>> hello and welcome to the "journal" on dw. the greek prime minister appeals for more time to implement reforms in return for bailout money. >> the united nations says 2.5 million people in syria need humanitarian aid. >> german scientists put a robot on its paces on a test run. greece needs more time to get its economic house in order -- that is the message the greek prime minister will give the

head of the eurozone group, jean-claude juncker, athens date. >> it is a high-level meeting. samaras will meet with angela merkel and french president francois hollande. >> he needs their support to get the next slice of bailout money amid speculation the indebted country may have to leave the eurozone. >> time may be greece's most valuable and scarce is resourced at the moment. athens has until september to enact austerity measures worth 11.5 billion euros. i of the troika of the eu, the international monetary fund and european central bank are not satisfied, greece's credit fund could dry up -- i f -- if they are not satisfied. samaras says that is not enough time and that the country is only asking for breathing space

to get the economy thriving. he also painted a bleak picture of what would happen if greece had to revert to its old currency. he said the consequences would be a catastrophe for greece. in the scenario, samaras predicted at least five more years of depression and the unemployment rate jumping to 40%. >> for more on the story, i spoke to our correspondent in brussels and asked if juncker would listen to the plea for more time. >> he will definitely listen to what samaras has to say. in an interview earlier, he said he cared about the greek population and wants to see what is actually going on on the ground, so he will listen to what degree premier has to say, but of course, jean-claude juncker cannot make any

decision. all he can do is take the information back with him to the meeting of his eurozone colleagues, and they are the ones who have to decide, and they are basing their decision also on the trigger reports that you have mentioned. we know jean-claude juncker has always had sympathy for greece, and he said a possible eurozone exit -- any speculation about it is unnecessary because it will not happen. it would be technically manageable but completely impractical. bennett even if -- >> even if juncker is sympathetic, samaras will be meeting with top partners later in the week. >> yes, he will be meeting with angela merkel and the french president, francois hollande, later in the weekend. france has said that it shows sympathy for the greek position. angela merkel is a tougher nut.

elections are coming up next year in germany. support for bailouts is dwindling. angela merkel risks losing votes, so she is in a difficult position because she does not want to lose support at home, nd at the same time, she does not want to be blamed for being the one who kick degrees out of the eurozone. -- who kicked grease out of the eurozone. >> thank you for that. -- who kicked greece out of the eurozone. >> there are growing concerns of the spillover of fighting in syria into neighboring lebanon. signs of street fighting were visible in tripoli wednesday. the day after there was renewed fighting between supporters and critics of the syrian regime. least eight people have died and 75 were injured. >> reports coming in from syria say the government has stepped up attacks against rebel groups.

>> this amateur footage is said to show a government attack west of a lot of -- a lack of -- the lack of -- aleppo. many civilians are wounded, traumatized. all have lost their homes in the violence. these images claim to show a helicopter attack and its aftermath. syria's allies, russia and china, remained firmly opposed to any foreign country taking unilateral action to stop the killing. this after the u.s. threatened a military response if damascus uses chemical weapons. >> we agree with china that there is a need to strictly adhere to international law and the principles contained in the un charter.

russia could be using its influence to exert pressure on syria behind the scenes. after a meeting in moscow, syria's deputy prime minister for the first time raised the possibility of president assad's resignation. >> no issue is barred from the negotiating table, including assad's resignation, but it cannot be a precondition for dialogue. that is not democracy. >> that is unlikely to appease the opposition, which has flatly predict flatly rejected talks where assad remains in power. with no solution in sight, the human cost of the conflict steadily rises. >> it has been a long time coming. after 18 years of negotiations, russia finally became a member of the world trade organization on wednesday. it is the last major economy to join the group. >> the eu, russia's largest trading partner, called this a major step, but domestic critics

say moscow's wto membership will increase competition at home and spell disaster for many russian farmers. >> the harvest here is picked by hand, just like during soviet times. but that is going to have to change. russia's membership in the world trade organization means that duties on imported food have been cut by half. already most of the fruit sold in russia comes from outside the country. the director of the farm says hard times are ahead. >> we are now paying almost the same prices on our fertilizer and energy as they are in america and europe, but farmers there get more support. that is why we expect our products will become more expensive than competitors from foreign countries will gain the upper hand, which means we will have to cut back on production and let workers go.

