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CNN International: Biden Imposes 500+ New Sanctions Against Russia; Schumer Leads U.S. Congressional Delegation To Ukraine; Netanyahu Unveils "Day After" Plan For A Postwar Gaza. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired February 23, 2024 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
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RAHEL SOLOMON, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning or good evening, depending on where you're watching. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York.
The White House announcing a major new sanctions package targeting Russia in retaliation for two years of war against Ukraine and also the death of Alexei Navalny, and we could hear the President weigh in on this in just moments. South Carolina Republican primary now just hours away as Donald Trump and Nikki Haley make their final pitches to voters in the Palmetto State. And in Spain, more than a dozen people are still missing after a massive fire inside an apartment building. We know that at least four people have been killed. We're going to have a live report from Valencia straight ahead.
But, happening now, President Biden is expected to address the nation's governors. Vice President Kamala Harris, she is also scheduled to speak. This is a live picture at the podium there. We're going to be listening very closely to what they have to say. And when the President begins speaking, we will, of course, bring it to you live. So, stay tuned for that.
In the meantime, the U.S. imposing a slew of new sanctions against Russia. The move comes as the Ukraine war hits its two-year anniversary this weekend. The sanctions are tied to that milestone and also the death of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny. They're meant to target individuals linked to his imprisonment as well as Russia's financial sector and defense industry. And although the U.S. hopes that Russian President Vladimir Putin feels the sting, he is not actually directly targeted. U.S. Treasury official says he has already been sanctioned.
On Thursday, U.S. President Joe Biden met with the wife and daughter of Alexei Navalny, and sent a statement out today. Biden called the war in Ukraine a "vicious onslaught". And he went on to say this, "If Putin does not pay the price for his death and destruction, he will keep going", adding "Today, I am announcing more than 500 new sanctions against Russia for its ongoing war of conquest on Ukraine and for the death of Alexei Navalny, who was a courageous anti- corruption activist and Putin's fiercest opposition leader." For more on this, I'm joined by -- from -- I'm joined by David Sanger,
who is live for us in Berlin. He is a CNN political and national security analyst, a New York Times White House and National Security Correspondent, and author of "The Perfect Weapon." David, always good to see you. Let me ask, I mean, we've had a few hours now to digest this news of the sanctions. Your response and how effective you think it might be in terms of hurting Russia and its ability to carry on in this war. OK. Well, we lost David Sanger. As we said, he was in Berlin. We'll try to get that back up for you.
But, in the meantime, let's see if we have CNN's Matthew Chance who is in live -- we don't. So, we'll get to Matthew in just a moment. He is live for us in Moscow, and we'll get his sense of the reaction to these sanctions just as soon as we can get his shot up for you.
Also, we know a delegation of U.S. lawmakers is in Ukraine today and they're urging action on a foreign aid bill held up by Republicans. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is leading today's delegation. The Democrat says that he hopes the trip shows that the U.S. stands with Ukraine and is not deserting Europe. Meanwhile, Ukraine is in a desperate fight to try to stop Russian momentum. Ukrainian forces say that they destroyed 23 out of 31 drones in overnight attacks, and at least three people were killed and eight injured.
And later in the show, we're going to be joined by Ukraine's most celebrated novelist Andrey Kurkov. So, stick around for that interview. That's going to come up in about 27 minutes and about at 11:30.
Also this morning, Israel has warned Hamas has no end in sight. But, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has now formally unveiled a plan for the future of Gaza. It calls for Israel to retain indefinite security control while civil administration would be run by local Palestinians not linked to "terrorism". Now, the plan also calls for the complete demilitarization of Gaza. The Palestinian Authority says that it amounts to "reoccupation", calling instead for the creation of an independent Palestinian state. Israel, meanwhile, is sending a negotiating team to Paris today. They're hoping to make progress on a hostage deal that could and would lead to a ceasefire. Israel's delegation is headed by the director of the Mossad, and they're expected to meet with U.S., Egyptian and Qatari negotiators.
Let's get more now from CNN's Melissa Bell who joins us live in Paris.
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Melissa, tell us a bit more about who all is meeting in Paris and what they're expected to demand.
