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Category: Europe

  • MIL-OSI Economics: Maritime associations launch updated guidance to protect vessels and seafarers from rapidly evolving security threats

    Source: International Marine Contractors Association – IMCA

    Headline: Maritime associations launch updated guidance to protect vessels and seafarers from rapidly evolving security threats

    An alliance of maritime associations has released new best practice guidance to help vessels and crews respond to the growing challenge of maritime security threats.

    The interactive report – BMP Maritime Security – aims to help vessels plan voyages safely and to detect, avoid, deter, delay, and report attacks and incidents, wherever they occur.

    It has been created by the Baltic and International Maritime Council (BIMCO), the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the International Association of Dry Cargo Shipowners (INTERCARGO), the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners (INTERTANKO), the Oil Companies International Marine Forum (OCIMF), and the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA), with the support of over 40 maritime stakeholders.

    BMP Maritime Security consolidates previously published regional publications into a single, comprehensive report with actionable insights and advice. 

    It focuses on providing the maritime sector with a threat and risk management process and, recognising the dynamic nature of regional security situations, provides signposts to direct users to the most up-to-date security intelligence and risk assessment information.

    BMP MS is now available to download here, and to view on the Maritime Global Security website here.

    Seafarers operating ships around the world encounter a range of maritime security threats, which often involve aggressive state and non-state actors.

    Although these threats vary across regions and in their severity, they can have a traumatic effect on seafarers who face unwarranted physical and mental harm – in some cases, being held as hostages and subjected to violence and ill-treatment for extended periods.

    To counter the threat, BMP guidance has greatly improved the industry’s ability to understand, detect, and deter maritime security threats in recent years, but the advice needs to keep pace with the rapidly evolving threat environment.

    In BMP Maritime Security, users can navigate easily to different sections and link directly to external sources and access details on global authorities and, importantly, appropriate contacts and tools for seafarer welfare support.

    IMCA Chief Executive Iain Grainger said: “The maritime industry faces an ever-evolving landscape of security threats, making it essential for seafarers to have access to the most up-to-date and practical guidance. BMP Maritime Security provides a consolidated resource that helps vessels proactively manage risk, safeguard the welfare of crews, and enhance maritime security resilience worldwide. People are our key asset, so IMCA is proud to support this initiative, ensuring that best practices continue to evolve alongside the challenges our industry faces.”

    David Loosley, BIMCO Secretary General and CEO, said: “2024 saw an unprecedented spike in attacks against merchant ships. Ships were attacked with weapons of war in the Black Sea and in the Southern Red Sea more than 100 times, and four innocent seafarers lost their lives. Globally, 126 seafarers were held hostage during pirate attacks and armed robberies, and 12 seafarers were kidnapped. BMP MS will reduce risks and save lives. While we cannot control how the threats will develop in 2025 and beyond, we can make sure that we have the best tools available to help protect our seafarers and world trade.” 

    ICS Secretary General Guy Platten, said: “Recent years have shown the stark security threats that seafarers and the industry can face in the service of world trade. From the conflict in Ukraine to the Red Sea Crisis, the dangers faced by shipping have increased to a severity not seen in two generations. This new global BMP continues the shipping industry’s unswerving commitment to protecting seafarers and mitigating threats to the trade on which we all depend.”

    Kostas G. GKONIS, PhD,  Director / Secretary General at INTERCARGO, said: “The new consolidated BMP guidance, developed by the maritime industry in coordination with naval forces, addresses escalating global threats to the safety and well-being of seafarers. INTERCARGO proudly supports this vital collaboration which cuts across traditional sector boundaries to deliver clear, actionable security protocols to protect those working at sea. Through our joint work, we should collectively ensure that these practices reach and empower every vessel, requiring sustained cooperation between frontline crews, whose dedication keeps global trade moving, and security resources and expertise.”

    Tim Wilkins, Managing Director at INTERTANKO, said: “As seafarers navigate conflict and armed threats, it is our duty as shipowner representatives to provide them with the most up-to-date information and guidance to ensure their safety. The revised BMP and related threat overviews reflect the collaborative efforts of many of our members, drawing on the hard-earned experience of the maritime industry. INTERTANKO considers BMP as being a vital reference for every vessel.”

    Karen Davis, Managing Director at OCIMF, said: “In the current heightened threat environment, where seafarers face unprecedented security challenges, the maritime community needs clear advice on how to manage threats, the risks, and the best mitigations to implement. This publication builds on a successful series of BMPs consolidating the best information available in one publication, BMP Maritime Security.” 

    MIL OSI Economics –

  • MIL-OSI Video: UK Foreign Affairs Committee Livestream – Disinformation Diplomacy

    Source: United Kingdom UK Parliament (video statements)

    The Foreign Affairs Committee will hold an evidence session hearing from the Fifth President of Georgia, Salome Zourabichvili, at 14.00, on Tuesday 1 April.

    This session will help to inform the Committee’s inquiry into disinformation, and the threat that disinformation poses to democracies worldwide. Ms Zourabichvili will appear virtually.

    This session will focus on disinformation in the context of Russian interference and the disputed October 2024 Georgian election.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pi_Stz6-giI

    MIL OSI Video –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: expert reaction to study on association between postpartum hormonal contraceptive use and risk of depression

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    A study published in JAMA Network Open looks at postpartum hormonal contraceptive use and depression risk. 

    Dr John Reynolds-Wright, NES/CSO Clinical Lecturer in Sexual & Reproductive Health, University of Edinburgh, said:

    “This retrospective registry study indicates an association between use of hormonal contraception in the first year post-partum with either being prescribed an anti-depressant or being labelled with a discharge diagnosis of depression in the Danish national healthcare electronic records.

    “It does not demonstrate causation of depression by hormonal contraception.

    “When examining the absolute risk of being prescribed an anti-depressant (or receiving the discharge diagnosis of depression), these risks are small and comparable for users (1.54%) and non-users (1.36%) of hormonal contraception in the twelve months following a first live birth in this cohort.

    “The study excluded women who had given birth previously and did not consider previous history of depression (or anti-depressant prescription) longer than 2 years ago. Considering both of these aspects may have altered the findings of the study.

     “The authors conclude that “the incidence of depression post partum may be inflated by routine HC initiation, which is important information to convey at postpartum contraceptive counseling” however this study has not convincingly shown that incidence of depression is higher – anti-depressants may be prescribed for a range of indications, not only depression – and so changing advice about postpartum contraception is not supported.

     “Further, any small increased risk (0.18% higher of being prescribed an anti-depressant or being diagnosed with depression), needs to be balanced against the benefits brought by post-partum contraception to allow women to space births, which improves their and their baby’s health in multiple ways, and gives them reproductive freedom in their lives.

     “We must cautiously interpret the recommendations and findings of this study, particularly given the current global political climate, where reproductive rights are continually under threat.”

    ‘Postpartum Hormonal Contraceptive Use and Risk of Depression’ by Søren Vinther Larsen et al. was published in JAMA Network Open at 16:00 UK time Monday 31 March 2025.

    DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2025.2474

    Declared interests

    Dr John Reynolds-Wright:

    –              Associate Editor, BMJ Sexual and Reproductive Health

    –              Evidence Advisor, British Society of Abortion Care Providers

    –              I have received research funding from HRA Pharma (Perrigo) and Exelgyn (Nordic Pharma)

    –              I have received support to attend international conferences from Gedeon Richter (travel, hotel, conference registration)

    For all other experts, no reply to our request for DOIs was received.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Have your say on bus stop improvements for faster, more reliable and more accessible bus travel in Portsmouth

    Source: City of Portsmouth

    Portsmouth residents are being invited to share their views on plans to improve bus stops across the city.

    These proposals follow Portsmouth City Council’s 2024 bus stop accessibility survey, where members of the public were asked what changes they would like to see to make bus stops more accessible for everyone. Bus drivers were also asked to contribute and share their thoughts on where improvements could be made. This is part of efforts to speed up bus journey’s and make taking the bus better for all.

    This project is funded by the Portsmouth Bus Service Improvement Plan, £52 million of government investment designed to improve bus services in Portsmouth.

    Improvements have been suggested at bus stops across the city, including, Oakwood Road, Doyle Avenue, Knox Road, Angerstein Road, Kings Theatre, College Park, Hayling Avenue, St Luke’s Church, Milton Road, Copythorn Road and Charles Dickens Birthplace.

    Proposals at these stops include making changes which will speed up bus journey times and help buses to get out of stops easily, as well as changes to pathways and stops to make bus stops easier for people to get on and off with a pram or in a wheelchair.

    Encouraging more people to choose the bus not only reduces traffic congestion, but it also contributes to better air quality, creating a healthier environment for everyone. This is one of the many initiatives the council is implementing to support bus travel including: a new bus bus ticket range, fare free days, and improvements to bus services such as more frequent buses, and 24-hour bus routes.

    Councillor Peter Candlish, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “Making bus travel accessible for everyone is a key part of our efforts to improve transport in Portsmouth. These proposed bus stop upgrades will help ensure that everyone can access buses with ease and comfort, while also reducing congestion and improving our city’s air quality.”

    How to get involved

    Residents are encouraged to provide their feedback by 5pm on Friday 11 April. To have your say, email citytravel@portsmouthcc.gov.uk or write to BSIP Team, Floor 2, Portsmouth City Council, Civic Offices Guildhall Square, Portsmouth, Hampshire, PO1 2AL

    Once the feedback has been collected, the council will review all views before making a decision. If the improvements move forward work is expected to begin later this year.

    More information about the proposed improvements can be found on the council website travel.portsmouth.gov.uk/bsip-schemes/bus-stop-improvements/

    More information about the Portsmouth Bus Service Improvement Plan

    The Portsmouth Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP) is Portsmouth’s visionary delivery scheme aligned with the government’s National Bus Strategy and aims to dramatically improve bus services in Portsmouth and to encourage passengers back to the bus.

    This programme is managed by an enhanced partnership between local bus companies Stagecoach South, First Solent and Portsmouth City Council. With a £52 million grant from the Department for Transport (DfT) the Portsmouth BSIP aims to increase bus usage in Portsmouth by engaging with the local community and transforming the bus network in the city so that it is faster, more reliable, and more affordable.

    The Portsmouth BSIP has already funded early morning travel, and later night services, tap on tap off technology, fare free weekends to encourage residents to try the bus, Christmas Day bus services and much more, with even more exciting developments planned for 2025.

    According to the latest Department for Transport (DfT) figures, Portsmouth has seen a 20% rise in bus passengers in 2024 and is recognised as the top city for bringing people back to bus travel, with over 12 million bus journeys taken. These achievements were recognised at the UK Bus Awards in 2024, with Portsmouth winning gold in the Partnership for Excellence category.

    More information can be found on our website: https://travel.portsmouth.gov.uk/bsip/

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Financial news: Fake employees of the Bank of Russia offer to close the “international account”

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Central Bank of Russia (2) –

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    Categoris24-7, Central Bank of OF Russia, Miles, Russians Banks, Russians savings, Russians finance, Russians Language, Russian economy, Russian banks

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    Fraudsters have begun to use a new fraudulent scheme involving the Bank of Russia. They send potential victims an email with the regulator’s logo, which includes the person’s last name, first name, and patronymic.

    In the letter, the scammers report that the person allegedly has an active account in a European financial institution. They demand to close an “international account” with a large sum of money and offer to withdraw it while preserving the interest income. The scammers claim that to do this, you need to use your Russian bank account, which has the most money. To get more detailed instructions, the person should reply to the letter or contact its senders via instant messengers. Some letters include a phishing link to a site where you are asked to enter personal data and bank details, allegedly for identification and closing the account.

    Refusal to close the account, according to the scammers, threatens a significant fine, seizure of property or forced collection from wages. In the future, the scammers can use this information to steal money or arrange loans and credits.

    In addition, the link may contain malicious software that is automatically installed on the user’s device and provides attackers with remote access to banking applications.

    Be vigilant and do not respond to such letters: do not follow links in the message, do not provide personal or financial information. Real employees of the Bank of Russia do not call people and do not send them copies of any documents, do not request personal or bank information, do not offer to perform any transactions with the account. If possible, install an antivirus program on your devices and update it regularly. If you have any doubts, call your bank yourself at the number indicated on the back of the card or on the credit institution’s website.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The government will allocate over 4 billion rubles for the purchase of agricultural machinery for leasing

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Documents

    Order dated March 27, 2025 No. 737-r

    Order dated March 27, 2025 No. 738-r

    The government continues to work on updating the agricultural machinery fleet and reducing the financial burden on farmers. More than 4 billion rubles will be allocated from the federal budget for the purchase of agricultural machinery, which will then be leased. The orders to this effect were signed by Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin.

    The funds reserved in the federal budget are intended for Rosagroleasing. The decisions will allow for the purchase of various agricultural machinery. It will be transferred to farmers, including under preferential leasing agreements.

    In total, 4.5 billion rubles of budget investments are planned to be allocated for these purposes in 2025. This will allow purchasing at least 300 units of domestic agricultural machinery.

    Commenting on the decision taken at a meeting with deputy prime ministers on March 31, Mikhail Mishustin noted that this issue was discussed during the Government’s recent annual report to the State Duma.

    “It is important that farmers receive new machines as soon as possible. The demand for agricultural machinery is growing now, which means that the industry should not have a shortage of the necessary components for harvesting,” the Prime Minister emphasized.

    The work is being carried out within the framework of the state program “Development of industry and increasing its competitiveness.”

