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Germany Resumes AstraZeneca, Minister Warns Of Vaccine Shortage; French PM Given AstraZeneca Vaccine As Cases Spike In Paris; CNN's Sanjay Gupta Joining Campaign For Vaccine Awareness; U.S.-China Talks Get Off To A Strained Start; Hospital In Mekelle Sees Increase In Rape Victims; Emma Watson In 2014: Feminism Must Not Mean Man-Hating. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired March 19, 2021 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LYNDA KINKADE, CNN HOST: Hello, I'm Lynda Kinkade in for Becky Anderson. Good to have you with us and welcome to "Connect the World". We're denied a
big warning out of Europe. Germany says there is not enough vaccine to stop a third wave of COVID 19. The country's Health Minister acknowledging it
may be time to take one big step backward.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENS SPAHN, GERMAN HEALTH MINISTER: There are not yet enough vaccines in Europe to stop the third wave through vaccination alone. Even if delivery
of e-orders are not reliable, it will still take several weeks before the risk groups are fully vaccinated. Only then talk about why--
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Many lock downs are taking place across the continent already exhausted by restrictions, but critics say it's too little too late. Health
officials warn new contagious COVID variants are responsible for the majority of cases in Germany, France, Italy, and parts of Spain leading to
a heavy strain on hospitals.
Adding to the misery the vaccine rollout has been slow and chaotic one of the big factors at play the AstraZeneca vaccine. This hour, several EU
countries are now resuming use of their vaccine after concerns about possible blood clots. On Thursday, Europe's main drug regulators said the
benefits still outweigh the risks following an emergency investigation.
But the damage may have already been done. Vaccine skepticism across Europe is already high with the latest developments only causing more anxiety. We
will be connecting you across the continent this hour. Fred Pleitgen is in Berlin, Jim Bittermann is in Paris and Cyril Vanier is in London.
Well, let's first get to Frederik Pleitgen who visited a vaccination center in Berlin today, where they've restarted administering the AstraZeneca
vaccine. Fred?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: This is one of the main vaccination centers in the German capital Berlin. And one of the
things that the authorities here in Berlin decided is that when Germany decided to use the AstraZeneca vaccine, again, they wanted to get going as
fast as possible.
So as you can see, we're actually in the waiting area where people come after they get the vaccine because their monitor to make sure that they
don't have side effects and that they do have side effects that of course, they can be helped medically, very quickly.
Now, we did speak to some of the people who came here. And they generally told us, they're not concerned about getting the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Here's what they said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm not I'm not sure I'm not the doctor. But I asked my doctor, he says it's fine, I have done it. So I heard him and I followed
his instructions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: I have no problem with it she says none at all. For me, the relation to the large amount of people who got vaccinated worldwide, to
those few who had complications is not that significant.
Now, of course, when Germany and other European countries decided to halt the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine that caused all sorts of problems with
the appointments here at this vaccination center in and others as well and there were some people that we talked to today, and they told us that they
got their appointments for the vaccination very, very quickly.
Some said they went on the website today, and they immediately got an appointment because of course now Germany wants to start moving along as
fast as possible. The use of the AstraZeneca vaccine is extremely important not just to Germany but to other European countries as well, especially
since their vaccination campaigns have been going fairly slow.
You look at Germany, for instance, they want to start administering the AstraZeneca vaccine in general practitioners office just to make sure that
more people can get the vaccine quicker.
One of the things though, that the German Health Minister said earlier today is he said that even with the vaccines that are currently available,
Europe does not have enough vaccine to keep in check the third wave of the Coronavirus pandemic and therefore countries like Germany, other countries
as well might have to put in place new lockdown measures.
KINKADE: Well, our Frederik Pleitgen joins me now for more on all of that. Fred, you spoke obviously about how there's not enough vaccines even to
prevent this third wave in Europe, a dire situation but we are seeing that some countries are now going to use AstraZeneca vaccine. The question is
how much damage has already been done as a result of the suspension and investigation?
PLEITGEN (on camera): Well, I think a lot of damage has been done to the confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine Lynda, certainly when you speak to
people here in Germany. We spoke to people a couple of weeks ago already in vaccination centers, a lot of them said that they were not necessarily 100
percent confident.
And of course, this has been another blow the fact that the AstraZeneca vaccine was not used for several days because of some of the things that
that some of the countries here in the European Union had done by suspending the use of that vaccine.
You looked at France, for instance, we're only about 20 percent of the peoples there still have faith in the AstraZeneca vaccine. So certainly,
some damage has been done. But on the other hand, the AstraZeneca vaccine of course, such an important part of the rollout here in Europe.
