welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: donald trump's top economic advisor, gary cohn, resigns following disagreements over the president's threatened trade wars. the us state department confirms that north korea used the nerve agent, vx, to kill the half—brother of kimjong—un, in malaysia last year. british chemical experts are working to identify the substance blamed for poisoning a former russian spy and his daughter. the kremlin is denying any involvement but the british foreign secretary says the uk will respond if moscow is found to be responsible. calling russia a malign and disruptive force. hello. the top white house economic advisor, gary cohn, is to resign. his decision to leave comes just days after president trump said he could trigger a trade war

by imposing tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. mr cohn‘s resignation follows a series of high—profile departures from mr trump's team. our correspondent peter bowes is following this story from los angeles. gary cohn is a democrat and might not be expected to see eye to eye with the president. he has talked about resigning before but this is the dealbreaker. last time it was over the charlottesville march in virginia with donald trump said there were some good people in that march when they were ku klux klan members in it. the timing is significant and it is about economics. after the announcement that donald trump wants impose ta riffs that donald trump wants impose tariffs on the import of aluminium and steel, gary cohn note to be in

favour of free trade as opposed to protectionism, means there is a different of opinion here. he is not saying that in his short statement. from outside as it appears to be because of differences with the president and his inability to dissuade the president and taking this form of action. mr trump seems to be saying he is going ahead with the tariffs and saying a trade war is not such a bad thing. people are worried about it, and some close to the president. senior republicans have expressed concern. buried in mind that this is an election year and according to many analysts could backfire and effectjob losses. industries requiring those

resources , industries requiring those resources, job losses would hit hard. donald trump campaign to book blue—collarjobs —— hard. donald trump campaign to book blue—collar jobs —— to hard. donald trump campaign to book blue—collarjobs —— to create blue—collarjobs —— to create blue—collarjobs. perhaps blue—collarjobs —— to create blue—collar jobs. perhaps people would retaliate at the ballot box. looking at the list of people who left the white house, it is unprecedented? it is only a week since the communications chief resigned and other senior figures have gone and there are? is over the future of others remaining. this is a white house in caves but bizarrely it seems the kind of atmosphere at the president favours. he said just a few hours ago said he likes people who disagree and clashing in his environment, within the oval office and the white house. yes, it is not chaos, it is energy!

president trump has accused the european union of making it almost impossible for the united states to do business with the bloc. during a news conference in washington with the swedish prime minister mr trump said if the eu responded to his proposed tariffs his government would impose a 25% tax on european cars. the us state department has formally confirmed that it believes the north korean government used the nerve agent, vx, to assassinate the half brother of the country's leader, kim jong—un. kim jong—nam was attacked at kuala lumpur‘s main international airport in february last year by two women who rubbed a cloth in his face. our correspondent laura bicker is in seoul. we hope to speak to her in a moment. we hope to speak to her in a moment. we cannot speak to her right now we will be back with that. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: east timor and australia have signed a treaty that resolves a long—running dispute over their maritime border. the deal also finalises how

the neighbours will share revenue from the huge oil and gas reserves beneath the timor sea. east timor — one of the world's poorest countries — will get between seventy and eighty percent of the proceeds. a town in the rebel—held enclave of eastern ghouta, near damascus, has reportedly surrendered to syrian government forces. it's thought civilians in hammouriyeh put pressure on the rebels to evacuate the town. it follows reports of a chlorine gas attack in the town overnight. additional troops are being deployed to the streets in sri lanka, after reports of further tension between muslims and the buddhist sinhala majority. muslim—owned property has been attacked by buddhists in kandy and the town of ampara. earlier the government announced a state of emergency. let's go back to the confirmation from the us state department that the nerve agent, vx was used to kill the nerve agent, vx was used to kill the half rather of the north korean leader in february. last year. the

timing and news is terrible. when it comes to the nerve agent vx, malaysian authorities have already said they believed that was the agent used to kill kim jong—nam. said they believed that was the agent used to kill kimjong—nam. the state department have decided to impose further sanctions on north korea stopped the timing could not be worse. it comes just as north korea has decided it is willing to and the discussions with the us and also willing to get rid of its nuclear weapons. how it reacts to more sanctions imposed on them, we will have to wait and see. we are also hearing the north korean leader kim jong—un gave the south korean delegates a letter for donald trump

and it will be delivered to the trump white house injust and it will be delivered to the trump white house in just a few days time by the south korean delegates. we are not being told what is inside the latter. at the moment that is all we know. it could signal a huge response from here in the peninsulas because people are hoping this could because people are hoping this could bea because people are hoping this could be a breakthrough for peace here. the british foreign secretary has said the government will take whatever measures necessary if it's found the suspected poisoning of a russian former spy in salisbury was ordered by moscow. the kremlin has dismissed the accusations as groundless. sergei skirpal and his daughter yulia are in a critical condition in hospital, whilst the uk's weapons research facility is working to identify the substance used. tom symonds reports. a father and a daughter apparently struck down in public on a sunday afternoon in salisbury. the bbc revealed today that yulia skripal had been visiting her father sergei

