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Mourners Gather for Raisi's Death; Israelis Irked by ICC's Chief Prosecutor's Decision; Michael Cohen Stole Money from Trump; Iran's Declares Five Days Mourning for President Ibrahim Raisi; ICC Arrest Warrants for Hamas and Netanyahu; New Taiwanese President Urges China to Stop Threats; Understanding Elephant Communications. Aired 3- 4a ET

Aired May 21, 2024 - 03:00   ET

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

[03:00:00]

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MAX FOSTER, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, welcome to our viewers joining us from around the world. I'm Max Foster.

Just ahead laying Iran's president to rest. Funeral ceremonies for Ibrahim Raisi are now underway. We'll look at how Iranians around the world are reacting to his death.

Wanted for war crimes, the International Criminal Court's chief prosecutor says he's seeking arrest warrants for top Hamas and Israeli officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

And Michael Cohen makes a major admission as Donald Trump's hush money trial enters its final stages.

UNKNOWN: Live from London, this is CNN Newsroom with Max Foster.

FOSTER: Let's take you to live pictures out of northwest Iran, where funeral prayers and ceremonies for President Ibrahim Raisi are underway. Large crowds, as you can see, turned out to pay their respects to Raisi, the country's foreign minister, and seven others who were killed in a helicopter crash as well over the weekend.

The northwest city of Tabriz is the first stop for the funeral procession, followed by ceremonies held in other cities in the days ahead. The country is observing five days of national mourning.

A video released earlier by Iran's state media shows the caskets carrying the late president and the country's foreign minister. Raisi's helicopter crashed in a remote mountainous area of Iran's east Azerbaijan province.

The country's military chief has now appointed a commission to investigate what caused the deadly crash.

CNN correspondents are following all the developments for you. Paula Hancocks, standing by for us in Abu Dhabi, and Anna Coren as well for us in Hong Kong.

Take us through what we're seeing then, Paula.

PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, Max, this is going to be a multi-day ceremony, a funeral procession that's going to take in a number of different cities over the next few days. So we are starting here in Tabriz. This is really the city that is in the northwest of Iran. It's the closest city to where this incident took place, where the helicopter crashed, and this is where the bodies were brought when they were found on Monday.

So, what we're seeing here is a funeral procession through the streets. It's supposed to go from the Martyrs' Square to the funeral hall, and then later in the day the bodies, nine of them that were on board that helicopter, will be flown to the holy city of Qom.

Now, beyond that, we know that there will be funeral processions and prayers said there before they are moved on to the capital, Tehran, and this is where on Wednesday we could see the most significant crowds coming out onto the street.

At the Grand Masalla Mosque, there will be a funeral prayer said there as well for those individuals, and then for the late President Raisi himself, his body will be taken on to Birjand, where he was the Grand Ayatollah's representative for many years, and then on to Mashhad.

Now, this is where the Imam Reza Shrine is, and this is where we will see Ali Khamenei conducting prayers over the body of the late president, and then he will be laid to rest later on Thursday.

So, there are multiple stops for the funeral procession, and what we are seeing here, although there are many in Iran who will certainly not be mourning in any shape or form the passing of this president, there are some who did support what he did. There are some who support the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his policies, and these are the people that you will see on the streets over the next few days. Max?

FOSTER: Yes. Anna, these are images coming out from Iran. These are the sorts of images that, you know, the authorities would like the world to see as well. A much-loved leader being mourned, but as Paula was describing, not everyone was a supporter.

ANNA COREN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No, look, and this is what we will see coming out over the coming hours and days, you know, this outpouring of grief, if you like. Is it staged? We don't know.

[03:04:57]

Perhaps it's, you know, hardline government supporters who genuinely revered the president, but we do know he was widely unpopular and despised within Iran, as Paula referenced.

You know, he was referred to as the butcher of Tehran, the hanging judge, for his key role in the extrajudicial killing of thousands of political prisoners back in 1988. The State Department earlier today said that Raisi had blood on his

hands. And as president, he oversaw the strict morality laws, which led to protests and then that bloody crackdown right across the country.

So, you know, there's going to be a lot of Iranians who will not miss him whatsoever. And on social media, many of these people inside Iran and certainly the diaspora are posting celebrations. You know, they're handing out sweets, which is a gesture of celebration within Iranian culture. We saw fireworks in Kurdistan.

And then within the country, there are women posting these videos. They're not showing themselves, their faces, fearing, obviously, retribution from the government for celebrating what's considered a national tragedy. But they are celebrating.

Let me read to you one of the translations from one of these videos. A woman says, I never thought I would be happy with someone's death. I congratulate everyone on the death of the Iranian president, especially the family of those who sacrificed their lives, their wealth and their children for the freedom of Iran. I hope for happier times for the people of Iran.

