Source: European Parliament
On 12 December, DASE held an exchange of views on EU-ASEAN relations with
• Ms Leila Fernández Stembridge, Head of Division for Southeast Asia (ASIAPAC.3), the European External Action Service (EEAS) and
• Mr Christophe Kiener, Head of Unit, DG TRADE, South and South East Asia, Australia, New Zealand Unit, European Commission
Source: International Monetary Fund
March 5, 2025
PARTICIPANTS:
PETER BREUER
Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka
KATSIARYNA SVIRYDZENKA
Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka
MARTHA TESFAYE WOLDEMICHAEL
Resident Representative in Sri Lanka
MODERTOR:
RANDA ELNAGAR
Senior Media Officer
TRANSCRIPT:
Ms. Elnagar: Good morning to our participants who are joining us from Asia and good evening to our participants in DC. Welcome to the press conference on of the Third review of Sri Lanka’s Extended Fund Facility Arrangement with the International Monetary Fund. I am Randa Elnagar, with the IMF’s communications department.
I am joined today by three speakers. Peter Breuer, IMF’s Senior Mission Chief for Sri Lanka; Katsiaryna Svirydzenka, Deputy Mission Chief for Sri Lanka; and Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael, IMF’s Resident Representative in Sri Lanka.
By now you should have seen the press release, which we issued on Friday and the staff report is not on IMF.org. First, Peter will give some opening remarks, and then we will take your questions.
We are kindly asking you to mute your microphones throughout the briefing, unless you are asking a question. Peter the floor is yours.
started transcription
Mr. Breuer: Thank you, Randa. Good morning, all, thank you very much for being here and for your interest in Sri Lanka’s IMF-supported economic reform program.
I am pleased to announce that, on Friday February 28, the IMF Executive Board approved the third review under the 48-month Extended Fund Facility Arrangement with Sri Lanka. This provides the country with immediate access to about US$334 million to support its economic policies and reforms.
It brings the total IMF financial support dispersed so far to about $1.3 billion.
The IMF continues to support Sri Lanka’s efforts to restore and maintain macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability while protecting the poor and vulnerable rebuilding external buffers. Safeguarding financial sector stability and enhancing growth oriented structural reforms, including by strengthening governance.
The IMF Executive Board’s approval to complete the third review recognizes the strong program performance. All quantitative targets for end December 2024 were met, except for the indicative target on social spending.
Most structural benchmarks do by end January 2025 were either met or implemented with delay.
Turning to through the macroeconomic situation, it is encouraging to see that reforms in Sri Lanka are bearing fruit with the economic recovery gaining momentum, inflation remains slow.
Revenue collection is improving and reserves continue to accumulate.
Economic growth averaged 4.3% since growth resumed in the third quarter of 2023.
The recovery is expected to continue in two thousand 2025 now. Despite these positive developments, the economy is still vulnerable.
It is critical to sustain the reform momentum to ensure macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.
And to promote long term inclusive growth, there is no room for policy errors.
Let me emphasize that sustained revenue mobilization is crucial to restoring fiscal sustainability.
And ensuring that the government can continue to provide essential services.
Boosting tax compliance and refraining from tax exemptions are key to maintaining support for economic reforms.
Let me also emphasize that to ease economic hardship and ensure the poor and vulnerable can participate in Sri Lanka’s recovery, it is important to meet social spending targets and continue with reforms of the social safety net going forward. Social support needs to be well targeted towards the.
Most disadvantaged, so as to promote inclusive growth with limited fiscal space.
Restoring cost recovery, electricity pricing without delay is needed to contain fiscal risks from state owned enterprises.
A smoother execution of capital spending within the fiscal envelope would foster medium term growth.
The recent successful completion of the bond exchange is a major milestone towards restoring debt sustainability, timely finalization of bilateral agreements with creditors in the official creditor committee, and with remaining creditors is a priority now. Regarding monetary policy, I would like to highlight that it should prioritize maintaining price. Stability supported by sustained commitment to prohibit monetary financing and.
To safeguard central bank independence. Continued exchange rate, flexibility and gradually phasing out the balance of payments measures remain critical to rebuild external buffers and facilitate rebalancing.
As for the financial sector, resolving non performing loans, strengthening governance and oversight of state owned banks and improving the insolvency and resolution frameworks are important priorities to revive credit growth and support the economic recovery.
Finally, prolonged structural challenges need to be addressed to unlock Sri Lanka’s long term potential, including steadfast implementation of governance reforms.
I would like to thank the authorities for their commitment and excellent collaboration.
Let me also take this opportunity to announce that as part of a standard staff rotation process, I will soon be transitioning from the role of mischief for Sri Lanka.
And I will be handing over to the next mission Chief Evan Papageorgiou, during the next mission. It has been an honor to accompany Sri Lanka on his journey out of this.
Severe crisis for nearly three years. While there are more challenges ahead, the IMF team will remain a steadfast partner for Sri Lanka and its people on the road to a more sustainable and inclusive recovery.
I will be moving to another assignment soon and wish the people of Sri Lanka continued success with the economic recovery.
With this, let me hand it back to Rhonda. Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you so much, Peter.
Colleagues, please raise your hand and identify yourself if you want to ask your question and turn on your camera, if possible and the mic. Thank you. I see the first hand, please.
QUESTIONER: Thank you, Randa. This is Shihar Anis from economy next.
I hope you can hear you.
Ms. Elnagar: We can hear you well, Shihar. Thank you.
QUESTIONER: OK. So my question is now there is a delay in the SOE restructuring because we don’t see the same speed that the previous government was doing, the SOE restructuring this government has been. Basically, they are not into privatization, but they are looking into a different model. How concerned are you on that? You know, delay or the current restructuring model.
Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you. We’ll take another couple of questions and then answer them in groups.
Ms. Elnagar: The audio. Zulfiq there is a lot of static on your mic.
QUESTIONER: Hope you can hear me. I have two questions. That is, it has come to light that the Sri Lankan Government plans not to proceed with the imputed rental income tax as a revenue measure. So has this been discussed with the IMF and is there any other alternative that is being put forward and at the same time, what is IMF stake on the budget that was presented recently?
Ms. Elnagar: Let’s take another question. Sampath, please.
QUESTIONER: Hi I’m Sampath Dissanayake from BBC Sinhala service.
The government is increasing the tax as per the IMF advice to increase government revenue. The number of people receiving Social Security benefit in benefits in Sri Lanka is increasing annually. So do you believe that the increase in tax burden is increase for reason for this?
Ms. Elnagar: Peter, we can take these three questions.
Mr. Breuer: Yes, thank you very much. So let me answer some of the questions.
On the budget and fiscal, and maybe Katie can answer the question on the.
SOE reforms so the. Imputed rental income tax was a measure proposed by the previous administration as part of a possible revenue package for 2025, and the new authorities have proposed a slightly different package that is aligned with their mandate and priorities. And staff and the authorities have assessed that this package is sufficient to meet the revenue targets under the program. Now of course, should those measures prove insufficient, then additional revenue measures would be needed. And so that also. Ties in with the question on the budget and tax revenues. So yes, we have looked at the budget. And have, of course, disgusted with the authorities. There’s more detailed explanation in the staff report that should be online now, so there’s a table on page 12 that kind of lists some of the main measures needed to. reach the goal for tax revenue for next year. Yeah, reallybthe objective here is as you know tax revenue was a key driver of the crisis in 2022.
Sri Lanka was the lowest that the country with the lowest tax take amongst.
Middle income countries and low income countries in the world, and so it has made significant progress since then. Tax as a share of GDP, he has increased by 5 percentage points from somewhere. You know 7 to somewhere 12.4% or so last year. So that’s a significant increase, but by no means is excessive and. The essential services that the government provides need to be funded and for that reason.
Working on ensuring that there is sufficient tax revenue remains a priority.
And so social services, which was the 3rd question is just a portion of the overall essential services that that the government provides and is just a component on that actually. Maybe Marta can add on that point and cut you a can speak to the SOE reforms.
Ms. Svirydzenka: So should I go first? OK. So on the on the SOE restructuring, the most crucial element is that the state owned enterprises are managed in a prudent manner so as to avoid the accumulation of losses or debts that then would eventually need to be repaid by the taxpayers. And in that sense, the SOEs can be managed prudently while remaining state owned or they can be divested partially or completely.
We are reassured by the authorities commitment to ensure that this enterprises do not become a burden for the budget or for the government debt in terms of other key elements under the program has been the cost, reflective pricing of services provided by so especially in the area of electricity and fuel prices. Other commitments under the program include making SOEs more transparent, in particular by publishing audited financial statements of the largest, SOEs in a timely manner.
And then finally, to allow the economy to grow, it is important that the consumers of services receive the best value for the price of being charged. So this involves running, SOEs in the most efficient manner and ensuring that they are following the best governance principles. So in that sense, we’re quite satisfied with the progress, yes.
Martha Tesfaye Woldemichael: So let me maybe come in then to compliment a bit Peter’s response on the social spending, right. So there’s a question. Why social spending is increasing? I think this is a good opportunity to remind that protecting the poor and vulnerable is really an important component of the EFF program. So the EFF supports this objective through the different reforms through macro stabilization. But importantly, there is also a floor on social spending in the program that we assess on a quarterly basis. So this means the government has to spend a minimum amount to protect the poor and vulnerable.
So in this context, the key commitment is really for the authorities to continue strengthening the coverage, the adequacy and the targeting of social spending. So recent announcement related to the expected decrease in the payments, for instance for the poor and extremely poor categories under a ASWASUMA or the.
Announcement that the payments would also increase for the elderly, the disabled and chronic kidney patients are aligned with the authorities commitments to continue strengthening, strengthening social safety Nets and I think it is also very important to make sure that this coverage under the ASWASUMA program. Is above the poverty rates that are currently observed. I think I will stop here. Thank you very much. Back to you, Randa.
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you, Martha. We’re first going to take a question from Kelum.
I think Shihar you had your hand raised, so it’s from the first question. So if you can, please put your hand down because it’s a bit confusing, but we’re going to go to Kellum 1st and then Asante. So Kelum, please go ahead.
QUESTIONER: Thank you. Can you hear me?
Ms. Elnagar: Yes.
QUESTIONER: Yes, I’m Kelum Bandara, from Daily Mirror newspaper. So my question is wanting the overall assessment about the budget, actually that was answered was that next day and the next question is, how important is it for the government to proceed with this Economic Transformation Act to reach the economic targets? Actually in searching by MFN or for the broader infrastructure of the country.
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you Asante. If you can, please pose your question.
QUESTIONER: Yeah, so, the government has started the import duty on vehicles, which just knocked out earlier. Yeah, I think all the taxes were kind of like excise taxes. And so have you made any assessment on whether this will lead to an increase in assembled vehicles, which earlier didn’t get this tax protection and how much leakage of revenue might happen to the assembled sector and whether any effect to publish a kind of a tax expenditure statement to say how much of the import duties lost due to any increase or the sales of the assembled vehicles which are like got CKD, I think tax free the parts and also have you had any discuss? With the central bank. On offloading their government securities now that the Treasury bills
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you, Asantha. There is a question in the chat which we’re going to take and then move to the ones online. Amal, you didn’t verify your organization.
QUESTIONER: Oh, and I have actually done that. I’m from AFP, the French news agency, Agence France Press.
Ms. Elnagar: Hi would you like to ask? Yeah, because you post in the in the chat.
QUESTIONER: Oh yeah. I mean, if you want to save time, can just answer that.
I mean basically I was trying to ask Peter how concerned you are about sort of emerging labor unrest, particularly now in the medical field. The doctors are threatening to go on strike from tomorrow, although there is a pay increase that the increase is less than the. Reduction of their allowances. So this is something that affects a lot of not just the medical sector. So how concerned are you that this kind of growing unrest, labor unrest, how it will affect the overall IMF backed program?
Ms. Elnagar: Peter, do you want to take another question?
So they are three. So I think Indiqa is next.
Mr. Breuer: Well, there’s actually an under. It feels like there’s a bunch of questions.
Should we try and answer these?
Ms. Elnagar: OK. Sounds good.
Mr. Breuer: And maybe Katya can speak to the Economic Transformation Act.
And also to the central bank question so. On this important question with respect to the potential for unrest. Well, I suppose there is potential, but I think what really should be remembered is that this budget really sought to address some of the concerns that the government and ourselves have hurt that. You know, civil servants have been concerned about. The wages that they have been receiving and so.
There is for the first time in a long time, an increase in civil service wages, while at the same time the personal income tax regime is were being changed and reducing personal income taxes considerably, at least for some. Income earners, including civil servants, you have to remember who are the ones who earn an income and pay taxes that really is the upper 20% of income earners in Sri Lanka. There has been a massive crisis in 2022 with huge costs to the population of Sri Lanka and in order for the government to keep on providing the essential services that the citizens of Sri Lanka expected, expect the government to provide and in order to bring along the poorer segments of society. Everyone who can needs to make a sacrifice.
This is how the society can pull together and continue to function, and so.
I think we all know how painful this crisis has been there’s no doubt about it.
We have travelled around the country, we have met with many people.
You know the plantation workers in Noro, alia have shown us their income statements and their bills. And it was very, very clear that this is a very severe crisis, but how else to address it. So, sticking with the reforms is really the best way out for Sri Lanka to assure its sustainability, and I think it’s important for everyone in Sri Lanka to recognize that.
If you put it into the broader perspective the adjustment, this is the last budget.
Where there is still a bit of an increase in in revenue is needed 1.5 percentage points of GDP, but all the hard adjustment has already taken place in the previous two years. You know revenue have increased 5 percentage points of GDP over the last two years. This is, you know, the last sort of big push. Not quite as big as in the previous years, and there after it’ll be much easier going forward.
So on the cars I mean that’s a specific question. Does is there some import substitution? I can’t answer that. I would assume that after five years or so of a ban of imported cars that there will be some demand for finished cars from overseas.
I do take your point that it’s possible that there may be some assembly of cars domestically.
Katya, can you answer the other two questions please?
Ms. Svirydzenka: Sure. So on the economic transformation, bill, we understand there was a recent announcement that the new government will propose amendments to the bill. And so we look forward to reviewing the amended economic transformation bill. We expect it to be consistent with program objectives, including for example with the authorities’ commitment to refrain from granting tax.
Incentives until the STP act is revised to provide clear and transparent criteria on the granting of tax incentives on the. Central Bank Securities, I understand the question was that the Central Bank has sold T-bills but has a stock of on marketable bonds. And this is correct. And under the program at this point, because there’s no market for this restructured bonds, we do not envision they unwinding of this stock and over the next 12 months you can see it in the program targets in table one on page 95 of the published report under the category of net credit to the government.
I hope that answers the question. If I understood it correctly.
QUESTIONER: So, I am trying to find out what’s the alternative if you want to sterilize the inflows. I mean, kind of issuing central banks equity or something, but you have reserve target.
Ms. Svirydzenka: Is this more than a question about the operation of monetary policy and how to sterilize reserve accumulation?
QUESTIONER: Yeah. Yeah. Because you don’t you?
Ms. Svirydzenka: Perhaps I misunderstood.
QUESTIONER: You no longer have the tables to sell. What is the alternative securities they can sell to build?
Ms. Svirydzenka: Yes, I understand. Thank you so much for clarifying. Yeah. So there are many alternatives that the Central bank can use. For example, they can engage in repo operations or also issue their own securities. But I guess what is important to highlight for your question is that the Central Bank so far has been able to meet the inflation target and if anything, they’re a little bit undershooting as you saw with the breach of the MPCC clause in June and in December. So in that sense, the central bank is quite effective in terms of reaching the inflation objectives and we think the tools they have in their, in their in their hands should be enough.
Ms. Elnagar: Thank you, Katya. We have more questions, Peter.
We have Indika first please.
QUESTIONER: Hi, Randa. Thank you, I think. I hope I’m audible.
Ms. Elnagar: Yes you are.
QUESTIONER: My questions, question to Peter is in the budget, there is a budget proposal to recruit about 30,000 people to the public sector. So we already have a bloated public sector in the country. So what’s your what’s IMF’s opinion on that? And the other question is on their flight, electricity, the price, reflective electricity tariffs. So we were under the impression that that is already happening because the government is already. Adjusting prices periodically, but in the press release that was released on Friday. The sort of insinuated that Sri Lanka S deviated. What is what is the situation there? Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: Peter, we can take a couple more questions this round.
