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Ukraine Looks Ahead To Future F-16 Deliveries; Ukraine Now Using United States-Provided Cluster Munitions; Chinese President Xi Jinping Arrives In Johannesburg; Thai Supreme Court Sentences Ex-Prime Minister To Eight Years In Prison. Aired 2-3a ET

Aired August 22, 2023 - 02:00   ET

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

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[02:00:17]

ROSEMARY CHURCH, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Hello, and welcome to our viewers joining us from all around the world. I'm Rosemary Church.

Just ahead here on CNN NEWSROOM. Russia blames Ukraine for overnight explosions near Moscow that damaged apartments and forced its three major airports to briefly close.

After 15 years in exile, a controversial billionaire ex-prime minister returns to Thailand where he's just been sentenced to prison on corruption charges.

We'll have a live report.

Plus, despite protest, Japan says it will release wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean this week.

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ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Rosemary Church.

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CHURCH: Good to have you with us. Well, Russia says it's defending itself from several new Ukrainian attacks. Some of them coming very close to the capital city.

This dashcam footage shows the orange glow from an apparent Ukrainian drone that crashed outside Moscow. Russian defense officials say it's one of four drones they intercepted on Tuesday.

Aviation authorities temporarily closed all the airports in the Moscow region. And Russia's Defense Ministry says it destroyed a Ukrainian reconnaissance boat on the Black Sea, which was spotted near a Russian gas production facility.

For its part, Ukrainian officials say they carried out a successful attack on a Russian military base on Monday, claiming one of its drones damaged at least one aircraft.

Well, meanwhile, Ukraine's president is meeting with Balkan leaders in Greece. Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying, Greece will help train Ukrainian pilots on F-16 fighter jets. And the sooner they are trained, the sooner the jets can join the counter offensive.

Fred Pleitgen brings us the latest.

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FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): As Kyiv's offensive grinds on with only modest gains, Ukraine's president already taking a seat in the next major weapons platform his country is set to receive.

Two key U.S. allies, Denmark and the Netherlands, confirming they will give Ukraine, American-made F-16 combat aircraft.

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE: Today, we are confident that Russia will lose this war.

Together, we proved that life is a value that people matter. Freedom matters. Europe matters.

PLEITGEN (voice over): The Biden administration already signaling it will approve the F-16's transfer to Ukraine once training is complete. Denmark and the Netherlands could give Ukraine dozens of aircraft.

METTE FREDERIKSEN, DANISH PRIME MINISTER: Together with the Netherlands we are the first country to make a solid and concrete commitment to donate western fighter jets. And hopefully, others will follow now.

PLEITGEN (voice over): The Ukrainian say a severe lack of airpower is stalling their counter offensive. Ukraine's old MiGs can't compete with Russia's modern Su-35 fighter jets and their powerful radars. That allows the Russians to easily target Ukrainian ground forces leading to heavy losses.

While Ukraine probably won't have the F-16s until early next year, Kyiv believes they will stop Russian jets from attacking Ukraine's troops.

YURII IHNAT, SPOKESPERSON, UKRAINIAN AIR FORCE (through translator): They will not be able to do this with the F-16's present. Air superiority is the key to success in the ground.

PLEITGEN (voice over): But on the ground, Moscow's forces are putting up a tough fight both in the south of Ukraine and in the east.

Russian President Vladimir Putin, visiting the main headquarters in southern Russia this weekend to get battlefield updates as Russians are increasingly feeling the war come to them.

These people on the Russian side of the border with Ukraine complaining to Putin about shelling from Ukraine, which Putin's army so far seems unable to stop.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (through translator): Give us the opportunity to receive compensation. We want to move away from here. It is impossible to live here.

PLEITGEN (voice over): And Ukraine is vowing to continue its fight trying to push the Russians back, hoping in several months, modern western jets could be a game changer.