We also saw a video of a woman dancing with her friend. She was blinded in one eye after being shot by police with a pellet gun during those 2022 protests. And she said, we will return to Iran. She fled to Germany. But there are many Iranian women who have gone into self- imposed exile.

And then, you know, there are plenty of women, not just women, but men as well, whose children have disappeared and were then executed as part of this social unrest that really captured Iran.

But there is no doubt utter disdain for the president and the regime in much parts of Iran. But certainly, analysts believe that it will be someone of the same ilk as Raisi, who will be the next president of Iran.

FOSTER: Yes. Can I ask you about the process now, Anna, because the supreme leader has a challenge now, because as you've described, there are obviously wildly different views within Iran and he'll want to keep, you know, someone in that position who shares his views.

So what are his views and what will we see in terms of how hardline the next leader will be?

COREN: It's a big unknown, Max, as to who the next president will be. We know that the ayatollah's son, that he is considered a potential contender, as is the first vice president, who is now the acting president. He could also be seen as in the running, but we know that the election will be held on the 28th of June.

So, you know, this is going to be something that is very much engineered. These are sham elections, you know, people can vote, but it doesn't matter. It will be up to the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as to who he wants to be the next president. I think anyone who's hoping for a reformer will be sorely disappointed, Max.

FOSTER: OK, Anna and Paula, thank you both for your updates.

Ali Vaez is the International Crisis Group's Iran project director, joins us now from Doha, Qatar. So just take us through the process now, how will the supreme hand leader handle this?

ALI VAEZ, IRAN PROJECT DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP: It's good to be with you, Max.

So, in the next few days, I think we would see after the funeral, candidates announcing themselves, and then they would have to go through the powerful Guardian Council's vetting process. And at the end of that process, there will be a shortlist of candidates and they would have about two weeks of campaign period before the elections are held.

And then whoever becomes president would have to put together a cabinet and start his new government. So it is going to be at least a few weeks of a political process, and Iran is going to be internally focused.

But I think it's important to remember that at this moment in Iran's history, the most important thing for the Islamic Republic is ideological conformity at the top, not legitimacy from the bottom.

And in that sense, I think the Iranian upcoming elections is going to be very similar to U.S. primary elections, where you have a very limited slew of candidates within the same party. And people who are going to go out to vote are also going to be the devoted members of that party and not the electorate but writ large.

[03:09:59]

FOSTER: Is it too much to read something bigger into this in terms of the fact the supreme leader is elderly, there'll also be a succession plan in place for him and all of this feeds into that, which is where the ultimate power lies?

VAEZ: Yes, in fact, this could be described as a crisis of two successions, one succession of the president, which despite the fact that it's going to be a limited competition. Nevertheless, within the conservative camp, there is going to be fratricidal infighting for that position.

And then there's the question of the supreme leader succession. And Raisi was widely seen as being groomed for the top job. And now that he's been removed from the stage, obviously, there will be a lot of competition to try to jockey for that position.

But the reality is that the supreme leader saw in President Raisi a subservient and loyal follower. And that is not a difficult profile to fit and to find a replacement in the coming weeks and months.

FOSTER: Just take us through the images that we're receiving. We're being fed them effectively, aren't we, by the authorities there. These are very important, aren't they, because they want the nation to be seen to be in mourning. But as our reporters were describing, this isn't the full picture of the real emotion in the country.

VAEZ: Yes, there are absolutely mixed feelings. The core constituency of the regime, which is about 10 to 15 percent of the population, based on polls and recent electoral participation that we have seen, is likely to come out. And then the regime is also pretty adept at bringing and mobilizing huge segments of the population forcefully to come to these events.

It's a made-for-TV demonstration, basically, because it's an opportunity for the regime to showcase that it has support at home, and also to showcase to its adversaries in the region and beyond, that it is here to stay.

So the Islamic Republic will make the best of the next few days in different funerals until President Raisi is buried, precisely to advance that agenda.

FOSTER: As you were saying, it does mean that Iran will be internally focused now, won't it, for the next few weeks, certainly. What does this mean in terms of foreign policy and those tensions we've obviously been reported on widely with Israel?

VAEZ: That's a great question, Max, because one of the worries that I have is that in the next few weeks, people might think that there's an opportunity to push the envelope against Iran and the region.

But I think that would be a mistake, because the same people who designed and mounted the very perilous attack against Israel, with firing 350 projectiles from Iranian territory towards Israel on April 14th, those people are still in place. And that's the supreme leader and the Revolutionary Guards.

