germany says it has unequivocal proof that alexei navalny was poisoned with a nerve agent. angela merkel says he is a victim of a murder attempt. the white house has called the use of the boys and completely reprehensible. the european union says those responsible must behold to justice. we have more. reporter: alexei navalny, in a video filmed, days before he collapsed on a flight to moscow. tests carried out in a military laboratory have produced unequivocal proof the leader was poisoned with a nerve agent. angela merkel says it was attempted murder. is the victimlny of a crime. he was met to be silenced. i condemn this in the name of the entire german government. reporter: the foreign minister of germany has summoned the foreign investor, saying those responsible in russia be identified and brought to justice. alexei navalny was airlifted to germany late last month two days after being taken to a hospital --the siberian city of banks in a siberian city. although his symptoms of poisoning are declining, they cannot will let long-term consequences. germany says it has uneq

unequivocal proof that a military—grade nerve agent was used to poison the prominent kremlin critic, alexei navalnycellor angela merkel has said only the russian government can explain how mr navalny came into contact with novichok. he was airlifted to berlin last month in a coma after falling ill on a flight. his advisers believe he was poisoned on the orders of president putin. this from our security correspondent gordon corera. alexei navalny has been the most prominent opposition figure in russia, campaigning against corruption. a thorn in the kremlin‘s side, he's been arrested and had his offices raided. but soon after being pictured drinking tea at a siberian airport in august, he fell suddenly and violently ill on a flight to moscow. russian doctors said there was no sign of foul play and his blood sugar had simply dropped. but, amidst growing pressure, he was airlifted to berlin, where he remains in a coma. and today angela merkel revealed he'd been poisoned with a novichok nerve agent. translation: we expect the russian government to give an explanation. there are now grave questions which

today's revelations strengthens the evidence alexei navalny was targeted by the russian state. question now is how the international community will respond. joining me now with more on this story is alexey muraviev, professor of national security and strategic studies at curtin university in perth. thank you very much for your time. what do you think happened here and why?m time. what do you think happened here and why? it is a complicated case and obviously allegations have been thrown and compared with what happened in salisbury. however the circumstances are different. if there is going to be an error it will be the russian government who had an interest in neutralising navalny by injecting him with novichok. it would be more difficult for the west to develop some sort of compelling case because contrary to salisbury, that alleged poisoning took place in russia against the russian national rather than something that was carried out on foreign soil and that could be interpreted as an internal matter. i would propose that if navalny was not deliberately poisoned it is more to d

his situation was similar to that of alexey navalny. like navalny, there were no signs of the nerve agent. >> my poisoning was not as bad as his. i was able to recover more quickly. i was already able to speak in the second week of recovery but novichok is an extremely strong poison. does not make a difference if you want to hurt someone or kill them. novichok is perfect for committing murder. >> like a navalny, he was treated at a berlin hospital. no one can confidently identify the substance that had been given to him. his symptoms prompted the doctors to suspect poisoning. with navalny he says, there is no doubt. >> the fact that novichok was used clearly points to the russian president. one thing is clear. only secret agents have access to this specific poison. this operation could only have been carried out with the approval of vladimir putin. >> other opposition figures have been targeted with less deadly means. among them is the independent politician, dimitri. one year ago, he was barred from standing in the moscow city council e

the headline reads that alexei navalny was a victim of crime.ows on from what angela merkel has been saying today, that this will be, given it is germany now pointing the finger at russia, regarding this, how much weight do you think this is going to carry with regards to what has been a come of the use once again of this awful, awful poison? we never really heard the name of nova check before until two years ago. with the poisoning of sergei skripal. and his doctor. and 110w sergei skripal. and his doctor. and now that we see again an accusation leveled at the criminal in this particular nerve agent is being used. —— and his daughter. —— novo chuck. and this time against the opposition later alexei navalny and the fact that angela merkel has called it out so strongly in those condemnations that have been supported by our prime minister borisjohnson, supported by our prime minister boris johnson, there's order supported by our prime minister borisjohnson, there's order been talk about a unified response from the european union and nato. i think

