♪ >> further escalation of the standoff between moscow and the eu. today, the latest cut in gas supplies by the nord stream 1 pipeline. as president macron continues his tour, he pledges his support in benin. on this day 4 of the papal visit to canada, the pope is in québec where he is having meetings with

the country's political leadership. welcome back. thank you for joining us. first, in a sign of further escalation of the energy standoff between moscow and the eu, russia has implemented the latest cut in gas supplies. this brings capacity of the nord stream 1 to 1/5 of total. the wholesale gas price for august stands at 210 euros per megawatt hour, up 400% from one year ago. brian quinn has more. >> turning the tap to a trickle. the russian energy giant says there is another reduction of gas applies to germany, this time cutting supply to 20% of capacity. according to moscow, the cut is due to maintenance issues.

european leaders say it is part of a russian strategy of weaponizing supplies in order to destabilize energy markets in europe. >> they don't even have the guts to say we are in an economic war like confrontation with you. we have been told over and over this farcical story about turbines, which is simply not true. >> nord stream 1 carries gas from a russian port under the baltic sea to germany. western sanctions have halted the opening of the sister pipeline, nord stream ii. in june, it was cut to 60% capacity saying sanctions prevented sending a turbine to canada for repair. it was returned to 40% capacity before the latest announcement of further cuts. germany says the turbines are not subject to eu sanctions and

any delay in the return of repaired parts is due to missing russian customs documents. the latest cut comes as european countries scramble to stock up gas during a potential full cut off by moscow in winter, when heating demand is highest. >> ukraine said today it is moving closer to resuming grain exports. this is in line with a u.n. backed deal which was struck last week with the help of turkey. preparations are being made to escort ships through mine infested waters. istanbul will oversee the logistics. we have the report. >> it is a consequence of the war being fell far away from the battlefields. turkey oversees the limitation of a deal struck between the warring sides. there is hope ukraine, the

world's fifth largest exporter of wheat will be able to ship again. >> we believe it is critical to ensuring local food security. >> russia maintains a maritime blockade in the black sea. it runs from the russian coast to the romanian border and prohibits ukrainian ships from departing, in particular from odessa. turkey and the u.n. will check ships as they pass through istanbul. >> if there is a need for de-mining, we will proceed as agreed, however, there is no need at this stage. >> in ukrainian fields, farmers are hard at work. new attacks at the coast and a missile strike on odessa, one day after the agreement was signed, many people are skeptical about the deal. >> historically, it makes no sense to make a deal with russia.

agreements with russia are only worth the paper they are written on. >> speaking to france 24, the ukraine foreign minister underlined his countries commitments to the deal. >> ukraine will do everything it can to make sure this deal works and ukrainian agricultural products reach world markets. what remains to be seen is how russia will behave. >> with 20 million tons of grain stuck in silos, there is hope the shipments will ease the global food prices. the cost of grain has soared leaving millions worldwide at risk of hunger. >> the french president is currently on the second leg of his three nation tour of west africa, cameron, benin. in today's talks, president michael thought to -- president macron sought to strengthen

ties. this is in the face of attacks by militant groups, including al qaeda. >> a strong handshake to signal close friendship as emmanuel macron greets his counterpart. security issues where terror attacks are multiplying is one of the main discussions. >> we need military equipment. we expect support from you. we have the financial means to acquire it. we know you have the means to provide it to us. >> a request thawas heard and welcomed by the french president. >> the president asked me for more sophisticated equipment, which we are going to provide. a legitimate request. we must never forget security

response must be accompanied by a political and developed response proving sustainable. >> beyond talk, culture was a central point. the president saying looted artifacts have been returned by france, a restitution project that should continue in coming years. >> with regards to the restitution, i hope we can create the framework introduced in a study a few weeks ago. i hope we can move forward. >> in his first visit to africa since his reelection, emmanuel macron seeks to strengthen his influence on the continent. the president is expected in guinea this thursday. >> 30 jail opposition supporters are to be freed in benin.

critics have accused the current leadership of eroding freedoms. the president said there are no political detainees in his country. one of the president's host messages was a warning about russia, a country he branded as one of the last imperial colonial powers, with reference to the invasion of ukraine. emmanuel macron said he brought a message to a consummate that had suffered from colonial imperialism. the russian foreign minister has himself just wrapped up in african tour. --an african tour. >> sergei lavrov trying to win over his african counterparts after five months of conflict in ukraine. his strategy? a tour of africa. at the same time emmanuel macron

is meeting with different delegates. french troops from mali, russia is expanding military operations. >> france, ltle by littl is tting cut off. is being countered in countries that were its former colonies. >> last april, the french army released footage showing soldiers burying civilians in northern mali. they describe the images as part of a scheme to make it look like french military left a massacre behind before handing over the base to molly and troops. -- malian troops. on the economic side, they are accused of weaponizing economic tools. >> some say europeans sanctions are the cause of the crisis, including in africa. this is totally false.

