Its very good to have your company. We start in morocco, where rescuers are scrambling to find survivors under the rubble after a huge earthquake on friday. The death toll has just been updated and its risen to 2,122 people. There are also more than 2,000 injured. Small Rural Communities remain cut off by rock falls and there are reports of entire villages flattened. 0ur Correspondent, nick beake, has made it to a community in the Atlas Mountains and sent us this update. Sniffer dogs have been brought in. They belong to spanish firefighters who are the First International rescue teams to arrive here. Im talking in a really quiet voice because in a different part of this devastated village, theyre listening out to see if there are any signs of life. But really, hope is fading extremely quickly. Weve been told that 200 people used to live here. 90 are confirmed to have died. Lots more are missing and the remainder are in hospital. When you look at this, you realise you simply couldnt have walked away from this. Many people had no chance, the way these buildings have been flattened. And if you look at the materials, these were not complex structures, and an earthquake of this magnitude meant that they simply came crumbling down. People weve spoken to here are saying they arent getting the help they need from the moroccan government. They want more support. They want food and water. People are sleeping out in the open. And this is something that you see right across this vast, mountainous region. And lets focus on the tourist hub of marrakesh, which is around 72 kilometres or 45 miles from the epicentre. This was the moment the quake struck there, prompting people to sprint for the streets. The city has reported a lower death toll than other areas, but considerable damage to buildings. Thousands of moroccans spent a second Night Sleeping outside on the streets, fearing aftershocks. Some have been describing their fears and sense of loss translation | returned to my house and noticed many cracks in the walls. I cannot sleep there. Im asking the authorities to help me and bring in an expert to assess whether its possible for me to return to the house or not. Look where all these people are sleeping. Theres no help for us. 0ur houses have been cracked, others destroyed, like my daughters house, which has collapsed. We are in a chaotic state. Its painful to enter the ancient city and witness the collapsed homes and see people in great suffering. Its a painful experience when this happens to your brother or sister. I its really painful. The Moroccan Army has cleared one of the main roads to the areas worst affected by fridays earthquake, allowing vital assistance to reach people. Rescue efforts are continuing and help from abroad is on the way too. Spanish and qatari teams have been sent to join the rescue operations. Earlier i spoke to David Wightwick from uk med, a British Charity which is deploying a team of aid workers to morocco. I asked him when he made the decision to go. 0h, yesterday morning. And then it was a matter of getting people together, getting the right flights together, and making sure weve got the most appropriate team for the circumstances. As i understand it, youre due to arrive around 6 00am in the morning on monday. Whats the immediate plan when your team land on the ground . Yeah. So weve actually got one person arriving this afternoon and then another three tomorrow morning. And the sort of immediate task, because the focus right now will be on search and rescue, but very rapidly thats going to move to provision of services for those people who are injured or in need or displaced. And we bring medical care in one way or another. Now, i think your package earlier mentions the need up in the mountains, and that obviously is going to be one of the Priority Areas for our team, is to get up into those kind of areas and to see how we can bring health care, whether thats sort of mobile by vehicles or helicopters or something else, or whether we need to put in place a big field hospital. We have a couple of Field Hospitals which we can deploy. We deployed one to turkey, the turkey earthquake earlier this year. So, its getting in to see what the situation is, but more to the point, how we can work best with the local Ministry Of Health and the local communities, there is no point in usjust coming in and doing our thing. We need to work with them. Yeah, i was going to ask you about that because obviously you cantjust turn up in another country and start doing your own thing. In terms of the logistics, how do you work with local officials but also other Aid Organisations already on the ground . Yeah. So theres a United Nations coordination body which brings together all of the International Actors and we work very closely with them. We also work very closely with the British Government and the embassy in country. And there is a process of negotiation, often, with the local Ministry Of Health and the local hospitals on the ground and the local communities. Because bringing in external actors, you know, a group of foreigners to provide medical care obviously needs to be done with some care. And it is negotiation and it is working alongside the local providers to make sure that we can bring what the population want and need. As we said earlier, the death toll in morocco has been upped to 2122, following freddys week. Fridays quick. President biden has defended the United States engagement in the pacific, against a background of rising chinese influence there. He said american actions were not about containing china, but about maintaining stability. President