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Hala Gorani Tonight
Russia Accuses Ukraine Of Cross-Border Attack; Mariupol Rescue Missions Delayed Again; FIFA Announces Draw For Qatar World Cup; Red Cross: Mariupol Evacuation Team Fails To Reach City; Thousands Of Desperate Civilians Trapped In Ukrainian Cities; Refugees Find Ways To Adapt In Hungary. Aired 2-3p ET
Aired April 01, 2022 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[14:00:00]
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN INTERNATIONAL HOST: Hello, everyone, live from CNN in Dubai, I'm Eleni Giokos. Tonight, signs the conflict in Ukraine could be
escalating as Russia says it was attacked on its home soil. We'll have all those details for you. Then rescue efforts for civilians out of Mariupol
are again delayed. I'll be speaking to the International Rescue Committee about what's happening on the ground.
And later, the World Cup draw is here. Find out who is going head-to-head. Right, so we begin with reports that the war in Ukraine could be widening
as Russia accuses Ukraine of carrying out its first cross border attack. It says two Ukrainian helicopters hit a fuel depot in Belgorod today,
triggering a massive fire. The city is one of Russia's main logistical hubs for its war efforts. Ukrainian officials neither confirm nor deny
responsibility.
In Ukraine itself, devastating news in the meantime for civilians that are desperate to escape the ruins of Mariupol. A Red Cross evacuation convoy
could not reach the city today and had to turn around. The aid group says it is simply running out of words to describe the horrors that people there
are enduring.
The siege of Mariupol is part of Russia's effort to seize control of the entire Donbas region. A senior U.S. defense official says Russia's focus on
Donbas could mean a longer, more prolonged conflict. And our David McKenzie is following developments tonight from London. David, I want to start off
with what Russia says is the first cross border attack by Ukraine into Russia, and of course, the Ukrainians say they can't confirm or deny this.
How does this change firstly, the security situation and how does it impact the discussions that are going on?
DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think the primary thing we can look at is a question mark of potentially Russia's air defense systems in
the southern part of the country. And that region, you had these two helicopters at least -- now, just a short time ago, the Russian Ministry of
Defense saying that there were MI-24 gun-ships from Ukraine that struck this fuel depot which contained millions of gallons of fuel.
And you see those extraordinary videos of the helicopters at 5:00 a.m. in the morning according to Russian officials, extremely low altitude flying
presumably to evade any air defense system. There was a large explosion and massive fire. The governor of that region saying that two people were
injured, not life-threatening injuries. It's too early to say whether this is going to be a sustained escalation of the conflict.
Of course, Russia itself has been rocketing parts of Ukraine very far from the frontlines, including fuel depots. Now, the Russians just a short time
ago saying that this was for civilian use. The Ukrainian official as you mentioned, saying this is not the first time we are witnessing such
accusations.
Therefore, I will neither confirm nor deny this information. Now, you can understand why the Ukrainians even if they are responsible for this attack,
wouldn't want to put their name to it, given the very tentative negotiations that are ongoing with the Russians for some kind of ceasefire.
The Kremlin spokesperson saying that this could impact these ongoing negotiations which haven't really, to be honest, seen any major
breakthroughs. And they also said that the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, was made aware of this pre-dawn attack.
GIOKOS: Yes, and David, I mean, as you say, that Russia says this could impact the talks, but they specifically said this could escalate things on
the ground. And, of course, you rightly say there wasn't really anything concrete at this point. Russia -- you know, Russia saying that they want
more than just assurances on neutrality. Give me a sense of how things have really just evolved over the last few days.
MCKENZIE: Well, what you've seen on the ground and our reporters in Kyiv have been confirming is that, Russian troops have been moving away on a
certain extent from the center of Kyiv. What this latest incident at this stage -- just that incident shows is that, there is still air capability
from the Ukrainians, even allegedly into Russian air space. Again, this is not confirmed and nor is it corroborated by CNN, but it does show that they
have this capability, if this is -- turns out to be the Ukrainian air force or helicopter gunshot, to go inside Russian territory.
[14:05:00]
Sure, it's close to the border, but is it a significant symbolic move, and it does show that there is not the air power ascendancy which one expected
from Russia in the opening days of this conflict. Eleni?