[11:05:00]
The authorities really want to get the vaccinations going as fast as possible Lynda.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OZLEM TURECI, CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER, BIONTECH: This merit is a great honor for us and it also is a celebration of science as a problem solver for in
this case, global health crisis. And it also honors the fact that when we work together internationally in partnerships and costs across private
public borders, that important differences can be made.
PLEITGEN: There's a lot of concern about variants of the novel Coronavirus mutations, how confident are you that your vaccine will continue to be
effective against those mutations?
TURECI: From what we know based on the scientific data, the current variants for our example the UK variant and the South African variant, we
are protected against those with a current version of our vaccine.
However, what we also prepare is emphasis basically to be prepared for tomorrow in case such a variant of concern would occur, the process with
which we can adapt to a new variant. The other is you have to pre discuss with regulators the process with which you do this, which basically means
that we exchange the new sequence against the one we have now and use our MRNA platform technology.
PLEITGEN: Of course, right now, there's a lot of demand for your vaccine for other vaccines as well. What are the plans to try and even further
upscale the production to make sure that you can meet that global demand?
TURECI: This is new technology. You cannot just repurpose vaccine facilities which are there. And you can also not to train people very fast.
So we are working and turning every stone basically to upscale and roll out our capacities. And continuously re evaluating how the target we have
already be - have already set could be even over performed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN (on camera): And that was the Chief Medical Officer and the Co- Founder of the company BioNTech who we interviewed yesterday. The founders of BioNTech today got the German Cross of merit, obviously for coming up
with that very important vaccine.
And of course, the main message that they're sending is that they are really trying to produce as much vaccine as possible as fast as possible as
there is an unbelievable huge amount of demand, not just here in Europe, but of course around the world, Lynda.
KINKADE: Frederik Pleitgen for us. Good to have you across all those elements for us from Berlin. Thanks so much. Well, I want to zone in now on
France, the country has resumed the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine, though the warning that only people over 55 should take it because of concerns
about blood clots in young users.
Well, about an hour ago Prime Minister Jean Castex got his dose of the vaccine part of an effort to convince France that it's safe. It comes as
cases are surging and officials are imposing new restrictions. Well, on Thursday, Castex warned that a new COVID-19 victim is checked into
intensive care every four minutes in France.
Well, that's pretty insane. CNN's Jim Bittermann for more on this situation in France which of course, is pretty dire and there's certainly now is this
uphill battle to convince people there to take the vaccine.
JIM BITTERMANN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, that was such a roll out here the vaccine was so bungled earlier in the week that after
the first suspended things for a day and a half suspended the AstraZeneca shots from going out for the first day and a half. They took those public
opinion polls discovered that only 20 percent of the French had any kind of confidence in the AstraZeneca vaccine.
So this afternoon, the Prime Minister himself got himself shot up with AstraZeneca. He's 55 years old, which is supposedly not where they are
supposed to be at with the vaccination program right now. But he decided it was better to jump the queue to make the point to the public that the
vaccine is safe, and that they should continue getting AstraZeneca.
In fact, all across the country that signaled the start of restart rather on the AstraZeneca campaign. So all across the country, they restarted and
began vaccinating again with AstraZeneca.
Now, one of the more interesting facts that came out this morning was the Junior Budget Manager estimated that the cost of this vaccination campaign
in France is somewhere between 3 and 4 billion but he quickly added if there's one spending that we really should not restrict its spending on
vaccinations.
[11:10:00]
BITTERMANN: So the government is going all out trying to get people to take these vaccinations even though the vaccines skepticism still runs high here
Lynda.
KINKADE: Yes, it certainly does that needs to change. Jim Bittermann for us in France thank you so much. Well, Britain's Prime Minister is also hoping
to boost confidence in AstraZeneca by getting the vaccine himself. Boris Johnson announced Thursday he would be receiving his first dose sometime in
the next few hours.
He prays for the other Pfizer and the AstraZeneca vaccines for their safety and urged the public to get their own. When asked to do so for more on all
of this Cyril - CNN's Cyril Vanier if following the story for us from London certainly the uptake there in the UK, much higher than the rest of
Europe and follow skepticism.
CYRIL VANIER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Oh, absolutely Lynda. And it is what has allowed such a fast and successful vaccine rollouts here in the UK almost
half of the adult population has been vaccinated for a rollout that began on December 8th. A little ahead of time of most European countries because
the vaccine at the time it was the Pfizer vaccine was approved here before it was approved on the continent.
90 percent of people who are considered extremely vulnerable to COVID have also been vaccinated. And frankly, this country has had many missteps when
it comes to managing the pandemic. But this has been a resounding success.
