Global News Podcast - Iran war: World leaders respond to economic impact

Episode Date: April 1, 2026

Countries outline measures to try to reduce the impact of rising energy prices, as stock markets rise on President Trump's statement that the war may end in as little as two weeks. We also hear the views of people living inside Iran. India's census of its population of 1.4 billion gets under way; Russia steps up attempts to block the messaging app Telegram seen in a drive to further isolate Russians from the outside world; South Africa deploys more than two thousand soldiers to help police combat crime; Tech giant apple is celebrating its 50th anniversary; and joy and sorrow in the final qualifying matches for the men's football World Cup. Iraq gets through for the first time in forty years and Italy miss out for the third time in a row. 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: [e-mail]

This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service. I'm Valerie Sanderson, and at 16 hours GMT on Wednesday the 1st of April, these are our main stories. Stock markets rise, as President Trump promises the end of the war with Iran within the next three weeks. We get access to the views of people living inside Iran. Also, India's census of its population of 1.4 billion gets underway. Also in this podcast, Russian. government doesn't want people to access things on the internet, free speech, doesn't want people to access Western media. Russia clamps down on the social media messaging app, Telegram.

As we record this podcast, President Trump is due to address the nation about progress on the war with Iran. Mr. Trump says he's achieved his aim of destroying all of Iran's nuclear capabilities and has promised an end to the conflict within two to three weeks. Because of the effect of the U.S. war with Iran on the global economy, many countries are already facing economic difficulties and are being forced to bring in measures to try to reduce the impact of rising energy prices. The British Prime Minister, Kyr Starmer, has become the latest world leader to outline a plan responding to the energy crisis, while also referencing long-term shifts in alliances.

It is now clear that the impact of this war will affect the future of our country. In the coming weeks, we will announce. a new summit with our EU partners. And I can tell you that at that summit, the UK will not just ratify existing commitments made at last year's summit. We want to be more ambitious. Closer economic cooperation, closer security cooperation, a partnership that recognizes our shared values, our shared interest and our shared future. In Australia, the Prime Minister Anthony Albanesey acknowledged it's difficult to feel positive. with the biggest spike in petrol and diesel prices in history,

and he urged Australians to use less fuel while outlining new measures. Today we cut the fuel excise in half, cutting the tax on every liter of petrol by 26 cents. Those savings have started showing up at your petrol station. For our truckies, we have cut the heavy vehicle road user charge to zero. Both these measures will be in place for the next three months. We are working to bring the price of fuel down, to make more fuel here, and to keep it on shore. Using our strong trading relationships with our region to bring more petrol, diesel and fertiliser to Australia.

Our business editor, Simon Jack, looks at how countries can prepare for a period of sustained high prices. They've got to tackle this head on. Clearly, we're seeing a major energy disruption, despite the fact that oil prices have fallen quite sharply today. They reach $119 a barrel. They're down at around 103 right now. So it's in big swings in recent days. Nevertheless, some of the supply chains of things like jet fuel, fertiliser, etc. Are going to start, and petrol and diesel are going to start filtering through. Very interesting.

Depends where you are in the world as to how strong these messages are. You heard in Australia there, you know, try and drive less. You're hearing similar things actually in the EU. Work from home if you can, fly less. much more moderate messages in the UK where people have basically been told to Karen as you are but keep your shopping habits the same if you've got half a tank of petrol

don't fill it up to full when you wouldn't normally and also on airlines for example again Asia very dependent on Gulf energy we've seen some emergency measures at Korean Airlines some surcharges in airlines in Australasia and we've seen some creeping messages

in Europe and the UK saying we're good for now, but six weeks out from now, the pressure points begin to build because those tankers that set sail with things like jet fuel before the conflict are arriving in European refineries now. So if you like, the gap in the supply chain begins from now. As I say, markets taking some comfort from the fact that Donald Trump says he wants to end this in a couple of weeks. And airlines are saying, you know, we're pretty good till mid-May, maybe.

But everyone's sort of saying, we're monitoring this. We're keeping our own and where we can will protect consumers. Nick Marsh, our business correspondent based in Singapore, has been looking at the impact across Southeast Asia. You've got countries across Southeast Asia who are arguably impacted even more than Australia. So I'm thinking about countries such as Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand as well. All of these countries rely heavily on Middle Eastern oil and gas. I mean in the Philippines, reserves dwindling by the day.