GIOKOS: David McKenzie, thank you so much for that insight. And just a short time ago, the mayor of Bucha, a suburb of Kyiv said Ukrainian forces
have now retaken the town. Ukraine has been making advances since Russian troops began repositioning away from the capital this week. Let's talk more
about today's developments with CNN military analyst Cedric Leighton; he is a retired U.S. Air Force colonel.
Cedric, really, good to see you. I mean, I want to talk about this attack on the depot, and how significant this is. What do you make of the
messaging both from the Ukrainian and the Russian side about this attack?
CEDRIC LEIGHTON, CNN MILITARY ANALYST: Yes, Eleni, it's good to be with you as well. I think what the -- you know, on the Russian side, of course,
this -- if it is, in fact, the Ukrainians that did this, you know, it's a great embarrassment that the Ukrainians were able as David mentioned to
penetrate the Russian air defenses and strike a target that is from at least a tactical perspective, very lucrative.
I mean, this is -- appears to be a petroleum oil lubricant facility or POL facility as we use that term in the military jargon, and basically a
storage facility, and that could have a significant impact on logistics, operations in the Belgorod region for Russian forces. Because that was a
big --
GIOKOS: Yes --
LEIGHTON: Jumping off point for them when the invasion started on February 24th. As far as the Ukrainian side of this concerned, it's very interesting
that they're not claiming credit for it. So that leads me to believe that if it was them, they're trying to shroud this in as much secrecy as
possible. They want everybody to know that these kinds of things are happening and that the Russians are exhibiting some weaknesses, but they
also --
GIOKOS: Yes --
LEIGHTON: Don't want to admit directly that this is what's -- you know, what they're doing.
GIOKOS: Yes, fascinating. Do you think that this is going to signal a significant shift in the conflict? Russia says this could cause an
escalation. We know talks are kind of underway. And as you say, it's interesting the Ukrainians don't want to completely say it was them, but
also leaving things to the imagination, it seems at this point.
LEIGHTON: Yes, very much like the Israelis, actually, when they do certain things, for example --
GIOKOS: Yes --
LEIGHTON: In Lebanon or you know, against the forces in Gaza. So I would - - you know, as far as this is concerned, I believe that, you know, when it comes to the escalatory rhetoric that the Russians are talking about, we
all have to keep in mind that the Russians have attacked numerous oil storage facilities in Ukraine including in areas that are not directly in
what we consider to be the conflict zones. You know, everything from towns like Lviv or Lutsk, all the way through the center of the country.
So, this is whether or not a real escalation right now, I see that more is Russian rhetoric, because the Russians do need to understand from a
Ukrainian point of view, they need to understand that the Ukrainians are willing to hit back, and they may hit back in some areas that are -- that
are quite painful.
GIOKOS: OK, so, I want to talk about that sort of dynamic where around Kyiv, if you look at Irpin or you look at Bucha for example, where the
Ukrainians say they've retaken control. And we've seen this redeployment, repositioning of Russian military, which is anticipated to then focus on
the east, are you worried about eastern cities that could now be under attack or be the point of aggression?
LEIGHTON: Yes, I think, you know, it's interesting when you look at the towns around Kyiv, such as Bucha, Irpin and the others that we talk about
frequently, it's very important to realize that, you know, the cause in fighting, if you really can call it that, but the Ukrainian gains, let's
say, it may come at the expense of territories in the east. And you know, what I'd be watching for, of course, is the Donbas region where there has
been a significant increase in Russian activity.
GIOKOS: Yes --
LEIGHTON: Also the area around Chernihiv and Kharkiv. Those areas are, I think particularly important for the Ukrainians, because, of course, they
are wanting to take that part of the Donbas that they don't have, and any movement in the northeast is going to be very important for their effort
there.
[14:10:00]
GIOKOS: So, Cedric, very quickly, regarding Mariupol, because that -- I mean, that city has been under relentless attack, but still holding strong.
Melitopol for example is under Russian occupation, do we understand what the dynamics are in terms of how many cities Russia's -- Russians have at
this point in time and what the targets are going to be, and also the vulnerable cities whether they are at significant risk of seeing a
significant change in dynamics?
LEIGHTON: Yes, I think the main areas to be concerned about are along the coastline. First of all, around the Sea of Azov, you would find that
they're building that land bridge that they've talked about for a long time, and that's where Mariupol in particular becomes critical for them.
