>> well, it's all a matter of degree, wolf.the spectrum with the 18th airborne goes into ee ukraine a cleans up the russians, which believe me they could, you need to find a balance only because russia has 6,000 nuclear weapons. the debate right now is, how far do you go? how much risk do you take? personally, i think the administration has done generally a good job of finding that middle getting javelins, stingers into the fight. it's time to take a bit more risk, more higher altitude missile systems, continue to work the problem of getting the jets into the fight. all of this means we are going to be helping the ukrainians push back on the russians on this illegal war criminal invasion. >> the director of the dia says a no-fly zone would not necessarily offer ukraine significant protection against many of the weapons that the russian forces are already using right now. do you share that assessment? >> i do. i know her well. she's one of our sharpest minds, focused on this. here is the point. what she is saying correctly is th

i am wolf blitzer in the situation room.utfront" starts right now. >>> out front next. breaking news. putin gaining ground in southern ukraine as the mayor of the sen second largest city tells me his people are under siege and konts bomba bombardment tonight. he says putin is intentionally targeting innocent civilians. plus, the west punishing putin looking to go after the pricey yachts, belonging to russia's richest. yachts that include missile defense systems and submarines in addition to massive pools. and we are live in moscow tonight, where citizens tell cnn that fae negative news about putin's invasion is, quote, fake news. let's go out front. go

i am wolf blitzer. this is cnn. the pentagon warned yesterday not to be fooled, and there's further proof tonight that russia is not to be taken at its word. it's not drastically reducing military operations around ukraine's capital and in the city of chernihiv to the north, but increasing its assault. the mayor of chernihiv says his city has been under colossal attack over the last 24 hours, and kyiv, the capital, has remained under constant bombardment as well. here's the ukrainian president zelenskyy's take on that tonight. >> translator: this is not a retreat. this is the result of the work of our defenders, who pushed them back. >> the pentagon says only a small percentage of russian forces are repositioning from the capital, but the majority remain. and the air strikes haven't stopped at all. meanwhile, not only are russians being misled on this invasion by their own government, the u.s. now says vladimir putin himself isn't being told the truth about it by some of his own advisers. the new u.s. intelligence r

i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >>> this is cnn breaking news. >> we'll get to all the breaking news out of ukraine in just a moment, but tonight president volodymyr zelenskyy is lashing out at nato's refusal too create a no fly zone over his war torn country. in an online message zelenskyy suggested nato leaders are, i'm quoting him now, weak and insecure. this as russian invasion forces are broadening their targets including their alarming attack on europe's biggest nuclear power plant. in just a moment we'll go live to the correspondents near the nuclear plant and in the ukrainian capitol. first, we have a war update from cnn's oren lieberman. >> reporter: the unthinkable now another step in russia's invasion of ukraine. russian forces firing on the largest nuclear power plant in europe, seizing control of the zaporizhzhia facility friday morning. they set fire to a building near the reactor, threatening to cause a nuclear disaster. >> russian federation continues shooting at the n

>> yeah, well wolf, the u.s. officials saying that russia did use these incredibly, incredibly fast-moving missiles, hypersonic missiles against ukraine last week. now, this is the first known instance of hypersonic missiles being used in combat ever. it is incredibly significant and they travel at five times the speed of sound or faster. that, of course, makes defenses incredibly challenging. now, u.s. officials said that they were able to track these missiles in real-time, which is significant. but they also said that russia likely used these missiles to test them, and also to show off what military capabilities that they have to the west. that's according to u.s. officials. now, as you said, the russian ministry of defense said that these did destroy structures in western ukraine. and we should note that introducing these new missiles to this already-deadly crisis is incredibly concerning for the united states. now, when it comes to hypersonics, we should also note that the united states is top priority right

that's what they're saying to me, wolf, is i don't know.d with their emotions and their body language uncertainty because they don't know. many of them have lived years and years in the same place and then all of a sudden for no reason they have been displaced. their homes have been bombed. you can understand sometimes when it is a natural disaster or hurricane, a storm of some sort, an earthquake or what have you, a fire, but this is for no reason. someone just decided to bomb their homes and take their loved ones and take everything they own. but i tell you what, vladimir putin, wolf, may indeed occupy physically parts of this country, but he will never be able to occupy the hearts of these people. they don't want it. they're not having it. they say he's like an ex-lover that won't get the point and won't go away, but they do not want him back. they don't want him. he will never be able to occupy their hearts. it's a resolve. what i have noticed the most, wolf, from the folks here, it's their resolve. and they're saying no matter what he

