U.S. President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter Biden this week, ending a political saga that had divided American lawmakers for years. As VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports, the pardon process at the end of presidential administrations has always been controversial.
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The FBI has charged Nomma Zarubina, a Russian national living in New York, with two counts of making false statements to FBI agents regarding her ties to Russian intelligence services.
According to the FBI, Zarubina sought connections with U.S. journalists, military personnel, and think tank experts on behalf of Russian intelligence agencies. Court documents reveal that she initially lied to U.S. authorities about her ties to FSB but later admitted to cooperating with FSB agents.
See the full story here.
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President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariffs are poised to significantly impact countries with substantial trade volumes with the United States. The primary nations affected include China, Mexico and Canada, which are among the largest U.S. trading partners.
Trump has said that tariffs can help his administration pay for proposed tax cuts. But these tariffs are expected to disrupt trade flows, potentially leading to increased consumer prices in the U.S. and prompting retaliatory measures from the affected countries. Industries such as automotive, agriculture and technology may experience significant impacts due to their reliance on imports and exports with these nations.
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Від початку 2024 року гірські пошуково-рятувальні підрозділи ДСНС врятували 579 людей, які заблукали в горах
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«Це для них і для нас досить важливий плацдарм», сказав речник Сил оборони півдня Владислав Волошин
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ABUJA, NIGERIA — Political analysts in Nigeria say the country needs to be careful after signing a series of agreements with France during President Bola Tinubu’s three-day visit to the European country last week.
Tinubu’s three-day visit to France was the first official state visit to Paris by a Nigerian leader in more than two decades.
During the visit, Nigeria and France signed two major deals, including a $300 million pact to develop critical infrastructure, renewable energy, transportation, agriculture and health care in Nigeria.
Both nations also signed an agreement to increase food security and develop Nigeria’s solid minerals sector.
Tinubu has been trying to attract investments to boost Nigeria’s ailing economy. While many praise his latest deals with France, some critics are urging caution.
The deals come as France looks for friends in West Africa following a series of military coups in countries where it formerly had strong ties — Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
Ahmed Buhari, a political affairs analyst, criticized the partnership.
“Everybody is trying to look for a new development partner that would seemingly be working in their own interest, but obviously we don’t seem to be on the same page,” Buhari said. “We’re partnering with France, who [has] been responsible for countries like Chad, Niger, Mali, Burkina Faso and the likes, and we haven’t seen significant developments in those places in the last 100 years.”
Abuja-based political analyst Chris Kwaja said France’s strained relationships with the Sahelian states do not affect Nigeria.
“That the countries of the Sahel have a fractured relationship with France does not in any way define the future of the Nigeria-France relationship,” Kwaja said. “No country wants to operate as an island. Every country is looking at strategic partnerships and relationships.”
France has a long history of involvement in the Sahel region, including military intervention, economic cooperation and development aid. Critics say the countries associated with France have been grappling with poverty and insecurity.
Eze Onyekpere, economist and founder of the Center for Social Justice, said Nigeria must be wary of any deal before signing.
“It is a little bit disappointing considering the reputation of France in the way they’ve been exploiting minerals across the Sahel,’ Onyekpere said. “They’ve been undertaking exploitation in a way and manner that’s not in the best interest of those countries. I hope we have good enough checks to make sure that the agreements signed will generally be in the interest of both countries and not a one-sided agreement.”
Nigeria is France’s top trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa.
During the president’s visit, two Nigerian banks — Zenith and United Bank for Africa — also signed agreements to expand their operations into France.
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WASHINGTON — The United States says it is closely monitoring the rapidly evolving situation in South Korea, where President Yoon Suk Yeol declared emergency martial law, citing the need to protect the nation from North Korea’s communist forces and to eliminate anti-state elements.
Taken by surprise, U.S. officials are actively engaging with the South Korean government to address the situation.
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said on Tuesday that the U.S. is watching developments in South Korea “with grave concern” and expressed every hope and expectation that “any political disputes will be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law.”
President Joe Biden, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken have been briefed on the developments and are being kept updated as the situation unfolds, according to Campbell.
He added that U.S. officials are actively engaging with their South Korean counterparts at all levels, in Washington and Seoul.
