Global News Podcast - Trump calls Zelensky a 'dictator'

Episode Date: February 19, 2025

Donald Trump launches a fresh attack on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, calling him a "dictator". Also: global glaciers are melting faster than ever recorded - and a ridiculed New Zealand tourism campaign.

This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. It's a show about money. It's what gets me out of bed in the morning. But it's also a show about life. I'm very scared, but part of me is optimistic. Business Daily from the BBC World Service. Search for Business Daily wherever you get your BBC podcasts. This is the Global News podcast from the BBC World Service.

I'm Janet Jalil and in the early hours of Thursday the 20th of February these are our main stories. As the bitter war of words between Ukraine and the United States intensifies, Donald Trump describes Vladimir Zelensky as a dictator. European leaders express support for Ukraine's embattled president. Microsoft unveils a chip powered by a new state of matter, which it says shows a quantum computing revolution is only years away. Also in this podcast, they have said that it sounds a bit like a clearance sale, you know, like bargain bin kind of territory, which is perhaps not the sort of thing that

you'd be wanting to give us the message when it comes to tourism. Why a campaign to get people to visit New Zealand is being ridiculed by Kiwis. In just a week, the US under Donald Trump has gone from being Ukraine's biggest ally to becoming embroiled in a bitter war of words even as Trump officials have held peace talks with Russia that excluded Ukraine and Europe. In his latest jaw-dropping attack on Ukraine's president Mr Trump lashed out at Vladimir Zelensky, calling him a dictator without elections, who had done a terrible job as leader. Here's what he posted on social media. His words have been voiced by one of our colleagues.

Think of it. A modestly successful comedian, Vladimir Zelensky, talked the United States of America into spending $350 billion to go into a war that couldn't be won, that never had to start, but a war that he, without the US and Trump, will never be able to settle. The United States has spent $200 billion more than Europe, and Europe's money is guaranteed, while the United States will get nothing back Why didn't sleepy Joe Biden demand equalization in that this war is far more important to Europe than it is to us?

We have a big beautiful ocean as separation on Top of this Zelensky admits that half of the money we sent him is missing this, Zelensky admits that half of the money we sent him is missing. He refuses to have elections, is very low in Ukrainian polls and the only thing he was good at was playing Biden like a fiddle. A dictator without elections, Zelensky better move fast or he is not going to have a country left. In the meantime, we are successfully negotiating an end to the war with Russia, something all admit only Trump and the Trump administration can do. Biden never tried. Europe has failed to bring peace,

and Zelensky probably wants to keep the gravy train going. I love Ukraine, but Zelensky has done a terrible job. His country is shattered, and millions have unnecessarily died. And so it continues. This social media post came after Mr Zelensky responded to earlier claims made by Mr Trump, not least that Ukraine started the war and that he only has the support of 4% of Ukraine's population. Mr Zelensky said the US President was simply repeating false claims by Russia. The Ukrainian leader said they belied the reality that he is supported by a majority

of his country's population who want a just peace. Since we are talking about 4%, we have seen this disinformation, we understand that it is coming from Russia. It is unfortunate that President Trump, and with great respect for him as the leader of the American people who constantly support us, unfortunately lives in this disinformation space. European political leaders weighed in to support Mr Zelensky. The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, called him to say

that it was perfectly reasonable to suspend elections during wartime, just as the UK had done during the Second World War. The German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, said that it was wrong and dangerous to deny President Zelensky his democratic legitimacy. A French government spokesperson said France didn't understand the logic of Mr. Trump's comments. I asked our Russia editor at BBC Monitoring Vitaly Shevchenko what he made of this increasingly alarming war of words between the US and Ukrainian presidents.