i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >>> tonight we're seeing russian forces intensify their bombardment of multiple cities across ukraine. new explosions -- listen to this -- erupting just a little while ago in mykolaiv, a southern city now under heavy bombardment. in kyiv, cnn's clarissa ward is standing by with an update on the russian advance toward the capital. but first we have a wrap of all the breaking news on the war from cnn's oren liebermann. >> reporter: tonight, the russian military is expanding its invasion of ukraine, increasing its attacks on the western part of the country. fire and smoke seen in the aftermath of strikes on airfields near the polish border. it's a scene that played out in cities all across the country as russia unleashed a barrage of attacks in the early morning hours. in the central city of dnipro, fire poured out of a factory. another strike near a preschool and an apartment building. in cher cheev, an explosion d

wolf? >> really so sad. we're following, poppy, all these late breaking developments as only cnn can. here with me in warsaw is our chief white house correspondent kaitlan collins and barbara starr from the pentagon. kaitlan, as we await for the president it land, here in poland in moments, give us the big picture a little bit. we're going to hear from the president speaking about refugees, speaking about poland, the critically important nato ally, speaking about the horrible situation that is unfolding in ukraine. >> yeah, wolf, you'll see another side of this invasion in what it has caused and the havoc it wrihigg rigged here today. yesterday was focused on diplomacy in they have for the to project unity with other nato allies against russia to try to punish them for thin vas invasi that extended into a month now, wolf. president biden is on his way to poland, he's going to get a humanitarian briefing on the effort that you have even under way here because of this crisis, this refugee cri

such a historical speech, wolf. he went back to the fall to berlin wall, and talking about the iron curtain and using all of the moments to really put this in a context of what this means for history. that is why you were talking and we do believe it is likely one of the biggest speeches that he will give in his time of office. >> the white house said it is a major address and we quoted the white house saying that it was going to be major address and main the most important speech he has given so far, and maybe the most important of the presidency. >> one line is that the putin cannot remain in the power and if that is something in the prepared remarks or something that he added in the end. >> he called him a thug and war criminal and today a butcher, and you don't want to sit down and shake hands and have a meeting with a butcher. >> that is the big question of whether or not when they would speak again and what that would mean, because putin has had conversations with other world leaders and that i have not reacte

he's been incredibly reluctant to do so, wolf. so part of this effort of this stop today, this symbolic measure of this stop today is the president showing there are u.s. forces in these nato ally countries supporting them, bolstering them in light of all the russian aggression that you've seen in ukraine. >> yeah, it's interesting, barbara, you were showing our viewers some more live pictures. this is where the president is inside that room now with some of the troops of the 82nd airborne but you can see these other troops that are now lined up. i see some armored vehicles, some battle tanks. but i think they're trying to send another message, aren't they? >> you know, i think they want this visual. it's possible they scrambled a bit with the change in schedule. the president coming slightly earlier than they expected but that's not for the military, they're out there ready to meet the president and show the world that they are there. now, let's be clear. we have not, in the media, been allowed to see u.s. troops operating in pol

>> thanks, wolf. so we don't have a precise number of russian casualties to give you but i can say that i think the casualty number is probably much beyond what russia expected. particularly just in the early days of this conflict. and we're taking a two-part approach. the first part is providing the kra ukrainians the tools they need, that is predominantly anti-aircraft and anti-armor weapons. the president laid out in some detail yesterday exactly what we're putting in to ukraine to support the ukrainian defense forces. and then second, pressing the russians. pressing them diplomatically and most importantly pressing them with our sanctions which have taken an enormous bite out the russian economy in just a few weeks. >> certainly has. we've also now heard from the secretary of state and the president, they both accuse russia of war crimes. publicly. practically, how does that change the u.s. response because putin won't be tried in the hague any time soon, right? >> look, i think we'll leave those

i'm wolf blitzer. i'm reporting live from nato headquarters in brussels, where president biden is attending this truly extraordinary summit, with 29 other nato heads of state. in just a few moments, we're going to -- we expect to hear from the president of the united states, and the administration announcing new sanctions against russian lawmakers and oligarchs. this as we're also learning that the united states is wrapping up what to do if -- what to do if president putin and the russian military take even more extreme measures, extreme steps including the deployment of chemical, biological or tactical nuclear weapons. god forbid any of that happens. we're watching it all unfold. >>> i'm john berman on the ground in lviv, in western ukraine, where this war is now entering its second month. we do have new video this morning from the russian occupied port of berdyansk where ukrainian forces say they destroyed a large russian ship. several videos captured an explosion and flames, you can see it right the

