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Connect the World
Family Says Aid Worker Kayla Mueller is Dead; Obama Delays Decision on Arming Ukraine; Indian PM's Party Defeated in Delhi State Election; Samsung Confusion Over Smart TVs
Aired February 10, 2015 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LYNDA KINKADE, HOST: An another American held hostage by ISIS is dead. 26-year-old Kayla Mueller's family confirming the news they've been
dreading. They say they are heartbroken and have released a letter written by their daughter in captivity.
Also ahead, scenes of terror in eastern Ukraine the day before another peace push. We get the view from the ground and from Moscow.
And what does this pinstripe suit have to do with political bruising? We'll live to New Delhi to talk fashion and politics.
ANNOUNCER: Live from CNN Center, this is Connect the World.
KINKADE: The family of Kayla Mueller, an American woman held captive by the terror group ISIS say they've received confirmation that she's dead.
Mueller went to the Middle East to help the flood of refugees affected by Syria's civil war. She arrived in Syria in 2012 with the Danish Refugee
Council and Support to Life humanitarian agency.
Her family said she was abducted in August the following year in Aleppo as she left a Doctors Without Borders hospital.
On Friday, ISIS claimed that Mueller had been killed in a building it says was hit by a Jordanian airstrike on Raqqa, but offered no proof.
A spokesperson for the U.S. national security council says the family received a private message from Mueller's captors containing photos that
indicated she was dead. It is not clear, however, how she died.
The White House has offered its condolences and vowed to track down those responsible.
We'll be live in Mueller's home town shortly with more.
Now to eastern Ukraine where towns and cities are being torn apart bit by bit a day ahead of a peace summit. The fighting between government
forces and pro-Russian separatists in the east shows no sign of letting up.
A scene of chaos and terror caught in video in the Luhansk region, this is a soup kitchen that was hit by a rocket fire. Civilians are also
caught in the middle in the city of Kramatorsk in government held territory.
The terrifying sounds of combat captured from a residential window. This is the view from a relatively safe distance.
A short time ago, we received this video showing the aftermath of the Donetsk regional state authority which is tied to the Ukrainian government
in Kiev says seven civilians were killed in Kramatorsk today, that includes five children.
Now we're covering the story from Ukraine and Russia. Matthew Chance is standing by in Moscow, but first let's go to Nick Paton Walsh in
Donetsk. And Nick, on the eve of this summit, describe what you've witnessed and are the rebels making ground?
NICK PATON WALSH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, no sense of the fighting easing up at all.
We were near the city of Debaltseve, town of Debaltseve I should say, earlier on today. Heavy shelling over that area, a lot of fire power being
thrown towards it as far as we could see. We also saw some of the front line separatist troops very well equipped how they were pushing towards
trying to cut off the main access road into that town, which the Ukrainian military themselves accepting while the area is not in fact surrounded,
that road is coming under heavy attack, the separatists themselves claiming that city is in fact completely cut off.
A very violent day in Kramatorsk as well as you mentioned. That city being hit is significant because firstly it's the headquarters of the anti-
terror operation as the Ukrainians would call their push against the separatists. I've been inside that base that was targeted today. We know
from local officials 10 soldiers were injured.
It is a lot of times a series of trenches and tents, very limited protection there for a lot of the soldiers inside. And of course also,
too, some of these rockets landed in residential areas as well resulting in those civilians casualties.
A quite remarkable terrifying moment for many Ukrainian civilians now to learn that potentially the reach of these rockets could be something in
the region of nearly 100 kilometers, potentially. That will have many deeply concerned about violence escalating in the days ahead.
But all eyes really now focused on Debaltseve and quite how the battle for that strategic town plays out as we expect these leaders to gather
potentially tomorrow for peace talks -- Linda.
KINKADE: And, Nick, in terms of those peace talks, should they fail what would it mean for the people caught in the crossfire?
WALSH: Well, the concern is if we do not see a ceasefire come from these talks, and we are seeing on Russian state news agency RIA Novosti,
the suggestion that the Russians might like the OSCE monitoring group who are already monitoring the conflict here to take a wider role perhaps and
monitor a different set of borders or demarcation zones. That's one possibility.
If we don't see a ceasefire, then the question really is quite how does this conflict wind down? The separatists are very clear about their
ambition to take all of the Donetsk region back. They clearly have a lot of equipment at their back now and a lot of discipline and confidence. The
question is to the Ukrainian government, can they accept a political deal, which perhaps waters down the sovereignty over this area. It is de facto,
frankly, in so many ways feeling closer and closer to Russia day by day, even on Moscow time as we speak in this area of the separatists call the
Donetsk People's Republic.
