Global News Podcast - Trump again accuses Zelensky of not wanting peace

Episode Date: March 4, 2025

The US President says he won't tolerate President Zelensky's position on a ceasefire, but denies reports he may end military support for Ukraine. Also, two people are killed after a car drives into a crowd in Germany.

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Welcome to the Criminalia podcast. Together, we invite you into the dark and winding corridors of historical true crime. Each season, we explore a new theme from poisoners to art thieves. We uncover the secrets of history's most interesting figures and tune in at the end of each episode as we indulge in cocktails and mocktails inspired by each story. Listen to Criminalia on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Open your free iHeart app and search Criminalia. This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Andrew Peech and in the early hours of Tuesday the 4th of March these are our main stories. Donald Trump again accuses the Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky of not wanting peace with Russia. Two people die after a car hits a crowd of people in the German city of Mannheim. Concerns mounting that the ceasefire in Gaza could collapse. Also in this podcast, the Scottish painter Jack Vettriano, whose best known work is The Singing Butler, has died. And… There was a jury and a council and suddenly we were in a real court and there I was passing

the death penalty and the oxygen was just sucked out of the room. You could hear a pin drop. The actor Nigel Haberson playing his own grandfather, the judge who sentenced the last women to hang in the UK. The fallout continues after last week's bad tempered meeting at the White House between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky. Today the US president has once again hit out at his Ukrainian counterpart. Here's what he had to say when he was asked about his stance on a ceasefire in Ukraine.

I don't want to see this go on for years and years. Now President Zelensky supposedly made a statement today in AP. I'm not a big fan of AP so maybe it was an incorrect statement but he said he thinks the war is going to go on for a long time. And he better not be right about that. That's all I'm saying. A little earlier, Mr Trump said in a post on social media that the United States wouldn't put up with Mr Zelensky's position on a ceasefire for much longer. North America correspondent Nomi Iqbal is in Washington.

Nomi has been telling me the president's comments didn't come as a surprise. Over the weekend, key members of his cabinet coalesced around him. The whole Republican Party has pretty much fallen in line with his view on how things went on Friday. His national security adviser Mike Waltz echoing actually there seems to be a line that they're all using at the moment which is President Zelensky doesn't want peace. This is a guy that does not want peace, which is what Mr. Trump has put in his post. I think if there was any way that Zelensky could redeem himself in the eyes of the Trump administration it would be to say

sorry for what happened on Friday, to sign the deal without any objections and to just make peace with Russia but of, President Zelensky is not likely to do that. So from Washington's point of view, it's almost like that gathering of European leaders yesterday didn't happen. Well, Mike Watts, going back to the National Security Advisor, he said that he welcomes it and that it's good that Europe is doing this. I mean, President Trump has also said in the past that Europe needs to pull its weight when it comes to security, when it comes to the financial side of things, in terms of NATO. So I think that they're fine with, but in terms of what happens next, I mean, the truth is Europe needs to draw Donald Trump back

into it. They need the US's support. But what I think the big question might be for Europe, can we rely on the US? Is Europe and Ukraine now on its own? Remember, Republicans control all three branches of government. And so the stark truth is that right now, this is the US position, which is a much more radical shift from not just President Biden's position, but I think there's a lot of questions right now about this bedrock assumption that has been formed regarding a strong basis that the transatlantic relationship since World War Two has been based on. And is the Trump administration trying to force Zelensky

out personally here, by painting him as the roadblock to ending the war? Well it certainly seems like it because over the weekend there were also calls by some of Donald Trump's aides for President Zelensky to resign. One of the most remarkable comments came from Republican Senator Lindsey Graham who is a pro-Ukraine advocate, he's a staunch supporter and only a few weeks ago he said that President Zelensky was, to quote him, the ally I've been waiting for my whole life and now he has turned around he has done a u-turn he backs Trump and Vance and he has suggested that mr. Zelensky should resign and mr. Zelensky's responded to that saying well you know Ukrainians decide the election

so whether or not they want him to go is like an official sort of policy, I don't know, but it's certainly making those sounds and those suggestions. Nomi Iqbal with me from Washington. This is a fast moving diplomatic situation. If you've got questions about Ukraine, Russia and the involvement of President Trump and also European leaders in recent days, we'd love to hear your questions so we can get an answer for you from BBC correspondents. Drop us an email the address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk Two people have been killed and ten injured after a car hit a crowd of