from russia when it happened. they were left fighting for their lives. her eyes were just completely white, they were wide open butjust white and frothing at the mouth. and the man went stiff, his arms stopped moving, but he was still looking dead straight. cctv images obtained by the bbc appeared to show mr skripal and his daughter walking together at 15:47 on sunday afternoon. they were heading for a small park surrounded by shops in the centre of salisbury called the maltings. the camera which captured these pictures is yards from where they were found. police were called at 4:15pm when people reported the pair were unconscious on a park bench. last night zizzi, an italian restaurant nearby, was sealed did someone slip something into theirfood or drink? for the police this is a highly sensitive and potentially hazardous investigation,

not least for the officers involved. the key question of course is what was the substance that left there will be toxicology reports prepared but we understand that several police officers were admitted to hospital, one has been kept in. symptoms include breathing difficulties and itchy eyes. at what is in the environment, what is on the clothing, on the skin of the people and also what is in blood and urine and any other samples. so far the tiny wiltshire police force has led the investigation but that changed today in a significant department. this afternoon the metropolitan

police have confirmed that, due to the unusual circumstances, the counterterrorism network will be leading this investigation as it has the specialist capability and expertise to do so. after all, as the foreign secretary made clear in parliament this afternoon, this incident could have implications for britain's relationship with russia. should evidence emerge that implies state responsibility, then her majesty's government will respond appropriately and robustly. sergei skripal was arrested in 2004, accused of spying for mi6, convicted, but in 2010 handed over to britain as part of a spy swap. sergei skripal‘s wife, older brother and son have died in recent years — the family believe in suspicious circumstances. he has been living quietly here, vigilant and fearful of russian intelligence,

his relatives said, but under his own name. he would not have been hard to find. tom symonds, bbc news, salisbury. the russian government has vehemently denied any suggestion of involvement and promised to cooperate with the inquiry if asked. a foreign ministry spokesman accused boris johnson of making "wild" and "preposterous" statements and the russian ambassador in london accused the british media of trying to demonise russia. our correspondent steve rosenberg reports from moscow. it sounds chillingly familiar. russia under suspicion of planning and executing an attack, 2,000 miles away, in britain. in 2006, the target was former russian agent alexander litvinenko, murdered in london. the man britain believes poisoned him is andrei lugovoy. today, he dismissed claims that moscow had attacked sergei skripal as propaganda. translation: why do

they say he was poisoned? perhaps he poisoned himself or had a heart attack. you talk about propaganda, but what about alexander litvinenko? the inquiry in britain into his death found that you had poisoned him, probably on the orders of vladimir putin. translation: there was no official investigation into litvinenko's death. there was an attempt to accuse russia and a russian citizen, me, of poisoning him in britain with polonium. as for the kremlin, well, it's been saying very little today about sergei skripal. president putin's spokesman told me earlier, "we have no information about what happened. we cannot comment." although he did add, it was a "tragic situation." but catching spies has become one of vladimir putin's priorities. yesterday, the former kgb officer praised russia's security service

for uncovering 397 spies last year. the kremlin leader has never hidden his contempt for those who betray the motherland for money. translatiopn: traitors will kick the bucket, trust me. these people betrayed their friends, their brothers in arms. whatever they got in exchange for it, those 30 pieces of silver they were given, they will choke on them. yet sergei skripal wasn't an obvious target for the kremlin. translation: there are certain rules that the secret services keep to. when there's an exchange of spies, the matter is considered closed. skripal had been exchanged, russia had no problem with him. moscow denies any connection, but a former double agent, collapsing in britain, it can only add to the chill in relations between the uk and russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. stay with us on bbc news,

still to come: the news behind the masterpieces. a new exhibition takes a close look at the woman who inspired some of picasso bass most famous works. first, the plates slipped gently off the restaurant tables, then suddenly the tables, the chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards, and it was just a matter of seconds as the ferry lurched on to her side. the hydrogen bomb. on a remote pacific atoll, the americans have successfully tested a weapon whose explosive force dwarfed that of the bomb dropped on hiroshima. i had heard the news earlier and so my heart went bang, bang, bang! the constitutional rights of these marchers are their rights as citizens of the united states, and they should be protected, even in the right to test them out,

so they don't get their heads broken and are sent to hospital. this religious controversy, i know you don't want to say too much about it, but does it worry you that it's going to boil up when you get to the states? well, it worries me, yes, but i hope everything will be all right in the end, as they say. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: donald trump ‘stop economic adviser has resigned. us department of state has resigned. us department of state has confirmed in the past few hours that north korea is a nerve agent tuque kill the half brother of kim jong—un last year in malaysia. —— to kill. returning to our top story.

