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Russia Soldier Apologizes Again at War Crimes Trial; Biden in Asia for First Trip as President; Qatari Emir Confirms Natural Gas Supply to Germany; U.S. President trying to Shift Focus to Asia; U.S. Fisherman could Win Musk's $100M Prize to Combat Carbon; Ireland, Guinness each lay Claim to Harp Symbol. Aired 11a-12p ET

Aired May 20, 2022 - 11:00   ET

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

[11:00:00]

ELENI GIOKOS, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: A deliberate attempt to kill as many Ukrainians as possible, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's words about

Russia's relentless offensive. I'm Eleni Giokos. I'm in for Becky Anderson.

Hello and welcome to "Connect the World".

Basements and bomb shelters the home for up to 15,000 Ukrainians in the eastern city of Severodonestk. The city is one of the last holdouts in

Luhansk, one of the two regions that make up the Donbas; this has been a major focus of the Russian war.

Ukrainian military officials say despite shelling Russia has not made any headway there in the past day, low Russia says its campaign in Luhansk is

nearing completion. This is what Russia is fighting for a region largely in ruins.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the Donbas has been "Completely destroyed". Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: The bombing and shelling of other cities the air and missile strikes of the Russian army. All this is not

just hostilities during the war. This is a deliberate and criminal attempt to kill as many Ukrainians as possible, destroy as many houses social

facilities and surprises as possible.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GIOKOS: Mr. Zelenskyy also called out a strike Thursday on a village in the Chernihiv region north of Kyiv. He says it left many dead and it caused

this crater at a military compound.

Meantime, a Russian soldier who's admitted to shooting an unarmed Ukrainian man spoke again in court today. CNN's Melissa Bell is falling that story

for us from Kyiv. And we've got Suzanne Malveaux, reporting for us from the western city of Lviv.

Melissa, I want to start with you. We've heard an admission of guilt and apology. He's also directly spoken with a widow all in the courtroom. What

is the latest?

MELISSA BELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Extraordinary teams once again this time getting to the core of the defense that Vadim Shishimarin is pleading and

essentially, the idea is Eleni that this was an invasion ordered by Vladimir Putin sold to his people as being a special operation.

And it was the foot soldiers of his army as they came into Ukraine on the first few days of the war, which were caught up in the middle of that chaos

and fear.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BELL (voice over): recognition of his guilt, but a final plea for clemency.

VADIM SHISHIMARIN, RUSSIAN SOLDIER WHO PLEADED GUILTY TO WAR CRIMES: I'm sorry, and I sincerely repent. I was nervous the moment it happened. I

didn't want to kill, but it happened and I did not deny it.

BELL (voice over): On Thursday, the prosecution laid out the facts of the case against 21 year old Vadim Shishimarin, the Russian soldier who's pled

guilty to killing Katarina Shelipova's husband, Alexander, an unarmed civilian, in the village of Chupakhivka on February 28.

Two miles from there, CNN has geo located this video shared exclusively by Ukrainian armed forces? It shows a column of Shishimarin's fourth tank

division after it had hit a mine and its soldiers had fled.

The prosecution alleges that Shishimarin and four other soldiers fled the scene in a stolen car. And that Shishimarin was then given an order to

shoot 62 year old --Alexander Shelipova for fear he might report them.

IVAN MALTISOV, WITNESS: It was very stressful. It was under great stress. He shouted at me.

BELL (voice over): A version of events corroborated by another Russian soldier who was traveling in the car that day.

VIKTOR OVSYANNIKO, DEFENSE LAWYER: The warrant officer ordered Vadim to shoot with the justification that the man could be reporting on us. Vadim

refused to do it, and the man ordered him to do it.

BELL (voice over): A rare glimpse into the chaos and fear of the early days of the war on the Russian side.

KATERINA SHELIPOVA: The leadership of the Russian Federation is to blame for this war, not this boy. He was trying to save his own life, especially

from the threat that came from his fellow servicemen.

BELL (voice over): Alexander Shelipova's widow was not in court as the trial adjourned on Friday. But on Thursday she had been able to put her own

questions to Shishimarin.

[11:05:00]

BELL (voice over): Why did you come here? Did you come to defend us from whom? Did you defend me from my husband you killed?

SHISHIMARIN: Our command gave us an order to move in as a column. I didn't know what would follow.

BELL (voice over): On Monday, the court will hand down its verdict and the sentence; the 21 year old will then learn whether or not he will spend the

rest of his life in jail.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BELL: Until then, Eleni this trial has provided us with an extraordinary glimpse of the first few days of the war even as that war continues to rage

on in so many parts of Ukraine. I think that's been the most unique thing about this trial, a war crimes trial brought even as the war continues.

