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00:00 [Music]
00:19 [Music]
00:31 Live from London, this is The World Today.
00:35 Hello, I'm Robin Dwyer. Welcome to the program, our top stories.
00:39 More than 100 people are reported killed in strikes across Gaza.
00:43 As the United Nations warns, there's a growing risk of famine.
00:48 Hopes for a new ceasefire as an Israeli delegation holds talks in Paris
00:52 to try and secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.
00:57 Western leaders show support in Kiev as the war in Ukraine enters its third year.
01:07 And furious French farmers storm a major agricultural show in Paris
01:12 before a planned visit by President Macron.
01:28 More than 100 people are reported to have been killed in overnight strikes in Gaza,
01:32 including at least 24 at a shelter for displaced people in Deir el-Bala.
01:37 It comes as the United Nations warns of an impending famine in Gaza,
01:41 saying that aid agencies need unrestricted access to the territory.
01:45 Meanwhile, the southern city of Rafah is preparing itself
01:49 after Israel restated its threat to launch a ground assault.
01:53 Our correspondent Akram Alsatiri reports from Gaza.
01:56 Well, people are extremely worried that can be seen and observed through the different movements
02:01 out from Rafah city towards the area between Khan Younis and Rafah
02:05 that can also be seen through the large-scale relocation
02:08 from areas in Rafah that are expected to be part of the imminent ground operation in the area.
02:14 People have been following the news.
02:15 People have been hoping that a ceasefire would be reached before this ground operation is a reality.
02:22 However, it looks like the bombardment is still ongoing in Rafah,
02:26 and people perceive that ongoing bombardment that has been intensified
02:30 for the last couple of days or so as part of the ground operation.
02:35 And they think that this occupation is paving the way towards a larger action
02:40 that includes a ground operation in area Rafah.
02:43 So people still stay confused, still stay worried,
02:47 still stay afraid because of that ongoing activity.
02:50 And that's why they have been trying to secure whatever food supplies they can.
02:55 They have been trying to secure blankets, the ones that have some tents that were moving,
03:00 were removing those tents and moving to some area that they think would be safe.
03:04 So the general and overall feeling of unsafety has been
03:09 haunting the people in Rafah, and it's still haunting them.
03:12 And you talk then about securing food and water.
03:15 We've had the United Nations warning about a potential famine.
03:19 How hard is it for people to get hold of food and water?
03:22 Well, I think the famine has already hit the Gaza Strip.
03:29 Some of the stories and some of the evidence reports that are coming
03:32 from the Gaza North and Gaza South alike are indicative of some horrors
03:36 that people have been seeing, are indicative of some people dying because of the cold
03:41 and because of the hunger, have been also indicative of the fact that people are suffering
03:45 from thirst because they don't have adequate water.
03:48 The UN quote, the UN words were saying that there's no adequate food
03:53 or water supplies for the people of Gaza, and that is likely to bring about a famine.
03:58 Some areas have no water or food at all.
04:01 Some people were doing harvesting or collecting the rain fall for the sake of just drinking water.
04:08 That is safe.
04:09 Some people have been developing public diseases,
04:12 abdominal diseases, skin diseases because of the ongoing deprivation from almost everything.
04:18 The situation is extremely bad.
04:20 As the Israel-Gaza conflict continues, mediators are trying to reach a ceasefire deal.
04:26 An Israeli delegation is in Paris for meetings with Qatar, Egypt and the United States.
04:31 After Hamas officials ended their round of negotiations on Friday.
04:35 The meeting comes after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined his plans
04:39 for complete post-war control of Gaza, a plan rejected by Palestinian leaders.
04:44 David Biller is the Associated Press correspondent in Jerusalem.
04:48 So there was some cautious optimism this week.
04:52 We saw in the lead up to the meeting in Paris, the War Cabinet Minister Benny Gantz saying
04:58 that there were signs of progress.
04:59 We also heard similar things from a Western diplomat,
05:02 an Egyptian official who said they saw encouraging signs.
