>> welcome to the "journal" here in berlin. >> great to have you with us. here's the headlines -- russia and china signed a landmark energy deal. could it be a geopolitical game changer? >> with nigeria still reeling from yesterday's attacks, there are reports of more killings by militants. >> and we will take a look at some of the favorites at the cannes film festival.

>> russia and china have signed an energy deal that promises to be a global game changer. a 30-year oil and gas contract that would pump hundreds of billions into kremlin coffers. >> it's far more than simply a trade pact. >> it was more than a decade in the making, and it is a political triumph for president vladimir putin, who was courting partners in asia as the west seeks to isolate him over his ukraine policy. >> russia's president vladimir putin was determined not to end his visit to china without a big deal. a few strokes of a pen by the two countries signal successful conclusion.

the agreement with china's national petroleum organization will run over 30 years. the russian president hailed the agreement. >> this is the biggest contract in the history of the gas industry in the former ussr and the russian federation in terms of volume. >> i want to note that this was indeed a difficult job at a specialized level. our chinese friends are difficult and tough negotiators. >> it is a contract of compromises. a relatively cheaper price offered by russia and a pledge from china not to impose an import tax on it. analysts say a global drop in gas prices likely pushed russia into signing. the agreement is game changing. it will help ease chinese gas shortages and curb its reliance on coal, and it also deals a blow to the west, offering

russia breathing space from sanctions imposed over ukraine. the deal is due to come into effect over 2018. >> an amazing amount of cash will be changing hands. we asked our moscow correspondent about the economic significance of this megadeal. >> like you said in your intro, i think this is a real game changer. russia has been up against it. it has been delivering gas to europe, but europe has been saying it wants to diversify away, and suddenly overnight, they have a major significant new customer who is going to take as much gas as they can possibly sell to them. the $400 billion it will earn over a decade billion is an upfront payment comes as a -- at a very useful time for russia. >> what about politically,

diplomatically? the u.s. says putin is isolated over ukraine. >> he is isolated on the international front, but when you say isolated, you are talking mainly about the west. however, the rest of the emerging market world have been actually quite silent on this is not quite unsettled to see what they see as america's bullying of russia. the chinese themselves have come out quite strongly in support of russia because they do not like this new unipolar power, as it were, pushing them around, and they subscribe to putin's view of a multipolar world, and that is part of the reason why china has decided to get into bed with russia. >> thank you so very much for those insights. >> with that energy deal done and dusted, russia has turned its attention to the ukraine crisis. the kremlin says russian troops are moving away from the ukrainian border and that to the permanent aces.

>> this has been a key demand for weeks from the u.s. and eu. putin called it a move aimed at providing benign conditions for ukrainian elections on sunday. >> irina has signed up for a dangerous job. she is the deputy chair of the internet. her job is to ensure everything goes smoothly when ukrainians elected a president on sunday, but not everyone wants the boat even take race. >> we were threatened by people with guns. they came in and took all of our paperwork thomas and now, we are trying to put it back together again. >> pro-russian separatist are thought to be behind the intimidation, intent on disrupting the presidential election, but the participants of national unity talks, part of an osce-sponsored peace plan, are adamant that citizens in eastern ukraine should be able to exercise their right to vote. negotiators met not far from

crimea for their third round table session. once again, the separatists were not invited. the german diplomat was not very optimistic. >> after the elections, we will not simply be able to get rid of all the problems with a magic wand. >> meanwhile, russian media has broadcast images of russian troops pulling back from areas near the ukrainian border. a withdrawal could ease tension ahead of the election, but nato says it has seen no sign of a pullout. >> to africa now, attacked the n nigeria according to local residents in the exact location where some 300 schoolgirls were kidnapped just last month. >> the latest violence comes just a day after two massive blast in a central major he and city left 120 people dead. the country's president has

indicated he thinks boko haram militants were behind the bombings. most of the victims were women and children. >> emergency crews clearing a really the wreckage -- clearing away the wreckage. scores of bodies retrieved, but the death toll could still rise. the attack has been blamed on boko haram, the islamist group that waged a campaign of bombings in recent months. this is located in nigeria's middle belt region that divides the mostly muslim north from the christian south. many fear the attack could inflame religious tensions in the country. it is also adding to public outrage over the failure to stop boko haram. the government says it is ommitted to crushing thes insurgents. >> nigeria and other countries in the region will continue to cooperate and coordinate efforts

to combat boko haram. >> several western nations have sent soldiers to fight the insurgents, but so far, there's little sign a are in retreat. >> tuareg rebels say they are now completely in control of a town after reading back an offensive by government troops. a number of pictures have been posted online, which are said to show the militia in control of a government military base. news agency afp is quoting a united nations official on the ground, saying a number of government soldiers have been killed or taken prisoner. two years after the u.s.-led air attacks that toppled lately be a leader moammar gadhafi, the country's dissent into chaos is near complete. >> armed men stormed the ghazi

