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news. i'm george. south korea puts a freeze on relations with the north. after accusing north of sinking one of its warships, seoul suspense true. it already has the u.s. support. >> we endorse the president's call on north korea to come forward with the facts regarding this act of aggression. and above all, to stop its belligerent and threatening behavior. >> a 200-strong delegation from america and arrives in beijing to talk about north korea and currency reform. the state of emergency in the jamaican capital after armed supporters of an alleged drug lord it take to the streets. back to business -- schools and shops gritty to reopen in bangkok. -- get ready to reopen.

>> hello, and welcome to gmt. last week's south korea said it had an overwhelming evidence that its northern neighbor deliberately attacked one of its naval vessels. now comes the retaliation. so, suspending trade with the north korean capital -- and looking for condemnation at the un security council. it has the support of the u.s., but what if china, the traditional supporter of the north? it is the test of beijing. can rise above all the alliances -- alliances, and at the super regional power that it is? >> this is a man carrying away to boarding -- how to respond to the torpedo attack on one of your countries were shipped without risking escalation? here's what he plans to do. >> south korea will ban all

north korean ships from its waters, the president told the nation. we will spend almost all trilling's and refer the incidents to the united nations. the warship was split in half by the force of an explosion that had it late one evening at the end of march. it has since been salvaged in two parts. and an international team including american and british experts has completed its investigation. they concluded the ship was sunk by a north korean torpedo designed to explode in the same way as this tests conducted by the australian navy. the remains of just such a torpedo water found close to the wreckage. >> the retaliation was never an option by the south korean government because of the risk, but it has decided to cut trade links and banning north korean ships from its border. trade between the two still

makes up a sizable chunk of north korea's struggling economy. >> speaking on a visit to beijing, hillary clinton said that america is standing firmly behind its south korean ally. >> our support for south korea's defense is unequivocal. president obama has directed his military commanders to coordinate closely with their korean counterparts. to ensure readiness, and to deter future aggression. >> the evidence of north korea's involvement in the sinking of the warship will not be taken to the un security council. america and south career looking for china's backing for tough international action. john ford bbc news. >> following hillary clinton bear on her tour, as she is in beijing -- what about that

question? is hillary clinton going to get beijing's support of this one the? >> was simply do not know yet. hillary clinton has made clear what washington wants to do, but it is still not clear whether beijing will be swayed by her argument in the private conversations since she has arrived in beijing. she's issues having intensive consultations with her chinese interlocutors, but it was premature to discuss options and what the nature of the conversations were. we have no indication yet of what the chinese may agree to, or not. but it is clear that the americans and chinese do this differently. washington wants to send a clear message to north korea that it can i get away with such provocative acts, and it feels

as though what generally wants is for them to just go away. then accused china of sitting on the fence. that is the language you see all over the place? >> there is that as an accusation that there will face. they will come up with a statement at some time. we'll see how they will react when the u.s. takes this to the un, or rather when south korea it takes it to the un with washington's strong backing, but sometimes the will be questions raised about whether china's approach to north korea is indeed the best way to maintain stability. in the and what everyone agrees on is that they want to maintain stability in the region. hillary clinton called the situation precarious, fragile. but everyone agrees that no one wants this to generate -- to degenerate.

people ask whether china's stance is stability, or whether it becomes too easy for north korea to get away with anything. >> kim will continue to travel with hillary clinton on her asian tour. you can follow the latest developments on her online contact. here are the rest of the day's main headlines. >> a state of emergency has been declared in part of kingston, jamaica as the prime minister promises a tough response to armed gangs who attacked a number of police stations. there were trying to prevent the arrest and extradition of the drug lord wanted in the u.s. on charges. >> security forces trying to seize.

several police stations have been attacked by gunmen. this one was set on fire after police abandoned it after having run out of bullets. now a state of emergency is declared in parts of the capital. the prime minister has described violence and the city as a calculated assaults on the authority of the state. >> this will be a turning point for us as a nation. to confront the powers of evil that have penalized the society and ernest d. and indeed -- and earned us the label of one of the murder capitals of the world. we must confront this with determination and unqualified resolved. >> it was plans to arrest this man that's part the trouble -- christopher coke, known as dithers.

