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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.

Mexico City — France has sent a group of special anti-riot police that's been banned for 65 years to the French Caribbean island of Martinique, where protesters have gathered despite the government barring demonstrations in parts of the island.  The force arrived this weekend after the local representative of France's central government in its overseas territory said in a statement that protests were forbidden in the municipalities of Fort-de-France, Le Lamentin, Ducos and Le Robert until Monday. The government also issued a curfew.  The restrictions came after violent protests broke out on the island last week over the high cost of living, with gunfire injuring at least six police officers and one civilian. Police launched tear gas and government officials said several stores were also looted.  Officials said the bans were meant "to put an end to the violence and damage committed at gatherings, as well as to the numerous obstacles to daily life and freedom of movement that penalize the entire population, particularly at weekends."  But the measure was met by defiance by many on the island, with massive peaceful protests breaking out Saturday night. Videos from local media show crowds of thousands peacefully walking along highways overnight banging on drums and waiving flags.  As protests wound on without violence, the force of French anti-riot police arrived on the island and were staying at a hotel in Fort-de-France on Sunday. It wasn't immediately clear how many were sent.  The elite riot police, known as the Companies for Republican Security, were banned in the French territory following bloody riots in December 1959. The unit had been accused of using disproportionate force against protesters, ending in the deaths of a number of young demonstrators. The force is rarely deployed in French territories in the Caribbean but was called on during riots and strikes in Guadeloupe in 2009.  Martinique's leaders requested the forces amid the recent protests in an historic shift for the island, and one met with a sharp rejection by some in the territory.  Beatrice Bellay, a representative of the socialist party on the island, blasted the move, saying: "Martinique is not in a civil war, it is a social war." She called for an "open and transparent dialogue" between protesters and the government.  "This measure ... only serves to aggravate tensions and distract attention from the legitimate demands of the people of Martinique," she wrote in a statement Sunday. 

Sacramento, California — "Paper or plastic" will no longer be a choice at grocery store checkout lines in California under a new law signed Sunday by Gov. Gavin Newsom that bans all plastic shopping bags. California had already banned thin plastic shopping bags at supermarkets and other stores, but shoppers could purchase bags made with a thicker plastic that purportedly made them reusable and recyclable. The new measure, approved by state legislators last month, bans all plastic shopping bags starting in 2026. Consumers who don't bring their own bags will now simply be asked if they want a paper bag. State Sen. Catherine Blakespear, one of the bill's supporters, said people were not reusing or recycling any plastic bags. She pointed to a state study that found that the amount of plastic shopping bags trashed per person grew from 3.6 kilograms per year in 2004 to 5 kilograms per year in 2021. Blakespear, a Democrat from Encinitas, said the previous bag ban passed a decade ago didn't reduce the overall use of plastic. "We are literally choking our planet with plastic waste," she said in February. The environmental nonprofit Oceana applauded Newsom for signing the bill and "safeguarding California's coastline, marine life, and communities from single-use plastic grocery bags." Christy Leavitt, Oceana's plastics campaign director, said Sunday that the new ban on single-use plastic bags at grocery store checkouts "solidifies California as a leader in tackling the global plastic pollution crisis." Twelve states, including California, already have some type of statewide plastic bag ban in place, according to the environmental advocacy group Environment America Research & Policy Center. Hundreds of cities across 28 states also have their own plastic bag bans in place. The California Legislature passed its statewide ban on plastic bags in 2014. The law was later affirmed by voters in a 2016 referendum. The California Public Interest Research Group said Sunday that the new law finally meets the intent of the original bag ban. "Plastic bags create pollution in our environment and break into microplastics that contaminate our drinking water and threaten our health," said the group's director Jenn Engstrom. "Californians voted to ban plastic grocery bags in our state almost a decade ago, but the law clearly needed a redo. With the governor's signature, California has finally banned plastic bags in grocery checkout lanes once and for all." As San Francisco's mayor in 2007, Newsom signed the nation's first plastic bag ban.