people in the German city of Mannheim. The vehicle seems to have been driven at high speed through a busy shopping area as people were marking the German carnival season. Stephanie Bach is a reporter with local media outlet Mannheim 24. All I could see was shattered pieces from cars, children's shoes shattered, a stroller. There was a lot of blood at one food truck. It was really hectic. A lot of people were just coming out from the city center. They were a little bit panicked. They were calling their families and friends, tell them what they saw, tell them what they've heard, and asking them if it's true. All the shopping centers and restaurants were closing. No one wanted to talk. It was just like, I want

to get out of here. I don't feel safe. I'm afraid. Police have arrested a 40-year-old German man and have said they don't think the driver was acting out of ideological extremism, but rather that he was, as they put it, psychologically unwell. So how significant is this information from the authorities? Tim Franks asked Thomas Sparrow, who's a security correspondent for Deutsche Welle, the German public service broadcaster. It is very significant indeed because the motivation will determine, and it has been in the past, will determine the political reactions that you see both at a local or regional level and also at a federal level here in Berlin. So the fact that authorities are not thinking of a political background or an extremist

background but are rather looking into mental health issues will also determine what kind of concrete reactions you will see coming in the next few days. I mean, I guess though, it still leaves the problem that Germany does seem to have a problem with car ramming attacks. It definitely has a problem with car ramming attacks. But each of the three most recent car ramming attacks had different motivations. You had the incident in Magdeburg during the Christmas market. And that was carried out by a Saudi man with anti Muslim views. You had a car ramming in Munich in February,

which was carried out allegedly by an asylum seeker from Afghanistan who had Islamist motivations, according to authorities. And now you have a car ramming in Mannheim. And the main suspect there, you said it also in your introduction, is not said to have a political background. So there are three separate incidents. What they do have in

common is, I would say, two things. The first one, the fact that because of these three incidents, there's a heightened sense of insecurity among many Germans. And the second one is that these security incidents alongside a couple of other security incidents, especially to knife attacks, have basically made this issue top at a top issue in the political discussion in Germany, especially when it comes to the election that was held on February 23, the general election here in Germany. Yeah. And I mean, I guess the problem for the authorities, especially when it comes to car ramming, is it's, I mean, obviously obviously one can change things with regards to the way in which there is street furniture and bollards and barriers and all that sort of thing.

It's not easy though, is it? It's not easy and in fact in the Magdeburg attack in December you had the situation where you have Christmas markets that were protected by bollards and the man who drove through the Christmas market actually found the emergency exit through which he then drove his car. What I'm trying to say with this is that authorities have stressed time and time again that it's impossible for them to guarantee 100% security. So the measures that they're trying to include are on the one hand obviously more police security, more police presence, but also focusing for example on prevention and on other issues as well. And that is something that we're going to hear in Germany in the next few days definitely.

Thomas Barrow with Tim Franks. There's growing concern that the ceasefire in Gaza could collapse as regional mediators seek to resolve the current standoff between Hamas and Israel. It comes after Israel blocked the entry of all humanitarian aid into the territory, accusing Hamas of stealing the supplies and using them to finance their operations. The blockade has sparked widespread international condemnation. Our correspondent Paul Adams reports from Jerusalem. In an effort to force Hamas to alter the terms of the Gaza ceasefire, Israel is winding up the pressure on Hamas and the entire civilian population.

Officials are talking more and more about the possibility of a return to war. But for now, the main weapon is aid. Humanitarian agencies say that food is relatively plentiful at the moment, but that following yesterday's Israeli decision to block any more deliveries, prices have already risen dramatically. And all this in a place left devastated by 15 months of war. Rosalia Bolan is a spokesperson for UNICEF currently in Rafa. The extent of destruction in Gaza is really unbelievable.

It's chilling when you drive through Gaza. Some areas are more affected than others, for instance in Rafa, Chanyounes, Jabalia. There's hardly any building still standing. An agreement on how to proceed with the ceasefire seems remote. Israel says it's agreed to what it says is an American plan for all remaining hostages to be released over a 50-day period, but with no Israeli military withdrawal. Hamas will not agree unless it feels Israel's withdrawal is somehow guaranteed. Until a compromise is found, aid trucks remain stationary on the Gaza border. David Mensah is an Israeli government spokesman.