05:05 The Egyptian official in particular said that both parties had watered down their demands
05:11 due to the help from the mediators that included the number of prisoners that Israel would release,
05:18 number of Palestinian prisoners.
05:19 As you may remember, Israel walked away from original negotiations or the most recent round
05:25 negotiations because of demands that Netanyahu characterized as delusional,
05:30 and that included the release of thousands of prisoners.
05:33 Now, the Egyptian official told us that an understanding was reached with Hamas for a
05:42 ceasefire deal that would last six weeks with the release of elderly and sick hostages,
05:47 as well as Palestinian prisoners.
05:49 They were going to present that understanding to the Israeli side in Paris.
05:54 We need to see what exactly comes from that.
05:57 It would have to be evaluated by the Israeli War Cabinet.
06:01 We've seen some really recent reports from local press,
06:05 positive signs from that returning delegation.
06:08 But we need to see, we haven't yet confirmed that.
06:11 And I would just caution that we don't want to get ahead of ourselves.
06:14 Yesterday, Hamas official Osama Hamdan, he really threw cold water on a bit of this optimism,
06:20 saying that there were still significant obstacles to reaching any ceasefire deal.
06:24 And then we've had this plan outlined by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for the future of
06:30 Gaza rejected by Palestinian leaders.
06:33 And what's been the reaction in Israel?
06:35 Right, so just to step back a second, this was really the first time that Netanyahu has
06:45 formally presented a plan for post-war Gaza.
06:48 It was a short outline.
06:50 It really was just over a page.
06:51 And as you mentioned, the Palestinian foreign ministry rejected this pretty quickly,
06:55 saying that it amounted to or it would amount to reoccupation of Gaza.
07:00 The response in Israel, aside from the Palestinian Authority, has been fairly muted.
07:06 That may be because some of these positions that Netanyahu outlined have been proposed
07:13 by him in the past, but this was really the first time he'd put it in writing in a formal document.
07:19 It obviously does not satisfy the desire of the Israeli far right that would,
07:26 you know, quite loudly, as I said, it wants to resettle Gaza.
07:29 Canada and Italy have both signed new 10-year bilateral security agreements with Ukraine.
07:45 The leaders of the two countries are among those in Kyiv as the country marks the second
07:50 anniversary of Russia's military offensive.
07:52 Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has agreed to send over $2 billion in financial
07:57 and defence aid over the next decade.
07:59 Italy's leader, Giorgio Maloney, has told Ukraine's President Zelensky
08:03 that peace cannot mean surrender to Moscow.
08:06 Our correspondent, Megumi Lim, is in Kyiv.
08:09 Well, that's right.
08:10 As you mentioned, the leaders of Italy, Canada, Belgium and the President of the EU Commission
08:16 are here today in Kyiv in a show of solidarity and support for Ukraine as the country marks
08:22 two years of war with Russia.
08:24 And they are going to be holding a meeting, a virtual meeting, which will include the
08:29 leaders of Germany and France as well.
08:31 Macron and Schultz will be joining via video link.
08:35 And we are expecting them to be discussing more security cooperation with Ukraine as
08:41 the country enters its third year of war against Russia.
08:44 They will be discussing further military and financial assistance for Ukraine and also
08:50 more sanctions against Russia.
08:53 Now, the details of the discussions we have yet to find out in a few hours once the meeting
08:59 wraps up.
09:00 But we have seen reports that they are expected to adopt a declaration at the end of the meeting,
09:08 which will include, obviously, a strong condemnation against Putin and his ongoing aggression
09:15 against Ukraine.
09:17 It will also state that Putin has not achieved his goals so far in Ukraine.
09:24 And it will also call on Russia to withdraw fully and unconditionally his forces from
09:31 Ukraine.
09:32 We are also seeing reports that this declaration will also include a pledge that the countries,
09:39 the participating countries signing this declaration will not recognize any elections that Russia
09:46 will hold now or in the future in the occupied territories of Ukraine.