and the farm has retained its soviet era name out of nostalgia -- >> the farm has retained its soviet air name out of nostalgia, but today, it is one of the most modern in the country and has about 300 people on the payroll. it has acquired new machinery to help process vegetables and fruit, but still a lot is done by hand. because, for me and everyone else who works in agriculture here in russia, the wto is evil. we must have the same conditions if we are to compete fairly with foreigners. the state has to help us modernize our machinery, at least with tax breaks. >> livestock also presents new challenges. import duties for dairy products and meat, and the days are gone when the government camper here that the import of foreign meat, but the wto also brings some

benefits to the farmers. >> in some ways, keeping livestock will be easier in the wto because imported farm machinery will now become cheaper for us. the big disadvantage is that imported milk is also much cheaper. dairy farms in the west are suddenly competing with us and putting us under pressure. >> the farmer is able to sell some of its land in order to finance the machinery it needs to stay competitive, but many smaller farmers will not have that option and will probably have to close down. >> stocks have been trading lower today. let's bring in our correspondent, who is standing by at the frankfurt stock exchange. we do have to put today's declines into a little bit of perspective. recently, stocks have been trading at 13-year highs. are today's declines a change in

direction or just a momentary blip? >> at the moment, investors do not say there is a change in direction. they talk about some profit- taking, which is the reason the share prices went up straight in the last few days, and weeks. after this rally, it seems to be time for a break also because of the fact that the euro debt crisis is, of course, causing many questions, and this is why investors want to wait and find out what the politics will decide. the dax down nearly 1%. the euro stoxx also down 1%. losses on wall street as well and the euro down slightly today. >> if you have been looking to fill up your car recently, you may have been shocked if you are

here in europe. in italy, a leader will set you back more than two euros, and in germany, fuel more -- fuel is more expensive than ever -- in italy, a liter will set you back more than two years. >> consumer protection groups are crying foul. a trip to the gas pump is a painful exercise for german motorists. a leader of super unleaded can cost 1.77 euros or more -- a liter. companies say higher oral prices are to blame. >> the price of crude has risen more than 25% since the end of june. gas prices have gone up by only 10%. competition is fierce, and these numbers show we do not pass on every price increase to our customers. >> automobile association said the competition is not costing the company's much.

most german drivers get their gasoline from one of five companies. adac says this gives the companies lots of room to maneuver. >> i cannot stand to hear this morning from the oil companies at the same time, they make billions in profits every quarter. it just does not add up. >> the one thing that everybody seems to agree on is that things will not get any better any time soon. >> just as well. we do not have cars. we cycle. >> to soccer now appear the falls took the lead after 13 minutes, but kiev fought back for a comfortable win. germany's new bundesliga season starts on friday, and this year, the league marks a 50th

anniversary. >> to mark the event, we are bringing you a series of special reports. today, we look at some of the charismatic and flamboyant coaches of the bundesliga in the past decade. >> what kind of person would want to be a soccer coach? to go on a 90-minute emotional roller coaster ride every week, to suffer extremes of disappointment and elation. one has achieved cult status for the way he has coached back-to- back bundesliga titles. one of just 23 coaches to win titles so far. here is the league trophy eight times in bayern-munich. a legend in the early years, winning the league wants with

cologne and three times with another team, whose new coach learned a thing or two from the old master. >> i got to know him when he was coaching grasshoppers are, and i was playing for geneva. i was in close touch with him. >> some club coaches go to even higher things after successful stints in the bundesliga. the new season kicks off on friday, and you can bet that coaches are looking forward to the right -- ride. >> and the fans as well. if you had just joined us, you are watching the "journal." >> a surprisingly high number of private businesses are supporting charity. >> more of that as well as lots

more other news after the break, so stay with dw.

>> welcome back. germany's family minister has unveiled the country's first- ever report on social commitment, tracking corporate and individual contributions to charities. >> the results showed a 64% of companies do something for the common good, mostly in the form of monetary and product nations. >> nearly one in three private citizens does some form of volunteer community service. >> there is space for nine terminally ill children, but demand for beds greatly exceeds that, so an extension is being built, made possible by private donations. a lot of them come from here, the hard rock cafe in berlin. please have organized baffles, football tournament, and options.

-- employees have organized raffles, football tournament, and -- tournaments, and auctions. germany's family minister wants to see more of that. nearly 2/3 german companies support causes to the tune of 11 billion euros a year. >> large corporations in particular are finding that employee's social skills, their soft skills, profit greatly from the company's social engagement. >> but business associations warned that private and corporate contributions -- for example, for day care -- should not lead to a reduction of the welfare state. for now, the children at this hospice are dependent on such contributions. >> i am now joined by a political correspondent who has done a great deal of research work.