GIOKOS: Melissa, you can hear the pain in the widow's voice. Thank you so much for bringing us that story. That was Melissa Bell. In Lviv standing by

for us, we've got Suzanne Malveaux.

Suzanne, you've been following so much about what's been happening on the ground, specifically in Mariupol, you and I've been talking about Azovstal

for quite some time this week.

But importantly, we've also seen Zelenskyy coming out talking about missile strikes in various parts of the country concerns that you're seeing an

heightened Russian aggression, clearly where you can clearly see what the military strategy is for Russia right now.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, that's absolutely right. I mean, if you take a look at just the damage in the areas that they keep hitting

over and over just north of Kyiv, in that small village of Desna, that's about 40 miles from the border of Belarus.

Again, we heard President Zelenskyy saying there are many, many dead and those are the civilians in that area in that region that they continue to

try to push back the Ukrainian defenses.

And also in the East and the Donbas, as we have discussed time and time, again, the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the Russian controlled regions, if

they are trying to just create that land bridge, if you will, to the Crimea to make that kind of progress to disrupt the trade, the economy, the

communications of the Ukrainian people with the rest of the world and, and so they continue to pummel that area in Luhansk.

And it is devastating when you see the civilian casualties just over the last 24 hours the 12, who were killed, 60 structures down and in one

particular city, 70 percent of the housing actually destroyed.

So we've been presented with many images of the destruction there and they are trying to really break the Ukrainian people. And then, as you say,

Mariupol in the steel plant, there are 2000, which have been evacuated, at least according to the Russian statistics.

Most of them are in the military, but it is a Russian controlled type of detention center, and also about 50 or so severely wounded. We are told at

least that they're being treated again, Russian controlled hospital facility, many of the families just don't know where their loved ones are.

And the mystery remains inside of that steel plant. There are still hundreds who are left there. Those soldiers we have heard from many of them

as they've been posting on social media.

CNN has, of course gone through the process of verifying these posts. One soldier on Instagram or within the last 24 hours as seemingly he's been

providing lots and lots of beautiful pictures, but seemingly saying goodbye at least that's what it seems in his post.

He said that's it, thank you for the shelter of a stall that the place of my death and my life. We have also heard from various military officials

inside, a various ranking some of them pledging in video statements not to surrender that the fight have just begun.

The top commander of the unit inside of the steel plant, however, has called for his soldiers to surrender saying that to please stop the mission

of protecting those in Mariupol to save you. Nevertheless, a deputy commander releasing this video statement suggesting that there is more

afoot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SVIATOSLAV PALAMAR, AZOV REGIMENT DEPUTY COMMANDER: My command and I are on the territory of Azovstal plant and operation is underway. I will not give

any details. I'm grateful to the whole world and to Ukraine for support, see you.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: So it is uncertain the fate of many of those, the hundreds who still remain inside the steel plant as many Ukrainians look to them as the

really the last hope or symbol of Ukrainian resistance against the Russians.

[11:10:00]

GIOKOS: Suzanne Malveaux, thank you very much for those details. A civilian convoy trying to move into Ukrainian held territory in the Zaporizhzhia

region is being stopped cold by Russian forces.

That's according to the regional military administration in Zaporizhzhia. In an online post, it says more than 1000 cars are being blocked for a

fourth day, with many holding women and children who have no money, water, or food.

The post says some cars did make it to Zaporizhzhia on Thursday.

Russia's war in Ukraine has changed Europe forever, shaking up the continents security environments. As a result, countries like Sweden and

Finland are seeking to join the NATO security alliance.

And now Russia is retaliating. Finland's main gas company says Russian supplies to its Nordic neighbor will be halted on Saturday morning, local

time. Gasum says it will keep its customers supplied with natural gas from other sources after that. It's refusing to pay for Russian gas in rubles.

Now, it's important to note most of Finland's energy comes from wood based biomass and nuclear power. Meantime, the U.S. is trying to help Ukraine on

and off the battlefield in terms of the sweeping new emergency package.

CNN's Lauren Fox is at the U.S. Senate building, Lauren, really good to see you. I have to say this is a monstrous package. We've spoken about this

before. We you know, we're wondering in terms of the breakdown, how much is going to aid in terms of, you know, food supplies into the country?

How much of that is going to the Ukrainian Government in terms of helping with Fiscus and revenue? And how much of that is allocated to arms?

LAUREN FOX, CNN POLITICS CONGRESSIONAL UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, let's break this down. I mean, obviously $40 billion, a significant amount of money

that Congress lawmakers on both sides of the aisle came together to pass in the U.S. Senate yesterday.

