VOA Mandarin: As Trump’s talks with Zelenskyy disintegrate, will China benefit?

The public spat Friday between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, at the White House has triggered European solidarity for Ukraine. Barring Hungary, major European powers led by Germany and France have thrown their weight behind Kyiv, calling it the victim of Russian aggression, while promising sustained support to the war-torn country. Experts say rising tensions in the transatlantic relationship would benefit one country – the People’s Republic of China. They argue that recent developments provide Beijing with an opportunity to make inroads in Europe.

Click here for the full story in Mandarin.

your ad here

Anti-corruption purges raise serious questions about China’s military readiness

NEW DELHI — China is in the midst of a sweeping anti-corruption campaign that has seen a growing number of high-ranking military officials removed from their posts. The campaign has been so expansive that when China hosts the Two Sessions next week – Beijing’s biggest political event of the year – more than a dozen military officials will not be able to attend.

In late February, just days before the Two Sessions begin on March 4, authorities in China announced that Tan Ruisong, former chairman of the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China, or AVIC, was the latest target of the government’s anti-corruption campaign. AVIC is a major defense contractor and aircraft manufacturer that is on Fortune’s Global 500 list. The anti-graft watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), said Tan took huge bribes and “lived off the military sector.”

There has been no public response from Tan or AVIC.

Analysts say the purges are part of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s efforts to ensure personal loyalty towards himself within the rank and file of the People’s Liberation Army, or PLA, and less about corruption. More than 14 senior officials have been punished in the past two years.

There have been several reports that China’s Defense Minister Dong Jun, a naval officer, may have been put under investigation, although the Foreign Ministry previously denied that was the case late last year. Analysts say they will be watching closely to see if Dong attends the Two Sessions meetings next week.

China’s leader has also fired General Li Yuchao, the head of the PLA’s Rocket Force unit — which is responsible for the country’s rocket and missile systems — as well as his deputy. Those sacked are part of the ongoing second wave of disciplinary actions that have included four generals, eight lieutenant generals and two major generals. At least three more aerospace defense executives have been expelled from China’s top political advisory body.

In his remarks to senior military leaders last June, Xi was clear about the intention of the crackdown.

“We must uphold the party’s absolute leadership over the military,” he said, adding that “the gun barrel must always be grasped by people who are loyal and reliable to the party.”

Xi’s remarks echoed a phrase that Communist Party’s founder Mao Zedong coined, “political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.”

Some see the ongoing anti-corruption campaign as a sign of political struggle within the party.

“Purges are likely a manifestation of growing challenges against Xi by other party leaders. Those military leaders suspected to be less loyal to Xi are likely to be subjected to pre-emptive removal,” Yoichiro Sato, a professor at the College of Asia Pacific Studies in Japan’s Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, told VOA.

“Corruption in the military is nothing new. Corruption charges are a tool of Xi for going after potential challengers to his rule,” he said.

The anti-corruption drive is also causing a good amount of political confusion because the targets include those regarded to be close to Xi. They included Miao Hua, who held one of China’s most powerful positions as a member of the Central Military Commission and was head of its Political Work Department.

Two consecutive ministers of defense, Wei Fenghe and Li Shangfu, also were removed and punished in 2023. Li was removed while in office, and Wei after he had stepped down.

Wei served as China’s Defense Minister from March 2018 to March 2023. Before that, he was the commander of the PLA Rocket Force.

Miao’s suspension showed that the drive had expanded to the Political Work Department, which acts as the Communist Party’s eyes and ears within the military force. Previously, the anti-corruption campaign concentrated on military departments involved in defense procurement like the Rocket Force unit and the Equipment Development Department, which are regarded as hotbeds of corruption.

Analysts say the purges may further strengthen Xi’s position, but they may have negative implications for China as well. They would not just affect the military’s morale but could also hamper its ability to fulfil the party’s plans to take over Taiwan.

“If Xi cannot be sure that the PLA would be able to prevail in the case of a conflict, he is less likely to take on the risks that an operation against Taiwan or in the South China Sea, for example, would entail,” said Helena Legarda, lead analyst at the Berlin-based Mercator Institute of China Studies. “In the short run, and at least while this second anti-corruption drive takes place, Beijing’s appetite for initiating an open conflict might be reduced.”

Rocket Force hit hard

Xi has himself raised questions about the PLA’s ability to accomplish essential functions of a modern mission command and accused it of suffering from “peace disease,” said Roy Kamphausen, senior fellow for Chinese security at the Washington-based National Bureau of Asian Research.

“The decade-long campaign against corruption in the PLA has had a negative impact on morale and thus ability to accomplish its missions, despite technological advances,” Kamphausen told VOA. “All of this suggests that whatever inclination Xi might have to take Taiwan by force is reduced,” he said.

The Rocket Force – which would play a critical role in a potential Taiwan conflict – has been hit hard by anti-corruption purges, Mohan Malik, a non-resident fellow at the Washington-based Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies, told VOA.

“Morale and capability suffer when leaders skim off the top or push subpar gear. This suggests the PLA may be less effective than it appears on paper, even as China fields advanced missiles, stealth fighters, and an expanding navy,” he said.

Xi cannot permit dissenting generals to continue in crucial positions because of the evolving international situation and the potential for a future global conflict, said Evan Ellis, a Latin America research professor at the U.S. Army War College.

“Xi is conscious that he will have to call on the PLA in a global war with the U.S. in the not distant future. It is vital that he eliminate any risk of dissent or challenge to his political authority on the military,” Ellis told VOA. 

your ad here

VOA Uzbek: Tajik national detained in US on terrorism charges

A Tajik national has been arrested in New York on charges of conspiring to provide material support to Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and the Islamic State-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K), possessing firearms while unlawfully in the United States and immigration fraud.

Click here for the full story in the Uzbek Language.

your ad here

VOA Spanish: Mexico used 20 aircraft to extradite drug traffickers to the US

In Mexico, authorities reported that the delivery to the United States of 29 people linked to drug trafficking was possible through an unprecedented police operation, in which 20 aircraft and thousands of agents participated.

