this is v.w. news live from berlin deadline for a deal after waiting more than one hundred days in germany any closer to getting a new government political leaders have been burning the midnight oil trying to agree on the basis courting a new coalition but they are still not done we will have the very latest we are standing by also coming up. let's rip on immigration and the profanity laced

comment he is reported to have insulted haiti el salvador and several african countries. and thousands rally in pakistan to protest against the grain and murder of an eight year old girl they demand to know why police force is so slow to react to the child abduction. plus scaling new heights we need an incredible rock climber from hong kong who is determined to fulfill his dream despite losing the use of his legs. i'm sorry kelly thanks so much for joining us german political leaders have been negotiating throughout the night here in berlin trying to see if there is enough common ground to enter formal coalition talks thursday was the last day of exploratory talks but no one. has yet emerged from the chancellor angela merkel has

been heading a caretaker government since the national election more than one hundred days ago she and her conservatives are in talks with the social democrats led by martin schultz to form a new government as the talks began yesterday merkel was cautious about the outcome of a list of us. or can often there are still big hurdles to overcome. stuff through the seeking for my party i can say we'll be as constructive as possible in our search for compromises will miss the truth in that of course we are also aware that we want to deliver the right kind of deal for the country and that means it's going to be a tough day. and our political correspondent would provide a vault is standing by at the social democrats headquarters where those talks are taking place so report what's the latest there any rumblings out

now on all to told negotiators have been sitting together now for nearly twenty four hours and we can say that there has been any progress so far so. the only the information that we're getting is very very very. politicized and come and go all the time all we hear is it's going to take a while and what we've also heard is that apparently these negotiators that they they left the most contentious issues for last what goes through what must be on the table right now. absolutely from what we have heard is that the main problem is a money problem. the negotiators agreed to several projects but these projects sum up altogether to more than one hundred billion euros and this is much more money than the than than than than they actually want to spend that's more than

double as much so they they agreed on about forty five billion euros to spend during the next four years but one hundred million they haven't projects so now the question is ok how are we going to finance this the social democrats want to raise the taxi taxes for the rich while the conservative block of angle i'm actually michael is completely opposed to this and then of course they all the other issues we have been talking about during the last days there's of course the refugee issue especially if refugees should be allowed to get their families also into germany social democrats want to. enter this with with a broad brother liberal stance while the conservative bloc of article americal especially the more conservative see as you party is completely opposed about and report as they hack through these issues i mean there is really so much at stake right now especially for the chancellor herself just walk us through that. yes this is the last chance for america to. get to move majority

a clear majority within within parliament if these coalition told she would feel. would only have the option to form a minority government a minority government is something she has solved cold unstable and therefore not suitable for germany so if these talks fail she wouldn't have any other options left than new elections a new elections is something she can't really want because everybody knows that as soon as the voters would be called back to the polls this would probably strengthen the right wing party the a of d. which is the. one of the biggest opponents of chancellor angela merkel. is doomed to success here but right now we can see anything that is close to success doomed to success that hit it right on the head right there with her bitter vault standing by with the very latest at the social democrats headquarters where these talks are taking place as we mentioned the last day of exploratory talks and what

a long day it has been rupert thank you so much for bringing us the latest. let's get more now on what these talks could be in for the overall german political situation we're joined by spanier cross she is a political scientist at the humble two university here in berlin she is an expert on coalition governments spend your welcome to you q what do you make of these talks. i mean. that the fact that they're taking so long should be a positive sign because then it seems that there's actually the will to form this grand coalition again but then i mean these are just exploratory talks right these are not in coalition negotiations yet so i don't think they have to find the perfect solution yet so walk us through that and on the road to the perfect solution say that they decide today that they are indeed able to you know continue the conversation and enter formal coalition discussions what happens now along that