That about $40 billion is broken down with 20 billion going to military assistance for heavy military equipment. You also have about $8 billion for

economic assistance to the country of Ukraine, as that country is dealing with this ongoing conflict.

You have $5 billion in food assistance and about a billion dollars that will go to help support refugees. So that money really going to several

different pots, different areas to make sure that this effort coming from the U.S. is not just about getting military, weapons and equipment to the

country, but also about trying to sustain the country's economy.

But this is a very significant investment. And there were some members who were opposed to voting for it. There were 11 Republicans who voted against

it, but like you said, an overwhelmingly bipartisan piece of legislation.

GIOKOS: Lauren, I have to say I mean it's really interesting to see that 20 billion is going to be allocated to arms. But what's really fascinating

about this, it was just a very swift agreement from both sides of the aisle, not this piece of legislation is being flown to President Biden to

now sign off. How quickly will this money be allocated and get to work?

FOX: Well, the hope from the White House and the reason that the President is taking this action while he's abroad is that this money will start

getting flowing very quickly so that they can actually make sure these weapons get to Ukraine.

Last time around obviously, this is not the first aid package that equipment started to flow very quickly to the country. And that is the hope

right that you can get the weapons in the hands of the people who need them as immediately as possible.

GIOKOS: All right, Lauren Fox, really good to see you. Thank you for breaking those numbers down for us. And U.S. President Joe Biden is in

South Korea today as he makes his first trip to the region as president.

It's a historic move coming at a vital moment. As Russia's invasion strange global supply chains and North Korea ramps up its nuclear posturing. A show

of unity was on the cards this morning; Mr. Biden visited a semiconductor factory alongside his South Korean counterparts.

Speaking afterwards, he said that it was time for the U.S. to secure its supply chains and stop relying on autocratic regimes. And CNNs Jeremy

Diamond joins me now from Seoul with the latest interesting messaging here.

It's also about ensuring alliances during a time where you see major polarization coming through. And it's sort of a concern that the east might

be you know, weighing and swaying towards Russia and I'm talking about China Russia relations.

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, no doubt about it. President Biden came into office looking to shore up those alliances

following four tumultuous years of President Trump at the helm in the United States. And that is certainly a focus for President Biden here as he

starts his visit in South Korea and then heads to Japan where he will also have meetings with leaders of India and Australia as well.

[11:15:00]

DIAMOND: President Biden in his first remarks here in South Korea, talking about the U.S. South Korea relationship as a lynchpin of peace, stability

and prosperity.

And it comes of course, at a moment of increased tension with the potential for a North Korean nuclear and or missile test looming large over President

Biden's visit as U.S. intelligence indicates that such a test could take place while President Biden is here in the region.

Now, as President Biden addressed this issue of national security, he's also talking about economic security. And that's where you heard those

remarks about supply chains, as President Biden talked about the importance of shoring up those supply chains amongst allies and not relying on those

autocratic regimes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOE BIDEN, U.S. PRESIDENT: Food brutal and unprovoked war in Ukraine has further spotlight the need to secure our critical supply chains, so that

our economy, our economic and our national security, are not dependent on countries that don't share our values.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

DIAMOND: And you hear President Biden there talking about Putin talking about Russia. But what he's not saying there and what he's really talking

about is China, which, of course, is looming large, over this entire region, President Biden is trying to ensure that the United States has a

key role economically in this region.

And he's also sending a message to allies as we are seeing disruptions of supply chains and oil flows to European countries because of the war in

Ukraine, reminding them of that as he tries to reinforce those supply chains, with the Asian allies as well, and not to rely on China for

critical technological components like those semiconductor chips.

For example, Jake Sullivan, the National Security Adviser a couple of days ago made the point that even as President Biden has had to focus on Europe

so much, they don't see a push and pull between that rather, he said that the U.S. policy in Europe as well as Asia is mutually reinforcing.

GIOKOS: Yes, and it's so fascinating, you say that he was almost, you know, the nuance was that he was referring to China when it came to

semiconductors, but actually having China on the U.S. aside is going to be pretty vital.

Are you getting any kind of messaging around him trying to preserve that relationship?

DIAMOND: Well, listen, we know that President Biden is considering revoking some of those sealed tariffs on China as well. So there is potentially some

movement there.

But it is interesting that President Biden in making his first trip here is not visiting China. Part of that is because of the Coronavirus

restrictions. And other part of that is that U.S. China relations are really at a historic low right now.

You know, I was with President Trump in 2017, when he came to this region for the first time. And on that trip, we saw President Trump hitting South

Korea hitting Japan and also visiting China on that first Asian tour as President of the United States, so notable that President Biden is not

doing that here.

