Britain gives Ukraine missile blueprints, and Shein prepares to go public | Global News Podcast

Hello, this is the Global News podcast. on the BBC World Service. I'm Valerie. Sanderson and on Monday, the 24th of. August, these are our main stories. The. UK is handing over classified technology. to Ukraine that would help Kyiv strike. deeper into Russia. Pakistan's army. chief is back in Iran trying to restart. peace talks between Tehran and. Washington. And the BBC speaks to. Afghans living under the hardline rule. of the Taliban.

>> [music]. >> Ukraine is hosting key European allies. known as the coalition of the willing on. the 35th anniversary of the nation's. independence to press for more political. support and crucially the critical. weapon systems it needs to combat. Russia. The meeting is also expected to look at. how to supply Ukraine with Patriot. missiles that would intercept some of. the aerial attacks from Russia. It's an. event being chaired by the leaders of. France and Germany who participate.

remotely and by the British Prime. Minister Andy Burnham who's in Kyiv. >> Thank you for the incredible stand you. have taken because we are all stronger. for it. Europe is stronger. NATO is. stronger, too. As President Zelenskyy has said, Ukraine. is not a poor relative but a strong. ally. I'd go further still. Ukraine has been.

Europe's protector, not a drain on our. security but the front line of keeping. Europe safe. >> But this is not just a day for symbolic. acts of support as our correspondent in. Kyiv, Dan Johnson, explains. >> There's a large security operation in. Kyiv today for the Independence Day. celebrations. They're marking 35 years. of Ukraine's independence from the. Soviet Union. A lot of international. politicians and leaders here, including. British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on.

his first overseas visit. He's bringing. a message of renewed British support. He. said that friendship would be there for. Ukraine as long as it takes and that. Russia's threats against the UK would. not weaken the resolve that Britain. would not waver in supplying Ukraine. with what it needs. And that's not just. the Storm Shadow or Scalp missiles that. have already been supplied, but it is. now the technology, the blueprints for. those missiles so that Ukraine can. produce them itself. That's an important.

step, but it also signals to other. international countries that Ukraine can. be trusted with that technology. And. President Zelenskyy will be hoping that. Donald Trump hears that message and. therefore agrees that Ukraine can. produce its own Patriot missile. interceptors, which are desperately. needed to protect Ukraine skies. There. are political meetings today as well as. the celebrations. Andy Burnham is going. to receive an award on behalf of the. British people for the support the UK. has given Ukraine in the 4 and 1/2 years.

of this war. >> So, what impact would the promised new. defensive and offensive weapons have on. Kyiv's military abilities? Here's the. BBC's Joe Inwood. >> What we're do seeing here is the ability. of Ukraine to produce these missiles. Now, that's going to take time to get. going. What it could do is make a. difference in the long term. So, they. now have the capability or they will do. to set up their own production. facilities, their own factories in. Ukraine and they can start producing. these Storm Shadow, these Scalp. missiles. They are just one of a a number of kind.

of of options that the Ukrainians have. in terms of long-range, medium-range. attack. And they are significant as they. have the capability to strike targets. that, for example, drones can't, not. just because they can fly undetected, but also they are capable of defeating. hardened targets, so bunkers or ammo. stores. So, in that sense, this is a. really important bit of technology, but. it's one that's going to take a bit of. time to get going. >> Pakistani mediators are in Iran trying. to restart the peace process between. Tehran and Washington. It comes as the.

US is preparing to expand its economic. sanctions, which could see nations that. trade with Iran hit with financial. penalties. The US Treasury Secretary. Scott Bessent says they will be the. toughest in history. In anticipation, the country's currency, the rial, has. hit a record low. The Iranian President. Masoud Pezeshkian says the nation stands. firm in the face of aggression. >> The perception from the US was that Iran.

would become Venezuela. Not only has this not happened, but Iran. has become a power that's astonished the. world with its display of resistance, solidarity, and integrity. We are in an. all-out military, economic, and security. war in the face of the most devastating. set of sanctions. But, we're standing. firm to secure the future of our people. >> I asked Rana Rahimpour from BBC Persian. what appetite there is in Tehran for a. diplomatic solution to the conflict.

