Great to have you along everyone. Has the feud over north Koreas NuclearProgram Moves to center stage on the eve of the Olympic Games in south korea u. S. Vice president mike pence has arrived in seoul and is promising new more aggressive sanctions against the north in met with south korean president moon jay in following on his warning not to allow pyongyang to quote hide behind the olympic battle and today kim jong moon presided over a military parade a show of force after sending athletes and performers over the border all that move is seen as either a bit too thought relations with the south or a ploy to provoke the u. S. North korea and the United States are still sending mixed messages a day before the twenty teen winter games. Despite signaling it was willing to talk north korea hasnt traded the same for the olive branch quite yet pyongyang staged a massive military parade marking the founding of its armed forces. Addressing his troops north Korean Leader kim jong un called on his military to be on the ready to repel quote invasive forces much further south young is trying to put its best foot forward sending kim yo junge sister of the north Korean Leader as part of their olympic delegation shell be the first member of the norths ruling family to cross the demilitarized zone. The u. S. Is response is also a mixed bag american Vice President pence is meeting regional leaders ahead of the games hes already warned the u. S. Is preparing more aggressive sanctions on the north. And he promised south koreas president that the u. S. Wouldnt rest until pyongyang abandons its nuclear ambitions. And allow me to do the sure you. The people of south korea and the United States of america will continue to stand shoulder to shoulder in our effort to bring maximum pressure to bear on north korea until the time comes when the finally and permanently. Reversible abandon their nuclear and Ballistic Missile ambitions. In the world may be coming together for the Winter Olympics but the gulf between washington and north korea is as wide as ever. Our joining me now is eight and Foster Carter korea expert at Leeds University in the u. K. A very good day eight and up john yang holding a military parade as it rattles south koreas nurse just before tomorrows Winter Olympics opening ceremonies. I think i think its annoyed them that when this is a new rather delicate tightness here bonhomie they have said so and its totally gratuitous for not go into lots of detail we havent got time full february eighth used to be the army day in north korea but it hasnt been for years they changed it to april and so if suddenly brought it back again and they can be no other reason for that than to slightly rain on the souths no military parade so its a kind of annoying but the south has kind of brushed it off and hopes that tough you know things will go well nonetheless ok well arguably it collapsing tomorrow is opening ceremonies as the arrival of the norths a diplomatic delegation on saturday that slated to meet with the south korean president tell us more about that. Well this really is something i mean until the announcement that kim jong uns systems coming and i tended to the view that mr what was happening although very welcome its nice to have some respite from months and months of crisis if he doesnt seoul and a lot of course but it was it was all stuff thats happened before you know weve now got a twenty year history there not recently most of it ten years ago almost ten years ago of the last south contacts you know theyve had cheerleaders for a vote thats not but its really interesting as as was correctly said its the first time a member of what i guess you can call the royal family of the logo this must be a coat his country is coming south we dont know what can come of that because of course the whole situation is hemmed in by the Nuclear Issue and if we were so i forget that we have Vice President pence of the us a firmly reminding everybody at every opportunity how about north koreas i say have a talk to us a little bit about south korea as that president because he finds himself a bit between a rock and a hard place. Thats nice ive just written something with a different much a full i think as a kind of olympic sport Cold Mountain tightrope walking. Is good too but you know he hes going to be really capitol hill luce is followed so we have skating on thin ice sorry so many choices he really its a very delicate line because what is the space exactly i mean its not tickle of faith that people like him center left South Koreans of a certain age but she his family was from the north that you want to you know the circle sunshine policy if you may remember back in the day that engagement is a good idea now a lot of younger South Koreans to his surprise dont actually share that view they wouldnt say pleased about the joint hockey team for instance and the americans certainly and im a Prime Minister of japan reminding everybody that north korea is a Nuclear Family factor which is true of many other things horrible human rights record so its quite easy to see how each will be watching to see how he how far he leans i wish him luck a layby doesnt fall off that tight rope all right and just for the record im going to go with then ice a to Foster Carter korea expert at