welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: asian stock markets recover, despite the arrest of a huawei executive and fears of a renewed us—china trade war. canada's prime minister says it's not political. there was no engagement or involvement in the political level in this decision because we respect the independence of ourjudicial processes. difficult but critical. mediators in the yemen peace talks say there's a long way to go. paris braces for another round of protests by the yellow vests movement. thousands of police and armoured vehicles are put on standby. and the rescue mission for a sailor in one of the most remote spots on earth, adrift after a huge storm. there have been sharp falls in global stock markets. they were reacting to doubts about an easing of the trade war between the united states and china.

the concerns were aggravated by news of the arrest of a top executive from the chinese telecoms giant huawei. meng wanzhou is the chief financial officer and the founder's daughter. she was detained at vancouver airport on saturday on an extradition request from the us. china correspondent steven mcdonnell reports. the chinese technology giant, it will play out in court later. the financial officer was arrested in vancouver while in transit and reportedly faces extradition to the united states following alleged breaches of washington sanctions against sales of technical equipment to iran. this is the reason for her to iran. this is the reason for her to be taken into custody, the

chinese government says it is still being given no explanation to have dashed for it. translation: being given no explanation to have dashed for it. translationzli being given no explanation to have dashed for it. translation: i can discuss the details of this case here, but what i can tell you is that after learning about it, we have made solemn representations to canada and the us. have demanded that both parties immediately clarify the reasons for this detention and that they immediately replete —— release the dk need to protect the person ‘s legal rights. the copy has also issued an open letter to its suppliers and partners. saying it too has received very little information regarding her detention and that it quickly abide by all international laws. according to ca nada's abide by all international laws. according to canada's prime minister, this is all a routine exhibition procedure. minister, this is all a routine exhibition procedural minister, this is all a routine exhibition procedure. i can assure eve ryo ne exhibition procedure. i can assure everyone that we are a country of an

independent judiciary and the appropriate authorities took the decisions in this case without any political involvement or interference, as must be the case. however, this is a case obviously before the court, upon which there isa before the court, upon which there is a publication ban and it would be inappropriate for me to comment further. the timing of this us request to have a senior chinese executive arrested seems extraordinary. it comes at the beginning of a 90 day truce in the escalation of the trade war. earlier, i spoke to my colleague and asked her whether a letter released to its global supply partners would reassure customers. that is the line they have been saying since her arrest was reported yesterday. she was arrested on saturday when the president met, agreeing to a trade truce. but that was when she was arrested. we only found out about it yesterday and when we reach out to

huawei yesterday they said the same thing, that they have no knowledge of her doing wrongdoing and that is exactly what the companies have said to its corporate partners in its letter. of course, there are some because huawei has been under scrutiny in the us, the authorities there have reported they had been investigating the company for two yea rs investigating the company for two years and it has been blocked in australia and new zealand just a few days ago in the uk as well. bt has said that it will not use any huawei equipment in its new five g networks as well as the existing three g and 40 as well as the existing three g and a0 systems. now there is a report that the japanese government might stop buying any huawei and zte, another chinese technology giant. there are things that technology companies are concerned about and if you look at the reactions especially on social media in china, a lot of outrage that this is just another way of the western governments trying to stock huawei and zte, who

was fined last year in the, from doing well overseas. a lot of angering china about the arrest. what can china actually do to retaliate? at this moment, they don't have enough information of why she is arrested and what is going to happen. her bell hearing has been set for later today in canada, so we will seek what happens there are and of course, if the us officially request her extradition, what happens there. of course, we have heard from the chinese foreign ministry, which also had a very strongly worded statement from the chinese embassy in canada, strongly protesting the arrest. immediately demeaning her release. definitely beijing is not happy about the arrest. the rising trade tensions between the us and china are just one area where president trump's promises are now being judged against reality. last week, general motors announced that it plans to stop production at five factories and cut more than ia,000 jobs. among the plants scheduled to close is lordstown in ohio, and aleem maqbool‘s been

there to see the impact. this single factory covers an astonishing 900 acres. but after more than 50 years producing cars at this site, general motors — once america's biggest employer — has announced that from the spring no more vehicles are due to be made here. kasey king has worked at the plant her entire adult life. it's almost like you're experiencing a death. you know, it'sjust hard to imagine that the one thing you thought you would never hear, and never wanted to hear, just happened. with some job losses in recent years, kasey and many others had considered selling their homes and moving elsewhere. let me tell you folks in ohio... last year though, visiting here, the president promised this...

