no thank you britain wishes the euro all the very best and walks out of the deal a bit saving the common currency making the dream of a united europe look more of an illusion. given chancellor angela merkel claims parts of the deal have been a breakthrough while you can also says it's unfortunate but not everyone backs it will have more from brussels people it's. israeli missiles rained down on gaza targeting militants but hitting civilians in the most dramatic escalation of violence in weeks. and the vote valid russia central election commission confirms

the ruling united russia party with sunday's parliamentary polls but it may smile a regularities did take place. hello and good morning from me kevin owen here in moscow it's just past midnight now you're watching r.t. in our top story the leaders have pushed through new budget rules to save the single currency but the franco german dream of a unified europe is being dealt a severe blow by london marathon overnight talks saw the u.k. opt out of a new e.u. treaty which will now have to be agreed between individual nations. in brussels for us. with the decisions that came out what we're going to see is a two speed europe essentially those who are on board the german push for more

fiscal integration stricter rules and harsher punishments more supervision and those who aren't now as it stands there are twenty three yeses maybe including sweden hungary and the czech republic who have to check with a problem once and get back with an answer and a note coming from the u.k. you know that no it's not very surprising because david cameron before getting into the summit had already said that if he doesn't get the guarantees that he needs to protect british interests the sticking point being the financial transactions tax and labor laws then he's going to use his veto to avoid that sweeping e.u. treaty that's exactly what happens in the u.k. is going it alone now from german chancellor angela merkel's point of view it is a breakthrough a success looking at what germany had wanted to achieve going into the summit and what they're getting out of it yes it would be fair to say that it is a success from their point of view now merkel also said that far as the u.k. is concerned she didn't think david cameron was ever at the table with them to begin with anyway well now the next step is how are they going to go about doing

all of this this new agreement among the twenty six e.u. commissioner also had said it would have been less of a headache if all twenty seven were on board from a legal institutional point of view but he also thinks it's a possibility that there could be an intergovernmental agreement among the twenty six provided that the three maybe become a yes but it will be interesting to see how these leaders will have to go we'll go home and present the plan to their citizens and explain to their people exactly how these plans will affect the ordinary guy on the street bureaucrats here would be would be considering the success they're saying but they're actually very glad at the speed with which this agreement had been reach or this plan had been reached considering that the lisbon treaty took eight years to negotiate so they're thinking and saying that the credibility of the euro has been regained because of this plan on the other hand your of skeptics are still voicing out their concerns saying this. this need for speed mean a sacrifice in democratic processes and what will it mean for countries like italy and greece who have already suffered cuts because of plans imposed by the e.u.

so question still there and the big question that journalists have been asking readers here is does it mean that the euro is saved now and the most conclusive answer we can get at this point is we hope so. talk talk and more talk when the politicians know it. alone and not believed anymore because too often we did not live up to a word it's. yet another d.-day for the euro another big question mark hangs over brussels do years and politicians have what it takes to hit the euro crisis nail on the head once and for all the diagnoses is that the euro which should inspire confidence is not inspiring this confidence if there is no deal on friday there will be no second chance. even if changes get through would it change anything you will never solve this problem as long as these currencies. these countries are within a currency that doesn't fit their economy this is what all the fuss is about the

euro that's what's backers of represents a three grand idea of a single currency for what some would call the united states of europe but now with the problems of becoming simply too big to ignore the question being asked is are they also too big to solve the possibility of a euro collapse is now an actual threat and here's another question is the euro even worth saving some say yes the alternative existence has a possibility that we're to break down but i think a lot of or most policymakers more citizen rapidly see that the breakdown will be more expensive than maintaining what we have today and to make the to undertake the necessary structural changes some say no it was always going to end it was pretty clear there was always going to end in disaster with very very bad effects even for those countries which are not members of it and the blame for that should be laid firmly and clearly with the european political establishment whose obsessive pursuit of a united states of europe has got us into this mess and if the eurozone does

survive what will it look like economically and politically now if i knew the old so that i'd be a wise man tesser cilia r t brussels marko peter paul a financial advisor with our wealth management told us that the british prime minister's decision to go it alone was the right one he thinks. i don't think we gone against europe i think we decided not to sign up to any further any further loss of sovereignty i think that that's fundamental i don't think cameron had really much choice given how his party have voiced their opinions over the last couple of weeks in many ways it doesn't. really affect us in that we're not part of the euro we don't want to give up our power to set our own budget set our own taxation we don't want to give up the power to regulate our own

