this is bbc news, welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories. britain accuses russia of planning to install a pro—kremlin leader in ukraine, as fears of an invasion grow. foreign aid is distributed in tonga, with more than 80% of the population affected by last weekend's volcanic eruption and tsunami, new zealand pledges more than $2 million us dollars. we have sent three navy vessels up, all of which contain water but also desalination equipment. and the actor and former governor of california arnold schwarzenegger is involved in a multi—car pile—up on sunset boulevard in los angeles. and how this indestructible store of primary climate data, earth's black box, could see us pass invaluable information

to future generations. britain has accused the kremlin of planning to install a pro—russian leader in ukraine, as fears of an invasion grow. the foreign office in london says a former ukrainian mp is being considered as a potential candidate, along with four other politicians, who it says have links to the russian intelligence services. russia has 100,000 troops on ukraine's border, but denies it intends to invade. james waterhouse reports now from the ukrainian capital, kyiv. the friendship of nations arch, built by the soviets to celebrate the closeness between russians and ukrainians. that crack was painted on by activists a few years ago as relations

between the two countries deteriorated. and as talks intensify about a possible invasion, the hope is things don't break down completely. tensions are still rising on the border and today russian jets made their way to joint military drills with neighbouring belarus. ukrainian ministers have welcomed a delivery of american military equipment and now there's a call for the uk to step up its own support. the british government has delivered 2,000 anti—tank missiles this week and says it is open to sending more weapons. as president putin continues to up the pressure. he has actually boxed himself into a corner. because so much effort has been put into this. but he also recognised he will never again be as strong as this to take advantage of the west's weakness. i suspect invasion is now imminent. so does kyiv feel like a city preparing for an invasion? evelyn and lillian are too small to appreciate the power

struggle surrounding their country, but their parents obviously aren't. it is definitely concerning. it definitely seems more tense than the past times that we were concerned about this. i would say it is definitely increasing anxiety and stuff, for sure. i don't feel good that i can come back to my hometown easily. because i always have to think whether i will be able to do it safely or not. and of course i am afraid. translation: ifi see others do it, i'm ready to defend my country. i'm not going to run away, but then again there might not be anywhere to run away to. moscow denies it is planning an invasion. but it is easy to forget ukraine has already endured eight years of russian aggression. it's brought fighting, cyber attacks, misinformation and constant uncertainty.

next week the us will continue to discuss russian demands that nato will both scale back its military presence and rule out ever letting ukrainejoin. for the country at the heart of it, that uncertainty goes on. james waterhouse, bbc news. well, moscow has rejected britain's claim that the kremlin is planning to install a pro—russian leader in ukraine, calling it disinformation. earlier, i spoke to our correspondent mark lobel, who told me more about the allegations made by the foreign office. the big question hanging over this is what is president putin thinking? the british foreign office are suggesting president putin is considering installing a pro—moscow leader in kyiv after a potential invasion. we know russia and ukraine are both building up for potential military conflict. the british foreign office have declassified information to back up those claims.

if we look at what liz truss the british foreign secretary has said, she said the information being released today shines a light on the extent of russian activity designed to subvert ukraine, and it is an insight into kremlin thinking. so what does the information show? well, the british claim the former ukrainian mp yehven murayev is being lined up as a potential leader of the ukraine. if they are to invade and win the military conflict, of course. this man ran for president in 2019, he set up his own party, admittedly it doesn't have any seats in the ukrainian parliament. he has denied the claims in a text message to the telegraph in britain saying it is stupidity and nonsense, pointing out that he is under sanctions himself, he has been barred from russia and his father had his assets frozen in russia. he said it is hard to comment on the foreign 0ffice statement. but russia also said this was misinformation from the foreign office,

