it will cost through three readings the fust rate being the floating in the post rating on the actual text of the trade it will take place today for the sessions will be devoted to the so-called i would if occasion resolution which the u.s. senate aides insisted upon and voted for but this will most likely happen option new year of course russian lawmakers will seriously consider the document which was pushed through by republican john mccain who is widely known as one of the most regular of code and so broad brush wrong with russia it was definitely a lone star and the way to the start was rocky to say the least even before the president sealed the deal in april in prague there had been more than a year of intense negotiations between the delegations all both countries and just as expected very lengthy process of education followed on capitol hill with these full games between the two parties the republican side and democrats to ensure that the new treaty is ready five democrats needed some seven votes from the republicans

all in all they got eleven votes from them and of course they celebrated a tremendous victory one thursday of the u.s. assistant secretary of state rose to go to mothers to as early as forty five days up to the two sides ready by the treaty the first cuts in nuclear stockpiles save the united states of america could start all in all on this new start the both sides will have to cut their arsenals by a third from the current twenty two hundred a a piece to thousand five hundred fifty each of course they'll be also cuts in delivery systems also new stars will reinstate inspections and there would be a case show which actually ended when the previous nine hundred ninety nine arms reduction treaty sponsored and most importantly that new start still selling between a fancy weapons on the defensive capabilities all the both sides to the treaty. and for more on the treaties progress we're now joined by political analyst to use.

volk who is the deputy director at the yeltsin foundation now mr volcker the run up to the ratification of start in the us was to say the least tense now that it's in russian hands are there some political parties that may have voiced their opposition to the treaty could we see a similar situation play out here in russia. i believe that. thought. in russian parliament would not be easy. so long as. the american senate in fact. nationalist parties. the government. of the start agreement for russian national security and.

in fact. russia and the government has. developed. its a ballistic missile systems but i believe that the discussion. will be. when you. have to face. questions. that we know we know that washington has introduced a number of side bars if you will to the treaty do you know if moscow is likely to introduce any ideas of its own that might change this process. i don't think.

as you say you amendments. to. the. american senate. and the. security. yeah in fact. the russian. have an impact on. security policy now both presidents have. it's undoubtedly a. scenario but is it enough what else do you think we need to do to prevent any type of a future disaster. in fact. although it's

very important from a psychological point of view. of. the russian relations still it's more of the cold war. of the nuclear war. now when both sides claim that. the security area. looks like a relic of the cold war and. in fact. the cold war. that.

they face. agreement will not significantly change of a strategic. russia and america. for. a long. prospects i really believe that the. nuclear between russia and america even. sequence is for international security because other countries tried to proliferate tried to acquire nuclear weapons could be encouraged by the reduction of american and russian nuclear arsenals because of the situation. of their own. nuclear arsenals could grow. subsequently there are international.

also taking some time to be with us today thank you very much that's you get me involved who is the deputy director at the yeltsin foundation. now in his final speech of the year us president obama has described the start treaty as the most significant agreement for his country in decades and about an hour president dmitri medvedev is also planning to give his thoughts on the deal and the year's other key moments it will be at the annual meeting between the russian leader and the heads of the country's main t.v. channels we'll be covering this for you and of course it will be at your fingertips any time on our web site. tensions are spiraling on the korean peninsula as the north threatens to launch what it calls a sacred nuclear war against its neighbor if seoul strikes first on thursday the south military held wide fire drills some of the largest in its history the

exercises brought heavy military equipment fighter jets missile launchers and troops within thirty kilometers of the border with the north souls recent series of war games have come in the wake of a cross border artillery exchange that killed four south koreans last month foreign policy analyst stephen gallons told r.t. that sols military strategy is imposed by washington. and its goal is to end north korea. the united states' policy for the last sixty years has been to seek the collapse of the north korean state and its absorption into the south. the lead government is more closely aligned with u.s. foreign policy goals on the korean peninsula than say the governments of presidents rohan presidents kim. in south korea president lee is often times seen as a puppet of the united states and the area around his office is called by many south koreans the news united states of south korea south korea certainly seized on any

opportunity it can to escalate tensions there is the sinking of the south korean corvette chain on the hand which was immediately blamed on north korea over north korean denials and there are many in south korea who do not believe the official inquiry then we have the artillery exchange that happened on november twenty third which has been blamed on north korea however the exchange was triggered by south korea and marine garrison on an island that lies very close to the north korean coast you consider that you consider president leaves hostility toward north korea . it's his policy of confrontation the escalating war games and it's hard not to conclude that south korea is trying to precipitate a fight to to pick a fight and trying to provoke its northern neighbor washington based investigative

journalist wayne madsen says that the south korean leaders policies totally contradict the more conciliatory approach of his predecessors and of the peninsula may indeed see a nuclear war. last few presidents south korea had had what were known as sunshine policies with the north they opened up to the north they they had cross border visits trade all that has been stopped by this present south korean president lee myung bok he's basically gone back to the cold war days. he's playing brinkmanship if the north attacks south korea the united states will respond. commensurately i think. you know it's very possible we could see this go nuclear that is probably something that would get out of control rather rapidly i think you would see then japan get involved obviously china we get involved where we would definitely see a lot of casualties of course you are with r t we've got plenty more in store for

