tv France 24 LINKTV January 28, 2022 3:30pm-4:00pm PST
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>> join us in germany on europe now as we explore those and other big issues for the country and years to come. >> hello and welcome back to live from paris on france 24, i'm kate, our top stories is our, rusa nowas the military capability to invade ukraine, but will boot and do so? u.s. defense secretary saying there is still time to diffuse tensions even as troops continue to amass along the border. days after a military coup burkina faso has been suspended. it is a third such takeover of member states in such months.
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2021 is the strongest. of growth since 1969, government aid and consumer spending helps -- ♪ russia now has a full range of military options to act against ukraine. that warning from u.s. defense secretary lloyd austin as diplomatic talks of the standoffs showed little signs of progress. e 100,000 troops that are stationed on the border could be used to take over cities or rritories if e are prudent chooses to do so -- if vladimir putin chooses to do so. the u.s. and eu were failing to take his security concerns into
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account, and a call with french president mccall, -- macron had not addresses demands. the president had also spoken with his ukrainian counterparts to continue to de-escalate tensions. he urged his western allies not to create panic. >> the feeling you get from the media is that we have a war, troops on the road, was asian, people are going somewhere -- mobilization, people are going somewhere. >> senior fellow for the center of european policy analysis, thank you for being here this evening. diplomacy does not seem to have produced huge results so far, is the time for talks past? >> i do think so, because putin
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came into these negotiations with nonstarter demands, it clearly shows he has no intentions and having diplomacy work. all we have seen is him continuing to increase the military on ukraine's borders. all the signs are looking like a clumsy, -- dipmacy, the window to diplomacy is closed. on the russian side that they never had truly the intention of diplomacy. >> what you think his a is in all of this? >> i honestly think, because internally and domestically, putin for decades has viewed ukraine as part of russian territory. just overall they always saw ukraine as being part of russia. i honestly think he does want to invade. overall on the bigger scale i
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think he is seeking to kind of reinstate the soviet union because for him that was one of the biggest failures that he had ever seen as led by him. >> europe's energy dependence on russia also adds a real layer of complexity, doesn't it? >> it does. i think europe should have started looking for alternatives for energy security at this point they know the u.s. is trying to help, making calls and making sure that europe gets some kind of deliveries from other means. we see even in the response, because while russia is threatening to invade a sovereign country, you have some countries in europe because of the energy dependence not willing to fully respond. holding back, even at some
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point, in germany's case where they say they have to weaken the sanctions package because it would affect them. you cannot run a foreign policy based on that. >> we have seen the french president spearheading efforts to reach a detente speaking both to the russian and ukrainian presidents, u.s. efforts to broker peace talks have not done well either. what comes next? >> the best thing that happens right now is that the u.s. keeps arming ukraine, the u.s. is planning to send troops to protect and secure the eastern flank. i think we should keep the door to diplomacy open as long as we can, but at the same time anticipate that if a war breaks out, because if russia invades
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ukraine as u.s. intelligence is morning, it could lead into a eu country or nato country and then all of europe would be thrown into war. i think the preparation needs to be diplomacy, but at the same time preparation needs to be done in the case of a war erecting and prudent invading -- erupting and putin invading ukraine. >> a small percentage of nato's countries touch russia's border, was the next step for that alliance? >> i think that the alliance has shown themselves that they will, they were there to deter russian aggression and even during the nato talks, the alliance was 30 countries with one message, that send a very strong message back
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to moscow, even if it does not stop the war it is showing that putin will not be able to break the alliance. >> from the center of european policy analysis, thank you for joining us. any sanctions against russia would likely impact the nord stream 2 pipeline, that is a stalled project to increase applies of russian gas to europe. the you is working on finding alternative supplies, they rely on russia for 40% of their natural gas. >> germany hardening its stance on a controversial gas pipeline between russia and europe after weeks of hesitation, germany's foreign minister confirmed that if russia invades ukraine the nord stream 2 pipeline is at risk. >> in the event of the regression a range of responses are available including nord
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stream 2, yes we want a dialogue at all times. in the view of the current situation we also need toughness. >> the pipeline has been divisive since announced in 2015, built along the bottom of the baltic sea, it by trout -- bypasses the traditional route of ukraine. doubling eu energy dependence on russia, it has been ready since september, but flow is on hold until german regulators open the valves. canceling t project would mean a huge financial blow to russia. >> while it is possible to put europe under pressure, europe would eventually turn to liquid gas from other countries. that means the russians would lose their market. >> cutting of vital gas supplies in the middle of winter could also cause a big economic and social issues for eu nations. the government says it is working on a contingency plan,
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approaching qatar and other major energy producers about increasing gas to europe in case russian supplies cut off. however these types of deals are usually done through long-term contracts and energy prices are already soaring across europe with russia allegedly restricting existing gas applies to put pressure on the west. >> burkina faso has been suspended from west africa's named regional block. the group could also impose sanctions, there has been widespread international condemnation of monday's mutiny that saw the ousting of the democratically elected president. the new military leader defended the takeover and his first national speech. take a listen. >> [speaking foreign language]
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>> burkina faso is now the third member to be suspended following a coup in the last 18 months, regional leaders are holding talks on friday with a president describing the trend as the direct violation on the block commitmento diplomacy. >> west african leaders have a suspended burkina faso from the 15 member economic community of the west african states block. according to the officials that attended a virtual summit held friday in response to monday's coup in burkina faso. >> the resurgence of coup d'etat's in our region is a direct violation of our democratic tenants. represents a threat to peace,
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security, and stability in west africa. the west -- rest of the world is looking to us to be firm in this matter. >> they also reported a plan to send a delegation to the capital and is calling the new junta to release the ousted president. they will not impose other sanctions for the time being, civil society organizations in burkina faso urged echo not to. >> we therefore dared to tell echo to be very careful in their sanctions. we are not going to let them do it to us. we will not let burkina faso fall prey to imperialist powers once again. >> the coup in burkina faso is the latest in military power grab cindy region -- in the region.
