it's twenty four seen everywhere on the new year's enjoyed a spectacular welcome across the globe with crowds of revelers ringing at any time zone by times our. president has reproduced in visit the city of volgograd mourning the victims of successive suicide bombings after the pledge to find tara until the end of his new year tress. largely a welcomes twenty four seen under a new currency but many doubt the doctrine of the crisis vantage euro will turn out well. and is just about a month before the winter games start in salt it will pull from the city preparing

to host the olympics and wow it's get. under will welcome to our scene to national twenty four hour news live from moscow i knew national problem our top story now the world has running the new year everywhere on the planet it's now twenty fourteen and here's how it was welcomed across the globe let's now have a look at australians were among the first to welcome twenty fourteen well the traditional dazzling display of fireworks over a million people banks around the iconic bridge in sydney harbor which was lit up by more than seven tons of pyrotechnics festive crowds gathered in new york's times square to watch the famous crystal ball count down to midnight rio well for the twenty four teams with the national party on the iconic public about on

a beach over a million brother lives gathered that some trust in traditional white good luck others in gallo trouble welton the new year. champagne drinking crowds filled the streets of paris the french capital i should say while in london hundreds of thousands watched the city of being a little by and nothing breathtaking display and ever want to. see you. again. for the celebrations were a moment for the tragic events involved says she four people were killed by two so side bombings in two days present person change has traditionally new year's address in the wake of that tonks promising a months of crime down on terrorists he also visited the morning safe have to pay tribute to the dead and visited the injured still in hospital she is moderate

howell reports from boca grande president putin has arrived in volgograd and he has had a very busy morning he laid flowers at the site of the latest blast on monday an explosion that ripped through a trolley bus during rush hour whoknows also taking a tour of one of the hospitals here where many of the wounded are being treated he was briefed on their condition and met them personally wishing each of them a fast recovery and a happy new year the president also held a meeting with the heads of the federal security service and emergency committee on their current anti terror activities but the tragic events in volgograd where were on putin's mind however even before the new year as he rewrote that annual address to the nation pledging to fight terrorism still the very end and he was speaking for the first time not from him outside the kremlin but from the far east city of culture oscar where it was hit by a massive flood last year. with news but the new russia has always stood united

in face of trial but argue that as your friend school in a way mourn the victims of the brutal terrorist attacks. we're here and we will continue to fight the terrorists from a determination that i do use the resolve and commitment to what i'm told they are all gone where by your we will provide support for the victims and their families we will accomplish everything we have blown the law and we will restore a build everything we have decided to restore our ability to post well despite the new year's festivities the city is and morning until the third of january commemorating the thirty four victims of the two terror attacks. and for the company involved a grandson to see how the locals are coming to terms with the tragedy you're going to have to. be alone with the new year lots fear was welcomed in a new currency becoming the eighteenth mendell of the eurozone but with the euro

still emerging from a severe crisis many a lot here have their doubts about adopting the single currency as aussies paul scott now reports you know you have to understand if a country wants to be independent it has to have its own independent currency a currency it prints itself and controls itself. andras and his organization are calling for a referendum he says the latvian people have had the euro forced upon them and haven't been allowed their say the claims of the vast majority of the population are opposed to the move. there's always some who will benefit at the top end but the majority will lose out will import goods from other e.u. countries at a cheaper rate which will mean we produce less and ruin the economy. recent statistics from a leading latvian pollster showed that fifty three percent of latvians are opposed to the move while only twenty two percent think it is a good idea with legitimate concerns over the state of the eurozone the bank of

latvia has launched a p.r. campaign in an attempt to convince people now is the right time for the country to switch currency whenever we have a chance we explain to people that sloppier is a small open economy with both loans and deposits very much in euro's already and is again the country its entrepreneurs and its people will have by seeing higher ratings and lower interest rates on their on their on their loans although there's little public support and economic instability across the continent one leading opposition figure says the government simply has no choice but the news business it's inevitable we took responsibility to join the eurozone when we entered the e.u. time will tell it doesn't matter what money is in our pockets it matters how much of it we have. now to make life easier for small businesses and