president trump says he hasn't yet seen proof that the russian opposition leader, alexei navalny, wast. germany — where mr navalny is being treated in hospital — says it has "proof beyond doubt", and is asking the russian government for an explanation. our correspondent, nomia iqbal, reports from washington. alexei navalny supporters claim he was poisoned on the creme and's orders, which raised russia dies. —— alexian, of all supporters, claim he was poisoned ——on the kremlin's ——on the kremlin's orders, which russia denies. germany says novichok agent was used similarto germany says novichok agent was used similar to one that almost killed a former russian spy and his daughter in salisbury two years ago. that assessment received supports from some trump administration officials, including the head of the white house, national security council. president trump, who had been criticized for not speaking about the case, earlier, said that he would study the evidence. i don't know exactly what happened. i think it's sad. it's tragic. it's terrible. it shouldn't happen. we haven't had any

there is "unequivocal proof" that the russian opposition politician alexei navalny — was poisoned withk nerve agent. that's the finding of the german government — which says mr navalny was the victim of attempted murder — and the world was looking to russia for answers. mr navalny was airlifted to berlin in a coma — after falling ill on a flight last month. his team says he was poisoned on the orders of president putin — but the kremlin denies the allegation. novichok was used to poison the former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter in the uk in 2018. our security correspondent gordon corera reports. alexei navalny has been the most prominent opposition figure in russia, campaigning against corruption. a thorn in the kremlin‘s side, he's been arrested and had his offices raided. but soon after being pictured drinking tea at a siberian airport in august, he fell suddenly and violently ill on a flight to moscow. russian doctors said there was no sign of foul play and his blood sugar had simply dropped. but, amidst growing pressure, he was airlifted to berlin, where he remains in

meanwhile, alexei navalny remains in a serious condition in hospital. acked with a chemical weapon, the questions to the kremlin won't be going away. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the online retailer amazon says it's going to create another 7,000 permanentjobs in the uk this year, to meet growing demand the figure is on top of 3,000 positions already announced this year. it will take the company's total uk workforce to more than 40,000. despite a recent rise in house prices, mortgage providers are cutting the number of low deposit deals — because of the economic fall—out from coronavirus. lenders are setting stricter conditions fearing defaults. some have already said they would not currently consider applications from people on furlough and who did not have a return to work date. ministers are defending the former australian prime minister tony abbott afer reports that he is being lined up for a role in post—brexit trade talks. mr abbott has been accused by politicians in australia and the uk of misogyny, homophobia and downplaying the science on c

there is "unequivocal proof", that the russian opposition politician alexei navalny, was poisoned with a novichok nerve agent. that's the finding of the german government — which says mr navalny was the victim of attempted murder, and the world was looking to russia for answers. mr navalny was airlifted to berlin in a coma, afterfalling ill on a flight last month. his team says he was poisoned on the orders of president putin, but the kremlin denies the allegation. novichok was used to poison the former russian spy sergei skripal and his daughter in the uk in 2018. our security correspondent gordon corera reports. alexei navalny has been the most prominent opposition figure in russia, campaigning against corruption. and had his offices raided. but soon after being pictured drinking tea at a siberian airport in august, he fell suddenly and violently ill on a flight to moscow. russian doctors said there was no sign of foul play and his blood sugar had simply dropped. but, amidst growing pressure, he was airlifted to berlin, where he remains in a coma. and today angela merkel revealed he'

news live from berlin russia denies any involvement in the poisoning of the opposition leader alexei navalny germany says it has proof that the politician was poisoned with a toxic nerve agent about mean supporters say this goes right to the top of the what we all schools don't live there is 0 force a group of social parisian could have been carried out with 0 personal produce permission also on the program for. us democratic contender joe biden brings a message of unity to the city rocked by the police shooting of a black father in direct contrast to president donald trump's rhetoric on law and order. and the evil of modern day slavery why the pandemic is leaving factory workers in asia more risk and open to exploitation. and public folios welcome to the show nato will convene on friday to discuss chemical weapons and the poisoning of russian opposition leader alexei navalny germany says it has been in on a political evidence that the volley was poisoned with a deadly nerve agent from the novacek group moscow is denying any involvement but germany and its allies are calling on the kremlin t