and accuses them of escalating tensions. i guess the important point is it a part of the narrative from the uk. one of the people the uk said is helping, he was also sanctioned by america on thursday for similar accusations. so both america and the uk are adding to the arming of the ukrainians with this kind of narrative about president putin's intentions. yesterday we were talking about the meeting in geneva between the american secretary of state and his russian counterpart sergei lavrov, diplomacy but then a lot of harsh words. what can we look at if we think about the week ahead? that diplomacy didn't get very far last week, it continues this week with a visit from the british defence secretary to moscow to visit his counterpart there, the first meeting in nine years. and america has this

written answer it has promised the russians, responding to their far—reaching demands, for example trying to get ukraine to pledge never tojoin nato. all these things coming together, but there is a lot of friction between the two sides, and this will certainly ramp it up. let's get some of the day's other news. a battle is continuing for a third day in syria between islamic state militants and kurdish forces guarding a prison, where thousands ofjihadists are held. more than 75 people, most of them jihadists, are reported to have been killed in the fighting in the northern city of hasakah. an unseasonal wildfire is raging in california's monterey county, forcing evacuations and the closure of a major highway. the blaze along the big sur pacific coast — dubbed the colorado fire — has scorched about is—hundred acres. strong winds have been recorded across the san francisco bay area and a swathe of the sierra nevada. a 75—year—old frenchman who was trying to row across the atlantic ocean has been found dead at sea.

jean—jacques savin had previously made the crossing in a large barrel in 2019. the adventurer had triggered two distress beacons on thursday night. a un official in tonga says the country will be heavily reliant on aid shipments for some time, after last week's devastating volcanic eruption and tsunami. a national emergency team is distributing vital food and water supplies, but they say more than 80% of the population has been affected by the disaster. jatinder dhillon reports. relief at last. a new zealand naval ship, with a desalination plant on board, which can produce 70,000 litres a day, started cleaning the sea water from tonga's harbour, ready for distribution to desperate residents. japan is the latest to deliver urgent supplies, including clean water. and equipment to clean the volcanic ash.

it is a complicated operation. the pacific kingdom is covid—free and has strict border control policies, requiring contactless delivery of aid. that means aid workers cannot enter the country unless they have undergone a three—week isolation period. supplies are quarantined for 72 hours after arrival, before being distributed by tongan authorities. the un says the country will be heavily reliant on food aid for some time. almost all the crops have been badly affected by volcanic ash. farmers have lost their homes and livelihoods. in the first update since the eruption triggered a tsunami, the government says the country has been hit by an unprecedented disaster. tonga's recovery from this disaster is going to be long—term, and i think we need to ensure that we keep

the momentum up. after tonga has got enough water we will have to rebuild and it will be a long road to recovery. tongan communities abroad have also been providing support and donations. in new zealand, entire families filled this auckland car park and loaded trucks with supplies of food, water and other essentials. a tongan born rugby player, who lives in the uk, has not heard from his family and has launched a fundraising page to help with reliefs. the tongan government has asked for the international aid effort led by australia and new zealand to be paced so the island's small airport and harbour are not overwhelmed. in the next few days, a repair ship will arrive to reconnect the undersea cable that links tonga to international telecoms networks. jatinder dhillon, bbc news.

new zealand has already pledged over $2 million us dollars to the devastated nation. i've been speaking to nanaia mahuta, new zealand's foreign minister, about the problems they've faced delivering the much—needed aid. it's a challenge because of covid, however close friends and neighbours are quickly understanding the catastrophic impact of the eruption on the outer islands, so we are doing as much as we can. we are moving swiftly to support the tongan government. why is covid such a challenge in concrete terms? delivering humanitarian aid under covid conditions means you have to abide by the tongan government's isolation requirements, so it does make the whole situation a bit challenging, but we have identified a way in which we can provide aid with 72

hours contactless consideration. we are also mindful that tonga doesn't have any active covid cases right now, so they are being quite vigilant as they respond domestically, and as they deal with countries like australia, new zealand, the us, the uk and france, who are helping in their humanitarian aid effort. that must be a real challenge, i can imagine, while you have the clock ticking, basically, because so many people have been affected. water, one of the big aspects, trying to get people clean water. i know there is a desalination effort by new zealand. how long do you think that can continue? look, one of the primary asks very early was for water, 84% of the island was covered by ash, so we have sent three navy vessels up, all of which contain water, but also desalination equipment, engineering equipment, but also support

