ulris organises tours with a focus on latvia's soviet heritage. actually the most famous soviet era... we meet at the bottom of the country's first skyscraper, built in the 1950s. well, we've got stalin's cake, by later nickname, actually at the present moment the academy of sciences, and one of the most controversial and most significant buildings from the soviet era in riga. i'll be happy to get inside. there's quite a view here. oh yes, beautiful. almost the entire riga, it is possible to see from here. when it's not snowing quite so much? yes. of course. i made those tours for the last 20 years. those tours became more and more popular with the westerners, because you can see unique things from the soviet era. so what was it like for you to grow up under the soviet regime here? it was a hard time. so you had to queue? yeah, even to buy meat or butter. it was a hard time. so in the early 90s, independence was just around the corner, what were you doing? i was a student then, of course, i was on the barricades. we wanted not to be under control.

this then organises tours with a focus on latvia's soviet heritage. of the country's first skyscraper, built in the nineteen fifties. we have got stalin's birthday cake, by nickname, one of the most controversial and most significant buildings from the soviet era in riga. there is quite a few years. yes, beautiful. almost the entire riga, it is possible to see from here. when it is not snowing? yes, of course. those tours became more and more popular with westerners because he can see unique things from the soviet era. so what was it like for you to grow up under the soviet regime here? it was hard. you had to queue? yeah, even to buy meat or butter. it was hard. so in the early 90s, independence wasjust butter. it was hard. so in the early 90s, independence was just around the corner, what were you doing?” was a student, of course. we wanted not to be under control, we believed that we will live better without this huge big brother. yes. the russian bears still projects in shadow over the tiny country, but it is also part of its dna. about one infour

what is latvia trying to do you in this case that is president does he want to provoke question or make it more and secure what is he going for what do you think. well first of all lent is not a policy maker and we polish the takers whatever come on you know and union is foreign policy a well put forward a lot they will follow. be friendly towards russia. and well as. these military. nato. natives issue. well. to provoke russia middle are trying really is inconceivable so that is stern it remembers like the baltic states and poland which had to have a history with russia are the ones that are crying foul over they perceived rational threat meanwhile western states have little beef with the moscow well the insecurities and historical grievances of some members of the new be enough to polling here me and into a confrontation it really doesn't want you doesn't come military force ok germany's speaking about creating one e.u. army is. going to work this is well known to work and americans don't like good americans was their own vision of europe security as they have started creating a milit

from the state of lower saxony runs a company that extracts people in latvia. working in the more difficult heavy machines can easily get stuck in the soft ground. the soil yields not only peat but also a lot of dead pine trees some are up to two thousand years old the wood is shredded and then burned in the local power plant. by the these people so that we can keep an eye on the market higher in the baltic states so at the same time pete extraction is decreasing in northern. no but it's long to pull from of you need to get the permits are no harder to get because extraction is now only allowed on old farm land on. the topic of inflation eloped is. in germany peat can only be extracted if it lies under meadows and fields and latvia peat can be extracted from forest land but the land has to be drained first existing more land cannot be drained but peter extraction permits are relatively easy to get here and there's not a lot of red tape. another advantage is lower labor costs and the peat producers have agreed to rework the lands where peace has been extracted e

in group g, robert lewandowski was among the scorers, as poland beat latvia 2—0.. 2—0 in group i for belgium meanwhile. perfect start maintained. eden hazard and michy batshuayi on the score sheet against cyprus. also in that group, denis cheryshev scored twice in russia's 4—0 win in kazakhstan. and scotland won 2—0 in san marino. in africa, the last five places at this year's cup of nations have been decided. among the teams who've booked their places in egypt: the former champions — south africa and dr congo. percy tau scored both goals for south africa. they won 2—1 in libya — that qualifies them as runners—up of group e, behind nigeria. and cedric bakambu scored the only goal of the game as dr congo beat liberia to decide who qualified from group g along with zimbabwe. elsewhere, steve mounie scored the winner as benin beat togo 2—1 to qualify from group d. as mentioned, zimbabwe the group g winners they beat congo—brazzaville 2—nil. and, in group l, tanzania beat uganda — who'd already qualified — to join them in the finals. on to tennis — the defending champ

