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Explore the Washington Park Arboretum, an outdoor museum renowned for its focus on trees and woody plants. Situated in the heart of vibrant Seattle, Washington, this 230-acre park is home to over 40,000 plants sourced from various corners of the globe. Camera | Producer | Editor: Gabrielle Weiss

WASHINGTON AND SAN FRANCISCO — U.S. President Joe Biden is set to announce new tariffs on China as soon as next week, targeting strategic sectors, including electric vehicles, according to two people familiar with the matter.  The full announcement, which could take place as soon as Tuesday, is expected to largely maintain existing levies, according to one of the people. An announcement could also be pushed back, the person said.  The tariffs were also set to include semiconductors and solar equipment, according to one of the people.  Details on the precise value or categories of tariffs that would be imposed were sketchy, but the administration was said to have zeroed in on areas of interest within strategic competitive and national security areas, one of the people said.  The U.S. Trade Representative's office made its recommendations to the White House weeks ago, but a final announcement was delayed as the package was debated internally, according to one of the sources and an additional person familiar with the matter.  Biden, a Democrat seeking reelection in November, is looking to contrast his approach with that of Republican candidate Donald Trump, who has proposed across-the-board tariffs that White House officials see as too blunt and prone to spark inflation.  The White House and the office of the U.S. Trade Representative declined to comment. Bloomberg News first reported the story.  The measures could invite retaliation from China at a time of heightened tensions between the world's two biggest economies. Trump's broader imposition of tariffs during his presidency prompted China to retaliate with its own levies.  Biden has said he does not want a trade war with China even as he has said the countries have entered a new paradigm of competition.  Both 2024 presidential candidates have sharply departed from the free-trade consensus that once reigned in Washington, a period capped by China's joining the World Trade Organization in 2001.  In 2022, Biden launched a review of the Trump-era policy under Section 301 of the U.S. trade law. Last month, he called for sharply higher U.S. tariffs on Chinese metal products, but the targeted products were narrow in range, estimated at more than $1 billion of steel and aluminum products, a U.S. official said.  Biden also announced launching an investigation into Chinese trade practices across the shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors, a process that could lead to more tariffs.  The Biden administration has also been pressuring neighboring Mexico to prohibit China from selling its metal products to the United States indirectly from there.  China has said the tariff measures are counterproductive and inflict harm on the U.S. and global economy. 