And he's also going to be announcing this new economic framework for the Indo Pacific, which really focuses again, on the U.S's leadership role in

this region, less so on cooperation with China, and more on ensuring that these countries in the region democracies in particular, have an

alternative trading partner to China in the United States.

GIOKOS: All right, interesting times, Jeremy diamond, really good to see you. Thank you so much. And we will have much more on President Biden's

visit coming up.

And I'll be speaking to an Asia experts about how the U.S. President hopes to new to the growing influence of China, in Asia and around the world.

Stay tuned.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:20:00]

GIOKOS: In North Korea, more than three quarters of a million people are now receiving medical treatment for what officials are calling fever cases.

State media they say the total number of reported fever cases exceeds 2.2 million.

CNN's Will Ripley tells us about the state sponsored events that could be the source of this outbreak and what all this could mean for the country's

leader Kim Jong-Un.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

WILL RIPLEY, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice over): The mood was triumph crowd massive and most people not wearing masks. At last

month's military parade in Pyongyang, North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un promised to protect his people from hostile forces like the U.S.

Protection from the virus that would soon ravaged his unvaccinated population non-existing. Weeks later, a devastating fever believed to be

undiagnosed COVID-19 infecting and killing some of Pyongyang's most privileged citizens.

CHAD O'CARROLL, MANAGING DIRECTOR, NK NEWS: The military parade was a super spreader event. And we know that they flew in citizens from across North

Korea.

RIPLEY (voice over): Some of those citizens from the Chinese border region, a place I visited five years ago. North Koreans are living a literal

stone's throw away from the raging Omicron outbreak in China.

Beijing pledged to help Jong-Un battle the outbreak, the hermit kingdom's hermetically sealed border, apparently breached by the highly contagious

variant. Two years of pandemic isolation. Two years of sacrifice gone in one parade.

O'CARROLL: That's the perfect Petridis for this virus to spread. So I think that parade will go down in history as a very bad idea for North Korea.

RIPLEY (voice over): A colossal miscalculation and experts say the likely cause of North Korea's explosive outbreak and unprecedented nationwide

lockdown, skyrocketing infections and deaths.

A dilapidated healthcare system on the verge of collapse, lacking even the most basic medicines and medical equipment, millions of malnourished North

Koreans at higher risk of severe infection.

O'CARROLL: I think it's going to test his leadership certainly, and it's going to create some urgency for very creative storytelling in the North

Korean propaganda apparatus.

RIPLEY (voice over): North Korean propaganda crucial to keeping the Kim family in power, even during times of crisis, like the deadly famine of the

late 1990s when citizens literally a tree bark to survive the Kim's rule over a police state that relies on heavy surveillance, restricted movement

and brutal political prison camps.

LINA YOON, SENIOR KOREA RESEARCHER, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: They strengthen social controls because they had the fear that you know if there is an

outbreak there if there is a crisis that was what happened in the 1990s that you know, the police, the secret police, the military, they all went

hungry.

RIPLEY (voice over): Now they're getting sick. State media says around 2 million fever cases in one week, a crisis of Kim's own creation potentially

devastating hardship for the North Korean people. Will Ripley, CNN, Taipei.

(END VIDEOTAPE) GIOKOS: For an even deeper dive into the potential impacts of COVID outbreak on the Kim dynasty, you can head to cnn.com. There you'll find

more insights on why the North Korean leader could be in big trouble.

That's all on cnn.com as well as our app. Right let's get you up to speed on some other stories that are on our radar. At least 10 people have died

and more than 700,000 have been impacted by flooding and landslides in northeastern India.

Some states are the worst affected area. Food deliveries have been disrupted there and elsewhere, both state and national disaster forces are

assisting in rescue operations.

Jordan's King has issued a royal decree to limit the movements and communications of his half-brother Prince Hamzah seen here. In a letter

King Abdullah said that he didn't believe his brother would change his ways.

It comes a year after the prince was accused of plotting to undermine Jordan's stability. The Emir of Qatar is in Berlin where he confirmed plans

to start supplying natural gas to Germany in 2024.

[11:25:00]

GIOKOS: The Emir and the German Chancellor held a news conference in the German capital a short time ago. Berlin is scrambling to wean itself off

gas imports from Russia in response to Moscow's attack on Ukraine.

Ukraine's military is upbeat about the success of its recent counter offensive saying the Russian seizures of Kharkiv and Mykolaiv have been

broken with Kharkiv came under heavy Russian shelling.

During the early days of the Kremlin's war in Ukraine, thousands of people sought refuge underground. Now they're starting to return to the surface

but many have no homes to go back to. CNN's Nick Paton Walsh brings us their story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL SECURITY EDITOR (voice over): The noises may be further away from Kharkiv and its distant fields of villages.