And we should also look toward the west of that coast line toward Odessa, the Russians are experiencing at least some degree of setback, you know,
around Kherson and those areas, so especially Mykolaiv.
So those areas become important to look at. And I think we have to be careful that they don't try to do something from the sea, whether it's by
missile attack or by land attack against Odessa.
GIOKOS: Cedric Leighton, great to have you on. Thank you so very much for that analysis. Let's go now live to Ukraine, Phil Black joins us from Lviv.
Full humanitarian corridor, a vital artery that needs to open up to get over a 100,000 people out of Mariupol. We've heard from the Red Cross,
they're saying they had to turn back because of conditions that made it very difficult to get into the city. What more do we know?
PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The humanitarian corridors, Eleni, open almost every day, but throughout the course of this war, they've only been
letting civilians out in their own cars or on foot. What the officials here haven't been able to do, and groups like the Red Cross, they haven't been
able to get supplies in or empty buses in to get out people in larger numbers. They've tried to do that over the last 36 hours or so, and it has
largely proven to be unsuccessful.
Although, some mixed success. So, what we understand is that some buses were able to pick up -- and this is from a convoy originally of some 45
buses were able to pick up some people from Mariupol. Some people who had already made their way out of Mariupol, about 2,000 or so. They were
heading in. They wanted to go deeper, they wanted to get into the city itself, and they were traveling with a Red Cross convoy who was acting as
an intermediary and hoping to get some aid into the city, to the people who desperately need it.
That's the part of the operation that hasn't worked. So on the whole, it's taken almost two days to have a partial success which has resulted in as I
say, a couple of thousand -- a couple of thousand people being rescued and pulled out. But on the whole, the numbers weren't as much as they had
hoped. And indeed, the aid, it would seem, hasn't got in. But our understanding, and what they're all saying is they're going to try again
tomorrow.
They have no choice, really because as you touched on, there are still so many people there, around 150,000 people. And as a representative of the
Red Cross today said, they're running out of adjectives to try and describe just how terrible the conditions in that city are. They've been enduring
them for weeks. They have very little food, water, heat, and of course, they're still living with daily fighting as well. So, there's a real urgent
need to get people and supplies and empty buses in. It's just not working on any really noticeable scale so far. Eleni.
GIOKOS: Yes, and we knew it was going to be difficult and very complex, so something we'll be watching extensively. Phil, I want to talk about
Chernobyl because we know that Russian forces have withdrawn, which is good news. But it's interesting to also hear that there were reports of some
Russian military and soldiers in the red forest which is contaminated. Tell me about what we know.
BLACK: Well, I think it's interesting to note, Eleni, that the Russians themselves haven't commented on this particular withdrawal. This wasn't a
region that they flagged when they talked about pulling some of their forces back and then reducing their operations. But it's happened very
suddenly. Chernobyl, this -- the nuclear plant -- nuclear plant itself, the surrounding site, the contaminated area, contaminated as a result of that
disaster back in 1986, that was all captured in the very early days of the war.
And yes, they've now pulled out very suddenly. And what Ukrainian officials are saying is that, that is because some of them were in the surrounding
area, the contaminated area, building fortifications, digging trenches and so forth. And as a result, some of those soldiers very quickly --
GIOKOS: Yes --
BLACK: They say, experienced radiation sickness. They also said they don't know how significantly or to what extent they were exposed to radiation,
how sick they became.
[14:15:00]
But what they talk about is the impact that, that had on the Russian soldiers. They didn't like it, and it created some sense of panic. This is
all very difficult to verify, but this is the version of events from Ukrainian officials. And it may explain why they have --
GIOKOS: Yes --
BLACK: Suddenly pulled out of this location very quickly, very suddenly.
GIOKOS: All right, Phil Black, thank you so much for that update. And we've been discussing that humanitarian convoy to Mariupol which has had to
now turn around. And it's part of a larger effort to rescue civilians from a reality, that's all but unthinkable. CNN's Ivan Watson is in Zaporizhzhia
city that's controlled by Ukrainian forces and welcoming those who did manage to escape.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
IVAN WATSON, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): They're going to be coming to this place where police, where ambulances, where volunteers
are standing by to help process. Now, this has been kind of an improvised hub. This is a super store where people have been coming on their own with
their own privately-owned vehicles day after day to try to escape Russian- occupied territory.
