>> welcometo the "journal" year on dw-tv. allen has lines -- -- our headlines, the eu can no longer cope with the surge in immigrants. and a secretly filmed video appears to confirm that votes for world cup bids can be bought.

the greek government says it does not have the resources necessary to halt a surge in illegal immigrants crossing its border with turkey and has asked the european union for help. brussels has described the situation as alarming and sending members from its border agency. it is the first time since its creation three years ago that members from the 2000-strong intervention force will be deployed. >> this is the most porous border in europe, a 10-kilometer stretch between greece and turkey, a unit from the e's quarter agency is carrying out exercises. the team uses imaging devices to carry -- to identify migrants. they will be deployed now on their first mission. >> we know that a part of the border is currently not controlled, not guarded. greek authorities cannot manage to a share control this part of thextended border of the

european union. >> nearly 90% of migrants trying to reach europe do so through greece, which requested the you's help. since the agency started patrolling the aegean waters, migrants have started crossing by water, but rights groups are urging the you to take into account the special needs of refugees. >> it is understandable that they want to guard their borders, but we must make sure that we do this in a way where we also take into account that people still need to come to europe. >> up to 400 mignts into your -- into greece each day. >> other news now, afghan president karzai says his office receives cash in bags from iran but says it is a chance from -- transparent former aide and that the net is states makes similar payments. karzai's chief of staff receives covert the eggs of money in any of it -- and him to receive --

an attempt to receive loyalty. >> iranian president ahmadinejad on a visit to kabul this year. has been revealed that relations between the countries have a financial dimension. the "new york times" reports that tehran has channeled millions of dollars to the afghan president. he has now confirmed this but does not see a problem with the process. >> afghanistan is a country that knows its business well, and we are grateful to iran. >> karzai says the process of iran handing over bags of cash is a transparent form of aid that helps cover special expenses at the presidential palace. he added the previous u.s. administration had also been aware of the payments. the "new york times" report

cites an unnamed afghan official who claims that tehran has been attempting to buy the loyalty of tribal elders, lawmakers, and taliban commanders here in washington has in the past accused iran of playing a double game by being friendly to kabul while trying to undermine the international stabilization mission there. these latest allegations could further tarnish afghanistan's image in the west where is already seen as a hotbed of corruption. >> the 33 chilean miners rescued earlier this month have been honored as national heroes as a special ceremony. the chilean president handed the metals and a replica of the phoenix is the capsule. he stressed that lessons have been learned and pledged to tighten safety requirements. the 33 men were twisted to freedom almost two weeks ago after 69 days underground. eu nations are divided in their search for stricter budgetary rules and sanctions for those that define them with germany

and france finding their desire among other members for a major reform of the e/lisbon treaty. at a meeting of eu foreign ministers in luxembourg today, france and germany said they want a new round of trade reforms, which they say would prevent a repeat of the debt crisis that engulfed greece, spain, portugal, ireland, and gutted confidence in the euro. >> the prime minister had a difficult task. he had to calm the nerves of many e members, angry at a recent compromise by heavyweights germany and france and their bid to change the lisbon treaty. >> this debate is going in the wrong direction. it's a mistake if our goal is to change the treaty and return to the 19th century. with the reintroduction of census law. >> since this lot is an old term meaning that those countries

facing the most also have the biggest say in european affairs. tempers have been freed since last week's meeting between the german and french ministers. they carved out a deal that would prevent automatic sanctions against the huge deficit offenders. angela merkel gave ground to nicolas sarkozy for his bid to draw voting rights from states that do not stick to budgetary rules. >> it is not fair for a country to keep its rights if it does not fulfil its obligations. >> but that would require changing the lisbon treaty. it came into force just last december after years of wrangling, a tall order. >> anything is possible, but little is likely. >> germany is now caught up in a fierce debate that probably will not subside any time soon. >> there is a glimmer of hope today for the hard hit u.s. economy. >> across the atlantic, the u.s. housing market appears to be picking up herit in some

timber, sales of previously occupied homes jumped 10% to an adjusted annual rate of $4.5 million, according to the national association of realtors. the data points to a gradual recovery of the housing market. in july, sales tumbled to their lowest levels since the troops began keeping records a decade ago. a sharp decline occurred after the government eliminated a tax credit. the subprime mortgage crisis in u.s. triggered the global credit crunch almost three years ago. earlier, i asked our reporter at the new york stock exchange how wall street reacted to the latest data. >> the mood here does not get any better. some good market data from housing was pretty strong today and sales of 10%, but on the other side, prices are lower, so what we see is not stability anywhere close to where we are, but what we see is the same old

game in of blue prices that lead to higher sales volume. higher prices in the next month, and sales numbers are going down. we have one interesting fact in the market, so-called distressed sales, but people pretty much forced out of their houses who cannot pay their mortgages anymore. their sales make up 35% of the housing sales, and that is a very large part of that market. >> the new trading week started on a pretty strong note. what else has been giving the market a boost today? >> generally, the mood is pretty optimistic because we are gng to get se good data this week for some data from our economic field here, and we have one big winner today -- citigroup has been bought up to 3% in early trading. goldman sachs has put that stuff on its "conviction buy" list,

