korea when the north korea tries to subjugate south korea with their military means if that means north korea could actually hit back. you know and destroy u.s. cities is united states going to still be willing to help south korea so that's the fear of the collapse so extended that there is on the side of the united states the lone help the decades long security guarantee and that's the fear of nuclear weapons here about north korea's nuclear weapons capabilities so we do have that trust issue in a very different kind of dimension regarding u.s. capability and willingness to help south korea so that's a very important point to keep in mind that while keeping those concerns in mind conservatives at the same time also advocate perhaps the we should strengthen our independent defense capability so that we will over time gradually reduce the reliance on the united states and that could be actually best interests for the united states and best thing to do to protect american citizens as well when south korea have enough military capability and even possibly some conservatives say if we have

and south korea. meanwhile, the nuke slinging war of words between the president of the united states and the leader of north korea has certainly gotten off to a robust start this new year with some of the harshest rhetoric we have heard from the president since last summer. president trump taunting north korean dictator kim jong-un over the size of america's nuclear arsenal, asserting his is much bigger and more powerful than north korea's, before threatening that the u.s. button works. mr. trump lashing out after kim jong-un bragged that the u.s. is in range of a north korea strike. the ratcheting up of tensions raising alarm. >> there are potentially millions of lives at stake, untold death and destruction here. to me it is very disturbing. >> no one in the white house knows what is un's ignition point where one of these tweets is going to set him off and he will hit the button. >> reporter: president trump mocking kim jong-un with the name rocket man. >> rocket man is on a suicide mission for hims

issue, we, south korea, is trying to bring north korea to the table to open a dialogue. however, when the pressure from international community goes up so high, obviously includes it and is as, the tension between south and north can only be increased. —— obviously in consequence. this needs to be dealt with extremely carefully. we need to give very deep thinking. at the moment they came out to talk with this. this is talk, north korea. they came out to improve the into korean relationship, the tension that north korea input for this talk. —— inter—korean. so i think this is a good start. that was the south korean president was boring —— responding to laura bicker‘s question. sophie weldon gave us more reaction to be president's speech. what is interesting that we have heard from president moonjae—in this morning is that he used the word denuclearisation quite a few times, but he also talked about the us and how they are working together with the us and how that is their ultimate goal, and there is no disagreement between south korea and the us. these t

north and south korea are holding their first formal talks in two years after donald trump claimed his tough stance on pyongyang made the meeting possible. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu faces mass protests over corruption allegations with thousands marching in the streets of tel aviv. and new coalition talks are in full swing in germany as i'm going to multiple attempts to end what some indeed the country's worst political crisis in years. this is r.t. international coming to life are lost on the joining us. north and south korea have started their first official talks in two years the negotiations are taking place in the demilitarized zone between the two countries that have been recent signs of progress january the third sold the reopening of a cross border telephone line and the following day donald trump delayed the annual military drills with seoul until after next month's winter olympics in south korea . let's cross now to our reporter caleb caleb what more can you tell us about these talks which we north and south korea. well the talks have already started in the sh

now north korea and south korea are now actually starting to sit down and talk directly to each other rather than the hub and spoke type relationship or foreign policy u.s. would prefer that south korea only do what it says it with regards to north korea one of the interesting things here damon is that you know you won't get this in mainstream media but the south koreans are reminding everyone that they are a sovereign state and they have the right to determine therefore i think honestly they're reminding themselves absolutely who would you know if you look at western media coverage in the politicos in washington they're quite bewildered by this because it's the south koreans taking the initiative oh my goodness they have historical agency new that's true but how did the whole story begin south koreans just indicated that. they had a message from north koreans suggesting to reestablish connection you know fax connection and joining connection so basically the south koreans did what the north koreans asked them maybe you can still do they started talking and they at least checked the f

between south korea and the u.s. that should you start at the end of sept at the end of february now on north korea sees the many of these drills use all these drills as a threat and see them as a preparation for an invasion and they've long opposed the sort of military drills now president moon j.n. had proposed for a postponement in part because of the upcoming games the so this is perhaps in recognition of that now and the other reason why north korea has made this piece of a chair could be because it hopes to drive a wedge in between north korea in between south korea and the u.s. particularly because u.s. president sir i beg your pardon because south korean president moon j.n. is more of a liberal now the world however is most concerned about north korea's nuclear ambitions particularly because of the strides it's made in nuclear weapons technology in the past year and on that this is what he had to say. good news from the u.s. mainland is within the range of our nuclear strike and the nuclear button is put on t

