are you a christian author with a book that you're ready to share with the world? get published now, call for your free publisher kit today! hello, and a very warm welcome to our viewers joining us in the united states and right around the world. i'm isa soares in london. >> reporter: and i'm michael holmes in ukraine. coming up on "cnn newsroom." >> to the citizens of russia, you are not our enemy. >> we've seen this playbook

before. their history of false flag operations, misinformation. we need to verify. >> we don't trust. we need to verify whether he's going to withdraw forces. >> military maneuvers. ukraine marks a day of unity and russia claims to pull back some troops from the border. we're live in kyiv and moscow this hour. plus, the russian figure skater at the center of the olympic doping scandal is outshined. >> calls for clarity as prince andrew settles out of court with no admission of liability. brits want to know who will pay up, the private or public purse? >> announcer: live from london, this is "cnn newsroom" with isa soares.

>> welcome to the show, everyone. it is wednesday, february 16th. we begin with a show of patriotism and defiance in ukraine. holding a national day of unity in the face of the looming threat over russia. moscow claims some of the troops have finished their military drills and returning to their home bases has not been verified. russian troops remain in a threatening position. meanwhile, ukraine says an investigation is underway into cyber attacks that targeted the west side of the military. cnn is covering every angle of the story as you'd expect we would. alex marqise is in ukraine, melissa bell is following the u.s./nato talks in brussels and our barbara holmes is in kyiv, ukraine. michael. >> reporter: isa, thanks so much. the russian defense ministry has

released information saying they have left crimea after finishing up the military exercises. russia said some of the troops were being sent back to the home bases after drills near the ukraine border were over. the u.s., nato and ukraine say that would be an encouraging sign but they haven't seen evidence of a deescalation so far. >> united states and nato are not a threat to russia. ukraine is not threatening russia. neither united states ornate tow have missiles in ukraine. we do not, do not have plans to put them there as well. we're not targeting the people of russia. we do not seek to destabilize russia. to the citizens of russia, you are not our enemy and i do not believe you want a bloody, destructive war against ukraine. >> reporter: president biden was optimistic about the chance for

a diplomatic solution to the crisis but he also warrant russia would pay a high price and face international condemnation if it, indeed, invades. >> russia attacks ukraine it will be a war of choice or a war without cause or a reason. i say these things not to provoke but to speak the truth because the truth matters. accountability matters. if russia does invade in the days and weeks ahead, the human cost to ukraine will be immense. the strategic cost for russia will also be immense. the world will not forget that russia chose to meet with death and destruction. the pain in ukraine will be a self-inflicted wound. >> now the german chancellor olaf scholz is the latest european leader to travel to

moscow to meet with vladimir putin. he called these moves a direct and immediate threat to security of russia. he said he, too, does not want war. >> translator: do we want it or not? of course not. our intention is to negotiate with our partners which we raise to resolve through diplomatic means. >> here in ukraine it is a day of international immunimmunity. they celebrated president zelensky. he's going to visit the city of mariupol to mark this occasion. fred pleitgen is live for us in moscow this hour. we begin -- and melissa bell is in brussels, belgium. let's begin with alex marquardt.

what are you expecting? >> reporter: we are expecting to have president zelensky here on this day of national immunity. this is after president zelensky said today was supposed to be the day of the russian invasion and instead he decreed a day of international celebration. mariupol is a strategic location. we have danyesk down the coast where russia has been backing separatists in their fight against the ukrainians and then we have crimea which is not too far away which they occupied and annexed back in 2014. michael, it is really in crimea where we see the confusion over what russian intentions are.

the russians putting out video this morning that claims they are pulling back their troops, they are pulling back their weaponry after exercises have taken place in crimea. they loaded up trains with troops, trains, artillery. those are all going back to the mainland in russia. they're crossing the kurtz bridge which they annexed with crimea. at the same time, michael, we are seeing a consistent buildup. we have seen a consistent buildup of this third front, if you will, this southern front that russia could use to invade ukraine. we have seen troops going into crimea. we have seen the satellite imagery showing that fighter jets are going across into russia. we have seen more satellite imagery showing attack and transport helicopters being based in crimea. we're getting these mixed messages of both the draw down but at the same time the u.s.

