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Heat Wave Scorching A Third Of U.S. Population; Ukraine's First Lady Asks U.S. Congress For More Weapons; CNN Meets Ukrainian Refugees Who've Been Sent To Russia; Estonia Sheltering 1,700 Plus Ukrainian Refugees Aboard Ferry; Ranil Wickremesinghe Sworn In As New President; Final Candidates in PM Race: Rishi Sunak & Liz Truss. Aired 1-2a ET
Aired July 21, 2022 - 01:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[01:00:36]
JOHN VAUSE, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, welcome viewers joining us from all around the world. Coming up this hour, more than 20 countries in Europe remain under heat warnings. The hot temperatures threatening live, sparking fires, making life deadly for tens of millions of people.
Plus, Russia accused of forcibly relocating hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians through nearly five months of war. An exclusive look at a refugee shelter in Russia, where many are being sent.
And Hasta la vista, baby. Boris Johnson gives his last speech to Parliament as prime minister as the race to replace him comes down to just two.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN Newsroom with John Vause.
VAUSE: With Europe's heatwave set to continue into next week, scientists say this marks the beginning of a new era. Soaring temperatures, intense wildfires and prolonged drought. Only made possible because of human-caused global warming. Heat warnings are now active for more than 20 European countries.
In Greece, at least one person has died. Dozens are in hospital after wildfires erupted north of Athens. In southwest France, fires have scorched 20,000 hectares. The French President Emmanuel Macron traveled to the region Wednesday to see the devastation firsthand.
And after the U.K. sweltering through its hottest day on record, firefighters reported their busiest day since World War II as fires broke out around London on Wednesday.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRIAN BRAZIER, STABLE OWNER: So those everything I've got, because I had thousands of pounds (INAUDIBLE) and carts and harness and shoes and everything. They are what I used to mess about with and it's all gone. You know, every bit of, it's all gone. You know what I mean?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: In northeast of Italy, flames are threatening power grids and water supplies. 14 metropolitan areas including Rome, Milan, Florence, are now under the country's highest heat alert.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For me, it's very hot here. I'm not used to that kind of temperature.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Oh my god, it's awful. We're trying to cover up everything's going to get burned like --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, it's -- anyway, it's breeze, we're thankful because just a little bit of relief.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's pretty intense. Yes, it is.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're sweating all day. It's really hot. Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're slowly getting used to it so it's getting fine. But the first day was really -- was pretty awful, actually.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Soaring temperatures in China as well as surging COVID infections. Rising temperatures are clearly taking a toll. Videos posted on social media have gone viral, showing many of the COVID testers becoming physically ill, collapsing and fainting, others suffering from heatstroke after working long hours in the outdoors and head to toe protective suits. Just weeks ago, China was dealing with record rainfall, deadly flooding, and landslides.
Now, the brutal heatwave has settled across the United States. That heat warnings in effect for more than 100 million people, about a third of the population. Temperatures are expected to reach or exceed 40 degrees Celsius in some areas in the coming days. That's more than 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
Across the U.S., residents are being urged to stay indoors. Public cooling centers are now open in some cities to provide respite for those who have no place to go to avoid the extreme heat.
CNN's Ed Lavandera begins our coverage.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ED LAVANDERA, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The growing heatwave now has about 110 million Americans under heat alerts, making millions miserable coast to coast. In Texas and Oklahoma, residents are enduring a string of record setting high temperatures, several cities seeing temperatures over 110 degrees.
Emergency officials in Tulsa are warning residents to take heat- related illnesses seriously and urging vulnerable populations like the elderly and the homeless to use the area's cooling stations.
JOE KRALICEK, TULSA AREA EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY: The number one way that they can protect themselves and their loved ones from heat is by staying in an air conditioned building and to not be afraid to utilize their air conditioner.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The extreme heat and drought conditions are forcing many cattle ranchers to sell their cows earlier than usual because it's so difficult to care for their herds.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're so on just out of desperation because you don't want to mistreat the animal and make it starve to Mother Nature and God just pray for rain.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a hot day and it's a good time to come in a water.
[01:05:00]
LAVANDERA (voice-over): The scorching temperatures are moving into the Northeast. In Connecticut, firefighters are passing out water and libraries have become cooling centers. In Philadelphia, people looking to get outside trying to beat the heat early in the morning.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's going to be hot. It's going to be like 95 and above all week, so I tried to get down here early.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): West of Fort Worth, Texas firefighters are racing to contain several massive wildfires, burning thousands of acres. 99 percent of the state is now experiencing drought conditions. The fires in the area have already destroyed at least 16 structures. Four of the properties belonged to Beth Key's family.
BETH KEYS, PARENTS LOST HOME IN WILDFIRE: My parents lost their house, everything. My uncle lost his house. Another aunt lost everything. And another aunt is still battling out there trying to keep her house.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): There is no relief in sight from the heatwave gripping the country. Forecasters say brace for more punishing high temperatures.
TOM SATER, CNN METEOROLOGIST: In fact, it's getting worse and it's growing. It's expanding eastward Tennessee Valley up and down the east coast of the big cities. Next week, the temperature trend shows that getting worse. 87 percent of the U.S. next week will have temperatures above 90 degrees, over 20 percent above 100.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: The extreme hot weather across the country is being caused in large part by a high pressure system that is just camped out over this part of the country, which isn't allowing clouds and precipitation to form. Fittingly, this is known as the death ridge.
