The deaths that occurred were all avoidable and those who lived in the tower were badly failed by those who were responsible for ensuring the safety of the building and its occupants. The country failed to discharge its most fundamental duty to protect you and your Loved Ones, the people that we are here to serve, and i am deeply sorry. Human life was never a priority and we lost friends, neighbours and Loved Ones in the most horrific way. Through greed, corruption, incompetence and negligence. Welcome to hardtalk. Im stephen sackur. Vladimir putin talks of restoring greatness to what he calls the russian world an expansive territory which, as ukrainians know to their cost, stretches far beyond russias current borders. Putins Expansionist Nationalism requires military power, but its harnessed the cultural spiritual authority of the russian Orthodox Church, too. My guest, andrey kordochkin, was a russian Orthodox Priest who spoke out against the ukraine war and the putinisation of his c
But is he swimming against an unstoppable tide? andrey kordochkin, andrey kordochkin, welcome to hardtalk. Welcome to hardtalk. Thank you. Thank you. It s a great honour it s a great honour and privilege to be here. And privilege to be here. Well, it s great to have you well, it s great to have you in the studio. In the studio. Let me take you back let me take you back to february 2022. To february 2022. Putin orders putin orders an all out invasion of ukraine. That this would be the end an all out invasion of ukraine. Within days, you, a priest within days, you, a priest in the russian orthodox church, in the russian orthodox church, choose to speak out choose to speak out against the invasion. Against the invasion. When you did that, did you feel when you did that, did you feel that this would be the end of your career in the russian orthodox church? i think that when the war has begun, very few of us could actually give a prediction of what is going to come through. So i think that
Leonid volkov in lithuania, welcome to hardtalk. We need to begin, i think, by establishing what kind of contact you have with Alexei Navalny right now. Do you have any means of contacting him . Now the only way to contact him is that his lawyers, not even the relatives, but the lawyers are allowed to visit him two or three times a week and they dont enjoy privacy during those visits. So its like supervised contact, but still, we manage at least to pass some basic information about, like, whats going on. But to tell that alexei is now orchestrating the protests from his cell is a little bit too much. He actually isnt able to do it. But his political structure, the structure he has built that im now managing, is capable of, at least for some time, of keeping pace, of running forward, along with the directions we discussed with him when he left berlin for moscow a week ago. What kind of condition is he in . Because im mindful that he recovered from a Near Death Experience with the novich
Welcome to hardtalk, im stephen sackur. Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny is the most resilient opponent Vladimir Putin has everfaced. Navalny survived attempted assassination by novichok, returned to russia and is now orchestrating anti putin protests from his prison cell. My guest is navalny s Chief Of Staff leonid volkov. The Opposition Movement has supporters willing to take to the streets in hundreds of russian towns and cities, but do they have a strategy capable of forcing putin from power . Leonid volkov in lithuania, welcome to hardtalk. We need to begin, i think, by establishing what kind of contact you have with Alexei Navalny right now. Do you have any means of contacting him . Now the only way to contact him is that his lawyers, not even the relatives, but the lawyers are allowed to visit him two, three times a week and they dont enjoy privacy during those visits. So its like supervised contact. But still, we manage, at least, to pass some basic information about, l
Ukrainian border. And first elements of a 3,000strong deployment sent to support nato allies, poland and romania. This afternoon President Biden was asked if war troops could soon be on the way. Not yet im not going to speculate on that. In particular thing that Vladimir Putin is looking for, sir in order to make i think thing hs he cannot g. U. S. Intelligence estimates paint a bleak picture of what could happen if russia invades. One estimate says ukraines capital city of kyiv might fall in 48 hours if poutin were to unleash his full Military Power and tens of millions of casualties and up to 500,000 refugees. Dont believe the apocalyptic predictions theyre called. Putin could conduct the Largest Military operation on land in europe since world war ii. Cnns senior Internationaliley Ukraine and also joining us from fort bragg, north carolina. Sam, ukraine doesnt seen worried. Rye not . Reporter two reasons, jim. First, as they regularly point out government level, countrys already bee