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CNN International: World Leaders Meeting at Security Conference in Munich; Heaviest Fighting Reported in and around Bakhmut in Eastern Ukraine; Some Rescuers Desperate for New of their Loved Ones; Did Police Cross the Line by Releasing Woman's Private Info; Online Personalities Falling Victim to Deepfake Porn. Aired 8-8:30a ET

Aired February 17, 2023 - 08:00   ET

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

[08:00:00]

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Hello and welcome to CNN Newsroom. I'm Max Foster in London. Just ahead, world leaders are gathering in Germany for crucial security conference, this as the war in Ukraine rages in the east. CNN is in Munich and Eastern Ukraine.

Then British police are under scrutiny over the handling of the case Nicola Bulley a woman who seemed to have vanished into thin air three weeks ago. Plus, how Artificial Intelligence is being used to create deepfake porn and how the technology is consistently targeting one group, women?

Leaders from around the world are at a security conference in Munich at this hour where the war in Ukraine is expected to dominate the agenda. Live pictures here from the conference and for the first time in two decades, Russia was not invited.

You can see there, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivering an open address by video link. It comes just days before the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of this country. And he started by referencing the biblical battle between David and Goliath.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: --call David on Dnipro. I considered a task, rightful respect to Ukraine and to everything that our people are doing. By this year, determination was shown on different banks, not only of the Dnipro - and seen dams and Potomac - and Tiber. David is now all of us. He is the whole free world that it is everyone who left that there is no alternative, but to defeat Goliath who came to destroy our life.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: CNN's Nic Robertson joining me live in Munich. On these speeches he always creates this connections doesn't he using rivers across the western world effectively to show that this is a battle between the West and Russia and he needs more help.

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: He does and that will be part of the discussion here as well ammunition tanks getting them. The Germans, of course, have committed their Leopard 2 tanks and have really been extolling partners who also have the Leopard 2 tanks that they should bring theirs as well. Olaf Scholz the German Chancellor soon to speak here as well.

Maybe we'll hear that from him the German Defense Minister here as well, Boris Pistorius. Kamala Harris, the U.S. Vice President, also here she was expected to meet with Olaf Scholz, Emmanuel Macron, as well she'll meet with him. She will also meet with a British Prime Minister that's expected Saturday, she'll meet with the Finnish Prime Minister, the Swedish Prime Minister of course both of those nations trying to join NATO.

So while a lot of this will be about Ukraine, there will be a lot of other topics discussed Artificial Intelligence, human rights violations, again, that will relate back to Russia and the war in Ukraine. But as we heard from the Chairman here just a few minutes ago, before President Zelenskyy started speaking, he said, look, there are many other countries and issues on the agenda.

China being one of them, Iran being another, North Korea, climate so there are a lot of issues Artificial Intelligence, as they say how that's being used. All of these issues will get discussed. Some of the many, many meetings that are being had here but of course President Zelenskyy speech getting pride of place this year. He was of course here in person last year now getting by video link getting paid to place at the beginning of the conference, Max.

FOSTER: OK, Nic Robertson in Munich back with you with updates throughout the day. On the ground in Ukraine, the grinding battle taking place along the Eastern front lines, with one regional official reporting a significant increase in Russian attacks. The fighting is particularly brutal in Bakhmut.

Authorities say five people were killed and 10 wounded Thursday in Russian strikes on residential areas in and around the city. In an interview with the BBC, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has suggested that Russia's Spring Offensive has already begun and he's ruling out any peace deal that involves giving up Ukrainian lands.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ZELENSKYY: Any territorial compromises he told me are only going to weaken our country. So it's not about compromise. We make millions of compromises every day, but the question is with Putin, no, because we don't trust Putin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Sam Kiley joins me now from Eastern Ukraine. There are Leaders around the world of course, pressuring Ukraine to compromise perhaps give up some land. So that was quite a defining comment from that President.

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Max, he is the one he's been making since February the 24th. Last year when the country was invaded in fact, prior to that, the Ukrainian position has been that all Russian troops have to leave all of Ukraine which at the time, then to Crimea, and of course, parts of Luhansk and Donetsk province, colloquially known as the Donbas.

