Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Kyiv on Edge on First Anniversary of Russian Invasion; Head of Wagner Group Clashes with Kremlin; Inside Nablus, West Bank After Deadly Israeli Military Raid; China Sending Sensitive Military Parts to Russia; China Calls for Political Settlement on War's Anniversary; 18 Days After Quake, Many Survivors Lack Shelter. Aired 12-12:45a ET

Aired February 24, 2023 - 00:00   ET

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

JOHN VAUSE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, I'm John Vause. It is day 365 of the war in Ukraine. A year since Vladimir Putin's special military operation rolled across the border.

[00:01:17]

One year since his much-feared army was speeding towards Kyiv in what was meant to be a lightning strike on the capital, with the goal of taking control of the country within days.

And now, one year on, Putin's war of choice has become a grinding war of attrition, and his worst military blunder.

And on this day, towns and cities across Ukraine are bracing for a flurry of Russian airstrikes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

(AIR-RAID SIRENS)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: One year ago today, air-raid sirens rang out what is now a familiar and dreaded sound, heard across Ukraine. In the months since the invasion, more than 8 million Ukrainians have fled their country, the biggest wave of refugees in Europe since World War II.

Millions more have been forced from their homes as Russia repeatedly targets residential areas, power, and water facilities.

And yet, Ukraine still stands. Barricades and sandbags along the streets of the capital. There is heartbreak, destruction and death. But not one Russian troop in the capital. Here is Ukraine's first lady.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OLENA ZELENSKA, UKRAINIAN FIRST LADY (through translator): Today, we are not commemorating a year of war, but we are celebrating a year of resistance to aggression, a year of courage, a year of mutual assistance and rescue of each other. A year of humanity and a year of friendship.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Live now to Luke Hardy, foreign correspondent for "The Guardian." He's also author of the book "Invasion: The Inside Story of Russia's Bloody War and Ukraine's Fight for Survival." Luke Harding was in Kyiv the night the Russian tanks rolled into the country, and one year on, he's there once again.

So, Luke, thank you for being with us.

LUKE HARDING, FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT, "THE GUARDIAN": Great to be with you, from Kyiv. Hello.

VAUSE: In so many ways, this war began either yesterday or a lifetime ago. And for Ukrainians, I guess, it began in 2014. But on this day, what's the atmosphere like there in Kyiv as this war enters its second year?

HARDY: Well, what I can tell you, John Vause, is it's been a remarkably quiet night. There was an expectation here that perhaps we would see one of the Russian missile strikes that have been pretty frequent in Kyiv and across the country since October of last year, trying to demoralize people and knock out power supplies and so on.

But actually, no air raid alarms of the kind you played at the top of your program. And we just have to see what today brings. But my sense is, actually, that Kyiv stands. People are resilient. You talk to anyone here, they all believe in victory. I mean, they can't quite define what victory looks like or when it will arrive, but actually, despite the horror, despite the loss, despite the displacement, people are remarkably upbeat.

VAUSE: We have heard that warning from Ukrainian officials about this possibility of Russian airstrikes in the days to come. CNN reporting has this: school classes have moved online. Working from home is being encouraged. Security patrols have been stepped up in order to minimize the potential impact of those Russian strikes.

So, is there a degree of normalcy now for the Ukrainians in how they just go about their daily lives amid a conflict?

HARDY: I mean, there is. I mean, if I go back to a year ago, when I was in Kyiv, there was a mood here of absolute fear and dread, and an assumption, even at the top levels of the Ukrainian government that, probably, the Russians would come in and seize Kyiv and topple everything.

Now, that didn't happen. A lot of people fled. But more people came to the capital from cities like -- like Mariupol, like Kharkiv, which had been pulverized by Russian bombs.

