china is building in strips in the south china sea on disputed islands condemned by an international tribunals this is now a flashpoint for war between china and america. what is not news is that china itself is under threat. these american bases form a giant news in circling china with missiles bombers warships all the way from a stranger through the pacific to asia and beyond. i mean if you were in beijing looking out stood on the tallest building in beijing and looked out of the pacific ocean you'd see american warships you'd see guam is about to sink because there's so many missiles pointed at china you look up the korean see american armaments pointing at china you'd see japan which is basically. japan's a glove over the american fist i think if i was chinese i'd have a little to worry about about american aggressiveness and we have china surrounded and we're doing more all the time to try and keep it surrounded and deepen that containment of china. but china presents a fascinating case of a country that is independent doesn't have foreign bases on its territory. growing very rap

arbitration tribunals ruled against china's claims to the strategic spratly islands in the south china sea in two thousand and fifteen the us navy refers to blockade that would cut china's lifelines of oil and trade and roll materials. the danger of confrontation grows by the day. the u.s. navy is on the doorstep of china regardless of disputed islands and is there with low draw off ships planes battle groups it's right on the doorstep of chinese ships what a few quid lindt was off california where we ask ourselves that question regularly and it's important to put yourself in the other guy's shoes so we don't operate in the pacific in an effort to scare china to contain china to back foot china our operations and our presence in first of all is warmly welcomed by the vast majority of the coastal states but secondly is fully accepted by the chinese time after time it's that excuse me is it fully accepted my impression there will by their words the chinese version is this good. then this is what they scared off a noose of bases right around china. drug war ships a provocation of law so they.

you can see this in the south china sea. it is heading towards the southern tip of the numb.r south of the nam. very heavy rain, damaging wind but also big waves around the coast. coastal flooding will be a problem. rainfall totals will mount up, we could see landslides. the storm continues to wea ken landslides. the storm continues to weaken before moving out into the gulf of thailand towards southern parts of thailand, so another heavy burst of rain and some strong winds likely here. storm will weaken a touch. it is quite slow—moving and it will have further impact. making impact on monday, could bring more than 300 millimetres of rain. flooding and landslides likely. as well as gust about 130 kilometres an hour. this is bbc news. our latest headlines: north korea says the latest un sanctions are an "act of war" as they amount to a complete economic blockade. pyongyang has vowed to strengthen its nuclear deterrent. rescuers are searching for victims of a tropical storm in the southern philippines. more than 200 people have died in mudslides and flash floods. emergency servi

other partners that our important and future potential settings with these operations the south china sea is an area where that immediately comes to mind in that regard where we seek rea and united states become much more active in to be not as well resources so they cannot make good use of what is developing for our own military spare go there is work to be done with those capabilities tailored less that our affordable that can be maintained and a sustained but to create the strategic advantages we need to be developing relation to the south china sea. so you might think about those sensors above water and below bader that are cheaply produced and master played in the 18th of less sophisticated rules the day you could profitably focus on but to ensure the partners in the region can have a more effective defense against adversaries. those are a couple of thoughts to support strategic elements the there is a tremendous amount of promise in the relationship. thank you. >> before i turn to audience questions that i will do shortly, i want to give our presenters a chance to respond. >> transl

a good example of that is in the south china sea, we used to do navigational operations in international waters. under the last administration, they did peaceful passages unaware the warships just passed through. that allowed china to become emboldened, allowed north korea to become more emboldened because they thought america was taking a backseat on the world stage. that is why it's so important we have a president that has a strong message. most people know where he stands. have reinitiated those operations in the south china sea to show that we are there, as long -- as well as with the military to military operations with south korea and japan, and we will continue those. they need to know america is serious that we are not taking a backseat. host: if we wanted to, could we shoot down these missile test? guest: you would have to ask somebody in the dod but as far as i know, we have a pretty good record of at least tracking them. there are other weapons out there that are not talked much about that would do a good job . let's hope we do not get to that point. richard from south caroli

