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U.K. Defense Secretary Meets with Russian Counterpart in Moscow; South Kore and Japan Order All Citizens to Leave Ukraine; Diplomatic Progress in Question After New 4-Way Talks; 15-Year-Old Athlete Tests Positive for Banned Heart Drug; Protests at the U.S.-Canada Border Show No Signs of Easing; Russian and Ukrainian Emigres Follow Escalating Crisis from Israel; President Biden to Split Frozen Afghan Funds Between Aid and 9/11 Victims. Aired 10-11a ET

Aired February 11, 2022 - 10:00   ET

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

[10:00:19]

BECKY ANDERSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: President Biden urges Americans to leave Ukraine, while Russia builds up its military activity.

Another twist in the doping scandal involving a Russian skater at the Winter Olympics. The latest from Beijing for you.

Plus, Canadian truckers are refusing to budge from a major international crossing. The consequences of this crippling protest are coming up.

I'm Becky Anderson. It is 7:00 p.m. here in Abu Dhabi. Hello, and welcome to CONNECT THE WORLD. This will be a busy couple of hours.

Bracing for an invasion, the U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying today a Russian attack on Ukraine could begin at any time. In an interview

on Thursday night, U.S. President Joe Biden warning, quote, "Things could go crazy quickly." The White House convening a situation room meeting on

Thursday night.

The question is, why are they so concerned? Well, increasing evidence that Russia is building up its military presence on three sides of Ukraine.

Satellite photos show hundreds of vehicles parked at a former air field in Crimea. Russian warships arriving in Crimea's main port for Black Sea naval

exercises, and now within striking distance of Ukraine. And Russian troops in large scale, joint drills in neighboring Belarus that Russia claimed,

Moscow claims are defensive in nature.

Well, let's get you on all of these angles today. Nic Robertson is in Moscow, Sam Kiley in Kharkiv, Ukraine, which could be an early target if

Russian invades, and Fred Pleitgen is in Bucharest in Romania. The NATO secretary-general visiting there today and talking to Fred about the

prospect of a Russian move at this morning and hopes for a diplomatic solution.

Let's start with you, Nic, in Moscow. It certainly seems like things are ramping up, both diplomatically and militarily. What are you hearing there?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL DIPLOMATIC EDITOR: Yes, I think the diplomatic level they're frosting over. British Secretary of Defense Ben

Wallace meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu. You only had to look at the body language there to detect that it was not a comfortable

conversation that they were having. These were not men who were having a meeting of the mind, far from it.

Sergey Shoigu saying that there are tensions building up in Europe, that's not Russia's fault, it's NATO's fault for pumping Ukraine full of weapons

and as far as relationships with the U.K., Russia-U.K. relationship, he said that was close to zero, and indeed looked like it was going to go into

negative territory.

The British Defense secretary, without being absolutely explicit, but using words like I have buried many of my own soldiers, I don't want to see other

families suffer, was really implying the narrative that we've heard before that there would be heavy consequences for Russian forces if they invaded

Ukraine. He was sort of using very careful language, but there was no -- it was very clear what he was say saying to Sergey Shoigu.

He also said, look, there are areas where we can cooperate on counterterrorism, where we have joint threats. There are areas that we can

discuss about security concerns. So -- and he said let's try to get that relationship back off zero and get it going in the positive direction. But,

you know, this comes after a week of diplomacy and just the sort of cap out where we're at, that week began with Emmanuel Macron, the French president.

The hope from President Putin that Macron could go to Kyiv and put pressure on Kyiv to do what he wants, which is get the leadership there to negotiate

directly with the pro-Russian separatists in the east of Ukraine. And the reality from the Minsk talks yesterday, in Germany, but after nine hours of

talks there still wasn't agreement and the readout from the Russians, and this is the key part.

The readout from the Russian side was that the Western diplomacy at the moment is not having an impact. So I think that tells you everything you

need to know about the diplomatic track. From the Russian side they don't think it's working. Things are frosting over.

ANDERSON: Sam, let me bring you in. What's the perspective there?

[10:05:03]

SAM KILEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the interesting reaction to those overnight statements coming from the United States,

demanding that -- literally demanding that Americans leave Ukraine, that is in addition to advice that they should get out, in addition to reports that

2,000 American servicemen have been put on standby in Poland to receive potential American refugees or evacuees from Ukraine.