QUESTIONER: Randa, I hope I’m audible.
Ms. Elnagar: Yes you are.
QUESTIONER: Great. I just have one question. Peter, could you please outline what are the key goal posts that Sri Lanka has to hit as it moves forward to the 4th review now, right. And when will there be an IMF delegation coming to Colombo?
Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: We can take more questions. There are two questions in the chat, Peter, One is asking, why was the proposed property tax under the IMF program withdrawn, and why wasn’t the existing under taxed Council tax system rebased instead? How much revenue was expected from the input rental tax and why could this be? Couldn’t this be raised adjusting Council taxes? There’s another one we can take, or that’s enough for now this round.
Mr. Breuer: Yeah. Why don’t we get going with these ones? Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: Yeah, because Shehar already had a chance at the beginning, so let’s take a different group now. Thank you.
Mr. Breuer: So thanks so much for these questions. On the size of the public sector, that’s really not for us to judge the government needs to sort of identify the resources it needs to provide the services that it’s expected to provide.
And do all of that within the envelope of the program. So there may be other institutions. The World Bank, for example, you know that can provide some more assistance, technical assistance to help with making the government as efficient as as possible. But. I don’t really have a comment there. The electricity tariff.
So there was a reduction in the electricity tariffs in January, and this is when we feel that the cost reflective pricing was no longer met because on a forward-looking basis. That tariff cut meant that Ceb wouldn’t be able to avoid any losses.
So these cuts. Essentially, at least on a forward-looking basis, implied that losses would be run now of course. These profits and losses by the electricity company depend on many factors, including the weather, the rain and so forth.
So what turns out ex post may be different from what happens ex ante, but this is a concern that we have because it could mean that that starts building up again in the electricity company. That could ultimately become a contingent liability for the government. This is something that, of course, Sri Lanka has experienced before, and avoiding this and making sure that consumers on average pay for how much it costs to generate and distribute the electricity is an important part of the program.
And this actually also goes towards answering the question of what are some of the main goal posts for the 4th review. So ensuring that cost reflective energy pricing is restored is of course a key. Part of what we would like to see for the next.
Review I should say there are some mechanisms that give us hope that this will happen automatically. The SD bulk supply transaction account, which is sort of a mechanism that is supposed to kick in when losses at CB become too large when they are cash balances become. You know, negative beyond a certain value.
Then there’s meant to be an automatic increase in the tariff. That would prevent these losses from accumulating, so so they are already mechanisms in place.
It’s important that these mechanisms be allowed to function, and then, of course, at the next tariff setting, it’s important to ensure that tariffs will once again be set to cover the costs. Another important Issue for the next review will of course be.
The budget that the budget that is finally passed at the end of this month is in fact consistent with the program parameters. So this is something that we will be watching very carefully. So those are two issues that may matter.
The next mission we expect to be visiting Colombo.in the coming weeks or months or so. So the exact dates will be announced closer to the time.
With respect to the property tax. That is a property tax. Is very common in many countries it is a form of wealth tax whereby those who have more wealth, meaning more expensive homes, larger homes that are worth more, need to make larger contributions to the tax coffers and support the government. So, now it’s it had been discussed for quite some time previously, and in fact many preparations have been made under this program for property tax with respect to, you know sales price and rents register, and various databases to estimate the values of homes. So lots of preparations have been have been made. Then there were some concerns and this goes towards the question with respect to the local authorities how this tax could be raised and how it could be shared with at the at the central government level. So some of these issues still need to be resolved and so this is this is something I think that is as yet you know to be addressed. Let me stop there. Thank you.
Ms. Elnagar: Peter, we can take a couple more questions because we are out of time. So we can take from Sisira, who has been waiting patiently, and then we have a couple of questions in the chat. So Sisira, please go ahead. We can’t hear you.
Sisira do you have a question? You have your hand raised?
QUESTIONER: Yeah. Can you hear me?
Elnagar, Randa Mohamed: Yes.
QUESTIONER: My question is, what is the impact?
Ms. Elnagar: Your mic is a bit muffled.
QUESTIONER: Can you hear me?
Ms. Elnagar: Peter, can you hear him?
Mr. Breuer: It’s very, very soft. I don’t know whether you can bring the mic closer to him.
QUESTIONER: Yeah, my question is what is the projected impact of Sri Lanka’s foreign reserves?
Mr. Breuer: I think the question is what is the impact of the car imports on reserves? Yeah, OK.
Ms. Elnagar: Vehicle import. Yeah. And then we have a couple of questions here.
Amal already asked the question, a supplementary question regarding what Asantha raised about vehicle imports. So it’s the same topic and then we have. One from Ishara. Even though the IMF program has put Sri Lanka’s economy on the right track, a recent poverty study revealed that more than 50% of households are below the poverty line. Additionally, the Central bank mentioned that brain drain could severely impact efforts to accelerate growth. In this scenario, how can Sri Lanka reach its anticipated IMF recovery targets? And these are the last questions of the press conference.
Mr. Breuer::Yeah. Thank you very much. On the car imports. So yes, removing the import restrictions on car imports will allow cars to be imported which means they have to be paid for and so that could have an impact on the balance of payments. But as you know there’s a question to what extent you know the Central bank should intervene to make those reserves available versus allowing the exchange rate to fluctuate in response to market forces. So, that is something that remains to be seen, but maybe just to highlight the fact that reserves have increased. Significantly, so far under the program they have reached about half of the program objective already, which is very impressive.
On the question with respect to the anticipated IMF recovery targets, so. I think it’s quite clear that things really have turned around significantly in Sri Lanka. I mean, you all live there, so you experience it much more than us. But when I first got to Sri Lanka in June 2022. Everybody was standing in a line somewhere in, you know, to get fuel, to get cooking gas to get food or medications and economic activity was was very subdued, I think in real terms. Sri Lanka lost, you know, 10% or so of its economic activity. As a result of this crisis and since then in the short amount of time.
That the program has been there basically since 2023 it has already recovered 40% of the income it has lost. In the preceding five years, so in a very short amount of time, you have already a very significant recovery. You have the most recent growth number of 5.5%.
So I think things are turning around significantly in Sri Lanka and that will have an impact on the indicators that we care about, such as poverty, so.
As economic opportunities return to Sri Lanka. Incomes will increase and poverty will be reduced, and also it’ll be more attractive to remain in Sri Lanka and not leave and emigrate or those who have emigrated may find opportunities back in in Sri Lanka again so. You know, as you look at our projections, we have increased these quite a bit. For 2025 and beyond and so based on these, I would say I’m quite optimistic about the recovery in Sri Lanka.
Ms. Elnagar: I think we’re out of time, Peter. If you guys have any further questions, please, please feel free to send them by e-mail. We are always very responsive or via WhatsApp. With that I would like to thank our speakers Peter, Katia, and Martha, and I would like to thank you all for participating in this press conference.
We’re going to be posting the recording and the transcript by tomorrow.
And we look forward in seeing to seeing you again in the future.
Thank you very much.
Mr. Breuer: Thank you.
Ms. Woldemichael: Thank you.
Ms. Svirydzenka: Thank you.
PRESS OFFICER: Randa Elnagar
Phone: +1 202 623-7100Email: MEDIA@IMF.org
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Mississippi Roger Wicker
WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., the Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, today chaired a hearing reviewing the nomination of Mr. Elbridge A. Colby to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy at the Department of Defense.
In his opening statement, Chairman Wicker raised the need for a program of rapid reform at the Pentagon to improve deterrence against the complex threat environment posted by China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. Chairman Wicker noted that Mr. Colby shares a common understanding of the dangerous security situation in the Western Pacific. Wicker also commended Colby’s exhortations to improve the defense industrial base.
In examining Colby’s previous writings, however, Chairman Wicker noted the importance of remaining active in multiple theaters where threats against American national security have manifested, and asked Colby to offer his grand strategic vision for the U.S. in years ahead. Chairman Wicker also asked Colby to comment on his major reports to rebuild the military and reform the Pentagon as well, which Colby offered strong concurrence with.
“Senator…I’ve had the pleasure of reviewing [your Peace Through Strength plan], and I think we’re keying off exactly. And I am a big supporter of that kind of perspective: restoring American strength, industrial might, and getting our allies to do more, which seems to me is also the perspective of the president and the Secretary of Defense…part of that plan [for deterrence] is greater resources, like, Mr. Chairman, you have advocated for,” Colby said. “I commit to advocating for the higher defense levels that I think are consistent with what our security dictates.”
Read Senator Wicker’s hearing opening statement as delivered below.
The hearing will come to order.
Thank you all for being here this morning. The committee meets to consider the nomination of Mr. Elbridge Colby to be Under Secretary of Defense for Policy.
I want to thank Mr. Colby for his willingness to serve again. I want to thank his wife, Susanna, and their children for being here today. It also says a lot that Mr. Colby will be introduced today by two distinguished friends: Vice President JD Vance and Senator Banks.
We are informed that the vice president is in traffic, and so after consulting to my right and left, we will proceed again because there are time constraints. And when the vice president arrives – I think he’ll be arriving just in time, so proceeding on.
If confirmed, Mr. Colby would oversee the developments of policy and strategy for the Department of Defense. He would assume these responsibilities during the most dangerous security environment since World War II. The deepening military cooperation between China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea represents a complex and far-reaching set of threats. These threats demand a generational investment to revitalize America’s military strength. They demand rapid Pentagon reform. And they demand a fresh look at strategies needed to achieve our national security objectives.
The American people need to understand what is at stake. We should help the country appreciate the risks imposed to our way of life. Beijing is leading an emerging alliance of countries with one clear objective: to use their economic and military power to tear down the United States and impose their will on global affairs. The new Axis of Aggressors is a greater menace than we have faced in decades.
Under Xi Jinping’s leadership the Chinese Communist Party has undertaken one of the largest and most aggressive military buildups in history. Their speed has been astounding. In just a few short years, China has built more nuclear intercontinental ballistic missiles than the U.S. has in decades. They have tested orbital bombardment weapons and unveiled what may be the world’s first sixth-generation fighter aircraft. China possesses a ship building capacity over 230 times that of the United States – over 230 times. That’s almost inconceivable.
Over three years ago, Vladimir Putin launched the first invasion of a European country since World War II. He has barraged the Ukrainian people with constant missile and drone attacks. The Kremlin has developed a variety of new weapons capabilities, including nuclear-armed satellites. Meanwhile Russia actively provides enriched uranium to China to support Beijing’s nuclear buildup. Putin has also been suspected of aiding North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs.
Moving on to North Korea, nuclear arsenal there continues to advance unchecked. Kim Jong-Un has been aiding Russia’s war machine as it terrorizes Europe. Pyongyang’s missiles could soon be capable of overwhelming our defenses – North Korea’s – especially if reports of Russian assistance are accurate.
In the Middle East, Israel has successfully crippled Iran’s proxies in the region, but these setbacks may spur Tehran to take the final step: to build a nuclear weapon, permanently altering the balance of power in that region.
Few really understand how this axis of aggressors is working to make Americans less safe. If confirmed, I hope Mr. Colby can help Secretary Hegseth as he makes sure the public sees these threats for what they are.
During Secretary Hegseth’s hearing, I spoke about the importance of building a motivated and highly competent team of professionals at the Pentagon. In this regard Mr. Colby is certainly qualified for the role to which President Trump has nominated him.
For more than two decades, he has worked on defense policy. Mr. Colby previously served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary Defense for Strategy and Force Development. In that role, Mr. Colby played a pivotal role in the formulation of the 2018 National Defense Strategy – the first real strategy in years. His leadership was crucial in helping the United States articulate the need for a new defense posture, one focused on strategic competition with China and Russia, and the overdue modernization of our military.
Mr. Colby and I have been ringing the same bell on military unpreparedness for years, particularly as it relates to China. This committee would echo exhortations on defense policy in the Western Pacific. We should make Taiwan a porcupine and Taipei is sprinting in that direction. We should build a larger US military footprint in East Asia, and we should accelerate the most important weapons programs to deter China.
President Trump has made it clear that he intends to rebuild the military and reform the Pentagon. He campaigned on peace through strength. We all want to keep America safe and prosperous. To secure that peace, we will enable a Golden Age for America, but we do not now have the strength that can guarantee us the peace.
Given the threat environment facing us, I strongly believe that we cannot simply pivot our attention and resources from one threat to another. That is an approach the Obama administration tried, and it did fail. We must be focused and strategic, but we need to be clear Beijing sees its fight against America as a global fight.
Beijing is not pivoting between theaters or among theaters. Significant American withdrawal in Europe, Africa, South America, or the Middle East will allow the Chinese Communist Party to overcome us strategically, even if we are able to prevent military conflict in East Asia in the near term.
In the past few weeks, President Trump has killed five top Al-Qaeda and ISIS terrorists. Good for him. He’s green lit more aggressive campaigning against the Houthis, and promised to support Israel to the hilt. All these policies are in line with the president’s desire for lasting peace and prosperity in the United States, and Mr. Colby, I’m sure that is your desire too.
Now, Mr. Colby, your views on each theater have seemingly evolved since 2018, and I’m sure there’ll be discussions about that which are worth exploring. It goes without saying that the elephant in this hearing room today is the recent developments with regard to Ukraine and Russia and this administration.
I was disappointed and dismayed as I watched the televised meeting involving the President of the United States and President Zelenskyy. And I was distressed that the White House meeting ended without the signing of the minerals agreement, which was there to be signed, as I understand it.
This was followed by a television appearance by President Zelenskyy, and then a visit to some of our friends in Europe, where there’s much concern about the failure of that agreement to be signed.
It was also followed that weekend by Mr. Putin’s continued barrage of attacking apartments, civilian targets, and other areas in Ukraine. Not a good weekend for peace in Ukraine or world peace.
The president is trying to get a peace deal in Ukraine, and I certainly hope we’ll be able to get this back on the rails. I would like to hear your views on the potential there. Your views on President Trump’s crystal-clear Iran policy seem to have hardened considerably, yet your views on Taiwan’s importance to the United States seems to have softened considerably. I hope we can clarify those views today. And your views on the relevance of nuclear weapons in the next decade remain unclear to me. I would appreciate your comments on each of those issues.
Mr. Colby, you’ve spoken frequently to audiences who are skeptical of the idea that U.S, peace and prosperity require us to wield U.S. power abroad. I’m grateful that you have led those discussions that U.S. foreign policy professionals do not like having. I expect your points on the limits of U.S. power remain nuanced, and complimentary to the president’s peace through strength agenda. And it will be crystal clear that you will speak for the president in this regard.
If you’re focused on finding innovative ways to blend America’s comparative advantages in this global fight against Chinese Communists, then I strongly believe you will be a boon to the president and to the United States of America. I’d like to hear your strategic vision for the next four years. I’d like to hear your comments on the plans I have released for rebuilding and reforming the military. In confirming Secretary Hegseth, we charged him with focusing on four guiding principles as he assumed office: lethality, efficiency, speed, and accountability. I also appreciate the ease of access that he and I have had in conversations with each other since his confirmation.
As Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, I’d like to know how you plan to execute in these four areas to support President Trump’s peace through strength agenda. So, thank you very much for being here, we look forward to your testimony, and I now recognize Ranking Member Reed for his opening remarks.
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Michigan Gary Peters
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Gary Peters (MI) delivered a speech on the Senate floor denouncing the Trump Administration’s illegal firing of thousands of veterans throughout the federal government. Veterans make up nearly 30 percent of the federal workforce, or approximately 640,000 employees. Since taking office, the Trump Administration has already laid off about 6,000 former servicemembers without cause, including veterans who worked in federal agencies like the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Department of Defense (DOD), and the Treasury Department for several years. In his remarks, Peters underscored the talent and value that veterans bring to the federal civil service and called on the Trump Administration to immediately reinstate these employees.
“Employing our nation’s veterans when they transition to civilian life is not just a responsibility, it is a smart business decision,” said Senator Peters. “That’s why the federal government has long taken advantage of this absolutely remarkable talent pool.”