dastyari also spoke in favour of china's claims in the south china sea.an awful lot of attention in australia. he has now resigned. was he basically forced to go? yes, i think the pressurejust built too much on sam dastyari when he gave a press conference earlier on. he said he realised he had become too much of a distraction within australian politics and for the opposition. he said that for the better good, i guess, the opposition. he said that for the better good, iguess, he the opposition. he said that for the better good, i guess, he would give up better good, i guess, he would give up hisjob and not return to better good, i guess, he would give up his job and not return to the senate in 2018. but his problems go way back. his political career is pretty short. he is only 34. he had beenin pretty short. he is only 34. he had been in the senate for some three or four years, but a year ago he had had to accept that he had accepted money from this businessman, who had paid for a travel bill he owed. then the embarrassment continued when he was found to b

it‘s currently over the south china sea, where it‘s picking up strength again and has been categorisedf the southern philippines continue the search for loved ones. they will be hoping for much more help to reach them in the coming days. well, sarah keith lucas from the bbc weather centre has the latest on the storm‘s trajectory, as it heads towards vietnam. the storm is now moving towards the west and on the satellite you can see the storm sitting here in the south china sea. it is heading towards the southern tip of vietnam. it is likely to weaken a little bit just making landfall around the south vietnam, a wide area is likely to see heavy rain, damaging winds and also big waves around the coast, so and also big waves around the coast, so coastal flooding will be a problem, further inland as rainfall totals mount up we succeed landslides occurring too. the storm will then weaken a little bit, moving into the gulf of thailand toward southern parts of thailand. heady bursts of rain and strong winds likely here. although the storm will be weakening a touch, as it is quite slow moving i

it's currently over the south china sea where it's picking up strength again and has been categorised, the people of the southern philippines continue the search for loved ones. they'll be hoping for much more help to reach them in the coming days. well, sarah keith lucas from the bbc weather centre has the latest on the storm's trajectory, as it heads towards vietnam. typhoon tembin caused devastation as it made landfall across the southern philippines. the storm is now moving towards the west and on the satellite you can see the storm sitting here in the south china sea. it is heading towards the southern tip of vietnam. it is likely to weaken a little bit just making landfall around the far south of vietnam, a wide area is likely to see heavy rain, damaging winds and also big waves around the coast, so coastal flooding will be a problem, further inland as rainfall totals mount up we could see landslides occurring too. the storm will then weaken a little bit, moving into the gulf of thailand toward southern parts of thailand. heavy bursts of rain and strong winds likely here. althou

it's currently over the south china sea, where it's picking up strength again and has been categorisedoon. it's expected to hit vietnam later this week. meanwhile, the people of the southern philippines continue the search for loved ones. they will be hoping for much more help to reach them in the coming days. two men have died in a crash involving five vehicles that closed part of the mao in oxfordshire for several hours last night. one vehicle is thought to have overturned in the incident which happened between junctions io and 11 near banbury. jo kent reports from the scene. this northbound stretch of the mao here between junctions 10 and ii opened again this morning and is running freely now. there is really no trace of the terrible crash which happened here last night. it was a very different scene last night as members of all of the emergency services raced here to try to help in the aftermath of this multi—vehicle crash. five vehicles were involved in it and we know that two men sadly died. they were a 60—year—old man from oxfordshire and a 29—year—old man from warwickshire. one

it is heading out into the south china sea and it is intensifying once again. winds of 185 kilometres an hour. it is heading toward southern parts of vietnam and is likely to make landfall on the southern tip, to the south of ho chi minh city. it could cause devastating flooding across a wide part of southern vietnam. we are expecting about 300 millimetres of rain to fall across southern vietnam with coastal flooding and even inland there could be flooding issues, as well as the damaging winds that will be sweeping across vietnam. it will then head out into the gulf of thailand, probably a bit weaker, but still bringing damaging winds and rain, before heading towards southern parts of thailand. wye we will keep an eye out on that storm. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come... we'll go to japan to meet the priests who see in the new year with a smile in what's known as a laughing ceremony. we saw this enormous tidal wave approaching the beach and people started to run and it was complete chaos. united states troops have been trying to overthrow the dict