But the fear will be if we see a failure tomorrow in Minsk -- and I should point out that according to one European diplomat key separatist
leaders aren't actually attending the meetings in the Belarussian capital. They'll be sending lower level delegation instead, then that really could
result in even greater escalation of violence here than we saw today, Lynda.
KINKADE: OK. Thanks for the perspective from Ukraine. Nick Paton Walsh.
Now we need to correct something. We just learned that five children were among more than two dozen people injured, they were not killed.
Now let's take a moment to give you a bit of context of this situation and show you just how large an area we're talking about.
Now this map we're about to show you, you'll be able to see the fighting between government and rebel forces has mainly been limited to
Luhansk and Donetsk. That area is just over 50,000 square kilometers, or about the size of Bosnia and Herzegovina. That's less than 10 percent of
the whole of Ukraine, which is one of the largest countries in Europe.
Well, as the fighting intensifies, so do the Diplomatic efforts to end the bloodshed. The leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine and Russia are
expected to sit down in Belarus tomorrow to try to find a peaceful solution.
And our Matthew Chance joins us from Moscow with more from there.
And Matthew, who is expected to be present at these Minsk peace talks? I understand that pro-Russian rebels would not be represented?
MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yeah, as we just heard from Nick there on the ground in eastern Ukraine. The pro-Russian
separatists from that region won't be represented at the highest level at these meeting. There will be other meetings, perhaps, where lower level
officials from the Donetsk People's Republic may be attending. The key meeting, though, is between four leaders. The leaders of Russia, Vladimir
Putin; Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko; the French President Francois Hollande; and Angela Merkel the German Chancellor. These two figures representing
Europe and then the two people from Russia and Ukraine.
You know, this is where the main negotiations are going to take place, to try and forge some kind of compromise that's going to bring a peaceful
settlement, a diplomatic settlement to the terrible suffering that's taking place on the ground in eastern Ukraine. So a very key diplomatic meeting.
If it doesn't work, and of course all hopes at the moment are that it will, but if it doesn't obviously it could be catastrophic for the region
and the fighting, well, that would doubtlessly continue, Lynda.
KINKADE: What does Russia want to get this peace agreement through?
CHANCE: That's a good question. And in fact there have been very few public statements on what it is specifically that Russia wants to use its
influence, as it might say, on the pro-Russian rebels in eastern Ukraine for the fighting to end, for this conflict to be resolved.
We know that in general terms, they're looking for greater autonomy for ethnic Russians and Russian speakers in eastern Ukraine. We know also
that they're perhaps supporting the idea of a demilitarized zone along the current front line in eastern Ukraine, that's a territory which the rebels
have been taking more of in recent days specifically, so it would leave the rebels with more land.
You know, but more generally I think what Russia is looking for is some kind of reconfiguring of its relationship with the west. I mean,
Vladimir Putin says this a lot, he said it yesterday in Egypt where he was on a state visit that, you know, the west has for too long now, and I'm
paraphrasing him, trampled over the concerns of Russia. Russia sees Ukraine as part of its natural sphere of influence. And there's a sense in
which Russia is now -- Vladimir Putin is now drawing a line in the sand and saying, look, we're not going to allow Ukraine to join NATO. We're not
going to allow it to join the European Union or other western institutions. It's part of our sphere of influence. And we want that recognized if this
conflict is going to come to an end -- Lynda.
KINKADE: Very complex talks.
Matthew Chance in Moscow, thanks so much.
And we have more ground to cover on this story. A bit later, we'll look at the debate in Washington over whether or not to arm Ukrainian
government forces. And what kind of deal with Kiev accept in order to make peace?
We'll take you live to the Ukrainian capital to talk with a spokesman from the country's foreign ministry.
Now as we mentioned, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been in Cairo holding talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi. The two
leaders have been discussing different deals on trade, arms and the construction of a nuclear power plant.
The increased economic cooperation between the two countries could be worth billions of dollars.
Ian Lee is following the visit from Mr. Putin. And he joins us now from Cairo.
Ian, the red carpet was effectively rolled out for President Putin. And he emphasized Egypt's status as a trusted partner. Russia doesn't seem
to have many so-called partners right now. Describe the relationship between the two countries.
IAN LEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, the relationship between Vladimir Putin and Egyptian President Abdel Fatah el-Sisi makes for
natural friendship. Both men were in intelligence. Both men have fought Islamist insurgencies. And both men have been criticized by the west,
which has left an opening for this warming of relations.
They discussed an array of issues from economics to regional to terrorism. President el-Sisi praised Russia for their cooperation and
their military in the battle against the Islamist insurgency here in the country.
