welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is ben bland. our top stories: showdown in brussels: president trump demands nato countries double their defence spending. the first pictures of the rescued thai boys recovering in hospital, as more details emerge of their dramatic escape. dozens are still missing after japan's worst floods in decades. the death toll‘s now passed 170. and croatia come from behind to beat england and book their place in the world cup final. they'll face france on sunday. hello and welcome to bbc world news. president trump has called on nato allies to double the amount they've committed to spend on defence,

from 2% to 4% of national income. mr trump was commenting, after he clashed with the german chancellor, angela merkel, at the nato summit in brussels, singling out her country for not paying its share and accusing berlin of being a "captive" to moscow because of its reliance on russian energy. our europe editor katya adler sent this report. such careful choreography — not showy, but precise. nato boasts that it is in control and ready to take on modern—day threats — cyber—crime, cross—border terror, concerns about russia. but there was one big element today over which nato had no control at all — donald trump, a man determined to shake up this alliance, which has guaranteed european security since world war ii. thank you very much. thank you.

the morning here started with a jolt. germany is totally controlled by russia, because they were getting from 60% to 70% of their energy from russia, and a new pipeline. a blistering and not entirely factually correct attack by donald trump on nato ally germany for its plan to build a gas pipeline with russia. so we're supposed to protect you against russia, but they're paying billions of dollars to russia, and i think that's very inappropriate. but the german chancellor was mentally prepared today for a ding—dong with donald trump. her reply was swift. translation: i myself experienced living in part of germany when it was occupied by the soviet union. but i'm happy today that germany is united in freedom, so we can make our own independent policies and our own independent decisions. so what does this all mean? is nato, the cornerstone of european security, falling apart before our eyes? well, not quite.

the us remains as involved as ever in nato missions, and donald trump blows hot as well as cold when it comes to this alliance. but he did stamp his foot today about his favourite nato bugbear, military spending, a message above all for europe. "you want us protection," he insists, "you start coughing up a lot more for defence." nato has a military spending target of 2% of gdp for all its members. most european countries don't make the grade, including big beasts germany, france and italy. with all her problems at home, the prime minister came here determined not to trip up — at least with regards to president trump. we're announcing today that we will be deploying an additional 440 personnel to nato‘s resolute support mission in afghanistan, and i think that shows when nato calls, the uk is one of the first to step up. the right honourable theresa may. and, just for good measure,

theresa may also underlined that the uk is paying its way when it comes to military spending. nato leaders then headed off for dinner, to keep talking and possibly arguing. a big question donald trump's allies have for him is about his one—to—one meeting with russian president vladimir putin next week. katya adler, bbc news, brussels. we will speak to a military expert on little later. the first images have emerged from the hospital where 12 thai boys and their football coach are being treated after their remarkable rescue from a flooded cave. and new details have been released about the complexity of the rescue operation. the boys were heavily sedated ahead of the rescue to prevent them panicking in the dark, narrow, passageways which were under water in parts. our correspondent

lucy williamson reports. these are the luckiest boys in thailand — still weak, still in quarantine, these pictures the first we've seen since a rescue diver filmed them huddled together in the cave, their schoolboy poses for the camera hiding the miracle that they are here at all. what happened here at the cave over the past two weeks inspired horror, then awe, and now curiosity — a dozen boys who couldn't dive, or even swim, trapped two miles inside the cave. rescuers said the biggest risk was that they would simply panic. so how did they get them out? the incredible story of their rescue from tham luang is onlyjust emerging. this is the first footage of the mission itself, each boy wrapped in a special kind of stretcher and carried along by hand. in parts of the cave where it was impossible to stand, rescuers built a complex system of pulleys to transport them out. and, where it was flooded,

scuba divers strapped the children underneath them and carried them through — a feat described by one rescuer as superhuman. several sources have told the bbc the boys were sedated during the journey. watch his arm. not unusual for normal mountain rescues, experts say, but much riskier with children and scuba diving conditions. you have to believe. we think that our plan is perfect. we try and try and try, we test and test and train. 0k, and you've got the best team so you have to believe in them. leaving from chiang rai airport tonight, the british cave diver who starred in the rescue denied he was a hero. but what most people see when they look at the rescuers and their boys is the most

incredible show of courage from one, from the other, incredible trust. lucy williamson, bbc news, chiang rai. let's return to our top story, the summit in brussels for nato were donald trump has asked allies to increase defence spending to 4%. daniel davis is a retired lieutenant colonel, defence fellow and military expert at the washington think tank defence priorities. hejoins me now from washington. this is not the first time the us president has called other nato members to take more responsibility for their defence but none have put it quite so bluntly? note, that is exactly right. every president,

