【343-346】 El Salvador Breaks with Taiwan, Opens Ties with China

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AS IT IS

El Salvador Breaks with Taiwan, Opens Ties with China

August 21, 2018

El Salvador's Foreign Minister Carlos Castaneda and China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi celebrate a toast at a signing ceremony to mark the establishment of diplomatic relations between El Salvador and China August 21, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

El Salvador has broken off ties with Taiwan and established relations with China.

President Salvador Sanchez Ceren announced the change late Monday in a nationwide address. He said the Central American nation’s decision was made after “careful” study.

Taiwan split from mainland China as part of a civil war in 1949. China still considers self-ruled Taiwan a part of Chinese territory, not an independent state with rights to establish foreign relations. The Chinese government bars countries it has diplomatic relations with from having official ties with Taiwan.

El Salvador is the fifth country to drop Taiwan as a diplomatic ally since 2016. Taiwan currently has official diplomatic ties with just 17 small, developing nations.

In Taipei, President Tsai Ing-wen blamed the decision on China. She promised to keep resisting efforts she said are clearly aimed at further pressuring Taiwan diplomatically.

“We will turn to countries with similar values to fight together against China’s increasingly out-of-control international behavior,” Tsai said.

Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Joseph Wu told reporters Taiwan had not been willing to get involved in a “money competition” with China.

He said El Salvador had repeatedly sought “massive funding support” since last year for a port development. But in the end, Taiwan decided not to assist with the project. Wu said El Salvador’s ruling party had also asked Taiwan to provide money to help it win in elections, but Taiwan refused.

In Beijing, the Chinese government’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, said El Salvador had made the right decision.

“I’m confident that the people of El Salvador will feel the warmth and friendship of the Chinese people and derive tangible benefits from its cooperation with China,” Wang told reporters.

The U.S. government expressed concern about El Salvador’s decision to split diplomatically with Taiwan.

U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador Jean Manes wrote in a tweet late Monday the decision was “worrisome for many reasons.” She added that the decision would “without a doubt” affect the U.S. relationship with El Salvador’s government.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn adapted this story for VOA Learning English from reports from the Associated Press and Reuters. Hai Do was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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Words in This Story

derive – v. come from or be developed from something

tangible – adj. something real that can be seen, touched or measured

benefit – n. something that helps you or provides an advantage

doubt – n. feeling of not being sure about something

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AS IT IS

Microsoft: Russian Hackers Targeted US Websites Before Elections

August 21, 2018

FILE - A man is silhouetted as he walks in front of a Microsoft logo Nov. 7, 2017. Microsoft says it has uncovered new Russian hacking attempts targeting U.S. political groups ahead of midterm elections in November. (AP Photo/Altaf Qadri, File)

Software maker Microsoft says that hackers linked to Russia’s government tried to launch computer attacks on United States websites. The websites belonged to the U.S. Senate and to some conservative American research groups known as think tanks.

Microsoft warned that Russia is expanding its attacks before U.S. congressional elections in November.

The world’s biggest software company said late on Monday that last week it took control of six web domains that hackers had created to look like websites belonging to the Senate and the think tanks. Users who visited the false websites were asked to enter information to log in to them.

Microsoft’s action is its latest effort to stop what it says are Russian government hacking attempts. The company said it has shut down 84 false websites in 12 court-approved actions over the past two years.

The attacks are believed to have come from APT28, a group under the Russian military intelligence agency GRU. It is believed to be the same group that interfered with the 2016 U.S. election. Microsoft did not blame the group directly, but named them in their statement.

Microsoft President Brad Smith wrote about the hacking incident in a blog post. He said he was concerned that the hacking attempts are a “security risk” to American political parties as they near the 2018 election.

Microsoft said it had no evidence that the hackers had been able to use any of the login information before the sites were removed from the web.

This kind of attack is known as “spear fishing.” Spear fishing describes an operation in which hackers trick people into entering their username and password into a false site in order to steal their login information.

Gaining login information would permit the hackers to get emails, contact lists and other information of important individuals.

Reuters news service reported that Russia rejected the Microsoft accusations and said there was no evidence to support them.

“We don’t know what hackers they are talking about,” Russian spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. “Who exactly are they talking about?” He added that Microsoft did not show any real evidence to support their accusations.

Russia has denied that it used hackers to effect U.S. elections and political opinion.

The targets, Microsoft said, included the International Republican Institute. Its Republican members include Senator John McCain of Arizona.

The Hudson Institute, another target, has held discussions on cyber security, Microsoft noted. It also explored the rise of government corruption and theft in Russia, and has been critical of the Russian government.

Other false domains were used to look like real websites used by the U.S. Senate and Microsoft’s Office software, the company said.

Microsoft’s report came as tensions between Russia and the U.S have grown.

In July, a U.S. federal grand jury charged 12 Russian intelligence officers with hacking into the computer networks of Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party in 2016.

I’m Susan Shand.

Reuters and the Associated Press reported this story. Susan Shand adapted the story for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor.