All of this being dismissed rather by the Ukrainian government as we've heard it all before. This is because as we've seen before, Becky, this is a

country that is trying to keep a lid on all of this, in particular preserve its economy in the face of what now is an increasingly strident level of

course from a wide range of different governments. South Korea recently just today said that they wanted their 340 something citizens out of

Ukraine as a preemptive evacuation.

There is deep concern, Becky, that there could be a strike against Ukraine any moment, possibly against the Kyiv, in an attempt to decapitate the

government. Possibly against here, Kharkiv, the center effectively of the industrial complex, just 30 miles from the border. But here on the ground,

the atmosphere is one of tension, there's no doubt about it. But also a real attempt to continue to behave normally.

They do know that they're over gunned here, but they are trying to send a signal to the Russians that if they came in, there would be a blood price

to pay, Becky.

ANDERSON: Let me bring in Fred at this point. You're in Bucharest in Romania. Why did the NATO secretary-general go there? And what is he saying

about Russia's latest military moves?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, hi there, Becky. Well, he went there simply because the situation at this point right

now is, of course, very dangerous. The NATO secretary-general saying that he does believe that an invasion by Russia is something that certainly

could happen. He certainly says that one of the things that are concerning to him is the fact that NATO says that Russia is continuing to build up

those forces and, of course, has now also started those military exercises in Belarus as well.

He interestingly said that the Black Sea region is certainly one that NATO is very much looking at. Of course, Romania is one of those nations that is

right at the Black Sea, just like other NATO member states as well. And I think it was very important for the NATO secretary-general to come out

here, and to show that the alliance is standing as one and is in fact beefing up its forces here in these new Eastern European member states to

reassure them that in the face of any sort of aggression that could happen by Russia, the alliance will be on their side.

Now I was able to speak to the secretary-general exclusively. And here's what he had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JENS STOLTENBERG, NATO SECRETARY-GENERAL: Russia is increasing both the number of troops, but also the readiness and their capability to act and to

conduct aggressive actions on very short notice. So the number of troops is going up, while the warning time is going down.

PLEITGEN: Do you think that there is a chance that Russia will invade?

STOLTENBERG: There is a real danger. And we are prepared for many different scenarios. Everything from a full-fledged invasion to smaller scale and

military action, aggression against Ukraine, to subversion and the big cyberattacks. So the thing is to be prepared, but as we prepare for the

worst, we also work strongly for political and peaceful solution, and it is still possible for Russia to de-escalate.

PLEITGEN: How important is this commitment from the United States to send these reinforcements here to NATO's eastern flank?

STOLTENBERG: I strongly welcome the deployment of more U.S. forces, partly because the United States is by far our biggest ally and they contribute

thousands of troops, but also because it's, of course, it sends a very strong message of the iron clad commitment of the United States to NATO and

to European security.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PLEITGEN: This, Becky, as a thousand additional American troops arrived on that base this very day. And you can really feel how NATO is stepping up

those efforts of trying to deter Russia. They're stepping up air policing. There's also new planes that have been brought in as well. And then of

course also those additional ground forces in Eastern European member states, some being deployed from Germany there to Romania, others arriving

from the U.S. to places like Poland as well -- Becky.

ANDERSON: The NATO head said to you there is still time for Russia to de- escalate. We keep hearing this word, don't we? The Europeans, NATO, the U.S. calling for de-escalation. I just wonder at this point, given that we

are seeing the ramping up of the Russian military forces as it were both in the sea and on the border and in these exercises with Belarus, what is it

that NATO means by de-escalation at this point?

[10:10:08]

What would they need to see from Russia to acknowledge or observe a de- escalation? Do you see what I mean?

PLEITGEN: Yes, absolutely. And I think a lot of that, Becky, the secretary- general said that he believes a lot of that needs to happen through diplomatic channels, and, of course, one of the main ones between NATO and

Russia is the NATO-Russia council. And he says that he has invited the Russians to come back to that and then to talk about some of the concerns

that Russia does have at this point in time.