customers alike all prices on display are going to show two amounts the price and lots and the pricing euros twenty places. for two experts must accept both latin eras but whatever currency you choose to pay we're supposed to give you change in your us. so it's not going to work i don't know how i don't know how it's going to display here for me but i hope somehow it. it will work well but of course it will be confusing especially first two weeks as people like kareena learn to adapt to the new currency the long term affects on the lottery and economy remain to be seen in this case the proof of the pudding really eating. altie riga latvia. and a eurozone member greece whose economy has been struggling more than most is taking over the rotating e.u. presidency for the year politicians say their role is chance to prove greece is

a normal country despite all its economic woes let's not take a look a quick look at how some e.u. measures have been affecting athens and some of the european economies and for years over your stereotyping measures the nation's shown here how when their debt increased by as much as forty percent for greece and spain that's despite every choir meant for all eurozone countries to limit their national debt sixty percent of g.d.p. at the same time their every income has fallen in all of those states except germany greece has been worst affected assuming the e.u. presidency gives athens power to regulate policies in the blog however one great journalist we spoke to doesn't expect much on that front. i believe that greece can give some lessons of how. in a time of crisis and when a country has a huge problem that this is very beginning leads only to disaster in that sense we

can beat some lessons to other european countries in the space of the countries in the european very free but there is nothing else europeans would take from greece at the moment these european phrases than see him not really make any teens is in the europe in the european union that is going drawled primarily by very lean by some big financial institutions. in the core of the european union. and coming up later on r.t. international scotland marks the start of a get of major decision of course we'll have to say yes or no to becoming independent from britain surrounded by fireworks and festive spirit travelled to edinburgh to gauge public beginning on a breakaway. in just a few weeks russia's most anticipated event of twenty four team gets underway the walls of winter athletes are waiting for their chance to shine of the olympic games in sochi the city is new to constructed venues are promising a warm welcome and

a first class service. say looks now. it's always been a subtopic cool vacation spot for russians now it's on the world's map for winter sports so she wore hose that sports men and women dignitaries and spectators come the winter olympics and paralympic games. sochi is one of the southernmost places in russia as the unofficial capital of the riviera of the caucasus the beaches and marina make the city popular in some a loss skiing in the nearby mountains make it an ideal place for winter vacations. russian is of course the main language used by days in the service industry of brushing up on the english while key information signs are also being translated your first reaction to sochi is that it's big with high rising buildings and an

urban attitude this may surprise many of the wrongly faces to the subtropical city its basic beautiful collection of the instant binah shops and natural mineral spring keeping fit with the daily show is a new trend. the international olympic committee as their owner. with announcing that the twenty second olympic winter games in two thousand and fourteen are war the to defeat the b. and the six in hot yes the pool of the plexi has become a world cost resort to name pixar renowned for reviving and regenerating they succeed here the mix of the new building rail line and world constitutes easy to gauge the strong legacy in the caucuses for generations to come. it's easy to said

that's what's going to happen here is that they will have a beautiful ski resorts nice hotels nice facilities nice transport and differently they have the potential to attract tourists here no doubt spread across two distinct areas the games coastal cluster its way into ice events in the city and the mounting cost for sports like skiing and bobsled the two clusters only thirty minutes apart making these games one of the most compact have a helped. but have all the infrastructure changes made a difference for those who call sochi home including people with disabilities first of all there are many ramps and many places are accessible now lifts first of all the winter theater here in the square i used to visit it quite often actually my expectations were superseded by the reality i didn't expect that it would be so good i went to olympics with many first innovative technology and environmentally friendly the sochi olympics is all said she showcase russia to the world they

sought she our team. and stay tuned for more ports from this here six have big dreams from to bang on say throughout the week international. so much for the country fourteen olympics what's this place like the line is is so special as the russian resort prepares to welcome the world power the games should be the city's present and future life sochi will bring you this is the moment they're reporting from a very cold snowy windy mountainous tough yet beyond the olympics but the monks say. on our team. well the. sun is technology innovation all the moves developments from

around russia we've got the future covered. dramas that can't be ignored. stories others who refused to notice. faces changing the world light snack. food picture of today's leaves. on demand from around the globe. look to. me.

