rico hizon in singapore. thanks for joining us. our top stories. after the phone call, jelly‘s alliance with the united states hit its lowest point in their codes. —— australia's alliance. mrjohn says he loves australia and will accept the deal to take refugees. —— mr trump. james mattis reassures the leader of south korea that the alliance between the two countries remained strong. i'm kasia madera in london. why cities across romania experiencing the biggest demonstration since the fall of communism? and trading places, it china ready to the chance —— united states and take the lead in a new world order? live from our studios in singapore and london. this is bbc world news. its newsday. it's 8am in singapore,

midnight in london and seven pm in washington where president trump has again defended his controversial travel ban — on people from seven mainly muslim countries — and insisted that america was being ‘taken advantage of by every nation in the world'. he said he'd had a series of ‘tough phone calls' with various world leaders — including a less than diplomatic exchange with the australian prime minister — over a deal to bring a group of mostly muslim refugees to the us. our north america editor jon sopel reports. the trappings of office is impressive. the reality is burdensome. last night, the president trump and daughter ever car returned to the us. there was a military operation in yemen. the

first one ordered by america's first commander in chief. at a prayer brea kfast commander in chief. at a prayer breakfast this morning in washington, that experience seemed to weigh heavy. greater love hath no man than this than a man laid down his life for his friends. we will never forget the his life for his friends. we will neverforget the men his life for his friends. we will never forget the men and women who wear the uniform, believe me. but overwhelmingly, the tone of a foreign policy is abrasive. when you hear about the tough phonecalls i'm having, don't worry about it. just don't worry about it. they are tough. it's time we have to be a bit tough. it's time we have to be a bit tough. we are being taken at vantage of from every nation in the world, virtually. it is not going to happen any more. in the past day, we have seen a warning shot fired towards a run. sellar putting iran on notice. thank you. details about what happened to be at shouting match between he and australian premier mr

malcolm turnbull. it was about refugees that america would not take. and mexico, a warning he would send troops across the border if the authorities didn't deal with the bad hombres, as he called him. rex tillerson took up his post today. what was striking was how much more can sell a tree he was. no one will tolerate disrespect of anyone. before we are employees of the state department, we are human beings first. let us extend respect to each other. especially when we may disagree. it's too soon to say what a donald trump foreign policy will look like. yes, we had what he said that we are yet to see what he will do. what we do know is that he will continue to take aim at anything or anyone who gets in his way. even arnold schwarzenegger, his successor on the apprentice. and i want to

just pray for arnold if we can, for those ratings. it brought a swift response from terminator.‘ those ratings. it brought a swift response from terminator. a good great idea. why don't we switch jobs? why don't you take over tv because you are an expert in ratings. i would take over yourjob and people can finally sleep co mforta bly and people can finally sleep comfortably again. and just in the last five minutes, the white house chief of staff said that the president's chief strategist, steve bannon, had ‘productive meeting' with australian ambassador at white house. if we get anything more, we will bring you up to date. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. thousands of people are protesting for the second night in romania, after the government pledged to release dozens of officials charged with corruption. more than 250,000 people have been out on the streets against the measure. these are the biggest protests since the 1989 fall of communism.

the bbc‘s nick thorpe is among the crowds. this is victoria square in bucharest. it is home to the romanian government but it is also the focal point of these daily protests here in romania. the people are angry and they are turning out in their tens of thousands to try to get the government to withdraw the decree which was passed very rapidly on tuesday night. 0ne decree which was passed very rapidly on tuesday night. one of the favourite chance of the ground here is "phoebs." —— thieves. the bill was in the past two months ago and it has legitimacy. the people here say there are only eight days before the decree comes into force and they will stay on the street every day until that decree is cancelled. a remarkable stand—off, putting the

protesters, the proximal —— prosecutors and the government. also making news today — a tokyo court has begun hearings in the case of a man who developed leukaemia after working as a welder injapan's damaged fukushima nuclear site. the 42 year old is the first person to be recognised by the japanese labour authorities, as having an illness linked to the radiation that leaked from the site, after it was hit by an earthquake and tsunami. the man is suing the tokyo electric power company, which operated the nuclear reactors. the united states has condemned russia's aggressive actions in the ukraine where renewed violence has erupted between moscow backed rebels and ukrainian government forces. in her first public remarks to the un security council, the new us ambassador to the un, nikki haley, says the us stands with the people

