very small shop who they damage the ground. bad choices in crop planting intense cattle pasturing and unfavorable weather conditions of all brought about an ecological catastrophe these daily winds that blow over counties contributed to the disaster they carry solid particles of dust and salt from the drying our old sea vast lush pastures have been all that robbed of their moisture. alexanders clad remembers all too well how it started thirty years ago. and a master plan of countering that invasion was put together. when an emergency state was introduced in the republic almost all farmers schoolchildren and students were involved in seed collection and subsequent sowing works in the region. the results achieved proved that it was possible not only to stop does it invasion but also to

bring life back but. not that it'll take fifteen to twenty years for this land to become step again. we should remember that it's impossible to revive step in its original form on the open sea. the water our goal is not only to reinforce the sandy soil but also to create quality pastures that will foster the development of cattle breeding in kalmykia where. it's a tough task selecting which plants are fit for life in the desert and those that can help turn the desert back into step. bush is was selected by way of trial and error which. was one of the first scientists who proved which plants are most likely to survive here with a cord injury this is a collision route one of the bushes planted to study the. it would be the roots can grow fifteen to twenty meters deep fifteen yet no one and it's a very convenient plant to use because it grows in the sand and doesn't require watering

. when you get in the world enough scientists recommend planting cuttings of killing you know the same way grapes are planted. on what we were hesitant at first but it turns out that it grows well after all even on certain people can't help wondering they tell us what's the use of planting sticks but after three months the sticks start to blossom. today residents of the county village of pecans kate will start another round combating the desert all they have is an old tractor with soviet era of quick mint attached to fight the invading sands the new agricultural technique of planting cuttings with just the working team is composed of three people two technicians who plant the cuttings and an assistant who stamps on the ground around the plants to make it flat one planting machine can cover up to twelve hectares of sand in

a single shift it is hard work especially considering temperatures often reach forty five degrees celsius one hundred thirteen fahrenheit in the shade in the first year the young plants will shoot out a strong and lengthy root system then every bush gradually gains a territory is about thirty square metres all to itself when the sand invasion is stopped the spaces between the bush rows will be filled with grass this is how a former desert is going to become a pasture. there is a great variety of deserts and some of them instead of being a hindrance can be a natural wonder six thousand kilometers east of moscow in the foothills of the kadar ridge behind lake baikal lies the chara desert it is a unique place siberia. tourists from all over russia visit there even though it's hard to reach the desert is surrounded by rivers and marshes every

july it hosts a festival the real. enthusiasts stay away from the proper roads for the trip to the festival location is an adventure in itself some travel across tighe on rivers and trucked off road vehicles others had through the marshes on foot one group of thrill seekers full by force has chosen an especially difficult route. dimitri balaban of the shy program from kazakhstan is the focus of attention his car is completely unfit for off road exploits yet he has travelled four thousand kilometers to join the band of adventurous. at u.b.s. i was of course i'd never dared to go to such a place on my own. but going with a group is a different thing. besides the experience guys took a look at the route beforehand and said we should be able to make him do it but

probably. dimitri ran into problems as soon as the cars left the highway and the next five hours were very hard however his fellow travellers tell him it's the only way a rally across tigar is a real test but for the driver and for the vehicle. adrenalin is pumping the car is stuck the wheels are spinning and the terrain is getting more and more difficult now the participants will all experience the front shapes of traveling off road through the siberian tiger the crews will help each other out if not many of these cars will end up abandoned in the swamps forever by the time the convoy arrives it is already late but the drivers for go exhaustion and start repairing their vehicles right away are the good with no i probably wouldn't want to come every year. because you need some time off but almost as if it's

a very intense kind of experience because you. early in the morning while the campus's sleep is son of an experienced hiker well acquainted with the area sets off into the sands his task is to check how safe the route is before the new arrivals hit the road to explore the charred desert the shortcut to the desert goes through a marsh land and a pine forest we're going to explain landing in charge of the flies over the desert . with the passengers are always but will the two actually see sanjay and hear. that legend has it that wants there were two brothers or younger. and older both were princes and they lived in peace and harmony as even if it was me until they came upon a treasure trove of gold they proceeded to divide it mostly but they could never come up with their hogs one always ended up shorter than the other at this led to fighting and civil war the gods were greatly displeased with it and turned one

