Zelensky proposes face-to-face meeting with Putin

Summary

Global News Podcast – Episode Summary

Date: June 5, 2026
Host: Will Chalk (BBC World Service)
Episode Title: “Zelensky proposes face-to-face meeting with Putin”

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Overview

This episode covers major breaking news stories from around the world, with a particular focus on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's open letter inviting Vladimir Putin to face-to-face peace talks to end the ongoing war. The episode also explores US diplomacy in the Middle East, the aftermath of a major Air India air disaster, a miraculous survival story on Mount Everest, cybersecurity warnings concerning Chinese intelligence, water access controversies in Mexico prior to the World Cup, a surprising environmental success story about mangroves, and a high-profile Marilyn Monroe auction.

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Zelensky's Open Letter to Putin and Prospects for Peace

[02:03 – 07:14]

Key Discussion Points

• Zelensky’s public invitation: In an open letter exceeding 1,800 words, Zelensky invites Putin for direct negotiations, calling for a full ceasefire during talks.

  • Tone is “defiant and at times even mocking” toward Russia and Putin.
  • Opens with an assertion that Russians are tired of the war, drone attacks, shortages, and rising prices.
  • Suggests global fatigue is with Russia, not Ukraine.

• Excerpts read aloud:

  • “The world has not grown tired of Ukraine as you long hoped it would, but there is growing fatigue with Russia...”
    — [Frank Gardner, reading Zelensky’s words, 02:46]

• Immediate Rejections and Reactions:

  • Putin “ruled out” a ceasefire earlier the same day.
  • The Kremlin’s response: “If he wants to talk to us so much, let him come to Moscow”—an offer previously issued by Putin, widely seen as unrealistic and humiliating for Ukraine.

• Analysis by Vitaly Shevchenko (BBC Monitoring, Kyiv):

  • Points out that similar invitations have been extended before; this letter is primarily a messaging tool to international audiences, not a genuine negotiation offer.
  • “I think it’s the last thing you should say when you are genuinely inviting Vladimir Putin… that is going to sound insulting to the Russian president.” — [Vitaly Shevchenko, 04:57]
  • Zelensky is signaling to global allies, especially Europe and the US, demonstrating willingness for talks and putting the onus on Russia.

• Geopolitical Motive:

  • The timing coincides with US focus on Iran; Zelensky is highlighting that peace discussions shouldn't be postponed until the US can fully engage.

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Trump’s Claimed Diplomacy with Hezbollah and Progress on Iran

[07:14 – 10:21]

Key Discussion Points

• Trump’s Surprising Claim:

  • Claims to have spoken with Iran-backed Hezbollah despite it being a proscribed terrorist group in the US.
  • Suggests progress on ceasefire negotiations in Lebanon: “I spoke to Bibi Netanyahu … and I spoke to Hezbollah about it, and I think progress is made.” — [Tom Simons, relaying Trump’s words, 07:56]

• Details and Skepticism:

  • Tom Simons (North America Correspondent, BBC) notes the difficult contradictions: Hezbollah leaders have rejected current US proposals.
  • “If Donald Trump is saying he’s seeing all this and he’s trying to get involved personally talking to Hezbollah, that is certainly a new development…” — [Tom Simons, 07:56]

• Domestic Political Context:

  • Trump is under pressure to deliver diplomatic wins as US primaries and midterms approach.

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Air India Disaster: Grief, Compensation, and Legal Struggles

[10:21 – 14:37]

Key Discussion Points

• One-Year Anniversary of Air India Flight 171 Crash:

  • 241 out of 242 onboard and 19 ground fatalities.
  • Families express deep, ongoing grief; many have received final settlement offers from the airline.

• Disparities in Compensation:

  • Indian families report lower offers and forced waivers of legal rights.
  • UK families offered higher sums; waivers less comprehensive.

