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During a phone call between U.S. President Joe Biden and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Biden told Netanyahu to improve the humanitarian situation and the safety of innocents in the Palestinian enclave. White House National Security Adviser John Kirby said If Israel does not change how it is carrying out its war in Gaza, the U.S. will change its policy toward Israel. Within hours, Israel opened three humanitarian routes for aid. We talk with Nomi Bar-Yaacov, an associate fellow of the International Security Program at Chatham House. NATO discussed a $108 billion fund for Ukraine's military. And at the 2024 New York International Auto Show, to no one’s surprise, the electric car stole the show.

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.

Washington — The publisher of a small Kansas newspaper that police raided in August is suing officials involved in the act, accusing them of violating the newspaper's First Amendment rights. When police in Marion, Kansas, raided the newsroom of the Marion County Record and the home of its publisher, Eric Meyer, the move was met with widespread condemnation from press freedom groups. Meyer said he wanted to file the lawsuit because the raid on his weekly newspaper has major implications for press freedom across the United States. "We're the plaintiffs in this, but really, the plaintiff is American democracy," Meyer told VOA. "They're trying to silence criticism — silence anything other than the voice they want to hear. And we just can't let that stand. We wouldn't be doing our duty as Americans." During the August 11 raid, security footage showed police seizing computers, cell phones, hard drives and other devices from the newsroom. And in the Meyer household, footage reveals Eric's 98-year-old mother, Joan, co-owner of the newspaper, confronting police during the raid on their home. The lawsuit, which Meyer filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for Kansas, also alleges that the stress of the raid caused his mother's death the day after. After the raid, Joan "repeatedly told her son that her entire life was meaningless if this is what Marion had become," the lawsuit said. The nearly 130-page lawsuit, which Meyer said took some time to put together, is the fourth filed by current and former newspaper staffers over the incident. Police defended the raid, saying they were responding to an identity theft complaint. Meyer disagrees. "This was an attempt by people to weaponize the criminal justice system for personal gains," he said. The newspaper was investigating the police chief who led the raid. Gideon Cody eventually resigned in October after body camera footage revealed him rifling through files about himself. "It's clear as anything that we didn't do anything wrong," said Meyer, who estimates the case won't be resolved until 2026.  

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.

NATO members pledged to boost Ukraine’s air defenses against Russian attacks as the alliance marked its 75th anniversary Thursday, following a two-day summit of foreign ministers in Brussels. Members, however, did not agree on any specific military aid deal for Kyiv, as Henry Ridgwell reports.

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.

washington — U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell has suggested that the U.S.-U.K.-Australia trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS may soon be expanded to include other Indo-Pacific nations. AUKUS was established in 2021 in the face of China's increasingly assertive presence in the Indo-Pacific. Talks about other countries joining the group or participating in what is called Pillar 2 have been circulating for more than a year. "It was always believed when AUKUS was launched that, at some point, we would welcome new countries to participate, particularly in Pillar 2," Campbell said while speaking Wednesday at an event hosted by the Center for a New American Security (CNAS). The first pillar of AUKUS was to provide Australia with a conventionally armed, nuclear-powered submarine fleet, and the second pillar is to collaborate on advanced capabilities such as artificial intelligence, quantum technology, advanced network capabilities, hypersonic capabilities, electronic warfare and underwater capabilities. Campbell added that other countries have expressed interest in participating in AUKUS when the time was right. "I think you'll hear that we have something to say about that next week," he said. Trilateral summit next Next week, U.S. President Joe Biden will host a trilateral summit with Japan and the Philippines. Biden will also have a bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. Campbell said the summit with Japan is expected to "historically" upgrade security cooperation relations, including the joint development of defense supplies. According to Nikkei Asia, Campbell revealed on March 21 that the U.S.-Japan talks are expected to discuss technical cooperation between Japan and AUKUS. According to the report, Campbell said Japan had made it "very clear" that it had no interest in participating in the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine project. But, he said, "there are clearly areas that Japan could bring substantial capacity to bear in security and technological pursuits that advance common goals in the Indo-Pacific." Campbell told Nikkei Asia that those areas include advanced robotics, cyber initiatives and some work in anti-submarine warfare. At Wednesday's event, Campbell noted that several countries in the Indo-Pacific region are undertaking critical research and development in areas Pillar 2 focuses on, including hypersonic capabilities, long-range strikes, undersea capabilities and cyber. AUKUS to JAUKUS? As China's provocative actions have escalated in recent years, AUKUS has begun to set its sights on more countries. During a "2+2" meeting between Japan and Australia in December 2022, Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles said that AUKUS could involve Japan. In August 2023, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the British House of Commons stated that AUKUS should invite Japan and South Korea to join. Last November, former Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso suggested during a visit to Australia that Japan join the group, which could be named JAUKUS. He said that would help send a unified signal on the Taiwan issue. Australia and New Zealand also raised the possibility of New Zealand joining the second pillar of AUKUS after a ministerial meeting between the two countries in February. Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst in defense strategy and capability at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute, or ASPI, said the second pillar of AUKUS could draw on the strengths of Japan, New Zealand, Canada and even South Korea, but not necessarily as full members. "Rather than bringing in these states as full AUKUS members, it's better to bring them in on a project-by-project basis within pillar two areas of priority — for example, robotics and A.I., autonomous systems, advanced undersea warfare, electronic warfare, quantum technologies, and hypersonics," Davis told VOA via email. "It also opens up opportunities to add in some new priority areas — for example, space-related areas, where these states can make a great contribution." Bronte Munro, an analyst in the ASPI office in Washington, told VOA that Japan is an increasingly suitable candidate for joining AUKUS, noting major changes in its defense policy in response to the perceived Chinese threat. These include amendments to laws prohibiting the export of lethal weapons. Munro said Japan's manufacturing of advance semiconductors is critical for technology leadership, and the inclusion of Japan can help "secure semiconductor supply chains more explicitly for AUKUS partners." However, there are doubts in some circles about the wisdom of expanding AUKUS in view of the risks involved in sharing and transferring advanced technologies. Andrew Hastie, the shadow defense minister of the Australian opposition party, told the U.S. media outlet Breaking Defense on March 28 that AUKUS' focus should remain with the three countries already involved to ensure a seamless "transfer of the very sensitive secrets and intellectual property that's involved with the heart of Pillar 1 and Pillar 2." When asked at the CNAS event whether Japan has established a security architecture to integrate into the second pillar of AUKUS, Campbell pointed out that the U.S. has been involved in "a series of engagements with Japan both on the intelligence side and in security spheres to encourage Japan to take on increasingly more strenuous activities that protect their intellectual property, that hold government officials accountable for the secrets they are trusted with." "It's fair to say that Japan has taken some of those steps, but not all of them," he said. "And we believe that ultimately, it is in our interest to share as much information and other technologies ... with close partners like Japan to allow for a deeper, more fundamental alliance," said Campbell. He announced that "One of the things that I think you'll see next week are steps, for the first time, that will allow the United States and Japan to work more collaboratively on joint development and potentially co-production of vital military and defense equipment. "The U.S.-Japan Alliance is the cornerstone of our engagement in the Indo-Pacific." Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.