The aid we send is used to kill. No more. No free meal to those who kill. Israel will not allow the Hamas terrorist organisation to continue the ceasefire under the conditions of the first stage without releasing our hostages. Tomorrow, Egypt will unveil its plans for Gaza's future at an Arab League summit in Cairo. But unless the dispute over the ceasefire can be resolved, Egypt's plans could soon be overtaken by events. The Scottish painter Jack Vettriano has died at the age of 73. One of his best-known works was the singing butler showing a couple dancing on a storm-swept beach. He was found dead at his apartment in Nice in southern France. It's understood there are no suspicious circumstances.

Our correspondent David Wallace Lockhart looks back at his life. Jack Vettriano was the first to admit that not everyone knew him by name, but most he believed would recognise his work. His most famous painting, The Singing Butler, was said to be Britain's best-selling image. It features a wealthy couple waltzing on a beach, while a butler and a maid shield them from the rain with umbrellas. It sold for nearly a million dollars in the early 2000s. Despite this, Jack Vettriano was never the darling of an art establishment that felt he appealed to the masses rather than pushed the boundaries. Speaking in

2004, the artist predicted that his work would stand the test of time. If they want people to go into those galleries, why don't they put something in that they want to bloody see? I'll be surprised, and this isn't some kind of egotistical bluff, I'll be surprised if my work isn't around in a few hundred years. Jack Vettriano didn't have the typical start in life for a world famous artist. He was born in Fife in 1951 and his working life started in the pit as a mining engineer. He took up painting in the 70s after a girlfriend gave him a box of watercolours.

His self-taught hobby became his passion and his career. Worldwide recognition followed. But there was not universal praise. Some of his work, which often featured women in various stages of undress, was even described as badly conceived soft porn. He dismissed such criticism, insisting that his paintings were about exploring the power of sex. He was a painter who conceded that he copied the style of others, and yet few would deny that he was one of a kind. David Wallace Lockhart reporting. And still to come. He was so dedicated to the cause that even when he went on holidays, he would find another

donor centre to donate at on his travels. The Australian blood donor who saved the lives of over two million babies. Welcome to the Criminalia Podcast. Together we invite you into the dark and winding corridors of historical true crime. Each season we explore a new theme from poisoners to art thieves. We uncover the secrets of history's most interesting figures. And tune in at the end of each episode as we indulge in cocktails and mocktails inspired by each story. Listen to Criminalia on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Open your free iHeart app and search Criminalia.

There's been a surge in deportations, arrests and detentions of Afghans living in Pakistan. That's despite the UN saying some are registered by its refugee agency as being in need of international protection. Islamabad says its policies are aimed at illegal foreign nationals, but the crackdown has pushed many Afghans into hiding. Our Pakistan correspondent Azadeh Mashiri has been talking to some of them in Islamabad. Their names have been changed in her report because of security concerns. Ahmad walks us through his neighbourhood. Many of the homes he shows us seem empty. Yes, from this street and also from this area, many families are deported. He and his family have chosen to stay, but hide when they hear the police is nearby.

He says he used to work for a Western charity in Afghanistan and was in the final stages of a US resettlement programme. Two weeks ago, when he was out shopping, he received a call. It was his daughter's voice on the line. My baby called me three years ago. She called me, come, here is the police. The police came to our homes. How many words does your baby know? She's only three years old, so, and yet she knows

the word police? Yeah, she knows the police, unfortunately, yeah. Ahmad had his visa extended, but his wife was still waiting for hers. The police said they'd have to take her and his child to Hajikamp, where many Afghans in Islamabad and Raalpindi are being held. He decided to go with them. He shows me a video, similar to one other Afghan's have sent me. In it, men, women and children are being driven away. The situation was unimaginable and was very bad, particularly for women and children. The peer family only had one blanket.

And also they collected the phone of everyone and our communication cuts with outside. Ahmad's family was released three days later. We've come here to Haji Camp to try to verify some of the accounts we're hearing, but officials and the police here won't let us in. The Pakistani government does insist that no one is mistreated during the repatriation

process. There are also some Afghans around us, some people who have come here to search for their relatives who they say are being held in the camp. We meet a woman named Amaneh who was trying to visit her sister. If my country was safe, why would I come here in Pakistan? And I can't even live here peacefully. Pakistan has taken in millions of Afghans over more than 40 years. The UN says there are about three million in the country today. But Pakistan is frustrated by what it calls very slow resettlement programs in other countries

and says this problem can't go on forever. Families like Nabila's are terrified of what that could mean for them. Your friends are gone. They're back in Afghanistan? At 10 years old, her life is limited to the confines of her home in Islamabad and the dirt road outside it. Her father Hamid served in the Afghan military.

