Firstly, in the run-up to this cessation of hostilities there was a dramatic increase in the intensiveness ... of Russian aerial bombardment and also of the regime warplanes of Bashar al-Assad, secondly, the people living in rebel territory don't trust the Assad regime and see this cessation of hostilities as a trick designed so that the regime can take more territory.

Clarissa Ward

Categorized in : World

I don't deal with hypotheticals. I deal with reality.

Clarissa Ward

deals reality

We need to be aware of all different forms of brainwashing and radicalization.

Clarissa Ward

form different needs

I do think that when we're looking at Putin's actions, we really need to look further into what his point is. Because I think there is a misconception that this is kind of reigniting the Cold War and Putin's a bully. And he's just, you know, sort of lashing out at Ukraine when actually I think that this goes much deeper to that.

Clarissa Ward

bully war thinking

Putin described Kiev is the mother of Russian cities. These - the Russian people view Ukraine as an extension of Russia. And so there is a sense that Putin really will do whatever it takes, even in the face of overwhelming, diplomatic, and economic pressure to defend what he sees as Russia's vital interest. And I think when we're trying to understand what's going on in Ukraine we have to keep that in mind. This isn't a simple case of Putin agitating for a fight.

Clarissa Ward

fighting simple mother

The economic sanctions are absolutely going to hurt Russia's economy. They're hurting some of his key inner sanctum. But they are not affecting his political standing. And it's hard to see how they would do so at least, in the short term.

Clarissa Ward

economic political hurt

People are tired of the humiliation that they don't want to be perceived as weak within the international community. And they are, therefore, actually quite grateful to President Putin for reinstating some sense of national pride.

Clarissa Ward

tired grateful pride

People do forget there is still a lot of nostalgia in Russia for the Soviet Union.

Clarissa Ward

nostalgia forget people

I think what this really highlights (is) the fundamental disconnect that exists between the people who are fighting and dying here on the ground and the people who are brokering deals overseas.

Clarissa Ward

world

The experience of being a young, blonde, naive but well-intentioned young producer was both intimidating and eye-opening.

Clarissa Ward

being experience blonde young

There are times when it's absolutely appropriate to march up to someone, stick out your hand and introduce yourself, and times when it's best to let your male cameraman or producer do the talking and hang back until you've felt out the situation.

Clarissa Ward

yourself best you situation

I absolutely love my job. I feel so privileged: I get to travel the world, I get to witness history... and I'm constantly inspired by the different amazing characters I meet along the way.

Clarissa Ward

love history world travel

We're journalists, and so it's our job to be impartial and provide a fair and thorough assessment of what's happening on the ground from the perspective of what we're able to see.

Clarissa Ward

ground job see perspective

Even though I don't have a lot of spare time, what I do have I'm very protective of, and so I make sure to have a normal life and to remember that, while it's important to keep in mind these conflicts are ongoing, it's also important to enjoy simple pleasures, too.

Clarissa Ward

simple mind time life

When you're out in the field and spending time in these different places around the world, humility is one of the most important assets that will serve you well.

Clarissa Ward

you spending-time time world

I always knew I wanted to be on air and travel the world and tell people's stories. I wanted to convey something from other cultures to the U.S. - and vice versa.

Clarissa Ward

always people world travel

We've not seen anything to back that up in any way.

Clarissa Ward

The fact that it was prerecorded and then released at a specific time indicates indeed that there's some kind of premeditated plot here.

Clarissa Ward

Nowadays, we're having to use so many different tools to go about that verification process, it all makes the job just a little bit more complex.

Clarissa Ward

What you're seeing in the last few days is... a major uptick, a major escalation, particularly when you're seeing shells landing on civilian buildings.

Clarissa Ward

Some of these journalists and reporters know that they have a big X on their backs... because they have been so outspoken against the Taliban.

Clarissa Ward