Now, the Russians have tried to seize more territory and the Ukrainians are stronger now than they were then. And they are hell bent on ridding themselves of this Russian invader force, firstly and secondly, ridding the country of the longest standing rebel republics, if you want to call them that way, in the east of the country.

So there's no real change at all in Zelenskyy's position, I think what is different in the Munich Conference, and in his Defense Ministers meetings in Europe and elsewhere, more recently is that they're getting more confident about the sort of equipment that they're going to be given to fight.

They are talking to Ukrainians, that is about a spring offensive or planning some kind of offensive action. We have seen here in Eastern Ukraine, an increase in Russian activity from Kupiansk and Sumy, up in the north, right down as far as Vuhledar and the frontline going east, west towards Zaporizhzhia.

So right across a very long frontline, there has been an increase in Russian activity being seen here on the ground really is shaping operations for what might be a Russian offensive. Of course, as you know, Max, the assessment of the Americans in particular, is that the Russians may not actually even be capable of launching and offensive.

But that is certainly not something that the Ukrainians are resting on their laurels with that kind of information. They are desperately calling for more sophisticated weaponry, again and again, calling for tanks and longer range artillery and missile systems, Max.

FOSTER: There was this concern wasn't there, Sam about this buildup of aircraft on the border on the Russian side of the border concerned that there could be this major aerial assault? How do you read that and how are those aircraft being used?

KILEY: Yes, that keeps coming out, Max, it comes out they've been Russia Military bloggers suggesting that perhaps they were going to shift their tactic from these human wave.

[08:05:00]

KILEY: Tactics have been extremely costly in terms of human lives here on the Eastern front to aerial attacks. But of course the Ukrainians with every month at parties are getting more sophisticated surface to air missiles, aerial defense systems. So it could be a very costly switch in tactic if the Russians were going to do that.

They do, however, have a very significant edge indeed, in terms of men and material when it comes to aviation. They've got far more helicopters, far more jets, far more capability to launch mass aerial attacks against Ukraine.

But so far they've restricted those aerial attacks to those waves of cruise missile and Shahed drones from Iran, supplied by Iran are going after the electrical infrastructure here. That may shift that is deeply concerning to the Ukrainians, which is why they are asking for more and more air defenses, Max.

FOSTER: OK, Sam, thank you for joining us from Ukraine. Now 11 days after that devastating earthquake in Syria and Turkey. We continue to see amazing rescues the latest one happened in Hatay, Turkey. 261 hours after the quake struck crews pulled a 33-year-old man out of the rubble of a collapse hospital. And he was well enough to call a friend as well. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MUSTAFA AVCI, RESCUED AFTER 261 HOURS: How was my mother and everyone?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are all waiting for you. Everyone is well they're all waiting for you. I'm coming to you.

AVCI: Did everyone escaped, OK, nicely.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They are all well; everything is well waiting for you. They are all waiting for you.

AVCI: Let me hear their voices if for a moment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm driving. I'm coming to you, brother. I'm coming.

AVCI: Thank you to each and every one of you. May God be happy with you a thousand times?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: It's wonderful to see isn't? But for every rescue, there are many more heartbreaks. The death toll is nearly 44,000 in Southern Turkey and Northern Syria. Many who did survive the earthquake are in dire need now having help, whether it's food or medicine or shelter. Nada Bashir is in Istanbul with the latest and that's the big effort, isn't it NATO getting involved bringing in tents?

NADA BASHIR, CNN REPORTER: Yes, absolutely. That is certainly the focus now thousands and thousands of people desperately in need reliant on that humanitarian assistance, which is coming in. We've seen visits by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg comments from the U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres are all calling for further support for Turkey and indeed, for Northwest Syria.

As those survivors start to grapple with the new reality that they face, they have lost absolutely everything. Many of them, of course, have lost loved ones. They are homeless, dealing with freezing weather conditions, and there is a real sense of urgency now in order to offer that support to those in need.

We're already here in Istanbul beginning to see evacuations taking place some of those survivors from Southeast Turkey. Coming into this city as well as other cities across Turkey, they're being housed in University dorms are being hosted by volunteers opening up their homes to those in need of shelter.

