PBS News Hour - Full Show - October 26, 2025 – PBS News Weekend full episode

Episode Date: October 26, 2025

Sunday on PBS News Weekend, as Trump kicks off his Asia tour with a stop in Malaysia, tensions appear to ease with China as the two countries say a trade deal may be close. We look at the future of war and why some believe the U.S. may be in “catch up” mode when it comes to the latest technological advances. Plus, the struggle many men face maintaining deep male friendships later in life. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Tonight on PBS News Weekend, as President Trump kicks off his Asia tour with a festive stop in Malaysia, tensions appear to ease with China as the two countries say a trade deal may be close. Then the future of war and why some believe the United States is in catch-up mode when it comes to the latest technological advances. And the struggle many men face maintaining deep, male friendships later in life. I had always seen myself as a hyper-social person, somebody with tons of friends when I was a younger man. How did I get to the point where in my 30s and 40s, I was spending, you know, most weekend nights in my house, not going out, not seeing friends? I'm John Yang.

On the first day of his nearly week-long Asia trip, President Trump sought to shift attention from controversies at home to deals struck with allies in the region. In Kuala Lumpur for a summit of Asian leaders, Mr. Trump took part in a ceremony to sign a series of agreements and a court ending the brief war between Cambodia and Thailand and economic deals with both of those nations and with Malaysia. Addressing the summit, Mr. Trump tried to reassure a region

that's been hit hard by U.S. tariffs. My message to the nations of Southeast Asia is that the United States is with you 100%, and we intend to be a strong partner and friend for many generations to come. Together will create incredible prosperity for the nations on both sides of the Pacific Ocean and to seize new opportunities for all of our people.

On NBC's Meet the Press, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the administration is closing in on a trade deal with China. President Trump gave me a great deal of negotiating leverage with the threat of the 100% tariffs on November 1st. And I believe we've reached a very substantial framework that will avoid that and allow us to discuss many other things with the Chinese. U.S. and Chinese negotiators aim to have a final deal by Thursday

when the president meets with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, in South Korea. Jonathan Zinn is from the Brookings Institution. He was China Director on President Biden's National Security Council and a senior China analyst for the CIA. Mr. Zin, what do we know about this framework that the Secretary was talking about? Is it likely to lead to something substantial

or is this going to lead to something just to have for the meeting on Thursday? I think it's more the latter. This is going to be something to have for the meeting for Thursday. And I think that this has kind of been the story throughout this trade war since Liberation Day back in April, where you will have skirmishing between the two sides. But then the focus in the particulars will come down to focusing on

relatively narrow agreements on either specific sectors or specific firms without ever getting to some of the strategic trade issues that ostensibly animated the trade war in the first place. There was talk from the U.S. side about purchases, the Chinese purchases of soybeans, a deferral of China's export controls on rare earth elements, and some kind of deal on TikTok. Both sides have discussed some kind of deal on fentanyl may be in play here. But the Chinese side has also mentioned additional possible aspects to this as well, such as U.S. levies on Chinese ships accessing ports. Besides trade, what are the other topics that are probably going to come up in this meeting? In the run up to this meeting, President Trump broached the possibility

of discussing Ukraine with the Chinese side, with Xi Jinping, and Taiwan has come up as a possible area of discussion as well. Trade has really been the predominant focus throughout these discussions, which is why the main conduit of exchange between the two sides has run through Vice Premier Holi Feng on the Chinese side and Secretary Bissent and Jameson Greer on the U.S. side. What's at stake for each leader in this meeting? I think for President Trump, there is a fair bit at stake. I think this is an important element for him to demonstrate his persona as a dealmaker. And I think that has been an important theme throughout this trip so far and his other international engagements.

For President Xi, I think the goals are actually less ambitious here. He's looking to sustain the relief that he secured earlier in the year from U.S. trade measures. I think he sees that as a win for right now. What's the relative bargaining strength, as it were, of these two leaders as they go into this meeting? Does one side be in a stronger position than another? I think from the U.S. side, there are a number of cards that the U.S. has to play in points

of leverage that we have. But I think from the Chinese perspective, what they are going to read into this, and I think what they've read into the trade war so far, is that the U.S. I doesn't necessarily have the appetite. Part of what's happened in the run-up to this meeting that's quite notable is that the Chinese side seats have switched from playing defense for most of the year and largely reacting to U.S. policy moves to playing offense through these expansive export controls on rare earth elements, which China has a chokehold over. And I think the fact that the U.S.I did not follow through with its threats to retaliate and kept this meeting on the glide path, I think Beijing is going to see that as a sign that they can enact these kind of measures with impunity. And if that's the case, I think we are in for another round of skirmishing and a bumpy rounds, further bumpy rounds in the trade war in 26. Mr. Trump has other meetings, of course, leading up to this. He's going to Japan to meet with the new prime minister in South Korea, the APEC summit. What are you watching for in those meetings? The fact that the meeting is occurring at all, I think, is significant for the Japanese. We are dealing in Japan now with a new prime minister and one who's new to international diplomacy. She is from the more conservative wing of the party and had said before that she might be tougher with the Trump administration,

