>> you are watching "live from paris" here on france 24. i'm mark owen. these are the headlines. u.s. secretary of state lincoln is in saudi arabia for talks with prince mohammad bin salman. zelenskyy tells macron of the urgent need to deal with the strike down on the dnipro river . macron is urging the red cross to step in. mike pence declared he is in

competition with his former boss donald trump for the republican nomination to run for the white house in 2024. this is "live from paris." thank you very much for being with us. antony blinken in talks with the crown prince of saudi arabia. the two met face to a perception of rapidly shifting alliances with sunni muslim saudi's rapprochement with shiite muslim around. topics included the conflict in yemen, the unrest in sudan, as well as human rights. >> alliances in the middle east may be shifting, but the u.s.

assess what has not changed is its support for allies in the region. at a meeting with his counterparts, u.s. secretary of state antony blinken sought to reassure officials of washington's focus. >> the united states will remain a partner with all of you. >> he also pledged to work to bring peace to conflicts in yemen, syria, palestinian territories, and sudan. >> [indiscernible] >> earlier, blinken met with the saudi foreign minister. the two sides resolve to continue to work together to counter terrorism the region.

their meeting came after the secretary of state had a reportedly open and candid conversation with saudi arabia's de facto ruler. human rights topped the agenda for talks, a topic that has strained relations between the countries. oil has also been a sticking point since the u.s.'s pleas for help in bringing down skyrocketing prices last year were dismissed. lincoln's -- blinken's visit to riyadh coincides with the restoration of diplomatic ties between saudi arabia and iran in a deal brokered by china. mark: let us get the analysis now from a senior resident scholar with the arab gulf states institute. thank you for being with us. why are these two meeting now? >> it is very important, and it is a follow-up visit by the

national security advisor, jake sullivan, which happened last month. there are increasing efforts by the united states to solidify the relationship with saudi arabia, which really got better after joe biden's trip. then there was this pickup last october over opec/oil price -- opec oil price quote of reductions. there was a sense saudi arabia might be partnering with russia against the interests of western consumers, but it did not happen. the saudi's were right when they said there would not be an oil price increase. there was not. so that has been tamped down. in the meanwhile, even though saudi arabia is trying a rapprochement with iran and even though it is building stronger ties with china, both sides are working hard to maintain the

core security relationship between washington and riyadh and partnering on sudan trying to end the war in yemen and cooperation -- very quiet cooperation, sort of under the radar, in building a new regime of containment and deterrence against iran that the u.s. is putting together through a lot of bilateral stuff. u.s. efforts, saudi efforts, u.s. ae efforts, cooperation between these countries worried about iran's hegemony in the region. mark: can i take you back to the opec issue and the iran issue? which of these two is the most disturbing from washington's perspective?

>> the u.s. does not mind the exchange of embassies or ambassadors and the reopening of embassies between iran and saudi arabia. iran is not entering an alliance with saudi arabia and saudi arabia is not embracing iran. what they are doing is de-escalating. they are diffusing tensions because it is in the interests of both parties not to do that. the saudi's also among other things are trying to convince the iranians that even if they were to make an attack on nuclear facilities, which israel keeps threatening, that retaliating by striking saudi arabia or the uae would be a misstep. they are sort of trying to get out of the way up possible israeli retaliation. washington does not mind negotiations. it does not mind diplomatic relations. it even was not that upset with arab countries re-embracing syria under assad.

that is ok. the opec plus issue is really an irritant, and it is a potential problem. because saudi arabia uses opec plus and its cooperation with russia to create a floor and ceiling for the christ -- the price of oil. that is crucial for the economic transformation plants which are necessary and not the most vulnerable, but if it comes at the cost to western consumers, it's going to look like the saudi's gouging americans, and it's going to look like they are doing it in collusion with moscow against kyiv, and that will be potentially the source of a lot of tension, so that is the biggest ticking bomb out there. mark: you describe that again so vividly, but behind that, there is real genuine level of proper, strong cooperation between the two. >> absolutely. i think if you look under the

