china going forward. and in part, he told me, the data released today confirms that china has fallen well short of the purchase commitments they made under the phase i agreement. we have engaged the prc on its shortfalls for months, but have not seen any real signs towards making good on the purchase commitments and our patience is wearing thin. the biden administration has actually held on to most of those tariffs against china. the question is, clearly, those haven't worked well enough. now where does it go from here? >> vaughn, i know you're going to stay on top of this. it's fascinating and really important right now. thank you so much for coming on. that's going to wrap up this hour. i'm chris jansing in for stephanie ruhle. jose diaz-balart picks up our coverage right now. >> and good morning. it's 10:00 a.m. ian, 7:00 a.m. pacific. i'm jose diaz-balart. and happening this morning, moscow is sending war ships towards the black sea, a stunning move as the west continues to ramp up diplomatic efforts. we'll get a live report from moscow and kyiv. in afghanistan, the writing

was on the wall. newly released documents reveal the military's frustration with how the white house is preparing for the taliban takeover. meanwhile, new york, understand the u.s. epicenter of the covid, is set to join several other states for rolling back its mask mandate, but likely not for kids in schools, as new covid cases continue to plummet. and we're taking a closer look at the booming medical marijuana industry in oklahoma, where it's set to bring in $1 billion this year in retail sales. we begin with the latest developments and increasing tensions between russia and ukraine. "the wall street journal" says the white house has approved a plan to help thousands of americans likely to flee ukraine in the event of a likely attack.

nbc news has reached out to the white house for comment. some of the 1,700 u.s. troops being deployed to poland will begin to set up checkpoints, tent camps, and other temporary facilities to help americans who leave ukraine. meantime, russia continues to expand its military presence around ukraine, with surface-to-air missiles arriving in belarus for what the russian defense ministry is joint military exercise with belarusian troops. and several russian warships continue to make their way toward the black sea. at the same time, hundreds of u.s. troops stationed in germany are preparing to deploy to romania in the coming days. meantime, a u.s. government source says that president biden appreciates emmanuel macron's diplomatic efforts this week, while pope francis calls for a diplomatic solution, saying, war is insanity. with me now to talk about this

is nbc news's erin mclaughlin in kyiv, matt bodner in moscow, as far as rick stengel former undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, and retired admiral james stavridis, a an international security and diplomacy analyst. matt, the arrival of those russian surface-to-air missiles in belarus comes just before a joint military exercise. questions have been raised if this is part of a military exercise or part of a continuing buildup of russian troops there at the border. >> reporter: thank you, jose. the kremlin deflects when you try to pin them down on the size and numbers of this. the kremlin spokesman asked, how big is this. he said, it's a significant movement. and that's very trues.

when you look at what they're bringing to the table, that doesn't give you the full picture. you mentioned these anti-aircraft systems and we've seen fighter jets, and grounded attack aircraft, kind of like the russian equivalent of the a10 warthog. this has been going on for several weeks. they started piling this stuff in at the end of last month, declaring that they're preparing for an exercise. today is the last day of the phase i, they later started calling it, and this goes into active exercise tomorrow. and it's supposed to last ten days until february 20th, at which point we're being told those troops are expected to leave. so really, we kind of now have a date on which we can kind of look to to see -- to try to guam what russia's intentions are, ultimately here. are those troops going to stay in belarus on the 21st or start leaving? we'll find out. >> and russia is also making new demands at agreements aimed at ending the long-running conflict

in eastern ukraine. what can you tell us about that? >> it's interesting. obviously, russia came into this with the big-picture demands of nato, essentially, dismantle your eastern flank demands. those are still there, but we've seen them in their official rhetoric, kind of steer now towards the minsk 2 agreement. this is the cease-fire that was signed in 2015 between ukraine and the rebel regions. one of the big sticking points here is that if that is implemented, and this is kind of the reason ukraine is dragging its feet on this, it would give special status to the rebel regions, which they think could give the kremlin a back-door into ukrainian politics. that would be a veto on any kind of western association. the kremlin and the foreign ministry now are drawing this line, the only real way forward from here, the path to peace, sneak, is a strict implementation of those agreements. about an hour or so ago, saying that they are worried that the united states is trying to

