what's a warm welcome to you. "european journal" coming to you from brussels. here is what we, with you today. song and dance. the six grammys to represent russia in the song contest. helping those who help others. and restore with the effects of the debt crisis in europe. the crisis is not over yet. take spain, for instance. they are struggling and they are having to pay horrendously high interest rates when they want to borrow money in the markets. one look at the labor market shows things are getting worse rather than better. it was the beginning of a vicious cycle. without a job, it becomes difficult to pay your bills. what happens next? you lose your apartment. >> no evictions year, they chance. the police are nervous. they're due to be evicted from their apartment in the bailiffs are closing in. they are gathered upstairs. the couple has not paid their mortgage for one year. the stress has made monica sick. they have been given two weeks and then they are out. bu>> we build out an application for social housing but there is nothing for us. we looked at a few apartment but they

intervention. >> how worried is brussels about the situation in spain it? but but the question to our foreign affairs correspondent, jeff meade. >> very worried and they have been for long time. this is one of the biggest economies. there's no question that europe could afford the scale of a bailout required. officially, today, all is calm on the surface. the commission is saying, yes, there has been a downgrade of spain but that has not triggered a market fall. the official line from brussels is that the commission is supporting the spanish economic reform austerity program. they will meet their target in 2013 reducing their deficit to no more than 3% of national wealth, which is the highest allowed commitment under a you stability lot. -- e.u. stability law. that will not happen, largely because of the scale of the spanish economy in the spanish prime minister telling the president of the commission that we will need to recapitalize banks and we will not meet our deficit targets on time. that is the official commission. spain is on course and we are supporting them in their austerity measur

anything. i'm told i even sparkle about things like brussel spouts. >> stephen: how would you sparkle about a brussel sprout? >> are you kidding? oh, my god, brussel sprouts, and they're roasted. that's a real turn-on. >> stephen: are you going to yell through this entire interview? >> no. really by sparkle we mean what is it that makes your heart sing? >> stephen: you know what would make me sparkle? if we could sing a little song together. >> i don't think so. >> stephen: you've also written a series of books about "dumpy the dump truck." >> those are for very young, young men. >> stephen: very young. "dumpy the dump truck" spoke to me. >> really? >> stephen: how does dumpy learn how the take a dump? >> well, he just does that automatically because that's what he is. but don't go any further. >> stephen: ever thought about extending the series to other objects? are rusty the trombone? >> no, we haven't got there yet. we have a lot of other books, but we haven't done the trombone yet, but good idea. >> stephen: yeah. trombone nobody wants to play. [laughter] because it's all rusty. >

premier wanted to present in brussels next week to show the country is on track to meet budget limits. the dutch had been one of germany's chief partners in the push to cut budget deficits in the eurozone. now, dutch papers are writing that chancellor merkel is losing an ally. lee told parliament that the netherlands was also losing an opportunity. >> a deadlock is not good for the netherlands. our economy wil improve only if we stop taking on new debt. he still needs opposition support for spending cuts, but he's not impressed. with fresh elections looming, he has found a way to praise -- placed the blame. the dutch should stop babbling to the dictators in brussels, he said on monday. >> the government is doing anything that can and deteriorating conditions for seniors. >> the eu commission rejected the portrayal of the situation. >> this is basically because it is good for the dutch citizens, and decisions, by the way, have not been taken by brussels. >> the dutch finance minister, for his part, attempted to calm markets ahead of tuesday's bond sale, saying holland could stil

sucked into the engine of a plane carrying secretary of state hillary clinton from brussels to paris. you may remember cnn's own ali velshi was on the flight from new york to los angeles that was forced to make an emergency landing yesterday because of a bird strike. our mary snow is taking a closer look into what appears to be a growing problem. mary, what's going on? >> wolf, the incident on thursday, the emergency landing is still being investigated. it is not certain the kind of bird that struck the engines, but here in new york the city has stepped up efforts in recent years to cut the risk of bird strikes and that's because the population of canada geese has been increasing and they flock to areas near the city's major airports. just moments after delta flight 1063 took off from jfk airport thursday, it was clear something went wrong. >> delta 1063 has had an engine failure on the right engine declaring an emergency due to a bird strike. >> reporter: passengers described smoke and a loud noise in the cockpit. >> 1063, we'll clear the right. we lost the right. >> the plane landed saf

