>> bbc world news is presented by kcet, los angeles. funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, the newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, union bank, and "bright star," a new film by jane campion.

>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> he was a dreamer. >> i was floating above the trees with my lips connected to those of a beautiful figure. >> were they my lips? >> she was a realist. >> my sister has met the author. she wants to read it to see if he's an idiot or not. >> with every word he wrote -- >> a thing of beauty is a joy forever. >> inspired the romance that would live forever. >> i get anxious if i don't see you. >> i must warn you of the trap you are walking into. >> you know i would do anything. >> "bright star," from jane campion. rated pg, now playing in select cities. >> and now, bbc world news. >> this is "world news today." the nuclear family takes center stage. talks at the un on the next big step to reduce weaponry around the world.

president obama to be a special meeting of the security council. the breakthrough in the fight against hiv as a new vaccine is trial with striking success in preventing the virus. the deposed president of honduras accuses forces of the interim government of killing his supporters. also, buried for more than 1400 years, the largest hoard of gold and silver jewelry ever found in britain. >> every item picked up was stunning. i have not seen the like in such individual items, let alone a collection of hundreds of items. i was absolutely staggered. >> hello. it is midday in london, 7:00 a.m. in new york, where in just an hour's time, barack obama is to host a special meeting of the u.n. security council. on the agenda, long stalled

plans to move to a world without nuclear weapons. that means nuclear-weapons states -- china, the u.s., russia, france, and the u.k., reducing their stockpiles, and curbing the ambitions of iran and north korea. the americans and russians have talked of further sanctions with iran if it fails to cooperate. china has opposed that move. we will be asking what is likely to come after barack obama's meeting. first a report from barbara plett. >> he has toasted in a new era of cooperation with the un. now president obama has another busy day of making good on that pledge, starting with hosting a special security council session on nuclear non- proliferation. gordon brown plans to flesh out the details of possible cuts to the national fleet of nuclear submarines. then he joins mr. obama to chair an international support group for pakistan. the main event will take place

in this room, security council discussions on a resolution against nuclear weapons, an attempt to strengthen the non- proliferation regime, overshadowed by concern about iran's nuclear ambitions. >> if they are relying on the passive response of the international community in order to pursue military nuclear programs, they are making a tragic mistake. >> world powers are preparing for negotiations with tehran, with some advocating tougher sanctions if it fails. russia appeared to move closer to backing that option, tempering its opposition after talks with barack obama, but cautiously. >> sanctions -- in some cases, sanctions are inevitable. >> iran's president did not

mention the nuclear program to the speech -- in his speech to the general assembly. as well as his denials of the jewish holocaust. israel's leader will get his turn to address the u.n. today, calling for crippling sanctions to force an end to iran's nuclear program, convinced it is a cover for developing a bomb. israel has not ruled out military action as a last resort. almost certainly the security council will be able to agree on a resolution calling for a world without nuclear weapons. it is not difficult to get a consensus here. it will be more difficult to get agreement on action to deal with these specific problems of iran. barbara plett, bbc news, the united nations, in new york. >> runnymeade from washington is named associate in the nonproliferation -- joining me from washington is a association and the non- proliferation group. let's start with the

establishment there powers. it feels like they are swimming with the tide, a common consensus. >> there is something of a consensus. there is also a lot of this agreement under the surface. the resolution is almost certainly going to be passed today. a path for the weapons states to start down the long road to new nuclear-weapons, and to ensure that that does not happen, new weapons do not proliferate. >> but the decisions were always taken by the soviet union and the united states in those old days. is it the russians and americans that still provide the momentum? >> it depends on what you mean by momentum. russia and the u.s. have between than 90% of the world's nuclear weapons, so naturally they are going to have to be out there in front to start with. but in terms of where the initiative comes from, it was