but we've not seen evidence of that since she's taken office and in the final run-up to securing her position. Instead, what we saw on Friday right before her meeting with President Trump, was an indication that Japan would elevate its defense spending from 1% to 2% of its GDP. And at the APEC meeting? And at the APE meeting itself, I mean, I think this is probably going to be the tough thing for the South Korean side is that Trump's meeting with Xi is kind of overshadowing the whole event. I think they are going to be some details that they're focused on. They have their own trade negotiations that they are looking to finalize with the Trump administration.

And I think they're hoping to lock that up. I think one of the most nettlesome issues is what to do about. that this $350 billion investment fund that's been talked about as part of the negotiation. But for the most part, I think for not just for the Koreans, I think for throughout the region, because there hasn't really been a clear Indo-Pacific strategy articulated by the Trump administration, they're going to see the meeting between Trump and Xi as a proxy sign for the administration's broader approach to the region. Jonathan Zinn of the Brookings Institution. Thank you very much. Thank you.

In tonight's other headlines, police have made two arrests in last weekend's daring daylight theft of crown jewels from the Louvre Museum. French investigators said the arrests were made late Saturday and that the men, both in their 30s, are known to police. One of them was taken into custody at Charles DeGal Airport while preparing to flee to Algeria. Police haven't said if any of the multi-million dollar jewels have been recovered, they were taken in a theft that took less than 10 minutes from start to finish. Authorities say the thieves posed as construction workers and forced open a window. Hurricane Melissa is now a category four storm, and forecasters are warning of potentially life-threatening conditions in Jamaica, Cuba, and the Bahamas. The National Hurricane Center predicts the slow-moving storm could strengthen tonight to

category five as it churns in the warm waters of the Caribbean. Across Jamaica, residents gathered supplies, moved inland and prepared for the worst. The system is expected to drop up to 30. 30 inches of rain over the next 72 hours. At least four storm-related deaths have already been reported in Haiti and the Dominican Republic. In Gaza, Hamas has expanded the search for the remains of dead hostages. Egypt deployed a team of experts and heavy equipment to hunt through rubble with the bodies of the remaining 13 hostages, including two Americans.

President Trump has said he's watching very closely to be sure Hamas returns the bodies in the next 48 hours. Meanwhile, the Israeli military said the target of an overnight strike in the Nusirut refugee camp in central Gaza was someone planning an imminent attack on IDF troops. It's the latest strain on the fragile ceasefire, as Israel and Hamas accuse each other of violations. And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he will soon name the countries that will be part of a Gaza peacekeeping force. And overnight, Russia battered Ukraine's capital with deadly drone strikes. At least three people were killed in Kiev, including a mother and her teenage daughter. 29 others were injured.

Ukraine's Air Force said it shot down most of the 100 drones that were launched, but several made it through defenses. Emergency crews evacuated residential buildings, but Russia says its only targets were emergency facilities and military installations. Still to come on PBS News Weekend, why some believe the United States risks losing its dominance in war. and how men are struggling with the collapse of male friendship. This is PBS News Weekend from the David M. Rubenstein studio at WETA in Washington, home of the PBS News Hour. Weeknights on PBS. In a recent address to top military leaders, defense secretary Pete Hegseth laid out his ambitious vision for the Pentagon. This urgent moment, of course, requires more troops, more munitions, more drones, more patriots, more submarines, more B-21 bombers.

It requires more innovation, more AI in everything, and ahead of the curve. More cyber effects, more counter-UAS, more space, more speed. America is the strongest, but we need to get stronger and quickly. But questions remain about how the military translates that more of everything vision into reality, especially as technologies like drones and AI rapidly transformed the battlefield. Ali Rogan spoke with retired Army Colonel Ken Glyman, the editor-in-chief of Small Wars Journal and a professor at Arizona State University. Thank you so much for joining us.

We know that a big priority for the military right now is finding out which innovations to invest in. So what are some of the benefits of new technologies like these smaller, more agile, cheaper to develop drones? and what are some of their drawbacks? When we're talking about inexpensive but potentially lethal or highly capable systems, I mean, one of the great benefits is that they are attritable and that they don't cost a lot and they can be used on the battlefield, of course, without risking the life of the individual human.

We are seeing this incredible innovation cycle in the current conflicts. And I think part of the issue that the U.S. is facing right now is that we are so used to these more expensive. expensive boutique systems that take a long time to develop and that we can't afford to lose. So the question for the U.S. right now is how to get these types of systems that are less expensive, that are highly, as I said, attribable and expendable. And does that mean that the U.S. is really in catch-up mode when it comes to investing in these types of innovations?

