german chancellor argues, hand back the pieces looted by the russians following the second world war. >> earlier today, there were reports president vladimir pugh 10 had canceled exactly such a tour with his german opposite, angela merkel, to a museum in st. petersburg because she was planning precisely such demands. reports of the cancellation, pewter and said nothing had been called off and that the pre-agreed itinerary would be followed after all. lex the pair did tour the exhibition, merkel did make her demands, and this has taken away the focus from the real reason she is there -- and international economic forum. >> the two leaders' smiles concealed and economic class. the dispute over vladimir puget and angela merkel's joint visit to st. petersburg's museum threatened to overshadow anything -- vladimir pugh 10 and angela merkel's joint visit -- vladimir. -- vladimir putin and angela merkel's joint visit. russia lays a moral claim to the works, saying it paid for the minute peoples -- paid for them and its peoples own blood. the visit by the german chancellor and russian president to the museum was supposed to be the crowning moment of the the year in which the countries have showcased their close ties, but suddenly, the appointment was canceled. sources say the russians wanted to stop merkel from giving a speech referring to the dispute. hours of intense negotiations followed. in the end, they appeared side- by-side to face the media, and both did their best to play down the diplomatic rift. >> i was looking forward to seeing this exhibition, so i would say we have resolved the problem. >> this is a very sensitive issue for both sides. if we want to move forward, we f void magnifying the problem -- a void magnifying the problem. >> but it's a solution neither putin merkel seem particularly happy about. >> for more, we are joined by marcus who is standing by in st. petersburg. this politically sensitive museum visit -- it was on and off and and obviously back on again. what what prompted the political turnaround? >> what actually made them change their mind -- putin plans at all on a lack of timing, but merkel told reporters [inaudible] together and open the exhibition together. [inaudible] both remarked how important it was, that it was an important step toward bringing this debate about the looted art forward. >> of course, the question of who the rightful owner of the art actually is remains unresolved and remains a volatile issue between the countries. any progress there? >> it is a very old debate. [inaudible] >> well, sorry, we were having a great deal of difficulty with the quality of the line, so we had to prematurely bailout of that interview. >> and move on to yet another diplomatic dispute, this one between germany turkey, which has intensified in the wake of turkey's crackdown on antigovernment protesters. lex turkey has blamed angela merkel for blocking negotiations on turkey joining the european union. she recently said she was appalled by the harsh treatment turkish demonstrators -- of turkish demonstrators, saying that does not correspond with european ideals. police have arrested about 3000 people in three weeks of street violence in turkey. some of those were involved and support appearances after turkey accused merkel of the electioneering. turkey's ambassador to germany was summoned to the foreign ministry in ankara and did the same. >> more on that diplomatic spat from our political correspondent. is this one set to get worse? >> it's hard to say how far this is going to run. it is certainly unusual to see these two countries using the diplomatic sledgehammer of summoning each other's ambassadors. that smacks of another era in international relations, and it is not what you would expect from military allies and two countries who see themselves as key partners in europe. i think ankara is feeling the pressure of international criticism about its reactions to the protests we have seen their. berlin is saying that there is no link whatsoever between its criticisms of turkey's actions on the protests and on the one hand, the question of turkey's accession to the european union or indeed to germany's general election coming up later this year. >> is there any truth to ankara's claime that merkel was electioneering? >> angela merkel and her have never made a secret that they are skeptical of the idea of turkey becoming a full member of the european union. they see turkey as not compatible in many ways with the european union. they favor the idea of what they call a privileged partnership. i suppose many germans look at it the same way, but this is not going to be a key election issue. there are not many votes in it. the official reason why the germans are standing back on this business of enlarging or expanding the accession talks with turkey at the european level is they say there are more technical questions that have got to be looked at, but as the government spokesman admitted that everything is linked to everything, and i think from berlin's perspective, it would have looked wrong to be as it were rewarding the turkish government at this time when it is proceeding in such a harsh way against protests on the streets of istanbul and elsewhere. >> thank you for the analysis, simon. the cracks are growing in greece hoss coalition -- greece 's coalition. >> the democratic left party has abandoned talks. the move has left residents of morris with just a three-seat jury in parliament -- the move has left president samaras with just a three-seat jury in parliament. >> the blow to the stability of the jurisdiction was delivered here. the government's smallest party voted to pull out its two ministers. the move had been foreshadowed for days. on thursday evening, another meeting of coalition leaders broke off without agreement. three crisis talks in four days -- all to seek agreement on the future of the state broadcaster. premier antonin samaras ordered the station shut down last week, saying it was raised that money, but the outrage staff has found support from the angry populace and parts of the coalition. samaras wants to found a new broadcasting while the leftist want ert to go back on the air. the government is now left with just a thin majority in parliament. >> following the eurozone financial meltdown in 2008, the du spent nearly 1/numeral three of its economic output on saving banks -- the eu spent nearly will 1/3 of