I don't normally use words such as extraordinary in my interviews but frankly I cannot recall a time when America's rhetoric on Ukraine was so extraordinarily similar to Russia's rhetoric and also so different from Europe's and NATO's, let alone Ukraine's. And what this suggests, well, we've got to ask the question whether the United States is still Ukraine's ally. Is it still part of the Western alliance that's been helping Ukraine fight Russian aggression and frankly the Western alliance that's emerged since the Second World War? And the tone of these exchanges seems to be getting increasingly personal on Donald Trump's side. Mr. Zelensky is trying

to refute him with facts, but it's getting increasingly difficult for the Ukrainian leader. It is. And the claims that Donald Trump's been making, to be honest, I've been hearing them from Russian state TV because, you know, that's my job. That's what I do. I watch Russian state TV. And I've been hearing about how Ukraine should not join NATO. I've been hearing that for years. They've been saying for years that Ukraine should forget about the territories captured or liberated, as Russian state TV calls it. Now, President Trump says that Vladimir Zelensky is a dictator, unpopular, 4% approval rating, and that it's Ukraine that started this war. Again, I would expect to hear this from a commentator on Russian state TV. And okay, there are opinions

and there are facts. And Donald Trump in his post on Truth Social, he said that Zelensky is a modestly successful comedian. Well, that's a matter of opinion. But in terms of facts, credible opinion polls, they suggest that Vladimir Zelensky's approval ratings are more than 50%, even higher than Donald Trump's in America. And when it comes to elections, which is again something that Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin have been bonding, that Ukraine holds elections, this is what Ukrainian law specifically forbids and none of the credible potential rivals of Vladimir Zelensky in Ukraine are pushing for that idea. They're saying, look, this is not a good idea to hold elections now. And in fact, they are no less hawkish on Russia than Vladimir Zelensky.

Vitaly Shevchenko, for President Zelensky also rejected suggestions that Ukraine should repay US military aid by granting access to his country's largely untapped reserves of rare earth minerals and other natural resources. Our diplomatic correspondent, James Landell, assesses where this growing row could lead. Not many people say no to Donald Trump. President Zelensky has, and now he's paying the price.

At the heart of Mr Trump's fury is a row over Ukraine's critical minerals. Mr Zelensky floated the idea last year as part of his so-called peace plan that Ukraine might offer American firms access to its rare earth deposits in return for continued US military support. Last weekend at a conference in Munich, Mr Trump's team laid down an ultimatum. rare earth deposits in return for continued US military support. Last weekend at a conference in Munich, Mr Trump's team laid down an ultimatum. Ukraine should, it was reported, sign over 50%, not only of its mineral wealth but also its oil and gas reserves and infrastructure.

Mr Trump claims inaccurately that America is owed $500 billion for its previous assistance to Ukraine. Critics accuse Mr Trump of seeking war reparations from the wrong side. Well, Mr Zelensky rejected this US demand out of hand, saying any deal had to be linked to post-war security guarantees. This is not a serious conversation, he said today. I am defending Ukraine. I cannot sell my country. There is much at stake. Ukraine has vast reserves of mineral deposits. How much is not clear, but some estimates value them at more than $11 trillion. They include

things like lithium, graphite, cobalt and titanium, which are used in everything from mobile phones and renewable energy to missiles and superconductors. But these minerals are rare and China dominates the market. Donald Trump may say he wants peace in Ukraine, but he also wants a peace of Ukraine. And right now, President Zelensky is not playing ball. James Landell. Well, another president who has stunned the world recently is South Korea's leader, who out of the blue nearly three months ago declared martial law in a country long viewed as a vibrant and prosperous democracy.

Yun Sang-yeol justified his power grab by claiming without any proof that pro-North Korea communist forces had infiltrated South Korea and were trying to take control of it. The coup attempt failed but since then support for the embattled president appears to be growing as conspiracy theories take hold with thousands of people taking to the streets each week to demand his release. Our sole correspondent, Jean Mackenzie, has been following the protests. I'm near South Korea's constitutional court where at the moment the impeached and imprisoned president is testifying and his supporters have rallied outside.

They want him released, they want him returned to office and they are shouting some pretty extreme things. They're saying that the left-leaning opposition party are communists and that the leader of the opposition should be executed. When the president here declared martial law, he justified this extreme move by claiming that the parliament had been infiltrated by people who were pro-North Korea, pro-communist. Now, he didn't provide any evidence, but since then, these ideas have

really taken hold. If the next president would be the leader of Democratic Party, what he's talking about is to become one with Kim Jong-un. There's no denying these threats used to be very real. Experts say Mr. Yoon has exploited these historic fears. Before Yoon Sung-yeol, we did have extreme groups saying extreme things. Sang-shin Lee is a polling expert for the Korea Institute for National Unification. But they were isolated.