and other contested areas so in the south china sea you might think about patrol boats or sensors booth above water and underwater that are cheaply produced in mass deployed and easy to maintain and you might think of less sophisticated defense capabilities in the areas we might focus on not so much for the development of our own military capability but to ensure that the partners in the region are able to bounce more effective defenses against potential adversary action in that context so those are just a couple thoughts about how we ought to be operationalizing research and development to support and i think there's a tremendous amount of promise in the relationship to do just th that. >> before i turned to the audience questions i want to give the presenters a chance to respond to the comments made. why don't you go first. >> [inaudible] >> translator: completely in agreement but not quite for my comments which were shocking but after all, i think he basically stands in agreement with what i stated because as i said, the three barriers which were those things that i mentioned t

philippines in two thousand and thirteen a tropical storm is now making its way across the south china sea towards vietnam thousands of flights southern areas and schools have been closed in the capital city all part of efforts to prevent the sort of devastation tempting caused to the philippines india style al-jazeera. m.p.'s in afghanistan some in senior security officials after at least nine people were killed in a suicide bomb attack in the afghan capital kabul happened near an intelligence agency building in kabul shushed neighborhood says it was responsible. peru's former president alberto fujimori has been pardoned because his health is failing his supporters celebrated the news outside the clinic where he's been since saturday after a big drop in his blood pressure he was serving a twenty five year sentence for corruption and human rights crimes committed during his ten year presidency from lima marianna sanchez now reports. he spent years in prison campaigning for his release. he never acknowledged most of the crimes for which he was sentenced to twenty five years. the former pres

the moment before then starts to clear away so at that stage as it pushes away across the south china sea certainly will seem brighter weather conditions across much of the region but city in particular and that become delta region could see some very nasty flooding from time been. the weather sponsored by cateye nice. witness documentaries that open your eyes at this time on al-jazeera. where every. you're watching the al-jazeera news are on the whole rob a reminder of our top stories this hour the u.s. says it will give you crane what it calls enhanced defensive capabilities in its fight against pro russia separatists the u.s. media reports that the new arms include antitank missiles also in the philippines nearly ninety people have died in landslides and flooding caused by tropical storm tembin most of the casualties are on the island of mindanao dozens more are missing . and ninety percent cut in pyongyang's petrol product imports and workers abroad to be sent home these are just the highlights of the latest u.n. sanctions aimed at forcing north korea to abandon its nuclear weapons an

create the kind of strategic advantages we need to be developing in relation to activities in south china sea and other contested areas so self sinus the you might think about patrol boats, sensors above water and underwater that are chiefly produced and mass deployed and easy to maintain and might think about less sophisticated literal defense capabilities in some of the areas we might profitably focus on not so much for development of our own military capabilities but to ensure our partners in that region are able to mount more effective defenses against potential adversary action in that context so those are a couple thoughts about how i think we ought to be operationalizing research and relevant to support strategic, a tremendous amount of promise in the relationship, thank you. >> before i turn to audience questions which i will do shortly, get your questions ready, scribble it down if you want, i want to give our presenters a chance to respond to comments made to the extent -- why don't you, first. [speaking in native tongue >> translator: he said he is in agreement but not quite for my

hundred thirty people and displaced tens of thousands has strengthened to a typhoon over the south china sea that is now heading for vietnam. and the president of guatemala jimmy murat this is his country will be following the u.s. example and moving its embassy in israel to jerusalem to all that was one of only eight nations just saw it with the u.s. in the united nations general assembly vote last week that rejected president donald trump's decision. now the president of peru has pardoned the country's former leader. on medical grounds throughout the one nine hundred ninety s. for him already held an grip on power in peru but was later given a long prison sentence for crimes committed during his tenure the former strongman supporters a cheering his release but others condemning the move. more. hospital bed his son kenji reads out the text of the pardon for quote humanitarian reasons citing doctors determination that he suffers from incurable and degenerative medical problems. i wasn't but on the streets of lima outrage at the pardon among human rights and left wing activists they say he sh