The part of the city still stays hidden underground in the subways near apocalyptic dark morons.

They came down to shelter just for the night but that was two months ago. Homes now destroyed but the fear of the bombs remaining most have nowhere

to go.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm cold, cold for two days.

WALSH (voice over): Officials have asked people to leave soon and stopped people sleeping at least in the trains which they have to get moving again.

Ludmilla keeps her place tidy and welcoming but is alone here, her flat bombed twice.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am alone, but I like it like that. The war isn't over, but they ask us to leave. How? Tell me how? I have a room nearby. Am

I supposed to be there in the bombing? No one is listening to us.

WALSH (voice over): In a damn cold coffin with food in one bucket you are in another, this is a desperation Russia's war on Ukraine wanted to

inflict. Luba is sat between her family and people whose names she doesn't even know.

LUBA, KHARKIV RESIDENT: Everyday was scary. Every day I don't know that guy. He's a stranger to me.

WALSH (voice over): Even if Ukraine wins, this is still where it hurts in the loss of presumptions about the most ordinary parts of life. Victor -

his mother says sheltering in a game of two pirate ships attacking each other.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We stayed in the apartment until the end. We slept in the corridor, hid in the toilet. It was destroyed when we were here.

WALSH (voice over): We see some deciding to leave already. Yet still the framework of permanent sets in and the outside sunnier days to noisy at

night.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: CNN's International Security Editor Nick Paton Walsh is in Kharkiv. He's been covering the war from the frontlines and reporting on its human

impact since Russia invaded Ukraine in February.

Right when we come back, we will take you abroad aboard rather a U.S. aircraft carrier to see how the U.S. military is flexing its muscle in the

region. Stay tune for that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:30:00]

GIOKOS: As Joe Biden begins his first presidential visit to Asia, he is working to fulfill a campaign pledge to make the U.S. more engaged on the

world stage. His visit to South Korea and Japan will also include meeting with leaders of Australia and India as he attempts to unite democratic

nations as a force against China's growing influence.

Let's dive a little bit deeper into what Mr. Biden is hoping to accomplish. Joining me now is Sheila Smith. She is the Senior Fellow for Japan studies

at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Sheila, really good to see you, you know, ensuring that the U.S. cements its relationships across Asia and specifically with other emerging markets

like India is going to be absolutely vital if we're talking about a multilateral approach in terms of dealing with Russian aggression. What do

you think his endgame is going to be after this specific trip?

SHEILA SMITH, SENIOR FELLOW FOR JAPAN STUDIES, COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS: Well, thanks for having me. There are two reasons for the Biden

trip at this particular time. The first one, of course, is this is part of the Biden administration's Indo Pacific strategy.

You saw last year, very early on, there were meetings in the region; we had prime ministers and presidents coming to the United States to visit with

him in person. So Asia is a place that the Biden Administration cares very deeply about and understands America needs to show up to make sure that

there's no miscalculation by Beijing.

But as you noted, of course, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has now made it a more acute challenge for the United States and its allies in the

region to make sure that America isn't perceived as being distracted by what's happening in Europe and continues to play a significant strategic

role in the Indo Pacific.

GIOKOS: Yes. You know, you're actually also, you know, in some of the analysis that you've done, that there's a concern that the U.S. doesn't

have the bandwidth to handle crises in both Europe and Asia at the same time.

I shudder to think this was sort of a commentary that we heard around World War Two, by the way, how are they going to act differently this time

around?

Because there's major concern that China might be sort of behind closed doors, teaming up with the likes of Russia, Japan didn't play ball during

Crimea, and now they are they're aligned with the U.S.? How important is it to cement these relationships?

SMITH: Absolutely critical. And I think you've seen Japan really step up. And in this particular round of g7 coordination, you saw Japan impose

sanctions on Russia, something that Japan is not used to doing.

But also come to the aid of Ukraine and the country surrounding Ukraine, to stand up for, you know, what it believes are the rules of the postwar

order. It doesn't want to see a global system that disregards aggression, especially blatant aggression of the type that Russia has just displayed.

And again, Prime Minister Kishida closer to home has his eye on China, as you noted, the idea that China could use force to try to unify with Taiwan

makes many in Tokyo and Seoul and obviously here in Washington very nervous about how to make sure that we deter that calculation on the part of China.

GIOKOS: Do you think that the U.S. does have the bandwidth to deal with issues both in Asia and in Europe? We've seen bullying by time - is the big

concern.