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: The government is launching new programs in the field of creating agricultural machinery and producing veterinary drugs

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Document

    Resolution of March 27, 2025 No. 395

    The Government, on the instructions of the President, continues to work to achieve technological sovereignty in the field of agricultural engineering and to form a sustainable system of national biological security. A resolution has been signed supplementing the Federal Scientific and Technical Program for the Development of Agriculture with two new subprograms: “Agricultural Machinery and Equipment” and “Development of Technologies for the Production of Veterinary Medicines.”

    The total funding for the first subprogram, which will be implemented in 2025–2030, will amount to approximately 15.8 billion rubles. Federal budget funds will amount to over 13.1 billion rubles, and attracted investments will amount to over 2.7 billion rubles. The implementation of the subprogram activities, in particular, involves the development and creation of modern tractors, self-propelled combines for harvesting grain, potatoes, beets and other agricultural crops. It is also planned to create domestic equipment for the maintenance and harvesting of fruit and berry plantations and vineyards, modern sprayers, fertilizer spreading machines, seeders, milking systems, and egg sorting machines. It is expected that at least 27 new types of agricultural machinery will be developed by 2030.

    The implementation of the second subprogram, dedicated to the development of veterinary drug production, is also planned for 2025–2030. The volume of funding from the state will amount to more than 4.4 billion rubles. Another 12 billion rubles are planned to be raised from extra-budgetary sources. The main goal of the subprogram is to create new, competitive domestic veterinary drugs and meet the domestic needs of the livestock industry for such drugs. For this purpose, it is planned to develop and clinically test new vaccines and veterinary drugs for pigs, poultry, cattle, and farmed fish, and then launch them into industrial production.

    Successful implementation of the subprogram will allow achieving a 70% level of provision of livestock with domestic veterinary drugs by 2030. By the same date, the level of provision with Russian vaccines should be 61%.

    During a meeting with deputy prime ministers on March 31, Mikhail Mishustin instructed Dmitry Patrushev to monitor the progress of the subprograms. “We need to ensure that all these projects go into production as soon as possible and become available to consumers,” the Prime Minister emphasized.

    The signed document introduces changes toGovernment Resolution of August 25, 2017 No. 996.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Chernyshenko: Almost 8 million users and over 130 thousand organizations are registered on the Dobro.rf platform

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Dmitry Chernyshenko and the head of the Federal Agency for Youth Affairs (Rosmolodezh) Grigory Gurov spoke about the work of the social development ecosystem Dobro.rf.

    “President Vladimir Putin emphasizes that compassion and support for those in need have always been present in the hearts of our people, and the fact that young people are involved in volunteer activities is doubly, triply important. Since 2025, work to involve young people in volunteer and social activities has been carried out within the framework of the national project “Youth and Children”. Almost 8 million users and over 130 thousand organizations have already registered on the Dobro.rf platform, which have implemented more than 100 thousand projects. We encourage all volunteers to register on the platform. This will ensure the implementation of support measures for volunteers and provide guarantees of safety in work,” said Dmitry Chernyshenko.

    The head of Rosmolodezh Grigory Gurov emphasized that over 10 years, Russia has managed to create a powerful movement of caring people, form a culture of participation and mutual support, and increase the share of Russians in volunteer projects from 3% to 28%. The volunteer community has become a support for the state in the socio-economic sphere.

    “We are creating all the conditions for the development of infrastructure and support of specialized initiatives. Our mission until 2030, including within the framework of the new national project “Youth and Children” is to reveal the potential of every Russian, to cultivate trust and partnership between people, communities and the state. We see that the potential for civic activity exists in all ages: from childhood to “silver”. This is confirmed by the VTsIOM study, according to which the number of Russians ready to engage in volunteer activities has grown from 20% to 67%,” said Grigory Gurov.

    Today, the Dobro.rf ecosystem is the largest community in the “third sector”, which includes services for the development of civil society and a culture of mutual assistance, support for volunteering and NGOs, training, mentoring, donation, volunteer programs in schools and universities, and international cooperation programs. Dobro.rf is a national social brand created with the support of President Vladimir Putin.

    The flagship projects of the ecosystem are the Dobro.rf platform, where all volunteer projects are collected, and the all-Russian mutual aid project

    “The platform’s tools help people choose a project they like to become a volunteer, and volunteer organizers find assistants and partners. Users can receive material and non-material incentives for their activity, undergo training, and fill out volunteer books to record the hours spent as a volunteer. Event organizers have the opportunity to search for grants or other support measures through the platform,” emphasized Artem Metelev, head of the Dobro.rf ecosystem and chairman of the State Duma Committee on Youth Policy.

    Dobro.rf is also developing the Service Learning program, which has already provided socially oriented project-based learning in 415 universities, as well as the Mentor.rf project, which has united large organizations and verified mentors from various fields. Under the Dobro.Center project, federal franchises of social assistance centers have been opened in more than 600 municipalities, and with the help of the Dobro.Navigator aggregator of support measures for NGOs and individuals, over 3.5 thousand support measures have been created for about 1 thousand organizations.

    For users of the ecosystem, a Single ID has been introduced for all services: State Services, My Documents, Dobro.rf and DobroCenter.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Dmitry Patrushev: Protecting biological diversity is one of the most important tasks in the environmental protection sphere

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev took part in the first meeting of the Coordination Committee for the support of environmental and nature conservation projects. It was chaired by First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of Russia Sergei Kiriyenko.

    “The activities of the Presidential Fund for Ecological and Nature Conservation Projects will be aimed, among other things, at preserving rare and endangered species of plants and animals. Our country has unique biological diversity, and its protection is one of the most important tasks in the environmental sphere. However, we cannot do without consolidating the efforts of the authorities and the public. We need educational projects in the field of protecting wild animals, plants and unique ecosystems. We have many areas in which to prove ourselves and contribute to the environmental well-being of our country,” said Dmitry Patrushev.

    The Deputy Prime Minister cited the example of the Arctic zone, where work on ecological improvement of territories, preservation of biodiversity has been underway for several years, with the active involvement of businesses, public organizations and volunteers. Dmitry Patrushev emphasized that these activities must be continued, including in dialogue with the presidential foundation.

    The Russian Nature Reserve Fund is one of the largest in the world. It is about 12 thousand specially protected natural areas. The Deputy Prime Minister added that one of the grant areas chosen is to promote the development of human resources in specially protected natural areas, as well as charitable and volunteer activities on their basis.

    The Presidential Fund for Ecological and Nature Conservation Projects was registered on March 3, 2025. It was created in accordance with the decree of the President of Russia. The main grant areas include the protection of rare and endangered animal species, as well as their habitats, the study and monitoring of biodiversity, information and educational projects in the field of protecting wild animals, unique and relict ecosystems, as well as plant species listed in the Red Books.

    The First Deputy Chief of Staff of the Presidential Executive Office of Russia Sergei Kiriyenko has been appointed Chairman of the Coordination Committee for the Support of Environmental and Nature Protection Projects. His deputies are the Special Representative of the President of Russia for Environmental Protection, Ecology and Transport Sergei Ivanov and Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Patrushev.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Financial News: Suspicious Transactions Declined by 21% in 2024

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Central Bank of Russia –

    They fell from 113 billion rubles to 90 billion rubles. This reduction was more significant than in the previous 2 years (by 5% in 2022 and by 12% in 2023), it says. in the analytical material Bank of Russia.

    Transactions with signs of transferring funds abroad decreased by 17% over the year, to 25.6 billion rubles. As before, they were mainly carried out using advance payments for import deliveries without subsequent import of goods into Russia. The volume of these schemes decreased by a third. At the same time, the share of suspicious transfers to non-residents for goods that are allegedly purchased from them on the territory of Russia without crossing the border increased.

    The volume of illegal cashing decreased by 22%, to 64.2 billion rubles. Cashing on payment cards of companies and individual entrepreneurs decreased more significantly, more than 2 times.

    Banks have been able to effectively combat the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing, including through the development of online tools for monitoring suspicious transactions, as well as the prompt identification of risks on the Know Your Customer platform.

    In October 2024, the Bank of Russia opened service, with the help of which anyone can check whether a company belongs to the high-risk level on the platform. The service has proven to be in demand among businesses: since its opening, it has been accessed more than 200 thousand times.

    Preview photo: UnderhilStudio / Shutterstock / Fotodom

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    Please Note; This Information is Raw Content Directly from the Information Source. It is access to What the Source Is Stating and Does Not Reflect

    HTTPS: //VVV.KBR.ru/Press/Event/? ID = 23504

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI USA News: ONDCP Recognizes Law Enforcement’s Work to Stop Drug Traffickers

    Source: The White House

    class=”wp-block-heading has-text-align-center”>National High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas Awards Ceremony Recognizes Excellence Across 14 Key Categories

    Washington, D.C.—Last night, the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) recognized individuals and initiatives of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Areas (HIDTA) Program at the 2025 National HIDTA Awards Ceremony for their critical work to combat the national security threat posed by drug traffickers, including those who traffic deadly illicit fentanyl in the United States, killing tens of thousands of Americans each year.  

    The Trump Administration is taking the fight to the cartels and drug traffickers in order to save American lives. The HIDTA Program plays a key role in disrupting and dismantling drug trafficking organizations and provides assistance to federal, state, local, Tribal, and territorial law enforcement agencies operating in areas determined to be critical drug trafficking regions across all 50 states. Last year, the 33 HIDTAs seized 4.1 million pounds of fentanyl and other drugs and denied drug traffickers $17.7 billion in illicit profits. For every dollar invested in the HIDTA Program, the American people get $68.07 in benefits, making HIDTA an effective and efficient use of taxpayers’ money, and an important tool in the nation’s effort to stop drug traffickers and save American lives.  

    The following awards were presented March 27 to individuals and initiatives of the HIDTA Program for their efforts to reduce the supply and trafficking of dangerous drugs in communities across the country: 

    INVESTIGATIVE COLLABORATION

    Chicago HIDTA, Chicago HIDTA Counternarcotics and Cryptocurrency Task Force

    Created to identify, disrupt, and dismantle transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), the Chicago HIDTA Counternarcotics and Cryptocurrency Task Force (CNCTF) targeted one of the largest, fastest-growing dark net markets in the world – Nemesis Market. This marketplace facilitated drug trafficking, fraud, hacking, and other illicit activities responsible for more than $20 million in illicit transactions to more than 150,000 registered users around the world. Led by DEA and comprising an array of federal and local partners, CNCTF undertook Operation Keyboard Warrior, which received designation by the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF). In March 2024, CNCTF, working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the German Bundescriminalamt, disrupted Nemesis Market by executing simultaneous, multinational search and seizure warrants on critical technological infrastructure. The warrants resulted in nearly $1 million in frozen and seized cryptocurrency-related assets, twelve computer servers, various electronic devices, and terabytes of data containing financial records and personal information of more than 1,000 vendors trafficking in drugs and engaging in fraud, hacking, and forgeries on the marketplace. CNCTF leveraged this information to effect arrests and warrants in eight U.S. federal districts, and provided investigative leads to foreign law enforcement counterparts in multiple countries using international treaty-based disclosure agreements that were novel to cyber cases.

    PROSECUTION

    South Florida HIDTA, Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kevin Gerarde and Sean McLaughlin

    With the support of the South Florida HIDTA and assistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Assistant United States Attorneys (AUSAs) Kevin Gerarde and Sean McLaughlin secured a jury verdict against the Premier of the British Virgin Islands (BVI) for drug trafficking. Andrew Fahie, who was elected as the Premier in 2019, was accused of assisting the Sinaloa Cartel in transporting loads of cocaine weighing three metric tons from the coast of Colombia through the BVI en route to the United States for distribution. In exchange for his assistance, Fahie allegedly received a 12 percent cut of the proceeds when the cocaine was sold in the United States. After an extensive undercover operation conducted with the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency and the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force, DEA arrested Fahie. In prosecuting Fahie, AUSAs Gerarde and McLaughlin overcame a variety of evidentiary challenges, including United Kingdom and BVI foreign law determinations regarding the applicability of U.S. money laundering statutes. On February 8, 2024, the jury returned a verdict finding Fahie guilty on all counts, and he was subsequently sentenced to 135 months imprisonment.

    PUBLIC HEALTH/PUBLIC SAFETY COLLABORATION

    Texoma HIDTA, Caprock Drug Initiative

    The Texoma HIDTA’s Caprock Initiative launched a program at the behest of local officials to address alarming increases in fentanyl overdoses in and around Lubbock, Texas. Since its inception, the program has reached nearly 26 thousand individuals from all walks of life. Undertaken with substantial support from the United States Attorney’s Office, the Texas Anti-Gang Center, and the Lubbock County District Attorney’s Office, the program has become the most requested fentanyl awareness presentation in the South Plains region. It has been presented to numerous local schools, including to the Texas Tech football team. The program provides candid, factual information from people in recovery, overdose survivors, and families of overdose victims. It is credited with raising public awareness and contributing to a reduction in overdoses in the region.

    HIDTA SUPPORT

    Atlanta Carolinas HIDTA, Lydia Sheffield

    Lydia Sheffield has served the Atlanta Carolinas HIDTA for two decades, providing continuity with her outstanding support to three executive directors. In addition to her myriad duties as the Executive Assistant, Ms. Sheffield is the primary Performance Management Process (PMP) Coordinator for the HIDTA, and has established herself as an expert user of PMP. In that role, she has generously provided training to PMP users from multiple other regional HIDTAs at the behest of the National HIDTA Assistance Center and to National HIDTA Program staff. Ms. Sheffield has drawn upon her own background and experience as a skilled trainer to develop curriculum materials to support trainings to both peer PMP coordinators and initiative commanders across the United States.