Ed Lavandera, CNN, Dallas. VAUSE: Let's get that all important forecast now from CNN Meteorologist Pedram Javaheri. So, you know, we've seen some cooling in some areas, what are we expecting elsewhere?
PEDRAM JAVAHERI, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You know, it's going to be a long lived event here when it comes to portions across the south. At least the northern regions are beginning to see a cooling trend. And John, really important to note, just the incredible nature of this heat the last couple of years.
Since 2019, these nations whether it be Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom, they've all seen their hottest temperatures ever observed since the summer of 2019. Here are the numbers that we've seen in the past three years alone. And again, calculating the population of these countries about 250 million people call these countries home as a whole. And then none of these people have ever felt temperatures this hot going back to just a couple of years. And this is all happening in the last three years.
But 2021, of course, was the hottest summer on record across Europe. Summer just about a month old here in 2022. And you'll notice some incredible temperatures yet again, as the energy shifts a little farther towards the east here. Hamburg comes in at 40 degrees on Wednesday afternoon, where in 23 is typically your late July expectations.
And here we go, Budapest, Warsaw, notice where the heat has kind of shifted off towards the east. That's where the middle and upper 30s are expected. London, number 40. Paris, number 41 down to 25 to 28 respectively here. But there are heat alerts now across the southern portion and southeastern areas of France, also around the Western periphery of Poland where that ridge is beginning to shift a little farther eastward. And that's where the heat is kind of in line here.
But notice, the cooler air at least for those northern regions is back in order here the next couple of days. But long range forecast does want to show additional heat restoring across this region. So enjoy this morning. 17 degrees in Paris, only 16 in London, temps on the eastern periphery in Berlin already at 24 degrees.
And here's what that seven-day forecast looks like in Berlin -- in Paris, I should say. Notice this, climbing up to 33 degrees, moderate back out early next week. But we do expect another surge of warmth here for Sunday into Monday across Paris.
And I leave you with this image here, John, when it comes to a NASA database from 1936, comparing it to 2022, June of 1936 across the globe, look for the areas in orange where you expect summer across the northern hemisphere, of course, parts of the U.S., portions of Europe or portions of Asia where the warmth is in place. Compare that to June of 2022, the coverage of orange versus blue, and most importantly, the planet's temperature regulator, the Arctic incredible warmth in place well above anywhere else in the world when you take a look at disparities of where it should be across those regions. And that's again the most concerning and we see how things have played out in recent years. VAUSE: We've cooked the planet. I don't think we do. Appreciate that for that update.
Russia in advance in eastern Ukraine has been slowed mostly because of new high-tech rocket system. U.S. only recently shipped HIMARS to Ukraine but they proved so effective. On Wednesday, the Pentagon announced another four HIMARS were on their way, bringing the total numbers of 12.
So far Ukrainian fighters claim they've destroyed about 30 Russian military command centers as well as ammunition depots deep inside Russian held territory. Russia's Foreign Minister responded to the impact of the long range weapons, saying Moscow's military goals will now be extended beyond the Donbas' threat which was quickly dismissed by Ukraine's military.
Meantime, Ukraine says three people were killed, a man, a woman, 13- year-old boy by Russian shelling early Wednesday in the northern city of Kharkiv. The Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska addressed U.S. Congress on Wednesday, telling lawmakers she came to Washington not as a president's wife but as a daughter and a mother, concerned about her nation and her nation's future.
[01:10:08]
Behind her, images of Ukrainians impacted by the war. She said Ukraine needs more military aid, especially air defense, to protect against Russian missiles.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OLENA ZELENSKA, UKRAINIAN FIRST LADY (through translation): And I appeal to all of you on behalf of those who were killed, on behalf of those people who lost their arms and legs, on behalf of those who are still alive and well and those who wait for their families to come back from the front. I'm asking for something now. I would never want to ask. I'm asking for weapons.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: The exact number of Ukrainians forcibly deported to Russia remains unknown, but Ukrainian officials put the number of hundreds of thousands. Many of those taken to filtration centers in Russian controlled areas of Ukraine, and then to temporary holding facilities inside Russia.
CNN's Matthew Chance was given exclusive access to a Russian shelter, spoke with the Ukrainians about their ordeals. And a warning, some of the images in his report are disturbing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): He was mad as Russian forces entered his Ukrainian home. His foot shot to pieces and his wife killed, he says, before his eyes.
But now across the border in Russia, Alexei insists Ukraine, not Moscow is to blame for his suffering.
(on-camera): Is it the Russian army that that this?
The Russians were just entering the city. It was Ukrainian troops who shot at us as we collected drinking water, he says. No criticism of Russia's military here, not from Alexei, nor from the other Ukrainian refugees. We were given exclusive access to on Russian soil.
(Speaking Foreign Language)
There's a lot of people here from Mariupol. And that's not surprising because we're just across the border from that city here on Russian territory. We've been brought here to this big old gymnasium with its basketball courts, which is filled with, as you can see, a couple of 100 beds to cater for the hundreds of refugees that are still months after this conflict began, pouring across the border into Russian territory.