MELISSA BELL, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Rahel, what
we've got is a meeting, even existence of risk to the holding of which only become apparent really over the last course of -- last 24 hours. It took so many different moving pieces to fall into place that this could happen at all. Gathered in Paris now, not only Bill Burns, the director of the CIA, but his Israeli, from Mossad, counterpart, but also Qatari, Egyptian, all assembled here, these intelligence heads to try and hammer out what possibility there might be for a deal, not a ceasefire. Israel's position remains the same that this is a long-term war against Hamas. But, a pause, that would allow for at least some of the hostages are to be taken out of Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
But, this meeting comes even as Israel has, of course, announced finally its long-term plan, what it envisions for a post-war Gaza, and that, of course, includes many things that will already appear difficult, not just for allies, but also for Palestinians. In fact, we've already had response for the Palestinian Authority about this plan, the creation of a buffer zone to the south, the creation of a buffer zone all around the Gaza Strip, which essentially, first of all, makes the strip smaller than it was, but also for a number of other reasons, is likely to prove problematic, not least, Rahel, because essentially, the fact of insisting on local stakeholders to run Gaza, those that had no link to Hamas, for instance, the plan appears to preclude the possibility of the Palestinian Authority taking control politically of the Gaza Strip after the war.
And this is at odds not least with the American position on the matter. So, many things remain extremely uncertain. But, the fact that these very many intelligence had been able to gather a tool around the possibility of a plan is, I think, some progress and a dependent, not least on the fact that Israel receive from Cairo in the sense of those talks that were going on with a political head of Hamas, some sense that enough progress had been made. So, the meeting is underway. But, for the time being, very little coming out of it for now, Rahel, about what progress might have been made.
SOLOMON: OK. Well, we know you'll continue to watch it and keep us posted, Melissa, as we learn additional details there. Melissa Bell live for us in Paris. Thank you, Melissa.
I want to go back now to those new sanctions on Russia. David Sanger with me again from Berlin. David, good to have you. I'm glad your shot is back. It's important conversation this morning. I was asking, after having a few hours to digest the sanctions, what your reaction is and how effective you think this round of sanctions maybe.
DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL & NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: Well, Rahel, apologies for the bad connection before. The most remarkable thing about these sanctions is they found something in Russia to sanction that they haven't sanctioned already. It's very much like the China problem or the Iran problem, which is, you do so many sanctions. You begin to get diminishing returns. The unimpressive part about it is that so far the United States has not found its way to cut into the two things that would hurt Russia the most. One of those would be seizing and turning over the Ukrainians the $300 billion in Russian assets that were left in the West before the invasion. For two years, they've been trying to come up with legal ways to go seize those. And today, we heard the Treasury Department say they're still working on that problem.
The second would be to find a way to cut the Russian oil revenues. It is interesting that revenues right now for Russia are above slightly above what they were before the invasion, which tells you we've done nothing to really hurt them on the largest source of their income.
SOLOMON: So, David, would you go so far as saying that the sanctions have become more symbolically damaging to Russia than practically damaging?
SANGER: They brought about a lot of anger, including from people who disliked Putin but don't want their own lives to be restricted. I think the U.S. hope was that anger would be directed to Putin, but it's difficult to go do that. I'm not saying they've been useless. They have made light
SOLOMON: All right. David Sanger, thank you.
And let me bring in CNN's Matthew Chance live in Moscow. Matthew, I'm not sure if you heard where David left off there, but if you could pick up.
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He said they haven't been useless. They have made life in Russia and that's when we lost his shot. So, please fill us in.
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CHIEF GLOBAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yeah. I don't want to pretend to anticipate what he was about to say. But, look, yes, they have made life more difficult for Russians. And I think one of the hopes was that that would encourage people to sort of rise up against Putin or at least to voice their opposition a bit more. But, as David was mentioning there, it's incredibly difficult in an environment where there is zero tolerance for dissent in Russia to do that. I mean, people, if they protest against the government, can lose a lot. They can go to prison. They can lose their children. They can be taken away, things like that. And so, it's a very hard environment in which to expect people to come out and publicly protest.
I think the other thing that sanctions have done is increased the cost for Russia of doing business. I mean, they have to go through third parties. They have to go through middlemen. That sort of eats into the sort of profits that they make generally. And so, I suppose from the sanction imposer point of view, that's a positive, but the big problem with sanctions, which is what we've seeing from the outset, and Russia, remember, is the most heavily sanctioned country in the world with more than 16,000 individual sanctions imposed against it by the United States, by the European Union and others, is that it doesn't seem to have an impact on Russian policy.
Two years on, the full scale invasion of Ukraine, what Russia calls it special military operation, is still underway and shows no sign of being diverted, and the crackdown on opposition figures in the country. We've seen this with the death of Alexei Navalny, the most prominent critic in the country recently. That continues as well, despite the fact that the sanctions regime has been ratcheted up time and again. And so, to answer your question to David, yeah, I think there is there is a symbolism to this. But, I mean, the whole point of sanctions is that they are action that you can take as a country or as an organization that stopped short of head-on military confrontation. And so, in that sense, they're valuable.
SOLOMON: Matthew, so far no reaction from the Kremlin to these sanctions. How might they respond?
