Iran war: World leaders respond to economic impact

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1:18Stock markets rise as President Trump promises the end of the war with Iran within the next three weeks. We get access to the views of people living inside Iran. Also, India's census of its population of 1.4 billion gets underway. Also in this podcast... Russian government doesn't want people to access things on the internet, free speech, doesn't want people to access Western media. Russia clamps down on the social media messaging app Telegram.

1:55As we record this podcast, President Trump is due to address the nation about progress on the war with Iran. Mr. Trump says he's achieved his aim of destroying all of Iran's nuclear capabilities and has promised an end to the conflict within two to three weeks. Because of the effect of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran on the global economy, many countries are already facing economic difficulties and are being forced to bring in measures to try to reduce the impact of rising energy prices. The British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has become the latest world leader to outline a plan responding to the energy crisis, while also referencing long-term shifts in alliances.

2:33It is now clear that the impact of this war will affect the future of our country. In the coming weeks, we will announce a new summit with our EU partners. And I can tell you that at that summit, the UK will not just ratify existing commitments made at last year's summit. We want to be more ambitious, closer economic cooperation, closer security cooperation, a partnership that recognises our shared values, our shared interest and our shared future. In Australia, the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese acknowledged it's difficult to feel positive with the biggest spike in petrol and diesel prices in history and he urged Australians to use less fuel while outlining new measures.

3:21Today we cut the fuel excise in half, cutting the tax on every litre of petrol by 26 cents. Those savings have started showing up at your petrol station. For our truckies, we have cut the heavy vehicle road user charge to zero. Both these measures will be in place for the next three months. We are working to bring the price of fuel down, to make more fuel here and to keep it on shore. Using our strong trading relationships with our region to bring more petrol, diesel and fertiliser to Australia. Our business editor, Simon Jack, looks at how countries can prepare for a period of sustained high prices.

4:04They've got to tackle this head on. Clearly we're seeing a major energy disruption, despite the fact that oil prices have fallen quite sharply today. In fact, they've reached$119 a barrel. They're down at around$103 right now. So it's in big swings in recent days. Nevertheless, some of the supply chains of things like jet fuel, fertilizer, etc., are going to start, and petrol and diesel, are going to start filtering through. Very interesting. Depends where you are in the world as to how strong these messages are. You heard Australia there, you know, try and drive less. You're hearing similar things actually in the EU.

4:39Work from home if you can, fly less. much less much more moderate messages in the uk where people have basically been told to carry on as you are but keep your shopping habits the same you know if you've got half a tank of petrol don't fill it up to full when you wouldn't normally and also on airlines for example again asia very dependent on gulf energy we've seen some emergency measures at korean airlines some surcharges in airlines in australasia and we've seen some creeping messages in europe and the uk saying we're good for now, but six weeks out from now, the pressure points begin to build because those tankers that set sail with things like jet fuel before the conflict are arriving in European refineries now.

5:23So if you like, the gap in the supply chain begins from now. As I say, markets taking some comfort from the fact that Donald Trump says he wants to end this in a couple of weeks. And airlines are saying, you know, we're pretty good till mid May, maybe. but everyone's sort of saying we're monitoring this, we're keeping our own and where we can we'll protect consumers. Nick Marsh, our business correspondent based in Singapore, has been looking at the impact across Southeast Asia. You've got countries across Southeast Asia who are arguably impacted even more than Australia. So I'm thinking about countries such as Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand as well.

6:04all of these countries rely heavily on Middle Eastern oil and gas. I mean, in the Philippines, reserves dwindling by the day. So you've got all kinds of fuel rationing being put in place, directives from the government not to use air conditioning too much, for example. And we've just had Indonesia, which up until now wasn't quite as badly affected as the rest of Southeast Asia bringing in its own emergency regulations. So public employees are being told to work from home on Fridays. Private vehicles can only fill up 50 litres of petrol per day, all with the aim of trying to save fuel and save energy.

6:52Markets in that region rallied after President Trump's latest comments. But how likely is Donald Trump's latest war timeline? I asked our diplomatic correspondent, Paul Adams. Well, look, I think Donald Trump has a peculiar relationship with time. And he admits that and he kind of manipulates and uses that. He sets deadlines and then lets deadlines expire and sets new deadlines. It is all part of keeping everyone guessing. And, you know, that is clearly a part of the strategy. In fact, his defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, said the other day, the point is to be unpredictable. I mean, the problem we have at the moment is we don't quite know exactly what Donald Trump's ambitions are for this war.