They believe he and their family will be punished or killed if they return. Don't force us out. Don't kick Afghans out of their homes. We are not here by choice. The Taliban government has told the BBC all Afghans can live in the country without any fear. But the UN has previously cast doubt on an amnesty. Pakistan says its policies are aimed at all illegal foreign nationals. But Afghans we've spoken to feel their lives are hanging by a thread and their time in Pakistan running out.

Our correspondent Azadeh Mashiri in Islamabad. One of the world's most prolific blood donors who saved the lives of over two million babies has died in Australia at the age of 88. James Harrison had a rare antibody in his blood which was then given to pregnant mothers. From Sydney, our correspondent Phil Mercer. James Harrison was known in Australia as the man with the golden arm. His blood contained a rare antibody called anti-D. It's given to pregnant mothers whose cells are at risk of attacking their unborn babies. Mr. Harrison had been donating blood plasma every two weeks since he was 18 years

old. He continued until he was 81. His dedication saved the lives of more than two million babies. Reports in Australia have suggested that his body was so rich in anti-D because of a massive blood transfusion he received when he was a teenager. Jessica Willett from Australian Red Cross Lifeblood told us more about James Harrison's legacy. He was really just an incredible man. He gave 1,173 donations over 60 years. And he was so dedicated to the cause that even when he went on holidays,

he would find another donor center to donate that on his travels. So the contribution that he has made to the Australian community is just incredible. And you know, he was a humble man. He believed that his donation was no more important than anyone else's and that he believed that everyone could make the same life-saving contribution that he could. And he hoped that one day someone would take his record from him because that would mean

that more lives are saved. It was a huge night of celebration for the Oscar winners in Hollywood but the celebrations went far wider than Los Angeles. There were big wins for actors and films from several countries around the world including Brazil, the Dominican Republic and Iran. Mark Lowen's been talking to three film critics from those countries. First Daniel Oliveira from Brazil. So what was the reaction there when I'm Still Here won the Oscar for best international film, the first Brazilian film to do so? People need to understand is that right now in Brazil, people are in the middle of carnival. Carnival is like, of course, the biggest party, one of the biggest days in Brazil. So the fact that actually last night during the ceremony,

people actually paused Carnival for a couple of hours to watch the ceremony and to cheer for this movie that I'm still here to celebrate this victory is something that I think is unprecedented during my lifetime. I have never seen anything put a pause on carnival. I saw a comment, President Lula of Brazil, saying, today is the day to feel even prouder of being Brazilian.

Let's bring in Victor Pinheiro from the Dominican Republic. Victor, the film Emilia Perez, which Zoe Saldana won the Oscar for, it's about a Mexican cartel leader who transitions into a woman and Zoe Saldana gave quite a strong affirmation of her Dominican heritage. She said I am the proud child of immigrant parents with dreams, dignity and hardworking hands. So what does it mean to the Dominican Republic to have this triumph at the Oscars? It means a lot actually. Zoe's decision to acknowledge the DR in her speech was a powerful and really, really emotional moment for all of us here.

We were joking that today is National Post-Year Photo with Zoe Day, but more than that, it actually reaffirms our presence in the global cinematic stage. Last year, a Dominican director won best director in Berlin, and now Zoe wins best actress award at the Oscars. It actually confirms that Dominican talent is thriving. Our actors and filmmakers and creatives all over the industry have worked tirelessly to gain this type of recognition and hearing Soei saying your country out loud, it sends a message to the Dominican community that aspiring artists can dream big and achieve this kind of international success.

Hamed Soleimanzade, for the film which won in the shadow of the Cyprus, what does it mean to Iran to have this kind of recognition? First of all, I would like to congratulate Hussein and Shirin and the entire Iranian animation industry on this incredible achievement. It's a proud moment for Iranian cinema and for all Iranians who celebrate this success. It's our third Oscar. Regarding the challenges the filmmakers face in attending the ceremony, these struggles, yet despite all the difficulties the filmmakers made it to the Oscar which in itself is a kind of victory. That was Hamid Salmanzade from Iran, Victor Pinero from the Dominican Republic

and Daniel Oliveira from Brazil talking to my colleague Mark Lowen. Finally the story of Ruth Ellis, the last woman to be hanged in Britain in 1955, has been the subject of several documentaries and a film, Dance with a Stranger. Now it's been turned into a courtroom drama for television, starring one of Britain's best-known actors Nigel Havers, who plays the High Court judge who sentenced Ellis to death for killing her abusive and violent lover. Sir Cecil Havers also happens to be Nigel Havers' grandfather. Ruth Ellis' case was pivotal in changing attitudes both to domestic violence and capital punishment, ultimately leading to its abolition. This is how British Pathé News reported the story in 1955.