timeline so first of all there will be the party convention of the s.p.d. at the twenty first of january where they have to formally agree to start these coalition to go she asians and then we'll have the actual coalition negotiations writing the coalition agreement will take place and if i remember correctly siegel for us said that they want to be able to form the new government by the end of march so it is a long road and it is a road that is paved with challenges as you've just highlighted there amy and what do you think that we will see. i personally think that we will end up with a grand coalition again because it's right now the only doable solution because america doesn't want to have a minority government and john mica is off the table new elections would not lead to any significant changes in the in the vote shares so we will not end up with

a either of center left or a center right majority so i think personally that the grand coalition is the only option is that a viable coalition for governing would you say because i mean we saw in the elections in september that the center you know that's where this grand coalition is because we have two parties one from the center left one from the center right that it was really bleeding supporters that those supporters many of them were voting in favor of the fringes in fact yeah i mean these parties lost quite some while shares but i mean we have to take into account that two additional parties entered the poly i'm and so they were set off to lose votes here so. i think that it even for the s.p.d. at the grand coalition could be beneficial because even if there was a minority government they would have to support the conservatives policy wise but would not be able to have the benefits of ministerial office there has been so much

conversation about the future of the sherman chancellor herself angela merkel lot of people saying on perhaps this is a bit too much time in office what do you see as the as the plan going forward as the world perhaps prepares for a post merkel germany yes i think she will be able to finish this legislative term but even if she wanted to start a fifth term i don't think conservative sports allow her to do so because i do think that in two thousand and twenty one her time would be up. but we will have to see i mean there's no real potential. chancellor candidates present right now in the in the for the conservatives so many open questions we're standing by to see what answers we might get found across political scientists at the humble university in berlin and an expert on coalition governments thank you so much for joining us to share your expertise well as we were just mentioning germany has now

been without a new government for more than one hundred days but have voters even noticed and how do they feel about the prospect of yet another grand coalition of germany's two largest parties well we spoke with a group of activists who want to see more openness and transparency in the german government have a listen. yeah we are very proud right here and right now to announce the opening of the ministry for transparency. political activists in the democracy in action group are keen to influence the nature of a possible grand coalition at least symbolically a ministry of transparency of course is an illusion no matter who governs but their hope is that a third grand coalition might have the courage to do things differently. we hope the talks will result in less deadlock and more democracy in action more government unification and more change more decisions not just based on the lowest common

denominator. on what we know so far our expectations are pretty low the government's previous climate commitments have been dropped sticking to them would have been the least we could expect and our hopes for other important issues for the future are also lower. these activists want more grassroots democracy more political participation and more transparency not likely with another grand coalition but they're not giving up hope personally i don't think so i think. resignation in two years time. if they decide to work together again to them they'll be just as attached to their positions as ever none of them is willing to take the blame for failure that would be more embarrassing than not seeing it through so for now grassroots democracy and the idea of a ministry for transparency remains nothing more than a dream. well now let's head to the united states where president donald trump has

come under fire after reportedly insulting haiti salvador and several african nations and they found mouth outburst trump is said to have asked why are we having all of these people from profanity their countries come here according to the washington post newspaper the president became frustrated during talks on immigration lawmakers are trying to put together a reform package that includes protection for the children of undocumented migrants . now is the president of the united states fit for office donald trump is due to undergo an annual medical check later today as allegations over his physical and mental health abound the white house says that the results of the health check will be made public and here's more. slurred words at the end of a major speech in december the united church thank you very much field a flurry of speculation about donald trump's health. trumps the oldest person to

become president in american history he was seventy when he was sworn into office he doesn't drink or smoke but he makes no secret of his love for fast food. or his aversion to the more rigorous forms of spores. he uses a cart for golf and once said that his main source of exercise comes from moving his hands during his speeches so how does the president shape up problem and from and there's. a letter written by trump's doctor during the presidential campaign showed he was overweight and on medication to control his cholesterol but have proclaimed him to be in excellent physical health. fast forward sixteen months and he's dealing with the pressures of arguably the most demanding job in the world questions have existed from the beginning of a term psychological and intellectual competence for the role of president just days ago he came under fire for seeming to forget the words of the u.s.

