i'm rico hizon in singapore, the headlines: defrosting relations — north and south korean women play their first ice hockey match ahead of the winter olympics — as a united team. a crunch meeting as pressure grows on south africa's president — reports suggest jacob zuma is refusing to quit. i'm sharanjit leyl in london. also in the programme. safety concerns and overcrowding could force climbing operators to give up on everest via the nepalese route — and take their business towards china instead. and why do so many south korean men use beauty products? we meet a one vlogger who's trying to change perceptions about men and makeup. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning.

it's 8am in singapore. midnight in london and 9am in seoul where — just days before the start of the winter olympics — some of the athletes have been taking part in warm—up matches. not a big deal, but when it's a team made up of north and south koreans — the world takes notice. a joint women's ice hockey team played a friendly against sweden — it's being seen as a sign of reconciliation. in another move — north korea's sending its highest ranking official for years to the south, leading a delegation on friday. laura bicker reports from seoul. fierce and determined, the korean players head onto the rink to prove they are notjust pawns in a political drama, or an experiment in sports diplomacy. they fight hard against high—ranking sweden,

willed on by a crowd eager to witness a piece of history, and waving the flag of a unified korea. translation: i was so touched. ifeel so good because i felt the passion of the players, and it felt like we were one together. it was very meaningful to all of us, and especially for my son, it was a very meaningful event. but this team's formation has been controversial. the south korean hockey coach has had to tell players she's worked with for years that they've lost their spot to make way for north koreans such as this player. we're not allowed to ask the north koreans any questions at the press conference, but the south korean coach was frank when i asked her about the challenges. so, adding players that close to the olympics that haven't been with us for the last four years, learning our systems, kind of understanding how our team plays is difficult. the north korean language is different

than south korean, is so for our team meetings, it is going through to english, the south korean to north korean, so the meetings take three times as long, and it's really hard when, you know, you have three different languages on one team. the event feels like a celebration, but playing as one team under one flag has not been welcomed by the younger generation in south korea. to them, unifying the two countries is a very distant goal. the problem with the young generation, and the sentiment towards north korea is, they do not really trust them. and they have seen, and we all have seen, flip—flopping and breaking the promises by north korea. so, they do not really share the feeling of like one nation with north korea. the north korean players will not stay with their team—mates at the athletes‘ village. they'll be kept in separate accommodation and watched over by minders. sweden won the match today, 3—1, but for north and south korea,

fielding a joint team will be viewed as a small victory for diplomacy. laura bicker, bbc news, seoul. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. two people have been killed and more than 100 injured in a rail crash in the us state of south carolina. an amtrak passenger train — travelling between new york and miami — appears to have been on the wrong track when it slammed into a stationary freight train at 95 kilometres an hour. south carolina's governor said it appeared that the passenger train had been on the wrong track, at the time of the crash. it isa it is a horrible thing to see and to understand the force that is involved. two trains, is about as forceful as you can get. the engine of the first train was torn up and the single engined of the passenger

train, the amtrak heading southwards, it is barely recognisable. it was quite a crash. for whatever reason, the switch... and when i talk about a switch on talking about a rail switch, they can switch how the rail track goes from here to here. for whatever reason, that switch was, as they say in the industry, lined and locked at which basically means it was aligned with the train coming down this way to be diverted into deciding. —— the siding. also making news today, the sole surviving suspect involved in the terror attacks that killed 130 people at the bataclan in paris goes on trial in belgium today. salah abdeslam was captured in brussels four months after the paris attacks in 2015. the charges he faces in court are not related to the french attacks, but to a shootout he had with police while on the run

in belgium. sunday was supposed to be the final day of negotiations between angela merkel and the social democrats in the drawn—out efforts to form a government. but germany will remain in political limbo for at least one more day — as the two sides couldn't agree on key issues such as health—care and tena nt‘s rights. hundreds of thousands of greeks have protested in athens against the former yugoslav republic to the north, using the name macedonia. greece objects because it has a region called macedonia, and argues the use by its neighbour implies it has claims over the province. opposition supporters in the maldives have taken to the streets, chanting that nine political prisoners must be freed in accordance with a recent supreme court order. the attorney general says the government will resist any attempt by the court to impeach president abdulla yameen for disobeying its order, issued last week. the 52nd super bowl is under way in

freezing temperatures in the us city of minnesota. the philadelphia eagles are taking on the new england patriots and the eagles began with the ball and came away with an early field goal, matched by the patriots. the underdogs, philadelphia, have just scored a touchdown, putting them in the lead at 9—3. we will keep you updated as the game progresses. pressure is growing on south africa's president jacob zuma to step down. the top six officials from the governing anc have been to see him at his official residence to discuss his future. for months now, allegations of corruption have swirled around mr zuma, with both the opposition, and elements of the anc, intensifying their effort to remove him from office. as andrew harding reports from johannesburg, we could be seeing the last days of mr zuma's presidency.