Click here for the full story in Spanish. 

your ad here

Voices Unheard: Living with disability in Libya

Khalid Al-Khateb was born in Libya in the 1990s without the use of his legs. Despite wars and economic collapse in his country, the greatest challenge he has faced is trying to function in a world where disabilities are mostly ignored. From Tripoli, Libya, Malik Ghariani has this animated story.

your ad here

Gene Hackman likely died Feb. 17, last day of activity on pacemaker, official says

Academy Award-winning actor Gene Hackman likely died on Feb. 17, the last day there was any activity on his pacemaker, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Friday. “According to the pathologist,” Mendoza said, “that is a very good assumption that was his last day of life,” nine days before investigators found his body.

The bodies of Hackman, 95, and his wife, Betsy Arakawa, 64, a classical pianist, were found, along with the dead body of one of their three dogs, Wednesday in their home in the southwestern U.S. state of New Mexico.

The initial findings of autopsies on the couple revealed that Hackman and his wife both tested negative for carbon monoxide poisoning and “no external trauma” was reported to either of them.  Mendoza said, “There were no apparent signs of foul play.”

However, the couple’s “manner and cause of death has not been determined,” according to the sheriff. “The official results of the autopsy and toxicology reports are pending.”

Investigators have retrieved an assortment of prescription and over-the-counter medications, in addition to cellphones and records from medical diagnostics testing from the house.

“I’m pretty confident there is no foul play,” Mendoza said Friday on The Today Show. He said the autopsy results “will steer us in the right direction” in determining what happened to Hackman and his wife.

Without the autopsy, the sheriff said, it is difficult to determine how long the couple had been dead.

A search warrant affidavit issued Thursday said the circumstances surrounding the couple’s deaths were “suspicious enough in nature to require a thorough search and investigation.”

Mendoza told The Today Show that several doors around the house were unlocked and one door in the rear of the house was open. Earlier reports said the front door was open.

Hackman’s body was found near the rear of the house, while his wife’s body was found in a bathroom. The dead dog’s body was found in a dog crate, not far from Arakawa’s body. The couple had three German shepherds. The other two dogs were found alive and healthy at the property.

The search warrant affidavit also revealed that police called the Santa Fe Fire Department and the New Mexico Gas Company to Hackman’s residence, but no toxic fumes or leaky pipes were found on the grounds.

Storied career

Hackman had a lengthy career on stage and screen, including appearing in Broadway shows, on television and in more than 80 films.

He won an Oscar for best actor for his role in the 1971 film The French Connection and a best supporting Oscar for the 1992 film Unforgiven.

Hackman’s resume featured three other Oscar nominations, including his breakout role in Bonnie and Clyde in 1967 as well as I Never Sang for My Father in 1970 and Mississippi Burning in 1988.

His work crossed genres as he appeared in action movies, thrillers and off-beat comedies.

In addition to his award-nominated works, he was also known for roles in films such as The Poseidon Adventure, Young Frankenstein, Superman, Hoosiers, The Birdcage, and The Royal Tenenbaums.

His last film was Welcome to Mooseport in 2004.

His loss was immediately felt throughout the entertainment community as fellow artists praised him on social media. Director Francis Ford Coppola and actor Morgan Freeman were among those who posted their remembrances of the actor.

“The loss of a great artist, always cause for both mourning and celebration,” Coppola posted on Instagram. “Gene Hackman a great actor, inspiring and magnificent in his work and complexity. I mourn his loss and celebrate his existence and contribution.” Hackman starred in Coppola’s 1974 film The Conversation.

Freeman posted on Instagram: “One of the personal highlights of my career was bringing the French Film Gardé a Vue (Under Suspicion) to life with the incredibly gifted Gene Hackman. And of course… Unforgiven. Rest in peace, my friend.”

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.

your ad here

Concern grows in Washington, Seoul about China’s disinformation campaign 

WASHINGTON — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in the closing statements of his impeachment trial this week said that a Chinese-backed disinformation campaign is threatening South Korea’s democracy.

The United States has acknowledged Beijing’s global disinformation campaign amid growing concerns in Seoul and Washington about China’s alleged interference in South Korean politics and elections.

“It’s well known that the Chinese Communist Party deploys vast information manipulation campaigns around the world,” a State Department spokesperson said in a statement emailed Wednesday to VOA’s Korean Service.

“Fake news, propaganda and disinformation are tools frequently employed as a part of Beijing’s diplomacy,” the statement said, using a long-standing practice of anonymity.

The comments were made in response to remarks by China’s  ambassador to Seoul, Dai Bing, who criticized South Korean conservative groups for speaking out about what they view as Beijing’s interference in South Korean politics and elections.

On Tuesday, Dai told journalists gathered at the Chinese Embassy in Seoul that the groups’ “strong disruptive influence could significantly impact the development of China-South Korea relations.”

Dai continued, “We remain committed to noninterference in South Korea’s internal affairs, but we will also take appropriate measures depending on the severity of the situation.”

Anti-Chinese sentiment has been growing in South Korea, along with opposition to the impeachment of Yoon, who is now waiting for the Constitutional Court to rule on his brief martial law decree in December.

Yoon, facing separate charges for insurrection associated with his martial law decree, was impeached by the opposition-controlled National Assembly on Dec. 14, for what they saw as taking an extreme measure designed for times of war.

Alleged election interference

Thousands of protesters took to the streets in support of arguments made at weekslong court hearings by Yoon’s attorneys, who alleged that China and North Korea interfered in South Korean politics and elections to undermine national security.

The court wrapped up its impeachment hearings on Tuesday after Yoon made his final statement defending his decree.

Yoon said foreign entities have been collaborating with anti-state forces in South Korea in undermining the system of liberal democracy, threatening its national security and driving the country into a state of emergency.

“They have driven the country into the state of conflict and chaos through fake news, manipulation of public opinion and propaganda,” Yoon said.

The court’s impeachment ruling is expected in mid-March. If the court rules to impeach Yoon, an election will be held within 60 days to select a new president. The leader of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), Lee Jae-myung, known for his pro-China views, is considered a strong candidate.

“China has been actively interfering in South Korea’s politics for decades, and recent evidence suggests that Beijing has even been helping the South’s leftists rig elections,” said Gordon Chang, senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and the author of Plan Red: China’s Project to Destroy America.

Dai’s remarks suggest that “China’s communists think no one should ever complain about their brazen meddling,” Chang told VOA on Thursday.

Chang and others raised concerns about China’s interference in South Korean politics and elections at the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, held last week in Washington.

At a forum held Friday at CPAC, Fred Fleitz, vice chair of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for American Security, said, “South Korea plays a crucial role in promoting security in the Asia Pacific, and it is a key strategic ally of the United States.”