And certainly the Prime Minister Boris Johnson can be credited with it. Boris Johnson who will be receiving his first dose of AstraZeneca he was
pleased to announce that sometime today we're still waiting for confirmation on that from 10 Downing Street, Lynda.
KINKADE: All right. We'll wait and see when we hear from them Cyril Vanier in London. Thanks so much. We're not all European nations are resuming the
use of AstraZeneca Norway, Denmark and Sweden all say they want to further investigate blood clotting and other problems connected with it. Well, a
Senior Norwegian Health Official tells CNN and that experts have not seen anything like this before.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
STEINER MADSEN, MEDICAL DIRECTOR, NORWEGIAN MEDICINES AGENCY: No, we haven't started and we will not start in a while. It will take some time
because, you know, nowhere has had six cases of very severe disease after AstraZeneca vaccination, and we have to do more investigation because we -
it's not a very special case. We don't know. But we have to be sure.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, coming up in a few minutes, I'll be speaking with an official from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health about the decision
not to use the AstraZeneca vaccine. Well, we've talked a lot about COVID-19 vaccines now let's zone in where we are on regarding other treatments.
Now the U.S. health officials warn that monoclonal antibody treatments may not work against some of the new Coronavirus variants. But the FDA says
Regeneron's dual antibody treatment does appear to protect against the most worrying of variants. So what exactly does that all mean? Well, let's break
it down with a Global Health Expert at the University College of London. Oksana Pyzik is joining us now live good to have you with us.
So as much as we are hopeful, with the rollout of vaccinations around the world as slow and chaotic, as it has been hoping that it'll be enough to
start reducing some of the restrictions we've seen. The next big threat is the virus mutating, which we've already seen as some new variants and
merging.
OKSANA PYZIK, GLOBAL HEALTH EXPERT, UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON: Absolutely. And I think particularly due to some interruptions in supply chain that
we've seen in other countries, the UK is expected to have a hiccup coming up in the next month, which will slow down currently very successful
immunization campaign.
We've also in Europe have throughout the entire period, seeing that there have been not only logistic challenges, but procurement problems. And all
of this really favors the virus. It means that countries that are taking a more vaccine nationalism approach that are ahead may face the fact that the
tools and investments that they have heavily prioritized may be less effective.
And in the worst case scenario if the rest of the world we see continuous lack of success with vaccines, that there could be even further variants.
Europe, for instance, is now in its third wave of Coronavirus and Brazil has been an absolute disastrous response and this is where the P-1 the
Brazilian variant has emerged.
So while originally there had been some optimism around the not only the monoclonal antibody bodies but the fact that perhaps we could easily tweak
the existing vaccines.
[11:15:00]
PYZIK: I think there is more hesitation given some studies showing even the AstraZeneca vaccine being less effective for mild to moderate cases against
the South African variant. So both treatment and the preventative aspects are now under threat.
KINKADE: Right. So break it down for us a little bit more as to how these antibody treatments treat some of the emerging variants that we're seeing?
PYZIK: Yes, so if we think about these monoclonal antibodies, they're in lab engineered immune system proteins, and they help or assist the body in
responding to the virus pathogen, in order to speed up the recovery process, dampen down some of the more severe symptoms, and even can have
some preventative benefit.
Now what the current investigation which have been lab based, so they're, again, testing variants, in a sort of Petri dish scenario, here, we see
that the dual antibody treatments, so that's Regeneron, these seem to be the most robust, but the ones that are the most vulnerable against variants
are the single antibody treatments.
Also, apart from this, just the availability of these medicines is extremely limited. So even if we are able to have some adaptation, for
instance, adding on more dual types of therapies, which I think will be the path forward, just getting enough of them and other challenges across the
world, it's really been concentrated in the U.S. where this has been one of the main forms of limited treatments, for instance, that Former President
Donald Trump famously had received.
So there is, again, more work that's going to be needed and fully understanding how these new variants are going to affect people. And I
think we're going to have to have larger studies outside of just a lab environment to better understand that.
KINKADE: And for the vaccines that already exist, how can they be reworked or tweaked to be more effective against some of the emerging variants?
PYZIK: So there is a fantastic foundational element that we have here. So we're able to see that if there is different entry points so many of the
way that the variants work are that they're - they have a slightly different shape of virus. So the more that we can find ways to engineer
viruses that recognize not just the spike protein, but other elements of virus, the more robust those vaccines are going to be.
But I would stress that actually, we are in a good place in the sense of having more vaccines than many imagined would be efficacious. For this,
there were over 300 vaccines in development. And there are many now that are on market - in the market.
