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BBC World Service

Where the world and America meet, with episodes each weekday. The world is changing. Decisions made in the US and by the second Trump administration are accelerating that change. But they are also a symptom of it. With Asma Khalid in DC, Tristan Redman in London, and the backing of the BBC’s international newsroom, The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption.

Come and join us our live event. You can register for Castfest tickets here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/shows/castfest-2026

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)

The US and Israel entered the Iran war together. Is Israel now being sidelined?

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

How Ukraine won a battle with robots alone

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

What was the Iran deal that Trump ripped up?

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)

Is China ‘winning’ the Iran war?

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.

Live in London: Is the 'special relationship’ between the US and the UK over?

Donald Trump has promised to release government files on UFOs and Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, telling a crowd at Turning Point USA this month, “ we found many very interesting documents”. 

Meanwhile, Vice President JD Vance has said he is “obsessed” with the search for aliens, which he believes are demons, rather than innocuous little green men. Their comments follow a slew of congressional hearings about the subject in recent years, as well as pronouncements from other political figures, such as Barack Obama. 

Why has the search for extra-terrestrial life – a fascination that began in the 1940s in the US – become mainstream again? What deeper meaning are people seeking when they look to the skies? 

Daniel Lavelle, an award-winning British journalist, set out on a road trip across the States to answer these questions for his forthcoming book, Chasing Aliens: Conspiracy in the UFO Heartlands, and he joins Tristan on today’s episode. 

Producer: Hannah Moore 

Executive producer: James Shield 

Mix: Travis Evans 

Senior news editor: China Collins 

Photo: Meteors in the night sky. Credit: Georgi Licovski/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock.

What are UFO hunters really searching for?

Why were scheduled talks between the US and Iran suddenly cancelled? On Tuesday, as US vice president JD Vance was due to be flying to Pakistan for mediated talks on ending the war in Iran, Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he was extending the ceasefire agreement, but that the US will continue to block Iranian ports. 

Meanwhile, the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping lane through which 20% of the world’s oil, as well as critical supplies of gas, aluminium and fertiliser is transported, remains a flashpoint, with Iran attacking cargo ships attempting to get through. 

Today, we speak to the BBC’s diplomatic correspondent, Paul Adams, who is in the capital of Pakistan. Plus, in response to listener demand, we speak to Charlotte Smith, the long-time presenter of the BBC’s Farming Today, about how the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz is affecting the farming and food industries globally. 

Producers: Hannah Moore, Lucy Pawle and Valerio Esposito 

Executive producers: James Shield and Richard Fenton-Smith 

Mix: Travis Evans 

Senior news editor: China Collins

The Iran peace talks that didn’t happen

*** This episode includes discussions of child sexual abuse and upsetting scenes *** 
 
The BBC has been following a global team of undercover officers as they investigate the most hidden corners of the internet to stop those who exploit and harm children. 
 
A dedicated network of specialist investigators has successfully tracked and caught serial paedophiles who operate across the dark web with the same sophistication and secrecy as international organised crime syndicates. 
 
We speak to Special Agent Greg Squire who has dedicated his life to rescuing children who might otherwise never be found. His story is featured in the BBC documentary The Darkest Web and the BBC podcast World of Secrets: The Darkest Web. 

 
For further information on the issues raised in the programme, contact support organisations in your own country. For a list of organisations in the UK that can provide support go to bbc.co.uk/actionline. 
 
Producer: Xandra Ellin 

Executive producer: James Shield 

Sound engineer: Travis Evans 

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: Greg Squire in The Darkest Web: Inside the internet’s most hidden corners to save kids – BBC World Service Docs)

The global network hunting predators on the internet

For decades, Pakistan sat on the margins of global diplomacy. But now it’s due to be the unlikely venue for another round of peace talks between the US and Iran.

We speak to the BBC’s Pakistan correspondent, Carrie Davies, to ask how the country became a trusted intermediary between the parties in this conflict, and whether it can use this moment to increase its influence on the world stage.

Producers: Cat Farnsworth, Viv Jones, Aron Keller and Xandra Ellin

Studio managers: Mike Regaard and Ricardo McCarthy

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: U.S. Vice President JD Vance with Pakistan's Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Asim Munir after arriving for first round of talks with Iranian officials in Pakistan, April 11, 2026. Credit: Jacquelyn Martin / Reuters

How Pakistan became the peacemaker

When the ceasefire deal was announced more than six months ago, there was celebration and relief in Gaza and Israel. But since the US-led Board of Peace announced plans to rebuild Gaza, the Trump administration’s attention has been occupied by other matters.

The success of the ceasefire deal hinges on Hamas disarmament and the full withdrawal of Israeli troops. So what progress has been made?

We speak to Yolande Knell, the BBC's Middle East correspondent, about life inside Gaza since the Iran War began.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak, Lucy Pawle and Xandra Ellin

Studio managers: Dafydd Evans and Mike Regaard

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo credits: A displaced Palestinian woman stands on a balcony inside a building damaged during the war at Al-Aqsa University, now used as a shelter, in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, April 5, 2026. Photo: Reuters/Haseeb Alwazeer.

The Iran peace talks that didn’t happen

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