and others are convinced that russia does continue to build up. so it remains very much to be seen what russia's intentions truly are, but today here in mariupol as in cities all across the country we are expecting to see some kind of display in unity. president zelensky expected to visit here in the port city of mariupol, michael. >> very strategic city. alex marquardt, appreciate that. let's switch to brussels. melissa bell standing by there. melissa, tell us about this nato meeting and what we know about nato's positioning and nato's troops, where are they, what are they doing? >> reporter: we know it's substantial, michael, 25 to 30 nato allies according to sources have already committed, have already sent extra troops or committed resources to this buildup. now today's meeting is going to be, first of all, about briefing

one another. defense ministers will be briefing one another about what they've been hearing throughout this diplomacy. we've seen where so many leaders, foreign ministers, defense ministers have been shuffling to and from moscow, kyiv having conversations with their russian and ukrainian counterparts. each is going to be briefing the other about the very latest intelligence they have and no doubt the american defense secretary will be taking a lead role and saying what the latest american intelligence is. the big question at this stage, michael, is whether the russian planes and that troop withdrawal has begun are being substantiated by what nato allies are seeing through their intelligence. that's a question. we heard from the secretary general of nato saying he hopes the diplomacy still has a chance but they had yet to see any tangible signs of deescalation.

that question at the heart of the deescalation. but also then perhaps much more substantially, michael, even as the world seeks peace this is also a meeting about preparing for war. what nato allies are going to be looking at today are the specifics of extra resource that is have been pledged or already moved to europe and nato's eastern flank. how the resources will be organized, what will happen should russia invade. >> all right. melissa, thanks for the update there. melissa bell in brussels. let's now go to moscow. that's where we find our fred pleitgen standing by. the russians are talking about diplomacy, which is a good thing, of course. this troop withdrawal, small as it is. bring us up to date on developments there. >> reporter: hi there, michael. the russians are making a big deal out of the troop withdrawal

they say they've conducted over the crimean bridge alex was talking about. they put out video today. it is no secret that there are still a substantial amount of russian troops in and around -- or around the area of ukraine and then also you have those big drills that are also taking place in belarus as well. the russians have said their forces would also withdraw from there. nevertheless, the u.s. says it is a very dangerous situation that's going on near the ukrainian border and that the invasion could happen at any time even though the russians say there are no plans for that. it was very interesting to see yesterday the talks between olaf scholz and vladimir putin, scholz has said the answers the russians have gotten about the security demands, it involves nato force withdrawal in eastern european countries and guarantee

ukraine would not join nato as well. they do feel there are still grounds to continue those talks. olaf scholz, the german chancellor, says the west needs to see deescalation. in a press conference after vladimir putin i asked him on what issues he pressured the american president and here's what he had to say. >> we have a very clear strategy and this is first saying that if there would be a military aggression against ukraine, that this would have hard consequences and we are well prepared to decide the necessary sanctions. >> reporter: so the german trans l -- chancellor olaf scholz saying he wants to have a prodder discussion about security in europe and they say they want their demands to be

spoken of. they want that to be a longer term discussion. it looks as though the key demand is not one that will go away any time soon. >> indeed. fred pleitgen there in moscow. melissa bell in brussels, alex marquardt in mariupol, ukraine. thank you for the great reporting. that will do it for me in western ukraine. for now let's go back to isa soares in london. isa. >> thank you very much, michael. we'll return to michael in about 20 minutes. the ukraine border crisis could send u.s. inflation to a rate it hasn't seen in four decades. new analysis from rsm shared exclusively with cnn found that if the standoff drives oil prices to about $110 a barrel, u.s. inflation would top 10% on a year-over-year basis. rsm's chief economist says gasoline and diesel costs would

be more expensive in the immediate aftermath of invasion. u.s. oil prices hit $95 a barrel. crude fell $92 after russian claims of withdrawal. wall street also welcomed those reports, those claims from russia with a rise in prices. dow is up 422 points ending over 1% higher. the s&p and nasdaq also saw significant gains, particularly the nasdaq. quite a run over the previous day, up 2.5%. i'm hoping of course that momentum should carry on today and it is expected to at least with all -- expected to open higher when trading kicks off this wednesday. in washington senate republicans have boycotted a vote halting the entire process including other key nominations on hold.