They also talked about getting -- creating closer economic ties, opening up free trade zones and having greater transfer of goods back and
forth. They want to see an increase in trade that already stands for right now at $4.5 billion.
But el-Sisi also brought up Syria. And both countries have a different approach when it comes to that. Both said that they want to see
a peaceful resolution, but the Russians are very firmly in the Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's camp where the Egyptians are very strong allies
of the Gulf. And they are backing the Syrian rebels.
So it will be difficult for -- it'll be difficult for Egypt to jump on Russia's camp. But they are warming relations and el-Sisi is going to
visit Putin in Moscow.
KINKADE: It's interesting watching that relationship develop. And clearly trade will be very important between the two countries.
Ian Lee, thank you so much for joining us.
Still to come this hour, India Prime Minister Narendra Modi concedes his party's defeat in state elections. We'll take a look at the former
taxman whose party won and what it means for Mr. Modi's future.
And with ISIS in control of parts of his country, the Syrian president finds himself fighting the same fight of many old enemies. But are they
coordinating their efforts? We'll bring you Bashar al-Assad's version of the events next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: You're watching CNN. And this is Connect the World with me Lynda Kinkade in for Becky Anderson. Welcome back.
The rise of ISIS across large parts of Syria has had a devastating impact and not just for the obvious reasons. The militant group's
voracious appetite for violence has in many ways stolen attention from the wider Syrian civil war and its victims.
Let's remind you of the numbers. Nearly four years of conflict, more than 220,000 deaths, 7.6 million internally displaced, more than 3 million
forced out of the country.
And while ISIS dominates the headlines, it scenes like this in Damascus go largely unreported, but they've become the reality for many of
those who remain in the country.
The victims are not the only ones with a lower profile these days? Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has arguably found himself overshadowed by
ISIS as the U.S.-led coalition tries to stamp out the militant threat. But as Mr. al-Assad finds himself fighting the same enemy as the countries who
want him gone, which begs the question are they cooperating?
The BBC's Jeremy Bowen (ph) put that president -- put that question to the president.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you talk to the Americans? There are American planes in the air above Syria at all time. To you coordinate?
BASHAR AL-ASSAD, PRESIDENT OF SYRIA: No. Because they don't talk to anyone unless it's puppet. And they easily trample over the international
law, which is about our sovereignty now. So they don't talk to us, we don't talk to them.
UNIDNETIFIED MALE: But I'm curious that at a time when there are -- there's the American military in the air above Syria and your people in the
air, your air force is also in the -- the Syrian air force is the air above Syria, that there haven't been any incidents between the two. No shots
seemed to have been traded, no plans have been shot down. That suggests to me surely there's someone is talking to someone here.
BASHAR AL-ASSAD, PRESIDENT OF SYRIA: That's correct. But, again, there's no direct cooperation.
UNIDNETIFIED MALE: Direct. Is it via Iraq, that's what some people have said.
ASSAD: That's through third party, more than one party. Iraq and other countries. Sometimes they convey message, general message. But
there is nothing tactical.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So they don't tell you when we'll be bombing Raqqa at 10:00 this evening, please keep out of the way.
ASSAD: We knew about the campaign before it's started, but we didn't know about the details.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And is that a continuing dialog that you have through third parties?
ASSAD: There is no dialog, there's let's say information, but not dialog.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They tell you things?
ASSAD: Something like that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you tell them things?
ASSAD: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Let's dig a bit deeper into those dynamics between the Syrian leader and the anti-ISIS coalition.
I'm joined via Skype by Salman Shaikh who heads up the Brookings Institution in Doha and specializes in negotiation and conflict resolution
in Syria and the Gulf states. Thanks so much for joining us.
SALMAN SHAIKH, BROOKINGS INSTITUTION: Pleasure to be with you.
KINKADE: And Mr. Assad says he is not giving away his secrets, but he's getting intel on what the coalition is up to. Do you believe that?
What do you make of that?
SHAIKH: Well, he said it's the coordination is general, not tactical. And I take him on this one for his words.
I think as he said the Iraqis, maybe even the Iranians and others are passing on information.
Of course he knows that the region aircraft are not going to go and buzz over his palace or other areas where the government is strong. They
will be focusing on DAESH concentration, so ISIL concentrations in Syria, which would be largely around Kobani.
KINKADE: Now, let's hear another clip from that BBC interview in which President al-Assad is challenged on the use of barrel bombs.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What about barrel bombs. You don't deny that your forces use them.
ASSAD: I know. But army, they use bullets, missiles and bombs. I haven't heard of army using barrels or maybe...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Large barrels full of explosives and projectiles, which are dropped from helicopters and explode with devastating affect.
