Rescue Work Continues after Mexico City Earthquake

  The earthquake that struck near Mexico City Tuesday came exactly 32 years after an 8.0 magnitude quake hit the area. The 1985 earthquake killed nearly 10,000 people. Mexican officials say more than 200 people are confirmed dead following Tuesday’s quake. Many buildings were damaged, while others were destroyed. Rescue workers searched the capital and other areas on Wednesday in hopes of finding survivors.  Mexican Interior Minister Miguel Osorio Chong says his country’s armed forces and police will continue working until they explore all possibilities of finding more people alive. Civilians joined the search and rescue teams shortly after the quake. They used heavy machinery and, in some cases their hands, to clear away wreckage from homes, schools and other buildings. Scientists say the earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1. The United States Geological Survey defines magnitude as a number that represents the relative size of a quake. The quake’s epicenter was near the city of Puebla, 120 kilometers southeast of Mexico City. Ken Hudnut is a science adviser with the U.S. Geological Survey in Pasadena, California. He told VOA that the land on which the buildings were set up could be a reason for the collapses. "Some of the buildings are on old lake beds, and that can amplify the shaking and cause the shaking to last longer, and that can make for more damage.” On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump sent a message of support on Twitter. He wrote, “God bless the people of Mexico City. We are with you and will be there for you.” On Wednesday, Israel announced plans to send 70 people to Mexico to help with rescue efforts. A military spokesman said the team will help examine buildings to identify their damage and safety levels. The earthquake hit less than two weeks after another quake killed more than 90 people in southern Mexico. The U.S. Geological Survey said the two quakes appeared to be unrelated. The Earth’s outermost surface is made up of large tectonic plates. As many as 20 tectonic plates cover the planet. They move slowly, sometimes sliding under one another. When that happens, earthquakes can take place. Ken Hudnut says the two recent quakes in Mexico have similarities. “So both of them occurred within the plate that's going down underneath the plate that is overriding up on top. And both of them had some extensional movement, which is unusual. The more typical thing is like the 1985 earthquake that did much more damage in Mexico City than either of these…” I’m Ashley Thompson.   George Grow wrote this story for Learning English based on VOA, AP and Reuters news reports. Hai Do was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   lake – n. a large, inland body of standing water amplify – v. to expand; to make larger or greater tectonic plate – n. large pieces of the Earth’s outer shell occur – v. to happen; to exist or appear typical – adj. normal for someone or something   We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

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Hurricane Maria Strikes Puerto Rico

Hurricane Maria pounded eastern Puerto Rico after making landfall Wednesday as a powerful Category 4 storm that forecasters described as "extremely dangerous."

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Explainer: Debt Ceiling

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September 19, 2017

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

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Students with Learning Disabilities Can Learn New Languages