• Personal Stories:

  • Abbas Padria: “They have put a number on my mother’s life and the compensation offered to us is way lower than other families. Was her life less valuable?” — [12:00]
  • Ajay Parmar, bystander: “I want to return the money and get my rights back.” — [13:19]

• Legal Viewpoint:

  • Chuck Chiyounuma, lawyer for US-based families: “It’s extremely unconscionable, very, very unfair.” — [14:10]

• Analysis:

  • Air India seeks full waivers for all parties, including suppliers and government.
  • Many families remain undecided whether to accept settlements or fight for accountability.

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Everest Survival: The Miraculous Return of Hillary Dawa Sherpa

[14:51 – 18:44]

Key Discussion Points

• Six Days Lost on Everest:

  • Hillary Dawa Sherpa, presumed dead after six days of exposure, crawls back to base camp alive as his family mourns and prepares a funeral.

• Eyewitness Account:

  • Mountaineer Chris Thrall:
    • Details brutal conditions: “It took us 19 hours to get to Camp 2. That’s how bad it was…all the ropes were a foot under snow. We were just, you know, guessing which way to go…” — [16:40]
    • On news of Hillary’s survival: “One minute to be fighting back tears with his daughter, and then the next minute to see him doing a Crocodile Dundee and crawling into town. It’s, you know, absolutely amazing beyond words.” — [17:14]
  • Expressed awe at Hillary’s crossing of the dangerous Khumbu Icefall unaided: “That takes it from a sort of utterly brutal ninja feat of endurance to just something else again. I mean, you’re talking serious, serious ice climbing. Just incredible.” — [18:19]

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Cyber Espionage: The Five Eyes vs. Chinese Recruiting Efforts

[21:17 – 24:36]

Key Discussion Points

• Joint Security Warning:

  • The Five Eyes (US, UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand) collaboratively warn that Chinese intelligence is luring Western officials using fake online recruitment, especially aiming at sensitive government, defense, and tech positions.

• Frank Gardner (BBC Security Correspondent):

  • On China’s methods: “It's the scale of it ... and the fact that they're doing this in a very modern way, rather than the old fashioned honey trap ... this is very much a 21st century way.” — [22:45]
  • Platforms like LinkedIn are common vectors; sophistication varies.

• Chinese Embassy Reaction:

  • Dismisses allegations as “malicious slander”; notes Five Eyes are world’s largest intelligence organization.

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Mexico’s Water Crisis and FIFA World Cup Controversy

[24:36 – 27:24]

Key Discussion Points

• FIFA’s Water Bottle Ban:

  • No reusable bottles allowed inside stadiums, water must be purchased—criticized by health experts for safety in Mexico’s heat.

• Context: Deeper Water Insecurity Issues:

  • Andrelusa Solov (Sports Journalist, Mexico City):
    • “Already, it is a very elite event...all the working class people that live in the neighborhood around the stadium actually don't have access to water. … They have to pay for water tankers to come and bring them water.” — [25:36]
    • “It's really just caused a lot of chaos in our lives. ... and people are saying the subway barely works. We don't care about some floating bridge.” — [26:51]
  • Controversy highlights local infrastructural and social inequalities exacerbated by the World Cup.

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Environmental Win: Mangrove Comeback

[27:24 – 29:43]

Key Discussion Points

• Research findings:

  • Global mangrove forests are expanding after decades of decline, thanks to conservation and natural expansion (esp. Indonesia, Myanmar).

• Ecological and Social Benefits:

  • Professor Daniel Friess (Tulane University):
    • “Great thing about mangroves is that they're these kind of unsung superheroes ... they are protecting our shorelines, they're creating fisheries, ... and they're taking up our carbon emissions, and they're doing all of this for free.” — [28:28]
    • “The future is uncertain for mangroves. … We’ve shown that it works. And let’s make sure that we’re still having the same success story in 10, 20, 50 years.” — [29:32]

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Marilyn Monroe’s 100th Birthday: Memorabilia Auction

[29:43 – 31:33]

Key Discussion Points

• Auction Details:
  • “100 Years of Marilyn” auction; items include makeup, a yellow sofa, handwritten notes, and a stuffing recipe (“no garlic”—said to reference ex-husband Joe DiMaggio’s preferences).
  • Hot pink lipstick sold for $12,000, the sofa for over $250,000.
  • Renewed cultural interest driven by younger generations recreating her look.

