>> welcome back you are watching france 24. mark: these are the headlines. one the most significant figures of the 21st century mikhail gorbachev has died, he was 91 years old. the last leader of the soviet union, he was key of moving rush away from a communist doctrine. ukraine claims have destroyed of bridges, ammunition and tempos and russian command posts. this is the counteroffensive in underway. of the country is the nuclear watchdog lands in kyiv in zaporizhzhia.

iraq's prime minister said he will resign if the political situation continues. supporters of the shiite, of heated his call to stop the fighting in baghdad. ♪ thank you very much for being with us. we start with the sad news, the death of one of the most significant figures of the 20 century mikhail gorbachev sing away at 91. reports coming out of russia confirming this. the last leader of the soviet union, he was key in russia's move away from communist doctrine. was the 1986 nuclear disaster, sure noble, that has made him realize that major reform of the

soviet system was needed. mikhail gorbachev is often derided in russia today as some by presiding over the dissolution of the soviet union, which precipitated economic collapse. mikhail gorbachev eyeing at the age of 91. the sick a look at his life -- dying at the age of 91. let's take a look at his life. >> he was a man of change and became an iconic figure of the 20th century. born in 1971 -- he roasts to the top of the soviet union and ultimately oversaw its collapse. >> it briefly, the fall of the berlin wall was a sign of what was going on in the world and where was heading to. this event gave rise to a great lot of changes. >> mikhail gorbachev came to power in 1985, at the origin 54

and represented a new era for the communist party. his goal, saving the soviet system through reform and the changes were not limited to internal affairs. looking to warm, cold war relations with the u.s., he launched a dialogue, signing a bilateral treaty to reduce nuclear weapons. in 1988, he pulled russian troops from afghanistan. mikhail gorbachev started a stagnant economy through restructuring and government transparency. but the country's financial woes they accused him obeing too slow. conservatives of leading the country to its demise. >> of course we made mistakes. we waited too long to reform the communist party. to reform the soviet union too. we did not anticipate the problems to come. when will started earning more

and consuming more, the market was not at all supplied to meet the demand. hence these huge queues in stores. >> in august of 1991, mikhail gorbachev survives the q attempt -- akutan. the new russian president, he resigned as president of the ussr. soviet union had fallen. >> when i saw that an agreement had been signed in order to create new independent states, it declared i stop my presidency. i could've stayed. could have called the congress of people, could have called the army. but i saw that the people would have been divided, even if people voted in march to keep

the soviet union. but i didn't want the bloodshed. >> his biggest regret, the fall of the soviet union. his domestic reputation never recovered from overseeing its collapse. it would endear him to former soviet states and the west. his role of bringing about the end of the cold war earned him a nobel peace prize. >> --mark: last leader of the soviet union, the man many say is responsible for the reform of a pressure from the soviet times into what it is. he was keen to stay within the communist doctrine but the change he began in the late 80's ended in the soviet system being overturned and a different type of emergent -- russia emerging. mikhail gorbachev passing away at the age of 91. we get more reaction and analysis coming up on france 24. next, ukraine, claimed to

destroyed bridges and admission depots as well as pounding command posts in search of fighting in the south of the country, fueling speculation that the counteroffensive to turn the tide of the war is now underway. russia has said it repelled the attack, and avoided casualties. it took place in kherson. cranes authorities have not yet gone public on their intentions are at the state. here at france 24. x drones like this one- >> drones like this one are in the sky. the operators risk coming under fire from russian soldiers wanting to prevent the ukrainian army from discovering their locations. >> i think today's mission was useful. we have identified it russians constructing fortifications and strengthening their positions. >> ukrainian army says russian

forces in the kherson region are vulnerable after it destroyed bridges over the river threatening russia supply lines. ukraine says it can bomb any bridges russia tries to build. >> as of now russia cannot send reinforcements from the left bank of the river, so they are creating an illusion of sending in reinforcements by relocating army units from one place to another. >> but moscow paints a different picture. the russian defense ministry reported on tuesday that the counteroffensive had failed and russian forces have defeated the 128 brigade. it confirmed thisould be a significant loss for ukraine. >> effective actns of the russian grouping of troops stroyed 40 tanks, 46 inftry fighting vehicles, 37 other army vehicles, eight pickup trucks

with machine guns and over 1200 ukrainian servicemen. >> it's the first time ukraine has gone on the defense in the south after weeks of stalemates. kherson is a strategic area with access to the black sea, taking it back with stopping -- russia's forces in ukraine. mark: perhaps the counteroffensive underway. we will keep up developments. tonight, the safety of europe's largest nuclear power station is headline news.s. the fighting going on within striking distance of the zaporizhzhia, there are growing concerns over a possible nuclear accident. in kyiv atomic agency met with the ukraine government, face-to-face, shaking hands with president zelenskyy. zelenskyy saying he wants the iea mission to reach the power station to ensure there is no disaster. there were six reactors in zaporizhzhia, more than the nuclear disaster of 1986 which

