egypt braces for a fresh wave of protests sparked by people's anger at president mubarak the latest refusal to step down well archie looks at why the embattled leader just won't go. shortly after the territorial dispute between moscow and top fuel flared up once again the japanese foreign minister is in the russian capital for talks join me. for more in just a few minutes. and sweden is under fire for its controversial wiretapping wall slammed as the most far reaching dropping plan into europe we can weeks cable suggest america is pulling the strings.

nine am here in moscow this is r.t. welcome to the program well much to the anger of the crowds of protesters on egypt streets president hosni mubarak has once again valid to remain in office until september and a televised national address he promised to transfer some power to his vice president omar suleiman but not step down himself well as mubarak pointed out that the demands of the protesters were just eligible hundreds of thousands gathered at the where square shouting for his removal the eighty two year old also cited his reluctance to valve to international pressure something many believe he's done on a regular basis and has more from washington d.c. . the u.s. wants an orderly transition as they say president obama said hosni mubarak's statement on the transition of authority was not clear and needs more explanation mubarak basically said in his address that he was not going to run for president is a member and egyptians will have the chance to. whatever leader they choose but at

any given time he said he was not going anywhere we spoke with senator ron paul earlier and he thinks mubarak is following washington's plan we had a lot to do with mubarak being in power and staying in power like we subsidize and we own all these our puppet dictator he does what we tell him because he gives so much money he's gotten probably sixty to seventy billion dollars and i understand his family probably has sixty or seventy billion dollars stashed away in swiss accounts and other places around the world washington can hardly be considered to be impartial when it comes to power struggle in egypt it's a strategic location for the u.s. mubarak has been a close ally for thirty years the u.s. has been pumping billions of dollars into the egyptian military and they certainly don't want to lose that whoever is in power there's a great chance that they won't lose that although the personal position is it's up to the gyptian people to choose their next leader washington is apparently to some strange the man who was sort of the charge during this tumultuous transition and

who's seen as a possible alternative to mubarak is a big cia friend it's omar suleiman he has reportedly orchestrated the brutal interrogation of terror cells suspects abducted by the cia also in the run up to the u.s. invasion of iraq in two thousand and three the cia will lie down mr salim on to beat confession out of a detainee who said that amcu saying had connections with al qaeda something that was proven to be false but back in the day was perfect for the americans who desperately needed an excuse to invade iraq so he's an old friend not hostile to israel at that that's basically all the u.s. wants from a future leader of egypt in official statements of course the u.s. officially says. the u.s. officials say they want to see a leader who hears his people's but they're certainly blacklisting here just a year ago when asked about human rights violations by the egyptian government i remember obama's response was this our close calls ally and it's not the job of the united states to. a lecture eject on democracy and human rights rather wait for

egypt has changed in recent weeks the u.s. took up its is old role of democracy preacher but if you watch american t.v. listen to american politicians it's all about us interests not really about egyptians they want democracy for egypt but a democracy that will be ok with the united states a large he also spoke with author william engdahl who says that mubarak's demise is now a u.s. priority after the longtime washington ally dropped his support for america's middle east policy. mubarak's government realized that the u.s. was preparing a regime change that along the lines of the so-called color revolutions in georgia ukraine and so forth bringing young egyptian activists to the united states sometimes receiving them at the state department sometimes at the national endowment for democracy or freedom house these are all quote unquote private n.g.o.s that specialize in the regime change for washington and. what's going

on is really a major not enough destabilization of u.s. ally mobarak has been opposed to most of us policy views of iran reserve the persian gulf nations and these would be levanon over the last several years so he's become in effect a thorn in the side of washington's greater agenda since two thousand and one. of friday is expected to see the largest protests since the unrest began more than two weeks ago former cia officer and not clear told r.t. he thinks mubarak's reluctance to go makes the situation volatile. now that the president. has said he would not leave i am afraid that they are going to expand their religion and take it beyond. the way our government building as we see them doing in fact the movement has already selected

a leadership of fourteen people and this leadership who insists among other three groups of the muslim brotherhood so i do not believe that the muslim brotherhood necessarily will get over the who. the movement remains secular are lived through are professional movement from across the ship just inside so it is not one specific ideology so there are some members who are extremists but for the most part the muslim brotherhood has participated in the general elections and already indicated they would be willing to participate in fair and free elections each now with people in egypt demanding change peter lavelle asked as a guest who dictates what democracy is and what exactly is the role of those who promote it or heated debate in our cross talk show coming up later in the day. can