7:40He seems to have moved away from the idea of regime change. And he seems also to have moved away from the idea of completely removing all trace of Iran's nuclear program, even though clearly the Americans believe that the damage that is being done will make it impossible for Iran to reconstitute any kind of weapons program in the near future. But as always with Donald Trump, you're never quite sure and we'll have to wait until he speaks much later today to find out if he can put any more flesh on that particular bone. Do you think there's an element of reassuring people in the US and indeed financial markets in the timing of this?

8:19There always is an element of that. And he is notoriously someone who watches those indicators very closely. And it will not have escaped his notice that petrol now on American forecourts has hit$4 a gallon. And that is a pretty significant figure. but the rhetoric that he has employed in the last few days does rather suggest that he wants this to be over sooner rather than later and is prepared if necessary to walk away from some of his sort of maximalist goals in the process. And talking about walking away in a newspaper interview with the British newspaper, Mr Trump has said he's thinking of leaving NATO.

9:01Do you think that shows his dissatisfaction with Western allies? I think it's clearly a fit of pique over the reluctance of many of those allies to get more closely involved and supportive of the war in Iran. I mean, the Trump administration seems to blithely ignore the whole premise for the NATO alliance, which was that it was a defensive alliance where members would spring to the defense of members when they were attacked. And of course, it is America that has done the attacking in this case. And that accounts for the extreme reluctance of a lot of European NATO allies to get more intimately involved.

9:42Paul Adams. And we have more analysis of the economic impact of the conflict on our YouTube channel. Just search for BBC News on YouTube and you'll find Global News Podcast in the podcast section. There's a news story available every weekday. So what do we know about the situation inside Iran itself. Daily bombardments have hit the country's infrastructure and civilians alike. More than 3 ,000 people are reported to have been killed. It's been difficult getting information out of Iran because of the internet shutdown since anti-government protests began in December. BBC Persians Gonchi Habibiazad gathered these recent voices.

10:22I feel like I've been in a purgatory for a month. I can't do anything and everything is up and air. I'm so tired of the war. To be honest, I felt a bit hopeful last night about the war ending and things coming down. Then I saw that Trump might want to target infrastructure. I'm honestly sick of this kind of contradictory talk. I want them to continue striking. I'm tired of this situation. I want the government to go. I got more details about the views of Iranians from Ganchi Habib-Ezzat. Some of them are obviously very worried. They don't know what's going to happen, what Donald Trump is going to say, is he going to end the war, if it's going to continue even harder.

11:06So these people that I'm talking to, they're just a small fraction of what's going on inside the country. It's very, very difficult to contact the outside world under an internet blackout. And some people are connected via Starlink, which is satellite internet. But also using or possessing Stalin in Iran can lead to up to two years in prison. So these people are paying hefty prices to connect. The visa that I'm getting are mostly from the capital Tehran. But I'm seeing even among those who are against the establishment that I'm hearing from, there is a division. Some still support the strike. Some are against it and they just want the war to end.

11:47Some are getting indifferent. friend they're saying that we are going back to our routines we are going to the gym but at the same time it's having an impact on daily life of everyone it's not a normal situation and even though they're some of them are trying to adapt and trying to go back every night in Tehran which has seen the heaviest strike so far they hear the strikes. And what is the impact on their daily life you said some are even going to the gym. We don't hear much about people who have lost their homes or have lost a loved one because of the internet blackout and also threats by the authorities as well.

12:24They have threatened people not to take photos or videos of the places that have been hit, not to send out information to foreign-based media outlets. And also we're seeing mass arrests happening every day of those who have sent videos or photos to foreign outlets. Yes, because executions are still being carried out, aren't they? Of course, the executions related to the recent protests. So to put it into context, Iranians were already, some of them are very fed up with establishment. Thousands have been killed in those protests, according to human rights organizations, more than 7000. But some put the figures even higher.

12:59But then a war happened and it added to that. US President Donald Trump had said that he's coming to the help of these protesters. Some that I'm talking to now that they did participate in the protests are not seeing the current situation as help. And they're worried very much about the country's infrastructure and if an attack happens on them. Ganchi Habibyazad. India is gearing up for one of the world's largest acts of admin, a census for its population of 1.4 billion. National elections in the country can take months and involve the use of boats, helicopters and even elephants to reach remote communities.