renegotiate that deal, get ukraine to tear it up. and this would have grave processes for the peace process. this is where they're drawing the line now. >> and admiral, run us through some of the possible scenarios for what we could see from russia, as far as ukraine. >> i think three things could happen here, in descending order of danger, if you will. the most dangerous contingency is a full-on blitzkrieg, shock and awe, all-in kind of move by vladimir putin, that goes all the way to kyiv, conducts a regime change, puts zelensky in a jail cell or worse, and attempts to subdue and subjugate the country. i think that's relatively low probability, call that one in four. i think more realistically, kind of two in four chance is he will go along the lines of what matt

just said, but back it up militarily. he'll go into southeast ukraine. he'll carve out a strip of land that would run from russia down to the crimea, he'll liberate those breakaway republics, effectively, he'll crack the sovereignty of ukraine. but he won't take on the extreme difficulty of managing the entire country. and then the final one in four, jose, on the hopeful end of the sp spectrum, would be that there can be a negotiation here. i think there's still opportunities for that. macron, i think, advanced the process somewhat by going to moscow. let's hope vladimir putin goes for door number three, so to speak. >> and erin, while the ukrainian government has been downplaying the overall threat at least publicly, there are concerns from within about different kinds of threats. >> yeah, that's right, jose.

while the ukrainian government officials have been downplaying the prospects of an immediate invasion, they're very concerned with the hybrid warfare tactics, they say that have been happening here in ukraine, for at least the last eight years. but in the last few weeks, according to hybrid warfare expert i've been speaking to, they've been seeing an increase in the number of these kinds of attacks, an increase in the amount of disinformation pouring into ukraine, an increase in the number of cyber attacks, including bomb threats that have been called in to local metro stations, as well as local schools preventing people from being able to drop off their kids for school, having to stay home from work, because of a bomb threat. we were outside of kyiv earlier today, at one elementary school, talking to parents as they were dropping off their kids. this particular school had received a bomb threat, just a week and a half ago. we were speaking to one parent who said that she had moved her family from eastern ukraine.

she had moved from the war in donbass, hoping to avoid that conflict, but arriving to a very different kind of war here in kyiv. take a listen to what she had to say. >> yes, i worry, because i see the situation so strange and i cannot understand what will be there, because also, i even couldn't think that things could happen. of course -- now, i understand everything that's happened. >> reporter: and the purpose of hybrid warfare, according to experts, is to create confusion and instability. and we heard from the ukrainian defense minister, just this week that he's worried that confusion and instability could create a context for some sort of coup attempt, fueled by the kremlin that would ultimately create the pretext for an invasion.

that is the scenario that is most concerning to ukrainian military officials here in kyiv. jose? >> thanks. and rick, i want to pick up on what the admiral was telling us about french president emmanuel macron, who reportedly told reporters traveling with him to moscow that the finlandization of ukraine was one of the models on the table for diffusing tensions between russia and ukraine. that refers to the 1948 treaty between the soviet union and finland, if i'm not mistaken. but that was a treaty between stall yip and another country. this would be others talking about what the future of ukraine should be like. is this something, rick, that you think, could, maybe, help diffuse the situation there? >> i don't know if it could help diffuse it, jose. but i would add to the admiral's good summary of the possible options there. it's one of the things that putin has always wondered about ukraine, is to turn it into a

failed state. if he can't have it as part of russia, he doesn't want it to succeed. you know, for a thousand years going back to the czars, the russians felt most secure when the countries on their border were least secure. that's what he's trying to do in ukraine. and in fact, i would add to what erin was saying, which is sort of in my wheelhouse, is that russia has used ukraine as a laboratory for disinformation and cyber warfare going back to 2014. remember, what they did in ukraine in 2014 was a rehearsal for what they did here in 2016. another option for them is they could end the electricity supply, end the water supply, all of those things that they had been fooling around with for years in ukraine. and that's another way of turning ukraine into a failed state, which is kind of a fifth option. >> yeah, matt, that's such a scary possibility, right, rick? i mean, the future for ukraine, i mean, they had that border

forever. and as you mentioned, i mean, a thousand years, the world's countries have looked at ukraine with a desire to invade or disrupt it, right? i mean, from the -- from the czars all the way down to the austrian empire to the ottomans. what's the future for ukraine? rick, what can they do? what can be done? >> so, i -- jose, when i was at the state department and went to ukraine three times during this time when they were invaded by russia in 2014, when russia annexed crimea, and ukraine is so important, because it's a hinge point between russia and western europe. and we want ukraine to lean towards the west. i believe that ukrainians want to lean towards the west. ukrainians want to determine their own destiny. russia wants to keep ukraine within its sphere of influence. that's its goal. they want to get that one way or

