troubles of bombs from under control. plus destination noted russia's acknowledged approach but discovery in his mission went astray before settling that i finally plunged into the ocean to run suffocates you know but it's not here to clear if it's landed in the pacific on a plan to catch. a load welcome to the program and now to news that shaved this week the crisis in relations between iran and the west peaks again fueled by wednesday's assassination of a top nuclear scientist in toronto iranian officials blamed the murder of the glass and is throw no want to stop its nuclear program meanwhile american and british warships were gathering in the persian gulf why iran and had threatened to block a crucial oil laying that's a made a pending oil embargo aimed at forcing to iran to abandon its atomic ambitions. the

cold run of tension between iran and the west is simmering. it seems the slide is the increase of heat could make it boil over into an all out confrontation. where will be that boiling point the point of no return we're getting closer and closer to war with people on the iranians are playing with fire and the problems in a crisis if you get were any small things that really set it off and it doesn't quo washington that the international nuclear watchdog these arm side closely monitoring iran's nuclear activities are they trying to develop a nuclear weapon no but we know that they're trying to develop a nuclear capability and that's what concerns us and our red line to iran is do not develop a nuclear weapon iran's main source of livelihood is oil export is in danger the u.s. is imposing fresh thank sions that will dramatically complicate transactions do you grandstand. well bank iran is also close to losing here of as

a customer the reason that this is happening is that this is the logical conclusion of our current strategy against iran we have sanctions in place with no diplomacy the only way that that and is through confrontation cornered by crippling sanctions iran's threatening to block the strait of hormuz a vital oil artery through which a sixth of the world's oil is should the u.s. replied by moving its test suite to the region and saying if iran goes for it they will attack thousands of u.s. troops are being deployed to israel experts say the policy of isolating iran may lead to other threats from tehran moment and the possibility that one day they will go through with their threats but washington signals that it's ready or even wants everybody to believe that it's ready could way if we had to without using nuclear weapons ourselves take out their their nuclear capability well i certainly want them to believe that that's the case well is that if i absolutely want them to

believe that that's the thing that secretary would you add anything to that some believe it's just a war of words and neither side will go for an all out conflict considering what it is that after it will be for the whole region frankly speaking this tension is artificial it doesn't have to happen it doesn't need to exist the iranians would do themselves an enormous favor by saying less. and we would do ourselves a favor by ignoring most of it all of this i was sadly i think is connected to israel and the israeli fear of iran for rhetorical reasons more than military iran might feel cornered and therefore make drastic moves right now it's in a war of words but one bullet shot and the powder keg can blow up the question is what's going to provide that deadly spark i'm going to check our reporting from washington our team. here as president bashar al assad has issued an amnesty for crimes committed during the all. government uprising in the country according to

the official state news agency it will cover peaceful protesters also those who carried unlicensed weapons and army defectors who turned themselves in before the end of the month meanwhile you. demanded that the regime stop the quiet down on protesters with reports suggesting at least seventy were killed last week this kind of group of qatar has backed military intervention to the country if it's the only option to end the bloodshed and he is the first arab leader to openly endure such a step. in the middle east research center. says this exposes double standards and caught. this is just really unbelievable to hear this especially considering that today. mir is actually in sri lanka another country whose government violently oppressed its people and there was no word not a peep from the international media from the international politicians and nor from the security council and so this is really problematic that sri lanka can get away

with this kind of violence but you know when it comes to a country that is against western interests there is a different standard and of course we have to remember that the tar send forces to train to help you know quell a demonstration they brutally repressed democratic protesters in bahrain you know with the invitation from the. royal autocratic government there so this call for interference or intervention in syria really is ridiculous when one looks at the undemocratic past and present of these countries and how and why the believe that they can use force to you know fear in a country that's going suffering from a civil war really from violence from its own citizens when you know who is who are the arab troops going to shoot if they enter syria. long time ally turkey

is among the increasingly vocal chord is calling for president assad to step down and it's lending its support to the armed opposition and keeping its own troops at the ready near the border but there's a lot easier if a notion or a pause on crown might not be getting an accurate picture of what's happening in syria. with the bloody status quo in the syrian crisis mind he was prime minister he is a growing violence may start spreading beyond the country's borders especially with his close neighboring turkey wants to close friends too but no harsh critique of damascus. because syria's first priority should be to listen to its people and meet their demands not to denounce others sort of massacring its people we should listen to them. through glitter glue is a harsh critic himself but he says he's criticizing the turkish government because ankara is on the side with the free syrian army and the syrian national council and military and diplomatic forces aimed and overthrowing the regime of bashar assad it

