and started botox® sooner. plus, right now, you may pay zero dollars for botox®. ask your doctor about botox® 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 and we are following the breaking news coverage of the war in ukraine. and just ahead right here on "cnn newsroom." >> vladimir putin is intent on destroying ukraine. >> we have seen many things that were unimaginable. >> they stay on the ground three, four days, they do not see the sky, they do not see the sun. >> many people are traumatized. >> russian people are living in perverted relative. >> we all stand together and we

are highly motivated to defend our country because this is our home. >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. it is monday, march 14th, and another round of talks between russia and ukraine is set to take place in the hours ahead as the war in ukraine pushes well into a third week. in just the last hour, ukraine's emergency services said at least two people were killed when a residential building in a kyiv suburb was hit by shelling. this amid a widening russian offensive. now, russia's military assault has spread to western ukraine where missiles hit a military base near the city of lviv, close to the border with nato member poland. a local official says at least 35 people were killed. the white house national security adviser is warning any attack on nato territory will

trigger a full response by the alliance. a warning as well from the ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy. he said it's only a matter of time before russia's military assault expands into nato territory and he's calling once again for a no-fly zone in ukraine. the pentagon spokesman reacted to the expanding russian offensive. have a listen. >> this is their third now military facility or air field that the russians have struck in western ukraine in just the last couple of days. so clearly at least from an air-strike perspective, they're broadening their target sets. >> and this right here is mariupol. the video shows russia as you can see there firing on apartment buildings. officials in the besieged city say more than 2,000 people have been killed so far. the red cross is calling for an urgent solution for the hundreds

of thousands of residents trapped in mariupol for a worst case scenario as humanitarian aid remains stalled. and we are seeing more devastation east of where a school in one village was destroyed by russian military strike. one official said there were several casualties there. still, the russian assault is being met with strong resistance. new satellite images show ukrainians thwarted a russian military attempt to cross a pontoon bridge towards kyiv. photos show the bridge and nearby russian vehicles destroyed as you can see there. the country remains defiant as well as determined. >> translator: russia also lost thousands of units of military weaponry. 74 planes, 86 helicopters. we understand they've got more, but we also know that we shall continue defending ourselves. ukraine does not surrender.

the army does not surrender, the people do not surrender. the whole of ukraine is fighting heroically. >> let's get more on the latest developments. salma abdelaziz joins me from ukraine with the latest. salma, we have been seeing yet again russian forces getting ever so closer to kyiv. though still on the outskirts. what can you tell us about their advance in the last 24 hours or so? >> reporter: well, isa, we do understand according to western intelligence agencies that russian tanks are just about 15 miles from the outskirts of kyiv. what's been of particular concern is that there were images of this huge convoy, a 40-mile long convoy of armoured vehicles, tanks, troops, a russian armed convoy that had been on the outskirts of kyiv just a few days ago, and that appears to have dispersed. western intelligence says that is a sign potentially that russian troops could be preparing to besiege the capital. now, that's not something that is easy or could happen

overnight. there is also a geographic barrier. ukrainian resistance. but we do have a worrying sign this morning. we have new breaking information, i know you mentioned this, of a residential building in a suburb of kyiv hit in the early hours of this morning, shelling hit the 9th floor of this residential building in the district. emergency services arrived quickly. evacuated 15, 65 people were evacuated, rather, but two people have died and three were hospitalized. fires continued for hours to burn at that building. have now been put out, but emergency services are continuing rescue operations. now, why is this a worrying sign? well, the ukrainian government says that when russian troops are unable to capture a city, take, for example, mariupol. what they do is besiege, they en circle, they cut off food, they hit residential buildings and that is what has many civilians terrified, that russian tactics might be become more brutal in

the absence of clear military victories. isa? >> and, salma, on that point, where are we on the humanitarian corridor? some were promised we saw last week, not all russian stick to their promitions of letting civilians through. we are are we expecting more humanitarian corridors in the next few days? >> reporter: a green corridor set to reopen towards mariupol. there is a convoy trying to make its way there the last two days. they still have tens of miles to go before they can arrive in mariupol. it is a huge convoy with aid, help, assistance. it's led by orthodox priests who want to get into that city. again, mariupol has been cut off from electricity, food, water, basic supplies. what we hear from accounts from eyewitnesses inside mariupol is absolutely horrifying. people unable to get their basic medicines, unable to provide for their families, apparently