13:36The census is potentially an even bigger feat of organisation and is predicted to take a year and involve 3 million support staff. Ambarasan Etharajan told us about the census and its challenges. The geography reaching out from 3 ,200 kilometres from top to bottom, north to south, and to deserts and snow-capped mountains and tribal areas and coastal areas. So reaching out to various communities itself is a big challenge. Now, why this is important? Because India conducts census, basically counting the number of people. It's going beyond that, knowing more about how people live, what kind of house they are living in, whether they have internet access or only mobile phones.

14:22So these are some of the questions that will be asked. It is being conducted in two phases. This one is an online enumeration. And then next year also they will have population count. But this is very important for India to find out how many people are there. Number one, what kind of condition they are living in so that they can frame policies. When they want to send money or announce various projects, it should be based on the number of people and what kind of condition they live in. So it normally happens once in 10 years. The last one was in 2011. But because of the pandemic and then election scheduling, it could not happen.

14:58So that is why this is considered a very key moment for India to get a snapshot of what's happening in the country. And what about the questions, Anbarasan? I mean, will there be questions about caste, you know, the old social system in India that still exists? In about a century, for the first time, they are going to ask about caste. It's a social hierarchy based on religion. So they want to know how many people from different castes are there because India also has what you call affirmative action, reservation in educational institutions and government jobs and in various sectors. Now, if they know what kind of caste group they are living below poverty line or above poverty line, that can help the government planners to come out with policies to benefit such caste groups.

15:47It will also tell you what kind of caste groups are dominant and how many people are there. So it is a massive exercise. And at the same time, some people are concerned whether how this information will be used. And also it can also tell about the huge migratory pattern which has happened in the last 20 years because of the economic growth. And Barisan Etherajan. Moscow is introducing new measures to further control online access in Russia. The main target is the social media messaging app Telegram, founded by two Russian brothers who then moved abroad, which is widely used across the country.

16:23There have been long-standing tensions with the Russian government because Telegram has refused to hand over user data to the authorities. James Kopnell spoke to Russian IT specialist Alexander Izevnin, who's in Moscow, about the level of internet access enjoyed by most Russians. Russian government doesn't want people to access things on the internet, free speech, doesn't want people to access Western media. And we are already in that situation of internet regulation in Russia, that the government could do random things on how they throttle, how they block, how they restrict access to Western resources.

17:03So that's why the situation with internet is unpredictable for ordinary users. What are you expecting then with these efforts to cut back on the Telegram Messaging Act? What's likely to happen, do you think? I think technically nothing new will happen because Telegram is being blocked like it was eight years ago. And people already know how to use Telegram, how to avoid Telegram blockings. So people still using it. Everyone who wants to use it, they still use it. The worst scenario which could be is actually Russian government could declare Telegram a terrorist organization or a desirable organization or something really bad.

17:49That's any communications to Telegram or buying advertisement on Telegram or buy premium subscriptions on Telegram will become illegal in Russia. It will become terrorist-like crime. You mentioned that anyone who wants to use it can. Is that generally the pattern that people have been able to find their way around government restrictions on technology? Content blocking started in Russia like 15 years ago. Originally, it was at the beginning, it was very light, but it became stronger and stronger and people adapted to all the stuff. When there are new restrictions, is the government fairly open about why it's doing it?

18:34I mean, how does the government communicate all this to you? They communicate internet shutdowns or white lists as a measure to protect from Ukrainian drones, because government says they control via internet. And Telegram blocking and other messengers are blocked because terrorists and scammers are using them against Russian citizens. That's how government communicates. It's for sure no one believes in it. So does it mean then that if people can access the sort of apps and Internet sites they want, that there is a certain freedom of speech politically? If you access a Western website, definitely not Russian VKontakte or not Russian messengers.

19:24Yeah, people feel free to express their opinions. But it might not help because there are a lot of criminal cases and a lot of political prisoners who talked on Telegram or who talked on Facebook. And when they got arrested, their devices were searched and this was used as evidence of their relations to terrorism or discreditation of Russian army. Alexander Izevnin. Still to come in this podcast. At Apple, we understand that business as usual isn't anymore. That's why we make the most advanced personal computers in the world. They've come a long way. Apple celebrates its 50th anniversary. We find out what's next.

