NewzIntel.com

Category: Americas

  • MIL-OSI USA: Member of the 764 Criminal Enterprise Pleads Guilty to Racketeering Conspiracy and Other Charges

    Source: US State of California

    Jairo Jaime Tinajero, 25, pleaded guilty yesterday in the Western District of Kentucky to the following charges contained in the superseding information: racketeering conspiracy, online enticement, three counts of production of child sexual abuse material, three counts of distribution of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), five counts of interstate communications of threats, cyberstalking, and conspiracy to murder Jane Doe 1 in aid of racketeering. The terms of the plea agreement specify that both parties agree to the applicability of the terrorism sentencing enhancement (U.S.S.G. § 3A1.4 n. 4).

    On Oct. 11, 2023, a grand jury in the Western District of Kentucky returned an indictment charging Tinajero with online enticement and production of child sexual abuse material. On Oct. 4, 2023, in the Eastern District of Arkansas, Tinajero was arrested on a criminal complaint that was filed in the Western District of Kentucky.

    According to the court documents, Tinajero is a self-identified member of the 764 network. The 764 network’s accelerationist goals include social unrest and the downfall of the current world order, including the U.S. Government. Beginning in 2020, Tinajero started communicating with, and grooming, several minor victims to obtain sexually explicit content from them, including Jane Doe 1. In 2023, Tinajero began to threaten the safety of Jane Doe 1 and her family. Tinajero posted online in encrypted platforms associated with 764 and related groups a “Lorebook” – commonly used in 764 blackmail schemes — containing Jane Doe 1’s identifying information along with nude pictures of the minor.

    Between July 2023 and September 2023, during multiple discussions over social media, Tinajero and a co-conspirator agreed that Tinajero should kill Jane Doe 1. Tinajero and the co-conspirator specifically discussed that Tinajero should murder Jane Doe 1 and dispose of Jane Doe 1’s body in a barrel of acid after the murder. Tinajero posted multiple messages on various social media websites stating that he planned to kill Jane Doe 1 with a firearm because Jane Doe 1 refused to provide additional child sexual abuse material.

    On Aug. 26, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “Im determined to die” and “If I gotta kill her I can’t let her live and f**k with dudes and girls while I’m sick and miserable” and “Im gonna live stream it.” Tinajero also posted a picture of Jane Doe 1. On Sept. 2, 2023, Tinajero posted on Telegram, “I wanna kill them so bad just show up at their cribs and shoot 100 rounds in 5 seconds” and, on Sept. 3, 2023, posted “I didn’t wanna do anything bc I was scared of dying or prison but now I’m determined to die if I have to after getting rid of [Jane Doe 1] . . . .” Tinajero also began soliciting others to assist with attempting to kill Jane Doe 1.

    The FBI is investigating the case.

    Assistant U.S. Attorney Erwin Roberts for the Western District of Kentucky and Trial Attorneys Justin Sher and James Donnelly of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case. The Violent Crime and Racketeering Section for the Criminal Division and the Eastern District of Arkansas provided assistance.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Only political will can end world hunger: Food isn’t scarce, but many people can’t access it

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Jennifer Clapp, Professor and Canada Research Chair in Global Food Security and Sustainability, and Member of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems, University of Waterloo

    History has shown us again and again that, so long as inequality goes unchecked, no amount of technology can ensure people are well fed.

    Today, the world produces more food per person than ever before. Yet hunger and malnutrition persist in every corner of the globe — even, and increasingly, in some of its wealthiest countries.

    The major drivers of food insecurity are well known: conflict, poverty, inequality, economic shocks and escalating climate change. In other words, the causes of hunger are fundamentally political and economic.

    The urgency of the hunger crisis has prompted 150 Nobel and World Food Prize laureates to call for “moonshot” technological and agricultural innovations to boost food production, meaning monumental and lofty efforts. However, they largely ignored hunger’s root causes — and the need to confront powerful entities and make courageous political choices.

    Food is misallocated

    To focus almost exclusively on promoting agricultural technologies to ramp up food production would be to repeat the mistakes of the past.

    The Green Revolution of the 1960s-70s brought impressive advances in crop yields, though at considerable environmental cost. It failed to eliminate hunger, because it didn’t address inequality. Take Iowa, for example — home to some of the most industrialized food production on the planet. Amid its high-tech corn and soy farms, 11 per cent of the state’s population, and one in six of its children, struggle to access food.

    Even though the world already produces more than enough food to feed everyone, it’s woefully misallocated. Selling food to poor people at affordable prices simply isn’t as profitable for giant food corporations.

    They make far more by exporting it for animal feed, blending it into biofuels for cars or turning it into industrial products and ultra-processed foods. To make matters worse, a third of all food is simply wasted.



    Read more:
    Earth Day 2024: 4 effective strategies to reduce household food waste

    Meanwhile, as the laureates remind us, more than 700 million people — nine per cent of the world’s population — remain chronically undernourished. A staggering 2.3 billion people — more than one in four — cannot access an adequate diet.

    Women queue up to receive food distributed by local volunteers at a camp in Somalia in May 2019. Conflicts hinder the effective delivery of humanitarian aid during food security crisis.
    (AP Photo/Farah Abdi Warsameh)

    Confronting inequity

    Measures to address world hunger must start with its known causes and proven policies. Brazil’s Without Hunger program, for example, has seen dramatic 85 per cent reduction in severe hunger in just 18 months through financial assistance, school food programs and minimum wage policies.

    Our politicians must confront and reverse gross inequities in wealth, power and access to land. Hunger disproportionately affects the poorest and most marginalized people, not because food is scarce, but because people can’t afford it or lack the resources to produce it for themselves. Redistribution policies aren’t optional, they’re essential.

    Governments must put a stop to the use of hunger as a weapon of war. The worst hunger hotspots are conflict zones, as seen in Gaza and Sudan, where violence drives famine. Too many governments have looked the other way on starvation tactics — promoting emergency aid to pick up the pieces instead of taking action to end the conflicts driving hunger.



    Read more:
    Colonialism, starvation and resistance: How food is weaponized, from Gaza to Canada

    Stronger antitrust and competition policies are vital to curb extreme corporate concentration in global food chains — from seeds and agrochemicals to grain trading, meat packing and retail — that allow firms to fix prices and wield outsized political influence.

    Dependency trap

    Governments must also break the stranglehold of inequitable trade rules and export patterns that trap the poorest regions in dependency on food imports, leaving them vulnerable to shocks.

    Instead, supporting local and territorial markets is critical in helping build resilience to economic and supply chain disruptions. These markets provide livelihoods and help ensure diverse, nutritious foods reach those who need them.

    Mitigating and adapting to climate change requires massive investments in transformative approaches that promote resilience and sustainability in food systems.

    Agroecology — a farming system that applies ecological principles to ensure sustainability and promotes social equity in food systems — is a key solution, proven to sequester carbon, build resilience to climate shocks and reduce dependence on expensive and environmentally damaging synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.

    More research should explore agroecology’s full potential. And we must adopt plant-rich, local and seasonal diets, ramp up measures to tackle food waste and reconsider using food crops for biofuels.

    This means pushing back against Big Meat and biofuel lobbies, while investing in climate-resilient food systems.

    Bold political action needed

    This is not to say that technology has no role — all hands need to be on deck. But the innovations most worth pursuing are those that genuinely support more equitable and sustainable food systems, and not corporate profits. Unless scientific efforts are matched by policies that confront power and prioritize equity over profit, then hunger is likely to here to stay.

    The solutions to hunger are neither new nor beyond reach. What’s missing is the political will to address its root causes.

    This message is shared by my colleagues with the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems, IPES-Food, whose work covers a range of expertise and experience. Hunger persists because we allow injustice to endure. If we are serious about ending it, we need bold political action, not just scientific breakthroughs.

    Jennifer Clapp receives funding from the Canada Research Chairs program and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada. She is a member of the International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food).

    – ref. Only political will can end world hunger: Food isn’t scarce, but many people can’t access it – https://theconversation.com/only-political-will-can-end-world-hunger-food-isnt-scarce-but-many-people-cant-access-it-248736

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: M23’s capture of Goma is the latest chapter in eastern Congo’s long-running war

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Assistant Professor, Interdisciplinary Studies, Carleton University

    At a recent summit in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania, leaders of eight African states released a statement calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

    The statement comes after a flareup in fighting in eastern DRC that has killed hundred and wounded thousands.

    On Jan. 31, 2025 the rebel group known as the March 23 Movement (M23) captured the city of Goma in the eastern DRC. At a news conference, Corneille Nangaa, leader of the Congo River Alliance that includes M23, declared that they were there to stay and would march to the DRC’s capital of Kinshasa.

    The World Health Organization reported 900 bodies had been recovered from the streets of Goma, with about 3,000 people injured and thousands forced to flee. The Congolese government said that it had started burying more than 2,000 people and thousands had been displaced.

    On Feb. 4, 2025, the Congo River Alliance declared a ceasefire. This isn’t the first time M23 attacked Goma and then declared a ceasefire. The renewed violence is the latest in a long-running conflict in the region that has grown to involve local militias, regional countries and foreign companies seeking to exploit Congo’s mineral wealth.

    What is M23?

    M23 is an armed group made up predominantly of ethnic Tutsis. It emerged as an offshoot of the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP), which disbanded in March 2009 after the Goma peace agreement. The agreement stipulated the integration of CNDP soldiers into Congo’s military and police, while its political wing would be recognized as an political party.

    However, a faction within the CNDP disapproved of the Goma agreement and created a militia group in 2012 that came to be known as M23. A United Nations group has said senior government officials from Rwanda and Uganda have provided M23 with weapons, intelligence and military support.

    Multiple reports from the UN Group of Experts on the DRC have noted Rwanda’s and Uganda’s support for M23 and other militias such as the Alliance of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of the Congo Zaire, the Congolese Rally for Democracy and the CNDP.

    The roots of the conflict lie in the history of Belgium’s colonial rule of the region that pitted the Tutsi and Hutu ethnic groups against each other. In 1956, ethnic tensions in Rwanda forced many Tutsis to seek refuge in Congo (then Zaire), Uganda, Tanzania and beyond.

    Tutsis who fled to Congo and Uganda were not accorded full citizenship rights, and this led to resentment.

    In the mid-1990s, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni collaborated with Congolese rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila to create the AFDL. The group waged the First Congo War from October 1996 to May 1997 that ended with the overthrow of the DRC’s long-time ruler, Mobutu Sese Seko. Kabila became president.

    Kagame and Museveni fought along with Congolese Tutsis to assert their citizenship once the war ended. However, when Kabila turned against his backers, it led to the waged Second Congo War from 1998 to 2003, with Rwandan and Ugandan-backed militas fighting against the DRC government.

    M23 claims that it wants to defend the interests of Congolese Tutsis, and to protect them against the Congo government and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR).

    The FDLR was implicated in orchestrating the 1994 Rwandan genocide that killed 800,000 people, most of whom were Tutsi. The FDLR has been based in eastern Congo since 1996, after the Rwandan Patriotic Front, led by Kagame and others, pushed them out of Rwanda.

    Fear of the FDLR was one of the drivers for the First Congo War. In a recent interview with CNN, Kagame said:

    “If you want to ask me, is there a problem in Congo that concerns Rwanda? And that Rwanda would do anything to protect itself? I’d say 100 per cent.”

    Control of minerals

    Before the fall of Goma in February 2025, M23 captured mineral-rich areas like Rubaya, the largest coltan mine in the Great Lakes region; Kasika and Walikale, where there are numerous gold mines; Numbi, which is rich with tin, tungsten, tantalum and gold; and Minova, which is a trade hub.

    In December 2024, a UN expert group noted that M23 exported about 150 tonnes of coltan to Rwanda, and was involved with Rwanda’s production, leading to “the largest contamination of mineral supply chain.”

    One of the central dynamics of this conflict is the control and profit from natural resources. The DRC is rich in minerals and metals needed around the world, including the critical minerals used in the technology and renewable energy industries.

    The World Bank has noted that the “DRC is endowed with exceptional mineral resources.” However, administration of the sector is dysfunctional and handicapped by insufficient institutional capacity.

    This problem is exacerbated by the interference of neighbouring countries, foreign corporations and their international backers who destabilize the DRC to balkanize and control resources.

    The way forward

    Ending the M23 insurgency requires taking Tutsi citizenship seriously. Politics researcher Filip Reyntjens has argued that any peaceful transition in the DRC needed to take regional countries seriously. He emphasized:

    “By turning a blind eye to Rwanda’s hegemonic claims in eastern Congo, the future stability of the region remains in doubt. Rwanda may once again, in the not too distant future, become the focal point of regional violence.”

    A factor contributing to the violence is the lack of measures to ensure ceasefires are respected by different parties engaged in conflicts. In addition, armed groups and their backers have not been effectively prosecuted. A 2010 UN mapping report describes 617 alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and human rights between March 1993 and June 2003. No perpetrators have never been prosecuted.

    Furthermore, there must be strong international efforts to prevent conflict minerals from getting into international supply chains. M23 and other militias smuggle Congo’s minerals through regional neighbours, where they are considered conflict-free.

    Tech giants that rely on these minerals must do more to scrutinize where they come from. Equally, all of us, as consumers of products made from the DRC’s minerals, must demand accountability.



    Read more:
    Overcoming racism depends on respect for every person’s dignity

    It’s usually only men who participate in such talks. Women, who endure the brutality of sexual violence and other human rights violations, must be represented in peace and security talks.

    In his 2018 Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech, Congolese physician and human rights activist Dr. Dennis Mukwege noted that:

    “What is the world waiting for before taking this into account? There is no lasting peace without justice. Yet, justice in not negotiable. Let us have the courage to take a critical and impartial look at what has been going on for too long in the Great Lakes region.”

    To effectively respond to the plight of the people of eastern Congo will take more than situational and short-term intervention. National, regional and international parties must negotiate peaceful and just access to minerals. Peace and security in Congo will happen when sectarian and partisan politics is replaced with commitment to democracy, sovereignty and peoples’ well-being.

    Evelyn Namakula Mayanja receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Canada and Carleton University.

    – ref. M23’s capture of Goma is the latest chapter in eastern Congo’s long-running war – https://theconversation.com/m23s-capture-of-goma-is-the-latest-chapter-in-eastern-congos-long-running-war-248833

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How the pollution of today will become the ‘technofossils’ of the far future

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Jan Zalasiewicz, Professor of Palaeobiology, University of Leicester

    dimitris_k / shutterstock

    How might you make your mark on the world forever? Write a play more timeless than Shakespeare, or compose music to out-do Mozart, or score the winning goal in the next World Cup final, perhaps?

    There’s an easier way of leaving an indelible mark on our planet. Just finish a soft drink and toss the can (and the remains of the chicken dinner that went with it), ditch last year’s impulse purchases from your wardrobe, resurface that old patio, upgrade your mobile phone … simply carry on with everyday life, that is, and you’ll likely leave a fascinating legacy. It might last a billion years.

    We’re palaeontologists, and have spent our careers looking at the fossil record of the deep past, puzzling out how those magnificent animal and plant relics have been preserved as dinosaur bones, the carapaces of ancient crustaceans, lustrous spiralled ammonites, petrified flower petals and many more. Often they still have exquisite detail intact after millions of years.