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Notable Quotes

• “The world has not grown tired of Ukraine as you long hoped it would, but there is growing fatigue with Russia.”
  — (Frank Gardner, reading Zelensky's letter, 02:46)
• “…the offers at the heart of it are not new…this letter is more about messaging.”
  — (Vitaly Shevchenko, 03:41)
• “It’s extremely unconscionable, very, very unfair.”
  — (Chuck Chiyounuma, 14:10, on Air India settlement offers)
• “One minute to be fighting back tears with his daughter, and then the next minute to see him doing a Crocodile Dundee and crawling into town. It’s, you know, absolutely amazing beyond words.”
  — (Chris Thrall, 17:14)
• “They're these kind of unsung superheroes…they are protecting our shorelines, they're creating fisheries, and they're taking up our carbon emissions. And they're doing all of this for free.”
  — (Professor Daniel Friess, 28:54)

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Episode Timestamps for Major Segments

• Ukraine: Zelensky’s Open Letter: 02:03 – 07:14
• Trump’s Middle East Diplomacy: 07:14 – 10:21
• Air India Disaster Compensation: 10:21 – 14:37
• Everest Survival Story: 14:51 – 18:44
• Five Eyes Warn on Chinese Espionage: 21:17 – 24:36
• World Cup in Mexico/Water Access Crisis: 24:36 – 27:24
• Mangrove Forest Recovery: 27:24 – 29:43
• Marilyn Monroe Auction: 29:43 – 31:33

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This detailed summary captures the essential insights, powerful moments, and global scope of the episode, making it accessible for listeners and non-listeners alike.

Transcript

[Will Chalk]

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[Will Chalk]

This is the global news podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Will Chalk and in the early hours of Friday 5 June, these are our main stories. Ukraine's President Zelensky has written to Vladimir Putin, inviting him to a face to face meeting to negotiate an end to their war. President Trump says he's spoken directly to the Iranian backed group Hezbollah, officially designated in the US as a foreign terrorist organization, about a possible end to fighting in Lebanon. A year on from one of the world's deadliest air disasters, grieving families tell the BBC their compensation is not being handled fairly by Air India. Also in this podcast, how he would

[Chris Thrall]

have crossed the Khumbu icefall with no ladders beggars belief. That takes it from a sort of utterly brutal ninja feat of endurance to just something else. Just incredible.

[Will Chalk]

Yeah, an amazing story. The Nepali climbing guide, thought to have died on Everest last week reaches base camp alive after six days exposed on the mountain.

[Andrelusa Solov]

Foreign.

[Will Chalk]

So we start with an open letter to President Putin. It's over 1800 words long and in it President Zelensky invites the Russian leader to a face to face meeting in a renewed bid to try and end the war. It's been translated into English and posted on his social media platforms, and in it the Ukrainian president says Russians have grown tired of Ukrainian drone and missile attacks, petrol shortages, Russia rising prices as well as the war in general. He calls for a full ceasefire for the duration of the proposed negotiations, but that's something that Putin ruled out earlier on Thursday. If you read the statement, it's got a defiant and at times even mocking tone. Here is part of it read by one of our producers.

[Frank Gardner]

The world has not grown tired of Ukraine as you long hoped it would, but there is growing fatigue with Russia. Even among those in the wider world who help you bypass sanctions and keep your economy afloat, you cannot fail to notice it. After 26 years in power, age is beginning to take Its toll. And with time, the fatigue with you will only grow.

[Will Chalk]

Now, President Zelensky goes on to say that with America so focused on what's happening in Iran, it would be wrong to wait until Washington could give the conflict in Europe its full attention. And that's something journalists put to President Trump at the White House. Well, I don't know. I'm glad that they're maybe talking about meeting. I think we had a lot to do with it, but I think it would be great if they met.

