welcome to bbc news, i'm david eades. our top stories: as russian forces show no sign of pulling back from ukraine's border, president putin accuses the us of trying to �*drag russia into war�*. the most important goal is to contain russia. in this sense ukraine is the tool to achieve this goal. bomb threats are made to several historically black us colleges and universities as america begins to mark black history month. the us considers approving covid vaccines for children underfive, as omicron cases in the young spike. an american football great retires, ali—year old tom brady quits at the top, with an astonishing seven superbowl victories to his name.

welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. president putin says the us is ignoring russia's security concerns over ukraine. in his first public comment on the situation since december, he said the us was using ukraine simply as a tool to contain his country, adding that washington had failed to address russia's key demand — that nato should not expand further eastwards. meanwhile, ukraine's president has warned that any russian invasion of his country would lead to a full—scale war in europe. he's been hosting britain's prime minister, borisjohnson, for talks in kyiv, from where our diplomatic correspondent james landale reports. for borisjohnson today, a change of subject, a change of place.

he arrived in ukraine to make a show of support for a country facing the threat of invasion — a country where political survival has an existential meaning. first stop, the presidential palace. he told volodymyr zelensky that britain would always stand up for ukraine's freedom. he promised an £88 million in aid, and he had a clear warning for moscow — if a single russian toecap crossed the border, they would be met by devastating economic sanctions and a resolute ukrainian army. they will put up a very, very fierce and bloody resistance. and i think that parents, mothers in russia should reflect on that fact, and i hope very much that president putin steps back from the path of conflict. translation: there would be a tragedy if an escalation - against our country starts. and that's why i am saying openly that this wouldn't be a war between ukraine

and russia. this would be a full—scale war in europe. the uk's been one of ukraine's of most vocal supporters, sending them 2,000 anti—tank weapons and british troops to train ukrainian forces how to use them. but this is what's facing them just over the border — the continued build—up of more than 100,000 russian troops that moscow insists are training and pose no threat. president putin, meeting today his hungarian counterpart, insisted his country's security interests were not being addressed by the united states. "their most important goal is to control russia, that's the thing. in this sense, ukraine itself is just a tool to achieve this goal," he said. the russian president is expected to speak to borisjohnson tomorrow — a planned call on monday was postponed because of the row over lockdown parties in downing street.

reporter: why should the international community take your diplomacy seriously when you're so preoccupied at home? when you put talking to mps ahead of talking to the president putin? it's absolutely vital that the uk government should step up now and bring together our friends and partners in the west. "russia has a gun to ukraine's head," mrjohnson said, "and is using it to try to redraw the security map of europe." it was a critical moment. all sides saying that this is no longer about ukraine — it is about wider issues. you've got mr putin saying that the west are using ukraine as a tool to threaten his security. you've got mrjohnson saying that mr putin has a gun against ukraine's head to redraw the map of european security. and you've got the president of ukraine saying, "well, look, if there's any fighting, this soon becomes

a fully—fledged european war." the stakes could not be higher. james landale, bbc news. the white house has condemned a spate of bomb threats against a number of historically black colleges. the threats made to more than a dozen universities and schools in cities from baltimore to new orleans began on the first day of black history month in the united states. a spokesperson says president biden has been made aware of the situation and the fbi is investigating. david willis is our north america correspondent. david, what is the scale of this? ~ ., ., david, what is the scale of this? a, ., ., ., this? more than a dozen, historically _ this? more than a dozen, historically black - this? more than a dozen, j historically black colleges have been targeted by this. as you mentioned, they range in states across the country from calendar in california sorry i should say to florida. no explosives have so far been

found. a lot of the x colleges have now issued all clear messages after being searched by local law enforcement officers but this caused many officers but this caused many of the colleges to go into lockdown, and to revert to virtual lessons. and you mentioned there the white house has expressed concerns, so to the fbi which said it was working with local law enforcement, to basically address in potential threats. the agency continues to urge members of the public to be vigilant, around those campuses. vigilant, around those campuses-_ vigilant, around those camuses. ., ., �*, campuses. you are saying it's the start _ campuses. you are saying it's the start of — campuses. you are saying it's the start of black _ campuses. you are saying it's the start of black history - the start of black history month and maybe there is a tie and there, but is not first time, it seems it's a very easy option to take, to throw a warning at a college like this? absolutely, and several of these colleges were actually targeted by similar sorts of threats earlier this year. some, also last year, and threats against ivy league