I think a lot of it would happen at the diplomatic table. But then also of course some of those forces possibly being withdrawn as well. One of the

things of course that we've heard from the Russian government is they said that after those exercises, their end in Belarus, which are gigantic, of

course, as we know, that Russian forces would be withdrawn from that area. Will those forces really be withdrawn?

That certainly could be something that will be interpreted as a sign of de- escalation. But then across the board, if you look at the area around the border with Ukraine, certainly NATO would want to see some of those forces

withdrawn from there as well to call any of this a form of de-escalation.

But I think no one is under the illusion that this is something that will happen fast and certainly the secretary-general as well saying he believes

this could be a drawn-out and very difficult process -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Fred is in Bucharest in Romania. He has spoken to the NATO head. Thank you.

Before I move on, I do want you folks to hear from Joe Biden himself. He spoke to Lester Holt on NBC last night. And this is part of that

discussion. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I have spoken with Putin, I have spoken with every NATO leader, I brought them together like I think they've

never been as coordinated in modern history, NATO leaders about what to do if Putin moves. The question is he knows, he has to know that if he does

the entire circumstance for Russia changes worldwide. Changes overnight. The cost to Russia both in terms of reputational cost and economic cost can

be profound.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON: President Putin in the next hour will hold a call with -- sorry, President Biden, of course. President Biden in the next hour will hold a

call with European and NATO leaders. When we get more on that, that's closed to the press, when we get more on that, you will get it. Things do

seem to be heating up.

Well, the Russian Olympic Committee says that it's taking measures to keep what it calls its honestly won gold medal. 15-year-old figure skater Kamila

Valieva won gold with her team on Monday, but today the International Testing Agency confirms the results of a doping test she took back in

December before the games. She had failed.

Well, you see Valiyeva here practicing earlier today, as this scandal threatens to overshadow the entire competition. Right now the IOC is

appealing a decision made by the Russian Anti-Doping Agency to lift a provisional suspension that had been placed on her.

There is a lot to unpack here. So let's get you to Selina Wang who is in Beijing with what's going on and what's next for that young skater.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SELINA WANG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A 15-year-old pushing the laws of physics, Kamila Valieva has lit up the world of figure skating, leading

a Russian team to gold on Monday at the Beijing Olympics. An honor that could still be taken away after the team tested positive to a banned

substance for before the games. The heart medication trimetazidine.

DR. ELIZABETH MURRAY, PEDIATRIC EMERGENCY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN: What this drug does is actually kind of make your heart work more efficiently, and it

doesn't change your blood pressure very much or change your heart rate, so an athlete wouldn't get jittery or necessarily feel all that different, but

they would theoretically be able to perform at a higher level for longer. So it would increase their endurance potentially.

WANG: Confirming the apparent doping violation on Friday, the International Testing Agency pointed to a protected status as a minor, as to why they

delayed naming her. And because she is only 15, it's unclear what kind of penalty she might face if any. Other athletes like men's singles gold

medalist Nathan Chen of the U.S. watching closely.

NATHAN CHEN, U.S. FIGURE SKATING GOLD MEDALIST: Certainly, you know, as athletes you want to be able to have as fair of a playing field as

possible.

WANG: In a statement Friday, the ITA said the sample that later tested positive was taken on Christmas Day last year, in St. Petersburg, by

Russian officials and processed in a lab in Stockholm accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency. But it said the test result was only reported

after Valieva had competed in the team event here.

Almost immediately after the results became known, Russia's Anti-Doping Agency suspended her from their Olympic team, but then overturned that the

next day after she appealed. Now the ITA says the International Olympic Committee is challenging Russia in the Court of Arbitration for Sport,

while the Russian Olympic Committee says she's tested negative before December 25th and after arrival in China, and should be able to compete and

claim her team gold medal.

[10:15:14]

CHRISTINE BRENNAN, CNN SPORTS ANALYST: If people tune in on Tuesday, and if she is competing, what a travesty that will be, what a tainted competition

that will be. Someone who has tested positive for a performance enhancing drug, competing in the Olympics, when everyone knows that she has tested

positive. That would be a first.

WANG: That legal process eating up precious time here at the Olympics. Valieva allowed to practice as her singles event grows closer.

