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CNN INTERNATIONAL: U.N. And Ukraine Warn About Food Shortage Due To War In Ukraine; Rwanda Ready To Accept British Migrant Deportees; President Joe Biden Addresses Summit Of The Americas; Summit Of The Americas; Russia's War On Ukraine; Groups Seek To Block U.K. Flying Migrants To Rwanda; Thailand First Asian Country To Decriminalize Cannabis. Aired 2-3p ET

Aired June 09, 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]

ZAIN ASHER, HOST, CNN NEWSROOM: Hello everyone, I'm Zain Asher, you are watching CNN NEWSROOM live from New York. Tonight, warnings from the U.N. and Ukraine about food shortages caused by Russia's war. And we look ahead to the first televised hearing of the investigation into the riots at the U.S. Capitol. And the controversial decision to deport migrants from the U.K. to Rwanda or in Kigali. So find out more.

We begin with dire warnings about the consequences of Russia's war on one of the biggest grain exporters in the world. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the international famine is a very real threat, warning that hundreds of people could starve if Russia continues blocking Ukraine's Black Sea ports. Even if the blockade is lifted, Ukraine says next year's harvest could be reduced by almost half because of the lost of arable land.

The U.N. Secretary General says the crisis could unleash an unprecedented wave of hunger and destitution, as well as economic chaos. CNN's Clare Sebastian has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Just a day after talks between Russia and Turkey seems to lay the groundwork for at least some kind of negotiation, perhaps even just on a temporary solution to the problems of Ukraine's grain exports. More and more obstacles now seem to be getting in the way of that. One is that Russia may already be putting in place deals to sell Ukrainian grain from occupied areas.

On Wednesday, the head of the Russian military administration in occupied parts of Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia regions said the first rail shipments of grain had departed the town of Melitopol for Crimea, to be loaded onto ships to Turkey and the Middle East. Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov said no agreements had been signed yet with Turkey or the Middle East, that work was underway. Ukraine, meanwhile, is accusing Russia of stealing grain to sell for its own gain. This is what the country's deputy Agrarian minister told CNN's Julia Chatterley. TARAS VYSOTSKYI, DEPUTY MINISTER FOR AGRARIAN POLICY & FOOD, UKRAINE:

Unfortunately, we have the situation where about half a million tons of grain has been stolen by Russians on the partly occupied territories of Ukraine. We do know this because we have received the information from the people on the elevators that Russians came, just took this grain, came with military power. And also we have -- did a photo of costs and real(ph) cost, bringing this grain towards the direction of Russia or occupied Crimea.

SEBASTIAN: Elevators are, of course, storage facilities for grain. The minister also said he had seen satellite images of the grain, leaving Crimea for other countries. CNN has also uncovered evidence of this. And secondly, Ukraine is stepping up the rhetoric. President Zelenskyy calling for Russia to be expelled from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, accusing Moscow of potentially causing starvation of at least 400 million people.

Exactly, there are still fundamental disagreements about how to unravel the situation. Russia, which has blockaded Ukraine's ports claims it's ready to open up grain shipments. But first, it says Ukraine needs to de-mine the coastal waters around its southern ports. Ukraine says the real threat to world food security comes from Russia, and is wary of any Russian talk of humanitarian maritime corridors. And meanwhile, time is not on their side.

An estimated 20 million tons of grain are stuck in Ukrainian storage facilities. And the U.N. warns this Thursday that the situation could tip 47 million more people into acute hunger this year than previously estimated. Clare Sebastian, CNN, London.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ASHER: Russia's war in Ukraine is pummeling the global economy, and it's ordinary people who are feeling the heat. For the first time in more than a decade, the European Central Bank has said it plans to raise interest rates next month. It's hoping that a quarter of percentage point increase will pull Europe's inflation back from record highs.

[14:05:00]

CNN's Barbie Nadeau traveled to a market in Italy where she now takes a look at how this financial strain is impacting one of Italy's staple dishes.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE)

BARBIE NADEAU, CNN REPORTER (on camera): This is the quintessential Italian meal, spaghetti with tomato. But the price of this Italian staple has increased tremendously over the last year.