    We’ve now turned our attention to the myriad everyday objects that we make and use, to see what kind of future fossils – we call them technofossils – they will make. We’ve written about this in our new book, Discarded: how technofossils will be our ultimate legacy. Here are some key messages:

    The first things that’ll catch the eye of any far-future palaeontologist are our manufactured objects – buildings, roads, machines and so on. In recent decades, they have rocketed in amount to over a trillion tonnes, to now outweigh all living things on Earth. That’s a lot of raw material for generating future fossils.

    Then, most things we make are designed to be durable, to resist corrosion and decay, and are significantly tougher than the average bone or shell. Just from that they have a head start in the fossilisation stakes.

    Many are new to the Earth. Discarded aluminium cans are everywhere, for instance, but to our planet, they’re a wondrous novelty, as pure aluminium metal is almost unknown in nature. In the past 70 years we’ve made more than 500 million tonnes of the stuff, enough to coat all of the US (and part of Canada) in standard aluminium kitchen foil.

    What’s going to happen to it? Aluminium resists corrosion, but not forever. Buried underground in layers of mud and sand, a can will slowly break down, but often not before there’s a can-shaped impression in these new rocks, lined with microscopic clay crystals newly-grown out of the corroding aluminium.

    Everyday items can be flushed onto a floodplain and be quickly buried under sediments. As they slowly degrade they may leave an impression on the soft muds and silts for future palaeontologists to puzzle over.
    Sarah Gabbott

    Having been shielded from ultraviolet light, the thin plastic liner inside the can may endure too. (Oil-based plastic is even more novel in geological terms, being entirely non-existent until the 20th century). These two materials compressed side-by-side represent future fossil signatures of our time on Earth.

    Billions of fossilised chicken thighs

    But what about bones – the archetypal fossil relic? There will be many of these as future fossils, stark evidence of our species’ domination over others.

    The standard supermarket chicken seems mundane. But it’s now by far the most common bird of all, making up about two-thirds of all bird biomass on Earth, and its abundance in life increases its fossilisation chances after death.

    We stack the odds further by tossing the bones into a plastic bin-bag, that’s then carted to the landfill site to join countless more bones for burial in neatly engineered compartments – also plastic-lined. There, the bones will begin to mummify, another useful step in the road to petrifaction. Our landfills are giant middens of the future and will be stuffed full of the bones of this one species.

    Geologists of the far future may conclude that chickens could only have existed thanks to a more intelligent species.
    dba87 / shutterstock

    These bones – super-sized but weak, riddled with osteoporosis, sometimes fractured and deformed – will tell their own grisly story. Future geologists will puzzle over a suddenly-evolved bird so abundant yet so physically helpless. Will they figure out the story of a broiler chicken genetically
    engineered to feed relentlessly to maximise weight gain, for slaughter just five or six weeks after hatching? We suspect the fossil evidence will be damning.

    Fossilised fleeces

    Fossilizeable fashion is also new. Humans have worn clothes for thousands of years, but archaeological clothes discoveries are rare, because made of natural fibres they are feasted on by clothes moths, microbes and other scavengers. Fossil fur and feathers are rare too, for the same reasons.

    But cheap, cheerful and hyper-abundant polyester fashion is quite different. There’s no need for mothballs with these garments because synthetic plastics are indigestible to most microbes. How long might they last? Some ancient fossil algae have coats of plastic-like polymers, and these have lasted, beautifully preserved, for many millions of years.

    Fossil clothes will surely perplex far-future palaeonologists, though: first to work out their shape from the crumpled and flattened remains, and then to work out what purpose they served. With throwaway fashion, we’re making some eternal puzzles.

    Concrete and computers

    The lumps of concrete from your old patio are not any old rocks. The recipe for concrete, involving furnace-baked lime, is rare on Earth (the minerals involved occasionally form in magma-baked rock), but humans have made it hyper-abundant. There are now more than half a trillion tonnes of concrete on Earth, mostly made since the 1950s – that’s a kilo per square metre averaged over the Earth. And concrete is hard-wearing even by geological standards: most of its bulk is sand and gravel, which have been survivors throughout our planet’s history.

    There’s nothing old about computers and mobile phones, but they are based on the same element – silicon – that makes up the quartz (silicon dioxide) of sand and gravel. A fossilised silicon chip will be tricky to decipher, though: the semiconductors now packed on to them are just nanometres across, tinier than most mineral forms geologists analyse today.

    But the associated paraphernalia, the burgeoning waste of keyboards, monitors, wiring, will form more obvious fossils. The patterns on these, like the QWERTY keyboard, resemble the fossil patterns seized upon by today’s palaeontologists as clues to ancient function. That would depend on the excavators, though: fossil keyboards would make more sense to hyper-evolved rats with five-fingered paws, say, than superintelligent octopuses of the far future.



    Read more:
    What species would become dominant on Earth if humans died out?

    It’s fun to conceptualise like this, and set the human story within the grand perspective of Earth’s history. But there’s a wider meaning. Tomorrow’s future fossils are today’s pollution: unsightly, damaging, often toxic, and ever more of a costly problem. One only has to look at the state of Britain’s rivers and beaches.

    Understanding how fossilisation starts now helps us ask the right questions. When plastic trash is washed out to sea, will it keep travelling or become safely buried, covered by marine sediments? Will the waste in coastal landfill sites stay put, or be exhumed by the waves as sea level rises? The answers will be found in future rocks – but it would help us all to work them out now.

    Sarah Gabbott is affiliated with Green Circle Nature Regeneration Community Interest Company 13084569.

    Jan Zalasiewicz does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. How the pollution of today will become the ‘technofossils’ of the far future – https://theconversation.com/how-the-pollution-of-today-will-become-the-technofossils-of-the-far-future-248815

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Wyden Appoints New Field Representative for Eastern Oregon

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Ron Wyden (D-Ore)
    February 12, 2025
    Washington D.C.— U.S. Senator Ron Wyden today announced that Andrew Cutler has begun work as his new field representative for Eastern Oregon, covering Baker, Gilliam, Grant, Harney, Malheur, Morrow, Sherman, Umatilla, Union, Wallowa and Wheeler counties. 
    “I’m gratified to have someone on my team as knowledgeable and passionate as Andrew is about issues in Eastern Oregon,” Wyden said. “A field representative’s role is about being a region’s eyes and ears, hearing directly from locals about logical and meaningful solutions to the area’s specific challenges. I know Andrew will work hard to support and represent his fellow Eastern Oregonians in any way he can to shorten the distance between our state and Washington, DC.”  
    Cutler, a Treasure Valley Community College and Boise State University alum, comes into this role with a wealth of knowledge about the region. Prior to joining Wyden’s staff, Cutler was the regional editorial director for the EO Media Group from July 2020 to June 2024, where he also served as editor and publisher for the East Oregonian and the Hermiston Herald from May 2019 to June 2024. Cutler also served as editor of The Observer in La Grande from November 2012 to December 2017, and later returned as interim editor from May 2021 to June 2024. He also was the publisher of The Observer from 2015 to 2017.
    “As a resident of Eastern Oregon since 2012, I know how important it is to help the region with issues  where Senator Wyden can assist, such as securing federal funds, wildfire mitigation, economic development, rural healthcare, broadband accessibility and more,” Cutler said. “I look forward to collaborating with everyone in the region to work on solutions Senator Wyden can bring back to DC to make lasting and positive impacts here at home.”        
    Cutler replaces Kathleen Cathey, who retired in December 2024, after serving the people of Eastern Oregon on behalf of Senator Wyden for nearly 20 years.
    “Kathleen leaves huge shoes to fill after close to two decades of service, and I immensely  appreciate her deep community connections that enabled her to work successfully with farmers, ranchers, veterans, educators, local officials and all residents wanting to make  Eastern Oregon an even better place to live and work,’’ Wyden said. “I’m confident Andrew will keep building on those accomplishments and helping me to generate new successes.” 
    Cutler can be reached at andrew_cutler@wyden.senate.gov while the previous Eastern Oregon office in La Grande is moved to Pendleton.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Warner, Reed, Colleagues Blast Trump Admin. Decision To Shutter The CFPB and Put Consumers & Military Families at Risk

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Commonwealth of Virginia Mark R Warner

    WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen. Mark R. Warner (D-VA) joined Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) and a number of their Senate colleagues in a letter demanding that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) perform its essential work supervising and investigating violations of consumer financial protection laws and taking forceful enforcement actions against scammers and payday lenders. This letter comes on the heels of an ill-advised move by the Trump administration to shutter the CFPB, which collects, investigates, and monitors consumer complaints about financial products and services, and provides relief to consumers who have been wronged by unscrupulous financial providers. 

    As a consumer watchdog, the CFPB looks out for Americans’ financial wellbeing, preventing scams and holding offenders accountable. This is especially true for servicemembers, veterans, and their families, Since the agency’s inception, the CFPB has returned over $21 billion back to consumers who have fallen victim to abusive and illegal activity.

    “This morning, in your capacity as Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), you issued a directive to employees to cease all work without your express written approval.  This includes investigations, supervision, enforcement, and litigation activities, as well as all stakeholder engagement and public communications.  This decision leaves all Americans susceptible to predatory lending and other abusive practices, but in particular, it eliminates protections that prevent servicemembers from being exploited,” wrote the senators.

    In this letter, the Senators also express The Trump Administration’s decision to stop supervision, enforcement, and litigation eliminates key protections enacted by Congress through the Military Lending Act (MLA) and Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) to protect servicemembers, who are disproportionally targeted by predatory lenders and schemes, and often face greater financial risks than civilian borrowers due to the nature of their military service.  The financial and legal protections in these bipartisan laws – most notably a temporary reduction in interest rates on mortgages, credit cards, and auto loans – are critical to national defense and military readiness. 

    “Nullifying the MLA and imperiling servicemembers’ rights under the SCRA will degrade military readiness, cost taxpayers money, and tarnish servicemembers’ records.  The Department of Defense (DOD) has stated that ‘high-cost debt can detract from mission focus, reduce productivity, and require the attention of supervisors and commanders.’  Morale suffers when servicemembers and their families are trapped in cycles of debt. And taxpayers are on the hook when our servicemembers leave the military due to avoidable personal issues like financial insecurity.  According to DOD, each separated servicemember costs the Pentagon more than $58,000,” they continued.

    “Accordingly, we request that the CFPB continue to supervise and investigate violations of the consumer financial protection laws and take forceful enforcement actions against lenders that violate the law, especially when it comes to predatory lending that harms our military readiness. We also request that the CFPB continue to make public communications to consumers, especially to servicemembers regarding the rights that they are owed under the SCRA,” the letter concluded.

    In addition to Sens. Warner and Reed, the letter was signed by U.S. Sens. Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Ben Ray Lujan (D-NM), Gary Peters (D-MI), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Edward Markey (D-MA).

    A copy of the letter is available here and below:                                                      

    Dear Director Vought:

    This morning, in your capacity as Acting Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), you issued a directive to employees to cease all work without your express written approval.  This includes investigations, supervision, enforcement, and litigation activities, as well as all stakeholder engagement and public communications.  This decision leaves all Americans susceptible to predatory lending and other abusive practices, but in particular, it eliminates protections that prevent servicemembers from being exploited. 

    This funding, supervision, enforcement, and communications freeze will hit military families especially hard.  Without a functional CFPB, military families will be stripped of their financial protections under the bipartisan Military Lending Act (MLA) that they have earned and deserve by serving our Nation.  The CFPB is the primary agency responsible for supervising and enforcing the MLA against nonbank financial companies, including payday lenders, pawnshops, and debt collectors who have charged servicemembers interest rates as high as 600% and who have threatened to derail their careers if they do not pay up. 

    The agency’s supervision and enforcement program has delivered concrete results for the military.  The CFPB has resolved 39 cases involving harm to servicemembers and veterans, returning $363 million to victims, including six enforcement actions for violations of the MLA.  Two additional MLA cases are currently pending in court, alleging that a pawn shop and an installment lender charged sky high interest rates to military families and engaged in deceptive practices to illegally harvest fees.  With these cases frozen, no supervision, staff locked out, and additional enforcement off the table, unscrupulous lenders will exploit these circumstances to engage in additional predatory lending.  The actions that you have taken since being installed as Acting Director betray our servicemembers and empower scammers who want to rip them off.

    Further, recent CFPB research identified a long-running pattern of lenders failing to decrease servicemembers’ interest rates while on active duty as required by the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA).  These failures cost servicemembers thousands of dollars per year.  The CFPB’s public communications have held lenders accountable and helped servicemembers exercise their rights under Federal law.

    Nullifying the MLA and imperiling servicemembers’ rights under the SCRA will degrade military readiness, cost taxpayers money, and tarnish servicemembers’ records.  The Department of Defense (DOD) has stated that “high-cost debt can detract from mission focus, reduce productivity, and require the attention of supervisors and commanders.”  Morale suffers when servicemembers and their families are trapped in cycles of debt.  And taxpayers are on the hook when our servicemembers leave the military due to avoidable personal issues like financial insecurity.  According to DOD, each separated servicemember costs the Pentagon more than $58,000.

    Accordingly, we request that the CFPB continue to supervise and investigate violations of the consumer financial protection laws and take forceful enforcement actions against lenders that violate the law, especially when it comes to predatory lending that harms our military readiness.  We also request that the CFPB continue to make public communications to consumers, especially to servicemembers regarding the rights that they are owed under the SCRA. 

    We request your commitment no later than February 12, 2025.  Thank you for your attention to this important matter.

    Sincerely,

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Dr. Rand Paul Reintroduces National Right to Work Act

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Kentucky Rand Paul

    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

    February 12, 2025

     Contact: Press_Paul@paul.senate.gov, 202-224-4343

     

    WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) reintroduced the National Right to Work Act to preserve and protect the free choice of individual employees to form, join, or assist labor organizations or to refrain from such activities.

    “The National Right to Work Act ensures all American workers have the ability to choose to refrain from joining or paying dues to a union as a condition for employment,” said Dr. Paul. “Kentucky and 26 other states have already passed right to work laws. It’s time for the federal government to follow their lead.”

    “More Congressmen and Senators than ever before cosponsored the National Right to Work Act in the previous Congress, and we’re grateful to Senator Paul for introducing it again this year. Union bosses don’t get to decide what policies are “pro-worker.” That’s up to workers themselves, and the overwhelming majority support the Right to Work principle that union dues should always be a voluntary choice. The National Right to Work Act protects that choice. Anyone who truly stands with workers and against the union boss special interests that seek to force workers to pay union dues should support Senator Paul’s bill,” said Mark Mix, President of National Right to Work Committee.

    The legislation is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Roger Wicker (R-MS) Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Katie Britt (R-AL), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Mike Rounds (R-SD), James Lankford (R-OK), Tim Scott (R-SC), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Rick Scott (R-FL), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Ted Budd (R-NC), John Barrasso (R-WY), and Mike Lee (R-UT).

    Consistent with his continued efforts to reduce the massive size of government, Dr. Paul’s legislation does not add to existing federal law but instead deletes existing federal forced unionism provisions.

    The National Right to Work Act repeals six statutory provisions that allow private-sector workers, and airline and railroad employees, to be fired if they don’t surrender part of their paycheck to a union. Dr. Paul’s legislation will put bargaining power back where it belongs: in the hands of the American workers.