to help with the clean—up, and experts who can help with the assessment and impact of the eruption on maritime routes. so there is a huge effort undertaken by new zealand, also australia, as i say, both the uk, the us, japan, samoa and fiji have also offered assistance. quite interesting some of the countries operating, curious on your thoughts on how long this will need to go down the road... i was reading that tonga are quite heavily indebted to china, perhaps also offering aid, and i am wondering whether some geopolitical concerns play into it as well. some of these decisions you need to make when it comes to helping tonga?

right now it is a clean—up effort for the safety of those most vulnerable. the rebuild challenge will be a further consideration, those who need to help rebuild the resilience in the face of this catastrophic event, the significant challenges, for example food crops have been extensively impacted. seawater level will impede the way in which crops can be restored. thankfully samoa and fiji have offered assistance on that front, but it will still be some time before the ground is fertile enough to regenerate its own harvest from its native plants and food resources. that is some of the situation happening in tonga. new zealand, they are going to impose their mask mandate

rules from midnight on sunday after a cluster of 0micron, just nine cases i believe, but do you feel that is necessary, briefly? we've anticipated the onset of 0micron around what we are doing, so we are rolling out our booster, the vaccination to those who have been double vaccinated already, and also rolling out young people vaccinations, so the way we are managing slowing down 0micron coming down to our community, to reduce the numbers going into hospitals is the effort at this moment, and it is the right way to go. limiting the numbers who can gather, making sure people wear masks in close settings, and also maintaining the distance and hand—washing, the public health that has

always been suggested alongside the covid response. nanaia mahuta, new zealand's foreign minister. new zealand is limiting gatherings, after nine cases of the covid—19 0micron variant were detected after a wedding. the prime minister, jacinda ardern, said from midnight on sunday there would be a cap of 100 fully vaccinated people at events. ms ardern has cancelled her own wedding as a result. you're watching bbc news — our main headlines. britain is accusing russia of planning to install a pro—kremlin leader in ukraine, as fears of an invasion grow. foreign aid is being distributed in tonga, with the un saying more than 80% of the population has been affected by last weekend's volcanic eruption and tsunami. the head of a british parliamentary standards committee says any attempt by the conservative government to blackmail its own mps into supporting the prime minister would be illegal.

chris bryant, who's from the opposition labour party, said he'd heard complaints from about a dozen conservatives. it comes amid reports that gatherings in borisjohnson's official residence are part of an investigation into parties held against covid rules. here's our political correspondent, damian grammaticas. already under pressure, the coming days could prove decisive for boris johnson. now, there is a new concern. the fact that one of the main rebel mps who've already written letters of no confidence in him is due to talk to the police, possibly on monday. the mp william wragg this week alleged he had been told others had faced threats that they might lose funding for their constituencies if they didn't back the prime minister. the intimidation of a member of parliament is a serious matter. moreover, the reports of which i am aware would seem to constitute blackmail. cheering. on wednesday, mrjohnson was there when another of the rebels, christian wakeford, defected to labour. he claims he was told some time

ago that funding for a school might not happen if he did not support the government on free school meals. today, a senior labour mp said he had heard more claims. i must have spoken to about a dozen tory mps in the last few days who have made similar allegations about whips either offering to withdraw financial support for their constituencies, either from the political party, so, for campaigning, or for their constituents. that conservative mps are airing this publicly, and one even says he will go to the police about his own party, tells you much about tensions in the ranks. here, downing street says it has seen no evidence, and would take it seriously if it did. so, the important question for the coming week, will any tory mps step forward and corroborate the claims? i have voted against the government on occasions when i've thought it right, and i've always had a very close relationship with the chief whip and a very productive relationship with the whips, so, i'm waiting

