Суспільство

TASHKENT, UZBEKISTAN/WASHINGTON — Uzbekistan is expected to push to deepen relations with the United States in the coming year, a position that is broadly popular among Uzbeks across the country, VOA found during a recent reporting trip.

With more than 37 million people, Uzbekistan, Washington’s strategic partner in Central Asia, accounts for more than half of the population of the region, which includes Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan.

“I understand that the U.S. prefers dealing with us in the C5+1 format — five republics plus Uncle Sam — but we want more bilateral attention, at least for now,” said Sherbek Artikov, a young Uzbek hoping to study political science in America.

Artikov is aware that many of his fellow Uzbeks are often denied U.S. visas and that hundreds of them have been deported since 2019 as undocumented immigrants. Yet, he remains optimistic: “I believe over time, Washington will see that Uzbeks are not only reliable strategic partners but also hardworking, compassionate people — both as migrants and visitors.”

In recent conversations with a VOA reporter traveling across Tashkent, Ferghana, Bukhara, Samarkand, and Surkhandarya, most Uzbeks expressed enthusiasm about U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to the White House. They hoped his administration would foster stronger connections with the people of Uzbekistan, not just its government.

From journalists and activists to entrepreneurs and educators, they want Trump to fulfill his promises to end the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East.

“We are a peaceful region, despite the continuous turmoil in neighboring Afghanistan, but these conflicts deeply trouble us,” said Zuhra Amonova, an English teacher in Bukhara.

Calls for new approach

As relations between Washington and Central Asian nations have evolved, there have been some calls by American experts for creating a new diplomatic approach, shifting the U.S. government away from grouping the countries with South Asian nations and instead aligning them more with the Caucasus.

Veteran bureaucrats who have worked with these regions at the State Department and the Pentagon told VOA that Washington’s view of this part of the world has increasingly been seen through a Russian lens since the U.S. exit from Afghanistan.

Ikboljon Qoraboyev, a professor at Maqsut Narikbayev University in Astana, Kazakhstan, says the Central Asia-Caucasus proposal reflects the region’s crucial role between China and Russia and the growing significance of the Middle Corridor, a transit route across the Caspian Sea that carries goods westward to European markets.

“Central Asian policymakers may welcome the change, as their previous alignment with South Asia felt misaligned with their identity,” Qoraboyev told VOA. “But U.S. policymakers must recognize each country’s distinct interests, rather than relying solely on regional frameworks.”

Like many experts VOA spoke to, he points out that Central Asian governments are eager for closer ties with the U.S., seeking investment, political support, development aid, and expanded educational and technological exchanges.

These are among the key factors in the policy recommendations by Eric Rudenshiold, a former White House, Congress, and USAID official, now a senior fellow at the Caspian Policy Center.

“Successful U.S. engagement in the Trans-Caspian region will preserve the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Caucasus and Central Asia,” Rudenshiold said at a forum in Washington ahead of the inauguration.

He emphasized that such an approach would benefit the U.S. while creating opportunities in energy development, trade, and connectivity.

Rudenshiold believes that promoting American values in this way could spur economic and political reforms in the region and shape democratic institutions.

“The Trans-Caspian region is becoming a vital geopolitical and economic crossroads, important to U.S. interests as it counters Russia’s restrictions on the region’s gas, oil, and uranium supplies and China’s efforts to control next-generation energy,” he wrote in a strategic brief.

Washington needs security agreements and closer partnerships in the region, Rudenshiold argued, “due to shared concerns over renewed terrorist threats and its geostrategic location bordering Russia, China, Afghanistan, and Iran.”

Leaders encourage Trump visit

In congratulatory messages to Trump, regional leaders have invited him to visit. No U.S. president has ever toured Central Asia and the Caucasus.

In a letter to Trump, Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev wrote that his country “deeply values and appreciates the U.S. policy of consistently supporting the independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of our nation.”

He credited Trump’s first term for renewing the strategic partnership, adding: “We are committed to further developing our long-term cooperation within bilateral and multilateral frameworks.”

The Trump administration has yet to outline its priorities both in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Rudenshiold and his center are pressing to appoint a special representative for these regions.