korea when north korea tries to subjugate south korea with their military means if that means north korea could actually hit back. you know and destroy u.s. cities is united states going to still be willing to help south korea so that's the fear of the collapse so extended that there is on the side of the united states the lone help the decades long security guarantee and that's the fear of nuclear weapons here about north korea's nuclear weapons capabilities so we do have that trust issue in a very different kind of dimension regarding u.s. capability and willingness to help south korea so that's a very important point to keep in mind that while keeping those concerns in mind conservatives at the same time also advocate perhaps the we should strengthen our independent defense capability so that we will over time gradually reduce the reliance on the united states and that could be actually best interests for the united states and best thing to do to protect american citizens as well when south korea have enough military capability and even possibly some conservatives say if we have

south korean support could lead to a backlash against the american presence in south korea that could have unforeseen consequences as far as our position in east asia. >> this is the historians lesson for the age, to understand we do not have a rock solid ally in south korea. >> we do at the moment but that could change drastically with a rash american decision. it is possible we could do this and get away with it, but nobody >> we do at the moment but that knows. i feel like there is a subset of possibilities as to how this crisis could play out. we think if we strike the north first, x number of south koreans will die. i think it would make much more sense from the north korean perspective if we were to attack them, not to level seoul, but to point out to south koreans that americans had just rolled the dice with tens of millions of korean lives hanging in the balance. which is what we would be doing. and then to ask the south koreans, do you really think you still need the americans, because they are the greatest threat to security on the korean peninsula. >> we have referenced chi

and then he invaded south korea in 1951. and made real progress across south korea. there was a counterattack by u.s.-led forces, and over the course of three years, they fought to a stalemate. the same line was returned, and north and south korea have been divided ever since. north korea remained allied with russia and china, but north korea developed a brand of totalitarian leadership that became increasingly isolated and increasingly cruel as time went on. kim il-sung was a popular leader . he had real grassroots support from lots of north koreans. when he died in 1994, people genuinely wept. his son, the first hereditary dictator in a communist state, kim jong-il, was less popular. he did not have a popular touch. but he was shrewd. and he was cruel. in the camps -- and of the camps as an instrument of enforcement became increasingly important, and their population grew. there are indications now with this third kim family leader, kim jong-un, who is 28 or 29, interestingly about the same age as the hero of my book -- it is unclear how popular he would be. or eve

is a south korea is and is south korea alliance so tight that we can depend on south korea to basically do our bidding and coordinate with us, or has this administration, by asking south korea to break up the trade agreement by some of our language, how do we distance ourselves from south korea? >> what's the answer? >> we're going to find out. what nikki haley said yesterday was not helpful. when she said we can't have negotiations that we will support unless north korea says in advance that they are going to give up all their nuclear weapons. there is zero chance. not 1% chance, but zero chance north korea will accept that condition. diplomacy is where you get. it's not where you begin. we should not set preconditions like that. >> the counter argument is this. trump starts talking to kim jong-un in a way that a lot like you don't like in a condescending way. iran, you don't like the way he likes about them bashing obama. but look at them now. people are in the streets fighting for their freedom. he is speaking out in a way obama did not. you know the history of pakistan better than e

but to south korea the offers and all of branch. and what is it about new year's day that makes people want to jump into really cold water we'll take a look at that and some of the other things people get up to around the world on the first of january. and it's good to have you with us reports from iran say more protests have erupted in the capital tehran police say one officer has been shot and killed and three others injured last night the country experienced its worst night of violence since the protests started last thursday at least thirteen people have now lost their lives. this footage has been provided by demonstrators people have been on the streets in various parts of iran's since thursday protesting conditions in the country and this is footage provided by iranian state t.v. which claims that protesters are violent and that some have damaged a.t.m.'s buildings and other property and also claim that some protesters tried to take over police stations and military bases. on monday iranian state t.v. showed president hassan r

all of this is crucial because south korea is the sixth largest trading partner with the us and the south koreans have not been happy about this. they have been saying they didn't want to renegotiate and that potentially this could scupper talks about north korea, which is crucial about their nuclear missiles. fingers crossed that when all this is said and done there will be an agreement between the two countries. thank you so much my colleague, sharon. in other news, china is making it easier to get work permits for foreign professionals and high school workers in a way to bridge the talent gap. ten year free geysers —— ten year free visas are being offered to sign this, maybe a nobel prize winner or two. spouses and minor children is the applicants would also gain the same visa. they can get confirmations of qualifications in five working days. we know him by many names, william and to some the greatest ever english writer. but can we add management guru to his title? a top recruitment firm is using shakespeare's plays to teach top executives key leadership lessons, including julius

