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washington, d.c., and this is bbc news america. tensions rise bween russia and the u.s. as moscow expels 10 diplomats in response to u.s. sanctions. troop buildup continues close to the border with ukraine. we are there on the ground. >> on the russian side of the border, there has been a massive buildup of both personnel and equipment. laura: japan's prime minister gets a warm welcome from president biden as his first face to face meeting with the foreign leader at the white house. talk on the agenda, countering china. preparations taking place for the funeral of prince philip. we will have the latest from windsor castle. ♪

welcome to world news america on pbs and around the globe. a diplomatic row between russia and the u.s. is intensifying with moscow expelling 10 american d -- diplomats and strongly recommending the ambassador return home. this is in response to sanctions issued thursday over what the white house called russia's harmful activity, from election interference to a buildup of troops along the ukraine border. our correspondent is in the front -- on the front lines in ukraine. >> and rpg shall -- an rpg shell. >> yours or theirs? >> there's. >> a war is coming back to life. just 100 meters separate the trenches from the positions of the russian backed forces.

>> very little has changed here along the front line in eastern ukraine. the last few weeks have seen a very dramatic shift in mood. that's because on the russian side of the border, there has been a massive buildup of personnel and equipment. news of the troop movements have coincided with the deterioration of the situation on the ground. >> how seriously our soldiers taking the possibility of russia forging a full-scale invasion? >> it doesn't matter if you are expecting escalation or not. no matter what will happen, we

will stay here until the end. >> during our time in the trenches, we get a glimpse of how tense things have become. a drone. >> yes, and, lead -- an enemy drone. they are usually carrying a grenade. >> ukrainian soldiers opened fire, but failed to hit the drone. it's another breach of the cease-fire. along the front line, those who can leave have long gone. a 72-year-old widow has no choice but to stay, deciding each day whether to spend her small pension on firewood or on food. her memories are still fresh of

the intense fighting seven years ago. >> so many people in our village were killed. young people and children shot in their homes. wars are so pointless. >> on the roads, we seeigns that ukraine is getting battle ready. the hope is that russia is flexing its military muscle, rather than preparing for all out war. laura: our moscow correspondent, steve rosenberg, joins us now. before we get to the retaliation that happened today in moscow, do you think there is any chance these american sanctions are going to deter russia from carrying on with the troop buildup we were just seeing in that report? >> you know, four years -- for

years, russia has said we are not frightened of sanctions. it will be interesting to see whether the carrot and stick approach of joe biden actually works. the stick, of course, is the sanctions announced yesterday. the carrot is the offer of a summit to vladimir putin, something he is very keen to determine up -- to turn up at, i think. will that carrot be enough? russia doesn't say it has any intention to invade ukraine. it says it haseen moving troops and has the right to build up troops on russian territory. of course, russia's actions have been making europe nervous, american nervous, nato nervous, including russia's decision to restrict access to parts of the black sea for the next few months. >> that expulsion of u.s.

diplomats by the kremlin today is being seen in washington is relatively proportionate -- as relatively proportionate. is that the view from moscow? >> i think so. we were expecting that. the kremlin says it acts according to reciprocity. america expels 10 russians, russia expels 10 americans, and eight u.s. officials. the russians have recommended the u.s. ambassador pop home for consultations. it is not an expulsion, but a strong hit the ambassador should be in washington. but at the moment, crucially, i think the door for dialogue is still open. in a statement the russian foreign ministry put out, they said moscow noted joe biden's words that america wanted a

constructive relationship with russia and noted his proposal for a summit, so i would expect that to continue behind closed doors, a conversation about the possibility of a summit this summer. laura: what would have to happen for that summit to take place? >> there must not be an escalation of tension. that is certainly what joe biden was trying to achieve by speaking to vladimir putin earlier this week, by announcing these sanctions and making it clear that america has red lines, saying russia should not launch any military campaign against ukraine right now. that is a message you hope will have gotten through to vladimir putin.

