russia and china block a western backed u.n. draft resolution on syria with moscow slamming the text for an unbalanced approach and denial of dialogue between government and opposition. other stories that shape the week riots returned to egypt as anger at authorities failure to prevent a deadly soccer ball spills over into four days of violent clashes that have already seen a dozen dead. and in russia's bitter subzero cold hundreds of thousands during a record breaking rallies both pro and anti-government of next month's presidential vote.

midnight in moscow bring you today's top stories in a look back at the week's news here on r t moscow says it's determined to help bring an end to the syrian crisis by implementing democratic change in sending foreign minister sergey lavrov to damascus for talks next week saturday russia and china blocked the latest u.n. security council resolution on syria saying it could cause even more bloodshed because it took sides in the armed conflict. as the latest. tempers are still flaring because as we've been reporting and this should be surprise that the security council did not reach a consensus on the draft resolution on syria yet western countries still pushed for a vote and russia warned from the very beginning that if the draft was not a did not address some of russia's concerns it would veto and that's exactly what happened now let's talk about these concerns because moscow said it just requested

some simple amendments would be made to the draft text that would have made the resolution a little bit more balanced for example the draft resolution different and that the syrian government with its all of its forces from the cities and towns and seize all all violence but russian officials want to the document the draft resolution to also demand that the armed opposition groups stop participating in violence and retreat back from any cities or towns where it may have occupied the crime call it has called a draft text that was presented saturday morning to one side with a list of demands being made on the assad government but no note of armed opposition groups operating in syria now while addressing security council saturday a russian envoy to the u.n. fratelli churkin said the security council was not created just for the sake of taking sides or interfering in a civil war of sovereign countries he also accused some some countries of sponsoring

a campaign of regime change in syria those who are pushing for this resolution to be adopted don't you sleep with them stood you could put some influential members of the international community including those sitting around this table from the very beginning of the syrian crisis. which unity is a little settlement but i couldn't call regime change stirring up the opposition against the authorities and north because if anything to encourage enfeeblement methods of struggle the draft resolution put to the vote does not adequately reflect the real situation in syria and since unbalanced to go to the syrian sides it doesn't take into account though. proposals look as well as withdrawing syrian armed forces from the cities that this should be and to attacks by armed groups on state institutions and neighborhoods with a low balance here when the signal is not a u.s. delegation it could not help but showing its frustration and anger why not participating in the meeting saturday morning we heard. you some language that's normally not heard in these diplomatic settings like discussed it in shame the

united states is discussed that a couple members of this council continue to prevent us from fulfilling our sole purpose here. addressing an ever deepening crisis in syria and a growing threat to regional peace and security in the meantime russian foreign minister sergei lavrov is heading to damascus on tuesday to meet with syrian president bashar al assad russia has been very vocal in trying to get both sides participating in the conflict in syria to come to the table and start speaking to one another and. using some type of dialogue instead of violence to come to a peaceful approach so of course we will stay on this story and see how it evolves and works out as diplomats continue their showdown over syria thousands of demonstrators gathered in damascus in support of president assad crowds also praise the decision by russia and china to block the calls for action in changing the

country or work rose off from the group stop nato tells r t although moscow and beijing not to allow u.n. sanction intervention in syria there is a chance they could have intervened could still be trouble for iraq. but i fear is we may be see a replication of what happened in one thousand nine hundred ninety when the united states and its nato allies launched the seventy eight day bombing campaign against yugoslavia having failed to enlist chinese and russian support for un resolution against not move here that's one of the i'm hoping of course that the resolute stand today on the principled stand taking the taken by russia and china against a resolution that we have to remember was sponsored by morocco and co-sponsored by a very interesting group of people they include the nato quality of the world the united states britain france and germany along with portugal they include all six members of the cooperation council that is the monarchies and camera some in the persian gulf this is not a representative group of nations of course in the united nations of the world is

a very select one is largely the same for the first a comparable resolution one thousand seven hundred three against libya last year no armed uprising of the sort of burn in syria could have occurred if it was in libya earlier or kossovo to those long the thirty years ago without the understanding by those in gauging the armed uprising that they would be supported by the forces outside the. more than two hundred people were reportedly killed by security forces in the syrian city of homs just ahead of the vote at the u.n. security council but the government has denied the assault calling the reports a hysterical campaign of incitement by armed groups editor of the syria tribune dr ali mohammed says the information from the opposition shouldn't be taken at face value. i mean there were none to be leaving the syrian army waited ten months and then just the night before the security council meeting it decided to start bombarding homes this too which in homs it's been difficult for the syrian.

