welcome to bbc news. i'm monika plaha. our top stories: ukraine's president zelensky tells a joint meeting of the us congress in washington that his nation's struggle for freedom is for the future of the whole world. we don't have to know everyone's wish, as we know that all of us, millions of ukrainians, wish the same. victory. only victory. applause at the white house, president biden announces almost $2 billion worth of further military aid for ukraine, including patriot missile defence systems. meanwhile, in moscow, president putin tells the military there is no limit to the funds available for the russian offensive.

also in the programme: the world health organization issues a stark warning about the worsening covid situation in china as cases continued to rise. and sam bankman—fried, the founder of the collapsed crypto—currency exchange, ftx trading, is extradited to the us from the bahamas to face fraud charges. the president of ukraine, volodomyr zelensky, has received the red carpet treatment in washington, dramatically flying in from a war zone to meet president biden at the white house. it's his first overseas trip since russia invaded ukraine in february. america is kyiv�*s most important ally, and today

president biden told ukraine that the united states "will stay with you as long as it takes" — pledging another military aid package worth around $1.85 billion. a little earlier, president zelensky also addressed both chambers of congress on capitol hill. he received several standing ovations. the battle continues and we have to defeat the kremlin on the battlefield, yes. these battles not only for the territory, for this and other parts of europe, the battle is not only for life, freedom and security of ukrainians or any other nation which russia attempts to conquer. this struggle will define in what world our children and grandchildren will live, and then their children and grandchildren. it will define whether it will be a democracy of ukrainians and for americans, for all.

well, mr zelensky said russian attacks will not stop ukrainians from celebrating the holiday season. we will celebrate christmas. celebrate christmas, and even if there is no electricity, the light of our faith, in ourselves, will not be put out. applause. if russian missiles attack us, we will do our best to protect ourselves. if they attack us with iranian drones and our people have to go to bomb shelters on christmas eve, ukrainians will still sit down at the holiday table and cheer up each other, and we don't have to know everyone's wish, as we know that all of us, millions of ukrainians, wish the same. victory. only victory.

our correspondent barbara plett usher was on capitol hill when the president gave his address to congress. it was notjust it was not just about ukraine but about the wider world and he kept bringing back to america, at one 90 said you can expect what is happening across the ocean not to you effect you at some point because this is about issues like sovereignty and democracy. he thanked the americans or thejoint and democracy. he thanked the americans or the joint session several times for everything they had given but you will notice he, of course asked for more, and at a certain point he turned it into a joke as he did with resident hyden earlier he said thank you for the patriot we need more weapons, he laughed and everybody knows what they want, thanks for the financial assistance it has made a difference but we hope you will make another decision for more financial assistance.

in the middle of the talk about how this is a bigger issue than just ukraine, in the middle of being thankfulfor the just ukraine, in the middle of being thankful for the great support congress has shown he continue to put forward his request, that that support would continue into the next year. barbara referenced america's military aid to ukraine there, and president biden made this announcement after talks with president zelensky. i'm announcing the next tranche of our security package to ukraine, $1.5 billion includes direct transfer of equipment that ukraine needs as well as contracts to supply ammunition ukraine will need in the months ahead for its artillery, and in rocket launchers. critically in addition to these new capabilities and precision aerial munitions, the fact it will include a patriot missile battery which will train

ukrainian forces to operate as part of the ongoing if to help bolster the ukraine in defence. it will take some time to complete the necessary training but the patriot battery will be as it defends itself. this was president zelensky�*s reaction. this will strengthen our air defence significantly, the society way you can stop the terrorists country from striking our energy sector and infrastructure. we can now speak to steve pifer who's a former us ambassador to ukraine and now an affiliate at the center for international security and cooperation at stanford university.