They're given food, they're given medical attention. And despite the fact that it's very hot outside, you know, because it's the middle of the summer, they're getting some rest from the ordeal that they've gone through. It's also the first opportunity that we have to speak to these people about the sometimes horrific experiences that they've had back across the border in the war zone.
(voice-over): But don't expect them to describe that ordeal. Human rights groups say Ukrainians in Russian occupied areas are rounded up and filtered, before being bussed to camps like these. All those suspected of posing a threat don't even make it through.
Saying the right thing here is a matter of survival, especially for those who've already lost loved ones. Like this refugee who asked not to be named.
(on-camera): You're not angry with the Russians for that?
These are provocative questions, he answers. But now I'm here, so please don't press me. I didn't see who killed my relatives, he says. As far as I'm concerned, they're just another casualty of this conflict, he says.
But in Russia, the freedom to speak act is a casualty too. While we traveled away from Taganrog, outside of the country to neighboring Estonia, and the Baltic port of Tallinn. Boarding this giant passenger ferry turns temporary shelter for refugees from Ukraine.
(on-camera): Well, it's in these cramped cabins below decks, in these corridors, in the bowels of the ship that now house more than 1,700 Ukrainian refugees, many of whom have escaped directly from Russia, and its filtration center. And at least people can speak freely and without fear about their experience.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Speaking Foreign Language)
CHANCE (on-camera): That is in Mariupol exactly. (voice-over): Daniil (ph) told me how he bluffed his way through Russia's filtration system by pretending he wanted to make Russia his permanent home.
They asked, for instance, if I knew Vladimir Putin's birthday, because they said he is your president now. I told him I didn't, but I promise to learn it. And they let me through, he says.
Others like Stanislav (ph) and Vitolena (ph) had a much tougher time, transported from their homes like cattle, they said, in freezing trucks to filtration centers.
[01:15:04]
Vitolena (ph) says she had to leave her elderly father behind after he was shot and injured by a Russian soldier.
It filled her with hatred, she tells me, but she had to hide to pass through Russia. Now she's left with a desperate sadness. We really want to go home, she sobs. I can't tell you how much. Even though through the tears, she admits that home may already be lost.
Matthew Chance. CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: An artillery attack on a tourist resort in northern Iraq has left eight people dead, more than two dozen wounded. Protesters outside the Turkish Embassy after Iraqi officials said Turkey was responsible. An allegation Ankara (ph) has denied and said placing blame on Kurdish militants. Turkey though has previously launched attacks in northern Iraq, targeting the Kurdistan Workers Party, a group who considers to be terrorists. Iraq's Prime Minister says most of the victims were women and children.
Still to come, Sri Lanka has a new president. Protesters already wanting to be a former president. The latest on the country's political crisis in a live report in a moment.
Also down to business in the race to become Britain's next prime minister, just two candidates now in the race to replace the scandal plague, Boris Johnson.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VAUSE: Sri Lanka has a new president. Sixth time former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was sworn in just last hour and faces an economy in freefall and a deeply divided public. CNN's Will Ripley is standing live for us in Colombo. This guy has quite the to-do-list. Where does he start?
WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, he starts now because he was just sworn in. He's no longer the president-elect, he's now the president. And, you know, I don't know if it was deliberate timing or not but there are fuel trucks that we've actually seen driving to the petrol stations to drop off some reserved supplies or some new supplies and hopefully reduce the, you know, the number of days. And I emphasize days, that people are waiting to fill up their fuel tank for their car, or their tuk-tuk or their scooter.
I mean, it's really, really surreal to see how people are living here. You know, the father who has to push his son in a wheelchair to dialysis five times a week, 12 kilometer round trip because public transportation has gotten so expensive, he just can't afford it. People who I know from the Easter bombings back in 2019 are spending six times what they normally would for gas to buy it from this like gas mafia that's foreign because gas is in such short supply.
You know, well, other people who don't have the luxury of being able to pay that much just have to like sleep in shifts in these lines for fuel, for food, for medicine.
[01:20:02]
That's the immediate pressing concern establishing rule of law which means, you know, no major protests which we have not seen them. We've seen, you know, protest groups gathering numbering in the dozens. So rule of law, restoring, you know, an acceptable living standard for people where they don't have to wait days in line for basic essentials, and then have those discussions with the IMF and potential other creditors to try to figure out a bailout, a way to pull Sri Lanka's collapsed economy out of the doldrums. They're so deeply in debt, they can't pay the interest on their loans.
And this is, you know, a sixth time prime minister who was brought in, in the past. He told me, you know, earlier this week, to turn around a collapsed economy. So he thinks that he's able to do it. He's optimistic that by 2024, things could be looking a lot better here. And they could be focusing on restructuring the economy, getting rid of some of those tax cuts for the super rich, that unnecessarily white, billions off the national, you know, GDP, you know, I should say, a percentage of the GDP, billions off of the national budget for no reason whatsoever, other than to just kind of look like a good guy to a certain group of people.
Does that sound familiar? It's happened in some other countries around the world as well. Super wealthy getting tax cuts, but in the case of Sri Lanka, it's landed them in a really deep bind, John. And he now has to pull this country out of it.
But -- yes, but, you know, you've got people that don't want him in office, but they're not out protesting at the moment. We'll see if that continues. So it means he just got to do his job. I guess people are waiting to see.