of ukraine. the british government has published a document setting out more details of its plans for the brexit negotiations. the brexit secretary, david davis, told members of parliament that changes would be phased in gradually. and that the uk would not find itself on the edge of a cliff. prosecutors in france have widened their investigation into the financial affairs of the centre—right presidential candidate, francois fillon, to include payments made to two of his children. he's been under increasing pressure to step down over allegations that he paid his wife, penelope, a large salary as a parliamentary assistant, despite little evidence of any such work. these underweight animals are the only ones left in mosul‘s nour park zoo in iraq. when military advances began in mosul, the zoo was turned into a staging ground for islamic state. these animals haven't been fed for weeks. but now volunteers sent by the kurdistan organisation

for animal rights protection have brought the first substantial amounts of food to the former zoo in a month. throughout the fighting local people had been bringing what food they could spare. more on our top story, the us president donald trump and the australian prime minister malcolm turnbull are said to have had an acrimonious phone—call about a refugee resettlement deal. well, a short time earlier i spoke to ashley townshend, a research fellow at united states studies centre at the university of sydney. i started by asking him what impact this row would have on the us—australian relationship. i think this is exactly the sort of way that the united states should

not manage a difficult issue in the alliance with australia. 0ne not manage a difficult issue in the alliance with australia. one of trump's tweets after a press statement was released from the australian consulate, saying, essentially, the two sides had agreed that the refugee deal would go ahead. to then tweet it was a bad deal and review it and then at the end of the day to wrap up and say it will be on. it is an area of disagreements and dirty laundry that should have been publicly —— done privately rather than the public limelight. i don't think this will have an impact on the alliance itself. it has been reassuring to see the number of high—level us officials, not least senatorjohn mccain, to come out in support of the us australia alliance but there isa the us australia alliance but there is a something of public opinion in australia that this could be damaging. donald trump is 76% unpopular in australia. they might find it more difficult to prod the alliance along when they do not trust the us leader and when he does

hang out the italian prime minister to dry like this. and it is notjust australia. mr trump has also been ruffling feathers across asia, even accusing south korea and japan for not being enough for us military support and now we have james mattis vitis —— visiting the superpowers in asia. how do you think this will play out? that's right. mattis is there to deliver to messages. he was to reassure the us commitment. he has caught the commitment is ironclad to south korea and japan. he is there to mop up the mess that trump made during the election campaign when he said that these we re campaign when he said that these were bad deals as well. his second shift is more difficult. he needs to convince asian allies that donald trump is not go to inject an unprecedented level of uneasiness with us and china. north korea, the

south china sea, that military present in asia, he is go to press ha rd present in asia, he is go to press hard on china. for countries that live with china and trade with china, this is uncomfortable and it needs to be said to trump privately that allies in the region are genuine supporters of the us but have concerns with the way he is conducting policy with china. if there's one common thread amid president trump's international disputes it's that, if you're on the receiving end of his attacks, it seems like the most important conflict in the world. take mexico. you'll remember that mr trump came out swinging at america's southern neighbour when he announced his candidacy, and the jabs keep coming. the bbc‘s will grant looks at how that is playing out. mexicans famously love their soap operas. the latest big release, the double life, is a tale of cross—border immigration, music

business and money laundering. the past two weeks have seen more drama than even the most outlandish of storylines. when it comes to life imitating art, everything is therefore a good plot. a powerful villain which for most mexicans is being played by donald trump. the dashing hero, the role coveted by the mexican president, and of course, the criminal mastermind, el chapo. in reality, us and mexican politics no longer follow linear script. mexicans are deeply offended by president trump's order to extend the border wall and the idea of taxing mexican exports to pay for it. small businesses like this american—style rather shop in mexico city are already struggling amid the faltering economy. translation: 0ne of .0ne of . one of the barbers says he worked

until he was laid off recently. the president has long been criticised in mexico as a reality tv politician. his approval ratings hover a round to single digits. he might benefit from the conflict with the president trump. in the last few weeks, there has been the rally are around the flag type of phenomena in. it has actually been getting the applause of much of the mexican elite. there are protests against his much loathed energy reform which raised the price of petrol at the pumps. whether soap opera, tragedy oi’ pumps. whether soap opera, tragedy orfaster, pumps. whether soap opera, tragedy or faster, the pumps. whether soap opera, tragedy orfaster, the air in mexico has taken a dramatic twist with donald trump in the white house. small businesses and farmers are already angry at the government for recent