another, whether it means invading, turning it into a failed state, or keeping this going on for so long that it interrupts the alliances of the allies and turns ukraine into a country that can't really function without russia. that's their goal. but for us, we want russia to lean west. -- we want ukraine to lean west. and i think the people of ukraine want that, too. >> and so the situation of joining nato, which was really kind of not on the table, could it mean that maybe, as a reaction to this, we could see maybe nato getting closer to ukraine? >> i think we will, jose. and, not only will this have a knock-on effect in that regard, and an ironic one in the sense that it's exactly what putin didn't want to happen, but the other thing that could occur in europe, as the fins, we were talking about finland a moment ago, and the swedes, two highly competent nations with

exceptional militaries, they are going to draw closer and closer to nato. frankly, i would not be surprised to see both of them in the years to come attempt to join nato, as i always say to the fins and the swedes, tell us on wednesday if you want to join nato, we'll have you in on friday. they're that good. so this is going to be very ironic, negative outcome for vladimir putin. >> yeah, and i mean, finland's relations and relationship with russia, with the soviet union, has really given us a lot of historical examples of moments where they can stand up and survive. in this case, of course, even thrive. admiral, thank you very much. rick stangl and matt bodner, erin mclaughlin, thank you all for being with me this morning. really appreciate your time. up next, multiple states dropping their mask mandates as cases fall, but is it all too soon? too much? dr. vin gupta joins me to weigh in. and later, a harsh reality

on the ground. the ongoing dangers for those left behind after u.s. troops left afghanistan. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports." fghanistan you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports. ♪♪ you pour your heart into everything you do, which is a lot. so take care of that heart with lipton. because sippin' on unsweetened lipton can help support a healthy heart. lipton. stop chuggin'. start sippin'. it's still the eat fresh refresh™ and subway's refreshing everything like the new honey mustard rotisserie-style chicken. it's sweet, it's tangy, it's tender, it never misses. you could say it's the steph curry of footlongs. you could, but i'm not gonna. subway keeps refreshing and refreshing and re... ♪ (jazz drum intro) ♪ (how 'bout this?) (typing) ♪ (jazz music) ♪ (waves crashing)

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18 past the hour. we'll be hearing soon from new york governor kathy hochul who's expected to announce that she will let the state's mask mandate expire, but likely not for kids in school. it's a major moment for a state

that was once the national epicenter of the virus. joining me now is nbc news correspondent, emilie ikeda, live from new york city. also with us is dr. vin gupta, pulmonologist and an affiliate assistant professor at the institute for health metrics and evaluation at the university of washington. also an msnbc medical contributor. emilie, what can you tell us about what we'll be hearing from the governor? >> reporter: hey, there, jose. so many eyes on the empire state today. governor hochul is expected to weigh in on really two big things here. first, mask mandates within businesses, second, mask mandates within schools. and she could come down on those items differently. as you mentioned, reports suggest that she may possibly let the mask mandates within businesses expire tomorrow, but when it comes to schools, she appears likely to extend the requirement for face coverings in the classroom at least through the end of the month. of course, we will get a more definitive answer in just an hour or so. one thing that governor hochul has continued to express concern

around is the vaccination rate among young people, specifically those around 5 and 11 years old, that age group, less than a third with at least one jab in the arm. the number is slightly higher for here in new york, but not by much. closer to 38%. other states like new jersey, connecticut, delaware, machine states who have announced that they're going to be rolling back some covid-19 safety protocols are pointing to things like the case rates. covid-19 cases across the country, down more than 60% over the past two weeks. so that's how they are justifying this change and update in protocols. and in talking to folks around here, you will find varying levels of comfort ahead of governor hochul's announcement. listen here. >> i mean, i don't see no problem. it's not surging again. and i'm uncomfortable with wearing them. but i really think they should let the kids take them off now. >> it's way too soon. still, not everyone is

vaccinated. no one believes in getting vaccinated. and it's just -- without a vaccination, you're still going to get sick. and even with that, you're still getting sick. >> i think it should stay. i think the mandate should stay for a few more weeks, probably. i don't think it's time yet. >> reporter: the cdc telling reuters this week, this is not the moment to roll back masked mandates for public spaces or schools, citing data, 99% of counties in the u.s. considered to have high levels of transmission. now, jose, it is important to know, for those nearby states who announce that they're going to be rolling back mask mandates within the classroom, that likely won't be lifted for several weeks. new jersey, for instance, students will have to wear masks at least through march 7th, the second week of next month. jose? >> emilie, thanks. dr. gupta, i want to play for you what cdc director rochelle walensky had to say about all of this. >> we have and continue to