thirty people in displaced tens of thousands tembin has now strengthen to a thai food over the south china sea it is now heading for vietnam. now just months ago the iraqi city of mosul was a stronghold holds of forces belonging to so-called islamic state when i asked overran the city many residents fled to escape the violence of the extremists now with driven out many a coming back including mosul christians on sunday hundreds of them attended the first christmas since the city was liberated. i. christmas mass in mosul. a year ago it would have been unthinkable back then the city was under the firm grip of the so-called islamic state. but since the militants were driven out in july more and more christians have been returning home. it was said are met with without peace there is no life after update tree over islamic state messages that we missed old cold the peace the first in our hearts until it can be reflected on the outside. it's been six months since the iraqi army drove by as out of mosul replacing the militants flag with the national flag of iraq. but the city landscape has changed a

there are twenty provinces affected from the pacific side to do what's going to bring seaside or the china sea the chevrolet you want to quality and that's about eight hundred miles of land and most of the areas are printed on whom he has tried to get to on business a lot of boulders a lot of mud and people dying mares everybody in areas where rivers suddenly overtopped and conquered practically those living that were in there and the river side and also on the mountain side people are very thin much and so it's quite a while the warnings these are who are in areas that cannot be reached you can eat like communication and these are very poor families and families exam the communications equipment to be able to get the warning and so we have all these we will on a lot of the same amount of me here a lot of miles this is sorry another big one i've been flogged is a father who has mothers as are the children and they are not he leaves with a very pernicious fact that is going to see. a magnification of the cycle of poverty and these are syrian our country to corn in the philippines thank you for

hundred people and displaced tens of thousands and been has now strengthen to a typhoon over the south china sea it's heading for vietnam. to russia now where opposition leader alexei navalny has held rallies across the country as he bids to run in next year's presidential election he's hoping the show of support will persuade officials to overturn a ban on his candidacy due to a court conviction valley's considered the strongest potential challenger to president vladimir putin who is nevertheless expected to extend his term by another six years. a show of support for alexei navalny the opposition leader needed the endorsement of five hundred people to initiate a presidential bid but far more than that took to the streets on sunday here in new katherine burke and in nineteen other cities across russia. russia needs a new president and new economic policies we need to stop fighting and start working together. at the group and i came here because it's important the election is competitive. you know. because our country is stagnating and we need change. in moscow not only was cheered on by over sev

. >> and now this land makes the situation in the south china sea even more tense. >> and we're aware. we've been watching that very closely and i think we'll continue to watch that as we deal with tishss that keep coming up about the south china sea. >> yes. that's correct. that's correct. what should be done because of this binomo? >> let me find out exactly what our stance is on that and what if anything the u.s. is doing or thinks should be done and i'll report back to you on that, as well. >> so whatever or wherever this binomo is, nikki hay sli totally on the case. for the record, she really is the u.n. ambassador. binomo is not real. nikki haley not confirmed the call and not independently verified it was her on the phone but local south carolina press where she was governor is reporting that someone who sure sounds like nikki haley spent 22 minutes chatting with the fake polish prime minister. in addition to discussing the fake island of binomo, reportedly thanked the prime minister for obstaining from the u.n. vote and talking about russian aggression and did not leave the ru

from the asian-pacific bradley and the south china sea. nd various other areas we cannot find over china. we cannot brush under the rug the nefarious practices. on the other hand we cannot create a mortal enemy when we do not have one. that is a violence we have to strike and i think we're not quite fond of putting up your north korea obviously is a very important issue in which we have to work with china. but i think we have to be realistic. yes, china has the capacity to continue to tighten economic squeeze on north korea and we have seen that incrementally do so over the years. including in recent months. we want to encourage that. we want to be able to continue to work with china to ratchet up the pressure in united nations. and it remains a necessity. but also to have a productive dialogue with china about future scenarios that might unfold on the korean peninsula so that we are not surprising one another. but to expect china to go as far as we might like it to go, to put this sort of regime threatening destabilizing pressure on north