17 afghan villagers. in brussels, nato members decided wednesday to stick to the planned withdrawal of international troops by the end of 2014. >> let me stress that there is no change whatsoever. it is in the interest of the whole international community to see strong and highly capable afghan security forces take full responsibility for its security by the end of 2014. >> reporter: that statement by the nato security general came the same day that afghan defense ministries say the country will need at least $4.1 billion a year from the international community to maintain security after foreign troops leave. nato is due to discuss long-term aid for afghanistan at a meeting in the united states next month. but many members of the alliance says financial difficulties of their own. for them the afghan mission looks increasingly hard. nhk world, kabul. >> multiple attacks in kabul on sunday and monday were among the worst violence afghanistan has seen in weeks. the taliban has now released a video of militants it says played a role in the offensive. the footage was apparently performed

, barbara, as it comes in. i spoke of this war in afghanistan at nato headquarters outside brussels, belgium, yesterday. i spoke with leon panetta and secretary of state hillary clinton. they sat down with me for an exclusive interview in brussels. listen. >> madam secretary, mr. secretary, thank you for being with us. >> we are glad to be with you. >> let's talk about afghanistan. $2 billion a week in u.s. taxpayer dollars being spent to maintain the troop level and the existence to the afghan people. is this money well spent right now? $100 billion a year for another two and a half years? >> well, first of all, wolf, we are in a transition and as we transition, the afghan security forces are stepping up to protect their own people and as we saw over the weekend with those deplorable attacks luckily, they were not successful and that was because the afghan security forces which our soldiers and others of the nato alliance have been training and mentoring. so i think that if you look as we do at the progress that has been made on the security side and other indicators and health, ed

trip in. >> it was good. i spent two days in nato headquarters outside of brussels. part two of the interview will be airing at the top of the hour with hillary clinton and the secretary of defense leon panetta. we had an exclusive opportunity to sit down with both of them. you'll be afshgs to hear, i think a lot of viewers will be anxious to hear precisely what they're saying about the situation in afghanistan right now. also with iran, what's going on there. hillary clinton actually a bit upbeat as far as the first run of talks with iranians as far as the nuclear program is concerned and the prime minister of israel, benjamin netanyahu saying it's a freebie for the iranians. we'll have the latest on that. also, we'll go in-depth with hillary clinton on 2012. is it possible she could be on the ticket as a vice presidential running mate? we'll go in-depth on that and see what she has to say and 2016. she'll only be 68 or 69 years old in 2016. is she going to be the first woman president of the united states? i'll ask her that question. the interview, we taped it all yesterday and yo

yesterday from brussels. >> this is war and i know that war is ugly and it's violent. i know that young people sometimes caught up in the moment make very foolish decisions. i'm not excusing that. i'm not excusing that behavior, but neither do i want these images to bring further injury to our people or our relationship with the afghan people. >> another missile test launch in asia. today, it was successfully launched for the first time. it gives india the ability to hit beijing and shanghai. >>> ted nugent is meeting with the secret service today. he made inflammatory remarks at the nra conference. he called to chop their heads off in november referring to all the democrats. >>> the opening bell just rang on wall street. it's time for the market rundown. becky is here. we have been tweeting back and forth. what do you have today? jobless claims, what do you know? >> i knew the answer to the trivia question. i'm not going to give it away. i knew it. jobless claims, chuck, came in worst than expected. it rose to 386,000 for the week. economists were expecting it to drop. it's the s

criticism. >> they overshadow a nato meeting in brussels designed to map out what role the alliance will play in afghanistan once foreign troops are gone. we will have more analysis from brussels and washington in a moment, but our coverage begins with what came out of the meeting in brussels. >> speaking to media at the meeting, the nato secretary general was quite clear on this point -- nato will remain committed to afghanistan beyond 2014, not as a fighting force, but to train and assist. >> it is in the interest of the whole international community to see strong and highly capable afghan security forces take full responsibility for security. >> the price tag of a mission to assist in afghanistan's army and police forces could cost around $4 billion a year, says nato. that is less than the cost of keeping combat troops there, but it is unclear how much member states would contribute. on tuesday, australia said it would withdraw most soldiers as early as mid-2013 and turned over command to local forces. a statement that caused some consternation at nato headquarters. >> as far as

