:00:10. > :00:20.Hello, this is BBC World News. The top story: The Pope greets his
:00:20. > :00:21.
:00:21. > :00:28.cardinals for the last time before heading into retirement
:00:28. > :00:32.TRANSLATION: Today I promise my obedience and unconditional love.
:00:33. > :00:40.After ten years of conflicts, the Thai government agrees to talks
:00:40. > :00:49.with Muslim rebels. European Union votes to cap
:00:49. > :00:59.bankers' bonuses but will they go elsewhere? And meet the white otter.
:00:59. > :01:08.
:01:08. > :01:11.Hello. History will be made today when
:01:11. > :01:16.Pope Benedict XVI flies off to retire ment ina helicopter.
:01:16. > :01:23.The Pope has been saying farewell to the cardinals electing his
:01:23. > :01:25.successor. He promised whoever they choose, the next Pope, will receive
:01:25. > :01:28.his unconditional reverence and obedience.
:01:28. > :01:35.Jon Sopel has the latest for us in Rome.
:01:35. > :01:43.Tim, thank you very much. Yes, it has been a two-week long farewell.
:01:43. > :01:47.Today it cull name -- come United States with his departure to Castel
:01:47. > :01:53.Gandolfo, where he will still until a new Pope is elected.
:01:53. > :02:00.This morning in the Vatican he gathered with his cardinals, most
:02:00. > :02:05.of whom had had appointed. He heard an address from Cardinal
:02:05. > :02:11.Sardono. We can see where he greets and embraces him. This is the Dean
:02:11. > :02:15.of the College of Cardinals and will have the responsibility of
:02:15. > :02:18.organising the conclave to choose Pope Benedict XVI's successor. He
:02:18. > :02:21.gave an address thanking Pope Benedict XVI for the work that he
:02:21. > :02:25.had done. Then a short time after that, Pope
:02:25. > :02:29.Benedict XVI rose to speak. We had been told yesterday that this would
:02:29. > :02:32.be the last time we would hear from Pope Benedict XVI when he did the
:02:32. > :02:40.general audience in St Peter's Square, but he rose from the thrown
:02:40. > :02:46.and he spoke to the cardinals about the work that he had done, that
:02:46. > :02:54.they had done. TRANSLATION: The Church is a living
:02:54. > :03:04.thing. It must intervene like a living thing.
:03:04. > :03:05.
:03:05. > :03:12.Its heart is Christ. The experience yesterday shows the
:03:12. > :03:20.Church is a living body with the holy spirit.
:03:20. > :03:25.It is in the world but it is not of the world. We saw the Spirit of
:03:25. > :03:30.Christ yesterday. We are here overlooking St Peter's
:03:30. > :03:34.Square with Monsignor Roderic Stranger, the head of the
:03:34. > :03:40.Pontifical Beda College. I needed to get that in the right order.
:03:40. > :03:44.Lovely to see you. We can see the pictures of what has been going on
:03:44. > :03:52.in the Vatican this morning, the Clementine Hall. This is something
:03:52. > :03:58.personal to each of the cardinals. That he wants to pay a personal
:03:58. > :04:03.farewell and vice versa? I'm sure he does. Because the Pope is not
:04:03. > :04:09.dead, there is no official period of mourning but for a while we will
:04:09. > :04:14.be mourning. That always happens, whether a sharp change in life it
:04:14. > :04:20.has left a gap. When somebody goes into retirement, we mourn for him.
:04:20. > :04:24.The other thing that should be said is that the Clementine Hall, this
:04:24. > :04:29.fabulous Rennes building from the 14th century is where the Pope's
:04:29. > :04:34.lie in state when they have died. Pope John Paul II did? Yes.