    You can read the National Right to Work Act HERE.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Australia: CSL Behring’s Gene Therapy HEMGENIX® (etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb) Four Years Post-Infusion Data Continue to Show Sustained Efficacy and Safety in Adults with Hemophilia B

    Source: CLS Limited

    CSL Behring’s Gene Therapy HEMGENIX® (etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb) Four Years Post-Infusion Data Continue to Show Sustained Efficacy and Safety in Adults with Hemophilia B

    • 94 percent of patients eliminated factor IX prophylaxis and remained free of continuous prophylaxis through four years post-treatment
    • Mean factor IX activity levels were sustained at near normal levels of 37% through four years post-treatment, reinforcing the efficacy of HEMGENIX in the treatment of hemophilia B
    • Phase 3 HOPE-B data showed that a one-time treatment with HEMGENIX provided long-term bleed protection as mean adjusted annualized bleeding rate (ABR) for all bleeds was reduced by approximately 90% from lead-in as compared to year four

    KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa., Feb. 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Global biotechnology leader CSL (ASX:CSL; USOTC:CSLLY) today announced the four-year results from the pivotal HOPE-B study confirming the long-term durability and safety of a one-time infusion of HEMGENIX® (etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb) for adults living with hemophilia B. In an oral presentation at the 18th Annual Congress of the European Association for Haemophilia and Allied Disorders (EAHAD), data showed that through four years, HEMGENIX continues to deliver elevated and sustained factor IX activity levels, can offer long-term and greater bleed protection compared to prophylactic treatment, can eliminate the need for routine factor IX prophylaxis, and maintains a favorable safety profile. Approved in 2022 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), HEMGENIX is the first gene therapy for the treatment of adults with hemophilia B who currently use factor IX prophylaxis therapy, or have current or historical life-threatening bleeding, or have repeated, serious spontaneous bleeding episodes. It is also the only approved gene therapy for hemophilia B that can treat adult patients with and without AAV5 neutralizing antibodies thereby providing the potential for a greater number of eligible patients to be treated.

    “Hemophilia B can cause spontaneous bleeds into the joints, resulting in extreme pain and progressive, arthritis-like damage, which can lead to permanent physical debility,” said Steven Pipe, MD, Professor of Pediatrics and Pathology, Laurence A. Boxer Research Professor of Pediatrics and Communicable Diseases, Pediatric Medical Director, Hemophilia and Coagulation Disorders Program Director, Special Coagulation Laboratory University of Michigan. “These results underscore the ability of HEMGENIX to offer long-term bleed protection with a one-time treatment, resulting in dramatic decreases in all annual bleed rates, including joint bleeds, and sustained independence from regular prophylactic infusions.”

    In the Phase III, open-label, single-dose, single-arm HOPE-B trial, 54 adult male participants with severe or moderately severe hemophilia B, with or without preexisting AAV5 neutralizing antibodies, were infused with a single dose of HEMGENIX. Of the 54 participants who received HEMGENIX, 51 completed four years of follow-up. HEMGENIX produced mean factor IX levels of 41.5 IU/dL (n=50) at year one, 36.7 IU/dL (n=50) at year two, 38.6 IU/dL (n=48) at year three and 37.4 IU/dL (n=47) at year four post-infusion. In addition, mean adjusted annualized bleeding rate (ABR) for all bleeds was reduced by approximately 90% from lead-in (4.16, n=54) as compared to year four (0.40, n=51). Furthermore, joint bleeds were reduced from a mean ABR of 2.34 at lead-in to 0.09 during year four. In year four, 94% of patients remained free of continuous prophylaxis treatment. No patients returned to continuous prophylaxis between year three and year four.

    There were no serious adverse events related to treatment with HEMGENIX. HEMGENIX was generally well-tolerated, with a total of 96 treatment-related adverse events (AEs), 92 (96%) of which occurred in the first six months post-treatment. The most common adverse events were an increase in alanine transaminase (ALT), for which nine (16.7%) participants received supportive care with reactive corticosteroids for a mean duration of 81.4 days (standard deviation: 28.6; range: 51-130 days).

    “These data continue to instill confidence in the clinical benefits of HEMGENIX, highlighting the remarkable impact of this one-time treatment to reduce the frequency of bleeds in people with hemophilia B and improve quality of life by alleviating the burden of ongoing factor IX prophylactic treatment,” said Andres Brainsky, Vice President R&D Hematology at CSL. “CSL is committed to continuing to provide ongoing data analyses of HEMGENIX, ensuring that healthcare providers and patients have the necessary information to make informed decisions about treatment options. We are proud to continue to provide life-changing treatment options to the hemophilia community.” 

    The multi-year clinical development of HEMGENIX was led by uniQure (Nasdaq: QURE) and sponsorship of the clinical trials transitioned to CSL after it licensed global rights to commercialize the treatment. Additionally, CSL established a post-marketing registry, which will be informative to all stakeholders and will generate additional evidence on the long-term safety, efficacy, and durability of gene therapy. HEMGENIX has also been granted conditional marketing authorization by the European Commission (EC) for the European Union and European Economic Area, the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), as well as authorization by Health Canada, Switzerland’s Swissmedic and provisional approval by Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).

    For more information on HEMGENIX, please visit www.Hemgenix.com.

    About the Pivotal HOPE-B Trial
    The pivotal Phase III HOPE-B trial is an ongoing, multinational, open-label, single-arm study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of HEMGENIX. Fifty-four adult hemophilia B patients classified as having moderately severe to severe hemophilia B and requiring prophylactic factor IX replacement therapy were enrolled in a prospective, six-month or longer observational period during which time they continued to use their current standard of care therapy to establish a baseline Annual Bleeding Rate (ABR). After at least the six-month lead-in period, patients received a single intravenous administration of HEMGENIX at a 2×10^13 gc/kg dose. Patients were not excluded from the trial based on pre-existing neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) to AAV5.

    A total of 54 patients received a single dose of HEMGENIX in the pivotal trial, with 51 patients completing at least four years of follow-up. The primary endpoint in the pivotal HOPE-B study was ABR 52 weeks after achievement of stable factor IX expression (months 7 to 18) compared with the six-month lead-in period. For this endpoint, ABR was measured from month seven to month 18 after infusion, ensuring the observation period represented a steady-state factor IX transgene expression. Secondary endpoints included assessment of factor IX activity.

    No serious treatment-related adverse reactions were reported. One death resulting from urosepsis and cardiogenic shock in a 77-year-old patient at 65 weeks following dosing was considered unrelated to treatment by investigators and the sponsor company. A serious adverse event of hepatocellular carcinoma was determined to be unrelated to treatment with HEMGENIX by independent molecular tumor characterization and vector integration analysis. No inhibitors to factor IX were reported. 

    About Hemophilia B
    Hemophilia B is a life-threatening rare disease caused by a mutation on the F9 gene, resulting in low levels of functional clotting factor IX. People with the condition are particularly vulnerable to bleeds in their joints, muscles, and internal organs, leading to pain, swelling, and joint damage. Treatments for moderate to severe hemophilia B typically include life-long prophylactic infusions of factor IX to temporarily replace or supplement low levels of the blood-clotting factor.

    About HEMGENIX®
    HEMGENIX is a gene therapy that reduces the rate of abnormal bleeding in eligible people with hemophilia B by enabling the body to continuously produce factor IX, the deficient protein in hemophilia B. It uses AAV5, a non-infectious viral vector, called an adeno-associated virus (AAV). The AAV5 vector carries the Padua gene variant of Factor IX (FIX-Padua) to the target cells in the liver, generating factor IX proteins that are 5x-8x more active than normal. These genetic instructions remain in the target cells, but generally do not become a part of a person’s own DNA. Once delivered, the new genetic instructions allow the cellular machinery to produce stable levels of factor IX.

    Important Safety Information (ISI)

    What is HEMGENIX®?
    HEMGENIX®, etranacogene dezaparvovec-drlb, is a one-time gene therapy for the treatment of adults with hemophilia B who:

    • Currently use Factor IX prophylaxis therapy, or
    • Have current or historical life-threatening bleeding, or
    • Have repeated, serious spontaneous bleeding episodes.

    HEMGENIX is administered as a single intravenous infusion and can be administered only once.

    What medical testing can I expect to be given before and after administration of HEMGENIX?
    To determine your eligibility to receive HEMGENIX, you will be tested for Factor IX inhibitors. If this test result is positive, a retest will be performed 2 weeks later. If both tests are positive for Factor IX inhibitors, your doctor will not administer HEMGENIX to you. If, after administration of HEMGENIX, increased Factor IX activity is not achieved, or bleeding is not controlled, a post-dose test for Factor IX inhibitors will be performed.

    HEMGENIX may lead to elevations of liver enzymes in the blood; therefore, ultrasound and other testing will be performed to check on liver health before HEMGENIX can be administered. Following administration of HEMGENIX, your doctor will monitor your liver enzyme levels weekly for at least 3 months. If you have preexisting risk factors for liver cancer, regular liver health testing will continue for 5 years post-administration. Treatment for elevated liver enzymes could include corticosteroids.

    What were the most common side effects of HEMGENIX in clinical trials?
    In clinical trials for HEMGENIX, the most common side effects reported in more than 5% of patients were liver enzyme elevations, headache, elevated levels of a certain blood enzyme, flu-like symptoms, infusion-related reactions, fatigue, nausea, and feeling unwell. These are not the only side effects possible. Tell your healthcare provider about any side effect you may experience.

    What should I watch for during infusion with HEMGENIX?
    Your doctor will monitor you for infusion-related reactions during administration of HEMGENIX, as well as for at least 3 hours after the infusion is complete. Symptoms may include chest tightness, headaches, abdominal pain, lightheadedness, flu-like symptoms, shivering, flushing, rash, and elevated blood pressure. If an infusion-related reaction occurs, the doctor may slow or stop the HEMGENIX infusion, resuming at a lower infusion rate once symptoms resolve.

    What should I avoid after receiving HEMGENIX?
    Small amounts of HEMGENIX may be present in your blood, semen, and other excreted/secreted materials, and it is not known how long this continues. You should not donate blood, organs, tissues, or cells for transplantation after receiving HEMGENIX.

    Please see full prescribing information for HEMGENIX.

    You are encouraged to report negative side effects of prescription drugs to the FDA. Visit www.fda.gov/medwatch, or call 1-800-FDA-1088.

    You can also report side effects to CSL Behring’s Pharmacovigilance Department at 1-866-915-6958. 

    About CSL
    CSL (ASX:CSL; USOTC:CSLLY) is a global biotechnology company with a dynamic portfolio of lifesaving medicines, including those that treat haemophilia and immune deficiencies, vaccines to prevent influenza, and therapies in iron deficiency and nephrology. Since our start in 1916, we have been driven by our promise to save lives using the latest technologies. Today, CSL – including our three businesses: CSL Behring, CSL Seqirus and CSL Vifor – provides lifesaving products to patients in more than 100 countries and employs 32,000 people. Our unique combination of commercial strength, R&D focus and operational excellence enables us to identify, develop and deliver innovations so our patients can live life to the fullest. For inspiring stories about the promise of biotechnology, visit CSL.com/Vita and follow us on Twitter.com/CSL.

    For more information about CSL, visit CSL.com.

    Media Contacts
    Etanjalie Ayala, CSL Behring
    Mobile: +1 610 297 1069
    Email: etanjalie.ayala@cslbehring.com

    Stephanie Fuchs, CSL Behring
    Mobile: +49 151 58438860
    Email: Stephanie.Fuchs@cslbehring.com

    SOURCE CSL Behring

    MIL OSI News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Opening Remarks by Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth at Ukraine Defense Contact Group (As Delivered)

    Source: United States Department of Defense

    Good afternoon, friends.

    Thank you, Secretary Healy for your leadership, both in hosting and now leading the UDCG. 

    This is my first Ukraine Defense Contact Group. And I’m honored to join all of you today.  

    And I appreciate the opportunity to share President Trump’s approach to the war in Ukraine.

    We are at, as you said Mr. Secretary, a critical moment. As the war approaches its third anniversary, our message is clear: The bloodshed must stop.  And this war must end.

    President Trump has been clear with the American people – and with many of your leaders – that stopping the fighting and reaching an enduring peace is a top priority.

    He intends to end this war by diplomacy and bringing both Russia and Ukraine to the table. And the U.S. Department of Defense will help achieve this goal. 

    We will only end this devastating war – and establish a durable peace – by coupling allied strength with a realistic assessment of the battlefield.

    We want, like you, a sovereign and prosperous Ukraine. But we must start by recognizing that returning to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders is an unrealistic objective.  

    Chasing this illusionary goal will only prolong the war and cause more suffering.  

    A durable peace for Ukraine must include robust security guarantees to ensure that the war will not begin again.  

    This must not be Minsk 3.0. 

    That said, the United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement. 

    Instead any security guarantee must be backed by capable European and non-European troops. 

    If these troops are deployed as peacekeepers to Ukraine at any point, they should be deployed as part of a non-NATO mission. And they should not covered under Article 5.  There also must be robust international oversight of the line of contact.

    To be clear, as part of any security guarantee, there will not be U.S. troops deployed to Ukraine. 

    To further enable effective diplomacy and drive down energy prices that fund the Russian war machine, President Trump is unleashing American energy production and encouraging other nations to do the same. Lower energy prices coupled with more effective enforcement of energy sanctions will help bring Russia to the table. 

    Safeguarding European security must be an imperative for European members of NATO. As part of this Europe must provide the overwhelming share of future lethal and nonlethal aid to Ukraine.

    Members of this Contact Group must meet the moment.  

    This means:  Donating more ammunition and equipment. Leveraging comparative advantages.  Expanding your defense industrial base. And importantly, leveling with your citizens about the threat facing Europe.

    Part of this is speaking frankly with your people about how this threat can only be met by spending more on defense.  

    2% is not enough; President Trump has called for 5%, and I agree.

    Increasing your commitment to your own security is a down payment for the future. A down payment as you said Mr. Secretary of peace through strength.

    We’re also here today to directly and unambiguously express that stark strategic realities prevent the United States of America from being primarily focused on the security of Europe.

    The United States faces consequential threats to our homeland.  We must – and we are – focusing on security of our own borders.

    We also face a peer competitor in the Communist Chinese with the capability and intent to threaten our homeland and core national interests in the Indo-Pacific. The U.S. is prioritizing deterring war with China in the Pacific, recognizing the reality of scarcity, and making the resourcing tradeoffs to ensure deterrence does not fail. 

    Deterrence cannot fail, for all of our sakes.

    As the United States prioritizes its attention to these threats, European allies must lead from the front. 

    Together, we can establish a division of labor that maximizes our comparative advantages in Europe and Pacific respectively.

    In my first weeks as Secretary of Defense, under President Trump’s leadership, we’ve seen promising signs that Europe sees this threat, understands what needs to be done, and is stepping up to the task.

    For example, Sweden recently announced its largest ever assistance package. We applaud them for committing $1.2 billion in ammunition and other needed materiel.

    Poland is spending 5% of GDP on defense already, which is a model for the continent.

    And 14 countries are co-leading Capability Coalitions. These groups are doing great work to coordinate Europe’s contributions of lethal assistance across eight key capability areas.

    These are first steps. More must still be done.  

    We ask each of your countries to step up on fulfilling the commitments that you have made.  

    And we challenge your countries, and your citizens, to double down and re-commit yourselves not only to Ukraine’s immediate security needs, but to Europe’s long-term defense and deterrence goals. 

    Our transatlantic alliance has endured for decades. And we fully expect that it will be sustained for generations to come. But this won’t just happen.  

    It will require our European allies to step into the arena and take ownership of conventional security on the continent.  