Javlon Vakhabov, Uzbekistan’s former ambassador to the U.S. and Canada who now heads the International Institute for Central Asia in Tashkent, also advocates for deeper political dialogue.

“In an era of global uncertainty, Central Asia seeks to collectively champion its interests on the international stage and coordinate efforts to address shared challenges,” Vakhabov told VOA. “A high-level U.S. visit to Uzbekistan would underscore the region’s importance.”

Vakhabov sees great potential in the Middle Corridor, where secondary routes via Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan could strengthen supply chains and diversify transportation lines.

He highlights the Uzbekistan–Afghanistan—Pakistan railway, “which will reduce delivery times from 35 days to just three and cut shipping costs by two-thirds.”

Vakhabov agrees with Rudenshiold that U.S. support for such initiatives would enhance regional stability and attract more American businesses. Touting Uzbekistan’s natural resources, he underlines that collaboration on essential minerals and rare earth elements could help the U.S. strengthen “defense, manufacturing, and technological competitiveness.”

Some yearn to learn 

The U.S. has a long history of cooperation with Central Asian countries on counterterrorism and border security. Vakhabov recommends expanding that cooperation “since they serve common interests.”

The Human Rights Watch 2025 annual report describes Central Asia as a region where autocratic regimes systematically violate freedoms, reforms are stalled or superficial, and security forces hold significant power, undermining the rule of law.

Uzbeks interviewed by VOA this winter expressed mixed views on the U.S. role in promoting justice and freedom, but most admired its democratic system.

“We need to grasp how democracy works in practice,” said Dilrabo Zaripova, a small business owner in Samarkand. “From what we saw in this U.S. presidential election, it requires a strong will and commitment. I don’t think we’re there yet. But having close ties with America would help us learn from its resilience and complex experience.”
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U.S. President Donald Trump said the federal government is standing behind California 100% in the aftermath of devastating wildfires and said during a visit to the state on Friday that he would come back as much as needed.

“The first lady and I are in California to express a great love for the people of California,” Trump told a gathering of local leaders at a fire station in Los Angeles’ Pacific Palisades neighborhood.

The neighborhood was one of the worst hit by the recent fires, with rows of homes left in ashes. Trump participated in a walking tour of the area earlier in the day and also surveyed recovery efforts from a helicopter as firefighters in the Los Angeles area continued to confront multiple blazes amid high winds and dry conditions.

“I don’t think you can realize how rough it is, how devastating it is, until you see it,” Trump said after the tour.

The Palisades Fire is about 77% contained and has burned through nearly 9,500 hectares of land, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Trump has criticized California leaders for water policies that he says have exacerbated the recent wildfires. He said before traveling to California that he would “take a look at a fire that could have been put out if they let the water flow, but they didn’t let the water flow.”

California Governor Gavin Newsom has rejected the president’s assertion, and other state legislators have said the fierce wildfires placed extreme demand on a municipal system not designed to battle such blazes.

Newsom greeted Trump as he arrived on the tarmac in Los Angeles on Friday. The two were cordial and shook hands.

“I have all the expectations we’re going to be able to work together,” Newsom said.

Trump responded: “We’re going to get it fixed.”

During the gathering with community leaders, Trump said that Los Angeles residents who lost homes should be allowed back onto their properties immediately, challenging Mayor Karen Bass to speed up the cleanup process.

“People are willing to get a dumpster and do it themselves and clean it up. There is not that much left, it is all incinerated,” Trump said.

Bass said, “the most important thing is for people to be safe,” but promised residents should be able to return home within the week.

Trump promised that federal permits to rebuild would be granted promptly and urged local officials to do the same.

Before visiting California, Trump first visited North Carolina, where he was briefed on monthslong recovery efforts of the damage caused by Hurricane Helene.

Speaking to reporters at Asheville Regional Airport, Trump said FEMA “has been a very big disappointment” and said he is considering “getting rid” of the agency.

FEMA is the Federal Emergency Management Agency that has been responding to disasters in both California and North Carolina.

“It’s very bureaucratic. And it’s very slow,” Trump said of the agency.

Trump continued to express dissatisfaction with FEMA while in California, calling it a “big disappointment.”