:04:34. > :04:42.Now, it is a living Pope that the cardinals are saying their
:04:42. > :04:46.farewells to? Yes, making their farewells to. There is something
:04:46. > :04:52.powerfully significant about that. I would really hope that the Pope
:04:52. > :04:57.Benedict XVI has years to come in which he will be able to enjoy
:04:57. > :05:01.retirement. We understand he is not going to publish but no doubt he
:05:01. > :05:06.may write and certainly he will be reflecting and playing the piano, I
:05:06. > :05:09.hear. He is also going to be nearby. I am
:05:10. > :05:14.not trying to suggest power behind the thrown but he will be in a
:05:14. > :05:19.former convent in the gardens of the Vatican behind the walls, where
:05:19. > :05:24.he, presumably, I am sure it will be a source of some comfort to
:05:24. > :05:29.whoever his successor is, to talk to. If they have a problem they can
:05:29. > :05:36.ask for advice, counsel? There may be some of that, but I do think it
:05:36. > :05:41.is important, as you were saying, that we do not try to wrest this
:05:41. > :05:47.situation into a political situation. I was thinking earlier,
:05:47. > :05:53.when Margaret Thatcher left office, forced out of office, John Major
:05:53. > :05:59.became the Prime Minister. People went, "Want he her candidate? How
:05:59. > :06:03.much influence would she be having "qop we should not see this
:06:03. > :06:08.situation in those terms it is easy to cast it in those terms as that
:06:08. > :06:13.is the political scenario. What form is going to take now with
:06:13. > :06:20.the cardinals? Is it really about what is important to the Church, or
:06:20. > :06:24.is it about personalities as well? I am sure it is a bit of both. I
:06:24. > :06:30.think that the first thing is it think about the needs of the Church
:06:30. > :06:38.at the present time. I expect there to be different views amongst a
:06:38. > :06:43.large body of men such as this group of cardinals. Perhaps they
:06:43. > :06:48.want a stronger hierarchal Church, more defendant control from Rome.
:06:48. > :06:53.Others may say "no", that they need to engage more around the world.
:06:53. > :06:57.That Rome needs to look, to create that kind of a partnership with
:06:57. > :07:03.other bishops. The other thought to make, when
:07:03. > :07:08.over the half of the cardinals PROBLEM WITH SOUND Have been
:07:08. > :07:18.selected by Pope Benedict XVI, whoever succeeds him is going to be
:07:18. > :07:19.
:07:19. > :07:26.pretty much in the same mould, idea logically? You can never be sure of
:07:26. > :07:33.that. Pope John Paul II? 26 years, chose an cardinal a Pope-created
:07:33. > :07:37.cardinal by Paul VI. That is not precise an analogy but you never
:07:37. > :07:44.know what is going to happen, what fresh life may come from the new
:07:44. > :07:47.Pope. That is what the Vatican watchers are so fascinated by,
:07:47. > :07:50.enjoying what is happening here. Monsignor Roderic Stranger thank
:07:50. > :07:58.you very much. I have no vote in this conclave!
:07:58. > :08:03.Thank you very much. Back to you in the studio.
:08:03. > :08:08.Jon Sopel speaking there. Rome is at the centre of diplomatic efforts
:08:08. > :08:12.to resolve the crisis in Syria. John Kerry has been meeting key
:08:12. > :08:18.figures from the Syrian opposition after they dropped their boycott of
:08:18. > :08:23.the meeting. They have called on Bashar al-Assad to stop the
:08:23. > :08:30.indiscriminate bombing of populated areas. It includes a Scud missile
:08:30. > :08:32.attack on Aleppo. We hope to be crossing to Rome to hear a press
:08:32. > :08:39.conference held by the new Secretary of State, John Kerry. We
:08:40. > :08:44.are to take you there in a moment, but now onthank Marcus has more
:08:44. > :08:47.details. -- Jonathan. The new Secretary of
:08:47. > :08:53.State, John Kerry. This Rome meeting with the Syrian opposition,
:08:53. > :08:59.it is billed as a moment to see a significant shif in -- shuft in US
:08:59. > :09:04.policy. Moaz al-Khatib is here to. He had
:09:04. > :09:08.intended to boycott the meeting, a sign of frustration, among many in
:09:08. > :09:11.the opposition, who see that the Western opposition is doing too
:09:11. > :09:16.little to end Bashar al-Assad's grip on power.