    The United States remains committed to the NATO alliance and to the defense partnership with Europe. Full stop.   

    But the United States will no longer tolerate an imbalanced relationship which encourages dependency.  Rather, our relationship will prioritize empowering Europe to own responsibility for its own security. 

    Honesty will be our policy going forward – but only in the spirit of solidarity.   

    President Trump looks forward to working together, to continuing this frank discussion amongst friends, and to achieve peace through strength – together.

    Thank you.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Readout of Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth’s Meeting With Jordan’s King Abdullah II

    Source: United States Department of Defense

    Department of Defense Spokesman John Ullyot provided the following readout:

    On February 9, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth met with Jordan’s King Abdullah II to affirm the strong partnership between the United States and Jordan and to discuss opportunities to advance shared interests. The Secretary expressed his appreciation for over 75 years of diplomatic ties between the United States and Jordan and for Jordan’s leadership in promoting security and stability in the Middle East.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI: RegEd Expands its Xchange Solution to Support Canadian Insurance Licensing and Securities Registration Requirements

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    Raleigh, NC, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — RegEd, the leading provider of regulatory compliance and credentialing solutions for the financial services industry, today announced the expansion of its Xchange Producer Management platform to support insurance licensing and securities registration in Canada. This expansion enables financial services firms to harmonize their US and Canadian licensing and registration processes, leveraging Xchange’s advanced automation to improve efficiency, enhance compliance, and accelerate time-to-market for financial professionals operating across both regions. The move comes as part of a new agreement with one of the largest wealth management firms in the US, who will partner with RegEd to launch the new capabilities.  

    As financial services firms continue to focus on digital transformation, many are seeking to modernize outdated licensing and registration systems. U.S.-based firms with operations in Canada, in particular, require a single, unified platform to support licensing and registration processes in both countries. The expansion of Xchange enables these firms to streamline operational workflows, reduce administrative overhead, and ensure compliance across multiple jurisdictions. 

    “As firms look to replace aging licensing and registration systems, they need a solution that can support their entire North American footprint,” said Frank Brienzi, CEO of RegEd. “With Xchange’s expansion into Canada, we are meeting that need—offering a comprehensive, automated solution that simplifies compliance for firms operating in both the U.S. and Canada.” 

    How Xchange Will Deliver More Value for Firms Who Operate in Canada 

    • Seamless U.S.-Canada Integration – Extends Xchange’s advanced automation capabilities to Canadian licensing and registration processes, enabling firms to manage both U.S. and Canadian compliance in a single system. 
    • Integration with the National Registration Database (NRD) – Synchronizes registration data in real time and enables electronic filings for Canadian securities registrants. 
    • Localization Capabilities – Provides support for both English and French-language interfaces and documentation, ensuring a seamless experience for Canadian users in their preferred language. 

    By investing in localization capabilities and NRD integration, RegEd is reinforcing its commitment to delivering best-in-class compliance technology to global financial services firms.

    “Xchange has long been the industry’s most trusted licensing and registration solution in the U.S.,” said Ethan Floyd, Chief Product Officer of RegEd. “Now, we’re bringing that same automation, efficiency, and compliance-driven innovation to the Canadian market, helping firms retire legacy systems and unify their licensing and registration functions.” 

    About RegEd 

    RegEd is the market-leading provider of RegTech enterprise solutions with relationships with more than 200 enterprise clients, including 80% of the top 25 financial services firms. 

    Established in 2000 by former regulators, the company is recognized for continuous regulatory technology innovation with solutions hallmarked by workflow-directed processes, data integration, regulatory intelligence, automated validations, business process automation and compliance dashboards. The aggregate drives the highest levels of operational efficiency and enables our clients to cost-effectively comply with regulations and continuously mitigate risk. 

    Trusted by the nation’s top financial services firms, RegEd’s proven, holistic approach to RegTech meets firms where they are on the compliance and risk management continuum, scaling as their needs evolve and amplifying the value proposition delivered to clients. For more information, please visit www.reged.com. 

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: HSI New England investigation leads to recovery of over $300,000 to victim of a computer support scam

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    HARTFORD, Conn. — U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced on Feb. 7 the return of $328,573 to the victim of a computer support scam as the result of an ICE HSI cybercrime investigation.

    According to the complaint (3:24cv840), in February 2024, an elderly woman was tricked by a scammer who mimicked Microsoft customer support. The victim transferred approximately $550,000 to the scammers in two wire transfers. Within two days of the transfers, the victim and a family member reported the incident to the Simsbury Police Department, who then partnered with HSI to investigate the crime. Fortunately, one of the wire transfers, in the amount of $221,000, was reversed by the bank and returned to the victim. ICE HSI special agents traced the remaining money, totaling approximately $328,573, and seized it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then filed a civil asset forfeiture action to forfeit the money to the government, and HSI special agents and the U.S. Attorney’s Office then worked with the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section to return the money to the victim on Feb. 4, 2025.

    “Cyber scams run by foreign malign actors are becoming more common and more sophisticated every day,” said ICE HSI New England Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol. “The victim in this case contacted authorities quickly resulting in the recovery of most of her money by the bank and by HSI — a best case scenario and rare result. It is essential for victims of these kinds of cybercrimes to come forward as soon as possible. We want the public to know that help is available and to reach out immediately if they’ve been victimized by international scammers.”

    “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to helping victims of crime, and civil asset forfeiture is a powerful tool that allows the government to return money to victims of fraud schemes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Silverman. “As we continue to pursue criminal prosecution of the individuals responsible for this and other computer crimes, it is equally important to ensure that the government uses all of its tools to minimize, and in this case, undo, the financial impact these crimes have on victims. This case represents the best case scenario, where nearly every dollar taken from the victim was returned to her. While it can be difficult to come forward and admit that you have been victimized by online scammers, know that federal law enforcement and our state and local partners stand ready to help you to the fullest extent possible.”

    This case was investigated by ICE HSI New England’s Hartford Resident Agent in Charge office. If you or someone you know is a victim of elder fraud, call the HSI Tip Line at 877-4-HSI-TIP or the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11.

    Follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @HSINewEngland to learn more about HSI’s global missions and operations.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Statement on Staff Legal Bulletin 14M

    Source: Securities and Exchange Commission

    Today, under the direction of the Acting Chairman, Staff Legal Bulletin 14L is now rescinded by the issuance of Staff Legal Bulletin 14M (“SLB 14M”). SLB 14M moves the goalposts smack dab in the middle of this year’s shareholder proposal process. Doing so at this hour creates undue costs and uncertainty for investors and corporations alike. This type of political policy shifting mid-season serves to undercut capital formation, not facilitate it.

    SLB 14M implements different rules of the road for the process of excluding shareholder proposals from issuers’ proxy statements.[1] Such proposals include topics relating to poison pills, compensation, emerging issues such as AI, political and lobbying expenditures, and environmental or other issues that shareholders have identified as materially impacting the firm’s financial value.[2] The fact that the change is taking place at this time is significant. As anyone familiar with the shareholder proposal process knows, excluding a proposal from the proxy statement all but guarantees it will never make it to a shareholder vote.

    The rescission comes as no surprise given that the shareholder proposal process has become the target of politicized messaging and a preferred punching bag of those who wish to diminish corporate democracy. This is the case even though there are already numerous other mechanisms in place to limit the availability of the proxy ballot to shareholders.[3] Though the shareholder proposal process is designed merely to facilitate a dialogue with investors, today’s actions drowns out investor voices and facilitates corporate monologues instead.[4]

    Even though the rescission may not be a surprise, the timing of this action is arbitrary and inequitable. Shareholders have already crafted and submitted their proposals for this season. Corporations and shareholders will incur costs to supplement or alter no-action requests and responses. Further, SEC staff have already issued no-action letter responses related to proposals for this proxy season. Even for those stakeholders and observers who prefer a different approach to this process, the end result is quite possibly disparate treatment not just for shareholders, but for issuers as well. We are so focused on undoing the prior Commission’s agenda that we sow chaos now. By choosing this path, we forsake all consistency, and perhaps even the legitimacy, of the independent, historically staff-governed process to the detriment of all parties.

    While costly and confusing, corporations will still have a chance to revise their no-action requests to exclude proposals. Shareholders, of course, will have no such opportunity. The 14a-8 no-action process is fact-intensive, and exactly how a proposal is crafted is often determinative of its exclusion or inclusion. It is now too late for most shareholders to design proposals in line with SLB 14M.

    Instead of taking a measured approach that would ensure market stability and a meaningful consideration of cost and benefit, this leadership has rushed out staff guidance for the sake of political expediency, and at significant cost to shareholders, corporations, and SEC staff resources.

    [1] SLB 14M rescinds Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14L and, in large part, reinstates previous guidance on staff views relating to the (i)(5) and (i)(7) substantive bases for exclusion. See Staff Legal Bulletin No. 14M. It is important to note that (i)(7) was the most often used exclusion in the 2024 proxy season. See Merel Spierings, the Conference Board, 2024 Proxy Season Review: Corporate Resilience in a Polarized Landscape, H. L. School Forum on Corp. Gov. (Oct. 12, 2024).

    [3] For example, shareholders must meet certain ownership and resubmission thresholds to submit a proposal, and proposals are subject to a 500 word limit. See CFR 240.14a-8(b)(1), (d), & (i)(12).

    [4] Additionally, shareholder proposals are precatory, or merely advisory, in nature. See CFR 240.14a-8(i)(1).

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Assessing the Global Climate in January 2025

    Source: US National Oceanographic Data Center

    January Highlights:

    • Temperatures were above average over much of the globe, but much below average over the United States, Greenland and far eastern Russia.
    • Eurasian snow cover extent and Arctic sea ice extent both ranked second lowest on record for January.
    • Global tropical cyclone activity was slightly below average with five named storms, three of which occurred in the Indian Ocean.

    Temperature

    The January global surface temperature was 2.39°F (1.33°C) above the 20th-century average of 53.6°F (12.0°C) and 0.05°F (0.03°C) above the previous record set last year, making last month the warmest January on record. According to NCEI’s Global Annual Temperature Outlook, there is a 7% chance that 2025 will rank as the warmest year on record.

    The new January global record is particularly notable for having occurred during a La Niña episode, the cold phase of El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Global temperatures tend to be cooler during periods of ENSO-neutral conditions and even cooler during La Niña. According to NOAA’s Climate Prediction Center’s January 9 ENSO Diagnostic Discussion, La Niña conditions emerged in December 2024 and are expected to persist through February–April 2025 (59% chance), with a transition to ENSO-neutral likely during March–May 2025 (60% chance).

    January temperatures were above average across much of the global land surface, particularly over Alaska, much of western Canada and most of central Eurasia. The United States, Greenland, far eastern Russia and parts of southern Africa and Antarctica were colder than average. Overall it was the warmest January on record over global land areas. Sea surface temperatures were above average over most areas, while much of the central and eastern tropical Pacific was below average (consistent with La Niña), as were parts of the southeast Pacific, western North Atlantic and the northwestern Indian Oceans. The global ocean was the second warmest on record for January.

    Snow Cover

    The Northern Hemisphere snow cover extent in January was the fourth lowest on record. While snow cover over North America and Greenland was slightly above average (by 80,000 square miles), Eurasia ranked second lowest on record (940,000 square miles below average). Areas of below-average snow cover stretched across most of Europe southeastward into central Asia.

    Sea Ice

    Global sea ice extent was the seventh smallest in the 47-year record at 6.89 million square miles, which was 1.17 million square miles below the 1991–2020 average. Arctic sea ice extent was below average (by 330,000 square miles), ranking second lowest on record, and Antarctic extent was slightly below average (by 130,000 square miles).

    Tropical Cyclones

    Five named storms occurred across the globe in January, which was below the average of seven. Three named storms formed in the southwestern Indian Ocean, the most impactful being Intense Tropical Cyclone Dikeledi, which made landfall on Madagascar and Mozambique, bringing high winds and heavy rains to the affected regions.

    For a more complete summary of climate conditions and events, see our January 2025 Global Climate Report or explore our Climate at a Glance Global Time Series.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: ICE HSI New England investigation leads to recovery of over $300,000 to victim of a computer support scam

    Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement

    HARTFORD, Conn. — U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced on Feb. 7 the return of $328,573 to the victim of a computer support scam as the result of an ICE HSI cybercrime investigation.

    According to the complaint (3:24cv840), in February 2024, an elderly woman was tricked by a scammer who mimicked Microsoft customer support. The victim transferred approximately $550,000 to the scammers in two wire transfers. Within two days of the transfers, the victim and a family member reported the incident to the Simsbury Police Department, who then partnered with HSI to investigate the crime. Fortunately, one of the wire transfers, in the amount of $221,000, was reversed by the bank and returned to the victim. ICE HSI special agents traced the remaining money, totaling approximately $328,573, and seized it. The U.S. Attorney’s Office then filed a civil asset forfeiture action to forfeit the money to the government, and HSI special agents and the U.S. Attorney’s Office then worked with the Department of Justice’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section to return the money to the victim on Feb. 4, 2025.

    “Cyber scams run by foreign malign actors are becoming more common and more sophisticated every day,” said ICE HSI New England Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol. “The victim in this case contacted authorities quickly resulting in the recovery of most of her money by the bank and by HSI — a best case scenario and rare result. It is essential for victims of these kinds of cybercrimes to come forward as soon as possible. We want the public to know that help is available and to reach out immediately if they’ve been victimized by international scammers.”

    “The U.S. Attorney’s Office is committed to helping victims of crime, and civil asset forfeiture is a powerful tool that allows the government to return money to victims of fraud schemes,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Silverman. “As we continue to pursue criminal prosecution of the individuals responsible for this and other computer crimes, it is equally important to ensure that the government uses all of its tools to minimize, and in this case, undo, the financial impact these crimes have on victims. This case represents the best case scenario, where nearly every dollar taken from the victim was returned to her. While it can be difficult to come forward and admit that you have been victimized by online scammers, know that federal law enforcement and our state and local partners stand ready to help you to the fullest extent possible.”

    This case was investigated by ICE HSI New England’s Hartford Resident Agent in Charge office. If you or someone you know is a victim of elder fraud, call the HSI Tip Line at 877-4-HSI-TIP or the National Elder Fraud Hotline at 833-FRAUD-11.

    Follow us on X, formerly known as Twitter, at @HSINewEngland to learn more about HSI’s global missions and operations.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Gov. Pillen Appoints Jesse Bradley to be Interim Director of DEE and DNR

    Source: US State of Nebraska

    . Pillen Appoints Jesse Bradley to be Interim Director of DEE and DNR

     

    LINCOLN, NE – Today, Governor Jim Pillen announced his appointment of Jesse Bradley as interim director for the Department of Environment and Energy (DEE). Bradley will continue in his current role as interim director for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). His duties overseeing DEE are effective immediately.

    Gov. Pillen called out Bradley’s steady leadership of DNR since assuming the position of interim director in August 2024. This is the second time Bradley has been interim director of that agency. He was appointed in 2020 as well.

    In his lead role at DNR, Bradley has worked with natural resources districts across the state to implement the Nitrogen Reduction Incentive Act. He has been part of the agency’s push to leverage new technologies to improve system processes to utilize data-informed management decisions.

    Bradley has been with DNR since 2006, when he started as an integrated water management analyst. In 2012, he became head of the Water Planning Division and two years later, was promoted to deputy director of DNR. He has degrees in environmental geology and hydrogeology and is a licensed professional geologist in Nebraska.

