2026 has already been a huge year for international news, from Venezuela to Greenland to Iran.

We wanted to get our heads around what other seismic changes we can expect in the rest of 2026: from Europe’s new dynamic with Washington, to President Trump’s meeting with President Xi of China, to the rebuilding of Gaza.

So we sat down with two foreign policy experts: Tom Bateman, the BBC’s State Department Correspondent, and Emma Ashford, a Senior Fellow at the Stimson Center and author of First Among Equals: US Foreign Policy in a Multipolar World.

We were joined in the heart of Washington DC by a live audience at Syracuse University’s Institute for Democracy, Journalism and Citizenship.

Recorded Monday 2 February.

Producers: Chris Benderev and Xandra Ellin

Executive producer: James Shield

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: A live taping of The Global Story in Washington DC on 2 February 2026. Credit:Emma Carroll Hudson/Syracuse University

Warning: this episode contains themes of sexual abuse.

Following the release of the latest tranche of Epstein files, renewed scrutiny has fallen on the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s links to powerful figures in the United States. In the UK, attention has shifted to a related controversy that is now sending tremors through Westminster.

Newly surfaced email exchanges between Epstein and former UK ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson - also known as Britain’s “Prince of Darkness”, have raised questions about the nature of their relationship and its political ramifications, triggering a police investigation and threatening the position of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

George Parker, the Financial Times Political Editor and BBC Radio Presenter, has known the man in question for over three decades. He talks about the seismic implications the Epstein files are having on British politics.

Producers: Samantha Chantarasak, Valerio Esposito and Cat Farnsworth

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Peter Mandelson and Keir Starmer. Credit: Carl Court/PA Wire

On Sunday, Bad Bunny will perform at the Super Bowl half time show to an audience of more than 100 million people across the world. But the NFL’s choice of the Puerto Rican star has proven controversial, because he has long been outspoken in his criticism of the US government, including most recently at the 2026 Grammy Awards, when he called for ICE agents to be removed from the streets.

In today’s episode, Puerto Rican cultural critic Carina del Valle Schorske, who profiled Bad Bunny for The New York Times Magazine, explains how the artist’s pride in his homeland is infused throughout his music, and considers how he might use the US’ biggest stage this weekend to challenge the president’s policies.

This episode was updated on 5 February 2026 for music rights reasons.

Producers: Hannah Moore and Xandra Ellin

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Bad Bunny poses on the red carpet during the 68th Annual Grammy Awards. Credit: Mario Anzuoni/Reuters

For three weeks, the world has been watching to see whether Donald Trump will order military strikes on Iran. The US military has been building up forces close to the Islamic Republic, including an aircraft carrier and several warships which President Trump has been calling an “armada.”

Trump says he wants to do a deal with Iran, and the two sides appear to be talking. White House special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to meet with the Iranian Foreign Minister on Friday in Istanbul. But Trump has threatened that if no agreement is reached, he’s ready to order US forces into action.

President Trump has withdrawn the US from the Paris climate agreement for the second time and also announced plans to leave the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change. In his first year back in office, Trump has rolled back restrictions on oil, gas and coal – and has urged other countries to do the same.

Producers: Aron Keller and Hannah Moore

(Photo: A wind turbine and solar panels in Yancheng, China. Credit: Alex Plavesvski/ EPA)

The US military has begun to transfer up to 7000 Islamic State (IS) group detainees held in prisons in Syria to Iraq, which officials say is to prevent prisoners breaking out and regrouping. The transfer comes weeks after the US led large-scale strikes on IS group targets in Syria.

The move comes after clashes between the Syrian government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, which last week ended in a deal that would see the gradual integration of Kurdish forces and institutions into the state, and transfer control of the prisons to Damascus.

Producers: Sam Chantarasak and Lucy Pawle

Senior news editor: China Collins

Mix: Travis Evans

Photo: A member of the Syrian security forces stands in front of the gate of the Al-Hol camp, which houses families of suspected Islamic State (IS) group fighters. Credit: Mohammed al-Rifai/EPA/Shutterstock

Palantir isn’t just another tech firm - it’s reach cuts across almost every aspect of modern life, from AI to healthcare to Formula 1 racing.

Founded in 2003 to support US counter-terrorism efforts, the company has since grown into a global powerhouse and is central to the Trump administration's policies, from its military to immigration enforcement.

At the centre of it all is billionaire co-founder Alex Karp – the philosopher turned tech-CEO who built the company from the ground up.

So how did this software company built for bad times become indispensable to governments across the globe, and what does its rise reveal about the future of politics?

We speak to journalist Michael Steinberger whose book The Philosopher in the Valley charts Karp’s life and Palantir’s rise.

Producer: Aron Keller

Mix: Travis Evans

Executive producer: China Collins

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Palantir co-founder & CEO Alex Karp. Credit: Jonathan Ernst/Reuters.

Over the weekend, some TikTok users in the United States claimed the social media platform was censoring content critical of the Trump administration. Users reported that they couldn’t upload or view videos related to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, otherwise known as ICE. But TikTok disputes that functionality issues were political, attributing them instead to data center outages.

The criticism has come to a head after federal agents shot and killed intensive care nurse Alex Pretti, a US citizen in Minnesota. The Department of Homeland Security says the agents fired in self-defence.

Though the facts remain muddy, the controversy has exposed how a divided America is reacting to the shooting. For the latest, we speak to BBC Social Media Investigations Senior Correspondent Marianna Spring.

Producers: Xandra Ellin, Samantha Chantarasak, and Viv Jones

Executive producer: China Collins

Mix: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: Teenagers holding smartphones in front of a TikTok logo. September 11, 2025. Credit:Dado Ruvic/Reuters

When US Special Forces captured Venezuela’s former president Nicolás Maduro several weeks ago, many wondered whether his ouster would bring about further changes to the country. So, what has changed in Venezuela?

And while President Trump has made it clear he sees oil as a very important priority for the United States’s future relationship with Venezuela and increased American involvement in the country’s oil operations, how do Venezuelans feel about this prospect?

Our guest today, reporting from inside Venezuela, is BBC correspondent Norberto Paredes. How do Venezuelans feel about their country since Maduro’s departure?

Producers: Lucy Pawle, Sam Chantarasak and Hannah Moore

Executive producer: Bridget Harney

Sound engineer: Travis Evans

Senior news editor: China Collins

(Photo: People walk past a painting of an oil pump on Venezuela's national flag, in Caracas. Credit: Gaby Oráa/Reuters)

In September 1999, just weeks into Vladimir Putin’s first premiership, four bombs blew up four apartment buildings, over a period of twelve days, killing hundreds and plunging the entire nation into fear.