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — As world leaders meeting in the United Nations this week discuss the future of efforts to rein in the gangs strangling Haiti, Haitians are expressing hopelessness that an international response can turn the tide of violence. Thus far, a U.N.-backed force of 400 police from Kenya and about two dozen Jamaican officers have done little to quell the country's gangs, which have terrorized the country since the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. World leaders have been discussing the next steps in a convoluted effort to restore order to the Caribbean nation. The United States has floated the idea of a U.N. peacekeeping force, but the idea was considered too controversial given the introduction of cholera and sexual abuse cases that occurred the last time U.N. troops were in Haiti. The deployment of Kenyan forces was, in part, to avoid tensions that may be sparked by sending another U.N. peacekeeping mission. But in a visit to Haiti by Kenya's President William Ruto over the weekend – on his way to the United Nations General Assembly session, which began on Sunday – Ruto said he would be open to expanding Kenya's operations into a larger U.N. peacekeeping mission. "On the suggestion to transit this into a fully U.N. Peacekeeping mission, we have absolutely no problem with it, if that is the direction the U.N. security council wants to take," Ruto said. While Ruto hailed the successes of the Kenyan forces on Sunday, a recent report by a UN human rights expert said gang violence is spreading across Haiti and that Haitian police still lack the "logistical and technical capacity" to fight gangs. The ongoing violence has left Haitians like 39-year-old Mario Canteve disillusioned with further international efforts to quell the gangs, saying he no longer believes promises by world leaders that they'll be able to change anything in the crisis-stricken nation. "No one is coming to save Haiti. Nothing is changing," he said. "A new mission cannot save Haiti." Canteve sells cellphone chips and repairs electronics in the capital of Port-au-Prince, 80% of which is estimated to be controlled by gangs. Facing brutal gang violence, some Haitians have organized vigilante groups to battle the gangs themselves. Such groups speak to the lack of hope many Haitians have that an international solution can mark a shift in Haiti. Moise Jean-Pierre, a 50-year-old schoolteacher, recalled past U.N. missions in Haiti and said such efforts were a "waste of time." "It would not be the first time we've had U.N. missions in Haiti," he said. "What difference will it make?" Sentiments on the ground speak to the bind world leaders are in as they've spent years looking for a larger solution to Haiti's woes. The current security mission is expected to reach a total of 2,500 personnel, with the Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Benin and Chad also pledging to send police and soldiers, although it wasn't clear when that would happen. Few at the U.N. have an appetite for a larger peacekeeping mission in part due to the abuses in past missions, but also because many Haitians have an aversion to foreign interventions. Experts say three previous interventions by U.S. and the U.N. have not improved crises in Haiti. Some harbor hope that elections planned next year will pave the path to a Haitian-born solution. The country has not held general elections since 2016 as the crisis has dragged on. Last week, Haiti took its first steps in creating a provisional election council to prepare the nation for elections. Haiti still has many hurdles ahead of it to get there. Chief among them is violence. While Canteve, the cellphone chip salesman, called for unity and said "a new mission cannot save Haiti, the children of Haiti need to save themselves," he also expressed doubts the country was safe enough to facilitate elections. "How can you hold an election when everything is so violent. Everyone is so violent. When police cannot even go into certain areas, what kind of election are going to get?” he asked.

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.