don't sell your house. do not sell it. we're going to get those values up, we're going to get those jobs coming back... he made so many promises to so many people and... i've heard people compare him to a snake oil salesman, or he'sjust, you know, going around and selling false hope. but general motors says it's just restructuring, and that's not donald trump's fault. in another industry here though, it's a different story. well, here on the other side of ohio, we're very much in farming territory, and agriculture has been devastated as a direct result of decisions made by the white house and the exports to china that have plummeted. alan armstrong's family's been growing soya beans in ohio for generations. but donald trump's sparring with china has made for the most difficult years. 60% of our soya beans have been

exported over the last five years to china, and when the trade dispute started, effectively, those sales went to zero. but in recent days on social media, the president has been making more promises, that china will start buying us agricultural products again, including soya beans. and despite facing so many problems because of the trade war, alan, who voted for donald trump, is sticking by him. i don't remember in my lifetime a president of the united states talking about agriculture as often as i've heard donald trump speak about it. so you don't hear people saying in the community "i voted for the guy, now look what's happened, i regret that"? no, you don't hear that. you hear "gosh, i hope he knows what he's doing." and though he hasn't been able to deliver on his promises elsewhere, they still retain theirfaith in the president.

aleem maqbool, bbc news, in ohio. us president donald trump has reportedly chosen state department spokeswoman heather nauert as the new ambassador to the united nations. ms nauert is a former fox news channel anchor and became the state department spokeswoman in april last year. she will replace the outgoing ambassador — nikki haley — who announced her resignation in october. ms haley held the position for 18 months. in france, the eiffel tower and a number of museums and markets in paris will be shut on saturday, that's because of fears of more street violence involving the yellow—vest protest movement. the demonstrations were initially about fuel tax rises, but have since broadened to include anger over living costs and with president macron. close to 90,000 police are to be deployed across the country as well as armoured vehicles in the capital. georgina smyth has more. france on yellow alert.

burnt out cars, violence and vandalism scenes not to be repeated this weekend, according to the french prime minister. addressing the senate and addressing nearly 90,000 boots on the ground, edouard philippe called for calm, while reminding protestors of parliament's decision to drop the fuel tax rises that ignited the protests in the first place — but some demonstrators were not impressed. translation: the only person who has the power is the president, so the president has to stand in front of the people of france as the father of the nation. that's his role, to be the keystone, but he has to speak to the french people from the gut and with his heart. discontent has only grown around the country since the protests began in mid—november. anger now extends to high living costs, marginalisation felt in rural areas, and grievances felt by ambulance drivers,

pensioners and students. this group of protestors in western france, blocking access to a refinery, have set up camp for the long—term. translation: the decision made yesterday is pointless, it's just hot air. it's what we call magic dust in these parts. it's just meant to hypnotise the people, but people aren't naive and people are still angry. a list of more than a0 demands have been issued to the government and some of paris's most iconic sites will be closed on saturday amid fears of further street violence. georgina smyth, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: alone in the southern ocean, dis—masted and drifting. a long—distance rescue is underway for a round—the—world yachtswoman. john lennon was shot at the entrance

