welcome to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and all around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. hazed on "cnn newsroom".

>> and for those who have been wronged and betrayed, i am your retribution. i am your retribution. >> fiery words from donald trump in front of a very supportive crowd. we'll bring you the message he and other republicans brought to cpac. ohio once again facing a train derailment. details plus the latest from the toxic spill in east palestine is just ahead. and later, one ukrainian mother's journey to america, with her children to escape the horrors of war. the remarkable path she took, the stranger who took her in, and her message to those she was forced to leave behind. >> announcer: live from cnn center, this is "cnn newsroom" with kim brunhuber. an adoring crowd at the conservative political action conference gives former u.s. president donald trump a rapturous reception and momentum for his 2024 presidential campaign. trump said he wouldn't drop out of the presidential race if he was indicted in the state or federal investigations he faces.

he also promised retribution against democrats and establishment republicans. here he is. >> in 2016, i declared, i am your voice. today, i add, i am your warrior. i am your justice. and for those who have been wronged and betrayed, i am your retribution. i am your retribution. >> a straw poll at the conference found 62% want him to be the republican nominee, only 20% want florida governor ron desantis. cnn's kristen holmes has more on conference. >> former president trump talking to a very enthusiastic crowd here at cpac. he pitched himself for another trip to the oval office. he talked about how he wanted to obliterate the deep state. he took on the establishment, particularly republicans. take a listen. >> we're not going back to people that want to destroy our great social security system, even some in our own party.

i wonder who that might be. that want to raise the minimum age of social security to 70, 75 or even 80 in some cases. and that are out to cut medicare to a level that it will no longer be recognizable. >> reporter: now, that was a thin ly veiled jab at ron desantis who while he was in congress suggested changes to those social security and medicare programs. that is something that trump has gone after him a number of times over. the florida governor has not entered the 2024 presidential race, but he is seen as trump's most formidable opponent, should he decide to run for president. but it was interesting, as we walked around during this event for the last several days, this used to be the premiere event for conservatives. instead, it seems now like the trump show. almost all of the speakers were trump-centric, they were supporters, people who wanted to see him in office in 2024. and it showcased really the deep divide within the republican party, particularly as we noted,

so many of these potential 2024 hopefuls decided to skip the event this year. and it really set up what is expected to be a very ugly republican primary. kristen holmes, national harbor, maryland. >> republican colorado representative lauren boebert addressed the conference friday as did kari lake, who repeated familiar false claims about election fraud. here she is. >> they stole an election in broad daylight. right front of us. and then they dared us to do something about it. they dared us to do something. >> we had just begun winning. we took back the house and i'm excited about our slim majority, because that gave us leverage to actually do something. leverage to govern as we campaign rather than looking at that "r" next to our name and thinking it stands for

"rollover." >> and it's not just american conservatives at cpac. brazil's former president also spoke at the conference on saturday. jaer bolsonaro made comments that cast doubt on the lerks that he lost. he also told the crowd that he sees as leading brazil as a calling for him and he believes his job isn't yet complete. here he is. >> translator: and also for the mission of being the president of brazil for one term. but i feel deep inside that this mission is not over. >> saturday was the final day of the conference. meantime, sources tell cnn that trump's legal team is seeking to block testimony from mike pence on matters covered by executive privilege, in the criminal investigation into efforts to overturn trump's 2020 election loss. the justice department has asked a judge to compel the former vice president's testimony.

friday's request from the trump team was is submitted secretly in a sealed proceeding and it's unclear how long it will take to unfold. but cnn legal commentator ely honig doubts it will be successful. here he is. >> i think it's very much of a long shot. i think donald trump has a steep, rocky, uphill climb, legally. he's invoking executive privilege, meaning, i had conversations when i was president with one of my key advisers, my vice president, that needs to remain secret, but he's got two big problems. one, dronald trump is now a former president. while it's not impossible for a former president to invoke executive privilege, the courts have said it's much more difficult for a former president to invoke executive privilege than a sitting president. that's number one. the other problem donald trump has is, this is a criminal grand jury subpoena. and usually, courts are going to honor criminal grand jury subpoenas, and typically, with some exceptions, executive privilege does not prevail over a grand jury subpoena. so it's a shot in the dark here. i think it's got a chance of

