Source: United States INDO PACIFIC COMMAND
FORT BONIFACIO, MANILA, Philippines — Philippine, U.S., Japan, Korean and United Kingdom military leaders launched KAMANDAG 9 on Monday with an opening ceremony hosted at Marine Barracks Rudiardo Brown, marking the official start of the ninth iteration of the Kaagapay ng mga Mandirigma ng Dagat (“Cooperation of Warriors of the Sea”) exercise.
Source: Hong Kong Government special administrative region
SFST promotes HK’s measures for integrating traditional and digital finance at Web Summit Vancouver
The Web Summit, a mega event for the tech sector, attracted over 10 000 tech investors, entrepreneurs and industry leaders across the world each time it is hosted. This is the first time the Summit has been held in Vancouver. Mr Hui engaged in a panel discussion session titled “Local to global: Strategies for tech success”, which was joined by the Minister of Jobs, Economic Development and Innovation of the Province of British Columbia, Canada, Ms Diana Gibson. They had an illuminating discussion on the various approaches taken in building dynamic fintech economies, ranging from developing talent, attracting investment to creating opportunities.
Mr Hui said that as one of the top three international financial centres and a leading international green finance hub, Hong Kong is pioneering the integration of traditional and digital finance with a view to strengthening its position as Asia’s gateway for financial innovation. The city is striving to accelerate green and sustainable finance and virtual asset development, with a view to making them key components of the diversified financial value chain. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has already commenced sandbox experimentation of Project Ensemble, which is a new wholesale central bank digital currency project to support the development of the tokenisation market in Hong Kong.
The fintech ecosystem is thriving in Hong Kong, with around 1 100 fintech companies and start-ups, including 10 licensed virtual asset trading platforms, eight digital banks and four virtual insurers. Pledged to continue playing a leading role in facilitating green and sustainable financing and investment for the global agenda of green transition, Hong Kong issued a policy statement last October to set out its policy stance and approach on the responsible application of artificial intelligence in the financial market. The Government also launched a roadmap last December to require publicly accountable entities (PAEs) to adopt the International Financial Reporting Standards – Sustainability Disclosure Standards (ISSB Standards) and to provide a well-defined pathway for large PAEs to fully adopt the ISSB Standards no later than 2028. This brings Hong Kong among the first jurisdictions to align its local requirements with ISSB Standards. As an initial step, the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited has already started to implement in phases new climate disclosure requirements to reflect the ISSB Standard No. 2: Climate-related Disclosures since this January.
Mr Hui also updated the Summit on the latest passage of legislation last week establishing a licensing regime for fiat-referenced stablecoins issuers in Hong Kong, as a way to further enhance Hong Kong’s regulatory framework on virtual asset activities for supporting the healthy, responsible and sustainable development of Hong Kong’s stablecoin and the broader digital asset ecosystem. Hong Kong is among the first batch of regions to have introduced stablecoin legislation and strives to fully implement the licensing regime within this year, with a view to approving the first batch of licences as soon as practicable.
Looking forward, Hong Kong will soon promulgate a second policy statement on the development of virtual assets to explore the convergence of traditional finance and virtual assets. A consultation on the licensing regimes for virtual asset over-the-counter trading services and custodian services will also be conducted within this year.
During his stay at the Summit, Mr Hui visited exhibition booths manned by Hong Kong delegates. He was pleased to learn that the Hong Kong delegates received encouraging feedback over the past few days, reflecting the world-class standard of Hong Kong fintech talent and their appeal to investors.
In the afternoon, Mr Hui paid a courtesy call to the Consul General of the People’s Republic of China in Vancouver, Mr Yang Shu. Mr Yang said Hong Kong has always been a window of the country to the world and will continue to be. He encouraged Hong Kong to keep up with its work in deepening international exchanges and co-operation.
Before concluding his visit to Canada, Mr Hui visited Bank of Montreal and met with the Senior Vice President & Head, Mid-Market, Commercial Bank, Mr Andrew Hung, and Senior Vice President & Head, BC & Yukon, Mr Greg Vriend. He told them that in a world full of geopolitical uncertainties, Hong Kong’s financial market is emerging as a risk-off haven for investors and attracting more investments owing to its connectivity with the Mainland and the world at large, bringing greater prospects for the banking sector and different financial areas.
Mr Hui will return to Hong Kong in the early hours of May 31 (Vancouver time).
Issued at HKT 9:40
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Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhuanet) — The tradition of drinking matcha originated in ancient China and was later spread to Japan. Jiangkou County in Tongren City, southwest China’s Guizhou Province, has become the world’s production center for this type of tea. In 2024 alone, the county sold more than 1,200 tons of matcha, worth over 300 million yuan (about 41.7 million U.S. dollars). The county’s products enter overseas markets including Japan, the United States and France.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
This photo taken on May 30, 2025 shows a view of the International Organization for Mediation in south China’s Hong Kong. [Photo/Xinhua]
The Global Forum on International Mediation was convened in Hong Kong on Friday, following the signing ceremony of the Convention on the Establishment of the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed) earlier.
The occasion gathered leaders of several signatory states of the Convention, heads of international organizations and multilateral institutions, experts in the field of international mediation, and other stakeholders, to delve into topics including state-to-state mediation as well as international investment and international commercial dispute mediation.
They applauded mediation’s dual focus on procedural and outcome fairness, describing it as a “win-win” alternative to adversarial legal processes. They also believed that the IOMed would fill a critical gap in global dispute-resolution mechanisms, enhancing both international governance and state-to-state collaboration.
In his keynote address, Paul Lam, secretary for justice of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) government, emphasized the principle of peaceful dispute resolution under international law, calling mediation a forward-looking and constructive approach compared to traditional litigation and arbitration.
Lam underscored the selection of Hong Kong as the court’s headquarters as a testament to its legal infrastructure, citing Hong Kong’s pool of cross-jurisdictional legal talent and track record in international dispute resolution. Hong Kong’s common law system and reputation for efficiency position it as a global hub for legal services, he said, adding that it would leverage this role to expand mediation services and attract more member states.
Indonesia’s Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs Arif Havas Oegroseno praised the convention’s timing, calling it a response to global demand for cooperative conflict resolution. He highlighted gaps in current international mechanisms and stressed the importance of a specialized body for strengthening the global legal framework. Oegroseno said Indonesia would actively participate in drafting the court’s rules and collaborate with the relevant parties to advance its mandate.
Edward Liu, the principal representative of the International Chamber of Shipping (China) Liaison Office and a partner at Haiwen & Partners LLP, described the court as a “Chinese solution” expands the focus on economic engagement to formal dispute resolution, saying that it embodies China’s philosophy of “harmony with diversity” and signals China’s commitment to global governance.
Noting Hong Kong’s unique status as a common law jurisdiction under “one country, two systems,” Liu said Hong Kong’s role as the court’s base aligns with its designation as an “Asia-Pacific international legal and dispute resolution center.”
The role as a “super-connector” and a “super value-adder” between the Chinese mainland and the rest of the world positions Hong Kong to serve both national priorities and international needs, he said.
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in Hong Kong on Friday that China is willing to work with Pakistan and like-minded countries to enhance the unique advantages of the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed).
When meeting with Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar, who attended the signing ceremony of the Convention on the Establishment of the IOMed in Hong Kong, Wang said that China is willing to work with Pakistan and other countries to provide voluntary and efficient new options for dispute settlement for all countries, and a new platform for maintaining peace, stability, fairness and justice in the global South.
Dar said that China’s initiative to establish the IOMed was timely and represented an important contribution to strengthening the multilateral system. He noted that the recent informal meeting of foreign ministers from Pakistan, China, and Afghanistan in Beijing was a success. Pakistan decided to accept China’s mediation proposal and elevate its diplomatic relations with Afghanistan to the ambassadorial level.
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that Pakistan’s move to upgrade its diplomatic ties with Afghanistan will help improve relations, enhance trust and strengthen cooperation between the two countries.
China supports Pakistan in assuming the rotating presidency of the United Nations Security Council in July and contributing to international peace and security, Wang added.
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
CALGARY, Alberta, May 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Trans Mountain Corporation (“TMC” or “the Company”) has released its financial statements and associated management report for the three months ending March 31, 2025. The Company’s financial results are also included in Canada Development Investment Corporation’s (“CDEV”) consolidated quarterly financial statements.
Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (“EBITDA”) reflect the performance of TMC’s base business. Revenues and Adjusted EBITDA have increased significantly following the commercial commencement of the Expanded System on May 1, 2024.
Financial Highlights:
Operational Highlights:
Since the commercial commencement of the Expanded System, all deliveries have been subject to the Expanded System tariff and tolls. Contractually committed revenues associated with the 15-and 20-year transportation service contracts covering approximately 80 per cent of the Expanded System’s capacity have resulted in a significant increase to transportation volumes, revenues and Adjusted EBITDA.
TMC reported net income of $148 million for the first quarter of 2025, as compared to $158 million in the same period of the prior year. While Adjusted EBITDA reflects the results from the Company’s base business, net income incorporates depreciation and amortization expense, as well as the significant financing impacts of the Trans Mountain Expansion Project (“TMEP”), specifically, the equity allowance for funds used during construction (“AFUDC”), interest expense and capitalized debt financing costs.
While net income decreased by $10 million year-over year, the underlying factors changed significantly. Interest expense before capitalized debt financing costs was materially lower, reflecting the recapitalization of TMC’s balance sheet in December 2024. However, these savings were offset by increased depreciation and amortization expense, and the cessation of equity AFUDC and capitalized debt financing costs on TMEP following the commercial commencement of the Expanded System.
CEO Comments
“Trans Mountain is demonstrating its strategic value to Canada’s economy,” said Mark Maki, Chief Executive Officer, Trans Mountain Corporation. “Our team remains focused on safe, reliable operations as we complete one year of Expanded System operations. The Expanded System has driven strong value to Canada’s energy producers and Canadians overall.” Maki continued, “This critical infrastructure is opening new global markets for Canadian energy, reducing reliance on a single US market and ensuring long-term economic benefits for Canadians. These results reflect the hard work, commitment to safety and collaboration of our dedicated team.
For the three-month period ending March 31, 2025, the West Texas Intermediate to Western Canadian Select differential averaged US$13 per barrel (bbl), which was US$4 per bbl narrower than the average of US$17 per bbl in Q1, 2024. While the differential does not directly affect TMC’s operational or financial performance, the commencement of the Expanded System has contributed to greater egress optionality and improved oil prices for Canadian producers in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin,” concluded Maki.
See the full financial statements and management report documents here. See CDEV’s Quarterly Report here.
Looking Forward
Toll Hearing: TMC continues to operate under an interim toll structure currently before the Canada Energy Regulator (CER). On November 30, 2023, the CER approved preliminary interim tolls for the Expanded System, which remain in effect today. Under the current CER hearing timeline, final arguments are scheduled for late 2025.
Optimization Opportunities: Trans Mountain is exploring both short and long-term optimization projects aimed at increasing pipeline capacity by 200,000 bpd to 300,000 bpd. Potential solutions may include the use of drag-reducing agents to increase flow efficiency, as well as other operational enhancements to improve system capabilities.
