Boston Calling

The US and the Taliban are reportedly inching closer to a breakthrough in peace talks. But the Afghan government has been notably missing from these negotiations. Afghanistan's first female ambassador to the US, Roya Rahmani, says that the Afghan government's position regarding the talks is that ‘peace is the highest desire.’ Also, we’ll take you Tijuana, Mexico, just south of the US border, where migrants from all over the world are waiting for a chance to enter the US; and long lost relatives reunite and share their family history after being seperated by a legacy of slavery. (Afghan Ambassador to the United States Roya Rahmani. Credit: Shirin Jaafari/The World)

The US-China trade war has been going on for almost two years now. Both countries have imposed hundreds of billions of dollars worth of tariffs on each other, and that number has only been growing. Right now, we may be entering a new, potentially dangerous, phase of the dispute: currency warfare. Also, we’ll take a look at real life consequences that the US-China trade war is already having, both for small businesses and for Chinese-Americans who are now experiencing unwanted scrutiny; and we’ll also explore China’s so called social credit system, and why it’s been mostly misunderstood in the West. (An aerial view of a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong province. Credit: STR/AFP/Getty Images)

In 1987, Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev and US President Ronald Reagan signed the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty. It led to the elimination of more than 2,500 nuclear missile. But as of this week, the INF treaty is no more after the Trump administration announced its withdrawal. Former Secretary of State George Schulz thinks today’s politicians underestimate the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Also, roughly a year after the US announced that it’s creating a military space force, now France is following suit. It’s a 21st century military version of the space race; how hypersonic missiles could transform the future of war and diplomacy; and the widespread use of Agent Orange during the Vietnam war has consequences beyond Vietnam’s borders. (U.S. President Ronald Reagan and Soviet General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev signing the INF Treaty in the East Room at the White House in 1987. Credit: Universal History Archive/Getty Images)

Next month, roughly two million Muslims will travel to the holy city of Mecca for one of the most important religious rituals in Islam. As long as they are in good health and can afford it, every Muslim must complete the Hajj at least once in their lifetime. But the Hajj can only be done in Saudi Arabia, which is making some people feel conflicted about making the journey. Also, Dutton Books is trying to reinvent books for the smartphone generation with something called the ‘Dwarsligger’; Disney is remaking a live action version of the hit film ‘Mulan,’ this time though, they’re paying attention to their Chinese audience; Some women in Argentina are challenging gender roles on the dance floor, taking the macho out of tango; and in their new album, three Israeli sisters pay tribute to a family member going three generations back, from Yemen. (Every year, millions of Muslims from around the world descend upon Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for the hajj. Credit: Shirin Jaafari/The World)

There are upwards of 10 million unauthorized immigrants living in the US. Many of those immigrants are children or have children studying in schools throughout the country. For them,fear of deportation and family separation is a constant reality. Students at El Colegio High School in the Midwestern city of Minneapolis know that feeling, so the school has prepared its students and staff for when the immigration agents come knocking. Also, find out how Trump's hard-line immigration policies build on the history of former US presidents; we meet the teachers of University Open Air where classes are all taught by immigrants; author Adaobi Tricia Nwaubani talks about the legacy of Nigerian slavery and how it affects people’s lives today; and the story of a Uighur family whose members fled China and now own a restaurant in Boston. (An exterior view of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency headquarters is seen in Washington, DC. Credit: Alex Wong/Getty Images)