biden made those remarks in vietnam, where hes on a visit that aims counter the rising influence of china in southeast asia. Hanoi and washington are expected to sign a new Partnership Agreement and upgrade their relationship. It comes less than 50 years after the vietnam war, which left millions of vietnamese and 58,000 us Service People dead. From hanoi, our asia pacific correspondent, laura bicker reports. Starspangled banner plays. From wartime foes to firm friends. The United States is drawing chinas neighbour closer. Cheering. This new relationship excites vietnams next generation. But even as they sing songs about appreciating what they have, its clear they want more. This countrys young and talented workforce has attracted foreign business here instead of china. A lot of, like, korean and then Japanese Technology is pumping money into vietnam to develop, like, technology centres. And then they come to us. I can see in the future vietnam will become another like Silicon Valley for the us and for everyone to come here and work, and cant wait for it to happen. Vietnam was once one of the worlds poorest nations, but is now one of the Fastest Growing economies in asia, and it wants to stay that way. This e scooter start up was built by a vietnamese entrepreneur who learned his craft in the us. Because i want to realise my vietnamese dream. I was exposed to the american dream, but i think i have a stronger desire for my vietnamese dream. Its the right time. Its the right time, the right generation to make the vietnamese dream come true. That drive to succeed is attractive to america. The deal being done will bring washington and hanoi closer than theyve ever been before. Its all part of a us strategy to try to contain china. But while vietnam might be wary of its largest neighbour, its certainly not going to walk away from beijing. Vietnam will try to balance the two superpowers. This communist country with its own brand of capitalism will not want to pick a side. Laura bicker, bbc news, hanoi. We can speak now to dr william figueroa, who is an Assistant Professor of History And Theory of International Relations at University Of Groningen in the netherlands. His research focuses on chinas foreign relations. Thank you very much for being with us. What, for you, was president baden� s message to china . Trier . Us. What, for you, was president badens message to china . Very happy to be here. Badens message to china . Very happy to be here for badens message to china . Very happy to be here. For me, badens message to china . Very happy to be here. For me, biden, badens message to china . Very happy to be here. For me, biden, if badens message to china . Very happy to be here. For me, biden, if you to be here. For me, biden, if you look at his words, he says it is very much not about china, that they dont want this to be some sort of move seen as against china, but i think it is clear from the context that it does have something to do with china. It is about stability to a certain extent. China has been, over the last decade, more aggressive in the south china sea, in some of its territorial claims which has countries like vietnam a bit worried. It is also in the context of these heightened us china tensions. They have fallen back to a more competitive attitude in the last four years. Mostly initiated, i must say, by the United States. The us sees china as a increasingly. Rival. Ithink states. The us sees china as a increasingly. Rival. I think it has fallen back into the older, cold war style. This means shoring up our alliances in the pacific, and the significance and international system. Hope that is necessary for china thats why i think that is the message for china, the United States is here in the pacific, it will take action that china may not like, but it is also not trying to directly confront china at this time. Moves like this are confront china at this time. Moves like this are often confront china at this time. Moves like this are often about confront china at this time. Moves| like this are often about countering the rise of china, but there is an argument that, hold on the second, this is chinas back yard, vietnam is chinas neighbour, not america. It is an american push for her germany in a region where it has no business . I germany in a region where it has no business . ~ , germany in a region where it has no business . ~ ,. , business . I think there is some truth to that business . I think there is some truth to that argument. Business . I think there is some truth to that argument. In business . I think there is some truth to that argument. In a business . I think there is some truth to that argument. In a lot| business . I think there is some i truth to that argument. In a lot of ways, it is not so much, i think we need to get not too overexcited about this like this. This isnt really a medium turn away from trying out for vietnam, or indeed to turn towards the United States. Yes, it is the highest level that us and vietnam relations have been since the war, but vietnam is maintaining its options open. They are bouncing against other relations. It is currently actively looking into concluding a clandestine deal to purchase weapons from russia, and of course its natural economic relationship with china is so strong that it relationship with china is so strong thatitis relationship with china is so strong that it is not going to be able to turn away from it completely. In that respect, we dont want to over exaggerate what the United States is doing here. As you said, vietnam is in chinas back yard, it is not going to be able to, it