But in terms of the reengineering we'll largely also focus on recognizing that pathogens, so it can't slip through to those - receptors which are all
over the body. We have to remember that COVID is actually not just a respiratory disease. It's a multi system disease.
And that's why we see so much variability to how different populations have responded and the types of complications, including blood clotting, heart
disease, and many other issues that put people at risk from very serious complications, hospitalizations, and long COVID. So that disability burden
we still don't fully understand yet.
KINKADE: Oksana Pyzik is certainly very complicated, but great to have you on it to break all this down for us. Thanks so much. Thank you. Well, all
this month we have heard about vaccine' successes and failures. Well, here is a success story at the top of the list.
The Portuguese Island of Corvo has vaccinated almost its entire population. Life there appears completely normal restaurants and bars are open. Schools
are in session with no masks and a small but important example of post pandemic life that can happen if we all get vaccinated and stay safe. We'll
stay safe until that happens.
Well, CNN's very own Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is joining in to raise awareness of the vaccines and make sure that everyone
gets a shot in the arm. Well, he made a public service announcement with a staff in the Broadway hit Hamilton and even did a little wrapping of his
own take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Sanjay, you there?
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey David.
UNIDENTFIED MALE: I'll make this quick. Listen, I have some questions.
DR. GUPTA: What's on your mind?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This vaccine, I'm nervous. I got songs to write well I still be able to do that.
DR. GUPTA: It'll be fine David science is what you need. The vaccine is safe, my friend. It's going to bring this pandemic to an end. See what I
did there?
[11:20:00]
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. OK, I trust it. Thanks. Oh and Sanjay, don't do that again.
Dr. GUPTA: David? David? I don't know. I thought I was spitting fire.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: I love it. There's a Sanjay Gupta there. Well, I like to sing along myself. So I'll have to give Sanjay a call after this and see if we
can do a little duet? Well, for now I'm going to be right back in just a little while. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back. Imagine growing up to the sound of bombs all around you constantly fearing attacks, never feeling safe on the streets, or even
in your own home. Your childhood stolen by a war you're far too young to understand.
Well, today on the 18th anniversary of the U.S. led "Shock and Awe" campaign that would leave Iraq in ruins. We're remembering the children who
paid such a terrible price for that war. Those who were born in 2003 are adults now. They've never known life without conflict. Some suffered
physical wounds; others carry invisible scars from mental trauma.
Well, CNN spoke to some 18 year olds in Iran to learn about their past, but also their hopes for the future. Here's what one had to say.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't remember anything about Americans entering Iraq, because I was still young. But when I grew older, I remember simple things
like their control over most of the areas. Their entry was sort of cruel on the people in general. Because first of all their problems with a
government, not with the people. So many people were hurt and died because of these reasons.
I have hope for the future of Iraq at the same time I'm not prepared to bring up kids under these sectarian circumstances in this environment and
with these people. If there's a change, and I trust, there will be of course - and we'll be proud to bring up my children proud Iraqis.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: CNN's Arwa Damon covered the Iraq War since the very beginning. She's in Turkey tonight and joins us now live. Arwa, it's hard to believe
it's been 18 years since a war that began with that "Shock and Awe" campaign that decimated cities across Iraq and destroyed livelihoods.
ARWA DAMON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It really is. And you heard it from that young man speaking there himself about how on the one
hand, he has hoped but on the other hand, Iraq is not quite the country where he would want to raise a family just yet.
And when you speak to a lot of Iraqis about this, they're still trying to come to terms with what it is that they have gone through? There was among
many, Lynda, a sense that the U.S. led invasion the Fall of Saddam Hussein was going to bring about something better.
[11:25:00]
DAMON: Problem is it didn't. It brought about a different sort of nightmare, a nightmare that manifested itself in the insurgency against the
Americans and the rise of the Shia militias in the sectarian bloodletting that turned a city like Baghdad into a patchwork of sectarian
neighborhoods, friends turned on each other families are were torn apart by mistrust that only grew as the years went by.
And then as the violence slowly began to reduce, and when I say reduce, I don't mean eradicate, and I don't mean being brought down to a level that a
country in the West would find acceptable, we're talking by Iraqi standards.
Iraqis began to be able to go out and try to pick up the pieces of their lives. And then of course, you had the grand entrance of ISIS that utterly
devastated huge parts of the country and put the entire population on edge once again.
If we purely look at the security situation right now, yes, of course, it is significantly better. But if you ask Iraqis about the barometer, by
which they measure their quality of life that still stays very low. And many of them do feel betrayed by the United States, because they felt that
America made them a promise. And that promise has not even come close to materializing.