09:52 OK, so financial assistance, one of the things on the agenda for the G7 then.
09:57 When it comes to funding for Ukraine, is Europe united on continuing their support?
10:02 Yes, largely the EU has overall remained united in terms of its solidarity and support for
10:15 Ukraine.
10:16 Just earlier this month, the EU pledged 50 billion euros in macro financial support for
10:23 Ukraine.
10:24 This is part of the Ukraine facility program.
10:26 That is the money, the funds will be disbursed from this year till 2027.
10:33 Now, the question is, are these funds enough?
10:36 The IMF has said that Ukraine's funding gap is expected to amount to about 40 billion
10:42 dollars in this year alone.
10:45 And of course, Ukraine has managed to stay afloat, although its economy was devastated
10:50 during the early the first year of the war.
10:53 But it has managed to bounce, bounce back thanks to the financial assistance that's
10:58 been provided by its Western partners.
11:00 But how sustainable the funds are going to be remains a question.
11:06 Now, in terms of EU unity, we have also seen Hungary block in the past further aid for
11:16 Ukraine.
11:16 Hungary has voiced that it would not support more aid for Ukraine in the future.
11:23 And Slovakia has also in the past backed Hungary in terms of this statement.
11:28 So there are also concerns that Hungary and Slovakia may in the future again become a
11:34 stumbling block in terms of EU disbursing more funds for Ukraine.
11:38 And also, we have to remember that the EU has not been has been no match with the United
11:44 States in terms of military aid.
11:46 The U.S. has still been the biggest donor of weapons and arms to Ukraine.
11:50 And as we know, the additional military aid for Ukraine has remained stuck in Congress
11:57 since December.
11:58 And U.S. officials have been sounding the alarm more and more that Ukraine may be facing
12:04 catastrophic consequences by late March in terms of shortages of critical, critically
12:10 needed ammunition and artillery shells if the U.S.
12:14 Congress doesn't approve more aid for Ukraine.
12:17 There's been no comment from the Kremlin so far about the anniversary, as our correspondent
12:22 Dasha Chernysheva reports from Moscow.
12:25 Well, the Kremlin has remained silent, providing no comments on the 24th of February 2024,
12:31 which is indeed the second anniversary since the start of Russia's so-called special military
12:36 operation in Ukraine.
12:37 However, we have heard from several Russian politicians, including the presidential candidate
12:42 Leonid Soski, the head of the Liberal Democratic Party, suggesting that this operation was
12:48 inevitable.
12:48 And the two years since the conflict started are only proving that.
12:52 We also have heard another candidate for the Russian president, Davankov, suggesting that
12:58 he wishes to the Russian people the peaceful sky as soon as possible.
13:04 But largely, the Russian politicians have all been talking about the inevitability of
13:08 this conflict between Russia and the West.
13:10 This is how it is largely described here in Russia.
13:13 At the same time, we've heard the Russian Ministry of Defense confirming that the defense
13:17 minister, Sergei Shoygu, has traveled to the area of the special military operation.
13:21 He has listened to the reports of the center grouping of forces.
13:26 He was briefed about the ongoing situation there and praised the work of the soldiers
13:31 who captured Avdiivka.
13:32 In his words, he was shown the military equipment provided by the Western countries to Ukraine,
13:41 and that appears to be inferior to the Russian one.
13:45 He was also briefed that while taking Avdiivka, the Russian forces have managed to push back
13:50 the Ukrainian soldiers by over two kilometers, and over 200 prisoners of war have been captured
13:57 as a result of this latest development on the ground.
14:01 The Russian defense minister also said that those prisoners have to be treated humanely.
14:06 And, Dasha, new sanctions against Russia announced by both the United States and the EU,
14:13 has there been any reaction to those from Moscow?
14:20 Well, we have heard Moscow saying that all those sanctions are the so-called anti-Russian
14:25 agony because they do not change Russia's course on the ground.
14:30 All those sanctions from what we hear from the Russian officials have not managed to
14:34 cripple the Russian economy.