And superficially, yes, it's normal. Restaurants are open; bars are open. You see people walking their dogs. There's an 11 p.m. curfew, and the streets are pretty deserted in the evening. But also, there is a sense of loss. If you go into the Maidan, the

main square, there are blue and yellow flags, planted for victims of this war, civilians, soldiers and so on. And it's an enormous carpet, with people coming every day to plant more flags and to pay their respects to people they've lost.

VAUSE: That is tragic to see.

[00:05:02]

According to the Ukrainian military, though, over the past year, the Russians have carried out almost 8,500 missile and air strikes, as well as almost 1,000 drone attacks. You know, there may be a certain degree of normalcy in how Ukrainians faced the day today, but there's no way to normalize that amount of destruction caused by almost 10,000 airstrikes in one year. And as well as all the other damage, all the other destruction which has happened.

So in many ways, how is the country still functioning?

HARDY: Yes. I mean, both are astonishing statistics. And I've recently been to the front line in Kherson in the South, the regional capital which, of course, the Ukrainians took back, in a dramatic counteroffensive last November.

I've been in Zaporizhzhia region, a bit further along in the South. And also over in the East, where the Russians have been grinding away, trying to capture the city of Bakhmut.

And what you have to understand is it's an enormously long frontline. It's more than 1,000 kilometers. And it's noisy. You hear the kind of booms of artillery from both sides, crumps of shells being fired across a kind of winter landscape. And sometimes, if you're in the wrong place, the whistle of Russian munitions landing close.

And what I have to tell you is that there are people living there, people who -- many people have fled but others who are, incredibly, still on the front line. They say they have nowhere to go, surviving without electricity and water. And the scale of this human tragedy is just so vast.

VAUSE: And Luke, as we speak with you, we're looking at live images now there from the capital, Kyiv. It's 7 -- 7:06 in the morning. As you can see, it is fairly quiet right now. And as you mentioned, Luke, there has been no air strikes, no air-raid sirens overnight. And of course, that's one of the expectations in the coming hours there from the authorities in Kyiv.

But Luke, some great reporting in "The Guardian" newspaper. It is very much appreciated. Please stay safe. Thank you for being with us. And take care.

HARDY: Thank you.

VAUSE: Be well. Cities across Europe marking the first anniversary of Russia's

invasion of Ukraine. More than 1,000 gathered for a nighttime vigil in London's Trafalgar Square.

In Paris, the Eiffel Tower was lit up in blue and yellow in solidarity with the people of Ukraine. Mayor Anne Hidalgo tweeted, "Glory to Ukraine."

And in Brussels, the European Parliament is illuminated in the colors of Ukraine's flag. That would be blue and yellow. The E.U. issued a statement on the anniversary, saying it will not rest until Ukraine prevails and is rebuilt.

The U.N. General Assembly marking the first anniversary of the war with a resolution demanding Moscow immediately withdraw its troops from Ukraine. Seven countries, including Russia, Belarus, Syria, North Korea, voted against the measure. China abstained.

Ukraine's president hailed the overwhelming international support for his country. And the Russian foreign minister said -- or the foreign minister, rather, of Ukraine said, Russia must end its illegal aggression.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER: We are satisfied with the outcome and the message is clear. It doesn't matter what Russia tries and how it attempts to undermine the international order and the coalition in support of Ukraine's territorial integrity. It fails one time after another.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Even before Russia launched its offensive, Russia's leader framed it as a patriotic struggle to liberate Ukraine from Western aggression. Now, one year on, many Russians still believe that.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen has more now on the view from Moscow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice- over): Vladimir Putin laying a wreath at Russia's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, commemorating Soviet troops killed in World War II, while the invasion in Ukraine is taking a heavy toll now.

VLADIMIR PUTIN, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT (through translator): The sacred duty of the state is to take care of those who defend the country.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): A year after launching the major invasion, Russia's leader has been busy trying to convince his people he has a plan for victory.

PUTIN (through translator): We are confident in ourselves, confident in our strength. The truth is on our side. PLEITGEN (voice-over): But the truth is also its been months since the

Russians made any significant progress on the battlefield. Smaller gains coming mostly thanks to the mercenaries of the Wagner private military company.