The president and the foreign minister played a marginal role in those attacks. And usually when Iran feels vulnerable and in a position of weakness, it acts much more aggressively. So, I'm afraid if, indeed, we see more tit-for-tats between Iran and Israel, or between Iranian allies like Hezbollah in Lebanon, or the Houthis in Yemen, with Israel or U.S.-aligned forces in the region, that this time Iranians might respond in a way that might not be as calibrated and well-telegraphed as the previous attack that they mounted on Israel.

FOSTER: Ali Vaez, thank you so much for joining us with your analysis on a really, really big day, not just for Iran, but the entire region. Thank you.

Now, the October 7th Hamas terror attack and Israel's massive military response in Gaza are setting off a potential legal battle, meanwhile, before the International Criminal Court.

The chief ICC prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his defence minister, as well as Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar and also two others.

Now, Karim Khan announced the decision in an exclusive interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour. He says the charges would include war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Of course, we are nowhere near any kind of verdict, but the charges could result in up to 30 years in prison, even life under exceptional circumstances.

Critics accuse the ICC prosecutor of putting the Israeli government on the same footing as a terrorist organization.

Let's bring in CNN's Scott McLean, following developments for us from Istanbul.

Just take us through the reaction to this. We need to hear, obviously, on Israel's view.

[03:14:59]

SCOTT MCLEAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, this has gone over in Israel, Max, exactly how you would expect it to, like a lead balloon. There is widespread outrage from all ends of the political spectrum, from government to opposition and plenty in between.

The defence minister, Yoav Gallant, who is named here, called this decision scandalous. You have the opposition party leader, one opposition party leader and war cabinet member, Benny Gantz, who is in the midst of a public spat with Prime Minister Netanyahu, very much on his side here, calling the decision moral bankruptcy.

We also heard from the far-right national security minister who accused the court and the prosecutor of anti-Semitism. The former Prime Minister, Naftali Bennett, called for the court to be defunded. And you have the president and also another opposition party leader, Yair Lapid, making essentially the same argument that you can't have Hamas being compared to the democratically elected government of Israel. That is an outrageous comparison.

That is also pretty well how President Biden is framing his argument. But what is especially interesting here is that's also the argument that Hamas is making just in reverse. This is what the group said in a statement yesterday.

It said, in part, Hamas strongly condemns the attempts of the ICC prosecutor to equate victims with aggressors by issuing arrest warrants against a number of Palestinian resistance leaders without legal basis. It's also wanting the court to expand the scope of its charges against Israelis and to cancel the warrants against the Hamas leaders.

Now the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, he is also making this argument that you cannot compare Hamas and Israeli leaders. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER: Mr. Khan creates a twisted and false moral equivalence between the leaders of Israel and the henchmen of Hamas. This is like creating a moral equivalence after September 11th between President Bush and Osama bin Laden or during World War II between FDR and Hitler. What a travesty of justice. What a disgrace.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MCLEAN: Netanyahu went on to call this a moral outrage of historic proportions, saying it would put a mark of shame on the court and he said that it would not deter Israel from continuing on its mission to destroy Hamas and get the hostages back.

Now in the west there are varying levels of opposition to this. We heard from the Italians, the Austrians, the Czech prime minister who called the court's decision appalling. The British prime minister said that it was not helpful, also rejected the court's jurisdiction here since Israel is not a member of the ICC and Palestine is not an internationally recognized state.

There are also two notable exceptions from the west though. The Belgians who said that crimes in Gaza must be prosecuted regardless of the perpetrators and the French are also saying that they support the court's independence and the fight against impunity in all situations. Max.

FOSTER: Okay, Scott McLean in Istanbul. Thank you.

U.S. President Joe Biden says the idea of issuing arrest warrants for Israeli leaders is outrageous.

CNN senior White House correspondent Kayla Tausche reports.

KAYLA TAUSCHE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The White House offering a blistering if brief response to news that the ICC intends to obtain arrest warrants for top Israeli and Hamas leaders. That statement on behalf of President Biden, reading the ICC prosecutor's application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders is outrageous. And let me be clear, Biden says, whatever this prosecutor might imply, there is no equivalence, none between Israel and Hamas.

At an event at the White House celebrating Jewish American heritage President Biden reiterated that forceful condemnation and again argued that the ICC has no jurisdiction in Israel.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Let me be clear, we reject the ICC's application for arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.

(CROWD CHEERING)

BIDEN: Whatever these warrants may imply, there is no equivalence between Israel and Hamas.

(APPLAUSE)

BIDEN: And it's clear isn't wants to do all it can to ensure civilian protection. But let me be clear, contrary to allegations against Israel made by the International Court of Justice. What's happening is not genocide.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

TAUSCHE: The ICC announcement is separate from another case being heard in front of the International Court of Justice. South Africa has accused Israel of committing genocide in the war it's waged in Gaza in the wake of the October 7th attacks.