succeeding, but only a very long shot chance here. >> and pence has already announced plans to fight his subpoena. he says he's shielded by the constitution's speech or debate clause. american author marian williamson has once again announced she will run for president in 2024. the democrat launched her campaign on friday, setting up a primary challenge to president joe biden who is widely expected to seek re-election. williamson told supporters that she's running to fight economic and social injustices. here she is. >> we know that this country is plagued by many challenges now, not the least of which is hatred and division, which is greater than any of us have experienced in our national life. and it is our job to create a vision of justice and love that is so powerful that it will override the forces of hatred and injustice and fear. >> you may remember williamson preached a similar message to voters during her previous campaign in 2020, which failed to gain traction.

later today, president biden will commemorate a singular moment in civil rights history when he travels to selma, alabama, to mark the anniversary of bloody sunday. it was there in 1965 that riot police attacked peaceful marchers as they crossed the edmund pettus bridge into town. today, that bridge has become a potent symbol of the civil rights legacy. this will be biden's third visit to selma for the anniversary and his first as president. one month after a toxic train derailment in east palestine, ohio, there's been another norfolk southern derailment in the state. it happened saturday in springfield. according to norfolk southern, there was no injuries reported and no hazardous materials involved. once desc one witness described what he saud. >> i was watching it and people were sitting there and you could watch it off the tracks and kicking up gravel, but once the cars started coming off and collapsing on to one another, it was time to go.

and you see everybody going backwards down the road and getting out of there. >> the road near the scene of the accident was closed. company teams are headed to the site to begin the cleanup. local emergency management officials asked residents within a thousand feet of derailment to shelter in place out of an abundance of caution, and that has now been lifted after officials determined there was no risk to public health. residents of east palestine were invited to tour their town's water treatment plant on saturday. plant employees explain where the city's wells were located and answered questions about the water system, according to local officials, and ohio governor mike dewine's office, all samples of east palestine's water to date have shown no contaminants associated with the train derailment. an estimated 2.7 million gallons of wastewater have been removed from the derailment site. firefighters in the u.s. have been pulling out a blaze involving hazardous materials along a maryland highway. a tanker truck crashed on u.s. route 15 in frederick saturday, killing the driver and sparking a fire that engulfed the truck

and damaged nearby homes and vehicles. officials say the truck was carrying flammable liquids, but none of the liquids entered the city's sewer system. >> the maryland department of the environment, the frederick county of hazardous materials and the frederick city of public works are on the scene and confirmed that the hazardous materials involved in the incident are contained. they were contained prior to reaching carroll creek. >> authorities plan to be on the look out for any environmental effects from this crash in the days ahead. in southern california, some residents in the mountains are still buried under several feet of snow after a severe winter storm lashed the region last week. have a look. this was a desperate cry for help in san bernardino county, as residents are running low on food, medicine, and gas and roads remain closed. dozens lined up hoping to receive food. the roof on the town's only grocery store collapsed earlier this week.

many residents are getting frustrated as help is coming slowly. >> women are stuck at home with their children, and they're on their last two chicken breasts. and there's no help. >> some ladies need diapers, some people need medicine, some people cannot get their insulin on time. the pharmacies are closed. i mean, it's crazy up there. >> one fedex driver in kentucky is lucky to be alive right now. just watch what happened along his route on friday. >> tony tells cnn it's now setting in how close he came to getting seriously hurt or worse. gosh, just look at that, when a tree toppled after hours of rough weather. he was still scanning packages on the porch when he said something felt off. he heard a creeking sound and saw a shadow out of the corner of his eye. that's when he started running.

after the tree crashed on to the porch, tony was unarmed, but he called the home's homeowner to make sure he knew what happened. the u.s. so far hasn't supplied fighter jets to ukraine, but now we're learning that ukrainian pilots are in the u.s. to find out how quickly they could master flying jets like this one. and the man at the center of the deadly train derailment appears in court as mourners gather outside the courthouse. we'll go l live to athens. coming up. stay with us. to a little eggs and bacon. day or night, it's always s time for crepes. for a limited time, buy one, get one free with five flavors that are delicious any time of day. only from ihop. download the app and earn free food with every order.

