US claims Russia and Iran have military pact

The US national security spokesman John Kirby says Iran has become Russia's top military backer, supplying hundreds of drones that have been used to attack Ukraine's infrastructure. He said the US believed Iran was also considering supplying ballistic missiles, and may be discussing setting up a joint production line for drones inside Russia. In return, he said, Russia was offering Iran an unprecedented level of military and technical support.

Also in the programme; at the football World Cup Morocco takes on the hopes of Africa and the Arab world, bidding to be the first nation from the region to qualify for the semi-finals; and 90-year-old, Rita Moreno who despite her lengthy Hollywood career is not happy that the Latina community haven’t made enough progress in the film industry.

Joining Celia Hatton to discuss these and other stories are Emma Graham Harrison, Senior International Affairs Correspondent for The Guardian, and Hisham Hellyer, a scholar at Cambridge University, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and the Royal United Services Institute in London.

(Photo: Russia's President Vladimir Putin (L), meets with Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran, Iran, November 23, 2015. Credit: Reuters/Alexei Druzhinin/Sputnik/Kremlin)