Return to Transcripts main page
Connect the World
Biden: "We're going to help Ukraine Build a Strong Defense Across Land, Air and Sea; 5 Azov Regiment Pows Return Home from Turkey; 60 Plus Million People in U.S. Under Heat Alerts; Biden Meets with Zelenskyy about Ukraine's Path into NATO; Ukrainian President: A lot of Positive Outcomes to Summit; Zelenskyy Talks to Reporters as NATO Summit Concludes. Aired 11a-12p ET
Aired July 12, 2023 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[11:00:00]
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ELENI GIOKOS, CNN HOST, CONNECT THE WORLD: Welcome to our second hour of "Connect the World" with Eleni Giokos. A major commitment on the second and
final day of the NATO Summit appears to calm growing concerns from Ukraine's Leader over his country's potential NATO membership.
Members of the G7 made new long term security guarantees pledging to help Kyiv build its own powerful military, while it waits to be allowed into the
alliance. Just a day earlier President Zelenskyy clearly frustrated called the lack of a timeline for Ukraine to join NATO "Absurd".
A very different tone last hour when President Zelenskyy and his American counterpart met one on one, the two men exchanging mutual praise and Mr.
Zelenskyy thanking President Biden, for standing shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine.
I would like to go to Jeremy Diamond, who is going to unpack these conversations for us. So much happening, but I just really want to get into
what we saw coming through from President Biden and President Zelenskyy at that press conference.
And as we said, mutual praise, frankly, a more conciliatory tone coming through from President Zelenskyy and Biden, reassuring Zelenskyy look,
we're here to stay. We are not going anywhere.
JEREMY DIAMOND, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's exactly right, Eleni. And you know, over the last couple of days, in particular,
yesterday, we saw some frustrations bubbling to the surface; both on the Ukrainian side, as well as on the American side.
On the Ukrainian side, President Zelenskyy was clearly unhappy with, you know, the statements from the NATO alliance, about the future of Ukraine
within that alliance, clearly not believing that the statement about Ukraine joining when conditions are met and the time is right.
Zelenskyy didn't feel that that was strong enough. He wanted a more concrete commitment from the alliance that Ukraine will be able to enter
the NATO alliance. And on the American side, you heard Jake Sullivan as he was facing questions about that just this morning.
You know, offering some frustration about the notion that, you know, Americans should ultimately be feeling a little bit more gratitude from the
Ukrainians for all of the support that has been provided and so today, as you saw President Zelenskyy, and President Biden sitting down together.
Both of them were clearly very eager to put on a united front, you heard President Zelenskyy expressing that gratitude that Jake Sullivan was
talking about thanking the American public for their support. And President Biden for his part, acknowledging the frustrations from the Ukrainians,
listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Your resilience and your resolve has been a model for the whole world to see. And the
frustration, I can only imagine, I know, there many times frustrated about when things were things get to you quickly enough. And what's getting to
you and how we're getting there. But I promise you, the United States is doing everything we can to get you what you need as rapidly as we can get
it to you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DIAMOND: And so ultimately Eleni those comments from the President and the comments of gratitude from President Zelenskyy really aim to put the U.S.
and Ukraine back on the same page for a day where President Biden is going to be delivering a big speech in Vilnius, talking about what has happened,
essentially, since the beginning of this war in Ukraine.
In terms of the massive amounts of U.S. and allied support for Ukraine, announcing a new long term security package for Ukraine more security
assistance in the short term for Ukraine as well from the United States and NATO allies.
So really putting the focus back on the united effort to support Ukraine and the U.S. and the alliance's long term commitment to seeing Ukraine
emerge out of this conflict, victorious, following Russia's invasion over a year ago.
GIOKOS: United front, absolutely. We've got Melissa Bell in Vilnius for us, and we just seeing an image there of that family photo. And this is the
message, Melissa that NATO is sending. You have also spoken to NATO Chief Jens Stoltenberg, what was the overall message from him?
MELISSA BELL, CNN PARIS CORRESPONDENT: Well look, I put to him those frustrations so clearly expressed by President Zelenskyy less so in that
bilateral meeting, or rather at the start of it, when he was full of thanks to the American people and the American President for what had been
delivered and for what was to be delivered specifically the cluster munitions. And what Jen Stoltenberg said was look I hear the frustrations
of course President Zelenskyy has come here us paying for more.
[11:05:00]
And yet really insisting on the fact that what has been achieved so far, not just in terms of the weapons that have been provided. But the
consistent support are essentially would have allowed Ukraine to continue existing as a country also that that's going to continue.
