a group has claimed responsibility for the attack >>> the leaders of russia ukraine, france and germanyspoke on the phone about the crisis in eastern ukraine, coming after secretary of state john kerry warned of consequences of the kremlin and pro-russian separatists. fragile truce is holding in the east where fighting killed 6,000 people in less than a year. if there continues to be a broad swath of noncompliance or a cherry-picking where it has been moved back from or where to. inevitable inevitably it there's be consequences adding strain on russia's troubled economy >>> pro-russian separatists withdrew weapons, both ukraine and the rebels are acting in line with the deal made in minsk. john hendren reports in rebel held donetsk. >> reporter: the machinery of war keeps rolling. the silence is deafening. that's hours. the ceasefire is holding. ceasefire can't exist. small shells landed on our side before being fired back. fired at us. occasional volleys violate the ceasefire, a report found 6,000 people have died. separatists say it is ukranian forces that violated the ceasefire. >> w

in eastern ukraine russia in eastern ukraine, russia and its separatist puppets have unleashed unspeakable violence and pillage. this is a manufactured conflict control by the kremlin, fueled by russian tanks and heavy weapons, financed at russian taxpayers expense. it has cost the lives of more than 6000 ukrainians, but also of hundreds of young russians have also lost their lives in eastern ukraine, sent there to fight and die by the creme lip. when they come home in zinc coffins -- "cargo 200," the russian euphemism for war dead -- their mothers, wives and children are told not to ask too many questions or raise a fuss if they want to see any death benefits. throughout this conflict, the united states and the eu have worked in lock-step to impose successive rounds of tough sanctions, including sectoral sanctionson russia and its separatist cronies as the costs for their actions. our unity with europe remains the cornerstone of our policy toward this crisis and the fundamental sort of strength. and it is in that spirit that we salute the efforts of german chancellor merkel and french pre

since then russia has thrown its support behind separatist rebels fighting in eastern ukraine, and that triggered a sanctions war between the west and russia, polarizing trade and threatening security in europe. new front lines between east and west have hardened into a new iron curtain of sorts of the this one runs through russian controlled territories in ukraine, moldova and georgia, where russia announced a treaty with the secessionists that controlled south ossetia. all the nations in blue responded with more defense deployment. increasing tension that russia has with the n.a.t.o. alliance. europeans were hoping to celebrate the end of the last war. symbolized by the fall of the wall a quarter of a century ago. europe opened up to a cold war, one dividing the continent between east and west. the refusal by russia and the west to acknowledge the interests of the other means the conflict is here to stay for the foreseeable future. ukraine's crisis was the catalysters it was russia's moves crimea that made it attractable. rory challands is in crimea where they are marking the one year

the ukraine/russia conflict. that will start shortly and we will take you there. >> here at the senate foreign relations committee will be a hearing about the ukraine conflict. federal officials will be testifying. there has been progress toward a cease-fire with russian backed rebels and creating a buffer zone in ukraine. the president of ukraine says they have pulled act from the frontline -- back from the front lines. we are waiting for the ranking member bob menendez. this should begin momentarily. >> the committee will come to order. we will begin this by expressing the condolences to the family of forest them solve. -- boris nemsov. he sought a better future for his people and we must remain committed to a democratic russia at peace with itself and its neighbors. he was critical of vladimir putin's aggression in ukraine. russia has continued its occupation of crimea and the destabilization of the region. we made a commitment in 1994 to ukraine -- defend ukraine. that has been under assault for more than a ye

he was taken by russia from ukraine. there is just continued efforts and the russia's violations of its agreements, including the minsk ii cease-fire. i'm pleased to see you're looking at additional sanctions. understand that it's going take u.s. leadership. if we wait for europe to act it's not going to be effective. we have to be out there and with our european partners. but it's going to require the u.s. leadership. i want to change gears for one moment if i might. i think we've had a lot of questioning on the defensive issues. i want to get to the economic front. my assessment from visiting kiev was that what happened in the protests there were as much about basic rights and economic rights as it was about political issues. so as we look to ukraine being able to defend its borders and being able to control its territory, we also at the same time have to make sure that they have an effective government with the institutions that protect the lights of all of its citizens to express his view's be treated fairly as well a