    INVESTIGATION INVOLVING INNOVATIVE APPROACHES

    Gulf Coast HIDTA, Mobile Baldwin Major Investigations Team

    In 2023, the Mobile Baldwin Major Investigations Team (MBMIT) began investigating a deactivated DEA confidential source who was coordinating large shipments of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine from Texas and Georgia into the Mobile, Alabama area. Because the former source was familiar with law enforcement communication and investigative techniques and was still being used by local law enforcement agencies, the source was emboldened to conduct illicit drug-related transactions via an end-to-end encrypted phone app. MBMIT agents successfully executed a search warrant to clone the source’s phone and initiated real-time Title III intercepts of the encrypted app. This was the first time an end-to-end encryption application was successfully intercepted in the New Orleans Division and only the third time this type of intercept had been conducted worldwide within DEA. The success of this investigative technique enabled 120 electronic and voice Title III intercepts resulting in 24 state and federal arrests, the seizure of 19 kilograms of cocaine and 20 kilograms of methamphetamine, and the seizure of over $500,000 in cash, jewelry, and vehicles. Additionally, these intercepts lead to the identification and follow-on investigation of regional drug traffickers in the United States with links to multiple Mexican TCOs.

    INTELLIGENCE AND INFORMATION SHARING

    Nevada HIDTA, Investigative Research Assistant Phillip Scichilone

    In early 2024, the Nevada Highway Patrol received a tip regarding a suspicious trucking company suspected of transporting illicit drugs from northern Nevada across the county, and subsequently passed the tip to Investigative Research Assistant Phillip Scichilone. Mr. Scichilone provided Northern Nevada Interdiction Task Force members with key intelligence related to the travel patterns of the vehicle involved, suspicious financial activity of the trucking company, and identification of the suspected owner and driver of the vehicle. The task force used this information to interdict the vehicle involved, resulting in the seizure of approximately $1 million and the identification of the driver and passenger, who were suspected of being linked to a known terrorist organization. After conducting follow-up analysis linking the suspects to out-of-state DEA and FBI investigations, Mr. Scichilone connected representatives of both agencies to deconflict and share information and then worked with both agencies to pass on key intelligence information.

    INTERDICTION

    New England HIDTA, Greater Boston HIDTA Task Force

    The Greater Boston HIDTA Task Force, co-led by the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), initiated an investigation targeting a California-based drug trafficking organization (DTO) involved in large-scale illicit drug smuggling, distribution, and transportation from the Southwest Border to destinations throughout the United States and Canada. The initial phase of this ongoing investigation resulted in the disruption of a large-scale criminal enterprise with two arrests and the interdiction of 32 kilograms of methamphetamine and 490 kilograms of cocaine from a tractor trailer that traveled cross country to meet with undercover law enforcement agents in Massachusetts. The Massachusetts State Police have claimed this to be the largest seizure of narcotics from a tractor trailer in New England history, and the ongoing investigation has wide-ranging impact on DTO operations in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

    INVESTIGATION INVOLVING A VIOLENT ORGANIZATION

    Texoma HIDTA, ATF Oklahoma City Violent Crime Initiative

    The ATF Oklahoma City Violent Crime Initiative led interagency Operation Sonic Boom that used information from the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN) to overlay maps of Oklahoma City with shooting incidents to identify critical, high gun violence areas to deploy additional resources. In a 60-day operation, ATF Confidential Sources and Undercover Agents conducted 117 undercover firearm purchases that led to the indictment of 64 defendants and the seizure of 110 firearms, 83 machinegun conversion devices (MCDs), 53 kilograms of methamphetamine, 5 kilograms of cocaine, and more than 1.5 kilograms of fentanyl tablets. Highlighting the critical links between the undercover operations in this case and the ongoing violent crime investigations in Oklahoma City, twelve of the firearms purchased by undercover agents had confirmed links in NIBIN to open shooting and homicide cases by violent criminal gangs in the greater Oklahoma City area. From a HIDTA perspective, the case was also a statistical success, with investigators identifying eight separate Drug Trafficking or Money Laundering Organizations and disrupting six of them during the course of the operation. 

    COMMUNITY IMPACT INVESTIGATION

    Northwest HIDTA, DEA Bellingham Regional HIDTA Task Force

    Over the past year, the DEA Bellingham Regional HIDTA Task Force (BRHTF) initiated an investigation that resulted in a substantial impact concerning public safety and health on the greater Lummi Nation Tribal Lands. Over a one-year period, BRHTF, along with partner agencies, seized over 850,000 fentanyl pills, seven kilograms of fentanyl powder, seven kilograms of cocaine, 29 illicit firearms, over $120,000 in U.S. currency, and disrupted a centralized DTO responsible for trafficking and distributing fentanyl and other drugs in the Lummi Nation within Whatcom County, WA. This investigation resulted in a notable decrease in both fentanyl availability and overdose deaths on Lummi Tribal Lands.

    OVERDOSE REDUCTION

    South Texas HIDTA, Laredo DEA HIDTA Task Force

    In 2023, the DEA Laredo District Office created a HIDTA Overdose Task Force initiative to address the dramatic rise in overdose deaths in Laredo, Texas, and its surrounding communities. The City of Laredo experienced 21 overdose deaths in 2021, rose to 41 overdose deaths in 2022, and was on pace to experience nearly 100 overdose deaths in 2023, when the task force was launched. Formed with multiple local and federal agencies and comprising six task force officers, the task force proved to be effective, with Laredo reporting 73 deaths in 2023, well short of the expected numbers. Throughout 2024, Laredo and its surrounding communities experienced 40 overdose deaths, and preliminary data indicate the city is on pace for a remarkable 45 percent decrease.

    INVESTIGATION

    Arizona HIDTA, Metro Intelligence Support and Technical Investigative Center (MISTIC)

    Throughout 2024, the Phoenix Police Department (PPD) Drug Enforcement Bureau’s (DEB) Conspiracy Squad and the DEA Phoenix Field Division’s Financial Investigations Group (FIG) conducted a long-term, complex investigation that targeted a TCO responsible for the trafficking and distribution of bulk quantities of illicit drugs, as well as for money laundering. Investigators conducted 2,000 hours of surveillance, utilized 225 court orders and search warrants, and initiated 35 wire intercepts targeting TCO members. Through the course of this investigation, detectives identified, disrupted, and dismantled the international drug trafficking activities of both foreign and United States-based sources of supply, load coordinators, couriers, stash house operators, and distribution coordinators, while also dismantling metropolitan Phoenix-based DTO operations.

    TASK FORCE OF THE YEAR

    Appalachia HIDTA, Appalachia HIDTA Diversion Task Force

    In response to an influx of counterfeit pharmaceuticals flooding southeastern Kentucky that were contributing to a rise in drug poisoning deaths, investigators with the Appalachia HIDTA Diversion Drug Task Force initiated an investigation into a dark net market distributor operating under the name GreenBeansUSA. This investigation was conducted jointly with the Appalachia HIDTA DEA London Task Force in coordination with the FBI, Internal Revenue Service, and U.S. Postal Inspection Service under the OCDETF Operation “Loyal Business.” Investigators identified GreenBeansUSA as a global supplier responsible for the sale and distribution of over 16 million counterfeit pharmaceutical pills, and the receipt of over $11 million in drug proceeds in the form of illicit cryptocurrency. In the course of the operation, investigators issued more than 200 grand jury subpoenas, 47 pen registers, 8 ping orders, Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) requests, IP analysis, blockchain and cluster analysis, 2703(d) orders, undercover purchases, undercover money laundering operations, pole cameras, and electronic search warrants to multiple telecommunications and technological entities. Their efforts resulted in federal indictments of six key members of the organization, the seizure of 11 kilograms of controlled pharmaceuticals (nitazene, benzodiazepine, and ketamine), six pill press machines, and approximately $1.2 million in assets.

    HIDTA AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE

    Ohio HIDTA, Sergeant Breck Williamson, Ohio State Highway Patrol

    Sergeant Breck Williamson has distinguished himself as both a prolific and successful interdictor of illicit drugs transiting the nation’s highways, and as an expert instructor and mentor to other officers conducting highway interdictions. Since October 2023, Sergeant Williamson has personally seized over 405 pounds of methamphetamines, 11 pounds of fentanyl, 141 pounds of cocaine, 3,203 pounds of marijuana, and $135,000 in U.S. currency. He also serves as an instructor for both the El Paso Intelligence Center (EPIC) and the Drug Interdiction Awareness Program (DIAP), sharing his expertise with hundreds of students throughout the past year. In addition to his day-to-day supervisory and highway interdiction duties, Sergeant Williamson is a DEA task force officer and is regularly called upon by DEA offices nationwide to advise on interdiction tactics and techniques.

    HIDTA OF THE YEAR

    SOUTH FLORIDA HIDTA

    The South Florida HIDTA has demonstrated an exemplary capacity for multidimensional vision and leadership. Through its Executive Director and Executive Board, it has targeted emerging threats, such as synthetic drugs, while remaining steadfastly committed to the interdiction of metric tons of cocaine destined for the United States from South America. It has inspired national efforts, like the launch of Crime Gun Intelligence Centers in HIDTA regions across the United States, without losing focus of the core HIDTA mission to disrupt and dismantle DTOs and while maintaining deep and sustaining partnerships at the local level. It has launched enterprising collaborations with law enforcement partners, such as partnering with the Federal Aviation Administration to access radar interdiction operability and records of straw registration of aircraft, while embracing public health initiatives focused on overdose reduction and drug use prevention.

    Among its many accomplishments, in 2023 South Florida HIDTA initiatives dismantled or disrupted 54 DTOs, of which 19 were international in scope and nearly 20 percent were OCDETF-designated or linked to consolidated or regional priority organization targets. Task forces seized illicit drugs with a total estimated value of $748 million, including 23 metric tons of cocaine, 248 kilograms of methamphetamine, and 224 kilograms of fentanyl. South Florida HIDTA initiatives also seized more than $105 million in cash and other assets, delivering a return on investment of $56.22 for every dollar financed by the National HIDTA Program. Finally, in pursuit of one of its most vital functions – ensuring officer safety – the South Florida HIDTA provided deconfliction services to all its partners, preventing more than 400 “blue on blue” incidents.

    MIL OSI USA News –

  • MIL-OSI Europe: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “Fiction Litterature Is Messy”

    Source: Universities – Science Po in English

    « Fiction literature is messy, we have to write about the world as it is, not as we wish it were. I really feel that the self that writes fiction is not the self that writes non-fiction. When I’m writing non-fiction, essays, lectures, or a Ted Talk, I am hoping to persuade people. I want you to come on board and care. »

    Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

    Author and feminist icon

    In March 2025, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie joined us to present her latest novel, L’inventaire des rêves (Dream Count), published by Gallimard. The renowned Nigerian author delivered an inspiring keynote on the power of writing. She generously shared her unfiltered reflections on women in history, literature, and shaping one’s destiny.

    Organised by our Institute for the Arts & Creation, Africa Programme, and Gender Studies Programme (PRESAGE), the event was moderated by Hélène Périvier, economist at the French Economic Observatory (OFCE) and director of PRESAGE, alongside students from our Paris School of International Affairs (PSIA).

    The conversation is now available for replay:

    Cover image caption: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie with Hélène Périvier at her right, translator Marguerite Capelle at her left and PSIA students on both outer sides. (credits: Louis Roquebert / Sciences Po)

    MIL OSI Europe News –

  • MIL-OSI Banking: Samsung Unveils New Onyx at CinemaCon 2025, Setting New Standards for LED Cinema Innovation

    Source: Samsung

    Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. today announced the latest Onyx (ICD model) cinema LED screen at CinemaCon 2025, marking a new era for cinema display technology. Building on its legacy as a cinema LED pioneer, which began in 2017, Samsung is setting new standards with unmatched picture quality, industry-leading reliability and expanded screen scalability to meet the evolving needs of theaters worldwide.
    “The cinema industry is shifting its focus towards delivering a more immersive and visually captivating experience,” said Hoon Chung, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “With Onyx, Samsung delivers not only the highest-quality visuals but also the flexibility that allows theaters to redefine the movie-going experience and cater to evolving audience expectations.”
    Brighter, Bolder and More Immersive: The Future of Cinema is Here
    As the world’s first DCI-certified1 cinema LED display, Samsung Onyx delivers an unparalleled cinematic experience with true black levels, infinite contrast ratio and exceptional color accuracy. The screen is capable of supporting frame rates up to 4K 120Hz,2 delivering ultra-smooth motion and razor-sharp details.
    Every auditorium has unique dimensions, and screen size requirements vary from theater to theater. To accommodate this, Onyx offers four standard sizes3 and additional flexible scaling options, allowing theaters to maximize their available space and present films in the largest possible format without compromising image quality:
    5 meters (16ft) – Ideal for boutique and smaller-format theaters (Pixel pitch: 1.25mm)
    10 meters (33ft) – The industry standard for premium cinemas (Pixel pitch: 2.5mm)
    14 meters (46ft) – A versatile format that delivers an impressive, large-scale cinematic experience (Pixel pitch: 3.3mm)
    20 meters (66ft) – A large-format solution for premium auditoriums (Pixel pitch: 5.0mm)
    Samsung Onyx cinema LED screens natively support both scope (2.39:1) and flat (1.85:1) aspect ratios, ensuring films are displayed in their intended formats without the need for additional adjustments. When scaling beyond standard sizes, Onyx maintains both aspect ratios while maximizing the screen size, allowing content to expand proportionally without distortion.

