The Global Story

Since the start of the US-Israel war with Iran, there has been an ongoing debate over the role played by Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in convincing Donald Trump to go to war.
But when it comes to ceasefire announcements, it has been the US President taking the lead - if the Israelis are present at all. So when it comes to ending the wars in Iran and Lebanon, are the Americans leaving Netanyahu out in the cold?
We speak to Anshel Pfeffer, Israel correspondent at The Economist, and author of Bibi: The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu.
Producer: Sam Chantarasak and Xandra Ellin
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivering an address from the roof of the Kirya in Tel Aviv, Israel, 1 March 2026. Credit: Avi Ohayon/EPA-EFE)

For the first time in history a country has apparently won a battle using only robots, without a soldier on the ground put at risk. Ukraine claims to have recently taken over a Russian position – forcing Russian soldiers to surrender – using robotic systems alone.
President Zelensky has been asking the world for help to fight Russia since the full-scale invasion began in 2022. But in the years since, Ukraine has revolutionised the technology of warfare with battlefield robots and drones, and now other countries are turning to it for its technology and expertise.
We speak to the journalist and defence expert Mark Urban about how Ukraine went from needy to needed.
Producers: Lucy Pawle and Viv Jones
Executive producer: Richard Fenton-Smith
Mixed by: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: The "ASLAN" unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) is tested during a NATO exercise in Germany, February 20, 2026. Photo by: Liesa Johannssen/Reuters

When President Trump talks about his attempts to reach an agreement with Iran, he often mentions a previous deal: the 2015 JCPOA (Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action), or Iran nuclear deal.
Trump pulled America out of the Obama-era accord during his first term and has called it, "the worst deal in history". His own deal, he says, "will be FAR BETTER".
Asma speaks to Ambassador Wendy Sherman, the lead US negotiator on the JCPOA, to get the inside story on how the deal was done, and ask what it might take for Trump to get a deal now.
Producers: Viv Jones and Xandra Ellin
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Wendy Sherman. Credit: Michael Reynolds/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

As the US-Israel war with Iran reaches a diplomatic stalemate - one idea seems to be taking hold: that China is the real winner. Some have argued that the US’s biggest rival is quietly boosting its international standing, leverage and reputation as a reliable partner. Yet beneath the surface the economic situation in China looks far less triumphant.

We speak to the BBC China Correspondent Laura Bicker who has been reporting from inside China’s factories and trading hubs to explore whether the potential political gains China may be accruing from the Iran war are being offset by the acute economic cost - and what this means for China’s long-term geopolitical ambitions.

Producers: Aron Keller and Sam Chantarasak

Digital producer: Matt Pintus

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Former Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, 14 February, 2023. Credit: WANA/Reuters)

King Charles is visiting America at a tense moment for the ’special relationship' between the United States and the United Kingdom. Can he help turn things around?
In a special live recording at the BBC’s Maida Vale Studios in London, Asma and Tristan speak to the former British ambassador to the United States, Lord Kim Darroch.
Recorded on Saturday 25 April as part of Castfest, a one-day celebration of BBC podcasts.
Producers: Sam Chantarasak and James Shield
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: BBC. Kim Darroch talked to Asma Khalid and Tristan Redman at BBC Maida Vale Studios.