it will continue on the path of democracy because the being of our vote was in the heart of minsk when the rallies broke out she's keeping us up to date. it's all quiet right now in the bella russian capital of course a very stark contrast to what was taking place last night when thousands of opposition supporters took to the streets of the capital they were here first where we are right now in october sky square thousands of people with flags and banners chanting slogans calling the election all flawed and one haski for attacks on the whole question of the incumbent president and victor and this election to step down and give the people a democratic choice they then blocked off one of minsk central highways and move towards the parliament building some of the protesters tried to storm the building breaking down doors smashing windows riot police of course try to resist had pushed everybody out of the way not really differentiating between the civilians

journalists anybody and everybody who was close to them got hit including our very own cameramen who were hit on the face with a police baton police dispersed the riots brutally put very efficiently very quickly it was in a matter of minutes that the square which was filled with thousands of people was emptied by a riot police in full riot gear one of the opposition leaders and one of the presidential candidates mr nuclei it was attacked out on his way to the protest he left his office with a few of his supporters they were attacked by a number of men in black without any official law enforcement insignia the presidential candidate was beaten and hospitalized with a serious concussion and we know of fourteen to his wife a later security officials came and took him out of the hospital she doesn't know where he is opposition leaders of course calling for more people to come out on the streets and protest an election they believe to have been a fraudulent election in which incumbent president aleksander has secured his

fourth consecutive victory with a landslide win. results he received over seventy percent of the vote securing him . another stay in office continuing his sixteen year stretch of uninterrupted power opposition leaders those that have been detained or are seriously injured are planning to take more people out into the streets of the capital and a will of course be keeping you updated with more information when we get it. considering that as our reporting there from minsk well to talk more about the outcome of the presidential election in belarus i'm joined by fielder lukyanov he's the editor in chief of russia in global affairs magazine thanks for being with us it looks like a convincing victory for alexander lukashenko more than seventy percent of the vote closer to eighty really thousands took to the streets they're saying that these elections were rigged is that all they're upset about i mean what is their anger really about. the victories too convincing so it does look

a bit of credible so ninety percent. and eighty percent of popularity for a leader who is in charge since the early ninety's it's not very very credible so i think that people who went to the streets the doubt that. he can win but he can't win so much submissively so it's so i think it's a big. indication of nervousness of the regime the results of so high and the sort of beaten sort so hardly how does the opposition able to gather so many people out onto the streets but not gather enough support for any of the opposition candidates. first it seems like people in belarus started to be time to look. for it's a long long time second opposition is very. skillful and bad

politically because they. were serving or eight persons for a very limited electorate so it's not serious but at the same time elections in billows used to be organized in the way we cheer so to see me it's a victory for me said the chauffeur because you're sick you. understand there's a striking to. chris between the turnout and political views people that live in the capital and people that live in more rural parts of dallas why is that tell us more about that gap your rural part of belarus is much more traditional. in the excuse and people prefer stability of the church active part of population in minsk and some other big cities in the west and bill is for example they think that the local show has actually did what he could and he should be replaced by by some

sort some somebody new but the rural part is more than rose so in this regard i don't doubt that the question call one i don't do the question quite so much right and the opposition is promising more rallies a lot of their leaders are in custody at the moment do you think we're actually going to see people flood back on to the capitol streets. i don't think that position will be able to organize something something click what they did yesterday because the reaction from authorities was so brutal no it's probably the thing there is that test for them the authority think there's a test for them to prevent any protest for a long time i had so i think that more or less so that was that was what happened. outside the reaction seems to be if not a positive but widely different and without outside support i don't think

opposition has any chance prior to the election promise change how much change do you think we could possibly see in belarus and what kind of change is he talking about. i don't believe that look i surely will deliver in the political changes because he is a mortal is based on a very hard to read the. idea asked for economy he will be forced to change because bill are in in a good shape it cannot make these very much dependent on russia and i think that what he told about privatization for example that month of time it will be watching closely if you know there are new count of editor in chief of russia in global affairs magazine thanks for your time. but coming up in the program here on r t a call to break ties find out why brainy and want to know brought the end to diplomatic relations with britain. plus

