in many parts of the country including the capital the u.n. estimates over five thousand civilians have been killed since the beginning of the uprising ten months ago meanwhile the un security council has met to consider a draft resolution to end the bloodshed we're now joined live by he's merino. thank you for joining us first of all can you tell us what has been achieved behind closed doors at the security council so far. well so far there hasn't been anything achieved behind closed doors at the security council but there has been a lot of discussion taking place primarily because a european arab draft resolution was circulated to the u.n. security council members in which it calls for the syrian president bashar al assad to transfer power to his deputy while a unity government is formed and prepared for new elections now according to reports this draft text calls for

a political transition in syria it also says the security council could adopt further measures if syria does not comply with the terms of the resolution now of course this is just a draft text that was written up by france and britain in consultation with morocco germany portugal the united states and qatar this is a draft that is just beginning to be discussed by the security council members we do know that the russian ambassador to the united nations vitaly churkin expressed deep disappointment with their draft indicating that he does not believe that the international community should impose an outside solution on syria in terms of the conflict place there and he also rejected the idea of an arms embargo or the use of force being imposed on syria because we should keep in mind that if this text

includes that the key security council could adopt further measures if syria does not come by with the security council wants we don't know what those further measures would be and that is the concern that many security council members do how waiting comes to how the international community will be with syria considering what has taken place in libya. no marina real quickly why is the u.n. security council seemingly able at this point to go from words to actions. because as i just began discussing you have countries such as russia china india brazil that believe that there is a conflict that two sides are involved in syria and both of those parties should be addressed now russia has drafted a resolution on syria but according to reports and according to what members told

me it does not include the cohesive or punitive measures against syria that western countries are looking for in the russian draft hold both parties accountable the assad government and the opposition groups and says both parties need to come to the negotiation table it does cause it doesn't call for any type of regime change and that is something that russia and china we saw three months ago vetoed a western draft resolution that could impose possibly regime change in syria india also doesn't support any kind of government change imposed by the international security so that's the difference there is that you have one side that wants to have both. parties in syria come together in negotiate one side of the security council wants the other side that proposed their draft resolution today wants to see a government transition and that's where you have

a difference of opinions but this story will continue next week because from what we're told the security council will meet to discuss the text of this draft resolution all right thank you very much more important we know that you'll stay on top of things as the situation develops there now let's get some insight from an anti-war activist and blogger don de bar who is also in a new usa misuari thank you for joining us thank you for first of all the u.n. security council has met as we just heard to discuss a draft on the resolution to stop the bloodshed in syria what disagreement has the motion sparked amongst members. well it seems. the point of departure between the western interests and russia and china voiced by russia this time is whether or not the decision about who will rule syria is made by the syrian people or by nato as it was in libya and. this time russia has already

ran china exercise their veto back in october and apparently today again they indicated that they would not allow a resolution to go through that called for regime change in syria without the participation of the syrian people is no where the that you know the footage to today of what happened in soccer. was countered by footage that you aired yourselves yesterday from damascus with the massive pro-government rally the people of syria in general on the ground according to every journalist i've spoken with that's been on the ground there and from you know places like artsy where you have objective you know report taj the people of syria generally back the regime these rebellions quote unquote or rather small and scale and they don't happen in multiple spots as was reported by car cause you gave me yesterday on r t it seems that there's a role for your band of people the trial when you list al-jazeera and al-arabiya

news crews and specific stage these things and they are the you know backdrop for the activity as people say that the arab league and now would you have if you u.n. security council you mentioned that regime change is one of the goals the wording of the resolution under discussion says president assad has to go or face tough action how far is the west ready to go to prove its view that the time for the syrian leader to get out well it depends on how far they're allowed to go we saw how far they would go in libya they carried out a seven month massive bombing campaign that reduced the infrastructure of that country to rubble practically which had been built up on. in the last forty years and they installed a group of thugs that are so greedy that they're killing each other now that the government has been swept out of the way there by nato so they'll go as far as they're allowed to go and it seems this time russia and perhaps china are standing up to them now if president assad does step down or is alstead whichever comes