food and energy have become weapons of war for russia. >> despite its effort on the african continent, russian presence is only half that of france in 10 times less then china. >> it will not replace oer powers that have been on the ground. >> a second russia-africa summit is set for 2023, intensifying political tensions between europe and russia, fighting over the african continent. >> the pope is continuing his tour of canada, today he is visiting québec. on the first leg of his tour, he was in the western province of alberta where he begged forgiveness for the role of the catholic church in the running of boarding schools which aimed to assimilate indigenous people. many children died in those institutions and thousand suffered horrific abuse. our correspondent joins us from

vancouver. tell us what is on the pontiff's schedule? >> he has arrived from québec and is going to the citadel, the official residence in québec of the head of state in lieu of queen elizabeth the second. he will be meeting with first nation leaders, the prime minister and he will make an address on the plains of abraham, which is where bottle was fought in the 70 900s, that basically ended royal france in north america. tomorrow, he is traveling out of québec city, holding mass at a basilica just out of montréal. on friday, he's going up to nunavit where he will be meeting with local indigenous first nations, school survivors and having a farewell ceremony. then he returns back to rome. >> is it fair to say church

attendance and influence in canada has been on the decline in recent years and decades? >> it has. there was a report out of québec, 90% of the population decades ago used to be church attending. now it is about 10%. clear across the country, regardless if it is catholic or protestant, organized, attendance in organized religion has fallen substantially. two churches in the area where i live just closed down in the past couple years. some evangelical churches aren't doing too badly. there has been a massive crash in attendance for organized religion, particularly mainstream christianity. that is clear across the country and in washington state, and oregon. >> thank you very much. >> you're welcome. >> that is the world news.

thanks for watching. stay tuned. ♪ >> could be in danger. you are in danger. >> just want to be a normal anonymou lawyer. >> can you tell us where she is? >> that is the story. >> from a true crime series featuring the late ray liotta to a slate of fantasy spinoffs, there is something for everyone streaming this summer.

rtv critic is here to break it all down. hello. >> hello. >> you're starting with one of my personal favorite shows,, stranger things which has finally released to the second part of season 4. >> our favorite 1980's teenagers from hawkins are back for part two of this season. it is just two episodes, movie length episodes, 1.5 hours and 2.5 hours long respectively. season 4 continues to focus on the upside down villain who is a humanoid monster. >> season 4 is only the second show after screed game to clock one billion hours viewed in the first month. let's take a look. ♪ >> it's not going to stop. ♪ >> let's do it. ♪

>> i have this terrible feeling. ♪ >> it might not work out for us this time. ♪ >> season 4 has been epic for many reasons, not least of all its incredible music. >> the whole deal with this villain is that he tortures his victims by bringing up painful memories in their past. the hawkins kids figure out the only way to fight him is by playing the victim's favorite songs. this is where we get incredible music. ♪ >> is working. let's go. ♪ >> the show have been clever and playing to its 1980's cultural references.

metallica's 1986 classic, master of puppets, has enjoyed renewed success among a younger generation. it has shot up to the top of the music charts thanks to eddie shredding his guitar in this incredible solo while he is in the upside down. >> i am not usually a metallica fan but i listened after that episode. perhaps the main anthem of the season was kate bush's song running up that hill. ♪ >> what a rousing anthem. epic that saw max breaking free to this incredibly rousing song.

that song has gone on to smash the music charts and break in his world records in the process 37 years after its first release. >> i have been listening to that one too. netflix briefly crashed when the show dropped because of the sheer number of people trying to watch it at the same time. what should people expect overall? >> i have a gripe with the season. the episodes are getting ridiculously longer and longer. is that necessary or overindulgent? the season has really been terrifying, emotional as well, mixing russian prisons with a terrifying villain and 11 trying to find her powers. it has been really dark. without giving much away, the season is a bit of a bloodbath. be prepared to say goodbye to some of your memorable characters and also, this season sets up the inevitable showdown in the fifth season. >> i am very excited for season

5. stranger things will be getting a spinoff series and a new stage play. not a surprise that they are keen to keep interest going. it is one of their most lucrative shows, especially at a time when they are losing subscribers. we are going to move on to apple tv plus. their newest show blackbird is a twist on the true crime genre and features ray liotta in his last appearance. >> jimmy keene is a cocky, son of a policeman who gets caught up in drug trafficking and ends up in minimum-security prison. prosecutors offer him a way out but he must infiltrate a maximum-security prison to elicit a confession from a serial killer, suspected of killing over dozen women. blackbird is expired by the extraordinary true story of a convicted felon trying to entrap another inmate in exchange for his own freedom. ♪ >> larry has vivid dreams. >> tell me about them.