CHANCE: Well, there has been the reaction. It's partly because it's a public holiday here. But, it's also partly because there have been so many of these sanctions. The response to them has become kind of well known, which is that the Russians say that, look, these sanctions were illegal. They say that they're not going to have an impact on Russia and they're going to find a way around them. And in fact, they have found ways around many of the sanctions that have been put in place. They also say that they're going to respond. They've actually responded to the EU sanctions, not to the American sanctions today. And to the EU sanctions, the Russian Foreign Minister has said, look, we're going to respond proportionately to the fact that these European Union sanctions another round have been imposed.
And so, yeah. I mean, that's what's likely to be the responses time when it comes to an eventual reaction by the Kremlin to the American measures.
SOLOMON: All right. Matthew Chance live for us in Moscow. Matthew, thank you.
All right. Coming up for us, what you need to know before the final day before South Carolina's Republican primary. We are going to head to the Palmetto State to hear who some voters are excited about, former President Donald Trump or former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley. Plus, the Odysseus lunar lander successfully touching down on the moon. It was a success. Coming up, we'll have the latest from that mission later this hour.
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. And only one day left until South Carolina Republican voters head to the polls. Donald Trump and Nikki Haley are fighting for the 50 delegates at stake in the state. And heading into this primary Trump has 63 delegates compared to Haley's 17. Now, while Trump holds a wide lead among likely GOP voters, Haley is vowing to stay in the race until "the last person votes". In response, Trump is telling his supporters that Haley is hurting the party's unity.
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DONALD TRUMP (R), FORMER U.S. PRESIDENT AND 2024 PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: She is hurting the party, but I don't care. Let her run because think of it. If she is not running, they're not talking about us. So, maybe it's better if she runs a little bit. But, she is not doing well and we can't let it happen. You know, it's -- we have to stick together as a party.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SOLOMON: All right. Let's bring in CNN's Jeff Zeleny who is speaking with South Carolina voters. Jeff, good to see you. You've been talking to voters there. You are in South Carolina. What are they telling you?
JEFF ZELENY, CNN U.S. CHIEF NATIONAL AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Rahel, there is no doubt that voters here have been really paying attention to this race before it arrived in South Carolina. Donald Trump, of course, winning in Iowa, then in New Hampshire. But, it's been a month since that New Hampshire primary. And Nikki Haley has been trying to make her case here for why she believes Republicans should have some seeds of doubt about the electability of Donald Trump. So, as we've been talking to voters on both sides, the Nikki Haley supporters are passionate for her. They have deep questions about who they will vote for if she does not become the nominee.
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NIKKI HALEY, U.S. REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I am not going anywhere.
ZELENY (voice-over): For supporters of Nikki Haley, her defiant pledge is music to their ears.
SHEREE RICHNOW, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: I think she should stay in until the very last second. I really do. I do not think that we should acquiesce.
ZELENY (voice-over): Sheree Richnow sees Haley as not merely the best choice but perhaps the only choice in the race for the White House.
ZELENY: If she is not the Republican nominee, what do you do?
RICHNOW: I may not vote.
ZELENY: You may not vote for President.
RICHNOW: Not vote. Right. Because I don't think either choice is good at that point.
ZELENY (voice-over): The sun is setting on the Republican primary and on Haley's chances of catching Donald Trump before the early state delegate contest becomes a nationwide sprint.
HALEY: Don't complain about what happens in a general election if you don't go out and vote in this primary. It matters.
ZELENY (voice-over): Should she not deliver a South Carolina surprise on Saturday, her supporters face a decision. Many would prefer not to discuss aloud.
ANN HUPKA, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: We need a President that's going to protect our democracy, not one that's going to give it away to the Russians.
ZELENY (voice-over): Ann and Marty Hupka are pulling for Haley but bracing for the general election ahead. ZELENY: Come November, what do you guys do?
ANN HUPKA, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: We move to Canada.
MARTY HUPKA, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: You're down to two choices. You take that lesser of the two.
ZELENY: Who is that in your mind?
M. HUPKA: It's got to be Biden. If it's Trump, then it's got to be Biden.
ZELENY (voice-over): South Carolina has long been Trump country.
TRUMP: We've never lost here. We've never lost one.
ZELENY (voice-over): On the final day of early voting here, Porter and Linda Baldwin proudly cast their ballots for the former President.
PORTER BALDWIN, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: We are Trump people.
ZELENY (voice-over): Haley was a fine governor, they said, but her pointed criticism of Trump has soured their view.
BALDWIN: It's a waste of time and money. Now, I think they're using her. She is being used.
LINDA BALDWIN, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: I think she needs to step down.
ZELENY (voice-over): Senator Tim Scott who cast his early vote for Trump told us, a prolonged Haley candidacy was not good for the party or country.
SEN. TIM SCOTT (R-SC): The one person that stands in the way of having a conversation between Joe Biden and Donald Trump is Nikki Haley. And so, getting out of the way is incredibly important.