recommend masking in areas of high and substantial transmission. that is essentially everywhere in the country in public indoor settings. we continue to recommend universal masking in our schools. and so our guidance has not changed. >> so, states saying one thing, cdc director saying another. doctor, what should we be making of all of this? again, there is no real, clear one message being stated. >> good morning, jose. thank you for having me. i would say that there is the difference between the urgencisy of now, and as some in the medical profession like to call it, the urgency of normal. i am operating as the director of the cdc, dr. walensky, in the urgency of now. there is a reason, jose, that leading pediatric experts -- i'm an adult pulmonologist -- let me say it outfront, i'm not an pediatric expert, i'm an adult pulmonologist, and i defer to what the pediatric experts say. the american academy of pediatrics say -- they couldn't

be clearer -- indoor masking is necessary in school right now. there's no evidence that masks are harmful. we're still in the thick of this, by the way. 15,000 americans just died last week. 2 to 4% of all hospitalizations in any given state are of kids. hospitalizations have been at the highest levels during this omicron surge. it's not like kids are somehow spared the worst impacts of this. but that's been the narrative. it's wrong. i do think relief is ahead. so when governor hochul is saying, maybe in a few weeks, we'll reconsider this, absolutely. i've been saying, i think april 1st will be a watershed moment for the country, where we will really start to see that movement towards an endemic phase, less hospital stress, less cases. but these conversations will make a lot more sense. it's just a few weeks away, hopefully, where we can really have this conversation rationally. right now, it just doesn't make much sense. and remember, kids and vaccine, under 5, still no access. parents across the country, many parents still want that to be the case before we remove masks.

and it's really important to let our leaders and pediatrics lead this discussion, not non-experts. >> dr. gupta and emilie ikeda, thank you so much for being with me this morning. appreciate it. up next, new information about the warning signs before the u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan and the dangers that still remain on the ground today."jose diaz-balart reports". on the grd today."jose diaz-balart reports" there's a different way to treat hiv. it's once-monthly injectable cabenuva. cabenuva is the only once-a-month, complete hiv treatment for adults who are undetectable. cabenuva helps keep me undetectable. it's two injections, given by a healthcare provider once a month. hiv pills aren't on my mind. i love being able to pick up and go. don't receive cabenuva if you're allergic

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♪ so different and so new ♪ ♪ was like any other... ♪ 27 past the hour and time for a check of the headlines beyond our borders. in columbia, rescue crews are looking for four people missing northwest of the capital after a landslide triggered by heavy rains killed at least 15 people. officials are warning more landslides are possible. at least 60 homes have been evacuated. and we're learning new details about the u.s. withdrawal from afghanistan last year. in sworn testimony first obtained by "the washington post," military officers say senior white house and state department officials failed to grasp the speed of the taliban's takeover and resisted efforts to prepare to evacuate embassy personnel and afghan allies. i'm joined by "the washington

post's" dan lamotte. thank you for being with me. dan, you were one of the first reporters to break this story. give us a sense of what we learned from these documents. >> it's very striking commentary from the top two generals and the top admiral on the ground, along with witness statements from easily dozens of other people who were involved. the investigation centered on that awful bombing we had in august, where 13 u.s. service members were killed. but the scope of the investigation and the discussion in these documents is much broader. they express frustration with the national security council, with the acting u.s. ambassador in afghanistan at the time, and basically, a desire to have prepared for evacuations more quickly, staging food, staging people at the airport, things of that sort, that they simply were not allowed to execute as rapidly as they thought was

prudent. >> and so, dan, what frustrations did they encounter. what issues did they find? >> one thing in particular comes up over and over again, is a desire, once it was clear that the united states was leaving, based on the president's decision in april, and based on the very obvious rise of the taliban throughout last year, they wanted to make sure that they could get as many people out as they could. there are several people, several senior officers, who said that they were frustrated with the ambassador, the saudi ambassador is very much against evacuation. he wanted to keep an embassy there as long as possible. saw the goodness in having an embassy there as long as possible. but that as time progressed, that became less and less practical. and that concerned over what the messaging would look like by preparing for an evacuation, basically prevented them from effectively being able to do so

