his anger on the streets of spain were and the sentiment is coupled with protest against a brutal police tactics aimed at the demonstrators desperation is growing in the euro zone's fourth largest economy with the highest unemployment rate in the e.u. . the u.s. declines to rule out arming the syrian opposition was also bad by spreading fear is that washington's push for regime change in syria could plunge the country deeper into chaos. and the failure of the u.n. the nuclear watchdog mission in iran fuels talk of even more sanctions while the tension around the islamic state begins to take its toll on the very countries supporting those families and. relations between moscow and washington have seen their ups and downs in recent months to discuss the future of cooperation between the two nations r t caught up with the newly appointed u.s. ambassador to russia was also the architect of the reset of tice.

michael mcfaul a newly appointed and bastard to russia also a professor at stanford an expert in political science who has said that he's first day with the banks great to have you with us thanks for having me so i'm going to quote your recent tweet productive meetings with russian government officials as we disagree on syria and sharp contrast with public anti-u.s. statements were you shocked by your welcome in russia. well i was shocked by some of the public things that have been said about my appearance here in russia when it comes to meetings i've had with senior russian government officials and let me be clear on my very first day in the job i met with about a dozen of the most senior government officials that one could meet with. very

positive meetings with everyone and the reason simple we've had a very productive run over the last three years and i've been very much involved in that in working with my russian colleagues so all those meetings have been bent asked dick and they're all thrilled i'm here as the president said to my president when he first announced this deal last summer when the president in a very unorthodox way asked medvedev hey i want to send mcfaul to russia what do you think he said banta stick that's been all fine the other stuff has been different don't really quite understand it well i was going to ask you the public side exactly the commentators and journalists who are actually condemning you on television. their longtime acquaintances and you know some of them are your friends when your opinion why do you think it cost such a stair. well of course you have to ask them because they're the ones doing it i'm not what i can say is i'm surprised it's not in the spirit of the reset.

you're most certainly never going to see president obama or anybody in my administration in our administration say such things we don't think it serves our national interest to have these kinds of exchanges and so we're not going to engage in them well it's only normal that any ambassador who is sent to a new mission does what he would usually be doing on the mission but it's not by accident that you were appointed the u.s. ambassador to russia because you are so closely related to this country since nine hundred eighty three you are very well acquainted with the russian mentality you know the realities on the ground and you better than anyone else really understand how sensitive russians are views of the relations to the united states so ok along with the state official this you do meet on your second day of arrival the opposition leaders and that's to take our practice after ears of silence i mean surely you knew that probably that wasn't going to send the best message out there

well first of all the reason i'm here is that president obama sent me here when he wanted to continue the momentum of the reset knowing that this was going to be a difficult period because of the new more difficult issues we're tackling he wanted to have me out here in the front lines working to advance the reset with respect to the opposition meetings it's our policy it's called dual track and gauge where when president obama was here he spent the first meeting with president to get a. government officials he spent the next morning in a very interesting and engaging breakfast with prime minister putin and the rest of his day he spent meeting with societal leaders because there's been such a fuss about it all i'm asking is that how wise was it to meet those people. you have to meet opposition leaders the how wise wants to meet them on a second day of the year a vile and i know that that hasn't at all undermined your relations with the state

officials they're fine with that it just the people there that the average russian and i know how important was talk about the average russian though so let's not let's not generalize that we all know who the average russian is last time i checked the attitude towards the united states had gotten much more positive under the obama administration i think last year we were at sixty percent approval rating so yes now there's been this anti-american campaign for whatever reasons but what i can say from our point of view we're not changing we're the reset is our policy we seek to execute it and we're proud of that last question on an average question why do you think once again in your opinion so many people here think that you're in russia to inspire a revolution it's not an opinion commonly her held. semester to russia why do it is the case that i am as you rightly pointed out i'm a professor at stanford i teach about political change i teach about democracy at

stanford and so for those that want to misconstrue my mission here they can look to my past to say well that's what he's here to do and to that i would just say two things one i'm here to represent president obama and the obama administration to advance our foreign policy what i did ten years ago but that's a different thing i'm not going to dismiss what i did ten years ago and i would say the same thing about your russian government officials here what they did twenty thirty years ago in previous jobs should not be probative as to what they're seeking to do in their current job in other words let's let's talk about today and what we're doing now and that you've set into the two russian media that united states used to support the college revolutions but that's in the past because that was under a different administration. person a bomb this administration does not do that anymore that's what you've said can you say that under president obama's administration the u.s.