After a recent spat in which he blamed Russia's defense ministry for a high death toll for allegedly not providing enough ammunition, Wagner boss of Yevgeny Prigozhin now sending battlefield greetings from near Bakhmut.

YEVGENY PRIGOZHIN, HEAD OF WAGNER GROUP (through translator): You can congratulate all of the guys who are fighting, who are on the front lines, in the hospital; the military who are fighting for our motherland, volunteers, those who work hard and make much needed ammunition.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): But ammunition and weapons remain an issue hampering Russia's offensive operations. Former Putin advisor Sergei Markov tells me.

SERGEY MARKOV, DIRECTOR, INSTITUTE OF POLITICAL STUDIES: Putin mobilized to November 300,000 soldiers, but they happen no used in attacking on the front because they have not been not used in attacking on the front, equipped by weaponry and in other stuff for themself.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): On the home front, support for what the Kremlin calls its special military operation remains strong, even as only a few streets away, boarded-up shops show the toll sanctions are taking on Russia's economy.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through Translator): We got ourselves into this ordeal. We had to see it through to the end. It's like in a common street fight. If you give in, you will take the beating.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): I don't think we will see the end of it any time soon. I don't know what this and will look like, but I don't think there's anything good for Russia in it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): I believe we did the right thing. It's just that we should have hit them stronger from the start. There is no question that victory will be ours.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Vladimir Putin acknowledges that times are tough for many Russians, but claims he had no other choice.

MARKOV: For the majority of the nation, it's fighting for resolution survival, for existence. We have 1,000 history in our generation would be responsible for stopping Russia? what reason to live?

PLEITGEN: Making this out to be an existential battle for the very existence of Russia as the nation, it certainly seems to be the core that Vladimir Putin is trying to strike with his own population.

And the way the Kremlin portrays it is that it's a battle on Ukrainian lands, but it is one between Russia and the West led by the United States.

[Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Moscow.

(END VIDEOTAPE

VAUSE: Jill Dougherty is an adjunct professor of Georgetown University, a CNN contributor and former CNN Moscow bureau chief.

Good to see you, Jill.

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Hi, John.

VAUSE: So Putin's message at this one-year point in the war in Ukraine seems to be everything is going OK. Everything is going to plan. Trust me.

But maybe the head of the mercenary army, known as the Wagner Group, did not quite get that memo. On Wednesday, Yevgeny Prigozhin took to social media. He released photographs that we warn you are quite disturbing. And here's one of them.

This photograph shows row after row of dead Wagner fighters fighting in Ukraine, along with this comment: "Ammunition was not given to us and is not being given to us. These are the guys who died yesterday due to the so-called shell starvation."

A day earlier, he accused the defense minister and Russia's highest- ranking military officer of treason for cutting ammunition supplies to his men in Ukraine.

By Thursday, though, it seems, these shock tactics had worked. Here he is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRIGOZHIN (through translator) (via phone): I would like to thank everybody who helped us do it. You saved hundreds, maybe even thousands of our guys who defend our motherland, who gave them an opportunity to live on. Their mothers and children will not receive coffins with their bodies.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: It would seem there's a lot more going on here than some kind of dispute over a lack of ammunition.

DOUGHERTY: Yes. I mean, Yevgeny Prigozhin is a complex person.

I think what's happening is, you know, for a long time, he was in the shadows with this organization that he created back in 2014 in connection with Crimea. And it provided, by being in the shadows, deniability for the Russian government. In other words, they could have Wagner do all sorts of nasty things literally around the world -- Africa, Middle East, and Latin America, even before Ukraine.

And so Prigozhin did not talk about that. In fact, he tried to sue at least one journalist who said that he actually was the head of Wagner.

And now, all of a sudden, he's very obviously the head of Wagner.