  Laura Grey is proficient in five languages: English, French, Spanish, Italian and German. She is also learning Russian, Mandarin Chinese and Dutch. She is doing this although she has a learning disability. A learning disability is a condition that makes learning difficult. Grey has dyslexia, a learning disability that makes reading, writing and spelling difficult. “I was an early reader so nobody thought that I was dyslexic for a long time,” Grey said. “They had just thought that I had terrible handwriting and was a bad speller. Not living up to my academic potential.” The National Center for Education Statistics says that 13.8 percent of students learning English in the United States have a disability. The statistics include both physical and learning disabilities. What is a learning disability? People with learning disabilities can have trouble reading, writing, spelling or understanding texts. They may have a hard time processing sounds or calculating numbers. Disabilities can be mild or severe. Priscillia Shen is the Assistant Head of DAS Academy. The Academy is part of the Dyslexia Association of Singapore. She said, “Every dyslexic learner is different.” Shen said, students with mild dyslexia may do well in primary school, but may face problems in higher levels of education. Shen believes that lessons need to fit the needs of individual students. Multisensory teaching can help Brenda Bernaldez is a specialist for the Office of English Language Programs in Mexico. She has taught English to students of all ages. Bernaldez said a multisensory approach to learning English could help students. She explained that this method includes using visual, auditory and kinesthetic tools. Kinesthetic tools are activities in which students move, play or act. This approach can involve teaching vocabulary words with pictures or using movable tiles to show how words are formed. Strategies: reading and using words is important Lía Kamhi-Stein is a professor at California State University in Los Angeles. She is an English language teacher who works with students struggling to read. She said students with mild learning disabilities need to “develop the love for reading” in order to read better. Kamhi-Stein said, the students should choose what they want to read whether it is comics or books about animals. She also said that reading with someone else can help students hear how words sound. In addition, she said students should learn text structures. For example, some texts have problem-solution structures where the problem is at the beginning and the solution is at the end. Students who know these structures can find information faster because they know where to look. Kamhi-Stein also said that each lesson’s vocabulary needs to be from readings in the lesson and the vocabulary needs to be repeated. “If what you are going to do is expose the kid to a vocabulary word one time, then that vocabulary word is not going to stick,” she said. Strategies: designing lessons for learners with disabilities Although Laura Grey speaks many languages, her grades would not have suggested this ability. She said writing and spelling—which she struggles with—usually affect students’ grades the most. Grey said that language learning also involves speaking and listening which affect grades less. Priscillia Shen said, DAS Academy designs lessons for students’ learning needs. The Academy might start with only listening and speaking. Brenda Bernaldez encouraged students with learning disabilities to discover what learning methods work for them. She said students should then ask teachers to use those methods in class. ​Sara Kangas is an assistant professor at Lehigh University in the state of Pennsylvania. She has researched English language learners with learning disabilities. She said, many schools only place students with learning disabilities into Special Education classes and not English language classes. Kangas said she hopes people who work in Special Education and English language teaching can collaborate to help these students. Strategies: learning apps are good tools Not all schools around the world provide special education however. Brenda Bernaldez said, “If you are, as a student, trapped in a situation where you cannot ask for anything, I would say try technology to help you deal with it.” For students struggling to read and write, Bernaldez suggested using voice recorders to take notes. She said there are apps like Evernote that let students record voice notes and organize them. Lía Kamhi-Stein said apps like Quizlet are useful because students can learn vocabulary by reading and hearing words and looking at pictures. Laura Grey said she likes Duolingo because the lessons let users take as long as they need. She said, “If you’re willing to keep going and keep doing it, you’re going to get there.” Dyslexia in other languages Learning disabilities are not language specific. That means, if someone with a learning disability has difficulties in one language, they are likely to have the same difficulties in another. Laura Grey said, in any language, she is a terrible speller. Priscillia Shen has researched dyslexia in Chinese language learners in Singapore. She said, Chinese language learners with dyslexia have similar difficulties to English language learners with dyslexia. While some students learning English may write ‘d’ instead of ‘b’, some students learning Chinese may reverse Chinese characters. Chinese language learners with dyslexia may mix up stroke patterns, add or forget strokes. Some students may confuse words with the same sounds but different meanings. Shen said color-coding Chinese characters may help. Many Chinese characters have semantic and phonetic parts. Semantic parts tell the reader what the word may mean, while phonetic parts tell the reader how to pronounce it. Shen said writing semantic parts in one color and phonetic parts in another color may help. Diagnosing disabilities Brenda Bernaldez said wealthier people are more likely to be diagnosed with learning disabilities, while poorer people are less likely to be diagnosed. She said, in Latin America, many people do not know what a learning disability is and do not know how to help students with learning disabilities. “I think sometimes it’s even a relief for the father and mother or the family to be like ‘Oh, he’s not slow,’ he actually has something we can deal with,” Bernaldez said.  Laura Grey said that she was not afraid of the judgments of others when she decided to get diagnosed. Before her diagnosis she was frustrated because her undergraduate grades were not good. Getting diagnosed gave her an official reason why she was having difficulties. And with it, she is attending graduate school. She gives this advice to other language learners: “You have to do it every day. And if you do it every day, it’s definitely not so hard. But if you don’t do it every day, it’s almost impossible.” I’m Mario Ritter. And I’m Olivia Liu.   Olivia Liu wrote this story for Learning English. Mario Ritter was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   proficient – adj. a certain level of skill potential –n. the ability of something to become real to come into being statistics –n. numbers that provide information answering questions like how many, how often, to what degree? auditory –adj. related to hearing tiles –n. a flat piece of material apps –n. computer applications found on phones, tablets and computers reverse –v. to change to the opposite state or condition stroke –n. one part of a written or painted character or painting semantic –adj. related to meaning phonetic –adj. related to sound frustrated –adj. the result of not being able to gain or complete something We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