Trump, a Republican, has broached using federal disaster assistance as a bargaining chip during unrelated legislative negotiations over government borrowing, or as leverage to push California to alter its water policies.

“Playing politics with people’s livelihoods is unacceptable and a slap in the face to the southern California wildfire victims and to our brave first responders,” Representative Young Kim, a Republican from Orange County, south of Los Angeles, said in a recent statement.

Trump has also suggested putting more responsibility on individual states to respond to disasters.

“I’d rather see the states take care of their own problems,” he said in a Wednesday interview with Fox News. “FEMA is getting in the way of everything.”

Michael A. Coen Jr., who served as chief of staff at FEMA during the Biden administration, said Trump has been “misinformed” about the agency, and he took exception to what he characterized as Trump’s inclination to play politics with disaster relief.

Ahead of Trump’s visit to southern California, firefighters continued to fight multiple fires in the Los Angeles region.

The second-largest fire, known as the Eaton Fire, is now 95% contained after burning through more than 5,600 hectares of land, according to Cal Fire.

The Hughes Fire in the mountains northwest of Los Angeles near Castaic Lake started Wednesday, prompting evacuation orders for more than 50,000 people. Health advisories for smoke and windblown dust and ash have been issued for surrounding areas.

“Smoke and ash can harm everyone, even those who are healthy,” Dr. Muntu Davis, Los Angeles County’s health officer, said in a statement.

Firefighters received help fighting the Hughes Fire overnight with aerial water drops from helicopters. The fire is now 56% contained and has burned more than 4,200 hectares of land, according to the Cal Fire.

The Laguna Fire in Ventura County initially prompted evacuation orders for California State University Channel Islands and University Glen, but the orders were downgraded to warnings Thursday afternoon.

That fire is 70% contained after charring nearly 40 hectares of land, according to Cal Fire.

The U.S. Storm Prediction Center said high winds, low humidity and dry conditions continued to cause “elevated” fire weather conditions on Friday.

There is a chance for some relief in the coming days. The National Weather Service said rain is expected in the area beginning Saturday.

Forecasters expect up to a centimeter of rain across much of the Los Angeles area, while localized thunderstorms could bring even more rain in limited locations. The potential for those storms has prompted concerns about the possibility of mudslides, with debris flowing down hilly areas that have been scorched by several weeks of wildfires.

The fires that broke out in southern California on Jan. 7 have killed at least 28 people and destroyed an estimated 16,000 buildings. The death toll is expected to climb as emergency workers comb through the ashes.

Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.  
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New online videos recently investigated by VOA’s Russian and Ukrainian services show how artificial intelligence is likely being used to try to create provocative deepfakes that target Ukrainian refugees. 

In one example, a video appears to be a TV news report about a teenage Ukrainian refugee and her experience studying at a private school in the United States.

But the video then flips to footage of crowded school corridors and packets of crack cocaine, while a voiceover that sounds like the girl calls American public schools dangerous and invokes offensive stereotypes about African Americans. 

“I realize it’s quite expensive [at private school],” she says. “But it wouldn’t be fair if my family was made to pay for my safety. Let Americans do it.” 

Those statements are total fabrications. Only the first section — footage of the teenager — is real. 

The offensive voiceover was likely created using artificial intelligence (AI) to realistically copy her voice, resulting in something known as a deepfake. 

And it appears to be part of the online Russian information operation called Matryoshka —‚ named for the Russian nesting doll — that is now targeting Ukrainian refugees. 

VOA found that the campaign pushed two deepfake videos that aimed to make Ukrainian refugees look greedy and ungrateful, while also spreading deepfakes that appeared to show authoritative Western journalists claiming that Ukraine — and not Russia — was the country spreading falsehoods. 

The videos reflect the most recent strategy among Russia’s online disinformation campaign, according to Antibot4Navalny, an X account that researches Russian information operations and has been widely cited by leading Western news outlets. 

Russia’s willingness to target refugees, including a teenager, shows just how far the Kremlin, which regularly denies having a role in disinformation, is prepared to go in attempting to undermine Western support for Ukraine. 