later. >> and i want to turn to the reality afghans are left with on the ground. also, "the washington post" is reporting that female activists have been silenced. they're actually disappearing, being beaten. electric shocked. what's going on, attiah? >> i mean, this is no surprise -- >> sorry, let me ask attiah. sorry, dan. >> i'm sorry. >> it's -- dan's right, it's no surprise, jose. this was a day that we expected to come. the taliban were told by -- our allies, their allies, pakistan, qatar, to be on their best behavior back in august and september, when we saw a lot of protests on the streets of kabul, hirat, all over the country. they told them to wait, just wait, and when the cameras turn away, that's when you can take your power against these people. the women that were abducted, they were on the streets just a few weeks ago protesting. they want their voices to be heard, despite a lot of people

are closing their ears and closing their eyes right now and trying to ignore the situation in afghanistan. thankfully, people like you, jose, are keeping their voices heard and letting the world know that they have been taken. at least a hundred people have been killed. those are former afghan government officials, security forces, as well as prominent women. and there are women being abducted, there are worse things than death, jose, as we know. and many of these women are terrified. they're terrified of forced marriages. let's be clear what a forced marriage is. that's continuous rape and slavery. so when we talk about forced marriages in afghanistan, let's just remember exactly what that means. >> yeah, there is no other words to describe that. forced marriage is not that. it's the abuse of people, very much, many times, underaged children. you know, we should never use that term, you know, it's -- that's no what it is. it's abuse and destruction.

atia abawi and dan lamotte, thank you very much for being with me. appreciate it. up next, was the attack on the capitol the work of a broader domestic extremist network? brand-new reporting on what the january 6th committee is investigating. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports." e is investigating. you're watching "jose you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports. ♪ ♪are you ready for me♪ ♪are you ready♪ ♪are you ready♪ >> woman: what's my safelite story? i see inspiration right through my glass. so when my windshield cracked, i chose safelite. they replaced the glass and recalibrated my safety system. that's service i can trust. >> singers: ♪ safelite repair, safelite replace. ♪ ever wonder what everyone's doing on their phones? they're banking, with bank of america. the groom's parents? they just found out they can redeem rewards for a second honeymoon. romance is in the air.

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and save. ♪♪ you pour your heart into everything you do, which is a lot. so take care of that heart with lipton. because sippin' on unsweetened lipton can help support a healthy heart. lipton. stop chuggin'. start sippin'. 37 past the hour. this morning, we are learning more about what the january 6th committee is pursuing in their investigation. the committee is examining rallies a year before the riot to determine if a broader network helped plan the attack. investigators told nbc news that the goal is to determine whether these earlier events were proving grounds for future violence. joining me now is nbc news senior reporter, ben collins, and ana palmer, the founder of punch bowl news and an msnbc contributor. ben, what more can you tell us

about what investigators are looking into? >> i talked to about a half a dozen investigators on the committee, and they told me they're looking into these rallies over basically a year before the january 6th riot and those rallies were things like protests at the state capitol in lansing, michigan, or in oregon. there are the covid lockdown rallies that happened all throughout the united states or counterdemonstratios to racial justice protests. they're trying to see if people made relationships in those spaces that they could later use for january 6th. maybe there was some coordination between militias with each other, like the oath boys and proud boys, maybe there was some coordination between them or government officials or maybe random conspiracy theorists, who they're able to drag into the movement line qanon supporters. that's what they're looking at. they're trying to figure out not just what happened on the 6th,

but how it got that bad and how the crowd got that big with rallies in months prior to january 6th itself. >> and matt collins rejected kinzinger and cheney for their work with the january 6th committee. >> it was a violent insurrection for the purpose of trying to prevent the peaceful transfer of power after a legitimately certified election from one administration to the next. but the issue is whether or not the rnc should be singling out members of our party who may have different views from the majority, that's not the job of the rnc. >> ana, how significant is this? >> i think it's significant and i also think it's really a signal of how upset senators, members of his own party, were

that the rnc chose to go forward in this way. it's clearly a line of where they are and showing another division here of where mitch mcconnell is and where a lot of the trump loyalists are, which have really been installed in the rnc. >> and ana, you also have some new reporting about a potential congressional stock trading ban? >> this issen issue that is really garnered steam this congress. there's several different bills that have been floated out there about whether or not congress can actually ban members from trading stocks. we were reporting this morning that speaker nancy pelosi has some of her leadership members to figure out a pathway forward. her plan on that is to potentially try to bring a bill forward before the end of the year. that would have to be married with what happens in the senate. it's a little bit trickier. there's a lot of different factors here, but certainly a

