Newshour

US and Russian negotiators are planning to meet for discussions in Saudi Arabia next week about the war in Ukraine. The US envoy to Russia-Ukraine suggested yesterday that Europe would not be involved in peace talks. We speak to a European foreign minister who met with the envoy earlier today.

(Photo: Steve Wikoff, US Special Envoy to the Middle East and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the White House in Washington DC, USA, 11th February 2025. Credit: Aaron Schwartz/POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to meet Russian officials in Saudi Arabia in the coming days for talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine. European states concerned about being sidelined are to hold an emergency summit on Monday.

During the second day of the Munich Security Conference in Germany, there’s been debate about President Zelensky’s proposal that Europe should create its own army. We get a response from a European defence minister.

Also in the programme: More Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners are released as part of the phased Israel-Hamas ceasefire; and as US TV show Saturday Night Live celebrates its 50th anniversary, Kate Pierson from the pop band the B-52s offers her thoughts on why the programme has lasted.

(Photo: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives to meet with the German Chancellor at the Munich Security Conference, 15th February 2025. Credit: Sean Gallup/POOL/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has said that Europe can no longer depend on the United States for military support. We hear from Europe's top foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas.

Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky has met JD Vance at the Munich Security Conference, after the US vice president launched a withering attack on European countries. In a hard-hitting speech, Mr Vance said said there was "a new sheriff in town" as he criticised what he called a "retreat of fundamental values" across Europe.

Also on the programme: we speak to the Egyptian sportswoman whose pregnancy during the Paris Olympics stunned the world; and the study explaining why so many people feel they have a separate stomach for pudding.

(Picture: US vice president JD Vance pictured ahead of the bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Credit: REUTERS/Leah Millis)

US Vice President J.D. Vance speaks at the Munich Security Conference. As Ukraine’s President Zelensky warns about Vladimir Putin’s European ambitions, is Europe now on its own when it comes to defence?

Also in the programme: why did six federal prosecutors resign in protest in New York and D.C. yesterday? And the study explaining why humans feel there IS a separate stomach for pudding.

(IMAGE: US Vice President JD Vance speaks during the 61st Munich Security Conference (MSC), in Munich, Germany, 14 February 2025 / CREDIT: Ronald Wittek/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

The European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, has accused President Trump of appeasing Russia over Ukraine. Newshour hears from NATO's former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, Gen. Sir. Richard Shirreff.

Also in the programme: Israel's hostage families speak of captivity ordeal; and the rise of Germany's AFD.

(Picture: U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth holds a press conference during a NATO Defence Ministers meeting at the Alliance's headquarters in Brussels. credit: Reuters)

European countries are left reeling after Donald Trump cuts them out of negotiations with Russia over Ukraine: we speak to Estonia's foreign minister, and hear from Kyiv on how Ukraine sees its future.

Also in the programme: unearthing a major piece of Roman history in an office basement in London; and we get the latest after a man drives a car into a crowd in Munich.

(IMAGE: Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna speaks to the media as he attends Foreign Affairs Council at the EU headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, 27 January 2025 / CREDIT: Olivier Hoslet/EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock)

Donald Trump has announced that talks to end the war in Ukraine will start immediately. The US President had 'a lengthy and highly productive' phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by a call to Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelensky. We hear from a former NATO Deputy Secretary General and a Ukrainian MP about the path going forward.

Also in our programme: is the United States in the midst of a constitutional crisis? And we hear about a historic raid targetting the Sicilian mafia.

(Photo: US President Trump Welcomes Released Russian Prisoner Mark Fogel. Credit: Shutterstock)

The new US defence secretary has delivered an uncompromising message to Ukraine three years after Russia's full-scale invasion began, saying Nato membership is unrealistic. We get a response from Ukraine's former prime minister.

Also on the programme: A BBC investigation has uncovered allegations that the energy giant Shell ignored repeated warnings that a one-billion-dollar clean-up operation of polluted land in southern Nigeria has been beset by problems and corruption and why a Dublin city councillor is campaigning for the removal of key lockboxes.

(Photo: US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks at a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group on the eve of a Nato defence ministers' meeting at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, 12 February, 2025. Credit: Johanna Geron/Reuters)