welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines: china prepares to begin live fire military exercises, after nancy pelosi's controversial visit to taiwan. our delegation came to taiwan to make unequivocally clear we will not abandon our commitment to taiwan and we are proud of our enduring friendship. the un secretary general accuses oil and gas companies of exploiting the poor while destroying the climate. in a major victory for pro—choice groups, the conservative state of kansas, votes to keep

its abortion services. and how do countries adapt to climate change? we'll be looking at new zealand's plan to deal with the impact of global warming. welcome to bbc news. taiwan has scrambled fighter planes after chinese military aircraft entered its air defence zone. beijing is protesting against the visit by the us house speaker nancy pelosi, who vowed her country would never abandon the island, china has also begun manoeuvres around taiwan that are affecting air and shipping links. taiwan is self governing, and lies about 160 kilometres across the taiwan strait.

it sees itself as independent, but china views it as its own. from taiwan, here's rupert wingfield hayes. despite what china has been saying, today's meeting between nancy pelosi and taiwan president ing—wen didn't look terribly sinister. president tsai began by presenting ms pelosi with taiwan's highest civilian honour. she in turn praised taiwan's democracy and promised america would stand by the island. our solidarity with you is more important than ever, as you defend taiwan and your freedom. we are supporters of the status quo, and we don't want anything to happen to taiwan by force. so strength, and one of the biggest sources of strength is democracy. most people here are unfazed by china's threats. if anything, they're excited that the world's attention is focused on taiwan, if only for 2h hours.

i think everybody is very excited here and very happy that she can come. and, more importantly, that people can show their excitement that, you know, that they're very welcome. to most people here, taiwan is a proud, independent country, with its own national flag and its own democratically—elected president. it is not some renegade province of china. but beijing has used its considerable economic and political clout to make sure this place is recognised by almost nobody. and that's why nancy pelosi's trip here today has been so important to them. they also knew china might retaliate, and that is exactly what it's now doing. china has declared these six areas around taiwan closed to all air and sea traffic, starting from midday on thursday until midday on sunday. some of them encroach on taiwan's own territorial waters. in beijing, the foreign ministry said china had been forced

into taking these actions. translation: for days, china has repeatedly - expressed its opposition to pelosi's taiwan visit, but the us and the taiwan separatist forces seem not to have heard. in this case, china can only speak to them in a language that they can understand. china's state television has been showing warplanes and navalforces mobilising, and ballistic missile carriers on the move. taiwan's defence ministry says china may be preparing to blockade the island. if so, we could be heading for the most serious crisis in more than 20 years. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in taipei. you have seen and heard the view from taiwan. john kirby, a spokesman for the us security council, has been speaking to the bbc about china's reaction to ms pelosi's visit to taiwan. certainly watching this as

closely as we can, we have made it clear that we don't want to see any tensions escalate, that the united states is not going to participate in sabre rattling but we're going to be intimidated by the threat. there is no reason whatsoever for beijing to amp up the tensions here, to escalate things and to turn this into some sort of a military event. we knew and we said so on monday that we expected them to conduct some exercises, they have done that. it appears as if they are going to do some more so we are going to watch this very closely. we have serious security commitments throughout the region, five of ourseven throughout the region, five of our seven treaty alliances are there in the indo—pacific, we take those seriously and nothing has changed, either about our commitment to help taiwan in their self defence but also to support this self defence, rather, but also nothing has changed about our one china policy. we have said all along that there is no

basis orjustification all along that there is no basis or justification for the chinese to establish some sort of pretext for this to emerge into a crisis or conflict.- into a crisis or conflict. that was john — into a crisis or conflict. that was john kirby _ into a crisis or conflict. that was john kirby they're - into a crisis or conflict. that wasjohn kirby they're speaking to the bbc a little earlier. earlier i spoke to asia security expert bonnie lin. she told me how taiwan is likely to respond to the chinese military drills. there are some of the exercise areas that are even closer than 16 km. and the real question is, if china starts entering into taiwan's airspace and waters, it's how taiwan may react. it may be from taiwan's perspective, if they do not respond, it could set a precedent for china to operate close to taiwan. but if they do respond, there is a real risk of escalation. at what point do you see the us getting involved, as well? so, i think, if china starts operating closer and closer to taiwan,

i think taiwan will likely be cautious and probably not engage in significant activity to strike the chinese first or any such activities, as if china starts flying over taiwan airspace. but, as we see the two militaries start coming even closer and operating closer and closer together. there is a risk of potential escalation. if china decides to fly aeroplanes over taiwan airspace, taiwan may try to intercept them and what happens in the air, we could see a midair collision, we could see a lot of different scenarios plank it's very difficult to tell in advance. and potentially, a really dangerous, as you've been discussing, intriguing.