wolf? >> i want to you stand by. we're getting more information even as we speak right now. i want to bring in our correspondents. oren, kyiv, as you know, and you're getting that information, has been bracing for the worst. but reading between the lines of this latest, latest u.s. assessment, has russia essentially given up on capturing the capital of ukraine, kyiv? >> i would say the words given up is probably going a little too far. given what we've seen from the north, the northwest, and the east. the sort of multipronged attack to take capital at this. the u.s. assessment was that russia would try the take ky within a matter of days. that failed as we watched all the convoys and approaches stall out. but russia is still attacking the city. not on the ground but on the air. the pressure is still there. we see that. and i think the expectation is that it will continue as we get the updates from defense officials. russia now saying, we've talked about this. this is part of the plan all al

i'm wolf blitzer and you're in "the situation room." we're following breaking news out of ukraine now as russia's war enters a new phase and vladimir putin is keeping the world guessing about his next moves. in just a moment, we'll go live to christiane amanpour in kyiv and kaitlan collins at the white house, but first a record from alex marquardt. >> reporter: ukraine is taking back territory, troops here walking through the town of sloboda near the northern city of chernihiv where russia said they would deescalate the fight but it wages on, as well as near the capitol kyiv. a senior defense official says russia increased the amount of aircraft munitions near kyiv, president joe biden saying he's in and out sceptical of russia's claim of withdrawing from kyiv. >> i'm a little sceptical. it's an open question whether he is pulling back and saying i'll just focus on the donbas and not the rest of the country. i'm a skeptic, so far, that he has not pulled out all the troops around kyiv and moving south, there's no evidence that he has don

i am wolf blitzer. >>> this hour, we begin our war coverage with the word of the president of the united states and the president of ukraine. president biden now calling president vladimir putin a war criminal. the russian president a war criminal and president zelenskyy putting new pressure on the united states to do more to en

>> good morning, wolf.television that the russians are committing war crimes. for the u.s. to make that determination has huge weight. the government is committing itself to the process of documenting the evidence and pursuing justice and accountability for all of the war criminals, that includes not just the guy who pulled the trigger, his boss, the general above him and all of the commanders all the way up to vladimir putin himself. second of all, there is no statute of limitations on war crimes. that means prosecutions for each and every one of these war criminals could last forever. there will be no general or colonel or admiral or captain in the russian military who will from this day on pull that trigger to attack civilians without thinking in the back of his mind that he could go to jail for it either years or decades down the line. that doesn't stop the war crimes that are happening but at the very least it commits the u.s. government for pursuing justice and accountability in the long run. >> do yo

i'm going to hand it over to wolf on "cnn tonight." >> i'm wolf blitzer. this is "cnn tonight." we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. "i'm not walking anything back," na vow from president biden today getting defensive in his first existential explanation on his ad lib heard around the world this weekend. >> for god's sake, this man cannot remain in power. >> that remark about ladvladimi putin at the close of president biden's address in poland on saturday has been looming over the white house ever since. it's had some aides scrambling to counter some of the comments. they said he does not mean regime change, but he said that's not what he meant. >> i'm not walking back anything. i was expressing more outrage that i felt and i'm expressing no apologies for it. no one talked about taking down putin. the last thing i want to do is engage in a land war or nuclear war are russia. it's more of an aspiration that he shouldn't be in power. people like him shouldn't be ruling countries, but they do. the fact they do doesn't mean i can't express my out

>> reporter: that is right, wolf. this is the first major city to fall since this war began one week ago. and despite the -- nothing short of heroic efforts of ukrainian forces defending various towns and cities across the country, it appears kherson has now fallen. that is important, on the sea of azov, trying to build a corridor right up to moldova. we just don't know what their plan is yet, wolf and that is what got so many people here in kyiv, here capital, very much on edge. not knowing what russia's end game is here. it had been a quiet day earlier, then a few hours ago we heard a very loud explosion coming from not too far away. what we're hearing now is that hit an area near the main railway stations where thousands have been evacuating, but it is was a piece of the missile that fell off and didn't hit the train station but it did hit and damage a heating pipeline. it does not appear that there were any casualties other than that. but we have heard the air raid sirens going at several points in the evening. it

i'm wolf blitzer in the situation room. you can follow me on twitter and instagram @wolf blitzer.ng china not to help the russians as more senators push biden to give fighter jets to ukraine. how much longer can the world stay out of putin's war? the u.n. calling a port center the center of hell. mass graves, a maternity hospital bombed, people with no food, no power, no water, no heat. and a shocking display of dissent. a woman interrupting a live broadcast on russian state tv to protest putin's invasion. let's go "outfront."

