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NATO Leaders To Gather For Final Day Of The Summit; Putin Denies Russia Responsible For Missile Strike On Mall; Chinese Leader Xi Jinping To Visit City For Friday's Event; Interview with Iceland Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir; Finland and Sweden Invited to Join NATO; Interview with Co-founder #MuteRKelly Kenyette Barnes; Lithuanians to Repel Any Russian Assault; Tragedy in Texas; Los Angeles County Returns Beach Property to Rightful Owners; Pat Cipollone Summoned January 6 Committee. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired June 30, 2022 - 02:00   ET

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

[02:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LYNDA KINKADE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. Live from CNN world headquarters in Atlanta, I'm Lynda Kinkade, and this is CNN NEWSROOM.

Coming up, Finland and Sweden are set to be welcomed into NATO with open arms. Why war-torn Ukraine isn't getting the same treatment?

Hong Kong is gearing up to celebrate 25 years since its handover to China, but some journalists won't be able to cover official ceremonies. We're going to go live to Hong Kong.

And it's a prison sentence years in the making. Musician, R. Kelly receives 30 years behind bars. Here reaction from his victims.

ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center. This is CNN NEWSROOM with Linda Kinkade.

KINKADE: NATO leaders had set to begin arriving this hour for the final day of their summit in Madrid, Spain. After Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the alliance has formally invited Sweden and Finland to join. And NATO has also agreed to its most significant strengthening since the Cold War. The expansion runs counter to Vladimir Putin's long- stated goal to keep NATO from growing. The Russian president says he has no issues with Sweden and Finland, but he vowed to respond in kind to any threats from those territories.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VLADIMIR PUTIN, PRESIDENT OF RUSSIA: Speaking in a foreign language.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We don't have problems with Sweden and Finland like we do with Ukraine. We don't have territorial differences. There is nothing that can bother us about Sweden and Finland joining NATO. If Finland in Sweden wished to, they can join. That's up to them. (END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: While Western leaders are celebrating Sweden and Finland's imminent inclusion into NATO, Ukraine's president is feeling like the odd man out. Why he asks, is Ukraine's years-long request to join the defense alliance, seeming to fall on deaf ears?

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Speaking in a foreign language.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: NATO's open-door policy shouldn't remind us of the mechanism of the old key metric barriers. They are open. But as soon as you approach them, they are shelf until you pay. Has Ukraine not paid enough? Is our contribution to the defense of Europe and the entire civilization, not enough?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, President Zelenskyy later called on Western powers to put more pressure on Moscow saying current sanctions are not enough. He says Russia continues to attack civilian targets across Ukraine, including 10 missile strikes on Wednesday in Mykolaiv killing five people. Well, Ukrainians are celebrating the return of 144 Ukrainian troops in a prisoner swap. Nearly 100 of them had defended the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol before they were forced to surrender more than a month ago. Ukraine's defense ministry says many of the returning soldiers are badly wounded.

CNN's Scott McLean is live this hour in Kyiv, Ukraine, and CNN White House reporter, Kevin Liptak, is in Madrid for us. I'll start with you first, Kevin. NATO is expanding, clearly the opposite of what Vladimir Putin wanted when he invaded Ukraine. And the U.S. is also planning to put troops in Europe permanently.

KEVIN LIPTAK, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER: Right. I think that the NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg probably put it best when he said that Putin's aim was less NATO, instead, he's getting more NATO. And so leaders are leaving this summit today, really with a new sense of purpose for this defense alliance. There had been a debate for so many years among the NATO allies about how to approach Russia. Now, that's really clear, they have put out in their strategic concept document their kind of mission statement that Russia now poses the biggest threat to the Allied security. They've also mentioned China for the first time in that document saying that this budding alliance between Moscow and Beijing runs counter to the goals of NATO.

And so leaders are leaving here with the Alliance larger. They've added two countries to it. They're leading -- leaving with it more muscular, all of these attempts to bolster the eastern flank with a new force posture, enhanced force posture. And they're leaving with it more focus, identifying Russia as the biggest threat really leaving Madrid with a new sense of purpose.

[02:05:05]

LIPTAK: But I think the question in all of this is whether anything that came out of these summits this week, both this summit and the earlier G7 summit, whether it's massive new sanctions on Russia, new shipments of security assistance to Ukraine, and this new reinvigorated NATO. Whether any of that is going to be able to turn the tide on the ground in Ukraine where momentum right now still very much favors Russia as it continues to make small gains in the East.

