https://www.voanews.com/z/5302 VOA Connect brings together stories of people across the United States and around the world, from a virtual reality brain surgeon ushering in a new age of medicine to a Vietnam War vet connecting to the daughter he never knew. It's a place to meet street https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com/z/5302 en 2026 - VOA 60 Wed, 22 Apr 2026 20:03:28 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA Transcript: The Inside Story: USA Votes 2024: The Republican Convention Episode 153 – July 18, 2024   SHOW OPEN:   This week on The Inside Story:   Former President Donald Trump survives an assassination attempt... days before receiving his party’s nomination for another run at the presidency.   See who he picked for a running mate.    President Joe Biden insists he can serve four more years despite continued questions about his age.    Plus, a Trump-appointed judge throws out the classified documents case against the former president.    NOW.... On the Inside Story, American Votes: The Republican National Convention.      The Inside Story:     KATHERINE GYPSON, VOA Congressional Correspondent:   Welcome to the Inside Story, I’m VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson. I am in Milwaukee, Wisconsin for the Republican National Convention.   This Week...    Republican Presidential Nominee Donald Trump takes center stage at the Republican National Convention amidst heightened security measures, following an assassination attempt last weekend.     Donald J. Trump, Republican Presidential Nominee:  Friends, delegates and fellow citizens, I stand before you this evening with a message of confidence, strength and hope. Four months from now, we will have an incredible victory and we will begin the four greatest years in the history of our country. Together, we will launch a new era of safety, prosperity and freedom for citizens of every race, religion, color and creed. The discord and division in our society must be healed. We must heal it quickly. As Americans, we are bound together by a single fate and a shared destiny. We rise together or we fall apart. I am running to be president for all of America, not half of America, because there is no victory in winning for half of America. So tonight, with faith and devotion, I proudly accept your nomination for president of the United States, thank you.       KATHERINE GYPSON: In the aftermath of the shooting incident that left Trump injured, the United States Secret Service remains "confident" in its ability to protect the former President. VOA's Arash Arabasadi brings us more details.      ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: Trump Shooting Investigation (TV)  BYLINE: Arash Arabasadi   ((NARRATOR))   The campaign of former president Donald Trump says he’s “fine” after surviving what the FBI described as an assassination attempt at a campaign stop Saturday night.   ((STILL IMAGE, TRUMP INJURY, AP))   ((NARRATOR))   Trump says he was shot in the ear during the attack by what authorities described as an “AR-style” rifle, like those used in several mass shootings in the United States.   ((STILL IMAGE, THOMAS MATTHEW CROOKS, AP))   ((mandatory cg Bethel Park School District))   ((NO ARCHIVE))   ((NARRATOR))   The FBI identified 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks as Trump’s would-be assassin, and the Secret Service says it fatally shot him outside the rally venue. The Biden administration says it is looking into security failures.   [RADIO TRACK: Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas at a White House briefing as carried on The Hill's YouTube channel]   ((mandatory cg The Hill via YouTube))   ((Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security)) "At President Biden's direction, an independent review of the incident will be conducted.  One that will examine the Secret Service's – and other law enforcement's actions – before, during, and after the shooting to identify the immediate and longer-term corrective actions required to ensure that the no-fail mission of protecting national leaders is most effectively met."   ((VOX POP, BIDEN, “My fellow Americans…”))   ((BIDEN, OVAL OFFICE, WH, DC, AP, 07/14))   ((NARRATOR))   The White House says Biden spoke with Trump by phone, and the president later addressed the nation from the Oval Office.   ((VAR, JAN 6, AP))   ((NARRATOR))   He called for unity while condemning the violence that’s plagued American politics, including the January sixth assault on the U.S. Capitol and extremists threatening election workers.   ((VAR, RNC STREET SCENES, MILWAUKEE, WI, AP, 07/14))   ((NARRATOR))   Trump is in Milwaukee this week for the Republican National Convention, which will likely make official his nomination as the party’s candidate for president.   But after the shooting in Pennsylvania, the Secret Service is responding to questions about its ability to safeguard the venue.    ((Audrey Gibson-Cicchino, Secret Service RNC Coordinator ))   “We are confident in these security plans that are in place for this event.  And we’re ready to go.  It’s been an 18-month process.  It’s the, we’ve worked together over that 18 months to develop operational security plans for any and all aspects of security related to this event.”    ((VAR, RNC STREET SCENES, MILWAUKEE, WI, AP, 07/14))   ((NARRATOR))   The Secret Service calls this a “national special security event,” the highest security designation the federal government provides.   ((MILWAUKEE MAYOR NEWSER, MILWAUKEE, WI, AP, 07/15))   ((NARRATOR))   Milwaukee’s Mayor, Cavalier Johnson, echoed his confidence in the 18-month process adding that local first responders, as well as state law enforcement, stand at the ready to safeguard the RNC.   ((VAR, STREETS, BETHEL PARK, PA, REUTERS, 07/15))   ((NARRATOR))   Back in Pennsylvania, cameras captured FBI agents entering the home of suspected shooter Crooks in the Bethel Park area.    His motives for the shooting remain a mystery.   But how he carried out the attack in the first place became a political flashpoint…   ((SCREEN SHOT, HOUSE OVERSIGHT))   ((mandatory cg oversight.house.gov))   ((NARRATOR))   … as House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer of Kentucky said, “Americans demand answers.”    ((CHEATLE AT NEWSER, MILWAUKEE, AP, 06/21))   ((NARRATOR))   Adding that the Committee will soon send a formal invitation for a hearing to Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle.   Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.        ####  KATHERINE GYPSON:   In an election year that so far has been anything but normal, this year’s Republican National Convention has been surprisingly and perhaps comfortingly normal.   The party faithful have turned out to support Donald Trump to be the Republican Presidential nominee and with the usual pomp and circumstance announced the Vice-Presidential candidate, MAGA convert J.D. Vance.     Carolyn Presutti leads our team coverage coverage here at the convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.       ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: E24 0716 RNC WRAP BYLINE:  Carolyn Presutti   ((NARRATOR))   ((thunderous applause))   (NARRATOR))   This is Donald Trump's first public appearance since he was shot. He didn't need to speak --- his state delegates filled the void.   ((NAT))   (fight, fight, fight))   ((NARRATOR))   Here, to join his new ballot partner, Ohio Senator J.D. Vance. It was the biggest political secret of the year --- announced at the Republican National Convention.   ((nat of Vance announcement from earlier today))   ((NARRATOR))    Senator Vance, at age 39, brings youth to the presidential election. Known for his rural America memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” he’s a former Marine, and a conservative who once referred to Trump as “America’s Hitler.”    President Biden Monday called Vance a “clone of Trump.”    ((nat of convention state roll call))   ((NARRATOR)) The announcement comes on the first day of the Republican National Convention, in front of 24-hundred state delegates pledging their votes for the expected nominee, former President Donald Trump.    ((Nat of protest))   (( broll of protesters https://app.frame.io/player/035648c5-2baa-45d9-bc70-622641ee56ad   and https://app.frame.io/player/f1548e0b-6d96-4775-ad1a-fe3b1c29fd86 and https://app.frame.io/player/118b0795-dbc3-41dc-97f4-9e2d72e3fd87 ))   A few blocks from the convention, protesters -- against Republican policies and Trump.   [[RADIO TRACK John Miller lives in Milwaukee, where the convention is taking place.”]]   (( https://app.frame.io/player/b1e7db88-5e5e-4e97-8379-5943d595e8a3 at :15))   ((John Miller, Milwaukee Resident))   “I thought it was important to remind people that we have two candidates and one of the candidates has 34 felony counts against him.”   ((NARRATOR))   But the Vance choice and Trump’s rebound after the attempted assassination energized this group even more.   [[RADIO: Michael Lawler is a US Representative from New York]]   ((https://app.frame.io/player/c20210c9-29b8-4bdf-9df8-dd64374780ef at 1:55))   ((Rep. Michael Lawler, New York))   “The question is not about the past. The question is about the future and how we move forward as a country and the issues impacting the American people.”   ((NARRATOR/VO cover with convention or stand up))   ((STAND UP CLOSE))   ((Carolyn Presutti, VOA News))   ((https://app.frame.io/player/dfd724ee-cc1b-46c8-9f97-139e1610e565))   These delegates say they want more unity. Now, at the end of this first day of their convention, they can rally around the full presidential ticket of Trump and Vance.    ((Carolyn Presutti, VOA News, at the Republican National Convention, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.))     ((PLAYBOOK SLUG:  E24 0716 RNC WRAP BYLINE:  Steve Herman   ((VIDEO: Turkish RNC https://app.frame.io/player/7eb3c109-9da4-4f9f-965e-7274e67872f1 ))    ((NARRATOR))  The official theme of Day 2 of the Republican National Convention -- ‘Make America Safe Again.’ It could have been ‘Republicans All Play Nice Again.’   ((VIDEO: RNC Tuesday Trump walks in))   Donald Trump’s former foes in this year’s party primary took turns issuing messages of unity.   ((VIDEO: RNC Tuesday Vivek 20:36 EDT))   ((Vivek Ramaswamy, Former Republican Presidential Candidate)) “If you want to seal the border, vote Trump! If you want to restore law and order in the country, vote Trump!” [[:08]]   ((Video: RNC Tuesday cutaway shot / RNC Nikki 21:36 EDT ))   ((NARRATOR)) Besides entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy, former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley also put aside her previous policy differences with the former president.   ((VIDEO:  RNC Tuesday Nikki 21:29 EDT ))   ((Nikki Haley, Former Republican Presidential Candidate)) “I’ll start by making one thing perfectly clear – Donald Trump has my strong endorsement.” ((:11))     ((VIDEO: Reuters Haley 4Mar2024 https://app.frame.io/player/355a1bdd-ef6b-4e81-9689-6fb28a62a654 TC 00:27))   ((NARRATOR)) During this year’s primary battle, Haley was Trump’s last challenger. The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations during Trump’s administration attacked her former boss as unfit and unelectable.    ((VIDEO: South Carolina b-roll  https://app.frame.io/player/1a49029f-8d6d-4a96-b254-83cc71e8d9e2 TC 02:17))   Delegates from Haley’s home state, such as Gerri McDaniel and Robin Holley, prefer to look ahead, not back.   ((VIDEO: South Carolina https://app.frame.io/player/f7131f6b-c218-4670-abb3-bdd39ccd002c TC 02:30 ))   ((Gerri McDaniel, South Carolina Republican Delegate)) “It doesn’t matter who ran against him before. President Trump is bringing them all in together, and that’s what we want to see.”  [[:06]]   ((Reporter)): “Do you think Governor Haley has her heart into this Trump 2024 campaign now against President Biden?” [[:09]]   ((Robin Holley, South Carolina Republican Delegate)) “I think if she is a person that I think she might be, because I don’t know her, I think that she’s got some forgiveness and some motivation to move on and to keep us together and to help our country.” [[:16]]   ((VIDEO: RNC Cruz 21:08 EDT  / Rubio 22:47 EDT / Carson 22:40 EDT/ DeSantis 21:40 EDT))   ((NARRATOR)) Other former Trump opponents from this year’s primary and those from the past, addressing the convention Tuesday included Senator Ted Cruz of Texas… Marco Rubio of Florida… former Housing Secretary Ben Carson … and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.   ((VIDEO:  RNC DeSantis 21:40 EDT)) ((Florida Governor Ron DeSantis)) “My fellow Republicans, let’s send Joe Biden back to his basement and let’s send Donald Trump back to the White House!” [[:11]]   ((VIDEO for web: Steve signoff https://app.frame.io/player/1f72b6c1-2ac6-4a49-be9e-641d87fecb32  TC 00:01)) ((VIDEO for lang. services: SC b-roll https://app.frame.io/player/1a49029f-8d6d-4a96-b254-83cc71e8d9e2 TC 02:52 / https://app.frame.io/player/7eb3c109-9da4-4f9f-965e-7274e67872f1  Turkish RNC TC 00:14))   ((Steve Herman, VOA News)) ((Standup)) Some of the former and future presidential hopefuls praising Trump here tonight might be seeking to court favor his favor and that of the delegates four years from now – as a Republican victory at the top of the ticket in November would give Trump his second and final term.    ((Steve Herman, VOA News, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee)) [[:26]] ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: E24 0718 RNC WRAP  BYLINE: Katherine Gypson     ((Narrator)) In his first speech on the national political stage, Donald Trump’s vice presidential nominee, U.S. Senator J.D. Vance, came out swinging….   ((J.D. Vance, Republican Vice Presidential Nominee)) ((Clip to Come)) “We're done importing foreign labor. We're going to fight for American citizens and their good jobs and their good wages.”   ((Narrator)) Relatively unknown across the United States, Vance -- a Yale Law school graduate who served in the U.S. military for six years -- has served in elected office for about a year and a half. He was introduced by his wife, Usha Vance.   ((Usha Vance, Wife of Vice Presidential Candidate)) ((Usha Vance at 9:45 pm)) “Chosen to help lead our country through some of its greatest challenges. I am grateful to all of you for the trust you placed in him.”   ((Open for nats of delegates chanting JD, JD))   ((Narrator)) Wednesday night was a chance not only for Vance to introduce himself to the American public but to prove his foreign policy credentials.   ((J.D. Vance, Republican Vice Presidential Nominee)) ((Clip to Come)) “Together, we will make sure our allies share in the burden of securing world peace, no more free rides for nations that betray the generosity of the American taxpayer.”   ((Narrator)) Delegates said they were not bothered by Vance’s lack of experience…   ((FOR RADIO: Walter Goodwater is a Republican delegate from Texas.))   ((Walter Goodwater, Texas Delegate)) ((Walter Goodwater at 6:03)) “Really what we're electing here is potential leadership, and he has got proven potential leadership, and he's not one of us old fossils.”   ((Narrator)) Or by his past comments criticizing Trump…   ((FOR RADIO: Laurie Schaefer is a Republican delegate from Illinois.))   ((Laurie Schaefer, Illinois Delegate)) ((Laurie Schaefer at 2:04)) “I love that he's young and he can be molded, and he is embracing the America First, which I also appreciate. I think under Trump's tutelage, he can go pretty far.”   ((Narrator)) In a night focused on “Making America Strong Again,” Trump’s son summed up the choice facing voters.   ((Donald Trump Jr., Donald Trump’s Son)) ((Donald Trump Jr. speech at 9:32 pm)) "It's a choice between people who are proud of America and the people who are ashamed of America, and ultimately, it's a choice between America last and America first."   ((Narrator)) ((GYPSON On-Camera Standup)) ((Katherine Gypson, VOA News)) The convention closes Thursday evening with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s acceptance speech - his first time speaking in public since he survived an assassination attempt.   ((Katherine Gypson, VOA News, at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, Wisconsin)) KATHERINE GYPSON:   In the Democratic camp, President Biden condemned the assassination attempt against his political rival, and said it’s time to cool down the political rhetoric.   All this as questions about his age, and ability to effectively govern the country for another 4 years continue to dog President Biden’s campaign. Plus, a series of one-on-one interviews have done little to convince the public he’s up for the job.       ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: E24: Biden Candidacy TV/WEB   BYLINE: Patsy Widakuswara        ((Wide of RNC and Trump scenes, AP 4506856 and other wires))       ((NARRATOR))   Republicans are pledging unity and support behind their presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, during their national convention this week.  ((Biden arrival Delaware, AP 4506844))      ((NARRATOR))      For President Joe Biden, it is a lonelier scene. He is isolating in his home in Delaware following a positive COVID test.      ((GFX Schiff, Pelosi, Schumer))    ((NARRATOR))      This amid calls from prominent Democrats for him to step down. Analysts say it is looking grim for the president.     ((Radio: Larry Sabato, University of Virginia’s Center for Politics, via Skype))     ((https://app.frame.io/player/97e1cbd1-7505-48ff-a9b7-7c06ce080dd3 TC 0:07))    ((Larry Sabato, University of Virginia)) ((courtesy Skype))  “Democrats can't even decide whether Biden is really in trouble or not. And if he is, how to get him out of the race. And if they get him out of the race, who should replace him and how. Now, that's pretty fundamental. Meanwhile, the Republicans have gotten their act together, they have had a great convention. And Donald Trump, because in part of the assassination attempt, probably has more public support than he ever has had.”     ((Biden stepping out of car then giving thumbs up, AP 4506822))     ((NARRATOR))     Privately the president is reportedly listening to concerns. Publicly he is resisting calls to step aside.     ((AP 4506793))     ((President Joe Biden)) ((MANDATORY CREDIT COURTESY OF BET NEWS))   “I've demonstrated that I know how to get things done for the country in spite of the fact they're told we couldn't get it done. But there's more to do, and I'm reluctant to walk away from that.”     ((GFX2))    ((NARRATOR))      Sixty-five percent of Democrats said Biden should step aside, according to an AP-NORC poll.      ((https://app.frame.io/player/afb3c970-3e29-47da-9b7e-1f1bef3b600a TC 10:05))    Alan Lichtman, Presidential Historian, American University))    “It is the height of folly and ignorance to claim you know, based on the polls which constantly change, who's going to win and who's going to lose. And that you should force candidates out, just because you think they can't win.”     ((GFX))     ((NARRATOR))      Presidential historian Alan Lichtman’s “Keys to the White House” system has accurately predicted all but one U.S. election result since 1984. He says Democrats should stick with Biden.    ((GFX))     ((NARRATOR))      Lichtman’s system ignores polling, including that 70% of Americans said they are not confident that Biden has the mental capacity to be president. For Trump, it’s 51%.     ((Biden at NAACP, AP 4506553))     ((NARRATOR))     What happens now is anybody’s guess. If Biden agrees to step aside, the most orderly scenario would be for him to endorse an alternative candidate.    ((Biden and Harris, AFP V000_362Q846))    ((NARRATOR))     Vice President Kamala Harris would be a logical choice at least financially, because as part of the Biden Harris ticket, she would inherit their campaign war chest.    ((Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, Washington))         KATHERINE GYPSON:   The U.S. district judge in Florida presiding over the classified documents case against former president Donald Trump dismissed the case on Monday.  She sided with defense lawyers who argued the special counsel who filed the charges was illegally appointed.      Trump faced dozens of felony counts accusing him of illegally keeping classified documents at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. He is also accused of obstructing FBI efforts to get them back. He had pleaded not guilty and denied wrongdoing.    Defense lawyers filed multiple challenges to the case, including one based on a legal technicality. They asserted that Special Counsel Jack Smith had been illegally appointed under the Constitution's Appointments Clause because he was appointed by the Attorney General rather than being confirmed by Congress.    In a 93-page order, Judge Aileen Cannon wrote: “The Framers gave Congress a pivotal role in the appointment of principal and inferior officers. That role cannot be usurped by the Executive Branch or diffused elsewhere — whether in this case or in another case, whether in times of heightened national need or not.”    The Department of Justice says it will appeal the decision.    Although the motive for the attempted assassination remains unknown, heated political rhetoric has long been a concern for observers of campaign speech for fear it could incite violence. We asked two experts on Presidential campaigns and rhetoric, University of Pennsylvania Professor Claire Finkelstein and Third Way executive Jim Kessler, if the attack could affect the tone of each campaign’s criticism of the other.    Jim Kessler, Executive Vice President for Policy, The Third Way Both sides believe that the other side's rhetoric is inappropriate.   Claire Finkelstein, professor of law and philosophy, University of Pennsylvania We had years and years in this country in which people debated issues, talked about principle, actually try to answer questions that the media has or that members of the American public have about their positions, about what they stand for rather than slinging insults and you know accusations.   Jim Kessler: I think the Biden language is strong. .Some may say that it crosses a line, but it's certainly not as incendiary as the Trump rhetoric and the Republican rhetoric. But I'm not sure how well each side will be able to turn down the heat.   Claire Finkelstein: I don't want to be blaming the victim in this attack, but I do think that this is a lesson to candidates, to former President Trump, that words really matter and that when you use words that point in the direction of violence ,when you use words suggesting that there needs to be any kind of explosive reaction to the other side,in a country rife with weapons, we really run an enormous risk and we have been ratcheting up the political violence for years, making it really dangerous to hold public office.      KATHERINE GYPSON:   Project 2025, a conservative blueprint designed to centralize governmental authority under the President has, in recent weeks made its way into the broader US electorate.   While most of the electorate say they don’t know much about it, in recent polling by YouGov, a majority of those that do know of it, don’t like the plan, that has far reaching consequences for women’s rights, climate change policy and calls for the dismantling of the US government.    That led candidate Trump to disavow the strategy on his social media site Truth Social, even though many of the people who would serve in a second Trump administration have been involved in crafting the plan.     For more details, here is VOA’s Chief National Correspondent, Steve Herman.      ((PLAYBOOK SLUG:  TV-E24-Project 2025 BYLINE:  Steve Herman   ((VIDEO: SnagIt Trump speech TC 00:14))  ((NARRATOR)) ((courtesy: YouTube logo/@uspresidentdonaldtrumplive))   ((Oct. 22, 2016)) Donald Trump, campaigning for president eight years ago, promised to bend Washington’s bureaucracy to his will.    ((Donald Trump, Presidential Candidate)) “If I’m elected president, we are going to drain the swamp in Washington, D.C.” [[:07]]  ((NARRATOR)) Trump’s continuing vow to drain the swamp --   ((end data courtesy)) ((end YouTube courtesy))   meaning to rid government of those who impose policy but are unaccountable to the president -- is now backed with a blueprint, crafted by more than 100 conservative groups.  Project 2025, published by the right-wing Heritage Foundation, instructs how to swing a wrecking ball against the administrative state.     ((Courtesy: Real America’s Voice/The War Room))   Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts is warning there may be violence along the journey to its implementation.  ((The War Room with Stephen K. Bannon/Real America’s Voice))   ((Kevin Roberts, President of The Heritage Foundation)) “We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless -- if the left allows it to be.”   ((NARRATOR)) After that incendiary comment, Trump tried to distance himself from Project 2025 -- asserting that while he knows “nothing” about it and its authors, “I disagree with some of the things they’re saying.”     ((Courtesy: CSPAN)) The project’s head, Paul Dans, appearing on C-SPAN, left no doubt Trump’s words and ideas were the inspiration.   ((Courtesy: C-SPAN))    ((Paul Dans, Project 2025)) “He was president for four years, so many of the ideas are carry-ons from his original work. So, I would like to think a lot of it does spring from that first term of Trump.”   ((NARRATOR)) VOA requested an interview with the Heritage Foundation. The think tank said it could not make anyone available, but e-mailed a statement stressing Project 2025 does not speak for any candidate.  Project 2025 seeks to eliminate the checks and balances writers of the Constitution, such as James Madison and Thomas Jefferson, crafted through dividing power among the executive, legislative and judicial branches of the government, according to Will Marshall, the president of the Progressive Policy Institute.  ((Will Marshall, Progressive Policy Institute))  “Madison and Jefferson ought to be spinning in their graves when they see how much power they want to concentrate in the next president's hands. And if that president happens to be Donald Trump, then it's a kind of a nightmare for the country, given the way he's misused power in the past.” ((NARRATOR)) President Joe Biden’s re-election campaign has made Project 2025 a primary target, setting up a separate website dedicated to criticism of it and highlighting liberal media reaction. ((Mandatory Courtesy: YouTube/MSNBC\))   ((Melissa Murray, MSNBC)) “Critics are calling it the fascist playbook. And it should be one of the reasons, if not the reason, that you vote this November.” [    ((Steve Herman, VOA News)) The sweeping plan also calls for slashing government funding for renewable energy and climate change mitigation. The Department of Education would be eliminated. The Federal Bureau of Investigation would be overhauled top to bottom, as would the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which oversees the Voice of America.   Steve Herman, VOA News, at the White House   KATHERINE GYPSON:    It became an instant iconic image.  Former president Donald Trump, blood streaking his face, and his fist in the air after a botched assassination attempt in Pennsylvania.  Social media ensured that image and others taken that day quickly circulated around the world.  Media analysts examine the power of news photography and how independent media work to combat the waves of dis and misinformation following Sunday’s attack.  Cristina Caicedo Smit has this story.       ((PLAYBOOK SLUG:  TV PF Trump Shooting PF Media Analysis  BYLINE:  Cristina Caicedo Smit, Liam Scott    ((Narrator))    It’s a photo seen around the world.   ((AP photos collage of Donald Trump shows the multiple photos taken by AP journalist))    ((NARRATION))     Taken by veteran AP photojournalist Evan Vucci, the image captures the immediate aftermath of the attempted assassination of Trump at a campaign rally.     ((For radio: Here’s Evan Vucci))    ((Evan Vucci, AP Photojournalist)) ((Mandatory: AP))  It was a normal rally. You know, I've done it hundreds of times. And, over my left shoulder, I heard several, several pops, and I knew immediately it was gunfire.”     ((AP video of aftermath of shooting)) ((Mandatory: AP))    ((NARRATOR))    Vucci is one of dozens of photojournalists covering the Butler, Pennsylvania rally Saturday. The shooting left one bystander dead and injured Trump and others.    Images from that day are described by some U.S. media outlets as iconic.     ((AFP video of news headlines)) ((Mandatory: AFP))    But ethics experts are watching to see how — in a polarized time — media and others use the coverage of the attack.    ((For radio: Subramaniam Vincent is the director of Santa Clara University’s journalism and media ethics center))    ((Subramaniam Vincent, Media Ethics Expert)) ((Mandatory: Skype)) ((10:49))  “The media needs to stay on the facts and tell the whole story the way it is. It doesn't have to exaggerate. It doesn't have to add outrage to its own actual headline.”     ((Narration)) Vincent sees no ethical dilemma in using pictures of the attack. But the more complex part is how those images will be used.    ((Subramaniam Vincent, Media Ethics Expert)) ((Mandatory: Skype)) ((10:49))     “So, the real ethics of it, I think, comes in, in interpreting where the picture is, what it stands for in, in the narrative about American culture, politics, guns, violence.” ((NARRATION))     For photojournalist Vucci, his priority was documenting the events unfolding right in front of him.    ((Evan Vucci, AP photojournalist)) ((Mandatory: AP))  “I knew that this was a moment in American history that had to be documented. I mean, it's our job as journalists to do this work.”    ((Name of file: AP video of chaos Trump rally)) ((Mandatory: AP))    ((NARRATION))    As media work to verify what happened at the rally, on social media mis- and disinformation is flourishing.       ((Name of file: AP video Trump rally PN AP video of Trump while he’s talking to the crowd and is shot)) ((Mandatory: AP))    ((NARRATION))    Among the conspiracy theories being shared are baseless claims that say political parties on either side are responsible. Journalists are working to set the record straight. ((How? You’ve identified the challenge. But aren’t journalists always working to set the record straight?)) Yes, but now more than ever there must be more done when this happened…   Media analysts say this is where media have an important role in sorting fact from fiction and highlighting baseless claims.   ((David Klepper, Associated Press Reporter)) ((Mandatory: AP))  "There's no evidence for either of these conspiracy theories, but they reflect the kind of claims that are spreading in this very polarized emotional climate in the immediate aftermath of the assassination attempt.”     ((AP Trump RNC Convention or AP 4506345_US. Trump at RNC))((Mandatory: AP))  As Trump appears at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee just days after the attack, social media mentions of him are skyrocketing, says cyber analysts PeakMetrics.    Trump was back in public Monday at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. In the hours after the shooting, social media mentions of him skyrocketed, says cyber analysts PeakMetrics.   ((Cristina Caicedo Smit, VOA News))        KATHERINE GYPSON:   From Milwaukee, Wisconsin,  Site of the 2024 Republican National Convention...    Thank you watching this edition of The Inside Story...    For the latest news you can log on to VOA News dot com...    Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News..    To access our great VOA content...    Follow me on X formerly known as Twitter  @ .......XXXX    Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service...  VOA Plus..    I am Katherine Gypson..    We’ll see you next week for another episode of...    The Inside Story.  https://www.voanews.com/a/7704464.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7704464.html Fri, 19 Jul 2024 00:12:34 -0400 VOA Connect Transcript The Inside Story: NATO in Washington Episode 152 – July 11, 2024     Show Open:    This week on The inside story:    The 75th anniversary of the world’s largest military alliance.   NATO members meet in Washington to discuss European security and the defense of Ukraine.    Plus, right-leaning parties take a beating at European polls… as the continent eyes the November elections in the U.S.    Now… on The Inside Story: NATO in Washington.     The Inside Story:   KATHERINE GYPSON, VOA Congressional Correspondent:   Thank you for joining us. I’m VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson in Washington.   NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization turns 75 this year, and leaders of the 30 European countries, the US and Canada that make up the alliance gathered in Washington to celebrate their commitment to the alliance and renew their commitment to European security.   VOA’s Anita Powell reports from Washington.    ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: US NATO TUESDAY HEADLINE: Biden launches NATO summit with sober warning about global threats TEASER: Biden, weakened politically at home, makes the case before NATO allies for peace through strength PUBLISHED AT: 07/09/2024 at BYLINE: Anita Powell CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Washington VIDEOGRAPHER: VIDEO EDITOR: SCRIPT EDITORS: Mia Bush, David Jones (bal), Reifenrath VIDEO SOURCE (S): AP, AFP, Zoom PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __ TRT: VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: EDITOR NOTES: ))   ((INTRO)) [[U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday welcomed NATO leaders and heralded the alliance’s 75th anniversary while making the case for peace through strength amid the largest challenge to peace Europe has faced in decades. Other administration officials made similar arguments for bolstering defense to fight global threats. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington. ]]   ((Establish Biden from speech, wires or pull from https://www.whitehouse.gov/live/))   ((NARRATOR))   President Joe Biden made a forceful case for peace through strength as NATO members gathered Tuesday in Washington to mark 75th anniversary of the security alliance as it faces what may be the biggest test in its history.   ((SOT, English, from 1:05:06 in file, find here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6D3-fDtOmY – note cut))   ((U.S. President Joe Biden))   “It's good that we're stronger than ever. Because this moment in history calls for our collective strength. // Terrorist groups continue to plot evil schemes, to cause mayhem and chaos and suffering. In Europe, [Russian President Vladimir] Putin’s war of aggression against Ukraine continues. And Putin wants nothing less – nothing less – than Ukraine's total subjugation, to end Ukraine's democracy, to destroy Ukraine’s culture and to wipe Ukraine off the map. And we know Putin won't stop at Ukraine. But make no mistake: Ukraine can and will stop Putin.”   ((Show Blinken speaking Tuesday at sideline event AP-4505097))   ((NARRATOR))   His argument was bolstered by other members of his administration on Tuesday,   ((NATO summit setup broll, AP-4505152– this is because there is no Sullivan speech footage, though I got the White House to send me the transcript so I know what was said))   with his national security adviser speaking to defense industry executives and invoking a Roman adage: If you want peace, prepare for war.   ((Show Stoltenberg throwing the first pitch at the Nats game, start from about 0:36 and leave room for the announcer saying “great pitch, again, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg of NATO” – if you keep that, then we also don’t need a radio intro for him as they say his name))   And the alliance’s chief began making his pitch – literally and rhetorically – right after landing in Washington.   ((SOT, English, AP-4505108))   ((Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General (English?))   "Sign a new defense industrial pledge. And that will be a pledge that will help to make our industry across Europe and North America stronger, more innovative and capable of producing at scale."   ((Show Biden giving Stolty the medal, from 1:15:02 in https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6D3-fDtOmY))   ((NARRATOR))   Biden, in his remarks, acknowledged Stoltenberg’s role in the alliance by surprising the former Norwegian prime minister with the U.S.’s top civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom.   ((Biden stumping and talking about his not-great debate, AP-4504478))   But analysts ask whether this show of presidential power at the summit can obscure Biden’s obvious political troubles at home after a poor debate showing led to mounting calls for him to leave November’s presidential race.   ((Radio: Giselle Donnelly is a research fellow at the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research. She spoke to VOA on Zoom.))   ((SOT, English, Zoom, from 4:25 in interview, here: https://app.frame.io/player/069103a9-5863-40b1-bff4-94a4d94f2b0f   ((Giselle Donnelly, American Enterprise Institute)) ((Zoom))   “It should remind us of the criticality of American leadership of this alliance. It is an American creation. It survives and prospers and thrives and is driven on American leadership. And when doubts arise about American leadership and American leaders, the alliance, you know – when the American president catches a cold, NATO gets pneumonia.”   ((End with Biden shot from speech here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6D3-fDtOmY))   ((NARRATOR))   It’s a sobering thought as NATO meets under the hospitality of an embattled American president: that his weakness – and likewise, his strength – are contagious.   ((Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington))     ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: US NATO WEDNESDAY (TV) HEADLINE:  Ukraine, China front and center of NATO 75th anniversary summit TEASER: PUBLISHED:  Wednesday, 07/10/2024  at 11:05pm BYLINE:  Carla Babb CONTRIBUTOR:   DATELINE:  Washington VIDEOGRAPHER:   VIDEO EDITOR:   ASSIGNING EDITOR:  Aru Pande SCRIPT EDITORS:  Mia Bush, Jepsen VIDEO SOURCE (S):   DVIDS and FEEDS PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO __   TRT:  2:23 VID APPROVED BY:  wpm TYPE:   EDITOR NOTES:))    ((INTRO)) [[NATO allies on Wednesday pledged to support Ukraine on an "irreversible” path to integration while calling on China to cease all support for Russia's war effort against Kyiv. This as new fighter jets are set to patrol the skies of Ukraine. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb has the details. ]]   ((NARRATOR)) ((DVIDS- Courtesy Department of Defense)) American-made F-16s fighter jets like these -- now heading to Ukraine from NATO allies Denmark and the Netherlands.   ((Lloyd Austin, US Defense Secretary)) “The transfer of F-16s is officially underway, and Ukraine will be flying F-16s this summer.” ((NARRATOR)) All 32 allies in a communique calling Ukraine’s path to NATO membership “irreversible,” in a strong message to Russian President Vladimir Putin that he simply cannot wait out NATO allies.   ((Radio intro: NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg))   ((Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General)) “The work that we are doing together now will ensure that when the time is right, Ukraine can join without delay. It is not the question of if, but when.”   ((NARRATOR)) ((US President Joe Biden at working group)) U.S. President Joe Biden Wednesday pressed NATO allies to continue their increased defense spending in order to keep up with Russia’s wartime production levels.   ((US President Joe Biden)) “They're significantly ramping up their production of weapons, munitions and vehicles, and they're doing it with the help of China, North Korea and Iran. We cannot, in my view, we cannot allow the alliance to fall behind."   ((NARRATOR)) ((Shot of Xi and Putin)) The alliance also calling on China to cease its support of Russia’s war machine …   ((File of Ukraine hospital attack))   saying it cannot enable the largest war in Europe in nearly 80 years without negatively impacting its interests and reputation.   ((Radio: Again, NATO’s Stoltenberg))   ((Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General)) “The declaration that we have agreed to today is the strongest message that NATO allies have ever sent on China’s contributions to Russia’s illegal war against Ukraine.”   ((Brad Bowman, Foundation for Defense of Democracies)) (7:05-15)) “They're providing dual-use technology and support to Russia's defense industrial base, enabling Putin's war of aggression in Ukraine and allowing him to fight longer and to replace his losses.”   ((NARRATOR)) Analyst and veteran Brad Bowman tells VOA that calling out China was long overdue for the 32-member bloc.   ((Brad Bowman, Foundation for Defense of Democracies)) ((7:41-49)) “Europeans are dying in Europe in a war of aggression from the Kremlin with the support of Iran, North Korea and China, period.”   ((NARRATOR)) (shots of NATO members) Non-NATO partners from the Indo-Pacific joined NATO allies for the summit in Washington this week. Officials say attendance by Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand sends a message to China that democratic alliances will stand up for the rule of law, no matter where an aggressor tries to break it.   ((CARLA BABB, VOA NEWS, WASHINGTON))         KATHERINE GYPSON:   U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed Sweden as the newest member of the NATO alliance. But after some pomp and circumstance, the summit pivoted to planning for Ukraine’s defense.      U.S. President Joe Biden: Together, we’ve built a global coalition to stand with Ukraine.  Together, we’ve provided significant economic and humanitarian assistance.  And together, we’ve supplied Ukraine with weapons it needs to defend itself: tanks, armored fighting vehicles, air defense systems, long-range missiles, and millions of munitions.   The United States and nearly two dozen Allied partners have signed the bilateral security agreements with Ukraine and more countries will follow.   Today, I’m announcing the historic donation of air defense equipment for Ukraine.  The United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Romania, and Italy will provide Ukraine with the equipment for five additional strategic air defense systems.   And in the coming months, the United States and our partners intend to provide Ukraine with dozens of additional tactical air defense systems.   All told, Ukraine will receive hundreds of additional interceptors over the next year, helping protect Ukrainian cities against Russian missiles and Ukrainian troops facing air attacks on the front lines.   Make no mistake, Russia is failing in this war.  More than two years into Putin’s war of choice, his losses are staggering: more than 350,000 Russian troops dead or wounded; nearly 1 million Russians, many of them young people, have left Russia because they no longer see a future in Russia.   And Kyiv -- remember, fellows and ladies -- was supposed to fall in five days.  Remember?  Well, it’s still standing two and a half years later and will continue to stand.  (Applause.)    All the Allies knew that before this war, Putin thought NATO would break.  Today, NATO is stronger than it’s ever been in its history.   When this senseless war began, Ukraine was a free country.  Today, it is still a free country, and the war will end with Ukraine remaining a free and independent country.  (Applause.)   Russia will not prevail.  Ukraine will prevail.       ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: E24 0712 WHO MIGHT REPLACE BIDEN   HEADLINE: Who might replace Joe Biden as Democratic Party nominee?   TEASER: President says he is staying in the race amid calls for him to quit PUBLISHED AT: 07/11/024 at 8:53pm BYLINE: Scott Stearns   CONTRIBUTOR:   DATELINE:  Denver   VIDEOGRAPHER:   VIDEO EDITOR:   ASSIGNING EDITOR: Bush   SCRIPT EDITORS:  VOA, Reuters, AP VIDEO SOURCE (S):  MAS, sv PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _X_ RADIO _X_   TRT:  3:49 VID APPROVED BY: Jepsen  TYPE: TVR  EDITOR NOTES:))    ((INTRO)) [[U.S. President Joe Biden is rejecting calls by some leaders of his political party to step down as its candidate following a debate with Donald Trump last month in which Biden sometimes struggled. If Biden is not the Democratic Party nominee, who would be? VOA Correspondent Scott Stearns looks at some of the contenders.]]   ((NARRATOR)) President Joe Biden says he is in this race to win.   ((President Joe Biden)) "I think I’m the most qualified person to run for president.”   ((NARRATOR)) Following his debate struggles late last month, some leaders of his party are calling on Biden to step down as the presumptive Democratic nominee.   ((NARRATOR)) But after months of voter primaries and caucuses, the Democratic Party cannot force him out, says University of Virginia Center for Politics director Larry Sabato.   ((Larry Sabato, University of Virginia)) “There is only one way for a nominee to be removed, and that is for the nominee to decide not to run before the convention, to open it up, to let the in this case, Democratic National Committee, set the rules for the convention.”   ((NARRATOR)) If Biden does step down, vice president and running mate Kamala Harris would top the list of Democrats to replace him.   ((NARRATOR)) Harris says Biden is the party’s nominee and demonstrated her loyalty by slighting Trump, who has split from his former vice president Mike Pence.   ((Kamala Harris, US Vice President)) "Note between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, only one candidate on that stage has the endorsement of his own vice president --- Joe Biden." (CHEERS/APPLAUSE)   ((NARRATOR)) Harris as the party’s presidential nominee might help with independent voters, says University of Southern California political science professor Christian Grose.   ((Christian Grose, University of Southern California)) “The one thing about Kamala Harris that I think makes her a little bit more electable than Biden right now is if you look at the polling, there’s more independents that are undecided about her right now so she can persuade people in a way that Biden maybe can’t persuade people to move.”   ((NARRATOR)) Also on the completely unofficial list of people who might replace Biden is California Governor Gavin Newsom.   ((NARRATOR)) He too says he is backing Biden and showed his support campaigning for the president’s re-election in Michigan last week.   ((Gavin Newsom, California Governor)) "I care about results and outputs, and he's produced. And so I'll leave more objective minds to judge that. But I'm not looking for a performer in chief, I'm looking for a commander in chief."   ((NARRATOR)) Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer is among those discussed as a possible Biden replacement. She too says she is still backing the president.   ((NARRATOR)) Whitmer won re-election in an important swing state and is popular with national Democrats for supporting labor unions and efforts to combat gun violence.   ((Gretchen Whitmer, Michigan Governor)) “Week after week in America, we see grim, familiar headlines. Every place you can think of, every situation you can imagine, has been shattered by gun violence.”   ((NARRATOR)) Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear is less-known nationally than Newsom or Whitmer, but he is a popular governor in a Southern region dominated by Republican politics.   ((NARRATOR)) Illinois Governor J. B. Pritzker hosts this year’s Democratic convention and has the personal wealth to self-finance much of what would be a last-minute presidential run.   ((NARRATOR)) And then there is former first lady Michelle Obama, who has consistently rejected any notion of running for office but who remains popular with many voters. A Reuters-Ipsos poll last week showed Biden and Trump in a tie but Michelle Obama beating Trump by more than ten percentage points. Sabato says there is no way she is running.   ((Larry Sabato, University of Virginia)) “She's much too smart after eight years in the White House to want to go back, much less to be president. So, you know, we could speculate about names all night long, but what matters is who has the intense ambition or the ability to raise money and the opportunity to put together the kind of coalition that could produce a majority in the convention.”   ((NARRATOR)) If Biden stays in the race, that speculation about other names may carry on through next month’s Democratic Party convention in Chicago.   ((Scott Stearns, VOA News))     KATHERINE GYPSON:    We turn now to France, where a political whirlwind these past few weeks saw the stunning rise and fall of the far right’s bid for power.  Now, talks begin to find a political path forward following snap legislative elections that put the left – and not the far right – on top.  France now has no clear political majority or roadmap to forming a government just three weeks before the Paris Olympics.  Lisa Bryant reports from the suburbs just outside of the French capital.     ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: FRANCE ELECTION WHAT’S NEXT HEADLINE: France faces uncertain future after left surges in legislative runoff TEASER: With no party capturing majority, country braces for gridlock PUBLISHED AT:  7/8/24 BYLINE: Lisa Bryant DATELINE: Neuilly Plaisance, France VIDEOGRAPHER:  Agency, Lisa Bryant VIDEO EDITOR: PRODUCER:   SCRIPT EDITORS: LR, DLJ VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original, AFP PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV X RADIO __   TRT: VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: TVPKG   EDITOR NOTES:))   ((INTRO)) [[Talks to find a political way forward have started in France, following the stunning results of snap legislative elections Sunday that put the left, and not the far right, on top.  The polls left the country with no clear political majority or path to forming a government, just three weeks before the Paris Olympics. Lisa Bryant reports from the suburb of Neuilly-Plaisance, just outside the French capital.]]   ((SHOTS: CELEBRATIONS /LEFT — AFP))   This was not the outcome most French had expected. Instead of a far-right victory, it was the leftist New Popular Front coalition that scooped up the most seats in the National Assembly...   ((SHOTS: SHOTS OF UPSET NATIONAL RALLY SUPPORTERS — AFP))   …a setback for the right wing, anti-immigrant National Rally. After surging ahead in the first round, the National Rally came third in the runoff….   ((SHOTS — MACRON/PARTY — AFP)) …behind President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist coalition — which did better than expected, but still lost almost 100 seats and its relative majority in the lower house.   ((Gabriel Attal, French Prime Minister, MALE IN FRENCH — AFP)) “So, in keeping with republican tradition and in accordance with my principles, tomorrow morning I will hand in my resignation to the President of the Republic."   [[RADIO VERSION:  France’s Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, announced that in keeping with republican tradition and in accordance with his principles, he would hand in his resignation to the president of the republic.]]   ((SHOT: MORE CELEBRATIONS — AFP))   Many credit the left-wing’s results to a so-called “Republican Front” by mainstream parties, to keep the far right from winning.   ((Gesine Weber, Analyst, German Marshall Fund - FEMALE ENGLISH - SKYPE))   “I think the most likely scenario right now is having the left block — le Nouveau Front Popular (New Popular Front)— and Ensemble, the parties supporting Macron, having a sort of coalition agreement or at least a sort of cooperation agreement.”   ((SHOTS: VARIOUS OF MACRON — AFP))   After tilting center-right, the French president and his alliance may now have to tilt left. Macron may have to govern with the political opposition — something he’s never done in his seven years in power.   ((SHOTS — MACRON/NATO & ZELENSKY — AFP))   Analysts like Weber say Macron will likely retain control of foreign policy, which supports Ukraine, the European Union, and the transatlantic alliance.   ((SHOTS: PROTESTS AGAINST RETIREMENT— AFP))   But a possible alliance with the left could halt or roll back Macron’s domestic agenda, including controversial retirement and other reforms.   ((SHOTS: SHOTS OF FAR NEUILLY PLAISANCE — POSTERS, PEOPLE COMING FROM POLLING— VOA ORIGINAL))   France’s political divisions were reflected here in Neuilly-Plaisance, where Sunday’s vote pitted a far-left against a far-right candidate.   ((Louise Ragu, Voter - FEMALE IN FRENCH - VOA ORIGINAL))   “I voted for the left. They have the values I believe in.”   (( Radio version:  Louise Ragu says she voted for the left. They have the values I believe in, she says.))   ((SHOT: YANINA KERKINI TALKING - VOA ORIGINAL))   So did Yanina Kerkini. The daughter of Algerian immigrants, she’s worried about the far right’s appeal.   ((Yanina Kerkini, Voter - FEMALE IN FRENCH - VOA ORIGINAL))   “People are saying more of what they really believe. We’re seeing it every day. They don’t remember history. It makes me sad.”   [[RADIO VERSION: She says people are saying more of what they really believe, and she says it’s obvious every day.  Kerkini says people don’t remember history and she says that makes her sad.”     ((SHOTS: VARIOUS OF NATIONAL RALLY — AFP))   The National Rally is disappointed today, but it still won dozens of new legislative seats, and it remains a major force ahead of French presidential elections, just three years away.   ((Lisa Bryant, VOA News, Neuilly-Plaisance, France))       KATHERINE GYPSON:    Continuing the trend of left-leaning victories in Europe, we now go to Britain where voters there elected a new government.  Keir Starmer’s center-left Labour party recently won a landslide victory securing a majority in Parliament.  To see how Britain’s role on the world’s stage may change under Prime Minister Starmer, we go to Henry Ridgwell in London.     ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: BRITAIN ELECTION RESULT (TV) HEADLINE: How will Britain’s global role change with new government? TEASER: Immigration, conflict, defense and geopolitical tensions are major foreign challenges facing the Labour prime minister PUBLISHED: 7/5/2024 at 6:26p BYLINE: Henry Ridgwell  CONTRIBUTOR:  DATELINE: London  VIDEOGRAPHER: Henry Ridgwell VIDEO EDITOR:  SCRIPT EDITORS:  Baragona, Tom Turco, DJ (ok) VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA, APTN, Reuters, AFP, Zoom  PLATFORMS: WEB _X_ TV _X_ RADIO __  TRT:  2:50 VID APPROVED BY: Reifenrath TYPE: TVR  EDITOR NOTES:    ((INTRO)) [[Britain has a new government. Keir Starmer’s center-left Labour party won a landslide victory in Thursday’s election with a 412-seat ((**update as needed)) majority in Parliament. How might Britain’s role in the world change under Prime Minister Starmer? Henry Ridgwell has more from London.]]     ((NARRATOR)) A new government and a new direction for Britain. Labour leader Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria were cheered by supporters as they arrived Friday at the prime minister’s residence.   Starmer promised to lead a “government of service” on a mission of national renewal.   ((Keir Starmer, British Prime Minister))   “From now on, you have a government unburdened by doctrine, guided only by the determination to serve your interest, to defy quietly those who have written our country off.”     ((NARRATOR)) The result brings a crushing end to 14 turbulent years of rule under the Conservatives – their worst result in history.   ((FOR RADIO: Outgoing prime minister Rishi Sunak apologized to his party.))   ((Rishi Sunak, Former British Prime Minister))   “I have heard your anger, your disappointment, and I take responsibility for this loss.”     ((NARRATOR)) Britain has had five prime ministers in just the past eight years - a period that saw Britain’s exit from the European Union, the coronavirus pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a financial market crash under Liz Truss, and an inflation crisis.     Immigration remains a major political issue. The Conservative plan to reroute some asylum seekers to Rwanda for processing is set to be dropped by Starmer.   ((FOR RADIO: Tim Bale is a professor of politics at Queen Mary University of London.))   ((Tim Bale, Queen Mary University of London))   “Labour is going to need to find a solution to the small boats coming across the Channel. It's going to ditch the Rwanda scheme, but it's going to have to come up with other solutions to deal with that particular problem.”     ((NARRATOR))   Analysts say Britain is unlikely to see dramatic changes in foreign policy under Prime Minister Starmer.   ((FOR RADIO: Again, Tim Bale.))   ((Tim Bale, Queen Mary University of London))   “Keir Starmer's Labour government will continue to back Ukraine against Russia very strongly, will try to maintain the special relationship with the United States of America, although that will get a little bit more difficult if President Trump is re-elected.”     ((NARRATOR))   Starmer’s first foreign visit will likely be to next week’s NATO summit in Washington.   ((FOR RADIO: NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said he already knew Prime Minister Starmer well.))   ((Jens Stoltenberg, NATO Secretary-General (in English) ))   “I know that he's a strong supporter of NATO, of the transatlantic alliance, and also committed to ensure that the United Kingdom continues to be a strong and very committed NATO ally.”   ((NARRATOR)) But there are defense challenges at home.   ((FOR RADIO: Anand Menon, a professor of international politics at King’s College London.))   ((Anand Menon, King’s College London)) ((cf. Zoom logo))   “We keep hearing in this country that our armed forces are stretched to the bone, that they haven’t been invested in enough, that the U.K. military is incapable of defending U.K. territory. So, a new government is going to immediately face the issue of what it wants to do about that. Labour have said they want to take defense spending up to 2.5% of GDP when economic circumstances allow.”   ((NARRATOR)) But Labour warned Friday there isn’t a huge amount of money to spend. Any mission of renewal will have to be a long-term project.   ((Henry Ridgwell, VOA News, London.))       KATHERINE GYPSON:   Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan joined his fellow-NATO members in Washington this week.  And as Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, after recent years of mistrust, Turkey’s leader hopes to reset relations with Western allies.      ((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TURKEY NATO SUMMIT HEADLINE: Erdogan aims to patch relations with NATO allies at summit TEASER: Despite tensions over his closeness to Putin and his stance on Israel, Erdogan goes to Washington hoping to reset ties and boost cooperation PUBLISHED AT: 07/08/2024 at BYLINE: Dorian Jones CONTRIBUTOR: DATELINE: Istanbul VIDEOGRAPHER: Agencies, Berke Bas DO NOT USE NAME FOR SECURITY REASONS. PRODUCER: SCRIPT EDITORS: LR, MAS VIDEO SOURCE (S): Original, Agencies AFP, REUTERS, Turkish Presidency. PLATFORMS:  WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO _x_ TRT: VID APPROVED BY: TYPE: TVR UPDATE: DO NOT USE Berke Bas NAME FOR SECURITY REASONS))   ((INTRO)) [[After recent years of mistrust, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends NATO’s summit in Washington on Tuesday, hoping to reset relations with Western allies. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.]]   ((VIDEO SHOT: NATO SYMBOL FLAGS-REUTERS SWEDEN NATO-REUTERS ERDOGAN RUTTE-AFP))   ((NARRATOR))   Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan attends the three-day NATO Summit in Washington after years of bitter differences with other members of the Western military alliance.   Analysts say Erdogan goes to the Washington meeting on a good footing, having resolved contentious issues that dogged previous NATO summits.   [[RADIO VERSION: Sinan Ulgen is an analyst with the Centre for Economics & Foreign Policy Studies, an Istanbul think tank.]]   ((Sinan Ulgen, Center for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies – MALE IN ENGLISH)) ((Via Zoom))                                                                                                   “At the time, NATO's enlargement to Sweden and Finland was under way, but that's now over. Turkey also backed the new secretary general, the former Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte. Overall, Turkey is in line with the slate of decisions that will relate to NATO support for Ukraine.”   ((VIDEO SHOT: ERDOGAN PUTIN-Mandatory cg. TURKISH PRESIDENCY SHANGHAI MEETING- Mandatory cg. TURKISH PRESIDENCY ISTANBUL SHIP PORT-original))   ((Mandatory cg. TURKISH PRESIDENCY))     ((NARRATOR))   But Erdogan's close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin remain points of tension with NATO allies. His ties with Putin were underscored by last week's face-to-face meeting on the sidelines of the China-led Shanghai Security Organization – and Turkey’s refusal to impose sanctions on Russia over Ukraine.   That relationship will require careful handling by both Washington and Ankara.   [[RADIO VERSION: ...says analyst Ulgen of the Centre for Economics & Foreign Policy Studies.]]   ((Sinan Ulgen, Center for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies – MALE IN ENGLISH))   ((Via Zoom))    “There's an understanding that as a country that neighbors Russia that has a number of interdependencies, this is, something unavoidable. However, in return, Turkey is also quite cautious in not crossing the red lines set by the US and by EU in terms of the current Russia sanctions.”   ((VIDEO SHOT: NATO FLAGS-Reuters AFRICA ISTANBUL MEETING-Original TURKIC SUMMIT-AFP))   ((NARRATOR))   The NATO summit in Washington will give Erdogan a chance to meet with President Joe Biden. Analysts suggest that Turkey's growing importance in Africa, Central Asia, and the Caucasus, could be an incentive for the U.S. administration to increase its cooperation with Ankara.   [[RADIO VERSION: Asli Aydintasbas is an analyst with the Brookings Institution in Washington.]]        ((Asli Aydintasbas, Brookings Institution - Female in English))    ((Via Zoom))    “(The US) Administration and Turkish officials are looking into Africa, where Turkey has ambitions to expand its influence both economically and in security terms. There is a renewed attention on Central Asia and, of course, an effort to see if there could be more in the Balkans when it comes to Turkey and US supporting stability and EU enlargement process.”   ((VIDEO SHOT: GAZA-REUTERS WASHINGTON-REUTERS))   ((NARRATOR))   A May meeting in Washington between Erdogan and Biden was cancelled amid differences over Israel’s war in Gaza and analysts say they could again prevent a meeting at the NATO summit.   ((Dorian Jones, for VOA News, Istanbul))     KATHERINE GYPSON:    Here, in the U.S., we are now just four months away from the presidential election, and to put it mildly, political tensions are high.  VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias spoke with some voters who blame the media for deepening divisions.        KATHERINE GYPSON:   That’s all for now. For all of us at The Inside Story thanks for watching.       For the latest news you can log on to VOA news dot com.   Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.      I'm Katherine Gypson follow me on X at XXX. Also, Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.       We will see you next week, for The Inside Story.  https://www.voanews.com/a/7694495.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7694495.html Thu, 11 Jul 2024 15:56:28 -0400 VOA Connect VOA Connect Episode 312 - Stories of a Liberian Refugee, a formerly undocumented Bolivian and a humanitarian migrant. https://www.voanews.com/a/7427911.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7427911.html Fri, 05 Jan 2024 14:48:25 -0500 Connect FullVOA Connect On November 22, we commemorate the 60th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy's assassination. VOA's Steve Herman interviews Sid Davis, White House correspondent for Westinghouse Radio, who recalls the tragic day in Dallas when one president was killed, and another hastily took the oath of office https://www.voanews.com/a/7359111.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7359111.html Fri, 17 Nov 2023 11:59:50 -0500 Connect FullVOA Connect VOA Connect Episode 296 - Crafting legacies and reviving nearly forgotten arts. https://www.voanews.com/a/7268903.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7268903.html Fri, 15 Sep 2023 13:16:28 -0400 VOA ConnectConnect Full   Transcript:  The Inside Story: A Free Press Matters – World Press Freedom Day  Episode 90 – May 4, 2023    Show Open:    Unidentified Narrator:     This week on The Inside Story: A Free Press Matters.      President Joe Biden:    A free press is a pillar – maybe the pilar – of a free society.         Unidentified Narrator:     The United Nations marks the 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day.    From foreign assassination plots on U.S. soil, to a growing anti-war movement in Russia, we take you inside the targeted tactics of repressive regimes.     Plus, a look at journalists missing in action, jailed or whereabouts unknown.     Join us today for The Inside Story… A Free Press Matters.          The Inside Story - A Free Press Matters:    JESSICA JERREAT, VOA Press Freedom Editor:     Welcome to Inside Story, I’m Jessica Jerreat. The notion that Freedom of the Press is a vital part of any functioning Democracy has been written about for centuries and proven time and again.      Without a free press, democracy loses its watchdog.    But globally, media rights are being rolled back.    The non-profit Reporters Without Borders says that conditions for media are now dire in seven out of 10 countries.     As the UN marks the 30th anniversary of World Press Freedom Day here in NYC, we look at the lengths to which journalists from Iran, Myanmar, and Russia are willing to go to continue to report the truth.         JESSICA JERREAT:    Reporting under a repressive regime is one thing.  But reporting on that regime from exile comes with a laundry list of challenges.  Overcoming those are Nicaraguan journalists who’ve recreated their newsrooms in Costa Rica.  From San José, Costa Rica, Donaldo Hernández has this story as narrated by VOA’s Cristina Caicedo Smit.            CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT, VOA Correspondent:    San José, Costa Rica. A city refuge for dozens of journalists fleeing repression in neighboring Nicaragua.         Under President Daniel Ortega, Nicaragua’s media have weathered arrests, threats, and raids. But exile is no barrier to their reporting.             Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director, 100% Noticias:    We start working in the morning, we work from home. We talk to sources, and people who are in Nicaragua, they also give us an overview of what is happening there.          CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Lucía Pineda is one of the most influential journalists from Nicaragua. She ran 100% Noticias, a 24-hour news TV channel, in the capital, Managua —  until her arrest in December 2018.            Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director, 100% Noticias:    I have been here in Costa Rica since June 14, 2019, two days after I was released.          CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Pineda was incarcerated for six months on accusations of inciting violence and promoting terrorism. Charges she denies.         At that time, her outlet was reporting extensively on anti-government protests.        Free from jail, Pineda is still running 100% Noticias, but with limited resources.             Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director of 100% Noticias:    We are often on the phone, and we make a lot of video calls. Thank God there is Skype, Zoom, different tools that make it easier for us to connect with people.           CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Ortega’s crackdown on the press is reflected in the country’s poor media freedom ranking.         Watchdog Reporters Without Borders says no independent media outlets remain inside the country.                 Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director, 100% Noticias:    They confiscate your things, they steal your house, your TV channel, your work equipment and they also put you in jail.         CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:     Ortega’s government declined to directly respond to VOA’s questions on the environment for media, sending only a document thanking VOA for the interest.         Today, 100% Noticias operates in Costa Rica via a website and social media, where they publish interviews, stories, and a daily news roundup.            Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director of 100% Noticias:      There is always the challenge to go on air, and to be online, you are working from here from Costa Rica and we would like to be doing it from Nicaragua.       CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Life in exile can feel isolating.          Most afternoons, Pineda drives from her home to meet with the team at Nicaragua Actual, another outlet run by exiles.               Héctor Rosales, Nicaragua Actual:    Social media has been a key element to keep people inside Nicaragua informed. I dare say that we are one of the media that is widely seen in this digital age.            CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Rosales worked as a journalist inside Nicaragua for more than 15 years. But risk of arrest, along with threats and a beating forced him to leave in December 2018.            Héctor Rosales, Nicaragua Actual:     I left Nicaragua to flee the dictatorship of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, I did not want to go to jail, and I did not want my family to suffer, precisely while in jail.          Héctor Rosales, Nicaragua Actual:  The media still there are threatened. Unfortunately, they are keeping silent because of those threats.          CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    Héctor and Pineda say the challenges of reporting from exile are enormous, including a high cost of living and little income for operating expenses.        But giving up is not an option.            Héctor Rosales, Nicaragua Actual:    I have always had that motivation to continue in this great fight, to continue reporting, to continue doing journalism despite the setbacks.               Lucía Pineda Ubau, Director of 100% Noticias:    This dictatorship is going to pass; I always say this again and again: “dictatorships pass, and journalism and the people stay.          CRISTINA CAICEDO SMIT:    With data from Voices of the South showing 185 journalists forced to leave Nicaragua since 2018, and media outlets shuttering, the work of exiled journalists like Rosales and Pineda is more important than ever.        For Donaldo Hernández in San José, Costa Rica, Cristina Caicedo Smit, VOA news.            JESSICA JERREAT:     It is impossible to discuss freedom of the press, or speech, or assembly without taking note of the situation in Iran.      Over the past eight months Iran has seen widespread demonstrations in the wake of a young woman who died while in police custody.  To deal with the turmoil there, the Islamic Republic turned to wholesale jailing of dissenting voices and threats to media overseas.     VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has the Inside Story.          ARASH ARABASADI, VOA Correspondent:     Six months of civil unrest after a young woman’s death in the custody of Iran’s “morality police”.     In September of last year, 22-year-old Mahsa Amini was arrested for what the Islamic Republic described as “immodest attire.” Tehran released a video claiming to show Amini collapse in custody and blamed the fall for triggering a fatal heart attack. Her family disputed that account in an interview with VOA.    Almost immediately, nationwide anger became worldwide condemnation of Iran’s harsh treatment of Amini and countless others like her. In response, Tehran began jailing journalists critical of the regime.     Iranian journalist and media advocate Yeganeh Rezaian watched from Washington as the government turned up the heat.        Yeganeh Rezaian, Committee to Protect Journalists:    In multiple cases we at the Committee to Protect Journalists were in touch with lawyers who are representing these journalists and their families. And one morning we wake up, and our source is gone, because the lawyer, himself, was arrested and thrown in jail.        ARASH ARABASADI:    The Committee to Protect Journalists, or CPJ, documented nearly 100 media arrests from the end of September — when protests began— to early January. Of those, half were women.        Yeganeh Rezaian, Committee to Protect Journalists:  Based on our annual research in 2022, at the end of the year, not only Iran became the biggest jailer of journalists in the world, but it was also the biggest jailer of women or female journalists.      ARASH ARABASADI:    Those arrested are accused of charges from vague anti-state activity to espionage, a crime punishable by death.     But it’s not just inside Iran’s borders, as Rezaian says Iran looks to silence its critics abroad… like VOA Persian Host, Masih Alinejad.        Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian Host:    The Islamic Republic hired three criminals from Eastern Europe. They were clearly part of a criminal syndicate. They were hired by the Islamic Republic to kill me on U.S. soil.        ARASH ARABASADI:    But that was just one attempt.        Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian Host:    The Islamic Republic actually tried to kidnap me first. The FBI stopped the kidnapping plot, and they charged four people, one of them--Niloufar Bahadorifar--is right now in prison. She received four years’ prison sentence.        ARASH ARABASADI:    Alinejad says she isn’t deterred by Iran’s attempts to reach her in the U.S.           Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian Host:    I tell myself that I have two options: to feel miserable every single day, or to make my oppressors feel miserable. Honestly, I choose the second one and that makes me so powerful. Because look, I'm only 45 kilos, you see that I'm not even carrying a weapon, but they are scared of me. They’re scared of millions of Iranian women like me who say no to them.        ARASH ARABASADI:    Back in Washington, Rezaian says that although Iranians no longer fear the regime like they once did, the threats and following violence remain very real.        Yeganeh Rezaian, Committee to Protect Journalists:    And I fear for them. But I’m glad that they’re brave, and they’re not afraid of telling the truth. They are not afraid of covering their own country at its realities.        ARASH ARABASADI:    Iran’s permanent mission to the UN did not respond to VOA’s request for comment. But the Islamic Republic recently announced the pardoning of tens of thousands of Iranians arrested since protests began.    Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.        JESSICA JERREAT:    We just saw the lengths to which Tehran has gone to silence those critical of the regime, even on U.S. soil. It’s rare that such brazen attacks happen in the United States.  But they do. We spoke to VOA Persian Host Masih Alinejad about the Islamic Republic’s efforts to silence her.           Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian Host:    They did everything – I mean everything - to silence me. By everything, I mean, everything!  They went after my family. They brought my sister on TV to denounce me publicly. Can you believe that?  I was just watching my sister denouncing me, like in 17 minutes TV show. It was not easy. And then they went after my mother. They interrogated my mother for two hours to stop her from sharing her love with me. Then they arrested my brother. They put my brother in prison for two years to punish me. None of them stopped me.  They created actually a law saying that if anyone sends Masih Alinejad videos or you know photos, you will be charged up to 10 years prison. That didn't stop women, so then it's not going to stop me as well.   We face guns and bullets. We face the killers. If we say that we want to just be free to express ourselves. So that's why for me, it's it's like having air having energy. It's like having food, water. It's like ,you know, if I don't have freedom to express myself, I don't think that I can survive. I can -I'm not as scared of being killed, but I'm scared of being shut up.     Ihar Tshikhaneka, VOA New York Bureau Chief:  How is the recent crackdown on the media? They're different from the ones we've seen before?      Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian Host:    This time is totally different. Because people made up their mind that the more that they get killed, the more that they get determined to take back to the street and bring this regime down.   People are ready to pay the price.  I see the mothers of those who got killed saying that this revolution needs blood and our children you know sacrifice their life that shows you this time is different. For 40 years we had the fear inside us. Now this is the government that they scared of their own people.       JESSICA JERREAT:    As government officials inside Russia and occupied Ukraine continue to censor and restrict social media and news-gathering outlets, a group of Russian anti-war specialists is finding ways to connect with its audience by combining technology with lessons learned from the Soviet underground press era.     VOA’s Alexey Gorbachev has this report on Samizdat Online.      ALEXEY GORBACHEV, VOA Correspondent:     Gathered in a Manhattan house, this group of tech-savvy activists say all they need to circumvent Russian censors is an internet connection.    Their website Samizdat Online — named after the Soviet era underground press — can reach audiences inside Russia without users needing a VPN.        Yevgeny Simkin, Samizdat Online:    The links that we generate are available everywhere. There's nothing specific to the regions, so any place where the internet exists, those links will open and deliver the content that we are proxying.        ALEXEY GORBACHEV:    Russia’s media regulator Roskomnadzor has blocked access to Samizdat, but that doesn’t stop them the team providing content on the war in Ukraine or human rights issues that authoritarian regimes seek to suppress.    Each article has a unique link, rendering attempts to block it futile.   Co-founder Michael Sprague says the method reflects how people in Soviet times secretly produced pamphlets.     Three decades after the fall of the Soviet Union, he finds himself explaining those methods to a new generation.         Michael Sprague, Samizdat Online:    Everything had to be handwritten. Everything had to be passed from person to person to person. And so, we basically trained a whole generation of 20 year olds like to understand like, this is, there is another way to communicate when you're not quite sure whether you can trust the state or even the media that you're working with.         ALEXEY GORBACHEV:    Samizdat translates roughly 15 articles daily from several news sites that it partners with, to share reports on on the war in Ukraine and human rights abuses in Russia, Belarus, and Iran.     But staying one step ahead of the censors is tough.     Since its invasion of Ukraine, Russia has blocked access to social media platforms and thousands of news websites, including the Russian-language services of the VOA.     According to Statista, about a fifth of Russians now use a VPN. A spike in use since 2021.     It was only a matter of time before the authorities took notice, says Steven Feldstein, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.         Steven Feldstein, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace:    The most common method is for Russians to access, to use VPNs, virtual private networks, to get around blocks of different platforms or different websites. Now that in of itself has become very complicated because Russian authorities have also sought to block different VPN providers as well.      ALEXEY GORBACHEV:    Samizdat gets around that with a method that doesn’t require VPN. Users simply browse stories then share unique links with friends via social media, messaging apps, email or text messages.     Samizdat’s founders believe tech giants like Google and YouTube could be incorporated into their system.     And they have an additional objective: to reach Russians who are not actively seeking independent coverage and who lack access to accurate information.    From New York, Alexey Gorbachev, VOA News.      JESSICA JERREAT:    When the U.N. declared World Press Freedom Day, the goal was to promote media freedom and the safety of journalists around the world.      On this 30-year anniversary, VOA’s Lisa Bryant spoke with UNESCO’s head of the media platform about the importance of this issue.   Guilherme Canela, UNESCO  Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists:    The role of the universal system of human rights and particularly of UNESCO is to protect a free, independent and pluralist medium.  So, you can’t talk about freedom if journalists are being attacked. You can't talk about editorial independence if the media can’t survive financially.You can’t talk about pluralism if you don’t have a plural media landscape in terms of private media, community media, public service broadcasters.  So, in the last 10 years, UNESCO has engaged 25,000 judges and prosecutors in these conversations about freedom of expression all over the world.  30 years ago we had 12 countries with freedom of information laws. Today we have 135 in 30 years, getting 100 plus nations agreeing to a significant structural change in their in their in their laws, not minor at all.      This 30 years really shows that we managed to put freedom of expression and safety journalists in higher place in terms of international discussions with concrete impacts on how this can be better protected and better promoted at both the  regional and international level. 04:59      LISA BRYANT, VOA Correspondent:    I’d be curious to get more information from you about some of the attacks on journalists and what can be done?      Guilherme Canela, UNESCO  Freedom of Expression and Safety of Journalists:  We have identified violations in 65 countries, in all regions of the world, we published another  concern about the safety of foreign correspondents in different ways of attacking them, labeling them as a particular enemy of the state, or using accusations of money laundering. Different elements that we can call a soft or indirect censorship. You don’t censor the content directly you find other excuses.   However, the good news is that is now the alarms are being raised So let's hope that we all will work like fire man and fire women and try to extinguish this. This fire that unfortunately it is out there.      JESSICA JERREAT:    The threat of being arrested and jailed remains a harsh reality for journalists in Myanmar.     Following the February 2021 military coup, dozens of media workers were detained, while others fled for their safety. Two years later concern for press freedom is still a priority.     Living in exile, journalist Kyaw Myo Thura Tun shares his story with VOA.        Kyaw Myo Thura Tun, Journalist:  My name is Kyaw Myo Thura Tun. I am working for Myanmar Press Photo Agency as a news editor.  I arrived in Mae Sot (Thailand) when the fighting broke out in Karen state (Myanmar) December 15, 2021. We had to run away and spent a night in Mae Taw Tha lay.   So, we arrived at Thailand December 16. We stayed at Mae Taung refugee camp for eight days. We arrived at Mae Sot during Christmas time in 2021.  In Thailand, for media, the most important things are press freedom and security.  Some fled and escaped, some are wanted by the Myanmar military junta in the exiled media community. The main challenges for journalists in exile are press freedom, safety and security.  Right now, there is a lot of inflated news. In order to prevent that, we should select which news is not toxic for news consumers. Although Myanmar is currently facing a crisis as we are reading bad news daily, but we should break through from this routine and present the possible solutions for the audience  As media, we have responsibility to point out injustice. Therefore, press freedom is vital.    After the coup, the military banned free press, and we have seen the situation as Junta can to do whatever they want to do freely. It is important to not to let that happen. Media as a public service, we have to inform the public systematically and press freedom plays the very important role.        JESSICA JERREAT:    As we close out this week’s show, we moved to a new position, in front of News Corp and Fox News Headquarters in New York City. News Corp also owns Wall Street Journal.     We are here to highlight the plight of a fellow member of the media, Evan Gershkovich. Evan’s detainment in Russia sparked President Biden at the White House Correspondent’s dinner to speak about efforts to free him and to also bring home journalist Austin Tice, from Syria.        President Joe Biden:    To Evan’s parents Ella, Mikhail, and sister Danielle, as I’ve told you in person: We -- not just me -- we all stand with you.  Evan went to report in Russia to shed light on the darkness that you all escaped from years ago.       Absolute courage.  Everyone in this hall stands with you. We’re working every day to secure his release, looking at opportunities and tools to bring him home.  We keep the faith.       We also keep the faith for Austin -- Austin Tice. His mom Debra is here tonight.  (Applause.)  She knows from our several conversations -- the conversations with me and my senior staff -- we are not giving up.       Tonight, our message is this: Journalism is not a crime.       Evan and Austin should be released immediately, along with every other American held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad.         JESSICA JERREAT:    As we leave you, we note other journalists detained, whose work covering unrest in Iran was recognized this week by UNESCO.      I am Jessica Jerreat. See you next week on the Inside Story.    ###         https://www.voanews.com/a/7079189.html https://www.voanews.com/a/7079189.html Thu, 04 May 2023 15:30:27 -0400 VOA Connect TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: A Free Press Matters Episode 82 – March 9, 2023 Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Freedom of the press ---    A bedrock of American democracy ---    Now under pressure around the world      Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   They inform citizens, they hold the powerful to account./So this is all really necessary for a healthy democracy.      Unidentified Narrator:   From Haiti to Afghanistan ….    And Nigeria to Iran ….    Democracy’s dependence on press freedom …    Now on The Inside Story --- A Free Press Matters.        The Inside Story:   JESSICA JERREAT, VOA Press Freedom Editor:   Hi, I’m Jessica Jerreat, VOA Press Freedom Editor.     “A Free Press Matters” because freedom to report without fear of reprisal helps the public hold governments to account.     Freedom of the press is the cornerstone to American democracy --- enshrined in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.     But press freedom is under attack everywhere, and with it, an attack on democracy itself.     Freedom House is a non-profit organization that tracks freedom and democracy around the world.  Its latest report finds political and civil liberties in decline for the 17th consecutive year. Among the organization’s biggest concerns: the roll back in media freedom.   VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias gets us started.         VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS, VOA Correspondent:   As freedoms continued to decline globally for the seventeenth consecutive year in 2022, U.S. nonprofit Freedom House noted a positive trend: everyday citizens are demanding that their political and civil rights be preserved.    Yana Gorokhovskaia is a co-author of the Freedom in the World Report.   Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   We continued to see that around the world in the most repressive environments. We see that in China, we see that in Cuba, we saw that in Iran last year.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   Gorokhovskaia says that inadequate protections, intimidation and even violence against journalists has left media freedom at risk in at least 157 countries and territories.      Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   They inform citizens, they hold the powerful to account./So this is all really necessary for a healthy democracy.   She added that Russian censorship was particularly damaging when it came to reporting the war in Ukraine.            Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House;   You couldn’t call the war ‘war.’ You couldn’t criticize the Russian military, and so as a result most Russian independent media left the country and has to be based elsewhere.     VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   The repression has also discouraged ordinary citizens from seeking access to reliable sources of information – even through a VPN, for instance, says Ksenia Kirillova, an investigative journalist and analyst at The Jamestown Foundation.      Ksenia Kirillova, The Jamestown Foundation:   If you just share truthful information about the war, you can be arrested and can be put in jail.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   The Freedom in the World Report — now in its fiftieth year — also highlighted declines in Burkina Faso and Myanmar.      Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   We have actually seen people put to death in Myanmar for offering criticism of the coup and the military junta.…    We’re really seeing an unfortunate situation in Burkina Faso/because it means sort of almost a complete destruction of political institutions and people’s rights.     VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   She noted that's a sharp contrast to Colombia and Lesotho, which are among the 34 countries to show improvements.      Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   One aspect of the so-called bright spots we see are elections that are competitive and free.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   The United States also has work to do in terms of combatting polarization, something Gorokhovskaia called “worrying.”         Yana Gorokhovskaia, Freedom House:   But we also see efforts from both political parties to address that.     VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   Amid a global struggle for democracy, Freedom House recommends governments make human rights a priority, including in bilateral engagements.   Veronica Balderas Iglesias, VOA News, Washington.         JESSICA JERREAT:   Among the most dangerous places to report is Haiti.     Seven journalists were killed there in 2022. Threats of violence and intimidation are escalating.     From Port-au-Prince, Matiado Vilme shows us how journalists fight to deliver the news.         Dieudonne St-Cyr, Journalist:   We often face death threats from people committing acts of violence.       MATIADO VILME, Reporting for VOA:   That’s Dieudonne St-Cyr, who reports for Kingdom FM radio and the news website L’Ethique in Haiti. As a journalist in the capital, Port-au-Prince, he risks his life every day.   Dieudonne St-Cyr, Journalist: I’ve had experiences where I survived by the grace of God. I’ve had head injuries after running into a streetlight while trying to avoid being shot.     MATIADO VILME: Although he has escaped serious physical harm, the trauma has taken an emotional toll. St-Cyr is struggling after the deaths of his friends and colleagues.       Dieudonne St-Cyr, Journalist: I’m living in constant fear. And that hasn’t changed. When I look around, there are five or six journalists I know who have died. You ask yourself, 'Will it be me tomorrow? And if I’m going to die tomorrow, where will it be? How will they execute me? Will I be shot, or will they beat me to death?'     MATIADO VILME:   Unrest and violence have ramped up since the July 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moïse. In the apparent power vacuum, gangs have been fighting for territory. It’s a situation that the United Nations says is creating a “living nightmare” for thousands.   Since then, journalists have been navigating a treacherous environment. Some have been contacted by gang leaders who want to share details about their actions, such as the blocking of the Varreux oil terminal in Port-au-Prince in September. Gangs have also threatened journalists for quoting their rivals in the news.     Dieudonne St-Cyr, Journalist: The gangs understand the importance of a journalist’s microphone because they want to use it to get their message out.     MATIADO VILME:   Residents, too, recognize the importance of the press. When three rival groups went to war in 2021 and 2022, media helped keep the public safe, says Yvenert Phanord Silla, a Port-au-Prince community leader. Yvenert Phanord Silla, Community Leader:   We did interviews with journalists, asking them to get the news out, make the public aware of what’s going on, make the gangs aware of the impact of their actions, make people traveling through the area aware, too, and that effort resulted in the peace we’ve been enjoying for two months.   MATIADO VILME:   As shown by the kidnapping of journalist Jean Thony Lorthé on the streets of Port-au-Prince in early February, the risks media face are ever present. But still, Haiti’s reporters persist, knowing their audiences are depending on them.   For Matiado Vilme in Port-au-Prince, Sandra Lemaire, VOA News. JESSICA JERREAT:   Organizations like the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press help journalists across the U.S. to perform their role as public watchdog.       I spoke with Gunita Singh, a staff attorney for the RCFP, here in Washington to learn more about what they do and how they help.          Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   We have been around for about 50 years and we're essentially a one stop shop for journalists, where we provide pro bono legal support for virtually any legal need that a member of the news media may have.      JESSICA JERREAT:   What issues or challenges do journalists tend to come to you for help with?       Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   You really see a wide spectrum. In cases where dockets and court cases are sealed or maybe some of the records filed in a court case are sealed, journalists will come to us and say, ‘I don't think they should be sealed and it's actually really relevant for my reporting. Can you help me with this?’ So in those cases, we will file a motion to intervene in the case for the limited purpose of unsealing those records.     JESSICA JERREAT:   Why do you think that public watchdog journalism matter so much?        Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   For example, if you attend a government meeting, a school board meeting, say or a city council meeting, and you're able to see government working as it should, you know, you're seeing the the legislators or the School Board Representatives being engaged and curious, that fosters I would say a hope and or rather a sense of faith and confidence in the way government is working. And just important, just as important is being able to see misconduct and spot where potential failings and shortcomings are. So that watchdog role is of utmost importance and it's what motivates Reporters Committee attorneys in providing pro bono support to members of the news media.    So whether you're checking the score of the latest game or you're checking the weather or you're learning about the war in Ukraine or economic policy that interest rates, whatever it is, we rely on numbers, of the news media to distill these highly complex matters for us, and I feel like every time I try to imagine living in a society without a free press, it's a very dark and bleak landscape. The people are entitled to timely and accurate information about governmental affairs in order to make informed decisions about how they, how they vote, who they want representing them. But just beyond that, I mean, you want to foster informed debate about matters of public concern is what democracy is all about. And that's why we need members of the news media to play that role in facilitating that.       JESSICA JERREAT:   Newsrooms are under extraordinary economic pressure. We see particularly across the U.S., news deserts: communities that no longer have local media outlets associated with their region. How prohibitive is that?       Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   It's a very difficult landscape for local news right now, but fortunately, individuals and organizations are taking note of that, and enterprises are springing up to kind of make things easier for local journalists.   So local news is critically important, which is why the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press a few years ago launched its local legal Initiative … We have attorneys in Oklahoma and Tennessee and Colorado and Pennsylvania, where those attorneys are just— their dockets are filled to the brim helping local journalists with freedom of information requests and court unsealing dockets. The gains have been truly, truly remarkable.     JESSICA JERREAT:   I want to talk a little about when the system works well. I believe you were involved in the Khan v Department of Defense records request for a journalist at the New York Times magazine who was exploring the extent of civilian casualties from military strikes.  Could you tell me a little bit about that case?      Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   Absolutely. I love talking about this case. So I appreciate the question. Azmat Khan has sued the Department of Defense in a Freedom of Information Act litigation that my colleagues and I at the Reporters Committee are so proud to help Azmat Khan with.     She focuses on America's air wars, and as you mentioned, she wants to understand the true extent of civilian casualties resulting from the war on terror.   And in the course of her reporting, she learned that these drone strikes are very often based on deeply flawed intelligence and they're executed in rushed and imprecise ways at times at times.   It's critically important that the American people have this more accurate and more honest picture of the ramifications of a war that has been waged in our names and with our taxpayer dollars, for decades. I think just as important as that element of allowing Americans to bear witness is the fact that Ms. Khan's reporting generated policy reform within the Defense Department.         JESSICA JERREAT:   Is there any advice or information that you would like to direct journalists to in this field?        Gunita Singh, Staff Attorney, RCFP:   I guess the only advice that I would give journalists is to be persistent. We need you and we need your doggedness and your bravery and your persistence in order to remain aware and informed.       Unidentified Narrator:   For its January edition, the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo asked cartoonists to lampoon Iran’s Islamist leader Ali Khamenei. Iran’s brutal response to anti-regime demonstrations has included sentencing protesters to death. In 2015, Charlie Hebdo was the target of a homicidal attack by Islamists who objected to cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad. Reacting to the latest cartoons, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said [quote]: “We are sorry that this magazine is published in a country which claim[s] to be respecting the values and supporting the rights of others … “… but it fails to stand by the most obvious principles and bases that govern the international law.” [Nasser Kanani, Iranian Foreign Ministry] That is false. In fact, France’s independent press demonstrates its adherence to international law. Freedom of expression is enshrined in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Charlie Hebdo’s director, “Riss” Laurent Sourisseau, said the cartoons of Khamenei are in support of Iranians [quote] “risking their lives to defend their freedom against the theocracy.” They also honor 12 colleagues assassinated in the attack on Hebdo’s office in Paris. In Iran, hundreds of demonstrators allegedly have been killed by security forces, and thousands have been detained or arrested. More than 90 Iranian journalists have been detained for covering the unrest. The U.N. human rights chief has said death sentences for demonstrators amount to [quote] “state sanctioned killing” for exercising basic rights.     JESSICA JERREAT:    “Gender apartheid”. That’s how the U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Afghanistan described the Taliban’s policy of banning women from places in society, from schools to many occupations, including journalism.     