welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my my name is gavin grey. our top stories: donald trump says he hasn't ruled out military action against north korea, but he warns of the consequences of conflict. north korea is maybe more important than trade. trade is very important. but massive warfare with millions, potentially millions of people being killed? that, as we would say, trumps trade. tornadoes hit texas, leaving at least nine people dead and nearly 50 in hospital. emergency services say they fear the death toll may rise. international tributes to ueli steck, one of the world's best known mountaineers, who was killed in an accident on mount everest. and ten years after the disappearance of madeleine mccann, her parents tell the bbc they'll do "whatever it takes for as long as it takes" to find their daughter.

president trump has warned that a conflict with north korea, which is trying to develop nuclear weapons, could kill millions of people. he argued that getting chinese help to deal with north korea was more important than becoming involved in a trade dispute with beijing. in an interview with cbs news he also described the north korean leader, kim jong—un, as "a pretty smart cookie." sarah corker has the latest. so far, mounting diplomatic pressure has not stopped north korea accelerating its weapons programme. pyongyang has launched two failed missile tests in the last two weeks, the latest one on saturday. and in a wide—ranging

interview on us television, president trump stepped up the rhetoric. if he does a nuclear test, i will not be happy. and i can tell you also, i don't believe that the president of china, who is a very respected man, will be happy either. you mean military action? i don't know, we'll see. but he also warned of the consequences of conflict. massive warfare, with millions, potentially millions of people being killed... and a reminder of america's military might, the arrival of uss carl vinson in waters off the korean peninsula this weekend. tensions in the region have intensified, with both north and south korea conducting military exercises. and when asked about north korea's young leader, mr trump questioned this sanity, but also had these surprising words of praise. at a very young age, he was able to assume power. a lot of people i'm sure

tried to take that away, whether it was his uncle or anybody else. and he was able to do it. so obviously, he's a pretty smart cookie. mr trump's comment came as he marked 100 days in office, at a rally in pennsylvania. in that time, he is hosted china's president xi, who he says is now putting pressure on north korea, its ally, to scale back its nuclear ambitions. meanwhile, the us is installing an anti—missile systems in south korea, activity that has attracted some protest from local people. and it sparked this reaction from pyongyang. its state news agency urged the us to... and so, for president trump, the question of what to do about north korea remains his toughest foreign policy test. sarah corker, bbc news. our north america editor, john sopel, has more

on donald trump's latest interview and the possibility of a new "special relationship" with china. you can go in and out of favour with president trump quite fast. during the campaign president xi was responsible for the terrible trade deals hitting america, he was responsible for manipulating chinese currency to the disadvantage of the americans but now he is seen as a needed ally in the attempts to rain in north korea and their nuclear programme and so you're seeing lavish praise being heaped upon president xi from donald trump. i thought also something else came out of the weekend that i thought was really interesting, he put out a tweet saying kimjong—un had showed disrespect to president xi by trying to hold another missile test and i thought that all spoke to one thing, i want to hold president xi very close because any success in north korea has to go through china. it was very interesting that interview on us tv,

he even appeared to show a bit of empathy for the north korean leader? i kind of think that donald trump respects people who are strong, who've shown themselves to be resilient. i think he looks at kimjong—un, this young man who came to power when presumably there were an awful lot of generals jockeying for position and, you know what, he's a pretty smart cookie. i think he's also hoping that one day maybe he will be able to negotiate with kim jong—un. so maybe there was a little bit of flattery there, maybe he was offering something kimjong—un might bite on as a way of de—escalating the tensions that are in the korean peninsula at the moment. tornados that hit texas on saturday evening have left at least nine people dead and more than 50 in hospital according to the local authorities. neighbouring states, missouri and oklahoma, are now in a state of emergency, and as tiffany wertheimer reports, the american midwest has been struck by an intensive weather system that has caused damage across several states. this was one of the killer tornadoes that hit the city of canton, 80 kilometres east of dallas,

on saturday afternoon. the funnel crosses a major road. cars pull over, not knowing which way it will turn. there is a tornado crossing the road right in front of us. sights like these are not uncommon. this area is called tornado alley because of its frequent twisters. but they still pack a deadly punch. this storm brought with it a late—season blizzard in kansas, colorado, and wyoming. there has also been flash flooding in some states, with the fear that the death toll could rise. among the victims, a 10—year—old girl, swept away by rushing waters in arkansas, and a fire chief, who was hit by a car. a number of people are still missing. we were all sitting in the hallway, and our roof collapsed on us. and by the time it was over, we went outside — we had a three level house, we were down to the last level, and half that house was down. the roof came down on some of us.