from germany's chancellor, angela merkel, as she revealed that the prominent kremlin critic, alexei navalny, was poisoned with a military grade nerve agent, novichok — "the victim of a crime that intended to silence him," as she put it. mr navalny was flown to berlin after falling ill on a flight within russia last month. the confirmation coming from germany has elicited international expressions of concern and condemnation of the russian government. paul hawkins reports. was this man poisoned by russia for being a long—time critic of vladimir putin? alexei navalny was a persistent thorn in the side of the russian president. he is currently in a coma in germany. the 44—year—old airlifted there after falling ill on a flight from siberia to moscow after he was seen drinking tea just before takeoff. the german government saysis takeoff. the german government says is unequivocal proof he was poisoned with the nerve agent another choc in that russia is responsible. —— novichok. translation: we expect the russian government to give an explanation. there are grave questions which one of the russia

poisoning the kremlin critic alexei navalny. lavrov said the accusations were unsubstantiated and he staunchly denied any official involvement. in the valley is currently being treated at a german hospital after falling ill three weeks ago on a domestic flight in russia. german experts say the forty four year old was poisoned with the nerve you choke nerve agent. russia's foreign affairs minister saiaid calls from western nationsor an investigation into the poisoning of opposition politician alexey navalny. reminded him of the twenty eighteen script ball case when a russian spy and his daughterr were p poisoned with a soviet ea nerve agent nothing showing in england. we are a customs a and difficult thoughh to remind us been c creat by our westernave collgues after the poisonining in salisbury. was oncnce everything waslassified. when we havave not been able to acces information ever since. including on n the whereabouts f russian citizens the scribbles. alexei navalny's case repeatsts the story that happened with ththe malaysia

we have heard lots today, from the foreign secretary. —— alexei navalny. what can they do?tion for the prohibition of chemical weapons, the use of those in any context is illegal, russia is a signatory of the chemical weapons convention. an enquiry by them is an essential element in establishing the truth that russia cannot deny. 0nce element in establishing the truth that russia cannot deny. once that has happened, international committee has to look at a range of options, including targeted sanctions and other similar measures. in the end, president putin knows there are not really going to be any serious replications? that depends, at the moment there is a vacuum because of the presence of president trump in the presence of president trump in the united states, ifjoe biden wins the united states, ifjoe biden wins the presidency in november, that will change quite rapidly. then we will change quite rapidly. then we will have the possibility of some proper pushback and proper measures. there has not been much from president trump on this, has there? he has not said anythin

questions germany's motives in pressing it to explain the alleged poisoning of alexei navalny saying it's. not being co-operative with russia's own investigation . ready for phase 3 trials and it's worked towards a 1st coronavirus a vaccine that is a british medical journal concludes the drug. produced an antibody response. in so far. the french satirical magazine charlie hebdo reprints its controversial mohammed cartoons review 19 debate and this is the terror trial gets underway for 14 suspected associates 5 years after the attack in paris. thanks for joining as you're watching the weekly here on r.t. international. remain locked in a diplomatic row over the alleged poisoning of russian opposition figure alexei navalny on sunday the russian foreign ministry question berlin's ultimatum to provide an explanation for what happened to him suggesting it's the german side that's not being forthcoming. if the german government is sincere in its statements it should respond to the request of the russian general prosecutor's office as soon as possible that was passed on august 27 it is the

so that's extremely encouraging for alexei navalny. of course he's been posting pictures on his social media over the past week or so, basically looking at himself in a very sort of weakened state but looking increasingly better, pictures of his family, with his wife were there in berlin, sort of at his bedside and of course walking with him as well. there's some bad news as well. the doctors say it remains too early to gauge the potential long term effects of severe poisoning. of course that's a reference to the fact that with this chemical nerve agent doctors have assessed he was poisoned with, we don't know what the consequences will be for alexei navalny's long term health. he certainly says through his spokes people he wants to come back to russia and continue his work here but we don't know how long it will be before he's able physically to do that, rosemary. >> can we expect to hear anything from russian officials on this? >> reporter: well i expect there will be more denials because ever since this apparent poisoning took place