hood, so to speak, to compare this to a vehicle, it looks like there is a lot of tension and dynamism on the outside, and there is, but under the hood where the working groups are, where the military groups are, where the alliances are, task force 59, a u.s. naval mission, which is creating this remarkable surveillance project in the waters of the gulf, and they are going to move to the red sea and the arabian sea in coordination with local countries like saudi arabia, uae, bahrain dashed on the red sea, it will probably involve egypt as well as israel as well as saudi arabia. all this stuff is going on quietly and there is a good deal of cooperation, especially in terms of creating a new regime of containment and deterrence against iran, but again, very quietly. i think nobody wants to make a big deal out of this because they don't want to save her rattle. there is a preference in the biden administration for negotiations and talks over

conflict and confrontation. at the same time, as long as talks are not going on with iran , as long as iran continues to inch toward nuclear weapons status and maintain this network of armed gangs around middle eastern militias that are attacking and killing american troops and contractors in iraq and syria and elsewhere, then there really is the need to build up more containment deterrence against tehran, and the saudi's are a big part of that. >> thank you very much indeed for that analysis, giving us a real sense of context and depth. thank you very much indeed, senior resident scholar at the arab gulf states institute. we continue to watch the secretary of state on his visit to saudi arabia, speaking with mohammad bin salman, the crown prince, giving us a sense of what this visit means and why it is so important. let's move on to the situation

in ukraine. president volodymyr zelenskyy spoke with the french president this wednesday about the urgent need to help over the dam disaster. zelenskyy has issued an appeal to help save ukrainians in the face of rising waters caused by the destruction of the dam. he has criticized the red cross and the united nations for what he says is a lack of action in the face of the threat to life and property caused by the explosion that triggered the collapse of the dam, which observers say was carried out by russian occupying forces. ukraine's deputy prime minister has been to kherson to see the damage. he once of the danger of flooding minds, disease, and chemicals washed into places where people were still living. >> a city underwater. it is a similar story across several areas along the river. the scale of destruction left by an explosion at the dam is clear

. plus, the humanitarian fallout from the disaster is still unfolding. thousands are being evacuated from their homes, seeing their entire community and gold has been difficult for residents. >> i live in this house and i've always been happy in my neighborhood. the most beautiful and picturesque. in my old age, it feels like i've seen -- i've received somewhat of an unwanted gift. i cannot sleep, i cannot eat, and i cannot get into my apartment. >> ukraine estimates that some 42,000 people are direct risk from flooding. tens of thousands remained stranded while hundreds of thousands could be left without drinking water. even as the residents were evacuated, shelling continued. ukraine and russia blame each other for the blasts and the collapse of the dam. >> trusting russia is futile.

they lie on a daily basis. plus, our president said it clearly. the dam was blown up from the inside and it was under pressure's control for the last half a year. >> it is allegations moscow denies. >> everything fits the description of the situation -- terrorism, extremism, sabotage. >> the kremlin says ukraine had sabotaged the dam to distract attention from what it calls as kyiv's faltering counteroffensive. >> our ukraine correspondent has more now on the situation with kherson where the water has been rising at a rate of 16 cm every hour. >> this roundabout in kherson is

called shipbuilder square. unexpectedly, it has become a hub of navigation. also it's of vessels have been mobilized to bring residents of flooded areas to safety and relief. >> my house is gone. only the roof is visible. just the roof. >> the areas worst affected by the flooding are also those worst affected by shelling from russians across the river. people leaving now are people who have decided to stay put despite the risks. >> i'm fed up. i was home, but now it is flooded up to the second floor. rocky, come here. >> there are many pets among the evacuees and other animals, too. >> i found him sitting in the stairway. i could hardly leave him to drown. when we woke up this morning, the water was too deep, so we waited for the evacuation. >> most evacuees say they plan

to stay in the upper districts of kherson, which are not under threat of flooding, but the whole city and beyond will be affected by this disaster for years, says ukraine's deputy prime minister. >> regions of kherson will already have problems with drinking water supplies. we are talking hundreds of thousands of residents of our country who are already being affected by this. now with the governmental team and with the representatives of the military administrations, we are working to mitigate the effects of this catastrophe. >> the waters will subside in a week, but ukraine will be dealing with the aftermath for years. mark: gulliver cragg in kherson. former u.s. vice president mike pence has formally declared himself as candidate for the republican party presidential nomination for 2024. the all-time trumpoyalist now