you including a fresh fight for land in israel. the government's bulldozing of bedouin villages and uprooting inhabitants from the desert where they've lived in for over a century archie looks at the reasons behind the crackdown in. the united states has long championed the cause of capitalism but now with globalization and outsourcing in full swing the country is experiencing its less pleasant aspects faced with a huge economic slump one american town is turning to an unlikely savior chinese students but as priya schriever reports for some residents pride might get in the way. millinocket mean once a booming mill town now. almost a ghost town the paper m l once a symbol of pride and prosperity in the region now a reminder of a time that has come and gone and international trade is what basically took the

paper industry of the united states down it's not just here in the in the town of no one market it's worldwide the chinese there are more clever than we are. you know we when we do a deal with them we usually. get the sound of it. today millinocket is a small town of five thousand the closest mall or movie theater is an hour's drive away many of the once bustling businesses in town now stand empty and abandoned and very depressing for a lot of people have had their hopes the hopes that they would something would come along that would change everything but it has been a. doctor cannot smith is the superintendent of millinocket public schools after watching his town fall apart around him he decided it was time to take matters into his own hands. myths idea is to boost the school's population by charging chinese students twenty seven thousand dollars to attend his high school for one

year and they have some skills that we don't have that we'd love to instill in some of us to this desire to learn and get a. good education it's a bold idea in a town where most few china as the reason there mill went bankrupt but smith argues that the competition the might have hurt the town's past can also help to reshape its future but we can't possibly compete with the labor market and you know one point four billion people i think the competition good for us we have to learn a job with economy work right now there are two hundred students that attend this high school even though it was built for eight hundred sixty percent of the students here qualify for a state run free lunch because their parents' income is at the poverty level school administrators say that bringing in students from china will not only save the school it will save the town and bring it back to the days when the mill was booming. but not everyone in this almost exclusively white town is

excited about the idea that their school might eventually have just as many chinese kids. as kids from maine some people will have an issue with they're going to be like oh my gosh they're not from here make them go away most students in this high school have never traveled abroad what they know about china they say they've seen on t.v. i think the chinese are going to be total shock i think of a. way more advanced than us that ten times more money in like in a better society and then you look at us and roy poor and nothing and those struggling to survive in town are angry that the country they believe took their jobs from them is now the one they're looking to for help preassure either party millinocket mean. and of course you can always find more news blogs analysis and interviews on our web site here's just a sneak peek at what's online at r.t. dot com right now. prime minister putin takes to the mat in st petersburg to show

young wrestlers can't beat a black belt even if he is fifty eight you can join his master class online right now. and the muslims in the u.s. say since nine eleven terror obsessed mainstream media has been a typecasting followers of their religion as enemies find out who is really behind those headlines on. the israeli government is uprooting arab tribes from the desert they've lived in for over a century it says the bedouins build their homes without permission but activists claim the crackdown on arab villages aims to replace them with jewish settlements policy or reports. in the middle of nowhere the remains of

a kid village. for the third time in two weeks israeli police came with a few cases and in little more than an hour demolished sixty houses. from a club no this is my land i have a paper i have a document this is my land i ask this government how do i live and how can i afford to buy the same land elsewhere in israel and i can't what they want me to sell my land i won't agree. and as long as he and hundreds of others won't the police will continue to raid backed by a government whose official policy states this is their land but i think the official policy underneath. the land should go to the jews with. the big ones on a medic arabs who've lived in the negev desert for more than one hundred. years but after israel took over in one thousand nine hundred eight they've been hard placed to prove their ownership of the land israel says it's built alternative cities for them with all the facilities they could hope for but they keep coming back to the

desert. they're not abiding by the law they live inside graveyards with horses donkeys she was the animals mess all over the graves and make it difficult for us to move them but we have to because they need permission to build on the land and they don't have it. i think that the government would like to push them into to count troops were they could become simple workers they would like to give the learned to the mayor to the army and to settlements just look around here this vast uninhabited desert is home to only seven percent of israel's population several years ago the government launched an ambitious program to the value of six hundred million dollars to try and attract new jewish immigrants and israelis to live here it aims in the next three years to have more than a quarter of a million of them living in the desert but is because the desert is it seemingly

not big enough for jew and arab jew mel torme has lost his way house and seven houses but he hasn't lost his result of. we're man of peace we don't use the gun the man who came to destroy our houses with other bad phases of this land we did not fight back when they came but the fight will continue because tomorrow when the sun comes up will build again and in a few weeks the israelis will return policy r.t. in the negev desert israel. and now for a brief look at other major headlines from around the world. the u.n. has recognized ivory coast opposition leader. as the winner of the country's disputed presidential election. and turn declared all mine thousand un peacekeepers in the country enemy combatants the international body accuses of obstructing access to the suspected mass graves of at least one hundred seventy three people