Targeting the victims  

A second video targeting Ukrainian refugees begins with real footage from a news report in which a Ukrainian woman expresses gratitude for clothing donations and support that Denmark has provided to refugees. 

The video then switches to generic footage and a probable deepfake as the woman’s voice begins to complain that Ukrainian refugees are forced to live in small apartments and wear used clothing. 

VOA is not sharing either video to protect the identities of the refugees depicted in the deepfakes, but both used stolen footage from reputable international media outlets.  

That technique — altering the individual’s statements while replicating their voice — is new for Matryoshka, Antibot4Navalny told VOA.  

“In the last few weeks, almost all the clips have been built according to this scheme,” the research group wrote. 

But experts say the underlying strategy of spoofing real media reports and targeting refugees is nothing new. 

After Russia’s deadly April 2022 missile strike on Ukraine’s Kramatorsk railway station, for example, the Kremlin created a phony BBC news report blaming Ukrainians for the strike, according to Roman Osadchuk, a resident fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Digital Forensic Research Lab. 

During that same period, he noted, Russia also spread disinformation in Moldova aimed at turning the local population against Ukrainian refugees.

“Unfortunately, refugees are a very popular target for Russian disinformation campaigns, not only for attacks on the host community … but also in Ukraine,” Osadchuk told VOA. 

When such disinformation operations are geared toward a Ukrainian audience, he added, the goal is often to create a clash between those who left Ukraine and those who stayed behind. 

Deepfakes of journalists, however, appear designed to influence public opinion in a different way. One video that purports to contain audio of Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins, for example, claims that Ukraine’s incursion into Russia’s Kursk region is just a bluff. 

“The whole world is watching Ukraine’s death spasms,” Higgins appears to say. “There’s nothing further to discuss.” 

In another video, Shayan Sardarizadeh, a senior journalist at BBC Verify, appears to say that “Ukraine creates fakes so that fact-checking organizations blame Russia,” something he then describes as part of a “global hoax.” 

In fact, both videos appear to be deepfakes created according to the same formula as the ones targeting refugees. 

Higgins tells VOA that the entirety of the audio impersonation of his own voice appears to be a deepfake. He suggests the goal of the video was to engage factcheckers and get them to accidentally boost its viewership. 

“I think it’s more about boosting their stats so [the disinformation actors] can keep milking the Russian state for money to keep doing it,” he told VOA by email. 

Sardarizadeh did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.  

Fake video, real harm  

The rapid expansion of AI over the past few years has drawn increased attention to the problem of deepfake videos and AI images, particularly when these technologies are used to create non-consensual, sexually explicit imagery. 

Researchers have estimated that over 90% of deepfakes online are sexually explicit. They have been used both against ordinary women and girls and celebrities. 

Deepfakes also have been used to target politicians and candidates for public office. It remains unclear, however, whether they have actually influenced public opinion or election outcomes. 

Researchers from Microsoft’s Theat Analysis Center have found that “fully synthetic” videos of world leaders are often not convincing and are easily debunked. But they also concluded that deepfake audio is often more effective.

The four videos pushed by Matryoshka — which primarily uses deepfake audio — show that the danger of deepfakes isn’t restricted to explicit images or impersonations of politicians. And if your image is available online, there isn’t much you can do to fully protect yourself. 

Today, there’s always a risk in “sharing any information publicly, including your voice, appearance, or pictures,” Osadchuk said. 

The damage to individuals can be serious.   

Belle Torek, an attorney who specializes in tech policy and civil rights, said that people whose likenesses are used without consent often experience feelings of violation, humiliation, helplessness and fear. 

“They tend to report feeling that their trust has been violated. Knowing that their image is being manipulated to spread lies or hate can exacerbate existing trauma,” she said. “And in this case here, I think that those effects are going to be amplified for these [refugee] communities, who are already enduring displacement and violence.” 

How effective are deepfakes? 

While it is not difficult to understand the potential harm of deepfakes, it is more challenging to assess their broader reach and impact. 

An X post featur phony videos of refugees received over 55,000 views. That represents significant spread, according to Olga Tokariuk, a senior analyst at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue. 

“It is not yet viral content, but it is no longer marginal content,” she said. 

