by giving the same number of british officials a week to leave moscow. it's also closing a british consulate and the british council in russia as the row over the chemical attack on a former russian double agent and his daughter continues. this week's fighting in syria has driven up to 250,000 people from their homes. 150,000 are reported to have fled a turkish military offensive in afrin in the north, while tens of thousands have escaped the rebel—held enclave of eastern ghouta in the south. us officials are investigating claims that a political consultancy misused facebook users‘ data in order to support president trump's election. an ex—employee of cambridge analytica, claims 50 million profiles were accessed. the companies deny wrongdoing. now on bbc news, politics europe.

hello and welcome to politics europe, your regular guide to the top stories in brussels and strasbourg. as putin prepares for the expulsions of former russian nation, will the eu increase sanctions on the soviet state 7 eu increase sanctions on the soviet state? does the eu have its very own frank underwood? we will delve inside the shady world of european bureaucrats. as britain's relationship with russia reaches those not seen since the cold war, the russian embassy has upped it came on twitter. is social media a new diplomatic weapon? all that to come and more in the next half an hour. joining me for all of it is

ian dale and rachel sylvester. first, here is our guide to the latest from europe injust first, here is our guide to the latest from europe in just 60 seconds. this week, meps voted in favour of setting up recommendations for future relationship with favour of setting up recommendations forfuture relationship with uk. the d raft forfuture relationship with uk. the draft text has now been to london. meanwhile, european commission president told parliament that the uk would regret brexit to the amusement of eurosceptics. you will respect —— regret your decision. amusement of eurosceptics. you will respect —— regret your decisionm has emerged a european parliament delegation has been conducting secret talks with north korea to try and persuade them to end their nuclear programme. elsewhere, slovak p.m. resigned nuclear programme. elsewhere, slovak p. m. resigned after weeks nuclear programme. elsewhere, slovak p.m. resigned after weeks of turmoil sparked by the murder of an investigator journalist who sparked by the murder of an investigatorjournalist who had raised questions about his judgement after it was alleged a close aide had links to the mafia. millions of europeans may have been running late since mid—january following an

electrical dispute between kosovo and serbia, causing cox to lag behind by up to six minutes across 25 countries. —— causing clocks. that's picked up after that. will we regret brexit? he has to say that because the eu has to hope that we regret brexit or others may want to follow suit. of course he will say that. some of the reaction has been slightly over the top. it is what we expect him to say. it is not bullying britain in any way at all. we would expect him to say that. shouldn't he give outline a rest? we do expect it to some extent. this idea that we don't want to see others go the way of britain. just drop it. i think that's right. i think he's probably right. written may well end up removing it. it is

already proving much more complicated, the economic implications becoming clear, all of that. i think is the worst possible to say it. it sounds so arrogant, it is exactly what everyone voted against is being told what to do by the eu and some eurocrat. maybe he is right, but shut up, as gavin williamson might say. and go away, to finish that phrase. do you think as you have said, actually, people just have priced it in.|j as you have said, actually, people just have priced it in. i think people factor it in. i think what is more interesting is what gave the whole state is saying. if you look at his tweets and statements over the past couple of weeks, they are very different to what he was saying six months ago. much went arrested in getting the right deal, much more positive, much more constructive than he has been. he was one of the first to come to britain's support

over russia as well. i think that people on my side of the argument need to actually recognise that there is a little bit of a change with some people and we should also be very open in thinking european countries for their support over russia because that wasn't necessarily a given, and france and germany hadn't come so strongly and denmark as well, of course, rachel would be writing: is saying it is all due to brexit and it is what we can look forward to in the future. let's discuss the relationship. there has only been one big story in town this week, and that is of the poisoning of surrogate scruple and his daughter. they have expelled diplomats and they are expecting the same to happen to diplomats in russia. we await the retaliation. what will the eu do? a previous candidate to be thin and's prime minister is in brussels. what do you