you watching our senior national is great to have you with this let's move on and we've said goodbye to twenty set seen but let's not take a look at some of the bones it will be remembered for and it was a turbulent year for america of course which was rocked by the boston marathon bombings the government shutdown left and balancing on the verge of default and it almost launched a war and syria and of course twenty thirteen revealed how the n.s.a. how much the country and the rest of the world are she's eyes in washington got an edge check on sept as this report. it was a year of cliffhangers we heard the white house threat military action we saw the us congress threaten default to blackmail the president it's been a roller coaster but very few enjoyed it and here's a quick look back at some of the twists and turns. team obama prepared to hit syria

the un bolt while others worried that u.s. strikes could benefit extremists not. the american people wouldn't buy it either so president obama finally took up the russian proposal to cut a deal and we will work together in consultation with russia and china to put forward a resolution at the u.n. security council requiring assad to give up his chemical weapons and to ultimately destroy them under international control desist for war in syria live many americans wondering why their representatives weren't as robust in helping them so paul and to me that in this circumstance in these times we spend two or three or more weeks deciding whether we should conduct what is laughingly referred to as a humanitarian war in congress the republicans used the debt limit to blackmail president obama and starve funds for a medical insurance scheme for millions of americans which is struggling to get off the ground anyway the government close for over two weeks and us that default fears

put the world back on economic alert with suspiciously dramatic time in congress eventually you'll do it but its reputation was sealed it will leave millions dangling on the brink of a catastrophe so if you can score political points you had many politicians calling for reforms in the wake of further snowden's revelations and at the same time calling him a traitor the obama administration of course had to do some damage control after all the revelations show that the government had lied to the people about this program but it seems it's going to be damage control more in words than actual change of policy we hear words transparency and oversight more often. but the reality is is president obama himself said he's quite happy with the way it was how the program works the boston bombings the may prove which killed three people and injured two hundred sixty four in fact and it actually said something about how this surveillance program works the two perpetrators somehow flew under the radar

although the f.b.i. and the cia had received warnings from russia about one of them a year before it happened but the u.s. law enforcement didn't act on those warnings possibly looking at the guy you know was from chechen descent and thinking it's russia trying to solve its problems and that it has nothing to do with the u. was well it turns out it's not just russia's problem it seems that washington is starting to see it more clearly. thousands of percents is in ukraine have remained camped out in central care for the new year's celebrations independence square has been the heart of government over a month with the opposition calling for closer ties with the. husband following the demonstrations from the beginning for. this is a political protest this is the anger at the country's government and the president president something which has been going on for more than six weeks now it's rather turbulent six weeks for ukraine as i mentioned my report. first they wanted to be

in europe was then they wanted a revolution. that was the. ukraine's leaders feared that a free trade zone with the e.u. would cause industry to collapse the crowds never bought that but when the police used force against peaceful bro e.u. protesters. they stopped caring altogether. government building stormed barricades built and top western politicians dropping by the german and dutch foreign ministers and a deputy u.s. secretary of state before u.s. senator john mccain weighed in taking a swipe at russia stalks while stirring up the key of crowds himself remember all those with a few american is when you find anything but none of them dug ukraine out of its mess mosco later agreed to help with a discount on gas prices and

a fifteen billion dollar loan for the now entrenched protesters the lifeline was a sellout. any treaty with russia is not worth the paper it was signed on. key of still has the crowds what's more twenty fifteen will see ukraine choose its next president a leader who needs to make a difference and whether it's embittered sides continue to fight or unite. the one thing whichever demises the happenings at the my gun right now better is the christmas tree over there usually it is a christmas tree which the authorities set up in the central square for people to come here to celebrate right now is something of a protest symbol is covered with ukrainian flyers it's covered with protest banners and even. the banner of the former prime minister yulia tymoshenko who is now in jail indeed the euro my done has become something of a state within a state it lives by its own laws people are sleeping here they set up tent camps they're cooking food and it's really unlikely they're willing to disperse that

anytime soon the opposition already said about its plan to hold the protesters at least until the end of january then in fact holding a huge national wide strike on a generally the twenty fourth that's how it is right now but definitely twenty fourteen will be a very turbulent year for ukrainian politics because in a little more than twelve months from now at the end of january twenty fifteen the people will take to the polls to elect a new president and that will be some very serious political battle especially considering everything which has happened in the last two months in this country and they speak house complement welcome day here which promises to be momentous for the scottish people on september the eighteenth they will decide whether they want their country to go it alone after three centuries as part of britain in a new year address to the nation david cameron urged schools to say no and stay with the u.k. . investigate which way they could come. it's going to be