:09:16. > :09:23.The policy is shifting in Rome but probably not fast enough for many
:09:23. > :09:26.in the Syrian opposition. They want Western weaponry. Anti-tank and
:09:26. > :09:29.anti-aircraft systems, that they believe will significantly alter
:09:29. > :09:35.the balance of the forces on the ground.
:09:35. > :09:45.Without such a military shift in gear, the fighting is looking set
:09:45. > :09:49.to continue, with neither side able to force a shut down. The stakes
:09:49. > :09:53.here at the Rome meeting are high, but there is a sense that many
:09:54. > :10:01.western governments are struggling to match diplomatic action to the
:10:01. > :10:06.scale of what is unfolding inside Syria.
:10:06. > :10:10.Well, let's go to Rome because we are told that this press conference,
:10:10. > :10:17.we think it will be held by John Kerry, the new US Secretary of
:10:17. > :10:22.State and the leader of the Syrian National Coalition, Moaz al-Khatib.
:10:22. > :10:25.We think that is about to start in the next few minutes. We are
:10:25. > :10:30.returning to there as soon as it does.
:10:30. > :10:34.The reporters were sitting down, the expectation is, was that the
:10:35. > :10:38.two men would come out. Let's move on, they are milling
:10:38. > :10:44.around. Let's move on until the press conference starts. 5,000
:10:44. > :10:49.people have lost their lives in a conflict in Thailand over the past
:10:49. > :10:56.decade. Now both sides are trying to find a resolution. A deal has
:10:56. > :11:01.been brokered by Malaysia, to lead to peace talks. Could this be a
:11:01. > :11:06.break through moment to end years of violence in southern Thailand?
:11:06. > :11:10.The sides have agreed to start talks to end nearly a decade of
:11:10. > :11:14.fighting it is part of a peace initiative, brokered by the
:11:14. > :11:19.Malaysians. It is thought nearly 5,000 people have been killed
:11:19. > :11:24.during the long bloody insurgent. Ever since 2004, fighting has
:11:24. > :11:27.become a daily fact of life in Thailand's three southern most
:11:27. > :11:32.provinces. One of the worst days of fighting
:11:32. > :11:38.came earlier this month when militants launched an attack on a
:11:38. > :11:41.thiel military base. 16 insurgents were killed in the -- on a Thai
:11:41. > :11:47.military base. 16 insurgents were killed, but it seems to have
:11:47. > :11:53.increased the will to talk on both sides. One of the chief negotiators
:11:53. > :11:58.for the rebels sounded hopeful. TRANSLATION: In God's will we will
:11:58. > :12:01.do our best to solve the issue. We will tell our people to co-operate
:12:01. > :12:06.in solving the problems in the south.
:12:06. > :12:10.But this is still very much the start of a process untested and it
:12:10. > :12:16.could stumble on many issues there. Is faction fighting between the
:12:16. > :12:19.militants themselves. The Thai government has no intention of
:12:19. > :12:23.granting concessions like autonomy for the southern provinces.
:12:23. > :12:27.That would upset the thiel Nationalists.
:12:27. > :12:32.-- Thai. New rules agreed by the European
:12:32. > :12:37.Union could spell the end of passive performance bonuses for
:12:37. > :12:43.bankers. A deal reached in Brussels, could mean that the bonus is no
:12:43. > :12:50.large are than the banker's annual salary. The British Government
:12:50. > :12:57.opposes the proposals it believe it is will drive trade away.
:12:57. > :13:02.Let's move on to the City. Chris Beecham is there in London.
:13:02. > :13:07.Chris, what do you make of the British Government's attitude on
:13:07. > :13:13.this, their argument it will drive businesses away to Zurich and
:13:13. > :13:16.elsewhere? We know the importance of the City of London economy. So
:13:16. > :13:21.the British opposition to the move is expected, but this looks to be
:13:21. > :13:25.the first time that London will have lost an argument on finances
:13:25. > :13:35.services with the European Union. So the ram fuductions of this could
:13:35. > :13:38.
