Voice of America’s immigration news

He wants agencies to plan for “large-scale reductions”

Heavy fighting is reported as Russian forces advance on the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk. One hundred kilometers down the road, anxiety is growing among residents of Pavlohrad as people worry their city could be next. Lesia Bakalets reports. Videographer: Vladyslav Smilianets

Authorities say the meeting is expected to produce a preliminary draft of the transition charter

The latest offerings for electric vehicles take center stage at the 2025 Chicago Auto Show as some federal tax incentives could end. VOA's Kane Farabaugh has more.

President Trump has signed an executive order to pause enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which prevents U.S. companies from paying bribes to foreign government officials to win business. He has instructed new Attorney General Pam Bondi to review the current prosecutions and determine if they should move forward. President Trump said the half-century-old law puts U.S. companies at a disadvantage. We speak with Scott Greytak is an anticorruption attorney and the Director of...

White House casts deal as hint of ending Russia’s war on Ukraine

Human rights experts in Washington are divided over whether US withdrawal from the body will hurt North Korea’s already poor human rights situation

The Trump administration says it is carrying out a review of foreign aid programs and the main U.S. agency for humanitarian assistance, USAID. Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports on what changes critics of the agency are proposing.

The monarch's Washington visit comes amid threats of a ceasefire collapse between Israel and Hamas

The U.S. State Department gave Haiti's National Police force equipment such as vehicles and other items to be used in the effort to tackle gang violence and reestablish security. American Ambassador Dennis Hankins spoke at a ceremony in Port-au-Prince, where he announced the U.S. was giving Haiti's police force and the Kenyan-led Multinational Security Force dispatched to the restive Caribbean country 600 guns, nine vehicles, two trucks and other materials. Click here for the full...

Two Venezuelan planes with 190 undocumented migrants on board, who were deported from the United States, landed in Venezuela on Monday night.  Click here for the full story in Spanish. 

Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, who is a Kurd, filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Finance Minister Taif Sami over the delayed salaries of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) civil servants. The lawsuit, filed with the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court on Jan. 20 but made public Sunday, seeks to ensure salaries are paid "continuously and on time" while negotiations continue between Irbil and Baghdad to resolve financial disputes. Speaking to VOA, Srwa...

The U.S. State Department has determined that dual U.S.-Russian national Ksenia Karelina, also known as Ksenia Khavana, was wrongfully detained in Russia. Karelina was jailed by a Russian court for 12 years for donating $51 to a Ukrainian charity. The new determination will enable U.S. authorities to operate more actively in securing her release. Karelina's civil partner remains optimistic that efforts by the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump will eventually get her out of the...

Education is another casualty of the aid suspension in Afghanistan

The EU says new US levies of 25% on their steel and aluminum exports ‘will not go unanswered’

Russia has hit a record low in the newly released 2024 Corruption Perception Index by Transparency International. It occupies the 154th place out of the 180, the lowest placement for the nation in the history of the index.  VOA Russian spoke to the head of Transparency International in Russia, Alyona Vandysheva, who said the collapse of the Kremlin’s anti-corruption efforts shows the negative impact the war in Ukraine has had on Russia's government sector.  Click here for the full...

UNRWA is still operating in East Jerusalem, even though Israel’s ban on the agency went into effect last week. Refugee advocates are proposing alternatives to help hundreds of Palestinian children whose educations - and futures - are uncertain.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth says Pentagon will be smart as it reviews its force posture worldwide

Across China, K-12 schools are making students study more than 16 hours a day, six days a week in a phenomenon called 611. Some schools allow students only a half day off per month. Chinese teachers, key opinion leaders and U.S. education experts talk about the phenomenon, how the Chinese practice affects students, and how it can be improved.    Click here for the full story in Mandarin.