And the top U.S. intelligence official, Avril Haines, the Director of National Intelligence really painted quite a grim portrait of the situation on the ground yesterday. She said that Putin is willing to stick it out, according to U.S. intelligence assessments because he believes that the willingness of the West to continue on will eventually wane. She said that the consensus of that intelligence is that this war could last a lot longer.

Now, President Zelenskyy when he spoke to the NATO alliance yesterday, he was clear he did not want this to drag on. And he made a new call for more modern artillery in an attempt to kind of regain the initiative on the ground there. And so while the buzz words at the summits this week were unity, collective will to help Ukraine, it is clear that there's not a lot of agreement necessarily on what the next phase of this war will necessarily look like, Lynda.

KINKADE: Yes, but it certainly seems it will drag on as you point out, Kevin. I want to go to Scott McLean now, who joins us from Kyiv. And, Scott, Amnesty International report has found that Russia's attack on that Mariupol Theater, which was used to shelter hundreds of civilians, was clearly a war crime. And we're getting that news as, of course, Putin is denying that Russia destroyed a shopping mall in Kremenchuk, which is a city far from the battlefield.

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. And yesterday, Vladimir Putin said that look, Russia does not target civilian infrastructure. They don't have to because they have plenty of resources to know exactly what they're going to be striking. But you mentioned that Amnesty International report, which found that Russia did deliberately target that theater in Mariupol back in March, the one where, as you said, hundreds of civilians were sheltering in the basement. Not only that but there were also the Russian word for children spelled out in very large letters on either side of that theater. So there should have been absolutely no doubt about who was inside when those bombs came barreling down on those civilians.

In the case of the mall, right now, at that site, my colleague had a chance to travel out there yesterday and she found that there are two things happening on site. There is, of course, rescue workers picking through the rubble dismantling the mall trying to make it safe looking for bodies. There are also investigators on site trying to collect evidence of war crimes and trying to collect evidence specifically that the Russians knew that this was a civilian target, and they struck it anyways.

The Russians say that they were actually targeting a cache of weapons that was nearby -- a cache of foreign weapons and ammunition that was nearby. But again, my colleague went out there and with the prosecutor in that area who said that there's no evidence that there was any ammunition stored on that site, if there was, there would be holes where the bullets would have penetrated the side of that building because they would have exploded when that bomb actually came down. They simply have not found that at this stage of the game. The Ukrainians obviously, tell a very different story. They say that this was not -- this was not the mall being collateral damage, as the Russians say, they say that it was deliberately targeted, but now they're going to have to collect evidence to see if they can actually prove that case.

You mentioned the theater, back in March, Lynda, obviously, we have the mall. And even just yesterday in Mykolaiv, the president said that 10 civilian sites were targeted, including a five-story apartment building. This is really just par for the course in this war.

KINKADE: Yes, sad but true, the evidence of war crimes certainly growing. Scott McLean for us in Kyiv, and Kevin Liptak in Madrid, our thanks to you both.

And I want to bring in Josh Rogin. He's a columnist for the global opinions section of the Washington Post and a CNN political analyst. Good to have you with us, Josh.

JOSH ROGIN, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Great to be with you.

KINKADE: So U.S. President Joe Biden says NATO is more united than ever. And he's pledged to boost America's military operation in Europe in order to make sure that NATO is ready to meet any potential threat. It was only a few years ago, of course, when members questioned whether the alliance was still relevant. Just how United is NATO right now when it comes to dealing with the threat from Russia?

[02:10:00]

ROGIN: Well, it's very clear that NATO is united when it comes to defending NATO from Russia. What's less clear is that, whether or not the NATO countries are united when it comes to defending Ukraine from Russia. And while we see a bolstering of NATO forces, a recognition of the importance of NATO to protecting its member countries, at the same time, it's very clear that the Summit and the G7 summit before it did not produce a quantitative or qualitative increase in support, especially arm support for the Ukrainians who are in the midst of the brutal part of their fight with Russia in the East -- in the east. Not a lot of new weapons. The Ukraine did not get the weapons that it wanted in terms of long-range artillery. So, yes, NATO is united but if it's not doing the things that are going to allow the Ukrainians to push Russia back and finish the war, sooner rather than later then what good is that unity in the end?

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And Josh, Ukraine, of course, currently at war with Russia, desperately wants membership in NATO. Why won't the Alliance agree to let Ukraine in, and what would it mean in the very unlikely case that they did?

ROGIN: Well, what's really interesting, I think, is if you look at the communique that they released today from the NATO Summit, it doesn't even mention Ukraine's membership into NATO. That's a change from just last year when the last few communique said that Ukraine was on the path to NATO membership and should be in, will eventually become a part of NATO.

