ally the rain is an important american ally i mean if we look at a place like the rain there the united states houses they hit quarter of the u.s. navy's fifth fleet the big question mark for washington of course is iran because it does not have a strong american influence there in these clashes that happened today wednesday a lot of protesters were holding up empty even with signs they were they were chanting anti american slogans and the feeling is growing within iran as it has been for some time against the american administration if we look back at what inspired a lot of these events the toppling if one can call it that of president mubarak in egypt the united states was giving conflicting messages at the beginning of the demonstrations it seemed to support mubarak the u.s. had supported for thirty years and then slowly changed its support to the demonstrators and by the time the bike was overthrown it clearly put itself of the demonstrators the people here asking the question this doesn't really change the

u.s. influence particularly in egypt because now the army is in place and for four years the u.s. has been financing with billions of dollars the egyptian army so to some extent the army is really just the other side of mubarak's power so the u.s. watching these developments with increasing concern and needing to balance itself people here criticizing a american involvement and b. their involvement as being of double standards and then of course israel comes to the party as well watching events israel increasingly concerned that it could see islamic republics erupting on its borders so as the tsunami continues to sweep across the middle east the u.s. and israel as well increasingly alarmed. the russian president dmitry medvedev who's on an official visit to italy expressed hope that the q. rights and liberties of people living in the revolution will be observed and respected. it's a very difficult process we hope that all conflicts that are taking place in the middle east will be settled on

a legal basis through observing the constitution and fundamental rights and freedoms of people living there. during the visit kid agreements were signed including one a military transit to afghanistan and an asset swap deal with an italian energy company and you can read more on that and lots more and i website at www dot com. the us unconditionally supports the corrupt regimes of the middle east but switches sides as soon as the dictator is a toppled well that's according to finney and coming up now he's an expert on the region he spoke to us earlier from protest stricken bahrain the us foreign policy is replete with contradictions of what they heal the virtues of democracy free markets free speech and these kind of things but in reality on the growing they've shown past and present to be fus were behind regimes that are the antithesis of these regimes that are brutally repressive regimes that are corrupt

elites regimes to destabilize the region and through their misconduct i'm or a few so of their own populations under new britain but nations it's very tellingly in the very mature real position of the us regarding the demonstrations in egypt and elsewhere they do have to give so sort of lip service understandable support to the burdens for democracy it was very it was in the disciplines by lukewarm and it's quite large virtually in its not its number of food some of the words were the demonstrators and my. goodness you do it's quite evident that the walking a very fine line because of their bridges contradictions. experts say rising food prices were one reason behind the wave of anti-government demonstrations in north africa and the middle east the u.n. has warned of impending social upheaval in countries that are quite literally hungry for freedom issues also creeping into the u.s.

where food stamp programs are being slashed. as this report. in egypt the revolution took to the streets. but it may have started at the table when food prices began skyrocketing for the more than forty percent of egyptians living on less than two dollars per day. and it isn't just egypt around the world where there are billion people who are already hungry they spend more than half of their money on so these these kinds of world crop price increases can translate into twenty or thirty percent or more increases in their cost of. food prices rapidly rising beyond the levels of the two thousand and eight food prices are forcing americans to make tough decisions at the cash register to. go in there we have to learn how to if a bad thing. because they don't know we don't get

a raise. and everything means basic staples like milk. coffee and syria which rose five percent in the last few months alone. every summer going to fifty dollars and i get a lot of what i mean if i want to eat. but decisions about who pays and how much aren't made at the register says journalist frederick kaufman imaginary wheat being bought and sold by financial giants is controlling the price of real wheat they're made on wall street by big investment firms who distrust dollars and euros and instead hedge their bets on commodities who's winning you've got it goldman sachs j.p. morgan chase the largest holders a lot of largest financial dealers in this they're doing very well as the u.s. pushes producers to convert corn crops to ethanol the crisis deepens around the world demand for biofuels has tripled over the past six years and will triple again

by two thousand and twenty growing demand by. challenge increasing the amount of food produced for people and. farmers are having a tough time keeping up but americans aren't as eager to push frustrations from the grocery store to the street from the table. you know we had to. do with thirteen point nine billion dollars in cuts to food stamp programs over the next three years means that the average american family will receive fifty nine dollars less per month bringing less food to their table but it's unclear whether it will also bring them out in the streets florida are washington d.c. . and staying with dollars in the u.s. we explain to you later this hour a new budget proposal is making some americans fear for their feet to find out why they think trillions in federal spending will fall in the wrong hands only in power . to come for you

a little later but first let's move on to lithuania where disagreeing with the government can land you behind bars an opposition party leader faces jail off to blame his country's authorities for orchestrating a fatal gun battle with soviet troops two decades ago. takes a look at both accounts of that day. january nine hundred ninety one fourteen protesters dying out the clashes with sylvie troops the incident sparked international support for the demonstrators cause an independent state civil if you waning however one local politician now faces a possible jail sentence that disagreed with the official version of events a good artist polansky this is a member of the vilna city council and says soviet soldiers would responsible i am basing my opinion on the witnesses and on the book which was published by the former head of parliamentary national security committee chair so he wrote in his

