US defends its deal with Iran
6/18/202648 min
Donald Trump says he expects a ceasefire to take effect "on all fronts", including between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon while Vice President JD Vance says the memorandum signed with Tehran is already bearing fruit and insisted that Washington holds the cards in coming negotiations. Meanwhile, a message attributed to Iran's Supreme Leader says that Tehran will not submit to any excessive demands.
Also in the programme: why one critic calls Barack Obama's Presidential Centre a 'Klingon Prison'; and how Nigerian sisters born conjoined at the head are enjoying life after pioneering surgery assisted by artificial intelligence.
(Photo: US Vice President JD Vance speaks to the media about the Iran-US memorandum of understanding in the White House Briefing Room in Washington, DC, USA Credit: JIM LO SCALZO/EPA/Shutterstock)
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First 90 secondsSpeaker 10:00
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Tristan Redmond0:03
[upbeat music] Who's actually won the Iran war? I'm Tristan Redmond.
Asma Khalid0:10
And I'm Asma Khalid, and together we host The Global Story podcast from the BBC. The US and Iran say they've struck a deal to end the war.
Tristan Redmond0:19
But a key question is what's actually been achieved by nearly four months of fighting, and is the situation better, worse, or the same for the region and Iran?
Asma Khalid0:29
For the full story, check out The Global Story on bbc.com or wherever you get your podcasts.
Shaun Ley· Host0:34
[upbeat music] Hello, and welcome to News Hour from the BBC World Service. We're coming to you live from the BBC studios in London. I'm Shaun Ley. It's very good to have your company this hour. The Palace of Versailles was not perhaps the happiest choice of venue for US President Donald Trump to sign the memorandum of understanding with Iran. In the decadent, declining years of France's monarchy, it was home to an elite entirely detached from the harsh reality of French life. Later, in 1919, it was where Europe's victorious powers carved up the defeated empires of Europe and the Middle East, arguably laying the groundwork for future wars. Thus far, the response of the president's party back home has been muted. John Cornyn, the majority leader in the Republican-controlled Senate, remarked that no deal was better than a bad deal. Hardly an enthusiastic