Category: Americas

MIL-OSI Global: Grover Norquist’s lasting influence on the GOP and US economic policy

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Gibbs Knotts, Professor of Political Science, Coastal Carolina University

Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, speaks on Capitol Hill on Nov. 7, 2017. Alex Wong/Getty Images

In the “one, big, beautiful bill,” President Donald Trump has called for substantial decreases in federal domestic spending. However, a schism emerged between Republican lawmakers during the budget debates in Congress.

Some Republicans in blue states called for a tax increase for the wealthiest Americans, prompting longtime anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist to call the increase an “incredibly destructive idea economically, and very foolish politically.”

As he has done since the 1980s, Norquist demonstrated his influence over the GOP. Since Trump’s second inauguration, he has appeared in several high-profile news stories about the budget, including a Washington Post article where he said, “Tax cuts are income to Americans and a loss to the bureaucracy.”

Ultimately, the tax increase was defeated, and the Trump budget proposal passed the House on May 22, 2025.

Norquist praised the leadership from Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise, saying taxpayers owe them “bigly for managing a narrow Republican House Majority that was united and committed to reducing taxes on the American people.”

As scholars of U.S. politics, we examined Norquist’s emergence, traced debates about the scope and size of the American government and assessed Norquist’s relevance in the Donald Trump era, where he continues to wield considerable sway in the Republican Party.

The conscience of a conservative

In 1960, a slim, 123-page book changed the trajectory of American conservative thought.

“The Conscience of a Conservative,” written by Barry Goldwater, laid out the premise that an expansive federal bureaucracy was the root evil of government.

Four years later, Ronald Reagan launched his political career with a speech supporting Goldwater. His words echoed Goldwater: “No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size … a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we’ll ever see on this earth.”

Reagan ended the speech by noting, “You and I have a rendezvous with destiny.” Goldwater wouldn’t manifest that destiny, but Reagan, 16 years later, took this vision of fiscal conservatism to the White House.

By the 1980s, Goldwater’s limited government creed had become part of Republican dogma. Government wasn’t just bloated, according to Reagan. It was, as he noted, the problem. The Reagan presidency ushered in the doctrine of supply-side economics, which rests on the premise that tax cuts are key to stimulating economic growth.

Norquist’s emergence

Into this landscape stepped a young Norquist.

He had cut his teeth at the National Taxpayer’s Union, a fiscally conservative taxpayer advocacy group. Then, in 1981, he became the executive director of the College Republican National Committee.

In the first issue of CR Report, a college Republican newsletter, Norquist’s position as executive director was announced, and he provided a list of suggested readings. Among the titles he recommended were Goldwater’s “Conscience,” Milton Friedman’s “Capitalism and Freedom” and Friedrich Hayek’s “The Road to Serfdom.”

In 1985, Norquist founded Americans for Tax Reform to support his tax reduction efforts. As Norquist noted, “The tax issue is one thing everyone agrees on.”

He and his organization effectively institutionalized a permanent tax revolt in Congress supported by his “Taxpayer Protection Pledge,” a promise made starting in 1986 to oppose all efforts to increase marginal tax rates or reduce deductions or credits.

The pledge became a litmus test for fiscally conservative GOP candidates and cemented the party’s anti-tax stance.

Feeling this pressure, GOP nominee George H.W. Bush delivered his famous line, “read my lips, no new taxes,” at the 1988 Republican National Convention. Those six words were repeatedly used by primary challenger Pat Buchanan and Bush’s opponent in the general election, Bill Clinton, to raise questions about Bush’s honesty – since he made a pledge that he was unable to keep.

Newt Gingrich, speaker of the House of Representatives, holds up a copy of the ‘Contract With America’ during a speech on the steps of the U.S. Capitol in April 1995.
Richard Ellis/AFP via Getty Images

With Clinton in the White House in 1994, Norquist helped House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich write the “Contract with America” to legislate fiscal conservatism. Weaponizing government shutdowns and setting a more confrontational tone, congressional Republicans successfully rolled back welfare programs, reduced the size of government and cut taxes.

In 1995, they came two votes shy in the Senate of approving an amendment to the Constitution that would have required the federal budget to be balanced – with no borrowing – every year.

Anti-tax conservatism in the 21st century

In 2001, Norquist told a reporter at The Nation: “My goal is to cut government in half in twenty-five years to get it down to the size where we can drown it in the bathtub.”

This objective would have to wait during the George W. Bush presidency. Resulting in part from the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, the Bush administration saw dramatic expansions of federal power and spending in homeland security, defense and Medicare, as well as a large increase in the budget deficit.

The tea party movement, a fiscally conservative political group, was formed in response to these Bush-era increases and two signature programs of the Barack Obama administration: the massive stimulus package, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and his signature health care reform, the Affordable Care Act.

Norquist reveled in renewed attention to tax policies and the size of government, urging readers of The Guardian to “join the Tea Party movement.”

Norquist’s continuing legacy

For more than four decades, Norquist has been a relentless advocate for fiscal conservatism. He is the living embodiment of an ideological thread that stretches from Goldwater to Reagan to Gingrich to current GOP leadership.

Grover Norquist waits for the arrival of President Donald Trump in the East Room of the White House on March 21, 2019.
AP Photo/Evan Vucci

The ongoing debates about the Trump budget are just the latest example of Norquist’s influence. He continues to play an active role in debates about the federal budget and still has considerable sway with Republicans.

However, Norquist’s uncompromising stance on taxes has coincided with increases in federal spending, surging budget deficits and increased national debt.

That additional debt is accumulating because many Republicans have adopted his anti-tax position while simultaneously increasing defense budgets, maintaining or expanding entitlement spending and lowering taxes on the wealthiest Americans.

Nevertheless, Norquist continues to be the fiscal conscience of the Republican Party. Politicians come and go. Powerful ideas, and those who champion them, endure.

The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Grover Norquist’s lasting influence on the GOP and US economic policy – https://theconversation.com/grover-norquists-lasting-influence-on-the-gop-and-us-economic-policy-256978

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: What happens next in US-Iran relations will be informed by the two countries’ shared history

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Gregory F. Treverton, Professor of Practice in International Relations, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Iranians protest the U.S. attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities in Tehran on June 22, 2025. Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images

The Trump administration’s decision to bomb Iran dramatically marks the now nearly half-century of hostility between the United States and Iran, which began in 1979 with Iran’s takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and the taking of 52 diplomatic hostages.

It remains uncertain whether the Iran-Israel ceasefire will hold, given President Donald Trump’s seemingly impulsive policy decisions and an Israeli leader who critics say pursues war to stay in power.

Additional unpredictability can be seen in a weakened Iran government that is unpopular with its own people but must also bet that standing up to the U.S. and Israel will induce its people to rally around the flag, even if they don’t like who holds that flag.

As a U.S. international relations scholar, I think whatever comes next will be well informed by what has already happened in U.S.-Iran history. That includes an offer from Trump – who considers himself the consummate negotiator – to Iran to return to the negotiating table.

The shah’s last visit to Washington

The opening bracket in modern U.S.-Iran relations was the 1979 Islamic Revolution that overthrew Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi,“ whom a CIA covert action had restored to leadership a quarter-century earlier.

As a young National Security Council staffer, I stood on the South Lawn of the White House as the shah’s helicopter landed in 1977 for a state visit to his close ally, the United States.

The episode was perhaps a metaphor for the two countries’ relationship. I stood next to a colleague who had written for President Jimmy Carter remarks that included fulsome praise of the shah, but his crack to me was: “You’ll recognize the shah. He’s the one with blood under his fingernails.” Beneath a formal alliance, there was a good deal of cynicism on the U.S. part about the shah’s repressive regime and use of secret police to suppress opposition.

Pro- and anti-shah protesters were demonstrating at the bottom of the Ellipse, the park south of the White House grounds. The U.S. Park Police, understandably but unwisely, sought to separate them with tear gas, which then wafted over the proceedings on the South Lawn.

The Shah of Iran wipes tear gas from his eyes as President Jimmy Carter speaks on the South Lawn of the White House on Nov. 15, 1977.
AP Photo

The impact of the hostage crisis

It’s impossible to overstate the effect of the 1979 hostage crisis, when Iranian students seized the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, holding 62 American hostages for 444 days.

The Carter administration negotiated the Algiers Accords, which led to the release of the hostages in January 1981. There have been persistent accounts, none ever fully validated, that the incoming Reagan administration dealt with Iran to delay the release until after the new president’s inauguration.

The crisis not only cost Carter his job, but it also cast an enduring shadow over the U.S.-Iran relationship, compounding Americans’ difficulty in understanding a regime that was not only theocratic but Muslim.

The 1980s witnessed a whipsaw of relations.

From 1980 to 1988, as Iran and Iraq fought a bloody war to a stalemate, the U.S. saw the power of both countries contained, but it did provide intelligence and logistical support to Iraq.

Then came the Iran-Contra Affair of 1985 to 1987. It was the Reagan administration’s most serious scandal, in which White House officials illegally sold sanctioned arms to Iran and secretly diverted the proceeds to the Nicaraguan Contras. In a moment straight out of comic opera, National Security Council aides brought a goodwill chocolate cake to Tehran during a secret diplomatic mission in May 1986.

Unidentified U.S. hostages arrive on Jan. 21, 1981, at Rhein-Main U.S. Air Force base in Frankfurt, West Germany, one day after their release from Iran.
AP Photo

In 1988, a U.S. ship struck an Iranian mine in the Persian Gulf. The U.S. retaliated by destroying oil platforms and damaging Iranian ships in “Operation Praying Mantis,” and tragically – and mistakenly – shot down Iran Air Flight 655, killing 290 civilians.

The 1990s and 2000s again displayed the limits of the relationship.

In 1995, President Bill Clinton imposed an oil and trade embargo against Iran, and Congress passed the Iran–Libya Sanctions Act in 1996, which imposed economic sanctions on companies doing business with Iran and Libya.

In 1998, Iranian President Mohammad Khatami called for a “dialogue of civilizations,” prompting cautious U.S. signals of engagement.

Then, in 2002, President George W. Bush labeled Iran part of the “axis of evil,” a sharp rhetorical escalation. For its part, Iran alleged U.S. drone incursions and covert operations. Limited diplomatic back channels emerged, but to no outcome.

In 2009, President Barack Obama reached out to Tehran amid post-election unrest in Iran, but two years later Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial route for oil shipments to the West.

In 2015, the two countries were party to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, with Iran agreeing to limit its nuclear program under international oversight.

Two years later, though, President Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal and reimposed sweeping sanctions in a “maximum pressure” campaign.

In 2019 and 2020, a series of tit-for-tat escalations culminated in the Jan. 3, 2020, U.S. drone strike that assassinated senior Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. Iran retaliated with missile strikes on U.S. bases in the region.

U.S. sanctions continued in the Biden administration as Iran pursued deeper ties with Russia, China and nonstate proxies, especially Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.

What lessons?

What can be learned from this tangled history?

First, that negotiations are possible between the two countries, but they are neither easy nor likely to produce more than limited outcomes. Indeed, high-level indirect talks mediated by Oman began in April 2025, though they were in suspension when the U.S. bombers struck.

Second, despite the Iran regime’s unpopularity, regime change in Iran is unlikely. Assassinating Ayatollah Ali Khameini would likely abet the “rally ‘round the flag” effect, as did the assassination of Soleimani.

Third, Iran has been careful in its responses even to Israeli aggression but especially in engaging the U.S. in military conflict, a caution the American B-2 bombings on June 21 can only underscore.

Iran had to retaliate, so the attack on the U.S. base in Qatar came as no surprise. But Iran was careful in retaliating, even notifying the U.S. in advance.

The dropping of U.S. bombs, followed by Iran’s careful retaliation, was the opportunity for Trump to make an offer Iran couldn’t refuse.

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

– ref. What happens next in US-Iran relations will be informed by the two countries’ shared history – https://theconversation.com/what-happens-next-in-us-iran-relations-will-be-informed-by-the-two-countries-shared-history-259607

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Mitochondria can sense bacteria and trigger your immune system to trap them – revealing new ways to treat infections and autoimmunity

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Andrew Monteith, Assistant Professor of Microbiology, University of Tennessee

Neutrophils (yellow) eject a NET (green) to ensnare bacteria (purple). Other cells, such as red blood cells (orange), may also get trapped. CHDENK/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Mitochondria have primarily been known as the energy-producing components of cells. But scientists are increasingly discovering that these small organelles do much more than just power cells. They are also involved in immune functions such as controlling inflammation, regulating cell death and responding to infections.

Research from my colleagues and I revealed that mitochondria play another key role in your immune response: sensing bacterial activity and helping neutrophils, a type of white blood cell, trap and kill them.

For the past 16 years, my research has focused on understanding the decisions immune cells make during infection and how the breakdown of these decision-making processes cause disease. My lab’s recent findings shed light on why people with autoimmune diseases such as lupus may struggle to fight infections, revealing a potential link between dysfunctional mitochondria and weakened immune defenses.

Mitochondria do so much more than just produce energy.
OpenStax, CC BY-SA

The immune system’s secret weapons

Neutrophils are the most abundant type of immune cell and serve as the immune system’s first responders. One of their key defense mechanisms is releasing neutrophil extracellular traps, or NETs – weblike structures composed of DNA and antimicrobial proteins. These sticky NETs trap and neutralize invading microbes, preventing their spread in the body.

Until recently, scientists believed that NET formation was primarily triggered by cellular stress and damage. However, our study found that mitochondria can detect a specific bacterial byproduct – lactate – and use that signal to initiate NET formation.

Lactate is commonly associated with muscle fatigue in people. But in the context of bacterial infections, it plays a different role. Many bacteria release lactate as part of their own energy production. My team found that once bacteria are engulfed by a compartment of the cell called the phagosome, neutrophils can sense the presence of this lactate.

Inside the phagosome, this lactate communicates to the neutrophil that bacteria are present and that the antibacterial processes are not sufficient to kill these pathogens. When the mitochondria in neutrophil cells detect this lactate, they start signaling for the cell to get rid of the NETs that have entrapped bacteria. Once the bacteria are released outside the cell, other immune cells can kill them.

Here, a neutrophil engulfs MRSA bacteria (green).

When we blocked the mitochondria’s ability to sense lactate, neutrophils failed to produce NETs effectively. This meant bacteria were more likely to escape capture and proliferate, showing how crucial this mechanism is to immune defense. This process highlights an intricate dialogue between the bacteria’s metabolism and the host cell’s energy machinery.

What makes this finding surprising is that the mitochondria within cells are able to detect bacteria trapped in phagosomes, even though the microbes are enclosed in a separate space. Somehow, mitochondrial sensors can pick up cues from within these compartments – an impressive feat of cellular coordination.

Targeting mitochondria to fight infections

Our study is part of a growing field called immunometabolism, which explores how metabolism and immune function are deeply intertwined. Rather than viewing cellular metabolism as strictly a means to generate energy, researchers are now recognizing it as a central driver of immune decisions.

Mitochondria sit at the heart of this interaction. Their ability to sense, respond to and even shape the metabolic environment of a cell gives them a critical role in determining how and when immune responses are deployed.

For example, our findings provide a key reason why patients with a chronic autoimmune disease called systemic lupus erythematosus often suffer from recurrent infections. Mitochondria in the neutrophils of lupus patients fail to sense bacterial lactate properly. As a result, NET production was significantly reduced. This mitochondrial dysfunction could explain why lupus patients are more vulnerable to bacterial infections – even though their immune systems are constantly activated due to the disease.

This observation points to mitochondria’s central role in balancing immune responses. It connects two seemingly unrelated issues: immune overactivity, as seen in lupus, and immune weakness like increased susceptibility to infection. When mitochondria work correctly, they help neutrophils mount an effective, targeted attack on bacteria. But when mitochondria are impaired, this system breaks down.

Neutrophils unable to effectively produce NETs may contribute to the development of lupus.
Luz Blanco/National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases via Flickr, CC BY-NC-SA

Our discovery that mitochondria can sense bacterial lactate to trigger NET formation opens up new possibilities for treating infections. For instance, drugs that enhance mitochondrial sensing could boost NET production in people with weakened immune systems. On the flip side, for conditions where NETs contribute to tissue damage – such as in severe COVID-19 or autoimmune diseases – it might be beneficial to limit this response.

Additionally, our study raises the question of whether other immune cells use similar mechanisms to sense microbial metabolites, and whether other bacterial byproducts might serve as immune signals. Understanding these pathways in more detail could lead to new treatments that modulate immune responses more precisely, reducing collateral damage while preserving antimicrobial defenses.