[02:05:04]

Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

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CHURCH: Retired Australian Army Major General Mick Ryan, joins me now from Brisbane. He is the former commander of the Australian Defense College and is author of "War Transformed: The Future of 21st Century Great Power Competition and Conflict.

Appreciate you joining us.

MAJ. GEN. MICK RYAN, (RET.), AUTHOR, WAR TRANSFORMED: Yes, it's great to be with you again.

CHURCH: So, let's start with Ukraine's military strategy of striking on Russian soil. This time, its drones brought down near Moscow early Tuesday, damaging apartments and causing issues at the city's three biggest airports.

How significant is the strategy for Ukraine? And does it have Russia on the run?

RYAN: Well, it certainly is becoming a drumbeat of attacks inside Russia that will be causing more and more angst for Putin, any senior military leaders. They are going to have to answer more questions about why can't they defend themselves against Ukrainian drones?

From the Ukrainians, these are political attacks primarily. But there's also military outcomes, like that recent attack on the Russian airbase, about 700 kilometers from Ukraine's boarder.

CHURCH: And we reported yesterday, on Denmark and the Netherlands, announcing future donations of F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. The war- torn nation has long been requesting this form of critical air support. It won't happen immediately, of course, but could these F-16 represent a game changer for Ukraine once these pilots are trained and ready to use them?

RYAN: Well, that will certainly level the playing field against the Russian Air Force. They are significantly more sophisticated, particularly their radars and their weapons than the current aircraft possessed by the Ukrainian Air Force.

So, these will push back Russian aircrafts launching cruise missiles and glide bombs against Ukrainian military targets as well as civilian targets within Ukraine as well.

CHURCH: So, a game changer?

RYAN: Well, it will -- it will certainly change the situation in the air. The Russian Air Force is very large, but it will change the situation in the medium to long term. Absolutely.

CHURCH: Right. And meantime, the United States has been sending Ukraine millions of weapons, ammunition, and other military equipment. But now, the U.S. is apparently struggling to keep up with munitions supplies.

How problematic could this prove to be? And what's the solution to sustaining the required supply levels for Ukraine, because they are working through a lot of this ammunition, certainly.

RYAN: Well, they certainly are. None of us were really prepared for war under these conditions. At the end of the Cold War, a lot of defense industry consolidated, we got rid of a lot of our war stocks. And we haven't seen this kind of consumption for generations.

But we have seen us industry, particularly with artillery starting to expand. The real question is, can that expansion happen fast enough for the Ukrainians?

CHURCH: And Mick Ryan, Ukrainian artillery crews received U.S.-made cluster bombs a few weeks ago after U.S. President Joe Biden made the decision to send the controversial weapons, even though they're outlawed in more than 120 countries. And it's a decision not supported by many allies.

Ukraine is using these bombs against the Russians on the front lines, although it has to be said Russia is doing the same. Is that a fair reason to use them against Russian troops? And how big a gamble could this prove to be for the United States in the end?

RYAN: Well, the reason why the cluster munitions were sent there, is because there was a huge shortage of traditional high explosive rounds for that artillery. And it was really a case of send these custom munitions or send nothing.

And sometimes, in war, you have to make these kinds of terrible choices between bad and worse decisions. So, you know, the Ukrainians, welcome the use, they're using against the Russians.

Certainly, it's probably not optimal from many people's perspective, but it was the best option at that point in time.

CHURCH: Mick Ryan, appreciate you joining us. Thank you so much.

RYAN: Thank you.

CHURCH: North Korea says the possibility of thermonuclear war is rising, as South Korea and the U.S. carry out their annual joint military exercises, state media said, Pyongyang would punish hostile forces, and was waiting for the right time to strike. North Korea also condemned the summit last week between leaders of the U.S., South Korea, and Japan at Camp David.

Well, the first major session of the BRICS summit in South Africa gets underway in the coming hours, as the world's emerging nations trying to forge a tighter alliance.

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Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Johannesburg on Monday to hold pre-summit meetings with his South African counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa.