(voice-over): To understand why the cost to produce pasta from durum wheat and tomato sauce from fresh tomatoes has gone up, we went directly to the source. Here, the Maestri Pastai Factory in southern Italy, owner Valentina Castiello tells us the price of some of the raw materials to make her pasta have jumped by 100 percent. She tells us her company is trying to find ways to absorb the excess, but some of it will go to the consumer.

VALENTINA CASTIELLO, OWNER, MAESTRI PASTAI FACTORY: We have increased the price of our final product by 30 percent. The cost is high, but the consumer continues to buy the affordable products that everyone can use at home.

NADEAU: The average Italian eats around 50 pounds of pasta every year. Castiello says to confront the rising cost of living, distributors are actually buying more inventory from her factory. Because even if the price of pasta goes up, it is still by far the most affordable way for many Italians to put food on the table. The rising cost range from packaging to electricity to fuel, to transport these goods.

But it isn't just pasta makers struggling to produce economical food. At this tomato farm near Rome, that Dalai Lama(ph) owns with her father and brother, things aren't much easier. She tells us that fertilizer costs alone have risen 150 percent over last year. They had to make a drastic decision to reduce the number of tomatoes they planted by 40 percent because they have no idea where the market will be like when these new tomato plants are ready to harvest.

Moraska(ph) says the tomato is the base of the Italian diet. During the Summer as fresh produce, and during the other seasons as canned products. The factors driving the prices of these fundamental Italian ingredients are complicated. First came the pandemic, then Russia's war in Ukraine, and now, the uncertainty of what's next. Barbie Latza Nadeau, CNN, Rome.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ASHER: The house committee that's been investigating the January 6th insurrection at the U.S. Capitol is going public tonight with a televised hearing. The panel plans to unveil what it's learned from more than 1,000 witnesses, and some 140,000 documents. One committee Democrat says the panel will show that the riot at the capitol was not spontaneous, but actually rather part of a deliberate conspiracy to overturn the 2020 presidential election and block Joe Biden from taking office. Here's how our Ryan Nobles explains it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The committee believes and they want to show that many individuals came to the capital that day inspired by the former President Donald Trump because of his claims that the election was stolen. They came here with a specific purpose, to cause chaos and violence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ASHER: Let's dig deeper into this now and what we can expect from the hearings tonight with Richard Painter; he was White House ethics lawyer in the George W. Bush administration, and is a co-author of "American Nero: A History of the Rule of Law in America". Thank you so much for being with us. So obviously, lawmakers here cannot indict Trump, but what is the goal, do you think of these hearings?

RICHARD PAINTER, AUTHOR: Well, the goal, I hope, is to expose what happened, and the very deep conspiracy involving many people supporting President Trump in his challenging the election 2020.

And the impact, that conspiracy to subvert the United States government had our democracy, not just on January 6th, but also the continued efforts in the last months of the Trump administration to pressure the Justice Department, even the military, to support President Trump in seizing power and the efforts to pressure the vice president of the United States to throw the election to President Trump even though Joe Biden had clearly won the election.

This was a serious threat to our democracy, a pattern of behavior over two months before January 6th culminating in the insurrection at the capitol.

[14:10:00]

ASHER: How much will this move the needle in the court of public opinion, do you think? Just given that most people have already made their mind up about Donald Trump.

PAINTER: Well, we need to decide if we want to live in a democracy or not. And it doesn't matter whether you are a staunch conservative who would like to see another Republican president, a staunch Democrat or someone in between. The common value we share as Americans is commitment to represent a democracy. And we have had peaceful transitions of power in all instances, say it too -- in 1860, the civil war erupted over the challenges to the election of Abraham Lincoln.

And in 2020, the insurrection of the capitol, which were not as dangerous as what happened in the civil war, certainly, was a grave threat to our representatives of democracy and together as Americans. We must stand firmly against such tactics if we want to preserve the representatives of democracy, their founders established in the constitution.

ASHER: So, what can we expect tonight? I mean, this is airing on primetime television here in the United States. What can we expect tonight in terms of the type of evidence that's going to be presented by the committee?

