phil: this is "dw news," live from berlin. donald trump's former attorney gives congress a damming indictment of the president. mr. . cohen: he is a racist, hes a con man, and he is achieved. phil: and he unleashes a torrent of allegations. the white house says michael cohen is lying. also on the program, the second summit between the leaders of the and north korea gets off to a friendly start. donald trump and kim jong-un opened her meeting in the vietnamese capital, hanoi.

will it be enough to make progress towards peace? and britain's parliament votes on a series of amendments to brexit mps backing the move to ask brussels for a delay of the date britain leaves the european union if necessary. and another doping scandal hits the sporting world. police in austria and germany make several arrests, hitting the world of nordic skiing. phil: i am phil gayle. welcome to the program. donald trump's former fixer and personal lawyer has made a string of allegations about the u.s. president. michael cohen told the congressional committee that the president had prior knowledge of week emails during the

presidential campaign and said that the president instructed him to break campaign-finance laws. >> mr. cohen's testimony is the beginning of the process, not be funny to. - not the end. ladies and gentlemen, the days of this committee protecting the president at all costs are over. reporter: the democratic-controlled house flexed its muscles with michael cohen's live testimony, and they cannot of chosen a more colorful witness to kick off the hearings. mr. cohen: i am ashamed, because i know what mr. trump is. he is a racist, he is a con man, and he is a cheat. reporter: cohen was president trump's personal lawyer for a decade before he was caught up in the probe of russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. he was called to capitol hill to testify on possible criminal conduct by the president and is

and will circle, including his son-in-law, son, and campaign manager, related to the election and beyond. cohen said the president directed him to break campaign-finance laws with hush money payments to porn star stormy daniels. mr. cohen: i am providing the copy of a $35,000 check that president trump personally signed from his personal bank account on august 1, 2017. when he was president of the united states, pursuant to the cover-up, which was the basis of my guilty plea, to reimburse me. reporter: cohen alslso painted a portrait of a candidate who encouraged associates to do anything to get him elected. that included communicating with wikileaks about emails stolen from his opponent hillary clinton. mr. cohen: mr. stone told mr. trump that he had just gotten off the phone with julian assange, and mr. assange told

mr. stone that within a couple of days, there would be a massive dump of emails that would damage hillary clinton's campaign. mr. trump responded by stating to the effect, "wouldn't that be great?" reporter: cohen provided no smoking gun of the trump campaign's collusion with russia. he suspects it, he said, but he has no complete evidence. but if wednesday's hearing is any indication from the rest of the trump presidency will be docked by inquiries as the democrats expand investigations of the president's business and political affairs. phil: straight to washington, where dw correspondent helena humphrey has been following the drama. welcome. how significant is michael cohen's testimony? helena: people here in the united states has been glued to their televisions here and washington, d.c. some bars have been open from

10:00 a.m. so people can attend hearing watch parties. this is a moment in history many people have been saying or drawing parallels to another presidential lawyer, john dean come and his testimony in 1973, the watergate scandal. his testimony was seen as the turning point in the investigation a year later, president nixon resisigned. the question is, what is so explosive about mr. cohen's testimony today? i wouldn't say is the character assassination -- mudslinging has been going on the past two years. it is the three big accusations. esther cohen had to come up with something concrete, and those allegations are related to the wikileaks dumping of emails regarding democratic candidate hillary clinton that trump had prior knowledge about that. two, regarding russia, that he continued his business with the moscow trump tower in 2016 when he was running for president, and that he knew about his son,

donald, jr. meeting, in trump tower in manhattan with russian connections. and three, regarding hush money payments to adult actress stormy daniels of the we knew about the payments. what we didn't know in the allegations of mr. cohen is that president trump reimbursed him, pay him back with a check on he was in office, the check that he was presenting taken congress appears to bear the signature of the president and is dated august 2017. phil: talk us to the reaction to this drama. helena: i think it is fair to say that the most explosive reaction has been in congress. today, the beginning of proceedings, resolve republican mark meadows trying to delay the proceedings, saying that we did not receive the prepared statement in time and there was a vote in delaying it. that did not pass. mark meadows then taking the line, what proof do you have.

