[000:00:00;00] ah, ah ah, this is the w news live from burly russia analysis. it's withdrawing more troops. the defense ministry says drills in the russian controlled crimean peninsula have ended. it's released this video, which it says shows military units leaving crimea to return to their home base. also on the program, a day of unity president vladimir zalinski leads ukraine in celebrations at defiance of suggestions from the west that to day could see the start of

a russian invasion and could germany, cnn's to corona virus restrictions ass case numbers are falling, an increasing number of politicians and scientists say it's time to plan a path back to normality and it's awards night at the berlin international film festival stars and audiences are back despite some pandemic restrictions. which film will when the golden bear we show you. so, the favorite ah, i'm good, how the elf as well come to the program. and we begin with the latest developments in the crisis over ukraine. russia says it has now begun withdrawing troops from crimea. that's the territory. it annexed from ukraine. in 2014, the russian defense ministry says military drills in the region are over, and their tanks and soldiers are returning to their basis. yesterday the kremlin

announced it was pulling back some forces from its border with ukraine. western allies have welcome that statement, but say they need to see evidence that this is actually happening. meanwhile, ukraine is celebrating a day of unity called by president vladimir the landscape. people paraded the flag the olympic stadium in the capitol hill if they're also being encouraged to fly the flag from buildings and to sing the national anthem. some us officials had previously warned that today might see the start of a russian invasion. and mister zalinski hart, an upbeat message for his fellow ukrainians. hello, we are all united by our wish to live, to live in peace, to live a happy life with our families, parents and kids. we have the full right to all of this because we at home here in ukraine. nobody will love our home as much as we do,

and nobody can defend our home as we can. i wish you a happy unity day. my blue, yellow ones, a happy day of unity of ukraine in the east and west in the south and north. it works only together. and when it works, we are strong. she, lillian, i spoke to the w correspondent and he has billing and who was covering a ukrainian military maneuver in the city of river name. i asked him whether this is the de escalation that ukraine's leaders have been hoping for. what it could be, but ukrainian authorities are careful. they have said that they do not see the final proof that they're really withdrawing yet. they're still looking at all the information. so they're really careful on that, and they want to be really sure that it is really happening this the russia will be in any way if, if russia starts withdrawing. now,

it will also be able to bring them back quickly. so this is a why ukraine is really careful and is waiting for it, but you can feel a certain deterrent here anyway. it also, the ukraine is still upholding a military exercise that's taking place where you are right now. what is key of trying to say with this? so this miniature exercise has just finished, the president has come here. he has watched this exercise and then he's had talks with the soldiers. ukraine is of course, saying that it is going to stay prepared this. this crisis is nowhere over. ukraine has been at war for 8 years and any other form of encourage beat a military incursion or some kind of cyber warfare, or any of this can still happen so. so the signal, of course, the president is trying to send here is that ukraine is, is still prepared and of,

and there may be also making use of all the attentions they have been getting on this day that has been pinpointed by some western services as the day of a possible incursion. today is also ukraine's day of unity. that's a public holiday that was just invented 2 days ago. how are you clinicians celebrating? how are they reacting to it? yes, the president, 2 days or no announced this day off, a national unity. that is of course, another reaction to this to this state that has been said by the information that was leaked by western services. and they are flag rising ceremonies all over the country. a lot of official activities and some ukrainians also have been putting the national flag, for example on their cars are celebrating in the street, but it's a working day. it is not a holiday. so you will not see masses of you craning celebrating this war,

that they did the fact that this war just didn't happen or some kind of a victory. it's, it is a way to by the government to give this day a different spin to, to, to send a different message to the world from this message that we've been hearing for the last few a weeks that this is, this country is at the brink of an invasion dw corresponded, mathias billing of that in the ukrainian city of witness. thank you very much. but before the announcement of withdrawals outside estimates put, the number of russian troops close to ukraine's borders at 130000. that's including $30000.00 involved and exercises in neighboring belarus. the build up has happened in stages, but it has given russia but unity to flex its military muscle and shown the scale of the potential threats to ukraine. russian fighter

jets patrol the skies above bella. ruth, on the ground, russian marines practice combat drills with a bellow ruffian army. just some of the 30000 or so russian troops taking part in the launches military exercise held between the 2 neighbors. since the collapse of the soviet union in russia's northern leningrad region. more footage, released by the russian ministry of defense. this time one of its tank units involved in another military exercise. and in the south, russian wolf ships openly train in the black sea. the country's military buildup harangued ukraine has been no secret. even if getting accurate numbers has been hard. satellite images released this week have

