i want to get information from peter zwack, also cnn analyst james spider marks.eral zwack, how significant is this military aid, the stinger missile, s-300 antiaircraft systems, and the other items going, including a source telling cnn providing switchblade drones. >> yes. hugely significant when you consider the nature of the fight. this has become a mono y mono on the ground fight. infantry, whether regular or irregulars on the ukrainian side and how they bleed the russians is with added tank weapons. whether they're javelins or rpgs, the air power, the, you know, stingers and other systems keeping the russian helicopter ground attack at higher altitudes. and these hundreds and hundreds of systems are going out into a ground force that is growing and metastasizing, i believe, throughout ukraine. and this is becoming hell for those russian columns. wherever they concentrate, they can overpower. but they are being hit from all over. and these type of systems are small. they're portable. and very, very versatile. and they will make a huge difference in this elemen

joining me now brigadier general zwack. also mark hertling.lling, the pentagon estimating russia has roughly 100% of the forces amassed before the invasion are now inside ukraine itself. and yet in some places russian forces have struggled to surround major cities. what do you see as the -- what happens? where are we in this if the goal ultimately is to occupy cities or control ukraine? do they -- they don't have enough forces for that. >> they do not, anderson. i've been saying that from the very beginning. they are woefully sort in terms of the number of forces. so, what they've reverted to and math you's reporting just now is an indicator of that. they revert to laying siege to the cities with artillery and missile strikes. so, the population leaves. and we've seen 1.7 million people ukraine already. as soon as the people leave the city centers, the russian troops had been used to rolling into the city with their tanks and armor saying, hey, we're here, we've secured the city and it belongs to russia, we've subjugated it. that's not happeni

army general peter zwack is with me.pete zwack is with me . >>> hey there, i'm ayman mohyeldin. at 8:00 eastern, igor novikov, former advisor to volodymyr zelenskyy will join me live. we're going to discuss what he is seeing on the ground and zelenskyy's part in leading the resistance. join us for "ayman" tonight 8:00 eastern right here on msnbc. in 0 eastern right here on msnbc. ♪ ♪♪ hey google. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ (customer) [reading] save yourself?! money with farmers? (burke) that's not wrong. when you switch your home and auto policies to farmers, you could save yourself an average of seven hundred and thirty dollars. (customer) that's something. (burke) get a whole lot of something with farmers. ♪we are farmers.bum-pa-dum, bum-bum-bum-bum♪ to help prevent bleeding gums, try saying hello gumwash with parodontax active gum health. it kills 99% of plaque bacteria and forms an antibacterial shield. try parodontax active gum health mouthwash. >>> at this hour, ukraine's third largest city is bracing for an onslaught from russia

. >> ambassador, let me ask you this because -- and then i want to come back to you, general zwack. look at the deal announced today by the u.s. and eu. they're sending more lng, liquefied natural gas to europe, trying to bolster our allies to get them to cut back on russian gas by something like 2/3 this year. this is going to cost the kremlin money. is this something that gets vladimir putin's attention? >> hallie, vladimir putin has to be paying attention to a lot. he's got to be paying attention to the problems that general zwack just talked about of his forces in ukraine not doing very well. indeed, the ukrainian forces pushing back, actually counteroffensive pushing the russians way out of range of kyiv in terms of artillery. so president putin has a lot on his mind there. he's lost, it sounds like, 16,000 soldiers, hallie. 16,000 families back in russia are burying their dead. and they're not sure why. the russian people are facing the damage to their quality of life, to their living, their ability to buy things. so president putin has a lot to worry about. yes, the sanctions

also with us, retired army brigadier general peter zwack.tlan, let's start with you, the president announcing new sanctions but also discussing how to, i guess, blunt the impact of these sanctions on the u.s. >> reporter: yeah, so, just a refresher on who it is that the president and the united states is sanctioning today. it's seven of these russian oligarchs and their family members. they are also adding dmitry peskov to that list, that is president putin's spokesperson that you so often see on television defending him, talking about that. he is also being sanctioned. one of those russian oligarchs is the one who had that mega yacht that was seized by german authorities in recent days. his name is now on this list and when the president was talking about banning travel, that comes to the state department and they are imposing these visa restrictions on about 47 of these russian oligarchs, their family members, their close associates as well, and so those are the steps that president biden was taking. they are highlighting that they are try