    “Water management is critical to the state of Nebraska – and we need to continue to innovate and improve water quantity and quality for the next seven generations,” said Gov. Pillen. “Jesse’s vast experience in that area, coupled with his ability to bridge the gap between local needs, the state and federal regulators, make him strongly qualified to lead DNR and DEE when they are combined through passage of LB317.”

    LB317, which has been introduced on behalf of the Governor by Senator Tom Brandt, proposes naming the newly formed agency the Department of Water, Energy and Environment. The bill will have a hearing before the Natural Resources Committee on Thursday, Feb. 13.

    The Environment Quality Council (EQC) provides names to the Governor for consideration as director of DEE. Gov. Pillen said he will continue to consult with the group as the legislation moves ahead.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: U.S. Attorney’s Office Secures Guilty Plea from Shiprock Woman in Straw Purchase Case

    Source: Office of United States Attorneys

    ALBUQUERQUE – A Shiprock woman pleaded guilty to federal charges related to the straw purchase of a firearm that was later used in a violent crime spree and murder.

    According to court documents, on April 24, 2024, Brittania Navaho, 29, an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation, purchased a revolver and ammunition from a pawn shop in Gallup, New Mexico, on behalf of Rydell Happy, a convicted felon prohibited from possessing firearms or ammunition.

    At sentencing, Navaho faces up to 15 years in prison followed by three years of supervised release.

    U.S. Attorney Alexander M.M. Uballez, and Raul Bujanda, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office, made the announcement today.

    The Farmington Resident Agency of the FBI Albuquerque Field Office investigated this case with assistance from Navajo Nation Police Department, the Navajo Nation Department of Criminal Investigations and the McKinley County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney R. Eliot Neal is prosecuting the case.

    This case is being prosecuted as part of the Department of Justice’s Missing or Murdered Indigenous Persons (MMIP) Regional Outreach Program, which aims to aid in the prevention and response to missing or murdered Indigenous people through the resolution of MMIP cases and communication, coordination, and collaboration with federal, Tribal, state, and local partners.

    This case is being prosecuted under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. The Act is a federal statute specifically designed to target the unlawful trafficking and straw-purchasing of firearms.

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI NGOs: Coca-Cola slides backwards again, plans to expose Americans to more toxic plastic bottles

    Source: Greenpeace Statement –

    Washington, D.C. (February 10, 2025)—In response to Coca-Cola’s statement that it will shift to using more plastic bottles instead of aluminum if the latest wave of tariffs from President Donald Trump take effect, Lisa Ramsden, Greenpeace USA’s senior plastics campaigner said: “Coca-Cola’s decision to double down on plastics in response to Trump’s tariffs is a reckless step backward in the fight against plastic pollution. Instead of investing in real solutions like refill and reuse they are choosing to pump more toxic plastic into our communities and the environment. Coca-Cola is already the world’s biggest plastic polluter, and this would ensure they remain number one for years to come.

    “What Quincey fails to mention is that PET plastic bottles contain harmful chemicals linked to cancer, hormone disruption, obesity, early puberty in children, reproductive health problems and declining fertility. This move would lock consumers into a future of rising health risks and medical costs–at a time when Americans are already struggling with economic and health burdens. As long as corporations like Coca-Cola keep increasing our exposure to dangerous chemicals, making America healthy again will remain an unfulfilled promise.”

    Coca-Cola has already been increasing the amount of plastic it uses every year and currently produces more than 130 billion plastic bottles every year. In December, Coca-Cola walked back its commitment to sell 25% of its products in reusable packaging by 2030.   

    Contact: Tanya Brooks, Senior Communications Specialist at Greenpeace USA, [email protected]  

    Greenpeace USA is part of a global network of independent campaigning organizations that use peaceful protest and creative communication to expose global environmental problems and promote solutions that are essential to a green and peaceful future. Greenpeace USA is committed to transforming the country’s unjust social, environmental, and economic systems from the ground up to address the climate crisis, advance racial justice, and build an economy that puts people first. Learn more at www.greenpeace.org/usa.

    MIL OSI NGO –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Trump White House’s disengagement from HIV/AIDS response could have lethal consequences

    Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Yolaine Frossard de Saugy, PhD Candidate, International Relations, McGill University

    With the endless stream of announcements, reversals, measures and countermeasures coming from the new administration of United States President Donald Trump, it has become difficult to make sense of what is just noise or opening negotiation offers and what constitutes actual policy change.

    Unfortunately, in the case of the global response against HIV/AIDS, it seems the attacks go beyond bluster.

    The methods used in the fight against HIV/AIDS have long been disputed, but overall commitment to the response was one of the few deeply bipartisan endeavours left, until now. Undercutting this decades-long consensus would mean endangering millions of lives.

    U.S. role in global HIV/AIDS response

    As a PhD candidate in international relations working on the politics of the response to HIV/AIDS, I am very aware of the central role that the U.S. has played in building and sustaining a global response to the epidemic in the past 25 years.

    The U.S. is the largest provider of funds for HIV/AIDS programs worldwide. It does so mainly through the bilateral President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) as well as through its contribution to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Overall U.S. funding for global AIDS reached $7 billion in 2020, 2021 and 2022. PEPFAR alone is estimated to provide treatment to 20 million people.

    The U.S. is also a fundamental participant in HIV/AIDS research, including through the work of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), as well as USAID.

    All of this involvement has already been dangerously jeopardized by the actions taken by the White House since Trump took office for his second term.

    Many activities of the CDC and NIH have been halted. Funding for PEPFAR was caught in the freeze on foreign aid announced in January. Though an exemption was later made and the order has since been blocked by a federal judge, it has already forced recipients of aid to lay off personnel and close clinics and programs in places like Kenya and South Africa.

    USAID, the primary implementer of bilateral HIV/AIDS funds, is at risk of being dismantled.

    Current changes

    The chaos wrought by these measures has impacted the response to HIV/AIDS in deep ways, even if they may be contested or reversed by the courts and Congress.

    The uncertainty in itself is damaging for programs that need reliable funding and long-term planning, not to mention the clinical trials that have been brutally interrupted. What’s more, there are indications the Trump administration and other Republicans have abandoned the longstanding commitment to the response itself, which may lead to irreparable damage.

    American involvement in the global response to HIV/AIDS has long been shaped by domestic politics. Most notably, PEPFAR’s first rounds of funding were deeply constrained by the views of George W. Bush’s evangelical constituency, including in its focus on abstinence as prevention and denial of funding for sex workers.

    But the overall commitment to fighting HIV/AIDS had enjoyed bipartisan support for over two decades. Even during the first Trump administration, the U.S. maintained its involvement, though this was also due to Congress’s resistance to the White House’s attempts at reducing funding.

    There are indications that things might be different this time. Entire pages on HIV/AIDS have disappeared from government websites.

    The Heritage Foundation, the conservative think-tank behind the potential blueprint for Trump’s government known as Project 2025, has referred to HIV/AIDS as a lifestyle disease, like tobacco consumption. This language is reminiscent of the 1980s playbook of opponents on AIDS action and negates both the nature of the epidemic and the realities of those who live with the virus, casting doubts on the need to engage meaningfully with the response.

    Most ominously, the last reauthorization of PEPFAR in 2024 was limited to one year instead of the customary five, as some Republican representatives sought to end it altogether. This means the entire program is to be re-examined this March with no guarantee of how the debates will unfold, especially in the current climate.



    Read more:
    As the United States disavows the World Health Organization, Canada must double down on its support

    Ultimately most will depend on Congress, including the amount pledged by the U.S. to the Global Fund at its replenishment conference sometime this year.

    Its decisions will be the real test of the depth of change on this matter, though everything that has unfolded so far hints at a far-reaching shattering of the consensus. If conservative Republicans maintain their pressure on PEPFAR, the program could be significantly diminished, and it is unlikely that a White House that withdrew from the World Health Organization on day one will act decisively to save it or insist on a sustained contribution to the Global Fund.

    Consequences of U.S. disengagement

    The consequences of a U.S. retreat from the global response to HIV/AIDS would be immense.

    In the short-term, millions of people would lose access to the treatment they depend on for their survival. In the long term, shrinking American funding would undermine health systems around the world and risk the resurgence of the pandemic and the rise of resistant virus strains.

    This would jeopardize 40 years of progress, returning us to a time when AIDS was considered a key security risk and threat to development.

    Even if funding is maintained, all of this shows that for the next few years the U.S. is unlikely to be reliable. This means others will have to take up the leadership to ensure the worst-case scenario is avoided.

    Among these, Canada could have a crucial role to play. It has long been a key entity in its own right — the seventh largest contributor to the Global Fund — though Ottawa has remained discreet in this area so far. Washington’s withdrawal from the field may force it to step into a more visible role and contribute to reframe Canada’s international involvement.

    Yolaine Frossard de Saugy does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

    – ref. Trump White House’s disengagement from HIV/AIDS response could have lethal consequences – https://theconversation.com/trump-white-houses-disengagement-from-hiv-aids-response-could-have-lethal-consequences-249261

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: $1.5 Million in Charitable Gaming Grants Paid to Community Groups Across Saskatchewan

    Source: Government of Canada regional news

    Released on February 12, 2025

    Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan (LGS) provided $1.5 million in charitable gaming grants in the third quarter of 2024-25, benefiting more than 700 groups and organizations across the province.

    “These grants help charitable and nonprofit groups provide a variety of programs and services across our province – everything from animal rescue to youth sports to arts and culture, and so much more,” Minister Responsible for LGS Jeremy Harrison said. “Nearly 2,500 groups and organizations qualified for a charitable gaming grant last year, and this year we have been encouraging even more groups to apply.”

    The Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation is one of the recipients of the grants, helping to fund their important work in support of pediatric and maternal health services.

    “Charitable gaming grants make a meaningful difference for families in Saskatchewan,” Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital Foundation CEO Troy Davies said. “These funds help ensure children and moms-to-be have access to family-centred programs, world-class equipment and innovative technology at Jim Pattison Children’s Hospital and across the province.”

    Groups in about 200 Saskatchewan communities received a charitable gaming grant in the third quarter of 2024-25, with more than $431,000 going to groups in Regina and more than $280,000 to groups in Saskatoon.

    Other regions across the province also received funding, including:

    • Yorkton, Melville and area – more than $103,000
    • Swift Current and area – more than $102,000
    • Weyburn, Estevan and area – more than $94,000
    • Prince Albert and area- more than $30,000
    • Meadow Lake and area – more than $29,000
    • Humboldt, Melfort and area – more than $21,000

    These quarterly grants are paid to groups and organizations in good standing that conduct licensed charitable gaming activities such as bingos, raffles, breakopen ticket sales, Texas hold ’em poker tournaments and Monte Carlo events. The grants are equal to 25 per cent of the net revenue raised by each charitable event, up to a maximum of $100,000 per group or organization annually.

    The amount of each grant paid by LGS to each charity is calculated by the Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority (SLGA) based on financial reports and other information submitted by the group or organization. Groups can apply through SLGA’s charitable gaming licensing process here. (https://www.slga.com/permits-and-licences/charitable-gaming).

    -30-

    For more information, contact:

    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Canada: Strengthening transatlantic partnerships and securing Canada’s AI advantage

    Source: Government of Canada – Prime Minister

    Working together, Canada and its transatlantic partners have created good-paying jobs for our peoples, strengthened our economies, and advanced progress on key priorities, including climate change and international security. With increasing geopolitical instability and economic disruptions, including proposed U.S. tariffs, it is critical to accelerate these partnerships, now and into the future.

    The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today concluded a successful visit to Paris, France, and to Brussels, Belgium, where he strengthened Canada’s ties with transatlantic partners and made progress on shared priorities, including artificial intelligence (AI).

    In Paris, the Prime Minister participated in the AI Action Summit, co-chaired by France and India, where he engaged with business and policy leaders on how we unlock opportunities and growth for Canadians. As part of our 2025 G7 Presidency, the Prime Minister underlined Canada’s commitment to responsibly power, adopt, and share AI. This includes helping partners access clean and reliable energy to power AI, finding ways to leverage AI and build more reliable energy grids, supporting small and medium-sized businesses’ use of AI to improve their productivity, and sharing the AI revolution with the world so our prosperity remains inclusive.

    At the Summit, Prime Minister Trudeau signed a joint Leaders’ Declaration on inclusive and sustainable AI, which reinforces Canada’s approach to AI development and ensures it aligns with human rights, public interest, and environmental protection. The Prime Minister also met with over a dozen CEOs and leading AI business leaders to position Canada as an ideal partner for innovation and investment while helping deepen Canada’s commercial relations with its partners across the U.S. and the European Union (EU).

    While in Paris, the Prime Minister also chaired a roundtable on infrastructure and energy requirements for AI and participated in the closing ceremony of a ministerial meeting of the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence, of which Canada is a founding member.

    In Brussels, Prime Minister Trudeau took part in a Canada-EU Leaders’ Meeting with the President of the European Council, António Costa, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen. The leaders reaffirmed the strong ties between Canada and the EU and discussed the progress made in recent years for the benefit of people on both sides of the Atlantic. This includes a strengthened trade relationship under the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA), which continues to create significant opportunities for businesses and good-paying jobs for workers in Canada and the EU. They also discussed the imposition of U.S. tariffs as well as Canada and the EU’s responses.

    At the meeting, the leaders reaffirmed their commitment to building on the Canada-EU relationship and continuing to deliver results on a range of shared priorities. This includes promoting global economic security and stability, strengthening bilateral and global trade and investment – including in response to expected tariffs by the U.S. – defending the rule of law, advancing defence and security co-operation, and supporting Ukraine. They also discussed developments in the Middle East, including in Gaza and Syria, stressing the importance of an inclusive Syrian-led political governance structure.

    While in Brussels, the Prime Minister also met with the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Mark Rutte. He reaffirmed Canada’s commitment to working with NATO Allies to strengthen Euro-Atlantic security and continue supporting Ukraine in the face of Russia’s unjustifiable war of aggression. He also highlighted Canada’s contributions to NATO’s collective defence efforts across Europe, including through Operation REASSURANCE.

    Shared challenges require shared solutions. By working together, we can make the world safer, create good-paying jobs for our peoples, harness the potential of the greatest innovations, and ensure that growth is inclusive. As a leader in AI and a steadfast member of the NATO Alliance, and as part of our G7 Presidency this year, Canada is taking action to create a better, safer, and more prosperous world.

    Quote

    “During my trip to Paris and Brussels, I had one message – if you’re looking for a strong, reliable, and trustworthy partner, Canada is it. We’re advancing progress on AI, strengthening our defence alliances, creating good-paying jobs, and making sure businesses, innovators, and partners choose Canada.”