Forward-looking information
This news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (“forward-looking information”). Forward-looking information is not historical fact, but instead represents the current expectations of TMC regarding future operating results and other future events relating to TMC, many of which, by their nature, are inherently uncertain and outside of the control of TMC. Forward-looking information can be identified by words or phrases such as “will”, “may”, “expect”, “anticipate”, “believe”, “intend”, “plan”, “seek”, “aim”, “potential”, “should”, “would” and similar words or expressions. Forward-looking information in this news release includes, but is not limited to, expectations regarding future distributions, potential uses of funds resulting from lower interest costs, expected timing for final arguments for the current CER hearing, potential optimization projects and the expected increase in pipeline capacity resulting from such projects. the opening of global markets for Canadian energy and long-term economic benefits resulting from TMC’s infrastructure. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking information. The forward-looking information in this news release is based on certain assumptions that TMC has made regarding, among other things: market conditions, economic conditions, prevailing governmental policies, regulatory, tax, and environmental laws and regulations, inflation rates and commodity prices, future demand for space on TMC’s pipeline systems, interest, tax and foreign exchange rates and expected cash flows and availability of funds. Although TMC believes the assumptions and other factors reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable as of the date hereof, there can be no assurance that these assumptions and factors will prove to be correct and, as such, forward-looking information is not a guarantee of future performance. Forward-looking information is subject to a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or results to differ materially, including, but not limited to: the regulatory environment and decisions, including the outcome of regulatory hearings, the available supply and price of energy commodities, TMC’s ability to successfully implement its strategic priorities, the operating performance of TMC’s pipelines and related assets, performance and credit risk of TMC’s counterparties, the geopolitical environment, actions taken by governmental or regulatory authorities, changes in laws, the occurrence of unexpected events such as fires and severe weather conditions, cyber-attacks and other accidents or similar events and adverse general economic and market conditions or other risk factors, many of which are beyond the control of TMC. The foregoing list of assumptions and risk factors should not be construed as exhaustive. The forward-looking information contained in this news release speaks only as of the date hereof. TMC does not undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking information contained herein, except as required by applicable laws. All forward looking information contained in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.
GAAP and Non-GAAP measures
We make use of certain financial measures that do not have a standardized meaning under U.S. GAAP because we believe they improve management’s ability to evaluate our operating performance and compare results between periods. These are known as non-GAAP measures and may not be similar to measures provided by other entities. The non-GAAP measures discussed above should not be considered as an alternative to or more meaningful than revenues, net income, operating income or other U.S. GAAP measures. Adjusted EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization and equity AFUDC) is a non-GAAP measure we use to evaluate our operating performance and is calculated from its most directly comparable U.S. GAAP measure, operating income but excludes the impact of financing decisions, non-cash depreciation and amortization, and non-cash equity AFUDC.
AFUDC (Allowance for Funds Used During Construction) is an amount recognized under U.S. GAAP by rate-regulated entities to reflect a return on the equity and debt components of capital invested in construction work in progress.
About Trans Mountain
Trans Mountain Corporation (together with its wholly-owned subsidiaries, “Trans Mountain”) operates Canada’s only pipeline system transporting oil products to the West Coast. Trans Mountain is a wholly owned entity of Canada TMP Finance Ltd., a subsidiary of Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV), the entity which holds the Government of Canada’s investment in TMC. We have nominal capacity to deliver 890,000 barrels of petroleum products each day through a pipeline system of more than 1,180 kilometres of pipeline in Alberta, British Columbia and 111 kilometres of pipeline in Washington state. Trans Mountain also operates a state-of-the-art loading facility, Westridge Marine Terminal, with three berths providing tidewater access to global markets. As a federal Crown corporation, Trans Mountain continues to build on more than 70 years of experience delivering operational and safety excellence through our crude oil pipeline system. To learn more, visit us at www.transmountain.com.
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for New Mexico Martin Heinrich
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Ranking Member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, sent a letter inviting U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz to visit the Upper Pecos Watershed in Northern New Mexico and hear from local leaders, Tribes, community members, farmers, business owners, and recreationists about the importance of protecting the Upper Pecos Watershed from new mining operations.
“For decades, the community in the Upper Pecos Watershed of New Mexico has been united in an effort to protect the river basin from the very real threat of mine waste pollution. Everyone in the community can agree that the Pecos River is an invaluable lifeline. With headwaters in Northern New Mexico, the Pecos supports a wide range of uses from recreation and agriculture to traditional use by the Pueblos in the area. Unfortunately, this region has a history of poorly managed mining projects,”Heinrich wrote to U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz.
“The area is still recovering from a devastating 1991 mine spill, which threatened the health and economic survival in the immediate community and for hundreds of miles throughout the state. Thanks to decades of hard work and millions of dollars, this watershed is once again one of the cleanest and most productive in the state – though the remediation is not complete,” Heinrich stated.
In 1991, a toxic waste spill from a closed mine in the Upper Pecos Watershed caused more than 11 miles of fish kill in the river and required a clean up effort that took decades and millions of dollars to complete. For years, there has been a community-led effort to protect the area from future mining claims to avoid similar threats and pollution.
In response to a letter sent by Heinrich and the N.M. Congressional Delegation, in December 2024, President Biden’s Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and Forest Service initiated a process to propose a 20-year withdrawal to help secure the region’s water and air quality, cultural resources, critical fish and wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities. The withdrawal, for lands in San Miguel and Santa Fe counties, encompassed multiple Pecos River tributaries, including Dalton Canyon, Macho Canyon, Wild Horse Creek, Indian Creek, and Doctor Creek.
On December 16, 2024, the BLM and Forest Service initiated a 90-day public comment period to gather input on the proposal. During the comment period, the two agencies were scheduled to host a public meeting for the proposed Upper Pecos River Watershed Protection Area withdrawal on February 26, 2025. This public meeting was cancelled by the Trump Administration on February 19, 2025, with no further explanation. Despite the cancellation, the Administration received hundreds of public comments in support of the mineral withdrawal.
On April 7, 2025, reporting from Source New Mexico revealed the Trump Administration plans to reverse the BLM and the Forest Service’s decision to protect the Upper Pecos Watershed from new mining operations.
“I am concerned by the Forest Service’s decision to reverse the temporary protection and discontinue the process for a longer-term withdrawal. This decision was made without proper community engagement or review of the hundreds of positive comments that were submitted during the public comment period,” Heinrich continued in his letter to Chief Schultz.
In response to the Trump Administration’s reversal, Heinrich reintroduced his Pecos Watershed Protection Act to permanently withdraw all federally managed minerals in the watershed from development — preventing the leasing, patent, or sale of all publicly owned minerals.
To continue the effort to protect the Pecos, Heinrich invited Chief Schultz at the end of his letter, writing, “I would like to extend an invitation to you to visit New Mexico and the Pecos area so you can hear firsthand from local leaders, Tribes, community members, farmers, business owners, recreationists, and others while experiencing the beauty of this watershed. While there, you can see why this river is so valuable and witness the very real threat of mining pollution that still exists.”
At the end of his letter, Heinrich included invitations to Chief Schultz from local and Tribal leaders that show the widespread community support for permanently protecting the Pecos.
Read the community letter from over 20 local leaders and members of the Hispanic Conservation Leadership Council here.
Read the invitation from the Pueblo of Jemez here.
Read the invitation from the Pueblo of Tesuque here.
Read Heinrich’s full letter here and below:
Dear Chief Schultz:
For decades, the community in the Upper Pecos Watershed of New Mexico has been united in an effort to protect the river basin from the very real threat of mine waste pollution. Everyone in the community can agree that the Pecos River is an invaluable lifeline. With headwaters in Northern New Mexico, the Pecos supports a wide range of uses from recreation and agriculture to traditional use by the Pueblos in the area. Unfortunately, this region has a history of poorly managed mining projects. The area is still recovering from a devastating 1991 mine spill, which threatened the health and economic survival in the immediate community and for hundreds of miles throughout the state. Thanks to decades of hard work and millions of dollars, this watershed is once again one of the cleanest and most productive in the state – though the remediation is not complete.
To New Mexicans who are facing a threat to their way of life and cultural heritage, there is no doubt that this area should be permanently protected. The spill in 1991 left scars on the landscape and with those who depend on the river. We celebrated when the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management announced last year that they would be pursuing a 20-year mineral withdrawal in the basin. The long-overdue action by the last Administration was a major victory for the Pecos Valley.
However, I am concerned by the Forest Service’s decision to reverse the temporary protection and discontinue the process for a longer-term withdrawal. This decision was made without proper community engagement or review of the hundreds of positive comments that were submitted during the public comment period. The Administration also cancelled a public forum that would have allowed for discussion of the administrative withdrawal and demonstrated to your agency that this community is united by the beauty and health of the Pecos River.
Therefore, I would like to extend an invitation to you to visit New Mexico and the Pecos area so you can hear firsthand from local leaders, Tribes, community members, farmers, business owners, recreationists, and others while experiencing the beauty of this watershed. While there, you can see why this river is so valuable and witness the very real threat of mining pollution that still exists.
I am including letters and invites from local and tribal leaders that show the widespread support for this effort in the area. They represent just a few of many examples of community support for protecting the Pecos. Thank you for your attention to this request and I hope I can see you in New Mexico soon.
Sincerely,
Source: United States Department of Defense (video statements)
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth speaks at the Shangri-La Dialogue 2025 in Singapore, May 30, 2025 (EDT)/May 31, 2025 (Singapore). Hosted by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, the event is an opportunity to discuss the region’s most pressing security challenges and engage in important bilateral talks.
For more on the Department of Defense, visit: http://www.defense.gov
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Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
BEIJING, May 30 — China’s State Council announced on Friday that Zhou Ji was appointed director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), and national security adviser to the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the HKSAR.
Meanwhile, Zheng Yanxiong was removed from his posts as director of the Liaison Office of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR, deputy director of the State Council Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, and national security adviser to the Committee for Safeguarding National Security of the HKSAR.
Source: United States Department of Defense (video statements)
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@marines assigned to @i_marine_expeditionary_force and the Philippine Marine Corps participate in the annual exercise KAMANDAG aimed at defense and humanitarian capabilities by providing training in combined operations for the advancement of a Free and Open Indo-Pacific.
For more on the Department of Defense, visit: http://www.defense.gov
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Like the DoD on Facebook: http://facebook.com/DeptofDefense
Follow the DoD on Twitter: http://twitter.com/DeptofDefense
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Source: US Whitehouse
AMERICAN JOBS, AMERICAN STEEL.
The landmark agreement comes alongside a host of companies from across industries that are onshoring their production and investing in American manufacturing as President Trump relentlessly pursues his America First trade policies.
Look no further than the automotive industry:
It’s not just the auto industry; scores of others are lining up to invest in America:
That doesn’t even include the U.S. investments planned by foreign countries:
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Richard G. Frohling, Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and Bilal Essayli, United States Attorney for the Central District of California announced that federal grand juries in Milwaukee, WI and Los Angeles, CA each returned indictments charging two foreign nationals, Cui Guanghai, 43, of China, and John Miller, 63, of the United Kingdom and a U.S. lawful permanent resident, with interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit interstate stalking (Los Angeles) and conspiracy, smuggling, and violations of the Arms Export Control Act (Milwaukee).
“As alleged, the defendants targeted a U.S. resident for exercising his constitutional right to free speech and conspired to traffic sensitive American military technology to the Chinese regime,” said Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche. “This is a blatant assault on both our national security and our democratic values. This Justice Department will not tolerate foreign repression on U.S. soil, nor will we allow hostile nations to infiltrate or exploit our defense systems. We will act decisively to expose and dismantle these threats wherever they emerge.”
“The defendants allegedly plotted to harass and interfere with an individual who criticized the actions of the People’s Republic of China while exercising their constitutionally protected free speech rights within the United States of America,” said FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino. “The same individuals also are charged with trying to obtain and export sensitive U.S. military technology to China. I want to commend the good work of the FBI and our partners in the U.S and overseas in putting a stop to these illegal activities.”