colleges such as cornell and brown in november of last year stop but also last year us intelligence services warned of the possibility of attacks by white supremacist groups, some of them with backing from overseas. so, hence an abundance of caution in this particular case, nobody is taking, regarding these threats frivolously. taking, regarding these threats frivolously-_ frivolously. thank you very much. let's get some of the day's other news. the pharmaceutical company johnson&johnson and three major us drug distributors have agreed to pay about $600 million to settle lawsuits by native american communities devastated by the opioid crisis. the companies have not admitted wrongdoing, but the settlement will speed up the process of distributing funds. the norwegian mass murderer anderds brevik has lost his bid for parole after a court decided he remains a risk to society. he was jailed for killing 77 people in oslo injuly 2011 but applied for

parole last month. after a three—day hearing, the court decided it did not trust his claim that he would now only promote his ideology through peaceful means. tonga is imposing a covid lockdown after the pacific island nation, which had been virus free, recorded two cases. the prime minister said the measures would be reviewed every two days. the two men who tested positive had been working in the capital's port where humanitarian aid has been pouring in after last month's devastating volcanic eruption and tsunami. lionel richie has pulled out of his forthcoming european tour due to his concerns over covid. the 72—year—old, currently performing in las vegas, said the well being of his fans, band and crew were uppermost in his mind. as well as gigs in several european cities, he was also due to perform at the isle of wight festival this summer — a commitment he originally

agreed to do in 2020. the united states has signalled it will approve coronavirus vaccines for children under the age of five by the end of february. officials at the food and drug administration say they expect vaccine manufacturer pfizer to submit evidence in the coming days. the company has trialled a two—shot vaccine, in which dosing levels are much smaller than those given to adults. covid—19 cases among children in the us have spiked since the rise of the omicron variant, which has also led to higher hospitalizations. we can now speak to dr peter hotez who's co—director of the texas children's hospital center for vaccine development in houston. how much of a spike is still going on among children? m0??? going on among children? now the cases are _

going on among children? now the cases are starting - going on among children? firm" the cases are starting to come down, and in many cases they are coming down as quickly as they went up. the big question we have here for the omicron wave is doesn't continue to plummet and go back down to a very low level or doesn't resemble what is happening in the united kingdom, which goes down about halfway then plateaus. we are seeing a lot of paediatric hospitalisations, however with the omicron wave and that seems to be what is driving both the us government and pfizer to try to accelerate and pfizer to try to accelerate a paediatric vaccine for those under the age of five stop i'm interested in what you make of that. , . ., . ., that. given omicron infection rates are _ that. given omicron infection rates are falling. _ that. given omicron infection rates are falling. is _ that. given omicron infection rates are falling. is this - that. given omicron infection rates are falling. is this a - rates are falling. is this a wise move?— rates are falling. is this a wise move? , ., wise move? there is more we don't know — wise move? there is more we don't know than _ wise move? there is more we don't know than we _ wise move? there is more we don't know than we do - wise move? there is more we don't know than we do know. | don't know than we do know. i've been talking to colleagues all day, we are not certain we have all the docs connected his. there are some unusual features about this. pfizer say in the press release anticipates will be a three

dose vaccine, the two doses three—week apart followed by a pause of eight weeks, then the third dose of. but they only have collected data for immunogenicity the ability to produce an immune response and safety for the first two doses. the idea would be it sounds like the emergency authorisation would be granted, potentially based on information from two doses, with the understanding and the hope it will be the third dose that does the trick and really boost a large immune response. my boost a large immune response. my colleagues and i really haven't seen that before, trying to understand the dynamics of it and hopefully more information will be forthcoming.— more information will be forthcoming. more information will be forthcomina. , forthcoming. just tackling the issue of vaccine _ forthcoming. just tackling the issue of vaccine hesitancy, i issue of vaccine hesitancy, clearly an issue in the us. if i look at what's happening in the uk, the messages children between five and 12 years old could have the vaccine, if they are deemed to be vulnerable, essentially. but this seems like a readiness to say,

across—the—board, underfives, across—the—boa rd, under fives, fair across—the—board, under fives, fair enough? across-the-board, under fives, fair enough?— across-the-board, under fives, fair enough? well, we have seen a lot of paediatric _ fair enough? well, we have seen a lot of paediatric illness - a lot of paediatric illness under the age of five, we don't have all the risk factors in hand and we are seeing some unusual features more like a bronchiolitis, i do think vaccination for those under the age of five may be warranted, but by the need to accelerate it like this, without having the data on hand for the third dose, that one is a little less clear. so i'm hoping we will get more information, pretty soon. idr get more information, pretty soon. , ., ., soon. dr peter hotez, “oining us there on i soon. dr peter hotez, “oining us there on the fi soon. dr peter hotez, “oining us there on the issue _ soon. dr peter hotez, joining us there on the issue of - us there on the issue of covid—19 vaccinations for the under fives covid—19 vaccinations for the underfives in covid—19 vaccinations for the under fives in the covid—19 vaccinations for the underfives in the us. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: ecuador sees a0 times its normal rainfall, sweeping away cars and engulfing houses in the capital, quito.