ZELENY (voice-over): Don Lassey, a Marine veteran, sees it differently.
DON LASSEY, SOUTH CAROLINA VOTER: Any vote for Donald Trump is a vote for Putin.
ZELENY (voice-over): He is a lifelong Republican --
LASSEY: I voted for Richard Nixon. I voted for Ronald Reagan. I voted for John McCain. I voted for Mitt Romney. I voted for George H. Bush.
[11:20:00]
I like Republicans, but I like mostly honest Republicans.
ZELENY (voice-over): -- and believes Trump will become more vulnerable as the campaign goes on, given his legal and foreign policy challenges. If Haley doesn't prevail, he is already weighing his options. LASSEY: Lesser of two evils is either Kennedy or Biden. I would like to pick Kennedy, but I'm not sure he will beat Trump. So, I will go Biden.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ZELENY: So, perhaps the biggest question hanging over the presidential race at this moment is not who is going to win the South Carolina primary tomorrow. Even Nikki Haley would be surprised by an upset win at this point. The question is, will Donald Trump be able to coalesce the party behind him? You hear so many voices, so much sentiment from Republican voters that they simply do not believe he is the best choice. So, the margin of victory tomorrow should Donald Trump actually be the winner is essential for Nikki Haley. Yes. She is vowing to stay in the race. Next week is Michigan. In fact, she is flying there Friday. The week after is Super Tuesday. But, it's that margin of victory that really is going to determine what the market out there is among Republicans for her to continue in this race.
But, Democrats are also watching this with great interest. They believe the longer she stays in, it keeps sowing those seeds of doubt about Donald Trump. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Jeff, that was a really interesting package. I was struck by what appears to be the angst of some Nikki Haley supporters about what they are going to do if she is not the nominee. You have covered many campaigns. I'm curious if you were struck or if you notice the real turmoil, it sounds like, some voters are having about the impact of their vote.
ZELENY: Absolutely, Rahel. That came alive in one conversation after another. I was struck actually by how unanimous the sentiment was about really what they're going to do. Several voters said, look, I'm not going to vote. And we don't know if that actually will be the case once November comes around. People vote for a variety of reasons. But, there really was a lot of consternation and concern and uncertainty about what they will do.
And one thing that Donald Trump has been saying is that Nikki Haley is fueled by Democrats. You heard the comments there from Don Lassey. He is that Marine veteran. He said he is a lifelong Republican voter who cannot vote for Donald Trump. He said he will vote for Joe Biden. So, in South Carolina, that may not matter, because this is a red state in general elections. But, across the country, that certainly could be something that could affect the election in November. All of this, of course, goes to Nikki Haley's argument that she says that she is more electable in the general election. Her challenge, of course, is winning a primary. Rahel.
SOLOMON: Yeah. She has to get there first. Jeff Zeleny, good to have you. Thanks so much.
ZELENY: That's right.
SOLOMON: Yeah. All right. Joining us now is Joseph Bustos in Columbia, South
Carolina. He is the politics and state government reporter for "The State" newspaper. Joseph, good to have you. I'm curious if you can just sort of bounce off of what we just heard our correspondent there just talking about what it sounds like is the angst of some South Carolina voters who are Nikki Haley supporters deciding, what do we do with our vote if it's not Nikki Haley? I mean, what are you hearing on the ground there?
JOSEPH BUSTOS, POLITICS AND STATE GOVERNMENT REPORTER, THE STATE NEWSPAPER: Yeah. When I talk to voters who support Nikki Haley, they -- they're not sure who they want to vote for, for the Trump-Biden rematch. Some have said that they'll look for a third party or they'll just leave the presidential race blank in November. There are some who I speak to who say they will hold their nose and vote for Trump. But, a lot are saying it'll be a tough decision between those two top candidates.
SOLOMON: And Joseph, actually, if you wouldn't mind standing by for just a moment. My understanding is that the President is speaking right now. We want to listen together. Standby.
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Thank you very much, Governor Cox, Governor Polis, all the governors for being here. I know you just heard -- you're your party speak my wife? What hell am I doing here? Yeah. Jill enjoys traveling to your states and to advance priorities like education and workforce development.
And thanks to Kamala for her leadership and her incredible partnership across the board, and to the members of our cabinet, including former governor, and we have two former governors here. Are they both here today? Governor Raimondo? Where is my Secretary of Agriculture? See here. Well, he is going to be here tomorrow. Tom Vilsack is going to be here tomorrow.
My Republican friends. I got bad news for you. I actually like working with you. And it reminds me of the days I was in the Senate, things we argue like hell and then we get things done. And -- but, look, before I begin, I want to say a few words about an important anniversary that we marked tomorrow. Two years ago, shortly before dawn, Russian troops marched across the border in Ukraine, and Putin believed he can easily bend the will and break the resolve of free people of Ukraine, that he could roll into Ukraine and he would roll over them.