VAUSE: I guess the question is, there are no protesters out there, so there's sort of a reluctance sort of resignation, if you like, that he is now the president. He's got a job to do. How much breathing space has he got to get stuff done before the show results, before the protests started again?
RIPLEY: Well, I would say, resignation to a certain extent, but also there was a very clear message with, you know, declaring a state of emergency and deploying large amounts of armed military and police with instructions to do whatever it takes to prevent a repeat of what happened when we saw the presidential palace occupied the Prime Minister's house set on fire and the secretary occupied.
There's actually a police order for the police to disperse people from that area, but it hasn't happened yet that we know of. But the number of people who are still there are such a small number. You know, they could probably all fit in one police van at this point.
So you're right, there's resignation. And, you know, it's not like he's -- he didn't come in on this big uplifting, you know, wave of support. He's got two and a half years left in this disgrace, former president's term, just show people what he can do. And then I guess, decide if he wants to run again. Depending on how things go, it might be a job that not very many people want, or maybe they will.
Let's see what happens here in Sri Lanka, but it's going to be an important months ahead, for sure.
VAUSE: Well at least two other people wanted it because there were three contenders and he won. So good luck, I guess. It was pretty hot there too, Will, so stay cool. Will Ripley there in the Sri Lankan capital. Thank you.
Pretty nice, he says.
Well as the race to replace Boris Johnson heats up, the British Prime Minister is going out in true Bojo style.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BORIS JOHNSON, BRITISH CARETAKER PRIME MINISTER: Mission largely accomplished. For now, I want to thank you, and Mr. Speaker, I want to thank all the wonderful staff that has confirmed, I want to all my friends and colleagues. I want to thank my other friend opposite. And Mr. Speaker, I want to thank everybody here and Hasta la vista, baby.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: That was his final appearance before Parliament as prime minister. His time at Number 10 was cut short by a series, a long series of scandals.
Meantime, just two candidates remain in the race to be Prime Minister, former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak and Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, will spend the next few weeks campaigning before a vote is held by card carrying members of the Conservative Party.
CNN European Affairs Commentator Dominic Thomas joins us now from Berlin. Dom, thanks for getting up early for being with us.
DOMINIC THOMAS, CNN EUROPEAN AFFAIRS COMMENTATOR: no, thank you. Good morning, John.
VAUSE: OK, so Sunak may have the support of his fellow Conservative MPs, but Truss is more popular with the rank and file members, the so- called selectorate. They're mostly men around 60 years old living in the South of England, a group which bears little resemblance to the demographic makeup of the country. So why did they get to choose who's the next prime minister is?
THOMAS: Yes, well, that's the system, John, and they certainly do get to choose. So there's been this sort of pre-selection process going on, all handled by the Conservative Party. And what's been so interesting, you know, watching this is, of course, this isn't an internal process, and was a real opportunity for the Conservative Party to sort of showcase its policies and to move away from the distractions of the -- of what we might call the Boris Johnson era.
And yet the whole process has revealed deep divisions in the party, and even resentment. So, yes, Rishi Sunak is there now in the final stages, but having said that, is really very much, you know, being held up as the individual who walked away from his position and precipitated the downfall of Boris Johnson. And so there's a lot of anger and resentment and around that.
[01:25:04]
And yet, when it comes to Liz Truss, we see that continuing importance in the Conservative Party, the shadow of Brexit. And we see that in some of the endorsements she's received from the far-right wing of the party. And that is very much likely to play out among this membership, which you described as far more homogenous and monolithic. And that ultimately now gets to vote on these final two characters, John.
VAUSE: Simon Jenkins, a columnist for The Guardian, had an assessment of Liz Truss, which is a little harsh, but similar in tune to what others have written. Here's part of it. "A limited experience of high office and the conduct of her leadership campaign are unedifying. This is just a vain, cliched, pseudo-right wing Tory, with no spark of charisma or originality. Her attempt to mimic Margaret Thatcher have been childishly embarrassing."
She's also been described as an ideologue without ideas, who promised any now deleted tweet, I'm ready to hit the ground from day one. Notably, so Keynes (ph), she forget the word running. In many ways, at least in a style over substance ways, is she called the appropriate heir to Boris Johnson?
THOMAS: Yes. Well, the question, John, is at this stage, you know, who really wants to take over, given all the challenges facing on this post-Brexit U.K. I think on the question of experience is a little bit unfair. She has been an MP and a minister much longer than Rishi Sunak. However, having said that, I think the real issue around her has to do with convictions. This is someone who initially was a Remainer. Now, she's an arch defender of Brexit and all that entails.
And I think that that, therefore, opens her up to manipulations. And I think that ultimately, that's what much of the membership is looking for is this sort of post-Johnson security, make sure the Brexit train kind of keeps moving. And that ultimately, that sort of lack of conviction is something that can be instrumentalized by the party as they move forward. And that may ironically be what gets into the position, rather than a kind of long track record. And really a sort of a genuine move away from everything that Boris Johnson represented to a kind of new era for this party, John.
VAUSE: As for Boris Johnson, they see he almost a sense of joy, a relief, perhaps even satisfaction, that he's now leaving Parliament. Here he was just last week. Listen to this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHNSON: And I'm also proud of the leadership that I have given. And I will be leaving, Mr. Speaker, I will be leaving through wave my head held high.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: He is a man who fills the room to say the least. He does have the charisma, he does have a following. He is already working behind the scenes against Sunak. Is he likely to go quietly into the night? Or could he make a return at some point to Number 10? Yes, he doesn't seem to have the demeanor of a man who is at the end of his political career.