meaning they are very bullish. they mean that there is a growth potential of up to 35%. of course, investors are buying that sck tay. >> thankou ry much. >> looking at several market indices in detail now, we begin in frankfurt where the dax index closed today at 6689. the u.s. stocks ended the day flat. in new york, the dow jones industrials still up in positive territory at 11,164, and in currency markets, the u.s. dollar sliding against most major currencies after the group of 20 meeting on the need in failed to l.a. -- failed to allay fears in the currency market. the plot thickens in the

takeover battle for germany's construction company. spain had launched a takeover bid, but employees are trying everything they can fend off a takeover. now, they're still in subsidiary has asked the country's takeover panel to intervene. >> the company wants to drive up the cost of a takeover. this could happen acs is required to make a separate bid. it is possible in australia, provided it can be shown theacs is really after is jillion subsidiary. hochtief is supported by jimmy's opposition social democrats, who are positioning during takeover regulations more into line with other key countries -- supported by germany's opposition social democrats. companies which own more than

30% of the company would have certain obligations to other holders, that is if they wanted to boost their holdings. >> we hope that the government and parliamentary groups will want to see more done to ensure fair competition for german companies. this could also give us a chance to change takeover regulations in the case of hochtief. >> a change in legislation would make it substantially more difficult for a non-german concerns such as acs to gain control of the german companies such as hochtief. >> the government in france is striking against unpopular pension reforms, costing the country as much as 400 million euros a day. this came as the flip across the country, about one in four french filling station said they were short of supplies or flat out of gas. a french news agency rorted

french sources say and fuel depots were no longer being blocked. refineries were due to resume operations on monday. to be prepared for possible disruptions on tuesday, the feel are planning on traveling on regional chains within germany, strikes are anticipated as trade unions at the six largest privately owned rail companies demand higher wages for workers. pay levels are about 20% lower than state-owned in the event, one of the largest employers in the country. trade unions want to see a wage agreement applied to all regional workers. they want to schedulemore higher paid workers to come in if the other rail rates go untouched. and an order from norwegian cruise line for two passenger ships worth over 1 billion euros. the 4000 us passenger vessels are due to be delivered by 2014. it will be the largest ever cruise ships made by the german

shipyard. the announcement is great work for the company's working on. the are currently building nine ships. >> a german documentation center chronicling the expulsion of some 15 million ethnic germans and other ethnic groups from their homes in eastern europe following world war ii is one step closer to becoming a reality. the exhibit concept was approved today in berlin by the 21-member committee, which oversees the center. the plan for the center has caused some controversy with countries like poland, fearing the exhibition could divert attention from nazi atrocities during the second world war. >> and artwork that depicts the chaos and upheaval caused by displacement, the structure in central berlin stands opposite the offices of the german foundation for flight, expulsion, and reconciliation behind the new center. >> in the general discussion,

participants unanimously expressed their clear will to create the documentation center on life, the expulsion, and reconciliation. and they have promised to do so speedily. then the debate over the project has raged for two years. the museum will address the fate of the 15 million german expellees as well as the plight of other ethnic groups and minorities. >> on curious what kind of suggestions or criticism the public will have in reaction to this first draft of the concept. >> the center will be set up in this building in berlin. the next step will be getting researchers from around europe to work on the concept. >> to sports now, the world soccer's governing body has extended its investigation into allegations of corruption. at issue is whether or not two

contenders to stage the world cup agreed to trade votes for their respective its theory the countries involved -- spain and portugal, though the bidding for 2018, and qatar, hosting to -- seeking to host the event in 2022, were allegedly seeking to buy votes from members of the fifa board. a formerfficial has been caught on tape, apparently confirming that both were indeed for sale. >> the british newspaper "the sunday times" has published new revelations in the video, which appears to suggest that the world cup can be bought. the man in the video alleges that 1 ft. the executive member can be bribed with women. -- that one fifa executive member can be primed with women. he told the "nday times" reporters that some countries seeking to host the tournament had struck secret deals. the former fifa man said the

joint spain/portugal bid had managed to secure seven votes due to its alliance with catarrh. it once -- once the tournament in 2022. he stressed this was not just here say. he had been passed by a company to find out which of the 24 fifa executive members still had not decided. after the story broke, he backtracked. >> it was not factual aice. ey were only impressions of mine, referring to two or three people. my impression is those people are open to influence, and that is what i said. >> fifa has said it will take the statements into account in its ongoing investigations. >> police in portugal have made one of europe's biggest ever sieges of fake paintings. some 130 forgeries were discovered in a house on the outs of the capital. what to go has become a major transit route for art

traffickers, and police warned passengers to carefully check the authenticity of works purchased there. >> coming up, why youdw-world.d.

get more. >> welcome back. one of the world's biggest plastics trade fairs is set to get under way on thursday in duesseldorf on germany, and insiders say they are expecting double rate growth rates with the man in emerging economies in places like china and india. plastics consumption is forecast doublin t next ve years from 20 kilograms to 36 kilograms per person annually. good news for manufacturers, but not such good news for planet earth. here is a look at a new film that aims to teach us about the dangers plastics pose for our world.