the u.k. government that really started to spearhead the initiative, round about two years ago, the last major speech of the foreign -- of the former foreign secretary, who really put this on the agenda. ever since then the u.k. has been active behind the scenes in moving the agenda for word with the united states. >> turning attention to the others, if you like -- we can talk about iran and north korea of course, but we cannot do this without mentioning whether israel, india, pakistan, however long the unofficial list is -- are they all going to be brought into this? >> not immediately. the defacto nuclear-weapons states -- they are being asked to do things like not proliferate nuclear-weapons by the resolution, but what this resolution is really geared at are the non-nuclear weapons states, not iran and north korea, but the other 180 non-

nuclear weapons states in compliance with the agreement. in order to stop the problem of proliferation, you need their help, whether the problem is enhancing international atomic energy agency safeguards, or putting pressure on north korea. you need the help of all the non-nuclear-weapons states out there. it is starting to hammer out the situation quid pro quo. the non-nuclear-weapons states are being asked to do their part. that is the kind of strategy behind the talk by president obama, a world free of nuclear weapons, behind the prime minister in a world free of nuclear weapons. this is the first evidence that that strategy is paying off. >> do you see evidence that at this stage the way to deal with iran at north korea -- let's take those two -- they are

getting closer to something akin to a common view? we still have china saying we are not interested in sanctions, the russians bending a little perhaps. >> well, we'll have to wait and see. you have the position of china and russia exactly right. russia has indicated it might be more willing to sanction china -- to sanction iran. we are going to have to see whether now the weapons states will start making good on their promise to work toward a zero. all of the other non-weapons states are going to take non- proliferation more seriously. we are going to have to see how it shakes out over the next weeks and months. >> thank you for joining us. now hope in the fight against aids. for the first time an experimental vaccine has stopped

people contracting hiv, the virus that causes aids. thousands of volunteers took part in the trial in thailand where researchers found it reduced by nearly one-third the risk of contracting the illness. a look at the global spread of the aids infection, nearly 2/3 of those living with hiv are in sub-saharan africa. south africa has the largest percentage of hiv patients in the world, just under 6 million, up 5.7 million. and southeast asia is the second roast -- is the second worst affected, an estimated 2.5 million infections. >> in this room in bangkok, the thai government and the americans this morning announced what many thought may never be possible, a breakthrough in the step toward an aids vaccine.

>> in the international scientific and medical communities around the globe, this trial will be recognized as a testament to thailand possibility to successfully attempt at a vaccine trial, it ended with an incredible conclusion and brought us one step closure -- one step closer to an hiv vaccine. >> for more than 20 years scientists have carried out trials for a vaccine, and all of them have failed. the prime minister of public health and the u.s. army began the world's largest vaccine trial in thailand, testing these volunteers from two provinces near bangkok. the results show the vaccine has a 31.2% success rate, reducing the risk of being infected by hiv. it is a combination of two older vaccines that have not cut infection on their own, giving hope that the 33 million people

who have hiv. >> this is the first time we can prove the vaccine can prevent infection. this is the first stepping stone of for the vaccine involvement. >> scientists are still unsure as to why it has worked, but after years of disappointment there is at last some hope. >> now the white house has dismissed suggestions that there is trouble in relations between the u.k. and the u.s. as absurd. this comes after a diplomatic source told the bbc president obama repeatedly turned down requests from the british prime minister, gordon brown, for a full bilateral meeting in new york. the white house adds that the u.s. and u.k. enjoy what it

calls a terrific relationship. the u.s. secretary of state says the obama administration plans to engage diplomatically with the military government to promote democracy. hillary clinton said sanctions alone has not -- have not changed nurmi's behavior. insurgents have shot dead seven tribal leaders in a town close to the taliban strong herd -- stronghold of waziristan. news breaking here from brussels in belgium, and we are hearing thieves have stolen a valuable painting by the belgian artist, a surrealist, from a museum, migrate -- we will get details as to the picture itself, what has gone

and how. as soon as we do, we will bring it to you here on bbc world news. the deposed honduran president has accused the country's interim authorities of killing 10 of his supporters in clashes tuesday. the skirmishes embassy outside the capital where men wells ally took refuge there. where man well -- >> as you can see behind me there are rows of policemen and soldiers dressed in riot gear. in an effort to keep pro-is a lizalaya supporters away from here. we are told that some of the services have been resumed, and there is something of a ray of hope here.