to the dakota building, in the centre of new york. there's been a crowd here, standing in more or less silent vigil, and the flowers have been piling up. the iath ceasefire of this war ended at the walls of the old city of dubrovnik. this morning, witnesses said shells were landing every 20 seconds. people are celebrating the passing of a man they hold responsible for hundreds of deaths and oppression. elsewhere, people have been gathering to mourn his passing. imelda marcos, the widow of the former president of the philippines, has gone on trial in manila. she's facing seven charges of tax evasion. she pleaded not guilty. the prince and princess of wales are to separate. a statement from buckingham palace said the decision had been reached amicably. this is bbc world news,

the latest headlines: asian stock markets have recovered slightly despite fears that the us—china trade war will resume after the arrest of a senior executive of huawei. canada has defended its arrest of a top executive from the chinese technology firm on a us extradition request. the canadian prime minister said it was a legal not political decision. peace talks aimed at ending the civil war in yemen have been described by the un special envoy as an important milestone. thousands of people have died in nearly four years of fighting in the country, with millions pushed to the brink of starvation. our chief international correspondent, lyse doucet, reports from stockholm, where those talks are taking place. yemen is on its last breath. its children dying every day

from hunger and disease, and a devastating war. tens of thousands of young lives have ended since this war escalated in 2015. today, a faint glimmer of hope. around a table in faraway sweden, houthi rebels and the government sitting together, for the first time in more than two years. the un got them here to talk. let us be in no doubt that yemen's future is in the hands of those of us in this room, and we must act now before we lose control of the future of yemen. let none of us waiver in spite of the challenges that we may face. but on yemen's killing fields, there are other powerful players, and arch—enemies like saudi arabia and iran.

they all call for peace, but continue the war. in the old city of the capital, sanaa, yemenis know how hard this will be. "we hope the talks in sweden succeed", this trader says, "but there's little hope in our situation. both sides will have to compromise." "it would be a nice surprize for everyone", says this woman, "but logically, i don't think our situation will improve." if all goes to plan, the lights in this swedish castle will burn long into the night for the next week. the goal — to come up with a road map for peace. that's ambitious, given that the two sides are so far apart, but with yemen on the brink of collapse, every step counts, which brings them closer. lyse doucet, bbc news, outside stockholm. international medical charity medecins sans frontiers

say its ship, the aquarius, will no longer carry out life—saving rescue operations in the mediterranean. msf said it had had to take the step following what it described as a sustained campaign by the italian government and other european countries to smear and obstruct aid organisations trying to save the lives of vulnerable people at sea. sophie long reports. your lifejackets, take them off, people, if you must. the number of people, if you must. the number of people attempting to cross the mediterranean has fallen but the journey remains as dangerous as ever. medecins sans frontieres says with its partnership organisation it's rescued or helped more than 80,000 people over the past four years. but in recent months, as men, women and children continue to embark on the world's deadliest migration route,

the charity's sea rch—and—rescue vessel, the aquarius, has remained import. accusations the aid organisation karak categorically denies. msf is bitterly critical of european governments. they say they failed to provide enough dedicated rescue capacity of their own and then actively sabotaged the efforts of others trying to save lives in the mediterranean. it says european countries have violated international law by refusing to allow those rescued at sea access to safe ports and have instead enabled the forced return of thousands of them to detention camps in libya. it says eu governments have created a climate that discourages ships at sea from carrying out their obligations to rescue people in distress, and for now it's been forced to terminate its own vital search—and—rescue forced to terminate its own vital sea rch—and—rescue work, it forced to terminate its own vital search—and—rescue work, it will avoid, result in more avoidable

deaths that will go an witnessed and unrecorded. sophie long, bbc news. cuba has the lowest internet connectivity rate in the western hemisphere. now, though, people there will be able to get 3g internet access on their mobile phones, instead of using wi—fi hotspots and internet cafes. broadband's been available to state—approved clients for some time now. analysts say the new service may be too costly for many people. from cuba, will grant reports. it is a day many cubans had thought might never come. finally, after years of waiting, they can get the internet on their phones. while that might sound underwhelming in countries where such a luxury is considered normal, cuba remains one of the most off—line nations in the world. the new president, miguel diaz—canel, appears determined to change that. under the new plan, cubans can get packages of 3g data on their phones for prices ranging from $7 to $30 a month, depending on usage. the prices are high for those on state wages. but some may consider it