And I think what's going on is, he's -- he's feeling his oats. He is necessary to the Kremlin's war in Ukraine, to Putin's war in Ukraine, because he provides a lot of the cannon fodder. These forces that go in, the mercenaries and oftentimes are slaughtered. Some of the better ones are really vicious fighters. So, they play a role.

But it's always been kind of a confrontation to a certain extent from the regular military, from the defense ministry.

So, that's kind of what you're getting here. Prigozhin saying, Hey, we're doing it. You know, we're the guys who are winning the war. And then when he goes too far, sometimes it has an effect. But he pulls back.

It's a very tenuous relationship, I would say, with Putin and with the Kremlin, but they still need him.

VAUSE: He also has this sort of army of Internet trolls who he can demobilize when he needs them to do it. And he has a very prolific presence on social media.

And unlike many others in Russia, he's been highly critical at times of how the war has played out. Is he setting himself up as a possible replacement here for Vladimir Putin?

DOUGHERTY: I don't think he could ever become president of Russia. But I do think that he has a power base.

You know, all of the things that he's into -- and don't forget, his businessman side of him -- just in January, the U.S. Treasury Department declared them -- declared Wagner a significant transnational criminal organization.

[00:15:08]

So these guys go in -- Wagner goes into places, let's say, in Africa, and makes money from blood diamonds and from Gold and other, you know, products that they can extract from these areas.

So, he has an empire of making a lot of money from, exactly this type of business.

So, I think he wants more power. I think he's very -- he appears to be an unstable person. I do not think he could become president. But I do think he's got a power base.

VAUSE: Well, Putin, for that matter, his problem is the same amount (ph) here. Notably the economy, a year on, is beginning to struggle under international sanctions.

Here's the U.S. treasury secretary, Janet Yellen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JANET YELLEN, U.S. TREASURY SECRETARY: There are sanctions have had a very significant negative effect on Russia so far. While, by some measures, the Russian economy has held up better than might initially have been expected, Russia is now running a significant budget deficit.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Is it fair to say the impact of sanctions on everyday Russians and Russian business doesn't really carry much weight for Putin? But for important important, is the country's ability to produce materiel for the war?

DOUGHERTY: Yes, I think that's probably very true. You know, Putin plays two roles in this.

On the one hand, he says, this is an existential war, and we have to all be in it. And sanctions, you know, the West is trying to destroy us with sanctions.

And on the other hand, he tries to calm people down and say, Don't worry. Domestically, we're doing OK.

It's a very strange tap dance, I'd say, John. And you know, we saw this week when the president delivered his kind of State of the Union, the address to the federal assembly. It's -- it's an odd thing. You know, drumming up fear and yet trying to tamp down the fear at the same time.

VAUSE: Yes. It's schizophrenic in a way, almost. Jill, thank you very much for being with us. We appreciate it.

DOUGHERTY: Sure.

VAUSE: Mercenaries with the Wagner Group, as well as regular Russian forces, continue to focus their firepower in an effort to break through Ukrainian defensive lines around the city of Bakhmut in the East of Ukraine.

More than a dozen settlements near the city came under Russian fire on Thursday, according to Ukrainian officials.

The loss of life on both sides continues to mount. And as CNN's Sam Kiley reports from near Bakhmut, many of those saving the lives of wounded Ukrainian soldiers are from outside the country and are volunteers.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SAM KILEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Almost walking, this one wounded Ukrainian soldier has an obvious injury. Arriving at a casualty evacuation point for the battle of Bakhmut, American medics look for hidden trauma.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tell them I's going roll him, and I'm going to check his back. One, two, three.

And when you get a chance, give his legs a feel for me.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can we get him back? A shrapnel wound out here, as well. It looks minor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You want to go ahead and draw up some Ondance (ph) for me?

KILEY (voice-over): Chris is from Houston, Texas. He's three kilometers, less than two miles, from Russian troops. And he's only 22.

Last year, he took time out from his job to volunteer for Road to Relief. The charity relies on donations to fund and equip frontline ambulances. And these teams are unpaid.