China is hoping to expand the block beyond the four other current members: South Africa, Brazil, India, and Russia.

And CNN Beijing bureau chief, Steven Jiang is in Beijing. But first, we do want to go to David McKenzie, who is there in Johannesburg.

Good to see you both. So, David, what are the key issues to be covered at this BRICS summit? And what are the expectations?

DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, I think BRICS has taken on a new relevance in particular because of the context of the war in Ukraine. And that will be the event that's sort of shadowing a lot of this summit, both in terms of what these countries represent and their viewpoint on the Ukraine war.

So, if you look at some of the key things to watch out for one is that Vladimir Putin is not going to be here, of course, he is under in a warrant from the International Criminal Court. He faces charges of human rights abuses in that Ukraine war, and the decision was taken for him to not come in person.

There will be a very interesting moment when all of these leaders of Brazil, India, China, and South Africa are in a room together, that Vladimir Putin has to attend virtually, and that will send a message about his isolation. But I think it's more complicated than that, because these countries have supported Russia in some sense, or kept on the sidelines.

And this bloc of countries, is also looking possibly to expand. That's another key issue. China, in particular, is pushing for that expansion. We've seen more than 20 countries formally, try and add their names to BRICS. And that is something that could mean this becomes a de-facto group of countries to take on the G7.

At least, that's what China would want. It's a more complicated when you look at what perhaps Brazil, and India, in particular, want to see out of this organization. We'll see if that becomes a formality, this particular summit.

And then, I think finally, you know, will this become a major power center of the so-called Global South. You've seen moves by BRICS to form their own multilateral lender in the New Development Bank or BRICS bank. There is talk about trying to reduce the dependency on the U.S. dollar when it comes to trade between countries in the Global South.

So, you know, after some years of trying to find its footing, this might be a moment where BRICS comes into more relevance on the global stage. We'll have to see in the next few days, but it is a significant meeting, indeed, Rosemary.

CHURCH: And Steven, what is China's President Xi Jinping hoping to accomplish at this summit?

STEVEN JIANG, CNN INTERNATIONAL BEIJING BUREAU CHIEF: Well, Rosemary, you know, it's worth noting that this is only Xi Jinping's second international trip after the pandemic.

The first one was actually back in March to Moscow to see his "dear friend," Putin.

So, this kind of dynamic really underscores what David was saying that as despite these country's vastly different political and economic models, these leaders really bonded by these shared grievances or a desire to change this current global order, led and dominated by the U.S. and its allies.

And David mentioned some of the items on the agenda: expanding this grouping, but also reducing their reliance on U.S. dollars. I think, Xi Jinping very much is on board about this. You know, that, of course, is why you have seen state media and officials here really drumming up this narrative of the Global South, emerging nations around the world coming together to counter what they describe as the U.S. policy of unilateral sanctions and long arm jurisdictions.

But Xi Jinping comes here at a time when the Chinese economy, the world's biggest -- second biggest facing a lot of strong headwinds back at home, this post-COVID rebound really not going as well, as officials had hoped they are faced with a burgeoning local government debt crisis, a deepening real estate crisis, not to mention, youth unemployment, consistently reaching historic highs for several months.

And now, the government has decided to stop releasing data on this front.

So, that means, Xi Jinping may be more constrained in terms of what kind of investment, projects -- what kind of projects they can invest and finance compared to given just the past few years.

But some experts say the Beijing leadership has now switching -- has now switched to a so-called low-cost high impact strategy by, for example, improving party to party relations to tout the superiority of the Chinese political system by having more African military officers being trained here in China, not to mention of course, expanding China's soft power.

The state media outlet, Rosemary, CCTV (PH), debuting the second season of a show called, "Classics Quoted by Xi Jinping" across Africa. [02:15:03]

I'm sure officials here hope that's going to be a huge hit. Rosemary.

CHURCH: Steven Jiang in Beijing. David McKenzie in Johannesburg. Many thanks to you both.