prince into the kadar ridge and the other into the can ridge while the gold they were fighting over became a stretch of sand between them and the first groups of tourists are approaching the charas sands. each person has to improvise a way of walking over the difficult terrain where the tiger ends and the desert starts the walk ahead of them is fascinating yet tiring the key to success here is to ignore the burning sun and insect bites of the tiger. there is no complete explanation as to the deserts origin one theory is that it was produced by centuries of winds eroding the sediment of an ancient lake. the lake dried out about fifteen thousand years ago and its former bed was walked on by packs of mammoths and woolly rhinoceros tusks keep turning up in the area to this day. landscape is a breathtaking combination of north and south brought together as if by magic.

there is no other doesn't like it anywhere else in the world these fabulous sights completed by the impressive skyline of the kadar mountain range the chara desert itself is quite small but just over fifty square kilometers. some members of the talk who post stayed behind in the camp there completing preparations for the relay competition on the festival's program it's going to be tough with over fifty experienced hiker's after the trophy. so that the whole naturally our goal in coming here was not to take some wild rides in off road vehicles or like bonfires balls that are both of the quite the opposite was the year we were trying to appreciate the beauty of the desert as it is then we'd like to make sure it stays this way for times to come that some countries a desert is considered disaster just the char is a place for us to get together and have a good time in

a friendly atmosphere. just like today's festival. the relay competition route is set a few kilometers away from the desert the chara desert itself is a protective nature reserve and visitors only allowed on foot this is no place to host a competition but the protection of the law and the deterrent provided by the sounds themselves make sure that this one of a kind natural treasure remains in its original state. in the evening visitors are treated to one last one. the sun setting over a quiet lake lights up low clouds and fog on the horizon creating an unforgettable beautiful picture. once the sun has set everyone gathers at a large meadow by the lake it is time for the awards ceremony and singing songs by the fire all just for listening to the music of the night forest by the slumbering

siberian desert.

clouds of war looming over the syrian capital with heavy artillery fire on the outskirts and government. in the streets. iran a war on oil sales to some countries it is still possible amid growing anti iran rhetoric from campaigning u.s. politicians just ahead of this year's presidential race. and occupiers in the city of old notions of tolerance go out the window police bomb bomb activists with . jail time. and a prime minister putin gets down to business sun comes up with russia's new

economic layout in the latest article about his presidential. a very warm welcome to you from all of us here at r.t. moscow rule reception. syrian troops backed by tanks and heavy i mean never politically regain control over the outskirts of damascus activists suggest over sixty people have been killed in the latest fighting it's just over a day after the arab league mission that was frozen and. now has details from the syrian capital. this is considered one of the big connecting points between the city that's us and the suburbs people areas like harassed and i believe that have been the seeds of this fighting over the weekend along with a number of the suburbs as government forces have moved to retake control of areas

that have folded its rebel forces no people here in the city who waking up yesterday morning sounds of gunfire and shelling from many of these areas the images is rising for it so these suburbs and tanks rolling into the street scenes that were described as. the extremely conservative this comes on the back of the arab league monitoring mission posting its exact mission here the time being they haven't really seen sort of the from the decision earlier last week that the goal statement is to be withdrawal the arab league and now taking their proposal for a political transition to the u.n. the backing but it seems that by any interest the government have really been trying to quell the uprising this is carried so close to the center of the government think tanks that they're fighting arms forces of course you do have these weeks now as the uprisings continued we've seen this come take to get the

closer to the kids need to deal with it to the limits to bring this to the president to start this thursday extremely concerned since its missions being hosted to see the escalation in violence so you close to the capital how do you surface right there and she is also helping you keep track of the syrian conflict on the stay up to the minute with all developments in the country via twitter stream us a look here and one of the latest tweets here on our she says observer has compared the fact finding mission to tom and jerry they traced the un rest unsuccessfully all around the country that's how they explain the difficulty in trying to get an accurate perspective. the situation ongoing in certain areas.