Antibot4Navalny, on the other hand, believes that Russian disinformation actors are largely amplifying the X posts using other controlled accounts and very few real people are seeing them. 

But even if large numbers of real people did view the deepfakes, that doesn’t necessarily mean the videos achieved the Kremlin’s goals. 

“It is always difficult … to prove with 100% correlation the impact of these disinformation campaigns on politics,” Tokariuk said. 

 Mariia Ulianovska contributed to this report.
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У 13 областях материкової України триває повітряна тривога.
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Олексій Чернишов зазначив, що міністерство працює над тим, «щоб кожен громадянин, де б він не перебував, почувався частиною сильної та єдиної України»
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The U.S. government consists of three branches designed to keep each other in check, with Congress responsible for passing legislation. But presidents have some power to unilaterally direct government policy by using executive orders. 
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washington — Giant pandas have returned to the National Zoo in Washington, drawing joyful crowds.

Two pandas, Bao Li and Qing Bao, made their public debut Friday in front of hundreds of excited fans, the first pandas at the zoo in more than a year.

Lisa Barham came all the way from Cleveland, Ohio, with her son to see them.

“It’s just fantastic to be able to experience this as a family,” she told VOA’s Mandarin Service.

Bao Li is the son of Bao Bao, a giant panda who was born at the National Zoo in 2013 and was returned to China.

“I brought my little boy to see Bao Bao’s little boy,” Barham said.

The pair of pandas, who are both 3 years old, rolled in Washington’s newly fallen snow and munched on bamboo. Crowds lined up for hours before the zoo opened at 8 a.m. to catch a glimpse of the bears.

The pandas arrived from China in October but have been in quarantine while their enclosure was renovated.

National Zoo director Brandie Smith told VOA that the pandas are “a symbol of happiness and joy.”

“The pandas to me are such a success story … a story of panda friendship between our cultures,” she said.

Because of conservation efforts, the giant panda is no longer on the endangered species list. However, it is still listed as “vulnerable.”

Smith said that at the start of the zoo’s program with pandas, which began in the 1970s, the focus was on producing more pandas to create an “insurance population” for the planet.

“We accomplished that, and now the focus is really on habitat,” she said.

About 1,864 giant pandas live in their native habitat in Asia while another 600 pandas live in zoos and breeding centers around the world, according to the National Zoo’s website.

Any cubs born to the new pandas are returned to China to join that country’s breeding program.

The pandas are in Washington on a 10-year lease from China. The National Zoo says it is paying the China Wildlife and Conservation Association $1 million per year for the animals.

At an opening ceremony at the zoo Friday morning, students from Yu Ying Public Charter School, a dual Chinese and English school in Washington, wore panda ears and sang a song about friendship.

The school’s executive director, Carlie Fisher, told VOA that the “pandas represent peace and goodwill.”

The zoo relaunched its popular Panda Cam on Friday, with 40 cameras streaming images of the furry bears throughout the day. The site had 75,000 views by 11:30 a.m. on Friday, according to zoo officials.

VOA Mandarin Service reporter Calla Yu contributed to this report. Some information came from Agence France-Presse.
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Підкотрольний РФ голова Севастополя стверджує, що в місті «ситуація зараз стабільна, нові значні викиди мазуту не фіксуються»
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У 2024 році було приєднано 233 генераційні установки встановленою потужністю понад 830 МВт
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WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Friday barred Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes from entering Washington without the court’s approval after U.S. President Donald Trump commuted the far-right extremist group leader’s 18-year prison sentence for orchestrating an attack on the U.S. Capitol four years ago.

U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta issued the order two days after Rhodes visited the Capitol, where he met with at least one lawmaker, chatted with others and defended his actions during a mob’s attack on Jan. 6, 2021. Rhodes was released from a Maryland prison a day earlier.

Mehta’s order also applies to other Oath Keepers members who were convicted of charges that they participated in a violent plot to attack the Capitol.
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LONDON — A London judge on Friday rejected a U.S. mother’s challenge to be extradited to Colorado to face murder charges in the deaths of two of her young children.

Judge John Zani said in Westminster Magistrates Court that it would now be up to the British Home Secretary to order Kimberlee Singler returned to the United States.