PAINTER: Well, I hope the committee will focus not just on the events of January 6th, and the fact that President Trump's speech incited the insurrection. That much is clear, and we've been over that again and again. What we need to focus on is what was happening behind the scenes? The meeting in the Oval Office in which President Trump met with senior advisors in the White House and political supporters, to contemplate sending the military into Pennsylvania and other states to redo the election in essence of military coup.

The pressure on the Justice Department to render an opinion, saying that their election was invalid, an opinion that then would have been taken over to the military to persuade the military to support President Trump in staying in power. This is how democracies turned into dictatorships. When you have a president or other leader in a representative democracy who will not leave office when the voters have told him his time is up.

And this was a pattern of conduct through November, December, January, that was a grave threat to our democracy. And I hope the committee will focus on all of that, not just the dramatic events of a single day.

ASHER: Do you see the Justice Department going after former President Donald Trump?

PAINTER: I see the Justice Department looking into everybody, I hope. I'm not inside the Justice Department, so I can't see everything that's going on there. But I will assume the Justice Department is going to do its job, which is to prosecute everybody who committed crimes in connection with the attempt to overturn the election. That would include those who pressured United States government employees to engage in partisan political activity.

It is a felony to coerce or order a U.S. government employee to engage in partisan activity, whether it's to win election or to overturn an election. So, when Donald Trump pressured the Justice Department to render that opinion, he committed a felony. That needs to be investigated, and if the evidence supports prosecution, he should be prosecuted for that.

ASHER: All right, we'll wait and see how it all plays out on our prime time television here in the United States tonight. Richard Painter live for us, thank you so much. Still to come tonight, Ukraine's president says the fate of the entire Donbas region hinges on the fierce battle underway in Severodonetsk.

We'll get a live update from Kyiv straight ahead. And a desperate search for safety. A controversial U.K. scheme to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda begins in a matter of days -- all right, it looks at though President Joe Biden speaking now at the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles. Let's listen.

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Please, have a seat. Only been president about a year and a half, but every time I walk in a room, everybody stands up, I think there may be a fire or something.

(LAUGHTER)

Press, that was a joke.

(LAUGHTER)

That was a joke. Well, it's wonderful to be with you this morning, I really mean it. I want to thank the Chamber of Congress for bringing together this group of business leaders from all across the region, and all of us here in Los Angeles for a simple reason. Because we believe in the incredible economic potential of the Americas. I know I do, we all do. I mean, it's -- I just think the potential is unlimited.

The region is filled with dynamic energy, entrepreneurs who are ready to break out, innovators who will change the way we think and the way we do things.

[14:15:00]

Young people poised to seize the future. Everybody, the press always asked me, why am I so optimistic with the way things are? Take a look at all these young folks. They're the best educated, they're the most generous, they're the people who have done the most, they're ready to volunteer and the least prejudiced folks in the world. It's a new generation, and this underpinning gives me an enormous sense of -- and I mean this sincerely, and enormous sense of optimism.

We have everything we need right here in the western hemisphere, not only to point ourselves towards a future that is more prosperous, secure and Democratic, but the ability to achieve it as well. And for all of you, are essential to making sure we get to this place we have to get to. You know, the private sector is able to move quickly to mobilize vast amounts of investment capital that is going to be needed to unlock the enormous potential for growth in this hemisphere in the region.

When we combine the ability of government to direct economic activity towards specific challenges, to help mitigate risk, guard against unfair practices, and create predictable demand with the agility of the private sector, i believe we can deliver real improvement for people's lives. I really believe it. You know, just my wife often reminds me that I had a doctor who, a long time ago, who was saying when I had an aneurysm and kept saying is it congenital or is it environmental?

And I said, I don't care, I just -- you get it done. He said you know what your problem is, senator? I said, no. He said you're a congenital optimist.

(LAUGHTER)

But I am. I'm an American. That's why I'm a congenital optimist.

(APPLAUSE)

So what? I really mean it. We can do anything. Jobs that pay good wages and respect workers rights. Communities that come to life around investments. Families that can envision a future with an opportunity -- just as my dad would say, just give them a little bit of breathing room. A little bit of breathing room. When that happens, everyone prospers including all of you. All of you.