[Archana Shukla]

They should get it done.

[Will Chalk]

So why has President Zelenskyy chosen to do this now? I got more from Vitaly Shevchenko, who is the chief analyst at BBC Monitoring and is in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv.

[Vitaly Shevchenko]

He suggests that Vladimir Putin should be interested in in sitting down and talking to him, because he says that Russia is losing too many people on the battlefield and the Russians are tired of Ukrainian airstrikes. Also, notably, he says that it would be wrong for the United States to come back to trying to end the war in Ukraine because the Ukrainian president says Washington is focused on Iran. So in itself, these offers are not new. Volodymyr Zelenskyy previously also invited Vladimir Putin to Tors. He also suggested a ceasefire. And that's why I think that this letter is more about messaging. And it would be very unlikely that it will lead to peace in Ukraine or even talks to presence.

[Will Chalk]

But that being said, the tone of the letter, it's not pleading or kind of meek, it's almost mocking Russia in a way. So do you think then, given that, that the offers at the heart of it are still genuine offers?

[Vitaly Shevchenko]

I think it's the last thing you should say when you are genuinely inviting Vladimir Putin to. And they say when you say that, well, after so many years in power age is beginning to take a toll on you, that is going to sound insulting to the Russian president. And that's why I think that Vladimir Zelenskyy himself isn't really hopeful that this meeting is going to take place. And the Kremlin's initial response to this letter, in which they said, well, if he wants to talk to us so much, let him come to Moscow. It also suggests that they're not really thinking that this is going to happen because Volodymyr Zelensky is extremely unlikely to come to Moscow that would look so close to a surrender, visiting the capital of the state that is waging war on you. And also this idea that Volodymyr Zelensky should come to Moscow, it has been voiced before by Vladimir Putin himself back in September last year when he said that, well, he was told to me, let him come to Moscow, but what is the point? And I do think that that attitude in the Kremlin was point of talking to Zelenskyy. I do think that it hasn't changed.

[Will Chalk]

Is there a sense then, given that this has been published in English as well on Zelenskyy's Instagram, that actually the intended audience for this isn't Vladimir Putin, it's the rest of the world and it's Zelenskyy doing everything he can to get eyes back on the situation in

[Vitaly Shevchenko]

Ukraine, get eyes back on Ukraine and also possibly signal to allies in Europe and Donald Trump himself that this war could be ended without America's direct involvement, especially given that it's been so much focused on Iran. That is something that Volodymyr Zelensky has suggested before and I think it's an invitation or a prod, if you like, at European allies of Ukraine to do more to help Ukraine.

[Will Chalk]

Vitaly Shevchenko there now. Donald Trump made a number of claims to reporters at the White House on Thursday that talks to end the war in Iran are in their final phase, suggesting there's a deal coming soon. We have of course, heard all that before, though perhaps more surprisingly, he claimed that he had spoken directly with the Iran backed militia Hezbollah after the group rejected a ceasefire deal in Lebanon. The president insisted that Hezbollah had called him about it and hadn't rejected the US Proposals for peace. I asked our North America correspondent Tom Simons in Washington what to make of all this, especially since Hezbollah is proscribed a terror group by the US it was a surprise.

[Tom Simons]

And as always, one has to slightly read between the lines of what Donald Trump said to reporters in the White House earlier. But this is what he said. I spoke to Bibi Netanyahu, Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli leader about that and I spoke to Hezbollah about it, and I think progress is made. So it does seem that Donald Trump is telling reporters there that he has put himself between the Israelis and Hezbollah in an attempt to get this ceasefire to work. And just to remind you, the ceasefire involves Hezbollah pulling out of parts of southern Lebanon, currently Israeli occupied, the Lebanese army moving in to replace the group. And the the leader of Hezbollah, Naim Qasem, has said that that is not something it accepts as a group, that the negotiations around that were futile, humiliating and widely opposed in Lebanon, and that effectively there will be no ceasefire and there have been further airstrikes from the Israelis. So if Donald Trump is saying he's seeing all this going on and he's trying to get involved personally talking to Hezbollah. That is certainly a new development. He, of course is saying progress is being made, but he's the Iran deal will be signed this weekend and I think we'll have to wait and see, of course. But he said something like that many times in the past.