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22:12South Africa is deploying more than 2 ,000 soldiers to support police in a crackdown on organised crime, illegal mining and gang violence. The operation started on Wednesday and took place across three provinces. The government says the operation is aimed at restoring order in areas where crime has remained persistently high. But critics warn that using the military in civilian policing rarely delivers lasting results. Pamza Falani reports from Johannesburg. Now to strengthen our fight against gang violence, I will be deploying the South African National Defence Force to support the police. In a country where many communities feel under siege from violent crime, President Cyril Ramaphosa's move to deploy troops is being seen by some as a sign the government is getting tough on criminal networks.

23:07Soldiers will be sent to five of South Africa's nine provinces for up to a year. For many, the sight of armoured vehicles and armed troops on the streets is still deeply unfamiliar. One of the last major deployments came during the country's strict COVID-19 lockdown, when soldiers enforced curfews and restrictions. But that operation drew sharp criticism, with reports that soldiers were using excessive force, unlawfully detaining and harassing civilians. Security experts warn the military is trained for combat, not for the kind of community-based policing needed to build trust. And so some are skeptical about their return.

23:50And there's also history to contend with. the apartheid regime used the military to enforce their rule, a legacy that still shapes how some South Africans view soldiers on their streets today. We're in El Dorado Township, south of Johannesburg. One of the main problems in this community is gang-related violence, as well as a huge drug problem. We've come to find out from the community what they think about having the military and armored vehicles rolling through their streets. This place, Sodom and Gomorrah, has got no say yet. It's just a hellhole. The babies are here. I don't ever leave them.

24:34Because the fear of just something happening when I'm absent and then what happens to them, I know obviously automatically. I can't depend on the police. There's too much going on, so no one is assisting or helping. They're making things worse. Gang violence is not unique to this community. In Cape Town, police admit they are overwhelmed as shootings linked to gangs continue to claim lives, with bystanders including children often caught in the crossfire. Joint police-military operations could become more common, at least until the deep drivers of crime, poverty and unemployment are addressed.

25:14Here's defense expert Dr Guy Lam. The worry is that there isn't really a dedicated plan to try and address why crime is so violent in these sort of places. So we're likely to see this happening into the foreseeable future because this plan of addressing what are the root causes of crime in these high crime areas is not in place. The government says the troops have received additional training for this mission. And for some residents living with daily gunfire, the calculation is simple. Any sense of safety, however temporary, may be better than none. Pamza Filani Apple is celebrating its 50th anniversary after decades of the tech giant giving the world computers, phones, watches, headphones and much more.

26:01The company's success is often attributed to its product sleek design and Apple's focus on innovation. But as David Pogue, who's written a book about the company, told Justin Webb, there's a lot more going on behind the scenes. I think Tim Cook's, the CEO Tim Cook's thing has always been, I'm not a product guy. I'll never be Steve Jobs dreaming up new inventions. But what I can do is squeeze all the juice out of what we have. So he, for example, built up Apple's ability to make his own chips. He multiplied the number of iPhones available. and Tim Cook has made Apple into a services company, Apple Pay, Apple Music, Apple TV and all that stuff.

26:42He's also been very careful about his relationship with Donald Trump, hasn't he? People who don't like Donald Trump have been surprised. I don't know if it's closeness to Donald Trump or his manipulation of Donald Trump. In other words, Trump was threatening these devastating tariffs that would have driven up the cost of an iPhone to$3 ,000. So my take on it is Cook did an extremely pragmatic, practical, almost manipulative maneuver and handed Trump a trophy. And I don't know if people can have their own opinions about whether it was worth it to violate his own personal principles to do that. But it did work.

27:23I mean, the tariffs never happened. What has Apple got wrong? Oh, man. I mean, Apple's history is strewn with failure. I mean, the first, the Apple I was not much of a seller. They sold 150 of those. The Apple II was a huge hit. Six million introduced the whole world to personal computers. But then the next three failed. Apple recently spent$10 billion and a decade working on the Apple car. They never got there on that one. So most of the things Apple does, you never hear of because they get canceled before they reach the finish line. So its future is what do you think? I think its future is very solid, if only because two and a half billion people are carrying around Apple devices right now.