the consequences to alexey navalny could be devastating. they put out an update late wednesday saying long-term consequences of a severe poisoning cannot be ruled out. and, rosemary, obviously we're in front of that hospital right now, which is in germany. one of the premeir hospitals in germany. they obviously say as we just heard there, they're not sure whether or not there's going to be a full recovery. they certainly say they know this will be a prolonged illness as they put it. they say his condition has gotten a little bit better over the course of time as obviously he's been in treatment. it appears there is a long way to go. as far as the russian side is concerned, they're still denying everything. the spokesman for the russian foreign ministry came out and said all of this was russian antipropaganda. the words we've heard in the past from moscow as well. the russians themselves are saying they would be willing to give data to the german authorities on the condition of alexey navalny. they haven't launched an investigation. they con

international demands for a "full and transparent investigation", after germany said it had proof that alexei navalnys man poisoned by russia for being a long—time critic of vladimir putin? he's alexei navalny, a persistent thorn in the side of the russian president, and he's currently in a coma in germany, the 44—year—old airlifted there after falling ill on a flight from siberia to moscow after he was seen drinking tea just before take—off. the german government say there is unequivocal proof he was poisoned with the nerve agent novichok, and that russia is responsible. translation: we expect the russian government to give an explanation. there are now grave questions, which only the russian government can and must answer. the german government holds russia responsible because it was developed by the soviets during the cold war. western intelligence agencies think it's been modified for assassinations. it causes the body's basic functions to stop working once the victim's been poisoned through inhalation, ingestion or absorption. that's how former soviet agent sergei skripal and his daughter yulia

meanwhile, alexei navalny remains in a serious condition in hospital. ng. but if mr navalny was attacked with a chemical weapon, the questions to the kremlin won't be going away. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. as the campaign continues for november's us presidential election, donald trump, who's a critic of postal voting, has suggested that people in the battle ground state of north carolina should try to vote twice, once in person and once by post, to test the system. voting more than once is illegal. his comments come as his democratic challengerjoe biden is due to travel to kenosha, to meet the family ofjacob blake, who was shot in the back by police. gary o'donoghue is in washington. still two months to go but we have a strong sense of the tone of all of this, gary. yes, we do, and i think this, gary. yes, we do, and i think this issue around voting is becoming a central part of donald trump's strategy in the run—up to november three. yesterday suggesting people in north carolina should mail their vote in and go and vote in person, which is not j

slapped on russia in response to the alleged assassination attempt against opposition figurehead alexei navalny russia's foreign minister has responded by saying many politicians in the block are all too happy to pass a promised your judgment well before any due process has been conducted. any discussions about the naming of the sanctions mechanisms are seen as an unhidden attempt of given in the mornings you your restrictions and you and to russian sentimental nature while at the same time that our proposals to berlin to conduct a joint investigation of the incident are continuing to be ignored the meat of pretexts the nature of the statements made in brussels makes one think there are all western partners do not wish to find out the troops while the action goals are to support the information pain unleashed in the european union in order to ensure that the european destructive course against russia becomes irreversible peter all of us has more on today's vote in the european parliament and what it could mean in future. $532.00 m. e p's voting in favor of this resolution $84.00 'd against with

oleg boldyrev, bbc news, moscow. letter is bringing more now on the situation of alexei navalny, the allegedly poisoned while on a flight back to russia. if the kremlin does not provide an explanation soon sanctions could be instigated. suggestion was that novichok was used against him. the russian opposition leader is any, in a birmingham hospital after being airlifted from siberia. let's speak now to tobias ellwood, former uk foreign minister and chair of the defence select committee. thank you for being with us. what do you think the outside world needs to do now if it is convinced that this was a deliberate poisoning by the kremlin? well, the first thing is that the outside world must pay attention as to what russia is up to, because this is all symbolic of an increasingly confident kremlin. president putin has secured the presidency for life, as we know and he is consolidating control. he is regrouping and substantially rearming and he has two clear objectives, firstly to strengthen his own domestic base, to remove opposition as he has done with alexei navalny and the other one