But of course, this will be a long and significant challenge ahead for the Turkish Government. And there have been calls for further support from the international community. Now, at this stage just yesterday, in fact, the U.N. issued an appeal for $1 billion in aid from the international community over the next three months in order to provide that support the message from Antonio Guterres there.

That Turkey has over the last few years taken on the world's largest portions of refugees, and that now is the time for the international community for world leaders to stand behind Turkey. And this comes just two days after the U.N. issued a similar appeal for Northwest Syria calling for $400 million, or nearly $400 million in aid there.

But of course, the challenges ahead are significant and it's not just about those physical needs. As you can imagine the emotional trauma that these families, these children have gone through is significant to say the least. And we've met some of those families who have been evacuated to Istanbul and it is difficult to grasp the reality that they are facing now.

Many of them say they are still afraid, unable to sleep their children worried that there will be another earthquake that strikes Istanbul. So this is a hugely difficult time for them. And then, of course, when we talk about Northwest Syria, the situation there is, it's hard to describe this is a region which has already faced years and years of war at the hands of President Bashar al-Assad.

4 million people in this region were already heavily dependent on humanitarian assistance. And for those Syrians who are already in Turkey, many of them of course, in that South East region towards the border with Syria. This is not the first time they've been displaced. They have been displaced multiple times.

And in fact, we spoke to one Syrian family originally from the City of Homs. They told us, or at least one of them told us that she simply couldn't bear the thought of having to start her life.

[08:10:00]

BASHIR: Once again that she felt it would have been better off for her to have died in the earthquake. So you can imagine that the real struggle that they are facing but the message from the international community, as this rescue effort shifts into more of a recovery effort is that the real focus now really needs to be on providing that urgent care that urgent humanitarian assistance to those impacted by the earthquake in the Southeast of the country, Max.

FOSTER: OK Nada, thanks for joining us from Istanbul. China declaring a "major and decisive victory" and its handling of the Corona virus pandemic Chinese Leader Xi Jinping presided over a closed door meeting on Thursday where officials claimed having the lowest COVID-19 fatality rate in the world.

The self-praise comes despite criticism. The country hasn't been transparent about COVID's impact on the nation. CNN's Marc Stewart joins us live from Tokyo. How reliable is this statement do you think, Marc?

MARC STEWART, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of questions, Max, a lot of questions I should say. This is a statement; it's a very bold statement from Beijing. In fact, according to a summary that was published from the state run news agency Xinhua, China had "created a miracle in human history".

But this miracle is being seen as dubious by a number of experts and a number of physicians. A lot of questions here, including the reality of the death toll of COVID in China. In fact, after zero COVID ended, China reported 80,000 COVID related deaths in a population of more than 1.4 billion people.

Statistically speaking, that seems to be a little bit off According to experts, including the World Health Organization, as well as just physicians watching from the outside. A big point of contention has been exactly how China has counted these debts and illnesses, for example, at one point in China for a death to be considered COVID cause, someone had to test positive for COVID.

And then they had to die in a hospital. So it was a very narrow definition. And that's why there is a lot of skepticism about this declared victory, if you will. It's also important to point out this victory. This declaration of victory is having been is taking place at a time when we have been seeing a lot of protests in China over economic conditions.

It was just last night, Max, that we were talking about protests over potential cuts to State Health Insurance Programs. Local governments have been strained because of the zero COVID policy in China. Governments had to spend money on testing they had to spend money on quarantine that caused a tremendous economic strain. So now from the Central Government in Beijing, we are seeing what appears to be a much more positive narrative, Max.

FOSTER: Yes, Marc, thank you very much, fascinates. The death toll from cyclone Gabrielle in New Zealand rising at least 8 people have died and more than 4500 have been reported as un-contactable. Police believe some simply don't have access to communication networks, or the storm which hit the North Island on Sunday before making its way down to the East Coast cause severe flooding and widespread power outages.