On June 21st, Ruth Ellis was found guilty of murder at the Old Bailey and sentenced to death in accordance with the law. On July 13th, she was executed in accordance with the law. On July the 13th she was executed in accordance with the law. But Britain's conscience was uneasy. During those three weeks while public controversy mounted, one man had a terrible decision to make, Home Secretary William Lloyd George. As he went about his public duties, he had to decide whether or not to write the grim words, the law must take its course. But in the end he had no choice.

As the law stands and as precedent dictates, Ruth Ellis had to die. For the hundreds who waited at Holloway Jail on execution morning, and for the millions who stayed away, three questions remained. Should a woman hang? Should anyone hang at all or should there be degrees of murder my colleague Patty O'Connell spoke to Nigel Havers about playing his grandfather so had he grown up knowing about Ruth Ellis I suppose I did because

it's it's a controversial story and the fact that she was the last woman to be hanged and it was my grandfather who put the fact that she was the last woman to be hanged and it was my grandfather who put the little black cap on, as you know, when you pass sentence, the death penalty. That's what the judge has to do. My father was very against capital punishment so it was part of my growing up really. And did the family feel a sense of shame? No, no shame, just pity, because my grandfather spent the entire time in court with her in the witness box trying to persuade her to say something

that she she never did say. In other words, if she had talked about the abuse she'd suffered and that she didn't pre-meditate it, she would never have received the death penalty. Correct. She kept saying, no, no, I knew what I was doing. I intended to kill him. Although we know you as an actor, have you gone and read the transcripts and spoken to people about it? I was offered this role out of the blue and it was just extraordinary. I was so excited and I immediately rang my brother and said, this is what I've been offered. He said, that's just wonderful to play grandpa, it's just fantastic. Then I spoke to my aunt, whose name is Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, and she said, well, to make sure that you read all the stuff around it and make sure you do what grandpa did, which was to make copious notes. He was a great note taker in court. So I did all that. And then

I read the transcript and I actually actually the words I speak in the show are exactly the words he spoke at the trial. What was the atmosphere like when you donned the robes and filmed the scene? It was incredible. We filmed in a make-believe court. There was a jury and a council and suddenly we were in a real court and there I was passing the death penalty and the oxygen was just sucked out of the room and it was just extraordinary. You could hear a pin drop. I was devastated giving this verdict. I felt terrible. You know I

always say I maintain that I'm not a method actor in any way but somehow that day I was a method actor. After filming it did you feel... I burst into tears. It was extraordinary. I felt very sorry for my grandfather because he was extremely upset and he wrote a letter to the Home Secretary at the time and said this woman must not be hanged and the Home Secretary ignored it. In his lifetime you found out that he tried his best to assist a family. As far as my aunt is concerned and what she told me was that she he financed one of the children supported them. That's how strongly he felt.

It was all done at great speed wasn't it between the shooting and her hanging was only a matter of months. Indeed. Funnily enough towards the end and I think after sentence it was just over a month before she was hanged and she changed her mind and she said can I go back to court and say I didn't premeditate. I mean she tried, she thought about it. Mind you, I suppose one word, sitting in a prison cell waiting to be executed is probably the most appalling thing any human being could go through. The actor, Nigel Havers.

And that's all from us for now. There will be a new edition of Global News to download later. If you'd like to comment on this edition and the stories we included, drop us an email. The address is globalpodcast.bbc.co.uk or you'll find us on x at BBC World Service. Just use the hashtag globalnewspod. This edition was produced by Judy Frankel and mixed by Caroline Driscoll. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Andrew Peach. Thank you for listening and until next time, goodbye. Welcome to the Criminalia Podcast. Together we invite you into the dark and winding corridors of historical true crime.

Each season, we explore a new theme from poisoners to art thieves. We uncover the secrets of history's most interesting figures. And tune in at the end of each episode as we indulge in cocktails and mocktails inspired by each story. Listen to Criminalia on America's number one podcast network, iHeart. Open your free iHeart app and search Criminalia. story.