Singler, 36, is accused of two counts of first-degree murder in the December 2023 shooting and stabbings of her 9-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son, and one count of attempted murder in the knife slashing of her 11-year-old daughter. She also faces three counts of child abuse and one count of assault.

Singler’s attorney had argued that sending her back to the U.S. would violate European human rights law, in part, because she faces a sentence of life in prison without parole in Colorado if convicted of first-degree murder. Such a sentence would be inhumane because it offers no prospect for release even if she is rehabilitated, attorney Edward Fitzgerald said.

Fitzgerald said that despite an option for a Colorado governor to commute her sentence at some point, it was “political suicide” to do so.

Experts for the defense had originally said that a life sentence had never been commuted in Colorado. But prosecutors later found that Governor John Hickenlooper in 2018 commuted life sentences of five men convicted of murder.

The defense countered that three of those sentences were not life without parole and two were for men who committed their crime between the ages of 18 and 21, which is sometimes considered a mitigating factor at sentencing because of their relative youth.

“This defendant, Kimberlee Singler, has no real prospect of release no matter what progress she makes” behind bars, Fitzgerald said.

Prosecutor Joel Smith said the judge only had to consider if there is a mechanism that could allow Singler to be freed someday.

“Prospect of release — that is not your concern,” Smith told the judge at a hearing in December.

Zani said in his ruling that there was an option in Colorado to release an inmate serving a life sentence.

“I am satisfied that the defendant has failed to vault the hurdle necessary in order to succeed in the challenges raised,” the judge said.

Fitzgerald said he planned to appeal.

Singler has denied that she harmed her children. She told police that her ex-husband had either carried out the killings or hired a hitman.

Singler had superficial knife wounds and was initially treated as a victim.

But that changed when her surviving daughter, who initially said she had been attacked by an intruder, told police her mother tried to kill her.

After her daughter changed her story, police sought to arrest Singler on Dec. 26, but she had fled. She was found four days later in London’s posh Chelsea neighborhood and arrested.

The girl told police that her mother gave the children milk with a powdery substance to drink and told them to close their eyes as she guided them into a sibling’s bedroom, prosecutors said.

Singler cut her neck and, as the girl begged her to stop, she slashed her again. The girl said her mother had a gun.

“The defendant told her that God was telling her to do it and that the children’s father would take them away,” Smith said at a previous hearing.

Police found Aden Wentz, 7, and Elianna “Ellie” Wentz, 9, dead when they entered the Colorado Springs apartment on Dec. 19. They had been shot and stabbed.

Although Singler blamed her husband, authorities said he had a solid alibi backed up by GPS records that showed he had been driving a truck at the time of the killings.
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NICOSIA, CYPRUS — Experts from the U.S. Air Force are looking at ways to upgrade Cyprus’ premier air base for use as a humanitarian staging post in future operations in the Middle East, a Cypriot official told The Associated Press on Thursday.

Cyprus, which is only 184 kilometers from the Lebanese capital, Beirut, has acted as a transit point for the repatriation of foreign nationals fleeing conflict in the Middle East and beyond on numerous occasions in the past. It has also served as a transit point for humanitarian aid to Gaza.

Experts from the 435th Contingency Response Group based out of Ramstein, Germany, will spend the next few days at Andreas Papandreou Air Force Base to assess the upgrade needed to accommodate a wide array of U.S. air assets and other forces.

A key priority is to ensure air traffic safety in and around the base, which abuts the island’s second-largest civilian airport, the official said. The base’s location makes it easy to transfer evacuees onto civilian aircraft at the adjacent airport for their trip home.

The official spoke to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he’s not authorized to speak publicly about the details of the experts’ visit.

Air traffic safety would need to be enhanced through new high-tech installations, including state-of-the-art radar, to ensure the independent operation of civilian and military aircraft at safe distances.

“The Americans are very specific on safety issues and want to make some upgrades to further improve the base’s safety,” the official said.

Other essential upgrades include expanding both the base itself and the runway to accommodate more transport and fighter aircraft. Hardened shelters to protect those air assets are also envisioned.