this is the moment that millions in iran have 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, and the anc leader nelson mandela is to be set free unconditionally. mission control: three, two, one... a countdown to a critical moment — the world's most powerful rocket ignited all 27 of its engines at once. and apart from its power, it's this recycling of the rocket, slashing the cost of a launch, that makes this a breakthrough in the business of space travel. 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 l the yachtswoman 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 bbc news. the latest headlines: president putin says the west is ignoring his demands over security and accuses the us of trying to drag russia into war. the white house has condemned a spate of bomb threats made to several historically black us colleges and universities as america begins to mark black history month. the fallout from monday's release of the initial findings into lockdown parties in downing street rumbles on. the deputy prime minister, dominic raab, says conservative mps still overwhelmingly support boris johnson, despite the findings by a senior civil servant concluding there'd been a failure of leadership. but another conservative mp said he has submitted a letter of no confidence in the prime minister. here's our political correspondent, chris mason.

after a mauling from mps in public and pleading with his backbenchers in private yesterday, fleeing abroad — even to a potential war zone — must have felt like a relief for the prime minister today. but 1,500 miles and a few hours later, the questions he faces at home had followed him to ukraine. he didn't want to say much about them... my focus is entirely on delivering on the priorities of the british people, and they include ensuring that we are secure in our relations with our friends and allies, and that our friends and allies are secure. back here in westminster, conversation is still reflecting on the report that said there was rule—breaking at the top of government. not only did the prime minister and others break the rules, but they've taken the country for fools by insulting our intelligence in the cover—up that's gone on since. borisjohnson�*s

promised a shake—up in how downing street works... reporter: are you sticking around, chief whip? hope so. ..which means questions for the man in charge of persuading conservative mps to back the prime minister... are you making a run for it, dan? ..and ones with the prime minister's chief of staff, too. down the road in parliament, one of mrjohnson�*s most loyal allies insisted... we're moving on with delivering with the british people. we're implementing the manifesto in which he got an intensely personal mandate in 2019. but others have had enough... thank you, thank you. people want honesty, that's what they want. yeah, i agree. this conservative backbencher congratulated by a passer—by for talking candidly about his grandma's funeral. i didn't hug my siblings, i didn't hug my parents. i gave a eulogy, and then afterwards i didn't even go to her house for a cup of tea. does the prime minister think i'm a fool? ifeel this is tarnishing us all, and the longer it goes on, the more damage it does

to the conservative party as a whole. that means finding another leader? it may well do. i've had hundreds of people in my inbox overnight, and they don't feel that they can vote for this government as it stands. the prime minister has survived for now, but there are two big questions — for how long and can he recover? even some of borisjohnson�*s biggest supporters acknowledge privately he has been damaged by this, perhaps irreversibly changing some people's perceptions of him. and this is farfrom over. with a police investigation ongoing, there is still the prospect the prime minister could be found to have broken the law. chris mason, bbc news, at westminster. a landslide in ecuador�*s capital, quito, has left at least 22 people dead, with 47 reported injured. it comes after the country saw its heaviest rainfall in two decades. aru na iyengar reports.

monday's deadly must live swept whole families to their deaths. homes and livelihoods destroyed. emergency workers in quito undertake the grim task of searching for bodies and pulling them out of thick mud. it came after 17 hours of non—stop rain. a gorge overwhelmed above the areas of la gasca and la comuna. translation:— la gasca and la comuna. translation: ., , ., , translation: people are playing in the field and _ translation: people are playing in the field and they _ translation: people are playing in the field and they could - translation: people are playing in the field and they could not - in the field and they could not escape. the mother spoke to them suddenly and drag them, it dragged the field. those who ran were saved. a family was buried, they are dead here. ecuador is suffering heavy rain right across the country. 75 litres per square metre fell in quito, the highest levels in 20

