Hello, and a very warm welcome to our viewers here in the United States and all around the world. Im paula newton. Ahead here on cnn newsroom, Vladimir Putin and kim jongun ref up talks in Eastern Russia. What the two are expected to discuss. Plus, the presumed death toll from the catastrophic flooding in libya has more than double and as many as 10,000 are still missing. And the u. S. Takes a key step in a deal to free five americans being detained in iran. What critics are saying about that agreement. And we go straight to our breaking news. Kim jongun is heaping praise on russias Vladimir Putin as the two sit down for their first facetoface talks in more than four years. The meeting in russias far east follows days of warnings from the United States about these two leaders possibly sealing a deal on weapons. But theyre not talking about that publicly, at least not yet, any way. Instead, the russian president spoke of cooperation on humanitarian and economic issues. And in a veiled swipe at the United States and the west, kim jongun applauded President Putin for standing up to, quote, hegemonic forces to secure his security. He pledged his full and unconditional support to all that russia dunn does in response. Earlier they toured a space launch site, the cosmodrome and inspected all sorts of spacecraft there. And for the first time, north korea, this is significant now, fired off two missiles, Ballistic Missiles while kim jongun was outside of the country. Cnns Kristie Lu Stout has been following all of these developments with us. She is with us now from hong kong. Truly a significant meeting already. We believe there is more to come, including theyre going sit down for a meal. What are we learning so far about the extent that these two leaders are willing to go to forge possibly a new closer relationship . Well, this is what we know. And the meeting is just wrapped. The north Korean Leader kim jongun and the russian president Vladimir Putin, they have met at the cosmodrone. The talks have ended after more than an hour. Thats according to russian state media. And earlier they shook hands, they greeted one another, they toured the facility at the space port in russia. And kim, he signed the guest book. We see on camera writes this prose saying russia which gave birth to the first conquers of space will be immortal. His sister was also seen on sight, she is a high level official, kim yo jong. Ahead of the meeting, putin said kim showed great interest in space and rocket engineering. And putin also said that the leaders will discuss all issue, quote, without haste. This meeting comes just hours after north korea fired two shortrange Ballistic Missiles into the waters off of the east coast of the korean peninsula. This according to south koreas joint chiefs of staff. Analysts point out this is the first time weve seen a launch with the north Korean Leader out of the country. But we have to bear in mind this is a leader who very rarely travels overseas. Now this meeting that just wrapped between kim and putin, it comes after the u. S. Has issued the warning saying that the two are actively advancing their talks over another potential arms deal. Kim arrived in russia early on tuesday morning. It was 6 00 a. M. Tuesday when he set foot in hassan. Thats the main rail gateway to russias far east. And kim, he was smiling as he stepped off his train, that famous green train for a russian red carpet welcome, as you see there. And also on board and traveling with him are north koreas leading officials, including its top military leaders as well as its chief diplomat. This is the first overseas trip for kim since 2019 when he went to vladivostok for his first meeting with putin, and the u. S. Remains very concerned that north korea will provide arms to russia. In exchange, north korea is seeking advanced technology for nuclearpowered submarines and for satellites. Back to you. Yeah, it is so interesting, isnt it, kristie, that were seeing all of this go on live, live on state tv in russia. And there has been a lot of video and a lot of interaction between the two leaders. Kristie lu stout, i know youre going continue to watch all of it live for us, live from hong kong. We appreciate it. Edward howell joins me now from london. Good to have you on the program. You know, youve been saying for months now that a new and closer relationship between these two countries could be a menacing development. Now im sure you dont want to be alarmist, and neither does anyone else. But what are the real risks here if these two leaders become very close . Thank you very much. So first we have the transactional element of this relationship, where kim jongun is in need of food and crucially Financial Assistance in a declining north korean economy, but also more advanced and sophisticated technology. And particularly in terms of satellite technology. And north koreas satellites in recent months have failed