A united front, russia and china say de, oppose a further expansion of nato. As president Vladimir Putin visits by ging, how campaigning for columbia as a general election is being overshadowed by a surge in violent attacks. Plus im adarine in northern portugal home to europes largest lithium deposits. Locals here whose families date back generation say a propos, lithium mine threatens their way of life. Ah, hello, and welcome to the program. We begin the in china where a spectacular ceremony has opened the badging Winter Olympics in late. 3000 athletes are in a strict bible, though because of coven 19, and no foreigners are able to watch them compete. Despite that, the athletes are ready to go for gold. As david strikes reports. Please. Yes. Well, i think once again, after a troubled build up the 24th Winter Olympics have officially begun in beijing. The venue for fridays Opening Ceremony was the birds nest stadium originally built for the summer olympics, back in 2008. Its the 1st city ever to host both the winter and summer games. Like the Tokyo Olympics last year cupboard 19 has given these games a different complexion that taking place inside a closed loop system, keeping competitors and stuff away from the general public athletes must get tested for cupboard 19 daily. And there were no foreign fans with only a small handpick domestic audience allowed to attend. Some of the worlds best winter athletes are unable to compete after testing positive. This is much tougher than injury because you arent putting yourself out. Lets take the risk. Its just the risk is everywhere around us, and i really feel for those athletes, i cant, i cant even imagine how it must be to day 4 years of work and then at the last minute. So had that taken away by something thats out of your control. Several World Leaders have travel to beijing for the games, but other nations including the u. S. Britain and canada had declared a diplomatic boycott over chinas human rights record. Specifically, its treatment of muslim wiggers, china to noise human rights abuses. The peoples republic of china is perpetrating a campaign of gross Human Rights Violations, including genocide. Over the next 2 weeks is an urgent moral duty to shine a bright light on the many Human Rights Violations being perpetrated by the host nation. Beijing 2022 organizes say the games will be Carbon Neutral. Oh, venues will be powered by renewable energy, and 5 of them have been repurposed from 2008, but with very little snow full more than 200000000 liters of water have been used to generate fake powder for the alpine locations. Lets not been. You know, artificial snow is used in a consistent way for decades. You know, in winter a competitive sport. What is really important, like for any other activities that there we practice is to try to do it in the most efficient way. With the lead up to the olympics dominated by politics and covet 19, most of the athletes will hope the focus now shifts to the action as nearly 3000 competitors from 90. 1 nations fight to take home a gold medal. Theyd stokes out as era and a p sports correspondence. Stephen wade has more from the Opening Ceremony. I was in the 2008 the Opening Ceremony here. 13 and a half years ago. It was 30 to 33 degrees, sweltering hot pac stadium, 91000 people right now back. And we have maybe 20 or 30000 fans. Were not sure. Maybe 40 percent full and its below 0. Its one or 2 degrees below 0 here. So its a very different different atmosphere and what are games of course, are much smaller than the summer game, so theyre really not not comparable. But paging is the most unlikely. Can i have one or lympics but in 2015, 6 European Countries who should have had or could have been dropped out too expensive or political problems . Yeah. To see what had was left with not because x on and beijing, they chose beijing, beijing. I think with the more surprising anybody, so the games are here, the run up to the games have been filled with contention. The weaker the genocides is going on in northwestern. John, the region here has occupied the press, the chinese have tried to avoid it. They see has tried to avoid the sponsor. Theyve tried to pretend like they dont see it. I think everybody will be glad like yours or when the games get started, the focus goes on. The athletes and the politics probably will be put aside. However, its very possible with natalie to may speak out or we have a lot of contention for these 2 and a half weeks while were bridging among those at the ceremony is rushes president , let me put in moscow is to cheery aging relations with the west took center stage jasper and held talks with his counterpart, she didnt ping in by jing in a joint statement. They said they opposed the expansion of nato and cold on the lines to ditch what they called cold war approaches. Took us in the federal hip machine. Youre going through our bilateral relation with their developing, with the spirit of friendship and strategic partnership, and have reached an unprecedented level there. An example of upstanding relations which have both sides develop and support each other at the same time. Is, comes is tensions between keys and moscow. Showing no signs of thawing. Russia has massed more than 100000 troops, ne ukraines border. Both countries have been holding military drills. Russia has also offered to beef up its gas supplies to china. Meanwhile, the us and europe have threatened moscow with unprecedented sanctions. If ukraine is attacked, leisure sewage issues. The issue are old producers prepared a very good solution, and hydrocarbons applies to china for todays meeting. And we made another step forward in the gas sector. I mean the new deal to supply china with 10000000000 cubic meters of natural gas from the far east. Contain you easy beijing and has more on todays talks. What we were really looking for was any specific signal from china that it would support you, craig . Now from this joint statement, we havent heard from aging yet, but what were hearing from the kremlin is that china really still on paper wants to maintain