but also unexpectedly an offer of dialogue with neighboring south korea. you will the winter olympics to be held in south korea will be a good occasion for the country and we sincerely hope the day will be a success we're prepared to take various steps including sending a delegation officials from the two koreas may meet to discuss the possibility. kim said that now was a good time to demonstrate the status of the korean people in seoul the government responded positively. saw the south korea's presidential office has always stated our willingness to talk with north korea anytime and anywhere if that would help restore into korean relations and lead to peace on the korean peninsula. but that is still a distant goal north korea's leader peppered his speech with threats against the u.s. state t.v. superimposed pictures over parts of his speech kim said the united states will never be able to start war against me or our country back to the. numbers and the entire u.s. is within range of our nuclear weapons and a nuclear button is always on my desk. a little.

leaders agreed not to conduct south korea yes joint military drills. and to do their best to use sure the security of the olympics. next week's discussions will center on north korea's participation in the upcoming winter olympics as well as generally improving and to create relations but officials here in south korea are also hoping the negotiations will eventually lead to north korea returning to international talks on its nuclear program even so president cautiously optimistic saying we should refrain from making premature judgement or expectation. the japanese defense minister also sounded a lot of caution when. north korea goes through phases of apparent dialogue and provocations but either way north korea is continuing its nuclear and missile development we have no intention of weakening our warning and surveillance. it is new year's day speech said north korea with its nuclear weapons program and even called for the mass production of deployment of nuclear warheads at this house. from the conservative perspective in north korea trying to buy tim

korea when the north korea tries to subjugate south korea with their military means if that means north korea could actually hit back. you know and destroy u.s. cities is united states going to still be willing to help south korea so that's the fear of the collapse so extended that there is on the side of the united states the lone help the decades long security guarantee and that's the fear of nuclear weapons here about north korea's nuclear weapons capabilities so we do have that trust issue in a very different kind of dimension regarding u.s. capability and willingness to help so korea so that's a very important point to keep in mind that while keeping those concerns in mind conservatives at the same time also advocate perhaps the we should strengthen our independent defense capability so that we will over time gradually reduce the reliance on units or capabilities and even possibly some conservatives say if we have our nuclear capabilities we could protect ourselves better and that we could actually protect u.s. citizens lives better so all those different thinkings they're going on

and south korea. it's part of a larger effort to make sure that south korea and the united states are not coordinated we have to remember that for kim jong un the biggest threat is the united states being right on his borders and he wants to get rid of the united states in the only way to do that is to make sure that south korea and the united states have different priorities and different negotiation outcomes that they seek different negotiation outcomes it would be difficult for south korea to ignore something like this and they have been ignored in the past when north korea has approached them about family reunions or joint industrial projects those are things that have been going on in the past and they've negotiated that on a bilateral level so south korea will be very difficult i know that they passed the deadline would be very difficult for south korea to turn away north korea when it when it is a a friendly just at least on paper it's clear that north korea is has a strategy here because they

is going to respond to this offer south korea said they try to contact north korea via communication hotline this morning but nobody picked up this communication hotline had been severed since february two thousand and sixteen after north korea conducted a nuclear test the president of south korea has also made it clear that talks on denuclearization will have to involve the international community but they're hoping that separate south korean officials are hoping that these talks will help improve into a career relations that him have been at their lowest point in decades. a former palestinian negotiator has condemned the new bill passed by the israeli parliament the law makes it harder to hand over parts of jerusalem to the palestinians under a future peace deal sideboard i says it's a continuation of u.s. president donald trump's decision to put an end to the palestinian cause it comes less than a month off to trump recognize the city as israel's capital. jhoom has more from west jerusalem at its core this new law would require that eighty of one hundred twenty knesset members or

north korea plans to send a team to the winter olympics and south korea calls for more cross border reunions but the first formal talks to you. alone down in jordan this is live from doha also coming up chinese media say a body has been recovered from the scene of a collision between an oil tanker and a freighter. the french president emanuel micro set to meet with the chinese leader in just a few hours time we'll have a live report plus. salvadoran immigrants in the u.s. are given a deadline to meet or face deportation. north korea says it will send a delegation of athletes supporters and officials to next month's winter olympic games in south korea kyung yang is holding its first high level talks with seoul since twenty fifteen south korea has also proposed to the two sides hold military talks to reduce tension on the peninsula. but is a number. we came to this meeting today with the serious and sincere attitude and with the thought of giving our brother and who have high hopes for this dialogue invaluable results of the first president of the year when the going to do so is our talks resu

