sara Sidner, CNN, Mykolaiv district, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Just ahead here, China forges ahead with zero COVID, even as cases decline and some restrictions on public life began to fall. We'll go live to Hong Kong for the latest.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:17:52]

NEWTON: After months of COVID lockdowns and mass testing in cities throughout the country, China is gradually beginning to ease restrictions, trying to reboot its weakened economy.

Now, in Shanghai, all businesses will be able to operate beginning Wednesday. In Beijing, meantime, there has been a partial reopening of some public spaces.

Following all of this for us is Kristie Lu Stout. She joins us now from Hong Kong. Kristie, good to see you.

Now, it's true: infections appear to be stabilizing, and authorities are, as you said, easing some restrictions in Beijing and Shanghai. What will that look like as they begin to do that? KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT/ANCHOR: Well, on

Sunday, Beijing reopened part of its public transport system, as well as gyms, libraries, and some shopping centers.

Also on Sunday, we learned from Shanghai government officials that they plan to remove what they call unreasonable curbs on business starting this Wednesday, June the 1st.

And, you know, look, let's focus on the city of Shanghai. This is China's financial capital, a mega city of 25 million that has been locked in this punishing and paralyzing lockdown for two months now.

And it is very gradually inching towards some form of reopening. We heard from Shanghai officials on Sunday they made an additional announcement, saying that they planned to reduce testing restrictions on residents who wish to enter public areas. This will kick in on Wednesday, June the 1st, all in a bid to encourage people to get back to the office and to get back to work.

But despite all the talk and the reports of the easy of restrictions and the relaxation of curbs, China's still very much a zero-COVID nation. Let's bring up the math for you, and you'll see how it's still holding fast to this punishing pandemic policy.

According to CNN's calculations, based on government data, as of May the 26th, at least 21 Chinese cities are in some form of lockdown, either partial or full, affecting up to 140 million residents.

And the risk of lockdowns, the risk of zero COVID disruptions, that has been taking a major toll on lives and livelihoods.

And recently, I had a chance to speak to the rather outspoken president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce. He had this to say about the economic fallout.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOERG WUTTKE, PRESIDENT, E.U. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN CHINA: We are really in bad shape here, because we want to have certainty. Business needs predictability. Is it going to be six months, nine months? We don't even know when China is going to stop the lockdown.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

[00:20:15]

STOUT: But Shanghai has announced measures over the weekend to shore up its economy, including speeding up the issuance of local government debt, speeding up approval processes for property deals, as well as cutting some taxes on car purchases. Anything in order to counter the overall trend of slowing down the economy of the world's second largest economy, caused by zero COVID, of course.

Back to you.

NEWTON: And no doubt that will impact all of us. Kristie, thank you for the update.

Now, as Kristie was just saying, in spite of those hardships associated with it, Beijing is sticking to a zero-COVID policy. Now, how does that decision affect China's economy? Kristie was just talking about it. But also the economies right around the world?

For more now, I'm joined by Ryan Patel in Los Angeles. He's a senior fellow at the Drucker School of Management at Claremont Graduate University.

And good to see you. Thanks for being here to weigh in on this. You know, despite the worst maybe being over at this particular time, and I stress for now, how much has this scarred China's economy?

RYAN PATEL, SENIOR FELLOW, DRUCKER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT, CLAREMONT GRADUATE UNIVERSITY: Well, it's taken a step back, where the economy, China's economy was estimated at 5.5 percent of GDP. Some analysts, like for UBS, are thinking it's going to be less than 3 percent. And right, that's the lowest it's been in decades, to be able to grow from last year, being 7 to 8 percent, dropping in double digits.

I think -- I understand where we are today, but if you think about two years ago, when China wanted to reopen, this is for the audience. This is a reopening again of the borders. This is something that all hands on deck with the Chinese government, with businesses being closed, I mean, closed, and consumers spending nothing. Last April, obviously Shanghai being the financial hub, as we heard, you know, we're looking at retail sales collapsed 11 percent, while industrial production also fell.

Unemployment at 6.1 percent, its highest level in two years.