Peters continued, “These are Americans who put their lives on the line to defend this country. They took up a job to continue to serve the people of this country. They represent the best of our nation, and we need them in our federal workforce. I’m calling on the Administration to reinstate these veteran employees immediately.”
To watch a video clip of Senator Peters’ remarks, click here.
In his remarks, Peters also highlighted the stories of Michigan veterans who were impacted by these firings:
“My staff met with a veteran who has worked for the VA in Michigan for nearly 30 years. Last year, they were moved to a new role within VA and were promoted to supervisor shortly thereafter. No surprise, because they had never received less than an excellent performance review over 30 years. But because they were relatively new to that specific role, they were swept up in the widespread firings, both within VA and across government, of all probationary employees. They were one of many veterans fired abruptly without cause, without reason.”
“In another case, a veteran with 8 years of active-duty service in the Air Force was fired from a VA in Michigan after receiving an ‘outstanding’ performance review. Their probationary period was set to expire last week, just 12 days after they were let go.”
Peters has been a continued advocate for America’s veterans. In January 2024, two bipartisan bills authored by Peters were signed into law to protect burial benefits for both veterans and military families. Peters also helped pass the Sergeant First Class Heath Robinson Honoring our Promise to Address Comprehensive Toxics (PACT) Act into law – which delivered VA health care and benefits to all generations of toxic-exposed veterans – and their survivors – for the first time in our nation’s history. In 2016, Peters’ Fairness for Veterans Act was signed into law to help veterans who may have been erroneously given less than honorable discharge from the military due to negative behavior resulting from mental health traumas, such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI). In 2017, Peters was recognized as Legislator of the Year by the Vietnam Veterans of America for his work authoring and enacting the Fairness for Veterans Act.
Peters served more than a decade in the U.S. Navy Reserve, where he earned a Seabee Combat Warfare Specialist designation and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Commander. After the September 11th terrorist attacks on our country, he volunteered again for drilling status and served overseas as part of his Reserve duty.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)
BOSTON – A Brooklyn, N.Y. man pleaded guilty today in federal court in Boston in connection with his role in a sophisticated international money laundering and drug trafficking organization.
Rongjian Li, 38, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley scheduled sentencing for June 5, 2025.
In May 2023, Li was among 12 individuals from Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York and California charged in a superseding indictment for their alleged involvement in a sophisticated international money laundering and drug trafficking organization led by Jin Hua Zhang. The investigation revealed that, for a fee, Zhang laundered bulk cash for drug dealers and laundered profits from other illegal businesses. In less than a year, Zhang and his organization laundered at least $25 million worth of drug proceeds and funds from other illegal businesses through undercover agents. Funds were eventually traced to, and seized from, accounts in Hong Kong and elsewhere in China, India, Cambodia and Brazil, among other locations.
The investigation identified Li as a member of the money laundering conspiracy who, from 2021 through 2022, used his position as a Bank of America employee to knowingly open several accounts through which the organization laundered illicit funds. Li was also aware that some of the accounts were opened using fraudulent passports. As part of his involvement, when the bank’s financial auditing systems flagged or froze accounts for suspicious activity, Li helped Zhang circumvent the bank’s anti-money laundering protocols and move illicit funds elsewhere. In addition, Li was observed sitting next to Zhang at a dinner in New York, where Zhang discussed the different fee percentages he charged various criminal groups for drug trafficking and scams.
Zhang pleaded guilty in September 2023 and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 15, 2025.
The charge of money laundering conspiracy provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $500,000, or twice the amount involved, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
United States Attorney Leah B. Foley and Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Christopher Pohl, Brian A. Fogerty and Meghan C. Cleary of the Criminal Division are prosecuting the case.
The details contained in the indictment are allegations. The remaining defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Magdalena Frennhoff Larsén, Associate Professor in Politics and International Relations, University of Westminster
US president Donald Trump sees himself as a born negotiator with a knack for driving a hard bargain and striking a good deal. When it comes to trade, his approach is clearly positional, and negotiations are treated as zero-sum games with winners and losers.
Imposing tariffs – or threatening to do so – is his preferred way of exerting influence over US trading partners. While tariffs are unilaterally imposed – and not the result of negotiations – they can be interpreted as an opening gambit to gain leverage in trade negotiations further down the line.
Since taking office, Trump has already announced a series of sweeping new tariffs, including an across-the-board steel and aluminium tariff to be effective from March 12.
He has also presented the “fair and reciprocal plan” aimed at correcting any trade imbalances facing the US, including the EU’s trade surplus in cars. And most recently, he threatened to impose 25% tariffs on all imported goods from the EU.
As the biggest trading partner of the US, the EU is concerned. Yet the EU is also a formidable negotiator.
Negotiations are very much part of the EU’s DNA. They are the bloc’s preferred way of engaging with third countries, and in trade the European Commission negotiates on behalf of the member states, projecting a unified EU front. With more trade agreements in place than any other country or regional bloc, it is considered a champion of a liberal global trade order.
Unlike Trump, the EU prefers a more open approach. Negotiations are considered win-win games, with a focus on relation-building and trying to understand where the other party comes.
Its response to the provocation from Washington has been rapid and strategic. Even so, the EU has already found that the only option with Trump is to play him at his own game.
Sticking with what it knows best, the EU has hurried to conclude trade negotiations with other partners to offset some of the economic losses resulting from potential US tariffs, and to demonstrate its continued commitment to trade liberalisation and international cooperation.
Since Trump’s election, the EU has finalised negotiations for a groundbreaking trade deal with Mercosur – a South American trade bloc bringing together Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. This agreement –- if ratified – will create a market of 800 million citizens and boost trade and political ties between the two regions.
Indirectly rejecting Trump’s “America first” approach, Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, stressed how the EU-Mercosur agreement is a political necessity, “bringing together like-minded partners that believe in openness and cooperation as engines of economic growth”.
The EU has also concluded negotiations on trade agreements with Switzerland and Mexico, relaunched negotiations for a comprehensive free trade agreement with Malaysia, and is aiming for a trade deal with India this year.
This reaction is similar to the EU’s response to the isolationist approach taken by Trump during his first administration. Most significantly, it then reached an extensive free trade agreement with Japan.
Cecilia Malmström, the EU trade commissioner at the time, highlighted how the EU and Japan were “”sending a strong signal to the world that two of its biggest economies still believe in open trade, opposing both unilateralism and protectionism”.
It was also the first time the EU used a trade agreement to commit to the Paris agreement on climate change – a commitment that was replicated in the EU-Mercosur agreement. This again, was a way of taking a stance against Trump’s broader rejection of multilateralism and withdrawal from the Paris agreement.
Although not intentionally, Trump has triggered an expansion of the EU’s network of trade agreements. But while these are significant, they cannot fully protect the EU from the effects of US-imposed tariffs. After all, the EU and the US are each other’s largest trading partners, and they have the world’s most integrated economic relationship.
For that reason, the EU has engaged in intensive diplomacy to try to avert the looming tariffs, and to lure the US to the negotiating table. It has expressed openness to lowering tariffs on industrial goods, including cars, while insisting such a move needs to form part of a broader negotiated deal, compatible with the rules of the WTO. However, these efforts have been to no avail.
This has left the EU with no choice but to adopt Trump’s positional approach and threaten to impose retaliatory measures. In response to the economic pressure exerted by Trump in his first term, the EU has expanded its arsenal of punitive measures, including an anti-coercion instrument that allows for rapid retaliation.
There has long been strong resistance to use such measures as it runs counter to the EU’s traditionally open negotiating approach, but the tone in Brussels has now hardened.
A tit-for-tat tariff war would negatively affect businesses and consumers on both sides of the Atlantic. During his first term Trump imposed tariffs on steel and aluminium, and the EU responded with targeted tariffs on goods, such as American whiskey and jeans.
This was followed by a political agreement, opening the door for trade talks. While a trade deal never materialised, it demonstrates how both the US and the EU recognised the need for a de-escalation of the dispute, and a return to the negotiating table.
This time around, the looming tariffs are more comprehensive, and they would have more far-reaching implications. The question is how long – and how damaging – the trade war will be before the parties return to the negotiating table. After all, that’s where you reach a deal.
Magdalena Frennhoff Larsén does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. How the EU is preparing to play hardball in the face of Donald Trump’s tariff threats – https://theconversation.com/how-the-eu-is-preparing-to-play-hardball-in-the-face-of-donald-trumps-tariff-threats-251506
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Duncan Depledge, Senior Lecturer in Geopolitics and Security, Loughborough University
During a wide-ranging 90-minute speech to the US congress of March 4, Donald Trump revisited his determination to “get” Greenland “one way or the other”. Trump said his country needed Greenland “for national security”. While he said he and his government “strongly support your right to determine your own future” he added that “if you choose, we welcome you into the United States of America”.
Trump’s ambitions regarding Greenland and its considerable mineral wealth are just one of a raft of issues in the first six weeks of his second term that have plunged European global politics into disarray.
As the White House ramps up the pressure on Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelensky, to allow the US access to Ukraine’s mineral wealth, the US president is also talking about “cutting a deal” with Russian president Vladimir Putin. That deal would not only mean territorial losses for Kyiv, but would prepare the ground for a potentially far-reaching economic partnership between the White House and the Kremlin.
Currently, Trump and Putin are primarily focused on Ukrainian territory and mineral assets. But discussions have also begun on where else “deals” might be made, including in the Arctic.
A carve up of the Arctic is an attractive proposition for the two countries given the importance both leaders attach to mineral resource wealth. As in the case of Ukraine, such an approach would reflect Trump’s predisposition for transactional geopolitics at the expense of multilateral approaches.
In the Arctic, any deal would effectively end the principle of “circumpolar cooperation”. This has, since the end of the cold war, upheld the regional primacy of the eight Arctic states (A8) that have cooperated to solve common challenges.
Since the Arctic Council was established in 1996, the A8 has worked on issues of environmental protection, sustainable development, human security and scientific collaboration. That harmony has been crucial in an era in which climate change is causing the rapid melting of Arctic ice.
Notably, the Arctic Council played an instrumental role in negotiating several legally binding treaties. These include agreements on search and rescue (2011), marine oil pollution preparedness (2013) and scientific cooperation (2017). It also supported the Central Arctic Ocean fisheries agreement (CAO) signed in 2018 by the Arctic Ocean states with Iceland, the EU, China, Japan and South Korea.
The Arctic Council – and more broadly, circumpolar cooperation – withstood the geopolitical aftershocks of Russia’s seizure of Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine between 2014 and 2015. But Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine left trust teetering on the precipice.
Within a month, European and North American members had pressed pause on regular meetings of the Arctic Council and its scientific working groups, isolating Moscow. Some activity eventually resumed at the working group level in virtual formats, but full engagement with Russia has remained conditional on a military withdrawal from Ukraine. Meanwhile, hefty sanctions were imposed by the US and Europe, including targeting Russian Arctic energy projects.
Russia’s response was to enhance its relationships with others. Countries such as Brazil, India, Turkey and Saudi Arabia now work with Russia in the Arctic on commercial and scientific projects. This pivot raised concerns among Nato allies about a stronger and challenging Russia-China presence across the Arctic. But the second Trump administration has changed the calculus. There’s now the threat of a new Arctic order based on the primacy – not of the A8 – but on a reset of US-Russia relations.
Trump’s signing of an executive order on February 4 to determine whether to withdraw support from international institutions may lead the White House to conclude there is no place for the Arctic Council. Its longstanding focus on climate change and environmental protection is anathema to the Trump administration, which has already withdrawn from the Paris agreement and is destroying domestic climate-related science programmes.
The longstanding commitment of the A8 to circumpolar cooperation, or even a narrow A5 (Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia and the US) view of the primacy of the Arctic Ocean coastal states, is likely to be dismissed by the White House, which favours the embrace of great power politics. While many have warned that the Arctic Council can’t survive without Russia, losing US interest and support would surely be its death knell.
In this landscape of “America first”, the prospect of Washington and Moscow dividing the Arctic and its resources seems increasingly realistic. In such a situation, the international treaties signed by the A8, and the CAO may also be at risk. Denmark may find itself excluded altogether from Arctic affairs if Trump gets his way over Greenland. At any rate, all the Nordic Arctic states are likely to struggle to make their voices in the region heard.
A key question for European Nato and EU members is whether Trump would worry about Russian dominance in the European Arctic if it brought US-Russia economic cooperation to extract the region’s wealth? Might Trump even be supportive of Russian attempts to revisit the terms of the 1920 Spitsbergen Treaty, which ultimately gave Norway sovereignty over the Arctic archipelago (albeit with some limitations), if that too meant jointly unlocking Svalbard’s mineral resources let alone the wealth of the Arctic seabed?
What room, if any, would a deal leave for Indigenous people to be heard, or for international scientific collaboration on critical challenges related to climate and biodiversity?
If we have learned anything in the tumult of recent weeks, it is that European countries, individually and collectively, struggle to exercise strategic influence over contemporary geopolitical events. If Trump and Putin do begin negotiations over the Arctic, Europe may simply have to accept the end of the Arctic Council and circumpolar cooperation.
Climate science, environmental protection, sustainable development and the ability of Indigenous people to decide their future would all suffer. The UK and Europe meanwhile will be left to consider what, if anything, can be done to defend Arctic interests.
The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
– ref. Growing Trump-Putin detente could spell trouble for the Arctic – https://theconversation.com/growing-trump-putin-detente-could-spell-trouble-for-the-arctic-251386
US Senate News:
Source: United States Senator for Hawaii Brian Schatz
Nothing about Donald Trump’s hasty and illegal attempted dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)—and with it, the decapitation of American power—is remotely efficient. Just this week, USAID’s now-former Inspector General found that there is currently half a billion dollars’ worth of American-grown food stranded at ports and warehouses across the country, on the verge of spoiling. That’s corn and rice and lentils and soybeans, grown in Iowa and Kansas and Texas and Oklahoma, that would have otherwise fed children in a school in Bangladesh or famished refugees at a camp in war-torn Sudan. (The Inspector General was subsequently fired for disclosing this information.)
Similarly, there’s no efficiency being achieved by obstructing one of the most successful global health programs in history—the President’s Emergency Program for AIDS Relief—which has saved 26 million lives over the past two decades. PEPFAR currently provides HIV treatment to over 20 million people around the world, meaning every day aid isn’t flowing inches us closer to the very outbreaks we’ve worked so hard to prevent.
Whether it’s delivering clean water to communities across Africa; or promoting economic development through education in Mali and small business support in El Salvador; or providing life-saving care in Thailand and Syria; or fighting human trafficking in Nepal and Liberia, thousands of USAID workers and contractors make miracles big and small happen every day.
But USAID succeeds as more than just a moral matter. Each year, it pours billions of dollars back into the U.S. economy, supporting farmers and businesses that provide food and other supplies. It also helps fight terrorist groups and drug cartels that endanger Americans, while deepening American values and interests in every corner of the globe. But perhaps the most underappreciated aspect of USAID’s work is its singular ability to forge relationships with unlikely partners which help combat the harmful influence of adversaries like China and Russia.
It’s no surprise, then, that Beijing and Moscow are now cheering on our sudden retreat. They’re not wasting any time filling the void, either. Within days of USAID’s closure, China sent aid and dispatched workers to take on projects we’ve abandoned in the Indo Pacific and Africa. Intended or not, that will be the enduring consequence of this episode of chaos: an emboldened China, all-too-eager to exploit American isolation to grow its own power and influence.
Like any organization, USAID is not perfect. There are inefficiencies and redundancies, and evolving challenges and emerging technologies present opportunities for improvement. It’s also entirely legitimate to question whether U.S. funding is aligned with our current priorities and interests and seek to adjust it as needed within the four corners of the law. Doing that is one of Congress’ most fundamental responsibilities—and something I was eager to work on when I became the lead Democrat on the Senate Appropriations subcommittee overseeing foreign aid last month.
But the abrupt and total shutdown of USAID—in defiance of multiple federal laws through which it was codified and funded—reveals a simple truth: The Department of Government Efficiency is not actually about achieving efficiency. Rather, it’s about Trump trying to wish away whichever parts of the government he doesn’t like. Were a purge of this nature to happen in a country halfway around the world, we would rightly call it an authoritarian takeover. The fact that it’s happening at our own doorstep doesn’t change that.