“That obviously gives strong motivations to China and North Korea to undermine South Korea, to create domestic instability, knowing that it will advance their interests and undermine American and global security,” he continued.

“So this election fraud issue is part of a much bigger security challenge,” Fleitz added.

Disinformation campaign

China has been accused of attempting to interfere in elections in other democratic countries, including the U.S. and Australia. It is also accused of operating campaigns to influence politics and alter public opinion through media in European countries, including the U.K. and Germany. 

“There is certainly Chinese influence to shape [South] Korean public opinion in a direction that would favor PRC interests,” said Andrew Yeo, the SK-Korea Foundation Chair at the Brookings Institution’s Center for Asia Policy Studies, using China’s official name, the People’s Republic of China.

“This includes support for South Korean candidates who might adopt a more conciliatory approach to China. But I have not seen direct evidence of how China has been directly involved in election interference. If the allegations of Chinese interference are true, those allegations would be troubling and a violation of South Korean sovereignty,” Yeo told VOA on Thursday.

Robert Rapson, who served as charge d’affaires and deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul from 2018 to 2021, said, “I don’t think there will be any concern on the part of the Trump administration about a transition to a new ROK government should the Constitutional Court uphold Mr. Yoon’s impeachment by the National Assembly.” South Korea’s official name is the Republic of Korea.

He said the U.S. “can effectively and reliably conduct our two nations’ pressing business, regardless of whether that government is led by the DP or PPP” [the ruling People’s Power Party].

Jiha Ham contributed to this report.

your ad here

Uyghur linguist’s presentation dropped at UNESCO summit, igniting fears of Beijing’s sway

WASHINGTON — A United Nations-hosted language technology conference has come under scrutiny after organizers abruptly canceled a scheduled presentation by Abduweli Ayup, a prominent Uyghur linguist and human rights advocate.

The cancellation, communicated just hours before Ayup’s Feb. 25 talk, has prompted speculation about external pressures, with Ayup and others suggesting China’s influence may have been a factor.

Ayup was invited to deliver a 10-minute talk and serve as a panelist and chair/rapporteur at the conference, hosted by the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) at its headquarters in Paris.

“We are pleased to invite you to deliver a talk at the 2nd International Conference on Language Technologies for All (LT4ALL 2025),” the organizer stated in an email Ayup shared with VOA.

“I saw my participation [as] a rare chance on the Uyghur language’s plight — an issue I’ve fought to preserve against Beijing’s relentless suppression,” Ayup told VOA.

He said his talk was canceled under pressure from China.

“I see the reason as very simple. It’s because of my critique of China’s systematic erasure of Uyghur language and culture and questioning the Chinese representatives about the Uyghur language ban in education,” Ayup told VOA.

A linguistics graduate of the University of Kansas, Ayup returned to China in 2011 to launch Uyghur-language schools in defiance of Mandarin-only mandates. Arrested in 2013 on “illegal fundraising” charges, he said he endured 15 months of torture before fleeing to Turkey in 2015 and resettling in Norway by 2019.

There, he founded Uyghur Hjelp to document China’s cultural crackdown — a work recognized with the 2024 Language Rights Defenders Award. His siblings remain detained in Xinjiang.

Beijing’s “bilingual education” policy in the Uyghur region of Xinjiang in northwest China was enacted in the early 2000s and promised dual-language instruction but was later criticized as a tool of assimilation. By 2017, schools began to ban Uyghur language instruction at schools, a pattern researchers and advocates criticize as linguistic genocide.

Late on Feb. 24, Ayup received an email from the LT4ALL Organizing Committee stating, “We regret to inform you that we only received notice this evening that we were unable to secure approval to include your presentation in tomorrow’s program.”

The email sent by the summit organizers and later shared with VOA by Ayup continued, “Unfortunately, we were informed at the last minute, and this decision is beyond our control.” No further details were provided regarding who denied approval or why.

Speaking to Voice of America (VOA), Ayup suggested the cancellation was linked to his criticism of China’s language policies during the summit, which Ayup attended even though he could not deliver his presentation.

Earlier that day, he had directly questioned Chinese presenters — including a representative of iFlytek, a tech firm linked to Uyghur surveillance — about Beijing’s restrictions on minority languages.

The iFlytek representative who attended the summit did not respond to VOA’s inquiry regarding Ayup’s claim about why his presentation was canceled by the time of this report’s publication.

iFlytek, a China-based company specializing in voice recognition, has supplied Xinjiang police with voiceprint systems since at least 2016 and partnered with security agencies to build a national database used in the region’s mass surveillance, according to Human Rights Watch.

The U.S. sanctioned iFlytek in 2019 for its role in “high-technology surveillance” aiding China’s repression of Uyghurs, which includes detaining over 1 million since 2017, per U.N. estimates.

Ayup told VOA he asked Chinese representatives why China banned Uyghur language from education — a policy enacted first in parts of Xinjiang about 2017 — but received no answer.

Following the session, Ayup recounted being confronted by a few Chinese delegates, who questioned why he spoke in English rather than Mandarin and asked about his family’s whereabouts. When he revealed that his brother and sister were detained in Chinese internment camps — possibly now in prisons — the delegates dismissed his claims, labeling his relatives “terrorists.”

“I believe my encounters with the Chinese representatives have contributed to the exclusion of my presentation from the conference program,” Ayup said.

UNESCO’s response

UNESCO confirmed the cancellation, attributing it to “chaotic” planning.

In an email response to VOA, a UNESCO official stated that the cancellation only applied to a “scientific poster” presentation scheduled for a midday break on Feb. 25, not his broader participation in the event.

“UNESCO regrets that no space was available on Tuesday to accommodate Mr. Ayup’s scientific poster. However, this was possible the following day,” the UNESCO official wrote, adding, “[T]his logistical setback did not prevent him from participating in the Conference as such and from raising the issue of the Uyghur language.”

UNESCO noted that Ayup spoke freely during roundtables and was given the floor whenever he requested it. The organization attributed the issue to “chaotic” planning by academic co-organizers, who extended invitations without full coordination.

Ayup disputes that account, arguing that UNESCO, under pressure from China — a member of the U.N. Security Council — may have sought to limit his platform.

Other prominent human rights activists echoed those concerns on the social media platform X.