shed more light. these jets were photographed on sunday at an air basing crimea, an area annexed by russia in 2014 and images of military helicopters were taken near the russian city of sa lottie. not far from the ukrainian border. on tuesday, moscow announced it was withdrawing some of its forces. hours later, the ministry of defense released these images, which it maintain show troops leaving crimea. meanwhile, ukraine's militaries, a fraction of rushes. it's active duty troops and just a quarter of its foes. we even if civilians are being trained up to help bridge the gap some members of nato have been providing ukraine with

military age. but it's hard to compete with a nuclear power. even if it says it doesn't want war. many western leaders are reluctant to take the russian leader at his words, the european union is urging moscow to step to take real steps to deescalate tensions and to follow words with actions. meanwhile, natal ministers are meeting in brussels to reaffirm their commitment to alliance members in eastern europe made her chief un stoughton back says, there is no evidence. russia is actually backing down. we have or heard the signs from moscow about her readiness to continue diplomatic efforts. but so far, we have not seen any de escalation on the ground. on the contrary, it appears that russia continues, the military buildup into chief and strode back speaking there now for the view from brussels,

where nato has ordered. let's go to our bureau. chief alexandra found an arm and there, alexander nato, leader, stored by clearly not buying booting gestures a house, nay to prepare it for the road ahead. nato allies are seeing now they need 1st to verify whether russia is really pulling back some troops from near the ukrainian border. and that is certainly what is happening now. and, and we can expect to nato allies to continue their dual track approach towards russia. on the one hand, there are saying they are open to dialogue and they want to keep talking about russia security concerns. on the other hand, nato will continue to provide the fans and a terrans. many nato allies have started sending additional troops to eastern europe, the u, as, of course, but also other nations, such as tanya,

for example, or germany. and now nato secretary general st oldenburg, has made clear that he believes that the current situation has already labs to a deterioration of the security architecture in europe, and that it will have long term consequences. and that means that nato defense ministers will talk here today about and enhance natal presence in eastern europe. they will speak about a additional battalion at additional battle group that could be established in romania, a group that would be resembling those forces already in place. in the baltic states and in poland, west, the leaders reject so far be put in ski demand that ukraine will not join nato or can i offer instead. nita has made it clear that a day could offer a discussions about confidence building measures that could lead to more

transparency when it comes to military drill, for example, or troops movement. do you as for day apart, they are offering russia and discussion about arms control, and sir, also more transparency and deployment of massage dad's all on the table and russia we can expect is interested in speaking about that. however, when we talk about russia's main concern, main demand debt need till ban ukraine from becoming a member ever. that is not going to happen, happen. nato has medically, this is not on the table to w brussels bureau chief, alexander phenomena acid. thank you. somebody. let's have a look now at some of the other stories making headlines that this are. amnesty international says to graham fighters, deliberately killed civilians and gang raped dozens of women and girls and ethiopia

. m hara region. previous investigations found evidence of abuses committed by all sides in the year long. a civil conflict in brazil flooding landslides have killed dozens of residents in the hills above. rio de janeiro, firefighters and rescue workers are still searching for survivors. authorities in the region have declared an official disaster. germany is by on tech has unveiled a new mobile center made of shipping containers to produce vaccines in africa. the drug maker is to send facilities to either synagogue or wander within months by on tech has been criticized for refusing to open. it happens to other manufacturers. a german chancellor, all of shows and original state leaders are considering easing, pandemic restrictions. infections in germany have started for an almost 3 quarters of the population has had to vaccinations. new rules would allow bigger private

gatherings and entry into into stores. as long as people were massed b, unvaccinated would be allowed back to restaurants and bars if they can provide a negative test. and clubs could reopen something long awaited especially here in the capitol early and we asked berlin as what they think of the prospect of loser restrictions. although we should wait another 4 to 6 weeks until just before easter, that's the right time. as long as everything happens, gradually, it's a good idea, but you have to be careful that things don't get out of control and really looking forward to it. i thing it's about time. it seems a bit too much right now, i think. and we have to show the corolla pass every time you go in a story, i've never done that before, so i think it should be nice. well, i think you're about 2 weeks behind england to be honest with you and i think it's possibly the best thing we can do because we all get back to normal. we all have to get some sama, not normality in our lives. and if we don't do it now,