phil ittner joining us from london. >>> not justifying what russia has done in crimea and ukraine. sounds like he's trying to have it both ways. i'll challenge him next. our special coverage of the cold cold -- new cold war murder in moscow returns. >> vladimir putin rules russia in ways most americans find repugnant but his job is not to please americans. that is one of the provocative points made by stephen kinzer with the op ed, putin's push in ukraine is rational. visiting fellow at the watson institute for international studies. steven thank you for joining us. in this op ed you go on to write, quote, before the united states sends weapons or military advisors to ukraine we should stop to consider how we would react if russia did that in mexico or canada. end quote. explain this to me, why are you defending putin? >> in the first place i'm not defending putin at all. i'm trying to understand his motives. i like to justify the world, where all states are legally equally and they don't interfere in each other's affairs. strategic depth, means you don't want to have your enemy rig

russia's opposition soldiers on. >>> crisis in eastern ukraine has been top of the agenda at a meetingropean ministers in the latvian capitol. they will continue its stance on sanctions against russia for its involvement in the conflict. let's talk now to the ukrainian ambassador to the u.n. thank you very much for joining us on the program. more observers in europe. will this make a difference? >> sorry? >> i'm asking if more observers in your view will make a difference. >> so -- what -- what we have in the security council today, the observations are the following: this regime is very fragile. there is no verification of what the militants, rebels are doing, how they are fulfilling their obligation, so the observations are exactly different. the -- what we are doing on our side is well observed by though oec. what the rebels are doing on their side is not well observed. >> this is the right plan of reinforcing the ceasefire rather than putting more sanctions on russia. >> the european union is welcome to perform two things. two continue sanctions, this is what they deliberated on an

was sanctioned official supporting russia's aggression in ukraineand targeted key sectors of the russian economy and have seen results. russia's economy has been taking on water, and this has only been magnified by the recent dip in oil prices his his policies are good but only up to a. russia's military gains of slowed but putin continues to grab land along the line of contact in violation of the cease-fire agreement which mandates russian supported rebels pull back the forces. the government is committed to reform but leaders struggle every day to preserve ukrainian sovereignty. while our financial assistance has kept ukraine economy afloat they still confront a bleak economic outlook and the risks of a financial meltdown loom large. when ukraine gave when ukraine give up its nuclear arsenal in 1994 the united states made a commitment a commitment to help protect ukrainian territorial integrity. that that commitment was also made by russia uk , china, other countries, but our commitment is being tested. let me also say i think nato made a grave mi

everyone says ukraine cannot beat russia. can russia take those weapons away from ukraine? what is our position on arming ukraine? >> thank you. and thank you for your support as ranking member of subcommittee. with regard to managing our response on ukraine, spend almost as much as time working with nato and you -- eu partners because the community is so important and it makes it impossible for the kremlin to divide up. all 28 nato allies have provided some form of security assistance to ukraine. that is one of the commitments we made to each other at wales. it can take the form of training. it can take the form of medical needs. the u.k. in poland just announced they will start training ukrainians along the lines of notifications that we have sent up to you all. where the divide happens and where the debate happens, and there are folks on both sides of the debate, is the question of the lee -- the question of the leaf ballot he of the weapons. -- lethality of the weapons. the president has discussed this with his partners, most notably with chancellor merkel. that convers

given russia's actions in crimea and ukraine is intimidating russia not a necessary and rational strategy? what's wrong with nato's policy? >> immediately after the cold war there was a surge of power in the west, we thought we could extract away sanctions we wanted. but now we are seeing the backlash. russia felt isolated and alone and increasingly surrounded by the united states. not just politically but even in terms of the nato alliance. there were outspoken calls in the united states and elsewhere for countries bordering on russia to join nato. we have already got russian miferlsmissiles peeking into estonia and latvia, now the area around russia has awakened russian nationalism, president putin's popularity ratings are going through the ceiling. >> i really hear you. but those people whose countries border russia, lath latvia, lithuania l estonia poland, would supersede the rights of superpowers to have their buffer zones and their strategic debt. depth. >> i would say that's true but we live in the real world. i would say in the basket of countries you just mentioned you're mixing

moscow is also undermining ukraine's economy. today, russia is using his natural gas and other energy sources for political corrosion and to generate economic chaos in the country. ukraine is facing an economic precipice. it desperately needs help. meanwhile, russia is winning the battle on the airwaves and they are doing it by broadcasting out conspiracy theories and propaganda. anyone who is monitored is well aware that this propaganda is offensive, is aimed at sewing confusing to its aggression in ukraine and elsewhere. we are barely in the game of countering this. as i told the secretary last week, i would like to see more administration support for the effort mr. angle and i have undertaken. the broadcasting board of governors is broken. if we cannot begin to change minds, the struggle over ukraine today will become a generational struggle for the future of eastern europe. ukraine's fate has security implications well beyond its borders. we pass this bill into the senate last year, we were not able to bring it up get it out of the senate,