Azita Nazimi is one of those women --- forced into exile but committed to keep reporting on issues affecting women still inside Afghanistan.     VOA’s Shaista Sadat Lami tells us her story.         SHAISTA LAMI, VOA Correspondent:   As a journalist who covered health and women’s issues — and as a mother raising four children from exile in Pakistan — Azita Nazimi knows what news Afghan women find important.      For 15 years, she reported for stations including TOLO TV, 1TV and Radio Begum.          But when the Taliban entered Kabul in August 2021, Nazimi and her female colleagues were told to go home.       Nazimi remembers what was lost when the Taliban took over.         Azita Nazimi, Afghan Journalist:    All our dreams and hopes. The achievements that women made in the past 20 years and the main achievement of the republic, having freedom of speech and press.       SHAISTA LAMI:   About six weeks after the fall of Kabul, Nazimi joined a group protesting the rules imposed on women.          Azita Nazimi, Afghan Journalist:   We wanted to raise our voices to gain our freedoms. But, on the contrary, no one listened to us. And our voices were silenced. That was why we left Afghanistan.         SHAISTA LAMI:   The Taliban takeover had dire consequences for Afghan media, says Rebecca Vincent of Reporters Without Borders, an international organization that advocates for press freedom.           Rebecca Vincent, Reporters Without Borders:   The numbers of working journalists have decreased drastically for both sexes, but disproportionately so for women.          SHAISTA LAMI:   As of 2023, 11 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces have no female journalists at all. And of the 2,700 women reporters pre-Taliban, a little over 600 are still working, says Vincent.           Rebecca Vincent, Reporters Without Borders:    Women are largely absent now — not just in the storytelling role, but in the stories themselves. We’ve seen increasing restrictions by the Taliban on not only who can present the news and in what way, but who they’re allowed to interview, who can be present in these broadcasts.           SHAISTA LAMI:   The shrinking space for female journalists mirrors that for Afghan women in general.       Under Taliban rule, women are denied education and, oftentimes, employment and are forbidden to travel unless accompanied by a close male relative. Local media in recent weeks reported that pharmacies had been told to stop providing access to contraceptives, a claim the Taliban rejected.    For a journalist who used to report on women’s health, Nazimi is frustrated.           Azita Nazimi, Journalist:   If I could or I were allowed to, I would focus on women's issues, particularly health and women's empowerment, such as in social and economic sectors. Unfortunately, no journalist is allowed to work on such issues.          SHAISTA LAMI:   Afghanistan still has media, but, Vincent says, the ability of independent journalists to keep working is deteriorating.    For Muska Safi in Islamabad and Lisa Bryant in Paris, Shaista Sadat Lami, VOA News.     JESSICA JERREAT:   If a free press is a foundational part of democracy, then facts and fact-based reporting are the foundation of a free press.    Training journalists to use fact-checking to dispel false information is the goal of the non-profit news organization Dubawa. Established in Nigeria, it is now a major resource for journalists across West Africa.     From Abuja, our Timothy Obiezu dove into the media outlet’s work with its editor, Kemi Busari.      Kemi Busari, Editor, Dubawa:   The Nigerian Fact Checkers Coalition was established mid-2022 and it started with a meeting among Dubawa, Fact Checkup and Africa Checks. We realized that we all have a common enemy which is false information.   Disinformation is a very big issue in Nigeria because some people have found a market in it.     Nigeria is at a very critical stage currently. The country is not united in a way. There are a lot of other challenges like kidnappings, we also have a lot of economic challenges like the debt servicing, the issue of the new Naira and all.   And because of these challenges, purveyors of false information are leveraging on people's sentiments, on people's biases to put out false information. Like I said, we get a lot more false information these days and how do we fact check?     Dubawa is an independent fact-checking organization that operates in five West African countries ‑ Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Liberia and The Gambia, and what we do basically is - we do fact-checking work.   We try to first of all, reach out to the claimant. For instance, if someone goes on Twitter to claim something about the electoral process, we try to reach out to such persons to say ok, 'Where's your source?'  'How did you arrive at this?' And after that, we also have a methodology that we follow.     The attention span on the internet is very very low so we have fact card that has just the glimpse, the verdicts and how we arrived at the verdict that you can read in less than 30 seconds.   Information defines our lives in several ways - the kind of food we want to eat, where we want to go, how we want to get there and what have you. And if we are fed with false information, sometimes it could lead to some fatal consequences. I'll give you an example of it. Some years ago in the North Central part of Nigeria, in Jos, a picture was shared on Facebook of some people from the Fulani tribe attacking Berom tribe.   A few days later some Fulani people were moving around a particular road and they were accosted by some people from the Berom tribe and they killed a family of six in retaliation just because of that picture. When fact-checkers saw that picture, they fact checked it and they realized that it was from another country.    So, disinformation affects our lives in several ways and that is why it is important for us to be very wary and one of the key stake holders are the journalists.     JESSICA JERREAT:   Among the 12 individuals that Time Magazine is recognizing as Women of the Year for 2023 is Iranian activist and TV host Masih Alinejad.      In exile from Iran since 2009, Alinejad hosts a weekly program on VOA Persian.    She has been a fierce advocate for women’s rights and outspoken about Tehran’s requirement that women wear a hijab.      While grateful for the recognition, Alinejad says the circumstances blunt any enjoyment of it.         Masih Alinejad, VOA Persian:   I really want to thank TIME Magazine for selecting me as one of the Women of the Year. But to be honest, I don't know whether I have to be happy or not because of the situation in Iran. In normal circumstances, for me as a woman who comes from a very tiny village in north of Iran, to be selected for Women of the Year list of TIME Magazine should bring joy and happiness. But these days, these situations in Iran are not a normal time for us.    I want to use this opportunity to echo the voice of Iranian brave women who are leading the most progressive revolution, who are bravely saying that 'We lost everything, but not hope.    For me, this is an opportunity to dedicate my award to the brave women of Iran, to the brave men of Iran in standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Iranian women and saying no to Islamic Republic.       JESSICA JERREAT:   An elaborate plot to kidnap and return Alinejad to Iran was foiled in 2021, as was an apparent  assassination attempt in 2022.         That’s all for now.     Find our coverage of press freedom at VOANews.com.     Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOANews.     And catch up on past episodes and explore new documentaries on our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     I’m Jessica Jerreat.     Before we go, we honor the work of those journalists who were killed this year or are still missing while trying to bring you the news.     ###           https://www.voanews.com/a/6997741.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6997741.html Thu, 09 Mar 2023 12:44:31 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: Russia – Ukraine Year 2 Episode 81 – March 2, 2023   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Another day of bombing ---  Another year of Russia’s war on Ukraine.      Aliona, Kyiv Resident:   With each shelling, we only become stronger, we adapted, we survive every day.    Unidentified Narrator:   Ukraine’s resistance …  Its resilience …  And its refuge …  Now, The Inside Story --- Russia/Ukraine, Year Two      The Inside Story:   CAROLYN PRESUTTI, VOA Senior Washington Correspondent:   Hi. I’m Carolyn Presutti, VOA Senior Washington Correspondent at VOA’s rooftop studio. Marking one year of Russia’s war on Ukraine is in itself remarkable.     Most analysts and experts expected Moscow’s military to march into Kyiv relatively quickly.   Ukraine’s tenacity is now being fortified with weapon systems from the United States and NATO.     There are questions about the depth of the political will to keep spending billions of dollars to supply Ukraine.  But there is no doubt about the will of Ukrainians to fight and defeat the Russians.    Ahead you will see their resolve, how they are surviving day-by-day, and discover the ripple effects the war is having around the world. We’ll start close to one of the war’s front lines, the city of Kupiansk in northeastern Ukraine.  Russian forces occupied it from the war’s start until it was liberated in early September.  But Russia wants it back and has bombed the key railroad town daily since its latest offensive began in late January. Yan Boechat shows us the struggle for those who left the town.     YAN BOECHAT, Reporting for VOA:   After months of enduring Russia’s year-old war in Ukraine, a woman by the name of Nina says she has given up.       Nina, Kupiansk Resident:   We simply didn't expect anything like this.     YAN BOECHAT:   "We didn't expect this from Putin," she says, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose forces invaded Ukraine on February 24, 2022.   For the past weeks, the bombing has been too constant, too hard, too close.     Ivan Nasonov, Kupiansk Civil Defense:   Vitali, are you? This person wants to be evacuated. Can you write down the details? She can't use her phone; I'm passing the phone.       Nina, Kupiansk Resident:   Can I go on Monday?       YAN BOECHAT: One week before this war entered its second year, Nina decided to leave the life she had built here since 1993, when she came from a small village on the Romanian border.       Nina, Kupiansk Resident:   The bombings never stop; I'm still alive because a power plant was close to us, which protected us. But now I don't know anymore. It's time to go.       YAN BOECHAT:   The Russians have been bombing Kupiansk daily for the past month, sometimes, all day long. Destruction is everywhere and many here believe the city may be doomed to a fate like Bakhmut, where Russians and Ukrainians have been fighting street by street, house by house, for months.   Kupiansk is a strategic city. It is an important railway hub connecting the entire northeast of Ukraine with Russia. But bombs are only part of the problem here.       Ivan Nasonov, Kupiansk Civil Defense:   The local citizens are on the edge of a humanitarian catastrophe, have lost their jobs, and have no means to live anymore.       YAN BOECHAT:   Ivan Nasonov oversees civil defense in Kupiansk. He says promises of help from the United Nations and other Western organizations have yet to arrive.       Ivan Nasonov, Kupiansk Civil Defense:   Things are becoming worse; we need the help from our Western partners to hold. YAN BOECHAT:   Local humanitarian aid organizations have tried to offer some relief to Kupiansk's 16,000 residents. In this kitchen, 6,000 meals are served every day. For many, this is the only food they get.     Andryii David, Operates Food Kitchen:   The problem here is not access to food. The problem here is money. People have lost their jobs.       YAN BOECHAT:   Without money, there is simply no easy way out. Many are forced to stay.   Larissa Polyakova and her father, Ivan Zaika, have lived in a basement for three months.     Larissa Polyakova, Kupiansk Resident: There are no jobs; I'm living with the money my dad makes as a pensioner.       YAN BOECHAT:   Larissa once worked in a small clothing factory. But like most businesses around here, the factory closed.   Her father is almost blind following a stroke and can barely sleep with the constant sound of artillery.       Ivan Zaika, Kupiansk Resident:   To go on living like this, I'd rather be dead.     YAN BOECHAT: Yan Boechat, for VOA News, Kupiansk, Ukraine.     CAROLYN PRESUTTI:   U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen visited Kyiv earlier in the week, echoing American support for Ukraine for “as long as it takes.” Estimates to rebuild Ukraine run from 350-billion to a trillion dollars. Amid the devastating attacks by Russia, Ukrainians are determined to see better days.    From Kyiv, VOA Eastern Europe bureau chief Myroslava Gongadze gives us a glimpse of Ukraine's persistent resistance.      MYROSLAVA GONGADZE, VOA Eastern Europe Bureau Chief:   Russia’s full-scale war has taken an enormous toll on Ukraine, its infrastructure and on the Ukrainian people.        The National Democratic Institute says 37 percent of Ukrainians who took part in a study said they had lost a friend or family member since the war began a year ago.     Still, Ukrainians remain hopeful about the future, says institute director, Marcin Walecki.          Marcin Walecki, National Democratic Institute Director:   Against this background of terrible difficulties, Ukrainians remain very optimistic. There is a strong level of support for the leadership, and there is hope that with an international support, this war would be over soon.       MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:   Walecki says Russia has used disinformation to try to divide Ukrainians and convince them the West is not committed to their country.  But Walecki says this strategy has backfired.        Marcin Walecki, National Democratic Institute Director: 92% of Ukrainians would like to see Ukraine being a member of the European Union, 87% would like Ukraine to join NATO. And this is a very solid support which we’ve seen over the last year. It’s amazing to see how pro-European pro-Nato Ukrainians are. I’ve never seen anything like this in my history.     MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:   Ukrainian political analyst Mykola Davydluk agrees.        Mykola Davydluk, Political Analyst:   Russian invasion made NATO and EU fantastically popular in Ukraine, and the people understood that our unique way is only into the West. And we are moving in that direction very fast.         MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:   Meanwhile, ordinary Ukrainians say they are strong and resilient after a year of war and sustained missile attacks by Russia.        Anton, Kyiv Resident, in Ukrainian:   On the 24th [February], everyone just came together and demonstrated that we really are one nation and that we don't want it.       Aliona, Kyiv Resident, in Ukrainian: With each shelling, we only become stronger, we adapted, we survive every day. This makes us stronger, and we only show the enemy that we are not afraid of anything.        MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:   After one year of a full-scale invasion of Ukraine and nine years of war, this Wall of Remembrance honoring Ukrainian heroes who died defending their country is running out of space.   A few days ago, US President Biden came here to pay tribute to the Ukrainian sacrifice. Russia is trying to wear down Ukrainians’ resistance with prolonged war and regular missile attacks, but those techniques have not been effective; they make Ukrainians more resilient.   As the war drags on and evidence of Russian war crimes in liberated territories becomes known, public opinion research shows Ukrainians are overwhelmingly committed to victory and the liberation of their occupied territories.   While the Ukrainian human sacrifice of this war is growing, it makes Ukrainians even more determined to defeat Russia and join the Euro-Atlantic community.    Myroslava Gongadze, VOA News, Kyiv, Ukraine.       CAROLYN PRESUTTI:   Poland has been the first stop for millions of Ukrainians fleeing the war --- with more than one and a half million still there. Some Ukrainians crossing into Poland may be surprised at who’s lending a helping hand.    Our Henry Ridgwell is on refugee watch in border town of Przemysl Poland.        HENRY RIDGWELL, Reporting for VOA:   Maria Kryuchkova says volunteering helps relieve her feelings of guilt as a Russian national.   When Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine a year ago, she left her home city of Syktyvkar and came to the Poland-Ukraine border to help the refugees.       Maria Kryuchkova, Russian Volunteer:   I needed to help somehow, someone. And that's why I was trying to find a volunteering program somewhere in Poland. The first time I came here, I was quite afraid to tell people that I'm Russian because I felt a lot of feelings at that time and I felt guilty. Sometimes it scares people. Sometimes they're really happy. But now I realize that people from Ukraine, they need to know that there are a lot of Russians who are against the war and who support them.     HENRY RIDGWELL:   The charity "Russians for Ukraine" runs a refugee shelter in this building close to the Ukrainian border.   Among those staying here is Anna Sulmya and her family, who fled to Poland from Dnipro — not far from the Ukrainian front lines.       Anna Sulyma, Ukrainian Refugee:   I really appreciate their support in the first place. Despite the fact that they are Russian — in every nation, every population, there are some who are not good.       HENRY RIDGWELL:   77-year-old Mykola Ivanovych has also been forced to flee his home. At first, he could not believe that Russia would wage war on Ukraine – so he stayed put. But a year into the war, Ivanovych says he has learned the true nature of Russia’s invasion.       Mykola Ivanovych, Ukrainian Refugee:   This is the eradication of the race. They want to eradicate Ukraine. They are not fighting. They are just exterminating the people. To erase Ukraine.       HENRY RIDGWELL:   The Russian volunteers say they will continue to help Ukrainian refugees as long as they are needed. But for Kryuchkova, that may not be easy. Her Polish visa will soon expire.       Maria Kryuchkova, Russian Volunteer:   Recently I got a message, a letter saying that I can be a national threat to Poland, and that's why probably they're not going to give me permission to stay. But I'm just waiting for it to be confirmed or not. And then we'll decide what to do. Because right now I cannot go to Russia, because probably I will be in jail.   HENRY RIDGWELL:   Kryuchkova says she will apply for political asylum if she is refused permission to stay.   Her flight to safety is one of choice, not survival. But like the Ukrainian refugees, she – and thousands of other Russians – are also fleeing the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin.   Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, Przemysl, Poland.       STEVE BARAGONA, VOA Correspondent:   The fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine is leaving people hungry far from the battlefield.     Maximo Torero, Food and Agriculture Organization: Just because of the war in Ukraine we calculated an increase of 10.7 million people more [are] chronically undernourished.     STEVE BARAGONA:   WFP says 349 million people in 79 countries are struggling to get enough food and more than 900,000 are close to famine.    Prices have backed off a bit from last year's record highs. But there is little comfort in that. But Husain finds little comfort in that.     Arif Husain, World Food Program:   If you are a poor country, if you have high debt, if you happen to import your food, fuel and fertilizer, you're still in big trouble.     CAROLYN PRESUTTI:   U.S Secretary of State Anthony Blinken visited Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan this week to --- in the words of the State Department --  “deepen bilateral cooperation.”  Both countries were among 32 that abstained from a non-binding U.N. resolution calling for Russia to immediately withdraw from Ukraine. Another abstention: Pakistan.  The import-dependent country is facing soaring domestic prices while maintaining trade with Moscow for cheap energy. VOA Islamabad bureau chief Sarah Zaman explains the diplomatic tightrope Pakistan is trying to walk.       SARAH ZAMAN:   Russia's war in Ukraine derailed Ali Hasanain's plan to acquire an affordable foreign degree in medicine.   Hasanain was among hundreds of Pakistani students who fled Ukraine when Russian tanks rolled in.       Ali Hasanain, Student Who Fled Ukraine:   I am not in touch with anyone in Ukraine, because of the conditions there. I applied for admission to med school in Pakistan too but could not succeed due to the high grades required here.       SARAH ZAMAN:   Russia’s war has put Pakistan in a difficult position on the world stage.   Images of then-Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on the day Russian tanks entered Ukraine, embarrassed Islamabad.   As supply disruptions pushed up food and fuel prices around the world, Pakistan’s import-dependent economy, already beleaguered by the COVID-19 pandemic, devastating floods and mounting debt, faced increasing pressure.   Despite calling for peace, Pakistan, like a few dozen other countries, continued to abstain from voting on US-led UN resolutions that condemned Russian aggression.       Aizaz Ahmad Chaudhry, Former Pakistani Foreign Secretary:   I think the broader dynamics was that Pakistan wanted to maintain good ties with all major powers. The question arose essentially in the context of U.S. China competition, but I think the point was well made we want to have good ties with the US, with China but also with Russia and all other powers.       SARAH ZAMAN:   Driven by growing food insecurity, Pakistan increased wheat imports from Russia.  As its neighbor and archrival India ramped up cheap energy imports from Moscow to a record high,   Pakistan pushed for discounted Russian oil and gas as well.    The two sides may reach a formal deal late in March.   Ukraine's Ambassador to Pakistan, Markian Chuchuk, says Islamabad’s policy of staying neutral in the conflict while doing business with Russia is ultimately helping Moscow.        Markian Chuchuk, Ukrainian Ambassador to Pakistan:    A responsible country should not turn a blind eye to the fact that in doing business with Russia, it may support waging war through oil money.         SARAH ZAMAN:   Ukraine, a major supplier of wheat to Pakistan, saw bilateral trade drop 73 percent as its exports came under Russian attacks.       Markian Chuchuk, Ukrainian Ambassador to Pakistan:   If Pakistan condemns Russian aggression against Ukraine, it doesn’t mean that it becomes a puppet of the West. This may be the position of a sovereign state.       SARAH ZAMAN:   Chaudry says Pakistan is exercising autonomy by not taking sides.   Sarah Zaman, VOA News, Islamabad.     CAROLYN PRESUTTI:   Casualties of war that are difficult to calculate are culture and the arts.    Dozens of Ukrainian ballet dancers fled over the past year of war, finding their way to the Netherlands to form a ballet company in exile. Our Mariia Ulianovska caught up with them during a performance here in Washington.              MARIIA ULIANOVSKA, VOA Correrspondent:   These five dozen dancers from Ukraine were forced to leave their homeland after Russia invaded. Today they make their home in the Netherlands, where they formed the United Ukrainian Ballet company and then embarked on a world tour that included a stop in Washington.      For some — like Mykyta Potapchuk — these were their first performances after ballet school.         Mykyta Potapchuk, United Ukrainian Ballet:   I had to grow up very fast. Back in Kyiv, I lived with my parents, and when I had to leave Ukraine, I got to visit over 20 countries in a year — it was such a sudden change. But I’m getting used to it.       MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   Maxim Belokrynitsky, who danced with the National Opera of Ukraine, found himself in the Kyiv region in the first days of Russia’s invasion.     Maxim Belokrynitsky, United Ukrainian Ballet:   For a month, we lived a very tough life, and I realized I couldn’t go on like that. I decided to leave. There was no work, the theatre wasn’t working then.        MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   Before the war, Dmytro Boroday, also danced with the National Opera of Ukraine. After Russia invaded, he traveled west from Kyiv – on foot.       Dmytro Boroday, United Ukrainian Ballet:   We decided to just walk toward Khmelnytskyi, so that’s what we did. A couple of times we got picked up by cars passing by, but in general it was pure survival.       MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   The idea to unite Ukrainian ballet dancers from across the country into one company came from Dutch ballerina Igone De Jongh.         Igone de Jongh, United Ukrainian Ballet Artistic Director:   At the time I was dancing with two Ukrainian stars from the Kyiv National Opera, and when the war started, they were in Holland with me. And then through them I heard all these stories of their colleagues and friends in these horrible situations, and then I thought I want to try and help as many people as I can.     MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   Many of the dancers never imagined they would end up in the Hague — let alone continue to perform and go on world tours.        Anastasiya Belechinskaya, United Ukrainian Ballet:   I didn’t take anything with me – just some winter clothes.       MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   Despite never having worked together, dancers say they come together with something in common.         Alexei Ratmansky, Choreographer:   They all – myself and my wife – have families in Ukraine. So it's a constant worry. Every morning starts with checking the news just to make sure that your loved ones are okay. It's hard.       MARIIA ULIANOVSKA:   And no words speak louder than the beauty and sincerity of the ballet that these different artists with one shared story made happen.     For Mariia Ulianovska, Anna Rice, VOA News.       CAROLYN PRESUTTI:   “No words speak louder than a ballet these artists made happen” --- love that line.  And – a story dear to my heart since ballet was my minor in college.        That’s all for now.         Stay up to date with all the news at VOANews.com.     Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.     Follow me on Twitter at Carolyn VOA     Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     For all of those behind the scenes who brought you today’s show, I’m Carolyn Presutti.    We’ll see you next week for The Inside Story.     ###     https://www.voanews.com/a/6987490.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6987490.html Thu, 02 Mar 2023 17:11:35 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) Transcript: The Inside Story: Ukraine: One Year Later Episode 80 – February 23, 2023   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   A grim anniversary in Ukraine…   Met with a visit by the U.S. president…   And a vow of continue support:     President Joe Biden:   Democracy stands. The Americans stand with you. And the world stands with you.     Unidentified Narrator:   Defending Ukraine from Russia’s ambitions ...  Now on The Inside Story-Ukraine: One Year Later.      The Inside Story: CARLA BABB, VOA Pentagon Correspondent: Hi. I’m Carla Babb, VOA Pentagon Correspondent. I’m in Washington, DC near Ukraine’s embassy to the United States, where well-wishers have adorned with flowers and other mementos, marking one year since Russia began its war against Ukraine. From the start, expectations were that Russia would capture Kyiv within a matter of days of an invasion. But those expectations went unfulfilled. Russia’s military strength was overestimated while Ukraine’s defensive capabilities was underestimated. NATO countries responded by arming Ukraine with defensive weapons to try to push back Russia’s advances. One year later, Russia continues to attack Ukraine with missiles from the skies and with infantry and tanks on the ground. We will spend most of our time today looking at the help NATO and the U.S. have provided to Ukraine and its impact going forward. VOA White House bureau chief Patsy Widakuswara  gets us started with President Joe Biden’s speech in Warsaw and stop in Kyiv.   Unidentified Singers:    You Give Me Freedom     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA, VOA White House bureau chief: U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday returned to the Royal Castle in Warsaw, Poland, where he had delivered a speech last year, a month after Russia invaded Ukraine.   In his latest speech, he defended the Western alliance’s effort to help Kyiv defend itself.     President Joe Biden:   One year ago, the world was bracing for the fall of Kyiv. Well, I've just come from a visit to Kyiv, and I can report Kyiv stands strong. Kyiv stands proud. It stands tall. And most important, it stands free.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA: On the same day, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to an assembly of Russian lawmakers, saying the U.S. and NATO want to inflict a strategic defeat on his country. He suspended participation in the New START treaty, a landmark nuclear arms control pact, and threatened to resume nuclear tests.     Vladimir Putin, Russian President:   In early February of this year, the North Atlantic alliance made a statement with a de facto demand on Russia, as they say, to return to the implementation of the strategic offensive arms treaty, including the admission of inspections to our nuclear defense facilities. Well, I don't even know what to call it. What a theater of the absurd!     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Speaking directly to Russian citizens, Biden stressed that the West "is not the enemy."     President Joe Biden:   The West was not plotting to attack Russia, as Putin said today, and millions of Russian citizens who only want to live in peace with their neighbors are not the enemy. This war was never a necessity. It's a tragedy.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA, VOA White House bureau chief: Biden reiterated what Vice President Kamala Harris announced days earlier at the Munich Security Conference — that the U.S. has determined Moscow has committed “crimes against humanity” against the Ukrainian people.   Earlier Tuesday, Biden met with President Andrzej Duda, thanking him for Poland’s support for Ukraine and assuring the NATO partner that Washington will respond if Russia launches an attack on Poland.   Poland has welcomed more than 1.5 million Ukrainian refugees and provided billions of dollars in weapons and humanitarian assistance.   The White House denied Moscow’s claim that Biden received security guarantees from Russia before his surprise visit to Kyiv on Monday to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymir Zelenskyy.   Zelenskyy said the conversation brought joint victory.       Volodymir Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President:   We can and we must do, so that 2023 becomes the year of victory.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA: Before returning to Washington on Wednesday, Biden will meet with NATO leaders from the so-called Bucharest Nine, the countries on NATO’s easternmost flank. Patsy Widakuswara, VOA News, Warsaw.     ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:   As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine approached a grim anniversary this week, it was Joe Biden – not Vladimir Putin – striding through Kyiv on a sunny Monday morning.       President Joe Biden:   I thought it was important that the president of the United States be here… I thought it was critical that there would not be any doubt, none whatsoever, about U.S. support for Ukraine in their war against the brutal attack by Russia.     ANITA POWELL:   Biden was supposed to depart for Poland on Monday, but instead flew via Germany to Poland, and then made a 10-hour train ride to Kyiv.       Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President:   I think that is a historical moment for our country and very important to be able to speak detailing about the situation on the battlefield. But I think almost to speak about people, about Ukrainians, about Americans.       Mathieu Droin, Center for Strategic & International Studies:   Obviously for Vladimir Putin, having the president of the United States being in Ukraine just a few days before the anniversary is of course a very, very bad signal.       ANITA POWELL:   The White House says it informed Russian authorities hours ahead of Biden’s visit.   Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington.   CARLA BABB:   Russia has occupied --- and subsequently lost--vast swaths of territory, but appears to be regrouping for a new offensive.   Families in areas under fire say they’ve already suffered enormous losses.     VOA’s Heather Murdock takes us to the   Kherson region in southern Ukraine.       HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Correspondent:   When it was occupied by Russia last year, this village, Pravdyne, in the Kherson Oblast, was surrounded by the Ukrainian army and engaged in fierce fighting.   Victor Sasunovich, Pravdyne Resident: The front line passed right here. The Russians stood here, all over the street.   HEATHER MURDOCK: Much of the area has been destroyed or laden with mines, but Ukraine now controls the province. Dummies set up by Russian troops to scare Ukrainian forces now stand guard against no one — a reminder that on the ground, even high-tech war mostly consists of young men fighting to survive. This is the airport just outside the city of Kherson. The level of destruction here is breathtaking. Each side has attacked the airport multiple times. Both would rather see it in ruins than be useful to the enemy. Inside this provincial capital, street signs declare Kherson a “Hero City!” and say “Family, you are free!” Bombs still fall day and night, but most of the city still stands. Locals say the vast majority of residents fled long ago. Some escaped when Russian took over. Others left with the Russians when Ukraine took the city back. Russian forces are only a few kilometers away, and the people remaining say they have nowhere to go, or they have been displaced from even more dangerous places.   Olena Ignatenko, Displaced Person: We have been here in Kherson for half a year and have only been to our home once. Now there is no road because the bridge was destroyed.   HEATHER MURDOCK: Ignatenko is also from Pravdyne, where most homes are empty or destroyed.   Victor Sasunovich, Pravdyne Resident: There were many worse days here. We were fired upon many times. I fixed the windows over and over again before the house was destroyed. So, there were many worse days here. The very worst day was when I saw Russian tanks entering the village.   HEATHER MURDOCK: Now only remnants of Russian tanks remain in the village, but Sasunovich says that is little comfort when so much has been lost. And after a full year of war here in Ukraine, locals say that even if it ends tomorrow, the devastation here is enormous. Heather Murdock, VOA News, Kherson, Ukraine.     Unidentified Narrator:   February 24 marks the anniversary of Russian forces attack on Ukraine as part of a massive scale invasion. Analysts initially predicted it would be a matter of weeks if not days before Russia seized control of the capital key view were prepared for the fears Ukrainian resistance that followed Least of all Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky swiftly rejected an offer from the US government to evacuate him saying the fight is here. I mean, ammunition not a ride, vowing to stay in keep and declared martial law.   The fog of war soon set in. More than 1.5 million Ukrainians became refugees within the first 10 days after being forced to flee the country. Western nations meanwhile, hit Russian officials with a flurry of sanctions as they supplied Ukraine with billions of dollars in military aid and heavy artillery.   By early March, Russian troops made quick advances in the south and east and during the Kerrison region and taking control of Europe's largest nuclear plant located in the southeastern city of separate each. Russian forces also approach the outskirts of Keef, but quickly faced manpower shortages.   In early April, journalists and human rights workers found extensive evidence of apparent war crimes committed in the town of Bucha less than 20 miles northwest of key. They asserted that Russian troops deliberately targeted civilians.   Hundreds of civilian bodies were uncovered after being found scattered across the streets and in communal graves. After the Bucha findings, US President Joe Biden accused Russia of committing genocide in Ukraine . Putin, vowing to continue the war, ordered a new Russian offensive to take control of the Donbass.   In May UN Secretary General Antonio Gutierrez doubled down on calls for Russia to end a war he said it was a senseless in its scope, ruthless in its dimensions, and limitless and its potential for global harm. Several days later, the US, G7 and EU agreed to impose a sweeping new round of sanctions against Russia, including a commitment to phase out most imports on Russian oil by the end of 2022.   In another blow to Putin, Sweden and Finland unveiled formal bids to join NATO, who hadn't had previously cited fear of NATO expansion is one of the main reasons for Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As Somerset in Ukrainian forces made key strides with a string of counter offensives.   By September Ukraine retook nearly all of the hard key region and later recaptured the city of linemen in Donetsk province. Russia, meanwhile, illegally annexed Donetsk Ersan, and advanced on Zhapricha on September 30, significantly deepening Russian control in the East after its 2014 annexation of the entire Crimean peninsula, and occupation of areas of Luhansk and Donetsk.   In October, an explosion of severely damaged a bridge linking Russia with Crimea, the Peninsula that was annexed by Russia in 2014. After accusing Ukraine of being behind the explosion, Russia retaliated by bombing Ukraine's energy infrastructure, destroying keep plants and power grids ahead of winter.   Ukraine celebrated another key victory in early November, when Russian forces retreated from the southern port city of Karason, once home to 250,000 people.   Another crisis was deepening in Europe, as inflation hit double digits amid the fallout from the war. The Kremlin wagered that surging prices combined with new waves of Ukrainian refugees in Europe would strike a blow to European support for the war. However, a January 2023 Eurobarometer poll found that 74% of EU citizens feel strongly approved of Europe's decision to provide support for Ukraine. A similar Ipsos poll from December 2022 found that the vast majority of Americans supported us aid for Ukraine, but concerns lingered about its impact on American households. Nearly half of respondents said Ukraine should settle for peace as soon as possible, even if it meant losing some territory. A number of grim figures show the devastating cost of war as the one year anniversary approaches. The UN estimates that some 7000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine. Since February 2022. Senior Ukrainian officials estimate up to 13,000 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in the last year. Russian officials say nearly 6000 Russian troops have been killed in the same time period. Though US intelligence officials say the number of Russian soldier deaths and injuries is much closer to 100,000. The OECD estimates the war will have cost the global economy $2.8 trillion in lost output at the end of next year. And the UN has recorded close to 8 million Ukrainian refugees across Europe alone. To many the human and economic costs of the war may already seem extreme, but analysts remain uncertain as to how and when the conflict will end. Both sides determined to push forward       CARLA BABB: In response to Russia’s war in Ukraine, the U.S. and NATO drastically ramped up defenses across Eastern Europe.    This month, I gained exclusive access to US soldiers in Estonia preparing to defend NATO’s edge should Moscow invade.     Unidentified:   They’re the closest U.S. soldiers to Russia’s border…   CARLA BABB: Training with live fires in NATO-ally Estonia on how to take turf from an enemy.   Maj. Jayson Szorady, U.S. Army: The overall end state of this is the platoon seizing that key piece of terrain, which is that enemy trench line.       CARLA BABB: U.S. soldiers with the 101st Airborne Division eliminate simulated enemy scouts and defenses at a training site less than 50 km from Russia…   Unidentified soldier: Alpha Platoon Move Out!   CARLA BABB: …which invaded its non-NATO neighbor Ukraine one year ago. And these are real case scenarios. You're seeing this play out on the battlefield in Ukraine?   Maj. Jayson Szorady, US Army: Yeah, with any type of training exercise  we want to provide the most realistic training environment for our soldiers to better prepare them and our leaders for any type of challenges that are in the future.   CARLA BABB: OK so they’ve just reached the objective, but they’re still taking on enemy fire. Team leader Liz Fursova trains the platoon’s weapons on the open field ahead.     First Lt. Liz Fursova, U.S. Army: Because we were expecting some enemy reinforcements as well as a BMP2, which is an infantry fighting vehicle.     CARLA BABB: They take that out with an AT4, a weapon similar to the Javelin anti-tank missiles knocking out real armored vehicles in Ukraine.   The enemy here is simulated, but the challenges are real as soldiers used to desert warfare for the last 20 years build a new type of readiness.   Sgt. Jack Scott, US Army: A lot of the soldiers have not seen snow before in their entire lives, so being thrown into this environment can be challenging.   CARLA BABB: About 200 km northwest, American HIMARS multiple-rocket launchers with the First Infantry Division stand guard, sentinels shrouded by pines.   Maj. Scott Clark, US Army: We can fire on the move and stay in hide positions and very well concealed and covered locations for long periods of time and once the fire mission is processed, in a matter of seconds, it’s able to deliver a rocket or a missile.   CARLA BABB: These HIMARS and their operators arrived in December as part of the US military’s enhanced presence in the Baltics. At the beginning of last year, there were about 600 US troops in the three Baltic nations. Now there are about 1500. Col. Richard Ikena commands the First Infantry Division’s artillery forces. He says U.S. HIMARS operators have trained in Estonia before, but now it’s different, because they’re also part of Estonia’s collective defense for an extended period of time.   Col. Richard “Ike” Ikena, US Army: We are in the scenario here. It really brings real time what is going on here in order to operate and to be as ready as possible.   CARLA BABB: Estonians defend trenches that French forces try to seize. This is how Estonia prepares for war. But because they’re a member of NATO they wouldn’t go it alone and NATO allies are fully integrated into the exercise. British troops clear the way for Danish Leopard 2 tanks, similar to the ones soon to be seen on the Ukrainian battlefield, to punch through simulated defenses.  NATO allies hope the Leopards, along with Britain’s Challenger 2 tanks, will give Ukrainians more power and protection than the Soviet-made tanks currently in the fight.   Maj. Nick Bridges, UK Chief of Staff of Estonia’s Enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup: The battles in the Ukraine will be slow and what you need is you need a heavy tank like Challenger that can take a hit, and more so than a T-72 which will probably be destroyed after one round. Challengers you can take multiple hits and stay in the fight.   CARLA BABB: But training Ukrainians to use these tanks effectively won’t happen overnight.   Hanno, Pevkur, Estonian Defense Minister: Tanks are much awaited. We know that, and I really hope that we are just not too late for that. Russia still has, even they have lost more than 2,000 tanks, they still have thousands of tanks in the stocks they can bring to Ukraine. They still have missiles, they still have rockets, which means that of course Ukraine needs as much help as we as we can give.   CARLA BABB: Estonia’s Defense Minister tells VOA his country has spent 1% of its entire GDP supporting Ukraine and nearly 3% of GDP on self-defense.   Hanno Pevkur, Estonian Defense Minister: We have a clear understanding that every tank destroyed in Ukraine is one tank less behind our border.   CARLA BABB: How worried are you that Russia could attack here? Hanno Pevkur, Estonian Defense Minister: Well, we have to be ready.  Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, we are like the front door of NATO, and when the front door is locked, then it's safe to be inside of the house. So, it’s so simple as that.   CARLA BABB: A message NATO allies have taken to heart as increased defenses pour in. Several reporters have been killed or seriously injured during the first year of this war.    From Ukraine’s capital Kyiv, VOA’s Heather Murdock shows us what it’s like to cover Russia’s war on Ukraine in today’s Press Freedom Spotlight.      HEATHER MURDOCK: Over the past year, thousands of foreign journalists have come from all over the world to cover the war in Ukraine. Ukrainian journalists also traveled into battle zones, instantly shifting their positions from beat reporters to frontline correspondents.   More than a dozen journalists have been killed out on assignment, and many others were seriously injured. Veteran correspondents say the war is like none other in recent memory.    Paul Conroy, Frontline Club: I was down in Bakhmut and Soledar about two weeks ago, and to be honest, it was the most, what I’d imagine, World War II was, compared to a lot of the wars I’ve covered - civil wars and small groups of rebels fighting the army. But this is like total war, you know, very, very, very heavy artillery.   HEATHER MURDOCK: The conflict has brought large numbers of freelancers to Ukraine. Eager young journalists can “make a name” for themselves in warzones, but lack of preparation can be deadly. The Frontline Club and other media support groups, like the Lviv Press Freedom Center in Western Ukraine, are attempting to mitigate the risks.   Olga Letnianchyk, Lviv Press Freedom Center: We can provide them with vests, with helmets, with medical kits. Also we help them build capability by providing some trainings.   HEATHER MURDOCK: But there’s no way to prevent all field injuries or deaths, no matter how well trained the journalists are.   And some say it’s worth the risk.   Dima Khilchelko, Freelance Journalist: There is no really safe way to be in the war, especially in this war, because this war is brutal. There are casualties, civilians, and their houses are shot by missiles.   HEATHER MURDOCK: Like many Ukrainian journalists, Khilchelko sees his work as part of the war effort.  In general, the goal of journalism is to present neutral information in conflict. But, Khilchelko says, he believes that keeping the outside world informed about the suffering of civilians inside Ukraine could be important to their “survival as a nation.” Heather Murdock, VOA News, Kyiv, Ukraine. CARLA BABB: And now a closer look at the human cost of this war. Vitaly Antyshchuk was a soldier in the Ukrainian Army who died during a Russian missile strike in the Zaporizhzhya region in May. He left behind his wife Yulia and their 6-year-old daughter Alyssa. I met them in Warsaw, Poland, where they fled to escape the war.     Yulia Antyschuk, Ukrainian widow:   It was an incomprehensible connection. We watched each other grow up.   CARLA BABB: After graduating from college, Yulia and Vitaly got married--he joined the army, she started teaching and then came Alyssa.   Yulia Antyschuk, Ukrainian widow:   He always talked to Alyssa during the whole period while she was in my tummy. He said that she would have eyes like his, lips like mine. He taught her to be sporty, to ride a bicycle. He had no other hobby.   CARLA BABB: And he was always little Alyssa’s protector.   Yulia Antyschuk, Ukrainian widow:   He was kind. He supported me, hugged me all the time, played with me and taught me how to fight.   CARLA BABB: But their family was ripped apart when Russia invaded Ukraine. This is the last photo they ever took together. Yulia fled with Alyssa here to Warsaw, but not long after, Vitaly was killed in a missile strike. Alyssa, too young to fully comprehend this war, has taken the loss hard.     Yulia Antyschuk, Ukrainian widow:   She began to draw pictures where Vitaly is no longer standing next to us, where he is above us. And when she asked me if he would come back, I had to say. ‘No’. It was very difficult.   CARLA BABB: Yulia and Alyssa both seek counseling at Warsaw’s U.N. Refugee Agency center. Alyssa gets to play there with other Ukrainians and talk to kids who speak her language. They’re supported by a foundation called Children of Heroes, a charity that aids Ukrainian children who have lost one of both parents in the war.   Dan Pasko, CEO and Co-Founder of Children of Heroes: There is between 20,000 and 50,000 children in this situation right now.”// “As of today, we have 3,488 children under our support programs, and we're adding 50 children per day.   CARLA BABB: Yulia says this war has turned their future, once so bright, into something painful without Vitaly.  You’re still wearing your wedding ring aren’t you?   Yulia Antyschuk, Ukrainian widow:   Yes, because I’m not ready to let him go.   CARLA BABB: She says her main focus is keeping Alyssa’s happy memories of Vitally in her heart, in hopes they can soon return to the homeland he died fighting for.  That’s all the time we have for now.  Stay up to date at VOANews.com    Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.    Follow me on Twitter at CarlaBabbVOA.    And catch up on past episodes with our free streaming service VOA Plus.    More from Ukraine next week on The Inside Story.    ###                         https://www.voanews.com/a/6976302.