From Our Own Correspondent

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Moldova’s Divided Loyalties. Feb 25, 2023

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Kate Adie presents stories from Moldova, Estonia, Cambodia, Chile and the Seychelles.

Lucy Williamson visits the Moldovan enclave of Moldova Noua, which has been surrounded by pro-Russian forces since the 1990s. Villagers tell her they feel isolated by pro-Western rhetoric and are being lured closer to Moscow by the cheap energy and lower food prices available in the breakaway Russian-backed region of Transnistria

In Estonia's easternmost city of Narva, on the Russian border, Nick Robinson finds there is a generational divide when it comes to views about life under former Soviet rule. Increasingly, locals have to choose which side they're on as they wrestle with the implications of the invasion of Ukraine.

Celia Hatton follows the story of stolen Cambodian jewels which have finally been returned from Britain to the southeast Asian country. Under the Khmer Rouge regime, antiques were looted and sold through dealers in Asia to Europe and the US. She meets an archaeologist who is piecing together her country's lost past.

Chile has seen some of its worst wildfires in years, with forests destroyed, crops ruined and homes burnt to the ground. More than 25 people have been killed. Jane Chambers drove through one of the worst affected regions.

The Coco de Mer tree is a much treasured species that can only be found on two islands in the Seychelles archipelago off East Africa. Rhodri Davies discovers how the region has seen a rise in poaching of its highly prized nut, due to the economic impact of the pandemic.

Ukraine: One Year On Feb 23, 2023

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Orla Guerin, senior international correspondent, reports from Ukraine's east, a region she has covered on different trips during the last year, on the permanent sense of danger lingering there, that has become a way of life since the Russian invasion.

Russia Editor, Steve Rosenberg recounts his own feelings of surprise at Vladimir Putin's decision to invade - and how far everyday Russians have swallowed the government propaganda. He explores the motivations as to why this might be.

US Editor, Sarah Smith describes the secrecy surrounding President Joe Biden's surprise visit to Kyiv - and what the political climate is like in Washington amid pledges the US will support the war for 'as long as it takes'.

Sarah Rainsford, Eastern Europe Correspondent, has followed the story of Ukrainians fleeing the war from the outset of the invasion. She speaks to those who have only recently fled in Poland's east and what prompted their decisions to leave now.

Vitaliy Shevchenko, presenter of Ukrainecast, has lost friends during the conflict. Over the last year, he evacuated his parents from Zaporizhzhia, now controlled by Russians, and also watched a broader shift in Ukraine's standing in the world - and that of its leader.

The questions after Turkey's earthquake Feb 18, 2023

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Kate Adie introduces analysis and reportage from correspondents in Turkey, Israel, Nigeria, Georgia and South Sudan.

While reporting from across southern Turkey after the February 6 earthquake, Nick Beake often came across moments of astonishing kindness and generosity - but also found an incalculable burden of grief and a growing sense of anger. How and why did the natural disaster have such devastating human consequences - and can anyone be held responsible for the deaths and damage?

There's a war of words going on in Israel over moves by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government to reform the status and powers of the country's Supreme Court. Amid the fervent demonstrations and political horse-trading in and around the Knesset building, Yolande Knell's been hearing the cases for and against the proposed changes to the system.

Nigeria is due to elect its next President on the 25th of February, but the scheduled election day comes as the nation grapples with a string of crises. Soaring inflation, burgeoning insecurity and dire fuel shortages have been capped off by currency chaos - as the entire country struggles to find enough cash to pay for its daily needs. Mayeni Jones reports from Lagos.

The political career of Mikhail Saakashvili has never been short of passionate rhetoric or dramatic twists, but recently, people in Tbilisi have been worried by a series of images which seemed to show their former President wasting away in a prison clinic. Rayhan Demytrie explains why 'Misha' still provokes strong feelings in Georgia.

And: what is really the point of a Papal visit? As Aleem Maqbool followed the route of Pope Francis's recent travels to the D R Congo and South Sudan, he was moved by the joy of the crowds - and considered how Popes can move politicians to act.

Producer: Polly Hope Production coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith

Rescue hopes fade in Turkey and Syria Feb 16, 2023

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Kate Adie presents stories from Turkey, Ukraine, the USA, Sao Tome and Principe and Lithuania.