>> reporter: that's right, wolf. we have heard another fiery speech from ukraine's president volodymyr zelenskyy this evening, in which he praises his citizens for continuing to resist russian aggression. he calls on them to go on the offensive. go on the streets. we need to fight every time we have an opportunity. and he goes on to commend their faith and the protests ongoing. listen, wolf, no question this war is taking a heavy toll on the ukrainian people, and we saw that firsthand for ourselves when we finally got access to a kyiv suburb called irpine where people have been under heavy bombardment seven days and only just managing to flee to safety. take a look. for seven days, the kyiv suburb of irpine pummelled by russian strikes. and you can see it in the faces of those leaving. exhaustion, fear, and gratitude to the soldiers helping them flee. this bridge was downed by the ukrainians to prevent russian forces from getting in to the city centre. now it's yet another hurdle people must cross. there has been a s

wolf blitzer. see you tomorrow. >>> happening now, breaking news, ukraine accuses of russia of genocide, blaming kremlin forces for the bombing of maternity and children hospitals that blasted two story deep. president zelenskyy says there are children under the wreckage of shattered walls and broken glass and burnt out cars. the attack takes into horror of a new level of wounded pregnant women and bloodstain beds and cribs where young patients once slept. >>> a chilling new warning of vladimir putin's plans. the white house now says russian forces may be preparing to use chemical or biological weapons in ukraine. our correspondents are in ukraine and other key locations as russia's brutal war heads into the third week. we want to welcome our viewers here and around the world. i am wolf blitzer and you are in "the situation room." ♪ tonight we are getting powerful new reaction to the bombing at children's hospital in southern ukraine. president zelenskyy claiming a while ago that the attack is proo

wolf? >> he'll be there together, all 30 nato allied leaders will be there in brussels on thursday for this truly extraordinary meeting. we'll see where else, if any place else, in europe the president of the united states winds up going. we'll get back to you. coming up, u.s. officials say russia fired hypersonic missiles for the first time in combat. this as secretary defense lloyd austin says putin has bigger problems on the ground. the house armed service committee chairman, adam smith, is standing by live. we have several critical issues to discuss. stay with us. you're in "the situation room." this is how you imagine your dishwasher. but it may not be as clean as you think. built up grease and limescale could be hiding in your pipes. try finish dishwasher cleaner its dual action formula hygienically cleans hidden limescale and grease in your dishwasher. finish. clean dishwasher. clean dishes. hi, i'm debra. i'm from colorado. i've been married to my high school sweetheart for 35 years

>> hi, wolf.ave been killed. today, dozens of children are now killed. many more i imagine. civilian facilities are coming under attack leaving millions without water. critical infrastructure. and as you saw there, we have almost a million children who are refugees. a million kids refugees. in under two weeks. this is unprecedented globally. it's harrowing, happening as we speak and it will continue unless we see a cessation and this bombing to stop. otherwise we will keep seeing lives as we just saw there, shattered. >> as you know, the european union today said they could see more than five million, five million ukrainian refugees in the coming days and weeks. many of them of course, children. is the world, james, prepared to deal with such a massive humanitarian crisis? >> look, wolf, on the back of the sheer weight of numbers that we've never seen so fast in human history, at least in modern day history, last 100 years, the idea that children keep being killed, the idea that homes, schools, or

i'm wolf blitzer in brussels and you're in "the situation room". we're coming to you live from the european union headquarters here in brussels after a very, very intense and busy day of emergency summits. president biden standing together with u.s. allies against vladimir putin and his aggression in ukraine. let's go right to our senior white house correspondent, phil mattingly. phil, four weeks into this brutal, awful war. the president of the united states wanted to send a message to putin and to the world. >> reporter: yeah, no question about it, wolf, a senior u.s. official describing the mood behind closed doors where the leaders gathered as sober, resolute, a group keenly aware of the historical nature of this moment but more than anything else, a group that's unified. >> nato has never, never been more united than it is today. putin is getting exactly the opposite what he intended to have as a consequence of going into ukraine. >> reporter: tonight, president biden marshaling the full weight of the world's democracies to isolate vladimir pu

and also an increase in hospitalizations, wolf.linked, because typically hospitalizations follow cases. but yeah, i think we have to keep an eye on this and be ready so we're not surprised again. >> some indicators, as you well know, are already showing these signs, as you point out, of these increasing coronavirus trends here in the u.s. do you think we'll see mitigation measures have to be put back into place? >> well, i don't know, wolf, but, you know, there are these early warning systems that we now have. we've learned a lot through the pandemic, so, for example, wastewater analysis. that's something that is looking at large samples of people. it doesn't give you case counts per se, but as an early warning sign. take a look back on february 10, about 16% of sites reported an increase in overall coronavirus in the wastewater. that's more than a third, 38%. what this leads to ultimately in terms of mitigation measures, i don't know. and that's obviously a question that's science and then the policy and it may be different in dif