CANOAS, Brazil — Hundreds of volunteers have set up a makeshift dog shelter in an abandoned, roofless warehouse in the city of Canoas, one of the hardest hit areas by floods in southern Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state.  They treat and feed sick, hungry or injured dogs, hoping to reunite them with their owners, and they were working at full speed Friday morning as renewed heavy rains are forecast in the region over the weekend.  Authorities say more than 110 people have died, almost 150 are missing, and more than 300,000 people have been displaced by the floods. There is no official tally for the number of animals that have died or are made homeless. Local media estimated the number to be in the thousands.  The makeshift shelter, about the size of a soccer field, has taken in hundreds of canines from inundated areas since Sunday. Every hour between 20 and 30 dogs arrive, many injured after having been run over or nearly drowned. The shelter sends some to veterinary hospitals, but others that are in need of medical attention are too frail to be transported. Dog food is scattered throughout the facility, and dogs are chained at distances from one another to prevent fighting.  Hairdresser Gabriel Cardoso da Silva is one of the main organizers. He came from the neighboring city of Gravatai, which wasn't hit by the heavy rains, to help rescue people.  “When we were about to leave, we heard the barking. I and my wife felt so moved, we just cried; we have two dogs,” said Silva.  Many more were drawn to the movement following a social media campaign, he added.  “Sunday we had 10 volunteers, now we have 200. We have tons of food. Our community chose to embrace this, but days ago we felt so alone.”  Whenever a dog is reunited with family, the hairdresser shouts “One less!” so other volunteers can stop and applaud throughout the shelter.  Cardoso's call often mixes with loud barks of small, jittery dogs; fights between distraught animals that manage to get close; and frantic movement by desperate families trying to locate their lost pets.  Eder Luis da Silva Camargo, a garbage collector in Canoas, found two of his six dogs at the center after searching for two days. Hunter and Preta were separated from him on Tuesday, as they boarded different boats during a rescue operation.  “They were so scared then, they ran to the side, and we couldn’t run after them. Now, thank God, we found them here,” Camargo said.  He and his wife, Jenifer Gabriela, want to find their four dogs that are still missing: Bob, Meg, Polaca and Ravena.  “This is the third place we came to look for them. This is great, but we still want to find the others,” Gabriela said.  Animal protection groups and volunteers have shared images of difficult rescues and heartwarming scenes of pets reuniting with their owners on social media. One video that went viral showed a man crying inside a boat, hugging his four dogs after rescuers went back to his home to save them. The images have spurred Brazilians to send donations and brought veterinarians to the region.  Gustavo Ungerer, a jiu-jitsu teacher who lives in Rio de Janeiro and treats stray animals during his spare time, will join a group of veterinarians heading south in just over a week.  They will bring food and medical supplies, assist cats and dogs that have found shelter and seek out those still fending for themselves, said Ungerer. One veterinarian specializes in larger animals, such as oxen and horses.  Stray animals "don’t know how to ask for help. They get scared and run away or attack when people approach to help,” he said by phone. “Sometimes it might be necessary to climb a house or enter into the river.”  The plight of lost animals in southern Brazil became national news this week after a television news helicopter spotted a horse nicknamed Caramelo stranded on a rooftop in Canoas, not far from the shelter.  About 24 hours afterward, and with people clamoring for his rescue, a team in Rio Grande do Sul on Thursday successfully removed Caramelo, providing a dose of hope to a beleaguered region.  Carla Sassi, chairwoman of Grad, a Brazilian nonprofit that rescues animals after disasters, said she met with state government officials in Canoas to discuss emergency measures to rescue pets, but that nothing came of it.  So far, according to volunteers in some areas, only business leaders and local residents have acted to save pets in flooded areas.   Rio Grande do Sul's housing secretariat says state agents have rescued about 10,000 animals since last week, while those in municipalities and volunteers have saved thousands more.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

SYDNEY — An Australian study claims that China’s monitoring of global internet users’ online habits — a practice that has made TikTok controversial in the United States — extends far beyond the popular social media app to numerous other platforms and even online games. The Australian Strategic Policy Institute, a research organization that receives funding from the Australian government and others overseas, said in a May 2 report that Beijing’s propaganda chiefs are forging ties with Chinese tech companies to gather personal data from a wide range of social media apps or platforms and popular online games. They include ride-sharing app DiDi, the action game Genshin Impact, and Temu, the popular online marketplace. The Australian study claims that China’s ambition is to harvest “strategically valuable” data from media, gaming, artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies. It states that China is “working to extend its influence abroad to reshape the global information ecosystem … to strengthen its grip on power, legitimize its activities and bolster China’s cultural, technological, economic and military influence.” There has been no response, so far, from Chinese authorities. Beijing has previously accused the Australian government of “anti-China hysteria” over various geopolitical and trade disputes. Samantha Hoffman, the lead author of the Australian Strategic Policy Institute report, told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation this week that data obtained from apps, platforms and games could be valuable to China. “That could be data on the way that users make decisions. [With] Temu, it could be preferences that indicate the likes and dislikes of particular demographics,” she said. “If China is trying to shape the way that the world perceives and understands truth and reality, then this data will help to make those efforts more successful over time.” The report urged policymakers to “develop robust defenses and countermeasures to safeguard against future information campaigns orchestrated by Beijing.” It also asserts that much attention has been given to the Chinese-owned platform TikTok because of concerns that the user data it collects could be shared with Chinese authorities. It cautions, however, the problem “runs much deeper than just TikTok.” TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, has said it will mount a court challenge in the United States to what it called an “unconstitutional” law making its way through Congress that could require the platform to be sold or banned in that country. ByteDance has denied collusion with the Chinese government. Marina Zhang, an associate professor at the Australia-China Relations Institute at the University of Technology Sydney, told VOA she thinks the Strategic Policy Institute report is exaggerated. “[The] Chinese propaganda machine is huge, but to link all social media apps [to] this propaganda machine is a bit of overstretching,” she said. Zhang said she believes technological collaboration, and not confrontation, is in China’s best interests. “If segregation is going to happen and if reports like this [are] going to happen, China will be isolated from the rest of the world,” Zhang said. “So, we do not want to see a total technological decoupling between China and the West in terms of not just applications but also eventually in technological infrastructure. That is not going to be good for anybody.” Last year, Australia said it would ban TikTok on government devices, including cell phones, because of security and surveillance fears.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

A Venezuelan artist is turning plastic trash into artistic treasure. His latest project is a 200-meter-long masterpiece in a small city in Panama. Óscar Sulbarán reports, in this story narrated by Veronica Villafañe.