and russian opposition leader alexey navalny says he faces a long road to recovery. he grand jury in the u.s. has charged one police officer in connection with of the raid that resulted in the fatal shooting of breonna taylor. the 26-year-old was shot multiple times at her home in march. her death and that of george floyd led to widespread protests. the mayor of louisville has announced a 722 -- 72 hour curfew. protesters want all three officers arrested and charged. kentucky's attorney general says the officer charged faces three counts of wanton endangerment for firing into the apartments of breonna taylor's neighbors. >> the grand jury voted to return an indictment against placinge hankinson for the three individuals in apartment three in danger of serious physical injury or death. how have the charges been received? in a couple of words, not well. nobody we have talked to has been satisfied. that thing they bring up over and over is the fact that the three charges of wanton endangerment are because in a neighboring apartment there were three people who were endan

weibel talk about alexey navalny, russia'seading opposition leader, you can see him being taken inton ambulance. asgermany concluded heeen poisoned with a nerve agent with intention to kill. these are live pictures from north carolina, donald trump is going to be addressing those who gathered. joe biden has spoken an hour or so ago. >> american families across this country are paying the price for his failures. ros: this is two black holes comingogether, we know about this because 7 billion years ago, a shockwave was sent and arrived on earth last year. searchers will explain why we need to pay attention to ts. ♪ s: germany is being clepe about what hd to russia's high-profile opposition figure, alexey navalny. >> the presence of this poison was discovered without a doubts. it is now certain that alexey nalny is a victim of a crime. the attempt h was to silen and i condemned this. ros: he is being treated in germany and thetory dates back to august 20 when on became ill flight to siberia. he was airlifted to berlin and he has been in a coma since. laan merkel on what she expects from

treatingn hospital alexey navalny says he is out of his, and is responding. the staggering unemployment in ecuador. how and nation of jobless people is fighting to survive. ♪ hello and welcome to the program. saudi arabia has overturned the death sentence of five people convicted of the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi in turkey. they been given 20 years of prison instead. investigated who the killing called it a parody of justice. accusedaudi death squad of killing journalists jamal khashoggi was caught on camera entering the consulate in istanbul. khashoggi was interrogated, killed, and dismembered. all 21 men were detained by saudi arabia over the murder, much of what happened in the courtroom remains a mystery. secret andl was a close trial. there were no international observers. the names of the accused were not published, and there's no more appeal possible. so the nature of the evidence and every technical part of the trial has been questioned by internationally accepted judicial standards. >> five are given the death penalty but that has been cut

well the chief toxicologist in the russian city of squids 1st treated alexei navalny has poured scorn on math saying that mr novelli did not present with the symptoms that you would have if you had been poisoned with a nerve agent or not a chalk nerve agent for that matter these new this news coming out of germany is unlikely to placate russia moscow wants to see the data from the samples taken from alexa in the found me this data is now being shared with labs in france in sweden and moscow says it needs to see the evidence behind the claims made against it. the usual uses them raise questions. being speech we hear what statements want and what measures are being mentioned discussed or in war. these leaders leads us to only would rule republican question legion lost in search situations we've won you trace it erk we've pulled those who used to be. the one that won it if you demand explanations will deflect when the people and we'll compare ml's one should with the last elysia is uncorroborated by evidence even leases as you see your input reasonable. russian president vladimir putin i

chancellor angela merkel says alexey navalny was poisoned by a nerve agent. we discuss.s is bloomberg. ♪ good morning from bloomberg middle east headquarters in dubai. i am manus cranny. this is bloomberg "daybreak: europe." the rally for u.s. equities broadens. the fed beige book says risks remain. broad chipid to plan sector support to fight donald trump. the cdc tells estates to prepare for a vaccine by november 1. -- tells states to prepare for a vaccine by november. france unveils a stimulus plan today. german chancellor angela merkel says there is unequivocal proof that alexey navalny was poisoned by a military grade nerve agent, escalating tensions with the kremlin. 6:30 in london, seven: 30 in paris, as we get to the markets -- 7:30 in paris. we saw a rally yesterday. a debate between growth now and value as we see a shift in money across the sector. less just take a look at some of the markets. -- let's just take a look at some of the markets. the cdc saying to get ready for a vaccine. growth shares lost billions since 2016. do you become more discerning? do you