    Quick Facts

    • This was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s 11th official visit to France.
    • Held on February 10 and 11, 2025, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit in Paris was the third global summit of its kind. It followed the AI Seoul Summit, which Prime Minister Trudeau attended virtually last year, and the AI Safety Summit that was hosted by the UK in 2023.
    • Entitled “Inclusive and Sustainable AI for People and the Planet”, the AI Action Summit joint Leaders’ Declaration is focused on the inclusive governance of AI that reflects the public interest, human rights, the environment, and the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It also highlights the need for inclusive dialogue and co-operation on AI governance and alignment with ongoing governance efforts by the UN Global Digital Compact, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and the network of safety institutes.
    • Launched in 2020, the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) supports the development and use of AI based on human rights, inclusion, diversity, innovation, and economic growth, while seeking to advance the UN SDGs. As a founding member of the GPAI, Canada is working closely with international partners to ensure that AI is developed and used responsibly to the benefit of all citizens.
    • Canada was the first country in the world to introduce a national AI strategy. Since 2016, the Government of Canada has announced over $4.4 billion to support AI and digital research infrastructure, including $2.4 billion announced in Budget 2024 to scale-up AI compute infrastructure, support AI adoption programs, and launch an AI Safety Institute.
    • In November 2024, the Government of Canada launched the Canadian Artificial Intelligence Safety Institute to bolster Canada’s capacity to address AI safety risks, further positioning the country as a leader in the safe and responsible development and adoption of AI technologies.
    • Last year, Canada and France signed the Canada-France Declaration on Artificial Intelligence, reiterating our countries’ commitment to the responsible, safe use of AI that respects human rights and democratic values.
    • In 2024, France was Canada’s third-largest merchandise export market in the European Union (EU) and its 10th-largest trading partner globally, with two-way merchandise trade totalling $14.1 billion.
    • During his visit to France, the Prime Minister also met with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron.
    • This was Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s sixth official visit to Belgium.
    • With its 27 Member States, the EU is Canada’s second-largest destination for merchandise exports, after the United States of America. In 2024, two-way merchandise trade between Canada and the EU reached a total of $119 billion.
    • The Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) was signed in 2016 and has been provisionally applied since 2017. Since 2016, bilateral merchandise trade between Canada and the EU has grown by 58 per cent.
    • Canada is a founding member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The Alliance is a cornerstone of Canadian security and defence policy and an important platform for Canada’s contributions to international peace and security.

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    MIL OSI Canada News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Canada-European Union Leaders’ Meeting

    Source: Council of the European Union

    European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Brussels to discuss the importance of Canada-EU relationship, including trade, economic security, and global stability. They emphasized cooperation in tackling current global challenges, reiterating their full support for Ukraine, and promoting a rules-based international order.

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Adjusting Imports of Aluminum into The United States

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    class=”has-text-align-center”>BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA A PROCLAMATION
         1.  On January 19, 2018, the Secretary of Commerce (Secretary) transmitted to me a report on his investigation into the effect of imports of aluminum on the national security of the United States under section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1862) (section 232).  The Secretary found and advised me of the Secretary’s opinion that aluminum is being imported into the United States in such quantities and under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security of the United States.
         2.  In Proclamation 9704 of March 8, 2018 (Adjusting Imports of Aluminum Into the United States), I concurred in the Secretary’s finding that aluminum was being imported into the United States in such quantities and under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security of the United States, and decided to adjust the imports of aluminum articles by imposing a 10 percent ad valorem tariff on such articles imported from most countries.  Proclamation 9704 further stated that any country with which the United States has a security relationship is welcome to discuss alternative ways to address the threatened impairment of the national security caused by imports from that country, and noted that, should the United States and any such country arrive at a satisfactory alternative means to address the threat to the national security such that I determine that imports from that country no longer threaten to impair the national security, I may remove or modify the restriction on aluminum articles imports from that country and, if necessary, adjust the tariff as it applies to other countries, as the national security interests of the United States require.
         3.  In Proclamation 9704, I also directed the Secretary to monitor imports of aluminum articles and inform me of any circumstances that in the Secretary’s opinion might indicate the need for further action under section 232 with respect to such imports.  Pursuant to Proclamation 9704, the Secretary was authorized to provide relief from the additional duties, based on a request from a directly affected party located in the United States, for any aluminum article determined not to be produced in the United States in a sufficient and reasonably available amount or of a satisfactory quality, or based upon specific national security considerations.  Proclamation 9776 of August 29, 2018, and Proclamation 9980 of January 24, 2020, similarly authorized the Secretary to provide relief from certain tariffs on other aluminum products and derivatives set forth in those proclamations.
         4.  In subsequent proclamations, the President adjusted the tariffs applicable to aluminum articles imports from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, the European Union (EU), and the United Kingdom (UK), after engaging in discussions with each of those parties on alternative ways to address the threat to the national security from such imports.
         5.  The Secretary has informed me that, notwithstanding the 10 percent ad valorem tariff imposed by Proclamation 9704 that mitigated the threatened impairment of our national security, aluminum imports into the United States have continued at unacceptable levels as the global aluminum excess capacity crisis continues.  In addition, the exclusion of certain countries and products from the tariff and efforts by foreign producers to circumvent the tariff have undermined the purpose of Proclamation 9704, which was to adjust the level of imports of aluminum to remove the threatened impairment of the national security.  This has again resulted in aluminum smelter capacity utilization rates in the domestic aluminum industry that are well below the target level recommended in the Secretary’s January 19, 2018, report.  This indicates that the initial tariff of 10 percent ad valorem is not high enough to address the threatened impairment to our national security posed by aluminum imports. 
         6.  In particular, the Secretary has informed me that global primary aluminum capacity has continued to increase, fueled by expansions in the People’s Republic of China (China) and South America, which is seen in rising aluminum imports that continue to weigh on the price domestic aluminum producers may charge.  There has also been a significant increase in Chinese investment in Mexico, driven by massive Chinese government subsidies and the continued ability to exploit loopholes in U.S. trade policy.  
         7.   Domestic aluminum producers have been forced to idle additional production and shut down facilities.  Two primary aluminum smelters within the United States have closed since Proclamation 9704 was promulgated.  In addition, U.S. primary aluminum production decreased by 30 percent from 2020 to 2024, and U.S. smelter capacity utilization was only 52 percent in 2024.  Overcapacity for primary aluminum has harmed downstream aluminum producers, including producers of aluminum extrusions and aluminum sheet.  To allow U.S. aluminum producers to restart production and to incentivize new capacity, additional adjustments to section 232 tariffs on aluminum need to be made, including limiting exemptions and increasing the tariff rate.
         8.  The Secretary has informed me that imports of aluminum articles from countries that are excluded from the tariff regime or have alternative arrangements have remained significantly elevated at levels that once again threaten to impair the national security of the United States.  The volume of U.S. imports of aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK in 2024 was approximately 14 percent higher than the average volume of such imports in 2015 through 2017.  In particular, the volume of U.S. imports of primary aluminum from Canada in 2024 was approximately 18 percent higher than the average volume for 2015 through 2017.
    Notwithstanding Proclamation 10782 of July 10, 2024, which imposed higher tariffs on certain aluminum imports from Mexico, imports of aluminum from Mexico have continued to surge beyond historical volumes. The volume of U.S. imports of aluminum articles from Mexico in 2024 was approximately 35 percent higher than the average volume for 2015 through 2017. Proclamation 10782 did not resolve the surge of imports of aluminum from Mexico.  Mexican producers are using unfair trade to gain market share in the United States and are leveraging their access to unfairly traded global primary aluminum to do so.  I understand that Mexican producers are commingling primary aluminum from China and the Russian Federation (Russia) with primary aluminum from other countries to produce downstream aluminum articles.  These practices are distortive and provide continued outlets to absorb the massive amount of global excess capacity and must be remedied.  The volume of U.S. imports of primary aluminum from Australia has also surged and in 2024 was approximately 103 percent higher than the average volume for 2015 through 2017.  Australia has disregarded its verbal commitment to voluntarily restrain its aluminum exports to a reasonable level.
         9.  These volume increases occurred even though demand for aluminum in the United States and Canada (the market measured by industry) has generally remained flat, averaging about 20 percent since 2018.
         10.  These increasing import volumes support the conclusion that aluminum producers in countries subject to the additional ad valorem tariff proclaimed in Proclamation 9704 are engaging in transshipment or further processing of upstream aluminum products in countries that have since been exempted from that tariff.  Foreign producers have shifted assembly or manufacturing operations to third countries, such as Mexico.  For example, Chinese producers are using Mexico’s general exclusion from the tariff to funnel Chinese aluminum to the United States through Mexico while avoiding the tariff. 
         11.  The Secretary has informed me that producers in countries that remain subject to the ad valorem tariff have continued to evade the tariff by processing covered aluminum articles into additional downstream derivative products that were not included in the additional ad valorem tariffs proclaimed in Proclamation 9704 and Proclamation 9980.  Foreign producers are continuing to expand downstream production to absorb the global excess capacity.  Imports of additional derivative aluminum products have increased significantly since the issuance of Proclamation 9704 and Proclamation 9980, eroding the domestic industry’s customer base and resulting in depressed demand for aluminum articles produced in the United States.
         12.  The Secretary has also informed me of the impact of the product exclusion process authorized by Proclamation 9704, Proclamation 9776, and Proclamation 9980 and implemented by subsequent regulations.  This process has resulted in exclusions for a significant volume of imports, in a manner that undermines the purpose of the section 232 measures and threatens to impair the national security of the United States.  Certain general approved exclusions remain in effect for entire tariff lines of aluminum imports, notwithstanding the domestic industry’s potential to produce many excluded products. 
         13.  I determine that these developments and modifications to the original tariff regime as proclaimed in Proclamation 9704 have undermined the regime’s national security objectives by preventing the domestic aluminum industry (including derivatives) from achieving sustained production capacity utilization of at least 80 percent, as determined in the Secretary’s January 19, 2018, report.  I also determine that the modifications failed to achieve their articulated objectives.  As a result, I determine that these modifications have resulted in significantly increasing imports of aluminum articles that once again threaten to impair the national security of the United States.
         14.  In light of the Secretary’s findings, I have determined that it is necessary and appropriate to adjust the tariff proclaimed by Proclamation 9704, as amended, and the tariff proclaimed by Proclamation 9980, as amended, to increase the tariff rate from 10 percent ad valorem to 25 percent ad valorem.  These actions are necessary and appropriate to remove the threatened impairment of the national security of the United States. 
         15. In light of the Secretary’s findings regarding the alternative agreements with Argentina proclaimed in Proclamation 9758 of May 31, 2018; Australia proclaimed in Proclamation 9758; Canada proclaimed in Proclamation 9893 of May 19, 2019, and Proclamation 10106 of October 27, 2020; Mexico proclaimed in Proclamation 9893 and Proclamation 10782 of July 10, 2024; the European Union proclaimed in Proclamation 10327 of December 27, 2021, and Proclamation 10690 of December 28, 2023; and the United Kingdom proclaimed in Proclamation 10405 of May 31, 2022, I have decided that it is necessary to terminate these agreements as of March 12, 2025.  As of March 12, 2025, all imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariff proclaimed in Proclamation 9704, as amended, with respect to aluminum articles and Proclamation 9980, as amended, with respect to derivative aluminum articles.  Imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the UK shall be subject to the revised tariff rate of 25 percent ad valorem established in clause 2 of this proclamation, commensurate with the tariff rate imposed on such articles imported from most other countries.  In my judgment, these modifications are necessary to address the significantly increasing imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from these sources, which threaten to impair the national security of the United States.  Replacing the alternative agreements with the additional ad valorem tariffs will be a more robust and effective means of ensuring that the objectives articulated in the Secretary’s January 19, 2018, report and subsequent proclamations are achieved.
         16.  In light of the information provided by the Secretary that the significant increase of imports of certain derivative aluminum articles has depressed demand for aluminum articles produced by domestic aluminum producers, I have determined that it is necessary to adjust the tariff proclaimed in Proclamation 9704 and Proclamation 9980 to apply to additional derivative aluminum articles.
         17.  I have also determined that it is necessary to terminate the product exclusion process as authorized in clause 3 of Proclamation 9704, clause 1 of Proclamation 9776, and clause 2 of Proclamation 9980. 
         18.  Section 232, as amended, authorizes the President to take action to adjust the imports of an article and its derivatives that are being imported into the United States in such quantities or under such circumstances as to threaten to impair the national security of the United States.
         19.  Section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, authorizes the President to embody in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) the substance of statutes affecting import treatment, and actions thereunder, including the removal, modification, continuance, or imposition of any rate of duty or other import restriction.
         NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including section 301 of title 3, United States Code, section 604 of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended, and section 232, do hereby proclaim as follows:
         (1) The provisions of Proclamation 9758 with respect to imports of aluminum articles from the Argentina; Proclamation 9758 with respect to imports of aluminum articles from the Australia; Proclamation 9893 and Proclamation 10106 with respect to imports of aluminum articles from Canada; Proclamation 9893 and Proclamation 10782 with respect to imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Mexico; Proclamation 10327 and Proclamation 10690 with respect to imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from the European Union; and Proclamation 10405 with respect to imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from the United Kingdom shall be ineffective as of 12:01 a.m. eastern time on March 12, 2025.  The provisions of clause 1 of Proclamation 9980 as applicable to imports of derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, and Mexico shall be ineffective as of 12:01 a.m. eastern time on March 12, 2025; all imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from these countries shall be subject to the additional ad valorem tariffs proclaimed in Proclamation 9704, as amended, and Proclamation 9980, as amended.  Imports of aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles from Argentina, Australia, Canada, Mexico, EU countries, and the United Kingdom will be subject to the revised tariff rate of 25 percent ad valorem established in clauses (2) and (3) of this proclamation, commensurate with the tariff rate imposed on such articles imported from most countries, as amended by this proclamation.
         (2) As of 12:01 a.m. on March 12, 2025, the tariff proclaimed by Proclamation 9704, as amended, and the tariff proclaimed by Proclamation 9980, as amended, are adjusted to increase the respective tariff rates from an additional 10 percent ad valorem to an additional 25 percent ad valorem. 
         (3) Clause 2 of Proclamation 9704, as amended, is further amended in the second sentence by deleting “and” before “(k)”; replacing “11:59 p.m. eastern standard time on December 31, 2025” after (k) with “12:01 a.m. eastern time on March 12, 2025”; and inserting before the period at the end: “, and (l) on or after 12:01 a.m. on March 12, 2025, at a revised rate of an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate, from all countries except from Russia.”
         (4) The first two sentences of clause 1 of Proclamation 9980 are revised to read as follows:
         (5) Except as otherwise provided in this proclamation, all imports of derivative aluminum articles specified in Annex I to this proclamation or any subsequent annex published in the Federal Register pursuant to this Proclamation shall be subject to an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate of duty, with respect to goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after the Commerce certification date in accordance with clause 9.  For any derivative aluminum article identified in Annex I that is not in Chapter 76 of the HTSUS, the additional ad valorem duty shall apply only to the aluminum content of the derivative article.  These rates of duty, which are in addition to any other duties, fees, exactions, and charges applicable to such imported derivative aluminum articles, shall apply to imports of derivative aluminum articles described in Annex I to this proclamation from all countries, except Russia, but shall not apply to derivative aluminum articles processed in another country from aluminum articles that were smelted and cast in the United States.  Further, all imports of derivative aluminum articles specified in Annex I to this proclamation that are the product of Russia and all imports of derivative aluminum articles specified in Annex I to this proclamation where any amount of primary aluminum used in the manufacture of the derivative aluminum articles is smelted in Russia, or the derivative aluminum articles are cast in Russia, shall be subject to the 200 percent ad valorem rate of duty established in Proclamation 10522, with respect to goods entered for consumption, or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption, on or after the Commerce certification date in accordance with clause 9.  Primary aluminum is defined as new aluminum metal that is produced from alumina (or aluminum oxide) by the electrolytic Hall-Heroult process.  The Secretary shall continue to monitor imports of the derivative articles described in Annex I to this proclamation, and shall, from time to time, in consultation with the United States Trade Representative, the Secretary of Defense, or other officials as appropriate, review the status of such imports with respect to the national security of the United States.
         (6)  The Secretary shall not consider any new product exclusion requests under clause 3 of Proclamation 9704, clause 1 of Proclamation 9776, or clause 2 of Proclamation 9980, or renew any such product exclusions in effect as of the date of this proclamation.  Granted product exclusions shall remain effective until their expiration date or until excluded product volume is imported, whichever occurs first.  The Secretary shall take all actions, including publication in the Federal Register, necessary to terminate the product exclusion process.  In addition, all general approved exclusions shall be ineffective as of March 12, 2025, and the Secretary shall publish a notice in the Federal Register to this effect.  I have determined that this is necessary to ensure that these general exclusions do not allow high volumes of imports, including of products that the domestic industry can produce and supply, to undermine the objectives articulated in the Secretary’s January 2018 report and relevant subsequent proclamations.  Following the elimination of quantitative restrictions on certain sources pursuant to this proclamation, and subject to any restrictions set forth in or pursuant to other provisions of applicable law, imports of any aluminum article or derivative article from any source and in any quantity will be available to domestic importers, provided that the additional ad valorem tariffs are paid upon entry or withdrawal from warehouse for consumption. For purposes of implementing the requirements in this proclamation, importers of aluminum derivative articles shall provide to CBP any information necessary to identify the aluminum content used in the manufacture of aluminum derivative articles imports covered by this Proclamation.  CBP is hereby authorized and directed to publish regulations or guidance implementing this requirement as soon as practicable.
         (7)  Within 90 days after the date of this proclamation, the Secretary shall establish a process for including additional derivative aluminum articles within the scope of the ad valorem duties proclaimed in Proclamation 9704, as amended, Proclamation 9980, as amended, and clause 5 of this proclamation.  In addition to inclusions made by the Secretary, this process shall provide for including additional derivative aluminum articles at the request of a producer of an aluminum article or derivative aluminum article within the United States, or an industry association representing one or more such producers, establishing that imports of a derivative aluminum article have increased in a manner that threatens to impair the national security or otherwise undermine the objectives set forth in the Secretary’s January 19, 2018 report or any Proclamation issued pursuant thereto.  When the Secretary receives such a request from a domestic producer or industry association, it shall issue a determination regarding whether or not to include the derivative aluminum article or articles within 60 days of receiving the request. 
         (8)  The provisions of clause 3 of Proclamation 9704, clause 1 of Proclamation 9776, and clause 2 of Proclamation 9980, or any other provisions authorizing the Secretary to grant relief for certain products from the additional ad valorem duties or quantitative restrictions set forth in the prior proclamations described herein are hereby revoked, except to the extent required to implement clause 5 of this proclamation. 
         (9) The modifications made by this proclamation with respect to derivative aluminum articles identified in the annex that are not in chapter 76 of the HTSUS shall be effective upon public notification by the Secretary of Commerce, that adequate systems are in place to fully, efficiently, and expediently process and collect tariff revenue for covered articles. 
         (10) Any aluminum article or derivative article, except those eligible for admission under “domestic status” as defined in 19 CFR 146.43, that is subject to the duty imposed by this proclamation and that is admitted into a U.S. foreign trade zone on or after the Commerce certification date, in accordance with clause 9, may be admitted only under “privileged foreign status” as defined in 19 CFR 146.41, and will be subject upon entry for consumption to any ad valorem rates of duty related to the classification under the applicable HTSUS subheading.
         (11)  The United States International Trade Commission, in consultation with the Secretary, the Commissioner of United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) within the Department of Homeland Security, and the heads of other relevant executive departments and agencies, shall revise the HTSUS so that it conforms to the amendments and effective dates directed in this proclamation within ten days of the date of this proclamation.  The Secretary is authorized and directed to publish any such modifications to the HTSUS in the Federal Register.
         (12) CBP shall prioritize reviews of the classification of imported aluminum articles and derivative aluminum articles and, in the event that it discovers misclassification resulting in loss of revenue of the ad valorem duties proclaimed herein, it shall assess monetary penalties in the maximum amount permitted by law.In addition, CBP shall promptly notify the Secretary regarding evidence of any efforts to evade payment of the ad valorem duties proclaimed herein through processing or alteration of aluminum articles or derivative aluminum articles as a disguise or artifice prior to importation.In such circumstances, the Secretary shall consider the processed or altered aluminum articles or derivative aluminum articles for inclusion as derivative aluminum articles pursuant to clause 5 of this proclamation.
         (13) No drawback shall be available with respect to the duties imposed pursuant to this proclamation.
         (14) The Secretary may issue regulations and guidance consistent with this proclamation, including to address operational necessity.
         (15)  Any provision of a previous proclamation or Executive Order that is inconsistent with the actions taken in this proclamation is superseded to the extent of such inconsistency.
         IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand thistenth day of February, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-five, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Readout of President Donald J. Trump’s Meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan

    US Senate News:

    Source: The White House
    class=”has-text-align-left”>Yesterday, President Donald J. Trump and His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan held a warm and productive working meeting at the White House. King Abdullah congratulated President Trump on his very successful first weeks in office, and thanked the President for his leadership in securing the release of hostages from Gaza and a temporary pause in hostilities. The President affirmed the strength of relations between the United States and Jordan, and thanked His Majesty for the Kingdom’s longstanding commitment to promoting and advancing regional peace.
    President Trump and King Abdullah also discussed the situation in Gaza. The President reiterated that Hamas must release all hostages, including all Americans, by Saturday, and asked for the King’s assistance in ensuring that Hamas, as well as the leaders of the region, understand the severity of the situation.
    The two leaders also discussed the President’s goal of ensuring that Gaza is rebuilt beautifully after the conflict ends, and providing options for the people of Gaza that allow them to live in security and dignity, and free of Hamas’s tyranny.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Peters and Young Lead Bipartisan Legislation to Extend Federal Funding and Protections for the Great Lakes

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters

    WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Gary Peters (D-MI) and Todd Young (R-IN) are leading bipartisan legislation to extend federal funding and protections for the Great Lakes. The senators introduced the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2025 to reauthorize the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) through 2031 and increase the program’s annual authorized funding levels from $475 million to $500 million. The GLRI is the most significant investment ever made to restore and protect the Great Lakes. The GLRI combines federal and nonfederal efforts to stop the spread of carp and other invasive species, restore coastline and habitats connecting streams and rivers, clean up environmentally damaged Areas of Concern, and prevent future contamination. While providing vital support for these efforts, the GLRI also helps ensure we can address new and emerging threats to the Great Lakes.  

    “The Great Lakes are a national treasure and central to our economy, environment, and way of life in Michigan. Since its creation, the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative has made significant headway in cleaning up Areas of Concern, protecting vital habitats, and restoring coastlines around the Great Lakes Basin,” said Senator Peters. “This bipartisan legislation will provide GLRI with the resources needed to build on that success and help protect and preserve the Great Lakes for future generations of Michiganders. I’m proud to again help lead the charge to strengthen this essential program.” 

    “The Great Lakes are an important part of Indiana’s ecosystem and economy,” said Senator Young. “The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative is a results-driven program that addresses the most serious issues threatening the wellbeing of the Great Lakes basin, including toxic substances, pollution, debris, and invasive species. Reauthorizing this program will continue to protect and preserve these lakes for generations to come.”   

    The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2025 is cosponsored by U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Bernie Moreno (R-OH), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jon Husted (R-OH), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Tina Smith (D-MN), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), John Fetterman (D-PA), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL).

    Since its inception, the GLRI has spurred tremendous progress throughout the Great Lakes region including nearly half of a million acres of habitat protected, restored, or enhanced, a five-fold increase in the successful cleanup and delisting of Areas of Concern, a ten-fold increase in the remediation of environmental and public health impairments, and reducing the threat of harmful algal blooms. The GLRI’s efforts have also resulted in economic returns of more than 3 to 1 across the region. 

    “The simple fact is the GLRI funds critical projects that make life better for the millions of Americans that depend on the Great Lakes. It also delivers a positive economic return on the government’s investment in cleaner water and healthier communities. Senator Peters and Senator Young along with other Great Lakes senators have our gratitude for introducing this important bill,” said Joel Brammeier, Alliance for the Great Lakes President and CEO. 

    “The GLRI is a landmark program that is making significant progress in restoring the waters, ecosystems, economies, and communities that make up the Great Lakes region,” said Erika Jensen, Executive Director of the Great Lakes Commission. “The Great Lakes Commission applauds Senators Peters and Young for introducing this important legislation, which will safeguard the economic and environmental health of the Great Lakes region for generations to come.” 

    “This bill is a winner for millions of people in the region,” said Laura Rubin, Director of the Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition. “We thank Sens. Gary Peters and Todd Young for their bipartisan leadership and commitment to tackle the serious threats to our region’s drinking water, public health, jobs, and quality of life. Federal investments to restore the Great Lakes have been producing results, but serious threats remain. We look forward to working with the Great Lakes congressional delegation to pass this bipartisan bill that supports common sense solutions. If we scale back investments now, the problems will only get worse and more expensive to solve.” 

    “The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative provides critical investments in the health of the Great Lakes and the communities and businesses that rely on clean water. Communities across the region realize the lasting benefits of clean and healthy lakes, which attract visitors, create jobs, and sustain the Great Lakes way of life,” said Peter Laing, Great Lakes Business Network Co-Chair.  

    The Great Lakes Restoration Initiative Act of 2025 enjoys broad support from Great Lakes advocates, including the Council of Great Lakes Governors, Great Lakes Fishery Commission, American Great Lakes Ports Association, Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, American Sportfishing Association, Ducks Unlimited, Trout Unlimited, Congressional Sportsmen’s Foundation, League of Conservation Voters, National Wildlife Federation, Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, National Audubon Society – Great Lakes, Environmental Law & Policy Center, MI League of Conservation Voters, Save the Dunes, Citizens Campaign for the Environment, Clean Wisconsin, Ohio Environmental Council, Western Reserve Land Conservancy, and Minnesota Environmental Partnership.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Nations: 12 February 2025 Departmental update Global convening to empower digital health transformation built on robust foundations

    Source: World Health Organisation

    On the sidelines of the World Summit on the Information Society +20 High-Level Event 27–31 May 2024, the Global Initiative on Digital Health convened global stakeholders governing, supporting and implementing digital health transformation for a multistakeholder dialogue in Geneva, Switzerland, from 28–29 May 2024. 

    WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus provided opening remarks at the World Summit on the Information Society +20 High-Level Event, alongside other global leaders, setting the stage for this significant event. 

    This first global convening of the Global Initiative on Digital Health was co-hosted by the Global Initiative on Digital Health, the Brazil G20 Presidency under the framework of the World Summit of the Information Society (WSIS) and Action line C7: E-Health. The event commenced with remarks from: 

    • Dr Alain Labrique, Director, Department of Digital Health and Innovation, World Health Organization
    • Ms Ana Estela Haddad, Secretary of Information and Digital Health of the Brazilian Ministry of Health
    • Ms Rachel Toku-Appiah, Director, Policy, Advocacy and Communication, Africa, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
    • Ms Monique Vledder, Head for Health, Nutrition and Population, World Bank
    • Mr Tomas Lamanauskas, Deputy Secretary-General, the International Telecommunications Union.

    Participants included representatives from over 60 countries and 150 organizations across ministries of health and Information Communication and Technology, government agencies, bilateral agencies, philanthropic organizations, academia, civil society, private sector and technologists. Through both in-person and online participation – enabled with support from the International Telecommunication Union – participants shared their experiences and lessons learned with standards-based and country-led development of digital health architecture.​  

    The discussions focused on several critical topics, including: 

    • the role of digitalization in health financing and the need for digital public infrastructure in the health sector;
    • policy legislation and regulations that enable digital health adoption, data sharing and interoperability standards; 
    • the impact of internet connectivity and bandwidth, level of digital literacy and data governance on national digital governance; 
    • what constitutes a good digital health investment and how to track this;  
    • the opportunities for government-to-government collaboration to strengthen national governance of digital health transformation; 
    • the opportunity for public private partnerships for resilient digital health; and 
    • how to measure progress on the Global Strategy on Digital Health. 

    Key milestones included kick-off of the development of the WHO-ITU Digital Public Infrastructure Reference Architecture​ for Digital Health Transformation and the launch of data collection for the Global Digital Health Monitor and Complementary Report ​focused on the WHO Africa Region through a collaboration between WHO and Africa CDC. 

    The second GIDH global convening will be held at the end of May in Geneva, Switzerland. Visit the GIDH webpage for updates and information on how to get involved. 

    MIL OSI United Nations News –

  • MIL-OSI: Trade Crypto with 100x Leverage on BexBack – Enjoy Double Deposit Bonus & $50 Welcome Gift – NO KYC

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SINGAPORE, Feb. 12, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — With the price of bitcoin once again trading below $100,000, many analysts believe it will enter a long period of high volatility. Holding spot positions may not continue to generate profits in the short term. BexBack Exchange is stepping up its efforts to provide traders with irresistible preferential packages. The platform now offers a 100% deposit bonus, a $50 welcome bonus for new users, and a 100x leverage on cryptocurrency trading, creating unparalleled opportunities for investors.

    What Is 100x Leverage and How Does It Work?

    Simply put, 100x leverage allows you to open larger trading positions with less capital. For example:

    Suppose the Bitcoin price is $100,000 that day, and you open a long contract with 1 BTC. After using 100x leverage, the transaction amount is equivalent to 100 BTC.

    One day later, if the price rises to $105,000, your profit will be (105,000 – 100,000) * 100 BTC / 100,000 = 5 BTC, a yield of up to 500%.

    With BexBack’s deposit bonus

    BexBack offers a 100% deposit bonus. If the initial investment is 2 BTC, the profit will increase to 10 BTC, and the return on investment will double to 1000%.

    Note: Although leveraged trading can magnify profits, you also need to be wary of liquidation risks.

    How Does the 100% Deposit Bonus Work?
    The deposit bonus from BexBack cannot be directly withdrawn but can be used to open larger positions and increase potential profits. Additionally, during significant market fluctuations, the bonus can serve as extra margin, effectively reducing the risk of liquidation.

    About BexBack?

    BexBack is a leading cryptocurrency derivatives platform that offers 100x leverage on BTC, ETH, ADA, SOL, and XRP futures contracts. It is headquartered in Singapore with offices in Hong Kong, Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Argentina. It holds a US MSB (Money Services Business) license and is trusted by more than 500,000 traders worldwide. Accepts users from the United States, Canada, and Europe. There are no deposit fees, and traders can get the most thoughtful service, including 24/7 customer support.

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    Disclaimer: This content is provided by BexBack. The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the content provider. The information provided in this press release is not a solicitation for investment, nor is it intended as investment advice, financial advice, or trading advice. It is strongly recommended you practice due diligence, including consultation with a professional financial advisor, before investing in or trading cryptocurrency and securities. Please conduct your own research and invest at your own risk.