financial industry so in many ways the eurozone can go ahead on their own it would have been great to have britain as part of it but in the grand scheme of things this is a a euro problem and of course we're not part of the euro and there's nothing on the horizon that says that where we want to join all will join at some point there is already a two speed europe the euro is been in place for ten years and maybe being outside the euro moving forward the speed of britain may be far faster than than the eurozone over the next decade if the euro is maintained in the same way. nobody was there's been a sharp escalation of violence in the middle east with israeli bombs raining down on garza or at least one palestinian civilian was killed and twenty five wounded most of them women and children tel aviv is stepping up its assault on hamas militants but his reports next the campaigns putting more innocent lives in the

firing line. at least three israeli airstrikes targeted a hamas training camp in the gaza strip now in some of the shrapnel from one of those bombs that hit nearby homes at least one palestinian civilian was killed this follows an israeli airstrike in which two high ranking palestinian militants were killed while traveling in a car in a crowded area in gaza city that was the first israeli strike in a concentrated area since the israeli gaza border back in two thousand and eight two thousand and nine now the palestinians have responded with a barrage of rockets there were five because some rockets or grad missiles fired on southern israel the south of israel is in a state of high and the residents have been ordered to remain near of bomb shelters throughout the course of today and this comes as various faction groups in the gaza strip point for increased revenge attacks against israel we also are hearing from hamas that it's ordered its operatives to keep a low profile sort of meeting this is the most dramatic escalation of violence that

we've seen between israel and gaza in civil weeks now with the israelis accusing the gazans the gazans accusing the israelis and the scene does seem to be sit for a return to violence the israeli palestinian peace talks have yet again stored despite international pressure and largely over the issue of israeli settlement building like we witnessing from tel aviv is an increase in settlement construction so much so that the united states which is israel's closest ally has actually criticized the israeli government for its moves in this direction and now the israelis for various sides have also by targeting these two high ranking palestinian officials and there's a strike there is day resumed what seems to be a policy of targeted killings because certainly hasn't been any kind of targeted killings since two thousand and ten and this is causing many to say that there's an inconsistency in the israeli policy it was just several weeks ago that is roll released more than a thousand palestinian prisoners in

a prisoner exchange deal with hamas. now we witnessing it once again targeting militants at the same time we're hearing from various human rights groups that they particularly concerned that the israelis are again putting civilians in the firing line relationship in the region is becoming more fluid all of this does set the scene for a real showdown paula slayer russia's central election commission has announced the final official results of sunday's vote earlier almost saving the election determines now the makeup of the country's parliament for the next five years sara further explained more. well the central election commission has released a final results and this is what they need to is going to look like united russia will hold two hundred thirty eight seats the communist party ninety two seats hairbrush sixty fools the and the liberal democratic party fifty six seats now the commission oh also said that the mind of violations during the election process

president medvedev had already said that all the claims of violations are going to be fully investigated now of course those claims of fraud and vote rigging during the election process is books this international debate and we've seen a number of international voices indeed wading into that all given prime minister putin has slammed the u.s. for interfering in russia's internal affairs he will say course aside hillary clinton and the keys to encouraging the opposition for claiming that the votes were rigged before she had any of the official information regarding the election process and others who say vincent controversy surrounding the supposedly independent russian watchdog goal of confidential e-mails that were published by life nice appeared to shave it a washington view sending payments the information that would discredit the polls one of the males from the u.s. state department praised the association's work and also promised but the support

of the organization now the chief executive told us has said that the emails were obtained illegally and they want to take that to court but didn't deny the content of these e-mails especially it seems that this very heated post-election debate is going to go on for some time yet in the country. well as we just heard washington was quick to call the russian elections unfair and democratic which was immediately then picked up by the western media some news let's see protests that have been taking place russia's arab spring result is this in our reports next the comparisons twenty years too late. dockery or tear skya. u.s. senator john mccain tweets dear vlad the arab spring coming to a neighborhood near you but is it seems russia's so-called slavic spring came and went twenty years ago. mccain and hillary clinton really would like this to happen

and you see it in their relations to other countries where these revolutions benefit the u.s. and of course they're pushing for this but don't think it will happen there we're talking here like protests during the collapse of the soviet union hundreds of thousands were out on the streets people who actually saw all this all is in. these and they will want to get that. most of the few thousand out on the streets of moscow after these elections move ya know die there not remember or be i'm able to compare salafist though it is funny how it worked out the middle class that exists today does so because of the politics of this government if they rebuilt the country four years ago there was a much smaller middle class if any. a middle class egyptians would dream of its revolution praised as democracy by the west saw the military take over was.

