welcome to newsday. reporting live from singapore, i'm arunoday mukharji. the headlines — the us announces another $1 billion in security assistance for kyiv and urges allies to increase the delivery of weapons to help ukraine battle russian forces. the us central bank raises interest rates by three quarters of a percentage point to combat soaring inflation, the biggest hike in nearly 30 years. we have both the tools we need and the resolve that it will take to restore price stability on behalf of american families and businesses. uk prime minister borisjohnson�*s ethics adviser has resigned. lord geidt gave no details other than to say that he felt it was the right thing to do. and the england and wales cricket

board brings charges against yorkshire and several individuals over allegations of racism. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. welcome to the programme. it's 6am in the morning in singapore and midnight in brussels, where the us defense secretary has said he will move heaven and earth to ensure ukraine receives the weapons it needs to combat russia's invasion. lloyd austin was speaking at a nato meeting and called on allied countries to urgently increase deliveries of arms during a pivotal moment in the war. here's a glimpse of what secretary austin had to say.

we cannot afford to let up, and we cannot lose steam. the stakes are too high. ukraine is facing a pivotal moment on the battlefield. and we are seeing what presidency zelensky warned us about after failing to take kyiv and reassessing its combat aims, russia has shifted its combat aims, russia has shifted its focus to the donbas. and we cannot underestimate the challenge that ukraine faces. a little earlier, president biden announced that the united states will give an extra $1 billion in security assistance to help ukraine fight the russian invasion. our defence correspondent jonathan beale has been given rare access to the us military base in germany where they're co—ordinating supplies of military aid. western weapons have been arriving in ukraine and are being used to deadly effect. more recently, they've been sending

more heavy equipment... ..artillery guns like this, but ukraine says it's still not enough. and they're vastly outgunned by russia. but from this us military base in stuttgart, germany, western nations are working hard to keep the weapons flowing. and the us commander of this highly sensitive operation insists ukraine is getting what it needs. we are giving the ukrainians what they need. we're coordinating with them daily. we have a liaison officer here, it's a three—star general, that sets their priorities, shares it with us and our allies in our daily coordination sessions. and we're able to adjust very rapidly in the donations that are provided across the allies. so, you don't think ukraine's going to run out of weapons and ammunition? we're going to make sure they don't

run out of weapons and ammunition. from this austere building, they're working round—the—clock to prevent russia from winning this war. the attic of this barracks behind me has now become the nerve centre, the hub for coordinating western weapons supplies to ukraine. we've been told we can't film inside for security reasons, but inside, there are military personnel from 26 countries trying to ensure ukraine gets the ammunition and the weapons it needs. this has become a lifeline for ukraine. these are the first photos from inside cleared by the us military. so far, dozens of soldiers from dozens of countries have already helped deliver 66,000 tonnes of military equipment to ukraine worth nearly $8 billion. and they believe it's just the start. here, they're preparing for a very long war. it's not going to be months. well, how long is it going to be? i think we'll be here

for a number of years. they're already preparing to send in american and british multiple rocket launchers. they say once they arrive at secret locations in eastern europe, weapons can get to the front line within 48 hours. ukraine still says it's not enough, but the message from stuttgart is that it's keeping them in the fight. jonathan beale, bbc news, patch barracks stuttgart. i'm joined now by retired colonel brendan p kearney in san diego, who is now a military affairs analyst after spending 31 years in the us marines. thanks very much for your time here on the bbc. how crucial is it for this kind of support to be ramped up for ukraine? i this kind of support to be ramped up for ukraine?— for ukraine? i think it's very crucial. the _ for ukraine? i think it's very crucial. the ukrainians - for ukraine? i think it's very crucial. the ukrainians havej for ukraine? i think it's very - crucial. the ukrainians have been forthright and public in asking for help. the us and its european friends and allies, nato, have been providing help here now since the

start of these hostilities. the question is can we get enough of it this additional help and some of the helpjust this additional help and some of the help just have not been delivered yet that was promised months ago, get in the hands of the ukrainian soldiers so they can their homeland. do you feel that the us and other countries are still falling short and need to do much more than what they are doing right now? you and need to do much more than what they are doing right now?— they are doing right now? you know, that's a great — they are doing right now? you know, that's a great question. _ they are doing right now? you know, that's a great question. and, - they are doing right now? you know, that's a great question. and, you - that's a great question. and, you know, my knowledge base is that what is publicly being shared, and i believe we are getting an awful lot of the material that the ukrainians have requested across the border into ukraine. and then of course it becomes a ukrainian logistics problem to get it their front line forces. however, i have to be honest, i'm a little bit sceptical that what we are doing is providing the ukrainians enough of these items to go ahead and adequately defend