regime supporters for such a long time and i don't see why the army would choose such a critical timing just start it's a vicious crackdown at this strike it's the out of only means and just two weeks ago we had the arab league observers who could have gone there and investigated but unfortunately they were pulled out for a good reason and therefore there are only claims from this side it. was it's claims from that side we cannot treat it with what's going on but i don't think that the army wants surely it's it's not like the syrian army this is number one and james like that happened before in. just a short and the opposition was not able to prove any of these claims over the past and months egyptian police have again fired rubber bullets in tear gas to drive a crowd of rock throwing protesters away from the interior ministry in cairo clashes between security forces and demonstrators in egypt have been raging for

four days and left a dozen dead and thousands injured activists have been venting their anger over the military rulers alleged failure to prevent a deadly outbreak of violence at a football match wednesday artie's where if an ocean has more from cairo that things have been extremely devastating and terribly killed sixty eight days of the last two days and also very tragic the chord sadomasochist on wednesday when seventy four people died in a stampede at one of the city's football stadiums has become by itself the deadliest incident since the bar of alsip last february but it's also to get a new wave of clashes between the police the army and demonstrators that's actually become something common seen here in the. and with all of egypt the fact these people have been very quick to use polling points late incident to use local forces especially thing to ministry will do nothing of allowing this to happen allowing these deaths over inefficiency and actually wolf over instigating these trailers

they know who to preserve the situation of instability in the country in order to just to follow somehow the. terror and rule the generals from the supreme council of the armed forces they took power from mubarak last february and since then demonstrations actually have never told shortly after this happened only one state to hold school football fans have come to the booths nothing to minister here in the central pa who just walked away from here seeking for justice and calling for amy did transition of power from the ministry to civil to situations unquote early presidential elections and since then twelve people have been killed in the last full day seven twenty five hundred dollars have been injured who think that it's a terrible dissolve so i have to say while masood street is a narrow street this one the streets they didn't go to the woods they didn't all follow the interior ministry here in hollywood they've seen many many people there

chanting intimately slogans from time to time police has been firing tear gas at the times doesn't even show it so we've been able to speak to several people there let's listen to what they have to say about who's going to go and when it's going to stop people are just protesting in addition to teaching. the comes to the students are unbelievable in fact even people might die and that they will they suffocate each day children everything to their chinese that. that it might occur and they does she think. that the child the seventy seven year old china it's over your news it's more than enough what they're doing to the protesters and that they're doing here. to the way to the country and the children must be oh well as you can see situation is very volatile here in cairo and actually in several all the cities throughout egypt but we can also can't talk now about several months sometimes well

a full report see no incidents. people from that ministration told this to do have been detained did they are in custody right now is that while the investigation goes you know say. protesters took months just recently the supreme council of the armed forces it. has also called for early presidential elections in the country stay with us here on r t this hour still ahead a change of tune a once vocal critic of the prime minister now tells a different tale is very few people he would see as many. as i did as well but you want to blame right here putin for the death of his son alexander litvinenko but now the former f.s.b. officers father has had a change of mind at all there is his own theory to explain what happened. and the latest in the sit in for the u.s. anti-corporate protesters face a heavy handed police response we ask how the occupy movement will cope with

eviction from a park they've occupied since early october. but first saturday was a day for demonstrations in russia of more than two hundred thousand governed across the country voicing their political views ahead of next month's presidential race two of the largest rallies happened in moscow with supporters and opponents of the current leadership braving bitter cold to have their say it was the third biggest opposition gathering after the parliamentary vote two months ago that protesters claim was a rigged now their main demand is for a fair presidential vote in march political analyst dimitri baddish thinks there is no split in russian society but rallies will positively influence the country's political climate. it's mostly just emotional. fueled by the media some people were obviously irritated seen the same two faces on television maybe too much in the last few months especially some people were terrified the way they saw their position and it's small the incident when they failed to handle the west

behind it so it's mostly media driven there is no real cost struggle behind it there are people and reach people in both radius there are people of all kinds of ethnic groups in both race so right now i think it's mostly a positive effect because it sort of wakes up the government to the needs of the people so until now the consequence of smart of more stability i hope it will continue in that weight if there is a real split in society of course it's not going to be good for the country author a researcher f. william engdahl thinks the west is funding the russian opposition to minimize the country's influence on the world stage during a critical time. it's documentable from the records of the national endowment for democracy which is a washington government financed goal that's all over the place in russia they're financing activists in. several different cities in russia i think really their

