investigate last week's chemical attack but there's no sign russia is ready to drop their .upport for assad the game was postponed by the .ttack iran's former president says he

will run again for the top job. --moud on the dinner job run.t in a job -- he will first, russia and the united states have agreed on the need to investigate last week's chemical attack in syria. a military communications channel was closed after u.s. airstrikes on a syrian airbase last week but there's no sign moscow is willing to drop it bashar al-assad. rex secretary of state tillerson said trust between washington and moscow was low. discussed the

current state of u.s.-russia relations. i expressed their view that the current state of u.s.-russia relations is that a low point. there is a low level of trust between our two countries. world's two foremost nuclear powers cannot have this kind of relationship. we further discussed approaches to improving our channels of communication. we had a link the situation in syria and shared perspectives on possible ways forward. on thethomas has more significance of those meetings in the comments made by the two in moscow. reporter: what have we got so far? there are several signs of cooperation that have inklings of coordination but they're fairly limited at this point, given the scope of the issues of both of these countries, countries that have nuclear weapons.

where heard from sergey lavrov, the foreign minister, saying a working group will be set up to examine the poor state of ties whichn the two countries, shows something of an effort to build a relationship there, and also the decision from vladimir put the memorandum of flight safety in syria back on track to get the hotline working again, which enables communication between both the russian and american air forces so that planes don't accidentally shoot each other down or run into each other. why did he do that? it was only suspended a couple of days ago. i would suggest it is to show that russia has a significant degree of influence in syria, that it can do things to make the life of the u.s. military

very difficult in syria, or which would help it if washington is willing to make conditions and follow the rights that's. has had totillerson severely downscale his expectations from the sound of it. aiment to moscow with the of persuading the russians to drop their support for asher al-assad and that's not what happened today. there has been no ground given whatsoever on the future of assad and there was no mention until the very end. there's a big divide between the two countries, russia backed assad in syria for a long time now with lots of money and dozens of soldiers have been killed in the country. russia's influence in syria is largely dependent on assad or

someone who could replace him and is willing to pursue or allow russia to pursue its interest in syria. there is no figure on the board currently like that that we are aware of. the uss basically either you're with us or against us. either you're with the western states in syria are you will stand beside the syrian regime and ran. very little concrete on the , both of bashar al-assad sides sticking to their guns and sticking to the strong rhetoric they had before the meeting. laura: there was a heated exchange at the you -- un security council today which had been debating a new resolution on syria. a new text was put forward that would condemn the use of chemical weapons in syria.

rush is expected to veto it. here is part of that meeting and the bitter disagreement between the british and russian ambassadors. take a listen. >> time and time again, russia has protected the regime and defended its use of chemical weapons. and what has russia got in return for its seven be toes in six years? years?n vetoes in six it's been exposed as a shambles. protest hase in the been turned to humiliation and russia's credibility and reputation across the world has been poisoned by its toxic .ssociation with assad >> regine change for you is more important than the position of the majority of countries of the united nations. >> syria, iran, turkey, other

states. mr. president, i would ask you to make sure that the rules of procedure of this meeting is respected. members speak insultingly, i cannot accept that you insult russia. hasa: champions league wrapped up in the german city of win for with a 3-2 michael. the match was postponed after three months -- three bombs hit the bus of the german side. the attack is being treated as terrorism and at least one suspect has been arrested. he is said to have links to islamic extremism. two letters were found at the scene and are being investigated. the explosive contained shrapnel. german chancellor angela merkel has called it appalling.

down -- theyining leave the training ground in their own cars after their brush with death. the bus was targeted as they headed to the stadium for the match against monaco. thee explosions destroyed rear part of the vehicle. police are focusing their investigation on two suspects with extreme islamic links. >> explosive devices were equipped with strips of metal. one was drilled into the head rest of one of the sea inside the bus. we are lucky that nothing worse happened. explosive devices were capable of reaching beyond 100 meters. >> prosecutor say they found three copies of a letter near the scene of the bus blast.