I did put to him, Eleni, the question of the cluster bombs whether the controvert -- the delivery of such a controversial weapon dividing as it
does NATO is not ultimately the symbol of the failure of the strategy. That where we've seen NATO consistently, initially deny weapons, and then given
to Ukrainian demands.
And the critic suggests that this is essentially prolonged the war unnecessarily. What he replied, was that NATO has acted in a way where it
sought to adapt itself to what was happening on the ground, the war has changed, NATO's efforts have changed. You've seen you said from last
summer, this war turned into a war of attrition, and that has changed the nature of the weapons being delivered and NATO's overall strategy.
I also asked him Eleni, how much longer NATO could sustain this effort? These are, after all, Western ammunition and weapons stocks that are being
depleted, unity is hard to keep. He replied that he believed that unity has never been stronger. And that that's what we see that this particular
summit.
So we're very confident, Jen Stoltenberg, I think there really buoyed, of course, by the obsession, not just a Finland and a bit of Sweden. But also
I think of some of the meetings that have taken place here. And in the end, the fact that this sense of unity has been in the end the projected image
for all the talk of divisions that we've seen in the run up to this in the end.
And despite the sense of frustration on President Zelenskyy's side. In the end, it's been about the unity going forward; the tremendous bricks are
going to continue. And he suggested the fact that this is for the long term, Moscow essentially is going to have to get used to the fact that
Ukraine finds itself very much on the other side of the fence, Eleni.
GIOKOS: It does, indeed. I mean, Melissa, what was interesting, I mean, you heard the G7 declaration. You had the inaugural forum on Ukraine as well.
It's been deal after deal commitment after commitment.
What struck me and this came through yesterday with what Jen Stoltenberg said we have to see an increase in spending. It is absolutely vital for
allies to up their spending. And I guess it speaks to what you asked him in terms of can NATO keep this up as the war rages on?
BELL: These are huge efforts that are being asked of taxpayers, and specifically American taxpayers. I did ask him about some of those
comments. Jake Sullivan, the American National Security Adviser has been speaking to reporters about the division of effort. He replied, look,
European allies have really stepped up to the plate here.
And it's been a fairly equally shouldered effort to see the truth. But of course, these are huge commitments. And I think that speaks also to what's
been whispered in the ear of President Zelenskyy here on the sidelines of the summit by the British Defense Secretary saying, look, we understand
your frustrations.
But you have to understand that these commitments are substantial. We're digging deep into our pockets. These are our own stockpiles that we're
often giving a little bit of gratitude in what you've come here to say is necessary.
Even though Ben Wallace accepted that they understood that President Zelenskyy is speaking also to his own people. And that is a crucial part of
his being here. He's sending a message back home, even as his brings his request to NATO allies. But you're quite right beyond those key
deliverables in terms of the military equipment.
I think what was interesting about the NATO meeting, is the talks that there was about the longer term building of Ukraine's economy, the
resilience that it needs to have the specifics on its reconstruction and the fact that the G7 intend to be there to continue holding Moscow to
account Eleni.
GIOKOS: Jeremy, I want to come to you now. And speaking to Melissa's point in terms of how much the U.S. has offered, Jake Sullivan, clearly reminding
everyone that it's billions of dollars' worth of funds that have gone to Ukraine in the form of weapons and assistance.
But here's the thing as well, what Zelenskyy had said in that public meeting was that he knows it was a tough decision for the United States to
send cluster munitions, but he sees that as a commitment that is required, right now for Ukraine to make headway to create momentum on the ground?
DIAMOND: Yes, that's exactly right. And we heard President Biden himself in his interview with Fareed Zakaria as well as Jake Sullivan, explaining this
notion that providing those cluster munitions is directly related to the fact that Ukraine is running low on ammunition and also that as they are
fighting these dug in defensive positions that the Russians have established, this is the most effective weaponry at the moment for use in
that context.
[11:10:00]
And look, the this administration has consistently defended what Melissa was just talking about in terms of the idea of evolving security packages
that they have provided initially saying no to certain types of weaponry, and then eventually relenting. And that is also the backdrop to these
frustrations that we saw boiled to the surface a little bit over the last 24 hours between the Ukrainians and the Americans.
Is the fact that President Zelenskyy and his administration have at every single turn demanded the utmost set out a maximalist position for what they
would like to see from the United States and the allies, and ultimately hoping that that gets the U.S. and its allies a little bit higher in terms
of what they provide versus what they would have provided without that kind of strong pressure from the Ukrainian President.