well south korea has responded rather positively to kim jong un speech especially the parts where he's offered to deescalate tensions on the korean peninsula he's made in a peace overture he's suggesting dialogue with south korea he's even hinted that north korea could send its athletes to participate in the upcoming winter olympics and paralympics to be held in pyongyang in south korea just eighty kilometers from the border with north korea now the presidential spokesman has said that the blue house that's a presidential. official dress has reiterated that it is willing to talk to north korea anytime anywhere and in any form if it pertains to restoring inter career relations as well as peace on the korean peninsula and we have to remember that communication between the two koreas has been severed since february two thousand and sixteen almost two years now since north korea launched its fourth nuclear test and the two countries are still technically at war having not signed a peace treaty but rather an armistice but the presidential spokesman from south korea however did not address t

but i don't think most people realize when north korea and south korea communicate back and

he says north korea is trying to create divisions between the u.s. and south korea. well it's part of a larger effort to make sure that south korea and the united states are not coordinated we have to remember that for kim jong un the biggest threat is the united states being right on his borders and he wants to get rid of the united states and the only way to do that is to make sure that south korea and the united states have different priorities and different negotiation outcomes that they seek different negotiation outcomes it would be difficult for south korea to ignore something like this and they have been ignored in the past when north korea has approached them about family reunions or joint industrial projects those are things that have been going on in the past and they've negotiated that on a bilateral level so south korea will be very difficult i know they've they passed the deadline it will be very difficult for south korea to turn away north korea when it when it is a a friendly just at least on paper it's clear that north korea is has a strategy here be

now north korea and south korea are now actually starting to sit down and talk directly to each other rather than the hub and spoke type relationship or foreign policy u.s. would prefer that south korea only do what it says it with regards to north korea one of the interesting things or demon is that you know you won't get this in mainstream media but the south koreans are reminding everyone that they are a sovereign state and they have the right to determine therefore i think they're reminding themselves absolutely who would you know if you look at western media coverage in the politicos in washington they're quite bewildered by this because it's the south koreans taking the initiative oh my goodness they have historical agency new that's true but how did the whole story begin south koreans just indicated that they had the letter they had a message from north koreans suggesting to reestablish connection you know fax connection at a twenty connection so basically the south koreans did what the north koreans asked them maybe you can still do they started talking and they at least check

south korea. it comes hours after president trump's most direct nuclear threat against pyongyang. >>> the hot line is back on. lines of communication open this morning between north and south korea hours after president trump's 280 character message to kim jong-un. anything you nuke, i can nuke bigger. >> nothing abnormal about that. the president's tweet on north korea part of a wild and wide ranging social tirade. he took aim at iran, the palestinians, democrats and his own deep state justice department. >> and the senate returns to washington today, top level meetings on tap. can the white house get its 2018 agenda off the ground? good morning, everyone. welcome back to "early start." >> the concept of mad or mutually assured destruction comes to mind this morning. breaking overnight, diplomatic contact has resumed between north and south korea just hours ago north korea called south korea through a now revived communication line. discussions resumed after a green light from kim jong-un. it's w

and south korea. talk about that a little bit. what does it mean? guest: this all grew out of a speech that kim jong-un, the north korean leader, gave to commemorate the new year, in which he trumpeted his accomplishments, as he said, establishing north korea as a nuclear state, but also calling koreaproved ties to south , in part calling for enhanced communications with south korea, and specifically pointing to the upcoming winter olympics, which will be held in february. host: these exercises are held fairly regularly between the u.s. and south korea. whether they normally entail, and from a tactical standpoint, is there any issue or effect of delaying the? guest: the united states and south korea hold several exercises every year. some larger than others. usually in the spring, the combined exercises are usually quite large. one is a field exercise. the other is a command exercise. and it does not have any real tactical effect. what it does do is it shows that and we some flexibility, are able to h