least university in the u. K. Thank you so much for weighing at leisure. All right away from the political posturing the athletes at the Winter Olympics are raring to go or some of them at least thirteen the russians have failed with appeals to the court of arbitration for sport they want to compete despite a doping bad on their country an additional forty seven russians will find out on friday if they can participate just as the olympic torch which is the host city county. The olympic torch is journey is almost over with the Opening Ceremony just around the corner flame took a spectacular ride on a zip while on its way to be on chang. This is one of the more daring stages of its two thousand eight hundred kilometer journey around south korea. Not a fate for the faint hearted. At least the next leg was far easier for those watching to stomach and the Olympic Village there was an unexpected visitors russian athletes who had been banned from the games by the i. O. C. Were presenting their case to the court of arbitration for sport in the hope of having the decision overturned at the last minute the hearing concluded we presented the arguments and the fifteen kids were cleared last week but had to guess and also and thirty two hundred athletes were not invited by the issue a final decision is expected early on friday with only hours to spare before the games open but the i. O. C. On the only ones with a close eye on the courts decision regarding the russian athletes the World Antidoping Agency is also in south korea for the games president craig really made his views clear. Bunch of you much wider. Entirely. To a process that. And just to try to pin the compliance and the improvement of the russian onto dont think agency. Organizers are hoping the legal wranglings and other issues surrounding the games will fade into the background once the action is fully underway phrasing how city pyong chang is ready for its moment in the sun for the next two and a half weeks it will be at the center of the sporting world. Right now to some of the other stories making news around the world. Thousands of people attended a Memorial Service for a russian pilot who died in syria Romana Filipov blew himself up to avoid capture after his jet was shot down by militants according to the Russian Defense ministry his body has been repatriated and hes been awarded the nations highest honor. The former Prime Minister of Bangladesh Zia has been sentenced to five years in jail for corruption the court in the bangladeshi capital dhaka found the seventy one year old swindled funds from a charity into her personal accounts. Eight people have died and three others are missing after a road collapse in Southern China a local media report that a seven leak inside a subway station construction site cost the major road to cave in. And. Rescuers in taiwan are combing through the rubble following choose these powerful earthquake around fifty people are still unaccounted for at least nine were killed and hundreds more injured in the quake aftershocks combined with rain and low temperatures are hampering rescue efforts. Hard to believe that this was once a three star guesthouse in a taiwanese beach town today while ians Marshall Hotel is just a pile of mangled wreckage. How low can you hear me the rescue is you know theyre hoping that somewhere in the rubble someone is left alive but this search is proving very difficult and dangerous. Aftershock the rescue is called walkie talkie so the First Responders of forced to retreat for now many of the quite victims why the inside the marshall or now the three star hotel the bt in ivory daylight the residential tower its like a didnt is to listing precariously they supports have been brought in to stop it folding ivor entirely. And this is the moment the cost of the destruction a same captured inside a utah style. People rush for the exit as a magnitude six point four tremors strikes it hits in the middle of the night a used to quite a even side that was shocked by these quakes impact. States and thats not what then that at this time i was really scared until now icon is that fear is still that you know that i am still a phrase because things kept on fooling both and chopsticks fell in the kitchen and broke my mother that was even more frightened because she cannot walk i made her want to go over and its a rescue operation continues people are starting to us why did some buildings but not others collapse taiwan has strict building codes but Construction Experts say the worst hit buildings were built before then now some are asking if more should be done to enforce the codes and stop more towers toppling when the next quakes. Strikes. European leaders are welcoming the deal reached by germanys two biggest parties to form a Coalition Government its been more than four months since germany held elections while European Council president donald tusk travelled straight to berlin for talks with Anglo American he called the deal quote good news the Coalition Agreement reached on wednesday would see berlin contributing more to e. U. Budgets something proselytes sees as a Welcome Change merkel is also due to meet with the commission president. Later today. Our right lets find out what this would be government could mean for europe with Political