Former World Uyghur Congress President Dolkun Isa denounced the “last-minute cancellation of linguist Abduweli Ayup’s presentation on the Uyghur language without any explanation,” calling it “seemingly influenced by Chinese interests.

Maya Wang, associate China director at Human Rights Watch, also weighed in, pointing to iFlytek’s presence at the conference. “UNESCO abruptly cancelled his presentation but allowed a Chinese voice recognition/surveillance company iFlytek + Hunan state TV to whitewash China’s erasure of minority languages,” she wrote.

Ayup’s ordeal didn’t end with cancellation. He told VOA an unidentified Chinese man shadowed him, filming him during breaks — a claim backed by an attendee’s video, later shared with VOA.

Ayup told VOA he’s not the first to face restrictions at a U.N.-related event, stating, “There are precedents.”

He pointed to Tove Skutnabb-Kangas, an expert at the 2019 U.N. Forum on Minority Issues in Geneva, who claimed her speech on “linguistic and cultural genocide” naming Uyghurs and China was censored by organizers fearing state backlash.

“Freedom of speech denied at the U.N.!” she wrote, later sharing her original text online after it was altered. Ayup sees this as part of a pattern limiting discussion of Uyghur repression at U.N. forums.

your ad here

WHO says water contamination suspected in Congo village hit by illness 

BASANKUSU, Democratic Republic of Congo — Authorities investigating the deaths of at least 60 people in northwestern Democratic Republic of Congo suspect the water source in one of the areas may have been contaminated, the World Health Organization said Friday. But the agency said it’s too early for a definitive conclusion.

Doctors are investigating more than 1,000 illnesses that have emerged since late January in five villages in Congo’s Equateur province, where high rates of malaria have complicated efforts to diagnose the cases and where officials have said they’ve been unable so far to confirm the main cause.

WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan said during an online briefing Friday that for one of the villages there is “a very strong level of suspicion … related to the poisoning of a water source.”

Ryan did not clarify whether he was referring to contamination by accident, negligence or deliberate action. He also did not identify the village where the poisoning was suspected.

“We will not stop investigating until we are sure that the true cause or the absolute cause of what is occurring here is fully investigated,” Ryan said.

Illnesses were first detected in late January in the village of Boloko after three children ate a bat and died within 48 hours.

Twelve cases and eight deaths in total have been recorded in Boloko, with no new cases recorded since January, officials say, adding that nearly half of deaths there occurred within hours of the onset of symptoms.

The village of Bomate in Basankusu health zone, around 200 kilometers from Boloko, has been hit the most: 98% of the cases and 86% of deaths have been recorded there, health officials say.

WHO said on Thursday that hundreds of the patients have tested positive for malaria, which is common in the region. In addition to common malaria symptoms such as fever and body aches, patients have also shown symptoms such as chills, sweating, stiff neck, runny or bleeding nose, cough, vomiting and diarrhea.

The health crisis has caused fear among residents, some of whom have said they fled the villages to avoid falling sick.

Experts say that access to the sick has been hindered by the remote locations of the affected villages and that several people died before medical teams were able to reach them.

your ad here

Trump-Zelenskyy White House meeting on mineral deal devolves into shouting match

A White House meeting Friday between U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, aimed at securing a deal that would give the U.S. rights to rare earth minerals in Ukraine, turned into an intense and heated exchange between the two leaders. The White House later confirmed that the mineral deal was not signed. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this report.

your ad here

Russia and China’s relationship may not be as strong as it seems, report says

WASHINGTON — On the third anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine earlier this week, Chinese President Xi Jinping reaffirmed Beijing’s “no limits” partnership with Moscow in a call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to Chinese state media.

“China-Russia relations have strong internal driving force and unique strategic value,” Xi said, according to the official readout from state media. He also called Russia a “true friend” and a “good neighbor.”

The sentiment is not new. Moscow and Beijing have long touted the strength and long-term nature of their relationship.

But according to a new report from Filter Labs, a U.S.-based political research and analysis company, Russia and China’s relationship may be weaker than they want the rest of the world to believe.

“Their partnership is vulnerable,” Filter Labs founder Jonathan Teubner told VOA. “This ‘no limits’ partnership is much more complicated.”

‘Infused with doubt’

While the governments and state-run media from both countries work to project the image of a strong partnership, their relationship may be underpinned by more tension, mistrust and competing interests than previously thought, according to an extensive analysis of news media and social media posts by Filter Labs.

“The axis is infused with doubt, ripe for disruption,” the report said.

Teubner added, “The monolith theory of the China-Russia relationship isn’t necessarily the way it has to be.”

But not all experts agree that the Russia-China relationship is fragile.

“The China-Russia relationship continues to deepen and widen, and occasional disagreements are dwarfed by the scale and momentum of their strategic cooperation,” Robert Blackwill and Richard Fontaine wrote in a 2024 Council on Foreign Relations report.

From the Chinese perspective, according to the Filter Labs report, there are doubts over the true resilience of Russia’s economy, whether Russia’s military is as strong as it says it is, and what Russia’s true intentions are in the long term.

Meanwhile, says Filter Labs, Russian doubts pertain to quality concerns about Chinese goods, how militarily committed China actually is to Russia, and whether Chinese investment in Russia is really that substantial.

Chinese state media is generally positive about the state of the Russian economy and often criticizes Western sanctions.

However, Chinese netizens are increasingly worried about the impact that secondary sanctions could have on China.

The United States has threatened to use secondary sanctions against Chinese businesses viewed as engaging with Russia, pushing some Chinese netizens to weigh the value of China’s relationship with Russia against its ability to trade with the United States.

Once those sanctions are enforced on China, Teubner predicts, it will lead to changes in the Russia-China relationship.

“The sanctions on Russia actually have a pretty important countering Chinese effect, too,” said Teubner, who thinks the sanctions are the biggest source of friction between Beijing and Moscow.

Quality concerns

Meanwhile, the most common doubt among Russians about China pertains to quality concerns about Chinese goods, according to the report. In Russia, Chinese goods have a reputation for being affordable but of poor quality.

“We see more persistent complaints about Chinese goods,” Teubner said.

“That’s paired with Russian anxiety over pairing itself so deeply to China,” Teubner added. “That comes through very strongly in Russian anxieties toward being subordinated to the Chinese economy.”