    Unlike traditional projectors, which can appear dim in larger theaters and struggle with washed-out colors in bright scenes, Onyx’s enhanced brightness ensures richer details in shadows, more intense highlights and superior color accuracy across the entire spectrum. Powered by Samsung’s HDR technology, Onyx reaches peak brightness levels of 300 nits (87.6fL) — six times brighter than conventional cinema standards — allowing even the brightest details to remain clear and visible.4 As a result, high-brightness scenes retain their full impact, rather than appearing washed out or overexposed.
    “As the entertainment industry looks ahead to the future of cinema, innovation is more important than ever,” said David Phelps, Head of Display Division, Samsung Electronics America. “By delivering truly immersive experiences in theaters, we can ensure that the magic of the big screen not only endures, but thrives. The new generation of Onyx Cinema LED screens enables theater owners and operators to engage, thrill and remind moviegoers why the theater remains the ultimate place to experience visual storytelling at its finest.”
    With its industry-leading brightness and precision, Onyx enables clear and vivid playback even in brightly lit environments, making it ideal for alternative content such as live sports, concerts, gaming events and corporate presentations. This allows theaters to deliver a premium viewing experience beyond traditional movie screenings.

    Built for Reliability and Seamless Integration
    Onyx is built for long-term performance, offering the industry’s first and longest 10-year warranty for cinema LED,5 setting a new benchmark for reliability in cinema display technology. This extended coverage helps reduce the total cost of ownership and ensures a future-proof investment for theater owners.
    To maintain optimal picture quality, Samsung provides an auto-calibration solution that enables theaters to easily calibrate their screens during installation and routine maintenance.
    Designed for seamless integration, Onyx is compatible with both Dolby and GDC IMB media servers, making it easier for theaters to transition from traditional projection systems. Because of this, theater networks can enjoy seamless content playback and efficient management.
    Onyx is fully compatible with leading cinema audio solutions, including Dolby Atmos, Meyer Sound, QSC and custom-designed sound systems, providing theaters with the flexibility to customize their sound experience to meet their specific needs. For theaters using HARMAN’s JBL surround sound technology, Onyx also offers seamless integration to ensure optimized audio performance.

    A Proven Legacy with Global Recognition
    Samsung Onyx is one of the most widely adopted cinema LED screens in theaters worldwide — setting a new industry standard for premium cinema display technology. As it expands its presence, Onyx continues to showcase its unmatched reliability, versatility and ability to elevate the cinematic experience.
    One of the most recent installations is at Pathé Palace in Paris, where Onyx was selected to enhance the premium viewing experience in one of the world’s most visually stunning cinemas.
    “At Pathé, we are committed to delivering the highest-quality cinematic experience for our customers,” said Laure de Boissard, Managing Director, Pathé Cinéma France. “Samsung Onyx allows us to achieve stunning visuals with exceptional brightness and contrast, ensuring that every film is presented exactly as intended.”

    MIL OSI Global Banks –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: UK statement in the Kimberley Process: March 2025

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    UK statement in the Kimberley Process: March 2025

    The UK’s Explanation of Position during the adoption of the Kimberley Process Resolution (A/RES/79/275) General Assembly.

    The United Kingdom thanks the United Arab Emirates for bringing this important proposed resolution forward,

    The United Kingdom is a proud founding member of the Kimberley Process, and we are committed to its values and principles of accountability, transparency and collaboration.  

    As a tripartite body, we value the Civil Society Coalition, African Diamond Producers’ Association and World Diamond Council’s roles in the Kimberley Process because they all bring expertise that strengthens the body.

    The Civil Society Coalition elevates the voices of marginalised people, including in the extractives industry, and it is crucial for the Coalition’s voice to be engaged in the Kimberley Process’ decision making.

    Colleagues, the current definition of conflict diamonds is solely focused on rebel movements using revenue from rough diamonds to overthrow legitimate governments. This is not enough.

    Although the Kimberley Process has succeeded in many areas – we regret that to date, the Kimberley Process has not reached consensus in agreeing a broadened definition of conflict diamonds despite in 2012 agreeing that there is urgent need to agree a definition that captures the evolving nature of conflicts and realities on the ground.

    We reiterate the need for members of the Kimberley Process to work collaboratively and are pleased that it is in that spirit the resolution reiterates the pressing need for the Ad-Hoc Committee on Review and Reform to achieve consensus on a broadened definition of conflict diamonds.

    We look forward to continuing this dialogue.

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Working visit of Alexey Overchuk to China

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Government of the Russian Federation – An important disclaimer is at the bottom of this article.

    On March 27–28, Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Alexey Overchuk paid a working visit to the People’s Republic of China (Hainan Island), heading the Russian delegation at the annual Boao Forum for Asia.

    During his speech at the session “Creating favorable conditions for peaceful development and ensuring overall economic security,” the Deputy Prime Minister spoke in detail about the creation of international partnerships aimed at forming a reliable basis for sustainable economic growth in the Eurasian region, including the construction of transport and logistics systems and an independent payment infrastructure.

    Alexey Overchuk spoke about the initiative of the Greater Eurasian Partnership, put forward by Russian President Vladimir Putin, which implies the interconnectedness of the economies of Eurasia and is based on the idea of economic security and integration.

    The Deputy Prime Minister noted that the Northern Eurasia macro-region serves as an example of multi-level economic integration, where such associations as the Union State of Russia and Belarus, the Eurasian Economic Union, and the Commonwealth of Independent States operate.

    At the same time, in Asia there is the Chinese initiative “One Belt, One Road”, ASEAN, the Organization of the Gulf States and other organizations that unite the countries and regions of the global South. Many countries of Asia and Eurasia, including the three largest economies of the continent – China, India and Russia, participate in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and BRICS. Russia and China are also members of APEC.

    The Deputy Prime Minister stressed that the unification of these multilateral efforts will lead to the creation of the impetus needed to build a more sustainable future and socio-economic progress, develop and implement new technologies, increase economic connectivity, and strengthen intercultural communication in Eurasia.

    During the visit, the Deputy Prime Minister held talks with Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Ding Xuexiang. During the conversation, it was noted that further development of strategic partnership in all sectors of the economy meets the interests of both countries. The trusting dialogue between the leaders of the two countries, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping, plays a decisive role in the development of Russian-Chinese cooperation. Mutual high-level visits are planned for the spring-autumn of 2025, timed to coincide with the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of Victory in World War II.

    Alexey Overchuk emphasized that Russia is ready to jointly implement the agreements reached by the heads of the two states and continuously deepen Russian-Chinese relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic interaction.

    “Russia and China need to expand trade relations, scientific and technical cooperation, and create new production and cooperation chains,” said the Deputy Prime Minister.

    During the talks, it was noted that China remains Russia’s main foreign trade partner. By the end of 2024, mutual trade approached the $245 billion mark. Over 95% of bilateral settlements are conducted in rubles and yuan.

    The parties are implementing joint projects in industry, energy, high technology, space, transport, automotive engineering and other sectors.

    Cultural and humanitarian ties are actively developing. The countries’ mutual interest in each other’s history, culture and traditions is high and continues to grow. The cross-cultural years of Russia and China are being held successfully, more than half of the 230 events of the Russian part have been held.

    Alexey Overchuk also invited representatives of the leadership and business community of the PRC to take part in international economic forums held in Russia – the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum in June and the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok in September 2025.

    Vice Premier of the State Council of the People’s Republic of China Ding Xuexiang stressed that relations between China and Russia have become a model of cooperation between major neighboring powers, stating that Beijing, together with Moscow, is ready, in line with the important agreements reached by the heads of state of the two countries, to deepen political contacts and strengthen practical cooperation for the benefit of the peoples of the two countries.

    On the sidelines of the forum, Alexey Overchuk held talks with the Chairman of the Provisional Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh Muhammad Yunus. During the meeting, it was noted that the countries are striving to strengthen friendly relations and develop trade and economic ties on a mutually beneficial basis. According to the results of 2024, mutual trade between Russia and Bangladesh amounted to 2.66 billion dollars.

    The parties discussed issues of cooperation in the fields of industry, energy, food security, and the cultural and humanitarian sphere. The Deputy Prime Minister noted the need to continue work to expand the regulatory framework for bilateral cooperation, emphasizing the importance of activating the format of the Russian-Bangladesh Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific and Technical Cooperation for the development of bilateral relations.

    During the Russian-Pakistani meeting, which also took place on the sidelines of the forum, Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk and Minister of Finance of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan Muhammad Aurangzeb considered priority issues on the bilateral agenda, including cooperation in energy and food security.

    The parties noted the active development of Russian-Pakistani cooperation. In 2024, a series of mutual visits took place between governments and parliaments.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Global: How viruses blur the boundaries of life

    Source: The Conversation – UK – By Heshmat Borhani, Lecturer in Bioinformatics, University of Nottingham

    Cryptographer/Shutterstock

    When people talk about the coronavirus, they sometimes describe this invisible entity as if it has a personality and even a conscience. If you ask a biology or medical student what a virus is, they will tell you that a virus is not a living organism, or at most that it exists at the border between living and dead – a kind of walking dead.

    For biologists who specialise in virology, however, this view is not clear-cut. Scientists still disagree on whether viruses are truly alive or not.

    What scientists can agree on is that a virus adapts to new conditions, evolves and sometimes harms humans. It is also an infectious agent that can only replicate within a host organism such as bacteria, plants or animals.

    The boundary between being alive and dead is a concept with no specific criteria. So to help you think about whether viruses are alive, I will talk you through some of the different definitions of life in science.

    Throughout history, scientists have debated the definition of life and researchers from different fields still disagree. This debate shapes scientific understanding and influences public health decisions – for example, defining whether viruses are “alive” affects how we design vaccines and strategies to stop their spread.

    Biologists may refer you to Erwin Schrödinger’s definition of life. Schrödinger was an Austrian Nobel-prize winning physicist who published a book in 1944 called What is Life? He was one of the first scientists to try to define life and is perhaps better known in popular culture for his “Schrödinger’s cat” thought experiment.

    He proposed that life is a form of negative “entropy”, a scientific concept that explains how disordered something is. A physical system will always increase in entropy/disorder unless we insert energy to change this process. Schrödinger thought living things create and maintain order by using energy.

    For example, a messy bedroom doesn’t clean itself, but a person can tidy it. Organisms do something similar at the molecular level. DNA is highly structured, allowing it to store genetic information. Proteins fold into specific shapes to function properly. In contrast, after an organism dies, its molecules break down, increasing disorder.

    Schrödinger later revised his view – around the 1950s – suggesting that life depends on free energy. Free energy is the energy that drives chemical reactions in living things. This marked a shift from focusing on order (negative entropy) to emphasising energy as essential for life.

    The coronavirus took on a personality for many people.
    creativeneko/Shutterstock

    In the mid-20th century, scientists switched from defining life to describing its key characteristics. Studying organisms such as bacteria, plants and animals, they identified common traits, setting a precedent still followed today.

    Rather than seeking a single definition, researchers classify entities based on these traits. To decide whether a virus is alive, researchers assess how well it meets these criteria.

    According to biology, the smallest unit of life is the cell. A cell is an independent unit which makes functional molecules (such as proteins and enzymes). Cells can use their own molecules to replicate genetic material independently. A virus also has genetic material but needs to use the host cell’s enzymes to make functional molecules or replicate its genetic material.

    Put simply, a virus does not replicate or function independently. So by the biological definition, a virus cannot be categorised as a living organism.

    But from a genetic and evolutionary point of view a living organism is defined by its ability to reproduce. A person who does not have children is still considered to be alive as they are part of the gene pool and descended from people who did have children. From this view a virus is alive, since it can produce similar offspring.

    Some scientists also focus on metabolism and energy production as criteria for life. Metabolism includes catabolism (breaking down molecules like sugars during digestion) and anabolism (building molecules like muscle tissue), linking energy and material. These reactions require molecular structures to generate or use energy – structures viruses lack.

    Does that mean viruses aren’t alive? An amoeba, for instance, uses nutrients and enzymes to sustain itself, while viruses rely entirely on a host. From this perspective, viruses don’t meet the metabolic criteria for life. However, some argue that since viruses hijack a host’s metabolism to replicate, they show life-like behaviour.

    If we consider nutrients to be sources of free energy, a cell uses energy from the environment to build what it needs. As the cell absorbs energy from the environment, it builds and maintains its internal structures – like proteins and membranes.

    It also releases a byproduct – carbon dioxide – that contributes to disorder in the external environment. Viruses also do this. They make their structures by using the external environment, a host cell in this case. The viruses’ byproducts may be what makes us sick.

    As we explore the complexities of biology, it becomes clear that defining life itself is anything but straightforward. Viruses display both life-like and non-living traits, which influences how we approach treatments like antiviral drugs designed to block their replication inside host cells.

    Heshmat Borhani 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 viruses blur the boundaries of life – https://theconversation.com/how-viruses-blur-the-boundaries-of-life-230802

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Nuclear war threat: why Africa’s pushing for a complete ban

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Olamide Samuel, Track II Diplomat and Expert in Nuclear Politics, University of Leicester

    At a time of heightened geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine, intensified by strategic dynamics involving the US, Nato and Russia over Europe’s security, nuclear weapons are back on the agenda.

