North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has announced plans to expand the country’s nuclear arsenal at ‘an exponential rate’, according to state media reports.

His announcement comes as China’s president, Xi Jinping, is making his first visit to Pyongyang this week since 2019 – the same year Donald Trump met Kim Jong Un several times for failed talks on denuclearisation.

We speak to the BBC’s Celia Hatton about why China might now be trying to keep North Korea in check.

New episodes of The Global Story are released daily. If you’re in the UK, listen on BBC Sounds. If you live outside the UK, listen on BBC.com or wherever you get your podcasts.

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00:00 Introduction
01:13 The changing ways North Korea is portrayed
02:51 China’s ‘big brother’ relationship with North Korea
06:13 North Korea’s path to nuclear weapons and why they wanted one
09:27 Donald Trump’s attempts to engage North Korea
14:05 Kim Jong Un’s relationship with Vladimir Putin
17:07 China’s anxieties around North Korea and the wider region
20:03 How Russia have impacted China’s relationship with North Korea
21:25 Why Donald Trump has changed track on North Korea’s nuclear programme

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Debutants Cape Verde produced one of the biggest 2026 World Cup shocks of recent times by holding Spain to a goalless draw in Atlanta.

The third-smallest country in terms of population to qualify for a World Cup, Cape Verde were 67th in Fifa’s latest rankings and many expected them to be swept aside by second-ranked Spain in their opening Group H contest.

But what does their recent success mean for the small island off the coast of West Africa?

00:00 – Intro
00:38 – The nation that shocked the world
01:23 – Quickfire questions about Cape Verde
02:15 – How did they shock Spain?
03:39 – The tactics behind the upset
06:08 – What could this mean for Cape Verde?

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The deal to end the war has already been signed electronically by the US and Iran, and details of the Memorandum of Understanding will be released publicly in “24 to 48 hours”, a US official said.

US President Donald Trump said a formal signing ceremony, attended by Vice-President JD Vance, will happen in Switzerland on Friday.

Trump said the deal includes the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and the end of the US naval blockade on Iranian ports.

A senior US official said that Israel’s withdrawal from Lebanon is not part of the deal. A spokesperson for Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said ending the conflict in Lebanon is a pivotal part of the framework agreement Iran and the US reached.

Oil prices have fallen and shares risen after the US and Iran said they had agreed a framework deal to end the war.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, dropped more than 5% to $82.84 (£61.70) a barrel, while global stock markets rose.

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The Red Cross said it could take a year to end the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

A dozen of healthcare workers sang songs of praise on Friday, as they escorted a patient, who has recovered from the disease, out of a hospital in the north-east of the country.

More than 780 people have been infected with the desease and more than 180 have died.

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Follow our coverage of Andy Burnham’s victory in the Makerfield by-election.

He won almost 25,000 votes, beating Reform UK’s Robert Kenyon by more than 9,000 votes.

The result paves the way for him to challenge Keir Starmer as Labour Party leader

We’ll bring you analysis and reaction throughout the day.

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