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Russian State T.V. Employee Disappears After Crashing Newscast; Ukrainian Activists Documenting War Atrocities Go Viral; Warsaw Pleads For Help As City Is Overwhelmed By Refugees. Aired 7:30-8a ET

Aired March 15, 2022 - 07:30   ET

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

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:31:00]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: A simply stunning moment on Russian television. An employee of a major Russian network crashed the set of a live newscast protesting the invasion of Ukraine. Her sign reads "Stop the war. Do not believe propaganda. They tell you lies here."

She also recorded this video message.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MARIA OVSYANNIKOVA, RUSSIAN T.V. EDITOR (TEXT): Unfortunately for the past few years, I have been working on Channel One and doing Kremlin propaganda, and now I am very ashamed of it. It's a shame that I allowed to speak lies from the T.V. screens, ashamed that I assisted in the zombification of the Russian people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Joining me is CNN chief media correspondent and host of "RELIABLE SOURCES," Brian Stelter, CNN senior affairs global analyst Bianna Golodryga. And back with us, CNN global affairs analyst and Time Magazine contributor Kimberly Dozier.

Brian, this is a remarkable and courageous act of defiance.

BRIAN STELTER, CNN CHIEF MEDIA CORRESPONDENT, HOST, RELIABLE SOURCES: Yes, and we have not heard anything verifiable about the woman since. Her lawyers apparently trying to find out where she is.

This -- I think she was speaking to multiple audiences, right? A message partly written in English, "No war" -- but also clearly, a message to Russians and possibly a message to Ukrainians as well. To see Zelenskyy come out overnight thanking her and recognizing her bravery means that this is seen not just in Russia but around the world.

BERMAN: To what extent Bianna does this break through in Russia?

BIANNA GOLODRYGA, CNN SENIOR AFFAIRS GLOBAL ANALYST: Well listen, Maria Ovsyannikova -- and that is the name of the producer -- is no doubt one of the bravest women that we've seen throughout all of this conflict.

And you've got an audience there with Channel One -- state media propaganda there -- that network -- of about 130-140 million Russians. So, how many of them actually watched her? We know a lot. Whether that resonated -- what they thought of it -- because they quickly went to a package when she -- like 10 seconds after she came out.

So, I'm not sure how much that impacted viewership in terms of taking in what they just saw, but millions -- tens of millions if not over 100 million people saw it.

BERMAN: It was a thunderclap -- it just was.

All right, Brian -- and this is a cause of concern for all of us in the journalism community -- Fox correspondent Benjamin Hall severely injured. What do we know about his situation at this point?

STELTER: Still relatively little. It is a very serious situation and there's a tremendous amount of concern about Hall right now. About 24 hours ago he was injured in some sort of incident outside Kyiv. Fox has said very little because I'm not sure if Fox knows much more than what they've shared. And we have no updates overnight.

But we do know he was hospitalized yesterday. We know it's a very serious situation. And we know that the entire journalism industry is pulling for him and for anyone else who might have been affected. Because we have seen now, several days in a row, incidents that have been incredibly dangerous for journalists, including the death of Brent Renaud on Sunday outside Kyiv.

So, a series of these episodes just shows everybody is in danger in this war zone. There is no way for journalists to stay out of harm's way because there really isn't a front line in many cases. It is shifting at all times. And so, we hope to have updates on Hall later today.

BERMAN: So, Kim, you know all too much about this type of situation. You were severely injured in Iraq in 2006. It was a car bomb that hit you and your team right now.

What must it be like inside that community right now?

KIMBERLY DOZIER, CNN GLOBAL AFFAIRS ANALYST, CONTRIBUTOR, TIME MAGAZINE, INJURED WHILE REPORTING IN IRAQ WAR: Well, I can understand why Fox is being careful about what details it releases because you've got to let the families know what you know and since Ben and his team are still inside Ukraine, that information is going to be limited.

I'm also thinking about Ben waking up and his team possibly injured in a hospital bed without family around them, possibly not everyone speaking the same language. You're already dealing with a severe injury and you're on painkiller and you're out of it. And just, my thoughts are with him and his family.

And I'm also worried about the fact that the hospitals in Ukraine are having trouble with electricity, water supply -- things like that. So, Ben is now facing the situation faced by so many Ukrainians under fire.

[07:35:00]

BERMAN: And I'm so glad you brought up -- both of you brought up that is a team here; it's not just a correspondent. There are so many other people involved. And oftentimes, it's the crew that's at an even greater risk because they can't look around.

Can you just talk to me about the risks that you took and journalists take being in a war zone like this?