game change in the sense that not only is the speaker supportive of a ban is now actually looking at putting together legislation. >> and ben, meanwhile, over the past two weeks, we've seen massive protests from truckers in canada calling for the end of covid-19 rules. have you seen any signs that groups like that may be planning similar protests in the u.s.? >> ye, i have. they've been working themselves up on telegram and similar messaging services, saying that tlishd to do something similar in the united states. they had plans for the super bowl for a minute, but they realized that it would be too soon to really pull that off. they've talked with the white house, they have talked about various other places that they could go to basically try to stop traffic, interrupt day-to-day business in whatever city they go to. look, this is a wildly popular concept, on the far right internet right now. the idea of shutting down major

cities to get their way in terms of covid-19 mandates. the difference is, there's no lockdowns like there is in parts of canada and europe. that's not the same situation. that's not stopping these people. a lot of these people who are supporting financially this cause in canada are from the united states. they are trump supporters. they are people from the far right. and they are funneling money into this thing up north. >> thank you very much for being with me this morning. up next, what do ukrainians make in the difference in tone from their government and the u.s. and nato allies? we'll ask someone on the ground in kyiv, next. you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports." next. you're watching "jose you're watching "jose diaz-balart reports. versus 16 grams in ensure high protein. boost® high protein also has key nutrients for immune support. boost® high protein. with taren arthritis pain gel. my husband's got his moves back. boost® high protein also has key nutrients an alternative to pills,

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46 past the hour. there appear to be two messages when it comes to the russian threat against ukraine, in the u.s. and in other european countries. they're stressing the urgency of the situation, saying things like, an invasion could happen at any time, even though more than 100,000 russian troops are now amass on three sides of ukraine, the ukrainian government is sending a much different message to its people. stay calm, don't panic. diplomacy will prevail. with me now from kyiv is chair

of the u.n. affairs at the ukrainian world congress and a spokesman for the ukrainian congress committee of america, which advocates for ukrainian interests in the united states. thank you very much for being with me. what do ukrainians make of this difference between, you know, what the ukrainian government saying to its people and then what we're hearing from the u.s. and other countries in western europe? >> thank you, jose, thank you for having me on. let me just clarify that i'm currently in europe, so i want to make sure you understand that. >> in terms of what's happening in kyiv, kyiv is the majority of the population in ukraine. however, it is a massive country. if you drive from montauk to all the way end of cleveland, you're still two hours away from the border. it depends on where you are in the country, in terms of what your anxiety level is. certainly, people in the center and the east of the country are packing go bags.

they have emergency contact lists, and if you have a regular job on the weekends, you might be doing medical training. you might be trained how to drag people off the street after a firefight. or you might be buying a handgun for the first time in your life. there's a popular pizzeria that's actually giving you free pizza if you can show that you have taken handgun training. so, life has been like this for the last eight years. it's just that it's ramped up, especially with the international attention on it. >> and look, we're coming up on the eighth anniversary of the russian entry into ukraine in 2014. but yet, if you look at the history of ukraine, it's always been almost like the focus of desire of other countries, you know? not just russia/soviet union, but the austrian hungarian empire and everyone in between. why is that that it's so -- it's always been threatened?

>> it's been the crossroads of civilization. it's one of the earliest places you'll see. it's in a warm spot, a lot of fertile lands and rivers across there, much like the meopotamia and the tigris. but what i like to focus on is not necessarily what the foreign empires are doing, but the people themselves. for people to consider that there are victims of genocide in ukraine, as my friend spoke to you last week, not just of the stalin genocide against ukrainian people, but they were ethnically cleansed off of crimea, note once, but three times. there's also the holocaust that happened in ukraine. no country has this bloodshed. and what is important for people to understand is that when we hear politicians or somebody saying that ukraine is a buffer zone, they're not recognizing that these are people with the dignity and the right to live their lives as they want to. >> that is so important. it is oftentimes, not even