14:35 Now, we have heard in 2022 that the wave of sanctions that has been imposed against Russia
14:41 would cripple the Russian economy.
14:42 That did not happen.
14:43 In 2023, the energy sanctions were supposed also to collapse the Russian budget.
14:48 That did not happen.
14:49 So, now, Moscow insists that this is not the case and that all those sanctions that the
14:55 West is trying to impose against Russia will not work, and these attempts to meddle into
15:02 the Russian domestic affairs, as Moscow sees those, will not yield those results.
15:07 Having said that, obviously, Russia has to redirect and transform its economy.
15:11 A lot has been done in terms of restructuring the Russian industrial output and many areas
15:18 that have long been underdeveloped are now being developed.
15:21 But at the same time, the inflation in Russia is growing.
15:24 It is quite significant, and Russians do feel that those sanctions are in place.
15:29 Around a third of Ukrainians have fled the country over the last two years,
15:34 according to the United Nations.
15:36 After an initial exodus, large numbers went back home, but an estimated 6.5 million people
15:42 remain outside Ukraine, and many made Germany their temporary home.
15:47 As our correspondent Natalie Carney reports.
15:49 Ukrainians are living under temporary protection in Germany, such as 33-year-old Katarina,
15:56 who arrived nearly two years ago with her nine-year-old son.
15:59 Thanks to the support of the NGO Spaceye, she has been able to find accommodation and work.
16:05 Back in the Ukraine, she worked as an intensive care nurse.
16:08 There was a very large shortage of nurses in Germany,
16:12 and that my profession is in great demand here.
16:15 Spaceye connected her to a local hospital in the Bavarian city of Regensburg,
16:20 where she now works as a nursing assistant while learning German.
16:23 We're not working as full-time nurses yet, of course, because we need to confirm our diplomas.
16:30 But we see how work is organized in Germany.
16:33 We can also communicate with patients and colleagues in German,
16:37 thereby improving our German and learning it faster.
16:39 This has definitely helped her and her son,
16:42 who is attending both German and Ukrainian schools, settle in.
16:46 I'm only thinking about confirming my diploma and trying to stay here.
16:51 I really like Regensburg, and I really like the hospital.
16:54 My son has said that he doesn't want to go back,
16:58 so we'll do our best to stay and to integrate fully.
17:00 But Katarina is in the minority.
17:06 According to the IFO Centre for Migration Research,
17:10 there's growing pessimism among Ukrainian refugees about when the conflict will end.
17:15 However, the vast majority still want to return to their homeland,
17:19 with many struggling to integrate in their host countries.
17:22 Ukrainian refugees in Eastern European countries,
17:26 but also in some Western European countries like the Netherlands,
17:30 the majority of them are working, while in Germany it's only a minority.
17:35 Part of the explanation for this is that in Germany it's more difficult to find some jobs
17:41 without qualifications and without good German skills.
17:46 And given that Germany also has more generous welfare benefits,
17:52 then people can afford taking more time to look for a qualified job.
17:58 The integration process has been easier for children who attend German schools, says Putvada.
18:04 Older people are more determined to go back to Ukraine than younger people,
18:10 and I find it likely that when it comes to children who are currently going to schools,
18:17 an even higher fraction of them will end up staying.
18:21 Ukrainian membership of the European Union is now more a case of when rather than if.
18:27 But what's certain is that the conflict has already had a permanent impact
18:31 on towns and cities right across the bloc,
18:34 and on the Ukrainian families who have been forced to find a new life.
18:39 Natalie Carney, CGTN, in Regensburg.
18:42 You're watching CGTN Still Ahead.
18:45 Furious French farmers clash with police after they storm a major agricultural show in Paris.
18:59 Ever wondered what's the difference between a bear and the bull market?
19:03 Where are the cash cows?
19:05 And who are the lame ducks?
19:08 And what exactly are black swans,
19:12 grey rhinos,
19:14 and unicorn companies?