that is the chorus line we keep seeing -- what proof do you have that mr. trump is a racist, for example. trump ally jim jordan also said, are you aware, mr. cohen, that essentially you are a puppet of the democrats who want to bring down the president. despite the fact that president trump is that a high-stakes summit in vietnam where he is meeting with north korean leader kim jong un, we believe he has been tuning in. he has been tweeting. he retreated an earlier tweet. "michael cohen was one of my many lawyers who represented me, unfortunately. he and other clients also. he was just as far by the state supreme court for lying and fraud. he did bad things unrelated to trump. he is line in order to reduce his prison time using crooked's lawyer." it is believed his sentence is already set. phil: briefly, which of these

claims is likely to be the most damaging? helena: until there is concrete evidence, so far it is the reputational damage. there will be interest in russian allegations, but at the moment it seems that these allegations are the summit between the blocks of the mueller investigation -- cement between the blocks of the mueller investigation. there is one allegation that mr. cohen is aware of further illegality, which he cannot speak about. we all look forward to hearing more about that in the future. phil: the next exciting episode. helena humphrey in washington, thank you. meanwhile, the second summit between president trump and north korea's leader kim jong-un is underway in vietnam. they met for short time on wednesday evening. more talks are set for the morning. mr. trump hopes to push mr. kim to give up his nuclear weapons program in exchange for economic

development. the talks come 8 months after an historic summit in singapore, the first between a sitting u.s. president and the north korean leader. dw correspondent alexandra von nahmen is following the talks in hanoi. here is her assessment. alexandra: on the first day of their summit, donald trump and kim jong-un were all smiles and pleasantries. the u.s. president repeatedly stressed his good relationship with the north korean leader, referring to the brutal dictator as "my friend." he seemed to be hopeful that their personal rapport can bridge gaps in negotiations. on thursday, the talks will continue. the u.s. is seeking detailed commitments from pyongyang to dismantle at least some of tis to live-- its nuclear facilities. while kim's regime wants relief

from punishing economic sanctions. the challenge will be toooo try the apparent good chemistry between the two leaders into a concrete agreement both sides are happy with. phil: alexandra von nahmen in hanoi. now to some of the other stories making news around the world. it kititchen state television ns at least 20 people were killeled and 14 woundnded aftfter a fire broke out at cairo's s main tran station. the fifire was reportedly set of by a fuel tank which exploded. nigeria's president muhammadu buhari has defended his victory with his presidential election. the electoral commission declared the result on wednesday, sayaying he had won y a comfortable margin. the opposition said the election was rigged and they would challenge it in court. the german city of regensburg is celebrating the opening of a new synagogue. the building stands on the same site as a synagogue that burned down during a night of attacks

across nazi germany. the jewish community in the town has grown in recent years, and now numbers about 1000. spain's former prime minister mariano rajoy has appeared in court as a witness in the trial of 12 catalan separatist leaders . he said the politicians created a dangerous situation i in the 2017 i independence bid and he defended his decision to crack down on the separatist movement. the trial continues. british lawmakers have been taking part in a series of votes that could result in a delay to brexit beyond the current deadline. mps voted to allow themselves a vote in favor of seeking an extension to the current brexit deadline. prime mnister may says it is not her preferred outcome. european leaders say they are open to a brexit tlaib and nott to renegotiating the deal. -- brexit delay but not to

renegotiating the deal. straight to london, where we are joined by birgit maass outside the houses of parliament. nothing about brexit is straightforward. mps were due to vote on five amendments tonight. which are the most significant? birgit: well, you already mentioned one, were basically backing theresa may's plan were if her deal does not get the approvement of parliament in a couple weeks' time, she will ask for an extension, if the house of parliament approves of. maximum three-month extension. the other intereststing amendmet was later, there-- labour, their vision of how brexit should look like. it got voted down. will they throw their whole weight behind the second referendum, campaign for a second referendum? i don't know if you hear or see

behinde, white a lot of campaigners are e hoping thatt labor willll actually do that. it remains to be s seen. maybe tomorrow we will know more. phil: nothing about this is straightforward. which do you think at this stage looks like the most likely scenario, an extension of the negotiations or in fact no deal? birgit: well, those two are not mutually exclusive. it is more likely, i think, that if theresa may's deal does not get voted through parliament in a couple weeks time, mps might seek an extension. however, at the end of that period, theresa may says she will look at maximum three months time because there will be a parliament election and she is not in favor of going for a very long period. it is the same situation. it is just moved a few months time into the summer. but still, the default position if parliamentarians cannot get