THOMAS: No, I think you're absolutely right there, John. I mean, this will be the fourth Conservative Party Prime Minister in a six-year period. As we just mentioned, the country faces a whole range of challenges, like much of Europe, energy crisis, inflation, and so on. And one cannot help but think that with the general election potentially a good two years away, that one in many ways would be foolish to bet that this new party leader who will on September 5th, become the new Prime Minister, will be standing in two years time.
And I think to that extent, nothing is impossible in politics. And Boris Johnson was there reminding people in his interpretation of his prime ministership that he was the one that delivered that great majority. And I think there's a lot of uncertainty as this party goes down the road and will now ultimately be accountable for the way in which it deals with these real issues rather than just simply the emotions that surrounded in Brexit, that that level of accountability will be scrutinized, and nothing is impossible in politics, John.
VAUSE: Absolutely. Especially British politics these days incredibly unpredictable.
Dominic, as always, thank you for being with us. We appreciate it.
THOMAS: Thank you.
VAUSE: When winning is losing. Italy's Prime Minister is likely to resign despite winning a confidence vote in the Senate. On Wednesday, senators voted to keep the Prime Minister Mario Draghi on the job but his government now so fractured, he's expected to step down anyway.
To do that, he'll offer his resignation again to the president. He did that last week after a key party in his coalition withdrew support because of his economic policies. But the President rejected the resignation last week, urge Draghi to stay on. Now he's going to go.
So wait for a moment. Still to come, fears mount of more cuts of Russian gas supplies to Europe for that hinging on a pipeline which is due to stop flowing natural gas once again, but will it? Will Putin turn off the taps? Who knows?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:32:16]
VAUSE: 31 minutes past the hour. Thanks for being with us. You're watching CNN.
And we're waiting confirmation right now on whether the Nord Stream 1 pipeline is flowing again. The biggest single pipeline supplying Europe with Russian gas scheduled to be back in operation this hour after a planned 10-day maintenance.
CNN's Clare Sebastian explains why this pipeline is so crucial.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CLARE SEBASTIAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: When it launched in 2011, the Nord Stream 1 was actually expected to reduce potential disruption to European energy supplies. By running the pipeline under the Baltic Sea to Germany, Nord Stream 1, unlike many other European gas pipelines bypassed Ukraine and fairly giving Russia room to deal with any future spats without leaving Europe in the lurch.
And in practice, it made Europe more reliant to Russia and made both the E.U. and Ukraine more vulnerable to Russian influence.
And here's how. In 2021, the E.U. imported about 155 billion cubic meters of gas from Russia. Now, Nord Stream 1 alone accounted for 59.2 billion cubic meters. That is about 38 percent-- almost 40 percent of the total. And if you look at the E.U.'s total gas consumption, around 400 billion cubic meters, the Nord Stream alone accounted for 14 percent of all the gas that Europe consumed last year.
Now, the E.U. says Russia has now cut or partially cut gas supplies to at least a dozen European countries Poland, Bulgaria, Finland and the Netherlands, to name a few.
In May, it temporarily suspended supplies to through the YUMAB pipeline to Germany. And in mid-June, it's slashed supplies through the Nord Stream 1 itself to about 40 percent over what Russia claims were equipment problems. That caused the German government to trigger the second stage of its gas emergency plan.
MASSIMO DI ODOARDO, VP GLOBAL GAS AND LNG RESEARCH, WOOD INSTITUTE: The pipeline that was carrying gas to Belarus and Poland is now largely (ph) completely empty. The pipeline even through Ukraine despite Gazprom (INAUDIBLE) protracted capacity before (INAUDIBLE) at about 12 to 15 BCM. So until June, Nord Stream was really, you know, the only pipeline that is continuing to provide substantial exports to the E.U. SEBASTIAN: Well, this chart shows natural gas flows to Europe from
Russia since 2019, but you can see that there dips to the July maintenance period every year but never quite like we're seeing today. It flows down about two-thirds in the last two months alone.
[01:34:55]
SEBASTIAN: And all this as the E.U. races to meet its target for filling its gas storage capacity to 80 percent by November 1st to avoid shortages. It's currently at about 64 percent, according to Gas Infrastructure Europe.
And Germany says right now, gas is being taken out of its storage facility at the same rate it's being injected in. So Nord Stream 1, the biggest single pipeline between Europe and Russia will be critical if Europe is to avoid those winter shortages, something experts warn could tip the continent into recession.
Clare Sebastian, CNN -- London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Well, joining me now from Berlin is Liana Fix with Germany's Koerber Foundation, a nonprofit focusing on European foreign policy in Eastern Europe and Russia. And we have this update.
We know that the gas is flowing once again. But at precisely what levels, we do not know at this point but we'll keep an eye on that and bring you the information as soon as we get it. But in the meantime, thank you for being with us, Liana.
And you know, I guess in the situation right now where Putin is doing what Putin does. And that's keeping the world guessing about what his next move will be. You know, will he, won't he -- how much will flow, how much will not flow. You know, what the levels will be. This kind of stuff.
So, I guess --
LIANA FIX, PROGRAM DIRECTOR, KOERBER FOUNDATION: Yes, absolutely.