i have a little more pessimistic view on this in that russia's goal to have federalized ukraine where they defacto can influence the east use as a veto to control the region. what do you think about that. >> that may be russia's goal but that doesn't mean they get there. >> when i view these statistics , to become a that is why i am pessimistic. people are not sure where they want to go and i worry we will see a lack of will to the west. they don't really know where they will go and russia can use this and leverage this to influence the country. >> i would emphasize that the more ukraine moves westward, the greater the opportunities are for russia to try to influence the eastern part of the country because you will have more alienated people in the eastern part of the country. to the extent that people in the east have a assurances that they're not going to be pulled, kicking and screaming into europe, the less russia will have a source or means of leverage. >> well, thank you very much. i think we'll probably leave it at that. we've gone a little bit over the time but not too much. t

it provides aid to the ukraine and imposes additional sanctions against russia. this was necessary in december and it is necessary today. we all want a diplomatic solution. but i believe this can only come about when the cost of ravaging the ukraine is to live. providing nonlethal equipment is well and good but giving ukrainians the ability to see russians, and but not the weapons to stop them is not the answer. night vision goggles are one thing but providing antitank and antiarmor weapons drones, secure communications better, it would be fought better. i have disappointed the administration required to report to congress on its plan for increasing military assistance to the ukraine has yet to send us that report. i was glad to join with the senator yesterday on the importance of providing defensive weapons and that we need to see this overdue report. it is time to impose additional, target extensions on the russian energy sector to add to existing sections. the administration should tighten restrictions on the development of arctic drilling and offshore drilling

ukraine. if russia's aggression on the west reaches the frontiers of our nato allies, the dangers to europe increased tremendously the dangers to the nato alliance increased tremendously. in december, congress unanimously passed the ukraine freedoms were act. this legislation authorized the provision of lethal defensive aid. i was out to lead efforts to pass this legislation and happy that obama signed it. i have been disappointed that the administration has not used tools provided. it is time to ask hard questions. are we willing to stand up to aggression before he kills more people? further destabilize his europe? threatens our allies? or are the risks so great that we will simply cut our losses yet go time passes, our options grow fewer and less effective. that is why i am announcing my plan to introduce new legislation. it will offer ukraine greater assistance on a variety of fronts. able die let the pressure on vladimir putin for his destabilizing policies it will send a clear message that the united states stands the people of ukraine against russian aggression. i look forward to working with c

ukraine. the meeting comes just days after kerry publicly accused russian officials of lying to his face about their military support for separatist rebels. russia and ukraine are also holding direct talks in brussels to resolve a dispute over the delivery of russian gas. the u.n. said today the death toll from the nearly year-old conflict has topped 6000. a recent ceasefire continues to hold after a shaky start. iraq has launched a new military operation to retake the city of tikrit from the self-proclaimed islamic state. thousands of iraqi forces and militia fighters have converged in the city samarra to strike nearby isis strongholds. the u.s. is expected to provide air support as part of its continued bombing campaign. the offensive comes as the iraqi military prepares for a major u.s.-backed operation to retake mosul from isis in the coming weeks. opposition groups in syria have rejected the u.n.'s plan for a temporary ceasefire in the northern city of aleppo. u.n. envoy staffan de mistura recently won a pledge from the regime of bashar al-assad to stop attacks on aleppo for up to six weeks. but aleppo's revolutionary council says it won't

i asked him if russia was involved in ukraine, which russia denies. >> w we can see the group. cease-fire wl be effective. this is our best hope to stop the killing of innocent civilians in ukraine. how nato gets intelligence -- this is the psalalm of the -- sum of the intelligence, plus other capabilities. at the e of the day, there are 28 nations assisting. that is why the secretary general of nato can express himself in the name of the nation' -- natio. iill follow hiown declaratation. we kno involvement must stop. we he seen whahas happeneded in crimea. we have seen what has happened in eastern ukraine. many in nato ourur pushing for ththis --are pushihing for the ase-fire. far as nato is concerned, i would just remind that ukraine is not a member of nato. weust make sure that na is ready, in any se. nato is a defensive alliance, an alliance of peace and security and we must show we are ready to defefend peace and security for the 28 nato members. vago: have you seen anymore about how russia's tactics are changing? whatat are l lessons that can be derid, so that nato is prep