Some people escaping from Mariupol, others escaping from villages and towns in the countryside between Ukrainian-controlled territory and Russian-
occupied territory. And they kind of come in here and they're processed. And there's a tremendous volunteer effort to help people who have suddenly
been made homeless. So, I'm going to take you into this. There's a metaphor here, perhaps, the super store is called The Epicenter.
And I would say, it is the epicenter of trying to help out the tens of thousands of people who have been displaced by this -- by this terrible
conflict. So many of the people when they come in, they can get donated clothing here which was stacked up to the ceiling just a couple of days
ago.
And come into here, and you have free food, hot tea. You have medics standing by, and you have support networks. This is particularly poignant
for me, this bulletin board where people post all sorts of things like offering to fix people's shattered car windows which have been hit by
Russian shells in Mariupol or information about missing loved ones.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: And I'll be speaking with the head of the International Rescue Committee's Ukraine team later on in the show, and she'll be giving us more
details about the humanitarian situation on the ground. Meanwhile, Ukrainians have retaken Irpin or what's left of it. The key suburb is still
within range for Russian artillery, so it's off limits to civilians for now. CNN's Fred Pleitgen was granted rare access by Ukrainian forces so you
can see just how hard the city's residents had to fight.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): There is no safe way to get into Irpin. The only feasible route is on the
back of a police special forces pickup truck on dirt paths. But even here, the earth is scorched after Russian troops shelled the trail.
(on camera): Ukrainian forces are taking us into this area on back roads because they say taking the main roads is simply much too dangerous. They
want to show us the damage done when Russian forces tried to enter Kyiv.
(voice-over): Ukrainian authorities say this is still one of the most dangerous places in this war-worn country, and we immediately see why. We
are driving right towards an area engulfed in smoke from artillery shelling. This is where Russian forces tried to push into Ukraine's
capital, but were stopped and beaten back by the underdog Ukrainians. The battles here are fierce. Authorities say 50 percent of the city has been
destroyed. To us, that number seems like an understatement.
(on camera): We have to keep moving quickly because this place can get shelled any time.
(voice-over): Ukraine's national police patrolled Irpin again, but their forces frequently come under fire, the chief tells me.
"Just yesterday, our officers who were searching for dead bodies, they were shot at with mortars", he says. "They had to lay under the bridge and wait
for it to stop." But the grim task of finding and taking out the many dead continues. More than two dozen on this day alone. Some have been laying in
the streets for weeks and can only now be removed.
When Russian forces invaded Ukraine, they quickly advanced on the capital, Kyiv, all the way to Irpin. Here, the Ukrainians stood and fought back.
Vladimir Putin's army controlled large parts of Irpin and the battle laid waste to much of this formerly wealthy suburb. And this was the epicenter
where we find burned-out Russian trucks and armored vehicles.
[14:20:00]
(on camera): So this is the area where some of the heaviest fighting took place in Irpin, and as you can see that, there, was a Russian armored
vehicle which was completely annihilated. We do have to be very careful around here because there still could be unexploded ammunitions laying
around.
(voice-over): We meet Vladimir Rodenko(ph), a local resident who says he stayed and took up arms when the Russians invaded.
"Always, there was not a single day when I left town", he says, "even during the heaviest fighting." It must have been difficult, I asked. "Just
so you understand", he says, "once, there were 348 impacts in one area in one single hour." And the battle here is not over. Suddenly, Irpin's mayor
shows up with a group of special forces, saying they're looking for Russians possibly still hiding here. I asked him how it's going?
"We're working", he says. "There's information that there are two Russian soldiers dressed in civilian clothes, but with our group, we're going to
clean them up." Ukrainian forces say they will continue the fight and further push Russian forces away from their capital. The deputy interior
minister saying they need the U.S.' support to succeed.
(on camera): What do you need from the United States?
YEVHEN YENIN, DEPUTY INTERIOR MINISTER, UKRAINE: Everything. Military support first of all.