to hear more about this because it's not something i've seen or been told about. but the inquiry by the civil servant sue gray into downing street parties due this week poses the biggest risk to the prime minister. it's now reported she is also looking into events in his private flat, too. the question for borisjohnson, who's at the official country of chequers, can he survive it unscathed? he's thought to be busy plotting his strategy and calling his mps to try to secure their support. abortion rights activists have gathered outside the us supreme court to mark the 49th anniversary of the roe vs wade decision that legalised abortion across america. it comes a day after anti—abortion campaigners rallied in their annual march for life, highlighting the polarising nature of the issue across the country. saturday's colourful demonstration included singing and dancing, as pro—choice activisits called for their rights to be upheld. the supreme court, which has a 6—3 conservative majority,

looks poised to overturn the landmark roe ruling, which would likely see millions of women lose abortion access. my hope is also that people will rise up and speak out. i think americans tend to wait for the bad thing to happen to hit the streets, and this is actually a crisis — it's a human—rights crisis, it's a health crisis, it's a family crisis, it's a woman's crisis, it's an anyone—who—can—get—pregnant crisis — and we all need to stand up now. the hollywood actor arnold schwarzenegger has been involved in a multi—car crash in la. one woman has been taken to hospital. a spokesperson for the former california governor said he was unharmed. nickjohnson explains what happened. from the sky above the la suburbs, arnold schwarzenegger's black suv flanked by tow trucks, some hours after it was involved in a multi—vehicle crash. photos taken by us showbiz news site tmz showed the body—builder, actor

and politician standing at the scene talking to a police officer, with the black suv teetering on top of both a toyota prius and a porsche. police say the four vehicle collision happened on friday afternoon in the wealthy brentwood area of la. one woman was taken to hospital but it is not thought her injuries are life—threatening. well, i told tom to get a six pack. but he got a cake instead. a spokesperson for the actor confirmed the 74—year—old was behind the wheel of his car at the time but was unharmed. los angeles police department say no arrests have been made and neither drugs or alcohol were involved, but the investigation is continuing. nickjohnson, bbc news. as the impact of climate change is felt around the world, the possible consequences for humanity are growing by the day. so how can we pass on our experiences to future generations? a project under way in tasmania, earth's black box,

an indestructible store of primary climate data, may be the answer. butjust like the black box on an airplane, the hope is it never gets used for its main purpose. jim curtis, one of the principals behind the project, gave me the details. the black box is a structure and a device that will record every step humanity takes towards — or hopefully away from — this impending climate catastrophe. sojust like an aeroplane flight recorder — if the plane goes down, we find the flight recorder, we find what went wrong, and hope we don't make the same mistakes. so it's a very similar concept. unfortunately for earth, as we get closer to this catastrophe, we need to make sure that whoever�*s left over afterwards won't make the same mistakes that we do. my goodness, that does sound pretty ominous! but what's going in? if you were going to put something in today, what sort of data would it be?

it's already started recording — there's two sets of data. so there's primary data relating to the health of the planet — ocean temperatures and ocean acidification, and so forth — but there's secondary data, so the data relating to political speeches, social commentary, both sides of the argument. so it's very objective, it's just recording our approach as a species to this disaster. and is it that somebody would only access it after some terrible apocalypse catastrophe? or is it something that the public will be able to access as this evolves? well, look, the purpose of it, yes, is to be a tool to learn from, but we're hoping it will inspire change. so i just want to make that clear. we're hoping people will realise that the time for change is now. when the box is up and running, people will be able to access the data online on a website, or you can actually visit the box to access the data. we'll also be using the data as a learning tool in

