and even though the ceremony marks the end of nato's combat mission here, the fighting isn't over. >s in the hands of the afghan security forces. for them, it's been the worst year ever. more than 4,600 soldiers and police have been killed and thousands wounded. casualties are so high because the afghan troops don't have the nato support they used to. >> everything. we are limited. we have a lot of challenges and the biggest challenge is the air force, intelligence but we have enough to work on it. it has allowed al-qaeda to establish training basis and the taliban has taken control of large parts of the country side in many provinces. >> insurgency is not beaten on the battlefield. an insurgency can only be overcome by reconciliation. >> that's the processs that president ghani has laid out as the path of the future. >> any reconciliation seems a long way off. in addition to the security concerns, the country relies heavily on foreign aid. there is still no cabinet three months after the new president took. nato says its mission is a success but afghans are concerned the gains of th

afghanistan has been the longest war for both the united states and nato. though this ceremony marks the end of nato's bad minutes here the fighting isn't over. it is in the hands of the afghan security forces and for them it's been the worst year ever. more than 4,600 soldiers and police have been killed and thousands woundss. casualties are so high, because the afghan troops don't have the nato support they used to. >> we are limited. we have a lot of challenges. and the biggest challenge is the air force indulgence, but we have enough to work on it. >> reporter: the nato withdraw has allowed al qaeda to reestablish training bases and taking large parts of the country side. >> insurgency is not beaten on the battlefield. an insurgency can only be overcome by reconciliation, and that's the process that the president has clearly laid out as the path of the future. but any reconciliation seems a long way off. in addition to the security concerns, the currently relies heavily on foreign aid and there is still no cabinet three months after the new president to

could take years to complete membership to alliance and not all nato countriesn favor but with the fighting between ukraine and separatist rebels east of the country showing no sign of ending 4700 soldiers and civilians have died since an aborted ceasefire was signed in minsk in september and it won't make it easier when russia and rebels sit down with ukraine to try to reinstate another ceasefire and warning of a far more wide ranging conflict should ukraine join nato giving russia cause forward. >> ukraine moving toward nato or nato moving into ukraine could be something like a cause belly, not for a small conflict that contains somewhere the east of ukraine but to a much, much larger conflict that may effect western countries. >> reporter: just how russia will react to that eventuality will be occupying the minds of putin and his military planners since the crisis began nearly a year ago. the decision by kiev to scrap its nonaligned neutral status has provoked an anticipated angry reaction from the kremlin. the russian prime minister chose his words carefully

as the us and nato prepares to pull out most of their forces later this year, i travelled here to try to see what life is like in areas of afghanistan under the rule of the taliban. after days of negotiations, through intermediaries - i was told i would be allowed in, with a camera. >> i'm actually quite nervous and the reason is that five years ago when i tried to embed with a group of insurgents in helmand i was kidnapped and i was held for a week. i was lucky and managed to escape from them but still i don't hope that i will end up in the same situation. >> this sort of access is incredibly rare... its also risky - this is taliban country. >> charkh is a cluster of dusty settlements surrounding a small, central town. the taliban of charkh were burying their dead. >> one of the two taliban fighters killed in an attack on a local afghan army base. a lot of inhabitants from this village in charkh have gathered today. >> they're here to pay their respects. they're here also to mourn, and also show that they are proud. >> the dead man's father was amongst the mourners. >> many of the de

there's no interest on the part of nato and going it alone. look, at the end of the day, nato is our creation, nato sustained through american involvement, and the nato alliance will do what american, what american military power leads them into, and right now in this country, there's no interest and frankly nato countries there's no interest, so putin generally has a run of the place in eastern europe, and so far in moldova and, of course, ukraine and the baltic states, he's already begun to infail the rate his neighbors. this is an attempt by vladimir putin to return to the wonderful days of the czarist era, and right now, there's nobody standing in his way. lou: so as we look at moldova voting to tell putin no, i love the democratic process which you tell a dictator that no is the answer. is moldova next? is it estonia? where does he go next? >> it's not next, they're already in moldova. the least clandestine operation that the russians pulled off in the last five years is the injection of gru forces, spetznaz into moldova. the great fear pa