(On-camera): All eyes will be on this venue on Tuesday to see if Valieva will be able to take the ice. This doping scandal is overshadowing the

premiere event of the Winter Olympics. It's diminishing Valieva's phenomenal athleticism and once again putting the spotlight on Russia's

history of state-sponsored cheating.

(Voice-over): It's no small matter. The medals for the team figure skating event, that ceremony has been postponed while we wait to see if Valieva's

team will lose their medals. The ROC says it is taking measures to keep its, quote, "honestly-won Olympic gold medal." But if they lose it, Chen's

U.S. team would move from silver to gold.

CHEN: The medals ceremony is definitely a very special part of the Olympics. And for those that, you know, should get a medal, I truly hope

that they can. Just having had the experience in 2018 and being able to be a part of a team collectively standing on the podium together is a really,

really special moment. So, you know, whatever happens happens but I do hope that we will have this opportunity to share as a team.

WANG: The ITA warned Friday that a decision on whether the team from Russia keeps its gold medals could take time and that might not allow for a team

medal ceremony at all.

Selina Wang, CNN, Beijing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Well, you just heard CNN's sports analyst Christine Brennan there talking about how it would look if Valieva competes again. And she joins me

now live from Beijing.

Good to have you. Many people calling this another instance of state- sponsored cheating. Despite the fact that this team of course is not actually competing under the Russian flag. But if Valieva is allowed to

compete again, what impact will it have on these Olympics in Beijing, these Winter Olympics this year, and indeed in years to come?

BRENNAN: Becky, it would be a tainted Olympic Games. Already these are controversial games here in China and linked so politically to so many

issues, human rights abuses, et cetera. But you throw in the fact that you have an athlete and she's 15 and we're sympathetic and everyone understands

that and it's the adults that really should be looked at here, but you have -- would have an athlete who would potentially win two Olympic gold medals,

who everyone knows tested positive for a banned substance within two months before the games.

What a headline. Are you for doping or you're against doping? If you're against doping, which the IOC says it is, they want to eradicate all the

cheating, they want an even playing field for all those athletes out there who are doing everything the right way, then you have to punish her. She

cannot skate. The team competition, they would have to have Russia be disqualified and have the U.S. win the gold medal.

You have to do that, or just don't have rules and have it be a free for all, have it be the wild west. That's the issue and that's why the

International Olympic Committee is now part of the appeal process. They do not want her to be competing at the Olympic Games.

ANDERSON: Well, as you get more on this, I know that you will -- our viewers will be the first to hear. And while we work through this story,

another controversy is taking Chinese social media by storm. Fans claim that a Chinese snowboarder should have won Monday's men's slope style

competition. Not Canada's Max Parrot. Tell us about that.

BRENNAN: Well, I really don't know all that much about that one because I've been obviously on this figure skating story. But I do know very much

about the controversies in general in the Olympics. And, you know, it's an emotional story, a cancer survivor winning and as we have seen with these

games, with the figure skater, with Eileen Gu, the Chinese social media tends to pick up on these stories and run with them. But I do think that

controversy is part of the Olympic games always.

ANDERSON: Got it. All right. Good stuff. Thank you very much indeed, Christine Brennan on the story for you.

Well, Olympic fans in China also speaking out online about a lighter matter. This year's mascot, a very round, very cute panda. That is until it

started talking. Read about why people are so weirded out by Bing Dwen Dwen's voice. That and all that our Beijing 2022 coverage at

CNN.com/Olympics.

[10:20:05]

Protesters at the U.S.-Canada border say they are in it for a long haul. We'll look at why their standoff against vaccine mandates is spreading and

if their methods are working.

Later, the U.S. president is taking action over the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan. It's controversial, though. Will White House moves help

Afghans who are starving? More on that after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Well, it's not just a small number of Canadian commercial truck drivers wreaking havoc on some of the roadways there, pickup trucks, SUVs,

and cars now also in on the protests over Canadian government COVID restrictions. The mayor of this town is just fed up, and asking a judge to

remove these demonstrators from the bridge that links Windsor, Ontario, to the United States.

American automakers are pretty fed up, too. The supply chain problem from these protests causing production delays and the demonstrations are now

popping up overseas as well.

We've seen this so-called "Freedom Convoy" in France and in Belgium. There is worry the anger and protests may spread to this weekend's Super Bowl in

California.