    Photos accompanying this announcement are available at

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2c949916-63ec-49bf-8315-2789892a6ac5

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/de06fad7-8bb9-464d-9bd2-fd5692f22049

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6d5c4ef7-2abb-4af2-a0f4-023c8b06d4e2

    https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a4b88d21-dc6d-4073-b660-40c80c60cdbd

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI USA: Ernst Says No More Union Time on Taxpayers Dime

    US Senate News:

    Source: United States Senator Joni Ernst (R-IA)

    WASHINGTON – As part of her sweeping effort to get the absent federal workforce back to work and serving the American people, U.S. Senate DOGE Caucus Chair Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) is introducing the Protecting Taxpayers’ Wallet Act to crackdown on taxpayer-funded union time.
    The bill will stop the practice of requiring taxpayers to foot the bill for federal employees engaging in union activity while on the clock, including lobbying Congress for higher pay, negotiating telework agreements, and others securing cushy perks.
    “Federal employees have been on a four-year vacation from work but were quite busy locking in pay raises and cushy telework agreements with the Biden administration,” said Ernst. “We need a full accounting of how many work hours and tax dollars have been spent to fully understand just how broken the federal workforce is. I am getting bureaucrats back to work and serving taxpayers instead of themselves.”
    “Forcing the American Taxpayer to foot the bill for federal union organizing is outrageous and absurd. If federal employees and resources are going to be used for union tasks, the unions should foot the bill,” said Rep. Scott Perry (R-Pa.), who is introducing this legislation in the House.
    In addition to this legislative action, Senator Ernst partnered with Congressman Michael Cloud (R-Texas) to ask the Trump administration to restart the annual reports fully accounting the cost of taxpayer-funded union time.
    “The Biden administration allowed federal employee unions to run wild, sticking taxpayers with the tab. At the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), whistleblowers have come forward with evidence of HUD improperly paying TFUT to a number of employees, and investigations have substantiated these allegations. Specifically, a whistleblower with first-hand knowledge alleged that a HUD union official was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol during the work day and was able to successfully assert she was engaged in union activities pursuant to TFUT while in custody,” wrote the lawmakers.
    Background:
    Ernst’s investigations previously exposed bureaucrats claiming to be on taxpayer-funded union time while sitting in a jail cell and on permanent vacation in Florida.
    Cracking down on taxpayer-funded union time is part of Senator Ernst’s broader push to get the broken federal workforce back to work as chair of the Senate DOGE Caucus through her telework report.
    Her playbook has already racked up a win with the announcement of the sale of the Wilbur J. Cohen building, a 1.2 million square foot monument to waste, where just 72 of 3,341 workers were showing up to work.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Rugby takeover at SAFC fan zone

    Source: City of Sunderland

    The Women’s Rugby World Cup trophy will be the star attraction at Sunderland AFC’s pre-match fan zone next month.

    The trophy’s appearance is part of a rugby takeover of the fan zone on International Women’s Day, on Saturday 8 March.

    Families coming along to the fan zone at the Beacon of Light ahead of the Sunderland v Cardiff City match will be able to try their hand at a whole range of exciting rugby inspired activities on the day.

    Councillor Beth Jones, Cabinet Member for Communities, Culture and Tourism at Sunderland City Council, said: “We’re thrilled to have secured the Women’s Rugby World Cup trophy for our fan zone takeover on International Women’s Day.

    “With just months to go until England’s Red Roses kick off the opening match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup at the Stadium of Light on Friday 22 August, the fan zone event is a great opportunity to showcase everything rugby has to offer.

    “Even if you don’t know anything about the sport, it’s a fantastic way to immerse yourself in all things rugby.

    “There’ll be something for everyone no matter what your age or ability, including walking rugby, fun fitness sessions with a rugby twist, children’s activities, tag rugby, and rugby skills on show from local clubs, as well as the chance to hear about the new T1 rugby offer coming soon to the city.

    “So this is a brilliant chance to come along and find out all about our Active Sunderland community rugby offer and learn more about our fantastic local rugby clubs. You’ll also be able to find out how to get tickets for the England v USA opening match. And, you can even have your photo taken with the Women’s Rugby World Cup trophy.”

    The Beacon of Light will be hosting the fan zone take over from 12.30-2.30pm on Saturday 8 March, with match-goers and non match-goers alike welcome to come along and join the fun. All activities are free. 

    Match-goers will also be able to see girls from Houghton Rugby Club’s under 12’s team demonstrating their rugby skills when they take to the pitch at the Stadium of Light at half time during the Cardiff City game.

    The fan zone takeover is being organised by the RFU, University of Sunderland, local rugby clubs, the Foundation of Light, SAFC, Sunderland BID, Newcastle Falcons and Sunderland City Council.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Eastern Caribbean Currency Union: IMF Staff Concluding Statement of the 2025 Mission on Common Policies for Member Countries

    Source: IMF – News in Russian

    February 12, 2025

    A Concluding Statement describes the preliminary findings of IMF staff at the end of an official staff visit (or ‘mission’), in most cases to a member country. Missions are undertaken as part of regular (usually annual) consultations under Article IV of the IMF’s Articles of Agreement, in the context of a request to use IMF resources (borrow from the IMF), as part of discussions of staff monitored programs, or as part of other staff monitoring of economic developments.

    The authorities have consented to the publication of this statement. The views expressed in this statement are those of the IMF staff and do not necessarily represent the views of the IMF’s Executive Board. Based on the preliminary findings of this mission, staff will prepare a report that, subject to management approval, will be presented to the IMF Executive Board for discussion and decision.

    Washington, DC:

    The Eastern Caribbean Currency Union (ECCU) has been providing a strong anchor for macroeconomic stability in a shock-prone region, demonstrated most recently by Hurricane Beryl with its devastating impact on Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The recovery from successive external shocks has been strong, driven by a rebound in tourism, with ECCU economies expected to converge to modest pre-pandemic average growth rates over the medium term. To effectively manage downside risks while supporting long-term inclusive growth and the continued robustness of the quasi-currency board, policies should aim to address supply-side bottlenecks, build resilient fiscal frameworks to support fiscal sustainability, and continue to enhance financial system resilience and intermediation. Greater leveraging of synergies in regional data collection and processing could help strengthen data provision and thereby evidence-based policymaking.

    The ECCU has achieved a strong rebound from successive adverse shocks. A strong tourism season and continued infrastructure investments supported robust growth in 2024. Inflation has moderated in tune with global trends from a post-pandemic peak of more than 9 percent to less than 2 percent. Nevertheless, public debt remains high and generally well above the regional 2035 debt ceiling of 60 percent of GDP. Meanwhile, Citizenship-by-Investment (CBI) revenues have shown signs of slowing amidst heightened international scrutiny and regulatory tightening. The financial system remains stable, partly due to a prolonged period of cautious bank lending. Despite persistently elevated current account deficits, the ECCB’s reserve position has remained stable and currency backing ratio high, supporting confidence in the currency union.

    Going forward, GDP growth is set to moderate, and risks remain mostly on the downside. As most parts of the region approach full tourism capacity, average growth in the region is expected to slow from 6½ percent in 2021-24 to around 2½ percent in the medium term amid weak productivity growth and investment, a shrinking labor force, and reduced fiscal space. Moreover, given the region’s long-standing vulnerabilities of high dependence on energy imports, exposure to natural disasters (NDs), persistently high public debt, and some economies’ heavy reliance on uncertain CBI revenues, the outlook is subject to significant downside risks.

    Addressing Supply-Side Bottlenecks to Enhance Growth

    The ECCU economies have exhibited a trend slowdown in growth due to structural factors. Supporting strong, resilient, and inclusive growth is key to reducing fiscal and external imbalances and raising living standards. An updated growth accounting analysis finds that potential growth has dropped in recent decades, reflecting declines across all components of growth, notably total factor productivity (TFP). These trends reflect a series of persistent structural impediments to economic efficiency, such as impediments to credit growth, burdensome administrative and licensing processes, and labor force skills gaps and mismatches. Recurring NDs also impair productive infrastructure and hinder human capital formation, placing additional limits on TFP growth. Against this backdrop, the regional “Big Push” effort that calls for a doubling of ECCU GDP in the coming decade is a welcome aspirational initiative, both in sensitizing the membership to key growth impediments and in helping to build a regional consensus on a roadmap for reform.

    A multipronged and coordinated set of policies that build on ongoing efforts is recommended to alleviate major structural impediments to growth. Improving labor market outcomes requires a renewed effort to attune human capital to economic needs and development priorities. This involves expanding vocational training and modernizing education systems, supplemented by policies to alleviate youth and gender employment gaps, such as active labor market policies and greater access to child and elderly care. Enhancing efficient and resilient capital investment could be supported by coordinated regional efforts to accelerate the green energy transition (GET), safeguard and optimize the CBI funding model, and strengthen disaster preparedness of the capital stock. Regional mechanisms such as the ECCB’s Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment Facility (REIIF) hold potential to scale up countries’ access to finance that can be usefully supported through regional frameworks to pool procurement and harmonize modern regulatory standards. Last year’s regional agreement to buttress the integrity of CBI regimes through enhanced regulatory, information exchange, and pricing frameworks is a welcome step to safeguard critical investment inflows. The planned regional CBI regulator provides an opportunity to address gaps in institutional reporting and strengthen accountability frameworks to ensure the productive allocation of all CBI inflows. Fallout from Hurricane Beryl highlights a potential role for common building standards across the region and the importance of prioritizing resilient infrastructure investment. Finally, policies to enhance the business environment—such as by digitalizing key services, streamlining cumbersome licensing and administrative processes, and improving financial intermediation—are essential to boost productivity and growth potential.

    Building Resilient Fiscal Frameworks to Support Fiscal Sustainability and Inclusive Growth

    The regional priority remains to rebuild fiscal buffers, reduce public debt levels consistent with the regional debt anchor, and improve fiscal resilience to shocks. Fiscal resilience is essential for macro stability and continuing to protect the quasi-currency board. The region’s high vulnerability to recurring NDs, coupled with periodic procyclical fiscal policies, are key drivers of the ECCU’s ongoing fiscal sustainability challenges. With 2035 only a decade away, sizable efforts are needed in some countries to achieve the regional debt target. Fiscal space is also needed to guard against risks and finance social spending and growth- and resilience-enhancing investment.

    This calls for a region-wide establishment of robust national fiscal resilience strategies and frameworks. Strong national medium-term fiscal frameworks (MTFFs), that incorporate well-designed country-specific fiscal rules, supported by specific fiscal measures and plans and strong fiscal institutions, will help instill prudence and create policy space. While many ECCU members have continued to upgrade their MTFFs, there is a need to enhance effective operational frameworks and underpinning fiscal policy and contingency plans that link fiscal operations with longer-term objectives. In addition, comprehensive ex-ante resilience strategies to enable resilient investment and adequate insurance against NDs would support debt sustainability and resilient growth. Integrating green budget tagging and a pipeline of projects into MTFFs will help anchor sustainable multi-year climate resilient investment plans and unlock global concessional financing. Expediting efforts to adopt a disaster risk financing strategy with self-insurance, contingent debt financing plans, and risk transfer arrangements will support liquidity for relief and reconstruction while safeguarding public finances. The relevant authorities should also consider frameworks with clear provisions for use of CBI revenue to avoid budget overreliance on these revenues given their potential volatility and to complement efforts with buffer and resilience building.

    Regional coordination and oversight of these efforts would help reinforce fiscal discipline and the credibility of the regional debt ceiling. To ensure the success of regional fiscal policy coordination, a strong governance framework to provide independent macroeconomic and budgetary projections and transparently assess fiscal plans, the implementation of fiscal rules, and fiscal sustainability would be beneficial. These efforts could be supported by national and/or regional independent fiscal oversight entities. International experience suggests that these entities have played an increasingly significant role in strengthening fiscal frameworks. A helpful first step could be to operationalize regular ECCB Monetary Council peer reviews of members’ fiscal strategies and progress toward the regional debt target.

    Safeguarding Financial Stability and Supporting Private Investment

    Banks’ legacy balance sheet weaknesses warrant continued policy focus. Close monitoring of agreed timelines and action plans for all extensions of implementing regional provisioning standards is important, and timely interventions should be made where necessary. Transitioning from reserve-based regulatory loan loss allowances to loss-bearing provisions would ensure appropriate recording and treatment of banks’ capital positions. Streamlining costly foreclosure and collateral sale processes and strengthening the capacity of the Eastern Caribbean Asset Management Company would support impaired asset disposal. Risks from rising overseas investments and some banks’ elevated local sovereign exposures warrant close monitoring.

    Stepped-up regional coordination would help mitigate non-bank financial system vulnerabilities. The continued rapid expansion of credit unions warrants strengthening provisioning standards, monitoring of forbearance measures, and enhancing supervisory capacity, including through greater sharing of best practices. The planned common minimum regulatory standards for non-bank financial institutions (NBFIs) under the recently endorsed Eastern Caribbean Financial Standards Board (ECFSB) represent an important opportunity to establish a more level regulatory playing field between credit unions and banks. More centralized NBFI supervision would support more efficient and effective region-wide financial stability monitoring and is more acutely needed for consolidated oversight of pan-ECCU insurance companies. The ECCU’s high dependence on global property reinsurance makes it vulnerable to the evolving reassessment of climate liability risks. The risk of more sustained hardening of the reinsurance market could worsen existing underinsurance by driving up costs and reducing capacity. Strengthening monitoring of reinsurance coverage, including through more targeted data collection, would support policy preparedness to manage these risks and narrow protection gaps.

    A more systematic approach is needed to strengthen financial intermediation and private investment. Slow bank lending growth, particularly in business credit, has long limited growth-supporting investment. Notwithstanding some recovery in construction and real estate credit, much of the high system liquidity is invested overseas and the unmet credit demand has partly fueled growth of the more risk-tolerant credit unions. The region has taken important steps to address credit access constraints through the ongoing rollout of the Credit Bureau and more demand-tailored products under the Eastern Caribbean Partial Credit Guarantee Corporation. Closer coordination of these regional initiatives and national MSME development policies would support development of regional best practices in enhancing small businesses’ bankability. This would also allow more efficient scaling up of active outreach programs to foster business formalization. Competing lending programs under national development banks should closely consider their risk-bearing capacity. Strengthening the collateral infrastructure through modernized foreclosure and insolvency frameworks, development of market-based real estate indices, and reviewing any policy impediments to secondary property market liquidity can help derisk local lending opportunities and reduce credit costs. The potential credit pricing distortions from the minimum savings rate should be reviewed alongside the ongoing efforts to encourage regional retail investment and capital market development.

    Strengthening of AML/CFT frameworks remains crucial amidst the scrutiny of CBI programs and thin correspondent banking relationships. This includes completing the long-pending designation of the ECCB as the AML/CFT supervisor for banks and centralization of AML/CFT regulatory standards under the ECFSB.

    Strengthening data provision

    Greater leveraging of synergies in regional data collection and processing could help address persistent resource and capacity gaps. Regional data provision has some shortcomings that somewhat hamper surveillance. While continued IMF/CARTAC technical assistance has proven valuable in improving data timeliness and quality, progress is often impeded by persistent staffing shortages and high turnover. A regional framework with centralization of data compilation and analysis could limit processing overlaps, enhance cross-country comparability, and better leverage the limited staffing resources.

                                                                                                                    

    The IMF team thanks the authorities and private sector counterparts for their warm hospitality and insightful and constructive discussions.

    IMF Communications Department
    MEDIA RELATIONS

    PRESS OFFICER: Meera Louis

    Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org

    https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2025/02/12/021225-mcs-east-carib-currency-union-imf-cs-2025-mission-on-common-policies-for-member-countries

    MIL OSI

    MIL OSI Russia News –