Much of what DOGE claims to have newly unearthed are either outright lies or were already publicly available for all to see. Worse, there’s no telling what funding they deem unnecessary—except for vague, baseless descriptions like “woke” and “radical” and “criminal.”
The way to make reforms is through the lawmaking process—not the lawbreaking process. If you believe that a program needs to be narrowed in scope, reformed a great deal, or even eliminated altogether, the way to do that is by proposing a law—not by rampaging the federal government and stripping it for parts. Our government with three separate but co-equal branches exists precisely to prevent this kind of anarchy operating under a thin veneer of fiscal responsibility and shrewd cost-cutting.
Moving fast and breaking things may be an acceptable way to conduct business at a tech company. But a break now, fix later strategy doesn’t work when you’re the leader of the free world. What’s on the line is not advertising revenue and the user experience, but lives and livelihoods. Hundreds of millions of them, in fact. People will die, diseases will spread, and famine will grow. Trump is trying to hoodwink Americans into thinking the only way to achieve efficiency is by exacting maximum chaos and cruelty. It’s a false choice and we must reject it.
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
GAITHERSBURG, Md., March 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — GL Communications Inc. addressed the press regarding their extensive range of consulting services to effectively manage engineering and IT projects while delivering substantial cost savings. GL operates Technology Solution Centers in Bengaluru, India, and Washington, D.C., USA, staffed by highly skilled software and hardware developers, network engineers, cybersecurity experts, and project managers.
[For illustration, refer to consulting press release.jpg]
GL Communications Inc. is a leading provider of comprehensive telecommunications and IT consulting services, as well as cutting-edge test solutions. The company serves various industries, including telecommunications, aerospace and defense, e-commerce, oil and gas, and healthcare.
Vijay Kulkarni, CEO of GL Communications, states, “GL offers comprehensive consulting services for all aspects of telecommunications and IT projects, covering network infrastructure testing and evaluation, custom hardware and software development, cybersecurity guidance, project management, proposal development, communications systems design, cost estimation, procurement, vendor analysis and selection, and field inspection. Our company is proficient in all telecommunications network technologies including Ethernet and IP , wireless , high speed fiber optics, land mobile radio, Time Division Multiplexing and Analog.”
Tailored Solutions to Meet Business Needs
GL Communications Inc. offers a comprehensive range of solutions to meet diverse business needs, including managed network services, which encompass network design, implementation, monitoring, cybersecurity, and support to ensure constant availability and optimal performance. The company also specializes in custom hardware and software Development, providing tailored applications for Windows® and Linux, custom-built servers, portable durable PCs, IoT devices, handheld devices, centralized monitoring platforms, and surveillance solutions. Additionally, GL offers Outsourcing Solutions, delivering cost-effective IT support, project management, and software development by leveraging its expertise as an extension of client organizations.
Global Reach with Local Expertise
With Technology Solution Centers in Bengaluru and Washington, D.C., GL Communications maintains a strong international presence while offering localized support. The company’s team of experienced professionals ensures businesses worldwide overcome complex challenges by providing tailored solutions aligned with industry’s best practices.
Innovative Telecommunications Test Equipment
Beyond consulting, GL manufactures advanced test equipment for comprehensive network performance evaluation. These solutions measure voice quality, call success rates, throughput, latency, and signal strength, while also simulating real-world conditions such as congestion, packet loss, and delay to provide valuable insights for network optimization and troubleshooting.
Over 35 Years of Industry Leadership
With over 35 years of successful projects and satisfied clients across government and private sector companies, GL is a trusted partner for telecommunications and IT solutions. The company provides cost-effective solutions by leveraging global talent and delivering innovative services that stay ahead of industry trends and technologies. With a customer-centric approach, GL collaborates closely with clients to understand their requirements and exceed expectations. Its scalable and flexible services adapt to evolving business needs, ensuring long-term success.
GL has become a trusted partner for many customers due to its cost-effectiveness, flexibility, and unmatched capabilities in solving the toughest telecom and IT challenges. Whether seeking managed network services, custom development solutions, or reliable outsourcing options, GL Communications Inc. stands out as a go-to provider. Contact GL Communications today to discuss how they can support your business growth and success.
Warm Regards,
Vikram Kulkarni, PhD
Phone: 301-670-4784 x114
Email: info@gl.com
Source: International Association of Drilling Contractors – IADC
Headline: Membership Updates for March 2025
IADC welcomes 21 new Members:
Source: World Health Organisation
In the past two decades, tuberculosis (TB) prevention, testing, and treatment services have saved more than 79 million lives—averting approximately 3.65 million deaths last year alone from the world’s deadliest infectious disease. This progress has been driven by critical foreign aid especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), particularly from USAID. However, abrupt funding cuts now threaten to undo these hard-won gains, putting millions—especially the most vulnerable—at grave risk.
Based on data reported by national TB programmes to WHO and reporting by the US government to the creditor reporting system of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the U.S. government has provided approximately US$200–US$250 million annually in bilateral funding for the TB response at country level. This funding was approximately one quarter of the total amount of international donor funding for TB.
The 2025 funding cuts will have a devastating impact on TB programmes, particularly in LMICs that rely heavily on international aid, given the U.S. has been the largest bilateral donor. These cuts put 18 of the highest burden countries at risk, as they depended on 89% of the expected U.S. funding for TB care. The African region is hardest hit by the funding disruptions, followed by the South-East Asian and Western Pacific regions.
“Any disruption to TB services—whether financial, political, or operational—can have devastating and often fatal consequences for millions worldwide,” said Dr Tereza Kasaeva, Director of WHO’s Global Programme on TB and Lung Health. “The COVID-19 pandemic proved this, as service interruptions led to over 700,000 excess deaths from TB between 2020 and 2023, exacerbated by inadequate social protection measures. Without immediate action, hard-won progress in the fight against TB is at risk. Our collective response must be swift, strategic, and fully resourced to protect the most vulnerable and maintain momentum toward ending TB.”
TB response in peril: Essential service disruptions escalate
Mandated by Heads of State, WHO plays a crucial leadership role in guiding countries toward the End TB targets for 2027 and 2030. Early reports to WHO from the 30 highest TB-burden countries confirm that funding withdrawals are already dismantling essential services, threatening the global fight against TB. This includes health and community workforce crises with thousands of health workers in high-burden countries facing layoffs, while technical assistance roles have been suspended, crippling national TB programs.
Drug supply chains are breaking down due to staff suspensions, lack of funds, and data failures, jeopardizing access to TB treatment and prevention services. Laboratory services are severely disrupted, with sample transportation, procurement delays, and shortages of essential consumables halting diagnostic efforts.
Data and surveillance systems are collapsing, undermining routine reporting and drug resistance monitoring. Community engagement efforts—including active case finding, screening, and contact tracing—are deteriorating, reducing early TB detection and increasing transmission risks.
Without immediate intervention, these systemic failures will cripple TB prevention and treatment efforts, reverse decades of progress, and endanger millions of lives.
In addition, USAID, the world’s third-largest TB research funder, has halted all its funded trials, severely disrupting progress in TB research and innovation.
WHO commitment
In these challenging times, WHO remains steadfast in its commitment to supporting national governments, civil society, and global partners in securing sustained funding and integrated solutions to safeguard the health and well-being of those most vulnerable to TB.
Source: The Conversation – UK – By Euan Nisbet, Professor of Earth Sciences, Royal Holloway University of London
The biggest challenge to limiting climate change to 2°C, the upper target of the 2015 Paris agreement, is this: methane emissions are rising very fast.
Methane is a greenhouse gas that, molecule for molecule, traps heat in the atmosphere more effectively than carbon dioxide, though over a much shorter timescale (decades versus centuries). Reducing emissions of methane to the atmosphere could drastically slow the rate at which Earth’s climate is warming.
Unfortunately, a warmer and wetter atmosphere is already causing wetlands to make more methane and so exacerbate climate change. This feedback loop makes the task of cutting methane from sources under our immediate control, like agriculture, more urgent. The good news is, my colleagues and I showed that there are lots of ways we can do this in a recent study.
Each year, about 600 million tonnes of methane are emitted to the air, very roughly 40% from natural sources and 60% from human activities. Of this latter portion, fossil fuels contribute 120-130 million tonnes. This is methane that leaks from gas pipelines, coal mines and oil wells. There has at least been some progress towards controlling these leaks: new satellite technology has excelled at finding them, while 159 countries have pledged to cut emissions by 30% by 2030.
In contrast, roughly 210-250 million tonnes of methane come from agriculture and its products, but these emissions are much tougher to tackle. It’s easier to spot a leaky gas well from space than farm leaks that are collectively large but individually small.
These sources include the breath of livestock animals and their manure (roughly 120 million tonnes), rice fields (about 30 million tonnes), crop waste fires (about 20 million tonnes) and organic matter rotting in landfills (about 70 million tonnes).
Since 2000, the UK has slashed total methane emissions, especially by covering landfills and piping out gas, but farming emissions, from manure stores for instance, have hardly changed. The methane is made by methanogens, which are microbes that live in oxygen-poor environments, like the stomachs of cows, and biodigesters (which grow bacteria to convert organic waste into fertiliser, oils and gas) and landfills.
If the UK cuts its own agricultural emissions by importing more food from tropical nations like Brazil it may still increase climate damage on a global scale. The problem is a global one, and very few countries are successfully reducing methane emissions from farming.
Cows, pigs and chickens make vast amounts of manure. In the US, Europe and East Asia, manure is often kept in big tanks or lagoons. These are usually under covers, but still release a lot of methane.
Gas-tight coverings can prevent this, and the captured methane can be harvested and then burned to generate electricity. This still produces CO₂, but the warming impact is smaller, while the electricity can replace new natural gas in the national grid.
The remaining slurry can be turned into fertiliser. Though it’s not commercially feasible now, it may one day be possible to turn it into aviation fuel.
Biodigesters are becoming common in towns and on farms, but are often very leaky. Methane doesn’t smell, but if a biodigester is releasing other gases that stink, it’s probably also releasing methane. Leaks are easily controlled but much tighter regulation is needed to ensure this happens.
Most of the world’s cattle are in India, Africa and South America. In large parts of the tropics, rain-fed crops aren’t enough to sustain people. The difference is made up by meat and milk from cows and goats that browse trees and bushes and graze seasonal grasses.
Smaller herds can produce the same amount of food if cattle diseases are reduced. Bovine mastitis, East Coast fever and African trypanosomiasis can be vaccinated against, for example and agricultural experts in India have even used artificial insemination to make more calves female, and so slash dairy cattle numbers. It’s possible to give drugs to cattle to reduce methane emissions, but poor countries would struggle to cover the expense.
Rice paddies emit methane, but rice is essential for nutrition, especially in East and South Asia, and increasingly in Africa. Flooding paddies only when and for how long it is needed during the year may cut emissions by as much as a quarter.
In China, India, Africa and many parts of the US and Europe, landfills are major methane emitters. This is where wasted food ends up. But as the UK has shown, emissions can be sharply reduced by good landfill design and gas extraction.
Simply adding a metre of soil to the surface of a landfill creates habitat for methane-eating bacteria, and also prevents landfill fires, which are very common in Africa and India. Still inexpensive is putting a plastic liner between the waste and soil and inserting pipes to extract gas that can generate electricity.
The widespread burning of crop waste that pollutes skies in India and tropical Africa has terrible consequences for human health, but it also includes methane emissions that contribute to climate change.
Crop waste fires were once a major source of air pollution in the UK and Europe. Today they are minimal thanks to better farming practice and straw processing. To cut burning, farmers need good advice, good management, good regulation and targeted financial help.
Cutting agricultural methane emissions involves a wide range of relatively cheap measures that need good design and management, but could cut food-related emissions substantially over the next decade. High on the list should be tackling landfills and crop waste fires in India and Africa. In the US, Europe and China, it is manure storage facilities and biodigesters. With determination and inexpensive financial carrots and sticks, much could be accomplished.
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Euan Nisbet is an honorary fellow of Darwin College at the University of Cambridge. He is a member of the science panel of the UN International Methane Emissions Observatory.
– ref. Methane emissions are turbocharging climate change – these quick fixes could slow it down – https://theconversation.com/methane-emissions-are-turbocharging-climate-change-these-quick-fixes-could-slow-it-down-246192
Source: Hong Kong Information Services
CPC Central Committee Hong Kong & Macao Work Office Director and State Council Hong Kong & Macao Affairs Office Director Xia Baolong met Chief Executive John Lee, who was in attendance at the opening meeting of the third session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC), in Beijing today.
Mr Xia said that the central government remains committed in fully and faithfully implementing the principle of “one country, two systems”, and will continue to fully support Hong Kong and Macau in integrating into national development.
Mr Xia noted that under the leadership of Mr Lee, the governance team of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region has been resolutely implementing the guiding principles of important speeches by President Xi Jinping on Hong Kong and Macau affairs and the central government’s strategic decisions.
Mr Xia supplemented that by proactively identifying, adapting to, and driving change, the team has firmly safeguarded high-level security and strenuously promoted high-quality development, while uniting all sectors of society to focus on economic growth, pursue development and advance infrastructure, achieving good results in the areas.
He expressed confidence that the Hong Kong SAR Government and the Hong Kong community would seize opportunities, pursue reforms and endeavour to fully leverage the institutional strengths of “one country, two systems”, consolidate and enhance Hong Kong’s status as an international financial, shipping and trade centre, establish an international hub for high-calibre talent, and in turn expedite the city’s transition from stability to prosperity, making greater contributions to the building of a great country in all respects and advancing toward national rejuvenation through Chinese modernisation.
The Chief Executive expressed his gratitude for the central authorities’ support and recognition of the efforts of the Hong Kong SAR Government. He also expressed his gratitude for Mr Xia’s guidance and care for the Hong Kong SAR.
Mr Lee highlighted that 2025 marks the conclusion of the 14th Five-Year Plan and is an important year in further deepening reform comprehensively.
He pointed out that since assuming office, the current term of the Hong Kong SAR Government has striven to consolidate and realise the positioning of the “eight centres” under the 14th Five-Year Plan, proactively attracting businesses and talent while expanding economic and trade networks.
The Government has introduced multiple reform measures, including over 600 policy initiatives spanning diverse sectors outlined in last year’s Policy Address, specially themed “Reform for Enhancing Development & Building Our Future”.
These measures aim to deepen reforms and uncover new economic growth areas, while upholding the city’s principle and embracing innovation.
Mr Lee said that the measures will consolidate Hong Kong’s status as an international financial, shipping and trade centre, establish an international hub for high-calibre talent, accelerate the city’s development into an international innovation and technology centre, and advance such developments as the Northern Metropolis and the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science & Technology Innovation Co-operation Zone.
The Hong Kong SAR Government will continue to unite all sectors of society in driving innovation and reform, and better understand, respond to and embrace changes, the Chief Executive added.
Giving full play to its institutional strengths under the “one country, two systems” principle and unique strengths in internationalisation, Hong Kong will further strengthen its bridging role between the Mainland and the world, actively integrate into national development, and contribute to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development and the Belt & Road Initiative, telling the good stories of the country and Hong Kong.
Mr Lee highlighted that in collaboration with the community, the Hong Kong SAR Government will earnestly study and implement the spirit of the third session of the 14th NPC and the third session of the 14th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference National Committee, foster unity, and achieve greater development for Hong Kong, thereby making greater contributions to the building of a great country in all respects and advancing toward national rejuvenation.
Source: US State of California
Chinese Law Enforcement and Intelligence Services Leveraged China’s Reckless and Indiscriminate Hacker-for-Hire Ecosystem, Including the ‘APT 27’ Group, to Suppress Free Speech and Dissent Globally and to Steal Data from Numerous Organizations Worldwide,
Note: View the indictments in U.S. v. Wu Haibo et al., U.S. v. Yin Kecheng, U.S. v. Zhou Shuai et al. here.
The Justice Department, FBI, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and Departments of State and the Treasury announced today their coordinated efforts to disrupt and deter the malicious cyber activities of 12 Chinese nationals, including two officers of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Ministry of Public Security (MPS), employees of an ostensibly private PRC company, Anxun Information Technology Co. Ltd. (安洵信息技术有限公司) also known as “i-Soon,” and members of Advanced Persistent Threat 27 (APT27).