retaliation by north korea against the republic of south korea. and the capital city, seoul, is just about on the front lines. so south korean views have a presumptive value. second, political trends in south korea are important here as well. we had conservative presidents for nine years up until last year. now we have a progressive president. and his ideas towards north korea, relatively speaking, are more conciliatory and more in favor of engagement than those of his predecessors. so that raises the question whether public attitudes have moved as well. i'm going to draw on two recent polls. one is by gallup korea in september of last year and the other is by genron npo. thank you, kudosahn, for doing july.oll last the two polls didn't ask the same questions. but that's ok. first question, how much does north korea pose a threat to peace and security particularly after the last nuclear test? people in south korea, 76% say it is a threat of some degree. only 20% said it is not much of a threat. there are no illusions in south korea about the dange

decent relationship with south korea that is to say that the north korea misses the days when south korea used to give assistance and aid and subsidies and stuff like that it was known as the sunshine policy which was continue which was begun under previous liberal presidents and the stop hope of north korea the current liberal president of south korea bring that back so i think the north koreans are entirely content to have the relationship they have with the united states right now the nuclear tensions and all that obviously with donald trump that's not going to change and they'd like to find a way than to go along with some of the other players the north has done this for a long time sort of playing one off the other off the other right and so if you if the americans are giving you a hard time then you go to the south i don't really see any change what we've seen in two thousand and seventeen i am i'm genuinely concerned right i mean the more the north koreans build the more missiles the more nuclear weapons they have the more tests they do and stuff like that the more sites they

as he signals a desire for the better relations with south korea. president joseph kabila faces calls to step down amid rising violence between protesters and security forces. and welcoming in the new year spectacular fireworks around the world as people celebrate the arrival of twenty eight. iranian state media is reporting fourteen people have now been killed in four days of anti-government protests it says security forces repelled what it's calling on to protest as you're trying to take over police stations and military bases airports have not yet been independently verified especially going to name has mall . a social media blackout didn't stop protesters from gathering on iran's streets for a fourth day and posting these videos. the iranian government says people have the right to express their discontent but violence is unacceptable iranian state media says some social media sites and messaging apps such as telegram have been blocked to keep the peace. on saturday there were also pro-government rallies our own we cannot predict a time when the

korea republic of south korea. and the capital city, solo, is just about on the front lines. so south korean views have a presumptive value. second, political trends in south korea are important here as well. we had conservative presidents for nine years up until last year. now we have a progressive president. and his ideas towards north korea, relatively speaking, are more conciliatory and more in favor of engagement than those of his predecessors. so that raises the question whether public attitudes have moved as well. i'm going to draw on two recent polls. one is by gallup korea in september of last year and the npo. is by genron the two polls didn't ask the same questions. ok.that's first question, how much does north korea pose a threat to peace and security? particularly after the last test.r people in south korea, 76% say it is a threat of some degree. only 20% said it is not much of a threat. there are no illusions in south korea about the danger that their country faces from their northern cousins. second

so far behind south korea. paradoxically, the way that we need to get out of this security dilemma we are stuck with with the north korean sister help them move along, give them or competence, let kim jong—un focus more on economic element and move away from the nuclear deterrent. john, thank you to talking to us. —— thank you for talking. donald trump's former chief strategist steve bannon has stepped down as head of the far right website breitbart. he's been heavily criticised by mr trump and faced a backlash from supporters since the book "fire and fury" quoted him accusing the president's son and son—in—law of treason. detectives in italy and germany have arrested 169 people on suspicion of activities related to the mafia. tens of millions of dollars worth of property was seized in the operation against the ‘ndrangheta, a crime syndicate accused of infiltrating businesses across both countries. the us secretary of state has ordered a new inquiry into the health problems suffered by diplomats sta

to south korea he offers an olive branch. and what is it about new year's day that makes people want to jump into really cold water we take a look at that and some of the other things people get up to around the world on the first of january. and it's good to have you with us reports from iran say more protests have erupted in the capital tehran police say one officer has been shot and killed and three others injured last night the country experienced its worst night of violence since the protests began last thursday at least thirteen people have now lost their lives . protesters have been on the streets in various parts of the country since thursday they first protested about the country's dire economic situation but are also now complaining about human rights. abuses you know at least a dozen have died and there's extensive damage on monday iranian state t.v. showed president hassan rouhani meeting with members of parliament to discuss the situation rowhani claim that protests are happening because iran's enemies are angry

