it. was. stories that showed that we gave you an r c a u r us russia rocker councils an upcoming meeting with plenty of pretense and suggest relations need a time out also most who want a temporary asylum to whistleblower edward snowden. claims of genocide occurred say they're being targeted for ethnic cleansing amid mounting reports about kind of link fighters are tightening their villages in syria. and most code comes under pressure from the global gay community in the winter olympics taken away from russia over the introduction of what they call a functional style law against homosexuals.

the latest news and the week's top stories you're watching the weekly here on ars he was in new york thanks for turning us. relations between russia and the u.s. suffered a major said bond this week at least according to the american side first president obama's council to y.y. son a summit with and then even called for pools in the relationship russia while expressing disappointment over these developments insists however there are no signs of return to the cold war he's going to check out the details. this week when president obama canceled the bilateral meeting was at the russian president in september u.s. russia relations have a new low on friday the russian foreign minister sergey lavrov and the russian defense minister arrived in washington as planned to meet their u.s. counterparts and we heard two different messages coming from president obama and

foreign minister lavrov both held a news conference on the same day at the same time in different venues of course with foreign minister lavrov trying very hard to ease the tension to move it away from the cold war talk with president obama seemingly doing the opposite take a listen remember very rude words you said when we were saying goodbye you said will i believe that we can make a difference. in the village and let's. get as adults. and that's. when president putin who was prime minister when president came back into power i think we saw more rhetoric on the russian side that was anti-american that. played into some of the old stereotypes about the cold war contest between the united states and russia president obama also said in light of all the disagreements. it's time for the u.s. to take a pause and recalibrate the tone of the talks at the state department seemed

a bit different there were some very serious issues on the agenda like syria like missile defense in europe where russia and the u.s. obviously don't see eye to eye but it seemed there was an agreement on both sides that they should not let disagreements and scandals completely overshadowed whatever progress the two countries can actually make and one area where the two countries ted make a difference is the crisis in syria both state the same objective that they want to political solution that they want to bring all sides of the syrian conflict together in geneva to try and map out such a political solution the syrian opposition though says they're not going to sit down at the at one table with those who have blood on their hands moscow says in order to stop the bloodshed all hands need to come to the negotiating table and foreign minister lavrov said john kerry assured him that the syrian opposition is going to be there. making progress on those very important issues concerning global security becomes that much harder when galatians are defined by scandals not going

back to president obama's news conference it was not all about president obama proposals for me and i say some failings president obama said he intends to work on ways to try one provision of the patriot act. the government broader authority to obtain business phone data records he announced the creation of a panel of outsiders former intelligence officials civil liberty and privacy advocates and others to assess the program since. suggest changes by the end of the year but everybody understand it's all happening because of edward snowden's revelations probably that's why the majority of americans say edward snowden is a whistleblower and not a traitor now it's not clear whether the government will actually go through with those were forms promising is one thing delivering on those promises is something else but at the end of the day the american people may actually benefit from what snowden did which can't be said about u.s. marshal ations. so opinions differ on whether to send back information was provided

by russian granting fugitive u.s. whistleblower edward snowden asylum over whether that was just a pretext whichever is true moscow's efforts to limit the damage from snowden's affair being underestimated as married to draft is the chief editorial writer for the u.k. based independent newspaper know that some people say oh relations between the us and russia generally are very strained and the reset never really happened that it didn't have the desired effect but i think that to an extent is exaggerated what i find more interesting is what i think the great efforts. president putin has gone to to try to make sure that the snowden affair damages relations with the u.s. as little as possible i think there's a lot of evidence for that which really hasn't been appreciated i think there's been two maybe three one on one telephone conversations between president putin and

president obama since snowden landed unexpectedly in moscow so i think there are actually great efforts of being applied to find some source sort of some sort of solution but it's very difficult to see how that can be a solution which such plies both sides. and from the institute of democracy and corporation of paris says there's much more than snowden's asylum behind president obama's decision. obama in a sense felt i had to cancel this bilateral meeting because of the internal political pressures and that's really what it's all about but of course the there is a lot of background to this it's not just about snowden obama of course the president of the famous reset four of five years ago in other words of the restart of relations with russia has turned out to have been not much better really in terms of friendship with moscow than his predecessors there is a drifting apart i think things are going badly in