PLEITGEN (voice-over): Weapons to help the Ukrainians expel the invading army, they hope, and finally bring this suburb out of the reach of Vladimir
Putin's cannons. Fred Pleitgen, CNN, Irpin, Ukraine.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Incredible images out of Irpin. All right, and still to come tonight, Russia is pushing Europe to pay for its natural gas in rubles. But
it may backfire and become the kick-start the EU needs to wean itself off Russian energy.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Russian natural gas is still flowing to Europe for now. On Thursday, Vladimir Putin said unfriendly nations will need to start paying
for their energy in Russian currency starting today or risk being cut off. Now, the Kremlin's spokesperson says the payments in rubles are actually
due at the end of this month. Either way, EU nations are refusing. So they stick to their contracts which require payments in euros and insisting they
won't give in to what they call Moscow's blackmail.
Richard Quest joins me now from Brussels. Russia needs the money, Europe needs the oil and gas, It's a showdown using currencies, and it's really
smart on Putin's front because he knows that if he gets paid in rubles, that's going to prop up his currency.
[14:25:00]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS EDITOR-AT-LARGE: Absolutely. And it's a case of chicken over oil in an extremely dangerous environment. Who is going to
blink first? Now, Dmitry Peskov; the spokesman said, look, this is all rubbish that we're turning off the gas today, despite the fact that's
pretty much what Putin said yesterday. He said look, the way these contracts are written, we've got until the middle of the month into next
month to pay for today's gas. So will they cut off the gas?
Well, Europe seems to think that they've got time on their side. And it really is a question of European leaders saying, we won't be blackmailed,
but recognizing they're not in a very strong position. However, they are brazening it out as I heard from the Belgium prime minister this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXANDER DE CROO, PRIME MINISTER, BELGIUM: This shows that the economic sanctions do work. Because it shows that Russia really is in trouble, and
especially on the ruble currency, they're really in difficulties. Our position is that, you cannot just change the terms of the contract, so
we'll just stick to the position we had and the contracts we have.
In any case, on the Belgium side, we're not very much exposed to that, less than 5 percent of our consumption is coming from Russia. But let's see if
Russia really pushes through. But the European position is a correct one. We won't be blackmailed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: And the long-shot of it is that, the way it's going to play out will be who blinks first. Moscow needs the money, the West needs the oil --
GIOKOS: Yes --
QUEST: And at the moment, it's a question of threats with little action.
GIOKOS: Absolutely, Richard, I mean, I have to say one thing that strikes me is, they say the sanctions are working. It is making it very difficult
for those that still need to buy oil and gas or anything from Russia right now, extremely difficult. And Putin and his administration are trying to
figure out ways and being very creative to get those funds in. Is this going to become increasingly difficult for him to achieve?
QUEST: Yes, because as the prime minister also said, and the head of NATO told me, and you'll hear that tonight on "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS", these
sanctions are not going away. Even if the fighting was to stop tonight, the sanctions will be with us for a long time. Think about the 2014 sanctions
over Crimea. So the environment under which -- the economic environment under which Russia has to live for the foreseeable future is going to be
hard, getting harder, and nasty.
And as President Biden said earlier in the week, the goal of the sanctions was never to deter, but it is ultimately to get the result, and that's
going to take a lot longer than just a week and a half.
GIOKOS: So Richard, I have to ask you, what do you think of the public display of camaraderie with the Russians and the Indians? And also talking
about sort of figuring out how to make payments in different currencies, is that concerning you?
QUEST: If it was anybody else, but India, yes, it would be concerning. But the Indian non-allied policy is so well known, and the way they have
managed to navigate these relationships before is much more important than say, for example, where you are. Where Saudi and the UAE have
pertinaciously refused to increase supply, pretty much thumbing their noses at the United States and waiting to see how the U.S. is going to respond.
In the case of India, they get much more leeway from the U.S. in how they're going to adapt their policies, providing, they don't and they are
not seen to ultimately act against the United States or, indeed, western interests. At the moment, the Indians are walking that fine line.
GIOKOS: "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" coming up in 30 minutes. Richard, thank you so much for joining us, great to have you on. And still to come tonight,
more Russian assurances come up empty as rescuers fail again to reach civilians in the shattered city of Mariupol. We'll speak with a top
humanitarian relief official inside Ukraine about the challenges they're facing.
Also ahead, a look inside one Polish hospital treating women fleeing the war, and one mother's experience escaping Ukraine at eight months pregnant.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:30:00]
GIOKOS: A Red Cross team hoping today to get into Mariupol to arrange civilian evacuations has turned around, unable to reach the bombed out
city. The Red Cross says conditions are making it impossible to get there. Russia's military announced yesterday it would allow a humanitarian
corridor linking Mariupol with Zaporizhzhia. Some 3,000 civilians who escaped early are on their way to Zaporizhzhia from the coast.