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While Stock Values Rise, American Farmers Struggle

  Leading measures of U.S. stocks have been setting records. Employment reports are making Americans feel good about the economy. Yet many farmers in the United States are struggling. Fertilizer and seed costs are rising at the same time demand and prices for crops are low. And the farmers’ economic problems are affecting others. The Farm Progress Show is one of the largest events for farmers in the world. It is a place where manufacturers and suppliers can demonstrate their new products and equipment. Farmers go to the show to learn how they can do their work more efficiently. This year, the show was held in Decatur, Illinois. Farmer Jeff Fisher went there, but all he could do was look. The Illinois farmer told VOA he does not have enough money to buy the things he would like to have on his farm. Fisher has not been able to buy new equipment since he last made a profit -- five years ago. “We’re losing money where the cost of production of corn is higher than the price of corn on the Chicago Board of Trade and our local price.” The U.S. Department of Agriculture reports median net farm income in 2016 was the lowest since 2009. The department predicts there will be a small increase in earnings this year. The lack of profit has hurt more than just farmers. Tamara Nelsen is the Senior Director of Commodities for the Illinois Farm Bureau.  “The Equipment Manufacturers Association released some pretty dismal numbers for farm equipment sales, and what that means to Caterpillar and Deere, that’s troublesome.” The Association of Equipment Manufacturers reported a 14 percent decrease in farm equipment exports for the first nine months of 2016. Sales dropped 44 percent from 2015 levels in Asia and 28 percent in South America. Tamara Nelsen says a drop in equipment sales affects manufacturers that depend on farmers buying new equipment. “If a farmer cannot afford to buy this, then those 25 workers that work to make it and the steelworkers who produce the steel, and all of the people involved in the parts, they are not going to have jobs either -- and so farmers need to have good markets just like manufacturers need to have good markets.” Mark Bremer is a farmer from southern Illinois. Bremer grows corn and soybeans on his farm and raises livestock. Like Fisher, he is using old equipment. “We would love to update, we’d love to purchase new technology and stuff, but that technology comes with a price -- they didn't develop [it] for free.” Bremer is not sure when he will have enough money to buy new equipment. And he is worried about the effect this year of a lack of rainfall will have on his crops. “We’re not guaranteed the rain, we’re not guaranteed the price and we’re not guaranteed the yield either so it’s a continual challenge of making it.” There is also no guarantee that next year will be better. But farmer Jeff Fisher still has hope. “We’re in the bottom of that roller coaster, it feels like, ride right now -- I hope it doesn’t get worse.” In a few weeks, he will begin harvesting his crops. I’m Caty Weaver.   VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reported this story from Decatur, Illinois. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted his report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. ____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   profit margin – n. the difference between the cost of something and the price at which it is sold Chicago Board of Trade – n. an exchange or marketplace where agreements on agricultural products are bought and sold median net – adj. of or related to the middle value dismal – adj. very bad or poor livestock – n. cattle or other farm animals stuff – n. materials, supplies or equipment yield – n. something produced; a product roller coaster – adj. of or related to something with numerous ups and downs  

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Experts Criticize Russian Disinformation

Experts Criticize Russian “Disinformation” Campaigns Targeting the West

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Blasphemy Is a Life-or-Death Issue in Pakistan