[Will Chalk]

Yeah. A sign, all of this maybe then that he is just trying more and more things, isn't he, to try and get out of this situation because it's all linked.

[Tom Simons]

I mean, Iran wants to see progress in Lebanon. It wants to see Israel to stop military action in Lebanon. Israel wants to see Hezbollah stop military action in Lebanon so that Israel can feel safer. And Hezbol says it hasn't got a deal. It doesn't see that there's any progress and it's not necessarily going to surrender in its own words and fulfill Israel's objectives. So it gets more and more difficult for Donald Trump. And of course, every time we get to another weekend where he says there's going to be progress and there isn't progress, we're getting a little bit closer to the midterm elections. There are primaries going on and have been for some weeks now, reminding everyone that Americans will get a vote on, effectively on Congress. But of course, with his activities and actions and successes or failures in mind, so it all ramps up to a lot of political pressure on him.

[Will Chalk]

I'll take you back to last June when just seconds after it had taken off, air India Flight 171 from Ahmedabad to London crashed, killing all but one of the 242 people on board and another 19 on the ground. An investigation into the crash is still going on. But as grieving families wait for those answers, many have already been given final settlement offers from Air India. Some have told the BBC the amounts being offered to relatives differ wildly and they say the settlement includes a clause to give up their legal rights forever. Archana Shukla reports from Ahmedabad.

[Archana Shukla]

May I have your attention please, as we settle in? We requested that announcement is From Air India 171 that crashed seconds after takeoff in what was one of the world's deadliest air disasters. Mariam Padria had shot the video on her phone and sent minutes before takeoff. Now it's the last memory that her son Abbas holds on to. I met him in Vadodara Town in their one room home where life has stood still since the crash. A year on, the grief here is still very raw. It is made even harder by the final compensation offer they got from Air India. They have put a number on my mother's life and the compensation offered to us is way lower than other families. Was her life less valuable? They are offering a few thousand dollars in addition to the interim amount and say we can't hold anyone responsible for the crash. Later we give up all future claims. We haven't signed yet. Abba showed me the letter on his phone. He hasn't signed yet. A hundred kilometers from Mariam's home is where her plane crashed in Ahmedabad. While the probe still pieces together what happened, the BBC has seen these settlement documents asking families in India to waive all legal action not just against the airline, but manufacturers, suppliers, even the government, all of whom are potentially under investigation. But offers to families in the UK are different. Lawyers for 25 UK families say offers are significantly higher than and has no sweeping ask to waive legal claims beyond Air India. We met several other families who received these offers. None wanted to be named but all had the same concern. Some, like Ajay Parmar regret signing it. He was on the scooter passing by meters from where the plane crashed. He got severe burns which are still healing.

[Will Chalk]

I thought they were giving money for my scooter which was burned. I don't know how to read and there was no one at home. I want to return the money and get my rights back.

[Archana Shukla]

It's a blazing summer afternoon and Ajay is playing with his two year old niece in this one room house that doubles up as a bedroom. At night he's not able to find work because after the burns from the crash his skin itches every time he goes out in the sun. And that's why the compensation meant a lot to him. He says he had no idea and it was not explained to him what the signature meant. In a statement, Air India told the BBC the offers are fair and in accordance with the law. Where requested translations were provided and content explained to families. Full waivers are sought, including for other parties to prevent direct or indirect claims in the future.

[Will Chalk]

It's extremely unconscionable, very, very unfair.

[Archana Shukla]

US based lawyer Chuck Chiyounuma represents 110 families and has advised them not to sign.

[Professor Daniel Friess]

Money is their easy way out and

[Will Chalk]

I think India is trying to do

[Professor Daniel Friess]

exactly that, minimize their exposure and close the case.