But now Yoon Sung-yeol gave those extreme more presidential authority. When he says that the left-wing liberal political parties are North Korea's sympathizers, people believe that. Hallelujah! It's a Saturday afternoon, and the main road through the center of Seoul has been closed off to traffic because thousands of people have come out to support Mr Yoon.

These aren't just Mr Yoon's core supporters, older, ultra-conservatives. There are young people here today. Like most young people, I thought, how could martial law be declared in the 21st century? That was very critical. But after researching it on YouTube, I realised I was wrong. It was unavoidable.

If I had been in the president's position, I'd have done it too. Something people keep telling me is that they don't trust mainstream media. Even the conservative press here has been very critical of Mr. Yoon. And so these people have turned to YouTube, where there are these very popular right-wing channels

that are amplifying these sort of messages. One idea the president has dangled that has really taken hold is that China interfered in South Korea's election last year and rigged the result. I noticed that you're holding a sign which says CCP out. So Chinese Communist Party out. Why is that? I believe China is interfering in all our political affairs.

It is pulling the strings behind the scenes. I didn't fully understand the extent of it until recently. The protests turned violent last month when a group of young men smashed up a courthouse looking to take revenge against a judge who'd helped detain the president. These were shocking scenes for a country which prides itself on its tradition of peaceful protest. These views could create problems for the country's opposition Democratic Party.

I've come to the parliament to meet one of their most seasoned politicians. I am Wi Song Lak. I'm a lawmaker from the Democratic Party. What do you say to these claims, that it is the Democratic Party that is secretly colluding with North Korea, secretly colluding with China? They are simply not true, crooked up concept to demonise the opposition and to justify martial law. justify martial law. The court is expected to rule in the next month on whether to bar Mr. Yun from office. Then there will be elections and South Korea will have the chance to move on.

Politicians now are going to have to work really hard to put this country back together. That report by Jean McKenzie. Tech companies are in a multi-billion dollar race to develop advanced quantum computers designed to crack problems that are impossible for ordinary computers to solve. Industry experts had been under the impression that this technology was decades away. But Microsoft has just unveiled a new chip called Myorana One, which it says could bring us quantum computers much faster within years. Technology journalist Amit Katwala explains the highly complex science behind quantum computing. It's not just a faster version of our current computers. It's a fundamentally different

device that basically takes advantage of some weird properties of quantum physics to do things that current computers can't do. So instead of using bits, which are ones and zeros, like a normal computer, a quantum computer uses what are called qubits. So these can be one, zero, or somewhere in between a state called superposition. Now that's quite complicated. I like to think of it in terms of flipping a coin. So if a normal computer could be heads or tails, a quantum computer can be heads, tails, or also a spinning coin where you don't know quite where it's going to land. It means it's going to be much better at simulating the natural world, which also follows those rules.

The natural world does not follow the rules of ones and zeros. It follows these quantum physics rules. If we can build a computer that simulates those quantum physics rules, then we're going to be much better at simulating biology, chemistry, physics, designing new medicines, finding materials for better batteries, things like that. So Microsoft had been trying to do this for almost 20 years and they really embarked on a very different approach to the other companies in the field that are doing this,

you know, Google, Amazon, et cetera, IBM. And this was really like a kind of Hail Mary play. Like when they started doing this, it was really like no one was really sure if it would actually work or not, if it was even a real thing. So some experts are skeptical as to whether the claims that Microsoft have made are actually going to come to fruition. But certainly they've made a big splash. Technology journalist Amit Kapwala. Still to come on the Global News podcast. Men tend to receive less emotional support from friends and family than women typically do.