we will never do it. that's when dw political correspondent nina has on this nina, as we heard there many a looking forward to see. finally seeing an end to the restrictions. well, chancellor of shoals announce a freedom day after today's leaders meeting. well i doubt that the german chancellor shows will call it freeze them day, and i will also caution you against hoping that all restrictions will full what the leaders of the 16 regions and all of us will probably agree is to extend the existing anti cove at low for another 3 months, but probably phase out some of those restrictions that are in place gradually they will not fall. but in the 1st step, bigger events will be allowed. again, nightclubs can open all what you've just mentioned. but for example, the obligation to wear a mask on public transport that is here to stay for now and dead, there will be one more inter interesting thing to watch. during this meeting, there had been a discussion about the partial vaccination mandate for medical facilities and

nursing homes that is coming into effect in a months time. and a look for a while at some of the regions run by conservative leaders weren't going to implement it. and now they have said that they're going to do it. or you mentioned boxing mandates for, for those in medicine, bought the vaccine mandate for all odd. all stats has been hotly debated for months . is that that dead now? well, it is a highly controversial issue of course, because it essentially means infringing on people's own idea of what they want and don't want to do with our own bodies. and there are massive questions about just how to implement it. and there are different proposals that are being worked on. so does it apply to the vulnerable groups 1st, or would it be compulsory from when you're 18? how do you check that? who checks in willoughby a national vaccination database? who gets access to that data? does that pose arista people's privacy? all those sort of questions are currently being debated. and of course you need to

have a bullet proof, a draft law before you can actually discuss it in parliament because otherwise people will take that to court instantly. but the goal is still to have that in parliament soon and then make it a little bit before the next variant arrives. but tell us a bit more about the grown of ours situation in germany. can you still call it a crisis? yes, you can as health experts. now do you agree that while many people are infected the numbers are going down and the current variant omicron is relatively mild. and so at the moment the health system is not under concrete threat. so hospitals can cope . but there is big concern here in political berlin that the next varian could hit the country a lot harder. again, we still haven't reached had immunity. and so that is one of the main arguments used by those who are in favor of that general vaccination mandate. they say once infection rates go down in the spring and early summer, you lose the momentum and then you're not prepared for potential next wave that

might hit the country and very, very badly. did have you political correspondent, nina. how's that? thank you, nina. european union's highest court has ruled that brussels can cut funds from member states that disregard democratic standards. the case has major implications for poland and hungary b. the uses. both countries are undermining the rule of law in areas such as judicial independence and wants to slash billions of yours and recovery funds. these countries are due to receive by our corresponded barbara visit is at the european parliament in strasburg. barbara, what makes this case so significant this case is so important because now the door is really open for the european union. finally, after years of a legal and political battle, particularly was poland and hungary, about democratic values, and the rule of law. finally, they can against those 2 countries,

they can sanction them if they come to illegally sound finding that a corruption is ramp and particularly in hungary, those are the accusations. and that are the judiciary. the independence of this judiciary is undermined. that is happening in both countries. now though that is the thrust of this whole thing, the european power parliament did the european union, particularly and the parliament who are powerless to and looked on as both countries sort of went more and more autocratic and authoritarian in their rule. and now they can was hold, always draw money from them. that is of course, the ultimate sanction in the you. we know that so is it now ok there. poland and hungary will have their fonts cause now that we don't know yet, we might later in the afternoon because the european commission has really been dragging their feet. they have just not done anything. they could effect that last

year even before this verdict. because the regulation was already in force, but they for political reasons, out of a father for a consideration for political peace within the commission. and within the you, they didn't do anything. and parliament is really furious about this in action. i talked to parliamentarians here about their opinion on this verdict and what they think should be happening now. let's listen to what they have to say. i think it's a good day for the rule of law in europe and, and now it's high time that the commission is using the new mechanism. and finally starts really acting on the rule of law. preserving though you're rule of law in europe. i think it's time that there is no rebates anymore on the rule of law in europe. well, this takes away the last excuse of the european commission not to act in this rule of law crisis. european parliament has been pushing for this mechanism to be used for over a year now because it has been a legal instrument for over

a year. now really is the time to use it to fight against the rule of law crisis in the european union. barbara hall, poland and hungary reacting i. we've seen some reactions from hungary already of quarries. so over the weekend, victor auburn spoke about is g hot, that the european union was waging against hungary, so he is sort of fair stoking the fire is and, and turning this whole thing against it into a culture war. and that has been his strategy all along, whereas it's about to ramp and corruption in hungary. that's what the european union says in poland. they have been so far more careful. there were certain signs that the polish government might be a willing to compromise. and sort of withdraw some of the regulations and, and some of the judicial regulations that and that have been a question here. but we will see if the e commission now goes ahead and really it's against 2 countries. or we can, of course, expect strong pushback from both countries to w,

