it. is there to live from moscow look at the top stories russia plays a mediator for the libyan conflict and prepares to host it up as an boys by the rebels representatives failed to turn up with some analysts suggesting they have grown too close to some states not interested in peace. demi financial dominoes for the e.u. spain looks like the next possible victim of the euro crisis and reports of those massive bailout package as unanimously agreed. with china places and issues plans to close its own station or the politician he focused on research program is mostly

funded by the military causing concern new arms race in spades and as we have eyes here not the next hour not talks to one of the un's regional directors in a fight against aids about the challenges that russia and its neighbors are facing flying the spread of hiv. hello again and often through spotlight today into the shelf i think i'm now going out and today my guest on the show is they need the. latest statistics from the united nations aids department are optimistic pointing to success in the battle against a charity new infections are declining in many countries affected by the epidemic

in russia the tendencies are controversial on the one hand we've learned how to allow and try the positive mothers to give birth to healthy babies but on the other hand there is still much to do in prophylactic treatment of the doctors provides how to do this the director of the un aids which will support same here in central asia did nice group is a senior centers. mr brinkley's russia has developed one of the most complex and perfect schemes of mass h.i.b. screening every year twenty five billion people are tested and ninety five percent of each i.v. positive pregnant women undergo special treatment but the virus is still advancing spreading mostly through intravenous drug users and gay men the best to defy the tendencies prophylactic negative public attitudes both to the social causes and to treatment pamper the procedures.

hello mr bruno thank you very much for being with us on the show welcome to share welcome to moscow thank you thank you for the returns the question is well first of all there's a big controversy today in russia when talking about the plans to introduce a good three drug drug testing. schools and universities what's your opinion because you were being an anti-democratic control for more than seventy years we're very sensitive to student democratic freedoms is this antidemocratic to the obligatory testing. the question is more is it useful there have been some. studies tanna because some schools have had obligatory testing in north america and they show their public protest it didn't change anything the year of students as they do because i think when we're talking now that we're talking about is it

democratic that's really not as you said it might not work even i don't think it works no and you have to see also that testing for drugs works particularly well for cannabis but not for the other drugs where you know heroin or cocaine which has nothing to do with aids or with it so it's as problematic many people who work in human rights consider that it's like considering students guilty instead of first considering them innocent it's also the adventure of what would happen to those who are found positive for drugs are there to risk of being discriminated of losing access to education of being thrown out of schools etc this is a problem which may also be difficult but. testing every student for four drugs if everybody is tested without exception one couldn't see how it could be done to democratic there's no discrimination it's just it's not very useful it's not proven

effectively and it's very expensive and it's very expensive you know the reason why some people are afraid of that for example my many of my friends who have kids that are grown up or in c.c. if you're a kid. if he tasted cannabis when he was like fifteen sixteen years and only once and they can find traces of that cannabis like in our after three four or five years even is bunny and we find it and then they put this big stamp into his finals in this will and this will cause problems for him this is the major danger. testing people if it is to give them better access to confidential support confidential counseling and treatment if necessary so that they can leave it. without the risk of discrimination i don't think it would be a big danger but the difficulties when it is actually discriminating that it is stigmatizing and that it it reduces the possibilities for the future remember all

the discussions there were about president clinton during his campaign as a president he had to acknowledge that he had smoked cannabis and didn't prevent him from being a pretty good president ok now according to federal aid center in russia and there are one hundred and sixty new cases of hiv infection are registered daily daily one hundred sixty new cases end more than more than five hundred ninety thousand people half a million people are living with h. o. the in this country does that mean that the virus that the epidemic and russia is getting out of the. troll but maybe because of that you see it only in these figures the better everything's under control is there is not a contradiction. it is it is it may appear like a contradiction half a million people living with h.l.v. is a very high figure indeed the number of new cases happening every year it was it is