There's been a lot of testimony about these things.
ASSAD: They're called bombs. We have bombs, missiles and bullets.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you would -- but you wouldn't deny that included under the category of bombs are these barrel bombs, which are
indiscriminate weapons.
ASSAD: No, there's no indiscriminate weapons. When you shoot, you aim. And when you shoot, when you aim at terrorists in order to protect
civilians. Again, if you're talking about casualty, that's war, you cannot have war without casualties.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: Mr. Salman, do you buy his assertion that there are no indiscriminate weapons? And would you expect al-Assad's enemies to buy it?
SHAIKH: No, of course they don't. And the people who are receiving these day in, day out month after month certainly don't buy it.
There's a real callousness to his remarks here. He knows full well what's going on. He knows hundreds are being killed -- in fact, in the
last four days probably 120 have just been killed around the Damascus suburbs. He's been barrel bombing yesterday in the northeast of Aleppo.
What's most disturbing here is that we had a UN security council resolution nearly a year ago which said this had to stop and yet it's
continued. We've given him a license to continue in this regard. And that I think is the most worrying thing.
It's also, his notion that he's not doing this means that the killer is in denial. This is actually shocking. And the international community
really now has to do something about it.
I would also say look at the footage for yourself. Go on YouTube, go on Syrian civil defense, go on a number of other websites and you will see
this kind of indiscriminate attacks which are going on.
KINKADE: That's right, there are obviously -- there is evidence of the shellings of these barrel bombs that we're seeing humanitarian groups
put out.
Now if you don't mind, let's have a quick look at his staying power. Like, why has he lasted this long? International pressure on the president
increased after his government responded violently to protests in March 2011. By November that year, the Arab League had suspended Syria. Six
months later, some western states, including the UK, Germany and France expelled Syrian diplomats after a massacre in Homs. In December 2012, the
U.S. and others recognized the opposition Syrian National Coalition as the legitimate representative of the Syrian people.
Washington and London pledged non-military aid to rebels in March 2013, but soon it withdrew it after it found some of that aid found its way
into the hands of al Qaeda-linked fighters.
Now last June, U.S. President Barack Obama pledged $500 million to arm and train so-called moderate rebels, but they're proving difficult to
identify.
So why is Mr. al-Assad still in power? And are the west and other states wavering in their efforts to unseat him?
SHAIKH: Well, the rhetoric from the west and the coalition at the London level and others has been very strong, but we've not backed it up by
real action.
Real action and support has come with regards to Assad's backers and particularly Iran and Russia.
On top of that, Russia and Assad created a self-fulfilling prophesy. He and those closest to him said right from the start it's either me or
chaos. And he very cleverly used a strategy whereby which he helped to create that chaos. Extremists were let out of prisons. They organized.
And this mother of all safe havens in the northeast of the country, connecting now with Iraq, of terrorists has been created.
Also, the inability of the international community to simply protect civilians. The security council's inability to come together and to
progressively put pressure on anyone who is killing civilians in Syria has now got us to this absolute terrible situation where now Assad has change
the narrative.
And of course DAESH and ISIL's appearance here has helped in that regard where the west is more focused on that fight than against Bashar al-
Assad.
KINKADE: OK, Salman Shaikh in Doha, thank you so much for joining us today.
Live from CNN Center, this is Connect the World. Coming up, U.S. President Barack Obama is holding off on deciding whether to send weapons
to Ukraine's military. The pressure he's facing from both sides of the debate just ahead.
And coming up next, find out how Hong Kong is turning water into art and music venues in a bid to boost its cultural credibility. That's One
Square Meter after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN DEFTERIOS: This week, One Square Meter is in Hong Kong. We're on a ferry boat to cross over Victoria Harbor to Kowloon to see if a
planned cultural district can help redefine this city of trade and finance.
The International Commerce Center at 484 meters is the tallest in Hong Kong. Developer KW Low (ph) says it complements a sister office tower on
the other side of the water: the Eye of Sea (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's a slight, you know, kind of a gateways to Victoria Harbor.
DEFTERIOS: Morgan Stanely was the first of three global banks to cross the harbor, enticed by lower property prices.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: People, you know, see the value of coming to here is I think community (inaudible) is one thing. And also the future.
DEFTERIOS: There are big but long delayed plans in the near future to go beyond banking and high-end shopping complex. These 40 hectares of
reclaimed land will be transformed into a massive cultural hub, now led by this man Michael Lynch, the third CEO in five years.
