Today's agenda
| 14:46 UK time, Monday, 9 October 2006
Apologies for our silence so far today. I'd offer excuses but they're not too interesting so I'll just get on with it. North Korea's nuclear test is sure to dominate today's programme. Our has received thousands of your messages, and are awash with reaction.
We're doing our best to speak to some of you in North Korea as well as people who know the country. I'd be lying if I said we're making much headway on people who are actually there, but we'll keep trying. But of course this test has ramifications for the whole region, and indeed some would argue the world. So wherever you are, we'd like hear how today's news has made you feel? Do you feel scared when you hear that the test was felt in Australia and was the size of the bomb that Hiroshima in 1945? Or perhaps you think this is just high stakes diplomatic maneouvres that are a long way from the use of such weapons in attacks on other countries?
I'd particularly interested in hearing from some of you in America. North Korea says it your it’s your government's foreign policy that is the reason for the test. Can you understand why? And how would you like President Bush to respond to this test? He used military might to deal with Saddam Hussein's regime in Iraq. Do you want a military response to this threat?
Finally, our colleagues at Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú News Online do an excellent job of summarising the issues of major stories like this. If you're coming to the whole issue for the first time, is an excellent place to start.
The other story we know you want to talk about it is . She was an investigative journalist known for her critical stance on Moscow's policies in Chechnya. There were demonstrations in Moscow yesterday and she'll be buried tomorrow.
David has just been to speak to the Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú's . Some of you have been telling them this is yet more evidence of a lack of press freedom and government-sponsored oppression. But that is by now means the whole story.
There are many of you saying that Ms. Politkovskaya was funded by the West and was not as transparent as she claimed. None of us can speak or read Russian, so we're going to be getting some help to translate some of the emails being sent in. But those of you in Russia who do speak English, is this a one-off, or evidence of broader and more worrying traits in your society?
Speak to you later.
Comments Post your comment