Mitochondria are not just the powerhouses of the cell – they are the immune system’s watchtowers, alert to even the faintest metabolic signals of bacterial invaders. As researchers’ understanding of their roles expands, so too does our appreciation for the complexity – and adaptability – of our cellular defenses.

Andrew Monteith receives funding from the National Institute of Health.

– ref. Mitochondria can sense bacteria and trigger your immune system to trap them – revealing new ways to treat infections and autoimmunity – https://theconversation.com/mitochondria-can-sense-bacteria-and-trigger-your-immune-system-to-trap-them-revealing-new-ways-to-treat-infections-and-autoimmunity-255939

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How do scientists calculate the probability that an asteroid could hit Earth?

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Toshi Hirabayashi, Associate Professor of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology

NASA’s Webb telescope captured a photo of the asteroid 2024 YR4 from afar. European Space Agency via AP

I was preparing for my early morning class back in January 2025 when I received a notice regarding an asteroid called 2024 YR4. It said the probability it could hit Earth was unusually high.

As defending Earth from unexpected intruders such as asteroids is part of my expertise, I immediately started receiving questions from my students and colleagues about what was happening.

When scientists spot an asteroid whose trajectory might take it close to Earth, they monitor it frequently and calculate the probability that it might collide with our planet. As they receive more observational data, they get a better picture of what could happen.

Just having more data points early doesn’t make scientists’ predictions better. They need to keep following the asteroid as it moves through space to better understand its trajectory.

Reflecting on the incident a few months later, I wondered whether there might have been a better way for scientists to communicate about the risk with the public. We got accurate information, but as the questions I heard indicated, it wasn’t always enough to understand what it actually means.

Numbers change every day

The 2024 YR24 asteroid has a diameter of about 196 feet (60 meters) – equivalent to approximately a 15-story building in length.

At the time of the announcement in January, the asteroid’s impact probability was reported to exceed 1%. The impact probability describes how likely a hazardous asteroid is to hit Earth. For example, if the impact probability is 1%, it means that in 1 of 100 cases, it hits Earth. One in 100 is kind of rare, but still too close for comfort if you’re talking about the odds of a collision that could devastate Earth.

Over time, though, further observations and analyses revealed an almost-zero chance of this asteroid colliding with Earth.

After the initial notice in January, the impact probability continuously increased up to 3.1% on Feb. 18, but dropped to 1.5% on Feb. 19. Then, the impact probability continuously went down, until it hit 0.004% on Feb. 24. As of June 15, it now has an impact probability of less than 0.0000081%.

The orbit of 2024 YR4 will take it close to Earth, but scientists have found the chance of a collision to be exceedingly low.
NASA/JPL

But while the probability of hitting Earth went down, the probability of the asteroid hitting the Moon started increasing. It went up to 1.7% on Feb. 24. As of April 2, it is 3.8%.

If it hits the Moon, some ejected materials from this collision could reach the Earth. However, these materials would burn away when they enter the Earth’s thick atmosphere.

Impact probability

To see whether an approaching object could hit Earth, researchers find out what an asteroid’s orbit looks like using a technique called astrometry. This technique can accurately determine an object’s orbit, down to only a few kilometers of uncertainty. But astrometry needs accurate observational data taken for a long time.

If an asteroid might get close to Earth, astronomers take observational data to better track the object’s path and eliminate uncertainty.

Any uncertainty in the calculation of the object’s orbit causes variations in the predicted solution. Instead of one precise orbit, the calculation usually gives scientists a cloud of its possible orbits. The ellipse enclosing these locations is called an error ellipse.

The impact probability describes how many orbital predictions in this ellipse hit the Earth.

Without enough observational data, the orbital uncertainty is high, so the ellipse tends to be large. In a large ellipse, there’s a higher chance that the ellipse “accidentally” includes Earth – even if the center is off the planet. So, even if an asteroid ultimately won’t hit Earth, its error ellipse might still include the planet before scientists collect enough data to narrow down the uncertainty.

As the level of uncertainty goes down, the ellipse shrinks. So, when Earth is inside a small error ellipse, the impact probability may become higher than when it’s inside a large error ellipse. Once the error ellipse shrinks enough that it no longer includes Earth, the impact probability goes down significantly. That’s what happened to 2024 YR4.

As the error ellipse shrinks, the chance of the asteroid hitting Earth either goes down or goes way up, if it ends up overlapping with the Earth.
Toshi Hirabayashi

The impact probability is a single, practical value offering meaningful insight into an impact threat. However, just using the impact probability without any context may not provide meaningful guidelines to the public, as we saw with 2024 YR4.

Holding on and waiting for more data to refine a collision prediction, or introducing new metrics for assessing impacts on Earth, are alternative courses of action to provide people with better guidelines for future threats before adding confusion and fear.

I have been studying planetary defense, particularly being part of past, ongoing, and future small body missions. I was part of the NASA/DART mission. I am currently part of the NASA/Lucy mission and the ESA/Hera mission. I am also on the Hayabusa2# team, led by the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), as part of an international collaboration. I have no affiliation with JAXA.

– ref. How do scientists calculate the probability that an asteroid could hit Earth? – https://theconversation.com/how-do-scientists-calculate-the-probability-that-an-asteroid-could-hit-earth-249834

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Baldwin and Colleagues Introduce No War Against Iran Act

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Wisconsin Tammy Baldwin

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) joined her colleagues in introducing the No War Against Iran Act to prohibit the use of federal funds for any use of military force in or against Iran without specific Congressional authorization. This action follows Israel’s military strikes against Iran and President Trump’s strike on Iranian nuclear facilities that did not have congressional approval, threatening to further destabilize the Middle East and draw the United States into yet another military conflict. The bill contains an exception for self-defense as enshrined in the War Powers Act and applicable U.S. law.

“I agree with the vast majority of Wisconsinites who don’t want to send American troops abroad and get us involved in another war in the Middle East. Period,” said Senator Baldwin. “President Trump got us into this situation by pulling out of the last deal, which would have restricted Iran’s nuclear program. No President, including Donald Trump, can start an all-out war without Congress signing off, and what Donald Trump did was frankly unconstitutional. The President should be laser-focused on diplomacy to reduce tensions and prevent our country from being launched into another conflict with no clear end in sight.”

After President Trump’s bombing of Iran, Senator Baldwin released a statement slamming the decision, arguing that while Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, diplomacy is the only course of action, not an all-out war started by a President without the approval of Congress.

The bill is led by Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and co-sponsored by Senators Peter Welch (D-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ed Markey (D-MA), and Tina Smith (D-MN).

Full text of the bill is available here.

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Landlords and property managers: agreeing with competitors on rental prices is illegal
Source: Government of Canada News (2)

June 25, 2025 – GATINEAU (Québec), Competition Bureau

The Competition Bureau is aware that some landlords and property managers may be engaging with their competitors, including through discussion groups on social media.

While some discussions between competitors may be justified, others could be illegal. Landlords and property managers must understand the difference between conversations that are harmless and conversations that they should steer clear from.

Agreements between landlords to “make the most of the booming rental housing market” or “find ways to ensure that all players benefit from the strong demand equally” raise concerns under the law and could be illegal.

It is illegal for competitors to agree about:
- Rental prices, including any increases or surcharges.
- The terms of their leases, including amenities and services.
- Restricting the housing supply by artificially reducing the availability of rental units.
Engaging in illegal agreements with competitors, such as price-fixing, market allocation, restricting supply, or wage-fixing and no-poaching agreements, is a criminal offence under the Competition Act, with potential prison sentences of up to 14 years and hefty fines at the discretion of the court.

Landlords and property managers can stay on the right side of the law by:
- Deciding on their own prices, price increases, surcharges and the terms of leases.
- Explaining and negotiating the terms of leases with their tenants only.
The Bureau encourages the reporting of any suspicious activity through the Bureau’s Information Centre and online form. Those who believe that the company they work for has entered into an illegal agreement with its competitors can provide information anonymously through the Bureau’s Whistleblowing Initiative. Parties that engaged in anticompetitive activity can also come forward to seek immunity or leniency in return for their cooperation with the Bureau’s investigations.

MIL OSI Canada News –
June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Prime Minister Carney meets with Prime Minister of New Zealand Christopher Luxon

Source: Government of Canada – Prime Minister

Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, met with the Prime Minister of New Zealand, Christopher Luxon, on the margins of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Summit in The Hague, the Netherlands.

The leaders discussed strengthening collaboration between the NATO Alliance and its Indo-Pacific partners to address shared challenges.

Prime Minister Carney shared Canada’s plan to rebuild, rearm, and reinvest in the Canadian Armed Forces – meeting the NATO 2 per cent target this year and accelerating defence investments in the years ahead. The leaders explored opportunities to deepen collaboration through Canada’s new defence procurement strategy and New Zealand’s Defence Capability Plan.

They reaffirmed their shared commitment to global security and their support for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Carney spoke about efforts in Canada to make housing more affordable and remove barriers to internal trade. The leaders also discussed deepening trade and commercial ties between Canada and New Zealand, including through the CPTPP.

The prime ministers agreed to remain in close contact.

Associated Link

MIL OSI Canada News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Electricity use for commercial computing could surpass space cooling, ventilation

Source: US Energy Information Administration

In-brief analysis

June 25, 2025

In our Annual Energy Outlook 2025 (AEO2025) Reference case, we project the electricity consumed for commercial computing will increase faster than any other end use in buildings. Computing accounted for an estimated 8% of commercial sector electricity consumption in 2024 and grows to 20% by 2050. Ultimately, more electricity could be consumed by computing than for any other end use in the commercial sector, including lighting, space cooling, and ventilation.

We expect commercial computing growth will outpace computing efficiency improvements which, in the past, have moderated the growth in electricity consumption associated with computers. Commercial computing electricity demand growth is significant enough in our projections to contribute to a reversal in the trend in declining commercial electricity intensity, as measured in kilowatthours consumed per square foot. Many of our assumptions about future energy consumption are based on average energy consumption per unit of commercial floorspace.

Computing includes energy consumption from data center servers, desktop and laptop computers, and monitors in commercial spaces. Data center computing is significantly more energy intensive than computing in general. By 2050, as much as 7% of all U.S. commercial floorspace requires additional energy to meet data center demand across most building types.

Because data centers generate heat and require more air exchange, the increase in data center computing also requires more commercial ventilation and space cooling. These uses are sensitive to assumptions about population migration and the weather. Without computing demand, ventilation and space cooling would still grow but at slower rates.

Much of what we know about how U.S. commercial buildings use energy is informed by our Commercial Buildings Energy Consumption Survey (CBECS). Data center equipment is found in both standalone data center buildings and in on-premises data center rooms that are part of most building types. The latest CBECS shows that data center rooms were most prevalent in healthcare and large office buildings.

In our AEO2025 projections, much of the growth in data centers is in office buildings and in the other building category, which includes standalone data centers. In our Reference case, we make no additional assumptions about revolutionary technologies such as the accelerating expansion of highly energy-intensive artificial intelligence (AI) or, conversely, initiatives that may moderate the energy consumption of data centers generally or AI specifically.

Our projections are benchmarked to sectoral consumption data and forecasts from our State Energy Data System, Monthly Energy Review, and Short-Term Energy Outlook. Since these consumption measures include all commercial sector activity, including energy use for AI, cryptocurrency mining, and data centers, the energy consumption associated with these uses is implicitly represented in our AEO projections.

Principal contributor: Courtney Sourmehi

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Man Convicted of Carjacking Resulting in Death

Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On Friday, June 20, 2025, a federal jury convicted Joseph Payne-Pabón for carjacking resulting in death of an 82-year-old woman on January 7, 2020, in the municipality of San Juan.

According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, on January 7, 2020, Joseph Payne-Pabón, a 34-year-old homeless man, entered the home of Eulalia Combas Sancho during the blackout resulting from the earthquakes, violently killed her and took her Hyundai Sonata. The evidence showed that Mr. Payne Pabón used a cement block to hit the victim in the back of the head causing a fracture to her skull and trauma to her brain that resulted in her death. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for September 10, 2025, at 10:30 am before United States District Court Judge Aida M. Delgado-Colón.

“This verdict is a direct result of the tireless efforts and outstanding work of agents and officers of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, & Explosives, the Puerto Rico Police Bureau, and federal prosecutors and professional staff from the U.S. Attorney’s Office,” said United States Attorney W. Stephen Muldrow. “I commend their exceptional efforts and dedication from the beginning of the investigation of the carjacking and murder of the victim to the guilty verdict at trial.”

“This verdict reflects our community’s intolerance for senseless acts of violence, and our commitment to bring violent offenders who endanger innocent persons to justice,” said Gordon Mallory, Acting Special Agent in Charge of ATF Miami Field Division. “In partnership with the US Attorney’s Office in San Juan, the Puerto Rico Police Department, and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice, Mr. Payne-Pabón is being held accountable for his violent, and life-altering actions. It is our hope that this conviction can bring some closure to the victim’s family.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives investigated the case with the assistance of the Puerto Rico Police Bureau and the Puerto Rico Department of Justice.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jeanette M. Collazo-Ortiz and César Rivera-Díaz prosecuted the case.

###

MIL Security OSI –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: Moody’s fully acquires ICR Chile, solidifying its leading position in key Latin American markets

Source: Moody’s

Headline: Moody’s fully acquires ICR Chile, solidifying its leading position in key Latin American markets

Moody’s fully acquires ICR Chile, solidifying its leading position in key Latin American markets

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Moody’s Corporation (NYSE:MCO) announced today that it has fully acquired ICR Chile (ICR), a leading provider of domestic credit ratings in Chile. The transaction follows Moody’s 2019 acquisition of a minority stake in ICR and will further strengthen its presence in Latin America’s domestic credit markets.

Following the transaction, ICR will continue issuing domestic ratings in Chile under its own rating process and methodologies. In the following months, ICR will be fully integrated into Moody’s Local, a group of leading credit rating agencies in Latin America.

“Today’s acquisition builds on our successful partnership with ICR and underscores our commitment to Chile’s growing debt capital market,” said Martin Fernandez-Romero, Managing Director of Moody’s Local. “Bringing ICR into Moody’s Local will enhance our ability to provide high quality credit ratings, research, and analytical services to market participants, while contributing to greater transparency in Latin America.”

Founded in 2005, ICR is renowned for its high-quality analyses and the expertise of its analytical teams. It provides ratings across a diverse range of sectors, including corporates, financial institutions, insurers, structured finance vehicles, funds, and project finance. Since Moody’s initial investment, ICR has gained market growth, driven by its in-depth credit analyses and the expansion of its coverage within Chile’s domestic ratings market.

The terms of the transaction were not disclosed, and it will not have a material impact on Moody’s 2025 financial results.

About Moody’s Local
Moody’s Local is a group of domestic rating agencies covering 13 Latin America’s domestic financial markets. Moody’s Local provides domestic credit ratings, research and risk analyses to market professionals with methodologies and seasoned analysts that capture the unique risks and dynamics of each market. Learn more at moodyslocal.com.

About Moody’s Corporation
In a world shaped by increasingly interconnected risks, Moody’s (NYSE: MCO) data, insights, and innovative technologies help customers develop a holistic view of their world and unlock opportunities. With a rich history of experience in global markets and a diverse workforce of approximately 16,000 across more than 40 countries, Moody’s gives customers the comprehensive perspective needed to act with confidence and thrive. Learn more at moodys.com.