MICHAEL LYNCH, CEO: I first came to Hong Kong in 1964. And this was water and that was water. I think the whole idea of turning water into a
fabulous cultural sector that Hong Kong doesn't have state of the art venues and a really desirable place will be an incredibly wonderful thing.
DEFTERIOS: The West Kowloon cultural district will be home to up to 16 art and music venues, including the MPlus (ph), a modern art museum to
rival the MOMA in New York. And a Chinese opera house.
Culture, of course, is at the center of the masterplan, but transport and connectivity is appealing to both developers and real estate buyers.
There's an airport express already in operation, and there's a high-speed line being built to the mainland.
Mainland Chinese buyers have helped drive up prices in West Kowloon by 110 percent since the real estate trough in 2009, even after a correction
in the last two years. The latest transactions went for an eye popping 28,000 to 48,000 dollars per square meter.
On the hospitality side, the Ritz Carlton embraced the district early.
General Manager Pierre Pouricet (ph) says getting the ingredients right for the creative arts is essential.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like in Paris, like in London, like in New York, people go to music hall, people go to see a show, that's why they go to the
cities. And I think that will give a good reason for Asian people and perhaps also people from Europe and United States to come to Hong Kong.
DEFTERIOS: Now West Kowloon needs to finish what it has finally started: to compete with those global cities in culture as well as
business.
John Defterios, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LYNDA KINKADE, HOST: This is CONNECT THE WORLD, the top stories this hour. Video from Ukraine shows intense shelling in the city of Kramatorsk.
Regional officials loyal to the Ukrainian government say seven civilians were killed. Kramatorsk is the main base for Kiev's military operation
against pro-Russian separatists.
The United Arab Emirates says its carrying out airstrikes on ISIS targets for the first time since late last year. A press release from
state media reported that an F-16 squadron based out of Jordan launched a series of strikes and successfully hit its targets, but they did not reveal
the location of the assaults.
Russian president Vladimir Putin is in Cairo holding talks with Egyptian president Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. The two leaders discussed ways to
increase trade and boost economics ties, and they also talked about the ongoing war in Syria.
The Indian prime minister has conceded defeat in the New Delhi state elections. Narendra Modi's party suffered a crushing defeat in the
regional vote. It's the first big loss for the BJP since it took national power in May last year.
Now, we want to bring you more on our top story. The family of Kayla Mueller says they have received confirmation that the young American woman
is dead. ISIS had been holding her hostage since August of 2013.
A US official says a message that was sent from ISIS to Mueller's family included pictures that were used to verify her death. It's still
unclear, though, how she died. President Obama has called the Mueller family to offer his condolences.
Let's go live to Kayla Mueller's hometown of Prescott, Arizona. CNN's Kyung Lah is there. And Kyung, obviously this is horrific news. Everyone
was hoping for a different outcome. What has her family had to say?
KYUNG LAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, what her family had been publicly saying is that they did hope that Kayla would come home, but
today releasing that statement that she had, indeed, died. We are hearing from US officials that they've received pictures, some photo confirmation
of her death, and it is simply crushing for this town of 40,000 people.
Just as the town is beginning to wake up, people are starting to bring flowers to the one acknowledgment that Kayla was indeed missing. There is
a sign here in this town square, and it says "Pray for Kayla."
And you can see that there are just the very first signs of grief beginning to pour out, because there was so much hope that maybe -- maybe -
- what had been happening with this claim by ISIS might be some twisted ploy. But the family confirming that it is now, indeed, not that. They
have the proof.
The family also released a handwritten note. It is heartbreaking if you look at it. There's one particular line I wanted to read to you. This
is a handwritten note by Kayla Mueller while she was in captivity. It's dated at November 2nd, 2014.
And here's what the one line reads that's really important. It says, "I have been shown darkness, light, and learned even in prison, one can be
free. I am grateful. I have come to see that there is good in every situation. Sometimes we just have to look for it."
Why is that important? Why did this family release something so personal? Because the mission of Kayla Mueller's life was to help people.
She wanted to help people who could not help themselves. She went to Israel, the Palestinian territories, to India, and then finally, to the
brutal fringes of Syria's war to help refugees.
She felt that you could not understand or bring social justice to the planet without experiencing that suffering for yourself. Even in that
letter, Lynda, what her family says is very clear by releasing this is that they want people to know that in life and death, Kayla Mueller wanted
people to understand that there is suffering among people who have no power. Lynda?
KINKADE: And Kyung, obviously, we heard from so many people who've worked with Kayla that she was not naive. She went into this very much
with her eyes open. What has been the reaction among the community, and how will she be remembered?