a sacrifice worth making. especially if they can stop having to rely on public access wifi squares to read their e—mails or speak to their families abroad. translation: it is a great opportunity which is going to resolve the problems people have to speak to their families and their loved ones abroad. translation: everyone is going to be connected to everyone else internationally. they will see our news in the rest of the world and on social media, which are now the most important. translation: it will be good to have more contact with our families. it will make studying easier. for looking at things on google, for social networks, for playing games. it will bring many good things. some though remain unconvinced, especially by the prices. translation: i can't see the logic of paying up to $30 for the package when you come here to the park and connect to the wi—fi spots. the irony is that, having waited so long, cuba could theoretically

jump past fibre—optics and have all its internet access in the cloud. that for me is the smartest step to take. besides, adsl, for example, is really tricky and really complicated, it goes down all the time. you have to live at some specific distance from the central and it is super expensive to do. it is just too expensive and it's not realistic. while some countries are contemplating 5g, the arrival of 3g on their mobile phones does at least bring cubans a step closer to the rest of the world. many people see it as a positive sign that the government is finally serious about bringing cuba properly online. still, in infrastructure alone, there is a long way to go before the island can be considered truly connected. will grant, bbc news, havana. a sea rch—and—rescue operation is underway to find a 29—year—old

british sailor whose boat was wrecked as she took part in a solo race around the world. susie goodall is the youngest competitor and the only woman taking part in the 30,000—mile golden globe race. her yacht was badly damaged and lost its mast in a storm in the southern ocean, around 2,000 miles west of the southern tip of south america. since then, she's been in radio contact but her location is so remote the nearest boat is not expected to reach her until later on friday. jon kay has more. the boat is destroyed. inside and out is destroyed... this is the call susie goodall made after her boat flipped over. in the southern pacific ocean, alone, injured, and thousands of miles from dry land. we rolled and i was thrown across the cabin, and i think i was knocked out for a moment or two. the 29—year—old set sail injuly and was coming fourth in one

of the world's most gruelling events when she hit a ferocious storm. in school, it was what you want to do when you grow up? and i think my thing was always like i want to sail around the world. speaking before the race, she knew the southern ocean would be the toughest part of her round the world challenge. i'm sure there will be times down there where i willjust think what the hell am i doing, this is horrendous, the boat isjust like a rag doll being chucked around all over the place and you can do nothing about it. the first man to complete the golden globe race knows susie well and says waiting for help will be exhausting. i think she'll be a little bit debilitated by the adrenaline that she has lost, not getting sleep. but susie goodall‘s very experienced and she is tough. this chinese cargo ship is the closest vessel to susie. it has been diverted hundreds of miles through challenging seas to rescue her. on social media, she said

all she wants is a nice cup of tea. jon kay, bbc news. don mcintyre is the founder and race chairman of the golden globe race. he's been telling the bbc more about the rescue mission. it is being co—ordinated by the chile rescue co—ordination centre, it's their zone of responsibility. they found a ship about a00 miles away. it is currently steaming to the area but it is in heavy weather so it has slowed down to about six knots and it is a bit later than expected. but it will all start to happen tonight, around about 9 o'clock and it's still very challenging. we are unsure whether they will be able to lodge a small boat to go over and recover her and come back and bring her on board again because of the sea state. if that is not possible, the captain is going to have to manoeuvre a i90—metre vessel, which is about a5,000 tons, as close as he can to the yacht and susie will literally have to jump, maybe onto a cargo net or a ladder. we're not sure yet, the final planning is yet to be made. right now, she is doing it tough

but she is an incredibly strong and competent sailor so she understands the reality of her situation. it is a tough challenge. she has already sailed two thirds of the way around the world and doing extremely well and her boat was built by one of the best builders in the world and the mast and rigging were by one of the biggest mast builders in the world and she got caught in a particularly bad storm and she actually rolled over, but also went upside down in terms of the stern went over the bow of the boat. she was concussed when she was thrown around inside and woke up. she was not sure how long she was out of it. she is badly bruised but she's ok and her hands cut up when she had to cut the rigging off and get it over the side of the boat before it put a hole in the boat. she feels as if she has let some people down. she has a huge following.

