>> hello and a very warm welcome to "european journal -- to the "journal" coming to you live from dw in berlin. >> germans need for highly skilled immigrants. >> and we will take you for a ride on a vintage car rally from beijing to paris.

russia says it plans to deliver an anti-aircraft missile system to syria. a senior official said russia wants to deter hopheads from getting involved in the syrian conflict and undermining next month's peace talks. it comes after the european union decision to lift its arms embargo on syrian rebels. >> russia is a major ally of bashar assad's regime and has condemned the european union for not renewing the arms ban. syria's main opposition group has welcomed the move but says it was too little too late with fighting raging on for control of strategic towns in the country. >> these latest images of violence in syria are said to show rubble's battering -- battling -- rebels battling government forces. they do not seem to have much in equipment, but they are

fighting a full-scale war. british foreign minister william hague pushed to end the embargo, but he says he hopes arm shipments will be unnecessary. >> we have no plans to send arms at the moment. this is a strong signal to the assad regime, that it needs to engage in the political process, and as i have always said and as i said to our parliament last week, we would only take the step of sending arms in company with other nations in carefully controlled circumstances. >> moscow was unhappy with the decision. the kremlin says more weapons will only mean more killing. >> it is a rather obvious double standard in a policy of our european partners. you cannot on one hand declare your intention to stop the bloodshed and on the other hand move in the direction of pumping more weapons into syria.

>> but russia says it will deliver missiles to the assad regime due to existing contracts. it is unclear what the latest moves mean for the international peace talks planned for next month. >> we are joined now in the studio by a middle east expert. very warm welcome. russia says it is delivering anti-aircraft missiles to syria to help deter hotheads. who are they talking about? >> basically, russia is saying should the western world even think about sending troops to syria in order to topple bashar al assad, they will be there to help out with sophisticated weapons. it is a message for western countries not even to consider. it is a clear message by the russians telling the west they will stick with bashar al assad and his regime.

>> do you feel with russia's reaction that the eu decision to allow for sanctions to expire has essentially backfired? >> in a way, you can say that european policy-making has failed miserably because western countries in general including the united states but also turkey and the gulf arab states, they thought assad would be toppled within half a year's time. this, however, has been an erroneous assumption, and he is back in business, basically winning the civil war for the time being. at least it looks like it. western policy makers have a big problem because they have cut most diplomatic relations with syria, but now bashar al assad is sending a clear message -- "we are here to say." either the need to change policies and readdress contacts, or they continue to deliver weapons to the opposition on a much larger scale, but this would spell trouble for the whole region. >> just to be clear, none of the

european countries have said that that actually will send these weapons. what are the chances that this might happen in the near future? >> it will not happen before this geneva conference that is going to take place next month, but after that, anything is possible. basically, great britain and france are considering delivering weapons to the opposition, to moderate parts of the opposition, but it is impossible to know who will receive these weapons in the end. once they have crossed the border, anything is possible. let's face reality -- the strongest fighting force on the ground are basically terrorists, at least from an american point of view. it is very difficult, and the more moderate fighters of the free syrian army -- they do not play any significant role in the regime. it is a difficult situation for any foreign intervention list.

european policy maker was wrong in refusing to talk to bashar al assad. he is a brute, no doubt about that, but nevertheless, he is going to stick in power in damascus. >> thank you so much for your insight. >> on to some business news now. the eu competition commissioner says internet search giant google will probably have to come up with more concessions if it wants to avert a $5 billion fine for anti-competitive practices in europe. >> over a dozen rival companies accuse google of squeezing them out of the results of search queries. the eu opened an investigation, and last month, google came up with a list of solutions, but many critics say those proposals are inadequate. shares in a spanish finance group plunged, enraging small shareholders who said they were

cheated into making risky investments. created in 2010 from the merger of seven troubled savings banks, it has become a symbol of spain's banking crisis. last year, it was bailed out by the spanish government and has received billions of euros from the eurozone rescue package. >> hundreds of customers joined a protest outside a madrid branch of the bank. most are small savers who were advised -- they say cheated -- into converting their savings of the bank into shares which have plummeted in value. they are chanting the words "thieves," and "you are robbing your customers." many have lost their pensions. >> the guy at the bank of trust and all our lives told us to invest in preference shares. i had a pension plan, and i cashed it in and invested in that. >> the prospects are looking bleak. shares lost as much as 20% at

one point on tuesday. this panicked many shareholders to cut their losses and sell off their shares. for most, there is no way out as the money is trapped. >> on tuesday's market action, apart from the previous story, european shares were able to build on monday's gains as the u.s. and european markets reopen following the holidays, but it was france dominating the mood in frankfurt. our correspondent sent us this summary of the trading session on the frankfurt stock exchange. >> france is of major importance to the people here on the frankfurt floor because it is so important to germany and to the eurozone. germany's largest trading partner, the number two economic mission and politically perhaps as well, in the eurozone, so stability is needed if the eurozone is needed to be stable and also i of germany is able to move forward, but the french government does not seem to be moving in the right direction. the people here say it is not