Allegations in the Eastern District of Wisconsin
According to court documents, beginning in November 2023, Miller and Cui solicited the procurement of U.S. defense articles, including missiles, air defense radar, drones, and cryptographic devices with associated crypto ignition keys for unlawful export from the United States to the People’s Republic of China from two individuals (Individual 5 and Individual 6).
In connection with the scheme, Cui and Miller discussed with Individuals 5 and 6 ways to export a cryptographic device from the United States to the People’s Republic of China, including concealing the device in a blender, small electronics, or motor starter, and shipping the device first to Hong Kong. Cui and Miller paid approximately $10,000 as a deposit for the cryptographic device via a courier in the United States and a wire transfer to a U.S. bank account.
Allegations in the Central District of California
According to court documents, beginning in October 2023, Cui and Miller enlisted two individuals (Individual 1 and Individual 2) inside the United States to carry out a plot to prevent the Victim from protesting President Xi’s appearance at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in November 2023. The Victim had previously made public statements in opposition to the policies and actions of the PRC government and President Xi.
“The indictment alleges that Chinese foreign actors targeted a victim in our nation because he criticized the Chinese government and its president,” said U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California. “My office will continue to use all legal methods available to hold accountable foreign nationals engaging in criminal activity on our soil.”
Unbeknownst to Cui and Miller, Individual 1 and Individual 2 were affiliated with and acting at the direction of the FBI.
In the weeks leading up to the APEC summit, Cui and Miller directed and coordinated an interstate scheme to surveil the Victim, to install a tracking device on the Victim’s car, to slash the tires on the Victim’s car, and to purchase and destroy a pair of artistic statues created by the Victim depicting President Xi and President Xi’s wife.
A similar scheme took place in the spring of 2025, after the Victim announced that he planned to make public an online video feed depicting two new artistic statues of President Xi and his wife. In connection with these plots, Cui and Miller paid two other individuals (Individual 3 and Individual 4), approximately $36,500 to convince the Victim to desist from the online display of the statues. Unbeknownst to Cui and Miller, Individual 3 and Individual 4 were also affiliated with and acting at the direction of the FBI.
If convicted, Cui and Miller face the following maximum penalties: five years for conspiracy; five years for interstate stalking; twenty years for violation of the Arms Export Control Act; ten years for smuggling.
The FBI is investigating the case. The United States is coordinating with Serbian authorities regarding the pending extraditions of Cui and Miller in Serbia.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Benjamin Taibleson for the Eastern District of Wisconsin, and David Ryan and Amanda B. Elbogen for the Central District of California, along with Trial Attorneys Leslie Esbrook and Menno Goedman of the National Security Division’s Counterintelligence and Export Control Section are prosecuting the cases, with valuable assistance provided by the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
# # #
For Additional Information Contact:
Public Information Officer
414-297-1700
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
Demands Management’s Board Nominees John Medland and Emily Jameson Withdraw Immediately or Face Public Complicity in Ongoing Alleged Systemic Violations of Securities Laws
URGES SHAREHOLDERS TO VOTE THE GOLD PROXY CARD “FOR” APOLLO CAPITAL’S SIX DIRECTOR NOMINEES AND DISREGARD MEDIPHARM LABS’ GREEN PROXY CARD
TORONTO, May 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Apollo Technology Capital Corporation (“Apollo Capital”), which together with its affiliates and associates collectively is one of the largest shareholders of MediPharm Labs Corp. (TSX: LABS) (OTCQB: MEDIF) (FSE: MLZ) (“MediPharm”, “MediPharm Labs”, or the “Company”), owning approximately 3% of the Company’s common stock, today condemned MediPharm Labs and its leadership team for their blatant failure and outright refusal to answer simple, direct, and highly serious questions concerning credible allegations of alleged extensive securities act disclosure violations committed by the MediPharm Labs’ Board of Directors (the “Board”) and management team.
In a deeply troubling display of evasion and obfuscation, MediPharm Labs’ senior management and current board—including Chairman Chris Taves (Managing Director and Head of Capital Markets for Asia at BMO), CEO David Pidduck (former CEO of OxyContin® Manufacturer Purdue Pharma), Shelley Potts, Chris Halyk, Keith Strachan, and recently resigned Audit Committee Chair Michael Bumby—have persistently refused to respond meaningfully to allegations of systemic and intentional securities fraud.
Apollo Capital asks incoming MediPharm Labs Board nominees John Medland and Emily Jameson: How long will you continue standing for election to a board that consistently refuses to answer basic questions about credible allegations of securities fraud? Are you prepared to potentially permanently stain your professional reputations by associating yourselves with an entity that has been accused of deliberately evading accountability and transparency?
Apollo Capital demands immediate, straightforward answers from MediPharm’s directors to the following questions:
Has MediPharm Labs changed its revenue recognition practices from those in place two years ago?
Is any purported growth simply a result of creative accounting designed to deceive shareholders?
Given the undeniable gravity and credible evidence surrounding these allegations, Apollo Capital reiterates its urgent call for an immediate, comprehensive investigation by regulatory authorities including the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC), the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Earlier this week, Apollo Capital raised broader concerns about the current Board’s commitment to ethical conduct, asking its fellow shareholders if they felt like Chairman Chris Taves properly fulfilled his fiduciary and moral duties and obligations to make them fully aware of David Pidduck’s history as CEO and VP of Marketing for OxyContin® Manufacturer Purdue Pharma, and whether they felt like details of Pidduck’s very recent past were MATERIAL facts that Chairman Taves should have made crystal clear before asking them on multiple occasions to vote in favour of Pidduck’s outrageous and off-market compensation package.
Apollo Capital’s nominees, experienced professionals known for corporate turnarounds, have clearly outlined their mission: to root out any corporate rot, restore credibility, and return value to shareholders.
MediPharm Labs shareholders deserve accountability, transparency and competent leadership—not empty claims, evasive tactics and an almost complete destruction of investor value.
Previous Apollo Capital press releases detailing allegations of fraudulent and unethical activities at MediPharm Labs can be accessed here:
MediPharm Labs Shareholders can visit www.CureMediPharm.com, to sign up for important campaign updates.
VOTE THE GOLD PROXY CARD “FOR” APOLLO CAPITAL’S SIX DIRECTOR NOMINEES AND DISREGARD MEDIPHARM LABS’ GREEN PROXY CARD
To access Apollo Capital’s Circular and related proxy materials, including a proxy or voting instruction form, visit SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.
Contacts
For Shareholders:
Carson Proxy
North American Toll-Free Phone: 1-800-530-5189
Local or Text Message: 416-751-2066 (collect calls accepted)
E: info@carsonproxy.com
For Media:
CureMediPharm@gasthalter.com
Legal Disclosures
Information in Support of Public Broadcast Exemption under Canadian Law
In connection with the Annual Meeting, Apollo Capital has filed an amended and restated dissident information circular (the “Circular”) in compliance with applicable corporate and securities laws. Apollo Capital has provided in, or incorporated by reference into, this press release the disclosure required under section 9.2(4) of NI 51-102 – Continuous Disclosure Obligations (“NI 51-102”) and the corresponding exemption under the Business Corporations Act (Ontario), and has filed the Circular, available under MediPharm’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The Circular contains disclosure prescribed by applicable corporate law and disclosure required under section 9.2(6) of NI 51-102 in respect of Apollo Capital’s director nominees, in accordance with corporate and securities laws applicable to public broadcast solicitations. The Circular is hereby incorporated by reference into this press release and is available under MediPharm’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The registered office of the Company is 151 John Street, Barrie, Ontario, Canada L4N 2L1.
SHAREHOLDERS OF MEDIPHARM ARE URGED TO READ THE CIRCULAR CAREFULLY BECAUSE IT CONTAINS IMPORTANT INFORMATION. Investors and shareholders are able to obtain free copies of the Circular and any amendments or supplements thereto and further proxy circulars at no charge under MediPharm’s profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. In addition, shareholders are also able to obtain free copies of the Circular and other relevant documents by contacting Apollo Capital’s proxy solicitor, Carson Proxy Advisors Ltd. (“Carson Proxy”) at 1-800-530-5189, local (collect outside North America): 416-751-2066 or by email at info@carsonproxy.com.
Proxies may be revoked in accordance with subsection 110(4) of the Business Corporations Act (Ontario) by a registered shareholder of Company shares: (a) by completing and signing a valid proxy bearing a later date and returning it in accordance with the instructions contained in the accompanying form of proxy; (b) by depositing an instrument in writing executed by the shareholder or by the shareholder’s attorney authorized in writing; (c) by transmitting by telephonic or electronic means a revocation that is signed by electronic signature in accordance with applicable law, as the case may be: (i) at the registered office of the Company at any time up to and including the last business day preceding the day the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement of the Annual Meeting is to be held, or (ii) with the chair of the Annual Meeting on the day of the Annual Meeting or any adjournment or postponement of the Annual Meeting; or (d) in any other manner permitted by law. In addition, proxies may be revoked by a non-registered holder of Company shares at any time by written notice to the intermediary in accordance with the instructions given to the non-registered holder by its intermediary. It should be noted that revocation of proxies or voting instructions by a non-registered holder can take several days or even longer to complete and, accordingly, any such revocation should be completed well in advance of the deadline prescribed in the form of proxy or voting instruction form to ensure it is given effect in respect of the Annual Meeting.
The costs incurred in the preparation and mailing of any circular or proxy solicitation by Apollo Capital and any other participants named herein will be borne directly and indirectly by Apollo Capital. However, to the extent permitted under applicable law, Apollo Capital intends to seek reimbursement from the Company of all expenses incurred in connection with the solicitation of proxies for the election of its director nominees at the Annual Meeting.
This press release and any solicitation made by Apollo Capital is, or will be, as applicable, made by such parties, and not by or on behalf of the management of the Company. Proxies may be solicited by proxy circular, mail, telephone, email or other electronic means, as well as by newspaper or other media advertising and in person by managers, directors, officers and employees of Apollo Capital who will not be specifically remunerated therefor. In addition, Apollo Capital may solicit proxies by way of public broadcast, including press release, speech or publication and any other manner permitted under applicable Canadian laws, and may engage the services of one or more agents and authorize other persons to assist it in soliciting proxies on their behalf.
Apollo Capital has entered into an agreement with Carson Proxy Advisors (“Carson Proxy”) for solicitation and advisory services in connection with the solicitation of proxies for the Meeting, for which Carson Proxy will receive a fee not to exceed $250,000, together with reimbursement for reasonable and out-of-pocket expenses. Apollo Capital has also engaged Gasthalter & Co. LP (“G&Co”) to act as communications consultant to provide Apollo Capital with certain communications, public relations and related services, for which G&Co will receive a minimum fee of US$75,000 in addition to a performance fee of US$250,000 in the event that Apollo Capital’s nominees make up a majority of the Board following the Annual Meeting, plus excess fees, related costs and expenses.
No member of Apollo Capital nor any of their associates or affiliates has or has had any material interest, direct or indirect, in any transaction since the beginning of the Company’s last completed financial year or in any proposed transaction that has materially affected or will or would materially affect the Company or any of the Company’s affiliates. No member of Apollo Capital nor any of their associates or affiliates has any material interest, direct or indirect, by way of beneficial ownership of securities or otherwise, in any matter to be acted upon at the Annual Meeting, other than setting the number of directors, the election of directors, the appointment of auditors and the approval of the ordinary resolution approving, among other things, the Company’s amended and restated equity incentive plan dated May 8, 2025 and the unallocated awards available thereunder.
Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward‐looking statements. All statements contained in this filing that are not clearly historical in nature or that necessarily depend on future events are forward‐looking, and the words “anticipate,” “believe,” “expect,” “estimate,” “plan,” and similar expressions are generally intended to identify forward‐looking statements. These statements are based on current expectations of Apollo Capital and currently available information. They are not guarantees of future performance, involve certain risks and uncertainties that are difficult to predict, and are based upon assumptions as to future events that may not prove to be accurate. All forward-looking statements contained herein are made only as of the date hereof and Apollo Capital disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any such forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that subsequently occur, or of which Apollo Capital hereafter becomes aware, except as required by applicable law.
Hashtags: #ShareholderActivism #CorporateGovernance #InvestorProtection #Investor Alert #Investor Fraud #FinancialRegulation #CorporateCrime #FinancialCrime #HomelandSecurity #DHS #OpioidCrisis #OpioidEpidemic #OpioidLitigation #OpioidVictims #BMO #DEA #ONDCP
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Kansas Roger Marshall
Washington – U.S. Senator Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-Kansas) joined U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-California) to introduce the Plant Biostimulant Act to establish a standardized process for approving the commercial use of plant biostimulants as alternatives to synthetic pesticides and fertilizers. Plant biostimulants have demonstrated potential in advancing sustainable practices, including carbon sequestration and water quality enhancement. The legislation would also support research into the benefits of these technologies for soil health.
“Innovation is the cornerstone of American agriculture, and creating pathways for new agronomic tools like plant biostimulants to be approved for use allows our nation’s farmers to produce more food with fewer crop protection tools and fertilizers,” said Senator Marshall. “I am proud to lead this bipartisan legislation alongside Senator Padilla as we work together to improve soil health.”
“California’s agriculture industry is essential to our national economy and puts food on the table for families across the country,” said Senator Padilla. “As we make our agriculture sector more sustainable, our evolving practices must be properly implemented to ensure their efficacy and safety. Oversight and regulatory standards for plant biostimulants, which could replace or reduce the use of synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, are critical to maintain California’s leadership at the forefront of this bio-based agricultural technology.”
Representatives Jim Baird (R-Indiana-4) and Jimmy Panetta (D-California-20) introduced the House companion bill.
“Our farmers and ranchers deserve a regulatory process that provides a clear path for their products to go to market, especially as new technologies become available for farmers and producers to improve the efficiency, productivity, and sustainability of our agriculture industry,” said Representative Baird. “Biostimulants have significant potential benefits for producers and their sustainability footprint. Defining these products and creating a consistent process is an important step in giving farmers better access to plant biostimulants and other new technologies to ensure our agriculture sector can thrive.”
“The lack of a standard regulatory definition or pathway to market for plant biostimulants makes it harder for producers to access this sustainable and effective technology,” said Representative Panetta.” By reintroducing this bipartisan bill, we’re pushing for the clarity and federal coordination needed to encourage the adoption of biostimulants. Increasing access to these products helps our farmers improve crop yields, protect our environment, and maintain U.S. leadership in sustainable agriculture.”
The Plant Biostimulant Act is endorsed by Agriculture Retailers Association (ARA), American Seed Trade Association (ASTA), Biological Products Industry Alliance (BPIA), Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), Council of Producers and Distributors of Agrotechnology (CPDA), CropLife America (CLA), The Fertilizer Institute Biostimulant Council, Golf Course Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA), Humic Products Trade Association (HPTA), International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA), National Association of Landscape Professionals (NALP), RISE (Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment), Southern Crop Production Association (SCPA), and Western Growers.
“We thank Senators Marshall and Padilla for championing the Plant Biostimulant Act,” said Russell Taylor, President, Humic Products Trade Association. “This essential bill provides a clear regulatory path for innovative products, including humic substances, that build soil resilience and optimize nutrient use. It delivers the certainty needed to advance science-backed tools for a more sustainable American food supply.
“I’d like to thank Senators Marshall and Padilla for reintroducing the Plant Biostimulant Act,” said Megan Provost, President of Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment. “Plant biostimulants help homeowners, landscape professionals, and golf course superintendents provide healthy greenspaces that benefit us all. This legislation will help to clarify how they are defined and ensure access to these valuable products. We are excited to see bipartisan, bicameral legislation now gaining traction and hope for its inclusion in the upcoming Farm Bill.”
“I’d like to thank Senators Marshall and Padilla for reintroducing the Plant Biostimulant Act,” said Rhett Evans, CEO of the Golf Courses Superintendents Association of America. ”Plant biostimulants help golf course superintendents provide healthy green spaces that benefit everyone. This legislation will help ensure golf’s access to this valuable product.”
“The Fertilizer Institute (TFI) thanks Senators Marshall and Padilla for reintroducing this important legislation. This bill provides a critical definition for plant biostimulants, which will help states establish a clear path to market for these important products and technologies, critical to a variety of growers,” said Corey Rosenbusch, President and CEO of the Fertilizer Institute.
“The reintroduction of the Plant Biostimulant Act in the Senate is a pivotal step forward, and we commend Senators Roger Marshall and Alex Padilla for their leadership,” said Keith Jones, Executive Director of the Biological Products Industry Alliance. “This bipartisan legislation provides much-needed regulatory clarity for plant biostimulants – ensuring a consistent federal definition and a predictable path to market for these innovative tools. By enabling greater investment in U.S. agricultural innovation, it strengthens our global competitiveness and supports long-term sustainability. BPIA stands ready to work with Congress, growers, and partners across the agricultural community to get this bill passed and deliver the solutions our farmers deserve.”
The full text of the legislation can be found HERE.
Source: United Nations secretary general
Your Excellency Mr. Emomali Rahmon, President of the Republic of Tajikistan,
Your Excellency, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, Mr. Shehbaz Sharif,
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the Government and the people of the Republic of Tajikistan for convening this High-Level International Conference and championing 2025 as the United Nations declared International Year of Glaciers’ Preservation.
Mr. President, I thank you for the opportunity to visit the Glaciers in the Pamir mountain range. This was a reality check to how fragile the ecosystem is and needs preservation.
Your commitment to glaciers – the water towers of the world, holding nearly 70% of Earth’s freshwater – stands as a beacon of hope, towards keeping global momentum, securing our planet’s vital water sources, and raising urgent climate ambition.
A decade has passed since the world embraced the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement, setting out a bold vision for a more just, resilient, and sustainable future.
In spite of the recent geopolitical tensions and the pushback on multilateralism, this Conference convenes at a pivotal moment—with a decisive call to turn commitments into action, and shape the trajectory of our planet, economies, and the well-being of generations to come.
The time for ambition is an imperative now, and the stakes have never been higher.
Allow me to recognize the invaluable contributions of the World Meteorological Organization, UNESCO, the Asian Development Bank, and all other dedicated partners whose collaboration has made this conference – and this growing momentum – possible.
Your steady dedication to glacier research and monitoring throughout the 2025-2034 Decade of Action on Cryosphere Sciences has been instrumental in raising awareness and advancing scientific knowledge to safeguard our planet’s equilibrium.
Excellencies, Friends,
Since 1975, over 9,000 billion tons of ice have disappeared – equivalent to a 25-meter-thick block covering all of Germany.
In the past six years, glaciers have been retreating at an unprecedented pace, marking the fastest loss in recorded history.
Between 2022 and 2024 alone, the world witnessed the largest three-year glacier mass loss ever observed – a staggering acceleration of ice melt.
At current rates, many glaciers may not survive this century, reshaping landscapes, ecosystems, livelihoods and water security on a global scale.
This is not just a mountain crisis – it is a slow-moving global catastrophe with far-reaching consequences for planet and people.
Glacier loss threatens water and food security, biodiversity loss, infrastructure, and the stability and health of communities worldwide.
Billions of people depend on glaciers for drinking water, irrigation, livelihoods, and energy production, making their preservation essential for human survival and sustainable development.
Yet those at the frontline of glacier loss – primarily in developing regions – face the greatest injustices.
With shrinking water resources, vulnerable communities endure worsening poverty, forced migration, and harsh living conditions all while relying on glacier-fed supplies that are rapidly disappearing.
Melting glaciers also drive sea-level rise, endangering coastal megacities and displacing millions downstream.
Each millimeter of rising seas puts hundreds of thousands at risk of annual flooding and much more.
In my own country Nigeria, I witness firsthand the impact of sea level rise in Lagos, which is threatened and in the Niger Delta which as seen unprecedented changes in its ecosystem. And we also see states once not affected by flooding are experiencing them at unprecedented levels.
Beyond the physical impacts, glacier loss is also an erosion of culture, of history, and identity.
Communities tied to mountain landscapes face the disappearance of ancestral lands, traditional knowledge, and linguistic heritage, severing connections that have existed for generations.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
With a third of mountain ice already lost due to climate change, these consequences will only intensify without immediate mitigation measures to keep global temperatures within the 1.5 degrees threshold.
Let me note at this time 83% of these emissions for this mitigation agenda, are within the hands of 35 countries.
Stepping up our ambition and scaling up action is imperative, before dwindling water resources destabilize ecosystems and economic disruptions become irreversible.
Strategies for glacier preservation must enable integrated, inclusive, data-driven and locally grounded adaptation responses that meet the needs of those most vulnerable.
Investing in adaptation should be recognized as a catalyst of sustainable growth and resilience.
Yet, adaptation and risk reduction tools cannot succeed without sustained, predictable financing to support resilience-building at every level.
The upcoming Financing for Development Conference in Seville is an opportunity to make the Clarion Call, for more investment in adaptation a reality.
This year’s Global Assessment Report on disaster risk reduction informs us that “Resilience Pays”.
Every dollar spent on resilience enhances early warning systems, safeguards infrastructure, and protects livelihoods from extreme climate events. It reinforces food and water security and strengthens economies against future shocks.
But we must significantly scale up financing and investments – integrating risk reduction into core policy decisions.
Failing to invest now, will result in exponentially higher costs – ranging from economic loss, development setbacks to humanitarian crisis.
As we embark on the Decade for Glaciers’ Preservation, I have three messages:
First, let us ensure that this conference signals an urgent call to action, uniting multilateral cooperation and strategic global partnerships.
These partnerships should be engines for the design and delivery of ambitious, economy-wide Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) – as we go to Belem in Brazil later this year. These should not only as climate pledges, but as investment of roadmaps that drive SDG implementation.
Second, ensure that your national climate plans set measurable adaptation targets across water, infrastructure, energy, and food systems to build resilience, secure financing, and protect livelihoods. These plans need to be linked to national budgets to optimize resource allocations, avert losses, and build institutional capacities to fill gaps in technical expertise but also to create an enabling environment for large scale and urgent investments.
Third, identify pipelines of market-ready investments, backed by high-quality data and evidence-based tools that forecast returns, demonstrate co-benefits for job creation and economic growth, and unlock new financial services.
Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Together, we can galvanize impactful solutions to safeguard the cryosphere, polar regions, and mountain ecosystems.
Early warning systems could be strengthened with hydro-climatic experts to reinforce datasets that help anticipate water-related risks and ensuring a constant state of preparedness to enable early action.
Data-driven predicative analytics and AI could also complement skills, while generating baselines that help identify and anticipate fault lines, aligning with the Secretary General’s Early Warnings for All initiative.
This year’s Fourth Financing for Development Conference presents an opportunity to ensure that development funding is not just allocated, but strategically risk-informed – across all types of shocks-strengthening resilience and safeguarding development gains.
Let us use other global milestones including – COP30 in Brazil, the Third UN Ocean Conference in Nice, the UN Food Systems Summit Stocktake in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and the Second World Summit on Sustainable Development in Doha, Qatar – to elevate political will and sharpen our focus on glaciers for people, planet and prosperity.