Geneva — Switzerland, known for natural beauty like pristine lakes and majestic Alpine peaks, ranks among the world's richest countries whose plant and animal life is under the greatest threat. Environmentalists were seeking better protections for the country's biodiversity in a nationwide vote that culminated Sunday. Final official results showed more than 63% of voters casting ballots had rejected the initiative that aimed to boost public funding to encourage farmers and others to set aside lands and waterways to let the wild develop more, and increase the total area allocated for green spaces that must remain untouched by human development. The contest was decided by mail-in ballots followed by a morning of in-person voting Sunday. Factors behind the weakening biodiversity in the country of rivers, lakes, valleys and mountains include intensified agriculture, soil alteration, a fragmentation of the landscape — such as the building of roads and housing that cut through wildlife habitats — and pollution and climate change, proponents of the measure said. The federal government — parliament and the executive branch — opposed the plan, as did many rural voters and the country's main right-wing party, according to polls. They called it too costly, saying 600 million Swiss francs (over $700 million) is already spent on biodiversity protection each year, and fear economic development will suffer. Passage was estimated to cost at least another 400 million francs for national and local governments, the Federal Council estimates. The initiative would also, for example, prohibit the construction of new railway lines through protected dry meadows — even if such meadow is set aside and developed elsewhere, it says. "Passage of the biodiversity initiative would severely limit (sustainable) energy and food production, restrict the use of forests and rural areas for tourism, and make construction more expensive," argued the campaign for a "no" vote on its website. "YES to biodiversity, but NO to the extreme biodiversity initiative." Proponents, meanwhile, pointed to dwindling natural resources in Switzerland and threats to bees, frogs, birds, mosses and other wildlife. They argued that protected green spaces are "the main capital for tourism" and more of them would support local economies. "Diversified nature guarantees air purity, drinkable water, pollination, fertility of the soil, and our food supply," said a committee that backed the idea. "But in Switzerland, biodiversity is suffering. One-third of all our plant and animal species are threatened or have already disappeared." The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, a think tank that counts 38 mostly rich countries as members, has produced a comparative look at threats to plant and animal life. Switzerland ranks among the top four countries with the highest rates of threatened species in all eight categories of wildlife. The voting was part of the latest Swiss referendums, which take place four times a year to give voters a direct say in policymaking in the country of around 9 million people. The only other nationwide issue up for consideration this time was a pension reform plan backed by the government. More than two-thirds of voters turned down the pension reform plan, the final results showed.

Tirana, Albania — Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said Sunday his country would transform the Tirana-based Bektashi Muslims, an Islamic Sufi order, into a sovereign state to promote moderation, tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Speaking at the United Nations, Rama pointed out that Albania, a tiny Western Balkan country, saved Jewish refugees from the Nazis during World War II and sheltered Afghans after the Taliban came to power three years ago. Albanians are also proud of giving to the world Mother Teresa who "embodied love for humanity," he said. "She told us that not all of us can do big things, but we can all do small things with big love," he said. "That is our inspiration in supporting the transformation of the World Bektashi Order into a sovereign state in our capital, Tirana, as a new center of moderation, tolerance and peaceful coexistence." Albania's 2.4-million population is about 50% Muslim with the rest of the population Catholic and Orthodox Christians and other smaller communities. The country is known for its religious harmony and co-existence. Bektashi Muslims make up about 10% of the Muslims in the country, according to the last census. It wasn't immediately clear how the order would legally be granted sovereignty. But the Bektashi Order said it considers the move the beginning of a new era promoting global religious tolerance. "Such a historic step aims at recognizing the Beltashi Order as a sovereign, self-governing state, committed to supporting its century-old culture of moderation and spiritual involvement," it said in a statement. The Bektashi Order will receive sovereignty similar to that of the Vatican, governing religious and administrative issues independently of Albania, the Order said. Citizenship would be provided only to the top religious members and those individuals involved in managing the state, while the leadership will run from the head of the Bektashi, Baba Mondi, and a council that will monitor its religious and administrative operation. "The new state will aim at nothing but the spiritual leadership," the statement said. The Bektashi Order originated in the Ottoman Empire in the 13th century. The Bektashis acquired political importance in the 15th century, when the order dominated the Janissary Corps, the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman sultan's household troops. After the foundation of the Turkish Republic, its leader Kemal Ataturk banned religious institutions that were not part of the Directorate of Religious Affairs and the Bektashi community's headquarters relocated to Albania, where it became involved in politics. One of its members, Ismail Qemali declared Albania's independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912.

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.

Tensions between Israel and Hezbollah increased sharply in recent days, after an Israeli airstrike on Beirut killed a senior Hezbollah official, Ibraim Aqil, as well as dozens of others. On Sunday, Hezbollah fired more than 150 rockets at Israel, damaging homes in northern Israel, and sparking fires. Israel continued to fire barrages of rockets at Lebanon. Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem.

