Rigging with responding in kind. Of very warm welcome to the program on this friday afternoon its 4 pm here in the russian capital lets get started with a live news update we start with a deadly standoff between armenia and azerbaijan in the south caucuses the main city in the disputed province of. Has been pounded by warplanes and locals have been hearing the regular sound of air raid sirens. Several buildings have been damaged including the Emergency Ministry where the windows were shattered and holes blown through the walls Armenian Defense ministry has blamed azerbaijan for the airstrikes and has put its National Army units on full combat alert armenia has also accused of using cluster munitions and karbala and has published photos allegedly proving that azerbaijan has not yet responded to the allegation or confirmed or denied the airstrikes are going on the reports now from the destroyed Emergency Ministry building. Has come under probably the heaviest shelling since we arrived here 2 massive explosions in the very center of the city usually what we could hear what we could see the smoke from the explosions on the outskirts in the suburbs this is the very city center and moreover this is the building of the ministry of emergencies so it has been obliterated i mean look look at this everything is gone windows are gone the whole wall theres a hole in the whole wall and its not just this building theres a whole complex its a large its a large complex and its everywhere like this obliterated not raised to the ground but its gone i dont see any way how it can be fixed all renovated we dont know what we dont know what exactly caused the explosion but we didnt hear any sirens and sirens so probably wasnt a drone but some really heavy artillery and with a very long range as well but we have to go they are telling us its not safe because sometimes as the azerbaijanis are using these socalled double tap so that they not only they destroy the building but also the kill soldiers who arrived here weve arrived here with the soldiers as well so we have to go this is the crater that was made by one of the rockets and this is a piece from a the military here is telling me that this is a 250 caliber 250 millimeter caliber so it is a massive rocket they dont know exactly what it is theyre telling me these these are not laws but that this one is also israeli made. Russian singer and activist syria chair and i happened to be in the area at the same time of the 2nd airstrike and saw the explosion. First there was an explosion and something was flying around over had them there was an air raid alert these were drones i so huge hole in the breach this is Something Else flew over the village there was nowhere to hide the meters leave the car so as not to become targets i hid under canopy i saw the bridge being bombed with my own eyes and heard more explosions and the government car bomb conflict is one of several border disputes still unresolved since the collapse of the soviet union the enclave populated mainly by armenians broke away from azerbaijan in 1988 but has not been widely recognized as a sovereign state in all turkey says its ready to give military support to its ally azerbaijan if they need it although back who claims it hasnt asked for any help meanwhile the french president has accused turkey of funneling syrian militants into the conflict zone emanuel mccrone has told nato that turkey has already crossed a red line here as are to see if with more on that. Well aside from an increasingly violent and volatile situation on the ground things that heating up on the diplomatic International Stage i would say at this point that they are boiling france now coming out with an increasingly hardline stance on what is happening in the region in these in this conflict and theyre saying that theyve come by the same intelligence as russia had that there are indeed syrian geodes mercenary fighters being transported and utilized by is headed by john in the fight against armenia. Today we have information with certainty that indicates that militants from to how does groups who left the field of combat and syria to rejoin the field of competent care above we have this information regarding the transfer of mercenary fighters from the middle east to the going to curb area the information exists and it was presented in social networks and relevant publications previously tacky and as ed by john had vehemently denied that they were usually using utilizing syrian mercenaries in the in the fight against armenia against catabolic but in recent days that lied has changed now theyre accusing armenia of itself using hiring mercenaries under the guise of them being volunteers. There is much historic evidence for meaning of terrorists and mercenaries during the occupation of nagornokarabakh and adjacent regions of their beach on their mini and leadership continues this policy today mercenaries are pumped into the conflict zone disguised as mountaineers according to our information about food fans and militants have recently been deployed by turkey from syria to azerbaijan they are already fighting for azerbaijan they are trained in militant camps and than transferred weirdly calling its International Concern doesnt quite do it justice there are very concrete fears that have taken root that this could be a runaway conflict the potential as collation could be catastrophic because all these powers regional powers could be pulled into this war into this conflict irregardless of what they want russia for example with its security pact defense pact with armenia iraq making it know very well that it is tremendously concerned about syrian fighters mercenaries which it has forth in syria now being flew to its doorstep. Just just to show how can they are france the United States and russia have come together in a in a comparatively rare feat addition to the joint statement calling for peace though turkey for one doesnt quite believe that that can happen you should learn the fact that america russia and france known as the minsk trio are looking for cease fire in the face of these negative developments just because they