In conclusion, as we look forward to the 2026 UN Water Conference, co-hosted by Senegal and the United Arab Emirates, I also wish to recognize the co-hosts of the 2023 UN Water Conference – Tajikistan and the Netherlands – for their continued political commitment to the International Decade for Action on Water for Sustainable Development 2018–2028.
Let us act with the urgency that SDG 6 demands by protecting water-related ecosystems.
The UN – as always – stands ready to ensure that we meet this target. For our communities, for our economies, for our children’s future and those yet born.
Let our children not know thirst.
Thank you.
***
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
WEST DES MOINES, Iowa, May 30, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Athene Holding Ltd. (“Athene”) today announced it will redeem all outstanding shares of its 6.375% Fixed-Rate Reset Perpetual Non-Cumulative Preferred Stock, Series C (the “Series C Preferred Stock”), and the corresponding depositary shares (CUSIP: 04686J 309; ISIN: US04686J3095) (the “Depositary Shares”), each representing a 1/1,000th interest in a share of the Series C Preferred Stock.
The Series C Preferred Stock will be redeemed on the upcoming dividend payment date on June 30, 2025 (the “Redemption Date”). All 24,000,000 Depositary Shares currently outstanding will be redeemed on the Redemption Date. On and after the Redemption Date, no shares of Series C Preferred Stock or Depositary Shares will remain outstanding.
The Depositary Shares will be redeemed at a redemption price of $25.00 per Depositary Share (equivalent to $25,000 per share of Series C Preferred Stock) (the “Redemption Price”). The regular quarterly dividend on the Depositary Shares was separately declared and will be paid separately on June 30, 2025 to holders of record on June 15, 2025 for such dividend payment in the customary manner. Accordingly, the Redemption Price does not include any accrued and unpaid dividends. No further dividends will be declared or paid following the Redemption Date.
Simultaneously with the redemption of the Series C Preferred Stock, the outstanding Depositary Shares will be redeemed on the Redemption Date in accordance with the applicable procedures of The Depository Trust Company (“DTC”), for an amount per Depositary Share equal to the Redemption Price. All Depositary Shares are held in book-entry form through DTC. Payment to DTC for the Depositary Shares will be made by Computershare Inc. and Computershare Trust Company, N.A., collectively, as redemption agent. The address for the redemption agent is as follows:
Computershare Trust Company, N.A.
Attn: Corporate Actions
150 Royall St.
Canton, MA 02021
Investors in the Depositary Shares should contact the bank or broker through which they hold a beneficial interest in the Depositary Shares for information about obtaining the Redemption Price for the shares of Depositary Shares in which they have a beneficial interest.
About Athene
Athene is the leading retirement services company with over $380 billion of total assets as of March 31, 2025, and operations in the United States, Bermuda, Canada, and Japan. Athene is focused on providing financial security to individuals by offering an attractive suite of retirement income and savings products and also serves as a solutions provider to corporations.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains, and certain oral statements made by Athene’s representatives from time to time may contain, forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results, events and developments to differ materially from those set forth in, or implied by, such statements. These statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of Athene’s management and the management of Athene’s subsidiaries. Generally, forward-looking statements include actions, events, results, strategies and expectations and are often identifiable by use of the words “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “projects,” “may,” “will,” “could,” “might,” “should,” or “continues” or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements within this press release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding future growth prospects and financial performance. Although Athene management believes that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these expectations will prove to be correct. For a discussion of other risks and uncertainties related to Athene’s forward-looking statements, see its annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2024, which can be found at the SEC’s website www.sec.gov. All forward-looking statements described herein are qualified by these cautionary statements and there can be no assurance that the actual results, events or developments referenced herein will occur or be realized. Athene does not undertake any obligation to update or revise forward-looking statements to reflect changed assumptions, the occurrence of unanticipated events or changes to future operating results.
Media Contact
Jeanne Hess
VP, External Relations
+1 646 768 7319
jeanne.hess@athene.com
Translation. Region: Russian Federal
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian – People’s Republic of China in Russian –
Source: People’s Republic of China – State Council News
Moscow, May 30 /Xinhua/ — A delegation of the Communist Party of China (CPC) led by Sun Haiyan, deputy director of the International Liaison Department of the CPC Central Committee, visited Russia from May 28 to 30.
During the visit, the delegation took part in a meeting of the Standing Committee of the International Conference of Asian Political Parties and in the Eurasian International Socio-Political Hearings organized by the United Russia party.
Sun Haiyan also met with Vladimir Yakushev, Secretary of the General Council of United Russia. The two sides exchanged views on strengthening exchanges between the ruling parties of China and Russia and jointly implementing important agreements reached by the leaders of the two countries.
In addition, Sun Haiyan acquainted V. Yakushev with the key theses of the central meeting on work in relation to neighboring countries, which took place in April in China. –0–
Source: New Zealand Government
New Zealand and India have discussed their enhanced relationship across a broad range of domains, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.
“New Zealand and India have agreed that we can and should be doing more together,” Mr Peters says.
“Both countries have worked hard over the last 18 months to bring energy, focus and deeper practical cooperation to the relationship.”
While in New Delhi, Mr Peters held official talks and had a working dinner with India’s External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
“This has been an excellent opportunity to take stock of the progress we have made over the past year-and-a-half, while also discussing the pressing regional and global challenges our countries face,” Mr Peters says.
“New Zealand and India have a shared interest in promoting a stable, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific region. My discussions with Minister Jaishankar and have been invaluable in understanding Indian perspectives on recent events and charting our course for enhanced bilateral cooperation.”
Mr Peters noted that, over the past 18 months, New Zealand and India had made concrete steps towards closer engagement across a wide range of domains, including defence and security, trade and economic cooperation, science and technology and sport.
While in New Delhi, Mr Peters also had meetings with the President of the Bharatiya Janata Party, JP Nadda, and the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi; and delivered a speech about New Zealand’s strengthening ties with South and South East Asia under the Foreign Policy Reset.
His visit to India concluded a four-country tour which also included trips to Australia, Sri Lanka and Nepal.
“New Zealand’s strategic and economic interests are inextricably tied to the Indo-Pacific, including South Asia. It is crucial that we continue to invest in and strengthen our relationships here,” Mr Peters says.
“This week has also highlighted the quality of our relationships in South Asia, characterised by rich people-to-people connections, a common desire to do more together, and shared perspectives on the challenges facing our region.”
During the first half of this Parliamentary term (from December 2023 to May 2025), Mr Peters has visited 45 countries and spent 154 days overseas on official visits.
Mr Peters returns to New Zealand later today (31 May).
Source: US State of Idaho
Home Newsroom Labrador Letter: Defending Biological Reality in Federal Corrections Policy
Op-Ed: Defending Biological Reality in Federal Corrections Policy
by Attorney General Raúl Labrador
How transgender-identifying individuals are housed in federal prisons is not a theoretical question. It directly affects the safety, privacy, and dignity of inmates, particularly women. Under the Biden Administration, federal agencies were instructed to disregard biological sex and could instead classify inmates based solely on how they self-identified. That policy treated personal identity claims as if they were biological facts and authorized prison officials to treat male inmates who identified as women the same as biological females in housing assignments and private spaces.
This shift did not occur in isolation. It reflected a broader federal posture that prioritized gender ideology over operational safety and common sense. Prison officials were expected to override objective assessments in favor of self-identification, even when that meant placing biological males in private women’s facilities. This put the dignity, safety, and privacy of female inmates at risk on top of ignoring basic truth.
In January, in one of President Trump’s first acts, he restored clarity and truth and away from gender ideology. Through Executive Order 14168, his administration reaffirmed that biological sex was the standard for housing inmates. The order also prohibited the use of federal taxpayer dollars to fund sex-reassignment surgeries and hormone procedures for inmates.
Shortly after Executive Order 14168 was issued, multiple lawsuits were filed in federal court seeking to block its enforcement. The plaintiffs in those cases argued that housing transgender-identifying male inmates in male facilities and denying access to taxpayer-funded sex-reassignment procedures, violated the Eighth Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. In response, a federal district court issued a preliminary injunction,halting the Trump administration’s policy before it could be fully implemented.
That is when Idaho stepped forward. Together with Indiana, we led a 26-state coalition urging the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to reverse the lower court’s rulings. We filed an amicus brief defending the executive order and the authority of the federal government to establish policies that preserve safety, security, and institutional order within its correctional system.
Our position is straightforward and common sense. The federal government is responsible for protecting the welfare of all prisoners in its custody. The Trump Administration has rightly determined that placing biological males in female spaces creates unacceptable and dangerous risks. Those risks include increased chances of violence and sexual assault, the violation of female inmates’ rights to privacy and dignity, and the coerced use of language and conduct that contradicts biological reality and truth.
Contrary to the claims made in these lawsuits, the Constitution does not require the government to disregard biological sex. The Eighth Amendment does not prohibit policies that seek to protect the safety of inmates based on evidence and professional judgment. In fact, constitutional principles require that these policies be made by accountable decision-makers, not imposed through litigation.
This case is part of a broader legal and cultural conflict. If federal policy treats gender identity as a substitute for biological sex, that approach will not remain limited to the prison system. It will affect how schools assign housing, how athletic programs determine eligibility, how shelters are operated, and how medical professionals are required to provide care. The consequences will be felt most by women and girls, who will be forced to bear the cost of policies built on fiction rather than fact.
Idaho has led on this issue consistently. We were the first state to protect the integrity of women’s sports. We enacted laws to protect minors from irreversible gender procedures. And now we are leading again by defending a federal policy that affirms biological reality, respects constitutional boundaries, and places public safety above political ideology.
Our coalition’s brief makes clear that the federal courts must allow the Executive Branch to exercise its lawful authority to run the prison system based on the realities faced by those who work in it. Policies grounded in biological truth are not discriminatory. They are essential to fairness, order, and the protection of individual rights.
Idaho will not retreat from this responsibility. We will stand for the truth, for the Constitution, and for the women whose dignity and safety depend on it.
This op-ed originally ran in TownHall on May 24, 2025
Source: US State of New York
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Proclamation Declares May Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month
16 State Landmarks to be Illuminated Red and Gold to Celebrate AAPI Heritage Month on May 30
View the Proclamation Here
Governor Kathy Hochul today issued a proclamation celebrating May 2025 as Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. Governor Hochul also announced 16 state landmarks will be illuminated red and gold tonight, May 30, in celebration.
“New York has long served as a beacon of hope for immigrants and marginalized communities who are looking for a safe haven and a land of new opportunities,” Governor Hochul said. “The AAPI community continues to enrich our State, fostering strength and resilience through their boundless contributions.”
Landmarks to be illuminated red and gold include:
View more information on the Governor’s commitment to supporting AAPI New Yorkers.
The State of New York does not imply approval of the listed destinations, warrant the accuracy of any information set out in those destinations, or endorse any opinions expressed therein. External web sites operate at the direction of their respective owners who should be contacted directly with questions regarding the content of these sites.
Source: US State of North Dakota
United States Also Returned International Fugitives Wanted for Terrorism, Murder, Attempted Murder and Child Sexual Abuse to Canada, India, and Mexico
Note: The defendants whose names are underlined hyperlink to press releases.
WASHINGTON — Extensive coordination between the Justice Department and law enforcement authorities in Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Israel, Kenya, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Panama, Peru, Spain, Thailand, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom (UK) resulted in the extraditions in April and May of dozens of individuals. The defendants returned to the United States are alleged to have committed crimes — including child sexual abuse and rape, murder, hate crimes, assault, narcoterrorism, drug trafficking, alien smuggling, cybercrime, money laundering, fraud, aggravated robbery and extortion — in a number of U.S. states and federal districts, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia.