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6976302.html Thu, 23 Feb 2023 16:00:02 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) Transcript: The Inside Story: Earthquake Episode 79 – February 16, 2023 Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   An earthquake kills tens of thousands of people ---    Leaving hundreds of thousands homeless in Turkey and Syria.      Unidentified Rescue Worker:   We don’t know if they are alive or dead but mostly dead bodies come out now.     Unidentified Narrator:   From rescue to recovery and survival amid the rubble ….    Now on The Inside Story --- Earthquake.        The Inside Story:   ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:   Hi. I’m Anita Powell, VOA White House Correspondent.  It was 4:17 Monday morning, February 6th when the earth shook in south central Turkey and northern Syria.     The magnitude 7.8 earthquake was followed by a 7.5 aftershock nine hours later.    The death toll is approaching 40-thousand.     Rescue operations are shifting to recovery efforts as families grimly watch and pray.    The epicenter was 33 kilometers west of Gaziantep --- a major city in an area of more than two-million people.    The big aftershock was centered about 80 kilometers north --- near the ancient city of Kahraman Maras, an area with about a million people.    Getting help to survivors has been hampered by geography and war. Dorian Jones begins our coverage from Istanbul.      DORIAN JONES, Reporting for VOA:   For many earthquake survivors, the painful wait continues for loved ones still buried in collapsed buildings as rescuers race against time to find survivors.       Selim, Earthquake Survivor: Two of our relatives are under the rubble; they still could not take them out. So we are waiting; we don't know if they are alive or dead, but mostly dead bodies come out now. Some come out alive, but not many; we are waiting, God should not make anyone experience such a thing.   DORIAN JONES:   Successes still occur; six days after the quake, a U.S. search and rescue team dug out a survivor, part of a growing global effort to help. But with over seven thousand buildings destroyed and many more uninhabitable, shelter is of critical importance with the region in the grip of bitter subzero temperatures. For many, just staying warm is a daily struggle.     Zeki, Earthquake Survivor:   I applied, but no one gave me a tent. I am taking care of orphaned children. The front of my house was utterly cracked, we were afraid to go back there. There are some places to shelter from the cold, like mosques, schools, and condolence houses, and these are the places we have been staying. DORIAN JONES:   Many remote villages where temperatures drop to minus 20 Celsius are only now starting to receive assistance, thanks in many cases to local support groups. Neighboring Syria too is only now starting to receive aid. Aids groups warn assistance is desperately needed in the rebel-controlled Idlib province that was devastated by the quakes.       Souhaib Touliamat, ATAA Relief Agency:   The delay in accessing the aid and the humanitarian aid through the borders increased the vulnerability, increased the crisis, which is affecting the people over there     DORIAN JONES:   These medical supplies are approaching to be finished. And also, the logistic supplies for the civil defense are approaching to finish, including diesel for the equipment and the vehicles for evacuation.” In Turkey, international assistance is picking up as the government faces criticism over the speed of its response to the disaster.   Those in shelters contemplate the painful reality they face.       Earthquake Survivor:   We are staying with four families in this tent. We have no heating; we have nothing. You can see this is all we have.       DORIAN JONES:   Survivors in Turkey and Syria face the prospect of having to rebuild with nothing, at a time when so many are grieving the loss of loved ones.   Dorian Jones, for VOA News, Istanbul.       ANITA POWELL:   Turkey’s government estimates the quake has caused 50-million dollars in damage. A Turkish business group puts the number closer to 80-million dollars.    Help is coming in from all corners in all kinds of ways --- from clothing to food to heavy construction equipment to individuals volunteering their time.       Bahri,Diyarbakir Resident:   Many of our neighbors died. We are so sad and wish to recover. We wish Turkey will recover. People are still under the rubble and we are already mourning. God bless those who died and bring healing to the injured.       Aydin Sisman, Relative of missing family members:   Right now, my mother-and father-in-law-are inside under rubble. I got here yesterday and there was no one here. There were no rescue teams. I went up by myself, took a look, walked around. I saw bodies and we pulled them out from under the rubble. Some without heads, there’s everything, believe me, it’s all there.  If you ask people, 'Which building in Hatay wouldn’t collapse?’ They’d all point to this one. But this is the one that is in worst shape. We have Ukrainian guests who fled the war, and they are also laying inside. We have had no contact.       Hussein Waheed Hanan, Jinderis, Syria resident:   Eight family members were missing, we pulled out four and buried them with our own hands. The Civil Defence rescued three, and there is still a girl under the rubble, and until now, we don’t know anything about her. Today, I went to hospital and asked the father. He said, “My little daughter, who is 14-years-old, is she still under the rubble? She hasn’t been pulled out?”  I said not yet. He said “she was sleeping in the bedroom alone.     Mazen, Aleppo Resident:   I was sleeping that time… I see something shaking. I heard my wife say “earthquake, earthquake.     Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General:   Today, I'm announcing that the United Nations is launching a $397 million U.S. dollar humanitarian appeal for the people of earthquake-ravaged Syria, and this will cover a period of three months.   We all know that lifesaving aid has not being getting in at the speed and scale needed. The scale of this disaster is one of the worst in recent memory. One week after the devastating earthquakes, millions of people across the region struggling for survival, homeless and in freezing temperatures.   We are doing all we can to change this, but much more is needed. And I have an urgent message to the international community: the human suffering from this epic natural disaster should not be made even worse by manmade obstacles. Excess, funding, supplies. Aid must get through from all sides to all sides, through all routes without any restrictions.       ANITA POWELL:   VOA’s Turkish Service and Kurdish Service are on the ground in Turkey and Syria trying to bring audiences there the latest information about rescue and recovery efforts along with where survivors can find help.       Mehmet Toroglu, Correspondent VOA Turkish Service: There was a clear lack of coordination by the government and local authorities, like the governors, the local rescue groups, local branches, they were not mobilized fast enough by the government. The situation on the ground is difficult. There's a serious problem of sheltering many people, as I said, are homeless, they lost their homes, they live outside on the streets, even if their building is safe. They prefer living outside either in the tents or especially significant number of people staying overnight in the cars. So there will have to be an effort a serious effort, maybe it will take years of rebuilding effort from right now.   ANITA POWELL: I want to talk about the political fault lines that go through this region I'm talking about conflict across the border. I'm talking about allegations of repression, both in Syria and in Turkey. Why does that matter? Why does that make the impact of a natural disaster like this any different?     Mehmet Toroglu: Well, I shouldn't say this is the first test of a big natural disaster, how Erdogan  would handle the natural disaster in such a big scale after he brought he implemented the presidential system in in Turkey. This is the big one. So we will see how he will handle but as of right now on to the right now. There's, like you can we can say we can clearly say that he did not make a good beginning. Everybody waited for, too long to give them to order them what to do. So everybody expected that word. Everybody was looking at that last mile. So that's why the beginning of the disaster that was the things were slower.   ANITA POWELL: Can I ask you just about the presence of a large number of Syrian refugees in this area? How is this resonating for that community and also for Syrians in Syria who are seeing this happen to their relatives?   Mehmet Toroglu: Yes, there was. There is the disparity in distributing the aid but if you look at the Syrian side, one thing actually stringers talk with the Syrians in the region, there are the Gaziantep, especially as you can see, as the capital of Syrian refugees, there are a significant number of Syrian refugees are there like, How can I describe they're saying that our country during the war had already collapsed on our heads and now here the same thing happened Turkey also collapse in our heads. We ended up being crushed on the run of the room, rumbling both countries.  So and also the in Turkey that maybe not from the political level.  We look at the reaction attitude of Turkish people against the Turkish Syrian refugees. There's been an increasing level of animosity. We look at the People's reaction done you look at the social media posts. Like for example, there is a far right party in Turkey victory party when you look at this party's leaders statements now. We can see that there is you know, from at least from some circles, there is a campaign negative campaign going on against Syrian refugees. ANITA POWELL:   For refugees who fled Syria’s civil war, the earthquake adds another challenge to a group of people group of people beset with challenges.    From Mersin, Turkey, our Arif Aslan tracks a Syrian refugee family who are once again, facing hard times.        ARIF ASALAN, VOA Correspondent:   Mohammed Beko and his family had no choice but to flee the Turkish city of Hatay, one of the areas hit hardest by earthquakes on February 6 that has left thousands of people dead in Turkey and Syria.   Originally from the northwestern Syrian province of Idlib, Beko and his family moved to Turkey in 2013 after fleeing civil war in their country.   The quake had a devastating impact on the Beko family, like so many other residents of Hatay.       Mohammed Beko, Syrian Refugee:   The entire house was destroyed. My father and aunt remained under the rubble. We kept digging for three hours to get them out. My aunt lost her life. God bless her soul. But my father survived. Thank God, he is fine.     ARIF ASALAN:   After three days, Beko decided to move his family to the city of Mersin, which has been spared the devastation of the earthquake.       Mohammed Beko, Syrian Refugee:   We left the city because there were still aftershocks. While there, we stayed under a tent for three days. It was very cold, and my children couldn’t bear it. With every aftershock my children got more terrified.       ARIF ASALAN:   While they feel safe in Mersin, the family has been living on the street with no place to stay. With processing the scale of the devastation and grieving for the loss of his loved ones in Turkey and Syria, Beko says the future is uncertain, once again.   For Arif Aslan in Mersin, Turkey, Sirwan Kajjo, VOA News.       ANITA POWELL:   Among the first responders to these kinds of catastrophes is the search and rescue team from Fairfax County --- about 10 kilometers from here.    VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias tells us they are joining others from the U.S. trying to help.        VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS, VOA Correspondent:   Syrian refugees in Turkey and those who have been displaced in northwest Syria are among the most vulnerable and have the greatest need for food and other assistance, UNICEF said on Tuesday.   The United States has joined several other nations to support relief efforts.       Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary:   We are in the process of deploying additional teams to support Turkish search and rescue efforts and address the needs of those injured and displaced by the earthquakes. U.S.-supported humanitarian partners are also responding to the destruction in Syria.         VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   Mobilized by USAID, the Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue Team prepped for deployment to Turkey.       John Morrison, Fairfax County Urban Search and Rescue Team:   We have about 60,000 pounds of equipment here, we are loading 79 people with 6 rescue dogs.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   Health concerns will also need to be addressed, notes the U.S.-based humanitarian organization “Project Hope.”     Arlan Fuller, Project HOPE:   Whether that be waterborne diseases or airborne diseases that are spread through communities that are now living in very close proximity and shelters, you will have a number of different disease vectors that will arise after the first few days of a disaster.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   For those who want to help, the non-profit Global Giving has some advice.       Sandrina da Cruz, Disaster Response Director at GlobalGiving:   Cash is first and foremost the most important way to donate. And that is because the needs on the ground fluctuate so quickly. Look at the organizations on Charity Navigator in order to be able to verify that is a trusted charity entity.       VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS:   Humanitarian workers say it could take weeks for the emergency in Turkey and Syria to move to the recovery phase.   Veronica Balderas Iglesias, VOA News, Washington.   ANITA POWELL:   Among the challenges facing the hundreds of thousands left homeless by the earthquake is managing through winter temperatures.    While it rarely gets that cold in Los Angeles, a mobilization is underway to get warm clothing and other essentials to those who need it.    Details from L.A. and our Angelina Baghasaryan.        ANGELINA BAGDASARYAN, VOA Correspondent:   Since early morning, Los Angeles residents have been bringing humanitarian aid – including warm clothes and other essentials – to this mosque so that it can be sent to Turkey and Syria.     Rauf Patel, King Fahad Mosque Director: We are collecting winter clothes for Turkey’s people. As we know Turkey had a really big disaster and at this point any human – of Muslim or non-Muslim faith – if they get hurt, we feel we need to help. So, we are helping each and every person.       Suleiman, Los Angeles Resident:   We must respond. I have sent some clothes here; what we need more of is blankets and winter clothes like this.       ANGELINA BAGDASARYAN:   Residents throughout California are stepping up with aid for earthquake survivors across the ocean.    Nurdan Civi is a singer and a volunteer in Northern California.    For years, she’s been collecting money to help Turkish children to get an education. Nurdan Civi, Volunteer:   Maybe instead of sending kids to school and giving them scholarships, maybe we’re going to use the funds to build new schools. So, we will use the funds for meeting more essential needs.       ANGELINA BAGDASARYAN:   Businessman Murat Karslioglu has sent all the trucks from his firm to transport humanitarian aid from collection centers to the airports in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Most boxes contain warm clothing and hygiene essentials for women and small children.        Murat Karslioglu, Bakkal Corporation CEO:   The only thing we can do from here is to provide them with things they need to survive – blankets, tents, because the next three to six months at least will be very difficult for them. And even after that, recovery will take a year, maybe longer.       ANGELINA BAGDASARYAN:   US rescue teams along with their search dogs are also on the way to help, and they are taking tons of humanitarian aid with them.    Californians know all too well about this kind of catastrophe. The state, itself, is situated on the very active San Andreas fault, making the region susceptible to powerful and dangerous earthquakes.    For Angelina Bagdasaryan in Los Angeles, California, Anna Rice, VOA News.         ANITA POWELL:   Before we go, a development here in the United States that has more questions than answers.    Less than a week after the U.S. downed what officials say was a Chinese surveillance balloon, the U.S. military shot down three more flying objects of unknown origin.     Chinese officials say they can’t say whether the newly downed objects are theirs but say the U.S. is overreacting.    Amid the questions, one thing is clear: China-U.S. relations have taken a hit.      There are many questions about the three unidentified flying objects the U.S. military has shot down in as many days. Here’s one thing the White House can say with confidence:         Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary:   There is no indication of aliens or extraterrestrial activity with these recent takedowns. We wanted to make sure that the American people knew that all, that all of you knew that it was important for us to say that.       Unidentified Reporter:   The truth is out there, Karine. ((laughter))       ANITA POWELL:   But seriously, White House officials offered one theory on why the military is suddenly finding more of these flying vessels: because these are the objects they’re looking for.         John Kirby, National Security Council:   If you set the parameters in such a way to look for a certain something, it's more likely that you're going to find a certain something.         ANITA POWELL:   On Friday, less than a week after downing a Chinese balloon over the eastern shore of the United States, the U.S. military shot down a UFO over Alaska. On Saturday, the U.S. worked with the Canadian military to take down another over the Yukon territory. And on Sunday, a third was shot from the sky into Lake Huron.     People should not panic, Kirby said.         John Kirby, National Security Council:    We do not assess that these most recent objects pose any threat to people on the ground, and we are laser-focused on confirming their nature and purpose.        ANITA POWELL:   But if the truth is out there, it’s clouded by China’s anger over what they say is unfair U.S. punishment for a weather balloon that simply drifted off course and across the entire continental U.S.    On Monday, China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin, accused Washington of being “trigger-happy.” He did not say whether the three recent objects were Chinese but fired a volley of accusations at Washington.         Wang Wenbin, Chinese Foreign Ministry:   The U.S.’ abuse of force, overreaction and escalation of the situation goes against the spirit of international law and against international practice. Now (they are) hyping up, exaggerating and exacerbating (the situation), using this as an excuse to illegally sanction Chinese enterprises and organizations. China is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposes this.     ANITA POWELL:   The White House said there is no current plan for President Joe Biden to talk to Chinese President Xi Jinping, and Kirby said the Chinese military is “not interested” in speaking to the U.S. defense secretary. He also repeated claims that the U.S. does not have surveillance aircraft in Chinese airspace.  That, says analyst Emily Harding, sets up tension with Beijing and raises serious questions for Washington – questions that Kirby could not answer when asked on Monday.          Emily Harding, Center for Strategic and International Studies:   I think the message sent to Beijing is, ‘Hey, we caught you. We know what you're up to. Cut it out.’ I think the more interesting question right now for the Pentagon is going to be, what are the rules of engagement on these? Suddenly, we found these objects that are floating over the northern United States – and are we going to try and shoot down every single one of them that floats over the airspace or are we going to come up with a much better way of determining what is and is not a national security threat?     ANITA POWELL:   And, she said, the conspiracy theories floating around the internet raise another concern.         Emily Harding, Center for Strategic and International Studies:   When we have so little information out in the public, it's very easy for misinformation and disinformation, conspiracy theories to spread. There's been some, I think, well-intentioned joking about this on the interwebs over the weekend, but at the same time, like, you don't really know you don't want to speculate and spread potential missing disinformation.      ANITA POWELL:   Which leaves the biggest question of all: once investigators learn what the objects are and what they were doing – what then?       Stay up to date on that story, the earthquake recovery, and the rest of the news at VOANews.com.     Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.   Follow me on Twitter at Six Arms Powell.   Catch up on past episodes on our free streaming service, VOA Plus.   I’m Anita Powell. See you next week for The Inside Story.     ### https://www.voanews.com/a/6966253.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6966253.html Thu, 16 Feb 2023 14:25:49 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: State of the Union Episode 78 – February 9, 2023   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Joe Biden presses bipartisanship by touting its successes:      President Joe Biden:   But now we’re coming back, because we came together and passed the bipartisan infrastructure law.     Unidentified Narrator:   Halfway through his first term, the U.S. president makes his case to the American people and a rowdy opposition.    And he wants more time to finish the job.      President Joe Biden:   The State of the Union is strong.     Unidentified Narrator:   Now, on The Inside Story --- State of the Union.      The Inside Story:   PATSY WIDAKUSWARA, VOA White House Bureau Chief:   I’m Patsy Widakuswara, VOA White House Bureau Chief.    This week, an American political tradition, enshrined in the US Constitution that the President of the United States “shall from time to time give to the Congress Information of the State of the Union.”    President Joe Biden delivered his second State of the Union address on Tuesday, the third time speaking before a joint session of Congress since coming into office.   Now halfway through his four-year term, Biden faced a divided Congress of a polarized nation, as a likely candidate for re-election.    House Sergeant-at-Arms:   Mister Speaker, the president of the United States.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   During his second State of the Union speech on Tuesday, his third address to a joint session of Congress since taking office, President Joe Biden stayed with his “unity” agenda.     President Joe Biden:   Speaker, I don’t want to ruin your reputation, but I look forward to working with you.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Biden touted increased American manufacturing, and legislation that invests in renewable energy production, domestic semiconductor industry and infrastructure to compete against China.   President Joe Biden:   We used to be number one in the world of infrastructure. We’ve sunk to 13th in the world, the United States of America, 13th in the world on infrastructure, modern infrastructure. But now we’re coming back because we came together and passed the bipartisan infrastructure law.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Addressing high inflation, Biden argued the problem is global, caused by the pandemic and the war on Ukraine and focused instead on low unemployment.     President Joe Biden:   We have created a record 12 million new jobs — more jobs created in two years than any president has ever created in four years.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   He highlighted steps his administration took to erase federal student loan debt, increase the number of insured Americans, implement COVID relief programs, and lower prescription drug prices.   But can he convince Americans things are looking up? Republicans are determined to stop him, with Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Arkansas governor and former White House press secretary under President Donald Trump, delivering the GOP response.     Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Arkansas Governor:   In the radical left’s America, Washington taxes you and lights your hard-earned money on fire, but you get crushed with high gas prices, empty grocery shelves, and our children are taught to hate one another on account of their race, but not to love one another or our great country.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   With Republicans controlling the House of Representatives following the November election, new House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has promised renewed scrutiny on the administration, including on the classified documents found in Biden’s home, the billions of dollars of aid to Ukraine, and what they say is his weak response to a Chinese surveillance balloon, which the U.S. recently shot down.   Despite low unemployment and gas prices down sharply from a record high in mid-2022, Biden’s approval rating remains at 40 percent. Eighty percent of Democrats, 37 percent of independents and only 3 percent of Republicans approve of the job he’s doing, according to Ipsos.   While his speech is unlikely to change that, it does signal that he is likely to run again in 2024.       Jennifer Mercieca, Texas A&M University:   He didn't say he is, or he isn’t, but he made the case for why he should, which is that he can see what needs to be done, he's had all of these successes so far, he’s had all of these achievement[s], but there’s still a lot more that he wants to get done       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   As a gesture of solidarity to Ukraine, first lady Jill Biden again invited the country’s ambassador, Oksana Markarova. And parents of Tyre Nichols, the Black man who was beaten by Tennessee law enforcement officers and died days later.     President Joe Biden:   When police officers or departments violate the public’s trust, we must hold them accountable.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Following recent shootings in California, Biden again called on Congress to ban assault-style rifles. He urged Republicans to come up with immigration reform, debt reduction proposals, and vowed to protect reproductive rights.     President Joe Biden:   Make no mistake; if Congress passes a national abortion ban, I will veto it.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   But bipartisan legislation is unlikely under a divided government.   In a few months, he’s set to clash with Republicans who are demanding spending cuts before agreeing to pass a debt ceiling hike to prevent the country from defaulting.   State of the Union addresses are traditionally focused on domestic issues. But, for the second straight year, foreign policy troubles cast a shadow over Biden’s speech.  Last year, Russia attacked Ukraine days before the address.   This year, it’s China’s balloon that popped the president’s good news bubble.    VOA Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine drills down on foreign policy issues.      CINDY SAINE, VOA Senior Diplomatic Correspondent:   As President Joe Biden spoke to a joint session of Congress Tuesday evening on the state of the nation, tensions with China loomed large after a suspected Chinese surveillance balloon captured the attention of both lawmakers and ordinary Americans. Without mention the balloon specifically, Biden sought to reassure Americans, while sending this message to China.   President Joe Biden:   I am committed to work with China where it can advance American interests and benefit the world. But make no mistake: As we made clear last week, if China’s threatens our sovereignty, we will act to protect our country. And we did.     CINDY SAINE: On Saturday, a U.S. fighter jet shot down the balloon in midair over the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of South Carolina.  China has called the U.S. shooting down of the balloon “unacceptable” and an “over-reaction.”   Some Republicans criticized Biden for not ordering the balloon shot down earlier as it traversed the country. They may be looking for a tougher stance on China, Michael Kugelman of the Wilson Center told VOA.   Michael Kugelman, The Wilson Center: So, he was not taking a forceful, hawkish position. He was leaving open some space for conciliation, and I really don't think those members of Congress that wanted a more hard-line stance would have been would have been satisfied with what he said tonight.   CINDY SAINE: Russia’s war against Ukraine also was featured in Biden’s address. The U.S. has committed more than 27 billion dollars in security assistance to Ukraine. Biden said Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion one year ago was a test that America passed.   President Joe Biden:   We united NATO and built a global coalition. We stood against Putin’s aggression. We stood with the Ukrainian people. Tonight, we are once again joined by Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States. She represents not just her nation, but the courage of her people.   CINDY SAINE: Some Republicans have been skeptical of military aid to Ukraine, but that was not the case when Republicans in the chamber, including House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, appeared to strongly support Biden’s remarks.   Elizabeth Shackelford, The Chicago Council on Global Affairs: I have to say, I saw a lot more support coming from the Republican side of the aisle when he was speaking about Ukraine, particularly at the moment when he said, ‘we are in it as long as it takes.’ This is something that we have heard the Republican Party push back on specifically, saying that there wasn't a blank check for Ukraine.     CINDY SAINE: Apart from the war in Ukraine and a long-planned “pivot to Asia,” President Biden is planning for the first visit to sub-Saharan African by an American president since 2015. Cindy Saine, VOA News, Washington.   PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   President Biden took full advantage of the State of the Union address to lay out an array of policy measures for Congress to consider ---- And issues you will likely hear more about during the 2024 presidential campaign.      President Joe Biden:   The story of America is a story of progress and resilience. Of always moving forward. Of never giving up.   A story that is unique among all nations.   We are the only country that has emerged from every crisis stronger than when we entered it   That is what we are doing again.   Two years ago, our economy was reeling.   As I stand here tonight, we have created a record 12 million new jobs, more jobs created in two years than any president has ever created in four years.   Two years ago, COVID had shut down our businesses, closed our schools, and robbed us of so much.   Today, COVID no longer controls our lives. And two years ago, our democracy faced its greatest threat since the Civil War.   Today, though bruised, our democracy remains unbowed and unbroken.    As we gather here tonight, we are writing the next chapter in the great American story, a story of progress and resilience. When world leaders ask me to define America, I define our country in one word: Possibilities.   You know, we’re often told that Democrats and Republicans can’t work together.   But over these past two years, we proved the cynics and the naysayers wrong.   Yes, we disagreed plenty. And yes, there were times when Democrats had to go it alone.   But time and again, Democrats and Republicans came together.   Came together to defend a stronger and safer Europe.   Came together to pass a once-in-a-generation infrastructure law, building bridges to connect our nation and people.   Came together to pass one of the most significant laws ever, helping veterans exposed to toxic burn pits.   In fact, I signed over 300 bipartisan laws since becoming President. From reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, to the Electoral Count Reform Act, to the Respect for Marriage Act that protects the right to marry the person you love. The people sent us a clear message. Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere.   I ran for President to fundamentally change things, to make sure the economy works for everyone so we can all feel pride in what we do.   To build an economy from the bottom up and the middle out, not from the top down. Because when the middle class does well, the poor have a ladder up and the wealthy still do very well. We all do well. And that’s always been my vision for our country.   To restore the soul of the nation.   To rebuild the backbone of America, the middle class.   To unite the country.   We’ve been sent here to finish the job. It’s never a good bet to bet against America. Our strength is not just the example of our power, but the power of our example.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   For the first time in his presidency, Joe Biden spoke to a politically divided Congress.   Republicans control the House of Representatives while Democrats have the US Senate. And despite calls for civility from House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, several Republicans heckled and booed the president.   One Congresswoman shouted “liar” as Biden asserted that Republicans want social spending programs Medicare and Social Security to sunset, drawing a raucous uproar. Biden, swiped back with his own quips and jabs.   The evening underscored the tense relationship between the White House and Congressional Republicans and perhaps signaled that the American tradition of lawmakers listening with decorum as the president speaks, is now broken.   VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson brings the lawmakers’ reactions after the speech.   KATHERINE GYPSON, VOA Congressional Correspondent:   President Joe Biden with a message of bipartisanship for the U.S. Congress Tuesday night….       President Joe Biden:   If we could work together in the last Congress, there is no reason we can’t work together and find consensus on important things in this Congress as well.   KATHERINE GYPSON:   But on Capitol Hill, now divided between a Democratic-majority U.S. Senate and a Republican-majority U.S. House of Representatives, lawmakers disagreed on the big issues Biden said the country needs to address.      Rep. Mark Takano, Democrat: The Republicans chant ‘Close the border, close the border’ without really conceding that that is not the solution to the problem. I think, I think we can get more serious about the border, other ports of entry like airports. But we also have to really get down to our DREAMers, those, you know, several million young people, some of them adults by now in their 30s, who came to this country through no fault of their own.     KATHERINE GYPSON: But Republicans are skeptical of Biden’s request for more funding for border security, fearing it would be used in ways that encourage rather than discourage migration.     Rep. Brian Babin, Republican: If we give them more money, they're going to use it to count more, and facilitate the process and give more immigrants coming in. Instead of stopping the immigration and disincentivizing it, that's where that money would be used.     KATHERINE GYPSON: Biden said backing Ukraine is a key U.S. national security interest.     President Joe Biden:   Putin’s invasion has been a test for the ages.     Rep. Vincente Gonzalez, Democrat: This is our reputation at stake in front of the world, in front of the global community. We stand for democracy, we're the beacon of hope to democracies around the world. We must stand with Ukraine.     KATHERINE GYPSON: But House Republicans want more oversight of U.S. aid to help combat the Russian invasion.     Rep. Ryan Zinke, Republican: What's the plan? To suggest that it's just open-ended, a blank check in Ukraine. And remember, when we ship armament to Ukraine, we don't control where their armaments going.     KATHERINE GYPSON: Republicans also say that Biden did not react quickly enough to the suspected Chinese surveillance balloon that was shot down last week.     Rep. Don Bacon, Republican: He's very tentative. He doesn't want to provoke but by doing so he's actually tempting the Chinese to do more. I think they see, they sense weakness.     KATHERINE GYPSON: But Biden argued the United States is in competition – not conflict with China.   Rep. Vincente Gonzalez, Democrat: The president did the right thing and waited till it left our coast and it was in a safe place to shoot it out of the sky. And we did, and I think we showed China, Russia, and the world that if you come and try these type of maneuvers in our country, that we're going to take repercussions.     KATHERINE GYPSON: The divided Congress will face a major test in late May when the debt ceiling must be raised to avoid a U.S. government default. Katherine Gypson, VOA News, Capitol Hill.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Despite repeated calls for bipartisanship, President Biden knows that the Republican-controlled House of Representatives is intent on investigating him and his administration.    VOA Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson explains their concerns about immigration, political favoritism and Biden’s handling of classified documents.      KATHERINE GYPSON, VOA Congressional Correspondent:   A Republican-majority U.S. House of Representatives was sworn in last month ushering in a new era of divided government in Washington, DC. And with it, Republicans pledging to fulfill Congress’ role of oversight of the White House.     Rep. Kevin McCarthy, Speaker of the House:   I do not think any American believes that justice should not be equal to all and we found from this administration, what happened before every single election, whatever comes out that they utilize... to try to falsify, they try to have different standards for their own beliefs. That doesn't work in America.       KATHERINE GYPSON: Republicans argue the Biden administration has abused its powers; from the way it has handled mass-migration at America’s southern border…. Rep. Jim Jordan, House Judiciary Committee:   Month after month after month, we have set records for migrants coming into the country. And frankly, I think it's intentional. I don't know how anyone with common sense or logic can reach any other conclusion. It seems deliberate. It seems premeditated.       KATHERINE GYPSON: ...to the alleged weaponization of the federal government for political purposes…     Rep. James Comer, House Oversight Committee:   We're going to be returning this committee to its core mission. And that is to ensure that taxpayer dollars are not being mismanaged, abused or wasted, to shine a light in the darkness of the federal bureaucracy to prevent corruption and self-dealing to make sure our federal government is working efficiently for the American people.     KATHERINE GYPSON: Republicans also plan investigations into the president’s own family, including accusations his son, Hunter Biden, improperly benefited from his father’s positions. Oversight of the executive branch is a key part of Congress’ role and analysts say these investigations are common when the U.S. government has divided party rule.     Ken Hughes, Miller Center, University of Virginia:   Even in a polarized era, Congressional investigations can do some good, but in order for it to have a truly beneficial impact, both parties have to cooperate.     KATHERINE GYPSON: But Democrats say the probes will unfairly target the president.     Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, House Democratic Leader:   It’s very unfortunate that we’ve seen this extreme MAGA Republican agenda which is apparently anchored in impeachment and investigations focused on witch hunts, not on working families.       KATHERINE GYPSON: Any legislative fixes that come out of the House hearings won’t be passed in the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate.   Sarah Binder, Brookings Institution: There's a broad realm here for lawmakers to use the subpoena power to force people to come to speak to them, even though no one expects a real lesson of change to occur because of those investigations.     KATHERINE GYPSON: The discovery of classified documents at Biden’s residence will also prompt a House investigation, one Republicans hope will keep the focus on the president ahead of the 2024 elections.   Sarah Binder, Brookings Institution: Congressional investigations we can show historically, do dampen presidential approval, right? They really tarnish what the public thinks about the president.     KATHERINE GYPSON: The first subpoenas stemming from House investigations of the Biden Justice Department were issued last week. Katherine Gypson, VOA News, Washington. PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   President Ronald Reagan started the tradition in 1982 --- inviting to the State of the Union a man who dove into an icy river to save the life of a woman after an airplane crash. Since then, heroes and many others have been invited to be recognized by the president in his address.   This years’ guests included the man who disarmed a mass shooter in California and the family of murdered Memphis motorist, Tyre Nichols.      President Joe Biden: Joining us tonight is Brandon Tsay, a 26-year-old hero.   Brandon put off his college dreams to stay by his mom’s side as she was dying from cancer. He now works at a dance studio started by his grandparents.   Two weeks ago, during Lunar New Year celebrations, he heard the studio’s front door close and saw a man pointing a gun at him. He thought he was going to die, but then he thought about the people inside.   In that instant, he found the courage to act and wrestled the semi-automatic pistol away from a gunman who had already killed 11 people at another dance studio.   He saved lives. It’s time we do the same as well.   Ban assault weapons once and for all.   We did it before. I led the fight to ban them in 1994.   In the 10 years the ban was law, mass shootings went down. After Republicans let it expire, mass shootings tripled.   Let’s finish the job and ban assault weapons now. Once and for all. Joining us tonight are the parents of Tyre Nichols, who had to bury him just last week. There are no words to describe the heartbreak and grief of losing a child.   But imagine what it’s like to lose a child at the hands of the law.   Imagine having to worry whether your son or daughter will come home from walking down the street or playing in the park or just driving their car.   I’ve never had to have the talk with my children – Beau, Hunter, and Ashley – that so many Black and Brown families have had with their children.   If a police officer pulls you over, turn on your interior lights. Don’t reach for your license. Keep your hands on the steering wheel.   Imagine having to worry like that every day in America.   Here’s what Tyre’s mom shared with me when I asked her how she finds the courage to carry on and speak out.   With faith in God, she said her son “was a beautiful soul and something good will come from this.”   Imagine how much courage and character that takes.   It’s up to us. It’s up to all of us.   We all want the same thing.   Neighborhoods free of violence.   Law enforcement who earn the community’s trust.   Our children to come home safely.   Equal protection under the law; that’s the covenant we have with each other in America.   And we know police officers put their lives on the line every day, and we ask them to do too much.   To be counselors, social workers, psychologists; responding to drug overdoses, mental health crises, and more.   We ask too much of them. I know most cops are good. decent people. They risk their lives every time they put on that shield.  But what happened to Tyre in Memphis happens too often.   We have to do better. Let’s commit ourselves to make the words of Tyre’s mother come true, something good must come from this.   All of us in this chamber, we need to rise to this moment.   We can’t turn away.   Let’s do what we know in our hearts we need to do.   Let’s come together and finish the job on police reform.   Do something.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Follow us on social media and stay up to date with the latest US and world news at VOANews.com.     Catch up on past episodes on our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     And for all things White House related, my Twitter is P-Widakuswara.   Thanking you on behalf of my colleagues who brought you today’s show, I’m White House bureau chief Patsy Widakuswara.  See you next week for The Inside Story.     ###     https://www.voanews.com/a/6956440.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6956440.html Thu, 09 Feb 2023 18:04:30 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: Deadly Force Episode 77 – February 2, 2023   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Police face murder charges after beating an unarmed black man in the U.S.    Mass shootings in California seemingly target Asians in America...    A suicide bomber kills dozens in a Pakistan mosque.    And still seeking peace in the Middle East.    Now on the Inside Story: Deadly Force    The Inside Story:   ELIZABETH LEE, VOA Correspondent:   Hi, I’m VOA’s Elizabeth Lee.     There is an adage in the news business that says, “If it bleeds, it leads.”  We have tried to avoid bending to that belief through the 76 episodes of The Inside Story.    But the sheer volume of deadly force incidents we’ve experienced in the past few weeks demands attention.    A pair of mass shootings in the California appear to have targeted Asians celebrating the Lunar New Year.    And video of a black man brutally beaten by police in the southern city of Memphis has many calling for police reform as the officers involved face murder charges.    But we are going to start in the Middle East, where deadly clashes between Israelis and Palestinians have the U.S. Secretary of State going back in the region with hopes for peace.   More now from VOA Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine:       CINDY SAINE, VOA Senior Diplomatic Correspondent:   U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken shuttled between Israel and the West Bank on Tuesday, amid some of the worst violence the region has seen in decades. Blinken pleaded with both sides to stop the killing.       Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State:   As I discussed with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas, and everyone I met in Israel and the West Bank during this visit, all sides must take steps to prevent further escalation of violence and restore calm. That's the only way that we can create conditions in which people's sense of security will start to improve and fear will start to recede.   CINDY SAINE: Blinken said the immediate priority is to calm things down and restore trust. But he said that over the longer term, President Joe Biden is committed to the goal of preserving and then realizing the vision of an Israeli state and a Palestinian state existing side by side.     Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State:   The United States will continue to oppose anything that puts that goal further from reach, including but not limited to settlement expansion and legalization of illegal outposts, moves towards annexation of the West Bank, disruption to the historic status quo on Jerusalem and its holy sites, demolitions and evictions and incitement and acquiescence to violence.     CINDY SAINE:   Palestinians protested Israeli plans to demolish houses Tuesday by blocking roads in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Jabal Mukaber. Blinken, conceding that Palestinians have a “shrinking horizon of hope,” said that he heard constructive suggestions from both Israelis and Palestinians, and that he asked some senior members of his diplomatic team to stay in the region longer to support those ideas. Cindy Saine, VOA News     ELIZABETH LEE:   Police were the targets in Pakistan, where a suicide bomber managed to slip through several checkpoints to detonate inside a mosque within a highly secured part of Peshawar.    More than 300 people were in the mosque, which is within a police and government compound.   More on the Peshawar blast from our Iftikar Hussein.      IFTIKHAR HUSSAIN, Reporting for VOA:   Authorities say the police were the target in Monday’s afternoon attack on a mosque inside a police compound located in a high security zone in the city.     Muhammad Ishaq, Survivor:   As usual we prepared for the prayer in the mosque, we did ablution, the moment we stood up in line for the prayer, the prayer leader performed Allah-Akbar (God is great) and we all followed him, I heard the sound of the blast, after that I had no clue, I fell unconscious.     IFTIKHAR HUSSAIN:   Pakistan’s army chief and the prime minister visited the wounded at the Lady Reading Hospital. It was unclear late Monday who was behind the attack.   Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province borders Afghanistan. Militant groups including the Tehreek-e Taliban Pakistan, also known as the Pakistan Taliban, have intensified attacks since ending its cease fire with the Pakistani government in November.    Provincial Governor Ghulam Ali in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where Peshawar is the capital, expressed concerns over the security situation Monday.       Gov. Ghulam Ali, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province:   Both the provincial and federal government needs to think over a solution if terrorism is increasing again, both have to find a solution whether to negotiate, once the state decides on the course of action, the government will implement it.   IFTIKHAR HUSSAIN:   The resurgence of the outlawed Pakistan Taliban in some of its former strongholds has sparked public protests.  Thousands of residents have demanded that the authorities restore peace.   Senator Mushtaq Ahmad Khan said the government must do more.       Sen. Mushtaq Ahmad Khan, Pakistan Lawmaker:   Today, we make two demands from the state, our life is not safe, protect our lives, our freedom is not safe, protect our freedom.     