The Trump administration got bashing from its own countrymen during the 25th United Nations climate conference in Spain. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a Democratic presidential contender, former Secretary of State John Kerry, and actor Harrison Ford all criticized the administration for abandoning the 2016 Paris Agreement on climate.  As VOA’s Zlatica Hoke reports, speakers also commended young people around the world for standing up to protect the planet.

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A man who served as secretary of public security in Mexico from 2006 to 2012 has been indicted in New York City on drug charges alleging he accepted millions of dollars in bribes to let the Sinaloa cartel operate with impunity in Mexico.

Genaro Garcia Luna, 51, a resident of Florida, was charged in Brooklyn federal court with three counts of cocaine trafficking conspiracy and a false statements charge, authorities said in a release.

Garcia Luna was arrested Monday by federal agents in Dallas. Prosecutors in Brooklyn said they will seek his removal to New York. The arrest and charges were announced Tuesday.

U.S. Attorney Richard P. Donoghue said Garcia Luna took millions of dollars in bribes from the former leader of the Sinaloa cartel, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, “while he controlled Mexico’s federal police force and was responsible for ensuring public safety in Mexico.”

 “Today’s arrest demonstrates our resolve to bring to justice those who help cartels inflict devastating harm on the United States and Mexico, regardless of the positions they held while committing their crimes,” he said.

Garcia Luna received millions of dollars in bribes from 2001 to 2012 while he occupied high-ranking law enforcement positions in the Mexican government, authorities said.

From 2001 to 2005, Garcia Luna led Mexico’s Federal Investigation Agency, and from 2006 to 2012 served as Mexico’s secretary of public security, controlling the nation’s federal police force, authorities said.

They said the bribes paid to Garcia Luna cleared the way for the Sinaloa cartel to safely ship multi-ton quantities of cocaine and other drugs into the United States while getting sensitive law enforcement information about investigations and information about rival drug cartels.

There was no immediate comment from representatives for Garcia Luna.

Garcia Luna was once seen as a powerful ally in the American effort to thwart Mexican cartels from flooding the U.S. market with cocaine and other illegal drugs. But he had also previously come under suspicion of taking bribes.

In 2018, former cartel member Jesus Zambada testified at El Chapo’s New York trial that he personally made at least $6 million in hidden payments to Garcia Luna, on behalf of his older brother, cartel boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.

The cash was delivered during two meetings at a restaurant in Mexico between the start of 2005 and the end of 2007, he said.

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A new rehab technology company helps patients maximize physical therapy and regain movement after paralysis – through gaming. Deana Mitchell checks it out.

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When can a U.S. intelligence community worker “blow the whistle?” VOA Explains.

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The Supreme Court appeared likely Tuesday to rule that insurance companies can collect $12 billion from the federal government to cover their losses in the early years of the health care law championed by President Barack Obama.

 Several justices indicated their agreement with arguments from the insurers that they are entitled to the money under a provision of the “Obamacare” health law that promised the companies a financial cushion for losses they might incur by selling coverage to people in the marketplaces created by the health care law.

The program only lasted three years, but Congress inserted a provision in the Health and Human Services Department’s spending bills from 2015 to 2017 to limit payments under the “risk corridors” program. Both the Obama and Trump administrations have argued that the provision means the government has no obligation to pay.
 
“Are you saying the insurers would have done the same thing without the promise to pay?” Justice Elena Kagan asked Deputy Solicitor General Edwin Kneedler. Kneedler said the health care law created a “vast new market” of customers, most of whom would qualify for subsidies.

“The primary point was to encourage companies to go on the marketplace,” Kneedler said.

Paul Clement, representing companies who sold insurance in Alaska, Illinois, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon and Washington, called the government’s refusal to pay a “massive bait-and-switch.”

The companies cite HHS statistics to claim they are owed $12 billion.

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A Bangladeshi girl who escaped being married at the age of 12 and went on to win an international athletics competition said on Monday that girls in the conservative country could “achieve anything” if they overcame their fears.

Ety Khatun, 14, the daughter of a sweet-seller, defied her parents attempts to marry her in 2016 as they struggled to get by in a remote village in western Bangladesh.

On Monday, Khatun won a third gold medal in archery at the South Asian games in Nepal, a rare sporting success for Bangladesh which has yet to land an Olympic medal.

“My parents wanted me to get married. I cried a lot and didn’t eat for two days. I forced them to send me to Dhaka to take part in an archery training camp,” Khatun told the Thomson Reuters Foundation by phone from Nepal.

Muslim-majority Bangladesh has one of the world’s highest rates of child marriage, according to the United Nations.