schools and universities. so what would you say to those that call it a pr stunt? i would say, once the box is built and fully functional, it will definitely be a tool and i invite them to come down and check it out. if it is a pr stunt and it works, and it gets people to change and we don't need the box, then i'm all for that, too. it is in tasmania, why did you pick that part of the world? part of the world? 0n the west coast of tasmania, so it was picked for its political and geographical stability, so it's a very politically stable place, and geographically, as well, so the box will be safe there, and last for a very long time. 0k, and i think some of our viewers might be thinking, you know, that is was going to be some small box — if you hear "black box" — but it's this massive structure, you know, that looks like — i don't know — an art gallery or something, in this quite barren landscape. will it be... it'll be a place, you think,

for people to actually go and visit in that part of the world? yeah, it's not farfrom a road — from a highway — so you will be able to see it and walk up to it and look at it, if that's something that you want to do. but, as you say, it has been built purely for purpose, so it has solar panels on the top, it's self—powered, it's three—inch steel, it's ten metres long, so i don't think you'll miss it. and finally, we've all heard the saying "make hay while the sun shines", but minnesotans have put a wintery spin on the adage, making the most of the freezing temperatures in this ice palace maze. close to 3,000 blocks of ice were used to build the labyrinth, complete with dragons and a knight to keep guard. the brave took on a frosty slide and there was even a cuddly friend on hand to maximise the photo ops.

hello. the normal pattern of january temperatures was turned upside down on saturday — 12 degrees in northern scotland, four in southern england. a little bit of sunshine across parts of north—east england, most places had another cloudy day, and will again for part two of the weekend. despite the cloud, though, a lot of dry weather around, high pressure�*s close by, exerting its settling influence on our weather. underneath the high pressure and around it, all of this cloud coming in. a weather front�*s approaching northern scotland and, as it does so, it will strengthen the wind here, which does mean a mild start after a mild day, but a hint of blue through parts of wales and england, lighter winds and a chance of a touch of frost with any clear spells — although there could be some mist and fog patches developing that will be more reluctant

to clear on sunday morning than they were on saturday. again, a lot of cloud around, a few sunny spells, north—east scotland, parts of wales, south—west england, perhaps eastern counties of northern ireland most favoured, and elsewhere maybe a few brighter breaks here and there. a breezier day in northern england and northern ireland, especially scotland, especially into the north—west, gales developing in the western isles. and it'll be another mild day here, though temperatures not as high as they've been — probably the lower temperatures around four or 5 degrees, whilst some low cloud just hangs around all day through parts of central and southern england. 0vernight and into monday, rain turning heavier as that weather front moves into northern scotland, where the wind will be easing. it'll be dry elsewhere, again a lot of cloud around, with any breaks in the cloud where the winds are lighter through wales and england — again a touch of frost is possible, perhaps a few mist and fog patches. that weather front will take some outbreaks of rain very slowly a little further south through parts of especially northern and western scotland and into northern ireland as we go through monday. barely any rain, though, to register in northern ireland. ahead of that, there may be

a few sunny spells around, maybe parts of northern england, north wales and the midlands — south of that, a good deal of cloud, temperatures around 6—9 celsius. by monday evening and night, perhaps a little bit of patchy rain also reaching in towards northern england. tuesday looking mainly dry, rain moving into scotland and northern ireland on wednesday, and sweeping south on wednesday night — though weakening as it does so. what that weather front does do is sweep away a lot of the cloud that's around at the moment. so not much rain moving south, but brighter skies following that system across much of the uk — with a breeze, mind you, on thursday.

this is bbc news —

the headlines. britain is accusing russia of planning to install a pro—kremlin leader in ukraine, as fears of an invasion grow. the foreign office in london says a former ukrainian mp is being considered as a potential candidate — along with four others who it says have links to russian intelligence services. foreign aid is now being distributed in tonga, following last weekend's devastating volcanic eruption and tsunami. the united nations says more than 80% of the population has been affected, with almost all crops badly affected by volcanic ash. new zealand is limiting gatherings after nine cases of the covid—19 0micron variant were detected following a wedding. the prime minister, jacinda ardern, said from midnight on sunday there would be a cap of 100 fully vaccinated people at events. ms ardern has cancelled her own wedding as a result. now on bbc news, it's time for click.