fuel price hikes and now they are concerned about what any future hit the economy will be in for them and theirfamilies. the the economy will be in for them and their families. the business internet is concerned, too. it doesn't get much bigger than this. 0ne doesn't get much bigger than this. one of the richest people in the world, he boasts more financial clout than donald trump and warns the new us president against protectionism. translation: he is an intelligent man and we hope that he will understand it is not the way to go. because it is clear they take back all manufacturing to the united states. that may generate a few thousand jobs but prices will rise for 325 million americans. in the hours before president trump was inaugurated, the world's most notorious drug lord, el chapo, was extradited to the united states. some have interpreted the move as a gift from the mexican government to the new us administration. a message they can work together on security issues. ironically, el chapo is

exactly the kind of bad hombre that mrtrump exactly the kind of bad hombre that mr trump says the wall is supposed to keep out. we live from london and singapore. still to come the programme. 0ur china editor considers if china will step up to the plate in the changing world order. aussies call it a bottle of "shiraz" and the french say "syrah" but where does the grape really come from? this is the moment millions in iran have been waiting for. the first steps of ayatollah khamenei on iranian soil. the ban on the african nation of congress has been lifted immediately. the leader, nelson

mandela, after 27 years injail, is to be set free unconditionally. the aircraft is returning from belgrade where manchester united entered the semi—final of the european world cup. two americans have become the first humans to walk in space without any lifelines on their one of them called it a piece of cake the thousands of people have given ellen macarthur a spectacular homecoming. that is after she smashed the world record for sailing solo around the world non—stop. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm in kasia in london. our top stories: after president trump and prime minster malcolm turnball‘s difficult phone call, reports that the australiam ambassador has had a productive meeting at the white house. and the us defence secretary, james mattis, also smooths the way

with south korea, before heading to japan. and this is one of the stories trending on the bbc website at the moment. hundreds of thousands of romanians have joined a third night of demonstrations against a decree that will decriminalise some forms of corruption. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the front page of financial times has president trump on his phone. details of trump's not so diplomatic conversation with australian prime minister has dominated the international news agenda. but trump has told americans not to worry, and says "it's time america got a little tough." the philippine star reports on a new investigation over the extra—judicial killings of drug dealers. as international pressure increases, reports that policemen were given incentives for every drug suspect killed as part of the so—called "cleansing process" are to be looked into. le figaro shows a picture of a painting by picasso ina museum. the article explains how france's most famous artist is continuing to be the star attraction for many of the galleries in france and other european countries.

now, rico, we covered this on yesterday's newsday, but it seems people online cannot get enough of beyonce's good news. that is right. congratulations to her and jay z. beyonce has been sharing more pictures from her elaborate photoshoot celebrating becoming pregnant with twins. posted on her website, they show the superstar in a number of poses swimming underwater. five—year—old daughter, blue ivy, alsojoined in, holding flowers and checking out mum's bump. such wonderful pictures.

in the era of trump's "america first," will china step up to become the global leader? with its rapidly growing economy and strengthening military, some see china taking on a new role of world leadership. the bbc‘s china editor, carrie gracie, gives her assessment. in the new donald trump era, strange things are happening. is the world is turning upsidedown? this white house is in beijing. and this theme parkis house is in beijing. and this theme park is a good place to ask whether china and the us are changing places. america once defined itself asa places. america once defined itself as a melting pot for immigrants. it forged alliances in europe and asia,

and built the capitalist system. it was always china that was the prickly protectionist power. but now the rhetoric is reversed. so, what about the other pillar of the old world order, europe? brexit, a refugee crisis, and before that, an economy crisis. europe, according to some analysts, is in steep decline. is russia china's rivalfor global leadership? no. moscow is too busy with its economic problems and its european borders to trouble its giant neighbour in the east. india could be a problem. its population

will soon outstrip china's. and it is making friends with other asian powers who are wary of beijing. but it is hard to compete on the money. china's economy is five times as big, and it is spending nearly $1 trillion to build infrastructure and influence around the world. so, if the way is clear, will china step up to lead? i don't think so. from outside, china looks rich. but at home, it has problems. if president trump has the slogan make america great again then president xi jinping has the great rejuvenation of the chinese nation. and that is exactly how far chinese ambition goes. carrie gracie there. iran once had a thriving wine culture centred around the city of shiraz but it was forced underground with the creation of the islamic republic in 1979.