:13:38. > :13:42.be intense. -- Ramifications. you can only get a bonus as much as
:13:42. > :13:47.your annual salary, surely the banks will raise salaries? This is
:13:47. > :13:51.a difficult thing for the banks, salaries could go up. The bonuses
:13:51. > :13:56.could decrease. It, in a sense, although the EU is making the banks
:13:56. > :14:00.safer it makes life harder for the banking industry to react to
:14:01. > :14:06.changing forces in the market. The bonus rules, as I understand it,
:14:06. > :14:10.will apply to all banks that have staff in Europe. So if you are
:14:10. > :14:16.working in New York for example in Deutshe Bank, the same will apply?
:14:16. > :14:20.That is the intention of the EU. If you have branchs in New York and in
:14:20. > :14:25.other parts of the world, how it is placed with financial regulators it
:14:25. > :14:30.becomes an issue. I don't think that we have seen the end of this
:14:30. > :14:38.discussion yet. Not within the EU or other parts of the world.
:14:38. > :14:43.Still to come: Marciano, mission with a difference. -- Mars, mission
:14:43. > :14:49.with a difference. Why this man wants a couple to spend 17 months
:14:49. > :14:52.in a capsule, the size of a small bathroom.
:14:52. > :15:02.President Enrique Pena Nieto has made a televised address in the
:15:02. > :15:06.
:15:06. > :15:11.hope of heading off the dispute of the country's head who is accused
:15:11. > :15:15.of diverting more than �200 million in funds.
:15:15. > :15:25.The President insisted that the case and that of others, was purely
:15:25. > :15:29.
:15:29. > :15:34.a legal matter. The self-styled Maestra, or the
:15:34. > :15:38.schoolteacher behind bars. For more than 20 years, she has led
:15:38. > :15:43.the most powerful union in Latin America with an iron fist, but she
:15:43. > :15:48.is now facing her biggest challenge yet. The Attorney General's office
:15:48. > :15:54.accused her of emBusiness Secretarying more than $200 million
:15:54. > :15:58.of the union's funds to pay for plastic surgery, accounts in high-
:15:58. > :16:03.end department stores and two luxury homes in San Diego. During
:16:03. > :16:07.that time she was on a teacher's salary. So significant is she to
:16:07. > :16:12.the Latin America life, that the President gave an address to appeal
:16:12. > :16:16.to her supporters. TRANSLATION: I reaffirm my
:16:16. > :16:20.commitment to the teachers of Mexico. The government will
:16:20. > :16:22.continue to be your ally and work to improving the conditions, to
:16:22. > :16:26.raising the education of the citizens of tomorrow.
:16:26. > :16:30.Meanwhile, her union members are planning the next move.
:16:30. > :16:36.For now, they have only made a general expression of solidarity
:16:36. > :16:39.with her. The arrest comes shortly after
:16:39. > :16:45.President Enrique Pena Nieto signed a sweeping education reform into
:16:45. > :16:51.law which will require all teachers to under go regular assessments.
:16:51. > :16:56.The new law is intended to tackle corrupt practises in the country's
:16:56. > :17:01.ailing education system, ranked last out of the OECD nations.
:17:01. > :17:06.For years, this woman has been seen as the symbol of all that is wrong
:17:06. > :17:11.with education in Mexico, but after two decades working alongside
:17:11. > :17:21.successive Presidents, her fall from grace has been swift and
:17:21. > :17:24.
:17:24. > :17:29.Let's take you back to Rome. That press conference, with the Friends
:17:29. > :17:33.of Syria Meeting, with John Kerry has started now. The Italian
:17:33. > :17:36.Foreign Minister is introducing the two men, John Kerry and Moaz al-
:17:36. > :17:41.Khatib. Let's listen in.