its neutral storms. But there are some statements within this state, which implies strong support of russia when it comes to its policy in ukraine or its actions on the ukraine border, the joints, them, and said that each country supports each others foreign policy, that no country should improve its security at the expense of others, and also the both countries of per unilateral actions towards specific countries. I think really this relationship its have to main dimensions. One is political, do use countries, definitely a lot in common in terms of the ideology and i think specifically what theyre both very tired of and what they both oppose is a world order under which the u. S. Is the dominant power. So i think during this meeting, what theyre doing is showing how strong their partnership is and also showing the world, perhaps a potential count away to the u. S. And other european powers. And of course, the other dimension of this relationship is very practical. Its based on the economic and economics and trade. China is russias biggest trading partner. They did about 12840000000000. 00 and trade in 2021. Thats an unprecedented volume of trade between the 2 countries. And thats only set to increase. Frances president Manuel Mccomb will travel to moscow and kiev next week to discuss the standoff between russia and ukraine. His visit will be followed by another european laid them. Germanys chancellor love shows. Well also go to the region next week for more on that visit. Lets bring in a dominant cane whos live for us in berlin. Hello there. Dominic jeremy chancellor has been criticized and being tough enough on this whole ukraine, russia situation, but hes finally stepping up. What more can you tell us . The interesting thing here is that there all those in the media here in germany, but also in the International News media youve been saying, where is the last shot . Whats the been up to . Why are we not hearing more from him in so far as ukraine is concerned, and other world crises . Well, he is planning lots of different involvement. So we know that on monday of next week he will be in washington d. C, meeting president joe biden, clearly to talk about this particular crisis and others. And thats not the only visit thats going to happen in so far as with the shots is concerned. He will receive visits from different heads of government. Heads of states next week. Here in berlin specifically he will be meeting the heads of government or heads. The state of the 3 Baltic States that feel that the way near sonya, who are you members would also nice members and all who have a border either with russia or with b. L. A ross. So hes going to be active. Thats certainly whats being said by his, by the press office is working for the German Government. But the interesting thing here is the mediation role that germany is hoping to adopt and adapt in so far as it can. Remember that the German Government is part of the normandy format. Thats the format that brings together the french, german, ukrainian, or russian governments. Theyve always stressed the importance of the mens agreement, which should have de escalate the situation between kiev and moscow. Yes, it hasnt. Theyve always stressed the importance of that. And then there is the thought here that the German Government has slight difficulty in that it wants to emphasize diplomacy and the threat of sanctions against russia as an act of aggression. And yet it doesnt want to arm the ukrainians. It doesnt want to give weapons to defensive weapons to key if, even though they know there are increasingly loud voice is coming from key f, asking for precisely that. So its quite difficult past that Mister Schultz and his colleagues are having to, to go down by trying to talk tough to the russian government while stressing the need for diplomacy. And yet also trying to appear like an ally to those in kiev who are asking for weapons which the germans dont want to give them. All right, thank you for breaking it down for us, dominic came left for us in berlin. Thats head to paris now, where Natasha Butler is standing by for us. Natasha. What, what do we know about emanuel mac, crohns upcoming visits to moscow, and then ukraine. While the french president manual micro is hoping to use some of his powers of personal persuasion to try and de escalate the crisis with russia of ukraine when he arrives in the russian capital on monday to meet of Vladimir Putin, the russian leader. Now the 2 men had a telephone call on thursday evening. We understand it last just an hour. And this is the 3rd time that the 2 spoken on the phone in the past few weeks is all part of the french president efforts to really try and push diplomacy to try and put the European Union back at the center of diplomacy. Because the at least say are very adamant that this isnt about a minute micro, on a similar mission to moscow representing fraud. This is a manual mike crawl, trying to talk to russia on the hall for the European Union. France has the rotating presidency, all through your opinion at the moment, and he is traveling to moscow very much on behalf of the e. U. But it is also very much in keeping with the french president is all part of his personal style. He believes in face to face and personal contact, and he has also had a relatively strong relationship with the russian lead. If youd like in terms of continuing dialogue, michael is always been a proponent of continuing to talk to russia, trying to continue to talk and diplomatically to moscow. He has done that from the very beginning of his present, these invited periods and several times the france. In fact, he was supposed to be going to moscow in 2020, but then have to cancel those plans because of the cobra pandemic. Its worse also saying that micro will be going to kill, has just off the, his meeting with president putin, no doubt to brief the landscape, the ukrainian president on the talk that he had with the russian leader. Plenty of moving parts to the story. Thank you very much for the update. Natasha butler live for us in paris. Meanwhile, rushing