So you've got all kinds of fuel rationing being put in place, directives from the government not to use air conditioning too much, for example. And we've just had Indonesia, which up until now wasn't quite as badly affected as the rest of Southeast Asia, bringing in its own emergency regulations. So public employees are being told to work from home. on Fridays. Private vehicles can only fill up 50 litres of petrol per day, all with the aim of trying to save fuel and save energy. Markets in that region rallied after President Trump's latest comments, but how likely is Donald Trump's latest war timeline? I asked our diplomatic correspondent, Paul

Adams. Well, look, I think Donald Trump has a peculiar relationship with time, and he admits that and he he kind of manipulates and uses that. He sets deadlines and then lets deadlines expire and sets new deadlines. It is all part of keeping everyone guessing. And, you know, that is clearly a part of the strategy. In fact, his defense secretary, Pete Higgs had said the other day, the point is to be unpredictable. I mean, the problem we have at the moment is we don't quite know exactly what Donald Trump's ambitions are for this war. He seems to have moved away from the idea of regime change, and he seems also to have moved away from the idea of completely removing all trace of Iran's nuclear program, even though clearly the Americans believe that the damage that

is being done will make it impossible for Iran to reconstitute any kind of weapons program in the near future. But as always with Donald Trump, you're never quite sure. And we'll have to wait until he speaks much later today to find out if he can put any more flesh on that particular bone. Do you think there's an element of reassuring people in the US and indeed financial markets in the timing of this? There always is an element of that. And he is notoriously someone who watches those indicators very closely. And it will not have escaped his notice that petrol now on American four courts has hit $4 a gallon. And that is a pretty significant figure.

But the rhetoric that he has employed in the last few days does rather suggest that he wants this to be over sooner rather than later and is prepared, if necessary, to walk away from some of his sort of maximalist goals in the process. And talking about walking away in a newspaper interview with the British newspaper, Mr. Trump has said he's thinking of leaving NATO. Do you think that shows his dissatisfaction with Western allies? I think it's clearly a fit of peak over the reluctance of many of those allies to get more closely involved and supportive of the war in Iran.

I mean, the Trump administration seems to blithely ignore the whole premise for the NATO alliance, which was that it was a defensive alliance where members would spring to the defense of members when they were attacked. and of course it is America that has done the attacking in this case and that accounts for the extreme reluctance of a lot of European NATO allies to get more intimately involved. Paul Adams, and we have more analysis of the economic impact of the conflict on our YouTube channel. Just search for BBC News on YouTube and you'll find Global News Podcast in the podcast section.

There's a news story available every weekday. So what do we know? about the situation inside Iran itself. Daily bombardments have hit the country's infrastructure and civilians alike. More than 3,000 people are reported to have been killed. It's been difficult getting information out of Iran because of the internet shutdown since anti-government protest began in December. BBC Persians, Gonchi, Habibyazad gathered these recent voices. I feel like I've been in a purgatory for a month. I can't do anything and everything is up and and air. I'm so tired of the war. To be honest, I felt a bit helpful last night about the war ending

and things coming down. Then I saw that Trump might want to target infrastructure. I'm honestly sick up this kind of contradictory talk. I want them to continue striking. I'm tired of this situation. I want the government to go. I got more details about the views of Iranians from country. How do you get that? Some of them are obviously very worried. They don't know what's going to happen, what Donald Trump is going to say is going to end the war, if it's going to continue even harder. So these people that I'm talking to, they're just a small fraction of what's going on inside the country. It's very, very difficult to contact the outside world under an internet

blackout. And some people are connected via Starlink, which is satellite internet, but also using or possessing Starlink in Iran can lead to up to two. two years in prison. So these people are paying hefty prices to connect. The viz that I'm getting are mostly from the capital Tehran. But I'm seeing even among those who are against the establishment that I'm hearing from, there is a division. Some still support the strike. Some are against it and they just want the war to end. Some are getting indifferent. They're saying that we're going back to our routines. We are going to the gym. But at the same time, it's having. an impact on daily life of everyone. It's not a normal situation. And even though some of them

are trying to adapt and trying to go back, every night in Tehran, which has seen the heaviest strike so far, they hear the strikes. And what is the impact on their daily life? You said some are even going to the gym. We don't hear much about people who have lost their homes or have lost the loved one because of the internet blackout and also threats by the authorities as well. they have threatened people not to take photos or videos of the places that have been hit, not to send out information to foreign-based media outlets. And also, if you're seeing mass arrests happening every day of those who have sent videos or photos to foreign outlets. Yes, because executions are still being carried out, aren't they?