And I tell you all this because, that was when the borders were closed. So when you're slowly reopening, you have to do everything, Paula. They have to do everything to get that back to normalcy. And that's going to take a little time.

NEWTON: Yes. And as Kristie pointed out, as well, it does measure. It is measured in risk for not just for China but the global economy.

We should obviously be paying attention, but what have the impacts been on the supply chains in the last few months? I mean, we've already seen the way it's contributed to inflation up to now.

PATEL: Yes. I mean, you've seen Tesla, Volkswagen suspend their operations, which obviously has a ripple effect back into how you manufacture and sell cars in the rest of the world. That's just two examples.

You know, even for Airbnb, which is the latest, I think, multinational front to pull out home sharing in China. So that's obviously in China with exports.

But when we're already having an issue with getting parts or chips that we've seen, we already had a higher raw material cost already. And then you put on the disruption of getting items that takes even longer. The consumers are going to be the one who will be paying for this. And some companies not being able to make it, because they don't have a plat backup option B, to be able to supply the big demand.

NEWTON: Now, what does this mean for supply chains, not just in the weeks and months to come, but perhaps years to come? Are we seeing the very architecture of our global business just shift, and shift profoundly?

PATEL: One word, yes. Period. That's two words, I guess.

I'm telling you that the chief supply chain officer I'm talking to, some of the top brands in the world, they have all used the word "deal transformation," being nimble, omni-channel. Every buzzword that you can name, Paula. they are talking about it, because they believe in it. Because that's the path moving forward.

The way we did business in many of these -- manufacturing has changed, including technology. And if you don't move forward with -- you can't be stuck in these kinds of times where you're always looking for plan -- option B, C, D. You've got to be ahead of it.

NEWTON: So when we are looking at our own economies, and even that might go over the point of household economies, right, how much should we be paying attention to what's going on in China? Especially as they continue to stick to that zero-COVID policy, which means that they haven't shown a mass vaccination program so far. Which means they could be back into lockdown within weeks or months, even.

PATEL: Great question. I think it's super important. We're talking about the No. 2 economy in the world, who is the No. 1 transformation hub with Shanghai.

And so what is happening there, I'm not saying, you know, it does have an effect and has -- I'm not saying it has a 10 percent, 20 percent.

But when you talk about GDP in certain countries, domino effect, with global trade and being interconnected, it does have an impact.

Even if you recall a couple years ago, when there was a Turkey crisis, the majority of many European and the U.S. had got effected. So just imagine we put China in that aspect.

[00:25:04]

So yes, I think we should be paying attention, and not just watching but also being reactive and proactive in many of these measures, because you do not want to be caught flat-footed if China goes back into lockdown and you are just kind of waiting for your services or goods, and you don't have another way for business specifically to create that revenue stream that, you know, you're just holding in all from China specifically.

NEWTON: Yes. I hear you. A lot more turbulence to come, which is the reason we should be paying attention to what goes on there. As you said, the second largest economy in the world. We can't say that often enough. Ryan Patel, thanks so much. Appreciate it.

PATEL: Thank you, Paula.

NEWTON: Now, Colombia's presidential election is headed to a runoff. Coming up, we look at whether voters favor a leftist former guerrilla, or a populist social media star.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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NEWTON: And welcome back. Thanks for your company. I'm Paula Newton, and you are watching CNN NEWSROOM.

A leftist former guerrilla and a populist social media star are headed for the next round in Colombia's presidential election. Left-wing Gustavo Petro will face off against the self-proclaimed "king of TikTok," Rodolfo Fernandez, on June 19.

Now, the runoff comes after the first round of voting finished on Sunday. Journalist Stefano Pozzebon is on -- at Gustavo Petro's headquarters and has more now from Bogota.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEFANO POZZEBON, JOURNALIST: Colombia took a step towards the unknown on Sunday --

POZZEBON (voice-over): -- with two political outsiders progressing to the second round of the presidential election.

The left-wing candidate, Gustavo Petro, in his third bid for the presidency, won the larger share of the vote, with about 40 percent of the ballots and in the second round, which is set for June 19.