general zwack as well.d children and doctors we met here in lviv in specialized children's hospital. we cover war and we have these masks and talk about what the soldiers are doing and the fights. and all of that is of course a main part of war. but there are also children fighting right now. they're fighting cancer. they're fighting heart disease. they're fighting all the things that kids around the world fight and adults have to fight. but they're doing it in the midst of a war. and right now there are kids in the city who have come from all over ukraine because they can't take cancer treatment anymore because they're in a hospital treatment here and they're hoping to get out to poland to get to a better hospital. and i want you to meet some of them ahead. we'll be right back. g boi house. big boi kitchen! big boi waterfall shower! big boi crawl space. big boi sold sign, big boi logo. realtor.com to each their home. we have to be able to repair the enamel on a daily basis. with pronamel repair toothpaste,

general zwack would know more because he served as the most senior representative and not that long ago and so he is acutely well aware of this, and those of us who know not a majority, but a stronger and forward looking liberal element that is simply appalled by this, and even one of the more extended oligarchical wealthy group of those who have defected and caused the cracks in the ranks, but much more than that, jim, we need a much more sophisticated information campaign to try to directly reach the russian people in innovative ways through the mobile phones and through the messaging in a variety of ways that we have not tried before that push out the envelope to try to bring to them the truth about what their country doing in ukraine and how pointless and destructive it is, and not only to the 44 million people of ukraine, but to the more than 150 million people of russia. >> general, how about that? you have worked inside of russia, and you know the counterparts and have had good relations with them, and professional relations with them as an attache, and how do we get this message

let's discuss with retired brigadier general peter zwack.a stalemate. if we look at the map of where russian troops are, there have been few advances around kyiv for more than a week now. what does a stalemate look like? what does that poretend for the next phase of the war? >> victor, i think stalemate is not the right word. there may be stalemate meaning russian forces have stopped, dug in, consolidated, in the places where they are amassed but everywhere else in ukraine, those long supply convoys, all the things that need to be done to keep those forward troops, if you will, supplied and fed is not stalemate. if the ukrainians, whether military, territorial forces or private, well-armed civilians are wreaking havoc on these long vulnerable lines that we talked about, that is not stalemate. that is eroding and whittling their combat power and making them up front, including all the shells, artillery, and rockets they're firing at risk. so that would be my view. >> so let's talk about the hardware then, and the use of this hypersonic missil

. >> general zwack there's been a public debate about the support. the latest over whether to supply these polish fighter jets. i've been told that that is less impactful than air defense systems. that those have proven more crucial to ukraine's military defense and that is the focus now, not just the stinger shoulder-fired missiles, but perhaps mobile more sophisticated surface-to-air missiles. do you agree those weapons systems are more impactful and should be the focus rather than fighter jets? >> yes. i'm on the record at being against at this time a no-fly zone and actually having our fingerprints, putting in mig 29s and all that. we have to pull back, and i pull my own mind back. my god, russians are in the middle of a continuing, unprovoked brutal aggression of a peaceful country. yes, i'm all for the sanctions. but something more increasing needs to happen. yes, you can bring in platforms into western ukraine, lviv and in that area. but the russians, we just have to be ready. the russians will come after them. we have to be ready for the cons

brigadier general peter zwack.nks for talking with us. >>> still to come, what history can teach us about the current war in ukraine. don't go anywhere. you're l live in the "cnn newsroom." , dry and shine yourr dishes. solve 3 problems at once with finish jetdry 3in1. it's still the eat fresh refresh, and subway's refreshing their italians. so, we're taking this to italy. refresh. becaussubway now has italian-style capicola on the new mozza meat and preme meats. love the smell of italian food. subway keeps refreshin and refres- having a 5g phone that's not on t-mobile makes as much sense as playing ice hockey... using pool noodles. get out of the penalty box with 5g coverage like this. t-mobile has more 5g bars in more places than anyone. t-mobile. more 5g bars in more places. another reason t-mobile is the leader in 5g ♪ ♪ nice suits, you guys blend right in. the world needs you back. i'm retired greg, you know this. people are taking financial advice from memes. [baby spits out milk] i'll get my onesies®. ♪ “bab

