German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday she sees more opportunity for agreement with new U.S. President Joe Biden than the previous administration, but she also continues to believe Germany and Europe cannot rely on U.S assistance as much as in the past.Speaking to reporters in Berlin, Merkel said just by looking at the executive ordersRead more
Two suicide bombers attacked a market in Iraq’s capital Thursday, killing at least 13 people and wounding 19 others.The bombings hit central Baghdad’s Tayaran Square.There was no immediate claim of responsibility.Such attacks had become rare in Baghdad following the 2017 defeat of the Islamic State militant group. …Read more
U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are putting a large focus of their first full day in office on the federal government’s response to the coronavirus.Biden is scheduled to speak Thursday about the administration’s plans and to sign executive orders and other actions related to combating COVID-19.Both Biden and Harris are thenRead more
U.S. President Joe Biden signed a series of executive orders and other actions Wednesday aiming to address the coronavirus crisis and to reverse a number of policy changes enacted under former President Donald Trump.“There’s no time to start like today,” Biden told reporters at the signing event hours after he was inaugurated.Among the orders, BidenRead more
Former Vice President Joseph R. Biden became the 46th president of the United States on Wednesday, taking the oath of office on the steps of a heavily locked-down U.S. Capitol just two weeks after pro-Trump protesters breached the seat of congressional power. As VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson reports, former president Donald Trump’s refusal toRead more
President Joe Biden plans to make sweeping changes for students who borrow loans from the federal government, which could result in major relief for many younger Americans.As of 2019, about one-third of Americans younger than 30 held student loan debt, according to the Pew Research Center. The average debt load was $29,200 in 2018, accordingRead more
Bangladesh officials say they expect to begin a third effort to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to their homes in Myanmar’s Rakhine state in June.The target date – seen as premature by many Rohingya – emerged from this week’s talks between the two countries under Chinese mediation.“We proposed beginning the repatriation by March.Read more
Wall Street marked the dawn of President Joe Biden’s administration with stocks rallying to record highs as hopes build that new leadership in Washington will mean more support for the struggling U.S. economy.The S&P 500 rose 1.4%, topping its previous all-time high set earlier this month. The Dow Jones industrial average, Nasdaq composite and RussellRead more
Democrats took control of the U.S. Senate on Wednesday when Vice President Kamala Harris swore in three new members to give the party a narrow grip on both houses of Congress as well as the White House for the first time in a decade. Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff of Georgia and Alex Padilla ofRead more
Beatings, arrests, court cases, internet blocks and revocation of press credentials — being an accredited journalist is no longer a guarantee of protection for independent media in Belarus.Four members of Press Club Belarus, a network that focuses on journalism, have been in pre-trial detention since December 22, when club founder Yulia Slutskaya, program director AlaRead more
Pakistan said Wednesday that it had successfully test-fired a medium-range ballistic missile into the Arabian Sea, aimed at “revalidating” the weapon’s operational and technical parameters.The Shaheen III surface-to-surface missile, which the country first fired in 2015, can carry nuclear and conventional warheads up to 2,750 kilometers.The range, analysts said, enables the liquid-fueled, multistage rocket toRead more
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu congratulated newly inaugurated U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday, saying he looks forward to working with him to strengthen the U.S.- Israeli alliance. In a video message, Netanyahu said he is eager to work with Biden to continue expanding peace between Israel and the Arab world and “to confrontRead more
There were words of welcome Wednesday from across the world for Joe Biden as he was sworn in as America’s 46th president. They were mixed with parting shots from some leaders aimed at his predecessor, Donald Trump, who left Washington hours before the swearing-in. As the inauguration has been atypical — with no crowdsRead more
President Joe Biden signed three documents in the President’s Room at the U.S. Capitol shortly after his swearing-in ceremony, his first official act as the 46th president. Biden signed the Inauguration Day Proclamation and documents for nominations to Cabinet and sub-Cabinet administration positions. The signings were part of his campaign promise to reverseRead more
Aid agencies are urging the incoming Biden Administration to immediately revoke the designation of the Houthi rebel movement in Yemen as a foreign terrorist organization to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe. The secretary-general of the Norwegian Refugee Council, Jan Egeland, calls the Trump administration’s last-minute terrorist designation of the Houthis, known officially as Ansar Allah,Read more
The incoming Biden administration is inheriting from President Donald Trump an Iran-focused social media campaign that dramatically boosted U.S. engagement with Iranians by sharply criticizing their Islamist rulers, a strategy that President-elect Joe Biden appears set to change. Trump and his State Department used a variety of social media channels, messaging techniques and languages toRead more
Bangladesh officials say they expect to begin a third effort to repatriate hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to their homes in Myanmar’s Rakhine state in June.The target date – seen as premature by many Rohingya – emerged from this week’s talks between the two countries under Chinese mediation.“We proposed beginning the repatriation by March.Read more
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Labor Party opposition leader Keir Starmer expressed good wishes Wednesday to U.S. President-elect Joe Biden on his Inauguration Day. Speaking in Parliament during his weekly question time with lawmakers, Johnson said he is looking forward to working with Biden and with his new administration “strengthening the partnership between ourRead more