people who have died in shelling. their bodies left behind in streets unable to be retrieved by their families because of the fighting. so that convoy getting to mariupol is crucial. it is critical. but here's the thing, isa. this is the sixth time that the ukrainian authorities have tried to get help to mariupol. this convoy has been on the way for two days now. this will be the third day of its journey. everyone is really hoping, isa, that that convoy makes it because that help is absolutely critical for the people of mariupol. >> we will believe it when we see it, like you said, salma. it's been a city under siege for nine-plus days and like you said, the people are in dire need of humanitarian help. salma salma dabdelaziz. thanks very much. a journalist was killed. he was hit by gunfire in northern ukraine near the capital. his friend and fellow journalist juan was wounded. he described from the hospital

what happened to them. tetteh a at the time apparently he didn't know his friend was killed. have a listen. >> we were crossing the first bridge. we were going to film other refugees leaving. we got into a car. somebody offered to take us to the other bridge, and we crossed the checkpoint, and they started shooting at us. so the driver turned around and they kept shooting. it's two of us. my friend renault has been shot and left behind. >> reporter: and how is he? >> i don't know. >> reporter: you don't know? you don't know what happened to him? >> i saw he was shot in the neck. we got split. >> renault was working for time magazine. our hearts are with all of his loved ones. it is essential that journalists are able to safely cover this invasion and humanitarian crisis in ukraine. well, russia is asking china for both military as well as economic assistance in its war

against ukraine. that is according to a u.s. official. but beijing is denying it received any such request for help from moscow. the topic will, no doubt, come up as u.s. national security adviser jake sullivan meets with his chinese counterpart in the coming hours. cnn's nina dos santos is standing by with more impacts on sanctions on russia. first steven jiang on the call for assistance from china. steven, i know the thought of china weighing in this very carefully because little is gained here. tell us about the beijing response this morning. >> reporter: well, isa, the chinese foreign ministry just responded to this issue with the spokesman basically dismissing this report saying this is, again, u.s. officials peddling false information with, quote, unquote, sinister intentions. now, the timing of this leak from washington, of course, is very interesting because this is definitely putting china under an intense spotlight for its

role in the war just as jake sullivan as you mentioned is about to meet his chinese counterpart who is a key adviser to president xi jinping in rome in the coming hours. the chinese are framing this meeting a longs planned, not hastily arranged because ukraine is on top of their agenda. perhaps in anticipation of washington exerting even more pressure over beijing, chinese state media outlets have been pushing back and warning against this approach and cautioning the u.s. not to try to sow division between russia and china. obviously ever since the war broke out, china has been trying to strike a very, almost impossible balance, standing by russia when it comes to parroting the propaganda, some say disinformation from the kremlin. also trying to say the right things, isa, in public, reiterating its respect for all countries' sovereignty in peace talks, and trying to minimize chinese entity's exposure to severe western sanctions.

that's why in the past few days some analysts have been pointing to some subtle signs of change here, including china, for example, sending a small-scale humanitarian assistance to ukraine and some chinese entities indication that they were willing to comply with western sanctions. at the end of the day, experts we talked to say the chinese leadership is very pragmatic. chinese -- china's self-interest is paramount. that's why they don't see any up side for china to get deeply involved in a war not fought on its soil. the calculus, no matter what happens on the battle field, eventually a weakened and bitter russia would have almost no choice to move ever closer into china's orbit as the junior partner in this so-called no-limits partnership. that's why at this stage most experts are skeptical of china getting involved in the war especially militarily, isa. >> especially because this is supposed to be china's recovery post covid, and we all know beijing needs that stability. thanks very much. i've got nina here with me