going all the way back to reagan, has been saying the same thing u nfortu nately has been saying the same thing unfortunately it has not resulted in any increase in what they are paying at president trump has turned a new page on how to approach the issue, thatis page on how to approach the issue, that is a sure. if it is not a realistic target, is there any point in calling for it at all? i honestly think he's trying to make a point that he expects the number to come up that he expects the number to come up and using some of the tactics he he used in his financial works. i think it wants to accomplish the 2% at numberand by think it wants to accomplish the 2% at number and by throwing the 4% number, which we are not even meeting at the moment, we have 3.5%,

and they may say that 2% could be reasonable to say and see it materialise. the problem is, i am not sure it will happen even then. i wish he would be doing it a lot differently and a lot more friendly towards allies. it is one thing to say other nato members, in general, but he singled out germany in particular. what is his gripe with germany? i think that some of the points are valid but the way he has gone about it is a really bad. for example, germany was spending i.4% of gdp in 2001, example, germany was spending 1.4% of gdp in 2001, now it is one point

to something % it is going in the wrong direction so if the powerhouse of europe is not making progress at something needs to change. —— of europe is not making progress at something needs to change. “1.2%. but not calling out angela merkel, i do not think that is the right way, it is not going to be helpful, but there is some substance underneath that. could he do any damage between the us and its european allies and nato? for the difficulty that trump has and how he presents himself in our situation and needs, i think nato is bigger than the us. we also have the congress, the military capabilities, and you are seeing some continued cooperation at high levels with our nato allies. do not

think it will cause any permanent damage, at least not at this point. daniel davies, thank you very much. it was my pressure. —— pleasure. croatia have beaten england to reach sunday's world cup final. the balkan team fought back from a goal down to win 2—1, and ended english hopes of glory after extra time. it's the first time croatia have ever reached a world cup final, in their fifth appearance at the tournament. they'll now play france who beat belgium in the other semifinal on tuesday. adam wild reports. well, then, deep breath. again. the players with a great opportunity. some faces little—known to the world. keep your eye on kieran trippier. croatia conceding a freekick where the world ‘s best would fancy their chances. here it

was trippier. belief soared through the english team but there is always the english team but there is always the chance this could happen. ivan perisic‘s equalising. a moment to rally the players again but mario mandzukic too good to miss. 0ne rally the players again but mario mandzukic too good to miss. one last freekick cleared and that was it. the final whistle blew up on england's world cup. a sense of this opportunity. the final they knew could have been theirs, instead it would be croatia's. let's get some of the day's other news: british police say they've begun speaking to one of the latest novichok poisoning victims. charlie rowley has regained consciousness, and is no longer in a critical condition. authorities are still looking at a possible link to the case of russians sergei and yulia skripal, who were poisoned with the same substance in march. in wimbeldon, defending champion roger federer has been knocked out. he was beaten by eighth seed,

kevin anderson, who fought back from two sets down in a gripping quarter—final. top seed federer, who was aiming for a record—equalling ninth singles title, missed a match point in the third set which proved pivotal. dozens of people are missing injapan, after torrential rain caused flooding and landslides in central and western areas. rescuers are still trying to find them. at least 179 people have died in the worst weather for decades and around eight million people have been ordered to evacuate their homes. 0n wednesdayjapan‘s prime minister shinzo abe visited the city of 0kayama to inspect the damage, as michael bristow reports. he visited a shelter, promising he

would provide everything they needed. the government had put aside extra money and pledged they would receive it quickly. the cleanup has now begun. people are sorting through items that can be saved and those that must be discarded. co nsta nt those that must be discarded. constant reminders of a more carefree time. somehow this immature horse was stranded on a roof. she fell off and was unharmed. the search is now on for her fall. fell off and was unharmed. the search is now on for herfall. more predictable weather caused by climate change. japan is one of the

best prepared countries in the world when it comes to disaster response. they are supremely well prepared so the magnitude of the casualties, of the magnitude of the casualties, of the destruction we are seeing now, really is an indication ofjust how big and extreme this was. nearly 200 people have died. tens of thousands of homes were without water. japan has a detailed plans to cope with earthquakes but some say it has done far less to get ready for flooding. when the rebuilding is finished, that will no doubt change. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come: 70 years of the special relationship between the us and the uk — we take a look at what it means in the trump era. central london has been rocked by a series of terrorist attacks.