NSC spokesman John Kirby said that the administration believes that Israel has not intended to cause civilian death in Gaza, the same way that it believes that Vladimir Putin is responsible for intending to cause mass civilian death in Ukraine in the war it's waging there.

Even so, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan was on the ground in Israel as this news broke meeting with officials from that country, including Israel's defense minister.

[03:20:02]

Sullivan again reiterating deep concerns about the potential for more civilian deaths if Israel were to go forward with an incursion in Rafah.

Now, in the U.S., GOP lawmakers are working on a nascent effort to potentially respond with new sanctions on ICC officials if those arrest warrants are obtained. The Biden administration is remaining in close touch with members of Congress, but so far has not said whether it would support those efforts.

Kayla Tausche, CNN, the White House.

FOSTER: Heated moments in Donald Trump's hush money trial between the judge and key defense witnesses, what he did that prompted the judge to clear the courtroom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Angry moments in the Donald Trump hush money trial. A key witness for the defense brought in to discredit former fixer Michael Cohen managed to infuriate the judge who cleared the courtroom. And the defense also got Cohen to admit he had stolen tens of thousands of dollars from the Trump Organization.

The case is now entering the home stretch with closing arguments expected next week.

CNN's Kara Scannell picks up the story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KARA SCANNELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): After four weeks of testimony, prosecutors rested their case in former President Donald Trump's criminal trial. Just after their star witness, Trump's former fixer Michael Cohen concluded more than 17 hours of dramatic testimony over four days. Trump's attorney Todd Blanche intensely attacked Cohen's credibility

over multiple days, trying to paint him as a liar who's motivated by money.

MICHAEL COHEN, FORMER DONALD TRUMP'S LAWYER: I just want to get through this so that I can start my own life again.

SCANNELL: Blanche got Cohen to admit that he stole from the Trump Organization. Cohen confirmed he paid a tech company $20,000 instead of the $50,000 that was owed by Trump. But Cohen asked Trump to be repaid the full amount, which was double to cover taxes.

Ultimately, Cohen admitted he kept around $60,000 for himself. Blanche asked, so you stole from the Trump Organization? Yes, sir. Cohen replied. Cohen said he was angry about getting a low annual bonus.

Earlier in the trial, Cohen told prosecutors he requested the full reimbursement because that's what was owed. And I didn't feel Mr. Trump deserve the benefit of the difference.

On Monday, Cohen admitted it was wrong to have taken the money. Cohen defended his character during testimony to Congress in 2019.

COHEN: I understand. I have lied, but I am not a liar and I have done bad things. But I am not a bad man.

SCANNELL: After cross examination concluded, prosecutors tried to clean up some of the damage done to Cohen's credibility. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger asked about repayments Cohen received from Trump for the $130,000 in hush money he provided to adult film star Stormy Daniels, which is the crux of the case.

[03:25:00]

DONALD TRUMP, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: This is why I'm here because we called it a legalist. That's payment to a lawyer.

SCANNELL: Cohen testified that despite the 11 checks referring to a retainer agreement, he said no agreement existed because there was no legal work that I was to be paid for. Prosecutors played an audio clip for the jury of Cohen talking about Trump to Daniels lawyer Keith Davidson about the payment.

COHEN: And I can't even tell you how many times he said to me, you know, I hate the fact that we did it. And my comment to him was, but every person that you've spoken to told you it was the right move.

SCANNELL: After the prosecution rested, the defense started calling witnesses, including Robert Costello, who once served as a legal advisor to Cohen. Costello was visibly frustrated as the judge sustained several objections from the prosecution, audibly saying, geez, and rolling his eyes.

Judge Merchan became so angry, he briefly cleared the courtroom and address Costello. Kara Scannell, CNN New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Coming up, CNN goes to the front lines in northern Ukraine, where cross border attacks and drone warfare are ramping up on both sides of the fight.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: A funeral ceremonies for Iranian President Raisi are underway. Right now, mourners are gathering in Tabriz in Iran. Over the next few days the president's body will travel to Tehran. Mr. Raisi was one of nine people killed in a helicopter crash in the remote east Azerbaijan province on Sunday.

United States extends official condolences for their deaths, but also forcefully rejects allegations that its sanctions were responsible for the crash. former Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif told state media that the U.S. kept Iran from accessing spare aviation parts. Washington is denouncing those allegations, calling them baseless.

CNN's Fred Pleitgen walks us through the events of the helicopter crash.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Iran's presidential helicopter completely destroyed after crashing into a mountain in the remote north of the country. Dense fog, frigid conditions making the recovery effort even harder.