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make sure you have downy unstopables in-wash scent boosters. shop for downy unstopables online, including our lighter scent. cnn's learning that two ukrainian pilots are here in the u.s., being evaluated for possible training on american-made fighter jets. three sources briefed on the matter say the goal is to see how quickly those pilots would learn to fly f-16s and other aircraft. ukraine has been pushing to acquire western fighter jets, but the u.s. and some of its allies have been skeptical about the idea. now all of this as fighting rages for control of the ukrainian city of bakhmut. [ gunfire ] >> ukraine says it's still holding the line in bakhmut despite russia trying to make a

final push to encircle the city. this video was posted on saturday, showing ukrainian troops exchanging fire with russians on the streets. one ukrainian soldier says the only thing certain right now is the uncertainty. z >> translator: i don't know what is coming tomorrow or even this evening. the situation is changing every minute. there might be shelling right now. no one knows what will happen tomorrow. we will see. >> now live from london, selma abdel adis. how long can they hold out? >> all eyes on bakhmut, the primary flashpoint right now in this conflict, where ukrainian troops say russian forces are doing everything they can to encircle the city, ukrainian forces saying they've been able to repel several attacks by moscow's troops and vogner mercenaries, just in the last 24 to 48 hours.

but they say those attacks, those very ferocious attacks keep coming, constant artillery shelling, multiple rocket launchers used, those street-to-street battles that you played video of earlier continuing. president zelenskyy using his nightly address to appoint out the challenges his men are facing on the battlefield. he says it's the most difficult war, most difficult part of the war right now is in the city of bakhmut. he goes on to say that the line of resistance, that front line is still being held by ukrainian forces. and that they have been able to repel those attacks, but also inflict damage on russian troops. president zelenskyy saying that hundreds of russia's forces have been killed in recent days and weeks, and that some have even been captured as prisoners of war. now, that still means that there's still a very bleak picture on the ground for ukrainian forces, who really have been struggling to hold this city in recent weeks and months. the major vital supply route that had connected bakhmut to a nearby village, it was that

supply route that brought weapons in, that brought supplies in to those troops. but also provided a corridor for aid for the 4,500 civilians still trapped inside. that supply was blown up in the last couple of days, cutting off this very besieged and vulnerable city from the rest of ukraine. we also understand that president zelenskyy's own men have not ruled out the possibility of having to strategically withdraw from the city. but for now, ukrainian commanders say they've been able to stabilize that front line, hold that line of resistance, but they say, kim, every hour in that city is like hell. >> and then salma, it seems as though ukraine has seen quite a few high-profile foreign diplomats, politicians come in the past week or so. the latest, the chief of the european parliament. what came out of that meeting in lviv? >> what's very interesting, kim, about this conflict is while this is happening, while this is

unfolding on the ground, ukraine has made a very clear and deliberate effort to try to collect evidence, it says, to eventually hold russia accountable for alleged war crimes, for alleged human rights violations on the ground. just from my own experience of being there, you very quickly see after a bomb attack or a missile attack, there are prosecutors on the ground. there are experts on the ground there to collect evidence. so in the realm of that, ukraine holding a united for justice conference, and inviting its partners over to begin to speak about holding russia accountable. the european parliament president was there for an unannounced visit in la viva just the other day. listen to what she said in her visit. >> when we talk about peace, we need to talk about accountability. whoever is responsible for these crimes needs to pay. and that means if we find jurisdiction for the crime of aggression, we need to find the legal means to do it.

it is about bringing persons accountable, including vladimir putin to justice. without that, we will not have peace. >> now, just before her visit, the u.s. attorney general visited as well and echoed a very similar sentiment, saying that the united states and its partners will do everything they can to hold russia accountable for any alleged war crimes or human rights violations on the ground. ukraine has stepped forward with its partners, also to build a center in the hague, of course, home of the international criminal court there. they hope, again, to bring people to justice. >> appreciate that, salma abdelaziz in london. yesterday marked one year since russia attacked and occupied ukraine's largest nuclear power plant. since then, attacks have continued near the zaporizhzhia plant, and now ukraine is worried about what russia wants to do next. >> reporter: a year into its

