Could the Trump-Zelensky relationship be back on track? France’s President says the future of Europe will not be decided in Moscow or Washington. Also: A Superbowl-style half-time show for the 2026 World Cup.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic of this episode?
This is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Valerie Sanderson and in the early hours of Thursday, the 6th of March, these are our main stories. President Trump suspends intelligence sharing with Ukraine, but the US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz strikes an upbeat note for future relations with Kiev.
We are having good talks on location for the next round of negotiations, on delegations, on substance. I think we're going to see movement in very short order.
Präsident Macron tells the French. The future of Europe does not have to be decided in Washington or Moscow.
Chapter 2: What are the implications of Trump's suspension of intelligence sharing with Ukraine?
And yes, the threat is returning to the East.
And warns France will have to spend more on defense. The White House confirms direct talks with Hamas over the hostages in Gaza. Also in this podcast, how aspirin helps stop the spread of cancer and FIFA's decision to have a Super Bowl-style halftime show at the World Cup.
The Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says there's been positive movement in his engagement with the United States and he expects to see results next week. The head of his office, Andriy Yermak, said both sides had agreed to hold further talks about ending the war that began with Russia's invasion.
US officials have also confirmed that intelligence sharing with Ukraine has been suspended as part of moves by President Trump to force the country to negotiate with Russia. Here's our diplomatic correspondent, James Landale.
After last week's rupture in the Oval Office, the diplomatic dust has begun to settle. President Trump told Congress he appreciated the letter he received from President Zelensky, which praised his leadership and welcomed a proposed minerals deal. In his nightly address, Mr. Zelensky said there had been positive movement and his chief of staff said both sides had agreed to hold talks soon.
The US National Security Advisor Mike Waltz said he'd had good talks with his Ukrainian counterpart about the location, delegations and substance of any discussions. And he suggested that if there were progress, the US might end the pause on military aid to Ukraine, it announced earlier this week.
I think if we can nail down these negotiations and move towards these negotiations and in fact put some confidence-building measures on the table... dann wird der Präsident einen schwierigen Blick auf diese Pause nehmen. Wir müssen wissen, dass beide Seiten auf eine partielle, dann permanente Frieden negotieren.
But for now, that military aid remains suspended. And it was confirmed today that it includes a ban on the sharing of intelligence with Ukraine. That will have an immediate impact on the battlefield, with Ukraine finding it harder to track incoming missiles and glide bombs or attack Russian targets behind its front lines.
The CIA director, John Ratcliffe, said this was making President Zelensky think again.
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Chapter 3: What is President Macron's stance on Europe's future?
And all the while it remains unclear whether President Putin is ready to talk, as Mr. Trump insists he is. The Kremlin said today merely it would react positively to the latest developments.
So what impact will the suspension of intelligence sharing have on Ukraine? Here's our Ukraine correspondent, James Waterhouse.
It's central to Ukraine's survival, really. I mean, in the early battle of Kiev, it was shared intelligence from America, which allowed Ukraine to repel Russian forces in a way that many didn't expect. It is shared American intelligence that alerts your mobile phone if there is an airstrike, which happens most nights.
They allow Ukrainian troops to identify the locations of invading Russian soldiers and to launch long-range missile strikes. The Das Ziel dieser Pause ist noch nicht klar, wie man erwartet. Aber das ist ein amerikanischer Ansatz, der weniger eine unpopuläre Maßnahme ist, um die Ukraine zu fordern, um zu negotieren, sondern mehr ein rechnerischer Wandel mit der Zukunft der Ukraine.
Und man wundert sich, wie weit Donald Trump bereit ist, weil Wladimir Putin die Ukraine sieht, er sieht sie nicht als ein sovereignes Staat. Er sieht die Ukrainer und die Russen als das Gleiche. Und es gibt keine Beweise, dass er eine andere Sicht hat. Präsident Zelenskyy sagt, er wird ein Meeting haben.
Er erwartet, dass er die Ergebnisse mit Washington nächste Woche eröffnen wird, nach einer Verbesserung in den Verhältnissen. Und er braucht diese Ergebnisse schnell, so wie die Hilfe aus Amerika jetzt ausgeliefert wird.
James Waterhouse. The French President Emmanuel Macron has addressed the nation at a time of abrupt changes in the Transatlantic Alliance since US President Donald Trump came into power. In a televised speech just a few hours ago, Mr Macron emphasized the need for continued support for Ukraine and stronger European military defense.
Whatever happens, we must equip ourselves more, raise our defence position. We need to do this for peace and as a deterrent. We remain committed to NATO and our partnership with the US. But we also need to further strengthen our independence in terms of defence and security. The future of Europe does not have to be decided in Washington or Moscow.
And yes, the threat is returning to the East and the innocence of the last 30 years since the fall of the Berlin Wall is now over.
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Chapter 4: How is the US engaging with Hamas regarding hostages?
But what has happened in America means that this willy-nilly is how we have to proceed. And of course there are going to be differences in Europe still about how the money is raised, about where the arms industries are to be based and more specifically on...