what is important and it has been increasing steadily until last year in our last year the number of cases was the same as two years ago in talking around the world and here in russia and maybe that theory of the epidemic is progressing more slowly now what we know from the beginning of this year is that the number of cases remains high and we don't see that the transmission of the virus is slowing what we see is elsewhere in the world the number of cases is disgracing and it's increasing in africa is increasing in asia and countries that have taken effective measures for prevention are now reaping from what's the position of russia if we compare it it's compared to other countries i mean in the in the case of new cases and the number of people who are we in the middle the well it's relatively high for europe really hard for you we are looking here at all russia is no europe is not old

europe rich arab presents two thirds of the overall opinion make in eastern europe and central asia so it's a lot of new cases it represents a prevalence which was between one point five and one percent which is also much higher than in western europe or europe today it is less prevalent than in ukraine it's less prevalent in the studio but it is high and it is necessarily high and it's possible to prevent a lot of these cases of transmission when you see and this is so really high does that mean that if we put more money more attention to the merit we make coke the program with me we need to find it is that we really mean. that it is possible to reduce transmission of hiv and countries of. eastern africa which have far less possibilities and russia have shown it is possible so it's possible with good prevention is possible if increased access to treatment is possible by addressing the population most at risk. and we know in these countries it is mostly drug users

who are most at risk of catching a trophy by doing these things that would be possible to reduce pollution. who have less resources they have achieved more what's what do we lack in russia will devotion awareness of what well there's a lot which is there in russia there is money in every scot pittance there are excellent people there is a relatively good organisation and what we need is a what is missing is some of the political enthusiasm considering that h.l.v. use indeed a national cause political the easiest among politicians among politicians i think this was the case in two thousand and six when president putin at the time at the g eight summit of somebody who really put a lot of emphasis on the fight against h.l.v. it has not been kept at a very high momentum what is missing or so is appropriate emphasis on prevention because really it's a disease that can be prevented and russia's doing very well on the prevention of

mother to child transmission as you mentioned at the beginning is we increasing the number of people in treatment but when it comes to preventing new infections preventing infection among drug users preventing sexual transmission it could be done better and that would reduce the number of cases would still is still the main . cause of the during the main driver of the it will at least in russia is is drug use injection drug the dually needles as we call them so what's the most effective strategy to prevent this needle to lethal transmission when we are talking here of what is called harm you. these are people who are already taking drugs or who are already harming themselves so we're not preventing heart we're trying to reduce the harm people are taking a growth spurt we would want to make sure that they do not get infected by hiv in addition i for that if they inject this would only use clean needles and not

exchange them preferably they should stop injecting and take drugs through the mouth rather than injecting it they should also all receive a vaccine against the potatoes b. and be treated for tuberculosis when needed this is this whole sphere of what is called the harm reduction this is not very much developed in russia and it could be it could be done in a more skilled up manner though many experts were in the russia russia should or should legalize methadone is one of the ways to to to to to fight to fight aids what's your opinion of the event this controversial issue because russians don't want to do that they they they see this is going on with. well maybe to to just recall what method or nice little is such that you hear it in a satirical it's in a period drug when people take methadone they are dependent on methadone instead of being dependent on hearing that methadone is not injected but only something that

you can take through the mouth they are not at risk of being infected by the tovey and if they are positive that all objectives are not at risk of infecting others let me say i don't give a drug and people hope to get out of i do tomato it works there are methods to do that most countries in the world health methadone program all the countries of the european union have a methadone solution program the twenty seven of them but it is something which is not a panacea it's not solving everything people are still drug dependent and i understand that among russian authorities there are people who feel it he's the drug users should receive an option we drove paid by the government so that they would reduce the risk that they're taking right now. countries which have implemented that have showed that it is cost effective it is cheaper because people are no longer robbing or stealing or committing crimes to get access to heroin because they are no longer

injecting and because there are no medical sutherland's because methadone is given by doctors so all these are advantages and we see that less people die or for those less people who get infected by a tragedy and less people get arrested or in jail because of the crimes related to drugs says denise grooms the director of the un aid solution with the politics lead free europe and central asia support like good be back shortly after the break so stay with us we'll continue this interview in less than.