occupation of the zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, russia is making changes. satellite images showing the dry storage area where spent nuclear fuel is kept after being cooled. first in august last year, then at the end of february. what looks like a structure has appeared. russia's atomic energy company tells state media it's building a shield to protect against ukrainian artillery strikes. a local russian-backed official posted this in december, calling ate protective done. >> it's all in need of no radiation cycles. >> reporter: the head of ukraine's atomic energy corporation says he's powerless to stop. what is the biggest risk right now when it comes to safety in the plant? >> the biggest risk is that we do not know what is in their

hands at the moment. and you cannot expect them to do anything. so they can continue shelling on the ground, for example. >> reporter: russia, which forcibly took over the plant last month, damaging several buildings in the process, continues to use it as a de facto military base. video surfaced last summer of military trucks in one of the turbine buildings next to a reactor. last month, he accused russia of bringing hundreds of newly mobilized troops to the site before deploying them to the east. his own press service for the power plant denies there's think heavy military equipment on site, but noted that russia's national guard troops, putin's domestic security force, are go guarding the plant. >> i'm very worried about zaporizhzhia. i'm very worried. >> reporter: adams says the plant has been cut off from the electricity grid five times in total, leaving diesel generators the last line of defense before

a catastrophe. fighting has also come too close. the iaea reports shelling hit a building housing fresh nuclear fuel in september and reactor building in november. adams now estimates that 4,500 staff are left at the plant how far 11,000 before the war. >> that reduction of the number of people is going to have a significant impact on their ability to maintain and function sort of systems, whether or not that's security systems, safety systems, radiation monitoring. >> reporter: nuclear expert nick tomkinson says he is working with the ukrainian government to try to deploy radiation mapping systems at zaporizhzhia and other nuclear sites. >> one of the concerns could be that things could go missing from zaporizhzhia, particularly some of the fuel. i'm not worried about mistakes. what i would be worried about is an active decision to do something. >> reporter: ukraine's nuclear power company, though, is worried about a slow-motion

mistake. poor maintenance leading to the degradation of the equipment on the site, including the reactors themselves, currently all in various states of shutdown. >> nobody knows to how to hoerpt. and this is just a matter of time. >> reporter: the russian side says strict radiation safety standards are being observed. hardly a consolation when 20% of ukraine's electricity supply remains hostage to this war. clare sebastian, cnn, london. later this hour, you'll hear how one mom from ukraine left the war zone with her two young children and is now building a new life in california with help from her american sponsor. iran will allow the u.n.'s nuclear watchdog to monitor its atomic energy program more closely. that's according to the head of the iaea who met with irani leaders in tehran on saturday.

raphael grossi says iran will give the agency more access to certain people and sites where uranium is being enriched. he also says inspections will increase by about 50% and that some monitoring equipment will be reinstalled after being removed last year. >> we have put a tourniquet on the bleeding of information and lack of continuity of knowledge we had. so now we can start working again, reconstructing this base lines of information. and these are not words. this is very concrete. and this was a deficit we had, which we have agreed, with iran, that is going to be redressed. >> china's national people's congress is now gathered for its annual session and the policies approved here will likely be felt far beyond china. we'll have a live report from beijing just ahead. please stay with us. estion. hello 12 hours of relief. 12 hours!! not coughing? hashtatag still not coughing?! mumucinex dm gives you 12 hours of relief

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welcome back to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and around the world. i'm kim brunhuber. this is "cnn newsroom." china's national legislature is now in session for the first time since xi jinping secured his third time as head of the communist party last october. for the u.s. and other countries, the u.n. offers a glimpse into beijing's policies and goals for the coming year. the national people's congress is largely a formality with delegates signing off on policy decisions that have already been finalized by the top leaders. china's premiere, who is expected to step down after ten years in the post delivered an opening address on the state of the country and beijing's continued hard line towards

taiwan. listen to this. >> translator: we should persist in implementing our parties' overall policy on the new era on resolving the taiwan question. firmly adhere to the one china principle and the 1992 consensus. and firmly take resolute steps to oppose taiwan independence and promote reunification. >> chooip's also planning a major boost to its defense spending this year. cnn's beijing bureau chief steven jiang is tracking all of this for us from the chinese capital. so this increase in defense spending, steven, what's behind it? >> taiwan is a big reason for that, kim, as you just heard the outgoing premiere mentioning the self self-governing democracy, which the ruling party has never controlled, but has never renounced a use of force to reunite it with the mainland, because they have sovereign claims over the island. the increase budget of 7.2% for

