♪ >> here in the french capital, you're watching live from paris on "france 24." these are our top stories. making history, president barack obama visits hiroshima after becoming the first sitting u.s. leader to visit the scene of the world's first atomic bombing. we won't give up as blockades are lifted across france. union leaders are vowing to continue to bash the government's plan to reform labor laws. and talking energy, the russian president vladimir putin arrived in greece on one of his first visits to an e.u. country so far this year.

>> good evening. we begin in the japanese city of hiroshima where thousands gathered today as the u.s. president barack obama visited the site of the world's first atomic bombing. obama is the first sitting u.s. president to visit the site where the bomb was dropped 71 years ago and among those who gathered at the memorial were hiroshima survivors. in the first year of his presidency obama gave a major foreign policy speech in praying -- prague during which he called for the elimination of nuclear stockpiles. >> standing at the hiroshima peace memorial, u.s. president barack obama called for a more peaceful world, one without nuclear weapons. president obama: but among

nations like my own that hold nuclear stockpiles, we must have the courage to escape the logic of fear and pursue a world without them. we may not realize this goal in my lifetime but persistent effort can roll back the possibility of catastrophe. [cheers] >> obama's rhythm with nuclear weapons is complicated. shortly after taking office in 2009, he gave a speech in prague outlining an ambitious plan to rid the world of nuclear stockpiles. his vision won him a nobel peace prize but it clearly hasn't succeeded. it's estimated there are at least 16,300 nuclear weapons around the world. russia has the largest arsenal with over 8,000 warheads. untries such as india, akistan and north korea have

weapons.rger nuclear >> unfortunately reality hasn't played in his favor. there have been a number of things that have come out and indeed barack obama has put in place a modernization to have u.s. nuclear arsenal that may coast over $1 trillion. he's had to make certain decisions he hadn't necessarily wanted to make in the beginning. >> president obama has been more successful in reducing nuclear threats, reaching a brick threw deal with iran to halt its nuclear program and raising awareness about the need to diminish stockpiles. he held the world's first security summit in 2010 as well as the fourth one last month. >> the french president francois hollande is also in jean, taking part in the g-7 summit as well. referring to events back here in france, hollande said the

economic recovery shouldn't be jepdilesed by the recent wave of prozests -- protests. e bock aids have left -- blockade is have left hundreds of petrol stations without fuel. the president said his government is going to push ahead with the labor reforms, which triggered this wave of action in the first place. >> i will keep going because i think these are good reforms. the bill will go before the senate and then return to the national belief. it is within this framework that discussions should take place and nowhere else. >> president hollande speaking there. it's been a week of disruption and fuel shortages here and french oil and gas company total says all nine of its bepoes -- depots have gotten back to normal operations.

a report for more. >> car owners are not waiting to find out if the lines will get longer. they keep filling their tanks just in case. >> it's a problem for me in terms of my job because i have to often fill up with gas. i have to look everywhere. >> this situation may be irritating by the government says it's improving. 20% of gas stations are now dry or low on fuel supplies due to protests against the labor reform. the labor ministry says it's optimistic now that all but one fuel blockade around depots have been cleared. however, workers' unions say they're still striking in six out of eight of france's refineries. fuel shortages are now slowing down public transportation and air traffic.

paris airports are getting less fuel than usual but enough to keep their traffic almost unchanged. the situation is more complicated for regional airports, chose whose fuel suppliers are in shormente supply. meanwhile, for some airports, fuel levels are not the only reoccupation. -- preoccupation. they have to deal with their own strikes. airport personnel also protesting against the thrabe reforms. > now, the russian president vladimir putin has today arrived in greece. he's holding talks with the prime minister sip rat. talks on russian investment. he's also visiting one of orthodox christianity's holiest sites in greece. we have a reporter in athens. why is putin there and what's on

the -- under discussion? >> there's a variety of reasons. first, as you mentioned, he is visiting tomorrow to celebrations marking the 1,000 -year presence of russian orthodox community, one of the most important in christianity. on the sideline of that, he's also taking a huge opportunity both for greece and for him because it's kind of a wink at rope, because greece share such strong cultural and religious ties that go back in history but also he's seeking to kind of revive economic relationships and investing in greece. for quite some time russia has been eyeing the northern ports, which is very strategic, but also greece's railway.

of course for greece, it's a big investment opportunity. now they're just signing a series of by lateral agreements ranging from -- bilateral agreements ranging from tourism to investing in infrastructure in greece, energy, you name it. on both sides, they want to use their alliance, if you could call it as much, as a pressure tool to brussels. so i think both have a lot to benefit from each other but at the same time greece is very aware of what putin and russia can represent. >> it's interesting that put be -- putin hasn't been to a single e.u. country this year and here he is almost six months into the year paying a visit to greece. i wonder what sort of a welcome he's expected to get there. how do greeks feel about putin's visit? is he getting a raptures welcome? >> absolutely. you'd be surprised. the city center has been all but