[Will Chalk]

While the families bear the brunt of the grief and losses,

[Archana Shukla]

back in Abbas home in Vadodara, talks still circle back to the crash. For families like his, the hardest choice still lies ahead. To settle or keep fighting for accountability.

[Will Chalk]

Archana Shukla now to A tale of one man's survival that is so extraordinary that his family, who believed he died, had started organizing his funeral. The Nepali climbing guide Hilary Dawa Sherpa spent six days alone on Mount Everest, the world's highest mountain, before he was spotted crawling towards Base Camp camp by a rubbish management team doing their final checks. He is now understandably, undergoing medical treatment, so the world's waiting to hear his account of what happened and how he survived. In the meantime, my colleague Sean Lay has been speaking to Chris Thrall, a mountaineer and former British soldier and perhaps the last person to see Hillary Dawa Sherpa on the mountain because they've been climbing down together.

[Chris Thrall]

We were descending from the Death Zone after myself and another Sherpa had summited. Hilary Dower sat down on his backpack as he had done hundreds of times before, to take a short rest. And as I descended the next 50, 100 meters alone, I came across the Polish primer with no oxygen, battling fairly severe frostbite. So immediately my attention obviously turned to the weakest member of the trio, and that was that. As I looked back up the mountain, I helped this guy descend, which, what, should have taken two hours, the conditions were so bad and with no oxygen, took about 11 hours. And in this time, Hillary Dower didn't appear to have moved and certainly wasn't descending because we would have seen his head torch.

[Will Chalk]

So by the time you reached Base Camp, I guess you'd assumed that he just died in the conditions.

[Chris Thrall]

Yeah, you'd assume so. It took us 19 hours to get to Camp 2. That's how bad it was. And then it took us a further day, I think another 19 hours to cross the Khumbu Icefall and get into Base Camp. Complete whiteout. All the ropes were a foot under snow. We were just, you know, guessing which way to go and that we didn't all end up in a crevasse is quite, quite a godsend.

[Will Chalk]

Can you tell me when you. When you heard the news that Dawa Sherpa had actually survived and what your

[Frank Gardner]

reaction was to that?

[Chris Thrall]

I started to see on my social media, my Instagram and my YouTube channel a couple of comments saying, he's alive. Obviously, I thought they were spam initially because it, it really does defy the odds. I did a quick search, obviously, because, you know, I met the family yesterday to offer my, you know, utmost condolences and to offer my, you know, financial assistance if I'm able to raise any. So it's kind of crazy. One minute to be fighting back tears with his daughter, and then the next minute to see him doing a Crocodile Dundee and crawling into town. It's, you know, absolutely amazing beyond words. I'm a bit. How can you say my emotions aren't fluctuating? Because if they were fluctuating, I'd be all over the place. You know, I've just taken this amazing bit of news kind of in my stride. Very happy for Hillary, looking forward to speaking to him. But moreover, I'm absolutely fascinated to know what happened. How he would have crossed the Kumbu icefall with no ladders, beggars belief. That takes it from a sort of utterly brutal ninja feat of endurance to just something else again. I mean, you're talking serious, serious ice climbing. Just incredible.

[Will Chalk]

Amazing story, isn't it? That's Chris Thrall speaking to Shawn Lay still to come in this podcast, a nature success story.

[Professor Daniel Friess]

They're these kind of unsung superheroes. They are protecting our shorelines, they're creating fisheries, and they're taking up our carbon emissions. And they're doing all of this for free.

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[Tom Simons]

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[Will Chalk]

Intelligence agencies from the uk, us, Australia, Canada and New Zealand an alliance known as Five Eyes are warning that Chinese agents are posing as online recruiters to try and trick government and military personnel into disclosing Western state secrets. Agents are said to be luring government employees into fake job interviews or setting them assessment style tests to try and probe them for information. Our security correspondent Frank Gardner told my colleague Valerie Sanderson about how serious this warning is.