korea a reason we didn't relationship with south korea that is to say that this is the north korea misses the days when south korea used to give it assistance and aid and subsidies and stuff like that this was known as the sunshine policy which was continue which was begun under previous liberal presidents and this up hope in north korea the current liberal president of south korea bring that back so i think the north koreans are entirely content to have the relationship they have with the united states right now the nukes in the tension and all that obviously with donald trump that's not going to change and they'd like to find a way than to go along with some of the other players the north has done this for a long time sort of playing one off the other off the other right and so if you if the americans are giving you a hard time and you go to the south you and i say robert the rhetoric between kim jong un and donald trump pretty much remains the same the north korean leader as you say talked about having missiles that can reach the u.s. and he's got the nuclear button on his desk. yeah a

but to south korea he offers an all of french. and what is it about new year's day that makes people want to jump into really cold water we'll take a look at that and some of the other things people get up to around the world on the first of january. it's been a long time coming but today america's most populous state california legalized cannabis for recreational use will this be a new high or new low opinions could not be more divided. and it's good to have last night the country experienced its worst night of violence since the protests started last thursday at least thirteen people have now lost their lives. this footage has been provided by demonstrators people have been on the streets in various parts of iran's since thursday protesting conditions in the country and this is footage provided by iranian state t.v. which claims that protesters are violent and that some have damaged a.t.m.'s buildings and other property and also claim that some protesters tried to take over police stations and military bases on monday iranian st

and of course south korea has limited sovereignty because u.s. troops thirty thousand of them are still there so we see an unprecedented break away from the south korean government trying to assert sovereignty and say to this to the northern people to the people their brothers and sisters in the north let's have peace let's have negotiations let's have a joint team that's alarming to trump into the military industrial complex but very welcomed by all the people in the world i'm just wondering what is the next move for north korea if you've got the u.s. saying look north korea you need to take a more sort of gentle approach to your relations with the rest of the world and they have this seemingly positive gesture by unifying for an olympic team with south korea and they're still getting this aggressive rhetoric what do do they. right the united states doesn't want north korea to be reaching out and speaking in a way that would build peace and promote unity between the two koreas because as the new york times on the other corporate owned mainstream

now north korea and south korea are now actually starting to sit down and talk directly to each other rather than the whole been spoked type relationship or foreign policy u.s. would prefer that south korea only do what it says it with regards to north korea one of the interesting things here damon is that you know you won't get this in mainstream media but the south koreans are reminding everyone that they are a sovereign state and they have the right to determine therefore i think honestly they're reminding themselves absolutely who would you know if you look at western media coverage in the politicos in washington they're quite bewildered by this because it's the south koreans taking the initiative oh my goodness they have historical agency new that's true but how did the whole story begin south koreans just indicated that they had that letter they had a message from north koreans suggesting to reestablish connection you know fax connection and joining connection so basically the south koreans did what the north koreans asked them maybe you can still do they started talking and the

pact on north korea. soldiers are fleeing to south korea. rocket man wants ta talk to south korea for the first time. perhaps that is good news and perhaps not. we shall see. joining us is the managing director at the washington institute of former senior director at security counsel. also with us, the former secretary of state heather conley geist. thank you very much for joining us. is north korea trying to drive some sort of wedge between the united states and south korea by reaching out in this dramatic way? >> i think they are using the opportunity at the olympics. the government is anxious to have a success olympics and i think the ankzs are in fact starting to weigh in on the north korean regime. they want to use it as an opening. if they can divide the u.s., that's a benefit, but the sanctions are impacting and they want to drive a wedge between the u.s. and south korea. >> for they can entice the north koreans to get involved and make sure there is no violence and no confrontation that would be successful. it comes at a time when we

in the short term, both south and north korea have a real co nve rg e nt south and north korea have a real convergent of entrance. south korea really wa nts convergent of entrance. south korea really wants the olympics to go off well and without incident and north korea wants to have its athletes participate and also showcased some other cultural and sporting prowess in front of the world. on the flipside, has the north being drawn into this dialogue because sanctions are starting to bite? there is a little evidence over the last couple of that sanctions are starting to bite. we are seeing the exchange rate fluctuate a little bit. the price of gas shut up but then stabilised a if you months ago. i think overall, the economy is now robust enough in north korea that kim jong—un is more robust enough in north korea that kimjong—un is more keen to explore what is possible now with south korea and where the diversions is with washington. also to seek what mainly the moon administration may be able to sell in dc in terms of a compromise position. what does this mean now in terms of impr

in south korea. this morning. do we know anything yet any agreements yet to come out of these talks that are in effect happening. at this moment it's all very sensitive and secretive given that you know this is the first meeting face to face meeting between the two sides in two years and it's been a heck of a year with all the saber rattling with all the missile launches the war games and you know what gives it away is where this is taking place along the most heavily militarized border in the world the most heavily mined border in the world we're getting bits and pieces coming out of a south korean news agency and various south korean news agencies but this was these talks were never supposed to be about anything other then the winter olympics that are going to be taking place in south korea that's the official reason because obviously the south koreans want to get the north koreans to come if the north koreans and the delegation will be much more unlikely to launch ballistic missiles or you know stage war games