oz embassy and killed the united states ambassador and his staff -- men stormed the benghazi and the sea. >> the aftermath of a rocket attack in the southwestern suburbs of tripoli -- the barrage came down near an army barracks shortly after the air force chief announced his backing for armed action against the islamists. two migrant workers were killed and a number of people wounded. >> yesterday at midnight, we heard explosions, so we rushed outside to see what was happening. we found out that our shops were burned out, and we evacuated to wounded people. >> the u.s. says it is concerned at the deteriorating situation and has moved elements of a marine air-ground task force

where they could deploy more quickly if needed. >> watching the situation very closely, the unrest, the violence certainly troubling to all of us here in the defense department. again, this was a prudent precautionary measure. >> last week, the libyan general ordered his troops to put an end to the growing influence of islamist militia and their allies in parliament. the u.s. says it cannot condone the move, but libya's formal -- former prime minister was outspoken in his support. >> everyone should join the joint movement of the army and the people, which is aimed at restoring security and putting an end to terrorism. >> this is the parliament building damaged in sunday's attack, which the government has condemned as a coup attempt. the islamists dominated this assembly when it extended its own public mandate. fresh elections have now been called for june 25, an attempt

at least to calm tensions. >> it is day two of martial law in thailand, and the military ordered the country's rival political groups to hold talks this morning. >> that session did not produce any results, but the army says the two sides will meet again tomorrow. >> is the first time these two sides have met since antigovernment protests rope out six months ago. >> thailand's army chief used martial law to summon the opposing sides. representatives included the head of the pro-government camp known as the red shirts. the opposition leader also attended. at their first meeting, the rival camps showed little taste for compromise. the talks are due to resume on thursday. country's urban elite. for months, it has been protesting against the government, accusing it of corruption and nepotism. it is not satisfied that the constitutional court ousted the

premier. it points out that her ruling party is still in power. >> i think we have to win this fight because a lot of our supporters have come out because the government is no longer a government. we need a new set of rules and regulations. >> the antigovernment movement wants to install a people's council to oversee electrode reforms. the government wants a fresh election as soon as possible, feeling it would probably win, thanks to broad support from the rural poor. >> the red shirts will keep on fighting until we get democracy back. >> the military has also imposed far-reaching media restrictions. it has ordered at least 10 tv channels to stop broadcasting and has banned social media it considers anti-military. fears are that martial law could turn into a full military coup despite the army's pledges to the contrary.

that would put elections even further in doubt. >> you might not be surprised to hear that google has overtaken apple to become the world's top brand. findings just published show the tech giant's brand value now totals -- get this -- 115 billion euros. >> those researchers say notations such as the google glass headset help raise google 's profile. apple has recorded a 20% fall in value over the last 12 months, so it now ranks second. as you will hear from our markets correspondent, investors hope google's strong grandstanding will translate into some spending. >> billions of euros and dollars are going to be invested in at the sessions. this, of course, is a perspective that people at the stock exchange and joy. with regard to the gas deal

between russia and china, not even this -- there could also be opportunities in this sense russia and china will invest billions of dollars or rubles and you want into infrastructure to be able to transport gas from russia to china, and maybe german companies will get business in this as well. people are convinced we will see a little volatile nervous up and down days before the german stock index dares to name 10 thousand points again. >> we're going to take a short break, but after one minute, we will tell you all about the goings on at the cannes film festival. >> not only that -- voting starts europewide for a parliament and president of the european commission.

we will talk about some of the eurosceptic arteries and what they want to see happen in the eu. >> i don't think it is time to go away right now. >> welcome back. millions of europeans will begin voting tomorrow, thursday, in a european-wide election that promises to be a test of strength for the eurosceptic hearties. although the elections are european, they have a very local flavor. >> with the battle for votes now in full swing, new antiestablishment parties like germany's asd -- afd are calling for radical changes. >> they are the first ones to set up today. the eurosceptic alternative for germany party is canvassing

voters in berlin. after taking a surprising 4.7% and germany's vote last year, activists want to keep building momentum. the anti-eu party did especially well in affluent areas like this one. >> i'm against the eu because i don't like the things they are doing there, so i voted for the aft. -- afd. >> they are the only party that can still save us. >> people here don't look like they need saving. the eurozone crisis has left few scars in this area. many find it difficult to see how the european union relates to their everyday lives, but few seem interested in finding out. attendance at a question-and-answer session with politicians is poor. >> in the past, politicians neglected the european elections because the european parliament really did have mostly a

symbolic function. >> i think many citizens are very disappointed with the european union, and with good reason. >> the contest for the voters' allegiance is tough, especially in the absence of a real fight over issues, and if you do not have much to offer, you do not get recognized. the christian democrats try their luck with baked goods and balloons. >> would you like a doughnut? >> no, thanks. >> people are rejecting more than the freebies. 60% of germans have little or no interest in the election. >> i'm not going to vote. >> why not? >> it does not interest me. >> no. >> why not? >> because 28 commissioners are too many for me. anyway, the european parliament consists of burnt out politicians. >> german voters may be less

than thrilled with their mep's, but polls still show widespread support for the idea of the eu. >> for me, it is a joy to be -- able to travel freely around europe. there is nothing better. >> we have an enduring peace, which in the past was unimaginable. >> that's why europe is a wonderful project that we absolutely must support. >> that's not how the afd sees the matter. it's eurosceptic message is gaining ground. latest polls suggest 7% of germans would vote for the party. >> if you ever written the london underground, you will have heard a voice saying "mind the gap." >> if only someone had even that advice to french regional train operator rff. they put in a very big order for a fleet of new trains, but they forgot all about the gap. >> they did indeed.