I think the U.S. is in catch-up mode. certainly depending on who you're comparing the U.S. too. When it comes to these types of systems that you're talking about, the U.S. may have some really great systems and technology around, but actually having the supply chains and the innovation chains and the procurement systems to build, acquire, and then to integrate these systems into formations. I mean, I think that's where most experts would agree the U.S. is pretty far behind. The U.S. has had a tradition of having these, as I said, very expensive, very exquisite systems, and now the defense community is seeing the need to change and to change rapidly.

Are tools like AI and drones, though, fundamentally changing the nature of warfare? The nature of war remains the same and remains constant, but the character of warfare is what changes over time. And it changes because, partly because of technology, but also trends in human society. And so I think these current conflicts, for example, in Ukraine, if anything, they remind us of the constant nature of warfare that it is a human endeavor and that it is filled with violence and chance and suffering for those involved. But we are seeing some differences in the ways that wars are fought. And I think that drones, autonomous systems, AI, these are things that we're starting to see a bit more of. What lessons can

and should the military be learning from current conflicts, like Israel, Gaza, like Russia, Ukraine. I mean, we're seeing incredible adaptation in the war in Ukraine that's happening in weeks, not months or years. Innovation is happening between battles, not between campaigns or over the course of the year. And that rapid innovation cycle changing the way units are formed, the way they fight, the tools they used. It's actually quite hard to keep up with that. So I think one of the most important lessons that the U.S. is trying to learn is how do we replicate that before you have the pressure, the necessity that happens within armed conflict? How do you create institutions that can rapidly adapt and then scale different capabilities

that become important in the conflict? I think that is one of the most surprising lessons, and we've seen Ukraine be able to do that. And we've actually seen Russia a little slower, but be able to do that as well. And Secretary Hegeseth has talked about needing more of basically everything, more troops, more big weapons, more nimble weapons, more strength. Is that realistic for a defense department which is well funded but still has finite resources? Every Secretary of Defense faces this sort of giant dilemma, which is one that I think is best framed between the decisions of three things.

that all cost money and time, and that's readiness, modernization, and capacity. You want your forces to be ready for the kind of conflict you think they're going to face. You want them to be modernized so that they are ready for what's next and not behind, and then you want to have the capacity to fight the wars that you think you need. Everything's a trade-off. The more you spend on readiness, you might not be able to spend on modernization. The more you spend on modernization, you might not be able to afford the capacity. need. So yes, you know, wanting more is clearly the temptation, but the real strategic choices

come in how you do those three things. But even the U.S. with its tremendous defense budget is, as you said, quite limited in resources. And the answer cannot be just more, more and more. Colonel Ken Gleiman, editor-in-chief of the Small World's Journal, professor at Arizona State University. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you. It's a pleasure. A recent Pew Research Center study found that 54% of women say they turn to a friend for emotional support, but only 38% of men say they do. Men's lack of deep, close friendships has been in the spotlight lately. To try to understand more about it, we asked men across the country to tell us what friendship means to them.

and why some of them struggle to maintain social connections with one another. It's about feeling comfortable with somebody enough to be your authentic self. It's somebody that is there for you and you're there for them. I define friendship as being a mutual connection between two people. It's very much a two-way street. I think friendship is definitely harder for men. I don't think men open up as much as they should. For my experience, I think that men are sort of more the type to isolate themselves.

There were a lot of times where I was closer friends with women than I was with men. Sometimes women, you can connect with them better on an emotional level as opposed to men. I think a lot of my male friends mirror my personality. They're softer. They don't feel the need to be headstrong or to compete innately with each other. My best friend, his name is Mateo. I really trust him. It's the type of relationship where we just, there's a mutual vulnerability.

I know it's cliche, but my wife actually is my best friend. With her, it was, there was this natural genuineness. And so it actually helped me open up more with her and to be my genuine self with her. And she was very accepting of everything. Personally, I'm still on the spot where it is hard to make new friends. guess I'd like to see more events going on, more things, more places that people could go just to hang out, whether you know somebody or not. I would definitely welcome more male friendships. I mean, I can't, I got to admit I get

jealous when people hang out with the guys, and I don't really have that sort of dynamic. So why do some men seem to struggle with friendship? Novelist in essay as Sam Graham Felsen recently wrote an essay in the New York Times magazine entitled, Where Have All My Deep Mail Friendships Gone? And Richard Reeves is the CEO of the American Institute for Boys and Men, which focuses on research and policy. Sam, I want to start with you. In your essay, you had a line that struck me.