also let's bring in now retired brigadier general peter zwack, a global fellow at the wilson centers. he served in moscow as the united states senior defense official and the attache to the russian federation for 2012 to 2014. he's also the author of "swimming the volga: a u.s. officer's experience in pre-putin russia." what is your assessment of what you're seeing in terms of the russian positions and where they're attacking today? >> all right. they're moving. a lot of the columns, reinforcements have come up. they've had a very, very clumsy initial five days. they're amassing their fire power. there's no clean way to take a city. they would prefer doing it by intimidation. they don't have the time to besiege them because of all the things we talked about, the stress at home in russia, the world. they want to get this thing done fast. so, if you're going to take a city, and you're going to storm it, you need a lot of artillery, a lot of air power, and we're seeing the front end of it. they declared they're going after communications facilities. witnessed the kyiv tower, which is, b

brigadier general peter zwack, we always appreciate your help. "the lead" with jake tapper starts right now. >>> reports of bombs dropping every ten minutes. constant bombardment in one strategic ukrainian city. an art school bombed. hundreds possibly trapped. no access to food or water. and now the u.s. is warning russian forces could be getting even more desperate. >>> and then history on the hill. as the confirmation hearing begins for the first african american woman nominated to the supreme court. judge kentanji brown jackson makes her opening statement. >>> and a boeing 737 crashes into the mountains in china with 132 people aboard and no one knows why. now the airline is grounding all of its 737 jets. >>> growing desperation among russian forces to gain any momentum in their unprovoked war on ukraine. this is what that looks like on the ground. take a look here, starting in the key port city of mariupol. a ukrainian official inside that city says bombs are dropping every ten minutes. and that includes striking civilian targets. ukraine's p

. >> general hertling, general zwack, i appreciate your expertise. >>> ordinary people are taking upmixing molotov cocktails, training to defend their cities and towns and neighborhoods. cnn's ivan watson reports. >> reporter: dawn breaks over the city of vinitsia with an air raid siren. this is the entrance to a village on the outskirts of the city, a checkpoint protected by volunteers, an ex-cop, a fireman, and an electrician. look at how this village is protecting itself, homemade tank traps which the locals call hedgehogs. they've put up netting and sandbags. around the wall of this checkpoint they've got boxes of molotov cocktails ready. this is all locally made. these are improvised defenses. and this is just one ukrainian village. just down the road, i meet nina who seems like a sweet 71-year-old grandmother. by the way, nina says if she saw vladimir putin, she would strangle him with her own hands right now. "i'm ready," she says. "if by god the russians come here, i'll shoot them all and my hands won't even shake. i'll throw grenades at them." there is seething anger at russ

general zwack, thank you. kim dozier, thank you as well. >>>> we'll be right back.l cocow. and she really hates that. let's go on the open road with a safe stay! now get double best western rewards points on every stay. and with rewards points that never expire, you get free nights fast! book now at bestwestern.com. [upbeat acoustic music throughout] (vo) small businesses are joining the big switch. save over $1,000 when you switch to our ultimate business plan for the lowest price ever. plus choose from the latest 5g smartphones. get more 5g bars in more places- switch to t-mobile for business today. - common percy! - yeah let's go! on a trip. book with priceline. you save more, so you can “woooo” more. - wooo. - wooo. wooooo!!!!! woohooooo!!!! w-o-o-o-o-o... yeah, feel the savings. priceline. every trip is a big deal. i'm mark and i live in vero beach, florida. my wife and i have three children. ruthann and i like to hike. we eat healthy. we exercise. i noticed i wasn't as sharp as i used to be. my wife introduced me to prevagen and so i said "yeah, i'll try it ou

