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Biden Meeting with NATO Leaders Over Russia War; Russian Ship Destroyed in Port of Berdyansk; North Korea Tests New Type of Ballistic Missile Tested by North Korea; SCOTUS Nominee Jackson Could Face Tight Confirmation Vote. Aired 6-6:30a ET

Aired March 24, 2022 - 06:00   ET

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

ANNOUNCER: This is CNN breaking news.

[05:57:27]

JOHN BERMAN, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to our viewers in the United States and all around the world. It is Thursday, March 24. I'm John Berman in Lviv in Western Ukraine.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Brianna Keilar in Washington, and we are joined by Wolf Blitzer in Brussels, where we begin with breaking news -- Wolf.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: It's -- it's very important what's going on, Brianna and John. Right now here in Brussels at NATO headquarters, the president of the United States, President Biden is here in Brussels. He's attending this truly historic and extraordinary summit of NATO leaders. Twenty-nine other NATO leaders are here with the president of the United States.

And they're deciding what to do, what kind of steps to take to deter, to deter Vladimir Putin from continuing this brutal invasion of Ukraine. It's an awful situation that's unfolding right now. We're watching all of these developments.

We expect to hear from the president at some point this morning. We'll, of course, have his remarks. Chief White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins is getting some new information for us right now. The 30 NATO allies are here, but they also are listening to someone else.

KAITLAN COLLINS, CNN CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes. There is a special guest, of course, who is here, part of this who is not part of NATO; and that is Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. He is not here in person, of course. He is Kyiv in Ukraine, where he has been as this invasion has happened, now stretching into a month.

But he is appearing via video conference at this extraordinary summit, a summit that typically would take months to put together, Wolf. This is something that NATO has now put together within days, which speaks to the urgency that they are applying to this situation.

And of course, with Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, we know these appeals that he has been making to the very leaders who are meeting in this room right now, meeting privately behind closed doors with no cameras in the room.

And he has asked for things that they have said they're not prepared to give him. They have done a lot of other things when it comes to assistance, when it comes to sanctions, when it comes to other stuff that he's called on them to do.

There are two requests, of course, that he has -- that have gone unanswered. And that is the call for a no-fly zone over Ukraine and for more fighter jets to Ukraine. Whether or not those things change over the course of the next few days or weeks, that remains to be seen.

But we do know that at the end of the summit today, we do expect President Biden to announce new sanctions on hundreds of Russian lawmakers. They'll also talk about steps that they're taking to help shore up Russian [SIC] -- or shore up European energy so they're not as dependent on Russian energy, which of course, has been a big factor in how this response has gone.

And so these are critical talks that are happening right now. They're trying really, though, overall to put together this picture of solidarity, showing Putin that they are meeting here together.

BLITZER: It's really significant what's going on with the president of the United States and with Zelenskyy now calling in virtually and expressing his desire.

I'm sure he's going to repeat his desire for a no-fly zone, for aircraft, which so far the U.S. and the other NATO allies are saying no.

COLLINS: Right. They have. And President Biden has explained why he said no to that, because he believes that, if the United States sends in forces or NATO overall sends in forces to Ukraine, that could create issues. That could lead to World War III. Because he said it would -- it would end up being U.S. jets, NATO -- NATO jets shooting down Russian aircraft. And so that's the big concern that they have here, Wolf.

And so those requests may go unanswered still today. We have no sense from our reporting that the U.S. position on that has changed. But you can still expect Zelenskyy to make that, and maybe he will make other requests when he speaks to these lawmakers.

Because you've seen him doing this, you know, almost on a daily basis. Speaking to different governments. He obviously addressed the United States Congress. He's spoken to Canadian Parliament. He's spoken France, to Japan. All of these allies who are now meeting in this room to talk about what he believes he needs the most.

And so we should expect that, a readout of that coming out of here. We will hear from President Biden later on today. He's got a day full of meetings, though, Wolf, to talk about this very issue.