length. repairing a broken link should. i wait construction and humanitarian aid. causes shady officials get the spoils of war and it's the people who pay the price. profiteering here is no longer just down to drug trafficking. afghanistan eligible . welcome back to the spotlight i'm older now and just

a reminder that my guest in the studio today is they need good the director of the u.n. aids regional support team for europe and central asia mr bill we've started talking about metadata which is a substitute for hiring but some people say that not a done even increases addiction though it may be less harmful than heroin but it. really increases the addiction to to this chemical chemical stuff is there any reason than to call into therapy or when it started therapy is just it's just reduce the harley as you put it. it is reducing harm it is also helping drug users get out of heroin just by stopping injection and you have to see that people inject heroin not for the pleasure of injecting but because they receive a great amount of pleasure the moment the inject the kind of a flash that i don't get that with methadone methadone is a drug which just reduces the withdrawal effect they help by not taking heroin it's

also in a period they're also dependent but they're no longer trying to reach some supernatural they're here in the not getting high and they're not getting hired are hard they can't operate normally they can work going and drive a car they can have a perfectly normal life i had an accident in paris who had been on methadone and just could not get away from it he'd been twelve years on methadone accident where per never a day off raising his family and doing it when drinking alcohol the goal preferably not and what is important was i know that there are people who are on drugs they don't take alcohol you know people should not take over all they should not also take other drugs what we see the dangers with methadone are not so much of the tools which sometimes happens but when people associate methadone with sleeping pills for instance so that's it is a treatment and just like any medicine it is dangerous. this method and the treatment it's the science for example in the u.s.

and some neighboring countries like you know for instance which is close to russia similar to russia in million milli senses will. be a good example when do you know about the effects of this treatment in this country i have been impressed by the methadone program it means in particular and i remember going there only in the morning they opened the center very early most people come and take them it on because after that they go to work and instead of being drug users who are useless or not able to get integrate into society these people are by. it we're learning a living and you know making a useful life for themselves and i think this is the part which is particularly important crack users who are on here in do not have this capacity people on methadone can do that it's not perfect they're still picking up here it's there everyone would prefer that they stop doing it but at least they are living normally

in society in their lives that is a damaging for the brain for the body in the middle. no not particularly damaging but can you can you become a drug addict over starting with methadone or other not because it doesn't give you pleasure it does make you hurt no one wants to take it on for the greater of methadone it doesn't if you give you anything but it's true that once you're addicted to methadone it's difficult to get off it just like any ok we just like often enough just like heroin thirty years out or aids became a major scientific group who researches are still this agreeing on the causes of the disease spotlights you know neither one has more in. the aids epidemic first hit the headlines in the mid one nine hundred eighty s. the disease quickly caused widespread panic as it claimed more than woman lives including some of the rich and famous green front man freddie mercury world famous dancer rudolph in the rear and science fiction also isaac is the most or among the

victims of the early ninety's since that time there has been a significant decline in death rates from aids there is huge progress made in hiv therapy which has become more effective and less harmful than in the early days of the epidemic but while the situation has improved in the developed world massive challenges remain over three quarters of all deaths from aids occur in sub-saharan africa where medication is hard to get last year aids conference in vienna was marked by a duty to debate over the disease causes and how it can best be treated kerry stewart who is a chilly positive after eleven years on the drug combination therapy stopped taking the medication after coming across the turn of the views it's not that hiv slash aids is a met aids are the asli is not a myth that's an acronym for abuse suppression of people become immune suppressed

all over the world every day for all types of different reasons other things cause lower immunity and illness. when. hiv has been proven to be a viable infectious virus that sexually transmitted i think is really the bigger question for me while also took some minds compares turn to views on the relation between age and aids with whole opposed to last year's debate in vienna were coolly assigned a number of scientists willing to approach aids from an alternative point of view is growing. most of what's your what's your attitude to the so-called deniers to people who deny the existence of a virus where we just heard one what was that immune immune. problems with immunity happened but nobody has yet proven that that that it's a virus cause. oh yes it's absolutely proven i feel sorry when i hear such such