the report is encouraging in the number of people as well as companies doing voluntary work and making donations, but do you think it is enough? >> it is never enough. free society is absolutely dependent on civic engagement, dependent on the fact that every citizen tries to do more for the community than just pay his taxes, so while the figures are quite encouraging and it is not the first time they are being published, we will still have to look at whether civic engagement is going the right way, whether the government is doing enough to encourage civic engagement, and whether enough research has been done. >> what needs to be done to encourage civic engagement? we know that when there is an emergency like an earthquake or flood or tsunami, lots of people to donate money and time to help out. >> that is correct. in times of great distress, people do turn out in large

numbers. what is just as important is the political side. citizens need to engage politically. not necessarily in politics and not necessarily things that have to do with the state, but in community affairs, we have int. that is what the government needs to encourage. >> is it a danger that if more people get involved and there is more civic engagement that the government will read at on its responsibility as a welfare state? >> there's still much to be done to prevent that. in many cases, i think the citizens can do things better than the government can. >> thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us. a south african court has handed down a life sentence for the killing of one of the country's most prominent white

supremacists. >> he was found guilty of murdering the man at his home. the judge said racial motivations did not play a role in a mortar -- murder. >> in ethiopia, thousands of mourners turned out to pay their last respects to the prime minister. >> the 57-year-old died monday night in a brussels hospital following an undisclosed illness. his remains have been flown to the ethiopian capital on wednesday. zenavi was largely credited with ethiopia's strong growth, but activist accused him of harsh repression of the province. >> the head of the imf met with egypt's president on wednesday. >> discussed the potential loan from the imf and plans to relaunch egypt's national economy. according to reports, the

egyptian president has been trying to consolidate power since his election back in june. >> of the moment, the country's military still has a firm grip on its economy. we explained. >> karl rove's -- cairo's tahrir square, august 12. the surprise reshuffle, another step towards greater civilian control of political life in the country, but egypt's military still has best economic interests. not just gas stations. it has factories that produce vehicles. besides a baking empire, it owns vast real estate and runs a huge construction projects. but the military's commercial complex built up over decades is thought to make up 1/6 of the economy. >> it is hard to see how a civilian government could assert control over the military's

activities in the future. the military has basically taken on a life of its own, and it is a powerful player in egypt. i really do not think it is realistic to expect that it will come under civilian control. >> among the military is highly profitable assets are these hotels on the sinai peninsula. several are owned by high- ranking officers. not surprisingly, many officers staff the government agencies that handout building permits for such developments. the president signaled he was not challenging the military's business model when he wrested political control from them earlier this month. for example, one general was made head of the suez canal authority, which collects about 5 billion euros worth of tolls from ships each year. but some each of watchers say it is unlikely the military and the muslim brotherhood will actually join forces.

>> there is a risk that the sides might come to some sort of power-sharing agreement that would harm the public interest. mainly, i think the muslim brotherhood has to deliver results, or they will lose the next election. they will definitely need to show an improvement over the mubarak era. memo 1/5 of egypt's population still lives on less than $2 a day. for most of those steps in party, it is probably irrelevant who runs things, as long as they get paid. >> the international atomic energy agency says it will meet with iran on friday to discuss what it called remaining outstanding issues surrounding tehran's contested nuclear program. >> the united nations body is expected to again ask for access to a nuclear site where it believes iran is covering up evidence of nuclear research. tehran denies it is developing an atomic bomb, saying its uranium enrichment program is for civilian use only.

>> the european commissioner has called on romania's president and prime minister to end their political power struggle. the mission president said the romanian president must be reinstated immediately. >> romania's constitutional court threw out a july referendum to impeach the president because of low voter turnout. the prime minister led the campaign to unseat the president and has rejected the court's ruling. well, if you hate running to the store to do errands and pick things up, there may be a solution out there for you. >> some technology students in germany have unveiled a robot that can do your shopping, although it will cost you 125,000 euros. >> not cheap, and it also has some problems to smooth out. it cannot handle steps of more than 3 centimeters, and it is a bit slow, but researchers are still failing it a major feat

-- hailing it a major feat. >> the strange device certainly got people curious. >> a robot? really? >> what its purpose? >> researchers from the university took the robot on a public test run for a simple reason -- they want robots like him to make its way through a crowded urban landscape with no assistance. >> we hope that someday he will actually inhabit the city or the similar robots will and have it cities along side humans. they would carry out automated services, run errands and so forth. >> the test track is four kilometers. the task is to navigate the crowded streets without having an accident. as he makes his way through the city, he will have to recognize obstacles in his path and avoid

potential pitfalls. it took three years and about 6 million euros before the robot was ready to do the things humans do every day. but despite cutting edge technology, it still has a few kinks to work out. >> he can pick up the trash can with his 3-d sensors, but it is getting very tight. i am a little nervous. the curve is right there. i do not know why he is stopping. perhaps it is a little too close for him. i am still hopeful he will continue on his way. >> only once did the robot could really bogged down and need to be recruited. otherwise, his laser sensors did their job, allowing him to scan his environment at lightening speed and calculate and adjust his movements.

after 100 minutes, his day's work was done, but he seems to need a lot more programming before he can come home with a fresh bouquet of flowers. >> he has quite the crowd of groupies following him around, popular guide. >> with all the money he cost, he had better have a lot of groupies, but still a lot of kicks. 3 centimeters a step, which is what we would call a bondage walk. >> exactly. state -- thanks for joining us this half hour. >> do stay with dw if you can. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

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