The Cyprus government agreed to the air base upgrade assessment following the recent deployment of a U.S. Marine contingent at the base. The Marines, who were equipped with V-22 Osprey tiltrotor military transport and cargo aircraft, were on stand-by in the event of a swift evacuation of US citizens from nearby Lebanon during Israel’s strikes against Hezbollah targets late last year.

Deputy government spokesman Yannis Antoniou told the state broadcaster Thursday that any use of the base by the forces of the U.S. or other nations would require prior Cyprus government approval. He insisted the air base would not act as a forward base for military strike operations against targets in the region.

“We’ve shown interest in working with (US. Forces) because we consider this to serve the vital interests of the Cyprus Republic,” Antoniou said, adding that in their report, the USAF experts will offer an estimate of the upgrade costs and which percentage of those the US government would be willing to cover.

Bilateral relations between European Union member Cyprus and the U.S., especially in terms of military cooperation, have grown significantly over the last few years following a pledge by Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides to affirm the ethnically divided country’s “clear Western orientation.”

A manifestation of those ties was last week’s directive by former President Joe Biden that allows Cyprus to buy arms from the U.S. government and get surplus American military equipment.

The Cypriot government noted the development as a tangible acknowledgment of Cyprus’ reliability as a U.S. partner in the region.
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WASHINGTON — U.S. immigration agents rounded up undocumented migrants as well as American citizens in a raid of a Newark, New Jersey, worksite on Thursday that the city’s mayor said involved detaining a military veteran and violations of the people’s rights.

The raid in New Jersey’s most populous city, hailed in the past by Mayor Ras Baraka for its “sanctuary” policies protecting migrants, follows President Donald Trump’s pledge to deport millions of immigrants who are in the U.S. illegally.

Trump issued a raft of executive orders after taking office on Monday that aim to clamp down on illegal immigration. He has taken steps to punish officials who resist enforcement of his sweeping crackdown.

In a raid of a business establishment in Newark, outside New York City, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents failed to produce a warrant as they detained “undocumented residents as well as citizens,” Baraka said in a statement.

“One of the detainees is a U.S. military veteran who suffered the indignity of having the legitimacy of his military documentation questioned,” Baraka said.

In a statement, an ICE spokesperson said that agents “may encounter U.S. citizens while conducting field work and may request identification to establish an individual’s identity as was the case during a targeted enforcement operation at a worksite today in Newark.”

The spokesperson said that ICE was investigating the incident.

Baraka said the raid had violated the citizens’ rights under the U.S. Constitution.

“Newark will not stand by idly while people are being unlawfully terrorized,” he said.

Neither Baraka nor ICE identified the business raided by name.

White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said on X that the Trump administration arrested 538 people Thursday, describing all of them as “illegal immigrant criminals.” She said they included members of a Venezuelan prison gang and people convicted of sex crimes.

Leavitt did not provide more details.

A range of studies by academics and think tanks have shown that immigrants do not commit crime at a higher rate than native-born Americans. Other studies find that immigrants in the U.S. illegally also do not commit crimes at a higher rate.

Sanctuary cities

Baraka, the Newark mayor, is one of the first local officials in the U.S. to issue a statement on a specific raid following the start of Trump’s immigration crackdown.

In 2017, he signed an executive order cementing Newark’s sanctuary status and was a vocal opponent of Trump’s immigration policies during the president’s first term.

Of the estimated 11 million immigrants in the U.S. illegally or with temporary status in 2022, about 44% lived in states with “sanctuary” laws that limit cooperation with federal immigration authorities.

That figure does not include those in sanctuary cities and counties in places without a statewide law, such as New Mexico.

U.S. media outlets reported that federal law enforcement and ICE agents had arrested nearly 500 undocumented migrants wanted for outstanding crimes in sanctuary cities, including some from New York and New Jersey. The reports cited ICE officials who said the arrests took place Tuesday and Wednesday. 
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After U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, appointments scheduled for the asylum process through the CBP One application were canceled.  

Click here for the full story in Spanish.
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«Інтенсивно атакує ворог українських захисників на Покровському напрямку. Тут, впродовж дня, агресор здійснив 63 наступальних дії»
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