first what would it mean for a war torn syria. hopefully the model is not the same as libya or iraq but most likely that's the case the thing that the western powers want to see in this region is dischord they obviously cannot occupy these territories after they conquer them if you look to iraq and afghanistan you can see that that's the case but as long as the people on the ground are busy killing each other the united states can secure oil or in the case of syria for example the port at sardis which would keep russia out of the mediterranean and whatever other objectives they have and you know the other people are busy killing each other the west is milking the place of whatever they are there to you know to milk it of now the new resolution that is up for debate is based on the plan outlined by the arab league earlier this week after its findings of its observer mission in syria they've been there for

a while now now the un security council will be briefed about the missions conclusions on tuesday by the u.n. secretary general but just how much should the u.n. position on syria depend on the arab league's missions observations in a country. well first of all the arab league is hardly an objective observer they have been serving the western interest particularly the gulf cooperation council states saudi arabia qatar i mean if they're going to do that first let's send an arab league delegation into bach reign where the saudis and qataris have cropped up the regime against a genuine populist uprising and you know let them do a report there that talks about. removing say the u.s. navy from the middle of that kingdom let's see saudi arabia and qatar be examined by the arab league or by some other international observers for their human rights records and let's have a discussion of the entire area perhaps even some could come visit the united states stop off in kuantan tomorrow and look at some of the things that have

happened in the congress recently with respect to civil rights human rights indefinite detention and now they're looking at stripping people of their citizenship ear on a declaration by the president you know the people so. thank you very much for your observations don de bar an anti-war activist and a journalist with us here on r.t. thank you thank you for having me. thousands of protesters have rallied at the presidential palace in warsaw over the signing of an international treaty to enforce intellectual property rights on the internet opponents say the pact amounts to internet censorship and a violation of human rights activists also alleging secrecy saying the documents exact wording prepared by non elected officials has never been revealed the legislation must be ratified by the polish and european parliament before coming into effect. by charge of scott who's a needy a freedom specialist with the helsinki foundation for human rights says the

government should communicate with users instead of changing internet policy. the way it did three it my pride and ego was basically done and ensure your match with . you is there without really actually to be a good buy in later in the internet and those internet. companies which are taking advantage of the fear and believe in the internet the first thing we should be aware of is people. our feeling then they were cheated by the government and that something is wrong and that there were no contemplation and there was no quote a good debate before our before and the signature of the document there were what maybe happened in the recent year or even man who would be internet and every time

people have the impression that the government taking that without the base and without. their now and internet use there libya's new government is being accused of torture and abuse in detention centers médecins sans frontiers is suspending its mission in misrata saying it is repeatedly treating patients for injuries sustained during interrogation with thousands of gadhafi loyalists still behind bars it's raising key questions about the people nato helped to bring to power as artie's marie financial reports. doctors without borders known for going do their job in the most dangerous and notorious places around the globe but in n.t.s.c. iran libya the group has encountered a formidable obstacle they couldn't overcome burns from electric shocks and cigarettes heavy bruising and renal failure all these evidence of the continued torture of prisoners say the doctors and now after two inmates died from beatings

the international group has stopped its mission in protest. patients were brought to us in the middle of interrogation for medical care in order to make them fit for further interrogation this is an acceptable our rule is to provide medical care to war casualties and sick detainees not to repeatedly treat the same patients between torture sessions the news comes amidst rising anger with libya's interim government demonstrations in benghazi last week ended with the resignation of a high ranking member of the m.t.c. in the former gadhafi stronghold of bani walid locals pushed out a traditional council forces claiming systematic abuse it started with the very beginning of the rebellion very beginning of the insurrection the second day of the rebellion on eighteenth of february the african migrants were rounded up locked in a detention center and burnt to death and the n.p.c.