a way i think the americans are being very infant tile and silly about this russia and america don't have an extradition treaty so whether or not. snowden was granted asylum in russia is of absolutely no significance at all however strong the political differences between moscow and washington business relations will carry on regardless as the hero of the head of the american chamber of commerce under sol is and his full interview is coming up next on a boy who has a world apart later this hour. the kaddish minority in syria has reportedly been the target of heavy at times by radical it for over three weeks now with stories of killings and kidnappings increasing almost daily four hundred fifty civilians were allegedly slaughtered in

one incident alone although heard that information is hard to verify due to they can also have violence engulfing that region and kurdish journalist as an iso has helped us two together to put together a timeline of what's being happening. and according to him islam is to launch their assault on the nineteenth of july and trying to plant a bomb in a kurdish school and kidnapping local civilians the next day many houses across the kurdish enclave were blown up one village destroyed completely around five hundred kurds were kidnapped while a radical cleric declared from a local mosque but those killing kurdish civilians will go to heaven also encouraging people to loot and destroy kurdish homes the violence continued in august al-qaeda linked fighters murdered seventy cares and abducted three hundred and fifty artie's correspondent in the region is following the conflict for us. horrifying images of slaughter in mayhem from

a region already in throes of conflict this week some reports emerged that hundreds of kurds had been slaughtered by extremist groups in northeastern syria they're still in very fighting because insurgents keep the media from getting close this is just syrian kurds find themselves in a green gruesome situation. that the militants started shooting everyone who came out onto the streets become should young men and started cussing them with knives the rebel shouted granted them all their money homes and their women and then they started looting houses the kurds who are one of the largest nations in the world without a state have tried to stay neutral for as long as possible in the syrian conflict and it's for that they believe islamic fighters from al-qaeda affiliated groups turned up their killing pressure on the kurds or the kurds do not want to be part of the war and they have achieved that by not siding with the the saudis they're showing their ability to administrate themselves and that all the some international players such as it has been hoping those facing against the kurds for

example there are several al qaeda affiliated organizations in turkey going in fighting against the kurds in syria kurds however want to have a democratic syria not just for the kurds but for everyone on top of that jihad is themselves have made statements alluding to their hopes of creating an al qaida state right here on what they hope to be vestiges of syria but there friday deadline came and went the situation is getting worse and the number of people who have been kidnapped and killed and beheaded is rising every day are they know what's going on there especially into a lot outside lawson free army as they are united together again this through video just as they are killing people on i didn't say so and they call their people you can kill them kidnap them capture their women and it's all how long that means it's or allowed for you once you fight for force. russian foreign minister sergei lavrov was among the first to sound the alarm over reports from syria urging the security

council to step in we believe that in this action we were shocked by the reports of around four hundred fifty kurds massacred in the north of syria including children just because the men were fighting against. the first report of the un security council will condemn all these terrorist attacks we've seen some of its members refusing to condemn terrorist attacks in syria justifying it with the fact that the people behind them are fighting against the outdated regime this stance is totally unacceptable terrorism should be treated without double standards kurds seem to be facing a double threats on this side of the syrian state border they're up against extremists on the other lies terry it's been a bit or a long running battle with the kurdish workers party and only recently seem to be making amends at the same time on karrar backs the syrian opposition which is known to include al qaeda sympathizers and allows for arms shipments into syria which the kurds say ends up in the hands of extremists the twentieth comes to helping kurds

western powers who wasted no time in trying to force out president assad seem to do little in curbing extremists an approach that looks ominously familiar through the overthrow gadhafi in libya to syria we've been supporting al-qaeda the very people who are united states of america. is a cause that spreads from north africa all the way to the gulf that could bring us to a new world war if we don't stop obama and the british policy but for now syrian kurds plea for international help to seems to have been met with indifference it in the other school r.t. istanbul. the kurdish community being targeted for genocide so was the iraqi kurd needed to threaten to intervene in syria if there portico from. they katter's an aquatic union party at to the e.u. added this week calling for help and protection and peace in kurdistan campaign has

the world to defend the kurds from massacre and ethnic cleansing so they're asking the u.s. and the u.s. and e.u. to now to stop what they call brutal massacre is demanding they stop sending weapons to groups in syria which could be used to attack civilians and commit war crimes the statement also says tech is rolling fuelling the conflicts in the kurdish enclave and syria needs to be examined as well out and alters down technician claims that the eights know involved all day doesn't support al qaeda affiliated fight says investigative journalist. who's been closely following the ship later as both jackie and the u.s. have links to the radical group fighting in syria. are international interests especially the international the geopolitical interests of turkey was a very important nato member we shouldn't forget that nato troops also german troops are now at the turkish syrian border with patriot rocket systems heading

