On this "Face the Nation" broadcast, moderated by Margaret Brennan: Secretary of State Antony Blinken Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki of Poland Fiona Hill , the former senior director for European and Russian affairs on the National Security Council, and John Sullivan , the former U. S. ambassador to Russia Dr. Joshua Gordon , the director of the National Institute of Mental Health Click here to browse full transcripts of "Face the Nation. " MARGARET BRENNAN: I'm Margaret Brennan in Washington. And this week on Face the Nation: The Biden administration mounts an aggressive diplomatic offense at an international security conference. And former President Jimmy Carter enters end-of-life hospice care. Just ahead of its one-year anniversary, the war in Ukraine was the top item on the agenda at the annual Munich Security Conference, with U. S. diplomats publicly blasting the Russians and Vladimir Putin. (Begin VT) KAMALA HARRIS (Vice President of the United States): We have examined the evidence. We know the legal standards. And there is no doubt these are crimes against humanity. (APPLAUSE) (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: Privately, Secretary of State Antony Blinken had a -- quote -- "candid and direct," code for confrontational, meeting with his Chinese counterpart about the spy balloons. We spoke with him right after that. (Begin VT) ANTONY BLINKEN (U. S. Secretary of State): It's safe to say there was no apology. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: We will bring you that interview, plus a conversation with Senator Bernie Sanders. And we will take a closer look at the nation's mental health crisis and the hospitalization of Pennsylvania Senator John Fetterman for depression. It's all just ahead on Face the Nation. Good morning, and welcome to Face the Nation. We have got a lot of news to get to today, but, last night, we learned former President Jimmy Carter has decided to spend his remaining time with his family in Plains, Georgia, in home hospice care. The 98-year-old Carter is the oldest surviving president. And our Bob Schieffer will be along later in the broadcast with some insights. But we want to turn now to that hour-long meeting between Secretary of State Blinken and his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, the first face-to-face meeting since the U. S. shot down the Chinese spy balloon two weeks ago. We spoke with the secretary last night from Munich just after that meeting. (Begin VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: Mr. Secretary, I know you just met with your Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, who has publicly said the U. S. response to the spy balloon was "absurd, hysterical, and an effort to divert attention away from domestic problems. " Was he that dismissive to you in private? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Margaret, I don't want to characterize what he said. I can tell you what I said. I made very clear to him that China sending a surveillance balloon over the United States, in violation of our sovereignty, in violation of international law, was unacceptable, and must never happen again. We also had an opportunity to talk about Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine and concerns that we have that China is considering providing lethal support to Russia in its efforts in Ukraine. And I was able to share with him, as President Biden has shared with President Xi, the serious consequences that would have for our relationship. Finally, it was important for me to underscore that we believe having lines of communication, engaging in direct diplomacy is very important. MARGARET BRENNAN: Does that mean their defense minister will pick up the next phone call from Secretary Austin, instead of refusing it? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Well, it's one of the things that we talked about, the importance of having lines of communication, including military- to-military lines of communication. It's vital to making sure that there aren't miscommunications, misunderstandings, especially if you've got a crisis or some other situation on your hands. MARGARET BRENNAN: A senior Pentagon official said last week that President Xi Jinping was caught by surprise by the surveillance balloon and that he doesn't trust his own military. Did the left and right hand of the Chinese government not know what was going on? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: It doesn't matter, in the sense that China is responsible for this action. And, ultimately, as the leader of the country, President Xi is responsible. MARGARET BRENNAN: There is open-source reporting that Chinese companies are providing surveillance equipment to that mercenary group the Wagner Group fighting in Ukraine. Does the U. S. consider this to be providing military support to Russia? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: We've been concerned from day one about -- about that possibility. And, to date, we have seen Chinese companies -- and, of course, in China, there's really no distinction between private companies and the state -- we have seen them provide nonlethal support to Russia for use in Ukraine. The concern that we have now is, based on information we have that they're considering providing lethal support. And we've made very clear to them that that would cause a serious problem for us and in our relationship. MARGARET BRENNAN: Lethal support, what would that entail? What do you think. . . SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Weapons. Weapons. MARGARET BRENNAN: That's ammunition. That's. . . SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Primarily, weapons. MARGARET BRENNAN: Primarily. . . SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: There's a whole gamut of things that -- that fit in that category, but everything from ammunition to the weapons themselves. MARGARET BRENNAN: Iran is also accused of providing more weaponry to Russia here. So, they are. . . SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: That's right. We've seen Iran provide. . . MARGARET BRENNAN: They are building an alliance. SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: There's an increasingly noxious relationship between Russia and Iran. And it's actually a two-way street. Not only is Iran providing this -- this equipment to Russia, but Russia is also providing military equipment to Iran, including, it looks like, sophisticated fighter planes. MARGARET BRENNAN: So from your conversation with your Chinese counterpart, do I understand that, usually, when you say it's a direct conversation, that's diplospeak for it didn't go very well, it was pretty heated, or did you make plans to visit Beijing in the near future? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: It's diplospeak for saying it was very important to speak very clearly, very directly about the deep concerns we have, the concerns that we have about this surveillance balloon and the entire program, the concerns we have about the possibility that China will provide lethal material support to Russia in its war effort against Ukraine. . . MARGARET BRENNAN: But there was no apology? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: And it's important that -- again, don't want to characterize what they said, although it's safe to say there was no apology. We have to make sure that the competition that we're clearly engaged in does not veer into conflict, into a -- into a new Cold War. It's not in our interest. I won't speak to theirs, but it's not in ours. MARGARET BRENNAN: In terms of Russia's war, 97 percent of its military is already engaged in this fight in Ukraine, according to the U. K. But they have substantial airpower they haven't tapped into yet. Do you see evidence that Russia is preparing an aerial attack on Ukraine? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Russia's losses have been horrific. You're right that 90 -- 97 percent or so of their ground forces have been engaged in this war, which is extraordinary. And the losses to date have been horrific. Public figures suggest 200,000 casualties. That is a combination of those killed and those wounded. The destruction of their war machine itself, the tanks, the armored vehicles, the missile launchers, et cetera, has also been extensive. In terms of airpower, they tried some of this early on. Ukraine's air defenses were actually successful in shooting down a lot of Russian aircraft. So they backed off of using aircraft. That doesn't mean that they won't try to do that going forward. But, at least to date, Ukraine has had air defenses that have allowed it to pose such a threat to Russian aircraft that they haven't really been flying. MARGARET BRENNAN: I want to ask you lastly about this designation of crimes against humanity that the vice president announced. She cited horrific things, like a 4-year-old girl being raped by Russian soldiers, thousands of Ukrainian children being taken from their families, to say that this constitutes legally crimes against humanity. President Biden has already used the term genocide. Is the State Department working on a genocide determination? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: We will, as always, look at every legal possibility when it comes to going after the atrocities that Russia is committing in Ukraine. The determination that -- that we made of crimes against humanity that the vice president announced today is, unfortunately, starkly clear. And we've seen that almost from day one. This practice that, as a parent, is almost impossible to fathom of literally seizing Ukrainian children, sending them to Russia, sending them to centers -- there are about 43 of them that we found -- there was a project undertaken by Yale University, with our support, that has documented this -- to 43 centers in Russia and some in Ukrainian territory that Russia now holds. Some of these places are closer to Alaska than they are to Ukraine. Separating them from their families and then having them adopted by Russians, this is, in and of itself, horrific. It also speaks to the fact that President Putin has been trying from day one to erase Ukraine's identity, to erase its future. That's what's going on, and that too is a crime against humanity. MARGARET BRENNAN: Some of what you described is consistent with the statutory basis for the Genocide Convention. So I'm hearing what you're saying as you are potentially looking at that? SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: We will look at every possible determination, but we're going to follow the facts, and we're going to follow the law. These are very serious determinations, and we will engage in them very seriously. MARGARET BRENNAN: Secretary Blinken, thank you for your time today. SECRETARY ANTONY BLINKEN: Good to be with you. Thanks, Margaret. (End VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: Late last week, Senator Bernie Sanders stopped by the Face the Nation studio to talk about his new book, "It's OK to Be Angry About Capitalism. " (Begin VT) MARGARET BRENNAN: You talk about the alliance you formed with Joe Biden during the campaign to really shape the Democratic platform and incorporate many of your ideas. You said he wasn't as bold as you would have hoped, but he would have been the most progressive president since FDR if he had acted on that agenda. How do you categorize Joe Biden on that progressive scale now? SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS (I-Vermont): Well, I think the American Rescue Plan was, in fact, one of the most significant pieces of legislation for the working class in this country in the modern history of America. Build Back Bitter -- Better would have been transformational. It would have finally addressed the crises that the working class of this country has faced for decades, revolutionized childcare, revolutionized health care, dealt boldly with climate change, raised wages. I mean, it would have done a whole lot. MARGARET BRENNAN: But the votes weren't there. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: We got zero Republican support, and two Democrats decided not to support it. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, in terms of how you view the president, do you think he is progressive? SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: I think he is a much more progressive president than he was a United States senator. MARGARET BRENNAN: In some of the things you were able to get done and signed into law, President Biden points to them as achievements, but you diminish them a little bit in this book. You point out Medicare won't be permitted to negotiate lower drug prices until 2026. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: Right. MARGARET BRENNAN: The cap on out-of-pocket prescription drug costs for seniors doesn't kick in until 2025; $35 dollar cap on insulin prices doesn't help those who aren't on Medicare. Are you saying he hasn't delivered? SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: No. I mean, look, this is the real world that we live in is that you need 60 votes often in the Senate. And the truth is that, today, over 60 percent of our people are living paycheck to paycheck. So the question that I am asking is why, in the richest country in the history of the world, why aren't -- why don't we have a health care system that works for all? Why do we pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs? So, we have seen some achievements, but given the scope of the problems and where we should be going, nowhere near enough. MARGARET BRENNAN: We also have one of the most innovative health care systems when it comes to creation of pharmaceutical drugs. You are doing this. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: No. MARGARET BRENNAN: So, when someone hears you lay out the problems with our pharmaceutical industry, as you do in this book, and say, but the lifesaving vaccines, for example, for COVID, they were created by the United States of America, they were created by the pharmaceutical system, with taxpayer help. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: They were created by -- sure. Of course, the drug companies produce great drugs. But one out of four people in America cannot afford the price -- the drugs that their doctors prescribe. So, of course, we want the drug companies to do the research and development. And, by the way, taxpayers of this country spent $45 billion a year through the NIH to help with that research and development. . . MARGARET BRENNAN: You're talking about. . . SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: including Moderna and the vaccine. MARGARET BRENNAN: You're talking about Moderna. Pfizer didn't take that -- that money. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: Correct MARGARET BRENNAN: But, Moderna, you're -- you're sharply critical. In fact, you're calling in Moderna's CEO to testify. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: Right. MARGARET BRENNAN: You're critical of his plan to quadruple the cost of the COVID vaccine. SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: Well, here's the. . . MARGARET BRENNAN: Can you stop him from doing that? SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS: Well, here's the story. Taxpayers -- the NIH co-authored, wo