here's more. >> travelers in france expect trains to become fertile, fast, and on time. moreover, they expect to be able to get on and off them easily. now, france's state-owned railroad has discovered that hundreds of new reasonable trains it has ordered will not be able to fit into many of its stations. the new trains are too wide -- by 20 centimeters, to be precise. the country's rail operator has taken the blame for the mistake. it's engineers forgot to check the platform in older stations. >> the platforms were made 50, 70, or a hundred years ago. we've got 30,000 kilometers of rails, and until now, we have never had any problems with trains which ran correctly. that's why we did not measure the platforms by the centimeter. >> work has already begun on trimming back over 1000 rail

platforms to accommodate the new trains. they are due to be phased in by 20 16. the blunder is expected to cost at least 15 million euros. >> elsewhere in france, the sun is shining, the red carpet rolled out, and a-list stars have been striking a pose. >> that can mean only one thing -- the international film festival at cannes is in full swing. >> there's no real favorite yet. some 4500 journalists are there, and many more film fans. one contender for the golden palm is about the real-life murder of a wrestling champion. "fox catcher" tells the story of olympic gold medalist brothers and their friendship with john du pont, and idiosyncratic multimillionaire who bankrolled

the u.s. wrestling squad. a friendship that ended in tragedy. actor steve carell has received 20 of praise for his performance as du pont. >> what do you hope to achieve? >> i want to be the best in the world. >> i think that the style of this film and my other films is not so much telling a story but observing a story, and i tried to create a context that will sensitize you to what is happening beneath the story. >> the director brothers who have already won the golden palm twice have good chances of bagging it again. in two days and one night, french actress marion cotillard is fighting for her job.

her character has to convince her colleagues to give up their bonuses. the film is marked by the brothers' signature style -- humanism and absence of judgment and no sentimental is him. -- sentimentalis,. -- sentimentalism. this action-packed western stars the director's compatriot and a central role. the world's most prestigious film festival comes to an end this week and the coveted prizes are awarded. >> what do you know? our entertainment reporter is keeping a close eye on the festival for us. we asked him for his favorite moment from this year's festival. >> cannes is always good for its scandals, and this year, it was a film that was not even

screening officially called "welcome to new york" which is about dominique strauss-kahn's very famous sex abuse scandal that happened a number of years ago, and it starts is your i do part of -- gerard depardieu as the former imf head, and it is a crazy movie which is almost half pornography. it was a great moment because i don't think you could see any other country other than france who could have such an incredibly prominent figure -- remember, he was almost president of france -- being graded -- degraded in such a manner. and the film itself being so celebrated here. that caused a lot of scandal, and a lot of chattering from the people here, and for me, that was my favorite moment. >> in just over three weeks, football's world cup begins in brazil. with each passing day, worries over security are growing larger.

>> many brazilians are angry at their government's spending spree to fund the tournament and are making their anger known. a group of protesters threw stones outside a building where fans can view the world cup trophy before storming it. >> the greatest worry at the moment, however, is the ongoing unrest in the country's largest city. >> burning buses in the streets of são paulo. less than a month before the soccer world cup is set to kick off, brazil's biggest city is in turmoil. earlier, a strike by public transportation drivers caused chaos in the city. brazilians have been protesting for months. they say the costs or the world cup are way too high. estimates show brazil will spend more than 40 billion euros on the event. many of são paulo's 11 million residents live in slums and believe the money could be better spent raising living standards. instead, housing prices have soared in areas around the newly

built stadiums. most people in brazil expect protests and unrest to continue during the world cup. rio de janeiro, which will host the final, is bracing itself for the worst. >> we estimate that if you put all security activities together, the state of rio de janeiro will need almost 20,000 men until the end of the event. i am absolutely certain that this will be the largest security operation in rio de janeiro's history. >> at the copacabana, it is all peaceful and sunny. a clock is counting down the hours until the kickoff match starts, but it is not certain whether things will remain this calm when the world's eyes turned to brazil next month. >> most of the teams taking part in the world cup are beginning

their final preparations. >> the german team has arrived at their world cup training camp located in the italian alps. germany will stay until the end of the month. a number of key players did not travel with the squad. the captain and goalkeeper are both injured right now and will be joining their teammates in the coming days. england, meanwhile, are spending a week in portugal before traveling to miami and then on to the big game in brazil. >> portugal, miami, brazil -- that's a great location. >> that's all we have time for right now. thanks so much for joining us. >> bye-bye. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--

w?q?q?q?q?q?gg99ññwçça7guc

>> welcome back to the newsroom. you are watching "france 24.a" a deal between russia and beijing. they call it the biggest contract with the former ussr, and militants strike again as workers are searching through bombs one day after twin killed one hundred 18 people, and floodwaters recede in the balkans, revealing devastation. swisspromising