2023 only slightly higher than last year's 7.1% on paper. but it does indicate this continuous growth several years in a row. and also, given the size of china's economy, it translates into $224 billion u.s., really dwarfing those of china's neighbors, many of whom are having territorial disputes with beijing. not to mention rising geopolitical tensions between the united states and china. we have seen the u.s., for example, in recent months expanded its access to military bases in the philippines, and also teaming up with the uk and australia to develop nuclear-powered submarines for australians. there's quite a bit of regional arms race going on. that's why this newest increase from beijing is for concerning for many. the most concerning issues for many legislators this year is probably the economic recovery, after the government abruptly ended its zero-covid policy. remember, that policy really wreaked havoc on this economy for much of last year. but after that initial chaotic

and even deadly exit from this policy, we have seen a very strong rebound in this economy. official data really showing very strong numbers in manufacturing, services, and construction starting in late january. so some were predicting the growth target for the gdp would be something closer to 6% for 2023. but the official figure, around 5%. so that relatively modest figure may be a reflection of the leadership's hesitancy in terms of how sustainable this growth is, as well as the realization, the strong headwinds that continue to face both domestically and internationally with a severely unprecedented slump in the real estate sector, a very, very high youth and unemployment rate, not to mention high interest rates around the world and the war in ukraine, and of course, the growing u.s. restrictions on technology transfer to china. kim? >> interesting. all right, thanks so much, steven jiang in beijing. north korea is objecting to

the latest u.s./south korean joint military exercises. pyongyang even calling on the united nations to urge them to stop. the united states and south korea carried out a combined military air drill on friday. the exercises involve u.s. long-range bombers, as well as south korean fighter jets. the two nations will conduct large-scale military exercises dubbed freedom shield beginning in mid-march. north korea has responded to previous military exercises with missile launches and nuclear threats. for the ninth straight week, protesters in israel have staged massive rallies against their country's far-right government. in teleaviv, some demonstrators breached a barricade and temporarily blocked a highway before they were dispersed by police. more than 150,000 people marched through that city on saturday. tens of thousands more demonstrated in other places across the country. most were protesting against the prime minister's plan to weaken the independence of the judiciary. some were also there to condemn recent attacks by israeli settlers against palestinians in the west bank.

>> this is nine weeks in a row that we come here, every saturday night, to protect our democracy. because there's great danger that israel will turn into a dictatorship with the laws being passed by the kneknesset. so we came here to demonstrate over and over again until we win. >> in peru, at least 16 people including ten civilians were injured after clashes broke out between protesters and police. local officials say among the injured was a 13-year-old who suffered tear gas poisoning. crew's state news agency report that clashes erupted. the country's ombudsman office said acts of violence will be investigated. protests have increased after the impeachment and arrest of former president, pea dro cas tealio. the station master of greece's train derailment will

face charges in court today. at first, he blamed the disaster on a technical fault, but later admitted to making a mistake. 57 people died when the passenger train collide head-on with a freight train. le le lenny giokos joins us live from athens, greece. what's the energy there? >> reporter: the energy of trauma, pain, and anger palpable here. everyone i speak to is absolutely traumatized. i guess it hits home, because this is a route that so many people have taken and security, as you say, the station master will be appearing before prosecutors to give his version of events. he initially said it was a technical fault, but then admitted it was human error. and he heard that sound where he was telling the train driver to skip the red lights and also did not give the order to change track. then that resulted in the fatal

accidents. and quite significant today, the prime minister coming out with a statement and apologizing and he says everyone, and above all to the relatives of the victims, a big sorry. both personally and in the name of all of those who have ruled the country for years. we cannot and will not and must not hide behind human error. he also goes on to say, which is quite interesting, if the remote system had been completed, this accident would have been practically impossible and the fact that that control system was meant to come into effect in the next two months is no excuse. this is really significant. the prime minister initially said this was human error. and as the investigation goes on, you're hearing just so much more that is coming through. greeks have so many questions. i want to show you a couple of newspaper headlines that have come through in the sunday papers. this one says guilty and fatal, and showing the face s s and