But a Mariupol official says the Russians are not even allowing aid convoys into the devastated city. The International Rescue Committee is directly
involved in helping manage civilian evacuations in Ukraine. It's Ukraine's team leave, Nora love, who has been on the ground doing a lot of this work
joins me now live from inside the country. Thank you so much, Nora, for joining us.
You know, when you see the devastation in Mariupol and those cities that have, of course, major reporting of tens of thousands of people that are
trapped, what does that tell us about the current humanitarian situation playing out?
NORA LOVE, UKRAINE TEAM LEAD, INTERNATIONAL RESCUE COMMITTEE: I mean, we call on all parties to adhere to the humanitarian laws and to allow us and
others access and ability to deliver our services there. So we hope that all parties to the conflict will do the same.
GIOKOS: Are you concerned about the humanitarian corridors constantly becoming increasingly complex and difficult? I mean, this is one case where
we heard the Red Cross had to turn around, talking about impossible situations that can't get aid into the city and people out.
LOVE: Yes. I mean the laws of war call on all parties to a conflict to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian relief to the people in need. And
again, we look to all parties to help us deliver that aid.
GIOKOS: Yes. So talk to me about the humanitarian scenarios that are playing out, specifically in the east of the country. How concerned are you
when you're hearing reports of people running out of food and water and that are trapped?
[14:35:04]
LOVE: I mean so IRC is focusing on working with both local partners to support the health system in Ukraine. We're looking to work with local
partners in delivering pharmaceutical supplies, equipment, and materials. And we'll also be looking to do -- supply basic needs in response to trauma
as they settle in the central and western part of the Ukraine or the continue their journey onwards to the European countries.
GIOKOS: Have you been able to effectively reach some of those areas? And have you been able to deliver the requirements?
LOVE: We're working with partners that have been able to reach the populations. So we will continue to support those partners that have that
access.
GIOKOS: Yes. I mean some of the numbers that we know, I mean, four million refugees confirmed to have fled Ukraine, so many more millions displaced
within the country. What is your latest understanding of the security situation that is, of course, compounding the humanitarian one?
LOVE: I mean, the situation makes it difficult for people in those areas to get out. And so, again, we're asking on all parties to respect the
humanitarian laws, and that they allow people to move freely.
GIOKOS: Yes. Nora, very quickly, in terms of the assistance that you've been able to give, you're talking about medical supplies, what is most
needed at the stage?
LOVE: So the partners that we're working on are looking for mobile medical equipment, like the mobile ultrasounds, and other things like that, but
we're also providing -- looking at providing pharmaceutical supplies and pharmaceuticals themselves, so just not the medical supplies but the
pharmaceuticals.
GIOKOS: Yes. All right, Nora, thank you very much for your time. We wish you all the best and good luck. Thank you.
LOVE: Thank you.
GIOKOS: Now to the story of one first-time mother who managed to escape Ukraine. Kristina Pavlyuchenko fled her home when the war began in late
February when she was eight months pregnant. Now the mother of a newborn, CNN's Kyung Lah spoke with Kristina Pavlyuchenko about the war and how it's
already shaped her daughter's life. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KYUNG LAH, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Born just hours ago in Poland, baby Adelina is already a survivor of the war in Ukraine.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: Is it hard to be happy?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: "It is," she says. Adelina is Kristina Pavlyuchenko's first child.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel guilty.
LAH: You feel guilty? Why?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: "Because I left," she says. Left her home in Western Ukraine. The war had begun, the bombing near their city. Pavlyuchenko escaped by bus then
walked on foot across the border. Paramedics rushed her to the hospital. She delivered Adelina a month early, separated from her family.
"My mother, sister, grandparents, still in Ukraine." "He's killing our people," she says of Vladimir Putin. "How could anyone be so cruel?"
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DR. MAGDA DUTSCH, INFLANCKA SPECIALIST HOSPITAL: I'm terrified. I'm terrified that something like this can happen, that you can lead your
everyday life and all of a sudden, because of decisions that you have no influence upon, there is a war and you have to flee. It's unbelievable.