Washington — Congressional leaders announced an agreement Sunday on a short-term spending bill that will fund federal agencies for about three months, averting a possible partial government shutdown when the new budget year begins Oct. 1 and pushing final decisions until after the November election. Lawmakers have struggled to get to this point as the current budget year winds to a close at month's end. At the urging of the most conservative members of his conference, House Speaker Mike Johnson had linked temporary funding with a mandate that would have compelled states to require proof of citizenship when people register to vote. But Johnson could not get all Republicans on board even as the party's presidential nominee, Donald Trump, insisted on that package. Trump said Republican lawmakers should not support a stop-gap measure without the voting requirement, but the bill went down to defeat anyway, with 14 Republicans opposing it. Bipartisan negotiations began in earnest shortly after that, with leadership agreeing to extend funding into mid-December. That gives the current Congress the ability to fashion a full-year spending bill after the Nov. 5 election, rather than push that responsibility to the next Congress and president. In a letter to Republican colleagues, Johnson said the budget measure would be “very narrow, bare-bones" and include "only the extensions that are absolutely necessary.” “While this is not the solution any of us prefer, it is the most prudent path forward under the present circumstances," Johnson wrote. "As history has taught and current polling affirms, shutting the government down less than 40 days from a fateful election would be an act of political malpractice.” Rep. Tom Cole, the House Appropriations Committee chairman, had said on Friday that talks were going well. “So far, nothing has come up that we can't deal with," said Cole, R-Okla. “Most people don't want a government shutdown and they don't want that to interfere with the election. So nobody is like, ‘I’ve got to have this or we're walking.' It's just not that way.” Johnson's earlier effort had no chance in the Democratic-controlled Senate and was opposed by the White House, but it did give the speaker a chance to show Trump and conservatives within his conference that he fought for their request. The final result — government funding effectively on autopilot — was what many had predicted. With the election just weeks away, few lawmakers in either party had any appetite for the brinksmanship that often leads to a shutdown. Now a bipartisan majority is expected to push the short-term measure over the finish line. Temporary spending bills generally fund agencies at current levels, but some additional money was included to bolster the Secret Service, replenish a disaster relief fund and aid with the presidential transition, among other things.

Scranton, Pennsylvania — Under extraordinarily tight security, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Sunday visited the Pennsylvania ammunition factory that is producing one of the most critically needed munitions for his country's fight to fend off Russian ground forces. His visit to the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant kicked off a busy week in the United States to shore up support for Ukraine in the war. He will speak at the U.N. General Assembly annual gathering in New York on Tuesday and Wednesday and then travel to Washington for talks on Thursday with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. As Zelenskyy's large motorcade made its way to the ammunition plant on Sunday afternoon, a small contingent of supporters waving Ukrainian flags assembled nearby to show their appreciation for his visit to thank the workers. The area around the ammunition plant had been sealed off since the morning, with municipal garbage trucks positioned across several roadblocks and a very heavy presence of city, regional and state police, including troopers on horseback. The Scranton plant is one of the few facilities in the country to manufacture 155 mm artillery shells and has increased production over the past year. The 155 mm shells are used in howitzer systems, which are towed large guns with long barrels that can fire at various angles. Howitzers can strike targets up to 24 kilometers to 32 kilometers away and are highly valued by ground forces to take out enemy targets from a protected distance. Ukraine has already received more than 3 million of the 155 mm shells from the U.S. "It's unfortunate that we need a plant like this, but it's here, and it's here to protect the world," said Vera Kowal Krewsun, a first-generation Ukrainian American who was among those who greeted Zelenskyy's motorcade. "And I strongly feel that way." She said many of her friends' parents have worked in the ammunition plant, and she called Zelenskyy's visit "a wonderful thing." Laryssa Salak, 60, whose parents also immigrated from Ukraine, also said she was pleased Zelenskyy came to thank the workers. She said it upsets her that funding for Ukraine's defense has divided Americans and that even some of her friends oppose the support, saying the money should go to help Americans instead. "But they don't understand that that money does not directly go to Ukraine, Salak said. "It goes to American factories that manufacture, like here, like the ammunition. So that money goes to American workers as well. And a lot of people don't understand that." With the war now well into its third year, Zelenskyy has been pushing the U.S. for permission to use longer range missile systems to fire deeper inside of Russia. So far he has not persuaded the Pentagon or White House to loosen those restrictions. The Defense Department has emphasized that Ukraine can already hit Moscow with Ukrainian-produced drones, and there is hesitation on the strategic implications of a U.S.-made missile potentially striking the Russian capital. Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that Russia would be "at war" with the United States and its NATO allies if they allow Ukraine to use the long-range weapons. At one point in the war, Ukraine was firing between 6,000 and 8,000 of the 155 mm shells per day. That rate started to deplete U.S. stockpiles and drew concern that the level on hand was not enough to sustain U.S. military needs if another major conventional war broke out, such as in a potential conflict over Taiwan. In response the U.S. has invested in restarting production lines and is now manufacturing more than 40,000 155 mm rounds a month, with plans to hit 100,000 rounds a month. Two of the Pentagon leaders who have pushed that increased production through — Doug Bush, assistant secretary of the Army for acquisition, logistics and technology, and Bill LaPlante, the Pentagon's top weapons buyer — were expected to join Zelenskyy at the plant, as was Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro. The 155 mm rounds are just one of the scores of ammunition, missile, air defense and advanced weapons systems the U.S. has provided Ukraine — everything from small arms bullets to advanced F-16 fighter jets. The U.S. has been the largest donor to Ukraine, providing more than $56 billion of the more than $106 billion NATO and partner countries have collected to aid in its defense. Even though Ukraine is not a member of NATO, commitment to its defense is seen by many of the European nations as a must to keep Putin from further military aggression that could threaten bordering NATO-member countries and result in a much larger conflict.