Why did they drop that? It seems that actually they're moving further away from Ukraine being a member rather than closer. And that's troubling from Ukraine's perspective, to be sure. The reason, of course, is that other NATO countries don't want to provoke Russia. And, of course, now that Russia is occupying 20 percent of NATO -- of Ukraine, in addition to what they already stole, it's really hard to incorporate a country that's occupied into NATO. But I think what we see is a trend of NATO putting up the walls around the countries that are in it now, and -- including Sweden and Finland, and then closing the door behind them.

KINKADE: So, Turkey, of course, negotiated a deal with Finland and Sweden and dropped its objections to their request to join NATO. Why does their membership matter?

ROGIN: Well, bolstering NATO's Northern Front is crucial. And Finland and Sweden are a crucial part of that. And by extending the borders of NATO in the north, and joining forces with Finland and Sweden that will definitely make Putin think twice before trying something in that part of Europe. But it doesn't solve anything in the south of Europe, especially in the southeast of Europe, where the war is actually going on, where countries around Ukraine, including NATO member states, like Romania, but also, non-NATO states, like Moldova are under increasing threat. So it's good for one part of the problem, but not for the other part of the problem. And I think that's the takeaway.

KINKADE: Yes, exactly. And, Josh, we've seen so many world leaders visit Ukraine and meet with President Zelenskyy. What's the likelihood that U.S. President, Biden, will visit Ukraine, given his wife has already met with Ukraine's First Lady near the border with Poland?

ROGIN: You know, I don't think that the security conditions are such in Kyiv that the U.S. government would take the risk of sending the president of the United States there right now. But, of course, it remains their-long term goal. This is again, part of a series of calculations that's going on inside the Biden administration about what to -- what to do to help Ukraine and what not to do. And often these calculations are made based on U.S. politics and U.S. interests, which is natural but at the same time, they come at the expense of things that Zelenskyy wants. And that's the tension that's existed this whole time since the war began. And that's one of the problems of the shaky alliance between NATO and Ukraine that is facing the onslaught from Russia today and will be for the foreseeable future.

KINKADE: Yes, certainly a lot of challenges going forward. Josh Rogin, as always, thanks so much for joining us.

ROGIN: Anytime.

KINKADE: All right, now, we are waiting for a vote in Israel's Knesset which will set the stage for the fifth election in less than four years. Lawmakers are scheduled to dissolve parliament which would end Naftali Bennett's time as prime minister. He'll be replaced by a Foreign Minister Yair Lapid. Last night, Mr. Bennett made it clear he does not plan on running for reelection. And that, of course, opens the door for former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to try to reclaim the job he had for 15 years.

Still to come. Preparing for a visit from the Chinese leader as Hong Kong is set to mark the 25th anniversary of its handover to China. We'll have the latest in a live report. Plus, a French court hands down a historic verdict in the 2015 Paris attacks trial. We'll have the details coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[02:17:04]

KINKADE: Well, Chinese President Xi Jinping hints to Hong Kong to mark 25 years since the city's handover from Britain to China on Friday, but a number of local and international journalists including from CNN will not be there. That's because they've been prevented from covering ceremonies during Mr. Xi's visit. The Hong Kong Journalists Association says at least 10 applications were rejected for security reasons. We'll CNN's Ivan Watson is trying to cover through for us from Hong Kong and joins us now live.

Ivan, Xi Jinping, obviously, set to begin this two-day visit to Hong Kong from this afternoon. This is his first trip outside mainland China since the pandemic began. And there seem to be some pretty strict restrictions in place.

IVAN WATSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. For example, here on the waterfront, you can't find a garbage can around here. I think that's one of the security measures we have there, Marine Police boat kind of moving around. And don't forget, a lot of this is normal for the visit of any head of state, these extra security precautions. But also, Hong Kong is one of the most isolated places in the world because of the zero-COVID policy of China and Hong Kong. So the internal boundary between Hong Kong and mainland China, that's largely closed. And any international visitor to Hong Kong faces one of the strictest quarantines in the world, at least seven days in a hotel to try to come here.

The last time Xi Jinping was here was five years ago at the 20th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong from British to Chinese rule. And the city has changed pretty dramatically since that time. Organized political opposition has been all but crushed, and the changes are being welcomed by the Chinese authorities and establishment who are promoting what they're calling a new era in Hong Kong. One, they say that is of stability, prosperity, and opportunity.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON (voiceover): A massive police deployment in central Hong Kong on June 4 to stop what used to be an annual tradition here, a candlelight vigil for the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre in Beijing. For 30 years, the vigil attracted tens of thousands of peaceful participants until the practice was banned in 2020 they say due to COVID 19. In fact, the authorities have banned all independent street protests, while also cracking down hard on the city's political opposition.