. >> one more matter is island binomo, it's not far from vietnam in the south china sea, you know. >>mo? >> yes. >> and now this land makes the situation in the south china sea even more intense. >> and we're aware of that and we've been watching that very closely, and i think we'll continue to watch that. >> yeah, so first of all lesson number one, if you don't know about something, just say you don't know about it and you'll like into it. she she'll handled herself well during most of the call. just to back up a little bit, the call was conducted by these two russian guys. for years they've bip doing these prank calls. it's sort of like howard stern except not as dirty and there's a political angle to it. because what they do is ask questions and they either want the person on the other end to embarrass themselves and embarrass their country. so a lot of people they've called are actually ukrainians or they've called to try to embarrass ukraine or their country. >> what is the core purpose of their satire. >> and they also illicit information. >> what are they getting at? >> they're

the east china sea.hina, running over international law in making extravagant legal claims to the space in the south china sea. the only combination of powers that can manage this, contain china's ambitions are the united states and japan and india, all democratic countries, all increasingly aligned with each other. in europe, we are facing an equally tough problem. vladimir putin has invaded georgia and crimea. in eastern ukraine, pressured the baltic states all over the last nine years. the intelligence communities of the united states said publicly about one year ago that vladimir putin interfered in our 2016 election. there is no question that the russian government is trying to cut the united states down to size and limit our power in the world. that is a second factor. we are also going to examine technology. because the technological military edge that we have, the qualitative military edge is being narrowed. not just by powers like china. but also by the fact that countries like north korea not h

. >> and now this binomo land makes the situation in the south china sea even more tense. >> we're aware of that. we've been watching that very closely. and i think we will continue to watch as we deal with the issues that keep coming up about the south china sea. >> so to her credit, there were parts of that conversation where she also seems somewhat skeptical and says, hey, i'll get back to you on the position of the u.s. the duo of the russian pranksters claim to have pranked nikki haley last week, spent 20 minutes on the phone with her. the u.n. hs. has reached out fo comment. we haven't heard from the mission. but what does this say about foreign affairs at that level that can be conducted? you have the ambassador allegedly going along with this and almost in agreement, not cutting it off and saying, i have no idea what you're talking about? >> be careful answering in too much detail a call or questions from somebody you don't really know who it is. i guess i would rather have russians pranking our u.n. ambassador than conducting military exercises, you know. this does remind me a l

but most of its military activities that we don't like are in the uninhabited islands of the south china sea and they're not attacking other countries they're not doing things that historically you know rising powers that at the beginning of the twentieth century for example you know my letter should have been a little more measured not mike let me say with you here i mean. put yourself in the chinese position in beijing and they read this report here and then they hear from the american white house or the state department why don't you help us more on north korea i mean if i was sitting in beijing i said well what are you talking about these are your words this is your official policy and you come to us for help i mean it's really quite remarkable the same thing actually can be applied to russia i mean bellicose language towards russia but then they say we need your help you're not doing enough to fight terrorism in i mean i do if you're outside that bubble it's really kind of odd rhetoric coming out of this government in thirty seconds i'll stay with you mike before we go to the break go a

. —— on the south china sea.yrighted. its name and products. that is owned by something called into ikea. based in the netherlands. while the rest of the company, the stores have to pay 3% of the revenue to this company and the netherlands for the rights. these royalties are taxed cheaply in the netherlands. it has to pay interest on a loan. it looks at these two things. was this really at these two things. was this really a commercial loan? is it fair to trigger a 3% of the revenue and move it to the netherlands and pay less tax? —— is it fairto take it to the netherlands and pay less tax? —— is it fair to take 3%. ikea says that it is committed to paying taxes according to the laws for ever it operates. the ceo's secret is to try to make people go into a new niche business. your business. figure out how to get into a business that they are used to, not make people change what they do. the strategy in general was to get mainstream film—makers to fill movies in imax and to get exhibition trains are multi—walled b

it's now over the south china sea. it's expected to hit vietnam in the coming days.son, bbc news, manila, in the philippines. two men have died after a crash on the mao involving a number of vehicles. 4 people were injured, one seriously. police and paramedics were called to the scene on the northbound stretch of the motorway in 0xfordshire just before midnight. officers from thames valley police are calling for witnesses. london zoo has reopened today after a fire on saturday killed several animals, and some staff had to be treated for smoke inhalation. britain's political leaders have used their annual christmas messages to pay tribute to those who help others. they also urge people to support those in need over the festive season. 0ur political correspondent, eleanor garnier, has more. wishing everyone a happy christmas, the prime minister thanked those who help others during the festive period, like volunteers at faith projects and international aid workers. theresa may highlighted the courage and dedication of the emergency services who went to the grenfell towe