we just why don't the world just let the egyptians a lot leave the egyptians alone and leave the tunisians alone leave the people of palestine alone leave the people of lebanon alone and let them decide their fate and then we can deal with them. yes that would be the best course but that would involve. it would not involve in action it would involve reversing the status quo namely the us would have to cut all the laws i was president of the united states to it to achieve any of our out into a. string of repressive to a string of what is left in the stress and really interest of the united states of america it's not watching out for the interest of the united states and i know you're not trying to say he was being. unfair i'm trying to say how nice it would be my imprudence right even trying is a human being then i just say that we should not be killing innocent people we should not be torturing innocent people i am opposed to the us government i am an

opponent of the us government. now a territorial dispute between moscow and tokyo is running high as the japanese foreign minister this is the russian capital for talks with this counterpart when it comes shortly after some rash statements from tokyo concerning the carrillo islands the russian territory japan is laying claim to. joins us live from moscow well you court in the context of the latest developments what can we expect from the talks today. this meeting really can send the relations between moscow in tokyo in a new direction because many analysts agree now that they've hit the lowest point since the cold war and one of the main reasons for that is the territorial dispute over the cool islands tokyo claims that these islands belong to japan historically russia says it's strategic to juries and that is one of the outcomes of the second

world war so this dispute really has been going on for quite a long time over half a century now and russia has been making several proposals looking for ways to resolve the situation including. creating a joint economic zone in the region but unfortunately none of these initiatives brought any positive results in fact just several days ago in japan during the so-called day of northern territory. criticized the visit by russia's president to these islands and also japanese nationalists vandalized the russian flag moscow reacted quite strongly the russian president once again stressed that the islands are russian territory. and also said that russia will increase its military presence there for example two helicopter carriers which are currently being purchased from france are to be sent

there as soon as they're delivered so it is quite a complicated situation it's quite worrying for businesses on both sides so business is being quite rapidly and this. may cause a negative effect but it's also quite a stressful factor for ordinary people for the russian families thousands of them living on these islands for decades now all right well thank you very much for that update. from moscow. now we've got plenty more ahead for you this hour on r t including family support knows no borders deal how a severed ties with moscow cash flow from russia grows every here that's due to money transfer from those who left their country. plus. we. are to.

the centuries old culture of and find out why the new vision song contest holds a special place in its history. now as sweden battles for the extradition of. we can leaks cables on the country's close cooperation with the u.s. or provoking a public backlash the text revealed that washington's push to influence we dish water topping laws so that communication passing through the scandinavian country can be intercepted. at has this story. bugged and wiretapped at the behest of the us swedish intelligence service the death of a has the power to monitor and intercept all internet traffic in the country and thanks to leaked u.s. state department cables we now know the controversial law was adopted after pressure from washington and the security services were deliberately kept out of it to reassure swedes there was no funny business force to operate under strict data

storage and protection laws for swedish citizens they are concerned that the public may perceive their involvement as an attempt to work around these restrictions by using a foreign intermediary that's poisoning any chance for success the u.s. interest is clear eighty percent of all the internet traffic from russia travels through sweden and from there to america but most men from by by government representatives that now know that the purpose is not to spy on swedes it's the morning monitor among other things russian transit traffic but what kind of information they are worth i think the information that is made accessible to special services by this law is of course sensitive and there are ways it can harm russia's political interests. was the law has been slammed by some as the most far reaching eavesdropping plan in europe and prompted widespread protests ahead of its implementation cables also suggest the swedish government was

colluding with the u.s. to avoid involving the public at all costs. the agreement may have to be presented to parliament and a vague constitutional requirement for matters of great importance he said the process will take considerably longer and be subject to public scrutiny something the government of sweden will want to avoid as the ministry of justice continues to analyze the proposed text it is also considering how to craft in a range meant that will avoid the need for parliamentary. you know control of. us. and of course the general public in sweden has even less control much of the pressure coming from the united states and from the corporate industries it's being government more than. two to do whatever the american corporations. through the american government judging from the date on the leaked cables while

