Taiwan to spend extra $40bn on defence to counter China
Taiwan’s President Lai Ching-te has announced a plan to spend an extra $40 billion dollars on the military over the next eight years to resist Chinese aggression.Also on the programme: at least 13 people have died in a fire in a tower block complex in Hong Kong; and the new "Russian cultural code” from fashion to music, aiming to define what it means to be Russian. (Photo: Taiwan President Lai Ching-te gestures as he delivers a speech during National Day celebrations in Taipei on October 10, 2025. Credit: Reuters)
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Ukraine calls for Trump-Zelensky meeting in US this week
Ukraine's President Zelensky says he's ready to meet President Trump to discuss the most sensitive points of US- drafted peace agreement with Russia. But he said his country's European allies should also join the meeting. Mr Zelensky was addressing a gathering of the Coalition of the Willing - a group of nations which supports Kyiv. We will hear from an Ukrainian MP who is in London to meet with British lawmakers.Also in the programme: Scientists in the UK have established that the brain ages through five distinct stages over its lifetime; and Los Angeles' most famous modernist-styled house goes on sale for the first time.(Picture: Ukrainian rescuers work at the site of a Russian strike on a nine-storey residential building in Kyiv, Ukraine on 25 November, 2025. Credit: MAXYM MARUSENKO/EPA/Shutterstock)
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US officials claim progress in Ukraine peace talks
As American officials brief that they're making progress in peace negotiations over the Russia-Ukraine war, we get a view from Moscow on what kind of deal might be acceptable to Russia.Also in the programme: why is femicide – the killing of women – especially by intimate partners or close relatives, still so common around the world? We hear from the UN about what needs to happen to bring the numbers down; and ash from a volcano in Ethiopia which has erupted after many dormant years forces flights out of India to re-route.(IMAGE: Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov speaks during a joint press conference with Belarusian Foreign Minister in Moscow, Russia, 25 November 2025 / CREDIT: Alexander Nemenov/AFP/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock)
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Zelensky warns against giving away territory
President Zelensky has hailed what he called "important steps" in peace talks for Ukraine, but said making territorial concessions to Russia's leader would be rewarding him for theft. Also in the programme: A judge has dismissed charges against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James; we meet the 3 year old with a deadly genetic disorder who's been treated with a pioneering new therapy; and Gaza food kitchens still missing essential products despite ceasefire. (Photo credit: Getty Images)
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US and Ukraine signal peace plan progress after Geneva talks
Negotiations on a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine are continuing after the United States said progress had been made on Sunday. Moscow says it's not been informed of changes to a draft widely seen as favouring Russia.Also on the programme: a three year old boy from California suffering from a rare, genetic disorder called Hunter syndrome, has become the first person in the world to be treated with a gene therapy developed in England; and Jimmy Cliff, the musician credited with introducing Jamaican reggae to the world, has died aged 81.(Photo: Russian missile and drone assaults on Ukraine continue as its leaders hold talks with the US on a potential peace deal. Credit: Reuters)
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