Voice of America Chinese Broadcast (October 8, 2026) On October 7, U.S. President Trump announced that tax-free investment and savings accounts known as "Trump Accounts" have been established for approximately 70 million eligible children of U.S. citizens - October 08, 2026
This episode of Voice of America Chinese broadcasts covers a variety of important international and domestic news. Main topics include U.S. President Trump announcing the establishment of “Trump Accounts” for approximately 70 million eligible children of U.S. citizens; U.S. Secretary of State Rubio delivering a speech in Athens emphasizing that Western countries are at a crossroads and calling for precautions against the Iranian nuclear threat; the World Health Organization paying attention to the death of personnel at a Siberian plague research center; scientists Kagan, Kagan and Line3 winning the Nobel Prize in Chemistry; the United Nations reporting that the conflict in Yemen has caused over 200,000 people to be displaced; Chinese officials planning to run for WHO Director-General attracting attention; the United States launching the construction of a new defense shipyard; multiple U.S. members of Congress visiting Taiwan; and U.S. senators demanding the Department of Justice investigate China-related illegal marijuana networks, among other stories.
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Hello everyone, and welcome to the Voice of America Chinese broadcast. I am Unknown, broadcasting today's program from the U.S. capital, Washington. Here is the main news for today. U.S. President Trump announced on October 7 that tax-free investment and savings accounts called Trump Accounts have been established for approximately 70 million eligible children of U.S. citizens. Secretary of State Rubio said Western countries are standing at a crossroads and the path they choose will determine whether the West continues to maintain its position as a world leader or declines. Secretary of State Rubio stated that Iran must never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons, and any plan they agree to that is acceptable to the United States must ensure that Iran can never possess nuclear weapons. Scientists Henri Kagan and Line3 have won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work in understanding mirror-image molecules, research that is crucial for developing prescription drugs. For more news content, please stay tuned to the Voice of America Chinese broadcast.
You are now listening to the Voice of America Chinese broadcast. U.S. President Trump announced on October 7 that tax-free investment and savings accounts called Trump Accounts have been established for approximately 70 million eligible children of U.S. citizens. Listen to the report. U.S. President Trump announced at the White House on October 7 that tax-free investment and savings accounts called Trump Accounts have been established for approximately 70 million American children under the age of 18. This project is part of the Great American Act passed by the U.S. Congress and was launched on July 4 of this year. President Trump stated that every American child deserves a fair opportunity to achieve the American Dream, and today I am pleased to announce that a Trump Account has now been automatically opened for every eligible minor child in the United States. According to the plan, the U.S. government will automatically set up a tax-free investment account for each child, and the funds in the account will continue to appreciate as they grow, to be used by them after reaching the age of 18 for their own benefit. After the Trump Account is automatically established, parents or guardians still need to actively claim the account and manage it, allowing others to inject funds into it to ensure that eligible children can receive a one-time federal deposit of $1,000. President Trump urged more parents to claim their accounts.
Voice of America continues to broadcast its Chinese programs. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio delivered a speech in Athens on Wednesday, October 7, stating that Western nations are at a crossroads, and the path they choose will determine whether the West continues to maintain its position as a world leader or heads toward decline. The choice made by the United States, under the leadership of President Trump, is to pursue national strength, revitalize the economy and national defense, regain control over critical supply chains, and strive for dominance in future technologies and industries. Let us listen to the report. U.S. Secretary of State Rubio delivered a speech at the Pnyx in Athens on Wednesday, October 7, stating that the threats faced today are as real as those faced by ancient Greece, and the West must rebuild its institutions and alliances to jointly address these threats. We are at a turning point, not only in the history of my country but also in the history of our entire civilization. The threats we face today are as real as those that played out on the stage of ancient history. National interests have not disappeared due to the existence of international institutions, and war has not ceased to exist simply because we yearn for peace. Other nations are still expanding their military capabilities, seeking influence, and competing over territory, technology, resources, markets, energy, and power. Today, war has re-emerged, great power competition has re-emerged, and vulnerability, aggression, terrorism, and various new threats and attacks have also re-emerged. Therefore, we must rebuild our institutions and alliances to jointly address these threats.