KINKADE: And not even close, as you say, and just take us through the cost of this war Arwa because they're the last lives of course, the
displacement, the trauma, and of course, the financial burden.
DAMON: And all of that is really something that has largely been carried by the Iraqi population. But the U.S. military in terms of troops lost America
itself paid a very heavy price as well, not to mention the tens of billions of dollars that the United States spent there.
America officially declared its war in Iraq over in 2011 and withdrew, saying that the Iraqi security forces had been trained up to a level where
they could hold on to security gains. The United States at the time this was the Obama Administration was unwilling to listen to warnings coming
from many senior government officials.
Ordinary Iraqis that they felt that the then government of Iraq the Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki was quite sectarian and its tendencies that the
predominantly Shia security forces were targeting Sunni neighborhoods and that this sense of oppression could potentially lead to even more violence.
The rise once again of what was then the Islamic State of Iraq; the United States though was quite willing to want to shut the door on what was
happening in this country, especially the Obama Administration. And two years later, you have the rise of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria that
rose up from Iraq, crossing over to Syria, and then coming back to take over Mosul.
And so when you look back on the reasons that America said it went to war, these so called weapons of mass destruction, and when you look at what the
country has become right now, you know, it's completely understandable that Iraqis are angry and are frustrated.
And for many of them, Lynda, you know, they often get this question of, well, is it better now? Or was it better under Saddam Hussein? Their lives
are not that black and white? They can't answer that question in terms of one being better than the other because they'll tell you that they
basically as I was saying treated one nightmare for another.
KINKADE: Yes, an ongoing nightmare. Arwa Damon for us as always, great to get your insight thanks so much for joining us from Turkey. Well, coming
up, we're going to attend to Ethiopia where thousands of fleeing human rights abuses in the Tigray region. The situation is so dire that the U.S.
is now sending an envoy there. I have the details the head.
Also the Biden Administration is wasting no time calling out China on human rights. We'll tell you about the shift in messaging for Beijing, and for
Russia.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
KINKADE: Welcome back. Where the Biden Administration is setting a blistering new tone in its dealings with Russia and China with the message
we are holding you accountable. Well, this week, Joe Biden said yes to an interview question asking if he thought the Russian President was a killer.
Well, now Vladimir Putin has fired back with this response. It takes one to know one. He also is asking Mr. Biden for a video call that would be
televised to both countries. And there was no fence mending at the administration's first high level meeting with Chinese officials.
That meeting deteriorated at the start with the U.S. Secretary of State pressed China human rights as well as its cyber attacks and economic
policies. Without a global order based on rules he warned we could have a much more violent world. With China's top diplomat launched into a long
response calling the U.S. tone condescending. Well, U.S. President spoke a moment ago addressing China and Russia. Let's listen in.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you going to pick Vladimir Putin up on his offer to talk live with you?
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: I'm sure we'll talk at some point.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you getting any close sanctions on Russia still? Are you enforcing sanctions on Russia sir?
BIDEN: That would come in time.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Well, for some inside into all of this let's bring in CNN's Senior Global Affairs Analyst Bianna Golodryga. She joins us now live good to have
you with us Bianna. I just want to touch off on those comments we just heard from U.S. President Biden.
He was responding to a question as to whether he would have a public televised debate of some sort with President Putin of Russia. He didn't say
you'd have a debate, but he said he'll talk soon. Can you see any sort of debate happening between the two in a televised way?
BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST: Well Lynda, it's good to be with you. No, there will not be a debate between the two in any
televised way anytime soon. Obviously, with G-20 meetings and summits, we can expect to see foreign leaders meet with each other and have offside
chats.
But in terms of Vladimir Putin's offer, it's a bit rich given that the man has never really debated anybody in his life in his career as president. He
was sort of appointed president following President Yeltsin and Russia and has been in office there for 20 some years now.
And one could ask why not debate Navalny first right? And said we see that the attempted poisonings, and now he's sent to a Soviet style gulag for a
trumped up charge. So it's really big of him to offer to debate Biden, while he's there in Moscow, and obviously, that's for an audience
domestically, but we see that is never going to happen. And obviously, it's much more talk than it is something that's going to materialize.
KINKADE: Yes, you make very good points there Bianna. Obviously this question about a debate came about after the U.S. President Biden referred
to the Russian President as a killer. And I thought those comments may be walked back at some point, but when his Press Secretary was asked about it,
she said, it was the direct question and President Biden gave a direct answer. What's your take on that?
GOLODRYGA: Its Joe Biden its classic Joe Biden, he speaks his mind for better or worse and that this has been his style throughout his career as a
politician. Obviously, he anticipated a question about Russia and perhaps not that specific one.