And we've heard it from the President publicly. And I can tell you, in speaking with officials, even as there are sometimes tensions between U.S.
and Ukrainian officials at all levels, just given the zealousness and the sense of urgency that the Ukrainians ask the United States for more help.
There are frustrations that occur between the two sides.
But at the end of the day, President Biden and his administration understand that they would be doing the same thing if they were in the
Ukrainian position. And so ultimately, you heard the President today saying that he understands those frustrations. He also understands the Ukrainian
approach here.
GIOKOS: And he also said the whole world sees your courage and your commitment. You get the sense that what we see on the public sphere are two
men having frank conversations one wonders what happens behind closed doors. Melissa Bell and Jeremy Diamond great to have you on the show thank
you so much!
Well, as Melissa was just saying, the NATO Chief stressing the unity of the alliance, especially with the approval of Sweden's bid to join Turkey has
stood in the path of Sweden joining NATO for more than a year over a multitude of concerns. And we're getting some insight about how the Biden
Administration pushed for that move.
A major part of that diplomatic effort was the potential sale of F-16 fighter jets that Ankara has been asking for. Now the Swedish Prime
Minister spoke to CNN exclusively from Vilnius after the announcement was made. Let's take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UIF KRISTERSON, SWEDEN PRIME MINISTER: It was a good conversation having there it's no secret that Sweden and Turkey have different views on a few
topics, but in terms of we tried to concentrate on common ground and the common security, fighting terrorism and fighting financing of terrorism and
organized crime that is our concerns of mutual interest.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GIOKOS: Well, CNN's Salma Abdelaziz has more on the behind the scenes diplomacy, to get Turkey to move ahead with Sweden's NATO membership.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SALMA ABDELAZIZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): After months of resistance, a surprise U-turns Turkey agreeing to back Sweden's bid for
membership into NATO on the eve of the blocks two day annual summit in Vilnius.
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tweeting a photo smiling alongside Turkish and Swedish Leaders, calling the step historic, it appears to iron
out an issue that had strained the alliances unity while the war in Ukraine raged on.
KRISTERSON: We are thus taking a very big step towards the formal ratification of Sweden's membership in NATO. It has been a good day for
Sweden.
ABDELAZIZ (voice over): The move represents a stunning about face from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who had been opposing Sweden's
accession for more than a year, leveraging his position and demanding concessions in exchange even linking Sweden's NATO bid to Turkey's long
standing effort to join the European Union less than 24 hours before the Summit.
In response to the news, Russia said Turkey is turning into an unfriendly country after a series of "Provocative decisions". And another significant
move Erdogan violated an agreement with Moscow over the weekend by allowing five Ukrainian commanders part of the Azov Stall defense previously
captured by Russia to return to the battlefield in Ukraine from Turkey.
The announcement came as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with Erdogan in Istanbul as part of a tour of NATO countries. Russia called it a stab in
the back, claiming Turkey was being pressured by NATO.
Since the start of the war, Ankara has opted for a delicate balancing act keeping an open channel of communication with both Moscow and Kyiv. But
Erdogan surprise announcement on Sweden serves as a major blow to Vladimir Putin, paving the wait for NATO to complete its expansion launched as a
response to his invasion of Ukraine.
[11:15:00]
It also comes just weeks after an attempted mutiny inside Russia by Wagner Boss Yevgeny Prigozhin, exposing cracks in Moscow's leadership and Putin's
hold on power. Turkey's decision has been welcomed by U.S. President Joe Biden, who had been ramping up pressure on Erdogan for months.
Hours after the announcement, Washington said it intends to move forward with the transfer of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey a request that has been on
hold for nearly two years. It's unclear however, if this aid came in response to Ankara's reversal on Sweden.
And a flurry of arm support is now headed to Ukraine too. France announcing it would be sending longer range missiles to Kyiv while Germany pledged
nearly $800 million in military aid, including leopard tanks and other equipment underscoring another severe blow to Putin.
But while it may be some time before Sweden officially joins NATO, Turkey's decision will undoubtedly lighten the mood in Vilnius, where alliance
members had hoped to project unity over the war in Ukraine, Salma Abdelaziz CNN, London.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: In the last few minutes, Turkey's President spoke at the NATO Summit and said Turkey will ratify Sweden's membership in the fall when the
Turkish parliament resumes its session. And you can read more about Turkey's geopolitical recalibration in our "Meanwhile in the Middle East
Newsletter"
And how pragmatism is behind the Turkish Leader's approach to the war in Ukraine and you can sign up for the newsletter @cnn.com/middleeast, or by
scanning the QR code at the bottom of the screen right now is delivered three times a week with experts analysis on the most important stories
across this region.