finds himself competing head-to-head with him. pence ditch trump over bogus claims of electoral claims -- bogus claims of electoral fraud. pence was also one of the congresspeople who had to run for their lives on january 6, 2021, when angry trump supporters stormed the capital. pence says different times call for different leadership. >> today, before god and my family, i am announcing i'm running for president of the united states. we can bring this country back. we can defend our nation and secure our border. we can revive our economy and put our nation at on a balance, defend our liberty. mark: with those words, mike pence set him up -- set himself up for a dramatic showdown with his former boss. for the first time, a former vice president is running for the white house against a

president who served under. the former indiana governor never mentioned donald trump by name but signaled he would be a better fit for the job. >> we could turn this country around, but different times call for different leadership. today, our party and country with -- need a leader that will appeal, as lincoln said, to the better angels of our nature. >> after announcements of former new jersey governor chris christie and current north dakota governor doug burgum, the number of candidates for the republican nomination is in the double digits. those critical of donald trump seat mike pence as complicit in spreading his lies and those supportive of him seek pence as a traitor for not overturning the 2020 election results. last month, a cnn poll showed 45% of republican-leaning independents would not vote for pence under any circumstance, and that number seemed to be

hunting mike pence. it is coincidently the same amount he is lagging behind the front runner, his former boss, donald trump. mark: it seems to suggest pence has no chance, but it does point to a split within the republican party. now to the health of pope francis. he underwent surgery to repair a hernia. the pontiff is expected to remain in hospital in rome for several days. the vatican said there were no complications after the three-hour surgery during which the pope was under general anesthetic. >> a pope's regime could not have had more reassuring words for catholics awaiting the end of his operation. >> now he has awakened. he is fine, and he is already at work. >> still far from john paul ii's

nine operations at this very hospital, the pontiff has been treated here several times. pope francis has had 33 centimeters of his large intestine removed here two years ago, an operation that triggered his latest hernia and persistent pain. >> during the operation, we found an important connection, and we read all of the additions. then we arrived to perform the remainder of the surgery in a normal way. >> the pope is missing a portion of one of his lungs, and he does not take operations lightly. he declined the opportunity to repair his knee because he feared the effects of general anesthesia.

still, that concern and caution will not slow the pope. he will rest but not for long. audiences will resume in just a few days, and on august 2, he will fly to portugal to celebrate world youth day. later that month, he will even travel to mongolia, one of the most remote places he has ever visited. mark: certainly is a force of nature. pope francis recovering in hospital in rome for the next few days, but as we heard in that report, he has a packed schedule ahead. next, smoke from wildfires in canada is causing concern on both sides of the border with the u.s. they vest other countries for help biting more than 420 fighters nationwide. care quality rates -- air quality rates as hazardous level

of pollution extending into new york. 15 u.s. states are on alert. there are reports of schools being closed as the smoke drifts over cities such as baltimore and quebec. >> new york city shrouded in thick fog. the big apple is feeling the effects of smoke from fires in neighboring canada, which has spread hundreds of kilometers south. it is the same story in the state of ohio, parts of which are enveloped in fog with the sun burning bright red. according to experts, air pollution has reached health-threatening levels in several u.s. cities. >> the levels we are seeing today are really much higher then what are normally seen in a large, polluted city in asia, for example, so we are really seeing these exceptional levels that are traditionally seen in really populated cities. >> there are currently hundreds

of fires reaching across canada with more than 150 in quebec alone. the province has become the epicenter of the country's wildfires. in the capital ottawa, which borders quebec, residents will an orange haze, which has led to health officials advising people to wear masks when outside, to limit time outdoors, and to keep windows closed with the air conditioning on. experts are warning of the dangers of exposure to such conditions. >> not only because topical irritation through all of our respiratory linings but actually cross over into our bloodstream. >> air quality is expected to remain poor over the coming days. there is no rain forecast, and the wind is helping the fires to spread. arc: flights, too, are disrupted, as you might expect given the air quality. we will keep you updated on that story. it is time for business. the turkish lira just keeps