It's terrifying.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: Dr. Magda Dutsch is a psychiatrist at Inflancka Specialist Hospital in Warsaw. The hospital, focused on treating women, has seen 80 Ukrainian
patients this month, delivered 11 babies, and treated cancer patients like 58-year-old Tatiana Mikayla.
"I ran with my granddaughter in my arm," she says. Missiles had already blown up the windows in their building. As they fled, something exploded
next to their car. Her city is now occupied by Russians. She's grateful for her doctors at the hospital and the free health care in Poland that's
treating her cervical cancer.
Christina is one of the doctors. We're not using her last name because she herself is also a refugee from Ukraine, a mother of a 5-year-old and the
wife of a Ukrainian military man.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: Your husband. "My husband has been in the military since 2014. At the moment, he's in Lviv." You had to leave your husband behind? "Yes," she
says. "Now in Warsaw, I can't sit and do nothing," she says. I have this opportunity here to help women who fled the country. With each breath,
Adelina offers her mother a respite from the war.
What will you tell your daughter about her birth?
[14:40:02]
"The truth," she says. "We will tell her everything as it was. She should know the truth."
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LAH: All the Ukrainian patients you've seen in this story, that health care is being covered by the government of Poland, including all the care once
they leave the hospital and they're not the only ones. The Ministry of Health here in Poland says 197 Ukrainian children have been born in Poland
since this war began. Kyung Lah, CNN, Warsaw, Poland.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Some 300,000 refugees are now in Hungary. They face tough new challenges in a new country but are finding ways to adapt with the help of
some of the other people who have fled the invasion. CNN's Matt Rivers reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MATT RIVERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: In the play area of a temporary refugee shelter in Zahony, Hungary, kids sketch out their recent traumas on paper.
Burning tanks drawn in crayon, deadly battles fill out the chalkboard.
Just outside that tent, Anmol Gupta can't erase their pain, but he can get one of those kids a stuffed animal and a smile in the process.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: When someone says I'm scared, what do you say to them?
ANMOL GUPTA, INDIAN CITIZEN WHO FLED UKRAINE: Then we tell them what's going to happen next and everything will be okay, so you don't have to
worry. And then I start joking with them a little bit. So, a little bit of everything.
RIVERS: Yes. You're good at that.
GUPTA: Yes. Yes. That I know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: "A smile," he says, "goes a long way." Anmol is a volunteer having spent the last month just across the Ukraine border, helping weary
Ukrainians navigate the first few steps of new lives as refugees in Hungary. The native of Northern India is fluent in Russian.
A skill honed over his years studying for a medical degree in the city of Kharkiv, Ukraine. He was living there when the bombs first started falling.
His apartment was destroyed. His motorcycle hit by bullets and shrapnel and his nights spent in bomb shelters. He fled to Hungary but still he wanted
to help. As a foreigner, he says he lost very little while his friends, Ukrainians, have lost everything.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: Is that part of the motivation that you have for being here?
GUPTA: Yes, it can be. It can be, because I have been with them for nine years and it feels like they are also my family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: And he's not the only foreigner once living in Ukraine that still wants to help. Behind kiosk restaurants, fancy dining room in Budapest
works a man who just two weeks ago, was fleeing from explosions. Steven Ezeudo works in the kitchen, but in early March, he was in Kharkiv. He fled
when the Russians attacked.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: Were you scared?
STEVEN EZEUDO, REFUGEE: Yes, I was so scared. So scared because all the bombing stuff, you see, it's also shaken our building.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: He was studying there for a degree in business administration and wants to go back. But for now, he and his colleagues spend a part of their
day cooking free meals for refugees.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EZEUDO: At least I'm helping so that they are going to give some people food, you know, some people that doesn't have anything to eat.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: Back at the border, hundreds of refugees are headed in Budapest's direction. Anmol picks up some tickets, hands them out, then picks up some
bags and walks people to the train. He has done this every single day for a month now. So from us, a question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: How long do you think you're going to stay here?
GUPTA: As long as needed.
RIVERS: As long as needed? And when will that be?
GUPTA: No idea. That's the thing. I have no idea. But I believe that there will be some point when people will stop coming.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIVERS: But that time hasn't yet come and so he keeps helping amidst a crowd of people who need it. It's right where he wants to be. Matt Rivers,
CNN, on the Hungary-Ukraine border.