president zelensky set out this mission aimed at strengthening ukraine's resilience and defence capabilities, what to think were the main outcomes of this visit, to think they have been achieved?— achieved? yes, i believe president _ achieved? yes, i believe president zelensky - achieved? yes, i believe| president zelensky came achieved? yes, i believe - president zelensky came here with three goals that use saw reflected with his speech to congress, one, to express gratitude to the president, to congress and american people, for the support that america has provided ukraine. second, to remind people that this was not just about ukraine, to remind people that this was notjust about ukraine, it's about things like spaced international order, ukraine is fighting russia, not itself but other interests at stake here, on the part of america and europe stop thirdly the pointy mate is certainly the pointy mate is certainly the credit or most of the credit for what ukraine military has done in the last ten months belongs to the skill and courage of its national

ukrainian soldiers, he did make the point they need tools, and that means arms and weapons from the united states and the west and we saw that request. president zelensky said the $115 billion in aid congress is poised to approve as an investment that strengthens global security, but there are signs from some americans they are questioning the huge sum being spent by their country to support a foreign war? find being spent by their country to support a foreign war?- support a foreign war? and i think this — support a foreign war? and i think this was _ support a foreign war? and i think this was by, _ support a foreign war? and i think this was by, for - think this was by, for president zelensky and ukraine, the option to address congress was really important because you go back to the early 1990s when ukraine regained its independence, since then ukraine has enjoyed largely bipartisan support in the congress from republicans and democrats, but in the last six orseven democrats, but in the last six or seven months we have seen the first fissure that support develop among republicans. i

believe that for most republicans, they see there is an american interest in seeing that ukraine prevails and is able to defeat russia and this war but you have a small minority, that includes people like the person may be the next speaker of the house who begun to question that. part of this address was to remind congress and the american people there is an american interest in this, it's notjust about ukraine. this, it's not 'ust about ukraine._ this, it's not 'ust about ukraine. ~ . ., ,, ., ., ukraine. what about russia now, this visit is _ ukraine. what about russia now, this visit is not _ ukraine. what about russia now, this visit is not what _ this visit is not what president putin wants to witness, earlier he insisted russia was not to blame stop so where does this leave russia at the moment?— the moment? this visit is not the moment? this visit is not the way the _ the moment? this visit is not the way the kremlin - the moment? this visit is not the way the kremlin would i the moment? this visit is not i the way the kremlin would have hoped it to go, vladimir putin is fighting a two front war on one hand the russian military fighting against the ukrainian military and they have been losing for the last three months, the second front is trying to undermine western support for ukraine, to encourage the west to reduce or

cut off the flow of arms, and the message that comes out of president zelensky visit to washington to visit president biden as the us intends to continue to give those tools to ukraine, and that is shared by most european countries, certainly support ukraine in the west is strong and probably much stronger than the kremlin would have guessed five or six months ago. would have guessed five or six months age-— would have guessed five or six months ago-— would have guessed five or six months auo. ., ~' ,, , . months ago. thank you very much for our months ago. thank you very much for your time _ months ago. thank you very much for your time here _ months ago. thank you very much for your time here on _ months ago. thank you very much for your time here on bbc - months ago. thank you very much for your time here on bbc news. i well, president zelensky�*s trip made headline news in russia too — where news programmes mocked his reliance on western military aid while president putin made a speech to his top defence chiefs, telling them that the invasion was going to plan. here's our russia editor steve rosenberg. "comrade officers," the greeting. the occasion — president putin had come to tell chiefs, "i'll give you everything "you need to secure victory in ukraine "and against the west."

translation: almost all the main nato countries l are employing their military capabilities against russia. but our soldiers, sergeants and officers are fighting courageously. confidently, step—by—step, they are tackling the goals they've been set, and these goals will be achieved. meanwhile... ..russia's state media jeered and sneered at president zelensky for flying to washington, claiming he was prostrating himself before america and begging for money. there's a good reason for the bad press. having invaded ukraine, the last thing the kremlin wants is for russians to start viewing president zelensky as much of the world views him — in other words, as a charismatic, courageous, hugely impressive leader. because if they start doing that, who knows how they'll

view their own president. this was vladimir putin on tuesday, at an awards ceremony for his special military operation, in the safety of the kremlin. the same day, president zelensky was visiting the front line. russians are starting to spot the differences. zelensky�*s a modern person, very eloquent, very smart. putin is old, he is old—fashioned. zelensky is an example of the politician for the future. putin will stay in history as a person from the dark past. bells ring but vladimir putin has no intention of being consigned to history. on his stage, there's no room for rivals, competitors. no—one's allowed to outshine the leader here.

steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: scottish minsters prepare for a final vote on a controversial gender recognition bill. the world of music has been paying tribute to george michael, who's died from suspected heart failure at the age of 53. he sold well over 100 million albums in a career spanning more than three decades. the united states' troops have been trying to overthrow the dictatorship of general manuel noriega. the pentagon says it's failed in its principle objective to capture noriega and take him to the united states to face drugs charges. the hammer and sickle| was hastily taken away. in its place, the russian flag - was hoisted over what is now no longer the soviet union, but the commonwealth i of independent states. day broke slowly over lockerbie, over the cockpit of pan am's maid of the seas, nose down in the soft earth.

you could see what happens when a plane eight storeys high, a football pitch wide, falls from 30,000 feet. christmas has returned to albania after a communist ban lasting more than 20 years. thousands went to midnight mass in the town of shkoder, where there were anti—communist riots ten days ago. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: ukraine's president zelensky tells a joint meeting of the us congress in washington that his nation's struggle for freedom is for the future of the whole world. at the white house, president biden announces almost $2—billion worth of further military aid for ukraine, including patriot missile defence systems. the founder of the collapsed cryptocurrency exchange,

ftx, is in custody of the fbi and being flown to the us. authorities in the bahamas agreed to extradite sam bankman—fried to new york where he faces fraud charges. ftx went bankrupt last month. hilaryj allen is a professor of law at the american university washington college of law and was an expert witness in the hearing on collapse of cryptocurrency company ftx last week. thank you very much forjoining us on bbc news. if you canjust begin by talking us through what they do this extradition, and how the serious accusations came about? sam bankman—fried and the ftx were the golden boy of crypto for a long time, it

were the golden boy of crypto for a long time,— for a long time, it seemed to be that he — for a long time, it seemed to be that he was _ for a long time, it seemed to be that he was the _ for a long time, it seemed to i be that he was the responsible player in the room, but behind—the—scenes ftx was lending its customers' assets to its affiliated hedge fund, alameda, and alameda made a lot of very poor bets and the money disappeared, and suddenly through some balance sheets it became clear about a month ago that the money was no longer there and it all unravelled. it has been described as one of the biggest financial fords in us history, so what is the impact on the victims and those that have suffered in this, and essentially where does it leave them now?— them now? the victims are basically — them now? the victims are basically in _ them now? the victims are basically in a _ them now? the victims are basically in a position - them now? the victims are | basically in a position where they don't know where they are because it is unclear how many assets the combined ftx — alameda group still has to distribute to the people who thought that their money was safe with the exchange, what we know for sure is that we won't be seeing money anytime soon

because these bankruptcy proceedings take a long time. mount cox, which was another crypto exchange failed many years ago and it is still distributing assets. estimate no doubt a — distributing assets. estimate no doubt a lot _ distributing assets. estimate no doubt a lot of— distributing assets. estimate no doubt a lot of uncertainty| no doubt a lot of uncertainty and frustration, so where does this leave regulators in regulating crypto in the future? . , , future? that is the big question. _ future? that is the big question, what - future? that is the big question, what do - future? that is the big question, what do we | future? that is the big l question, what do we do future? that is the big - question, what do we do now? there are concerns about giving the crypto industry the regulation it was looking for, so crying to the ftx failure, sam bankman—fried was the golden boy of crypto was lobbying heavily for regimes that would help crypto thrive. now, ironically, with his fall from grace they have been some renewed pressures to enact that very legislation that he was championing. i don't think that's what's going to happen but we need to be careful about the type of regulation applied. we don't want regulation that

