Donald Trump and a dangerous ultimatum
From Our Own Correspondent
BBC
4.4 • 1.3K Ratings
🗓️ 11 April 2026
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Kate Adie introduces stories on President Trump's threats towards Iran, how the war in Ukraine has reshaped Kyiv, why the Trump family sees potential in Albania, Indonesia's plastic waste problem, and the dawn of the year 2976 in Morocco.
Citizens of Iran and nearby gulf countries held their breath this week after Donald Trump threatened 'a whole civilisation would die' if a ceasefire wasn’t agreed. The BBC’s State Department correspondent Tom Bateman has been following the proclamations of an unpredictable president.
The BBC's Vitaly Shevchenko is originally from Ukraine and recently returned home for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion began in 2022. While there, he saw how the war has reshaped Kyiv, and how the town of Bucha is recovering from the massacre which took place at the start of the conflict.
The white sands of the Albanian Rivera are catching the eye of global property developers - President Trump’s daughter, Ivanka, and her husband Jared Kushner among them. The country is being touted as the next must-visit destination, but there are environmental concerns finds Emily Wither.
Indonesia's tourist hot spots and remote beaches alike are being hit by waves plastic waste., with videos of floating rubbish tips going viral. Rebecca Henschke saw the plastic problem up close while snorkelling in once pristine waters.
The Amazigh are North Africa’s most-populous indigenous group, having inhabited the region for centuries before Arab migrations. With long-standing traditional customs, the Amazigh also have their own calendar. Peter Yeung travelled to the Atlas Mountains to welcome in the year 2976.
Series Producer: Serena Tarling Production Coordinators: Katie Morrison and Sophie Hill Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | Hello. Today we're in Kiev, where our correspondent discovers how the war has reshaped the city in the four years since he last went home. |
| 0:15.8 | Albania's pristine coastline is prime real estate for the tourism industry, and the Trump family has big plans. |
| 0:24.6 | We go snorkeling in a coral reef in Indonesia, a once idyllic experience increasingly spoiled by the growing piles of plastic waste. |
| 0:34.9 | And finally, in Morocco, we join the indigenous Amazir people to celebrate the |
| 0:40.1 | new year of 2,976. But first, citizens of Iran and nearby Gulf countries held their |
| 0:49.2 | breath this week after President Donald Trump threatened a whole civilization would die if a ceasefire wasn't agreed by Tuesday evening. |
| 0:59.0 | At the 11th hour, news came through that an agreement had been reached, |
| 1:03.4 | though there were conflicting reports from the US and Iran over what that really meant. |
| 1:09.0 | But peace talks are going ahead in Pakistan this weekend. |
| 1:13.1 | Tom Bateman, the BBC State Department correspondent, |
| 1:16.1 | has been following events from Washington |
| 1:17.9 | and the proclamations of an increasingly unpredictable commander-in-chief. |
| 1:24.0 | All wars are also propaganda wars, |
| 1:26.5 | and in this one, the information blitz has felt close up inside the beating heart of American military power. |
| 1:33.1 | Since the first week of the conflict, I've been attending the Pentagon News briefings given by Pete Hegseth, the former National Guard major, turned Fox News pundit, turned Trump-appointed U.S. Secretary of Defense, a job rebranded by |
| 1:46.2 | the President to the Secretary of War. The briefings take place first thing in the morning, lest they |
| 1:51.8 | interfere with the President's daily, sometimes hourly appearances in front of the media at the White |
| 1:56.6 | House. A. 6.30am, arrival at the Pentagon, ready ready to be wristbanded and badged and put into a seat |
| 2:02.9 | with your name on it. These events have been highly choreographed and controlled by Mr. Hexeth's |
| 2:08.5 | press and security people. Front row seats and questions are nearly always prioritised for media |
| 2:14.4 | outlets who have signed up to a restrictive set of conditions, which bar reporters |
| 2:19.1 | from seeking any information in the Pentagon that has not been officially authorized. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from BBC, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of BBC and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.