One consequence of Russia’s war in Ukraine has been that it has pushed Russia and China closer together, prompting some governments to default to treating the autocratic duo as a bloc, according to Teubner.

“It will increasingly be that way unless we do something to keep them apart,” Teubner said.

The report recommends that the United States and its allies and partners take advantage of the fault lines to drive a wedge between Russia and China.

your ad here

Chad’s groundbreaking asylum law gives Sudanese refugees opportunity to work 

With nearly 1 million Sudanese refugees having fled to Chad, escaping what the United States has called a genocide in Darfur, the country has taken an unusual step — allowing them to work. Due to a groundbreaking asylum law, refugees are finding ways to rebuild their lives, while Chadian business owners offer what little employment they can. Henry Wilkins reports from Adre, Chad.

your ad here

Trump to sign order designating English as official US language

U.S. President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order on Friday designating English as the official language of the United States, according to the White House.

The order will allow government agencies and organizations that receive federal funding to choose whether to continue to offer documents and services in languages other than English, according to a fact sheet about the impending order.

It was not immediately clear when on Friday that Trump planned to sign the order.

The executive order will rescind a mandate from former President Bill Clinton that required the government and organizations that received federal funding to provide language assistance to non-English speakers.

Designating English as the national language “promotes unity, establishes efficiency in government operations and creates a pathway for civic engagement,” according to the White House.

More than 30 states have already passed laws designating English as their official language, according to U.S. English, a group that advocates for making English the official language in the United States.

For decades, lawmakers in Congress have introduced legislation to designate English as the official language of the U.S., but those efforts have not succeeded.

Within hours of Trump’s inauguration last month, the new administration took down the Spanish language version of the official White House website.

Hispanic advocacy groups and others expressed confusion and frustration at the change. The White House said at the time it was committed to bringing the Spanish language version of the website back online. As of Friday, it was still not restored.

The White House did not immediately respond to a message about whether that would happen.

Trump shut down the Spanish version of the website during his first term. It was restored when President Joe Biden was inaugurated.

The Wall Street Journal first reported on the order Friday.

your ad here

New gallery at Marine Corps Museum tells story of Afghanistan

A new gallery at the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Virginia features the stories and experiences of U.S. Marines who served in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. From Triangle, Virginia, VOA’s Noshaba Ashna has the story, narrated by Bezhan Hamdard. Roshan Noorzai contributed to this story. Camera: Hoshang Fahim

your ad here

Southern Africa pushes for better energy access

GABORONE, BOTSWANA — Southern Africa energy experts and political leaders pledged to improve access to energy at a summit in Botswana this week. The commitments come as most countries in the region still rely on coal, a major contributor to global warming.

More than 500 participants from 16 Southern African Development Community, or SADC, member states, as well as other African countries, participated in the energy gathering.

Moses Ntlamelle, a senior SADC programs officer, said pursuing a more inclusive transition to cleaner energy was one of the resolutions that regional representatives adopted at the summit.

“The region is recommended to expedite just energy transition and explore the development of a regional renewable energy market,” he said. “This is to ensure that nobody is left behind. … Inasmuch as we are going for cleaner energy, we must ensure that this energy transition is just to everybody.”

Botswanan President Duma Boko spoke about the need to end energy poverty.

“Countries across the SADC region face challenges related to energy poverty,” Boko said. “This constrains our economies, leaving millions of people, especially in rural areas, without access to critical services like health, education, communication, among others. A clarion call for an energy-secure region is, therefore, urgent in order to drive industrialization and integration of our economies.”

Most Southern Africa countries rely on coal for energy. Boko called on the region to cut its dependence on fossil fuels and speed up the transition to green energy.

“We should incentivize renewable energy and energy-efficiency projects and initiatives, enforce environmental protections and establish clear roadmaps for a just and equitable energy transition, which is relevant to the realities of our countries and region,” he said. “As a region, let us set tangible targets not only to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels but also to increase the use of renewables.”

Yunus Alokore, a technical expert at the intergovernmental organization East Africa Center for Renewable Energy and Efficiency, told VOA that if Africa wants to accelerate its transition to sustainable energy, several key elements are needed.

“There has to be policies in place and regulatory framework,” Alokore said. “What this does is that it creates transparent, long-term, consistent target, which is something that investors and development partners need.”

Alokore said access to finance is also key.

your ad here

As Yoon remakes South Korea’s right, lonely conservative pushes back

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — Conservative South Korean lawmaker Kim Sang-wook has received so many threats since December that his children no longer tell classmates who their father is.

Already sidelined in the ruling party, many colleagues want Kim expelled altogether. In his home district of Ulsan, he finds himself shunned by former friends and allies.

Welcome to the life of a conservative politician who has chosen to break ranks with the People Power Party, or PPP, which has swung sharply to the right as it rallies around impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol.

Once a low-profile figure, the 45-year-old first-term lawmaker has emerged as one of the most vocal critics of Yoon, whose short-lived martial law declaration in early December triggered South Korea’s worst political crisis in decades.

At times, Kim has quite literally stood alone. Ahead of Yoon’s impeachment, he staged a one-man protest on the top steps of the National Assembly, holding a giant placard imploring fellow conservatives to abandon the president. Hours later, the impeachment motion passed with the support of just 11 other conservatives, out of a total of 108.

If fully implemented, Yoon’s decree would have outlawed all political activity and required journalists to report to martial law command – measures not seen since South Korea emerged from a military dictatorship in the 1980s.

That hasn’t prevented the overwhelming majority of the PPP from defending Yoon — a trend Kim blames on “extreme partisan logic” that has come to define both sides of the country’s politics.

“It’s like everything is justified by the belief that ‘we’ are right and ‘they’ are wrong,” Kim told VOA in an interview at his National Assembly office. “Is that conservatism? I don’t think so.”

Kim’s defiance highlights a broader reckoning within the PPP. As the Constitutional Court decides Yoon’s fate, the party must decide whether to uphold his populist legacy or choose a different path.

Fighting back

Few would deny that Yoon’s more combative approach has galvanized the conservative base, as indicated by the size and intensity of street protests.

Throughout the frigid Seoul winter, large crowds, including many young people, have rallied in Yoon’s defense. His arrest for alleged insurrection, which carries a possible death penalty, only added to their outrage.

That anger deepened when the opposition, using its legislative supermajority, ousted acting President Han Duck-soo less than two weeks after impeaching Yoon, reinforcing conservative concerns about political overreach.