book and nobody denied that but from the start our representatives awfully thin and all for a case where shooting down into the crowd. and other businesses why and all who lived in that area and still live pointed to valve's houses here on the roofs off the shelves is better people for the shooting and they solve them. you fresh opinions on historical events are nothing unusual some are based on newly discovered evidence others merely conspiracy theories what's different is that mr polanski is argument that it was live gunman that were responsible heard london in jail i am facing a charge of. up to two years in prison i mean i i may receive a fine up to two years in prison i think this is absolute from terms in terms of human rights and freedom of opinion absurd or not it's the law and if you win you

that also as well because both of our part the lithuanian penal code provides for criminal responsibility for the publics in aisle of genocide crimes against humanity or war crime was people who belittle these crimes or mock victims should be held responsible in one thousand nine hundred gratian against lithuania and its citizens falls under the definition of a war crime. as an elected official mr plaits case is a mune from prosecution however he has waived this right and is prepared to stand trial local historians question plaits gives his sources and back the official version of events from my start only when. on the one hand there were civilians who wanted self-determination on the other hand it was military might in my assessment the events of january nine hundred ninety one were an attempt to salvage the use of force claimed innocent lives. but should questioning history bring with it

a criminal investigation. i don't think that this is a reason for a person to be prosecuted it's his personal opinion your thirty seven overreacted but it's up to the lawyers to decide it's a provocation but it's based on certain logic lithuanian authorities did make attempts to provoke the savior flora tease and compel them to start solving the lithuanian issue. should he be found guilty by the code. it is needed lithuania and gladys polanski's says he will appeal to the european court of human rights an appeal he's convinced would be carried out from a jail cell history may not agree with the opinion of mr polanski when it comes to the events of january one thousand nine hundred however those same historians are unsure whether it's the role of the legal system to determine who can say what about the circumstances of the deaths of fourteen people here in vilnius peter all over r.t. lithuania. well coming up later in the program we bring you the story of. a

mental institution in russia. right now. and i'm a fighter tarzan redhead coming up that's it has been for these political asylum in norway will return to russia to stand trial. but first some other international news in brief for you an iraqi defector who said saddam hussein had weapons of mass destruction has admitted. claims were among those used to justify the u.s. led two thousand and three invasion of the country he said he saw an opportunity to topple the regime and bring democracy to iraq research group say the war has resulted in over one hundred thousand civilian deaths. a pressure system which developed into a category one. and main roads have been cut off by

floodwaters high winds and heavy rains lashed the city overnight trees and knocking down power lines schools in the city remain closed. as expected to intensify to a category two as it nears the coast until friday. has been announced as the name for the world's newest country it will come into existence in july after a referendum last month went overwhelmingly in favor of a split from the north to be much speculation of the territories name among suggestions work kush on the republic. decades of conflict between north and south . animal rights. a magic trick with synchronised goldfish and cruelty was required to make the fish move in unison it was made famous off to be. the new year celebrations last month in the most i watch program. of the year.

should say a magician responsible says there's no abuse but there fuses to give away the secret the trap on and off. does look a bit fishy to me now u.s. president barack obama has unveiled his twenty twelve federal budget proposal in which he highlights the country's financial priorities the plan includes budget cuts and tax increases all aimed at reducing the deficit over the next ten years and while washington is calling for over three trillion dollars in federal spending experts say regular americans will not benefit from this i think we have a political system that is sclerotic and what i mean by that is all the beneficiaries of government spending the companies that get subsidies the military producers who sell goods to the government the working people who get some benefits even if they're small all of them have mobilized to hold on to what they get to make it politically costly for any congress man or woman to go against them those people whose programs will be cut they will be hurt those people whose taxes will

be raised they will be heard but these are very small potatoes the basic picture which republicans and democrats alike support is a budget that's going to be basically of one and a half trillion dollars short the government is going to spend that money the republicans and democrats agree on all of that they're just squabbling over little amounts but the larger picture nobody addresses nobody debates and that's an economy that requires a huge amount of government support to keep hobbling along and debts into the future that we will suffer a farm much more than anything being debated by republicans and democrats in washington now is professor richard then. a court in norway has ordered the russian nationalist be extradited back to his country which is that sick also known in his mixed martial arts days as the ginger tarzan escaped

from a psychiatric ward in russia and sought political asylum. has the latest now. a request was sent by the russian prosecutor general's office to norway asking that this man be returned to russia to stand trial he is of course wanted here in this country for a number of robberies he is also of course known for many strange and bizarre acts. as a self-proclaimed and relative to some sort of pagan gods that he believes to be of russian descent he has called himself the lord of the more room school forest which of course is a region in russia has denied christianity as this country's religion has proven itself to be a hardcore neo nazi and even the fighters the result is of course not the m.m.a. fighters the mixed martial arts bunch of perhaps other well known figures in the