progressing in terms of reforms. it is becoming less competitive instead of more competitive. debt is still very high. the budgets are not solid enough for the people here. it could become a problem if the euro debt crisis could escalate once more and france could become a major problem. for the moment, it is being put on the back burner in terms of what is happening here in the equities markets. people still think there is more room for stocks to climb, not least because a lot of people look at the share prices and profits and think there is more room. they say german stocks are undervalued. >> we stay in frankfurt for a closer look at the numbers. the dax was up by well over 1%. the euro stoxx 50 up by nearly 1.5%. the euro slipping against the

greenback, trading at a value of $1.2875. back to france where president hollande says europe must act immediately to lower youth unemployment, which now tops 50% in some countries. >> he was speaking at the start of talks between french and german cabinet ministers working on a joint initiative to present at next month's eu summit. >> with 6 million young people in europe lacking either a job or training placement, many analysts are warning of a new jobless generation. a new program launched on tuesday aims to prevent that. >> the whole european idea is at stake. nobody thinks the european union can take care of all our needs, but the eu should at least give its citizens hope and protection. >> the measures include helping small and medium-sized

businesses get moans to expand operations and create new jobs for young people. another idea is for more countries to adopt germany's dual education system was on the job training. and young people are being encouraged to move for the jobs are. >> young people in europe are waiting for answers. they need to develop their skills and get job experience, and they can do that wherever they get job openings. >> specifically, that can mean more people mean -- moving to france or germany were currently 30,000 training positions remain unfilled. >> staying with the topic of jobs, germany would like to attract more foreign skilled workers to make up for shortages here in the job market. that is one of the issues that was on the table at the german government's integration conference in berlin. >> delegates also discussed ways of increasing employment opportunities for individuals of foreign descent who are already

in the country. german chancellor angela merkel called for a more inclusive concept of integration. >> chancellor angela merkel wants to promote a culture of respect for migrants. the german labor market is open only to people who complete vocational training. unskilled workers have a difficult time finding jobs. 1/3 of the jobless here are my guns. merkel says there are other hurdles as well. >> we can see structural discrimination at work here. this is especially clear when it comes to lending. that leads to a greater rate of failure. >> berlin would like banks to lend more to immigrant entrepreneurs. the government plans to hold talks with the financial ministry on the topic, and merkel's government wants the public sector to hire more migrants. right now, there are very few non-germans in civil service.

>> if you look at how many migrants are hired by the public sector, by local councils or agencies, you notice that they are really missing. it would be great if the number of migrants in every branch of the civil service were larger. it would solve a lot of problems. >> the opposition has criticized the summit for lacking concrete action and instead, offering nothing more than good intentions. >> for more on this, we are joined from our parliament terry studios by our political correspondent. thanks so much for being with us. angela merkel had lots of positive things to say about immigrants and immigration. is she saying that she wants more people to move to germany? >> immigration is a classic political hot potato, especially for conservatives in an election year, said chancellor merkel is definitely not issuing a blanket

invitation to would-be migrants. what she is saying at the integration summit is that more should be done to better integrate those immigrants who are already in germany, and she is saying germany can use skilled migrants still coming into the country to the pot -- support development of the country. >> with the ongoing economic crisis, lots of young people are moving to germany to find jobs. do you think the government now is adapting itself to that? >> again, german industry is profiting from the influx of skilled labor from crisis-hit regions, and the german government would like to see that continue, and it realizes that efforts need to be made to accommodate those people more effectively because they would like to keep them here if they can stay, but germany is also being diplomatic and saying that they will also be supported i am returning home when they are ready.

>> dw's political correspondent terry martin. thanks for your insight. >> we will have more on that topic after a short break. stay with us.

>> welcome back. as we mentioned earlier, immigrants to germany faced a host of challenges, and it is not just a first generation and new rivals. second and third generation immigrants, many with the minority backgrounds that contrast starkly with german culture, often find themselves caught between different worlds. >> these are folks that grew up here with a german passport speaking german as their mother tongue but face a struggle for acceptance as germans. we spend time with young people who they -- who say they want to overturn stereotypes in a positive way.

>> lila on the streets of her home town. the 22-year-old student was born and raised here in berlin. her mother comes from syria. her father is palestinian. in those countries, she is considered german, and she is viewed with suspicion because she is a muslim. >> one of the prejudices is that people think i have no say, that i'm not a person who would speak up. >> prejudice based on appearance and religion is something yusef is also familiar with. the 24-year-old german has syrian routes and is studying german engineering. he dislikes being labeled a foreigner. >> i think there's not enough dialogue. non-muslims know very little about muslims. there's much talk about muslims

but not much talking with them. than a keen to change attitudes, he and his friends have organized a poetry slam for muslims. the events are held up and down the country. they give a voice to those who might not normally take the stage. islam is a recurring theme observed through an ironic lens. the call for an introduction to courses in hatred -- four courses with an introduction to hatred. organizers say they do not laugh at the religion. they laugh with it. they hope to open up public debate on the issue. >> we want to encourage muslims by introducing them to this art form by playing with language,

by writing poetry, and by speaking their minds in public. >> now the nine regional winners are gearing up for the first annual islam final in berlin. >> coming up, very unusual car race. >> of first, a look at some other news in brief. a deadly new coronavirus has claimed its first victim in france. the 65-year-old man is thought to have been exposed to the virus while traveling in dubai. the infection attacks the lungs and is similar to the stars virus that killed 800 people in 2003 -- similar to the sars. >> the world health organization has suspended its polio vaccination program in northwest pakistan.