Lansing, Michigan — Republican activists in swing states say they have seen little sign of the teams tasked with knocking on doors and turning out infrequent voters on behalf of Donald Trump, raising concerns about the party's presidential nominee relying on outside groups for an important part of his campaign operations. Trump and the Republican National Committee he controls opted to share get-out-the-vote duties in key parts of the most competitive states this year with groups such as America PAC, the organization supported by billionaire Elon Musk. It is difficult to demonstrate that something is not happening. But with fewer than 50 days until the Nov. 5 election, dozens of Republican officials, activists and operatives in Michigan, North Carolina and other battleground states say they have rarely or never witnessed the group's canvassers. In Arizona and Nevada, the Musk-backed political action committee replaced its door-knocking company just this past week. "I haven't seen anybody," said Nate Wilkowski, field director for the Republican Party in vote-rich Oakland County, Michigan, which includes crucial Detroit suburbs. He was speaking specifically of America PAC. "Nobody's given me a heads-up that they're around in Oakland County areas." Trump has relied on the loyalty of his fervent base, in an election expected to pivot on turnout. The spotty evidence, however, of what was portrayed as a sophisticated operation has some party activists questioning the operation's value. Trump's campaign views the race with Vice President Kamala Harris as a toss-up among likely voters but believes it has the edge among people who stayed away in 2016 and 2020, making it even more essential to reach them. The work is particularly important in Michigan, where Trump lost by fewer than 160,000 votes in 2020, and where the Republican Party began the year mired in debt and fighting an ugly contest over the rightful state party leader. Michigan's Republican chairman, Pete Hoekstra, said he was told that America PAC canvassers had arrived in late August and were at work. A spokesperson for the PAC said canvassers were in Michigan, as well as Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin — the seven most competitive states. The spokesperson declined to say how many canvassers there were across the states. Meghan Reckling, a Republican canvassing firm owner in Michigan, said she spotted two America PAC canvassers Tuesday in Oakland County. Identifiable in blue polo shirts emblazoned with "America," they were working an area that Reckling's own data showed to be one with low-propensity voters, she said. "They had, you could tell, a very pleasant exchange with the lady who answered the door, and probably talked to her for five minutes," Reckling said. "From what I observed, they were obviously engaging in direct conversations." But in interviews with more than two dozen activists and party officials across the seven battleground states, such reports were rare. "I don't know what the PACs are doing," said Mark Forton, the Republican chair in Macomb County, Michigan, a populous, suburban area northeast of Detroit. "I don't know if they are going door to door." Trump aides say the campaign has an estimated 30,000 volunteer captains who are identifying less likely voters at the local level, including through neighborhood canvassing. Campaign political director James Blair also estimates that close to 2,500 paid canvassers, with America PAC making up a significant chunk, are working in the seven states. The PAC has paid canvassing firms more than $14 million since mid-August for work on the presidential campaign, according to Federal Election Commission spending reports filed by the group. Blair dismissed the statement that the campaign was ceding work to outside groups. Instead, he said, the campaign was making use of "the resources within those groups to bolster the frequency of contacts and the total coverage within the universe of where we would want them." "We very much are focused on low-propensity voters, because it's what makes strategically the most sense in terms of how the president is going to win these states, and these groups' efforts have helped reach them," Blair said. America PAC is run by former top aides to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' failed presidential campaign. Trump's team also is sharing the responsibility of reaching less-frequent voters with groups that include Turning Point USA, led by conservative millennial personality Charlie Kirk, and the Faith and Freedom Coalition, headed by Christian conservative figure Ralph Reed. Part of the reason for the campaign's move was the result of an FEC ruling this year that a candidate's campaign and outside groups could coordinate their canvassing efforts with super PACs, and specifically share voter lists and data that they collect door to door. It means campaigns could share much of their labor- and cost-heavy ground efforts with groups that can take unlimited donations. Harris' outreach on the ground in the seven states is being led by campaign-paid staff, a number the campaign puts at nearly 2,200 in more than 328 offices. Campaign aides said groups affiliated with labor organizations were canvassing independent of the campaign. The vast majority of what outside groups that support Harris are doing is advertising. Based on ad reservations for Harris and the leading super PAC supporting her, they are on track to spend nearly $175 million more than Trump's campaign and the leading super PACs supporting him by Election Day. Harris' campaign has outspent Trump's on advertising by 2-to-1 since she entered the race on July 23, according to the media tracking firm AdImpact. Over the past week, there were complications for America PAC, the most high-profile of the groups helping Trump in 2024. America PAC fired Nevada-based canvassing company September Group, according to two people familiar with the matter. America PAC had paid the company almost $2.7 million a month ago, according to FEC reports. The people familiar with September Group's dismissal spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private business decisions. A spokesman for America PAC declined to confirm the move. Trump is not the first candidate to delegate some typical campaign-managed duties to outside groups. But the arrangement has not gone smoothly for some of the others who have tried it. Last year, DeSantis entrusted much of the political outreach for his Republican presidential campaign to a super PAC called Never Back Down, with conflict between its board and top campaign personnel late in the lead-up to the Iowa caucuses. Despite starting the campaign with roughly $100 million, DeSantis dropped out after losing the first contest in Iowa. In his unsuccessful quest for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination, former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush attempted something very similar, ceding much of the political infrastructure work to a super PAC called Right to Rise, which raised more than $114 million in 2015.