the organization of american states is trying to get tmr. zalaya in a face-to-face meeting. andy geller, bbc news, honduras. >> it is not clear exactly how he got into honduras, and indeed in the brazilian and is -- embassy. hugo chavez was in new york. he said people are getting there by train, a tractor, and even in the boot of a car. mr. chavez said that he and his zelaya -- the idea was that anyone listening in would be put off the scent. i suppose you could argue that if that was the case, it worked. we will have full market and financial analysis in 20 minutes. sarah, you are here now with a view of the g-20 in pittsburgh.

>> i think the real worry is, does it have the same sense of urgency that last summer did in london in april of this year. i think particularly there will be some issues that will get everybody going. not surprisingly, bankers bonuses, and the french are very keen to get some kind of commitment. i am not really sure the british and americans are going to see it that way. one other point is the whole issue of the imbalances in the global economy. you have americans pushing hard on this because they do not want to see the u.s. consumers spending too much money. they want to see them saving money, but the chinese do not like that. it will be interesting to see how that plays out. more details in the financial report. >> sarah, thank you very much indeed. you are watching "world news today." still to come, enough is enough. zimbabwe's president mugabe take

his fight against sanctions to the u.n. and the robin hood of german politics is shaking things up ahead of the country postelection. -- of the country's election. specialist rescue teams from britain and the netherlands are taking part in an exercise to simulate what might happen in the event of a major flood. the exercise is in response to rising sea levels from global warning -- from global warming. it is two years since parts of england and wales are submerged. for months it seemed like it would never stop. the emergency services were stretched to breaking point as the floodwaters rose to 7000 people -- 7000 people were forced from their homes.

today this man is in the netherlands, taking part in a major european exercise and hopes to pass on some of the lessons he has learned. >> cam across two old people in a house nearly 70. they could not swim, they are wheelchair-bound, and that is it. i said it is time to go. i do not want to see that here ever again. >> they are training for a major disaster. in a worst-case scenario, a storm surge in the north sea could displace hundreds of thousands of people in the netherlands and the u.k., trapped by rising waters. it would require an international rescue effort to cope with the number of people trapped. there are specialist rescue teams from all over europe, and they are trying to make rescue as realistic as possible.

a quarter of the dutch countryside lies below sea level, and all of this would be submerged is the sea defenses were breached. because of climate change, there is fear of more 1953-style floods. >> this is "world news today" from bbc world news. the man headlines -- within the next hour the u.n. security council will start a special meeting on the next big step to reduce weaponry around the world. for the first time, at a trial of a new vaccine against hiv has shown encouraging results. scientists say it can reduce the risk of infection by about 1/3. president robert mugabe is taking his fight against sanctions against zimbabwe to the u.n., planning to ask that they be lifted when he addresses the general assembly tomorrow.

joining a from johannesburg is andrew harding. it is so much about timing, i guess. >> i think what we're seeing is a bit of a charm offensive by president mugabe. his point is that it is a year now since he signed up for a political truce with his political enemies in zimbabwe. six months since the unity government has been up and running, it has had a lot of problems but it is still up and running. he is saying now is the time for the international community to show some goodwill and lift the targeted sanctions against him and his close allies. this is a point he made a short while ago in this interview in new york. >> i did i see a reason why anybody should mention sanctions, but we are giving time to the administration of obama.