SMITH: Right, I think it does. I think if you go to the worst case scenario where you've got ongoing wars in both Europe and Asia, which is what you

were referencing, I think with World War Two, then that's a situation where the United States would really have to, you know, engage its economy engage

its society and get ready for that kind of a war.

But we are not there yet. And that's really important to remember. What I think the President is trying to convey to its allies, first in Seoul and

then in Tokyo, is that United States continues to keep his eye on the ball so to speak in the Indo Pacific.

And I think you'll see in the quad meeting which you referenced as well with India and Australia that this is a new vehicle also in the region for

these countries like minded democracies to come together to demonstrate that they can coordinate --.

[11:35:00]

GIOKOS: It's interesting. You know, our Veteran Correspondent Steven Collinson says this, he says, he's far from the U.S. from the first U.S.

president to prioritize U.S. strategy in Asia.

But events tend to get in the way of America's best laid plans. Years of U.S. wars in the Middle East and South Asia seriously curtailed

Washington's bandwidth for Asia in the early century.

What would you say the most important piece of policy is going to come through in terms of changing that reality that Stephen Collinson is

describing?

SMITH: Well, I think the president is going to be very clear about Article Five protections. These are the security treaty commitments of the United

States to both Japan and South Korea.

So you'll see a restatement of that commitment, I think, by the president. I think you're also likely to see at least in Japan, a combined statement

with the Japanese Prime Minister on acting together and in concert to deter aggression.

So I think the important thing to remember here is not that the United States alone is going to manage the challenges of the Indo Pacific. But

instead is mobilizing a coalition of likeminded countries, allies, as well as friends and partners, who also want to see the balance of power in the

Indo Pacific, not, you know, tilts to their disadvantage. So this is a coalition strategy as much as it is an American strategy. GIOKOS: OK, very

quickly, do you think that you would see a sub alliances occurring globally with China, India and other emerging markets teamed up with Russia?

SMITH: I don't see India teaming up with China and Russia. I think India is trying to balance its interests here, in a way, and it's a very difficult

path to try it at the moment.

GIOKOS: Yes.

SMITH: But I think you are seeing the western democracies in Europe in the Indo Pacific and of course, us, we are much, much closer aligned today than

we ever have been before. And I think that's an important balancing act that I think you'll see the United States continue to prioritize.

GIOKOS: It is a balancing act indeed, Sheila Smith really good to see you. Thank you so very much for that insights. President Biden's trip comes as

China and North Korea increasingly flex their military muscles in the region.

And the American response to that has come in the form of the USS Abraham Lincoln, one of the largest fighting ships in the world. The aircraft

carrier is deployed right where Beijing and Pyongyang can see it. And CNN's Blake Essig went on board to check it out.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BLAKE ESSIG, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): If you ask the United States Seventh Fleet Commander Karl Thomas, this is what deterrence looks and

sounds like.

ADM. KARL THOMAS, COMMANDER, U.S. 7TH FLEET: Deterrence to date has worked. And I'm hopeful that it continues to work but my job is to be prepared in

case it doesn't.

ESSIG (voice over): For the past several months, the U.S. Navy carrier strike group three led by the USS Abraham Lincoln, an armed with U.S.

Navy's most advanced fighter wing has conducted joint drills with allies like Japan, and patrolled the waters of the Indo Pacific.

ADM. THOMAS: Being out here operating as a very visible and very agile, dynamic force. There's no better way to provide the deterrence that we need

this part of the reason.

ESSIG (on camera): This aircraft carrier brings massive firepower to the region its purpose to protect power, increased security and serve as a

deterrent to countries like China, North Korea and Russia.

But in the part of the world seemingly more unstable by the day, the effectiveness of a carrier strike group like this as a deterrence to

adversaries called into question.

KEN JIMBO, PROFESSOR, KEIO UNIVERSITY: We need to have a more robust, like minded states coalition because the China's rise is now the global

phenomenon.

ESSIG (voice over): A reality that isn't lost on quad member states, a coalition made up of the United States, Japan, Australia and India, whose

leaders are set to meet in Tokyo early next week.

With South Korea watching from the sidelines, member states are likely to discuss a unified response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The recent

flurry of weapons tests conducted by North Korea and of course, China.

RAHM EMANUEL, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO JAPAN: of the things that China doesn't have its friends and allies. They have subjects, we have friends and allies

who want to stand shoulder to shoulder with the United States.

ESSIG (on camera): Well, the quad isn't NATO like mutual defense commitment. Continuing to upgrade security cooperation between quad Member

States and other likeminded nations in this region is extremely important to maintaining maritime security.

ESSIG (voice over): But according to Cleo Paskal, an Indo Pacific strategic specialist, the key to combating China's rise isn't necessarily through

military strength.