BLITZER: And one of the issues that these NATO allies have to really come to terms with, the NATO allies, the U.S. and the others are providing surface-to-air missiles, antiaircraft missiles, but they're not providing aircraft, which are designed to do the same thing: shoot down these planes.

COLLINS: Right. And they've explained that as saying it's difficult logically to actually get the planes into Ukraine. They've talked about, of course, you see issues with, Did they take off from a NATO base? Does Putin view that as this point of aggression?

And that is something else that these allies, these NATO allies that are in this room right now have wrestled with, which is how to confront Putin without provoking him further.

Because of course, they've seen how he has taken these steps that a lot of nations didn't think he'd actually go this far when it comes to this invasion. And also, his aides have made clear he has -- shows no signs of stopping. And he doesn't believe his mission, an invasion that he won't call an invasion, has been completed yet.

And the White House has also been warning they believe this is something where the end is not in sight. They don't believe that this is going to end anytime soon, or certainly not easily. As Jake Sullivan, President Biden's national security advisor, put it.

And we should note that Jake Sullivan, President Biden's national security advisor, is here with him. So is the secretary of state, Blinken, and the defense secretary, Austin, as well.

BLITZER: They're all here. This is a critically important meeting, the most important meeting on national security this president has faced since taking office.

COLLINS: Absolutely.

BLITZER: John Berman, it's interesting that President Zelenskyy, he's participating virtually in this extraordinary summit right now. We know, John, that he would have loved President Biden to make a little stop, a visit in Ukraine, but clearly, that doesn't like look that's going to happen.

BERMAN: No, we're told that is not in the plans, Wolf. But as I said, I think everyone in this country is watching the meetings right now with anticipation and anxiety, because frankly, Ukrainians want help. Though, there are some instances where they're doing quite well on their own.

Breaking overnight, we have brand-new video in from the port city of Berdyansk, where Ukrainian forces say they have destroyed a large Russian ship in port. You can see the fire raging there, the ship ablaze. Also, some secondary explosions.

We have new details of what went on here. CNN's Phil Black joins me now in Lviv.

Phil, what have you learned? PHIL BLACK, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: So these images clearly

show big explosion, multiple explosions. And the Ukrainian navy says yes, a Russian large landing vessel, the Orsk, has been destroyed there this morning.

Officials say that it was around 7 a.m. when the destruction took place. Two other vessels were damaged in the process. And so was a large fuel tank was destroyed and a weapons depo. That -- a fire spread to that, as well.

That helps explain, perhaps, why we are so seeing so many explosions from this site this morning.

Berdyansk is under Russian control, in theory. It was one of the first cities to fall in the early days. And that particular ship, the Orsk, was reported by Russia to be among -- to be the very first Russian federation vessel to actually head into that port and deliver equipment and personnel carriers and so forth.

What the Ukrainians haven't revealed is how they did this, if they did it, how they did it. What weapons did they deploy that destroyed a Russian naval vessel in a Russian-controlled port?

I want to talk about Izyum, as well. This is an important city in the East where we have some new pictures, some disturbing pictures that show the extent of the damage and the destruction that has taken place there from some very intense fighting over recent days.

We're being told that this was the location of a Ukrainian counter- attack. The pictures that we see are one man's tour through the aftermath, through his city. And he records his shock at what he is saying, not just at the dead bodies but just at the sheer scale of the destruction. You can still hear shelling in the near distance. He jumps when that happens

[06:05:10]

Now, this morning the Russian military says they are in control of Izyum. But that has been denied by the Ukrainians, who say that this battle is still very much ongoing, John.

BERMAN: OK. Town after town in Ukraine. No matter who controls it, it's been destroyed, largely --

BLACK: There's not much left.

BERMAN: -- by the Russian invasion. Phil Black, we're going to talk to you again. Thank you so much for being with us.

Wolf.

BLITZER: Thanks very much, John.

I want to bring in CNN analyst, "New York Times" White House correspondent, David Sanger. You're watching all of this unfold very, very closely right now. And

the concern is, among top U.S. officials, that this could really escalate the Russian war against the the Ukrainian people. And not only with conventional weapons, but God forbid, maybe chemical or even tactical nuclear weapons.