ADAM MEYSING, AMBULANCE DRIVER: There's credit cards, and my mom, and a little bit of prior savings. So as long as you have enough money to scrape by and just buy, like, the basic goods, things tend to be OK.

KILEY (voice-over): Hospital and medical staff are regularly targeted by Russia. This location is hidden in trees near Ukrainian artillery. This firing overhead, on Russians just up the road.

CHRIS WRIGHT, VOLUNTEER PARAMEDIC: So it's just -- yes, we need more medics, more drugs. It's just that the amount of injuries is super high.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does he have any allergies?

KILEY : Chris is saying privately that one of the reasons there is such a need for foreign volunteers to work as medics is that so many of the Ukrainians have been killed.

KILEY (voice-over): The team relies on a former software designer for translation.

KILEY: Is there anything about this that you can't handle?

ANNA KOVALCHUK, TRANSLATOR: All the deaths, I, of course, they are incredibly hard. I don't know how to take. Somehow, you feel guilty about that.

KILEY (voice-over): It's a 20-minute run from the ambulance to a field hospital.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Can you approach this slowly for me, please?

A mine roughly -- like, what was it, 20 minutes ago? Thirty minutes ago now? Yes, a mine 30 minutes ago.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Careful, please --

[00:20:05] KILEY (voice-over): He's delivered to another secret clinic. Here, the wounded pour in. A soldier has lost a leg. In his abandoned uniform, the piece of shrapnel took it. Medics say it's relatively quiet. Some days, there are hundreds of patients.

WRIGHT: He doesn't remember losing consciousness or not. But pupils were equal and reactive, same size.

KILEY (voice-over): Blood-soaked stretchers dry in the sun outside. And sunset can be busy for medics. Soldiers trapped by fighting can be rescued as the light fades.

Back at the evacuation point, no wounded. Five dead soldiers lie in body bags. They're so fresh from the battlefield they are unknown. Their I.D.'s are checked, and they're photographed. Their suffering is over. Their families don't yet know that there's is about to begin.

Sam Kiley, CNN, near Bakhmut.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Still ahead here on CNN, how is Chinese military technology ending up on Ukraine's battlefield? Is Beijing helping Russia's war effort without directly providing weapons?

Also ahead, protests in the Palestinian territories as the Israeli prime minister defends a lethal military raid.

You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VAUSE: The ultra-conservative Israeli government has handed responsibility for West Bank settlements to a pro-settler cabinet minister, Bezalel Smotrich, a move likely to add to already sky-high tensions in Israel and the Palestinian Territories after one of the deadliest Israeli military aides in the occupied West Bank in years, which killed 11 Palestinians Wednesday.

A day later, demonstrations in Gaza. Burned ties near the border with Israel, following back and forth cross-border attacks.

The Israeli minister says it struck key targets in Gaza, belonging to the militant group Hamas, after six rockets were fired from Gaza towards Israel.

Meantime, many Palestinian shops and schools across the region were closed Thursday, a protest over the recent raid.

But the Israeli prime minister has defended that raid and said Israel will, quote, "settle accounts with those who attack its citizens and soldiers."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER (through translator): We will continue to take all actions on all fronts, near and far, in order to thwart our enemies' efforts to attack us. Whoever tries to harm us will pay the price.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VAUSE: Palestinian officials say around 500 people were wounded in that Israeli military raid. Many were hit with live bullets, according to the head of the Palestinian Red Crescent.

CNN's Hadas Gold spoke to witnesses and walks us through what happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HADAS GOLD, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The winding narrow streets of the casbah Nablus looks like a war zone: bullet- hole-riddled doorways, cars, rubble on the street, bloodstains on the ground.

[00:25:03]

Aftermath of a rare daytime Israeli military operation to target three militants, the Israelis say, were about to carry out imminent attacks.