our next stop is riga latvia as capital. these singers have been rehearsing for five years only the best are selected to perform. such a low he was beat. me. a . lot b. a is celebrating its one hundredth birthday. with songs and music performed by the diplomatic choir erykah. singing is more than a hobby here or people grow up with song books. to. see at the same moment the well i. go into petra was barely three when she started singing at her kindergarten was the who was a. saint and been a i was born singing i grew up singing thing i spent my life singing. the procession snakes twenty kilometers through downtown riga. their repertoire of folk songs is simply vast. i. must do it and something happens inside you and you seeing and when ten people a hundred or a thousand people sing together it creates incredible power and energy and i think the night of the. close visit for us if there's one thing they can do it's to sing loudly and beautifully for a long time and with such conviction that in one thousand nine hundred nine t

but first, here's christa taking part in a chilly sauna challenge in latvia. better her than me! very quiet today, but that is all set to change when tomorrow morning, this place becomes a staging area for the madcap, high—energy and very, very chilly european sauna marathon. the clock is ticking, got to go! so, we need to visit all the saunas. they're marked in blue dots — 19 of them. a long day ahead! yeah. first stop, a traditional smoke sauna. in here, in here, you have to register. registered! 0k. let's go. i don't quite know the sauna ettiquette. i think i'm just going to throw myself in there. each team must spend a minimum of three minutes in each sauna. at around 80 degrees, plus a little extra heat coming from the crowd, you get warmed up pretty quickly. about three minutes in now. are you ready to hit the cold again? alright. let's do it. you see the ice hole down there? someone‘s gotta do it and it's not going to be me. i'll do it. it takes bravery to plunge into a frozen lake, but thanks to lilia, ten minutes will be deducted from our overall time. yes! everyone in?

doesn't cut it but i wanted i want to i want to stress an important issue isto the up together with latvia is a country in europe with the highest number of immigrant people overall we have once thirty five me. it's one third one third is not a stone yours now this is the backs you particularly noticeable. no you said it in twenty thirteen if you're black go back and i want to stone me and to be a white country these were your words in turkey thirteen television talk show here . but we were roundly condemned by other politicians including the human rights group here in parliaments what eighty percent of stone as if we had a there was apologists own eighty percent of a stone and agreed with that statement so take it as this event you presented with a stone and you would have been but you would have won the elections you don't win the elections we did very well but i want to us about this this visit this was clearly grimaces of what. we will get to the racism issue but this was back when i wasn't a politician in an elected office i was a talking head in a commentator show you haven't changed

considering the large russian populations in estonia, latvia and lithuania, where would we be if we hads in israel and the golan heights? the un is not going to take any action, but it does not mean to say it agrees with it. it is donald trump ignoring the rules—based world order. he is not the only one. putin has done it, the answer is he has done it and nobody has done very much about it. that is the reality. it is all very well saying we should not legitimise what has happened in crimea, but in a sense, we have, it has happened and nothing has been done about it. but it is important. these structures, like the inadmissibility of acquisition of territory by force are crucial, and john is absolutely right. there is an entire post—war architecture of european diplomacy, of diplomatic usage that can be undermined by a tweet. that architecture will survive trump, putin and many others. one hopes. much depends on the surviving of trump himself and we have to reassess that this week. indeed, the mueller report was handed over to the attorney general in washington on friday. we may learn mor

and coming up at 10:30, this week's travel show, which delves into latvia's soviet past with a visitriga. there's been a major space rocket launch in the united states this morning. it's paving the way for america to send astronauts into orbit for the first time in eight years. three, two one, zero. ignition, lift off. the spacex falcon blasted off from the kennedy space centre on an uncrewed test—flight to the international space station. nasa says it's a critical mission and, if successful, will be a major step forward in space travel. 0ur science correspondent pallab ghosh has more. three, two, one, zero. ignition, lift off. up and away. spacex's mighty falcon rocket, and on top, the dragon space capsule. designed to take four astronauts into space, but not just yet. instead, just a solitary crash test dummy, wired with sensors, is in one of these seats. this uncrewed test is part of an ambitious nasa project to send astronauts into space from us soil once more. we're doing things that are really risky, that most normal human beings don't do. and the designs and the complexity of