to talk more about what russia needs and is requesting here. i mean, i don't know if you remember this, but during the beijing olympics, nina, both leaders, putin and xi jinping next to each other, talking about this new no limit alliance. the fact there was no limits to this relationship. how much does russia need china here? >> quite a lot actually, especially at the moment. in fact, it's gotten a lot closer to china, russia has, since the first round of sanctions were imposed in 2014, 2015, after russia's invasion of crimea. a number of sanctioned oligarchs, putin was sanctioned, particularly by the united states and doing a lot more business in china. there were energy projects that were taking place between china and russia as well as western pulled out. this is an extension of the relationship likely to be turbo charged here. as you just heard there from jake, we've had these interesting leaks coming up to the run up between china's top diplomat and jake sullivan. over the course of the weekend,

jake sullivan, in fact, actually told cnn the white house believes that china was pre-informed that russia was going to invade ukraine albeit they might not have been made clear exactly how, to what extent this invasion was going to be as damaging to ukraine, and the relationship between russia and the west as it was. what exactly would russia need from china? well, the white house hasn't said exactly what type of military assistance they might have asked for, but on the other hand, we know that repeatedly russia will be relying upon china to provide technological products. this is something they're not going to be getting from the west. that could be important for military assistance, but also just for consumer goods as well. i mean, we know that companies like apple and telephone companies have pulled out of russia alongside many western firms. could china make up the difference? also we know that jake sullivan has been very emphatic over the last few days saying that the united states would not tolerate

large-scale sanctions if china were to help russia with aids sanctions, and the key thing there is large scale. that's a qualifier. to understand exactly how far this diplomatic relationship will go. china and russia have had a history of closer cooperation since becoming under increasing scrutiny over issues like human rights. but on the other side of the last five, six years they've been getting closer and closer. china is russia's largest trading partner. and now obviously the west is trying to push russia to its favored trading status to get tighter. >> they are very much cornering china. they have to walk a very fine line here. both sides. nina dos santos, thank you very much. plenty of help is on its way to ukraine, u.s. help. they are moving quickly to send more military equipment to defend against the widening russian offensive. oren liebermann reports there is speed, they might target those armed shipments.

>> reporter: over the weekend the white house approved another $200 million in security assistance to ukraine. that is on top of some $350 million that was approved about two weeks ago. so in this short span since russia's invasion of ukraine, the white house is prepared to send in more than half a billion dollars of security assistance to ukraine. that's anti-armour, anti-tank, anti-aircraft missiles and more. all of which the pentagon says has been incredibly effective in slowing down the russian advance and assault across the country. where it used to take weeks or months for this to get in on previously approved packages, it is now taking days. the u.s. well aware of the fact that russia may make it difficult to get in those convoys, that equipment, and they are trying to do this as quickly as possible. in fact, deputy foreign minister from russia said they would consider targeting these convoys if they continue. national security adviser jake sullivan has made it clear they are still going in. >> the united states, our nato

allies and partners and the ukrainians have set up a system where we believe we will continue to be able to flow substantial amounts of military assistance and weapons to the front lines to help the ukrainians ensure that ukraine is a strategic failure for vladimir putin. of course, these convoys are going through a war zone, and so to describe them as safe wouldn't quite be accurate. but we believe that we have methods and systems in place to be able to continue to support the ukrainians as they fight very bravely, very effectively against the attacking russian forces. >> reporter: of course, the u.s. remains concerned about the direction this is going as russia's attack and invasion across ukraine grows wider and gets closer to nato territory in western ukraine. there, of course, remains the concern about the use of chemical weapons. u.s. officials have said they are concerned not because they have seen evidence russia is preparing such an attack, but russia has accused the u.s. and

the defense department of working in ukraine on biological and chemical weapons with ukraine. it is that sort of warning that the u.s. says could be a false flag operation as russia often accuses others of what it intends to do itself, and that is what is ringing alarm bells here. oren liebermann, cnn, at the pentagon. a journalist of the podcast ukraine, he's been hosting refugees in his home and he joins me now from ukraine. thank you very much for your time really here on the show. i want to get your sense of what you've been seeing as well as hearing in the last 24 to 48 hours as russian troops, of course, get closer to the capital. still outskirts, but getting closer. >> hi, thanks for having me. yeah, what we've seen in the past couple of days basically is that the russians are still trying to breakthrough the defensive lines that the ukrainian army has set up on the

outskirts of kyiv. they have attempted once again to breakthrough the points a that have been there since the beginning of the conflict around the kyiv, the northwestern kyiv suburb. irpin, and from the opposite side the northeastern side through the kyiv suburb. so far the russians have not been able to break through these defensive lines and have effectively been held at bay. though that has not stopped them from shelling residential neighborhoods in kyiv itself. such as where multiple strikes have killed multiple civilians in the area. >> and we saw such shelling. we're looking at pictures from shelling from this morning in the suburbs of kyiv, an apartment building on the suburbs. i mean, as you -- can you hear from where you are? talk to us about the defense from your vantage point how ukrainians have been able to withstand this pressure as they get ever so closer.