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Words in This Story

hacker – n. person who secretly gets access to a computer system in order to get information, cause damage, etc.

cyber – adj. referring to a computer

Think tank – n. an organization that consists of a group of people who think of new ideas on a particular subject or who give advice about what should be done

Web domain – n. an actual presence on the Internet, such as a web page.

log in - v. to use coded words to enter a website

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Riskiest Part of Haj Begins in Saudi Arabia

August 21, 2018

Muslim pilgrims throw stones at a wall that symbolizes Satan during the annual haj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, Aug. 21, 2018. (REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra )

More than two million Muslims from 165 countries gathered to throw stones at a large wall near the holy city of Mecca, Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. The event shows the believers’ rejection of the devil. It is part of the yearly pilgrimage to Islam’s holy sites known as hajj.

But the number of pilgrims in the hajj can make the event risky. In 2015, at least 800 people died when two large groups arrived at the road to the stoning site at the same time. The crush was the worst hajj-related disaster in at least 25 years.

Officials in Saudi Arabia have taken several steps to make sure the situation does not happen again. They have created a bridge to ease crowding, and they are using security forces and drones to keep order. Medical workers are also at the scene.

Pilgrimage and Saudi Arabia

Providing for the safety of pilgrims is important to the Saudi Arabian government. King Salman tweeted on Monday, “Our country’s greatest honor is to serve God’s guests.”

Pilgrimage is also critical to a Saudi plan to expand tourism and move the economy away from oil. Every year, religious visitors spend billions of dollars on hotels, transportation, fees and gifts.

One pilgrim from Jordan told a reporter that he was very pleased with this year’s event. Firas al-Khashani said, “The police assistance and the services were all extraordinary. Praise God, I am very happy and God willing our Lord will provide for us again.”

Almost 2.5 million pilgrims are attending the hajj this year. The five-day ritual is a religious duty that all Muslims are expected to perform at least once in their lives, if they are physically able and can afford the trip.

I’m Kelly Jean Kelly.

Kelly Jean Kelly adapted this story for VOA Learning English from a report by Reuters. Hai Do was the editor.

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Words in This Story

pilgrimage – n. a journey to a holy place

crush - n. a crowd of people who are pressed close together

drone - n. a type of small aircraft that flies without a pilot

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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AS IT IS

Trump's Former Aides Admitted, Convicted of Crimes

August 21, 2018

Michael Cohen leaves Federal court, Tuesday, Aug. 21, 2018, in New York.Cohen, has pleaded guilty to charges including campaign finance fraud stemming from hush money payments to porn actress Stormy Daniels and ex-Playboy model Karen McDougal. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)

President Donald Trump’s former lawyer has told a court in New York that he is guilty of campaign-finance violations and other charges. Michael Cohen said he was guilty of eight crimes in all, including not paying taxes and making a false statement to a financial institution.

In entering the plea, Cohen said he worked with an unnamed candidate to illegally buy the silence of two women. The payment dates and amounts are the same as those claimed by Stormy Daniels and Karen McDougal who say they had sexual relationships with Trump.

Cohen was the president’s personal lawyer during the 2016 election. He also represented the Trump Organization for many years.

Also Tuesday, a court in Virginia found Trump’s 2016 election campaign chairman Paul Manafort, guilty of eight financial crimes.

That finding represents the first trial victory of the special counsel investigation into the president's assistants. Paul Manafort joined the Trump campaign for president in March 2016. He served as chairman of the campaign from June to August 2016.

FILE - Paul Manafort, right, campaign manager to Republican Presidential Candidate Donald Trump, and his assistant Rick Gates stand on the floor of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, July 17, 2016.

Former lawyer admitted guilt

Under an agreement with federal prosecutors in New York, Cohen did not name the two women or the candidate. He told the court that he worked with a “candidate for federal office” to pay two women to keep their stories of alleged affairs from becoming public during the 2016 election.

The amounts of money and the dates suggest the payments were made to porn actress Stormy Daniels and Playboy model Karen McDougal. The two women said after the election that they had affairs with Trump, which he has denied. Cohen also admitted guilt to avoiding paying taxes and lying to banks.

Investigators from the U.S. Special Counsel’s office came across some of the evidence against Cohen while looking into Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. The office alerted federal prosecutors in New York. Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation then seized records from Cohen’s hotel room, home and office.

Cohen had been a trusted member of the Trump Organization. But Cohen’s legal team recently released an audio recording Cohen made of Trump reportedly discussing one of the payments.

FILE -Stormy Daniels arrives at federal court in New York to attend a court hearing where a federal judge is considering how to review materials that the FBI seized from President Donald Trump's personal lawyer.

Former campaign chief guilty of financial crimes

Paul Manafort was found guilty of creating false tax documents about tens of millions of dollars he earned from work in Ukraine. He was also convicted of fraudfor lying to banks to get millions of dollars in loans. Prosecutors said, overall, Manafort avoided paying more than $16 million in taxes over several years.

Manafort faces another trial later this year on charges of other financial crimes and conspiracy against the U.S. He is accused of lying and acting as an unregistered foreign agent for Ukrainian interests. He is also accused of witness interference in that case.

I’m Phil Dierking.

Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on AP and Reuters news reports. Caty Weaver was the editor.

Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

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