secretary of state says moscow and pro-russian separatists in ukraine must fully implement a ceasefire or russia will face further consequences. john kerry calling for an examination of human rights violations in ukraine. the ceasefire is holding despite hundreds of lives left around donetsk and debaltseve. barnaby phillips has more from geneva. >> at a lake side hotel in geneva, another round of talks between john kerry and sergey lavrov. they know each other well but they seem to be having a dialogue of the death. mr. lavrov says the minsk agreement is starting to have a positive influence in ukraine. >> translator: the ceasefire is starting to take hold. those calling for weapons deliveries to ukraine will bear a heavy responsibilities for breaking the peace process. >> john kerry says the minsk disagreement was being selectively implemented and threatened more economic sanctions against russia. >> if there continue to be these broad swaths of noncompliance or there continues to be a cherry picking as to where heavy equipment will be moved back from, without knowing where it's been moved to,

ukraine's east. they called on russia to leave the territory and honor the minsk peace agreement. more than 6,000 people have been killed in eastern ukraine since the conflict began nearly a year ago. >> we have seen and still see russian presence and strong support for the separatists in eastern ukraine. we have seen the delivery of equipment, forces, training, so russia is still in eastern ukraine. they have over over a long period supported the separatists. >> the u.s.-imposed sanctions on eight pro-russian separatists who are accused of causing conflict in the eastern ukraine. there have been sanctions on the russian bank and national group. they say they will deliver humvees and drones to ukraine. let's go to fred who is in moscow for us. >> it is a symbolic political statement by the americans i think they're still interested in putting the screws to russia, keeping the pressure on even though the europeans seem to have lost their appetite for nor sanctionsfor for more sanctions for the time being as long as the minsk agreement is in place. there may an rift widening between

or du tailor your impact and create a circumstance so that that element of russia-ukraine will be stabilizedthough -- bill: russians don't get to make ukraine's sovereign choices no more than we can get them to make those choices. i think you have clearly seen an interest in some sort of association with the european union and they see that as offering a lot of economic opportunity. charlie: and in doing that, do they give the back of the hand to russia? bill: not necessarily. without being poly on a -- pol lyanna-ish about it, recent circumstances make it hard to think in these terms. it is entirely conceivable that ukraine that has more of a connection to the eu can be of benefit to russia as well. economic connections will be very important. it is not impossible to find that kind of balance. a lot of that sense has been lost in the crisis over the last year. charlie: it must be frustrating to be a diplomatic you think the -- diplomat when you think the other person cannot think rationally. bill: sometimes but you don't get to do things rationally all the time. one of the starting points f

frankly we suspect the russia ukraine crisis is probably coming to an end as a market factor now.s more back to the macro fundamentals. >> china, india, mexico, poland those are your overweights. why? >> china, india, because they're very good reform stories and obvious structure reform stories. in india our favorite market above all. we like mexico because of its tie to the u.s. economy. which continues to be the best house in a pretty tep pid neighborhood in terms of global growth. also we've been surprised for the scale of the losses as far as the pesos is concerned and we think it looks oversold even in this strong dollar environment and po lanz is a nice leverage play on what is the growth pick-up going on in the world economy which, of course, is what's happening in the euro area as far as we're concerned. >> steve has a question for you. >> two of the countries, mexico, about 30% of their revenues, their tax revenues come from energy so are you concerned with that and go to poland where some polls reading in the paper are concerned they're next for russia to move into. i th

no nato, no eu, and you ukraine back within russia's border. that's the agenda he could go after other pieces of land. guest: i think ukraine is so central. 40 odd million people 1027 years of combined russian-ukrainian history. if russia brings ukraine and and it has been a ready in the eurasian union, this concern about the baltic states -- i tend to think moscow realizes that the article five defense clause would escalate it massively. they are messing around the border of nato to cause problems and threats, to make it pretty clear that russia can be very difficult. [indiscernible] francine: tim, thank you. guy: still ahead greece may have won a four-month extension to its bailout, but the greek banks are dealing with a liquidity crunch. how will they use their limited resources? we are going to talk to the ceo of one of the biggest banks in the country. that is coming up shortly. ♪ francine: welcome to "the pulse ." guy: let's turn to greece now as the country tries to fulfill its agreement with its creditors. the liquidity squeeze is addin