. >> north korea and south korea plan to meet for the first time in years ahead of the winter olympics. we recently spoke with a historian about the background of that relationship and the involvement of the united states. annualattending the meeting of the american historical association in washington. this is just under 20 minutes. david is a historian at the university of wisconsin, madison, who specializes in u.s./korea relations. what is the most important thing that anyone watching the news and worrying about the state of things should know about korea and u.s./korea relations. ? >> this was never supposed to be permanent. there is no doubt whose idea that was -- the reason this matters is because the koreans see themselves as one people, one nation, and one race and would like to be reunified, especially the elder generation of koreans who still have family in the north, some of whom have not spoken in decades. this matters because in many ways koreans hold the united states responsible for that decision. there is a latent stream of anti-americanism running through korean societ

and south korea alliance. we've heard from many people here in the region, that alliance is simply too strong to be able to be split apart by any kind of mind games. the south koreans are very welcoming of the fact that this is happening. we heard from an official saying kim jong-un himself welcomes what president moon jae in is talking about the olympics. the fact that north and south korea are talking for the first time in a number of years is significant. >> they are talking and the president is tweeting about north korea. thank you so much for that. president trump weighing in on the government protests in iran. the people of iran are acting against the brutal regime. all that money that president obama gave them went into terrorism and into their pockets. the people have little food and no human rights. the u.s. is watching. nikki haley echoing her boss's sentiments. >> we must not be silent. the people of iran are crying out for freedom. all freedom loving people must stand with their cause. >> the white

the economic situation in south korea and the improvements he wa nts to south korea and the improvements he wants to make. he is specifically talking about jobs and wants to make. he is specifically talking aboutjobs and the minimum wage, and how he wants to improve the quality of the workplace and how he hopes these differences will be visible by 2020. he has not yet spoken about north korea and the upcoming winter olympics, and the hope that north korea will send a delegation to those winter olympics. let's get a bit of background from oui’ let's get a bit of background from our correspondent, rupert wingfield—hayes. the skiers on the slopes of pyeongchang today were moving a little slower than they will be in a month's time. then, the world's best will be flying down these pistes. and now we know that when the olympic games open here on february 7th, there will be a full north korean team competing. they will march in side by side with their south korean compatriots. translation: i think with sport, we can put everything aside and everyone should do their best to achieve their goa

north korea and south korea have help their first official talks in over two years ago she took place in the demilitarized zone between the two countries the sides agreed on the participation of north korean athletes and the south korean olympics they also discussed the potential reunification of families separated by the korean war and in a significant breakthrough the two koreas agreed on talks between high level officials in order to avoid dangerous military incidents so that you have two points of view one is there buying time to perfect military capability of the nuclear the other is that they are self-confident enough no they're accepted as a nuclear power they can then become acting as a normal state and start negotiating with other states kim jong il one north. he has won the democratic people's republic of korea as one no i think this is very very welcome news that there is a constructive dialogue going on between the two koreas and i hope something comes of it i mean that when all said and done the political arrangements on the peninsula between the two countries are paramou

and south korea delay joint military drills and south korea is talking about easing some sanctions to let this happen. and moon jae-in gets what he wants, a peaceful olympics without a north korean missile launch or nuclear test to spook spectators since the seoul summer games in 1988. when you have the north korean chief negotiator talking about the oimpices and friendship, saying he doesn't want south korea to bring up denuclearization, that's a problem for the united states. >> it certainly is. will ripley in south korea along the dmz. barbara starr at the pentagon, we'll stay on top of this story for sure, as we do almost every day. that's it for me. thanks very much for watching. i'm wolf blitzer in "the situation room." "erin burnett outfront" starts right now. >>> "outfront" next, breaking news. bombshell testimony. people behind the russian dossier making major claims. was someone killed because of this dossier. >> and more breaking news tonight. white house exodus. the west wing expecting more staffers to leave. two team trump heavyweights among the possible exits. >>> plus,