his gang is known as "the shower posse" it for the number of bullets it uses. he has a loyal following. some see him as a godfather, a benefactor who pays for their children's schooling. late last week became not to protect against plans to extradite him to the u.s. on charges of guns and drug- running. [speaking jamaican english] >> the tories have not urged all law-abiding citizens to leave the troubled areas. the prime minister has appealed for the calm. >> here in the u.k. the coalition government has announced its first round of spending cuts. of budgets for i.t., property, advertising have been reduced and will be a freeze on civil

service recruitment. the secretary says it is essential to make the cuts not to show determination of the government to tackle the government's massive debt. >> this is the first time this government has announced difficult decisions on spending. it will not be the last. but i want people to know that in the years ahead, but we do it not for its own sake, but to improve the quality of people's lives and to build a better economic future. >> the european union's elections officer has said that the ethiopian elections have been peaceful. the prime minister is expected to win, but members of the opposition say some have been intimidated. elections in 2005 ended in violence leading 200 people dead. a security official says that armed yemeni tribesmen have kidnapped an american couple.

the kidnappers have made demands of the government for their release. australia is a spelling an israeli deployment after evidence was found that they've forged passports connected to the hamas situation. in business, british airways cabin crew have begun a five-day strike over pay and working conditions. this is the second round of strikes this year with trade union leaders also wanting the restoration of staff travel allowances. the airline says it will only negotiate through mediators. more than one-third of their long-haul services from london/heathrow may be canceled. >> the u.s. government says it is frustrated and angry andbp over their handling of the

gulf's bill. the u.s. secretary ken salazar says that bp missed deadlines. he says the disaster mounted to an existential crisis for the company. >> the latest evidence of the disaster that nobody can stop. oil-served pelican's washing up from the louisiana coast. few they should show the enormous level post to the delicate ecosystem of the wetlands and the entire gulf region. bp admitted their efforts to slow the leak were not working effectively -- barack obama administration toughened its stance. >> if we find they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing, we will push them out of the way and move afford to make sure all is being done to protect the people of the gulf coast, the ecological value of the gulf coast, and the values of the american people. >> but whether that warning

carries any weight is another matter. the government does not have the technical ability to handle this type of catastrophe. under u.s. law bp must be held responsible for stopping the leak and cleaning it up. the confidence is at an all-time low. >> bp from the beginning has given schedules they said the could meet -- they have not been met. >> the more harsh criticism of bp reflects the government's attempts to deflect deepening anger over failure to stem the oil. the obama administration like bp is feeling the pressure. >> there's a lot of criticism one can have certainly for bp and even for the government and how we got to this, but i don't think anyone can credibly say, even as frustrated as they and

we are, that the government has to run and done nothing and hope for the best. >> more than 22.7 million liters of crude oil have spewed into the gulf since the deep water horizon over exploded. engineers are facing more delays. it will be at least tuesday before they can attempt the next plan which is to shoot mud into the league in an effort to stop the oil. jane for bbc news in washington. >> this is gmt with me, george. bringing down the barricades -- big cut tries to return to normal, but can it avoid a repeat of last week's clashes? -- bangkok tries to return to normality. >> the british army's top bombs officer disposer has resigned. he is in charge of an elite unit and is believed to have stepped up because he believes the turning could be watered down.

he told the bbc about the conditions facing the bomb disposal experts in off. our defense correspondent carolina the reports -- about the conditions facing the experts in afghanistan. >> it is one of the most dangerous jobs. several lost their lives. [unintelligible] his widow christina. he was exhausted by the religious demands there. >> a question whether the ministry of defense is doing its diligence for soldiers. your breeze and leaves soldiers more susceptible to combat stress. even the army's most senior officer is worry. >> it has emerged that the battle officer has resigned. it may have been due to fears

that the turning could be compromised. he will speak tonight to christina about the pressure they face in helmand. >> we are about to kick off a more detailed study looking at psychological impacts of these operations because we have a duty of care. we owe it to these people to do the best we can. >> it takes a least six years to qualify. there are pressures to produce more soldiers quickly. it could result in even more was being endangered in the future. >> this is gmt from bbc world news. the main headline -- the american secretary of state

hillary clinton has given strong backing to south korea after it announced wide-reaching sanctions against north korea. correa top the agenda as mrs. clinton held talks in beijing with the chinese leadership. . like to washington to speak with the director of the national committee on u.s./china relations at the brookings institution. i was speaking to our correspondent traveling with hillary clinton, in beijing at the moment. she says there is no sign yet that china is going to come off the fence. >> china has a dilemma. on the one hand it is very unhappy with north korea's provocative activities, and it certainly in their system. the live marriage -- the leverage of china has limits

