Author: BBC World Service

Russia's leader visits India for the first time since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. India's prime minister is under pressure to stop buying Russian oil over accusations the trade is financing the war. Also: The New York Times is suing the Pentagon over its attempt to make journalists sign a pledge to only report authorised information. A study by the Gates Foundation has found that the number of preventable child deaths is due to rise this year for the first time this century. We go to New Orleans to examine the controversy surrounding an operation to arrest undocumented immigrants. A US senator gives us his view on President Trump's comments in which he describes America's Somali community as "garbage". The organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest debate whether Israel should be allowed to continue in the competition.

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: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

Zambian-American influencer Ethel Chisono Edwards, also known as 'One Boss Lady', has been a vocal critic of Zambia's President Hakainde Hichilema. She was convicted under the Cyber Security Act and the Cyber Crimes Act, two controversial laws that were recently amended to stipulate harsher penalties. The case has raised concerns about freedom of speech in Zambia.

Also, did you know that the trafficking and sale of ants is on the rise? We look at the impact of this illegal phenomenon on the environment.

Presenter: Nkechi Ogbonna Producers:  Bella Twine, Ly Truong and Makuochi Okafor Technical Producers: Jonathan Mwangi and Philip Bull Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla

As President Putin arrives for talks with Prime Minister Modi, will India's imports of cheap Russian crude oil scupper its relationship with the US, which says they are fuelling the war in Ukraine?

Also in the programme: what will the publication of tens of thousands of new photos and files mean for the Syrian families still looking for answers about their missing relatives? And we remember the American guitarist Steve Cropper, the man behind countless '60s soul classics.

(IMAGE: Russian President Vladimir Putin (L) and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) sit in a car after Putin's arrival at the Palam Air Base in New Delhi, India, 04 December 2025. CREDIT: GRIGORY SYSOEV/SPUTNIK/KREMLIN/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock (16009955i))

US special envoy, Steve Witkoff, is set to meet Ukrainian negotiators in Florida following talks with President Putin in Moscow. Mr Putin - who's visiting India - has already said some of the proposals for peace in Ukraine are unacceptable. The war is also on the agenda in Beijing, where the French President, Emmanuel Macron, is meeting the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping. Also: the family of Colombian fisherman killed in a US "drug boat" strike files a legal complaint, alleging he was murdered. An LA doctor who supplied ketamine to Matthew Perry, the late star of the TV show Friends, is sent to jail for 30 months. And in Scotland, the remains of a deep-water creature have washed up on a beach -- and, no, it's not the Loch Ness monster.

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: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

US President Donald Trump has said he does not want Somali immigrants in the US. There are threats of further immigration raids in Minnesota, home to one third of America's Somali community.

Also on the programme: the EU Commissioner for Energy and Housing on Europe’s plan to stop importing Russian gas but not until the end of 2027; and how does it feel when the remains of a giant octopus wash up on your shore?

(Photo: US President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington DC on December 3, 2025. Credit: Reuters)

Despite their support for Ukraine, European countries have been a significant market for Russian energy. But an agreement has now been reached between the European Council and the European Parliament to phase out imports of Russian gas. The announcement came as it emerged peace talks between the US and Russia had failed, once again, to produce a breakthrough. Also in this episode - France's President, Emmanuel Macron, has arrived in Beijing for an official visit that will also take him to the city of Chengdu. The search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH-370 will resume this month. A new draft law on conscripting ultra-Orthodox Jews has sparked uproar in Israel. The American city of San Francisco is to file the nation’s first government lawsuit against manufacturers of ultra-processed food. The BBC investigates the dramatic rise in online abuse towards football players and managers in the Premier League and Women's Super League. And a man in New Zealand is being questioned after allegedly swallowing a Faberge diamond pendant, in an attempt to smuggle it out of a jewellery store.

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: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

Nigeria: A deep dive into the spike in school mass abductions by armed groups in northern Nigeria. We hear from the parents of some of the victims and ask: Who is behind the kidnappings and what's the government doing about it?

And how are mental health institutions perceived in Africa? We speak to someone in Uganda about their mental health journey and experience at the country's main referral facility.

Presenter : Nkechi Ogbonna Producers:  Bella Twine, Keikantse Shumba and Ly Truong Technical Producer: Jonathan Mwangi and Philip Bull Senior Producer: Charles Gitonga Editors: Samuel Murunga and Maryam Abdalla

The European Union has reached an agreement to phase out its remaining imports of Russian gas by 2027. The decision came after a lengthy meeting in Moscow between US and Russian representatives resulted in no breakthrough to end the war in Ukraine. The sovereignty of the eastern region of Donbas, largely controlled by Russia, is at the heart of the negotiations, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky refusing to cede the territory.

Also in the programme: we go to the Swiss town where you can pay with Bitcoin; and the search for Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 will resume at the end of the month, 11 years after its disappearance.

(Photo: A gas torch is seen next to the Lukoil company sign at the Filanovskogo oil platform in the Caspian Sea, Russia. Credit: Reuters / M. Shemetov).

Talks in Moscow between President Putin and the US envoy, Steve Witkoff, about a peace plan for Ukraine have ended without a breakthrough. Russian negotiators described the meeting as productive and useful, but the Kremlin aide, Yuri Ushakov, said no compromise had been reached over Ukrainian territory. Also: on the first anniversary of an attempted coup in South Korea, the president praises civilians who defended democracy; Wikipedia's most read pages of 2025 are revealed, from Charlie Kirk to Ozzy Osbourne; we hear from a working mother in Japan, where the country's first female prime minister has made 'work' a national slogan; and the Fabergé egg, commissioned by Russia's last Tsar, which has sold at auction for a record $30 million.

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: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

President Vladimir Putin has accused European countries of being on the side of war and putting forward proposals to end the conflict in Ukraine that they knew would be unacceptable. He added that Russia was ready for a wider war with Europe if that's what they wanted. Mr Putin was speaking shortly before he started talks with President Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner in Moscow.

Also in the programme: a rising death toll after floods in Indonesia; and a Faberge egg sells for millions at auction.

(Photo: Russian President Vladimir Putin, presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev and foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov attend a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, December 2, 2025. CREDIT: Sputnik/Alexander Kazakov/Pool via REUTERS)