He will face off against 77-year-old populist entrepreneur Rodolfo Hernandez, who won about 28 percent of the vote.

Gustavo Petro is a veteran of left-wing politics in Colombia. He has run for the presidency before. And if elected, he would be the first progressive president in this country's recent history.

Hernandez as a relative newcomer who mounted a campaign without the support of traditional parties and who has been compared to former U.S. President Donald Trump but for his focus on social media.

POZZEBON: Whoever comes out on top of that challenge on June 19, Colombia, which is one of Washington's strongest allies in South Africa, really seems to have entered a new chapter in its recent history.

For CNN, this is Stefano Pozzebon, Bogota.

(END VIDEOTAPE) NEWTON: Now, an annual march through Jerusalem sparked violence between Israelis and Palestinian and the blurred lines between peaceful and provocative.

Coming up, the controversy around the demonstration blurred lines between peaceful and provocative.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

NEWTON: The death toll is rising in northeastern Brazil after landslides and floods triggered by heavy rains, and more than 50 people, 50, are now confirmed dead. Dozens more missing.

Thousands have been forced to leave their homes through the devastating downpours. Now, some places have had more rain in a day than in the entire month of May.

Brazil's president will travel to the region to get a look at the damage. He has promised help for those impacted.

Now, a controversial Israeli march through Jerusalem sparked fresh clashes between Israeli police and Palestinians Sunday. Dozens were arrested. And the Palestinian Red Crescent says 80 Palestinians were injured, and that's in Jerusalem alone. Atika Shubert has more now.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Jerusalem Day is a day that shows just how bitterly contested this city is.

For Israelis, particularly Jewish nationalists, it has become a day to mark Israel's capturing of all the city, including Eastern Jerusalem in the 1967 War and the holiest site in Judaism, the Western Wall.

Thousands upon thousands converge on Jerusalem's old city, marching through with Israeli flags. S

Some chant, "Death to Arabs." This is one extreme among the marchers.

Others here say the day should be a celebration, not a provocation.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Most of the people want to live in place. And as you can see, we live in peace. I didn't come to provoke someone. You understand I didn't come for it.

I'm not making problem. I'm not shouting back to the that other guy that wanted Arabs to be dead. I told him no, because I don't want them to be dead. I want them to be my neighbors.

But you know, I don't want them to kill me. We're saying the same thing.

SHUBERT: Well, for Palestinians, this is a day of provocation when the Israeli flag march goes through one of the most disputed areas of east Jerusalem. And it's almost inevitable that tensions will boil over. SHUBERT (voice-over): Thousands of police are deployed. But scuffles

still break out in the narrow, cobblestone streets. Police fire pepper spray and swing batons.

Palestinian residents say that they feel angry, frustrated and exhausted.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We cannot live. No peace at all. No peace in the shop. No peace in the street. No peace anywhere. Now a settler could come hit me. He will go and arrest me. Where is justice?

SHUBERT (voice-over): In a sea of flags, there is one that cannot be flown, the Palestinian flag. Israeli police quickly tackled the elderly man who dared to unfurl it.

If the march of flags went ahead, Hamas warned, it would fire rockets from Gaza. Watch the skies, the militant group warned.

What came instead was a small gesture of defiance, instead of rockets. Keeping Jerusalem's uneasy peace for another day.

Atika Shubert, for CNN in Jerusalem.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

NEWTON: Now a day after the game and the controversy over clashes between police and fans at the Champions League final, it's not dying down. Liverpool CEO Billy Hogan called the security situation before the game and the treatment of Liverpool fans, quote, "absolutely unacceptable."

The team has called for a formal investigation.

(MUSIC: "WE ARE THE CHAMPIONS")

NEWTON: Meanwhile, that as the Spanish capital fans pack the seats at Real Madrid's home stadium. The team pulled out all the stops, as you can see there, to try and celebrate the club's 14th Champions League title.

[00:40:08]

We'll have much more of that ahead on WORLD SPORT.

I want to thank you for joining us. I'm Paula Newton. I'll be back with more news at the top of the hour.

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