over no. 3. it does not want to hurt the relationship because north korea is still a communist party. china is concerned about the problems in the region. china wants to show solidarity with the u.s., but at the same time not to criticize north korea to much and elevate the situation. that is the dilemma of china. >> yes, that is the dilemma, but at some time doesn't beijing have to decide? is it only bell supporting another communist party, are living up to the expectations that it is some kind of regional superpower, a force for good in stability in the region? >> that is true, but china does not believe much an economic stations and is concerned about the refugee issue if north korea becomes chaotic. millions will enter china. also, china never trusted north korean leaders. he visited china only two weeks

ago. they like to talk about friendship and cooperation, but behind the scenes there are many rumors saying the chinese leaders are very angry about the north korean leader and the relationship is not doing well. >> you make it sound like the north korean tail is wagging the chinese dog? i did not mean to be flippant, but you have one of the poorest countries on earth and then the third largest economy. who is calling the shots? >> what is the purpose of north korea? why did they want to do that? maybe they deliberately want to cause of war cannot conflict. a war in the region is not of interest to china or anyone, except for north korea. on the other hand, china needs to be serious on the side of the u.s. and the other five -- four parties of the six-party ballot. that kind of behavior on the

part of north korea should be restrained. you can also influence privately and china has chosen the latter. >> i want to talk about the question of currency reform in china. america once china to revalue its yuan genesis there will be gradual progress. >> it means that china would not do immediately under the pressure of the u.s., but only do so because of its own interests. this refers to public opinion which does not want the chinese government to be too accommodating with the u.s., but at the same time china needs to appreciate the current state not only because of foreign pressure but it is also in china's best interest. on the other hand, the tree should be beneficial and the renmimbi should appreciate, but china was to do it slowly.

not 100% as foreign powers as for, but may be 5%, gradually. >> thank you very much for your time. the thai 47 extended the curfew for seven more days. it comes at the end of a violent two-month standoff in the heart of the capital last week. some schools, government offices, and shops are reopening. here's our correspondent from bangkok. >> where once the barricades and soldiers stood, it today cars and people are back on those same rights. it is a sign that bangkok is slowly getting back on its feet. bunkers are being dismantled. the army is scaling its presence down in the city. glimpses of the famous are beginning to re-emerge.

on sunday crowds of a different sort in the center of the city. no guns or grenades, a residence with brooms trying to scrub away the reminders of last week's violence. it will take a lot more than a clean-up to remove the divisions in thai society. >> within a year [unintelligible] it may take years. >> many of the city's buildings were burned down and the violence. the government says it will cost over $1 billion to rebuild bangkok, but the impact on tourism is expected to be considerably worse. >> almost one week has passed and the fires are still smoldering.

a famous bangkok when mark is now in ruins. this is one of the city's up market districts, frequented by both foreign tourists and locals. he owned a men's clothing store on the fifth floor. he never thought his shop would be affected, but is not really not a repeat of last week's events. >> it is the first time that we have our shop burned down. we lost all our inventory. the next time we do business we have to have insurance. >> it took the better part of the day for people to clear bangkok's streets. this part of the city will be open for business again, but the cleanup is only on the surface. thailand's problems cannot be so easily swept away. >> japan is known for its high- speed bullet trains, but one of the most spectacular lines of

the country is only 20 kilometers per hour. it runs through a gorge in the north. the area is so mountains and snowy that the service can only run in the summer months. >> it may be slow compared to the bullet train, but nothing can match it for views. the wildness of the japanese alps a trucks 1 million people each year to make the journey. simply gorgeous, he says. awesome, says another woman. keeping the train going is a tough job for the maintenance crews the take customer service very seriously. they must make sure the tracks are clear, that the wind through the steep mountainsides. >> nothing is mechanized. we do everything by hand. physically it is very demanding. >> at the start of the summer the team travels of the line which was originally built to transport materials for the

construction of hydroelectric dam. this is one of the few roadways in the world has to be rebuilt every year. the bridges of the mountain streams are dismantled during the winter to protect them from being swept away by avalanches. after a bit of motivational chanting, the work begins to put them back together. the men must carefully balance above that torrent to put them back together. one slip could spell disaster. it almost be finished in time to reopen for the summer season. it and once the trains are running again through the tunnels and over the viaduct's, the work is not the. every night there is maintenance to keep up with. >> some will work for the early hours. what keeps us going is bringing smiles to the faces of our passengers.

>> they seem to appreciate the men who keep the most famous real way running year after year. bbc news in tokyo. >> in this edition we have been looking at the standoff between the two korean countries. we heard from experts on u.s./china relations thfrom an expert at the brookings institution. he says that china faces a dilemma. it is very unhappy about north korea's actions, that does not want to hurt its relations with the capital of the country as a fellow communist party. it is angry with north korea, but chooses to exert its influence in the private. that is all for this edition of gmt. stay with us.

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