DAVID SANGER, CNN POLITICAL AND NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST: That is a concern, Wolf. And basically, it comes out of the success of the Ukrainians.

Remember, a month ago, when the invasion started, worth remembering exactly a month ago today, the Russians thought it would be a couple of days before they took the South, maybe a few days more before Kyiv fell, and this would go down with no resistance. They've now lost somewhere between 7,000 and 15,000 troops.

You know, by comparison, I think the United States lost a little more than 6,000 in Iwo Jima, you know, a really significant major battle, naval battle and land battle. So, they've had huge casualties. They're not making much progress.

And so that's why there is so much fear that -- that President Putin will do one of two things: use chemical weapons to clean out some of the cities; or set off a tactical nuclear weapons or something like it, maybe on an unpopulated area, to basically say to NATO, you stay out of my area.

BLITZER: Yes. I mean, and that would be a red line, I suspect, for a lot of these NATO allies, if the Russians started using chemical or nuclear weapons.

SANGER: It would be a red line, but the interesting question and one that I'm sure will come up today, either in this formal session or on the sidelines, is does that change the NATO calculus that they only entered this war directly against the Russians if NATO territory is hit?

And yesterday, you actually heard the NATO secretary-general express a fear that chemical weapons, radiation, something could drift over the line, and what that meant.

BLITZER: Yes. That's a huge, huge problem. Let's hope it doesn't develop, but it looks like it's about to get war [SIC] -- get worse, this whole war.

On top of all of this, all of a sudden, North Korea, for the first time in, what, five years, since 2017, has launched an ICBM, an intercontinental ballistic missile, potentially having a range that could hit the United States.

SANGER: That's right. This is the first time, as you say, since 2017. But the weapon itself, the missile is a different one. It's one that they've begun to show off a few years ago in a parade. Did some preliminary tests in recent weeks.

It went up about 3,700 miles. It flew for 71 minutes. So, it did a very high-parabola arc. So they didn't go, you know, across, to try to drop it off near the West Coast of the U.S. But they went a distance to show that it could reach that, if you just flattened out that trajectory.

Now, that doesn't solve all their problems. They still haven't demonstrated that they know hew to release a warhead and make it survive reentry into the atmosphere. But it certainly tells you that everything that President Trump thought he was accomplishing when we were covering those summits, Wolf, it basically came to nothing.

BLITZER: Yes. North Korea is a nuclear power. We can't forget that.

The timing of this ICBM, what do you make of that coming as there's a war going on in Ukraine and as these 30 NATO allies are meeting?

SANGER: A couple of ways to think about it. One is, this is a cry for pay attention to me. We've seen that happen before.

The second is that they may well have concluded that President Biden doesn't have time to go deal with North Korea while he's wrapped up in Russia.

BLITZER: He better have some time for that, because this is a significant development for those who have been covering North Korea, as you and I have.

All right, David. Thank you very, very much.

Brianna, lots going on here. We're staying here all day. We're going to see what happens. These 30 NATO allies, they've got a lot on their plate, and they're really concerned that what's going on in Ukraine right now is about to get even worse.

KEILAR: Yes, we'll be watching this all morning with you, Wolf.

President Biden and NATO leaders facing this critical challenge. Can they stop Vladimir Putin? Can they save Ukraine? What can be done at this critical moment in the Biden presidency? We'll be discussing that next.

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[06:14:07]

KEILAR: President Biden in Brussels this morning for a monumental NATO summit with the promise of more military assistance for Ukraine and tougher sanctions on Russia.

Let's talk about this now with chief national affairs analyst, Kasie Hunt; former ambassador to Ukraine, William Taylor; and CNN political analyst, David Gregory.

We're going it be hearing a lot from President Biden during these events today. How does he need to lead, David?

DAVID GREGORY, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, it's -- it's such a test for him on the world stage right now. It's a test for democracy. It's a test for NATO as an organization.