nancy pelosi has left taiwan, so what is the point of these drills now, do you see any of this from china in the coming weeks and months? china's timing these drills after speaker pelosi left. it shows that china is aware of the power dynamics and wants to make sure that it's punishment against what it views an acceptable activity is mainly directed towards taiwan. i expect these drills to put a lot of pressure on taiwan and whatever china is doing in these drills in the next couple of days, it would not be the first and only time that china does them. china is trying to normalise a pattern of more aggressive behaviour against taiwan. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. managing tensions in the south china sea will be

on the agenda as the us secretary of state antony blinken attends the summit of asia pacific leaders in cambodia. other topics include the military conflict in myanmar. the russian foreign minister, sergei lavrov, has told myanmar�*s ruling generals that moscow supports their efforts at what he called stabilising the situation in the country. russia is a major ally and arms supplier of the isolated burmese military, and has been accused of arming them with weapons used to attack civilians since last year's coup. ajury in texas has begun weighing how much in damages a prominent far—right us conspiracy theorist should pay for claiming that the massacre of 20 children and six teachers at sandy hook elementary school was a hoax. alexjones, founder of the website infowars has been found liable in multiple defamation lawsuits brought by parents of the victims of the 2012 shooting.

spain is experiencing a third intense heatwave, with temperatures spiking at more than a0 degrees in central and southern parts. an orange warning, which predicts a significant risk to those taking part in outdoor activities, is in place for 15 provinces. weather models estimate this period of intense heat will last until at least mid—august. another story for you now, and a strong statement from the united nations secretary general who has said, it is immoralfor oil and gas companies to be making record profits on the backs of the world's poorest people, and at massive cost to the climate. presenting a report on the energy crisis, antonio guterres urged all governments to tax excessive profits and use the money to help the most vulnerable. heres our new york business correspondent michelle fleury. the un secretary—general

did not mince his words. guterres tore into what he called the grotesque creed of these companies in the financial backers. they have seen bumper profit and with oil and natural gas prices soaring since the war in ukraine. it is immoral for oil and gas companies to be making record profits from this energy crisis on the backs of the poorest people in the communities and at a massive cost of the climate. mr guterres is urging the government introduced a windfall tax on the record profits and together he pointed out the largest producers made a profit of almost hundred billion dollars in the first three months of this year and he wants the money for this collection to be helping those most in need. mr guterres is picking up on a rising chorus of voices were calling for a windfall tax on energy.

in america, you have some congressional democrats who have floated the idea and in europe, spain is planning to following the footsteps of britain and which have already adopted such plans. it is also not the first of the oil industry has been criticised for taking advantage of the global supply server to which to fatten profits. president biden signalled out exxon saying it had made more money than god this year. meanwhile, the russian energy giant, gazprom, says the delivery to russia of a turbine crucial to its gas supplies to europe has been made impossible by the current sanctions. but the german chancellor has blamed moscow for not honouring its gas supply contracts and accused president putin of blocking delivery of the turbine. this comes as fears of gas shortages, and even blackouts, are growing in germany. jenny hill has more. he's holding europe's feet to the fire.

vladimir putin knows germany relies on his energy, that its industry needs his gas. the aluminium they produce here flows down vital supply chains — cars, medical equipment, wind turbines. but no—one can rule out shortages this winter. honestly, if they cut energy, there is no real contingency plan. the only thing you can do is then prioritise, and, let's say, allocate the capacity that you could still run to the most important markets, where you think the damage to society is the biggest, right? so you'd cut back on production? that's the only way. russia cut gas to europe, but it wants the world to think it's germany's fault. so, today, a photo—op. the german chancellor and the german turbine russia says it can't do without. olaf scholz insists it's available and there is no technical reason for russia to withhold its gas. but this is a chancellor who promised to phase out coal and end nuclear power.

he is having to rethink those pledges now. "germany's last three remaining nuclear power stations," he said, "only provide electricity, and only a small amount." "nevertheless, it could make sense to keep them going." it would be a huge political compromise. one of those plants is in bavaria, and provides 12% of the region's electricity. it's due to be decommissioned at the end of the year. in the nearby town of landshut, they're painfully aware that germany doesn't yet have enough gas stored for the winter. translation: we are preparing for disaster management. - should the gas supply break down, energy intensive industries would be the first to be taken off the supply grid, which would have catastrophic consequences for industry in our region. secondly, we would have to ensure

places like hospitals and old peoples' homes are looked after. vladimir putin is casting a long shadow over the baking heat of the german summer. he may not yet have triggered the economic and political turmoil he'd no doubt like to unleash in the heart of europe, but he is forcing governments like germany's into difficult decisions and uncomfortable choices. and that's before you throw soaring energy bills into the mix. europe faces a volatile winter. and its leaders, a critical task — to insulate europe from russian power. jenny hill, bbc news, landshut, in bavaria. if you want to get in touch with me i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma he you can get in touch with me about stories like the situation between taiwan and china. i would love to hear your thoughts.