could have you with us here on r t today. plans to halt or oil exports to some e.u. countries are still alive that's according to iran's oil minister despite the country's parliament temporarily perspiring the debate on a possible cut of crude supplies on is aiming to deflect the flow of sanctions adopted by the west that have been targeting the country's oil industry by implementing the measures the u.s. and the european union are seeking to bring an end to iran's alleged nuclear weapons program meanwhile a high profile group of i.a.e.a. inspectors have begun their three day mission to examine iran's nuclear facilities tehran says the talks with the u.n. atomic body officials the first on such a level in more than three years will prove its nuclear ambitions are peaceful professor mohammad marandi from the university of tehran says the i.a.e.a. visit will not change the west's hardline approach towards iran. but the

a currently has full time monitors in iran in this is something that we rarely hear in the western media and we have cameras in all of iran installations so therefore there is absolutely no evidence whatsoever that iran's nuclear program is anything but peaceful and. has no evidence on this the iranians are not very optimistic about the i.a.e.a. because it is heavily influenced by western countries it's not a democratic body most of the members on the board are european and north american they don't represent the international community at all and the head of the i.a.e.a. is he owes his job to the united states if you look at the wiki leaks documents the united states and the europeans are basically engaging in acts of war against the iranian people as the real issue is not the nuclear program it is iran's independence and sovereignty. and russia's foreign minister says that iran's

potential built to hold all supplies to some european countries is a logical response to the e.u. is dead and sanctions. russia has firmly held the opinion that in most cases sanctions are not only effective but also counterproductive the current situation yet again confirms the old law to every action there is an equal reaction iran's announcement was made in response to the european union's decision to ban the purchasing of uranium oil by either member states. when america beats the drums of war over iran it may not always be driven by the islamic states nuclear intentions would be u.s. presidential candidates on not shy when it comes to voicing their and see iran rhetoric in front of america's influential jewish community. in important explain. america almost never misses an opportunity to praise its ally ironclad commitment and i mean ironclad to israel's security has meant the closest military cooperation

between our two countries in history or point a proverbial punch at its greatest adversary but there be no doubt. america is determined to prevent iran from getting a nuclear weapon and i will take no options off the table. however for many american jews and israeli supporters parag obama's war of words against tehran doesn't go far no sign of the simply state i'm committed to israel's security you have to promote policies that commit you that show that you're serious about his security israel through these actions feels that obama is not committed to doing everything this power to stop iran from having nuclear weapons iran is a in this an existential threat to israel and obama should be saying. so publicly that he will support israel in whatever military action they stay necessary more inclined as president of the zionist organization of america he says an

unprecedented amount of american jews and israelis share his animosity a feeling arguably underscored by the israeli government according to published reports tell of eve would only give washington twelve hours notice if deciding to strike iran i believe his policies are among the most hostile israel's ever experienced of any president in my lifetime recently it was the life of president obama being threatened in a column written by the owner of the atlanta jewish times in an article titled what would you do andrew adler listed the assassination of obama as one way to ensure israel's security he wrote in part give the go ahead for u.s. based massada agents to take out a president deemed unfriendly to israel in order for the current vice president to take his place and forcefully dictate that the united states' policy includes

helping the jewish state obliterate its enemies i think that threat. or we are going to kill you either politically or literally i think that it. seriously the american president and money. is the largest. group in the united states it is the king maker in. the american israel public affairs committee known as a pac declined our request for an interview meanwhile obama finds himself facing another election and a slew of republican opponents banging on much louder war drum against iran with regards to iran which perhaps represents the greatest exist central threat to israel we have to make it abundantly clear it is unacceptable and i take those that word carefully is unacceptable for iran to become a nuclear nation if rick santorum and when rick santorum is president iran will not

get a nuclear weapon because the world as we know it will be no more clear i want to have israel i'm very close to netanyahu i would have said publicly that i would rather plan a joint operation conventionally than push the israelis to a point where they go nuclear. at a time when the u.s. bears the burden of a broken economy growing social unrest and ongoing military conflicts starting a war with iran would not be in america's best interest but in order to keep a best friend many believe president obama will be forced to put israel's national security first. r.t. new york. the ongoing western attempts to corner iran and what iran is doing in response are both issues being tackled in today's edition of a cross talk with peter lavelle that's coming up next hour here on for another taste of what's ahead. but he made me this i want to bring the hidden even out of