is going to have to balance this relationship with china, and china is certainly going to take some umbrage with the United States for exactly the reason you said, it is doing it right next door. That is the reason why i think you see this sort of downplaying, this messaging from biden and other officials, that we are not asking vietnam to choose, we know that vietnam to choose, we know that vietnam is going to have to maintain relations with china, because they have this attitude of, well, we are going to do what we want, and if it makes the other side unhappy, then were going to also send signals that we are not to completely rock the boat. China has this attitude as well. ,. , the boat. China has this attitude as well. ,. ,. ,. , , the boat. China has this attitude as well. ,. ,. ,. , , well. The us already has pretty good relations with well. The us already has pretty good relations with the well. The us already has pretty good relations with the regional well. The us already has pretty good relations with the Regional Bloc well. The us already has pretty good relations with the Regional Bloc the l relations with the Regional Bloc the association of Southeast Asian nations. How important is it for it to have this direct one on one relationship with vietnam, particularly where there is such difficult history . I particularly where there is such difficult history . Difficult history . I think it is important difficult history . I think it is important for difficult history . I think it is important for the difficult history . I think it is important for the us difficult history . I think it is i important for the us strategy difficult history . I think it is important for the us strategy of what the us sees its role as in the pacific. It sees a stabilising role, blocking chinese manoeuvres in the region, or potential chinese manoeuvres vis a vis taiwan, or some of its territorial claims in the waters of southeast asia, but then also the larger strategy of the United States, deterring and containing china even in its own back yard, in the region in which they would be expected to reject a certain amount of power. I think that it certain amount of power. I think thatitis certain amount of power. I think that it is important for the United States to have this kind of network of alliances in order to maintain some influence in that region, in orderfor it to some influence in that region, in order for it to pursue that strategy, especially when it comes to things like finding alternatives to things like finding alternatives to china, as there is port mentioned there is a lot of potential in the future, because vietnam still needs a lot of development, but once it has developed, for vietnam to fulfil some of the rules china has filled in the International Economic system and economic linkages. At the same time, there is also the kind of proactive messengers but the United States is taking, trying to block certain technologies. Places like japan, where some of the chips are manufactured, it is important to be able to pursue the strategy is. I dont know whether that is the smarter strategy they are pursuing, Thatis Smarter strategy they are pursuing, that is what they are interested in. Thank you very much for sharing your insights. Lets turn to the war in ukraine now, where there are little more than 30 days of fighting left, before the weather will hinder key of� s Counter Offensive. Before the weather will hinder kyiv� s Counter Offensive. Thats according to americas top ranking us military officer. Speaking to the bbc, general mark milley said colder conditions would make it much harder for ukraine to manoeuvre. It comes as kyiv was attacked by russian drones early on sunday, with debris falling in several districts. But ukrainian Officials Say no casualties have been reported. At least 10 explosions were heard in the capital, as Air Raid Sirens sounded. 0ur Correspondent in kyiv, paul adams, gave us his assessment of the general� s analysis on the state of the fighting. The response from a spokesman at the Foreign Ministry yesterday was that there was nothing for the g20 to be proud about. And in fact, he reprinted the words of the g20 on the war in ukraine as if he was a teacher correcting a pupils homework, scoring out the references to the war in ukraine, and replacing them with the phrase The War Against Ukraine and including the word aggression. Because last year, last november, when the g20 addressed this subject, they included a reference to russian aggression that was conspicuously absent in the communique released in delhi yesterday. So as far as the ukrainians are concerned, it represents a bit of a step back from the kinds of comments the g20 was making last year. I dont think there was any great sense of surprise. I think there was always an expectation that india would try and find some middle ground between the western nations that are very keen on strong expressions of condemnation for russia and other members of the g20 who are a little less comfortable with that. Its worth pointing out, and this is something that carl bildt, the former swedish prime minister, mentioned yesterday, that it does refer to the inadmissibility of countries altering International Boundaries through the use of force, and the importance of sovereignty. And so its a mixed package as far as ukraine is concerned, but certainly not as strong as they would have liked. Studio so, paul, bring us up to date on the Counter Offensive there. How is it going for the ukrainians . Well, mark milley, i think people will be scratching their heads a little bit around here because in t