nato headquarters in brussels where he sat down today with secretary of state hillary clinton and defense secretary leon panetta for an exclusive joint interview. they discussed a wide range of topics including the u.s. drawdown in of aing afl and the nuclear threats from iran and north korea and the presidential election at home. listen to this. >> on syria, is president bashar al assad, according to your opinion, madam secretary, a war criminal? >> i'm not going to get into the labeling, wolf, because what i'm doing now is trying to see whether or not he is going to get the implement kofi annan's plan and i don't think it's useful to do anything other than focus on the six points of the plan. right now it doesn't appear, one again that he is going to follow through on what he has pledged to the international community he will do. we are still working to see about getting monitors in to be able to have an independent source of information coming after the security council. i will be going to paris tomorrow afternoon to meet with like-minded nations in an ad hoc meeting to take st

suicide bombers. here's more of what defense secretary leon panetta said a few moments ago in brussells. >> this is war. and i know that war is ugly. and it's violent. and i know that young people sometimes caught up in the moment make some very foolish decisions. i'm not excusing that. i'm not excusing that behavior. but neither do i want these images to bring further injury to our people or to our relationship with the afghan people. >> with me now is retired army colonel jake jacobs, vietnam veteran, recipient of the congressional pedal of honor, an msnbc military analyst. thank you very much for being with us. this is avoiding, of course, and it's 2 years old as pa net tats said, they had appealed, the pentagon had appealed to "the l.a. times"" not to publish the pictures. what is your take away from all of this? >> well, first of all it's a failure of leadership clearly. there are always opportunities to do the wrong thing in a difficult situation like war. but good leadership will prevent almost all of it from happening and that requires that leaders both enlisted and officers spe

new german president, jaochim gauck, wrapped up his first visit to brussels in his new capacity. >> to visit nato headquarters in brussels and met with eu leaders. he called for more european integration and said the union heads germany's full support. >> jaochim gauck's visit to brussels was the celebration of the european project at the headquarters of democratic europe. he received a warm welcome from the eu parliament's president. >> it is an honor and a joy for me personally. many thanks for this symbolic visit. >> jaochim gauck also met with the eu commission president who spoke about what europe means to people who grew up under non- democratic regimes. >> i was 18 years of age when democracy came to my country. i remember. i remember when it was not possible to read the books i wanted, to listen to radio, or to watch what i wanted. for my generation, europe is freedom. >> europe and freedom. for both of them, the concepts and hand-in-hand. >> it has been a long journey from eastern europe to europe. i am also deeply moved by president barack so's recollections of his youth in a

brussels, belgium tonight. hey, wolf. >> brooke, thanks very much. >>> happening now, mitt romney rebounds and resets for november. we're watching all this unfold. a new poll shows voters like him better now, but they still like president barack obama more. >>> the president blames wall street for the high price of keeping your car on the street. he goes after gas prices by targeting speculators in the oil markets. >>> and the nation's capital transfixed, transfixed by a farewell fly b-by as discovery hitches a ride on the jet and heads for a museum. i'm wolf blitzer, and you're in i'm wolf blitzer, and you're in "the situation room." -- captions by vitac -- www.vitac.com >>> this just coming in to "the situation room." we are live here in brussels, belgium. i'll have the exclusive joint interview tomorrow with the secretary of state hillary clinton and the defense secretary leon panetta tomorrow from nato headquarters right outside brussels. lots to discuss including the situation in afghanistan. certainly a crisis right now and what's going on with iran and its nuclear program n

room." we are live here in brussels, belgium. i'll have the exclusive joint interview tomorrow with the secretary of state hillary clinton and the defense secretary leon panetta tomorrow from nato headquarters right outside brussels. lots to discuss including the situation in afghanistan. certainly a crisis right now and what's going on with iran and its nuclear program north korea and a lot to discuss with the secretary of state and secretary of defense. i just got in to brussels and flew in with the secretary of defense just a little while ago, but right now we want to get to politics. we have a brand new cnn poll that's just coming out and it sheds new light on the presidential race. look at this. 56% have a favorable opinion of president obama. that's what they think of him as a person and not necessarily his performance as president of the united states. 42% have an unfavorable view. 44% view mitt romney favorably. 43% have an unfavorable view of the presumptive republican presidential nominee. 13%, by the way, still aren't sure. so is mitt romney already rebounding to a certain de