Coming up on "Connect the World" how the U.S. State of Vermont is dealing with catastrophic flooding, with more rain possibly on the way. And we'll
take a look at how extreme weather is impacting Asia, from devastating floods to soaring temperatures. That's coming up when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
GIOKOS: Welcome back! Parts of the Northeastern U.S. are desperate to dry out after catastrophic floods. Cleanup efforts are underway in West Point,
New York which endured a once in a millennium rain event this past weekend and in Vermont thousands of homes and businesses have flooded.
This is drone footage of the delusion. Floodwaters have started to recede in some areas but the state is bracing for more rain this weekend. CNN's
Miguel Marquez joins us now from Vermont's Capital. And I have to say these images are pretty scary if you consider that more rain is expected what you
are seeing on the ground?
[11:20:00]
MIGUEL MARQUEZ, CNN SENIOR U.S. NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: More rain is expected, but it's not expected to be what they had over the last few days.
The problem with that storm it was a massive amount of rain over the entire state that stayed over the state for hours on end. They had in Montpellier,
for instance, they hadn't seen a rain like that. They hadn't had that much rain in a single day ever.
In 47,000 days of keeping records, they do not expect that level of rain, the water, people were kayaking where I am standing right now the water for
the most part has moved back into the river here. And the massive cleanup is on. This is bear upon books. It's a business that's been here for 50
years. These are all books, the water line was here.
So anything below this line, they've got to clean out and clear out of here. So you can see this is a pile of books, there's piles of books and
back. They're pulling out all the shelves here. All the businesses are starting to do this and then all of this will be put into dumpsters and
moved off.
There also, the massive cleanup as well is the mud. The mud here is impressively thick and salty and it is everywhere and businesses on the
streets. That's what they're dealing with now. In terms of emergency, there are still some towns where there is water. But emergency folks are able to
get big trucks in there to go check on folks. We just talked to the police chief here in Montpelier.
And he said there are people they're still checking on. But what is absolutely amazing and heartening is that nobody despite how big these
rains were and how much flooding there was, nobody was seriously injured or killed in this. So Vermonters are tough and what's happening now is people
are just helping out.
In fact, the woman, I do want to point this out, the woman you see down the street there with a little cart. She's now walking around. She's made
sandwiches. She has potato chips and water. She's walking around business to business, offering people who are helping clean up. There's an army of
volunteers here offering people something to eat as they're putting their time back together, back to you.
GIOKOS: Yes, community is coming together after this devastating flood, Miguel Marquez, great to have you on, thank you. Well, in addition to
flooding, parts of the U.S. are sweltering under intense heat. More than 16 million people from California to Florida under some type of heat alert
today.
Temperatures in the southwest could top 45 degrees by the weekend. And the heat index in Florida is again topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit or 37 degrees
Celsius. Last hour I spoke to CNN Meteorologist Derek Van Dam from Miami Beach, Florida. Take a listen.
DEREK VAN DAM, CNN METEOROLOGIST: You can literally drink the air here. It is so hot, so muggy, it's uncomfortable. And what I really believe that
it's so astounding about this heat wave is the magnitude and the scope of it. It actually crosses and impacts over 12 southern U.S. states.
We've got about 70 million Americans under some sort of heat alert including here where I'm located in Miami Beach, and we are toppling
records from Florida all the way to California. For example today here in Miami, this is the 32nd consecutive day where temperatures, the heat induce
that's the indication of heat, humidity and actual air temperature on your skin has actually reached 37 degrees Celsius.
And that is the longest streak that has ever happened. So that's saying something. What else right Phoenix has had temperatures over 43 degrees for
the past 12 days. That's its third longest streak and it's likely to be the first in that streak as it continues to warm up through the next couple of
days and Las Vegas may have its hottest temperature ever recorded as the heat dome builds over the western parts of the U.S.
Look 70 percent of the U.S. is going to feel temperatures above 32 degrees Celsius here in the next week. Yet this 50 million Americans will feel
temperatures above 38 degrees Celsius here in the next week. This heat we're in the thick of it here but it is also very dangerous. I spoke to an
expert about what these implications of the heat mean, have a listen.
BRIAN MCNOLDY, SENIOR RESEARCH ASSOCIATE, ROSENSTIEL SCHOOL OF EARTH SCIENCE: It's been record breaking and breaking records day after day after
day, so it's above and beyond normal by a lot. It just goes on and on with that. With heat index this is, we've never had a straight like this in
recorded history. At the very least it's uncomfortable. At the worst it's actually deadly.