>> i mean, a lot of it is down to the fact that quite frankly we are fighting for our very existence, and that tends to motivate people quite a bit, as you can imagine. so we are incredibly determined to defend ukraine and to defend our way of life and defend the freedoms and liberties we have built over the past 30 years of independence. and the russians, well, what are they fighting for? just conquest, just imperialism. and we can see how demoralized the russian armed forces are. we can see how poorly they're supplied, how poorly the logistics is. there is even rumors of dissent within the f.s.b., russia's security service itself, with several f.s.b. higher ups said to have been placed under house arrest. so in russia their mood is nowhere close to the kind of resolve that we have to win. and obviously it's impossible to overstate how much strength

that's given us. of course, western arm shipments haven't harmed our ability to defend ourselves either. >> i know that you mentioned you've been sheltering, hosting refugees in your home. give us a sense of how many people are staying with you, whether you have enough food, enough medicine. >> yeah, luckily where i am, about 300, 300 kilometers southwest of kyiv. so it's considered relatively safe. we've had a few missile strikes, but mostly on the military air fields that surround the city. nothing within the city itself. as a result it has become one of the major staging points and thoroughfares for evacuees going from the eastern parts of the country. so i've hosted quite a few families here, and it is typically families, people with children who cannot afford to stay where they are, who have other lives to consider besides their own. and aren't exactly willing to gamble on them.

and mostly people have been in shock. i mean, in the beginning i would say about a couple -- till about maybe a couple days ago, there was still this strong sense that the war may be over very soon and normal life will continue. now i think that kind of optimism has been fading, not we're going to lose, but this is going to grind on for awhile longer and hoping for a short victory is probably not worth it. >> i mean, viewers watching from around the world are probably thinking, why would people stay? why would you stay? why would people stay? you're on the outskirts of kyiv and it's relatively safe, but why stay? >> the reason a lot of people stayed -- i asked friends that remained in kyiv itself, and their response has been, well, we have elderly relatives who refuse to leave. in a lot of cases, these are

grandparents with either some kind of age-related frailties or are stubborn the place they built their entire lives and raised families in. and they don't want to go to an unknown future in a different country at the drop of a hat and they would rather stay to take care of them. obviously a lot of people have stayed. on top of that, it is incredibly difficult to just uproot your life and leave. i mean, you don't know -- in a lot of cases, these are people who don't know the language of the country they're traveling to. they don't know the culture there, they don't know anyone there. going to a completely new place, not speaking the language, not knowing whether you're going to have food, work, a place to eat, funding, it's a really tough decision to make. as a result, a lot of people have chosen to stay. though now that the shelling has become intensified in a lot of these bigger, bigger cities near the russian border, you've seen

a lot of people start saying, well, it's getting way too dangerous. it's too much, and we have to go. >> i appreciate you taking the time to speak to us. we are in awe of your defiance as well as the rest of ukrainian people. keep safe. keep us posted. and let's stay in touch. thank you very much. >> thank you. now, more than 850 people were detained in anti-war protests across russia on sunday. that is according to an independent human rights group. it says russian security forces are no longer detaining just protesters. they are also trying to identify, quote, unreliable people in places where demonstrations were announced. overall, the group says almost 15,000 anti-war protesters have been detained in russia since the invasion of ukraine began. just ahead, ukraine's president set to address the invasion of ukraine. just ahead, you are watching "cnn newsroom." psoriatic arthritis, made my joints stiff,... ...swollen, painful.