Late Tuesday, Yoon declared martial law during an unannounced late-night address, vowing to eliminate what he described as “anti-state” forces amid a power struggle with the opposition-controlled parliament, which he accuses of sympathizing with communist North Korea.
Within hours, the National Assembly voted to overturn the declaration. Speaker Woo Won Shik announced that lawmakers “will protect democracy with the people” and called for the immediate withdrawal of police and military forces from the Assembly grounds.
Some information in this report came from Reuters and The Associated Press.
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In Kenya, tech entrepreneurs who had trouble accessing resources as simple as an internet connection are getting an assist from American libraries. The U.S. Embassy in Kenya is now operating six tech hubs, the newest of which opened in Nairobi last month. Victoria Amunga reports. Camera: Jimmy Makhulo
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Washington — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Monday said he would “block” a planned takeover of US Steel by Japanese company Nippon Steel, a deal worth $14.9 billion including debts.
“I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company, in this case Nippon Steel of Japan,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Through a series of Tax Incentives and Tariffs, we will make U.S. Steel Strong and Great Again, and it will happen FAST! As President, I will block this deal from happening.”
Embattled US Steel has argued that it needs the Nippon deal to ensure sufficient investment in its Mon Valley plants in Pennsylvania, which it says it may have to shutter if the sale is blocked.
Nippon Steel said after Trump’s comments that it was “determined to protect and grow US Steel in a manner that reinforces American industry, domestic supply chain resiliency, and US national security.”
“We will invest no less than $2.7 billion into its unionized facilities, introduce our world-class technological innovation, and secure union jobs so that American steelworkers at US Steel can manufacture the most advanced steel products for American customers,” the Japanese firm said in a statement.
Days after the US election last month, Nippon Steel said it expected to close its takeover of the company before the end of the year, while U.S. President Joe Biden was still in office.
Biden, too, has opposed the deal, saying it was “vital” for US Steel “to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.”
The deal is being reviewed by a body helmed by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that audits foreign takeovers of US firms, called the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
In September, Biden’s administration extended their review, pushing a conclusion on the politically sensitive deal until after the November 5 presidential election.
A Nippon Steel earnings presentation on November 7 maintained that “the transaction is expected to close in… calendar year 2024” pending a U.S. national security review.
“Unless the situation changes dramatically, I believe the conclusion will come by the end of the year,” during Biden’s time in office, vice chairman Takahiro Mori told reporters.
Trump will be inaugurated on January 20.
Protectionist policies
On the campaign trail, he vowed to install protectionist economic policies to help support US businesses, including threats to restart a trade war with the world’s second largest economy, China.
While running for the White House, he specifically promised to block Nippon’s takeover of US Steel, which is based in the key political battleground state of Pennsylvania.
Trump’s vice presidential pick JD Vance also led congressional opposition to the takeover in the U.S. Senate, where the deal has been criticized by both Republicans and Democrats.
Analysts had suggested Trump’s position could soften after the election was over, but Monday’s statement indicated that was not the case.
Major Japanese and American business groups have urged Yellen not to succumb to political pressure when reviewing the proposed acquisition.
The steelworkers union has fought the deal, and criticized a September arbitrators’ ruling that Nippon had proven it could assume US Steel’s labor contract obligations.
In September, however, some US Steel workers rallied in support of the deal, arguing it would help keep plants open.
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«Дія» сама підтягує актуальну кількість працівників, доступних до бронювання, і перевіряє відповідність вимогам, каже міністр
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У Покровську пошкоджено вісім багатоповерхівок і два автомобілі
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Bangkok — China announced Tuesday it is banning exports to the United States of gallium, germanium, antimony and other key high-tech materials with potential military applications, as a general principle, lashing back at U.S. limits on semiconductor-related exports.
The Chinese Commerce Ministry announced the move after Washington expanded its list of Chinese companies subject to export controls on computer chip-making equipment, software and high-bandwidth memory chips. Such chips are needed for advanced applications.
The ratcheting up of trade restrictions comes as President-elect Donald Trump has been threatening to sharply raise tariffs on imports from China and other countries, potentially intensifying simmering tensions over trade and technology.
China’s Foreign Ministry also issued a vehement reproof.