republicans are opposed to the top bank regulator because she called for a crackdown on lending to companies. sarah raskin has since advanced. the white house blasting republicans for the holdup. >> and that's totally irresponsible in our view. it's never been more important to have confirmed leadership at the fed to help continue our recovery and fight inflation. obviously they have a unique role to play, important, vital role to play as it relates to inflation and i think democrats and republicans have agreed on that for decades. so republicans are out there saying inflation's a problem. it's a huge issue. we agree and then they're not even bothering to show up to even vote against these nominees to the federal reserve. what message is that sending to the american public? >> both sides, not a lot democrats can do. they either have to get 60 votes in the senate which means 10 from republicans or they have to

change the rules in a party line vote. americans could soon see avocado prices spike. you may have a tough time finding them at the grocery store. now the u.s. has suspended avocado imports from mexico. it comes after a death threat from the u.s. safety inspector. we have all of the details coming up. >> reporter: there's one state here in mexico that is currently legally allowed to export avocados to the united states, and that is the state of michuocan. they have temporarily suspended the export license. now we are getting a little bit more information as to why that decision was taken. according to a u.s. official with direct knowledge of that matter. a usda safety inspector working here in mexico, to make sure the shipments of avocados bound for

the united states met u.s. safety standards. one of the inspectors received what this official called a credible death threat after that inspector did not allow a shipment of avocados to go from the state up north to the united states. and this official added that it's not yet known who made this death threat and that u.s. embassy personnel from here in mexico city have already been dispatched to the state to try to get to the bottom of this and try to figure out how to get these talks back on track. when we asked this official how long will this temporary suspension be in place? the official said, look, there cannot be a security situation where the united states feels like these usda safety inspectors can't do their job without fearing for their lives or this official saying this temporary ban won't be lifted until they feel safe.

this is going to have a big impact depending on how long all of this lasts. economically speaking there's hundreds of thousands of jobs that rely on the export industry here in mention i conned at the united states. consumers are going to see perhaps problems with avocado supply given that mexico is far and away the largest exporter of avocados. consumers may have a hard time finding the avocados. if they find them, the price might very well go up according to multiple analysts cnn has spoken to. matt rivers, cnn, mexico city. ♪ ♪ new information shows three different substances sometimes used to treat heart conditions

were found in the star valiyeva back in december. 159-year-old is at the center of russia's latest doping scandal but was cleared to compete in the single event. two other drugs were also found. those two substances are not banned. valiyeva came in at the top of the program and is a favorite to win another gold medal this week. steven jiang joins us with more. first of all, look, she skated beautifully yesterday and was incredibly emotional. you can imagine how stressful this has been for her. talk to us about the heart conditions, heart medications and how the news is playing out at the olympics among other athletes. >> reporter: at least for the olympians here in beijing, they seem to be trying to rise above the frey declining to comment on the specifics of the case while

focusing on their own games and emphasizing the importance of having a level playing field. interestingly the chinese state media has mostly ignored the story and their tv announcers make no mention of the doping allegations against her when valiyeva performed tuesday night. the report that she tested positive for three drugs surrounds doubts. one substance was used by her grand grandfather, another used by her mother to treat her heart condition. it's painting this increasingly damning picture on her entourage and further convincing experts not to mention critics of her being part of russia's long standing doping scandal. this is what the u.s. told us several hours ago. >> having these three, two declared and one obviously testing positive that wasn't declared, one that was

prohibited, just raises significant red flags and alarm bells. there is someone behind whether it is a coach, doctor in the state that is helping this young athlete and teaching this young athlete to use these substances in order to increase and enhance performance. >> reporter: now tygart told us one is banned and the other two have long been on the radar for the performance enhancing capabilities. the amount of tmz in her body is more than a trace level. all of this is consistent with an intentional use instead of just an accidental intake. isa? >> still lots and lots of questions remain. steven jiang, thank you very much, steven. it was an unspeakable crime at an elementary school. the massacre at sandy hook left families devastated.

some have finally won a legal battle. and a massive operation to stop trafficking. 500 arrests in california. how they are protecting the public. >> we can't arrest our way out of this problem. we can't legislate our way out of this problem. we need communities to stand up. understand what's happening. reclaim our streets. reclaim our neighborhoods. reclaim our schools. this is on us. with citrus and mt to uplift the senses and transform your mood.d. air wick essential mist aroma.