IFTIKHAR HUSSAIN:   Security experts say the surge in attacks against security forces has put Pakistan’s counterterrorism strategy under scrutiny.       Akhtar Ali Shah, Former KP Police Chief:   Here we have Dae’sh (IS-K), here we have Al-Qaida, they are not local phenomena, and we have the (Pakistan Taliban TTP), the Taliban are here and also in Afghanistan. This is a national issue and it needs a national solution, both the provincial and federal government have to find a solution.     IFTIKHAR HUSSAIN:   According to the South Asian Terrorism Portal, 630 terrorism incidents were reported in 2022 in Pakistan killing 971 people including 180 attacks in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Most of the attacks were claimed by the TTP.   Iftikhar Hussain for VOA news in Washington.       ELIZABETH LEE:   It is the police and their tactics that are being scrutinized in the United States after the death of an unarmed black man.    Tyre Nichols was beaten by police officers on January 7th in in the southern city of Memphis. He died from his injuries three days later.    Video of the beating was released last week and five police officers face murder charges.    More from VOA White House Correspondent Anita Powell.       ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:   Tyre Nichols’ family remembers him as a loving father, an eager skateboarder and a keen photographer – the kind of guy, his brother said, who “never lifted a finger to nobody.”   But after his brutal January 7 beating by five Black police officers, captured on this disturbing video, America remembers him differently: as yet another Black man killed by what some see as an epidemic of violent racism in American policing.   Although Black Americans made up 12 percent of the population in 2022, they made up 26 percent of the victims killed by police that year, according to monitoring group Mapping Police Violence. And statistics show that Black people are three times more likely to die during police encounters than their white counterparts.   On Wednesday, Vice President Kamala Harris attended Nichols’ funeral, in the southern city of Memphis.     Vice President Kamala Harris:   This violent act was not in pursuit of public safety. It was not in the interest of keeping the public safe because one must ask, was not it in the interest of keeping the public safe that Tyre Nichols would be with us here today?       ANITA POWELL:   Activists want more than words. They want legal change, and for police to be held legally accountable through laws like the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act. Harris said the administration wants Congress to revisit the act — and leading civil rights figures agree. Rev. Al Sharpton, Civil Rights Activist:   It has to be federal law. Let me tell you. Until police know they have skin in the game, which is why you heard them say about the George Floyd Bill, you heard the sister say about the legislation here, you must get rid of qualified immunity. Where, police know that they can lose their house, their car and everything else.       ANITA POWELL:   VOA asked White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre what the administration is doing to combat perceptions that systemic racism is a problem in America.       Karine Jean-Pierre, White House Press Secretary:   The president has made it a priority in his administration to make sure that it looks like America, to make sure that we see the diversity in this administration and throughout different committees. And you see that over and over again, when you look at the different agencies, when you look to the White House. And this is, this is historically the most diverse administration in history. And that matters.       ANITA POWELL:     Mac questioned the power of representation — after all, she noted, all five officers involved in Nichols’ death were Black. All have been charged with murder.   On Wednesday, Nichols’ family and community mourned the man, the son, the father that he was.   And here’s what his family wants:     Rodney Wells, Tyre Nichols’ stepfather:   We have a long fight ahead of us and we gotta stay strong for it, so justice for Tyre!     Group repeats:   Justice for Tyre!   Rodney Wells, Tyre Nichols’ stepfather:   Justice for Tyre!   Group repeats:   Justice for Tyre!   Rodney Wells, Tyre Nichols’ stepfather:   Justice for Tyre!   Group repeats:   Justice for Tyre!   Anita Powell, VOA News, the White House.       ELIZABETH LEE:   Mass shootings are a too regular occurrence in the United States.  But a pair of recent shootings in California stand out because nearly all the victims were of Asian descent.    11 people were killed January 21st while celebrating the Lunar New Year at a ballroom dance hall in Monterrey Park --- near Los Angeles.    About 36 hours later, seven people were killed at two mushroom farms in Half Moon Bay --- near San Francisco.    Our Michelle Quinn picks up the story there.       MICHELLE QUINN, VOA Correspondent:   Many Asian Americans in California, already on edge over a wave of hate crimes against their communities, are struggling to celebrate the Lunar New Year and mourn people killed in two recent mass shootings.             James Zarsadiaz, Associate Professor of History: It's hard to really feel fully present and enjoy the festivity when you know that tragedy has hurt and has impacted the community.         MICHELLE QUINN:   James Zarsadiaz, who is Filipino and Chinese, grew up in eastern Los Angeles County, where the first shooting happened at a dance hall, killing 11. All Asian American. The suspect shot and killed himself.   Hundreds of kilometers north in Half Moon Bay, an idyllic small coastal town with nurseries and restaurants, people were grappling with a mass shooting killing seven, five Chinese nationals and two Latinos …   at two Northern California mushroom farms. Police have identified the suspect as a Chinese national, a farmworker at one of those nurseries.     Jian Cai, a Chinese American homemaker, has lived in Half Moon Bay for nearly 18 years.        Jian Cai, Half Moon Bay Resident: This happened yesterday, a lot of friends said ‘Hey, you should buy a gun.’ I said, 'No, I don’t like gun.' You have the gun, more dangerous, I think. Phil Ting, California Assembly Member: To have these incidents happen that are impacting Asian American farmworkers here and then 11 Asian Americans down in Los Angeles is really just the worst kind of news that we can ever have.          MICHELLE QUINN:   About one in six Californians are of Asian descent. In recent years, many of them feel like they’re under threat, said California Governor Gavin Newsom at a press conference at Half Moon Bay this week.       Gov. Gavin Newsom, California:   I grew up in San Francisco. A third of our population is Asian. I live in a state where 27 percent of us are foreign-born. Over a third in San Mateo County. What a gift, a majority-minority state. But I'm also mindful that we saw hate crimes go up 177 percent against Asians last year, a little more modest in some parts of the country, and we have to do more.       MICHELLE QUINN:   But the most recent shootings are different from the anti-Asian American crimes committed by non-Asian Americans. The two suspects in the mass shootings are themselves from the Asian American community.   While their motives are still under investigation, some believe mental health could be a factor. Asian American advocates highlight the fact that life in the U.S. for an immigrant can be challenging.           Russell Jeung, Asian American Studies Professor: The social and linguistic isolation they may have, the lack of mental health and community support that they need. The easy availability of assault weapons. These trends demonstrate that Asian Americans face a lot of issues as minorities.       MICHELLE QUINN:   For many Asian Americans, this year of the rabbit will be remembered as one that has started with tragedy. Some hope this will lead to deeper discussions about the experience of Asian Americans and immigrants who live in the U.S.   Michelle Quinn, VOA News, Half Moon Bay, California.           ELIZABETH LEE:   The issue of migration to Europe crystalized for many about 10 years ago when a boat carrying migrants from Libya caught fire and capsized hundreds of meters from Italy’s Lampedusa Island.   More than 300 migrants perished.    Nearly a decade later, European nations still struggle with migration issues and policies.    Turkey is investigating the death of a Turkish migrant who made it to Greece, only to be sent back critically injured.    European correspondent Henry Ridgwell has that story:      HENRY RIDGWELL, Reporting for VOA: Barış Büyüksu thought this was the beginning of a new life. He took these images on the Greek island of Kos in October. A few days later he was dead.   The 30-year-old paid a smuggling gang to take him to Kos. They gave him a fake Bulgarian identity card. Büyüksu planned to reach Athens — and then take a flight to France. On October 21, he was waiting to board a ferry. A friend told the family he witnessed Büyüksu being detained by police and then bundled into an unmarked black van. The following day, back in Büyüksu’s hometown of Izmir, his family received a call from Turkish police — who told them their son was dead and bore signs of torture.   The Turkish coast guard say it found Büyüksu in a boat that had been pushed back into Turkish waters. Several other migrants were on board. Turkey says Büyüksu died from his injuries before a medical team could reach him.    Reyis Büyüksu, Father of Baris: We picked up the body from the forensic center and brought it here and buried him. My son being killed is not only a problem for Turkey, but it is also a problem [for] humanity.    Saime Büyüksu, Mother of Baris: He wanted to marry, he had a girlfriend, he had dreams, and he was saying ‘Mother, we should build a house, I will buy gold and I will have a wedding when I come back.’ He went with his dreams to work there. But his dead body came back to me.    HENRY RIDGWELL The initial Turkish autopsy said Büyüksu had injuries consistent with torture: cuts and bruises covering his face and body, and internal bleeding. Other migrants on the boat told Turkish police they were detained alongside Büyüksu in Greece — and they heard him being tortured in an adjacent room. Turkish authorities say they are still investigating. The full autopsy results have not yet been released. A Turkish opposition lawmaker raised Büyüksu’s death in parliament.     Ömer Faruk Gergerlioğlu, Lawmaker from HDP Party: The Greek authorities committed murder. [The family] want this matter to be considered and followed up by the foreign ministry.    HENRY RIDGWELL Greek police have not responded to repeated VOA requests for comment. The Greek coastguard denies pushing migrant boats back into Turkish waters – despite widespread evidence documented by non-governmental organizations. The Greek Ministry of Migration and Asylum told VOA they had no record of Büyüksu and could not comment. His family say he did not register for asylum as he wanted to leave Greece to reach France.    Umut Büyüksu, Brother of Baris: I want my brother's killers prosecuted. I want to find out who they are. I don't want this case to be covered up like this.    HENRY RIDGWELL A bereft family searching for answers. Who killed a beloved son and brother? Who will deliver justice? It raises other questions too — over the policing of Europe’s borders — over the human rights of those seeking a better life. Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, London.   ELIZABETH LEE:   Presidential and legislative elections in Nigeria are on track for the end of the month despite threats of political.    Dozens of attacks across the country marred the 2019 presidential election.  From the capital Abuja, our Timothy Obiezu (oh-bee-A-zoo) is tracking preparations for the election and possible violence.        TIMOTHY OBIEZU, Reporting for VOA:   One by one, presidential candidates, party members and observers arrived for the signing of a National Peace pact ahead of February 25 polls.   It's a measure undertaken to foster fair play among political parties and their supporters before, during and after the elections.   In recent weeks, Nigeria has seen an escalation in clashes during campaign events and attacks on facilities of Nigeria’s Independent National Election Commission or INEC.        Samson Itodo, YIAGA Africa Director:   These attacks on INEC offices impedes on INEC's ability to conduct elections and this is where we have a major source of concern.       TIMOTHY OBIEZU:   The Electoral Commission has reported at least 53 attacks and arsons on its facilities in the last four years.   In December, four INEC offices were burned, setting back preparations for the elections.   But despite the security threats, officials are not deterred.       Festus Okoye, Independent National Election Commission:   The various security agencies have assured us that they have the capacity to secure the country enough to allow us to conduct a very good election.   TIMOTHY OBIEZU:   On INEC's books, there are more than 93 million registered voters, including 12 million new voters registered in the past year.       Festus Okoye, Independent National Election Commission:   We had 14 critical items that we felt we must accomplish before the election. Out of those 14 items, we've already accomplished eleven. So, in terms of our preparations, we're getting ready by the day.     TIMOTHY OBIEZU:   But some citizens say the readiness did not include their centers.        Emmanuel Oke, Abuja Resident:   Seventy percent of the people that are coming here can't find their voter's cards, likewise me. I didn't see my own. They said that my own is not printed, so I don't think I have hope of voting.       TIMOTHY OBIEZU:     In recent years, Nigeria has struggled to halt violence by Islamist militants and armed kidnappers, in addition to the attacks on the electoral system.   Many here say the next president must address these problems for good.   Timothy Obiezu, for VOA News, Abuja Nigeria.       ELIZABETH LEE:   More than seven thousand Ukrainian civilians have been killed and more than 11 thousand have been wounded since Russia began its war on Ukraine last February.  Living through the repeated air raid sirens and bombings is affecting many of Ukraine’s children in ways from managing emotions to being able to communicate.    From Kyiv, our Anna Kosstuchenko shows us how psychologists are helping the children cope with life in a war zone.      ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO, Reporting for VOA:   Nine-year-old Iryna is playing calmly with her cousins at home in the village of Krasylivka outside Kyiv.     But just a few months ago, she shuddered at the slightest noise, says her mother, Natalia Ladan.     In March, early in the war, the family lived under near-constant Russian shelling.   Natalia Ladan, Iryna’s Mother:   We were in the cellar. There was a loud explosion. The children started screaming and crying inconsolably. The lights went out. We realized the Russians hit somewhere very close.      ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   When a Russian rocket badly damaged the roof of the house, Ladan left for western Ukraine with her two daughters, sister and two nieces. They returned in April, after the Russians retreated. But Ladan noticed her daughters were still under a lot of stress.    Natalia Ladan, Iryna’s Mother:   Every noise makes them shudder. Younger Iryna asks to sleep together with her grandmother, so we even moved the beds together so they would sleep closer to each other and Iryna could let go of her scary thoughts a bit.        ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   The family decided to visit a special toy therapy room set up by Ukrainian psychologists to help children deal with their trauma.        Vita Moskalenko, Psychologist:   The toy therapy room project is a special space where a child and even an adult can receive healing and have the opportunity to relieve tension and stress by giving it all to a toy.       ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   When Iryna visited the room, she picked a zebra out of the many toys available. Psychologists say she transferred all her war fears to the toy and became terrified of the toy itself.        Iryna Ladan, War Survivor: When I went to bed with her, I had a terrible dream. I asked my mother to take her somewhere so that I would not see it.     ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   Local psychologist Vita Moskalenko says the girl transferred her fears to the toy. Now she can choose a new toy friend. After some hesitation, Iryna chose a snake — as a symbol of her own strength.        Unidentified Woman:   Is this the right one?       Unidentified Girl:   Yes! I am sure!         ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   The first toy therapy room opened in June.     Now there are about 100 such rooms throughout Ukraine that have helped more than    1,600 Ukrainian children.        Vita Moskalenko, Psychologist:   Prior to the war, they had stable, comfortable lives, and now they are used to hiding from shelling and taking care of themselves when there is danger. Our special space helps them find their strength in this new reality.       ANNA KOSSTUTSCHENKO:   There are plans to open similar rooms for Ukrainian refugee children outside the country as many are forced to remain abroad as the Russians continue to target critical infrastructure.    Anna Kosstutschenko, for VOA news, Kyiv region, Ukraine.      ELIZABETH LEE:   That’s all we have for now.        Stay up to date at VOANews.com.    Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.     Follow me on Twitter at E Lee-TV One     And catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     For all of those behind the scenes who brought you today’s show, I’m Elizabeth Lee.    Stay safe and we will see you next week for The Inside Story.     ###   https://www.voanews.com/a/6945410.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6945410.html Thu, 02 Feb 2023 14:55:07 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: Flashpoint Ukraine Episode 76 – January 26, 2023     Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Ukraine pleads for more on-the-ground help.      Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy:   Hundreds of thank you’s are not hundreds of tanks.     Unidentified Narrator:   How soon will German, British and American tanks roll into Ukraine?    From the frontlines to the capital …    Now, The Inside Story --- Flashpoint: Ukraine.      The Inside Story:   ELIZABETH LEE, VOA Correspondent:   Hi, I’m Elizabeth Lee, VOA Correspondent, here in our newsroom.    While thanking allies for supplying his country with billions of dollars in weapons to defend Russia’s attacks for the past 11 months, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, “I can thank you hundreds of times … but hundreds of thank you are not hundreds of tanks.”   Supplying Ukraine with tanks --- specifically, German-made Leopard-2 tanks --- is creating some tension among the allies.     Poland’s prime minister says he is asking Germany for permission to send some of its Leopard-2's to Ukraine --- while trying to get other countries with those tanks to band together and send them to Ukraine whether Germany agrees or not.    We’ll go deeper with two reports --- first from our European Correspondent Henry Ridgwell in London.        HENRY RIDGWELL, Reporting for VOA:   Germany decided this week to send fourteen of its powerful Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine — and allow allies to send theirs, too.     Berlin said the tanks should be delivered by the end of March. The West is now racing to get the equipment in place.       Boris Pistorius, German Defense Minister:   If you look at ammunition, there is also the issue of quantity. As announced yesterday, I will also hold initial talks with the arms industry on this issue.         HENRY RIDGWELL:   Poland, Spain, Norway and Finland have all said they are willing to send Leopard tanks. Germany said Wednesday two battalions will be given to Ukraine — around 80 vehicles.      In addition, Ukraine will receive fourteen British Challenger 2 tanks and thirty-one American Abrams. Ukrainian troops will require several weeks of training on the different equipment.         John Lough, Chatham House Russia Expert:   The Ukrainians have proved to be remarkably capable of absorbing Western military assistance. But it does take time. And time is not on their side, given that spring is round the corner, and there’s an expectation that Russia is going to mount some form of major offensive.         HENRY RIDGWELL:   NATO described the decision to send tanks as a "pivotal" moment.          Angela Stent, Georgetown University Russia Expert:   What Vladimir Putin is hoping for, and has been for the past few months, is that this kind of threat of intimidation and then weariness in the Europeans — particularly for the impact that sanctions is having on their own economies — that all those things will cause the transatlantic unity on this to break. But so far, it hasn't. We've seen the opposite.        HENRY RIDGWELL:   Kyiv says it needs three hundred tanks — and Western fighter jets to defeat the Russian invasion. Could that be the next barrier for the West to overcome?       Ed Arnold, Royal United Services Institute:   It'd be another escalatory measure. But I think at the moment, what they want to do see how Ukraine get on with the tanks and then assess from there.      HENRY RIDGWELL:   The West is now heavily invested in the Ukraine war. Its flagship battle tanks — crewed by Ukrainians — will soon go head-to-head with Russian armor on the steppes of Europe.      John Lough, Chatham House Russia Expert:   This could go on for a very long time. The Russians recognize this, and we can tell from Putin's messaging to Russian society, he is preparing the country for a long war. The question I think, however, on the Western side, is whether Western governments are prepared to do the same thing with their own societies.      HENRY RIDGWELL:   Western weapons could help Ukraine expel Russian forces. But the war won’t be over anytime soon — and the resolve of governments and the public will be tested.     Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, London.       CINDY SAINE, VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent: President Joe Biden entered the Roosevelt Room at the White House Wednesday, confirming media reports of new military assistance to Ukraine.   President Joe Biden: Today, I'm announcing that the United States will be sending 31 Abrams tanks to Ukraine, the equivalent of one Ukrainian battalion. Secretary Austin has recommended this step because it will enhance Ukraine's capacity to defend his territory and achieve strategic objectives.   CINDY SAINE: Biden’s remarks came just hours after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz stood in front of parliament to announce Berlin will provide 14 Leopard 2 tanks and open a path for other European countries to send tanks from their own stocks to Ukraine, with the aim of assembling two tank battalions with Leopard 2 tanks for Ukraine within the next several months. Scholz’s announcement had been long awaited by Ukraine, Poland, the Baltic states and others. The German leader said Berlin supports Ukraine but made clear he does not want to provoke Russia.   Olaf Scholz, German Chancellor: We must always make it very clear that we are doing what is necessary and what is possible to support Ukraine, but that at the same time we are preventing the war from escalating into a war between Russia and NATO, and we will always continue to observe this principle.   CINDY SAINE: Biden thanked Scholz, saying Germany has stepped up for Ukraine. The U.S. leader also noted the purpose of the tanks is to help Ukraine defend its own land.   President Joe Biden: There is no offensive threat to Russia. If Russian troops returned to Russia – they will be there, where they belong. This war would be over today. That's what we all want, an end to this war in just and lasting terms. CINDY SAINE:   Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had long been pleading for heavy tanks, saying it is not about five, 10 or 15, but that Kyiv needs between 250 and 350 tanks. Military experts say the total number allied countries have promised so far is about 90.     CINDY SAINE: In Moscow, Russia’s Foreign Ministry has called any such decision dangerous and warned it will escalate the conflict. Cindy Saine, VOA News.   STEVE REDISCH, VOA News:   Powered by a 15-hundred horsepower engine, America’s Abrams M1 tank is widely considered the world’s most technologically sophisticated tank.   A crew of four operates the M1.   It is equipped with a 120-millimeter smooth bore cannon, used to destroy enemy tanks and other heavily armored vehicles.   The Abrams also has three machine guns — a heavy one to take out lightly armored vehicles and a pair of lighter ones that are considered anti-personnel weapons.   It can move at a top speed of around 65 kilometers per hour, with a maximum road range of about 425 kilometers.   The Abrams M1 turbine engine runs best on jet fuel, which adds to the expense and logistics to operate it.   Germany’s Leopard 2 uses the more available diesel fuel to power its 15-hundred horsepower turbo-charged engine.   The Leopard 2 has many of the Abrams M1 features, such as the 120-millimeter smooth bore cannon and a pair of light machine guns.   The German and U.S. tanks are designed to better protect its four-person crew than the Soviet-made tanks that both Ukraine and Russia are currently using.     Gian Gentile, Former U.S. Army Tank Commander:   So, the M1A1 tanks, along with the Leopard 2s, the crew is much safer because the ammunition for those two types of tanks are outside of where the crew is sitting in the turret. And so, if a — If a M-1 tank or a Leopard 2 tank is hit and everything is right in the turret, the rounds go up and out. Whereas on a T-72 tank, the rounds are inside the turret with the crew, and they're much more prone to be set off and cause catastrophic damage to the tank crew and the tank itself.     STEVE REDISCH, VOA News:   With a crew of four, the Leopard 2 has a similar maximum speed as the Abrams, but its range is about 340 kilometers.   Availability is the Leopard’s biggest asset. More than 2,000 are spread through multiple European countries.   Britain's Challenger 2 has a 120-millimeter rifle gun as its main weapon, along with a couple of light machine guns, like the other tanks. And its ammunition is also stored outside of the crew compartment.   Its diesel fueled engine is smaller --- 12-hundred horsepower. And the Challenger 2 does not move as fast as the others.   But its maximum driving range of more than 500 kilometers is significantly better than either the U.S. or German-made tanks.   Steve Redisch, VOA News.       ELIZABETH LEE:   Ukraine wants the tanks to try to push out Russian forces that are occupying parts of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.    The city of Bakhmut is the focal point now in the Donbass region.    VOA’s Heather Murdock is in the field for us there.        HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Correspondent:   Today we are reporting from Bakhmut in Ukraine, a city that has been bombed and under fire for months.     The sound of shelling in this city is nonstop, and locals say they expect only five to 10 minutes of quiet a day. The war has gotten worse recently as Russian forces draw closer.     Most people have left the area, but about 10% of the population remains in the city. A few run this outdoor market, moved from its original location after a bombing.     Others stay indoors and underground as much as possible. Families come to this shelter for a little bit of food and safety. They also come simply to talk to people, saying life under fire is lonely.    Volunteers say almost all of the food and water is carried in by aid workers.   Electricity, heat, and cooking gas are also scarce or not available.     Lyudmyla Malynovska, Bakhmut Resident:   There's nowhere to go, so we stay here. You can still come here and talk to people. It's scary to go outside. No one walks on the street because of the bombings.       HEATHER MURDOCK:   Some residents who remain in other cities and towns in Donbas try to keep their homes intact, despite the frequent bombings, in hopes that the people will return when the violence subsides.    In Chasiv Yar, about 10 kilometers from the frontlines, residents say only a year ago, their town was alive with natural beauty and industry.        Alexander Pavlovitch, Chasiv Yar Resident:   It was a cluster bomb that fell here, and the shock wave went over there and smashed [that building]. Then the debris fell on the house. You see, the whole wall is covered in holes from shrapnel.       HEATHER MURDOCK:   The markets in Chasiv Yar are mostly closed now.  Sellers who remain in town say the constant shelling makes it too dangerous to work outside. Others say remaining in town and staying open for business is an act of patriotism.        Serhi Zamulenko, Chasiv Yar Resident:     I am a patriot of Ukraine. Ukraine is my homeland. It is my land, for me. This war only made me stronger in my resolve. And Russia is a terrorist country.       HEATHER MURDOCK:   Some of his neighbors disapprove of his loyalties, says Zamulenko, in a region with familial and cultural ties to both Russia and Ukraine.    The Donbas region has essentially been at war since 2014, long before the full-scale Russian invasion began almost a year ago. But the current level of violence is unprecedented, and widespread across the country.    The United Nations says more than 7,000 civilians have been killed in Ukraine in the past 11 months.    People we have spoken here to today say they have learned mostly to live without enough water, without enough heat, without enough electricity or internet, or sometimes even enough food, but they are exhausted, and they want this battle to end.    Reporting from Bakhmut in Ukraine, Heather Murdock, VOA News.         ELIZABETH LEE:   Human rights advocates have been sounding alarms about the Russian private military company Wagner Group using convicts as soldiers in Ukraine.     Amid reports the U.S. will sanction Wagner, the White House confirms “extraordinarily high” casualties among the some 40,000 convicts fighting for Wagner in Donbas.     VOA’s New York Bureau Chief Igor Tsikhanenka expains.      IGOR TSIKHANENKA, VOA New York Bureau:   As Russia has struggled to hold territory in Ukraine, the White House says the Kremlin is increasingly relying on the Wagner group to recruit thousands of prisoners for the war’s frontlines.    John Kirby, US National Security Council Spokesperson: The casualty rates for the convicts are extraordinarily high. As a matter of fact, what we think is that 90% of their casualties are convicts.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: Moscow disputes foreign tallies of war dead, but it’s clear Russia’s convicts are dying at high rates. Ukrainian officials estimate that some 77% of the 38-thousand Russian prisoners brought to fight in Ukraine have been killed, wounded or captured or have gone missing.     John Kirby, US National Security Council Spokesperson: They are just throwing them into this meat-grinder.    IGOR TSIKHANENKA: Russia dismisses most outside assessments of its war performance, insisting its troops are consolidating their gains. But experts say it is becoming difficult for the Kremlin to cover up the grim fate of convicts under Wagner commanders.     Yuri Butusov, Ukrainian Journalist: They are calling these prisoners “refillers.”    IGOR TSIKHANENKA: Yuri Butusov, a Ukrainian war correspondent, told VOA that in just the battle for the town of Soledar last month, Russians were losing several hundred soldiers a day. Almost all of them were convicts.    Yuri Butusov, Ukrainian Journalist: In order to attack the Ukrainian firing points, the enemy is using penal battalions. It's not a new invention. In Soviet times, Stalin also had them.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: Those World War Two battalions consisted of Soviet Gulag prisoners and were tasked with the most difficult assignments – like breaking through intense fire without any heavy equipment support.   Butusov says in some cases, Russia’s ill-equipped prisoners are used for similar missions, such as drawing Ukrainian artillery fire.     Yuri Butusov, Ukrainian Journalist: When they are fired upon, the Russian commanders detect the artillery positions of the enemy.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: Olga Romanova, executive director of the civil rights group Russia Behind Bars, told VOA that prisoners who agree to sign 6-months contracts with Wagner are paid about $3,000 a month. But it’s not the money that motivates them.    Olga Romanova, Russian Prisoners' Rights Activist: Their main motive is, of course, to become free.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: So far, out of tens of thousands of prisoners recruited by Evgeny Prigozhin, Wagner’s leader and confidant of Russian President Vladimir Putin, only 106 were freed and allowed to go home, Romanova says.     Olga Romanova, Russian Prisoners' Rights Activist: By the end of last year, the desire to go serve in Wagner diminished significantly among convicts — first of all, because of extrajudicial executions, unfulfilled promises and, of course, high, very high casualties.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: All of that, however, is unlikely to disrupt the Kremlin’s plans to use prisoners in its geopolitical objectives, Romanova says.    Olga Romanova, Russian Prisoners' Rights Activist: Prigozhin will squeeze out 20 to 30 thousand people more out of jails, and then the authorities will start formal mobilization.   IGOR TSIKHANENKA: In November, Putin signed into law a bill allowing mobilization of individuals with outstanding or unexpunged convictions, creating an even greater pool of potential war recruits. Igor Tsikhanenka, VOA News   HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Correspondent:   Ukrainians were used to 24-hour-a-day-seven-day-a-week uninterrupted electricity. It wasn’t until Russia began bombing their power plants that the country’s “new normal” began.      Even in the capital, Kyiv, there are daily power outages. Sometimes it’s on a schedule, and sometimes, when there is an attack, the lights just go out.      This tent is a power center, with access to lights and Internet, manned by emergency service workers.       Locals come here to work, and grow small businesses, despite the chaos.              Nazer Senychak, IT worker:   There were a few times when we heard very loud explosions here during the massive rocket attacks in October, the 10th if I’m not mistaken. But in general, it feels okay.         HEATHER MURDOCK:   Russian attacks on Ukraine’s infrastructure began in October, with massive strikes across the country, killing civilians and knocking out power structures. Since then, the devastation has continued.      On Saturday, a strike hit a residential building in the central city of Dnipro, killing more than 40 people.      At the Kyiv power center, locals say the daily grind of surviving the war is exhausting.            Victoria Kozlova, Kyiv Resident:   I only hear the explosions. I don't see it. I hear the explosions. The water is gone, and the electricity is gone.        HEATHER MURDOCK:   Kozlova says she is trying to rebuild her advertising business, which fell flat in the first months of the war as she fled west, further away from the danger. Now, she is back home in Kyiv, trudging up 12 flights of stairs to her apartment when the power is out.      And as night falls in the capital, some entire neighborhoods are in the dark, but residents say life goes on as normally as possible, with or without the light.      Heather Murdock, VOA News, Kyiv.     ELIZABETH LEE:   Russian attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure have crippled the nation’s power grid.    About 40-percent of the grid has been damaged leaving millions of people without a reliable source of electricity in the middle of winter.  While the US and other allies have rushed generators and other aid to Ukraine, an idea for another source of power is being floated.    From Istanbul, our Dorian Jones explains how a Turkish shipping company can help.        DORIAN JONES, Reporting for VOA:   Russia's latest attack on Ukrainian civilians not only targeted their homes. The streets of Ukraine are constantly plunged into darkness as Russian forces relentlessly hit Ukraine's electricity infrastructure.   Petro Burkovskiy, Democratic Initiatives Foundation: What they are seeing is that they are doing this in order to kill as many Ukrainians as possible, but in a kind of indirect way, by creating the unbearable conditions for life without electricity, heating and water.     DORIAN JONES: But the Turkey-based company Karpowerships says it can help alleviate Ukraine's energy crisis. Its power ships operate worldwide, including in hotspots like Beirut, and can supply millions of homes with electricity.   Zeynep Harezi Yilmaz, Karpowership: We have been in contact with Ukrenergo (Ukraine National Power Company) since August last year and with the Odessa governorate as well. We could potentially place 300-megawatt ships. So, totaling 300 megawatts in various ports in Odesa, and a 100 megawatt could power the Odesa port and its related facilities. The others could power the related residential areas around Odessa.   DORIAN JONES: Protecting the power ships remains a significant obstacle, says Karpower. Ankara has maintained good relations with Moscow, but it is unclear whether the goodwill extends to the protection of the ships. Karpowership says that with some of its ships already close by, they could be supplying Ukraine with electricity within thirty days. Dorian Jones, for VOA News, Istanbul.       ELIZABETH LEE:   The effect of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is creating unprecedented challenges at the borders for some EU nations.    With millions of Ukrainians fleeing for safety, along with asylum seekers searching for a new home, Europe’s migrant crisis is now at a tipping point.  From London, Henry Ridgwell explains.      HENRY RIDGWELL, Reporting for VOA:   330-thousand so-called irregular crossings were detected on the European Union’s external frontiers in 2022 — a steep rise of 64 percent from the previous year, according to Frontex, the European Border and Coast Guard Agency. That figure doesn’t include millions of Ukrainian refugees.   Syrians, Afghans and Tunisians together accounted for almost half of the irregular migrant crossings. There were high numbers of migrants from Egypt, Bangladesh and Nigeria as well.     Martin Hofmann, International Centre for Migration Policy Development:   The security situation and the economic situation in most of those countries and regions has worsened even more during last year.     HENRY RIDGWELL:   The Western Balkan route and the Central Mediterranean route to Italy accounted for most of the irregular arrivals.   Italy’s government passed a raft of asylum legislation this month, which charities like Doctors Without Borders say make it harder to rescue migrants at sea and bring them ashore.   Greece is also cracking down on migrant rescue organizations. Political attitudes have hardened with the war in Ukraine, says analyst Camino Mortera-Martinez.     Camino Mortera-Martinez, Centre for European Reform:   The common discourse at the moment here in Europe goes something like, ‘OK, we are dealing with a massive refugee crisis from our neighborhood. Why should we shoulder all the conflicts from other parts of the world?’”     HENRY RIDGWELL:   Thirteen million Ukrainian refugees entered the European Union since the start of Russia’s invasion. Some ten million crossings were also registered from Europe back into Ukraine.     Martin Hofmann, International Centre for Migration Policy Development:   We see that attacks on the civilian infrastructure are part of the war strategy of Russia, and so far, they have not resulted in increased outflows. There is the remarkable resilience of the Ukrainian society and the economy. But there are, of course, potential tipping points where the situation becomes unbearable for larger populations, and then we might see an increase.     HENRY RIDGWELL:   A special summit aimed at agreeing on a common EU policy on migration is due to be held next month. Observers say long-standing divisions between member states mean a breakthrough is unlikely.   Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, London.     ELIZABETH LEE:      That’s all for now.        Stay up to date with all the news at VOANews.com.     Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.     Follow me on Twitter at E Lee-TV One     Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     For all of those behind the scenes who brought you today’s show, I’m Elizabeth Lee.    See you next week for The Inside Story.    ####     https://www.voanews.com/a/6936600.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6936600.html Fri, 27 Jan 2023 08:48:33 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: New Congress, New Challenges Episode 75 – January 19, 2023     Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   After a bruising fight over its leadership …  A new Congress takes over Capitol Hill.  How will divided government impact America’s direction?  From immigration to defending Ukraine ….  Now, The Inside Story --- New Year, New Congress.      The Inside Story:   KATHERINE GYPSON:   Hi. I’m Katherine Gypson, VOA Congressional Correspondent, here on Capitol Hill where the new, 118th Congress is trying to make its mark.    Democrats managed to hold on to control of the U.S. Senate in November’s elections while Republicans took control of the House or Representatives, giving President Joe Biden a divided Congress to work with for the next two years.    And the lengthy battle among House Republicans to choose their leader suggests any agreements with the White House will be few and far between.    Republican leader Kevin McCarthy emerged from an unprecedented four-day battle to become speaker of the House touting Republicans’ accomplishments in their first full week of work.        Rep. Kevin McCarthy, House Speaker:   Government should be here to help people, be able to protect the unborn. We just protected the Strategic Petroleum Reserve where the president can no longer deplete it and sell our oil to China. And we opened the House back up for the public.          KATHERINE GYPSON:   But analysts say the conservative caucus that objected to McCarthy as speaker will continue to be a problem.      Michele Swers, Georgetown University Government Department:   He is in a weakened position. But his biggest problem is that his margin is so small, so he has only a five-seat margin.     KATHERINE GYPSON:   Many Republicans object to resetting the nation’s debt ceiling — a stance that could have global consequences if America's credit rating suffers as a result.      Rep. Tom Cole, House Rules Committee Chairman:   The American people elected Republicans to get our fiscal house in order.       KATHERINE GYPSON:   With inflation still high in the United States, Democrats have warned against government spending cuts.        Rep. Rosa DeLauro, Democrat:   These spending cuts harm families, communities throughout the U.S. that are already struggling with inflation and the cost of living.       KATHERINE GYPSON:   Republicans have also already launched multiple investigative committees.        Rep. Elise Stefanik, Republican:   We will counter the Chinese Communist Party with our select committee on China. We will vote to protect every American's constitutional rights, with a new select subcommittee on the weaponization of the federal government.     KATHERINE GYPSON:   And President Joe Biden and his family are expected to be a subject of Republican investigations, including concerning their financial transactions, despite Democrats’ objections.      Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, Democratic Leader:   “Instead of trying to find ways to work together, my colleagues on the other side of the aisle continue to lean into an extreme MAGA Republican agenda which seems to be focused on trying to investigate the president's family, not make a difference in the lives of everyday Americans.       KATHERINE GYPSON:   The Biden administration’s immigration policy will also come under scrutiny….      Rep. Mark Green, Homeland Security Committee Chairman:   If you were asking me my top goals, you know, it's securing that border. It's securing our cyber border.        KATHERINE GYPSON:   ….as well as billions of dollars in U.S. aid to Ukraine.     Michele Swers, Georgetown University Government Department:   House Republicans are split also. But Speaker McCarthy has indicated he might side with the elements who want to push back on funding.        KATHERINE GYPSON: But any legislation passed in the House will have to be agreed to in the Democratic-majority U.S. Senate.     One flashpoint that may emerge soon is the cost of supporting Ukraine in its defense against Russia’s attacks.   The US has spent tens of billions of dollars in military, economic and humanitarian assistance for Ukraine since Russia invaded in February 2022.      But several Republicans in Congress are questioning the amount of money being spent.  VOA Politics and Policy reporter Veronica Balderas Iglesias explains.    VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS, VOA Correspondent: As Ukraine mourns the victims of Saturday’s Russian missile strike in the city of Dnipro, U.S. President Joe Biden and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte decried Moscow’s aggressions during a bilateral meeting in Washington.   President Joe Biden: Russia is just continuing to act in ways that are almost unbelievable, and the brutality with which they’re acting.   VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS: Rutte announced more support for Kyiv.   Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands: We have decided to spend another $2.5 billion on helping the Ukraine war effort.//We have the intention to join what you were doing with Germany on the Patriots project. So, the air-defense system, I think that is important.     VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS: Also on Tuesday, circulating on Russian social networks -- what looked like images of a makeshift memorial in Moscow for the Dnipro victims. At the government level, however, more promises of military might by Russian Defense Minister, Sergei Shoigu.   Sergei Shoigu, Russian Defense Minister: Strengthen the combat component of the Navy, the Aerospace Forces and the Strategic Missile Forces.   VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov left the door open, however, for high-level talks between Russian officials and the director of the Central Intelligence Agency, William J. Burns.   Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin Spokesman: It can be excluded of course. This dialogue is useful. I don’t know the exact dates.   VERONICA BALDERAS IGLESIAS: Near Romania, meanwhile, NATO expanded its surveillance of Russia’s military activities with the deployment of three new planes. And on the ground in Ukraine, the International Atomic Energy Agency set a permanent presence to help safeguard key nuclear facilities. Veronica Balderas Iglesias, VOA News, Washington.   HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Correspondent: We arrived back here in Ukraine yesterday and we're now in the Lviv in the western part of the country. Lviv is far from the war, but it is still the frequent site of attacks on infrastructure, and is a main destination for internally displaced people and war wounded. This hospital specifically treats soldiers and civilians who have lost limbs mostly from bombings and landmines. And there are hundreds of people on their waiting list. We're recording today from Dnipro in Ukraine. And right behind me is a makeshift memorial for more than 40 people that died in a moment of this building on Saturday. Today, we met some people who survived the bombing. One man told us that he only heard silence with a blast. And then he realized he was bleeding. He could then hear the screams of women and children and realize that he had to go outside. Once he got outside situation was even more horrifying. He could see cars and his building on fire. Then about 20 minutes after the initial blast his building collapsed. Now he and about 300 Other people are homeless. Reporting from Dnipro in Ukraine, this is Heather Murdock, VOA news.     KATHERINE GYPSON:   Republicans in the House of Representatives also have their sights set on investigating President Biden’s immigration policy.    Controlling the flow of migrants crossing into the U.S. from Mexico has been a challenge for decades and topped the agenda for Biden’s meeting with the leaders of neighbors Mexico and Canada.    VOA White House Correspondent Anita Powell was in Mexico City for the summit.    ANITA POWELL, VOA White House correspondent: Amistad, bonhomie, Friendship. In all three languages, the leaders of Mexico, Canada and the U.S. made a show of unity as they met Tuesday in Mexico City.   U.S. President Joe Biden: We’re true partners, the three of us, working together with mutual respect and genuine like for one another to advance a safer and more prosperous future for all of our people.   ANITA POWELL: But the issues on the table are not as easy. Irregular migration, illegal drugs, climate change and trade disputes are front and center,as the Mexican president pointed out as he openly challenged Biden to expand economic cooperation.   Andres Manuel López Obrador, Mexican President: This is the moment for us to determine, to do away with this abandonment, this disdain and this forgetfulness for Latin America and the Caribbean, which is opposed to the policy of the good neighborhood of the titan of freedom and liberty, FDR, Franklin Delano Roosevelt. And starting with you.   ANITA POWELL: Biden fired back.   US President Joe Biden: The United States provides more foreign aid than every other country just about combined in the world, to not just the hemisphere, but around the world. Unfortunately, our responsibility just doesn't end in the Western Hemisphere. It's in Central Europe, it's in Asia, the Middle East and Africa. It's in Southeast West Asia.   