its economic output on saving banks, but a few years on, finance ministers are still struggling to deliver on those ledges and restore trust in eurozone banks and the block as a whole. today, they been trying to figure out how to let flailing winters go bust without burdening taxpayers. >> on the longest day of the year, eu finance ministers are gearing up for marathon talks. they are debating how to shut failed banks without panicking the markets, but some members worry strict eu-wide rules would threaten their sovereignty. >> certain countries want more national flexibility, and other countries want a more centralized system. that is probably the main point of disagreement. >> the ministers agree on one thing -- the air of bailing out banks on the expense of taxpayers is over -- the era of bailing out banks on the expense of taxpayers is over. >> it will be very important to maintain the momentum on the union, as we did yesterday in the euro group. >> the new law would be a crucial step towards the goal of a european banking union that ministers hope will bring stability back to the eurozone. >> our correspondent in luxembourg has been following the talks. are we really a step closer to a banking union? >> yes, we made one step forward last night when they talked about the direct recapitalization of banks, and they even managed to break in with the vicious circle you talk about, that the taxpayers finally helped the banks in the euro crisis, but it not as simple as it sounds. it is not as though a bank can call and say that they need money and ask for help. it only applies if the government itself cannot help the bank. that is one big step forward. they are talking now about another centerpiece of the banking union, and that tackles the question -- what should happen if a bank is in problems? should it be downsized or even closed? >> what are the main sticking points? >> there are basically two -- the first tackles the question of how creditors and investors should be involved to absolve the losses. the only thing that is sure for the moment is that deposits up to 100,000 euros are insured, and for the rest, the discussion is still going on. the second big sticking point is the banking resolution fund which is financed by the banks itself, and the rules still have to be worked out. there are a lot of tricky, detailed questions, and the positions are very far apart. >> thank you very much. >> moving onto china's credit crunch, which has eased slightly, a shortage of cash and there has been raveling world markets and putting on the country's banks. >> but after soaring recently, the cost of money has now eased a bit. there are reports that the central bank has injected several billion euros worth of cash into the banks. that would mean a major change in strategy. the central bank has been holding back from pumping money into the economy lately, worried about the risk of accumulating bad bets. onto markets, and european stock exchanges dropped for the fourth day in a row on friday, locking in the biggest weekly decline in 13 months. our correspondent sent us this trading -- the summary of the trading action on the frankfurt stock exchange. >> ee you is coming forth with the bank union. this was the only good news for traders. it is a very important project, they said, but besides these plans, the trading day was very weak. german stocks made only a brief move toward recovery after yesterday's selloff. the fed's announcement to reduce stimulus disappointed traders, and in addition, they also worried about the situation in the chinese banking sector. the week ended all in all with heavy losses. >> we stay in frankfurt for a closer look at the friday numbers. the dax was off i -- look at that -- 1.76%. also lower across the atlantic on the dow, which is trading up at this hour. the euro trading at a value of $ 1.31 51. briefly in sports, formula one racing team mercedes has gotten off with a bit of a slap on the wrist after running unauthorized tire tests. >> mercedes could have been hit with harsh sanctions, but the team only received a reprimand. more news coming your way in just a minute. >> stay with us. >> welcome back. brazil's president has held crisis talks on the protests that have been sweeping the country. >> around one million people took to the streets in brazil last night, the biggest said a protest against the government. >> the protesters are calling for an end to corruption and economic injustice. violence broke down at some of the rallies. >> clashes in rio de janeiro went into the night with police firing tear gas canisters and rubber bullets while protesters hid behind barricades, hurling back stones and firecrackers. farther north in the capital, demonstrators also turned up in the tens of thousands. one group wrote through police barricades at the country's foreign ministry -- one group broke through police barricades. >> the police are just spraying people with pepper spray without the people doing anything. they are just spraying people. >> the protesters are upset by the swiftly rising cost of living in brazil. at a time of massive government spending in the run up to hosting the world cup, many struggling even to afford groceries. >> a lot of people are unhappy with the way brazil is going these days. not everyone is benefiting from the economic growth. >> protesters say the government should be investing more in education and in the country's medical system. >> you can play football anywhere in a pinch, even on farm fields. but if you want to give proper treatment to sick patients, you need good hospitals. >> in são paulo, crowds have taken the street celebrating their victory in stopping a bus fare hike. celebrations were mostly peaceful, but an 18-year-old was reportedly killed when a motorist mode him down and injured two other protesters. >> protesters continue while the federations cup is being held there, the big soccer tournament. we'll have more on that later in the show. first, we go to tunisia, which is continuing its transition to democracy. citizens of the north african state now have much greater political freedoms, but some see a range of social freedoms as under threat, especially for women. >> a ukraine-backed women's activist group rang the alarm on women's rights in tunisia earlier this month in the traditional fashion -- with topless protests. they garnered worldwide media attention and landed in