and nato forces pack their bags. w, two american soldiers the latest victims of a taliban bombing in the closing weeks of the mission. >> plus the price of oil is falling fast and very fast. and that feels pretty good at the pump, but don't look at your 401(k). it might feel the pain. >>> so welcome once again. it didn't get done yesterday, so now the senate is meeting today in a rare saturday session to see if they can strike a deal on a spending bill. senate majority leader harry reid has been locked in a battle between democrats and republicans over passing the measure. and it appears now any vote will be tomorrow. so for today it looks like they will try to knock out some nominations instead. our chief congressional correspondent mike emmanuel is on capitol hill. sorry about that, mike. how troubling is this? can they get it done? >> kelly, at this point they're going through some procedural hurdles. all indications are they'll vote on this massive trillion dollar plus government funding extension, maybe tomorrow,

makers exported just over 36% of their military technology to member countries of the european union and natoa record 63% went elsewhere. germany's biggest customers are algeria, qatar and saudi arabia. opposition parties are calling for this to change. >> we repeatedly called on the german government and especially the social democrats to keep their word about scaling back arms exports. they have done the opposite. we especially need to cut exports to crisis regions. but the opposition and the church gives the government more credit when it comes to small arms. here they have declined drastically. >> all right. now we are joined by our political correspondent. germany's arm sales have been controversial for some time. are the church weighing in on this issue going change the debate? >> it is an ongoing debate in this country. i think certainly it puts the spotlight back on this sensitive issue again. the fact is that germans are quite sensitive about weapons exports for reason of their history during the 20th century. in two very, very problematic world wars. a high degree of sensitivity. bu

. >> american and nato soldiers in afghanistan celebrated christmas day in kabul.r was served at the headquarters of the international security assistance forms it's the tenth time in afghanistan as the country soldiers fight increased terrorist attacks. most u.s. and nato combat troops will leave december 31st. >> got a pretty important mission here so it's an honor to be a part of that but at the same time it's a little difficult being weigh from home. >> senator john mccain was in kabul for christmas day. he has separator meetings with chief executive officer abdullah abdullah. >>> president obama reflected on the afghanistan mission today. the commander-in-chief told americans the thank the troops. >> we're able to gather with family and friends because our troops are willing to hug theirs goodbye and step forward to serve. after a long day we can come home because they're willing to leave their families and deploy. >> the president said the combat mission in afghanistan was coming to a "responsible end." >>> former president george h.w. bush remains in a houst

the united states and nato officially ended their gas exwat mission. >> in afghanistan, the u.s.o officially closed their combat mission after more than 13 years. ( cheers and applause ) >> stephen: all right, all right, there we go. here we go. boom! now, i am-- i am sorry that our troops in afghanistan are not getting a parade like the one the iraq veterans didn't get. i don't be the problem. there must be a worldwide confetti shortage. so before i go off the air, i'm going to raise a little more green one last time for the yellow ribbon fund. ( cheers and applause ). tonight, i am raffling off parts of my set. steve, tell them what they could win. >> well, stephen, the first-place winner will take home the actual stephen colbert desk, made of 100% genuine material. this timeless classic is shaped like a giant "c," or a severely misshapen "u." this very desk witnessed the countless historic moments on the "colbert report," such as the time stephen colbert announced this raffle. >> thanks, steve, that stowndz soundz-- >> that's not all. the second-place winner upon take home thi