DAM: At the worst it can be deadly. Now what's top of mind for people in the Florida peninsula and all along the Gulf Coast of the United States
quite frankly is how these above average temperatures impact this upcoming hurricane season will?
Well, I asked Brian McNoldy who you saw on the TV screen just a moment ago, how these warm temperatures will impact the season that is ongoing and
going to intensify.
[11:25:00]
And he said, well look, if one of these storms happens to form and make it into this abnormally warm ocean water temperatures, that's just going to
add more fuel for a strengthening storm. So we're going to watch out for that. Colorado State University actually upped its number of hurricanes for
the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season. That is all because of the abnormally warm ocean water temperatures here.
The National Weather Service from Miami actually had an explicit warning that said even if you think that you are a physically fit person coming out
doors in the peak daytime heating, you have the potential to have heat stress, dangerous heat implications, even if you feel like you are a fit
person. And Eleni take it from me.
If you were here, anyone here who's looking to actually get relief from the heat in this water, well guess what? This is not bathtub territory. This is
hot tub territory, so really not going to pull off that much.
GIOKOS: From one end of the globe to another extreme weather is ravaging communities, China is grappling with excessive heat. The state energy
company says power generated in a single day reached historic highs on Monday. Beijing is facing one of the hotter summers on record, with
temperatures soaring past 40 degrees in recent days.
And in northern India, officials say flash flooding and landslides have left at least 41 people dead. The Dalai Lama released a statement saying he
is deeply saddened about the situation in his home state which is experiencing the brunt of the flooding. Anna Coren reports.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANNA COREN, CNN REPORTER (voice over): The rolling frontline of the global climate crisis right now stretches through Asia, from Japan and China to
India. Across the continent, stifling heat is giving way to torrential rain, swollen rivers and mudslides. In northern India, dozens of people
have been killed in raging floodwaters, bridges cars and homes crushed in Himachal Pradesh. Roads flooded and washed away. Survivors left to pick
through the wreckage.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was so much rain and flooding, it was hard to evacuate our families to a safe place because this area was inundated with
water. All our belongings were swept away by the floodwater, into the river.
COREN (voice over): Authorities across Asia and around the world are now being forced to treat the symptoms of a climate emergency with no immediate
cure.
SIMON BRADSHAW, CLIMATE COUNCIL: This is all a harrowing warning of what's at stake and why it's so important. We do everything possible to respond to
the climate crisis.
COREN (voice over): In Japan, eight people have been killed in landslides and flooding just this month. Houses have washed away, hospitals have
flooded, electricity and water has been cut off. The downpours the heaviest they have ever been on the mountainous island of Kyushu where the forecast
is for more rain.
BRADSHAW: That we are living in an age of consequences for past inaction on climate change. We see this playing out all over the world and every
community is affected. But there is still so much we can do to limit future harms.
COREN (voice over): No one nation holds the solution to the climate crisis. But China, the world's largest emitter of greenhouse gas, holds more sway
than most. The China Energy Investment Corporation, the world's largest coal fired power generation company said it produced more electricity on
Monday than on any other day in the past.
Hundreds of millions in China are sweltering through what could once again be the country's hottest ever summer. And it's not just people who need
protecting as our world gets warmer. Anna Coren, CNN, Hong Kong.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
GIOKOS: Still to come more from the NATO summit where g7 leaders pledged long term arm supplies and military support for Ukraine. But frustration
for President Zelenskyy as NATO refuses to give a timeline for Ukraine to join the military alliance. We'll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[11:30:00]
GIOKOS: Welcome back to "Connect the World" with me Eleni Giokos. Your headlines this hour, Palestinian Authority, President Mahmoud Abbas made a
rare visit earlier to the Jenin refugee camp in the occupied West Bank. This comes eight days after Israeli forces ended their biggest military
operation in Jenin in two decades.
Mr. Abbas laid flowers on the graves of those killed in last week's insurrection. It was his first visit to Jenin since 2012. Kenya provided a
red carpet welcome for Iran's president during the first stop of his three country tour of Africa. It is the first visit to the continent by an
Iranian president in more than a decade.
Tehran is trying to create new economic ties in the face of crippling U.S. sanctions; the tour also includes visits to Uganda as well as Zimbabwe. The
UAE is taking an aggressive stance against climate change. The Emirates announced Tuesday that it would cut its carbon emissions by 40 percent by
the year 2030.