The country has banned the practise and in 2018 launched a phone app to digitally verify the ages of brides and grooms.

Still, more than half of all girls are married before they are 18.

Khatun may have become one of them had she not been spotted by scouts from the Bangladesh Archery Federation.

“We had selected about 60 potential archers from various regions and she was one of them,” said national coach Ziaul Hoque.

Smaller in stature than her peers, many underestimated Khatun.

“Not much was expected from her,” Hoque said.

But she proved mentally strong, and, in 2018, won bronze at a national archery competition.

“That’s when my parents stopped pressurising me to get married,” said Khatun.

Today her parents back her and revel in her achievements.

Her father remains the family’s sole breadwinner, something Khatun hopes to change.

“(He) has allergy issues and can’t work in winters. If something happens to him we don’t know what we will do. I hope archery can help me support my family and bring peace to them,” she said.

Urging young girls from her village to follow her path she said: “If you work hard, anything is possible. If you are scared and sit back, nothing will work.”

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Older adults who are exposed to tiny particles in air pollution for just a day or two are more likely to be hospitalized for a wide variety of common health problems, a U.S. study suggests.

Researchers focused on so-called PM 2.5, a mixture of solid particles and liquid droplets smaller than 2.5 micrometers in diameter that can include dust, dirt, soot and smoke. They confirmed previously-known links between short-term exposure to PM 2.5 and an increased risk of hospitalization and death from heart and lung diseases, diabetes, and clots in the large veins of the legs. They also found new links between short-term exposure and increased hospitalizations for conditions ranging from sepsis to kidney failure.

The study team examined hospital data for Medicare patients nationwide from 2000 to 2012. They focused on 214 different health conditions, and looked at data on average air pollution levels the day before and the day of each hospitalization based on patients’ home zip codes.

“We discovered several previously unknown but common diseases among older adults, such as fluid and electrolyte disorders, septicemia, anemia, urinary tract infections, and renal failure, even when daily PM2.5 concentrations were below the current World Health Organization (WHO) air quality guidelines,” said lead study author Yaguang Wei, an environmental health researcher at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston.

“PM2.5 is composed of tiny solids and liquids floating in the air and once inhaled, these particles can pass through the respiratory system, sneak into the blood and circulatory system, and cause serious health problems,” Wei said by email.

“The most consistent and dangerous health effects identified have been cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, which are the leading causes of hospitalization, emergency room visit, and even death,” Wei added.

Under WHO guidelines issued in 2005, people shouldn’t be exposed to average PM 2.5 levels over 24 hours that exceed 25 micrograms per cubic meter of air (ug/m3).

Short-term exposure to fine particulate matter was associated with an increased risk of several common causes of hospital admissions including sepsis or septicemia, a life-threatening reaction to a bacterial infection in the bloodstream; fluid and electrolyte disorders; kidney failure; and intestinal obstructions. These diseases have rarely been studied in the context of PM 2.5 and hospitalizations, the study team writes in The BMJ.

For these rarely-studied diseases, each 1 ug/m3 increase in short-term average fine particulate matter levels was associated with an average annual increase of 2,050 hospital admissions, 12,216 total days in the hospital and $31 million in hospital and post-acute care costs.

Air pollution levels below safety standards set by WHO were also associated with an increased risk of hospitalizations for conditions like cardiovascular and respiratory disorders that have previously been tied to PM 2.5.

For these diseases previously linked to air pollution, each 1 ug/m3 increase in short-term average fine particulate matter levels was associated with an average annual increase of 3,642 hospital admissions, 20,098 total days in the hospital and $69 million in hospital and post-acute care costs.

Costs attributable to short-term air pollution exposure are likely far higher, said study co-author Francesca Dominici, also a public health researcher at Harvard.

“The major limitation of this study was that costs incurred after discharge, such as drug costs, readmission costs and outpatient costs could not be fully captured,” Dominici said by email.

People may not be able to avoid exposure to air pollution, but they can still take some precautions, said Matthew Loxham of the University Hospital Southampton in the UK.

“All people, but especially those who have underlying health conditions which may be exacerbated by air pollution, such as heart/cardiovascular conditions, asthma, COPD, should look for local air quality levels and associated guidance, which may suggest closing windows, or avoiding strenuous outdoor exercise,” Loxham, who co-authored an editorial accompanying the study, said by email.

“Furthermore, both patients and medical practitioners should be aware of the impact poor air quality can have on exacerbation of disease, to better understand and perhaps to better treat such flare-ups,” Loxham said.