:17:41. > :17:45.TRANSLATION: I would like to say what Italy has done up to now. In
:17:45. > :17:49.the past few months, together with our main part nrs in Europe and
:17:49. > :17:53.together with the United Nations, with have taken action on a
:17:53. > :17:58.humanitarian plane in order to alleviate the suffering of 2
:17:58. > :18:02.million internally displaced persons and throuss of refugees. We
:18:02. > :18:06.have allocated 30 million euros to help neighbouring countries to
:18:06. > :18:10.alleviate the suffering and we have supported the components of the
:18:10. > :18:16.coalition in seeking a leadership and a programme of action and we
:18:16. > :18:21.want to have a strong convincing alternative to the dictatorship.
:18:21. > :18:26.Today, the meeting in Rome has given us a new momentum. I think
:18:26. > :18:32.that we are taking a step forward. Firstly because we are taking the
:18:33. > :18:37.responsibility to provide not only humanitarian support but material
:18:37. > :18:42.assistance to the coalition. This stepped up support must be
:18:42. > :18:47.perceived in the Syrian territory through our support to local
:18:47. > :18:52.councils in the liberated areas and the possibility of opening
:18:52. > :18:58.humanitarian corridors and to be closely co-ordinateed with all of
:18:58. > :19:04.the countries who have met here today. Our friend, Moaz al-Khatib,
:19:04. > :19:09.has just pro news nowed encouraging words on the work that he is doing
:19:09. > :19:14.with his colleagues. The opposition must be able to fully play the role
:19:14. > :19:18.that it has in order to build up a new democratic Syria. He told us
:19:18. > :19:22.that they are about to establish a provisional executive body which
:19:22. > :19:29.should be operating within a Syrian soil.
:19:29. > :19:39.I wish to close with a warning. This was expressed during today's
:19:39. > :19:40.
:19:40. > :19:47.meeting to the regime in Damascus. They have to clearly show a
:19:47. > :19:51.democratic swaugs in sura with the exiting of Bashar al-Assad --
:19:51. > :19:57.situation. Of course, all countries working
:19:57. > :20:01.side by side are involved, we can say that the Syrian people will
:20:01. > :20:07.never be left alone. Now it is a pleasure to give the floor over to
:20:07. > :20:11.the US Secretary of State, John Kerry. After his remarks we will
:20:11. > :20:15.hear remarks from Moaz al-Khatib. Thank you very much.
:20:15. > :20:19.Thank you for welcoming us, thank you for hosting this very, very
:20:19. > :20:23.important meeting in Rome. We are honoured to be here. Moaz al-Khatib,
:20:23. > :20:29.thank you for joining us today, for being part of this important
:20:29. > :20:34.discussion. It is a pleasure to be here working with friends on a very
:20:34. > :20:39.important and consequential issue. We are grateful for the opportunity
:20:39. > :20:45.to come together with allies, partners, working together in
:20:45. > :20:52.pursuit of peace. Peace is the first resort.
:20:52. > :20:57.It is important to be joined here today by our partners, the Syrian
:20:57. > :21:03.opposition coalition. They are the legitimate voice of the Syrian
:21:03. > :21:09.people. That stands in very stark contrast to the rule of Bashar al-
:21:10. > :21:15.Assad, who long ago lost husband legitimacy, who is out of time and
:21:15. > :21:20.who must be out of power. So with our united voice today, and
:21:20. > :21:27.the voices of those other minister who is have joined us from other
:21:27. > :21:35.countries from the Gulf, from across Europe, with our united
:21:35. > :21:40.voice we express our commitment to helping the Syrian people. We want
:21:40. > :21:43.to help them to achieve the goal of living in a free, a safe, a just
:21:43. > :21:50.society. Their goal is our goaled. So we are determined to find a way
:21:50. > :21:57.forward to a better day that we know awaits Syria. A day that will
:21:57. > :22:02.not come as long as Assad is in power.