Miguel Marquez takes a look at the havoc this is wreaking across Canada.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Some protesters blocking this major trade corridor between the U.S. and Canada

say they'll risk their lives to stay out here. Three nights already, no sign of quitting.

(On-camera): You would risk your life rather than leave this protest at the moment?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A hundred percent. Absolutely 100 percent.

MARQUEZ (voice-over): The protest now starting to bite deeply into the economy. Supply chain bottlenecks, trucks backed up for hours across this

bridge at Port Huron. Automakers and part suppliers on both sides of the border starting to slow or altogether suspend production.

Windsor's mayor says while Canadians have the right to protest, patience for what he calls an illegal blockade is running thin.

DREW DILKENS, MAYOR, WINDSOR, CANADA: There will have to be a path forward. And if that means physically removing them, and that means physically

removing them, we're prepared to do that.

MARQUEZ: Protesters here want all Canadian coronavirus restrictions and mandates at the national level lifted before they say they'll leave.

JIM DOIG, PROTESTER: I'm fighting like our veterans did for the freedom of this country, what Trudeau is taking away from us.

MARQUEZ: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau now a target over too many rules. The prime minister so far not budging.

JUSTIN TRUDEAU, CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER: Individuals are trying to blockade our economy, our democracy, and our fellow citizens' daily lives. It has to

stop.

[10:25:04]

MARQUEZ: Michigan's governor demanding that the border crossing be reopened, calling the blockade unacceptable. Anti-mandate anger simmering

for weeks, starting with opposition to vaccine mandates, even though government statistics show more than 80 percent of Canada's truckers are

vaccinated.

Some provinces such as Saskatchewan and Quebec have recently announced plans to roll back COVID restrictions. But for those who believe the

government has robbed them of their livelihoods, they say it's not enough.

(On-camera): You want the entire country?

DOIG: Not only do I want the provincial ones, I want the national ones done. And I would like to see something where they can't happen again. If

we can get the restrictions gone, this little bit of a disruption in our day today for the next week or two, whatever it takes, they'll thank us for

it.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: And Miguel Marquez joining us now live from Windsor in Canada.

The mayor of Windsor, Ontario, is asking a court to step in and clear this logjam. Is that just going to enflame tempers at this point, do you think?

MARQUEZ: I don't think they care. I think they expect tempers will get enflamed. The mayor even said in his press conference, his last press

conference, that if anyone is encouraged by that press conference and the information that both the province and the city is putting out to come down

here to support these people, he said don't come. They're going to be in court in a couple of hours to get this sort of legal justification to clear

things out here, there are resources.

Possibly heavy resources coming in from the federal government and from the provincial government into this area. They have opened a lane. Protesters

have allowed a lane to be opened which they have wanted. Emergency workers have wanted to they can get emergency crews through. They see it as a sign

of good faith, but clearly the city, the province, the federal government wants this protest and others across the country ended and they say they

will move them out if necessary -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Thank you, Miguel.

And solving the world's problems over borscht. Ahead, CNN talked to the Ukrainian and Russian emigres in Israel. They tell us the current standoff

is not their war.

And as hunger ravages Afghanistan, the Biden administration is now taking action. Will it be enough? We'll be live at the White House to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ANDERSON: Welcome back. I'm Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi where the time is just half past 7:00. You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD. More on our top

story.

[10:30:01]

U.S. President Joe Biden is planning a phone call with NATO and other key allies about 30 minutes from now to discuss the standoff at the Ukrainian

border. NATO and the U.S. both say Russia is increasing the number of troops it has positioned near the border. The newest satellite pictures are

said to show continued Russian buildup on three sides of Ukraine. U.S. Secretary of State warns an invasion could happen at any time.

This on day two of Russia's military exercises in Belarus. Now the Kremlin denies it has any plans to invade Ukraine. More on this as we get it.

Well, thousands of miles away, the crisis is being followed by people from Russia and Ukraine who have made their home in Israel. They came as part of

an influx of Jews from the former Soviet Union.