live in your town. why did you have to go to brussels? >> they invite mead to come over. i'm going to be speaking with both the secretary of state and the secretary of defense. we'll have a joint interview tomorrow at nato headquarters right outside of brussels. i'm in brussels right now. i just got off the plane literally, secretary panetta's plane. we flew in from andrews air force base early this morning and just got here ready to do this show. there's a big nato defense ministerial and foreign ministerial joint meeting tomorrow to deal with the future of afghanistan which is the subject, obviously, close to my heart and close to the viewers' hearts. more than ten years the u.s. troops have been stuck in afghanistan. u.s. spending is hard to believe, $2 billion a week, more than $100 billion a year to maintain about 90,000 u.s. troops in afghanistan. a lot of them are supposed to stay through the end of 2014. major decisions are going to be made tomorrow here at the nato summit. also in chicago, there's a big summit coming up in may. so we're all over that and i'm looking forwar

♪ >> hello and a very warm welcome to "european journal" coming to you from dw's studio in brussels. life easier for working parents. why the you canadian -- when the ukraine is seeking refuge abroad. -- finish kindergarten making life easier for working parents. balancing your professional and family life can be quite a challenge, especially with a number of 9-5 jobs on the decrease. more europeans have to work shifts in hospitals, 24-hour supermarkets, or in the media, but who looks after the little ones when you have to work a night shift? your partner? mother? family friends? finland now has a solution -- an around-the-clock kindergarten. >> shall be working the evening shift today and stuffs her daughter enter her snowsuit and heads for the day care center, and all-day care center, open around-the-clock. >> my husband and i both work shifts. it is to be a regular center. it was complicated to work out who could take her, who could pick her up, and where she could spend the evening. with a 24-hour day care center, it is much easier. >> it is a big help for her husband as well. h

us from brussels. can you tell us why the new tensions are such a source of concern were you are? >> it is little known fact that in the recently agreed lisbon treaty on european union, strangely enough there was a reference to the falklands. the declaration of the treaty says that the falklands along to the united kingdom, and therefore, of course, that means that 27 nations, including the u.k., have subscribed to that belief. officially. now, if you talk to european commission felt here, they will say, look, it has nothing to do with us. this is a foreign policy matter for argentina and for the united kingdom. so we do not want to get involved. but in fact, if there's any by is one where the other, because of the treaty reference, the express instructions of the british foreign office, then the official opposition for the european union is malvinas are the falklands and belonged to britain. >> latin america is pretty much united behind argentina on this. in spite of this treaty, what else is happening with the eu? is it as united as latin america is behind britain? >> latin-ame

its laws to come in line with european requirements. >> at issue are reforms that brussels says affect the independence of the country's judiciary. >> the european commission says it will refer hungry to the european court of justice because laws passed by parliament in budapest violate eu treaties. brussels says one law gives the government too much authority over the appointment of judges. the other concerns the independence of the country's data protection authority. >> it would be a lot easier for hungary as well as for the european union if these problems were eliminated. because these are not just minor violations. they are about fundamental european rights and the values on which our union is based. >> in brussels on tuesday, the prime minister did agree to your demands to improve the independence of his country's central bank, a condition set by the european commission in order for hungary to resume negotiations over financial aid that the country badly needs. hungary sees that as a success. >> only a very limited number of issues will continue in this legal procedure and go pr

>> hello and a very warm welcome to "european journal" coming to you from dw studio in brussels. here is what is on the show today -- france -- what will become of the last farm in paris? coast soon be home to a nuclear power plant? and belfast's new museum pays homage to the titanic. it is hard to believe that rents were once very cheap in paris. one of the most popular neighborhoods was were virtually penniless artists such as painter pablo picasso and write your earning -- ernest hemingway used to live and work. today, it is one of the most expensive areas of paris. no wonder real-estate agencies are desperately seeking every square meeting under a lamp there. this could mean the end for a remnant of the past, that the people have grown fond of, the last farm in paris. >> lived in the middle of the district for 30 years. he says he does not enjoy visiting the district anymore because it has become too classy. >> i am really quite sad about the way the street looks today. this used to be a village where everyone knew each other. >> a bakery, a laundry, a bookstore. back then,