national anthem. and a bombshell book released last week claims that most of his staff and advisers think he's mentally unwell trump it back with one of the twitter verse is famous for assuring the world he's a very stable genius. and allies leapt to his defense that i'm not there seven days a week but i'm there once a week and i'm there for a day with white house meetings everything no one questions the stability of the president great review the wife has says today's medical check will be purely physical but the debates about terms mental health his sure to rage on that horse and to discuss a little bit more about that i'm joined now from los angeles by chris faulkner a republican strategist who has worked on past national campaigns welcome to you chris thank you chris i like to begin first with what trump has reportedly said in

the past twenty four hours basically questioning why the u.s. would accept more immigrants from what he calls asshole countries i mean i'm for of course paraphrasing there he used an expletive language aside why not i think the. president would absolutely use those words again all right stupid rebel and it takes away from the made focus what's really going on here which is contrary to the immigration united states is no different than any other developed nation in that we've struggled with immigration in the flows out deal with new numerous united states right now for the first are in probably close to twenty years we're closer than we ever of bits of copperheads of immersion for still going to start interacting there but i just i just really want to get to the meat of what the president said and the overall message you know let's talk about the language a little bit later but why not accept more immigrants from those countries because

i mean that is ultimately the message that he sent across. to the choice of words much notice that. the president signs the bill the house and senate are putting together a bill it's going to allow more people to come to united states we're just trying to figure out an organized way to do that so that people who want to come to states they want to play by the rules they want to become citizens they want to do these things they can't right now the system we have in place isn't broken for a long time. chris i mean i just want to remind our viewers of this but this is a quote that that every american really knows give me your tired your poor your huddled masses yearning to breathe free isn't that the spirit of america i mean we all know that that comes from the statue of liberty of course and isn't that the complete opposite of what we heard the u.s. president say in the past twenty four hours there's no doubt that that's exactly

what system especially the you know it has been it will be you know always will be the foundation of what the united states is the united states is not about which country you're from is about the opportunity the united states represents. president's choice of words certainly regrettable i would defend those but it doesn't change the fundamental dynamic of why america is a great nation and why people try and restore wives to get to the united states every single bit. chris what the president said i mean these comments they're being taken quite seriously a lot of people saying that they have racist overtones even republicans hitting back like utah lawmaker we have to mention love who is apparently the child of haitian immigrants this is what one of the countries that the president and compassed share you know haiti el salvador several african nations but what she was really talking about she has called his comments decisive divisive and asked for an apology shouldn't he give one. i think she's absolutely right and she's not the

only republican spoken out about this there's a lot of us are deeply disappointed in the president's choice of words here because the senator bowles i mean he continued on with making the comment about norway which clearly was a reference to the fact that you just never the prime minister throughout the day before. he should absolutely clear florida is certainly pause or say that you will send it but if you do they it doesn't change the court and it was going on with this immigration reform the united states which is going to means far more careless where it was are today. chris faulkner republican strategist who has worked on past national campaigns joining us from los angeles we very much appreciate you joining us to share your views thank you. you're watching news let's get a quick check now some other stories that have been making news around the world u.s. president donald trump has counselor trip to london next month to open the new u.s. embassy there trump tweeted that he's not a fan of the new embassy which he said wrongly was

a bad deal made by his predecessor barack obama secretary of state rex tillerson will go in his place french police are reported to have recovered all of the jewels stolen and wednesday's brazen heist on the ritz hotel in paris some of the loot was seized when three armed leaves were arrested as they tried to flee the remainder was in a bag for covered by police the gems and watches stolen were thought to be worth over four million euros. in japan more than four hundred people were stranded on a train overnight after heavy snow the train got stuck some three hundred kilometers northwest of tokyo officials decided against evacuating passengers until protégé break some parts of the north end of northern japan rather have seen ten times the average snowfall this winter. well gary hart is here now with more on our stop top story and the efforts to form a new coalition government here in germany german industry really urging