alexei navalny was poisoned in pressure with the same nerve agent.he german government says it ha proof. a french satirical magazine for dutch blished photos of the prophet muhammad and the office was brutally attacked. l the trgins today that might tell uy. facebook and twitter take action against a tout -- accounts linked to pressure trying to interfere with the u.s. election. how mucformation is being spread across the web? curfews in cuba. how havana is handling the latest efft to curb the coronavirus. welcome to "bbc world news therica." on pbs and aroun globe. germany says it has unequivocal proof that russian opposition politician alei navalny was poisoned with the same nerve agent used against a former spy in 2018. lynn says it made the conclusion based on its own toxicology reports. he says -- he is still in a german hospital in a the german chancellor says someone wanted to silence him and she wants answers. reporter: alexei navalny has been the most prominent oppotion figure in russia campaigning against corruption. a thorn in the kremlin'

well, pam, tonight there's a bit of good news for alexei navalny.clinic in berlin where he's being treated, his condition has been improved. he's been weaned off of the ventilator he's been on for weeks. and he's responding apparently to verbal stimuli according to the clinic. but the doctors there say they still can't assess at this stage what long-term damage may have been done by what they describe as a serious poisoning. pam? >> and the uk has summoned its russian ambassador because of the poisoning. is that right? >> reporter: it has. the british government has been expressing its outrage to the russians that this could have happened. dominic raab who is the british foreign secretary summoned the russian ambassador to register what they say is their deep concern about the poisoning of alexei navalny. it is completely unacceptable to a banned chemical weapon has been used and russia must hold a full transparent investigation. that's in stark contrast to the words we heard from president trump who still has not publicly accepted the evidence that

thing of alexei navalny saying that it's berlin that's not being cooperative with russia's only investigation. that's why russia ready for face 3 of the trials in its work towards a 1st coronavirus vaccine was the british medical journal concludes the drug big be used in antibody response to participants so far. in the french typical magazine charlie hebdo reprints its controversial mohammed cartoons reigniting debate on this the terror trial gets underway for 14 suspected associates 5 years after the attack. on good morning this is r.t. and. berlin and moscow remain locked in a diplomatic round of the alleged poisoning of russian opposition figure alexei nonviolently on sunday the russian foreign ministry question. to provide an explanation for what happened to him suggesting it's the german side that's not being forthcoming. if the german government is sincere in its statements it should respond to the request of the russian general prosecutor's office as soon as possible that was passed along on august 27 it is the german side that really lacks urgency but not sending a response believing

i say that the poisoning of alexei navalny with an advanced chemical agent is not a one off. we have seen the pattern angela in ukraine in syria and south ferry and an election meddling around the world and this pattern is not changing and no pipeline will change that well moscow is still saying burleson must share with them the evidence that is behind the claims alexei navalny was poisoned asserting if we consider any talk about how proper it would be to name the sanctions regime after in a valley to be a brazen attempt imbued the need the restrictions with obviously anti russian tendencies and all these companies are offering us to berlin to try to investigate what happened are ignored under some made of pretexts kremlin spokesperson dmitri press corps was also talking about nord stream too he says it's a putin commercial project and shouldn't be tied to anything political or diplomatic that's ongoing there was a similar feeling from russia's permanent representative to the european union he said that the north stream 2 pipeline project came about because of the european un

today'sen revelation strengs the evidence that alexey navalny s targeted by the russia state. question now is how the international community will respond. gordon corera, bbc news. katty: what will the west do? angela is an expert on russia and foreign policy and the author of the book "putin's world" and professor at georgetown university. what more did you learn from at the german governmentdeclare? >> first of all, i have be following russian-german relations for a long time and i have never seen chancellor merkel that robust agr direct and at russia. they obviously have incontrovertible proof it was novichok, and they are demandiny first, and inq the russian government says they will, cooperat one has to be extremely skeptical. the only reason we know about what happene in salisbury was because british authorities and other western colleagues were able to identify the poison and ultimately who did it. at the t moment, i thi first step is to report this as the chancellor said today,o the organizations for the prevention of chemical weapons, an international organization tha