19:18 Make sense of it all with Global Business, only on CGTN.
19:28 I think it should be more global cooperation.
19:30 I would like to hear more the voice of the developing countries.
19:37 Localization has lifted more than a billion people out of poverty.
19:43 The green transition has to happen.
19:45 For China and the United States are important powers in the world.
19:54 What unites us is much more than what divides us.
19:59 And I believe China is committed to this agenda.
20:02 Join me, Juliette Maran, to set the agenda at these times every weekend on CGTN.
20:09 Events have consequences.
20:16 Words create impact.
20:18 One more offensive in a long line of battles that's been ongoing for more...
20:22 Just got to be careful here with some gunshot.
20:24 The world today matters, but your world tomorrow.
20:30 The number of casualties is growing quickly.
20:32 Why this is one of the hardest hit towns in the region.
20:37 The world today, every day on CGTN.
20:41 Welcome back.
20:47 A reminder of our headlines.
20:49 More than 100 people are reported killed in strikes across Gaza,
20:53 as the United Nations warns there's a growing risk of famine.
20:56 Hopes for a new ceasefire as an Israeli delegation holds talks in Paris
21:02 to try and secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.
21:05 And Western leaders show support in Cuba as the war in Ukraine enters its third year.
21:14 Voters in the US state of South Carolina are picking their Republican presidential candidate.
21:20 Polls indicate that former President Donald Trump is on course for a resounding victory
21:25 over rival Nikki Haley, despite the vote taking place in her home state.
21:29 The victory would boost his chances of sealing the Republican nomination.
21:33 Associated Press correspondent Philip Crowther is in South Carolina.
21:38 Well, look, this is one of the very rare election days in the United States
21:42 that actually falls on a Saturday. Polling areas here opened at 7am.
21:47 This morning will close at 7pm tonight.
21:51 And this is a very rare thing as well.
21:53 This is a Republican primary that is an open primary.
21:57 What that means is that essentially all registered voters here in this state
22:02 can vote in the Republican Party, with one exception.
22:05 They can't if they voted in the Democratic primary, but that's only 4% of the population.
22:10 Now you ask what gives Donald Trump the edge? That does not.
22:13 That gives Nikki Haley potentially the possibility, as the former governor of the state,
22:18 to maybe collect some Democratic votes.
22:21 Those who really don't want Donald Trump to be the candidate on the Republican side again.
22:27 She, by the way, the former governor of this state, will be voting herself here this morning.
22:33 She was the governor after all here for six years.
22:36 She's been crisscrossing South Carolina over the last few weeks,
22:39 seeing this as a state that she would like to win, but is very unlikely to do so.
22:45 Her arguments, they've become a little bit more aggressive toward Donald Trump over the last few weeks.
22:50 She says that he is too old to be the nominee for the Republican Party again.
22:55 He has had too many scandals and he has too many legal problems indicted four times after all.
23:01 But I think the main argument from Nikki Haley to still remain in this race is essentially this one.
23:08 She says that she is the only one, according to quite a lot of polls,
23:12 who could actually beat President Joe Biden when it comes to the general election.
23:16 Now, Donald Trump, the former president on his side, he was here in the state as well last night on election eve.
23:22 His argument is this one, that Nikki Haley should not be in this race anymore.
23:27 Essentially, he is pretty angry that after the first few defeats,
23:32 and there have been three for her in primaries so far, that she is still remaining in the race.
23:37 He says it's not called for and he wants to concentrate already on what everybody essentially expects to be
23:43 a repeat of the duel between Joe Biden and Donald Trump when it comes to the presidential election.
23:48 A group of French farmers have stormed a major Paris agriculture fair
24:02 before a planned visit by President Emmanuel Macron.
24:05 [shouting]
24:10 The farmers clashed with police inside the trade show as they shouted for Macron's resignation.
24:15 France is one of several EU countries where farmers have staged demonstrations in recent weeks
24:20 amid anger over mounting costs and environmental regulations.