You said that when you were younger, you had friends that I loved and needed and who loved and needed me and whom now I almost never talked to. What did you learn about how men interact with each other? And also, what did you learn about yourself in doing this? Well, you know, I was aware of the fact that there was a loneliness crisis in this country and that men were hit particularly hard, but I never really accepted that I was one of these data points. I always thought of myself as an exception, somebody who had lots of friends. And then I had kids, I got married, I got busy with work, and days, weeks, sometimes months would go by without seeing a friend. And I finally started to admit to myself that I actually was lonely. And that's kind of the impetus for wanting to write this article, was exploring how did someone like me who I had always seen myself as a hyper-social person, somebody with tons of friends when I was a younger man, how did I get to the point where in my 30s and 40s, I was spending, you know, most weekend nights in my house, not going out, not seeing friends. Richard, do men and women socialize differently? Yeah, that's one of the differences is that men tend to socialize through an activity of one kind or another, right?

tend to socialize somewhat more shoulder to shoulder is how the social scientist put it as opposed to face to face. So whether that's fishing or hiking or watching sports, they need those spaces where men can kind of hang out. Women seem to be a little bit better at just doing face to face, meeting up just to talk to each other. Men tend to need some sort of structure. And so what that means is if those structures fall away,

then that makes just a little bit harder for men. Sam, having acknowledged that you were lonely and written, in this piece. Have you done anything differently in your life since then? So I really did the most basic possible thing you could do. I got over my fear and I just started picking up the phone and calling friends and not only calling friends, but just saying yes to when friends asked me to do something. I mean, it sounds so strange. I love hanging out with my friends, but I can't tell you the number of times in the past when I would come up with some reason, any excuse to not go out. Usually something related to work.

But I've just committed to, if a friend asks me to hang out, I'm going to say yes. Because basically what I've come to realize is that relationships are the most important factor in terms of feeling better and happier. You know, I tried all kinds of things. I tried meditation. I tried, you know, getting in really, really good shape. And all those things helped a little bit, but they didn't cure the fundamental problem, which was loneliness.

And the only thing that cured that was actually starting to hang out more. And it turned out that, you know, my friends were totally eager to get back in touch and start hanging out again. And, you know, might have been awkward for a few minutes. But pretty quickly, we found a groove and ended up, you know, enjoying hanging out again. Sam, I know you've written another essay since then about a road trip you took with your son. You said you talked about masculinity. Did you also talk about friendship? Part of why I wanted to take him on this road trip is because he's now nine.

But we were watching a movie together, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure. And it's a movie about male friendship, but there's a point in the movie where Bill and Ted embrace each other. And then they quickly pull away. And I watched my son react to that. And I've heard him say things like, you know, I used to say to my friends, I love you, but I don't say that anymore because I don't want them to think I'm weird or something. And that just struck me as a kind of sad thing because I have a daughter who's a couple years younger and she has no problem at all saying I love you to her friends. So part of my goal was to teach him resilience and toughness and some of these, quote, unquote, traditional masculine values. But I also wanted to leave room for him to challenge some of the conventions of what we think of as masculine to be the kind of person who can express his feelings openly and tell his friends he loves them.

Richard, on your website, your group's website, you write that broad measures such as overall loneliness, satisfaction with emotional support and the number of close friends, men and women look pretty similar. Take away the gender differences. Is this a societal problem? There are some differences. Men are more likely to be socially isolated than women. And some studies find this friendship gap. But there's really a huge class gap as well. I think it's worth mentioning that. It is really men and women from lower income backgrounds that are kind of struggling the most, actually, with these social connections. But I think this is just a broader question of isolation disconnection. It's easier to stay at home now. And so whilst I really applaud this move in my own life to try and definitely be more open about expressing love and physical affection for male friends, we should also be very careful

not to end up treating men as if actually we can't have some differences in the way that male friendships work. There are differences in the dynamics of male and female friendships, and that's okay. One of the things that really seems to bring men together is when they're doing things for other people. And voluntary organizations all over the U.S. are desperately sure of male volunteers. So maybe one of the ways we can connect with each other is by doing things for others. After I wrote this article, I heard from hundreds of men all across the country who said that they were struggling with this issue. One of the people that I heard from is part of an organization where it starts out being about fitness, but it's morphed into a nationwide movement

of men working out together and then doing community service work together. I think, Sam, this is in a way the win-win, which is to connect through providing service, through purpose. And so there's there's a hunger for connection, but this isn't a selfish desire necessarily. We're also, I think, looking for connections so that we can have a kind of positive impact on the world. Richard Reeves, Sam Graham-Felson. Thank you both very much.

Thank you. Thank you. part of shopping for Halloween candy this year. All that and more is on TikTok.com slash PBS News. And that is PBS News weekend for this Sunday. I'm John Yang for all of my colleagues. Thanks for joining us. Have a good week.