is not funding any opposition movement in the rest of the world what we do is we fund. non-governmental organizations non partisan organizations that are advancing what we call universal values so democracy human rights rule of law we do that around the world and we do it here and we're very proud of that we do not opposition leaders and we don't fund pro-government political leaders either we're not funding putin's presidential campaign either which is to say that the kind of norms that we apply is that we don't get involved in the politics of who gets elected and who doesn't that's a back to the core of your mission here in russia it's the reset policy your it's architect it's basically your baby and it's a concept that's very dear to you and. really a great deal of good things have come out of it but the notion here in russia is that yes america has it assisted russia in its final stages of the session today

and that's perfect yes why shay's aiding the united states in afghanistan for the past couple of years and that's great but the stumbling point between the two countries right and i'm saying the anti-missile defense issue we're still miles away on that we disagree on syria and iran but that's not just a bilateral issue there are other sides involved but as far as purely bilateral stumbling point goes that's really the end time we sell to subs issue. what's going to happen there is still a table what reset people tell you this is the main issue you couldn't resolve when we still don't know how to resolve it well first i would say we don't believe it's a main issue all the other things you just described those are real issues and let's not forget where we started in the fall of two thousand and eight us russian relations were in a very bad place. people sometimes forget how far we've come we worked through a lot of issues and had a lot of success so by definition the hardest issues are left on the table right we

solve some issues but no harder issues are there missile defense is one of them for thirty years forty years it was this issue of confrontation we're just in the initial phases and we have to we have to demonstrate that this is not threatening we've said that a hundred times or present united states has said this is not designed to undermine strategic stability between the united states and russia we have no interest in an arms race we have a lot of faith in the russian military industrial complex and the capabilities of russia so we know that that's a loser strategy and we don't have the money to do that we'll just have to keep working why i want the united states legally binding guarantees and i can also tell you why russians are so skeptical because there's another example where. george bush sr promised the russians that nato would not expand into a soviet bloc but gave no legally binding guarantees will seen you know how things

turn out so russians are saying why should we believe they want to anti-missile defense they're not giving us any written guarantees that's why i'm asking why not give legally binding guarantees. well i don't know about the history of nato expansion i'll leave that for the historians whether that's true or not i just i don't i don't know the history what i would say is this we're negotiating outcomes that would be good for russia and good for the united states. that the obsession with legally binding guarantees for us is not rational. so we're decide we have a disagreement about that we've said very clearly we will write these no will will declare the stuff. we've said very clearly we would like to give more transparency . and i just said i would just say this i don't want to get ahead in the negotiations that we're getting a little bit ahead of there goshi asians but when i sit down in the negotiations i

see a way forward i hear it from the russian side i hear from the american side i'm not going to predict it's going to happen this year probably won't happen this year we have a lot of other things going on but we've got time to deal with this issue because the real threats quote unquote threats we hear from the russians are these are problems decades away we've got time let's sit down rationally work this and will we need to do it in a way that makes russia better off and america better off that's the principle that president obama brings to every single issue in the reset thank you very much for this interview and we really truly wish you the best in sitting here with us in this mission thanks for having me. but.

it's all designed to keep you closed in your own small world as a prison. so you leave somebody in there for a couple hours like that in a stress positions. you have this fear of the unknown in this stress sort of building and. interrogations go on ten twelve hours they chose songs i remember from marilyn manson. slayer. would be angel of death and raining blood to me there was a war coming up here into iraq. charlie poole of the body for which the rock n roll band was fitting for the job we were doing.