And fast they often rely more on their romantic partners for receiving such support. Why a new study is claiming that men are in fact more romantic than women. more romantic than women. In every harvest we make, we are telling a story. Money and work are at the heart of so many of the dramas that we experience every day. This is a life or death matter. We have a fundamental problem and it needs to be fixed. In Business Daily, we tell stories about those dramas. We tried the nice way, it didn't work, so we tried the guilt. Because stories about

money are also stories about life. It showed me that the people wanted the same exact change that I wanted to see for my life as well. Business Daily from the BBC World Service. I'm telling you, you will see for your eyes. Search for business daily wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Scientists say the world's glaciers are melting faster than ever recorded as global temperatures continue to rise. Writing in the journal Nature, researchers say that since the turn of the century, the frozen rivers have lost more than 6,500 billion tonnes, or 5% of their ice. The new findings have alarming implications for rising sea levels and the global availability of fresh drinking water. Our environment correspondent Matt McGrath takes us to

one glacier that's lost more than three kilometers of its mass. Scientists drill into the Gornar glacier in Switzerland, one of the biggest ice masses in the Alps, but it's decreased in length by almost two miles since the middle of the 19th century. In common with glaciers all over the world, that loss has increased rapidly as temperatures have risen in recent decades, mostly from humanity's ongoing use of fossil fuels. Over the past 23 years, mountain glaciers outside the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets have lost around 5% of their volume, with 273 billion tonnes of ice melting every year on average.

To put that in perspective, one year's glassier ice loss is the same as 30 years of water consumption by the entire world's population. These melting waters are ultimately running into the oceans and are boosting sea levels across the globe. While the picture painted by this comprehensive new study is bleak, its lead author, Professor Michael Zemp from the University of Zurich, says curbing carbon emissions is more critical than ever for glaciers. We can already see, well, the best case scenarios we already missed.

There's going to be a damage that we're going to have. Adaptation is required, but still it matters to act because every tenth of a degree of warming that we can avoid will save some glaciers and will save us from a lot of damage and a lot of cost. Another important aspect of glacier loss is the impact on fresh water. From the Andes to the Himalayas, the loss of glacier ice threatens future drinking water supplies for hundreds of millions of people. Matt McGrath, now depending on how you read it, New Zealand's latest tourism tagline

can be a well-meaning plea for people to visit or sound like a threat to kick Kiwis out. Everyone must go is a slogan that's been printed across posters of people in the country's majestic landscapes. But what was meant as a catchy call to action aimed at mainly Australian tourists has been ridiculed for sounding like a clearance sale slogan and for being tone deaf amid widespread public service job cuts and record numbers of New Zealanders moving overseas. Susie Ferguson is a presenter at Radio New Zealand. Tourism is a big part of the economy and it hasn't really bounced back since COVID times and that's really what the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was

getting at but this is the beginning of what's really going to be a big rollout of an encouragement of people coming back over to New Zealand for tourism purposes. It's landed in a strange place. You know, like the Labour Party has been critical of it. They're the largest party in opposition here. They have said that it sounds a bit like a clearance sale, you know, like bargain bin kind of territory, which is perhaps not the sort of thing that you'd be wanting to give us the message when it comes to tourism. The Green Party as well, they have concerns around things like biodiversity and endangered species when it comes to tourism. And their spokesperson said that they thought it sounded a little bit like a cue for the toilets, that everyone must go,

has a slightly different resonance when you think about it like that. Quite a lot of people have been mocking this as well. People think it's quite a strange way to try and get people to come over. The thing that I find so extraordinary about New Zealand is the variation. Beautiful mountains, it's big country, it's got enormous sand dunes in places, you know, and there's kind of everything in between. We have super volcanoes here. The west coast of the South Island is utterly breathtaking. It's one of those places that when I first went there, you drive around a corner and you think, oh my god, we have to stop the car. It's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen in my life. I mean, it's an extraordinarily varied country when you look at the geography.

But then if you overlay the different cultures, obviously the indigenous Maori culture, it's really a country of huge diversity as well. Everyone must go. I mean, I sort of hesitate to say it because it's the government phrase, I'm a journalist, but I came on holiday here and now I live here. So what does that tell you? Suzy Ferguson from Radio New Zealand. Now we bring you another story about Ukraine but this one is about fascinating scientific research trialled among amputee patients in the country. It's a new treatment that could help with severe pain management and reduce reliance on strong painkillers like opioids which can be addictive or have other serious side effects. It's called hydro dissection and the US Army veteran behind

the study, Dr Stephen Cohen, calls it a potential game changer. He's professor of pain medicine at Northwestern University and he explained to Rebecca Kesby how this technique works. When they amputate a limb, they also cut nerves. And when you injure nerves, the chance of someone having pain that doesn't go away is much higher than when tissue is injured. And so hydro dissection involves using ultrasound to inject very high volumes of fluid. It could be local anesthetic, could involve steroid, saline, in this case a sugar solution, and it breaks up scar tissue. It can improve blood flow to the scarred nerves that are not receiving blood flow. It could wash out if it's done early on calcifications that can form and be painful.

