tv Journal PBS September 1, 2010 5:00pm-5:30pm PST
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is meeting middle eastern leaders in washington in a bid for a new mideast peace agreement. benjamin netanyahu and mahmoud abbas will hold face-to-face talks on thursday. netanyahu will meet obama for preliminary talks on issues such as the status of jerusalem and jewish building of settlements on the west bank's. later, he met a palestinian leader. jordan's king and egypt ruler were also attending. the talks came after hamas gunmen shot dead four jewish settlers. funerals for the victims were held earlier wednesday. the u.s. and israeli leaders condemned the killings but said they would not derail the talks in washington. >> the message should go out to hamas and everybody else who is taking credit for these heinous crimes that this is not going to
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stop us from not only ensuring that a secure israel but also securing a longer lasting peace in which people throughout the region can take a different course. >> i think that the president's statement as an expression of our desire to fight against this terror, and the talks we had, which were indeed open, productive, serious in the quest for peace, also centered around the need to have security arrangements that are able to roll back this kind of terror and other threats to security. that is a fundamental element, an important foundation of the peace we seek and work for. >> for more, i spoke with our correspondent asked how high the hopes are of making progress. >> expectations are rather low.
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we have had many peace talks between the palestinians and israel. why should it work this time? that is what many people said. the chemistry between netanyahu and mahmoud abbas seems to not be as good as predecessors. nevertheless, there are those who say the situation has been better in the last decade, in spite of the recent attacks of the violence is down and choose settlement has slowed down significantly, so why shouldn't there be progress made? the only thing that is crucial for this whole process is the will power of the leadership, and you can safely say the willpower of the u.s. government is very good, this being one of the top priorities of the obama administration. >> what is on the agenda for the rest of the talks? >> the agenda is basically the same as it has been the last decade -- east jerusalem jewish
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settlement, palestinian refugees, it has always been the same last year's. i think we will do in the next days is work out the timetable. there is one issue they need to take care of quickly, which is the moratorium of the jewish settlement, due to end on september 26. mahmoud abbas said the more time -- moratorium is not extended, he will leave the peace talks, so they give money to fund a compromise on that quickly. -- so they will have to find a compromise on that quickly. more than 150 people were injured in a bombing in pakistan. three bombers that made it their explosions during a festival. at one of them happen during a live tv broadcast of the event. 35,000 people were taking part
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in a religious procession. after the bombings, an angry crowd attacked police officers. at least six people were killed in mozambique after police opened fire on crowds holding what the police call the illegal protests against rising protests. two children were among the dead and several people were injured. demonstrators looted shops. the government has announced price hikes of bread because of increased global cost of wheat. the u.n. says food costs have risen to their highest gain it two years in mozambique, one of the world's poorest countries. chancellor angela merkel's cabinet has signed off on an austerity package that critics say will hit the poorest hard, and could endanger germany's economic recovery. 80 billion euro package of spending cuts includes half the reductions of welfare benefits. on the income side, the center-
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right government wants new taxes on financial transactions, earning transactions -- earning criticism from the banking sector. >> making budget cuts of 80 billion euros by 2014 is a daunting task, but germany's deficit ballooned during the financial crisis. now the conservative coalition wants to bring it back under control. the finance minister says the government is focused on it reining in spending. >> it is part of a parliamentary democracy to have a tense debate on the individual points, but it was always clear we would stay on course. >> farmers will have to pay higher environmental taxes, and the government expects to raise a billion euros with taxes on airline passengers. the most controversial point is child allowance payments for social welfare recipients. the opposition is critical. >> this spending is not based on a solid financing.
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it depends to a great extent on shady financing methods, cutting it social programs for families, single-parent households, and the unemployed. >> the government gave isn't -- gave into pressure. >> the finance minister is negotiating with the energy sector to find a suitable compromise on the nuclear power issue by the end of september. another area where the government is looking to make deep cuts in defense spending. as part of a wide-ranging reform for proposals, the defense secretary guttenberg wants to it and the conscript army and turn it into a smaller -- wants to end the conscript army and turn it into a smaller paid professional force. and the defense minister explained his plan. guttenberg needs the support of parliament to implement the proposed reform which foresees
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reducing the size of armed forces and making the military more efficient and better equipped for foreign missions. >> at the moment, we are looking at a model 4, which means a lower limit of 163,005 hunter servicemen and women. i want to stress that this is a lower limit, but one which allows us to meet our alliance commitments. >> guttenberg plans to slim down the military by putting compulsory military service on hold, but young men would be able to volunteer for 23 months. after the meeting, the opposite complained the ideas were not clear and not realistic. >> it will not be possible to save 8.3 billion euros, cut 40,000 soldiers, and meet commitments. >> guttenberg has his work cut out to convince the opposition, and there is also resistance within his own party to
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finishing compulsory military service. germany's recovery is still moving along. >> in the right direction. despite the worries mentioned earlier, more data came wednesday confirmed the strength of the rebound, in line with germany's economic rebound. the industry association has unveiled a strong set of figures for the month of july. orders for german machinery were up 40% year on year, led by strong foreign demand, bolstered by increased domestic demand as well -- a 48% at year on year. >> the mechanical engineering sector reports a surge in orders. domestic demand has also improved. of the past 12 months, industry has pulled out of its worst crisis in the last half century -- over the past 12 months, the industry has pulled out of its worst crisis in the last half a century.