    In recent times, Russia has openly threatened to use nuclear weapons. The UK and France are considering ways to rapidly increase their nuclear weapons stockpiles.

    Germany, Poland, Sweden, Finland, South Korea and Japan are now seeking nuclear weapons capabilities.

    Even a limited nuclear war in Europe would lead to catastrophic global climatic effects. Huge amounts of debris thrown high into the atmosphere would block sunlight, causing global temperatures to drop sharply. It would be much harder to grow food around the world.

    This would severely threaten Africa’s food security, exacerbating mass migration, disrupting supply chains and potentially collapsing public order systems.

    How should African countries respond to this growing threat?

    Based on my experience in nuclear non-proliferation and politics, I argue that African leaders need to proactively confront the risks, while there is still time.

    All African states, except for South Sudan, abide by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This is an international agreement which limits the spread of nuclear weapons. And 43 African states have gone further to join the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba). This was negotiated in the belief that it would “protect African states against possible nuclear attacks on their territories”.

    As conflict and uncertainty pushes many western leaders to support the madness of nuclear weapons proliferation, African leaders are in a unique position to push back against this.

    Africa’s strength in numbers in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, also known as the Nuclear Ban Treaty, is a vehicle the continent can use to address nuclear weapons risks, head-on.

    Global divide

    On one side, nuclear-armed states cling to deterrence for their national security. They insist that possessing nuclear arsenals keeps them safe.

    At present, there are nine nuclear-armed states: the US, Russia, the UK, China, France, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea. These countries possess around 12,331 nuclear warheads (as of 2025).

    The use of only 10% of these weapons could disrupt the global climate and threaten the lives of up to 2 billion people.

    On the other side, African countries and other non-nuclear-weapon states such as Ireland, Austria, New Zealand and Mexico highlight how deterrence creates unacceptable risks for the entire international community.

    This global majority – the 93 countries that have signed the Nuclear Ban Treaty and 73 that are party to it – argue that real safety comes from eliminating nuclear threats.

    The Nuclear Ban Treaty became international law on 22 January 2021. It is the first instance of international law challenging the legality and morality of nuclear deterrence.

    Since 2022, states parties to the Nuclear Ban Treaty have held formal meetings to address current nuclear risks. In March 2025, at their third meeting, 17 African states officially recognised nuclear deterrence as a critical security concern. They called on nuclear armed states to end deterrence.

    The deterioration of the international security environment is so palpable that there has been a noticeable shift in nuclear ban states’ perception of nuclear threats. Nuclear disarmament is no longer just a humanitarian or moral concern to these states, it is now a national security concern.

    South Africa warned that

    any use of nuclear weapons would result in catastrophic humanitarian consequences that would have a global impact.

    Ghana likewise stressed that Africa is not immune to nuclear war’s fallout:

    Africa, despite its geographic distance from the immediate hotspots of nuclear conflict, is not immune to the repercussions of nuclear weapons.

    Africa bears a unique historical connection to nuclear issues. Nuclear testing in the Sahara Desert in the 1960s, when France detonated nuclear bombs in Algeria, had devastating consequences. Widespread radioactive contamination harmed local communities, caused long-lasting health problems, displaced populations, and left large areas environmentally damaged and unsafe for generations.

    For its part, Nigeria recalled that Africa had “long acknowledged the existential threat nuclear weapons posed to human existence.”

    The meeting determined that it is unacceptable that states parties are exposed to nuclear risks, “created without their control and without accountability”. It stressed that eliminating nuclear risks “is a prime and legitimate concern and national responsibility” of states.

    Next steps

    Delegates effectively asked whether their own national security concerns had less value than those of nuclear-armed states. I think this is a valid question.

    Africa’s leaders and their allies in the Nuclear Ban Treaty are reframing what “national security” means in the nuclear age.

    Rather than accepting a world perpetually held hostage by the madness of nuclear deterrence, they are asserting that the security of nations – and of peoples – is best served by dismantling this threat to humanity.

    They are prioritising human life, development and international law over the threat of overwhelming force.

    The outcome of this contest will have profound implications, not just for Africa but for the entire globe.

    Olamide Samuel is affiliated with the Open Nuclear Network.

    – ref. Nuclear war threat: why Africa’s pushing for a complete ban – https://theconversation.com/nuclear-war-threat-why-africas-pushing-for-a-complete-ban-253171

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Rwanda and Belgium are at odds over the DRC: what’s led to the latest low point

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Jonathan Beloff, Postdoctoral Research Associate, King’s College London

    Rwanda’s foreign affairs ministry suspended all diplomatic relations with Belgium in March 2025. Soon afterwards, Belgium expelled Rwandan diplomats. This came weeks after Belgium had suspended foreign aid to Rwanda. At the root of this diplomatic fallout is the resurgence of the rebel group, March 23 Movement (M23), which has made recent military gains in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

    Prior to Rwanda suspending diplomatic relations, President Paul Kagame accused Belgium of continually undermining Rwanda. This deterioration in Rwanda-Belgium relations illustrates decades of the Kagame regime’s lack of trust in Brussels since the 1994 genocide. Jonathan Beloff, who has studied Rwanda’s political, security and foreign policies for nearly two decades, explains.

    What is the historical relationship between Rwanda and Belgium?

    Belgium is perhaps better known for having colonised the Congo. However, it also colonised present-day Rwanda and neighbouring Burundi.

    Belgian forces conquered Rwanda, a former German colony, in 1916 during the first world war. They got help from nearby British forces in Uganda. The Treaty of Versailles, which brought an end to the world war, officially transferred Rwanda and Burundi to Belgium’s colonial holdings.

    While Rwanda was never a significant interest for the Belgian colonial authorities compared to neighbouring Congo, Brussels nevertheless helped shape Rwandan politics, economy and society for decades.

    Rwanda’s current government claims that ethnic divisions of Hutu, Tutsi and Twa only came to the foreground during Belgian colonial rule, which ended in 1962. Before German and Belgian colonisation, Rwandan officials described these communities as socio-economic groupings rather than ethnicities. It was only with the introduction of ethnic identification cards in 1933 that these groups became intractable ethnicities.

    During much of its rule, Belgium used the existing political structures of kings, called Mwami, to carry out colonial policies.

    While a majority of Tutsis and Hutus suffered under these policies, Belgian officials often blamed the Mwami and his courts. The Mwami was often a Tutsi based on the number of cattle he owned. This led to a growing anti-Tutsi sentiment within the majority Hutu population.

    Eventually, it boiled over and led to the 1959 Hutu Revolution and the 1961 Coup of Gitarama. This anti-Tutsi sentiment established much of the political order following Rwandan independence in July 1962.

    What key moments have shaped the relationship?

    Prior to Rwandan independence, Belgium’s political allegiance shifted away from the mostly Tutsi Mwami and their power base to the growing Hutu movement. Under Rwanda’s Hutu leader and later first post-independence president Grégoire Kayibanda, Belgium began favouring Hutus. The community got increased education opportunities. Its leaders were given more say over post-colonial political events than the Mwami and his court.

    Rwanda-Belgium relations focused on promoting the majority Hutu population, despite some discontent from conservative, mostly Tutsi, actors. With independence, Belgium played an important but diminishing role. It did not provide the financial support Kigali wanted. In response, Kigali turned to France, whose influence grew significantly under President Juvénal Habyarimana (1973-1994).

    Despite their diminished state, relations between Rwanda and Belgium were still important. Belgium became the primary western nation to help provide stability in Rwanda during the waning years of the Rwandan Civil War (1990-1994), known locally as the Liberation War.

    A peace deal in 1993, called the Arusha Accords, between the Rwandan Patriotic Front and the Habyarimana regime paved the way for a UN mission. However, getting western nations to send soldiers for the mission proved difficult. This was after a peacekeeping disaster in Somalia (the Battle of Mogadishu) earlier that year. As a result, Belgium ended up providing the bulk of troops for the Rwanda mission.

    The assassination of Habyarimana on 6 April 1994 triggered the Genocide against the Tutsi. The UN mission’s commander sent a platoon to guard the home of prime minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana. The platoon had 10 Belgian and five Ghanaian soldiers. They were captured when Rwandan Presidential Guard officers stormed Uwilingiyimana’s home and killed her.

    The Ghanaian soldiers were released relatively unharmed, while the Belgian soldiers were killed at the Camp Kigali military base. The murders were intended to provoke the UN mission’s withdrawal from Rwanda. Belgian troops departed within the genocide’s first week. This allowed Rwanda’s genocide to run uninterrupted for 100 days until the Rwandan Patriotic Front stopped it in July 1994.

    Since the genocide, the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front has had a sceptical view of Belgium. In 2000, former prime minister Guy Verhofstadt apologised for Belgium’s failure to stop the genocide and for fostering ethnic divisions during the colonial period.

    Nevertheless, many Rwandan officials still believe Brussels hasn’t done enough to acknowledge its colonial record.

    What’s behind the current fallout?

    The current diplomatic crisis erupted because of accusations of Rwandan involvement in eastern DRC. UN experts’ reports have accused Rwanda of supporting the reanimated M23. The rebel group has captured large swathes of eastern DRC.

    Belgium has been leading calls for European sanctions against Rwanda for this involvement. However, Rwanda – which denies supporting the M23 – claims that Belgium’s accusations are aimed at gaining favourable mining rights in the DRC.

    Relations between the two countries have been deteriorating steadily in 2025. In February, Rwanda suspended a five-year (2024-2029) €95 million (US$102.8 million) deal. This was one of the largest aid deals between the two countries. In March, in addition to the suspension of diplomatic ties, the Rwanda Governance Board, which registers and monitors non-governmental organisations, placed restrictions on NGOs receiving financial support from Belgium.

    What’s the impact of this diplomatic falling out?

    Rwanda-Belgium relations have never broken down to the current level.

    It is unlikely to last in the long term. Like many other donor nations, Belgium needs Rwanda as a case study for proper aid utilisation and for its contribution to African peacekeeping.

    Rwanda is Africa’s most active troop-contributing country to UN missions and the fourth most active worldwide. Its primary political, security and economic allies remain the United States and the United Kingdom. While relations with these two nations are strained, they’re not at the level reached with Belgium.

    Nevertheless, the current state of affairs will continue in the near future unless the M23 is defeated. The only available avenues for quick restoration of relations are if Belgium apologises for seemingly siding with the DRC over Rwanda in the conflict in eastern Congo and repeats its apology for its colonial legacy. Neither of these options seems likely in the short term.

    Jonathan Beloff received funding from the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AH/W001217/1).

    – ref. Rwanda and Belgium are at odds over the DRC: what’s led to the latest low point – https://theconversation.com/rwanda-and-belgium-are-at-odds-over-the-drc-whats-led-to-the-latest-low-point-253349

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Nuclear war threat: why Africa’s pushing for a complete ban

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Olamide Samuel, Track II Diplomat and Expert in Nuclear Politics, University of Leicester

    At a time of heightened geopolitical tensions between Russia and Ukraine, intensified by strategic dynamics involving the US, Nato and Russia over Europe’s security, nuclear weapons are back on the agenda.

    In recent times, Russia has openly threatened to use nuclear weapons. The UK and France are considering ways to rapidly increase their nuclear weapons stockpiles.

    Germany, Poland, Sweden, Finland, South Korea and Japan are now seeking nuclear weapons capabilities.

    Even a limited nuclear war in Europe would lead to catastrophic global climatic effects. Huge amounts of debris thrown high into the atmosphere would block sunlight, causing global temperatures to drop sharply. It would be much harder to grow food around the world.

    This would severely threaten Africa’s food security, exacerbating mass migration, disrupting supply chains and potentially collapsing public order systems.

    How should African countries respond to this growing threat?

    Based on my experience in nuclear non-proliferation and politics, I argue that African leaders need to proactively confront the risks, while there is still time.

    All African states, except for South Sudan, abide by the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. This is an international agreement which limits the spread of nuclear weapons. And 43 African states have gone further to join the African Nuclear Weapons Free Zone Treaty (Treaty of Pelindaba). This was negotiated in the belief that it would “protect African states against possible nuclear attacks on their territories”.

    As conflict and uncertainty pushes many western leaders to support the madness of nuclear weapons proliferation, African leaders are in a unique position to push back against this.

    Africa’s strength in numbers in the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, also known as the Nuclear Ban Treaty, is a vehicle the continent can use to address nuclear weapons risks, head-on.

    Global divide

    On one side, nuclear-armed states cling to deterrence for their national security. They insist that possessing nuclear arsenals keeps them safe.

    At present, there are nine nuclear-armed states: the US, Russia, the UK, China, France, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea. These countries possess around 12,331 nuclear warheads (as of 2025).

    The use of only 10% of these weapons could disrupt the global climate and threaten the lives of up to 2 billion people.

    On the other side, African countries and other non-nuclear-weapon states such as Ireland, Austria, New Zealand and Mexico highlight how deterrence creates unacceptable risks for the entire international community.

    This global majority – the 93 countries that have signed the Nuclear Ban Treaty and 73 that are party to it – argue that real safety comes from eliminating nuclear threats.

    The Nuclear Ban Treaty became international law on 22 January 2021. It is the first instance of international law challenging the legality and morality of nuclear deterrence.

    Since 2022, states parties to the Nuclear Ban Treaty have held formal meetings to address current nuclear risks. In March 2025, at their third meeting, 17 African states officially recognised nuclear deterrence as a critical security concern. They called on nuclear armed states to end deterrence.