and nato. a quarter century later, former polish president lech walesa says, his country is on the borderline with another cold war with moscow. rchg 1980 a young electrician climbed this gate and rallied the 17,000 striking workers who had barricaded themselves here in the gadansk shipyards. the solidarity movement was born. poland's solidarity movement exposed poland's first contraction in europe, and that young leader was lech walesa, galvanizing support which brought poland's communist government to the negotiating table. ten years later, walesa went on to become poland's first popularly elected president and presided over his country's transition to a postcommunist state. but today, as the crisis unfolds in neighboring ukraine the poles are again feeling pressure from moscow. i sat down with the man who was there from the beginning. a quarter-century after his historic election, lech walesa again has his eye on russia. >> thank you so much for speaking to us. you've been speaking so much ab

and nato as top military threats to his country. erin mclaughlin has more for us from moscow. >> russian security analysts tell me they see this new doctrine as the kremlin's response to western sanctions and political statements on the situation in ukraine. and while calling it defensive in nature, the new doctrine identifies nato expansion and western military activities "on russia's doorstep as areas of deep concern." now, in previous doctrines, the focus had been the situation unfolding in central asia, but analysts tell me that the kremlin is essentially signaling that russia's response to nato and europe will be an area of primary concern in its long-term planning which will include the military buildup along russia's western border. now, nato issued a response saying that nato poses no threat to russia and its activities are purely defensive. it also said nato will continue to seek a constructive relationship with russia. but that russia is breaching international law in ukraine and undermining european security. another round

secretary of state summed it up when he spoked about the difficulties and challenges that nato has had to face. and what is ahead. in one way or another we have been tested by those who want to divide us, or cause us to retreat to the commitments we have made to one another, both in and beyond the nato arena, we have been called to respond to aggression, and to conflict. to law lessness, and deception. to violent extremists and epidemic disease. plenty of challenges for nato, and these operations cost money, of course. >> of course, and there has been growing con coughny and military commanders to get the leaders of governments to put their hands in the pockets and start to back the funding of greater defense spending. john kerry reiterated that in his news conference that we just heard from. he said basically twenty-first security cannot be done on the cheap, it is going to take a while, and europe is coming out of a long period of posterity, but what the message is that the threats and challenges are very real and immediate, and frankly the budge dare decisions can't be put off much

. >>> tension between russia and ooung will be high on the agenda when nato foreign ministers meet ins. >> those talks get under way shortly. we are taking live pictures there and they come as russia and nato accuse each other of causing instability. all the way from ukraine to northern europe. nato with its military exercises and russia with military overflights. >> for more on all this, matthew chance joining us now live from moscow. so, matthew, it's almost typical to see russia, nato trading barbs back and forth but bring us up to speed on what exactly is being said. >> reporter: well, this is a nato meeting of foreign ministers from the member states. you can sigh from the pictures we've been bringing in those foreign ministers including the u.s. secretary of state john kerry have already started to arrive at nato headquarters in brussels to discuss the issues that affect the alliance. one of those issues, by the way is the threat from the south of the nato area, the threat posed by islamic states to countries like turkey which is, of course, a member of the nato alliance and, of

sure, the united states and nato denounced russia's aggression but didn't do much else. in a prequell to russia's action he in ukraine, there's even talk of russia one day annexing one or both regions. mikhail sakashvili left office, and since then accepted a lecturer universit are positions university. got a conversation off to a lively start. i suggested his decision to attack south esetia caused a situation that cost georgia dearly. >> but for that difference the situations have a lot in common. >> yes. and i think the reality is that russia is a power, and the west is focused on i.s.i.s, i.s.i.l, for the west, the right is i.s.i.l, for russia it is, this is my forest this is my jungle. don't come here i'm not going to your forest. but here, i can do whatever. and he is actually implementing it. the problem is that there can be no deal made. because where putin says, you care about i.s.i.l, i care about the largest country in europe, ukraine. the problem is he is also going after the west. he sees it as a revenge against the west. >> so when he sees it as the west, th

