from berlin. tonight, a historic moment from the united states as the impeachment trial with president donald trump begins. >> present and ready to present the articles of impeachment against donald j. trump. president of the united states. brent: the chief prosecutor, adam schiff formally begins the trial as further evidence

implicates the president. also coming up tonight, germany's diplomatic efforts in libya yield a pototential brbreakthrou w with a rebebel commander admittiting to a cease-fire if one is signed. he'll also atattend a conference ending years of civil conflict. also coming up, pakistan'n's pre ministster opens up about his concerns over rising tension between saudi arabia and iran saying his escalation of the conflict would be disastrous for his country. ♪ brent: i'm brent goff. to our viewers, welcome. we begin tonight with historic proceedings on capitol hill as the u.s. senate formally opens

the trial against president donald trump. in the last hour, chief justice john roberts from the u.s. supreme court, who will be presiding over the trial, is sworn in with all 100 senators as jurors. this is only the third impeachment trial of a u.s. president in history. it is happening during an election year with president trump seeking a second term in office. earlier today, the chief prosecutor adam schiff read out the charges. >> article one, abuse of power. the constitution provides that the house of representatives shall have the sole power of impeachment. that the president shall be removed from office on impeachment for and conviction of treason, bribery, or other high crimes and misdemeanors.

in his conduct of the office of the president of the united states, and in violation of his constitutional oath faithfully to execute the office of president of the united states, and to the best of his ability preserve protect and defend the constitution of the united states and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, donald j. trump has abused the powers of the presidency and that, using the higher powers of his office, he solicited the foreign government ukraine in the u.s. presidential election. brent: our correspondent is keeping an eye on this for us. we just had 100 senators taking an oath of impartiality today. they are promising to act not as

politicians, but as jurors in this trial. to deliver a verdict that could determine the fate of f e u.s. presidenent. it almost sounds like an impossible task. is it? >> yes you are right. i cannot imagine how the senators could do impartial justice in the current toxic partisan atmosphere in washington. some of them democrats as well as republicans said how they are going to vote before the trial started. mitch mcconnell is coordinating with the white house. he said he is not impartial. there is a small number of republican senators who said they would consider calling on witnesses together with the democrats if they deem it necessary but they know what they are risking being attacked by president trump on twitter.

being attacked by his allies on fox news and losing his fan base. this is not likely to happen. >> at the heart of the impeachment proceedings are the president's dealings with ukraine. we have new revelations tonight from an associate of the personal attorney for the president. it is fairly explosive. >> yes. his name is a lev parnas and he was deeply involved in the trump administration ukraine dealings. he directly implicated president trump and his inner circle saying that he has documents that prove that the president knew about what was going on in ukraine and everything that happened was happening at his direction. he also said that everyone involved knew that president trump was not interested in fighting corruption and ukraine. what he was interested in was

getting help to get reelected. the white house dismissed this witness saying that he is not credible. indeed, he is out on bail. he is under indictment that he has documents to prove his claims and he is confirming what other witnesses already testified to. brent: the president today has not denied the accusations. it makes a lot of people wonder, will the president himself because called as a witness in this trial? >> he will certainly be asked to address the charges. however, we expect that it will be in written form. it will be a letter that his defense lawyers will read aloud on the senate floor. we do not expect president trump to appear on the senate floor.

anyway, the most interesting question is if he senators will call on witnesses to testify. however, as i said at the moment it is not very likely to happen. brent: thank you. let's brief you now on the headlines. the u.s. senate has voted to approve a new north american trade deal. the agreement overhauls trade deals in the u.s., mexico and canada. it is a major policy win for president trump did it faced opposition by some democrats said it ails to address climate change. germany's government has rejected legislation aimed a at makingng it easier to donate organs. that would automatically make almost every citizen an organ donor unless they have previously signed a declaration specifically revoking their consent.

now to libya where there appears to be movement and ongoing diplomatic efforts to secure a cease-fire. germany's foreign minister has announced that a rebelel leader has agreed to abide e by a truc. the general is said to have made the commentsts dururing a meetig with the foreign minister today and think as he. key is apparently also agreeing to a international meeting on the libyan crisis that w will te place here in berlin. earlier this week, he refused to sign a cease-fire deal in moscow. for more now, let's bring in our correspondent. he is following this. can germany, can a count on this promise? can a college victory? can it take him at his word? >> there is a huge amount of

hopes riding on this. in particular, the idea that he will come to the peace conference that is being organized here in berlin. that is key because the general and his forces control most of libya. outside of the capital tripoli. they are really the key player. the head of the unity government has also said he is coming. you will have the two parties sitting at the table sitting at the table with international actors. that is why extremely welcomed. earlier we h heard what angegela merkel said about it. >> our foreign minister met with the general today and first of all, it is good news he is willing to observe the cease-fire. to have it to start with. then, the libya conference, we need to see above all that the weapons embargo is adhered to.