a major year for scotland at the end of twenty four saying they're going to have that independence referendum and there is everything still to play for indeed the united kingdom this time next year could look vastly different services campaigns set to kick into first gear to try and convince voters either way ahead of that vote we went up to scotland to speak to some of the scottish people to find out how they're feeling about the new ones the toasts have been made and the glasses and scotland will wake up to what's to be a very big year comes that tend eighteenth and scottish faces will be asked the question should scotland become an independent country in the arguments for and against what sort of sway you see to say yes what's crazy is saying no i think just financially we are going to be job security but not everyone's course a new year resolution revolution i think the bank is going to get engaged trying to

. forward to the birth of my second child dealt with the most growing whatever happens. now lies in its people's hands i think it means up it's going to try and go down the road either to not look after themselves not sure which way it's going to go to go and study everything like everything to be. so if r.c. edinburgh. meanwhile our team has lined up plenty of stories for you on our website including how it wasn't hopefuls are getting the chance to be the first settlers on the red planet for more on how the applicants are being selected and what criteria station meet to become a national. and a new year presenter the russian maybe doesn't have gift wrapping but it does have cruise missiles and guided tours paedos more details on russia's new. seven arena

just ticking away. in twenty setting digital cameras a bit coy not only moved from the dull corners of the internet to dinner table discussions it changed the game free of government regulations it was once considered money only for the tech savvy but just a months ago its value skyrocketed about one thousand dollars for the first time i'm to patrick much from the general counsel of the bitcoin foundation believes it has the potential to become genuinely mainstream and i do think that what you're going to see with big coin is a internet reference currency a currency built for the internet that enables consumers to reap tremendous advantages there's no person behind big coin or company behind because that's the whole point there's been some volatility but that's not unexpected when you think about a new system that's just come around we're just about to hit five years old right for

a technology that's very very new and people are just starting to learn about it and get excited about it but i think over time what you'll see is that the price will level out it will come to a level that sustain that's sustainable through here again the supply and demand market mechanics as the market for big coin matures you see the dramatic swings that could be even a couple more years from now before we get to that level but it will likely happen . and ahead for you right now all aboard with international travel time tops. the new year in this edition of crossfire we ask what is in stores as we start two thousand and fourteen this year different even better from the years that has passed who should we keep borrowing and what story should we be following.

britain's cladding community fears its good name has been tarnished after incidents of people in clown costume scaring members of the public the copy cat craze believed to have been started by a man known to facebook as the northampton clown involves people dressing as the circus characters to surprise passers by and public places i know what you're thinking you're thinking that sounds a whole lot like the terrifying clowns of westminster george osborne with his big red nose and floppy feet scaring citizens into taking on ever more debt for fear of missing out on the property ladder or the equally horrifying stephen king like clouds of ben bernanke m.r. carney wearing their big red frizzy wigs and staring menacingly in through your window at night pointing teeny tiny scored goals of the bankers. of the twenty fourth jena lympics was this police line why is this so special as

the russian resort prepares to welcome the world power the games should be in the city's present and future what sochi will bring you this is the moment they're reporting from a very cold snowy windy mountainous tough beyond the olympics but . today on our team. cape town south africa the i condemn it few other of diesel electric research vessel the sport. pilot is aboard an officer with knowledge of these waters he still has to ship out into the atlantic and then returns to dock. this is the very last opportunity for several weeks to call home with a cell phone very soon all mobiles will be far out of range the ship is setting

sail for a vast and inaccessible area if there's any kind of emergency be no one to provide any kind of help. the russian ships sail south to the land of eternal ice and snow to antarctica. the first officer will now explain the code of conduct on board there are twenty three passengers aboard the ark of them explore the rough and for some this is their first trip to the antarctic zone but for one passenger it's become a familiar journey this is the twenty sixth time he's followed this route. back a nine hundred sixty four. trip we went to who was the first time i felt so acutely just how far away.

ten days and nights of ocean like. this is. as you can see nothing there. any other ships. have to look out for. no one to relay messages except. rescue centers a miles away now. much. winter in the southern hemisphere begins at the same time as the northern summer several times over the short summer season the academic field will approach the coast of the most remote. final voyage of the year. almost a year's worth of food and fuel to the ice stations and take away seasonal crews and aircraft.