CLEO PASKAL, FOUNDATION FOR DEFENSE BY DEMOCRACIES: By the time you get to the military part you're almost too late, you don't want to cut off China

militarily, you want to block its influence politically and economically first.

[11:40:00]

ESSIG (voice over): However as China and Russia work to strengthen their own military alliances in the region, Rear Admiral J.T. Anderson says the

U.S's presence along with the strength of its allies has proven to be an effective deterrent.

Nevertheless, if that deterrent fails. Our job is to fight and win period.

An outcome no one wants, but when the U.S. military and its allies must prepare for Blake Essig, CNN, onboard the USS Abraham Lincoln in the

Philippine Sea.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: All right and coming up the new creative way conservationists have found to raise endangered baby condors without exposing them to human

contact. That story is coming up.

And looking ahead the hub is a symbol of Ireland's pride. But there's a tussle over who controls it's a serious conversation and a friendly punt --

a little lighter.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GIOKOS: The Andean condor is one of the world's largest birds; they can soar up to 160 kilometers at a stretch without even flapping their wings.

But despite their epic grandeur, they're under threat. Today on Call to Earth, a Rolex Awards Laureate to has developed a way to breed the giant

birds giving them a chance at survival.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: High on a hilltop in the Andes, a moment of transcendence is about to take place.

NORBERTO LUIS JACOME, PRESIDENT, ARGENTINE BIOANDEAN FOUNDATION: When the Condor takes flight; all of us feel like we'd rise with him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This Andean condor has been bred in captivity and never flown before. Now, it's doing it with an audience to celebrate its release

into the wild.

JACOME: The connection with an iconic species for thousands of years has inspired man to look up at the sky and connect with the sacred.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's the life's work of Argentinian biologist Norberto Luis Jacome.

[11:45:00]

JACOME: Our mission is to conserve the Andean Condor and through the Condor to reconnect people with nature.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Endemic to South America, numbers of the soaring birds are plummeting across the continent, sometimes mistaken for predators. They

face threats from human activities like hunting, poisoning from toxic baits.

JACOME: Many condors come down to eat their animals to fulfill their role of Scavenger. They ingest lead bullets, and lead kills them.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: With a wingspan of up to 10 feet, these giant birds are slow to reproduce. So Jacome and his team developed a captive breeding

program at the Buenos Aires Eco Park.

They take one egg from a breeding pair, which prompts the condors to produce a second egg shortly after, ensuring all the eggs aren't in one

basket.

JACOME: So the second egg is raised by the couple. We can get two chicks for each couple per year, when in reality, condors would have one offspring

every three years.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After two months of careful monitoring, a tiny miracle, if needed, the chicks receive a helping hand to break free. Caring for

newborn chicks while ensuring they don't become attached to humans, it requires thinking outside the box.

JACOME: All the contact that the fledgling has here will be through latex puppets that represent its parents. At that moment you are the father, you

are the mother, you are responsible for that life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Jacome says the program has raised 78 chicks and rescued and released hundreds of condors throughout South America. But an increase

in poisoning has killed 150 condors in just the past two years.

JACOME: It means that our whole effort a lifetime of 30 years is not enough if we do not change that relationship we have with the environment.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Here Jacome and his team celebrates the release of the condors with the Mapuches and Tehuelches communities who have long had

reverence for this bird. As part of a traditional ceremony, the event is transformed from the scientific into the spiritual.

JACOME: It opens hearts, it opens people's minds and people quickly in a practical way, understand why we should take care of mother nature.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: Incredible efforts there. All right, let us know what you're doing to answer the call with the #calltoearth. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[11:50:00]

GIOKOS: So, how do you go about removing carbon emissions from the atmosphere? One answer, believe it or not, is seaweed and it could net a

fisherman in the U.S. state of Maine 100 million dollars, courtesy of Elon Musk.

CNN Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir has more.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BILL WEIR, CNN CHIEF CLIMATE CORRESPONDENT (voice over): To avoid cascading disaster, science agrees that it won't be enough just to stop using fossil

fuels. Humanity must remove trillions of tons of planet cooking pollution already in our seas and sky. And whoever figures out how to do that might

just get $100 million from Elon Musk.

ELON MUSK, SPONSORING CLIMATE COMPETITION: You know, sometimes people say well just plant a bunch of trees and like that's what's so easy, you're

going to get fertilizer. You're going to water them, where's the water going to come from? What habitat are you potentially destroying where the

trees used to be?

WEIR (voice over): With his year old carbon XPrize, the controversial billionaire says he wants to lure out the geniuses who will figure out how

to capture and store carbon dioxide on massive scales.

WEIR (on camera): It's a Godzilla.