>> in my dreams, i kill women. those are just dreams. ♪ >> in this prison where the guys? >> maximum security spealizing in the criminally insane. >> you want me to check into hell and befriend a demon? not for all the money in the world. >> how the freedom? >> the real james keane, whose bestseller led him to hollywood also has a producing role on the show. looks pretty gritty in the trailer. >> it is a really intense show. very gritty. suspenseful. perfectly paced. six episodes. seamlessly jumps between the past and present. it is the cast that elevates the show. greg kinnear is a detective. terron, far cry from his flamboyant role, absolutely

captivating as jimmy keene, this hardened drug dealer. ray liotta, who was actually ailing at the time. he plays his dying father. that chemistry is really formidable. one of those rare moments where you see the tough exterior of his character start to crack. props to paul walter hauser, he plays the suspected killer. he is bone chilling. his childlike voice, dead eyed expressions. the show really asks is ha serial killer or just a serial confessor with a pathological need to lie? >> it sounds intriguing. july and august may have once been sleepy month for television but streaming platforms have changed that. >> there has been an uptick in superhero and fantasy shows. there is a lot to look forward to this august. there are three new shows, two prequels. one is a spinoff.

♪ >> a new female superhero debuts in the marvel cinematic universe. tough tiana plays she hulk, who after a blood transfusion, transforms into a female hulk. mark ruffalo reprises his role. unlike other marvel heroes, she is a little more comedic. >> this is going to be a woman who decides these powers are liberating for her and she is going to enjoy her life with them. the fact the show is embracing that means there are very different types of stories that can btold ty are than what we would normally expect from marvel stories. >> hbo is bringing back the game of thrones magic with house of the dragon. >> what is this brief mortal

life if not the pursuit of legacy? >> the prequel, set a few hundred years before the events of the original series chronicles the rise and fall of the target area and family as they battle through a civil war in westeeros. george rr martin is said to be heavily involved in the production. >> it remembers names. >> in the star wars universe, the spinoff will tell the tale of a burgeoning rebellion against the empire and how endor became a rebel alliance hero. july and august are typically

sleepy months in television. this year is proving to be a boom for the fantasy and superhero genre. the september will mark the biggest television release of the year. the lord of the rings series on amazon. the first season alone cost half $1 billion to make. >> i love a fantasy series. lots of good shows coming up. another genre has been enjoying a boom. the biopic. who has a new series coming up about the rise, fall and redemption of mike tyson. >> it is called mike. it traces the ups and downs of the life of the boxing champion. hulu says it deals with things like class and race in america, fame and misogyny and also tyson's rape conviction for which he served three years in prison. >> tyson himself slammed the

show. >> he posted in early 2021 on instagram, he wrote that the show is a prime example of how corporate greed led to this tone deaf cultural misappropriation of the tyson life story. he has deleted that post. as per the show, i am not convinced by the physical resemblance but he has the tyson lisp down pat and the show looks interesting. there is another mike tyson series in the works from training day director antoin and reportedly martin scorsese starting jamie foxx. >> i guess mike tyson might be having a moment. we can leave you with a peak at mike on august 25. thanks to all of you for watching. for more culture, head to our

website or find us on social media. there is more news coming up on friends 24 after this. ♪ >> you need to embrace your ability. ♪ >> now i'm really going to have some fun. ♪

>> we can see those jellyfish coming to our shores in larger numbers. each year because of global warming, the water gets hotter, we see more jellyfish. these jellyfish came from the red sea into the mediterranean.

they cause real damage here, competing with local fish for food. they get stuck in the power plants and cause real damage. of course, they sting so people stay away from the beaches during the summer, which is the busiest time. ♪ >> france 24, more than ever before, is your window onto the world. ♪

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[captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now. >> join a has in recent time made clear to the united states repeatedly its grave concern the stern condition opposing pelosi's visit to taiwan.

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