have been equipped to this problem for nearly 30 years is unacceptable turkeys position and to a lesser degree that of is it by john is that there has been years decades of talks and theyve led to nothing theyve been completely fruitless the karabakh problem is still a problem the flare ups are still happening they say this is not the time for peace this is a tired. To resolve this conflict by military means because all these talks have led to nothing and if we keep talking the conflict will keep escalating it unless the underlying issue is result and that is who controls care about the problem will persist. As a bunch on has also seen its share of damage a border region was hit by mortar fire and several buildings were destroyed both science has released a string of videos to back up their claims of tactical victories but are making contradictory claims about the damage inflicted on to sofitel looks at how distant from ation has become one of the key weapons in the standoff. Deception and full of military victories are as old as wolf heart south but in the digital age the dissent from ation can be tough charged the military Propaganda Machine of armenia which found itself in a stalemate after a series of successful hostilities by the us or by johnny army began a large scale provocation in the Information Space though the armenian side as always presents old video of battles as new ones the goal was to present their failures to the population successes the ongoing conflict in the want to care about is an example of how information is deployed just as powerfully and destructively as guns claiming victory can play as important a role as physically claiming territory its all about the image you project so one surprise in that just as azerbaijan tried to discredit armenia as claims of success yaron shot off its own attack the enemy both at the front and in the Information Space is making its last efforts is running out of steam and therefore threw Everything Possible weapons into an even fakes and falls over the past few days there has been a relentless stream of accusations from one side followed by denials from the author and this exchange of fire has made finding the truth almost impossible for example armenia says one of its su 25 warplanes was shot down by tuckers fighter jet talkie and by john denounce this is law is on with no footage or i want to says its one sides word against the others so was the truth but even when evidence is put forward the truth proves to be just as elusive the car back to France Ministry sit down and sorry helicopter a photo of a burning helicopter into the ground is posted on social media a small victory is claimed it tuns out the photo was actually of a Helicopter Shot down over syria back in february but it doesnt matter because people were. Thought it was a sorry and that will stick as way john uses the same tactics to post about a successful strike as a bridge on his i did not publish any images of the strikes and their mean in positions of military equipment it turned out it was for those from the war in syria these videos were shattered thousands of times and so without being the truth they become a version of the truth so were letting this has this war of information become that journalists have been put on high alert. All members of the media in armenia and azerbaijan to not take part in the ongoing information war journalist should avoid when appeal ation an official propaganda it is important to crosscheck information even when it comes from official sources journalists should never become soldiers in the information war one of russias most famous authors once compared finding the truth to looking for gold he said the only way is 1st to wash away all that is not gold then you will find your shining nugget well when it comes to car thats still a knot of sifting through the muddy river of misinformation to be done before we even get close to the truth. Donald trump has announced he and his wife melania have both tested positive for cope with 19 comes not long after he said he would go in a corn tin when one of his closest aides also tested positive for the virus earlier my colleague neil harvey discussed the development with r. T. America scardino hughes. Most people went to sleep here in the United States they gave us hope hicks the president s longtime aide and 31 year old assistant was the one who tested positive last notes from the president most people went to sleep was that he had been tested he and his wife been tested since then about 12 o 5 the official memorandum came from dr connally the president s physician confirming that both the president as well the 1st lady was had tested positive however it does that the president in good health and will continue to be able to handle the position we here in the United States do have the ability thanks to the 25th amendment that the president is incapacitated he can temporarily pass his powers over to the Vice President we are not at this stage because the president himself is a systematic as of now and only took the test because of a closeness that he had to hope makes after she tested positive herself as she said asymptomatic the most to some implications so when it comes to his campaigning how hes going to fight what he would normally be doing in his bid to style this president. Well that is a very good question were going to find out a lot once the sun rises here in the United States how people are going to react to it is there going to be fear obviously the markets are going to be the 1st has to see how wall street is reacting to it but the campaign is very much alive and on on task considering its 32. 00 days the president has stopped all campaigning there all of it that he was going to be attending as evan now has declared his schedule is only one happening at 1215 today hes got a phone call from the white house and on all that of coping 100. 