but she is a very strong. susie is a great sailor but she's even a bit seasick right now because of the motion of the boat without the mast and the whole concept but she is focused now, she knows what is ahead of her, she knows it is a whole new challenge to get off the boat and try and get back to the uk and loved ones. don mcintyre, the founder of the golden globe race. the lead singer of the punk rock band buzzcocks, pete shelley, has died suddenly at the age of 63. it's thought he suffered a heart attack in estonia, where he was living. the band who formed in the 1970s are best known for their hit ever fallen in love. the hit bbc comedy music show, never mind the buzzcocks, was named after them. pete shelley, who died today, aged 63. that's all from us for now. thank you for watching. hello there. we are ending the week on a pretty turbulent note. some strong winds on the way to scotland.

severe gales here could cause some problems. and as well as the very strong winds on friday in scotland, we'll also have some heavy rain around, particularly across south—west england, over the next few hours, and that could bring some localised surface water flooding. the troublemaker is this developing area of low pressure. pressure continues to fall and the low pressure deepens, and that continues to strengthen the winds. now, the strongest winds will be going into the north of the uk, and you can see some of the heaviest rain will be trailing back across wales into south—west england. here, a0 millimetres of rain, and that could cause a few issues first thing friday morning. certainly, some big puddles on your morning commute across this part of the world. the winds will continue to strengthen as we go on through the next few hours. and there is a good chance if you're going out in the next couple of hours of seeing some pretty heavy rain around as well, but it won't be a cold start to the day. the winds will continue to strengthen to thorugh morning

across northern ireland and then into scotland. this is where the strongest winds are going to come through, probably the strongest winds around midday, the early afternoon, with gusts around 70 to 80 miles an hour. could even top that in one or two of the very, very most exposed locations. there'll be heavy rain as well. further south, our band of rain will continue to push eastwards across england, clearing friday. then we'll see some sunshine following and a few showers for western parts of england and wales to end the day. showers too for northern ireland. temperatures will be falling through the afternoon. seven to 10 degrees as that cooler air continues to work its way in. now, as far as the weekend goes, it will stay pretty wind and blustery, and we're looking at further showers around, particularly on saturday. it turns cooler on sunday, but with a bit more in the way of sunshine. here's a chart then to take us through friday night. those strong wind still buffeting scotland, it will take a while for those winds to ease down, and then we'll start to see the next system approaching from the west. so, this is the forecast for saturday. most of us will see at least some bright and sunny spells, but it's going to be a blustery kind of day, with showers moving in from the west and pushing eastwards as the day goes by.

so it's one of those days where most of us will see at least a spell of rain. temperatures between nine and i3 celsius, so we're just about on the mild side of things. however, for the second half of the weekend, as winds swith round more to a north—westerly, still with som showers knocking around, its going to start to feel a little bit cooler than that. those showers are really quite likely to work into parts of north wales and parts of north—west england, particularly around cheshire, greater manchester and merseyside. and the temperature's going down. seven to 11 degrees your high on sunday. this is bbc this is bbc news. asia's top marks have stabilised after concerns in the united states, about a resumption of a trade war between us and china. canada defended the arrest of a top executive from the chinese technology firm huawei, onto us extradition request. prime minister truedeu says it was not political. china has demanded her release. at the start of the first yemen peace talks in two years, the un envoy for the country has called the meeting a critical opportunity to give momentum to peace. the government and the houthi

rebels have agreed to a limited prisoner exchange. now on bbc news, stephen sackur is in washington with hardtalk.