contaminating reservoirs. hello, welcome to the program, we begin in the u.s. where president joe biden has decided to withdraw all remaining american u.s. troops by september 11. u.s. officials say biden will announce the move on wednesday. around two and a half thousand u.s. troops are still in afghanistan after a peak of more than 100,000 in 2011. biden's decision would miss the may 1 deadline for the withdraw, agreed with the taliban by the trump administration. september 11 this year is the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks by al qaeda, which led

to the u.s. invasion of afghanistan and america's longest war. the afghan government says it respects any u.s. troops decisions, stating the forces have conducted close to 98% of operations independently. it has also been announced that turkey will host a high-level peace summit in istanbul as a way to jumpstart efforts to end the war. the taliban said it won't be taking part. >> the conference will focus on helping the negotiating parties reach a new set of shared fundamental principles that reflect an agreed vision for a future afghanistan, a roadmap to a future political segment, and of course an end to the conflict. mariana: let's cross to washington. mike, there will be a formal announcement about u.s. troops in afghanistan on wednesday. but have there been more details about why there has been this delay may 1 to the symbolic date of september 11?

>> there has been no formal announcement, but it is understood that many within the pentagon were concerned about the timeline that had been set by then president trump following talks with the taliban in the afghan government. they had expressed concern that this timeline was far too soon, they needed more time to conduct an orderly withdrawal of troops. this would appear to be the major reason. it was said that president biden had taken advice from members within the pentagon from his national security advisers. and importantly too, there does appear to be discussions between secretary and stay in secretary of defense who are in brussels at the moment. it is believed they have been talking to their nato allies in terms of the timeline for this complete withdrawal from afghanistan by u.s. forces. mariana: in our development today we learned of a conversation between president

joe biden and russian president vladimir putin. mike: by all indications, it was a pretty tense conversation. it's said that president biden was sharply critical of president putin for russia's actions on the crimean border. he is asking for the tension to be lessened in that particular region. he also brought up the issue of russian interference in the u.s. electoral process. it on the other hand, he does appear to want to keep some form of relationship going with pressure, or to create a new one. he has suggested a meeting with president putin within the next month and a third country. so, there does appear to be the desire for ongoing discussions with president putin, face to face, even though this harsh criticism that he's believed to have had it out on the issue of russian interference in the elections and russians -- russia's accidents on the crimean border. -- actions on the crimean border.

mariana: the u.s. is offering its full support to ukraine over the escalating tensions with russia. nato has also called on russia to halt its military buildup, describing it as deeply concerning. here is more. >> unjustified and unexplained was how the head of nato described russia's buildup of troops on its border with ukraine. after a meeting with ukraine's foreign minister in brussels. >> russia must end this at military buildup in and around ukraine. stop its provocations and de-escalate immediately. >> russia has deployed naval ships, heavy armor, and tens of thousands of troops. in recent weeks, violence has risen between russian backed separatists and ukrainian forces. ukraine's foreign ministers said nato must respond to what he called a threatened war. >> by gathering today, we tried to avoid the mistake that was

made in 2014, when russia was ready to act swiftly and pursue its military goals and crimea, while our western partners were considering their reactions to what was happening on the ground. russia will not be able to catch anyone by surprise anymore. >> he also discussed the situation with the u.s. secretary of state, who's on a three-day visit to brussels.s the u.s. will station an extra 500 troops in germany. >> we are seeing, unfortunately, russia take very provocative actions when it comes to ukraine. we are now seeing the largest concentration of russian forces on ukraine's borders since 2014. >> kremlin officials say the troops are on a training exercise, and that ukraine has been acting provocatively. some analysts say vladimir putin is less interested in conflict

than in challenging washington. >> what we have seen is a breakdown of the u.s.-russian relations since the biden administration took power. and i think putin is replying to that and is testing the biden administration to see how far are they willing to go, or the turf on russia. >> the white house says u.s. president biden has called russia's leader to urge a de-escalation of tensions. in key have, the best way to end the conflict with russia would be for nato to fast-track its request for membership of the alliance, sending a clear message to moscow, the ukraine sovereignty could not be threatened. mariana: india is reported the world's highest daily tally of new covid infections.