DENNIS KWOK, FORMER MEMBER OF HONG KONG LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL: Speaking in a foreign language.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People are living in a state of fear.

WATSON: For 8 years, Dennis Kwok was an elected Hong Kong lawmaker until the government disqualified him from running for office in 2020.

KWOK: There are so many of my colleagues who are either in jail or have been arrested.

WATSON: Speaking from self-imposed exile in the U.S., Kwok argues the freedoms Hong Kong enjoyed started coming under threat when Xi Jinping took control of the ruling Communist Party in 2012.

[02:20:12]

KWOK: Hong Kong is one of the symptoms of where China is going. And I'm afraid that the country is taking a turn for authoritarianism, of a kind, which we haven't seen for many, many decades.

XI JINPING, PRESIDENT OF CHINA: Speaking in a foreign language.

WATSON: This year marks Xi's 10th year as the leader of China.

CY LEUNG, FORMER HONG KONG CHIEF EXECUTIVE: He's a very affable person.

WATSON: See why long previously worked as Beijing's appointed Chief Executive of Hong Kong. He's also an enthusiastic supporter of Xi.

LEUNG: Bounty of our electoral fund, for example. I mean, he's the key and major driving force behind basically cleaning up the country and also his anti-corruption efforts on all levels in the country.

WATSON: These would be, in your opinion, the highest marks for his kind of biggest accomplishments in China?

LEUNG: Yes, I would think so. And also, development of the -- of the economy.

WATSON: Xi has asserted Chinese hard and soft power overseas.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Speaking in a foreign language.

WATSON: Building manmade islands and military bases in contested waters of the South China Sea. Under his rule, China has made huge trade and infrastructure investments around the world as part of the Belt and Road Initiative. In 2018, China's ceremonial Parliament removed presidential term limits, paving the way for Xi to potentially rule for life. CARL MINZNER, SENIOR FELLOW FOR CHINA STUDIES, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: He looks back at the 50s and possibly in the 60s and sees that if I can bring back some of the political ideology and the vibrancy of that period, this can help combat sloth and corruption and other problems with the giant system.

WATSON: Xi's time in office has also seen a dramatic expansion of a high-tech state surveillance system used to chilling effect in China's Xinjiang region, where Western governments accused Beijing of detaining up to 2 million Uyghur Muslims and members of other ethnic minorities in internment camps. Traumatized victims of this crackdown question Xi's legacy.

ABDUWALI AYUP, UYGHUR ACTIVIST & FORMER POLITICAL PRISONER: What are we going to leave your behind, genocide, cruelty, dehumanization, this kind of cruelty? And do you want this becomes a culture, become a, like the behavior, and then do you want to expand this behavior to a different country like this? Do you want the world you become you, you create this system, digitalize prison in the world?

WATSON: The Chinese government rejects criticism of its human rights record, arguing it uses lawful measures to maintain security against violent extremists. In mainland China, officials offered cash rewards for tips about hostile forces. While here in Hong Kong, this public awareness campaign warns people to be on the lookout for possible terrorism. After a decade in power, Xi Jinping says he's making China great but his government seems to talk about internal and external threats more than ever.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WATSON: Now, Lynda so much has changed in Hong Kong since that handover 25 years ago. The skyline here, the waterfront, but some things are coming full circle, the weather. 25 years ago at the handover ceremony, both Chinese and the British delegations, they were being doused in rain. There is a typhoon coming in now as Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, is expected to make his visit to this city. Lynda.

KINKADE: Yes. Don't get blown away, not the most welcoming weather for the Chinese president. Our thanks to Ivan Watson in Hong Kong.

A disgraced political dynasty has just made a comeback in the Philippines. About two hours ago, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was sworn in in Manila. He was elected in a landslide last month. He is, of course, the son of former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr. who ran the country with an iron fist for 21 years. His father was forced to flee the Philippines after his regime was toppled in a popular revolution back in 1986. For Marcos Jr., who is known by the nickname BongBong, says he should be judged by his own actions, not his family's past.

And in a historic verdict, a French court sentenced the only known surviving member of the group responsible for the 2015 Paris attacks to life in prison without parole. Salah Abdeslam was found guilty of murder and terrorism. Although Abdeslam was one of 20 people on trial, he was the only one accused of physically carrying out the attacks. Survivors of that terrifying night in November expressed their relief after the verdict.