GIOKOS: We'll be back right after the short break. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[14:46:46]
GIOKOS: The draw is set and we now know the groups for football's biggest stage, this year's World Cup starting in November in Qatar. This tournament
has some milestones attached to it. It's the first World Cup to be held in the Middle East and because of it's -- because of the climate here, and of
course in Qatar specifically, it's the first that won't be held in the summer months.
Here to break down the groups and talk some more about this year's World Cup, we've got Amanda Davies joining us now from Doha. I love how the fates
of these 32 teams have been set by random draw and I've been looking through some of the groups and they look fascinating.
AMANDA DAVIES, CNN WORLD SPORT: Absolutely, Eleni. The headline who says football and politics don't mix. The FIFA president, Gianni Infantino,
opened the drawer, talking about the aggressive, divided world that we're in at the moment and said the call from the football community to world
leaders is for peace, to start dialogue to end the conflict and the war.
And then the draw took place. And then Iran and the USA were drawn in the same group along with England. And the winner of the playoff, the European
playoff that has been postponed because of the conflict in Ukraine, Ukraine still hope to be able to take part in that game so it will be either
Ukraine, Wales, or Scotland as the fourth and final team in Group B.
If you could put the politics to one side, you have to say the England manager Gareth Southgate will be quite pleased with that as a draw. It was
Spain, 2010 winners who got the team that everybody was hoping to avoid from part two, that is Germany. There were real gasps in the room behind me
when their name came out of the hat in Group E because they are a team in some great form. They're unbeaten under their new coach, Hansi Flick, and
will be very much looking to make amends for what was a really disappointing group stage exit four years ago in Russia.
The defending champions, France, they've been drawn against Denmark and Tunisia and one of the Intercontinental playoff winners. Their coach,
Didier Deschamps, went up on the stage and cheekily tried to take the trophy with him after he appeared but if only it was that easy. This is
where the hard work really, really starts for the coaches and their teams ahead of the big kickoff November the 21st when Qatar make their World Cup
debut against Ecuador.
GIOKOS: Yes, first time in the Middle East and nothing like a bit of sport to bring everyone together in the time of immense geopolitics and tensions.
Amanda Davies, thank you so very much. Great to have you on.
All right. Now the producer of the Oscars is shedding some light on the shocking scene at this year's Academy Award Ceremony. Will Packer says host
Chris Rock doesn't want to make a bad situation worse by pressing charges against actor Will Smith after Smith slapped him.
Speaking with ABC, Packer says he initially thought the slap was part of a joke.
[14:50:04]
And that the incident sucked the life out of that room and it never came back.
And still to come tonight, how two Iranian -- Ukrainian rather, filmmakers made a movie about a Russian invasion and then saw it become a reality.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: When Russian bombs hit the first Ukrainian cities, it was a shock, but not a surprise to Ukrainian filmmakers Valentyn Vasyanovych and
Vladimir Yatsenko. In fact, they'd spent months of their lives imagining it. Set in 2025, their film "Atlantis" depicts a desolate Ukraine ravaged
by brutal Russian invasion. They imagine a remarkable victory but at a huge cost. The Ukraine they knew torn to pieces, graveyards stretching for
miles.
Most of the actors you see on screen are veterans themselves who know the violence of war all too well. As cities they know become warzones, Valentyn
and Vladimir had been on the ground documenting the experience of ordinary people.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VLADIMIR YATSENKO, CO-PRODUCER, "ATLANTIS": We shot several days for evacuation of the some suburbs nearby Kiev, which called Irpin and it was
first time when we faced the cruelty of the word because the -- when the Russian people were bombshelling us during the -- during this emigration of
the -- just of civilians and we tried to do it as best as we can. Because it's going to be kind of a historical document what's happened with all of
us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: And if the time comes to fight, both say they'll be ready.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
YATSENKO: We're still fighting for our right to exist and just to understand that we will -- I mean, it's not something which we can
negotiate. I mean, it's how we survive and be a separate nation or we're going to be enslaved. Don't be afraid to fight for your own future because
we have a common future. All of us, all the world now is connected.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: We have a common future. Wise words. Thanks very much for watching tonight. I'm Eleni Giokos. Stay with CNN. "QUEST MEANS BUSINESS" is up
next. Have a fantastic weekend.
END