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.

washington — Planning is already underway for three-nation naval patrols in the South China Sea ahead of a high-profile summit next week among the leaders of the United States, Japan and the Philippines, senior officials have said. Philippine ambassador to the U.S. Jose Manuel Romualdez was quoted by the Financial Times on Wednesday saying that Washington, Tokyo and Manila are finalizing details of an agreement on the patrols, including when to begin and how often they will take place. The U.S. and the Philippines have conducted joint patrols in the past, but this will be the first time Japan has participated. Both Japan and the Philippines are treaty allies of the United States. Asked about the plan, Pentagon spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Martin Meiners told VOA's Korean Service via email this week that the U.S. has been concerned about "dangerous and destabilizing" actions in the region and is "committed to maintaining deterrence, peace, and stability" with its allies and partners. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the April 11 summit will be an occasion for "an unprecedented trilateral engagement" among the three countries that will lead to closer cooperation in the South China Sea and elsewhere. He made the remark Wednesday at an event hosted by the Center for a New American Security in Washington. A senior U.S. official said the three leaders will discuss what was described as China's "increasingly risky behavior" in the South China Sea. "We are increasingly concerned that the PRC's [People's Republic of China's] behavior in this space could lead us closer to really, unintended consequences," the official said at a background White House press briefing this week. "U.S. alliances and partnerships are not about China. … But oftentimes, Chinese action motivates a lot — much of what we talk about," continued the official. The most recent flare-up came on March 26 when the Chinese Coast Guard used water cannon to prevent a Philippine vessel from conducting a resupply mission to an outpost on a reef in waters within Manila's 200-mile exclusive economic zone.   White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told his Philippine counterpart Eduardo Año on Monday that the U.S. supports the Philippines against China's "dangerous actions on March 26 obstructing a lawful Philippine resupply mission to Second Thomas Shoal." Manila claims the shoal in the Spratly Islands as its own territory and has been keeping the BRP Sierra Madre, a World War II-era navy transport ship, grounded on the reef since late 1999. Patrick Cronin, the Hudson Institute's Asia-Pacific Security Chair, told VOA via email on Tuesday that the trilateral maritime patrols can provide "both a level of deterrence and a way of blocking Beijing's efforts to create de facto control over disputed waters and some areas that clearly belong to the Philippines." He continued, "China will not desist from its 'sovereignty enforcement' efforts, use of white hulls and maritime militia to impose its domestic law on international waters, but it may have to shelve staking further claims in the face of concerted opposition from the three democracies." Liu Pengyu, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, told VOA via email on Wednesday that "the military cooperation between the relevant countries must not interfere in South China Sea disputes," and called for the three allies to avoid actions that would "harm China's territorial sovereignty, maritime rights and interests and security interests." Liu continued, "The South China Sea issue is a matter between China and some ASEAN countries." Among ASEAN member states, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei are official claimants against China, whose claims to virtually all of the resource-rich waters have been rejected by an international tribunal.   Prashanth Parameswaran, a fellow at the Wilson Center and founder of the weekly ASEAN Wonk newsletter, told VOA on Tuesday, that "more patrols by more countries is one of many ways to reinforce presence and prevent the nightmare scenario of the South China Sea becoming a Chinese lake." He continued, "In addition to alliance networking, the United States and its partners will have to find ways to work with Southeast Asian states which are not formal allies but are nonetheless critical in addressing China's assertiveness as well."