supports a buffer zone and a humanitarian corridor which some fear could bring turkish troops to syrian soil what does that mean according to international law it means aggression against a country it means war but any intervention would be different from the one in libya since russia and china have made it clear new war no fly zone resolutions which means the role of vision players like turkey increases dramatically but for new claims and korea's behavior it is irresponsible and risky it has a larger implications beyond the bilateral context of turkey syria as such the situation in syria must be handled with great care by all powers and unfortunately i don't see that cash. sufficiently especially on the part of our government. works with

a middle eastern studies center based in and kyra it's sponsored by the turkish foreign ministry to help shape policy and its opinion on syria it's clear syria is killing their own people. not always that's clear nobody has objectively information what is going on in syria the center specialists haven't been to syria for over year it to me is the picture they paint for officials in ankara isn't likely to be an accurate one the technology changing you know when you look at the photographs or the videos coming from these governorates you can easily see that there is something going on that the sources of these reduce are often question of will so it's easy to be misled and get a false picture of what's really happening but there does. researchers from coming to firm conclusions military operations this is the last option which turkey does not want to see but this is an option it may have declared it doesn't welcome a military solution to the syrian crisis but turkey hasn't ruled it out either

plain and if game if there is massive migration from its troubled neighbor turkey says it will have to protect its own people and marc fisher and korea insists it wants peace and stability in the region its troops are already just kilometers from the border with syria. r.t. turkey. and later on r.t. we hear from the author what's being described as a blueprint for nonviolent revolutions and the next hour jean sharp explains whether he's peaceful revolution concept is a match for the arab spring reality. and also now it's time we look at how washington's latin american bogeyman hasn't warmed the heart and homes of half a million people in the last. year a struggle for survival got that much more difficult this week after a major credit rating agencies slash the credit scores of ninety you nations the downgrades handed out by standard and poor's kind of made growing concern that the

euro zone's fails to rein in its a runaway finally says and debt france and austria were especially hard hit losing their prestigious aaa status that's made the mess a haven where the best is the reaction from e.u. leaders was a very different sense calling the move and justified while others accepted the decision and called for urgent action economists across the you are now waiting for monday were not it's open to gauge how much damage has been done to laughlin from the institute for democracy and cooperation in paris believe the euro project has reached and. the downgrading of france but not of germany obviously means that the franco german axis is no longer a turn of all proposition what we see in the euros are those that there's only one country calling the shots not two and that's germany there's no doubt that it will strike a terrible blow for sarkozy is only real chance of winning the election was to show himself as a safe pair of hands as the devil you know in a crisis now it's clear that france has both

a crisis and the devil look you know i mean it's true that these agencies are not above reproach they've made a lot of mistakes in the past but i think that european leaders are being completely paranoid when they blame the ratings agencies for their problems any fool can see that there is a massive debt problem in europe and i think when the euro finally collapses as it will do surely within the i would think probably the next year we will see just this announcement the downgrading of france and as having been one of the decisive moments. degree of russia's failed and martian space probe called for a bit and variant has fallen back to earth but away planted remains unclear peter out of the has north of russia's most expensive and most ambitious space national times. it's a merchant there appear to be three theories as to where the revenants of phobos ground eventually hit the earth now most of the probe burnt up in the atmosphere

along with any of the toxic fuel it was carrying but around two hundred kilograms it's believed all of the modules made it through the earth's atmosphere now we heard initially from the russian military saying that that landed in the pacific ocean around one thousand two hundred fifty kilometers off the coast of chile we then heard from cosmos the russian space agency who said this well maybe it landed in the atlantic ocean over the other side of the south american continent now we've also heard from a ballistics expert putting forward a third theory which is that the remnants of they say this probe that came back down to earth could have spin spread over such a large area that it could have actually hit both the atlantic and the pacific as well as parts of mainland brazil it was a huge leap and dissipated mission from the russian space agency it was supposed to go to the martian moon a focus pick up soil samples bring them back to earth for analysis partially where

it gets its name from food was good and basically meaning phobias soil in russian now that information that data that the scientists were craving could potentially they were saying of lead to developments towards a potential martian settlement a human settlement on the moon of course all that data gone now it was a hugely disappointing mission at the probe got into orbit and then pretty much stayed there no matter how much effort was made by ross cosmos as well as the european space agency to try and contact it and get it back on its way eventually crashing back down to earth on sunday evening. insurgent radio communications intercepted by pakistani armed forces have indicated that the leader of the country's taliban. who has been killed in a u.s. drone strike that the shell taliban spokesman in the country denies the reports american drone strikes was used on wednesday having been suspended after a u.s. attack decimated