Lyse Doucet has been in Southern Turkey reporting on the earthquake which has devastated towns there and in North West Syria. She describes how the rescue effort has now changed to a recovery mission as hope of finding survivors fades - yet families still hope for miracles.

It's four months since Russia first launched a wave of drone and missile attacks aimed at destroying Ukraine's power grid. Millions of Ukrainians have had to put up with regular power cuts, sometimes lasting for days. Paul Adams meets the army of engineers who, despite the huge damage, are busy re-connecting towns and cities.

In California selling cannabis for recreational use has been legal since 2016. In Oakland Sharon Hemans hears about a scheme to help communities previously targeted by the so-called War on Drugs make the most of the now legal cannabis trade. She meets one man who's experienced selling cannabis on both sides of the law and hears of the new challenges he now faces.

Petroc Trelwany finds the West African island of Principe has such a young population that schools are having to adapt by teaching classes in shifts. At lunchtime when the schools switch over the streets are flooded with students.

And it's the 700th birthday of Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania. Lucy Ash visits for the celebrations and discovers a small country determined to stand up for itself and continue the legacy of its medieval founder.

Producer: Caroline Bayley Editor: Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

Southern Turkey: The Earthquake's Epicentre Feb 11, 2023

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Kate Adie presents stories from Turkey, the USA, Myanmar, Italy and Ukraine.

Anna Foster has been in Kahramanmaras, the epicentre of the recent earthquake, where diggers work to remove the debris, revealing small personal items that tell of so many lives lost. Even after the rescue teams have left for the day, relatives continue the search for loved ones through the night.

President Joe Biden has switched to campaign mode in both his State of the Union speech to Congress and on his recent visit to Florida - celebrating the achievements of his presidency. But a fight looms with Republicans who now control the House, and there are potential trip wires on the road ahead, says Anthony Zurcher.

A journalist from Myanmar shares his story of how hope turned to despair when the military seized power in a coup in 2021 - and how he was forced to flee with his family. The regime has used intimidation and harassment to shut down the media, says Rebecca Henschke.

In Italy, Daniel Gordon tells the story of a man who managed to escape the clutches of the mafia. Having grown up in a crime family, the man reveals the challenges of leaving 'the family' when he was still a young man, before starting a new life in the north of Italy.

And Nick Redmayne takes the ever-punctual Ukrainian Railways overnight sleeper from Poland's far east to Kyiv. As the train departs, following a timetable undeterred by war, Nick chats to his travel companions over cups of hot tea served to passengers in elegant glasses.

Producers: Serena Tarling and Louise Hidalgo Editor: China Collins Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

Southern Turkey: The Earthquake's Epicentre Feb 11, 2023

Show notes

Kate Adie presents stories from Turkey, the USA, Myanmar, Italy and Ukraine.

Producers: Serena Tarling and Louise Hidalgo Editor: China Collins Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

(Image: Adem Altan via Getty Images)

Voices from Syria’s North-West Feb 09, 2023

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Kate Adie presents stories from Syria, Nigeria, Romania, Armenia and Pakistan

Leila Molana-Allen has spoken to anxious friends and relatives in the Syrian diaspora who are preparing for the worst as roads are blocked and airports closed. Many relief workers are running low on supplies as they battle to reach those stranded.

Mayeni Jones has been in the midst of the chaotic fall-out from the Nigerian Central Bank's decision to replace the high denomination bank notes, which led to fights breaking out in banks and long queues forming as the new notes became scarce to find.

Paul Kenyon visits the Romanian home of former championship boxer and social media influencer Andrew Tate, who's been detained in the country due to allegations of people trafficking and rape. He finds the house wasn't quite what he expected for someone who boasts about a glamour lifestyle - and went to hear what the locals make of him.

A group of teenagers got stranded on the Armenian border after they travelled to Yerevan from Nagorno-Karabakh for the Eurovision Junior Song Contest. Azerbaijani political activists staged a sit in on the only road connection Armenia to the breakaway region and have stopped all civilian traffic from passing. Gabriel Gavin spoke to the children caught in the middle of the conflict.

And finally, over this past year, Pakistan has marked the 75th anniversary of its formation. There were many individual stories of communities and families who were split or who chose to relocate and the reverberations of that partition are still felt today. Ash Bhardwaj reflects on his first visit to Pakistan as someone who is half Indian and grew up in England.

