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Music bridges memory gaps for New York Alzheimer’s patients

The Unforgettable Chorus in New York is using music to help people with memory loss reconnect with family, friends and themselves. Since 2011, the choir has been a beacon of hope, offering a space where those living with dementia can…

Trump pushes for conflict-ending Ukraine-Russia ‘deal’

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump says the leaders of Ukraine and Russia should be “prepared to make a deal” to end the brutal conflict that has consumed Ukraine since 2022. He also slammed President Joe Biden’s decision to allow Ukraine to…

Ukrainian military gets NATO-standard training in Poland, Lithuania

Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian soldiers have been receiving training from NATO troops. VOA recently visited one of these training sites where troops from Britain and Canada are training Ukrainian soldiers. Vladislavs Andrejevs has the story, narrated…

Amazon workers strike at seven US facilities ahead of Christmas rush

Amazon.com workers at seven U.S. facilities walked off the job early on Thursday during the holiday shopping rush, aiming to pressure the retailer into contract talks with their union. Warehouse workers in cities including New York, Atlanta and San Francisco…

White House: NATO membership necessary for Ukraine security guarantees but invitation decision up to next president

WASHINGTON —  As President Joe Biden’s administration prepares to transfer power to the incoming team of President-elect Donald Trump, VOA Ukrainian Iuliia Iarmolenko spoke with Michael Carpenter, the National Security Council director for Europe. Carpenter discussed the Biden administration’s final…

Staggering scale of Sudan crisis ‘demands sustained and urgent attention’

Briefing ambassadors in the Security Council, Edem Wosornu, Director of Operations at the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), described the situation as a “crisis of staggering scale and cruelty”. “It demands sustained and urgent attention,” she emphasized….

Syria’s new ‘flame of hope’ must not be extinguished: Guterres

That’s the warning from UN Secretary-General António Guterres speaking to reporters in New York on Thursday morning. He said there is “a real risk that progress could unravel,” without an “inclusive, credible and peaceful” political transition that is Syrian led, on…

‘Dying hungry and in pain’: An increasingly likely outcome in Gaza

Speaking to correspondents via video link on Thursday, the senior OCHA official underscored the grim reality facing over two million people trapped in Gaza, where basic necessities like food, shelter, and safety have become scarce. “Dying hungry and in pain”…

Reconstruction and vital repairs underway in Syria, as ‘security conditions’ permit

UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric told reporters at the daily briefing on Thursday that bakeries in Aleppo are at near full capacity – “but partners report that they have seen long queues and crowding.” The UN aid coordination office, OCHA, reports that the rehabilitation…

Putin says Russia ready to compromise with Trump on Ukraine war

MOSCOW —  Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that he was ready to compromise over Ukraine in possible talks with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on ending the war and had no conditions for starting talks with the Ukrainian authorities….