mapping out the road to peace in syria russia's foreign minister and the u.s. secretary of state are meeting to push for an international conference on the young deadly conflict. comes amid growing fears the violence could spread across the region after a rocket was fired from lebanon into israel following two shells which landed in beirut. also trade war based german chancellor angela merkel hosts the chinese pm as the e.u. threatens beijing with howard's unfairly selling products below their real value.

and i welcome good to have you company watching r.t. this morning with me. now i fear is the conflict in syria could be spiraling into neighboring countries have once again being stoked the latest cross border violence a rocket has apparently been fired from lebanon towards israel that is. five people were injured when two shells landed in a hezbollah controlled area of beirut it's unclear who is behind the attack but it has a message that did come from within lebanon's own borders this comes just a day after the militant group reiterated its support for the assad regime the free syrian army has officially denied any involvement but middle east expert allie these says the rebels public statements can't be trusted because they are too divided. some members of the free syrian army deny that however there was one official who said that hezbollah are you know its activity will lead to

repercussions that would target by the northern city of tripoli and beirut international airport and that perhaps is an indicator of what some of these armed opposition groups of these syrian opposition groups are indeed involved in what happened you have to remember that the free syrian army use in the one block so if one spokesman denies that it might very well be that are not the opposition are opposition group which also use of title three free syrian army could have been involved in one of the rockets even landed in mirror church and it was on the border between the southern beirut and the christian district so obviously this is not an attack on a husband. institution it's a clearly an act of terrorism against innocent civilians on an inhabited area and so i think it just goes through the nature of these groups who we are dealing with . the u.s. enjoys a vast military presence worldwide and recently president obama unveiled

a new face to the war on terror defending america's overseas policies but there are more questions about the legal basis for this military activity when the u.s. is fighting wars under the cover of military threat. reports obama in his major national security speech this may quoted james madison saying no nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare at the very same time the administration claims power to wage endless war across the globe there was a senate hearing this may revisiting the authorization for use of military force which congress enacted days after nine eleven attacks in two thousand and one at a hearing pentagon officials claimed that authorization gives the president power to wage endless war anywhere in the world including syria yemen and the congo and when asked how long they predict this war on terror is going to last they said quote from ten to twenty years and one way of understanding this is you say ten to

twenty years when you see no end in sight here's a clip from that hearing on the you agree with me that when it comes to international terrorism we're talking about a war or the struggle. absolutely sure that would you agree with me the battlefield is wherever the enemy chooses to make it. is sir from boston the. i couldn't agree with you more do you agree with the general. the enemy of the troops so by the administration's definition the wall that is the battlefield with me today is a prime backer with the answer coalition in place with professional pride and you have president obama saying in his national security speech that the u.s. is not engaged in a boundless war and yet you have this vast military presence across the globe washington post cited a senior administration official who said u.s. special operations forces were active in seventy five countries to that you had the drone strikes and new drone bases does it look like the u.s. this really seeking to limit itself in the use of military force no in fact the

policy in the institutional policy is for the united states that it would be prepared for endless war but that being engaged in all of the activities that would lead one to believe that they are an endless war there's one point three million u.s. military personnel three hundred to four hundred thousand of them are overseas there's nine hundred military bases the united states spends not five hundred twenty five billion which is the defense department budget but really about a trillion dollars on warfare that's greater than the next sixteen nations combined we see an integrated network of bases now drone bases growing increasingly this is to have a full spectrum domination using the military as the club the administration argues that all their military actions in the countries that the u.s. is not at war with are perfectly legal under the u.s. congress it's authorization for use of military force that's their legal justification for continuing all these attacks what about international law well international law has been shredded by the so-called global war on terrorism or the

authorization bill that allows the u.s. to invade any country bomb any country and kill whoever it wants the u.n. charter is quite clear. the united states like all other member nations of the united nations can only go to war in gage and more engage in military activity. as an act of self-defense in other words the defense from an imminent threat but in fact the united states by arrogating to itself the right to war anywhere against anyone all the time is clearly in violation of international law but president obama says the administration does not violate anybody's sovereignty because it operates in consultation with the governments concerned the whole population of pakistan their parliament unanimously the monthly oppose drone strikes and yet they continue so maybe the administration is in consultation with the government there but certainly not the people i'm going to check on me today was brian becker with the answer coalition from our studio in washington thanks for watching. but we return to our top story where russia's foreign minister sergey lavrov and the u.s.