to me indemnify is a symbol of a russian citizen that connects ukraine and russia and sincerely respects ukraine. >> volunteers have delivered a much needed humanitarian aid to a town in eastern ukraine not far from the front lines. the town of poposna has been left battle-scared. 90% of notices who live there have fled, those who remain are too old or too poor to leave. >>> still to come, is israel's prime minister about to rub salt in the wound? >> individuals in government who want to control. >> and why it's a confusing picture for tv viewers in kenya. he's out there. there's a guy out there whose making a name for himself in a sport where your name and maybe a number are what define you. somewhere in that pack is a driver that can intimidate the intimidator. a guy that can take the king 7 and make it 8. heck. maybe even 9. make no mistake about it. they're out there. i guarantee it. welcome to the nascar xfinity series. >> every monday night, al jazeera america brings you conversations you won't find anywhere else. >> it's nice to be doing something everybody is so aware of. >> is a

moscow is also undermining ukraine's economy. today, russiausing it natural gas and other energy sources for political coercion and to generate economic chaos in the country. ukraine is facing an economic precipice. it desperately needs help. russia is when it the airwaves and they are -- winning on the airwaves and they are doing it by bouncing out conspiracy theories and propaganda anyone who has monitored what has been up on the air is well aware that this propaganda is offensive, is and at sowing confusion and undermining opposition to its aggression in ukraine and elsewhere, but we are barely in the game of countering this with the facts. as i told the secretary last week, i would like to see more administration support for the effort mr. engle and i have taken to perform our international broadcasting. the broadcasting board of governors is broken. if we cannot begin to change minds, then the struggle over ukraine today will become a generational struggle for the future of eastern europe. ukraine's fate has security implications for well

. >> before he was killed, boris nemtsov was working on an investigation into russia's military involvement in ukraine. that will still be published. and the rally is being planned for mid april. despite its trials and tribulations, russia's opposition soldiers on. >> russia and ukraine have agreed to double the number of osce observers in eastern ukraine. a truce is said to be largely holding despite continued fighting in donetsk and other flash points. but on friday a car bomb in the city left two people injured. simon mcgregor wood explains. >> the car exploded as it passed through the suburb that belonged to the leader of a pro ukrainian militia. he was injured, so too his wife and his brother. all said to be in stable ndition. the local police say that they think the explosion was caused by a magnetic mine. just the latest act of what the ukrainian authorities are calling terrorism they have accused russian-backed groups of trying to open a new front to destabilize parts of ukraine they want to control. on the 22nd february a bomb exploded during a pro-ukrainian rally in the same city. four peopl

russia refuses her of being behind the killing of two russian journalists at a check point in eastern ukraine last summer who were killed there. they say she crossed into russia as a refugee seeking asylum and was then detained there. kiev says she was kidnapped and is a prisoner of war. they say she will continue her fast, her starvation until she is released to ukraine or she dies in prison. this is why she has become a national national heroin. cnn, kiev. >>> ahead, through coup allegations by venezuela. the president there claims americans have been arrested. >>> plus a police chief who worked on the jonbenet ramsay case 20 years later. ale announcer ] only aveeno® positively radiant has an active naturals® total soy formula. it helps reduce the look of brown spots in just four weeks. aveeno®. naturally beautiful results™. ♪♪♪ if you can clear a table without lifting a finger... you may be muddling through allergies. try zyrtec® for powerful allergy relief. and zyrtec® is different than claritin. because it starts working faster on the first day you take it. zyrtec®. muddle no more™. >>>

the gray zone of russia struggles from your russia ukraine all the way to the south china seseas ande know about the middle east. this kind of a resolion budget issues makes us look weak and nocredible. it's a real challenge for our credility and our allies and partrs are very word about it. from europe throughout the middle east into east asia, they're wondering if we're going to be there. >> this could just be the beginning and termof credibility. if we can't t come to resolution we will eventually have to stop -- start cutting our overseas obligations. >> i want pursue that pointnt in a minute, but more immediately, if the pentagon is not going to get more money and they're not going to a surure -- frank kendall has come out and said the acquisition chiefef has said that there's not going to be a list the administration will send on what to cut. what a are some of the things that will be targed to make up this difference? $35 billion is a lot of money. >> the department is doing at at its o peril. it is very likely that they will end up within the budget caps. maybe ifif they'reuc