>> Officials are divided between whether. they should make it a deal or carry the. war. A few days ago, President. Pezeshkian. said that we have to get out while we're. on top. We have to end the war while. we're on top. And then the Iranian. Majlis speaker, Qalibaf, said in Baghdad. that if people are hungry, we can't continue. We can't last. And.

after there was massive backlash by. Iranian hardliner officials that they're. saying that they are. kind of showing weakness, the Majlis released a long video of the. remarks made by the. Iran Majlis speaker Ghalibaf saying that. it's important that we stand firm where. we are and security is just as important. and as financial stability. So, they're. kind of showing a tough facade, but.

underneath that they are aware that the. economy is crippling. >> What is life like there for people in. Iran? Cuz I know you've been talking to. to them. >> It wasn't long ago that I saw a video. online of this young woman who had. bought chicken bones from from a. butcher's, basically the waste of of. chicken that wasn't being sold. She had. bought that from the butchers and was. boiling that so she could get some.

nutrients out of it because chicken has. got so expensive. People are talking. about eggs cuz. um meat and red meat has been off-limits. for a lot of Iranian families now and so. they were resorting. to eggs for nutrients and protein and. even that is off-limits. People are. talking about devastating. poverty and these are people who were. middle-class not long ago and um. >> [snorts]. >> it's it's it's very tough. Like I I see.

videos of. sellers of shopkeepers saying that. they've been keeping their shop open. for days and they haven't seen one. customer. So, um. whatever the official's stand. people are people are really really. feeling the effects of the war. >> The BBC World Service has gained rare. access inside Afghanistan under the. Taliban. Five years after the extreme Islamist.

movement returned to power, the BBC has. spent time with senior figures there, former insurgents turned politicians, to. see how they are governing a country in. crisis. We've also spoken to Afghans. themselves living once again under the. same hardline rule the group first. imposed decades ago. The BBC's Kabul Kamush reports. >> In northern Afghanistan, Taliban. governor Abdul Ghani starts his day. He's a former Guantanamo Bay inmate, now.

responsible for enforcing a strict. Sharia across his region. While he doesn't want everything. recorded, this is rare access. One by one, locals bring their problems. The governor quickly makes his decrees. But one case dominates proceedings. An 18-year-old woman seeking a divorce. from her husband. She accuses him of. beatings and abuse. To protect her. identity, we have had someone else voice. her words.

>> I'm ready to be executed, but not live. with him. >> In Sharia or Islamic religious law, if a. woman initiates divorce, it often. requires the husband's consent, too. And. the wife may have to repay the dowry. given by her husband when they married. A financial settlement is often agreed. But this woman's husband says he wants. four times the amount. You'll have to compromise a lot, or you. lose your dignity and honor.

>> Mr. Governor, my honor and dignity have. already been ruined by him. >> While the woman is sent away, the matter. is discussed by the men. >> Women are mindless. They are deficient in intellect. They. don't know a thing. What would you do. with a divorced daughter? You can't kill. her. You need to marry her with someone. else. Would you marry such a girl with. your son?

>> Her family refuses to pay the $30,000. her husband wants, and the governor says. she should not seek divorce. Just a warning to her husband of. punishment after there's further abuse. The Taliban's policies today are similar. to the hardline interpretation of. Islamic religious law they imposed in. the 1990s. In the week the Taliban came to power, this woman took to the streets to. protest. She had a successful career and an.

active life, but now we meet in secret. We can't reveal her identity to protect. her safety. I ask her why the Taliban want to. restrict women. >> I think the Taliban are scared. They are. scared of educated women. They know educated women won't give. birth to ignorant beings such as the. Taliban. They restrict women so they. won't be able to raise wise men. because that would be the end of the. Taliban.

