The World Tonight

At Donald Trump's first cabinet meeting since returning to office, he confirmed President Zelensky will head to Washington on Friday.

The prime minister has announced billions more for defence spending as he said Britain faces grave new threats. We ask a former head of the army how that money could be spent - and a US Republican whether the prime minister's decision will win over President Trump - who he meets later this week.

Ukrainian officials say a deal has been reached between Kyiv and Washington over Ukraine's minerals and other resources. We have the latest.

Also on the programme:

A baby who was abandoned in a shopping bag in east London last year has taken her first steps. We reflect on the challenges for deserted children with the Olympic medalist Fatima Whitbread, who herself was abandoned as a child.

And catching a glimpse of the rare sight of a planetary parade, as seven planets became visible in tonight's sky.

James Coomarasamy reports live from Berlin at a pivotal moment for European security. French President Emmanuel Macron visited Donald Trump in Washington and urged him not to force a peace on Ukraine that would be tantamount to surrender. Meanwhile, after German elections, the Chancellor-in-waiting Freidrich Merz says he'll seek "independence" from the United States, in comments he has since softened.

Also on the programme: the man who set a new world record for the fastest marathon while using crutches, though he didn't know it at the time.

And has Donald Trump's rapprochement with Russia undermined attempts to seek justice for the invasion and war crimes in Ukraine. On the third anniversary of the invasion, we ask Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oleksandra Matviichuk.

There was outrage in Israel when a body handed over on Thursday which Hamas said was that of the Israeli mother Shiri Bibas was later discovered to be that of a Gazan woman. We speak with the father of a recently released Israeli hostage, who knew Mrs Bibas; and to a veteran Palestinian campaigner.

Also on the programme: Elon Musk demonstrates his approach to government efficiency - we hear why some Republicans are uneasy about government cuts. We look ahead to Sunday's German elections. And - the place of place in whisky - and why it could be causing a falling out between single malt producers north and south of the border.

The US National Security Advisor, Mike Waltz, has again urged President Zelensky to sign a deal for US access to Ukraine's minerals, to pay for support in its war against the Russian invasion. Mr Waltz also said that Ukraine needs to tone down its criticism of the United States. Mr Zelensky angered President Trump after he accused him of living in a bubble of Russian disinformation. Meanwhile, Mr Zelensky has been meeting the US envoy, Keith Kellogg, in Kyiv.

Also in the programme: On a day when Israel mourns four hostages, including two children, who've been returned dead, we speak to a woman in London who's awaiting the release of a family friend from captivity in Gaza,

And the university that is offering a film course that aims to rehabilitate the reputation of the donkey.

Sir Keir Starmer spoke to President Zelensky on the phone on Wednesday evening and said it was "perfectly reasonable" for Ukraine to "suspend elections during war time as the UK did during World War II", Downing Street said. We hear from Conservative MP and former security minister Tom Tugendhat about where he believes President Trump's comments leave the UK's cooperation with Washington over Ukraine.

Scotland's health secretary has admitted that more needs to be done to reduce deaths from drugs in rural areas. We report from the west coast town of Oban.

Egyptologists have discovered the first tomb of a pharaoh since Tutankhamun's was uncovered more than 100 years ago.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has said his country won't accept peacekeeping forces from Nato countries in Ukraine under any peace deal, following high-level talks with the US in Saudi Arabia.

"Any appearance by armed forces under some other flag does not change anything. It is of course completely unacceptable," he said. Russia and the US said they had agreed to appoint teams to start negotiating the end of the war.

A British couple who were travelling through Iran have been arrested and charged with espionage.

And as some The White Lotus fans complain about the third series’ opening music, what are the dos and don’ts of rewriting theme tune music?

In his speech at the Munich Security Conference, US Vice-President JD Vance has accused European governments - including the UK's - of retreating from their values and ignoring voter concerns on free speech and migration. We speak to the deputy leader of Germany's anti-immigration party Alternative for Germany (AfD) Beatrix von Storch.

Also in the programme: The Ukrainian writer Andrey Kurkov on Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and the war in Ukraine. The number of people who report being the victim of anti-social behaviour is rising - we hear from one of them. Plus a celebration of South Africa's Bantu culture and music with cellist and singer Abel Selaocoe.

US President Donald Trump repeated his pledge to meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to end the war in Ukraine, and said US and Russian officials would meet at the Munich Security Conference beginning on Friday. Speaking to reporters in the White House, Trump said Ukraine would also be included in the negotiations.

The parents of female Israeli hostages released by Hamas have spoken to the BBC about what their loved ones endured.

And we hear from the centenarian who refuses to give up her favourite pastime: horse-riding.

US President Donald Trump says he’ll meet his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, probably in Saudi Arabia, in the “not too distant future”. He was speaking after a 90 minute phonecall with Putin where they agreed to begin negotiations to end the war in Ukraine “immediately”. We ask what the diplomatic move means for European security.

US politicians and commentators are saying the country is headed for a “constitutional crisis” due to President Trump’s actions. We explored what the term means.

And a Roman basilica is being excavated in the basement of a London office block.