The fugitives extradited to the United States include:
Michail Chkhikvishvili, also known as Mishka, Michael, Commander Butcher, and Butcher, 21, a Georgian national and alleged leader of a white supremacist group, was extradited from Moldova to face charges in the Eastern District of New York for soliciting hate crimes and planning a mass casualty attack in New York City. As the alleged leader of the white supremacist group “Maniac Murder Cult,” an international, racially motivated violent extremist group that adheres to a neo-Nazi ideology and promotes violence against racial minorities, the Jewish community, and other groups that it deems “undesirables,” Chkhikvishvili allegedly traveled to Brooklyn in 2022 and actively solicited acts of mass violence with a person who was, unbeknownst to Chkhikvishvili, an undercover FBI employee. In November 2023, Chkhikvishvili allegedly began planning a mass casualty attack to take place on New Year’s Eve, which would involve an individual dressing up as Santa Claus and handing out candy laced with poison to racial minorities. In January 2024, as alleged, the scheme evolved and Chkhikvishvili specifically directed the undercover FBI employee to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools, and Jewish children in Brooklyn.
Liridon Masurica, also known as @blackdb, 33, a national of Kosovo and alleged administrator of an online criminal marketplace, was extradited from Kosovo to face charges of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and fraudulent use of 15 or more unauthorized access devices in the Middle District of Florida.
Adrian Alberto Cano Gomez, also known as Andrea, 45, a national of Colombia and an alleged member of the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), a designated foreign terrorist organization, was extradited from Colombia to face charges in the Southern District of Texas of narco-terrorism and distributing kilogram quantities of cocaine from Colombia.
Aler Baldomero Samayoa-Recinos, also known as Chicharra, 58, a national of Guatemala and alleged leader of a prolific Guatemalan drug trafficking organization, was extradited from Guatemala to face charges in the District of Columbia of conspiracy to distribute five kilograms of cocaine for importation to the United States.
Daniel Flores, 49, a national of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face charges of first-degree murder for the 1995 killing of two brothers, both U.S. Marines, ages 22 and 19, in Cook County, Illinois.
Manuel Alejandro Vasquez, 47, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face a charge of murder in Ventura County, California. Vasquez’s two co-defendants were convicted in 1999 and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for the 1998 murder of a man in his home over an alleged unpaid debt. Vasquez fled to Mexico before charges could be filed against him.
Tyler Buchanan, 23, a UK national, was extradited from Spain to face charges of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft in the Central District of California. Among other crimes, Buchanan and his co-conspirators allegedly stole cryptocurrency worth millions of dollars following phishing attacks on over 45 companies based in the United States, Canada, and the UK.
Felix Manuel Mejia-Gonzalez, 33, a Dominican citizen, was extradited from the Dominican Republic to face charges of fentanyl trafficking in the District of New Hampshire.
Samuel Steven Huggler, 28, a U.S. citizen, was extradited from Spain, to face charges relating to the alleged murder and attempted murders of three of his siblings in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. Huggler is charged with aiding, inducing, or causing murder, three counts of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of aiding, inducing, or causing attempted murder, and possession of an altered firearm.
Michel Patrick Desalles, 54, a Mauritian national, was extradited from Mauritius to face a charge of murder in the second degree in the State of New York. Desalles allegedly choked his employer to death with zip ties and immediately fled the United States in 2017.
Juan Miguel Roman-Balderas, 45, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face two charges of murder in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Roman-Balderas is alleged to have stabbed to death his 28-year-old ex-girlfriend in April 2014 in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Rody L. Wilcox, 50, a U.S. citizen, was extradited from Georgia to face charges of lewd conduct with a minor under 16 years of age filed in Latah County, Idaho. Wilcox allegedly sexually assaulted a six-year-old child on multiple occasions in 2023. In 2024, Wilcox fled Idaho while on bond. Through OIA’s cooperation with the FBI, U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service and Georgian authorities, Wilcox was arrested in Georgia on Aug. 16, 2024, while en route to the Russian Federation.
Miguel Angel Urbano-Vazquez, 48, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face charges of aggravated first-degree murder and rape in Pierce County, Washington. Urbano-Vazquez is alleged to have raped four victims between March and October 2002, one of whom he is also alleged to have murdered in the course of rape.
Gilberto Gutierrez, 46, a citizen of El Salvador, was extradited from El Salvador to face charges of rape, child abuse, and related sex offenses in Wicomico County, Maryland. Gutierrez allegedly repeatedly sexually abused two girls under the age of 10 years old between approximately 1999 and 2004.
Ramon Manriquez Castillo, 68, a dual U.S. and Mexican citizen; Edgar Rodriguez Ruano, 29, a Mexican citizen; Fernando Javier Escobar Tito, 48, an Ecuadorian citizen; and Anderson Jair Gamboa Nieto, 30, a Colombian citizen, were surrendered by Guinea-Bissau to face drug trafficking charges in the Southern District of Florida. The co-defendants are alleged members of a transnational drug trafficking organization comprised of several cartels in Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela, and they allegedly conspired to distribute large quantities of cocaine through Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Guinea-Bissau using a U.S.-registered airplane, with a U.S. citizen onboard, from about November 2023 to September 2024. They are also charged with distributing cocaine in these countries using an airplane with a U.S. citizen onboard.
Artem Aleksandrovych Stryzhak, 35, a Ukrainian national, was extradited from Spain to face charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, extortion, and related activity in connection with computers in the Eastern District of New York and the Middle District of Florida. According to the charges in the Eastern District of New York, Stryzhak is one of the administrators of the Nefilim ransomware gang. The Middle District of Florida charges allege that Stryzhak used the Hive ransomware to engage in a computer hacking and extortion scheme that targeted businesses in the United States and abroad. The Hive ransomware group is estimated to have attacked approximately 1,500 victims and extorted approximately $110 million in ransom payments.
The fugitives extradited by the United States include:
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 64, a Canadian citizen, native of Pakistan, and convicted terrorist, was extradited to India to stand trial on 10 criminal charges stemming from his alleged role in the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai that killed 160 people, including six Americans, and wounded hundreds more.
Aaron Seth Juarez, 26, a U.S. citizen, was extradited to Mexico to be prosecuted for femicide for the 2019 killing of his approximately 31-year-old stepmother, whose body he allegedly buried in the backyard of her Tijuana home.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs (OIA), along with the U.S. Marshals Service, provided significant assistance in securing the defendants’ arrests and extraditions. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Central District of California and the Eastern District of California litigated with OIA the successful outgoing extradition cases for Rana and Juarez, respectively. OIA and the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of Judicial Attaché in Bogotá, Colombia provided significant assistance in securing the arrests and extraditions from Colombia. The Criminal Division’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) also provided assistance with the extraditions from Guatemala and Kosovo. The Justice Department thanks and acknowledges the instrumental role of its law enforcement partners in Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Israel, Kenya, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Panama, Peru, Spain, Thailand, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom for making these extraditions possible.
An indictment and criminal complaint are merely allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: United Nations – Geneva
The Committee on the Rights of the Child this afternoon closed its ninety-ninth session after adopting its concluding observations on the reports of Brazil, Indonesia, Iraq, Norway, Qatar and Romania under the Convention on the Rights of the Child, as well as the report on Brazil’s efforts to implement the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.
The concluding observations will be available on the webpage of the session on the website of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on Thursday, 5 June 2025.
Presenting the report of the session, Sophie Kiladze, Committee Chairperson, said there had been a lot of improvements regarding the realisation of child rights in certain countries. However, after more than 35 years of entry into force of the Convention, the child rights situation was still very alarming in many States parties. Millions of children were victims of armed conflicts in many different parts of the world. The armed conflicts were taking their lives or lives of their parents and family members, leaving them in unimaginable sorrow for the whole of their lives. Many who survived were living in camps under deteriorating conditions. Millions of children were living in poverty, without access to education, health and digital environment, among others. The list was very long and many hours would not be enough to express the suffering of these children.
Ms. Kiladze said the United Nations was undergoing a huge liquidity crisis, which was affecting the Committee on the Rights of the Child, which had to work without knowing whether next sessions would be held. She asked the Secretary-General
and all relevant States parties to ensure that the Committee on the Rights of the Child, as well as other treaty bodies, continued their work. She said the Committee regretted the cancellation of the pre-sessional working group, expected to be held during the week following the end of the session, because of the liquidity situation.
Under the Optional Protocol on a communication procedure, the Committee adopted decisions on eight individual communications on the following issues: children in the context of migration, access to school during the COVID pandemic, and parental contact with children.
The Committee found no violation of the Convention in one case against Switzerland. It found three communications inadmissible in a case against Italy and two cases against Switzerland. It also discontinued the consideration of four cases against Finland and Switzerland after they had become moot. The Committee was satisfied that these discontinuances followed the positive resolution of these four cases. The Committee also discussed inquiries under article 13 of the Optional Protocol. It was currently dealing with four inquiries.
Also during the session, the Committee discussed amendments to its rules of procedure and working methods. It continued its discussion on follow-up to the treaty body strengthening process in the context of the United Nations liquidity crisis. It also continued its work on the next general comment no. 27 on children’s rights to access to justice and to an effective remedy.
The Committee continued its work on trends of the modern world regarding child rights, including artificial intelligence, and discussed a draft joint statement on artificial intelligence and child rights. Nine international organizations were co-signatories of the statement, co-led by the International Telecommunication Union and the United Nations Children’s Fund.
The Committee then adopted the report of the session.
On the first day of the session, which was held from 12 to 30 May, Ms. Kiladze (Georgia) was elected as Chair and Cephas Lumina (Zambia), Thuwayba Al Barwani (Oman), Philip D. Jaffe (Switzerland), and Mary Beloff (Argentina) were elected as Vice-Chairs.
The Committee also welcomed four new members – Timothy. P.T. Ekesa (Kenya), Mariana Ianachevici (Republic of Moldova), Juliana Scerri Ferrante (Malta), and Zeinebou Taleb Moussa (Mauritania) – and welcomed back Mr. Lumina, who previously served as a member from 2017 to 2021. They made their solemn declaration.
Summaries of the public meetings of the Committee can be found here, and webcasts of the public meetings can be found here. The programme of work of the Committee’s ninety-ninth session and other documents related to the session can be found here.
The Committee is expected to hold its one hundredth session in September 2025. However, this session is currently pending confirmation because of the liquidity situation.
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Produced by the United Nations Information Service in Geneva for use of the media;
not an official record. English and French versions of our releases are different as they are the product of two separate coverage teams that work independently.
CRC25.016E
Source: UNISDR Disaster Risk Reduction
Kazakhstan has positioned itself as a regional leader by embedding transboundary cooperation into its national disaster risk reduction (DRR) strategy-an innovative step in a region like Central Asia, where natural hazards such as floods, earthquakes and extreme weather frequently transcend national borders.
A major milestone in Kazakhstan’s approach was the establishment of the Centre for Emergency Situations and Disaster Risk Reduction (CESDRR) in Almaty in 2016, in partnership with Kyrgyzstan and with support from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). CESDRR operates as a regional coordination platform, enhancing disaster preparedness and response across Central Asia through joint training, information exchange, and shared risk assessments.
Kazakhstan’s national DRR strategy -developed after 2016 as part of broader DRR reforms extending through to 2030- is aligned with the Sendai Framework and explicitly prioritizes regional and international cooperation. It identifies shared hazards, particularly in seismically active zones and transboundary river basins such as the Syr Darya and Irtysh, as requiring coordinated risk management.
One practical application of this strategy is the development of joint early warning systems for glacial lake outburst floods (GLOFs) along the Tien Shan mountains. Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan jointly manage hydrological monitoring responsibilities in these areas, enabling harmonized alerts to reach communities in both countries more quickly-reducing risk to life and property.