he confirmed more than 160,000 new cases on tuesday, and 879 deaths. but the actual number is feared to be much higher because test results were delayed over the weekend. the country of almost 1.4 billion is seeing a huge surge in infections that is threatening to overwhelm hospitals and some of the hardest hit cities. here is more on this from new delhi. >> unfortunately we are seeing the kind of pictures that we did last year during the peak of the first wave of the coronavirus. most recently, we have seen pictures of bodies outside the biggest government run hospital in the city, and the city's chief medical office does not have enough freezers to keep the bodies, and there are more bodies at crematorium's in the city and can be cremated. hospitals in intensive care units and oxygen equipped beds have been out almost full capacity over the past week.

it is one of the worst affected at the moment. it also has a disproportionately high death rate, which is why the central government and medical teams are finding out why the situation is so bad. i more people seem to be dying. and those teams reported back and said that there are a numr of issues. there is a lack of hospital beds in many districts. there is a shortage of ambulances and one districts that tests are going down, that containment measures are being imposed properly, and that there is resistance to other containment measures, including attacks on health care workers. but, these issues are not unique to that state. most of these issues aren't. we have reports of a shortage of medical facilities, of equipment and a number of places. most importantly in the worst affected state where medical researchers were sent. they said there is a lack of oxygen supply and even

malfunctioning ventilators. mariana: turkey has announced a partial closure for the first two weeks for the month of ramadan for a surge in coronavirus infections. they have registered nearly 60,000 new infections in the past 24 hours. in response president erdogan has extended a weekday curfew, limited transport and banned all events in closed spaces until after ramadan. new measures come into effect on wednesday night. there has been a setback in the united states and its push to get americans vaccinated against covid-19. federal regulators have announced a surprise pause in the use of the johnson & johnson vaccine. here is why. >> it was heralded as a big step forward out of the pandemic. the johnson & johnson vaccine, easier to administer. just one shot and cheaper than the other approved vaccines. that enough federal authorities are urging health-care providers to hold off on using it. the reason of the 6.8 million

people who have received this vaccine, six people have developed blood clots. one died, another is in critical condition. critics say the federal response is an overreaction. >> we've only found six clots of this very rare severe and unusual clot out of 6.8, almost 7 million vaccinations delivered. that is less than one and a million. to put that in perspective, compared to astrazeneca, th is 10 times lower than what they found with astrazeneca and germany, and four times lower than what you found in the u.k. ee>> these types of blood clots show up in the unvaccinated population every year. but authorities see her at the fda says is the combination of this kind of blood clot and low platelets that has raised the alarm because if doctors don't know to ask have you had the johnson & johnson vaccine, they could give the wrong treatment

and that could be fatal. officials are urging people to keep and i out for symptoms. dr. fauci: pay attention, do you have symptoms, headache, shortness of breath, chest discomfort, do you have anything that resembles a neurological symptom? and if you have something as serious as a seizure, that's pretty clear. >> that there is concern that this will only further increase vaccine hesitancy. with more than one third of people telling pollsters they will wait to take the shot, or take it only if it's required. in many say they simply won't take it ever. officials expect the delay to last just days. the biden of ministrations as it won't impact their overall goal for hominy shots are administered. but what they uncover could have a huge impact on the rest of the globe. as many countries are counting on this vaccine to get them past the pandemic. mariana: in our developments,

the world health organization is calling for an end of the sale of live wild mammals to prevent future diseases. it says ending the trade could prevent new illnesses from emerging. the first known cases of the coronavirus and china were linked to a food market in wuhan or wild animals were sold. the who said animals at the source of 70% of new infectious diseases in humans. you're watching al jazeera live from london. still ahead on the program, to minnesota police resigned over the shooting of 20-year-old daunte wright as the defense begins its case for the death of george floyd. a resounding victory for the election that critics say was stacked in their favor. ♪

>> say goodbye to the tropical cycle that came down from indonesia. that hit western australia south. the next thing to watch is a fairly active cold air. it's not particularly cold but it is windy, particularly in south australia. for the next few months he will see this sort of thing. whether coming up, strong winds through tasmania and victoria heading to west new zealand. it's still 20 in melbourne. it's warm and sunny through the coast of new south wales, and even tropical queens will barely see this in the next day or so. a seasonal change in east asia is one of rain. it's this system that wonders in and out of japan, china and south korea. the first polls has gone through. you've got the sun returning on wednesday in japan.

in southern china that rain intensifies. and temporarily there is still a bit of wind hanging around far north. it will be a sandstorm with bitter snow. let's 18 in beijing. it will feel quite cold. a hail shower on thursday. wind dies down and temperatures barely change. >> a star striker in the top italian league. working-class of his hometown. football legend introduces cristiano. a one-of-a-kind superstar. equally adored by his fans for his socialist values, as as many goals against footballing elite. football rebels on al jazeera.