sinking. it plunged more than 7% justice wednesday against the dollar. tell us the story. >> the currency saw its biggest selloff since the historic crash in 2021 after president erdogan signaled over the weekend a possible u-turn on his unorthodox economic policy. economists say the lira is coming closer to its real value as the government loosened its grip after injecting massive amounts of dollars to hold it steady. expectations are high that with a new finance minister, government policy will change and the central bank will start raising interest rates. china says that it and the european union are both victims of economic coercion by the united states. there is a day after the eu agrees to create a trade tool

aimed at punishing countries that seem to put pressure on one of its members. the bloc's move came after china spoke with lithuania on trade and other issues over strengthening ties with taiwan. >> the reaction was to be expected. a day after the eu took aim at what it sees as china's economic coercion, beijing sought to deflect any blame. >> both china and the european union are victims of economic coercion by the u.s. the united states has blatantly coerced the european union and other countries to restrict exports to china. this kind of bullying has seriously impacted the developments of the semiconductor industry. >> trouble has been brewing for several years. in 2021, taiwan was allowed to open a representative office in the lithuanian capital. the move infuriated china, which considers taiwan part of its own territory. beijing would through its --

withdrew its investment expelled its ambassador. it also cut ties with lithuania. after a year of negotiations between eu member states and lawmakers, the la -- the bloc announced a new mechanism to tackle the issue, meaning it could impose tariffs and limit access to public contracts. >> when operating in an increasingly fragmented geographical conflict, we need to be able to defend our interests and values, also in situations where certain countries do not play by the rules. >> the new mechanism should come into effect later this year. it still requires approval from parliament and all member states . >> of global growth will pick up only moderately over the next year according to a new projection by the organisation

for economic co-operation and development. the oecd expects global gdp to expand by 2.7% in 2023, revised up from 2.6% in its previous estimates from march but well below 2022's 3.2%. the figures are well below the world bank's projections that came out a day earlier. falling energy prices and the end of china's zero covid policies are helping boost growth while high inflation, rising interest rates, and higher debt levels are providing some headwinds. >> risks remain tilted to the downside. we have significant policy challenges ahead of us. there's the uncertainty caused by the global impact of pressure's continuing war of aggression against ukraine -- russia's continuing war of aggression against ukraine and also other geopolitical tensions. >> let's take a look at the

day's market action and wall street end of the day makes. the nasdaq accelerated losses towards the end of trading, closing down almost 1.3% as tech shares gave up early gains. european markets were pretty lackluster this wednesday. airbus shares ended the day down, just as the plane maker announced it had delivered 63 aircraft in may, up 34% from the same month last year. members of china's communist party allegedly used tiktok data to spy on people in hong kong according to a former executive at the u.s. branch of the app's parent company bytedance. in a wrongful dismissal case filed at the court, his end-users as he said users who uploaded controversial content were detained in hong kong. he also said the app gives china

access all user data, including those in the u.s. the parent company has repeatedly denied it is sharing information with the chinese government. that is it for business. >> thank you very much indeed. great to see you. thank you for watching us, too. do stay with us. more to come live from paris. ♪ >> 35 years ago, and anti-apartheid activist, representative of nelson mandela's african national conference in france, was murdered in central paris. >> [speaking foreign language] let's whose toes was she stepping on? why was the investigation unsuccessful? >> from what we understand, french officials were involved in cleaning up her papers

subsequent to her murder. >> who killed the political activist? was it a state-sponsored crime? a report by "revisited" on france 24 and friends24.com -- and france24.com. >> with france 24, learn to tell what is true from what is fake on social networks. identify false rumors in european news stories. >> get reliable information about migration. >> every day, we bring you information that is verified and put into context. >> france 24 is news you can rely on every day across all platforms. ♪

06/07/23 06/07/23 [captioning made possible by democracy now!] amy: from new york, this is democracy now! >> the reason i am here -- [indiscernible] these are the same people trying to kick our kids out of sports. these are the same people