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.

harare, zimbabwe — On the eve of the anticipated rollout of a new gold-backed currency, Zimbabwe's central bank announced Thursday that it has the equivalent of 2.5 tons of gold reserves. Speaking in Harare after seeing the assets of the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe, John Mushayakarara, the new bank’s governor, told President Emmerson Mnangagwa – whom he addressed as H.E., for his excellency – that the bank’s balance sheet was healthy, with reserves of gold and other minerals worth $175 million. “I have taken over the control of the central bank," Mushayakarara said, "and one of the things I had to do upon taking over was to verify the assets that the central bank holds. And this morning I showed H.E. the gold that is in the vaults, and I can confirm that we have in the vaults at the central bank 1.1 tons of gold. "We also have other minerals – diamonds and so forth. If converted to gold, [they would] be equal to 0.4 ton of gold. We have other gold which is held offshore. It is worth 1 ton of gold.” On Friday, Mushayakarara is expected to announce the introduction of a gold-backed currency to replace the worthless local dollar, which is currently trading at around 30,000 to one U.S. dollar and, unlike the South African rand, does not circulate in neighboring countries. This was the first time in recent memory that the central bank gave an accounting of its gold and mineral assets. Mnangagwa said he was happy to physically see the assets that outgoing Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor John Mangudya handed over to Mushayakarara. Responding to a question from journalists about whether the country had enough gold to back its anticipated new currency, Mnangagwa said, “Let me assure you that my government does not work on rumors. We work on facts. Rumors can continue flying, but you have been able to come here and see facts for yourselves. So you should compare the facts you see today and the rumors you hear in the streets.” The press conference generated much debate on social media, with some saying the country’s gold reserves were being looted. One businessman allied with the ruling Zanu-PF party, Pedzisayi Sakupwanya, said he delivered 13 tons of gold to the central bank last year. Zimbabwe has introduced and abandoned at least five currencies since independence in 1980, all of which lost value to become almost worthless. It remains to be seen how well the new gold-backed currency is accepted by the public, and how it trades against the dollar and the South African rand.

state department — U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Thursday that more aid is urgently needed for Ukraine following meetings with NATO foreign ministers, amid growing concerns that Russia is building up its defense industrial base with support from China, North Korea and Iran. “Based on what I heard today ... everyone, including the United States, is going to double back and, as necessary, double down on finding the resources that Ukraine continues to need,” Blinken told reporters after meetings with NATO foreign ministers at the alliance headquarters in Brussels. While individual NATO members have been providing arms to Ukraine, the organization as a whole has concentrated on providing nonlethal aid for fear of escalating tensions with Russia through a more direct involvement. “More than 30 countries now have signed or are in the process of negotiating signing bilateral agreements with Ukraine, and we're ourselves, the United States, working on our own bilateral agreement,” he said. Earlier on Thursday, Blinken met with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba in Brussels, where the two discussed the situation on the battlefield and ways to bolster Ukraine’s energy sector in light of continued attacks from Russia.  The United States will host a NATO summit in Washington from July 9 to July 11. Blinken discussed priorities for the meeting with Kuleba as NATO celebrates its 75th anniversary. “Ukraine will become a member of NATO,” Blinken said. “Our purpose of the summit is to help build a bridge to that membership and to create a clear pathway for Ukraine moving forward.” During Thursday's press conference, Blinken also underlined the urgency of the U.S. congressional action to vote on aid for Ukraine. Congress has yet to approve the Biden administration’s supplementary budget request that would resupply Ukraine’s armed forces and help the country fend off Russian offensives. President Joe Biden has called on the Republican-led U.S. House of Representatives to approve the military and financial aid package. House Republicans have delayed action on it for months, prioritizing domestic issues. On Wednesday, the top U.S. diplomat held talks with NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on how to bolster the alliance’s long-term military support for Ukraine. This week, NATO foreign ministers met in Brussels to discuss a proposal for creating a five-year fund, totaling about $108 billion, to support Ukraine's military. The plan, put forward by Stoltenberg, includes making NATO more directly involved in coordinating military assistance provided by member countries — a role that has been filled by a U.S.-led coalition of more than 50 countries. A final decision on the proposal would not come until the NATO summit in July. It requires consensus among its 32 members. On Thursday, foreign ministers from the security bloc also met with its partners from the Indo-Pacific. “North Korea, China, Iran are supporting Russia’s war of aggression in different ways, so this demonstrates that security is not regional security, it’s truly global, and therefore it’s important that we work together with our Asia-Pacific partners,” Stoltenberg said on Wednesday.

Outrage from around the world following the killing of aid workers in Gaza by Israeli forces. Six months after a deadly attack by Hamas militants into Israel. An update on the Israeli response and what's coming next. This week on The Inside Story: Flashpoint Israel-Hamas.

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.