Producers: Serena Tarling and Louise Hidalgo Editor: China Collins Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

Grief and Grievances in Israel and the Occupied West Bank Feb 04, 2023

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After a surge in violence over the last week, in which several were killed in a military raid on a refugee camp in the occupied West Bank and a synagogue attack in Israel, Yolande Knell visited the both areas and spoke to friends and relatives of those who died about their fears for the future.

Rob Cameron extols the virtue of the old Soviet escalator in his local metro station in Prague, which is now being upgraded. And, as he sits down with pro-EU President-elect Petr Pavel, after recent elections, he reflects on the tensions between the old Soviet links, and modernisation in the country.

In Uruguay, Jane Chambers meets a new breed of cattle rancher - investors based in the city who buy cattle to be managed by local ranchers. She visits the farms beyond the capital, and hears how they've been focused on burnishing their environmental credentials to compete with Brazil and Argentina.

In the Canadian province of British Colombia, Mark Stratton visits a non-profit group who've teamed up with first nation people to promote bear tourism, as an alternative to bear hunting in the Great Bear Rainforest.

And finally, former Brussels Correspondent, Adam Fleming returns to Berlaymont three years after Brexit - for a spot of reminiscing over friends made, sleep lost and screeds of reports written on the twists and turns of the Brexit negotiations.

Producers: Serena Tarling, Louise Hidalgo and Arlene Gregorious Editor: China Collins and Richard Fenton-Smith Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

A Mosque Attack in Peshawar Feb 02, 2023

Show notes

Kate Adie presents stories from Pakistan Ukraine, Gibraltar, Uzbekistan and Namibia

More than 100 people were killed in an attack targeting police in a high security mosque in the northern city of Peshawar in Pakistan earlier this week. An investigation is now underway as to how the bomber managed to enter the high-security zone. Caroline Davies went to the city and met some of the survivors.

Ukraine's President, Volodymyr Zelensky has launched a anti-corruption drive, which led to the resignation of several government and regional ministers. James Waterhouse was in Kyiv and said the upheaval marked a shift in the government’s narrative, with a new focus on accountability.

Gibraltar, the British territory which borders Spain, remains deeply patriotic despite its geographical location. Joe Inwood met the chief minister there and discovered how a simple mispronunciation opened up deeper cultural differences.

We visit Samarkand in Uzbekistan, for centuries a major trading hub on the Silk Road. But under the former President Islam Karimov, the country experienced economic stagnation and isolation. His successor is trying to revive the economy by boosting tourism. Heidi Fuller-Love went to visit a shiny new complex near Samarkand - a different world from the heritage sites of the old city.

And Stephen Moss explores the sand dunes of the Namib desert - one of the most arid places on earth. He finds that, although Chinese investment in nearby Walvis Bay is reaping returns, the wider ecosystem is under threat.

Producers: Serena Tarling, Louise Hidalgo and Arlene Gregorius Editor: China Collins Production Coordinator: Helena Warwick-Cross

A Bitter Winter in Afghanistan Jan 28, 2023

Show notes

Kate Adie presents stories from Afghanistan, Peru, Russia, the US and Spain

As Afghanistan experiences its harshest winter in a decade, Lyse Doucet travels to Salang, the world's highest road tunnel. After roadside service comes to her team's rescue, she visits a struggling family who are cut off from aid and battling to keep warm.

Peru is seeing some of its worst clashes since the return of democracy, with protesters demanding that interim president, Dina Boluarte, resign and make way for a general election and a new constitution. Many of the biggest protests were in southern Peru but Mitra Taj spoke to those who took their grievances to the capital, Lima.

We meet a drag queen in Saint Petersburg who says Russia's new anti-LGBT law is crushing gay nightlife in the city. Our correspondent Will Vernon discovers this increased censorship also extends to bookshops, streaming services and high street shops -all part of Vladimir Putin's battle against Western values.

Barbara Plett Usher was in Washington for the anti-abortion activists' annual March for Life, which has been held every year since the Roe v Wade Supreme Court decision in 1973. She meets protesters on both sides of the debate, and finds America's battle over abortion is far from over.

In Spain, Guy Hedgecoe visits San Fernando, the hometown of the much revered flamenco singer, Camarón de la Isla, where, three decades after the singer's death, his memory is as cherished as the legacy of his music.

Producers: Serena Tarling and Louise Hidalgo Production Coordinator: Iona Hammond

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