♪ brent: this is "dw news" live from berlin. joe biden announces his first cabinet choices. >> the team reflects the fact that ameca is back, ready to lead, not retreat. brent: joe biden moving quickly to fill all positions, now that donald trump stopped blocking the transition.

ahead, a lockdown before christmas, regional leaders reach a consensus, aimed at slowing the surge in covid-19. also, evidence hungary is misusing funds, we take you to the critics fighting corruption at the highest levels. plus, a story of trauma in triumph, a former child soldier now a champion cyclist, with his eyes on glory in the upcoming paralympic games. ♪ i am brent goff. to all of you, welcome. america is strongest when it works with its allies, the words of president-elect joe biden

today as he introduced some of the people he wants on his new cabinet. the transition is picking up speed after president trump cleared the way for a transfer of power. joe biden said his team will leady example. >> it is a team that will keep our country safe and secure, a team that reflects the fa that america is back, ready to lead the world, not retreat, sit at the head of the table, ready to confront our adversaries and not reject our allies, ready to stand up for our values. in fact, in calls from world leaders i have had so far in the weeks since we have won the election, i am struck by how much they are looking forward to the u.s. reasserting its role as a global leader in the pacific,

atlantic, and all across the world. brent: he went on to introduce his national security team, underlining their experience. he said diplomacy and multilateralism are back in foreign policy. john kerry will be taking on a new post as special envoy for the climate, emphasizing joe biden's commitment to fighting global warming. john kerry says the u.s. will return to the paris climate agreement, but said it is not enough. tony -- has been selected for u.s. department of state, secretary of state, working for cooperation around the world. let's talk about these decisions and go to washington and talk to our correspondent. the names and faces were

familiar today. what did you make of that? correspondent: those people nominated and picked by president-elect joe biden are in the business for decades. it means they come with experience and a rolodex of contacts. blinken is known around the world, because he has been epic deputy secretary of state, the list goes on. all those picks are people who are the counter program to what many say we had under president donald trump, experience, diversity, and a vision to bring america back where it was, in

terms of cooperation and diplomacy around the world. brent: tony blinken, the designated secretary of state stressed america needs to serve with humility and confidence. take a listen. tony: as the president-elect said, we can't solve all the problems alone we need to work with other countries, the cooperation, their partnership, but also confidence, because america at its best has a greater ability than any other country on earth to bring others together to meet the challenges of our time. brent: blinken is the man that joe biden wants to restore american foreign-policy. what about american domestic policy? his cabinet is divers. is this the tool needed to unite a divided country? correspondent: the democrats,

the biting campaign, and the future present -- joe biden campaign in the future president-elect think so. keep this in mind, the context is a lot of political observers, experts, people coming out of four of donald trump's administration policies, borderline isolationists and america first. having said that, i don't think the joe biden administration will -- it is the process. how do you put american interests as they should? how do you put those first but don't be the bully in the china shop? that is what joe biden tries to do internally domestically and with his policies. brent: internationally there has

been good reception to blinken as the designated secretary of state, but what about in the united states with these cabinet picks? correspondent: it depends where you look. i have an example. there are progressive, democratic, a party line that says this is wonderful, but marco rubio, senator from florida, "joe biden's cabinet takes ivy league, attended all the right conferences, will be orderly caretakers of america's decline. i support america's greatness and have no interest returning to the normal that left us dependent on china." there you go, marco rubio, republican senator. there is a senate race in

georgia. if the democrats win, it doesn't matter what marco rubio think. if the republicans want, they will have the majority and can make approval of any nomination difficult. brent: thank you. here in germany, leaders have reportedly agreed on new coronavirus lockdown measures that will go into effect in december and last into the new year, after german chancellor angela merkel met with resistance to toughen aspects of the lockdown. the new measures include extending germany's current shutdown, targeting hotels, restaurants, gymnasiums, tight restrictions on socializing will remain in place, but exceptions will be made for the christmas holidays. correspondent: the pressure is

on for the german government to ease restrictions for the most important time of year for many, christmas celebrations. this glare would usually be packed with people enjoying -- square would usually be packed with people enjoying the christmas market. it has been canceled. people are allowed together at home in smaller groups. people accept the reality this year is different. >> there will be naturally some opposition, but it is what it is . there is no policy that will be 100% approved by the people. >> i don't understand why restrictions would be eased for christmas. i see what happens with people when they are lonely and unhappy, so i can't say muc but i talk about it because i see it in the hospital where i work. >> yes, it is sad not to celebrate christmas as usual. how else?