jail. this friday, they will find out how long they will be staying there. now, they face a decision on how much influence they want religious leaders to have in their government. >> barb wire cuts through the center of tunis. the security situation is precarious. since the 2011 revolution, there has been an ongoing tussle between different forces wanting to shape the fledgling democracy. war -- more women are choosing to wear headscarves. prior to the revolution, authorities restricted their use. the majority of tunisians are muslim, and religion is taking on increased importance in the society. this woman is dedicated to women's health and women's rights. she sees her mission as compatible with the revolution and with islam. >> we do not force anyone to wear headscarves. we try to strengthen the role of women in all areas of life -- politics, business, society. they are free to wear headscarves but not if they do not want to. it is their own choice. the revolution has had no influence there. we had the headscarf before the revolution. >> friday prayers in a predominantly salafist district. within the movement, there are also many differences. some are hard-line islamists. others, simply followers of the faith. but the move advocates testing the movement advocates its own strictly traditional interpretation of the koran. these men do not want to be filmed. our camera team moves away from the mosque. the hard-line salafists -- for her, a state based on the laws of islam is unthinkable. >> i'm fighting for religion to remain a personal matter. faith and one's relationship to god is one thing, and the laws and politics for all citizens in society are something different. >> but many in tunisia regard islam as more than just a religion. these other women believe islam is a way of life and therefore should form the basis for their nation. their interpretation of mohammed's teachings as also shared by western democracies. >> i hope we will get a constitution that guarantees human dignity, the integrity and rights of people and gender equality. that is islam, two, -- too, which promotes life as it applies to politics. >> they say tunisia remains an open and hospitable country, and that is our experience here at this mosque, where we are given the rare opportunity of filming tunisian women as they pray. >> coming up, we will take a look at a popular show in the middle east. >> first, a look at other news making headlines at this hour. the german foreign minister has condemned ukraine's treatment of former prime minister yulia tymoshenko during a trip to kiev. she received a seven-year jail sentence in 2011 and what is widely viewed as a highly politicized ruling. >> russia oslo or house of parliament has voted for a law barring same-sex couples from other countries from adopting russian children. the vote was passed by a vote of 444-0. next he goes to the other chamber, which is expected to approve it. >> a suicide bomber has blown himself up inside a shiite mosque in pakistan, killing at least 13 and injuring dozens. witnesses say the assailant had gunned down a security guard before entering the mosque prior to friday prayers. there has been no claim of responsibility, but sunni extremists are increasingly targeted pakistan's shiite minority. >> and earthquake has shaken large parts of italy. the magnitude 5.2 quake shook towns up to 1.60 two kilometers from the center in tuscany. the tremors were felt across northern italy from the lawn to france -- may land to france -- milan to france. tensions are growing in the middle east, but this time, it's about who will win the region's popular song contest, "arab idol." >> the show has proven to be a welcome distraction from the political tensions that often dominate the headlines there. >> in ramallah, they watch with bated breath. the young crooner from gaza strip is "arab idol's" new superstar. broadcast from beirut and lebanon, the show reaches alliston he and audiences in the west bank and the gaza strip. -- the show reaches audiences -- the show reaches palestinian audiences in the west bank and the gaza strip. >> mohammad used to sing at weddings. his brother says there are not many other options for musicians and hom us-run gaza. he had difficulty leaving the strip. he almost was not able to perform on the show. now his new freedom gives him a chance of singing. >> i'm just happy that a star from the gaza strip is representing palestine and showing people that there are artists here who can hold their own in the world. as his brother, that makes me very proud. >> the record-breaking viewing figures indicate that this is about more than just music. each performance is a signal of hope in the conflict-scarred region. week after week, the show's fans cross their fingers that their favorite contestant will go through. >> we have seen enough suffering and war. let us be happy for a moment. >> we wish him success and hope he wins the title. >> but all of "arab idol's" contestants have sung their way into the hearts of the viewers. no matter where the winner comes from, the fans will be elebrating. >> back to brazil now where fee for has denied -- fifa has denied it has been considering canceling the federation cup due to protests. >> most of the attention was still on world champions pain -- world champion spain's meeting with sed. >> the tahiti goalkeeper was jubilant after fernando torres missed a penalty shot. by then, the pacific islanders were already 8 -- zero down. earlier, torres had been more successful. his teammates scored a hat trick. the oceana champions struggled with their attack and sell came close to the spanish goal. tahiti fans were hoping their side would score again like they did against nigeria on sunday, but their hopes were dashed. tahiti tried their best to keep spam from reaching double digits, but in the 89th minute, david silva scored his second goal and put spain ahead. >> still sentimental favorites there in brazil. captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- hello and welcome back to nhk "newsline" with the news from tokyo. monsoon rain triggered flooding and land slides in india and confirmed nearly 600 deaths. that number is expected to rise. swollen rivers swept away houses and roads. state government officials say they launched full-scale search operations on thursday. emergency workers found more than 400s on friday alone. the state officials confirmed 576