we have only one demand that the military council and the army go back to their barracks and start protecting the country that they've demonstrated they're incapable of leading the country over the last nine months. to here certainly proved twitter and facebook are fierce tools when planning protests some thirty thousand have already signed after a moscow meet on the weekend but russia should have been my friend to egypt and to rebuild from scratch can take decades tens of thousands of young people are preparing to come out onto the streets and voice discontent and that. means millions want it's a safe bet many of them remember all too well the turbulent ninety's what chaos means for such a large country and aren't willing to go back and start over and he's now a r t moscow. in-depth analysis an opinion about russia's post-election future on our website r.t. dot com it's a great resource find out if the harsh statements of the u.s.

secretary of state do risk poisoning the reset relations with russia also see interesting while you're there was how one american news channel because to portray the antigovernment protests in roscoe bush and pictures from a completely different country is online from. the new f.b.i. definition of brave that could make the people who patch it down the airports the security guys guilty of the crime all that and more at r t dot com and always our best pictures and videos for you to our you tube channel. small world news in brief now and the indian police arrested six hospital officials on charges of culpable homicide after a deadly fire killed eighty nine people hospital staff are accused of abandoning patients and fleeing when a blaze broke out most of the victims are said to have died from smoke inhalation it took firefighters five hours to bring the situation under control the fire started in a basement with strangled materials being stored. a roadside bomb was wounded at

least five u.n. peacekeepers in southern lebanon the blast happened in the city of tire with local media claiming of the french u.n. patrol that was the target given several attacks on peacekeepers in lebanon since the summer including last month's bomb explosion at a hotel used by u.n. staff. hundreds of activists in pakistan have staged nancy nato rally condemning the u.s. for a recent story that left twenty four people dead the protesters also chanted slogans in support of the government's decision to close its afghan border crossing to nato supplies pakistan also recalled some to. soon coordinate activity with international forces on the frontier with neighboring afghanistan u.s. strikes sparked a crisis in the already sour relations between washington and islamabad. police of our reveal the government who killed a police officer at a us university car park on thursday acted alone the man whose identity has not been released ran from the scene before turning the gun on himself police say they

still don't have a motive behind the cop killing you may recall virginia tech is the site of one of america's worst ever deadly rampage is back in two thousand and seven then a student massacred thirty two people before killing himself. exactly midnight seventeen time with a recap of our top stories in about ten minutes time but between now and then a complete change of pace for you with a winter christmas nearly upon us if you celebrate it. check out how to have fun in the freezing cold just tell me. you're.

more daring. historic. dynamic. than. my cold.

hello and welcome on this week's program we'll be taking a look at various activities you can enjoy over the festive period right christmas is just a few weeks away and there's a real magical spirit in moscow over the new year period i wanted to start something good all i skating here on red square. open for three months until the beginning of march one of the best things about coming here is the story. impressive breadcrumb the move the ice rink and in terms of the sixteenth century. can be seen and what a magnificent sight. as it's known in mission has been set up by the company that runs the elegant shopping arcade on the east side of the square. skate away and enjoy the moment surrounded by history and stunning architecture. from.

the words where you. place you know. since we are. right now we're right here and we can skate. i think is the best experience you can get because it's like i'm being you know fairytale you have all these amazing and i just sat there and just feel like you know tell me. this can't wait i especially like the old russian songs here the ones my grandma used to listen to when she was my age my mom. people of all levels can come here i'm not doing too badly. oh well practice makes perfect. time on the. advice and give safety tips be prepared. be more proficient.

many tourists don't have the chance to skate every winter. either way popular with muscovites. is the ideal christmas day out. and those calories. don't you enjoy christmas shopping experience while moving to our next location it's time to get your wallets ready. i personally love to. hear. any christmas. traditional. christmas all. various christmas. is located next to red square. and it's a great place to bring family and friends it's open until the tenth of january.