themselves. and quite honestly, as a military man, i think we have to eventually come to the conclusion that if we want these hostilities to end, we have to provide them enough equipment and ammunition so that they can win. they can achieve victory. if we do that, the hostilities stopped. at victory. if we do that, the hostilities stopped. victory. if we do that, the hostilities sto ed. �* , ., hostilities stopped. at this moment, seeinu the hostilities stopped. at this moment, seeing the kind _ hostilities stopped. at this moment, seeing the kind of— hostilities stopped. at this moment, seeing the kind of support _ hostilities stopped. at this moment, seeing the kind of support that's - seeing the kind of support that's been extended, do you see ukraine being able to achieve that? i see being able to achieve that? i see ukraine being — being able to achieve that? i see ukraine being able _ being able to achieve that? i see ukraine being able to _ being able to achieve that? i"~ ukraine being able to adequacy defend itself, but you know we essentially have in the donbas region, we essentially have world war i attrition warfare going on. it's... i mean the veterans of order one probably feel very comfortable in the trenches of the donbas but we have to go ahead and look to somebody winning. and of course none of us want to see the russians went, and i think ukraine can prevent that. so that's the case, we have to go ahead and look to aiding the

ukrainians to the extent that they can win, they can reject the russian forces from ukraine. and then i think once that occurs, and that is not going to be easy, it's going to be once if not out to a year plus for them to achieve this but that's what we should be supporting them in their efforts. mil what we should be supporting them in their efforts. �* ., ., their efforts. all right, colonel come u- their efforts. all right, colonel come up with _ their efforts. all right, colonel come up with the _ their efforts. all right, colonel come up with the leave - their efforts. all right, colonel come up with the leave it - their efforts. all right, colonel| come up with the leave it there their efforts. all right, colonel- come up with the leave it there but thank you very much for your input and perspective on the additional assistance is now been announced by the us and urging other allies to also follow suit. thank you very much. staying in the united states, where the central bank has announced that interest rates will rise by three quarters of a percentage point. it's the biggest rate rise in nearly 30 years and part of the federal reserve's efforts to combat rising prices. last month, inflation in the us rose to its highest level in four decades. here's the chair of the federal reserve, jerome powell. we at the fed understand the hardship that high inflation is causing. we're strongly committed to bringing

inflation back down, and we're moving expeditiously to do so. we have both the tools we need and the resolve that it will take to restore price stability on behalf of american families and businesses. the economy and the country have been through a lot over the past 2.5 years and have proved resilient. it is essential that we bring inflation down if we are to have a sustained period of strong labour market conditions that benefit all. let's turn to the uk, where the ethics adviser for prime minister borisjohnson, lord geidt, has announced his resignation, saying there was a "legitimate question" about the prime minister's conduct in relation to lockdown gatherings in downing street and whether he'd broken the ministerial code. lord geidt, who took up the role in april last year, said he was leaving "with regret". 0ur political editor chris mason reports. i do try, you know, to make things work as well as i can. you can hear the exasperation

in lord geidt�*s voice. this was him in front of a committee of mps yesterday. and tonight, this statement of few words and even less detail. lord geidt used to be the queen's most senior adviser before taking on the job he's just left. his task as independent adviser overseeing and investigating ethics and behaviour in government at a time dominated by rows about the prime minister's own conduct. the ministerial code is very clear in that the sole jurisdiction over it is commanded by the prime minister himself, and that's why, that's how we ensure there's good administration, good governance. and, of course, we are always going to be guided by the rules and the principles in that code, and that's what we always bear in mind as ministers.