expressed support for this time and this is part of the strategy of the west you know divide and rule that was given the green light for the torture and execution that we're seeing now so this is a clear recipe for civil war meanwhile the nato operation that brought the m.t.c. to power is by itself raising questions. a high profile international team of human rights activists has been to leave here to investigate some of may two that it bears entity of were with their evolution in the province and there were guiding the air raids and they are getting them and court have been making them if you are mandated. that. it is very very accurate in a way that i myself saw the killing of so many people in front of my eyes i saw the

killing go fifty one people in front of my eyes was fifteen years old and while all sides in the libyan conflict are to blame for violence and violations the human rights activists claim not all of them have been held responsible for their wrongdoings investigating what happened during libya's seven months civil war and the nato campaign to protect civilians this fact of mission discovered again crimes against humanity but the goal was not to judge but to shed light on what happened and not to repeat the mistakes in recent united nations report has reviewed that up to eight thousand supporters have been held by militia groups in libya right now and with numerous occasions of torture and revenge killings throughout the country hopes of a new beginning for libya are fading quickly. r.t. . the struggling euro zone and a future of deep in greece have been

a center stage at the world economic forum in davos on friday the gathering continues in switzerland over the weekend. to reports european debt problems could still be shaping the agenda. we're going to day four here at the davos world economic forum and though the agenda seems to shift more of a focus on the global economic outlook talking to thinkers and economists we will have to see if the eurozone agenda continues to dominate the agenda as it has with the crisis in the eurozone unresolved now after we saw some very high profile officials from the e.u. finance ministers from duros own countries trying to instill optimism talking about how solutions have been arrived out that are going to work and that are going to be reached a fiscal compact that they believe will be tightened at this next meeting coming up and a solution with grief on holders to avert default. economic and monetary affairs

for the you said he believes will be coming this weekend after that being kind of the headlines that emerged and that caught a lot of attention we have since seen fitch the ratings agency come out and downgrade five nations including italy and spain which are widely considered two of the biggest risks in the euro zone when it comes to the debt crisis we're going to have to see what their reaction is to that news especially given the optimism that presumably come from some of these speakers at the conference. for us there now this is r.t. and now it is time for moscow out quite a ways out in fact. absolutely

beautiful welcome to florence and the famous bridge on this week's program we'll be continuing our exploration of russian culture and influence a broad from famous people who live here to curb russians who live and work in italy and who wouldn't be happy here with glorious winter sun sensational food culture overload the beginning of the nineteenth century saw a number of russian wealthy families. italy has always held a special attraction for russians many tools of each of these the cultural center

of the world and with its breathtaking architecture food and style it gets you thinking there may be some truth in that today dozens of companies offer excursions by plane and bus loads of russians of ice cream which. was famous landmarks which the conservation bridge in the fancy museum because you're not saying that everyone will be increased from the first visit here. it's amazing here we're especially impressed that despite so many tourists the city is still clean quiet safe and relaxed oh yes. without believing in florence for nine years and in my experience russians like not only the architectural and cultural beauty of the city that also enjoy shopping here a lot especially from that a good ideas that. would make is the hometown of michelangelo and. they spent a lot of time living and working in this region of italy the art and culture that

have created and contributed influenced many outstanding russians came to florence for inspiration and stayed here for a while. there are many ways talented and skilled italians enriched russian cultural life and vice versa over the centuries tell you expect a huge influence in the design of moscow and st petersburg. well the other great things about florence is the shopping. pastime of many russian tourists prices are lower here for designer goods than back home although this next looks us pretty well it might be better not to look at the price tags. here in the main shopping street of florence you can find a designer boutique a brand that was founded at the beginning of the twentieth century by

a russian noble family. in two thousand and eight it's now an international company based in france with several stores in italy. owned by the russian local sort of these three of the russian fashion they will ever see reads like an exciting novel the story of the brands you can say is part of russia's heritage and history. founded in paris one nine hundred twenty four by prince felix you suppose and his wife marina the niece of the last person thought the second and says she clothing range tasseled european and american customers but the prince had a little business sense and two years after the nine hundred twenty nine the street crash ruined his most prosperous clients do you suppose was forced to shut up shop . almost eight decades after the original house of m. street clothes stores. has restored the brand to his former glory.