it together or there is a second referendum, which looks unlikely at this point, the default still that there is no deal and the u.k. does crash out at some point. phil: on this idea of an extension, the french president of the eu would only agree to extend the deadline. if britain with something new on the table, as anything new emerged? birgit: well, this is what european leaders have always stressed, that they are sympathetic to the difficulties that mrs. may is facing here at home, and that ey want something concrete, that they want something like a general election or maybe a second referendum. it was interesting -- i spoke to one campaigner for a second referendum and he said he is really hoping for the eu to do that and to put some condition on this extension like, in his case, a second referendum, because then this is his way of making sure that he can get it through.

we don't know yet what the eu is really going to do. theresa may as a said she is adamant, only three months time. but maybe the eu also has the power to say, well, maybe a longer period of time so you in london can once and for all, what you really want, what kind of relationship do you want with the european union. phil: all right, birgit maass in london, thank you. the european union has urged india and pakistan to exercise the utmost restraint in their current abrego violence over the disputed territory -- outbreak of violence over the disputed territory of kashmir. the eu warned that it could lead to dangerous consequences. on wednesday, india and pakistan both claim to have shot down fighter jets from the other side. reporter: many detetails surrounding the latest skirmishshes between india and pakistan remain unclear.

nevertheless, pakistan says it took down 2 indian fighter jets. >> two indian air force planes once again into pakistan while crossing the line of control. the pakistani air force was ready. it took them on. there was an engagement, and as a result, both of the indian planes were shot down. reporter: the incident is the latest in a series of events in the contested kashmir region. the area has been central to the dispute between the two countries for decades. by some estimates, it is t the world's most militarized zone, a stare d down zone between two nuclear neighbors. the latest escalation began two weeks ago when 40 indian paramilitary police were killed by suicide bomber. according to the indian government, its warplanes retaliliated this week b by strg a training camp near pakistatani town, killing "a large number of militants."

delhi says it launched the airstrikes against jc mohammed after it gotot intelligence that group was planning for the attacks. > based on credible informatn that they were planning other attacks, the e government of ina decided to take action. reporter: with pakistan's clclam it shot down two indian warplanes, tensions of escalated further. pakistan's prime minister imran khan has called for talks with india. >> i want to ask a question of the indian government, that considering the nature of the weapons that both of us have, can we afford any miscalculations? should we not think at this moment that if the situation escalates, where will it go? it will not be in my control or narendra modi's control. reporter: calls for de-escalation are resounding from around the world with

germany, the u.s., and the u.k. all appealing for restraint. phil: the german government says it is taking seriously reports that german-made weapons have been used in the war in yemen. investigators reported by dw and media partners suggest that saudi arabia and united arab emirates have deployed the arms. opposition parliamentarians have called on berlin to end strategic partnership with saudi ariaia. reporter: according to german regulations, this minesweeper made in germany should not be in yemeni waters. but dw and its investigative partners have assembled proof that the vessel is on active service there. that has prompted calls for action. >> in my view, it is clearer than ever that germany bears some responsibility for the terrible suffering from the war in yemen. if we don't want thahat, we have

to stop delivering weapons to all sides of the conflict. reporter: citizens and politicians have been expressing their dismay online using #germanarms. the greens are calling it an absolute worst-case scenario. is germany indirectly involved in one of the world's most devastating conflicts? in response to the report, senior government figures are calling for an explanation. they suspect arms are being illicitly supplied to warring parties. >> i think this case needs to be investigated deeply. every state that gets weapons from germany has to sign and confirmed that these weapons remain in the state where they are delivered to. reporter: chancellor angela merkel's cabinet has denied knowing german weapons are being deployed in the war in yemen. in the wake of tw's revelations-- dw's revelations,

the government says fresh inspections will be carried out. >> the government takes seriously and will investigate any evidence of abuse or failure to observe the terms of end use. reporter: the question is, what has happened to the weapons that found their way to saudi arabia or the united arab emirates? the evevidence speakaks for itsf -- they ended up in the war zone in yemen. phil: another doping scandal has hit the sporting world, this time nordic skiing is under scrutiny. police made arrests in germany and austria. the raid focused in part on account in austria where the nordic skiing world championships are taking place. reporter: a house used to be sent quiet in the austrian alps is now at the center of a police bust. here, police arrested seven people. among them, five athletes. austrian pololice are working together with german authorities in a sting centered on an