“Safe Harbor” statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Certain statements included in this release are forward-looking statements and are based on future expectations, plans and prospects for Moody’s business and operations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties. Such statements involve estimates, projections, goals, forecasts, assumptions and uncertainties that could cause actual results or outcomes to differ materially from those contemplated, expressed, projected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements and other information in this document are made as of the date hereof, and Moody’s undertakes no obligation (nor does it intend) to publicly supplement, update or revise such statements on a going-forward basis, whether as a result of subsequent developments, changed expectations or otherwise, except as required by applicable law or regulation. In connection with the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Moody’s is identifying certain factors that could cause actual results to differ, perhaps materially, from those indicated by these forward-looking statements. Those factors, risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the uncertain effects of U.S. and foreign government actions affecting international trade and economic policy, including changes and volatility in tariffs and trade policies and retaliatory actions, on credit markets, customers and customer retention, and demand for our products and services; the impact of general economic conditions (including significant government debt and deficit levels, and inflation or recessions and related monetary policy actions by governments in response thereto) on worldwide credit markets and on economic activity, including on the level of merger and acquisition activity, and their effects on the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets; the uncertain effects of U.S. and foreign government initiatives and monetary policy to respond to the current economic climate, including instability of financial institutions, credit quality concerns, and other potential impacts of volatility in financial and credit markets; the impact of geopolitical events and actions, such as the Russia-Ukraine military conflict and military conflict in the Middle East, and of tensions and disputes in political and global relations, on volatility in world financial markets, on general economic conditions and GDP in the U.S. and worldwide and on Moody’s own operations and personnel; other matters that could affect the volume of debt and other securities issued in domestic and/or global capital markets, including regulation, increased utilization of technologies that have the potential to intensify competition and accelerate disruption and disintermediation in the financial services industry, as well as the number of issuances of securities without ratings or securities which are rated or evaluated by non-traditional parties; the level of merger and acquisition activity in the U.S. and abroad; the impact of MIS’s withdrawal of its credit ratings on countries or entities within countries and of Moody’s no longer conducting commercial operations in countries where political instability warrants such actions; concerns in the marketplace affecting our credibility or otherwise affecting market perceptions of the integrity or utility of independent credit agency ratings; the introduction or development of competing and/or emerging technologies and products; pricing pressure from competitors and/or customers; the level of success of new product development and global expansion; the impact of regulation as an NRSRO, the potential for new U.S., state and local legislation and regulations; the potential for increased competition and regulation in the jurisdictions in which we operate, including the EU; exposure to litigation related to our rating opinions, as well as any other litigation, government and regulatory proceedings, investigations and inquiries to which Moody’s may be subject from time to time; provisions in U.S. legislation modifying the pleading standards and EU regulations modifying the liability standards applicable to CRAs in a manner adverse to CRAs; provisions of EU regulations imposing additional procedural and substantive requirements on the pricing of services and the expansion of supervisory remit to include non-EU ratings used for regulatory purposes; uncertainty regarding the future relationship between the U.S. and China; the possible loss of key employees and the impact of the global labor environment; failures or malfunctions of our operations and infrastructure; any vulnerabilities to cyber threats or other cybersecurity concerns; the timing and effectiveness of our restructuring programs; currency and foreign exchange volatility; the outcome of any review by tax authorities of Moody’s global tax planning initiatives; exposure to potential criminal sanctions or civil remedies if Moody’s fails to comply with foreign and U.S. laws and regulations that are applicable in the jurisdictions in which Moody’s operates, including data protection and privacy laws, sanctions laws, anti-corruption laws, and local laws prohibiting corrupt payments to government officials; the impact of mergers, acquisitions, or other business combinations and the ability of Moody’s to successfully integrate acquired businesses; the level of future cash flows; the levels of capital investments; and a decline in the demand for credit risk management tools by financial institutions, corporate or government entities. These factors, risks and uncertainties as well as other risks and uncertainties that could cause Moody’s actual results to differ materially from those contemplated, expressed, projected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements are described in greater detail under “Risk Factors” in Part I, Item 1A of Moody’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, and in other filings made by the Company from time to time with the SEC or in materials incorporated herein or therein. Stockholders and investors are cautioned that the occurrence of any of these factors, risks and uncertainties may cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those contemplated, expressed, projected, anticipated or implied in the forward-looking statements, which could have a material and adverse effect on the Company’s business, results of operations and financial condition. New factors may emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for the Company to predict new factors, nor can the Company assess the potential effect of any new factors on it. Forward-looking and other statements in this document may also address our corporate responsibility progress, plans, and goals (including sustainability and environmental matters), and the inclusion of such statements is not an indication that these contents are necessarily material to investors or required to be disclosed in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. In addition, historical, current, and forward-looking sustainability-related statements may be based on standards for measuring progress that are still developing, internal controls and processes that continue to evolve, and assumptions that are subject to change in the future.

Source: Moody’s Corporation Investor Relations

MIL OSI Economics –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Economics: REPORT: Energy Storage Market Continues Strong Growth in Q1 2025

Source: American Clean Power Association (ACP)

Headline: REPORT: Energy Storage Market Continues Strong Growth in Q1 2025

HOUSTON/WASHINGTON, D.C. June 25, 2025 — According to the new U.S. Energy Storage Monitor developed by Wood Mackenzie and the American Clean Power Association (ACP), the American energy storage market experienced record growth in Q1 2025—amidst current policy uncertainty.
The U.S. energy storage market added more than 2 GW across all segments in Q1 2025, marking the highest Q1 on record. The utility-scale segment led the way with more than 1.5 GW of new capacity, representing a significant 57% increase compared to Q1 2024.
“Surging energy demand is putting the electric grid under strain. The energy storage market is responding to help keep the lights on and support this unprecedented growth in an affordable and reliable way,” said John Hensley, ACP SVP of Markets and Policy Analysis. “Policy uncertainty is now one of the most significant risks that remains on the horizon as we tackle a balanced approach to allowing our economy to expand while maintaining the energy reliability that Americans deserve.”
New horizons in the market
The report shows there is a growing appetite across the country for deployment of grid-scale energy storage, as utilities, regulators, and communities further integrate the technology into their resource planning. In Q1 of 2025, states such as Indiana highlighted the geographic diversification that continues to take place as the market expands beyond early adopters such as Texas and California.
The growing market in Indiana is made possible due to factors such as land availability and clear state permitting guidelines.

Indiana added 256 MW of new storage to the grid in Q1 2025, effectively quadrupling its operational storage capacity.
Indiana has more than 10 GW of new storage active in the interconnection queue—the fifth largest storage queue in the country.

“We’re now seeing significant deployment of energy storage resources in emerging markets like Indiana, while states across the Southwest like Nevada and Arizona continue to expand their energy storage portfolio,” said ACP Vice President of Energy Storage, Noah Roberts. “Energy storage was the second most deployed resource in Q1 2025, demonstrating its unique ability to be quickly built to address critical reliability needs.”
The residential storage market also saw significant year-over-year (YoY) growth, installing a record-breaking 458 MW in Q1. California and Puerto Rico accounted for 74% of this growth, while new markets like Illinois are beginning to emerge.
A moment of policy uncertaintyThe total 5-year utility-scale capacity forecast remains strong. However, the segment is at risk for a potential 29% contraction in 2026 due to policy uncertainty.
The community-scale, commercial, and industrial (CCI) segment has seen a 42% reduction in its five-year outlook, struggling with tariff uncertainty and slower-than-anticipated transition to NEM 3.0 projects in California.
The report cautions that potential changes to current tax credits could significantly impact the industry’s overall growth. If access to the Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is severely reduced as proposed in the reconciliation bill passed by the House, it could lead to a 27% reduction in buildout over the forecast period. (Note: this report was developed before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee released its version of the reconciliation bill on June 16.)
Distributed storage would be the most impacted segment, with a potential 46% drop from the base case over the next 5 years. Utility-scale installations would decrease by 16 GW over the next 5 years if the tax provisions are changed.
In the near term, the report projects that 15 GW/49 GWh of energy storage capacity will be installed across all segments in 2025. The utility-scale segment is expected to grow 22% YoY in 2025.
As the market evolves, continued innovation, supportive policies, and strategic planning will be crucial to navigate the changing landscape and capitalize on the immense potential of energy storage in the U.S. energy transformation.
“The Q1 2025 results demonstrate the demand for energy storage in the US to serve a grid with both growing renewables and growing load. However, the industry stands at a crossroads, with potential policy changes threatening to disrupt this momentum,” said Allison Weis, Global Head of Energy Storage at Wood Mackenzie. “It’s crucial that policymakers understand the importance of stable, supportive policies for the continued expansion of energy storage.”
Purchase the full report at ACP’s website.
###
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About Wood Mackenzie
Wood Mackenzie is the global insight business for renewables, energy and natural resources. Driven by data. Powered by people. In the middle of an energy revolution, businesses and governments need reliable and actionable insight to lead the transition to a sustainable future. That’s why we cover the entire supply chain with unparalleled breadth and depth, backed by over 50 years’ experience in natural resources. Today, our team of over 2,000 experts operate across 30 global locations, inspiring customers’ decisions through real-time analytics, consultancy, events and thought leadership. Together, we deliver the insight they need to separate risk from opportunity and make bold decisions when it matters most. For more information, visit woodmac.com.

MIL OSI Economics –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How high-latitude peat and forest fires could shape the future of Earth’s climate

Source: The Conversation – France – By Apostolos Voulgarakis, AXA Chair in Wildfires and Climate Director, Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment & Climate Change, Technical University of Crete

Understanding how wildfires influence our planet’s climate is a daunting challenge. Although fire occurs nearly everywhere on Earth and has always been present, it is still one of the least understood components of the Earth system. Recently, unprecedented fire activity has been observed in boreal (northern) and Arctic regions, which has drawn the scientific community’s attention to areas whose role in the future of our planet remains a mystery. Climate change likely has a major role in this alarming trend. However, high-latitude wildfires are not just a symptom of climate change; they are an accelerating force that could shape the future of our climate in ways that we are currently incapable of predicting.

A weekly e-mail in English featuring expertise from scholars and researchers. It provides an introduction to the diversity of research coming out of the continent and considers some of the key issues facing European countries. Get the newsletter!

The rising threat of northern fires

As global temperatures rise, wildfires are advancing further north and reaching into the Arctic. Canada, Alaska, Siberia, Scandinavia and even Greenland, all in northern high-latitude regions, have recently experienced some of the most intense and prolonged wildfire seasons on record. With climate change occurring more rapidly in these areas, the future of northern fires appears even grimmer.

Apart from typical forest fires that consume surface vegetation, many high-latitude fires burn through peat, the dense, carbon-rich layers of partially decayed organic material. Despite covering only 3% of the terrestrial surface, peatlands are one of the world’s most important carbon storage environments, containing around 25% of the carbon existing in the Earth’s soils.

Climate warming, which is even faster at high northern latitudes due to polar amplification – the phenomenon of greater climate change near the poles compared to the rest of the hemisphere or globe – is increasing the vulnerability of these ecosystems to fire, with potentially severe implications for the global climate. When peatlands ignite, they release massive amounts of “fossil carbon” that have been locked away for centuries or even millennia. The largest and most persistent fires on Earth, peat fires can smoulder for extended periods, are difficult to extinguish and can continue burning underground throughout the winter, only to reignite on the surface in spring. They have recently been described as “zombie” fires.

Warmer and drier conditions driven by climate change, apart from making boreal forests more flammable, are expected to intensify and increase the frequency of peat fires, potentially transforming peatlands from carbon sinks into net sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Such a shift could trigger a feedback loop, meaning that a warming climate will cause more carbon emissions, which in turn will accelerate climate change.

Air pollution and weather patterns

Wildfires release large quantities of smoke particles (aerosols) into the atmosphere, contributing significantly to both local and widespread air quality degradation. These particles are harmful to human health and can cause serious respiratory and cardiovascular problems, while prolonged exposure may lead to smoke-induced stress, hospitalizations and increased mortality. Wildfires can also cause mental health strains associated with evacuations, loss of homes, livelihoods and lives.

À lire aussi :
Wildfire smoke can harm your brain, not just your lungs

Beyond their long-term effects on climate, wildfire emissions can also influence weather patterns in more short-term ways via their impacts on atmospheric pollution levels. Smoke particles interact with sunlight and cloud formation processes, subsequently affecting temperatures, wind patterns and rainfall.

For example, our recent study on the large-scale atmospheric impacts of the 2023 Canadian wildfires, which we presented at the European Geosciences Union general assembly this spring, demonstrated that wildfire aerosols led to a surface air temperature decrease that expanded to the entire northern hemisphere. The cooling was particularly pronounced over Canada (up to -5.5°C in August), where the emissions were located, but was also significant over remote areas such as Eastern Europe and even Siberia (up to around -2.5°C in July). The average hemispheric temperature anomaly we calculated (close to -1°C) highlights the potential for large regional emissions from wildfires to perturb weather conditions for weeks across a whole hemisphere, with profound implications for forecasting. Unreliable weather forecasts can disrupt daily activities and pose risks to public safety, especially during extreme events such as heatwaves or storms. They also have serious consequences for industries such as farming, fishing and transport, where planning depends heavily on accurate, timely predictions.

Peat fires and the climate puzzle

While incorporating peatland fire feedbacks into Earth System Models (ESMs) is essential for accurate climate projections, most existing models lack a representation of peat fires. Understanding the smouldering behaviour of organic soils when they burn, their ignition probability, and how these processes can be represented at a global scale is of utmost importance. Recent research efforts are focusing on bridging this knowledge gap. For example, at the Technical University of Crete, we are collaborating with the Hazelab research group at Imperial College London and the Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Environment and Society to perform field research and cutting-edge experiments) on peat smouldering, with the aim of shedding light on the complex mechanisms of peat fires.

Integrating these lab results into ESMs will enable game-changing fire emission modelling, which holds potential for groundbreaking outcomes when it comes to our skill level for predicting the future of the Earth’s climate. By quantifying how the present-day atmosphere is influenced by fire emissions from boreal forests and peatlands, we can enhance the quality of projections of global temperature rise. This integration will also sharpen forecasts of regional climate impacts driven by fire-related aerosols, such as changes in rainfall patterns or accelerated Arctic ice melt.

Tackling the challenge of northern fires

Undoubtedly, we have entered an era of more frequent megafires – wildfires of extreme size, intensity, duration or impacts – with catastrophic consequences. Recent megafire events at boreal and Arctic regions unveil the dramatic change in wildfire patterns in northern high latitudes, which is a matter that demands urgent attention and action.

As the planet continues to warm, high-latitude fires are expected to help shape the future of our planet. Massive wildfire events, such as those in Canada in 2023, not only burned millions of hectares but also forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate their homes. Unprecedented amounts of smoke blanketed parts of North America in hazardous air, prompting school closures and health warnings, and obliging citizens to remain indoors for days. Events like this reflect a growing trend. They underscore why advancing research to better understand and predict the dynamics of northern peat and forest fires, and to mitigate their climate impacts, is not only a scientific imperative but also a moral responsibility.

Created in 2007 to help accelerate and share scientific knowledge on key societal issues, the Axa Research Fund has supported nearly 700 projects around the world conducted by researchers in 38 countries. To learn more, visit the website of the Axa Research Fund or follow @AXAResearchFund on X.

Dimitra Tarasi has received funding from the AXA Chair in Wildfires and Climate, the Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Environment and Society and the A.G. Leventis Foundation Educational Grants.

Apostolos Voulgarakis ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d’une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n’a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.

– ref. How high-latitude peat and forest fires could shape the future of Earth’s climate – https://theconversation.com/how-high-latitude-peat-and-forest-fires-could-shape-the-future-of-earths-climate-258721

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How high-latitude peat and forest fires could shape the future of Earth’s climate

Source: The Conversation – France – By Apostolos Voulgarakis, AXA Chair in Wildfires and Climate Director, Laboratory of Atmospheric Environment & Climate Change, Technical University of Crete

Understanding how wildfires influence our planet’s climate is a daunting challenge. Although fire occurs nearly everywhere on Earth and has always been present, it is still one of the least understood components of the Earth system. Recently, unprecedented fire activity has been observed in boreal (northern) and Arctic regions, which has drawn the scientific community’s attention to areas whose role in the future of our planet remains a mystery. Climate change likely has a major role in this alarming trend. However, high-latitude wildfires are not just a symptom of climate change; they are an accelerating force that could shape the future of our climate in ways that we are currently incapable of predicting.

A weekly e-mail in English featuring expertise from scholars and researchers. It provides an introduction to the diversity of research coming out of the continent and considers some of the key issues facing European countries. Get the newsletter!

The rising threat of northern fires

As global temperatures rise, wildfires are advancing further north and reaching into the Arctic. Canada, Alaska, Siberia, Scandinavia and even Greenland, all in northern high-latitude regions, have recently experienced some of the most intense and prolonged wildfire seasons on record. With climate change occurring more rapidly in these areas, the future of northern fires appears even grimmer.

Apart from typical forest fires that consume surface vegetation, many high-latitude fires burn through peat, the dense, carbon-rich layers of partially decayed organic material. Despite covering only 3% of the terrestrial surface, peatlands are one of the world’s most important carbon storage environments, containing around 25% of the carbon existing in the Earth’s soils.

Climate warming, which is even faster at high northern latitudes due to polar amplification – the phenomenon of greater climate change near the poles compared to the rest of the hemisphere or globe – is increasing the vulnerability of these ecosystems to fire, with potentially severe implications for the global climate. When peatlands ignite, they release massive amounts of “fossil carbon” that have been locked away for centuries or even millennia. The largest and most persistent fires on Earth, peat fires can smoulder for extended periods, are difficult to extinguish and can continue burning underground throughout the winter, only to reignite on the surface in spring. They have recently been described as “zombie” fires.

Warmer and drier conditions driven by climate change, apart from making boreal forests more flammable, are expected to intensify and increase the frequency of peat fires, potentially transforming peatlands from carbon sinks into net sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Such a shift could trigger a feedback loop, meaning that a warming climate will cause more carbon emissions, which in turn will accelerate climate change.