quite a spectacular fashion. And for putin, we know that he needs munition, and he needs Artillery Shells to continue his fight in ukraine. Now even though north korean Artillery Shells are not are seen not to be the best in terms of accuracy and precision. The broader ramifications of this meeting are that it will, firstly, make the u. N. Security council and put the u. N. Security council in a very difficult position with respect to trying to address north Koreas Nuclear threat. Already after russia invaded ukraine, russia has been taking north koreas side. But if a possible arms deal does emerge, questions of Sanctions Violations on the part of russia also emerge. In terms of kim jongun obviously ordering the two Ballistic Missiles be fired, he was out of the country at the time. We believe thats that would be the first time that that happened. What do you make of that, and what message was he trying to send . So, yes, it is unusual the occurrence. But i think its sending a clear message that north koreas quest for nuclear and particularly International Recognition as a Nuclear State continues. We must also not forget that these summits, much like past summits involving kim jongun, they dont just target international audiences. This is obviously a very clear message to the west and international audiences. But they also target domestic audiences. The same is true for north koreas missile and nuclear tests, which have a very strong domestic component reaching out to the north korean population. Yeah, and also im sure in that, certainly a message for the russian population as well as they watch this in some cases live on tv there. And that brings us to another interesting question. What do you think china is making of all of this . They certainly have not been seen to encourage north korea in its nuclear exploits, seeing them as not a rational actor. Do you think tacitly they would send any kind of message to russia to be careful . We know that china has been unusually quiet in the prelude to this meeting, and we know that the chinese and russian officials will meet in the days to come. Chinas ultimate aim is stability on the korean peninsula. China seems willing to provide Financial Assistance to north korea if that means that the Nuclear North Korea that we have status quo continues. Weve seen in chinas relations with russia but china also wants to be seen as a mediator in this. Chiwetel ejiofor in particular urging for peaceful resolution. Not only the issues on the korean peninsula, but also of russias war in ukraine. Chinas role is key, though, for broader regional security, particularly after claims by sergei shoigu, russias defense minister, that russian, chinese and north korean trilateral Military Drills could take place. Chinas role is important. Is very important here. Yeah, that would be a Significant Development indeed. Edward howell we will leave it there. I really appreciate your expertise. Thank you very much. Now russia is accusing kyiv of launching a missile assault ontopol. Air defenses were at work repel the attack, but it set fire to the shipyard that builds and repairs ships in the Russian Black Sea fleet. Regional Officials Say 24 people were wounded. Now ukrainian Officials Say at least 20,000 people have been forcibly removed from their homes and brought to russia or russian occupied territory. On tuesday, an Ngo Group Says it brought 13 of them home. This was save ukraines 11th Rescue Mission so far. And they have reunited 176 ukrainian children with their families. Moscow has denied it has done anything illegal, saying it is instead evacuating children to safety. But in march, the International Criminal court put out an Arrest Warrant for russian president Vladimir Putin over an alleged scheme to deport ukrainian children. U. S. House speaker Kevin Mccarthy has ordered a formal Impeachment Inquiry into president joe biden. This despite any direct evidence that links biden to corruption or illegal acts or any evidence to prove allegations that biden profited from his sons Business Deals. The white house responding with a social media post saying, quote, mccarthy vowed to hold a vote to open impeachment. Now he flipflopped because he doesnt have support. Also calling the move extreme politics at its worst. We get more now from cnns melanie dan zanona. Kevin mccarthy facing threats to his speakership, giving the green light into an inquiry into joe biden. Today i am directing our House Committee to open a formal Impeachment Inquiry into president joe biden. Reporter a dramatic escalation of the house gops investigations into the president. House republicans have uncovered serious and credible allegations into President Bidens conduct. Taken together, these allegations paint a picture of a culture of corruption. Reporter mccarthy today repeated several allegations made by some of his gop colleagues, including that as Vice President , biden joined meetings