and nato forces leave in just a few days? >> actually, it is -- we are at the moment that we are paying the price of the two transitions that still ongoing and one of them is the security that international forces are leaving afghanistan and giving a lot of vacuums and a lot of shored accommodation behind for the fledgling security forces. afghan security forces showed a very strong strength on the battle ground on the infantry forces, but unfortunately they have a lot of shortage one of them is the artillery, the other is the year force. so these all gaps will create a kind of space for al qaeda and taliban to maneuver and gain territory. >> the former u.s. commander in afghanistan actually did warn that the taliban would seek to destabilize once the u.s. battle force ended. can the administration achieve what karzai's couldn't, especially these shortfalls that you spoke of, including the pull up of u.s. and nato troops? >> actually, the new administration so far is still struggling to fulfill our truth, the political transit

and even though this ceremony marks the end of nato's combat mission here the fighting isn't over. it is in the hands of the afghan security forces and for them it's been the worst year ever. more than 4600 soldiers and police have been killed and thousands wounded. the casualties are so high because nato didn't have the forbes it used to. >> we are limited. we are limited the big biggest limits is the affairs. we have enough to work on it. >> establishing bases on kunar province. large part of the country side in other provinces. >> an insurgent isn't beaten in the battlefield but by reconciliation and that is the process that president ghani has clearly laid out in the future. >> in addition to the security concerns the country relies heavily on foreign aid. and there's still no cabinet through three months after the new president took office. nato says it's miss is a success but afngz afghans are concerned the gains of the past 13 years could be lost. jennifer glasse, kabul. >>> in a video you're about to see you can see smoke rising over the syrian border town where kurdish figh

and then a strong afghanistan. these three promises after nato or american, we have it. n now and i am sure we have afghanistan. on build up. i think this the next to keep it from the responsibility that they are redrawing it. without the responsibility to afghanistan. in bad condition today in afghanistan. i think this is some kind of thing, not ugly with them but afghanistan. only way i am happy about that. and we will see if we have to give afghanistan without the influence in the future. i do think they are there. american in their cooperation. otherwise, they will be needed. otherwise, they will be not independent afghanistan. so you say that your if i understand you correctly and i apologize because the phone call is not very clear. are you saying that afghanistan is more stanley today but there is, as you know concern about the future about the ability of afghan security forces being able to maintain security in the country? document they are able they are up to the job, they can do this? >> no. they cannot complete these. you can hide but the fact is that i think

nato and afghans work together to help the afghan people. creating an atmosphere that fostered progress. >> reporter: he also counseled there are difficult times ahead. even though this ceremony marks the end of nato's official mission, the fighting is not over. it is in the hands of the afghan security forces and for them it's been the worst year ever. more than 4600 soldiers and police have been killed and thousands wounded. casualties are so high because the afghan troops don't have the nato support they used to. >> everything, we are limited we have a lot of challenges and the biggest challenge is air force, isr intelligence assets, but we have enough to work on it. >> reporter: the nato withdrawal has allowed al qaeda to reestablish are training bases in kunar province and in other areas of the provinces. >> insurgency can only be overcome by what president ghani has laid out in the future. >> the country relies heavily on foreign aid and there's still no cabinet three months after the new president took office. nato says its mission is

and nato joined afghanistan officials for the event. more than 2200 troops lost their lives there. the insurgency remains always dangerous today as 2001 when the u.s. first went in. but from now on, the u.s. will have a supporting and training role. >>> north korea suffered a internet outage, this is the third outage in a week. the north korea national defense commission is blaming the u.s. for the shut down, u.s. officials have not commented on the matter. >>> a massive lava flow in hawaii is moving close to a shopping center. officials say the lava is move, once again several businesses in that area have begun excavating. >>> a alabama man is being praised for helping get a young child out of a fast-moving fire on christmas the rescue was caught on camera. >> reporter: a dramatic and daring rescue caught on tape as intense flames and heavy smoke poured out of this apartment complex in alabama on christmas morning. a mother's painful pleas to save her son trapped on the second floor. >> jump! we got you come on. come on, your mother right here. your momma said do it. come on. >> r