Soldiers surrounding this home where militants were holed up, refusing to give themselves up. Massive fire fight, the Israelis launching shoulder-fired rockets.

This woman lives right next door, still trembling, so afraid she didn't want to show her face, saying soldiers warned people to go home. She entered her house, where soldiers questioned her and warned her she'd hear explosions.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): We heard explosions and want to hide under our beds. We covered our ears with blankets. I can't even describe how shocking it was. We saw that death our own eyes. We didn't expect to get out of this alive.

GOLD (voice-over): The battle spilling out into the surrounding streets, as locals and militants clashed with the soldiers. Ahmad Jibril, the head of the Red Crescent in Nablus, said hundreds were injured, many by live ammunition seemingly falling from the sky, including non-armed combatants.

AHMAD JIBRIL, HEAD OF RED CRESCENT SOCIETY NABLUS: This is the first time they invade at this time of the day, when you consider our utter (ph) densely-populated area, at the main market in the city.

GOLD (voice-over): That includes the father of Elias Al-Ashqar, a nurse at al-Nasea (ph) Hospital, who says he was treating the wounded when he was called into another room. A man was dying from a bullet.

But then, "Father, father," he cries out, when he recognizes the body.

ELIAS AL-ASHQAR, NURSE (through translator): I came back to check on the two injuries. I asked the doctor, and he said both died. I felt a very strange feeling that something belongs to me is between the beds. I opened the second curtain, and it was my father. In the beginning, I didn't believe it. Then I came closer.

GOLD (voice-over): The Israeli military acknowledging the situation was chaotic and messy, saying it was looking into reports of unarmed civilians shot by their forces.

Carnage like this, not seen since the days of the Second Intifada, as residents here have loss faith in the Palestinian Authority, saying only God can protect them.

Hadas Gold, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Is China going all-in in its support of Moscow and the war in Ukraine? When we come back, Beijing reportedly sending duel-use high- tech equipment -- but not weapons -- to help Russia's military. That's ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:30:06]

VAUSE: In Ukraine's capital, Swiss artist Gerry Hofstetter lit up the Kyiv Opera House to mark the first anniversary of the war, part of a show honoring victims of this conflict.

And in Western Ukraine, beams of light amid the darkness of a cemetery, where hundreds of fallen Ukrainian troops have been buried.

NATO is now backing up U.S. concerns that China is at least considering sending lethal aid to Russia. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg raised the concerns Thursday, days after Washington expressed similar concerns.

But a U.S. think think says Beijing is already propping up Russia's war efforts on the battlefield. CNN's Will Ripley explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What will it take to stop the suffering, the senseless slaughter of Russia's unprovoked war on Ukraine?

One year in, President Vladimir Putin has a problem: ammo is running low. The U.S. government says Russia will run out of serviceable ammunition this year.

Moscow denies they have a fading arsenal, forcing their military to conserve, unless they get help, help us the U.S. and NATO say could come from China.

ANTONY BLINKEN, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: To date, we have seen Chinese companies -- and, of course, in China, there's really no distinction between private companies and the state. We have seen them provide nonlethal support to -- to Russia for use in Ukraine.

The concern that we have now is based on information we have that they're considering lethal support.

RIPLEY (voice-over): China denies it, calling the claims unfounded, a ploy, a smear. Beijing and Moscow declared a no-limits partnership last year.

CNN obtained a new report, showing Moscow may already be getting a boost on the battlefield from Beijing. Troves of trade data collected and supplied by the Center for Advanced Studies, a D.C. think tank. The data shows China is sending Russian defense companies sophisticated parts.

NAOMI GARCIA, DATA ANALYST, C4ADS: We see the nature of these parts being labeled explicitly for use in military systems.

RIPLEY (voice-over): CNN did not verify the data, showing a steady supply of parts, dramatically increasing after the invasion. They could be helping Russia resupply.

Rotors for attack helicopters; other parts for communication and controls; radar antenna parts for anti-aircraft missile systems, sent to a Russian defense company, labeled for military use, the think tank says.