Air pollution and weather patterns

Wildfires release large quantities of smoke particles (aerosols) into the atmosphere, contributing significantly to both local and widespread air quality degradation. These particles are harmful to human health and can cause serious respiratory and cardiovascular problems, while prolonged exposure may lead to smoke-induced stress, hospitalizations and increased mortality. Wildfires can also cause mental health strains associated with evacuations, loss of homes, livelihoods and lives.

À lire aussi :
Wildfire smoke can harm your brain, not just your lungs

Beyond their long-term effects on climate, wildfire emissions can also influence weather patterns in more short-term ways via their impacts on atmospheric pollution levels. Smoke particles interact with sunlight and cloud formation processes, subsequently affecting temperatures, wind patterns and rainfall.

For example, our recent study on the large-scale atmospheric impacts of the 2023 Canadian wildfires, which we presented at the European Geosciences Union general assembly this spring, demonstrated that wildfire aerosols led to a surface air temperature decrease that expanded to the entire northern hemisphere. The cooling was particularly pronounced over Canada (up to -5.5°C in August), where the emissions were located, but was also significant over remote areas such as Eastern Europe and even Siberia (up to around -2.5°C in July). The average hemispheric temperature anomaly we calculated (close to -1°C) highlights the potential for large regional emissions from wildfires to perturb weather conditions for weeks across a whole hemisphere, with profound implications for forecasting. Unreliable weather forecasts can disrupt daily activities and pose risks to public safety, especially during extreme events such as heatwaves or storms. They also have serious consequences for industries such as farming, fishing and transport, where planning depends heavily on accurate, timely predictions.

Peat fires and the climate puzzle

While incorporating peatland fire feedbacks into Earth System Models (ESMs) is essential for accurate climate projections, most existing models lack a representation of peat fires. Understanding the smouldering behaviour of organic soils when they burn, their ignition probability, and how these processes can be represented at a global scale is of utmost importance. Recent research efforts are focusing on bridging this knowledge gap. For example, at the Technical University of Crete, we are collaborating with the Hazelab research group at Imperial College London and the Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Environment and Society to perform field research and cutting-edge experiments) on peat smouldering, with the aim of shedding light on the complex mechanisms of peat fires.

Integrating these lab results into ESMs will enable game-changing fire emission modelling, which holds potential for groundbreaking outcomes when it comes to our skill level for predicting the future of the Earth’s climate. By quantifying how the present-day atmosphere is influenced by fire emissions from boreal forests and peatlands, we can enhance the quality of projections of global temperature rise. This integration will also sharpen forecasts of regional climate impacts driven by fire-related aerosols, such as changes in rainfall patterns or accelerated Arctic ice melt.

Tackling the challenge of northern fires

Undoubtedly, we have entered an era of more frequent megafires – wildfires of extreme size, intensity, duration or impacts – with catastrophic consequences. Recent megafire events at boreal and Arctic regions unveil the dramatic change in wildfire patterns in northern high latitudes, which is a matter that demands urgent attention and action.

As the planet continues to warm, high-latitude fires are expected to help shape the future of our planet. Massive wildfire events, such as those in Canada in 2023, not only burned millions of hectares but also forced hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate their homes. Unprecedented amounts of smoke blanketed parts of North America in hazardous air, prompting school closures and health warnings, and obliging citizens to remain indoors for days. Events like this reflect a growing trend. They underscore why advancing research to better understand and predict the dynamics of northern peat and forest fires, and to mitigate their climate impacts, is not only a scientific imperative but also a moral responsibility.

Created in 2007 to help accelerate and share scientific knowledge on key societal issues, the Axa Research Fund has supported nearly 700 projects around the world conducted by researchers in 38 countries. To learn more, visit the website of the Axa Research Fund or follow @AXAResearchFund on X.

Dimitra Tarasi has received funding from the AXA Chair in Wildfires and Climate, the Leverhulme Centre for Wildfires, Environment and Society and the A.G. Leventis Foundation Educational Grants.

Apostolos Voulgarakis ne travaille pas, ne conseille pas, ne possède pas de parts, ne reçoit pas de fonds d’une organisation qui pourrait tirer profit de cet article, et n’a déclaré aucune autre affiliation que son organisme de recherche.

– ref. How high-latitude peat and forest fires could shape the future of Earth’s climate – https://theconversation.com/how-high-latitude-peat-and-forest-fires-could-shape-the-future-of-earths-climate-258721

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Canada joins new NATO Defence Investment Pledge

Source: Government of Canada – Prime Minister

The world is increasingly dangerous and divided, with the rules-based international system under unprecedented pressure and global conflict becoming more frequent and volatile. To meet this moment, Canada and its Allies are building their defence capabilities to strengthen our collective security.

Today, the Prime Minister, Mark Carney, announced that Canada and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Allies have agreed to a new Defence Investment Pledge of investing 5 per cent of annual GDP by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective security. The commitment aligns with Canada’s own strategic defence and security goals.

As part of this 5 per cent pledge, Canada will invest 3.5 per cent of GDP for core military capabilities, expanding on our recent investments. That means further investments in our Canadian Armed Forces, modernizing our military equipment and technology, building up Canada’s defence industries, and diversifying our defence partnerships. An additional 1.5 per cent of GDP will be dedicated to investments in critical defence and security-related expenditure, such as new airports, ports, telecommunication, emergency preparedness systems, and other dual-use investments which serve defence as well as civilian readiness. Importantly, the progress of this pledge will be reviewed in 2029 to ensure Allies’ expenditures align with the global security landscape.

At the Summit, Canada and its Allies reaffirmed their support for Ukraine and the leaders agreed on the imperative for a just and lasting peace. Canada’s contributions to Ukraine’s defence and its defence industries, including Canada’s $2 billion in military assistance announced last week at the 2025 G7 Leaders’ Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta, are included in our NATO contributions, as the security of Ukraine is critical to our collective security.

Quotes

“The world is increasingly dangerous and divided. Canada must strengthen our defence to better protect our sovereignty, our interests, and our Allies. These investments won’t just build our military capacity – they will build our industries and create good, high-paying jobs at home. If we want a more secure world, we need a stronger Canada.”

“Canada is a proud founding member of the Alliance. In an increasingly unstable and unpredictable world, we are making the critical investments needed to keep Canadians safe, support our Armed Forces, and strengthen our role in Europe and on the world stage. The renewed Defence Investment Pledge to invest 5 per cent of GDP by 2035 reaffirms Canada’s strong commitment to our security, to our sovereignty, and to NATO.”

Related Product

Associated Link

MIL OSI Canada News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Simpson Votes to Boost National Security and Border Protections

Source: US State of Idaho

Rep. Simpson Votes to Boost National Security and Border Protections

Washington, June 25, 2025

WASHINGTON—The House Committee on Appropriations voted to advance the Fiscal Year 2026 Homeland Security Appropriations Bill. Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson supported this advancement. This bill invests in border security and public safety and supports the Trump administration’s policy initiatives.
“Under President Trump’s leadership, we have the most secure border in American history,” said Rep. Simpson. “Now is the time to strengthen our border protections and provide our brave Border Patrol agents with the resources they need to keep our homeland safe. I have long maintained that border security is national security, and supporting this advancement reaffirms that commitment.”
Highlights of the bill include:

Upholding the America First vision by realigning the Department of Homeland Security’s priorities around its fundamental mission: defending the nation against the threat posed by terrorists, criminals, and foreign adversaries and ensuring the safety and security of every American.
Prioritizing border security and the detention and swift removal of criminal aliens.
Enhancing resources to detect and counter the spread of deadly fentanyl that poisons our communities.
Protecting vulnerable children by strengthening exploitation investigations.
Prohibiting funding for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and Critical Race Theory.
Prohibiting gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy and surgery for ICE detainees.

The measure was approved by the Committee with a vote of 36 to 27.
This funding package will now go to the full floor of the House of Representatives for further consideration.

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI: List of Sweepstakes Casinos USA: Time2Play Highlights Key Updates for 2025

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

New York City, June 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — For all casino enthusiasts, Time2Play has released a detailed analysis of the sweepstakes casino landscape in 2025, revealing important updates and insights that can significantly impact how players engage with sweepstakes casinos this year. These developments will be accessible to players through Time2Play’s website, where the full report can be found. This release focuses on providing an overview of the changes in the industry, but for those who are looking for more in-depth findings, all the details are available directly on the Time2Play platform.

As the world of sweepstakes casinos evolves, it’s crucial for players to stay informed on the latest trends and updates. While we can’t go into the specifics here, Time2Play’s report offers a comprehensive analysis, including emerging technologies, new game formats, and legal changes that will influence how sweepstakes casinos operate in 2025. This update is essential reading for anyone interested in the sweepstakes casino scene and looking to stay ahead of the curve in a rapidly growing market.

Why Time2Play is the Go-To Resource for Sweepstakes Casino Updates

As sweepstakes casinos gain popularity across the United States, Time2Play has solidified its position as a leader in offering reliable, up-to-date information on the topic. Their comprehensive analysis of the sweepstakes casino market for 2025 explores crucial topics such as the technological advancements and features that will define the landscape for players and operators alike.

Rather than listing all of the findings here, we encourage you to visit the Time2Play website where you can access the full breakdown of their research. This includes insights into game selection, payment systems, legal shifts, and the latest trends that are shaping the future of online gaming in the sweepstakes space.

Key Insights and Trends in Sweepstakes Casinos for 2025

Technological Advancements in Sweepstakes Casinos

The sweepstakes casino market has always been known for its ability to innovate and keep pace with technological changes. In 2025, players can expect further integration of advanced technology into their gaming experience. These updates will include enhanced mobile functionality, improved payment processing systems, and the use of live dealer options that bring real-time interactions to online platforms.

Time2Play’s 2025 analysis goes into detail about these technological advancements, showing how new features will improve the overall player experience. From mobile gaming optimization to cutting-edge security measures, these updates will make it easier for players to access their favorite games from anywhere while ensuring a safe and smooth gaming environment.

Moreover, technological advancements in sweepstakes casinos are likely to have a direct impact on the speed and efficiency of gameplay, making the experience even more engaging. Live streaming, faster load times, and smoother transitions between game rounds are all expected to be part of the new developments. By visiting Time2Play, players can dive deeper into these updates and learn how they will affect the sweepstakes casino experience in the coming year.

Emerging Game Variants and Betting Options

Players who are familiar with the classic sweepstakes casino games will be pleased to know that 2025 is bringing new variations to some of the most popular games. Time2Play’s report touches on how operators are diversifying their game offerings, introducing new betting structures and unique game formats that cater to different types of players.

While the classic slots, roulette, and poker games will still dominate the sweepstakes scene, newer game types are emerging that offer more interaction and strategic elements. These include multi-level jackpot games, progressive betting options, and a broader selection of side bets that increase the excitement and winning potential.

For players looking to explore these new variants, Time2Play provides all the necessary details. They highlight the different types of games that will be available in 2025 and how they can enhance the player experience, making it easier for people to find a game that suits their style and strategy. By exploring these updates on Time2Play, readers can understand what’s new and how they can get the most out of their sweepstakes gaming experience.

Legal Developments Impacting Sweepstakes Casinos in 2025

Another important aspect of Time2Play’s 2025 report involves the legal landscape surrounding sweepstakes casinos in the United States. As gambling regulations continue to evolve, it is critical for players to stay informed about the legal status of sweepstakes casinos in their respective states. The legal landscape has seen changes, with more states recognizing the benefits of regulated online gambling, and Time2Play offers a breakdown of how these developments will affect players.

Time2Play’s report provides an overview of the shifting laws and regulations, including state-specific policies that may impact players’ ability to participate in sweepstakes casino games. These changes will likely influence how casinos operate, what promotions are available, and how payments are processed. For anyone interested in staying compliant with the latest legal standards, the full report is available on Time2Play’s website, which dives deeper into the legal implications of these shifts.

Why You Should Visit Time2Play for Detailed Insights

While we’ve only provided a brief summary of Time2Play’s 2025 report, the full version is available on their website, offering a much more detailed and thorough examination of the sweepstakes casino market. Players who want to stay ahead of the game in 2025 should definitely visit Time2Play to explore the in-depth findings. The full analysis includes critical information about new trends, the impact of new laws, and how technology is reshaping the sweepstakes casino industry.

How to Access the Full Report on Time2Play

If you’re interested in accessing the complete analysis and insights for 2025, be sure to visit Time2Play’s website. The full report goes into detail about each of these points, offering players and operators the information they need to make informed decisions in the year ahead. The website is the go-to destination for sweepstakes casino updates, as it compiles all the important data in one place, making it easy for readers to stay up-to-date with everything that’s happening in the world of sweepstakes gaming.

Conclusion: Stay Updated with Time2Play’s 2025 Report

As sweepstakes casinos continue to grow in popularity, it’s more important than ever to stay informed about the latest updates and trends. Time2Play’s 2025 report provides valuable insights that will help both players and operators navigate the ever-evolving sweepstakes casino landscape. To dive deeper into these developments, visit Time2Play’s website and read the full analysis for a more comprehensive understanding of what’s in store for sweepstakes casinos in 2025.

The future of sweepstakes casinos in the USA is bright, and with Time2Play’s expert analysis, players can ensure they’re well-prepared to make the most of the opportunities that lie ahead.

The MIL Network –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Rep. Jackson Reintroduces Bipartisan Bill, The Marshall “Major” Taylor Congressional Gold Medal Act

Source: United States House of Representatives – Representative Jonathan Jackson – Illinois (1st District)

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representatives Jonathan L. Jackson (D-IL-01) and Jim Baird (R-IN-04) led 43 of their colleagues in reintroducing the bipartisan Marshall “Major” Taylor Congressional Gold Medal Act. This legislation would posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Marshall Walter “Major” Taylor — America’s first Black sports star, recognizing his significance to the nation as a trailblazing athlete.

Taylor managed to become the first African American world champion in any sport and earned the title of “world’s fastest man” despite the extraordinary challenges of the Jim Crow era. He endured attempts by white promoters in both the North and South to exclude him from races. White riders, too, subjected Taylor to curses, insults, and even physical harm during competitions. Despite these adversities, Taylor’s exceptional talent and tenacity turned him into a sensation, drawing tens of thousands at races across the United States, Europe, and Australia.

“It is without question that Marshall ‘Major’ Taylor was a man before his time, a stellar athlete, a leader in the field of cycling, and a trailblazer,” said Rep. Jackson. “I believe it is fitting that Congress award the ‘world’s fastest man’ one of our nation’s most prestigious honors.”

“Even when compared to today’s athletes, Marshall ‘Major’ Taylor is among the greatest cyclists of all time,” said Rep. Baird. “His accomplishments are especially impressive considering the challenges he faced on his climb to cycling greatness. Marshall Taylor is one of the greatest athletes in Indiana history, and I can think of no one better suited to receive the Congressional Gold Medal.”

“Marshall W. ‘Major’ Taylor challenged both the odds and the adversity of his time with dignity and determination, and he went on to ultimately triumph,” said Karen Brown Donovan, the great-granddaughter of Major Taylor. “The awarding of a posthumous Congressional Gold Medal would be a significant achievement towards honoring his life and legacy.”

Supporting Individuals and Groups

119th Congress

Co-lead: Jim Baird (R-IN-04)

Original Cosponsors (44 total): Shontel Brown (D-OH-11), LaMonica McIver (D-NJ-10), Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ-12), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-08), Stacey Plaskett (D-VI-AL), Marc Veasey (D-TX-33), Kweisi Mfume (D-MD-07), David Scott (D-GA-13), Sanford Bishop (D-GA-02), Delia Ramirez (D-IL-03), Frederica Wilson (D-FL-24), Sharice Davis (D-KS-03), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), Maxwell Frost (D-FL-10), Hank Johnson (D-GA-04), Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), Mikie Sherrill (D-NJ-11), Gwen Moore (D-WI-04), Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06), Maxine Waters (D-CA-43), Sean Casten (D-IL-06), Danny Davis (D-IL-07), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-12), Shri Thanedar (D-MI-13), Cleo Fields (D-LA-06), Jim McGovern (D-MA-02), Andre Carson (D-IN-07), Jasmine Crockett (D-TX-30), Ro Khanna (D-CA-17), John Garamendi (D-CA-08), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA-07), Ted Lieu (D-CA-36), Becca Balint (D-VT-AL), Timothy Kennedy (D-NY-26), Nanette Barragan (D-CA-44), Troy Carter (D-LA-02), Terri Sewell (D-AL-07), Brad Sherman (D-CA-32), Robert Garcia (D-CA-42), Dina Titus (D-NV-01), Steven Horsford (D-NV-04), Shomari Figures (D-AL-02).