DETROIT — Federal investigators say they have “significant safety concerns” about a Ford SUV recall repair that doesn't fix gasoline leaks that can cause engine fires. The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is demanding volumes of information from the automaker as it investigates the fix in a March 8 recall of nearly 43,000 Bronco Sport SUVs from the 2022 and 2023 model years, and Escape SUVs from 2022. All have 1.5-liter engines. Ford says the SUVs have fuel injectors that will crack, allowing gas or vapor to leak near hot engine parts that can cause fires, fuel odors and an increased risk of injuries. In an April 25 letter to Ford released Thursday, the agency's Office of Defects Investigation wrote that based on its review of the recall repairs, it "believes that the remedy program does not address the root cause of the issue and does not proactively call for the replacement of defective fuel injectors prior to their failure.” Ford’s remedy for the leaks is to add a drain tube to send the gas away from hot surfaces, and a software update to detect a pressure drop in the fuel injection system. If that happens, the software will disable the high-pressure fuel pump, reduce engine power and cut temperatures in the engine compartment. Owners also will get a “seek service” message. But in the 11-page letter to the automaker, the agency asks Ford to detail any testing it did to verify the remedy resolved the problem and whether hardware repairs are needed. It also asks the company to explain any other remedies that were considered and any cost-benefit analysis the company did when it picked the fix. Safety advocates have said Ford is trying to avoid the cost of replacing the fuel injectors and instead go with a cheaper fix that drains gasoline to the ground. Ford said Thursday that it is working with the NHTSA during its investigation. NHTSA also is asking ford to detail how the software will detect a fuel pressure drop, how much time elapses between cracking and detection, and what messages will be sent to the driver. It also asks what effect disabling the high-pressure fuel pump has on other fuel system parts, and how the SUVs will perform when the pump is disabled. The agency also wants to know how much fuel will leak and whether the amount complies with federal environmental and safety standards. And it wants to hear Ford's take on “its obligations (legal, ethical, environmental and other) to prevent and/or limit fuel leakage onto the roadway at any point during a vehicle's lifespan.” Ford has to provide information to the agency by June 21, the letter said. Depending on the results of its investigation, the agency can seek additional repairs that fix the fuel leaks. The company has said in documents that it has reports of five under-hood fires and 14 warranty replacements of fuel injectors, but no reports of crashes or injuries. In a previous email, Ford said it is not replacing fuel injectors because it is confident the recall repairs “will prevent the failure from occurring and protect the customer.” The new software triggers a dashboard warning light and allows customers to drive to a safe location, stop the vehicle and arrange for service, the company said. NHTSA documents filed by Ford say the problem happens only in about 1% of the SUVs. The company also said it will extend warranty coverage for cracked fuel injectors, so owners who experience the problem will get replacements. Repairs are already available, and details of the extended warranty will be available in June, Ford said. The recall is an extension of a 2022 recall for the same problem, according to Ford. The repair has already been tested on vehicles involved in the previous recall, and Ford said it’s not aware of any problems. The company also said it isn’t recommending that the SUVs be parked only outdoors because there’s no evidence that fires happen when vehicles are parked, and the engines are off. NHTSA said in documents that in the 2022 recall, which covered nearly 522,000 Bronco Sports and Escapes, Ford had the same remedy as the latest recall.  

