the the russia with a curious borders in the same way the us does. that's the pledge vladimir putin made in an almost hour long conversation with us presidential biden. belgium suddenly back tracks on its covert measures and reopened theatres and the month that after its highest court said the restrictions were too excessive. elsewhere, joe biden, distances himself from previous promises to shut down the virus. he now says it's up to individual fate, not the white house to sort it out. we discuss his response to the pandemic so far . plus a special, we'd get a rare glimpse inside. one of the rushes most notorious prison home into the day for some of the countries most dangerous criminal in the wake of the soviet collapse of the 1990 walking into. so like this were

holding harden hacked. criminals give you this. been rejected by a fellow prisoner, commonly pariah with something they feared. most the guilty lab direct for us to do is moscow. this is our to international. sean thomas certainly glad to have you with us. now, russian, that leader vladimir putin says moscow will act as us does in securing its borders . that's a pledge made in an almost hour long phone call with joe biden, during which the president also promised not to deploy offensive strike weapons in ukraine, or cheesily up a try and go take a closer look at what the 2 men discussed. still, the details of the latest phone conversation between the presidents of the us and russia have come in from both sides. and the other versions are not strikingly

different. but moscow and washington are indeed emphasizing different things. the advisor to russian president vladimir putin pointed out that his counterpart made it clear that the u. s. has no intention of deploying offensive strike weapons in ukraine, which is a very important thing for moscow. the kremlin has called that a red line many times before. now, besides this, mister bruton told the u. s. president, that russia will defend its own interests just like the u. s. would if it faced similar threats. now, when a, the new threats of sanctions with a new warning came up from joe biden, vladimir putin responded by saying that this could lead to ties being cut completely between the 2 countries. now moving on to how the details of the phone conversation were presented by the white house, according to washington,

joe biden called to deescalate the whole ukraine crisis. and also promised that the u. s. and allies will be monitoring all the actions by russia and also that they're ready for any decisions that have latimer putin makes on ukraine. plus, as the white house puts it, joe biden spoke of reinforced nato strength, and also of further military assistance for ukraine vine nato. if the, the situation escalates, you have to remember that this phone call follows proposals being made by moscow for a new principles of european security. in particular, what russia once is, legal guarantees for nato not to be expanded further east and also for new weapons being deployed in places like ukraine or elsewhere on russia's doorstep. now we do also have to understand that in about 2 weeks,

very important security negotiations will take place in europe in geneva, in particular. and this phone conversation is happening in the build up to what we heard from both sides. that the 2 presidents a won't take part, however, that they will be personally supervising these talks. now a little earlier, the russian foreign ministry spokeswoman said like, on what russia once from these talks put together, that would have to do our viewing the talk to will ask us to insure a firm, legal guarantees of security for russia, that nato will not be able to move on the east and that weapon systems that threaten russia will not be deployed near our border. there is no agreed position, but when all the western partners within the e. u. a nato european security is not a new topic. since 990, we have been proposing not to allow the security of some countries at the expense

of the security of others. and what was so interesting about proposals which are currently being discussed is the, was pretending that this is the 1st time they have heard about it. we already have written fundamental principles in our joint document. and they were supposed to have been already implemented. the fact is that the president of the u. s. in russia are in touch more and more often. and we have already heard from both administrations that these frequent contacts will continue in the new year as well . earlier we spoke to investigative journalist rick sterling, who thinks that moscow's demands to stop nato's expansion in the east are quite understandable. i think it's reasonable to say that moscow has very legitimate, legitimate concerns. it looks like the u. s. in the military. industrial complex is looking to to increase the conflict in ukraine. nato is already expanded into many

countries. there are numerous countries on the, on a, on the border that, that were part of the soviet union. and there are no part of nato. so, given the proximity of ukraine to, to russia, given the proximity to moscow, only 460 miles that the russian demands. the red lines are completely understandable. ortiz spoke to susanna murphy, a former adviser on a russian affairs. 2 x u. s. president ronald reagan, who played a major role in relations between america and the soviet union in the final years of the cold war. she says, the only way forward for both countries is by developing a constructive relationship. you can watch the full interview on rti international on friday at 8 30 am moscow time. but here's a quick tracer. what was discussed. it is more important in my view, important than ever that switch that you are, the united states and russia develop

a constructive relationship. because i think if we can do that and i'm hoping we can it, would me better for the whole world? my goal is always to try to explain russia better than many americans know it, that i don't mean better could, but simply more completely than they do. and that's what i did. and that's why i wrote the books i've written because americans, alas, there are many americans who don't know much about you, aren't countries? i definitely in beneath ortho, humanizing it each other in a town, his eyes and well, it's not legal, you're very human. you tremendously healing and i think it's a wonderful thing that you can help americans wit, for many reasons. i believe that we need each other more than ever. now that just my feeling,