Correspondent thomas farah here with me on the set and with max hofmann brussels for chief a very good day to you both gentlemen want to start off with you thomas if i may the e. U. Is not wasting any time to v. I. P. s in town today indeed and that just stresses the importance of europe for this Coalition Agreement if you read the Coalition Agreement its one hundred seventy seven pages long but it starts with the message of the new stocks to europe and thats something that is also reinforced by the fact that the Foreign Ministry and the finance and as you will be in the hands of social democrats the Foreign Ministry will be in the hands of martin shows which is passionately pro european hides who has indeed stress on various occasions that he would like a strong good judgment participation within european institutions and he has a proven track record as well all right max nobodys breaking out the champagne just yet but is this agreement a step in the right direction for germanys european partners. Well i think i heard some champagne bottles over there at the European Commission because of what thomas does mention its all over the handwriting of drawn through a joker the president of the European Commission im sure hes very satisfied with it and he told us as much but the real importance here is the really Important Message for the rest of Europe Germany is most likely at least back has most likely again or likely at least a functioning government and thats important for what the European Union is attempting to do in the next months and years big reforms for example the euro zone reform and again as your produce one could put it we have to repair the roof of the European Union as long as the sun is shining and you cant do that without German Government ok you cant do that without a German Government thomas this is a marriage of convenience its a day after give us a sense of how this deal is going down well its such a not a marriage of love you can say that to these very much reluctant partners who feel the need to Work Together in order to avoid fresh elections or avoid avoid a minority government so from doctors that if there is a certain side of relief that germany at least has this Coalition Deal but that has been criticism today criticism leveled against and Eleven Oclock in particular about the loss of that Key Finance Ministry lets remember that the finance minister was held for a very long time by a vote of control of the conservatives here in in germany that has also been criticism leveled against not insurers who had previously said that he would never enter a. Led government and now hes saying that he wants to be the next foreign minister of germany on government so old though there has been some relief that germany has this Coalition Deal it has also been accompanied by a lot of criticism now right now max a year features prominently in this Coalition Deal but its short in detail and substance does that worry brussels. And youre right its more about the big vision for europe and a commitment to the European Union but if you look at the text that its unclear how they want to fulfill this goal just to give you an example more importance to the European Parliament all right but in this is treaty change for example how do they want to do that more money into the into the e. U. Budget ok but does that mean only germany or also all the others but i think the bottom line here at least for the european institutions right now is that the message is positive that the euro germany is willing to pay more that is one of the key messages as we just heard earlier so for now even if there is a lack of detail and even if we know that. Michael the french president are not necessarily on the same page when it comes for example to a euro zone finance minister or euro zone budget they have proven in the last months that theyre more than willing to Work Together and to try to find some Common Ground thomas does this didnt deal now mean that the social democrats are out of their rut got their mojo back well or suddenly good for them that they got those three key ministries Foreign Ministry finance minister. Minister they can push their european policies forward on the social justice policies forward but if you look internally in the s. T. G. There is a very big division among Tea Party Members and in fact those Party Members will be deciding whether this goes ahead they have to vote four hundred sixty three thousand of them have to vote on whether they approve this deal then just under no circumstance sure that they will give the green light all right Thomas Sparrow max hofmann thank you both gentlemen. Well germanys next government will start on a very solid economic footing the nations trade surplus has shrunk for the first time in eight years which could ease some of the International Criticism some countries say germanys strength is causing a dangerous imbalance in the euro zone u. S. President donald trump also feels threatened the good news is that while exports hit an all time high last year of close to one point three trillion euros worth of goods imports also increased to just over a trillion that narrowed germanys trade surplus to two hundred forty five billion euros slightly lower than the year before experts say an increase in sales contributed t