the e.u. is seeking to impose tougher economic sanctions on syria's government after failing to boost pressure on president assad through a u.n. draft resolution that was blocked by russia and china. and russia's foreign minister calls western reaction to the double veto indecent and hysterical that's ahead of his trip to damascus aimed at finding a political solution to the ongoing crisis. also ensuring greater political involvement for the people through the internet prime minister putin lays out his plans to upgrade russian democracy a day after massive pro and anti-government rallies sweep the country. pressure on all fronts the greek coalition government is in deadlock over adopting new

austerity measures to secure a second bailout of the e.u. says the time for a deal is running out for him. the rule reasons why europe's truths of justice winds up the business news into its. its seven pm here in moscow this is r.t. coming to you live from me so now with our top story this evening the e.u. is preparing to further toughen sanctions on syria in a bid to crank up pressure on the country's regime the decision came after russia and china vetoed the latest draft u.n. resolution on syria moscow and beijing save the wording took sides of the syrian conflict as it so they blamed the government for violence without mentioning armed extremist groups in syria opposition leaders claim at least fifty people have been

killed in a fresh wave of attacks by the army on the city of homes on the government denies the assaults and amateur footage showing the alleged shelling cannot be verified and start to sarah firth reports an absence of. ability and video evidence from syria raises serious questions as to exactly what's happening in the country you may find some of the images in this report disturbing. each video and social networking sites have for the past ten months being one of the activists the means of offering the world glimpses of the violence this tool in three syrian activists proves reports how we got the brick through and we've just seen pictures which the b.b.c. called verify the same many differing numbers and reports getting to the ball some of what's really going on is a major challenge even from inside the country. you guys they've already.

had a fever they think. rightly they. had as the u.n. security council showdown this weekend and the violence in syria seemed to reach fever pitch with activists reporting a massacre in homs that was all over the headlines and watched with horror by people worldwide initially the death toll that night was put over two hundred you see there could be as many as two hundred dead just in the last hour or two that was later significantly downgraded strict access policies they have made it difficult for many foreign networks to get their correspondents into the country to collect evidence at the end of last year i leveled this criticism at the foreign minister's spokesman we've never banned the media by the way. because objectivity we've been filtering a bit how can you justify for instance you on the people relying on you tube and

broadcasting one side even though or even on you tube you have also atrocity committed by the elements it's true that to a large extent mainstream coverage is the phrase of the can has been pretty fast. this graphic video appears to show every jeems the being hanged with the clear picture of exactly what's happening in syria right now hard to know what the western allies that they were basing their assertions on is not really about genuine concern for human rights and democracy this is all about region change dissatisfied with the wording of the resolution in china veto the latest proposal many felt it contained disturbing a case of libya russia and china believes the dual rate foreign military intervention as a conflict between the two sides as the crisis here in syria is becoming increasingly internationalized but any measures imposed limits where to try and put an end to the violence again has to be very careful not to make the same mistakes

made in libya they seem to be backing one side was increasingly looking like. are not. well indecent and hysteria that's how russia's foreign minister described the criticism by someone a string of countries of the russia china double veto sergey lavrov was speaking ahead of an upcoming trip to or to mass chaos where he's scheduled to meet with syrian authorities on tuesday our correspondent peter all over this and in on the minister's comments. this was continuing on from china and russia to veto the recent u.n. resolution on syria from moscow saying that russia had asked the u.n. security council to delay the vote for several days in order to allow mr lover off to complete his trip to damascus no they were requests that were turned down by the u.n. security council heading to damascus on tuesday bearing with him

a message from president dmitry medvedev a message that's believed to question the assad government make strong democratic changes in the country you know the foreign ministry very unhappy. about this the russian government very unhappy in fact going as far as to call it disrespectful to allow the vote to be delayed until. it completed that trip now. with regards to the comments that it be made from around the world following that the session by china and russia to veto the u.n. resolution with condemnation from the united states from france from great britain the foreign secretary in great britain going as far as to say that this meant there was blood on the hands of those that had vetoed it well so very unhappy about these comments he was speaking at a press conference alongside people here in a foreign minister he said that he was scathing in his response to those comments