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YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — Chad has ordered the immediate deployment of troops to maintain peace, especially in the capital, N'djamena, after provisional results of the May 6 presidential elections surprisingly published on Thursday night declared transitional ruler General Mahamat Idriss Deby winner with over 61% of the votes. The main challenger, Succes Masra, claimed he won, with over 73% of the votes. Residents in Chad's capital, N'djamena, said they awoke Friday morning to the sound of heavy gunshots. Forty-five-year old Oumar Saleh is a resident of the Machaga neighborhood spoke to VOA on Friday morning via a messaging app. Oumar said the shooting may have been ordered by Chad's government to intimidate those objecting to the results of Chad's May 6 presidential elections published by the country's elections management body, ANGE, Thursday night. Chadian state TV reports that there were isolated gunshots in N'djamena but does not say who the shooters are. Public Security and Immigration Minister Mahamat Charfadine Margui said in a release Thursday that enough police have been deployed to stop what he called the use of weapons and explosives all over Chad, but specifically in Ndjamena. Chad's military also said before the announcement of the partial results that enough troops had been deployed to protect people and their goods, especially in N'djamena and Moundou, the central African state’s second-largest city. According to the provisional results, transitional President General Mahamat Deby is the official winner with 61.3% of the votes, more than the 50% needed to avoid a run-off. Members of the opposition and the public say they are surprised ANGE published the figures in three days instead of 15 days after the voting, as stated in the electoral code. ANGE says it is legal to publish results within 15 days. Deby in a late-night message said he is very grateful to the majority that voted for him. Deby said he is now the democratically elected president of all Chadians, including opposition party leaders who lost. Deby says he is particularly delighted because he scored a resounding victory, and that he is going to work immediately to fulfill his electoral promises. Deby said he will concentrate on providing jobs for unemployed youths and strengthening Chad's internal security to guarantee peace and stability. ANGE says more than 75% of the registered 8.2 million voters took part in the vote. Deby's main challenger, Succes Masra, scored 18.53% of the vote while Albert Pahimi Padacke, the first transitional prime minister, got 7.91%. Masra had earlier declared that he won a resounding victory in the first round of voting, but that his victory was stolen by Deby. He spoke in a message broadcast on Facebook Thursday afternoon. He said Chadians voted en masse to say enough is enough to the over three-decade dictatorial rule of Chad's former president Idriss Deby Itno and his son Mahamat Idriss Deby. Masra said all his supporters and security forces should strongly oppose an attempt by Deby to steal victory from the people. Masra said all Chad civilians should calmly mobilize and demonstrate peacefully for the stolen victory to be restored. Opposition and civil society members say there is perceivable tension that may cause chaos in Chad following the publication of the results. Candidates have five days from the date of publication of provisional results to file complaints at the constitutional council, which has 10 days rule on fraud and irregularities allegations. Definitive results will be declared by Chad's Constitutional Council on May 21. Deby took power in April 2021 after the death of his father, Idriss Deby Itno, who died on the front line of a war against rebels after ruling for 30 years.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

JERUSALEM — The main United Nations aid agency for Palestinians closed its headquarters in East Jerusalem after local Israeli residents set fire to areas at the edge of the sprawling compound, the agency said. Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNWRA, said in a post on the social media platform X that he had decided to close the compound until proper security was restored. He said Thursday's incident was the second in less than a week. "This is an outrageous development. Once again, the lives of U.N. staff were at a serious risk," he said. "It is the responsibility of the State of Israel as an occupying power to ensure that United Nations personnel and facilities are protected at all times," he said. UNRWA, set up to deal with the Palestinian refugees who fled or were forced from their homes during the 1948 war around the time of Israel's creation, has long been a target of Israeli hostility. Israeli police said they had opened an investigation into a brush fire adjacent to the UNRWA compound. "Preliminary findings from the police investigation suggest the act was taken by young minors, purportedly falling below the statutory age threshold for criminal liability," it said. Since the start of the war in Gaza, Israeli officials have called repeatedly for the agency to be shut down, accusing it of complicity with the Islamist movement Hamas in Gaza, a charge the United Nations strongly rejects. Israel considers all of Jerusalem its indivisible capital, including eastern parts it captured in a 1967 war, which Palestinians seek as the future capital of an independent state. Lazzarini said staff were present at the time of the incident but there were no casualties. However outdoor areas were damaged by the blaze, which was put out by staff after emergency services took time to respond. Lazzarini said groups of Israelis had been staging regular demonstrations outside the UNRWA compound for the past two months and said stones were thrown at staff and buildings in the compound this week. In footage shared with Lazzarini's post, smoke can be seen rising near buildings at the edge of the compound while the sound of chanting and singing can be heard. A crowd accompanied by armed men were witnessed outside the compound chanting "Burn down the United Nations," Lazzarini said.