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july saw orders dipped slightly, but the market was still strong in the same time last year. despite the high number of new orders, the industry expects more modest growth in overall production by the end of the year. wednesday's trading action, after a dismal august for most major markets, global exchanges started the new trading month with strong rallies. our correspondent says this summary of the trading session in frankfurt. >> a splendid start to the month of september, having the reputation of being a weak trading month, but the dax soared well above 6000 points. confidence was boosted by better than expected economy data from the u.s. and germany. the german mechanical engineering sector had a flood of new orders and in the u.s. the industry expanded at its fastest pace, driving up shares of several companies.
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staying in frankfurt, looking at wednesday's numbers, the dax finishing 2.7% higher. the euro stoxx 50 closing higher. across the atlantic, on a wall street, the dow jones enjoyed a strong rally, finishing at the top of the hour up 2.5%. the euro trading at $1.28 06. shares and apple rose nearly 3% wednesday after the company unveiled several new products. ceo steve jobs introduced a new ipod line, a revamped apple device, and itunes social network, and updates to the operating system for the iphone, ipod touch, and the ipad.
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the revamp apple tea vite is being touted as a potential -- apple tv is being touted as a potential challenge to the cable-tv market. the economic situation in serbia is improving gradually, but the country still needs help from outside. state coffers are empty and they require financial assistance. serbia has turned to the imf, hoping for an additional billion in credit. prices in the country are rising. the market stalls and belgrade might be stopped, but many serbians cannot afford to spend much here because prices have risen. according to consumer groups, people are only getting half as much for their money as last year. >> you cannot buy anything you want. now we just by the basics. >> there are not many customers.
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we are having to drop prices. >> part of the problem is serbia it is deep in debt and to only gain access to international loans if it implements a tough austerity measures. the imf says the measures will be beneficial. belgrade remains optimistic. >> we are predicting economic growth of 1.5% this year and we predict 3% the following year. >> serbia out will have to make painful cuts to achieve that. despite that, the imf has given its backing to a small increase in wages and pensions next year, and i could have a positive impact on consumer spending -- and it could have a positive impact on consumer spending. more than 9000 cases of suspected money laundering or reported in germany last year, representing a 23% rise from the year before. methods to try to clean this up have become more innovative and sophisticated.
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now international cooperation is being used in the fight against it. >> it is the sort of thing that happens only in novels -- a suitcase stuffed with cash that has to be laundered somewhere. but these days, money launderers use the internet. they lure bank account holders and to the process. germany warns that money laundering is a growing threat and the perpetrators are often located abroad. >> in order to fight money laundering, we need to provide law enforcement with international procedures. the increasing use of modern technology for payment, such as anonymous prepaid cards, could be issued a broad, leading supervisory bodies in germany at a loss. >> an important component is the simultaneous fight against international terrorism. german investigators say last year, some 100 reported cases of money laundering may have had
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ties to terrorism. chilean television has broadcast a new video of the 33 men trapped in a copper mine. it shows them looking a lot healthier than it previously thought, as they have been provided with hot meals, clean clothes, and music. they are trapped 700 meters underground. rescuers have started drilling a rescue shaft, but it could take up to four months to reach them. venice is buzzing as the 67th international film festival gets under way. the blacks want to open the of that it blacks swan also opened the event. >> stars arrive on the red carpet, to the delight of fans. the next 11 days will be filled with celebrities and a lot of
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films. the eight-member jury made a less spectacular entrance. this panel is headed by quentin tarantino, which is looking forward to the role. >> usually you don't know what you will see until it starts playing. i love that experience. >> the festival got under way with a screening of "black swan," which features natalie portman entering into a twisted relationship with a fellow ballet dancer. the director won the golden lion in 2008 with his movie "the wrestler." but he will have to bide his time until september 11, when the prizes are presented at the world's oldest film festival. stay tune for in depth,
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germany is in the midst of one of its most defining political debates in years, although as yet it has failed to garner the pipe -- the type of public and media attention when it comes to decisions affecting the future of the german military. germany's defense minister is calling for an effective end to the conscript army that has been the pride of germany's postwar democracy, and it has long been considered one of the most important guarantees that the country would never again become home to at the type of militarism that spawned world war ii. plans to replace the citizen in uniform with a professional army has found a surprisingly few critics, as the government looks
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to cut its budget deficit. >> the crew of this plane had a very important passenger on board, the defense minister guttenberg on his way to a military training exercise in bavaria. guttenberg is a man on a mission. he wants to fundamentally reform the military. precise details are still not known to the troops. >> it is a real talking point. there are rumors. it is definitely being discussed. >> what does the future hold for the german army? military equipment is expensive, so is the plant and a huge payroll. the list of potential reforms is long -- so his deployment and a huge payroll. list of potential reforms as long. >> there will be no military based on funds available but solely based on security needs.