it's important that you and we are able to exchange our different talent. despite europe struggling with the new omicron strain, belgium has suddenly you turned on some of its toughest colored restrictions. this comes after the countries highest court ruled that the measures were too excessive by its judgment, the council of state suspends the measure of closure of the cultural sector facilities. it rule that this measure was not proportionate and cannot make it possible to understand why the attendance of theaters and cultural venues was particularly dangerous for the health of the population. essentially what you have is belgium's highest administrative court saying that the government rules make no sense and as a result, government will have to backtrack. this follows a legal challenge that was filed by a local theatre producer. and it followed a number of restrictions that the government had only imposed a short time ago,

amongst these new restrictions where that all theaters cinemas, and cultural venues had to close christmas parties would have to close early, and sports venues would have no audiences. and this is in addition to already the mandatory wearing of moss and people having to work from home. but now we have a situation where everything's reversed. so the cinema's, the theaters and the cultural venues ought to re open. and of course, it raises questions as to just what kind of consistency there is to these government rules and regulations. jago, there are still months and months of the covered crisis ahead of us. if the public is not in our side because of a lack of sense in the measures, we will have lost the battle against the virus on the machine. now you do have a part of the public that has been very, very vocal in particularly demonstrating and criticizing these government restrictions. in recent weeks, they've taken to the streets to voice their concerns.

now in general, the cove, its situation, a cross belgium has been relatively calm. they figures point to over 500 cases per day, per 1000000 people. but the situation is quite different just across the border. if we look there at fonts, for example, phones has registered an all time high of more than $200000.00 new cases per day. and that is a high for europe as well. as a result, the government has had to re impose restrictions. you had a situation where the french police are saying that everybody from 11 years and older. now when they are doors have to wear them off. except if they're involved in

fighting, if they do any kind of sports or if they're inside the vehicle. so you have, within the, you block itself, different european countries dealing with these high covert figures in a very different way. meanwhile, the u. s. is still top the global table when it comes to the number of covered deaths, but president biden is now distancing himself from his promise to shut down the virus. he says, the solution has to come from individual states rather than the white house. there is no federal solution, it gets found state level and then ultimately gets down to where the rubber meets the road and that's where the patient is in need of help or preventing the need for help. just over a year ago, biden slammed as the trump administration's covered testing efforts as a travesty, and said americans, vaccine rollout was well behind other developed nations. he then promised to change the course of the disease in his 1st $100.00 days. although that didn't happen over

400000 americans have died from cove it under biden's watch, with new cases hovering out around half a 1000000 per day, new york has been they hit the worst with case numbers. they're reaching and all time high since the arrival of the mac constrain our d soft taylor discussed with guests washington's response to the crisis thus far. why didn't sad what for what? that is? no federal solution. i don't think that is something that one wants to hand from the president. there never was a federal solution to a virus that spreads more easily than chicken box and with each to varian as becomes more and more of the early. the idea that there's some policy or some politician going to stop it, we should have been acknowledging that this is not a pandemic. and that this is endemic, at least a couple of waves ago. politicians. that's the 1st duty is not only did g d p and inflation and everything, but basically saved the health of their, of their countrymen. and this needs to be done. this was not done. joe biden got

elected because of donald trump's of failed handling cove. it in the minds of voters in coming up on the year that he was inaugurated. and we have cove id as bad as it's been certainly case wise. we can now add up all the rough weeks for biden, to rough year for by 62 percent of americans. and now a couple jobs. they said that when we get to a certain threshold, everything is going to be great. that's how immunity we're going to be able to live more normally. in your opinion, is 62 percent in good enough. these terrible, i mean 62 percent is close to 50 percent and not close to 100 percent. the reason why we're not vaccinated is because people are misinformed. it was not accurate information, but is vaccines and the fake news that are allowed on social media basically lead to the fact that patients and people at the end of the day will doubt necessity of having a vaccine. there's definitely a lack of trust in the government as well as a lack of trust in big pharmaceutical companies, especially now that an increasing number of so called lead vaccinated americans are being told. now if you haven't had a booster shot, you're not back need anymore. you as bad as all those people. it didn't get back to

vaccine mandate for domestic ad chapel. do you think that's the direction of cutting and the vaccines are for your personal protection? we have seen less of evidence that the vaccine limits trans miss ability. if you don't have that part of the puzzle from a political message and law making perspective, then you don't have the pretends to set up the mandate. put up other restrictions of occupancy restrictions or telling people that they need to wear a mask from when they walk into the building to least sit down and they can take it back off. none of this stuff is going to stop this buyer. we should be deciding for ourself the best way out of it. the sooner we're going to be able to find the best equilibrium that we're going to have in this new reality that the mayor of chicago is under fire for wishing people happy. kuanz up the holiday. that celebrates african american culture with many infuriated that she didn't. instead, address the cities crime rate after 3 people were shot and killed and 23 injured