what i find really interesting is that of course vladimir putin had a better relationship with donald trump, and it is clear putin did not want joeiden to come to power. but at least the kremlin knows what america has redlines are, and that could be the start of some kind of dialogue. laura: steve rosenberg live in moscow, thank you. president biden held his first in person meeting with a foreign leader at the white house today, and the marquis treatment went to the japanese prime minister. japan is the strongest u.s. ally in the pacific region. there was much for the two to talk about from the threat from china to trade. president biden said cooperation between the u.s. and japan is

vital. president biden: i am really pleased to welcome such a good ally and great partner. the united states and japan have a big agenda ahead of us. we are two important democracies , and our cooperation is vital, in my view, and i believe in both of our views, to meeting the challenges facing the nations and ensuring the region remain free, open, and prosperous. laura: joining us now for more on the significance of this meeting is she less meth, senior fellow at the -- sheila smith, senior fellow at the council for foreign relations. what does it say about president biden's priorities that the first leader to get in the door at the white house is the japanese from here. -- japanese premier? >> this is an administration very focused on building

partners, allies, and very focused on the pacific. the long-term u.s.-japan relationship is very strong. it has not had the setbacks that nato and the european allies had with president trump. the region -- i think the u.s. and japan see the need to pull in tight, to work with other partners around the region, to make sure nobody understands -- misunderstands the need for the alliance. laura: how delicate is the position for japan's prime minister? >> i think it's very gela can -- very delicate. japan, as you know, has a robust relationship with china, it is their largest trading partner. nevertheless, there are things

that make tokyo nervous. i think there is a good reason for making sure the deterrence of the alliance -- for making sure the alliance is in good shape, but also for coalition building with australia. laura: how important is it to the prime minister that the u.s. eventually rejoins the transpacific trade alliance? >> very important. president trump stepped out of that agreement with 12 countries within the first 100 days of his term in office, something the obama administration had worked hard to negotiate. that was something prime minister abe had worked to realize as well. i suspect the biden

administration recognizes that rejoining the tpp may not be something doable given american politics in the short-term. nonetheless, they are going to be working on ways to expand trade. laura: president trump did have a slightly more transactional approach to the u.s.-japan relationship. one cannot forget the previous prime minister giving golf clubs to president trump trying to win him over. has the trump presidency changed the way the u.s.-japan alliance is viewed in japan? >> i think not. you have a fairly interesting response in japan to the trump presidency. one is he was tough on china and therefore good for japan. they like it the rhetoric of really standing up to china. on the other hand, his trade policies did not protect japan from spillover effects, be it in the bilateral relationship or in the way u.s. tensions emerged.

i think the japanese are less critical of the trump presidency than their nato aies or other allies throughout the region. they see a strong america as their biggest priority. they are looking to the biden administration to be tough on china, to be supportive of this idea of a free and open indo pacific, to not waver and not get taken in by too much engagement with cha. laura: thank you so much for joining us. in other news, police and the u.s. city of indianapolis say a gunman who killed eight workers at a shooting in a fedex facility was a former employee. the 19-year-old gunman then took his own life. president biden noted last week that 316 people are shot in the united stas every day. hong kong's most prominent pro-democracy activists have

been given jail sentences for organizing and taking part in protest marches in 2019. they include a media tycoon who will serve a total of 14 months in prison for participating in two unauthorized protests. the head of the cuban communist party is stepp down, the latest move in havana. it is a historic moment on the communist run island. fidel castro and then his younger brother roel have ruled uninterrupted since -- raul have ruled on interrupted since 1959. there is outrage after the release of bodycam video showing a police officer fatally shooting a 13-year-old boy less than a second after the boy dropped a gun. we report from chicago. >> the policeman chases the boy down an alleyway. raise your hands, he shouts.

then a shot is fired. police had said the boy, adam toleda, was crying a gun, but the video shows him -- toledo, was carrying a gun, but the video shows him raising empty hands. a distraught officer calls for medical backup, but cannot save him. it seems he had dropped his weapon before turning around. those videos speak for themselv. adam, during his last second of life, did not have a gun in his hand. the officer screamed at him, show me your hands. adam complied, turned around, his hands were empty when he was shot in the chest at the hands of the officer.