haunts the continent. james andre at zaporizhzhia. >> iea delegation has arrived in the ukraine in kyiv. if met with president zelenskyy. they are expected here in the hours to come. no one knows what the exact schedule is. there's been no communication when it comes to the way's is going to take place. it appears that indeed they are going to cross towards the zaporizhzhia power station through ukrainian territory, something that was brokered with the russians and it was problematic because moscow's insisting that they should go through russian-controlled territory. there has been a lot of brokering about the team itself. there are from various countries, two from pro-russian countries, two from pro-ukrainian countries. 10 from countries considered neutral. they will inspect the facility,

verify its structural integrity, check the reactors, but also check the working conditions of the roughly 1000 ukrainian engineers who still working on the plant, under russian supervision and control. of course there been international cause, including the u.s. calling constant monitoring of the plan. also asking for it to be a demilitarized zone. that is yet to be discussed with russian authorities who have refused these two hypothesis. of course all of this is in the backdrop of a potential catastrophe. also the fact that a lot of people experts in ukraine consider that there is a risk that russia might indeed disconnect the ukrainianrid to connect its own grid. including the grid of crimea and indeed that would mean the 20% of electricity production of ukraine would be diverted it to russian control territory. mark: james andre in

zaporizhzhia. we will bring you more as we get it. let's return to opening stories the death of mikhail gorbachev. he is credited of changing bodies today from the soviet union. as russian society, some say he was behind at the dissolution and ruin of the soviet union. so, in many having a positive view of mikhail gorbachev and ti mes. let's get the versa -- first of the international reactions and our washington correspondent. very good evening to you. when american perspective, what would one to think of them signing a treaty. we started the obituary we had of mikhail gorbachev. give us some sense of how the

last leader of the soviet union is viewed in the usa? >> he is viewed as that partner help bring the end of the soviet union in a peaceful way. of course, the first american leader you think about when you mentioned the name mikhail gorbachev. is ronald reagan as he said. these two were absolute partners, especially in bringing about arms-control and those two leaders didn't trust each other if you look at the recounting of those years. they went on to build a trust and eventually become some type of a friends because they managed to develop respect for each other, trust for each other and worked together to bring

some sort of peace in the world at a time when their two countries where the two main powers in the world. and had bit at arms for decades. but mikhail gorbachev has had relationships with other american leaders. there was george bush but the current president, joe biden who met with mikhail gorbachev back in 2009 when he was the vice president to barack obama. that meeting according to some reports, lasting more than an hour, an hour and half, the president, barack obama dropping in on that meeting between biden and mikhail gorbachev and russian media a couple of years ago putting out a reporting on a letter that joe biden may have

sent to mikhail gorbachev to celebrate and congratulate him on his 90th birthday. so, as soviet leader that had very close respectful relationships, if not friendships with american leaders. in grand scheme of things, in the way history has seen in the u.s., when he think about the soviet union and the end of the soviet union, there is a positive view, an image of mikhail gorbachev, someone who brought an end to that soviet union in the most peaceful way, even though his image and his stature may be seen from the russian point of view may be very different. mark: thank you very much, indeed. we will bringing -- we will be bringing more reaction from the

passing of the last leader of the soviet union, mikhail gorbachev. iraq's prime minister says he will resign if the complicated political say she drew -- situation continue. supporters, who clashed with iraqi security forces in baghdad began to withdraw from the street this tuesday, following two days of deadly unrest that sparked fear throughout iraq and over the region of the middle east. he told his supporters to leave the government quarter with a have rallied. within minutes some could be seen heeding the call, dismantling their tents and walking out of the area known out of -- known as the green zone. i am for the business, who better than brian quinn. starting with the more

uncertainty for europe's energy supplies as russia once again reduces deliveries of natural gas. >> tuesday russia said it would be suspending all natural gas deliveries to french aghast utility starting thursday or -- over what it is called unpaid delivery sums. the news comes a day after a three-day total shutdown of the nord stream 1 pipeline that supplies germany with most of its russian gas since the summer nord stream 1 has been operating at an -- a fraction of its total capacity. france is less dependent on russian gas than its neighbors, but it is still staring down potential power shortages this winter as it races to catch up on long overdue maintenance. the countries fleet of nuclear reactors. we have the latest. >> this pipeline has only been running at 20% capacity since july. as of wednesday it will grind to a halt for three days. it's second outage this summer. nord stream 1 is one of the main

pipelines that brings russian gas to europe. but recently, it has been falling short of its delivery potential. moscow says the shutdown is due to maintenance issues. blaming western sanctions. >> russia was and remains ready to fulfill its obligations. sanctions against the russian federation do not allow for normal maintenance and repair work. >> european leaders describe the situation as politically motivated. >> russia is using gas as a weapon of war. we must prepare for the worst case scenario, which would be a complete halt of deliveries. >> the french energy minister made that statement on the same day gas halted from the main france gas facility. this over a contract dispute. paris has reassured consumer that there are two months worth of gas in emergency stock for