over the christmas break. joyous quanto, chicago. i mean, i wish to extend a very beautiful and process to all of you celebrated the see as you like the candles and gather in unity, we hope your holidays filled with rejoicing and happiness. how many people were shot this weekend? happy cleanse it to the 4442 people shot in chicago in 2021. thank you for keeping chicago safe and crime free. floating blue works chicago is experiencing its worst year for murders in a quarter of a century with $780.00 people killed. this also been a significant increase in sexual assaults and thefts. our guests agreed that the mayor and other politicians should not be focusing their efforts on kwanza rather on solving the crime wave in the city. i don't think they're upset about

the whole for unity. i think they're upset that she chose to give that message as opposed to specifically address the crime that happening in her city all over the over the last year. the fact that she's ignoring the fact that she again doesn't address the fact that over 90 percent of the victims are lacking, brown and over 90 percent of the perpetrators are like it. so i don't think it's the message that people have a problem with. i think it's the are wanting disregard for the victims she wants to focus on the holidays doesn't really ignore. doesn't really address the fact that a lot of people are not spending the holidays with their loved ones because they have to come to be murdered and being killed. the way a lot of politicians think is that if they ignore bad news, the bad news goes away. whereas if they address it, it keeps it in the headlines. and it perpetuates the new cycle rather than ignoring it, hopefully it falls out of the news cycle. busy and reporters in the media and the

general public moves on to other topics for a lot of things that are happening in american society. i think that the public in general is getting tired of politicians getting latitudes and basically not doing anything to solve problems. ah, tick tock, the app that has seemingly become the heart of the internet has been accused of helping children to be brainwashed by transgender influencers. activists say that the viral videos promote changing the sex for youngsters who identify as trans. oh, major concern is that millions of impressionable children are watching these online influences when these videos would lead a generation of children to believe is that it's easy to change sex and that it's the answer to all of your problems. videos with the trans hash tag have been viewed about 27000000000 times according to the firm's own data. more than a quarter of british users are aged between $15.25 and spend more than an hour

a day on the app. activists and parents alike are raising the alarm over the influence the site has on children. tick tock announced this year. it would work closely with stonewall the l. g. b t q writes charity. they both agreed to promote trans content, and stonewall says it's there to help children cope better with all gender issues, but the director of transgender trend believe that this partnership is a dangerous combination for impressionable youngsters. a need to recognize that stone, what is this calabi group that has a particular idea? logical belief. social media platform that's directed towards young people should not be aligned with the political not be great all over the transition videos that ready glamorize the idea of magical transition that they should be seen as some of the wires as, as the website that was pushing drunk some children have always been,

they different ways to rebel. and to show you that you were rebel as, as a teenager or young person. but this particular way, of course, has the dangers of irreversible magical interventions. if you, if you want to help children to understand the feelings and fail, not so alone, then you can have a lot of material that talks about how you can feel uncomfortable in sex. you can fail that you're not your proper girl or look up the boys that you don't fit in with the stereotype. not presenting children with, with content about those kinds of problems or, or gender dysphoria. so it's a political message. stonewall and and others are sending children. it's not helpful message that they can able children to find better coping strategies for those feelings of not fitting in feeling different. ah,

president putin have fact rushes prison chief that was happened last week and as reforms get under way in the wake of a damning video that showed widespread abuse in the countries jails. now, next we visit a notorious former prison in saint petersburg. that is now been replaced with a more modern facility. the old jail was infamous in its day back in the 990 s when it was home to some of russia's most dangerous criminals. amid the chaos that followed the collapse of the soviet union parties, constantine are off. coff has been granted rare access to it and just warn you. his special report contains graphic descriptions for violence. me were in saint petersburg and in front of what used to be rushes most infamous for them for more than a century. this was the largest incarceration facility in the whole of europe were the country's most notorious and violent criminals were being kept. now we're going

to check out the jails, darkest parts that have been hidden from the general public. for decades. this looks like a perfect sat for a horror movie. even after 4 years since the prison was shut down, its empty cells and court are still sent chills down your spine. this is one of the solitary confinement cells that were widely used during stalins rolling the night in the thirty's and forty's. you can see how small it is, i think 3 times smaller than a regular. so you can, i mean you can even fully stretch out your arms while inside. you have to spend days and weeks and a cell like this where it can effectively only stand or sit on the edge of a small metal bed. lying down during the daytime is forbidden. well then it becomes how on earth in the prison was billed at the end of the 19th century as the most

advanced facility of its kind in russia. firstly, because of its connie architecture cross shape of the 2 main buildings. not only gave the jailer con official name, but also made it easy for guards to monitor and access every corner of that prison . at a time when cctv cameras were mostly with history, the prison served as a pre detention facility. yet in the soviet times, there was also a dedicated wind for those found guilty of the most violent crimes like multiple murders and rapes. this is probably the dark part of the prison death row behind the field gate. there was a small basement where they were sentenced to death, were executed. prison came to nationwide notoriety in the 9290s when the severe economic crisis of follow the collapse of