  Blasphemy is a sensitive subject in Pakistan, where strong religious feelings have led in the past to violence. Blasphemy laws are meant to guard against anything seen as a direct insult to God, Islam or religious leaders. For people accused of violating such laws, the judgment is often a life-or-death matter. Under Pakistan’s legal system, a judge can propose either life in jail or death to anyone found guilty of blasphemy. The issue is back in the news after a Punjab court last week condemned to death Nadeem James, who is Christian. The police said they had gathered evidence from someone who said James sent him a blasphemous poem through the software program WhatsApp. A Pakistani government lawyer confirmed a claim by James's defense lawyer that James never sent any blasphemous material to anyone. "The accused said ... he never sent any blasphemous message through his cellphone," prosecution lawyer Rana Naveed Anjum told VOA. "But once something has been alleged against you, and there is enough evidence on record corroborating that assertion, then it is hard to deny or overlook such material." A fair trial is difficult A Pakistani human rights activist, Mehdi Hassan, said it is difficult to get a fair trial in cases involving religious beliefs. "In Pakistan, religious might is very influential," Hassan told VOA, "and that thinking has an impact on police and other departments in such cases." Nadeem James's lawyer, Anjum Wakeel, has said the defendant was "framed" by his so-called friend, "who was annoyed by [James's] affair with a Muslim girl." Prosecutor Anjum agreed that James told investigators he had been set up. James and members of his family had been receiving threats, some of them from local religious leaders. Because of the sensitive nature of the case, the trial was held in secret, and in a prison. 'Blasphemy' can mask personal disputes Blasphemy is one of the most divisive laws in Pakistan. Rights groups say accusations of blasphemy are often abused, and used to settle personal disputes.  Activist Mehdi Hassan said the country's political parties should press Pakistanis to end the misuse of these laws. "To address this problem as a long-term solution, political parties should play a role, because democracy gives a level playing field to everyone," Hassan told VOA. Hassan remembered Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the well-respected lawyer and political leader who helped create modern-day Pakistan. He said, "We have to remember what Mr. Jinnah said, ‘Religious beliefs are the personal matter of an individual.’” Jinnah served as Pakistan’s first governor-general after the end of British colonial rule in 1947. A history of violence Past blasphemy cases have fueled public anger that resulted in mob violence and killings. Mashal Khal was a journalism student at Abdul Wali Khan University in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. In April of this year, he was beaten and shot dead by other students. They became angry over reports that he had placed blasphemous comments online. In 2014, an angry mob in Punjab beat a Christian woman and her husband to death over blasphemy accusations. In 2011, Punjab Governor Salman Taseer was killed by his bodyguard after the governor proposed reforms for the blasphemy laws.  Even with criticism, Pakistan's government has been calling for strict enforcement of blasphemy laws. In April, the government used newspaper advertising and text messages to warn millions of Pakistanis not to post, share or upload "blasphemous" material online. The government also asked anyone finding such material to report it to the police. The group Human Rights Watch reports that 10 Muslims and five non-Muslims were arrested in Pakistan last year on blasphemy charges.  In addition, at least 19 people found guilty of blasphemy were sentenced to death and are being held in prison. I’m Phil Dierking.   Madeeha Anwar reported this story for VOANews.com. Phil Dierking adapted the report for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. Do you think there should be a separation between religion and state laws? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   allege - v. o state without definite proof that someone has done something wrong or illegal​ assert - v. to state (something) in a strong and definite way​ blasphemy - n. something said or done that is disrespectful to God or to something holy​ corroborate - v.  to support or help prove a statement, theory, etc. by providing information or evidence​ controversial - adj.  relating to or causing much discussion, disagreement, or argument​ frame - v. to make an innocent person appear to be guilty of a crime​

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SpaceX Releases Blooper Video of Rocket Failures

  The private American company SpaceX has been called a pioneer in the space industry. SpaceX was the idea of businessman Elon Musk. He wanted to reduce the cost of space travel by reusing rockets over and over again. At the time, this was a completely new idea. For years, booster rockets that lifted spacecraft into the skies returned to Earth and were discarded at sea. At first, many scientists and people in the aerospace industry did not take Elon Musk and SpaceX seriously. There were many rocket failures in the company’s early days of testing. But many people became believers after SpaceX successfully recovered its rockets, turning Musk’s dream into reality.   In recent years, SpaceX has increased the number of rockets it launches. These have included flights transporting supplies to the International Space Station, as well as many satellite launches. To date, SpaceX has successfully landed 16 first-stage booster rockets to be reused in future rocket launches. The most recent landing took place earlier this month in Florida. Some rockets touched down on land, while others landed on a floating platform in the sea. But before all the successes, there were also some big failures. SpaceX recently put together a collection of some of those failures in the form of a blooper video. Musk announced the video on Twitter: “How NOT to land an orbital rocket.” In another recent post, he wrote “we messed up a lot before it finally worked.” He also promised that viewers would see “some epic explosion” video. The two-minute video is set to John Philip Sousa’s famous march “The Liberty Bell.” It shows rockets exploding at sea and over land, with short explanations and dates. The opening explosion, from 2013, is timed to the music. Towards the end, the video shows SpaceX’s first successful booster landing at Cape Canaveral Air Force station in 2015. The final shot is of the booster that touched down on an ocean platform in 2016. I’m Bryan Lynn.   Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English. His story was based on reports from the Associated Press and SpaceX. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   pioneer – n. person who is one of the first to do something booster – n. part of a rocket that provides force for the launch and the first part of the flight discard – v. throw something away after use platform – n. raised structure with a flat surface blooper – n. mistake, sometimes funny, made in public mess up – v. make a mistake or do something wrong epic – adj. very large or impressive  