LAH: She'll be remembered as somebody who was exactly that. She understood the risk. I've spoken to a professor of hers who was her mentor
through college. And she said she had many, many conversations with Kayla about what is that line? At what point do you cross it, and where do you
feel comfortable putting yourself in jeopardy?
And Kayla went beyond her professor. She felt that she had to plunge herself in there. She was absolutely sober about the risks, and she was
willing to take it. Even in that handwritten letter, it's very clear that she understood what she was doing, and that she felt it was so important
that she had to be there to try to help the people that much of the world had forgotten. Lynda?
KINKADE: Our thoughts are with her family. Kyung Lah, thank you very much for that. Back to another of our top stories, the fighting in
Ukraine. US president Barack Obama says he supports diplomatic efforts to end the conflict, but he's still considering whether to send weapons to
Ukraine's army.
Mr. Obama met Monday in Washington with German chancellor Angela Merkel, who warns that arming Ukraine could cause Russia to escalate the
conflict. For months, the Ukrainian president has been asking the US to send weapons, so how is the government there reacting to President Obama's
wait-and-see approach?
I want to bring in Dmytro Kuleba, the ambassador-at-large for Ukraine's Foreign Ministry. He joins me, now, from Kiev. Thanks so much
for your time. Firstly, what do you make --
DMYTRO KULEBA, UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTER AMBASSADOR-AT-LARGE: Good evening.
KINKADE: Firstly, what do you make of the fact that the US is considering arming the Ukrainians. Is there a big risk of inflaming the
situation?
KULEBA: We really appreciate the attention the US administration is paying to the situation in Ukraine. The conflict is here on the ground,
and Russia keeps supplying terrorists with state-of-the-art weapons, tanks, artillery, radio-jamming stations.
Unfortunately, the Ukrainian army has not been modernized for years, and we do need urgent support. We do need to strengthen our critical
defense capability. So, a US contribution to that will be deeply appreciated.
KINKADE: Sir, obviously, you want it. What do you make of the fact that European nations, European leaders, especially from, obviously,
Germany and France, think that this will create a bigger problem on the ground?
KULEBA: It's hard for me to imagine a bigger problem than the one we already have on the ground, with all these inflows of weapons and heavy
fighting that are taking place right here, right now. As it was mentioned earlier in your report, the peaceful city of Kramatorsk was shelled today
by Russian missile rocket launchers.
So, everything provokes Russia. We should have the ability to defend our country, and we count on our partners to support us in this endeavor.
KINKADE: Going into the peace talks, what do you want out of it? What will the Ukraine government not negotiate on?
KULEBA: We want a cease-fire. Cease-fire is urgent. There is too much blood, too much suffering. We need a cease-fire that Russia and
terrorists will support. Our strategic goal, of course, is to ensure territorial integrity of Ukraine, and this question will never be
compromised. This will never come under discussion. We will not accept any attempt to change -- to destroy territorial integrity of Ukraine.
And the second thing is the European choice of Ukrainians. We paid a high price for that, and we want to build a society built on values and
principles on which the European Union is built. These things will never be discussed. These are the red lines we are not ready to cross.
KINKADE: So, what concessions are you willing to make to the anti- Kiev forces? What are you willing to give up in order to get an agreement?
KULEBA: We are in the middle of the negotiation process, and I would prefer not to go into details on that. But trust me, the Ukrainian
government is ready to make compromises, but for the two issues that I've mentioned before
KINKADE: And so given that, obviously, Russia is a neighbor of yours, no matter how these talks fare and no matter how the outcome is, do you
think you are going to have problems with Russia going forward, long term?
KULEBA: Well, unfortunately, the attitude towards Ukraine that is being supported and cherished in the Russian -- in Russia, is very
destroying to -- damaging to our relations. But we did not want to consider Russia as an enemy. All we want is Russia to stop aggression
against Ukraine and to pave the way for deescalation.
KINKADE: Well, we wish you all the best for the peace talks. Dmytro Kuleba, thank you so much for joining us.
KULEBA: Thanks.
KINKADE: Now, along the Napa River, which virtually slices Ukraine in two parts, there's a growing divide between those on the west and those on
the east.
You can get a glimpse of how the fighting has forever changed the lives of the people there by heading to our website, edition.cnn.com and
searching "Ukraine divide." We have a photo gallery up there with images captured by a Polish photographer documenting this deepening rift.
Live from the CNN Center, this is CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up, find out why the Indian prime minister's fashion sense is causing public debate
and may hurt him in the polls.
Plus, your television might be smarter than you think. What Samsung is now saying about its new TV that eavesdrops on your conversations.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
KINKADE: You're watching CNN, and this is CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Lynda Kinkade. Welcome back. It's not often that the tax man wins a
popularity contest, but in India, that's exactly what happened.