“China has lodged stern protests with the U.S. for its update of the semiconductor export control measures, sanctions against Chinese companies, and malicious suppression of China’s technological progress,” Lin Jian, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said in a routine briefing Tuesday.
“I want to reiterate that China firmly opposes the U.S. overstretching the concept of national security, abuse of export control measures, and illegal unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction against Chinese companies,” Lin said.
Minerals sourced in China used in computer chips, cars
China said in July 2023 it would require exporters to apply for licenses to send to the U.S. the strategically important materials such as gallium and germanium.
In August, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said it would restrict exports of antimony, which is used in a wide range of products from batteries to weapons, and impose tighter controls on exports of graphite.
Such minerals are considered critical for national security. China is a major producer of antimony, which is used in flame retardants, batteries, night-vision goggles and nuclear weapon production, according to a 2021 U.S. International Trade Commission report.
The limits announced by Beijing on Tuesday also include exports of super-hard materials, such as diamonds and other synthetic materials that are not compressible and extremely dense. They are used in many industrial areas such as cutting tools, disc brakes and protective coatings. The licensing requirements that China announced in August also covered smelting and separation technology and machinery and other items related to such super-hard materials.
China is the biggest global source of gallium and germanium, which are produced in small amounts but are needed to make computer chips for mobile phones, cars and other products, as well as solar panels and military technology.
China says it’s protecting itself from US trade restrictions
After the U.S. side announced it was adding 140 companies to a so-called “entity list” subject to strict export controls, China’s Commerce Ministry protested and said it would act to protect China’s “rights and interests.” Nearly all of the companies affected by Washington’s latest trade restrictions are based in China, though some are Chinese-owned businesses in Japan, South Korea and Singapore.
Both governments say their respective export controls are needed for national security.
China’s government has been frustrated by U.S. curbs on access to advanced processor chips and other technology on security grounds but had been cautious in retaliating, possibly to avoid disrupting China’s fledgling developers of chips, artificial intelligence and other technology.
Various Chinese industry associations issued statements protesting the U.S. move to limit access to advanced chip-making technology.
The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said it opposed using national security as a grounds for export controls, “abuse of export control measures, and the malicious blockade and suppression of China.”
“Such behavior seriously violates the laws of the market economy and the principle of fair competition, undermines the international economic and trade order, disrupts the stability of the global industrial chain, and ultimately harms the interests of all countries,” it said in a statement.
The China Semiconductor Industry Association issued a similar statement, adding that such restrictions were disrupting supply chains and inflating costs for American companies.
“U.S. chip products are no longer safe and reliable. China’s related industries will have to be cautious in purchasing U.S. chips,” it said.
The U.S. gets about half its supply of both gallium and germanium metals directly from China, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. China exported about 23 metric tons (25 tons) of gallium in 2022 and produces about 600 metric tons (660 tons) of germanium per year. The U.S. has deposits of such minerals but has not been mining them, though some projects underway are exploring ways to tap those resources.
The export restrictions have had a mixed impact on prices for those critical minerals, with the price of antimony more than doubling this year to over $25,000 per ton. Prices for gallium, germanium and graphite also have mostly risen.
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Вночі російський дрон влучив в обʼєкт енергетичної інфраструктури Тернополя
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«Зимова єПідтримка» – це спроба виявити тих чоловіків, які ухиляються від мобілізації, вважає народна депутатка Ольга Василевська-Смаглюк
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A day after U.S. President Joe Biden announced the pardon of his son Hunter, the White House said the president is expected to issue more pardons and clemencies before he leaves office next month.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters Monday that Biden is “thinking through that process very thoroughly.”
“I don’t have a timeline for you,” Jean-Pierre said. “As you know, this usually happens towards the end. And so, the president is going through that process, thinking through that process. I’m not going to get ahead of him. But you can expect more announcements to come.”
Hunter Biden was facing sentencing this month for gun and tax offenses and could have been imprisoned for years.
Biden had for months pledged not to pardon his 54-year-old son, a lawyer who for years was caught up in cocaine addiction as his life spiraled out of control.
But the president said in a statement late Sunday that Hunter Biden’s prosecution was selective and politically motivated, aimed at undercutting his reelection campaign before he dropped out of the race in July for another four-year term.