you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: we'll look at a plan by new zealand to deal with the impact of global warming with a climate expert. the question was whether we wanted to save our people, and japanese as well, and win the war, or whether we want to take a chance on being able to win the war by killing all our young men. the invasion began at two o'clock this morning. mr bush. — like most other people, was clearly caught by surprise. we call for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all the iraqi forces. 100 years old, and still full of vigor, vitality and enjoyment of life. no other king or queen in british history has lived so long, and the queen mother is said to be quietly very pleased indeed that she's achieved this landmark anniversary. this is a pivotal moment for the church

as an international movement. the question now is whether the american vote will lead to a split in the anglican community. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani, in singapore. our headlines: china prepares to begin live fire military exercises, after nancy pelosi's controversial visit to taiwan. the un secretary general accuses oil and gas companies of exploiting the poor while destroying the climate with what he called "grotesque greed". let's turn to the united states now, where voters in the conservative state of kansas have voted to uphold the state's access to abortion services. it's a major victory for pro—choice groups, after the us supreme court overturned roe v wade, two months ago,

ending federal protection for the procedure. since that ruling, abortion has been banned in ten states across the us, and restrictions imposed in at least four. the referendum in kansas is the first time voters have had the chance to weigh in. president biden called the vote a "decisive victory". nomia iqbal reports. cheering. in this deeply conservative state, it is a moment that has gaving liberal groups hope. it is a moment that has giving liberal groups hope. it's going to be ok, it's going to be ok. they'd expected the vote to protect abortion rights to either be tight, or not go their way at all. i am speechless, really. i'm so proud and relieved. i'm relieved that our rights remain intact in kansas. when the us supreme court overturned roe v wade two months ago, a ruling that legalised abortion nationwide, many republican—led states banned or restricted

the procedure. not kansas, because the right is enshrined into the state's constitution. an amendment had to be passed to remove that right. it was a yes or a no vote. no won, by a lot. so proud of everybody in this state of kansas who has stepped forward and worked so hard for this. for president biden, this result is proof that the removal of roe v wade is out of step with public opinion. voters made it clear that politicians should not interfere with the fundamental rights of women. the voters of kansas sent a powerful signal that this fall, the american people will vote to preserve and protect their rights, and refuse to let them be ripped away by politicians. and my administration has their back. anti—abortion groups say this is a temporary setback. this campaign has been bitter and divisive. about $12 million has been spent

by both yes and no sides, in a state with a population ofjust three million people. both groups have accused each other of aggressive and misleading tactics. unlike its neighbouring states, abortion is currently legal in kansas until 22 weeks of pregnancy. and now will stay that way. for many, that's emotional and disappointing. itjust goes against my faith, i guess, or my feelings. i just don't like to see an innocent life taken, if it isn't really, really medically necessary. other states will now vote directly on abortion rights in the mid—term elections in november. but this comfortably republican state has shown just how unpredictable this issue is in america. nomia iqbal, bbc news, kansas. pilgrims at the great mosque of mecca are once again able to touch and kiss one of the most revered relics in islam, the black stone,

set in the ancient structure known as the kaaba. after two years of drastic pandemic restrictions, the protective barrier around the kaaba has now finally been removed. it was originally set up at the start of the covid—i9 pandemic for social distancing, but has been taken down just in time for the umrah pilgrimage season. new zealand has released its first national plan to prepare for extreme weather in the years ahead. it comes as fires, floods and heatwaves have scorched countries around the globe this summer, and scientists say these severe weather events will only get more frequent. the country's climate minister james shaw says the national adaptation plan outlines steps the government will take over the next six years and is absolutely crucial. earlier i spoke with climate expert, professor bronwyn hayward, about how ambitious this plan is. i think that overall, the feeling around the country and by most experts, is a sense of relief that

new zealand has finally joined many countries around the world in setting up a plan but as we know from our work on the ipcc as well, most countries are now developing these plans. it is putting them into practice that is really the next big step and funding them. what is particularly useful about this plan is its focus on protecting the poorest and indigenous maori communities here, who we now are going to be the most affected by our rising seas and, while britain, for example, has been having such record heat waves, here in my own city, in christchurch, we have had the wettest july on record and so flooding, sealevel rise, together with wildfires and drought, are an increasing risk for new zealanders so it is a relief but now the big question is how are we going to fund it. absolutely, professor, and that is what i want to ask you about because, while the plan has been praised in terms of the sort