killed in post-election violence that comes just a day after opposition of the country's only t.v. channel offline depriving the incumbent of an important propaganda tool. california has been hit by powerful storms which have flooded the state with a year's worth of rain in just one week many people were forced to leave their homes after the downpours sparked landslides and floods burying cars and mud emergency services are working to clear roads governor schwarzenegger has declared a state of emergency in affected areas officials warn that there is a high chance of more storms in the coming weeks. and the tally an anarchist group has claimed responsibility for carrying out two blasts involved on thursday mail bombs exploded in the hands of the boy ease at the swiss and swinging embassies injuring staff law enforcement have launched an investigation recognizing the blasts as terror attacks italy's interior minister says the devices were similar to

the mail bombs sent to fourteen embassies in athens last month. now this festive season the latvians believe they have an extra cause for celebration five hundred years since the first christmas tree was decorated there but one of the country's neighbors is bristling at the plants. found out why. it's a white christmas in a stone and lot there a fluffy snow fairy alliance and mulled wine all the ingredients of the proper christmas spirit but instead of gifts there is a pile of historic arguments on the tree the two neighbors are in a bitter dispute over who was first to come up with the festive for your let's light up the tree here in riga sasha helps her daughter to decorate her fourth christmas tree there in no doubt whose fruits shines the brightest and for the longest time. of course is very pleasing to think that the first time

a christmas tree and hit here in latvia and we have historic proof to back this claim everybody here knows that it was dressed with flowers and very soon here in riga in fifteen ten. but head north and that theory has been cut down to size before somebody. document but. before i can believe but no i say. the. first christmas story about. the best gift breakers has reached such a pitch that even santa claus is weighing in on this if spicy to feel if you ask the fish people will tell you they were the ones to invent the christmas tree so with the norwegians in the germans i think what's important is not who decorated it first centuries ago but that we all do it now it is a seasonal spirit assigned to this symbol of contention for the two feisty

neighbors shows just how much they have in common christmas comes once a year but is still in use a lot friends have many ongoing haggles they also disagree about whose reman are more beautiful whose beer tastes better how many bears this nation is allowed to have the nearby woods some of us say that without this legal disagreements life would be too boring so in a way this latest christmas tree controversy is just another way of making christmas a bit merrier somebody's got our tea towel it's tony. and while latvia and estonia battle it out we in russia we know the truth they're actually called new year's trees now business news with daniel after a short break. welcome

to business ben seven out substantial new investments in russia's car industry with prime minister putin in attendance the german company sealed an agreement to build sprint's of violence at the gas factory initially novgorod output will be some twenty five thousand vehicles annually although says it will pump an additional one hundred fifty million dollars into its assembly plants in the kaluga region south of the capital that emit putin says the government will help the industry with cheap loans. despite sustainable growth the government has plans to further supply the auto industry in the future especially reserve fund was the created to ensure that. that's why in two thousand and eleven which we will continue to stimulate demand with. market over seventeen billion rubles. time for the

stock markets the footsies crept further away from six thousand points in the opening minutes in london shares in mind randgold slumped almost four percent the company says instability in the ivory coast will affect fourth quarter production the dax is also slightly down. tokyo dropped off a seven month high but still ended with a fourth straight week of gains a stronger yen hit exporters cameron joins an impulse lost over a percent the hang saying also fell in friday's half day session carmakers skidded as beijing put in measures to reduce the number of cars in the congested capital shares in dongfang motor crashed almost eight percent. russian stock stock should end with a fourteenth straight week of games the l.t.s. has ticked up point one percent since it opened last hour in the starting minutes the my six has also edged higher for trading volumes of very low as investors leave for christmas holidays let's check out some of those russian stocks

a new call has opened higher up no point nine percent no point nor one percent. from his flat. morning trade on the alter yes this is him will for the first time be able to trade russian depository receipts the bank has begun placing. today on both the. officials at russia's first liquefied natural gas projects a foreign investors. in its expansion. in the country's far east said shell could participate in the construction of the second three plants as well as expansion of second into a majority share in the project to gazprom several years ago it retains a blocking state. has increased its order for sukhoi superjet it now wants to buy forty of the planes ten more than previously. can make the decision with. which announced last week it was dropping an order with in favor of

a brazilian rival plan to start delivery of the super two years ago but the date has been repeatedly pushed back. remember you can always find more stories on our website.

down the official. from. video. on. the palm of your. central.

to the beach. with us. already approved.

south korea's history exercises included tons of heavy military hardware and took place just. with the north. and this christmas eve is also seeing another far less threatening neighborly dispute. introduced the world's first decorated christmas tree five hundred years ago. in about thirty minutes we're expecting to hear from president. television executives from around the country also will be in but first up next peter lavelle and his guests discuss what's been called of the new exodus christians leaving the historic palestine cross talk show is up next.