President Ibrahim Raisi, along with Foreign Minister Hossein Amir- Abdollahian and seven others were killed in the crash. Rescuers having to carry the bodies away through the rugged terrain.

A CNN Turk journalist showing how challenging the conditions are.

FULYA OZTURK, CNN TURK CORRESPONDENT (through translator): This place is a very difficult terrain with dense trees, deep valleys, and steep mountains. We can say that this is the most challenging terrain of Iran.

[03:30:08]

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Raisi inaugurated a dam with the president of Azerbaijan and was traveling to nearby Tabriz. The chopper, a decades- old American-made Bell 212, a model developed for the Canadian military in the 1960s. The chopper crashed in poor visibility. Iran, under heavy sanctions, has been unable to acquire more modern helicopters.

President Ibrahim Raisi was rumored to be a possible successor to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who is 84 years old. As the chopper went missing, the Supreme Leader taking the reins, chairing a meeting of Iran's Security Council and vowing the country's government will continue to work.

AYATOLLAH ALI KHAMENEI, IRANIAN SUPREME LEADER (through translation): Be assured that there will be no disruption in the country's affairs.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Black flags have been hoisted across Iran as the country's leadership has ordered five days of mourning, canceling most public events. Also deeply mourning the country's Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who was instrumental in the past months as Iran and Israel came to the brink of full-on war and traded missile strikes.

Amirabdollahian also challenging the U.S. in a recent interview on CNN's "OutFront with Erin Burnett."

HOSSEIN AMIRABDOLLAHIAN, FOREIGN MINISTER OF IRAN (through translation): I do think that America must pay closer attention and focus on the adventure-seeking regime in Israel so that such a crisis will not happen in Gaza because Netanyahu showed he will not respect any of the red lines.

PLEITGEN (voice-over): Tehran has launched an investigation into the crash that killed two key figures of the Islamic Republic's leadership, while vowing that the nation will carry on. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Berlin.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MAX FOSTER, CNN HOST: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says the prospect of an international criminal court arrest warrant against him is outrageous. The chief ICC prosecutor is hoping to move forward with charges against Mr. Netanyahu and his defense minister, Yoav Galant. Karim Khan accuses them of causing starvation as a method of war and deliberately targeting civilians.

Three top Hamas leaders are also targets for their roles in the October 7 terrorist attacks. U.S. President Joe Biden says there is no moral equivalence between the Israeli leaders and Hamas. Now, the ICC chief prosecutor announced his pursuit of arrest warrants in an exclusive interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour. Here is part of their conversation.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: I want to ask you about the so-called political nature that many people will claim. Prime Minister Netanyahu has already said ICC charges would be a scandal on a historic scale, an indelible stain on the idea of justice. Israel's commitment to international law is unwavering. And Netanyahu has also said it would be an anti-Semitic hate crime.

Now, we haven't heard anything from Hamas about how they would react. What do you say to that? There must have been a huge amount of pressure on you from all sides to do and not to do.

KARIM KHAN, INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT CHIEF PROSECUTOR: Well, this court, Christiane, is the child of Nuremberg. It was built because of the awful pictures that haunt us today of the Shoah and the gas chambers and then the Balkans and the list goes on. And we have to look at the evidence. And the way I very simply try to do things is look at the evidence, look at the conduct, look at the victims, and airbrush out the nationality.

And if a crime has been committed, we should move forward. Nobody is above the law. No people, by dint of birth or passport, religion, nationality, or the color of their skin, have a get-out-of-jail-free card, have a free pass to say, well, the law doesn't apply to us. This is a moment when we see in the shadow of Ukraine an increasing cacophony of noise, of double standards and selectivity. And what we're trying to do is not go with a tide of emotion, but take our time, move as effectively as we can, but be guided by evidence.

And every human life, every baby that is killed, whether it's a baby that's cruelly abducted by Hamas and killed, or a baby that's been bombed or killed or has died in incubators because of no electricity or water or food in Gaza, for them, for their families and humanity, it's a tragedy. And this is why we have a court. It's about the equal application of the law. No people are better than another. No people anywhere are saints.

[03:35:00]

And so, we have to apply a yardstick of legality to conduct. We've done that. And this is why we've made the applications that the judges must determine.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, CNN's Christiane Amanpour there with the ICC chief prosecutor, Karim Khan. The threat of war crimes charges isn't stopping Israel from its military campaign in Gaza, however. Palestinian health officials report at least 12 people were killed in Israeli strikes in northern Gaza on Monday. And the U.N. says more than 900,000 Gaza residents are 40 percent of the population, have been displaced over the past two weeks. Some desperately needed humanitarian aid is getting into Gaza through that temporary pier built by the U.S. military. Central Command says nearly 570 metric tons of supplies have been delivered so far.