CNN's Hadas Gold sat down with some emigres in Tel Aviv.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

HADAS GOLD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There's dumplings, caviar, and borscht. But we're not in Moscow or Kyiv. This is Baba Yaga restaurant in

Tel Aviv, owned by Russian-born Cyril Tartakovsky, and once managed by his Ukrainian-born best friend, Alexander Druz.

Over a shot of vodka and a traditional sniff of the pickle, there is disbelief at the prospect of war between their homelands.

ALEXANDER DRUZ, RESTAURANT OWNER, VILLA MARE: It's brothers. It's same country for us. We're born in USSR. And now we see and don't understand

what happened.

GOLD: Both men moved to Israel with their families in the 1990s, part of a wave of more than a million Jewish emigres from the former Soviet Union who

at one point made up as much as 15 percent of the overall Israeli population.

DRUZ: I really love my born country. I remember everything from my child times, but now we're here. It's not our war. And we don't want war.

CYRIL TARTAKOVSKY, RESTAURANT OWNER, BABA YAGA: I absolutely agree with our government. They should be very careful because we are small country. And

we don't have, as we say in Israel we don't have friends. We only have interests.

GOLD: Those interests are complicated. Israel relies on Ukraine for vital imports like grain and steel. It also needs to think about its key ally,

the United States. But good relations with Russia are vital, too. Israel needs Moscow's tacit approval to keep striking Iranian targets in Syria. On

top of all of that, both Russia and Ukraine have among the largest Jewish communities in the world. No wonder Israel's Foreign minister sounds

cautious.

YAIR LAPID, ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER (through translator): We have a unique obligation that no other country has to be extremely careful. Part of my

role and the government's role is to look after the Jews in the world. I believe in the old principle that Israel is a capital of the world for the

Jewish people, and not only the state of the Jewish people.

GOLD: At Baba Yaga, the arguments, when they happen, tend to be over food. Whenever the true origin of borscht or vareniki dumplings, both men hope

the things they share together might find reflection on the front lines as well.

TARTAKOVSKY: I imagine now the soldiers are on two sides of the border, Russia and Ukraine, and they are waiting for the government decision.

They're waiting and they eat now and they see they eat the same food. Soup, like borscht, you know, we serve here borscht and borscht, it's also

Russian and those Ukrainian soup, so let's tell that borscht is connecting people.

DRUZ: Yes.

GOLD: Hadas Gold, CNN, Tel Aviv.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Let's get you up to speed on some of the other stories that are on our radar right now. And the U.S. State Department has condemned

Thursday's drone attack on a Saudi Arabian airport. 12 people were injured by shrapnel. Yemen's Houthi rebels say they hit a military target. However,

the Saudis say they intercepted the drone which reportedly did minimal damage.

Well, Thailand working to contain a pipeline leak off the coast that spilled thousands of liters of oil into the seas around the Rayong

Province. This comes just two weeks after the same undersea pipeline dumped up to 55,000 liters in the area. Officials say tides are likely to keep the

oil from Thursday's spill away from the shore.

One person was killed in an explosion outside an Afghan mosque. Now this happened in a northwestern province right after Friday prayers. Eight

people were injured. No one has claimed responsibility.

As Afghanistan suffers with what the U.N. calls extreme levels of hunger, U.S. President Joe Biden signed an executive order a short time ago which

will allow $7 billion in frozen assets from Afghanistan's central bank to be distributed to Afghans, and two victims of the September 11th terror

attacks.

[10:35:08]

The money is held in the U.S. It was frozen after the Taliban took power in Afghanistan last August.

Well, CNN White House correspondent Jeremy Diamond joining us now from Washington, D.C. with more on this.

Look, lawmakers have urged the Biden administration to take action to avert an economic disaster in Afghanistan, proposing measures that could provide

relief. The U.N. says nearly 23 million people, more than half of the country's population, are facing extreme levels of hunger. At least a

million kids under the age of 5, Jeremy, are at risk of dying from starvation.

So the question is, will $3.5 billion, which is actually a third of the assets that are frozen by the U.N., be enough and is there -- is there an

explanation why this money is being split between humanitarian assistance and victims of the 9/11 attacks?

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, well, Becky, as you know well, there is no doubt that there is a dire humanitarian situation in

Afghanistan and the Biden administration says that this step is aimed at trying to help the people of Afghanistan without letting -- allowing those

billions of dollars in frozen central bank funds to go into Taliban hands or to their associates like the Haqqani Network, for example.