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Two years later, he remains wrong. He didn't do that, were unable to do that. Kyiv is still standing. Ukraine is still free, and the people of Ukraine remain unbowed and unbroken in the face of Putin's vigorous onslaught. This is due to their sheer bravery and their sacrifice, but it's also due to us. Remember, the United States pulled together a coalition of more than 50 nations, 50 nations to support Ukraine. We unified and expanded NATO. We can't walk away now. And this is what Putin is betting on. He is betting on we're going to walk away. That's Robbie speaking to the G7 folks, some of the heads of European Union and NATO today. That's why I'm announcing more than 500 new sanctions in response to Putin's the brutal war of conquest, in response to Alexei Navalny's death, because make no mistake, Putin is responsible for Alexei's death.
Yesterday, I met with Alexei's wife and daughter in California, where his daughter attends college. Alexei was incredibly courageous man. His family is courageous as well. I assured them his legacy will continue to live around the world, and we in the United States are going to continue to ensure that Putin pays the price for his aggression abroad and repression at home.
But, let me be clear. The House of Representatives must pass the bipartisan national security bill. The bill provides urgent funding for Ukraine and it passed overwhelmingly in the Senate. And there is no question. None. None. If the Speaker calls for a vote in the House, it would pass easily today. Instead, they want to vacation. I mean, it's just -- look, folks, all kidding aside, history is watching. The clock is ticking. Brave Ukrainian soldiers and civilians are dying. Russia has taken Ukraine territory for the first time in many months.
But, here in America, the Speaker gave the House a two-week vacation. They have to come back. They have to come back and get this done, because failure to support Ukraine in this critical moment will never be forgotten in history. It will be measured, and it will have impact for decades to come. And I want to thank all your governors here for, and I urge you, if you agree with me, and many of you do, to urge the congressional representatives to force this bill to be brought up. America can -- has to prove America can be relied on. America stands up for freedom. We never bow to anyone, particularly Putin.
Look, folks, now, on another important work we're doing. I want to thank you all for delivering historic results for the American people. You've been incredible partners. Governors know the measure of success isn't how many partisan points we score. It is till fix the problem, that we fix the problem. We disagree on how to fix a problem anytime. We're all here for one reason, to fix the problems, to get things done for families or communities for the country. That's why I kept my commitment to be present for all Americans, whether you voted for me or not. In fact, we've invested more and all we passed in red states than we have in blue states. That's a fact. Billions of dollars more of what we passed is invested in red states and blue states.
I came to office when the pandemic was raging and the economy was reeling. But, we've turned things around with your help. The American Rescue Plan provided $350 billion to state and local governments. And many of you, many of you put that money up for cops on the beat, bringing down violent crime across the nation, which we've done, to bring a half a million teachers and other school personnel back into the classrooms, to prevent foreclosures and evictions to keep eight million families in their homes. The bipartisan infrastructure law made the most significant investment in our nation's infrastructure in history.
SOLOMON: All right. We've just been listening to U.S. President Joe Biden marking this two-year anniversary of Russia's invasion into Ukraine. A few things that he said worth noting. He said we can't walk away now. Putin is betting we walk away. History is watching. The clock is ticking, as he urged the House of Representatives to pass foreign aid to Ukraine. That has been stalled. So, we'll continue to watch this for you.
In the meantime, still ahead for us, a deadly apartment fire in Spain. We're going to have a live report from Valencia with the latest details from authorities.
[11:30:00]
Plus, one of Ukraine's most celebrated authors joins the show live as the war approaches its two-year anniversary. We're going to take a short break. We'll be right back.
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. You're watching CNN Newsroom. I'm Rahel Solomon live in New York. IN Spain, at least four people have died after a fire tore through a residential high-rise building in Valencia. Authorities say that at least nine other people are still missing. The city's mayor has declared three days of official mourning, saying that the city is in "enormous pain".
Atika Shubert joins us live from Valencia with more details on this tragedy. Atika, I mean, what more are you hearing from authorities in terms of what happened?
ATIKA SHUBERT, JOURNALIST: Well, unfortunately, we do have an update from the local government. 10 people have been killed in this fire. They were able to confirm that when investigators were finally able to get into the building. It was so hot earlier this morning. They really weren't able to enter. The only way they could see inside were with these drones that they were flying around. Now, however, they have been able to identify 10 people have died in that fire. They still haven't been able to identify who they are. And there still may be some people who are unaccounted for. So, that investigation is still ongoing, Rahel.
SOLOMON: You can see the just what's left of the building behind you. I mean, it was clearly an extensive fire. Any sense of what caused it?