“The charges in his cases came about only after several of my political opponents in Congress instigated them to attack me and oppose my election,” Biden said.
Hunter Biden was convicted of three felonies in June for a 2018 gun purchase. Prosecutors said he falsely claimed on a federal form to not be illegally using or addicted to drugs.
He also pleaded guilty to nine federal tax charges in a case where he was accused of failing to pay at least $1.4 million in taxes.
He faced up to 17 years in federal prison in the tax case during a scheduled sentencing hearing in Los Angeles on December 16, although sentencing experts said that most likely as a first-time offender, he would have served no more than 36 months behind bars.
Hunter Biden was facing a stiffer maximum sentence, 25 years, in the gun case but was more likely, based on precedent in similar cases, to be handed a much shorter sentence, perhaps up to 16 months during a hearing scheduled in Delaware for December 13.
The president’s action Sunday pardoned Hunter Biden in both cases, as well as any offense he “has committed or may have committed or taken part” from January 1, 2014, to January 1, 2024.
Hunter Biden said in a statement, “I have admitted and taken responsibility for my mistakes during the darkest days of my addiction – mistakes that have been exploited to publicly humiliate and shame me and my family for political sport.”
The president said in his statement that he hopes “Americans will understand why a father and a president would come to this decision.”
“For my entire career I have followed a simple principle: just tell the American people the truth. They’ll be fair-minded. Here’s the truth: I believe in the justice system, but as I have wrestled with this, I also believe raw politics has infected this process and it led to a miscarriage of justice – and once I made this decision this weekend, there was no sense in delaying it further,” Biden said.
President-elect Donald Trump criticized the move, calling it “such an abuse and miscarriage of justice” compared to hundreds of Trump supporters who have been imprisoned after being convicted for an array of offenses stemming from the rioting at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021, while they tried to block Congress from certifying that Biden had defeated Trump’s reelection bid in the 2020 campaign.
Trump has said he will consider pardoning many of the rioters when he takes power again on January 20 after winning the November presidential election. Some of the rioters have already served their sentences, but many are still in prison for years to come, while other trials have yet to occur.
Trump, in the late stages of his first term in office, pardoned Charles Kushner, the father of his son-in-law Jared Kushner, who was convicted on tax offenses and other charges. On Saturday, Trump said he intends to nominate the elder Kushner to be the U.S. ambassador to France.
Trump also pardoned one of his former national security advisers, Michael Flynn, former campaign manager Paul Manafort, former chief strategist Steve Bannon and campaign aide George Papadopoulos, among others.
Reactions to President Biden pardoning his son varied across the U.S. political landscape and not always predictably along political party lines as is usually the case when contentious decisions are announced.
Jared Polis, the Democratic governor of Colorado, said that while he understood the “natural desire” of Biden wanting to help his son, he said, “I am disappointed that he put his family ahead of the country. This is a bad precedent that could be abused by later presidents and will sadly tarnish his reputation.”
Greg Stanton, a Democratic congressman from Arizona, said, “I respect President Biden, but I think he got this one wrong. This wasn’t a politically motivated prosecution. Hunter committed felonies and was convicted by a jury of his peers.”
Chuck Grassley, a Republican senator from Iowa, posted on X that he was “shocked” by the pardon because the elder Biden “said many, many times he wouldn’t & I believed him. Shame on me.”
But Eric Holder, a Democrat who was the U.S. attorney general under former President Barack Obama, said the president’s son was only prosecuted because his last name was Biden. He said no U.S. attorney “would have charged this case given the underlying facts.”
Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters.
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WASHINGTON — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Monday said he would “block” a planned takeover of US Steel by Japanese company Nippon Steel, a deal worth $14.9 billion including debts.
“I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company, in this case Nippon Steel of Japan,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
“Through a series of Tax Incentives and Tariffs, we will make U.S. Steel Strong and Great Again, and it will happen FAST! As President, I will block this deal from happening.”
Embattled US Steel has argued that it needs the Nippon deal to ensure sufficient investment in its Mon Valley plants in Pennsylvania, which it says it may have to shutter if the sale is blocked.
Nippon Steel said after Trump’s comments that it was “determined to protect and grow US Steel in a manner that reinforces American industry, domestic supply chain resiliency, and US national security.”