commemoration of those who lost their lives there are seven people in critical condition. that first carriage we spoke about, when most of the people were found dead, one person survived. he was thrown out of the carriage. he is in critical condition. there's one person that is unaccounted for. no one -- no loved one has gone to search for them. so there's a lot of talk about how to find this person's relatives and family. importantly here, as well. i think greeks want to know how

this happened, why it happened, and what kind of responsibility comes with all of this. the station master, of course, in the middle of this investigation right now. he's going to be the person that i think everyone turns to. but here's the thing. we've known for many years and there have been many voices throughout the years talking about the fact that there was lack of safety in the greek railway system. greece has the worst rating in the whole of the eu over the past ten years. in the meantime, people are coming to terms and grips with what this means for the nation. and as i say, the energy here, you can just feel. everyone you speak to, regardless of who you bump into, is talking about this. and wondering what the next steps are. we also have to keep in mind, the greece will be hosting general elections in the next few months. this might be a critical momentum for this government. how they handle this, how they deal with this, and what the next steps are. kim? >> we'll keep following that

story. eleni giokos in athens. thanks so much. from scrapin escaping a war a fresh start in the u.s. still ahead, a ukrainian mother who escaped scenes like these in her hometown talks about her new life. stay with us. introducing the new sleep number climate360 smart bed. the only smart bed in the world that actively cools, warms and effortlessly responds to both of you. our smart sleepers get 28 minutes more e restful sleep per night. proven qualityty sleep. only from sleep number. my most important kitchen tool? my brain. so i choose neuriva plus. unlike some others, neuriva plus ia multitasker supporting 6 key indicators of brain heah. to help keep me shar neuriva: think bigger.

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millions of ukrainians had to bid good-bye to their homes, at least temporarily after russia began its invasion. they fled across the border or to other parts of ukraine in search of safety. according to the u.n., more than 8 million ukrainians have gone to other parts of europe and neighboring countries, while nearly 5 million are internally displaced inside ukraine. so we want to introduce you now to a refugee from the city of dnipro, which has seen its share of russian attacks. she's now adjusting to a new life in the u.s., partly thanks

to her host who was originally a complete stranger. and joining me now from sacramento, california, katrina piro is from ukraine. she and her family fled the country when the war began and jennifer skalzy is her sponsor here in the u.s. thank you so much for coming on. katrina, i want to start with you. the year anniversary of the war just passed. looking on, it must be an emotional time for you, thinking of having to leave your country and everyone that you left behind. >> you know, maybe it's so hard, it's the most hard year of my life. because not to know where you're coming was scared. and you leave your home, it's so dangerous, and you understand that you need to be safe with your kids, and that's all.

and i just -- i don't know. i just, i appreciate that i'm here and you're saying it's the most safe country in the world. and now i have jennifer near me and it's -- >> tom find her out of all of this is a real blessing, and it was not easy. i mean, your journey here to the u.s. was so difficult. you had to travel first to poland and to tijuana, mexico, with two children. i mean, how challenging was that? what was the hardest part? >> you know, it's so -- i don't know how to say, jennifer, help me. >> not knowing where you were going or who was going to help you next, who you could trust, that was one of the things you shared. >> yeah, it's so hard. >> jennifer, i'll pick up with you, then. you didn't know katrina, how did

you get involved in her life and in taking her in? >> well, when i heard what was going on and i knew that sacramento was going to be, you know, a major stopping ground for a lot of refugees, because we have a high ukrainian and russian population here, i started networking with the local ukrainian churches and friends that i know that are from russia or the ukraine and told them that i have, you know, plenty of room available in my house that i was willing to take, you know, a mom and her children. and so, you know, i didn't hear from anybody for a couple of months and all of a sudden, they said, they're going to be here tomorrow, and i was like, oh, wow! so i rushed around! i already had things kind of ready, i had some extra beds put in. the whole upstairs is vacant, so it was very easy for me to get things ready. and then she's -- i opened the door one day and there she was with her two precious little girls and the rest is history.