Dubai will host the UN climate conference COP28 later this year. U.S. President Joe Biden says his administration is doing everything it can to
help Ukraine in its fight against Russia. He and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met one on one at the NATO summit in Lithuania, the two
men exchanging mutual praise.
It comes as g7 leaders pledged to help Kyiv build its own powerful military. CNN's Natasha Bertrand joins us now from Vilnius. Interesting
conversation is showing that the two men are aligned despite Zelenskyy's frustration about not getting an official invitation to join NATO, but also
making it clear that he is grateful for what he's received.
NATASHA BERTRAND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY REPORTER: Yes, that's exactly right. So Zelenskyy really has kind of changed his tune over the last day
or so. He started out, of course, by slamming NATO leaders saying that it was absurd that Ukraine still did not have a proper invitation to NATO or
even know really the timeline of when they might be able to join.
But then today, he softened his tone somewhat after his meetings with NATO leaders, and he said that he was very grateful for the support that he had
received, particularly by the United States. We heard his comments side by side with President Biden there.
And he thanked the American people something that National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan earlier in the day said that Ukraine should do. He said that
Ukraine should express its gratefulness to the American people for standing in solidarity with Ukraine.
And so, after all of these meetings took place, it seemed as those Zelenskyy was a bit more heartened by what he heard, particularly by that
statement, by the G7 leaders reaffirming their unwavering and their word support for Ukraine and formalizing long term security agreements with
Ukraine. Security guarantee is whereby they have agreed to "Swift and sustained security assistance" in the event of a future Russian armed
attack.
[11:35:00]
That includes modern military equipment across land, sea and air as well as economic assistance and enhanced intelligence sharing. So the Ukrainians
are very happy with this. Of course, the details still need to be worked out between the G7 countries and Ukraine. These are going to be bilateral
arrangements between each G7 nation and Ukraine in terms of what kinds of security assistance they actually provide the Ukrainians with.
But they do believe that this amounts to the kind of security guarantees that they had been hoping for just short, of course of NATO membership,
which is not going to come Eleni as we know until the war with Russia is actually over.
GIOKOS: Right, we're keeping a close watch on Vilnius right now, President Zelenskyy is on stage, he is about to make a statement and we have him,
take a listen to President Zelenskyy at NATO.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That there are conditions, you said, conditions are related to security. But at the same time, we can hear from some of the
foreign partners that there's political conditions, political reforms. So do you have an understanding what sort of conditions are there? And who
will be defining those reforms? Or conditions, not only the security, but the political reforms as well?
VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, UKRAINIAN PRESIDENT: Thank you for the question. I'm not sure I will be able to provide you all the details. What is the outcome
of this summit? I would say we have a lot of positive outcomes. We have received a unity the leaders have supported Ukraine, and they supported the
unambiguous future of Ukraine in NATO.
When is this going to happen? I'm not sure, but considering the support of the leaders, considering the statements of the leaders at the NATO Ukraine
council session. We have received strong support of three dozen countries; I believe that we will be in NATO when the security situation would be
stabilized.
And that means that when the war will be finished. Ukraine will definitely be invited to NATO and Ukraine will definitely become a member nation to
the alliance. I haven't heard any other opinion today. For me, it was important that the NATO declaration contained security conditions. Still we
understand that it's all about the security. Well, I guess that's it. So let's have -- .
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. President (Inaudible) German TV. Yesterday, you had a very strong language on what was to be in the communique. So you said it
is absurd what they are going to decide. Now they decided it and today you're very grateful. You're very thankful. What made you change your mind?
And are you sometimes afraid that you could alienate the partners who spend a lot of political capital and money in order to help you? Thank you.
ZELENSKYY: I haven't changed my point of view. What's most important is that we have a common understanding on the conditions on when and under
which conditions Ukraine would be in NATO, maybe not all the details were communicated. But for me, it was very important that it depends on the
security, that there is an unambiguous statement about Ukraine and NATO.
So that would not be any trade-offs, that would be a political decision based on the political security situation in the world. I don't know
whether everyone is frank with me whether it's all correct, but we believe to departments we have to leave with a face in our partners that are
helping us today to win in this war and those unambiguous things.
I have repeated them once. In the dialogue with every leader of the G7 countries, I have repeated them and we have received the answers to the
questions that we've posed. Secondly, we have received powerful defense confirmations, they're very important to us.
[11:40:00]
And thirdly, I believe that all of that resulted in a logical point for our today's meeting, that's the security guarantees. That's the declaration on
the security guarantees for Ukraine.