closed off to the public. that will give you an idea. we have over 2,000 policemen deployed on the streets. we're hearing that the russian leader is going to stay at a coastal resort. the security there is completely beefed up. you know, red carpet to welcome him and this, after all, is an unofficial visit so we have the defense minister meeting him at the airport. a meeting with the president. very symbolic. he has all the honors that would go attached to an official visit. too greeks have a soft spot for russia and for putin and are kind of looking at this with a bit of enthusiasm, but as i said earlier, they're all very well aware of what russia can represent but more often than not they look at russia as a

friend and an ally and basically because of the shared values, if you like, that are linked to their culture and their religion and that's exactly what putin stressed when he wrote an article in one of the most popular newspapers here, but also in his speech he said let's try and turn this friendship into actual material results and i think that's what the prime minister is very keen on having done. >> thank you very much for that update. the italian coast guard says that dozens of migrants are missing following the sinking of an overloaded fishing boat in the coast off libya. according to one reporort, as my as 350 people are aboard that stricken vessel. italian rescuers say that about 130 are accounted for. this is the third major accident

involving migrants in week along. with authorities estimating now more than 10,000 migrants have been rescued off the coast of libya. fallujah has been in control of the islamic state group since 2014 and it remains the second largest city still head by the militants. a shia military leader said a final push to recapture fallujah could begin within a matter of days. we're finding out that a u.s. air strike has killed the strike commander and dozens of other militants in that city in fallujah. we have a reporter with more. >> they fled their homes where they had been blocked for months. they had little food and no running water but they considered themselves lucky. they're out of fallujah and like -- unlike tens of thousands of

over civilians still trapped in the city. >> we were trapped in fallujah and we got out. >> fallujah was the first iraqi city taken by the islamic state group in january 2014. the government hopes to push the militants out of the whole area. after six months of siege, during which no food or medicine reached the town, iraqi troops and their allies launched an offensive on monday. they were already struggling to survive. now their neighborhoods are being bombed. dozens have been killed. security forces have only evacuated several hundred people. >> the displaced people are coming from different areas then we bring them to a specialized committee and academic there are any wanted people among them. they urge iraqi civilians to

evacuate fallujah as quickly as possible 6. >> clashes near a bridge leading up to baghdad's heavily guarded green zone. soldiers fired tear gas at the crowd, calling for sweeping reforms reforms in the country. demonstrated to break in and storm the iraqi parliament. for the second time in a week, a cabinet member in israel has handed in his notice. it was accompanied by a blistering attack on the prime netanyahu, whoin he accuses of putting the country on a track to ruin. he followed the resignation of the defense minister earlier in the week. here's what the outgoing minister had to say.

>> it is in my opinion, a highly unusual move, even in the cynical world of politics. the defense minister is the most important minister. something aside of a professional and manage minister, who managed to calm the palestinian uprising is a decision they cannot accept. >> the outgoing israeli minister of the environment. we have a reporter from jerusalem with the latest. >> environment minister gabbay is from the one real main centrist party in this right wing coalition government and he resigned this morning with a searing speech, the second in the space of a week. last week it was the defense minister who left. and gabbay has a number of complaints about this government which he describes as cynical and destructive but he looks at

that resignation and says the this is the straw that broke the camel's back. y back, he said. lieberman, who is extremist, maverick and inexperienced and said that was a bad move for israel. he called for prime minister netanyahu to wake up. he said israel wants a right-wing government but not an extremist one. >> a ukrainian pilot who returned home this week after spending two years in russian custody has given her first news conference today since her release. the 35-year-old told reporters she would now like to get back behind the controls of a plane but might also launch a political career to help ukraine deal with ongoing turmoil. she said she would do anything possible to secure the freedom of other ukrainians still being held in custody. >> i'm ready to talk to the

devil himself to get every one of our people back. i don't reject any resolutions. when they say we should not engage with separatists politically, i don't think so. i will engage with everyone. but that doesn't mean we will become friends and divide ukraine into two parts tomorrow. no. >> the newly released ukrainian pilot speaking there. in a few weeks, voters across the channel are cast ballots on whether or not the u.k. should remain in the european union. polls suggest that younger people are in favor of remaining but they're much less likely to get to the polling places and vote. we have more on this generational split. >> this young all of a sudden makes up a significant portion of the u.k.'s electorate. the electoral reform society has warned of a worrying generation

gap. 21% of 18 to18% to 24-year-old are interested in the referendum. compared to 47% of those over 65. flash topics such as immigration -- >> just remember how many immigrants like my family, like lot of people's family in this have you had have built this nation. >> we have people in australia, canada. at the moment -- why not have somebody from the common wept, somebody who speaks our language -- >> oh! >> well, i didn't have an issue with that, actually, alan. >> another weighty issue, employment. >> i plan on attending university. will i have a job if we leave the e. u.? will the economy be strong enough? >> if you're good enough to get a job, you'll get a job.