as we've heard, the man at the centre of the investigation — sergei skripal — arrived in the uk in 2010, as part of an exchange of spies. he was a former colonel in russian military intelligence. and mr skripal‘s relatives have told the bbc that he believed russia's special services could come after him at any time. our security correspondent gordon corera examines whether the signs so far point to a state—sponsored assassination attempt. does the long arm of the kremlin reach all the way from moscow to salisbury in wiltshire? and if the attack on sergei skripal did come from russia, why? after being released from jail, skripal had spent the last eight years living quietly in salisbury but he still had enemies. sergei skripal had been imprisoned in russia for selling secrets to british intelligence here at m16. it's claimed he provided the identity of hundreds of russians operating undercover in europe. even though he had been pardoned as part of a spy swap, his former colleagues

would still have regarded him as a traitor. the fact that he blew a whole range of russian agents, there may be personal animosities there. the fact that he was a british spy, a former member of the russian military, in most russians' minds actually it would categorise him as a traitor. so yes, there would have been, there are people there delighted to see him dead. no one yet is confirming that moscow was involved but there have been other incidents involving russians in the uk. as we have heard, most famously alexander litvinenko, another former russian spy, poisoned in london's mayfair. and there have been other figures whose deaths have aroused suspicions like badri patarkatsishvili. alexander perepilichny died suddenlyjogging in surrey. one test revealed traces of a rare toxin in his stomach and a businessman campaigning over his death says not enough has been done to deter russia. based on the reaction of the british government to the murderer

in mayfair using nuclear material with alexander litvinenko, which was nothing, it basically gave a green light to vladimir putin that he could do whatever he wants here. and he has been doing whatever he wants here for quite a while. it is still too early to be sure this investigation will go. but if the trail does connect salisbury to moscow, then the pressure will be on the british government to respond. scott stewart is vice—president of tactical analysis for the geo—political intelligence firm stratfor. he was a us state department special agent for a decade and was involved in hundreds of terror investigations. hejoins me from outside pittsburgh, pennsylvania. i know you are a special agent for the us state department and for a decade you are involved in many terror investigations. what you happened here? —— what do you think. it is too early to know to shore but certainly all the signs are pointing at russia at this point. it is just

very strange for at russia at this point. it is just very strange for someone at russia at this point. it is just very strange for someone to have this kind of reaction in a public place and notjust a single man, but his daughter as well. it really does point to some sort of a poisoning, rather than a heart attack or some other natural cause. a state—sponsored action, you think more by what state and white? certainly the russians have motive, not only the revenge motive but by going after these former spies, they are also sending messages to future would be spies that if you do betray russia, we will track you down, we will kill you, we will kill the family. which is also taking it even a step further as a deterrent for would—be spies. a step further as a deterrent for would-be spies. i know he has put lot of emphasis on catching spies, i think he once referred to a previous double agent as judas. think he once referred to a previous double agent asjudas. but you don't think this is a much about revenge? —— so think this is a much about revenge? —— so much.

think this is a much about revenge? -- so much. i think it is a great deterrent when you track down spies living in the west when you kill them and their families. we have heard our foreign secretary describe russia as a maligned and destructive force, in practice, what can the uk or anywhere else for that matter, really do? one of the things i think they really need to do is something strong this time. unfortunately really not much was done in the other case and i think something, not just a nasty other case and i think something, notjust a nasty diplomatic letter, i think you really need to go after them, whether it is expelling agents, seizing assets, something thatis agents, seizing assets, something that is more than just a statement of. —— statement. that is more than just a statement of. -- statement. you think russia will respond to that, how difficult could this get internationally?m certainly will have some

repercussions, but until something is done to curb the russians they will continue to act. basically at this point, from their perspective, the benefits far outweigh the costs of doing these sorts of operations of. how important was sergei skripal? —— sort of operations.“ we look at the career he had working for the british as their agent within the gru, i saw reports that he may have been a personnel officer and had a good grasp of their operations across europe and that allowed the british and the nato allies to keep tabs on the gru and certainly did impact their operations in a very deep way. he was a colonel in the service, he was low ranking guy. thank you very much indeed. picasso's young lover, marie—therese walter, inspired some of his most celebrated works of art. a new exhibition at london's tate modern focuses on picasso's work from the year 1932 and includes the dream, and nude in a black armchair.