    The deterioration of the international security environment is so palpable that there has been a noticeable shift in nuclear ban states’ perception of nuclear threats. Nuclear disarmament is no longer just a humanitarian or moral concern to these states, it is now a national security concern.

    South Africa warned that

    any use of nuclear weapons would result in catastrophic humanitarian consequences that would have a global impact.

    Ghana likewise stressed that Africa is not immune to nuclear war’s fallout:

    Africa, despite its geographic distance from the immediate hotspots of nuclear conflict, is not immune to the repercussions of nuclear weapons.

    Africa bears a unique historical connection to nuclear issues. Nuclear testing in the Sahara Desert in the 1960s, when France detonated nuclear bombs in Algeria, had devastating consequences. Widespread radioactive contamination harmed local communities, caused long-lasting health problems, displaced populations, and left large areas environmentally damaged and unsafe for generations.

    For its part, Nigeria recalled that Africa had “long acknowledged the existential threat nuclear weapons posed to human existence.”

    The meeting determined that it is unacceptable that states parties are exposed to nuclear risks, “created without their control and without accountability”. It stressed that eliminating nuclear risks “is a prime and legitimate concern and national responsibility” of states.

    Next steps

    Delegates effectively asked whether their own national security concerns had less value than those of nuclear-armed states. I think this is a valid question.

    Africa’s leaders and their allies in the Nuclear Ban Treaty are reframing what “national security” means in the nuclear age.

    Rather than accepting a world perpetually held hostage by the madness of nuclear deterrence, they are asserting that the security of nations – and of peoples – is best served by dismantling this threat to humanity.

    They are prioritising human life, development and international law over the threat of overwhelming force.

    The outcome of this contest will have profound implications, not just for Africa but for the entire globe.

    – Nuclear war threat: why Africa’s pushing for a complete ban
    – https://theconversation.com/nuclear-war-threat-why-africas-pushing-for-a-complete-ban-253171

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI Africa: Rwanda and Belgium are at odds over the DRC: what’s led to the latest low point

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Jonathan Beloff, Postdoctoral Research Associate, King’s College London

    Rwanda’s foreign affairs ministry suspended all diplomatic relations with Belgium in March 2025. Soon afterwards, Belgium expelled Rwandan diplomats. This came weeks after Belgium had suspended foreign aid to Rwanda. At the root of this diplomatic fallout is the resurgence of the rebel group, March 23 Movement (M23), which has made recent military gains in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

    Prior to Rwanda suspending diplomatic relations, President Paul Kagame accused Belgium of continually undermining Rwanda. This deterioration in Rwanda-Belgium relations illustrates decades of the Kagame regime’s lack of trust in Brussels since the 1994 genocide. Jonathan Beloff, who has studied Rwanda’s political, security and foreign policies for nearly two decades, explains.

    What is the historical relationship between Rwanda and Belgium?

    Belgium is perhaps better known for having colonised the Congo. However, it also colonised present-day Rwanda and neighbouring Burundi.

    Belgian forces conquered Rwanda, a former German colony, in 1916 during the first world war. They got help from nearby British forces in Uganda. The Treaty of Versailles, which brought an end to the world war, officially transferred Rwanda and Burundi to Belgium’s colonial holdings.

    While Rwanda was never a significant interest for the Belgian colonial authorities compared to neighbouring Congo, Brussels nevertheless helped shape Rwandan politics, economy and society for decades.

    Rwanda’s current government claims that ethnic divisions of Hutu, Tutsi and Twa only came to the foreground during Belgian colonial rule, which ended in 1962. Before German and Belgian colonisation, Rwandan officials described these communities as socio-economic groupings rather than ethnicities. It was only with the introduction of ethnic identification cards in 1933 that these groups became intractable ethnicities.

    During much of its rule, Belgium used the existing political structures of kings, called Mwami, to carry out colonial policies.

    While a majority of Tutsis and Hutus suffered under these policies, Belgian officials often blamed the Mwami and his courts. The Mwami was often a Tutsi based on the number of cattle he owned. This led to a growing anti-Tutsi sentiment within the majority Hutu population.

    Eventually, it boiled over and led to the 1959 Hutu Revolution and the 1961 Coup of Gitarama. This anti-Tutsi sentiment established much of the political order following Rwandan independence in July 1962.

    What key moments have shaped the relationship?

    Prior to Rwandan independence, Belgium’s political allegiance shifted away from the mostly Tutsi Mwami and their power base to the growing Hutu movement. Under Rwanda’s Hutu leader and later first post-independence president Grégoire Kayibanda, Belgium began favouring Hutus. The community got increased education opportunities. Its leaders were given more say over post-colonial political events than the Mwami and his court.

    Rwanda-Belgium relations focused on promoting the majority Hutu population, despite some discontent from conservative, mostly Tutsi, actors. With independence, Belgium played an important but diminishing role. It did not provide the financial support Kigali wanted. In response, Kigali turned to France, whose influence grew significantly under President Juvénal Habyarimana (1973-1994).

    Despite their diminished state, relations between Rwanda and Belgium were still important. Belgium became the primary western nation to help provide stability in Rwanda during the waning years of the Rwandan Civil War (1990-1994), known locally as the Liberation War.

    A peace deal in 1993, called the Arusha Accords, between the Rwandan Patriotic Front and the Habyarimana regime paved the way for a UN mission. However, getting western nations to send soldiers for the mission proved difficult. This was after a peacekeeping disaster in Somalia (the Battle of Mogadishu) earlier that year. As a result, Belgium ended up providing the bulk of troops for the Rwanda mission.

    The assassination of Habyarimana on 6 April 1994 triggered the Genocide against the Tutsi. The UN mission’s commander sent a platoon to guard the home of prime minister Agathe Uwilingiyimana. The platoon had 10 Belgian and five Ghanaian soldiers. They were captured when Rwandan Presidential Guard officers stormed Uwilingiyimana’s home and killed her.

    The Ghanaian soldiers were released relatively unharmed, while the Belgian soldiers were killed at the Camp Kigali military base. The murders were intended to provoke the UN mission’s withdrawal from Rwanda. Belgian troops departed within the genocide’s first week. This allowed Rwanda’s genocide to run uninterrupted for 100 days until the Rwandan Patriotic Front stopped it in July 1994.

    Since the genocide, the ruling Rwandan Patriotic Front has had a sceptical view of Belgium. In 2000, former prime minister Guy Verhofstadt apologised for Belgium’s failure to stop the genocide and for fostering ethnic divisions during the colonial period.

    Nevertheless, many Rwandan officials still believe Brussels hasn’t done enough to acknowledge its colonial record.

    What’s behind the current fallout?

    The current diplomatic crisis erupted because of accusations of Rwandan involvement in eastern DRC. UN experts’ reports have accused Rwanda of supporting the reanimated M23. The rebel group has captured large swathes of eastern DRC.

    Belgium has been leading calls for European sanctions against Rwanda for this involvement. However, Rwanda – which denies supporting the M23 – claims that Belgium’s accusations are aimed at gaining favourable mining rights in the DRC.

    Relations between the two countries have been deteriorating steadily in 2025. In February, Rwanda suspended a five-year (2024-2029) €95 million (US$102.8 million) deal. This was one of the largest aid deals between the two countries. In March, in addition to the suspension of diplomatic ties, the Rwanda Governance Board, which registers and monitors non-governmental organisations, placed restrictions on NGOs receiving financial support from Belgium.

    What’s the impact of this diplomatic falling out?

    Rwanda-Belgium relations have never broken down to the current level.

    It is unlikely to last in the long term. Like many other donor nations, Belgium needs Rwanda as a case study for proper aid utilisation and for its contribution to African peacekeeping.

    Rwanda is Africa’s most active troop-contributing country to UN missions and the fourth most active worldwide. Its primary political, security and economic allies remain the United States and the United Kingdom. While relations with these two nations are strained, they’re not at the level reached with Belgium.

    Nevertheless, the current state of affairs will continue in the near future unless the M23 is defeated. The only available avenues for quick restoration of relations are if Belgium apologises for seemingly siding with the DRC over Rwanda in the conflict in eastern Congo and repeats its apology for its colonial legacy. Neither of these options seems likely in the short term.

    – Rwanda and Belgium are at odds over the DRC: what’s led to the latest low point
    – https://theconversation.com/rwanda-and-belgium-are-at-odds-over-the-drc-whats-led-to-the-latest-low-point-253349

    MIL OSI Africa –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Pub-owning businesses agree minimum standards for tenants on short agreements

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

    News story

    Pub-owning businesses agree minimum standards for tenants on short agreements

    The 6 regulated pub-owning businesses have worked together with the PCA to agree minimum standards in dealing with tied tenants on short agreements over and above what the Pubs Code requires.

    A tenancy at will or short agreement is often used by pub companies to enable a tenant to begin operating a pub while a longer-term agreement is finalised. Such an agreement can provide an opportunity for both parties to understand whether the business relationship will work, and it can be a good introduction to the trade for a new operator.

    If the business relationship is going to develop well, it is vital that the operator on a short agreement gets off to the right start. These transparent minimum standards for dealing fairly with tenants on short agreements can support them in their businesses.

    Most rights in the Pubs Code do not apply to tenants on short agreements. However, those entering into such an agreement do have the right to certain information from their pub company and must be advised to complete pubs entry training unless they have certain business experience. A short agreement under the Pubs Code is a tied agreement which is either a tenancy at will or a tied tenancy which (when considered together with any other agreements) entitles the tenant to occupy the pub for under 12 months.

    Using the relevant Pubs Code rights of tenants on substantive agreements as a guide, the pub companies regulated under the Pubs Code have worked together with the PCA to agree minimum standards. While largely reflecting existing business practices, these standards provide clarity to those entering into a short agreement on what they can expect from their pub company in addition to what the Pubs Code requires.

    Fiona Dickie said:

    “Everyone wants tied tenants to do well, and getting off to a strong start is essential. Those on tenancies at will and other short agreements are entitled to be treated fairly. It is particularly important that they should be advised not to invest their own money in the pub when on agreements which can be terminated at short notice. I’m pleased that the regulated pub companies have agreed to a consistent set of minimum standards to reflect their business practices over and above what the Pubs Code requires them to do. This should help tied tenants to understand what they can expect from their relationship with them”.

    The short agreements minimum standards document can be found here: Short agreements – minimum standards (March 2025) – GOV.UK

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI: Salad Disrupts AI Transcription Market: Highest Accuracy at the Lowest Cost

    Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

    SALT LAKE CITY, March 31, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Salad Technologies, a leader in distributed cloud computing, today announced the launch of the upgraded Salad Transcription API, delivering the highest accuracy in the industry for AI batch transcription at the lowest cost.

    Ranking No.1 in an accuracy benchmark (95.1% accuracy rate), Salad’s API outperforms all major market alternatives, such as Deepgram, Assembly AI, Amazon Transcribe, Google Speech-to-Text, and OpenAI Whisper. The API is priced at just $0.16 per hour – at least 40% lower than competing APIs. 

    Designed for high-volume enterprise batch transcription, this launch sets a new industry standard – combining cutting-edge AI accuracy with unprecedented affordability. With asynchronous processing, the API can transcribe millions of hours of audio in parallel, making it genuinely built for scale.

    “There is an epidemic of overcharging in AI transcription today. Enterprises and startups have been forced to overpay for Transcription APIs as providers passed on the high cost of custom model research, large team sizes, and datacenter GPUs for inference to customers,” said Bob Miles, CEO of Salad Technologies. 

    “With Salad’s Transcription API, we’ve broken that cycle – delivering best-in-class accuracy while halving the cost to customers. Without training a proprietary model, Salad has taken an open source, multi-step, multimodal approach to ship the most powerful, cost-effective batch transcription API available today.”

    The API delivers transcription, translation, summarization, custom prompts, and custom vocabulary as a fully unified solution – no hidden fees, upcharges, or secondary API calls – just one all-inclusive rate for every advanced feature.

    Accuracy Benchmark Results

    Results from an accuracy benchmark over the CommonVoice5.1 dataset show the Salad Transcription API achieved the highest Word Accuracy Rate in English (95.1%), Spanish (96.8%), and German (96.3%) and the lowest Word Error Rate (WER).

    The benchmark processed over 1 million audio files, surpassing 4,500 hours of audio, and with new in-house optimizations, Salad Transcription API outperformed all six major API providers in accuracy across multiple languages.

    The API also shows industry-best accuracy for Russian (96.3%), Italian (93.3%), Portuguese (92%), and French (92%). 

    “With this API, our goal is to democratize the AI Transcription landscape and help companies realize massive cost savings at a price point that unlocks new use cases with the industry’s best accuracy,” said Bob Miles, CEO of Salad Technologies. 

    For more information, visit the website: https://salad.com/transcription

    About Salad Technologies

    Salad Technologies is a leader in distributed cloud computing, leveraging idle consumer and datacenter GPUs to deliver high-performance compute at industry-low costs. Our mission is to democratize cloud computing by utilizing latent consumer resources to power a sustainable, affordable, and environmentally friendly cloud for everyone.

    Media Contact:
    Prashanth Shankara
    prashanth.shankara@salad.com

    A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ccd7d05b-7ce3-42fd-82a0-aa7225d18f8a

    The MIL Network –

  • MIL-OSI Global: Africa’s data workers are being exploited by foreign tech firms – 4 ways to protect them

    Source: The Conversation – Africa – By Mohammad Amir Anwar, Senior Lecturer in African Studies and International Development, University of Edinburgh

    Data workers in Africa often have a hard time. They face job insecurities – including temporary contracts, low pay, arbitrary dismissal and worker surveillance – and alarming physical and psychological health risks. The consequences of their work can include exhaustion, burnout, mental health strain, chronic stress, vertigo and weakening of eyesight.