a lot from president is visiting moscow for the first time since the soviet union collapsed we've got the latest. but first north korea says it will not retaliate against south korea's war games close to a disputed maritime zone calling them a reckless military provocation russia has called on seoul to cancel the exercise warning it could further destabilize the already volatile korean peninsula artists are first reports. korea has now responded to these military drills to the carried out this morning by south korea despite previous threats that they said that they would respond that she was taken they've said that the no it's going to retaliate the reason that they cited this was the south korea actually changed its firing say and say the shells that came from that military drill actually landed further away from north korean territory i know from previous military drills are being carried out there are unconfirmed reports so the shelter phone north korean territory i

must possibly what provoked the attack we saw the last time this military drill was carried out this also comes off the talks last night at a u.n. security council meeting this is held russia's request but we had the russian ambassador to the u.n. saying the russian draw statement is really cool for both north and south korea to avoid doing anything that would escalate this conflict we can also hear now from russia's foreign minister has commented on the situation. we cannot be optimistic in the situation that's why we suggested an urgent meeting of the u.n. security council last weekend we did not want to condemn anyone we really want to urge the sides to show control tensions are very high the meeting took place and unfortunately no statement was made we managed to send a clear message during the discussion to the previous military drills carried out

by south korea on the same island. on a fender the twenty third in that instance north korea reacted by shelling the island and that resulted in two civilian deaths and with us the team remains that it was the worst attack on south korean territory since the korean war ended in one thousand nine hundred fifty three you know you heard south korea saying that these astounded military tools that they carried out of the news quiz come back and said that they view it as. goodman even though you seem a bit north korea does to me the hardest to victory in south korea and the u.s. and japan in these military drills i read today and perhaps south korea i would need government coming under some pressure in public opinion certainly in the wake of the previous attack and they take this. on and know that we are at the north where a lot has said that it's not going well and i am good and examined its nuclear

facilities but the name in russia and china certainly made it clear that there are placing any action that can be seen to inflame the tensions there are existing at the event with a more reaction on this q were you told the riaa from the russian academy of scientists the probability of war between the two koreas is now at its highest point for decades. first time i've been watching north korea close with us for the last thirty five years i would say that the danger war is now is now real and it can start unpredictably you know have been saying it's ready for talks for several months already. it has been said to the chinese it has been said publicly. so parrot is ready for dialogue for dialogue both on the issues of nuclear nuclear program and the broader issues of security in the korean peninsula unfortunately this is the u.s. and south korea one not ready for the dialogue. gives us another suspicion that the

real goal of both exercises and this. refusal to start the dialogue used to really brace should know if there were even concessions. that was your cue to the riot there from the russian academy of sciences. well barack obama's democrats have fought back another attempt to amend a landmark nuclear arms control deal with russia a senate votes turned down republican calls to alter and effectively kill off the new strategic arms reduction treaty hailed as one of the u.s. administration's main foreign policy achievements start would slash the two country's nuclear arsenals by a third the agreement was signed by dmitri mutated and barack obama in april but needs to be ratified by both the american senate and the russian duma russian lawmakers say they've been ready to do this for months and have been waiting for capitol hill to do likewise is now a race against time for the democrats whose majority in the senate will be reduced in january they need over a dozen republican votes to pass the treaty. with

a lot fear gripped by the economic recession the baltic states now wants partnership with russia while to visit is the first by a laughing leader to moscow since again independence in one thousand nine hundred ninety one what's get more now from artie's daria pushed over was following this visit daria is this visit by the life and president a sign of improving relations between the two countries. that's right as you just said this is the first time this is the first visit by presidents in more than fifteen years since one nine hundred ninety one when the it became independent the two presidents discussed by let's throw trade and economic cooperation and signed a number of treaties now just to remind you that there is currently going through a deep economic crisis and this is particularly important for last year as it is seeking economic partners and investment and however many analysts say that this

miti could be the first step. would be the first sign of the proven. all the relations of lot in russia the two of the former soviet republics. now there is of course a number of sensitive issues between the two nations like the status of large fields russian population and disputes over history have these topics been discussed by the two leaders. indeed there is a number of thorny issues which has been really making of a relation of this he countries difficult in the past two decades and the main problem is the all the rights of more than a half million of ethnic russians living in now in latvia out of the more than three hundred thousand. roughly fifteen percent of latino populations are have the status of nonresidents those are primarily the people who moved to latvia after