Well, Thailand's former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has returned home after 15 years in exile to an arrest and a prison sentence. A short time ago, the country's Supreme Court gave him eight years in prison for corruption.

Thaksin was ousted in a 2006 military coup, while he attended a U.N. meeting in New York. He was convicted of corruption during his self- imposed exile.

Let's turn to CNN's Paula Hancock. She joins us live from Seoul in South Korea.

So, Paula, why is he returning now? What is the significance of this return?

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rosemary, it's something that Thaksin Shinawatra has been promising for some time now that he was going to return to Thailand. It's been postponed a number of times. But finally, he has returned today.

It is the same day, in fact, as you say that there will be a vote on electing a new prime minister. So, the timing is obviously interesting. The prime minister who or, at least, the candidate running for prime minister, is a member of the Pheu Thai Party, which is the Thaksin-backed party. He's a former confidant of Thaksin.

In fact, he's also tweeted, saying he welcomes Thaksin back to the country, and is happy that he can be reunited with his family.

So, he certainly has some support from a man who is currently a candidate and will be voted on to be prime minister in the coming hours.

Now, when it comes to this Pheu Thai Party, what we have heard on Monday, is that they agreed to be part of an 11-party coalition. Now, Pheu Thai did not win the election, they got the second most amount of votes.

Move Forward, the progressive party won the most votes, but they were unable to form a government as they were blocked by the conservative military-backed parties.

So, this new coalition with Pheu Thai will not include Move Forward. It's certainly a very stringent a bank turn from the group itself. And they will be included in this coalition with two military-backed parties. So, certainly, it'll be interesting to see what kind of reaction there is from Move Forward. Voters, much of them among the youth of the country. But when it comes to Thaksin, himself, he has been affiliated with this party. He is now has been sentenced, as you say, to eight years in prison. It's a corruption case or three charges, in fact, that he was tried on in absentia, while he was in self-imposed exile, and he could have been sentenced up to 10 years.

The judges decided eight years, and we will have to see what the format is where he will spend those eight years, and in fact, how many of those eight years he will spend behind bars. Rosemary?

CHURCH: Our thanks to Paula Hancocks, joining us live from Seoul.

Donald Trump has announced on social media that he plans to turn himself in at the Fulton County Jail in Georgia on Thursday. His lawyers have agreed to a $200,000 bond for the former president and Trump's release conditions prohibit him from communicating directly or indirectly with his 18 co-defendants, witnesses, or unindicted co- conspirators, or use social media to target them.

Trump has been indicted on 13 felony counts in the 2020 Georgia elections aversion probe. Several of his co-defendants have also agreed to the terms of their bond agreements with the district attorney's office.

And meantime, a source tells CNN that the Fulton County sheriff's staff who operate the jail where Donald Trump will surrender are facing threats.

Since last week, the FBI has also been looking into threats against other Fulton County officials, including District Attorney Fani Willis, who led the investigation into Trump and his allies.

Well, still to come the cleanup in California begins after Tropical Storm Hilary. I will speak with a local fire chief about what it will take to recover from the disaster?

Plus, U.S. President Joe Biden visits Hawaii for a firsthand look at the devastation left behind by the deadly wildfires. We're back with that and more in just a moment.

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CHURCH: In Kelowna, Canada, the horizon was turned bright orange as wildfires burned the hills at night.

Officials say about 60,000 people across British Columbia and the northwest territories have been placed under evacuation orders since the weekend.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says the devastation has been apocalyptic. But he praised Canadians for their response to the disaster.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JUSTIN TRUDEAU, PRIME MINISTER OF CANADA: It has been the very best of Canada that we've seen through these difficult times, through this incredibly difficult summer. And I just want to say how inspiring it is to know that no matter how bad things get, Canadians are going to continue to be there for each other.

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CHURCH: Spanish officials are set to declare areas affected by wildfires on the island of Tenerife a disaster zone, once the flames are under control.