this very arrangement was clearly awkward for lord geidt. just last month, he said it was a legitimate question to ask if borisjohnson had breached the ministerial code by breaking covid laws, but the code's author and guardian, as he put it, were mrjohnson. the prime minister denied such a breach. given that, he was asked yesterday... ..whether you've - contemplated resignation? there are few instruments are available to an independent adviser, and, erm. .. i'm going to take that answer. as at least it was on the agenda. we've mentioned before in evidence that it's always on the agenda as an available remedy to a particular problem and one that my predecessor indeed exercised. that was a reference to the resignation of this month, sir alex allan, who gave up the same job in november 2020 afterfinding the home secretary, priti patel, had broken the ministerial code, but borisjohnson wouldn't sack her. tonight, a government

spokesman said... the person who should've left downing street tonight is the prime minister himself, and the whole country will be wondering just how long do they have to wait for those tory mps to do the right thing. it's this long—standing public servant who's walked, leaving plenty of questions behind him. still to come a bit later in the programme, we focus on afghanistan, where more than a million children are facing severe levels of malnutrition. that's ahead in a bit. staying with the uk, where the yorkshire cricket club and a number of individuals have been charged by the england and wales cricket board with a breach of its code of conduct. this follows an investigation into racism at the club. the charges relate to bringing the game into disrepute and breaking the anti—discrimination code. the charges surfaced after claims

were made last year by the former yorkshire player azeem rafiq. he has welcomed the charges and said the process had been gruelling, but necessary. 0ur sports editor dan roan reports from headingley. english cricket was on a high — yesterday's stunning victory over new zealand in the second test one of the greatest wins in the team's history. butjust 2a hours later came the latest development in the saga that's cast a shadow over the sport. yorkshire and a number of unnamed individuals charged by the ecb over allegations of racism at the county following a six—month investigation into its handling of claims made by former player azeem rafiq. in a statement, the governing body said... last year, rafiq gave harrowing testimony to mps about the racist abuse he said he'd suffered by some of his former colleagues at yorkshire.

there just seems to be an acceptance in the institution from the leaders, and no—one ever stamped it out. the whistle—blower claimed former team—mate gary ballance was among those to have used racist language toward him. ballance said he deeply regretted doing so. former yorkshire and england captain michael vaughan revealed he'd been accused of making racist comments to rafiq and other players, but has repeatedly denied the claims. today, in a statement, rafiq said he welcomed the charges, but that... last year, yorkshire, who today lost in the county championship, sparked outrage by not disciplining anyone despite rafiq having been found to suffer racial harassment. a damning parliamentary report then concluded discrimination was endemic in the sport. the absolute key thing is what actually happens to the game more generally.

can we be certain there are no other yorkshires out there? and we need to be sure that the ecb has a game under its control which is inclusive, which means that everyone from every background can feel safe and can feel welcome in. having regained the lucrative international hosting rights that it lost in the wake of the scandal after governance reforms and an overhaul in leadership, yorkshire are now preparing to host a buoyant england next week here in the third test. but for both this county and the game at large, moving on from this crisis is proving no easy task. dan roan, bbc news, headingley. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme, why walt disney's latest animated film has been banned in a number of markets across asia and the middle east. there was a bomb in the city centre. a code word known to be one used by the ira was given.

army bomb experts were examining a suspect van when there was a huge explosion. the south african parliament has destroyed the foundation of apartheid by abolishing the population registration act, which, for a0 years, forcibly classified each citizen according to race. just a day old, and the royal baby is tonight sleeping in his cot at home. early this evening, the new prince was taken by his mother and father to their apartment in kensington palace — germany's parliament, the bundestag, has voted by a narrow majority- to move the seat of government from bonn to berlin. _ berliners celebrated into the night, but the decision was greeted - with shock in bonn. the real focus of attention today was valentina tereshkova, the world's first woman cosmonaut. what do you think of the russian woman in space? oh, i think it's a wonderful achievement. and i think we might be able to persuade the wife it would be a good idea, if i could, to get her to go up there for a little while!

you're watching newsday on the bbc with me, arunoday mukharji, in singapore. a look at our top story again — the us announces another $1 billion in security assistance for kyiv and urges allies to increase the delivery of weapons to help ukraine battle russian forces. getting you news from afghanistan now, where more than a million children are facing severe levels of malnutrition as the country struggles with an economic crisis that's already seen average incomes cut by a third. humanitarian aid is being delivered, but wider development funding is missing and there are warnings that much more help is needed. 0ur afghanistan correspondent secunder kermani reports from kabul. we're in one of afghanistan's busiest markets. there's plenty for sale, but for most families, money is tighter than ever. this stall tells you how much

some are struggling. these sacks are full of stale, leftover bread, normally fed to cattle. now more people than ever are eating it themselves. translation: the better quality | bread is on the top of the bag. i when poor people come to buy, they pick these better ones. look, this one cannot be eaten. before, five people used to buy this bread in a day. what does it feel like, doing thisjob and seeing so many people having to buy this bread? i pray to god to get rid of this misery and poverty from my country. the life of afghan people right now is like a bird which has been locked in a cage with no food or water. bread is the staple food here in afghanistan. but there's a deep economic crisis. international development funding the country relied on has largely