considering the large russian populations in estonia, latvia and lithuania.tions in israel and the golan heights? the un is not going to take any action but it does not mean to say he agrees with it. it is donald trump ignoring the rules —based world order. putin has done it, the a nswer world order. putin has done it, the answer is he has done it and nobody has done much about it. that is the output. it is all very well saying we should not legitimise what has happened in crimea, but it has happened in crimea, but it has happened and nothing has been done about it. these structures like the inadmissibility of territory by force a re inadmissibility of territory by force are crucial and john is right. there is an entire post—war architecture of european diplomacy and diplomatic usage that can be undermined bya and diplomatic usage that can be undermined by a tweet. that architecture will survive trump, putin and others. one hopes. that depends on the surviving of trump himself and we have to assess that this week. indeed, the mueller report was handed over in

but first, here is chris dictate in part in a chilly sauna challenge in latvia.y, but that is all set to change when tomorrow morning, this place becomes a staging area or the madcap, high—energy and very, very chilly european sauna marathon. the clock is ticking, got to go! so, we need to visit all the saunas. they are marked with blue dots. 19 of them. a long day had! first stop, a traditional smoke sauna. in here, in here, you have to register. registered! 0k. here, you have to register. registered! ok. i don't quite know the sauna to quit. i think i am just going to throw myself in there. —— ettiquette. each team must spend a minimum of three minutes in each sauna. at around 80 degrees, plus a little extra heat coming from the crowd, you get warmed up quickly. about three minutes in now, ie ready to hit the cold again? let's do it. you see the ice hold down their? —— ice hole downed there? some body has to do it and it is not going to be me. i will do it. it to do it and it is not going to be me. iwill do it. it takes to do it and it is not going to be me. i

latvia and luxembourg have full equal rights how angry does that make you feel. i'm i'm a journalist i don't have feelings. it is surprising was that report was eye opening because it also talked about only ten countries actually having gender equality. or equal rights on the books which i thought it would be more than that i i was surprised to see germany was -- thirty one in in america sixty five i think which is even more. shocking and i think disappointing as a woman but i think if you if you look at what's happening in i mean people are standing up and speaking about it more. that's not that's a change that i've noticed. i mean whether it's the me too movement whether it's a debates about who who's at the top -- certainly are are very up. colorful shall we say president that we have at the moment the united states if it that has really forced the debate are certainly american society you're you're hearing people are thinking a lot more. about the gender equality in and i agreed catching a feminist label to it -- i think has made it more palatable maybe for g

the world bank report says there's only six countries worldwide sweden belgium france denmark latvia looks and full equal rights angry does that make you feel. i'm a journalist i don't have feelings i mean it is surprising it was that report was eye opening because it also talked about only ten countries actually having gender equality or equal rights on the books which i thought it would be more than that i was surprised to see germany was thirty one. in america sixty five i think which is even more shocking and i think disappointing as a woman but i think if you if you look at what's happening i mean people are standing up and speaking about it more that's not that's the change that i've noticed i mean whether it's the need to have movement whether it's debates about who is at the top certainly are are very. colorful shall we say president that we have at the moment the united states that has really forced the debate certainly to american society you're hearing people are thinking a lot more about that gender equality and i agree that not attaching a feminist label to it i think ha

as stony and lithuania and latvia separate russia from the baltic sea. is located off the stony as west coast. the food. this is mari met us she has four children a lot of grief and a husband who works out at sea. and she also has a soft spot for old soviet motorcycles with side cars. you can still smell the exhaust fumes long after they are gone. there's only ten minutes left until school starts so mari has to hurry to get her children to class this morning. if that's the good looking very mellow over there not the kind of driving that you never know yesterday we were talking about it. it's morning is it not for this. dolly sad to say engine up working if some party says stop begging and it be a dollar fuck ups say i use a side car and usually have wooden side car it also seems inside the car and you can transport cheated on no time really. reading practices on the schedule today the school has three classes with a total of thirty five children the first lesson today is a stone ian in the class will be reading a fairy tale about a fox. oh sorry daughter