,here was a series of demands including the withdrawal of planes over syria and the closing of an airbase. the soccer authorities said it will review security across the champions league tournament. >> we will as the club's two review security measures to guarantee the safety and security of all those involved and also tomorrow for the opening matches. >> are considering detailed body searches as part of the security measures. laura: joining me is alexander, security analyst at the global studies institute. thank you for being with us on "france 24." the investigation is still ongoing and it's not been determined who was behind the attack. if it was islamic state group, it will be their first attack incident attempted bombing of

that france germany match back in 2015. i don't think football is the issue, i think politics is the issue. indeed in the two letters at a been found, there are rumors that a third message has also been delivered. it is germany's association in a coalition of essentially nato countries it has been bombing against the islamic state for the last few years. all the while, germany's involvement in the coalition is not involve bombing, it is actually reconnaissance flights, reconnaissance and targeting up islamic state targets and infrastructure has been one of the very ambiguous involvements of german foreign policy the past few years. strike and its port is another way to hit at a big symbol, isn't it?

of european symbol life, another way to make people feel afraid when they go about doing things they enjoy. >> absolutely. as you said, i think it's very symbolic what has happened. essentially war has invited itself into germany because of its policies, because of its immigration policies in particular. three bombs exploded, but there are rumors there was a fourth weapon that did not explode and of course the disposition of these weapons along the roadside reminds us of the improvised explosive devices that are being used by the taliban and by the islamic state in afghanistan in the first case and in syria more recently. laura: an previous attacks in germany have been blamed on migrants, some of those attacks were blamed on migrants coming to germany from the middle east.

we saw comments from the german finance minister who said muslims who migrate to europe should understand that are better places to live if they want to live under islamic law. we are seeing a tougher line perhaps from government. >> the tone has completely changed in germany since late 2015 already because these authorities now have to deal with their own administration, which cannot follow with the quantity of people that have come in. it's about 500,000 people that are unaccounted for in germany. so it's very difficult on one side to say that you want to give a silent to people and then have to admit that half of these people almost are unaccounted for. they cannot be located easily,

simply because they do not report regularly to the authorities. so i think there is a lot of explaining to do on the home front with regard to this immigration policy, with regard to demonstrating the strategy and clear lines towards the german administration and german public, and there's also, as i mentioned before, clarification that needs to come with regard to germany's involvement in nato, germany's involvement in the syria conflict over these past few years. last month alone, we've seen attacks in westminster, stockholm, now in germany. the list of european cities being targeted by terrorists seems to be growing. it's become something that europeans just ugly have to live with. >> i'm not sure that is the plan

and i'm not sure that any politician can really truthfully and correctly say get used to it , this is going to happen regularly. laura: the french prime minister said it. >> i don't necessarily agree with these words. i think something needs to be done about this, but we also had to understand that strategically, all of these aents are taking place at very crucial moment, because there'll be extremely important elections in germany. weeks if not a few days, the french presidential election, and over the past 12-15 months, most intelligent services in germany and france and switzerland have all been saying this is a crucial moment right now, this is the moment when islamic fundamentalist

groups such as islamic state can onduce the most effect european politics if they strike now. laura: alexander, thank you very much indeed. here in france, authorities have been transferring migrants from a camp that was destroyed by northern city of dunkirk. 1200 people have been buzzed off to temporary accommodations elsewhere since the fire on monday night. officials say the fire started following a fight between afghans and kurds who were camped there trying to reach u.k. by the english channel. hundreds remain unaccounted for. leaderformer firebrand mahmoud ahmadinejad announced he is running for president during his last and in power, there were huge popular protests in iran and grinding international sanctions were imposed on the

regime. a surprise return against the supreme leader's wishes. former iranian president mahmoud almond in a job said despite being advised not to run again, he was returning to the political realm for his fans and to support his former vice president, who is also running. >> it was just advised, and his advice does not prevent me from running. there is extensive pressure on me from dear people in different walks of life to come onto the election seen. nevertheless, i am committed to the moral promise i made to the supreme leader, and today, my presence here and my registration is solely for supporting my dear brother who has signed up as well. reporter: if he does intend to run after all, it would shake up

the race many iranians assume will be won by the current moderate president. many sanctions imposed on the country were lifted, but that was before the election of the current u.s. president, doll trump, who has taken a more iran.e stance toward his presidency between 2005-2013 divided many in the country. some appreciated his hard-line approach and belligerence toward israel. he denies that the holocaust happened and has repeatedly called for the country's demise. in 2000 9,000 were imprisoned and scores killed in huge protest against i'm a dinner job -- against his reelection. craig some took to the streets bearing placards telling him to work the occasion by taking a permanent holiday.

the no-confidence vote next week has been suspended. was not ont probably his birthday wish list, but thousands used his birthday to give him a message. protesters rallied in the capital pretoria, telling him to go. >> we want him to step down. economic freedom is what we are fighting for. the pretoria demonstrations united all kinds of group. supporters of the democratic alliance popular with the white minority and other opposition groups backed by black south

africans. is facing increasing criticism from within his own party. for the moment, zuma is sitting tight, but he's facing a no-confidence vote once the court decides whether it should be taken by secret ballot. businesst's get some news, kate moody is with us in the studio. starting with the charity oxfam, it has a new report on how big american companies are keeping money abroad to avoid paying taxes. saying the 50p biggest companies had an 1.6hore cash pile worth trillion dollars. most of the money is kept in tax havens which oxfam says is hurting poor and working-class people around the world.