The declaration will allow the government to get emergency funds to those affected, but that moment has not happened yet. The situation is said to be improving. But more than 12,000 people have been evacuated from their homes as the blazes continue.

Parts of Europe are breaking heat records this week, including in France, where officials say certain areas of the country could be under red level heat alerts as temperatures soar.

That's the highest alert possible from the country's meteorological agency. France's health minister warns they could reach temperatures never before measured in the area.

Italy has even named its newest heatwave Nero is set to bring temperatures of up to 38 degrees Celsius or 100 degrees Fahrenheit for at least five days straight.

The trend extends throughout the region with other major cities around Europe set to log sweltering temperatures this week as well.

U.S. President Joe Biden is promising government support for Hawaii for as long as it takes after witnessing firsthand the devastation left behind by this month's deadly wildfires.

He and First Lady Jill Biden toured the affected areas in Maui on Monday, including the historic town of Lahaina, and met with first responders and survivors.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I know the feeling -- is many of the people in this town, this community. That hollow feeling you have in your chest like you've been sucked into a black hole, wondering will I ever -- will I ever get by this.

But I also want all of you to know the country's grieve with you, stands with you, and will do everything possible to help you recover, rebuild, and respect culture and traditions when the rebuilding takes place.

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CHURCH: At least 115 people have been killed and more than 800 are still unaccounted for, following the deadliest wildfire in the U.S. in more than 100 years.

Well, parts of the southwestern U.S. are facing a lengthy recovery after Tropical Storm Hilary. The weakened system is still moving north, putting states like Oregon on alert with concerns over flooding.

Emergency crews in San Bernardino, California were faced with scenes like this, washed out roads, covered in mud and debris, as they work to rescue people who were trapped.

[02:25:10]

And Hilary broke records in Nevada producing the most rain ever from a tropical system in the state. The rainfall more than doubled the old record set 116 years ago.

And for more, I'm joined now by Fire Chief Dan Munsey, with the San Bernardino County Fire Department. Appreciate you joining us.

DAN MUNSEY, CHIEF, SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY FIRE DEPARTMENT: Thank you, Rosemary.

CHURCH: So, thankfully, no deaths or significant injuries have been reported in the wake of Tropical Storm Hilary, hitting Southern California.

But how extensive and costly is the damage?

MUNSEY: Our counties largely cover about 20,000 square miles. And Hilary hit almost all parts of it. It certainly affected our mountains and our foothills a little more than most places.

However, even our deserts are inundated. We're working hard (INAUDIBLE) cost, but it's going to be millions of dollars-worth recovery efforts, are going to take months.

We've had several roads that have been washed out, we've had several structures completely vary with mud.

And our crews have been working really hard to make sure that the residents are able to get on their houses and return to life as normal as possible.

CHURCH: That is critical, of course. And it has to be said too that a lot of warnings were issued across Southern California at the time. Some residents heeded them, some did not. All those warnings have now been canceled, of course. But what has been learned from this historic tropical storm, hitting the region, and how might things be done differently in the future, do you think?

MUNSEY: I think we're well practiced in Southern California responding these types of emergencies. Just in February, we've had historic blizzard that buried about 40,000 people in 10 feet of snow. I think we took a lot of lessons from that particular event.

Moving into the storm, we quickly met with our sheriff's department, our allied fire departments, our OES division, Officer Marty (PH) services division. And we started putting pre-plans in place. That included putting extra firefighters and police, ordering specialized resources such as -- such as search and rescue crews.

We handed out over 100,000 sandbags and 270,000 pounds of sand to our residents, so they can prepare their own structures. We went into our river bottoms where homeless populations are and make sure the homeless was aware that the storm was coming, move them into high ground.

Offered vouchers for people to evacuate to shelters all before the storm. And I think that really helped us get ahead of the storm as soon as the storm is impacting us.