Supporting Organizations: Washington Area Bicyclist Association, The League of American Bicyclists, Major Taylor Association, Bike to the Beach, and Black Girls Do Bike, Inc.

118th Congress

Co-lead: Jim Baird (R-IN-04)

Original Cosponsors (32 total): Danny Davis (D-IL-07), Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), André Carson (D-IN-07), Henry “Hank” Johnson (D-GA-04), Barbara Lee (D-CA-12), Eleanor Holmes-Norton (D-DC), Janice Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Mike Quigley (D-IL-05), Earl Blumenauer (D-WA-03), James McGovern (D-MA-02), David Scott (D-GA-13), Gwen Moore (D-WI-04), Sheila Jackson-Lee (D-TX-18), Mike Thompson (D-CA-04), Jasmine Crockett (D-TX-30), Raul Grijalva (D-AZ-07), Alma Adams (D-NC-12), Al Green (D-TX-09), Rashida Tlaib (D-MI-12), Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL-08), Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-FL-20), Chuy Garcia (D-IL-04), David Trone (D-MD-06), Ann Kuster (D-NH-02), John Duarte (R-CA-13), Frederica Wilson (D-FL-24), Tony Gonzales (R-TX-23), Debbie Dingell (D-MI-06), Ted Lieu (D-CA-36), Maxwell Frost (D-FL-10), Joe Wilson (R-SC-02).

Supporting Organizations: Bronzeville Trail Task Force, Inc., Major Taylor Association, Washington Area Bicyclist Association, League of American Bicyclists, ADD Impact Network & Bike to the Beach, and Black Girls Do Bike, Inc.

About Major Taylor

Taylor, the son of a veteran who fought in the Civil War, was born in 1878. Despite racial tension, Taylor was educated and viewed as an adopted son by an affluent white family from Indianapolis, Indiana, who also employed his father, Gilbert Taylor. Due to his relationship with the family, Taylor received gifts, including his first bicycle. Upon receiving the bicycle, Taylor displayed natural talent.

Taylor received the nickname “Major” as a child while performing bicycle tricks outside of his workplace at Hay & Willits Manufacturing, Indiana Bicycle Co., in Indianapolis. His employer was so impressed with his abilities that the company enrolled him in his first race, which he won at the age of eleven. Taylor moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, with his employer, mentor, and racing manager, Louis D. “Birdie” Munger, in 1895, because Munger was forced out of his Indianapolis-based firm due to his mentorship of Taylor.

In 1896, at the age of eighteen, Taylor received a professional racing license from the League of American Wheelmen, despite the league’s 1894 “white only” rule for amateur membership. This membership led to his eventual professional debut.

Later that year, Taylor gained notoriety in his first professional contest by competing in the “Six Day Race” at Madison Square Garden in New York City. This race was considered a test of endurance, where cyclists would test both their mental and physical ability in front of a packed house at the Garden. At the conclusion of day six, Taylor finished eighth out of twenty-six and cycled roughly 1,732 miles.

In 1899, Taylor would win the world one-mile sprint championship in Montréal, becoming the first Black American and the second Black athlete to win a world title. Taylor would go on to set seven cycling records and become the first Black world champion, which led to his being considered the first international superstar. Taylor would even revolutionize the sport by creating an innovative adjustable handlebar stem, which to date is called the “Major Taylor Stem.”

While experiencing racial prejudice throughout his career, Taylor became one of the first Black athletes to secure corporate sponsorships. He represented bicycle brands such as Iver Johnson, Sager, Stearns, and Orient, eventually becoming one of the wealthiest Black men in America. Due to his devout commitment to his faith, Taylor refused to race on Sundays, which led to him turning down a significant number of lucrative offers to race in Europe. However, once he achieved international superstardom, Taylor was able to negotiate “no Sundays” provisions in his European racing contracts.

Taylor retired from racing in 1910 and started many business ventures. In 1928, he published his autobiography “The Fastest Bicycle Rider in the World” with the intent of impacting justice, equal rights, and the ‘square deal’ for African Americans in sports.

About the Congressional Gold Medal

Since the late 1700s, Congress has expressed public gratitude to individuals and groups by awarding medals and other similar decorations. The Continental Congress awarded the first Congressional Gold Medals. Since that time, Congress has awarded gold medals to express public gratitude for distinguished contributions, dramatize the virtues of patriotism, and perpetuate the remembrance of great events. Two-thirds of both the House and Senate must cosponsor the legislation to advance it.

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: The Hague Summit Declaration
Source: Government of Canada – Prime Minister
1. We, the Heads of State and Government of the North Atlantic Alliance, have gathered in The Hague to reaffirm our commitment to NATO, the strongest Alliance in history, and to the transatlantic bond. We reaffirm our ironclad commitment to collective defence as enshrined in Article 5 of the Washington Treaty – that an attack on one is an attack on all. We remain united and steadfast in our resolve to protect our one billion citizens, defend the Alliance, and safeguard our freedom and democracy.
2. United in the face of profound security threats and challenges, in particular the long-term threat posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security and the persistent threat of terrorism, Allies commit to invest 5% of GDP annually on core defence requirements as well as defence-and security-related spending by 2035 to ensure our individual and collective obligations, in accordance with Article 3 of the Washington Treaty. Our investments will ensure we have the forces, capabilities, resources, infrastructure, warfighting readiness, and resilience needed to deter and defend in line with our three core tasks of deterrence and defence, crisis prevention and management, and cooperative security.
3. Allies agree that this 5% commitment will comprise two essential categories of defence investment. Allies will allocate at least 3.5% of GDP annually based on the agreed definition of NATO defence expenditure by 2035 to resource core defence requirements, and to meet the NATO Capability Targets. Allies agree to submit annual plans showing a credible, incremental path to reach this goal. And Allies will account for up to 1.5% of GDP annually to inter alia protect our critical infrastructure, defend our networks, ensure our civil preparedness and resilience, unleash innovation, and strengthen our defence industrial base. The trajectory and balance of spending under this plan will be reviewed in 2029, in light of the strategic environment and updated Capability Targets. Allies reaffirm their enduring sovereign commitments to provide support to Ukraine, whose security contributes to ours, and, to this end, will include direct contributions towards Ukraine’s defence and its defence industry when calculating Allies’ defence spending.
4. We reaffirm our shared commitment to rapidly expand transatlantic defence industrial cooperation and to harness emerging technology and the spirit of innovation to advance our collective security. We will work to eliminate defence trade barriers among Allies and will leverage our partnerships to promote defence industrial cooperation.
5. We express our appreciation for the generous hospitality extended to us by the Kingdom of the Netherlands. We look forward to our next meeting in Türkiye in 2026 followed by a meeting in Albania.
MIL OSI Canada News –
June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Asia-Pac: CHP investigates two epidemiologically linked measles infection cases

Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region

CHP investigates two epidemiologically linked measles infection cases
The two cases are family members living together. The first case involves a six-month-old baby boy. He presented with fever on June 21, and developed cough, runny nose and skin rash the following day. He was brought to the Accident and Emergency Department of Kwong Wah Hospital on June 23 and was admitted for treatment. His respiratory specimen sample tested positive for the measles virus upon nucleic acid testing.

During contact tracing, the CHP found that the boy’s 29-year-old father also presented symptoms of measles, including fever and cough, on June 20 and developed skin rash on June 23. The CHP arranged the patient to attend the Accident and Emergency Department of Kwong Wah Hospital for isolation and testing on June 24. His respiratory specimen sample tested positive for the measles virus upon nucleic acid testing.
An epidemiological investigation revealed that the baby boy has not yet reach the age to receive the first dose of the measles vaccine, while his father was uncertain whether he had received measles vaccination. One of their household contacts also presented relevant symptoms earlier and has recovered now. Testing is being arranged for this household contact.

The CHP continues to investigate the cases to identify potential sources of infection and high-risk exposure. Initial investigation revealed that no epidemiological linkages have been established between these two cases and other confirmed cases previously recorded in Hong Kong.
The number of measles cases in some overseas countries remains at a high level this year. The outbreaks in North America (including the United States and Canada), Europe and neighbouring areas (including Vietnam, Cambodia and the Philippines) are ongoing due to the relatively low vaccination rate. Furthermore, an increasing number of measles cases have also been recorded in Japan and Australia this year. For those who plan to travel to measles-endemic areas, they should check their vaccination records and medical history as early as possible. If they have not been diagnosed with measles through laboratory tests and have never received two doses of measles vaccine or are not sure if they have received a measles vaccine, they should consult a doctor at least two weeks prior to their trip for vaccination.
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Besides being vaccinated against measles, members of the public should take the following measures to prevent infection:
For more information on measles, the public may visit the CHP’s measles thematic pageIssued at HKT 20:37

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CategoriesMIL-OSI

MIL OSI Asia Pacific News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI: Minovia Therapeutics Ltd. and Launch One Acquisition Corp. Announce Proposed Business Combination to Create Nasdaq-Listed Mitochondrial Therapy Company in $1 Trillion+ Mitochondrial and Longevity Markets
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

HAIFA, Israel, and GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, June 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Minovia Therapeutics Ltd. (“Minovia” or the “Company”), a clinical-stage biotechnology company developing what it believes to be first-in-class therapies to treat mitochondrial diseases and combat age-related decline, and Launch One Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: LPAA, “Launch One”), a special purpose acquisition company focused on healthcare innovation, announce entering into a definitive business combination agreement (the “Business Combination Agreement”).

Transaction highlights:
- The proposed business combination (the “Business Combination”) will create a publicly traded, clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing and commercializing Mitochondrial Augmentation Technology (MAT) – a proprietary platform designed to address a broad spectrum of diseases driven by mitochondrial dysfunction, from rare pediatric disorders to common adult conditions.
- Upon closing of the transaction, the combined entity will operate under the name Mito US One Ltd. and is expected to be listed on Nasdaq.
- The transaction is expected to provide Minovia with additional capital to facilitate accelerating its growth and development pipeline. This includes potentially reaching clinical and regulatory milestones, technology transfer, and the eventual commercial launch of the Company’s longevity-focused offerings from its MAT platform.
- The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions and shareholder approvals.
- Launch One’s trust account currently holds approximately $239.7 million in cash, a portion of which may be available to the combined company following the transaction, depending on the extent of redemptions by public shareholders.
Natalie Yivgi-Ohana, Ph.D., Minovia Co-Founder and CEO commented, “Minovia is pioneering a new category of mitochondrial therapy that targets the root cause of disease and aging — mitochondrial failure. Our research has already demonstrated durable safety and life-changing impact in patients, including children with genetic mitochondrial disease and older adults with hematologic and kidney dysfunction. Supported by clinical data, FDA Fast Track Designation, and a clear path to pivotal trial, we believe our MAT platform is uniquely positioned to drive value across both rare disease and the fast-growing longevity market.”

Unlocking a New Category in Regenerative and Longevity Medicine

Mitochondria are the tiny powerplants inside human cells, generating the energy needed for everything from muscle movement and kidney function to immune defense and brain activity. When mitochondria break down, energy production collapses — contributing to a wide range of diseases, including neurodegenerative, metabolic, and kidney disease, as well as muscle weakness, anemia, and immune system decline. Minovia’s MAT platform is designed to enrich diseased cells with healthy and functional mitochondria, effectively recharging the body’s cellular batteries and restoring the energy essential for healing, resilience, and long-term health. This approach is backed by a deep patent portfolio, scalable manufacturing, a decade of research and development, and supported by clinical data.

To date, Minovia has treated 23 patients for a combination of Pearson Syndrome, low-risk Myelodysplastic Syndrome (MDS), and neurological conditions such as Kearns-Sayre and Leigh syndromes. Patients have experienced significant outcomes — including increased body weight and growth, restored mobility, kidney function, and hematologic stability. The treatment demonstrated to be safe with no drug-product related adverse response. The Company believes these results differentiate Minovia from others in the field and support its regulatory strategy across multiple indications.

Minovia’s lead product, MNV-201, supported by FDA Fast Track and Rare Pediatric Designations, is being developed under a Phase 2 trial for Pearson Syndrome, an ultra-rare pediatric disorder. In parallel, Minovia is also conducting a Phase 1b study of MNV-201 in low-risk MDS, a chronic blood disorder linked to aging and has launched compassionate use programs in neurological mitochondrial conditions. Across its pipeline, MAT has shown a preliminary consistent safety profile, multi-system benefit, and biomarker-driven evidence of mitochondrial restoration — supporting both accelerated regulatory pathways and broad clinical potential.

Looking ahead, Minovia believes it is poised to become a leader in the $1+ trillion longevity and regenerative medicine market with the first clinical-stage mitochondrial cell therapy for aging-related dysfunction. Minovia plans to launch MAT-based offerings through global longevity clinic partnerships beginning in 2026. Minovia believes that the accumulated clinical data, as well as preclinical data showing that MAT reverses biological aging markers and improves cognition and mobility in aged mice, lay the foundation for a scalable mitochondrial regenerative medicine franchise.

Chris Ehrlich, Launch One Acquisition Corp. CEO, added, “Minovia provides a clinical-stage platform with the potential to lead an entirely new category of cell therapy. FDA Fast Track designation, patient responses across multiple diseases, and a robust pipeline positions Minovia as a first mover in advanced mitochondrial medicine. The company is advancing toward pivotal trials and we expect it will be bringing U.S.-based GMP manufacturing online by the end of 2025, allowing it to scale both its rare disease and longevity programs globally.”

Transaction Overview and Next Steps

The Business Combination Agreement assigns Minovia a pre-money equity valuation of $180 million, which will be increased by additional proceeds into Minovia expected from a bridge financing of at least $5 million to be completed within 30 days of signing, payable to Minovia equity holders in newly issued shares of the combined company, and with the Minovia equity holders being eligible to potentially receive additional shares worth $57.5 million in the aggregate as an earnout after the closing of the Business Combination. In addition, the parties are currently anticipating at least $18 million in PIPE investments at closing of the Business Combination, in addition to remaining cash held in Launch One’s trust account after shareholder redemptions. The net proceeds will fund Minovia’s clinical milestones, regulatory approvals, and the commercial launch of longevity-focused offerings.

The boards of directors of both Minovia and Launch One have unanimously approved the transaction, which is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions and shareholder approvals.

Additional information about the transaction will be provided in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and will be available at www.sec.gov. In addition, Launch One and Minovia intend to file relevant materials with the SEC, including a registration statement on Form F-4 (the ”Registration Statement“), which will include a proxy statement/prospectus of Launch One. This communication is not intended to be, and is not, a substitute for the proxy statement/prospectus or any other document that Launch One and/or Minovia have filed or may file with the SEC in connection with the Business Combination.

Advisors and Legal Counsel

Locus Walk is serving as lead placement agent on the transaction. Bevilacqua PLLC is acting as U.S. legal counsel to Minovia. Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP is U.S. legal counsel to Launch One.

About Minovia Therapeutics Ltd.

Minovia, chaired by John Cox, is a company working on treatments to augment defective mitochondria with new healthy mitochondria, helping people with mitochondrial diseases and fighting aging. Its lead product, MNV-201, is already being tested in clinical trials for Pearson Syndrome and Myelodysplastic Syndrome. Minovia is also developing ways to potentially help people live longer, healthier lives. Based in Haifa, Israel, with a factory for its therapy, Minovia is expanding to the U.S. For more information, visit www.minoviatx.com.

About Launch One Acquisition Corp.

Launch One Acquisition Corp. is a company set up to merge with and take public an exciting business in healthcare or technology. Listed on Nasdaq under the ticker LPAA, Launch One is led by experienced leaders who want to support game-changing solutions. For more information, contact Jurgen van de Vyver at jurgen@launchpad.vc.

Participants In the Solicitation

Launch One, Minovia, and their respective directors, executive officers, other members of management and employees may be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies from Launch One’s stockholders with respect to the Business Combination. Investors and security holders may obtain more detailed information regarding the names and interests in the Business Combination of Launch One’s directors and officers in Launch One’s filings with the SEC, including, when filed with the SEC, the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus, amendments and supplements thereto, and other documents filed with the SEC. Such information with respect to Minovia’s directors and executive officers will also be included in the proxy statement/prospectus. You may obtain free copies of these documents as described below under the heading “Additional Information and Where to Find It.”

Non-Solicitation

This press release is not a proxy statement or solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to any securities or in respect of the potential transaction and shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy the securities of Launch One or Minovia, nor shall there be any sale of any such securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release includes certain statements that may be considered forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, statements about future events or Launch One’s or Minovia’s future financial or operating performance. For example, statements regarding the development and therapeutic benefits of MAT, the Business Combination and the anticipated timing of the completion of the Business Combination are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “project,” “strive,” “budget,” “forecast,” “expect,” “intend,” “will,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “predict,” “potential” or “continue,” or the negatives of these terms or variations of them or similar terminology.