you can get quite chilly. temperatures today. is known for its freezing weather take note when visiting any traction. you can see a range of christmas decorations. are closely connected with local history and old russia would have been a part of everyday life. one of the most popular russian souvenirs here it's been great design. to look like a christmas tree inside a miniature some to close. for the christmas and most gold we have ever argentina is from us and we got to hear the mark of the quotation everything is beautiful the trees are really nice and the people are friendly. christmas states can be

confusing in russia this is a christmas day falls on the seventh of january the reason is because the orthodox church still follows the old during calendar which is currently thirteen days behind the gregorian calendar he used in western countries. from one hundred seventeen revolution until the fall of communism christmas as a whole and a rather tenuous status in the soviet union although the holiday was officially frowned upon many and surprising people turned it into a new year's festival. with western influence meeting such russian tradition this has created a month long celebration in the capital there are many religious services held in the russian capital during the festive period i regard him buildings the christ the savior cathedral here is one highlight. with an overall height of one hundred five meters is that's most orthodox church in the world i can hold up to ten thousand people it's a beautiful place to visit over the christmas holidays brightly decorated interiors

and soothing festive music welcomes visitors carols a song mass is given and people reflect him pray for a healthy and successful year ahead. the. this is an extremely busy period when it comes to accommodation in the capital from party planning to special events moscow's five solid cations plan such festivities well ahead like all hotels in major cities. christmas program is very expensive. it's an exciting time for us here obviously we have the weather we have the location. is normally snowy around christmas time so the environment it's pretty much close to perfect i would say we run a lot of activities in the hotel very busy with corporate events obviously through the through the whole december and as we move towards christmas time we have all the traditional family events like brunch news parties and so on. what are the

christmas activities are worth mentioning in moscow apart from another impressive skating rink a moscow historical goopy park the park has been completely renovated to share and now it boasts the largest rink in newark you can skate on its fifteen thousand square meters of ice until midnight every night there are many other festive winter beaches in the park such as hockey rinks. ski tracks and an ice labyrinth for children. if it's not an easy one but rather design a christmas decorations. department store is the ideal place to shop annually a spectacular festive bizarre set up on the ground floor thousands of sparking toys and confess it music all around just make sure not to be carried away as you might end up bankrupt before the holidays even begin. a green fir tree with its distinctive scent reminiscent of the christmas period is one of

the main with symbols in russia in many families it's a tradition to buy real treats instead of an artificial attempt to harm the environment make sure to purchase a tree from companies who sell trees that have been. especially grain for christmas i'm not illegally chopped down you can choose from a range of dutch or russian for trees and pine trees you can even all of them online and have a tree to live it. finally there are dozens of hotels and restaurants and the special christmas menus for those who want a five star canary delight head to the ritz carlton hotel throughout december a special first of menu created by the french chef is offered to the guests the dinner of three courses costs three thousand two hundred rubles bypass and that's around one hundred dollars to the restaurant. final location now in moscow to some may seem to be a grey city of concrete and towering glass but there are several places where you

can still find traditional batches and chapels the perfect winter wonderland. although one problem at the moment is that it's still to cold enough the snow keeps on melting december slush is not nice. but in a few weeks as always i'm sure that will be resolved as the skies will clear and temperatures will plummet the typical i see my list of. the calmest. is a unique away says not far from the city center it was the summer residence of the sauces the time of ivan the terrible today it is vast parkland offering a selection of activities. inside the great person is busy businesses are told about life as it was in russia. but you can see blacksmiths working it's hot and relentless work as well as describing old

fashioned take meek's also introduce you to the various christmas traditions and customs of russia. is there is a history of fashion times sancerre. christmas time for paris could turn to the fairy tale residence of homelessness and rational times one of the main highlights here is a trickle right to the pretty parkland the museum is a of his exciting vista programs including his writing one trick is his promise to breast as well as in one post carriages sleighs and on that note into the carriage and off we go to. the russian soul comes into its own joy winter don't be afraid of the cold wrap up warm and enjoy the amazing when to activities inside or out the soviets may have tried

to ban christmas festivities but now they are back in full force bigger and better than ever before. so get the champagne ready and let's make this christmas wherever you are one to remember. rob but so far well unfortunately that's all that's how we have left on this week's program about christmas holidays here in the russian capital i'll see you again at the same time next week until then for me and the rest of the team here but i forgot the. great. thing.