the main risk it notes and this has not changed from four years ago is nato and nato's expansion , close to russia's borders is seen as a top risk to russian security. it shot up -- a shot across the bow. the big theme of nato coming up to russia's borders expanding. >> the ukrainian government and pro-russian separatists began an exchange of hundreds of prisoners of war. the deal will see 125 crimean servicemen exchanged for 225 rebels following a fresh round of peace talks. the former first lady of ivory coast when on trial for her part in the country's political crisis four years ago which claimed the lives of thousands of people. she is standing trial along with other -- 80 two others. her husband is being held at the hague. she faces a lengthy prison sentences, possibly life behind bars. >> hand-in-hand with her lawyer, the former first lady of ivory coast stands accused of threatening state security. the trail has just begun but her lawyer has concerns. >> we want the right to a defense and a fair trial. right now, i think this trial has got off to an unjust start. >> charged with

with the americans and nato ending combat operations next door in afghanistan, and a popular new leader confidently strolling on the world stage in india, what is next in pakistan. joining us next, chairman of the institute of public policy based in pakistan, also the former finance minister of pakistan. professor at georgetown's center for peace and security studies, and deputy director for south asia as the simpson center. has this been a water shed moment? has there been something different about this attack that separates it from others in the attack? >> i believe it is a water shed moment, and i believe we'll see a fundamental change in the way that pakistan is looking at terrorism. i'll give you three reasons for it. one is that there is a new guy who is in charge of pakistani armed forces. and he's much more --we had conversations with them, and they told us that that is his first priority to get rid of extremists. the second is th is a serious individual, i've known him for a very long time. we were together at the world bank, and they're serious about cultivating a positive rel

now, nato issued a response saying that nato poses no threat to russia. and its activities are purely defensive. it also said that nato will continue to seek a constructive relationship with russia. but that russia is breaching international law in ukraine and undermining european security. another round of peace talks apriled at ending the crisis in eastern ukraine was called off today. that according to media reports. pro-russian rebels as well as members of the ukrainian government met in the minsk on wednesday. now, reason for that cancellation was not given. erin mclaughlin, cnn. >> and we have more evidence of western sanctions affecting russia. russian news agency toss says mastercard and visa have stopped servicing banks in crimea. according to tas, the companies informed banks they cannot process any more credit transactions because of expanded u.s. sanctions. earlier this month, the u.s. imposed a ban on doing business in crimea. the conflict in ukraine and russia's economic crisis aren't threatening vladimir putin's popularity. an independent polli

sit down with ukraine to try and reinstate another ceasefire and political analyst have a far more wide ranging conflict should ukraine join natog russia cause forward. >> ukraine moving toward nato or nato moving into ukraine could be something like a cause belly, not for a small conflict, contained somewhere in the east of ukraine but to a much larger conflict that may effect western countries. >> reporter: just how russia will react to that will occupy putin and planners since the crisis began nearly a year ago and the decision of kiev to scrap the neutral status has an angry reaction from the kremlin. the russian prime minister chose his words carefully when he said an application for nato membership will turn ukraine into a potential military opponent. peter sharp, al jazeera in moscow. >>> russia prime minister says his country is at risk of falling into a deep recession if the government abandons its spending plans, on monday russian regulators forced to bail out a leading retail bank and western sanctions and crumbling oil prices hit the economy hard. the rubble plunged to record lows last week and central bank forced t

the work that we've done at nato, including at the wales submit, land sea and air that you don't mess with nato allies. we've also had consultations with the baltic countries as have our nato allies on an integrated approach to defense. you strengthening border security now, you see allies from all countries participating there. just to say that this was not our choice. but this is a clear necessity now to insure that first of all, those countries feel secure, feel all 28 allies there for them, but also that we make absolutely clear that this is not an adventure that anybody ought to be going on. >> you mentioned the information that gets to russians. one of the sources, a key source of that success in patriotic marginalization was propaganda and if my recollections of my misspent moscow youth are true it far surpasses anything that i saw in the '70s, in just sheer cynicism and not to mention technology and the reach. now, russians have been making quite a sport of it, one, a recent posting, mocked the propaganda line in this way. all the revolutions in history of humanity beginning w