These forward-looking statements regarding future events and the future results of Launch One and Minovia are based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, and projections about the development of MAT, the industry in which Minovia operates, as well as the beliefs and assumptions of Launch One’s management and Minovia’s management. These forward-looking statements are only predictions and are subject to, without limitation, (i) known and unknown risks, including the risks and uncertainties indicated from time to time in the final prospectus of Launch One relating to its initial public offering filed with the SEC, including those under “Risk Factors” therein, and other documents filed or to be filed with the SEC by Launch One; (ii) uncertainties; (iii) assumptions; and (v) other factors beyond Launch One’s or Minovia’s control that are difficult to predict because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. They are neither statements of historical fact nor promises or guarantees of future performance. Therefore, Minovia’s actual results may differ materially and adversely from those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statements and Launch One and Minovia therefore caution against relying on any of these forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by Launch One and its management and Minovia and its management, as the case may be, are inherently uncertain and are inherently subject to risks, variability and contingencies, many of which are beyond Launch One’s or Minovia’s control. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: (i) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstances that could give rise to the termination of the Business Combination Agreement and any subsequent definitive agreements with respect to the Business Combination; (ii) the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against Launch One, Minovia, or others following the announcement of the Business Combination and any definitive agreements with respect thereto; (iii) the inability to complete the Business Combination due to the failure to obtain consents and approvals of the shareholders of Launch One and Minovia, to obtain financing to complete the Business Combination or to satisfy other conditions to closing, or delays in obtaining, adverse conditions contained in, or the inability to obtain necessary regulatory approvals required to complete the transactions contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement; (iv) changes to the proposed structure of the Business Combination that may be required or appropriate as a result of applicable laws or regulations or as a condition to obtaining regulatory approval of the Business Combination; (v) projections, estimates and forecasts of revenue and other financial and performance metrics, projections of market opportunity and expectations, and the estimated implied enterprise value of Minovia; (vi) Minovia’s ability to scale and grow its business, and the advantages and expected growth of Minovia; (vii) Minovia’s ability to source and retain talent, and the cash position of Minovia following closing of the Business Combination; (viii) the ability to meet stock exchange listing standards in connection with, and following, the consummation of the Business Combination; (ix) the risk that the Business Combination disrupts current plans and operations of Minovia as a result of the announcement and consummation of the Business Combination; (x) the ability to recognize the anticipated benefits of the Business Combination, which may be affected by, among other things, competition, the ability of Minovia to grow and manage growth profitably, maintain key relationships and retain its management and key employees; (xi) costs related to the Business Combination; (xii) changes in applicable laws, regulations, political and economic developments; (xiii) the possibility that Minovia may be adversely affected by other economic, business and/or competitive factors; (xiv) Minovia’s estimates of expenses and profitability; (xv) the failure to realize estimated shareholder redemptions, purchase price and other adjustments; and (xvi) other risks and uncertainties set forth in the filings by Launch One and Minovia with the SEC. There may be additional risks that neither Launch One nor Minovia presently know or that Launch One and Minovia currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Any forward-looking statements made by or on behalf of Launch One or Minovia speak only as of the date they are made. Neither Launch One nor Minovia undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect any changes in their respective expectations with regard thereto or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based.

Additional Information and Where to Find It

In connection with the Business Combination, Launch One and/or Minovia intend to file relevant materials with the SEC, including the Registration Statement, which will include a proxy statement/prospectus of Launch One, and will file other documents regarding the proposed transaction with the SEC. This communication is not intended to be, and is not, a substitute for the proxy statement/prospectus or any other document that Launch One has filed or may file with the SEC in connection with the proposed transaction. When available, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus and other relevant materials for the proposed transaction will be mailed or made available to stockholders of Launch One as of a record date to be established for voting on the proposed transaction.

Before making any voting or investment decision, investors and stockholders of Launch One are urged to carefully read, when they become available, the entire Registration Statement, the proxy statement/prospectus, and any other relevant documents filed with the SEC, as well as any amendments or supplements to these documents, and the documents incorporated by reference therein, because they will contain important information about Launch One, Minovia, and the proposed transaction. Launch One’s investors and stockholders and other interested persons will also be able to obtain copies of the Registration Statement, the preliminary proxy statement/prospectus, the definitive proxy statement/prospectus, other documents filed with the SEC that will be incorporated by reference therein, and all other relevant documents filed with the SEC by Launch One and/or Minovia in connection with the Business Combination, without charge, once available, at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to Launch One or Minovia at the addresses set forth below.

Contact

Minovia Therapeutics Ltd.
Natalie Yivgi Ohana, Co-Founder and CEO
+972-74-7039954
info@minoviatx.com

Launch One Acquisition Corp.
Jurgen van de Vyver
jurgen@launchpad.vc
+1-510-692-9600

Investor Relations
Dave Gentry, CEO
RedChip Companies
+1-407-644-4256
LPAA@redchip.com

Investor Relations
Jules Abraham
Managing Director, Communications
CORE IR
1-917-885-7378
Julesa@coreir.com

The MIL Network –
June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI: Anthony Pompliano’s ProCap BTC, LLC Buys Another 1,208 Bitcoin and Now Holds A Total of 4,932 Bitcoin

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

New York, NY, June 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — American investor and entrepreneur, Anthony Pompliano, today announced that ProCap BTC, LLC, a bitcoin-native financial services firm (the “Company”), has purchased 1,208 bitcoin at a time weighted average price (“TWAP”) of $105,977 per bitcoin, following the Company’s June 23, 2025 announcement of a proposed $1 billion business combination with Columbus Circle Capital Corp. I (NASDAQ: CCCM) to take the Company public as ProCap Financial, Inc. The Company now holds 4,932 bitcoin on its balance sheet.

The bitcoin was acquired as part of the Company’s on-going bitcoin purchase program. The Company has wasted no time delivering for its investors by deploying the funds raised at signing to accumulate bitcoin. As a result, equity investors received immediate bitcoin exposure from the equity raise.

The Company plans to continue buying bitcoin for its balance sheet as part of its ongoing business strategy. At the closing of the proposed business combination, ProCap Financial is expected to hold up to $1 billion in bitcoin on its balance sheet. The TWAP for the Day 2 purchases may be different from the “Signing Bitcoin Price” for purposes of Business Combination Agreement signed by CCCM and the Company on June 23, 2025.

ProCap BTC, LLC, believes bitcoin is the new hurdle rate.

If you can’t beat it, you have to buy it.

About ProCap BTC, LLC and ProCap Financial, Inc.

ProCap BTC, LLC is a bitcoin-native financial services firm founded by Anthony Pompliano. Pompliano has invested in more than 300 private companies and is one of the leading voices on bitcoin globally. ProCap Financial, Inc., the company resulting from the proposed Business Combination, will focus on implementing various profit-generating products and services to support the unique financial needs of large financial institutions and institutional investors.

About Columbus Circle Capital I

Columbus Circle Capital Corp. I (NASDAQ: CCCM) is a Cayman Islands–incorporated blank check company formed to effect a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. The company is led by Chairman and CEO Gary Quin, a veteran investment banker with over 25 years of experience in cross-border M&A, private equity, and capital markets; COO Dan Nash, a skilled investment banker, with a strong track record in SPAC execution and building high-growth advisory platforms; and CFO Joseph W. Pooler, Jr., who brings decades of public company financial leadership. The board of directors includes Garrett Curran, Alberto Alsina Gonzalez, Dr. Adam Back, and Matthew Murphy.

Additional Information and where to Find it

ProCap Financial, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“ProCap Financial”) and Columbus Circle Capital Corp I, a Cayman Islands exempt company (“CCCM”) intend to file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a Registration Statement on Form S-4 (as may be amended, the “Registration Statement”), which will include a preliminary proxy statement of CCCM and a prospectus (the “Proxy Statement/Prospectus”) in connection with (i) a proposed business combination, to be effected subject to and in accordance with the terms of certain business combination agreement dated as of June 23, 2025 (as may be modified, amended or supplemented from time to time, the “Business Combination Agreement”), by and among ProCap Financial, CCCM, Crius SPAC Merger Sub, Inc., a Delaware corporation, Crius Merger Sub, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, ProCap BTC, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (“ProCap BTC”), and Inflection Points Inc, d/b/a Professional Capital Management, a Delaware corporation (collectively with all of the related actions and transactions contemplated by such agreement, the “Business Combination”), (ii) a private placement of non-voting preferred units (“ProCap BTC Preferred Units”) of ProCap BTC to certain “qualified institutional buyers” as defined in Rule 144A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or institutional “accredited investors” (as defined in Rule 506 of Regulation D)(such investors, “qualifying institutional investors”)(the “Preferred Equity Investment”) pursuant to preferred equity subscription agreements, and (iii) commitments by qualifying institutional investors to purchase convertible notes (“Convertible Notes”) issuable in connection with the Closing by ProCap Financial (the “Convertible Note Offering” and, together with the Preferred Equity Investment and the Business Combination, the “Proposed Transactions”) pursuant to convertible notes subscription agreements. The definitive proxy statement and other relevant documents will be mailed to shareholders of CCCM as of a record date to be established for voting on the Proposed Transactions and other matters as described in the Proxy Statement/Prospectus. CCCM and/or ProCap Financial will also file other documents regarding the Proposed Transactions with the SEC. This communication does not contain all of the information that should be considered concerning the Proposed Transactions and is not intended to form the basis of any investment decision or any other decision in respect of the Proposed Transactions. BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING OR INVESTMENT DECISION, SHAREHOLDERS OF CCCM AND OTHER INTERESTED PARTIES ARE URGED TO READ, WHEN AVAILABLE, THE PRELIMINARY PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS, AND AMENDMENTS THERETO, AND THE DEFINITIVE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AND ALL OTHER RELEVANT DOCUMENTS FILED OR THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC IN CONNECTION WITH CCCM’S SOLICITATION OF PROXIES FOR THE EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING OF ITS SHAREHOLDERS TO BE HELD TO APPROVE THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS AND OTHER MATTERS AS DESCRIBED IN THE PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS BECAUSE THESE DOCUMENTS WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT CCCM, PROCAP BTC, PROCAP FINANCIAL AND THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS. Investors and security holders will also be able to obtain copies of the Registration Statement and the Proxy Statement/Prospectus and all other documents filed or that will be filed with the SEC by CCCM and ProCap Financial, without charge, once available, on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov, or by directing a request to: Columbus Circle Capital Corp. I, 3 Columbus Circle, 24th Floor, New York, NY 10019; e-mail: IR@ColumbusCircleCap.com, or upon written request to ProCap Financial Inc. at 600 Lexington Ave., Floor 2, New York, NY 10022, respectively.

NEITHER THE SEC NOR ANY STATE SECURITIES REGULATORY AGENCY HAS APPROVED OR DISAPPROVED THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS DESCRIBED HEREIN, PASSED UPON THE MERITS OR FAIRNESS OF THE PROPOSED TRANSACTIONS OR ANY RELATED TRANSACTIONS OR PASSED UPON THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THE DISCLOSURE IN THIS COMMUNICATION. ANY REPRESENTATION TO THE CONTRARY CONSTITUTES A CRIMINAL OFFENSE.

The offer and sale of the Convertible Notes to be issued by ProCap Financial pursuant to the Convertible Note Offering and the offer and sale of the ProCap BTC Preferred Units in the Preferred Equity Investment, in connection with the Proposed Transactions, has not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) and such securities may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

Participants in Solicitation

CCCM, ProCap BTC, ProCap Financial and their respective directors, executive officers, certain of their shareholders and other members of management and employees may be deemed under SEC rules to be participants in the solicitation of proxies from CCCM’s shareholders in connection with the Proposed Transactions. A list of the names of such persons, and information regarding their interests in the Proposed Transactions and their ownership of CCCM’s securities are, or will be, contained in CCCM’s filings with the SEC, including the final prospectus for CCCM’s initial public offering filed with the SEC on May 19, 2025 (the “IPO Prospectus”). Additional information regarding the interests of the persons who may, under SEC rules, be deemed participants in the solicitation of proxies of CCCM’s shareholders in connection with the Proposed Transactions, including the names and interests of ProCap BTC’s and ProCap Financial’s respective directors or managers and executive officers, will be set forth in the Registration Statement and Proxy Statement/Prospectus, which is expected to be filed by ProCap Financial and CCCM with the SEC. Investors and security holders may obtain free copies of these documents as described above.

No Offer or Solicitation

This communication and the information contained herein is for informational purposes only and is not a proxy statement or solicitation of a proxy, consent or authorization with respect to any securities or in respect of the potential transactions and shall not constitute an offer to sell or exchange, or a solicitation of an offer to buy or exchange the securities of CCCM, ProCap BTC or ProCap Financial, or any commodity or instrument or related derivative, nor shall there be any sale of any such securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation, sale or exchange would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state or jurisdiction. No offer of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of the Securities Act or an exemption therefrom. Investors should consult with their counsel as to the applicable requirements for a purchaser to avail itself of any exemption under the Securities Act.

Forward-Looking Statements

This communication contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws with respect to the Proposed Transactions involving ProCap Financial, ProCap BTC, and CCCM, including expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions, plans , prospects, financial results or strategies regarding ProCap BTC, ProCap Financial, CCCM and the Proposed Transactions, statements regarding the anticipated benefits and timing of the completion of the Proposed Transactions, the assets that may be held by ProCap BTC and ProCap Financial and the value thereof, the price and volatility of bitcoin, bitcoin’s growing prominence as a digital asset and as the foundation of a new financial system, ProCap Financial’s listing on any securities exchange, the macro and political conditions surrounding bitcoin, the planned business strategy including ProCap Financial’s ability to develop a corporate architecture capable of supporting financial products built with and on bitcoin including native lending models, capital market instruments, and future innovations that will replace legacy financial tools with bitcoin-aligned alternatives, plans and use of proceeds, objectives of management for future operations of ProCap Financial, the upside potential and opportunity for investors, ProCap Financial’s plan for value creation and strategic advantages, market size and growth opportunities, regulatory conditions, technological and market trends, future financial condition and performance and expected financial impacts of the Proposed Transactions, the satisfaction of closing conditions to the Proposed Transactions and the level of redemptions of CCCM’s public shareholders, and ProCap Financial’s expectations, intentions, strategies, assumptions or beliefs about future events, results of operations or performance or that do not solely relate to historical or current facts. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,” “potential,” “plan,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events or conditions that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this communication, including, but not limited to: the risk that the Proposed Transactions may not be completed in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely affect the price of CCCM’s securities; the risk that the Proposed Transactions may not be completed by CCCM’s business combination deadline; the failure by the parties to satisfy the conditions to the consummation of the Proposed Transactions, including the approval of CCCM’s shareholders; failure to realize the anticipated benefits of the Proposed Transactions; the level of redemptions of the CCCM’s public shareholders which may reduce the public float of, reduce the liquidity of the trading market of, and/or maintain the quotation, listing, or trading of the Class A ordinary shares of CCCM or the shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of ProCap Financial (“Pubco Common Stock”) to be listed in connection with the Proposed Transactions; the insufficiency of the third-party fairness opinion for the board of directors of CCCM in determining whether or not to pursue the Proposed Transactions; the failure of ProCap Financial to obtain or maintain the listing of its securities on any securities exchange after closing of the Proposed Transactions; risks associated with CCCM, ProCap BTC and ProCap Financial’s ability to consummate the Proposed Transactions timely or at all, including in connection with potential regulatory delays or impediments, changes in bitcoin prices or for other reasons; costs related to the Proposed Transactions and as a result of becoming a public company; changes in business, market, financial, political and regulatory conditions; risks relating to ProCap Financial’s anticipated operations and business, including the highly volatile nature of the price of bitcoin; the risk that ProCap Financial’s stock price will be highly correlated to the price of bitcoin and the price of bitcoin may decrease between the signing of the definitive documents for the Proposed Transactions and the closing of the Proposed Transactions or at any time after the closing of the Proposed Transactions; asset security and risks associated with CCCM, ProCap BTC and ProCap Financial’s ability to consummate the Proposed Transactions timely or at all, including in connection with potential regulatory delays or impediments, changes in bitcoin prices or for other reasons; risks related to increased competition in the industries in which ProCap Financial will operate; risks relating to significant legal, commercial, regulatory and technical uncertainty regarding bitcoin; risks relating to the treatment of crypto assets for U.S. and foreign tax purposes; risks related to the ability of ProCap BTC and ProCap Financial to execute their business plans; the risks that launching and growing ProCap Financial’s bitcoin treasury advisory and services in digital marketing and strategy could be difficult; challenges in implementing ProCap Financial’s business plan, due to operational challenges, significant competition and regulation; risks associated with the possibility of ProCap Financial being considered to be a “shell company” by any stock exchange on which ProCap Financial’s common stock will be listed or by the SEC, which may impact ProCap Financial’s ability to list Pubco Common Stock and restrict reliance on certain rules or forms in connection with the offering, sale or resale of securities, which could impact materially the time, cost and ability of ProCap Financial to raise capital after the closing; the outcome of any potential legal proceedings that may be instituted against ProCap Financial, ProCap BTC, CCCM or others in connection with or following announcement of the Proposed Transactions, and those risk factors discussed in documents that ProCap Financial and/or CCCM filed, or that will be filed, with the SEC, including as will be set forth in the Registration Statement to be filed with the SEC in connection with the Proposed Transactions.

