BBC

After threatening to withdraw 4,000 troops from Poland, President Trump today reversed the plan and promised 5,000 troops would now be deployed in the country. Former US Ambassador to NATO, Kurt Volker, gives us his view on the confusing messages from Washington.

Also on the programme, we hear about the potential schism appearing between the US President and Senate Republicans, take a look back at CBS Radio on the night is closes down for good, and the founder of the slow movement, Carlo Petrini has died.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has sought to reassure allies after US rowed back on plans last week to cancel long held plans to deploy 4,000 US troops to Poland and instead send an extra 5,000 troops there. The move has caused confusion amongst NATO allies.

Also in the programme: Thousands of Cubans have taken part in a state-organized protest in the capital, Havana, in support of the country's former leader, Raul Castro, who was charged with murder and other crimes in the United States this week; and Carlo Petrini who began the Slow Food movement as a protest against a McDonalds opening in Rome has died at the age of seventy six.

Photo: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets press after NATO foreign ministers meet in Helsingborg, Sweden. Credit: JOHAN NILSSON/TT/EPA/Shutterstock

17 – 22 May 2026

Writer: Katie Hims

Directors: Kim Greengrass and Peter Leslie Wild

Editor: Jeremy Howe

Brian Aldridge … Charles Collingwood

Ben Archer … Ben Norris

Helen Archer … Louiza Patikas 

Leonard Berry … Paul Copley

Alice Carter … Hollie Chapman 

Ian Craig …  Stephen Kennedy 

Alan Franks … John Telfer

Bert Horrobin…  David Sterne

Brad Horrobin … Taylor Uttley

Tracy Horrobin … Susie Riddell 

Adam Macy … Andrew Wincott  

Akram Malik ... Asif Khan

Dr Azra Malik … Yasmin Wilde 

Kirsty Miller …. Annabelle Dowler 

Carol Tregorran … Mia Soteriou

Anna Tregorran … Isobel Middleton

Den … Laurence Saunders

What a week it's been for the Prime Minister. In the aftermath of seismic local elections results, there's been non-stop Labour party in-fighting. Wes Streeting has resigned as Health Secretary so the race for Labour leader is seemingly on - who will throw their hat in the ring? Will Andy Burnham, i.e. the King of the North, make his move? In other news, the panel discuss Trump's state visit to China and why the Royal Navy has to redesign women's uniforms over 'inappropriately placed' buttons.

Helping Andy make sense of it all this week is Nish Kumar, Ian Smith, Katy Balls and Mhairi Black.

Written by Andy Zaltzman.

With additional material by: Alex Kealy, Ruth Husko and Claire Rammelkamp

Producer: Georgia Keating

Executive Producer: Richard Morris

Production Coordinator: Asha Osborne-Grinter

Sound Editor: Marc Willcox

Recorded by David Thomas

A BBC Studios Production for Radio 4.

About twenty-five years ago, Africa had no dollar billionaires. Today, there are 23. Their combined wealth has grown to more than 100 billion US dollars. At the same time, many people on the continent are living in poverty, and their number has also grown. Focus on Africa Podcast host Charles Gitonga has been speaking to the youngest billionaire in Africa, Tanzanian businessman and philanthropist Mohammed Dewji, about how he made his billions and the responsibility of billionaires to reduce the widening inequality gap.

Presenter: Charles Gitonga

Producers: Fana Negash, Basma El Atti

Technical Producer: David Kinyanjui

Senior Producer:Carolyne Kiambo Jotham

Editors: Priya Sippy and Maryam Abdalla

At a summit in Sweden, the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, says the Trump administration is constantly reviewing its relationship with NATO. The chief of the military alliance, Mark Rutte, insists it has grown closer and will become less reliant on the United States.

Also: students at one of Turkey's oldest private universities protest over its closure; the WHO upgrades its risk for ebola in the DRC; two sisters share their experience of living in Iran during the US and Israeli attacks; the TV programme, The Late Show, is broadcast for the final time in the US; ahead of the Enhanced Games in Las Vegas on Sunday we hear more about which athletes are competing and Manchester City's coach, Pep Guardiola, has confirmed that he's leaving the club.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.

Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.

Get in touch: [email protected]

The new chair of the world's most powerful central bank is being sworn in at the White House today.

Kevin Warsh becomes the 17th Chair of the Federal Reserve at a very tense moment for the US and global economies.

He's an advocate for cutting rates. something President Trump has long demanded.

Also, why were 2 boxes of Japanese Melons worth $36,500?

The WHO has upgraded the risk from the current Ebola outbreak to "very high" in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and says regionally the risk is high -- though it remains low in the rest of the world. Newshour hears from Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group which helped develop the Astra Zeneca Covid vaccine.

Also in the programme: Will Grant reports from Havana on Cuba under pressure; and how barnacles affect stationary ships in the Strait of Hormuz.

(Picture: Red Cross workers walk in a formation as they disinfect Rwampara general hospital before handling the body of a person who died of Ebola, as aid agencies intensify efforts to contain a new Ebola outbreak. Credit: Reuters)

School principals and teachers in fear over the 'sexualised' behaviour of young boys.

An angry crowd has set fire to part of a hospital in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo after the death of a suspected Ebola victim. The BBC understands relatives stormed the facility and tried to remove the body after health workers refused to release it. Medical staff at the Rwampara Hospital are under military protection. Also: President Trump says he will be sending 5,000 more troops to Poland. Meta settles a social media addiction case with a US school district. And scientists discover that Beluga whales can recognise themselves in a mirror.

The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight.

Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment.

Get in touch: [email protected]