MARTY ODLIN, CEO, RUNNING TIDE: Yes.

WEIR (on camera): It's burning forests down it's stealing our fish.

WEIR (voice over): And among the finalists is a humble fisherman from Maine.

ODLIN: There's this thing out there and it's like ruining everything that we love or hate. All the good stuff is getting ruined.

WEIR (on camera): Your dream was to have a boat.

ODLIN: Yes, I just wanted a boat. I really just wanted a boat.

WEIR (on camera): There just aren't any mackerel.

ODLIN: Like, they're all. They're all, they swim north, they swim east and they're now probably up in Iceland.

WEIR (voice over): With his beloved Gulf of Maine getting warmer and more acidic by the day. Marty Odlin quit chasing macro, built a team of geniuses

and went fishing for carbon dioxide with seaweed. Because kelp grows and gobbles co2 much faster than trees needs no land or fertilizer.

And when it sinks to the deep ocean, the carbon can be locked away for thousand years.

WEIR (on camera): But kelp needs sunlight and something to hold on to. So Marty, who is also an engineer, went to the drawing board. And he settled

on floating thousands of high tech buoys in the North Atlantic, each holding a little kelp forest.

While the ring of limestone serves as the antacid for the ocean. Solar power runs a camera and instruments connected to the cloud. And when a crop

is cut, and falls into the deep, Marty gets a carbon credit from a billion dollar fund set up by Canadian e commerce giant Shopify.

You have a couple of high profile investors behind you. Do you think that it'll be enough if government can get its act together?

ODLIN: No. This has to not, it's just the math. People spent billions of dollars to see if there's an oilfield, right. And what we're trying to do

is build the oil industry in reverse.

WEIR (voice over): He imagines the Portland docks coming back to life to capture carbon the way they once built ships to beat Hitler.

ODLIN: It's a race that no one loses as long as someone wins. Like I don't care, like, you know, like, as long as somebody wins this race, like cool,

right? I don't care who moves the most of it.

WEIR (voice over): So he's thrilled to see competition like Beth Zoeller among the Silicon Valley startups, betting on big kelp.

WEIR (on camera): So if you end up being the Henry Ford of carbon green seaweed. This is your model A, I guess.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Exactly, this is - one.

WEIR (voice over): She envisions massive seaweed farms anchored closer to shore. But since rope contango sea mammals her team invented a whale safe

scaffolding screwed in place by underwater drones and fed by up-- Waller's that use wave energy to spin up nutrients and cold water from the deep.

Amanda and Beth have two offers on the table for their seaweed based bacon company. And before her crops are hauled and dumped, another one of her

companies will extract the plant protein and turn it into meat alternatives.

ODLIN: I'll do that deal.

WEIR (on camera): What are we waiting for?

ODLIN: We're waiting for all the fish to go away. I've seen enough go away do I have to wait for desertion? I have to be completely dead before we get

our act together. And so, but you see, I think all this anxiety. All this frustration that people have is just because we haven't been unleashed.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: And thanks to CNN Chief Climate Correspondent Bill Weir for that report. And in tonight's parting shots, we're finding plenty of fashion in

Ireland, who can lay claim to its official symbol, The Hub, Guinness famous around the world for its Irish stouts is having a bit of a body with the

government over the country's emblem.

CNN's Richard Quest went in search of some grace notes starting at Trinity College in Dublin. Take a look.

[11:55:00]

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

RICHARD QUEST, ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS (on camera): I'm not want to harp on about conflict. But in Ireland the dispute over this musical

instrument goes back hundreds of years. For Brian baru harp, it's the famous Brian Boru harp, and it dates back to the 14th century. It serves as

the inspiration for two beloved symbols of Ireland, the state emblem, and the Guinness livery.

QUEST (voice over): Guinness claims they got to the trademark office first, registering the harp in 1876, a move which forced the Irish government to

turn its official harp the other way round when the state was established, half a century later. The current tea shook, not surprisingly, a master of

political spin.

QUEST (on camera): I had been Guinness trademarked the harp in a particular orientation. And now even the government has to have the other way round

because Guinness has the trademark.

MICHEAL MARTIN, IRISH TAOISEACH: No, my understanding is it's the opposite way around, this government has the trademark and Guinness has to do it the

other way. But it's a very good point, and it tastes very well. But if you really want an alternative, come to my city of cork and have a pint

amorphous.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GIOKOS: Richard always finds a way to do all the fun stories. That was Richard Quest. Thank you so very much for joining us here on "Connect the

World". "One World" with Zain Asher is up next. From me, Eleni Giokos, thanks so much for joining me. Becky Anderson will be back with you on

Monday. Take care.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

END