The foregoing list of risk factors is not exhaustive. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of the IPO Prospectus, CCCM’s Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and CCCM’s Annual Reports on Form 10-K that will be filed by CCCM from time to time, the Registration Statement that will be filed by ProCap Financial and CCCM and the Proxy Statement/Prospectus contained therein, and other documents that have been or will be filed by CCCM and ProCap Financial from time to time with the SEC. These filings do or will identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. There may be additional risks that neither CCCM nor ProCap Financial presently know or that CCCM and ProCap Financial currently believe are immaterial that could also cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements.

Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and each of CCCM, ProCap BTC, and ProCap Financial assume no obligation and do not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise. Neither CCCM, ProCap BTC, nor ProCap Financial gives any assurance that any of CCCM, ProCap BTC or ProCap Financial will achieve their respective expectations. The inclusion of any statement in this communication does not constitute an admission by CCCM, ProCap BTC or ProCap Financial or any other person that the events or circumstances described in such statement are material.

Media Contacts

Ebony Lewkovitz

ebony@edencommunications.com

Larissa Bundziak

larissa@edencommunications.com

Dan Nash

IR@ColumbusCircleCap.com

The MIL Network –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI: Aterian Expands Presence on Mercado Libre into Chile, Colombia, and Argentina

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SUMMIT, N.J., June 25, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Aterian, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATER), a consumer products company, today announced the expansion of its presence on Mercado Libre, Latin America’s leading e-commerce platform. Building on its 2024 launch on Mercado Libre’s Mexico marketplace, Aterian began offering select products from its PurSteam, Mueller, and Squatty Potty brands on Mercado Libre’s platforms in Chile, Colombia, and Argentina during the second quarter of 2025 reflecting a continued focus on categories such as home, kitchen, and wellness.

“The expansion of our partnership with Mercado Libre advances Aterian’s long-term vision to scale our e-commerce presence beyond the U.S. to access new customers and positions us to capitalize on increasing demand in emerging e-commerce markets,” said Arturo Rodriguez, Chief Executive Officer. “While this program is still in its early stages, entering these new markets marks an important step toward building a long-term, durable brand ecosystem in Latin America. As with all our strategic expansions, we are approaching this opportunity with focus, discipline, and a long-term commitment to value creation.”

Founded in 1999, MercadoLibre, Inc. is the leading company in e-commerce and financial technology in Latin America, with operations in 18 countries. Learn more at https://mercadolibre.com/.

About Aterian, Inc.
Aterian, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATER) a consumer products company that builds and acquires leading e-commerce brands across multiple categories, including home and kitchen appliances, health and wellness, and air quality devices. The Company sells across the world’s largest online marketplaces, including Amazon, Walmart, and Target as well as its own direct-to-consumer websites. Aterian’s brands include Mueller Living, PurSteam, hOmeLabs, Squatty Potty, Healing Solutions, and Photo Paper Direct. To learn more, visit www.aterian.io.

Forward Looking Statements
All statements other than statements of historical facts included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that we expect, believe or anticipate will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements including, in particular, our ability to expand our operations internationally and access new customers. These forward-looking statements are based on management’s current expectations and beliefs and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties and other factors, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond our control and could cause actual results to differ materially and adversely from those described in the forward-looking statements. These risks include, but are not limited to, those related to our ability to continue as a going concern, the effect of tariffs and other costs on our results, our ability to continue to operate following our reduction in workforce, our ability to meet financial covenants with our lenders, our ability to maintain and to grow market share in existing and new product categories; our ability to continue to profitably sell the SKUs we operate; our ability to maintain Amazon’s Prime badge on our seller accounts or reinstate the Prime badge in the event of any removal of such badge by Amazon; our ability to create operating leverage and efficiency when integrating companies that we acquire, including through the use of our team’s expertise, the economies of scale of our supply chain and automation driven by our platform; those related to our ability to grow internationally and through the launch of products under our brands and the acquisition of additional brands; those related to consumer demand, our cash flows, financial condition, forecasting and revenue growth rate; our supply chain including sourcing, manufacturing, warehousing and fulfillment; our ability to manage expenses, working capital and capital expenditures efficiently; our business model and our technology platform; our ability to disrupt the consumer products industry; our ability to generate profitability and stockholder value; international tariffs and trade measures; inventory management, product liability claims, recalls or other safety and regulatory concerns; reliance on third party online marketplaces; seasonal and quarterly variations in our revenue; acquisitions of other companies and technologies and our ability to integrate such companies and technologies with our business; our ability to continue to access debt and equity capital (including on terms advantageous to the Company) and the extent of our leverage; and other factors discussed in the “Risk Factors” section of our most recent periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), all of which you may obtain for free on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

Although we believe that the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements are reasonable, we do not know whether our expectations will prove correct. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof, even if subsequently made available by us on our website or otherwise. We do not undertake any obligation to update, amend or clarify these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

Investor Contact:

The Equity Group
Devin Sullivan, Managing Director
dsullivan@theequitygroup.com

Conor Rodriguez, Associate
crodriguez@theequitygroup.com

The MIL Network –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI China: China ready to work with other BRICS countries for peace, stability in Middle East: FM spokesperson

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

China is ready to join hands with other BRICS countries to continue working for a peaceful and stable Middle East, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Brazil, the BRICS chair, released the BRICS Joint Statement on the Escalation of the Security Situation in the Middle East Following Military Strikes on the Territory of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

In response to a related query, spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a daily news briefing that BRICS is a force for progress that champions global peace and stability and defends international fairness and justice.

Following the escalation of the situation in the Middle East, BRICS released a joint statement calling for ceasefire, dialogue and consultation, which played a constructive role for deescalation of tensions in the region, Guo said.

At last year’s BRICS Summit in Kazan, Chinese President Xi Jinping noted that BRICS should be “committed to peace” and “act as defenders of common security,” Guo said, adding China stands ready to work with other BRICS countries to continue working for a peaceful and stable Middle East.

MIL OSI China News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI China: Feature: Chinese lychee, a sweet story in Mexico

Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News

While China is going deep into summer, Mexico enters the rainy season of the year. In breaks of showery days, crowds hit the streets for sunshine and a sweet fruit from China — lychee.

For many visitors to Mexico, lychee is something they don’t expect to see here. Meanwhile, the sweet, fleshy fruit has become a popular item on Mexican households’ seasonal grocery lists.

Few know that lychee trees have grown in Mexico for over a century. In the late 19th century, hundreds of Chinese workers migrated to Mexico, and many settled in Sinaloa. Local legend says the first of the lychee trees the migrants cultivated with seeds taken from their homeland was gifted to Sinaloa’s governor.

In an evolution journey starting from the Chinese lychee seeds, commercial farming didn’t take off until the 1970s in Mexico. After that, the seasonal fruit took no long time to find its way into the daily life of Mexicans. Liliana, a 37-year-old Mexican engineer, said: “They’ve always been a special treat in our home” every year since her childhood.

The lychee plantation industry in Mexico now spans 13 states, including Veracruz, Puebla and Oaxaca. In 2023, official data showed Mexico produced more than 26,000 tons of lychee fruits, largely going for the North American market.

On U.S. grocery platforms, lychee fruits command a premium price but continue to gain popularity. “Not as sweet as last year’s, but still the best I can find in the U.S. market,” one online reviewer wrote. “The season is short, just a few weeks. Worth savoring while it lasts.”

The Mexican story of the lychee mirrors the story of migration — of roots transplanted; of tastes carried across oceans. In markets from Los Angeles to Merida, the lychee is both about exotic appeal and homesick comfort.

“I was born and raised in Guangzhou, capital of China’s Guangdong Province,” said Zhang Tieliu from the Chinese American Business Association. “I later moved across the ocean for work. The U.S. doesn’t grow lychees, but for us Chinese living in North America, that taste of home is something we truly miss.”

And the modern lychee story overseas involves more.

“Over the years, I dreamed of bringing this jewel of South China’s fruits to the American market,” Zhang said.

“Thanks to breakthroughs in preservation and logistics by Chinese companies and universities, we’ve finally made that dream a reality — Guangdong lychees now carry their fragrance all the way to North America.”

Cold-chain technology is accelerating the lychee’s global reach. Pre-cooling and freshness-locking methods have helped overcome previous barriers in its trade, facilitating its rise in sales in recent years in the international fresh fruit market. From the plantations of Maoming City, Guangdong Province, lychee fruits can now reach destinations in the Middle East and Europe within three days.

Even today, lychees in Mexican supermarkets aren’t quite what a southern Chinese native remembers. They vary in size, sweetness and fleshiness. Yet spotting them on shelves is still a moment of recognition, a thread between homes, while the fruit continues to bear sweetness for generations to come.

And so, the lychee continues to bloom far from its native soil, as a living bridge between continents, past and present.

In Latin America, lychee is seen as a luxury fruit outside Mexico. In Panama, it is called “chirimoya china” to indicate its origin and exotic flavor. Brazil has thousands of hectares of lychee orchards and is still expanding its cultivation area.

MIL OSI China News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: NEWS: Sanders Releases New Report Detailing Devastating Impact of Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” on Health Care in America

US Senate News:

Source: United States Senator for Vermont – Bernie Sanders
WASHINGTON, June 25 – As Senate Republicans attempt to ram through legislation to cut health care for 16 million Americans in order to give tax breaks to billionaires without a single hearing or substantive debate, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, today released a new report detailing how Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill” would create a national health care emergency, drawing on responses from more than 750 health care providers across 47 states and the District of Columbia.
Specifically, the report finds that the bill would increase the number of uninsured Americans in every state in the country and nearly double the uninsured rate in some states — including Florida, Louisiana, Massachusetts and Washington. The legislation would kick 19 people off their health insurance for every millionaire household that receives a tax cut. The full state-by-state analysis of how uninsured rates will skyrocket available here.
“This report makes it abundantly clear that the reconciliation bill that Republicans are attempting to ram through the Senate this week would be a death sentence for working-class and low-income Americans throughout the country,” Sanders said. “Not only would this disastrous and deeply immoral bill throw 16 million people off of their health care and lead to over 50,000 unnecessary deaths every year, it would create a national health care emergency in America. It would devastate rural hospitals, community health centers and nursing homes throughout in our country and cause a massive spike in uninsured rates in red states and blue states alike. That’s not Bernie Sanders talking. That is precisely what doctors, health care providers and hospitals have told us.”
Earlier this month, Sanders, alongside every Democratic member of the HELP Committee, sent a letter to committee Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-La.) urging him to schedule hearings with patients and health care providers to hear about the legislation’s disastrous impact on the health and well-being of the American people and markup this bill before it reaches the Senate floor for consideration. Cassidy declined.
In today’s report, Sanders asked health care providers across the country to share what the bill would mean for their patients. Here are some of the responses from health care providers:
A doctor in Texas — where the uninsured rate will reach 20%, the highest in the U.S. — said, “These cuts will cause rural hospitals in Texas to close entirely. As a neurologist, I am terrified that the closest hospital for many rural folks may then be hours away. During an ischemic stroke, there is only 3 hours of precious time . . . the increased travel time may cause unnecessary cases of paralysis and death.”
A doctor from Florida — where the uninsured rate will surge to almost 19% — said, “Plainly said, children will die as a result of these cuts. Hospitals will cut back on ICU doctors, doctors will leave because of salary cuts, critical ancillary services will be reduced, more medical students will avoid going into pediatric residencies.”
A rural health group from Louisiana — where the uninsured rate will nearly double to over 12% — said, “Louisiana’s rural hospitals and healthcare providers are already operating on razor-thin margins, struggling to keep their doors open while serving some of our most medically vulnerable communities. In Louisiana, 38% of hospitals operate on negative margins and 27% are currently vulnerable to closure. Medicaid cuts would worsen these losses, putting more hospitals at risk of shutting down entirely.” Another doctor from Louisiana added: “If Medicaid is cut, my patients will die. I realize I am being dramatic. It is a dramatic situation.”
A social worker from South Carolina — where the uninsured rate will reach over 13% — said, “These changes would dramatically increase the administrative burden on our care team. We would likely need to hire at least 1–2 full-time administrative staff just to track patient eligibility, navigate complex documentation requirements, and assist families with enrollment or appeals. This would divert already limited funding away from clinical care and impose new costs on our department.”
A doctor working at a community health center in Missouri – where the uninsured rate will increase to over 10% — said, “We may not be able to keep the doors open. We would potentially have to stop caring for many of our patients.”
A doctor from Ohio — where the uninsured rate will rise to over 9% — said, “If the proposed bill is passed and [my patients’] Medicaid insurance is cut, it doesn’t mean their asthma will go away. It will mean that in most cases they will not receive preventative care, and as a result, their asthma will worsen . . . . Worse yet, they would be seen in the emergency room more often and admitted to the hospital. This care is more expensive, and less effective, than preventative care, and some children will die of their asthma.”
The CEO of a hospital in Idaho — where the uninsured rate will rise to over 10% — said, “Our margin last year was -31%, burning through cash to see patients, the majority of whom are on Medicare or Medicaid. If they lose Medicaid, we’ll still take care of them because that’s what we do, but the bills won’t get paid.”
“We cannot allow Republicans to take health care away from 16 million Americans in order to pay for more tax breaks to billionaires,” Sanders concluded. “As the Ranking Member of the HELP Committee, I will do everything that I can to see that it is defeated. Health care must be a human right for all, not a privilege for the wealthy few.”
Read the report here.
Read estimates of the increase in uninsured rates by state here and below.

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI Canada: Parliamentary Secretary Fortier to participate in General Assembly of Organization of American States

Source: Government of Canada News (2)

June 24, 2025 – Ottawa, Ontario – Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs, today announced that the Honourable Mona Fortier, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, will attend the 55th Regular Session of the General Assembly of the Organization of American States (OAS) in Saint John’s, Antigua and Barbuda, from June 25 to 27, 2025.

During the session, Parliamentary Secretary Fortier will deliver Canada’s national statement. She will also engage in discussions with heads of delegations to emphasize the value of regional collaboration on key priorities such as safeguarding democratic institutions; upholding human rights; advancing health, including mental health; and promoting gender equality, inclusion and diversity.

Parliamentary Secretary Fortier will advance Canada’s ongoing contributions to international efforts to address the humanitarian and security challenges in Haiti. She will also highlight the deteriorating human rights situations and democratic backsliding in Venezuela and Nicaragua.

MIL OSI Canada News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: A ‘Blueprint for Mass Cybercrime’
Source: US State of Connecticut

A sweeping and deeply concerning leak of internet user credentials is making headlines around the globe, with cybersecurity analysts confirming that more than 16 billion usernames and passwords have been compromised in what’s being called the largest credential compilation ever discovered online.

Although many of us have been desensitized to data breaches, this appears to be a much more sophisticated concentration of effort and information.

This sprawling dataset has reportedly been compiled from more than 30 major data breaches and malware operations, includes logins to Apple, Facebook, Google, Telegram, GitHub, government portals, and countless other platforms.

Stephen Fitzgerald (contributed photo)

Unlike outdated credential dumps often circulated on the dark web, this breach appears to be fresh, well-organized, and primed for exploitation. Different from a singular, high-profile breach, this leak is a curated amalgamation of stolen credentials gathered through various types of infostealer malware—malicious programs that quietly harvest passwords, cookies, tokens, and session data from infected devices.

The scale is staggering. Some of the individual datasets within the leak contain over 3.5 billion records; others range in the tens or hundreds of millions. While some overlap is expected, the sheer volume represents an expansive threat surface for both individuals and institutions.

Cybersecurity researchers warn that this is not just another recycled breach. It is a “blueprint for mass cybercrime” as threat actors can use the stolen credentials to launch phishing attacks, hijack accounts, or impersonate users across platforms. Many sophisticated campaigns require many different data points and accounts to be successful, and the discovery of a trove of information of this magnitude opens up possibilities previously thought unrealistic.