Now, the Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, says military aid from the U.S. and other allies is now arriving one year late. His comments come as Ukraine faces a new wave of Russian attacks, which are most intense near the country's northern border. Mr. Zelensky suggested allies could help by shooting down Russian missiles.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translation): Russians are using 300 planes on the territory of Ukraine. We need at least 120, 130 planes to resist, to fight back in the sky. You can't provide that right now? Okay, so we're going back to air defense. You can't provide that either? F-16, you cannot provide yet. So, we are returning to the planes that you have on the territory of neighboring NATO countries. Raise them up. They are there. Use them. Shoot down targets. Protect civilians.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, Ukraine says it has managed to stall Russian advances in the Kharkiv region. Russia has been targeting the embattled town of Vovchansk. But Ukrainian officials say their forces now control about 60 percent of the town, adding the situation in the region is stabilized. The fierce fighting in Ukraine's north has seen both sides carrying out more and more cross-border attacks, notably an increase in the use of drones, both by Russia and by Ukraine. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports from the front lines.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECUIRTY EDITOR (voice-over): Dusk begins a race to hide before dark. It's this drone unit's first night in a new location. The twilight, a tiny window when perhaps you can unpack, set up without the Russian drones that are always, always above, seeing you as clearly.

Like so much in this fast-changing war, their task was unimaginable when Moscow invaded. Their target is on the horizon, Russia itself, into which they fly and plant mines on key roads. They wait for dark.

(On Camera): Those lights twinkling over there on the horizon, that's Belgorod, Russia, how close they're operating towards Russian mainland.

(Voice-over): Putin's latest offensive towards Kharkiv has made the fight personal for Artem. His parents live about a five-minute drive away, and fighting for his literal home is unsettling.

ARTEM, DRONE OPERATOR, CODE 9.2 DRONE UNIT (through translation): It's anxious, for real. For a year and a half, they didn't know that I'm in a combat brigade fighting near Bakhmut. I was telling them I was guarding checkpoints.

WALSH (voice-over): And now, for the first of many times, their only defense is to listen for drones.

UNKNOWN (through translation): Back! Back! Back! Orlan (Russian drone) flying! Right over us!

WALSH: What?

UNKNOWN (through translation): Orlan.

WALSH (voice-over): It passes. Now that it's dark, they must hurry. Russian drones have thermal cameras. They hear another.

UNKNOWN (through translation): Quiet.

UNKNOWN (through translation): Flying.

WALSH (voice-over): Battles raging nearby may help them go unnoticed. They resume. Any strike could also ignite the two mines they're fitting, but they hear another drone.

UNKNOWN (through translation): The (BLEEP) won't let us work.

[03:40:02]

WALSH: Such an escalation over two years into the war to now see Ukrainians flying drones of explosive straight into Russia.

(Voice-over): Inside, Sasha watches it cross the border.

UNKNOWN (through translation): Here's the border.

UNKNOWN (through translation): Did you bring your passport?

UNKNOWN (through translation): No visa needed.

WALSH (voice-over): Remarkably, when Russian jamming kicks in, the drone keeps going, and they're able to pick the signal up again, deeper inside Russia. They spot the target road they will mine. Drop both payloads and head back.

A GPS problem means the drone crash lands, but they have a spare. They once, elsewhere, managed 24 sorties in one night. But they have to be spotted only once, and these shells may not pass overhead. We leave, quick. Lights off at first to avoid drones.

The road littered with anti-tank defenses not laid out in time to hinder Russia's latest advance, and now they have only courage and ingenuity to hold back the dark. Nick Paton Walsh, CNN, outside Kharkiv, Ukraine.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Still to come, how China is reacting to Taiwan's new president as he takes on Beijing in a defiant inauguration speech.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FOSTER: Taiwan's new president called on China to stop intimidating the island during his inauguration speech on Monday. After officially taking office, Lai Ching-te said that China needs to face the reality of Taiwan's existence. China slammed foreign officials for attending the inauguration, claiming, quote, "Taiwan is an inalienable part of China." CNN's Will Ripley is in Taipei with more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Taiwan begins a new era with a new leader, Lai Ching-te. The island democracy's 64-year-old president steps into a political minefield. China's communist leaders loathe Lai and his government.

(On camera): How is Beijing likely to respond?

WEN-TI SUNG, FELLOW, ATLANTIC COUNCIL'S GLOBAL CHINA HUB: Beijing is likely to play a hard ball towards Taiwan. More military exercises from Beijing, likely targeted economic sanctions against Taiwanese economic exports to China.

RIPLEY (voice-over): Just hours into his presidency, Lai called on the communist mainland to stop its military and political intimidation and recognize the sovereignty of democratic Taiwan using the island's official name, the Republic of China.