Secretary of State Rubio pointed out that when the West leaves a vacuum due to weakness, others are happy to fill it. When the West's self-confidence wavers, its adversaries and competitors become increasingly assertive. Today, we stand at a crossroads because the next decade and the decisions we make will write the history of the next century. The path we choose will determine whether the West continues to maintain its world-leading position or resigns itself to a future of atrophy, submission, and decline. We must choose to act now, or we will eventually lose even the choice to act. Under the leadership of President Trump, the United States has made its choice. We choose to pursue national strength without reservation, regain control of our critical supply chains, promote economic re-industrialization, rebuild our national defense, and compete for dominance in future technologies and industries. We choose to open up new frontiers, including advanced manufacturing, super-intelligent drones, weapons and warfare, chips, minerals, networks, and everything else within the reach of human potential. We want to unleash our energy potential, rebuild factories, return our astronauts to the moon, and open a new era of space exploration.
Secretary of State Rubio also cited the new agreement reached between the United States, Denmark, and Greenland, which will consolidate the security of the entire NATO and create a win-win-win situation, as an example to express his hope that Europe can wake up from its long slumber. We believe that Europe can awaken from its long slumber, and the sparks that once shone here a thousand years ago are showing signs on this continent that we are witnessing the beginning of what promises to be a generational transformation. Defense spending is increasing sharply, various new types of partnerships and cooperation projects are emerging, and manufacturing and production capacities are also expanding. Following the historic defense commitments made in The Hague last year, Greece has been at the heart of this transformation. Whether in the fields of energy, immigration, or national defense, Greece has demonstrated the model behavior of an ally, once again proving itself to be an indispensable partner for Europe and even the United States. We sincerely hope that all of Europe can take Greece as an example.
You are listening to the Chinese broadcast of Voice of America, I am Unknown. The World Health Organization said on Wednesday, October 7, that it has contacted Russian authorities regarding the death of a female staff member at a plague research center in the Irkutsk region of Siberia and is actively tracking the development of the situation. Let us listen to the report. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a statement that the woman passed away on Friday after being hospitalized for severe pneumonia. Russian health officials reported to the WHO that no cases of plague had been found. Tedros said they informed the WHO that an epidemiological investigation had been carried out, prevention and control measures had been implemented, and contacts had been identified, medically observed, and tested. He also said that the Russian side reported that no high-risk pathogens were found among the people who had been in contact with the woman.
Tedros said that according to the International Health Regulations, timely, complete, and transparent information sharing is crucial for clarifying conflicting reports and accurately assessing potential public health risks. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that Russia had notified the WHO in accordance with current practices. U.S. officials expressed concern about the situation. President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that he plans to speak with Russian leader Putin soon. U.S. Secretary of State Rubio called on Russia to share more information with the world, saying this would help in better responding to the situation. Rubio said, in short, we are closely monitoring this matter, and I think the whole world is closely monitoring this matter because, based on what we know about this, we will know how to respond.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said during a visit to Athens, Greece, that Iran must never be allowed to have nuclear weapons. Any plan that they agree to and that the US can accept must ensure that Iran never possesses nuclear weapons. Rubio believes Iran is trying to build a massive conventional capability to make itself untouchable. President Trump will never let such a thing happen. Let us listen to what Rubio has to say. It is simple, clear, unquestionable, and non-negotiable that Iran must never have nuclear weapons. I do not want to go into detail about which conditions are acceptable and which are not, but I can tell you unequivocally that they will never have a nuclear program. Any plan that they agree to and that the US can accept must ensure that Iran never possesses nuclear weapons. Iran is trying to build a massive conventional capability to make itself untouchable. Essentially, within a year or two, they would say to the entire world, 'You cannot attack us; we are going to build nuclear weapons, but you cannot do anything to us because we have too many missiles and drones.' If you try to take any action against our nuclear program, we will destroy every country in the Middle East, we will drive the US military out of the region, and we can do whatever we want. This is exactly what they are trying to achieve. US President Donald Trump will not allow this to happen.