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>> but the finance minister is demanding cuts to spending across all ministries. the defense minister alone will have to find savings of 8.3 billion euros over the next four years. after weeks of speculation, guttenberg presented lawmakers with three different reform proposals. his preferred model includes a significant reduction in troop numbers. >> this model will show the military can get stronger but at the same time get better. it will improve its deployment capability and ensure the continued protection of germany's national security, while carrying out other essential tasks. that is a key aspect. >> guttenberg wants to cut troop numbers by 40,000. pyrrole holds the biggest potential for savings. -- payroll holds the biggest
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potential for savings. modern equipment comes at a price. but the body that represents over 200,000 german soldiers says the military needs more investment and is critical of the spending cuts. >> it is impossible because there is little to squeeze out of the armed forces that have been permanently underfinanced in the past. it is like bringing out a dry sponge and expecting water. -- is like wringing out a dry sponge and expecting water. >> is arguably the world in which the army operates that has changed the most. what is the role of the military? the rearmament of west germany began 10 years after the end of the second world war. the armed forces were set up to defend its national borders. the cold war was escalating and attack from the east was expected at any time.
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at their height, the west german armed forces numbered half a million. but that finished when the soviet union crumbled. >> a lot has changed. the military and the armed forces has changed from being a one-dimensional army charged with defending national borders to an army that has to deal with conflict and other matters where they originate. >> in 1999, germany's nato allies called for assistance during the kosovo war. for the first time in postwar history, german politicians sent the military into conflict as air force jets took part in a bombing mission. controversy has also surround the mission to afghanistan. the defense minister at the time coined the phrase that has often been quoted since.
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>> the german army's arena of deployment as the whole world. >> afghanistan has been the biggest and most dangerous mission. germany's nato allies would like to see the country play an even bigger role. but under guttenberg's reforms, germany would have to limit the number of foreign deployments. >> we will have to look very closely at what we need in the future and the flexibility needed for deployments and at the security situation of today and tomorrow. we have to under 52,000 soldiers, but the only deploy 7000 -- we have 252,000 soldiers, but can only deploys 7000. >> the u.s. army is entirely professional. by contrast, germany still has
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compulsory service. all physically fit young men may be called up to further the armed forces, as they have done for several decades. but the numbers of youngsters doing military service has fallen. the changing role of the armed forces means they have little use for conscripts. they cannot be deployed overseas. instead, there remain in their barracks. during training, to keep other soldiers occupied -- during training, they keep other soldiers occupied. the defense minister wants a moratorium on compulsory service, without abolishing it entirely. >> with regards to the future of military service, i consider it important we retain construction -- conscription and the constitution. i have no idea what the world will look like in the future. we should retain the option of drafting youngsters if need be.
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>> these concert are swearing their pledge of allegiance in front of parliament -- these conscripts are squaring their pledge of allegiance in front of parliament. many seek compulsory military service as the firm anchoring of the military in german society, but nowadays only one in five young men does military service, and for six months only. >> you cannot achieve anything substantial in six months. i think the proposed voluntary military service should be given a chance, as long as it is structured in an attractive way. >> the army wants to attract new recruits from all social backgrounds. they had even created its own youtube channel to attract the smartest mines. -- minds. this could be a glimpse of the
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future, german and u.s. troops taking part in joint ventures. a german bridge for an american tank. joint diplomats are becoming more important than ever. -- joint deployments are becoming more important than ever. >> we work together much more on international basis in the near and distant future. practice in advance is good. >> change is on the way, but the soldiers still did not know what the reforms will mean for their company. it is likely to take a while before the reforms are fully implemented. the defense minister will outline what changes lie ahead by the end of the year. that has been our in-depth report as the german defense minister calls for a military force made up purely of paid professionals and said of
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