But to really be the leader of the West, America has always been the leader of NATO. So it's not only a test of keeping NATO unified, but this deterrent effect against Russia, to say that this war cannot expand from where it is now, and to keep the economic pressure on Russia, as well. This is the overarching task of what the president has.

[06:15:05]

He's uniquely suited to do it. It fits his experience to do it. And I think showing up personally and leading these meetings is very important back home and for the rest of the world to see the American president doing that.

Let's not forget, his predecessor was someone who effectively wanted to marginalize NATO, shut it down, even. And yet, it's ironically Vladimir Putin who has rejuvenated NATO, and now it's Biden's test to keep it together against the threat of what's happening in Ukraine.

KEILAR: We're all watching this today. Vladimir Putin is watching this. And I wonder, Ambassador, how you think he is viewing this demonstration of incredible unity?

WILLIAM TAYLOR, FORMER U.S. AMBASSADOR: Brianna, he has to be amazed, surprised, disappointed, probably somewhat frustrated that -- that this alliance is standing up so strongly.

He's probably surprised that President Biden has stood up, as Dave says. This is an important time for NATO, plus an important time for NATO to demonstrate support for Ukraine.

President Zelenskyy's going to beam in. He's going to have this conversation with -- with the NATO leaders. He's had this conversation with many of them already. And that support is really important for Ukraine.

KEILAR: He also -- he has to crack down and lead a crackdown on evading sanctions. Because obviously, Vladimir Putin is going to try to get around this. He has to send a message to China that they shouldn't be helping Russia out. How do you expect this to play out, Kasie?

KASIE HUNT, CNN ANCHOR/ANALYST: Well, as -- as David said, the stakes are incredibly high. And I think there all still a lot of questions about exactly what will -- they're called deliverables in foreign policy speak. What those are going to be at the end of the day. Because there are major questions about what will happen if Vladimir Putin continues to essentially -- to lose the war.

I think there's a grave concern among national security officials and certainly Republicans and Democrats I've talked to on the Hill about how Article 5, the rule that says NATO will defend every inch of its own territory. So, if it's touched, you know, we all would act. How that would play into a potential chemical weapons scenario, or God forbid, a nuclear battlefield, nuclear weapon. Right? So, that is one thing I'm really looking for as this plays out throughout the course of the day, is do they come to some sort of consensus or say anything at all about how they may act?

Because if you're European, for example, you're very close. You're a NATO country that's very close to Ukraine. What happens if those clouds drift over your country? Does that constitute an attack under Article 5?

So I think there are a lot of very significant, weighty questions they have to deal with. And you know, it's always noteworthy when leaders drop their Blackberries, get rid of their aides, walk into that room together and actually are able to negotiate. And the ambassador knows that much better than I do. But I think that's what we're going to -- there may be some surprises coming out of this meeting.

KEILAR: You're looking for the red line.

HUNT: Yes.

KEILAR: Right? You're looking for the red line. How important is it that there is a red line coming out of this?

GREGORY: Well, I think we have to be careful here, and I think the president and his team are going to be careful about issuing red lines when NATO does not want to get involved in a hot war in Ukraine with Russia. And I think he's trying to avoid that at all costs.

I think there's also an important point here, especially as Russia is doing poorly and is reaching stalemate and Putin feels desperate. Is there a way out? And not merely a sense that he's got nothing to lose? Because that becomes a catastrophe: diplomatically, militarily and morally, humanly. That is something that they want to avoid.

And I think in all of this, too, there has to be some recognition that part of what has fed Putin's paranoia, which was this expansion of NATO, may have been ill-conceived on the part of the West and that there ought to be messaging here, which is we're going to stand up for Ukraine, its independence. We're going to stand up for democracy. I don't think we should lose that thread in this conversation.

But that doesn't mean we want to be provocative in a way that's only going to fuel Putin or a potential successor, who -- who taps into that fear of the near abroad (ph) that Russian leaders have been -- have been worried about for some time.