SHUBERT: Yeah. We're not sure. Investigators are still looking at that, what caused it. It's a gas-free building. So, they're looking at whether it might have been an electrical fire. But, the big question is really why the fire spread so fast. One eyewitness actually shot a video of it, and you could time it, see that it spread from one apartment to the entire facade of the building in less than 30 minutes. In 40 minutes, it had already jumped to the adjoining tower. That's incredibly fast.
And the wind was a factor yesterday with gusts of up to 60 kilometers per hour. That spread the fire around. And sometimes, you can hear now, with all the debris on the streets here, this tinkling noise and that's this. This is actually the aluminum cladding that was on the front of the building, and it burned so quickly, it just disintegrated, and you see it all over the streets now. This is what investigators will be looking at to see whether or not this was sufficiently fireproofed or if it helped actually spread the fire even faster, Rahel.
SOLOMON: Wow. Just tragic. Atika Shubert live for us from Valencia. Atika, thank you.
[11:35:00]
Well, three people were killed in a series of Russian drone attacks on Odessa, Ukraine, overnight near the Black Sea. It's just the latest bloody reminder that Saturday marks two years since the full-scale Russian invasion. But, for many, this war has been going on for 10 years, and in the realm of ideas, (inaudible) longer than that.
CNN's Christiane Amanpour reports now from Kyiv.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR (VOICE-OVER): This bookstore is called Sense or the Meaning, and opening in Kyiv just days before the Russian war enters the third year. It sends a clear message. And Ukraine's greatest living novelist Andrey Kurkov tells us there is much to say about Ukraine's culture, identity and resistance. He wrote the foreword for this tome, full of 12th century artifacts.
AMANPOUR: So, when Putin says this is all greater Russia, what's your answer?
ANDREY KURKOV, AUTHOR, "THE SILVER BONE", & UKRAINIAN AUTHOR: Well, he is silly and he is not historian. Kyiv is 1,540-years-old. Moscow is only 870-years-old.
AMANPOUR (voice-over): An army of workers is still getting the bookstore cafe ready, but it is open and people come in hungry for nonfiction these days, for the history of their region. Ukrainian identity helps them fight and resist, says Kurkov, reminding us that Russians have looted and destroyed libraries, theaters and museums in parts they now occupy.
AMANPOUR: What would you be saying if you were to say anything to the people of Russia?
KURKOV: It's a very good question. I would probably ask them to put mirrors all around them and to look themselves in the eyes and to ask themselves the question, if they are living in 21st century or they are still living in Stalin's Gulag.
AMANPOUR (voice-over): Kurkov, like most Ukrainians, see themselves their land as the front line between the authoritarian and the Democratic worlds. Kyiv is further away from the fighting. But over in the northeast, Kharkiv, the second largest city, the danger is real and ever present. Some 40 miles from the Russia border, their massive S-300 missiles reached the city in less than 40 seconds, no time to hide. Memorials to the recent dead spring up all over.
DMYTRO CHUBENKO, KHARKIV PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE (TRANSLATED): This is a place where material evidence of war crimes committed by the Russian Federation is stored, including multiple launch rocket systems, Grads, cruise missiles, Shahed drones, artillery shells.
This Kharkiv radio station is called "Boiling Over". It started up 10 years ago after Russia's first invasion as an alternate voice.
Just a month and a half ago, you could listen to dozens of Russian stations, says the founder Yevhen. All of these are Russian propaganda stations that tell us that Ukraine doesn't exist, that it's in Russia, and that Ukrainian soldiers should surrender.
Natalia, the radio host, tells us it's also become a sounding board for the terrified and depressed Kharkiv listeners. Feedback can be varied, she tells us. Sometimes, they just thank me for the show, and for the fact that they got out of bed, thanks to the program. And I consider this a victory because it could be someone in a state of absolute despair.
Like Ukrainians everywhere, the novelist Kurkov tells me he is hoping for America to step up now.
KURKOV: And remember that America was always a symbol of freedom for Ukraine, for many countries, and I wish America remains the symbol of freedom and the country which set up the standards of democracy in the world.
AMANPOUR (voice-over): Kyiv and Kharkiv, a tale of two cities and separate states of anxiety.
Christiane Amanpour, CNN, Kyiv.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLOMON: And Ukrainian novelist Andrey Kurkov joins us now. In fact, his new book, "The Silver Bone" is available March 5. Andrey, welcome to the program. Good to have you.
KURKOV: Thank you. Thank you.
SOLOMON: I'm wondering how you're processing this anniversary and what more you can share with us about just sort of wrapping your arms around this moment.