[11:35:00]
GOLODRYGA: But remembers his predecessor, Donald Trump didn't deny that Vladimir Putin was a killer. He just sort of equated the two countries and
insulted Americans by suggesting that we have killers here too. One could argue the diplomatic merits of saying something like that, and being so
aggressive, publicly.
But there's no denying that, in fact, look at Vladimir Putin's track record. And you have all of his critics, and many of his opponents and
rivals, either in jail poisoned or falling out of windows. And as I've said before, there are no structural issues with Russia's buildings where people
tend to fall out of buildings.
So I do think that he called a spade a spade, and I think for both sides now the question is, can they put their egos aside and try to simmer
tensions down? There's no interest for either country to ratchet up tension. But at the same time, something has to be done given Russia's
malevolent behavior over the past few decades.
KINKADE: And speaking of egos and insults, I just want to ask you about the summit that's happening right now, in Alaska between a top official from
China and top U.S. officials. We have seen this exchange of insults quite heated, so much so that China went off script and described that being the
strong smell of gunpowder from the get goes from the outset of this summit.
What does that say about how the relationship between China and the U.S. is going to progress at the start of this new administration?
GOLODRYGA: It's uncomfortable to watch, I have to say. I don't know how you feel watching this. But it's not something that we typically see within one
week, we have presidents calling each other killers. And now we see these heightened tensions on display intentionally between the U.S. delegation
and China.
And the difference is that both sides are now approaching each other from a position of strength. China's intent is to present itself to the world as
sort of an alternative another option to the United States and with its Belt and Road initiative with the fact that it has, you know, handled COVID
one would argue in a better way than many Western nations has China's flexing its own muscles domestically, or the South China Sea, obviously.
And then you've got the human rights concerns that the U.S. has been presenting to them, whether it be the Uyghurs, whether it be Hong Kong, and
what does China do? China takes a page out of Putin's talking points and says; look at what's happening in your own backyard. Talk about human
rights abuses, look at what Black Lives Matter and the movement there.
So this is really an unusual and an unprecedented time in the U.S. China relationship. And it's clear as Anthony Blinken, the Secretary of State,
and even Donald Trump and his advisors have suggested that China is really the big rival to the U.S. in the 21st century, not to say that Russia isn't
going to be there in the picture.
But speaking of Russia, Russia and China, in this is an accidental have developed and renewed their cooperation as well again, playing up on the
theme that there's an alternate nation and alternate side to the view of the world than just from the west.
And that's why we're saying the Russian Foreign Minister traveled to China next week. And that's going to be the interesting focal point watching in
the weeks and months and years ahead.
KINKADE: Well, hopefully, we speak to you again sometime next week, certainly a lot to watch right now. Bianna Golodryga, good to have you with
us as always, thanks so much.
We're now to the escalating humanitarian crisis in Northern Ethiopia where there are grave concerns about conditions in the war torn region of Tigray.
Now the situation is so dire that U.S. President Joe Biden is sending one of his top congressional allies to Ethiopia.
Senator Chris Coons will meet the Prime Minister and the Capitol Ababa. And the U.S. has of course described some of the violence there is ethnic
cleansing now the Biden Administration is also sending almost $52 million to restart - to respond to the humanitarian crisis that's developed.
Since November the Ethiopian government has waged a war on Tigray in that region with assistance from neighboring troops from Eritrea. Now earlier
this month, an exclusive CNN report documented a massacre at a religious festival there last November. Well, the UN Human Rights Commission has
called for an independent investigation into those crimes.
Well, sexual violence has long been one of the weapons of war and this conflict is no different. Doctors at one hospital in Macau, the Capital of
the Tigray region says they're seeing an increase in the number of rape victims seeking help, his part of report by Channel Fours' Jamal Osman.
[11:40:00]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At Mekelle's either hospital, doctors are overwhelmed by the number of rape victims seeking help. They say rape is being used as a
deliberate weapon in this war. Now you're seeing many cases of--
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Many case--
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: --in relation to the war.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, where this dramatic increase in the number of cases almost all of them they tell you that they are raped by soldiers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Victims of rape, go to the center for women and children within the hospital. Sister Mulu is the first point of contact. Since the
war how many patients have you seen roughly?
SISTER MULU, NURSE: Roughly 260.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 260 in this clinic alone?
MULU: Yes, - no. They don't know as a person, correct. Proceed as a group. They get as many diseases. They acquired many diseases like HIV, like
hepatitis, like STI.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The women who reach the center often have serious physical wounds.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: Welcome back. You're watching "Connect the World". I'm Lynda Kincaid, good to have you with us. We have been talking all day about the
use of the AstraZeneca vaccine and the countries that have resumed using it.