as the us and nato prepares to pull out most of their forces later this year, i travelled here to try to see what life is like in areas of afghanistan under the rule of the taliban. after days of negoio

you envision a reduction of soviet troops in your country and then envision that the warsaw pact and nato might be dismanteleled? >> as a result of this negotiations, which i hope will come to an agreement the course of next year, it's quite possible that some of the troops might be reduced and other countries, too, including western countries, which also are included in the talks and which also have their talk there is. >> ambassador, there have been contacts between the u.s. government and your government, either here or in berlin regarding the developments and what specifically would you like the u.s. government to do toward your country? >> what we have done is no secret and i told you that things have -- before these drastic changes have been announced and been introduced only two weeks ago. we had consultations, the cases of deputy ministers for foreign affairs with the united states. our vice minister for foreign affairs met high-ranking people and of course, there was talk about what's going on in the gdr. \s >> do you have any idea how long it will be before things settle back in

and nato forces will leave afghanistan. ifer glasse reports, local security forces remain optimistic about taking control. [ explosion ] >> reporter: from a mountain top base, afghan army soldiers are sending a message to the taliban and al-qaeda. taliban fighters in the valley below keep the soldiers confined to the roads and their base. they control the countryside. >> translator: there are al-qaeda training centers about 20, 25 kilometers away from us. that's too far for us to launch operations, because we don't have access to any air support. we don't have proper artillery. >> reporter: only a small support force remains in the country, but not here. the soldiers say al-qaeda fighters reestablished their camps because they know the afghan army can't reach them. >> translator: if we had artillery and air force, tanks or other guns, we would destroy them. >> reporter: even the top nato commander here admits al-qaeda is here after 13 years of war. >> there continues to be al-qaeda presence in afghanistan. and there are othe

readiness to impose further costs by way of sector yal sanctions on russia and reassuring front line nato allies and friends like georgia and moldova. it's almost been half a year since you spoke there and outlined that plan. is the strategy the same? and if it is, have there been any shifts in maybe an emphasis or substance? >> the four points that you you lined are still how we look at the situation. support for ukraine, protection of allies, outreach diplomatically with our allies and partners to russia offering an off ramp, offering de-escalation if the kremlin is willing. primarily now focussed on implementation of the minksk peace plan from september that the kremlin signed on to but has not yet implemented and the final point imposing costs for aggression. so i think you've seen all of those pieces since the summer continue to accelerate. on the nato side, you have seen us continue to -- on land, sea and air, provide physical reassurance to our allies. you've seen the security support for georgia and mall doe va and ukraine increase. you've seen now with the congressional support f

we try to deal with cyprus and our relationship with turkey and nato. i would touch on that in the report. i experienced it in needing the cooperation of ethiopia, absolutely critical to our policy. we had other issues over democracy and human rights. balancing not what the rest of the u.s. government, those are legitimate concerns. these aren't illegitimate when you are running up against it. what's the challenge when you have to work it out and find out where the balance should be. but does happen all the time and that is where you need a policy prostatitis that will get at those, address it and come to an agreement. we needed a tough peacekeeping operation. the u.n. had failed there and the only ones who could go were ethiopian. now there's all these others that are my god, one more thing we are dependent upon. but we worked it through. we looked at it and everybody says you're right, we need them. you have to go through the process. >> i'll just say something briefly about combating envoys. it is a great point and i was thinking about whether i shoul

and nato marked the end of their combat mission 13 years after the mission began. ition will keep 13,000 troops in afghanistan to train and support afghan forces. i'm john siegenthaler. i'll see you back here at 11:00. "america tonight" is next. >> consider this: the news of the day plus so much more. >> we begin with the growing controversy. >> answers to the questions no one else will ask. >> real perspective, consider this on al jazeera america on "america tonight": the fallout. an legislated campus gang rape and the controversial reporting anreportingaround it. >> suggest that jackie hurt their trust by being untruthful. >> what exactly happened to jackie and what's next in the fight against sex crimes in campus. >>> also, raise the wage. it's