These malicious cyber actors, acting as freelancers or as employees of i-Soon, conducted computer intrusions at the direction of the PRC’s MPS and Ministry of State Security (MSS) and on their own initiative. The MPS and MSS paid handsomely for stolen data. Victims include U.S.-based critics and dissidents of the PRC, a large religious organization in the United States, the foreign ministries of multiple governments in Asia, and U.S. federal and state government agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) in late 2024.
“The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue those who threaten our cybersecurity by stealing from our government and our people,” said Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Today, we are exposing the Chinese government agents directing and fostering indiscriminate and reckless attacks against computers and networks worldwide, as well as the enabling companies and individual hackers that they have unleashed. We will continue to fight to dismantle this ecosystem of cyber mercenaries and protect our national security.”
“The FBI is committed to protecting Americans from foreign cyber-attacks,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “Today’s announcements reveal that the Chinese Ministry of Public Security has been paying hackers-for-hire to inflict digital harm on Americans who criticize the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). To those victims who bravely came forward with evidence of intrusions, we thank you for standing tall and defending our democracy. And to those who choose to aid the CCP in its unlawful cyber activities, these charges should demonstrate that we will use all available tools to identify you, indict you, and expose your malicious activity for all the world to see.”
According to court documents, the MPS and MSS employed an extensive network of private companies and contractors in China to hack and steal information in a manner that obscured the PRC government’s involvement. In some cases, the MPS and MSS paid private hackers in China to exploit specific victims. In many other cases, the hackers targeted victims speculatively. Operating from their safe haven and motivated by profit, this network of private companies and contractors in China cast a wide net to identify vulnerable computers, exploit those computers, and then identify information that it could sell directly or indirectly to the PRC government. The result of this largely indiscriminate approach was more worldwide computer intrusion victims, more systems worldwide left vulnerable to future exploitation by third parties, and more stolen information, often of no interest to the PRC government and, therefore, sold to other third-parties. Additional information regarding the indictments and the PRC’s hacker-for-hire ecosystem is available in Public Service Announcements published by the FBI today.
U.S. v. Wu Haibo et al., Southern District of New York
Today, a federal court in Manhattan unsealed an indictment charging eight i-Soon employees and two MPS officers for their involvement, from at least in or around 2016 through in or around 2023, in the numerous and widespread hacking of email accounts, cell phones, servers, and websites. The Department also announced today the court-authorized seizure of the primary internet domain used by i-Soon to advertise its business.
“State-sponsored hacking is an acute threat to our community and national security,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky for the Southern District of New York. “For years, these 10 defendants — two of whom we allege are PRC officials — used sophisticated hacking techniques to target religious organizations, journalists, and government agencies, all to gather sensitive information for the use of the PRC. These charges will help stop these state-sponsored hackers and protect our national security. The career prosecutors of this office and our law enforcement partners will continue to uncover alleged state-sponsored hacking schemes, disrupt them, and bring those responsible to justice.”
The defendants remain at large and wanted by the FBI. Concurrent with today’s announcement, the U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program, administered by the Diplomatic Security Service, announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting at the direction or under the control of a foreign government, engages in certain malicious cyber activities against U.S. critical infrastructure in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The reward is offered for the following individuals who are alleged to have worked in various capacities to direct or carry out i-Soon’s malicious cyber activity:
i-Soon and its employees, to include the defendants, generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue as a key player in the PRC’s hacker-for-hire ecosystem. In some instances, i-Soon conducted computer intrusions at the request of the MSS or MPS, including cyber-enabled transnational repression at the direction of the MPS officer defendants. In other instances, i-Soon conducted computer intrusions on its own initiative and then sold, or attempted to sell, the stolen data to at least 43 different bureaus of the MSS or MPS in at least 31 separate provinces and municipalities in China. i-Soon charged the MSS and MPS between approximately $10,000 and $75,000 for each email inbox it successfully exploited. i-Soon also trained MPS employees how to hack independently of i-Soon and offered a variety of hacking methods for sale to its customers.
The defendants’ U.S.-located targets included a large religious organization that previously sent missionaries to China and was openly critical of the PRC government and an organization focused on promoting human rights and religious freedom in China. In addition, the defendants targeted multiple news organizations in the United States, including those that have opposed the CCP or delivered uncensored news to audiences in Asia, including China and the New York State Assembly, one of whose representatives had communicated with members of a religious organization banned in China.
The defendants’ foreign-located targets included a religious leader and his office, and a Hong Kong newspaper that i-Soon considered as being opposed to the PRC government. The defendants also targeted the foreign ministries of Taiwan, India, South Korea, and Indonesia.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan B. Finkel, Steven J. Kochevar, and Kevin Mead for the Southern District of New York and Trial Attorney Gregory J. Nicosia Jr. of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
U.S. v. Yin Kecheng and U.S. v. Zhou Shuai et al., District of Columbia
Today, a federal court unsealed two indictments charging APT27 actors Yin Kecheng (尹可成) and Zhou Shuai (周帅) also known as “Coldface” for their involvement in the multi-year, for-profit computer intrusion campaigns dating back, in the case of Yin, to 2013. The Department also announced today court-authorized seizures of internet domains and computer server accounts used by Yin and Zhou to facilitate their hacking activity.
The defendants remain at large. View the FBI’s Wanted posters for Shuai and Kecheng here.
Concurrent with today’s announcement, the Department of States State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs is announcing two reward offers under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program (TOCRP) of up to $2 million each for information leading to the arrests and convictions, in any country, of malicious cyber actors Yin Kecheng and Zhou Shuai, both Chinese nationals residing in China.
“These indictments and actions show this office’s long-standing commitment to vigorously investigate and hold accountable Chinese hackers and data brokers who endanger U.S. national security and other victims across the globe,” said Interim U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. for the District of Columbia. “The defendants in these cases have been hacking for the Chinese government for years, and these indictments lay out the strong evidence showing their criminal wrongdoing. We again demand that the Chinese government to put a stop to these brazen cyber criminals who are targeting victims across the globe and then monetizing the data they have stolen by selling it across China.”
The APT27 group to which Yin and Zhou belong is also known to private sector security researchers as “Threat Group 3390,” “Bronze Union,” “Emissary Panda,” “Lucky Mouse,” “Iron Tiger,” “UTA0178,” “UNC 5221,” and “Silk Typhoon.” As alleged in court documents, between August 2013 and December 2024, Yin, Zhou, and their co-conspirators exploited vulnerabilities in victim networks, conducted reconnaissance once inside those networks, and installed malware, such as PlugX malware, that provided persistent access. The defendants and their co-conspirators then identified and stole data from the compromised networks by exfiltrating it to servers under their control. Next, they brokered stolen data for sale and provided it to various customers, only some of whom had connections to the PRC government and military. For example, Zhou sold data stolen by Yin through i-Soon, whose primary customers, as noted above, were PRC government agencies, including the MSS and the MPS.
The defendants’ motivations were financial and, because they were profit-driven, they targeted broadly, rendering victim systems vulnerable well beyond their pilfering of data and other information that they could sell. Between them, Yin and Zhou sought to profit from the hacking of numerous U.S.-based technology companies, think tanks, law firms, defense contractors, local governments, health care systems, and universities, leaving behind them a wake of millions of dollars in damages.
The documents related to the seizure warrants, also unsealed today, further allege that Yin and Zhou continued to engage in hacking activity, including Yin’s involvement in the recently announced hack of Treasury between approximately September and December 2024. Virtual private servers used to conduct the Treasury intrusion belonged to, and were controlled by, an account that Yin and his co-conspirators established. Yin and his co-conspirators used that same account and other linked accounts they controlled to lease servers used for additional malicious cyber activity. The seizure warrant unsealed today allowed the FBI to seize the virtual private servers and other infrastructure used by the defendants to perpetrate these crimes.
On Jan. 17, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against Yin for his role in hacking that agency between September and December 2024. Concurrent with today’s indictments, OFAC also announced sanctions on Zhou and Shanghai Heiying Information Technology Company Ltd., a company operated by Zhou for purposes of his hacking activity.
Private sector partners are also taking voluntary actions to raise awareness and strengthen defenses against the PRC’s malicious cyber activity. Today, Microsoft published research that highlights its unique, updated insights into Silk Typhoon tactics, techniques, and procedures specifically its targeting of the IT supply chain.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jack F. Korba and Tejpal S. Chawla for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Tanner Kroeger of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
***
The above disruptive actions targeting PRC malicious cyber activities were the result of investigations conducted by FBI New York and Washington Field Offices, FBI Cyber Division, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern District of New York and District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
The Department acknowledges the value of public-private partnerships in combating advanced cyber threats and recognizes Microsoft, Volexity, PwC, and Mandiant for their valuable assistance in these investigations.
The details in the above-described indictments and warrants are merely allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
Department Seizes Virtual Private Server Account and Domains Tied to Malicious Activity to include the U.S. Department of Treasury Hack
WASHINGTON – A federal judge in Washington, D.C., today, unsealed two separate indictments that allege Chinese nationals Yin Kecheng, 38, (尹 可成) a/k/a “YKC” (“YIN”) and Zhou Shuai, 45, (周帅) a/k/a “Coldface” (“ZHOU”) violated various federal statutes by participating in years-long, sophisticated computer hacking conspiracies that successfully targeted a wide variety of U.S.-based victims from 2011 to the present-day. According to the documents unsealed today, the defendants targeted a multitude of U.S. victim companies, municipalities, and organizations for profit, causing millions of dollars’ worth of damages. YIN and ZHOU, who have ties to the government of the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”), are alleged to have stolen and exfiltrated data from numerous U.S.-based technology companies, think tanks, defense contractors, government municipalities, and universities that they later brokered for sale. Arrest warrants have been issued for YIN and ZHOU, who both remain fugitives.
The unsealing by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia is part of the coordinated effort by Department of Justice (the “Department”), other U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the U.S. Department of Treasury (“Treasury”), and private sector partners that highlights the Chinese government’s unique role in intentionally promoting and protecting the wide-scale computer hacking activity by its citizens. According to court documents unsealed today, the PRC Ministry of Public Security (“MPS”) and Ministry of State Security (“MSS”) directed or financed Chinese hackers, such as the defendants, to conduct computer intrusions against high-value targets in the United States and elsewhere. Victims include U.S.-based critics and dissidents of the PRC, a large religious organization in the United States, the foreign ministries of multiple governments in Asia, and U.S. federal and state government agencies, including most recently in 2024.
According to court documents, the MPS and MSS employed an extensive network of private companies and contractors in China to hack and steal information in a manner that obscured the PRC government’s direct involvement. By employing these hackers-for-hire, the PRC government further allowed these same hackers to profit by committing additional computer intrusions around the world with impunity, and then to sell stolen data through Chinese data brokers. The PRC government’s state-sponsorship and protection of these hackers resulted in the loss of sensitive, valuable and personal identification information that was a direct harm to U.S. entities and other foreign governments and victims.
In conjunction with the unsealing, the Department announced the judicially authorized seizure of internet domains linked to YIN that he used in facilitating the conspiracy’s network intrusion activity. In addition, the Department announced the judicially authorized seizure of a Virtual Private Server (“VPS”) account linked to ZHOU that he used to facilitate network intrusion activity. In conjunction with these actions, the Treasury announced sanctions against ZHOU and his company Shanghai Heiying Information Technology company, Limited (“Shanghai Heiying”). YIN was previously sanctioned for his role in the recent Treasury network compromise in January 2025.
“These indictments and actions show this Office’s long-standing commitment to vigorously investigate and hold accountable Chinese hackers and data brokers who endanger U.S. national security and other victims across the globe,” said U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin, Jr. “The defendants in these cases have been hacking for the Chinese government for years, and these indictments lay out the strong evidence showing their criminal wrongdoing. We, again, demand that the Chinese government put a stop to these brazen cyber criminals who are targeting victims across the globe and then monetizing the data they have stolen by selling it across China.”
“The defendants allegedly waged a yearslong hacking campaign against U.S.-based organizations to steal their data and sell it to various customers, some of whom had connections to the Chinese government,” said FBI Acting Assistant Director in Charge Roman Rozhavsky of the FBI Washington Field Office. “Today’s indictment is the first step toward bringing these perpetrators to justice for endangering U.S. national security and causing significant financial losses for both U.S. and foreign companies. The FBI and our partners will continue to pursue these hostile cyber actors to the full extent of the law.”
“The defendants’ years-long hacking conspiracy to steal data from Cleared Defense Contractors that support the U.S. military—among many other U.S.-based victims—and sell it to customers with ties to the Chinese government poses a significant threat to our national security,” said NCIS Cyber Operations Field Office Special Agent in Charge Josh Stanley. “NCIS remains committed to working with the FBI and our law enforcement partners around the world to expose malicious actors who seek to undermine the cybersecurity of the Department of the Navy.”
“The Department of State appreciates the opportunity to collaborate with the Department of Treasury, FBI, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia in announcing today’s actions,” said Senior Bureau Official F. Cartwright Weiland of the Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL). “With reward offers up to $2 million each for malicious cyber actors Zhou Shuai and Yin KeCheng under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program, we ask the public to contact the FBI with tips to help bring these cybercriminals to justice.”
Overview
Today’s announcement reflects nearly a decade-long effort by the Department and the FBI. The action targets actors that various security researchers have historically referred to as “APT27,” “Threat Group 3390,” “Bronze Union,” “Emissary Panda,” “Lucky Mouse,” and “Iron Tiger,” and more recently referred to as “UTA0178,” “UNC 5221,” and “Silk Typhoon.”
The Department obtained a 19-count indictment against YIN on May 2, 2018 (the “2018 Indictment”) from a grand jury sitting in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The 2018 Indictment, which alleges conduct between August 2013 and December 2015, charges wire fraud, aggravated identity theft, and violations of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (“CFAA”).
Another federal grand jury in the District of Columbia indicted both YIN and ZHOU on March 28, 2023 (the “2023 Indictment”), with similar offenses. Specifically, the 2023 Indictment, which alleges conduct between June 2018 and November 2020, charges conspiracy, wire fraud, various violations of the CFAA, aggravated identity theft, and money laundering.
On March 4, 2025, a federal magistrate judge sitting in the District of Columbia authorized FBI to seize a VPS account and multiple internet domains involved in the criminal activity. According to the unsealed affidavits in support of those warrants, ZHOU utilized the VPS account to create additional accounts used to facilitate computer intrusion activity and to discuss the sale of access to compromised computer networks. Separately, YIN utilized his own servers and stood up the seized domains to exploit victim computer networks to include networks at Treasury.
Computer Hacking Scheme
As alleged in the documents unsealed today, at various points between August 2013 and December 2024, YIN, ZHOU, and their unindicted co-conspirators used sophisticated hacking tools and techniques in their efforts to overcome network defenses and avoid detection of numerous hardened targets in the United States and around the world. The defendants and their co-conspirators would routinely scan victim networks for vulnerabilities, exploit those vulnerabilities with sophisticated hacking techniques, and conduct reconnaissance once inside a victim’s network. The defendants and their co-conspirators and would install malware that would allow them to maintain persistent access and enable them to communicate with malicious external servers and other hacking infrastructure. The defendants and their co-conspirators would identify and steal data from the compromised networks by exfiltrating the data to servers under their control. The stolen data was then brokered for sale and provided to various customers, some of whom had connections to the PRC government and military.
Targeting of U.S. Victims
According to the 2018 Indictment, YIN targeted U.S.-based defense contractors, technology firms, and think tanks, among other victims. The 2018 Indictment alleges YIN openly discussed his preference for targeting American victims. For example, on one occasion in September 2013, YIN told an associate he wanted to “mess with the American military” and “break into a big target” so that he could earn enough money to buy a car. YIN used mapping software to identify network vulnerabilities for the purpose of gaining unlawful access to victim computer and installing malware. YIN used stolen network credentials to maintain persistent access to victim networks and utilized intermediary servers or “hop points” and malicious domains to remotely access and exfiltrate victim computer data.