    Data work includes text prediction, image and video annotation, speech to text validation and content moderation.

    The world of data work is built on labour arbitrage – exploiting the fact that workers earn less and have less protection in some countries than in others.

    Large technology firms often outsource this work to the global south, including African countries like Kenya, Uganda and Madagascar, and also India and Venezuela. The result is complex production networks that are generally opaque and shrouded in secrecy.

    Workers and researchers have issued many warnings about data workers’ health. Despite numerous court cases in multiple jurisdictions, nothing much has been done to address these issues either by tech companies or by regulators.



    Read more:
    For workers in Africa, the digital economy isn’t all it’s made out to be

    Still, the news of the death of a Nigerian content moderator, Ladi Anzaki Olubunmi, who was found dead in her apartment in Nairobi, Kenya on 7 March 2025, came as a shock. While the circumstances of her death are still unclear, it has renewed calls for wider systemic change. Her death has sparked condemnation from the Kenyan Union of Gig Workers, which demanded an investigation.

    Since 2015, we have been studying the central role of African data workers in building and maintaining artificial intelligence (AI) systems, acting as “data janitors”. Our research found that companies rarely acknowledge the use of human workers in AI value chains, thus they remain “hidden” from the public eye. In other words, the world of AI is built on the toil of human workers most people are unaware of.

    In this article, we outline key steps needed to protect these data workers in Africa. They include business process outsourcing regulations, ensuring quality rather than quantity of jobs, and providing social protection. There is also a need to name and shame companies that maltreat data workers.

    Data work needs tighter regulation.



    Read more:
    Digital labour platforms subject global South workers to ‘algorithmic insecurity’

    Regulation

    Business process outsourcing is the practice of procuring various processes or operations from external suppliers or vendors. Firms that do this are sometimes trying to evade local regulations (like minimum wages) and responsibility towards workers’ welfare (via sub-contracting and the use of temporary employment agencies).

    This is happening in Africa as some data training firms and digital labour platforms circumvent local labour laws.

    But there is more to the story.

    Data work is also seen by lawmakers and practitioners as a solution to the rampant unemployment and informality across Africa. African governments have actively created regulatory environments that enable these practices to thrive, despite adverse outcomes for workers.

    Nonetheless, new regulations have been proposed lately, like the Kenyan government’s Business Law (Amendment) Bill, 2024 targeting the wider business process outsourcing and IT-enabled services sector. Particularly, it makes business process outsourcing firms responsible for any claim raised by employees. It ensures some accountability for firms bringing data work to Africa.

    Other governments should follow with similar measures ensuring worker rights are enforceable. Some data workers are hired on contracts as short as five days and get paid less than the local minimum wage. Firms found violating labour standards should be penalised.

    In fact, there is an urgent need to create regional or continent-wide regulatory frameworks covering the business process outsourcing sector, limiting the space for firms to exploit workers.

    It’s possible, however, that jobs might be lost as firms relocate to places with favourable laws, an everyday reality in the outsourcing networks.



    Read more:
    Most call centre jobs are a dead end for South Africa’s youth

    Quality, not quantity

    African governments should prioritise the quality of jobs and not quantity. Policymakers should think about wider national economic development plans, particularly structural diversification and upgrading of their economies.

    Historically, these strategies have resulted in success in some states, addressing social and economic issues such as unemployment, poverty and inequality.

    Another option for African governments is to enhance social protection among data workers. Financing this is a serious issue, so proper taxation and compliance among workers and employers is urgently needed.

    Finally, there is a role for naming and shaming firms that treat their data workers poorly. There is evidence that such efforts improve compliance and firms’ behaviour.



    Read more:
    Digital trade protocol for Africa: why it matters, what’s in it and what’s still missing

    Worker movements

    African data workers have taken risks in openly speaking about their experiences. But these kinds of approaches work well when combined with collective bargaining.

    Workers have historically won their labour and civil rights after long and hard-fought struggles. There is a long history of African worker movements and trade unions resisting the apartheid and colonial regimes across the continent.

    While the freedom of association is enshrined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and most governments have legislation committed to collective bargaining, it is rarely implemented in the new outsourcing sectors, particularly data work.

    It is also difficult to organise workers in the industry, because of the high churn rate. For instance, data training firms like Sama offer short-term contracts to employees, often as short as five days.

    Some firms are hostile to workers’ organising activities.

    But numerous data worker-led associations have emerged in Africa recently, some led by the co-authors of this article. Techworker Community Africa, African Tech Workers Rising, African Content Moderators Unions and Data Labelers Association are among them.

    These initiatives are crucial to ensure workers have decent remuneration, work-life balance, adequate working hours, protection against arbitrary dismissal, safe working environments, and contributions towards their health and welfare.

    Several high-profile court cases are currently being pursued by African data workers against Meta and Sama. There is precedent. In 2021. Meta was ordered by a Californian court to pay US$85 million to 10,000 content moderators.

    AI-dependent tools such as ChatGPT or driverless cars would not exist without African data workers. They are tired of being “hidden”. They deserve to be treated with respect and dignity.

    Mophat Okinyi, Kauna Malgwi, Sonia Kgomo and Richard Mathenge co-authored this article.

    Mohammad Amir Anwar receives funding from United Kingdom Research and Innovation, Royal Society of Edinburgh, and British Academy.

    – ref. Africa’s data workers are being exploited by foreign tech firms – 4 ways to protect them – https://theconversation.com/africas-data-workers-are-being-exploited-by-foreign-tech-firms-4-ways-to-protect-them-252957

    MIL OSI – Global Reports –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Road closure ahead for city centre highway works

    Source: City of Leicester

    MOTORISTS and bus users are being advised that part of a main city centre route will be closed for maintenance and improvement work from this weekend.

    Leicester City Council will be carrying out highway works at the junction of Halford Street, Granby Street and Gallowtree Gate, from Saturday 5 April.

    General repairs and maintenance will be carried out to the road surface at the junction and new dropped kerb crossings will be created in the existing disabled parking by on Halford Street to improve accessibility. Block paving will also be reinstated at the Granby Street end of Gallowtree Gate where new automatic bollards have been installed.

    The work – which is expected to take up to three weeks to complete – will require road closures to be in place on Halford Street, between its junctions with Granby Steet and Free Lane, and along a short stretch of Granby Street, up to Bishop Street.

    A well-signposted diversion will be in place via Belvoir Street, Welford Place, Welford Road, Carlton Street, Oxford Street, Southgates, St Nicholas Circle, St Nicholas Place, High Street and East Gates.

    Some bus services will also be diverted.

    Pedestrian access will be maintained and businesses will remain open as normal during the works.

    Marshalls will also be on site to assist with access for deliveries to affected businesses.

    Martin Fletcher, Leicester City Council director of highways, said: “This is an important scheme that will allow us to improve disabled access, carry out maintenance to the road surface and complete work on the installation of new bollards all under one road closure.

    “Unfortunately, this will mean some disruption to motorists and bus services, but a well signposted diversion will be in place, and we’ll be working to complete the works as quickly as possible.”

    The work is expected to cost £30,000 and will be funded through the council’s transport improvement works fund.

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: Lectures on the “star” graduating class of 1885 were held at SPbGASU

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering – Saint Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering –

    Within the framework of the V National (All-Russian) scientific and practical conference with international participation “Reconstruction and restoration of architectural heritage” (RRAN-2025), a lecture block “On the 140th anniversary of the “star graduation” was held. Its initiators were Associate Professor of the Department of Urban Development of SPbGASU, PhD in Architecture Svetlana Levoshko, PhD in Philosophy, independent researcher Elena Travina and Director of the Historical and Information Center of SPbGASU Elena Klimenko.

    The reason to celebrate this date is truly loud: in 1885, the Institute of Civil Engineers (IGI, now SPbGASU) graduated a galaxy of architects and engineers who became world-class professionals and made a huge contribution to the development of our country. Among them are the director of IGI, architect, statesman Vasily Kosyakov (1862-1921), civil engineer Gavriil Baranovsky (1860-1920), architect Nikolay Sokolov (1859-1906). As the researchers who spoke emphasized, new details are still being revealed in the biographies and professional activities of these outstanding individuals.

    Professor of the Department of Urban Development of SPbGASU Sergey Semenov called holding such meetings a good idea, since the accumulation and preservation of information is of great value. It is no coincidence that during the Great Patriotic War, the Nazi troops primarily sought to destroy museums, libraries and educational institutions, including our university.

    “Graduates who have become outstanding engineers and architects confirm the highest level of training of specialists at our university at all times. The basic knowledge base was mastered by students even with low academic performance. Thus, Mikhail Eisenstein, the father of the famous director, worked as the chief architect of Riga and built several streets, some buildings of which are recognized as cultural heritage sites. The best graduates are a good example for students,” noted Sergey Semenov.

    Moderator of the lecture block Svetlana Levoshko clarified that the discussion will be about “star” graduates who have made a great contribution to the development of the industry and the country.

    The Kosyakovs’ example: talent and hard work lead to success

    Doctor of Art History, Academician of the Russian Academy of Arts, Professor of the Faculty of Arts of Moscow State University, graduate of the Leningrad Institute of Civil Engineering (now St. Petersburg State University of Architecture and Civil Engineering) in 1983. Sergei Savelyev initially wrote three books about Nikolai Vladimirovich Sultanov (1850–1908), Director of the Institute of Civil Engineers (1895–1903), Russian architect, civil engineer, art historian and architectural historian, restorer, teacher, and full member of the Imperial Academy of Arts.

    “Vasily Antonovich Kosyakov was a student of Nikolay Vladimirovich Sultanov and a graduate of the IGI architectural and construction school, the largest in Europe at the time, comparable to German and French schools. Only thanks to such a powerful school did Kosyakov develop into a major architect and statesman: he was an elected director of the IGI and held many other posts, including a member of the economic administration of the Holy Synod. At the end of his life, he became an architect of the Imperial Court, that is, he reached heights in his professional service activities. This indicates that talented people had every opportunity for development in the Russian Empire. Vasily Kosyakov was of humble origin – his father was a master of the kitchen workshop, in other words, a cook. During his years of study at the IGI, Kosyakov wrote a petition for a scholarship and even received a certificate of poverty. In essence, a person who had neither a status nor a financial starting point, reached heights solely due to his talent and hard work. For today’s students, this is a great example,” noted Sergey Savelyev.

    He added that Vasily Kosyakov is inseparable from the work of his two brothers Vladimir and Georgy. Georgy studied at the Academy of Arts, in the workshop of L. N. Benois and was an excellent artist, watercolourist, member of the society of architects and artists, artists of watercolour painting, participated in exhibitions. The ornamentation in Vasily Kosyakov’s projects appears precisely thanks to him. Their joint famous work of architecture is the Naval Cathedral in Kronstadt. Vladimir Kosyakov also studied at the IGI and was a remarkable architect and artist.

    “The example of the Kosyakov brothers is relevant for today’s students: you need to do graphics, draw, despite the computer programs. Each of the brothers had a certain professional profile. Vasily could do everything: he is a universal specialist in organizing construction. Georgy is a master of watercolors, an architect and artist. Vladimir was also involved in organizing construction work, a school for foremen for construction work, that is, he worked as a foreman. The qualifications of builders at that time were at a very high level largely due to the fact that the architectural community took the training of construction workers into its own hands,” explained Sergei Savelyev.

    He emphasized that the Kosyakovs’ theme is inexhaustible. In the course of the research, it is possible to discover more and more new materials, since their activity falls on the “silver age”: the heyday of Russian literature and fine arts, painting and architecture of the late 19th – early 20th centuries. And these people constituted one of the important pages of the IGI school. Many beautiful churches, public buildings, engineering structures were built. By 1917, the IGI architectural and construction school was on the rise. Today, it continues the traditions and serves as a magnificent foundation for new achievements.

    Engineer Baranovsky and architect Sokolov

    Elena Travina recalled that civil engineer Gavriil Vasilyevich Baranovsky (1860–1920) is known for his buildings, which became “postcard views” of St. Petersburg. His creative path began in 1881 in the building of the Construction School/Institute of Civil Engineers.

    “The engineer made a decent career, having risen to the rank of actual state councilor and sitting on all sorts of commissions and committees. But what do we know about the man Gavriil Baranovsky: his family, youth, friends, hobbies? Over more than ten years of research, we managed to find photographs, documents, projects that were previously unknown and not introduced into scientific circulation. They allowed us to imagine the image of Baranovsky – a son, husband, father, friend, a man who completely devoted himself to his favorite business – architecture, but at the same time a versatile personality. His son characterized his father as a mathematician, philologist, artist, lawyer and philosopher. Without all this knowledge, Gavriil Baranovsky would not have been able to publish the magazine “Builder”, create the seven-volume “Architectural Encyclopedia of the Late 19th – Early 20th Century”, work on the legal subtleties of the Construction Code and write the philosophical treatise “World Matter and Its Derivatives. Geometric Manifestation of the Ontological Problem”, explained Elena Travina.

    On July 30, 1920, his funeral service was held in the Dukhovskaya Church in the village of Kellomäki (now the village of Komarovo in the Kurortny District of St. Petersburg). In 2020, a cenotaph was erected in his memory at the local cemetery (designed by architect R. M. Dayanov).