secretary of state john kerry will meet in paris later on to prepare a conference on syria which is planned for next month we can talk more about this with artie's tom. the u.s. and russia have had very cliched differences haven't they on the issue in the past with in particular washington in the past expressing vocal support for the syrian opposition do you think that in any way will hamper today's talks and any hope for progress. hi there andy yes the two foreign minister sergei lavrov and john kerry meeting in private today in paris the chief discussion. that we know about will be syria all about syria this discussion however u.s. officials who wanted to remain anonymous said that this discussion would continue discussion held by kerry and lover of when kerry visited moscow on may the seventh

that point there were many issues on the table at this point the real headline issue for them for them is syria and focusing a lot on this conference in geneva planned in june international conference to try and resolve the two year civil war going on there in syria both sides russia and the u.s. trying to encourage both rebel groups and bashar al assad's regime to have talks together to try and resolve that crisis iran and saudi arabia are also planning to attend that conference the big question is whether the rebel groups and bashar al assad's regime can both sit down at the table at that conference there are indications at the moment that both parties in principle want to sit down however divisions within the rebels' ranks and their their main demand that bashar al assad should step down may cause

a lot of problems for that for that conference and their participation in it the u.s. has tried to press rebel leaders to attend that conference and russia for its part has tried to persuade bashar al assad and his regime to do the same with more than eighty thousand dead in the two year civil war and more than one point three million refugees having fled syria according to the u.n. the u.n. official say that something really has to be done or. about this situation and they've stated that sentiment multiple times there are a number of ongoing initiatives not just in syria but also incidents in the region recently a u.s. senate committee voted in favor or oppose legislation to supply rebel groups with arms that has a long way to go but it's a first step in that direction and today e.u. foreign ministers meeting to consider whether to raise the arms embargo from the

e.u. to syria a number of incidents recently highlighting the risks of regional conflict resulting from this syrian civil war most recently yesterday's rocket attacks in hezbollah controlled southern beirut also shooting incidents between israel and syria on the golan heights and the widely suspected but not confirmed israeli air strikes on armed convoys to bashar al assad's regime. ok thank you tom that's tom barton now is president obama really a catalyst for change your dirty to see the same goals as his predecessors that was the question posed in cross talk with the bait centering on the u.s. president's foreign policy here's a quick taste of what they discussed. you think when we compare like nixon to bush obama there's really not much of

a comparison we do have something like an imperial presidency now where i don't know if i'd go that far i did see obama you know he was swept into power in two thousand and eight as a change and hope he was really idealistic so originally he had foreign policies that were very different from what what had happened in the past and he was saying we shouldn't gauge with so-called rogue states he was saying that we should make this huge effort to engage with the muslim world is so he gave a very famous speech in cairo even went into the very same crossing of the u.s. policy on israel by really pushing the israelis to do more and on and on settlements and he wanted to big strategic and deep relationship with pakistan but all of that basically didn't work out. and the full of this crosstalk is just around the corner you can watch it in about twenty minutes time right here on our tape also to come u.k. industry getting back on its feet. what does.

oh my deal work. now makes me think of the we've come here in the northeast of the country to find out the impact that the death of all the industry have had on the local community there and why don't you find the life of grieving so important. and digital to send to you will soon be able to take part in any riot around the world from the safety of your home all the details just ahead. berlin is moving to avoid a looming trade war between beijing and the e.u. as chancellor angela merkel hosts the new chinese premier on his first foreign trip germany is the only e.u. destination in the changs european tour and it comes after brussels accused china of pricing its solar panels and telecom devices to cheaply and threatened trade tariffs artie's peter all of his been following the talks between the economic

giants of europe and asia. the new chinese prime minister is in germany for talks with chancellor angela merkel and trade is set to dominate those talks last year alone germany exported around sixty seven billion euros worth of goods to china and they want to see that increase in the future. has in the past made no secret about her want to call the chinese markets last year she visited beijing twice within the space of seven months and she's wanting to make sure that the trade can be done between the two countries especially considering germany's traditional markets in europe do appear to be drying up the financial crisis meaning that those countries in europe that were previously buying german exports really can't afford to do that at the moment she also perhaps has an eye on the future in a potential british exit from the european union that could see over seventy