According to the 2023 Indictment, YIN, ZHOU, and others targeted U.S.-based companies like technology and defense contractors, law firms, communication service providers, local governments, health care systems, and think tanks. The 2023 Indictment charges YIN and ZHOU with scanning victim networks for access points and also exploiting zero-day vulnerabilities. Once inside the networks, YIN other conspirators would then install malware such as web shells to maintain persistent access. YIN and other conspirators would then use hop point servers to exfiltrate stolen data to servers under YIN’s control. ZHOU then brokered access to such stolen data to interested third parties for a financial profit. The indictment further alleged that YIN, ZHOU, and other conspirators laundered cryptocurrency payments for their operational infrastructure from locations outside of the United States through the U.S. financial system.
The affidavit in support of the seizure warrant for the VPS account alleges that ZHOU used servers created by the account in order to establish a virtual private network (“VPN”) that would encrypt network traffic such that the true location and IP address of the actor or actors would be obfuscated. ZHOU also used the VPS accounts to create other accounts through which he communicated with buyers who were interested in obtaining access to computer networks compromised by YIN. ZHOU also used the accounts for victim reconnaissance purposes.
The affidavit in support of the seizure of the domains alleges that funds used to purchase computer network infrastructure used in numerous victim network breaches ultimately connected to an account registered in YIN’s name, from China, using an email address and phone number belonging to YIN. Of particular note, a virtual private server account controlled by YIN was associated with the compromise at Treasury.
This case is being investigated by the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) who continue to investigate malicious cyber activity associated with these defendants and threat actors and continue to notify affected victims immediately once any networks intrusions are discovered. The FBI’s Cyber Division and Department of Defense’s Cyber Crimes Center provided valuable assistance to the investigation. Private partners from Microsoft, Volexity, Palo Alto Networks Unit 42, and Mandiant also provided valuable assistance with this investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jack F. Korba, and Tejpal S. Chawla, and National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section Trial Attorney Tanner Kroeger. Paralegal Specialist Michael Watts and former Assistant U.S. Attorneys Demian Ahn and Opher Shweiki for the United States Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia provided assistance on this case.
An indictment is merely an allegation and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: Office of United States Attorneys
FORT WAYNE – Elijah Shores, 30 years old, of Irving, Texas, was sentenced by United States District Court Chief Judge Holly A. Brady, after pleading guilty to distributing fentanyl, possessing fentanyl with intent to distribute, and possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, announced Acting United States Attorney Tina L. Nommay.
Shores was sentenced to 200 months in prison followed by 4 years of supervised release.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from the Indiana State Police and the Fort Wayne Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lesley J. Miller Lowery.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. On May 26, 2021, the Department launched a violent crime reduction strategy strengthening PSN based on these core principles: fostering trust and legitimacy in our communities, supporting community-based organizations that help prevent violence from occurring in the first place, setting focused and strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring the results.
Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) State Crime Alerts (b)
SAN DIEGO – Rodolfo Benjamin Silva, a prolific cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl trafficker who called himself the “King of Coke,” was sentenced in federal court today to 17.5 years in prison for distributing large quantities of illicit drugs in the U.S. and for facilitating the movement of cartel hitmen into the United States.
At today’s hearing, prosecutors described Silva as a long-time San Diego-based drug distributor who worked directly with Mexican counterparts to receive narcotic shipments from Mexico. According to his plea agreement, in October 2022, Silva provided a drug courier with 114 pounds of methamphetamine and a kilogram of fentanyl for transport to Indianapolis, but it was interdicted in Oklahoma.
Silva also admitted in his plea agreement to threatening, directing or using violence as part of his drug trafficking activities. Prosecutors told the court today that Silva assisted in bringing assassins known as “sicarios” from Mexico into the San Diego area for cartel enforcement operations. On one occasion, Silva hired a sicario from Mexico to come to San Diego where that individual attempted to fatally shoot one of Silva’s rivals, prosecutors said.
This investigation was led by FBI and DEA in San Diego with integral assistance from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Indiana and FBI’s Indianapolis Field Office.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Ashley Goff.
This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) Strike Force Initiative, which provides for the establishment of permanent multi-agency task force teams that work side-by-side in the same location. This co-located model enables agents from different agencies to collaborate on intelligence-driven, multi-jurisdictional operations to disrupt and dismantle the most significant drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations.
DEFENDANT Case Number 23CR02513-WQH
Rodolfo Benjamin Silva, aka “Rudy” Age: 44 San Diego, CA
SUMMARY OF CHARGES
Conspiracy to Distribute Cocaine – Title 21, U.S.C., Sections 841(a)(1) and 846
Maximum penalty: Mandatory minimum 10 years and up to life in prison, $10 million fine
INVESTIGATING AGENCIES
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Drug Enforcement Administration
Source: United States Attorneys General
Chinese Law Enforcement and Intelligence Services Leveraged China’s Reckless and Indiscriminate Hacker-for-Hire Ecosystem, Including the ‘APT 27’ Group, to Suppress Free Speech and Dissent Globally and to Steal Data from Numerous Organizations Worldwide,
Note: View the indictments in U.S. v. Wu Haibo et al., U.S. v. Yin Kecheng, U.S. v. Zhou Shuai et al. here.
The Justice Department, FBI, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, and Departments of State and the Treasury announced today their coordinated efforts to disrupt and deter the malicious cyber activities of 12 Chinese nationals, including two officers of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Ministry of Public Security (MPS), employees of an ostensibly private PRC company, Anxun Information Technology Co. Ltd. (安洵信息技术有限公司) also known as “i-Soon,” and members of Advanced Persistent Threat 27 (APT27).
These malicious cyber actors, acting as freelancers or as employees of i-Soon, conducted computer intrusions at the direction of the PRC’s MPS and Ministry of State Security (MSS) and on their own initiative. The MPS and MSS paid handsomely for stolen data. Victims include U.S.-based critics and dissidents of the PRC, a large religious organization in the United States, the foreign ministries of multiple governments in Asia, and U.S. federal and state government agencies, including the U.S. Department of the Treasury (Treasury) in late 2024.
“The Department of Justice will relentlessly pursue those who threaten our cybersecurity by stealing from our government and our people,” said Sue J. Bai, head of the Justice Department’s National Security Division. “Today, we are exposing the Chinese government agents directing and fostering indiscriminate and reckless attacks against computers and networks worldwide, as well as the enabling companies and individual hackers that they have unleashed. We will continue to fight to dismantle this ecosystem of cyber mercenaries and protect our national security.”
“The FBI is committed to protecting Americans from foreign cyber-attacks,” said Assistant Director Bryan Vorndran of the FBI’s Cyber Division. “Today’s announcements reveal that the Chinese Ministry of Public Security has been paying hackers-for-hire to inflict digital harm on Americans who criticize the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). To those victims who bravely came forward with evidence of intrusions, we thank you for standing tall and defending our democracy. And to those who choose to aid the CCP in its unlawful cyber activities, these charges should demonstrate that we will use all available tools to identify you, indict you, and expose your malicious activity for all the world to see.”
According to court documents, the MPS and MSS employed an extensive network of private companies and contractors in China to hack and steal information in a manner that obscured the PRC government’s involvement. In some cases, the MPS and MSS paid private hackers in China to exploit specific victims. In many other cases, the hackers targeted victims speculatively. Operating from their safe haven and motivated by profit, this network of private companies and contractors in China cast a wide net to identify vulnerable computers, exploit those computers, and then identify information that it could sell directly or indirectly to the PRC government. The result of this largely indiscriminate approach was more worldwide computer intrusion victims, more systems worldwide left vulnerable to future exploitation by third parties, and more stolen information, often of no interest to the PRC government and, therefore, sold to other third-parties. Additional information regarding the indictments and the PRC’s hacker-for-hire ecosystem is available in Public Service Announcements published by the FBI today.
U.S. v. Wu Haibo et al., Southern District of New York
Today, a federal court in Manhattan unsealed an indictment charging eight i-Soon employees and two MPS officers for their involvement, from at least in or around 2016 through in or around 2023, in the numerous and widespread hacking of email accounts, cell phones, servers, and websites. The Department also announced today the court-authorized seizure of the primary internet domain used by i-Soon to advertise its business.
“State-sponsored hacking is an acute threat to our community and national security,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Matthew Podolsky for the Southern District of New York. “For years, these 10 defendants — two of whom we allege are PRC officials — used sophisticated hacking techniques to target religious organizations, journalists, and government agencies, all to gather sensitive information for the use of the PRC. These charges will help stop these state-sponsored hackers and protect our national security. The career prosecutors of this office and our law enforcement partners will continue to uncover alleged state-sponsored hacking schemes, disrupt them, and bring those responsible to justice.”
The defendants remain at large and wanted by the FBI. Concurrent with today’s announcement, the U.S. Department of State’s Rewards for Justice (RFJ) program, administered by the Diplomatic Security Service, announced a reward of up to $10 million for information leading to the identification or location of any person who, while acting at the direction or under the control of a foreign government, engages in certain malicious cyber activities against U.S. critical infrastructure in violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. The reward is offered for the following individuals who are alleged to have worked in various capacities to direct or carry out i-Soon’s malicious cyber activity:
i-Soon and its employees, to include the defendants, generated tens of millions of dollars in revenue as a key player in the PRC’s hacker-for-hire ecosystem. In some instances, i-Soon conducted computer intrusions at the request of the MSS or MPS, including cyber-enabled transnational repression at the direction of the MPS officer defendants. In other instances, i-Soon conducted computer intrusions on its own initiative and then sold, or attempted to sell, the stolen data to at least 43 different bureaus of the MSS or MPS in at least 31 separate provinces and municipalities in China. i-Soon charged the MSS and MPS between approximately $10,000 and $75,000 for each email inbox it successfully exploited. i-Soon also trained MPS employees how to hack independently of i-Soon and offered a variety of hacking methods for sale to its customers.
The defendants’ U.S.-located targets included a large religious organization that previously sent missionaries to China and was openly critical of the PRC government and an organization focused on promoting human rights and religious freedom in China. In addition, the defendants targeted multiple news organizations in the United States, including those that have opposed the CCP or delivered uncensored news to audiences in Asia, including China and the New York State Assembly, one of whose representatives had communicated with members of a religious organization banned in China.
The defendants’ foreign-located targets included a religious leader and his office, and a Hong Kong newspaper that i-Soon considered as being opposed to the PRC government. The defendants also targeted the foreign ministries of Taiwan, India, South Korea, and Indonesia.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Ryan B. Finkel, Steven J. Kochevar, and Kevin Mead for the Southern District of New York and Trial Attorney Gregory J. Nicosia Jr. of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
U.S. v. Yin Kecheng and U.S. v. Zhou Shuai et al., District of Columbia
Today, a federal court unsealed two indictments charging APT27 actors Yin Kecheng (尹可成) and Zhou Shuai (周帅) also known as “Coldface” for their involvement in the multi-year, for-profit computer intrusion campaigns dating back, in the case of Yin, to 2013. The Department also announced today court-authorized seizures of internet domains and computer server accounts used by Yin and Zhou to facilitate their hacking activity.
The defendants remain at large. View the FBI’s Wanted posters for Shuai and Kecheng here.
Concurrent with today’s announcement, the Department of States State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs is announcing two reward offers under the Transnational Organized Crime Rewards Program (TOCRP) of up to $2 million each for information leading to the arrests and convictions, in any country, of malicious cyber actors Yin Kecheng and Zhou Shuai, both Chinese nationals residing in China.
“These indictments and actions show this office’s long-standing commitment to vigorously investigate and hold accountable Chinese hackers and data brokers who endanger U.S. national security and other victims across the globe,” said Interim U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. for the District of Columbia. “The defendants in these cases have been hacking for the Chinese government for years, and these indictments lay out the strong evidence showing their criminal wrongdoing. We again demand that the Chinese government to put a stop to these brazen cyber criminals who are targeting victims across the globe and then monetizing the data they have stolen by selling it across China.”
The APT27 group to which Yin and Zhou belong is also known to private sector security researchers as “Threat Group 3390,” “Bronze Union,” “Emissary Panda,” “Lucky Mouse,” “Iron Tiger,” “UTA0178,” “UNC 5221,” and “Silk Typhoon.” As alleged in court documents, between August 2013 and December 2024, Yin, Zhou, and their co-conspirators exploited vulnerabilities in victim networks, conducted reconnaissance once inside those networks, and installed malware, such as PlugX malware, that provided persistent access. The defendants and their co-conspirators then identified and stole data from the compromised networks by exfiltrating it to servers under their control. Next, they brokered stolen data for sale and provided it to various customers, only some of whom had connections to the PRC government and military. For example, Zhou sold data stolen by Yin through i-Soon, whose primary customers, as noted above, were PRC government agencies, including the MSS and the MPS.
The defendants’ motivations were financial and, because they were profit-driven, they targeted broadly, rendering victim systems vulnerable well beyond their pilfering of data and other information that they could sell. Between them, Yin and Zhou sought to profit from the hacking of numerous U.S.-based technology companies, think tanks, law firms, defense contractors, local governments, health care systems, and universities, leaving behind them a wake of millions of dollars in damages.
The documents related to the seizure warrants, also unsealed today, further allege that Yin and Zhou continued to engage in hacking activity, including Yin’s involvement in the recently announced hack of Treasury between approximately September and December 2024. Virtual private servers used to conduct the Treasury intrusion belonged to, and were controlled by, an account that Yin and his co-conspirators established. Yin and his co-conspirators used that same account and other linked accounts they controlled to lease servers used for additional malicious cyber activity. The seizure warrant unsealed today allowed the FBI to seize the virtual private servers and other infrastructure used by the defendants to perpetrate these crimes.
On Jan. 17, Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced sanctions against Yin for his role in hacking that agency between September and December 2024. Concurrent with today’s indictments, OFAC also announced sanctions on Zhou and Shanghai Heiying Information Technology Company Ltd., a company operated by Zhou for purposes of his hacking activity.
Private sector partners are also taking voluntary actions to raise awareness and strengthen defenses against the PRC’s malicious cyber activity. Today, Microsoft published research that highlights its unique, updated insights into Silk Typhoon tactics, techniques, and procedures specifically its targeting of the IT supply chain.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jack F. Korba and Tejpal S. Chawla for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Tanner Kroeger of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
***
The above disruptive actions targeting PRC malicious cyber activities were the result of investigations conducted by FBI New York and Washington Field Offices, FBI Cyber Division, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The U.S. Attorney’s Offices for the Southern District of New York and District of Columbia and the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case.
The Department acknowledges the value of public-private partnerships in combating advanced cyber threats and recognizes Microsoft, Volexity, PwC, and Mandiant for their valuable assistance in these investigations.
The details in the above-described indictments and warrants are merely allegations. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
BOSTON, March 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Devo Technology, the security data analytics company, today announced that Ken Naumann has been appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Walter Scott, who served as the interim CEO, will continue to serve as the Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Ken is a veteran of the cybersecurity industry, having held CEO roles in a mix of high-growth public, private-equity, and venture-based companies. Prior to Devo, Ken served as CEO of NetWitness, a provider of cybersecurity threat detection and response solutions.
“The Board conducted a comprehensive search for an experienced leader in building and growing technology and cybersecurity businesses,” said Executive Chairman of the Board Walter Scott. “Ken brings the ideal mix of strategic vision, commitment to customer success, and operational acumen that Devo is proud to deliver. His deep understanding of CIO and CISO needs, coupled with his passionate commitment to protecting organizations from cyber threats, makes him perfectly suited to lead Devo into its next phase of growth and innovation.”
Ken Naumann, CEO of Devo, added, “I deeply value the board’s confidence in me and am grateful to lead Devo forward. Walter and the rest of the leadership team have done an incredible job positioning the company to solve modern-day cybersecurity and IT data challenges. We’ll remain committed to driving innovation and pioneering product advancements that help enterprises transform into data-driven organizations.”
Ken will start his role as CEO immediately.
About Devo
Devo Technology delivers a real-time security data platform that serves as the foundation of your security operations and includes data-powered threat detection, automated case management, autonomous investigations and threat hunting. AI and intelligent automation help your SOC work faster and smarter so your team can proactively make the right decisions in real time. Headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts, with operations in North America, Europe, and Asia Pacific, Devo is backed by Insight Partners, Georgian, TCV, General Atlantic, Bessemer Venture Partners, Kibo Ventures and Eurazeo.