sweden was debating whether to pass the bill the americans were already negotiating with the swedish authorities on what kind of information they wanted they see the twenty third meeting as an opportunity to seek precise details on the type of information the united states wants a move the agreement and it's clear the u.s. ended up getting what it was after at least in terms of information on the eighty percent of russian internet traffic that passes through sweden our intelligence cooperation with sweden on brusha is excellent do you a direct general budget will be here next week for exchanges with the swedes on russia and of the topics now it's not just information on russia that the u.s. is off to its reportedly carrying out its own investigation into wiki leaks founder julian assange still says all this information to see if it can bring espionage charges if it can and applies to sweden first extradition all this close

cooperation that we've seen may mean his feet won't touch the ground you know and it's r.t. . well the assault case leaves many guessing about his fate you can also have your say about what you think awaits the renowned whistleblower in our online poll where here are the results of the voting so far as you can see from the chart half of you say that a song can escape imprisonment if he gets political refuge in russia which was no extradition agreements more than a quarter believe that due process will see found not guilty twenty percent say assad will do his time in any case and only three percent think you should collaborate with the u.s. shut down to have his criminal case closed or you can influence the voting at any time or just by logging onto our website that's our daughter call.

now life in georgia can be tough especially after the country severed all relations with moscow its largest trading partner and benefactor well every year thousands of georgians pack up and set off in search of a better life in russia but as artie's denise polonsky reports it's a lonely life for those left behind. me you feel me happy and don't forget about us here come and visit us the north is asked us to show this video greeting to her relatives she sends her best wishes to her son bobby and her daughter in law and the grandkids who live away in russia for the seventy three year old they are her only real hope. life is hard nowadays oh i can get is if you are here and there this half of this big georgian family moved to rochelle fourteen years ago and even though it's hard for these people to make ends meet every month they

send money to their relatives and police and they're not the only ones last year alone families like the gross the chivas transferred more than seven hundred million u.s. dollars to georgia making russia the biggest cash supplier for this caucasus republic the number of such wire transfers has been growing steadily over the past few years giving a strong boost to georgia's economy and even though in two thousand aid bill we see officially broke all diplomatic ties with most schools and canceled direct flights between the two capitals it didn't stop georgians from my greeting to russia with the hopes of finding jobs and a better wife we came here as refugees the neighbors were kind to us and they helped a lot so now after all these years we communicated with the rest of the family over the internet sometimes who make the phone calls and we wire money to them whenever we can money there is none nobody's daughter in law living in a small mining town lives very well in southern russia she relies on her husband by

bill small business income that lets them. whole family live in russia being for their children situation and supporting their elderly relatives oh i didn't see this picture of her the newly this video message finally reached its recipients maya and martina haven't seen their grandma for more than sixty years now they're hoping that someday a wife in georgia will get better and visiting the relatives will be as easy as going to the bank and making a mani transfer then as well of r t it's very seldom russia. and now for a brief look at some other major headlines from around the world he's weighing in government up to the pressure on the country's opposition days before a proposed egypt and tunisia pro-democracy rally security forces are said to have placed a prominent government clerk under house arrest and detained several other activists authorities are also reported to have blocked access to

a number of reformist web sites earlier age chief prosecutor had dismissed calls for a rally as a poor way to undermine the regime. tensions between pro-government and opposition lawmakers came to a head and venezuela as a parliament brawl erupted on national television the scuffle took place after an opposition lawmaker called for president hugo chavez with supporters quote to be silenced by partisan politics in the contras parliament had been growing increasingly hostile over the last few weeks venezuelans are deeply divided over the leftist president's social policies. now we're close of team continues to explore the western europe's area as they get to know the culture and the traditions of the republic and its capital city.