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ukraine's president warns it is only a matter of time before russian missiles fall on people in nato territory if the western block does not close the skies

above ukraine. vladimir putin renewed his call for a no-fly zone to help stop russia's attacks, and in the coming hours mr. zelenskyy is expected to address the council of europe, the continent's leading rights organization. the group is meeting today and tomorrow to discuss russia's invasion of ukraine. cnn's natasha bertrand joins us now live from brussels with more. natasha, good morning. what more can we expect to hear from zelenskyy besides calling once again for a no-fly zone here? >> reporter: isa, he is likely to reiterate the message he has been sending the last few weeks and months ukraine wants to be a member of european union. of course, last week e.u. members met and they decided against fast tracking the candidacy status for ukraine. that has been very disappointing obviously for zelenskyy in addition to calling for the no-fly zone. he has been conveying to the europeans that ukraine feels

european -- that they would find it to be a very important symbolic message to russia to be a member of the e.u. and this is not only a fight that they are waging on behalf of ukraine, but also for the whole of europe, much in line with what he said yesterday about the possibility that missiles might actually start to fall in nato and in european territory. so this is going to be an opportunity for him yet again to send that message. and it comes just days after europe actually slapped new sanctions on russia, targeting its energy sector, targeting banning luxury good exports from the e.u. actually cutting them off from that most favored nation trade status. the e.u. is trying its best here to help ukraine under the circumstances, but they say they are not yet prepared to implement this kind of fast track status for their membership because ukraine is in the middle of a war right now. it would be pretty untenable for them to have this application be considered as they have been struggling, of course, to get

their legal, political and financial systems in line with e.u. standards. and so this is not a priority right now for the europeans. they say the priority is actually to be sending additional humanitarian and lethal aid to ukraine to help them fend off the russians. we expect to hear this plea yet again from zelenskyy to get ukraine into the e.u. as fast as possible. >> natasha bertrand for us in brussels. excuse me. thanks very much, natasha. and coming up right here -- pardon me -- waves of refugees from ukraine are crossing into poland. a report from one border town when we come back. >> some of them are tired and had pain in the stomach. they are children. many of the people are traumatized.

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welcome back to "cnn newsroom." i'm isa soares. an update on our breaking news story out of ukraine this hour. russia and ukraine are expected to hold another round of diplomatic talks later today. officials on both sides have signalled they are making progress, but so far negotiations haven't really yielded any major breakthroughs. meanwhile, the fighting rages on. officials in kyiv say at least two people were killed this morning after a russian strike hit a residential building in the northern part of the city. in southeastern ukrainian, meanwhile, video shows russian tanks firing inside the city where aid workers say hundreds of thousands of civilians remain trapped. russian state media is also

reporting troops have secured a land corridor in mariupol from 2014. cnn has not been able to confirm those reports. we are also learning russia has asked for military and economic assistance from china. that is according to senior u.s. officials. but china is denying those reports, saying russia has not asked for help to support its war in ukraine. meanwhile, local officials say at least 35 people were killed on sunday after russian missiles hit a military base in western ukraine. that is near the polish border. despite russia's relentless assaults, ukrainian leaders and citizens remain determined to defend their country. kyiv's mayor and his brother spoke to cnn earlier about their country's united front. >> the whole country is highly motivated to stop russian aggression and the war.

there is nothing that is possibly can break the will of our women and men. we all stand together and we're highly motivated to defend our country because this is our home. that's where our children were going to school. that's where our relatives buried in the ground. this is our home, and there's no other way that we're going to leave, and why? because this is our home. so we will defend the country until last drop of the blood. >> and regarding how much time we have, we have a lot of time. we never lose the fight for our home, for our future. because whole population against russian aggressors. we never give up. that way we continue this war. but the key which can stop this war is the unity of all world.