However, there are three countries that are refusing to heed the advice of the European drug regulators who say the AstraZeneca vaccine is safe.
Denmark and Sweden have joined Norway in saying more research needs to be done into cases of blood clots and other complications.
Well, joining me now is Sarah Watle Senior Physician at Norway's Institute of Public Health. The institute is responsible for determining when or if
Norway will begin using the AstraZeneca vaccine again?
Thanks so much for your time today. Much appreciate it. I just want to ask you why Norway like Denmark and Sweden and not restarting the use of the
AstraZeneca vaccination when the green line has been given by the European Medicines Agency.
SARA WATLE, SENIOR PYSICIAN, NORWAY'S INSTITUTE OF PUBLIC HEALTH: Well, we have decided to keep the vaccine on hold while the investigation is ongoing
so maybe just to put it into context. We are a very small country with 5 million people and we have vaccinated 130,000 healthcare workers with the
AstraZeneca vaccine.
And in this population we now have six very severe cases of a very rare syndrome in previously healthy individuals which is one in 20,000
vaccinated until these individuals have unfortunately died. And our investigation is ongoing and we need to complete the assessment of all our
data and also in conjunction with the consultation with clinical experts in the field before we can conclude in resuming using the vaccine.
[11:45:00]
WATLE: And we will do an independent evaluation where of course, the decision by the European Medicines Agency will be part of the evaluation.
And I think also, despite the fact that we have an increasing number of cases of COVID-19, in Norway, we have been very fortunate to have quite a
low number compared to many other European countries.
And even the progress of our vaccination doesn't really rely heavily on AstraZeneca vaccine, because the supplies from this vaccine have been quite
limited up until now.
KINKADE: So just quickly what are the vaccinations are you relying on there?
WATLE: We are using vaccines from BioNTech, Pfizer and Moderna as well. And then some, of course, we were using AstraZeneca up until we made a halt.
KINKADE: So how long is your investigation into that AstraZeneca vaccine expected to take? I understand that if you do proceed that you want
AstraZeneca to put a warning on that vaccination that those symptoms are possible.
WATLE: Yes, it's too early to conclude, regarding the causality aspect of it. Of course, there are clinical experts have come to a theory that they
might have found the explanation for the syndrome that these patients are with the cost and the bleedings and the low platelet counts.
But there's still a lot more assessment to do so we will be working with our clinical experts, we will look through the cases reported in Norway as
well as to the European Medicines Agency, because all of the cases in Europe haven't come to their database yet. And we will also look through
our registries and this - this will take some time. And we're hoping to come to a preliminary conclusion at the end of next week.
KINKADE: According to AstraZeneca, they believe that the number of blood clots from people taking COVID - from people taking their vaccine is
actually lower than what they were typically seeing in a general population. What do you make of that? And how are you taking that into
account because blood clots are quite common?
WATLE: Yes, I think they're absolutely right. Blood clots are quite common. And of course, blood clots might also happen if you are infected with the
SARS code to virus and you get to COVID-19 disease. But these are not the regular blood clots that we're talking about in these patients.
It's not like a deep vein thrombosis or a blood clot in the lungs. These are very rare and severe cases with the very critical outcome. And if you
look into statistics, and you look at all blood clots, of course, you won't find an increased rate.
But if you look at this type of syndrome in this age group, then it highly exceeds the background rates in our population that is.
KINKADE: Right. The Prime Minister's of Britain, France are getting the AstraZeneca vaccine today, with the Scandinavian countries saying they want
to investigate it further. Will that potentially undermine trust in this vaccine? What impact could that have on this - on the battle against COVID-
19?
WATLE: Yes, and this decision to halt the vaccine as a precautionary measure in Norway has absolutely been a difficult decision. Because as you
say, we are in the midst of a pandemic, pandemic and vaccines will be extremely important to stop the spread of the virus and will also prevent
COVID-19 in many cases throughout the globe.
But we do actually believe that this measure that we have taken will increase the trust in authorities and also confidence in vaccines. Because
when there is such a high signal as we see in our country, we believe it's important to just stop and investigate what's going on before we decide
whether or not to continue vaccination.
KINKADE: All right, well, it's good to get your perspective Sara Watle a Senior Physician at Norway's Institute of Public Health, thanks so much for
your time.
WATLE: Thank you.
KINKADE: We are going to take a quick break. You are watching "Connect the World". I'm Lynda Kinkade. We'll see on the other side.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:50:00]
KINKADE: Well, recent events like the death of Sarah Everard have sparked conversations about gender based violence all over the world. She's a 33
year old woman killed while walking back to her London home.