arguments because this absolutely no question whatsoever i don't think there is any disease at any time in the history of mankind that has been studied more in detail the nature of only. any world leaders can be killed so the virus can be killed why can't we go the ways ways and the drone there is a drone against every single one is it not a draw against the age maybe but i'm not sure i agree with that there are some viruses which are not killed by drones which are suppressed all the time. no less is or are they reproduce far less than the cock each other on earth with hiv drugs as you have now and to recall virus you can arrive at what is called zero copy of the virus that means it invades the body by copying itself inside the cells if you arrive at zero copy you can say that people are living completely normally are not at risk of transmitting living very well but if you stop treatment then the virus starts copying again and the evolution of this copy of the virus is aids and

it's the suppression of the total immunity because this virus attacks the white cells which carry immunity and that's how people will degrade progressively when there was no treatment everyone was dying of aids apart from some very remarkable exceptions. but everyone was then afraid of those only i think as far as i understand nobody has ever died of aids people die of aids related diseases absolutely they get it they they they get aids and they die of something else and you influence whatever thanks for correcting you perfectly right it's the very virus multiplies so that the immune system uses is ruined and an infection in particular to believe is. ok now listen no you know the question i want to tell is commenee people who who try to free other diseases for example heart of disease. i mean they. feel pretty envious they see so much money

is. invested into into finally finding the cure against nature i mean frankly if people have spent their money mankind they they spend on aids for example into treatment of heart disease humanity would have become a more. healthy the. world twice as healthy as it was yesterday. do you think do you think this is just just pure envy or. reason that we work with limited resources by definition so with more resources one can always do better i'm sure it can be done in heart diseases or in cancer in any type of condition hiv has killed thirty million people in thirty years it was a major threat for the whole of mankind and the fact that there has been such an

investment shows the importance that governments and research institutions have given to this disease now it should not be their money going to reach over you should prevent other sectors of health from being financed because this would be a bad result but it's not the case it has really brought i dish and resources which we're not there and which have achieved a tremendous amount but we are far from doing very well we have less than six million people on treatment whatever but still you sound pretty optimistic and i would like clearing optimistic point of view when will we see. an h.s.a. the drug. in drug stories. that people would be able to buy and in and get clear you know the ideal dream would be to take one pill and his kidneys would be. one but it's a good ten twenty like for six months for a reason. right right now three point kelly very normally bay taking three pills in

the morning three dealers in the evening we're looking at trying to see can there be one pill every day there are many companies working on that a lot of very promising results a little off course get people to take their treatment more regularly be more observant also suffer from less side effects all of these things are you know there's a lot of research on that we also are researching on vaccine it has not been very successful so far but if there is a vaccine against hiv even this question will be no longer be relevant in another age of the related news in russia that i wanted to come into and it's they their their their their words as of late the russian prisoners are getting to see the government for not providing adequate treatment against leeds in. in custody so are you following this case we are keeping informed of course and in general in the whole of europe the health in prison is something which is not as

good as health in freedom and it's very difficult to provide appropriate civilian services and treatment to people in prison there have been issues here in these countries of poor access i have met recently. muzzles was telling me that they have in our setup a beacon isn't by which all people requiring a chubby treatment in prison would receive it and starting now because there is a kind of progress so we definitely continue to keep that on our radar screen but i trust that the russian government is definitely improving the situation i understand that there have been problems of access they have been problems of stock outs of drugs they have been people who have not received access regularly it's very important that indeed they use whatever mechanism that the judiciary system provides them and some have made very successful use of it thank you thank you very much for being with us and just to reminder there may hear from the seriously. was denise broom the director of the un age regional sports teams

for europe and central asia and that's it for now from oldsters back with more for the congolese i love going on in and outside the shop and so then stay in our team and say thank you.

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