ok.

you. anger on the streets of spain where and how sturdy sentiment is coupled with protest against police tactics aimed at the demonstrators desperation is growing in the euro zone's fourth largest economy with the highest unemployment rate in the e.u. . the u.s.

the client strong arming the syrian opposition that was also backed by al qaida spreading fears that washington's push for regime change in syria could plunge the country deeper into chaos. the failure of the u.n. nuclear watchdog mission in iran fuels talk of even more sanctions while tension around the islamic state begins to take its toll on the very countries bordering those penalties in place. as they have lives here in the back at the top of the hour with more in the meantime and is here with sports news. hello there thanks for watching the sport here on r.t. and these are the headlines smiling sluicing tears scar's manager hailed his plays as they grab a one one draw against real madrid in the champions league. kelsey boss b.s. boas feels the pressure of his side's three one defeat to napoli. and

moscow successfully hosts a stage of the alpine skiing world cup the very first time. but first the champions league and it was a good life a scar who got a last minute equaliser against spanish giants reanimate read in moscow davey boy punches weren't blume with a vital strike for the army man who'd fallen behind to a first half goal from christiania where now they say one one the score on the plastic page at luzhniki. is a happy man. in the second half especially in the last quarter of the game obviously became pretty open and it is clear that real had chances we also had a large number of approaches which could have turned into something bigger and that we managed to equalize on the third minute of extra time of course it was a very happy event for us the result of today's game leaves us with a chance to continue to compete which most important thing the peach is different.

and the result is different too because in those moments. we are winning the real meaning of the time so i expect to win a difficult match of course but i expect to win. so confirmation then of that result and in the other game chelsea lost three one it napoli keeping more pressure on blue spot on the radius both sides having won nine for five games to take the matter but a break from living under strife and gave the italian side the win afterwards fiasco is playing his side's poor finishing. first roots of negative result of course. but the result that to be sure that you can turn around at the bridge due to the amount of chances that we had during the game again being more clinical and being more efficient in front of all there was the difference between the two teams both teams with almost assume all of opportunities with fifteen one another one with sixteen very open game for the champions league and two and. not believe found

that efficiency in front of all that we did find. it was also true that the day was a good match we had a chance to see chelsea strength they play well a very good team with several excellent players who are really hard to win the second leg but because if you want to face a team like chelsea with the right approach that it is easy that they can score a couple of goals of their own pitch. while also feeling the pressure is in turmoil and courage clarity around yairi his side remarks say for the first leg of their round of sixteen tie and it's a game italians are desperate to win to make up for a disappointing season they are currently fourteen points behind rivals ac milan in syria after losing four of their last five games and i've also been knocked out of the copper. when in contrast last a if it ever explain your full name one the last three matches and are unbeaten in fifteen outings so it sounds like a shoo in for the french side with a mass a cage did it ishant doesn't see it like that. i'm convinced

that the real strength of this team and its lawyers and the last four games we do believe in gulfport in the match is that it will have a different attitude toward you champions league can bring big focus and determination the most the most recent. year the champions league game on wednesday swiss sidebars will host by munich by and will be without their star midfielder bastian schweinsteiger who has an ankle injury they are also short at the back with content of reno and daniel who turned all the missing. elsewhere much of the city striker color stover's has apologised to the club following his self-imposed three month exile to argentina the argentine returned to training last week after his lengthy fall out with the club following his refusal to warm up in the champions league game last september this statement he said i wish to apologize sincerely and unreservedly to everybody i've let down and to whom my actions have caused offense well tell as isn't in the city's europa league squad who are preparing to face port