billion euros worth of exports put into doubt if great britain wasn't part of the trade union or it is the e.u. for the chinese they want to do more business with germany germany is one of the few countries that is kept its head above water when it's come to this financial crisis they have also that means that they're one of the few countries economically that can afford to buy more and more chinese exports so that's why we're seeing the world's second largest economy in china courting europe's largest economy in germany to try and mutually to increase mutually beneficial trade between the two countries. well the european commission is pushing the block's members to get engaged in talks with china which could pave the way to a free trade deal that need to set aside their tariff frictions there and make an investment pact to start with chinese direct investment could bring around two hundred billion euros in fresh capital to europe this year that's almost two

bailout packages for the that the e.u. paid for greece political analysts young it says chinese money is crucial the debt stricken europe the recent statistics show that china has increasingly being active in investing in europe therefore investment from china is very important or has become very important for some e.u. economies in. kind of recovery that's not surprising that a number of you politicians or government leaders actually go to china for some kind of help you is very important for china in terms of strategic relationship but they're also most importantly in trade an economic relationship and germany is the biggest kind of trading partner of china of all you countries and strategically also important the row therefore it's not surprising the prime minister.

chooses to visit germany. as the first you country he visited. the financial doldrums and toughening austerity the u.k. economy has managed to show a weak growth of no point three percent in the first quarter of this year british industrial output has beat forecasts performing stronger than expected but as r.t. sara firth reports while it might have dispelled some clouds above the u.k. economy the road to recovery will be long and hard. britain's industry seems to be showing some signs of life recent figures from the office for national statistics show industrial production is up which some of seen as a sign the u.k. might be slowly bringing itself back from the brink of another recession but renowned historian nicholas comfort has much the decline of the once industrial giant and says that when it comes to industry the k.

is still falling far behind the global competition to have. massive individual companies the second largest manufacturing power in the world in terms of exports we had a massive car industry a huge aircraft industry we will world leaders in computing and nuclear power. over that period pretty well all of this is evaporated along with the loss of great british press britain has gone from having the majority of its workforce in manufacturing to having little over ten percent so just how did this happen you know this clear need for all industries to keep being updated and relevant and the way to do that is to work closely with the workforce and show that there is that modernization basically happened was the life support was turned off for many. industries looted by the seemingly easy cash of the cities finance industry passed

governments dismantled large swathes of british industry arguing they were no longer profitable or here in the northeast that heavy industry is a huge point of pride when the coal mines in the still works in the shipyards with dismantled it wasn't just the loss of the industry it was a huge emotional loss as well it's one that many here have never really recovered from in the aftermath of the industrial collapse skilled labor workforce there was little else today that void is evident with the northeast suffering from the highest unemployment in the country. in the shipyards and factories and in the stores. perfect. things more difficult especially for paper. but along with the recent piece to manufacturing figures there are signs that things could be looking up the region's annual exports have almost doubled in the last five years enabling job

creation in areas such as the car industry recent resurrections might not be enough to replace what once was but this is it least an attempt to breathe life back into areas such as this and for many in the communities here that capri or welcome life sarah r.t. in the north east of england a quick look at other news making headlines this hour a series of blasts and gunfire attacks have once again shaken towns across iraq five were killed in the capital including one teacher and a police officer in three separate incidents of gun fire. fatal roadside blast struck army convoys claiming the lives of three iraqi soldiers in the northern town of mosul a car bomb was detonated during a police dozens more. massive protests against france's new gay marriage bill spiraled into full on violence in the capital on sunday police

attempted to disperse the one hundred fifty thousand strong demonstration with gas and rubber bullets before clashing with members of france's extreme right ninety six people have so far been arrested president francois hollande has been accused from both sides for using the gay marriage bill to avoid the heat of his economic policy failures. a man went on a huge spring concho county texas on sunday leaving two dead and wounding five according to police the twenty three year old man was armed with an assault rifle handgun and hundreds of rounds when he randomly opened fired open fired on passes by one victim is found dead in her car while five others were wounded before police caught up with him the suspect was later killed in a shootout the effects of the foreign troop withdrawal from afghanistan on border security will be among the key issues discussed at a summit today in the capital while the u.s.

military base used for its afghanistan missions also faces an uncertain future with plans to close it in july next year and despite the u.s. paying handsomely to keep it open over the years many believe its operation does more harm than good artes it in reports. three weeks after u.s. military refueling plane went down in the mountains of kyrgyzstan people in the nearby villages are still reeling from the effects of the crash of the but it went into the mountains right into three fresh water springs where villages get their drinking water the fuel leaked into the streams and now it's impossible to drink i have the official conclusion of an inspection of this water is too polluted to drink people now say their livestock beginning to get sick and when americans came here to get the wreckage they drove right over our pastors in fields the k c one thirty five straight a tanker was one of the planes station to the airbase which for a decade has been a major hub for the u.s.