everything collapsed onto top of us. from the sky, the devastation is clear: cars strewn across fields, houses flattened. the trail of destruction is massive. 2a kilometres wide and 56 kilometres long. there's no power here. the tornado ripped up three transmission stations. it's prompted the governors of missouri and oklahoma to call for a state of emergency. first thing on sunday morning, cleanup crews swung into action. but many people have lost their homes don't where to start. any buildings too dangerous to enter have been branded with red paint by emergency crews. a tornado warning is still in place in texas, where strong winds of up to 95 kilometres per hour and heavy rain is set to continue. tiffany werthheimer, bbc news. one of the world's most

accomplished mountaineers, ueli steck, has been killed in an accident on mount everest. known as the swiss machine, he was climbing alone, in preparation for a new route up the mountain. he'd won numerous awards, and was celebrated for the speed of his climbs. andrew brightness reports. mount everest — dangerous and daunting, even for the most experienced climbers. ueli steck was preparing to tackle a new and particularly difficult route without oxygen. in 2015, he climbed all 82 alpine peaks — over 4000 metres — injust 62 days, and he conquered the north face of the eiger in less than three hours. ueli steck was on everest to acclimatise, when it's thought that he slipped and fell. his body has been recovered, and tributes have been paid. if he was successful in this he

would have been pushed into another sphere. it isjust would have been pushed into another sphere. it is just sinking would have been pushed into another sphere. it isjust sinking in at would have been pushed into another sphere. it is just sinking in at the moment, i must say. he was the swiss machine. a lovely guy. a bottle of energy. he was known for his speed and ruthlessly methodical approach. the world has lost a pioneer. alexandra mckenzie, bbc news. ten years after the disappearance of madeleine mccann, her parents have told the bbc they'll do "whatever it takes, for as long as it takes" to find their daughter. madeleine was three years old when she went missing, while on a family holiday in portugal. speaking to my colleague fiona bruce, kate and gerry mccann say the pain never leaves them after a decade of uncertainty. every day is another day without madeleine...

i think it's just that number. that ten—year mark which makes it more significant i think because it's a reminder of how much time has gone by and obviously ten‘s a big number. i think that the day and the poignancy of it... we don't tend to go back to the time because it's so draining. but inevitably on anniversaries and her birthday, they're by far the hardest. how different is your life now to what you must have imagined all those years ago? it's a hard one, isn't it, because it's such a long time. i think before madeleine was taken we felt we'd managed to achieve a little perfect, nuclear family of five. we had that for a short period. you adapt and you have a new normality. unfortunately for us, the new normality at the minute is a family of four. last time we talked, you told me how you were still buying birthday presents and christmas

presents for madeleine... with ten years now, are you still doing that? yes, i still do that, yeah. i couldn't not. you go round the shops and you think, madeleine would be this age, what would she want? that's it. i obviously have to think about what age she is and something that... you know, whatecer we find her will still be appropriate? a lot of thought goes into it. i couldn't not. she's still our daughter. she'll always be our daughter. one of the police officers in portugal has been a thorn in your side for many years. he wrote a book which implicates you and you fought it through the courts. at the moment, you've lost and he has won. the last judgement i think is terrible. so we will be appealing. we haven't lodged that yet. it will be going through the courts. he was effectively suggesting

that you were involved? i think people really need to realise, and assistant commissioner riley has said it again this week and the portuguese have said it and the final report has said it, there's no evidence that madeleine's dead. and the prosecutor said that there was no evidence that we were involved in any crime. the police have talked about one significant lead that they're still pursuing. can you tell me anything about that? we're very much... the investigation is in the hands of the metropolitan police. there clearly are ongoing enquiries. we've come a long way and there is progress, there are some very credible lines of enquiry the police are working on, and while there's no evidence to give us any negative news, you know, that hope is still there. it really is there, in your hearts? that one day you'll be reunited with your daughter?

no parent's going to give up on their child unless they know for certain their child is dead. we just don't have any evidence. my hope of madeleine being out there is no less than it was almost ten years ago. apart from those first 48 hours, nothing actually has changed since then. i mean, i think the difficult thing has always been, how will we find her? you know, because you're relying on the police doing everything they can. and you're relying on somebody with information coming forward. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: as the uk election campaign continues, theresa may rules out increasing vat for the next five years, but refuses to say whether she will raise other taxes. nothing, it seems, was too big to withstand the force of the tornado. the extent of the devastation will lead to renewed calls for government to build better government housing.