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U.S. President Donald Trump will join Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Tuesday for talks with visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, the White House announced.

The three will “discuss the state of the bilateral relationship,” a senior Trump administration official said Monday.
 
The meeting, which was originally announced to involve only Pompeo and Lavrov, was widely speculated to be attended by Trump, as well.
 
White House National Security Adviser Robert O’Brien said such a visit by Trump would reciprocate a courtesy extended by President Vladimir Putin to Pompeo during his last visit to Moscow.

“When Pompeo has gone to Russia, Putin’s seen him. And one of the things that we’ve said with the Chinese and the Russians is, we want reciprocity,” O’Brien said on the “Face the Nation” television program.

The trio is expected to meet for a half-day of talks that include a working lunch and a news conference. U.S. officials say the three will discuss arms control, as well as the situations in Ukraine and Syria, among other issues.

Strained ties
 
The meeting comes as bilateral ties between the United States and Russia are strained over allegations of election meddling, as well as the conflicts in Ukraine and Syria.
 
The talks appear to have been initiated after Putin said last week that Moscow was eager to extend the New START nuclear arms control treaty by the end of this year “without any preconditions.”

At the recent NATO summit in London, Trump said that he was aware of Moscow’s desire to “do a deal” on arms control, and said that China could also be brought into the process.
 
Pompeo and Lavrov met several times this year, including in Russia and in New York at the United Nations. Lavrov has not been in Washington since he met Trump at the White House in May 2017, a meeting that led to accusations that Trump divulged classified information during the talks.

Impeachment inquiry

The talks come at a time when Washington is embroiled over the ongoing impeachment inquiry against Trump, which has focused on allegations that he withheld aid to Ukraine in order to pressure Kyiv into launching an investigation into Trump’s potential Democratic rival in the 2020 U.S. presidential elections.

Russia has also been drawn into the conversation, with some Democrats arguing that the scope of the impeachment trial should include allegations of obstruction of justice by Trump for his dealings with special counsel Robert Mueller, who investigated Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
 
Mueller’s report concluded that Russia did interfere to try to tilt the vote in favor of Trump. Moscow has denied any interference.

While Mueller’s report concluded that Trump did not collude with Russia, it also did not fully exonerate the president on possible crimes of obstruction of justice.
 

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As 2019 draws to a close, the U.S. economy is posting strong numbers, capping a remarkable 11-year streak of expansion. President Donald Trump argues that’s why he deserves to win reelection in 2020. But as VOA’s Ardita Dunellari explains, there are dangers ahead that could rattle both the economy and the president’s reelection message.

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Britain’s political leaders are making a final push for votes ahead of Thursday’s general election, which has been dominated by the issue of Britain’s exit from the European Union.

A new report from analyst group The UK in a Changing Europe at Kings College London concludes that both the ruling Conservative party and opposition Labour party manifestos are vague or misleading on Brexit — and warns the agonizing over Britain’s future relationship with the EU is only likely to get worse.

The Conservatives plan to leave the European Union on Jan. 31, 2020, under the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated with Brussels, if they win a majority on Dec. 12. Party leader Boris Johnson toured a fish market in the port of Grimsby on Monday, pledging to boost the industry after Brexit.

“I think it’s an opportunity here to look at one of the ways in which this country will take back control of a massive industry once we get Brexit done in January,” Johnson said.

Far from “massive,” commercial fishing makes up just 0.1 percent of the British economy — but control of fishing rights holds symbolic value for many pro-Brexit voters, who want to prevent European boats from accessing British waters.

However, three-quarters of British-caught fish is exported, most of it to the European Union — and any trade barriers could hurt the industry.

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The Conservatives election mantra is “Get Brexit done.” But Britain has yet to negotiate its future relationship with the EU and that will likely take years. Such Brexit trade-offs have been largely ignored, says Jill Rutter of The UK in a Changing Europe program.

“One of the things the Conservatives have said is ‘we can get a good trade deal done with the EU by December 2020. We’re not going to ask for another extension,’” said Rutter. “That looks pretty unrealistic to most people. And it’s very unclear exactly where the Conservatives are heading on that relationship.”

The opposition Labour party has tried to focus on other issues, like the health service, and has sometimes struggled to communicate its stance on Brexit, something that could cost them at the ballot box. The party promises to renegotiate a better Brexit deal then hold another referendum.

“So they talk about not full alignment with the Single Market rules, but close alignment,” noted Rutter. “I think the EU might want to ask what that’s about, because remember they really didn’t like it when (former Prime Minister) Theresa May said ‘I want to pick and mix which rules I go with.’”