>> Upon returning to power, the Taliban. said they had changed. Five years on, it's a country run by. men, for men. And you promised that you will respect. human rights. You will allow women to. participate in all aspects of life, work, and study. Why did you fail to. keep your promise? >> I mentioned a sharia as a condition. We. are committed to women's right, freedom. of speech, and other things, but in.

sharia, we must scale everything up. according to sharia. >> As an insurgency, the Taliban proved it. could survive. The question now is whether it can. govern a country in crisis and for how. long. >> Still to come in this podcast, protecting one of the world's most agile. birds. >> This bird is so rare and so charismatic. that if bird spotters knew where we. were, they would come not in their. hundreds, but in their thousands. And.

this is a bird that's already in real. trouble. >> [music]. >> Piracy was a major threat to. international shipping off Somalia. between 2008 and 2018. Now, the western. Indian Ocean is seeing a spike in piracy. incidents again after years of relative. containment. Six ships are being held by. hijackers and a drone strike on a. vessel, which was believed to be part of. a piracy supply chain, killed nine. people on Sunday. Our correspondent.

Barbara Fletcher told me more. >> A Puntland security official, this is a. semi-autonomous region in Somalia, told. us that they the men had been preparing. to board the skiff to go out to sea. He. said they were all armed. So, very. likely they were pirates or at least. part of a pirate network. Um and this is. the second such attack in a week, although no one has claimed. responsibility for them, but they seem. to be linked uh to one of the vessels. that was hijacked last week, the Lotuf. It is flying a Cameroon flag. Uh but.

there are reports, unconfirmed reports, that it has links uh to Turkey. So, possibly these boats were hit because. they were uh aimed at supplying. uh that ship. The Puntland security. official said he believed it was a. Turkish drone. Again, we have no. confirmation of that. So, the Lotuf is. one of I think now five ships that are. being held by the pirates. Um and they. have been uh hijacked over the course of. several months, and we know that for. some of them uh the pirates are asking. for quite steep ransoms.

>> Uh what's this surge in piracy do you. think in this part of the world? >> Well, um there are a number of things. Uh one of them is the general security. environment. So, you have a maritime. blockade on the Strait of Hormuz. You. have conflict and the threat of conflict. in the Red Sea. And so, that I think has. pushed uh more and more international. vessels uh closer to the Somali coast in. terms of the routes that they are. taking. Plus, uh it's believed that it. has distracted some of the international. forces who would normally be policing.

the pirates. uh and piracy uh to to be dealing with. these other um other issues. So, that. has created an an environment of. opportunity, shall we say? Um analysts. are suspicious about a number of ships. that have been hijacked near Yemen's. coast. They think this might show some. collaboration between the Somali pirates. and the Houthi rebels in Yemen that they. are perhaps collaborating to take. advantage of the environment to to make. maximum profit. Again, that hasn't been.

confirmed, but there is also a local. element to this. You have foreign. trawlers fishing in the shores off of. Somalia, and that has uh really been a. blow to the fishing industry and to. incomes of fishermen. So, it means that. they're more ready to take up piracy for. income. >> The online fast-fashion retailer Shein. will make its long-awaited market debut. on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange at the. beginning of September. Some analysts. say it could be one of the biggest. listings of company shares anywhere in. the world this year.

The company, known for selling dresses. for about $10 and jeans for about $15, was founded in China, but it now has its. headquarters in Singapore. Our reporter, Adjoa Andueza, has been following the. story. >> What's particularly interesting about. this listing is that um the the company. is valued at around $27 billion US. dollars, which is absolutely huge. I. mean, it makes it, you know, much more.

valuable than um Zara, which is a. household name, um which is a Spanish. company. However, back in 2022, um it was valued at nearly $100 billion. US dollars. So, that's a significant. fall in value, and that's come about for. a number of reasons. When Shein released. their their company results, we saw that. sales had slowed down. And and part of. that is because the US removed an import.