. >>> the leaders of russia, ukraine, france, and germany have they would held a telephone coughingsis in east turn ukraine coming off john kerry warned if the kremlin and pro-russia separatist fail to fully implement a ceasefire. fighting has killed more than 6,000 people in less an than a year. john hendon reports from rebel-2ke8d anheld donetsk. >> reporter: the machinery of war keeps rolling through a fragile ceasefire the silence is broken daily by small arms fire and mortars. that's hours he says. >> translator: in principle the ceasefire is holding but there is regular small arms fire so complete ceasefire can't exist before you arrived here several small shells landed on our side. before we fired back, there were grenade launchers fire at us. >> reporter: as occasion volleys routinely violate the tenuous ceasefire, a report released monday by the united nations found 6,000 people have died so far. separatists say it is ukrainian forces who are violating ceasefire. >> translator: the ceasefire from our side, we are not just trying, we are upholding it completely. the firing ye

since russia's invaded ukraine, nato has tried to present a united fro to reassure member nations. ssia has been hiwith sanctitions, and natoo increased troops, training, and a task force. that unity appears to be showing signs of cracking. ov the past several weeks, european newsto stories have criticized top nato leaders including the top commander, for being too touough on russia, accusing him of exaggerating russia's role in ukraine and provoking moscow. last week, leaders met in washington for their annual stratetegic off-si. we caught up with nato's deputy secretary-general, alexander hirschfeld -- hirshbaugh. i asked how to deter russia. guest: i would agree tt unity is the most precious asset, but i think the alliance is more unified than it has ever been. at the beginning of the crisis last year, there were some allies in a bit of denial about whatat was going on in crimea. today, i think we are united in standing fm, making clear to the russians this is unacceptable behavior. they violated every rule in the book and are going to pay a price. i think general breedlove enjoy

. >>> the leaders of russia, ukraine, france, and germany have held a telephone conversation on the ongoingastern ukraine. both ukraine and the rebels say they are acting in line with the deal made in minute of course last month. but the u.s. says pro-russia separatists have only withdrawn weapons from some parts of the front line, john lend ron reports from rebel-held donetsk. >> reporter: the machinery of war keeps rolling through a fragile ceasefire. >> reporter: the silents is broken baby lie small arms fire and mortars. that's ours he says. >> translator: in principle the ceasefire is holding but there is regular small arms fire so complete ceasefire can't exist. before you arrived here, several small shells land odd our side. before we fired back, there were grenade launchers fire at us. >> reporter: as occasional volleys routinely violate the tenuous ceasefire a report released monday by the united nations found 6,000 people have died so far. separatists say it is ukrainian forces who are violating the ceasefire. >> translator: the ceasefire from our side, we are not just trying, we

a war of words between russia and nato over u.s. troops in ukrainessia deputy defense minister said today the arrival of american forces in western ukraine is a provocation and troops are there to train ukrainian soldiers on how to use military commitment, a nato called russia angry and revisionist and earlier this year pentagon announced 300 soldiers would be used as trainers in ukraine. meanwhile russia has increased troop levels on ukraine's border as part of ongoing military exercises and that is sparking new fears in the region the exercise is said to test russia ability to funds off large scale air and missile attacks, some 2000 troops are taking part in the drills which are expected to end next month. nato commander phillip breeklove spoke to us in russells about the role in eastern ukraine. >> reporter: no question in your mind putin is lying, that there are russian troops there, that these are not volunteers that he has sent and organized them and it's the russian army? >> no question in my mind at all. >> reporter: is that continuing even w

lines coming in to us from russians foreign minister as part of the crisis between the west and russia over ukraine. fred is in moscow for us. russia is saying it has a right to deploy nuclear weapons in crimea. talk us through that, fred. >> on one level, of course, they're simply reiterating their message that crimea is now an integral part of russia and therefore, russia can do anything it likes on that territory, including stationing nuclear weapons. it should be noted that there is a major russian naval base there, sevastopol which has been through the years of ukrainian sovereignty, the headquarters of the black sea fleet and they probably did have nuclear weapons aboard the ships on that flight. on one level it's not that momentous, but on the other level, they are saying this annexation is permanent unchallengeable, and we will use crimea as the front line of russia's defense. if it was just out of context it might not be such a big deal, but russia today pulled out of the conventional arms treaty in europe which means they didn't pull out of the treaty itself, but they pulled out of all th