. >>> american and nato solders in afghanistan celebrated in christmas day in kabul. dinner was served at the headquarters of the international security forces, and it is tenth time in afghanistan as country soldiers fightin creased terrorist attacks there. most u.s. and nato combat troops leave december 31st, and about 13,500 troops will remain for training and support. >> pretty important mission here, it is an honor to be part of that but at the the same time it is a little bit difficult being a weighed from home. >> reporter: senator john mccain, in kabul afghanistan for christmas day, he held separate meetings with abdula abdula and the afghan president. >>> president barack obama reflected on the afghanistan mission in this morning's christmas address. he told americans to thank the troops. >> we're able to gather with family and friend because our troops are willing to hug their good bye and step forward and serve. after a long day we can come home because they are willing to leave their families and deploy. >> the president says that the combat mission in afgha

fighter jets bombers and drones to continue operating in support of afghan troops for the next couple of years. as you mentioned the taliban has declared the nato drawdown as their victory. some analysts predict stepped up taliban attacks. >> taliban are going to see this as an opportunity and it's very likely that we're going to see more taliban operations in the near term. the next six to 18 months, rather than less. >> christopher swift says that the 13 years of u.s. and nato involvement in afghanistan have done nothing to change theies old tribal allegiances of the region and nato's top-down approach to build the army was probably less effective than a bottom up approach would have been to build tribal allegiances into a loose confederation representing afghanistan's interests. >>> president obama promises that afghanistan will no longer cultivate international terrorism. >> because of the extraordinary service of the men and women in the american armed forces afghanistan has a chance to rebuild its own country. we are safer. it's not going to be a source of terrorist attacks again. >> fox news contributor ralph peters says there's no way t

and nato troops will remain to train afghan military, and former president george hw bush remains hospitalizedn houston. sunday, mr. and mrs. bush watched the texans football game together and hope to have news about a possible discharge, soon. mr. bush was hospitalized on tuesday for shortness of breath the 90-year-old bush is the country's oldest-living president i'm kelly wright. you're watching8çu fox news, th most powerful name in news. >>> rob o'neil had one year of college under his belt, a job delivering pizzas and only a basic grasp of swimming when a recruiter convinced him to enlist and become a navy s.e.a.l. by january 1996, after five months of intensive swim training, rob found himself in great lakes, illinois, for navy boot camp. but boot camp was nothing compared to what came next. buds or basic underwater demolition field training puts recruits through some of the most grueling physical punishment anyone can endure. most recruits don't pass the first phase. physical conditioning. >> general workouts every day eventually wear into, you know, a thousand push-ups a day, a thousan

and nato formally ended the war in afghanistan. on thursday the u.s. nge its mission and provide training and support for afghanistan's military. the taliban says it defeated the u.s. and its allies. richard jordan is life on capitol hill with more. >> reporter: president obama calls it a responsible end to the war marked by a ceremony over the weekend, but now the taliban is claiming victory saying the u.s. and nato forces did not accomplish anything sustainable in the last 13 years there on the ground in afghanistan. the u.s. government officials dismissed the claim, but it is true that this was one of the most violent years in afghanistan sie the start of the war back in 2001. 4,000 afghan soldiers and police officers were killed and the number of civilians was high also for those killed. the u.s. troops are not leaving afghanistan after the first of the year with 13,000 of them most of them american that will stay there in the region to provide support and security to afghanistan's new government. mostly training and advising those afghan troops. ov