he's swamped by scandal. south africa's president, jacob zuma, has already been found guilty of breaking his oath of office when he upgraded his private home lavishly at the taxpayer's expense. more recently, his friendship with the controversial business family, the guptas, has fuelled allegations of massive corruption — "state capture", they call it here. during the zuma presidency, south africa has floundered. the economy is struggling and unemployment is soaring, amid a sense that senior officials could get away with anything. but in december, zuma and his allies lost control of the governing anc. the new man, cyril ramaphosa, promising to end impunity. everyone agrees that our state was captured by people who purported to be close to the president, who have been doing really bad things and getting into all and many

state institutions. and suddenly, there is real change in the air here. prosecutors seizing this state farm in connection with alleged fraud by the gupta family and government officials. and the courts pursuing corruption charges against president zuma himself. i think these are real historic moments in south african politics. in all likelihood, we are going to see arrests and big people being caught up in this. because a wheel is turning, momentum is developing. and i don't think there is to be any turning back. for now, zuma is clinging to hisjob, but his allies are deserting him and tonight, party leaders are meeting him to discuss his removal. in places like zimbabwe and kenya we have seen this sort of situation turn ugly and dangerous. but south africa is still a robust democracy. so, whether he is pushed

or hejumps, president zuma will soon be out of power, and, most likely, in court on corruption charges. it is a moment of drama and optimism for a country poised to exit the troubled zuma era. andrew harding, bbc news, johannesburg. and that's a story we'll be keeping an eye on as it develops. china is accusing the united states of exaggerating beijing's nuclear strength — saying america needs to ditch what it calls a "cold war mentality". the statement comes after washington unveiled a new nuclear policy, that sees china as one of its potential threats. the us military believes its nuclear weapons are seen as too big to be used and wants to develop low—yield bombs. were speaking to an adviser from article 36, the

international campaign to abolish nuclear weapons. china calls the cold war mentality that we think the risks from nuclear weapons never went away since the cold war. this policy represents the reckless development of what was already a dangerous status quo. the policy argues that the us‘s nuclear weapons should be more usable and more willing and able to use them. this proposal that low yield nuclear weapons should be more available. the low yield weapons they are talking about similar size to the bombs dropped on japan talking about similar size to the bombs dropped onjapan in 1945 to such horrific effect. we think any policy that makes these more usable as an acceptable. the mentality that needs addressing here is that some states are still see nuclear weapons asa states are still see nuclear weapons as a legitimate tool of statecraft, including the united states. trump nuclear doctrine has come out this week it also states like britain here and china. the majority of the world's countries are already challenging this through a new treaty on the pro edition of nuclear

weapons that was negotiated last year at the weapons that was negotiated last yearat the un. weapons that was negotiated last year at the un. what you need to do is create a global environment in which these weapons are not seen as legitimate any longer. if you look at other weapons of mass destruction, biologicaland chemical, few countries today argue it is legitimate to have an arsenal of those. it may surprise people to know that the thatcher cabinet was looking at asking nato to adopt the chemical deterrent in the 1980s that it we need to do the same thing with nuclear weapons and that affects all states. that is why this new treaty is very important, not for addressing the short—term situation right now but for the long—term come to our world safer. the indian state of punjab is suffering a drugs epidemic — it's thought there are close to a million users. now, one local football club is hoping to keep youngsters away from drugs — with the aid of the beautiful game. they've already helped almost 5,000 children and young people. here are some of their stories. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: it's

no surprise that moscow gets wintry weather — but it doesn't get much worse than this. why are some everest expedition operators changing their route to the summit — and shifting from nepal over to china 7 this is the moment that millions in iran had been waiting for. after his long years in exile, the first hesitant steps of ayatollah khomeini on iranian soil. south africa's white government has offered its black opponents concessions unparalleled in the history of apartheid. the ban on the african national congress is lifted immediately, and the anc leader, nelson mandela, after 27 years injail, is to be set free unconditionally. the aircraft was returning from belgrade, where

manchester united had entered the semi—final of the european cup. two americans have become the first humans to walk in space without any lifeline to their spaceship. one of them called it "a piece of cake". thousands of people have given the yachstwoman ellen macarthur a spectacular homecoming in the cornish port of falmouth after she smashed the world record for sailing solo around the world non—stop. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm sharanjit leyl in london. our top stories: north and south korea thaw relations on the ice rink with a single, united women's ice hockey team, playing ahead of the winter olympics. there are reports that south africa's president jacob zuma is resisting calls to stand down.

let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. take a look at these pictures on the front page of the philippine daily enquirer. it has a special report on air and naval bases built by china on islands in the south china sea that the philippines also claims. the photographs show the transformation of seven reefs into military bases — you can see this one has a runway built onto it. the strait times says south—east asian governments are exploring ways to tax online transactions. that's because more and more people are buying things online. it reports the internet economy in the region will be worth as much as $200 billion by 2025. and this is the front page of the china daily. it has a picture of a boy pretending to whip an ox in beijing to celebrate the traditional start of spring, which fell on sunday. in trentin, a celebrity has given