But this is no doubt a controversial step in part because of the way that they are doing this, freezing these assets and allowing half of those

assets to potentially be available to victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Ultimately what the administration is doing here, $3.5 billion of

those fund are going to go into a separate trust fund that could be used for -- immediately for humanitarian assistance.

No details yet on exactly what that process will actually look like. The other $3.5 billion will be available to those victims of the 9/11 terrorist

attacks and their families who filed a lawsuit back in September looking to claim some of those billions of dollars in funds as part of a lawsuit that

had been settled years ago by default against the Taliban to try and use those funds as awards for that judgment.

But that's not a done deal. That is still going to have to proceed in litigation, so it's not clear yet whether those $3.5 billion will actually

make it to those victims' families. Ultimately, though, there are broader questions about this given that the U.S. does not recognize the Taliban as

the legitimate government, how can then those funds be used to compensate victims who are claiming damages against the Taliban.

That's a big question there. And then ultimately there is also a question of whether or not this will ultimately hurt the Afghan economy as well.

That's because if you take these funds, frozen funds from the Afghan Central Bank, it may make it more difficult for that central bank to go

ahead and stabilize the Afghan currency, which has been, you know, really struggled. And more broadly questions of how soon this money will actually

be dispersed to the Afghan people.

ANDERSON: Yes, and you're making some very, very good points. And we're going to discuss this more in the -- in the second hour of the show.

Meantime, critics will argue that this money and money frozen from the central bank in Afghanistan is for all intents and purposes Afghanistan's

savings. These are savings for and of the people of Afghanistan.

It's a tough argument that the White House is going to have to make that as people are starving, half of the country sort of living hand to mouth, you

know, if they can get anything the hands at the moment. It's a tough argument that this money is not -- is not coming in full.

DIAMOND: Yes, yes, exactly. And in fact some of the families of the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks have said that they disagree with allowing half

of this money to go to this -- to fund this lawsuit and the damages that were awarded in this lawsuit. They say that all of the money should be

going to the Afghan people. Ultimately the Biden administration will point out that they are still -- the United States is still the largest single

donor of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.

Millions -- $308 million in humanitarian assistance went through just last month. And that was on top of $516 million that had previously been

provided. So the Biden administration will argue that this $3.5 billion is just one part of its efforts here and that they've already been doing a lot

to help Afghanistan with the humanitarian situation. Of course, the questions about who is responsible for that humanitarian situation in

Afghanistan.

So much of that foreign aid not just from the United States, but from other countries has dried up, leading to millions of people not getting a

paycheck.

[10:40:00]

And the fact that those central bank funds have been frozen for so long has led to Afghans being able to withdraw only $200 a month in some cases

because of limits on those reserves and the strain that those banks in Afghanistan are facing -- Becky.

ANDERSON: Yes. It's a really important story.

Jeremy, thank you for that. And we will look at the liquidity crisis in Afghanistan in further depth next hour. Thank you.

Still ahead, an emotional farewell from a snowboarding legend. We'll have more details on that in our sports update. That is coming up.

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ANDERSON: Well, when it comes to snowboarding, Shaun White is legendary and his gold medals prove it. But everything must come to an end and it looks

like White is ready to hang up his boots and his board.

"WORLD SPORT" anchor Alex Thomas here with his story. And what a story it's been.

ALEX THOMAS, CNN ANCHOR, WORLD SPORT: Yes, he's won gold in three of the last four Olympic Games, an absolute legend of the sport, Becky. He already

said this was going to be his last attempt at getting top of the podium. He didn't manage it. He finished fourth. Crashed on his final run. He was

tearful at the end and said, you know what, I don't want to compete against these guys anymore. I actually want to sponsor them. And we'll tell you

about who did win his competition in just a moment.

ANDERSON: It sounds like he's still going to be around then. Whether or not he's actually on the slopes winning these medals.

Thank you, Alex. We are taking a short break. Alex is back with "WORLD SPORT" after that and then we will be back top of the hour for you. Lots to

come. It is a very, very busy time. Stay with us.

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[10:45:26]

(WORLD SPORT)

[11:00:00]

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