he♪ mariana: welcome back. a look at our main stories. it's being widely reported that president joe biden has decided to withdraw all remaining u.s. troops from afghanistan by september 11, the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. biden is expected to make a statement of his plans on wednesday. the u.s. presidental has also urged vladimir putin to de-escalate border tensions with ukraine. russia has already dismissed nato's call to withdraw. the forces are deployed near the border with ukraine. our others top story, johnson & johnson said it's delaying a rollout of its coronavirus vaccine in europe after u.s. drug regulators requested a

pause. top scientists are investigating blood clots in six women after they were inoculated. in other stories, the minnesota police officer who fatally shot 20 year old unarmed black man daunte wright has resigned along with the brooklyn center's police chief. daunte wright was shot on sunday after being pulled over for an expired registration not far from where the trial into george floyd's death is taking place. the fatal shooting has reignited nationwide shooting amend -- among racial equality. the police chief resigned after they passed a resolution to dismiss them. she said she mistook her gun for a taser when she shot him. civil rights attorney benjamin crump has been speaking out, joining the families of daunte wright and george floyd in minneapolis, expressing his disbelief at what happened. >> it is just something i could not fathom, that a minute --

that in minneapolis, minnesota, a suburb 10 miles from where the derek chauvin trial regarding george floyd was taking place, there's a police officer that would shoot and kill another unarmed black man. it is something that if you told me and i did not see daunte wright's face and his mother and grandmother crying, i would not believe it. because if ever there was a time when nobody in america should be killed by police, it was during this pinnacle trial of derek chauvin. mariana: a use expert has

testified for the defense team. that former officer derek chauvin was justified in pinning george floyd to the ground due to what he described his frantic resistance. barry broad's opinion contradicts the testimony of several top minneapolis police officials, including the city's police chief said derek chauvin used excessive force, going against police practice and training. the former police officer is on trial for murder and manslaughter. he was on floyd's neck for more than nine minutes during his arrest last year. >> i felt that derek chauvin was justified and was acting with objective reasonableness following minneapolis police department policy and current standards of law enforcement in his interactions with mr. floyd. it's easy to sit and judge in an office on an officer's conduct, it's more of a challenge to put yourself in the officers shoes, to try to make an evaluation

through what they are feeling, what they are sensing, the fear they have, and then make a determination. mariana: the testimony is designed to contradict or to overshadow what we have heard from other police experts that derek chauvin did not use reasonable force against george floyd. >> barry broad was the defenses star witness and much of the afternoon was taken examining him and cross-examining him. he is the first person to support what derek chauvin did that day in this trial that has now gone a little over two weeks. he said, as you heard, derek ewchauvin essentially did nothig wrong whatsoever, despite kneeling on george floyd's neck for nine and a half minutes. while the prosecution got right at that and pushed back, at one

point he said it was not even a use of force to hold someone prone on the ground like that. the prosecutor said, wait a second, if he's caused pain, is that not a use of force? and he acknowledged that that was the case. the prosecution pushed back and said that there was a point at which one of the officers had checked george floyd's pulse and found nothing responding at all, no pulse whatsoever. and he points out that derek chauvin continued to kneel on him long after he was not even showing signs of life. he backed off a little bit on saying that derek chauvin had done nothing wrong, and that may impact how the jury views this case. the defense is also taking a risky approach. and that is, as soon as the prosecution dabbled its case to a close this morning, then the defense immediately seemed to put george floyd on trial.

focusing the attention away from the officer accused of murdering floyd, and putting it on the man who was killed. so they brought out a series of police and medical witnesses, and they brought out body camera footage from 2019, from a previous arrest of george floyd. they tried to show a pattern that he resisted arrest with police and had a habit of ingesting whatever drugs he might have on his possession before the police could take him into custody. that is something that a paramedic testified to. then they went back to the may 25 video on the day george floyd died, and tried to show parallels with that. but that might backfire with this jury. this jury is half people of color, who might have their own views on aggressive police tactics, and might have some sympathy for george floyd. mariana: not far from where the

trial is taking place, another black man, 20-year-old daunte wright was shot on sunday. there have been these protests and clashes. does that raise the political temperature around the trial a bit? >> it certainly has. first of all, there is a curfew in town. it was at 7:00 last evening, that would be an hour from now. tonight it has rolled back until 10:00, but that is because of the social unrest that has been in the past couple of nights because of the shooting. and then judge peter cahill who is overseeing the derek chauvin case and was asked by the defense if he should sequester the jury. they wanted the jury to be isolated so they would not be influenced. the fear was that they might be more inclined to convict derek chauvin if they were concerned about social unrest in the streets here in minneapolis. we have a few days of this. the judge says they should