analysts tell me the kremlin is essentially signaling that russia's response to nato and europe will area of primary concern in its long term planning, which will include the military build up along russia's western border. now, nato issued a response saying that nato poses no threat to russia and its activities are purely defensive. it said nato will continue to seek a constructive relationship with russia, but russia is breaching international law in ukraine and undermining european security. another round of peace talks aimed at ending the crisis in eastern ukraine was called off today, that, according to media reports. pro-russian rebels as well as members of the ukrainian government met on wednesday. now, the reason for that cancellation was not given. aaron mclaughlin, cnn, moscow. >>> expanded sanctions over the annexation of crimea forced mastercard and visa to stop there. the companies informed banks they cannot process anymore credit card transactions. the u.s. imposed a ban on doing business in crimea. >>> the conflict in ukraine and russia's slumping economy is not threat

. >>> after 13 years of war, the united states and nato will hold a ceremony in afghanistan today to mark a major milestone in the conflict. >>> and xbox and play station systems are running smoothly again after a christmas day outage. now we're learning who may be behind the hack and why. >>> this morning the community of flagstaff, arizona is mourning the loss of a rookie police officer who was shot and killed while responding to a domestic violence call. 24-year-old tyler stewart was on the police force less than a year. he was looking for a man involved in a domestic violence incident yesterday when that suspect fired several shots and killed him. the suspect then shot and killed himself. stewart is only the second flagstaff police officer ever to die in the line of duty. >>> this weekend, two snowmobilers were killed while trying to cross a frozen lake in montana. they were snowmobiling with a group of people. two made it across safely. a third person fell through the ice, but was rescued. a helicopter search team eventually recovered the bodies of the other two snowmobilers trap

and nato will help afghan security forces with training equipment and funding. >>> a local mother is asking for her son's murderer to turn himself in to police. it's been a month since someone shot hollis johnson. the family held a candlelight vigil at the complex where he died. surveillance shows the man walking into his apartment and seconds later ran out and drove away. >> i know you have a mother. i know you have family. i'm pleading with you now to come forward >> prince george's county detectives also attended the memorial. they don't believe johnson's killer knew him. >>> a boy's father and stepmother are in jail for holding him for four years. they found the 13-year-old boy hidden behind a fake wall that had been camouflaged with towels. somehow the boy got a hold of a phone which helped police find him. he was reunited with his mother on saturday. neighbors say they saw the boy doing yard work and were shocked to hear the boy was being held before his will. >>> 14 before the hour. podcast produced by the same people of "this american life." it is called "serial". syed was in

and nato forces after 13 years of having troops on the ground there in afghanistan. the taliban saying there's been no us is tapeable changes that have come from that longest war in american history. now u.s. government officials, the obama administration they are dismissing the claim, but it is true that there has been a spike in violence in the past year in afghanistan. more violence than ever since the start of the war back in 2001. about 4,000 afghan soldiers and police officers were killed just in the past 12 months. also many civilians lost their lives because of the taliban attacks. so even though this is an end to the combat mission, there will still be american troops in afghanistan for several months maybe even up to two years. they will be in a support role working with the afghan military there advising them and training them. there will be several troops here along with senator john mccain saying this is not the end of the mission in afghanistan. moren 2,000 americans lost their lives fighting that war in afghanistan. and mccain says that that sacrifice

and syria. foreign ministers of 60 count thinks are meeting at nato's headquarters in brussels, and a joint statementsair strikes are forcing isil fighters to quote proceed with caution. here is u.s. secretary of state john kerry had to say. >> we have made already, significant process -- progress in two and a half months, but we also acknowledge there is a lot more work yet to be done. daesh is still perpetrating terrible crimes, but there was a consensuses that the momentum, which it had -- exhibited two and a half months ago has been halted, that it has been forced to modify its tactics, and some of those modifications severely hampering their ability to operate in the way that they were certainly. >> and tim friend joining us live from brussels. tim he also said there were other reasons he believed that progress was being made. >> reporter: yes, he did, and he spoke about the propaganda war. he said the perception of isil around the world was one that meant that most people in his view were of the opinion that isil needed to be eradicated and stopped in its tracks. it advances slowed down and term