KEILAR: What are you expecting when it comes to troops, I wonder? Because we've heard Jake Sullivan talk about this idea of the force posture. There's the short term, which is that you've seen U.S. deployments increase dramatically in terms of scale. I think you've got about 10,000 U.S. troops there. Are they going to be there for the long-term? Do you think we'll have some answers today?

TAYLER: This is one of the big questions for the NATO summit. And I think yes. I think you will see some statement about permanent deployment of forces in these Eastern NATO nations. So that's been a real question. How much forward, how permanent? We've

got -- we've had some agreement under previous discussion and previous agreements with the Russians that we wouldn't station permanently. But they violated all of that. They violated, and now we'll respond.

KEILAR: And Americans are fine with that, you think, as long as obviously, they're staying in NATO countries?

[06:20:07]

HUNT: I think -- I think yes, as long as it's a -- it's a force that is at relative peace, right? It's a deterrent force. I think the administration has been, you know, very careful about saying that that's a red line.

And I think eventually that does become, you know, a question for President Biden. Under what circumstances does he change that, you know, use of America troops in a combat situation? When and where, and how, and why? Again, going back to the use of Russia's potential use of weapons of mass destruction.

I don't think it really enters into the conversation until we get that far. But I think that they're -- that they're thinking through those possibilities.

KEILAR: I really appreciate you all being with us to discuss what is going to be a very consequential day there in Belgium. Thank you so much, Kasie, Ambassador and David. Appreciate it.

An emotional and very personal defense of Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson that brought the Supreme Court nominee to tears at her nomination hearing.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. CORY BOOKER (D-NJ): You have earned this spot. You are worthy. You are a great American.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KEILAR: We have a live report from the Capitol, next.

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[06:25:25]

KEILAR: The path to her historic Supreme Court confirmation may be clear, but the vote will likely be close. Republicans senators stepping up their attacks on Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson during a second day of intense questioning at her confirmation hearing.

CNN's Sunlen Serfaty is live for us on Capitol Hill -- Sunlen.

SUNLEN SERFATY, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brianna, senators are now done with their rounds of questioning. Today the committee will be hearing from outside witnesses. But there certainly were some very tense moments in the final round of questioning yesterday.

Republicans continuing to try to make an issue over Ketani [SIC] -- Ketanji Brown Jackson's sentencing over child pornography cases. And a group of 10 Republicans on that committee put together a letter demanding that they see her presentencing reports.

And the chairman of that committee, Dick Durbin, essentially saying that's not going to happen. He calls it completely unnecessary. And he's pushing, putting down on the schedule an April 4 committee vote for them to proceed to this nomination, even though, despite he said, he is concerned that some Republicans could boycott that committee vote.

Now, in the final moments of this testimony in the hearing yesterday, Democrats we saw really trying to put this in historical context, her historical nomination, leading to this very emotional exchange with Senator Cory Booker that actually made Brown Jackson tear up, as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BOOKER: I mean, this is a new low. And what's especially surprising about this is it didn't happen last year. You were put on a court that I'm told is considered like the second most powerful court in our land, and you were passed with bipartisan support.

You are a mainstream judge. Your sentencing -- I've looked at the data -- falls in the mainstream on everything from child sexual assault to all the other issues that people are trying to bring up.

Today you're my star. You are my harbinger of hope. This country is getting better and better and better. And when that final vote happens and you ascend onto the -- to the highest court in the land, I'm going to rejoice.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

SERFATY: Now, all this is happening as a justices on the Supreme Court, Clarence Thomas, he remains hospitalized here in D.C. He has been in the hospital for now seven days, Brianna, for what a court spokesman says is being treated for an infection -- Brianna.

KEILAR: Yes, I think historic nature of this nomination has at times gotten lost in some of the drama here. Sunlen, we certainly saw it come through in that moment. Sunlen Serfaty, thank you so much for that report.

Up next, a CNN exclusive: inside a rare meeting between military officials from the U.S. and Russia. We'll tell you what triggered an outburst of emotion from one powerful Russian general.

And you'll meet U.S.-trained Ukrainian fighter pilots who are taking on Russian forces at 50,000 feet.

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