probably be ready for closing arguments on monday. the big question is, will derek chauvin testify? mariana: john hendren reporting to us on that trial in minneapolis. moving to other stories, iran will start enriching uranium up to 60% purity, the highest level yet days after an attack on its nuclear facility. it comes as russia and iran's foreign minister met to sign a cooperation agreement. they both condemned the attack and encourage the u.s. to return to the 2050 nuclear deal and to lift the trump era sanctions. now the u.n. human rights chief years the situation in myanmar will turn into a full-blown conflict like the one in syria. michelle is urging stronger action against the army saying targeted sanctions won't be enough. protests against it have grown across the country despite the harsh military crackdown. or than several hundred people have been killed since the coup in more than 4000 people

arrested with reports that 23 people are facing the death penalty. >> there are many states and many businesses that have not got influence in the matter. they have leverage that they can use, whether it's diplomatic, geopolitical or economic pressure on the military. they need to use this and they need to pressure the military and to stopping the violence. to the people on the streets, the vast majority of protests remain peaceful. there are really small pockets of violence, and in these cases people are using homemade weapons to try to fight the military grade equipment that the military use -- is using against them. in spite of the fact that people don't have resources, they are resulting to these critical arms to fight back. mariana: we go to the political developments. the president has been reelected after a vote marked by violence

to stand for a second term. provisional results show that it received 86% of the vote, but many have questioned the results legitimacy with a low turnout of 50%. some opposition parties boycotted, banning the pledge to serve just one term. opposition leaders were also barred from running. here is more on the southern coast. >> it brought out a few dozen supporters of the press onto the streets saying that this victory, the wide margin of the victory signifies this. the results were declined by the commission despite the announcement on election night that it did not take place in 16 of the countries districts. it also said that more than 50% of voters participated in the election. although they would say the vote

was won by long-term voters. and they are waiting for the affirmation for an endorsement of his results in the first to be sworn in so that he can stand in in early may. a lot of people will be watching closely what the reaction is in many people here believe that it's a miracle that he will be declared the winner of this particar election. mariana: egyptian authorities have impounded the container ship that blocked the suez canal. it was stuck for nearly a week, disrupting billions of dollars worth of global trade. the head of the suez canal said the vessel won't be released until the japanese owner settles compensation reports to be around $900 million. you have been following reports in the caribbean island of st. vincent, which has been rocked by another eruption as volcanic activity threatens water and flutes -- food supply. to begin spilling gas and ash

clouds last week. 16,000 residents have been evacuated with experts saying explosions could continue for weeks more. >> for decades remained dormant. but late last week huge eruptions and as, gas and rock spewed from the summit. >> the initial impact led to regulation orders for 16,000 residents. on monday a bigger volcanic explosion made a dire situation worse. those that did not evacuate are dealing with choking ash, water shortages and fear that more erosions may come. >> right now i feel it because we don't know if we will get back our home. >> a from neighboring countries is making its way to the island of 100,000 people, but the prime minister told al jazeera the road to recovery will be hard.

>> we can see with mathematical precision how long it will last, but this is a long haul. we will be in this condition for four months or more. but it will take a much longer time to rehabilitate and to reconstruct. >> so far there are no reports of death or serious injuries from the multiple year options. those that live close to the volcano were evacuated. in 1902, 1600 people died from the violent eruption. those that remember the last eruption in 1979 say this is worse. >> there is this huge plume of ash hanging in this. silent, deadly, dreadful. and within minutes you could just feel a change in the mood. >> it sits away from the island

for most of the population. the threat to crops, water supplies and those on the island is critical. st. vincent's prime minister said normal life doesn'tsw■■oooú

the last time i was in taipei was in 1993, when i was teaching english to pre-schoolers. i've heard that it's changed dramatically here, but that just seems to be how this city rolls. taipei has seen pretty much everything, and it comes in bursts of furious growth. when martial law was finally lifted in 1987, taipei saw the rise of social movements. this place was an early adopter of the importance of indigenous rights and lgbt awareness, and embraced environmentalism and green space since the '70s. since the '90s, it's been globalization, neoliberalism, and american-style development. how do all these things work together? what will be the default as taipei plots