the measures are important and necessary. there is always skype, so we can see. >> the decision on christmas is expected to be confirmed wednesday, following talks between state premiers and angela merkel the overall situation remains critical. -- merkel. the overall situation remains critical. >> we have seen a trend in infections, which means exponential growth can be stopped, but we need lower figures, especially for christmas. correspondent: christmas is not the only celebration on the line . many safe new year's eve fireworks needs to be reined in, but a nationwide ban of fireworks sales does not appear to be on the cards. brent: let's go to our political correspondent. we understand these new restrictions will not be in effect for the christmas

holiday. the fire is does not know it will be christmas december 25, so how does the german government justify this exception? correspondent: yes, indeed. you might say the virus would be happy for people to sit in large groups, closer to each other. i think what the german government is doing is a carrot and stick policy, telling the public that if people stick to the stricter rules imposed, probably it will be agreed probably on wednesday, if they stick to these rules just before christmas, a couple of days before christmas, then they can be rewarded, in a sense, by a more or less normal christmas, christmas gatherings of 10 people are being talked about, children not included. that could possibly be permitted. under those circumstances and the people should not be afraid of being lonely during christmas

or having to be in isolation, which in germany is the most important family festival of the year. although people tend to accept such further restrictions, the numbers in germany have not gone down as much as had been hoped. the growth has stopped. the curve has been flattened. it has been flattened to a plateau, the curve at a very high level, a level still critical for many hospitals, so the numbers have to go down, the measures have to be stricter, and people have to follow him. brent: we have heard that despite the stricter measures, politicians reportedly agreed school should remain open. what are you hearing about that? correspondent: that has been one of the most intensely discussed aspect of public life. schools are to remain open, if at all possible, but there is

some discussion how much of the infections are transmitted in and around schools, so the leaders of the federal states appear to have agreed that the masks will be worn in schools much more extensively and has been the case. there has been talk about shutting down schools earlier before christmas before the normal christmas holidays so there is a quiet period just before christmas so people cannot infected themselves, and there is some talk about changing the way schooling is done, changing between homeschooling and schooling at school itself, so schools will remain open, but it seems likely some measures will be taken to prevent infections at schools. brent: thank you. as we heard, leaders are

debating limited school closures for christmas. there is still broad agreement that schools should remain open. that does not change the fact that students and teachers are getting sick. a hybrid model that combines remote and on-site learning could be a solution, but our schools prepared? we visited a berlin school to find out. correspondent: this politics class is still happening in person in a proper classroom, but the teacher says she can start teaching online tomorrow. students already have much of their classwork online, like this quiz on climate change. there berlin school has the technology to do hybrid learning , partly in class, partly at home. >> we worked hard on it. during lockdown, we had months to discuss the ways we could reimagine learning with the help

of technology. it would be better for all of us. right now, there is a tense atmosphere that is made even worse by uncertainty. correspondent: britain -- written exercises could go digital. like during the lockdown in early 2020. >> i don't really care, actually. we did it last term. i got used to it. >> i think it has gotten easier now. i already know what i have to do. i can learn from what i did wrong last time when i did not get that much done. now i try harder. i know how it is with the grading. correspondent: some students are already doing school work from home, if they or their

parents are at high risk for covid-19. the school principal says the whole class could switch to online instruction easily. >> we are well prepared. we developed an educational concept, and we would like to do the responsible thing and finally put it into practice now. correspondent: the school used a lockdown earlier this year to try out and test digital platforms and train the staff. official policy is to keep in class teaching going as long as possible. germany's federal states are responsible for educational policy, and have agreed, aiming to leave no child behind, but the teachers here believe they are in a better position to decide which students can study from home and which would benefit more from coming to school. >> i believe that is the decisive factor, and the key to

success. i know the students i deal with. i know who can't work from home and who should be here. we are watching that. we know this very well. the authorities should have confidence that we can do this. correspondent: teachers at the school have taken the initiative to prepare for hybrid learning. now it wants to put all that preparation into practice. brent: while in germany may be tightening its coronavirus restrictions, france is doing the opposite, the french president saying the peak of the second coronavirus wave in france is over. he announced the easing of regulations on public life. shops, movie theaters, and museums will gradually reopen and families will be allowed to observe christmas together. large gatherings of people will remain banned.

let's go to our correspondent in paris. good evening. it sounds like life will almost rerned to normal for people in france. is that the case? correspondent: well, not really, actually. the lockdown will stay in place, even if from this satuay on when life will get easier, shops will reopen,nd people will be able to walk or go for a jog for three hours in a radius of 20 kilometers as opposed to one hour and 11 kilometer now. the lockdown will stay in place until december 15, which should be the next step if the situation improves further. by that time, theaters and cinemas wi reopen, and the lockdown will end and be replac by a curfew. the president said tt curfew would be in place from 9:00 p.m until 7:00 a.m., except on