For their part, the Liberal Democrats say they would cancel Brexit altogether.  They could be kingmakers if no one party wins a majority Thursday.
 
Polls suggest Boris Johnson’s Conservatives will gain a majority. But there could be a surprise. Some 3.85 million people have newly registered to vote in the last few weeks, with roughly two-thirds of those aged under 35 — a demographic that tends not to vote Conservative.

Jason Palmer, a Student Union officer at Bristol University in the west of England, says many young people are engaging in the election debate.

“I think a lot of this comes from the discontent that’s previously been experienced in terms of young people feeling as though their voices don’t matter in politics,” Palmers said. “Or that they didn’t have a say, for example, in the 2016 Brexit referendum.”

The prime minister’s own constituency of Uxbridge could be the biggest surprise. The area voted to remain in the European Union in 2016 — and the Labour candidate for the seat, Ali Milani, believes he can win there.

“We only need a 5 percent swing to take this seat, to unseat a prime minister which would be the first time in British democracy’s history that that’s ever happened,” Milani said.

Another factor could be another great British obsession: the weather. A cold snap is forecast, which could persuade some voters to stay home.

Will Britain vote for a change of direction? Or will the election push Britain deeper into political quagmire? The result is due in the early hours of Friday.

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One person is confirmed dead and the toll is likely to rise after a volcano began erupting Monday afternoon off New Zealand’s North Island, one of the country’s two main islands.

While several people are still missing and some of the injured have been transported to the area hospitals, emergency teams say it is too dangerous to continue the rescue operation.

Emergency officials say around 50 people were on White island when the eruption began, fewer than initially reported by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern who said 100 tourists were “on or around” the White Island volcano, also known as Whakaari in the Maori language.

AFP reports that cameras providing a live feed from the volcano showed a group of tourists walking on the crater floor moments before the eruption occurred.

White Island sits 50 kilometers northeast of the town of Tauranga on North Island.

Authorities urged people to avoid areas on North Island near to the eruption. 

GeoNet agency classified the volcanic eruption as moderate and raised its alert level to four, on a scale where five represents a major eruption.

GeoNet says White Island is New Zealand’s most active cone volcano and about 70 percent of the volcano is under the sea.

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Democrat Joe Biden’s presidential campaign launched new attacks on Donald Trump on Sunday, advocating a reevaluation of U.S.-Saudi relations and calling North Korea’s apparent weapons test a “rebuke” to the U.S. president in a statement to Reuters.

The statement comes as Trump faces pressure to examine his administration’s approach to Riyadh after law enforcement officials said a Saudi Arabian Air Force lieutenant killed three people at a U.S. Navy base in Pensacola, Florida, before being fatally shot.

The man was on the base as part of a Navy training program designed to foster links with foreign allies.

Authorities said they believe the man acted alone. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman told Trump on Sunday the kingdom would aid an investigation into the shooting, the Saudi state news agency reported.

Still, the incident put a spotlight on the Trump administration’s warm ties with the Saudis as fallout continues from the killing of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi last year at a Saudi consulate in Turkey, as well as Saudi involvement in the war in Yemen and tensions with Middle East rival Iran.

In a statement emailed to Reuters, Biden campaign spokesman TJ Ducklo said the Trump administration has written Saudi’s kingdom “a blank check to act with impunity around the world.”

Biden would “reevaluate our relationship with Saudi Arabia to ensure it is fully aligned with American values and priorities” if he beats Trump in a November 2020 election, Ducklo said. Biden believes the investigation into the Florida shooting should run its course, the spokesman added.

Ducklo also said a test at North Korea’s Sohae rocket-testing ground after Trump called U.S.-North Korean relations “very good” were a “clear rebuke to Trump” and showed that “Trump’s made-for-TV summits have achieved little, while North Korea continues to advance its dangerous capabilities.”

He added that Biden, as president, “won’t be sending Kim Jong Un any love letters,” a reference to an exchange of personal correspondence between Trump and Kim since their first summit in Singapore in June 2018, when the North Korean leader pledged to dismantle the missile installation where its latest test took place.

Trump’s reelection campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment late on Sunday.

The former vice president has been highlighting his foreign policy credentials as he battles rivals for his Democratic party’s presidential nomination but also as he looks ahead to an election fight against Trump. In a widely viewed video posted online on Wednesday, Biden characterized the sitting president as a joke among world leaders.

Trump’s presidential campaign was based partly on the argument that other countries were taking advantage of the United States due to diplomacy Biden advocated when he was Barack Obama’s vice president.
 

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