duty exemption on small packages, and. which made it much more expensive to. order goods from the brand, and it. removed the fashion brand's competitive. advantage. As a result of this, Shein. has said that it has to review its. prices across the US market to try and. offset those costs. Um another problem. with their operating costs is that due. to the war in Iran, like many companies.

around the world, it has pushed up the. cost of doing business. Uh um and that's had an impact on their. operating costs. Um also, um there's Temu, which you may. have heard of. It's another Chinese. company which offers fast fashion. Um. they've um become a major competitor for. Shein, and they've taken some of Shein's. market share. And of course, all of this. comes at a time of huge uncertainty.

because we've been seeing a tit-for-tat. tariff war play out between the US and. China, which is currently paused, but as. we all know, that can restart at any. time. >> One of the world's most agile birds, the. Montagu's Harrier, is becoming a less. common sight in northern Europe in the. summer when it arrives to breed. It's a. long-distance migrant which then travels. to Africa for the winter. The bird of. prey's nests are on the ground, most. often in agricultural farmland. Now,

earlier harvests brought forward by. climate change mean the nests and the. chicks are often at risk of being. destroyed by farm machinery. In the UK, Montagu's Harriers are. extremely rare, but the largest. conservation charity here in Britain, the Royal Society for the protection of. birds, has found two nests with chicks. and has given exclusive access to the. BBC's climate editor, Justin Rowlatt. >> Is this the ultimate takeaway delivery?

Let's watch that again in slow mo. The grey male swoops in and releases his. prey. The female twists beneath him to. snatch it from the air. It is a stunning. aerobatic display, but here in Britain, Montagu's harriers are desperately rare. >> Now, this is a. top secret location. I've been told I. can say I'm in England, but I can't tell. you which county we're in. This bird is. so rare and so charismatic that if bird.

spotters knew where we were, they would. come not in their hundreds, but in their. thousands, the RSPB says. And And this. is a bird that's already in real. trouble. For 5 years, there were no. breeding pairs in the UK at all. >> This year, there are two, both served by. the same very busy male. He's supporting. two females and six chicks, which can. demand up to 10 of those spectacular. food drops a day. The male here is an incredibly special. bird. So, this was ringed as a chick in.

Wiltshire in 2016. I was present when. that bird was ringed, and he's come back. this year. He spent 10 days displaying. like crazy in the sky at several. thousand feet, and amazingly attracted. two female Montagu's harriers. >> And there is another threat. Montagu's. harriers nest on the ground, hidden. amongst the crops, and climate change is. bringing harvests forward. >> This is a species right on the brink, and climate change is not helping that.

And the reason it's not helping it is. the harvest here, for example, this year. was like a month earlier than in. previous years. So, it almost puts any. Montagu's harrier nest at the perils of. inadvertently being destroyed by farm. machinery. Here, the RSPB and the. farmers have fenced them off and left. crops standing until the young can fly. But surviving the harvest is just the. beginning. Soon these chicks will leave. Britain. >> God, they're beautiful birds, aren't. they?

>> They're absolutely the best, yeah. >> Two chicks, one from each nest, are. being fitted with satellite tags. Each. weighs just 5 g. >> It'll tell us where she goes, how she. disperses, how long she lives, where she. winters, where she'll return to breed. >> We know the adults migrate thousands of. miles to West Africa, but scientists. know far less about what happens to. young birds on their first journey. >> It'll allow us for the first time ever. to work out where they're going, what.

migration route, and how long they'll. spend there, and will they come back to. the UK in the first year or the second. year. >> Within weeks, these juvenile birds will. be heading south. And now, for the first. time, the RSPB will be able to follow. two of them. into the unknown. >> And that's it from this edition of the. Global News Podcast. If you'd like to. get in touch, our contact details are. below. I'm Valerie Sanderson from this. edition of the Global News Podcast here.

on YouTube. That's it. Thanks for. watching. Thanks for listening. And bye. for now. [music].