Of course, the executions related to the recent protests. So to put it into context, Iranians were already, some of them are very fed off with establishment. Thousands have been killed in those protests. according to human rights organizations more than 7,000, but some put the figures even higher. But then a war happened and it added to that. US President Donald Trump had said that he's coming to the help of these protesters. Some that I'm talking to now that they did participate in the protests are not seeing the current situation as help. And they're worried very much about the country's infrastructure and if an attack happens on them.

Gonchi, Habiby is that. India is gearing up for one of the world's largest acts of admin, a census for its population of 1.4 billion. National elections in the country can take months and involve the use of boats, helicopters and even elephants to reach remote communities. The census is potentially an even bigger feat of organisation and is predicted to take a year and involve 3 million support staff. And Barisan Etirajan told us about the census and its challenges. The geography reaching out from 3,200 kilometres from top to bottom, north to south, and to deserts and snow-capped mountains and tribal areas and coastal areas. So reaching out to various communities itself is a big challenge. Now, why this is important?

Because India conducts census, basically counting the number of people. It's going beyond that, knowing more about how people live, what kind of house they are living. in, whether they have internet access or only mobile phones. So these are some of the questions they will be asked. It is being conducted in two phases. One is an online enumeration and then next year also they will have population count. But this is very important for India to find out how many people are there. Number one, what kind of condition they are living in so that they can frame policies. When they want to send money or announce various projects, it should be based on the number of people and what kind of condition they live in.

So it normally happens once in 10 years. The last one was in 2011, but because of the pandemic and then election scheduling, it could not happen. So that is why this is considered a very key moment for India to get a snapshot of what's happening in the country. And what about the questions and Barrasana? I mean, will there be questions about caste, you know, the old social system in India that still exists?

In about a century, for the first time, they are going to ask about caste. It's a social hierarchy based in religion. So they want to know how many people from different caste are there because India also has what you call affirmative action, reservation in educational institutions and government jobs and in various sectors. Now, if they know what kind of caste group they are living below poverty line or above poverty line, that can help the government planners to come out with politics. to benefit such caste groups.

It will also tell you what kind of caste groups are dominant and how many people are there. So it is a massive exercise and at the same time some people are concerned whether how this information will be used. And also it can also tell about the huge migratory pattern which has happened in the last 20 years because of the economic growth.

And Barisan Etherajan. Moscow is introducing new measures to further control online access in Russia. The main target is the social media messaging app Telegram, founded by two Russian brothers who then moved abroad, which is widely used across the country. There have been long-standing tensions with the Russian government because Telegram has refused to hand over user data to the authorities.

James Copnell spoke to Russian IT specialist Alexander Isavnian, who is in Moscow, about the level of internet access enjoyed by most Russians. Russian government doesn't want people to assess things on the internet, free speech, doesn't want people to access Western media. And we are already in that situation of internet regulation in Russia, that the government could do random things on how they throttle, how they block, how they restrict access to Western resources.

So that's why the situation with the Internet is unpredictable for ordinary users. What are you expecting then with these efforts to cut back on the Telegram Messaging Act? What's likely to happen, do you think? I think technically nothing new will happen because telegram is being blocked like it was eight years ago and people already know how to use telegram, how to avoid telegram blockings. So people still using it, everyone who wants to use it, they still use it. The worst scenario which could be is actually Russian government could declare telegram a terrorist organization or undesirable organization or something really bad.

That's any communications to Telegram or buying advertisement on Telegram or buy premium subscriptions on Telegram will become illegal in Russia. It will become terrorist-like crime. You mentioned that anyone who wants to use it can. Is that generally the pattern that people have been able to find their way around government restrictions on technology? Content blocking started in Russia like 15 years ago. Originally, at the beginning, it was very light, but it became stronger and stronger, and people adapted to all this stuff. When there are new restrictions, is the government fairly open about why it's doing it?