It started impacting different parts of county. We were able to move our resources around with that storm. Unfortunately, it hit our mountain communities the hardest. We had some pretty significant mud flow, as you showed. We did have some houses that were completely buried. But our residents fared for the most part pretty well. They were prepared for the storm.

CHURCH: Yes., I mean, that has been a particular problem for your area, hasn't it? These mudslides. So, what a fire crew is doing right now in the affected areas? And how long will it take to clean up?

You mentioned just at the start there the possibility of a couple of months. Is that -- is that what you're looking at to get back to where things were before the tropical storm?

MUNSEY: There is -- there's some damage definitely to the roadways and those are going to be the hardest ones to repair. We have some roads that are washed out. Some of these houses are going to need to be completely rebuilt.

As far as what our crews doing right now, we're trying from rescue operations. And our San Bernardino County Fire crews did an amazing job performing rescues in the floodwaters, swiftly water moving water.

Now, they're going house to house. They are searching for any potential victims. They're meeting with the homeowners; they're assisting with the cleanup.

Today, I watched one of our fire crews actually treating a horse that had a bigger (INAUDIBLE) on his shoulder and preparing that horse to transport to a local vet.

So, they are doing whatever it takes to make sure that life is returning to normal. And they are going to keep doing that job until it's no longer needed.

CHURCH: Dan Munsey, thank you so much for joining us and for all that you've done for the area. Really appreciate it.

MUNSEY: Thank you.

CHURCH: Chile is also receiving its share of heavy rainfall. The Chilean president has declared a state of catastrophe in four regions, after torrential rain cause flooding and landslides.

At least two people have died due to flooding in the central southern region of the country, while 1,000s of others have been evacuated or left homeless in isolated communities.

Meantime, weather forecasters say they are expecting more rain across the region.

Well, coming up next, Japan is pushing forward with plans to release wastewater from the Fukushima nuclear power plant in just a matter of days, despite concerns. Details in a live report just ahead.

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[02:32:55]

CHURCH: Welcome back everyone. Officials in Japan now say that they will begin releasing treated radioactive water from the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant into the ocean as early as Thursday.

This comes despite pushback from neighboring countries and amid heightened public concern, especially among those in the fishing industry. The head of Japan's fisheries association says that while the group has a better understanding of the plan, it still opposes the move to release the treated wastewater.

CNN's Anna Coren is tracking developments for us. She joins us now, live from Hong Kong. Good to see you Anna. So some experts, including the International Atomic Energy Agency, maintain this water from the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant has been sufficiently purified to allow for its safe release into the ocean. But that is not a view shared by everyone. What's being said about this?

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: This is a highly controversial decision that has outraged not only people in Japan, but also its neighbors. However, the Japanese government has basically run out of options on how to dispose of this treated radioactive water.

As of Thursday this week, if there are no issues with the weather or sea conditions, the prime minister of Japan has said, after meeting with cabinet, that the treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant will start being discharged into the sea.

Now, as you say, the International Atomic Energy Agency said that it has met international safety standards, and would have a negligible radiological impact on the people and the environment. But as we know, not everyone is convinced.

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COREN (voice-over): A toxic blight on Japan's coastline, rising like a monument to the memory of nuclear disaster and bottling up its dangerous legacy. Just over 12 years ago, a 9.0 magnitude earthquake off Japan's coast triggered a tsunami. Power was cut at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant. Its cooling systems stopped working and the plant went into meltdown. Water was pumped in to reduce the temperature of the reactor cores becoming radioactive.

[02:35:12]

1.3 million metric tons has been kept here ever since. It's been treated to remove and dilute the most dangerous elements. On Thursday, Japan will begin to release that water into the Pacific Ocean.

FUMIO KISHIDA, JAPANESE PRIME MINISTER (through translator): The offshore discharge of ALPS treated water is an issue that cannot be postponed in order to advance the decommissioning of the plant and reconstruction of Fukushima.