ANITA POWELL: On Tuesday, the U.S. announced a range of outcomes, which included plans to collaborate on supply chain issues and semiconductor development; modest commitments to reduce methane emissions from the solid waste and wastewater sector and more clean energy collaboration.   Justin Trudeau, Canadian Prime Minister: To put it simply, we are, and always will be, stronger together. The world today is facing a lot of uncertainty with the rise of authoritarian leaders causing global instability and the high cost of living putting stress on families at home. It’s important that we come together as leaders and as friends to look at ways to make our economies more resilient.     ANITA POWELL: Irregular migration is also a thorny issue, especially after Biden launched his trip Sunday with his first presidential visit to the busiest port of entry in the U.S., in El Paso. The leaders also reiterated their commitment to “safe, orderly and humane migration” through the expansion of legal migration pathways, a range of collaborative measures and better communication, both among one another and with the public. They also agreed that illegal trafficking in arms, drugs and people is a shared threat and committed to work together on the challenge. So, was this summit a success? Mexico watchers say that’s a tough question.   Andrew Rudman, Wilson Center: Trilateral summits rarely yield major announcements or resolution of issues and given that the issues that the three leaders talked about are complex and longstanding I think it's not surprising that there was not some explosive announcement in their communique or in their press conference. But I think having said that, the fact that they meet on a regular basis and that they identify priorities for their administrations to pursue for the coming year, I think that is important.     ANITA POWELL:   But, as the leaders highlighted, this is a continent with great potential – and great challenges. Will this summit move the needle? Time will tell. Anita Powell, VOA News, Mexico City.   KATHERINE GYPSON:   More than 100 radio stations shut down last year in Venezuela under the weight of stiff government regulations and random threats of violence.  Now, proposed laws to regulate social media adds to the pressure on journalists there.    From Caracas, VOA’s Alvaro Algarra has our press freedom spotlight.      ALVARO ALGARRA, VOA Correspondent:   Media censorship has risen to new heights in Venezuela, with a record number of radio stations closed, even as the Venezuelan journalists association CNP documented marginally fewer physical attacks in the past 12 months.         Edgard Cardenas, CNP Secretary General:   There is a policy of censorship, persecution of the media. Although it is true that physical aggressions against journalists decreased, we saw an increase in radio station closures from 4 in 2021 to 104 in 2022.      ALVARO ALGARRA:    The state communications regulator cited licensing breaches for many of the closures, and lawmakers in 2022 denied the action was related to the broadcasters’ content.      But Carlos Correa, director of the free expression nonprofit Espacio Público, says the moves appear to be part of a policy to limit independent media.       Carlos Correa, Espacio Público Director: This year we have documented the highest number of closures since 2001. This situation indicates that the government seems to be trying to reconfigure the ownership structure of these stations.       ALVARO ALGARRA:   Adding to worries for journalists are new efforts by President Nicolás Maduro’s government to reform media laws.       The national assembly is discussing proposals on regulating social media, including requiring platforms to have an in-country office to handle complaints.            Delcy Rodriguez, Vice President:   We are going to regulate and control because in recent years Venezuela has been a victim of psychological warfare through messages on social networks.       ALVARO ALGARRA:    But reporters working in an already restrictive environment are wary of the plans.     And Carlos Julio Rojas, an independent journalist and member of the National Press Workers Union, says pro-government supporters sometimes use social networks to generate smear campaigns against those in media.        Carlos Julio Rojas, journalist:   We have seen how the Nicolás Maduro regime’s dominance over communications continues to get stronger. What’s their end goal? To close that last space that exists for freedom of expression?        ALVARO ALGARRA:   If passed, the bill could add to Venezuela’s already poor ranking on the global Press Freedom Index. The watchdog Reporters Without Borders says media there work in a restrictive environment, with policies that “threaten the full exercise of independent journalism.     For Álvaro Algarra in Caracas, Venezuela, Veronica Villafañe, VOA News.       KATHERINE GYPSON:   Threats of violence and government intimidation has many journalists fleeing Nicaragua --- finding safety in neighboring Costa Rica.  From its capital San Jose, our Donaldo Hernandez shows us how a media non-profit organization is helping these exiled journalists.      DONALDO HERNANDEZ, Reporting for VOA:   In search of protection, this group of Nicaraguan journalists arrived in Costa Rica halfway through 2022.     Like many of their colleagues back home, they risked arrest or harassment by Daniel Ortega’s government, as it cracks down on the media and opposition voices.     In the past two years, authorities have seized the headquarters of the historic La Prensa, resulting in the entire staff fleeing, and revoked licenses for several television and radio stations.       Helping the exiled journalists adjust is the Institute of Press and Freedom of Expression or IPLEX, a Costa Rican nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting Central American journalists.          Marco Barquero, Project Manager, IPLEX:   Our goal is to help them in their legalization process and to promote a more orderly migration for Nicaraguan journalists.           DONALDO HERNANDEZ:   More than 150 journalists have been forced to leave Nicaragua in the past four years, the Independent Journalists and Communicators of Nicaragua collective says.         Barquero is in close contact with many of those who recently arrived in Costa Rica.           Marco Barquero, Project Manager, IPLEX:   Through all IPLEX programs, we have helped 62 Nicaraguan journalists and one Salvadoran journalist.         DONALDO HERNANDEZ:   The nonprofit offers aid and temporary protection as journalists integrate into Costa Rican society.                Raúl Silesky Jiménez, President, IPLEX:   The Home Refuge program covers airfare, transportation, insurance, food, shelter, internet, per diem for food and basic necessities to sustain them for a while.        DONALDO HERNANDEZ:   For journalist Alberto Miranda, the support made a big difference. Miranda says he has been assaulted by police and threatened with arrest. He also received death threats.      In 2021, he decided to leave for Costa Rica. But for the first six months, he could not find work.        Alberto Miranda, Journalist:    I can tell you that this program represents an important support for Nicaraguan journalists when we arrive in Costa Rica, often in a situation of economic vulnerability.       DONALDO HERNANDEZ:   Miranda now works for the news website Nicaragua Investiga. IPLEX wants all journalists to be able to continue to report.         Media watchdog Reporters Without Borders says Nicaragua’s media “endure a nightmare of censorship, intimidation and threats.” But even from exile, the country’s journalists work to keep news flowing.        For Donaldo Hernández, in Costa Rica, Verónica Villafañe, VOA News.     KATHERINE GYPSON: For those who overcome the hurdles to enter U.S. legally, settling into American life and finding a welcoming community can be a challenge unto itself.    VOA’s Senior Washington Correspondent Carolyn Presutti found one in an unlikely place, Colorado Springs, Colorado.      CAROLYN PRESUTTI, VOA Senior Washington Correspondent: Karthick Radunath Palanimalai is a software consultant.  After he arrived in the US on an L1 visa, he says he got no help from the city to get settled. Instead, he relied on the Indian community.       Karthick Radunath Palanimalai, Colorado Springs Immigrant: They helped me to get the apartments and, you know, to the work nearest to the place and then the grocery shops or whatever things. So they really helped me for the first three months.   CAROLYN PRESUTTI: Jackie Jaramillo of Centro de la Familia says newcomers like Palanimalai, and especially immigrants in Colorado Springs, are often invisible and isolated.   Jackie Jaramillo, Centro de la Familia Co-Founder: It's very difficult. There are a lot of institutional barriers. And there are cultural barriers. There's definitely racism. A lot of our people are -- a lot of the immigrants that we serve -- are victims of crime.   CAROLYN PRESUTTI: That is why some found it surprising when the George W. Bush Institute ranked the city 21st out of the top 100 metro areas in the U.S. where immigrants are thriving. Colorado Springs is best known for the US Air Force Academy and for Pikes Peak at 43-hundred meters.  The city government is largely conservative and the Republican party is not necessarily known for migrant-friendly policies.   John Suthers, Colorado Springs Mayor: I don’t think we have a sign up that says ‘Colorado City, a Great Place for Migrants.’   CAROLYN PRESUTTI: John Suthers is a staunch Republican and two-term mayor of Colorado Springs.  In 2022, the Milken Institute ranked the city ninth in economic performance among large U.S. cities   John Suthers, Colorado Springs Mayor: We have a huge military defense, is about 40% of our economy. There're an awful lot of jobs in related high-tech, space, cybersecurity, and things like that. And, those are areas where I think a lot of our people who are migrating legally have the expertise in and so they're looking around. Why wouldn't you come to Colorado Springs?   CAROLYN PRESUTTI: Cullum Clark the George W. Bush Institute’s report called “Immigrants and Opportunity in America’s Cities.” He says several factors were considered in the rankings list.   Cullum Clark, George W. Bush Institute: Is it a good place to do business, to start a company? Is it a good place to kind of get ahead career wise? Is it a good place to afford a home?   CAROLYN PRESUTTI: To that, Palanimalai says, yes.  His new wife, who also landed a tech job, joined him in Colorado Springs, where they are enjoying the Rocky Mountain life…along with a little bit of home, like playing on the local cricket team. Carolyn Presutti, VOA News, Colorado Springs, Colorado.   KATHERINE GYPSON: Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, an outcry for the protection of human rights has echoed throughout the global community.     In its annual report, Human Rights Watch highlights a crisis that extends beyond the war in Ukraine and exists in China, Afghanistan, and Africa.     Details from our Henry Ridgwell in London.      HENRY RIDGWELL, Reporting for VOA:   The Human Rights Watch organization says that following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the global community deserves credit for unleashing what it calls the "full arsenal" of the human rights system — including an investigation by the International Criminal Court.           Tirana Hassan, Human Rights Watch Acting Executive Director:   We saw immediate responses from the international community to mobilize around key human rights supports, including establishing international justice mechanisms, evidence gathering for war crimes.   HENRY RIDGWELL:   In towns like Bucha and Izium, there is widespread evidence that occupying Russian soldiers tortured, raped and executed civilians. The United Nations Human Rights Council has documented several hundred civilian killings — thought to be a fraction of the total.       Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:   In some cases, Russian soldiers executed civilians in makeshift places of detention. Others were summarily executed on the spot following security checks — in their houses, yards, and doorways.       HENRY RIDGWELL:   Human Rights Watch's annual report also highlights ongoing abuses in China — including the mass detention, torture and forced labor of as many as a million Muslims in the Xinjiang region. Beijing denies the accusations. The report says the U.N. Human Rights Council's increased scrutiny of Beijing's actions is encouraging.       Tirana Hassan, Human Rights Watch Acting Executive Director:   What we have seen for the first time in a very long time is cracks in the authoritarian armor.       HENRY RIDGWELL:   In Iran, protests triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini after she was detained by morality police have grown into nationwide anti-government demonstrations. Human Rights Watch says the execution of at least four protesters must trigger a stronger global response.     Tirana Hassan, Human Rights Watch Acting Executive Director:   We need to move beyond international solidarity for protesters and need to make sure that governments all over the world are holding Iranian officials to account.     HENRY RIDGWELL:   The report cites increasing human rights abuses in Myanmar – where the authors say the regime is launching assaults on communities across the country that oppose the military coup.   In Ethiopia, Human Rights Watch says the recent African Union-led peace process has resulted in a fragile truce.       Tirana Hassan, Human Rights Watch Acting Executive Director:   Ensuring that there is accountability for the egregious crimes that took place in the Tigray region, for example, is going to be critical for this cease-fire and this truce to actually hold.       HENRY RIDGWELL: The report says climate change is having an increasing impact on basic rights worldwide. It says governments have a legal and moral obligation to regulate industries such as fossil fuel extraction that are incompatible with protecting basic rights.   Henry Ridgwell, for VOA News, London.     KATHERINE GYPSON:      That’s all we have for now.   Stay up to date VOANews.com.   Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.   Follow me on Twitter at K-GYP.    Catch up on past episodes at our free streaming service, VOA Plus.   I’m Katherine Gypson.  We’ll see you next week for The Inside Story.   ###   https://www.voanews.com/a/6925773.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6925773.html Thu, 19 Jan 2023 15:32:38 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story” Yellowstone at 150 Episode 74 – January 12, 2023   NATASHA MOZGOVAYA, VOA Correspondent:   Yellowstone, America’s first National Park, is marking 150th anniversary - celebrating achievements, dealing with climate challenges, and fixing the historic narrative by bringing in Native American voices.   Yellowstone National Park covers nearly 9,000 square kilometers of the Western United States across Montana, Wyoming and Idaho in four mountain ranges driven by powerful magmatic forces underground.   There are over 10,000 geothermal features, including hot springs…   … gurgling mud pots…   …steam vents…   …and half of the world’s active geysers,   including the most famous – Old Faithful.   About twenty times a day these fountains of boiling water erupt, reaching as high as 50 meters. It’s the center of the park’s tourism – an American landmark that draws more than four million visitors a year.       Matt Wallenstein, visitor from Texas:   We literally just arrived and saw Old Faithful erupt, which was pretty nice welcome.         Nicole Quiterio, visitor from Texas:   And I think we've gone to a lot of national parks but what sets this apart I think is just the attraction of the geysers. So just yeah, kind of all there's one hanging out and waiting for it to erupt it's kind of nice. It's sort of - it's everyone together.         Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:   I don't think anybody ever gets tired of the view. I think Yellowstone is an incredible global icon. And 70% of the visitors that come here - first time visitors every year. And so, a lot of people are seeing this for the first time in their lives, but even for those that come back time and time again are for those of us who are lucky enough to live here and work here – it never gets old.        NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   For the first-time visitors of Yellowstone, probably the most mind-boggling fact is to realize that they stand on top of a huge active volcano.       Rick Burk, visitor from Massachusetts:   I figure it only explodes like every 600,000 years - so we're probably not going to hit that one day - one week. So, yeah, I don't worry about it. But you think about - it's nice to think like, wow, we're in this crazy area, you know, that you normally wouldn't be in something like that.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   The Park Service monitors volcanic activity along with the U.S. Geologic Survey and the Universities of Utah and Montana. Yellowstone Volcano Observatory Scientist-in-charge Michael Poland says there is little chance of a surprise eruption across a volcanic system of more than three-thousand square kilometers.       Michael Poland, Yellowstone Volcano Observatory:   If you can imagine - it's like a car that hasn't been started in a really long time. In order to get Yellowstone to a point where it can erupt in a really big way, explosive, then you'd have to melt a lot of that cooling magma chamber beneath the surface. And in order to do that you would see all kinds of input of heat. There would be changes in gas emissions, lots of seismicity, lots of changes in how the ground deforms in ways we've never seen before.           NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   This is the rim of Yellowstone volcano caldera, it was likely formed 640,000 years ago during the previous eruption of the super volcano. Though not all geologists like this term.         Michael Poland, Yellowstone Volcano Observatory:   I'm not a fan of the term super volcano. This is something that was sort of made up and used in some documentaries and docudrama movies. I think it's misleading, because a lot of people will say: “Well if Yellowstone is a super volcano, it only has these huge explosions.” And that ignores the fact that we know from the geologic record that the most likely form of eruption from Yellowstone is a lava flow, not a big explosion.        NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Inside the park’s volcanic system, brightly colored organisms called thermophiles thrive in extreme conditions.       AJ Ferrara, Yellowstone Park Ranger:   We're looking at temperatures in the 90 to 70 degree Celsius range, far too hot for most life forms - even the well adapted, heat loving organisms that make these hot springs home - to survive. As we move closer to the edges, we near temperatures closer to the 60-degree range. And as we start seeing the transition from browns to greens, we're looking at temperatures in the much more-habitable 30-to-35-degree range.        NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   For microbiologists, Yellowstone is an immense living lab.         AJ Ferrara, Yellowstone Park Ranger:   What we know about the human genome the genome of animals is reliant entirely on a chemical made by that little yellow streak in that runoff channel. As we look towards the future, Yellowstone's thermophile communities are helping us look at so many possibilities in the field of medicine in the bright blue springs of Yellowstone with temperatures too extreme for most lifeforms to survive. There are archaea and viruses so alien that our immune system can't quite recognize them as a threat.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Research on organisms thriving in hot acidic water may provide answers about how early organisms on Earth survived without oxygen.       AJ Ferrara, Yellowstone Park Ranger:   The earliest days of life on Earth, when the Earth was volcanic, when the oceans were still young, when they were still hot, we probably saw bacteria like these we see in Yellowstone today. In fact, the first life on Earth and the first source of oxygen for our atmosphere probably came from photosynthesizing bacteria living in scarce and scant runoff channels from hot springs on the ancient Earth.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Archeologists say humans have been hunting and gathering in Yellowstone for at least 11,000 years.       Velda Racehorse, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes:   This continent was set aside for our people. And if you really think about it, you know, from the North Pole to the South Pole on this continent there were nothing but Indian people. And we've been placed here, you know, by our maker. And Yellowstone is part of that.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Velda Racehorse is a member of the Shoshone Bannock Tribes that lived in the area until the U.S. military arrived to secure the park’s borders at the end of the 19th century. The army stayed in Yellowstone for more than 30 years, based in a compound at Mammoth Springs that now houses park service administration.    Alicia Murphy, Yellowstone National Park Historian:   We have a government-to-government relationship with 27 tribal entities. These all are tribes that have identified that they have a real connection to Yellowstone and for a variety of reasons and many reasons for every tribe this is a rich, rich heritage with tribal experiences in Yellowstone.       William Snell, Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council:   They'll battle outside of these boundaries. But this, for some reason, the Yellowstone Park seemed to be kind of a neutral area for everyone. I think it adds a lot of spiritual meaning to it. It was unique. It was held sacred. Of course, we hold all lands sacred, but this is kind of a unique, special place that was given to us by the Creator.       Velda Racehorse, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes: Our people adapted to whatever happened to them, and that's why we're still here today, because we adapted and even though we were forcefully removed, we all adapted to what was happening and we moved further away from what was happening.   NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   When Yellowstone was designated a National Park, Native American tribes were chased out, and the history of the park focused on the white people exploration. Now for the first time in 150 years, teepees were erected in the park - and the first people of the land are telling their own stories.       William Snell, Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council:   We actually have three mothers, our mothers our Mother Earth, our biological mother, and then the lodge, because the lodge protects us, keeps us warm, keeps us cool. It's a place where we abide, it’s family, that kind of thing. And so when we put it up the meaning of the lodge is pretty dynamic.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Anniversary celebrations include Native American cultural events and public gatherings with tribal leaders. Shoshone-Bannock elder Winona Tindore said coming to Yellowstone was a hard decision.       Winona Tindore, Shoshone-Bannock Tribes:   My grandma told me not to come here, and she told me not to be speaking about these things because it's a bad memory for her when she got herded from her homeland. I mean, it’s very emotional, you know, because this was her homeland, and she was told to leave and never come back. And she never did come back.         NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Blackfeet attorney and artist Evan Thompson is documenting his fight in courts for restoring the traditional tribes' hunting rights using a technique developed by Native American artists in the mid-19th century.            Evan Thompson, Lawyer and Artist:   “Ledger art is what I call a semi-traditional form of Plains Indian art. Historically, men would leave a war record by painting it on tepees or on war shirts. And so, with the introduction of reservations and the disappearance of the buffalo, hide becomes very scarce. And so, people would go to the forts and other places to get papers to leave this record, their personal historical record for their families.”     So that tells the story of reasserting our hunting rights here in Yellowstone National Park, the lead figure is modeled after myself, I guess, to holding up our 1855 treaty with the United States government and then the four singers behind there supporting that event. And then on the bottom of the piece are some pictographic figures holding rifles and they represent the Blackfeet people that came in after we reasserted that right and their hunting the buffalo in the image.           NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Northern Arapaho and Northern Paiute artist Patti Baldes brought to life bison sculpted from willow branches with pairs of dancers from different tribes – she called the performance ‘Rematriate.’          Patti Baldes, Artist: The ladies I have with me are all moms and in some way we're all connected to each other. Daughters - not all of us are moms, but I feel it inside we each have that in us. Beginning like with land, and most of this is the rematriate - to bring land back to its natural state of this harmony and healing. … It’s just having the women in my lives - from my son's girlfriend to my cousins and my nieces, my granddaughter, and my daughter as well. And the drummers there's my husband and my dad and the people I pray with at home and our ceremonies. And my little brother. It’s just everyone that I am truly connected to.   For a lot of years, I didn't know how to feel because it's kind of either the tourist or the museum, where I can't touch anything. And it's really important that my peers, the people that are from this land, walk on it with confidence and take up the space that they should in a way that that they're proud of.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Yellowstone celebrations included the debut performance of Muscogee Soprano Kirsten Kunkle’s "Reclaim The Land".          Kirsten Kunkle, Soprano: It's about the struggles of Native American people and trying to get over them and move forward. It's about Yellowstone specifically, the beauty of the land and how we have as people once inhabited these lands. And now we are at the point we want to be recognized and share this land with all the beauty of nature that surrounds it. And I was hoping with this piece that I would connect with people - that it would be something that people would want to sing, that people would want to hear.   Obviously, people aren’t going to inhabit Yellowstone again. It is a National Park, but we want the cultures known, we want people to acknowledge the tribes that were once inhabiting this land and throughout the entirety of America. That you know, we're not just reservations we're not just casinos we're not just powwows, we have deep cultural heritages, and we have many things that are vitally important to us.        NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Park Superintendent Sholly says no one can tell that story as well as the people whose ancestors lived it.          Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:   They were on this landscape long before Yellowstone was a National Park. And we've done a significant amount of engagement, especially in the year leading into the 150th, with all of the tribes to have them help us do a better job.  You know, the Park Service has a duty to tell America's history, the good and the bad.  And importantly I think we want to look at the 150th not as a one-time thing - let's do these things together just in this year - but a reset point, a starting point to do more and more in the future with these tribal nations.         William Snell, Rocky Mountain Tribal Leaders Council:   The hope is that the tribe's involvement would be a little bit stronger, that they'll listen to our people. We're all about nature, we're all about balancing. We're all about honoring. And that's honoring not just us as people but also the animals and the Earth. It's give and take. It's if you take something from the Earth put something back, do it in prayer and supplication, you know, that's how important that is. And I think one hundred and fifty years from now I hope that it stays in balance, that it's maintained, and we as Indian people want to be able to help do that.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Preserving the park for future generations is a centerpiece of cooperation between the Park Service and Native Americans in Yellowstone, where there were too few rangers at its start to protect geothermal features.     Alicia Murphy, Yellowstone National Park Historian:   People would wade in the hot springs. People would, you know, at the West Thumb geyser basin over on the lake - it was really popular to catch a fish and stand on the cone of the geyser and cook it on the line in the hot spring.     You know, periodically we clean out some of our thermal features like our hot springs and, you know, there will be tires in there. I mean, weird things.   Now we have a system of boardwalks that protect people as well as protecting the resource so that people don't accidentally fall in, and also don't leave their footprints all over this landscape that takes, you know, thousands of years to develop. Once something is broken at a hot spring or a geyser, you know, that's fragile, fragile material, and those footprints will be there forever in some cases.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   With boiling pools of acid and wolves and grizzly bears roaming free, Yellowstone is no amusement park.         Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:   It’s a team effort here for us to manage the interface between visitors and wildlife and that's something that we've got a responsibility for, but it's also something that visitors have an  individual responsibility to understand what this place is, how wild these animals are.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Wildlife conservation improved with more rangers and an end to most poaching. Animal populations fluctuated naturally within Yellowstone until a change in government policy in the 1920’s eliminated nearly all the park’s predators.                 Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:   So we killed every wolf, reduced the number of grizzly substantially, killed all the mountain lions. And, you know, 50 years ago we were feeding grizzly bears out of garbage dumps so visitors could see them. So, we've slowly put the pieces back together of this ecosystem.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Bison have lived in Yellowstone since after the Ice Age. At the beginning of 20th Century, due to overhunting, there were about two dozen left in the wilderness in Yellowstone. Now there are over 6,000 of them here, and occasionally they create bison traffic jams.         Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent: Yellowstone - it's a bucket list trip for people. And it's not the public's fault that the Park Service 30 or 40 or 50 years ago didn't build shoulders on the roads. And so, when you see pictures of traffic jams and you see people, 70 percent of which are here for the first time, seeing their first bison in the wild or seeing a grizzly - that's why they came. And when they do, guess what’s going to happen – they're going to stop their car and they're going to get out and they're enjoying that moment. That's why they came here.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   There are also smaller marvels at Yellowstone, with hundreds of types of wildflowers supporting insect life in an ecosystem that combines species from both the Rocky Mountains in the west and the Great Plains to the east.       Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:   Health wise, the ecosystem is in better condition now than it ever has been since Yellowstone became a park. But that doesn't mean that we can sit back and enjoy success. There's a lot of challenges and threats - climate change, other threats to this ecosystem that we need to be cognizant of and pay attention to moving forward.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Unprecedented flooding in June tore through parts of Yellowstone, washing away roads and causing rockslides and mudslides.       Sarah Ondrus, Paradise Adventure Company Owner:   I've never experienced something like this. The rain was falling; it felt like forever. It just kept coming and coming and coming, which then was melting our snow melt. So together it just made this huge flume of water overnight.       Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent:    Yellowstone historically has not had a lot of floods. And there was not really any warning that this flood was coming. // But I think the team here couldn’t have handled it better. I mean, the fact that without power for 40 hours, evacuating the park, 10,000 visitors within about 30 hours; doing the damage assessments, getting temporary repairs done all across the park.         NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   The park’s North entrance reopened once upgrades were completed on the Old Gardiner Road as a higher-ground alternate route to the washed-out riverside road. Outside the park entrance, piping is all that is left of a house swept down the Yellowstone River from the small Montana town of Gardiner.   For local businesses here, the prolonged closure means lost income. This season, Sarah Ondrus' new hand-painted teepees stood mostly empty. Her other business, a rafting company, is down from 20 to 30 boats a day to about five.       Sarah Ondrus, Paradise Adventure Company Owner:   Unfortunately, with what has happened with the flood, we've pretty much lost all our business, and I lost about three employees from here just because we didn't have enough work for them.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Frank LaMotta and his girlfriend Ariel Rodriguez moved to the area about two years ago to work at a local hotel. The flood, along with the COVID-19 pandemic, added to their challenges, but they have no plans to leave.       Frank LaMotta, Wonderland Cafe & Lodge Manager:   This is a very special community. And if it wasn't, a lot more people would have left by now. But we all put our heads together and, you know, and make it work. So, our community is stronger, but our economy is struggling.         NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Some tourists were determined to come to Gardiner despite the logistical inconvenience. Mary Haag and Jim Zweighaft married in Yellowstone 32 years ago.       Mary Haag, Visitor:   We were devastated when we saw the videos and knew that the park would be impacted so highly with all the millions of people that come here in the summer, including our own plans in the park. But if we can get in by our bicycles and support the town of Gardiner by being here and having, you know, dinner or something, we think that's a good thing to do.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Central to the park’s infrastructure is the historic Old Faithful Inn. The largest log construction in the world looks today pretty much the same as it did when it was built in 1904. The massive fireplace, made from 500 tons of local rhyolite – rock, produced by volcanic eruptions; its towering iron and brass clock; and violin music filling the main hall. In the park’s early years, only the wealthiest visitors could afford to come to the Old Faithful Inn or the Yellowstone Lake Hotel, traveling first by train and then by stagecoach. When automobiles were allowed in 1915, attendance soared, making it one of the most visited national sites in the United States.       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Among the Inn’s unusual traditions is Christmas in August.       Alicia Murphy, Yellowstone National Park Historian:   There's no true record of how Yellowstone started celebrating August 25th as Christmas. There's some people suggest that visitors were snowed-in over August 25th and they needed something to do and so they decided to have a Christmas party. It can snow any month of the year here in Yellowstone.         NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   It’s the scale of Yellowstone’s natural beauty that helped convince U.S. lawmakers to fund the park 150 years ago. But they hadn’t seen it in person. They were persuaded by accounts of early expeditions and by the images of photographer William Henry Jackson and painter Thomas Moran. This scenery is still seen in the park. But what about in another 150 years?           Michael Poland, Yellowstone Volcano Observatory:   One hundred and fifty years from now, Yellowstone - I think it will be different. I think perhaps the way the park is managed will be different. Certainly, we can see over time the way the park has been managed has changed. For example, in the way the park responds to wildfires - the way climate is changing will certainly also have an impact. That's one thing I really wonder about. We know from looking at the past record of say Old Faithful that during prolonged periods of drought, some geysers don't erupt that much. Can you imagine that Old Faithful, iconic Yellowstone feature goes quiet?                 Cam Sholly, Yellowstone National Park Superintendent: We have a long way to go in relationship to a thorough understanding of how climate change impacts different species. Can those species adapt or not? What types of actions can we take if we need to assist in adaptation? Which critical resources are most vulnerable in future events? How do we protect those?       NATASHA MOZGOVAYA:   Central to its future, says Sholly, is responding more proactively to the impacts of climate change across the Yellowstone ecosystems.   Natasha Mozgovaya, VOA News, Yellowstone National Park.   ###                 https://www.voanews.com/a/6921979.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6921979.html Tue, 17 Jan 2023 11:00:51 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) The Inside Story: Alaska Strategic Frontier Episode.   [[COLD OPEN]]  [[VO]]  Alaska: America’s Strategic Frontier  Join us on a journey to the 49th state and see why the United States military has such a significant presence here.  Strap into a fighter jet and learn about the American missile defense system.  Plus, a look at Alaska's statehood and geography.  Now on The Inside Story …Alaska…America’s Strategic Frontier.  ####      [[CARLA OC]]  Hi. I’m Carla Babb, VOA Pentagon Correspondent and I am at ______ in Alaska ---- commonly called America’s last frontier  Alaska is the 49th of the 50 US states, admitted in January 1959.  It’s perhaps the most mysterious of the America’s states because of its remote location in the uppermost northwest part of the hemisphere.  [[FS G]]  Alaska borders no other U.S. state --- attached to the continent with a border with Canada.  It’s also big.  How big?  Texas was the biggest U.S. state before Alaska was admitted --- and you can fit all of Texas inside Alaska with plenty of room to spare.  [[CARLA OC]]  Alaska’s size and location provides many strategic advantages for the U.S. to base a good deal of national security assets here.   As well, Alaska’s size and location provides plenty of challenges for the U.S. to base a good deal of national security assets here.  I will take you inside both the challenges and the strategic advantages of Alaska.  The best way to show you isn’t here on the ground.  Follow me into the sky.    ((NAT 40:18 Pilot Bond—"Here we go”))  ((NARRATOR))  Soaring in an F-16 at the top of the world.   ((40:28 NAT: All right, here comes the afterburner. Feel it? Me: I feel it!))  Backseat with the U.S. Air Force …  ((flip 1:13:31  nats laughing))  over America’s last frontier, Alaska.  ((shot of F-35 from my go pro))  At times flying faster than the speed of sound …  ((1:09:50-55 “We are now supersonic”))  ((F-35 from my GoPro))  an F-35 — America’s newest stealth jet — beside us.   ((360 shot, then Denali))  A sea of snow-covered peaks below — the tallest in North America. The majestic Denali, nearby.  My pilot, Major Lloyd Wright — call sign “Bond” — has navigated these skies for the last seven years.  ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force)) ((talking in jet))  “This is the best airspace to fly in … absolutely a national treasure.”  ((take Gs nat, then F-16 shot looping around))  But American fighter jets aren’t here for the views.     ((Carla Babb, VOA News, STANDUP INSIDE THE F-16 DURING FLIGHT))  “The military calls this strategic airspace. We’ve just arrived at the Arctic Circle. From here, fighter jets can reach anywhere in the Northern Hemisphere in a single flight.”      ((transition aerial shot with nat))  ((Col. David “Ajax” Berkland, Eielson Air Force Base Commander))  ((17:24:41-53, 17:25:01-07)) “And it's hard to understand that looking at a normal map that stretches Alaska out over the top of the map. But when you look at a globe// ((start globe graphic)) It becomes very apparent how close we are to really anything in the Northern Hemisphere.”     ((NARRATOR)) ((Yass is creating now-- really cool globe graphic for me))  Europe is just across the Arctic Ocean.      Mainland Alaska is less than 100 kilometers from Russia,      ((Orient the graphic globe down to show Hawaii, too))   And Asia is just across the Pacific …     ((Col. David “Ajax” Berkland, Eielson Air Force Base Commander))  ((17:24:41-48) “We are closer to the Indo-Pacific than they are sitting in Hawaii.”      ((NARRATOR)) ((Chinese army, then NK missile launch video))  … with growing fears of Chinese and North Korean attacks.     ((NARRATOR)) ((shot of Eielson sign))  A few years ago, the Defense Department was looking to close most of Eielson.     ((Seamus Daniels, CSIS))  “DOD argued that the cost to operate and maintain Eielson was expensive due to the environment, the climate, in Alaska. And ultimately, they proposed a major realignment.     ((Sen. Dan Sullivan, Alaska))  “Airspace larger than Florida, right here in Alaska, right behind me, and all of that was on the chopping block.”     ((NARRATOR)) (shot of Carla walking with Sullivan),     Alaska Senator Dan Sullivan tells VOA the people of Fairbanks, the city closest to Eielson, pushed back.     ((NARRATOR)) ((commission footage 2005))  ((2005))  So did an independent commission set up to evaluate the Pentagon’s proposed base changes.     ((Seamus Daniels, CSIS))  “The commission rejected DoD’s recommendation because they found that it wouldn't actually generate the original savings expected, //and the commission also argued that Eielson was important because it has great air ranges and extensive complexes.”     ((NARRATOR)) ((another takeoff, then aerial footage, 7:20 hook from front of aircraft in F-16 footage))  After downsizing, Eielson failed to take off. The Air Force did a full 180, ((nat of accelerating in plane)) ordering its training squadron of F-16s to stay put …   ((DOD of F-35s: https://www.dvidshub.net/video/836332/eielson-exercises-readiness-capability))  ((Courtesy: DOD))  … while deciding to station not one, but two new squadrons of 5th-generation F-35 stealth fighters here in 2016.     ((Carla Babb, VOA News))  ((STANDUP 2 in F-35 hangar 0363))  “Six years and 54 of these F-35s later, Eielson is a combat-ready base equipped to fight at a moment’s notice.”     ((NARRATOR)) ((F-35 footage inside hangar, flight line footage, hangar footage))  These combat aircraft are worth about $5 trillion, and the Pentagon has spent $600 million building more runways, more hangars, more fuel tanks, more upgrades to accommodate the new jets and new people.      ((F-35 taxiing on runway with nats))  ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))  ((*17:11:58-17:12:11 loud planes rolling in behind us))   “Case in point. It’s always busy here. There’s only ever about 20 minutes where there's not an airplane flying around out here. So, it's really grown exponentially.”     ((NARRATOR)) ((warehouse with Stew))  But as Colonel Stew Williamson knows firsthand, it’s a struggle just living, yet alone operating and expanding in the remote arctic environment.     ((Col. Stew Williamson, 354th Mission Support Group Commander))  “Its entire crazy climate change from minus-50 degrees all the way up to 80 degrees or 26 degrees Celsius.”     ((NARRATOR))  An environment that military planners say will continue to cause even more costly and dangerous problems as permafrost underground slowly melts amid global warming.     ((Carla Babb, VOA News, Eielson AFB))    [[CARLA OC]]  Fragile and frosty one way to describe Alaska’s environment and the challenges it poses for the Pentagon.  Before that, let me give you a little more background about Alaska, its people, its wildlife and what makes it America’s final frontier.     ((ARCHIVE, VAR, WHITE HOUSE, AP/TUA, 01/03/1959))     ((mandatory cg The Universal Archives))    ((VOX POP, ANNOUNCER/MAN))    “In the White House, President ((Dwight D.)) Eisenhower signs a proclamation that makes Alaska’s entry into the Union official.”    ((NARRATOR))    January third, 1959, Alaska joins the U.S. as the 49th state.  Flag makers quickly got to work adding an extra star in a seven-by-seven pattern.      ((VAR, ALASKA, SOURCE TBD))    Alaska is the largest of the 50 states boasting nearly one-and-a-half-million square kilometers of territory despite having a population about the same as Washington D.C, which covers only fraction at about 176-square-kilometers.      ((ANIMATION FROM CONTINENTAL U.S. TO ALASKA))    ((NARRATOR))    Its capital city, Juneau, is roughly six-thousand kilometers from the nation’s capital.    Alaska is also home to a handful of military bases and is of strategic importance as it’s just north of 75-hundred kilometers from Asia and at its closest point, only 88 kilometers from Russia.    ((VAR, WILDLIFE, TBD SOURCE))    ((NARRATOR))    The nation’s 49th state is home to more than one-thousand vertebrate species, which often land in political crosshairs over drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.    Alaska is known as America’s Last Frontier for its remote location and vastly unsettled land.  ((ARASH ARABASADI, VOA NEWS))   [[OC]]  WITH RUSSIA’S INVASION OF OF UKRAINE   U.S. ALLIES FEAR THAT RUSSIA OR OTHER AGRESSORS..  LIKE CHINA OR NORTH KOREA ..  COULD ATTACK THEM AS WELL.  IT’S A THREAT THE AMERICAN MILITARY IS CONSTANTLY TRAINING FOR.  ESPECIALLY IN ALASKA.  LET’S RETURN TO ALLISEN AIR FORCE BASE FOR A FIRST HAND LOOK...  AT HOW THE U.S. MILITARY PREPARES  [[PKG]]    ((NARRATOR))     ((NAT 41:20 Good morning, Mig!)) ((2 flips 1:29:50))     Back in the air with the U.S. Air Force...     ((NAT: We’re supersonic again. No big deal.))     ((1:10:01-05 Me looking to camera saying—"we are faster than the speed of sound!))     ((aerial shot))     ...in the Joint Pacific Alaska Range Complex, covering nearly 200,000 square kilometers of Alaska’s air space.     We are flying at NATO’s western flank with Russia, in what is also the closest U.S. state to Beijing.          ((video from Russia, then video of China))     Neither power is afraid to flex its muscles— Russia invading Ukraine; China threatening war over Taiwan.         ((Shot of me with Alaskan Sen Sullivan))     Bully moves that need deterring, Alaskan Senator Dan Sullivan tells VOA.          ((Sen. Dan Sullivan, Republican, Alaska))     “It's not just great power competition. It's authoritarian, dictatorship, aggression. //And Alaska can play a huge role in making sure we're ready for it.”          ((NARRATOR)) ((flight line and aerial shots))     To prepare? War Games. Eielson Air Force Base hosts multiple Red Flag Alaska exercises each year, training thousands of U.S. forces along with allies from across the globe.    ((Col. Greg Hunger, U.S. Air Force))  “So, this Flag [right word?] we have Canada and we’ve got the United Kingdom. // This year we're incorporating Singapore and we'll bring in New Zealand and Australia.”       ((NARRATOR)) ((aerial shots from VOA, then shot of us again, then shot of fighter jets flying from Burke))     Alaska is more than double the size of Texas with a population only about the size of Washington, D.C., so pilots have most of this Last Frontier airspace all to themselves.          ((NAT from flight line, show multiple in air at same time))     The size of the range allows virtually all 90 aircraft to share the same airspace at the same time.      ((NARRATOR)) ((shot of Bonds patch, then his helmet))     The training is as close to reality as possible. My pilot, Maj. Lloyd Wright, call sign Bond, donning Communist red stars from shoulder to helmet.     ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))     “We’re usually pretending to be Russian, Chinese or North Korean airplanes.”        ((Nat **1:09:05 Found him…take some Gs…Mig 2 and 4 talking))     Back in the air, the dogfight is on. ((MiG 1:05:56 MiG 1 to MiG 3)      It’s a team of American F-35s against Bond and the rest of the MiGs—a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Russian- made MiG fighters. [I don’t get the joke]          ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))     “Today our mission is to try and bomb the F-35s defended asset list. // I am doing my best to do the tactics and all the airframe abilities and disabilities of our adversaries. And we’re going to try to penetrate our Blue F-35s defensive mission set.”          ((NAT: 49:32 Aircraft Flips then Bond says, “We got ‘em”))          ((NARRATOR)) (my go pro shot of missile, then show the flare drop, then turn))     The weapons in Red Flag are not real, but the responses mimic real combat…     ((NAT “Fast Flare”, then Mig next to us dropping flare))           ((NARRATOR))     With simulated threats above and below.           ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))     41:44:50 “So off to your right that’s the restricted area, the bombing area. There’s also surface to air missile systems in there.”          ((NARRATOR)) ((F-16 shot))     The so-called 18th Aggressors are masters of the terrain. Bond has flown here for seven years.          ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))     ((1:45:41)) So during Red Flag we’ll fly down these river valleys and try to make it to the target areas. Or when Blue Air tries to do it, they’ll fly into these river valleys. So, it’s really fun to try to find them and kill them before they make it to their targets.”          ((Carla Babb, VOA))     “That’s a fun game of hide and seek.”           ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright))     “It’s like the most expensive game of hide and seek, laser tag you’ve ever heard of.”          ((**2FLIPS - 1:29:50 You wanna go upside down? Uh, yes! Flips one way then other—great shot!—nat 1:11:50 “It’s kinda fun being the bad guy”))      ((NARRATOR)) ((shots aerial mixed with other Burke shots from Friday))     Bond says training with international allies here shows the United States is not alone, even in the remote Alaskan wilderness.    ((Maj. Lloyd “Bond” Wright, U.S. Air Force))     ((1:28:47-57)) “It’s always a challenge with language difficulties, but I’d rather learn that here in training than trying to integrate in real combat, you know?”          ((Lt. Col. Greg Hunger, U.S. Air Force))     ((0939 3:30-39)) “So, the problems that occur usually, we see week one get fixed in week two, so that if they went to combat week three, those things are all resolved.”          ((NARRATOR)) ((more good VOA original shots from Ukraine, the best broll of Berkland))     And with worries Russia could be inching the globe to the brink of World War III, base commander Col. David. Berkland, whose spent his more than 20-year career flying both the F-16 and the F-35, says Eielson’s strategic importance is growing.           ((Col. David “Ajax” Berkland, Eielson Air Force Base Commander))     ((17:30:46-04))“Well, it just makes everything that goes on here at Eielson that much more, much more real, much more relevant, I think to the global situation. And so, it keeps us very much involved in what's going on.”          ((NARRATOR)) ((landing shot))     A major reason why exercises like these will continue.     ((CARLA BABB VOA NEWS EIELSON AIR FORCE BASE, ALASKA))       [[CARLA OC]]  The U.S. used the arctic as a growing   Area of competition between Russia and China.  Particularly as climate change brings warmer   Temperatures that open economic and military  Valuable sea lanes for longer periods of time.  But officials have acknowledged that the U.S. lags...  Behind those nations. So the U.S. Army has revamped...  Its forces in the last in Alaska.  Raising a new 11th Airborne Division to better prepare for   Future cold weather conflicts. The change will replace Alaska’s  Heavy striker brigades with a light infantry unit better suited for operating in the Arctic.  I sat down with Army Chief of Staff...  General James McConvile on the day he stood up the division...  At for Waynewright and Joint Base Elmondorf Richardson.  To discuss what the new division will Bring.  [[SOT]]  ##  ###########  GUEST INTERVIEW…   [[OC]]  One of the biggest military concerns …  About Russia and China ..  Is their nuclear weapon stock pile..  The U.S. Russia and China all keep ..  Enough nuclear weapons..in the arsenals..  To end civilization...  Should Vladimir Putin or Xi Jinping..  Decide to launch hundreds of nuclear weapons..  The U.S. alone could not stop all of them.  I could only fire back likely leading to mutually assured.  Destruction of all parties.  But the U.S. can defend against a limited nuclear attack ..  From a rogue nation like North Korea.  A looming threat as Pyongyang this year..  Tested its first ICBM since 2017  And continues a provocative streak in weapons administrations...  We take you inside two military bases in Alaska...  Key to that defense.  [[PKG]]  #####  ((Nats)) ((Mandatory chyron: Drill)) Team Member: “Implement site reporting. Implement site reporting.” Team Member:  “This is Clear. Stand by for site reporting. Have you received an LMPI?” ((NARRATOR)) A presumed intercontinental ballistic missile—an ICBM—just launched from North Korean territory…   ((Courtesy: Missile Defense Agency)) Space-based radar sound the alarm.   Now this team at Clear Space Force Station in Alaska must quickly verify it with their ground-based radar.  ((Nats)) Team member: System status? System stable?  Team member: Copy and concur. This is Clear, site reporting is valid. Number of objects is one.”   ((NARRATOR)) This North Korea launch is just a drill, declassified for VOA to show how Clear Space Force Station serves as a virtual detection shield. ((end drill chyron)) Team member: “We like to say that we’re the 300 on this base protecting the 300 million.” ((NARRATOR)) But deputy base commander Maj. Dave Kim tells me those launches are part of life here with North Korea firing 16 ballistic missiles this year, including an ICBM launch that Clear confirmed in March.   ((Maj. Dave Kim, Deputy Commander of Clear Space Force Station)) “We're watching them 24/7. We see what they do.// I like to describe this job as a no-fail mission. There's zero room for error. Absolutely none.”   ((NARRATOR)) ((Mandatory courtesy: Missile Defense Agency)) ICBM payloads separate in space, creating complex debris fields.   ((NARRATOR)) The space force station’s current ground-based radar can track space objects up to 5,000 km away, ((Courtesy: Missile Defense Agency)) but the image isn’t clear, making it difficult to pick out an incoming warhead.  So, the U.S. government built a $1.5 billion tool for its tracking arsenal—the new Long Range Discrimination Radar, or LRDR.   VOA got a rare look inside LRDR. The technology in these panels, officials say, makes it the most sophisticated radar on the planet.   ((Maj. Dave Kim, Deputy Commander of Clear Space Force Station)) ((Courtesy: Missile Defense Agency)) “LRDR is able to look into that adversarial threat cloud and differentiate which object is the warhead that we want to hit.  If I could compare it to anything it would be watching regular TV versus 4K or 8K.”   ((Courtesy: Department of Defense)) But tracking alone won’t stop a missile.  ((Lt. Col. Chris Stutz, Alaska National Guard)) “We have to do a hit to kill and that's something we can do.”   ((NARRATOR)) Lt. Col. Chris Stutz commands the missile defense battalion at Fort Greely, Alaska, overseeing soldiers who protect 40 of these ICMB-killing missiles, known as Ground Based Interceptors, in silos deep underground.   ((Lt. Col. Chris Stutz, Alaska National Guard)) “We'll see that incoming threat and, if we are authorized to engage then, our weapon system will send a task plan, if you will, to however many missiles that we need to service that incoming threat, these clam shells will explode open, and that missile will launch.”   ((NARRATOR)) ((Courtesy: Department of Defense)) To date interceptors have hit just 10 of 19 targets, a 53% success rate. But Ian Williams of the Center for Strategic and International Studies calls that misleading.   ((Ian Williams, Center for Strategic and International Studies)) “If you actually drill down, a lot of the tests’ failures were in very early prototype models that are not the models that are currently deployed today. In fact, if you look at the model, the kill vehicle models, that are on the interceptors today, there's only been one failure.”   ((NARRATOR)) The government just constructed 20 new silos here. VOA is the first news outlet to go inside one.   ((Carla Babb, VOA News (standup version))) “Take a look at this. This is the inside of one of the new missile silos that’s going to house the Next Generation Interceptor. Those should be operational around 2028 and they are going to be a more advanced version of the current interceptors here at Fort Greely.”   ((NARRATOR)) The biggest advancement? Each new Next Generation Interceptor, or NGI, housed here will have multiple kill vehicles, the part of the missile used to take out a warhead.    ((Ian Williams, Center for Strategic and International Studies)) “And what that means is by having multiple kill vehicles on one interceptor, you don't have to fire as many interceptors at a single object.”   ((NARRATOR)) A reassurance as threats from North Korea continue, and these bases nestled in the Alaskan wilderness remain America’s last line of defense.   ((CARLA BABB, VOA NEWS, FORT GREELY ALASKA))         [[CARLA OC]]  That’s all the time we have for now.  Stay up to date on Facebook and Instagram at VOANews.  Read more about my Alaska reporting trip on VOANews.com and follow me on Twitter at CarlaBabbVOA.  See you next week for The Inside Story.  ###            https://www.voanews.com/a/6887824.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6887824.html Thu, 22 Dec 2022 14:56:48 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Carla Babb) Transcript: The Inside Story: Farewell 2022 Episode 70 – December 15, 2022   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   Farewell 2022.   Let's take one last look at the stories that shaped this year:   War in Ukraine.   Business in Africa.   The enduring and evolving COVID pandemic.   A look back at the year that was, and what's coming in 2023 on the inside story: Farewell 2022.       The Inside Story:     CARLA BABB, VOA Pentagon Correspondent:   Hi. I’m Carla Babb, reporting from the Pentagon, where we’ve been following one of the year’s most important stories --- Russia’s war on Ukraine.   The United States has so far committed more than $19 billion dollars in military aid since February 24. That’s on average about $2 billion per month for weapons, ammunition, training and other Ukrainian defense needs.   Let’s take a look at what weapons have been most effective on the battlefield, what additional weapons experts say are still needed, and what’s yet to come.   The battle for Ukraine is now a lethal artillery duel, with both sides burning through tens of thousands of rounds each week.         Samuel Bendett, Center for a New American Security:   It’s been the artillery systems that have really won the day on many occasions for the Ukrainian defenders.       CARLA BABB:   Analysts and former officials say the most effective systems the U.S. has provided to Ukraine are the U.K.-built M777 howitzers and High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems, more commonly known as HIMARS.       Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Ben Hodges, Former Commander of U.S. Army Europe:   There are hundreds of Ukrainian baby boys that are named Himars now because it’s had such an impact there. And it is that long-range precision that is making such a difference.       CARLA BABB:   Defense officials tell VOA the U.S. has delivered 20 HIMARS to date. The U.S. has provided GMLRS ((pronounced GIMLERS)) rockets for these HIMARS systems, which have a range of about 90 kilometers.       Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Ben Hodges, Former Commander of U.S. Army Europe:   That’s good, but that’s not enough. The ATACMS rocket also fired by HIMARS would give a range of 300 kilometers. If the Ukrainians had that now, they could already be hitting Sevastopol and other critical sites inside Crimea.     CARLA BABB:   As Russia improved its counter-drone capabilities on the battlefield, Ukraine used American-made Switchblade drones, Phoenix Ghost drones and Turkish-made Bayraktar ((Bear-ak-tar)) drones, or UAVs, for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance.   Samuel Bendett, Center for a New American Security:   Ukrainians have basically taken their UAV-to-ground force pairing to an art form. They are a lot more flexible. A lot of their units actually feature tactical and long-range UAVs for artillery strikes, for providing situational awareness to the Ukrainian forces. And in many cases, they are simply better aware of where Russians are and can react much faster.       CARLA BABB:   But Russia has an influx of drones, as well, from its ally, Iran. According to the Pentagon, Russia has deployed hundreds of Iranian-made attack drones to target critical infrastructure in Ukraine.   To knock them out of the sky, Ukrainian forces use air defense systems like American-made Stingers — heat-seeking missiles with a range of about five kilometers, small enough to carry on foot. Analysts say Ukrainian forces have managed to shoot down between 60 to 85% of Russia’s Iranian-made drones.   Last month, the Pentagon delivered two NASAMS to Ukraine — National Advanced Surface to Air Missile Systems — which can target drones, aircraft and cruise missiles.        Rear Adm. (Ret.) Mark Montgomery:   From what I hear it's in the 30s for 30; kind of 35 attempted intercepts, 35 intercepts. It's doing very well. It’s defending major cities.       CARLA BABB:   But Ukraine still struggles to defend itself from Russia’s Iskander ballistic missile striking deep inside Ukrainian territory.   The Pentagon’s solution, officials tell VOA, will be to send Patriot missiles to Ukraine to counter these weapons. But retired Rear Admiral Mark Montgomery warns the U.S. would likely need at least six months to a year to train Ukrainians to use the complex and costly system.         Rear Adm. (Ret.) Mark Montgomery:   Each round of Patriot is between $3 and $4 million apiece. That is a very expensive system. It would use up a lot of the money being set aside for them.       CARLA BABB:   Overall, analysts agree that U.S. and NATO weapons provided to Kyiv have critically helped Ukraine defend its homeland, with the former commander of U.S. Army Europe making this bold prediction:       Lt. Gen. (Ret.) Ben Hodges, Former Commander of U.S. Army Europe:   If we keep doing what we’re doing right now, then I think Ukraine is on track to liberate Crimea by the end of August.       CARLA BABB:   The Crimean Peninsula — illegally annexed by Russian since 2014 — serves as a hub for Russian fighters in Ukraine. Freeing it would be a huge blow to Moscow.   Sweden and Finland saw Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as unacceptable, and formally asked to join NATO for collective protection.   Our Senior Diplomatic correspondent Cindy Saine brings us up to date on where their NATO membership stands.       CINDY SAINE, VOA Senior Diplomatic correspondent: Secretary of State Antony Blinken has welcomed his Swedish and Finnish counterparts to the State Department, where the top issue was both countries’ applications to join NATO. The two countries have a long history of military nonalignment, but that changed after Russia invaded Ukraine last February.   Blinken said Sweden and Finland share NATO’s values and are already integrating into the alliance while they are waiting on approval from all 30 NATO countries.   The holdup on their accession has been Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who accuses Sweden of being a haven for terrorists. Blinken said efforts to resolve the stumbling block are ongoing.     Antony Blinken, Secretary of State:   What both countries have done in engaging with Turkey, and with NATO itself, has been to address those concerns in tangible ways.       CINDY SAINE   Blinken said he is confident that NATO will soon be able to welcome Finland and Sweden as members. But Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto expressed concern that Turkey has yet to set a date for their parliament to ratify the accession.     Pekka Haavisto, Finnish Foreign Minister:   Of course, what we are still missing is a clear date and a clear plan of the Turkish parliament to deal with this issue. And we know that Turkey is going to the elections. Of course, our hope is that this should come from Turkey rather sooner than later.       CINDY SAINE   Turkey is expected to hold elections next May or June.   Last month, Sweden's parliament passed a constitutional amendment that will make it possible to pass tougher anti-terror laws, a key demand from Turkey to approve Stockholm's NATO membership bid. Experts say the new legislation will make it easier to prosecute members of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, blacklisted by Ankara and most of its Western allies.   High-level diplomacy is ongoing, as both Finland and Sweden have warned that time is of the essence because Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression is unpredictable. Russia’s Foreign Ministry has warned that it would view Finland or Sweden joining NATO as a threat to its security and would respond.   Cindy Saine, VOA News.       CARLA BABB:   While Sweden and Finland will extend NATO’s border with Russia to the Arctic ---   There’s no place more critical to aiding Ukraine than Poland.    It’s the pass-through for those billions of dollars of military weapons that we discussed earlier, along with humanitarian supplies.    And it’s been the destination for millions of Ukrainians fleeing the fighting.      From Warsaw, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief Myroslava Gongadze explains Poland’s vital role.        MYROSLAVA GONGADZE, VOA Eastern European Bureau Chief: One day before Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24, Polish President Andrzej Duda visited Kyiv and promised that “Poland would never leave Ukraine alone.”   After the war began, Poland welcomed Ukrainians fleeing the war and treated them as guests.    Lukasz Adamski, deputy director of the Mieroszewski Center in Warsaw, pointed out that Poland became a home for millions of Ukrainian refugees. Ukrainian citizens have extended rights in Poland and vice versa.   Poland also has played a crucial role in facilitating the delivery of Western weapons systems and humanitarian supplies to Ukraine.   Adamski said that the Russian threat changed the not always smooth relationship between Ukraine and Poland.         Lukasz Adamski, Mieroszewski Center:   War contributed significantly to the intensification of bilateral contact, enormous improvement of trust and liking each other. It also revealed that both states have a common interest, a common vision of the future.       MYROSLAVA GONGADZE   In May, Polish President Duda spoke to the Ukrainian parliament in person, the first foreign leader to do so since the war began.   He stressed his support for Ukraine's request to join the European Union and criticized those in Europe who suggested that Ukraine accept some of Russian President Vladimir Putin's demands. In his view, any territorial concession to Russia would be a blow to the entire Western world.     Andrzej Duda, Polish President:   Only Ukraine has a right to decide its future. Only Ukraine has a right to decide for itself. The world must demand from Russia the total withdrawal from Ukraine's territory and stop breaking international law.       MYROSLAVA GONGADZE:   In 2022, Poland became one of Ukraine's main military supporters and, along with fellow Baltic states, a lobbyist for Kyiv's integration into the EU and NATO. Warsaw’s strong support for Ukraine contributed to an improvement in what had been a period of fairly bumpy relations with Washington.   U.S. President Joe Biden visited Poland in March, meeting Ukrainian refugees and American troops on the ground. During his trip, he asserted the United States' strategic goal of supporting Ukraine's fight for democracy and self-determination and identified Poland as an important battlefield in the struggle for freedom and security in Europe.   In a speech at the Royal Castle in Warsaw, he emphasized the historical importance of Poland’s capital city in the fight against oppression. The nation had played a key role in the events that led to the breakup of the Soviet bloc in Eastern Europe and the end of the Cold War. The United States and Poland have both contributed financially to Ukraine.   According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy, between January 24 and October 3, the U.S. pledged nearly $55 billion dollars in military, humanitarian and financial aid to Ukraine, while Poland pledged nearly $3 billion dollars   With Polish territory being a base for Ukrainian support, Poland has become an indispensable U.S. ally for European security.   Myroslava Gongadze, VOA News, Warsaw, Poland       CARLA BABB:   Pivoting now to the US-Africa summit in Washington.   Leaders from nearly 50 African nations were invited here by President Biden to boost cooperation and blunt the growing influence of China and Russia.    Accompanying the summit --- a commitment of 55-billion-dollars by the U.S., investing in Africa’s economy, security and health.     VOA White House Correspondent Anita Powell takes us inside the summit.      ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:   President Joe Biden says he’s serious about Africa’s success — and has a serious plan to get the continent on better footing.       President Joe Biden:   The United States is committed to supporting every aspect — every aspect of Africa’s inclusive growth and creating the best possible environment for sustained commercial engagement between Africa companies and American companies. The United States is all in on Africa’s future.       ANITA POWELL:   U.S. officials announced they would give African nations $55 billion over the next three years — much of it directed toward health and climate projects.     On Tuesday, Biden also announced an agreement between the U.S. and the new African Continental Free Trade Area and a range of other bilateral agreements that he said would “unlock economic growth” in the world’s fastest-growing continent.   And, he said, the U.S. is taking this relationship online, by working with Congress to invest about $350 million in what he called the “Digital Transformation with Africa.”       President Joe Biden:   And this will include partnerships between African and American companies to provide cybersecurity services to make sure Africa’s digital environment is reliable and secure.       ANITA POWELL:   The U.S. ambassador to the United Nations told VOA that U.S. assistance won't be affected by African nations’ reluctance to condemn Russia and cut ties over its invasion of Ukraine.     Linda Thomas-Greenfield, US Ambassador to the UN:   We're not paying countries to vote for condemning Russia, and we're not threatening countries who decide not to vote. But we are appealing to them. We're appealing to their values. We're appealing to right versus wrong.       ANITA POWELL:   And the new prime minister of Lesotho — also the richest man in the tiny southern African nation — told VOA’s Peter Clottey that African leaders also want to see a 10-year extension of the African Growth and Opportunity Act, which confers duty-free status on some African exports.         Sam Matekane, Lesotho Prime Minister:   We have just negotiated, this morning, with the senators that we need to extend AGOA by 10 years because it's coming to an end in 2025. So we have already started negotiations in that path. AGOA is very, very, very important to us as a country.       ANITA POWELL:   The last summit that brought dozens of African leaders to Washington was eight years ago. But, administration officials say, their commitment to the mother continent is as strong today as it ever was.   Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington.       CARLA BABB:   Africa’s Sahel region has been a battleground for influence for more than a decade.    2022 saw a 50-percent increase in the number of deaths as terrorism and political instability sowed fear in three countries while displacing millions of people.    From Niger’s capital of Niamey, our Henry Wilkins sorts out the fighting factions in the Sahel.      HENRY WILKINS, Reporting for VOA:   As the western Sahel conflict entered its 11th year in 2022, violence grew worse.  Data from the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project shows around 9,000 fatalities due to conflict in 2022, up from about 6,000 the year before. Analysts say many in Sahel countries are exhausted by the worsening conflict, which this video on social media purports to show.  And they are looking to new international partners for solutions.   Some in the region, like Bachirou Ouedraogo in Niger, believe Russia will remedy Burkina Faso’s insecurity.   Bachirou Ouedraogo, Painter and Decorator: We have been with France for years. If they really wanted to help us with terrorism, we think they would have done it long ago. If you partner with someone who doesn’t help you take care of business, you have to get rid of them and find someone who can. That’s why we think we have to pivot to Russia.     HENRY WILKINS:   2022 also saw France wrap up Operation Barkhane, its military intervention based in Mali, as it became increasingly unpopular and relations with Mali’s military junta began to deteriorate. France is now moving much of its military operation in the Sahel to Niger.   In Mali, French troops have been replaced by mercenaries from a Russian paramilitary organization, the Wagner Group, which has been accused of human rights abuses and of fueling more violence than they prevent. In Burkina Faso, pro-Russian and anti-French protests and attacks on French-owned institutions and businesses have become commonplace since a second military coup in a year took place in September. Both the Malian and Burkinabe juntas cited the previous governments’ inability to solve the insecurity. Asked how the Sahel’s conflict could develop in 2023, one analyst told VOA…     Michael Shurkin, 14 North Strategies:   What remains to be seen is what happens as the population of Mali figures out that things are getting worse despite everything. Burkina Faso, I worry a great deal about. I think given the scale of the problem in Burkina Faso I think they need a lot more international help. I’d like to see the U.S. government getting more involved to help the Burkinabe government.     HENRY WILKINS:   Analysts have also noted that an increasing number of terror attacks are taking place in the northern regions of Ivory Coast, Ghana, Togo and Benin along the borders with Burkina Faso and Niger.   Press freedom has dwindled, according to advocacy groups, with international broadcasters and journalists being banned from Burkina Faso and Mali.   Meanwhile, local rights groups and press freedom advocates say human rights continue to suffer too.   In Burkina Faso, the new junta says it is recruiting 30,000 extra civilian volunteers to fight terrorism.  But rights groups say the volunteers are carrying out many rights abuses, playing into the hands of terrorist group recruiters.   In all, more than 2.5 million have been displaced by the Sahel conflict. Henry Wilkins, for VOA News, Niamey, Niger.     CARLA BABB:   Everything that happened in 2022 --- as well as 2021 and 2020 --- happened in the shadow of the COVID pandemic.    More than 13-billion shots have been developed and delivered to combat COVID-19 …    But more than six and a half million people have died in the pandemic, and getting vaccines to poorer countries remains a priority.    VOA’s Steve Baragona takes us inside the challenges that lie ahead.      STEVE BARAGONA, VOA Correspondent:   February 24, 2021: a delivery of COVID-19 vaccines arrives in Ghana, striking a blow for vaccine equity.     Anne-Claire Dufay, UNICEF:   We’re really happy because they’re going to benefit a large number of beneficiaries in Ghana. Ghana is the first country to receive the COVAX vaccines.       STEVE BARAGONA:   The U.N.-backed COVAX program aimed to help low- and middle-income countries get access to COVID vaccines after rich countries had locked down most of the early supplies.   The program struggled to compete for the limited available doses. After nearly two billion shots delivered, COVAX is narrowing its scope to serve the poorest countries.   That is in part because, two years later, there are plenty of shots available.   Not everyone is getting them, however, says Duke University global health professor Krishna Ukayakumar:       Krishna Udayakumar, Duke Global Health Innovation Center:   The inequities really are stark and continued. In Africa, only twenty five percent of the population of the entire continent is fully vaccinated, compared with more than seventy five percent in places like South America.       STEVE BARAGONA:   Supply is not the biggest problem anymore. Demand is. People in lower-income countries are not lining up for COVID shots, says Center for Global Development health expert Janeen Madan Keller.     Janeen Madan Keller, Center for Global Development:   This lack of demand is really a concerning trend we're seeing. The reasons behind low demand, I'd say, are quite complex and multifaceted.       STEVE BARAGONA:   Misinformation about the vaccines is rampant. Trust in governments providing the shots is low. And many people in lower-income countries don't see COVID as much of a threat. Plus, the vaccines took too long to arrive, Udayakumar says.       Krishna Udayakumar, Duke Global Health Innovation Center: While there was demand, it was unmet. So, it's reasonable now that we're seeing more hesitancy because we missed the time when everybody was ready to accept and take vaccines.       STEVE BARAGONA:   Much of the delay was because vaccine manufacturing is concentrated in a few, mostly wealthier, nations. Poorer nations were left hoping for handouts, says Brown University Pandemic Center Director Jennifer Nuzzo.     Jennifer Nuzzo, Brown University Pandemic Center:   I think we have to figure out how to make these vaccines in a much more distributed way than we did before so we aren't just relying on donations. It's clear donations do not work because when faced with a crisis, countries will always choose to prioritize their own populations.     STEVE BARAGONA:   Efforts are underway to build more vaccine factories in Africa. But building them is just the start. How to keep them in business in the long term is another question, Keller says.       Janeen Madan Keller, Center for Global Development:   Who is going to buy these vaccines? Or, what vaccines make sense, both from an economic but also from a health perspective, for these manufacturers to produce? Where will the money to pay for them come from?       STEVE BARAGONA:   The African Union faces these questions as it aims to manufacture 60% of its routine vaccines on the continent by 2040. The challenge is to build a sustainable vaccine industry that can handle both regular vaccines and the inevitable next pandemic.   Steve Baragona, VOA News.     CARLA BABB:   Congress in 2022 passed new federal gun safety legislation for the first time in more than two decades.    The bipartisan measure came in the wake of a mass shooting at an elementary school in Texas and another at a supermarket in New York.  But mass shootings continue to plague the United States, with more than 600 such incidents recorded this year. That’s on average nearly two mass shootings a day.   VOA’s Chris Simkins has more.       CHRIS SIMKINS, VOA Correspondent:   Gun violence surged in many U.S. communities in 2022, including a near-record number of mass casualty shooting incidents. In May, an 18-year-old gunman wielding a semi-automatic rifle killed 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. It was the deadliest U.S. school shooting in nearly a decade. A week later, President Joe Biden addressed the nation.     President Joe Biden:   For God’s sake, how much more carnage are we willing to accept? How many more innocent American lives must be taken before we say enough is enough?     CHRIS SIMKINS   Days earlier, a 19-year-old opened fire with a semi-automatic rifle at a supermarket in Buffalo, New York, killing 10 people. The suspect said he was targeting Black people.   On July 4th in Highland Park, Illinois, a gunman fired 83 rounds in less than a minute from atop a building, killing seven people and wounding dozens of others who had gathered for an Independence Day parade.   In November, a shooter killed five people and wounded 17 others at a gay nightclub in Colorado.  The 22-year-old suspect has been charged with murder, bias-motivated crimes and assault. Criminology professor Jack McDevitt sees a troubling pattern.     Jack McDevitt, Northeastern University:   We are starting to see guns being used in hate crimes more. That wasn’t the case for a long time.  We are starting to see more often that people use firearms to go after victims who they perceive to be different.   CHRIS SIMKINS:   Mass shootings are broadly defined as an incident in which four or more people are shot or killed, not including the shooter. They occurred in practically every U.S. state, totaling more than 600 nationwide in 2022. Some see a connection between a rise in hateful rhetoric and bias-driven violence.   While mass shootings grab national headlines, they account for a small percentage of the more than 40-thousand U.S. gun deaths recorded in 2022. Half were by suicide.   In June, Congress approved the first national gun legislation in decades. The law seeks to deny firearms to those deemed to be a threat to public safety and enhances background checks for gun purchases. While gun control advocates want to go further and ban semi-automatic weapons, the U.S. Supreme Court in June overturned a New York state law that restricted carrying concealed handguns in public. Gun rights defenders rejoiced.       Steven Lollo, Firearms Instructor:   What I have noticed is places that have simpler, legal gun laws are safer. The recent shootings that we had, I feel if a place is unprotected by firearms, it's a soft target.       CHRIS SIMKINS   Amid the debate, the United States remains plagued by the highest rate of gun deaths among advanced industrialized nations.   Chris Simkins, VOA News Washington.     CARLA BABB:   This wraps up our 2022 season of The Inside Story.    Stay up to date with all the news at VOANews.com.     Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.     Follow me on Twitter at Carla Babb VOA     Catch up on past episodes with our free streaming service, VOA Plus.     I’m Carla Babb.    See you next week for The Inside Story.     ###                                     https://www.voanews.com/a/6878000.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6878000.html Thu, 15 Dec 2022 14:11:37 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: Liftoff! Episode 69 – December 8, 2022     Show Open:   NASA Audio:   3…2….1… Liftoff of Artemis !!     Brenda Mulberry, Owner, Space Shirts:   Excitement is over the moon.     Unidentified Narrator:   After months of delays and setbacks…     Stan Love, NASA Astronaut:   It’s the first time we’ve flown this rocket and this capsule…     Unidentified Narrator:   NASA’s Artemis 1 blasts into the heavens, ushering in a new era of space exploration.       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Now our generation is going to have its own moonshots!       Unidentified Narrator:   Back to the moon… and beyond.… now on The Inside Story: Liftoff!       The Inside Story:   KANE FARABAUGH, VOA Midwest Correspondent:   Thanks for joining us, I’m VOA Midwest Correspondent Kane Farabaugh here at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center at Cape Canaveral.      Fifty years since people last walked on the surface of the moon, hundreds of thousands are drawn to Florida’s Space Coast…   To witness the beginning of a new chapter of NASA’s human spaceflight mission, with the launch of the agency’s rocket and spacecraft system, designed to return astronauts to the lunar surface, with the goal of one day reaching Mars.   The first step back to the moon however, is unmanned, and marks the beginning of NASA’s Artemis mission.  As it launches into the sky, it carries with the agency’s hope of reinvigorating interest in space exploration.   For nearly forty years, Brenda Mulberry has owned a space themed clothing shop not far from Kennedy Space Center in Florida, where business was slow since Space Shuttle launches ended in 2011.    But this year, she says, is different.        Brenda Mulberry, Owner, Space Shirts:   Excitement is over the moon.       KANE FARABAUGH:   People are flocking to Mulberry’s store to get anything they can related to NASA’s new Artemis mission.      Brenda Mulberry, Owner, Space Shirts:   On a normal day we might see 60 to 70 people in a day in our store, and we’re seeing hundreds and hundreds and hundreds an hour.  It’s a zoo.       KANE FARABAUGH:   After overcoming some last-minute technical issues, NASA’s Space Launch System, or S-L-S, rocket and boosters successfully roared into the night sky over Florida’s space coast carrying an unmanned Orion spacecraft into the heavens on a test flight to the moon.        Andrin, Swiss Fighter Pilot:   I always admired rockets and fast vehicles, and that’s probably why I became a fighter pilot now.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Andrin, a Swiss Air Force F-18 fighter pilot, traveled from Switzerland to Florida just to watch the historic Artemis 1 launch up close, in person.        Andrin, Swiss Fighter Pilot:   The SLS rocket has about 250 times the thrust of an F-18 fighter jet so that is quite a bit more than I am used to.       John McDonald, Retiree:   The loudest thing that has ever launched.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Retiree John McDonald joined throngs of visitors filling parks and viewing areas near Kennedy Space Center to witness the event he described as “unifying” for a country divided by polarizing politics in the wake of mid-term elections.        John McDonald, Retiree:   Nobody here is talking about whether they are Trump people or Biden people.  Politics doesn’t enter into any of this.  They are just here for one thing, to see space and to see that rocket launch.       Josh Novack, Author and Artist:   Nobody cares about whether you are red, blue, purple, whatever.  I think it is a great unifier to have something like this to latch on to.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Florida author and artist Josh Novack hopes the Artemis program reinvigorates interest in space exploration like NASA’s Apollo missions to the moon in the 1960s and 1970s.        Josh Novack, Author and Artist:   I can see how an event like that can bring people together and galvanize everybody towards a goal, and I think that goal should be improving life on Earth and I think a great way to do that is to explore space.       KANE FARABAUGH:   One of the main goals of the 26 day Artemis 1 mission around the moon is to test the new Orion spacecraft in preparation for crewed missions.       Stan Love, NASA Astronaut:   It’s amazingly cool!         KANE FARABAUGH:   NASA Astronaut Stan Love says plans for Artemis includes diversifying the makeup of the crews, paving the way for the first woman and person of color to make history on the lunar surface.        Stan Love, NASA Astronaut:   We are going to broaden our demographics, so it won’t just be white guys on the moon.       Branelle Rodriguez, NASA Program Integration Manager, Orion:   I call it the Artemis generation. Apollo had a twin sister – Artemis – and this is our generation.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Branelle Rodriguez is an integration manager for NASA’s Orion capsule which will house the astronauts.        Branelle Rodriguez, NASA Program Integration Manager, Orion:   I think it’s a fantastic thing for us to experience, for people to go explore and create a presence on the moon.       Stan Love, NASA Astronaut:   It’s the first time we’ve flown this rocket and this capsule so there are many, many things that can go wrong.  This is a test flight.  Don’t get your expectations too high.               KANE FARABAUGH:   But with throngs of tourists gathering in Florida for each launch attempt, plus reporters from  around the world assembled at Cape Canaveral, astronaut Stan Love knows those expectations are high, due in part to the large price tag of the endeavor.    The cost of the rocket and boosters has grown from $10 billion to $20 billion, with each successful launch costing about $4.1 billion.  NASA’s Inspector General expects the overall Artemis program to reach $93 billion by the time the first astronauts return to the surface of the moon.        Doug Hurley, Former NASA Astronaut, Northrup Grumman:   But we have challenges.  We gotta make sure the vehicle is ready to go, we gotta make sure it’s safe for crew, and those things just take time.        KANE FARABAUGH:   Doug Hurley is a retired NASA astronaut who flew on the first crewed mission of Space X’s Crew Dragon capsule to the International Space Station.   What do you say to those who say this is over budget and behind schedule?”       Doug Hurley, Former NASA Astronaut, Northrup Grumman:   I’ve heard that my whole career.  Every aircraft I’ve been involved with, every spacecraft I’ve been involved with.  We heard that with Crew Dragon flying -  it was six years from the time the contract was awarded to the time we flew.  It takes time to build these complicated machines. But it’s worth it.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Hurley says patience, and expenditure, will be rewarded.       Doug Hurley, Former NASA Astronaut, Northrup Grumman:   I mean when you look at NASA’s budget -  ½ of one percent of the federal budget.  And S-L-S is a small part of NASA’s budget, so to me, it’s all perspective.   KANE FARABAUGH:   Space Shirts owner Brenda Mulberry says that criticism is hard to find on Florida’s Space Coast.  She credits Artemis with creating jobs and increasing tourism in a part of the state that lost jobs and visitors when the Space Shuttle program ended.        Brenda Mulberry, Owner, Space Shirts:   I think everybody in the area underestimated the power this was going to have.       KANE FARABAUGH:   The first crewed mission back to the moon – to orbit but not to land – is Artemis 2, currently schedule for 2024, with Artemis 3 returning astronauts to lunar surface by 2025.   Recently, NASA announced their initial selection of 18 astronauts participating in the upcoming crewed Artemis missions.    The agency plans to land the first woman, the first person of color, and the next man on the moon in just a few years.  In the lead up to the Artemis 1 launch, we talked with Victor Glover, a U.S. Navy aviator and test pilot, and now one of the astronauts hoping to make history in NASA’s return to the moon.     So, Victor, tell me what it's like to sort of be here right now in this moment? The clock behind you says…     Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   It's unreal. I mean it sounds a little cliche but to be at the place where the Apollo missions launched from all those shuttle launches happened from, and I actually launched from that next door neighbor launch pad right there just under two years ago. But it's still surreal to be here.   This is one of my favorite places on the planet, and that's just any day of the week, but when there's a big rocket like SLS or Orion sitting over there, it's just the buzz here, the energy. It's really special. And my favorite part about this is the excitement of all the NASA employees who have worked hard for years to make this happen.       KANE FARABAUGH:   What is that excitement like? What is it at right now? I mean, you weren't born when Apollo was happening so I'm sure there's really nothing to equate this to, is there?       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   It's really neat to, like, stand on the precipice of maybe the next thing like that happening knowing it.   We call things moonshots when humans do great things, right? And so, our generation doesn't have that, so we look back at Apollo for that inspiration. So now our generation is going to have its own moon shots. And so that's, I think, a part of it for all of us. And I love the fact that it's connected. The legacy of Apollo and Apollo–Soyuz and the shuttle and ISS and our partnerships with SpaceX and Boeing. People say this is a marathon not a sprint. I say it's actually a relay race.   And so those programs have all informed what we're doing now. They've handed us the stick, and now it's time for us to run our best leg. And so this is going to open the door for us to send humans to the moon. And I mean I just, it's hard to imagine anything more exciting for people all over the world.         KANE FARABAUGH:   But this mission is also not just charting new paths in space, it's also sort of crossing historic barriers in gender, race, ethnicity, culture. Can you talk about that a bit?”             Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Well of course you know you heard the line it originally was we're going to send the first woman and the next man to the moon. And then it became you know we're going to send the first woman and the first person of color to the moon. And I'll say here's what I think about that.   Our office is diverse enough, we represent America. And because of that, we make our bosses' jobs actually challenging, we make his job hard because he's got to pick some of us and I think all of us are ready trained and capable of making this mission a success, but then I think the fact that our leadership recognizes the past and how maybe it wasn't equitable, that we can do something about that now in the astronaut office that we have today looks like America. So it's easy to do.   But the fact that our leadership recognizes that they have a role in it as well to make sure that it happens and to support and encourage the continued dialogue about that I think is really important. So it is encouraging, and I think all people should feel supported by this effort.         KANE FARABAUGH:   Does the reality that you may be someone who charts some kind of historic milestone for humanity, is it something that seeps into your mind often while you're going through training or while you're talking to the media? Or while you're doing this or does it have a special place in your mind to prepare for this?”       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   No.  I think those kind of things can distract you.  I’m an operator.  I love this, the business, the hands on, the highs, teamwork and the mission.  I love having a great crew to work with.   You know, there was a lot of talk about that from my mission to ISS and I didn't focus on that. I kept my head down and just did the work. And so but again, I do think it's important you know, there are little kids out there that look up to us and say I want to do that. But more important is that inspiration drives decisions, right? It drives behavior.   And so some little kid’s going, 'I want to be like that and I'm going to study this and I'm going to eat my vegetables and I'm going to be a good person.' And that to me is valuable. No matter what those kids look like, people keep asking me, is it meaningful to you that little Black kids look up to you and say they want to be like you? You know what?   Let's be honest, I represent America. I'm a naval officer and I work for NASA. I represent America and little white kids, little Mexican kids, little Hispanic kids, and little Iranian kids follow what we're doing because this is maybe one of the most recognizable symbols in the universe. And I think that that's really important and I take that very seriously.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Is there anything you can do mentally to prepare for a mission to the moon? I mean, nobody in the program right now has ever been there before. There isn't like relative experience you can go to unless you're talking to an Apollo astronaut to help prepare you for what it's going to be like to reach the surface of the moon.   How do you get ready and how do you do this because it’s not been done in 50 years?”       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   There's going to be a great training program. We've got a great team of people that are thinking about how to train astronauts for this mission. One of the primary things all astronauts have to do though is integrate all of that and then take it into space and know how space is different than what you do on the ground. There's going to always be that no matter where you go lower earth orbit or beyond, on the moon or on to Mars.   But I think personally, I'm a little bit more of a philosophical astronaut I would say and I think it's important for us also to recognize when you go do something like this, to not just know there are unknowns but to embrace it. You are not prepared, you're not as prepared as you can be if you don't expect something to catch you off guard. And so knowing that it's going to happen, you're going to be able to process those emotions faster and instead of going, 'Oh my God is this really happening?' You're going to go, 'Yeah God, thanks for the preparation' and you're going to do the next right thing.   And so knowing that you're going to a place not many human beings have been, I think is an important part of preparing for something like flying Artemis II or Artemis III to the moon.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Do you think the general public is invested, educated and excited about this mission as they might have been for Apollo? Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   [H]opefully the public is following that closely to know this is not a walk in the park. There's a lot about this mission that could go wrong, and that's going to help us to send people back to the moon. And so I think part of that falls on us to do that advocacy.       KANE FARABAUGH:   You're a military aviator…     Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Yes, sir.       KANE FARABAUGH:   This will be automated. This is going to be more automated than any other spacecraft in history. You know, in Apollo, they had switches and knobs. Here, people on the ground will be controlling a lot of the flight maneuvers in the path of the spacecraft. As somebody who has that background, how do you feel about that automation?       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   There are regimes of flight where we can have full manual control and there are regimes of flight where we would have a blended, some sharing between manual inputs and automation. And so there's a scale, a range of sharing of that responsibility. And I think that that's the state of the practice, right? The state of the art is maybe one day going to be, who knows, it's controlled by thoughts and folks on the ground but that's the state of the practice. And so, software has gotten much better. Hardware has gotten a whole lot better, our manufacturing capability, and so I think that's progress.   And yes, as somebody who likes to have a stick and throttle, you know, I want to go up there and do aileron rolls in the thing, but the maneuvers it's going to do are so complicated that for me to have manual control throughout the entire regime of flight actually adds risk that that we aren't necessarily trying to buy off on.   So we want manual control where it really matters, things like docking, things like landing on the surface, and enduring entry to make sure that we have the ability to steer to a safe location to get us back down to Earth safe.     KANE FARABAUGH:   Knowing where you're at now, knowing what you might have the opportunity to do, what would you say to 12-year-old Victor Glover?     Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Oh wow. Oh boy. That's a great question. Twelve-year-old Victor Glover didn't even know if college was a reality, you know, and just, no one in my family had graduated from college, and so there's a lot to this iceberg, and I'll save you the long story and I'll just answer your question. What I would say to 12-year-old me is, ‘It's going to be OK. It's going to be OK. You're going to be OK, but it's going to be OK because you're going to work so hard.’ And so, that's what I would say to myself. You know, this will take care of itself. Getting to this point and the amazingness of this, the awe of it all, it will take care of itself. You know, I wouldn't spoil the surprise.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Victor, man or people have not landed on the moon in our lifetime. That's about to change. Do you think we will get to Mars in our lifetime?       Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Oh, I think we will get to Mars in our lifetime. I said it a little while ago. This is a relay race. The journey to Mars has been 25 years away since we went to the moon back in the Apollo program. This is the first leg of the race to Mars. And so it's been 25 years ahead of us because we haven't started the race. When this is successful, we will have finished the first leg of that race, and we'll be that much closer. I think it will happen in our lifetime. I think I may be too old to be on that crew, but to all those kids out there, be your best self. Listen to your mom and dad, say please and thank you and eat your vegetables and exercise, because those young kids are going to be the people that have a chance to put feet on Mars.         KANE FARABAUGH:   Victor, thanks for joining us and good luck God speed.     Victor Glover, NASA Astronaut:   Thanks Kane!     KANE FARABAUGH:   As NASA’s Artemis 1 mission begins a new era of spaceflight, the work for future missions is already underway, thanks to the efforts of hundreds of companies employing thousands of workers around the globe to manufacture and assemble NASA’s next generation spacecraft, Orion.    Few people who live on this quiet residential street in Illinois know that the address at the end of their block is where the future of human spaceflight is under construction.      Piergiorgio Assandri, Chief Innovation Officer, Ingersoll Machine Tool:   You wouldn’t say that Rockford is one of the key cities for space, aerospace, and defense and especially Ingersoll, so many people might not know.       KANE FARABAUGH:   But behind the walls of Ingersoll Machine tools work is underway to create critical components for NASA’s effort to take humans back to the moon, and eventually on to Mars.       Rex Walheim, Retired Astronaut, NASA:   This is the barrel section of the Orion, so this is the central section of the pressure vessel.  It’s where the astronauts will basically live and work and the only place they’ll have to go while they’re on this mission.  It’s what keeps us alive.         KANE FARABAUGH:   The “barrel” is one of four components created by Ingersoll for the Orion spacecraft for NASA’s Artemis program.      Astronaut Rex Walheim will watch from Earth as the equipment is launched into orbit.      He made history as part of the last Space Shuttle crew in 2011 and worked as NASA’s astronaut representative to the Orion program.        Rex Walheim, Retired Astronaut, NASA:   I’m one of the astronauts who interact with the Orion program to make sure they are taking account of the things we need as astronauts, everything from habitability to safety aspects.         Mark Kirasich, Deputy Associate Administrator for Artemis Campaign Development:   NASA’s focus is now the harder, more difficult destinations.       KANE FARABAUGH:   NASA’s Deputy Associate Administrator for Artemis Campaign Development Mark Kirasich says the recent boom of commercial space companies allows NASA to focus on those more difficult destinations such as the Moon, Mars and beyond.          Mark Kirasich, Deputy Associate Administrator for Artemis Campaign Development:   Space X, Blue Origin, Sierra Nevada, Boeing, the people manufacturing commercial spacecraft … ATK Orbital… they are working for a different mission, a different market if you will and they are doing a great job.  We’re able to fly quicker and cheaper to low Earth orbit for what I would call simpler destinations.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Focusing on faraway destinations for the Artemis mission has spawned new work for thousands beyond Florida’s Space Coast.        Mark Kirasich, Deputy Associate Administrator for Artemis Campaign Development:   The parts for the spacecraft they come from all over the country. We employ thousands of people at over 900 suppliers like Ingersoll here across the country.  We also have 10 European countries that participate under the umbrella of the European Space Agency that manufacture components for Orion.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Components made during VOA’s visit to Ingersoll Machine Tools is part of the Orion capsule scheduled to launch in the Artemis 2 mission taking up to four astronauts about 40,000 miles beyond the moon during a flight currently scheduled for 2024.      NASA last crewed lunar missions to moon last occurred before Ingersoll’s Director of Innovation Piergiorgio Assandri was born in Italy. But it made a big impact on his family, and led him to the move from Italy, his birthplace, to the United States.       Piergiorgio Assandri, Chief Innovation Officer, Ingersoll Machine Tool:   And it was anyway, during my childhood, a big topic to discuss.  And for me, made the difference, to be in that nation, and be now a citizen of that nation and participate in a program that will bring back people to the moon.        KANE FARABAUGH:   Ingersoll is one of many companies supplying components to Lockheed Martin, which won the overall contract to create and assemble NASA’s Orion spacecraft.    Assembling other pieces of the Orion capsules happens near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, at Lockheed Martin’s new Star Center near Titusville, Florida, a former home of Space Camp and the Astronaut Hall of Fame.  Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   This particular center here was an 18 month $20-million-dollar investment by Lockheed Martin and that is helping to expand the manufacturing footprint for the Space Coast and allowing us to increase throughput overtime to support the lunar mission.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Kelly DeFazio oversees the work at Star Center.        Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   We do the sub-assemblies here that feed into that flow, and it ranges anywhere from the wire harness assembly system…       KANE FARABAUGH:   This is basically the nervous system so to speak of the capsule?       Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   Yes, these would all be… if you would walk by Artemis 1 you wouldn’t see this here.   The team here basically takes what we call over there those one strand of wire, runs it out, and you can see how many different wires go into one little connector or one little harness.  It’s a lot of hard and meticulous work the team does here and has done for a long time.       KANE FARABAUGH:   I’m sure there is literally miles of this stuff in there?          Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   Yes.  We also have different elements of our thermal protection system - the TPS system is made up of radiation blankets, thermal blankets all the way to pillows for the astronauts.      KANE FARABAUGH:   The flurry of activity at Star Center is geared toward multiple missions.       Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   Artemis 3 hardware will start building up here in the next few weeks in addition to the cables you saw feeding into Artemis 2 we also have the side hatch here and we’re applying the TPS and that side hatch for Artemis 2 as well so that launch is in 2024.   This is the panel that actually covers just adjacent aside the hatch so the side hatch would be right here where the white foam is.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Beset by delays and cost overruns, NASA estimates that when the Artemis 2 crew orbits the moon in 2024, Orion capsule costs alone will top $13 billion.   Overcoming delays and setbacks to get Orion off the drawing board and on top of the new SLS rocket system that propels it into space has taken longer than astronaut Rex Waldheim and others had hoped for.        Rex Walheim, Retired Astronaut, NASA:   Everybody wanted to do this faster, and everybody wanted the gap between our shuttle and deep space program to be shorter, but we are where we are, and we’ve made tremendous progress.           KANE FARABAUGH:   But not enough progress to allow Waldheim to fly in an Orion capsule.  He was not selected to join the class of astronauts scheduled for the Artemis missions, and retired from NASA in 2020.  But he remains proud of his part in the effort to send people back to the moon… and beyond.        Rex Walheim, Retired Astronaut, NASA:   To be a part of the program that is sending humans farther than they have ever gone in the history of the Earth is just amazing and I’m glad to be a part of it… any part I can be. Kelly DeFazio, Orion Site Director, Lockheed Martin:   We are going to take humans farther than we have ever gone before.  So the platform is laid, the energy is high, and I think the launch of Artemis 1 is going to ramp it up that much further.       KANE FARABAUGH:   Thanks for joining us on the Inside Story.      You can connect with us on Instagram and Facebook @voanews.      You can also visit our website at any time at voanews.com.     I’m Kane Farabaugh, and we’ll see you next week on The Inside Story.   #### https://www.voanews.com/a/6868319.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6868319.html Thu, 08 Dec 2022 15:27:04 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) TRANSCRIPT: The Inside Story: Biden’s Road to Bali Episode 68 – December 1, 2022   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   U.S. President Joe Biden meets world leaders in Indonesia, while Vice President Kamala Harris visits Thailand for the APEC Summit. as the United States shifts focus to the Asian continent.   How will the U.S. hedge China’s growing influence in the region?   And what does it mean for Russia’s war on Ukraine?   Now on The Inside Story: Biden’s Road to Bali.     The Inside Story:   PATSY WIDAKUSWARA, VOA White House Bureau Chief:   From Phnom Penh, Cambodia, I’m Patsy Widakuswara, VOA White House Bureau Chief. I traveled here with President Joe Biden, the first stop in his trip to Southeast Asia.   From Phnom Penh, I’ll take you to Bali, then Bangkok, following Biden and vice president Kamala Harris as they attempt to navigate China’s influence in the region and broaden the coalition to isolate Moscow over its war on Ukraine. Stay with me, in this episode of The Inside Story.   In his first stop in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, at the U.S. – ASEAN summit, President Joe Biden reaffirmed to Southeast Asian nations that the U.S. is committed to “ASEAN Centrality” – the principle that regional engagements are driven by the ten-country bloc, not great power rivalry.       U.S. President Joe Biden:   ASEAN is the heart of my administration’s Indo Pacific strategy. And we continue to strengthen our commitment to work in lockstep with an empowered, unified ASEAN.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Political violence in Myanmar since last year’s military coup against Aung San Suu Kyi’s government is high on the agenda.   Leaders have warned Myanmar’s junta to implement ASEAN’s peace plan or continue being barred from the bloc's meetings.   Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, will assume ASEAN’s chair next year. He is expected to take a tougher approach than the current chair Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen.       Joko Widodo, President of Indonesia:   Indonesia proposed that the participation of non-political level representation of Myanmar should also be applied beyond summit and foreign ministers' meeting.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Biden met with Hun Sen, the region’s longest-ruling leader, in office since 1985.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Activists have urged Biden to hold Hun Sen accountable for the country’s democratic decline. But with Phnom Penh firmly in Beijing’s embrace, there may not be much that Biden can do.   During his meeting with Hun Sen earlier this week, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang pledged $27 million in development aid for Cambodia.       Bunna Vann, The Thinker Cambodia:   Whenever there’s pressure from the western country especially from the U.S., China will be at the back of the Cambodian government providing support. When the U.S. have put a sanction to the Cambodian government, China will provide the economic support to the Cambodian government.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   There’s concern that Cambodia is secretly allowing Chinese warships to dock in its Ream Naval Base in the Gulf of Thailand.   Earlier this year Beijing funded to revamp the base, heightening fears among some ASEAN members concerned about Chinese expansionist ambition in the South China Sea. From Phnom Penh, Biden traveled to Bali, Indonesia, for the G-20 summit with leaders of the world’s twenty largest economies. There too, divisions between major powers overshadowed talks. I flew with the president on Air Force One as radio pool reporter. While I’ve traveled on the presidential plane around three dozen times in the past four years on the White House beat, this trip was special. I was going home. As the first Indonesian American to return to her birth country with the U.S. president, I am incredibly proud and grateful for this milestone in my career. Plus, the kind crew of Air Force One gave me extra presidential candy for my family and friends! For President Joko Widodo, hosting the G20 summit was meant to showcase Indonesia’s progress under his presidency. But he faced initial boycott threats from Western leaders who insisted that President Vladimir Putin of Russia, a G-20 member, be excluded from the group as punishment for his invasion of Ukraine.   Widodo resisted. In the end, Putin chose not to come in person, and sent foreign minister Sergey Lavrov in his place.   I spoke with Indonesian finance minister Sri Mulyani, who was instrumental in navigating geopolitical tensions ahead of the summit, on the fallout of the war on Ukraine and the impact of the US-China rivalry in the region.     Sri Mulyani, Indonesia Minister of Finance: From the very beginning we say that the theme of "Recover Together Recover Stronger" is very important. This is showing that the G 20 as the global economic forum, premier global economic cooperation forum should be able to address the issues [that are] economically important globally, that is how to recover together pick up stronger from the pandemic.     The second one we also as a presidency we also [reminded] the membership especially the ones who tried to say that 'well, why don't we just disinvite Russia?' We said that the G20 was created to save the world from economic collapse during the global financial crisis. And that kind of cooperation certainly [is needed] not only [when] facing the global financial crisis back in 2008 but also when we are facing the pandemic in which our [countries] need to work together.   No single country can actually address the issue [of the] pandemic which is actually borderless. And then also the issues regarding climate change, which also require a lot of cooperation definitely in order for us to address the issues of this global challenge. So we reminded all the members that this kind of cooperation is non-negotiable for us. This forum should not be breaking.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   I want to move on to another meeting that was considered partly Indonesia's diplomatic success, which is the meeting between President Biden President Xi, which was some sort of modest lowering of tension in the region. From your point of view, from point of view of Indonesia and the region, what is the most concerning about the US China rivalry? Do you feel that there is a new cold war brewing in this region?     Sri Mulyani, Indonesia Minister of Finance:   So for all of us – I think ASEAN ten, the rest of the world – we have the interest to make the relationship work in a responsible way and that's exactly what was communicated by the two leaders. That is going to create less damage to the very fragile global economic recovery at this very moment. And at the same time, also creating a much better – if they have any differences or any political objective then they should have the ability to discuss.   But for sure ASEAN and Asia in general, this is the region which is being seen as the brightest part of the world in terms of economic performance, relatively safe in terms of the security as well as the war or tensions in this case. And that's allowing many of the ASEAN countries to actually catch up and build and develop so that they are reducing the poverty, creating prosperity and creating also a net positive benefit to the world.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   In a diplomatic compromise to U.S. and European leaders, Indonesia invited President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to speak virtually despite Ukraine not being a member of the G-20, group of the twenty largest economies in the world.   VOA’s Ukrainian White House Correspondent Iuliia Iarmolenko spoke with U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby in Bali, about the peace plan that Zelesnkyy presented at the summit.       Iuliia Iarmolenko, VOA Ukrainian White House Correspondent:   One of the points in this 10-point peace plan was that after war ends, Ukraine wants to have a security guarantee, and one of the proposals is the so-called Kiev Security Compact. Does the United States support this format?     John Kirby, U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications   What the United States supports, again, right now is a Ukrainian armed forces that can continue to defend their sovereignty and defend their people to defend their country and gain back the territory that Russia has taken or attempted to take in some cases. I'm not going to get ahead of where we are right now. And I'm certainly not going to get a head and jump into what negotiations would look like.   Obviously, we want the Ukrainian military to continue to succeed on the battlefield. And we are already talking with the Ukrainians about long term defense needs and what that might look like. But we're just not at a point now where we can say definitively exactly what that's going to look like.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   Bali is world renowned as a tropical paradise. In another diplomatic win for Indonesia, this “island of the gods” was a fitting setting for the highly anticipated meeting between two superpowers – President Joe Biden and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping.   Amid heightened tensions both leaders stressed the need to manage differences and avoid conflict.       Xi Jinping, Chinese President: We, as the leaders of China and the United States, should play a role in guiding and setting the directions so as to find the correct direction for the development of the relations between our two countries.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   In the meeting that lasted over three hours Biden said he sought to lower tensions over Taiwan, a self-ruled island Beijing considers its breakaway province.     U.S. President Joe Biden:   I do not think there's any imminent attempt on the part of China to invade Taiwan and made it clear that our policy on Taiwan has not changed at all, it’s the same exact position we've had. I made it clear that we want to see cross strait issues peacefully resolved.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   But just days after Biden and Xi met to lower tensions, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Palawan Island in the Philippines, underscoring that an attack on the Philippines would invoke U.S. mutual defense. Palawan sits just 330 km east of the disputed Spratly Islands claimed entirely by China and partly by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam.       Kamala Harris, U.S. Vice President:   As the United States as long made clear, we support the 2016 ruling of the UN arbitral tribunal which delivered a unanimous and final decision firmly rejecting China's expansive South China Sea maritime claims.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   China, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan and Vietnam – have competing territorial claims in various parts of the sea, with Beijing claiming most of it.   Skirmishes have often occurred. Phillipines President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr.:       Ferdinand Marcos Jr, Philippine President: The upheavals that we are seeing, especially, not only in the region, but especially in the region, these partnerships become even more important.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   China shot back.     Zhao Lijian, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson: We are not opposed to normal exchanges between the US and the Philippines, but such exchanges should not harm the interests of other countries.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:     As China increases military activity in the region, Washington is seeking to repair ties with Manila after fraught relations under previous President Rodrigo Duterte.   Of Washington’s five treaty allies in the Indo-Pacific, the Philippines is closest to Taiwan and therefore central to U.S. plans to deter and respond to potential Chinese attack on the island.   Just how convinced is Biden that Xi has no plans to invade Taiwan? VOA’s Mandarin White House Correspondent Paris Huang asked U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby in Bali.   Paris Huang, VOA Mandarin White House Correspondent:   Did Xi Jinping promise President Biden anything during the meeting to make him say that?     John Kirby, U.S. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications:   As the President said, we don't want to see these tensions result in the use of force. We want to see tensions over the Taiwan Strait solve peace peacefully. And we don't want to see that status quo change unilaterally, we certainly don't want to see a change by force.   The President feels very comfortable, that he had a candid, forthright conversation with President Xi. And again, we're gonna have our teams now move forward to work at a working level on some of these issues.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   While Indonesian President Joko Widodo as host insists that the G-20 is an economic, not a political forum, he could not escape geopolitical fault lines. Those lines literally exploded on the last day of the summit.   The mangrove planting ceremony by world leaders hosted by Indonesian President Joko Widodo during the Bali summit, was designed to highlight the G20’s climate agenda.   But an event ten thousand kilometers away caused late arrivals of NATO and G-7 leaders due to a hastily arranged emergency meeting to discuss the explosion in Poland that killed two people. While the blast was not caused by a Russian missile, the threat of the war in Ukraine spilling over to neighboring Poland – a NATO member – triggering the alliance’s collective defense principle and escalating the war, is real.   G-20 leaders concluded their summit with a statement that saying that “most” members “strongly condemned” the war in Ukraine, but that the forum was not the place for resolving security issues.   But no tensions exist between VOA journalists who covered the summits.   We sent our Russian, Ukrainian and Mandarin correspondents to Bali, as well as myself covering in English and Indonesian. And as you can see, there is no great power rivalry here, as we report for VOA’s global audience of 350 million.   Thanks for the great teamwork, guys, it’s been such a pleasure working with you, and with our VOA Khmer service in Phnom Penh during the ASEAN summit.   The G-20 Summit also boosted the Bali tourism industry that took a hit during the pandemic.     Delegations from around the world, stayed at the island’s luxurious resorts, just like this one where we, the White House press corps stayed at.   But the summit’s impact, is also felt by small business owners. Devianti Faridz, spoke with some of them. DEVIANTI FARIDZ, Reporting for VOA:   Punia Giri, an owner of a batik clothing and textile company, traveled from Bandung, West Java, for a G-20 exhibit of 300 small and medium-sized enterprises, or SMEs, from across the country.   The “Future SME Village” is a designated area to promote Indonesian products within the enclave of five-star hotels where the summit is being held.   The exhibit opened several days ago, but Punia said it hasn’t attracted the crowds and revenues she expected.     Punia Giri, Kamisuka Batik Owner:   Our revenues have not significantly increased, but we have gained brand awareness. Previously, our Kamisuka Batik brand wasn’t recognized by foreigners. In Indonesia alone, it is known within limited groups of people. Since the G-20 Summit, the governor’s wife and deputy governor have started to promote our brand to Indonesians across the country.       DEVIANTI FARIDZ:   Punia says many foreign delegates have exchanged information after buying her clothing, and she’s optimistic that more customers will come after the summit ends.   The COVID-19 pandemic was hard for Ni Nyoman Sandat, who owns a small eatery in the Nusa Dua district. During the height of the pandemic, she had no customers. But as preparations for the G-20 Summit began, Sandat saw an increase in sales.     Ni Nyoman Sandat, Local Business Owner:   We felt a significant increase in our income after police officers, security personnel and event organizers started eating here. I’m not sure who exactly they were, but, apparently, my revenue rose because of them.       DEVIANTI FARIDZ:   Bali opened to international tourists several months ago, but the number has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels.       Wayan Suriawan, Ride-Share Driver:   I hope the G-20 summit would run smoothly and further improve tourism development because Nusa Dua district relies heavily on the tourism sector.       DEVIANTI FARIDZ:   Despite safety precautions, many local residents say they are proud that Indonesia holds the presidency of the G-20. They hope, in the long run, the meeting will promote peace and prosperity in a world struggling with the pandemic, food insecurity and political tensions among the superpowers.   Devianti Faridz, for VOA News, Bali.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   With Biden returning to Washington, I left Indonesia for Bangkok, Thailand, where Vice President Kamala Harris led the U.S. delegation at APEC, the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.   She brought the message that the U.S. has an enduring economic commitment to the region. But with China a dominant trading partner and infrastructure investment force in the Indo-Pacific, how did that message land?   In Bangkok, I asked Thitinan Pongsudhirak, director of the Institute for Science and International Security at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.     Thitinan Pongsudhirak, Director, Institute for Science and International Security, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok:   When it comes to trade and geo-economics the US is a little bit behind the curve because it pulled out of the TPP (Trans Pacific Partnership) and the TPP became the CP TPP excluding the US, but not including China.   The RCEP does include China, and now China has stepped it up by proposing the China ASEAN Free Trade Agreement 3.0 which is an upgraded version of the RCEP building on the earlier China ASEAN free trade agreement.   So this is something I think the US will be scratching its head, and it’s a big challenge to US policymakers of trying to match China's latest geo economic maneuver.   But nevertheless, don't forget, the US is still a major investor in the region, the stock of us investments do immense, very close to China, they take turns going back and forth.   And then in the high-tech industries, the US is a pretty dominant force reckoned with. And then on the flow of trade, investment, high tech, innovation, digital trade, you know, the US has a lot to offer.     PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   It’s no secret that the common view in the region is that Beijing is your bankroller, and Washington is your security provider to maintain stability and peace. But its top leadership is warning that the U.S. military must change if it wants to stay ahead of China and Russia. Here’s more from VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb.       CARLA BABB, VOA Pentagon correspondent:   While the United States was busy fighting wars against Islamist extremists in Afghanistan and the Middle East, Russia and China steadily built up their military power.   Russia now flexes those military muscles in neighboring Ukraine, and the Pentagon has dubbed China its greatest threat to national security.   Speaking exclusively with VOA, Gen. C.Q. Brown Jr, the chief of staff of the Air Force, is warning the United States cannot be satisfied with its position as the world’s superpower if it wants to stay that way.     C.Q. Brown Jr., US Air Force Chief of Staff:   Our adversaries have continued to advance their capabilities at the same time we’ve been using some of the same capabilities we’ve been using for the past 30 years. The threat we were up against, it's not the threat we'll see in the future. And that's why we've got to, we've got to change.           CARLA BABB:   China has more active-duty military personnel than the United States and has spent decades advancing its weapons. In the last few years, the Chinese military has built new aircraft carriers, new fighter jets and a massive missile arsenal.     Melanie Sisson, Brookings Institution:   It's fair to acknowledge when progress is made by those potential adversaries, but that fact alone shouldn't induce any panic in the United States. We are still relatively very, very capable; the best military force in the world.     CARLA BABB:   Army veteran and defense analyst Bradley Bowman points out that China has methodically and deliberately chosen modernizations specifically designed to defeat the United States in East Asia, the most likely battlefield should war break over Taiwan.   And that could make American ports and bases in the region vulnerable to Chinese attacks.       Brad Bowman, Foundation for Defense of Democracies:   The reality I see is in capability after capability the Chinese have developed capabilities that are as good, in some cases better than ours. America's military edge in the Pacific has absolutely eroded and I continue to see China sprinting, while it often seems like we in Washington are slumbering.       CARLA BABB:   The Air Force unveils its newest stealth bomber, the B-21, next month. The B-21 will replace America’s B-1 and B-2 bombers, which have been around since the 1980s.     C.Q. Brown Jr., US Air Force Chief of Staff):   This is why I'm going to modernize, because we have some aircraft that are, from a maintenance standpoint, are a little harder, more difficult to maintain (with) diminishing resources for parts. And that's the aspect of being able to modernize so we increase the aircraft availability and ensure we have a ready force.       CARLA BABB:   But ready also for what has yet to play out.   U.S. officials say China wants the ability to invade and hold Taiwan by 2027. And China has said it aims to be a world-class military capable of "fighting and winning wars" by 2049.   CARLA BABB, VOA NEWS, THE PENTAGON.       PATSY WIDAKUSWARA:   That ends our journey through three Southeast Asian countries – Cambodia, Indonesia and Thailand on this episode of Inside Story, where I hope we’ve shown you how the region aims to navigate U.S. – China rivalry and geopolitical tensions from the war in Ukraine.   For the latest news on the region, log on to VOA News dot com. For all things White House – related, follow me on twitter at P-Widakuswara...   From Bangkok. I’m Patsy Widakuswara. We’ll see you next week, on the Inside Story.   ### https://www.voanews.com/a/6858526.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6858526.html Thu, 01 Dec 2022 15:37:39 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch) Transcript: The Inside Story: World Cup: Cause of Death Episode 67 – November 24, 2022   Show Open:   Unidentified Narrator:   1000s of migrant workers died in Qatar building the stadiums and infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup.   What happened?   We take you to Nepal for firsthand accounts from their families who asked Why are no governments companies or organizations taking responsibility?   The Inside Story: Cause of Death, Migrant Workers and the World Cup.       The Inside Story:   HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Middle East Correspondent:   Hi. I’m Heather Murdock, VOA Middle East Correspondent, here in Egypt. The FIFA World Cup is, perhaps, the biggest sporting event of them all. More than three and a half billion people watched the previous tournament on television – nearly half of the entire world.   But the 2022 World Cup in Qatar has been mired in controversies since the small Gulf country was named the host twelve years ago. Qatar has spent more than $200 billion dollars on new World Cup stadiums and related infrastructure – but the nation has almost no native construction workers. That has required a massive number of workers to travel to Qatar.   The system of importing labor – known as Kafala – has led to accusations of unsafe working conditions, abuse and exploitation by construction companies, and the deaths of thousands. This week, we will take you to Nepal to meet some of these workers and the families who lost loved ones in Qatar.   Here is “Cause of Death: Migrant Workers and the 2022 Qatar World Cup.”     Ramesh Gupta:   Football is one of the most popular games in the world.   When I play, it makes me so happy.   We play against the local teams.   And everyone is celebrating when we win the game.   To celebrate, we take pictures of ourselves with the trophy. And later on we also receive some cash prize. With that money we throw a party for the boys. That's it.     Unidentified reporter:   Certainly the most surprising decision was the 2022 victory by Qatar, to become both the first Middle East nation and the smallest nation to host a FIFA World Cup.     Unidentified reporter:   An estimated two million migrant workers are in Qatar, mostly from South Asia and Africa. There were widespread complaints of unpaid wages, dire living conditions and dangerous construction sites.       Gianni Infantino, FIFA president:   All the stadiums, they are state-of-the-art, they are beautiful.     Sepp Blatter, former FIFA president:   But in no way can FIFA accept to be responsible for the welfare of workers, they belong to commercial and industrial companies of other countries. We couldn't do that.       Ramesh Gupta:   I am from Nepal. My uncle passed away three and a half months ago in Qatar.       Dr. Prakash Raj Regmi, cardiologist in Nepal:   We find coffins with dead bodies arriving to Kathmandu airport.       Urmila Devi Sah:   My husband died in Qatar four months ago.       Hiralal Pasman:   I had a son who passed away.       Aslani Devi:   He died in Qatar.       Shekh Akhtar Husen:   My father called me with the news and asked me to come home right away. I couldn’t believe it and I said, “I talked to him this morning.”       Sakhil Saphi:   He told me that his ticket home was booked for next month. But the next morning at 4 o'clock he was found dead.   Kaushalya devi Bin:   I have lost my son. What else is there to say?     Ramesh Gupta:   My name is Ramesh Gupta.   Our team name is Shree Mahabir Sports Club.   If I had the opportunity to stay in my village, then I would like to start a small business.   We have a shop here that I would expand.   The government has not been able to provide enough employment opportunities for all of the people here in Nepal.   So, because we have no choice, in order to earn a living, to live our lives and to secure a future we are forced to go abroad.   I'm not sure what work I will get overseas. It's not determined yet.   But, given my abilities, it would be good if I could work in an office.   Or, I would like to work as a cashier.   Yes, I do get scared.   The work we do abroad is like that.   We have to work at building construction sites, and we don't know what might happen.   Whatever work people can get, they do it.   Since we don't have proper education, whatever work we get, we have to do.   A lot of people have died in Qatar.   HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Middle East Correspondent:   In 2010, when Qatar clinched its bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the controversies began.   The tiny Gulf country didn’t have the infrastructure in place to host the World Cup.   Qatari representatives were accused of bribing their way to securing the Cup. Investigations into alleged corruption continue more than a decade later.   There were complaints summer heat — sometimes soaring to 50 degrees — was too much for fans and players. That was solved by moving the games to the winter.   And while wealthy, Qatar has virtually no native construction workers. But over the next 10 years the population of foreign workers grew, adding more than 65% to the foreign population.   The influx meant the already fraught system of hiring abroad for labor would be put to the test.   And it was.   Construction boomed: a $300 million renovation of its Khalifa International Stadium; seven new stadiums; and a new luxury city – Lusail, where the Lusail Iconic Stadium will host the World Cup finals.   Qatar now boasts more than 100 new hotels and serviced residences, new skyscrapers, entertainment plazas, museums, public art works and a complete new metro and tram system.   As quickly as all those buildings rose, so, too did reports of human rights abuses of the people who were building them.   Human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, as well as news media reported that workers were subjected to wage theft and restrictions on their movement. Most egregiously, they said, workers suffered from dangerous working and living conditions.   Thousands of workers died during Qatar 2022 World Cup-related construction, far more than in the run up to every other World Cup or Olympic Games in the past 30 years combined. Amnesty International says most death certificates list “natural causes” or “cardiac arrest,” as the cause of death, causes that shift blame, and liability, away from employers.     Ramesh Gupta:   My brother brought back the body. He was living in Qatar.   There are many people from this village in Qatar.   They all helped him.   The people who were living there had raised about 300,000 Nepalese Rupees to bring his body back here.   Everyone pitched in.       Urmila Devi Sah:   My name is Urmila Devi Sah.   My husband died in Qatar four months ago.   I have four children.   My oldest son is 15, 16,   The others are ten, eight and five-and-a-half years old.   Sometimes I wake up at 6 a.m., sometimes at 5.   First, I clean the house, the shop and the yard.   Then I open the shop.   After that, I wake up my sons and make tea and a light breakfast.   I serve my family members and then I cook a meal.   After cooking, if I have other work, I do it.   If not, I run the shop in the afternoon.   I opened the shop three or four months ago for support.   But it doesn’t generate much income.   From the income, I purchase goods for the shop.   To date, I have not made enough for household expenses.   My husband worked as a painter.   He used to go to work at 9 a.m. and return around 6 or 7 p.m.   I talked to my husband a few hours before his death.   He told me that he was feeling pain in his chest after he attended a party.   He endured the pain for three or four days and was taking medicine.   Later, he died of cardiac arrest on his way to a hospital there, they said.     When I heard about his death, my mind stopped working.   My whole family was crying.   When I knew he was no more, I thought about what to do. I could do nothing if he was no more.   Everyone started weeping and crying.   Whenever I remember my husband, I can’t stop tears falling from my eyes.  Dr. Prakash Raj Regmi, cardiologist in Nepal:   But what we see every day, we find coffins with dead bodies arriving to Kathmandu airport.   How can it be a natural death?   Either it should be an injury   either it should be some serious illness.   How can a person, 20 years old, die naturally?   Of course now, if we go beyond the death, if we try to explore the cause of death.   What were the causes of death?   What were the triggers that caused the complication so that a person died?   The non-cardiac death, if we evaluate then there are several:   work injuries   fall from height   there are poisonings   there is homesickness, leading to depression and suicide.   And this extreme atmospheric condition where the workers work the day long.   It causes dehydration.   It may cause heat stroke.   It may cause massive dehydration, electrolyte imbalance.   And this may lead to death.   Sweating is a defense mechanism. It cools the body.   But when the person is exposed to extreme hot climate for a long duration of time this mechanism, body mechanism, fails.   The sweating cannot cool down the body.   So the temperature of the body rises and this leads to several complications which may later on cause death.   Death may occur immediately at the spot.   Or it may occur several hours or days later.       Ashmita Sapkota,Amnesty International Nepal:   Because their deaths are unexplained, not investigated properly, as a result, the families are denied compensation.   And also they do not know how their near and dear one died in Qatar.   It could be heat and it could be because of the pressure, the suicide rate is also very high, because they take loans they must have a lot of mental pressure also.       HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Middle East Correspondent:   Despite the danger, workers keep traveling to Qatar for the chance to work. Most come from India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, also the Philippines, Kenya, Sudan, Uganda and Nigeria, countries where jobs are scarce and poverty is rampant.     In Nepal, one of Asia’s poorest countries, 56% of households receive remittances from these workers abroad – that’s more than half the country dependent on their income.   The death of a family’s main earner can be devastating. If a worker is deemed to have died due his job, his family is compensated financially. But if his death certificate says he died of “natural” causes or other non-work-related reasons, the family gets nothing from the employer.   And this is usually the case.   Some say the worker hiring process known as Kafala is the heart of the problem.       Ashmita Sapkota,Amnesty International Nepal:   Due to this Kafala system — which is also called the sponsorship system — the workers were tied to their employers, they were not allowed to switch their jobs and they were not allowed to leave the country without taking permission from their employer.   As a result, migrant workers were forced to remain submissive to labor exploitation and abuses.     HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Middle East Correspondent:   The Kafala system is a legal framework used in many Middle Eastern countries to help employers hire workers from abroad, usually for household help or manual labor, and puts the employer in charge of the worker’s legal and visa issues.   Under Kafala, workers need employers’ permission to:   Enter the country Stay in the country Change jobs And leave the country   It’s a system so ripe for abuse that one Nepalese diplomat referred to Qatar as “an open jail.” Human Rights Watch said some of the abuses could amount to “modern slavery”.   Years of criticism of harsh working conditions, low or no pay, and deportations because employers withheld documents led Qatar to implement reforms starting in 2017, and officially dismantle the Kafala system. Among the improvements have been a set minimum wage - 1,000 Qatari Rials a month [about $275] - and a stipend for food and housing. That standard appears to be generally upheld.   Workers officially no longer need their employers’ permission to travel or change jobs.  But many people say they still need to seek that permission — often for fear of retribution. Others who want to leave can’t, as they owe large sums of money to lenders who helped them pay recruitment companies.    And they still have no right to join unions or participate in strikes. Three months before the games, a local advocacy group reported 60 workers were detained, some of whom were deported for protesting unpaid wages, according to the Associated Press. The Qatari government acknowledged arrests for “breaching public safety laws” but declined to provide details.       Ashmita Sapkota,Amnesty International Nepal:   So in the paper, Kafala has been dismantled but in terms of, if you see the practicality still it exists in Qatar.   So, in my opinion, we think that FIFA and Qatar should establish and fund a comprehensive program to provide a remedy to the migrant worker who faced exploitation and abuses for the last twelve years that went unaddressed.   And it should not be limited to migrant workers who worked in stadiums or in the training sites but also other workers who were deployed in preparation for the delivery of the tournament.   We continue to receive cases from migrant workers through phone calls, through emails complaining that they had not been paid for the last few months and also some workers, they complained that they had been underpaid or they were not paid for overtime.       Ramesh Gupta:   We go abroad because we are not getting any work here.   Otherwise, we would want to stay in our own villages and do something for our country.   If I go now, then I think I will stay there for a minimum of two to three years.   And after I come back, I will think about what I will do.   I will have to support my mother, my father, and my elder brother.   Until now, my brother has been doing everything for me.   So, now I will have to support them as well.   People go there for work and if some kind of accident happens to them, then it's a sacrifice.       Aslani Devi:   We had small children at that time.   So, my husband decided to go for foreign employment to earn money for the food and their schooling.   He called me on the phone everyday.   He had to climb high buildings and work hard there.   He had to carry construction materials up to the top of those buildings.   We were told he died the next morning when his friend called me.   He passed away at night.   His body was brought here 15 days after he died.   After that, we performed his last rites and rituals at our home.   I have no source of income since my husband’s death. I sold my one katha [338 m2] of land and I am running my home from the money I got from the sale.   I sometimes feared he would die abroad.       Sukhi Mukhiya:   My son was paid six kilograms of [unshelled] rice a day here.   I heard from others he was willing to go abroad for work but I told him not to go.   We had to take out a loan to send him abroad.   We had to ask for loans from the other villagers.   He went there as a painter to paint houses.   But when he got there, he was forced to work as a laborer using a shovel.   He said the work was very difficult and that the employment agent betrayed him.   He said, “I want to come home.”   He went there with loans.   So he wanted to pay off the loans and come back home.   He was just getting 300 Qatari Riyal per month for his work.   He said that he will first pay back the loans and then come back.   After repaying the loans he said, “I will come back now.”   So I told him to come back soon.   His roommate called me and said that Jit Narayan had passed away.   We were shocked.     Sakhil Saphi:   I went abroad because my family was in debt and we were struggling financially.   My brother was already in Qatar and he arranged my passport and told me to come there for work.   A month ago, he told me he was going to come home soon, but the next night at 4 a.m. he was found dead.       Dr. Prakash Raj Regmi, cardiologist in Nepal:   And they are forced to work for a longer period during the daytime.   They are more exposed to the outdoor heat.   The living conditions are poor.   The healthcare system is not that good.   As it should be.   So all these factors are causing the rise in death in these workers.       Urmila Devi Sah:   He was good natured.   His voice and behavior were also so nice.   We had very good relations.   He never quarreled or fought with me.   He was not rude. He was a good guy.       Ramesh Gupta:   My village is a very beautiful place.   I find it beautiful.   I don't feel like leaving my village and going somewhere else.   While I can stay in my village, I want to play football with my friends.   Football is my favorite game.       TEXT ON SCREEN:   Qatari World Cup officials declined VOA interview requests but issued a statement saying their “commitment to ensuring the health, safety and dignity of all workers employed on our projects has remained steadfast.”    They say just three people have died in World Cup work-related accidents since 2014.    Just prior to the start of the World Cup, Qatari officials removed hundreds of workers from Doha.   Though officials claimed they had been giving adequate living conditions, critics say Qatar tried to remove the spotlight from the migrant workers during the tournament.   Sepp Blatter, the former FIFA president who oversaw the vote for the 2022 World Cup host country, has since called the selection of Qatar “a mistake.”     HEATHER MURDOCK, VOA Middle East Correspondent:     That’s all for now.       Watch documentaries like this one on our free streaming app, VOA Plus.   Stay up to date with the news at VOANews.com.   Follow us on Instagram and Facebook at VOA News.   For the team that travelled to Nepal and worked behind the scenes who brought you today’s show, I’m Heather Murdock.   We’ll see you next week for The Inside Story.   ###   https://www.voanews.com/a/6847291.html https://www.voanews.com/a/6847291.html Wed, 23 Nov 2022 13:53:34 -0500 VOA Connectwebdesk@voanews.com (Steve Redisch)