LAI CHING-TE, PRESIDENT OF TAIWAN (through translation): I hope that China will face the reality of the Republic of China's existence and respect the choices of the people of Taiwan.

[03:45:05]

RIPLEY (voice-over): Lai faces rising tensions at home and across the Taiwan Strait. This is the first time in the history of Taiwan's democracy that any political party has won a third consecutive presidential term. But the next four years could be even more challenging for the new president.

Challenges like chaos in a fiercely divided parliament. A brawl broke out last week over legislative reforms to give more power to Lai's political opponents, champions of more China-friendly policies.

SUNG: The opportunity, however, is that there's always possibility for the ruling party and the opposition party of Taiwan to kind of play good cop, bad cop towards Beijing.

RIPLEY (voice-over): At a closed-door briefing in Taipei, a senior official telling CNN, Taiwan's new president is bracing for a turbulent tenure. Taiwan is spending billions to bolster its military defense, forging friendships with like-minded democracies, despite a dwindling number of formal diplomatic allies. One of many huge hurdles facing President Lai Ching-te as democratic Taiwan prepares for an uncertain future. Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: Slovakia's prime minister is clinically improving in hospital, according to doctors, just days after he survived an assassination attempt. Robert Fico was shot five times at close range on Wednesday after a government meeting in central Slovakia. The country's defense minister and interior ministers call the attack politically motivated. Mr. Fico won a controversial third term as prime minister in October after criticizing Western support for Ukraine and publicly sympathizing with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.

Lawyers for former Trump White House adviser Steve Bannon have filed paperwork arguing he shouldn't have to go to jail until he -- until all appeals, rather, are exhausted. Bannon was found guilty of contempt of Congress almost two years ago for rejecting a subpoena from the committee investigating the January 6th insurrection. He's ordered to start his sentence. He would by no means be the first member of Trump's inner circle to end up behind bars. CNN's Sara Murray explains.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SARA MURRAY, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Far-right firebrand Steve Bannon could soon end up in prison during the run-up to the presidential election.

STAVE BANNON, FORMER TRUMP ADVISER: You have to take on the deep state. You have to do it. You have to be prepared to go to prison. I get prison sentences all over.

MURRAY (voice-over): The Justice Department asking a federal judge to force Bannon to report to prison for his four-month sentence after an appeals court upheld Bannon's contempt of Congress conviction. The sentence coming after Bannon was arrested.

BANNON: They will never shut me up. They'll have to kill me first. I have not yet begun to fight.

MURRAY (voice-over): And convicted by a jury in July 2022 for defying a subpoena from the Congressional Committee investigating the January 6th insurrection.

LIZ CHENEY, FORMER U.S. HOUSE REPUBLICAN: Those who planned to overturn our election and brought us to the point of violence must also be accountable.

MURRAY (voice-over): The committee wanted to know about Bannon's contact with Trump and comments ahead of the Capitol attack like this one.

BANNON: All hell is going to break loose tomorrow.

MURRAY (voice-over): A defiant Bannon.

BANNON: If you do not believe the 2020 election was stolen, you're not at the railhead of this movement.

MURRAY (voice-over): Spending his time post-conviction continuing to spread the lie that the 2020 election was stolen to fire up the Trump base ahead of November.

BANNON: They're going to do everything to steal this election. That's why you have to be on the ramparts and you have to be on the ramparts 24/7.

MURRAY (voice-over): The goal for team Bannon, keep up the fight and keep Bannon out of jail.

BANNON: This thing about I'm above the law is an absolute and total lie.

MURRAY (voice-over): Bannon has long argued he followed the advice of his attorney in refusing to comply with a subpoena. But that defense was not allowed to be presented in court. Now Bannon's attorney plans to ask the full Court of Appeals to take up the issue, vowing to go to the Supreme Court if necessary.

"This prosecution was unprecedented and has at all times been politically motivated," Bannon attorney David Schoen told CNN. "The integrity of our system demands that the conviction be reversed."

If Bannon doesn't succeed, the former White House chief strategist could join this string of Trump loyalists who have found themselves serving time. One of them, Trump's former trade advisor Peter Navarro.

PETER NAVARRO, FORMER TRUMP WHITE HOUSE AIDE: Democrat-appointed judges are systematically stripping away the full, fair and rightful defenses of Trump. As I ready myself for a prison cell.

MURRAY (voice-over): Currently serving a four-month sentence for contempt of Congress. Former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen served a three-year sentence in prison and in home confinement. Former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort spent two years behind bars, followed by home confinement. And former Trump Organization CFO Allen Weisselberg is currently serving time at Rikers.