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.

Uniondale, New York — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, continuing a multiday U.S. visit, addressed a cultural celebration on Long Island Sunday, where he praised the United States' return of nearly 300 antiquities to India and relayed news of his country's dual win at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest, Hungary, to an enthusiastic crowd. "I just got some very good news," Modi told an estimated 13,000 people inside Nassau Veterans Coliseum for an event billed as a celebration of cultural ties between India and the United States. "In the Chess Olympiad, in both the men's and women's tournament, India has won gold medals," he said to applause in a speech that was translated into English for an online audience. Modi was reelected in June following a marathon election in which more than 640 million votes were cast over a span of six weeks in the world's largest democratic exercise. "This year, 2024, is a very important one for the entire world," he said. "On the one hand, there are conflicts raging between several countries in the world, there is tension. And on the other, democracy is being celebrated in several countries of the world. India and America are also together in this celebration of democracy." Modi's appearance in New York came a day after he attended a summit hosted by President Joe Biden in Wilmington, Delaware, for leaders of the so-called Quad that also included Prime Minister Anthony Albanese of Australia and Prime Minister Kishida Fumio of Japan. Also Saturday, Modi accepted the return of 297 antiquities spanning thousands of years that had been stolen or trafficked from India. The U.S. has returned nearly 600 such cultural artifacts to India since 2016, according to India's Ministry of External Affairs. On Monday, the prime minister is expected to attend a United Nations summit in advance of this week's General Assembly. Sunday's event was sponsored by the not-for-profit Indo American Community of USA.