corresponded barbara based on strasburg before us. thank you, barbara. let's have a look at some more headlines around the world. britain's prince. andrew has reached a financial settlement with his accuser in a sexual assault lawsuit, virginia defray claim she was traffic and forced to have sex with the royal when she was just 17. the amount of the payoff is not known. a u. s. gun manufacturer that made the rifle used in one of america's deadliest school shootings has reached a settlement with victims families. remington mar remington arms has agreed to pay $73000000.00 to relatives of those killed in the 2012 sandy hook. mustn't tonight is awards night at the berlin international film festival. despite pandemic restrictions, the stars up back on the red carpet and audiences are back in front of the silver

screens. so which film will scoop verbally and alice top prize the golden bear? well, here's a look at some of the contenders. the standard performance of the festival came from german turkish actress melt. m captain has the title character in robbie, a coroner's versus george w bush. he was a job. you couldn't us the for with georgie bush, no disagreeing in president deaf i downcast via ish o had ins on it's the true story of a loving mother who fought for 5 years to get her son released from guantanamo prison. you miss him. have him. he was shown you, but i will describe it misty. this is a give you the grammy's though, because really captains robert is a force of nature who doesn't lead anything. german bureaucracy, social norms or the u. s. government stand on the way of getting justice for her son. justice is nowhere to be found in rober of gems.

the debut film by mexican bolivian director natalia lopez, k ardo, a moody impressionistic look at the violence and brutality of the mexican drug wars . the film divided critics, but many agree it was the most visually arresting film in berlin this year. in both sides of the blade, french director clare denise managers, to be both stylish and intimate. her story of a woman caught between 2 men is deceptively simple. but the performances by julia be nash as long so london are subtle and emotionally devastating. they come to the berlin festivals most moving love story is. the chinese film returned to dust director li ruley. john's gentle tale follows a pair of outcasts and a forced marriage as the eke out in existence in a series of small villages. they're constantly uprooted as farming communities are

torn down to make way for urban expansion. nessa to see that politics are subtext. here the real story and returned to dust is the growing love between mar and glee, ying, an affection that is never sentimental and all the more affecting for its restraint . oh, they don't use film. critics scott roxborough reflects on how the pandemic as influenced this year's festival. the 2022 belly nala held in the midst of the crone of iris pandemic, has been a bit of a strange affair. and the film shown here seemed to reflect the sense of alienation and the longing for connection that i think a lot of us have felt of the past 2 years. the movies have been less spectacular and epic and more intimate and introspective. last a celebration of the magic of cinema and more reflection on the people we miss. and on the things we've lost. scope rocks for this. now before we go, a story that shows you should never underestimate

a man in his fifties. the greatest suffer who has ever lived kelly slater here is competing in a wealth surf league event at the age of 50. he celebrated the milestone 2 days after winning at the famous pipeline event. that incredible feat means that this event at sunset beach is not just part of some sentimental the time and tour. it means that slater, who 1st one the well title in 1992 goes into the new surf season. as the number one ranked, suffer in the world, ready to show the youngsters how it's done. on graduation. still watching dw news coming up next in d, w. news asia profiles in courage of the world can learn from the women in writing with fire in the us 1st documentary to be nominated for an oscar. and from the example of the protest as in miramar, demanding

a return to democracy. those stories and more coming right up with my colleague parish of vanity. there's plenty more world news now as, as antibody, as well as fulton business on our website, d, w dot com. and that's all from me that is seen from our layla, how iraq will be back with an update at the top of the hour from me and the team here and relates to it. thanks for watching with

ah ah, with someone else to the tv highlights, it's selected for you. you every week in your a box, subscribe now. for the battle against cove it the only variant is putting healthcare systems around the world to the test. vaccination campaigns are accelerating while restrictions are intensifying once again. but are

these measures enough to stop the spread of omicron, fax, data and reports? you know, a weekly coban special every thursday on d w they've had no peace for, for decades. the people of iraq, their country is devastated and there's no end to the final. how did it come to this in p? i witnesses reveal unprecedented story to they were freeze at the u. s. they knew what the consequences of these sanctions are, and they've lied to the world about as human nature. let's say that someone, good girl who's a friends. see, it's always really was

a you behaved exactly like said darcy and the poison spread. bedrooms ah lush, my zip in the great documentary series destruction of a nation starts march 4th on d. w. 58 of the news asia coming up to date. documentaries of cottage, our food makers, are capturing stories of boldness and determination from across the region. beginning in india, what an oscar nominated documentary profile, the google women journalist, challenging societies prejudice, and a film from me. and mom that practiced the people's fight for rights from a government willing to give