international doping ring whose backers are believed to come from germany. the munich public prosecutor is bringing charges against 4 german citizens on suspicion of using doping methods forbidden by the anti-doping law. the athletes are alleged to have practiced blunt doping, which involves blood being removed from the body and rejected shortly before competition, boosting delivery of oxygen to cells. police say on wednesday they caught two austrian athletes red-handed. authorities say the doping network originated in germany, but they believe it operates around the world. at the same time as the boston austria, police in germany searched nine buildings including the practice of a sports medicine specialist who was arrested along with an assistant. police believe he is a leading figure in the doping network. phil: let's get more on this from an investigative journalist who is an expert on doping in

sport. welcome to dw. what more can you tell us about today's events? >> it shows very clearly that doping is very widespread in nordic skiing. we don't talk about individuals we talk about systematic cheating in the sport. and obviously it was centered in germany, which means that as people say germany is a country with less doping than others. that is not true. we have people in the background who help others and also from other countries to cheat, to dope. phil: nordic skiing is not a sport one thinks much about, never mind about in terms of doping. do you think this is a big problem in this world? hajo: it is. we have, for example, a lot of documents which show very

clearly that since the early 2000 years there has been widespread doping in the sport because of the endurance and power, both are important to achieve really good performances. you have blood values from a lot of athletes which indicates clearly that there has been treating going on, at the time at l least. and now t this raided today shos that it is s still happening in the sport. it is no better than years before. phil: why do you think it has taken so long for this to come out and for arrests to be made? hajo: german television produced a documentary which was aired in january 2019 and the middle of the documentary was a former cross-country athlete from austria, and he made some allegations with respect to blood doping in germany, but he didn't tell the audience the

people in the backyard, more or less. later on there have been investigations by german and austrian prosecutors, and he named to the person's background who did that and who helped him to dope, andnd that led to investigations and that is the reason these raids have taken place in germany and austria. phil: do you think it is a matter of time before pretty much every sport we are familiar with has its own doping scandal? hajo: i would say in every sport where endurance is very important, where power is very important, we will have the problem, and i think we just see a tiny percentage of the whole problem because many doiper -- d opers don't get caught, and it is because more and more police investigators, journalists, are dealing with that matter and trying to find out more.

the situation is a little different than years before. that makes a difference to the early 2000s, for example. phil: thank you for joining us, hajo sappelt. thank you. at the dubai duty free tennis chairmanships, the polish underdog stunned top-seeded kei nishikori to reach the quarterfinals. he beat is japanese opponent 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, in just over two hours. it i is the first top 10 victory for the wodd number 77. public outcry has forced french sportswear retailer to scrap plans to market a jogger's hija b in france. some have threatened to boycott the brand. it has been a big seller in other countries. france and the hi-- banned the

hijab years ago. reporter: french politicians say that the running hijab contradicted the country's secular values. there were threats of a boycott until the retailer buckled under pressure from angry activists. >> it is promoting a government that is a confinement of women's bodies. these women should be doing sports, but it is supposed to be for the liberation of bodies and athleticic excellence. this shocks me. reporter: decathlon said it received hundreds of calls and emails in protest of the hijab, and that stuff and stores had been threatened. not everyone is offended. >> women should do what they want. if they cannot put this on, they will not do sports. >> it is a purely commercial decision. sports has nothing to do with it. why should they caps on not sell -- why should decathlon not sell this? reporter: decathlon is selling

the product in morocco, while nike stores introduced the product last year. phil: a reminder of our top story this hour -- michael cohen has told the congress that president trump had knowledge of emails of the democratic party during the presidential campaign. mr. cohen also said he heard donald trump make racist remarks about african-americans. stay tuned for "the day." that is up next, and more news at the top of the hour. have a good day. [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org]

. she lives in paris some for us twenty fr r the headlilines this hour. the president is a lawyer a con man and a racist explosive testimony from donald trump's former lawyer michael cohen says trump did have business dealings in russia. he knew about plans to leak cats emails. and he even made him lie to the first lady about paying off on stuff stormy daniels. trump meanwhile is in vietnam meeting with the north korean leader kim jong in. us president is under pressure to get came to commits to scrapping nuclear weapons little progress has been made since they lost wheezing incidental