made from abroad. as those western comments on the outcome of the u.n. security council vote on syria sound indecent and almost hysterical in this connection i can't remember the saying that those who are angry are really right look at these historical statements attempts are being made to create a false picture of what is really going on in syria and what's really happening is that there are several and not just one sources violence in syria but with regards to why russia vetoed that resolution over the weekend well russia's position on syria has always been the same they condemn both sides both the side kill them and the the opposition and want them both sides to put down their weapons and come to the table for talks now as far as russia concerned the resolution is on the table only focused on the government forces and didn't make any requests on the the opposition to lay down their arms and as far as russia concerned that's not acceptable when it comes to a u.n. resolution on syria. let's get more on this from patrick hayes political analyst

for the online magazine spiked which sees its mission as one to promote liberalism across the world patrick thanks for being with us once again russia and china are not popular at the u.n. but they're saying that western support for the syrian opposition and their campaign against the government hampers after it's to launch dialogue between the five how do you see it. well i think that's the true i mean i think i differ to an extent from china and russia in that you know i am supportive all the syrian people rising up against it but not in the way that the west wants it what you have here is one hysterical response in the west to desperately want to interfere and meddle in a country where they really have no business it's very difficult to know what's happening on the ground in syria at the moment so the reaction from a lot of western leaders you had hillary clinton talking about the travesty of the veto you had this hysterical statement from william hague from from the u.k.

the u.k. foreign steps are you saying that the countries that have blood on their hands and this you know when you hear these countries make these historical statements where you hear sarkozy the french president saying you know we're not going to abandon the syrian people you think so who are you to say we're not going to abandon the syrian people who are you to intervene in this conflict which is taking place inside the suffering country i think the response in the west just shows how much they like the metal and interference of a country's business and you just think how can they learn from libya gets haven't they learned from the other countries where they've tried to intervene in istanbul way and have made the situation much much worse as a result of the u.s. says its embassy in damascus has suspended operations and that all personnel have left the country due to the worsening security situation there what do you think this decision might signify and mean for the crisis there. well i think

in many ways it's going to exacerbate if it does mean the dialogue gets off gets taken off the table it doesn't mean that the west will try and intervene in other ways you know we see in the last few months effectively the arab league kind of step in and to monitor and effectively become the lackeys of western interests to a certain extent so so i think the more that the west kind of. moves itself from syria the more pressure and we're hearing with the you know our sanctions as well the more i see i think the syrian people will suffer as a result for any western intervention you will have the syrian people effectively having the democratic initiative taken from their hands and effectively you know you have western countries trying to give them democracy in states which historically has been proven not to be the case but also sanctions aren't going to really affect president just sad and the kind of cronies in charge sanctions will have a direct impact on the syrian people i always think it's very cruel and also quite

patronize him to say let's impose sanctions because i mean ultimately it's going to be the people on the ground that get hurt by this and the idea that they are facts we need to be made hungry or impoverished to rise up you know i think is. also actually quite inhumane why would countries like the you as the u.k. france and some arab states not favor finding a political resolution to the conflict i mean you have essentially russia and china being condemned for promoting diplomacy and like you say now dialogue being taken off the table with the with the u.s. embassy being closed in damascus. well i think it. seems that for western countries the time for dialogue is pretty much over now we know if the u.n. resolution that was just calling for. for the stand down we know that you know if he had done that it's very likely that the steps would have been taken no fly zones potentially military intervention we've seen that happen before in libya i wouldn't

be surprised if that had happened again were it not for the veto and it does look like western countries are still looking for ways in which they can sidestep that veto and intervene regardless and i think they want to abandon western countries have no faith in arab countries or already any other countries they have to determine their own affairs and we have to have out there. this discourse amongst themselves so they always want to intervene and think that they know better and if they don't step in then they could be potentially be a tragedy they like the idea that they are in a kind of almost neo colonialists way as if it's like this kind of paternalistic way in the way that you had kind of nineteenth century kind of western countries going in and educating you know the savages in africa you kind of see that now you know you see western countries going to the middle east and saying oh we need to teach them how to bring about an orderly transition to democracy no they don't as i said you know i do support the syrian people are rising up against that so it's not

i don't take sides like russia and china in this situation but i think what's really problematic is when you have external forces coming in like the west saying we know better how to govern your country we're going to step in and make careful rides i've got a long tradition of failing doing this they seem to bear that the suffering from a terrible amnesia about the kind of the mess they made of libya which is still going on we're still having big uprisings in libya and a kind of vacuum that has taken place since you know it's since the western troops moved out of libya and gadhafi is gone there still isn't the kind of democracy that only comes through people. as people who visit our country struggling to bring about a regime change i think the idea that western countries want to back away have no move to schools and effectively intervene to meddle in the thing is is very dangerous is think through a lack of faith in penetrating i don't want to make sure we talked on one more thing before i have to let you go russia's sending its foreign minister of course we've been reporting and foreign intelligence chief of to damascus to try to push