But to achieve this, we've got to update our recipe in my view for economic growth. It's time to put a nail in the coffin in my view of trickle-down economics. It doesn't work. It keeps you in an increasingly smaller and smaller world. It doesn't work. It keeps you in a same results, greater in equity, slower growth, less competition and less innovation. In the past few years, we've exposed the weakness of prioritizing

short-term profits and working exclusively to maximize efficiency. We learned firsthand the pain that happens when just in time supply chains breakdown or hit a bottleneck. It's a fundamental difference. And to all of you -- and you all felt it as well. COVID-19 pandemic triggered a global economic crisis that we're still digging out of. And now Putin's brutal, unprovoked war in Ukraine has created economic disruptions that are affecting the entire globe.

And that's not hyperbole. And these won't be the only shocks we're going to have to navigate. Climate change is increasing the pace and intensity of natural disasters. I leave from here, on my way back east, I'm going to be stopping in New Mexico. They've had an incredible impact on their environment of late. Rising inequity and food insecurity around the world can fuel political instability. You all know that. And the question is not if we face another pandemic, it's when we face it.

And are we going to be prepared this time? So, the economy of the future will increasingly belong to those who place a premium on resilience and reliability. Who invest in innovation over the long- term and strengthen systems, supply chains now, and mitigate the impact of future shocks before they hit. Each of us -- each of us, the government and the private sector have a critical role to play. That's why I'm focused on driving economic policies that grow our economy from the bottom up and the middle out.

Because quite frankly, when that works, everybody does well, and the wealthy do very well. No one gets hurt. No one gets hurt. For example, here in the United States, we're making a generational investment in our infrastructure. It used to -- we used to be number one in the world when I first came to the United States Congress. Now we're number 13 in the world. Thirteen. I'd have to tell business people what that means in terms of economic growth. But we're fixing that.

That's going to be the benefit to the entire region. We're investing $1.2 trillion, bipartisanly to upgrade infrastructure, to fix crumbling roads and bridges and ports, airports, all across the country. That's going to help you get goods to market faster while creating good-paying union jobs. And I know, a lot of you don't like me saying union, but union jobs to support working families. Because that's what's happening.

[14:20:00]

Everyone benefits, everybody wins when that occurs. And the return on our investment is going to strengthen U.S. competitiveness throughout the 21st century. You know, this is the same approach we're taking across America's partnership for economic prosperity. Many of the countries in our region qualify as middle income countries. But that label doesn't remove the persistent structural challenges that run in deep inequity.

Middle income means you don't get the benefit of a lot of opportunities. So, we can change that. Help governments make life better, easier and fair for the people by using hemispheric multinational financial institutions to modernize and mobilize greater levels of private investment and create good-paying jobs. I know, the real barriers for you to contend with. That's why we want to work with you to level the playing field.

As I said last night, the United States is prepared to put new capital in the inter-American development banks, private sector lending arm, the IDB invest, to help capitalize the flow of private capital into the region, especially to support start-ups, digital connectivity and renewable energy and health. For example, we need to make it easier for countries in Latin America and the Caribbean to develop their 5G infrastructure without having to choose between investing in their digital future or renewable energy structure, to be able to do both.

We need to unlock the financing so both can be done at the same time. We want to make sure our closest neighbors have a real choice between the death trap development that has become more common, more and more common in the region, and the high quality of transparent approach to infrastructure and investment that delivers lasting gains for workers and their families.

And by working through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to lower the risk around these kinds of investments, support policy reforms, improve investment in the climate and the countries -- excuse me, the investment in climate -- climate and investment in these countries, and level the playing field. We're going to open up new areas of private sector investors that are not only economically viable, but are highly desirable.

You know, over the course of this summit when governments are coming together to make significant, concrete commitments across a range of issues, vital to achieving sustainable and equitable growth throughout the region. I'm bringing supply chains closer to home. I'm fostering innovation and development and shared framework for our digital future on kicking our action on climate change into high gear and speeding our clean energy transition.