police say there have been many casualties and there is growing speculation that al-qaeda was responsible. germany will be the hosts of the 2006 football world cup, and they pipped the favourites, south africa, by a single vote. in south africa, the possibility of losing hadn't even been contemplated and celebration parties were cancelled. the man entered the palace through a downstairs window and made his way to the queen's private bedroom, then he asked her for a cigarette. and, on the pretext of arranging for some to be brought, she summoned a footman on duty, who took the man away. one child, one teacher, one book and one pen can change the world. education is the only solution. this is bbc world news,

the latest headlines: president trump has demanded nato countries double their defence spending. 0nly five countries meet the current target of 2% of gdp. the first images have emerged from the hospital where 12 thai boys and their football coach are being treated after their rescue from a flooded cave. a german neo—nazi has been sentenced to life in jail for her part in ten murders. beate zschaepe belonged to a gang that carried out racist killings over a period of seven years. the police initially thought the victims — mostly of turkish descent — were caught up in gang violence. lebo diseko has more. the only surviving member of a neo—nazi terrorist cell. beate zschaepe was found guilty of ten racially motivated murders. for the families of the victims,

this day has been a long time coming. a five—year trial almost two decades after the first killing. the nationalist socialist underground murdered eight ethnic turkish people, a greek citizen and a policewoman between 2000 and 2007. she denied taking part in the murders, saying she only knew of them after they had happened. she blamed two members of the msu, they killed themselves in an apparent suicide pact. but the court found she was possible and gave a verdict that carries an automatic life sentence. translation: i believe that the sentence imposed on her for life imprisonment is a substantial and right. she is not a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. she is a nazi, a racist and a murderer. there has been anger at what many see as the failures of the police, who at first blamed the killings on immigrant gang violence. and many families believe institutional racism hampered the investigation and the trial.

so while they may welcome this verdict, questions remain unanswered. how the killer selected their victims and just why authorities did so little to protect them. the special relationship was a phrase used by sir winston chrurchill in a speech in 19116, when he referred to political, diplomatic, cultural, economic, military, and historical relations between the united kingdom and the usa. 0n the eve of president trump's visit to the uk —— uk, our special correspondent allan little reports on how the relationship between britain and america was nurtured in the past and how it's now seen in the age of trump. in st paul's cathedral, this memorial chapel remembers

the americans stationed in britain who died in the second world war. the roll of the dead has 28,000 names. newsreel: britain and america join together in persons of high and lowly estate... inaugurated in 1958, by then, a new world had emerged from the shared sacrifice of war. the american—led atlantic order has endured and evolved over seven decades. its founding fathers were president franklin roosevelt and winston churchill. the institutions of global governance, the imf and world bank, the world trade organization, the marshall plan, nato and the european union, would all emerge from their victory. at the heart of the international system that america built after the second world war was the idea that nations should live by a set of agreed rules, in politics, economics, security and trade. america was the principal author of those rules, and has spent the last 70 years using its power in the world

to enforce them. not anymore. donald trump believes that america is not the beneficiary of those rules, but the victim, that the rest of the world uses those rules to cheat america, and that the european allies are among the worst offenders. the question those allies are now facing is this — is the rules—based order that roosevelt launched ending with donald trump? he doesn't know the history, and he doesn't care. he takes a very transactional approach to international relations, which seems to come from his sort of real estate background, where he is — where everything is a deal. the essence of the american support for the international order is that you're investing in it. but that investment allows them to sustain the rules—based order, and nobody else could do that, and that rules—based order is something which the united states benefits from tremendously. that's hard to measure in dollars and cents. it's a long—term proposition, and trump doesn't look at transactions that way. but does this mean he wants to tear up the rule book, or just rewrite it?

i think trump's role is to be a disrupter in all things. it is to look at how these relationships either help or hinder america. he literally wants to put america first. i think the whole idea of this international, globalist worldview has taken hold of government, and he wants to shake that up and say, well, is it really in the best interest of america to do it this way? for the first time in 70 years, europe will look across the atlantic at an america no longer willing to carry what it sees as the costs of an alliance forged in the sacrifice of a different age. allan little, bbc news. the former keeping up with the kardashians reality tv star, kyliejenner is on track to become the youngest—ever self—made billionaire. forbes magazine estimates the social media celebritry is currently worth about $900 million at just 20 years of age.