this winter, however rationing could still be put in place. germany has been scrambling to fill its gas reserves. berlin is ahead of schedule, the fact remains that europe has had to find alternative suppliers. before the war in ukraine, russia provided 40% of the continents gas. now, the eu is seeking new sources of gas from north africa, the middle east and deliveries to specialized liquefied gas terminals across the continent. brussels is also seeking energy policy reform, to decouple electricity prices from the volatile gas market. >> the markets. oil and gas, futures falling tuesday as traders worry inflation and recessions could hit global demand in the coming months. your peanut benchmark brent crude and its american counterpart wti dropping more than 5% on tuesday. european aghast benchmark -- european gas, dutch tt f dropped

nearly 7%, as france and germany approach capacity. in equity markets, european index were mixed, goldman sachs warns the u.k. inflation could hit 22% next year. frankfurt dax slight gain despite showing german inflation and ash year high. -- year high. wall street with a third straight day of losses, interest rate hikes, curbing inflation all major indexes ending the day in the neighborhood of 1%. the president of sri lanka says his country is nearing a deal with the international monetary fund for a an emergency bailout package as it faces out its worst ever economic crisis. heook office in july after his predecessor fled the country during mass protests over shortages over central goods. on tuesday the president who was also serving as finance minister presented a new national budget, that includes tax hikes to increase revenue for the bankrupt government, along as

deming sri lanka was 66% -- along with stemming be sri lanka 66% inflation rate. the country owes $51 billion to foreign creditors, 27 billion is due within five years. the ims says the debt must be restructured before a bailout package can be finalized. there is a president on tuesday. >> [speaking foreign language] >> negotiations with the international monetary fund have successfully reached the final stage. discussions on debt restructuring will be held with the main countries that provide loan assistance to our country. the united nations in collaboration with leading international organizations is launching a program to ensure code security. >> of hands for sri lanka. the president is looking at 25 year economic plan to get out of that hole. mark: thank you very much, indeed.

spain has introduced a major change to its migration policy in order to tackle a labor shortage. it is making it easier for foreigners to get work permits helping those already in , the country, as well as those coming to spain and students. x santos -- >> santos is 48 and from brazil. he spent the last four years in spain without official documents. he has tried to battle the bureaucracy himself but is now turning to a lawyer. it's good news. he could obtain a work permit soon. >> when you're in an irregular situation there are always people out to take advantage, to a -- to pay you less. you're always nervous, looking around tof see if anyone will ask to see your papers. now i can finally sleep peacefully. >> the government's recent immigration reform has made it much simpler for paperless foreigners who have spent more than two years here to obtain

papers. >> this reform is based on skills, it can help a lot of foreigners. they can commit to a training program and get to live in spain legally in return without a previous work contract. >> another group that is benefiting from the reform is students. from now on, once they finish their studies, they will automatically be granted an extra year in spain. vital extra time to get a job. >> for -- before there was so much bureaucracy in such a backlog to obtain papers. sometimes we filled our only options were to either return to our own countries or to work illegally. >> labor shortage and an aging population, spain has overhauled its approach to migration, a historic move, says the foundation por causa. >> it's not just trying to issue papers the people already here.

it's also offering regular routes to people who are going to college. what they are doing is sorting out the whole system and that was necessary and important. it is virtually a first in europe. >> it is estimated there are currently half a million foreigners living in spain, without papers. mark: tomatoes are under threat in italy. the hot weather, lack of rain means harvest is not looking good in a country where the tomato is essential to both cuisine and exports. our reporters with this. >> harvesting starts early, in morning before it gets too hot and too difficult to work. the season has seen temperatures rise above 37 degrees, four of ash for up normally -- four of normally long periods of time. >> we had to water much more frequently when the temperatures hit the highest peaks, because the plant was losing more water than usual. we adapted by making the watering times shorter. >> giovanni's yield has declined by 20%.

it's simir situation for all the tomato farmers in the region. the province in south italy supplies nearly half of the countries tomato production. >> one of the local union representatives has come to assess the situation. >> [speaking foreign language] >> in addition to the loss of fruit, production costs are higher due to soaring energy prices. >> for a hectre of tomatoes we used to spend 10,000 euros, now it is close to 15,000. before my costs were around a million euros, now i have to pay one and a half million euros for the same yield. >> the italian government has agreed to a tax credit of 20% on fuel purchase, only a small help as the additional costs continue to rise. also in the processing, the cost of glass bottle has doubled in a year.

>> a kilo of tomatoes cost is $.30. we are paying packaging costs of $.23 for the model. ask for the bottle -- for the bottle. five cents for the top, which means the raw materials, because the same as the packaging. it is absurd, absolutely absurd. >> representatives from the tomato industry have requested urgent assistance from the state in the region alone 1500 businesses are in a perilous situation. mark: more news, stay with us. you are watching france 24. ♪ >> lucian from the oil business is devastating gabon -- pollution from the oil business is devastating gabon. >> [speaking foreign language] >> activists are speaking out about constant leaks. >> [speaking foreign language].

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[captioning made possible by democracy now!] ♪ amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> u.s. foreign policy has been aggressive, and now we have serious dangers onwo fronts. the war in ukraine, which is devastatg, and the dangers a potential nfrontatn with china. we have to rethink our foreign policy