years. rivers are overflowing and transport is badly affected. many have had to move to temporary shelters. a deluge surging through main street in quito, cars washed away. translation: we quito, cars washed away. translation:— quito, cars washed away. translation: ~ ., ., ., translation: we got out, so an immense river _ translation: we got out, so an immense river that _ translation: we got out, so an immense river that took - immense river that took everything with that. it was swimming about as high as the second floor. pail swimming about as high as the second floor.— second floor. all your spills are also — second floor. all your spills are also a _ second floor. all your spills are also a side-effect - second floor. all your spills are also a side-effect of. second floor. all your spills| are also a side-effect of the are also a side—effect of the heavy rain. this pipeline was ruptured by a falling rock. it has contaminated to actors of the national park and sink into the national park and sink into the river which supplies water to indigenous ambers on communities. back in quito, the painful struggle to find survivors continues. aruna iyengar, bbc news. one of the biggest stars in world sport, the american football

quarterback, tom brady, is retiring. he's considered by many to be the best nfl quarterback player in the history of the game. the 44 year—old played for a remarkable 22 seasons. he won seven super bowls in total, six with the new england patriots, before joining the tampa bay buccaneers and winning a seventh just last year. he appeared in a record 10 super bowls, winning the game's most valuable player award, or mvp award, five times. nick hamilton is a reporter and host at nitecast media and siriusxm. hejoins us now from la. thank you forjoining us. before we get into this remarkable man's in their achievements, i thought he was going to do one more season. what made him change his mind? i don't think it necessarily changed his mind. he wanted to have the opportunity to retire for himself and not have other

people speak for him. 22 seasons, seven super bowl titles, there is never going to be another quarterback like tom brady. at least not in my lifetime. it is at the end of an era. it lifetime. it is at the end of an era. . . , , an era. it certainly will be that. what _ an era. it certainly will be that. what is _ an era. it certainly will be that. what is it _ an era. it certainly will be that. what is it then - an era. it certainly will be that. what is it then that| an era. it certainly will be - that. what is it then that made a tom brady, that made him stand out. the success and the statistics tell a story, but what about the player? this is a auide what about the player? this is a guide drafted _ what about the player? this is a guide drafted in _ what about the player? this is a guide drafted in the - what about the player? this is a guide drafted in the six - a guide drafted in the six round, 100 99p, no—one had any type of expectation about tom brady but he defied the odds. people did not pay attention to him. he made sure that he exemplified the best and he was a man of excellence, he demanded excellence out of his players and made sure he wheeled his way to win. he had

an incredible football iq and make sure he was going to be the cream the mof the nfl. he is the goat. he made sure he got the ball in the end zone as many times as possible. the createst many times as possible. the greatest of _ many times as possible. the greatest of all _ many times as possible. the greatest of all time. - many times as possible. the greatest of all time. we're going back 22 years, that is just crazy. is it fair to say he brought into play simply a different mentality about what the job of a quarterback or even a professionalfoot the job of a quarterback or even a professional foot bowler should be in terms of professionalism and attention to detail. —— footballer. mas to detail. -- footballer. was he a pioneer? _ to detail. -- footballer. was he a pioneer? absolutely. . to detail. —— footballer. —" he a pioneer? absolutely. he paid attention to detail, he studied his opponents, watching hours upon hours of film, he was locked in and focus. you

can talk about kobe bryant, michaeljordan and now we can put tom brady in that category because he made sure he was going to go out on top. also, something about tom brady, when you look at what he exemplified and also inspired other quarterbacks that are coming into the national football league will continue to carry their torch. league will continue to carry theirtorch. bi; league will continue to carry their torch.— their torch. by the time you aet their torch. by the time you net to their torch. by the time you get to 44 — their torch. by the time you get to 44 and _ their torch. by the time you get to 44 and a _ their torch. by the time you get to 44 and a lot - their torch. by the time you get to 44 and a lot of - their torch. by the time you | get to 44 and a lot of former get to tilt and a lot of former players of bad ten years to becoming a coach, is that his destiny? becoming a coach, is that his destin ? ~ , ._ destiny? will he stay in the name? destiny? will he stay in the game? i — destiny? will he stay in the game? i don't _ destiny? will he stay in the game? i don't know, - destiny? will he stay in the game? i don't know, i- destiny? will he stay in the | game? i don't know, ithink destiny? will he stay in the i game? i don't know, ithink it game? i don't know, i think it will be a part of the game itself in the way of fashion, occasional commentary. he is working with his son who has an incredible arm as a young man so you may see that brady extension but i think you will go ahead and retire and enjoy the family life and doing something around four volt. fits something around four volt. as an old man should do. thank you