2 vulnerable seniors sent then i think the president knows very much personally right now how to handle we are within the 14 day quarantine timeframe however to the next debate which is supposed to happen on october 15th so it will depend on whether or not the president is able to meet the specific guidelines as of now they are too negative a test to a jew negative test taken whether or not the president has this 2nd debate as scheduled on time i honestly my personal thing is i do not think it is going to be very likely i think they will push d it outside the 14 day window and there will be that 3rd debate the supposed to be happening in nashville tennessee on october 22nd as well all of these can be pushed on to the one thing that cannot be pushed off however is the actual election date which is november 3rd it is never happened in history that will take you through a 3rd vote by congress to change the election date and congress has not gotten along very well on any issue and lets be very highly doubtful if they would change it even on this. Still to come on the program these slap sanctions on bell russian officials over election rigging claims that leaves lucas sankoh off the list all the details on that and other stories after this break. Join me every thursday on the alex simon show and ill be speaking to guests of the world of politics sports business im showbusiness ill see you then. Welcome back has imposed sanctions on dozens of belarusian officials over allegations of election rigging and the countrys brutal crackdown on protesters mans quest quick to react issuing in its own blacklist of all the details peter all over and berlin. It was a Long Time Coming but the European Union have agreed sanctions on belorussian officials following all this disputed election the reason for the delay was a standoff between cyprus and or pretty much the rest of the e. U. Bloc cyprus wanted to see action taken against turkey over an kriz exploration for Energy Resources off its coast before it would agree to any form of sanctions against bella ruse that action against turkey that was agreed eventually and therefore they were able to proceed with the better russian sanctions so dozens of senior officials 40 in total will be. Facing sanctions this is to do with them they being accused of falsifying Election Results and a crackdown on protests following not election back in august now notably absent from this list is you gays bell russian president alexander shank his name not being there is raised a few eyebrows however on the line the e. U. Commission president says these sanctions send the right message there will be no impunity for those who are responsible for the crackdown on demonstrators and opposition politicians sunni important is this a clue through since we are critical we repeat it we would like to to to consider the people of the has the rights to do to mean whats the only future french president to manual microamp back not putting sanctions on belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko saying that if they did that they could see him retreat into a bunker mentality and refuse any future talks Angela Merkel the german chancellor said the result came after a long night of discussions but called this a real step forward minsk for their part they arent happy about this at all as you would imagine they say that no nation on. The plan it wouldve agreed to the demands that were being made of it by the European Union and that theyll be countering the sanctions with sanctions of they were saying sions have been imposed as a punitive measure for the belorussian failure to comply with a set of ultimatum requirements that not a single self respecting sovereign state would ever meet moscow which has a key role to play in the future of belarus to to the longstanding and close ties between the 2 countries has responded to the news of the sanctions to meet the press core of the kremlin Spokes Person less than impressed with the move made by brussels. These sanctions are a manifestation of weakness not of strength and could be included on the list that would have deprived the e. U. The chance to maintain dialogue including on topics of interest to both sides we have a very negative attitude toward sanctions in general the u. K. Young canada both are out sanctions against belarus previously the u. K. Issued a asset freeze against Alexander Lukashenko the reason for this delay from the european side it is a touch embarrassing and highlights some splits within the union it requires unanimity to impose sanctions for the e. U. To impose sanctions on a nation basically the Baltic States and in particular lithuania were demanding action immediately while cyprus said no no no hang on there well get to your problem once ours is sorted so belorussian officials 40 of them in total will have sanctions placed upon them notably absent from that list though Alexander Lukashenko. Geo political analysts ron arad 1st says that any sanctions are likely to have a knock on effect on the population. So i think its just a game of slightly stepping up the. Tone again. Against look i think oh. I see the difficulty about. Usually when. We have reached a stage of sanctions one its like a one way road and we will never never get out of it so we can take years and that was sanctions 1st may harm or may seem to harm the political elite but in the end we know from enough experience in this world iraq syria venezuela etc that its the normal people its most of all the poor people who are hit very very severely by those sanctions as soon as they got really tough. Spot has broken out between authorities in madrid and the Spanish Government after it reimpose lockdown measures on the city and surrounding areas the region is the countrys worst hit by cars in 1000. 