internationally, there have already been protests. sweden says it received no warning of the accident. indeed, the russians at first denied anything had gone wrong. only when radioactivity levels began to increase outside russia were they forced to admit the accident. for the mujahideen, the mood here is of great celebration. this is the end of a 12—year war for them. they've taken the capital, which they've been fighting for for so long. it was 7 o'clock in the morning, the day when power began to pass from the minority to the majority, when africa, after 300 years, reclaimed its last white colony. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: president trump says the north korean leader kimjong—un is a "pretty smart cookie" —

while also warning that a conflict involving pyongyang could kill millions of people. tornadoes hit texas, leaving at least nine people dead and nearly 50 in hospital. emergency services say they fear the death toll may rise. in venezuela at least 29 people died in april as a result of the political unrest. many due to gunshot wounds. spiralling inflation, food shortages and a call for new elections have brought thousands out onto the streets. president nicolas maduro has announced a 60% increase in the minimum wage — the third increase this year. this comes ahead of more pro—government and opposition marches planned this week. we take a look back at a month of protests. here — theresa may says there'll be no increase in vat —

a retail tax — if the conservatives win the general election, with labour saying it wouldn't increase the tax either. but the prime minister did signal she may scrap a pledge, made by david cameron, not to raise income tax or national insurance. mrs may has also made it clear she expects "hard talks" with the european union over brexit. it follows comments from the german chancellor angela merkel that britain musn‘t ‘delude itself,‘ about the outcome of the negotiations. here's our political correspondent ben wright. working people in this country have paid enough tax. as this economy recovers, i want you to be able to keep more of your own money to spend as you choose. it was a startling policy, a solemn promise made days before the 2015 general election. david cameron said three key taxes, vat, income tax and national insurance, would not go up for a five—year parliament. so will theresa may repeat that pledge in her manifesto?

we have absolutely no plans to increase the level of tax but i'm also very clear that i don't want to make specific proposals on taxes unless i'm absolutely sure that i can deliver on those. a pretty strong hint the prime minister does not think the existing tax freeze can be continued. and remember, just last month the chancellor's plan to raise the national insurance rate in the budget was criticised for breaking the manifesto tax pledge and the move was ditched. why does all this matter? because public services cost money. politicians need to decide how to balance the growing demands of hospitals, schools, social care and defence with voters' willingness to pay. today, there was clarity from the prime minister on one part of the conservatives' tax pledge. we won't be increasing vat. but no matching promise on national insurance or income tax, the other big revenue raisers. i know i'm going to get told off for overlong answers so this won't be an overlong answer.

labour has also promised not to raise vat and is making a lot of spending promises, which it says will be costed in their manifesto. we're the party that wants low taxes for low and medium earners. the conservative party are the party that wants low taxes for the higher earners. we look at things the other way round. so, yes, there will be changes but they will be very much at the top end. over the next couple of weeks we'll get the party manifestos, when rhetoric over tax and spending may crystallise into policy. but of all the uncertainties facing britain over the next few years, the biggest is brexit. and there seems to be a divide between theresa may and the rest of the eu over how the negotiations should happen. yesterday, eu leaders dismissed the idea of a quick trade deal and said there had to be progress on the terms of the divorce first, including the money britain owes. but theresa may has other ideas.

yes, they do want to start discussions about money. i'm very clear that at the end of the negotiations we need to be clear not just about the brexit arrangement, the exit, how we withdraw, but also what our future relationship is going to be. opposition parties said the government was kidding itself. the prime minister is not in charge of the agenda. there are 27 member states in the european union apart from the uk. they're absolutely united, they're holding a common line and theresa may is not going to be able to tell them what to do. but the eu will not begin to negotiate with us until after polling day and a new westminster government is in place. ben wright, bbc news. vienna of an iranian television service has been killed. masked gunmen opened fire on their vehicle

—— to the owner. they broadcast foreign and western shows in iran. thejeep foreign and western shows in iran. the jeep was reportedly found abandoned and burnt out. the united nations has 36 members of the years cds have been freed from the islamic state group. —— yes cd. they were in captive for nearly three years. —— yazidi. until very recently, bicycle manufacturers in china were struggling for survival amidst the seemingly endless rise of the motor car. but that could be changing — and it's all thanks to the rise of bike share schemes. harvey biggs reports. air pollution is notorious in china's major cities, a problem the country's government is waging a high profile war against.

one of the driving factors behind the smog has been cars. but it hasn't always been that way. china was once regarded as the kingdom of bicycles, and for decades, two wheels dominated the streets. but as the country began opening up to the world in the ‘80s and ‘90s, cars began to take over. today, less than 12% of commuters cycle to work, but the wheels of change are turning once again. at this factory in tianjing, a new bicycle is produced every 15 seconds, 2,000 bikes per day. the first time in decades, china is producing large numbers of bikes of the same model, colour and size. and these won't be bought by individuals, but willjoin the ranks of one of a number of growing bike share schemes. the simple concept isn't a new one but is growing, driving an industry that were struggling for survival just months go. translation: back in 2015, we realised that this new model could have an impact. but the speed of growth has been beyond imagination. with china intent on dramatically reducing its air pollution levels, the change is a welcome one.