Washington — The U.S. Commerce Department is expected on Monday to propose prohibiting Chinese software and hardware in connected and autonomous vehicles on American roads due to national security concerns, two sources told Reuters. The Biden administration has raised serious concerns about the collection of data by Chinese companies on U.S. drivers and infrastructure as well as the potential foreign manipulation of vehicles connected to the internet and navigation systems. The proposed regulation would ban the import and sale of vehicles from China with key communications or automated driving system software or hardware, said the two sources, who declined to be identified because the decision had not been publicly disclosed. The move is a significant escalation in the United States' ongoing restrictions on Chinese vehicles, software and components. Last week, the Biden administration locked in steep tariff hikes on Chinese imports, including a 100% duty on electric vehicles as well as new hikes on EV batteries and key minerals. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said in May the risks of Chinese software or hardware in connected U.S. vehicles were significant. "You can imagine the most catastrophic outcome theoretically if you had a couple million cars on the road and the software were disabled," she said. President Joe Biden in February ordered an investigation into whether Chinese vehicle imports pose national security risks over connected-car technology -- and if that software and hardware should be banned in all vehicles on U.S. roads. "China's policies could flood our market with its vehicles, posing risks to our national security," Biden said earlier. "I’m not going to let that happen on my watch." The Commerce Department plans to give the public 30 days to comment before any finalization of the rules, the sources said. Nearly all newer vehicles on U.S. roads are considered "connected." Such vehicles have onboard network hardware that allows internet access, allowing them to share data with devices both inside and outside the vehicle. The department also plans to propose making the prohibitions on software effective in the 2027 model year and the ban on hardware would take effect in January 2029 or the 2030 model year. The prohibitions in question would include vehicles with certain Bluetooth, satellite and wireless features as well as highly autonomous vehicles that could operate without a driver behind the wheel. A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers in November raised alarm about Chinese auto and tech companies collecting and handling sensitive data while testing autonomous vehicles in the United States. The prohibitions would extend to other foreign U.S. adversaries, including Russia, the sources said. A trade group representing major automakers including General Motors, Toyota Motor, Volkswagen, Hyundai and others had warned that changing hardware and software would take time. The carmakers noted their systems "undergo extensive pre-production engineering, testing, and validation processes and, in general, cannot be easily swapped with systems or components from a different supplier." The Commerce Department declined to comment on Saturday. Reuters first reported, in early August, details of a plan that would have the effect of barring the testing of autonomous vehicles by Chinese automakers on U.S. roads. There are relatively few Chinese-made light-duty vehicles imported into the United States. The White House on Thursday signed off on the final proposal, according to a government website. The rule is aimed at ensuring the security of the supply chain for U.S. connected vehicles. It will apply to all vehicles on U.S. roads, but not for agriculture or mining vehicles, the sources said. Biden noted that most cars are connected like smartphones on wheels, linked to phones, navigation systems, critical infrastructure and to the companies that made them.