On Wednesday, October 7, scientists Henri Kagan, Sharpless, and Arakawa were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work in understanding mirror-image molecules, research that is crucial for the development of prescription drugs. Their research involves the chirality of molecules, similar to the left-handed and right-handed versions of the same molecule, which can have different properties and therefore fundamentally different uses in fields such as medicine and agrochemicals. The Nobel Committee highlighted Kagan's work in discovering how scientists can create a higher proportion of one-handed molecules. Building on Kagan's research, Sharpless discovered a method to enhance the replication capacity of single-sided molecules. The Nobel Committee stated in a press release that the Sharpless reaction is considered one of the most elegant chemical experiments to date. Kagan is a professor at the University of Paris-Sud in France. Sharpless is a professor at Tokyo University of Science in Japan. The two will share a 1.2 million dollar prize.
The United Nations stated on Wednesday, October 7, that fighting between the Saudi-backed government forces and the Houthi movement in Yemen has forced more than 200,000 people to flee their homes. Let us listen to the report. The Yemeni government stated that amidst intense fighting on the west coast of Yemen in Taiz and Marib, the Iran-backed terrorist group used ballistic missiles and drones on Wednesday to attack one of the country's main airports used for civil aviation. This latest attack comes as the International Organization for Migration (IOM) of the United Nations stated that approximately 211,217 people have fled their homes since September 1, with displacement spreading to 10 provinces. The IOM described the spread rate of the battlefield crisis as shocking. IOM Director-General Amy Pope pointed out in a statement that people are rushing to save their lives yet cannot find a safe place to go, and today they urgently need places of sacrifice, food, and security guarantees. Our team is already on the ground, but funding is not in place, and I urge donors to act immediately. The UN warned last week that hunger among the displaced population in Yemen is deteriorating sharply, and access to humanitarian assistance is restricted.
The Yemeni government stated on Wednesday that the Houthi movement, designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, used ballistic missiles and drones packed with explosives to attack one of the country's main airports. Meanwhile, fighting is intensifying in the country's western coastal and central provinces. The Yemeni Ministry of Information issued a statement saying that two missiles landed near the airport runway a few minutes before a civil airliner from Cairo landed, and this attack narrowly avoided a humanitarian disaster. The statement said that the flight was carrying civilian passengers and stated that this could have led to a humanitarian disaster. The statement also said that the attack directly endangered the lives of passengers, staff, and crew members and narrowly avoided a humanitarian disaster. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree claimed that the organization launched ballistic missiles targeting Saudi military supplies delivered near the Badr camp close to Aden International Airport. He claimed that the attack caused casualties among several Saudi military officers. This claim has not been independently verified. Saree stated that the organization warned that Aden's civil airport must not be used for any military purposes. The Houthi movement also accused Saudi Arabia of launching new airstrikes in Saada province and targeting border villages. The Saudi-led coalition stated that they are tracking Houthi missile launch sites over Sanaa and vowed to destroy them. In addition, the coalition reported on Wednesday that it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile launched by the Houthis toward an area north of the Saudi capital, Riyadh. US officials warned the Houthis not to interfere with maritime navigation and stated that the organization must stop its attacks against the Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia.
China plans to nominate a senior Chinese public health official for the position of Director-General of the World Health Organization at the last possible moment before the nomination deadline. Analysts warn that when Chinese nationals head UN agencies, they often prioritize Beijing's interests. Reuters, citing four diplomats and one person familiar with the matter, reported that the candidate China is preparing to nominate is Song Li. According to the WHO website, Song Li has long been engaged in maternal and child health work, possesses over 20 years of experience in maternal and child health policy and international cooperation, and currently serves as a member of the Secretariat and a member of the Party Leadership Group of the All-China Women's Federation. The current WHO Director-General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, was elected by member states at the 70th World Health Assembly in May 2017 and was re-elected in August 2022 after his five-year term. His second term will expire on August 15, 2027. According to WHO rules, the Director-General can only be re-elected once, so Tedros will not be eligible for re-election after his second term ends. The election process for the next Director-General began in April this year, and the application deadline is approaching soon. The new Director-General is expected to be officially appointed at the 80th World Health Assembly in May 2027. Reuters stated in its report that Beijing has long sought to expand its influence and take on more responsibilities in UN agencies and other multilateral organizations, adding that Beijing's move to compete for the WHO Director-General position appears to be an attempt to take advantage of the space left by the United States' withdrawal from the WHO to expand its influence.