will allow crypto to continue to go and it is going because it doesn'tjust hurt the investors themselves, it could potentially have the financial system as a whole if it becomes integrated with the traditional financial system. bud integrated with the traditional financial system.— financial system. and let's talk about _ financial system. and let's talk about sam _ financial system. and let's talk about sam now, - financial system. and let's talk about sam now, you | talk about sam now, you surprise he agreed to being extradited to face these charges in the united states? i mean, i don't know him personally, he has been very vocal about his thought processes through others, more vocal than anybody else thought he would be, including his lawyers, yes, ithink he would be, including his lawyers, yes, i think he is an unpredictable character so nothing surprises me anymore. hilary allen, thank you very much forjoining us on bbc news. much for “oining us on bbc news. . ~ much for “oining us on bbc news. ., ~ , ., let's get some use of the day. the israeli prime minister netanyahu socio— successfully neta nyahu socio— successfully formed netanyahu socio— successfully formed a new coalition which looks set to be the most right—wing government ever. he

has spent weeks wrangling with coalition partners in two ultraorthodox jewish coalition partners in two ultraorthodoxjewish parties and in ultranationalist and in ultra nationalist religious and in ultranationalist religious alliance. doctors treating the former brazilian football star police says he will remain in hospital during christmas because his cancer has advanced. he was diagnosed with colon cancer three years ago but his health has deteriorated. he won three with the brazilian national team and is widely regarded as the best football player of all time. the united nations security council has for the first time adopted a resolution calling for mayanmar�*s military government to end political violence in the country. the security council also called for the immediate release of all political prisoners, including the ousted prime minister aung san suu chi. tom brada reports. for almost two years, myanmar has been in crisis. in february

2021 army seize power. a civilian protest movement opposed the coup, but the regime has been ruthless in a crashing opposition. now, the united nations security council has approved a resolution demanding an immediate end to violence. ~ , demanding an immediate end to violence. ~ ., violence. with this adoption, the council _ violence. with this adoption, the council has _ violence. with this adoption, the council has responded i violence. with this adoption, the council has responded toj the council has responded to the council has responded to the cause of asean leaders for support for their efforts. resolution calls for the of violence. resolution calls for the of violence-— violence. india, china and russia abstained - violence. india, china and russia abstained from - violence. india, china and i russia abstained from voting and the 15 member security council has long been split on how to act, but, the situation in my miers stock. more than 2000 people are estimated to have been killed since the army took over. —— maianbar. among them is the ousted leader aung san suu chi who is facing more than 20 years in prison. the security council is demanding the release of all political

prisoners and myanmar is welcome the move but calls for decisive response. the security council is needed to save the lives of the people in myanmar and prevent further stabilisation of the region. there is an ongoing state of emergency and myanmar with the military regime they akin to strengthen its grip on power. the un will have this resolution can kickstart a dialogue and the possibility of peace. tom brada, bbc news. the world health organization says it's concerned over the evolving covid situation in china. the who's chief, dr tedros adanom gabreysus, told a news conference in geneva that the number of severe cases was on the rise. it comes as china reversed its zero covid policy and stopped most testing and tracing. hospitals, pharmacies and crematoriums in the country all say they are

busier than usual. dr tedros called on beijing to provide more data and to urgently step up its vaccination programme. in order to make a comprehensive risk assessment of the situation on the ground, who needs more information on the severity, hospital admissions, and requirements for icu support. who is supporting china to focus its efforts on vaccinating people at the highest risk across the country. members of the scottish parliament have been debating plans to make it easier to change gender legally. the scottish government says the legislation will ensure dignity for trans people. but critics say it's a threat to women and girls. the bbc�*s scotland editorjames cook has been following events. yeah, i came out as trans when i was 18. and i was really lucky, all of my friends and family were so supportive. it was a really positive experience for me.