been cut off and central bank reserves frozen by the west over concerns about the taliban's hard—line treatment of women. but its poor families like hashmadullah's who are now struggling with rising food prices. before, did you ever used to have to buy bread from here? translation: in the past, i used to over $6 per day, l but now i barely earn $1. i've been working since the morning and can only afford to buy this bread. leftover bread is handed over by bakeries, restaurants and homes to scrap collectors like 14—year—old mohammed. but with around half the country going hungry, there's less bread, less of everything. "there's not enough work and myjob is very hard," mohammed says. hashmadullah is making his way home after another

disappointing day at the market. he's doing his best to keep his three young sons in school rather than sending them out to work. but it means surviving mainly on stale bread, softened with tomatoes and onions. you work hard for your family. how does it feeljust being able to bring this home for them? translation: i feel ashamed in front of my family that i'm so poor, - i can't afford to provide them good food. there's nothing i can do. even if i tried to borrow money, no one will lend it to me. my sons are really thin because they're not eating well. i can't afford meat, even once a month. 0utside kabul�*s bakeries, women wait for loaves of fresh bread to be donated. even when billions were pouring into this country, corruption, the war, meant that life here was a struggle. now the war might be over, but for many, the struggle is getting even harder. secunder kermani, bbc news, kabul.

now to a story that has sparked controversy in some parts of the world. walt disney's latest animated film lightyear, which is a spinoff of the toy story franchise, has been banned in a number of markets across asia and the middle east, mainly in muslim—majority countries. in singapore, children below the age of 16 will not be able to watch it in cinemas. so, why is the film facing a backlash? it's all because of a scene in the movie which shows a female space ranger kissing another woman. we took to the streets of singapore to find out more about what people think about the rating. i feel like it's not something that we should prevent our kids from watching. i feel like it's something we should start normalising and start to reflect kids seeing this in media and stuff like that. i have a son, so i mean i wouldn't mind to bring him to watch the movie in the cinemas. i wouldn't mind, yeah. yeah, too bad because of that, we cannot watch. i maybe next year. i don't want to wait for another year. . laughter.

yeah, yeah, but let's sayi if we do watch, i will have to explain to him same thing, - that you cannot glorify same—sex, you cannot glorify it. but you have to accept it, i some people are like that. while countries like singapore are controlling who will be able to watch the film, countries like malaysia have outright banned the movie. for more on film censorship in asia, i'm joined by siobhan synnot. thank you very much for your time here on the programme. in some countries like singapore, there are restrictions and in others outright bans. how controversial do you see this? , ., , , , this? interesting that disney themselves _ this? interesting that disney themselves were _ this? interesting that disney themselves were inclined i this? interesting that disney themselves were inclined to | this? interesting that disney - themselves were inclined to move the scene and only reinstated that context after a protest by some of their lgbtq employees. now, it seems from then on disney has put a line

in the sand and what they are saying is we are putting this back in, but also we are not going to remove it for other territories that request it. so as you say, 1a countries and you will not be able to see lightyear at all and it singapore has opted for this rating which is the first children's animated film to be given at rating for lgbt content. is it problematic? is going to be problematic for china. we are still waiting to hear what china's final decision is but we hearfrom the producers of lightyear that they have been asked to make cuts and they have not specified which cuts but i think we can guess which ones they are and they have declined to do that. now china of course has banned on—screen depiction of same—sex relationships in the past like coming by your name and broke back mountain but it is important because it is the world's largest movie market. in 2021, the second

year in a row, it had moviegoers spending 7.3 billion and now compare that with north america where they spent 11.5 billion in the same year. how difficult does it become for movie—makers to keep such diverse global sentiments in mind while making these films?— global sentiments in mind while making these films? well, this is somethin: making these films? well, this is something that _ making these films? well, this is something that is _ making these films? well, this is something that is going - making these films? well, this is something that is going to - making these films? well, this is something that is going to be - something that is going to be watched very keenly by other film—makers and other studios. disney has decided to take a stand, but not so long ago warner bros bowed to chinese pressure to remove a six ticket dialogue clip from a film called fantastic beasts with scenes of dumbledore in that its two central male characters were in a romantic relationship. so, disney decided to take a stand and warner decided to take a stand and warner decided it was better to make sure the film is seen by the widest possible audience.—