Former tax official and anti-corruption activist Arvind Kejriwal has delivered a huge blow to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His Common Man
Party is projected to win up to 90 percent of the seats in the election for the Delhi state legislature.
It's a shock for the previously popular Modi, who won the general election with a landslide victory less than a year ago. CNN's Sumnima Udas
is in New Delhi and explains what this means for Mr. Modi and the winning Common Man Party.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUMNIMA UDAS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The celebrations began even before the official results were announced. The two-year-old Aam
Aadmi Party, or Common Man Party, has just won the New Delhi assembly elections by a landslide. And its support that means for the first time
Narendra Modi and his BJP Party has lost a major election.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible). This is call for (inaudible), a sign for Modi, and I think it should away from its last sweep. Honeymoon period
is over.
(DRUMS BEATING)
UDAS: Aam Aadmi, the party of bureaucrats, lawyers, teachers, many of them are very young. And the face of the party, Arvind Kejriwal, is young
himself at 46, and a party symbol, the broom, a sign of how they want to clean up the system from corruption.
Delhi only accounts for 2 percent of India's population, but what happens here reverberates across the nation. It gets incredible amounts of
media coverage and, well, it's the seat of Indian power. And having an adversarial chief minister whose known for his socialist policies right
under the nose of business-friendly Prime Minister Narendra Modi is undoubtedly going to change the India narrative.
Sumnima Udas, CNN, New Delhi.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
KINKADE: Narendra Modi appeared at New York's Madison Square Garden last year, and this is the reception he got.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(CROWD CHEERING)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KINKADE: More fitting for a rock star than a politician. Tens of thousands of people turned out to greet him and listen to his speech. But
less than a year later, his popularity appears to be waning, while that of Arvind Kejriwal from the relatively new Common Man Party is rising
steadily.
To explain how this shift in popularity has happened and what it means going -- what it means for India, I'm joined by Gardiner Harris, the South
Asia correspondent for "The New York Times." Thanks so much for joining us. Firstly, how has this huge defeat come about? Was it out of the blue,
or was this expected?
GARDINER HARRIS, SOUTH ASIA CORRESPONDENT, "THE NEW YORK TIMES": Completely out of the blue. Nobody expected this. I certainly didn't
either. But what's going on here, Lynda, is that India's political reality and its demographic reality are on two very separate tracks.
Politically, India has always had very slow reforms, has been very hesitant on changing the system that radically. Demographically, though,
12 million people will come of age this year in India. In 6 or 7 more years, it's going to be 17 million. In 15 more years, it's going to be 26
million people coming of age. That's more than live in Australia at this point.
And India has never produced more than 2 million jobs in any one year. This year, with 12 million people coming of age, fewer than a million jobs
will be available for them. So there is this groundswell of desperation and anger coming up into India that Modi is going to have to deal with and
deal with quickly.
KINKADE: As you said, this is Modi's first blow since he won the election last year. Can we see this as a personal vote against him? Or
was it partly the fact that the opposition ran a good campaign?
HARRIS: I think obviously there's a little bit of both. But Modi made a huge personal appeal in this election. He led the campaign. It was
his face on all the posters. He put himself front and center in this election, so he cannot say that he was not important to it.
And over my shoulder is this enormous city called New Delhi, 25 million people. And in that city are 8 million people, roughly the size of
New York City, who don't have access to water, who don't have access to power, who don't have toilets.
And those people are deeply unhappy about this, and they're the ones who came out in such great numbers to support Arvind Kejriwal, who promised
to deliver those basic services. Bisli and pani (ph). In Hindi, that is electricity and water. They were promises he repeated over and over and
over again, and they resonated really strongly here.
KINKADE: Now, I want to take a look at a quick image that made headlines recently. It was of the prime minister wearing a suit he wore
when he met President Barack Obama last year.
HARRIS: Right.
KINKADE: You can see in the pinstripes, if you look closely, it's actually Minister Modi's name. It reportedly cost about $18,000, ten times
the average Indian wage. Can you tell us what you make of that? Does that suggest that he is out of touch with voters, even in Delhi, which is
obviously one of the wealthiest cities in the country?
HARRIS: So, one of Modi's great strengths in his campaign last year was that he was the son of a chaiwala, a tea seller. That he came from the
backward castes in India. It was a huge talking point for him, because in both the National Congress Party and in the BJP, those parties have long
been dominated by high-caste Indians.
So, here came a man of great modest upbringing. But in the months since his election, he has come out with sort of sartorial splendor,
incredibly expensive suits. He's flying around in private jets. He is clearly projecting himself as a very well-to-do, highly-placed person.