VAUSE: -- you know, is he likely to have a reduced flow here? Will he blame this on a bad -- you know, bad fake claim that the turbines aren't working? They're not at speed.
You know, what are the chances here for him to use Nord Stream 1 to squeeze more concessions from Europe?
FIX: Yes. Absolutely. The news from the morning that Nord Stream 1 has resumed gas flows is certainly no reason for relief because Putin will only resume gas flows to keep his own state budget afloat. But he will certainly not resume gas flows to allow Germany and Europe to fill their storages to a capacity that they need to get safely through the winter.
The plan and the strategy behind, this is to keep pressure and to leverage on the European Union. And we've also heard this from Vladimir Putin when he went linked (ph) further gas supplies to Nord Stream 2, the pipeline that Germany has shut down a few days before the invasion of Ukraine. He suggested, well, if anyone want additional supplies, why don't we restart Nord Stream 2.
So, the game will continue after today.
VAUSE: And if it was to be a total shutdown, that would represent a contractual breach. But does Putin even care about that kind of stuff? Is he likely to be restrained by legal obligations?
FIX: He absolutely is not. I mean there're some ways how Gazprom tries to mitigate the consequences. So they have for instance, claimed force majeure so there is a greater reason why gas supplies cannot be resumed to the levels they have been before. So they try some ways to get out of the legal complications.
But in fact, energy is being used as a weapon. Not only as of now, since the beginning of the war, this has already been the case last year with the summer and the autumn by the Russian president to put Nord Stream 2 into effect otherwise there will be political consequences.
So this really is not new and should not be surprising to anyone.
VAUSE: What is the solution here? For Germany and for Europe, how do they remove essentially what is a gun at their heads being held by the Russian president? What are their options? And is it just simply a case there are some tough months ahead and some tough choices have to be made?
FIX: Well, the question is how tough does it have to be? There're basically two answers to this. The first is European solidarity. Will European countries share the gas supplies that are there to reduce the fallout for individual countries?
In other words, will they repeat the mistake that they, for example, done at the beginning of the pandemic where every country went at it alone? The Europe Commission is already concerned about this and has put out an emergency plan, urging member states to show solidarity.
And the second way to respond to this crisis is really energy reduction. So a reduction of consumption in member states. This will be together with European solidarity, the two most important aspects how expensive this winter will become if we will see a rationing of gas supplies. And also, what kind of political consequence this may have if populations get upset about higher and higher gas and energy prices.
VAUSE: I guess the question with that is, who do they blame? Do they blame Putin? Do they blame their own governments?
FIX: Well that is a very good question. As an example in Germany, there was a survey asking if Germany should continue to support Ukraine even if energy prices go up. And the majority of Germans said, yes, we should do so. That is a very positive sign that there's an understanding this comes from the Russian side.
[01:39:57]
FIX: But there are also voices who say well, it is the fault of E.U. sanctions and the prosperity of Europe is at stake, especially the prosperity of Germany, which was so dependent on Russian gas.
So there are some voices who try to create a different narrative and to portray this as a fault of the E.U. and Europe that we are entering this gas crisis in the way we are.
VAUSE: Last question here though, you know, cutting off gas or reducing gas supplies, it cuts both ways. How much self-inflicted pain could this be mean for Moscow if there are reduced supplies?
FIX: Well, at the moment, there's not too much self-inflicted pain in the short term because the prices went up. So Moscow can sell less to the European Union, but get the same revenue for its own budget. That's in the short term, obviously, an advantage for Russia.
But in the long term, it really will become a challenge. Germany has announced it wants to get out of its dependency from Russian gas by mid 2024. So, Russia now urgently needs to diversify its gas flows, which is not possible from -- starting from tomorrow because the pipelines are where they are and they are going to western Europe.
So at the moment it's an advantage for Russia. But in the mid and long term, Russia will suffer the consequences of this policy.
VAUSE: Yes. I guess we'll see how this all plays out in the coming months. And also coming years
Liana Fix, thank you so much for being with us. We appreciate it.
FIX: Thank you.
VAUSE: Take care.
Well, the heat wave scorching parts of Europe is especially dangerous for those who are living on the streets. Some homeless people in Paris, Berlin and elsewhere are getting a little relief.
CNN's Paula Newton has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In a deadly heat wave, the most exposed become the most vulnerable. Across Europe hundreds have died in record breaking temperatures. Those without homes are among the most at risk, facing extreme heat without anywhere to go.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The heat wave knocks you out. You get knocked out and you just need a refuge somewhere cool where you can shower, where you can quench your thirst or maybe have a snack. Because it's difficult to live, you know, for us. It is quite difficult. NEWTON: Now, some cities are making efforts to help those experiencing
homelessness to cope. In the French capital, Paris, city hall workers are distributing water bottles to the needy and another mission offers respite from the sun.
LOTFI OUANEZAR, DEPUTY DIRECTOR GENERAL, EMMAUS SOLIDARITY (through translator): During the heat wave, we are extra vigilant because people living on the street suffer the most. So, people can find an air-conditioned place to cool off here, drink from the fountain, take showers and meet with social workers who can help.
NEWTON: In Germany, a pilot project in Berlin offers cool spaces to shelter while the heat wave continues.