COREN (voice-over): The International Atomic Energy Agency backs Japan's plan to slowly feed the water into the sea. But not all of the dangerous elements can be removed. A level of the hydrogen isotope called radioactive tritium will remain in the water. Japan and the IAEA says it is safe in small amounts.

RAFAEL GROSSI, DIRECTOR GENERAL, INTERNATIONAL ATOMIC ENERGY AGENCY: Tritium is present there in a very, very low concentrated and it will be diluted even further to a point that it would be negligible.

COREN (voice-over): The concentration of tritium released is set to come under the World Health Organization's regulatory limit. But such assurances have not been enough to sway the fears of many in Japan and around the region.

UNKNOWN (through translator): I don't believe it at all. It's very dangerous. It contains very radioactive substances. It would become a serious problem once it's released into the ocean. We won't be able to eat the fish anymore.

COREN (voice-over): Protests have been a constant since Japan announced its plan to release the water two years ago. Many worry of the potential for bioaccumulation of dangerous elements in the ecosystem. While neighboring countries like China have accused Japan of treating the ocean as a dumping ground. But the disaster of 2011 left Japan with few options.

GROSSI: This would not happen in a normal operation of a nuclear reactor. Here you have all of this accumulation and have to deal with it. You have to take a decision.

COREN (voice-over): Many difficult decisions will need to be made at Fukushima in the coming decades. Part of the reason to release the stored water is to free up space to safely decommission the plant. The legacy of the Fukushima nuclear disaster will be a lasting one.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

COREN (on camera): Japan's powerful neighbor, China, has been one of the most vocal opponents but so has South Korea. Earlier today, we heard from South Korea's main opposition party that said all countries bordering the sea of Japan have to endure unimaginable damage. That is the fear, really, that is out there. Now the IAEA has set up an office at the Fukushima plant. It says,

Rosemary, that it will publish data for the public in real time or as close to while the water is being discharged into the Pacific Ocean. But I think it's fair to say that we will continue to hear protests from neighboring countries and see protests also within Japan, Rosemary.

CHURCH: A lot of people are uncomfortable with this. Anna Coren in Hong Kong, many thanks for that report. Appreciate it. Still to come, Texas moves its controversial border barriers in the Rio Grande. We will look at what is behind that action.

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[02:40:40]

CHURCH: The governor of Texas admitting his state's controversial border buoys are being moved closer to the U.S. side of the Rio Grande after allegations they had drifted into Mexico. Texas deployed the buoys last month under Greg Abbott's border security initiative.

But just days ago a federal court filing claimed that a survey by the International Boundary and Water Commission found about 80 percent of those buoys were deployed in Mexican territory. Despite the controversy, Abbott again defended his state's use of the barriers.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. GREG ABBOTT (R-TX): If you look at the treaty between the United States and Mexico, that treaty specifically references buoys as a device that can be allowed in these waters between the United States and Mexico. And so it is highly recognized that buoys were acceptable, and not a deterrent to navigational waters.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CHURCH: Last month the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit demanding the removal of the buoys and asked the court to block future barrier construction. A preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled for Tuesday in Austin. Voters in Ecuador have passed a referendum to stop oil drilling in part of the Amazon.

Early results show about 59 percent of Ecuadorians rejected oil drilling in the Yasuni National Park, one of the most biodiverse places on earth. Drilling proponents say Ecuador was shooting itself in the foot, but environmental and indigenous groups say the country needs to move away from fossil fuels and protect the Amazon.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUAN BAY, PRESIDENT, WAORANI INDIGENOUS COMMUNITY: -- diversity that has been recognized nationally and internationally. We have saved those people's involuntary isolation who today have been heard.

(END VIDEO CLIP) CHURCH: With the passage of the referendum, the state oil company will have a one-year deadline to wrap up its operations. Thanks so much for joining us. I'm Rosemary Church, WORLD SPORT is coming up next, then I'll be back in 15 minutes with more CNN NEWSROOM. Do stay with us.

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