[02:25:09]

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLIVIER FISCHER, ATTACK SURVIVOR: Speaking in a foreign language.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am extremely satisfied of the sentences given. I think they are really at the level of what the state should do to protect itself from these types of individuals. It is a very clear message addressed to all people who are tempted by the experience of radical Islamism.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, ISIS had claimed responsibility for the attacks in the Bataclan concert hall, cafes, and the national stadium that left 130 people dead.

Russia's Baltic neighbors have plenty of historic reasons to be wary of Moscow's military aggression. Coming up. How the war in Ukraine has led many Lithuanians to volunteer to help to defend their country in case of a Russian attack? Plus, Iceland's prime minister talks about the war in Ukraine with our Nic Robertson. We'll get her assessment just ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

KATRIN JAKOBSDOTTIR, ICELAND PRIME MINISTER: Right now, I don't see any solution to the war on the horizon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KINKADE: Well, NATO leaders are gathering this hour for the final day of their summit in Madrid, Spain. The alliance is vowing to strengthen its defenses in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The U.S. alone will send thousands of additional troops plus fighter jets, ships, and other military equipment to its partner countries. And NATO has formally invited Sweden and Finland to join the organization. The move follows an agreement with Turkey which had been reluctant to allow the expansion. U.S. President Joe Biden expressed his gratitude to his Turkish counterpart.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Thank you for making the effort to come over. I want to particularly thank you for what you did putting together the situation with regard to Finland and Sweden, and all the incredible work you're doing to try to get Ukraine out of -- out of Ukraine and Russia. I mean you're doing a great job. Thank you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: The NATO expansion is getting a frosty reception from the Prime Minister of Iceland. She says Turkey was wrong for taking matters unrelated to NATO and making the conditions for membership. CNN's Nic Robertson asked her how Russia's invasion of Ukraine has changed this for her country.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAKOBSDOTTIR: Well, I think what we see having war in the continent impacts all of us even though we are not the nearest neighbors. For example, in Iceland, we have experienced increased pressure of cyberattacks after the invasion.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: And historically, you and your party have been as opposed to NATO membership.

[02:30:00]

JAKOBSDOTTIR: Yes.

ROBERTSON: Have these events, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the situation now, has that changed your mind, your opinion?

JAKOBSDOTTIR: Well, I haven't changed my policy which is really based on the fact that pacifism and peace is the precondition for prosperity in the world. So, that is my firm belief.

ROBERTSON: And what do you think President Putin's reaction is going to be if he's getting the opposite effect? He's getting much more NATO, greater presence. This is not what he wanted.

JAKOBSDOTTIR: Obviously not -- you know, obviously, I think that this war is -- shows us really the terrible effects of war.

ROBERTSON: Can we predict what President Putin is going to do?

JAKOBSDOTTIR: Right now, I won't predict anything. And right now, I don't see any solution to the war on the horizon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Well, the Baltic States bordering Russia have been on edge ever since Moscow invaded Ukraine. And welcoming the promised surge of NATO troops to the region. In Lithuania, more and more civilians are signing up to help defend their country from any potential Russian aggression. CNN's Nina dos Santos joins us from the Lithuanian capital.

Good to have you there for us, Nina. Many in Lithuania now joining the country's militia, and certainly plenty of historic reasons for the to be wary.

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right. Remember this is a country that only regained its independence after the end of Soviet rule in 1990. And there's many are people in this country that remember what it was like to grow up under Soviet occupation. Many of them saw their parents very, very badly treated. And everybody here you speak to almost has some kind of story of the type of situation they're desperate not to return to.

And it's for that reason, Lynda, that they are signing up in very large numbers and increasing ones to these homegrown paramilitary organizations, like this one that had been going for some time but enjoyed a recent resurgence in activity.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

DOS SANTOS (voiceover): Having a neighbor like Russia keeps Vetoes Gudinski (ph) up at night, armed with his machine gun and a Maltese terrier, he's literally the first line of defense if the Kremlin's troops, at the end of his street, take one step onto NATO soil.

DOS SANTOS (on camera): That's where Russia starts?

GUDINSKI (PH): Yes, Russians.

DOS SANTOS (on camera): At the end of your street?

GUDINSKI (PH): Yes.

DOS SANTOS (voiceover): Vetoes says, he can see the soldiers after dark with his night vision goggles. He points to a shooting range over the hill. You often hear the shots, he says, from there. Soviet occupation is a deeply personal memory in this part of Europe. Vetoes says his own father was among the quarter of a million Lithuanian's to be sent to gulags, where many perished.