I mean, how does the government communicate all this to you? They communicate internet shutdowns or white, as a measure to protect from Ukrainian drones, because the government says they control via internet, and telegram blocking and other messengers are blocked because terrorists and skimmers are using them against Russian citizens. That's how government communicates it. For sure, no one believes in it. So does it mean then that if people can access the sort of apps and Internet,

websites they want, that there is a certain freedom of speech politically? If you access a Western website, definitely not Russian vicaria or not Russian messengers, yeah, people feel free to express their opinions. But it might not help because there are a lot of criminal cases and a lot of political prisoners who talked on telegram, who talked on Facebook. and when they got arrested, their devices were searched, and this was used as evidence of their relations to terrorism or discreditation of Russian army.

Alexander isvnin. Still to come in this podcast. At Apple, we understand that business, as usual, isn't anymore. That's why we make the most advanced personal computers in the world. They've come a long way. Apple celebrates its 50th anniversary. We find out what's next. South Africa is deploying more than 2,000 soldiers to support police in a crackdown on organised crime, illegal mining and gang violence. The operation started on Wednesday and took place across three provinces. The government says the operation is aimed at restoring order in areas where crime has remained persistently high.

But critics warn that using the military, in civilian policing rarely delivers lasting results. Pamsafalani reports from Johannesburg. Now, to strengthen our fight against gang violence, I will be deploying the South African National Defence Force to support the police. In a country where many communities feel under siege from violent crime, President Cyril Ramaphosa's move to deploy troops

is being seen by some as a sign that government is getting tough on criminal network. soldiers will be sent to five of South Africa's nine provinces for up to a year. For many, the site of armored vehicles and armed troops on the streets is still deeply unfamiliar. One of the last major deployments came during the country's strict COVID-19 lockdown when soldiers enforced curfews and restrictions. But that operation drew sharp criticism with reports that, soldiers were using excessive force unlawfully detaining and harassing civilians.

Security experts warn the military is trained for combat, not for the kind of community-based policing needed to build trust. And so some are skeptical about their return. And there's also history to contend with. The apartheid regime used the military to enforce their rule, a legacy that still shapes how some South Africans view soldiers on their streets today. When Alderada Township, South of Johannesburg, one of the main problems in this community is gang-related violence as well as a huge drug problem. We've come to find out from the community what they think about having the military and armored vehicles rolling through their streets.

This place, Sodom and Gomorrah has got no say yet. Just a hell home. The babies are here. I don't ever leave them. Because the fear of just something happening when I'm absent and then what happens to it? I know obviously automatically. I can't really depend on the police. There's too much going on. So no one is assisting or helping.

They're making things worse. Gang violence is not unique to this community. In Cape Town, police admit they are overwhelmed as shootings linked to gangs continue to claim lives, with bystanders including children often caught in the crossfire. Joint police military operations could become more common, at least until the deep drivers of crime, poverty and unemployment are addressed. Here's defence expert Dr. Guy Lam.

The worry is that there isn't really a dedicated plan to try and address why crime is so violent in these sort of places. So we're likely to see this happening into the foreseeable future because this plan of addressing what are the root causes of crime in these high-crime areas is not in place. The government says the troops have received additional training for this mission. And for some residents living with daily gunfire, the calculation is simple. Any sense of safety, however temporary, may be better than none. Pumsa Filani.

Apple is celebrating its 50th anniversary after decades of the tech giant giving the world's computers, phones, watches, headphones, and much more. The company's success is often attributed to its product, sleek design, and Apple's focus on innovation. But as David Pogue, who's written a book about the company, told Justin Webb, there's a lot more going on behind the scenes. I think Tim Cook's, the CEO, Tim Cook's thing, has always been, I'm not a product guy. I'll never be Steve Jobs dreaming up new inventions.

But what I can do is squeeze all the juice out of what we have. So he, for example, built up Apple's ability to make his own chips. He multiplied the number of iPhones available. And Tim Cook has made Apple into a services company, Apple Pay, Apple Music, Apple TV, and all that stuff. He's also been very careful about his relationship with Donald Trump, hasn't he? People who don't like Donald Trump have been surprised. I don't know if it's closeness to Donald Trump or his manipulation of Donald Trump. In other words, Trump was threatening these devastating tariffs that would have driven up the cost of an

iPhone to $3,000. So my take on it is Cook did an extremely pragmatic, practical, almost manipulative maneuver and handed Trump a trophy. And I don't know if people can have their own opinions about whether it was worth it to violate his own personal principles to do that. But it did work. I mean, the tariffs never happened. What has Apple got wrong?