said he thought it would be a mistake because whatever what aid was sent to ukraine could be matched three, four times by russiauld lead to anesque lathelation of the situation, a break -- escalation of situation. the jury is out whether the u.s. is going to send any lethal weaponry to the ukraine. >> many commentators saying putin's attention could turn to that region after ukraine. >> yes. it is an informal meeting of e.u. foreign ministers. clearly the situation is at the top of the agenda. security concerns for other member states over the european union and nato, which is good for baltic republics are also very high on the list. the region itself has a large number of russian minority people in both -- latvia as well. there are concerns that similar activities could take place on their territory that began the conflict in ukraine. so there is nervousness, russia so far as dismissed all of these concerns but nevertheless nato and the e.u. are taking it quite seriously. >> thank you. tony hall pin in moscow today. >> in the u.k., rever knew and customs tpwhrouth more than 1 billion pounds from challenging th

justice found racially biased actions in ferguson. >>> nato has accused russia of continuing to arm separatist fighters in ukraine's east. they called on russian to russia to leave the territory in agreement with the minsk agreement. >> we've seen a strong support for separatists in eastern ukraine. we see the delivery of equipment forces training, so russia is still in eastern ukraine. they have over a long period the substantial support for the separatists. >> they are accused of causing conflict in eastern ukraine. penalties have been placed on a russian bank and the u.s. will deliver humvees and drones to ukraine. >>> reports of drug use on the rise. and the sharing of needles has led to the increase of hiv infections. ukraine is already the worst infected of hiv in europe. 150,000 people ages 15 to 49 are infected. john hedron reports from donetsk. >> it's a nearly daily ritual. every morning but sunday bruce will make the rounds distributing needles, antibacterial wipes and con domescondoms. donetsk is running out of the drugs that they use to help get people off heroin. >> they reduced doses so quickly that

he spoke about the russia-ukraine conflict. corker. we spoke about the russia-ukraine conflict. nuclear glorks with iran and the u.s. strategy for combating isis. this is 35 minutes. >> turks tom. and it is my great privilege to entrust my senator this morning. a great tennessee congressman davey crockett once adopted as his slogan first be sure you're right then go ahead and i think that could apply to bob koch -- corker because that's the way he approaches the issues. checks his facts, thinks seriously about the underlying problems and doesn't act until he's convinced he's on the right path. senator corker, i've had the privilege of watching senator corker move through the political process and he lived out the american dream. he started with a pickup truck and $8,000 and formed a construction company that became a multimillion dollar business operating in 18 states. he then became commissioner of finance for the state of tennessee where he astounded the members of the legislature with his breathtaking candor and transparency. apparently they're easily astounded or apparently

moscow is also undermining ukraine's economy. today, russiausing it natural gas and other energy sources for political use and to generate economic chaos in the country. ukraine is facing an economic precipice. it desperately needs help. russia is doing it by bouncing out conspiracy theories and propaganda anyone who has monitored what has been up on the air is well aware that this propaganda is offensive, is and at sowing confusion and undermining opposition to its aggression in ukraine and elsewhere but we are barely in the game of countering this with the facts. as i told the secretary last week, i would like to see more administrations are for the effort mr. angle and i have taken to perform our international broadcasting. the broadcasting board of governors is broken. if we cannot begin to change minds, then the struggle over ukraine today will become a generational struggle for the future of eastern europe. ukraine's fate has security implications for well beyond its borders. we passed this bill into the senate last year. we were not abl

russia. the border between eastern ukraine and russia -- unmonitored russians did not allow osce to monitor whats in those convoys, but the volume of artillery and ammunition has been expanded, his high water. the quality of electronic warfare capability that russians have employed in eastern ukraine -- this is not something you can create in the basement of your home. when putin s miners and tractor drivers, it is an obvious lie. vago: there are soldiers on vacation there as well. gen. hodges: when you allow a soldier to take a tank with him or his rocket launcher when he goes on lead -- on leave? the russian narrative is, we want peace, and that sort of thing. the proxies are clearly parart of the ukrainian military capability. and what russians are using their -- air defense, artillery rockets, surveillance -- it is significant. there is obvious command and control involvement on the ground by russians. people in uniform wt this to be a diplomatic solution. we wanted to see the minsk agreement successfully implemente one of the keys is monitoring. osce has been denied accent -- access to at l

investor, how difficult has it been, or has it been easy, when you strip out the politics between russia, ukrained in europe, the emergence of these extreme parties? the equity market hasn't had much impact. guest: this time last year when the invasion of crimea happened that had an impact. that really did change the political dynamics within europe. russia really moved beyond the pale with that move. i think that changed the way people were thinking in business. you saw that impact on the dax. i think people are getting more used to the status of russia as it is. it is not a great situation, but it no longer has the shock and surprise. jonathan: as you look at europe and strip out the politics, is it easy enough to say that this is just a qe trade until you see something more fundamental here? a lot of people say, great, equities are going higher. is there more to the story than that? guest: i think there is. there is an underlying improvement in the macro before qe. valuations were attractive and you had oil price falling as well. all of those things are helpful. plus, bank lending had been beg