    Let us recall some of Baranovsky’s famous works: the Eliseev Brothers Trading Company building on Nevsky Prospect and the Moscow Eliseevsky store on Tverskaya (together with V. V. Voeikov and M. M. Peretyatkovich).

    Doctor of Architecture, Associate Professor, Head of the Department of History of Architecture, Art and Architectural Restoration at the Southern Federal University Anna Ivanova-Ilyicheva spoke about the architect Nikolai Matveevich Sokolov (1859–1906). Sokolov worked as the chief architect of Rostov-on-Don and left behind a rich architectural heritage.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –

  • MIL-OSI Security: Update following the death of a baby boy in Notting Hill

    Source: United Kingdom London Metropolitan Police

    Update in connection with the ongoing investigation into the discovery of a baby’s body in Notting Hill.

    Over the past week, Met detectives, alongside partners from the NHS and local councils, have been conducting enquiries following the discovery of a deceased baby boy in Notting Hill. The baby was sadly found inside a bag near All Saints Church.

    Officers have expressed their thanks to members of the local community, who have offered their support to the local police teams as the investigation has progressed.

    Following an appeal by officers, on Saturday, 29 March, a woman, aged in her 30s, was safely located and arrested on suspicion of concealing a birth, neglect and infanticide. In a case of this nature this is necessary to enable officers to continue with their enquiries and understand more about the circumstances surrounding the baby’s death.

    The woman was immediately taken to a nearby hospital for treatment and to ensure all necessary medical care was provided to her.

    She remains in hospital currently.

    A forensic post-mortem will take place later this week, which will help officers understand more about the baby boy’s death. However at this time, officers remain open-minded about the circumstances.

    Superintendent Owen Renowden, who leads policing for Kensington and Chelsea said: “This is an ongoing, fast-paced investigation, with officers working tirelessly to ascertain the circumstances of the baby boy’s death.

    “We believe that the woman is the baby’s mother and I am reassured that she is receiving the support she needs, while officers continue their work to understand what took place.

    “I recognise that the news of this arrest may cause concern among our community, but when dealing with investigations of this nature our priority is to ensure the welfare of all involved and ensure that all lines of enquiry are fully explored.

    “I appreciate the high level of attention that this investigation has received, but we politely ask for the public not to speculate.

    “Although this is a significant development, we are still appealing for anyone with any information to contact police on 101 or at @MetCC quoting CAD1879 of 26 March.”

    MIL Security OSI –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Dame June Raine: How innovations are transforming regulation and speeding new treatments to healthcare

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    News story

    Dame June Raine: How innovations are transforming regulation and speeding new treatments to healthcare

    As Dame June Raine gets ready to pass the baton on after nearly 40 years at the agency, the last five of which she has been CEO, she reflects on how new innovations are transforming regulation and how honoured she feels to have worked with such inspiring people through a period she has not just lived through but helped to shape.

    When I entered the world of regulation in the mid-1980s, approvals for new medicines or the trials investigating them were arduous and subjective, requiring the review of juggernauts of paper files with thousands of graphs and tables of data in each file – not to mention a retentive memory, a very big desk and many painstaking hours of review.

    Fast forward to today, and healthcare product regulation is being transformed by technology. Just as Lord Darzi called for a major tilt to technology in the heath service, so MHRA is working to take time out of the development and review process for transformative medicines and MedTech.

    For example, new AI tools can reduce the length of time taken to assess vital aspects of clinical trial applications from 3 hours to as few as 35 seconds, without compromising on safety. By rapidly pinpointing common errors in applications made by companies to the regulator, AI has sped up the overall assessment process and is helping to make it consistent and predictable.

    The intention of this is not to replace the expertise of our experienced and knowledgeable scientific assessors but rather to give them more time to focus on higher risk analyses and more finely balanced judgements. This will see clinical trials being set up more swiftly, saving companies valuable funds and giving patients quicker access to the potentially life-saving medicines being studied.

    Thanks to successful pilots, this AI technology is now coming on stream in regulation, with international approval of the work we are doing at MHRA. It shows how far regulation has come from the days of paper-based assessments, and how exciting regulation is today – and you don’t often hear the words ‘exciting’ and ‘regulation’ in the same sentence.

    We’re in a new era of medicine – one defined by technological advancements like AI and genomics; a focus on meeting the needs of the individual rather than the whole population. A continued challenge for the next decade will be to ensure that regulation doesn’t just keep pace with this innovation but enables it.

    That’s why last week saw the launch of our first Centres of Excellence of Regulatory Science and Innovation, two of which are driving forward AI and health technology and one active in improving safety through pharmacogenomics.

    As I get ready to pass the CEO baton on after nearly 40 years at the MHRA, the last five of which I have been Chief Executive, I have been reflecting on what has been accomplished during my time holding the reins. My leadership was one dominated by two main events that in many ways came to set the pace and direction of change.

    The first of these was EU Exit, which offered new freedom to form novel international partnerships with trusted healthcare agencies both at home and abroad. Our ACCESS consortium of the regulatory agencies of Australia, Canada, Singapore and Switzerland has created an attractive market for innovative industry of close on 160 million people.

    The second event was one that few saw coming. The COVID-19 pandemic brought devastation and hardship to many people’s lives. But in 10 months it ushered in the level of innovative change you would expect to see in 10 years. When we announced our world-first approval of the COVID-19 vaccine made by Pfizer and BioNTech, we didn’t cut any corners. We developed innovative approaches to delivering the same high scientific standards and worked hand in hand with NICE and the NHS.

    These two seismic events have come to define my leadership, and probably rightly so. But advances in AI and the strides we’ve made towards a more personalised regulatory approach are also vitally important and will set the trajectory for regulation in years to come.

    The next few years will be defining ones for medicines regulation. I have absolutely no doubt that the agency I am leaving behind will continue to step up to the job, never losing sight of paramount importance of patient safety. I feel truly honoured to have worked with inspiring people in a period we have not just lived through but helped to shape.

    I look forward to watching – this time from the sidelines with a much warmer cup of tea in hand.

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Homes England agrees purchase of key Nottingham regeneration site 

    Source: United Kingdom – Government Statements

    News story

    Homes England agrees purchase of key Nottingham regeneration site 

    Acquisition of Broad Marsh site signals boost for city’s regeneration vision  and the start of major redevelopment in Nottingham

    The regeneration of Nottingham city centre has taken a major step forward following an agreement for Homes England to purchase the Broad Marsh site from Nottingham City Council.  

    The Government’s housing and regeneration agency will acquire the council’s land ownership of the former shopping centre, land to the west of the Green Heart, a multi-storey car park, Severns House and a former college site.  

    The next stage of development will include de-risking of the site, such as demolition and enabling works, to attract private sector developers with the necessary credentials and proven track record to deliver transformational, exemplar city centre projects.  

    The development of the site will bring forward around 1,000 homes, up to 20,000 square metres of retail, office and community spaces and create around 2,000 full-time jobs.

    Eamonn Boylan, Chief Executive of Homes England, said:  

    The acquisition of Broad Marsh is a major milestone in the city council’s vision of regeneration for this area of Nottingham.  

    We have worked closely with the council since 2022 to provide professional advice and support. Now that we have acquired the site, our teams will be working with partners to attract the right developer to deliver the new homes, employment spaces and leisure facilities necessary to create a vibrant city centre neighbourhood that the people of Nottingham can be proud of.

    Broad Marsh is Nottingham’s top priority regeneration project, with significant progress already made by Nottingham City Council (NCC) in advancing its vision. Key achievements include the establishment of a new Nottingham College hub, the opening of the Central Library, Broad Marsh bus station, car park, and, most recently, the completion of the Green Heart public realm. 

    Councillor Neghat Khan, Leader of Nottingham City Council, said:   

    It’s great to finally reveal the name of the buyer for such an important site. I have confidence in Homes England and the work they have already delivered across the country.  

    This is really positive news for Nottingham and marks the start of a major redevelopment for this key part of our city.  

    We know that people have wanted to see progress here for a long time and we understand that it has been a frustration for some that this hasn’t happened.  

    We’re excited by the plans that Homes England has, and we look forward to working closely with them to bring these to fruition.

    The project will also benefit from investment by the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), underlining Broad Marsh’s strategic significance to the region and showcasing the collaboration of organisations skilled in delivering complex regeneration projects, in line with the Government’s new Devolution arrangements.  

    The Mayor of the East Midlands, Claire Ward, said:   

    Homes England’s purchase of Broad Marsh is an investment into the future of Nottingham – a future that the people of Nottingham have been asking for and the city council has been pushing for, which can now be realised.”  

    As the Mayor of the East Midlands, I have been pleased to lead EMCCA into investing its resources so that this purchase could occur. This is exactly what the region expected when it chose to have a directly elected Mayor, and EMCCA will continue to work closely with Homes England as they transform the area.

    Homes England will maintain close collaboration with the council, ensuring the strategic vision for Broad Marsh is successfully realised. The Agency will also commit to continue the work undertaken so far by the council, to engage residents, partners and stakeholders in shaping the delivery of this important project.  

    Updates to this page

    Published 31 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI United Kingdom: World Tuberculosis (TB) Day: Minister West’s speech

    Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments 3

    Speech

    World Tuberculosis (TB) Day: Minister West’s speech

    To mark World TB Day, Minister for the Indo-Pacific, Catherine West, spoke at a reception hosted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Global TB.

    I wanted to thank everybody in this room for their efforts to fight this terrible disease, from finding and treating patients, to working on the new drugs and methods we need to combat TB. 

    We know it will take strong and united efforts to stamp out this age-old disease – so thank you for the important roles you play.  

    Now, I’ll begin by addressing the elephant in the room – the fact that the government will be lowering its spend on international development.  

    At this time of profound change, with conflicts overseas undermining security and prosperity at home, the Prime Minister had to make this very difficult decision. He was clear this was not an announcement he wanted make. 

    We are all proud of Britain’s record on development around the world, including when it comes to fighting TB. 

    Our support to the TB Alliance has led to game-changing research and development with new and better treatments being rolled out around the world – including within our own NHS. 

    Our support to brilliant organisations like MedAccess, Unitaid and the Clinton Health Access Initiative has driven down prices and improved access to critical drugs and diagnostics. All increasing the impact of our substantial investment in the Global Fund. 

    As the Prime Minister said, we will do all we can to move towards rebuilding our capacity when it comes to development. 

    And we remain determined to help the most vulnerable people.  

    As Minister for the Indo-Pacific region, I am painfully aware of the devastation that TB continues to wreak, particularly in the poorest communities. 

    This is one of the reasons why I am so committed to supporting the Global Fund, which provides more than three-quarters of all international funding to combat TB.  

    This is making a real impact – deaths have fallen by 40 per cent over the past two decades in countries where the Global Fund invests.  

    The UK is proud to be a founding and significant donor. And we are very glad that later this year we will co-host the Global Fund’s eighth replenishment together with South Africa. That joint convening role we’re looking forward to playing very much.

    Deputy High Commissioner, I am delighted that our countries are working together on this as the firmest of friends and partners on the international stage. 

    I know our teams will be collaborating closely behind the scenes to make the replenishment the biggest possible success. 

    And we want to work with all the people in this room. Everyone here has an important part to play in the fight against TB. 

    We know the stakes are high – we have to make this moment count. 

    Because the world is off-track when it comes to our goal of ending TB by the end of this decade. There is still time however, to make significant progress. 

    We are making big steps forward in finding the tools we need to prevent, diagnose and treat this disease. But we need much greater political will from countries with the ability to finance their own fight. 

    And we need a successful Global Fund replenishment to support those who need it most. There is a huge amount we can do by 2029 and we must continue to press our efforts to reduce new cases of TB by more than a quarter and deaths by more than a half, while finding and treating nearly 20 per cent more TB patients.  

    So, together with South Africa we will use our convening power to galvanise global efforts in this pivotal year. 

    I hope that by the time the world marks the next TB Day, we will have further progress to celebrate. 

    Thank you.

    Updates to this page

    Published 25 March 2025

    MIL OSI United Kingdom –

  • MIL-OSI Russia: HSE and Gorki Leninskiye Museum-Reserve Sign Cooperation Agreement

    Translartion. Region: Russians Fedetion –

    Source: State University Higher School of Economics – State University Higher School of Economics –

    The main objectives are joint scientific research and project activities, assistance in training scientific and pedagogical personnel and advanced training of specialists in the humanities. The document was signed by the dean Faculty of Humanities HSE University Felix Azhimov and Director of the Gorki Leninskiye Museum-Reserve Evgeny Saramud.

    During the interaction, students and postgraduates of the faculty will have the opportunity to undergo practical training and internships at the museum in their field, and for research staff, the agreement provides for the holding of joint events – seminars, conferences, round tables, master classes, symposiums.

    “This agreement will create a platform for deep and meaningful research, and will also provide students with a unique opportunity to apply the theoretical knowledge they have acquired in practice through direct interaction with the country’s cultural and historical heritage,” said the Dean of the Faculty of Humanities at HSE.

    “Our cooperation with the Faculty of Humanities of the Higher School of Economics will open up significant prospects for the development of educational and scientific initiatives. I am sure that we will implement many joint projects, actively exchange knowledge and new educational formats that will contribute to the progress of science and museum activities,” said Yevgeny Saramud, Director of the Gorki Leninskiye Museum-Reserve.

    Please note: This information is raw content directly from the source of the information. It is exactly what the source states and does not reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.

    MIL OSI Russia News –