Contact:
Holly Brown
holly.brown@devo.com
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
BERLIN, March 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) —
Penomo has formed a strategic partnership with Hoovest Financial Group, which collectively administers and manages over $1 billion in assets. This collaboration aims to accelerate institutional capital inflows into tokenized real-world infrastructure, facilitating the connection between asset-heavy renewable energy & physical AI operators and private capital allocators.
The global shift towards sustainable energy & physical AI is driving significant capital into projects building & operating physical infrastructure, such as solar, Data Centers & machines, and financing remains the key bottleneck. Traditional financing models for critical physical infrastructure—primarily debt financing and structured equity are often slow, bureaucratic, and capital-intensive. Institutions keen to allocate capital into sustainability-focused assets are met with high entry barriers, limited liquidity, and inefficient capital deployment instruments.
Penomo, an end-to-end financing protocol solves this by transforming heavy infrastructure-backed assets into institution-grade digital assets using tokenization. This lowers entry barriers, allows risk-weighted sustainability investments, and streamlines multi-channel financing for energy and AI infrastructure. While private equity and real estate have embraced tokenization, infrastructure financing is still emerging, with growing institutional adoption from firms like Ant Group and GCL Energy in Asia and Enel Group in Europe. Sustainability infrastructure-as-an-asset class presents as the next financial innovation frontier.
Recognizing this opportunity, Penomo and Hoovest Financial Group unveil a strategic partnership to bridge institutional capital with tokenized renewable energy and AI infrastructure assets. As the demand for AI Data Centers and energy storage surges, next-generation data centers and high-performance computing hubs require massive capital inflows to scale efficiently. Hoovest, a financial group administering over $1B in assets and $150M worth AUM through its regulated subsidiaries, will leverage Penomo’s digital infrastructure to deploy capital into sustainable energy and AI infrastructure projects, making these tokenized real-world assets more accessible to institutional allocators and financial institutions. Through this collaboration, renewable energy projects and AI-powered infrastructure at both the development and operational stages will gain access to fast, flexible, and cost-efficient capital, reducing the financing gap for global energy transition and sustainable AI expansion initiatives.
Peter Fang, CEO of Hoovest Financial Group, added: “Sustainable investment mandates continue to evolve, and investors are seeking high-quality, tangible assets with data-backed sustainability impact. Together with Penomo we address that need, providing our capital markets network with streamlined access to tokenized, real infrastructure-backed investments, ensuring both long-term value creation and sustainability.”
“Energy & AI transition projects need a rescue from stagnated, high-cost TradFi technology,” says Jasvir Dhillon, Co-Founder and CEO of Penomo. “We are opening new avenues for institutional investors to gain streamlined exposure to sustainable infrastructure assets in a liquid, scalable, and fully transparent manner. Hoovest with its exceptional institutional roots makes a perfect partner to move beyond traditional ESG bonds and equity investments and lead the new financial innovation frontier and make sustainable energy- & physical AI infrastructure as a major asset class.”
About Hoovest Financial Group
Hoovest Financial Group operates an impact-focused investment business specializing in sustainable and alternative assets. Through its various regulated entities, Hoovest provides capital allocation and structuring solutions for institutional investors, asset managers, and family offices seeking exposure to high-growth, sustainability-driven investment opportunities. Through its joint-venture subsidiary, Unitize Fund Solutions Inc., Hoovest Financial Group administers over $1B in assets and has $150M worth AUM, delivering best-in-class fund structuring, administration, and distribution solutions.
About Penomo
Penomo is an end-to-end financing protocol bridging private capital markets with tokenized AI & renewable physical infrastructure to address the $4tn+ energy financing deficit by 2030. It transforms physical infrastructure into an institution-grade digital asset class, delivering a sourcing & allocation solution to sustainability-oriented institutions and asset managers globally. Backed by top institutions, nominated by Standard Chartered for the Earthshot Prize, and with blended expertise from JPMorgan & Chase, Deutsche Bank, and BlackRock’s Recurrent Energy in institutional finance, digital assets, and infrastructure, its mission is to sustainably power humanity on Earth and beyond.
For more information, users can visit: X | Website | LinkedIn
Contact
CEO & Co-founder
Jasvir Dhillon
Penomo
marketing@penomo.com
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/77740c3b-b699-4cf2-85a7-518d68844aa6
Source: Huawei
Headline: All Intelligent Operations Enables New Growth
[Barcelona, Spain, March 5, 2025] Huawei, together with global operators, partners, and industry organizations, discussed how operators can upgrade their operations models, reimagine new experiences, and enable new growth at the Intelligent Operations Summit held during MWC Barcelona 2025. Bruce Xun, President of Huawei Global Technical Service, said, “In the next decade, operators will advance towards all intelligent operations at an unprecedented pace. Through in-depth integration of ‘digital twins’ and ‘GenAI+ Predictive AI’, a new operations model that features collaboration between human and AI agents will be built to realize value in specific scenarios along the end-user journey and operators’ value stream.”
Bruce Xun, President of Huawei Global Technical Service, delivering a keynote speech
Customer Journey: Rich Digital Intelligence Services with a Reimagined End-to-End NPS Journey
Operators leverage Mobile Money and AI applications to create a digital intelligence life entry, offering users a wide range of digital and intelligent services and novel experiences. In Africa, Huawei Mobile Money helped an operator expand its business scope from mobile payment to mobile finance. In 2024, the operator’s revenue from mobile finance exceeded US$900 million. In addition, certain operators have re-energized their end-to-end NPS journey with digital twins and AI. In Asia Pacific, Huawei has helped a customer streamline the process and data breakpoints between AICC and SmartCare through multi-agent collaboration. This resulted in a 30% decrease in user complaints and an improvement in service NPS. In China, Huawei collaborated with an operator to build N-NPS leading network, reducing detractors by 20% and improving the network NPS by 8%.
Value Stream Journey: Building a 3A Cognitive Network to Monetize Differentiated Experiences
In addition to delivering a leading network experience, Huawei has created a 3A cognitive network that features real-time service awareness, achievable KPIs/KQIs, and differentiated experience assurance. Converged data and AI are used to accurately identify user profiles, allowing operators to promote the right offer to the right people through the right channel at the right time. This shifts the operations focus from traffic monetization to valuable traffic + experience monetization. Additionally, spatiotemporal digital twins enable transformation from best-effort to differentiated experience assurance for high-value scenarios and services. Huawei has helped an operator build the best driver experience network tailored for delivery drivers. With the network, the operator sold packages to 380,000 delivery drivers and achieved a 6% rise in revenue in only one quarter. Leveraging the SRCON spatiotemporal digital twin, Huawei assisted an operator in building the best live streamer experience network, elevating the uplink rate from 3 Mbit/s to over 5 Mbit/s.
Value Stream Journey: Upgrading Operations Mode, Transforming from Cost-based to Value-oriented Operations
The increasingly diverse service scenarios and complex network structures pose higher requirements on network stability and operations. The operations model, which depends on people and tools, needs to evolve to depend on people and AI agents. The ultimate goal is to improve both efficiency and effectiveness, and realize transformation from cost-based to value-orientated operations. Huawei collaborated with an operator to establish a Digital Intelligence Operation Center (DIOC). Through the synergy of Huawei NOC, SOC, NPM, traffic loss reduced by 8.4%, and the operator’s network ranked No. 1 in third-party-tested video and gaming experiences in a country of Asia. In addition, Huawei FME copilot has helped an operator reduce unnecessary site visits and shorten MTTR by 30%.
At the end of his speech, Bruce Xun stated that, to seize the opportunities of all intelligence, operators need to build three major elements: collaboration between people and AI agents, real-time data awareness, and a high-quality chain of thought (CoT) corpus. In addition, the CoT capabilities of GenAI+ Predictive AI need to be combined with the real-time simulation capabilities of digital twins to truly solve scenario-specific problems and realize value, rather than just answering questions. The future is now. Huawei is ready to collaborate with global operators to expedite the transition towards all intelligent operations and enable new growth.
MWC Barcelona 2025 will be held from March 3 to March 6 in Barcelona, Spain. During the event, Huawei will showcase its latest products and solutions at stand 1H50 in Fira Gran Via Hall 1. In 2025, commercial 5G-Advanced deployment will accelerate, and AI will help carriers reshape business, infrastructure, and O&M. Huawei is actively working with carriers and partners around the world to accelerate the transition towards an intelligent world. For more information, please visit: https://carrier.huawei.com/en/events/mwc2025
Source: City of Plymouth
Staff at The Box are busy preparing for a busy day on 8 March, when it will be hosting a ‘Super Saturday’ to mark the final weekend of one of its current exhibitions.
‘Osman Yousefzada: When will we be good enough?’ has been on display since early November and comes to a close at 5pm this Sunday. The powerful, thought-provoking exhibition includes textiles, film, sculpture and clever use of found objects, and explores ideas of power across the ages.
The ‘Super Saturday’ will delve into different themes in the exhibition throughout the day with a series of events for different ages and interests.
Osman’s South Asian heritage has inspired a free family-friendly drop-in which will be on offer from 10.30am to 12.30pm (last entries at 12.15pm) and where children can decorate tote bags to take home using Indian prints and sparkles.
Osman will be in conversation with internationally-acclaimed author and curator Gemma Rolls-Bentley from 11.30am to 1pm. Gemma’s debut book ‘Queer Art: From Canvas to Club and the Spaces Between’ was published last spring and has been highlighted as a must-read by Them, Dazed, Timeout, The Guardian, Cultured and the FT. In Osman’s exhibition, queer communities are presented as spaces of resistance, providing hope of an alternative future and a means of escape from past and present power structures. Together, Gemma and Osman will explore his exhibition through a queer lens.
‘When will we be good enough?’ features three newly created busts of today’s digital ‘overlords’ Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Zuckerberg. In the afternoon, the focus will be on digital in a fascinating artist-led workshop led by Yudi Wu where participants will be able to learn more about how our data is currently being used, and how to better protect any creative content they share online. The workshop will run from 2pm to 4pm.
The ‘Super Saturday’ will finish with a talk by Wonderzoo that will highlight the untold stories of some of the many people who have made an impact on Plymouth. Jimmy Peters, the first black rugby player to play for England, Bill Miller, the first black Labour councillor in Plymouth and Ann Wilkinson, a black activist who co-founded the city’s Respect Festival will be the focus of ‘Exploring Plymouth’s Hidden Figures’ from 2.30pm to 4pm.
‘Super Saturdays’ are set to be a regular feature at The Box over the next few months, taking place at the start of each month with a wide range of talks, workshops and activities that really celebrate the exhibition programme. The Box is already planning future events for Saturday 5 April, all of which will be themed around its popular ‘Planet Ocean’ exhibition.
More information and ticket booking links for the Gemma Rolls-Bentley and Osman Yousefzada ‘In Conversation’ and Yudi Wu’s ‘Digital Resilience’ workshop are available from theboxplymouth.com. Further details about the Ramadan Tote Bag drop-in and ‘Exploring Plymouth’s Hidden Figures’ talk, both of which are free with no need to book, can also be found online.
Source: Northern Ireland City of Armagh
A vibrant, family-friendly event that celebrates the rich diversity of shared cultures within our community will be taking place in Solitude Park, Banbridge on Saturday 29 March from 4pm to 7pm.
Culture in the Park is a great way to come together and embrace the traditions and experiences that make us who we are, as well as being a wonderful opportunity to build connections and explore the beauty of different cultures, while celebrating the things we have in common.
This exciting event will feature a wide range of music, dancing, food stalls, crafts and lots more for everyone to enjoy and get involved in!
From Irish Dancing to an Afro-Caribbean Band, Japanese Origami to Chinese Calligraphy as well as delicious food stalls offering a variety of flavours, this is an event not to be missed!
“I am really looking forward to Culture in the Park and it will have something for everyone to enjoy – adults and children alike!” commented Councillor Peter Haire, Vice Chair of the Community and Wellbeing Committee.
“With live performances showcasing music and dance as well as interactive workshops and plenty of tasty food, come along and soak up the atmosphere and enjoy a day out with the family!”
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
COPENHAGEN, March 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Trust Stamp (Nasdaq: IDAI), the Privacy-First Identity Company™, has been awarded the D-seal, a recognized label for IT security and responsible data usage. The D-seal is the first of its kind to combine IT security and responsible data usage into a single label. This milestone further solidifies Trust Stamp’s leadership in delivering ethical, privacy-preserving digital identity solutions, particularly in humanitarian aid, financial inclusion, and public sector services, assuring these organizations that Trust Stamp’s privacy-first solutions meet the highest ethical and security standards. By voluntarily undergoing the comprehensive evaluation of the D-seal, Trust Stamp has demonstrated its unwavering commitment to responsible digital practices.
By adhering to the values of D-seal such as IT security, privacy, and responsible use of data, it can bring a shift to the humanitarian sector. The humanitarian sector has historically prioritized efficiency and fraud prevention over privacy, often collecting and storing vast amounts of biometric data without adequate safeguards. As a result, vulnerable populations face increased risks of data breaches, misuse, and unintended surveillance.
By voluntarily undergoing the comprehensive evaluation of the D-seal, Trust Stamp reinforces its longstanding commitment to responsible digital practices, and continues to lead the way—enhancing fraud prevention and operational efficiency while ensuring the protection of individual rights. Likewise, in financial inclusion, where billions remain unbanked due to a lack of verifiable identity, Trust Stamp’s privacy-preserving technology empowers individuals with secure, interoperable, and responsible identity solutions that open doors to financial services while minimizing risks of misuse or exploitation.
Beyond humanitarian and financial sectors, Trust Stamp’s commitment to ethical, secure, and interoperable identity solutions also extends to governments seeking to modernize their digital infrastructure without falling into the trap of vendor lock-in, a significant challenge, especially for developing nations. The achievement of the D-seal aligns with Trust Stamp’s commitment to breaking vendor lock-in and ensuring secure, ethical, and interoperable digital identity solutions. By leveraging privacy-preserving technologies that are adaptable and vendor-agnostic, Trust Stamp empowers public sector entities, as well as the humanitarian and financial sectors —to enhance security, efficiency, and inclusivity without being constrained by proprietary systems removing the constraints of vendor lock-in. This approach not only fosters innovation, it ensures that governments can implement sustainable and future-proof identity solutions that serve their citizens without compromising autonomy or security.
Scott Francis, Group Chief Technology Officer at Trust Stamp, stated:
“Receiving the D-seal certification underscores our commitment to security, privacy, and ethical data practices—values that are deeply embedded in our mission to break the cycle of vendor lock-in. The D-seal’s emphasis on IT security and responsible data usage aligns with our approach to interoperability, ensuring that identity solutions remain secure, privacy-preserving, but also interoperable. As interoperability in facial biometrics is non-existent today our recent patent addresses that gap, as it allows users to obtain and compare biometric samples across different vendors. By creating an open-format standard, we empower organizations to implement secure and scalable identity solutions .”
The D-seal achievement reaffirms a commitment to secure, privacy-first identity verification with interoperable, vendor-agnostic solutions that promote financial inclusion and tackle critical challenges in humanitarian and public sectors, fostering a digital identity ecosystem founded on privacy, trust, and accessibility.
For more information about Trust Stamp’s privacy-first identity solutions, visit www.truststamp.ai.
Inquiries
Trust Stamp Email: Shareholders@truststamp.ai
Jonathan Patscheider
President, Trust Stamp Denmark
About Trust Stamp
Trust Stamp the Privacy-First Identity CompanyTM, is a global provider of AI-powered identity services for use in multiple sectors including banking and finance, regulatory compliance, government, real estate, communications, and humanitarian services. Its technology empowers organizations with advanced biometric identity solutions that reduce fraud, protect personal data privacy, increase operational efficiency, and reach a broader base of users worldwide through its unique data transformation and comparison capabilities.
Located in six countries across North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, Trust Stamp trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market (Nasdaq: IDAI). The company was founded in 2016 by Gareth Genner and Andrew Gowasack.