make of the european union's response to the poisoning? we are going to see very different approach is because some of the country is won't be criticising russia very severely. at the same time, i think almost a clear majority will feel themselves very much pushed in a direction where they had to stand up for the values and for member states, even if it is the member states, even if it is the member state who is about to leave. so i think we are going to discuss this in the parliament in the next session and i think the verdict will be pretty harsh. pretty harsh in terms of the stance against russia? well, we have a lot of indications

in this case, russian security agencies have killed theirformer agent earlier, that is almost a question of honourfor agent earlier, that is almost a question of honour for them, so the only one who could actually be interested in getting rid of skripal are the russians. we won't find a person with the smoking gun going in or out from the russian embassy in london. we won't find, i am pretty sure we won't find a smoking gun at all. usually when you kill persons like this, it is a very cynical killing because they didn't even ca re killing because they didn't even care about skripal‘s daughter. my guess would be that they will be a middleman, a lot of middlemen in between, but from my point of view, i think russia should be very

interested in clearing this because the poison, the only source for it comes from, awkward come from russia. that is a small possibility during the 19905 that ru55ia. that is a small possibility during the 19905 that many weapons in russia were taken apart because the state couldn't take —— pay the wages and the military took what they could, just almost all the ak-47s, they could, just almost all the ak—47s, around in europe now come from these depots. there is a possibility that this also had this. becau5e possibility that this also had this. because of your proximity, to ru55ia, because of your proximity, to russia, in finland, are you afraid of russia and russian retaliation in general? no, we are probably the only country in europe having had a

war with russia and still staying independent nation, so i think our credentials are pretty good day and i don't think we are afraid of them. what we should be slightly scared of in europe in general is not very rational behaviour in russia, because it's an unstable system for the moment. you have somebody up there, vladimir putin, and then you don't actually have machinery on which you can put any, or a much trust. so the system as such is unstable, and that is a problem. what about concrete help from the european union? what concrete help could britain expect? well, it depends on what you need. as i said, we have a lot of indications about

the source of this murder, but as also said, we won't find a gun. so what would rate —— great britain needin what would rate —— great britain need in these times from us? i think if we go back to what we could offer, we could offer all the knowledge, and our services could fire and, and if russia is retaliating even more in regard of great britain, then of course we have two follow—up, we have to do something just to show our solidarity. this might sort of go further. do you think that it would have been any different's i will come back to you in a moment. you think there would have been a difference to the eu response? they have shown solidarity, if regs it wasn't happening? no, i don't think, i don't see what other response that could have been. the freight that

france, germany and the us signed this, which is quite strong, it is a very strong statement, and i imagine that a lot of the other countries would the happy to sign up to it as well so i don't know what else we could expect. after that it's the mango incident, europe showed solidarity, but there wasn't much in terms of concrete measures. are we expecting members of the european union to expel their russian diplomats? to put further sanctions in place? the sorts of things we should be expecting from the european union? i think there could be somewhat economic sanctions. but i think the show of solidarity and strength is in itself very important, and that's that's a statement that, a multilateral approach is important. it does work. even as brexit is going along, we are not ever going to be able to live and operate and spend it in isolation. we are always going to have to rely on allies in europe, in america, and i think that is

incredibly important reminder at this very critical moment in the negotiations to both sides, actually. and this is a big story in other european countries. it is the number one story for the whole week. i think some people think it is a story in a small town in england. i think some people think it is a story in a small town in englandm is not. finally, is that right? my other guest says it is a big story in european countries. it is a big story in the european parliament? in european countries. it is a big story in the european parliament7m isa story in the european parliament7m is a big story, yes, indeed. why? because it was a very cynical murder, and all the indications we have are pointing at rush hour, so we should demand of them some very honest and some very clear answers, and if they are not able to deliver those answers, then we have to think about further measures and those measures should be european measures, not just uk