a well by doing something spectacular and destructive to enemies of islam and this is what motivates him this is a crisis not of the old soviet leadership who for all their misdeeds were at least atheist so they believe that a nuclear war and death was an end in failure and many energy i think is dying in a nuclear war for allah will get him to paradise what incentive do you have to bring to bear on him what carrot can you offer him to compare with us so you have to be prepared to stop his military efforts and he says i'm going to go and he says he doesn't and you can involve why don't you marry in the new zealand and he wants to wipe out israel which is what for a country that had to have a taboo anybody or should not be only drop to the most powerful nation this kind of rhetoric this kind of rhetoric is not good for israel israel is a very strong country and it doesn't need this bibi netanyahu you know that is kind of information that rhetoric to get reelected he being here is a need now that people in you know how did you know then like you i mean when i say moderated you think it is interesting to me.

do stay with us for cross talk later on are still to come in the program here faulty brakes on the go for european leaders it's back to brussels as the e.u. rattled by the euro crisis labor to install a spending seat belt for the blocks debt ridden economy. the u.s. reportedly sits down with the taliban but hopes for peace talks after a decade of conflict in afghanistan and we've got more analysis on that story in just a few minutes here in our city. the mayor of oakland has asked the courts to throw out occupy activists with a record of protest arrests about the city demand follows one of the most dramatic clamps down on the movement in its history more than four hundred people were arrested when what began as a peaceful rally against inequality and police brutality turned out getting rough

right cops jumped into action powering volleys of tear gas and flash grenades at protesters hiding behind makeshift barriers bearing peace symbols first hand accounts say the police were carrying lists of demonstrators with them which they used to arrest attendance sara flounders from the international action center believes the occupy movement is like an alarm clock for a dying american dream. it's very much achieving its goals in terms of waking up the youth in the us waking up working people in the us to the reality the reality that poor and working people are losing more and more and that the one percent actually one thousands of one percent is gaining a normal new wealth so that they are very successful in drawing attention to that again and again the media tries to bait this occupy movement as being violent the

violence has come from the police and a broken piece of glass is not the broken heads that the police are inflicting on the occupy movement and that movement is very determined to continue and to find new tactics and as the fallout from those clashes in oakland can tin used to be counted you can find the latest pictures from california and other occupy events on our you tube channel just uploaded there for. a video of an occupy movement activist being tasered in his pajamas for allegedly tearing down police flyers that washington d.c. part of his story and many others are what our you tube channel that's you tube dot com slash. these are the images the world has been seeing from the streets of canada. trying

for a chatroom. quarter past the hour here in moscow bad debt austerity and fresh ammunition for europe's bailout fund are the main themes coming up in today's edu summit in brussels but the meeting the first such this year is set for a tense start as critical greek credit talks drag on our correspondent asked cilia has more from brussels. leaders of the twenty seven member states of the european union are meeting today for the first summit twenty. summit. this time nevertheless the stakes remain a very high especially with regard to the economic social and political stability of certain member states official. our jobs and growth this is very crucial at a time when the average unemployment is at around ten percent even as high as

twenty three percent in countries like spain it is expected that the seventeen members of the eurozone may meet. it hasn't been officially announced but it may be decided upon today of whether the talks among the seventeen will go ahead and one of the most important topics they need to discuss is that of ongoing negotiations between greece and its creditors there has to be a deal where the creditors are through right some of the greek debt take some losses is crucial here if greece is to get the second tranche of its money out into the mix of what's happening today belgium is holding a general strike involving both the private and public sector people are going out to protest against the government moves to make it harder for them to retire early as well as the. benefits of all of this is part of a certain want put forth to bring down the deficit of the country too with limits of three percent. prior to today. so it doesn't coincide with.

all that said and done all of these are indeed happening today. what you know from the russian capital if you. know. it's one thing to have. taken her appreciation one step further. to marry a century old building. plus a giant israeli drone crashes during a test flight find out what caused the largest on man aircraft in the country's arsenal to go down all that.