it comes after gunmen attacked a vaccination team near peshawar, killing one. militants have repeatedly attacked polio workers, claiming the program is a cover for foreign espionage. >> south korea has taken two of its nuclear reactors offline. substandard parts that could fail in an emergency were discovered in the cooling system. it is likely to take about four months to fix the problem, and the government is warning of an unprecedented power crisis in the meantime. >> a volcano on the chile- argentina border is showing signs of an imminent eruption. at the orders have declared a red alert and ordered the evacuation of the surrounding area. 3000 people are being moved to safety. >> back here in germany, europe's biggest selling newspaper has announced it will introduce a pay wall.

build germany's most popular daily, wants readers to pay for exclusive content. >> the tabloid post publisher says it will include but is like a soccer, videos, and celebrity news. the paper plans to start charging for content starting next month. >> but will it make it work were so many others have failed? >> this deserted newspaper kiosk sums up the state of print journalism these days. sales of germany's tabloid bild and others are on the decline with readers increasingly turn to the returning to the internet, but its publisher also wants to make money on line. some of the juicy news many people want to read will soon require a fee. >> take an exclusive story, for example, like a celebrity couple announcing a breakup. the news spreads within seconds of the internet, but the exclusive interview, background,

and how the story unfolds will all be available in the premium section. >> the standard subscription rate for the service will be four euros and 99 cents a month. premium service will cost another 10 euros. to help more subscribers, the magazine has secured online rights to first division sought -- first division soccer summaries, available only to paying customers. other publications have tried to introduce online fees, but so far, none has had much success. >> i think what might have been the problem is that others were trying to hard to sell serious content. bild has a smarter approach. football you can watch in summary is something i think a lot of people will find an attractive option. >> their online pay wall could set the new standard for tabloid news, but the publisher is walking a fine line with its attempt to generate new revenue without turning off readers.

>> the internet is the best thing that could ever happen for journalists. when you think of all the media, i can watch things that i would not have been able to do in the past. but for that, you need the right people who know what they are doing. only good people can produce good content, and that is what people pay for at the end of the day. >> the entire journalism's sector in germany will be watching how the experiment turns out. it is not the only publication interested in making money online. >> germany will join a growing list of countries to operate armed unmanned drones. the move was announced during a strategy conference in berlin on monday. the defense minister says the german military will buy up to 16 unmanned aerial vehicles in the coming years. the news is highly controversial here. it comes on the heels of a fresh scandal where the ministry had to cancel another drone project

that has cost german taxpayers some 700 million euros. >> well, climbing to the summit of mount everest used to be the pinnacle of achievement. for climbers, an epic journey that only a very few could successfully undertake. >> these days, climbing to the top of the world is more a question of cost and logistics and is no longer reserved for the mountaineering in the -- elite. >> this is the summit that stirs the heart of mountain climbers world over. mount everest has stood achievement for years. these days, things are getting a bit crowded in the ancient city of kathmandu. the capital of nepal is celebrating an important anniversary. the summit of mount everest was first reached 60 years ago. norgei became a hero in asia and

hilary was knighted by the english crown. >> we have been together a good deal and i think we have become a fairly happy pair. this is just one example of how happy a pair we are. >> since then, about 3600 climbers have accomplished the same feat. 500 people have made it to the top of everest this year. the oldest is 80 years old. he has been up there three times. >> it is time. the top of mount everest. >> mount everest may have lost a bid of its mystery, but from below, it has not lost any of its majesty. >> anyone who has ever been on a long road trip knows you want to

make sure you have a comfy seat. that message did not quite get through to a select group of drivers who have just embarked on a race that will take them across two continents. >> at the promises to be a bumpy ride at times. they are taking to the road in vehicles from yesteryear. >> we take you to the story line in china. >> cool weather did nothing to dampen spirits as drivers prepared to set off on a great adventure. they are at the start of a 12,000-kilometer race from the great wall of china to paris in classic cars. they are not competing for prize money, so drivers are relying on other sources of inspiration to keep them going. >> he said he was going to do a couple of years ago. he was then suddenly diagnosed with cancer and passed away last of timber, so we said we would do it for him and his memory.

i'm sure he will be looking over us at some point. >> it is a challenge. you are putting yourself against difficult roads, problems with the cars, long hours driving, and you have to make sure you can get to the end safely in one piece with you and your car in good health. >> a total of 96 vehicles left the starting gate in china. cars that make it to the end are due to cross the finish line in paris in a little over a month. >> there it is. >> well, we wish them the best of luck. that is all for us for now. we will have an update for you at the top of the hour. >> stay with us. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--