to step back for a minute, the russian money was going through the baltics -- lithuania, latvia and estoniaformer soviet states. most of them have big russian speaking populations. there is a lot of cultural connections with them. the scandinavian banks, the ones from finland, sweden and denmark, but a lot of these bought a lot of these baltic banks. they bought their weight in to these former soviet states. when they bought them, they got the same issues the banks had and did not appear to do much about it. danske bought a bank back in 2007, and for years let russian money roll through in an ever greater amount. yes, they bought into this issue, but they had plenty of time to do something about it and chose not to. it really was a cascade effect. danske appears to be the biggest hub of this. dbank andatie: julie others will also might have been involved with it, because all the money slushed through the baltic units of these scandinavian banks were linking to each other. carol: what is interesting -- you look at the history of the last 10, 20 years, it seemed like everyone was ok with so m

or latvia. have we wore gained what happened in the ukraine and crimea? how do we respond? it seems to me this is a challenge for our different posture. >> we've taken a close look at what's happened in the past and what we think could potentially happen in the future. the 1st thing i would say is, as a result of that, we've worked with our allies in poland, romania, bulgaria, along the eastern border. on what we have learned and also on the capabilities that we think we need is an alliance, them and us in order to deter this. our 1st perspective is, what we do today? to ensure that russia fully understands the commitment of article 5? for an alliance? >> but what's the definition of attack market seems to me that's the gray area that we are in. to know when and how to respond when it's not clear that tanks aren't rolling across the border. >> you hit that, the thing that i worry about most. >> you can continue that, i like that. >> you did. the thing that's difficult is not necessarily an actual attack that you can see coming. it's the kind of subversive undermining of the

know you touched on this, but look at me what happens if little green men appear in lithuania or latvia, have we war-gamed what happened in the ukraine, and crimea, how do we respond? it seems to me this is a real challenge for our whole deterrent posture. >> well, yes, we have taken, we've taken a close look at both what's happened in the past and what we think could potentially happen here in the future. the first thing i would say is, is as a result of that, we've worked with our allies in the poland, bulgaria, romania, along the eastern border on what we have learned and also on the capabilities that we think we need as an alliance, both them and us, in order to deter this. and our first perspective is what do we do today to ensure that russia fully understands the commitment of article five for an alliance. >> but the question is, how, how, what's the defense of attack? it seems to me that's the gray area that we're in, to know when and how to respond when it's not clear that it's tanks, that tanks aren't rolling across the border. >> well you hit it, i mean the thing that i worry

from austria, the chancellor said, an orderly brexit is becoming less and less likely and from latvia, britain, please tell us what you want. that is what the eu is asking now within the next week. yesterday the british chamber of commerce told mps their members needed certainty — pleading with politicians to ‘stop chasing rainbows'. has today's vote made any difference? joining me now is iain anderson, executive chairman of cicero —britain's biggest independent lobbying consultants. what is your reaction to what has happened today? more horror from a business point of view. we are stuck. i think we are stuck in a maze. it is absolutely impenetrable and we heard we are having a deal, no deal, the flip—flopping on this from politicians is just no deal, the flip—flopping on this from politicians isjust driving business is absolutely crazy. the real problem is that nobody can plan in this environment. we do not know where we are heading and frankly, at the moment i cannot tell you or are businesses that i advise, where we are heading in the middle of all best politics. we need some certa

they give both women and men equal rights of all the measured areas, denmark, belgium, sweden and latviaand luxembourg. the united states ranked 65th place. the u.s. has no federal paid family leave policy, according to world bank, workplace in equality contributes to $160 trillion loss in earnings worldwide. >> we don't say tril mulion mucn the show. >> women can move around on jobs as much as men can. >> access to capitol over bank accounts. >> harder when you combine entrepreneurship and access to capitol. that's a place where women don't do well. it is not a legal issue but it is societal issue. >> the lowest in parental leave. >> i point this out and one more thing. after those twelve weeks or 18 weeks for parents that the united states must address access to affordable child care. >> yep. >> you want to see parents go to work? help us figure out how to pay for it. >> in case you are heading to austin for sxsw, for information on where to see them in austin, follow nbc news on twitter. oh no, no, no, no, no, no, no... only pay for what you need. ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. liberty.