with me alice have it europe is on high alert belgian all four of these arrested several radical islamists twenty six people with these four apparently plotting it's time for the christmas period the suspects being linked to international terror organizations and chechen militants well done a bushel is following developments for. police here in brussels say they busted an islamic terrorist cell tied to russia's republic of chechnya which is planning attacks through three throughout europe so it is swooped on fifteen people suspect of recruiting jihad is to fight in iraq and afghanistan it comes just hours after or sorties launched pre-dawn raid on homes of another eleven suspects who were tied to a cicily are linked in its work the belgian prosecutor's office said quote there were an international terrorist group using extremist internet sites and saw al mujahideen to plan an attack it comes as part of massive coordinated raids across

europe in countries like the netherlands denmark and germany where thirty one year old russian of chechen origin was arrested suspected of training. to fight terrorist campaigns those arrested or belgian dutch moroccan and russian origin this is seen as among the first top level links that police have found between russia's chechen. rebel organizations and the worldwide al qaeda network to say those arrested are suspected of gathering recruit some money to finance a chechen terrorist organization called the caucasus emirate in effect to found a separate islamic state based on the surreal law in the south of russia and it comes in the wake of horrific attacks in russia from those moscow metro bombings that we saw earlier this year two increasingly but bloody suicide blasts in russia's southern republics of degas don and chechnya of the one of those attacks

russia's foreign minister sergei lavrov said that those chechen linked groups were based and was standing very much in line with al qaida but after that the united states but chechen rebel leader dog or more are on the most wanted list of terrorists but it's really taken this set of events in the past twenty four hours to show that russia's chechen terrorists networks are standing shoulder to shoulder with some of the world's most dangerous terrorists. well versus the. power says the terrorist network has helped strengthen european corporation and this raid is a much more important people give it credit. let's not fool ourselves somehow great regiments of uniformed soldiers marching over the horizon it is in fact much more a franchise yes the strong power base in the foothills between afghanistan and pakistan and it's clearly. a strong cobol now operating in yemen but we're now

seeing this creeping out under this broad term of al-qaeda but it doesn't necessarily mean that the official stamp on it so what with what we've seen in the last few hours is. it's a tremendous increase in european cooperation and the most crucially an increase in not just intelligence gathering but intelligence sharing. i've never quite seen it like this before but you know something really bizarre about this i went on to the b.b.c. website a few moments ago i found it impossible to find this story and it's been overtaken by the events of north and south korea but also by the pope talking about condoms in the royal wedding coming up in the u.k. strangely enough it's called off the front page a bit quickly in the u.k. many people see this is very significant. russia is a leader says the country's democracy is on the right part but in proving it to

avoid stagnation it's the main message from where the myth that its latest video blog which is just been posted online r.t. they tell you no because been watching of. in his address russian president dmitry medvedev mainly spoke about the need to modernize russia's political system with the help of gradual but still reforms but also to make sure that a stable political system doesn't mean that it's the naysaying. zelig national political system or we simply want to make our political system more fan more flexible more dynamic and more open to renewal and development he must enjoy the confidence of our lecturing it is no secret that for some time now signs of stagnation have begun to appear in our political life because to politico has threatened to turn into stagnation. the national president also spoke about the freedom of speech in the country the need to improve the quality of popular representation have stronger opposition forces and to simply have

a better political competition and more rights for political minorities. if the oversea sion has no chance at all of winning a fair fight it degrades and becomes marginal of him if the ruling party never loses a single election kate is just coasting alternately to degrades just like any living organism which remains static for these reasons it's become necessary to raise the degree of political competition with a question president has also said that the ruling party in russia should not add simply as a supplement to the executive power this year a list of bills have been completed that made major amendments to the multi-party political system on a nation wide scale and the key points of those amendments were decreasing the human factor in those counting providing more rights to political minorities and minimizing the risks of elections money relations politician this is still my. hope

that our political system has been improved quite significantly as a result of these adjustments i am absolutely sure that it has become more open and flexible because of them. ultimately it is also become more fair and more points i made. on democracy is imperfect and we are absolutely aware of fish but we are still at the beginning of the route the most important thing is that we are not standing still we are going forward you. will of course this address comes at a very important sign for washer is the electoral period is approaching parliamentary elections will take place in december two thousand and eleven and this is when all the amendments that have been introduced this year will be taken to the test. or to watch president medvedev full of video blog on russian democracy for yourself if you had to alter call and let's get some analysis some of us now from new guinea chang the director of the moscow based international institute all