The result was a scene unthinkable just months ago — Koreans packing streets in support of a leader who, however briefly, had just attempted to restore military rule.

“The whole situation just naturally evolved in a way that Yoon Suk Yeol became the symbol of this movement of freedom and liberal democracy, vis-a-vis communism, socialism, and tyranny,” said Lee Jung-hoon, a conservative legal scholar and dean at Seoul’s Yonsei University.

Lee served in the administration of the country’s last conservative president, Park Geun-hye, who was removed from office in 2017 and jailed on corruption-related charges.

In Lee’s view, Park was too passive in challenging her impeachment, which may have contributed to her downfall. By contrast, former prosecutor Yoon has vowed to “fight to the end,” further energizing his supporters, Lee said.

Yoon has defended his martial law decree as a tough but necessary response to an opposition he says crippled his administration with budget cuts and repeated impeachments of senior leaders.

At his final impeachment hearing this week, Yoon argued the decree was never meant to be enforced as written — insisting that if he had intended to follow through, he would have deployed more troops and used greater force.

Yoon has also defended martial law as necessary to investigate what he claims is election fraud.

Those comments helped bring once-fringe allegations into the conservative mainstream, where many now openly question the integrity of South Korea’s electoral system.

Some have gone further, attacking the credibility of judges they see as left-leaning, with a small group of conservative protesters even ransacking a court that had issued an arrest warrant for Yoon.

Underlying fears

Some of the hardening behind Yoon stems from deep distrust of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung. Lee is seen as the likely successor if Yoon is removed from office.

Conservatives view Lee as too soft on China and likely to pursue what they see as futile engagement with North Korea. Others fear he is seeking the presidency to shield himself from legal battles, as he faces five separate trials on corruption and other charges.

Hahm Sung-deuk, a professor of political science at Kyonggi University outside Seoul, said many conservatives are also eager to prevent a repeat of Park’s impeachment, which fractured the party and paved the way for a left-leaning president to take power.

“Conservatives have a painful memory. They feel that if they let this situation get out of hand, they might not regain power for not just five years, but maybe 10, 15, or even 20 years,” Hahm told VOA.

That anxiety may help explain the fierce backlash against lawmakers like Kim, the renegade conservative who has been accused of betraying conservative values after breaking with Yoon.

But Hahm insists the party’s divide isn’t about ideology but is about loyalty.

“This is not a policy debate,” he said. “It’s centered around whether … you support or oppose Yoon Suk Yeol.”

If Yoon is impeached, some fear that protests will once again turn violent. But in Yoon’s absence, party moderates may likely prevail, said Hahm, who is well-connected among elite conservatives.

“Deep down, both the far-right and moderates know that Yoon Suk Yeol made mistakes,” said Hahm, who believes the party will eventually unite around a steadier candidate to block Lee from taking power.

Uncertain future

As he withstands attacks from fellow conservatives, Kim is less confident about the party’s future. Once a rising figure in local conservative politics, he now acknowledges he may not win reelection.

But even if his stance costs him his political career, Kim says he will keep making decisions based on his principles, convinced this is what conservatism should be about.

“I have no regrets,” he said of voting to impeach Yoon. “I believe this was the best decision I have made in my entire life.”

your ad here

India, EU, pledge to push free trade agreement, elevate strategic ties  

New Delhi  — India and the European Union agreed to wrap up a free trade deal by the end of this year, the two sides announced Friday following talks in the Indian capital between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen.

While negotiations between India and the EU have dragged on for years, analysts say there is a greater urgency to conclude a pact as the threat of tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump prompts many countries to ramp up efforts to increase access to markets outside the U.S.

Von der Leyen came to New Delhi along with leaders of EU countries. Following talks with the Indian prime minister, she called India a “like-minded friend” and said that “we have tasked our teams to build on this momentum” to finalize a free trade pact.

Both sides also discussed elevating their defense and security partnership. Modi said they had prepared a “blueprint for collaboration” in areas such as trade, technology, investment and security.

Before her meeting with Modi, von der Leyen said the EU and India “have the potential to be one of the defining partnerships of this century” and it was time to take their strategic partnership to “the next level.”

A flux in geopolitics is pushing countries to diversify partnerships, analysts say.

“For India, which is scrambling to navigate the turbulence unleashed by Trump, Europe emerges as a valuable partner,” political analyst C. Raja Mohan wrote in The Indian Express newspaper. “While neither can afford to disengage from the U.S., both India and Europe must do more to strengthen their ties in response to Trump’s unpredictable policies.”

A free trade agreement between the EU and India “would be the largest deal of this kind anywhere in the world,” von der Leyen said. “It is time to be pragmatic and ambitious and to realign our priorities for today’s realities.”

Trump has said he will impose a 25 percent tariff on imports from the European Union. His plans for reciprocal tariffs also will hit Indian exports to the U.S.

The EU is India’s largest trading partner in goods — bilateral trade was more than $130 billion in 2023-24.

Negotiations between India and the EU began years ago but were stalled for eight years before resuming in 2021.

The main sticking points have been New Delhi’s reluctance to lower tariffs on key European imports to India, such as cars, whiskey and wine, while the EU has been reluctant to concede New Delhi’s demand to ease visa curbs on Indian professionals.

India also wants greater access to the EU for cheaper drugs and chemicals.

India, the world’s fifth largest economy with a large middle class, is seen as an attractive market but has high protectionist barriers.

Earlier this week, India and the UK also resumed trade talks during a visit by British business and trade secretary Jonathan Reynolds to New Delhi. India’s commerce minister, Piyush Goyal, said both countries aim to double bilateral trade in a decade. Reynolds said that securing a trade deal was a “top priority” for his government.

Trade analysts say there is a “sense of urgency” to seal trade pacts.

“It seems there is a real intent on part of India and other partner countries to do something this time. The timing is important – President Trump’s threat of tariffs can cause trade disruptions. So, I think countries want to conclude deals before the global mood changes from being relatively open to more protectionist,” according to trade analyst Biswajit Dhar in New Delhi.

While India has made slow progress in clinching free trade pacts in the past, it is now stepping up efforts to conclude deals amid fears that potential shifts in global trade could pose a challenge to meeting Prime Minister Modi’s goal of growing exports to $1 trillion by 2030.