violence. >> syria was also topping the agenda at nato in brussels. they called on russia, one of syria's few remaining allies, to use its influence to end the bloodshed. >> the russian foreign minister cyndi lauper of -- sergei lavrov said the alliance was down to bring this agreements. be appealed to russia to bring more pressure to its -- they appealed to russia to bring more pressure to its ally, syria. >> we have to end the violence, to make sure the annan plan has every chance to succeed. the assad regime must know it cannot rely on russia. >> the un-brokered cease-fire has been in force for a week, but there is fresh shelling in homs on thursday. >> if the cease-fire does not work, i think it will be understandable who was responsible for that. the assad regime. it looks to russia to pressure the regime to comply. >> but russia says the other countries should give the peace plan a chance to work and not condemn it to failure. >> the syrian government should ensure the human-rights and security of its citizens. >> discussions will continue at the friends of syria conference, taking

in brussels drawing up directives. once they are agreed on, they have to be translated into law. we expect our citizens to follow the law, and we expect no less from the justice minister. >> dispute is part of wider jostling in the coalition. the fdp is playing down the threat from brussels and says the eu directive puts basic freedoms at risk. >> to brazil now where the laws protecting the world's largest rain forests may soon lose some of their teeth. >> congress has adopted controversial legislation that eases the rules on the amount of forest farmers have to preserve on their land. and the german president is expected to veto the bill, which could ignite a fight with congress. amities members are among the last. it is estimated only about 450 of the hunter-gatherer's remain in brazil's amazon rain forest. human rights campaigners say their home is being destroyed at an alarming rate to make way for farming. now the process looks set to decelerate after deputies in the lower house voted to ease land- use regulations. the new legislation would reduce the amount of forest that farm

reactors with public funds. for that, they need the green light from brussels. sales of nuclear generated electricity would also be subsidized, just like wind and solar energy are today. the demands come from countries that want to expand their own nuclear industries. in france, nuclear energy accounts for 78% of total energy production. it is europe's nuclear power leader. the czech republic currently gets a third of its energy needs for nuclear reactors. in britain, that figure is 17%. pauling currently has no nuclear power plants. -- poland currently has no nuclear power plants. coal is their chief source of energy. poland is planning to build six new reactors. the british are looking at 40 nuclear plants. whether taxpayers will help pay for them as an issue eu leaders will have to decide that their next summit in june. >> the eurozone's sovereign debt woes coupled with disappointing first quarter for the chinese economy as traders on edge. >> new figures showed china's economic performance was worse than expected, starting worries about the health of the global economy. >> europe's on

and hello, and a very warm welcome to "european journal", our magazine from brussels with stories all across europe. here is what we have for you. white jewish families are contemplating leaving france. spain -- while more horses have to be rescued from the slaughterhouse. informants on the church board. france's jewish community is the largest one in the eu, and french jews are particularly shocked at the series of attacks in toulouse. the perpetrator first killed three french soldiers. in his eyes, there were lost souls. then he shot dead three jewish children and a rabbi. the attacks have renewed public debate in france about immigration and fundamentalism. those topics are now dominating the election campaign, and the attacks have already changed the daily lives of jewish families in france. >> the knapsacks are packed. he accompanies his daughters to school. after the attack, french jews are more cautious than before. the rabbi wears a cap over his yamulke. not everyone has to see that he is a jew. his children attend the state's goal, not the district jewish school. that alr

deficit spending cuts ordered by brussels was too great. new elections will be held, possibly in june. >> it was shortly after 4:00 p.m. when prime minister mark rutte left the royal palace after handing the queen his cabinet's resignation. his government is set to continue its official duties. the premier drove away from the scene without a word to reporters. the cabinet met on monday to draw up its resignation. the minority government has been in crisis since it lost support for is badly-needed budget cuts. -- for its badly-needed budget cuts. >> and a few decades, the netherlands have showed fiscal, solid budgetary policy and this will not change. >> negotiations came to an abrupt halt this weekend after an attack by it are right mean populist leader. he accuses them of doing the bidding of brussels. >> this is basically for the dutch citizens and the decisions, but the way, have not been taken by brussels. >> to the middle east now. in the coming days pending the arrival of next week's it monitors for the truce brokered by kofi annan. >> it is said that dialogue is the only way ou