I'm bolstering health system and food security in the western hemisphere. I'm managing safe and orderly migration as a shared responsibility to innovate and coordinate action, to enforce our borders and stabilize migrant populations while seizing the shared opportunity for economic growth. My challenge to all of you, is if you step up and play a bigger role in driving inclusive, sustainable, equitable growth in the 21st century, a lot is going to happen.

What more can you do to engage these issues to shape our future? Not as a favor to me or to any government leader, but because of your own overwhelming economic self interest. If you make the investments necessary to build more secure and resilient supply chains, that's only going to bring down your cost and make you more competitive and boost your bottom line. You're going to hear from John Kerry about the opportunities for private sector innovation, and new markets that will be critical to reach our climate goals.

Yesterday, Vice President Harris spoke about the 3.2 billion mobilized by our call to action efforts in Central America, including from several companies in this room, to bring quality economic opportunity to the region. We're expanding the 100,000 strong in the Americas program, to focus on opportunities for young people in climate and stem fields, especially in the Caribbean and Central America.

And I urge you to join us with matching funds just as you did when we launched the program ten years ago. There are many more examples -- and let me close with this. We stand at an inflection point, and I know you're tired of hearing me say this when I was running, and I continue to say it every day. We're at an inflection point. More is going to change in the next ten years than has changed in the last 30 years in the world.

Decisions we make today are going to have far-reaching impacts on our future. They're going to last well into the middle of the century.

[14:25:00]

And business leaders -- as businesses, you all see with the transnational reporting -- are pointing as clearly as I do. And our challenge is to shape the outcome so the future reflects democratic values of our region. An economy that we want to live and work in, and that ensures a fair-playing field for our workers and our businesses. As we navigate this inflection point, leaders and business and those who come out ahead are going to be the people who are going to lead this change for the future.

Not those stuck looking backwards and sitting on the sidelines. None of us will be able to fully realize our ambition for the region on our own. So, let's use this summit to tackle the obstacles to growth. Come together on new ideas, new opportunities and take our region's biggest challenges on, and defeat them. And for all of us, all of us to prosper, I really believe there is nothing we're unable to do. And I think we're primed, we're primed.

And I'll close with this thing, I'm going to say a little later at the general session. I think I find no reason why the western hemisphere, the western hemisphere, over the next ten years does not develop into the most democratic hemisphere in the world, most democratic region in the entire world. We have everything. We have the people, we have the resources, and we have more democracies in this hemisphere than any other hemisphere.

There's a lot we can do. But a lot of it matters in the private enterprise side of the equation. You all -- you all have fought -- enormous ideas and opportunities. I just want to thank you all, and I look forward to working with you. As my -- every time I walk out of my grandpa Finnegan, Joey, keep the faith, and my grandmother, no, Joey, spread it.

(LAUGHTER)

Spread the faith. Thank you.

(APPLAUSE)

I appreciate it. ASHER: President Joe Biden there speaking at the Summit of the

Americas in Los Angeles. Essentially rallying the private sector, rallying CEOs to come together to bolster the economies in the region. He emphasized that look, trickle-down economics doesn't work. It's something that he said many times before. It does not work. That is not how you reduce inequality, especially not in this region. He emphasized that economic shocks will continue to face the region, be it food insecurity, political insecurity.

There will be another pandemic, he said. The key is to be ready. He emphasized climate change as an ongoing threat as well. He said that various companies can assist in terms of making sure that their companies are much more resilient and much more reliable in order to soften these economic shocks.

And President Joe Biden there just really emphasizing the role of the private sector, in terms of shifting the economic landscape and leveling the playing field for ordinary workers. I want to turn now to CNN's Priscilla Alvarez who is at the summit in Los Angeles. So, Priscilla, just walk us through what President Joe Biden said and what stood out to you in that speech?

PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN REPORTER: Well, the overarching theme of the speech was really the quote, "economic potential" of the western hemisphere. And to your point, he stressed private sector investments, something that we had already heard quite a bit about earlier in the week from Vice President Kamala Harris or has a portfolio of addressing the root causes of migration, and as a result, has been shoring up private sector support for the northern triangle countries of Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.