the political expertise mr minturn came many thanks for joining us so why is president of choosing to assess the state of russian democracy now. ok so i guess the meaning of this speech of the treatment there differ is that he is go in around in for president on second term. i guess. there's certain decision about democracy. means. concrete things i guess it could be. changes in the ruling party. united russia maybe a change of leaders i guess it would be a very interesting combination. just. remind you that. the deputy. head of presidential administration

said to united states may be next parliament will be fired but just. not for like now all that. speech that he gave in that video blah president is suggests in creasing the level of political competition throughout the country took us through practically how do you think he's going to stay down. excuse me ask the. president heard of in that video blog he talks about wanting to increase the level of competition in the political arena throughout welsher but how can he really do that on a practical level do you think. practical well yes not i guess have a few. new. ideas into legislation so for

example it's about equal rights for. all the parties not on not. at all in part just in mass media. and now it's not so serious to take part in debates. among their. united. refused to or take part in debate saw. blood. to. now they have to take part in debates. now i guess it's interesting. a new idea. state duma all that idea made this change in legislation. they're out. of. least on the problem oh the elections will be turned people. to all the parties will be. needed to bring in. more people or

people. have a hole only for one person. have seen. him until elections then united russia had only bombed and had of the least. so ready some changes taking place that we can see on the ground the of getting director of the moscow based international institute all these many thanks for your time. south korea says it's discovered the bodies of two civilians on one of its a border ride in shells going north korea pyongyang claims the attack which took place on tuesday was in response to seoul firing weapons during military drills that near the front seat air to south korean marines were also killed by the shelling back with artillery fire all of it so details about casualties on the

northern side have not been revealed the international community is demanding that you countries maintain their cool to prevent a new war breaking out on the peninsula but pyongyang warns that will strike again if the sound violates the border by so much as a minute me said. the south korean president is using the incident his own political interests. we've got the korean peninsula those two countries north and south are still in a state of war there was only an armistice signed. russia and china king talked to the north to get them to back down but we also have to have the united states put pressure on president lee myung bok of south korea because he's been very warlike he unlike his predecessors who were trying to open up to the north in a policy of sunshine diplomacy across borders visits special economic zones this particular president of south korea is very aggressive

very right wing and very unpopular at home and the only thing he has going for him is to boost his image by getting into a military showdown with the north. coming up in just a few minutes here on r.c. getting a good grounding before blasting on. the next crew of the i assess of being cleared for launch and its next stop the launch pad get all the details with us just a minute. on roasters building in the u.k. over the government's proposal to increase university tuition fees it comes to weeks of protests for thousands classed with police in the worst riots in the country few years ben beats a protest organizer says today's demonstrations may turn violent if the government doesn't change its policy. now there is a distinct possibility that if the wishes of the british people are ignored again then the protests will erupt into violence has been made with the poll tax riots

which did achieve a repeal or even the suffragette movement which used violence to win the vote for women people across europe are being asked essentially to pay for a crisis they have very little party creating and we're seeing no change to the root causes of the same time billions are still being paid on to the uses from public. from the rich and the society for the poor and the unemployed are facing massive cuts to their benefits. let's bring you out so it was some other international stories this hour now and all nine were on the ground in a new zealand coal mine have been declared dead after a second gas explosion police saying no more could have survived described as a horrific retaining gas had been swirling in the point river color easton's the first blast last friday which prevented rescue attempts it's the country's worst mining accident in a century. cambodian investigators are trying to discover what started

a stampede that claimed more than three hundred seventeen lives during the countries and you'll lose the first of all tragedy struck when thousands of people panicked as they tried to cross and now a bridge causing a huge surge in crowds will most of the victims will crash while others drowned because day has been declared a national day of mourning. georges a parliamentary opposition is demanding an investigation into allegations of a racy scandal involving the country's delegation to the recent nato summit in lisbon while a portuguese newspaper claims the georgians hired eighty prostitutes to attend a massive party it's said to have ended early after the french delegation headed by president sarkozy complained about the noise the hotel where the alleged party to place is said to be one of the most luxurious in the country the georgian foreign ministry is yet to comment on the scandal. over the last