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general peter zwack, we'll check in with you as things development. appreciate your help. >>> this just in on the covid front. former president barack obama has covid. a short time ago posted this on twitter. i just tested positive for covid. a scratchy throat a couple of days feeling fine otherwise. michelle and i are grateful to be vaccinated and boosted. she tested negative. a reminder to get vaccinated even as cases go down if you haven't been. if you haven't been vaccinated get vaccinated and boosted because covid is still out there even though we're not talking about it that much. >>> and fleeing ukraine. incredible moment caught on camera. a mother reuniting with her children. a live report is next. live in the "cnn newsroom." par? they just found out they can redeem rewards for a second honeymoon. romance is in the air. like these two. he's realizing he's in love. and that his dating app just went up. must be fate. and phil. he forgot a gift, so he's sending the happy couple some money. digital tools so impressive, you just can't stop banking.

peter zwack is a former attorney general. he is author of "swimming the voel ga: an army officer's experience in pre-putin russia." i want to start with breaking news. carol lee is covering the white house. i understand, carol, in just the last couple of minutes as i was coming on the air, we got breaking news about a call the president will be holding with other world leaders. what can you tell us? >> reporter: that's right, chris. the president, according to the white house, is going to hold a call with the leaders of france, germany, the uk, and italy starting moments from now, scheduled for 9:15 a.m. eastern time. this call comes amid all of those -- the backdrop you just outlined, all of those developments from the peace talks to the russians signaling they may pull back its military invasion in ukraine, and it comes after president biden yesterday came out to further clarify some comments that he made on saturday saying that russian president vladimir putin should no longer remain in power. as you'll recall, there were

on the ground, yes, as we heard from ali and general zwack and others, morale remains high, but there's a real question about how much more russia is willing to escalate and how much longer ukrainian forces can hang on. >> amna nawaz, you'll stay with me. general, thank you. >>> coming up, more of my interview with ukraine's ambassador to the u.n. new insights as the russian invasion stretches into day 20. we'll also talk about the u.s. turning up the heat on china. what exactly is the u.s. willing to do to help end the war? i'll ask state department spokesman ned price straight ahead. >>> first, 5,000 miles away from the war, an emotional highlight at the metropolitan opera's soldout benefit for ukraine. a 24-year-old bass baritone was the soloist during the ukrainian national anthem. his mother is still in ukraine, where she's taking care of his 88-year-old grandmother. he told me last night his mom, mama, as he calls her, is glad he's here because he's safe. the words of his solo translated "our enemy shall vanish like dew in the sun." ♪ well the sun is shining and the grass is green

general hertling, general zwack, appreciate it.ican presidents, their support for ukraine. and we'll speak to an american doctor who is risking their lives to treat ukrainians when they leave and inside the country. ready to style in just one step? introducing new tresemme one step stylers. five professional benefits. one simple step. totally effortless. styling has never been easier. tresemme. do it with style. >>> take a look, former presidents bill clinton and george w. bush went to a ukrainian church in chicago. they wore blue and yellow ribbons and each brought yellow sunflowers, in solidarity with the ukrainian people. chicago is a sister city to kyiv. and tonight a south florida doctor is leading a medical team, racing to save ukrainians. once they cross the border into moldova or risking their own safety to help them. they even bought an ambulance to help. he leads the united medical team and joins me tonight. doctor, can you tell us a little bit about your decision to come to moldova and do whatever you can to help? >> wel

. >> keir simmons, brigadier general peter zwack, it's been great hearing from all of you. and coming up, we have much more on the domestic message from the president's state of the union address with some key parts of his legislative agenda stalled in congress. did his rhetoric do anything to move the ball forward. >>> and to two doctors battle a pandemic while trying to avoid russian air strikes. don't go anywhere. g to avoid russian air strikes. don't go anywhere. yeah, hi. instead of letting passengers wrap their arms around us, could we put little handles on our jackets? -denied. -can you imagine? i want a new nickname. can you guys start calling me snake? no, bryan. -denied. -how about we all get quotes to see if we can save with america's number one motorcycle insurer? approved. cool! hey, if bryan's not gonna be snake, can i be snake? -all: no. ♪ ♪ ♪a little bit of chicken fried♪ ♪cold beer on a friday night♪ ♪a pair of jeans that fit just right♪ ♪and the radio up well i've seen the sunrise...♪ get 5 boneless wings for $1 with any handcrafted burger. only at applebe