expectation is to create as much internal unrest in russia as possible to distract the prospective for a new putin presidency at a time when russia is going to face challenges with the missile defense with the destabilization of the assad regime in syria the attempt to create regime change in iran and throughout the middle east and you raise or to try to divert any russian any incoming russian government from dealing with these crises they're trying to do the same template they used in ukraine with the orange revolution in georgia to bring saakashvili into power as a pro. president in that country and i don't think it will work in russia i whatever mistakes the putin. tenure has brought with it whatever discontent is i think there are a lot of things that have significantly improved over the last years since the time

of the yeltsin era. but that that really isn't the point the point is u.s. interference in terminal russian election affairs is something that ought not to be tolerated and it's quite right not to tolerate it. there's more about moscow's rival rallies online thousands gather for a day of protest in r.t.e. photographer highlights on camera check out the big tears on our facebook profile more. analysis and much much more also what our. iran says it won't give in to international pressure and abandon its controversial

nuclear program even if it's banned from selling a single barrel of oil. spawn's to this week's approval by a u.s. senate committee of a package of sweeping new sanctions against the islamic state but the bill has yet to pass through congress as a whole the u.s. initiative targeting to iran's nuclear program follows the adopting a total embargo on iranian oil due to come into force in july the islamic republic in turn has repeatedly said it will halt all crude supplies to some european countries before summer maintains its atomic ambitions are peaceful and seeks to prove it by cooperating more closely with the nuclear watchdog team of i.a.e.a. inspectors arrived in iran this week and plans to return in february political analyst and he says keeping pressure on the regime is a key issue in the u.s. election. election especially if we go into the election they want to put a lot of pressure on iran. obama administration.

they want to squeeze. the pressure on iran. wanted to impose american law on the international community and i think what we have seen some european talk peanut of damage against your brand. i think american trying. to go to the extreme by trying to destroy a rainy and economy they've taken into consideration that iran is going through election parliamentary election probably the thing this is going to backfire in terms of the population of iran again. i think they go on very far in this in this and because this is going to have an implication for the world economy especially if this escalate to a military showdown between the american and the uranium. later in the program we

hear from iran's interior minister who is certain his country will weather of a storm of mounting sanctions in the interview with r.t. he said it's the countries imposing them that will end up being hit the hardest here's a sample of what's to come your way in about ten minutes. i think. i believe they've made a big mistake as this action results in turbulence for the oil and energy this very fact it can result in oil price growth in these conditions the west judy expected to drop in january and the grim. decision will result in further economic problems which as we can see the thick to the majority and so far they've been unable to find solutions the decisions taken today by the west unilaterally will result in the escalation of the economic problems. anti-corporate protesters in washington d.c. were evicted this week from a park they'd occupied since early october eight people were arrested when police

using riot gear and horses were raided the cabinet officer said they were just enforcing a no camping law and are allowing the activists back into the park the demonstrators say it was a full scale of the occupy movement seen some heavy handed police tactics including the alleged recently of a nonviolent d.c. protester but excessive force won't provoke activists according to kevin zeese from the it's our economy think tag telling our team the occupiers are too smart to fall into that trap. who knows what's going through their head space on that you know when we i watch that video it's available online and it looks like there is no justification for it when i went to meet piers on the day to ask about it people said the only thing he was doing was taking the signs around the tense and said no camping and so that was the rationale for tasering he was dropping values not being as threatening looks like an excessive use of force my sense is that it's not going

to provoke the macpherson campers. that there are more. disciplined than that to fall for that kind of trap the occupy movement in a few months has shifted the weight and shown the american people that if they get mobilized and organized that we have power we can change the direction this country so the future's going to be an american spring that's going to explode on the scene and become more important the presidential race in two thousand and twelve. asia's leading economy china has promised to consider pumping cash cash reserves into the eurozone to help with the blocs debt crisis the offer comes after a strong lobbying push by the german chancellor over her three day trip to the country this comes as the e.u. awaits the conclusion of a drawn out greek debt talks negotiations are key to athens getting a second ballot on are seen as only a chance to avoid default at the same time eva leaders are working feverishly to force through unpopular financial legislation paula tal a member of the european parliament for the u.k. independence party people won't take kindly to measures being forced upon me. it's