half century central asia has shrunk to less than the hall of its original size as the soviet irrigation pantsuit drained what was once one of the world's largest lakes well the receding water has devastated the region's prosperous fishing industry bringing unemployment and economic hardship but as assays lindsey france reports today the sea is returning and with it some hope. it starts with sun up these men fish in one of the worst manmade environmental disaster areas ever know. the same just wrote and then a trip turned brought to see back to us. when central asia became the center of the soviet union's plan for cotton cultivation it nearly drunk dried the rivers feeding the erroll see what covered sixty eight thousand square kilometers in one nine hundred sixty around the size of southern california shriveled to

a tenth of its size by the mid one nine hundred ninety s. nearly disappearing by the year two thousand here where the greater and lesser seas split there's just enough left for modern technology to make a stab at regenerating it in two thousand and five the cocoa round dam was constructed to trap what little water still flows into the lesser sea from the searing river locked safely inside the water is growing to witness the results you must drive hours over rough sea that. then there it is bright blue the fishing village is like being ghost towns now but groups of men and numbers of about twenty to thirty camped out at the newly readability and beaches and catch they are about one hundred kilo's a day until they've earned enough money to survive and they go back home. they live in dugout hats even in the coldest of winter but this new career means food on the table for young ahmad he was born long after commercial fishing had ceased. i've

been fishing for two years my grandfather was a fisherman but he died right now we all work for a month straight living at the shore and then have a week off that's when i go home to our ask we don't get a salary we had piece work payment twenty species of fish now wriggle out of the water and into the hands of the grandfathers of this industry still around to pull up the nets once again cart bringing him to a hike kept fish. more fishermen are returning to their home or far and away the sea is providing us with work and profit again they even say it will come back to our desk in around the silent still stands the locals know waves no boats yet this morning after a serve my term in the army i came back and the water was no longer here that was nine hundred seventy three zero people said that it wasn't the first time they will see it gone they see the sea will be back and maybe we will live to see the good

times and life will be even better we do hope. the water has twenty kilometers to go until it's back. it's impossible to restore the entire erroll seat or to make it the way to used to be if it pleases the northern part remains it will help solve many problems in central asia but while the industrial might of the past cannot be restored and food. will once again become a people. it may never be what it once was but the arrow scene now boasts two thousand men who now fish for their living for them that's enough when the france r.t. kazakstan. its final test time for the crew who are lining up to be the next to journey to the international space station their russian style thirty training center right now getting the onceover ahead of that blast off boston is that. the

tests that they've. always quite a trial they've had to really prove that they are absolutely familiar with what they're going to have to do on the flight up there and then on their i assess so on the module for this soyuz mission they've been going through drills have to be very quick they have to know the craft like the back of their hand and they proved that they they do know that to be. his first mission even though he's the commander of the mission he's very experienced in his field he's been a backup crusader for also catherine coleman from her. time in space and paolo nespoli in italian the second time the three of them have a lot to do up there it's going to be a very very busy time up there they're going to have to manage some dockings when they're up there and do a lot of science experiments so they need to be absolutely familiar with all of the technical things that they're going to have to do they're also though very proud to be part of this mission when it comes to two thousand and eleven next year it'll be

fifty years since your it was the first man in space and as we heard a little earlier from paolo nespoli when we talked to him in the press conference he personally is very proud to be part of that ongoing tradition it's an honor for me to be here in star seat if you were a lot of these start that walk on the seams there then you're going and continue with is this venture in space i'm looking forward to this is all the other astronauts will be on the space station be there and be of use of everybody here on earth as it was you were going when he flew fifty years ago and that was very much the sentiment of all three crewmembers that they're very proud to carry on their tradition of going to space and as he said representing humanity up there. and wants to attract wealthy. can as a national they still seems to. be so one. all day and trent saying. well

surprisingly the wealthy russians scares of being lured by an alpine medical care system no more than that coming up in the program but first we start with an r t exclusive the president of the world bank group robert zoellick told business that russia is now playing a more active role in global aids. i think deputy prime minister cooper and has started a process but also with the foreign ministry and prime minister and president that is very important which is as russia's economy recovers and grows stronger how will we engage now there were some particular areas of interest to economic literacy you would get some support from russia anti-malaria deal with africa but i'd give you a good example we're working with russia now and some of the central asian countries which obviously been very dependent on remittances from russia but have gone through some very difficult economic times so what i find encouraging is that russia is seen as it wants to move into the aid and development field that wants to