a pakistani army base last november the incident sparked an international outcry and caused pakistan to freeze nato supply routes through its territory and shut down an american base there is also promised to should doubt any trials of its territory but a defense analyst told r.t. that this applies talk of pakistan to a different story of america's intentions every. bit as the complete political chaos in the slum above the government has got up it is protest the americans have been bold this regime to achieve the objective of softening up pakistan for the doctrine of our work and this government is now on the verge of collapse which is also collapsing the us strategic games in the region basically what the americans are trying to do is their boss the responsibility of their freely years of one is found upon pakistan this is also corroborated from the fact that the nato supply is the storm has blocked in pakistan then the military hardware reduced an invasion

level hardware almost nine armored front two divisions and their support supplies that are stuck in pakistan and the concern box on army is that if the american the docking of the drawing from of understand the dropping of bees leave a taliban then why would be americans need abrams m one a one man back almost nine armored infantry divisions on the stand to fight an insurgency where we are blocking all of these deals. as he a report released this week says the u.s. military operation in afghanistan is doomed to failure it directly contradicts recent optimism expressed by the department of defense u.s. troops are said to leave the central asian country in twenty fourteen but an american think tank on peace in afghanistan believes the actual pullout will take far longer. it has been ten years that has not unified the country i said should have been it looks like there is no chance for the americans to see here government

standing on its feet however this could roll on americans be honest on for quite a number of years i would say in the years are unknown at this time but it looks like it's going to be a long time because there's a corrupt government cannot function in the way that it is right now the fact is that there is a friction in the white house right now that some or say no basically the pentagon good military is the one that's calling off that saying don't know we should not really rush in pull out fast as we can putting boots across kazakhstan have now closed millions of people cause their votes to choose the country's new parliament and those votes are now being counted they were actions coming in less than a month after all work at staging a prolonged strike of a poor pay or locked in fatal clashes with security forces they lections were set to take place in august but the president dissolved parliament last november and ordered an immediate as

a poll so far that they're hurting their all time policy has some eighty one percent of the vote but it's close it's competitive coming in at seven percent and that policy will now become the second political group to enter parliament and does acts on a boycott reports preempting violent unrest is a priority in kazakhstan having learned disturbing meshing lessons from the arab spring. it wasn't for the snow and the freezing temperatures stance capital of aston that could easily be mistaken for one of the gleaming cities of the gulf a village just two decades ago it is now an oasis in the desert but its architecture having a distinct arabic flavor like many arab countries kazakhstan's primary sources of income our oil and gas and it is that x. word that allowed this country the luxury of building its new capital city from scratch in fact kazakstan is now producing about as much oil as libor was churning out prior to its civil war and the similarities don't and here both kazakstan and

libya have predominantly muslim populations both were consider still roots of calm in their turbulent neighborhoods and both have experienced decades of rule by just one man in terms of style that's fast no short on the bizarre bias is the exact opposite of erratic more market afy and of course he's still in power but the libyan scenario no longer seems improbable in kazakstan even to its leader some young people are fascinated with what's happening in the world right now in africa and europe but we have to explain to the new generation that blindly believes everything it's told that there are those who enjoy our well being the countries who are revolutions took place have gone back ten to fifteen years economically speaking the town of john knows and is rightfully called catholics tons of oil capital but it's no match for glistening asked despite producing much of the country's hydro carbons for decades it's been poor and neglected. the uprising in

western kazakstan has smouldered since last spring but culminated in december in a weekend of clashes with police that left seventeen dead and more than one hundred injured as the protests spread to other cities. jittery in the wake of the arab spring but it was because extend has a semblance of. democracy with several parties in parliament and some a position media but the essence of the regime is similar to those of the arab countries that's why the first thing the authorities did when their prize and began was to switch off the mobo networks and the internet connection before the people even demanded it out loud the chasm the riches decided to offer a political reforms the people in there are going to the polls to elect a new parliament recent constitutional amendments guarantee they'll be more than one party that has been up until now the challenge now is to keep all the good things stability prosperity. and at the same time allow the

society to evolve. meanwhile they're there which is have approved millions of dollars worth of programs to give the rest of cd a facelift and create new jobs but you need. the president's close associates appointed to oversee the turbulent region says in a few years and will make some cities in the gulf pale in comparison. come here in a few years and you won't recognize this city while the arab spring may have inspired protesters around the world it's also taught authorities valuable lessons on how to contain those rallies and like all rulers and those that are by would much rather learn from the mistakes of others especially if they come at a price paid by gadhafi on a boycott artsy kazakstan. this week the anniversary of the world's most controversial prison going ton of a was marked by public protests on both sides of