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the trade embargoes and order closures have harmed businesses, military leaders remain in positions of powers. burkina faso's leaders say on thursday that they will return to constitutional order when conditions are right. >> we got an update from correspondent sam. >> the speech that he gave on thursday came across really wealth to the population, lee focusing on security, that is the main point e1 to make. -- he wanted to make. at some point the constitution would be returned to the population, the priority was security. he wanted to maintain nations with the international community, it is hard when he orchestrated a military coup. we have not heard from the ousted president since he we saw
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the resignation later that was widely circulated a few days ago, we have not heard or seen him since he was taken by the military junta. he says -- they say he is in good health and in a safe place. he is allegedly and a villa. there is no confirmation on that. >> mali's foreign minister has told france 24 that the government will rule nothing out in their increasingly fraught relationship with paris. francis e former colonial -- france is the former colonial power there. tensions further escalated this week after the junta ordered a contingent of danish troops to leave. worsening relationships between mali and its international partners. a multinational european effort
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to assist mali fighting jihadist troops. they demanded the withdrawal of 100 newly arrived danish soldiers. the demand blasted by the foreign minister. >> [speaking foreign language] >> franco molly --mali relations have been on a steep decline after the junta seized power in 2022. they saw the danisforces as provocation and asked for them to stay out of mali's affairs and keep their mouth shut. speaking difference 24 on friday mali's foreign minister -- >> [speaking foreign language]
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>> task force takuba has been a key element in france's effort to reduce its own military footprint ast winds down its operation, a decade long effort that has failed to curb the spread of jihadi groups. it is casting doubt on the future of european efforts in anti-terror efforts road sub-saharan africa. >> in syria there has been continued violence. u.s.-backed kurdish fighters have been searching for islamic group militants, and urge those hiding in prison to give themselves up. they temporarily freed hundreds being held there, most of been recaptured by kurdish forces, thousands of residences have been displaced by the fighting. we hear more about the prison at
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the center of that violence. >> we know that in this penitentiary there were up to 3500 to 4000 men who were held, among them 700 men under age, as young as 11 and 12 years old in the midst of this combat situation. the detention facility is very harsh. the were many syrian and iraqi's them. also as i toldou, some westerners, foreigners, up to 150 non-aired -- non-arab citizens left in those camps. >> turkey's central bank has again defended its handling of the economy even as it admitted that inflation far outstripped its forecast. president anyone has -- erdogan has ordered the move to cut interest rates.
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leaving many families struggling. >> deciding what to buy the market is getting harder and harder as prices keep increasing. >> i have never experienced such high prices. look inside my shopping cart, it is half empty. i cannot buy cucumbers now because the price has increased sixfold. >> this is all i have left, this money is worthless and i do not know how much you will be tomorrow. >> in turkey, annual inflation hit a 20 year high at 36% while the turkish lira lost more than 40% of its value last year. over the past three months the price of cooking oil has increased by 76%, it is up 86% for flower, 47 percent for milk, 66% for bigs. turks have taken to social media to vent their anger and mock the crisis, like one poster who placed his produce in a safe
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treating it like a precious commodity. part of the problem, president erdogan wish to keep cutting interest rates, he wants to keep the currency week two promote strong exports of kurt -- turkish goods. he has dismissed ministers and bank managers that contradict him. his handling of the can't -- economy can turn into a political liability. anger is growing, massive street demonstrations taking place in december, calling for the government to resign and for the police to back down. the population of discontent could be inflected in the ballot box at -- during next year's elections. >> the french economy grew at its fastest pace in over five decades last year as it recovered from the worst of the pandemic, gdp expanded to 7% in 2021, more than had been forecast. data provides a welcomed boost to present emmanuel macron. >> from a dizzying plunge to an
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impressive rebound, the french economy grew at the fastest pace since 19 six to nine last year according to the latest government data driven in large part due to consumer spending. it -- gdp hit a impressive 7% as a tumbling nearly a percent into a percent into i-20, that puts france -- rel above the 5.1% and more than double of germany. the french economist minister taking a victory lap. >> it it races the economic crisis and also shows the mobilization of all these french workers that rolled up their sleeves to get us at this eager, 7% is spectacular, what is behind it is jobs, factories, businesses.