nine hundred forty from within the soviet union and their descendants now. those who have the status of nonresidents are often deprived of their basic political rights such as for example they can't a vote in any latvian elections as well as social and economic rights many russians complain they can find a job and they're being discriminated against when they apply for one there are more than eighty differences between the residents the rights of the residents and nonresidents now russia's president meeting with it is said that the problem has been discussed it is indeed a very sensitive issue because of the lives of many people are impacted and if you also say that. the problem primarily needs to be dealt with by the local authorities now of course the other problem between russia and large is the different reading of history latvians have always claimed. that the the soviet

period of latvia is history last year has always maintained that it has been occupied by it was occupied by. the soviet troops russia has always disagreed with that sounds and the nationalist moves in recent phobia are quite strong in latvia many veterans of the second world war are often discriminated against while the nazi collaborators are often glorified with a large beer now that's another problem that needs to be dealt with by the latvians themselves and the local authorities however the two presidents agreed that a special commission will be created to deal with these differences in the reading of the history allowing. the cadaver dogs and scientists to discuss this issue in detail however most analysts agree that this first visit by a life is president could be the first step towards normalization of the relations

between the two countries daria perscribe reporting live from moscow. a group of influential iranian m.p.'s have voted for tehran to break all diplomatic ties with the u.k. after its ambassador criticized the country's human rights record the move comes on the back of iran's claim that britain's intelligence service was involved in the assassination of a top nuclear scientist. sharia was killed during a bomb attack in the iranian capital last month but to run based political commentator qiang mokhtari says to break up diplomatic ties is a warning that iran will not stand for britain's madley. iran doesn't seem to have a problem with britain and the u.s. for as long. and so on to some other source and i did in broad daylight in tehran. to still be you know person funeral type of.

feels that he can speak out against the domestic affairs of other nations or will whereas the iranian lawmaker is quite clearly disagree. but this is to send a strong morning well a strong warning this is to send the warning to to britain that iran is prepared to go as far as that if such language and such actions such as alleged actions via proxy terrorist organizations are not stopped very little happens here when things like this happen when bombs go off it is almost always from overseas. coming up to twenty minutes past the hour let's take a look at some world news in brief for you a series of bombings in baghdad killed one police officer and injured over a dozen iraqi officials say the first blast which exploded in the center was caused by a roadside bomb targeting a passing police patrol two other devices went off in eastern baghdad and in

a mainly shia neighborhood. twelve people have been arrested in three cities across the u.k. as part of a major anti terror operation the men aged between seventeen and twenty eight are suspected of preparing to carry out terror attacks it comes after intelligence agencies in pakistan europe and the u.s. intercepted plots to strike european cities police are searching the suspects homes for evidence. prison weather and severe snow is continuing to cause massive disruption to travel across europe the world's busiest international airport london heathrow has been reopened after having been closed for most of the weekend was operating on a limited schedule flights were also counseled or delayed due to icy conditions in paris frankfurt and amsterdam the arctic temperatures are predicted to last well beyond christmas. in taiwan four children were injured when a man plantaris car through the gates of

a primary school as pupils were winding the driver was a sixty seven year old who then lit containers of petrol inside the vehicle in an apparent suicide attempt teachers and parents who witnessed the incident were able to put out on or saving his life by when he was media have reported the man of having problems with his family. but for many people struggling to make ends in the republics of central asia russia is seen as the land of opportunity despite a recent law banning foreigners from working in russia without authorization a million still flock here every year in search of a better life most are forced to work illegally and live in fear. persecution as arena reports. here for the federal migration service comes knocking on the door at four o'clock in the morning officers say they arrive at this early hour before the immigrants leave for work which usually happens around six am. so srijit conducted in order to find illegal immigrants usually we have

about seven or eight such raids and. this time around the federal migration service found just a few people without permission to work in the country one of them isn't it means twenty two year old. i don't have documents i don't know russia i've been in russia for about a year and i don't understand the rules and customs of the country who is one of a dozen immigrants who were apprehended during the raid but officials say there are millions more undetected in russia. does russia need foreigners yes it does but only as many as are required for the economy there are about people living in that tiny little room right there we're going to go down the corridor into a kitchen and you can see for yourself that the conditions here are far from sanitary or convenient this is like a kitchen space something between a bathroom and basically