referred to or thought of, and yet, you know, it does have such a rich history. and it does have such a history of bloodshed. and as you, you know, so brilliantly mentioned, i mean, it's just been over and over and over over and over again, throughout its history. is there something that you think that people outside of ukraine don't realize or don't get about what's happening? >> i think the best thing that we as advocates throughout the world do for ukraine is convince people to actually visit ukraine. we have that wonderful delegation, the bipartisan congressional delegation, the senators. any time anybody visits, we consider that our biggest job already done. ukraine itself, the people are wonderful. you have a vast difference of terrain, the mountains, the steps, the vast sea on the black sea. so it's the beauty of the place but also there's just tons and

tons of history. as i mentioned, it goes back for millennia, not just centuries. that's not what ukrainians consider to be their history. we will gladly sit and and talk about thousands of years of history, things which have been lost to the sands of time, but you can still see evidence of that anywhere you go. that's the thing about ukraine. even though it's an up and coming and developing democracy and economy, you'll still see ancient relics strewn about everywhere, whether it's an old castle or ruin from the viking area. it's just amazing. >> andrij dobriansky, thank you for being with me this morning. >> thank you. >> it's a so-called green rush. we'll take you to a state seeing a boom in medical marijuana

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wait, you're new too nobody told you? subway's refreshing with better ingredients, better footlongs, and better spokespeople. because you gotta you gotta refresh to be fresh ♪ life can be a lot to handle. ♪ this magic moment ♪ but heinz knows there's plenty of magic in all that chaos. ♪ so different and so new ♪ ♪ was like any other... ♪ breaking news. house republican leader kevin mccarthy making his first real comments on the rnc censure of congress members kinzinger and cheney. we'll go right to garrett haake with the very latest on that. garrett. >> reporter: i just had a chance to talk with the minority leader about this. he has been reticent to comment in the last couple of days. i asked him specifically about the language in that censure

resolution he said "i think anybody that entered this building that rioted, that is not legitimate political discourse." he said he didn't think that was what the rnc was trying to refer to. he and others said that's focused on the alternate eelectors or rnc members caught up by the january 6 committee. i asked him if he supported this censure of liz cheney and other members. he speculated perhaps liz cheney might not make it to her own august primary. mccarthy's comments are notable, especially in contrast to mitch mcconnell, who commented yesterday a much more full-throated condemnation, both

of the legitimate political discourse concept and of the rnc's handling of it altogether. republicans are trying to turn the page past this entire controversy and for mccarthy, the house is voting, they're about to get out of town until the end of the month so this may be the last time we hear from him for quite some time. >> thank you very much. turning now to the olympics where a mystery surrounds the team figure skating event, the medal ceremony abruptly put on hold yesterday. gadi what is going on? >> reporter: the olympic committee is being very vague. all the ioc has said so far is there's some sort of legal issue that's arisen that could affect the medalist. here's what we know right now for sure. the rnc won gold, the united states won silver and japan won

bronze. the roc is the russian olympic committee, which is what russian athletes are competing under after russia was banned from official representation as punishment for a state-involved doping stand al. again, at this point the ioc hasn't said who is involved, nothing about the latest legal issue that has halted the ceremony. but if one of the medalists were to lose that medal, then canada would step up to third place. but, jose, still no word on when we might know that either. the ioc only saying that sometimes legal issues can drag on. jose? >> gadi schwartz, thank you so much. good to see you, my friend. that wraps up the hour for me. i'm jose diaz-balart. you can reach me on twitter and instagram. thank you so much for the privilege of your time.

yasmin vossoughian picks up with more news right now. good wednesday morning, everybody. i'm yasmin vossoughian in for craig melvin. we have got a busy hour ahead with very big developments on the way, including the fight against covid. right now we're waiting for the white house covid response team to start its briefing on that. but all eyes are on new york this morning. in about 15 minutes, new york's governor is set to make a major announcement and end to the state's indoor mask mandate. one area of her announcement is not expected to change, guidance for kids in schools. we'll talk about that as well. plus, new comments from house

minority leader kevin mccarthy. his first significant comments on the rnc censure of liz cheney and adam kinzinger. he made those remarks to our own garrett haake. we want to start with a new escalation on the russia/ukraine border. just this morning russia showed off missile systems arriving in belarus. top navy commanders have also flown to the area, telling richard engel that russian exercises in belarus are set to enter phase two tomorrow and is expected to bring even more military activity into a very fraught situation. mike memoli is at the white house. i'm joined by barry mccaffrey, former member of the national security council and is now an msnbc military analyst. and nola