measures should be european measures, notjust uk measures or finished measures of belgian measures, they should be european measures. all right. thank you very much forjoining us. they are critically ill, in hospital, not dead. now, it has been described as a coup, and the european union brodtmann very own house of cards. russes bureaucrat who used to be the chief of staff has been promoted to be the head of the eu civil servants. the eu commission has argued his appointment. the secretary general was all above board. some are timber is —— furious. there is something about martin, the man who prefers life behind the flags rather than in front of them. as the chief of staff or four years, he has found himself in the front row of the news before. either for his slightly scary reputation or accused of leaking details of a brexit dinner in downing street. now, it is big cause of his promotion. —— because. he has been

going up in the world. he applied for and got the job going up in the world. he applied for and got thejob of going up in the world. he applied for and got the job of deputy secretary general, and then in the same meeting, the secretary general announced he was retiring and he was red —— transferred into hisjob. summoned by meps to explain, the commissionerfor summoned by meps to explain, the commissioner for hr said summoned by meps to explain, the commissionerfor hr said it summoned by meps to explain, the commissioner for hr said it was all above order. translation: martin has all the necessary qualifications to take on the task of secretary general of the commission. he has lengthy experience in key positions within the commission. he is an excellent legal expert. he is very good communication and he is certainly 100% suitable for this position. but members from across the political spectrum lined up to criticise the appointment of. this destroys all of the credibility of the european union as a champion of integrity and transparency and public commercial edition. at times

when public trust in the eu is low, this is devastating and the fact that the commission remains deaf until the day of today to criticism shows how disconnected it is from reality. you should do your best to come out with something which is trustworthy and you should avoid any feeling for any impression that it was a preprepared, politically motivated nomination and unfortunately, i don't think that in this case you did yourjob perfectly. you can see the defeat etched in their faces. perfectly. you can see the defeat etched in theirfaces. this is the morning after and these were the european union's commissioners. to some it brings back memories of 1999 when a report accused one of jack santo's accusations of cronyism and they all resigned en masse.|j arrived here just after the fall of the commission and i would say this to you, that ukip would never have

won any seats in the european parliament had it not been for the nepotism of the commission, so i would be very grateful. does this at all feel like that period, could this be the start of that sort of thing? nearly. what is interesting is that you have thought the appointment of an official to a big job be a story that would have stayed within brussels and strasbourg, actually it is out there. it has been talked about in there. it has been talked about in the french media and training on twitter. there is a lot going on in this story, some score settling, and the germanjournalism, this story, some score settling, and the german journalism, some this story, some score settling, and the germanjournalism, some optimism and genuine concern and now his promotional bit subject of a parliamentary enquiry with a vote at some point in the future. good luck in the newjob, martin! adam fleming there with good wishes. alex barker in brussels for the financial times joins us. all this fuss about martin, is it overplayed? this is politics. indeed. what makes it

special is that martin, who was basically a political appointment and politics is against him and so it brought him into the limelight in a way that he is not comfortable with. jean-claude juncker's man, how powerful is he in this new role?|j don't think his new role makes much difference to his power. he is extraordinarily powerful in terms of a chief of staff or top aid to a european commission person and —— president. you have to go back to the days of delors and his team to have anything equivalent to this. the micro managers. his cursor is over at almost every document that emerges out of this place. what really distinguishes him is his willingness to take on a public profile. i asked willingness to take on a public profile. iasked him willingness to take on a public profile. i asked him once why his kind of methods were so tough on things, he said i cannot run the

commission k montessori schools. his methods, his micromanagement, his energy has really made him stand out in terms of a bureaucrat here. you have met him, what is he like? he is good company. he is quite funny. he is absolutely determined he can turn against you quite easily. he runs the place like a tight ship. he surrounds himself by people who are loyal to him, his top appointments in the commission at the people who are in the commission at the people who a re loyal to in the commission at the people who are loyal to him. but i think the pressure he is facing is partly a function of unease about his boss, really, as well. jean—claude juncker has not got the energy that some meps would hope a european commission president would have and yet it is powerful at the same time. lot of attention is turning to his aid and he is absorbing some of the criticism too. he is described as