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Despite Sanctions, South Korea Plans to Send Aid to North

South Korean President Moon Jae-in seems to have moved closer to the United States’ position on North Korea. Moon appears to be more supportive of the U.S. policy to pressure the North Korean government into giving up its nuclear program. Yet his government still plans to send $8 million in humanitarian aid to the North. Baik Tae-hyun is with the South Korean Unification Ministry. On Monday, he said the political situation would not stop South Korea from sending aid for children, pregnant women and some social groups. Moon Jae-in is a former human rights lawyer. At the start of his presidency in May 2017, he tried to balance economic actions against North Korea with aid to that country. His hope was to lessen conflict between the two Koreas over time. On sanctions However, North Korea carried out its sixth nuclear test earlier this month. Since then, the Moon administration has given signs it would more fully support U.S. President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” strategy toward the North. The policy combines economic sanctions and the threat of military action to try to force North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons. President Moon has expressed support for the latest United Nations or UN sanctions against North Korea. U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said those measures cut “90 percent of trade and 30 percent of oil” imports to North Korea. Moon also tried to get Russian President Vladimir Putin to support a total oil embargo on North Korea. But neither Russia nor China were willing to support such a measure. After North Korea fired a ballistic missile over Japan last Friday, Moon said negotiation with Pyongyang is impossible if things continue this way. On Monday, Moon said his government wants to give North Korea “powerful punishment" to make it clear that the North has “no other choice but to give up its nuclear weapons and missiles.” Humanitarian aid President Moon is now prioritizing support for the U.S. strategy toward North Korea. But experts say he still wants to find a long-term peaceful solution to the nuclear crisis, which is also a goal for the Trump administration. “It is not either-or, but both countries need to achieve both goals,” said Bong Young-shik, a North Korean expert with the Yonsei University Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul. The Unification Ministry defended its humanitarian aid plan as “separate from sanctions and pressure” and talked of the need to help North Koreans who already live in poverty. South Korea plans to donate $4.5 million to help the World Food Program provide food to North Korean hospitals. And, it will give $3.5 million to the United Nations Children’s Fund for medicine and nutrition to help children and pregnant women. These donations to UN agencies would restart South Korean humanitarian aid to the North. The aid was suspended in 2016 after North Korea's fourth nuclear test. The North Korean government rejected earlier offers of assistance and cooperation from Seoul. The Moon administration noted that the U.S. and Russia provided millions of dollars in the last year for aid to North Korea through the same U.N. agencies. But Yoshihide Suga, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, said last week that giving aid to North Korea could weaken international efforts to pressure the North. Moon’s critics say the aid will lessen the effect of the sanctions and help to stabilize the Kim government as it continues to develop nuclear weapons. Ahn Chan-il is an expert with the World Institute for North Korean Studies in Seoul. He fled to South Korea from the North almost 40 years ago. Ahn said, “South Korea's decision to send humanitarian aid to North Korea is nothing different from sending medication for casualties to an enemy country." South Korean opposition parties also criticized the timing of the aid announcement last week, just after international sanctions began. There are also concerns that President Trump will again be critical of President Moon’s aid plan. Trump recently called Moon's aid approach unworkable “appeasement.” I'm Jill Robbins. And I'm Alice Bryant.   Brian Padden wrote this story for VOA News. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   sanction – n. an action that is taken or an order that is given to force a country to obey international laws, often by limiting or stopping trade with that country or not allowing it economic aid embargo – n. a government order that limits trade in some way ballistic missile – n. a weapon that is shot through the sky over a great distance and then falls to the ground and explodes prioritize – v. to organize things so that the most important thing is done or dealt with first stabilize – v. to become stable or to make something secure casualty – n. a person who is hurt or killed during an accident or war appeasement – n. the act of making someone pleased or less angry by giving or saying something desired