only going to get worse i mean at the moment they're bending gender the flags on the streets of athens i predict it will be rolled next and then there's been you never know it could be top loose well the tensions between the countries and particularly between the north of europe and the south of europe is only going to get great that and what you've got is you've got protests in the south and what we're seeing in the north is a political revolution or a new parties a spring in all and skeptic parties gets better results than ever before the scary thing here that you have is once you start tinkering with the moccasin you're trying to change things i think you know the very slippery slope in these and what's happening at the moment over here is that the e.u. has really shown get through to chile what it's all about it doesn't want to listen to the people they're talking about an intergovernmental agreement and this will go into primary e.u. law through secondary legislation which means that the people can be bypassed there will be referendums across the continent particularly in ireland where the should be a referendum on this and what will happen is they will bypass the people. and they will get exactly what they want and it is a complete democracy he used to consider inviting your opponent an arch enemy

blaming him for the death of his son alexander litvinenko a former f.s.b. officer this week saw an unexpected turn around from a fierce kremlin critic who now admits he simply said what the western press wanted to hear walter lippmann and go spoke with r.t. is that catherine mcgrath over. but it is. this is how we found life that leads me and co praying in his tiny italian apartment no electricity no gas no cold water what if the if it wasn't for the help of various people i would have died from hunger over a reason to death the last time i took a bath was on christmas eve. we expected more because six years ago after his son former f.s.b. officer aleksandr litvinenko was poisoned in london he will stay can carol buy some very powerful patrons like suffix out tycoon boris berezovsky and ahmed zakayev and

a tourist former chechen militant both hiding in the u.k. . which of smug three of them we brought are. yet to be extremist yellow dogs that there are. given your pretty here doris you would be. one biter you'd be namco sent a letter asking to be interviewed by russian television we expected more of the same but instead. but they're going to be made that he made a video if you're watching this program please forgive me of all the slander the thai said and wrote about all the hate you know how do you know only i had known my son worked for british intelligence i would not talk about his death he could easily have been shot as a double agent the choice should be short of story what else can i answer. the u.-turn vaulters says came when his sons we doe marina been and co revealed to

the british media that her husband had worked for and my six alexander litvinenko was receiving a retainer of around two thousand pounds a month from the british security services at the time he was murdered at first by turnitin and cole like many others claimed his son had been poisoned with polonium to town and put in order the former f.s.b. officer and fierce critic of the kremlin alexander litvinenko spent twenty three days in a london clinic slowly dying from a toxic substance possibly consumed through a cup of tea even before police in london started questioning suspects the victim's father was actively kissing the russian government today by their admits he was saying only what the west wanted to hear. of course i realize russia's f.s.b. and the idiot have to take polonium to london sprinkle it over some heads and leave traces everywhere and their suspect and a little boy is not

a fool either it was anger and blind hatred speaking inside of me viger now believes his son fell victim to his own game of double agents now he wants his words to be heard but the media outside russia which once beat down his door for interviews now won't even reply to his requests. why is that because they like it when i scold the regime i was a root treasure for the movie the whole there are very few people who would say as many horrible things about simple because i did. you know living in two thousand and eight but that in between young coal flett russia for sanctuary needs healing has settled in the sleeping quiet town of sinegal it offered a new anonymous life the man claimed putin was his number one enemy so hiding in europe he believed was the only safe solution today by the libyan young co is still afraid to open this door not because of putin though but because of his landlord to whom he owes a lot of money this miserable life has made him

a slave of his century but surely the namco sold everything he had in russia to come to italy he opened a small business several years ago but it went bankrupt things got worse after the seventy three year old had buried his wife but are now fears here a casket could be removed because he hasn't paid the cost of a barrel plug and it's been months since the electricity was shot on your. last full two euros went on a gas canister and that is going to have been the work of the us navy says. look at the number of the southern wind in sight. there is east only as russia. learned. to notice i want to go home to russia but i do want to stay here. you fit in the children r t c golly i'm eternally. lines coming up in a couple of minutes stay with us here on r.t.

. protection can be used. in global supremacy. between two thousand and five and two thousand and nine. fifteen billion dollars in

the price paid for the entire program that we are dealing with right now here in two thousand and eleven is another hundred fifty billion dollars that's larger than many country's entire military budget all things becomes the best for the. wealthy british scientists it's time to rise. markets. happening to the global

economy in the kinds of reports on our. team has been to the. country's mineral wealth starts its way across the ocean. goes to the area. looking to a different character to represent. for local businesses are striving to build the aviation capital of russia. and for the four by fours are made. to the limit. welcome to the. russia.