a tonight city with a good chance of making the last sixteen of the competition after winning the first leg two one in portugal. every game is there to us about this but that we start from two one. but you know that. we should play like if we start. zero zero in that is difficult game would be a very difficult game depend on us we need to play very well porto got a taste of the end he had stadium during a training session and have it all to do if they are to end their bad run in england which has seen them fail to win in fifteen visits following last week's the think there were allegations city striker mario balotelli was racially abused by porto fans although poor head coach peter pear believes it could have been a misunderstanding. i didn't hear any racist comments so i can't comment on what i didn't hear i have no idea or hear very often and so we can comment on that our supporters many times a whole cult hulk but they're referring to our forward

a great quality as a way of motivating him i was focused only on the match to see what was happening inside the four lines i didn't notice any comment that could force the club to make any apologies. that the cold weather in moscow may not have suited the place in the champions league last night but it was perfect for another event taking place nearby the russian capital hosted a stage of the alpine ski world cup and hundreds braved the cold to watch including a couple of boxing stars with more is probably the down yet. i know it when winter frost could prevent muscovites from staying on the doors on tuesday evenings to resume watching the peak of alpine skiing in action. it was the first time this huge ramp in the heart of the russian capital has hosted the rules cup leg with a top fifteen stay in demand and women's overall standings have to had from the

fifty six metre high slope when the barrels thrown. this event which is uniquely sports turned out to be full of surprises and the first wrong was finding three books and stories in them the spectators. not of the organizers even offered me to get there on the ground and test the slope it scares me a bit but i feel i could do it in terms of proper preparation i have six years' experience in alpine skiing so far and i just love it there oh no i can't do that now playing skiing is almost impossible for a man of my weight but you work for me. but to be more precise it's even as dangerous for the speed and for the people around meanwhile some move bombshells came from the completion itself ladies first in the spotlight the three time world

cup winner concurrences loser lindsay wound was only left with third place then merican edged out in the semifinals by healthy patrick do women cool who can do a brilliant run in the finals against me have a look here house and to claim the most to crown it's always tough to go against your teammate not in the final but the best in the fight on but you know every anything happens out there and i got lucky when she hooked an arm so i was able to relax a little more second run and. that's kind of how parallel is it half mental half the feel very impressed with filming the slope in the middle of doubt in the format and everything was really cool and exciting for us racers i really liked it and it was a good job. demands event proved to be unpredictable too with gratian world cup leader he would suggest being out of the competition due to injury it was alexis binturong

who claimed the very first truth when in his career. the twenty year old was pre-game plan was just to gain experience. limited to the big final where he faced german pillocks no rather. to run so that their take turns taking the lead but it was the frenchman who proved defers to spend the night you know it's a different thinking you have. to get another guy with you and you just try to push doings around and there's no was what he. saw on shuttle tuesday whose first pancake in the open skiing events of the top level turned out to be far from a failure. the best morning marty. good stuff now a bit of action from the n.b.a. where there has been an impressive comeback the cleveland cavaliers overcoming a seventeen point deficit to just beat the detroit pistons one hundred one points

to one hundred cleveland's rookie card leading the comeback story a total of twenty five points seventeen of which were in the fourth quarter but it was a long as o.j.t. put the companies ahead for good with this slam dunk thirty seconds from time brandon knight did score too high of twenty three points for detroit but the defeat ended the pistons three game winning streak. and finally qatar has presented its bid to host the summer olympics in twenty twenty hoping it will be second time lucky it had had wanted to host the twenty sixteen gangs but that was turned down because of the scorching summer temperatures in the country said this time doha is getting to host the games in the winter olympics starting october followed by the paralympics in november also fighting for the right to be host city are tokyo madrid a stumble back in as a vision if successful it will be the first time the games have been held in the middle east last year katter won the right to host the twenty twenty two football

world cup. so that's a sport for the moment but later on with more. pressure is that so much given to you to be sitting on the mark with your advances contradictions and iran is the drumbeat towards more now inevitable as the chattering classes discuss the possible date.

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 rule today.

anger on the streets of spain where the protests face a brutal police response as desperation grows on the euro zone's fourth largest economy with the highest unemployment rate in the e.u. . the u.s. declines to rule out.