>> plastic is certainly useful stuff. verset tile, resilience, it is almost impossible to imagine a new life without it. this film maker has just made a documentary called "plastic planet," examined the influence of the plastics industry on our lives and even on the way we think. them that if we buy a drink in the supermarket, they only want us to think about the drink itself, not about the fact that we are actually buying a plastic bottle and certainly not about what might be in that plastic and what might come out of it. >> what is in the plastic and might come out of it includes chemicals suscted of causing damage to human cells. scientists have detected components from plastics even in the bodies of small babies. another problem with plastic is that once it is made, it is

almost impossible to get rid of. it bailey decomposes, a problem visible not just on land, but increasingly on see. it is estimated that 10% of the world's plastic waste ends up leading the world's oceans. scientists have discovered huge clouds of plastic waste under the surface of the water. this is not san you can see in the water. it is plastic. >> you do not see it when you are on the boat, but when you start looking for it, even in all of our service nets, this is what we found. this small material is hard to clean up, but it is potentially the most damaging to the marine life. >> fish and birds often mistake the plastic for food. they eat it. their stomachs fill up, and then they starve to death. microbes of sort of plastic as well, bringing their components into the food chain. the argument is that these are unacceptable problems that need to be addressed.

and here, cleaning up plastic waste on a japanese island. more evidence of the plastic planet we inhabit. them in the very first man made plastic was created by alexander parks, who presented at the eaton 62 great international exhibition in london. essentially -- a century and a half ago, who could haveseen e environmental damage it would have cost? one of the worst culprits, the common plastic bag. worldwide, more than one trillion are used each and every year. on average, for just 12 minutes, to carry home shopping. once thrown away, they take anywhere from 400 years to 1000 years to decompose, so is there an alternative? one german company thinks so and has started making packaging materials out of what are known as bioplastics. here's mroe.

*more -- here's more. >> a typical german breakfast table with a typical german breakfast on it. and after it has been eaten, a typical pile of german waste. this is a possible alternative -- a material manufactured by german company alesco, intended to be as practical as normal plastic film, flexible but resistance to tearing, butt is made from starch. it is what is known as bioplastic. >> in contrast to traditional materials, the most controversial issue is sustainability. it is a material that is renewable and in the interval, it is perfectly feasible that they could be recycled and reuseded for the same purpose oa different purpose. it is a completely different

prospect to current materials. >> this film can decompose in just eight to 12 weeks, turning into water, carbon dioxide, and soil. alesco also produces packaging for fruit and vegetables, but german officials are skeptical that these products can solve the problem of plastics. >> it is better for us to take a multi-pronged approach. we would like to see more materials we use. we need to encourage consumers to use bags more than just once. putting these bags into compost piles is not as environmentally beneficial as reing them. >> the bioplastic packaging is still a long way off from reaching the markets, too expensive, three times the price of using a normal bad. >> we are able to bring these products to market, but as a supplier, we are dependent on what our customers order, and if

they order more traditional plastic products, then that is what we deliver. >> so bioplastics remain a niche product for now wle plastics continue to fill the event. >> one of the most unusual products made from plastic is to be found in japan. is food, not food that you would eat, but plastic reproduction of a fire mills that restaurant owners hope will persuade customers to come inside and try the real thing. we went to meet a japanese family that runs a small business specializing in creating these imitations of popular cuisine. in japan, many restaurants have displays outside showing customers what they can eat inside. the meal models used to be made out of wax, but in hot summers,

they would sometimes melt, so nowadays, every conceivable food offering is lovingly recreated from pvc. the process of creating a plastic meal begins with the original. this is a meal that is going to be recreated. na fish, salmon, and shrimp, to ensure the plastic version is accurate, the dish is photograph from every possible angle. then, the work begins in earnest, with most of to create the individual ingredients, a very japanese specialty produce in a small family business -- with molds to create the individual ingredients. the job is to create food that cannot be eaten, but nonetheless to whet the customer's appetite. in the oven for 15 minutes, and this true to life, we will be ready. >> you can tell realistic plastic food from the realistic colors, and it is soft and

flexible, almost like the real thing. the tuna fish looks even better than the real thing because we mix in different shades of color. the salmon, too. we paint white lines on a sole looks more genuine. >> they used use the same old supreme models of shrimp for meals for the same customers, but expectations are higher, and every plastic dish is prepared individual. the customers want an exact and perfect copy of their meal, no bigger, though smaller, though they do allow a little bit of extra color. those photographs from earlier are used to check the accuracy of the reproduction. and then, the finished product is taken to the sushi restaurants. the original and coffee are placed side-by-side for comparison. the sushi chef is pleased with what has been created. the biggest compliment for these plastic coats is when their

stomertell them theifood looks delicious. >> that is our "in depth" looked at the plastic planet. thanks for joining us. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--