TAIPEI, TAIWAN — The United States and China have agreed to hold talks and create two economic groups focused on a wide range of issues — including addressing American complaints about China’s economic model, growth in domestic and global economies and efforts against money laundering — according to a statement released Saturday by the U.S. Treasury…
read morePHILADELPHIA — He surveyed the Arizona crowd that had paid to catch a wrestling glimpse of the planet’s mightiest heavyweight, as measured in both box-office heft and ink-stained muscles. Then The Rock let the abuse fly. And as with so many public outbursts these days, attacking his opponents wasn’t enough. He had to insult the people,…
read morewashington — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is on a five-day visit to China, where she expressed concern to Chinese officials Friday about state subsidies that fuel manufacturing overcapacity in industries such as electric vehicles, solar panels and semiconductors. U.S. officials and economists have warned that China’s overcapacity — when its production ability significantly exceeds what…
read morewashington — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called on China Friday to address its industrial overcapacity, reform its trade practices and create a “healthy economic relationship” with the United States. “The United States seeks a healthy economic relationship with China that benefits both sides,” Yellen said in remarks in the industrial southern Chinese city of Guangzhou.…
read moreDecisions by Florida’s high court this week opened the way for both tighter restrictions on abortion and the ability of Florida voters to decide this November whether to undo those restrictions. Reproductive rights are an important issue in this year’s presidential election. VOA Correspondent Scott Stearns reports. …
read moreIsrael has been quick to react to a Biden administration warning Thursday that it must protect Palestinian civilians and aid workers or lose the unconditional support of the United States. VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from the State Department. …
read moreWASHINGTON — Next week could prove pivotal for Ukraine, as U.S. legislators reconvene following the Easter break. One of the most pressing topics for discussion is President Joe Biden’s supplemental request, which includes $61 billion for Ukraine. Without these funds, U.S. aid to Ukraine will have de facto halted. Meanwhile, House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson…
read morepentagon — U.S. and Chinese defense officials met this week for the first time in nearly two years to talk about unsafe and aggressive incidents between the two militaries’ ships and aircraft in the Pacific region. The talks, which ran from Wednesday through Thursday in Hawaii, mark the restart of a dialogue Beijing abruptly ended following…
read moreNEW YORK — An earthquake shook the densely populated New York City metropolitan area Friday morning, the U.S. Geological Survey said, with residents reporting they felt rumbling across the Northeast. The agency reported a quake with a preliminary magnitude of 4.7, centered near Lebanon, New Jersey, or about 45 miles (72 kilometers) west of New York…
read moreWASHINGTON — More than 68,000 illegally trafficked firearms in the United States over a five-year period came through unlicensed dealers who aren’t required to perform background checks, according to new data released Thursday by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. That represents 54% of the illegally trafficked firearms in the U.S. between 2017 and…
read moreWashington — The publisher of a small Kansas newspaper that police raided in August is suing officials involved in the act, accusing them of violating the newspaper’s First Amendment rights. When police in Marion, Kansas, raided the newsroom of the Marion County Record and the home of its publisher, Eric Meyer, the move was met with…
read morewashington — U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell has suggested that the U.S.-U.K.-Australia trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS may soon be expanded to include other Indo-Pacific nations. AUKUS was established in 2021 in the face of China’s increasingly assertive presence in the Indo-Pacific. Talks about other countries joining the group or participating in what…
read moreWASHINGTON — Migrant children who wait in makeshift camps along the U.S.-Mexico border for Customs and Border Protection officers to process them are in the agency’s custody and are subject to a long-standing court-supervised agreement that set standards for their treatment, a judge ruled. The issue of when the children are officially in CPB custody is…
read moreWashington — Banning fishing and other human activity in marine protected areas (MPAs) has long pitted environmentalists against fishing interests, but a new study shows that nearby fisheries benefit from these areas. The study comes as the United States considers establishing the world’s largest MPA in the Pacific Ocean southwest of Hawaii, waters where “fishing remains…
read moreOn Earth and in space, efforts are underway to curb emissions of the super-pollutant methane, a greenhouse gas. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias looks at the latest innovations and policies, as the International Energy Agency warns the clock is ticking to win the fight against climate change. …
read moreIllegal immigration is the top issue for many voters in this year’s U.S. presidential election. VOA’s Scott Stearns looks at how candidates Donald Trump and Joe Biden differ over what to do. …
read moreBOSTON — In a scathing indictment of Microsoft corporate security and transparency, a Biden administration-appointed review board issued a report Tuesday saying “a cascade of errors” by the tech giant let state-backed Chinese cyber operators break into email accounts of senior U.S. officials including Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo. The Cyber Safety Review Board, created in 2021…
read morenew york — A New York judge on Wednesday denied Donald Trump’s bid to delay his April 15 trial on charges stemming from hush money paid to a porn star until the U.S. Supreme Court reviews claim to presidential immunity in a separate criminal case. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on April 25…
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