Almost all nations miss UN deadline for new climate targets
PARIS — Nearly all nations missed a UN deadline Monday to submit new targets for slashing carbon emissions, including major economies under pressure to show leadership following the U.S. retreat on climate change. Just 10 of nearly 200 countries required…
Trump to announce 25% steel, aluminum tariffs in latest trade escalation
ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE — U.S. President Donald Trump said Sunday that he will announce on Monday new 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the U.S., which would come on top of existing metals duties in another…
Soaring egg prices in US pique interest in backyard chickens
NEW YORK — Thinking about backyard chickens as egg prices soar? Think hard, especially in light of the bird flu outbreak. Keeping home chickens as a pastime has continued to grow since the pandemic. But if eggs are the goal,…
Baltic states switch to European power grid, ending Russia ties
VILNIUS — Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania said on Sunday they had successfully synchronized their electricity systems to the European continental power grid, one day after severing decades-old energy ties to Russia and Belarus. Planned for many years, the complex switch…
Economists raise concern over sustainability of Indonesian meal program
JAKARTA, INDONESIA — Economists are raising concerns about the viability of Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto’s program launched this year to combat child nutrition. According to an Indonesian Ministry of Health Nutritional Status Study report, 21.6% of children ages 3 and…
After years of conflict, Timor-Leste turns peacemaker
Timor-Leste’s road to peace has not been easy. In 1976, not long after Indonesia became independent it invaded the eastern part of the island of Timor, formerly a Portuguese colony. An unhappy period of occupation, punctuated by violent repression, followed…
Syria: Chemical weapons watchdog hits reset button in Damascus, following productive meetings
In a press release on Saturday the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) said Director-General Fernando Arias and his team had met interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa and caretaker Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, at their invitation – drawing…
Zelenskyy hints at ‘intensive’ talks with Trump as US, Ukraine discuss peace deal
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has not confirmed that he will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump next week but said the coming weeks may be “very intensive in diplomacy.” Trump said on Feb. 7 that he is likely to meet…
What economic measures can US use to force Russia to end war?
VOA Russian spoke to U.S. experts who outline how a mix of U.S. sanctions, export controls and other methods of applying pressure on the Russian economy can help President Donald Trump’s administration to force Moscow to stop the war in…
US stocks slide amid inflation, tariff worries
NEW YORK — U.S. stocks slumped Friday amid worries about higher inflation and tariffs, while a closely watched report gave a mixed picture of the U.S. job market. The S&P 500 was down almost 1%, and the Dow Jones Industrial…