KURKOV: Well, it's a difficult time, because for me, it is not really anniversary. Probably it is anniversary for the world since it was two years ago that the world and Europe discovered that this is not an internal conflict, as it was told -- named before. This is a real war. It is a war in the heart of Europe which can change borders of the European countries.
[11:40:00]
So, I'm worried, of course, and I'm concerned as anybody else in Ukraine about the delays of the military aid. I'm checking the news from the front lines every 20 minutes, every 30 minutes. We are expecting something to happen tomorrow, because, I mean, there was kind of -- not panic, but also concerned that Russia will also celebrate, if you can say so, these two years with a new missile attack on Ukraine. But, I do hope it will not happen. So, now we'll just have to wait until tomorrow is in the past and then the ordinary wartime life continues.
SOLOMON: Yeah. I'm wondering, we just heard from U.S. President Joe Biden, truly within the last 10 minutes or so, and some of the things he said is, we, meaning the U.S., can't walk away now. Putin is betting we walk away. History is watching. The clock is ticking. And I'm wondering, from your perspective, if Ukrainians feel in this moment perhaps forgotten at all. Are they concerned that they may be forgotten?
KURKOV: They are afraid that actually this fatigue can really come to the Western world, and that the countries will try to look away from Ukraine, which will mean, actually the end of Ukrainian existence, because I mean, if we are not helped, Ukraine will not be able on its own to withstand this aggression from the country which is huge and which has factories and plants producing shells and missiles 24 hours a day.
SOLOMON: Yeah. I was struck by something you said. You wrote an essay for the Financial Times, and you wrote in part, "Even if our bodies have not been captured by the enemy, our minds have been." Can you share with us what life is like right now in Ukraine two years into this invasion? I know there was certainly an attempt at pre-war normalcy. What does that look like there?
KURKOV: Well, I mean, if you see that life looks normal in Kyiv. Please take into consideration that actually all Ukrainians are traumatized. Many people are trying to live the same way they had before they were because they consider it is kind of resistance. This is their resistance, their contribution, actually, in this war. So, I mean, people don't sleep well, very often. And everywhere, we have air raid alerts in the nighttime, and then we check on internet whether it is caused by the single fighter jet flying somewhere near the border, or we are expecting 100 missiles and drones to attack all of the territory. If it is the second, then we have to move either to shelter or to the corridor and sleep on the floor. And -- I mean, it's not really normal life.
SOLOMON: And yet, you point out and we saw on Christiane piece, bookstores are opening. I think that the largest bookstore in Ukraine is opening in Kyiv soon. You say bars are full. Would you say that the act of trying to clean to pre-war activities is an act of resistance in and of itself among the Ukrainian people?
KURKOV: Well, it is an act of resistance, and it is also some kind of therapy, because I mean, you cannot get to theaters now. I mean, I was trying to get tickets for -- in one of five theaters in the central part of Kyiv for tonight. I thought we would go with my wife. All tickets are sold out. Cinemas are sold out. I mean, people are keeping themselves busy. And thanks God, culture is a good remedy to this backed people from the war for one hour for two hours while the play last.
SOLOMON: And how are you feeling, do you think, in this moment? I mean, Joe Biden, the President, just recently pointed out that Russia, of course, had its most significant victory on the front lines. Recently, of course, we've had now the death of Alexei Navalny. As spring approaches and as the war stretches out into its third year, what now?
KURKOV: Well, I don't see the end of this war without serious help from the States, from Britain, from the European Union. I mean, people understand that actually this war can last for another five years, for another nine years, for 10 years. Even if the territories are liberated, Russia can still shell Ukraine from its territory. So -- I mean, there should be in the end political diplomatic solution, but before that, of course, Ukraine should be helped in order to have better position before these negotiations take place.
[11:45:00]
SOLOMON: Yeah. And you pointed out in that same essay from the Financial Times, "The time has come for realism, an understanding that this war will last for a long time, that we must learn to live with it." And to that end in terms of living with it, I was struck by what you said that you really struggled initially at the beginning of this war to write fiction, that you said -- I think you said it felt like a sin. It felt like a guilty pleasure to be enjoying writing fiction at a time of such suffering. And yet, you persevered. As I said, "The Silver Bone" out next month. Tell us a little bit about the novel.
KURKOV: Well, "The Silver Bone" was written before the full-scale invasion, and it is actually a historical crime novel set in 1919 in Kyiv during the war, which was called in Russia civil war. But, in Ukraine, we had two wars at the same time, civil war between "White" and "Red", but also the war for Ukraine independence, because in 1918, Ukraine announced its independence and Ukraine had head of the government, head Hrushevsky (ph) had Parliament, had its own army, and we had also the second Ukrainian army headed by Symon Petlyura, another politician who wanted to build different kinds of independent Ukraine.