Safe Harbor Statement: Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Remarks
All statements in this release that are not based on historical fact are “forward-looking statements” including within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and the provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The information in this announcement may contain forward-looking statements and information related to, among other things, the company, its business plan and strategy, and its industry. These statements reflect management’s current views with respect to future events-based information currently available and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the company’s actual results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date on which they are made. The company does not undertake any obligation to revise or update
Source: Reserve Bank of India
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Governor, Reserve Bank of India today held an interaction with non-bank Payment System Operators and FinTechs along with their associations/SROs. The interaction was a part of the Reserve Bank’s series of engagements with the Payments and Fintech ecosystem. The interaction was also attended by Deputy Governors Shri M. Rajeshwar Rao, Shri T. Rabi Sankar and Shri Swaminathan J., along with Executive Directors-in-Charge of Payments, Fintech and Regulation. The Governor, in his remarks, recognised the important role played by the FinTechs including the payment system players, account aggregators, digital lending service providers in the growth of India’s financial system and economy. The Governor underscored the need for responsible innovation and emphasised the need for ensuring compliance by the entities who are new to regulatory space. He also emphasized that RBI values such interactions with the ecosystem participants and would continue to adopt a consultative approach. During the interactive session, the participants shared their feedback on the evolving payment and fintech ecosystem, various industry level initiatives and their expectations from the Reserve Bank. (Puneet Pancholy) Press Release: 2024-2025/2306 |
Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Alison Behie, Professor of Biological Anthropology, Australian National University
Madagascar is an island that’s no stranger to natural disasters, in particular cyclones. This is because it’s located in the south-west Indian Ocean cyclone basin, a region of the Indian Ocean where tropical cyclones typically form and develop.
Madagascar has experienced 69 cyclones between 1912 and 2022, although cyclones have been a pressure on the island for much longer – estimates range from hundreds to more than thousands of years. This regular exposure has resulted in a uniquely harsh and unpredictable environment.
Madagascar is also the only place in the entire world where lemurs, a group of primates, are naturally found. It’s home to over 100 species of lemurs.
Due to ongoing threats of disaster impacts, hunting and deforestation, lemurs are the most endangered group of mammals in the world. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), 98% of lemur species are threatened with extinction, 31% of which are critically endangered.
It is therefore important to understand future threats to lemurs so as to protect them.
Lemurs are unusual among primates. They show a higher degree of traits associated with resilience to living in a disaster-prone environment. For example, very few species rely on a diet of fruit, which is one of the first food items to disappear after a cyclone. Over half of lemur species rely on leaves as their main food item.
They also exhibit a high degree of energy conserving behaviours, including hibernation and torpor – a shorter period of inactivity characterised by a lower body temperature and metabolic rate.
It has long been believed that these behaviours are a result of Madagascar’s frequent cyclones. Living in an unpredictable environment over multiple generations could lead to different features being beneficial for survival. Some evolutionary adaptations may happen within a few decades, others could form over thousands of years.
However, there is variation among species in these traits and, to date, no one has tested whether the unique behavioural features of lemurs actually occur more frequently in species that have experienced more cyclones, or if there may be a different explanation. Our research wanted to clear this up.
In our study, my colleagues and I found no association between cyclone impact and how resilient lemurs are. We did however find a positive association between cyclone impact and body size. This suggests that the more a lemur species is affected by cyclones, the smaller they are.
Given the increase globally in disasters, this type of work allows us to better understand the most and least resilient species to prepare for conservation efforts into the future.
My research focuses on how animals, particularly primates, respond to the threat of climate change and disaster exposure. Previous work my colleagues and I did with howler monkeys showed that historical hurricane exposure was significantly linked to the evolution of behavioural adaptations, like small group size and energy conserving behaviours.
We set out to design a specific study for lemurs. We wanted to determine whether the variation in behavioural traits in lemurs could be accounted for by the variation in cyclone exposure across the island.
To carry out this research, we first made a map showing how cyclones affect different parts of Madagascar. We used weather patterns, past cyclone paths, how strong the cyclones were, and how much rain they brought. Data used for this came from the past 58 years, which is the data that was available, although Madagascar has been hit by cyclones over a much longer time period.
We then placed a map of where lemurs live on top of our cyclone map to see how much cyclones affect each lemur species’ home. Our study covered the 26 species for which enough data was published to be able to determine their overall behavioural traits.
For each of these species, we created a “resilience score”. To create this score, each species got one point for each behavioural trait they exhibited that is associated with living in a cyclone-prone area. For example, a species that shows hibernation got one point and a species that does not got 0 points. The resilience traits we used included: energy conserving behaviours; habitat use; group size; fruit in the diet; home range size; geographic range; and body size.
We then added up the score across all resilience traits and compared the resilience score of each species with their habitat range cyclone score. This helped us see if species in high-impact areas had higher resilience. If so, it would strongly suggest that resilience traits evolved as an adaptation to frequent cyclones.
Our results found no relationship between cyclone impact and overall resilience score. This may be because the historical cyclone data we had access to covered only the past 58 years. This may not be an accurate proxy for longer term cyclone activity associated with evolutionary adaptations.
It could also be that the traits linked to cyclone resilience may have already existed in the last common ancestor of lemurs due to rapid environmental change on the African continent. Recent research suggests this ancestor rafted to Madagascar from Africa on floating vegetation. These traits could have helped it survive the journey. They’re also seen in other wildlife believed to have rafted to their island habitats and that may have been crucial for island colonisation.
While overall resilience scores were not associated with cyclone impact, we did find that lemur species with smaller bodies experienced greater cyclone impacts. The north-east of the island was found to experience higher cyclone activity compared to the south-west. This aligns with previous research suggesting that larger primates, which require more food and space and reproduce more slowly, are less resilient and more likely to die after habitat disturbance.
Ours was the first study to try to find a quantitative link between cyclone exposure and the evolution of behavioural adaptations in lemurs and only the second to do so in primates.
While results did not show a link to overall resilience, they did provide a template for future studies to explore the concept on other primates at a global scale. The study also provides a cyclone impact grid that could be used to assess impacts on other wildlife in Madagascar.
In addition, our work has highlighted the importance of body size as a factor associated with less resilience to disaster.
This research helps us to understand more about how species responded to cyclones in the past, which improves our understanding of the sorts of behavioural flexibility needed to survive severe environmental change. This then improves our ability to predict the effects of future events and mitigate impacts through more effective and targeted conservation. This is particularly true in island ecosystems, such as Madagascar, where endemic species are confined.
Read more: Madagascar supports more unique plant life than any other island in the world – new study
– Madagascar’s lemurs live with the threat of cyclones – has this shaped their behaviour?
– https://theconversation.com/madagascars-lemurs-live-with-the-threat-of-cyclones-has-this-shaped-their-behaviour-249172
Source: US Immigration and Customs Enforcement
March 5, 2025Houston, TX, United StatesChild Exploitation
HOUSTON — U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested nine criminal aliens in the Houston area between Feb. 24 – 28 charged with, or have been convicted of, a sex offense and are amenable to removal from the U.S.
The arrests were part of a multi-agency enforcement effort conducted by ICE, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Texas Department of Public Safety – Criminal Investigation Division, and the Texas Office of Attorney General.
“Our local communities are safer as a direct result of this targeted enforcement effort,” said ICE Homeland Security Investigations Houston Special Agent in Charge Chad Plantz. “In just five days, working alongside our federal and state partners, and leveraging HSI’s unique investigative authorities and extensive expertise investigating child exploitation crimes, we were able to quickly locate and remove these criminal aliens from the community before they could reoffend.”
The arrests made during the targeted enforcement effort included:
To learn more about ICE’s mission to combat child exploitation in the Houston-area follow us on X at @HSIHouston.
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)
SINGAPORE, March 05, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — With Bitcoin’s price fluctuating below $100,000, many analysts predict a prolonged period of high volatility in the crypto market. Holding spot positions may struggle to generate short-term profits in such conditions. As a result, 100x leverage futures trading has become the preferred tool for seasoned investors looking to maximize potential gains in this volatile market. BexBack Exchange is ramping up its efforts to offer traders unmatched promotional packages.The platform now offers a 100% deposit bonus, a $50 welcome bonus for new users, and up to 100x leverage on cryptocurrency trading—all with No KYC requirements—providing excellent opportunities for investors.
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Source: City of Wolverhampton
The solo exhibition Other Pains includes 3 bodies of work where captivating landscapes and urban scenes reflect sites of previous pain, trauma or melancholy from both the artist’s own personal history and that of others. Through extensive research Sarkissian conveys stories of conflict, displacement, loss and hope.
By documenting sites that bear the scars of trauma as hints that remain of a life that has gone before in a landscape or previously loved place, Sarkissian draws upon personal and collective memories to reveal narratives previously untold.
As a third generation Syrian photographer of Armenian descent, Sarkissian grew up with the inherited narrative of the 1915 Armenian genocide from which both of his grandparents were the sole survivors of their respective families.
Sarkissian is considered one of the leading conceptual photographers of his generation. He trained at his father’s photographic studio in Damascus, Syria, which to this day informs his perspective and practice. In 2010, he completed a BFA in Photography at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie, Amsterdam. Sarkissian’s practice spans photography, moving image, sculpture, sound and installation, sometimes creating meditative dreamscapes; sometimes capturing landscapes which were previously places of trauma and destruction.
A major new commission for Other Pains, Sea of Trees, is an installation of 7 large format photographs with sound, captured in Aokigahara forest, which encompasses 30 square kilometres on the northwestern flank of Mount Fuji in Japan. A sea of trees thrives on hardened lava deposited by the last major volcanic eruption over a thousand years ago. The roots of hemlock, cypress and pine trees are unable to penetrate the ground, and snake out over the surface through a blanket of moss. Evergreen, and resembling an ocean when looked at from Mount Fuji, the forest is commonly referred to as Jukai, or Sea of Trees. The porous lava rock absorbs all sound, contributing to a profound sense of solitude.
The practice of finding solace in remote places to end life has deep roots in Japanese culture and mythology. Aokigahara forest has long been associated with this – a place where souls meet or disappear.
Sarkissian has captured the beauty and serenity of the forest in a series of large format photographs. Printed on aluminium and ceiling mounted, surrounded by the sounds of the Aokigahara forest, the installation allows visitors to walk around each work, emulating a sense of walking through the forest.
Included in the exhibition is a 3 channel video installation Sweet & Sour, Sarkissian travelled to his ancestral village to capture a place that was unknown and yet familiar to him. He subsequently travelled to Damascus, where he shared the footage with his father, who had also never visited his birthplace. The filmed encounter focusses on the emotional landscape of his father’s face as he watches the footage Sarkissian has captured. A third screen shows Sarkissian himself overlooking his ancestral land.
The third part of the exhibition in 47 archival inkjet prints is called Last Scene – a series of photographs of locations in The Netherlands that were chosen by terminally ill patients to visit as their last wish. The scenes were captured on the same date and time the actual visit took place in a previous year.
Cabinet Member for City Development, Jobs and Skills, Councillor Chris Burden, said: “Wolverhampton Art Gallery is honoured to welcome award winning photographer Hrair Sarkissian in this powerful solo exhibition, Other Pains.
“This immersive showcase of captivating landscapes and urban scenes reveals previously untold narratives, offering a compelling and unmissable experience.”
The project centres on the power of a well loved place to express an outlook on life in one scene that is at once melancholic and joyful. The simplicity of each landscape or scene heightens attention to an inner journey of remembering the past and envisioning a future beyond your time. The images turn into mirrors: on the one hand the viewer can try to imagine the person who looked at the scene for the last time, while at the same time it encourages personal introspection.
Hrair Sarkissian, Other Pains, runs at Wolverhampton Art Gallery from Saturday 29 March until Sunday 22 June. Visit Wolverhampton Arts & Culture for more information.
Source: US State of Connecticut
Cynthia Huge vividly recalls her time as a pharmacy student in the 1970s, a decade marked by cultural and political trouble. The Vietnam War protests and the Kent State shootings were important events during her college years. “It was a time of turmoil,” she says, noting the era’s profound impact on campus life. Despite these challenges, she felt her class embodied resilience and community.
The pharmacy field itself was undergoing significant changes. “Pharmacy was shifting from independent ownership to chain drug stores,” Huge says. She believes this evolution opened the profession to more women. Her class of 1975 reflected this progress, with women making up 25% of students—an increase from just 10% a few years prior.
Huge says that choosing to study pharmacy was a big decision. She had worked in a pharmacy during high school but entered UConn with little knowledge about the profession’s rigorous scientific foundation. “I thought all pharmacists did was type labels,” she says. Adjusting to courses like chemistry and physics wasn’t easy, but her determination and support from classmates helped her through.
Some of her fondest memories came from moments of creativity and humor. As co-editor of the yearbook, Huge and her team playfully dedicated it to the animals sacrificed in lab experiments. To fund the project, they organized a beer fest, a memorable event that showcased the community spirit of the School of Pharmacy.
Reflecting on her journey, Huge acknowledges that the friendships and experiences she gained at UConn have shaped her life. “It was a different time, but the connections I made are still meaningful today,” she says. For aspiring pharmacists, she offers a simple message: embrace challenges, value collaboration, and treasure the lifelong bonds formed along the way.
For Marghie Giuliano, the 70s at the School of Pharmacy were a time of transformation, both personally and professionally. Reflecting on her student years, Giuliano describes the decade as “unique, not just culturally and politically, but academically.” She recalls a time of significant curriculum changes, which posed challenges for students and professors alike. However, these challenges fostered resilience and growth.
“We were labeled disruptive because we stood up for ourselves,” she says, recalling how her class was characterized by their willingness to question authority and advocate for their needs. These experiences strengthened her sense of self and cultivated a collaborative spirit among classmates. Giuliano fondly remembers the friendships that defined her experience: “We didn’t want to see anybody fail. There was a real sense of collaboration instead of competition.” This support network forged lifelong friendships and set a foundation for her career.
Giuliano’s connection to UConn runs deep, reinforced by a family legacy in pharmacy. Her uncles, including one who also graduated from the School of Pharmacy, inspired her journey. Entering UConn for her first professional year was a significant transition from her small college background, but she found a welcoming community. “UConn has always been there for me—sometimes challenging me, sometimes supporting me,” she says. This enduring relationship with the university shaped her professional life, offering a sense of home within the larger institution.
Looking back at the evolution of pharmacy, Giuliano marvels at the growth of the profession. “When we graduated, there were only three options: hospital, retail, or industry. Now, opportunities are endless,” she says. Giuliano encourages today’s students to broaden their horizons and embrace change, emphasizing the importance of leadership and adaptability. “Challenge yourself, step into leadership roles, and keep your vision of pharmacy open,” she says.
Jack Collins had an unexpected start to his pharmacy career. Initially studying business at Boston College, a middle-of-the-night epiphany led him to transfer to UConn to follow in the footsteps of his pharmacist father and grandfather.
“I woke up in the middle of the night and said, you know what? You need to go back to the pharmacy,” Collins says. “I felt that strongly. I’m from Connecticut. That’s the school you want to go to if you’re going to become a pharmacist.”
His time at UConn wasn’t easy. The pharmacy program was intense, with five years of science-heavy courses that left little room for anything else. “It was science from freshman year through your fifth year, all in, full bore, and it was hard,” Collins says. Courses like organic chemistry and long lab sessions were especially challenging. “Organic was brutal…physics was hard, physics labs were hard.” But despite the challenges, Collins cherishes the relationships he formed with his classmates. “We had a great class. A lot of successful people came out of that class, and some of them are still good friends, even 50 years later.”
As he entered the professional world, Collins saw the pressures of retail pharmacy firsthand and knew it wasn’t the right path for him. In the 1990s, he pivoted to Home Infusion Therapy and Compounding. “Retail pharmacy wasn’t going to sustain my growing family,” Collins says. “So, I did something different, and it worked out well.”
Collins’ career highlights the adaptability of UConn graduates. He found success in niche areas of Pharmacy which allowed him to grow professionally and personally.
As UConn celebrates 100 years of excellence, the class of 1975 stands as a testament to the school’s enduring legacy. “It’s hard to believe it’s been 50 years,” Collins reflects. “But I’m just happy to be part of it.”
For future students, Collins’ advice is clear: “Try to find a branch of pharmacy that’s going to use your six years of very difficult education.” Collins encourages students to look for niches where they can apply their education and make a real impact, whether in hospitals, compounding, or other areas. “The opportunities are endless—go for it.”