[03:49:59]

MURRAY (on camera): And in a court filing Monday night, Steve Bannon's attorney said the judge should not force Bannon to begin his sentence until the appeal fully plays out, either before the full appeals court or, if necessary, the Supreme Court.

The attorney is arguing that Bannon would suffer irreparable harm if he is forced to serve out this prison sentence before the appeal fully plays out. And in the filing, the attorney said that might serve a political agenda, but it would be a grave injustice. Sara Murray, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: When we come back, researchers are discovering the many different ways that elephants communicate with each other, through sight, sound, and even foul smells.

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FOSTER: Now, an attorney for world number one golfer Scotty Scheffler says his client has no intention of taking a plea deal. Scheffler is accused of felony assault on a police officer and several less serious charges, including reckless driving after an altercation in Louisville, Kentucky last week. His attorney says Scheffler didn't do anything wrong. He wants the case dismissed, but he's also prepared to litigate if necessary.

The attorneys in the case were in court on Monday arguing over when Scheffler's arraignment should be held. It was originally scheduled for today, but the district judge granted a defense motion to postpone it until June the 3rd.

A portal between New York and Dublin Island has reopened after being closed for several days due to inappropriate behavior. Authorities say it will now open for a certain number of hours on both sides. The live stream installation is a big circular screen which connects the two cities with a video link, enabling people on both sides to interact with each other in real time. Before the closure, social media videos had shown people flashing

parts of their body. But the Dublin City Council says it's now found a way to prevent that from happening again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NOLLAIG FAHY, TOURISM INNOVATION MANAGER, DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL: We have a new piece of technology in the lens, so the lens, anyone that comes close to the lens, even any object at all, even a person or a camera, each screen will go blank. Well, it'll go blurred, so nobody's going to be able to see any of the outrageous stuff we saw last week and the unfortunate things, you know.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: You've been warned. Researchers are revealing more about the ways African elephants communicate. Some of them involve touch, whilst others, let's say, rely more on sometimes rank smells. Linda Kincaid has more.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LINDA KINCAID, CNN ANCHOR (voice-over): Roaming through Zimbabwe's Jafuta Reserve, these giant grey mammals are greeting each other in more unusual ways than one may expect, especially after they've been separated and reunite. A recent study showed these elephants communicate with 20 types of gestures in combination with sounds, smells, touches and even urination.

These modes of saying hello are complicated and sophisticated, according to the study in the journal Communications Biology. Researchers watched their every move as they roamed free during the day and returned to their stables at night. They found the elephants communicate through visual clues like flapping ears or raising a tail, audible clues like trumpets and roars, and even urination, defecation and secretions from a temporal gland.

VESTA ELEUTERI, BEHAVIORAL BIOLOGIST: Which could be because of the excitement of seeing each other.

[03:55:01]

But could also be because elephants rely extensively on olfaction. So, these secretions might actually convey some information to the greeting partner on who they are, if they're at a distance, what's going on with them, how excited they are, or even their sexual state in the wild, especially.

KINCAID (voice-over): Greetings can differ depending on their gender, or if they're making eye contact. One involves the female turning away, possibly as a sign of submission. And they often use their trunks to touch the temporal gland, where they gather information on one another's sexual and emotional state. But mostly they're happy to see each other.

ELEUTERI: For them it's important to be together and if they're not, they're super happy when they meet and they communicate that and they touch each ot her and it's a way to show that they are bonded to each other. A bit like we do with friends.

KINCAID (voice-over): With so many ways to communicate, research shows these powerful and intimidating animals can also be affectionate, gentle and loving.

ELEUTERI: The elephants are special because it reminds me of the better side of humans, because they're so empathetic and good to each other that they should be an example for us.

KINCAID (voice-over): Linda Kincaid, CNN.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

FOSTER: An iconic orange feline is the newest star to join the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Garfield, the lazy lasagna-loving cat, placed his paws in ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre over the weekend. The sarcastic kitty was joined by creator Jim Davis, who signed the cement as part of a promotional event for the upcoming Sony Pictures feature, "The Garfield Movie."

Now, speaking after the ceremony, Davis talked about the comic strip's humble beginnings and the surprise of watching Garfield rise to fame.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JIM DAVIS, GARFIELD CREATOR: When I created Garfield, I was hoping to just be able to make enough money so I didn't have to take a second job to support my cartooning habit. So, maybe sometime down the road have a book or something like that. But to think that he became a real, you know, entertainment figure and that he resonated, you know, with the readers like this is just mind-blowing. It's great to see.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: Well, Chris Pratt voices Garfield in the movie. It also features Samuel L. Jackson and Hannah Waddingham.

Thanks for joining me here. I'm Max Foster in London. I'll be back here with another hour of "CNN Newsroom" right after this short break.

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