[Frank Gardner]

It's not the first time that this warning has been issued, but it is the first time that all five countries that make up the so called Five Eyes alliance have joined forces to send out a coordinated synchronized warning. And their warning is that China's Ministry of State Security is using front companies and front covers to try and lure professionals who are working in sensitive positions, particularly people who work, for example in government, in parliament, in defense security tech, to lure them with tempting job offers through bogus recruiting ads to then eventually get them to try and steal secrets on their behalf. Look, spying is, I don't know, what is it, the second or third oldest profession in the world? Everybody does it. Britain and the US and the countries that are making this claim also do spying and they spy on China.

[Archana Shukla]

Is it very different from what China

[Will Chalk]

did in the past?

[Frank Gardner]

Well, I think it's the scale of it and I'm tempted to say the sophistication of it, but it's not always that sophisticated because there was a case last year where a couple of people were identified by MI5 as being fronts for China's Ministry of State Security. One of them posted a very attractive photograph of herself online. It all looked very innocent, but it was very badly worded in broken English. It kind of reminded me of those scam letters that used to come out of West Africa saying, you know, I just inherited millions of pounds, I'd like to give them to you. So I think there are varying degrees of sophistication here, but it's the fact that they're doing this in a very modern way, rather than the old fashioned honey trap or the two way mirror in your hotel room on the businessman's visit to Shanghai and Beijing. I mean, maybe that stuff still goes on, but it kind of belongs in the 1970s. This is very much a 21st century way of doing it. So what this bulletin saying is that China is using platforms like LinkedIn to warn people who are on these professional networking sites perfectly legitimately to be wary. And these reports get rewarded, they say, with hundreds, if not thousands of dollars, if we assume that it's true in China. By the way, the Chinese Embassy has responded in London saying this is totally untrue and it is malicious slander. I mean, they normally do react to any criticism of People's Republic of China as being malicious slander. It's a kind of stock phrase. And they pointed out, by the way, that collectively, the Five Eyes is the largest intelligence gathering organization in the world. And they would be right, because the biggest partner here is the nsa, the National Security Agency of the United States, which has enormous electronic eavesdropping and interception capabilities.

[Will Chalk]

That was Frank Gardner. Now, if you're a football fan, you'll already know that we are just a few days away from the start of the World cup. And in an earlier edition of this podcast, we reported on a new rule imposed by FIFA ahead of the competition, that fans won't be allowed to bring in reusable water bottles to the games. Instead, they'll have to pay for water in the stadium. FIFA promised not to charge above their usual venue prices, but the decision has been criticised by health experts who've warned that easy access to water will be a necessity because of how hot it's going to be. But the question of water access has already sparked controversy for the World cup in Mexico City. Locals living near the Azteca Stadium have been fighting to secure a safe and consistent supply of water for the community. So, given this, do Mexican football fans care about this water bottle controversy? Andrew Peach asked Andrelusa Solov, a freelance sports journalist based in the city.

[Andrelusa Solov]

Already, it is a very elite event where only the people that have so much money to get the tickets, which are highly coveted and largely inaccessible to most of the Mexican population, it's probably not that much of a big deal for them to pay 5 or $10 extra for water, is that all the working class people that live in the neighborhood around the stadium actually don't have access to Water. There is a well that was rediverted to have the water go largely to the stadium. They made a new fountain that has all this water. And many people I've been reporting on the area, Santa Ursula Cuapa, which is by the stadium in Mexico City. And people showed us how they don't have any drinking water. They don't have any water to wash their dishes or prepare their food, and they have to pay for water tankers to come and bring them water. So I actually think that here in Mexico, the more relevant issue is the lack of access to water. I mean, we're talking about that people don't actually have water to even cook food or plus a toilet. But I think it further goes into prioritizing profits over accessibility.

[Vitaly Shevchenko]

And will there be some economic benefit in the end to Mexican cities where World cup games are being hosted?