you mentioned ukraine and crimea, china, the east china sea, the south china sea, the daily grind andr to grind them down to take away some of their sovereignty. we do not have good strategies to deal with that, and we've got to fix that. paul: all right, jen keane, thanks for being here -- general keane. >>> whenç we come back, charges of collusion clouding president trump's first year. so what have we learned so far about the trump/russia connection, and will the investigations heat up or fizzle out in 2018? ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ paul: it's the story that has dogged president trump throughout his first year, charges of collusion between his campaign and the russians. so with inquiries in both houses of congress as well as special counsel robert mueller's sprawling probe, just what have we learned so far about the trump/russia connection, and are the investigations likely to heat up or fizzle out in 2018? so, kim, take up that question. stepping back, let's look at what do we know right now aboutç trump/russia so-called collusion? >> here's what's notable, paul, is that you've had all these inqui

you mentioned ukraine and crimea, china, the east china sea, the south china sea, the daily grind ande instruments of war to grind them down to take away some of their sovereignty. we do not have good strategies to deal with that, and we've got to fix that. paul: all right, jen keane, thanks for being here -- general keane. >>> whenç we come back, charges of collusion clouding president trump's first year. so what have we learned so far about the trump/russia connection, and will the investigations heat up or fizzle out in 2018? ♪ ♪ nick is a logistical mastermind. when it comes to moving packages on a global scale, nobody does it better. he's also an avid cookie connoisseur. dig in, big guy. but when it comes to mortgages, he's less confident. fortunately for nick, theres rocket mortgage by quicken loans. it's simple, so he can understand the details and get approved in as few as eight minutes. apply simply. understand fully. mortgage confidently. rocket mortgage by quicken loans. ♪ ♪ paul: it's the story that has dogged president trump throughout his first year, charges of collusio

you mentioned ukraine and crimea, china, the east china sea, the south china sea, the daily grind andhe instruments of war to grind them down to take away some of their sovereignty. we do not have good strategies to deal with that, and we've got to fix that. paul: all right, jen keane, thanks for being here -- general keane. >>> whenç we come back, charges of collusion clouding president trump's first year. so what have we learned so far about the trump/russia connection, and will the investigations heat up or fizzle out in 2018? ♪ ♪ i am totally blind. and non-24 can throw my days and nights out of sync, keeping me from the things i love to do. talk to your doctor, and call 844-214-2424. the market.redict but through good times and bad... ...at t. rowe price... ...we've helped our investors stay confident for over 75 years. call us or your advisor. t. rowe price. invest with confidence. ♪ ♪ paul: it's the story that has dogged president trump throughout his first year, charges of collusion between his campaign and the russians. so with inquiries in both houses of congress as well as

philippines in two thousand and thirteen tropical storm tembin is now making its way across the south china sea towards vietnam thousands have fled southern areas and schools have been closed in the capital city all part of efforts to prevent the sort of devastation tembin caused to the philippines india style of al-jazeera. members of afghanistan's parliament of someone senior security officials after at least nine people were killed in a suicide bombing in the capital kabul it happened near an intelligence agency building in kabul's shushed back neighborhood i saw says that it was responsible as it was a good reports now from kabul. that track happened early morning rush hour when people go to their work to their jobs and the suicide attack happened in cheshire dark area of kabul this is a diplomatic it happens to be near the u.s. embassy nato headquarters and also the headquarters for the afghan intelligence now the sources telling us that a suicide bomber believed to be a teenager on foot walking to do to put through the afghan intelligence checkpoint and detonated his explosives now number

this christmas day having to deal with the effects of this storm as it moves out into the south china seawell. rob the philippines is regularly hit by weather events like this there are questions already being asked about why the government wasn't pres prepared as it should have been for this. there is there is a controversy there are accusations and counter-accusations now flying here yes people are saying why didn't the government make more preparations for this obviously the philippines is always affected by the storm it has to be said that mindanao largely hasn't had the kinds of storms that other parts of the philippines has historically have but people believe it is actually the effects of climate change that the other storms that normally affect the northern parts of the philippines now affect the southern parts of the philippines and and then to now is possibly not as prepared you do have a growing population you do have villages on hillsides looking for places to live that are more susceptible to these kinds of storms but the government for their part the authorities said that th