anything from a monster to rasputin, to think are fair descriptions?” asked him that as well and he said thatjean—claude juncker is the asked him that as well and he said thatjean—claudejuncker is the good quy thatjean—claudejuncker is the good guy and! thatjean—claudejuncker is the good guy and i am the bad guy. he is an enforcer and for some member states, they are pleased that he is playing that role. this is a big unwieldy place, 30,000 odd bureaucrats here and he delivers for them. at times, when they have a special favour to ask tom in a political problem, but it also means that he upset a lot of people. so, you know, there are peoples upset that there are too many germans in top positions, the germans are upset that martin is not germans are upset that martin is not german enough. there are those who would prefer this to be a civil service and not run by effectively a political appointees. the coalition of the upset is growing and he is under quite a lot of pressure. you can't please all people all of the time or even any of the time. alex

barker, thank you from much for joining us. while russian british relations have fallen to their lowest level in decades, a very new type of diplomacy has been playing out on twitter. the official account of the russian embassy in london have frequently goaded the british government so much so that they have been called professional trolls by some. in theresa may called russia's reaction to the poisoning affair one of sarcasm, content and defiance, she could have had their social media output in mind. after the expulsion of 23 of their own diplomats this week, they posted the temperature of russian british relations drops to —23, but we are not afraid of cold weather. 0n tuesday, they said any threat to ta ke tuesday, they said any threat to take punitive measures against russia will meet with a response. the british side should be aware of that. with a handy diagram to explain their point. this post asked a week after the poisoning toll on

—— poisoning toll and. last month, when the uk was battling the beast from the east, their poll asked: the most popular answer was tricked more vodka. joining us now is molly goodfellow and russian comedian, constantine. welcome to both of you. constantine, to a british audience these tweets are pretty bizarre, even offensive. given the current context. are we missing digitjoke? i don't think so, these tweets are cheesy and slightly unoriginal. but i think that is where russia finds itself now. it is trying to fight a war of words and one of the interesting things in terms of difference, we don't have the concept of banter in russia. the idea that you it's a horrible things to your friends as a sign of affection. when he sees attempts, these are an attempt to undermine these are an attempt to undermine the west's message that russia is

doing through humour. how effective that is i don't think we really know that is i don't think we really know thatis that is i don't think we really know that is what i think is happening. you think it represents a russian sense of humour, even if it is not good and clumsily done? these are the kinds of church you write when you haven't in jokes the kinds of church you write when you haven't injokes before. he the kinds of church you write when you haven't in jokes before. he says crushingly. are they funny at all?” think some people are finding humour in them. if you look at the joke tweets they do versus the quite straight ambassadorial tweets they do, the jokes would have a far more sense of engagement and favourites, there are people who are finding it funny and that disconnect between this is a very serious political unit versus being quite trolled and tweeting in the way that tweeters tweet. looking at a political account, is quite rare. using the medium and the current context is serious. but actually when you look at what has been written, they are not bad in an attempt to break the

ice. iam not bad in an attempt to break the ice. i am sorry, i not bad in an attempt to break the ice. iam sorry, i know. that not bad in an attempt to break the ice. i am sorry, i know. that cannot the top of my head. i think it is such a serious situation. you have got three people in hospital having been poisoned with a nerve agent, it is not a time for sillyjokes on twitter. again, there has also been russian bots interfering in western democracy around the world. i think it isjust not a laughing matter actually. tasteless and inappropriate? no, it is a deflection tactic. i think they are quite funny in some ways but we all pay attention to them, discussing them here now, we would be discussing the russian embassy if they haven't done that. it was like a press office, they did the same, the liberal democrat press office. what you think the russian reaction would be to these kind of tweets from an official british account?” wouldn't know but i think in terms