it was basically agreed through the u.n. but unfortunately, has not been expected. first of all, today's development is good news. brent: she is saying it is good news but we have to make sure promises are kept. promises that have been broken. what does this mean for the conference this weekend? >> it is very good news. this is just part of a flurry of activity that was going on today. we have seen the italian prime minister in algeria and the european council has been telephoning with vladimir putin who is also a player in this. the hopes for that conference on sunday are very high. the focus on libya particularly for the eu countries is really strong. it libya is an important

country, a conduit for migration but also is an oil-producing country. with so many players involved, russia as i mentioned, turkey, the saudi's and europe, it is a very important focus for this issue. brent: thank you. it libya was a divided country back in 2011, the years since then have seen the divisions multiply. increasingly drawing in a mixed bag of international players. at the country and its backers are split now between two rival governments. in tripoli, the u.n. backed government and the libyan government. >> strongmen general once

tripoli. together with his libyan national army, he hopes to captpture the country'y's capitl and take full control off this oil-rich nation. it is partly because of oil that russia and turkey have weighed in on either side of this conflict. moscow has denied reports is sent mercenaries to reinforce the generals fighters. on thursday, turkey confirmed it started deploying troops. despitite a u.s. armrms embargo. withth libya so unstable, the fr of resurgent islamist terror has urged countries. other factors mean the eu is

split over its alliances. officially, the tripoli-based government has the backing of europe including germany. italy has openly supported the general who it sees as crucial in stemming the flow of migrants across the mediterranean and france's concerns over terrorism as well as interest in libya's oil wealth has put it at odds with the eu's official line. there are claims it has given covert military help to the governor -- general. earlier, peace talks in moscow broke down. despite the many interests at stake and the players involved, germany seems determined to pursue its mediation role. even if a cease-fire is agreed, the road to peace looks long and bumpy. brent: if there is a road to peace. to talk about that, i am joined

by the director of libya's first public policy think tank. he joins me from london. we spoke a few days ago about the cease-fire peace talks breaking down in moscow. is there any reason to believe that here in berlin they will be able to achieve what they could not achieve in moscow? >> i am still uncertain about those things and i think it depends on what kind of offer is being made under the table. effectively, it he still wants to achieve -- through military force and the last nine months. we should also remember that the govevernment he is figighting in tripoli, it was a government that was designed as a compromisese.

they appointed members of the government 3.5 years agogohen thee u.s. negotiated a compromie of a second civilar. it is difficult to take him at his w word. we donon't knonow whether oror e willll agree to those things.s. it's the fifirst time he will he turned his back on what is said. it's a dangegerous message we're sending out because we leave behind -- what kind of f message do we send one we allow someone to break the arms embmbargo? to turn his back on negotiations ? and to l launch the offensnsivee months ago in the presence of the e chief of thehe u.n.. brent: your painting a picture of a general who cannot be trusted. today, we heard the german

chancellor, she said she wants to go into these talks with good faith and start by trusting half star. what if he doesn't keep his word? >> lipids -- leopards don't change their spots. it [indidiscernible] in 1986, defected from their to langley, virginia, defected from them in 1992 and went back to -- reconcile. in 2014, defected from the resolution government. it then walked away from a deael that was given in 2016 again, it is difficult to take him at his word. trust is a dangerous word to use when someone has his history. brent: if a cease-fire agreement

is reached this weekend, let's look from an optimist viewpoint. what will that mean for the situation on the g ground in libya? >> there are leaders of the negotiation we will have to take into consideration. if they are to step down the we will have to look at what kind of forces he has. there has to be a vital trust building move on the ground locally between the groups finding and eee and on the perimeter. number two, we have to look up the uae, egypt and france. they are offering support at various levels. it there is no condemnation from the u.n. even though it is broken so many arms embargoes. also the military forces that are fighting for him.

there are later subtrust but that had to be meaningful on the ground. is a lot of heavy lifting to be done. brent: thank you to our guest helping us to understand these peace talks and the labors of context around the. russia has a new prime minister. today, the lower house of parliament approved by americans choice for the job and the president formally appointed him. he was the head of the country's tax service. he was put forward as vladimir putin's c choice afafter the ene govevernment resignened on wednesday. in his state of the union address yesterday, president putin for reform that would give more power to the parliament. there is speculation now the vladimir putin will take o on a new role when his current presidential term ends in 2024.