for dialogue a political solution but like you said with the west not interested in talks what do you think that mission can achieve just briefly. but i think what's going to happen now is that they will try and find ways of effectively isolating syria more and more and really keeping the pressure on russia and china the kind of moral pressure to try and act i think they're hoping that they they've done that already and obviously that hasn't been the case of the veto i think increasingly you know if there isn't a dialogue if there isn't if that if the west does. back off and try and find ways of intervening rather than kind of taking the two sides to the table they will find themselves getting into a situation where they may well starting to being again in one way or another and that can only mean more chaos than we currently see in syria that could mean more

bloodshed and for she mean more syrian people dying as a result of western intervention could mean again that the syrian people are able to determine their own future and that effectively is put into the hands of the west instead which is really where it shouldn't be so so i think it's very important that this is left to the syrian people to battle this out with assets be it with words or be through. struggle it should be for that country it's the sort of income tragic we're going to have to leave in there very sorry to interrupt you patrick hayes live with us on the line from london flugel analyst for spiked magazine. well it's less than a month to go before russia's presidential vote emotions are running high in the campaign shift up a gear that's following a day of demonstrations in russia prime minister and presidential candidate idea where putin continues to lay out his lecture electoral program this time it's more about web shaped democracy with initiatives allowing the people to suggest their

own laws online parties or groups going on has more. for the mean ideal disorder because the civil society in russia has grown and and developed. become much more active most importantly compared to say ten years ago and what comes to the state well it's a lagging behind at the moment people do want to be more active and have more influence on the political life and one of the mechanisms providing them with these opportunities is the internet and this is not only about the tens of thousands of people who now take to the streets for this or that rallies about millions of internet users in russia who over the past few years have become very active there is stories of blogs and forums videos all internet wars between political movements and all of them are going on on the web and the prime minister wants to see the role of the internet is influenced increase more user friendly government

websites to provide proper bases for public discussion and not only on initiatives put forward by the state any person any internet user has to be able to put forward their own draft law and if it gains say one hundred thousand approval signatures from other users it has to be reviewed by the parliament the internet also gives another opportunity to evaluate civil servants for example if locals of a district of any city are not satisfied with the way the head of the local police department works or a judge or even a principal of a local school they have to be able to voice their concerns on the web be heard by the authorities so that the civil servants can be substituted but let's move the web aside for a bit and our focus on all the initiatives like reintroducing the elections of local governors was initially put forward by the president and supported by the prime minister now another initiative in this sphere is easing the rules for registering new political parties which should make waiting for more competition

that is now this brings us to another problem of corruption and the prime minister is proposing to increase the salaries of civil servants in exchange for their complete transparency and put together a list of the most. corrupt jobson it's in the ninety's many people wanted to be called all the guards you know they're a need for civil servants because these positions are all still viewed as possibilities to make easy money and according to the prime minister. it's time for that to change as well. well our website on our website i should say the kremlin wants a more competitive approach to politics in russia president medvedev says russia needs a strong liberal party to break the mold of current politics more highlights of what he had to say are waiting for you at r t v dot com. also meet the man behind the mask he's moscow street artist whose detailed artwork and secret identity have earned him the nickname the russian banks the after the british artist. plus three

thousand meters beneath the sea russian scientists make a unique discovery find out exactly what they found and its impact on the future of science head to our team dot com. and the greek prime minister is struggling to get a coalition party leaders to buy into harsh new international bailout terms the talks have now been postponed until tuesday that's as pressure mounts on athens with the european commission spokesman saying the deadline has already passed the country must now accept even more painful cuts if it's to get a one hundred thirty billion euro second lifeline from international creditors and if the deal falls through greece is expected to default by the end of march first sort of constitutional or long george galloway's believes greek politicians have

already given in to the e.u. and the deadlock is just the fog. even though. the vast majority of grievances. sorry enormously can always be damaged more through policies that have absolutely no basis on logic but have a sound basis. the kind of politics which i'm afraid the european union has descended towards what i am afraid is happening at the moment is a shadow play. we have the. party leaders and the prime minister supposedly negotiating very harshly in my estimation i hope i'm wrong but of the i am this is just tense the decisions are made the deal is already in place all we have is three political leaders who are