one of picasso's portraits of walter sold recently for nearly 50 million as our arts correspondent david sillito reports from tate modern. there's a lot of emotion in this exhibition. it's kind of into lust and into life. there's also drama. normally a tate show would be a retrospective of a life's work, but this is just one year of picassos. that year is 1932. this is picasso and this is his wife olga. but when you look at the paintings, it's another face. wherever you look you see the same shock of blonde

hair, the same profile. here she is again. the same hair, the same profile. we're not looking at picasso's wife here though, this is marie—theres walter. this is her granddaughter, diana. two generations may have passed, but i think you can probably see a certain family likeness. what i think of, it as a granddaughter, when i walk in an exhibition like this, is that it's not a great artist it's a an accounter. she is everywhere. an obsession. picasso was approaching 50 when the affair began. marie—therese was a teenager. she was very young when she met picasso. 17. she was 17—and—a—half! and she's accepting the idea to see him again the following day. so she was young, but she was also adventurous.

if a relationship can bring you to an extraordinary level of life experience, i could neverjudge that. these days we've grown used to this new way of seeing. a marie—therese picasso can go for £100 million. that is the art market. this is the story of the man and the women behind the paintings. david sillito, bbc news. a couple of things to show you. this took over the internet recently, when this photo was posted of her staring at all of a porter at of michelle obama in washington, dc. this picture captured by a bystander also waiting to see the painting. things got more exciting for the topless topic today, the two met in person and as you can see, a dance partner. she posted this photo

online and said keep thinking big of yourself, maybe one day i will look up yourself, maybe one day i will look up at yourself, maybe one day i will look upata yourself, maybe one day i will look up at a porter of you. and to australia to show you these amazing pictures of. the wreckage of one of america's first aircraft carriers, which has been found, 800 kilometres off the east coast of australia, 76 years after it was sunk, in world war two. the uss lexington was discovered by a team led by paul allen, the billionaire co—founder of microsoft. you can see the carrier's guns and its planes, all remarkably well preserved. the lexington and her sister ship yorktown, fought the first ever sea battle, between aircraft carriers in the battle of the coral sea in 1942. that main news again, president trump's top economic adviser is set to resign, disagreement with the president on a plan to introduce ta riffs president on a plan to introduce tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. that is it for now. thanks for watching. hello again.

it felt like we had two different seasons across the uk yesterday, north to south. across northern areas in scotland, we had heavy snow causing transport disruption again. and temperatures struggled to get much above freezing. whereas further south, 11 degrees celsius and, indeed, we had some cloud breaks. and with the light winds around, it didn't feel too bad at all where the sunshine bothered breaking through. further north in scotland, though, it was another snow day, particularly over the high ground, and that snow again caused problems through those higher central belt motorways. now, looking at the weather picture at the moment, the last of the snow clearing away from the north highlands, but aside from that, we've got some clearer slots around. so a colder start to the day with a few frost patches around. a little bit of ice is a possibility first thing in the morning. certainly, a chilly start to the day for most of us. and then all eyes down towards the south—east, really. you've got a little area of low pressure that's moving in. now, there's a bit of

uncertainty with this rain. but it could end up being much more extensive across south—east england and east anglia, and slower to move away as well. so that's a possibility. by either way, by the time we get to the the afternoon, the cloud should be breaking up. further north and west, we've got a few showers, they'll be wintry over the high ground, but the weather not causing too many problems. a few showers later in the day, arriving across the south—west, but for many areas, cloud will break at times to give some sunny spells. temperatures coming up in scotland. we're looking at highs of 6 in edinburgh and aberdeen. further south, temperatures again just about reaching double figures in the afternoon brightness. you might remember thursday was going to be a dry day, but there's been a big jump in the weather forecast, and now, we've got a band of rain and perhaps even a bit of hill snow working across wales and england first thing in the morning. if the precipitation is heavy, might even get something wintry for a time over the midlands. but that is uncertain kind of detailjust at the moment. there will be some further wintry showers coming in across the north—west of the uk and temperatures ranging from 6 to 10 degrees, many areas

brightening up as we go on through the afternoon. for friday, a fairly quiet weather day coming up. north—westerly breeze for many areas and after a cold start to the day, we should see some sunny spells coming through. it will cloud over towards the south—west as a band of rain approaches here, and clouding over in london as well. temperatures, though, not doing too badly — highs of 11 or so. looking ahead to the weekend weather prospects, this area of low pressure is going to push a band of rain northwards across england and wales, and the cold air is still there, so we could just about see a spell of snow over some of the higher hills, the northern pennines and perhaps into parts of scotland as well. but it will be turning milder all the while. that's your weather. this is bbc news. the headlines: donald trump's top economic advisor has resigned following a disagreement over plans

to impose tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. mr cohn is the latest in a series of high profile departures from the white house. the us state department has formally confirmed that it believes the north korean government used the nerve agent, vx, to assassinate the half brother of the country's leader, kim jong—un. kim jong—nam was attacked at malaysia's main international airport, in february last year. british chemical experts are working to identify the substance blamed for poisoning a former russian spy and his daughter. the kremlin has denied any involvement and accused the media of trying to demonise russians. the british foreign secretary has called russia "a malign and disruptive force." now on bbc news, tuesday in parliament.