a target of 80% of people riding to work by 2020 should help keep producers like this one on the track to grow. harvey biggs, bbc news. a man chosen from dozens of competitors to take up a job as a hermit in austria has now received the keys to his new home. there was also a mass to welcome the new resident. it's part of a 350 year old tradition, in the town of saalfelden, as bethany bell reports. saalfelden has a new hermit. stan vanuytrecht, a divorced catholic deacon from belgium, has moved into the hermitage,

cut into the cliffs. there's been a hermit here for more than 350 years. but this is the first time a non—austrian has taken up residence. the key was handed over at a mass in the neighbouring chapel of st george. he'll live alone hear from april to november each year. but it's not an entirely solitary existence. the hermit is also expected to greet hikers and visitors, something that mr vanuytrecht welcomes. translation: i wanted to enter the monastery because i need silence and contemplation to pray. i was planning to enter one, but then i thought here in the hermitage, i can get both. in the mornings and evenings, silence and time to reflect and contemplate, and during the day, i see many people who i can talk to. it will be a simple life. the hermitage has no

electricity or running water. but it does have a spectacular view of the alps. bethany bell, bbc news. a room with a view. this is bbc news. stay with us for the headlines. hello there. good morning. we saw some big contrasts across the uk on sunday, but the southern half of the uk has seen quite a bit of cloud and some rain. this is the view from one of our weather watchers midafternoon on sunday. but at the same time, the northern half of the country, it was pretty different day. dry, bright, a bit breezy as well. this is the view on the shores of the moray firth. and i think we're going to keep similar contrasts through bank holiday monday because you've got this area of low pressure parked across the south of the uk.

that'll be a focus for some wetter weather. further north it should be essentially dry but quite breezy, but the breeze at least overnight helping to keep those temperatures up. the temperatures probably at their lowest in western scotland. but here is where we're going to see some of the highest temperatures as we get on into the afternoon. now, we mightjust see one or two early showers in northern england but they'll tend to fade away. generally speaking northern england northwards it's dry, bright and breezy, whereas the southern half of the uk, we've got a lot of cloud, some outbreaks of rain, some showers. they'll be heavy at times i suspect with the odd rumble of thunder. but equally a little bit of sunshine coming and going. not overly warm, though, only 11, 12, maybe 13 degrees. temperature contrast across northern england. north sea coast all areas, only ten or 11 degrees. but on the other side we'll get up to around 1a or 15 in carlisle. could hit 16, 17 in northern parts of northern ireland. only eight degrees in the eastern side of scotland with that breeze coming in from the north sea, but could go as high as 18 in the sunshine on the western side. through the evening, still got some of those showers, potentially heavy and thundery

across that central swathe of england. they're working their way ever southwards, eventually clearing away. by dawn on tuesday i think most places will be dry. still a fair bit of low cloud coming into that eastern side of the uk. maybe some mist and fog for as well. but temperatures are holding up at seven, eight or nine degrees in major towns and cities. a little bit lower than that in some rural spots. now, through tuesday, as our low pressure system drifts away to the south, it allows a high pressure system in scandinavia to become the driving force of our weather. and that'll be with us for a good few days. an easterly wind on a tuesday drags it in a lot of low cloud to the eastern side. it will be quite cool here as well. further west much brighter skies and we'll see some higher temperatures as well, 15, 16, 17 degrees in a few places. maybe one or two spots of rain to go with that cloud further east. cloudy across the southern half of the uk on wednesday. still that easterly breeze and still quite cool along that eastern coast. head further west, particularly into the north and west and it should be a lovely day in some sunshine and the temperatures should be in the upper teens here.

then towards the end of the week, a lot of fine and dry weather to be had. still a little bit cloudy up and down the eastern side, where it will be on the cool side. head further west, that's where it's going to be warmest, particularly so in the north—west. this is bbc world news. the headlines: president trump has praised his chinese counterpart, xijinping, as he tries to build international support for the us effort to halt north korea's nuclear programme. mr trump says he hasn't ruled out military action. in the united states, tornadoes have ripped through texas, leaving at least nine people dead and nearly 50 in hospital. emergency services say they fear the death toll may rise.

high winds and floods have also affected neighbouring states. tributes have been paid to ueli steck, one of the most famous climbers in the world, who's died on mount everest. the 41—year—old is believed to have fallen from a rock—face while spending time acclimatising at altitude. ten years after the disappearance of madeleine mccann, her parents have told the bbc they'll do "whatever it takes to find their daughter." madeleine was three—years—old when she went missing on a family holiday in portugal. now on bbc news: dateline london.