we do not expect him to get rid of them that quickly. >> i think he is right and nothing is going to happen quickly on sanctions. the west is still very concerned about the pace of political reforms inside zimbabwe, issues like the seizures of white farms, the rule of law, the continued arrest of ndc's and mp's. president mugabe putting a positive spin on his relationship with his former political rivals in this unity government, and with prime minister morgan and chiang rai -- morgan tsvangirai. >> not that we agree every time.

there is disagreement, and we trust each other. >> the relationship is full of contradictions in the way zimbabwe words as seen from the outside, because everyone breathed a sslight sigh of relief. but there is some frustration that things are not moving fast -- >> there is some frustration that things are not moving fast enough, that aid is still waiting to pour into zimbabwe. the outside world remains very sincskeptical and suspicious. we have got elections ahead, a new constitution to be drawn up. the continued the arrest

of opposition mp's. >> andrew harding, thank you very much indeed, from johannesburg. the largest port of anglo-saxon gold and silver found here in britain has in the last hour or so declared to be treasurer. archaeologists are stunned by the quality and quantity. you get a sense of how many wonderful pieces there are. it is all being unveiled at birmingham museum and art gallery during the course of the day. >> gleaming glimpses of the past, just a fraction of the huge hall experts say will rewrite the history books on anglo-saxon england. >> i turned up to see boxes and boxes of gold, every item i picked up was stunning. i have not seen the light in terms of individual items, let alone a collection of hundreds

of items. i was absolutely staggered. but it began in july of this year when a local man went out with a -- >> it began in july of this year when a local man went out with a metal detector inside this farmer's field. it heavily outweighed the most famous find from that period, the million pound grave. >> this is going to change your views of anglo-saxon england perhaps more than any other discovery, including sutton hoo. >> these intricately worked parts from anglo-saxon swords and weaponry are now known as the staffordshire cord and could have been buried between the sixth and eighth century. some of it will go on display for the first time today. >> amazing stuff.

now we have the latest sports news. there is news that the russians are coming. >> a russian billionaire is to become the first person from outside america and canada to own a major league basketball team. he has agreed to invest $200 million in the new jersey nets. he is the richest men in russia. the deal is expected to be completed early next year and will pave the way for the nets to leave their current home. tiger woods says he is not thinking about the money, despite more than $1 million at stake in atlanta this weekend. the single richest prize in golf is up for grabs at the tour championship. the winner will claim just over $1 million.

$10 million is going to the man who atop the standings on sunday. >> you do not look at it like that. even when i was playing my rookie season, you just look at trying to beat everybody in the field. other than that, it was just you play as hard as you can and at the end of the day you take a look at it. but when you are inside the ropes, you do not look at it like that. you just place the ball. >> this is obviously a unique situation. $10 million, $11 million, it is impossible that he does not realize what is going on. it makes this event unique. it will come down to the last tournament, and it makes this golf tournament unique and brings the whole fedex cup together. >> finally, the south african government has called for the head of athletics in the country to be sacked after he admitted

lying about a gender test. it was carried out before she took the title of 800 meters in berlin. tests were conducted one week before the championships saying he lied to protect her confidentiality. the deputy sports minister in south africa has called for him to stand down. there is an 18-year-old in the middle of all of that. >> a very good point to make. thank you very much indeed. u.s. president barack obama is to call for an end to nuclear arms and also efforts to stop the spread of technology behind them at a historic un session. we will have more of that on bbc world news. >> funding for this presentation was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, the newman's own foundation, the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation, union bank, and "bright star," a film by jane campion.

>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> he was a dreamer. >> i was floating above the trees with my lips connected to those of a beautiful figure. >> were they my lips? >> she was a realist. >> my sister has met the author. she wants to read it to see if he's an idiot or not. >> with every word he wrote -- >> a thing of beauty is a joy forever. >> inspired the romance that would live forever. >> i get anxious if i don't see you. >> i must warn you of the trap you are walking into. >> you know i would do anything. >> "bright star," from jane campion, now playing in select cities. >> bbc news was presented by

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