fighting community have all said that as a fighter and even as a human being that just loved atsic is not one of them and he of course continues to shock the public with his escapades the latest of course ring that he broke out of the psychiatric hospital apparently allegedly tearing at the fencing with his bare hands and then rode in a boat to norway from st petersburg that is how he arrived in that country and asked for political asylum that was refused to him and he's currently serving a prison sentence there for illegal possession of and on the registered firearm of that prison sentence will continue up until may be received eight months behind bars as soon as may which may be extradited back to russia of course and his lawyers say that they will fight this decision by the region or it's just

not does it is already considering asking for political asylum in both law to be and the winner. two russian cosmonauts on board the have taken this. space walk flight engineers. have now returned back to the station after spending about five space question was for state of the art space suits which had interactive displays telling them what must be checked and what to do in an emergency but what was. the cosmonauts were able to complete their work. much more news and videos you can also read blogs from around the world and of course leave your comments was good to hear from me is a taste of what's online right now. being put to the test in the twenty fourteen winter olympics so city prepares to stage the european cup. and never want to travel back in time. distant neighborhood.

he spoke to before. we have to say. all drugs produced in afghanistan are consumed in russia and the e.u. over thirty thousand people die every year from drug addiction in russia alone has been speaking to. chief. about a new five year plan aimed at eradicating drug production in afghanistan and that interview is coming up next here.

thank. you i like you thank you very much for being with us today ok well we're here now in her tour to afghanistan. do you agree with american ambassador eikenberry who says that president karzai is brother is a major afghan opium trade or when i was in the missions this guy was already known as a major trafficker so it's true course it is true but this is just one.

out of the problems what are you work so closely with i've got a son that's why i'm asking revelations for example in diplomatic cables to u.s. diplomatic cables it dry disastrous picture afghanistan for example is it true that afghan minister arrive to buy with fifteen million dollars in cash or like other cabinet members have privately last in palm trees already in dubai it's a trip he's absolutely true. but this is just one the piece of the truth he might have a part that you would find many figures and one important figure is this the output of a forty billion dollars that lived in afghanistan for the civilian aid only eight of these the forty went through the afghan government so the corruption of the african go a month is big so what does the rest go to the government officials know that there is international corruption so they're all intertwined yes which is never addressed

. international newspapers particularly western newspapers never speak about this big piece of the cake they speak all the time about corruption which is there of course but this is most likely these are the biggest corruption. that i discover the steal of from african people eighty percent there with international aid operation on a bigger scale for instance and they tell us anti-drug policy in afghanistan has had any impact. on two thousand and one up to now while many took doesn't do the cortex. operation. the contribution of a military occupation but you need to. offer very stanleys different their contribution to corruption is the military logistics. base contract.

people from start to private companies. these companies subsequent to. the military will just use a business of a couple billion dollars to africa companies who are comprised by world roads sometimes even by the taleban. they go to the security of. voile trucks or goes from kabul to anywhere in afghanistan in exchange of huge amount of money and that the money that is taken from the military nato military logistic is more i calculated then the money the taliban takes from drug trafficking. well now you as an executive director at the office for drug control and crime prevention i know that your policies almost brought about a collapse in afghan pop it trains did you directly negotiate with the taliban to kill the poppy crop or i spoke with the taliban leaders in one thousand nine

hundred seventy when they just conquered. the country about the limitation. of poppy cultivation in exchange for international aid for the government but. they did not abide the agreement we got. and i change the strategy. i ask of the security council to get them sanctions they got substance also i will be to them politically from the countries that surround the focused on the states fifty percent of every four or five into russia or before arriving to europe. after going to hell stays in the region both to pakistan. to the six countries borders and i created an alliance of these countries to put pressure on the taliban and stopping the cultivation and that this fact or blige at certain point the taliban

to be the production for the year two thousand and one there was almost zero production you know for this time this is important because. i showed that it is possible to eliminate the drug cultivation of i'm not going to stand it is not something that is beyond our possibilities for example in a recent interview with russia today his recent interview with said that you know it promises that we are in control of there is no poppy production where we're not in control we you know we can't be responsible true it is a draw that if they cooperate with the international community plan to provide africa base and ultimately of livelihood. drug production can be eliminated i'm sure that to the point that with the even of we between russia

and the e.u. we are going to launch a plan to eliminate production in five years thank you very much for this interview thank you. are not stopped we are going to come back. we'll have a rally we'll sell lots of beer will run on the stage will wear uniforms that will damage is down the black and them moving but very little damming the white. and

they are the key to our problem are all right. more news today violence has once again fled. and these are the images cold world has been seeing from the streets of canada. china operations to rule the day. from phones to.

t. p. p. his the groom her tongue. tied to. a. full point. how would.

this is. stories. with. protests. from washington some say the u.s. is using the pretext of democracy but display. to assert. food price hikes. of revolution this was the original cause of frustration which forced people to take to the streets. twenty years ago. the prosecution to stand up for freedom of speech in the.

thirty minutes from now in the meantime he was put in power by stalin's followers. cults of personality and the development of the soviet space program next we look at the secrets behind the rule. contradictions and paradoxes. in the press. i think he was the best emperor of the soviet era yes he was. publicly that the soviet union would catch up with america and do it to. his country. and compelled to share that belief.