against syria so we have turkey on this site and it's long turkey place this important role in this conflict i don't think that there will be any serious international reaction a former member stated that the leader of the north is the verb king or working close with the cia and we have other information from the kurdish popular defense units who claim that the most of our front is also organized and supported by the turkish intelligence and i think this is not a coincidence when we know how the kurds are treated in turkey itself. in response to our she's request the u.n. said it's launched an investigation into reports of kurdish civilians being targeted in syria the office of the high commissioner for human rights said if very fired those acts could amount to crimes and carrying a league failed and international correspondent focusing on syria says militants

are pushing for control in the kurdish enclave to get their natural resources actually what is behind all this fighting is it's a struggle about control struggle about control of certain areas we know that in the area of fighting in the north and in the east of the country we have. fields and. at least two of the very big oil fields under the control of the kurdish defense movement and they have been threatened openly by you know western diplomats if they don't give the control of these oil fields towards the free syrian army. they will have a problem so i think it's a fight about control of both about resources of the various groups because the kurds are not going to deliver to their request. she and a more news three short break kristie.

wealthy british style. is no time to surprise. the. markets why not scan them they. find out what's really happening to the global economy in the kinds of reports. choose your language. make of it know if they sell some of. the consensus to. choose the opinions that invigorating to.

choose the stories that in life choose to access to your office. this is the weekly on r.c. welcome back hundreds of gay rights activists have staged protests in london and glasgow calling for russia to be stripped of the winter olympics in sochi because of what they say is an anti gay policy bank by law however authorities in los co say the bill which only binds the promotion of homosexuality to minors doesn't restrict freedom of expression the u.k.'s prime minister rejected because to belong to the games but the gay community is keeping up the pressure renowned x. and gay activist stephen fry who joined a rally in london accused the olympic committee of not trying to fight what he called russia's barbaric laws and he also compared president putin's attitude

towards minorities to hitler the olympic committee responded saying that sport should be available to all and the new law will not affect those attending the games journalist neil clark believes gay rights are edges guides for other political aims in nazi germany homosexuals really were discriminated against they were put into concentration camps and killed in large numbers and of course this is not happening in russia today if it was i'd be the first person said we're going to boycott russia all together they are not saying i support what i oppose or anti-gay laws were passed in the world but why stephen fry focusing on russia there are about eighty countries in the world really where homosexuality is actually illegal one of them is a country called qatar where the world cup is going to be helping twenty twenty two you go to prison for five years if you're homosexual it's political i think those guys are so busy eighty countries. have worse record on gay rights the russia stephen fry's are talking about that so i think it shows double standards here and it shows this could have russia phobia i think among the western elite that they look down at russia they patronize them and the idea that in russia people want of

a phobic they're racist it's nonsense it's not true. and in the wake of international protests against russia send and use an hour to find out exactly what life is like for gays in moscow and she found a thriving community. there is. no stone lee no sochi. dumping russian vodka and calls to boycott the olympic games the l g b t community in the west is furious with the passing of a new russian law banning gay propaganda to minors detail almost never mentioned lot of here putin signed a law and some very strict anti-gay measures these laws absolutely obscure they're not clear in what they mean of course it will not have a wide ranging gretzky's of being applied everywhere and to everyone and members of the gay community have been attacked and arrested you cannot say that there is

massive suppression or messi of attacks against gay people in the streets and that wherever you say that you're gay you will be killed or beaten russian gay activists are taking their case to the european court of human rights and say the law is meant to target specific individuals but see the picture of gay life in russia from abroad is warped these pictures being shown and being portrayed just because this little became a symbol of a protest against the suppression of l.g.b. community in russia supporters of the law argue it represents the russian majority . but if there is a large number of people who believe the law is too soft thirty years ago there was criminal punishment for being if you take examples from some states in the us the relationship is much crudely and stricter than these propaganda law so. it's important to remember this law is about gay propaganda to minors and it will be

enforced with fines not criminal punishment russia is still a very traditional conservative country it wants to hold on to that. this is one of moscow's many day and night clubs yes it's in a discreet location but it holds three thousand people it's. on the weekends and it's full of foreigners it's owners asked us not to film on the inside to protect the privacy of its clients but real business is a group or is a happy the rising excitable you know wonderful gay community which is great martin mandrels is british openly gay and living in russia for eight years he opposes the law but won't be dumping his vodka russia is dominated by the church in general far more than the u.k. i think if you compare america for example if you call and look at some friends of the sons of these and new york and then look at the middle part of texas and that's what russia is especially moscow you've got the old meets the new and you've got