. >> transportation workers in brussels or are in -- are on strike after the brutal death of a colleague. police have arrested a suspect. transport police have refused to call off the strike before measures are discussed concerning their safety. the nobel peace prize winning german author has been banned from travelling to israel. his poem published last week caused outrage in the jewish state. the poem also caused controversy here in germany. he said the country was "a threat to world peace." >> at first, few israelis seemed interested in the pelham, but the interior minister -- in the poem, but the interior minister's decision to declare him persona non grata has excited the controversy. >> he says things we cannot accept people in >> opposition leaders say that the government of prime minister benjamin netanyahu is trying to position itself as the protector of national interest. the former ambassador to germany described the travel ban as over the top and slightly hysterical. >> this is just domestic politics. it is wrong. i do not believe he is anti- semitic, not at all. >>

in 2010. officials tried to limit the damage. u.s. defense secretary leon panetta in brussels had a meeting and denounced the actions of the soldiers. >> i strongly condemn what we see in those photos as has general allen. that behavior that was depicted in those photos absolutely violates both our regulations and more importantly our core values. >> reporter: as a string of incidents of u.s. troop in afghanistan has strengthened anti-u.s. american sentiment. they have been accused of burning copies of the koran and in one case killing villagers. in brussels, they decided on wednesday to stick to the planned withdrawal of troops by the end of 2014. >> let me stress that there is no change whatsoever. it is in the interest of the whole international community to see strong and highly capable afghan security forces take full responsibility for security by the end of 2014. >> reporter: that statement by the nato execusecurity general the same day that they say the country will need at least $4.1 billion a year from international community to maintain security after foreign troops leave

earned praise from brussels for its attempts to cut debt and get its economy going again. a new report by the european union, the european central bank, and the international monetary fund makes that -- things that unlike raese, the country will not need a second rescue package. the report also stressed the need for further economic reforms, including privatization of state assets. >> the united states has put a 10 million-dollar bounty on a pakistani islamist leaders suspected of planning imam by terrorist attack in 2010. >> the reward for the capture was posted on the state department's website today. the founder of the militant group lives openly in pakistan where he runs a charity, but the united nations says that charity is a front. to the u.s. now where police in oakland, california, say the former student who killed seven and wounded four was a 43-year- old south korean national bent on righting perceived slights by students and administrators. >> the suspect gave himself up to police in a nearby supermarket. uthorities say the killer opened fire in the middle of a nursin

president. >> it wasn't a lot. oh, my god brussels sprouts. and it was roasted and hard boiled beforehand. that is the real thing. >> i don't care. i think it's nutso ♪ he's the one with the most >> free to become prosperous. i left my last page of the speech. does anyone have my last page. >> do you know mitt romney? >> i've met him. but we're not friends. >> i like president obama. >> which one. >> the younger one. >> if i said that,-- ♪ that is how we slow jam the news ♪ oh, yeah ♪ >> i don't know, marco rubio by the time you're at the end of the speech, and you're desperate and you can't make it up by the end of the >>just refreshing to hear. no other television show does that. we're keeping it real. and everyone likes 50% more cash -- well, except her. no! but, i'm about to change that. ♪ every little baby wants 50% more cash... ♪ phhht! fine, you try. [ strings breaking wood splintering ] ha ha. [ male announcer ] the capital one cash rewards card. the card for people who want 50% more cash. ♪ what's in your wallet? ♪ ♪ what's in your...your... ♪ at one point rup

bureaucrats, folks in brussels, international organizations with a different view that different view should carry perhaps even more weight than the constitutional right. >> when what do you make of this comparing us to iraq and north korea? two terrorist regimes. >> you can't make this up. it's amazing to me, the folks that sit in ivory towers now in this administration, have crazy ideas how the world ought to work. for this man, who said things that are demonstratively untrue about george bush and dirk cheney and john yoo who talked about torture and said things that were slanderous to now advocate drone strikes -- i fully support the drone strikes. >> sean: so do i. >> they are important. but that means you don't get intelligence. there is no legal or moral distinction that you can draw between taking out a terrorist, the right thing to do and something far less injurious, waterboarding. it'd like to see him apologize frankly. i'd like to see him say look, i got it wrong. >> sean: the reason we're doing the vet, the president saying that, because i bet there are many people in