And Arvind Kejriwal, by contrast, wraps his head in cheap scarves. He wears the same tattered dark, Western clothing that the lower classes here
wear.
So, one got the sense that Modi had sort of forgotten one of the great messages that he had brought to the campaign, which was that he was just
like most of the electoral people here. And that was a message that Arvind Kejriwal brought very strongly.
KINKADE: Well, this may be a bit of a wake-up call for Mr. Modi. Thank you so much for joining us, Gardiner Harris. We appreciate it.
HARRIS: Glad to -- sure.
KINKADE: Now, live from CNN Center, this is CONNECT THE WORLD. Coming up, Samsung says there may be some confusion about its new smart TV.
How the electronics maker is responding to complaints the TV sets could listen in on your private conversations. That's coming up next.
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KINKADE: You're watching CNN, and this is CONNECT THE WORLD with me, Lynda Kinkade, in for Becky Anderson. Welcome back.
Samsung is rushing to clarify its privacy policy following an uproar over its new smart TVs. The previous policy warned that the TVs could
capture your private conversations through a new voice recognition feature. That, of course, led to fears that TVs are eavesdropping unbeknownst to
users.
The company has now reworked that policy and says the voice recognition functions are enabled only when users agree to the separate
Samsung private policy -- privacy policy when initially setting up the TV. And apart from initial setup, users are given the choice to activate or
deactivate the voice-recognition feature at any time.
For more on this, I'm joined now by CNN's business correspondent Samuel Burke. Samuel, firstly, just explain, if you were to give
permission for your voice recognition to be used, how does this work? How could a TV eavesdrop on a conversation?
SAMUEL BURKE, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: A lot of people are asking, why would I even want my TV to listen to me? But much in the way that you
might ask Siri on your iPhone or Google on your Android phone, "What's the weather like outside?" or "What time is it?" It's the same type of thing
for a smart television, you can ask it questions and it can deliver content to your television.
But there were some specific words in the privacy policy of Samsung, which they've now removed, but the reality still exists, that really had a
lot of people up in arms, especially privacy experts and a lot folks on social media.
So, I want to just show you the actual verbiage, the words that had people concerned. In the Samsung privacy policy it said, quote, "Please be
aware that if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and
transmitted to a third party."
So, what does that legal mumbo-jumbo mean? It means that if I say to Google on the television, "Who is Lynda Kinkade?" it might then transfer
that voice message to Google, Google would see it, and then deliver the results on the television.
Now, that had a lot of people concerned because it said the words "personal information." Of course you're talking about personal
information there.
Now, in defense of Samsung, they say, look, we're not storing this information or selling it. But at the end of the day, people like me are
still concerned because of the fact that it could be hacked, and those microphones could be listened in on somehow. So, I'm less concerned about
what Samsung might do and more concerned about a third party accessing that and using it to listen in on somebody.
KINKADE: Obviously, could this have continued, had someone not pointed out that the small print in that privacy policy?
BURKE: Well, here's the thing: yes, Samsung, as you just put on the screen, has changed the privacy policy, but the technology hasn't changed.
The fact of the matter is that that technology is still there.
Samsung has clarified that there are two different microphones, one in your television and one in the remote. And it's the microphone in the
remote that needs to be activated to send a third-party, like Google, for instance, that information.
But at the end of the day, Samsung can change the privacy policy all they want, but the technology, at least to this point, is remaining the
same. So what this creates, Lynda, is a new consciousness about all the devices around us that have these type of voice recognition features. So,
it's not just Samsung TVs, to be fair.
So, I just sat down and made a list and looked around me and saw all the places that I see voice recognition. So, I just want to list some of
them to you, because it's not just Samsung. Smartphones have this. Smart televisions have this. Laptops have this. Tablets, game consoles -- the
Xbox, for instance. Google Glass.
So, maybe someone can make an argument that Samsung is being unfairly picked on here, but the reality is that we do need to be conscious of this.
My dad puts tape over his webcam, and I kind of thought he was crazy when he did that.
But now that I sit and look at this little webcam and I see the microphone on it, I see the camera on it, I've started unplugging it. And
Samsung says you can unplug this technology, you can deactivate it. So why not, if you're not using it?
KINKADE: That is a very good point. Good warning to everyone out there. Samuel Burke, as always, thank you very much.
Now, the team at CONNECT THE WORLD wants to hear from you, facebook.com/CNNconnect, have your say. And you can tweet me
@LyndaKinkade. Let me know what you think about any of the stories we've covered this hour.
I'm Lynda Kinkade, that was CONNECT THE WORLD. Thanks so much for joining us today.
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