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Trump Targets North Korea, Iran, Venezuela in UN Speech

  U.S. President Donald Trump warned world leaders of “rogue regimes” with powerful weapons in his first address before the United Nations General Assembly Tuesday. The president had his strongest words for North Korea, which faces U.N. sanctions because of its continuing missile and nuclear programs. He said, if the U.S. is threatened, “We will have no choice but to totally destroy North Korea.” He also called the North Korean leader, who often attends missile tests, “rocket man” saying he was on “a suicide mission.” North Korea did not immediately answer comments in the speech. Trump thanked China and Russia for voting to sanction North Korea. But the president added, "It is an outrage that some nations would not only trade with such a regime, but would arm, supply and financially support a country that imperils the world with nuclear conflict." Iran, Cuba and Venezuela The nuclear deal with Iran was another one of the president’s main targets. Trump said the 2015 deal, which released billions of dollars to Iran in exchange for limits on its nuclear program, did not help the U.S. He said it was one of the worse and most one-sided transactions in U.S. history. He called the deal an embarrassment and suggested that the U.S. would reconsider the international agreement. “I don’t think you’ve heard the last of it,” he said. Speaking of countries closer to the U.S., Trump said he would not end U.S. sanctions on Cuba. Trump especially criticized the government in Venezuela saying its leader had pushed a “failed ideology” on its people. “We cannot stand by and watch,” Trump said. And he called on other Latin America countries to help deal with the crisis there. Trump explains America first policy The speech was an attempt to explain the “America First” policy that Trump has offered since he campaigned for the U.S. presidency. A main theme of the speech was to call for all members of the United Nations to strengthen their own sovereignty. He told the assembly that he would put America first, “Just as you, as the leaders of other countries, should put your citizens first.” He told the leaders and diplomats from 193 member nations: “I will defend America’s interests above all else.” But he also noted, “But in fulfilling our obligations to other nations we also realize it’s in everyone’s interest to seek a future where all nations can be sovereign, prosperous and secure.” He identified conflict in Ukraine and disagreements in the South China Sea as threats to sovereignty. The U.S. president opened his comments by praising gains in the American economy including record high stock market values and employment numbers. Trump also praised the U.S. military. He said with a budget of almost $700 billion it would soon “be the strongest it has ever been.” Immense promise and great peril The president noted that world leaders face economic promise but also many dangers. “We meet at a time of both immense promise and great peril,” he said. He praised U.S. gains made against the extremist group ISIS in Syria and other places saying the U.S. had made more progress in a few months than it had in many previous years. Trump called for a political solution that honors the will of the Syrian people. The Syrian conflict has caused millions of refugees to flee violence in that country. Trump thanked Jordan, Turkey and Lebanon for hosting refugees. But Trump added warnings about uncontrolled migration as being deeply unfair to both the sending and receiving country. The U.S. president spoke for about 41 minutes with few breaks for clapping from the audience of world leaders and diplomats. Trump is from New York, a place he called his “hometown.” U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres opened the General Assembly meeting. In his comments, he also warned of the danger of North Korea’s weapons. Guterres said world crises need answers that are developed cooperatively. “We are a world in pieces,” Guterres said. “We need to be a world at peace.”   Mario Ritter wrote this story for VOA Learning English with some materials from Reuters. Hai Do was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   regime –n. a government, a ruling group sanction –n. measure put in place to cause a country to obey international law, usually by limiting or banning trade imperil –v. to put in danger transaction –n. an business exchange or deal obligations –n. things that are required to be done by law, custom or agreement sovereign –adj. having independent power to govern prosperous –adj. to have success immense –adj. to a great degree, very large We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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