the republic is known for its centuries long traditions which represent a mixture of mythology ancient religions and ethnic rituals well as creative spirit gives rise to local talents achieving success at home and abroad well one of its famous songs peter tchaikovsky is still one of the most played composers in the world while others less famous try to make their own cultural mark. found out what makes more tick. welcome to the latest installment all because of serious work continuing to cover various regions and places in russia and this time we wanted more to learn steve's and rich cultural traditions it is known as the birthplace of russian composer tchaikovsky this is a place where for centuries christianity and shamanism paganism have co-exist peacefully and of course this is also a place where all of those traditions so pertain and still are very deeply felt to this state because there's a lot more that are more taken both in terms of cultural and traditional aspects and let's watch report now on some of those things. when you come to shift you're

in for surprise though it's known for its weapon producing factories and plants the first thing that catches your eye is the city's architecture which seems to have changed a little over the centuries and once you dig deeper you find the more people are good at preserving their heritage and not just on the outside in the culture for me is a part of my life it's a way of my life you know my mom was a lullaby it's my grandmother's song. and fairy tales she told this is very ecological very educational to moving and coming to a very close to nature culture but of course to get a full taste of the culture you have to get out of the city and go to the village where traditional songs dances food and drinks are still very much a part of everyday life so we hit the road trudge through the snow and ended up in

the village of gran of a and the home over local celebrities who made waves in russia's last bid for your vision song contest glory but don't expect to find any short skirts and hair extensions here most of the stars are over the age of seventy and dress much more tastefully. all but we come here in the evening meet so watch t.v. and seen during the commercials global. these grandmothers became an unexpected hit coming one point short of representing their country but they still caught audience's imagination with their songs giving some of the world's best known hits a new sound. was. it was.

your reading of after your vision wanted to come home quietly that would mortar shy people and we didn't want to make a fuss but people found out and when we got back to our village they gave us a grand welcome back party with songs and dances. and these take a creative hands on approach to everything they do but i'm trying to do right now is obviously because i look at it which are which is sort of like me you make this but all bask in the new you put the stuff in the side of the pacific traditional dish and try and still comes out of it afterwards when it hears the singing of. a doorstop what we do people do the same thing in every village and more to. the people here seem to have a song for every occasion be it a wedding gapped is

a birth or sunni young man off to the army whatever life throws at them the good moods find a way to market it's that approach which has kept these traditions going strong for hundreds of years in the. r.t. . i'll be back with the headlines shortly but first business news with corina after a short break. i am. i am. i am. i welcome to our business books and thanks for joining me russian stocks slump the most in seven months over deepening concerns that inflation in emerging markets will accelerate the mise it fell two point seven percent on thursday extending its

three day decline to over five percent and reversing this year's gains key n.c.i. emerging markets in the top five point two percent this year as developing countries raised interest rates like your nation every search for m p f r global says investors pulled seven billion dollars from the merging markets equity funds in the last week of january that's the biggest weekly outflow of three years. and a wave of consolidation is sweeping through the world's leading stock exchanges the london stock exchanges to merge with toronto's and franc for daughter boards is planning to link up with new york stock exchange euronext with my six an r.t.s. also planning tonight david buick from b.b.c. partners in london says russia will play a significant role in the future. russia is a massive country with huge influence in the world of energy and mining with plenty of money and i think the sense of goodwill that would be seen by russia taking

a stake in the significance. like l.s.e. . would be absolutely they're all huge cultural differences at the moment as we know and also regulatory differences in corporate governance differences but these are not things that couldn't be easily. and if i was a passive investor in terms of wanting to get involved. a culmination of my search to do that by i think the rest of the world would see that is very very positive indeed if we believe that global uncertainty in this country we don't think anything else than russia has to play a very significant role of rule you've had many of your i.p.o.'s in london or in hong kong and there's no reason why they can't be on an international basis going forward. to the market most asian markets down on friday hong kong and shanghai away by report of chinese morning banks was. trading positive.

japan's markets are closed for a public holiday and here in russia stocks slumped the most. first day investors were shifting their assets out of countries. for growth in emerging markets energy majors were the main drag. to eighty six dollars. a barrel. after klein. just under two. but despite recent falls the all price remains strong peter weston from capital believes this will continue to underpin the equity markets. now we've seeing other sectors also dollar gas trading at a discount to other emerging market peers that in our view means that as the market turns around russia might actually be a very sweet spot to receive additional funds and clearly with commodity prices although you know currently on a downward trend there are still

a fairly high elevated levels and that in our view should be support for the russian market in particular within the sea samir universe where south africa and turkey for most of two thousand and ten were very well the best performing markets rational for most of the year underperforming and we think that creates a very interesting backdrop for the russian market going forward at an hour journey at twenty past the hour from what i support.

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