:22:03. > :22:08.For more than a year the United States and our partners have
:22:08. > :22:11.gathered now in Rome have called on Assad to heed the voice of the
:22:11. > :22:18.Syrian people. To halt his war machine.
:22:19. > :22:25.Instead, what we have seen is his brutality increasing. Just this
:22:25. > :22:31.week, we witnessed a desperate leader engage in ruthless attacks
:22:31. > :22:38.on Aleppo with rockets. With the appalling use of Scud missiles,
:22:38. > :22:45.claiming dozens of innocent lives. I herd the story of the 70 young
:22:45. > :22:55.men and women taken, whose lives were wiped out.
:22:55. > :22:59.
:22:59. > :23:05.Even hopts have come under attack in his cold blooded evident to
:23:05. > :23:12.cling to power. The similar fact is, Assad cannot shoot his way out of
:23:12. > :23:18.this. And as he deludes himself in pursuit of the military solution,
:23:18. > :23:24.the United States, our partners, and now the Syrian opposition
:23:24. > :23:29.coalition make a different choice. Our choice is a political solution.
:23:29. > :23:37.Outlined in the Geneva communique, which Russia has also signed on to.
:23:37. > :23:42.It is in line with the opposition's own transition plan. This must
:23:42. > :23:48.include a transitioning governing body with full executive powers,
:23:48. > :23:54.formed on the basis of mutual consent. This is the right path to
:23:54. > :23:58.peace. It is one that can unite the Syrian people, re build a society
:23:58. > :24:04.that respects and protects them, regardless of their ethnicity,
:24:04. > :24:09.religion or gender. These are the same standards that we set for our
:24:09. > :24:14.own countries. So there is nothing different here. All Syrian,
:24:14. > :24:20.including those who have not yet taken side in this conflict must
:24:20. > :24:26.know that they all can have a future in a post Assad Syria. The
:24:26. > :24:33.opposition is prepared to take the steps necessary to get there. The
:24:33. > :24:40.question we ask today is this, will the regime allow its people this
:24:40. > :24:45.chance at peace, or is it going to continue its brutal campaign?
:24:45. > :24:51.Because as we make clear today, the United States's decision to take
:24:51. > :24:58.further steps now, is the result of the continued brutality of a
:24:58. > :25:04.superior armed force, propped up by foreign fighters, from Iran, and
:25:04. > :25:09.Hezbollah, all of which threatens to destroy Syria. The US, and all
:25:09. > :25:15.the countries represented here, believe the Syrian opposition
:25:15. > :25:21.coalition can successfully lead the way to a peaceful transition. But
:25:21. > :25:27.they cannot do it alone P They need more support from all of us, and
:25:27. > :25:33.they need President Bashar al-Assad to make a different set of
:25:33. > :25:38.decisions, so today, on behalf of President Obama, who has been very
:25:38. > :25:46.clear about the stakes in Syria, I am proud to announce that the US of
:25:46. > :25:50.America will be providing an additional $60 million in non-
:25:50. > :25:53.lethal assistance to support the coalition in its operational needs,
:25:53. > :25:58.day-to-day, adds it continues to organise and work for the political
:25:58. > :26:02.transition we all want to see. I look forward to working with the
:26:02. > :26:07.United States Congress on this. This funding will allow the
:26:07. > :26:13.opposition to reach out, and help the local councils to be able to
:26:13. > :26:18.rebuild in their liberated areas of Syria, so they can provide basic
:26:18. > :26:23.services to people, who often lack access today, to medical care, to
:26:23. > :26:30.food, to sanitation. This includes helping Syrians preserve
:26:30. > :26:35.institutions of state, which are critical, to enabling a future
:26:35. > :26:39.transition in Syria itself. And also, to helping those who work
:26:39. > :26:43.within them, those without blood on their hands, to be able to continue
:26:43. > :26:49.to do their important humanitarian work.
:26:49. > :26:53.STUDIO: The new Secretary of State announce nouings an extra $60