a place where people cook and wash themselves as well. so why do vietnamese chinese and many from other asian countries continue to flock to russia. although they get paid a lot less the native workers would be paid for the same job is still a lot more than they would have earned back home migrant workers are a very valuable resource countries with developed economies they do the hard low paid jobs that no one in the country wants to do. russia has the second largest number of immigrants in the world after the united states and there's plenty of jobs in industries such as construction and retail the flow of migrant workers doesn't show any signs of drying up even if the hours are long in the living conditions are cramped. party. well don't forget our web site house a lot more to offer you whenever you want and hear some of what's online right now at r.t.e. dot com if you're tired of digging your car out of all that snow every morning well

now you don't have to found out about the service in st petersburg to do it for you any time any day. and russia's father frost is kicking off the holidays at the kremlin by delivering a century old christmas tree to the very center of moscow take a look log on to our t.v. dot com to get into the festive spirit. later this hour here in our two were talked to rabbi andrew baker on the latest developments in the israeli palestinian relations but first the business news is out with kareena minicamp. hello and welcome to business good to have you with this other tell you has dropped russian playmakers so horrid for

a possible five hundred million dollars regional jet order italy's flagship carious size delivery delays saying you have afford to wait for the super did one hundred planes despite naming them as first choice instead i tell you says it's opting to lease twenty planes from brazil's where. and then book shareholders may block a merger with middle east john we either to create the world's fifth largest mobile network the bee line operators bosses next week to approve the deal with the owner of italy's egypt. financial times called sources saying the board may not get enough votes to pass the agreement on fears that the six and a half billion dollar price tag is too high. and there isn't emanates driver trench finance group societe generale which is did not it's buying d.t.b. stake in rolls bank on thursday bt balls that request and claimed it reach a deal on their nineteen point three percent share in russia's largest lender.

spokesman said there are no plans to increase stake in stops it every adding they remain open to talks. now is have a look at how the markets are performing miners are driving your pious demand holds up from china beach cuba to rio tinto a pull off point six percent on the food seat for british airways and move guns that have shed over one percent of snow in northern europe stops flights here in moscow the r.t.s. has continued the way it's ended last week slightly in the red but both main indices are barely moving in the afternoon as many investors leave early for the holidays. energy stocks are mixed after a week before mines on monday morning that's as light sweet stays on the eighty nine dollars a barrel is coming under pressure after it revealed the details of its merger would wobble forge a larger company to the needs it says it will be paying one point four billion dollars to acquire a further twenty percent stake in the probe another leap it's because reversed

early against the stew company posted stronger than expected third quarter profits at five hundred sixteen million but warned of a price squeeze in the coming months. now shares in mail dot are you have slumped fourteen percent since its long and not be all last month it comes after the bank stocks shed two thirds of their value following their listing on the footsie expert told business on t.v. a fair value of russia's top free e-mail service is even lower. than banks which early to do you have published research reports where they highlight the upside potential of the stalk which ranges somewhere from seventeen to forty three percent but at the same time several independent investment banks not related to the initial public offering have also published their research which. have highlighted the downside potential of the of the company of the company's stock and we believe

in the pen research we believe that from current levels the company has to lose half of its value to reach fair valuation. pharmaceuticals holding novartis plants in about half a billion dollars in russia over the next five years the world's number three pharma company will build a drug production plant in st petersburg the plant will produce one and a half million generic and preparatory medicines a year and novartis also double investment in its russian research and development program. that's all i have for you this hour join me at twenty past the hour for more here on business starting.

for the we've got. the biggest issues get a human voice ceased to face with the news makers.

here with our to you live from moscow these of headlines at four thirty pm bella groups is dealing with the aftermath of violent protests by the opposition to alexander lukashenko when in the presidential elections hundreds of people were arrested including a number of presidential candidates who claimed the vote was rigged meanwhile o.s.c. e monitors are demanding answers on the ras and a ballot and ballot the regularities. north korea calls artillery drills by the south a reckless military provocation but valve's to refrain from retaliation despite

previous threats moscow has warned seoul to cancel the war games to avoid further tension. and russia is battling with an overflow of illegal immigrants and the trunk shows no sign of slowing down even though they come from poor central asian states they are not doing that much better in this country don't stand up for the import of living conditions i should say and with low paid jobs. now palestinians have called on the e.u. to declare the west bank and the gaza strip an independent state despite the fact there's been no peace deal with israel. the move followed a breakdown in negotiations after the jewish state resume settlement building in september r.t. spoke to rabbi andrew baker who believes that no solution to the middle east peace is possible if israel is left out of the process.