Oh, man. I mean, Apple's history is strewn with failure. I mean, the first, the Apple One was not much of a seller. They sold 150 of those. The Apple II was a huge hit. Six million introduced the whole world to personal computers. But then the next three failed. Apple recently spent $10 billion and a decade working on the Apple car. They never got there on that one. So most of the things Apple does you never hear of. because they get canceled before they reach the finish line. So its future is what, do you think? I think its future is very solid, if only because two and a half billion people are carrying around Apple devices right now, 31% of every man, woman and child on Earth, Apple has a long runway. It can tread water for a couple of years before anything bad starts to happen, and Apple won't do that. David Pogue, author and broadcaster, who's written Apple the first 50 years. And finally, the lineup for this summer's World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the United States

is now complete after the final six nations qualified overnight. The Democratic Republic of Congo team secured a spot for the first time since 1974, and Iraq booked a place in the competition after a 40-year gap. This was the reaction on the streets of Baghdad. From jubilation for Iraqis to devastation for Italy who for the third time in a row failed to qualify for the World Cup after losing on penalties to Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Here's some reaction from Italian fans. It's like we're not ready for the good match. We're not ready when it matters. We're not ready when you need to give that extra. You're not ready when you have the pressure on. What can say? Like the system is rotten, completely rotten. Is it the system that's run?

My football system. I mean, the team, we knew that the team has its limits, but like this, you know, like not going to the World Cup three times in a row, Sweden, North Macedonia and Bosnia. What else can I say? Daniela Physikella is an Italian football journalist, and he told Lila Nathu what he made of those fans' comments. Despondent and deluded, of course, but I is the feeling

of a nation on the wake of something that perhaps up until 12 years ago would have been unthinkable four-time champions of Italy missing out on a World Cup and now unfortunately we're getting accustomed to and what stings the most is the fact that this is an extended World Cup with 48 teams. It's never been so large yet we didn't manage to make it but unfortunately if you are Italy and end up on

on a penalty shootout, a home against, at the home of a nation ranked 66 in the world, Bosnia and Herzegovina, which, by the way, they deserve to qualify. But I think if you end up there, that means things have gone wrong along the way and mistakes have been made long before last night. What has gone wrong along the way for Italy to end up in this position? The decline started probably when Italy were at the pinnacle, when they won the World Cup in 2006. the world of football was modernizing at pace and Italy were not able to keep pace with the changes.

They haven't changed the way football he's taught in school through the youth systems as well and unfortunately the focus on getting results quickly has overtaken the project. But most of all, I think the problem lies with the fact that Italian players and young Italian players are not playing in the Italy top flight anymore. Only three out of ten in Syria are Italians

and unfortunately that resulted in a very poor qualifying campaign. Do you think now because of these consecutive misses of getting into the World Cup, there's essentially a whole generation of young Italians who haven't grown up seeing Italy play on the world stage in that competition. What's that doing for the place of football in Italian society? The football is becoming less and less popular, and I think that it's a fair representation of where the alliances of young people are.

Italy are excelling in many other sports, from award number one in tennis with Yanik Sinner to Kimi Antonelli winning two Formula One Grand Prix, the baseball team, the Winter Olympics. And I think this is good. This is healthy. It shows that, of course, young people are approaching other sports that perhaps offer better infrastructure and better project, whereas football is lagging behind. But it's a systemic issue. If you do go and watch football in Italy, the stadiums are crumbling. They're old. And to build new stadiums, it takes such an amount, such an effort and such bureaucracies that sometimes investors just want to step away. And that obviously doesn't increase participation.

And the problem is that the World Cup is such a defining moment for generations. These are really moments where everyone comes together and they define our lives. And they have been deprived of that. Daniela Fizzikela. And the World Cup gets underway in June. And that's it from us for now. If you want to get in touch, you can email us at global podcaster at bbc.c.com. You can also find us on X at BBC World Service.

use the hashtag global newspod. And don't forget our sister podcast, 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 Alana Bowles. The producer was Charles Sanctuary. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Valerie Sanderson. Until next time, bye-bye.