On Wednesday, the three major stock indices fell: the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.66%, the S&P 500 fell 0.22%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index fell 0.22%. On Tuesday, October 6, U.S. President Trump announced a $6.6 billion corporate partnership investment plan to build a new defense shipyard in Maryland. This is part of U.S. efforts to expand submarine production and strengthen the military shipbuilding industrial base. Here is the report from Voice of America. Defense technology company Anduril Industries stated it will invest $3.7 billion to build a new facility called Arsenal-2 at Sparrows Point near Baltimore. Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy has awarded Anduril a contract worth up to $2.9 billion to produce components for Virginia-class nuclear-powered attack submarines. At a ceremony held at Sparrows Point, Trump said, "Today, we are officially launching the construction of the largest new shipyard in the United States." He added that there has not been a construction project of this scale since World War II, calling it one of the most important new shipbuilding investments in the U.S. in decades. Anduril stated that the facility, covering over 2 million square feet, will produce large submarine components and critical parts, which will then be transported to General Dynamics Electric Boat and Huntington Ingalls Industries' Newport News Shipbuilding for final assembly. The company will also open a factory in California to produce critical submarine parts, including torpedo tubes. The company said construction preparations will begin immediately, with initial operations expected to start in 2030. The project is expected to directly create approximately 3,100 jobs and support over 11,000 other job opportunities. President Trump also stated that U.S. taxpayers will receive a 40% stake in the new shipyard, though he did not specify the mechanism through which this ownership arrangement would be realized.
This investment comes as the U.S. Navy struggles to increase production of Virginia-class submarines. A report by the Congressional Research Service states that U.S. shipyards have only been able to produce about 1.1 to 1.2 Virginia-class submarines per year recently, significantly below the Navy's target of two per year. To meet the needs of the U.S. Navy's own fleet, clear the construction backlog, and fulfill commitments to Australia under the AUKUS trilateral security partnership, the U.S. Navy ultimately hopes to increase annual production to approximately 2.33 vessels. The U.S. Navy states that labor shortages, supplier delays, and insufficient infrastructure capacity are the main obstacles to accelerating submarine production. In recent years, the Navy has prioritized expanding the submarine industrial base to strengthen U.S. underwater combat capabilities and address increasingly intense military competition, especially in the Indo-Pacific region. Virginia-class submarines are primarily used for anti-submarine and anti-ship warfare, intelligence gathering, and land-attack missions. Anduril was founded in 2017 and is primarily known for autonomous systems, drones, and military software. The company stated that Arsenal-2 will employ highly automated and software-driven manufacturing methods to accelerate production speeds and reduce supply chain bottlenecks.
Multiple members of the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives arrived in Taiwan on Tuesday, October 6, for separate visits. The American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) stated that these visits highlight the United States' commitment to strengthening its partnership with Taiwan. Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also welcomed the lawmakers' visits. Here is a report from VOA reporter Zhong Chenfang. U.S. Democratic Senator Michael Bennet of Colorado visited Taiwan from October 6 to 8. In a post on its Facebook page, AIT stated in both Chinese and English that Bennet's visit to Taiwan was part of his trip to the Indo-Pacific region. During his stay in Taiwan, he will hold a series of meetings with senior Taiwanese leaders to discuss U.S.-Taiwan relations, regional security, and other important issues of mutual interest. The post stated that the senator's visit highlights the U.S. commitment to strengthening its partnership with Taiwan and reaffirms the shared determination of the U.S. and Taiwan to strengthen a free and open Indo-Pacific region. Bennet is a member of the Senate Finance Committee and the Select Committee on Intelligence, and is also a member of the Taiwan Caucus. In 2018, he co-signed a letter to then-Secretary of State Michael Pompeo and other executive branch heads, encouraging the U.S. government to work closely with the Taiwan government to investigate whether China might have interfered in Taiwan's 2018 nine-in-one local elections. In 2021, he co-sponsored a bipartisan bill aimed at helping the U.S. establish international partnerships in emerging technologies—including quantum computing, superintelligence (commonly known as artificial intelligence or AI), 5G, and the semiconductor industry—to compete with China by uniting with allies.