Kazakhstan also participates in cross-border emergency simulations facilitated by CESDRR. These exercises, led nationally by the Ministry for Emergency Situations, strengthen readiness and operational coordination for regional hazards, including earthquakes and large-scale wildfires.
In addition, Kazakhstan’s transboundary water governance efforts-particularly with Uzbekistan-have helped integrate DRR considerations into river basin management. Shared hydrometeorological data and coordinated flood prevention strategies mitigate the risk of downstream disasters during heavy rainfall or snowmelt periods.
International partnerships, such as with the European Union, have further supported Kazakhstan’s risk governance through regional projects focused on institutional capacity-building and early warning systems. These complement national efforts by enhancing data-sharing protocols and strengthening technical capacity.
Kazakhstan’s DRR strategy stands out for formalizing transboundary cooperation within national planning frameworks. This approach moves beyond ad hoc collaboration by institutionalizing cross-border risk reduction-a model cited in UNDRR reports as a good practice for other regions facing shared hazards. Through coordinated monitoring, planning and emergency response, Kazakhstan demonstrates how national strategies can actively contribute to regional resilience.
Source: UNISDR Disaster Risk Reduction
In July 2024, Tajikistan reached a significant milestone in disaster risk reduction (DRR) by endorsing a costed national roadmap for Multi-Hazard Early Warning Systems (MHEWS). This achievement followed the national launch of the Early Warnings for All (EW4All) initiative in August 2023, backed by high-level political commitment, including the appointment of a Deputy Prime Minister as the government focal point.
The roadmap sets out priority actions and investment needs in early warning and DRR, aligned with Target G of the Sendai Framework and building on the foundations of the National Disaster Risk Reduction Strategy (2019-2034). A key element of success has been the robust coordination mechanism led by the Tajikistan National Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction. This platform facilitates integration among national and local actors across key sectors, ensuring that early warnings are timely, actionable, and reach the most at-risk communities. Clearly defined institutional roles have strengthened information flow across the MHEWS value chain.
In partnership with the Swiss Cooperation Office, UNDRR supported Tajikistan in positioning early warning systems within its DRR priorities. As part of this process, over 50 representatives from government ministries, technical sectors and vulnerable communities came together to develop a comprehensive national risk assessment methodology. This approach reflects Tajikistan’s status as a landlocked developing country (LLDC) highly exposed to natural hazards, guiding evidence-based decision-making,planning and climate risk adaptation.
Tajikistan has also strengthened regional collaboration. In 2024, it joined Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan in calling for the establishment of a Regional Early Warning and Mutual Information System under the EW4All initiative., underscoring the importance of cross-border cooperation and shared risk information.Tajikistan’s National DRR Strategy (2019-2034) has played a central role in advancing early warning capabilities, as evidenced by its contribution to the MHEWS road map.
By leveraging its national DRR strategy, fostering political commitment, and investing in coordination and regional collaboration, Tajikistan has established a comprehensive and sustainable model for strengthening early warning systems. This approach not only enhances national disaster preparedness but also contributes to regional resilience against shared hazards.
Source: UNISDR Disaster Risk Reduction
In April 2024, Montenegro requested support from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) to conduct an external evaluation of its zero-draft Strategy for Disaster Risk Reduction with the Action Plan for the Implementation of the Strategy for the Period 2025-2030. This successor strategy builds upon Montenegro’s previous DRR framework for 2018-2023.
A drafting committee was established using a whole-of-society approach, involving governmental institutions, academic entities and civil society organizations to ensure inclusive participation. This approach significantly strengthened national disaster risk governance and resilience-building at the policy level.
UNDRR’s Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia (ROECA) coordinated the initial assessment, which involved 11 external experts from diverse technical backgrounds. Using the DRR Strategy Qualitative Assessment Tool, this peer review identified gaps and opportunities for strengthening the zero draft.
By September 2024, a second round of evaluation reflected clear improvements. The revised strategy incorporated key elements of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction, including measurable targets, hazard and sector-specific risk assessments, and timelines. It demonstrated a commitment to inclusivity, integrating gender equality, the needs of at-risk groups, alongside innovative nature-based solutions (NbS) to enhance sustainability. ). It also aligned with national development priorities and global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
The accompanying Action Plan translated these strategic goals into operational action-empowering municipalities and organizations to tackle localized vulnerabilities. It also linked DRR interventions to broader development objectives such as poverty reduction, climate adaptation, and ecosystem conservation, while incorporating monitoring mechanisms for accountability and continuous improvement.
Source: US State of Hawaii
Posted on May 29, 2025 in Latest Department News, Newsroom
STATE OF HAWAIʻI
KA MOKU ʻĀINA O HAWAIʻI
JOSH GREEN, M.D.
GOVERNOR
KE KIAʻĀINA
DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM
KA ʻOIHANA HOʻOMOHALA PĀʻOIHANA, ʻIMI WAIWAI A HOʻOMĀKAʻIKAʻI
RESEARCH AND ECONOMIC ANALYSIS DIVISION
JAMES KUNANE TOKIOKA
DIRECTOR
KA LUNA HOʻOKELE
CHIEF STATE ECONOMIST
VISITOR INDUSTRY GROWS AGAIN IN APRIL 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 29, 2025
HONOLULU – According to preliminary statistics from the Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT), total visitor arrivals and total visitor spending in April 2025 increased compared to the same month last year. There were 833,219 visitors to the Hawaiian Islands in April 2025, up 7.9 percent from April 2024. Total visitor spending measured in nominal dollars was $1.69 billion, which was growth of 9.4 percent from April 2024. When compared to pre-pandemic 2019 levels, April 2025 total visitor arrivals represent a 98.1 percent recovery from April 2019 and total visitor spending was higher than April 2019 ($1.32 billion, +28.3%).
In April 2025, 810,276 visitors arrived by air service, mainly from the U.S. West and U.S. East. Additionally, 22,943 visitors came via out-of-state cruise ships. In comparison, 740,720 visitors (+9.4%) arrived by air and 31,695 visitors (-27.6%) came by cruise ships in April 2024, and 824,610 visitors (-1.7%) arrived by air and 24,787 visitors (-7.4%) came by cruise ships in April 2019. The average length of stay by all visitors in April 2025 was 8.36 days, compared to 8.28 days (+1.1%) in April 2024 and 8.25 days (+1.4%) in April 2019. The statewide average daily census was 232,323 visitors in April 2025, compared to 213,080 visitors (+9.0%) in April 2024 and 233,616 visitors (-0.6%) in April 2019.
In April 2025, 457,248 visitors arrived from the U.S. West, which was an increase compared to April 2024 (400,070 visitors, +14.3%) and April 2019 (388,573 visitors, +17.7%). U.S. West visitor spending of $855.0 million rose from April 2024 ($765.2 million, +11.7%), and was much higher than April 2019 ($547.0 million, +56.3%). Daily spending by U.S. West visitors in April 2025 ($234 per person) decreased slightly from April 2024 ($236 per person, -0.8%) but was up considerably from April 2019 ($171 per person, +36.7%).
In April 2025, arrivals from the U.S. East of 180,383 visitors increased from April 2024 (176,339 visitors, +2.3%) and April 2019 (159,115 visitors, +13.4%). U.S. East visitor spending of $449.1 million rose from April 2024 ($436.8 million, +2.8%) and was significantly more than April 2019 ($286.8 million, +56.6%). Daily spending by U.S. East visitors in April 2025 ($277 per person) increased from April 2024 ($273 per person, +1.4%) and was much more than April 2019 ($200 per person, +38.4%).
There were 52,358 visitors from Japan in April 2025, an increase from April 2024 (50,626 visitors, +3.4%) but continued to be much lower than April 2019 (119,487 visitors, -56.2%). Visitors from Japan spent $77.4 million in April 2025, compared to $75.1 million (+3.0%) in April 2024 and $164.0 million (-52.8%) in April 2019. Daily spending by Japanese visitors in April 2025 ($245 per person) was higher than April 2024 ($238 per person, +3.2%) and April 2019 ($234 per person, +5.0%).
In April 2025, 36,381 visitors arrived from Canada, down from April 2024 (38,936 visitors, -6.6%) and April 2019 (56,749 visitors, -35.9%). Visitors from Canada spent $91.0 million in April 2025 compared to $88.3 million (+3.0%) in April 2024 and $100.2 million (-9.2%) in April 2019. Daily spending by Canadian visitors in April 2025 ($224 per person) increased from April 2024 ($221 per person, +1.6%) and was much higher than April 2019 ($154 per person, +45.8%).
There were 83,905 visitors from all other international markets in April 2025, which included visitors from Oceania, Other Asia, Europe, Latin America, Guam, the Philippines, and the Pacific Islands. In comparison, there were 74,749 visitors (+12.2%) from all other international markets in April 2024 and 100,686 visitors (-16.7%) in April 2019.
In April 2025, a total of 4,885 transpacific flights with 1,085,113 seats serviced the Hawaiian Islands. Total air capacity was similar to April 2024 (4,890 flights, -0.1% with 1,080,344 seats +0.4%) but less than April 2019 (5,031 flights, -2.9% with 1,112,200 seats, -2.4%).
Year-to-Date 2025
A total of 3,288,966 visitors arrived in the first four months of 2025, up 3.2 percent from 3,186,223 visitors in the first four months of 2024. Total arrivals decreased 2.6 percent when compared to 3,376,675 visitors in the first four months of 2019.
In the first four months of 2025, total visitor spending was $7.30 billion, an increase compared to the first four months of 2024 ($6.82 billion, +7.2%) and the first four months of 2019 ($5.81 billion, +25.7%).
VIEW FULL NEWS RELEASE AND TABLES
Statement by DBEDT Director James Kunane Tokioka
April was a solid month for the visitor industry. The industry has performed well during the first four months of 2025, mainly driven by continued growth in the U.S. markets (U.S. West and U.S. East). U.S. arrivals grew by 5.5 percent, offsetting the decline in arrivals from international markets.
We expect a modest slowdown in tourism during the summer season caused by uncertainties in the political and economic environment both nationally and internationally. We believe the situation will be temporary and anticipate the state’s tourism industry to rebound in 2026.
# # #
Media Contacts:
Laci Goshi
Communications Officer
Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
Cell: 808-518-5480
Email: [email protected]
Jennifer Chun
Director of Tourism Research
Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism
Phone: 808-973-9446
Email: [email protected]
Source: US State of California 2
What you need to know: CAL FIRE is awarding $72 million to projects across the state that help reduce catastrophic wildfire risk across California. Governor Newsom also announced 13 vegetation management projects spanning nearly 7,000 acres have already been approved for fast-tracking under his emergency proclamation.
SACRAMENTO – As the Trump administration cuts the U.S. Forest Service and creates rampant uncertainty ahead of peak wildfire season, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the state is continuing to ramp up its efforts to reduce wildfire risk and increase forest health.
CAL FIRE awarded nearly $72 million today to support large-scale, regionally based land management projects aimed at restoring forest health and resilience throughout California, while enhancing long-term carbon storage.
Additionally, Governor Newsom announced that under his wildfire prevention emergency proclamation, which became operational on April 17, the state has already fast-tracked approval for 13 projects totaling nearly 7,000 acres, on top of the 2 million acres treated in recent years. These projects involve tribes and other partners, natural resource managers and fire districts. This is part of statewide efforts to advance projects in key locations to help protect communities from catastrophic wildfires. One week after applications opened to fast-track critical wildfire safety projects in mid-April, the state began issuing fast-track approvals for wildfire safety projects.
“California is ‘raking the forests’ at a faster pace than ever before. Where’s the federal government?”