. >> it has gone beyond russia and ukraine. >> dozens of people gathered in san francisco to do somethinghey were not free to do in their country. actively protest the destruction of the russian constitution. >> in russia, right now, everything is dangerous. the danger comes in the form of propaganda. it is even in the media here in the united states. >> reporter: they are denouncing the killing of the opposition leader who was shot on friday near the gremlin in moscow. >> it is very important to show what is happening in russia. >> i think it speaks on its face on what it is. >> reporter: senator dianne feinstein says the key to the shooting is if the president was youthful involved. >> if he did it, if he knew it, if it was his friends or some of his military doing this, with we will wait and see. >> people in russia support our president. >> reporter: these protestors say their families back home have been brainwashed. they are hoping the killing sheds light on what they call a dangerous dictatorship. >> stop the war. >> reporter: this all comes at a tense time for russia. they are int

. >> if ukraine flourishes, that will tell the russian people that russia's problems are due to putin's policies. >> ukraine's finance minister says the war-torn country needs for more financial support. >> draghi versus the data. the release of pmi figures. caroline: the german chancellor angela merkel tells tsipras to stay the course. but our words and encouragement enough? life to berlin. -- live to berlin. ryan: welcome to "countdown. we go live with the regulatory burdens. what does it mean for the banks? chinese economy is showing further signs of a slowdown with manufacturing discipline falling to and from 11 month low. that has sent chinese stocks tumbling. shery ahn joins us with the latest from hong kong. shery: the reading came in as a bit of a surprise because economists had expected it to become a above 50, showing a slight expansion in manufacturing activity but instead it came in at 49.2. that is down from february. the index is weighted more heavily toward smaller companies. analysts say if the official pmi data which falls on larger company slides that will reinforce th

boris nemtsov was one that said there was clear evidence that russia is operating inside ukraine and t something that is very unpopular with many people here in russia and made him very unpopular with the kremlin and that also is something, a message that certainly would have gotten a lot less resonance than the crowd you're seeing right now. >> fred, i understand you've got new details into the investigation of his death for us? >> reporter: absolutely. there is new details that have been coming in really only a couple of minutes ago. one of the things, of course, that we had heard yesterday from russian media as well as from investigators is that they had believed that they had found a vehicle that might have been involved in the killing of boris nemtsov. talking about a white vehicle they identified on surveillance cameras that are all around the center of moscow. later, that vehicle was seen in a parking lot also here in moscow. it was then, however, investigated and the police are now saying -- we are getting this again from various russian media outlets -- is now saying they bel

ukraine. we see the equipment forces training russia is still in eastern ukraine. they have over a long period provided substantial support for the separatist. >> the u.s. has imposed sanctions on eight pro-russian separatists who are accused of causing conflict in eastern ukraine. washington also said it would deliver humvees and drones to ukraine. we have more on this from fred weir. >> it is mostly a symbolic political statement by the americans' message. they're still interested in putting the screws to russia, keeping the pressure on even though the europeans seem to have lost their appetite for more sanctions at least for the time being as long as the minsk cease-fire is in place. the idea is that a rift widening between the united states and europe over the efficacy of the sanctions on russia. but this particular list of sanctions probably won't make a difference at all. >> the peace process in colombia that is been given a past with the president announcing a one- one-month halt in airstrikes on the rebel-held camps. farc announced a cease-fire in december

russia at peace with itself and its neighbors. he was especially critical of putin's aggression in ukraine where for over a year now russia has continued its occupation of cryimea and the destabilization of the country's eastern regions. our country made a commitment in 1994 to defend ukraine's sovereignty and its territorial integrity, which has been under a near constant assault by russia for more than a year. more recently we lured ukraine west by supporting their desire for closer association with europe. now with ukraine's future in balance, the refusal of the administration to step up with more robust support for ukraine and further pressure on russia is a bligtht on u.s. policy in seven years of defending a europe that is whole, democratic and free. the conflict in eastern ukraine was started by a russian-backed mergs nair mercenary, now directly involves thousands of russian military personnel and has resulted in over 6,000 deaths and generated 1.5 million refugees in eternally displaced persons. for roughly two weeks after the second cease-fire agreement was signed on february 12th, the russian backed rebels continued their of