bbc persian reporter anahita shams has been travelling the world to find out if there's a link between the ancient shiraz wine of iran and the shiraz wine the rest of the world drinks today. this museum in the united states is home to the oldest chemically tested wine jar home to the oldest chemically tested winejar in the home to the oldest chemically tested wine jar in the world. it is from iran, and it is more than 7000 years old. mostly towards the bottom you will see, you know, very small areas of rubbish material which i was given permission by the testing committee of the museum to test a small sample. we did an analysis and we re small sample. we did an analysis and were able to determine that in fact were able to determine that in fact we have a wine jar. the wine culture of iran is an ancient one. through the centuries, tales of persian wine

we re the centuries, tales of persian wine were spread by french travellers who worked for the persian king. what is historically certain is from the 16th century we started production of good and fine wine. the wine of shiraz. it was well attested in documents. that since the beginning of the 17th century. so, where else do we investigated by france? flying over the valley a few kilometres south of lyon. behind me and the wynya rd south of lyon. behind me and the wynyard is with their historical chapels. —— wineya rd. wynyard is with their historical chapels. —— wineyard. legend has it that it was created from a persian vine brought by a knight from the

crusades. so, could this wine come from iran? a dna test showed the proof. it was done in 1998 by two different laboratory is. it ended in the discovery of the parents of shiraz. grapes, like humans, had a mother and father. it was a surprise to find that shira is a natural and spontaneous crossing between two local vines from this area. so, there is no persian link to france. but, there is to the napa valley in california where shira grapes are grown. this man from shiraz calls his wine shiraz. i remember my father making it, for a hobby, not for a job, father making it, for a hobby, not forajob, andi father making it, for a hobby, not forajob, and i rememberthe grapes. i put them in a big clay vat. i was going to put it on top of

that clay vat. i would smell and enjoy the wine and sometimes had a sip. he left iran. he created the persian culture in his adopted homeland, anti— ancient tradition that lives on. anahita shams, bbc news, california. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. we'll be looking at one of the biggest share sales in years in which the owner of the messaging app, snapchat, is hoping to raise billions of dollars. and we'll end this edition of newsday by paying tribute to a rather eccentric way of predicting the weather in the united states. and this teacher in the united states has a unique handshake for every single student he has. look at what is making the rounds on line. good evening. the winds have been

the talking weather point today. although all of us have had rain. severe gales went up through the irish sea. under this area of cloud, low pressure. this is the next big area of pressure that will develop into friday. still a few hours of severe gales up to the irish sea. the east coast of northern ireland seeing large waves. this is how it looked off the coast of belfast during the afternoon. in contrast, quiet further east. a windy day across the board, windier than it has been. the east will see strong winds through friday. windy nights. further showers to come. that should hold temperatures up. the odd valley where we see temperatures go into single figures. three or four. already you can see the next massive amount of rain gathering. remnants of rain in the northern. it clears away for a decent day in scotland and northern ireland but rain piles into the south—west driven by a

severe gale force winds. that will go east. more likely that eastern areas will have a windy day than we have had today. temperatures are not quite as high to be that is important. we will go in towards the southern half of the country. we we re southern half of the country. we were talking about the winds. stormy for northern france and the channel islands with 80 miles an hour winds. 74 islands with 80 miles an hour winds. 7a coastal areas. heavy rain with the wind. snowy in the hills of wales and northern england. does winds can be disruptive in the south—east and east anglia because we have not had those strengths during the day. —— those. it goes north during the night. another low pressure system on its hills. mostly rainfor pressure system on its hills. mostly rain for it. between those weather systems, dry and bright weather around. it will not be as mild as it has been this week. six, seven, eight. four degrees down on recent

days. saturday night sees the weather system just trundling up the north sea. it will stay in eastern scotla nd north sea. it will stay in eastern scotland at this stage. a dry day here and for northern ireland and much of england and wales to be the southis much of england and wales to be the south is most at risk on sunday. a chilly start. perhaps frost on sunday morning. a top story. after a bruising phone call with australia's malcolm turnbull, donald trump has clarified his position about that refugee resettlement deal. the president says that he loves australia and will respect the deal done by the above administration to take refugees being held in offshore detention centres in the pacific. the us defence secretary james mattis reassures the leader of south korea that the ties between the two nations remain strong. he is now heading to japan. this video is treading on bbc .com. beyonce, of course, sharing more pictures from her very elaborate photo shoot, celebrating her becoming pregnant

with twins. posted on her website, they show the superstar in a number of fantastical posers. that is all from me. do stay with us here on bbc world news. goodbye. now, on bbc news, it is time for hardtalk.