rebecca rossman has the story. reporter: it's a common practice that is more popular than ever. big american companies going taxis to avoid weighing were the corporate rate is at 35%. >> they've increased the use of ,ffshore tax havens dramatically reducing the tax payments to the u.s. and countries around the world which can have really negative consequences for poor and working-class people in america and in the poorest countries in the world. >> oxfam says it's equally worried about a proposal from president trump to reduce the u.s. corporate tax rate to 15% and allow companies to patry ate their stored cash back in the test ofh the one time only 10%. system, theyrent

would pay $560 billion in tax but the 10% tax rate would mean the government losing out on $400 billion. which is fine -- which is why according to oxfam, it's what they've been lobbying for for years. >> of companies will put their profits earned over several years into many offshore tax havens with the expectation and hope that congress will lower the tax rate and they will be able to basically passed that money back to their shareholders without paying as much taxes. reporter: the report estimates the top 50 companies have spent millions on lobbying congress, specifically to influence the tax debate. kate: a muted picture in europe on the stocks. daimlerve close as pushed up gains for the auto industry.

geopolitical concerns are back and waiting on wall street. the dow jones trading down about 40 points and the volatility index has i. down nearly .5% this hour. the head of the international monetary fund has taken a swipe at the growing trend of protectionist policies around the world saying that could hold back the global economy. saying there were signs of growth but that there could be a damper on the momentum. uncertainty, including at the center of europe, and i'm referring to various elections coming up, i'm referring to brexit and the terms under which it will be negotiated, the sort of protectionism which is hanging over global trade and tighter global financial conditions that could trigger disruptive capital

outflows from emerging to developing economies, a phenomena and we have not seen yet. kate: she also held progress in greece's debt negotiations saying potential participation in the bailout program is only about halfway through. headlines,business dan and has finalized his takeover of the u.s. group. the deal will double down on shares of the u.s. market. a number of plant-based substitutes like allman milk or a rapidly growing sector. the longest-serving female joins theof uber staff exodus. fuel prices rose but earnings

increased in the first three months of the year. the carrier said its request to take $125 million hit to its current quarterly results after severe weather near its atlanta hub forced it to cancel 4000 flights last week. many tourists or residents of paris will be familiar with the rental bikes that allow you to pedal quickly and cheaply around the city. prices may be set to rise as a new operator takes over. they won the next 14 year contract. the bikes will be getting a makeover. >> that have become as much a part of the parisian landscape as the eiffel tower. the ubiquitous bicycles have been rolling on the streets for a decade. today, 75 of them are rented per minute. while many are happy with the bikes, they do have a few complaints. next they are great, if you can

find a place to dock them. craig sometimes there are bikes that are broken with a punctured tire or chain that has come off. >> with any year, the bikes will maine -- made and maintained by a french company. vancouver,oscow and and their much lighter and come with extra features integrated into the bicycle. a system allows users to leave bikes at stations that are already full. but a key selling point is security. >> we develop the system by working with vandals, people who were used to stealing other rental bikes, in order to see how they did it. in that way, we created a theft proof bike. >> local median paris reports the prudence will lead to profits of up to 35%. that would see standard annual

descriptions rise. premium subscriptions as high as short time passes use mostly by tourists would give users just 15 minutes use per euro. as long as the users remain loyal. and the peerless girl statue was a hit when it was unveiled on international women's day last month in new york city. the four foot ron's girl faces off against the charging full of wall street to bring awareness about the lack of female leaders and the corporations. but the artist behind the bull is not pleased. saying the new installation violates his legal rights. he installed it in 1987 to celebrate american resilience after a stock market crash that year. his longer said the girls defiance undermines the integrity of his work. bull no longer

carries a positive, optimistic message. rather, it has been transformed into a negative force and a threat. kate: it has attracted some criticism notably from mayor bill de blasio. he said men who don't like women taking up space are exactly why we need the fearless girl. quite an interesting controversy there. laura: thank you very

04/12/17 04/12/17 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from pacifica, this is democracy now! >> many, unfairly, did not realize that the u.s. was are ready bombing syria. in syria and iraq, just over the recent weeks and months, u.s. air attacks have hit mosques, schools, apartment complexes, and killed many, many hundreds of civilians. amy: as rex tillerson meets with his russian, part