Governor Gavin Newsom
While 57% of California’s forests are federally managed, the state government manages only 3% of the forestland. The other 40% is privately owned and this work relies on partnership with private forestland owners.
More than 2,200 vegetation management projects are complete or underway, and in recent years, California has treated nearly 2 million acres – made possible by scaling up investments to 10 times the amount from when the Governor took office in 2019. California has funded over $350 million worth of projects on federal lands in the same time. CAL FIRE estimates that 83% of all tree mortality in California, which poses a significant wildfire risk, is on national forest lands.
Through its Forest Health Program, CAL FIRE is awarding 12 grants to local and regional partners carrying out projects on state, local, tribal, federal, and private lands. Designed to address critical forest health needs, these initiatives will reduce wildfire risk, improve ecosystem resilience, and enhance carbon sequestration across California’s diverse landscapes.
Forest health grant projects focus on large, landscape-scale forestlands – no less than 800 acres in size – that are composed of one or more landowners and may cover multiple jurisdictions.
“CAL FIRE is proud to award Forest Health grants that will increase the wildfire resilience of California’s landscapes and communities and help restore ecosystems following wildfire,” said Alan Talhelm, Assistant Deputy Director of Climate and Energy at CAL FIRE. “These grants will provide our partners around the state with funds to complete projects that support local economies, protect watersheds, increase public safety, and sequester carbon.”
The projects will employ a wide array of forest management strategies, with goals of wildfire resilience, watershed protection, habitat conservation for endangered species, recovery of fire-scarred and drought-impacted forests, and the reintroduction of fire as a natural ecological process. Projects include:
The majority of CAL FIRE’s Forest Health grants are funded through the Timber Regulation and Forest Restoration Fund (TRFRF), with additional support provided by California Climate Investments (CCI), a statewide initiative that directs billions of Cap-and-Invest dollars toward achieving the state’s climate goals.
The approved projects for fast-tracking are focused on removing flammable dead or dying trees, creating strategic fuel breaks, creating safe egress along roadways, manual and mechanical removal of ladder fuels and beneficial fire use. Some of the approved projects include:
To move faster without compromising important environmental protections, the state developed a new Statewide Fuels Reduction Environmental Protection Plan. State agencies will monitor and oversee these projects from initiation to completion to provide support and ensure environmental protections and best management practices are followed.
Following action by Governor Newsom and the Legislature last month, state conservancies are moving to deploy $170 million in voter-approved funding for wildfire resilience projects. The accelerated funding is part of the “early action” 2025 budget package. Governor Newsom signed the funding bill along with an executive order to ensure the wildfire safety projects benefit from the streamlining process created under the March 1 State of Emergency proclamation.
This builds on consecutive years of intensive and focused work by California to confront the severe ongoing risk of catastrophic wildfires, and Governor Newsom’s emergency proclamation signed in March to fast-track forest and vegetation management projects throughout the state. Additionally, to bolster the state’s ability to respond to fires, Governor Newsom announced last week that the state’s second C-130 Hercules airtanker is ready for firefighting operations, adding to the largest aerial firefighting fleet in the world.
New, bold moves to streamline state-level regulatory processes builds long-term efforts already underway in California to increase wildfire response and forest management in the face of a hotter, drier climate. A full list of California’s progress on wildfire resilience is available here.
Highlights of achievements to date include:
Source: United States Attorneys General 1
United States Also Returned International Fugitives Wanted for Terrorism, Murder, Attempted Murder and Child Sexual Abuse to Canada, India, and Mexico
Note: The defendants whose names are underlined hyperlink to press releases.
WASHINGTON — Extensive coordination between the Justice Department and law enforcement authorities in Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Israel, Kenya, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Panama, Peru, Spain, Thailand, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom (UK) resulted in the extraditions in April and May of dozens of individuals. The defendants returned to the United States are alleged to have committed crimes — including child sexual abuse and rape, murder, hate crimes, assault, narcoterrorism, drug trafficking, alien smuggling, cybercrime, money laundering, fraud, aggravated robbery and extortion — in a number of U.S. states and federal districts, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia.
The fugitives extradited to the United States include:
Michail Chkhikvishvili, also known as Mishka, Michael, Commander Butcher, and Butcher, 21, a Georgian national and alleged leader of a white supremacist group, was extradited from Moldova to face charges in the Eastern District of New York for soliciting hate crimes and planning a mass casualty attack in New York City. As the alleged leader of the white supremacist group “Maniac Murder Cult,” an international, racially motivated violent extremist group that adheres to a neo-Nazi ideology and promotes violence against racial minorities, the Jewish community, and other groups that it deems “undesirables,” Chkhikvishvili allegedly traveled to Brooklyn in 2022 and actively solicited acts of mass violence with a person who was, unbeknownst to Chkhikvishvili, an undercover FBI employee. In November 2023, Chkhikvishvili allegedly began planning a mass casualty attack to take place on New Year’s Eve, which would involve an individual dressing up as Santa Claus and handing out candy laced with poison to racial minorities. In January 2024, as alleged, the scheme evolved and Chkhikvishvili specifically directed the undercover FBI employee to target the Jewish community, Jewish schools, and Jewish children in Brooklyn.
Liridon Masurica, also known as @blackdb, 33, a national of Kosovo and alleged administrator of an online criminal marketplace, was extradited from Kosovo to face charges of conspiracy to commit access device fraud and fraudulent use of 15 or more unauthorized access devices in the Middle District of Florida.
Adrian Alberto Cano Gomez, also known as Andrea, 45, a national of Colombia and an alleged member of the Ejército de Liberación Nacional (ELN), a designated foreign terrorist organization, was extradited from Colombia to face charges in the Southern District of Texas of narco-terrorism and distributing kilogram quantities of cocaine from Colombia.
Aler Baldomero Samayoa-Recinos, also known as Chicharra, 58, a national of Guatemala and alleged leader of a prolific Guatemalan drug trafficking organization, was extradited from Guatemala to face charges in the District of Columbia of conspiracy to distribute five kilograms of cocaine for importation to the United States.
Daniel Flores, 49, a national of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face charges of first-degree murder for the 1995 killing of two brothers, both U.S. Marines, ages 22 and 19, in Cook County, Illinois.
Manuel Alejandro Vasquez, 47, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face a charge of murder in Ventura County, California. Vasquez’s two co-defendants were convicted in 1999 and sentenced to life without the possibility of parole for the 1998 murder of a man in his home over an alleged unpaid debt. Vasquez fled to Mexico before charges could be filed against him.
Tyler Buchanan, 23, a UK national, was extradited from Spain to face charges of conspiracy to commit computer intrusion, wire fraud, and aggravated identity theft in the Central District of California. Among other crimes, Buchanan and his co-conspirators allegedly stole cryptocurrency worth millions of dollars following phishing attacks on over 45 companies based in the United States, Canada, and the UK.
Felix Manuel Mejia-Gonzalez, 33, a Dominican citizen, was extradited from the Dominican Republic to face charges of fentanyl trafficking in the District of New Hampshire.
Samuel Steven Huggler, 28, a U.S. citizen, was extradited from Spain, to face charges relating to the alleged murder and attempted murders of three of his siblings in Vanderburgh County, Indiana. Huggler is charged with aiding, inducing, or causing murder, three counts of conspiracy to commit murder, two counts of aiding, inducing, or causing attempted murder, and possession of an altered firearm.
Michel Patrick Desalles, 54, a Mauritian national, was extradited from Mauritius to face a charge of murder in the second degree in the State of New York. Desalles allegedly choked his employer to death with zip ties and immediately fled the United States in 2017.
Juan Miguel Roman-Balderas, 45, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face two charges of murder in Prince George’s County, Maryland. Roman-Balderas is alleged to have stabbed to death his 28-year-old ex-girlfriend in April 2014 in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Rody L. Wilcox, 50, a U.S. citizen, was extradited from Georgia to face charges of lewd conduct with a minor under 16 years of age filed in Latah County, Idaho. Wilcox allegedly sexually assaulted a six-year-old child on multiple occasions in 2023. In 2024, Wilcox fled Idaho while on bond. Through OIA’s cooperation with the FBI, U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Service and Georgian authorities, Wilcox was arrested in Georgia on Aug. 16, 2024, while en route to the Russian Federation.
Miguel Angel Urbano-Vazquez, 48, a citizen of Mexico, was extradited from Mexico to face charges of aggravated first-degree murder and rape in Pierce County, Washington. Urbano-Vazquez is alleged to have raped four victims between March and October 2002, one of whom he is also alleged to have murdered in the course of rape.
Gilberto Gutierrez, 46, a citizen of El Salvador, was extradited from El Salvador to face charges of rape, child abuse, and related sex offenses in Wicomico County, Maryland. Gutierrez allegedly repeatedly sexually abused two girls under the age of 10 years old between approximately 1999 and 2004.
Ramon Manriquez Castillo, 68, a dual U.S. and Mexican citizen; Edgar Rodriguez Ruano, 29, a Mexican citizen; Fernando Javier Escobar Tito, 48, an Ecuadorian citizen; and Anderson Jair Gamboa Nieto, 30, a Colombian citizen, were surrendered by Guinea-Bissau to face drug trafficking charges in the Southern District of Florida. The co-defendants are alleged members of a transnational drug trafficking organization comprised of several cartels in Mexico, Colombia, and Venezuela, and they allegedly conspired to distribute large quantities of cocaine through Colombia, Venezuela, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Guinea-Bissau using a U.S.-registered airplane, with a U.S. citizen onboard, from about November 2023 to September 2024. They are also charged with distributing cocaine in these countries using an airplane with a U.S. citizen onboard.
Artem Aleksandrovych Stryzhak, 35, a Ukrainian national, was extradited from Spain to face charges of conspiracy to commit fraud, extortion, and related activity in connection with computers in the Eastern District of New York and the Middle District of Florida. According to the charges in the Eastern District of New York, Stryzhak is one of the administrators of the Nefilim ransomware gang. The Middle District of Florida charges allege that Stryzhak used the Hive ransomware to engage in a computer hacking and extortion scheme that targeted businesses in the United States and abroad. The Hive ransomware group is estimated to have attacked approximately 1,500 victims and extorted approximately $110 million in ransom payments.
The fugitives extradited by the United States include:
Tahawwur Hussain Rana, 64, a Canadian citizen, native of Pakistan, and convicted terrorist, was extradited to India to stand trial on 10 criminal charges stemming from his alleged role in the 2008 terrorist attacks in Mumbai that killed 160 people, including six Americans, and wounded hundreds more.
Aaron Seth Juarez, 26, a U.S. citizen, was extradited to Mexico to be prosecuted for femicide for the 2019 killing of his approximately 31-year-old stepmother, whose body he allegedly buried in the backyard of her Tijuana home.
The Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs (OIA), along with the U.S. Marshals Service, provided significant assistance in securing the defendants’ arrests and extraditions. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Central District of California and the Eastern District of California litigated with OIA the successful outgoing extradition cases for Rana and Juarez, respectively. OIA and the Criminal Division’s Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section’s Office of Judicial Attaché in Bogotá, Colombia provided significant assistance in securing the arrests and extraditions from Colombia. The Criminal Division’s Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance and Training (OPDAT) also provided assistance with the extraditions from Guatemala and Kosovo. The Justice Department thanks and acknowledges the instrumental role of its law enforcement partners in Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Guatemala, Germany, Guinea-Bissau, Honduras, Israel, Kenya, Kosovo, Malaysia, Mauritius, Mexico, Moldova, Panama, Peru, Spain, Thailand, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom for making these extraditions possible.
An indictment and criminal complaint are merely allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.