“The trade uncertainties being unleashed by Trump’s tariffs will push the Indian government to look at the levels of protection in the country more closely. It can’t afford that any longer,” said Dhar.

“Every major country is interested in the large Indian market but complains about high tariffs.”

your ad here

Nepal’s Kathmandu rattled by strong quake

KATHMANDU, NEPAL — A magnitude 6.1 earthquake struck north of Nepal’s Kathmandu on Friday, according to the National Earthquake Monitoring and Research Centre.

The earthquake struck around Bhairab Kunda in the Sindhupalchok District in Nepal, close to the Himalayan mountain range that runs along the border with Tibet.

The German Research Center for Geosciences placed the magnitude of the earthquake at 5.6, and the depth at 10 kilometers while the U.S. Geological Survey pegged it at magnitude 5.5.

There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties from the earthquake.

Pasang Nurpu Sherpa, chairman of the Bhote Koshi rural municipality, where the epicenter is located, told Reuters, “I have no information of any damage so far. The earthquake has triggered a landslide at Dugunagadi Bhir across the river. There are no houses around the site of the landslide.”

Kiran Thapa, district governor of Sindhupalchok, said, “One inmate of the district jail broke his hand while trying to run after the quake and he is now undergoing treatment at a hospital. One police post building developed minor cracks at Kodari.”

“It shook us from our sleep strongly,” Ganesh Nepali, a senior official of Sindhupalchok district, told Reuters. “We rushed out of our home. People have now returned home. We have not received any report of damage or injuries so far.”

your ad here

VOA Mandarin: Why is so much ‘academic misconduct’ found at Chinese hospitals?

The Nature news team recently published an analysis of the retraction rates of academic articles by institutions around the world over the past decade. The analysis found that from 2014 to 2024, Jining First People’s Hospital ranked first in the world in the global retraction rate ranking, with a total retraction rate of more than 5%, which is 50 times the global average. Among the top 10 institutions, another six are from China. 

Click here for the full story in Mandarin. 

your ad here

VOA Spanish: Migrant shelters in Ciudad Juarez register low influx 

U.S. President Donald Trump’s immigration policy has raised expectations of mass deportations to Mexico. However, the shelters in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, that were prepared to receive hundreds of migrants are practically empty.  

Click here for the full story in Spanish. 

your ad here

Migrant arrests at US-Mexico border near record low in February

WASHINGTON — The number of migrants caught illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border in February is on pace to be at or near a record monthly low, a U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson and two other sources told Reuters.

The U.S. Border Patrol is on pace to have arrested around 8,500 migrants at the border in February as the end of the month nears, DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said. Two other sources said the monthly total would be at or near a record low.

President Donald Trump, a Republican, took an array of actions to deter illegal immigration after returning to the White House on January 20, saying a crackdown was needed after high levels of migration under his predecessor, former President Joe Biden.

Trump’s moves included implementing a sweeping ban on asylum at the border and surging military troops to assist border security.

The American Civil Liberties Union sued the Trump administration over the ban earlier this month, arguing it violated U.S. asylum law and international treaties.

The Trump administration also struck new agreements with Mexico and Central American countries to accept U.S. deportees from other nations and has sent some migrants to a camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

U.S. Border Patrol’s monthly enforcement statistics go back to 2000. The lowest monthly total on record is currently April 2017, when the agency arrested 11,127 at the start of Trump’s first term.

While the number of border arrests similarly dipped at the start of Trump’s 2017-21 presidency, they rebounded in the months and years that followed.

The February projection would be a steep drop from the 141,000 migrant arrests in February 2024 and down from 29,000 in January, according to U.S. government figures.

your ad here

North Korea’s Kim orders nuclear readiness after missile test, KCNA says

SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — North Korean leader Kim Jong Un supervised a test-launch of strategic cruise missiles and ordered full readiness to use nuclear attack capability to ensure the most effective defense for the country, state media announced Friday.

The test was designed to warn “enemies, who are seriously violating the security environment of the (country) and fostering and escalating the confrontation environment” and to demonstrate “readiness of its various nuke operation means,” KCNA news agency said.

“What is guaranteed by powerful striking ability is the most perfect deterrence and defense capacity,” KCNA quoted Kim as saying.

The missile launch was conducted on Wednesday over the sea off the west coast of the Korean Peninsula, it said.

South Korea’s military said on Friday it had detected signs of missile launch preparations on Wednesday and tracked several cruise missiles after they were launched around 8 a.m. local time (2300 GMT Tuesday) over the sea.

North Korea has pursued the development of strategic cruise missiles over several years, intended to deliver nuclear warheads.

That type of missile tends to bring less alarm and condemnation from the international community than ballistic missiles because they are not formally banned under U.N. Security Council resolutions.

The Security Council has banned the North from ballistic missile and nuclear weapons development and imposed a number of sanctions for violations.

The report of the missile test came in the same week that Kim made back-to-back visits to military schools, driving home the message of loyalty and the importance of ideological and tactical training of young military officers.

Kim did not mention any country by name when he spoke of warning the enemies but has kept up harsh rhetoric against the United States and South Korea despite comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that he would be reaching out to him.

Trump and Kim held unprecedented summit meetings during the U.S. president’s first term.  

your ad here

Trump to hit Canada, Mexico, China with new tariffs

U.S. President Donald Trump said Thursday that he would impose 25% tariffs on imported goods from Canada and Mexico next week as he originally planned, contending the two neighboring countries are still not doing enough to curb the flow of drugs into the United States.

In addition, Trump said on his Truth Social media platform that he also was hitting China with another 10% levy next Tuesday on its exports to the U.S., on top of the 10% tariff he imposed earlier this month. China quickly matched the first Trump tariff with one of its own on U.S. exports.

“Drugs are still pouring into our Country from Mexico and Canada at very high and unacceptable levels,” Trump said. “A large percentage of these Drugs, much of them in the form of Fentanyl, are made in, and supplied by, China.”

Trump first announced the tariffs on Canada and Mexico, two of the U.S.’s closest allies and trading partners, earlier this month.

But he delayed imposition of the tariffs until March 4 after Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she would send 10,000 troops to her country’s northern border to help the U.S. control drug trafficking. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he would name a “fentanyl czar” to deal with the issue.

Sheinbaum, whose trade-dependent economy sends 80% of its exports to the U.S., said earlier this week, “We’re expecting to reach a deal with the United States,” but that if a deal is not reached, Mexico could impose retaliatory tariffs on U.S.-made products.