DOZIER: Well, it's always a calculated risk. It's not an adrenalin junkie thing. If you're going to bring the story of people who cannot escape this out to the rest of the world you've got to take the same risks. And you've got to be right next to them and that puts you in danger.

But as a Daily Beast freelancer told CNN early this morning, their car, in his case, was marked T.V. and he felt like they were specifically targeted on purpose by Russian forces. That has happened in other war zones because the forces don't want this story getting out because it's contributing to the information war that fights against what they're trying to do.

BERMAN: It's an attack on truth.

GOLODRYGA: Yes.

BERMAN: Quite literally and attack on truth.

GOLODRYGA: In both countries.

BERMAN: Yes.

GOLODRYGA: Right.

BERMAN: All right. Kim, Bianna, Brian, thank you all very much. And we are thinking about Benjamin Hall, his crew, and the entire journalistic community involved here -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: Yes, we certainly are.

The White House is discussing President Biden potentially traveling to Europe amid Russia's escalating attacks on Ukraine. And this could be one of the most closely-watched visits to Europe by any American president in decades.

CNN's reporters are covering the latest.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT (on camera): I'm Jeremy Diamond at the White House, where officials are having discussions about a potential trip to Europe by President Biden on the heels, of course, of recent trips by Vice President Kamala Harris and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The trip could include a potential stop in Poland as well as other parts of Europe.

And it comes as there are discussions about having a potentially high- stakes, in-person NATO summit at the headquarters in Brussels. All of this as the conflict in Ukraine worsens.

Now, neither the president's trip nor this potential in-person NATO summit have yet to be finalized or announced. But if indeed, this trip does happen, it would be the highest-stakes visit by an American president to Europe in decades.

NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN WHITE HOUSE REPORTER (on camera): I'm Natasha Bertrand in Brussels.

The E.U. adopted this morning what it is calling the strongest sanctions package it has ever adopted against Russia. It is revoking Russia's most favored nation trading status, it is banning luxury goods exports to Russia, and it is sanctioning over 600 people in Russia who are connected to the Russian invasion of Ukraine in some way.

Now, it remains to be seen whether these sanctions are going to have an actual impact on Russia's behavior because to date, the sanctions imposed by the E.U., the U.S., and NATO countries have not deterred Russia from its brutal invasion of Ukraine.

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNN EUROPE EDITOR (on camera): I'm Nina dos Santos in London.

The U.N. secretary-general Antonio Guterres has said that it's never too late to give up on diplomacy. But he described a recent decision by Russia to increase the alert level of its new nuclear forces as a bone-chilling development, saying, quote, "The prospect of nuclear conflict, once unthinkable, is now back within the realm of possibility."

These warnings from the head of the U.N. come about a week and a half after Russia's foreign minister Sergey Lavrov said that any third world war -- an escalation beyond the borders of Ukraine that could drag in NATO would, by definition, he warned, be nuclear.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BERMAN: Thanks to our reporters around the world.

The breaking news this morning, the mayor of Kyiv just set a two-day curfew in that city, day and night. The only exceptions, to go to a bomb shelter. Why escalating attacks on civilians in the capital -- they are very much suffering. We're going to speak to some Ukrainian activists turning the cameras toward the atrocities. They'll join us live from Kyiv.

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[07:43:00]

BERMAN: The breaking news this morning, a 16-story apartment complex ablaze in Kyiv, one of four residential buildings hit in the last several hours. Civilians clearly and quite deliberately under attack. At least two people killed here and several more injured, and there are reports that people are still trapped inside this morning.

A pair of Ukrainian activists are trying to document atrocities like this using an army of volunteers across the country. They are bearing witness. They've seen civilians fleeing the town of Irpin over a broken bridge. A school in Zhytomyr left in ruins after a Russian rocket attack. They're posting these videos on social media sites, including Facebook, which has more than 251,000 followers.

Joining me now are the founders of Ukrainian Witness and public activists Vitaliy Deynega and Olga Buzunova. Thank you so much for being with us this morning. Vitaliy, just explain to me why it's so important for you to document what's happening.

VITALIY DEYNEGA, CO-FOUNDER, UKRAINIAN WITNESS PROJECT: Because if you don't document -- if you don't show -- it's like, you know, in modern life if you go to the gym and you make a selfie and put it on Instagram, it doesn't mean you went to the gym. No one knows about that.

Actually, it's the same thing, unfortunately, about the war. If the world doesn't know what is going on in your country then the news, like football games or whatever will be more important and people will be more concerned on the performance of their football teams than actually the war in other countries.

