an explosion at dawn. this was the result. russian officials claim a lorry had been blown up here and that the fire then spread to a fuel train. whatever the cause, you could see the damage. this is the bridge that links russia to annexed crimea, and parts of the road had collapsed into the sea. later, investigators announced that three people had been killed. they have opened a criminal case. the 12 mile long road and rail bridge is not only strategically important to the kremlin as a supply route, it is also a symbol of the russian annexation of crimea. vladimir putin opened it in 2018, getting behind the wheel to show that, as far as he was concerned, russia and crimea were joined for ever. very different scenes today. pro kremlin commentators have blamed ukraine for the explosion, but there has been no claim of responsibility from kyiv. it is noticeable how the situation has changed here, and the messaging. a few months ago, russians were being told by their leaders and
about the significance of the bridge being hit. it depends how quickly they repair the bridge. it is a huge symbolic setback because this bridge was mr putin s personal commitment to crimea. it opened in 2018, cost $3 billion, massively overpriced. one of his friends was in charge of the construction and he identified with this because this was a way of uniting the mainland of russia with what he took to be the mainland of crimea which was now going to be russian forever so the bridge is symbolically hugely important. in terms of logistics, the fact is, one carriageway seems to have survived this blast although it may only take light traffic and we don t know how bad the damage is to the railway grid above it. my guess is that although the russians will have a big motive to say that the bridge is reopen soon and all is fine, it will not reopen to military traffic which is very heavy so we will see how long it is before they can start to use the road and particularly the rail
king charles iii. country prepares for its final farewell to the queen. a very good day to all of you. welcome to our special coverage remembering the queen. we are ushering in king charles iii. it is msnbc will headquarters new york. i m in london. we are getting a close-up view of history unfolding. right now, the british parliament is meeting in a rare saturday session where elected officials are being paid tribute to queen elizabeth ii. the began with members of parliament s swearing allegiance to the newly proclaimed king charles the third. on a day of conflicting emotions for it, they are warning the death of the green. they are also honoring and celebrating charles ascension to the throne. the royal standard is at full staff today. king charles was formally proclaimed by the council early this morning. official signatures from his son william, wife camilla, and other government officials. there was a 21 gun salute. fire! [noise] number two! fire! [noise] the ce
ali velshi and katie turner continue to pick up our special coverage right now. rounds and territories of the citizens morning it is ali velshi here at msnbc. joining me from london s you are watching the proclamation of king charles the their, or in, edinburgh scotland. this is one of four proclamations we will be watching this morning. there is one and, card of whales. there is one in belfast, northern ireland. , three actually. let s just listen to this for a moment. northern ireland now has all around us and territories, king, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. to whom we do acknowledge all face in obedience with humble affection. but featuring god by whom kings and queens to rain, to bless his majesty with long and happy years to rain over us. given that st. james s palace, it s tentatives up timber in the year of our lord 2022. proclamation got! britain! hut! god save the king. god save the king! [inaudible] [noise] check fire! [noise]
once the new president, gustavo petro, takes office in august. mr petro, himself a former rebel, has become the country s first left wing leader after winning sunday s presidential election. now on bbc news, it s hardtalk. welcome to hardtalk. i m stephen sackur. after a painful divorce, you never know if the ex partners will be able to build an amicable relationship. for britain and the eu, it seems the brexit break up has left a legacy of mistrust and bitterness, which is overwhelming any desire for cooperation. northern ireland is currently what they re fighting over. the uk is refusing to stick to the divorce settlement and the eu is threatening legal action. my guest is the eu ambassador in london, joao vale de almeida. is this a fight where everyone gets hurt? joao vale de almeida, welcome to hardtalk. thank you for having me. it s a pleasure to have you. i want to start with some words of yours from, actually, early in your posting here in london as eu ambassador. you