JANETTE WERNER, COORDINATOR, INITIATIVE FOR THE HOMELESS: All people are invited to come to us. They can shower. They are given hygiene products. They can rest. They can eat and have something to drink. They can put on sunscreen. They can get some clothes to shield their head from the sun.
NEWTON: With support from Berlin's senate, the ministry (ph) aims to provide respite for those without homes from the unprecedented heat. Extreme temperatures that experts say will only become more common.
WERNER: In times of climate change, it is getting hotter and hotter, especially in cities. A cool place to rest and take shelter is very important.
NEWTON: As temperatures rise, right across Europe and the globe, so too does the need of those most affected in an increasingly warming world.
Paula Newton, CNN.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: Still to come, details on what might just be must-see TV. New videos with the former President Donald Trump which the January 6 Committee will play during its their primetime hearing. Details on that when we come back.
[01:44:05]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK).
TOM SATER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Hello everyone. I'm CNN meteorologist Tom Sater. It's that time again.
Let's look at the forecast, different regions of the Americas.
[01:44:51]
SATER: Starting in North America, we have got heat. And it's not just the southern plains. Building into the plains in the central states, all the way up into western Canada. We do have rain on the periphery of that. Some of that is monsoonal rain. Well, we need it. The drought conditions are just terrible. But it was a severe weather day, again with that heat building in towards the east we had a line of severe weather.
Major damage. Heavy amounts of rainfall, flooding. In fact, 41 people are missing a county in western Virginia.
Heat index, very high. The watches, the warnings are in effect. This heat wave, the fourth of the year for the U.S., not just packing an overnight bag. It's got a large piece of luggage. It's staying around for a while.
Now, we've got a flood threat. Southern states, there's a tropical -- it's not quite a disturbance yet but it's going to be meandering around these Gulf coastal states. So again our flash flood threat is high. Southeastern states from areas of Louisiana up toward the Carolinas.
But look at this continuing to build. All the way up, areas of British Columbia, it's not just Albertan Saskatchewan. It's not just Manitoba. It is across much of North America. 36 in Denver, the mile-high city, looking at thunderstorms but still, oppressive heat just about everywhere.
The fires continue to grow. 74 large fires, again, already we have scorched more than twice as much land as we typically see in (INAUDIBLE).
VAUSE: Well, the final primetime hearing for the January 6 committee will be held Thursday. And the focus -- the 187 minutes when the riot unfolded at the Capitol and what then President Donald Trump did, or in fact failed to do.
And now we know the committee has in plans to release video outtakes of a speech Trump gave the night after the riot.
CNN's Ryan Nobles has our report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
RYAN NOBLES, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: One text exchange -- That is the sum total of what the Secret Service handed over to the January 6th Select Committee, leaving the committee with even more questions about what the agency is up to.
REP. JAMIE RASKIN (D-MD) You are asking the question that we are asking. We're trying to determine where the texts are, and whether they can be recovered and retrieved.
NOBLES: The Secret Service says their agents don't typically text as part of their job but they have yet to give a definitive answer about where texts from January 5th and January 6th may have gone, messages the DHS inspector general believes were deleted during a device upgrade program. REP. PETE AGUILAR (D-CA): There's a lot more questions to answer, but
we have a responsibility to tell the truth and to chase the facts and that is exactly what we plan to do in this regard, as well as our general, you know, oversight over the Executive Department.
NOBLES: Meanwhile, Secret Service has started complying with the committee subpoena, handing over thousands of documents, including radio traffic and email.
REP. ZOE LOFGREN (D-CA): We also need to find out what technologically is possible to recover, all of the communications between the Secret Service and others on that -- on the 5th and on the 6th, in particular, but not just those days.
NOBLES: As the agency faces a credibility crisis, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, who oversees their work promised they would comply with the investigation.
ALEJANDRO MAYORKAS, SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: The Secret Service remains committed to cooperating fully with the committee. the migration was planned well before January 2021.
NOBLES: The Secret Service and what they witnessed on January 6 could be a key part of what the committee hopes to uncover in their primetime hearing. And it's showing how President Trump refused to act for 187 minutes, while the mob was raging at the Capitol. And hearing from those who witnessed what Trump was and was not doing.
REP. ELAINE LURIA (D-VA):People who were in the White House, people who are close to the president and also, you know, people who had insight into the actions that were going on, you know, in a variety of ways that there are trying to control the violence.
NOBLES: And while the committee says that many witnesses in Trump's orbit have been forthcoming, one witness, former aide Garrett Ziegler was defiant. Ziegler is the low level aide that Sydney Powell, Michael Flynn and Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne into the White House for a raucous meeting in December, where the election deniers encouraged Trump to fight on.
The former White House aide took to social media after his deposition in a white nationalist rant calling the committee a --
GARRETT ZIEGLER, FORMER WHITE HOUSE AIDE: "Bolshevistic anti-white campaign. They see me as a young Christian who they can try to basically scare.
NOBLES: There will be a big difference to the hearing on Thursday night. Chairman Bennie Thompson will not appear in person. He tested positive for COVID earlier in the week so he will chair the hearing from a remote location.
And we are also expected to see outtakes of former President Donald Trump's attempt to tape a video message on January 7th, the day after the riot. In these outtakes, he is seen having a hard time trying to put into words his feelings about what happened on January 6th to try to call the rioters, at least some of them Patriots, also refuses to say that the election is settled. Expect that we'll see some of that video during Thursday night's hearing.