So, when Russia annexed Crimea, Vetoes joined Lithuania's historic volunteer militia, the Riflemen Union, ran by a regional commander also desperate to avoid a return to Russian rule.

EGIDIJUS PAPECKYS, COMMANDER, RIFLEMEN'S 4TH REGIONAL COMMAND: Everybody has the same story. Somebody was shot by a Soviet, for example, by a soldier of Soviet regime or sent to Siberia. Just because we're Lithuanians.

DOS SANTOS (voiceover): The Riflemen's membership has increased tenfold since the war in Ukraine began. Young adults keen to get trained up.

Every Lithuanian knows that Russia was a threat, says this new recruit in his 30s. And in this part of the Southern Baltics, that threat feels very real.

DOS SANTOS (on camera): I'm standing on what is currently one of the world's hottest borders, right inside NATO territory. Its attractive land called the Suwalki Corridor between Lithuania and Poland, which also lies to the West here between Kaliningrad, the heavily fortified nuclearized Baltic outpost of Russia. And over there, the Kremlin's ally, Belarus, about 60 miles in that direction. The fear is that if Ukraine were to fall, Russia's army could roll right through here.

GABRIELIUS LANDSBERGIS, LITHUANIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: We always said that we need additional allied troops within Lithuanian territory, in case Mr. Putin or his friends would try something. DOS SANTOS (voiceover): Lithuania's move to block the transit of some goods to Kaliningrad has raised the stakes just as NATO leaders meet. And Russia has already retaliated with ongoing cyberattacks.

MARGIRIS ABUKEVICIUS, LITHUANIAN VICE MINISTER OF DEFENCE: We have started witnessing an increase and more intensity in cyber activities against our state institutions, against some critical operators, especially transport.

DOS SANTOS (voiceover): Realizing it may get just one shot at protecting the Baltics, the alliance will now more than double the 3,000 troops stationed today. When they arrive, the Rifleman will be ready.

PAPECKYS: We are ready to fight with NATO, together with NATO, shoulder to shoulder.

DOS SANTOS (voiceover): Vetoes and his fellow volunteers have faith in NATO's protection, but living so close to Russia, they also have to be ready for anything.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

[02:35:00]

DOS SANTOS (on camera): So, there's great optimism that NATO's now committed to a new strategy to make sure that it can really deter any type of attempted aggression from Russia in this part of the world. But as a recognition, the deputy defense minister was telling me a couple of days ago that it could take up to two years for these troops to actually arrive. Which is why this paramilitary organizations are growing in number. Lynda.

KINKADE: Interesting report. Nina dos Santos for us in the Lithuanian capital. Thanks very so much.

Well, still ahead on CNN Newsroom, singer R. Kelly sentenced to prison on multiple charges, including sex trafficking. We'll speak with one of the founders of a group working to keep his music off the radio. And we'll get her reaction.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

Welcome back. Disgrace singer. R. Kelly has been sentenced to 30 years in prison. He was convicted last year of multiple charges including federal racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child, violating sexual trafficking laws, and more. Kelly's attorneys say they're ready to fight for an appeal. The singer has consistently said he's not guilty of any of the charges. Seven of R. Kelly's accusers address the court before the sentencing. One quoted saying, "Now, it's your turn to have your freedom taken away." Jovante Cunningham, a former backup singer for Kelly, praised the sentence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOVANTE CUNNINGHAM, R. KELLY ACCUSER: I started this journey 30 years ago. I was 14 years old when I encountered Robert Sylvester Kelly. There wasn't a day in my life, up until this moment, that I actually believed that the judicial system would come through for black and brown girls. 30 years did he do this, and 30 years as what he got.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KINKADE: Let's talk more about this with Kenyette Barnes. She's the National Cofounder of Mute R. Kelly. She joins us here from Atlanta.

Good to have you with us. Thanks so much for your time.

KENYETTE BARNES, CO-FOUNDER, #MUTERKELLY: Thank you so much for having me.

KINKADE: So, R. Kelly, whose real name is Robert Kelly, has faced sexual abuse allegations for decades, since the mid-1990s, and only now is he finally facing justice. Today's sentence to 30 years in prison for sex crimes, including sexual exploitation of a minor, kidnapping, trafficking, forced labor. What is your response?

BARNES: It's a little surreal, I have to be honest. I mean, you mentioned, this is a 30 -- this is 30 years in the making. I mean, he got 30 years in federal prison in the United States. But he's also been doing this for about 30 years. So, it kind of -- you know, gosh. I think it's almost like one year for every year that he's been doing this.