august 20th, why do you think in summer, just before those municipal elections, the poisoning of alexei navalnyoes he think so, too? cos you must have discussed it with him. so, once again, many journalists asked question why you are not yet killed, like, in any interview alexei gives. and now in any interview alexei gave. and now is the same journalists ask questions, why it happened now? if we actually think a little bit, we realise that these questions didn't have much sense because when it happened, it should have happened at some moment of time, and which begs the question, "why now?" not really very sensible. but... my thinking is this — does it, in your opinion, in your opinion, does it strike you that it's a sign of putin and the kremlin feeling very confident or actually feeling a great deal of pressure? how would you read it? no, no, no. yeah, i realise. no, of course not. it's a sign of putin in the kremlin feeling very inconfident. so, one yearago, there was a direct order from kremlin to kill our political operations, to destroy our political organisation. so, several criminal alle

as soon as he emerged from his coma, alexey navalny, the russian opposition leader, apparently poisoned by novichok nerve agent, expressed his determination to return to moscow. but what future is there for an anti—putin political movement in a country where dissent is all too often seriously bad for your health? well, my guest is leonid volkov, opposition politician and chief—of—staff to mr navalny. is there any weakening of the kremlin's grip on power? leonid volkov in berlin, welcome to hardtalk. hello. good afternoon. it's a pleasure to have you on the show. you, of course, are in berlin because that is where mr navalny is still being treated in hospital. give us the very latest information on his condition. his condition is getting better. he's really understanding everything what's going around and he's able to, like, communicate with the outer world — as you can see on his instagram and twitter. and he's really doing remarkable progress. and we — his friends and the family and the staff — are very happy to observe his progress. and still, we have to realise it's a long way to go.

alexei navalny is the victim of a crime he was meant to be silenced and i condemn this in the sharpest possible terms in the name of the entire german government chefs. now the only remains in an induced coma at oberlin hospital and in serious condition the attorney and anticorruption activist fell ill after boarding a plane in siberia heading for moscow on the 20th of august it's believed someone poisoned his d. before he boarded the plane the pilot was forced to make an emergency landing to save life the german government says testing carried out by its military proves a soviet era nerve agent novi chuck was used. it was we expect the russian government to explain itself over this incident there are very serious questions now that only the russian government can and must answer. went on for. 3 years saying not only has been fighting to regress or of what he calls crooks and thieves. and you know the united russia party has always won for 20 years and even if they lost using fraud they won anyway. the outspoken opposition figure as organized numerous anti kremlin protests has been arr

result in a is asset freezes travel bans and other sanctions against those that are featured in alexei navalny zante corruption videos could also lead to they also want to see an international probe into what happened to alexa in the valley when they talk about an international probe that's including the united nations the european union the organization for the prohibition of chemical weapons and others all to be on side with that and it talks about blocking the construction of nord stream to the gas pipeline that takes russian gas or will take russian gas under the baltic sea directly into germany earlier this week we heard from u.s. it bottled the e.u. high representative for foreign affairs saying that wasn't within the remit of the e.u. institutions to do he said it would be up to the individual member states that are involved in the project if they were to council out call it off block it in any way or just temporarily suspend it however we have heard from the e.u. commission president saying now is the time for action and to those that advocates closer ties with russia i say that the po

wide response against moscow over the alleged poisoning of alexei navalny the russian opposition figure is in a medically induced coma on a ventilator in a berlin hospital 2 weeks after being are lifted from russia berlin said on wednesday he had been poisoned with a novacek nerve agent russia is calling for dialogue stating it's still received no data from germany on the findings meanwhile the president of belarus has weighed in alexander lukashenko claims that his security forces have information which casts doubt on berlin's poisoning allegation. we have intercepted a call as we understand between warsaw and berlin that clearly sounds it's all a full suffocation and the reasoning didn't take place they have done it quote to discourage putin from interfering in the internal affairs of belarus. but within the last few hours the german government responded to mr version of events saying it's not true while the kremlin says it has no details on the russian president's claims reporting on the international fallout from the alleged poisoning all by lex in the valley here's our tease peter

meanwhile, alexei navalny remains in a serious condition in hospital. r navalny was attacked with a chemical weapon, the questions to the kremlin won't be going away. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. almost six months after it was scheduled for its cinematic release, disney's live action remake of the film mulan is out on friday, but you won't find it in the cinemas. instead it's being released exclusively on disney plus, the company's own subscription streaming service. and with the film industry looking for ways to show theirfilms in a post—covid world, could it be a viable way forward ? joining me now isjulia alexander, a reporter for the verge and author of musings on mouse, a digital newsletter that focuses on everything going on in the world of disney. thank you very much forjoining us. thank you very much forjoining us. the hollywood premiere for this was back in march. as a disney aficionado you must be thrilled that you are going to be able to see it soon.|j thrilled that you are going to be able to see it soon. i am extremely excited to purch