soviet mindset fused with this couple this with excise to the west lifestyle i was in such you last week filming there's a gay community there there's a great d.c. and then saatchi but the west has a big in its baltic regarding russia but it's a very. very upright. and he's in no way are to moscow. and supporters of the gay propaganda law sayed opposed views of the majority of russians and a seven day by independent research group they live out a center found that next now have a look at what they exactly they have found out so almost a whole of those asked think homosexuality is a form of immorality while some even believe it could be the result of a mental trauma or even an illness only twelve percent of the respondents believe it's just a normal sexual orientation while some people remain undecided the figures of the same survey conducted in one thousand nine hundred eight were almost identical

suggesting that little change to attitudes in fifteen is. how website looks dangerous online god we've got the story of contamination groundwater under the crippled fukushima nuclear power plant which is now leaking into the pacific ocean before information and timeline at r.t. dot com. last time to make a wish hundreds of shooting stars will dot across the sky over the next two nights head to the dot com to read more about the huge meteor shower.

the hunger strike could go on tunnel bay prison has entered a seventh month would be inmates still struggling to change their situation the detainees protesting over indefinite detention and mistreatment also complain of invasive body searches which sometimes include sexual assault and terry holbrooke's a former gun tunnel god told us how his former day job led him to quit and convert to islam. we were told not to interact with them not to look at them as humans not to talk with them not to speak with them have nothing to do with them unless it was absolutely necessary important to work we were told to be very aggressive in searching growing. i don't think any of us is cards felt comfortable doing that as a result of such we didn't do that there were certain rules that we were given that many of us just didn't fall of we didn't see them as being the political logical or ethical in some circumstances and as a result such we didn't implement them and over a hundred sixty six remaining we've had

a living year of the find any shred of evidence to charge try and convict them and we've not been able to do that nor we've been able to falsify the evidence i would think of america being the great nation that it is and having the wonderful legal system that it does can extend the courtesy of sending people home after ten years eleven years twelve years of captivity. maybe we need to have a look in the mirror and take a look at ourselves continent playing the number of hunger strikes strike is drawn by more than hama cheering the holy muslim month of ramadan however detainees noise say to find that their clients were eating to celebrate the holiday didn't mean the protest as. that sense of desperation that's going on in guantanamo bay has an abated in any way shape or form i find it kind of odd that we score how one

ton of obey is doing by the number of prisoners willing to starve themselves to death let us first look at the fact that only twenty men of the hundred sixty six that remain will ever be charged with a crime according to the united states government the sense of desperation is overwhelming as far as ramadan goes the men were given a choice in that choice was you can spend your religious holiday by yourself without any of your personal effects or hygiene items such as soap in water or in towels and things of that nature or you can break the hunger strike and spend it in a communal setting with the rest of your brothers the way ramadan is supposed to be spent so i think after ramadan you may see a resumption of the hunger strike. coming up next was a punt with. sigrid

lumbered sure to mccurry was able to build the world's most sophisticated robots which fortunately doesn't give a darn about anything mission to teach me the creation of why you should care about humans. this is why you should care only. for. the. economic ups and downs in the final. day of the deal and the rest. will be if we told the. police. mission. critical you should treat in store charges three. months three.

three. three. three blog video for your media project free media r t v dot com. look. a lot of welcome to worlds apart it's hard to find a bilateral relationship that. says the one between russia and the united states and yet when it comes to doing business that quite a few examples of prevailing. russians and americans just. stick to the mantra of nothing personal just business well to discuss that analogy under summers president of the american chamber of commerce thank you very much for a time mr summers we often hear that since the united states is the largest

consumer of energy and russia is the largest producer of energy the synergies between the two are obvious but i do you really so obvious the may not be obvious but there is great center g. already not just in energy but in many other sectors of the global economy where americans are investing in russia making a lot of money expanding their operations this is a completely different world in the geo political world that we read about and business is focusing on making money but whether we look at the trade between the two countries and last year it was just under fourteen billion dollars it's not so impressive if you compare that to the trade with china for example which was more than ten times larger. you know it could be argued that one of the reasons for so much geopolitical bickering that we've seen over the past year or so is simply because the two countries don't have that much to lose.