But this goes broader than that. And that is what Biden was speaking to today. It is bolstering the economies of the entire western hemisphere, and really sort of underlying the responsibility-sharing among the hemisphere in reducing migration, as well as tackling climate change. And he walked through some of that, including also supply chain resilience, combating climate change which has been a theme of today as well as food insecurity and addressing that.

Now, all of this is very urgent because of the pandemic, which a lot of these countries were crippled by. But also the war in Ukraine, which is something that Biden also cited as having ripple effects across the world, and in particular the western hemisphere. And I have heard that here too, from foreign ministers I spoke to. The foreign minister of Honduras just yesterday, who told me that in a ministerial meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, he mentioned it and other ministers mentioned the effect that, that war is having in their own countries, on the energy sector and on agriculture.

So, Biden really coming here and really stressing the economic potential, and saying that he is the ever optimist that hopes to see these countries advance in the next several years, with the commitments that they're signing today.

ASHER: All right, Priscilla, stand by, let me bring in Patrick Oppmann. So Patrick, just sort of walk us through the sorts of economic issues that are plaguing Latin American countries right now, and how the U.S. might assist.

[14:30:00]

PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, it's so interesting to hear him talk about the economy, because that is usually important coming out, as we are just now, of the pandemic.

But of course, this Summit of the Americas has been overshadowed by these long held Cold War era political differences. And while so many people are suffering in this tremendous disparity in Latin America and the Caribbean before the pandemic, it's only gotten worse.

That's why we are seeing these historic levels, in large part, of migration. But I think that despite the U.S.'s best efforts, despite Joe Biden's best efforts, it will be remembered for this long held Cold War ideological differences.

Cuba, Nicaragua, Venezuela were not invited. You had countries like Mexico, long-standing ally of the United States, who is essentially boycotting the summit, saying the delegation he sent, his foreign minister, they're only there out of protest.

It really is remarkable to hear that during an event where so many countries should be coming together, should be forging a new economic path that, really, you've had these issues, Latin American countries speaking up in ways they have not done in the past.

Countries the U.S. considers to be dictatorships were not invited. While Joe Biden thinks this region could become the most democratic region within several years, the reality is very different. What we are seeing on the ground, both on the Left and the Right, democracy is increasingly shaky here.

ASHER: All right, Patrick Oppmann, Priscilla Alvarez, thank you both so much.

Still to come tonight, Ukraine's president says the fate of the entire Donbas region hinges on the fierce battle underway in Severodonetsk. We'll give a live update from Kyiv ahead.

And a desperate search for safety, a controversial U.K. plan to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda begins in a matter of days. We'll have a report from the Rwandan hostel (ph) who is preparing for their arrival ahead.

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ASHER: The U.K. is condemning death sentences for three foreign fighters in Ukraine, calling it a sham judgment with absolutely no legitimacy. According to Russian news agencies, a court in the pro-Russian self-

proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic found two Britons and a Moroccan guilty of mercenary activities. Ukraine says it considers foreign volunteers to be members of its armed forces, thereby entitled to combat protections under the Geneva conventions.

Russia is waging a fierce battle to capture Donetsk and neighboring Luhansk on behalf of the separatists. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the fate of the entire Donbas could hinge on the battle for the city of Severodonetsk.

Ukraine is massively outgunned but says it could turn the tide with long-range artillery from the West. CNN's Salma Abdelaziz is following these developments tonight from Kyiv.

In terms of civilians who are trapped inside Severodonetsk right now, several thousand people remain, a lot of elderly, roughly 10,000, what are the options at this point of getting them out?

Are there any?

SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very few options, to be clear. About 10,000, as you, say civilians still trapped inside. What's important to remember here is it's not just Severodonetsk that's been heavily shelled with Russian artillery.

It's also the main access road that leads to that city. Ukrainian forces saying, if you use that main access route, there's an overwhelming chance you will be struck by Russian artillery.

That is extremely difficult to -- for those families to extract this people still stuck inside. Ukrainian forces themselves appear to be now pinned down to so-called fortified positions.