Why It Matters

It’s not just old data: Many of the credentials appear recently stolen and remain usable—posing an immediate threat.

It spans nearly every major platform: Apple, Facebook, Google, Telegram, developer tools, and even government systems are implicated. If you’ve reused a password in the past few years, you could be at risk.

A Need for Vigilance

This incident underscores the evolving nature of cyber threats. Even without a direct breach of one’s account, malware can silently compromise login data and sell or release it in bulk. It is uncommon to know that an account’s information has been compromised before a breach happens; this should be considered a rare but welcome early warning for us all.

Institutions rely on the diligence of the entire community to build a strong culture of security. Whether you’re a student accessing HuskyCT, a faculty member conducting research, or a staff member handling sensitive administrative information, credential protection is a shared responsibility.

As students in the Analytics and Information Management (AIM) major in the UConn School of Business know, IT security is a multidimensional field that relies on people, processes, and technology. To help satisfy student curiosity in the growing field of cybersecurity, our curricula include an IT Security concentration for majors and an Information Assurance minor for those outside of the major. For those interested in brushing up on their personal security, you can find suggestions below.

What You Can Do Right Now

Everyone should take proactive steps to safeguard their information. Here’s what you can do immediately:
- Reset passwords—especially for anything sensitive such as email, banking, and privileged accounts.
- Create long, unique passwords—aim for at least 16 characters using a mix of letters, numbers, and symbols. Use a phrase instead of a word to help you remember it!
- Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) on every account that supports it.
- Consider using passkeys or a trusted password manager to generate and store complex credentials securely.
- Check if your credentials were exposed using free services like https://haveibeenpwned.com/Passwords or Google’s Password Checkup.
  1. Note: haveibeenpwned is a trusted source in the security community, but if you are skeptical then you are exercising appropriate scrutiny!
- Stay alert—watch for unfamiliar login attempts, password reset emails you didn’t request, or strange behavior on your accounts.
People are (and likely always will be) the weakest link in security, but this is an opportunity for us all to prevent a future data breach, solidify our own security, and to collectively strengthen our community against malicious actors.

Stephen Fitzgerald is the Academic Director of the Analytics and Information Management (AIM) Program at the School of Business. He previously worked as a learning and development consultant at Evisions and as a risk assurance professional at PwC.

The AIM program (formerly MIS) is part of the Operations and Information Management Department at the School of Business. This fast-growing major preparing students with managing information and technology to drive business performance. The AIM program’s Information Security course is part of the foundation of the program.

MIL OSI USA News –
June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: UConn Magazine: The Ace

Source: US State of Connecticut

For most of the year, UConn teams dominate the sports headlines throughout Connecticut. But that changes in mid-June, when the PGA Tour comes to town for the Travelers Championship, played at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell.

The roots of the tournament date back to 1952. Then known as the Insurance City Open, the 1956 title went to a young golfer named Arnold Palmer. Today, as a Signature Event on the PGA Tour, it attracts the best players in the world, with an annual prize pool of $20 million — and as one of the top attended golf events in the country, raises millions of dollars each year for Connecticut charities. So you might be surprised to hear that it almost disappeared in the early 2000s due to a lack of corporate sponsorship.

Travelers stepped up to save the day, led by executive vice president and chief administrative officer Andy Bessette ’75 (CLAS). Since the beginning of the company’s title sponsorship, he has partnered with tournament director Nathan Grube to deliver one of the best stops on the tour. A member of the UConn Board of Trustees, Bessette was a four-time All-American hammer thrower for UConn track and field. A record-setting win in the 1980 Olympic track and field trials earned him a spot on the 1980 U.S. Olympic team, and later that summer, he received the Congressional Gold Medal for his patriotism in supporting the boycott of the Moscow Olympic Games.

“As a world-class athlete, you learn quickly that if you accept the status quo, if you accept where you are skill-wise and competitively, then you are going to go backwards,” Bessette told us on the eve of last year’s Travelers Championship from the clubhouse at TPC River Highlands. “You never ever stop trying to get better. That is what our rallying cry about the tournament has been for the past 20 years. We have a show for one week, but we work all year to plan to get everything right. And part of the week is taking a look around and making a list of things we can improve on for next year’s tournament.”

Read on for more.

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI USA: Athletic Trainer Employment in High Schools Associated with Fewer Fatalities and Injuries

Source: US State of Connecticut

One of the scariest moments in sports is when an athlete experiences a health emergency like heat stroke or cardiac arrest on the field.

Athletic trainers are medical professionals specially trained to identify and treat these kinds of emergencies quickly and with lifesaving results.

A growing body of research demonstrates the importance of having athletic trainers employed in high schools, including two new papers by researchers from the Korey Stringer Institute (KSI), housed in the College of Agriculture, Health and Natural Resources.

“Athletic trainers are unique in that they’re trained in recognition, prevention, and response to emergency, potentially catastrophic injuries in sport,” says Rebecca Stearns, associate professor-in-residence of kinesiology and KSI’s chief operating officer.

Aleksis Grace, a PhD candidate at UConn and director of sports safety at KSI, is the lead author on a paper highlighting that among schools that employed athletic trainers, there was more survival in cases where athletes experienced an exertional heat stroke event.

This work will be presented at the National Athletic Trainers’ Association (NATA) Conference in Florida in this week.

Grace and the other researchers looked at data from 2015-2021, which included 21 events.

Of the 13 cases in which an athletic trainer was employed, only five cases were fatal. In the six cases where an athletic trainer was not employed at the school, all six were fatal.

In the other two cases, the researchers could not confirm if an athletic trainer was employed at the time of the incident.

The study of exertional heat stroke in student athletes is becoming even more important as climate change is making summers, when football players are in preseason training, hotter. This time and this sport, which requires heavy padding, has the greatest risk for exertional heat stroke.

Despite the known risks and benefits, more than one third of U.S. high schools do not employ athletic trainers.

“Ensuring the athletic trainer is employed and that there is appropriate healthcare when there is the highest risk is a good way for schools to avoid liability and for there to be better outcomes from the prevention aspect, or if the event occurs, [the athlete] is potentially less likely to die,” Grace says.

The researchers also found that more socially disadvantaged schools were less likely to employ an athletic trainer.

The researchers defined socially disadvantaged schools as those that are further from a level 1 trauma center, have a higher proportion of students receiving free or reduced lunch, and a higher social deprivation index score.

“There was a trend where we can say there was more survival in the schools that had athletic trainers,” Grace says. “But when you look at markers of social disadvantage, the lower socioeconomic status schools were the ones less likely to have an athletic trainer.”

Another paper, led by Erin Shore, a PhD candidate at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill who is affiliated with the National Center for Catastrophic Sport Injury Research (NCCSIR) program, demonstrates an association between employment of an athletic trainer and lower rates of fatalities or permanent disability following a catastrophic injury. KSI is a member of the NCCSIR network.

This paper was presented at the SAVIR 2025 Annual Conference in New York in April and NATA Conference earlier this week.

The researchers used a national database of catastrophic injuries, which included non-concussion brain injuries, spinal injuries, or cardiac arrest, from 2013 to 2021 and compared that with a database of athletic trainer employment.

In general, among schools that employed an athletic trainer, there were fewer disabling or fatal injuries among athletes who experienced a catastrophic injury.

They found that this trend was true, regardless of race and ethnicity.

“Racially and ethnically minoritized individuals in the U.S. have less access to healthcare and worse health outcomes in general,” Shore says. “So, I was just curious to see if those disparities panned out in the athletic injury world as well.”

Among schools that employed an athletic trainer, 40% of catastrophic incidents led to fatalities or permanent disabilities among white students and 48% among non-white students.

There were much more significant differences in outcomes for both groups when there was no athletic trainer employed.

For non-white students, 67% of these catastrophic injuries were fatal or disabling. This rate was only 54% for white students.

While the researchers cannot say definitively from this study why this association exists, it points toward future avenues for continued research.

“Surveillance, in the realm of study design, can point out things we need to look at further,” Kristen Kucera, UNC professor of exercise and sport science and NCCSIR director, says. “I think this is a good example of how important this information is to be able to investigate these kinds of questions.”

This work relates to CAHNR’s Strategic Vision areas focused on Enhancing Health and Promoting Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Justice.

Follow UConn CAHNR on social media

MIL OSI USA News –

June 26, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Plans for UK to become sustainable finance capital of the world
Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

Press release

Plans for UK to become sustainable finance capital of the world

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband outlines plans to support banks and large companies in developing climate transition plans.
Government welcomes views on supporting banks and large companies to set out their climate transition plans

Energy Secretary announces plans will “help unlock billions in clean energy investment” and grow the economy

delivers on commitment to make the UK the “sustainable finance capital of the world” as part of the Plan for Change

To help “unlock billions in clean energy investment”, the Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has today outlined plans to support banks and large companies in developing climate transition plans when addressing the Climate and Innovation Forum as part of London Climate Action Week (25 June).

The UK is consistently ranked first in the world for sustainable finance, and 70% of FTSE 100 companies have already voluntarily developed many of the key elements of a transition plan. Widespread transition planning will help provide long-term certainty and clarity to help scale the sustainable finance industry as part of our modern industrial policy.

The government’s clean energy superpower mission is already delivering economic growth, with net zero sectors growing 3 times faster than the overall economy last year, according to CBI Economics. Since July, over £40 billion of private investment has also been announced into the UK’s clean energy industries – creating good jobs for working people and driving long-term growth.

As part of the government’s Plan for Change, the government wants to help stimulate billions of pounds a year of private investment to deliver the government’s clean energy superpower mission and make the UK the “sustainable finance capital of the world”.

To support this growth, the government will take forward recommendations from last year’s Transition Finance Market Review to consult on transition plan requirements in order to catalyse the growing transition finance market. The design of any future transition plan requirements will be aligned with the Prime Minister’s commitment to reduce regulatory compliance costs by 25%.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said:

This government is determined to make the UK the sustainable finance capital of the world as we seize the huge economic opportunities provided by clean energy.

Through our clean energy superpower mission and industrial strategy, we can win this global race and accelerate investment into these sectors – growing the economy, turbocharging the transition to net zero and delivering on our Plan for Change.

Our plans will transform our leading financial services sector into a global hub for green investment.

Minister for Competition and Markets Justin Madders said:

We want to work with businesses to develop a “common sense” sustainable reporting framework that is transparent, clear and proportionate for those investing in the UK.

These measures will enhance competition in the sustainability assurance sector, helping to deliver on our Plan for Change and kickstart economic growth.

Rt Hon Lord Alok Sharma KCMG, Chair of the UK Transition Finance Council said:

A clear message from the Transition Finance Market Review was that high quality disclosure and information are vital for investors and a pre-condition to a flourishing sustainable and transition finance market.

I therefore very much welcome the government taking forward recommendations from the Review to consult on corporate transition plan requirements.

The UK can become the pre-eminent global financial centre for raising transition finance, but this is a time-limited opportunity, and that is why it will be vital to move quickly from consultation to implementation.

The government is publishing 3 consultations on:

how to take forward the government’s commitment on transition planning to support the market to invest in sectors that will deliver the clean energy superpower mission

new UK Sustainability Reporting Standards to provide clear, comparable information for investors on sustainability related financial risks and opportunities to enable them to make informed investment decisions

the development of a voluntary registration regime for the providers of assurance of sustainability reporting, supporting growth in this important sector

Transition planning means businesses set out a roadmap that outlines how they intend to adapt and transform their operations, strategies, and business models to align with their climate goals.

This is a vital part of the government’s commitment to secure Britain’s position as the sustainable finance capital of the world and will help businesses and investors seize the opportunities from the clean energy transition.

A recent survey of financial institutions conducted by South Pole found that 84% of UK-based financial institutions find companies with transition plans more attractive to invest in.

Supporting British industry and creating good, skilled jobs up and up down the country is core to the government’s industrial strategy and plan to grow the economy, ensuring businesses can take advantage of the transition to new low carbon technologies as they reduce their emissions. This will allow UK industry to remain competitive globally and support the millions of manufacturing jobs in regions across the UK – as well as future-proofing existing sectors, and increasing economic resilience to climate impacts.

Alistair Phillips-Davies, Chief Executive at SSE plc said:

SSE has long been a firm supporter of credible, transparent transition planning. As an early adopter of climate transition plans, we’ve seen first-hand how they can build investor confidence and accelerate progress toward net zero.

We welcome the UK Government’s ambition to become the sustainable finance capital of the world and fully support the work of the Transition Plan Taskforce and the Transition Finance Market Review.

As the UK’s clean energy champion, we want to see the UK remain the best place in the world to attract transition finance and deliver the investment needed for a just and ambitious energy transition.

Rachel Solomon Williams, Executive Director of the Aldersgate Group, said:

The Aldersgate Group welcomes today’s announcement as a significant step forward in creating a first-in-class green regulatory framework.

Using the feedback from these consultations to develop clear financial guardrails will help strengthen the transparency, interoperability, and credibility of climate-related financial disclosures. This is essential to support the measures in the government’s Modern Industrial Strategy, unlocking private sector investment in the UK’s low carbon economy.

We are particularly pleased to see the consultation on how best to take forward the government’s commitment on transition planning. Climate transition plans are a vital tool to help real economy companies integrate climate into strategic and operational decision-making, while also enabling financial institutions to align capital allocation, stewardship, and risk management with the transition to net zero.

James Alexander, CEO of UK Sustainable Investment and Finance Association (UKSIF), said:

We welcome the government’s commitment to bringing forward the consultation on climate transition plans for banks and large companies. These are essential for enhancing growth and global competitiveness as the UK and other countries decarbonise.

Further dialogue between the government and industry on the UK Sustainability Reporting Standards is also very encouraging. We look forward to ministers taking forward these commitments, which will help future-proof our economy over the coming years.

Heather McKay, Programme Lead, UK Sustainable and Resilient Finance at E3G, said:

The delivery of the government’s growth mission relies on ensuring Britain is a world-class destination for green and transition finance.

The clean economy is our ticket to a high-growth future, and credible transition plans – as part of a future-fit regulatory regime – are fundamental to unlocking the investment required to seize this opportunity.

The release of this highly anticipated consultation package is a welcome step towards turning this vision into reality.

Claudine Blamey, Chief Sustainability Officer at Aviva, said:

We welcome this consultation as an important next step in understanding how transition planning is rolled out across the UK economy, helping businesses understand the steps needed to transition, supporting a greener, more prosperous future.

Andrew Ninian, Director for Stewardship, Risk and Tax at the Investment Association, said:

We want the UK to remain at the forefront of sustainable finance. Ensuring that reporting standards are focused on the issues that impact the financial performance of companies is vital to achieve this.

Transition planning should enable investors to understand how climate risks and opportunities affect a company’s value and how they are adapting their business strategy to reduce their climate impact, in order to provide a sustainable future and grow the UK economy.

International comparability is also key, and with companies already preparing for reporting in line with ISSB, endorsing the standards will allow investors in UK companies to fully understand their long-term sustainability risks and simplify reporting expectations in the UK and globally.

Ian Bhullar, Director, Sustainability Policy, UK Finance said:

The financial services industry backs proportionate, internationally aligned sustainability reporting. Many firms have already published transition plans and use their customers’ plans to make low-carbon financing decisions.

Better reporting by a range of companies will provide information that lenders and investors can use to increase green finance flows. UK Finance welcomes these consultations and will work with government to ensure they support growth in the UK economy.

Faith Ward, Chief RI Officer, Brunel Pension Partnership said:

I hugely welcome the HMG announcements today. Having been deeply involved in supporting the International Sustainability Standards Board and Transition Plan Taskforce, I am delighted to see the UK take this vital step to regain its leadership role as global centre for green finance.

Investors want to allocate capital to growing businesses that are taking action to address climate and sustainability risks – and that are looking to business opportunities so that they deliver financially over the long term. They need globally consistent reporting on climate and sustainability actions, alongside critical insights into corporate plans for the transition.

Bruno Gardner, Head of Climate Change and Nature, Phoenix Group said:

As a long-term investor, policy developments that provide greater certainty around the net zero transition enhance the UK’s role as the leading centre of sustainable finance.

Transition plans are critical to helping investors like Phoenix Group manage the risks of climate change and direct capital towards companies that are best equipped to navigate the transition to net zero, ensuring the best outcomes for our customers.

We welcome all three consultations and the government’s engagement with the private sector, which is a significant step towards giving investors greater policy certainty and enabling us to being net-zero by 2050.

Notes to editors

DESNZ analysis of Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF) data showed that global investment into low carbon sectors amounted to £1.6 trillion in 2024, with total investment in UK low carbon sectors representing 1.8% of GDP, the second highest share within the G7.

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Updates to this page

Published 25 June 2025
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
June 26, 2025