trying to find a way of presenting what is an out of the illogical package to the greek people. that was in fact economics professor garris younis i should say from athens there let's take a look at some other stories from around the world this hour for you romania's prime minister has resigned and dissolved the government saying he wants to preserve social and economic stability in the country this follows weeks of protest over austerity measures introduced in two thousand and ten to secure financial aid from the e.u. and i.m.f. the pm urged the country's politicians to bridge their divisions and vote in a new government as soon as possible. palestine's two rival factions islamist hamas and secular fatah have reached a deal to form a joint in term government they've agreed it will be led by palestinian president mahmoud abbas before the general parliamentary and presidential elections the deal brokered by count tar is seen as a major step towards reconciliation between the opposing groups after more than

four years of separate governments in the west bank and gaza but the israeli prime minister has slammed the agreement saying palestine has abandon the way to peace. but britain is celebrating sixty years since queen elizabeth the second session to the throne but jubilee year in the u.k. is also marked by preparations for a referendum on scotland's independence coming up in less than ten minutes on r t peter the valid his guess debate what happens if the people say yes to separation in cross-talk. well look at the figures and i'm sure you i'm sure the viewers will be able to judge the figures from themselves are publicly available but let's let's look at this issue the last four years ago it was really it was weeks of course the u.k. only once in the last five years of it it. grew so there's been a lot of the risk will be lower in scotland but in the u.k. average those those figures are going to be legitimate ok gentlemen i'm going to be reasons why gentlemen let me jump in here david i guess who's going to see interest

here ok this would look like these two people should be together look at all of the differences. i'll be back with the headlines at half past the hour but next let's get the latest from daniel at the business desk. welcome to business russia's gazprom has a knowledge that it temporarily reduced gas supplies to european customers at the end of last week deliveries to some countries were cut by ten percent this is due to high demand in russia called well unusually cold weather here and she joins there is now made up the shortfall in supply to europe and is pushing production to the maximum last week of just the month jumped twenty five percent. in a position to meet hundred percent of the inquiries about the first week of february it was another job of the do you want thing to but it was

a previous. plus fifty percent normal i just repeated well. gas prices in europe have shot up to their highest level since two thousand and six but alexander medvedev says the market is an illusion as there is no extra gas in the system. support market demonstrated that actually there is no real support look at the in the usual look at this fragmented that is. it's a lot of speculation to the there's a there's a sport prices there's a price of a long term contracts on leverage and continue to grow all but that is. that is no meaning in bed so it's only a marginal war in so we'll go in. staying with gazprom it seems the energy joy will remain under state control for the foreseeable future prime minister putin says privatization of the energy sector isn't favorable on the current market conditions

but as the economy matures such a possibility cannot be ruled out over here did the government is reluctant to give up control of some key assets. to check out the markets on the exchange rate the dollar's join the euro in the red against the ruble the euro is continuing to shed against the greenback this hour as well. on your markets the price of brant and light sweet continuing to slip a key meeting of greek leaders on the new bailout has just been postponed to tomorrow investors fear failure to do a deal with confidence and demand for crude. now u.s. markets have opened some thirty five percent down this morning in new york on the back of bad economic news in greece and europe also profit taking going on a strong performance last week european shares have recovered a little in the last hour but they remain down for the day concerns over the greek economy is the main drag on the indices russian markets had a late surge to finish the day slightly in the black let's take

a look now at some of the main movers gazprom followed the overall markets into the black in the last hour of trade precious metals producers were also on the rise as you see there the price of poly metal reached an all time high earlier today with investors catch those gains later in the day is there not unusual uses for profits to compensate the losses of minority shareholders the government has ordered the lender to boy back shares from over one hundred thousand investors who bought the stock in two thousand and seven a roughly double the current market price. fall is gold is posting hefty gains more than eleven percent today that's off the gaining a whopping thirty five percent on friday with the company's capitalization reaching almost nine billion dollars and this mention a number of factors among them a possible merger of polish gold and its russian rival poly metal also the company is expected to buy about four percent of its stock from minority shareholders. that's all the business i'll be back in about fifty five minutes with more here on

r.t. . culture is the same us guardian girlfriend a lot harder in the muslim world cup difference in search of national determination and sovereignty this is what many scots say they want a realistic is an independent scotland would appeal for.

calm. more news today violence is once again flared up. these are the images the world has been seeing from the streets of canada. giant corporations are all day.