This is an area that, of course, has been fiercely fought over. President Zelenskyy says every inch of its has been fought over. You are looking at a Ukrainian force that is outmanned that, is outgunned, they say they are running low on artillery.

And they have, for weeks, now been ground on by Russian forces. It's hard to imagine what could turn the tide here, Zain. This is important.

Why are we going on about this one city, Severodonetsk?

It is important because it's essentially the last stronghold for Ukrainian forces in the Luhansk region, the larger goal here, of course, Luhansk being part of the Donbas region. The larger goal is for President Putin to take that region.

Ukrainian officials say there's been an uptick in this offensive in Severodonetsk in recent days because there is that goal of trying to declare victory, a Russian victory, in Severodonetsk by Sunday. That's Russia day, that's an Independence Day, it could be a day for President Putin to make a statement, to be able to claim the Luhansk region to be, to claim the Donbas region. I just want to pull up the map for a second, because the reality is

that, even if Severodonetsk falls to Russian forces, they're already solidifying gains in the Donbas. They're already solidifying those gains all along the eastern front, because the goal here with this invasion was to create a land bridge from Russia to the Donbas into those southern regions of Mariupol, Kherson, newly occupied regions, down to Crimea and down to those very crucial, very strategic warm water ports in the Black Sea.

That's an important goal for the economy, for trade, for security for Moscow and they are making it happen by simply making that the reality on the ground. They are rebuilding infrastructure. That means there are hundreds of kilometers of railways that are functioning, essentially, allowing for the flow of traffic.

Russian forces are already demining these ports in Berdyansk and Mariupol, reopening them to traffic. A crucial canal that provides fresh water to Crimea and Kherson, that's been reopened.

So whether the international community recognizes this, Russia is carrying on with the facts on the grounds of using this infrastructure as a land bridge, as its goal was to connect these warm water reports up into Russia. Zain.

ASHER: Salma Abdelaziz, thank you so much.

In just five days, the U.K. will start deporting asylum seekers that it says have come to Britain illegally. But they're not being returned to their home countries. They are being taken to Rwanda.

The highly controversial government scheme sees the U.K. paying about $150 million to house the migrants while their applications for asylum are processed thousands of miles away in Britain. The move is intended to deter illegal entrants into the U.K.

But human rights groups say it's unlawful, dangerous and it is cruel. CNN's Larry Madowo is live in Rwanda's capital, Kigali.

[14:40:00]

Larry, what's the view from where you are in Rwanda?

LARRY MADOWO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Rwandans bristle at the thought of thousands of migrants coming here, to one of Africa's most densely populated nations, and also the fact that these people get this kind of VIP treatment, because there are 130,000 refugees that live in Rwanda.

There is some disquiet in the refugee community here. But Rwanda says they will have full board accommodations, a chance to rebuild their lives. They're ready to receive the first migrants next week.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MADOWO (voice-over): These are the final touches at Hope Hostel in Kigali, before the first migrants deported from the U.K. arrive. MADOWO: This is the new place for the migrants.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

MADOWO (voice-over): This building that, until recently, housed young survivors of the Rwandan genocide, has a new purpose.

This newly renovated hostel can host up to 100 people, two to a room, and sharing communal bathrooms.

MADOWO: This is one type of room.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, this is (INAUDIBLE) with amenities, towels and (INAUDIBLE) baths. We've got a change of sheets.

MADOWO (voice-over): This is where the migrants will live under the watchful eye of London authorities. The hostel is functional, not luxurious. But the Rwandan government says the migrants will be free here, not in detention like in the U.K.

MADOWO: The view of Kigali.

MADOWO (voice-over): Officials are also promising health care and support for at least five years or until they're self-sufficient.

But the plan has been widely criticized by many refugee rights groups in the U.K., internationally and here in Rwanda. The main opposition party here says, Rwanda shouldn't have to bear the U.K.'s burden.

JEAN-CLAUDE NTEZIMANA, SECRETARY GENERAL, DEMOCRATIC GREEN PARTY OF RWANDA: It's their responsibility.

MADOWO: So you think the U.K. is violating its international obligations by passing that off to Rwanda?