yes, alexei navalny seems to have survived what appears to have been an assassination attempt. with a novichok nerve agent. it looks as though he has made very good progress. the doctors who have been treating him for well over a month here in berlin, a lot in intensive care, say he has made such good progress that is utter he no longer needs inpatient acute treatment. they say a complete recovery is possible although there is a caveat, they say it is still far too early to gauge the long—term effects of the poisoning. writing is of course for the poisoning. writing is of course foer the poisoning. writing is of course for mr navalny and his team. he has indicated he wants to get back to russia. the political consequences of this of course still rumbling on both here in berlin and across other western capitals. thank you. ministers are warning there could be queues of 7000 lorries in kent at the end of the brexit transition period if hauliers fail to prepare for customs changes. a leaked letter from michael gove to trade groups says the "reasonable worst case scenario" will mea

stakes over the sudden and so far unexplained illness of prominent russian opposition activist alexei navalny kremlin spokesman to be through. all allegations of state involvement in the case as unacceptable and absurd in their very nature or the german spokesman spin asked if they will scrap the north stream to gas pipeline project with russia as artie's peeta all of the reports. the german government press briefing the lunchtime press briefing wrapped up on monday putted with with questions about north stream 2 i think just about every other question made reference to the multi national infrastructure project the message coming out of the german government is that as it stands at the moment north stream 2 is an economic project and its own connected to the no valley case starts as it stands however that could change depending on how things develop that's pretty much the same message we're getting coming out of moscow with dmitri peskov the kremlin spokesperson saying it was too soon to lump nord stream too in with the no vonnie case at the moment now moscow had been not very happy at all wi

well as germany continues to push russia for answers over what happened to alexei navalny the russian foreign minister sergey lavrov said russia was still waiting on the information that it needed from germany. it's the use of your money the german representative to the u.n. said the data is no longer a matter of my last will relations between germany and russia but a matter for multilateral proceedings what kind of proceedings the germans are talking about they were unable to say in the interests of our german colleagues we urged them to provide all necessary information which might in any way should lights when absolutely unfounded accusations. well vested gaiters who are being carrying out a probe in russia are also looking for more information police in the city of tom square alexei navalny had been before he made that flight that was supposed to take him back to moscow and had to make an emergency landing in the city of of established a timeline of what happened in the lead up to election of ali taking ill they have missed in the valley at a hotel at a flat at a restaurant and at

the german foreign minister has demanded answers from russia over alexei navalny wants those answers in the coming days or you says talk of sanctions is back on the table he's also hinted at the 1st time certainly the 1st time we've heard from a senior member of the german cabinet talking about this about the future of the nord stream to gas pipeline previously started being put to one side even angle of merkel the german chancellor saying that wasn't it risk it does seem like that may be changing now ultimatums do not help anyone move forward but if never explanations follow from russia in the coming days we will have to discuss the response with our partners we have high hopes for the russian government to solve this serious crime or the russian foreign ministry say any delays in an investigation down to berlin not giving the information that moscow has been requesting if the german government is sincere in its statements it should respond to the quest of the russian generals prosecutor's office as soon as possible that was passed along on august 27th it is the german side that rea

meanwhile, alexei navalny remains in a serious condition in hospital. eapon, the questions to the kremlin won't be going away. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. they call it super thursday, the unoffiical start of the literary race to see which books will be "best—sellers" come christmas time. this year, the field is even more crowded, since many publishers delayed book releases because of the pandemic. our arts editor will gompertz reports. "there was something mythic, something almost ghostly in the name by which miss jane dean had become known in bath. "she was described as the angel..." dame rose tremain reading from her latest novel, islands of mercy — one of thousands of new books being published this autumn in a series of so—called super thursdays when publishers release books en masse with the hope of one of them becoming a christmas hit. it is a case of throwing mud against a wall and seeing what sticks. i think there has been an element of that, of publishing too much because nobody is making the right aesthetic judgments about what is really