we have to make pressure, political pressure, sanction pressure, and please weapon deliverance to ukraine . >> what you are looking at is ukraine, a city under russian occupation. you can see hundreds of people turned out, the largest protests since russia invaded. at least one russian soldier fired over their heads to make them disperse. the protesters you can see there were not deterred and continue to chant anti-russian slogans. well, nearly 2.7 million people have fled ukraine and that is according to the u.n. but getting civilians out of some areas have been near impossible because, of course, the heavy fighting. temperatures are well below

freezing as hundreds of refugees, including the elderly wait in those long lines to cross ukrainian border into neighboring countries such as moldova. on sunday the ukrainian government says that more than 5,000 people were evacuated using humanitarian corridors. nearly 4,000 were from the kyiv region and about 1600 were able to escape from luhansk. cnn's ed lavandera has more on the plight of the ukrainian refugees. >> reporter: this is the pathway that is bringing thousands of ukrainian refugees to safety, and also to a life of uncertainty. many of these people have been traveling from the interior of the country. we spoke with one family that had come from, as fate would have t the hometown of volodymyr zelenskyy's hometown. it's become such a beloved figure among ukrainian people. they told us they had been traveling since 7:00 in the

morning on sunday, and it was just after midnight when they finally arrived to this border checkpoint in the cold here in poland. and the uncertainty now comes from the fact that as these families begin to board these buses, what happens to them next is still very much up in the air. they will be taken to temporary shelter in a nearby town here on the polish border, and they will be able to figure out what to do next, where to go next. and that is the question that so many of them are now facing because many of them, when you speak to these refugees, they talk about their homes in the past tense. so they don't know if they're going home in the coming weeks or even months or if ever. and this is an operation here in the border city of madika, poland, running 24 hours a day as thousands of refugees continue to come across the border. this is a scene even here in the late hours continues to unfold

as thousands of refugees continue to arrive at the border here in western ukraine. a great deal of uncertainty about what happens next, a great deal of emotion, watching what so many of these people and the journey they've been through, and this is a scene that just continues to play out around the clock here in poland. ed lavandera, cnn medyka, poland. >> if you would like to help people in ukraine who may need shelter, food as well as water, please go to cnn.com/impact. there you will find several ways that you can help. that's cnn.com/impact. and just ahead right here on "cnn newsroom," ukraine's train system is a reliable main stay of daily life. how rail operators are keeping people and supplies moving despite the russian invasion. that is next. enough, crohn's! for adults with moderate to severe crohn's or ulcerative colitis, stelara® can provide relief, and is the first t approved medication

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another area of concern is chernobyl, the international atomic agency says the nuclear power plant staff are so tired they stop carrying out repairs and maintenance of safety equipment. the i.a.e.a. said it has to be approved by ukrainian and russian authorities before it is implemented. despite bombardment, the rail system continues to be a reliable lifeline for their people. they are challenged for its operators. cnn's scott mclean now reports. >> reporter: the first light in ukraine is the rising sun. the city's lights have been kept off since the war began. more than two weeks that have exhausted, overwhelmed and completely upended normal life. but through it all, ukraine's rail network has kept running. every morning the railways executives led by 37-year-old

alexander gather for a morning call. no cell phones, no zoom, just a soviet-era closed circuit system that connects every station. they won't stay here long. they can't. they believe they're a prime russian target. >> the strategy is to move fast so that they don't catch you. >> reporter: how long can you stay in one place? >> hours. >> reporter: instead, their workmanaging 231,000 employees continues on a single her car train headed west for now. often their work is aboard ordinary passenger trains to blend in with the masses. since the war began, they've been in near constant motion, crisscrossing the country to keep the russians guessing. the decision to leave their headquarters in kyiv was made in the early morning hours of february 24th. he snapped one last picture with his two young kids, one still asleep. are they still in ukraine? how does that make you feel?

>> for me it's easier when they know they are safe, and i have time to do my job. >> reporter: the country's rail network, one of the largest in the world, has been a lifeline in war, moving desperately needed supplies in and desperate people out of danger. more than 2 million since the invasion began. schedules are drawn up the night before and changed in response to panic scenes like this one in kharkiv or in lviv in the early days of war. how on earth have people still been able to use the trains in a war zone? >> that's something which is surprising for the whole country, and for the president as well. >> reporter: surprising because every day the network is hit by russian bombs. small damage breaks the link between cities temporarily. a downed bridge indefinitely. near kharkiv, an undetonated bomb fell right next to the tracks. >> translator: we are reacting