00 accounting for more than one 3rd of inspections at the local Administration Says the new lockdown is illegal and violates freedom. Ok what i can tell you is that we have to act with determination to take control of the pandemic in the madrid region and this is the most important thing we have to do in this moment because health comes 1st. We believe this document contains decisions that concern the entire National Health system and above all the fundamental rights and freedoms of millions of people the minister is imposing measures that go against the will of many citizens. Under the new restrictions residents in madrid will not be allowed to leave the area unless they have to make an essential journey social gatherings will be limited to 6 people while bars and restaurants will have to close at 11 pm and parks and playgrounds will be off limits the measures have already led to mass protests over 2000 people gathered to denounce them last friday protesters pushed trash bins in the roads and chanted slogans demanding freedom we asked madrid residents what they think about the new law down and they have turned it into a political war theyre playing with us and they should be aware that they have to see this is a pandemic not a political war i think there is a real threat and this could be improved a lot if then of sri measures are taken with more transport put on to avoid grounding you know if you lock people up at home for the virus for the flu for a cold everything will get better but people dont have anything to eat you just have to take a walk through madrid to see the shops are all closed people will eventually have to grow their own potatoes because i dont know what were going to eat if madrid closes again. The f. B. I. Has released a new short film demonstrating the dangers of chinese intelligence if recruitment over the propaganda style video reminded many of the methods used by the us and the u. S. S. R. During the cold war in explains. Its the latest hollywood thriller complete with a catchy soundtrack and a script that keeps you on edge however its meant to be informative its not a feature film this half hour movie was created by the f. B. I. More knew about chinese intelligence and its efforts to recruit this is someone targeted on raven who may have sent classified information to chinese intelligence. Like many blockbusters its based on a true story a former cia officer was sentenced to 20 years in prison for passing along information to the chinese and the f. B. I. Says that this video is meant to educate the public and alert them about the threat of foreign intelligence recruitment as this movie highlights Foreign Intelligence Services are posing as head hunters and consultants and professional networking sites to aggressively target americans we believe its critically important to educate the public in order to need to as distress from Foreign Intelligence Services well weve seen all those old newsreels talking about the red menace it looks like the propagandists are still in business years later trying to. Devise im sure. Russia had occupied many New Territories bringing additional millions of people under communist control. To for example really make. Bridge American River road worker makes 10. 00 a day more times more the whos to say the chinese cant strike back theyve got hollywood scenes of their own the. Really awful what happens when im not worth. The amount on the lamp is on the line to the literal truth sometimes not. Just listen to yourself either the usa nor china has actually declared a new cold war but everyone is buzzing about it and the issue of our cold war is the foreign minister suggested so its not just our writings saying that is this a new cold war weve heard for example u. K. Officials are china and the United States headed for a new cold war or is it going to be a hot war the un is even getting in on the hysteria or should we call it in a stealth we must do every scene for the new cold war. We are moving in a very dangerous direction. Own homes cannot afford the future too much as the economy the globe integrates fraction each with its own treatments financial rules and the internet and not official intelligence capacities yes many of us heard stories from our parents about hiding under their desks in school during Civil Defense drills the cold war has a special place in American History and now with dueling propaganda films and talk of a red menace from china it seems that the cold war is back the good old days well perhaps weve forgotten how potentially dangerous it is. R. T. New york. We spoke to politics professor just of Gregory Mahoney who says a u. S. China cold war is already upon us. If we if we follow reports of majority opinions among Business Leaders and policy makers that there will be likely a war between china and us within the next 10 years so i think that again this is part of the. Negative messaging that we see with trump but there is also some credibility that it is an issue that the u. S. Wants to check had a future conflict we already see many people agree a cold war and tech a cold war growing frictions between us and china and other countries and International Organizations as the u. S. Turns against multilateralism some people a lot of people in the d. C. Area believe that were already in a hot cyber war thats a wrap up of the days top news for now but dont forget you can always find us on many of your favorite social media platforms like twitter and facebook to the minute reports. Always be polite never engage with a neg seated or constitutional. Dont get. Into any conversation or start answering questions just ask for an attorney. Survivor tara gage. Definitely dont want to be going to try to jump on cops. Youre more likely to walk free if youre rich. Or if youre poor and. Youve got 2 eyes and 2 ears and one mouth. So you should be seen in here and a whole lot more in your sand if you dont take that advice easy going to dig yourself. As the u. S. Economy was booming growing numbers of people were made homeless. You can work 40 hours d in a week and still not have enough to get housing everybody believes america still has the lead up to the reality of it were not financially equality and the lack of Affordable Housing for a living minimum wage gave many people no choice. Thats been a problem with the city knows turn around and told me stay away oh miss. The food the food is no answer because that requires resources the most vulnerable are abandoned on the streets to become invisible clubs. Seem wrong but all just all. To me the world is yet to shape out disdainfully comes to educate and in gains from it equals betrayal. When so many find themselves worlds apart. Just to look for common ground