Reuters World News - US-Iran talks, Rubio and Draco Malfoy

Episode Date: February 15, 2026

Iran signals flexibility ahead of Tuesday’s Geneva nuclear talks. Israeli strikes Gaza over alleged ceasefire violations ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's Peace Board meeting. Designer Michael Kors celebrates the brand's 45th anniversary at New York Fashion Week with a celeb-packed audience. A Carnival tribute to Brazil's president sparks political backlash. Plus, Draco Malfoy becomes an unlikely Lunar New Year good‑luck icon in China. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hi, I'm your weekend host, Sharon Raich Garson. It's Sunday, February 15th. Today. Iran signals flexibility on its nuclear program ahead of talks with the U.S. on Tuesday. Israel carries out strikes in Gaza ahead of Trump's Peace Board meeting. Russia turns to India to fill its labor gaps. And Draco Malfoy's connection to the Chinese Lunar New Year. This is Reuters World News, bringing you everything you need to know from the front lines in 10 minutes, seven days a week. Iran and the U.S. are heading into critical nuclear talks in Geneva this Tuesday, with Tehran now putting energy, mining, and even aircraft deals on the table. Iranian officials say they're ready to compromise on parts of their nuclear program if Washington offers real economic returns.

they're pointing to potential dilution of highly enriched uranium as proof of that flexibility. This comes as President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have agreed that the U.S. would push to curb Iran's oil exports to China. That's according to Axios. China buys more than 80 percent of Iran's oil, and any cut would reduce Tehran's revenues. Beijing is pushing back its foreign ministry saying its cooperation with Iran is leadership. and it should be respected. At least 11 people are dead after Israeli airstrikes across northern and southern Gaza, with one strike hitting a tent camp for displaced families.

That's according to Palestinian civil defense and health officials. Israel says the strikes are a response to what it calls multiple ceasefire violations by Hamas, claims including that Hamas fighters emerged from tunnels near the yellow line buffer zone. Gaza's health ministry says more than 600, Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire deal began. The strikes come just days before U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to convene a meeting for the Board of Peace, which is also expected to raise funds for the Gaza Project. And elsewhere on the diplomatic front, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is in Eastern Europe, working to strengthen ties with Slovakian Hungary,

to conservative governments that have close ties with Donald Trump, but often clash with other EU countries. Rubio's pushing for deeper energy cooperation and NATO commitments, as both governments maintain ties with Moscow and by Russian oil and gas. And he's also weighing in on a new report from five European allies that blames Russia for killing Alexei Navalny with a rare poison taken from dart frogs. We're aware of that case at Mr. Navalny, and certainly it's, you know, we don't have any reason to question it or we're not disputing or getting into a fight with these countries over it. Rubio calls the findings, quote, troubling and says Washington has no reason to doubt them. The joint analysis from Britain, France, Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands says samples from Navalny's body conclusively showed the presence of the exotic toxin. Moscow's dismissing the claim as a Western hoax, according to Russia's state news agency, Tass. Over to Brazil now, where Carnival is turning political, and President Luisinacio Lula de Silva

is right at the center of it. A samba school in Rio has built its big parade around Lula's life story. But opposition parties say that looks like a legal early campaigning ahead of the October election. Most of the complaints about the parade have already been thrown out by the courts. One case, though, is still pending. That election is expected to weigh on markets. With one analyst warning, Alula victory could be, quote, quite negative for prices. To take a look at what's happening in global markets right now, check out our sister podcast, Reuters Morning Bid. The link is in the pod description.

A textile factory near Moscow, producing curtains and bed linen. Operating the sewing machines are people who've traveled thousands of miles to get the work. My name is Gorov. I'm from India. My age is 23 years old. Gov is one of an increasing number of workers from India and Sri Lanka, filling vacancies across Russia. The choice of India for unskilled labor underlines the strong ties between, the countries, as Andrew Osborne in Moscow explains. India is one of the big sources of labor that it is targeting at the moment. I mean, if we look at the figures before the war in Ukraine, in 2021, Russia was issuing around

5,000 work permits for Indian nationals. Now, last year, that figure rocketed and was actually closer to about 72,000. So that's a huge increase. It's a relatively new trend, and it means that, you know, for the first time in many years, we're seeing Indian nationals working on farms, in textile factories, sweeping the snow from streets and in shops. Andrew says the war is taking a toll from pulling men to the front lines and into military factories to exposing demographic strains caused by the low birth. birth rates of the 1990s. Those strains, he says, also frame Russia's growing reliance on India. U.S. President Donald Trump, who of course we know has been, is very keen, has been trying

to broker a peace deal to end the war in Ukraine. He has been piling pressure on India to stop buying Russian oil. And Russia, of course, has been listening to all of this at the same time as it's been flying in these Indian workers. And so far, so far, it has said that India is abiding by, you know, all of its agreements and it's playing down the prospect that anything could derail the friendship between Moscow and New Delhi. We're going to leave Moscow there and turn now to New York, where Fashion Week is underway. And that means crowded sidewalks, flashing cameras, as big names like Ralph Lauren, Carolina Herrera and Michael Coors are pulling in packed rooms, and younger designers are grabbing fresh attention, too.

Organizers have been trying to streamline the week after a dip in sponsorships. And they're even helping cover some of the venue costs for smaller brands. I wanted to get a sense of the New York Fashion Week energy, so I called TV producer Alicia Powell and caught her before the Michael Kores show. Hey, Alicia. So set the scene for us. What's the atmosphere like this year? Sharon, you're right. I am at Michael Coors, where he is celebrating 45 years in business, and he's doing this at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center. Now he's going to have some celebrity friends here to help him do that, Uma Thurman, Ben Platt, Mary J. Blige, and a host of

others that will be a surprise to some of us. And in terms of the energy that you asked about, people are happy. They're cold, but they're happy to be here and to see what's the latest for fall 2026. Okay, now talk to me about the trends looking across the runways so far. What are you seeing come through this season? When it comes to trends, we are seeing Tweed, which is expected for fall, but also Browns, Brown and evening wear, day wear. We saw this at Ralph Lauren, a little bit at public school. Public school was heavy on the leather, which is another trend we're seeing, either buttery smooth leather or pebble leather. We're also seeing an embanky. We're also seeing an This is either crystals or sequins and floral.

Florals in black lace, but also pretty pastels. Let's switch gears. Remember Draco Malfoy, the kid at Hogwarts who made Harry Potter's life miserable? Well, forget all that for a second, because in China, for Lunar New Year, he's gotten a surprising rebrand. Malfoy's surname in Mandarin translates to horse and fortune. And in the year of the horse, that basically turns him into a good luck charm. So his face, or rather that of actor Tom Felton, is everywhere.

Plastered on bright red holiday decorations, posters, even phone covers. And Felton's noticed he's been sharing the memes and articles about it on his Instagram story. For more on any of the stories from today, check out Reuters.com or the Reuters app. Don't forget to follow us on your favorite podcast player. And if you're listening on a smart speaker, just ask for the latest news from Reuters seven days a week. We'll be back tomorrow with our daily headline show.