But for me it is surreal because, one, it should've never taken this long. I mean, people have been talking about R. Kelly's behavior for decades, myself included. And it took so many activists, so many survivors, journalists, most notably, (INAUDIBLE) out of Chicago.

[02:40:00]

To really have been pounding the pavement, to spend shoe-leather journalism to get people to just care. And all that work has culminated in this sentence today. So, it's a little surreal for me. A little surreal.

KINKADE: Yes, no doubt. And for those not familiar with him, give us some more history. Because he came to fame internationally with a hit song, "I believe I can fly". And it seemed to use his notoriety to exploit young girls. Even marrying an underage girl.

BARNES: Absolutely. So, Robert Kelly is from South Side, Chicago, Illinois in the United States. It's a mecca for music and entertainment. But what happened is, something went horribly wrong with Robert Kelly. And as far back as the '90s, and people knew about his behavior, but it was all rumor about the things he was doing. But people knew something was just wrong. And I remember, my mother would always say, when there's smoke, there's fire.

And even as a young woman, I actually liked R. Kelly's music. But I knew, you didn't go back stage when he came to town. You didn't get involved with him. But unfortunately, there were young women who had aspirations to be, you know, a recording star. And if the king of R and B wants to mentor you, most people are not going to say no. And unfortunately, that was, sort of, the gateway to the grooming and the abusive behavior that so many young women, and we now learn young men experienced at the hands of R. Kelly.

KINKADE: And despite the allegations over the last 30 years, people would still go to his concerts and buy his albums. You co-founded the national group movement, MuteRKelly, back in 2017, the same year as the global MeToo Movement took hold. Why did he get away with it for so long? And what was the primary focus of your group?

BARNES: Well, I think he got away with it for so long because the people that he targeted were black women. And when we talk about, sort of, sexual violence and black bodies, we find that black women, black girls, people of color, they tend to not be believed. They tend to not be believed in the investigation stage. And they are less likely to see their perpetrators do significant jail time.

So, R. Kelly knew that if I wanted to do this, if I wanted to play out my perversion, that the perfect victim were young, black and brown girls and boys, and people who didn't have social capital. People who didn't have the ability to, sort of, protect themselves. And I could have whatever I want and do whatever I want with them.

But I think what he learned today is that, at some point, the music did stop for him. We started MuteRKelly, our purpose was to create a seismic paradigm shift. And how we talk about Robert Kelly, how we consumed his art, and how we support him. And you mentioned that there are people who still go to his concerts and, you know, you can only get to so many people. There are people who, unfortunately, have their own traumas and beliefs about, you know, trauma. And they have an ability to, sort of, live in a cognitive dissonance where, yes, he's accused and now convicted and sentenced to these horrific things but I like the music, so, I'm going to separate the man from the music. And so, you know, it's a conundrum for me, both as an activist and the leader of this campaign and also as a mother and as a woman of color.

KINKADE: Well, well-done on all your work that helped to lead to this day of justice. Kenyette Barnes, thank you so much for your time.

BARNES: Thank you so much for having me.

KINKADE: Well, I'm Lynda Kinkade. I'll be back in about 15 minutes. We have much more from CNN Newsroom. World Sport is next.

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[02:45:00]

The death toll rising to 53 in Texas in what's being called the deadliest human smuggling case in U.S. history. On Monday, a packed semi-truck was found abandoned in sweltering heat on a remote stretch of road known as the mouth of the wolf for how dark it gets. The road runs parallels Interstate 35.

Tonight the 45-year-old driver of that truck has been arrested on charges related to alleged involvement in human smuggling resulting in death. He could be facing life in prison. Police say, he was found hiding in the brush while trying to get away. So far four people have been charged in connection to the tragedy. A worker heard cries coming from the truck and alerted authorities. The San Antonio police chief telling CNN when he arrived the floor of the tractor-trailer was, "Completely covered in bodies". And tonight, we have new audio of police as they arrived on the scene and identified one of the suspects.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The truck driver is running Southbound on foot on -- along the railroad tracks.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can I also get one more here? I have so many bodies here.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All we have right now is Hispanic male that may be wearing a brown shirt, going Southbound from that location either along the railroad truck or towards the -- a mechanic shop right there, nearby on New Laredo Highway. K9s have been notified.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 3-4-2 we got another body just North of the trailer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: 16 survivors, including four who are underaged were rushed to local hospitals suffering from heatstroke and exhaustion. Officials say they were too weak to move and too hot to the touch. 11 of those people are still in local hospitals. Texas Governor Greg Abbott denouncing new truck check point planned to check vehicles like the one used in this incident. We'll keep you updated.