. >>> our coverage continues now with wolf blitzer in "the with wolf blitzer in "the situation room" in brussels. -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> happening now. breaking news. president biden just landed in brussels for critical talks with u.s. allies about russia's war against ukraine as the bombs keep falling and civilians keep dying. the u.s. now formally declaring that kremlin forces have committed war crimes. this hour, we're getting new glimpses of the widespread destruction from russia's invasion, and a new estimate of the toll on vladimir putin's military. nato now estimating that as many as 15,000 russian troops have been killed on the battlefield. our correspondents are on the front lines in ukraine and at key locations here in europe and the united states, as putin's warheads into a second month. we want to welcome our viewers in the united states and around the world. i'm wolf blitzer in brussels and you're in "the situation room." >>> we're live at the european union headquarters here in brussels. where president biden has just arrived for urgent meetings with

wolf. >> miguel, thank you very much for that report.sh -- from the polish embassy in kyiv. the polish ambassador. thank you so much for joining us. thanks for all that you and the people of poland are doing to help the yukrainian refugees. what support does powe land neeo take in more than two million refugees within a month. >> thank you for having me. it's a pleasure, sir. secondly, well, we feel this is about our security as well. it should be downgraded to second class member. this is our fight for our state. we do it on our security policy and our domestic. president bhiiden is here and m with all 29 other leaders in brussels. are ukraine and poland getting what they need from president biden milltarially or do you want to see more? >> we very much appreciate the visit by president of the united states. this is a an issue, this is a challenge to the whole family of the western democracies. of course, ukraine is desperately needs more support now these days. these hours, both humanitarian. both supplies in food and medicines and def

i'm wolf blitzer. i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> breaking news, russia's brutal attack on ukraine described as a bloody stalemate as casualties mount on both sides, following unfolding bombardment of the southern city of mariupol. and don lemon also in lviv talking to the 3.5 million people fleeing the country and trying to flee the fighting. we begin in the capital of kyiv with cnn and the deadly russian attack on a shopping mall. >> reporter: this area was hit monday night. it is absolutely massive. if we go forward, we can see over there the mall and the parking lot of the mall where you can clearly see a gigantic impact crater right in the middle of that parking lot. and there are buildings around, the tall building absolutely destroyed in that entire mall complex. the buildings around here, a lot of them were badly damage as well. what we're hearing from the city council, they say that so far they know of eight people who have been killed in this explosio

wolf, it's so good to have you there and get your perspective on this.alk to us what we saw a couple moments ago, and how pivotal the meeting is in determining what the u.s.' next steps junior. >> yes, really a pivotal moment in this war in ukraine. good morning, christi and boris. we're watching this unfold right now. the president of the united states is preparing to speak to the very, very high stakes of russia's brutal war against ukraine. moments ago, you're right, the president arrived from the meeting with the polish president, president duda, to discuss the escalating refugee crisis and the response of the united states and its nato allies. later today, president biden will deliver what the white house is calling a major address on ukraine, on the war, what the conflict means for the world. what it means for the refugees. he'll be meeting, by the way, with ukrainian refugees and american humanitarian workers in the course of this morning as well. it's all so, so critically important. at the same time, ukrainian forces say they're going on the cou

i'm wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >> the humanitarian crisis unfolding in the war-torn ukraine right now is worsening by the hour. million of trapped civilians are at risk of being attack by russian forces at any time, even while trying to evacuate. cnn's clarissa ward will join us live from kyiv in a few moments with a heart-breaking look at older ukrainians simply struggling to survive. but first, more breaking news on the war. >> reporter: in northeast ukraine, not far from the russian border, the city of sumy was supposed to be safe. if only for a few hours. ukraine and russia agreed on a single evacuation corridor on tuesday but they have not protected the city. a russian air strike killed 21 civilians, including two children, overnight. the russian strikes have destroyed home in the city, flattening neighborhoods. we were leaders have already accused russia of targeting pre approved safe routes in ukraine. the city of mariupol in the south has been isolated by russian forces, acco

>> i shiver, wolf. it hurts. it breaks. maybe we're all running on empty here. experts in my organization, unicef, and one thing for that woman's kind of story on the route as people leave. we have blue dot safe spaces. it's all about tracking and tracing children. track them, trace and reunify them so these spaces where people can get critical information will link with social workers, municipal governments. so it's one thing that we do for people like that whose stories, as you know, repeated across the country. >> unicef spokesman james elder. thank you so much for joining us. thanks for all that unicef is doing and to our viewers, for more information about how you can help humanitarian efforts in ukraine go to cnn.com/impact and help impact your world. it is so, so important. >>> the breaking news continues next with new details of ukrainian president volodymyr zelenskyy's desperate plea to u.s. lawmakers for a no-fly zone to help from russia's brutal attack. we'll speak to a congressman who was in the remeet meeting next. energy is everywhere... even in a