When Trump first announced the hefty U.S. tariff on Canadian imports, Trudeau said it was “entirely unjustified” and promised to impose a 25% tax starting March 12 on U.S. steel and aluminum products exported to Canada. Canada is the top exporter of both metals to the U.S.

Economists say the tariffs Trump is imposing are likely to boost retail prices for consumers and the cost of materials for businesses. Mexico, Canada and China, in that order, are the three biggest national trading partners with the U.S., although collectively, the 27-nation European Union is larger than all three.

Trump, at the first Cabinet meeting of his new presidential term on Wednesday, said he would “very soon” announce a 25% tariff on EU exports to the U.S.

With Trump signaling the new tariff on goods sent to the U.S., the EU vowed to respond “firmly and immediately” to “unjustified” trade barriers and suggested it would impose its own tariffs on U.S. imports if Trump proceeded with his.

Trump, in his Truth Social announcement, said reciprocal tariffs on nations that levy taxes on U.S. exports were still set to take effect on April 2. He has also hinted at putting tariffs on automobile imports, lumber, pharmaceutical products and other goods.

Many economists have repeatedly warned that tariffs could lead to higher prices, boosting troublesome inflation in the U.S. Trump has acknowledged there could be short-term pain for Americans but he has contended that tariffs would ultimately be beneficial to the U.S. economy, the world’s largest.

Trump says the tariffs he is imposing would be an incentive for foreign companies to do more manufacturing in the United States to avoid the tariffs on overseas shipment of their products to the U.S.

More immediately, Trump is focused on the flow of drugs into the U.S. 

your ad here

Despite restrictions, Afghan women provide health care

ISLAMABAD — Sana Safi, a young a doctor in Afghanistan, takes pride in her work, for she is among a shrinking group of female health experts in a country where women are banned from pursuing education or working in most sectors. 

“I am making a real difference in the lives of my patients, especially women who have limited access to health care,” the doctor told VOA on the phone from Nangarhar province. 

But she also is afraid of drawing attention to herself for fear of reprisal and asked to be called Sana Safi to avoid revealing her real identity. 

Many female doctors have left Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. New women may not be entering the health sector any time soon, as the hardline de facto authorities banned medical education for women last December, leaving many final year students without a formal degree. 

The edict was one in a long line of restrictions the Taliban’s reclusive spiritual leader, Mullah Hibatullah Akhundzada, has placed on women, using extremely strict interpretation of Islamic teachings that he claims are divine commands.

The United Nations has called Taliban’s treatment of women “gender apartheid.” 

Health is one of the few sectors in which Afghan women are allowed to work. Safi works in obstetrics and gynecology, one of the few specializations that women can practice. 

Safi said she sees up to 40 women patients daily.   

“What makes me sad about my work is the lack of resources, the restrictions on female health care workers, and the fact that many women are unable to get the medical attention they need due to cultural and political barriers,” the doctor said. 

Barriers that women face in accessing health care vary according to local culture across the war-torn, mountainous country. 

“Patients in restricted [conservative] provinces are not allowed to come to the health facility without a mahram [male guardian],” a health sector researcher told VOA by phone from Kabul. 

She asked that we call her Amina to protect her identity as her work requires cross-country travel to collect data. 

“We have had these reports from the health facility level that the female who did not have the mahram with herself at the moment of delivery of the baby, she died because of this issue,” the researcher said. 

She said such restrictions are applied stringently in government-run health facilities in conservative towns but are largely ignored in private clinics, especially in urban centers like Kabul and Jalalabad. 

A World Health Organization donor appeal issued last month said 14.5 million people, or 33 percent of Afghans, live in areas where primary health care cannot be accessed within a one-hour walk. 

Since a majority of Afghans in the poverty-stricken country rely on state-run hospitals and health centers that provide care at little to no cost, women from poor households are forced to comply with the requirement of having a male guardian – who can even be a minor. 

Amina, who travels with her husband for her research, told VOA that many female health workers also must bring a male family member to work with them in conservative parts of the country. 

Taliban workers from the Ministry of Propagation of Virtue and Prevention of Vice, commonly called PVPV, routinely visit health centers to ensure compliance. 

“They are regularly checking each health facility to see that each female health worker brought their mahram with herself or not,” said Amina. 

The researcher said that the requirement that a male family member must accompany a woman outside the house, though, existed in conservative parts of the country under the U.S.-backed regimes, as well, because of cultural norms. 

The checks under Taliban are thorough. 

“They check the attendance sheet and ask who is a particular doctor’s mahram,” the researcher said. 

The restrictions come at a financial cost to families, while men who could work sit idle as chaperones. 

From pharmacies to hospitals, Taliban have put men in charge. However, performing duties amid restrictions on the mixing of sexes is a challenge for them, too. 

Pharmacy workers in areas under strict Taliban control are discouraged from giving medicine to women without mahram, and hospital chiefs are punished for holding meetings with female staff, according to Amina’s research. 

A hospital head in Badakhshan province spent two weeks behind bars after a meeting with female employees, Amina said. 

Staff in private hospitals don’t face similar restrictions. 

“In emergency situations or when no other doctor is available, I may also assist male patients, if necessary,” said Safi. 

She told VOA she does not take a male guardian with her and that her employer provides transportation. 

Amina said she believes Taliban are willing to look the other way because private hospitals pay taxes, contributing to the treasury. 

Despite the Taliban’s ban on women’s education, a few medical institutions also continue to train women in Kabul. However, the fields are limited to midwifery and dentistry. 

Both Safi and Amina worry that the limits on what female medical students can study will leave female patients with little help. 

“It breaks my heart to see patients suffer simply because there aren’t enough medicines, equipment, or female doctors available,” Safi said. 

Public health facilities across Afghanistan operate mostly with support from United Nattions agencies and other international aid organizations.   

Amina said the Taliban-run health ministry pays attention to research reports and donor feedback. She pointed to the authorities’ support for vaccination programs. 

Still, there is no sign the de facto authorities will lift restrictions on women’s education or access to work in health care despite international calls and dissent from within Taliban circles.

Cultural norms coupled with official restrictions mean some of the most vulnerable cannot receive the care they need. 

“I hope for a future where health care is accessible to all,” Safi said. “And female doctors can work freely without fear or restrictions.” 

your ad here