very much, nick hamilton. how does the rise in temperature effect plant life and animal numbers? a group of scientists have spent time in the antarctic hoping to find answers. cute and, so it turns out, pretty crucial. these penguins are native to this part of the antarctic. unlike other animals, they live mostly on the land rather than the ocean which makes them easier to track. , .. . ., ., to track. penguins can come to the sea over — to track. penguins can come to the sea over and _ to track. penguins can come to the sea over and over, - to track. penguins can come to the sea over and over, year - the sea over and over, year after year, and so we have this reliable signature of how many individuals there are one year to the next and how this plays out over decades or even longer time scales. out over decades or even longer time scales-—

time scales. researchers can aet time scales. researchers can net to time scales. researchers can get to monitor _ time scales. researchers can get to monitor the _ time scales. researchers can get to monitor the penguin i get to monitor the penguin population, collecting data from 21 different sites. parts of the antarctic have seen a big decline in animal numbers but at least around here, those diggers are relatively stable. this is obviously really good news that underlies like governments need to place an urgent protections to safeguard these healthy penguin populations and make sure they do not suffer the expansion of industrial fishing that could cause a decline in future. until recently, scientists knew very little about this cold environment. satellite imaging has help but bruise on the ground have made all the differences. understanding the lives of these penguins may help safeguard their future. fascinating, sort of canaries in the coal mine. i should just say, if you want more on that story or in bed on the many

climate stories we are tackling. ——or indeed, you can go to our website. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @ bbcdavideades you are watching bbc news. hello there. it was another windy day for many on tuesday, but the winds will be a notch down for the day ahead, as will the amounts of sunshine — actually, it's been the sunniest january on record for england. and we did have a fair deal of sunshine during tuesday. but through the overnight period, we've introduced a weather front and that weather front will mean a cloudier day for many and, in fact, it's giving us some patchy rain and drizzle as well. now, it's this weather front that i'm talking about — the rain most significant in the north, but i think it's just because it's introduced that milder air, we'll notice that difference. still a cold start in the far north—east of scotland and the northern isles. but, as i say, it's the change in wind direction — we've lost the north westerly, we're picking up this south—westerly air, coming in off the atlantic.

it will be with us for a couple of days now and so therefore, there will be more cloud around and some patchy rain and drizzle. the cloud sitting on the hills and the coasts in northern and western areas, giving some hill fog. but inland, there's a good chance of some brightness developing for parts of wales, the midlands, southern england, perhaps east of the pennines. it won't be as windy, but there'll still be a fair breeze blowing through the day. as you can see, a steady brisk breeze but it's milder — temperatures of 11—12 celsius above where they should be for this time of year — except in the north of scotland, where we stay in the chilly air. and we continue to feed in that rain and that drizzle, and then, as we go through the night, something perhaps a little bit more significant across scotland, as you can see. and temperatures also held up because of all that cloud, and still that breeze at 75 and 8s. now, as we go through thursday, we do have that more significant weather front moving in. so, again, ahead of it, still quite unsettled, showery outbreaks of rain, some brightness, but this is looking more significant, isn't it? and behind it, it could turn to snow,

some cold air digging back in. but for many, the day bringing stronger winds in the north, but a lot of drier weather, cloudier weather, milder weather further south. there's that mild air. but it's transient because, as i say, it's with us through today and tomorrow, and then, behind it on friday, we sweep in with that north—westerly wind once again coming up from the arctic. so, perhaps some snow on the trailing edge of this weather front, particularly over the hills, and then, plenty of wintry showers, rain, hail, sleet, yes, snow mostly over the hills following, but a much colder—feeling day by the time we get to friday. as ever, there's more on the website.

this is bbc news. the headlines: president putin says the us is ignoring russia's security concerns over ukraine, and added that the west is using ukraine as a tool to contain his country. he accused washington of failing to address russia's key demand — that nato should not expand further eastwards. the white house has condemned a spate of bomb threats against a number of historically black colleges in the united states. more than a dozen have reported the threats, just as america begins to mark black history month. several have moved back to virtual teaching for the time being. one of the biggest stars in world sport, the american football quarterback tom brady, is retiring. he's considered by many to be the best nfl quarterback player in the history of the game. the 44—year—old played for a remarkable 22 seasons and won seven superbowls in total. now on bbc news, it's time for the travel show with lucy

hedges.