cleave off the solve south korea from the americans. really because it is still foreseeable that north korea will want to carry on testing its nuclear weapons development program is still unfinished despite what kim jong un has said previous the completeness of that program and i think they will want to have the south koreans are on their side in order to sort of provide an apology or sorts should north korea resume testing and to buttress any prospect of preemption from the americans you said earlier that if all goes well at this stage they could move on to bigger things i simply mean the nuclear issue what would the starting point be for negotiations were would it be where they were you know years ago the idea of completely shutting down nuclear activities in return for food. well this is where things get very difficult and once again are all of us serving the course of events have to manage our expectations i think i think south korea despite holding on to its firm position and hope of didn't do it didn't arise the asian is quite pra

and sends a threat to the united states on a branch to south korea. jordan this is al jazeera live from doha also coming up president speaks for the first time about demonstrations against his government protests are allowed but violence is not. israel's governing the could party has passed a draft resolution urging annexation of much of the occupied west bank plus i. twenty seventeen twenty eighty celebration the world brings in the new. north korea's leader kim jong un has threatened the united states but also reached out to his neighbor in the south he made the comments in his annual new year's address kim says pyongyang has weapons capable of reaching the u.s. mainland and that the launch button is on his desk he also warned washington that in twenty seventeen north korea had completed its push to become a nuclear force and that it's time to start mass producing nuclear warheads but the defiant leader made some unusually friendly remarks about south korea saying the path to dialogue with seoul is open and that he hopes ties of improve between both

signals a desire for better relations with south korea. just political party calls for the annexation of the occupied west bank plus i. once the celebrations are over in many places a new year brings new laws will tell you about a few of the. iranian state media reporting that at least ten people have been killed in anti-government protests and a government back channel says security forces repelled the protesters who tried to take over police stations and military bases reports haven't been independently verified it follows a statement by the president has some rouhani urging people on sunday to demonstrate peacefully. has more. a social media blackout didn't stop protesters from gathering on iran's streets for a fourth day and posting these videos. the iranian government says people have the right to express their discontent but violence is unacceptable the iranian state media says some social media sites and messaging apps such as telegram have been blocked to keep the peace. on saturday there were also pro-government rallies our own wh

supporters and officials of next month's winter olympic games in south korea. holding its first high level discussions with seoul since twenty fifty. france's president is pushing for stronger ties between his country the european union and china and will be signing several deals with chinese leader xi jinping is offered to open up funds to chinese investment. and any radiant oil tanker that collided with a freighter off time is east coast on saturdays still on fire dozens of rescue boats spent three days trying to control the base rescuers are looking for thirty one crew members who are still basic. pro-democracy activists in hong kong are in court again over their roles in mass protests in twenty fourteen. eagles conard benny ty and eight others are attending a pretrial hearing they face charges of incitement connected with their roles in the movement demonstrations sarika has more from hong kong. this is the pretrial hearing for nine pro-democracy activists who've been child's withinside in public nuisance for their role back in the twenty four st occupy hon

and south korea. we recently spoke with a historian about the background of the relationship between the two countries and the involvement in the night states -- the involvement of the united states. this is just under 20 minutes. david is a historian at university of wisconsin madison who specializes in a timely field, u.s.-korea relations. what is the most important thing that anyone who is watching the news right now worrying about the state of things should know about korea and north korea? >> the most important thing to understand is that the division of korea was originally a u.s. idea. this was never supposed to be permanent. korea would eventually unify. that did not happen. the division became permanent. much,ason this matters so the koreans see themselves as one people, one nation, one race, and would like to be reunified. especially south koreans who have family in the north. koreans hold the united states responsible for that decision. there is a latent strain of running through korean soc

with south korea but warns he'll use the nuclear option if threatened by the u.s. . ice and takes action to guarantee equal pay between men and women with the first no of its kind in the world plus. two thousand and eighteen is election year here in brazil and a country that struggling with its corrupt politicians and economic strife will be hoping that something is going to change. the death toll of the five days of anti-government protests across iran has reportedly risen to fifteen among the dead is a policeman iranian state media say most of the deaths occurred on sunday night it's reporting that security forces repelled armed protesters who tried to take over police stations and military bases the reports haven't been independently verified pizza shop has the latest. the fifth day of protest on the social media blackout imposed by the government has done little to stop the demonstrators out on the street. posting these videos from cities across iran this was beer john the monday night gunshots scattering the people on the streets. at shahin shah buildings on fir