Ryan Nobles, CNN -- on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
[01:50:01]
VAUSE: Please stay with CNN for the committee's public hearing on Thursday. Our special coverage starts at 7:00 p.m. in Washington, 7:00 a.m. Friday in Hong Kong. You won't want to miss it.
Now to Cuba where diesel shortage has led to persistent black outs and long, long, long lines.
CNN's Patrick Oppmann reports some drivers have been waiting more than a week just to fill up.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PATRICK OPPMANN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The line for diesel in Havana seems to go on forever and barely move. It takes days now for these drivers to fill up their tanks. Yes, you heard that right. People wait here for days to get fuel. And don't even think about leaving the line, not even for a second.
"We can't go," he says. "If you leave, someone else takes your spot. And you have to go back to the beginning and start all over again."
The drivers catch some zs sleep in their cars. Brush their teeth by the side of the road. Kill the hours playing dominoes. Hoping the next increasingly scarce shipment of fuel comes soon. The people at the front of this very long line say they've been waiting for eight days to fill up their trucks and their cars with diesel.
They will sleep in the trucks, have their family bring them food. What they didn't want to do is talk to us on camera. They said if they complain too publicly, they might lose their place in line.
Battered by the pandemic, U.S. sanctions and a global supply chain disrupted by the war in Ukraine, Cuba is confronting a worsening energy crisis. Large parts of the communist-run island are being hit by longer and longer power outages. Keeping the lights on requires more fuel than the Cuban government has on hand.
"The power plants have consumed more of the small amount of fuel that we have," he says. "Fundamentally diesel, which causes a lot of work to get. It means that our generation of energy is affected, as our important economic activities."
Analysts say the whole grid is in danger of collapsing.
JORGE PINON, LATIN AMERICA AND CARIBBEAN ENERGY PROGRAM: You have a number of cumulative effects that are taking place that cannot be solved with band-aids. We're talking about major structural investments in the billions of dollars. That's going to take a number of years to solve this problem.
OPPMANN: Blackouts in July 2021, sparked the largest anti government protest in decades. Already this summer, outages have caused people to take to the streets, banging pots and pans to demand power be restored.
Well with the government warning that the blackouts and fuel shortages will continue, Cubans can expect a long hot intense summer ahead of them.
Patrick Oppmann, CNN -- Havana.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: An unprecedented global heat wave is having an impact on some of the coldest places on earth.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RENE MARSH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It is days like today, warm enough to wear shorts sleeves, near 60 degrees in Greenland.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VAUSE: Coming up on CNN, enormous ice melts in Greenland being felt around the world.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[01:54:53]
VAUSE: Unusually warm weather in northern Greenland has triggered rapid melting and scientists on the island's ice sea are becoming increasingly alarmed.
CNN's Rene Marsh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MARSH: Off the coast of northwest Greenland, the water is perfectly still. But puddling on icebergs indicate a transformation is underway.
That is the sound of rapid melting triggered by a few days of unusually warm temperatures. During CNN's first three days in northern Greenland, the temperature topped out nearly ten degrees higher than normal.
It is days like today, warm enough to wear short sleeves, near 60 degrees in Greenland. It is a high melt day when it is this unusually warm. And it is also deeply concerning for scientists.
KUTALMIS SAYLAM, RESEARCH SCIENTIST, UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS-AUSTIN: It's definitely worries me. We are 67 latitude here on top of the world, in the North Pole. We could just, yesterday, especially not today, but yesterday, we could wander around in our t-shirts. That was not really expected. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's basically at the melting point today. As you can see now to make snowballs.
MARSH: At a research site in northeast Greenland, near melt conditions at an elevation of nearly 9,000 feet made what is usually a frozen landing strip inoperable.
ASLAK GRINSTED, CLIMATE SCIENTIST, NIELS BOHR INSTITUTE: They have a problem when it's this soft as the surface is now.
MARSH: Climate scientist Aslak Grinsted tweeting, many heat wave, negative 1.6 degrees Celsius in the middle of the Greenland ice sheet. Our planned planes are postponed because our ski weigh is not a good when it is this warm.
Unable to fly out the scientists pass the time playing volleyball in shorts atop the ice sheet. Pre-global warming Grinsted says temperatures near 32 degrees Fahrenheit at this altitude were unheard of.
The National Snow and Ice Data Center tell CNN from July 15th through to 17th alone, a melt surge in northern Greenland caused ice sheet runoff of about six billion tons of water per day. That is about the volume of 2.4 million Olympic-sized pools.
Put another way, enough water to flood the entire state of West Virginia with one foot of water in three days.
SAYLAM: The amount of melt from the ice was very surprising because it was really a warm day. You can even hear the ice was just melting in front of our eyes.
MARSH: Research scientist tells CNN this extensive melt in north Greenland this past week is quite unusual and will contribute to the global sea level rise, which impacts coastal communities half a world away.
Rene Marsh, CNN -- (INAUDIBLE) Greenland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VAUSE: For those of you paying attention at home, yes, the planet is in trouble.
Thank you for watching CNN NEWSROOM. I'm John Vause.
CNN NEWSROOM continues with Kim Brunhuber after a very short break. I'll see you on Friday.
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