pakistan's prime minister -- pakistan is working to prevent relations between the two countries from getting worse. >> in a wide-ranging interview with dw's editor in chief, he spelled out his position on two places currently experiencing significant turmoil. pakistan's neighbor, ron is vying for influence was saudi arabia. tensions have been simmering for years. the assassination of the top commander by the u.s. brought the range -- region to the break of conflict. >> we live in a tough

neighborhood. we have issues, a balancing act because we have for instance saudi arabia which is one of saudi arabia's greatest friends. always been a friend in need for us. then we have iran which is a neighbor. we have always had a good relationship with them. the conflict between saudi arabia and iran is something which for pakistan would b be disastrous if it went into some sort of military conflict. >> he also spoke about pakistan's relations with india which have worsened because of kashmir. kashmir is claimed by both countries and has a muslim majority population. pakistan and india control large parts of the region. last year, india revoked the

economists status of the party controls. it shut down communications, ramped up security and imposed curfews. critics say the goal was to suppress the separatist movement. india said it was securing its integrity. he wants both parts of kashmir 20 issue a referendum on the future. >> let them decide what ththey want to do pat --. let themem decide whether they want to be independent. we are all for it. >> iran and kashmir, to potential flashpoints. brent: you can go to the dw website for more of the exclusive interview with imran khan. now, let's go to greenland. it is currently in the middle of an economic boom. its causes might surprise you.

global warming threatens to have dire consequences worldwide but in that country, the shrinking of the arctic ice has opened up what some e e as new opportunities.s. >> the snonow came l late this winter evening greenland. now, thehe island is looking ato -- how so many imagine it. take a ride out into the fjords, nec have agreement is changing even off the coast. >> we e are still finding caught it. climate change has not affected that. it is the opposite. we are catching more fisish than we used d to. halibut and crabs, they have moved further north. >> the arctic has warned by two degrees. last summer, ice melted in

greenland. a few remnants are still floating in the fjords. greenland is experiencing a construction boom. new flflats and hotels are being built. the e ree airports in the country are being expanded. this person runs a taxi boat company. he started off with one boat and now he has ordered his fifthth. he says more and more tourists want to see the melting glaciers. >> nowadadays, there is a lot focus on climate c change. you cacan see the effect on that here in greenland. everyone is talking about the ice. the danes haveve known about it for a while. now,w, the whole w world is talg about it. >> this is the new container port. the melting ice has allowed easier access to many are resources. it is for this reason that the united states sent him here. after president trump's failed attempt, the u.s. wants to

establish a new consulate. >> thehere are also opportunitis related to -- with relations to mining. possibly even petroleum exploration. these are e things that we wanto be a part of. >> donald t tmp and the c climae situatation have statarted someg here in greenland. the tide is changing. brent: here are more stories making headlines. it germany's government will pay the operators of coal power plants more than 4 billion euros in compensation for the permanent shutdown of those plants. germany is trying to reduce its dependency on fossil fuels. angela merkel's government wants to phase out cold by 2038. in egypt, ethiopia and sudan say they have reached a preliminary agreement on how to fill a $5 billion hydroelectric -- hydroelectric dam. fears that filling the dam would

negatively affect water levels downstream have sparked tensions in the region. prince harry has made his first public appearance since the recent announcement that he and his wife megan went to step back from their royal duties. he attended a school rugby demonstration on buckingham palace today while he openly joked with the children. mom was the word in regards to his future plans. >> in terri's wish to step back from his royal duties has been granted. he still has a few more commitments. that means a few more deep refs. it has taken some time for the dust to settle after last week's prize announcement. the timing of the rugby world cup is helping to soften the blow. it is something close to his heart. a record -- stiff event turned into something of a show. but not a cooking show, he joked.

afterwards, some small talk. a few comments on brexit and thoughts on sporting a beard. it's almost as if he was having second thoughts about his decision to stop his royal duties. key was in his element. >> we need someone high profile like him who is not just here is a ceremonial role. i hope he keeps his involvement with the sport. >> there has been no change of royal plans. this could be his last appearance in the spotlight before he begins a quieter life in canada. where his wife, megan has already landed. she has been photographed in meetings with women's rights groups but has not appeared publicly. in the meantime, a british tabloid reporter claims they are not laying off its harry just yet. the prince was not on hand to

play that kind of ball. for now, he could still off to retreat to his grandmother's palace. brent: here's a reminder of our top stories. the u.s. senate has formally opened the impeachment trial of president trump. the head of the prosecution team, adam schiff began today by reading out the articles of impeachment. the senate will hear opening arguments on tuesday. you are watching dw news from berlin. after a short break, i went to take you through the day. -- i will be back to take you through h the day. ♪

france twenty four i'm from twenty four .com. yeah ende to swim to life in paris world news and analysis from france twenty four i marco in these are the main world news headlines. high crimes and misdemeanors the charges against us president donald trump that then read aloud in the senate piece of power structure to congress in its investigation was attempt to get to print big data. on a political rival trump tweeted just impeach the making a perfect phone call. russia's loads the new prime minister hand picked by president vladimir putin changed seen as paving the way. influence beyond the end of his current mandate