[Andrelusa Solov]

Yes, this is a very good question. And I could say as a resident of the city, it's really just caused a lot of chaos in our lives. I live very close to where one of the main remodeling of the subway is happening. The World cup is a few days away and the subway is closed. They have not finished remodeling it. They have actually increasingly spent more money on this like, floating bridge that no one wanted. And it's considered one of the most expensive public works here in the city. And people are saying the subway barely works. We don't care about some floating bridge.

[Will Chalk]

Andalusia solo there. It's not often we get to report on nature success stories. But scientists say the world's coastal mangrove forests, which protect millions of people from storms and erosion and crucially, soak up vast amounts of planet warming gases, are staging an unexpected comeback. For decades, these trees have been declining rapidly as they were cleared for fish farms or housing. But this new research, which has been published in the journal Science, says conservation efforts and natural expansion mean that since 2010, the world has gained more mangroves than it's lost. It has, however, not been uniform across the globe. While the trees have expanded in places such as Indonesia and Myanmar, west and Central Africa have emerged as hotspots of destruction, proof, scientists say that conservation efforts need to continue. Professor Daniel Friess from Tulane University and director of the Mangrove Lab, takes us for a walk on Louisiana's coast.

[Professor Daniel Friess]

Around the world, there's about 70 species of mangroves, but we only have one here in Louisiana is this one here. It has these beautiful white flowers. It's pretty kind of short and shrubby because we're basically at the northernmost limit of mangroves in the world here. Great thing about mangroves is that they're these kind of unsung superheroes, right? You think they're just, they're not that important or they're just there, they're in the way. But they are protecting our shorelines, they're creating fisheries, They're a great place for recreation and education, and they're taking up our carbon emissions, and they're doing all of this for free. Hundreds of millions of people around the tropics rely on the benefits and the livelihoods provided by mangroves. The root systems are able to kind of hold the soil together really well. They're able to add roots and add soil. So they're also able to build up the elevation of the surface so it can keep pace as sea level changes. And then all the roots and all the biomass is a really good sponge to incoming wave energies. The future is uncertain for mangroves. They're still under threat in many parts of the world by human activity. So now we've got to build on this, right? We've shown that it works. And let's make sure that we're still having the same success story in 10, 20, 50 years.

[Will Chalk]

Professor Daniel Friess. That would have been Marilyn Monroe's 100th birthday this week. And even six decades after her death, she remains the ultimate symbol of Hollywood's golden age. And she clearly still means a lot to fans and collectors as well, because hundreds of the star's possessions and memorabilia, everything from her bras to a handwritten recipe for stuffing, have sold at an auction in California. Chantelle Hartle reports.

[Chantelle Hartle]

Marilyn Monroe shot to fame in the 1940s and 50s with films like the Seven Year Itch and Some Like It Hot. She's continued to captivate Americans and collectors worldwide long after her death at the age of 36. Even before the 100 years of Marilyn auction got underway, hundreds of thousands of dollars in bids had already been placed. Some of Monroe's makeup products sold for several times as much as expected, including a hot pink lipstick, which went for $12,000. The auction company Julian's noted that younger generations are attempting to recreate Monroe's signature look on social media, seeking out the same techniques and brands that she used more than 60 years ago. Other items at the pricier end include a yellow sofa that Monroe posed on for a series of photographs that fetched more than a quarter of a million dollars. A buyer paid $140,000 for a page of the star's handwritten note. Notes in blue ink, pen outlining her acting methods. As for that stuffing recipe, it sold for $16,000. A note on the corner reads, no garlic. According to the auction house, Monroe's former husband, Joe DiMaggio, wasn't a big fan of garlic, so this likely dates back to when the two were married briefly in 1954.

[Will Chalk]

Chantelle Hartle there, that's all from us for now. If you want to get in touch, you can email us@globalpodcastbc. You can also find us on X@BBC World Service using the hashtag Global Newspod. We have a sister podcast called the Global Story, which goes in depth and beyond the headlines on one big story. This edition of the Global News Podcast was mixed by Joe McCartney. The producer was Rebecca Wood. The editor is Karen Martin, and I'm Will Chalk. Until next time. Goodbye. To come.