24:24 Our correspondent Toni Waterman reports from Paris.
24:27 Yeah, it was a very chaotic scene.
24:29 You had these mass groups of people just pushing and shoving their way into the expo center here.
24:36 They were clashing with police.
24:38 At one point, the pushing and shoving was too much for one enclosure, which snapped under the pressure,
24:45 sending a group of men tumbling into an animal pen.
24:50 The French president wasn't present when this was all happening,
24:53 but he did appeal for calm as the show was opening.
24:58 [shouting]
25:00 The fair must take place in a peaceful environment.
25:03 I hear the frustrations, and I say this to all farmers.
25:07 You are not helping any of your colleagues by breaking stalls.
25:11 You're not helping any of your colleagues by making the fair impossible
25:15 and scaring families from coming.
25:17 And so his words were actually met by heckles and calls for his resignation.
25:25 Police had to disperse tear gas at one point.
25:28 And you can just see that the anger is still very much boiling on the surface for these farmers,
25:34 even weeks and weeks into these nationwide protests that we've seen about low salaries,
25:39 rising costs, regulation concerns,
25:43 what they believe to be unfair competition with cheap imports coming into the country.
25:48 The French president is actually still here at the fair.
25:51 This doesn't actually give you a very good representation,
25:53 but it is a vast, vast area with many different halls where this expo is taking place.
25:58 He is walking around through these different venues,
26:01 and he is surrounded now by dozens and dozens of police officers because of these protests,
26:08 something that we have not seen in years past.
26:10 At least 15 people have been killed and dozens more injured after a fire swept
26:15 through an apartment building in the Chinese city of Nanjing.
26:18 An initial investigation suggests that the blaze started on the first floor,
26:22 where electric bicycles were being stored.
26:24 44 people were taken to hospital, and one is still in a critical condition.
26:28 South Korea has raised its health alert to the highest level after a mass walkout
26:34 by thousands of trainee doctors.
26:36 They're protesting against a government plan to boost medical school admissions,
26:40 which they say will compromise the standard of health care.
26:43 The row has forced hospitals to turn patients away and cancel surgeries.
26:48 Colombia has announced plans to retrieve lost treasure found on a Spanish galleon,
26:54 which sunk in the Caribbean more than 300 years ago.
26:57 The ship was carrying emeralds, silver and gold worth billions of dollars when it sank
27:01 in 1708 after an attack by the British Navy.
27:04 Its wreckage was found just nine years ago.
27:07 Colombian officials say they'll use an underwater robot to explore the site
27:11 and retrieve the artifacts.
27:12 The mission is set to cost more than four and a half million dollars.
27:15 Sonar pictures have revealed weaponry, ceramics and bronze cannons on board.
27:20 China has officially named its two key spacecraft for a lunar mission planned by 2030.
27:28 The manned spaceship has been called Mengzhou, which translates to "dream vessel",
27:32 and Lanyue, meaning "one who embraces the moon", is the name of the lunar lander.
27:37 The names were inspired by a 1965 poem by Chairman Mao.
27:44 In a moment, my colleague Juliet Mann will be here with the agenda.
27:47 In this week's show, the view from Africa,
27:50 what the world's poorest continent needs to take its true place on the world stage.
27:54 That's the agenda right after The World Today at 16.30 GMT here on CGTN.
27:59 The headlines again.
28:02 More than 100 people are reported killed in strikes across Gaza,
28:06 as the United Nations warns there's a growing risk of famine.
28:11 Hopes for a new ceasefire as an Israeli delegation holds talks in Paris
28:15 to try and secure the release of hostages held by Hamas.
28:18 And Western leaders show support in Kyiv as the war in Ukraine enters its third year.
28:25 And that is The World Today. Thank you for watching.
28:29 There's more news on CGTN Europe's channel on the Telegram app,
28:32 or scan the QR code on the screen to get stories and updates sent direct to your phone.
28:37 There's more news at the top of the hour,
28:39 but for now, from all of the team in London, it's goodbye.
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