NTEZIMANA: Yes. And you can see why. We are struggling with having enough infrastructure, electricity, water, roads, schools, hospitals. We are not dissimilar care U.K. We have to think twice.

MADOWO (voice-over): Rwanda and the U.K. expect this migrant scheme to disrupt the business of people smugglers. But many international bodies, even the U.K., rank Rwanda poorly under some human rights indicators. Critics also say exiting migrants' rich countries don't want is cruel and inhumane.

YOLANDE MAKOLO, SPOKESPERSON, RWANDA GOVERNMENT: It's cruel and it's inhumane, the people are dying in the desert, trying to cross the desert, making these dangerous journeys, drowning in the Mediterranean. We're interested in protecting vulnerable people and this has been our philosophy for the last 30 years.

MADOWO (voice-over): Rwanda has also welcomed refugees and asylum seekers evacuated from Libya, after unsuccessfully trying to cross to Europe. Orientation has started for the latest arrivals at the Gashora Emergency Transit Center.

They're mostly from the Horn of Africa.

MADOWO: How do you compare the conditions in the four years you spent in Libya and here in Rwanda?

ZEMEN FESAHA, REFUGEE, GASHORA EMERGENCY TRANSIT CENTER (through translator): It is so difficult to compare because it is like from hell to heaven.

MADOWO: Being at Libya to Rwanda is like coming from hell to heaven?

FESAHA: Yes, yes, yes.

MADOWO (voice-over): Zemen is grateful for the peace and freedom in Rwanda. But it's not his destination of choice. None of the people we spoke to here wanted to stay, even though it's one of the options.

MADOWO: Your final goal is still to go to Europe?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

MADOWO (voice-over): Rwanda has become the global market leader in migrant offshoring. After the U.K. scheme, a deal with Denmark is in the works. It's helped clean up Rwanda's image internationally. But some accuse it of trying to paint over a dark reputation.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MADOWO: One of the biggest criticisms of this Rwanda-U.K. migrant deal is that this people are being forced to come here, 4,000 miles away from the U.K. after they have risked so much to get there.

It's illegal to do so. Rwanda says there are no laws being broken by this. And even though a similar plan already failed, Israel sent migrants here until about 2017-18. Many of them left as soon as they could.

The Israeli supreme Court came out against that decision. But Rwanda is very confident about this working out. In fact, we expect an announcement about a similar deal with Denmark anytime now.

ASHER: So other countries are already following suit. Larry Madowo, live for us, thank you so much.

Still to come tonight, the new Saudi-backed LIV Golf tourist is drawing in the game's top players with huge payouts. How that may affect the future of the sport altogether, next.

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ASHER: Welcome back. (SPORTS)

ASHER: We will have much more news after this quick break. Don't go away.

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ASHER: U.S. lawmakers are expected to vote next week on new security measures to protect Supreme Court justices and their families. The urgency to pass new protections comes after a man was arrested with guns and weapons outside the home of justice Brett Kavanaugh on Wednesday.

The man actually called police and turned himself in after arriving outside of Kavanaugh's home.

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UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Units be advised, a caller came to kill Supreme Court justice Rex Kavanaugh. He came from California, took a taxi from the airport to this location.

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ASHER: Security is tight across all of Washington as the Supreme Court is expected to hand down decisions soon on several high-profile cases, including abortion in the United States.

Long queues and big cheers in Thailand this morning. Customers are celebrating buying cannabis legally for the first time.

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Thailand has just become the first Asian country to decriminalize growing and selling the crop. They are, hoping it will help boost local tourism and are even giving away 1 million cannabis seedlings as a head start.

But weed fans be warned. Recreational use of the drug is still illegal.

The U.S. space agency's $10 billion telescope has been damaged by debris smaller than a grain of sand. The micrometeorite slammed into the giant mirror on the James Webb Telescope about two weeks ago. NASA says it has not compromise the mission.

The telescope is the largest and most powerful of its kind. It's set to deliver its first batch of photos in July, focused on the early universe and the growth of galaxies, stars and other worlds.

Thank you so much for watching tonight. Stay with CNN. "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is up next.