Now, what is the most important is that the security guarantees contains what's most important is that, we've preserved one moment in this security
guarantees that it says clearly that these are security guarantees on our way to NATO. I'm happy that we have it in the wording of the declaration
and that the partner supported us, now the Arabica, Ukraine, please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) Arabica, Ukraine. Mr. President, you're colleague, the President of Czech Republic Petr Pavel has stated that he
believes that the window of opportunity is for the occupation of Ukraine with weapons in this summer, because then their support will go weaker.
After all of your meetings, -- can see this risk.
ZELENSKYY: Today, at the summit, I've seen the support from the United States, Germany, France and Poland. I'm not mentioning all the countries.
Sorry for that. But I've heard a lot of leaders who reassured me and that means they reassured our people and our soldiers, which is even more
important that they will support Ukraine, as long as it takes -- .
We need to understand that all of that will depend on our actions on the battlefield. This is important, not only for the support of our partners,
but this is something that we made in order to remain motivated. So that we would know what's our target that we are on our way to victory. We cannot
just simply hold our grounds, and to hope that someone would support us for decades, I understand what you're talking about.
So I wish all of us to have a success and this fight. I'm confident that there should be a positive result. It's difficult. We had a very important
moment today. And I try to elaborate in as much detail as possible. All the moments that might either decelerate or accelerate the processes today, you
know, how much mines are plotted in the area?
If you're not in Ukraine, if you're somewhere else where it's hard to kind of to persuade to explain, but I think that our team today has explained
all the details. Therefore I do believe that the support will not diminish, at least that's what the partner said.
ALEXANDRA CATHERINA, LITHUANIAN NATIONAL RADIO AND TELEVISION (ph): Hello, Alexandra Catherina (ph) from Lithuanian National Radio and Television.
First of all, Mr. President -- from Ukraine, thank you for being here and we are very happy that you're in Vilnius. My question is pretty simple.
Everyone is talking about the victory of Ukraine that Ukraine must win. What would this victory mean to you today, after a year and a half of a
war? Thank you.
ZELENSKYY: Well, we're not expecting for any surprises. We want to return our land. We want to return the security to our territory to return all
those people who are forced to leave abroad. I believe that this is the victory that I've already mentioned. But still there has to be
accountability.
Accountability is part of the justice and justice is part of the victory. In any case, frozen conflict is not a victory if this is something that you
meant, now the 24 Channel Ukraine, please.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, before your bilateral meeting with Joe Biden, White House informed that on the agenda of the negotiations, there
is an issue of supplying Kyiv with long range missiles. So when are we receiving the outcomes?
[11:45:00]
ZELENSKYY: I don't know. How would it, could it, does conversations, a decision has not yet been made. But it's better not to raise this issue.
There are expectations of the military of everyone. And I think it's important to have it at first and then to share the information how it
didn't happen. We have a complicated decision.
And I'm very grateful for that decision to President Biden, we have started this conversation. A long time ago, we've started conversations about
cluster munitions many months ago, we talked about this. Now, I'm grateful that we have a decision because it's kind of not fair that Russia is using
that. And we don't have the weapons alike.
We worked a lot on this. I'm very grateful to President Biden and team for the results that we have received. So just wait, not everything at once.
Now, Sky please, first row.
DEBORAH HAYNES, SKY NEWS: Thank you, Deborah Haynes from Sky News. The British defense secretary today said that he told Ukraine that the UK is
not an Amazon style delivery service for weapons. Ben Wallace also had some advice for Kyiv, as you keep on asking for more and more weapons and
support. And that was that people want to see gratitude.
How do you respond to that? Do you think you're not being grateful enough? And are you worried that you need to be careful about what you say publicly
because if you complain, you could put off the public or politicians in countries like the U.S. and elsewhere?
ZELENSKYY: Yep. Yep. Well, I don't clearly understand the questions. I believe that we were always grateful to United Kingdom. We were always
grateful to the prime minister or to prime ministers, and to the Minister of Defense. Because the people in the United Kingdom have always supporting
Ukraine, we are grateful for this.
I didn't know what Tim and how else we should be grateful. Let him write me. How else should I express my words of gratitude? Or we could, you know,
get up in the morning and express our words of gratitude, personally to the minister. Really, I don't understand the essence of the question.
We are grateful to the United Kingdom, the only Kingdom is our partner, maybe the minister wants something special. But I think that we have a
wonderful relations, we are very grateful to the people. And really the significant support of the population, it has an impact on the decisions
taken by the leadership on the support of the leadership.