the afghan take to us traitors called on u.s. president barack obama to honor his election pledge and shut down the jail but critics say little changes of that happening because of the recently signed national defense authorization act a lie america saying anyone seems hostile and thomas whelan a lawyer for several detainees in guantanamo believes that. politics but how about are back from closing the infamous jail promised. this is a political problem in a democracy when certain people are playing with fear the republican party is basically playing on fear to influence their constituents in the face of that fear of the obama administration hasn't had the courage to oppose it or the courage to get the job done other things like the economy have seen more important it's a shame it's a challenge in a democracy and we need to continue to fight to have this cause it's a stain on the reputation united states it's

a horrible place. a one hundred forty people have been arrested at the members of course of those radical self-determination movement clashed with police five kilometers from a border crossing with serbia the activists were heading to their front here to block a good shipment from serbia but are stopped and pepper sprayed by police but just peace between cost of said there have calls tensions in the region of a decade so great has made a series of concessions to taste ambitions to join the e.u. but as his ego of god never pours they can take spans of as makes sabs living in the self-proclaimed state. it's a checkpoint in northern kosovo may not look like an obvious triumph of peace but here is the same spot just two weeks ago since the summer you backed kosovo albanians tried to take control of the border between serbia and kosovo the minority erected barricades in response they don't recognize course of independence

so in the albanian dominated province is still part of serbia now both sides are for a new agreed that the border will be jointly policed. anyone can now freely pass through this checkpoint when you're trumpeting this as a happy resolution but a standoff and while life here has become easier a lot of serbs are saying that once again they have given up too much for the compromise and have received no rush owen says about their long term future belgrade tried to talk serbs in kosovo down from the barricades so it was to join the e.u. which made a peaceful solution to the border issue a precondition but despite progress on the border belgrade's application for candidate status has been stalled in the latest round of talks with brussels some countries which did recognize and they feel that serbia is a weak just before they are getting the kind of as a status that is why they are squeezing serbia exacta trying to achieve something more than then usually are asking their candidates. just meters from the e.u.

soldiers in the past serbian militia many here have been engaged in conflict with albanians since one thousand nine hundred nine when an ethnic war divided their territory into they have been coming to this road block since july and say they will carry on despite the border deal along with why should we be happy to see you soldiers give us permission to use this road we never used to need permission to use it at all we do not trust the e.u. and albanians wanted it when a relative's and friends have been injured in this conflict for the past twelve years. those who gain the most from the border compromise are ordinary serbs blocked prevented many children from coming to school and their parents from buying even basic foodstuffs but normality is some distance away. so. there are constant warning sirens during the lessons these children are not growing up normally their lives are defined by the conflict and this is true not just for

children but for all serbs have been living in kosovo for twelve years while opening the roads is a step forward to serve status in. dougal considered. remains as uncertain as ever. of. possible. for a brief look at some other stories making headlines around the world a bomb blast has killed at least seventeen people and wounded twenty in eastern pakistan the explosion happened during a religious procession in which hundreds of shiites were marking the end of a period of mourning it's believed a bomb was planted ahead of the gathering and timed for maximum impact after the blast mourners began throwing rocks at the police who in turn hughes tear gas to control the crowds. and old residential building has collapsed in lebanon's capital beirut killing two people and trapping at least a single seat and others have already been rescued from the debris but officials are saying the number of casualties is likely to rise the buildings age and the

evil out of construction projects nearby or have been named as possible causes of the incident the army is evacuating other buildings in the area saying they're also in danger of collapsing. another two bodies have been pulled from the stricken cruise ship costa concordia bringing the death toll to five earlier three survivors were rescued from the vessel out of the forty thousand people on board fifteen remain unaccounted for the ship capsized late on friday near the italian island of giglio police have detained the captain who was seen drinking in the bar at the time of the incident and he will face charges of manslaughter and abandoning the ship leaving passengers in danger. i'll be back with the main headlines in just a few minutes and a little later our special report the billionaire's tea party about the protest movement which emerged in opposition to brag a bomber threatening to derail his promises of hope and change stay with us.

now it's not about spilling blood. it's the war of the barricades from one side and fears blockade from the other. invisible border it has cut people from the land for twelve years.

the conflict that divided serbia into two hostile parts is still not over. period. if. i am.

well. technology innovation all the latest developments around russia we've got this huge earth covered. that week's main news in r.t. tehran claims the u.s. and israel were both behind that fascination with iranian nuclear scientists in the city in an effort to block the country's at told the program adding further to mounting tension between america and the islamic republic. as syria's president assad grants an amnesty for crimes committed during ten months of unrest there's more international pressure with the u.n. security secretary general calling for violence to end. plus destination unknown russia's most pro focus group whose mission went astray by force.