Russia's fight is not only -- they fight openly against the freedom in Ukraine. They also fight against the truth. They try to make their own truth and tell us something which -- like, tell all -- give all the world their picture of what's going on. And we have to film and document the truth to make it shown.

BERMAN: Olga, what has surprised you most about what you have seen and what has been witnessed?

[07:45:04]

OLGA BUZUNOVA, CO-FOUNDER, UKRAINIAN WITNESS PROJECT: Well, actually, what surprises me the most is the reality of how everything is ruined and how the lives are taken in Ukraine by the Russian bombarding and Russian troops. So it is one of the most heartbreaking, most surprising things here.

BERMAN: Everything is ruined. Lives completely upended. And we see new evidence of it every day, including from the work that you and your teams are doing.

Vitaliy, we're getting word now there's this two-day curfew in Kyiv where they don't want people leaving their homes except to go to bomb shelters. What does that tell you about the situation in the city right now?

DEYNEGA: It tells that we -- like, I expecting to be forced by Russians. They will try to invade Kyiv once again. And that's why government wants the streets to be empty so they can control -- so they can control people -- what are they doing outside their houses.

BERMAN: Olga, 251,000 followers, so the message is getting out. These images are getting out.

A question I have is do you think people in Russia are seeing them? Do you think the Russians know what's being done inside Ukraine?

BUZUNOVA: It is under a big question mark because actually, our -- they are like the -- they don't have access to Facebook as of now without using VPN. They don't have access to Instagram and they are let -- they do not have internet as a fact. So, Facebook is not the audience of our Facebook. It is more western people and to whom we would like to speak about and to tell about the war -- how it happens here.

BERMAN: Vitaliy, just -- I have to let you both go. Is it getting harder? Is it getting more dangerous to get these pictures out to the world?

DEYNEGA: At the moment, we can get them but we're -- it's getting -- every day is getting more dangerous. Because when you -- for example, you've been talking before about American journalist killed and I've been there like two days ago at the same point. So, like -- it's getting like places which were safe like two days ago can be not safe like one day later.

So, yes, it gets -- but actually, talking about this like audience -- Russian audience. Like, I think that Russian people expect western countries to do something about that. They feel like they cannot do anything with their government. And western people -- they expect Russia to have a riot against the war. But I think all -- like, only Ukrainians -- they don't have a choice. They have to fight themselves.

So, I think that the main point here is that United States and western countries -- they should do their own job and close Ukrainian skies.

BERMAN: Vitaliy, Olga, thank you for being there and bearing witness. Please stay safe.

BUZUNOVA: Thank you.

BERMAN: All right. The breaking news this morning, an extraordinary visit -- three European leaders on their way to Kyiv right now to meet with President Zelenskyy despite the escalating Russian attacks on that city.

Plus, as millions of refugees flee Ukraine, the populations of nearby European cities skyrocketing. We're going to be joined by the mayor of Warsaw in Poland, who says his city can't take any more refugees.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

[07:52:39] KEILAR: U.N. figures show that more than 1.7 million people have crossed into Poland in the weeks since the Russian invasion began, with more than 300,000 people in Warsaw alone. And that means the population of that city is up nearly 20 percent in just two weeks.

I'm joined now by the mayor of Warsaw, Rafal Trzaskowski, who we certainly appreciate being with us.

I've been to Warsaw. It is beautiful. It is a city -- it is urban. It maybe doesn't have room for all of those people. And so, I wonder what the influx has been like for you.

RAFAL TRZASKOWSKI, MAYOR OF WARSAW, POLAND: Well, if you remember the Mediterranean crisis with refugees five or six years ago -- I mean, 300,000 were coming at a peak a month to Europe. And that's exactly the number of people that Warsaw has welcomed in the past two weeks.

So, of course, we will be welcoming all the refugees because we need to help, but we are slowly becoming overwhelmed. And that's why we make a plea for help from the international community and from the European community.

KEILAR: So, Mayor, what are you providing the refugees, and what do you need?

TRZASKOWSKI: Well, you know, at the beginning, 95-97 percent of the refugees who were coming to Warsaw in the first days of the -- of the war were taken care of by their families and by their friends. But now, more and more need accommodation, need basic help. And, of course, they are much more traumatized by war.

So, we feed them. We give them -- we give them medical help. We give them psychological help. And, of course, we also provide accommodation.

But it needs to be said that the central government organized reception centers along the border, but when it comes to cities, most of the burden is on us. And most of it is improvised. You know, the volunteers help us out, government organizations. We are sending buses to our friends in cities across Poland and across Europe.