and repairing railway even under artillery shelling every day. unfortunately, some of my colleagues have been killed and injured during shelling. >> reporter: 33 killed, 24 injured, and counting. the difficulty working aboard a moving train is the cell phone signal is not always great. now, they do have starlink systems courtesy of elon musk, but they barely ever turn them on because they say it makes it easier for the russians to target their location. the russians have taken control of rail links in cities like besieged mariupol. they are still connected by ukrainian rail. how bad would it be if the russians took these major stations? >> don't ask me how much. >> reporter: when the train reaches lviv, he makes a quick visit to the main station. then more calls and meetings,

and a message for the rest of the world. >> what we can do, what west can do, close the sky and all the rest we do ourselves. >> reporter: scott mclean, cnn, in western ukraine. and we've been telling you about misinformation the chem lynn has been broadcasting in russia about the invasion in ukraine calling it a special operation. earlier cnn spoke to misha who lives in ukraine and has family in russia. he tells us he's having a hard time convincing his own father about the reality of the war. have a listen. >> my father is 58 and he lives in, like a small village in the forest. and he doesn't use internet, so the only media he can read or watch, it's like a federal tv and the federal newspaper. so that's not like something new for him. yeah, and when i called him to tell what's going on in my family in my city, he start

arguing with me and he told me that, no, everything is not like you are talking about. so, in reality russia is not bombing you. russia is making special operation, it's peaceful and they're trying to kick out the nazi government from your country. there is no nazi government in my country. and also he told me the most impressive thing for me that russian soldiers, they are giving warm clothes and food to locals and to ukrainian military. so they are quite kind people in the eyes of my father. so that was the story. i tried to explain him that it's not true, and i'm here in kyiv and i see everything with my own eyes. he thinks that i'm also victim of propaganda, and he told me that, no, all information you've got, that's ukrainian propaganda. that's the thing. so russian people are living in

perverted reality which was formed by federal channels and by the years, 20 years. i know my father loves me and he wants to believe me. he just cannot because in his reality, that's unbelievable. that's all, and then after this ca call i made the post on instagram this story, and it became viral. they realized millions of people have a similar problem. and mothers does not believe daughters. sisters doesn't believe brothers. nobody believes to nobody in russia and ukraine. that's totally horrible. >> families are clearly being driven apart for different reasons. he and his colleagues have created a website to help others share the truth about what is happening in ukraine. we'll have much more news ahead right here on the show. thanks, gary. and for unexpected heartburn... frank is a fan o of pepcid. it works in minutes.

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ancestry's helped me really understand my family's immigration experience and what life must have been like for them. and as i pass it on to my daughter, it's an important part of understanding who we are.

i support ukraine and the people here. trying to escape and just be ever present of the horrors amidst the celebration that

casts a shadow on all of us. the 2022 baftas were held in london where actors and film makers wearing blue and yellow as you can see or ribbons to show their solidarity with ukraine. the show kicked off with a statement of support for the people of ukraine, and journalists, of course, covering the conflict. actress and comedian rebel wilson insulted vladimir putin while introducing sign language interpreters giving the middle finger to the camera. have a look. >> our thoughts are also at this time with the people afflicted by the conflict in ukraine. in all sign languages, this is the jess two for putin. -- gesture for putin. >> that is not in translation. it was an emotional return to the pitch for ukraine's andrei, the west ham striker. he scored the team's opening goal and broke down in tears

after celebrating with his teammates. he is also the former captain of ukraine's national team. he had been granted compassionate leave from west ham since the invasion began. and this was his first time back on the field. west ham went on to win the match 2-1. well, it turns out retirement doesn't sit well with tom brady. the 44-year-old legendary quarterback says he'll return for his 23rd season in the national football league. just last month brady said he was retiring, remember, after his second season with the tampa bay buccaneers. he tweeted this on sunday. these past two months i've realized my place is still on the field and not in the stands. that time will come, but it's not now. that does it for this hour. i'm isa soares. our breaking news coverage on the war in ukraine continues. we start with christine romans and laura jarrett. you are watching cnn. i shall see you tomorrow. bye-bye.

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>> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. it is monday, march 14th, 5:00 a.m. here in new york. thanks for getting an early start with us. i'm christine romans. >> nice to be back with you, christine. i'm laura jarrett. woll welcome to our viewers in the united states and around the world. we begin with putin's war right at nato's doorstep. russians hit a large military base close to the polish border. now, despite the escalation, ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy's resolve only