i want to hand it over to wolf blitzer and cnn tonight. >> thank you very much. i'm wolf blitzer. this is cnn tonight. we want to welcome our viewers here in the united states and around the world. so what is russia up to now? the pentagon is -- don't be fooled by ukraine and easing up and the capital and on the ground there and there is more explosions in the capital. an june tick in shelling and intense fighting continuing around the suburbs of kyiv this afternoon. we're about to take you there live. but first, some words of caution from the u.s. defense department earlier today. >> has there been some movement by some russian units away from kyiv in the last day or so? >> yeah. we think so. small numbers. but we believe that this is a repositioning, not a real withdraw. and that we all should be prepared to watch for a major offensive against other areas of ukraine. >> so is this just a repositioning not a real withdraw? as the pentagon claims? the president, president biden also expressing skepticism. >> we'll see. we'll see what their actions are. >> and as ukraine's presiden

i believe we have wolf now. can you hear me, wolf?ll having technical difficulties. the two are expected to meet on how they can respond to russia's war on ukraine. we do expect to see president biden at the top of the hour, and we'll, of course, bring those pictures as they happen. as of this morning russia has claimed to have achieved its initial goals on the war in ukraine, and now they will focus on what it calls the liberation of the eastern donbas region. a top russian general says the encirclement of key cities like kyiv is a plan to tie down ukrainian forces to deflect them from focusings on donbas. russia says it carried out new strikes on several ukrainian targets, but ukraine's military has made progress in recent days, taking back towns on the eastern outskirts of kyiv. i believe we have steve hall still with us as well as retired air force colonel cedric leighton on to discuss the latest developments. first to you, colonel leighton, the reaction to news that the russian focus is going to be on eastern ukraine, the donbas,

i am wolf blitzer. you're in "the situation room." >> announcer: this is cnn breaking news. >>> let's get to president biden trying to explain what he meant and why he said vladimir putin, repeat, cannot stay in power. he took questions today about his unscripted jaw dropping remark during a speech in warsaw. mj, the says he was expressing his personal outrage, not making new policy. >> reporter: that's right, wolf. president biden taking the opportunity to explain for himself what exactly he meant when he said over the weekend that vladimir putin cannot stay in power. those comments raised a series of concerns, including the perception that he may have been endorsing u.s. support for regime change in russia that they were he is ka la tori, may hurt efforts to stop the war. president biden saying tonight he is not backing down from the comments. >> i'm not walking anything back. >> reporter: tonight, president biden standing by his off the cuff remarks about vladimir putin that sent waves across the glo

they have plans that they keep under wraps, wolf. but it seemed to be indicating to me that he is planning to meet with refugees while on the ground in poland. >> all right, that's good to know. stand by. we're going to get back to you. lieutenant general mark hurtling is joining us right now, a cnn military analyst. so, what jumped out at you, general, from what we heard from the president? >> well, the president's announcements, wolf, were all very interesting. the increased security assistance, the potential for additional sanctions against the duma and the defense entities. i read that as being specific sectors of the russian industry that contribute to their defensive posture. a billion in humanitarian assistance. 100,000 refugees and family reunification issues. energy security for europe. the kinds of sanctions that, you know, as one reporter asked him, won't deter but it's increasingly significant that he is leveling these kinds of sanctions against the russian government and it's continuing to hurt them more and more, and it

wolf. >> very interesting. >>> up next, new revelations from the motion picture academy as it announces disciplinary proceedings for will smith for his violent oscars outbreak. emerging investors are absolutely investing with their heart. they're two times more likely to invest in companies that have social and environmental goals. ♪ ♪ there are so many more young investors coming in and participating in the financial marketplaces today, and that's really due to advancements in technology. there's a proliferation of innovative technology solutions to be able to interact and invest in the financial markets. younger investors today are engaging in social media in ways that we've never seen in the past. they're in forums, actively engaging with their peers on certain topics and certain investment ideas. 75% of them believe that their investment decisions can influence climate change, and 90% of them want sustainable investing options in their 401(k). they believe that they can really impact with their investment d

wolf. >> thank you. stay safe over there.'re live in key locations in ukraine and russia as kyiv, the capitol, braces for a major assault amid a new round of explosions. i have friends. [ chuckles ] well, he may have frieiends, but he rides alone. that's jeremy, right thehere! we're literally riding together. he gets touchy when you talk about his lack of friends. can you help me out here? no matter why you ride, progressive has you covered with protection starting at $79 a year. well, we're new friends. to be fair. eh, still. (jackie) i've made progress with my mental health. so when i started having unintentional body movements called tardive dyskinesia... i ignored them. but when the twitching and jerking in my fa and hands affectedy day to day... i finally had to say, 'it's not ok.' it was time to talk to my doctor about austedo. she said that austedo helps reduce td movements in adults... while i continue with most of my mental health medications. (vo) austedo can cause depression, suicidal thoughts, or actions in patien