“We will invest no less than $2.7 billion into its unionized facilities, introduce our world-class technological innovation, and secure union jobs so that American steelworkers at US Steel can manufacture the most advanced steel products for American customers,” the Japanese firm said in a statement.
Days after the US election last month, Nippon Steel said it expected to close its takeover of the company before the end of the year, while U.S. President Joe Biden was still in office.
Biden, too, has opposed the deal, saying it was “vital” for US Steel “to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.”
The deal is being reviewed by a body helmed by Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that audits foreign takeovers of US firms, called the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
In September, Biden’s administration extended their review, pushing a conclusion on the politically sensitive deal until after the November 5 presidential election.
A Nippon Steel earnings presentation on November 7 maintained that “the transaction is expected to close in… calendar year 2024” pending a U.S. national security review.
“Unless the situation changes dramatically, I believe the conclusion will come by the end of the year,” during Biden’s time in office, vice chairman Takahiro Mori told reporters.
Trump will be inaugurated on January 20.
Protectionist policies
On the campaign trail, he vowed to install protectionist economic policies to help support US businesses, including threats to restart a trade war with the world’s second largest economy, China.
While running for the White House, he specifically promised to block Nippon’s takeover of US Steel, which is based in the key political battleground state of Pennsylvania.
Trump’s vice presidential pick JD Vance also led congressional opposition to the takeover in the U.S. Senate, where the deal has been criticized by both Republicans and Democrats.
Analysts had suggested Trump’s position could soften after the election was over, but Monday’s statement indicated that was not the case.
Major Japanese and American business groups have urged Yellen not to succumb to political pressure when reviewing the proposed acquisition.
The steelworkers union has fought the deal, and criticized a September arbitrators’ ruling that Nippon had proven it could assume US Steel’s labor contract obligations.
In September, however, some US Steel workers rallied in support of the deal, arguing it would help keep plants open.
WASHINGTON — The Democratic-led U.S. Senate returned on Monday for a showdown with the Republican-controlled House of Representatives over government spending, disaster relief and defense policy before President-elect Donald Trump ushers in a new era of single-party rule next month.
The main challenge for lawmakers over the next three weeks is to avert a pre-Christmas partial government shutdown by striking a bipartisan deal to fund federal agencies beyond Dec. 20, when a current stopgap spending measure is due to expire.
The debate will include a nearly $100 billion emergency disaster relief request from President Joe Biden for areas of the U.S. Southeast hit by hurricanes Helene and Milton, and other communities struck by natural disasters.
Congress also faces a Jan. 1 deadline for raising the federal government’s debt ceiling, though lawmakers and aides say that extraordinary measures employed by the Treasury Department are likely to postpone the expected “X” date for default well into 2025.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer indicated on Monday that lawmakers are negotiating a short-term stopgap funding bill known as a continuing resolution, or CR, rather than a package of annual spending bills that would fund the government through fiscal year 2025, which ends on Sept. 30.
Schumer did not disclose details about a potential CR, which House Speaker Mike Johnson has said would run into early next year.
Trump’s allies are pushing for a three-month stopgap that supporters say would allow their party’s incoming political trifecta to dismantle current Democratic spending initiatives and policy priorities early in the new administration.
Legislative action on government funding is not expected to begin in the House until the last of the session’s three weeks, timing that could raise risks for Johnson’s slim 220-213 Republican majority if they opt for a partisan measure first.
House Republicans failed to pass their own partisan stop-gap measure in September and had to rely on mainly Democratic votes to narrowly avert a shutdown weeks before the Nov. 5 election.
Trump’s transition team did not respond to a request for comment.
Top lawmakers have yet to say how they intend to handle a Biden request for emergency disaster relief.
The head of the Small Business Administration recently testified to Congress that the agency’s disaster loan program for homeowners, renters, and businesses ran out of money in October, leaving more than 60,000 loan applicants waiting for assistance.
Congressional aides said a disaster relief package would likely be attached to a CR.
But the first objective for Congress this month is likely to be passage of the National Defense Authorization Act, or NDAA, annual legislation that sets policy for the Defense Department, according to congressional aides. Floor votes could come as early as next week, according to aides.
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