Their data shows military assistance from several Chinese companies, even before the war. Dual-use aircraft, radar, and lab equipment flowing into Russia 268 times. Shipped by Poly Group or its umbrella company, Poly Technologies, a state-backed Chinese arms manufacturer.

CNN contacted Poly Group for comment, along with several other Chinese companies shown in the data. So far, no response.

GARCIA: Any trade between a sanctioned Chinese state-owned defense company and a Russian sanctioned defense company, during wartime -- any trade, really, at all is indicative of a growing partnership that should potentially be of concern.

RIPLEY (voice-over): The data implies deepening cooperation. The U.S. suspects China of creeping closer and closer to fully supporting Russia's war. The consequences for Ukraine could be catastrophic.

MALCOLM DAVIS, SENIOR ANALYST, AUSTRALIAN STRATEGIC POLICY INSTITUTE: Some inflow of Chinese weapons into the Russians could fundamentally shift the dynamics in Moscow's environment (ph).

RIPLEY (voice-over): When asked about allegations of backing Moscow, Beijing blames Washington, saying, it's the U.S., not China providing a steady stream of weapons on the battlefield.

Off the battlefield, trade data reveals Russia may be bypassing Western sanctions, buying blacklisted advanced technology from Beijing, the kind of tech Putin's army needs to power high-tech weapons and communication systems.

Why would China risk so much for Russia?

DAVIS: It's in their interest to have a Russian victory, and to have the United States and its allies humiliated.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Russia's president and China's top diplomat meeting in Moscow Wednesday, just two days after President Biden's surprise trip to Kyiv.

Democracy and autocracy, a fight for the future of Ukraine and perhaps the free world.

RIPLEY: China's foreign minister visited the Kremlin in a visit that is widely believed to be a precursor for a visit in the coming months between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russia's president, Vladimir Putin.

Now, what they're going to discuss, whether it be this Chinese peace plan or something else, remains an open question.

But what is clear is that the partnership between China and Russia remains rock-solid, as evidenced by these high-profile visits and talks of this upcoming summit between the two leaders of the largest authoritarian powers in the world.

Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: CNN has reached out Russia for comment, but we have received no response. According to "The Wall Street Journal," though, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, quote, "Russia has enough technological potential to ensure its security and conduct a special military operation," adding, "This potential is constantly being improved."

Let's go live to the capital of Estonia right now, where the first anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine happens to coincide with Estonia's independence day. Heads of both the E.U. and NATO are on hand for this year's ceremonies in the former Soviet state.

Estonia shares a border with Russia and sees its ongoing military support for Ukraine as part of its own defense against Vladimir Putin's war of choice.

There it is, 7:35 a.m., Estonia capital.

(MUSIC: ESTONIAN NATIONAL ANTHEM)

VAUSE: And that is the scene there in Estonia, a scene which will play out in many countries across Europe as they mark this one a year since Vladimir's war of choice began, sending the tanks and the troops across the border a year ago today.

And now we have Beijing's idea of how to resolve this conflict. Kristie Lu Stout joins us now live from Hong Kong with more on this.

You know, this is part -- this is some of the foreign ministry's greatest hits. It's sort of a dialogue and negotiations, an end to cold war mentality. Guaranteed sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity. This is straight from their best album charts.

KRISTIE LU STOUT, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR/CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Let's go through what was released earlier today.

So earlier today, the ministry of foreign affairs released this 12- point peace plan position paper, and it's calling for the end of hostilities. It's calling for the end of unilateral sanctions. It's also calling for the resumption of peace talks with China, quote, "continuing to play a constructive role."

But no clear mechanism or concrete details were provided.

Now we did hear a response from the head of the E.U. delegation in China, saying that this peace plan proposal -- this position paper -- is just that. It's only a paper; it's not a peace proposal.