Union led strikes of grounded aircraft at seven airports across Germany today. Nearly 300,000 passengers are affected. The country's prime carrier Lufthansa has ceased all flight operations in Frankfurt and Munich. Workers are demanding better pay. The strike hasn't impacted relief medical and emergency flights or flights from the Munich Security Conference either.

Now still to come, a British woman who took her dog for a walk seems to have vanished into the river but the mystery is now embroiling police in controversy. Over the release of the missing woman's personal information we'll have the details coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) [08:15:00]

FOSTER: Welcome back. Why are the British Police under scrutiny over the disappearance of Nicola Bulley? Well, this is the 45-year-old who went missing on January the 27th that's the poster she was taking her dog for a walk along this river. Search operations and intense investigation are still ongoing.

And on Wednesday, they said they believe Nicola is at high risk. And here's the statement that proved so controversial. They said "Sadly, it is clear from speaking to Paul and the family that Nicola had in the past suffered with some significant issues with alcohol which are brought on by her ongoing struggles with the menopause and that the struggles that resurfaced over recent months".

Now British media are reporting that the U.K. Home Secretary Suella Braverman has demanded an explanation from the Police citing serious concerns over the disclosure of those health details. Let's bring in Bianca who's been looking at all of this. And of course, they can release details which help an investigation or protect the public but people are wondering what these details have to do with that?

BIANCA NOBILO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Exactly, there's been a lot of criticism from Former Members of the Police. For example, the Former Victim's Commissioner Vera Baird called this an appalling disclosure and said that it was all kinds of success and the main concerns are twofold. One is the fact that was this level of personal and intimate details actually necessary to release to the public.

The other even if it was and it was pertinent to the investigation, then why released it three weeks after Nicola Bulley went missing if it was that important. Now, what we can understand from the statement that's been released by the family is that part of the reasoning for the release of these details may have been the fact.

That they said people were getting distracted trying to investigate Nicola and her partner's personal life. And the family also said that they wanted to put a stop to appalling people who might be trying to trade in and sell stories about her. So that could partially explain this divulging of personal details.

FOSTER: In terms of the mystery here, it's obviously captivated social media in the U.K. If nothing else, it's certainly on a lot of the mainstream media as well. Just explain why there's so much mystery here? Where's the disconnect in the investigation?

NOBILO: So this case has gripped the entire United Kingdom and has been splashed over the front pages of British newspapers and pretty soon after her disappearance was reported. There were Internet sleuths, Expert divers, Police and Media all descending on this very small village in Northwest England.

So it's essentially on the coast and that part is key because Nicola Bulley was last seen walking her dog which was then later found without a harness, near where they believe Nicola may have gone missing, and that was by the River Wyre which does ultimately lead into the sea via an estuary.

But Nicola was last seen by two dog walkers. She dropped off her children at school earlier in the morning. We understand that she was making plans with friends and family and mysteriously her phone was found still connected to a team's meeting with her colleagues on a bench and then no other sign of her.

The police came under criticism because the area wasn't immediately cordoned off and treated as a crime scene, especially as more details are now being revealed that the Police had actually were aware of a so called welfare check where medical staff had been sent to Nicola's home 17 days before she went missing.

And now with these new details that we're receiving about her issues with alcohol and her struggles with the menopause. This case is just becoming more controversial in terms of how the Police have handled it, how details are being communicated and there is deep concern.

[08:20:00]

NOBILO: It's all distracting from main priority here which is to find out what happened to Nicola Bulley and so far there just seems to be no sign of that becoming any clearer, Max.

FOSTER: It does show a lack of trust in the police, doesn't it as well, because you've got all these amateur investigators going out because they just don't believe what the police are saying? Then the police come up with this information that people say shouldn't be released a big communication issue for the police here. But the more damaging thing is it's undermining trust in the investigation and the police.

NOBILO: It is one of the chief complaints that arose pretty quickly off the side of this investigation is the way that the police communicated with the public suggested that they had all but discounted any other theory other than Nicola may have ended up in the river.

That includes them saying that they were pretty certain that there was no suspicious and third party involvement and they weren't treating this disappearance as suspicious. And that was even more confusing, perhaps without the revelations of these personal details. And they also said that Nicola was treated as a high risk person immediately because she had these specific vulnerabilities referring to these struggles that she was having personally.