wolf. >> yeah. the united nations refugee agency today said more than 650,000 refugees have already fled, have already fled ukraine for neighboring countries, especially poland. jeff, stand by. jamie gangel is getting more reaction. jamie, i understand you've been speaking to several republicans. >> so i've been texting with about six or seven republicans tonight. some of them were members of congress who were there. some of them were at home. also some republican donors and republican strategists. and it turns out for once mitt romney was not alone. i don't want to overstate it, but you saw even kevin mccarthy, the republican minority lead, there he is, and scalise, his number two, standing and applauding. and beyond ukraine there were several other lines that the republicans i was texting with pointed out to me. the made in america line. fund police. secure borders. i think the headline is, wolf, that republicans didn't sit on their hands. one republican donor said to me, and this was in light of

>> you said it right, wolf.ourse of a week or ten days. it is a recognition of how truly grave the immediate crisis is, as you said just a moment ago. nato acknowledging the risk of a chemical attack. the president of the united states, biden said his way out of town, that is a real threat. that in itself and addressing that, announcing it, putting vladimir putin on notice, that is a big piece of this. he is an audience for this, and part of having a session like this, the most important word is unity. showing vladimir putin, showing the rest of the world that three weeks or a month into this war that you do not see divisions within nato, within the eu, that you see that they are, in a sense, stealing themselves for a very difficult and cooperative road ahead. >> what putin has done is tremendously unify the nato alliance. it's really impressive to see how these 30 leaders are working together. you said, evan, that this meeting here in brussels is about more than just the short-term needs for more weapons in ukr

. >>> i want to get to my colleague wolf blitzer. he is in brussels. wolf?ht, don, thank you very much. yes, we're here in brussels, right across -- right in front of the european union, the european council areas where the president has been holding summit talks as well. he's over at nato headquarters right now. i just came from there. he's about to have this news conference. we expect to learn new information from the president of the united states in the next few minutes. this is a truly historic moment at stake. population of ukraine, about 44 million people live there. maybe 10 million have been displaced from their own homes. 3.5 million of them have fled the country. we're watching what's going on. phil mattingly is our white house correspondent. phil, you are getting more information from your sources about what we should anticipate here. tell our viewers what you are learning, what we should brace to hear from the president. >> wolf, i think one of the interesting things is this press conference is going to be earlier than we expected it to. the tri

but they certainly don't have numbers on their side, wolf. the belarusians coming in really could tip the balance against them. >> at the same time, russia is clearly pounding and pounding and pounding the southern ukrainian city of mariupol, and has now started firing at it from the sea. how much longer can it hold up? >> well, it's been a miraculous defense of mariupol already. there is still many 10s -- many hundreds of thousands of people believed to be trapped in that city. it's been bombarded with the long-range cruise missiles, artillery missiles, mortars, and now being hit with the very big guns on battleships at sea in the sea of azov. it's a strategic target because if they can take it, even though in the words of president zelenskyy, there will be precious little left of it to take over, it will mean that they're able to join up their russian forces that are basically kept apart by mariupol between the east and the west side on the azov sea. it is a remarkable effort being made in maricopa. and also, of course, it's also critical t

." >> and i'm wolf blitzer in warsaw, poland.ust moments ago president joe biden landed here in warsaw. tomorrow he'll meet with ukrainian refugees living here. and deliver what the white house calls a major address about russia's war in ukraine. earlier today, president biden met with the polish president dudda near the poland/ukraine border received an update about the humanitarian crisis and met with u.s. soldiers from the 82nd airborne division. >> and we're getting update news cnn on russia's military operation around the city of keever have moved from offensive positions to defensive ones. that is according to a senior u.s. official. the official also said that russia is moving troops into ukraine from georgia as re-en forcements. and the uk said they have made some major gains and retaken towns an positions east of kyiv. we also have a clear picture of how deadly the war in ukraine has become. the city council of mariupol said at least 300 people are delivered to have been killed on a russian owe attack of a theater. this

i am wolf blitzer in warsaw. this is a special edition of the situ "situation room." >> this is cnn breaking news. >> we are live here in warsaw as president biden heads home from poland. he's now flying back to washington after his powerful declaration that vladimir putin cannot remain in power. we are getting new reaction to what the president said about putin, the war in ukraine and broader threats to nato, indeed, to the world. let's go to our senior correspondent phil mattingly here in warsaw. phil, a very, very strong message from president biden about putin that apparently was senate planned. tell us the latest. >> reporter: wolf, it was a forceful and carefully cag brated speech designed to send an unequivocal western strength about democracy. it was an off-the-cuff remark at the very end that may have given a window into the urgency president biden sees in this moment. >> for god's sake this man cannot remain in power. >> reporter: tonight president biden delivering a force st and dramatic condemnation o