Cognac, France — Frustrated cognac producers in southwestern France are growing increasingly anxious over the looming threat of Chinese tariffs on European brandy, a move industry representatives worry could force French liquor from the Chinese market. Some 800 protesters riding on tractors and carrying signs gathered in France's southwestern town of Cognac this week demanding a delay to an upcoming European Union vote to impose duties on Chinese electric vehicles. This protest -- the first since 1998 -- comes after Beijing refused to rule out future tariffs following an anti-dumping investigation into brandy imported from the European Union. The probe was launched months after the EU undertook an investigation into Chinese electric vehicle (EV) subsidies. And with the EU set to vote next week on introducing tariffs on Chinese EVs, France's brandy makers are worried about the consequences that vote could have on their livelihood.   "The situation is urgent," said Anthony Brun, the union head for Cognac's brandy makers, adding that a decision to levy tariffs on Chinese EVs "will jeopardize the entire industry." Cognac's interprofessional association BNIC said it was recently notified that China intends to impose tariffs of around 35% on European brandy, a move seen as targeting France. This comes despite repeated assurances from Beijing it would not implement provisional tariffs after it found European brandy had been dumped into China, threatening the country's domestic industry with "substantial damage.”   "For a year now, we have been warning French and European authorities about this risk and the need to stop this downward spiral," wrote Brun in a letter addressed to new French Prime Minister Michel Barnier about the tariff threat. "We are the victims without being in any way responsible. ... We have not been listened to," Brun said, writing on behalf of the cognac union. In May, French President Emmanuel Macron thanked his Chinese counterpart for not imposing customs duties on French cognac amid the probe, presenting Xi Jinping with bottles of the expensive drink. But cooperating with Chinese authorities has produced "no results" and incurred millions in costs, said Florent Morillon, head of BNIC. Tariffs could force French brandy to "disappear from the Chinese market," which accounts for a quarter of exports, added Morillon. The threat of losing the Chinese market could be existential for some brandy makers, who count on overseas consumers for up to 60% of their profits. China imported more brandy than any other spirit in 2022, with most of it coming from France, according to a report by research group Daxue Consulting. Cognac producers are calling on the EU to postpone its September 25 vote on imposing tariffs on EVs imported from China, fearing China will respond with customs duties on European brandy. "We have no way out," said Rodolphe Texier, a member of a farmers' union in France's western Charente region. "If Europe doesn't follow us, we're dead," said Texier, adding he is concerned about widespread repercussions throughout the industry which could impact everyone from distillers to barrel makers to truck drivers. With more than 4,400 farms and some 85,000 jobs, France's cognac industry is already in trouble after it saw a 22% drop in sales in 2023 and dramatically reduced new vine planting zones. France's brandy makers are not the only ones under pressure, as Beijing launched a probe into EU subsidiaries on some dairy products in August. Even though a meeting is set "in principle" between BNIC and the prime minister's office, Florent Morillon told AFP there is a feeling of being "taken hostage" by Paris and Brussels. "The French and European authorities have decided to sacrifice us," wrote union head Anthony Brun. "Never mind our jobs, our weight in the local economy, our contribution to trade, and to France's image," he added.

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Los Angeles — It's a three-peat for "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice." The Tim Burton legacy sequel to his 1988 horror comedy topped the North American box office charts for the third straight weekend with $26 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday. It edged out the animated new release "Transformers: One," which brought in $25 million. The Optimus Prime origin story from Paramount Pictures features the voices of Chris Hemsworth, Brian Tyree Henry and Scarlett Johansson. "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," a Warner Bros. release with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder returning as stars, has earned more than $226 million domestically in its three weeks after a monster opening of $110 million — the third best of the year — and a second weekend of $51.6 million. Third place went to the James McAvoy horror "Speak No Evil," which came in at $5.9 million in its second week for a total of $21.5 million. On the whole, the box office was in a quiet phase that is expected to break when " Joker: Folie à Deux " dances its way onto the big screen on Oct. 4. The year's second-highest grosser " Deadpool & Wolverine " remained in the top 5 in its ninth weekend with another $3.9 million and a domestic total of $627 million. Only Pixar's "Inside Out 2" has earned more. The Demi Moore-starring, Coralie Fargeat-directed body horror "The Substance," which made a splash at the Cannes Film Festival, brought in $3.1 million on limited screens in its first weekend for the sixth spot. The Daily Wire movie "Am I Racist?" — in which conservative columnist Matt Walsh goes undercover as a "DEI trainee" — stayed in the top 10 after a fourth place finish last week, earning $2.9 million for seventh place and a two-week total of $9 million. Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday. 1. "Beetlejuice Beetlejuice," $26 million. 2. "Transformers One," $25 million. 3. "Speak No Evil," $5.9 million. 4. "Never Let Go," $4.5 million. 5. "Deadpool & Wolverine," $3.9 million. 6. "The Substance," $3.1 million. 7. "Am I Racist?" $2.5 million. 8. "Reagan," $1.7 million. 9. "JUNG KOOK: I AM STILL," $1.4 million. 10. "Alien Romulus," $1.3 million.