with Hunter Bidens business partners, that the Treasury Department has flagged suspicious financial activity by the biden family, and that the president has lied about his knowledge of his familys Business Deals. But House Republicans have so far not provided evidence that biden directly profited off his sons Business Deals or made any decisions as Vice President because of them. There is zero evidence of any malfeasance on the part of president joe biden. Reporter the effort has faced resistance from some in the gop over the lack of evidence. What i wanted to do is look at the evidence. I said i will go where the evidence takes me. Im reluctant to agree with Speaker Mccarthy. Reporter mccarthy has been facing pressure from the right and former President Donald Trump to move ahead. Moments ago, Speaker Mccarthy endorsed an Impeachment Inquiry. This is a baby step following weeks of pressure from house conservatives to do more. We must move faster. Reporter a trio of House Committees leading the way. The speaker has not put a timeline on the process, though mccarthy ally Marjorie Taylor greene said there is no rush. Im interested in going as long as it takes. Reporter but marking a mccarthy reversal, no formal vote on the launch, aimed at protecting his most vulnerable members. That puts a lot of seats up at risk, particularly for republicans who won biden districts. Reporter House Republicans believe the public is on their side. According to a cnn poll, 61 of americans believe biden was involved in his sons Business Deals as Vice President , while 42 think he acted illegally. But some gop senators are uncertain about mccarthys approach. The way to make an inquiry legitimate is to have a vote as to whether or not you should have one at all, rather than just the leadership deciding. Reporter and democrats not sweating the threat of impeachment. Its devastating ooh dont do it, please, dont do it. And House Republicans have already taken their First Official step in this Impeachment Inquiry. On tuesday afternoon, a trio of House Committees sent a letter to attorney general Merrick Garland requesting all information and all documents about whether Hunter Bidens attorneys encouraged irs whistleblowers to be retaliated against by the department of justice. These irs whistleblowers have claimed that the doj mishandled and politicized the Criminal Probe Into hunter biden. But the doj has denied all wrongdoing. Melanie zanona, cnn, capitol hill. Still to come for us, morocco continues to grapple with the mounting death toll from last weeks powerful earthquake. The latest on that disaster ahead. Plus, a historic day in israel. Well break down the Supreme Court hearing over controversial law limiting the Supreme Courts powers. For up to 44 minutes more rerestful sleep per night. Save 1500 on n the sleep numbr climate360 smart bed. Shop now at sleep nunumber. Co. We planned well for retirement, but i wish we had more cash. You think those two have any idea . That they can sell their Life Insurance policy for cash . So theyre basically sitting on a goldmine . I dont think they have a clue. Thats crazy well, not everyone knows coventrys helped thousands of people sell their policies for cash. Even term policies. 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Com and see how golo can change your life. Thats golo. Com. The death toll from the catastrophic flooding in Eastern Libya has now soared to more than 5,000 with another 10,000 still missing. Thats according to the red crescent. Now one official in city of derna says entire residential buildings have been just swept away, and about a quarter of the town has disappeared. People are searching for their loved ones, but Cell Phone Towers have been knocked down, making communication nearly impossible. Some of the images from the Disaster Zone we warn you are quite graphic. Hospitals in derna are no longer functioning. The morgues are full, and video, as you see there, shows dead bodies lined up on the sidewalks. Now some neighborhoods have resorted to mass burials. We go line to eleni joko has been following for us. We have the political turmoil there. And just trying to really coordinate who goes in with what equipment, what more are you learning about attempts to get aid to libya . Yeah, there is a loot happening around the world, specifically in north africa. Look, when it comes to libya, we are just seeing catastrophic, devastating, and frankly terrifying images. One can only imagine what people have been going through there in the last few days. In terms of international assistance, and its coming through very quickly, you have turkey that has sent sentence, qatar, the uae. Egypt is also sending a delegation of people to support. You have algeria announcing that theyre sending planes and personnel. Tunis as well on the ground. Most of these teams have arrived in benghazi. They have to make their way to the hardest hit area, which