Los Angeles attempting to right a historic wrong. Prime Beachfront Real Estate returned to its rightful owners nearly 100 years after a black couple were harassed and their property was taken away.

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[02:50:00]

A wrong finally being made right in Southern California after nearly 100 years. Los Angeles County returning a piece of beachfront property to its rightful owners, the descendants of a black couple whose land was taken in 1924 by the City of Manhattan Beach, smack in the middle of the Jim Crow era. Tonight, the saga of Bruce's Beach from CNN's Stephanie Elam.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voiceover): For decades, this beautiful California beach held shameful secrets of racism and wrongdoing, stretched out as a physical reminder how Charles and Willa Bruce were harassed of their property nearly 100 years ago when the City of Manhattan beach seized Bruce's beach. CHIEF DUANE "YELLOW FEATHER" SHEPARD, HISTORIAN AND SPOKESMAN FOR THE CHARLES AND WILL BRUCE FAMILY: All we knew was that we were going to step up and speak out and make sure that people never forgot this wrong.

ELAM (voiceover): A wrong, the County of Los Angeles began working to fix last year, culminating with the board of supervisors unanimously voting this week.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Motion carries five to zero.

ELAM (voiceover): To return the land to the Bruce's great, great- grandchildren. Marking the first time in the county's history, black descendants have had their family's land returned.

HOLLY J. MITCHELL, LOS ANGELES COUNTY SUPERVISOR: We aren't giving property to anyone today. We are returning property.

ELAM (voiceover): In 1912, The Bruce's bought the land for more than $1,200. Eventually they owned two parcels and started a business, offering a place for black people in Southern California to enjoy the scenic vistas with friends and family.

ALISON ROSE JEFFERSON, HISTORIAN: The Bruce's establishment from day one was very successful. They started with just a pop-up tent where people could change their clothes, and they were selling refreshments. Then they later built a two-story building that included a cafe, area to dance. By 1922 some white folks were up in arms that the black folks had become -- had such a successful operation here.

ELAM (voiceover): Then in 1924, the City of Manhattan Beach snatched the property under imminent domain to create a park. Eventually the county took control of the estimated 7,000 square feet of land, which is currently home to a park and lifeguard training facility. The county says it has a two-year agreement to lease the land from the Bruce family for $413,000 a year.

ELAM (on camera): Now surrounded by million-dollar homes this is the property that is getting returned to the Bruce family. Now, estimated to be worth tens of millions of dollars as it truly is oceanfront property.

SHEPARD: Well, initially it cost the Bruce family their entire fortune, they originally asked for $125,000 for the two pieces of property, and they didn't get that. They only got $14,250, The loss of the generational wealth that would have been accumulated over the course of 98 years now.

KAVON WARD, FOUNDER JUSTICE FOR BRUCE'S BEACH: I feel some sense of peace. I feel joy.

ELAM (voiceover): Kavon Ward started the push to return Bruce's beach to its rightful owners in 2020.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No justice. No peace.

ELAM (VOICEOVER): After the murder of George Floyd.

WARD: I know it was the catalyst for me, for me to illuminate what had happened to the Bruces. And for me to move forward and take action to how I can legally and legislatively get the land back for them.

ELAM (VOICEOVER): It's a template Ward and the family hope others will use to also get their land back.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ELAM (on camera): Well, the count is owning up to what happened to Gruce's beach, both Ward and the families say that the City of Manhattan beach has yet to acknowledge its role in the property's history. Something, they say, they're going to continue to fight for. Don.

LEMON: Stephanie Elam, thank you very much for that.

Former Trump White House Counsel, Pat Cipollone, told Mark Meadows that blood is going to be on your f-ing hands if people died on January 6th. Now we're learning he might have agreed to a limited interview with the committee.

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[02:55:00]

LEMON: A major development in the January 6th investigation. The Select Committee issuing a subpoena for former Trump White House Counsel, Pat Cipollone. He is a key witness to what was going on inside the White House in the days before, during, and after the attack on the United States Capitol. I want to bring in now CNN Congressional Correspondent Ryan Nobles and former Nixon White House Counsel John Dean.

Gents, good evening. Thank you so much. Ryan, I'm going to start with you on the reporting here. What are you learning about the subpoena for Pat Cipollone?

RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think it got to the point, Don, where the Committee just felt that they'd exhausted every option that they could to try and get Pat Cipollone to come in voluntarily. They had informal conversations with Cipollone himself. They had negotiations with his counsel. They then tried to public shaming campaign where in multiple hearings they called him out and asked him to come forward voluntarily, and he just refused.

[03:00:00]