So, in this chaos time, Kyiv was occupied four times by Bolsheviks, by the Red Army, and my main character, Samson, accidentally becomes an detective in 1919 Kyiv and the Bolshevik rule among the chaos and violence, because I mean, there was not only a huge crime wave, but I mean, the soldiers, the Red Army soldiers who came to Kyiv together actually with Chinese Red Army soldiers. I mean, they were involved in crimes, not less than professional criminals.
SOLOMON: Yeah. Would you say in this moment that the appetite in Ukraine is strong for nonfiction and history, or is there would you say a strong appetite for fiction in this moment?
KURKOV: No. The best sellers are nonfiction books about Ukrainian history. Also, the Ukrainians are rediscovering now the fiction written by the writers and poets of so-called executed generation of Ukrainian writers from 1920s, 1930s, which were mostly killed in the concentration camp Sandarmokh in Stalin's Gulag in 1937.
SOLOMON: Andrey Kurkov, such a pleasure to have you today. Thank you. KURKOV: Thank you. Thank you very much.
SOLOMON: All right. Still ahead for us, America is back on the moon and with the first soft landing by a commercial spacecraft in history. Coming up, more on the landmark Odysseus mission, just ahead. And Beyonce getting major props for her new chart-topping country hit from a country music legend. We'll be right back.
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[11:50:00]
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SOLOMON: Welcome back. And let's take a look at the markets this Friday. Here is how Europe and Asia finished the week. You can see a mixed finished, FTSE 100 closing up about, let's call it, one third of a percent. The Hang Seng and the Shanghai Composite mixed, Hang Seng off fractionally, closing fractionally lower Shanghai, up about half a percent.
And turning to the U.S. where we are a couple of hours into trading on this Friday, one stock of particular interest. You can see a mixed reaction there on the markets, NASDAQ off, but the Dow and S&P up as well. S&P up fractionally. But, take a look at Intuitive Machines, which is up, this is not a typo, 30 percent. It's a $10 stock share, but still 30 percent. This is the company that developed the lunar lander that touched down on the moon Thursday. And that stock is trading that much higher because of this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I know this was a nail-biter, but we are on the surface and we are transmitting. And welcome to the moon.
SOLOMON: The Odysseus lander became the first commercial spacecraft to successfully pull off a soft landing on the surface of the moon.
And CNN's Kristen Fisher has more from Washington.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KRISTIN FISHER, CNN SPACE & DEFENSE CORRESPONDENT: Intuitive Machines has just made history as the first private company to successfully land a spacecraft on the surface of the moon. Its Odysseus lunar lander is standing up right, according to the company, and is successfully transmitting data, although we're still waiting for those first few pictures. Now, this was really a tense, final few moments for this mission. Just a few hours before landing, Intuitive Machines announced that there was an issue with Odysseus's navigation system. It wasn't working. But, in a spectacular example of a public-private partnership, it just so happened that one of Odysseus's or Intuitive Machines' paying customers, NASA, had an experimental piece of equipment that did the exact same thing as this broken piece of navigation software.
And so, engineers on Earth were able to patch up a fix and allow Odysseus to safely navigate that treacherous terrain on the south pole of the moon, dodging craters and boulders to find a safe space to land. And so, that is what happened. It took a little bit longer than the company thought to communicate with the spacecraft. But, it is sending back data now. And this is now the first time that any American spacecraft has landed on the surface of the moon since the end of the Apollo program back in 1972.
So, it's a win for NASA as a sponsor of this mission, but certainly a win for this Texas-based company Intuitive Machines. They were able to do for about $100 million what NASA was able to do with the Apollo program with a much larger budget. So, some big tears from that mission control room when the landing happened. And now, we get to see what Odysseus can do on the surface of the moon for the next week or so.
Kristin Fisher, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SOLOMON: And might I add, some big cheers from investors. As we said, those shares up 30 percent right now.
All right. Still ahead for us, legends supporting legends, Dolly Parton taking to social media with a note for Beyonce about Beyonce's new country smash hit, when we come back.
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[11:55:00]
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SOLOMON: All right. Our one more thing this Friday, Beyonce's new song "Texas Hold 'Em" debuting at the top of the hot country chart this week, and that smash hit has earned her a high praise from a country music legend Dolly Parton. Dolly Parton taking to Instagram with a note for Queen B. She wrote, "I'm a big fan of Beyonce and very excited that she has done a country album. So, congratulations on your Billboard Hot Country number one single. Can't wait to hear the full album. Love, Dolly." I can't wait to hear the full album as well. Also, the official Oprah Daily account commented, "Legends supporting legends." Don't we love to see it?
Well, that's it for today. We know your time is money. So, thank you for spending some time with me today and this week. I'm Rahel Solomon here in New York. Don't go anywhere. Stick with CNN. One World is coming up next. I'll see you next week.
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