the soviet union and crime rates through the roof. russian streets became an arena of bloody wars between newly formed criminal games. what are you looking at? what are you doing here anyway? who do you get to cover that cache you? i mean, oh, watch you that that would, that was kind of talk was colon back then. there was dictionaries of criminals. lang was out of out of gone. and his love mosquito used to run among russian criminal circles in the 9992. he spent 8 months in this prison on record during charges i yeah. boy of the business and someone told me money for went off to deal with the guy. i didn't go to raise the meeting group guns. almost everyone had gone to that time. we arrived at the meeting place in the police to meet the crime rate was so high in the ninety's, europe's largest prison quickly became too small to fit in all the mob stores and

violent criminals are popular if the door opens and i filled the ugly mugs staring at me, their faces of hog criminals. yeah, that's all i sat down on the edge of the bed. places sit down, these guys look like that. we have a cigarette. as i lit a cigarette and off of these gangs the smoke, they took almost the whole pack for me. so we smoked together and talked, so i realized is going to be okay. next warden who served in this prison at the time. recall some of the night mary scenes he witnessed every day at work for me to have caught up to 14 people used to shed this tiny cell. is it true that some in gibbons slept on the floor under the bed? otherwise it was impossible to fit. everyone in people slept into shifts. a lack of funding had left the prison without the most basic things like toilet seat inmates ended up rolling their blankets to have at least minimum comfort growing up in

russia in the nineties and seeing videos of this presence over crowded south. i vividly remember how terrified i was when i imagine what it would be like, walking into a cell like this. were all these hard tattooed criminals give you this look as the door slammed behind you. and some of the former inmates recalled that being rejected by a fellow prisoners and becoming a pariah with something they feared most, some times more than solitary confinement or punishment from the guard. it was not, i mean, this is a terrible place that ruined the loss of people's lives. morgan, no doubt, but everyone who came out to the door, they were mentally damaged. it's clear to me. well, you know, how young guys will rate the old mob the couple of times they raped young guys simply because they wanted 6 in the countries. future president vladimir putin visited the crosses in the 1992. he was particularly shocked that prison dentist

pulled out inmates ti without painkillers. the decision was made to shut down the notorious jail altogether and build a new one from scratch. in the next episode, we're inside the new prison that has replaced the old one is the most important to be is that we have a restroom. you can look from the inside. we have many prisoners friday night from you. what happened? i couldn't tell you the language and i killed them. i strangled in your wish. you would really want to be back with you. he's wait for me. about $33.00 and a half minutes. i will be back with another. look at your news. in fact, a full hour. you watch much international. ah ah christmas. the traditional yuletide on

a day this year making this traditional with a special christmas guide me christmas tolerance diversity guide. we all know that christmas is a family holiday. that makes all your parents are properly numbered. i follow the agenda and make us no woman instead of no man or even better at this new person designed for themselves. ah, ah, ah. now gifts. no, don't want any beth prepare your children for the brave new world. i remember diversity is not at all. i oh, this is no longer an appropriate costume. this is appropriation, zoological appropriation offensive to the dear community.

mm hm. and obviously, sandra. oh has to be cancelled. i because he is a white, his gender male who amuses mrs. close, discriminate against children based on behavior. whereas red, which is a communist color, makes children sit on his lap, makes people destroy trees and exploit sales. so sorry kids center is not coming to town anymore. i follow these instructions. stick to the spirit of christmas. you decide. ah ah, welcome nick jam bruno to the show for this christmas week special and nick was casey

research for a long time, but he started his own company focused on helping people to see the big economic and geopolitical picture to survive and thrive. the changes ahead was diagnosed with cancer in 2000 lives. when the doctors told me the cancer was incurable. i knew i had to make a change. so i decided to travel to one of the most toxic places in america. florida. one of florida is biggest industries and best kept secrets is phosphoric mine in the biggest layer is $85000000000.00 industry. is mosaic, and i, there are reports of millions of gallons of contaminated water now flowing into the florida aqua for the main problem. there's a chronic. oh well, you know, i don't want to hear that word poets name, but that's what it in 2013 my, all our family dog, my brother, who was 21 years old,

myself and my father. and we're all guy with rob. problem with wow, yeah. hold on. i'm a good player, right? yeah, yeah. maybe they'll actually learn that help is more important than with a folks next up. ziggy marley. dennis relo plus one love this dad. always loved visual tv. seems like he passed around to the boy who's on 8 grammys over the years, and now is branched out in the children's literature. we'll talk to him about his new book, ziggy marley right after this son, dennis miller plus one.