the film is seen by the widest possible audience. what happens to film-makers — possible audience. what happens to film-makers or _ possible audience. what happens to film-makers or studios _ possible audience. what happens to film-makers or studios it _ possible audience. what happens to film-makers or studios it refused i possible audience. what happens to film-makers or studios it refused to film—makers or studios it refused to cut scenes to conform to these kind of regulations?— of regulations? their films don't aet seen. of regulations? their films don't get seen- in _ of regulations? their films don't get seen. in the _ of regulations? their films don't get seen. in the big _ of regulations? their films don't get seen. in the big question . of regulations? their films don't get seen. in the big question is| of regulations? their films don't - get seen. in the big question is how much, how badly does hollywood want to make inroads into china. in particular as it's a place with deep pockets. china makes it very difficult for foreign films to get seen anyway. it's very protective of its local film industry and also it has only 3a films from abroad allowed to be screened in the country in a year. now if you do get your film screened it, country in a year. now if you do get yourfilm screened it, you get a revenue sharing arrangement and the only is to go to a chinese distributor and sell all rights to your film. distributor and sell all rights to yourfilm. that distributor and sell all rights to your film. that will be for a flat fleet, and normally films like to do that. and maybe this is why the feel

happy to walk away because china only accounted for 3% of the global revenue for toy story for it maybe dizzy can make more. indie revenue for toy story for it maybe dizzy can make more.— revenue for toy story for it maybe dizzy can make more. we are to leave it there but — dizzy can make more. we are to leave it there but thank _ dizzy can make more. we are to leave it there but thank you _ dizzy can make more. we are to leave it there but thank you very _ dizzy can make more. we are to leave it there but thank you very much - it there but thank you very much and thatisit it there but thank you very much and that is it that on the programme and stay with bbc news. well, we're certainly turning up the heat over the next couple of days. for southern parts of the uk, this will be a short—lived heat wave. and this is the peak — by friday, london and the southeast up to around 33—34 celsius. look at the average — so we're significantly higher compared to what we would normally see this time of the year. not unprecedented — the record is actually a little above 35 celsius. so we're not beating any records, but it's not that far away, if you think about it. now, this is what's happening on the satellite picture. here's the heat coming in from the south. we've got cooler air in the north atlantic — that cooler air will eventually win, i think by the time we get to saturday into sunday, things will start cooling off and storms will come our way as well, but not in the short term. this is what it looks

like thursday morning — clear skies across england and wales, a bit more cloud in the northwest here with these atlantic weather systems just brushing the northwest of the british isles, and bits and pieces of rain. some of the showers could turn a little heavy in the western isles, perhaps the north of northern ireland through the day. there's another weather front heading our way, but that's to come thursday night. but look at the temperatures — 28 in london, widely mid—20s into yorkshire, for example. we could actually hit 30 celsius on thursday. now, here's a reminder of the pollen levels — if you've been struggling with your nose and itchy eyes, the pollen levels are very high. and also, its worth aentioning the uv levels — we are approaching the longest day of the year, the sun's high in the sky. you know, make sure you're very careful if you're out for any lengthy period of time in that sunshine. so, here's a look at the weather for friday. this will actually be the peak of the heat — so these south—southwesterly winds draw up that hot air from the south, 33—34 celsius, all the hot air

coming in from france. the northwest of the country, much fresher here — this is that cooler atlantic air already starting to spread in. 17 celsius in glasgow. and this is what happens during the course of saturday — so that cooler atlantic air wrapping around this low pressure spreads across the country, here's the cold front. the heat is pushed to the south, back into france, and we get into this area of storminess. so come the weekend, whether you like it or not, after a hot and sunny friday, it's all going to go "bang".

this is bbc news, the headlines... the united states is sending a further $1 billion worth of security aid to ukraine. washington is also urging allies to increase their weapons deliveries to help ukraine battle russian troops. the us central bank, the federal reserve, has announced the biggest rise in interest rates in nearly 30 years. its benchmark rate is going up by three—quarters of a percentage point, to try to combat surging inflation. the british prime minister is underfresh pressure, following the resignation of his second ethics adviser since he took office. lord geidt has said there was a legitimate question over whether borisjohnson broke the ministerial code over lockdown breaches. and the england and wales cricket board has brought charges against yorkshire and several

individuals over allegations of racism.