december 24 and december 31, and then we will reach the third step, in january on january 20, restaurantwners, and maybe bars, although that is not clear to and oth businesses can hopefully be allowed to open again. that might mean the end of the curfew, but that is not confirmed. brent: how much pressure was emmanuel macron under to ease these restrictions? correspoent: tre was a lot of pressure from people getting really impatient with the government and with the situation in general. according to a recent poll, 70% agreed the lockdown should be in place, but 60% of the french also said they actually broke one of the rules in november, as opposed to 30% duri the first

lockdown, so it seems like the french are getting more and more impatient. there was a lot of pushck from opposition parti that did not agree with the government and the method, and also, some businesswners, some business owners and shop owners will be happier, but restaurant and bar owners are not happy at all here. brent: thank you. here in the european union, poland and hungary are refusing to approve the $2 trillion budget, which includes pandemic relief funds. they object to a plan that would tie those funds to a commitment and respect to the rule of law. some in hungary are saying the government is right with corruption when it comes to spending that money, and some people fear they could be silenced. ♪ correspondent: the latest news

in three minutes, a popular station in budapest, one of only a few media outlets critical of the government, but their license expires in three months, and the authorities have refused to extend it. >> the vast majority of the hungarian media's lavishly followed the words of the government. -- media's lavishly follow -- media slavishly follow the words of the government. correspondent: their voices seem to be needed now more than ever, with the coronavirus pandemic raging through the country, the prime minister is using the crisis to seize more power. one person works for the hungarian civil liberties union.

the ngo published a report showing how the pandemic has led to more corruption, was example is the purchase of ventilators by the foreign ministry. >> the ventilators were purchased in huge quantities and significantly overpriced. only some of them are likely to be used in intensive care and protection against the epidemic. this is on top of the fact they were acquired at an inflated price. correspondent: this man's mission is to uncover corruption at the highest level. he is an independent member of the hungarian parliament. he tells me that the government is plagued by corruption and it is high time for the eu to take action. >> somehow this has to be resolved. the government cannot continue to steal or spend eu funds uncontrolled. he uses this money to pay his people. this is how he maintains the

system. correspondent: viktor orban deflects the criticism and is challenging the plans to tie funding to respect for the rule of law. we wanted to speak about this with his spokesperson, but he canceled the interview at short notice. the hungarian government accuses brussels of trying to sanction it for political reasons, but the civil society in opposition stand their ground, fearing that backing down would encourage other populists in the eu. correspondent: the journalists of one radio station are hoping for support and determined to continue their work, if necessary by streaming their shows via the internet. that would mean a much smaller audience. brent: columbia has produced some top level cyclones, but none of them like this one.

almost a decade ago, florian lost his arms and a right height and a bomb attack on his family home. after years of rehabilitation, he is going for gold at tokyo's olympics. correspondent: he never imagined himself as an athlete, least of all as a cyclist. swimming is his favorite sport. the military was his choice of career. all that changed when he was forcibly recruited as a child soldier by columbia's farc rebels. he escaped, but not the reach of the rebels, who had been extorting his mother. >> this is the spot where the explosive device caused me to lose parts of my body, my arms, my right leg, the vision in my right eye here to hear they destroyed me, in a single moment -- right by. here they destroyed me in a

single moment. he needed years of rehabilitation. realizing he had more chance as a cyclist than a swimmer, he had a bicycle adapted by engineers. they made carbon fiber supports for his elbows and knee. he changes gears with his chin on a pad on the handlebars, and he breaks with his thigh. >> i dream of being the paralympic champion, the world champion, and the world cup champion here that is the biggest ambition i have, so -- champion. that is the ambition i have. correspondent: he says none of it would be possible without the support of his family. his wife angie is his carer and coach. >> my family represents, well, they are my engine from my life, my willpower, my strength, the support i need to get up in the morning.

correspondent: the centerpiece of the family living room is with the family call a tree of triumph, made by florian's older brother. it is crowded, but no doubt there would be room for one more medal. we brent: brent: we think he has already won the gold. download our mobile app to get the latest news from around the world and breaking news. you can also use the dw app to send us photos and videos of what is happening. a mysterious monolith has been found deep in the remote red rock area in the u.s. state of utah. a helicopter crew spotted it while counting sheep. it stands three meters tall. there is no evidence of how it got there. the pilot of the helicopter

believes it was placed by an artist, not an alien. it is illegal to install structures without a permit. no matter what planet you are from. here on earth, you are watching "dw news" live from berlin. after a short break, i will take you through th "the day"." we will be right back. [speaking in foreign language] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] ♪

>> welcome to life in paris.

world news and analysis from france 24. these are the headlines. emmanuel macron announces a relaxation of the lockdown in france from saturday. he outlined the next process. the french president backing the people, saying efforts have halted the virus. nonetheless, france has recorded over 9000 new cases of covid-19 and over 1000 new deaths over the past 24 hours. multilateralism is back, diplomacy is back, the word from joe bide'