But I'm of the opinion that we need a synchronized system which would help us deal with the problem. We need a relocation system. There is a huge logistical experience and exercise, but that's exactly what we need from the European community and from the world.

KEILAR: So, you need some coordination from maybe -- from what?

TRZASKOWSKI: Well --

KEILAR: From the U.N.? From the E.U.? What are you thinking?

[07:55:00]

TRZASKOWSKI: Well, there are two things. I mean, first of all, we need some basic help with foldable beds and with sleeping bags and with medical equipment. And, of course, when financial help is going to reach Poland it should go to the central government. It should -- it should also go straight to the refugees and to the governmental organizations, and to us as local governments.

But the important thing is that the United Nations and the European Union do have a system to deal with such problems. It works like Lego bricks. You put up a system in which one U.N. agency is responsible for reception centers, another one is responsible for providing water and sanitation, another one for psychologists, or chips cards for refugees so they can go to a shop and buy necessities themselves.

And that's exactly what we need because this is the biggest migration crisis in Europe after the Second World War. And, of course, it is very difficult to do it on our own. I mean, make no mistake, we will be welcoming every refugee that comes our way but we need assistance.

KEILAR: Yes, it's a -- look, it's a huge influx that you're dealing with.

I do want to ask you, your prime minister is now going into a war zone to Kyiv to meet with President Zelenskyy, along with two other NATO prime ministers. What message does that send?

TRZASKOWSKI: Well, we need to show solidarity. We need to show that we stand with Ukraine and we do everything we can. Of course, the West is united and that's where Putin miscalculated because we stand united. We are tough. And such courage is needed in time of crisis so that our friends in Kyiv can be reassured that we're with them.

But we are also doing our job here on the ground. Because I receive quite a lot of phone calls from my friends in Ukraine -- from Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv -- and they tell us we can fight -- we're strong because we take care of our families and of our children.

And we are doing our part -- our bit because the Ukrainians are fighting for our freedom -- not only for the freedom of Poland but for the freedom of the -- of the western alliance of NATO and for the stability of the European and Trans-Atlantic institutions. That's why we need to do whatever we can in order to help them out.

KEILAR: You're caring for their families so they don't have to worry about them. I think we've heard that a lot from folks who are still there in Ukraine.

Are you worried that Russia will strike Poland?

TRZASKOWSKI: I mean, first of all, let me thank the United States of America, and President Biden and his administration, and the U.S. Congress for its very, very strong position on sanctions and also when it comes to assuring us and assuring everyone in NATO that the United States of America is ready to defend every inch of NATO territory.

Thank God we chose to be a part of the alliance -- a part of the European Union because whatever happens, we feel secure. And if President Zelenskyy doesn't panic, we shouldn't panic either.

KEILAR: Mayor Trzaskowski, really appreciate you being with us. Thank you so much.

TRZASKOWSKI: Thank you very much.

KEILAR: And NEW DAY continues right now.

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

KEILAR: Good morning to viewers here in the United States and around the world. It is Tuesday, March 15th and I am Brianna Keilar with John Berman.

We do have breaking news this morning. The Ukrainian capital of Kyiv setting a two-day curfew, even throughout the day, as Ukrainian -- or pardon me, Russian forces are closing in on the city and escalating their attacks on civilians. The only exception allowed is to take cover in bomb shelters.

At least four residential buildings were hit by separate strikes here within the last few hours, and that included a 16-story tower in western Kyiv where two people were killed. There are reports that residents are still trapped inside at this hour.

And take a look at this footage of a man walking down a path in Kyiv when that explosion rocked a residential building directly across the street from him.

Russian forces are still facing stiff resistance. The Ukrainian military releasing this drone footage showing an artillery strike on a Russian military position that was hidden in a forest outside of Kyiv.

And President Zelenskyy is urging enemy forces -- urging Russian forces to rethink their mission.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE (through translator): Russian conscripts, listen to me very carefully, Russian officers. You've already understood everything. You will not take anything from Ukraine.

You will take lives, yes -- there are a lot of you -- but your life will also be taken. But why should you die? What for? I know that you want to survive.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BERMAN: Also developing this morning, the White House is discussing a possible trip to Europe for President Biden as NATO leaders talk about gathering in Brussels. This would be for an extraordinary session of NATO leadership there to discuss the crisis in Ukraine -- the Russian invasion.

And breaking this morning, word that prime ministers from Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Poland are headed, at this moment, to Kyiv right now -- the Ukrainian capital which is under siege -- to meet with President Zelenskyy.