Now, because of the significant support of the British people to the people of Ukraine, I think this is why we have such a tight cooperation. Our
intelligence have a perfect cooperation. The Minister of Defense, we have it here. Well, let's see.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you have a problem with your relationship with the Minister of UK, so why don't you extend words of gratitude to him?
ZELENSKYY: And you have to call him please today.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then the Bloomberg Agency. Could you please raise so that we see the --
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. President, please tell if you have discussed the food security with the partners because the grain deal is ending very soon.
ZELENSKYY: Well, thank you. There are great risks. Today, at our meeting, we raised this question, the President Erdogan raised this question as
well, who was saying that Turkey is supporting this mission. There are certain risks and we discussed that with President Erdogan during my visit
to Istanbul at our meeting during my visit there. It is hard work. And it is complicated.
[11:50:00]
We need Mr. Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations to work on this issue as well, to have the proper deals with the Russian party,
because we never violated anything from our side. We never blocked anything. We did not have a deal with Russia; we had to deal with the UN
and Turkey.
And UN and Turkey, I had to deal with Russia. We need this corridor, and it is working. Russia will do anything. I'm sure that after today's so called
exception of security guarantees, I am sure that they will just threw down some of the important humanitarian projects.
It's obvious Russia is always responding like that. They don't take them or they don't stick to their promises. And they will block, these are those
humanitarian corridors to create a new crisis.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you very much. President going back to the issue of the communique and the membership language, it appears that it was the
United States and Germany that had the strongest position against talking about a timeline and a concrete path toward membership for Ukraine and the
communique.
Why do you think Berlin and Washington took that view? And additionally, are you concerned at all that some Western capitals may be preparing for a
scenario where membership could be used as a negotiating chip in a negotiation with Russia? Thank you very much.
ZELENSKYY: Thank you so much. Well, the most important is for you to know my personal position, our position. I am always speaking about that
sincerely. And I'm sure that there won't be a betrayal from Biden or Schultz. But still, I need to say that we will never exchange any status
for any of our territories.
Even if it's only one village with a population of one older man, we will never give away our territories and we will never exchange them for any
frozen conflict. It will never take place. And this is my clear position which while we're partners really no.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Please let us go on VRT.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, not the further stand up please, so they can see you. Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (Inaudible) VRT from Belgium Television. Before the summit we heard from Ukrainian sources that let's say Western reluctance to
give Ukraine what it wants delays, Ukrainian victory to your opinion has this summit brought Ukrainian victory closer?
ZELENSKYY: (Inaudible)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, it did.
ZELENSKYY: Yes. A very important point is the protection of our sky air defense systems as well. And it is very important now because we have
little steps forward, which are still very important. I will not speak about the number of Patriot systems, but it's important that this decision
has been taken.
And second, connected with armed vehicles of different types, armored vehicles, there is public information which has already been mentioned.
There is nothing to hide here. Those are Bushmasters and other types and solutions about armored vehicles. That is very important.
And also we would like to have a breakthrough in the artillery systems. Let me say the following, we are discussing there are some positive
developments. But we, so far don't have specific decisions, but we just need time for that. The power of weapon always makes the victory closer at
the battlefield. Let us go.
GIOKOS: Alright, as you can see President Zelenskyy there at a press conference at the NATO summit, many questions posed by international media.
He is standing by his comments of frustration that he said it was absurd that Ukraine didn't have clear timelines on when to join NATO.
But he says that now at least they have an understanding of when and how that it is unambiguous that he's believing NATO allies in that commitment.
And importantly on security guarantees, it was the language that really says was vital here. That its security guarantees that is on the way to
joining NATO.
[11:55:00]
That was part of the communique. That is giving him that faith into what has been discussed. In terms of the -- ammunitions that was mentioned, he
says, it was definitely a difficult decision. But it was absolutely vital again, to maintain that momentum on the ground.
One question in terms of him showing more gratitude to the likes of the UK, it was something that came through from the defense secretary of the UK,
that he had mentioned that he wants to see more gratitude from Zelenskyy. He kind of play around with that and saying, we have shown gratitude, we
have said thank you. Perhaps we should call the minister tomorrow to do this even more.
The one question which was fascinating in terms of using NATO as a negotiating chip down the line, he has vehemently said that they will not
give up not one village or one piece of territory in a frozen conflict. Zelenskyy is standing firm in terms of what he has gotten through at the
NATO summit.
We'll just a quick programming note for you. We are expecting U.S. President Joe Biden to speak at Vilnius University with the next few hours.
His speech comes on the heels of that NATO Summit and we will bring that to you live. Thank you so very much for joining us, "One World" up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[12:00:00]
END