Well, among those conversations, looking for inclusive ways of men being part of the solution. And here's why the World Bank says that one in three
women have experienced either physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.
Well, my next guest launched a very successful campaign on exactly that "HeForShe" aiming to offer inclusive solutions. Elizabeth Nyamayaro is a
Former United Nations Senior Advisor for Gender Equality and joins me now live with a very exciting announcement. She's written her first book called
"I am a girl from Africa". It's wonderful to have you on the program.
ELIZABETH NYAMAYARO, FORMER UNITED NATIONS SENIOR ADVISOR: Thank you so much for having me, Lynda.
KINKADE: Firstly, let's start with your book since we've got it up on our screen. Tell us about the premise for it.
NYAMAYARO: As a humanitarian I wrote this book to inspire more of us to take action in creating a more equal world. I think we've seen that we're
living in a much more divided world with widening inequalities. And it's literally going to take all of us working together as a collective, to
create that wealth that we all want to be part of.
KINKADE: And in your work, Elizabeth, for the United Nations, you launched "HeForShe", which is one of the world's largest global solidarity movements
for gender equality. And you managed to get Emma Watson, the actress who's better known from her "Harry Potter" character. She spoke about this
campaign at the United Nations. I just want to play some of it for our viewers, let's listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EMMA WATSON, U.N. WOMEN GOODWILL AMBASSADOR: The more I've spoken about feminism, the more I have realized that fighting for women's rights has too
often become synonymous with man hating. If there is one thing I know for certain it is that this has to stop.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Talk to us more Elizabeth about that campaign, why it has been successful, and your work with Emma Watson on it?
NYAMAYARO: Well, many issues of gender inequality are ultimately about power, who has it, how they use it, and for whose benefits and currently
meant to make the majority of decisions across all levels of society so it's imperative that we engage them as part of the solution.
So in 2014, with the support of my colleagues at UN Women, and of course, our Global Goodwill Ambassador, Emma Watson, we launched the "HeForShe"
movement as a solidarity movement, to galvanize all genders, and in particular men to stand alongside women in creating shoe societies of
equality.
And I have to say the response was quite phenomenal because within the first three days, at least one man in every single country in the world
joined the movement. And they generated 1.2 billion online conversations. And that was really remarkable to see that there is a lot of men out there
will want to be part of the solution. And "HeForShe" provided that platform on which we could engage them.
KINKADE: And what does it mean by joining the movement? What's the action are they taking? Because it seems to me that these issues keep rearing
their ugly head?
NYAMAYARO: Yes, indeed. I mean, it's been devastating, as you say the story about Sarah in the UK. But what's remarkable with "HeForShe" is that we
started to see the combination of everyone standing together, translate into tangible action.
We saw men stand up against gender based violence, instead of putting the burden on women not to get abused. We also saw men say no to child marriage
in Africa and the Middle East, instead of expecting young girls to figure out how to escape a child marriage.
[11:55:00]
NYAMAYARO: And in the corporate world as well, we saw men really share the responsibility of creating equitable workplaces, instead of expecting women
to constantly have to fight to remove the glass ceiling, right?
And so this is what the movement is about. It's enabling men to also take ownership in creating the change that needs to be created, instead of
always asking women to be part, you know, to bear the brunt of creating that change.
KINKADE: And that's a very good point you made because so often we hear that women need to change their behavior for their own safety. And we're
hearing more now that men need to take responsibility.
And even in the case of what we saw play out in London with the death of Sarah Everard and the protests that followed, there was almost a joke
saying, well, man, you should stay home don't tell us women to stay home for our own safety.
What else needs to happen to make men more responsible when it comes to supporting women in this way?
NYAMAYARO: I mean part of that ownership also lies on how we perceive issues of gender equality, right? Because we often think that it's a women
issue, just a women's issue led by women, for women, I think more and more we are seeing that the easiest understanding that it has to be an inclusive
movement.
And also that it's not a zero sum game, right, whereby one gender has to concede power to the other. And I think that understanding of saying this
is going to take all of us. Men also, by the way, have agenda and the more that they engage in the dialogue, the better it becomes for everyone. So we
need more inclusive movements around this issue.
KINKADE: Elizabeth Nyamayaro - I'm good girl from Africa wonderful to have you on the program. Thanks so much for your time.
NYAMAYARO: Thank you so much for having me.
KINKADE: And all the very best to you and your movement. And thanks to everyone for watching "Connect the World". I'm Lynda Kinkade. Please stay
well. Stay safe and good bye for now.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
END