ellie gomersall is now 23. she's been trying — and failing — to change the sex on her birth certificate for nearly five years. i often joke that the hardest thing about being trans is the admin, and there is definitely truth in that. i mean, certainly, to apply for a gender recognition certificate can be so costly, it can have so much admin related to it, which can be really, really stressful. how important is this legislation to you? i think that this legislation is actually going to be transformational. i think, ultimately, the only person who can really describe my own identity, my own gender, is me. i promise you, we will keep fighting. at holyrood, a very different view — from feminists furious and fearful about what will happen if anyone born male can simply declare themselves to be a woman. a lot of this involves the total acceptance of the premise that sex is not real and that it's a feeling, and that sex doesn't matter,

and as women's rights campaigners, we cannot accept that. people who would argue in favour of this bill say that this is actually about protecting a group of people who are especially vulnerable. i think that some of the most vulnerable people are people like women in prison or women in domestic shelters or women who have been raped — i think they are vulnerable. the passage of this bill has been far from smooth. as the debate began, the minister in charge sought to soothe concerns. the threat to women and girls is from predatory and abusive men and there is no suggestion that such predatory and abusive men have ever needed to apply for a legal gender recognition to carry out their behaviour. the lights will temporarily go out at midnight. take as the night wore on, msps were still squabbling about procedure when this happened. day two, and while conservatives have led the charge against this bill, the snp is not

without its rebels. i am very, very sad to say that the message sent out to women and girls in scotland today is that you do not matter. i will vote as if women do matter, i will be voting against the bill. when trans people are under attack, what do we do? trans rights activists have been here this week too, fighting for the bill's passage. victory could well be theirs tomorrow, but even then opponents, including the uk government, may try to challenge this new law in court. this is an issue which attracts real passion, real anger, and that may be because, for those in favour and against the legislation, it's notjust a political issue, it's notjust a legal issue, but a moral one. james cook,

bbc news, edinburgh. your watching bbc news. hello there. the next few days are looking fairly unsettled through the run—up to christmas. we'll keep low pressure nearby. so, i think large parts of the country will see rain at times, a bit of sunshine here and there, and it will be mild in the south, but it'll start to turn colder across northern areas. you can see this conveyor system of low pressure pushing up from the southwest, bringing in bands of rain followed by sunshine and showers. and our air mass coming in from the southwest off the atlantic will always be warmer, certainly across the south of the country. colder air, though, will start to tuck in across the north as we move through the next few days. for thursday, looks like it will be colder across northern scotland — breezy with a few showers, but quite a bit of sunshine for scotland, northern ireland, far north of england. england and wales, though, rather cloudy, misty, murky with some patchy rain and drizzle, some heavier rain

into the southwest later in the day. here, it will be mild, quite breezy. further north, though, a chillier feel to things, but at least we'll have the sunshine to compensate. as we move through thursday night, it stays blustery, further showers across the north, these wintry over the hills. further south, it'll be quieter — mixture of clear spells, some cloud, but then some heavier rain and stronger winds will start to push into the southwest later on, along with some milder air. but a chillier night to come across the northern half of the country. so, for friday, a chilly start, some sunshine across northern areas, a few wintry showers over the hills of scotland, then this band of rain starts to push northwards across england and wales. some of this rain could be quite heavy and persistent for a while as it pushes its way northwards. doesn't reach scotland until we move through friday night. however, there'll be a big temperature contrast — some brighter weather in the south with a few showers, very mild, staying quite chilly despite the sunshine across the north. then, as we move into christmas eve, that weather front pushes northwards, some snow on the hill as it does so. then, for christmas eve, christmas day, we're in a run of milder southwesterly winds, sunshine and showers. but then, later on christmas day into boxing day, we start to see some colder air work its way

southwards across the country from the northwest, and with the winds coming in from the northwest, this is likely to see most of the snow showers on christmas day across the north and the west of scotland. one or two wintry showers getting into irish sea coasts as well. you can see the trend — it turns colder for all areas as we move through the christmas period, but i think it'll be short—lived, as it will start to turn milder once again in the run—up to new year's eve. don't forget, you can check out the bbc weather app for where you are or where you're going. take care.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the ukrainian president, volodymyr zelensky, has told a joint session of the us congress that the war in ukraine is a fight for the freedom of the world. in his speech, he thanked the us for its support, saying it was an investment in the future. earlier, at a white house meeting, joe biden praised the bravery of the ukrainian people. the us president also pledged america's continued support for kyiv. the patriot air—defence missile system will form part of a $115 billion aid package. the world health organization has said it's concerned over the worsening covid situation in china. the number of cases has continued to rise