of the russian reaction to these tweets, most russian people would be quite enjoying this trolling, i think. in terms of your point about seriousness, russian people tend to be less squeamish and politically correct on these issues. when most russian people see these tweets they will be kind of enjoying it. you should offer them your services!” think it works in their favour, i should say. it is that dichotomy between the strict parents telling russia to stop it and the child that is pointing their tongue out and blowing raspberries. gavin williams, the defence secretary. you do think we have british equivalents clearly on this site. playing of course, to cultural norms in russia, like the weather and a vodka. in a way, is that not an attempt to reach out somehow? is a staple of my comedy, absolutely. i think you do have to play with this but it is a question of what you're trying to achieve and

i think of what you're trying to achieve and ithink in of what you're trying to achieve and i think in this case in terms of russian humour, we are not quite as self—deprecating as british people asked when we make fun of someone else it is to undermine and question what they are saying, to make a point. i think this is a continuation of politics. it is a case of 1—upmanship than the. a dither completely russian and english comedy, there is not a meeting of the minds? no, i don't think there is. you are a meeting of the minds! isn't this what twitter is for? to do this sort of thing? absolutely. i think it is. politically the russian embassy is probably the account that is doing the best in terms of understanding the best in terms of understanding the twitter trolling— mind. the best in terms of understanding the twitter trolling- mind. when the minister of defence twitter account start doing this then it becomes a war of words. on that, that is it now. thank you forjoining us and thank you to 1a guests of the day. could buy. —— thank you for being. —— good buy.

—— goodbye. hello there. winter has returned with a vengeance this weekend. strong, cold easterly winds have already brought snow in places, our weather watchers have captured the scenes, this one from west yorkshire, this weather watcher picture from essex. and there is some more snow to come. let's look back at how things developed during saturday evening. from the radar picture, you can see all these showers piling in from the east, but then an area of more significant, persistent snow that developed across the south—east. that continues to drift westwards and so we have three different met office amber warnings in force, one towards the south—east and the london area, one across parts of eastern england and the north midlands and one for the south—west of england and the south—east of wales. these areas most prone to seeing disruption from significant snowfall. this is how we start off the day, with this area of more persistent snow continuing to drift its way across england and wales, some snow showers elsewhere, widely down below freezing, so not only frost, but ice to take us into sunday morning. but it's all about the snow across these western and south—western areas

during the first part of sunday, let's take a closer look. 9am, you can see the snow falling across devon, dorset, somerset, the bristol area, into east wales and the west midlands. that snow really piling up and blowing around this strong easterly wind, could be some drifting snow in places. all the while, a feed of snow showers across the eastern side of northern england, particularly, one or two clipping into the south—east of northern ireland and some showers across the eastern side of scotland as well. further west, the western side of scotland not seeing as many showers, more sunshine, that is the theme as we go through the day. many of the showers in eastern areas will slowly but surely fade away, could be some brightness appearing towards the south—east later and the snow will pull away from wales but will keep falling across the south—west, 10—20 centimetres over high ground. windy for all and a bitterly cold feel. but we will lose this area of snow during sunday night. high pressure starts to build down from the north and we have a subtle shift in the wind direction as well.

the easterly winds from the weekend will become more like northerly winds. northerly winds are never warm by any means, but they will be slightly less cold. so monday sees temperatures rising to between 3 and 7 degrees with some good spells of sunshine. not a bad day. temperatures will continue to climb as we head deeper into the coming week, but after a dry start to the week, things will then turn much more unsettled. hello, this is breakfast, with naga munchetty and christian fraser. temperatures plunge as low as —6 overnight, as the "mini beast from the east" bites. icy conditions are causing problems for drivers — and there are weather warnings in place across the breadth of the uk. amber warnings are still in place

across england and wales. some have already seen it 5—7 centimetres and more is due. join me in 15 minutes for your full forecast. good morning, it's sunday the 18th of march. also this morning — a top russian diplomat insists russia had "nothing to do"