politicians to act fast right in your heart that's right and while those exploratory talks in berlin today are coming to a close it emerged that germany's economy has been performing at its best in six years the national statistics office said thursday that growth what was two point two percent last year still business and industry leaders are urging politicians to spend their was out and tax revenue to modernize the country and it wants you government installed fast to respond to global trade wrists. full order books soaring exports and a shortage of skilled workers to handle the load germany's economy is thriving and exports are forecast to grow a further five percent this year as well flying start for the next government which can look forward to a tax revenue bonanza so there's money there which germany's industry federation the b.t.r. once used to modernize the country it warms the new government not to waste any time. we have to invest more which means public investment but

also means private investment so preparing the conditions for. intent more intense private investments in the sector of digitization in the sector of public transportation. but also in different sectors starting from schools and universities he set or other problems are also waiting for an incoming government the global economy is laden with risks the b.t.i. is especially worried by the threat of trade barriers and increasing state interventionism german companies cite china's behavior in particular. china is a very important market for our companies especially for the industrial part of our economy. on the other hand we see that china has a very strict strategic agenda. and we see an increasing influence off the political party. into the individual businesses but even the

u.s. and britain are becoming increasingly unpredictable trade partners the v.d.i. says it's high time for a new government to take office here to start taking the necessary decisions. let's you and there's those exploratory coalition talks are reaching their deadline today i am now joined by constance ascii chief economist i n g diva asking that the german economy is doing just fine why is german business so impatient. i also don't know why they're still in place because way to get other european countries the netherlands belgium they really did it for for ages without a government and the economies were booming so i think yes we do need a new government actually to prepare the future to take strategic decisions but in the short run i think having no government could probably actually do less harm than having a wrong government and then we look at the the outlook for the german economy in two thousand eight hundred it is still positive it is booming whether or not we're

going to get to conclusions in the a collision talks today or in the coming weeks well having no government might have its advantages because it looks like both parties that are talking right now about forming a coalition now agree on one thing and that is raising income tax for middle and high earners is that what business wants i don't know if this is what business or one proposal so don't know whether this is what the economy want because when you when you look we just had the of the data out yesterday for the first time since the one nine hundred fifty s. four years in a row running a fiscal surplus to the german public funds are sound they are extremely strong so you would rather argue to the to the opposite right now why isn't the new government actually lowering taxes why isn't it providing tax incentives for private investment something that the german economy really urgently needs what else would would be the advantage of a lowering income tax for average people obviously more purchasing

power because well there is still one thing we do have private consumption has picked up over the last couple of years but it's not booming also we we still have a very very huge low wage sector in the labor market seven point five million people in the labor market having a job but working in a low wage sector so if you would lower income taxes especially these people probably would have more purchasing power and would be better off because what would you recommend that the new government must address in the first hundred days in office. urgently digitization i think that this is the thing when you look at their journey as one of the of the slowest internet connections are hardly any broadband internet for forget about the last five are compared to other european countries germany is clearly legging behind don't even dare comparing it with international competitors so this is something where germany has to really that they have to invest we need public investment we need private investment because

they need because it's not for me having faster internet but it's because for the german industry the backbone of the german industry is somewhere in rural areas and they really urgently need faster internet that would be the first thing for the first hundred days after that education at to that structure reforms in the labor market to make it more flexible and through that strategy how to integrate the refugees and use the refugees positively because germany let's face it is also an aging economy and needs further integration growth and rescue of the the by thank you very much for this analysis and that's all your business for now it's back to south thank you so much care heart and we're turning now to that of a sports note for you now because all athletes have some burdens to overcome many of them but lychee why has battled through more than most as a competitive rock climber he was named asian champion four times before an

accident left him confined to a wheelchair but rather than give up he came through what he calls one of the lowest points in his life now he has become the first person from hong kong to be nominated for a laureus world sports award honoring the best sports men and women of the year.