enforced through the court. in canada a state of emergency has been declared in the capital 0ttawa in response to the ongoing truckers protests against covid restrictions. the mayorjim watson said the city was outnumbered and losing the battle against the freedom convoy. the truckers have paralysed the centre of ottawa with vehicles and tents blocking roads. horns blare. honking horns at a blockade of streets around parliament hill in the capital 0ttowa. the protest, dubbed the freedom convoy , began over a week ago, its aim to reverse the government s vaccine requirement for cross border truckers. but it s turned into a rallying point against all covid measures and prime ministerjustin trudeau s government. the city s mayorjim watson said the city was completely out of control with protesters outnumbering police. he said.
businesses and an avalanche of noise complaints. horns blare. oh, the horns are back! inspired by them, french drivers setting off from bayonne, lyon, lille and strasbourg. people from all corners of the country united by one message we want our lives back. translation: we want our liberty. that s it. others say this is a resurgence of the yellow vest protests liberte! others say this is a resurgence of the yellow vest protests for economic and political reform back in 2018. translation: when you ask the people here, they don t l have money for electricity, for gas and especially for fuel. the price of fuel has almost doubled it now costs 2 euros per litre. we can t live like this because the salaries aren t going up. horns blare. across europe in austria, the honking sounds that have come to define daily life in ottawa, with truck drivers
showing their opposition to restrictions by blocking off parts of vienna, defying police orders to not enter the city. horns blare. as with canadian and french organisers, the group here say their intention is to be peaceful, but the threat is there no more restrictions and no vaccine mandates or the city streets, not its residents, will be on lockdown. stephanie prentice, bbc news. let s turn to ukraine now, and the us is warning that russian forces could invade at any time although there is not yet any intelligence suggesting vladimir putin has decided to do so. president biden held a virtual meeting with the leaders of america s major european allies and nato member on friday, and the white house has confirmed that he is due to speak to vladimir putin by phone on saturday. with the latest from washington, here s our north america editor sarah smith. gunfire. the russians are not trying to camouflage these military exercises their troops
being seen in other countries across europe including austria and belgium. stephanie prentice reports. a party atmosphere with a serious message. demonstrators from across france have now reached paris to protest against all covid restrictions, harking back to some french fundamentals. all chant: liberte! liberte! the crowd, bolstered by the presence of far right candidate florian philpott, who s campaigned against health passports. translation: hang in there! don t you fall apart! because their world is falling apart. it s you we who are going to win! bravo to you! long live freedom! love live the resistance! long live the freedom convoys! horns blare. the freedom convoy is a reference to the situation unfolding in canada, where truckers have brought the capital ottawa to a standstill, triggering the closures of local
by truck drivers. the protesters who are angry at covid restrictions are blocking cross border trade at several crossing points. that s in addition to the ongoing demonstration in the capital, ottowa. the ambassador bridge between ontario and detroit is one of the busiest border crossings in north america and a supply route for carmakers. there is disuption too at coutts in the province of alberta, and emerson in manitoba. the economic cost is likely to be considerable. samira hussain has the latest. horns blare. for yet another day, lorry drivers furious at vaccine mandates and covid restrictions have blocked the busiest land border crossing in north america. itjust keeps going on and on. the economic impact could be serious. a quarter of all trade between canada and the united states happens here, or it did until angry truckers decided to intervene. we want freedom.