to our next location now and in a city known as the cradle of the renaissance surrounded by terra cotta roofs a cluster of onion domes each topped with a tall cross is certainly not what you would expect to see in the florence skyline less than a mile from florence as do most of these brightly colored domes of a different kind marked the surviving history of russian immigration to italy and florence the russian orthodox church of the nativity of christ's. there's been a russian orthodox church on the site since ninety three built by the russian community in florence time this is something to consider will damage over the years but was restored several times elegant exotic and much is the city's cultural heritage perfectly reflecting in the true architectural style of seventeenth

century moscow today the church is popular with orthodox worship as from all over tuscany. the church in florence houses many historic relics of the russian orthodox church including works by both russian and it's how you artists it's on the market you can't miss in florence and it's a place that brings the local russian community closer together and welcome addition to bush in life in tuscany. although you know most of the congregation of our church consisted of people of many nationalities including russians ukrainians georgians greeks italians serbs and bulgarians this church is the first big orthodox cathedral that was built initially then more cathedrals and son removed and barry appeared and only five years ago a big church in rome was built that. tchaikovsky the demi the family to c.s.t.

a real russians with a strong connection to italy. twenty minutes outside the city will match with beautiful scenery vibrant colors. but what has this park got to do with russian culture. to answer that question let's meet this week's guest. great to meet you thank you very much for your time nice to meet you while we're here in this beautiful and i guess of the question this place is called ponder like a sheen and there are many beautiful alleys here one of them in fact where we're standing right now is named after dusty of ski he spent a year in this city and it was said to be one of the happiest times and as. live. came to florence with his young wife and they found out here that they were going to have a baby and the couple stayed in the city while she was pregnant. also finished the eaters' here so she left a remarkable trace in the history of this city. and it's not just the esky who

lived tchaikovsky's but on this life there are many russian influences in florence . tchaikovsky spend seventy years in florence and composed quilts and he's here enjoyed florence a lot there whether architecture art and the many museums the famous director to also leave here in the ninety's seventy's and eighty's then there is joseph brought ski turner who has not been to florence to go up to the model it seems that many russians love it but one particular florence there's nor about this place the city is not too big and not too small and its historical centrist packed with everything one might fancy museum goers admirers of their were in a sense an art lovers is perfect for everyone also those who are into fashion are excited to come here not to mention those seeking good food and wine. thank you very much for your time and enjoy your time here florence.

moving on and what other locations in florence are connected to russia one of the most beautiful palaces is still officially named. after a noble russian family who owned it the nineteenth century it was pulled by count to me to be truly a senator and the director of the hermit's harsh also the god son of empress catherine the great the palace also contained impressive library which he started to put together in italy to replace his previous collection of books which were lost in the great fire of moscow in eighteen twelve. the brazilians were not the only wealthy russian family who made an impression in florence. in the city are also connected to. the demeter family there are squares villas and monuments in honor of the family members who lived in florence in the nineteenth century and the family emblem can even be seen on the front of the basilica of st mary the flower as it's officially cooled when money was needed to restore the cathedral princedom it off donated a large sum as his contribution was so great the florentine governess thanked him

by putting the emblem right next to the main entrance. many russian artists traveled all lived in italy in the previous centuries and the country is still an inspiration to many of their works far from classical but rather unusual controversial contemporary art is displayed at a russian art gallery in the center of florence. and she stood on galloway has existed for several years now and now we're working on a new concept. we want to showcase work which would combine art blind and sound and would affect as many senses as visitors as possible the want to share that art can be not only a visual treat little says she'll a person who could see folks and. florence is full of captivating stories and legends connects to many corners of the world. one local met is that if you rub this board snouts and put

a coin in its mouth you will return to florence at some point in your life and no he doesn't really like to has poor rubles. and italian many similarities the culture of the two countries is very classical based and complementary in many ways both have a rich history incumbent's a long tradition of excellence in every aspect of arts and design. and from modern russian french fashion houses to crane tools rocks churches cheap await the russian connections you can find in italy and you'll be amazed at the results. he did call florence the city of dreams he certainly. it's. the same.

with. technology innovation. developments. syria. armed opposition. to damascus meanwhile the united nations security council. on a possible resolution.

would be. torturing and killing. by humanitarian aid organization. it is pulling out of. detainees raising questions among human rights groups. protests against. piracy. which were. so i have signed up to a friend and he has also quit over the so called. calling the controversial treaty a charade. those are the headlines up next artie's interview show spotlight talks to the survivors of the costa concordia disaster.