first message we're going to put, protect americans and protect their jobs, the south china sea, neil trillion worth of cargo goes through there every year. it is vital to the economic security of the free world. this president gets that. neil: what do you think? >> well, i think what is basically the principle here is that the united states national security doctrine will have to preserve united states national security and also the international security of our allies and i think the president is going to expand on that. we find ourselves in opposing positions with russia in many places and most of these cases are because of third countries. the most important case of course after looking at north korea is iran. we and our allies in the region, arab moderates and israel are in a confrontation situation with iran and russia is strategically supporting iran, and hezbolla so that has to be clarified and in addition to that of course russian expansion into other areas in the region but also into latin america, with venezuela, so we find ourselves in opposing positions because of the all

the tropical storm strengthened into a typhoon today, then moved into the south china sea. >>> miss goodrich on this christmas eve, santa will find a layer of high clouds over the bay area before making his way into your chimney, tomorrow sunny and mild, low 60s, so a little bit warmer tomorrow than it was today. today we managed readings mostly just in the mid-50s. we look live out toward sunset toward the west, concord 53 degrees, morgan hill managing 52. we cooled down. it was 2 to 5 degrees cooler than yesterday. santa rosa 54, san francisco 55 degrees. oh, isn't that a pretty sight looking over the bay and the embarcadero square in the foreground and what used to be called goat island, out in the distance, concord 53 degrees, san francisco 53, san jose 54 degrees and santa rosa 51 currently. futurecast shows high clouds over the bay area again between now and 11:00 tonight. there could be a drop or two as this almost dissipated cold front heads out of the bay area. tomorrow we get mostly sunny skies picking up a few high clouds on christmas afternoon, but that's about it. it has been un

is president and him changing the politics geopolitics of the philippines and the and the south china sea and usually all we hear about is he's a terrible because he's reputed to join or away from the u.s. but what's this are yes the hero president the headline from c.n.n. philippines president detached a says he'll protect g b t community as the lesbian gay and transsexual community are going to be protected by him her a for those who support that but hold on a minute wasn't the who originally said that he was against those rights and he's in the right thing for criticizing the changes were named or whatever the case is identity politics driven companies like c.n.n. are going to find it very difficult to report on this turnaround or what i'm going to say but here is right despite the misery of. trying to change his mind he's changed mine and that's to be celebrated it's an amazing talent around that salt i'm saying could also be to do with politics or getting on with a little trump actually don't know what the total trump stands on this either we are pretty sure how he stands on the. peo

it's very active in the south china sea. >> laura: what's a bigger threat to us, russia or china? is the bigger threat to the united states, russia or china? >> i suppose i would answer the question by saying it depends on who is in the saddle in those countries in which one is more likely to make a mistake. because it's not in either of those countries interest to engage us militarily. and it would only happen through an error and my personal view is the fact that trump -- i don't know president trump, i've never met him that i can recall, but i certainly think that his demeanor in the presidency is a deterrent for those countries. they >> laura: shoot from the hp kind of thing? >> he's not tucked in and worried and cautious, he's a bold leader and he speaks his mind. it seems to me that people sitting in the kremlin and beijing seeing that are probably respectful of the fact that it's not in their interest to engage in things that are disadvantageous for the united states. >> laura: president obama was over traveling in india and other countries last week and he talked about dan

but most of its military activities that we don't like are in the uninhabited islands of the south china sea and they're not attacking other countries that are not doing things that historically you know rising powers that at the beginning of the twentieth century for example you know my well should have been a little more measured not mike let me say with you here i mean. put yourself in the chinese position in beijing and they read this report here and then they hear from the american white house sort of state department why don't you help us more on north korea i mean if i was sitting in beijing i said well what are you talking about these are your words this is your official policy and you come to us for help i mean it's really quite remarkable the same thing that actually can be applied to russia i mean bellicose language towards russia but then they say we need your help or you're not doing enough to fight terrorism in i mean i think if you're outside that bubble it's really kind of. odd rhetoric coming out of this government in thirty seconds i'll stay with you mike before we go to th