>> another shooting this week in minneapolis prompted knights of protest. -- nights of protest. now, they have started shouting adam toledo plus name. -- adam toledo's name. the george floyd -- the trial of the man who murdered george floyd is winding down. officials demanded release of bodycam footage after a public outcry. >> our understanding continues to evolve. this is a complicated and ongoing story. we all must proceed with deep empathy and calm. and importantly, peace. >> a difficult time for the family on the country. laura: barbara plett-usher

reporting from chicago. you are watching bbc world news america. still to come, ahead of tomorrow's funeral for the duke of edinburgh, we will be life at windsor castle -- live at windsor castle. serious ethical issues are being raised after it emerged that u.s. and chinese scientists implanted human cells in monkey embryos. the aim of the research is to understand more about how the cells develop. >> these are not human embryos. they were never destined to develop into a human being. they are just groups of cells. while people have a gut reaction of discomfort, this is actually something we have been doing for

several decades. there are concerns about what it might one day in the future lee to -- lead to. we need to make sure people have an opportunity to air their discomfort, have their voices heard. laura: the royal family is preparing to say goodbye to prince philip whose funeral wil take place tomorrow at windsor castle. there will only be 30 mourners, due to the pandemic. this is a funeral that prince philip designed himself. what can we expect? >> it is quite extraordinary to think he had such a hand in his

own sendoff, but he did. the way things play out over the course of the afternoon is very much in line with what the duke of edinburgh wanted. his coffin will be born on the back of a land rover. normally, it would be a gun carriage with all the pomp and ceremony that comes with that, but he did not want that. he wanted it on the back of a land rover that he himself personally helped design and modify. it was a bit of a project for him to do that. 16 years, if that gives you a sense of how long he had been thinking about and planning this. he will have his coffin born on this land rover. in terms of the service, we already know that the music in the service, some of the prayers will be what he wanted, by his own design, and it is very much the kind of sendoff he wanted

for himself and his family. laura: and how will the queen be seated as she says goodbye to her husband? >> i think the moment we see the queen tomorrow for the first time since the dukes death will be a significant moment, and one i think many people will find quite emotional. she will sit inside st. george's chapel alone. she will be wearing a mask because of covid regulations, and she will not be allowed to have some of her family or four children sit close by r because of the social distancing rules. it will be an extremely poignant and emotive image to see the queen inside st. george's chapel, knowing she is going to say a formal farewell to her husband of 73 years on what will surely be one of the saddest days of her long rain. laura: briefly, there is a lot

of interest in the united states on the attendance of prince harry. >> there is a lot of attention on that here as well, particularly the formation behind the duke. instead of standing side-by-side and walking in the procession, they will have a cousin of prince philip and the princess and walking between them. a lot of things in the royal family are about the optics. there has been a lot of speculation about the fact that they will not be walking side-by-side, they will not exit st. george's chapel side-by-side. laura: thank you. china says it is willing to cooperate with some countries over climate change. the argument continues over which of the major economies is the biggest polluter. our science editor reports.

>> china is the world's greatest factory and biggest polluter. america is the second-largest. together, they account for nearly half of global emissions. >> we cannot wait any longer. we see it with our own eyes, we feel it, we know it in our bones, it is time to act. >> he is reversing the trump years by sending his envoy john kerry worldwide. he was in the u.k. last month, and crucially, china now. >> we cannot solve the china issue without china beginning to reduce their emissions. this is the key. biden has to figure out a way to compel beijing to cut emissions or all the efforts we are making domestically are going to be effectual. >> one of the arguments is over

which of these giant polluters should do more. china releases about twice the u.s. global emissions. america has submitted about a quarter of the greenhouse gases emitted since 1750, whereas china industrialized relatively recently. another dispute is over coal. beijing is encouraging the burning of more of it. this comes as pressure over human rights lead to worsening international relations. >> if you are looking to greate tension across the world, particularly greater confrontation with the united

states, you probably want to hedge your bets and keep a hold of coal because there is so much uncertainty in the world. >> today, chinese television reported on president xi having talks with leaders from germany. the pace of diplomacy is accelerating. >> before we go tonight, as many parts of the world enjoy the springtime, people are eager to ke in the sunshine. take these stunts in spain. after a year of remote learning, one student is swapping chalkboards for beaches. an excellent idea. maybe we should take our studio to the beach, too. narrator: funding for presentation of this program is provided by.. the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum-kovler foundation.

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to learn more, visit safetyactioncenter.pge.com captioning sponsored by newshour productions, llc >> woodruff: good evening. i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight: gun violence in america. indianapolis reels from a deadly mass shooting at a fedex facility, asodycam video of the police shooting of a chicago teen is released. then, a growing trend. dozens of states across the country are seeking to ban young transgender athletes from competition, despite widespread public opposition. plus, it's friday. david brooks and jonathan capehart look at the national divide on police violence, and the president's plan to withdraw all troops from afghanistan. and, making their voices heard. after decades of being shunned by the industry, black women