, we're joined by our brussels correspondent jeff mead. they said this is not violate the fundamental right to the protection of family life. tell us more. >> they said that this was a guarantee to the right of private and family life. in europe, where the majority of countries do and, they said it was too early to change that moral code, and a german court said it plans to protect the family on the basis that and blurs family. the judgments themselves are blurred. the court saw no reason to change the overall position in europe and it allows those countries that do allow between consenting adults to go ahead and do that. for the vast majority, they will retain what has been a longstanding legal, as well as moral taboo against. >> you did mention the other countries. do you think this german decision will influence other countries? >> i doubt it very much. i think those that changed their laws -- the most recent is france -- i do not think they are going to change. there is still a moral feeling about, whatever the lot is, and in many of those european countries where they officially

♪ >> hello and a very warm welcome to "european journal," our weekly magazine from brussels with stores from all over europe. -- compulsory in armenian schools. paribas in danger. why yorkshire could become a mining center again. and kids keep up -- the controversial ban. armenians do not have it easy. the cease-fire with neighboring as a rise and is very unstable, and the relationship with turkey is difficult because the turks still deny the mass murder armenians during and after the first world war. things are not much brighter when it comes to the country's economy, either. in florida prospects in the small country in the caucuses are low, prompting people to leave the country look for jobs elsewhere in russia or in the u.s.. so how do you make young armenians believe in their future? give them something armenians are famous for. >> they may be only seven, but they already know how to topple a king. these second graders in armenia are learning to play chess. it is a required subject at the anton chekhov school. she says chess is great because it change your mind. it will make

anti-buying it. >> just how much is on the president. >> it wasn't a lot. oh, my god, brussels sprouts. and it was roasted and hard boiled beforehand. that is the real thing. >> i don't care. i think it's nutso ♪ he's the one with the most >> free to become prosperous. i left my last page of the speech. does anyone have my last page. >> do you know mitt romney? >> i've met him. but we're not friends. >> i like president obama. >> which one. >> the younger one. >> if i said that,-- ♪ that is how we slow jam the news ♪ oh, yeah ♪ >> i don't know, marco rubio, by the time you're at the end of the speech, and you're desperate and you can't make it up by the end of the last page, and you've been in politics as long as you have, that's not good. rupert gets grilled. no other television show does that. we're keeping it real. while you're out catching a movie. [ growls ] lucky for me your friends showed up with this awesome bone. hey! you guys are great. and if you got your home insurance where you got your cut rate car insurance, it might not replace all this. [ electricity cr

nato strategy session in brussels of the photos panetta said, "this is not who we are." he also explained why he asked the "los angeles times" not to publish the photos, a request the newspaper rebuffed. >> this is war. and i know that war is ugly. and it's violent. i know that young people sometimes caught up in the moment make some very foolish decisions. i am not excusing that. i'm not excusing that behavio behavior. but neither do i want it to bring further injury to our people. >> riots broke out when it was discovered that copies of the quran were burned at a country. and that unrest claimed six american lives after video surfaced in january showing u.s. marines urinating on afghan corpses. last month, army staff sergeant bales charged with killing 17 afghan civilians in a nighttime shooting rampage. nato's top official sought to tap down the ange they're the latest incident might create. >> these events took place apparently a couple of years ago. i consider them an isolated event. obviously, i hope there is no spillover. >> los angeles times obtained the 2-year-old photo

brussels set up a post box for collecting haiku on thursday. the first of its kind outside japan. the move is part of efforts to promote cultural exchanges. the box is shaped like an old hot spring building in matsuyama city. the best writer wins a trip to the city. at the ceremony, japan's u.n. ambassador kojiro shiojiri said he hoped to get exchanges between the people of japan and the eu. herman van rompuy also attended. he recited his favorite english haiku and dropped it in the box. >> flowering orchards, born again every year, i welcome the blossoms. >> van rompuy said his -- said the poems suit his character as he loves nature and the seasons. he hopes the post box will help increase the number of haiku lovers and deepen ties between japan and the eu. >>> a curator of an art museum in hiroshima solved the mystery. a portrait by the acclaimed dutch painter vincent van gogh hangs on their walls. it has been restored twice and that gives rise to the puzzle. >> reporter: here she sits, the peasant woman, unaware of the mystery that surrounded her. it dealt with the picture's appear