do so in concert with others. and let's have a look at the markets asian markets were mixed on wednesday tokyo so markets finished lower but recovered from earlier sell offs japan's nikkei closed point eight percent in the red and south korea's coast because it ended point two percent of all among exporters olympos fell point six percent recall and shed nearly three percent and kind of point nine percent. over to europe where stocks are higher following heavy losses in the previous two sessions both of pussy on the dax a trading over half a percent higher among shaz on the move u.k. food service company called pasqua that's up three point four percent after lifting its dividend payout by a third bank of ireland to up around six percent up to a week for the irish government will take the majority stake in the lead. here in russia markets have reversed from earlier and also not trading in the black this hour most of the blue chips are in the black with noise the biggest gainer up one half percent bucking the trend are b two b. and ross telecom that a tweet. seven percent lower shares of ross have on the downturn has four.

dollars pretax profits at large and medium russian companies grew by more than a half touring the first nine months of the year that's according to a report by state that to stick service wholesale retail and real estate companies make the biggest impact on the growth. germany's always sell its stake in russia's gas giant gas problem that's according to congress daily reports the potential buyer is the bank he on currently owns two and a half percent of gas probably world's largest utilities selling off assets in order to compensate its falling earnings earlier the company's chief said the stake in gasp almost lost a teacher for the company to expand in china and brazil finance minister says v. e. b. supervisory board hasn't discussed it in the yet. i was staying with us moscow and beijing are likely to agree on the price of russian gas supplies to china before

the middle of next year the news came after russian and chinese prime ministers held talks on tuesday in st petersburg energy relations top the agenda but in a culture pots. the latest round of energy dialogue between russia and china hasn't brought what many analysts were anticipating and pricing policy both sides find suitable on tuesday prime minister putin sound that negotiations between gazprom in china national betray him company are going according to plan. as you are to me energy between our countries developing quite successfully we have finished construction of the pipelines grid you know that scene starting from the first of january two thousand and eleven supplies of russian oil will arrive in china the negotiations between gastro in c.n. b.c. are going on successfully we are also thinking to develop nuclear energy corp but the main focus is to peter gas trade gazprom and c and. see signed

a framework agreement last year for shipment of natural gas to china the deal could see seventy billion cubic meters of russian natural gas sun to china annually this size haven't disclosed the price at which they want to sell and buy but their differ by one hundred dollars for one thousand cubic meters of gas both parties think that they can tackle the pricing dispute by the middle of next yeah meanwhile a distant transportation system is needed to successfully sent russian gas to china one future route could be the old tipline klein construction is supposed to start in twenty eleven it will start from russia's western siberia and x. breed gas to northwestern china next summer. supply demand picture in europe a lot more visible will have a lot more time to forgetful have a lot more time to converse reality of the new market there's going to be even more decor pulling with prices and gas prices in the european markets i think. get

stronger this on some gas from once again stressed that china is the focus of his future growth and it seems the asian pacific region is where a future an or g. cooperation will grow between other global oil and gas players might you know which non-business r.t. . switzerland is trying to attract wealthy russian tourists not only would slow but also with its medical care system but on so patients have been given brochures recounting how lenin and rebel writer alexander solzhenitsyn found asylum in the nation so it's a lot also aims to print brochures for arabian gulf customers expect revenue from medical tourism in switzerland to climb almost five fold by twenty twenty that's almost four times higher than the sales of chocolate last. fall we have for you the solver. you can always find most stories on our websites

or join me less than in less than an hour with more. cultures that so much are going to huge music to share the power of minute ride from the marquesas playing the blame game and where to go from here the west led

drive to find a final peace settlement among the palestinians and israelis. wealthy british style . expert on the tireless. market why not come to. find out what's really happening to the global economy with max concert for a no holds barred look at the global financial headlines tune into cars a report on our. fifty. five.

itself. this is. the rest twenty six people for allegedly assaulting a terror at times for the christmas period the suspects all members of the radical islamic network of the said to have links to international terrorist organizations and jim miller says. the russian president says he recognizes the country's imperfections and is vowing to reform the political system it is online blog to be that inventive of knowledge is the frontlines of a stagnates in a democracy but promises to develop a fair on more dynamic model for the future. and the change in central asia the dried out desert the used to be one of the world's largest bodies of water is slowly becoming fact a soviet every day she shrank the lake decades ago so.