>> worries, travel within europe. professional opportunities within and affordable -- along the way. >> active opportunity. by leaving i don't have the opportunity. >> the majority of us here all own a smart phone. come the beginning of next month, e.u. things the charges are going to -- thinks the charges are going to go down within europe. >> once again, deflections, insults, petty name calling -- i do not have an issue. i have no idea what to do and i blame you entirely for that. >> for now, though, many still haven't heard enough to make up their mind. >> now, donald trump has the support of enough delegates to clinch the republican nomination for president, something he's described as a great honor. he'll be giving a speech at an

oil conference where he'd outline the energy policies he'd pursue if elected to the white house. amongst them, a u.s. withdrawal from the paris climate deal. >> pulling the plug on the paris -u.s. climate accord is one of trump. cies outlined by he said he was reduce the u.s.'s flagging coal industries. >> american energy dominance will be declared a strategic foreign policy goal of the united states. america has 1.5 times as much oil as the combined proven resources -- listen to this -- as the combined proven resources of all opec countries. >> if elected to the white house, trump said he would scrap the paris climate deal and funding of global warming programs, overturn carbon

emissions targets and approve a keystone pipeline. >> america's incredible energy potential remains untapped. it's totally self-inflicted. it's a wound and a wound that we have to heal. >> environment advocates have already labeled the proposals frightening. trump has publicly declared climate change "a hoax" and engaged a climate skeptic as his tom energy policy vilesor. his energy policies are in stark contrast to rival democrat candidate hillary clinton and bernie sanders who support rolling backus reliance on fossil fuels to make way for more renewable energy. >> a reminder of our top stories here on "france 24." making history, barack obama pays a visit to hiroshima, becoming the first sitting u.s. president to visit the scene of the world's first atomic bombing. we won't give up.

as oil block aids are limited across france, union leaders are protestng their plan to law reforms. president putin arrived in greece, his first visit to an e.u. country so far this year. a check of the top business news stories. you've got some new information coming into us about the u.s. economy. >> the commerce department had forecast the u.s. economy's growth for the first quarter earlier in year. they released a second estimate earlier today saying that the economy grew at an annual rate of 0 .%. slightly more robust than what many thought but still the weakest performance since last year's first quarter. the economy has been hurt by a strong dollar, sluggish global demand and also low oil prices. >> speaking of oil prices, let's

check in on the markets. yesterday oil hit a seven-month high, hitting $50 a barrel. it's since dropped down. prices came under pressure from the strong dollar but economists expect it could help supply shortages and help clear a glut over the next few months. on wall street, that means energy stocks were down earlier today. health care is up. at the moment, the dow, the nasdaq and s&p are each up per a third to 1 half a scent. janette yellen said an interest hike could be probable in the next few months if economic growth continues. europe stocks were up. although, carmakers fiat and others all closed down.

the strikes continue here in france but a bit of optimism from the french government that says fuel supplies are slightly better at gas stations. french aviation authorities are less optimistic. air france said it was told to fuel up abroad over the strikes. all this over protests against the socialist government over reforms forced into law. borne out of frustration has been innovation. drivers have turned to smart phone apps and other inventive ways to get their fill. we have a report. >> due to ongoing strikes at the labor reforms, business near the french border has been picking up. mainlyly made up of french fuel tourists. >> naturally there are shortages .

it makes for good business sense. so here we are. >> national strikes kicked off down union in week shut six of france's oil refineries, leading to major shortages. many people here in paris a on their mobile phones, not textsing or expressing their despair on social media but searching for the best place to find fuel on mobile applications. >> the applications show the stations which are open and the stocks of the different times of petrol. >> this info is kept continually updated by drivers or pump attend ants. the most popular was developed here in this office with they -- where they say business is booming. >> several hundred users. >> how much normally? >> 300,000 a month. >> paris residents also have

another thing at their disposal. the car agency run through an app. however, most are busy, in which case, there's always the bicycle. >> wrapping up the summit in japan. and although the brexit wasn't officially on the agenda it did get a lot of attention there. that's, of course, britain's possible exit from the european union in less than one month, voters will decide britain's future in a referendum. angela mercker told reporters all present at the g-7 indicate they do want the u.k. to remain in the e.u. >> two days of talks are over and leaders of the group of seven countries have outlined what they agree on. britain, canada, france, germany, italy, japan, and the united states all say britain should choose to stay in the e.u. in next month's referendum. they say a brexit would reverse

the trend towards global trailed and investment and is a serious risk to growth. the message was welcomed by prime minister david cameron. >> it's not just me saying that there are economic risks from britain leaving the e.u. it is now a pretty large consensus that include people of impeccable independence and academic standing. and i think when you have that sort of agreement, it is really worth listening to. >> the talks also focused on the terrorist threat. global growth was teamed -- deemed crucial to settling violence extremism. >> the g-7 elaborated an action plan against terrorism. with information the changed, stronger security and efforts to combat everything that contributes to financing terrorism. >> g-7 leaders blamed

overcapacity in some industries like chinese steel for distorting markets and as in previous years, they denounced protectionism and trailed barriers.8úxú

05/27/16 05/27/16 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica this is , democracy now! >> that is a future we c can choose, a a future in which hiroshima and nagasaki are known the atomicdawn of warfare, but as the start of our own moral awakening. amy: president obama becomes the first sitting u.s. president to