In addition to Bennet, U.S. House Budget Committee Ranking Member Brendan Boyle (D-PA) also led a delegation including Representatives Andrea Salinas (D-OR) and Tim Kennedy (D-NY) to visit Taiwan from October 6 to 9. Salinas is a member of the Committee on Agriculture and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, while Kennedy is a member of the Committee on Homeland Security and its Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security. In a press release welcoming Senator Bennet, Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Bennet has proposed multiple pro-Taiwan initiatives, and the Ministry will continue to strengthen U.S. Congressional support for Taiwan and deepen U.S.-Taiwan cooperation in various fields on the existing solid foundation. In a press release welcoming Representative Boyle and his delegation, the Ministry said that during their stay in Taiwan, the delegation will hold meetings with President Lai Ching-te, senior government officials, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung. Both sides are expected to exchange views on issues such as U.S.-Taiwan relations, economic, trade, and technology cooperation, and the regional security situation. The press release noted that Representative Boyle has long focused on issues such as U.S.-Taiwan double taxation and superintelligence/AI, and has co-signed resolutions such as the Taiwan Travel Act and support for Taiwan's participation in international organizations.
Four Republican senators wrote to the U.S. Attorney General on September 30, requesting that the Department of Justice investigate Chinese criminal organizations operating illegal marijuana and hemp businesses. The senators stated that recent reports and investigations show that Chinese criminal networks are exploiting loopholes in U.S. federal law to operate large-scale drug businesses, thereby threatening U.S. communities and national security. Here is a report from VOA. U.S. Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Susan Collins (R-ME), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), and Ted Budd (R-NC) wrote to Attorney General Todd Blanche. In their letter, they mentioned the 2025 National Drug Threat Assessment released by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which points out that Chinese transnational criminal organizations dominate marijuana cultivation and distribution activities within the United States, especially in states where the marijuana market has been legalized. The senators wrote that these organizations purchase and lease U.S. land for illegal cultivation, traffic foreign labor, and use toxic pesticides and fertilizers shipped from China, including chemical substances explicitly prohibited by the United States.
The letter stated that the scale and complexity of these criminal networks make them difficult to track and raise concerns about other illegal or synthetic products being introduced into the U.S. market. The four Republican senators mentioned in the letter recent cases involving Chinese nationals in illegal marijuana cultivation and distribution, including 29 Chinese nationals charged this April for their involvement in a black-market marijuana operation centered in Oklahoma that spanned the entire United States. In a recent case, local authorities in California uncovered a massive, industrial-scale illegal cultivation network, with many of the grow sites operated by Chinese nationals. They pointed out in the letter that these growers are allegedly involved in human trafficking, violent crime, and the use of toxic foreign pesticides. However, their scale and the use of shell games in property records make dismantling their operations complicated. The lawmakers also discussed loopholes in existing federal law regarding marijuana toxicity standards, noting that failure to address these loopholes would give these criminal networks more time to dump synthetic products into the U.S. commercial market on a large scale. Furthermore, they said this would further consolidate their operations within the U.S., using illegal proceeds to fund their enterprises and exposing consumers to dangerous, unregulated synthetic products disguised as legal hemp.
The letter states that Congress has recognized the necessity of closing this loophole, and the reform measures will take effect on December 11 of this year. Four Republican senators told Blanche that while this will solve the current problem of harmful products in the market, the question of who is funding and supporting these organizations operating within the industry still remains. We therefore request the Department of Justice to conduct a full investigation into these criminal networks, including their financing, land use, chemical imports, and any connections with the Chinese Communist Party. On September 22, the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission released a research report commissioned by the agency from a think tank, titled "China's Gray-Zone Threats to Transpacific Submarine Cables." This research report analyzes China's growing capability to threaten critical submarine communication infrastructure. Submarine cables, which carry the vast majority of international data traffic, are the backbone of the global digital economy and are increasingly becoming a national security issue. That concludes this Voice of America Chinese broadcast. Thank you for listening. I am Unknown, and see you in the next program.