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the massacre of sandy hook elementary school in 2012 stands out. even in a country where mass shootings have become painfully frequent. 22 children and 6 adults have been killed. families of 9 of the victims have won a hard-fought legal battle. >> any kind of victory or forward progress you want to celebrate, then it hits you like a guilt punch that our daniel is

still gone. it's a strange psychological dynamic that continues to beat the crap out of us. >> yes. >> she's indicating someone's shooting in the building. >> daniel barden was 7 years old when he was murdered at sandy hook elementary. one of 20 children and 6 adults killed that day in 2012. >> what has happened, what has transpired at that school building will leave a mark on this community and every family impacted. >> overnight memorials like this small connected town, images of angels, messages of strength for 26 families now faced with an unimaginable horror. >> one moment we had this dazzling, energetic 6-year-old little boy and the next all we had left were echos of the past. every day is a realization that he should be here yet he's not.

>> reporter: the shooter that day, a deeply troubled 20-year-old killed his mother before opening fire at the school with a bushmaster semi-automatic ar-15 style rifle. two years later the families of 9 victims fired a lawsuit against the makers of that gun, bushmaster and its maker remington. it was seemed as an uphill battle in wrongful death cases by family members. >> this victory, this landmark historic victory sentences sends a forceful and historic victory this is a high-risk market. it is not profitable and you will be held accountable. >> reporter: that historic victory, a $73 million settlement with remington and its insurers. it will allow families to make thousands of internal documents

public to families. >> wanted to make sure they had found everything that was going on behind closed doors. >> this settlement is a tremendous risk for gun manufacturers because it allows the plaintiffs and the public to lift the curtain and see how guns are marketed and to whom and why and how much is spent on that. >> while the settlement is a victory, the families insist it is not justice. >> it's very emotional. it's because he was murdered as a direct outcome of what was going on. >> true justice would be our 15-year-old healthy and standing next to us right now, but benny will never be 15. he will be 6 forever because he is gone forever.

>> reporter: cnn has reached out to remington and its insurers for comment, we have not heard back. i'm erica hill, cnn. a new york person said she was missing since 2019. she was found under this staircase in new york city. she was found with her mother who did not have legal custody. authorities have searched for her. the residents always denied she was there. detectives finally made a discovery monday. >> our officers were up and down those steps several times and never heard the child never made a sound but the detectives said there was something odd about the stairs, just the way they were constructed, the way they felt when they were walking on them. he took a look at the stairs and between two of the stair boards there was a crack. he used a flashlight, looked in there and he saw what he believed was a light at the

bottom. so they used a control and they started removing the steps of the staircase and sure and behold they found a pair of feet. >> police have arrested the child's custodial parents as well as another relative. the girl is now with her legal guardian. authorities in california arrested 500 people in a statewide crackdown on human trafficking. that includes suspected traffickers and sex buyers. police say they rescued more than 70 adult victims and eight child victims during the week long operation. the los angeles county sheriff had this message. have a listen. >> we stand with each victim of this heinous crime. you are the focus of this endeavor. we are here for you and here to help you reclaim your freedom and the depravity to help you rebuild your lives. to the traffickers, l.a. county sheriff's department and our partners will not tolerate the enslavement and trafficking of others in any form.

we will seek you out, find you and prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law. >> the annual police operations helped several to work together. russia says some of its troops are pulling back from the ukraine border but satellite images tell a different story. we have the details for you just ahead. plus, with his reputation already in tatters, prince edwards reaches a settlement with virginia guiffre. we'll have the latest next. why ? visibly diminish wrinkled skin in... crepe correctotor lotion... only from gold bond.

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welcome back to "cnn newsroom." i'm isa soares in london. >> i'm michael holmes. we'll take you to our top stories at this hour. moments ago nato secretary general and u.s. defense secretary lloyd austin gave some remarks ahead of a meeting of defense ministers. russia's defense ministry has released video showing military equipment crossing the bridge from crimea into russia. this is coming a day after some troops were being sent back to base. western officials are skeptical of that announcement. the message on tuesday, president biden warrant of an invasion of ukraine and it is distinctly possible that could happen while it is still a question whether russian troops are actually pulling back, the arrival of more military equipment is clear. jim sciutto reports on the latest satellite images.