>> trokatrina, was it hard to adjust? was the u.s. what you pictured it to be. >> was the u.s. what you thought it would be? >> thought it would be? >> in your mind. >> no, it's like different in my head than in real, you know, just -- two big difference. >> she thought it was going to be more like hollywood. you know, the kardashians and desperate housewives and she gets here and reality hits. and that was tough for her. it really was hard for her and it was hard to watch the struggle, because she had a fantasy about what things were going to be like, and out of the horrible circumstances, her dream of coming to the united states came true, but it wasn't -- it wasn't -- the dream was not real, it was so different. but she got me. >> i got you and i just found

love and i have a family, a big family for me. yeah, it's hard, but my parents are still in ukraine and my little brother, you know, my relatives and my friends, all people in ukraine, but here is, you know, start of my new life. with my husband, future husband, and my kids. and it's good. >> you hear the debate here in the u.s. over whether we should continue giving ukraine billions of dollars worth of support. what would you say to those lawmakers who say that, you know, they want to cut off funding and the money is more needed here at home. >> you need to answer. >> okay, for me, i think that we need to practice a system of checks and balances. we do need to help our brothers and sisters that are under very difficult circumstances, but

we've got some crisises going on in this country, as well, especially what's going on in ohio. and we really, really need to be taking care of our own people here as well. but i think we can do both. and that's what i would say to our lawmakers. let's figure out a way to make this happen where we can help both the ukrainian people as well as our own. so we can't neglect, you know, americans, but we also can't turn away from what's going on, either. >> finally, katrina, i mean, you're still in touch, obviously, with friends, with your family, parents back home. what would you like to say to them? >> for my parents and friends? >> that's right. >> yeah, so i need to say for them that i love them so much and i miss them. and i want to hug all of my people, you know. it will be soon, and i believe in it.

the war needs to be end. >> yeah, let's hope so. absolutely. listen, it's been great talking to both of you, a heart-warming story in what's been such a tragic story for the last year. katrina pryoh and jennifer skalzy, thank you so much for being here with us. >> you're welcome. thank you for having us. just ahead, nearly a month after the earthquake that devastated turkey and syria, a young survivor gets his wish to meet a soccer legend. stay with us. nope. all in one and done. cuh-congestion? better. cough? fever? better. mucinex all l in one relieves 9 symptoms in 1 dose. it's not cold and flu season. it's alwlways comeback season.

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- [announcer] do you have an invention idea but don't know what to do next? call invent help today. they can help you get started with your idea. call now 800-710-0020. a syrian boy who survived february's devastating earthquake got his wish to meet one of soccer's biggest superstars. have a look. >> i love you. >> you okay? >> you can see the joy there in that video shared on social media. nabil saeed told rescue workers he wanted to meet cristiano ronaldo. he got his wish on friday when he was invited to meet the superstar before the team's match in riyadh, saudi arabia.

al nasser won the game 3-1. sydney harbor bridge in australia transformed into a rainbow of humanity earlier today when an estimated 50,000 people marched across the names span. they were celebrating the final day of world pride festival. the movie star sam neil was among the partygoers. >> it's good to be marching with this community that i love so much and celebrate how far it's come in the last 40, 50 years since i came to sydney. sydney really needs the world, really. >> sydney is the first city in the southern atmosphere to host the international event which started 23 years ago. it coincided with the fifth anniversary of marriage equality legislation in australia. nearly a year after will smith slapped him at the oscars, comedian chris rock is finally addressing the incident in a new netflix special. listen to this.

>> chris, they're ready for you. ♪ >> three, two, one, and we're live. >> performing in front of a global audience, rock said, he's not a victim and he took that hit like pacquiao, a reference to the famous filipino boxer. rock also suggested that smith's response to his joke about his wife was more about the couple's relationship than him. he went on to discuss various topics from addiction to abortion to racism in america. pretty pups, please step to the side. it's time to shine a light on men's most unattractive best friends. have a look here. the world's ugliest dog contest is taking applications until june 21st. according to its website, the competition celebrates imperfections that makes all dogs special and unique. last year's winner was an almost hairless 17-year-old named mr. happy face. organizers say the contest is

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hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the united states, canada, and all around the world. i'm kim brunhuber.