led war in afghanistan the base was renamed under the government of president bakiev to rid of any association with another country's military presence on the ground some thought that the heated debate surrounding the airbase would window once it was are named into a transit center changing the nature of its activity but the people in surrounding towns and villages say nothing has changed and they continue to feel the negative effects of the american presence no matter how much money is said to be poured into kurdistan's economy where people still want the u.s. base off their land washington shells out sixty million dollars a year on the lease and wants to extend the deal but the kurdish government has already announced the plans to evict their merican in june of next year once the lease expires the decision could be attributed to the vocal opposition to the base many have expressed over the decade often questioning just what exactly is going on at. least. in the course of all these years the kurgan's government never once

inspected the base they have absolutely no control over what's going on there and what kind of operations the base is engaged in americans are the sole bosses of the facility on top of that i'd like to point out that monash is the country's main civil aviation airport and it is being used for military purposes. the u.s. would be hard pressed to find a better location afghanistan china and iran are all within easy reach it's the spot on the map that's therefore difficult for washington to let go and this puts kurdistan in a very precarious position. to know the risks the kyrgyzstan in the care of his people rotten by possibly being dragged into a larger afghan war there's a possibility of course taliban good recapture control of the country and it's. you know i'm tom stole these and they're the ferghana valley and eventually afflict. the destabilization that has afflicted afghanistan's so that you know the

destabilization politically and security wise in the region is hardly worth the. going to return for a comparatively small sum of money tensions have existed since the start confrontations between locals and military personnel have at least once turned fatal when it curtis lorry driver was shot dead by one of the bases guards who believed him to be a threat but it's didn't vironment the tops the long list of complaints about the effects the american transit center has on the region expert opinion though it sounds are the experts say planes have to land with their fuel tanks nearly empty so they just dump the fuel over the place mostly in our lowlands and in the mountains in one town even the trees don't grow any more. u.s. officials say any problems are more than compensated for with a huge annual investment into kurdistan's economy which has surpassed one hundred million dollars annually for the past four years but money locals never see means little to the people who describe the treatment they receive from the u.s.

military personnel as derogatory and would much rather see their crops grow than have another plane spilling fuel into their drinking water in kurdistan. or t.v. . now there are also plenty more stories that r.t. dot com including bahrain justice critics slam the country's ideas of right and wrong saying charges remain against protesters well police are acquitted of murder to r.t. dot com for the full story. you can also click on to our you tube channel to find out what happens next on this bus ride from hell. if you ever wanted to take to the streets in protest at an important cause or perhaps join security forces to try to restore peace on the streets well soon you will be able to do both with a new right a video game giving you the opportunity to be on either side of the barricade

without putting yourself in direct danger. takes a look. soon you will be able to take part in a street protest from the comfort of your armchair coming out for handheld devices and p.c.'s is the first riot simulator game wrapped in pixel graphics and all school sounds it will let you choose sides protesters or the police and help violent havoc unfold in the streets of european cities the game's designers say they have taken part in real life protests in italy so they floated this game to tell the truth tale of global uprisings stop listening to the lies of the media shut down the television and get yourself in the line to fight for your freedom of speech is the message on the games website moreover the designers claim they are documenting eyewitness accounts to make the gameplay as real as possible and to answer many questions like what triggers acts of violence and what do cops feel when an angry mob attacks a game like this would probably have raised eyebrows

a few years ago but today the world sees protests on almost a daily basis to a large extent street riots have become a popular media tool music stars film videos with violence street skirmishes and hollywood makes entire movies about street movements scenes of rallies worldwide are ever present on t.v. screens which breeds a feeling that street upheaval is no longer something out of the ordinary the masterminds of the new addition to the whole protest many say their app is more about education than entertainment that i called one of the designers writing is an experience that needs to be lived and of quote and despite the fact that game hasn't been yet released it's already promises to be a hit judging by the hundreds of thousands of views of its trailer and the developers easily managed to get funding for the game online the rides better version is expected to be available within a few months. well as promised coming up next is crosstalk and the bites us foreign policy.

a clear image of iraq after invasion. twenty day taxi trip through the

country. the roads full of danger. clear evidence from north to south. the rich map of iraqi tragedy. after the war waiting for peace. by god taxi on our t.v. . it is.