>> reporter: new video from the russian ministry of defense as it claims that some units have completed their exercises and are now returning to their home bases. the russian military did not identify the locations. cnn located one rail yard where these tanks were being loaded on to a train. it's in crimea. asked if nato has been able to verify russian assertions that some units are going home, estonia's prime minister told me, not yet. >> we'll believe it when we see it, but we don't see it right now. russia has done this military buildup around ukraine for already months so nothing has been seen in a few days or a few we haven't seen any real deescalation yet. >> reporter: there is still plenty of russian armor near ukraine and moving closer still. among the more recent arrivals, transport and attack

helicopters. these near belgrade a few miles from the ukrainian border. these are showing more than 60 helicopters in a disused airfield in crimea. there was nothing there a few days ago. helicopters shown are attack, transport 40 miles from ukraine's southern coast. off the coast russia's defense ministry is reporting on the black sea navy drills which involve some 40 ships. maxar also detected that the russian air force has deployed at least ten su 34 strike bombers near an airport near kraznadar. the airfield is some 40 miles near the sea. it will be a few days before new satellite images and video can confirm that at least part of the force of 130,000 russian troops have, indeed, moved away from ukraine. for now a substantial force on land, in the air and at sea

remains on three sides of ukraine. jim sciutto, cnn, kyiv. >> and our thanks to jim sciutto for that report. i'm michael holmes in leviv in western ukraine. much more on the tensions in ukraine coming up on "early start" in 20 minutes or so. for now throw it back to isa soares in london. isa. >> thank you very much, michael. now to the investigation into the u.s. capitol insurrection. the january 6th committee has issued a new round of sub subpoenaed. the subpoenas were sent to two members of the trump campaign. investigators are digging into efforts to send illegitimate letters to key swing states that president donald trump's loss has delayed certifying joe biden's victory. we have an update on sarah palin's lawsuit against "the new

york times." attorneys for the former vice presidential candidate said they are considering an appeal. the judge in the case had already said he would dismiss the suit whatever the jury's verdict was because palin's attorney did not prove the case. and a lot of speculation here in the u.k. about prince andrew's future and his role really in public life now that he's settled a sexual abuse case. she alleged she was trafficked by elaine maxwell and jeffrey epstein. many are wondering how the payment will be made. anna, it seems to me at least from the papers here, that is the clarity that everyone wants to know. what will his future look like and also who is paying for this. the papers, there is one so you

can see there. a deal fto halt a sex claim. one 10 million for humiliation. another reports it as 12 million. we don't know. and as people ponder these questions this morning. >> i think you're looking at the headlines, he has not had his name cleared in the court of public opinion. the public wants to know how much is the settlement in terms of the money but also to her charity which is part of the settlement agreement. we don't know who will pay for it because can prince andrew who has no discernible income aside from a small naval pension. he did sell a chalet or will he be leaning on the queen but she's wealthy in her own right.

she could fund herself. these are the questions. also, should he lose the duke of york title? he has been stripped of his military title and his other title. people in the british public want to know. >> what about the tone and the language? when i read it it seemed to be a huge win for guigiuffre here. >> it should be known that prince andrew's team said they were baseless. prince andrew said he had never even met virginia giuffre. yesterday they said prince andrew never expected to resign. at one stage he is accused of make money. >> yes. >> she wants to achieve another pay day at his expense. in terms of the change of tone, a huge victory, but he hasn't

accepted liability. >> thank you very much. now still to come right here on the show, team u.s.a. aims to keep dominating men's slopestyle. they have some competition here. we have the latest victory and defeat. we'll have the latest with our coy wire. lactaid is 100% real m milk, just without the lactose. so you can enjoy it even if you're sensitive to dairy. so anyone who says lactaid isn't real milk is also saying mabel here isn't a real w. and she really hates that.