But Reuters is also reporting that Ukraine's charge d'affaires is welcoming this paper, calling it, quote, "a good sign," saying that Ukraine has its own peace plan and is hoping that China will support it.

Now earlier we heard from a senior official at the U.S. State Department, Victoria Nuland, who said that if there is to be any peace plan for Ukraine, it has to be just, and it has to be lasting.

I want to show you her comments. This is what Victoria Nuland said. She said, quote, "It can't simply be a cynical cease-fire that allows the Russians the time to go home, rest, refit and return. If Xi Jinping can get Putin and his army out of Ukraine, I think we'd all applaud and give a peace prize," unquote.

Now this also comes at a time at the U.S. State Department, as well as the Pentagon, they continue to warn China of consequences if they provide lethal weapons to Russia.

China continues to fire back. I think we do have a statement, the latest MOFA briefing of China firing back to that allegation, saying, this: quote, "We can easily imagine that the intelligence U.S. referred to is most likely chasing shadows and smearing China. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine crisis, China has firmly stood on the side of dialogue and peace."

Now, we are awaiting details of this expected Chinese peace plan. Of course, we're also awaiting Russia's reaction to it. As Victoria Nuland pointed out herself, the fundamental question here is, does Putin want peace?

Back to you, John.

VAUSE: So far, the indications are no. Kristie, thank you. Kristie Lu Stout, live for us there in Hong Kong.

We will take a short break. When we come back, in Turkey's quake zone a dire need for shelter. Many survivors still left out in the cold and the rain. That story and much more after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:41:12]

VAUSE: Eighteen days since the earthquake and more than 100 unaccompanied children in Turkey remain unidentified. The Turkish government says the majority of nearly 1,900 unaccompanied children pulled from the rubble have been reunited with their families. Perhaps you buried the lead there. Nearly 400 remain hospitalized.

CNN's Nada Bashir is in Hatay province with the very latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NADA BASHIR, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, more than two weeks on since the earthquake struck here in Southeast Turkey, and there are still thousands and thousands of people who have been left completely homeless with absolutely nothing.

BASHIR (voice-over): Now, according to authorities, some 900,000 people are currently living in tents across this region. We've seen some of those IDP camps which have been set up.

It is only a temporary measure, but for now, it is the only home many people have. And in fact, there are new ways of providing shelter that are being developed.

And one of the more novel forms of shelter that have now been established here in Iskenderun, in the Hatay province is this ship, the Gemini, which is currently housing more than 1,000 people displaced by the earthquake from this nearby area.

There are 400 cabins on board, families of children, all on board. They'll be spending the next couple of weeks here until they're provided with a tent or a more permanent container shelter on one of these IDP camps.

Now, on board, there are activities for the children. They're providing meals and health care, but this is only a temporary measure. And once they are finally assigned a tent or container, they will then move on.

This will only last for the next few weeks, but there is growing pressure on the Turkish government to find a more permanent solution for those who have been made homeless by this earthquake and, indeed, those who also lost their homes in the significant aftershock on Monday.

And there is a real sense of loss, a real sense of destruction across this region. It is difficult to grasp and explain in words the scale of the destruction across Southeast Turkey, particularly in the Hatay province, which was among the worst hit by the earthquake.

Many of these people have lost absolutely everything. And when we've been speaking to those families living in the IDP camp, some are still waiting for tents. They're living on the streets. The nights are cold, and their children are sleeping outside.

BASHIR: So there is a real sense of urgency and a real sense OF growing pressure on the Turkish government and on the international community to continue to provide further support for those who have been made most vulnerable by this earthquake.

Nada Bashir, CNN, Iskenderun, Turkey.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VAUSE: Thank you for watching. I'm John Vause. Please stay with us. WORLD SPORT starts after the break.

We will leave you with live pictures now from Estonia, where the heads of both the E.U. and NATO are there for the country's independence day. Also celebrating -- or marking, I should say, one year of the war in Ukraine.

You're watching CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[00:45:35]

(WORLD SPORT)