back to separatists in easton, ukraine have set up training camps. The young people, instructors, say, students are taught about patriotism and self defense shall stratford reports from the town of mucky africa. These teenagers, some of the 5000 members of a Youth Movement in the pro russia, separatists controlled region of east in ukraine. They are all still at school. You know, me roughly translates to army of the use in structures. Many of them form a separatist fighters say they teach patriotism and how to defend the self declared republic of dimansky. Job 8 years of conflict with ukraine remains unrecognized by any country in the world, even its main baca, russia, the students. Its also a range of Skills Including martial arts, 1st aid and assembling, and disassembling weapons, which we are not allowed to film. 14 year old christina joined 2 years ago after her cousin was killed during fighting between the russian bank separatists ukrainian army. Just think of it ok much. Its very painful for me when i remember she was like my brother. I joined because of his death because i wanted to remember those last in the war, especially when we dont want to make the same mistakes that we did when to soviet union was attacked in world war 2. Murals in the school. Cordele celebrate russian history and cultural figures like the novelist and poet alexander, pushkin. A map shows crimea painted in the colors the russian flag. So i thought to come on. Todays class is about the victory of soviet forces over the nazis and the bustle of stalingrad considered one of the bloodiest battles in history, claiming around 2000000. 00 lives. The manager to the cliff that i dont unami feels like my 2nd family, my 2nd home. When you go through so much together, you become very close at the bit of the white nash, but the develops are patriotism. We remember and a proud of our predecessors, and i want to eventually serve in the army outside students prepare for a battle. We split into 2 opposing sides and fired each other using laser guns and stacks of tires as cover. But this isnt just again, this might look like fun, but of course it has serious implications. And its important to recognize that there are similar youth groups on Ukrainian Government control side also being trained like this. There they, its whole that the danger is what the crane is described as russian expansionism with its roots in the soviet past. Here it start to tell the children that the danger isnt ideology that has huge residents with both the young and the old. They are working. Ok he no the near work for susan. Ukraine is not our enemy fascism. Is it . The enemy and 2014. When the conflict started, we were standing up against fascists. Like our grandparents did, we can say we have enemies. Our only enemy is fascism. We dont want to just to make fresh isnt our friends . But christina and her friends are too young to fully understand how history can be manipulated to serve military or political ends in any conflicts. If you could almost as away on the abandoned ruins of homes and places where children once played destroyed in 8 years of war with no peaceful solution in sight, a conflict into which the young on both sides of being drawn shall stratford al jazeera. Dont ask. Plenty more head on his knees. Ally, including, developed and designed on the african continent. South africa users, madonnas coven, 19 m. R. N. A vaccine, to make its own version of the job. In years struggles with carver 19 and deaths rate own warri number and how egypt, how their nerve to make the final of the african cup of nations. Peter will have those details coming up in school. India is the 3rd country to report half a 1000000 deaths related to kind of the 19 after the u. S. And brazil. As had me middle reports from new delhi government, leaders are rejecting claims by some Health Experts that the actual death toll is much higher. G then this is shante, can barely speak about what hes experienced. The social worker has been organizing ambulances for coven 19 patients, and helping families cremate loved ones who theyve lost. He was recently awarded in just bought high civilian off the wooded diva, social media, biblical who i lived, the tragedy people witnessed on tv and social media. It was horrendous. One day i committed 156 bodies. We discovered unclean bodies every day. People with bad destitute, i saw children bringing the bodies of the parent. India has recorded the death of more than 500000 people from covey 19. But some help experts say the actual toll is in the millions. At least half of these occurred last summer during a surge. If infections fueled by the dead are variant overwhelmed, hospitals ran out of oxygen and many people died as they were waiting to be admitted. Funeral pyres burned across the nation for days, and some families lined up for hours to cremate their dead in the northern states with their predation be hard. Hundreds of bodies were found floating in the river ganges, and buried by its banks. The government denies claimed the death toll is being under reported. India has used in excessively stringent definition of wonderful condenses, and this leaves no room for things like a person who died without deposited s because some guns to be counted as uncle lynette. Several states have recently devised their tallies, caroline, Southern India has increased, its debt, told the most by 20000 over 3 months. And part of the correction isnt being in recognizing that up to a month after the debt deb of the month of took over the admission if the debt is linton and his with this would be eligible to be counted as a covered debt. So all of this has actually resulted in a whole range of reconciliation of debts and therefore we see the numbers are going up in the recent times, which seems a little artificial. While the numbers of people infected by the or mac, ron variant have broken records in many states, hospital admissions and deaths have remained relatively low. Experts credit that to mild symptoms and patients with the variant more than 75 percent of the entire