wolf. >> yeah. as u.s.icials have said to me over the past few days, this is clearly, phil, a pivotal moment in what's going on in otown war in ukraine. phil black will be back with us. stay safe. we'll get back to you shortly. our chief white house correspondent kaitlan collins is still with us. also joining us the defense saerk firefighter europe, jim townsend. what's your assessment, jim? what do you see unfolding right now? this is an important day, and what the president of the united states is clearly trying to do in addition to everything else is send a powerful message to putin. >> exactly. he's sending a powerful message to putin. he's going right up in his face and saying, i'm here. nato is here. we're not split. there's a powerful message also going to the polish people who are clearly in the crosshairs of the russians, and that message is we've got your back. and so this has a -- this trip has had a major military theme. but the other is we know you're in the crosshairs. we're with you. that was

wolf? >> natasha, stand by.aitlan, you've been getting some new reporting on this so-called tiger team that the u.s. has put together to deal with this horrible contingency, this contingency of russia using chemical, biological or god forbid, nuclear weapons. >> this is basically a group of national security officials inside the administration. they're called a tiger team. they formed a version of this back in the fall when they thought russia might invade ukraine to prepare what that might look like. clearly that paid off given what's happened and four days we learned after the invasion started they authorized another version of it. this time focusing on if putin takes the extreme step of deploying chemical weapons, biological weapons, maybe even these tactical and nuclear weapons in ukraine, how does the u.s. respond to that? obviously, that's something they'd want to do in consultation with the allies here that the president is meeting with today, but they want to know, what are the options? what are we likel

wolf. >> thank you very much, jessica.ation room. we'll be live beginning at 5:00 p.m. eastern. erin burnett "outfront" starts right now. >>> next, breaking news, united states says ukrainian forces have pushed russia back to the capital. kyiv regaining crucial ground as nato estimates up to 15,000 russian troops are dead. the governor in ukraine calls on r residents to help collect russian corpses that are piling up. and inside a rare face-to-face meeting between the u.s. and russia. saying he was depressed over what's happening in ukraine, but wait until you hea

i'm wolf blitzer in "the situation room."n room from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. eastern. "erin burnett outfront" starts right now. >>> out front next. breaking news. new images this hour of the utter devastation in mariupol. this, as hundreds remain missing after a bombing of a theater in that same city. plus, biden warns china not to help russia but will the chinese president who calls vladimir putin his quote best friend listen? and he was a professional tennis player now trading his racket for weapons. why he says he is willing to die to defend ukraine. let's go out front. and good evening. i'm erin burnett.

he especially targets its administrator, meagan wolfe. >> meagan wolfe: my position is nonpartisan as is all of the staff at the wisconsin elections commission. >> whitaker: what does that actually mean? >> wolfe: to me, it means that i don't give any deference to political pressure, so people trying to sway us to implement elections in a way that might be beneficial to one party, or one candidate, or the other. >> whitaker: meagan wolfe was unanimously confirmed for the wisconsin elections commission by the republican controlled state senate almost three years ago. in february of this year, she was sworn in as president of the national association of state election directors. >> wolfe: when we say that the election in wisconsin was free and fair, we're not guessing. we know that because we have audited the election. we have recounted the election. we have canvassed the election. there have been court decisions that have looked at the election and affirmed the result. >> whitaker: why are people suspicious of the outcome of this election? >> wolfe: i'm not really sure, other than it f

i'm wolf blitzer.adquarters in brussels, where president biden is attending this truly extraordinary summit, with 29 other nato heads of state. in just a few moments, we're going to -- we expect to hear from the president of the united states, and the administration announcing new sanctions against russian lawmakers and oligarchs. this as we're also learning that the united states is wrapping up what to do if -- what to do if president putin and the russian military take even mor

>> in fact, it does, wolf. this is permanent, normal trade relations if a country has it, it means low tariffs. if a country doesn't, it means high tariffs. would translate into more pressure on the russian economy, even before the president gave the green light on this, there were a number of members of the house and senate both democrats and republicans who were pushing for it, but the white house at first told them to hold off. that was because they wanted to get more support among the allies. reason for that, pretty simple. if, for example, the united states goes it alone on this issue of revoking most favored nation status for russia, it would have a moderate effect on the economy, but if you throw in the u.k., the e.u., canada, japan, all of these different countries, it makes much more of a statement. so the house of representatives now is pushing hard to try to get this thing through on that side. by this time next week, not clear if the united states senate is going to move quite as fast. meanwhile, sp