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♪ ♪ and it is a good day to be part of team u.s.a. in the men's free ski slopestyle. on day 12 of the beijing winter games u.s. athletes took both the gold and the silver medal from the event with sweden taking the bronze. monitoring for us, coy wire joins us from beijing with the latest from the olympics. coy, a big, big day from team u.s.a. >> reporter: yeah, absolutely. good to see you, isa. temperatures were well below

freezing in the men's slalom. tricky slopes for them. the tall man clement noel slithering his way through the gates was sixth heading into run number two, his combined time of 1:09.44. it's the color gold like his helmet. his long legs were like pistons navigating that course. it's frapnce's first gold. he edges out johannes scholes by .6 of a second to take the gold. in free ski slopestyle final action, it's team u.s.a. taking the top two spots on the podium. alex hall grabbing gold. nick goepper grabbing silver and sweden got bronze. goepper has two silvers and a

bronze. he's overcome alcohol abuse, depression and he's become an advocate for mental health. alex hall was born in alaska, grew up in switzerland with parents who are professors at the university of zurich. didn't get coached up until he was 16 years old. now he stands today as a gold medalist in the olympics. this is further proof that the americans actually dominate the event dating back to the debut in 2014. they have won six of the nine medals awarded. huge day for slovakia in the men's hockey team defeating the previously unbeat enamerican team to advance in the semi-finals. it was a dramatic finish. slovakia tieing the game with 44 seconds to go sending it to a shootout. the u.s.u.s. man's hockey team in team in decades. huge by goalie patrick rybar rising to the occasion. slovakia now is headed off one step closer to an olympic medal after beating the ninth ranked

team in the world after coming into these games, isa. >> coy wire, thank you very much. i'll touch base with you tomorrow. now u.s. woman has become the third known person cured of hiv thanks to transplant of stem cells from umbilical cord blood. she was diagnosed with leukemia after her hiv diagnosis. after chemotherapy destroyed her blood cells, she received stem cells and it makes cells resistant to hiv infections. three years after she had stopped taking hiv medication she has no detectible virus 14 months later. still ahead on "cnn newsroom," millions of americans are bracing for colder temperatures and stormy weather. sorry. >> winter coming back with a vengeance across portions of the midwestern united states, parts of central plains and as much as 8 inches in storm.

spring-like patterns of weather coming across the southern u.s. we'll touch on this momentarily. mucinex lasts 3x l longer for 12 hours.

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are you a christian author with a book that you're ready to share with the world? get published now, call for your free publisher kit today! now a cold front could bring snow, ice, flooding and wind to millions of americans across the

united states. meteorologist paid dram javaheri has more. good morning. >> good morning, isa. a pattern coming across the united states. colder air coming in after big-time heat. gusty winds have been in place. wintry weather across the higher elevations of southern california. take you 80 miles east of southern california. lake arrowhead. thunder snow speaks to the inclement weather in place, instability in the atmosphere. not only seeing lightning during heavy snow but also 1/4 inch size hale and winds 25 miles an hour. hail even reported into portions of los angeles. notice the winds were howling. still have high wind alerts. parts of california into areas even across new mexico as well. we expect the gusty winds to persist. the system pushes towards the east. working towards areas further to the east central plains and even

to the midwest, 4 to 8 inches of snowfall. kansas city into chicago. little further south of this region could see an area where ice secretion takes place. farther south from there, talking about heavy rainfall potentials. just a mess developing here over the next say 24 to 48 hours. st. louis, indianapolis, cleveland could see three inches of rainfall. flooding could be an issue. severe element. slight risk. not a widespread setup here. the biggest threat going to be hail and isolated tornadoes. some areas that could see this are dallas, wichita falls, okc farther east we go. introduce atlanta and nashville as some of the larger cities going into the afternoon and evening hours. temperature trend. look at this. atlanta into the 70s and

dropping to the 50s. nashua, 71 to 44. a seesaw battle from the seasons here as washington sees a surge before dropping down into the 40s. isa? >> thank you very much, pedram. new report from rising sea levels may trigger a sinking feeling for those living in coastal communities. that is because the sea level is set to rise as much in the next 30 years as it did in the past 100. the report by the national oceanic administration shows scientists are growing confident that u.s. coasts will see another 10 to 12 inches by 2050. that will lead to an increase in coastal flooding. cities like new york and miami have a rise in high tide levels. and that does it here for me on "cnn newsroom." thanks very much for your company. i'm isa soares in london. our coverage of the

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♪ ♪ all right. it's wednesday, february 16th. 5 a.m. exactly here in new york. thanks for getting an "early start" in new york. i'm christine romans. >> i'm laura jarrett. thanks to our viewers in the united states and all around the world. we begin with the world watching and waiting for russia's next move. will vladimir putin pull the trigger and order an invasion? president biden preparing americans for the possibility