jenner, who is currently not old enough even to legally drink alcohol in the us, will turn 21 in august. the bbc‘s peter bowes in los angeles explained to me how she achieved this. in car —— in car -- in in car —— in part, because she is a car “ in car —— in part, because she is a car -- in, in car —— in part, because she is a car —— in, the youngest of the car -- in clan, car —— in, the youngest of the car —— in clan, the younger sister of kim kardashian— west. the cosmetics company that she launched just two yea rs company that she launched just two years ago, the cosmetics company that started by selling relatively cheap cosmetics focusing on lip products that produce that follow the appearance and it has been hugely successful, the company, worth about $800,000, another $100,000 from endorsements and other products, television appearances, and nearly $1 billion she has worked. she has gotten their faster

than the likes of mark zuckerberg, he was 23 before he became a billionaire and she is now a head on the list of self—made rich women in america, head of barbra streisand, beyond say, taylor swift. all at the age ofjust under 21. it's another world, isn't it. i wonder what the reaction has been to this on social media. there has been a mixed reaction. some people objecting to this phrase self—made, pointing out she comes from a very rich family, a family of millionaires, maybe it isn't that difficult if you are a kardashian to become a billionaire but others are applauding her for her achievements at a very young age and saying she is a great role model for young women who have an idea and wa nt to for young women who have an idea and want to pursue it. is there any comment on what people think this is about celebrity culture today? well,

i think it says that if you have a very recognisable name, a hugely recognisable name in her case, you can make money but we are seeing the melding of celebrity, reality television and the social media world which this family collectively managed to master all these different areas of media to make a lot of money from it. they couldn't do that without people like and what they do and providing a huge fan base, not only for their appearances on television and red carpets but with products like this, people love what celebrities have to offer and she is grateful for that. that is kylie jenner suit that is kyliejenner suit to become the youngest ever self—made billionaire. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @benmbland. hello there.

temperatures dipped a little bit at the start of this week. wednesday was a warm one, and those temperatures are going to continue to rise towards the end of the week. some places could be really quite hot during the course of the weekend. we also had a few showers around. they will tend to fizzle out, but we could start thursday morning with one or two across some western areas, maybe north—west england, in towards wales. there could be quite a muggy start to some of the larger towns and cities across southern england and southern wales. now, we start thursday, then, on a rather cloudier note. clouds will tend to break up with some sunny spells developing, although the eastern coastal areas remaining a little bit cloudy through the day, and then showers will develop, and we think most of these will be across more western areas. now, some could be quite heavy, particularly across south—western scotland, maybe the western side of england to the west of the pennines, in towards wales and south—west england.

and they will be very slow moving, almost stationary. some areas could get quite a lot of rainfall. the ground being so dry could lead to some local flooding, so watch out for that. but be warned, though — where you get the sunshine, especially in the south—east, 26 or 27 celsius. as we hurtle towards friday, looks like the risk of showers and thunderstorms begins to increase, and some of them could be on the heavy side. friday starts off mainly dry, with the sunshine, although there will be showers from the word go across parts of north—west england and southern scotland. these will become more widespread across parts of wales, into the midlands, maybe southern england as well. like i mentioned, some of them could be quite intense, with the risk of some local flooding. temperature—wise, around 25, maybe 26 celsius, and some eastern coastal areas may hold onto that cool breeze. now, as we head on in

towards the weekend, a big area of low pressure will be anchored to the north—west of the uk. further cloud, maybe outbreaks of rain, to scotland and northern ireland, but also going to draw much warmer air from the near continent. from saturday definitely a north—west, south—east split, outbreaks of rain across the north and west of scotland, maybe into the far north—west of england, as well. much of england and wales, dry and sunny. locally hot in places, maybe 28, 29 celsius in the south—east. sunday it's a similar picture — breezier, with more cloud from northern ireland and western scotland. outbreaks of rain, could see a few showers pushing into wales, north—west england. elsewhere, across most of england and eastern wales, a hot day to come. we could see one or two locations in the south—east reaching 30 or 31 celsius. so for the end of the week it looks like we will see an increase of showers and thunderstorms for a time, and then it starts to hot up as we head on into the weekend. this is bbc world news. i'm ben bland. the headlines: president trump has urged nato member states to commit 4% of their annual gdp output to military spending — double the current target. he made the remarks during the western military alliance's summit in brussels. 0f nato's 29 members, just five met the current target this year.

the first images have emerged from the hospital where 12 thai boys and their football coach are being treated after their remarkable rescue from a flooded cave. meanwhile, reports say the boys and the coach were sedated to stop them panicking as they made their escape. croatia have reached the world cup final for the first time ever after beating england. a strike from mario mandzukic in extra time gave croatia a 2—1victory. the win sparked euphoric celebrations across croatia as fans filled streets and squares waving flags and chanting. now on bbc news: click. >