birth. -- in trentin, a celebrity has given birth. —— trending. well, there's a new member of the kardashian klan. 20—year—old kylie jenner, here she is in may last year, has confirmed she's given birth to a baby girl, after managing to keep her pregnancy a secret. she finally spilt the beans on social media, announcing that she and boyfriend travis scott welcomed a "beautiful and healthy" daughter on february 1st. moscow has seen its heaviest snowfall in one day since records began, with thousands of trees brought down, power lines damaged and air travel disrupted. more than half the monthly average snow fell on saturday, beating the previous record set in 1957. sarah corker reports. this is what it takes to keep moscow

moving. an army of snow ploughs at the city's airports trying to keep ru nways the city's airports trying to keep runways clear. but nearly 150 flights have been severely delayed and dozens cancelled. the russian capital has seen more than half its average monthly snowfall in the space of 24 hours, up to 17 inches of snow blanketing the city's landmarks. this is the view of the kremlin. for those who ventured out it was a challenge to get moving. lorries, coaches, and cars are getting stuck on the snowy roads. translation: there has been a loss of snowfall over the past two weeks. we have put in a loss of effort and a working faster. i think it will be like this until march. one person died after a falling tree hit a power line, five others were injured. 2000 trees have been

brought down and people have been warned to stay clear of frozen branches. this is moscow's heaviest snowfall in one day since records began. it is expected to ease off overnight, but temperatures are forecast to drop to minus ten. mount everest is a crucial source of revenue for nepal — and it's often the ultimate challenge for climbers and thrill—seekers — despite the dangers. but some climbing operators are shifting their expeditions towards china, citing poor safety regulations and overcrowding on the south side of the mountain. earlier i spoke to lukas furtenbach. he's the founder of furtenbach adventures, which relocated its expeditions to china last year. i began by asking him why his company decided to make the move. it is basically because of two main reasons, one is that the roots on the northside, the chinese sign, has less objective dangers, less

rockfall, less icefall, no avalanche danger, almost no crevasse is. on the nepalese side we can see a growing number of climbers that are not properly prepared. we have a big crowds which leads to waiting in line, for example on the hillary step, bottlenecks on the route. but, nepal has already introduced some new measures such as barring a solo climbers, blind mountaineers, and is, don't these measures improve the situation? i don't really think that this improves the situation. we have seen a three aw four blind climbers in the last 50 years. we had one last year on the northside. this is not the big problem, blind climbers. so what is the big problem?” not the big problem, blind climbers. so what is the big problem? i think the big problem is climbers who are

not well informed about what they can expect on the mountain. climbers we re can expect on the mountain. climbers were not informed about dangers, about how risky and dangerous it is to climb this mountain and that are not prepared to climb this mountain. this is not a problem of the nepalese government, it is a problem of the operators operating on the south side. the fear of the nepalese government is that it will hurt the tourism industry and the nepalese economy. what history showed us is that after every catastrophic year on everest the number of tourists coming to nepal and coming to climb everest is growing. basically, dying people on everest makes it more attractive for people to go there. for the chinese side, tell us, in terms of the oversight, how better is it on the chinese side than the nepalese side? some of the logistics on the chinese side are

state—controlled and the organisation behind that proved to bea organisation behind that proved to be a very professional and reliable partner. this makes things much easierfor partner. this makes things much easier for operators like we are. lukas furtenbach speaking to rico hizon. here's a fact for you, south korean men spend more than men anywhere else in the world on skincare products. and walking around parts of seoul you can also see men wearing make—up. and just as women do, it's about boosting your self—confidence and self—esteem. we've been to meet meet a youtube vlogger trying to change perceptions of men who wearing make—up. it is not just it is notjust the streets of seoul, in television studios make up is an intrinsic part of what we do. very important. i have my brush and my foundation and my powder and my lip balm. very important, but never wear them in public. they give are joining us on newsday. stay with us. a star trek inspired command centre and free public wifi — how one indonesian mayor is is using technology to improve services in his city. that's coming up next on asia business report. the weather over the weekend was

pretty mixed, wasn't it? at least we ended on a mostly sunny note, that is across the majority of the country on sunday. now it is turning colder. cold enough for some snow this week. some of us will get a covering of the next few days. you might even have some snow in your area already. that is most likely across south—eastern areas, east anglia, and into lincolnshire. wintry showers blowing off the north sea of the past few hours. there a covering just in time for the rush hour, particularly in kent and sussex, essex, and the greater london area. these areas we are talking about. that north—easterly

wind bringing a cold and wintry showers. the further west you are the bright it will be. it will be cold. temperatures in towns and sittings, around freezing that make cities. one or two flecks of snow likely into the north—east of england as well. the rest of the country, northern ireland, the rest of england, scotland, waking to frosty weather but mostly bright if frfizta weathereéfimzfla agate ~ — —— l7, not 1; us during a during the r; during the course? during the course of happening during the course of monday. the best of the weather will be across western areas, most of the sunshine, beautifulfor be across western areas, most of the sunshine, beautiful for the lowlands of scotland, the lake district, into wales, partly cloudy skies across central and eastern areas and from time to time we will continue to have those wintry showers. not too many of them. for the rest of europe, it is cold for many of the major centres across parts of western europe. look at madrid. three celsius. very chilly. some of the cold air has gone into africa,

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