It can stop these nerve endings from spontaneously firing and it can release them when they're scarred down. The best thing would be to use this process early on in an injury, but could you also use it on an old injury? We know that outcomes are better for acute pain than for chronic pain. So some of the potential advantages for doing this early is like when calcifications form, they're probably extremely difficult to wash out if it's late. And the studies are mixed like when they use, you know, high volume washouts with fluid, whether it can prevent calcifications. But the other thing that happens with chronic pain is that your nervous system becomes more sensitized. And that becomes really, really

difficult to treat. that your nervous system becomes more sensitized and that becomes really, really difficult to treat. I mean, I know you've been doing this research in Ukraine where so many people have lost limbs and there's an urgent need for this kind of treatment there. But could it work with other pain management for things other than amputations like simple back pain, things like that? They've studied it for chronic pain from tissue injury and they've studied it for neuropathic pain or pain that follows injuries to nerves. And the results are very auspicious, but I

will say the studies are not super large and super high quality. Potentially, the potential is there. The potential is definitely there. Dr Stephen Cohen speaking to Rebecca Kesby. Now you may be surprised by our next story. I was. Once upon a time men prided themselves on being the strong silent type, not soft and romantic. But now a new study claims that men are more romantic than women,

even if few of them will ever admit to watching rom-coms or reading romance novels. romantic. But now a new study claims that men are more romantic than women. Even a few of them will ever admit to watching rom-coms or reading romance novels. So what lies behind this discovery of a more tender side to men? Imogen Rogers investigates. Did your partner forget Valentine's Day this year? Did a man just spring to mind? Whilst it's commonly thought that men have a laissez-faire attitude towards romantic gestures, a new study finds the opposite to be true. Researchers from the Humboldt University of Berlin used anonymous surveys and more than 50 psychological and sociological studies to find, on average, heterosexual men tend to want a relationship more than women and are

more likely to confess their love first. The main author of the paper Iris Warring explains one of the reasons why. Some argue that this I love you is often said among men as a means to secure having sex with a partner. But she says it's not just about wanting to get physical. Men tend to receive less emotional support from friends and family than women typically do, and thus they often rely more on their romantic partners for receiving such support. Both men and women are born with a need for emotional intimacy with others. But for women, it's easier to fulfill

this need without a partner. And we think this is the fundamental factor that might explain all these differences. The study also found that men are less likely to initiate breakups and more likely to suffer from them. So why then is there a stereotype that men are less romantic than women? Why do so many romantic movies have a female protagonist yearning for a male partner when this research shows it's the other way around? Maybe this is because they can. Women are portrayed as more into relationships than men in movies movies for instance. This is all based on these norms about women are more accepted to express their emotions, they disclose more, probably they talk more

with their friends and family about their emotions in general, also about romantic relationships because it's more accepted. Iris Waring is hopeful that the study can begin to change attitudes towards gender, romance and relationships. These norms should be overcome and I hope that it will have an impact on hopefully at least some men so they can be more independent from having a relationship. Iris Waring, ending that report by Imogen Rogers. And that's all from us for now, but there will be a new edition of the Global News podcast

later. If you want to comment on this podcast or the topics covered, you can send us an email. The address is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. This edition was mixed by Masood Ibrahim Kale and the producer was Stephanie Zachristen. The editor is Karen Martin. I'm Janet Jaleel. Until next time, goodbye. In every harvest we make, we are telling a story. Money and work are at the heart of so many of the dramas that we experience every day. This is a life or death matter. We have a fundamental problem and we need to be fixed.

In Business Daily, we tell stories about those dramas. We tried the nice way, it didn't work, so we tried the guilt. Because stories about money are also stories about life. It showed me that the people wanted the same exact change that I wanted to see for my life as well. Business Daily from the BBC World Service. I'm telling you, you won't see for your eyes. Search for Business Daily wherever you get your BBC podcasts.