of scope of its ambition, lots of questions, aren't there, in terms of lacking — the fact that it is lacking in detail, when it comes to who will pay for it and the cost of it? yes, the next step, we have been really following britain and setting up long overdue legislation so we have put in a climate commission, we have created a mission targets and net zero target for 2050. this step in setting up the plan and the risks is now followed by a climate adaptation a bill is now followed by a climate adaptation bill which is due in the legislation early next year. the climate minister is a green and he sits outside of cabinet. the labour government has been focusing on a raft of reforms. i think that this climate bill was pushed to the beginning of next year, while they pushed through other legislation. from my perspective, it is a shame that these weren't integrated but there is a lot of change happening. the new climate bill will look at how the insurance industry... i'm also interested on your thoughts on how you realistically, in the plan,

effectively get people to move because my understanding is that the plan includes moving people's homes which are in low—lying areas and moving them to higher ground. how do you convince people that they need to do this? well, at this point it is very difficult and i think britain and other countries are finding this idea of managed retreat very difficult and often treating it as a last resort step, but this legislation needs to provide funding and support in land use planning to make sure first that people are not in situations of high risk, which increasingly, at local government, is still happening. local government is struggling, around the world, actually, to control land use planning along coastlines so the first step is to get people out of harm's way before they move and then find the funding through the private and government sector to support people if they have to move and they can't elevate.

that was professor bronwyn hayward from canterbury university in new zealand. and before we go, let's bring you some live pictures now from iceland where a volcano is erupting near the capital reykyavik. you can see there that magma has once more started bubbling out of the earth's surface on the icelandic peninsula that saw six months of volcanic eruption last year. it's close to the fagradalsfjall mountain, whose eruption was the first on the peninsula in more than 800 years. iceland's government says that as it's a lava eruption, there's currently no expectation of ashfall or of damage to infrastructure. it's likely to draw big crowds as it's close to the capital reykyavik. last year's eruption — which lasted for nine months — became a major tourist attraction, drawing more than 430,000 visitors.

quite a sight to behold indian. i do not know if i would be forever enough to look at that “p forever enough to look at that up close. stay with bbc news. thank you forjoining us. hello there. we've had some exceptional weather through july and statistics came through this week to show that it was the driest on record in some southern and eastern parts of the uk, and there's little sign of any rain here for the rest of the week and into the weekend. but it's notjust been dry across the south and east. across the whole of the uk, through the summer so far — the meteorological summer, june, july — we've had just over 100mm of rain. whilst during the whole of the summer — so another month, august added on — we'd normally expect to see about 240mm, so we're way off that. it has been dry across many parts, but obviously exceptionally so in the south. and with this high pressure moving in, over the next few days, that's going to keep our weather fronts at bay,

and it means the dry weather persists. rain will fall, but mostly in the north. this shows the accumulations over the next 3—4 days, and we do expect some rain for northern ireland and for scotland, but very little across the south and east where we need it. there's been some heavy rain, actually, overnight across scotland and northern ireland, some heavy, thundery rain just across the east of scotland in particular. it could be some quite nasty conditions for travelling here, localised flooding. further south, we're losing the humidity — finally, we're lowering the humidity — more comfortable for sleeping. so, some rush—hour issues potentially with spray and standing water on the fast routes in the south and east of scotland before that clears away. sunny spells and scattered showers, heavy in the north of scotland, rumbles of thunder potentially, one or two into the midlands, east anglia. but notice the temperatures, 20—25, feeling a lot fresher, i think, compared with recent days, less oppressive. we'll notice that, actually, at the commonwealth games in birmingham — temperatures 3—4 degrees down here. through the evening and overnight, the showers continue, as you can see.

perhaps some heavier ones clumping together and a fresh feel again. more noticeable again across the south, and we keep that fresher air, actually, through the weekend. the rain comes in the form of showers, just one or two getting into northern parts of england, perhaps the midlands, again, and parts of wales, but few and far between for the most part. temperatures on a par with those of thursday, 17—24 celsius. then, into the weekend, there is going to be some rain, particular the across the north of scotland, but elsewhere, there's a lot of dry and settled weather, warming up again into next week.

this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour straight after this programme. i've been to hundreds of institutions, and i get a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach whenever i come. this is the search to uncover ukraine's most shameful secret. oh, my god, this is his ribs. this is his ribs hanging out. it's a nightmare. it's a living hell on earth. we're with human rights

investigators eric and halyna, exposing the abuse and neglect of disabled people.