But there has been criticism about why these other avenues were not more widely investigated at the beginning and her family have been keen to point out that we want to make sure absolutely every avenue is exhausted here. Given that nobody seems to have any clues now three weeks on, about where she is or what happened to her?

FOSTER: Bianca, thank you. Now Artificial Intelligence can be powerful in the right hands, but in the wrong hands, it can destroy lives and we'll look at one very disturbing use of deep fake technology coming up. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: They say don't believe everything you hear but what about everything you see, as the problem with the technology known as Deepfakes. Deepfake videos are made to look real with the help of Artificial Intelligence. And CNN's Donie O'Sullivan, I spoke to one woman who found her face replicated in porn videos without her knowledge or her consent.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

"SWEET ANITA", TWITCH STREAMER: It's very, very surreal to watch yourself do something you've never done.

DONIE O'SULLIVAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): Streamers sweet Anita has almost 2 million followers on Twitch where she plays video games and openly talks about having Tourette syndrome.

ANITA: I tend to say something inappropriate but I don't mean to not thinking

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): She was horrified when she found out her face was being used in so called Deepfake Porn.

ANITA: Well, I watched some of one of them, like a few seconds and I were like, no, I can't do this. I can't watch through these entire like, this is too much. It's often hardcore pornography, but it's also usually degrading or aggressive sex acts.

SAMANTHA COLE, REPORTER OF VICE MOTHERBOARD: It's extremely dramatic when this kind of thing happens.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Samantha Cole was one of the first people to report on deepfakes.

COLE: Deepfakes actually comes from the username of someone on Reddit, who was taking people's faces and putting them on performers' bodies using AI algorithms.

ANITA: It's so hyper realistic, it's genuinely scary.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Deep fakes are made using Artificial Intelligence technology.

HANY FARID, PROFESSOR AT UNIV. OF CALIFORNIA BERKELEY: These days there are apps on your phone, you can go to and upload either a single image and AI technology will re-render that image with the person without their clothes.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): When deepfakes first came on the scene around 2017. There was concern they would be used to make it look like politician said or did something they didn't do.

[08:25:00]

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Like this deepfake demonstration of Former President Obama.

BARACK OBAMA, 44TH U.S. PRESIDENT: We're entering an era in which our enemies can make it look like anyone is saying anything at any point in time.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): So far, this technology has primarily been used against women.

COLE: From the very beginning, the person who created deepfakes was using it to make pornography of women without their consent.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): First, the focus was on female celebrities.

COLE: And that's kind of how it spread how it became huge because everyone wanted to see basically a fake sex tape of their favorite celebrity.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): But now it's moved beyond movie stars.

ANITA: There are people who just want to see someone be humiliated that they personally know. And that's the market for it. This could just flit around and be found by your students, if you teach, or like some patients, if you're a nurse or a doctor, like this can affect you're standing.

COLE: They are using women's images as if they're, you know, stock images of fruit. That's how like detached they are from the reality of there are people behind these pictures.

ANITA: For the people who create this. I feel like a lot of them dehumanize us and don't actually realize we're real people who live in the consequences.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Some lawmakers have sought to crack down on nonconsensual, deepfake porn, but AI is developing at breakneck speed.

FARID: We haven't even solved the problems of the technology sector from 10, 20 years ago. And this field is moving much, much faster than the original technology revolution.

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): This is an issue that goes beyond the halls of Congress and Silicon Valley.

COLE: I don't know what the actual solution is, other than getting to that fundamental problem of disrespects and not consent.

ANITA: I want to push for a world where there are more consequences for the perpetrator, that for the victim, no one knows him. He created this and he created all these consequences for all of these women. And now he's just gone. No one knows

O'SULLIVAN (voice over): Donie O'Sullivan, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Before we go a quick programming for you. CNN's Christiane Amanpour will have an interview with the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz from the Munich Security Conference that's on Amanpour 7 pm Munich time, that's 6 pm here in London right here on CNN. Thanks for joining me here on CNN "Newsroom", I'm Max Foster. "World Sport" with Amanda Davis is up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)