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this also proves that the government's economic policy is effective. >> it is indeed welcomed news for president manual mac from just three months before elections, those figures did not come chief -- cheap. they brought the countries debt level to 113% of annual gdp, nearly twice the level allowed by eu regulations, coronavirus restrictions continue to weigh on activity in's -- hospitality and tourism. energy prices skyrocket. the government expects the good news to continue, with projections of 3.64% of economic growth into a 22. -- in 2022. >> they're pushing ahead to raise the minimum wage in germany that we brought ahead in two stages. somewhat worried about the
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impact on their bottom line, this report from berlin. >> this bakery, like every other company in germany, will have to apply the new minimum wage over the upcoming year, here in the brandenburg region one in three workers will be affected, there is a lot of poverty and low wages. these men making cinnamon rolls welcome the news. >> as an employee, i think it is great. to get a fair salary is excellent. as a professional i am happily -- happy to be paid decently. >> the bakery owner is of two months, he says his employees, especially those that had to get up early deserve it, he is worried about inflation and having to raise prices. in short, the future. >> in germany, one bakery is closing every day. we are suffering from the coronavirus restrictions, the price of energy and raw materials is rising.
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and now a 20% increase in salaries. >> women will make up for of the 6 million workers in the fitting from the increase. up the road from the bakery they are cutting hair, giving trims, this salon owner is also happy for her employees, in the past two years she has had to let three of six of them go. >> i think it is good, but the timing is absently wrong, we have already lost a lot of clients because of lockdowns, customers have less money because their working hours have been cut. every day expenses have been going up and going to a hairdresser is a luxury. >> raising the minimum wage is a manner of dignity said the chancellor, applying the measure will likely take a lot of care. economy -- economists bringing that inflation at a 30 year high
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could get worse. >> is time now for truth or fate, our daily fact checking segment, i am joined here. thank you for joining us. you have a story here that shows the taliban in afghanistan destroying cell phones. >> that is what some post are claiming, it is all over social media because it has been circulating online since mid januy phones are now banned in afghanistan, they are considered the eye of satan. the same video was posted on youtube, it reads cell phones band in afghanistan. the same video on facebook with over 20,000 views, instagram as well 27,000 views, taliban
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government in afghanistan and use of phones and surveillance devices because it exposes their people government activities to the world. this post has the -- a pretty big outreach on social media. the devil is in the detail. if we take a much closer look on this video and posit on seven -- second 16, you see the flag of afghans -- pakistan on this man's uniform. >> on his shoulder. >> that is the flag of pakistan. that is clue number one. clue number two, if we type in the words pakistan phone destruction on youtube, you find this video posted december 29, saying that pakistani customs officials will destroy bottles of liquor -- similar to the scene posted on
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instagram. they were claiming that the taliban was destroying phones in afghanistan. here we have a mystery solved, this video is actually pakistani police destroying hundreds of contraband merchandise, taking place on december 29 as reported in local news. it reads off of december 30, the customs enforcement in karachi organized a ceremony on wednesday for the destruction of smuggled and contraband goods. overall, to summarize, this was a huge contraband operation that took place in afghanistan on december 29. >> in pakistan? >> right. >> this is where the details come in, we want to clarify what is and not allowed in afghanistan under the taliban. >> as you said is very important to clarify what is allowed and what is not under this taliban
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regimen in afghanistan. we do have some local sources that have confirmed to observer teams at france 24 that cell phones are allowed in afghanistan. there are older news reports like this one right here from august 4, 2020, before the taliban took over enough -- afghanistan. it details how the taliban band music, and mobile phones and afghan province. this did happen before, but overall there has been a lot of misinformation online after the taliban took over. also lots of pro taliban misinformation on social media as we have reported on as well. just keep an eye on the fake news online. >> thank you so much. thank you for watching, there is more coming up on france 24, stay tuned. ♪ >> i need a driver so bad, but
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there is no driver. i need at least three drivers to just maintain what we have now. >> since the start of the covid-19 pandemic the united states has seen an unexpected surge of resignations, 4.5 million people quit their jobs in november, numbers not seen for 20 years. >> if you are n going to invest money in your workers coming you will have a workforce. >> these huge numbers are driven by social movements that are turning the tables on employers and giving employees the upper hand. the great reckoning in the land of capitalism. >> they know they cannot work without us. >> do not miss reporters, on france 24 and france 24.com. ♪
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01/28/22 01/28/22 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> i am asking for your support, for your help because i fear for my life. amy: three years ago, mexican journalist lourdes maldonado pleaded with mexican president andrés manuel lópez obrador for help because she feared for her life. on sunday, she was shot
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