Wenn es um die Ukraine geht, geht es jetzt um die Deployment von potenziellen Kriegsführern dort und Geld, das noch in die Ukraine gehen könnte und so weiter. Aber ich denke, die große Bildung, die Art von Epoch, die Änderung zu machen, die es um Europa geht, um die Selbstsuffizienz in der Sicherheit, ist etwas, das breit verteilt ist.
Hugh Schofield. The White House has confirmed that a US envoy spoke directly to Hamas in recent weeks about securing the release of American hostages held in Gaza. A little later, in a post on his Truth social platform, President Donald Trump issued a warning to Hamas. Release the hostages now or they'll be hell to pay later.
Our diplomatic correspondent Paul Adams told the BBC's James Menendez what we know about the meetings.
The White House has confirmed that its special envoy, Adam Bowler, has indeed had negotiations with Hamas. According to the White House spokeswoman, Carolyn Leavitt, the special envoy who's engaged in those negotiations, in her words, does have the authority to talk to Hamas. Obviously, this is a group considered to be a terrorist organization with whom the American administration deals.
Vielen Dank. This is all about trying to secure the release of one living American hostage, a 20-year-old soldier, Idan Alexander, and four others who are believed to be dead. The negotiations do not appear to have resulted in anything so far, though one or two Israeli networks are saying that what the Americans are doing is offering to pressure Israel
Did Israel know about these contacts between the US and Hamas? It's not quite clear whether Israel was told after the fact or before. Israeli officials are saying that they are aware of these contacts. The Prime Minister's office released a statement. It is pretty terse, I have to say. It says simply the following.
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Chapter 5: What is the case against Zhenhao Zhou and its impact?
Israel has expressed to the United States its position regarding direct talks with Hamas. I think you can take it from the brevity statement. Die Idee, dass jemand hinter Israel zurückgehen würde, um die Erlösung von individuellen Flüchtlingen zu sichern, könnte als die Überraschung Israels overall positionieren, wenn es darum geht, vorzugehen.
Police say they fear that a Chinese PhD student who's been convicted of drugging and raping 10 women in London and China could potentially be one of the most prolific sexual predators the UK has ever seen. 28-year-old Zhenhao Zhou secretly filmed the attacks and kept the videos as souvenirs. Officers say the material they uncovered suggests Zhou could have raped many other people.
Our UK correspondent Daniel Sanford found this report.
Hallo, bist du Mr. Zoo?
One of the most prolific rapists ever seen in the UK. Jen Hauzo's callous campaign of drug-raping young women came to an end when police officers knocked at the door of his expensive London flat. He lured women back to his apartment, gave them alcoholic drinks spiked with drugs like GHB, then raped them while they were unconscious or drifting in and out of consciousness.
How many victims are there?
No comments. How long is this going on for?
No comments.
When detectives searched Zhou's flat, they found that he had everything he needed in his bedroom to drug and rape women again and again. Among the evidence, two large bottles of an industrial chemical, which converts in the human body into the date rape drug GHB. Police also found a pipette for measuring out the dangerous liquid carefully to put the women to sleep.
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Chapter 6: Why is there a food ration crisis for Rohingya refugees?
Now they say that it is not directly linked to the USAID cuts, but there is a general donor fatigue, but not getting enough money. But the US also made it very clear, the State Department as well, that emergency humanitarian aid will not be stopped. because they continue to give this money even to the Rohingya camps.
So I spoke to one UNICEF official a couple of weeks ago when the decision was announced. They said, no, the emergency food aid that is being continued by the Americans. But what is happening, according to the Bangladeshi officials, is that there are five or six hospitals. They get... Und Barasan Etherajan.
Still to come in the Global News Podcast, new work by the late author Harper Lee, who wrote To Kill a Mockingbird, is being published.
Every single piece in the collection just rings with Harper Lee's voice. I mean, it is inimitable. They are wry, they're funny, they have a touch of darkness to them as well. They have to find their way to millions of readers around the world.
Das ist Ihre Millionenchance. Jetzt im Lotto-Jackpot. 14 Millionen Euro. 14 Millionen Euro. Lotto Bayern. Nimm dein Glück in die Hand.
Spielteilnahme ab 18. Chance auf den Höchstgewinn 1 zu 140 Millionen. Glücksspiel kann süchtig machen.
The foreign ministers of the UK, France and Germany have urged Israel to allow the resumption of humanitarian aid to Gaza. In a joint statement they described the situation there as catastrophic and expressed deep concern at Israel's decision to halt the entry of goods and supplies to the Strip. Israel has been asked to comment. Nick Erdly from BBC Verify has more.
Getting more aid into Gaza was a key component of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. But on Sunday Israel said it was stopping aid crossings, calling on Hamas to agree to extend the first phase of the ceasefire. Aid agencies are now warning the blocking of relief is having a significant impact.
The World Food Programme told the BBC it had enough stock to provide assistance to Gazans for less than two weeks. It warned if crossings into Gaza remain closed, it may have to further reduce rations. Christian Aid, which operates in the Strip, said market prices had increased by as much as a quarter, with some goods like meat, fish and imported vegetables starting to disappear altogether.
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